1
 
 iSSL^kJB^^Bi^H 
 
 SFDMIMiSQCOLLECT. 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 XLT Fq 
 
 «
 
 THE 
 
 VISIBLE UNITY 
 
 CATHOLIC CHURCH. 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 Ecclesia; autem iinitos in diiobus attenilitur: scilicet in connexione mem- 
 brontm Ecclesio} ad invicem, sen communicatione ; ct iterum in ordine 
 omninm membroram Ecclesiae ad iinum caput, Bccundum illud ad Coloss. 
 ii. 18, 19 : Jnflatus sensu carnis su(e, et non tenens Caput, ex quo Mum corpus, per 
 nexus el conjuncliones suhministratum et conslruclum, crescit in augmentum Dei, 
 Hoc aubcm capnt rst ipse Christns, cujus vicem in Ecclesia gerit SummiiB 
 Fontifcx. Et idei) schismatici dicuntur qui subcsse reuiiuut Summo Fonti&ci, 
 ct qui membris Ecclesia; ei Eubjectis communicare recosant. 
 
 S. TllOM. A<iuix. Siimm. Tlieol. '2da 2da'. Quasi, xxxix. ^1;/. i. n. 3. 
 
 LOttDOtI : I'UINtl.b IIT 
 
 ■ rOTTKWOOOB AHI> CO., HKW-HTIIIiliT 8QUARB 
 
 AMD rAULUUHilT ilUUIlT
 
 VISIBLE UNITY T 
 
 OF THE 
 
 CATHOLIC CHUECH 
 
 MAINTAINED AGAINST OPPOSITE THEORIES: 
 
 WITH AN 
 
 EXPLANATION OF CERTAIN PASSAGES IN ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 
 ERRONEOUSLY APPEALED TO IN THEIR SUPPORT. 
 
 BY 
 
 M. J. EHODES, M.A. 
 
 IN TWO VOLUMES. 
 Vol. I. 
 
 LONDON : 
 LONGMANS, GEEEN, AND CO. 
 
 1870. 
 
 A /I rights reserved.
 
 Nihil obstat. 
 
 Gulielmus A. Johnson. 
 
 Imprimatur. 
 
 t^i Henricus Eduardus, 
 
 A rchiepiscopus Westmon. 
 
 occ-tM
 
 
 DEDICATOEY LETTEK, &c. 
 
 To the Right Reverend WM. DELANY, D.D., 
 Lord Bishop of Cork. 
 
 My Dear Loed, 
 
 In addition to the daily spiritual benefits conferred 
 upon your own numerous flock by your Lordship's un- 
 wearied pastoral exertions, many a stranger's heart is 
 cheered and gladdened by the hospitable welcome which 
 your truly Christian kindness so largely extends to all. 
 
 Englishmen especially may thereby be reminded of 
 the generous and cordial greeting with which Ireland in 
 ancient days received her many visitants from the Anglo- 
 Saxon and the British nations, who thronged as students 
 to her far-famed halls of learning, or sought the way to 
 heaven, as disciples of Christ, in her equally celebrated 
 schools of piety and high religion. 
 
 The motives which led to my long sojourn in your 
 Lordship's diocese were more ordinary in their nature, and 
 did not entitle me to any such reception. Yet during 
 the seven or eight years through which it has been my 
 privilege to love and venerate you as my Bishop, the 
 repeated marks of favour which your unceasing goodness 
 
 1492.<80
 
 vi DEDICATORY LETTER, ETC. 
 
 has heaped upon me, and which will ever be remembered 
 by me with sincerest gratitude, would furnish proof, if 
 such were needed, that the hearts of Irish Churchmen are 
 still animated by the princely spirit of the olden time. 
 
 Now that I am returning to my nativ^e shores, your 
 Lordship has crowned these many acts of kindness by 
 graciously permitting me to connect your name with the 
 present volumes. 
 
 The work was begun with your Lordship's blessing ; it 
 has progi-essed under your encouragement ; and on its 
 completion I thankfully avail myself of your most kind 
 consent to allow me to dedicate it to you, as a small but 
 earnest token of my grateful affection and my unfeigned 
 respect. 
 
 Once more begging 3'our episcopal benediction on the 
 produce of my labours and on myself, 
 I have the honour to remain. 
 My dear I^ord, 
 Your Lordship's most faitbful and ol )liged servant, 
 
 M. J. KHODES. 
 
 Glengaiuff, Bantry, Co. Cork : 
 
 Feast of ,St. Edward the Confessor, 
 Oct. 13tli, 18G9.
 
 DEDICATORY LliTTiOR, ETC. Vll 
 
 To M. J. RHODES, Esq. 
 My dear Mr. Ehodes, 
 
 A treatise of such graceful and scholarlike execu- 
 tion, on a subject so important as that which is dealt with 
 in your work, ought to have been ushered into the world 
 under the auspices of some more distinguished name than 
 the obscure one you have selected. Such you might 
 readily have .found, but the extremely kind manner in 
 which you expressed your desire to inscribe my own at the 
 head of your book, precluded me from pressing this upon 
 you. 
 
 In the spirit of that generous friendship which I have 
 had the happiness of enjoying for several years, you dis- 
 carded prudential considerations, and I acquiesced, under 
 the conviction that a production of such rare and intrinsic 
 merits must ensure its own success without any consider- 
 able delay. 
 
 A more appropriate votive tribute could not have been 
 devised on your part, in gratitude to the blessed Spirit of 
 light and love Who in days gone by conducted you into 
 the communion of the Church, opening your heart to her 
 voice and teachings, which are as ancient as Christianity 
 and as unchanging as its truth. Your familiarity with the 
 difficulties and misapprehensions that affect the minds of 
 English churchmen, and the clearness with which you 
 explain the Church's doctrine, will render your work of 
 invaluable service in their regard ; and I cannot refrain 
 from expressing my unfeigned delight at the charitable 
 spirit you have displayed, in your mode of treating the 
 points of controversy which unhappily keep them apart 
 from us.
 
 Viii DEDICATORY LETTER, ETC. 
 
 On the other hand, Catholics, especially of these isles, 
 must derive peculiar pleasure and no small addition to 
 their information, from the perusal of your learned pro- 
 duction. The Celtic tribes of these regions are only 
 beginning to be introduced to the general acquaintance 
 of the scholars of our day, and the pursuit of your sub- 
 ject has led you to the consideration of events in their 
 history, wliich are of peculiar interest to ourselves, and 
 but little kno'vvn or understood. I cannot conceive how 
 anyone can rise from the perusal of your interesting and 
 masterly examination into the evidence which still sur- 
 vives upon the subject, without a thorough conviction 
 that, notwithstanding their divergence in certain points of 
 discipline, the ancient Christian inhabitants of these coun- 
 tries were bound in an indissoluble bond of union with 
 the Mother and ]\Ii stress of Churches. 
 
 Praying a blessing on yourself and all that are dear to 
 you, and on this work, the fruit of pious zeal, 
 
 I am. 
 My dear Mr. Rhodes, 
 
 Yours very sincerely, 
 
 »^ WILLIAM DELANY. 
 
 Cork: October 22, 1869.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 rpHIS work was originally commenced as a letter 
 -*- to a valued friend of early years, who took a 
 leading part in the general meeting of the ' English 
 Church Union,' held in July 1866 ; by which 
 meeting a formal resolution was adopted, welcoming 
 the publication of Dr. Pusey's 'Eirenicon,' and 
 expressing the earnest desire of the Association for 
 the restoration of unity to Christendom. 
 
 The proportions which the writing assumed as it 
 progressed were larger than had been contemplated 
 at its conimencement ; and when half of it was com- 
 pleted, my friend himself having become convinced 
 of the divine authority of the Roman Catholic 
 Church, sought and received admission into her 
 communion. 
 
 A great part of the book was consequently, 
 to some extent, recast, though not substantially 
 altered. If there still aj^pear in it any traces of 
 the epistolary style, it is owing to the above- 
 mentioned circumstance.
 
 X PREFACE. 
 
 There may be critics, otherwise favourable, who at 
 iirst siglit will object to the fact of a layman having 
 ventured to treat publicly of the matters of theo- 
 logy discussed in this work, particularly in the first 
 and second sections. This difficulty presented 
 itself to my own mind, but it was removed by the 
 ai)probation with which my proposed design was 
 received, when I submitted it to high ecclesiastical 
 authority ; and particularly by the blessing wliich 
 was accorded to it from its very commencement, 
 and the kind encouragement which throughout 
 accompanied its prosecution, on the part of the 
 Bishop of the diocese in which I was residing at 
 the time. The same Right Reverend Prelate has 
 graciously permitted me to place my volumes, now 
 completed, under his patronage, as may be seen 
 from the foregoing letters. 
 
 Moreover, since its completion, the whole of the 
 work has undergone the careful examination of 
 an ecclesiastical censor, appointed for the purpose 
 by the Archbishop in whose diocese it is now about 
 to be jmblished, and whose Imprimatur is affixed 
 to it. The first two sections, which form the 
 portion of the book most directly theological, have 
 been in type for more than two years, with the 
 exception of changes not affecting the substance of 
 tlic matter. Tiicy liavc l)ceii carefully perused and 
 examined b\- jnurc tlian one distlnLTiiishcd thoolo'nan
 
 TREFACE. XI 
 
 of our own isles; and, in the summer of 1867, on 
 the occasion of the centenary of St. Peter and 
 St. Paul, I took the opportunity of personally sub- 
 mitting them to the judgment of two professors 
 of theology, belonging respectively to two of the 
 highest ecclesiastical colleges in Rome. One of 
 these was the Reverend Father Cardella, then of 
 the Roman College, now Rector of the Civilta 
 Cattolica ; and he has kindly permitted me to 
 make this use of his name. 
 
 I am desirous to call particular attention to 
 these authorities in reference to the explanation 
 of the Church's doctrine on the Sacrament of 
 Extreme Unction, which is contained in the 
 second section of this work. It is a point on 
 which Dr. Pusey has more than once asked for 
 information, and the statements which I have 
 made respecting it have undergone the strictest 
 scrutiny. 
 
 In order to examine and to test the truth of the 
 theory against which these volumes are principally 
 directed, it was necessary, in the first place, to 
 state it with faiiniess and precision. This alone 
 was the motive which induced me to adopt as my 
 text upon the subject the extracts which I have 
 given from the pages of Dr. Forbes. The state- 
 ment which they contain oi' the theory in (juestion
 
 Xll PREFACE. 
 
 appears to me more clear, concise, and definite, 
 and, I may add, at the same time more plausible, 
 than any which I have met with elsewhere. 
 
 In addition to the extracts from Dr. Forbes, 
 Dr. Pusey's ' Eirenicon ' necessarily occupies a 
 prominent position in my pages. But it has by 
 no means been my intention to confine my obser- 
 vations solely to these authors. I have referred 
 to them simply as fair and competent exponents 
 of the theory of invisible unity. 
 
 Xo doubt there may be details respecting which 
 others who maintain the same theory \xi\\ be found 
 to vary in opinion from the authors above referred 
 to; and there may be Anglicans who would not 
 consent to extend its application so widely as, in 
 some respects, appears to be done by Dr. Forbes. 
 But the theory in itself forms a largely accepted 
 basis for common action, and a widely received 
 rule for indi\ddual guidance; and it is to the theory 
 itself, rather than to questions arising out of it, 
 that I have directed my attention in these volumes. 
 Thus, though a recent publication by Mr. Cobb,^ 
 was issued too late for any special notice in my 
 pages — excepting the few remarks which will be 
 found in a foot-note at page 329, vol. ii. — yet the 
 
 ' ' Separation ' not * Schism.' A plea for the position of 
 Anglican lieunionists. By Gerard Francis Cobb, M.A., Fellow 
 of Trinity College, Cambridge, London : Palmer, 18G9.
 
 PREFACE. Xlll 
 
 whole of the present work is expressly devoted to 
 the examination of the principle upon which his 
 opinions are based. The same remark will apply 
 to the opinions of all writers, whether of earlier 
 or more recent date, who adopt the same theory 
 of the present suspension of the Church's outward 
 unity. 
 
 It was not until after the completion of the 
 account of the British Church, which is comprised 
 in my second volume, that I became aware of the 
 collection of documents lately edited by Mr. 
 Haddan.^ I should otherwise have derived from 
 them considerable assistance. Althouo-h the learned 
 editor does not hesitate to speak of the ' Schism 
 between the British and the Roman Chm'ches,' 
 and to designate it as 'formal,' (p. 152), yet the 
 facts which he has produced in his work cor- 
 roborate my own statements. The very few pas- 
 sages amongst his quotations which may at first 
 sight assume a different aspect, are not of sufficient 
 weight to withstand the existing amount of counter 
 testimony. They will bear, and they require, the 
 same interpretation, which, as I have shown, must 
 
 ' Councils and Ecclesiastical Documents relating to Great 
 Britain and Ireland : Edited after Spelraan and Wilkins. By 
 Arthur West Haddan, B.D., and William Stubbs, M.A. Vol. I. 
 Oxford, at the Clarendon Press, 1869.
 
 XIV PREFACE. 
 
 be api^lied to certain strong expressions occasion- 
 ally met with in the pages of St. Bede. 
 
 It has been my anxious desire, throughout the 
 whole of this work, to avoid any term or mode of 
 expression which might give offence. But since 
 terms involve principles, and principles do not 
 admit of compromise, I have at times felt some 
 difficulty in the selection of my language. It 
 appeared to me, however, that the simplest course 
 was to adopt the expressions now most in use, 
 intending them in their commonly received sense. 
 
 I have endeavoured to render the book as gene- 
 rally interesting and as little controversial as 
 possible; and I have not hesitated to speak more 
 fully than was absolutely necessary for the sake of 
 argument, on such incidental points as appeared 
 particularly to invite notice. 
 
 M. J. RHODES. 
 
 18 Green Street, Grosvenor Square, 
 London, W. 
 
 Chri^tmm Day, 18C9.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 OF 
 
 THE FIRST VOLUME, 
 
 INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 Statement of the subject of tlie work . 
 
 Division of the subject ....... 
 
 SECTION I. 
 The one true Church of Christ. 
 
 The Divine nature and origin of the Unity of Christ's Church 
 The Unity of the Church is permanently visible 
 Permanent and visible Unity is pledged to her by Christ . 
 There can be no union with Christ excepting through the 
 
 Church ...... 
 
 Invincible ignorance .... 
 
 Individual responsibility .... 
 
 No corporate body of Christians can belong to the Church 
 
 who are not visibly in her connniinion 
 There is only one Church .... 
 The one true Church is visible to all men . 
 Christ's commission to His Church . 
 It is acted upon by the Roman Catholic Church alone. 
 The four Notes of the Church . 
 The Church's Unity ..... 
 Rome and England not one Clun-ch . 
 Differences amongst Roman Catholics 
 Inconsistent charges against them 
 Universality of the Church's Unity . 
 The Church's Sanctity .... 
 The Church's Catholicity .... 
 
 I'AGE 
 1 
 
 7 
 8 
 9 
 
 15 
 17 
 18 
 
 20 
 21 
 22 
 25 
 26 
 28 
 28 
 29 
 30 
 32 
 34 
 35 
 38
 
 X\T 
 
 CONTENTS OF 
 
 PiGE 
 
 Rome is the centre of her Catholicity . . . .39 
 
 Title of Catholic 40 
 
 The Church's Apostolicity 41 
 
 Mission and jurisdiction ....... 42 
 
 The Roman Primacy ....... 43 
 
 Necessity of rightful jurisdiction . . . . .43 
 
 Necessity of Apostolic doctrine . . . . . .44 
 
 St. Peter's chair and office ...... 45 
 
 Distinction between the Episcopate, Apostolate, and Primacy 45 
 Christ foimded the Church on St. Peter and his successors, 
 
 associating St. Peter with Himself . . . .48 
 
 Christ rvdes the Chiurch through St. Peter and his successors 50 
 St. Peter's See is the strength of the Episcopate . . .53 
 
 It is Christ Who acts in all 55 
 
 St. Peter's office continues in his successors . . .56 
 The Primacy is a great grace ...... 58 
 
 Visible and present testimony to the Apostolicity of Rome . fiO 
 Rome is the centre of the Church's Unity . . . .03 
 
 The Church bears the image of her Lord . . . .64 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 Examination of the theory of the existence of invisible unity between 
 outwardly divided bodies of Christians. 
 
 The Church's notes are inseparable, and each one of them is 
 
 indispensable ........ 64 
 
 None of them can become invisible . . . . .05 
 
 The theory of the suspension of visible imity tested . . 66 
 Statement of the above-mentioned theory, as contained in a 
 work entitled * A short explanation of the Nicene Creed ' 
 by Dr. Forbes, the Anglican Bi.shop of Brechin . . 69 
 The Church is only one, though comprising hierarchies in 
 
 many nations ........ 75 
 
 Exclusivcnc'ss of the one Church . . . . .70 
 
 God's universal mercies . . . . . . .77 
 
 The Catholic doctrine on grace outside the Church, as 
 
 stated by Dr. Newman . . . . . .78 
 
 Cases of goodness in individuals . . . . .81 
 
 Personal responsibility ....... 83
 
 THE FIRST VOLUME. 
 
 XVll 
 
 Goodness amongst the unbaptized 
 The lustre of the Church's Saints 
 Greek Missions .... 
 Fecundity of the Ancient Heresies . 
 
 Nestorians .... 
 
 Jacobites .... 
 
 Arianism, and the Arian Goths 
 
 Bishop Ulphilas . 
 
 Other heresies 
 State of the early ages 
 
 Dr. Newman's account of the fourth century 
 Dr. Newman's account of the fifth and sixth centuries 
 Present trials of the Church 
 The Church's golden age 
 Ancient appellation of ' Roman ' 
 The tenth century of the Church 
 Kome and the Popes of that age 
 The Church's holiness is always visible . 
 It was so in the tenth century — Instances . 
 St. Eomuald and Camaldoli 
 The Plospice of St. Bernard and its fovmder 
 Other instances ..... 
 Cluny and its Abbots .... 
 Saints unknown to us . 
 St. Peter Damian ..... 
 Christ's presence in His Church is never lessened 
 Her visible unity never is suspended 
 Distinction between individual Christians and the Church 
 AH the children of the Church are taught by God 
 All are not obedient ..... 
 The Church exists for the salvation of mankind 
 God's promises to His Church are absolute and unconditional 
 Distinction between ordinary and extraordinary gifts 
 Christ's presence never varies as regards all that is needful 
 for His Church 
 
 The peculiar force of the words of His promise to be 
 always ' with her ' . 
 
 The prophecies of the Old Testament concerning the Church 
 
 of Christ 
 VOL. I. 
 
 83 
 
 85 
 
 85 
 
 86 
 
 86 
 
 88 
 
 90 
 
 91 
 
 92 
 
 92 
 
 93 
 
 96 
 
 98 
 
 99 
 
 100 
 
 101 
 
 101 
 
 104 
 
 105 
 
 109 
 
 109 
 
 111 
 
 113 
 
 114 
 
 116 
 
 116 
 
 119 
 
 121 
 
 122 
 
 124 
 
 124 
 
 126 
 
 128 
 
 129 
 
 131 
 
 134 
 
 a
 
 XVlll CONTENTS OF 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Til e prophecies of Isaias . ...... 135 
 
 The prophecies of Holy David . . . . .137 
 
 The Chui-ch is not exempted from affliction . . .139 
 
 The Church as described in the Book of Canticles . .140 
 
 Prophecies of Ezecliiel ....... 141 
 
 Prophecies of Jeremias . . . . . . . 1 43 
 
 The theory tested by the Gospel . . . . .147 
 
 It is sho^vn to be inconsistent ■with the doctrine of the 
 
 Gospel . . . . . . . . .148 
 
 Also "with the Gospel precepts . ..... 150 
 
 Differences between Eome and England respecting points 
 
 of faith ..."..... 155 
 
 Difference respecting the ground of faith . . . .156 
 
 Are they agreed respecting the articles of the faith ? . .158 
 The Roman profession of faith . ..... 159 
 
 Obedience to the Bishop of Rome, the Vicar of Jesns Christ IGl 
 Difference respecting the Sacraments . . . .161 
 
 Baptism . . . . . . . .161 
 
 Confirmation . . . . . . .162 
 
 The Holy Eucharist 163 
 
 Penance . . . . . . . .163 
 
 Extreme Unction . . . . . .164 
 
 Teaching of the Council of Trent on Extreme Unction . 164 
 Its object . . . . . . . . .168 
 
 Its matter . . . . . . . . .171 
 
 Its form . . . . . . . . .172 
 
 Postponement of the last Sacraments . . . .176 
 
 Popular errors as to the time of receiving Extreme Unction 177 
 The Church's doctrine respecting its repetition . . .179 
 
 Explanation respecting its remission of sins . . .181 
 
 Explanation of the term ' remains of sin.' . . .184 
 
 The effects of Extreme Unction, as explained in the Roman 
 
 Catechism . . . . . . . .187 
 
 The teaching of St. Charles Borromeo respecting it . . 189 
 The teaching of Suarez on the Sacrament of Extreme Unction 191 
 It is a sacrament of special mercy . . . . .193 
 
 Difference in faith respecting it . . . . . 1 95 
 
 Rome's maternal care for the dying . . . . .197 
 
 The Sacrament of Holy Orders . . . . .198
 
 THE FIRST YOLIME. XIX 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Sacrament of Matrimony . . . . • . 1 98 
 Indulgences, Purgatory, Invocation of Saints . . .199 
 The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary . 200 
 The difference between Rome and England on tlie above- 
 mentioned points, proves that they are not one in the 
 
 faith 203 
 
 Which of the two is right ? 205 
 
 Sacraments, but not salvation, may be found outside the 
 
 Catholic Church 20G 
 
 As Christ acts through His ministers in baptizing, and 
 absolving, and the rest, so through the successors of 
 St. Peter He constantly rules His Church . . . 208 
 
 Definition of the Unity of the Church by St. Thomas 
 
 Aquinas ......... 209 
 
 The Church requires a visible head to remove occasion of 
 
 schism ......... 210 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 Explanation of certain passages in ecclesiastical historj/, appealed 
 to in support of the theory of invisible iinity. 
 
 Anglican appeal to past ecclesiastical dissensions . .211 
 
 The -want of analogy between the instances produced, and 
 
 the present divisions of Christendom . 
 The dissensions at Corinth ..... 
 liome appealed to, though St. John the Evangelist was 
 
 still alive ....... 
 
 St. Victor and the Asiatic Churches. 
 The grounds of the difference .... 
 
 The Synods held upon the subject .... 
 Letter fi-om Polycrates and the other Asiatic bishojis, to the 
 Pope St. Victor and the Roman Church . 
 
 The conduct of St. Victor 
 
 His authority not disputed 
 
 The result ........ 
 
 Ancient testimony that there was no breach of unity 
 Decision of the Nicene Council as to the time of Easter 
 
 The Cyprianic contest. 
 Reasons for doubting whethsr there was any formal or 
 complete breach of unity between St. Cyprian and 
 the Pope St. Stephen 
 
 212 
 213 
 
 213 
 
 215 
 21G 
 
 218 
 219 
 220 
 221 
 223 
 223 
 
 225
 
 XX CONTEXTS OF 
 
 PAGE 
 
 226 
 
 Testimony of St. Augustine ..... 
 
 If intercommunion was suspended, it could Lave been only 
 
 for a passing moment ...... 228 
 
 The special honour sliown to St. Cyprian by Rome . . 229 
 
 The letter of Firmilian 229 
 
 It testifies to the then existing claims of the Koman See . 230 
 
 Its excited language ....... 231 
 
 The respect due to Firmilian ...... 234 
 
 Evidence of the office of the Roman See .... 235 
 
 St. Vincent of Lerins extols the conduct of St. Stej)lien . 237 
 
 The Councils of Aries and of Nice on the controverted point 239 
 Question of the authenticity of the letters of St. Cyprian 
 
 and Firmilian . . . . . . . . 240 
 
 St. Cyprian's actual sentiments respecting the primacy of 
 
 the Roman See 240 
 
 The case of St. Meletius and the divisions in Antioch. 
 
 The statements of Dr. Pusey and Dr. Forbes . . . 243 
 
 Observations on the ecclesiastical position of Meletius . 244 
 
 Position of both the Catholic parties in Antioch . . 24G 
 Contrast between their position and that of the Church of 
 
 England 247 
 
 Both these parties in Antioch agreed as to the faith . . 248 
 
 The sermon of St. Gregory Nazianzen .... 249 
 
 The origin of the schism in Antioch . . . .251 
 
 The election of Meletius to the bishopric of Antioch . 252 
 
 His early lif(i and connection with the Ariana . . . 253 
 Ilis election to the see of Antioch was the work of the Arian 
 
 faction ........ 255 
 
 Certain Catholics concurred in his election . . . 25G 
 
 Theodoret's account of the transaction .... 257 
 
 The more consistent Catholics of Antioch, viz., the ' Eusta- 
 
 thians,' would not recognise his election . . . 259 
 Laxity of the other Catholics of Antioch in mixing with 
 
 the Arian congregations ...... 259 
 
 PaulinuH was the leader of the Eustathians in Antioch . 2G0 
 
 St. Athana.sius supported the said Eustathians . . . 2()1 
 lieoj)ective motives of the Catholics who joined in the elec- 
 tion of Meletius, and of the Arians, in choosing him 
 
 for the Bee of Aulioch 202
 
 THE FIRST VOLUME. XXI 
 
 The glowing contemporary descriptions of ' the Great 
 Meletius' 
 
 The epistle of the Council of Alexandria respecting the 
 affairs of Antioch ...... 
 
 Remarks upon the aforesaid epistle .... 
 
 The consecration of Pciulinus by Lucifer . 
 
 The consequent displeasure of St. Eusebius of Vei-cclli, when 
 
 he afterwards arrived in Antioch . . . .291 
 
 The question of Lucifer's sanctity . . . Note to p. 295 
 
 The position of Paulinus . . . . . . 29G 
 
 The position of Meletius ...... 298 
 
 Eusebius proceeds on his mission through the East, and 
 
 then gladdens Italy by his return . . . .300 
 
 The three exiles of St. Meletius 301 
 
 He holds a Council in Antioch ..... 302 
 
 Its profession of failh gave rise to rumours against his 
 
 orthodoxy, and against that of St. Eusebius of Samosata 303 
 
 2G3 
 2G5 
 267 
 268 
 269 
 
 269 
 270 
 271 
 
 The entrance of Meletius into Antioch 
 
 His public profession of the Nicene Faith 
 
 His consequent banishment ..... 
 
 The accusations against him ..... 
 
 The observations of St. Epiphanius on his sermon, and on 
 the steadfastness of his Hock in the true faith 
 
 The rumours against St. Meletius .... 
 
 They Avere disregarded by St. Epiphanius. 
 
 The favourable change effected in Antioch by St. Meletius 272 
 
 The Eustathians still held aloof from him, though of one 
 
 mind in the faith ....... 273 
 
 St. Meletius and other Catholic bishops recalled from exile 274 
 
 Eusebius of Vercclli and Lucifer of Cagliari, who were 
 recalled amongst the number, appear to have possessed 
 legatine aiithority from the Pope, for the Council of 
 Alexandria and the affairs of the East . . . 275 
 
 Historical testimony to the same ..... 279 
 
 Lucifer goes to Antioch and Eusebius to Alexandria, where, 
 
 together with St. Athauasius, he convenes a Coimcil . 281 
 
 The Coimcil of Alexandria and its indulgence to the 
 
 fallen 282 
 
 The said indidgence would apply to Meletius, and was con- 
 sidered to do so according to the tradition of the Roman 
 Church ........ 
 
 284 
 
 285 
 291 
 292
 
 XXI I CONTENTS OF 
 
 PA(iK 
 
 Yet it fulfilk'il the requirements of the Council of Alexandria 305 
 These two bishops accused of Arianism before Pope St. 
 
 Damasus, and warmly delended by St. Basil . . 305 
 Interchange of communication between St. Meletiiis and 
 
 Rome • 306 
 
 Evagrius of Antioch, on his return from the West, leads 
 
 St. Basil to expect that he will join the party of 
 
 Meletius, but afterwards unites liimself to Paulinus — 
 
 Argument deduced I'rom this ..... 307 
 
 Neither side was separated from the universal Church . 308 
 
 Paulinus defends himself by a profession of his faith . 308 
 
 Later accusjitions against Paulinus ..... 308 
 
 St. Athanasius and St. Meletius 309 
 
 Different degrees of excommunication, or of interruption 
 
 of ecclesiastical communion . . . . .310 
 
 St. Basil maintains the cause of St. Meletius in a letter to 
 
 St. Epijihanius 312 
 
 Yet St. Basil remained in full communion Avith the West ... 313 
 The object which St. Basil had in view . . . .314 
 
 Paulinus and his party elated by letters from the West . 315 
 St. Basil's letter to Count Terence on the subject . .315 
 
 He writes also to St. Meletius upon it . . . .318 
 
 The letters to Paulinus which may he supposed to be those 
 
 alluded, to, and their motive . . . . .318 
 
 The elation which they caused indicates the uncertainty 
 
 of the position of Paulinus ..... 020 
 
 Vitalis of Antioch ........ 322 
 
 The letters of St. Jerome to the Pope, St. Damasus, re- 
 questing direction in his perplexities . . . 323 
 Their recognition of the necessity of communion with 
 Rome, ijf the Pope's authority, and of his ollice as 
 guardian of the faith ...... 324 
 
 The miserable death of the Arian Emperor Yalens . . 327 
 
 St, Meletius returns from his third exile .... 328 
 
 His reception by the people, as described by St. John 
 
 Chryso.stom ........ 328 
 
 The alleged compact between Meletius and Paulinus . 329 
 
 Doubts whether it was really entered into . . . 330 
 
 Both St. Meletius and Paulinus oi)enly acknowledged by 
 
 the West 332
 
 THE FIRST VOLUME. XXUl 
 
 Proof of the visible communion of St. Melctius with the 
 Roman See, before the second General Council was 
 assembled ........ 333 
 
 Further history of the internal schism in Antioch, after the 
 
 death of St. Meletius ...... 336 
 
 Termination of the schism ...... 337 
 
 St. Meletius is commemorated in the Roman Martyrology . 337 
 The said Martyrology has been more than once carefully 
 
 revised and corrected ...... 338 
 
 Strictness as to the names admitted into it . . . 340 
 
 That of St. Meletius is still mentioned there with honour, 
 which is a crowning proof that he died in outward and 
 visible communion with the Roman See . . .341
 
 THE 
 
 VISIBLE UNITY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 CATHOLIC CHURCH 
 
 Quam dilecta tabernacula tua Domine virtutum : concupiscit 
 et deficit anima mea in atria Domini. 
 
 Beati, qui habitant in domo tua Domine. 
 
 Psal, Ixxxiii. 
 
 In the earliest days of Christianity, ' tlie multitude of The chm-ch continues 
 
 believers had but one heart and one soul.' But this Acts"^iv.°32! 
 
 universal unity was of short duration. Schisms and 
 
 heresies arose whilst Apostles were still upon the 
 
 earth ; divisions began to abound amongst Cliris- 
 
 tians, and have ever since abounded more and more. 
 
 Nevertheless, the true Church of Christ still holds on 
 
 her course, distinct from the separated fragments, 
 
 uncontaminated by the surrounding errors, always 
 
 visibly one from the beginning, in the strength and 
 
 the unity of God. 
 
 It is a hopeful sign for our time and country tliat Anglican efforts 
 men most distinguished for their piety, learning, and ro-union. 
 position in the communion of the established Church of 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 2 DESIRES FOR RECONCILIATION. 
 
 England, have freely and openly avowed their earnest 
 desires for tlie re- union of Christendom ; and liave 
 made direct efforts and proposals, in order .to ascer- 
 tain a basis on which negotiations for a general recon- 
 ciliation might be opened, not only with the distant 
 East, but also with the more neighbouring Church of 
 Eome, which till recently was regarded even by the 
 learned and the good amongst their body, as an object 
 of mysterious and religious dread ; a bearer of subtle 
 and deadly poison ; and one whose very fascinations 
 w^ere a cause and reason for mistrust. Many of the 
 same Anglican body now acknowledge that Church, 
 at least as their patriarchal see, and anxiously hope 
 for the day when they may no longer be severed 
 from her communion. 
 Ps. ixxvi. 11. ' This is the chand-e of the riii;lit hand of tlie Most 
 
 High ! ' 
 Rome's response. Eomc ycams ovcr her separated children, and sighs 
 for their return with more than any human mother's 
 love ; but no true love will ever betray its trust. 
 Rome knows that heaven has confided to her a higli 
 commission for the benefit of the whole human race, 
 and she cannot prove unfsdthful to it, or play a 
 double part by consenting to ignore it, for the sake 
 of any end however ardently to be desired in itself. 
 Therefore, so long as this her divine commission is 
 unacknowledged by those who are seeking for re- 
 union, she can make no response to their advances, 
 except l)y earnest exhortations, and unceasing prayer 
 for them to God.
 
 OBSTACLES TO BE OVERCOME. 6 
 
 Underlying this great difTiculty tliere is another, The Anglican 
 
 , 1 • 1 • 1 , • • • 1 • ^ proposals are based 
 
 connected witii it, but requiring special considera- ou a 
 
 ,• rrn \ T ^ r ' principle repudiated 
 
 tion. ine Anglican proposals tor re-umon assume, ^ by 
 
 as a first principle, that the present divisions of Rome. 
 
 Christendom, so fai at least as regards the three 
 great communions of Eome, the East, and England, 
 though grave, still are not vital, for that the out- 
 wardly-divided bodies continue inwardly one in 
 Christ. The maintainers of this opinion do not deny 
 that tliere is only one Church of Christ, and that 
 outside that Church there is no salvation ; but they 
 assert that essential unity may exist without being 
 visible, and not only (as is allowed by Eome), that 
 individuals invincibly ignorant may belong to the 
 soul of the Church though outwardly separated from 
 her \dsible communion ; but also, that the separate 
 and independent religious bodies which have been 
 mentioned, though visibly divided and without any 
 outward intercommunion, nevertheless form together 
 in the sight of God, that one holy Catholic Church 
 which is animated by His one Spirit, and consti- 
 tutes His one ambassador to fallen man, being in 
 reality, the one Body of His Son. Eome rejects 
 this doctrine, and asserts that the Church of Christ 
 can suffer no division, either visible or invisible, 
 but must continue to the eyes of all men, always 
 and only one, outwardly as well as inwardly; that 
 the visible intercommunion of all the parts and 
 all the members is essential to their life, and also 
 to the integrity of the one body ; that without it 
 
 B 2
 
 niPORTAXCE OF THE SUBJECT. 
 
 Object of 
 
 the 
 
 present work. 
 
 Division 
 
 of 
 
 the sultjf'pf. 
 
 they cease to be animated by the one Spkit ; and 
 that, apart from visible communion with this one 
 Church, no rehgious body can be a channel of the 
 grace of Christ ; nor any single soul attain salvation, 
 excepting in the case of individuals whose ignorance 
 is invincible in the sight of God. 
 
 This is tlie point on whicli botli parties finally 
 join issue. It lies at the root of the wJiole question, 
 and it is not easy to perceive how any further advance 
 can be made towards reconciliation until this diffi- 
 culty is removed. Therefore, all those who truly 
 desire the re-union of a divided Christendom (and 
 what Christian heart does not yearn to see it?) are 
 interested in the examination of the Anglican theory 
 which maintains that the one Church of Christ is now 
 outwardly split into fragments which have no visible 
 intercommunion, but which, in spite of their external 
 division, are nevertheless internally and invisibly 
 united ; all of them being partakers of the one 
 Spirit, though no longer joined together or acting 
 together in one external body. 
 
 The object of the present work is to analyse and 
 enquire into this most important subject, and to 
 ascertain whether the said theory is so well founded, 
 that men may trust their immorlal souls for all 
 eternity to the conclusions which they derive from it. 
 
 The subject will be divided into three sections. 
 
 In the first I propose, in a cursory and general 
 manner, to assign reasons for belief in the necessity 
 of \i'>ible unitv in the Clnnrh. and in its actual and
 
 ARRANGEMENT OF THE WORK. O 
 
 permanent continuance, showing where it nuist be 
 looked for, and may be found, at the present day. 
 
 In the second, I propose to examine more parti- 
 cularly into the previously mentioned theory of the 
 existence of invisible unity under outward division, 
 as set forth by Dr. Pusey, in the ' Eirenicon,' and by 
 Dr. Forbes, the Anglican Bishop of Brechin, in his 
 ' Explanation of the Nicene Creed,' and as generally 
 maintained by the more advanced members of tlie 
 same communion. 
 
 The third section, which will form the largest por- 
 tion of the work, will be devoted to the consideration 
 of a few of the most prominent instances brought 
 forward by the above-mentioned writers from eccle- 
 siastical history in support of the theory in question ; 
 treating particularly of the differences between St. 
 Victor and the Asiatics ; of those between St. Stephen 
 on the one side, and St. Cyprian and St. Firmilian on 
 the otlier ; of the divisions at Antioch, in which the 
 great St. Meletius was so intimately concerned ; and 
 lastly, of the divergence of the Celtic churches in 
 Britain, on certain points of discipline, from tlie 
 Eoman and general ecclesiastical usages. 
 
 Throughout the whole discussion I shall not shrink The spirit 
 from the examination of any apparently adverse fact, the work. 
 and never will I conceal or compromise any truth. 
 
 My object is not controversy, but concord. If 
 at times I express myself strongly, I will never write 
 bitterly. If I shrink not from exposing error, it 
 sliall not be in a spirit of provocation. If I must
 
 6 INVITATION TO HXAJIINE. 
 
 say wliat is unpalatable, I ask for indulgence if it 
 be true. I have no new theories to unfold, no 
 schemes of human prudence to propound, for such 
 
 Jirem. vi. 16. liavc uot the prouiisc — ' Thus saith the Lord : Stand 
 ye on the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, 
 which is the good way, and walk ye in it : and you 
 shall find refreshment for your souls.' 
 
 A.ivuntage of Until recently there has existed amongst the more 
 
 3 iibcubbion, r^j^.^-^j^^^gj members of the Church of England, a 
 manifest shrinking from the free and open discussion 
 of these important subjects. The ice has, at last, to 
 some extent been broken, and it is evident that if men 
 really desire re-union, they will give both a patient 
 hearing and a patient answer to the ' other side ;' if 
 they truly love truth and peace, they wdll not be 
 deterred from the pursuit of them by any whispers 
 of prejudice, or by any subtle suggestions (whether 
 from without or from within their own breasts), to 
 close eyes and ears, and to stifle every spirit of in- 
 vestigation. Controversy too often engenders strife, 
 and tends to make hearts harder ; but friendly and 
 free discussion gives rise to explanation, and thus 
 conduces to a better understanding. Let it be hoped 
 that the thawini^ waters will not be suffered ajrain to 
 freeze. Above all, may God protect us from frozen 
 hearts ! J better the passing anger of a loving zeal, 
 iliau ilic chill stagnation of a fixed estrangement.
 
 CATHOLIC UNITY. 
 
 Una est columba inea, perfecta mea, una est niatris sua?. 
 
 Cant. Cuntic. vi. 8. 
 
 The Unity of Christ's Church is divine in its nature The cimreii's Uuity 
 and in its origin, as the Holy Gospels testify : — God. 
 
 ' These things Jesus spake, and lifting up his eyes to st. John xvii. 
 heaven, He said. Father, the hour is come, glorify 
 
 Thy Son, that Thy Son may glorify Thee I 
 
 pray not for the world, but for them whom Thou 
 hast given Me : because they are Thine ; and all My 
 things are Thine, and Thine are Mine : and I am 
 glorified in them. And now I am not in the world, 
 and these are in the world, and I come to Thee. 
 Holy Father, keep them in Thy JSTame, whom Thou 
 hast given Me : that they may be one, as We also 
 
 are And not for them only do I pray^ hut 
 
 for them also ivho through their ivord shall believe 
 in Me. That they all may be one., as Thou, Father, 
 in Me, and I in Thee: that they also may be one 
 ^in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast 
 sent Me.' 
 
 No union which is merely human could satisfy this 
 prayer. No confederacy of independent churches 
 could fulfil the prophecy which it conveys. It asks 
 for and by asking it foretells a hving unity of heart 
 and soul and creed, amongst men of every nation and 
 every clime, so long as the world shall last ; a unity 
 never witnessed upon earth, excepting in the Church 
 of Christ. This unity is the supernatural mark and
 
 8 PERMANENT AND VISIBLE UNITY 
 
 I'i-. ixvii. 7. proof of tlic abiding presence of that ' God Wlio 
 niaketli men of one manner to dwell in a house.' As 
 siicli it was prayed for by our Blessed Lord. He asked 
 His Fatlicr for it as a mark of His Divine mission. 
 To be a mark at all it must be visible. • To extend 
 as such to all future believers it must not only be 
 visible, it must be permanent ; and it must belong ex- 
 clusively to those who believe in Him aright. It must 
 be a visible and a never-failing mark and note of His 
 one true Cliurch. Not hidden in its members' hearts, 
 but manifested in their lives and outward communion. 
 It must be an outward as well as an inw^ard 
 Unity, or it would not be visible. It must be 
 inward as well as outward, or it would not be real. 
 The unity of God is both its model and its source. 
 Our Lord Himself has said it. It is a foretaste 
 
 St. John xvii. of glory : — ' And the glory which Thou hast given 
 me, I have given to tliem : tliat they may be one, 
 as We also are One. I in them, and Thou in Me : 
 tliat they may be made perfect in one ; and the 
 world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast, 
 
 loved them as Thou hast also loved Me 
 
 And I liave made known Thy Name to them, 
 and will make it known: that the love, where- 
 willi TJiuu hast loved Me. may be in them, and I 
 in til em,' 
 
 Vnity (xists. Has this Diviiic prayer failed? Have the ages 
 
 lessened its efficacy ? Has this mark of the Church 
 been effaced ? 
 
 If these things cannot be, ihen visible Unity must
 
 IS PLEDGED TO IIIS CHURCH BY CHRIST. 9 
 
 now exist, an actual and divine reality, which, in the 
 fulness of its life is within the reach of all. 
 
 ' God is not as a man, that He should lie, nor a» Numbers xxiii. 19. 
 the son of man, that He should be changed. Hath 
 He said then, and will He not do ? hath He spoken, 
 and will He not fulfil ? ' 
 
 Where is our faith if we can imagine that the 
 prayer of Jesus, thus close upon His agony, fell un- 
 heeded and was lost? Of Him, who pledged to 
 us His word, that His Father will give us all that 
 we ask for in His Name ? 
 
 Yet it has been said that man's sin has broken Um'ty 
 
 1 T ^ 1 n • TIT- f unimpaired 
 
 the outward bond or unity, marred the designs of by 
 
 the eternal God, and effaced from His spouse this 
 
 note of her election. Man's sin once brou2:ht the 
 
 deluge. God's promise renders us fearless of its 
 
 return, even when the world goes after Antichrist. 
 
 Man's sin is now as impotent to destroy God's bright 
 
 creation, as man's best efforts would be impotent to 
 
 create. Come what may, ' all the days of the earth, Gen. viii. 22, 
 
 seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and 
 
 winter, night and day, shall not cease,' for God has 
 
 said it. Happen what will, the visible unity of the 
 
 One Church on the One Eock, of the One Light 
 
 on the One Candlestick, of the One City on God's 
 
 own Hill, of the One body of the faithful united 
 
 in the Chair of Peter, shall never fail, upheld by 
 
 Christ's prayer, and by His promise: — 'Behold I am St. Muu. xxviii. 20. 
 
 widi you all days, even to the consummation of the 
 
 world.'
 
 10 god's love for man. 
 
 God loved the world when He first created it and 
 pronounced it good. God loved tlie world when it 
 lay before Him, cleansed with the awful baptism of 
 the deluge. But what was this love of His natural 
 creation, compared with tliat which He bears to the 
 new creation of His grace? What His love for tlie 
 globe thus washed with water, compared to that 
 Avith which He loves the mystic spouse of His dear 
 Son, rising pure and spotless from the deluge of His 
 passion, from the washing of 11 is blood? Sooner 
 shall winter and summer, seed time and harvest, 
 fail, and cease to gladden man's heart, than God 
 shall suffer the beacon light of His Church — the 
 one sure guide of man into the haven of eternal 
 life — to become uncertain. Never will He permit 
 tlie human race He loves so well to be perplexed 
 and misled by an outwardly divided Church, giving 
 scattered tokens and opposing signals, lights manifold 
 and divergent, because posted on hills widely 
 severed in tlieir summits, albeit they may seem 
 to touch each other at the base. 
 Circumstances All the circumstauccs of tlie divine prayer for 
 our Lord's prayer Unity dcuiaud attention. Wliy should our Lord 
 "'^' have offered it up so publicly? Why should He 
 liave caused it to be handed down to all generations, 
 in the gospel ? No word or act of His was without 
 its meaning, and its teaching, and its [)ower. Had 
 the prayer been made in silence, in the stillness and 
 llie darkness of Gethsemani, its power would have 
 been the same; but. its meaning and its teaching
 
 THE PEAYER OF JESUS. 11 
 
 would have been withheld from us. Whereas its Public 
 
 publicity, and its marked solemnity of form, time, and our sakes. 
 place, reveal a special purpose. Our Lord desired 
 by that prayer to teach us, as well as to procure us, 
 the vi^;ible Unity of His Church. 
 
 When the stone was taken away from the tomb 
 of Lazarus, before raising him to life, 'Jesus lifting St. Joim xi. 41, -12. 
 up His eyes ' (the selfsame expression) ' said : Father, 
 I o-ive Thee thanks that Thou hast heard me.' 
 
 Our Lord explains why He said this ; — ' And I 
 knew,' He immediately adds, ' that Thou hearest me 
 always, hut because of the people wJio stand about 
 have I said it ; that they may believe that Thou hast 
 sent me.' The motive {that they may believe that 
 Thou hast sent me) was the same as in the prayer for 
 Unity. Had the thanks been offered in secret, had 
 Lazarus been secretly resuscitated, the miracle, 
 though truly wrought, would not Imve availed as a 
 public sign of our Lord's mission from His Father. 
 Had the prayer for Unity been offered in private, or 
 had that Unity been merely inward (to conceive an 
 impossibility), its testimony to the divinity of our 
 Lord's mission would not have been manifest. If all 
 the divided communions wliich profess belief in 
 Christ belong to that body of the faithful for whose 
 unity Christ prayed, then the testimony which He 
 asked for cannot have been given. 
 
 At another time when, troubled in soul, our 
 blessed Lord exclaimed : — ' Father, glorify Thy St. John xii. 27-30. 
 Name,' a voice responded from heaven: — 'I have
 
 12 UXITY UXFAILIXG, 
 
 both glorified it, and will glorify it again : ' and Jesus 
 said : — ' This voice came not because of me, but for 
 your sakes.' 
 
 So is it for man's sake that His thrice-hallowed 
 
 prayer for Unity is published and proclaimed with the 
 
 world-wide gospel, and shall be throughout all time. 
 
 Expressly ^i^q praver itself is expressly for all time ; and 
 
 for all time. i J l J 
 
 therefore the Unity which it obtained must be perpe- 
 tual, and can never be suspended. On various occa- 
 sions our Lord addressed His disciples in words which 
 are universally understood to appl}^ to all future 
 generations, although not so expressed. But in this 
 mysterious prayer for visible Unity he expressly men- 
 tions us, ourselves, and all who are to follow us, so 
 long as time si i all last ; nay, for all eternity ; for 
 charity and Unity shall never fail. He takes most 
 loving pains to mention us. His Unity is to be our 
 own portion, not merely that of His early followers. 
 It was to be everlasting as Himself; not to fail after 
 a few centuries. He prays for those around Him, 
 and then He adds : — 
 8t. John xvii. ' Not for them only do I pray, but for them also 
 
 who through their word shall believe in Me : tJiat 
 tlicy all may be one, as Thou Father, in Me, and I 
 in Tliee : that they also may be one in Us : that the 
 world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. 
 I in them, and Thou in Me ; tliat ihe}^ ma}^ be made 
 perfect in one; and llie woild may know tliat Tliou 
 hast sent Me, and liast loved them, as Thou hast 
 a]<() loved Me.'
 
 AND ALWAYS VISIBLE. IB 
 
 One in God, and as God, one in time and in 
 eternity. Visibly and invisibly, outwardly and in- 
 wardly, really, truly, divinely ' made perfect in one I ' 
 Oh heritage of heaven, never will we abandon Thee ! 
 Thou never-failing mark and witness of the love of 
 the Father, the mission of the Son, and the abiding 
 presence of the Spirit ! ' One in Us ! ' stupendous 
 mystery of love ! sweetest words of power! Dearer 
 ' than gold and many precious stones : sweeter than 
 honey and the honey-comb ! ' The tongue can never 
 tire of speaking them, nor the ear weary of their 
 repetition. The heart loves them, and lingers on 
 them ; it ponders over them, and chews them in the 
 cud of mental prayer. Like the peace of God, they Piuiipp. iv. 7. 
 smpass all human sense. — Exsuperant omnem sensum. 
 
 I ask aQ:ain, Has this divine prayer failed and The prayer of 
 
 ^ iiT Jesus 
 
 come to nouo'ht ? Has this earnest blood-con- could not fail, 
 firmed petition of our God, made man, gone up to 
 heaven and come back unanswered or refused? 
 Was His strong cry in vain ? Could Jesus pray in 
 vain ? At the tomb of Lazarus, before He raised the 
 dead, He addressed His Father and He said, — ' I 
 knew that Thou hearest Me always.' Was His 
 eucharistic dying prayer to be the one exception ? 
 
 Again I ask. Has He not pledged His word 
 that what we pray for in His Name shall be granted 
 to us ? Li His discourse of that same night, which 
 preceded His prayer for Unity, He said to those 
 assembled : — ' Amen, amen, I say to you : if you '"^f- Joim xvi. 23, 24. 
 ask the Father anything in My Name, He will give it
 
 14 NECESSITY OF VISIBLE 
 
 you. Ilitlierto you have not asked anything in 
 My name. Ask, and j'ou shall receive : that your 
 joy may be full.' 
 
 If, til en, He declared that His Father always hears 
 Him ; if He promised as regards each one of us that 
 all we ask through Him sliall be bestowed upon 
 us ; it is inconceivable, it would be blasphemy to 
 say, that this one prayer alone has fallen short of 
 its full effects. Our poor prayers indeed may still 
 be wanting in conditions essential to their accep- 
 tance; but we know that the prayer of Christ at 
 least, was perfect. If Jesus prays in vain, which of 
 us can hope for mercy ? 
 Romans iii. 4. ' But God is truc : and every man a liar, as it is 
 
 written : That Thou may est he justified in Thy ivords^ 
 and mayest overcome when Thou art judged.'' — 
 St. iiark xiii. 31. ' Ilcavcn and earth,' said our Lord, after His pro- 
 phecy on the Mount of Olivet, ' Heaven and earth 
 shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away.' 
 
 Tliis divine prayer then, is a pledge to us of the 
 perpetual visible Unity of the Church of Christ ; and 
 such Unity is an abiding mark that Christ is with 
 her, and a testimony that He is God. 
 
 Unity implies Tlic asscrtiou that, tlu'ough oneness in Christ the 
 
 intercommunion. Head, invisible Unity may exist between religious 
 
 bodies without visible intercommunion, seems to 
 
 confound the position of such bodies with that of 
 
 individual Christians in invincible ignorance. 
 
 There can be no imi(^n with Christ excepting
 
 INTERCOMMUNION. 15 
 
 through the Church. It is by baptism thcat men it is 
 
 become members of Christ, and baptism, by whomso- " iimt, 
 ever administered, is a sacrament of the one Church. to ciuist. 
 It therefore renders each one on whom it is conferred 
 a cliild of that only Church, and entails upon him all 
 the duties involved in that relation. It is to that 
 one visible Church that he must look for the other 
 sacraments of Christ; it is from her teaching he 
 must learn the faith of Christ ; it is to her that 
 his obedience is due, and his sole allegiance. St. 
 Augustine sees a figure of this in the women of 
 old, the wives of Abraham and Jacob, the children 
 of whose handmaids were reckoned as their own, 
 because begotten by their own husbands ; as, in 
 baptism, Christ begets children to the Church, even 
 though it be outside her. But the same holy 
 doctor teaches also, and no less distinctly, that such 
 baptism is of no avail for those who incur the guilt 
 of remaining outside her, apart from her visible 
 communion. By thus cutting themselves off from 
 her, they cut themselves off from Christ. She is one 
 with Christ, and if they are not hers, they are not 
 His ; for she is the only appointed means of our 
 union with Christ. 
 
 St. Augustine says, ' The Church in fact brings Lib. i. de Bapt. 
 forth aU, by baptism, whether in herself, that is, cap"xv. TS. 
 from her own womb, or outside herself by the seed 
 of her husband : (either by herself or by a hand- 
 maid).' He adds that Esau, though born of the 
 true wife, was separated from God's people through
 
 16 LVDIVIDUAL CASES 
 
 Genesis xxx. 13. fraternal dissension ; whilst Aser, born of a liandmaid, 
 but by the right of the wife, received the promises 
 through fraternal concord. ' Thus,' he says, ' amongst 
 those ' (outside the Church) ' all who are born are 
 born by the right of the Church which resides in 
 baptism.' Sicut apud istos Ecclesice jure quod est 
 in Baptismo, nascuntur quicumque nascuntur. If 
 they live in her unity (he adds) they shall reach the 
 land of promise ; but if they persevere in dissension, 
 their lot will be with Ismael, who was cast out on 
 account of disagreement with his brother. Else- 
 Lib, ii. where he states : — ' We confess that tlie baptism of 
 
 cont. Crescon. Donat. ^, . ^, ,t. -p ^ • ^ x*i 
 
 cap.xxviii. n. 34. Christ prouts a man nothmg it he is baptized among 
 heretics or schismatics, and attributes to these same, 
 the baptism he is baptized with ; but tliat it then 
 begins to profit him, when he passes over to the 
 body of Christ, which is the Church of the living 
 God.' Fatemur nihil prodesse homini haptismum 
 Christie si apud liereticos vel schisniaticos baptizetur, 
 eis ipsis tribuens baptismum quo baptizatur ; sed tunc 
 ei prodesse incipere, cum transit ad corpus CJmsti, 
 quod est Ecclesia Dei vivi. — He is speaking of all 
 those who, being separated from the Catholic Church, 
 tlieir true motlier, are responsible for remaining so. 
 It is however held that there may be the exceptional 
 case of the outward separation of individual Christians 
 from the body of the Cliurcli, througli no foult of 
 their own, while tliey are actually altliough invisibly 
 united with what lias been termed by tlieologians the 
 Church's soul.
 
 OF OUTWARD SEPARATION. 17 
 
 There are many who, through circumstances over invincible 
 
 , ,, ignorance. 
 
 which they have had no control, are outwardly sepa- 
 rated from the visible body of Christ ; and, thank 
 God, the hope may be indulged that amongst them 
 there are individuals who are prevented by ignorance 
 alone, from availing themselves of the means which 
 God puts within the reach of all for the knowledge 
 of His saving truth. K such persons are ready and 
 disposed at any cost to embrace in full the revelation 
 of God which they have hitherto learnt but in part ; 
 if their hearts are prepared to submit to that Church 
 from which ignorance of her divine authority alone 
 keeps them asunder ; then, blessed be God, such true 
 souls may be accounted as really, though invisibly, 
 united to the soul of the Church, though deprived of 
 the privilege of her outward communion ; and, there- 
 fore, as really members of Christ. But no one can pre- 
 sume to judge in any particular case. God alone can 
 read the heart. God alone can discern among those 
 outwardly separated from His only fold, who do 
 or who do not belong to it by this inward bond ; 
 for He alone can tell how far each one has done his 
 part to learn His truth, and to know and obey His 
 will. 
 
 We have the repeated authority of the Angelic 
 Doctor for asserting, that the mercy of God wiU not 
 suffer any one to be left without the necessary 
 means for salvation, even in the case of the out- 
 wardly unbaptized and heathen. To cite but one 
 out of several passages. In treating of the necessity 
 
 VOL. I. c
 
 18 GRAVE RESPONSIBILITY 
 
 of a certain degree of explicit belief, lie says, that 
 no (lifiiculty can be raised against this doctrine from 
 tlie case of any who may liave been ' bronght up in 
 forests or among brute beasts ' : — 
 
 S. Thorn. Aqiiin. * For it appertains to Divine Providence to provide for 
 qua'st^xiv"Dc' Fide ^^^ry one all that is necessary to salvation, so long as the 
 Art. xi. person ojDposes no impediment on his side. For if any 
 
 one so brought up should follow the guidance of natural 
 reason in striving after good and avoiding evil, it is most 
 surely to be held {certlssime est tenendum) that, either by 
 internal inspiration God would reveal to him those things 
 which are necessary to be believed, or would guide to him 
 some preacher of the faith, as He sent Peter to Cornelius. 
 Acts X.' 
 
 Individual Tlic uicrcy of God is infinite, but it does not 
 
 responsil)ility. ^^ ^^• -r • 
 
 divest any man ot his personal responsibility. It is 
 obvious, that the excuse of ignorance will not avail 
 for one who culpably neglects the means which are 
 afforded to enable him to discern and to enter tlie 
 true Church, or who wilfully turns a.sidc and shuts his 
 eyes and ears. jSTor jQi, for one who has doubted 
 the safety of his position, and has not thoroughly 
 examined it; for such a doubt was God's messenger. 
 Men must answer for each such call before their 
 Maker and their Judge Who alone can read the heart. 
 Hunian respect. It is a fcarful tliouglit liow many trust their 
 souls unhesitatingly to the word of their fellow- 
 men ; receiving as God's truth the mere assertion of 
 some individual clergj^man, whose learning, or 
 whose zeal and piety, has won their hearts and cap- 
 tivated their understandings. Roman Catholics are
 
 OF EVERY INDIVIDUAL. 19 
 
 accused of creature worsliip, wliicli tliey ablior. IIow 
 appalling is the extent to which it prevails outside 
 the Church's pale ! How appalhng the number 
 of men and women wlio stake their immortal souls 
 for all eternity on the word of some fellow-crea- 
 ture ! No Catholic could suffer himself with a safe 
 conscience to be ruled and guided on such a matter, by 
 the simple dictmn of any individual whatsoever. He 
 learns indeed the faith from the teachers set over 
 him by the Church, and obeys them as her represen- 
 tatives. But so soon as he should fxud one of them 
 contradicting another on any essential point, his sus- 
 picions would be aroused ; and he would at once 
 ascertain from some sure source what was really the 
 divine teaching. 'No priest or bishop could with a safe 
 conscience permit any more than this, or claim to 
 speak with a mere personal voice on any point of 
 faith ; or to affix his own interpretation to any teach- 
 ing of the Church ; or to rule and finally decide any 
 question which might arise as to what that teaching 
 is.^ God in His mercy has given ' some apostles, and Epii. iv. ii. 
 some prophets, and other some evangelists, and 
 other some pastors and doctors : for the perfecting 
 of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the 
 edifying of the body of Christ.' We are com- 
 manded to obey our prelates, to be subject to them, 11,1,. xiii. 7, 17. 
 and to follow their faith, and our divine Lord tells 
 us that in hearing them we hear Himself; but this 8t. Lukox. 16. 
 
 ' Of coiwse, I except (throiigliout) the case of the Supreme 
 Pontiff, Avium speaking ex cathedra.
 
 20 THE CHURCH IS ONE BODY, 
 
 applies to individual clergy only so far as they speak 
 
 the same thing with tlie whole body througliout tlie 
 
 Gal. i. 8. luiiverse. Otherwise, says St. Paul, — ' Though we, or 
 
 an angel fi'om heaven, preach a Gospel to you besides 
 
 that which we have preached to you, let him be 
 
 anathema.' This shows the necessity of the living, 
 
 ever present voice of the Holy Spirit in the Church ; 
 
 by means of which it may at once be made apparent, 
 
 should any individual pastor speak that which is his 
 
 1 Cor. vii. 23. owu, and uot of Jesus CJirist — 'You are bought with 
 
 Gal. vi. 4, 5. a pricc, be not made the bond slaves of men.' — ' Let 
 
 every one prove his own work^ and so shall he have 
 
 glor}^ in him.'^elf only, and not in anotlier. For every 
 
 one shall bear his own burden.'' 
 
 iTeb. xiii. 17. Our prclatcs ' watch as being to render an account 
 
 of our souls ; ' yet each one of us must individually 
 
 answer to God for liis own soul. 
 
 Corporate bodies The Cliurcli is formcd of single and separate indi- 
 ciiristians. vidual pcrsous, either outwardly and visibly hers, or 
 else belonging to her inward soul in virtue of the ex- 
 ception above referred to, of invincible ignorance. 
 But there can be no society of individuals, no corporate 
 body of Christians, which can possibly be united with 
 tlie Church of Christ, without visible intercommu- 
 nion. Tliis is evident from tlie very nature of the 
 case. We have seen that our Lord prayed for perma- 
 nent visible unity, as a mark of His Divine mission. 
 Xow two separate societies, each claiming to be His, 
 and neither of them in outward communion with
 
 AND ONE SPIRIT. 21 
 
 the other, would present the spectacle of visible 
 division, and therefore His words would not be 
 verified if both of them belonged to His Church. 
 Both could not be from Him. If Unity is to be 
 visible, we must decide between the two, for one 
 only can make good the claim to His abiding 
 presence. Such is the case before us. Is Clmst 
 divided? Can the same Spirit say one thing in 
 Eome, and another thing in England ? 
 
 Unity implies one Church alone, as the visible There is 
 channel for God's grace. Christ is One, and He is the °" ^ °°® 
 source of all grace and salvation to mankind. His 
 Body is One. His Spirit is One. His faith is one. 
 The Church is His messenger, the one appointed 
 teacher of His truth, and stewardess of His sacraments. 
 This Church, and this Church's baptism by whomso- 
 ever administered, are each of them visibly one. If 
 it be not so, our Lord must have prayed in vain, and 
 the prophecy must have failed which told that He 
 was to die, ' not only for the nation, but to gather St. Joim xi. b-2. 
 together in one the children of God, that were dis- 
 persed ; ' or, according to the Psalmist — ' In conve- Ps. ci. 23. 
 niendo populos in unum^ et reges ut serviant Domino.' 
 
 No society of Christians on earth which is not in 
 outward communion with this one visible Church of 
 Christ, can .possess authority to dispense the sacra- 
 ments, or to preach the faith. For the one Spirit 
 animates one body only, and speaks with one only 
 voice. 
 
 The first step is to affirm this fact, and the actual and
 
 22 THE TRLE CHURCH MUST BE 
 
 perpetual existence of tlie visible Unity of the Clmrch. 
 The next is to ascertain where that Church is to be 
 found. With God's assistance, it is an easy task, or 
 rather it would be so but for three centuries of preju- 
 dice; prejudice the more beguihng, because mixed up 
 with so many hallowed feelings, and with venerated 
 religious teachings from the early days of childhood. 
 Tiic truo chmvh The ouc visiblc Catholic Church being to us what 
 unicr a bushel, tlic ark of Noc was to tlic drowuiug world, the only 
 appointed means of our salvation, it would be mani- 
 festly inconsistent witli the mercy, and even with the 
 justice, of God, to leave mankind in uncertainty as to 
 which, among the various communities of Christians, 
 is really the mystical body of His Son, and the only 
 guide to heaven. When the Di\dne mind, in Its 
 awful simplicity and most loving wisdom, planned and 
 willed the salvation of the human race, It never can 
 have intended that, in these last days, tlie very path 
 that leads to heaven should become hidden under 
 the mists of doubt, and rendered undiscernible amid 
 the conflicting claims of rival parties. If it were so, 
 then must our Lord's Gospel have lost its character- 
 istic mark, that it is preached to the poor. If it be 
 necessary to enter into a recondite study of history 
 and the early fathers, and to examine with nicety into 
 disputed questions extending over a period of more 
 tlian eighteen centuries and a half, in order to ascer- 
 tain wlii(]i of tlie contending bodies of Christians is 
 leally tlie teaclier come from God ; then, indeed, it is 
 evident tlmt Cliristianity cannot have been the
 
 DISCERNIBLE TO ALL, 23 
 
 religion contemplated by tlie prophet when ho fore- 
 told :— 
 
 ' Grod Himself will come and will save you. Then shall Isaius xwv.i-i 
 the eyes of the blind be opened, and the ears of the deaf 
 shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as a 
 hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall be free : for waters 
 are broken out in the desert, and streams in the wilder- 
 ness And a path and a way shall be there, and it 
 
 shall be called the holy way : the unclean shall not pass over 
 it, and this shall be unto you a straight wa}^, so that fools 
 shall not err therein.' , 
 
 * In the last days,' says the same prophet, 'the moon- Is. ii. 2-5. 
 tain of the house of the Lord shall be prepared on the 
 top of mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills, 
 and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall 
 go, and say. Come and let us go up to the mountain of 
 the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob, and He 
 will teach us His ways, and we will walk in His paths: for 
 the law shall come forth from Siou, and the word of the 
 
 Lord from Jerusalem house of Jacob, come ye, 
 
 and let us walk in the light of the Lord.' 
 
 This passage appears to point directly to the 
 Apostolic see — the new Jerusalem — the city of the 
 great King; for where else do all nations now go up? 
 The prophet Micheas uses the self-same language. Mic-h.iv. i, 2. 
 
 Thus speaks the sure word of prophec}^, not 
 obscurely, but, as the Lord said to Habacuc, — 
 ' Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables : nab. ii. 2. 
 that he that readeth it may run over it.' 
 
 St. John Chrysostom says : — ' Neither the sun, nor st. John 
 the sun's light, is so plain, as what regards the Church. Hon^orS Tn. 
 For the hou-'^e of the Lord is on the tops of the
 
 24 THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE WORLD. 
 
 mountains.'' ^ And again : — ' It is an easier thing 
 for tlic sun to be quenched, than for the Church 
 to be made invisible.' ^ 
 
 St. M:itt. V. 13, 14. This is that Church which our Lord designates as 
 ' the sah of the earth ' — ' the hglit of the world ;' 
 adding: — 'A city seated on a mountain cannot be 
 
 St. Lukexvii. 24. hid.' IIc tehs us that, — ' As the lightning that light- 
 
 eneth from under heaven, shineth unto the parts that 
 
 are under heaven, so shall the Son of man be in His 
 
 s. Athanasiiis dav.' ' Th^ Church of Christ,' as St. Athanasius 
 
 lu Psiliii Lxxxviii. 38. 
 
 comments on the Psalmist, ' shall shine like the light- 
 ning, and enlighten all under heaven, and shall abide 
 unceasingly, like the sun and the moon.' St. Augus- 
 s. Aiiff. tine declares : — ' The true Church is hidden from 
 
 cont. lit. Petil. 
 
 \\h. ii. 11. 74. no one. Hence comes that which He Himself says 
 in the Gospel : — " A city planted on a mountain can- 
 not be hid." Wherefore it is said in the Psalm : — He 
 
 J's. xviii. 6. hath set His tabernacle in the sun; that is, in mani- 
 festation.' Again, to the Donatist Severinus,he writes, 
 as a Catholic might -write to an Anglican : — 
 
 s. Aufriistini ' How deplorable it is that we, who are brethren in the 
 
 i-;i>. lii. ad .Scveriiium. flesh, live not in the body of Christ in one society, espe- 
 cially since it is easy for thee to give heed to and see the 
 city placed upon a mountain, concerning which the Lord 
 says in tlie Gospel, that it cannot be hid. For it is the 
 Calholic Church itself, whence in Greekit is called KadoXiKij, 
 since it is spread throughout the whole world. To no one 
 is it allowed to he ignorant of this Church, therefore 
 {idea), according to the word of our Lord Jesus Christ, it 
 cannot be hid.' 
 
 ' Quoted by Watci-worth, FattJi of Catholics, vul. i. p. 235. 
 2 Ibid. p. 198, a.s from T. vi. Honi. iv. n. 2.
 
 THE church's credentials. 
 
 25 
 
 Our moral sense at once rejects the idea that our 
 Blessed Lord, Who ' came into this world to save 
 sinners,' can have left His Church witlioiit credentials 
 sufficient for all who desire that salvation. For to 
 her alone he gave the commission to preach His 
 Gospel, and to administer His saving sacraments. 
 
 Now, in fact, there is but one community of 
 Christians which visibly fulfils that commission ; 
 or which bears, prominently in all her conduct, and 
 manifestly to the eyes of all men, the charter of her 
 divine authority and power, conveyed to her by the 
 words of Christ : — 
 
 ' And Jesus coming spoke to them, saying : All power is 
 given to me in heaven and in earth. 
 
 ' Going therefore teach ye all nations : baptizing them 
 in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the 
 Holy Ghost, 
 
 ' Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have 
 commanded you : and, behold, I am with you all days, 
 even to the consummation of the world.' 
 
 The authority to teach which is conveyed by this 
 commission is given to none besides that body of men 
 to whom it is addressed. It extends throughout all 
 time and over all nations, and it regards not only 
 faith, but practice — ' Teaching them,' says Christ, 'to 
 observe all things whatsoever I have commanded 
 you.' He adds a promise to be always with that 
 body to the end, and thus ensures to it a never-fail- 
 ing infallibility, which His command to teach, indeed, 
 of itself conveys, for no mere fallible teaching could 
 be relied upon as divine. 
 
 1. Tim. i. 15. 
 
 Manifest claims 
 
 of 
 
 Rome. 
 
 St. Matt, xxviii. 
 18-20. 
 
 Chri.st's 
 
 commission to 
 
 His Church.
 
 2G Christ's commission is 
 
 It is only It caimot be denied that the Pionaan Catholic 
 
 Eome 
 
 which acts Church is the one only community of Christians 
 
 on this commission. • n -c o • ^ • ^• t • 
 
 which practically manitests laitli m this divine com- 
 mission, and whose faitli and whose claim have 
 received the corroborative testimony of the world- 
 wide, everlasting, workings of Divine Providence in 
 her behalf. There may be others who claim to be 
 the One Chm'ch, others wlio style themselves Apos- 
 tohc, or Catholic, others who call themselves infal- 
 lible ; but there is none other which, in the strength 
 and by the command of the Lord God, goes forth in 
 all the beauty and power of holiness to teach and to 
 rule the consciences and hearts of men over the face 
 of the whole globe, and to guide and control their 
 moral actions. Sweetly and strongly and sm^ely she 
 Apoc. vi. 2. advances onward, like her Lord in the vision, — ' con- 
 quering that He might conquer.' Conquering all 
 hearts for Ilim ! The very by-words of reproach 
 which are heaped upon her by the world, testify to 
 this most evident truth. Iler enemies say that she is 
 aggressive and exclusive — a claimant to infallibility 
 and to rule. And they say true. She is so, and 
 Cliristianity is so. She is the very personification of 
 Christianity, which is one, and aggressive, and infal- 
 lible, and lias a rule to wliich no earthly monarch 
 can apiH'oacli, tlic rule over men's hearts, and there- 
 fore the world hates it. Eome is all this, and she 
 acts accordingly, as none other dares to act ; if she 
 did not do so, by that very fiict she would be self- 
 condemned, as all lier pretended rivals are ; for not 
 one uf them fulfils these duties, which are nevertheless
 
 AGGRESSIVE AND EXCLUSIVE. 27 
 
 inherent in Christ's commission. That commission 
 was addressed to one only body of men ; it was, 
 tlierefore, exchisive. It commanded them to teach 
 Christ's faith, and to cause His commandments to be 
 observed throughout all nations ; therefore, it was 
 aggressive. The command not only gave infallibility 
 by its own virtue and in itself, for otherwise it could 
 not have been obeyed, but there was also expressly 
 connected with it a promise of the Divine assistance, 
 for all time : — ' Behold I am with you all days.' 
 Therefore Christ's Church must always be infallible, 
 and always practically assert herself to be so, and 
 none can be Christ's Church which fails, in practice, 
 to claim infaUibility, since it is essential in order to 
 command men's faith. Cursed is he that trusts in man. 
 Unless a Cliurch makes known that she speaks with 
 the infallibility of an ever-present God, what claim 
 has she on man's belief? Men could not trust their 
 souls to one whose voice was not the voice of 
 God. 
 
 The whole commission was conferred for the salva- 
 tion of mankind, and the one who possesses itcan there- 
 fore never cease to proclaim it and to act upon it, for 
 otherwise mankind could not profit by it. Eome alone 
 both proclaims it and acts on it. Therefore the world 
 calls her arrogant ; and the good see in her, visibly, 
 the teacher both promised and sent from God. It 
 was so with her Divine Master ; it will be so till the 
 end ; and it is a characteristic of the truth. Hers 
 alone is that universal empire, universal alike in 
 time and in extent, which the prophecies proclaim
 
 28 NOTES OF THE TRUE CHURCH. 
 
 as the heritage of Christ and of His spouse. It is 
 Ps. ii. 8. hers because it is His. On Him are bestowed ' the 
 Gentiles for His inheritance, and the utmost parts of 
 the earth for His possession ; ' and she alone it is 
 who, in every clime, in every nation, asserts this rule 
 of love ; extends this spiritual kingdom ; and with 
 the consciousness of God's authority demands an 
 undivided allegiance of the heart from every soul of 
 man ; calhng him, if heathen, into lier fold ; if 
 Christian, to her maternal bosom, by whomsoever 
 he may have been baptized, or wheresoever he may 
 be found. I say again, whatever others may hold in 
 theory, it is a visible fact, that, in practice and in 
 reahty, the Eoman CathoHc Church alone main- 
 tains and urges those necessary claims which form a 
 portion of the very charter of Christianity. All 
 others, in their conduct, if not in their words, say 
 practically : — This exclusive, universal, unerring rule 
 is not for me ! Therefore it is that the world hates 
 none of them as it hates tlie One Church of God, 
 and as it hated the One Christ. 
 
 Here, then, is the house of the Lord on the top 
 
 Dan. ii. 44. of the mountains ; ' the kingdom that shall never be 
 
 St. John X. iG. destroyed ;' 'the one fold under the one shepherd.' 
 
 Here alone are united the four notes of Christ's true 
 
 Church, defined in the Nicene Creed : — Credo Unam 
 
 Sanctum Catholicam et Apostolicam Ecclesiam. 
 
 ^,^^ The unity of the Blessed Trinity is the pattern of 
 
 church'b Unity. j^|jg Church's uuity. — ' One as We also are One.' —
 
 THE CHUKCII IS ONE. 29 
 
 Such was tlie prayer of our Lord to His Father. Tliis 
 unity, therefore, must be complete, and of a divine 
 intensity. It could not subsist without the abiding 
 presence of the Holy Ghost, uniting the many mem- 
 bers of Christ's mystical body to eacli other and to 
 God, by the threefold bond of one faith, one hope, 
 one love. Without such unity the Church could 
 not fulfil her office. She has received God's com- 
 mission to teach the nations. She could not do so if 
 she spoke with a divided voice. Her pastors could 
 not preach one faith unless, being divinely tauglit, 
 they were at one amongst themselves as to the articles 
 of that faith. 
 
 The consideration of the absence of such agree- Eome 
 
 ment between the established English Church and Engiimd. 
 Eome, might seem sufficient to dispel the dream of 
 any real though unseen unity between those two 
 communions. It is idle to reply that they are agreed 
 on fimdamentals. They are not even agreed as to 
 what fundamentals are. For the present I need go 
 no further than the article of faith, which declares 
 the divine authority of the see of St. Peter, to rule, 
 and govern, and teach the universal Church. This 
 is a fundamental doctrine of the Eoman creed. The 
 national Church of England is based on the principle 
 of its rejection. Surely there cannot be any unity 
 of spirit between two societies which contradict eacli 
 other on a point of faith, as to the essential con- 
 stitution of the Church itself. Such contradiction 
 affects the very essence and ground work of Christian
 
 30 
 
 HUMAN IMPERFECTIONS 
 
 External 
 
 differences among 
 
 members 
 
 of 
 the Church. 
 
 II. Cor. xii. 9. 
 
 faitli, which consists in tlie behef of everything 
 that God has revealed, because He has revealed it. 
 Tliis faith, therefore, requkes certainty respecting 
 the appointed channel of God's revelation, and any 
 difference respecting the definition of that channel is 
 incompatible with unity of faith. One who is con- 
 vinced by his own private judgment of the truth of 
 all the Pioman Catholic doctrines, save tliat of the 
 infallibility of the Church in subjection to the Eoman 
 See, cannot have divine faith in all those truths, 
 nor be, even so far, one in the faith with those 
 w^ho beheve them because they have been revealed 
 by God through His Church. 
 
 Superficial writers have professed to discern marks 
 of a want of unity among Eoman Catliolics, in the pass- 
 ing; external differences or dissensions which occasion- 
 ally meet the eye. One might imagine it had escaped 
 their notice that Catholics do not deny that they are 
 frail and erring mortals, and liable, like others, to all 
 the ills this flesh is heir to. We do not profess to 
 be individually exempt from human w^eakness and 
 human faults, although we glory in the strength of a 
 divine presence, whose 'power is made perfect in 
 infirmity.' We are but men; but ' in the midst of us 
 is Christ our God ' ! The Churcli is an abiding 
 miracle. From its very commencement, its whole 
 life is a testimony to the power of God displayed 
 tln'ough weak and erring instruments. If her 
 members were already supernatui-ally ]ierfect, the 
 miracle would cease. So long as they remain
 
 AND FALLINGS OFF. 31 
 
 imperfect, it is impossible that tlieir imperfections 
 can escape notice. But these imperfections are 
 individual ; these dissensions or differences between 
 man and man, or between one section of men and 
 another within the Church's pale, no more affect 
 the divine unity of the whole body, than the wind 
 which ruffles the surface of the ocean affects the 
 oneness of its universal waters. 
 
 I am speaking of differences amongst the good. 
 The Church on eartli comprises a mixed multitude, 
 and will do so till the end of all things. Betw«een 
 good and evil, wherever they are found, there must 
 always be a contest. Yet even Catholics of bad moral 
 conduct do not differ from the good as to points of 
 faith; or as to the rule of life which they know they 
 ought to follow. So that however inconsistent their 
 behaviour, they manifest no divergence of doctrine. 
 Nor can any such divergence be gathered from the dif- 
 ferences which frequently arise amongst the morally 
 good. It has happened, indeed, that good men have 
 been led astray, in opinion, as was the great Fenelon ; 
 but like Fenelon also they have submitted when their 
 error was condemned. Any who, in such case, 
 persist, are manifestly unsoiuid members ; and some, 
 hke Lammenais, have fallen, and have cut them- 
 selves off from' unity. But such cases of defection, 
 however sad, whether of individuals or of multitudes, 
 do not impair in the slightest the unity of the 
 Church they have disobeyed. The tree continues 
 one, though the storm may rend its branches.
 
 32 DIFFERENCES OP OPINION 
 
 It lias happened, too, that matters in themselves 
 indifTerent, have occasionally assumed an importance 
 not their own through their connection with parti- 
 cular interests, and have been argued so warmly on 
 both sides as to induce authority to interfere and 
 forbid all further discussion upon the subject. To this 
 class belong the questions as to whether the prophet 
 EUas was the founder of the Carmelites ; and as to 
 the form of the habit worn by St. Francis ; which at 
 one time were sources of contention. 
 Inconsistency So loug as men are men, these things will be ; 
 
 charges against and OR this subjcct, as ou most otlicrs, the Church 
 Catholic system, cau adopt the kuguagc of her Master: — 'And 
 St. Luke the Lord said : Whereunto then shall I liken 
 
 vii. 31-35. n 1 • • e\ -I 1 ^ 
 
 the men of this generation.^ and to wliat are they 
 like ? They are like to children sitting in the market- 
 place, and speaking one to another, and saying : We 
 have piped to you, and you have not danced : we 
 have mourned, and you have not wept. For John 
 the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinldiig 
 wine ; and you say : He hath a devil. The Son of 
 Man is come eating and' drinking ; and you say : 
 Behold a man that is a glutton and a drinker of 
 wine, a friend of publicans and sinners. And wisdom 
 is justified by all her children.' 
 
 If Eoman Catholics point to their world-wide agree- 
 ment on all essentials, they are charged with the rigid 
 immobility of enforced dogma ; with a Procrustean 
 system ready cut and dried. If they exhibit signs 
 of movement and of tliought, and sliow a con-
 
 ARE UNAVOIDABLE. 33 
 
 sequent difTerence of opinion, they are forthwitli 
 accused of internal divisions and suicidal discord. 
 But ' wisdom is justified by all her children.' The 
 greater the activity of men's thoughts, the more 
 numerous will be their differences of opinion on 
 every conceivable subject, — history, science, art, 
 politics, and even (as regards open questions) on 
 points of tlieology itself. Hence spring the friendly 
 controversies on such matters between one school 
 and another, one religious order and another, one 
 theologian and another, all equally faithful to the 
 one true Church — all equally united in her outward 
 and inward communion. She approves of such dis- 
 cussions (which, so long as they are conducted in 
 a spirit of charity and deference to authority, 
 are most serviceable to truth), whilst, like a 
 watchful mother she looks on, and keeps them 
 within due bounds. Men naturally have different 
 opinions also on matters of taste and feeling, on 
 external forms and styles of devotion, on the , 
 decoration of churches, on architecture, ritual, 
 and the rest, and even on the line of conduct 
 to be followed under the circumstances of tlie 
 day. Differences existed in the apostolic age ; 
 nay, they sprang up even between apostles. 
 The dissension which arose between St. Paul and 
 St. Barnabas was such that ' they departed one Acts xr. 39. 
 from another.' Yet unity was not impaired, though 
 the difference was so serious ; for they continued 
 one in the faith, and in the visible commu- 
 
 VOL. I. D
 
 34 UNIVERSAL AGREEMENT IN ESSENTIALS. 
 
 iiion of the Church. Sucli difTercnccs form one of 
 the troubles of our lot on eartli ; but if these mise- 
 ries did not exist in her, the Cliurch would not be 
 human, and if they penetrated below the surface, 
 
 II. Cor. iv. 7. slie could not be divine. She has her ' treasure in 
 earthen vessels, that the excellency may be of the 
 power of God, and not of herself.' The very exist- 
 ence of these occasional external differences amongst 
 her members is a test of her divine mission. If God 
 were not within her, man's weakness would have 
 tm-ned such dissension iiito division long centuries 
 ago. As it is, thej^ are but on the surface, and only 
 partial even tliere ; arising often from some local 
 cause, or peculiar circumstance, and therefore fre- 
 quently far shorter-lived than are the men them- 
 selves who take part in them. 
 Tho The enquirer after truth may search throughout 
 
 UnUyof the world; he may travel north, south, east, and 
 
 Cathoiie'chuich. wcst ; visit Europc, Asia, Africa, and America; 
 go through France, Spain, Italy, Germany, England, 
 Ireland, Scotland, the Arctic regions, and the 
 Antipodes ; lie may go everywhere, and ask every 
 Catholic he meets, cleric or layman, religious or 
 secular, Benedictine, Augustinian, Franciscan, Do- 
 minican, Jesuit, Carmelite, or any other ; young 
 or old, learned or unlearned, all who have 
 been taught the rudiments of their religion, he 
 may ask tliem respecting their faith, respecting 
 tlieir practice, respecting tlie sacraments and all 
 tnat concerns religion, and, from one and all, the 
 answer will be the same. Everywhere on the face
 
 THE CHURCH IS HOLY. 35 
 
 of the globe, amongst good and pious Roman 
 Catholics, though they may be utter strangers to 
 each otlicr in the flesh, and divided in temporal 
 position as far as men can be divided from their 
 fellow-men, there will be found one and the self- 
 same faith, one and the self-same rule of morals, the 
 self-same sacraments, and the self-same belief respect- 
 ing those sacraments ; there will be found but one 
 mind, one heart, and one voice, as regards all the; 
 doctrines and commandments of the Church. Tliis 
 is unity, and it is divine ; it is no mere human coin- 
 cidence or contrivance. The finger of God is here, 
 reversing the confusion of Babel. It is the unity of 
 God's one Church throughout the universal globe ; 
 and it has been her unity through more than eighteen 
 centuries and a half. It is a matter to be looked to, 
 and a test to be applied, for the absence of such 
 unity denotes the absence of God. He cannot speak 
 with a divided tongue ; He dwells not amid contra- 
 dictions ; He is everywhere one and the same. — 
 ' His place is in peace : and His abode in Sion : ' in rs. ixxv. 2. 
 the city He has constituted as the one fold under one 
 shepherd: — Jerusalem, quce ccdijicatur ut civitas ; Ps. cxxi. 3. 
 ciijus participatio ejus in idipsum. 
 
 God's Church is holy : holy with the lioliness f^anctiiy. 
 of supernatural grace. This clothes her with a 
 brightness that wholly covers the short-comings of 
 too many of her children, who, though in her, 
 unhappily testify by their lives, that they are not 
 
 d2
 
 36 SlTEItNATURAI. ITOLIXESS OF 
 
 of her. Our Lord lias warned us of this scandal. 
 But in spite of it she is pre-eminently holy, and 
 manifestly so to the whole world. Natural goodness 
 may be found elsewhere ; but that superhuman 
 lustre that shines like the stars of heaven, can 
 ghsten in her firmament alone. Who can count 
 that royal list of saints, nobler than earth's noblest, 
 who glory in her as a mother ? Derived from every 
 rank and every calling, from every chme and every 
 language ; from the fisherman at his nets, and the 
 publican at his ofiice, to the monarch on the throne, 
 and the philosopher in the schools. Now a simple 
 shepherdess, now a noble matron, or high-exalted 
 queen, now a converted sinner ; it would be endless 
 to recount the varieties or to tell the names of all the 
 heroes and heroines of sanctity, whose acts adorn the 
 robes of that one holy Church still ruled over and fed 
 by Peter in his successors. To pass by the early ages, 
 where else will be found a St. Elizabeth of Hungary, 
 a St. Louis of France, a St. Clare, a St. Mary 
 Magdalen of Pazzi, a St. Margaret of Cortona, a 
 St. Ignatius of Loyola, a St. Francis Xavier, a St. 
 Edward Confessor, a St. Thomas of Canterbury, a 
 St. Theresa, a St. Eose of Lima, and countless 
 others? Wliere else can be found the bri2;ht-robed 
 army of martyrs down cveh to tlie present age ? 
 All the miraculous creations of God's grace belong 
 exclusively to the Eoman communion. 
 Kxternai tf.stiiiiony. Nay, Auglicaus thcmselvcs being witnesses, — to 
 what source do they turn when endeavouring to revive
 
 THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. 37 
 
 former holiness of life ? To wliom do they look for u 
 pattern but to the holy Eoman Chureh ? It is her ritual, 
 lier forms, her sacraments, her doctrine (save on the 
 few essential points which they reject), her religious 
 orders, her works of mercy, her devotions to a great 
 extent, that they seek to adapt to their own use. For 
 this they gladly bear reproach, for this they toil. They 
 fly to Eome for well nigh everything but the sweet 
 protection and shadowing tender care of her maternal 
 authority. This holds true, though not in the same 
 measure, of every school which has yearned after 
 greater holiness, — of every effort after a higher stan- 
 dard of reliQ;ious Hfe. It holds true of the so-called 
 evangelicals ; for though they thought not of it, yet 
 in their teaching on the necessity of prayer and medi- 
 tation ; on the passion of our blessed Lord, and on the 
 great mysteries of man's redemption ; in their zeal for 
 maintaining; the essential doctrines of the incarnation 
 and divinity of Christ ; in the spirituality of their reli- 
 gion ; in their pious lives and active labours ; in all 
 these respects they followed in the track of that very 
 Eome, whom in their blindness they looked upon as 
 anti-christian. This holds true of all earnest Christian 
 teaching and practice. The Church of Eome has 
 throughout been the guardian of the saving truths of 
 Christianity. History has recorded the fact in pages 
 which can never be efiaced. The Church of Eome 
 kept alive, through ages of iron, the sacred fire of 
 the true religion of the heart ; the adoration of God 
 in spirit and in truth ; earnestness and piety of life ;
 
 33 tiil: ciiuiicii is universal, 
 
 tlie burning love of Jesus ; an apostolic zeal rendered 
 the more sure and efficacious by discipline, and by 
 tlie superhuman prudence and discretion which regu- 
 lates and dhx'cts it. The source of every really 
 religious movement may be traced to the fostering 
 care of Eome. If Eome could be abstracted from 
 C'hristendom, and from Christendom's history, how 
 mucli of Christendom would be left? If Eome's 
 teaching and Eome's practices were to be abstracted 
 I'rom Christianity ; in other words, if from every 
 communion of Christians there w^ere to be taken away 
 all that is there held in common with Eome, what 
 then would be found remaininsj ? A mere negation ! 
 All that is positive would be gone ; there would be 
 left mere human nothingness. On the other hand, 
 if all be supposed to be taken away from Eome 
 wliich others hold in common with her, tlie truths 
 and the virtues she woidd retain must be recognised 
 as fragments of a complete and divine system ; and 
 what Avas left woidd prove her title to what was 
 gone, from the evident connection between the two. 
 Intrinsic^ not imported^ holiness is an essential note 
 of the Church of Christ. She is the channel of holi- 
 I's. xiv. .). (;. ness and she is holy : — ' The Most High hath sanctijied 
 His own tabernacle. God is in the midst thereof.' 
 
 Catholicity. The Churcli of Christ is Catholic in time, and 
 
 A.iv. iiaies. i. 1, 5. in spacc also. She is coeval with the world. ' The 
 
 l)Cginning of all things,' says St. E})iphanius, ' is the 
 
 Catholic and IIolv Church.' She is to endure for all
 
 AND INCLUDES ALL NATIONS. 39 
 
 ages. ' Behold,' said our Lord, ' I am with you St. Matt. x.\viii. 20. 
 
 all days, even to the consummation of the world.' In 
 
 extent she knows no limits, save the orbis terrarum. 
 
 ' Go ye into the whole w^orld and preach the gos- St. Mark xvi. 15. 
 
 pel to every creature.' Such is her charter from 
 
 Christ. Her realm reaches on beyond the grave, 
 
 and death does not sever her children from her. Her 
 
 mission is to the whole liimian race, irrespective of 
 
 human nationalities. Her empire is universal ; it 
 
 comprises all mankind. She is neither French, 
 
 English, German, nor Spanish ; nor is she Asiatic or 
 
 European, African or American ; but still she includes 
 
 them all : and if she glories in the name of Eoman, 
 
 it is only because Eome is the seat of Peter, and, as 
 
 St. Ambrose testifies, — Ubi Petrus, ibi Ecdesia. in v^. xi. u. yo. 
 
 Peter is everywhere, and the Church is every- Romo 
 
 where ; her kingdom is not of this world, but it ab- of 
 
 sorbs all earthly kingdoms in its spiritual dominion, '' i'^'ci>. 
 which is extended over the whole globe. Besides the 
 many countries in professed communion with Eome, 
 in every nation and in every clime the faith of Peter 
 is proclaimed, the authority of Peter has its willing 
 subjects, and the bark of Peter is present to rescue 
 and to save. Even in lands wdiere schism and 
 heresy prevail, the Cliurch under Peter's rule ceases 
 not to seek the w^anderers ; to comfort, and support, 
 and cheer the weak. Her children, scattered far and 
 wide over the earth, may not even know each other 
 in the flesh, yet are they one in that omnipresent 
 fold, and known, each one, to that true and cnreful
 
 40 ROME ALONE IS CATHOLIC. 
 
 mother, who is hterally xara ro oXov, for she over- 
 spreads and interpenetrates the universe. 
 
 The cross which was erected on Calvary by our 
 Divine Master, was to be planted by His command 
 in the centre of the world — in imperial Eome — by 
 the Apostle whose humility obtained that its posi- 
 tion sliould be reversed ; for his high exaltation 
 demanded a corresponding self-abasement. It is in 
 the soil of Rome that the grain of mustard-seed has 
 grown up into the goodly tree, whose roots are 
 nourished by the most precious blood of Jesus, and 
 whose branches have filled the whole earth, so that 
 the birds of the air, even the Saints of God in all 
 lands, find shelter and fruit amongst them. 
 Title What claim has any religious communion save the 
 
 Catholic. Eoman to the title of Catholic? As a matter of fact, 
 on what ground can that title be maintained by any 
 other ? St. Augustine's and St. Cyril's test will hold 
 good still ; for, though it may occasionally happen to 
 an enquirer after a Catholic Church, to fall in with 
 one who makes as if he did not understand him 
 to mean the Eoman, such ignorance does not actually 
 exist ; it will be a mere pretence. If a Eoman Catholic 
 speaks of the Catholic Church, there are those who 
 will make haste to tell him to add Euman, thereby 
 proving how well they understand him : yet the 
 world lias not room for two Catholic Churches, if the 
 term Catholic really means universal. It is, how- 
 ever, maintained by Anglicans that the Christians 
 in cummunion with Eome are only a part of the
 
 THE CHURCH is apostolic. 
 
 41 
 
 Church, and liave no riglit to claim to be the wliole. 
 This argument may be answered in the self-same 
 words made use of by St. Augustine to the Donati&t 
 Bishop, Petilian : — 
 
 ' You, with closed eyes, so stumble against that moun- 
 tain, which, from a small stone, according to the prophecy 
 of Daniel, has increased and has filled the whole earth, as 
 to say to us that we have sunk into a part and are not in 
 the whole ; to us whose communion is spread abroad over 
 the universal globe. But, in like manner, as if you were 
 to say to me that I am Petilian, I could not tell how to 
 answer you, except by laughing as if you were in joke, or 
 else pitying you as if you were insane, so now, this is all 
 I find to be done. Since, however, I do not believe you 
 are in joke, you see the alternative.' 
 
 God Himself, Who is the model and the maintainer 
 of the Church's unity, is also the Author of her 
 universality. He has made her as necessary to the 
 spiritual hfe of man as the sun is to his physical, and, 
 like God's glorious sun, she shines for all. Of her 
 preachers it is written : — ' Their sound is gone forth 
 into all the earthy and their words unto the ends of the 
 whole world.' 
 
 But ' how shall they preach unless they be sent ? ' 
 The word Apostle means Ambassador. No Churcli 
 can be Apostolic which is not sent by Christ througli 
 His ambassadors, the Apostles. Many of those who 
 admit the necessity of the Apostolical succession as 
 regards orders, appear to make very light of it as 
 regards mission and jurisdiction. It would lead me 
 too far if I were to enter upon the (piestion of the 
 
 Cdiitni 
 
 Lit.Pctil. 
 
 lib. ii. No. 91. 
 
 lioiiiaus X. IS. 
 
 Apostolicity. 
 Kom. X. 15.
 
 4-2 
 
 NECESSITY OF APOSTOLIC JURISDICTIOX. 
 
 Onlers 
 
 do not give 
 
 Mission, 
 
 nor confer 
 
 Jiu'isdiction. 
 
 validity of tlie Cliurch of England orders. Suifice it 
 to say, that Eome's disbelief in them must be very 
 certain, otherwise she would not unconditionally 
 ordain those Anglican clergymen who, being recon- 
 ciled to her, are called to her priesthood ; for she 
 accounts it sacrilege to repeat the sacrament of orders. 
 But orders do not in themselves contain the Apos- 
 tolic mission, though they are indispensable in order 
 to render the recipients capable of exercising it 
 when bestowed upon them. Still less do they con- 
 vey jurisdiction, or confer power upon a priest to ad- 
 minister the sacrament of penance where he does not 
 possess jurisdiction. The confessional is a tribunal, 
 the priest a judge ; and this of necessity requires the 
 right of judging in the particular case before him ; 
 in other words, of jurisdiction over the penitent. 
 Now, ordination does not convey this jurisdiction, 
 though it confers the power of exercising it wdien 
 given. No priest can validly exercise the power 
 of the keys, excepting under those circumstances for 
 which he has received jurisdiction from competent 
 ecclesiastical authority. This has always been held 
 in the Church, and both Greeks and Latins are per- 
 fectly agreed upon it.^ Absence of the necessary 
 JLU'isdiction would invalidate the priestly absolution. 
 Nor can Bishops themselves exercise jurisdiction 
 beyond the limits assigned to them by Apostolic 
 
 ' Elementa Thcol. Dngmat. op. F. X. Schoiippc, S.J. — Bruxelles, 
 1803 — a most useful and accui'ate compendium, pos.sessing high 
 recommendations oi' authority. T. ii. pp 350-7.
 
 PKIMACY OF THE SEE OF ROME. 43 
 
 authority, wliicli is vested in tlie Eoman PontilT. If 
 in any case they seem to have done so, it must be 
 presumed that they were authorised, tacitly at tlie 
 least, by the Apostohc See of Eome ; to wliose 
 decision, as it is well known, all disputes upon such 
 questions have always been referred. 
 
 It is most important to bear in mind that the Definition 
 special privilege and authority divinely conferred on Primaey 
 the Apostolic See of St. Peter is one of dignity, and of Roman Poutiff. 
 jurisdiction; not of order. Every Bishop is as nuich a 
 Bishop as the Pope, as regards the Episcopal order ; 
 but no other Bishop possesses the dignity or the uni- 
 versal jurisdiction of tlie Pope, who has succeeded to 
 the plenitude of the Apostolic power and mission 
 conferred by Christ Himself upon St. Peter. The 
 Primacy has been defined by Fr. Schouppe, as — Eicm. Tiieoi. Dogm. 
 
 * The pre-eminence by which the Roman Pontif oh- 
 tairis, by divine right, not only honour and dignity, but 
 also jurisdiction aiid poiver, throughout the Universal 
 Church. — It is said: by which he obtains honour and 
 dignity, such, for instance, as that which an Emperor 
 enjoys among Kings who are not his subjects ; a man of no- 
 bility among commoners ; the president of a college among 
 his fellow-colleagues. — It is said : he obtains jurisdiction 
 andpoiver, such, indeed, as any Prince or magistrate enjoys 
 towards subordinate officers : thus, a King holds the pri- 
 macy among all the Princes who are subject to him.' 
 
 It needs but a slight acquaintance with the maxims, Necessity 
 rules, and practices of the universal Church, to riaiitfuijuri.sdieii,.M. 
 be aware that rightful jurisdiction was ahvays con- 
 sidered essential for the due exercise of the Episcopal
 
 44 
 
 THE APOSTOLIC COLLEGE IS 
 
 Nocpssity 
 
 of 
 
 Apostolic Doctrine. 
 
 functions ; and tliat such jurisdiction might be for- 
 feited, or witlidrawn by competent authority, 
 though the sacred orders must always remain. Since 
 tliis is a fact wliich cannot be contradicted, it surely 
 becomes a matter of supremest moment for English 
 Cliurchmen to examine and to resolve, not merely the 
 question of the validity of tlieir orders, but that also 
 of the authority and validity of the mission and juris- 
 diction exercised by their Bishops and clergy at the 
 present time. If they heed the voice of the Universal 
 Church at all, they must be convinced that this is a 
 vital point.^ The pages of history render it evident 
 beyond a doubt, that the two rival claimants between 
 whom they have to choose, as the respective channels 
 of Divine mission and of spiritual jmisdiction, are ; on 
 the one hand, — the Apostolic throne of Peter; and on 
 the other, — tlie Eoyal throne of Elizabeth. This is 
 not a rhetorical figure ; it is a manifest fact. 
 
 There is a necessary succession of doctrine as well 
 as of orders, and apart from the Apostolic communion 
 we have no guarantee for the Apostolic faith. The 
 Apostles alone received from Christ that great deposi- 
 tU7u, with the assistance of His Spirit to keep it uncor- 
 rupt for all time. Now, the Apostolic College is repre- 
 sented to us by its head, and it is to the successors of 
 
 1 This might be urged, on lower ecclesiastical grounds, even 
 apart from the divinely constitiited Primacy of St. Peter ; as is 
 clearly shown, in an essay deserving of closest attention, by the late 
 Cardinal Wiseman, on AnrjUcan Claims of Apostolical Succession. 
 Essays by lI.E. Card. "Wiseman. Dolman, 1853, vol. ii. p. Ifil. 
 It fir.<t aj)pearcd in the Dublin Review ; Oct. ] 838.
 
 EEPRESENTKD TO US BY ROME. 45 
 
 the blessed Peter we must look for instruction in the Amongst 
 
 tlio Apostolic chairs, 
 
 faith once delivered to the Saints, Even apart from «t. Piter's 
 
 .. . Tc alone remains to us. 
 
 this his distinct olhce, there is no other Apostolic bee 
 which God has left upon the earth, in a position for us 
 to consult. The chair of St. Peter alone amongst all 
 the Apostles, by a special privilege still survives to 
 us in a long line of successors ; a fact which of 
 itself seems to indicate, that the custody of the faith 
 and the rule of the Church were divinely committed 
 to that favoured See, pre-eminently above the rest. 
 To refer to the teaching of Pope Pius VI. : — 
 
 ' That the Church was founded by Christ on the firmness Constitution, 
 of the Rock; and that, Ly the singular favour of Christ, ^StliNovembor, 1786.' 
 Peter was selected above the rest to be by vicarious power 
 the Prince of the Apostolic Choir ; and therefore to receive 
 the supreme charge and authority, to be perpetuated 
 through his successors for all time, of feeding the whole 
 flock, of confirming his brethren, and of binding and loosing 
 over the whole earth — is a Catholic Dogma, which, having 
 been received from the mouth of Christ and handed down 
 and defended by the constant teaching of the Fathers, the 
 Universal Church has always held most inviolably, and fre- 
 quently confirmed against the errors of innovators by the 
 decrees of Sovereign Pontiffs and Councils.' 
 
 The Episcopal order is possessed in its fulness with- St. Peter's 
 out the Apostolate. The Apostolate was possessed in 
 its fuhiess without the Primacj^ The Primacy includes 
 the other two, but yet it is distinct from them. Every 
 
 ^ Quoted in vol. iii. p. 227 of the Irish Annual 3Jiscellan7/, at 
 the commencement of an invaluable Essay on The Svpremactj of 
 St. Peter and his Siiccesso7-s, by Dr. Murray, Professor of Tlieo- 
 logy at Maynooth. I thankfully acknowledge my obligations to 
 the said Essiiy, and earnestly recommend its careful jierusal. 
 
 office.
 
 4G THE APOSTOLATE SUBORDINATE 
 
 Bisliop is a true successor of the Apostles, but the 
 extent of his jurisdiction and mission is hmited. It 
 is only in council, in union with his fellow-Bishops 
 under the Eoman Pontiff, that he collectively exer- 
 cises wider powers. All the Apostles received from 
 Christ not only the Episcopal order, but also, by a 
 distinct act, universal jurisdiction and universal mis- 
 8t. Matt, xxviii. 19. siou to ' all uatious ;' — ' As the Father hath sent me, I 
 
 St. Jolin XX. 21. . 
 
 also send you' These universal powers, which are 
 not conferred on other Bishops, were conferred on each 
 and all of the Apostles, for the purpose of founding the 
 Universal Church. They were to be exercised, how- 
 ever, in union with, and in subordination to, the still 
 higher and distinct office conferred upon St. Peter. 
 A.D. 410-461. Hence the o-reat St. Leo teaches that — 
 
 &' 
 
 Scrm. iv. pap. 2, ' Out of tbe whole world, Peter alone is chosen, who 
 eiui3demVs"uinptionis. should be Set over both the vocation of the universal 
 nations, and all the Apostles, and all the fathers of the 
 Church : that, although among the people of God there 
 are many priests and pastors ; yet Peter, in his own person 
 (proprle), may rule all those whom Christ also rules as the 
 Head {jjvinci'paliter). A great and marvellous fellowship 
 in Its own power, most dearly beloved, has the Divine 
 estimation {dlgnatio) conferred upon this man ; and if It 
 willed that the other princes should possess anything in 
 common with him, it never, except through him, gave 
 to the others whatever it did not refuse them.' 
 
 Til.' Thus St. Peter received from Christ not only the 
 
 Episcopal order and tlie Apostolate in common with 
 the others; but, over and above these princely gifts, 
 he, and lie filoiio. received for himself and hissucce.s-
 
 TO THE PRIMACY. 47 
 
 sors, the supreme office, and the consequent plenitude 
 of power and sufficiency of grace, whereby to feed, 
 to rule, and to govern the Universal Church. As 
 Bishops and as Apostles they all were equal, but as 
 Prince of the Apostles and as Vicar of Christ after 
 His departure, St. Peter was raised above them all. 
 
 The Episcopal order is an essential part of the 
 Divine hierarchy of the Church, and must always 
 continue in its plenitude. But the Apostolic work 
 of the foundation of the Church has been accom- 
 plished, and so far, therefore, the Apostolate has 
 ceased. That is to say, the universal mission and 
 jurisdiction conferred on each and all of the Apostles 
 has not been continued to their successors, excepting 
 in the case of their head, the blessed Peter. The 
 Apostolate was more extensive than the Episcopate, 
 and the Primacy was over and above the Apostolate. 
 It concerned not only the foundation of the Universal 
 Church, but its preservation and its unity for all 
 ages, and therefore it could never cease. St. Peter 
 and his successors for evermore were constituted the 
 Vicars of Christ. Not Successors of Christ, but 
 Vica7\s. Christ still rules His Church, but he does 
 so through the successors of Peter. Tlie Apostles 
 were associated with Peter in establishing' and 
 governing the Church, but they were subordinate to 
 him as the representative of Christ. 
 
 The wall of the new Jerusalem in the Apocal}q)se Apostolic 
 'had twelve foundations, and in tliem, the twelve Air^'^Tw 
 
 ' ' ApOC. X.\l. 11. 
 
 names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb :' and it was
 
 48 
 
 THE ROMAN PONTIFF IS 
 
 St. Matt. xix. 28. 
 
 Mis.«;alo 
 Koiniinuni. 
 
 said to them by their Divine Master — ' Wlien the Son 
 of man shall sit on the seat of His majest}^, you also 
 shall sit on twelve seats judging the twelve tribes of 
 Israel.' These are Apostohc privileges in which they 
 all are equal : and that Holy Church regards and 
 venerates them still as her rulers in union with blessed 
 Peter, is evident from the words of her liturgical Pre- 
 face on their feasts, wherein she beseeches God 
 that ' He the eternal Pastor will not desert His flock, 
 but that through His blessed Apostles He will defend 
 it with His continual protection. Tliat it may be 
 governed by the same rulers whom, as Vicars of Thy 
 work, Thou hast employed as Pastors to preside over 
 the same.' St. Paul also tells us that we are ' built 
 upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, 
 Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone.' 
 
 It is from his union w^itli tliat corner stone that 
 St. Peter is what lie is. As, when on earth, our 
 Lord associated him with Himself in the payment of 
 the tribute, saying — ' Take that, and give it to them 
 for 7ne and thee^ — so has He associated him "\vith 
 Himself as the rock on which the Cluu'ch is built, 
 the corner stone l)y which she is held together. 
 I. Cor. iii. 11. 'Other foundation,' says the Apostle, ' no man can 
 lay, but tliat which is laid ; wliich is Christ Jesus.' 
 Yet Jesus united Peter to Himself, and made him 
 the visible minister of His own Divine work. Thus 
 in the continuation of the sermon already quoted, 
 St. Leo speaks as follows : — 
 Ubi supra, p. 4G. ' /, Cliiist says, sciy io Hice^ (Peter): 'that is, as my 
 
 Rpli. ii. 20. 
 
 St. Peter 
 
 the 
 
 foxindation. 
 
 St. Matt. xvii. 20.
 
 Proviiu'. Vienn. 
 const itiitos. 
 
 THE VICAR OF CHRIST. 40 
 
 Father has manifested to thee my divinity, so I also make 
 known to thee thy excellence. That thou art Peter : that 
 is, though I am the inviolable rock; I, the corner stone tvho 
 7nake both one ; I, the foundation besides which no man can 
 lay another ; — yet thou also art the rock, because thou shalt 
 be made firm by my strength, that those things which by 
 my power are my own, may be thine in common, by par- 
 ticipation with me.' 
 
 Elsewhere, the same holy Pontiff teaches : — 
 
 * The Lord willed that the sacrament of this charge ' Epist. x. 
 
 (preaching the gospel) ' should appertain to the office of all Episcopos 
 
 the Apostles, with the understanding that He vested it pei- 
 
 principally in the most blessed Peter, the chief of all the 
 Apostles ; and He wills His gifts to flow into the whole 
 body from the same, as from a head ; that whoso should 
 dare to withdraw from the solidity of Peter might under- 
 stand that he has no part in the divine mystery. For He 
 willed that this man, whom He had taken into the fellow- 
 ship of an inseparable unity, should be named that which 
 He Himself was, saying, Thou art Peter, and upon this 
 rock lu'ill build my Church.'' 
 
 Our Lord, mdeed, is not only the foundation but cin-ist 
 
 the founder of His Church, which He has purchased .^\\ ;'„ aii. 
 with His most precious blood, and established upon 
 Peter by His own power. All that Peter and others 
 are, they are, not in their own strength, but in Christ's. 
 Li this Christ necessarily stands alone, but -He dis- 
 penses His gifts as He will and where He will. His 
 word is power, and when He named Simon — the 
 rock — He made him what he named him. When He 
 promised to build on him the Church against which 
 the gates of hell should not prevail, He bestowed on 
 him an inalienable union with Himself for all time 
 
 VOL. I. E
 
 50 TITK SYMBOL OF TIIK KEYS. 
 
 as tlie one foundation of tliat Church ; and, as that 
 visible Church was to be gathered from successive 
 generations of men, so, after Peter had followed his 
 Lord both in His cross and in His glory, was it to 
 be founded on the successors of Peter, imperishable 
 and invincible in its basis and in its structure. 
 St. Pfter On them, also, was to descend the rule over the 
 
 ' Head. wholc Cliurcli prouiiscd to St. Peter under the sym- 
 
 l)ol of the keys, by which our Lord made him again 
 to be a sharer in His own office. The keys are not 
 promised to the Church, but to Peter. It is througli 
 Peter that they come to the Church ; through Peter 
 that they continue with the Church ; and beyond 
 the Hmits assigned by Peter and his successors their 
 power is not extended. 
 Suprome authority Our Lorcl sixjs, ' Ou this rock I will build My 
 
 conveyed n tt -i -i i x -n • 7 i 
 
 by Chui-ch ; and He adds, ' and i will give to thee tlie 
 
 St. Matt. xvi. 18, 19. kcys.' Hc says not, to hei\ i.e. the Church ; He says, 
 to thee — Peter — thereby setting him over the Church. 
 Por the keys convey more than the power of binding 
 and loosing, which, in conjunction with St. Peter, was 
 afterwards bestowed on the other Apostles; they con- 
 vey supreme authority over the exercise of that power. 
 Apoc.i. 18. Thus, in the Apocalypse, our Lord speaks of Himself 
 as having ' the keys of death and of hell ;' and again, 
 ihid.iii. 7. as ' He that hath the key of David ; He that openeth, 
 and no man shutteth ; shutteth, and no man openeth.' 
 The power of the keys includes both the power of 
 l^inding and loosing, and also the control over the 
 exercise of tliat power by others. Wlien St. Peter's
 
 ST. TETER MARKED OUT AS FIRST; 51 
 
 keys open, none other can sliiit ; when they sliiit, 
 
 none other can open. It is not so with any other, 
 
 for all others are subordinate to Peter. God says 
 
 of Eliacim in the prophecy, — 'He shall be as a isaiasxxii. 21,22. 
 
 father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the 
 
 house of Juda. And I will lay the key of the house 
 
 of David upon his shoulder : and he shall open 
 
 and none shall shut : and he shall shut, and none 
 
 shall open.' Primarily, this prefigured Christ ; 
 
 secondarily, His servant Peter. He made Peter His 
 
 representative, as He had before chosen Eliacim to 
 
 be His type. 
 
 Throuo;hout the Gosi^els, the priority mven to ■'^t. phpi- 
 St. Peter is most apparent. In the lists of the 
 Apostles his name is invariably first. Thus, in St. 
 Matthew, — ' The first, Simon who is called Peter ' — st.sratt. x. 2. 
 in the vulgate, jyi^inms — in the Greek, Trpcbrog. So, 
 too, we find frequently such expressions as — ' Simon st. i\rarki.36. 
 and they that were with him.' — ' Peter and they that " ' ix! 32.* 
 were with him.' Again, when the women sought 
 their risen Lord in the sepulchre, they were told by 
 the angel, — ' Go, tell His disciples and Peter that He st.]\r;vrk xvi. 7. 
 goeth before you into Galilee.' Why should Peter be 
 especially named here, excepting as the leader and 
 representative of the Apostles? St. Gregory the 
 Great gives it, indeed, as a reason, that our Lord, 
 in His loving tenderness, wished to encourage him 
 after his fall and deep repentance. But, so for 
 from ignoring the primacy, he goes on to explain 
 why God permitted such a fall in the case of one 
 
 e2
 
 was 
 
 allowed tu fall. 
 
 52 PRINCE OF THE APOSTLES ; 
 
 whom lie intended to set over the wliole Church. 
 He comments on the passage as follows : — 
 
 TTf.m. in Evang. xxi. 4. ' We must inquire why, when the disciples are mentioned, 
 Peter is marked out by name. But, if the angel had not 
 ^vhy St. Peter expressly named him who had denied his Master, he 
 would not have dared to come among the disciples. There- 
 fore he is called by name, lest he should despair on account 
 of his denial. In which matter we must consider why 
 Almighty God permitted him, whom He had determined to. 
 set over the entire church {quern cunctm Ecdesicc prwferre 
 disposuerat), to be affrighted at the voice of a servant 
 girl, and to deny Himself. Which, in truth, we perceive to 
 have been done by a most merciful dispensation ; in order 
 that he who was the future Pastor of the Church should 
 learn, through his own fault, how he ought to have com- 
 passion upon others. First, therefore. He shows him to 
 himself, and then he set him over the rest, in order that 
 he might learn, from his own infirmity, how mercifully he 
 should bear with the infirmities of others.' 
 
 In this, too, was Peter to be made most like his 
 Hcb. iv. 15. Master, Who, though ' without sin,' was ' tempted in 
 all things hke as we are,' and can, therefore, ' have 
 compassion on our infirmities.' 
 
 Amongst early ecclesiastical writers the well-known 
 
 designation of St. Peter is, — Prince of the Apostles. 
 
 Thus (to quote one out of a multitude), St. C3Til of 
 
 Catecb. ii. 19. Jerusalem names him as ' Peter the chiefest (6 xopu- 
 
 (^aioTuros xa) Tr^coTrxTrarr^^) and foremost of the 
 
 Ibid. xvii. 27. apostles ; ' — ' Key-bearer of the kingdom of heaven.' 
 
 This chief position was continued to the See of Peter, 
 
 Ep. xiiii. 7. as St. Augustine testifies when he speaks of ' the 
 
 Eoman Cliurch in which the principality {princi-
 
 CONFIRMER OF HIS BRETHREN ; 53 
 
 patus) of the apostolic cliair has always remained in 
 vigour (semper viguity 
 
 It is the presence of Christ in His Church which st. Peter's Se.- 
 
 IS also 
 
 renders her chief pastors collectively, firm and in- the .str.ngtii 
 
 violable in the faith ; and this office also, which is Episcopate. 
 
 exercised invisibly by His Spirit, He has conferred 
 
 upon Peter and his successors as His visible organs. 
 
 The words of our Lord are explicit. On the very night 
 
 of His passion, when He prayed for the visible and 
 
 perpetual unity of His Church, He gave to Peter 
 
 alone the charge of confirming and consolidating that 
 
 Church: — 'And the Lord said: Simon, Simon, St. Lukcxxii. 31. 
 
 behold Satan hath desired to have you [vy^oLQ) that 
 
 he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for 
 
 thee (TTrp) (Tou) that thy (o-ou) faith fail not : and thou 
 
 {(Tv) being once converted, confirm thy brethren.' 
 
 The words vary, — you, — and thee and thou. AU were 
 
 to be attacked by hell ; but their strength was to be 
 
 ill one, and that very one who was afterwards to be 
 
 their strength, was first to display his insufficiency 
 
 apart from Clirist ; that the power of Christ might, 
 
 through all ages, be the more apparent in him 
 
 through liis previous momentary weakness when left 
 
 to his own support. St. Ambrose, before St. Gregory, 
 
 taught that the trial was permitted in order to fit St. 
 
 Peter for his supreme office. He says : — in Ps.xiiii. 40. 
 
 * The adversary is compelled to tempt the Saints of Reason 
 
 the Lord, to his own loss. For by tempting them teg^p^^t^^./^J^j^^^^i^^^ 
 makes them better, that he who is tempted may be able to 
 instruct {instil uei'e) others also; even he who, to himself,
 
 54 CIIIHF I'ASTOK OF CIIRIST's FLOCK; 
 
 appeared infirm. It is then that Peter is set over the 
 Church, after he was tempted of the deviL And on that 
 account the Lord signifies beforehand what that is, be- 
 cause, afterwards, ]ie elected him Pastor of the Lord's flock. 
 For to him he said : hut thou being converted confirm thy 
 brethren.^ 
 
 The Our Lord is pre-eminently tlie good Shepherd. It 
 
 guod Shepherd. , . . 
 
 IS one of the most endearnig oi His titles, and the 
 subject of one of the most touching of His pro- 
 
 isaias xi. 11. pliccics rcspcctiug Himsclf : — ' He shall feed His flock 
 like a shepherd : He shall gatlier together the 
 lambs with His arm, and shall take them up in His 
 bosom, and He Himself shall carry them that are 
 with young.' Tliis office also, which, spiritually and 
 invisibly, He Himself still fidfils. He has conferred 
 upon Peter and the successors of Peter as His outward 
 and visible agents and ministers. We know how, 
 after the chief Apostle had redeemed his threefold 
 fall by a threefold protestation of love, our blessed 
 Lord Himself committed to him as His own Vicar, the 
 charge of His own Hock, by a thrice repeated com- 
 
 st. Joiin xxi mission, — ' Feed my lambs,' ' Feed iny lambs,' ' Feed 
 my sheep,' — BoV^cs to. apvla [xou, Ylolixaivs TO. Trco^ara 
 [j.r>\j. Feed and rule not only my lambs, but my 
 sheep the mothers of tlie lambs, — my whole flock. 
 Feed and govern all. The word 7ro//xa<j/s (which, 
 ill the Greek, has reference to the sheep) is the 
 very same wliich is applied to our Lord Himself in 
 the [)r()])hecy quoted by St. Matthew (chap. ii. 6), 
 niid rendered in the English, rule \ — 'that shall 
 1 iile (7roi[xavs7) my j)eo])le Israel.' 
 
 There is an account in the diary of Archbishop
 
 OP THE SHEEP AND OF THE LAMBS. 00 
 
 Laud, of a conversation between himself and a Thoofficp 
 Catholic on the primacy of St. Peter's See, and how ^'^cullil^'i-'mi'." 
 at last the Catholic would make no other answer 
 than the repetition of the words, — Daho claves, — 
 Pasceagtios; Pasceoves. — In truth, no human sophistry 
 can elude the divine simplicity and force of our 
 Lord's promise of supreme power, which was sym- 
 bolized by the keys ; nor explain away the fact of 
 its completion and fulfilment in the final committal 
 of the whole Church to tlie pastoral care and rule 
 of Peter, which included the charge of confirming 
 and maintaining in the faith his venerable brethren, 
 the Episcopate of the whole world. Moreover it is 
 manifest from the very nature of this commission, 
 that it was to descend in its fulness upon each suc- 
 ceeding occupant of St, Peter's See, so long as there 
 should be a flock to feed and to defend, to guide 
 and to rule over. 
 
 It is not man, it is Christ Himself Who, in these cin-ist 
 
 His pastors, still holds the keys, and feeds and rules ™ ^^ Poi'S 
 His flock. Thus, the Eoman Catechism teaches of 
 the Church, that ' its ruler and governor is one, Catcch. ox deercto 
 
 ' . . . ° ^ Coiicil. Tridunl. 
 
 Christ indeed invisibly, whom the Eternal Father p. i. cap. x. 
 
 "hath made Head over all the Church, which is His Eph. i. i-i, 23. 
 Body"; but visibly, the occupant of the Roman See, the 
 legitimate successor of Peter Prince of the Apostles.' 
 
 ' To Peter,' says St. Peter Chrysologus, ' does the .Serm. vi. 
 
 Lord commend His sheep, wlien about to return to j^i^^ JJ, q,.,,^ 
 
 heaven, that he may feed them in Ilis stead He . , 'y,f < -^ 
 
 ' •' CllOll A.D. 40U. 
 
 commends to him the sheep and the offspring of the 
 sheep ; for He, the foreseeing Pastor, already knew
 
 5G 
 
 THESE OFFICES CONTINUE 
 
 Horn, in Vig. 
 ?S. Pet. ct PiiuL' 
 
 Lib. ii. Ep. 75. 
 
 C'ire;i A.D. 430. 
 
 Ed. Leon. Allat. 
 
 Those offices 
 
 are 
 permanwit. 
 
 tlic future fecundity of His flock.' ' First,' says St. 
 Eucherius (a.d. 445), ' He commits the lambs to him, 
 then the sheep, because He makes liim not pastor 
 only, but pastor of pastors. Peter therefore feeds 
 lambs and sheep, feeds children and mothers, rules 
 both subjects and prelates.' St. Nilus observes that 
 the Lord, after consoling the penitent heart of Peter, 
 ' constituted him the shepherd of the whole world ' 
 (7roi[xiva. rrjg o]xotj[xivr]g a7rd(n^g xaSi<rTrj<nvy 
 
 It is self-evident that all these offices were not to 
 cease with Peter, since they were not given for the 
 sake of Peter, but for the sake of the Church, 
 and for the work of the Church, and were still more 
 needed for future generations than for the time when 
 the other apostles were on earth. Numberless 
 authorities might be produced to prove that such 
 was the belief of the early ages ; but it may suffice 
 to quote two which distinctly state it. The first 
 occurs in the address of the Presbyter Philip, 
 
 ' Quoted from Sconce's Testimony of Antiquitij to the Sitpre- 
 macij of the Holy See — a most useful book, published in Sydney, 
 1848, and sold by Messrs. Bui'ns & Oatpa of London. Besides 
 authorities, it contains simple, clear, and honest reasoning. It is 
 to be regretted that the Rev. J. Watervvorth's Faith of Catholics, 
 3 vols. 8vo., Dolman, 1816, which gives so large and valuable a 
 collection of early testimony to Catholic doctrine, has also repro- 
 duced certain propositions from a treatise censured by Bishop 
 INIilner as ' defective, ambiguous, suspicious, and erroneous.' See 
 the Kev. W. II. Anderdon's letter in the Weelly liejister of 
 March 31st, 18GG, republished by the Dublin Review in July 
 1<S0(), p. 257, in reierence to a rejtrint of the aforcsiiid treatise 
 undi r tlie title of The Catholic Eirenicon (Hayes, London, 1865), 
 ' li-cjni the edition of 1815.'
 
 IN THE APOSTOLIC SEE. 57 
 
 Legate of tlie Apostolic See of Eome, to the third 
 great Q^cunienical Council, held at Ephesus a.d. 431. 
 There, in the heart of the East, without a dissentient 
 voice among the bishops, he commences his confir- 
 mation of the condemnation of Nestorius (on the 
 part of Pope St. Celestine) in the following terms : — 
 
 * No one doubts, nay it is known through all ages, that Hard. Act. Concil. 
 the holy and most blessed Peter, prince and head of the • • ^^ • ' • 
 apostles, column of the faith, and foundation of the Catholic 
 
 Church, received the keys of the kingdom from our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, the Saviour and Eedeemer of the human 
 race, and there was given to the same the power of loosing 
 and of binding sins : who up to this time without intermis- 
 sion, and always, lives and exercises the ofiSce of a judge 
 (judicium exercet) in his successors.' 
 
 Anglicans profess to follow in all things tlie first 
 centuries of the Church, and to accept the above- 
 named Council of Ephesus. But, it may be asked, 
 would the same words be received in the same way 
 by the English convocation, if addressed to that 
 assembly by a legate of Pope Pius IX. ? 
 
 It was not many years later when the great St. Leo 
 (in one of his sermons on the anniversary of his 
 elevation to the Eoman Pontificate), after speaking 
 of our Lord Jesus Christ as the great High Priest 
 still ruling in His Church, continued his discourse as 
 follows : — 
 
 * Therefore, most dearly beloved, our festivity is not S*''^"!- \'- cap. iv. 
 presumptuous, wherein, mindfid of the divine favour, we 
 
 do honour to the day on which we received the priesthood ; 
 inasmuch as we piously and truly confess that Christ fulfils
 
 58 
 
 THIS D0CTK1XI-: OF TJIE 1*111. MACY 
 
 1)0 Trill. 
 L. \-i. c. 20. 
 
 Tlie rnmacy 
 
 is 
 a groat grace. 
 
 the work of our ministry in all things that we rightly per- 
 form ; and not in ourselves, who without Him can do 
 nothing, but in Himself, Who is our power, do we glory. 
 Another reason for our solemnity is not only the Apostolic, 
 but also the Episcopal dignity of the most blessed Peter, 
 who ceases not to preside over his see, and maintains an 
 imfailing fellowship with the eternal Priest. For that 
 solidity, which, from the Rock Christ, he also, made a liock, 
 received (de Petra Christo etiamipse Petraf actus accepit), 
 has transfused itself also to his heirs, and wheresoever any 
 firmness is manifested, without doubt there appears the for- 
 titude of the pastor. For if, in order to show forth their 
 merits, it has been granted to nearly all the martyrs every- 
 where, because of their endurance of the sutferings they 
 embraced, to assist those in danger, to drive away diseases, 
 to expel unclean spirits, and to cure innumerable sick- 
 nesses ; who will so unskilfully or enviously estimate the 
 glory of blessed Peter, as to believe that there are any parts 
 of the Church which are not ruled by his solicitude and 
 strengthened by his power ?' 
 
 The graphic words of St. Hilary of Poitiers are as 
 applicable now in the person of Pope Pius IX. as they 
 have been heretofore through liis long line of pre- 
 decessors, and as they will continue to be to the end : — 
 ' Blessed Simon, after his confession of the mystery, 
 supporting the edifice of the Church and receiving 
 the keys of the heavenly kingdom.' — ' Post sacra- 
 menti confessionem heatus Simon oedijicationi Ecclesice 
 siibjacens et claves regni ccelestis accipiens.' 
 
 I have but glanced at this vast and all- 
 important subject, which lies at tlie very root of 
 Christianity, and gives it an aspect under which 
 a denial of the Pope's supremacy in the Church 
 becomes visibly 'another gospel.' Nor have I
 
 IS FULL OF COXSOLATlOiX. 59 
 
 done more than glean, here and there, one authority 
 among thousands in proof of my assertions. 
 Whole volumes might be filled, and have been filled, 
 with the arguments and testimony of centuries, 
 in support of this fundamental article of Christian 
 belief. But, unless God prepare men's hearts, and 
 unless men co-operate with God's grace, the most 
 convincing of proofs will be unavailing. It is 
 humbling to reflect that prejudice can have so great 
 a power to close the human heart against the 
 reception of a Christian truth so strongly and 
 clearly attested, and, at the same time, so consoling, 
 strengthening, and encouraging ; so analogous to all 
 we know of God's mercy and of His dealings, and so 
 abounding in His love for us ; — as is that truth of His 
 ever-present rule and care, not only invisibly from 
 the realms above, but visibly, tangibly, here on 
 earth, in the venerable person of His own represen- 
 tative. Like all the other manifestations of His over- 
 ilow^hig goodness, it is too great for human littleness ; 
 men can hardly rise to its conception ; and unless His 
 grace gives larger and more generous powers of appre- 
 ciation and of confiding love, they cannot comprehend 
 the vast munificence of His condescension. truly 
 ' slow of heart ' are we, like the disciples on the way si. Luke xxiv. 20. 
 to Emmaus, ' to believe in all things which the 
 prophets have spoken ! ' Christ's resiuTcction was 
 to them a thouglit too glorious, too full of joy, to be 
 true. Christ's perpetual presence with us through His 
 Vicar may be, to many, a doctrine which so realizes
 
 60 THE APOSTOLIC TYPE 
 
 to tlie full all their visions of a Christian Church, that 
 they think the happiness too great for earth, and 
 accuse of sordid ambition that very See of Peter, in 
 which Christ Himself presides through a human 
 delegate. 
 Visible and present Nevertheless, not only sacred scripture and the 
 testimony. ^^^^y fathers, uot Only venerable antiquity and all 
 Christian history, proclaim this truth with the voices 
 of ages that are past, and teach that out of the apo- 
 stolical communion of Eome, no Church can be apo- 
 stolic; but it is written with the finger of Cod in the 
 passmg events of the day and hour. Where else, save 
 in the Eoman Pontiff, is to be found the apostolic type 
 at the present moment? Where else the image of 
 God's tranquil power undisturbed by the rude con- 
 fusions and wickedness of mankind? Patient, and 
 meek, and tender, but strong with a superhuman 
 strength. Forgiving, as Christ forgave ; but testify- 
 ing to truth and justice and everlasting right, as 
 Christ also testified upon the cross. Here, in spirit 
 and in letter, is beheld the apostolic pattern : — 
 2 Cor. vi. 3-1(1. ' Giving no offence to any man, that our ministry be 
 not blamed : but in all things let us exhibit ourselves 
 as the ministers of God, in much patience, in tribu- 
 lation, in necessities, in distresses, in stripes, in prisons, 
 in seditions, in labours, in watchings, in fastings, in 
 chastity, in knowledge, in long-suffering, in sweet- 
 ness, in the Holy Ghost, in charity unfeigned, in the 
 word of truth, in tlie power of God ; by the armour 
 of justice on the riglit liand and on the left, by
 
 IS MANIFEST IN ROME. 61 
 
 honour and dishonour, by evil report and good 
 report : as deceivers, and yet true : as unknown, and 
 yet known : as dying, and behold we live : as chas- 
 tised, and not killed : as sorrowful, yet always re- 
 joicing : as needy, yet enriching many : as having 
 nothing, and possessing all things.' The quotation 
 may be continued, for the apostolic voice now re- 
 sponds to all who, remaining separated, still long for 
 unity, — 'Our mouth is open to you, our heart is en- ibki. ii, 12. 
 larged. You are not straitened in us : but in your 
 own bowels you are straitened.' 
 
 Let thoughtful men compare, at this very moment, 
 the world-wide labours and zeal ; the devotion and 
 earnestness ; the faith, charity, and unity ; the spirit 
 of self-sacrifice ; the chastity and heroic virtue ; the 
 prevailing concord of bishops and priests among 
 themselves, with Eome, and with the people ; so 
 apparent among Christians in communion with the 
 Apostolic See ; — let them compare these present 
 facts, not with this or that individual instance which, 
 from its nearness and its very singularity, assumes 
 undue proportions, but with the general condition, 
 and the usual religious standard of any other Chris- 
 tian body ; and let them say whether the Divine pre- 
 sence and the Apostolic rule of life are to be discerned 
 in any other. That which amongst others is excep- 
 tional, if found at all, is set before Eoman Catholics 
 as their ordinary rule. Many, no doubt, fall short ; 
 but many press on beyond it, and attain to heroic 
 virtues not to be found elsewhere. Eome begins where
 
 62 THE SCHOOL OF HOLINESS, AND 
 
 Others end. The most advanced outside her, are but 
 hke tyros in her school of sanctity. Her very starting 
 points for perfection are the evangehcal counsels of 
 continence, poverty, and obedience, virtues which 
 she preaches on the housetops, and acknowledges as 
 divine for all who are called to practise them. Whereas 
 too commonly elsewhere, they must not be named 
 unless in secret, and if practised at all it must be more 
 or less by stealtli. Far be it from me to withhold 
 an earnest sympathy from all who anywhere may 
 aim at them ; far be it from me to make light of these 
 or any other virtues wherever they may be found. 
 I seek but to give tliem their perfection ; to point 
 out their true home, their natural birthplace, their 
 congenial soil. To the established Enolish Church 
 they are exotic, foreign and unwelcomed by the mass. 
 How many of lier bishops are there who encourage 
 the diffusion of these counsels of the Gospel, or who 
 acknowledge them at all as such? Nay, to speak 
 only of essential doctrine, her clergy are not agreed 
 amongst themselves respecting many most funda- 
 mental truths of Christianity, such as our Lord's 
 presence in the Holy Eucharist, the efficacy of Bap- 
 tism, the existence of tlie Sacrament of Penance, 
 and tlie like. 
 
 It is not hard to discern the one supernatural 
 liome on eartli of all most true and most heroic in 
 man's religious life. Tlie only home of apostolic doc- 
 trine, and of apostolic virtues, is the Apostolic Cluirch. 
 Elsewhere, indeed, they may seem to be transplanted
 
 WELL-SPRING OF GOD's GRACE. 63 
 
 and to flourish for a while, isolated and strange: else- 
 where, too, may natural virtue be so highly culti- 
 vated as to seem, in human sight, to wear the aspect 
 of divine ; though not so in the eyes of God. But, at 
 the best, such cases are the exception. In the lioman 
 Catholic Church alone, is to be found the supernatural 
 life of grace in that spontaneous and full develop- 
 ment, which bespeaks its birthplace and its native 
 air. It is there that, through its exuberance of 
 growth ; its full, vigorous, and prolific energy, recog- 
 nised, welcomed, and familiar to all ; its profusion 
 of flower and prodigality of fruit ; it reveals the 
 divine fecundity of the soil, and gives evidence that 
 its being; and its strena;th are drawn from that exultinsf 
 and abounding river, which gladdens the city and the 
 vineyard of our God ; which has its source in the 
 pierced side and most precious wounds of Jesus, 
 and flows on to us through the channel of the 
 Apostolic chair of Peter. 
 
 God has given in charge to Peter the eternal ^ome 
 
 interests of all mankind ; and has constituted Peter's ti^„ ^.H^^.^ of 
 See the guardian of His gifts of grace. Rome alone ""'*^-^" 
 
 dares claim this world-wide rule, and Eome alone 
 possesses it. In her lives on, and ever will live on, the 
 blessed rule of Peter. In her, through him, its liead, 
 the whole college of the Apostles is represented to us. 
 Out of her communion no Church can be Apostolic. 
 Christ Himself dwells in her, and He has estab- 
 lished that imperishable dynasty as the everlasting 
 basis of His everlastino; Church. He has constituted
 
 64 THE CHURCH can i^eveu lose 
 
 each succeeding Roman Pontiff the teacher of His 
 faith ; the centre of His Chuixh's Unity ; the ruler and 
 the shepherd of His fiock ; on him alone has He 
 conferred the divine right of delegating His juris- 
 diction throughout the universe, and of sending 
 
 Rom. X. 15. forth the messenoiers of whom it is written : — ^ IIoiv 
 beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of 
 jjeace, of them that biding glad tidings of good things!' 
 
 The Church Tliis Apostolic missiou is from Christ, and the model 
 
 bears the image „ . . ^^. . . „ 
 
 of her or it IS His owu uiissiou irom the r ather. He, too, 
 
 gives the Chmxh her Unity, her Sanctity, her Catho- 
 licity. Tiiey are, all of them, the purchase of His 
 most precious blood ; the gifts of His most sacred 
 Heart. They form the image and the expression of 
 His own divine perfections, Who dwells Himself 
 within her. 
 Apoe. V. 9, 10. ' Redemisti nos^ Deiis, in sanguine tuo ex omni 
 
 tribu, et lingua, et jwpido, et natione, et fecisti nos 
 Deo nostro regnum.' 
 
 II. 
 
 Quia non potest destriii, constat non esse divisnm. Non enim 
 dividitur unita.s, ncc scinditur ; et idco nee coiTiiptelaj subditur, 
 nee ajtati. — S. Amhros. de Fide, lib. I. c. i. n. 11. 
 
 The Church's notes TiiESE arc tlic marks by which the Churcli of Christ 
 
 permanent may bc knowu ; thcsc arc her credentials. Tliey 
 
 always visible, arc intimately connected with one anotlier, and they 
 
 are all of tliem essential; tliey cannot be divided, 
 
 nor can any one of them 1)e dispensed wit]i. But if
 
 HER OUTWARD UNITY. G5 
 
 they are notes tliey must be visible. When a person 
 is described in a document it is by visible marks and 
 features ; it would be mere trifling to draw his picture 
 in lineaments which could not always be recognised. 
 If the visible Church is to endure till the end of all 
 things, it follows that every one of her notes must 
 endure also, permanent as herself and equally visible 
 and characteristic as at the beginning. It would be 
 more consistent to deny the necessity of a visible 
 church and visible sacraments altogether, than 
 whilst affirming it, at the same time to profess that 
 any one of the essential notes of that Church can 
 ever be lost to sight. Those notes remain for all 
 generations, and form collectively a token and a 
 signal marking the abode upon earth of that God 
 ' Who will have all men to be saved.' The mission i Tim. 
 of the Church, the very end of her existence, is the 
 salvation of the whole human race, not of any privi- 
 leged class alone ; and God cannot at any time allow 
 her to be deprived of those marks by which she is 
 always to be known through all the ages, to all who 
 sincerely wish for salvation ; not only to such as 
 have leisure and learning to turn over the pages of 
 the Fathers, and laboriously investigate the teach- 
 ings of antiquity, but to the poor, the ignorant, the 
 labouring, the masses of the human race. 
 
 Each one of the four notes of Christ's Church is 
 affirmed as a matter of fliith by the Creed, and no 
 man can reasonably trust his soul to any communic^n 
 which does not visibly possess them all. 
 
 VOL. 1. F
 
 66 
 
 THE BODY OF CHRIST 
 
 Attractiveness 
 of 
 
 the theory 
 
 of the suspension 
 
 of 
 
 visible unity. 
 
 Paradise Lost, 
 iv. 811. 
 
 Divine 
 test of truth. 
 
 I. St. John iv. 
 1, 2, 3. 
 
 Consciences troubled by a sense of their separated 
 position are naturally soothed and attracted by a 
 theory which represents the existing divisions of 
 Christendom in the light of a mere suspension of 
 outward intercommunion, happening in chastisement 
 for the sins of men, but involving no guilt of schism. 
 There is a seeming humility in the teaching that 
 separation ought therefore to be submitted to with 
 resignation by individuals, though not ^vithout ear- 
 nest prayers and endeavours for a general reconcilia- 
 tion. But this apparent angel of light is in reality a 
 wolf in sheep's clothing, a delusive and seductive 
 phantom, which will not stand the test of Ithuriel's 
 bright spear of truth, — 
 
 ' for no falsehood can endure 
 Touch of celestial temper, but returns 
 Of force to its own likeness.' 
 
 The Apostle ' whom Jesus loved,' has w\arned us 
 against false spirits, and taught us how to detect 
 them : — 
 
 * Dearly beloved, believe not every spirit, but tr}^ the 
 spirits if they be of God : because many false prophets are 
 gone out into the world. By this is tlie spirit of God 
 known. Every spirit, which confesseth that Jesus Christ 
 is come in the flesh, is of God: and every spirit that dis- 
 Rolveth Jesus,' is not of God : and this is Antichrist, of 
 whom you liave heard that he cometh, and he is now 
 already in the world.' 
 
 • Ancient codices quoted by Socrates, Hist. Eccl. vii. 32, 
 read: — o \vei roy 'Itjuovv ; the Vulgate has: — solvit .lestim. — 
 Note in Prof. Oin.sl)y's edition of Card. Mai's Greek Testament. 
 Dublin, IHr.O.
 
 her Unity ; 
 
 CAN NEVER BE DISSOLVED. 67 
 
 The meaning is tlie same in the Oxford Greek, 
 which has : — b ju,^ b[xoXoys7 tov 'Irjcrouv 'Kpia-rov Iv 
 (rapx) s7\.rj7vvS6ra. 
 
 The Church is at once the fruit, and the apph- The test applied. 
 cation, and the continuance on earth, of the Incar- 
 nation of the Son of God. Holy Scripture declares 
 it to be, ' His body, and the fulness of Him, who is Eph. i. 23. 
 filled all in all.' Whatever doctrine, then, dissolves 
 the Church, dissolves Christ's presence upon earth. 
 Whatever doctrine teaches that any one of the visible 
 notes of the Church has failed, so far tends to deny 
 tliat Christ is still with us in the Church. 
 
 Now, tlie theory in question asserts that the The theory tends 
 Church, through the sins of her members, has for- the church's notes : 
 feited the gift of visible unity. This would resemble 
 the judgment which fell upon the proud sons of 
 men whose language was confounded at Babel. 
 They were building a tower of pride to reach the 
 heavens, and God at once frustrated their design by 
 depriving them of outward unity. This one curse 
 sufficed. We are not told that they were less one 
 inwardly, less united in their evil hearts than 
 before, but their speech was rendered diverse ; they 
 were scattered into all lands ; they lost their out- 
 ward unity, and they were impotent to build. 
 God's Church is God's own tower, by which He 
 bids the humble of heart ascend to highest heaven. 
 Can it be true that He has turned her into Babylon 
 in anger at her children's sin, when it was sin she 
 was sent to cure ? 
 
 F 2
 
 68 FATAT. CONSEQUENCES OF 
 
 Her Sanctity ; The iiiflictioii of SO severc a jiulgment woiikl seem 
 to imply an amount of wickedness incompatible with 
 the Church's attribute of sanctity. Although her pale 
 upon earth comprises sinners as well as saints, yet 
 if sin can have so far prevailed within her as to have 
 led to the suspension of her outward unity, it must 
 also have obscured her visible note of holiness. 
 
 Her CathoUcity ; If the Churcli's outward unity were thus suspended, 
 and her inward energies crippled by prevailing sin, 
 she could scarcely maintain her Catholicity through- 
 out the regions of the earth, and certainly she would 
 no longer be Catholic as to time. She would be a 
 
 o 
 
 different Church from that of the early ages ; nor 
 w^ould they recognise her in her state of outward 
 division and inward falling off. 
 Her Apostoiicity. The Church's missiou is from Christ and from the 
 Holy Spirit, whose abiding presence Christ has pro- 
 st. John xiv. 16, 17. mised shall be for ever with her, — 'the Spirit of Truth, 
 whom the world cannot receive.' Were it even pos- 
 sible that this blessed Spirit of Ilohness could continue 
 with the Church after hvv lioliness was obscured by 
 sin, yet His teaching w^ould no longer be discernible 
 amidst the disagreement of division. In fact, the 
 maintainers of the theory of suspended unity hold 
 tliat the infallible voice of the Church is suspended 
 likewise, and that men must now seek it as best they 
 can by ascertaining what it was that she taught at 
 the time when slie was visibly and wholly one. Yet 
 they do not point to any authority which can declare 
 or explain that teaching witli divine certitude. So
 
 THE THEORY OF HIDDEN UNITY. 
 
 GO 
 
 Maintainers 
 
 of 
 this doctrine. 
 
 that, according to this doctrine, the Cliurch's mission 
 as the infalHble teacher of the nations is in abeyance 
 also, and lier note of ApostoUcity has become as in- 
 visible as her other notes. 
 
 Thus does the aforesaid theory tend directly to 
 dissolve the Church, Christ's body ; it tends to a 
 denial of the abiding constancy of the Fruit of the 
 Incarnation amongst us in its fulness ; it would rob 
 us of our Emmanuel, our ' God with us,' of ' Christ 
 come in the flesh. '-r-This, St. John warns us, is the 
 mark of Antichrist. 
 
 Yet, as before observed, the same theory is so 
 calculated to lull conscientious doubts regarding the 
 safetj^ of the Anglican position, that men who would 
 abhor its consequences if perceived by them, have 
 been beguiled into its acceptance and defence. Dr. 
 Pusey's ' Eirenicon ' is based upon it, and it is almost 
 dogmatically put forth in the following extracts from 
 a work by the Anghcan Bishop of Brecliin, Dr. 
 Forbes. 
 
 After stating that unity is an 'attribute of the 
 church,' and ' very clearly taught in the Holy Scrip- 
 tures ; ' and asserting that ' the one truth requires 
 one vehicle of its tradition, the society which was a. h. Forbes, d.c.l, 
 visibly to bear the image of the one Christ on ppltiT -? fndtm. 
 earth,'— Dr. Forbes endeavours to show how real ^°"^^"">^^^'''^''^^^^- 
 though unseen unity may still exist, beneath the 
 divisions we behold. 
 
 * Unity,' he says, 'may be divided into objective and sub- 
 jective. Objective unity is that inwrought by our Head, Jesus 
 
 The 
 theory stated. 
 Explanation 
 
 of the 
 Niceue Creed, 
 
 by
 
 70 ALLEGED PRECEDENTS FOR 
 
 Himself, through imiou with Himself. It is wrought on 
 His side, by the communication of the ' one Spirit,' and 
 by the Sacraments, making us all one body in Him. It 
 requires, on our part, continuity of the commission which 
 He gave to His Apostles, and perseverance in the faith 
 which He committed to the Church. Subjective unity 
 is unity of will, and intercommunion with one another. 
 Subjective unity may be suspended, while objective unity 
 is maintained. Subjective unity was suspended during 
 the schism at Antioch, yet objective unity is maintained, 
 for the blessed Meletius is a saint. Subjective unity was 
 suspended in the quarrels between the British and Western 
 Churches in the Saxon times, yet nobody doubts of the 
 salvation or sanctity of St. Aidan or St. Cuthbert. Sub- 
 jective unity was suspended during the struggles of the 
 antipopes, yet no one considers the followers of Peter de 
 Luna as either heretics or schismatics. And this must 
 also apply to the mighty dissension between the East and 
 tlie West, and between ourselves and the rest of Christen- 
 dom. It is deeply to be deplored that the state of the 
 Church is as it is ; but let us hope that the evil is not so 
 great as it seems, and that there is a fund of unity, if 
 men only understood each other ; that the fissures are 
 only surface ones ; that the disorder is functional, not 
 organic' 
 
 Dosire Doubtlcss a better understandiDoj would remove 
 
 fur . . ^. . 
 
 botitiiDuit'israudiiig. many hindrances to re-union. But it is mere self- 
 delusion to conceal the fact that the divisions extend 
 far below the surface. They have to do with points 
 of dogma ; with truths revealed by God to man, 
 which admit indeed of explanation, but not of com- 
 promise. Still, ' if men only understood each other,' 
 much more of common ground would be discovered 
 than they are now aware of.
 
 THE DIVISIONS OF CHRISTENDOM. 71 
 
 It follows then, as a necessary consequence, that 
 every man should do what he can to understand, 
 and to make himself understood ; that no one 
 should shrink from listening to, or from giving, 
 full and patient explanation ; that no one should 
 rest on statements which have no foundation in 
 fact, or persist in them when proved to be false ; 
 that none should dwell on hearsay rumours and idle 
 tales with which our common enemy seeks to be- 
 guile men from the truth ; it follows, too, that no 
 opportunity for Mr discussion, in a spirit of charity, 
 should be withheld or avoided ; that no conse- 
 quences should be shrunk from, which God's truth 
 may involve ; that we all, in a word, should be 
 true, generous, and loving, candid, open-hearted, 
 simple, honest, and loyal, to God, to one another, 
 and to ourselves. How far each one is so, is a ques- 
 tion for each one to ask himself. Would to God we 
 all made it our business to understand and to love 
 each other better ! 
 
 Dr. Forbes returns to the subject. At p. 285 he d-- Forbps's 
 
 examination 
 
 sketches the present divided state of Christendom, of 
 
 • 1 T ^^'^ subject. 
 
 and asks, — 'What are we to say with regard to 
 it? how are we to justify it?' He rejects the 
 doctrine that any single one of the various 
 Christian bodies, whether Greek, Anglican, Eomaii 
 Catholic, or any other, can be exclusively the one 
 Church : — 
 
 * What is this,' he says, ' but the spirit of Donatisra ? Can p, 286-7. 
 this really satisfy the enlightened conscience of the Chris-
 
 72 EXPLANATIONS REJECTED BY Dl{. FORBES. 
 
 tian ? How, on tliijj ground, shall we account for the evi- 
 dent good that exists beyond our own sj^stem ? Shall 
 the Roman Catholic gainsay the grace which has been 
 poured out on the Greek Obedience, so that nations of 
 heathens or of heretics have since the schism been 
 gathered into the faith in Christ? Shall the Anglican be- 
 lieve, that the merits of ('arlo Borromeo, the most perfect 
 type of the Christian bishop which the world ever saw, 
 are as the evidence of grace in a man accidentally better 
 than his system ? Shall either Greek or Roman speak of 
 the devout Ken, or George Herbert, or Launcelot An- 
 drewes, as devils' blinds to keep men by a simulated 
 disguise of goodness from what they term the true 
 Church? Nay, shall men undervalue the unsacramental 
 grace of those, who like Spener and Gerhard have 
 adorned systems, which, in their logical consequences, and 
 generally in their practical results, have led to the most 
 miserable consequences ?' 
 
 r. 287. He equally rejects indifferentism, and the theory 
 
 of an invisible Church, as ' incompatible witli a real 
 belief in the Incarnation of the Word, ' for,' he ob- 
 serves, ' that Word has been made manifest, has 
 become visible, and therefore must energize in some 
 definite visible body.' He adds : ' There are also 
 distinct texts in Scripture which attach salvation to 
 belonging to the One Body of Christ. There are 
 certain outward conditions, such as Baptism, the 
 Euchari,<t, common worship, and tlie like, which 
 necessarily imply some visible body.' 
 Pp. 288-91. He then proceeds : — 
 
 Dr. I'oii.cs's 'The tiutli tlien nuist Ije somewhere between these two 
 
 exp :uiatiou. theories. On the one hand, we must avoid Donatism; on 
 
 the other, Latiludinarianisni. Ib'ly Scrij)turc sets fortri
 
 THE CONCLUSION HE ARIUVES AT. 73 
 
 what Christian^!, as individuals, or collectively as the living 
 Body of Christ, ought to be ; but it does not say what 
 degree of shortcoming shall forfeit the blessings of the 
 Cfospel. The Church and her children in her were pur- 
 chased by the blood of Grod, that they should be holy, the 
 temple of the Holy Grhost, full of love anS peace and all 
 other fruits of the Spirit. It was said of individuals, "By this 
 shall men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love 
 one to another ; " as much as it was said of the whole 
 Church, " That they may be one as We are." It was said 
 of every Priest, " The lips of the Priest should keep 
 knowledge," as much as it was said of the whole Church, 
 " Thy teachers shall not be removed into a corner any 
 more." Our Lord has promised, " Lo, I am with you 
 alway, even imto the end of the world;" yet surely as 
 much by the Spirit of Holiness, as by wisdom and teaching. 
 Since then our Lord's promise was fulfilled in that dreary 
 and hateful tenth century, when it was said that although 
 our Lord was in the boat, men were afraid to wake Him 
 up, but rather wished that He might never awake to 
 judge them ; so may it be fulfilled now, although the 
 fulness of His Presence may be abated through our divi- 
 sions and want of love. We bear separate witness still to 
 the One Faith which He gave to His Church, the faith of 
 the Creeds ; we all look to Him, as truly present in His 
 Sacraments, truly giving His own Body and Blood ; we all 
 hold to the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, teaching 
 those same truths which they taught, and holding sacred 
 the descent from them. We are one Body, through the 
 one Spirit, and all partaking of the One Body of Christ, 
 all holding to the One Head. The Body is mangled, but, 
 we believe, not severed, through loss of intercommunion. 
 We are one, we trust, in One, although in some, even 
 grave things, not at one with one another. If the Gospel 
 had its full course, every priest should be holy, and " all 
 the children " of the Church " taught by God." Our Lord 
 has promised, " I am with you alway, even to the end of
 
 74 DIVJDED BODIES CANNOT HAVE 
 
 the world ; " but He has not promised to be always jiresent 
 in the same degree or the same v,'a.j. He is not with us 
 as He was with the Apostles, in that they were " full of 
 the Holy Grhost," and they spake as " moved by the Holy 
 Ghost," so that what they spake were the words of God, 
 and have been, ever since, a fountain of truth to the 
 Church of Christ, such as no words, since spoken through 
 men, are or can be. He has been with the Church, in 
 dififerent degrees, since, according to her faithfvdness. His 
 Presence was lessened, surely, when He gave over whole 
 Churches to the Moslem apostasy. His Presence was less- 
 ened when He had given a nation, once the glory of the 
 Church, to set up the goddess of Reason. Everywhere He 
 is present, in every office exercised in His name : He 
 regenerates. He confirms. He absolves, He consecrates. 
 He ordains. He preserves the truth. He teaches those who 
 will receive it.' 
 
 I omit a paragraph on invincible ignorance, after 
 which Dr. Forbes proceeds : — 
 
 P- 290. ' It is best too to acknowledge our disjointed and un- 
 
 happy condition, rather than to shape the Gospel into 
 a theory that suits us. We had better acknowledge, that 
 for the sins of Christendom sul»jective unity is suspended, 
 and that while God has done great things for us, we have 
 not co-operated therewith.' 
 
 He exhorts men to strive and pray for unity, and 
 adds : — 
 
 p. 291. 'One effect of our unhappy divisions is, that we can- 
 
 not meet, even to heal them. Until we long more for 
 unity, we cannot take even the first visible steps towards 
 it, and union in heart must precede union in visible act. 
 As God's Holy Spirit fills the river of God, it will, in all 
 its several channels, overflow its banks, until they meet in 
 one vast sea of the knowledge and of the love of God.'
 
 ONE AXD THE SAME SPIRIT. t O 
 
 The river of God gladdens many nations, whose One Church 
 several hierarchies form many channels. But these m;iny nations. 
 hierarchies have all one visible head and centre, and 
 tlius the channels, though diverse, are not divided. 
 Their life-bestowing waters flow on through the para- 
 dise of the one fold in many courses and directions, 
 but they remain still visibly united with each other 
 through tlieir central union in the one spring wliich 
 pours forth its abundant waves from the Apostolic 
 throne ; from the sacred hill of Sion, the holy moun- 
 tain in which God dwells. These are the waters of 
 'the rivers of Juda, and their fountain comes fortli of Jo^i iii. is. 
 the house of the Lord,' which is established and built 
 up by Himself on Peter. God owns not Churches 
 of man's making. — ' My people,' says the Lord, ' have Jei-cm. ii. 13. 
 d.one two evils. They have forsaken me, the foun- 
 tain of hving water, and have digged to themselves 
 cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.' 
 
 It is true that ' the Spirit of the Lord hath filled wisdom i. 7. 
 the whole world: ' that 'the Spirit breatheth where St. John ill. s. 
 he will ; and thou hearest his voice, but thou know- 
 est not whence lie cometli and whither he goeth : so 
 is every one that is born of the Spirit.' I have Seop. 17, &c. 
 already spoken of the secret deaHngs of God with 
 individuals. They are unfathomable. God has re- tiio 
 
 served them to Himself, and we cannot deduce from mysteries 
 them any general rule of conduct. If we search Dn-me grace. 
 into them, we seem to meet with the reply which 
 Christ gave to His Apostle : — ' Wliat is it to thee ? st. John xxi. 22. 
 Follow thou me.' It is for each one to act up to his
 
 76 THE BODY OF CHRIST 
 
 own knowledge, and to take lieed to follow closely 
 the light and grace vouchsafed to liimself in parti- 
 cular. But of this we are sure ; — that the light and 
 grace bestowed on those outside the fold, is intended 
 by God to lead them onwards to full and outward 
 communion with that one Church which is the one 
 only visible temple of His presence ; tlie one only 
 body of men wherein His Spirit everlastingly abides ; 
 and, that, if they wilfully frustrate this divine pur- 
 pose, they will be called upon to give account. Even 
 Sacraments of the Chm^ch may be found outside her 
 pale, wherever there is a true priesthood ; but they 
 turn to death instead of hfe, to all who culpably 
 remain in a state of scliism. 
 Exchisiveness Tlic ouc Spirit of Christ animates the one Body of 
 
 the one Church. Christ, whosc Unity cxcludcs all other bodies. It 
 lias many members, and its life-blood flows through 
 many veins and arteries ; but they have all one only 
 centre ; one heart which feeds them, and one cir- 
 cumference which limits them. No body of Chris- 
 tians can be external to this, and, at the same time, 
 one witli it. No Churches can be Christ's which are 
 not visibly a portion of it. Tlie sap wliicli circulates 
 through the vine gives life to that tree alone. It 
 cannot nourish any other which is independent in its 
 growtli. The one living God cannot dwell in any 
 Church but one: but tliat one Church is extended 
 over tlie wliole world, and God would liave all men 
 to unite themselves to her communion, and become 
 partakers of lier divine life.
 
 CAN BE CUT OP^E. 77 
 
 It is in this sense that the Eonian Cuthohc Churcli, 
 tliongh universal, is at tlie same time exckisive, and 
 necessarily so. It is not her own doing, it is God's. 
 Nor could she otherwise fulfil her office. Every one 
 who believes in one visible Church and one definite 
 revelation, and the necessity of faith in that revelation, 
 must also admit the existence of certain limits. It is 
 simply a question of degree ; he must acknowledge a 
 hne of demarcation somewhere. Omnipotence itself 
 cannot divide a unit, and still leave it one ; nor elicit 
 more than one truth out of innumerable discordant 
 opinions. If the Church is one, by that very fact 
 she becomes exclusive. If God has revealed the 
 truth on any given point, by that very fact it be- 
 comes the only truth, as far as that point extends. 
 Therefore, so far from exclusiveness affording any 
 ground for objection, it is an essential characteristic 
 of the one true Church. I do not say it is the only 
 characteristic, or by any means a conclusive one, for a 
 false system may assert it ; but I say it is a necessary 
 characteristic, for God's system can never admit a rival. 
 
 Here we find one of the many apparent paradoxes Solution 
 
 of Christianity, and, like all others, its solution is seeming paradox. 
 redundant in wisdom and beauty. There is no 
 teaching which, whilst it strictly maintains the ex- 
 clusive unity of God's religion and God's church, 
 will be found, at the same time, one-half so free, 
 so large, or so liberal, regarding the boundless, 
 overflowing, and universal mercies of the self-same 
 God, as the teaching of the church of Peter, out-
 
 I 8 UXSCEX WORKIXG OF 
 
 side whose fold there is no salvation. There is no 
 other teaching which can 'justify the ways of God to 
 man,' maintaining to the full the claims of His truth 
 and justice, and at the same time magnifj^ing and ex- 
 tolling His sovereign prerogative of loving-kindness. 
 Inside Christ's fold there are wolves who have no 
 inward union with the flock ; and, outside it. He 
 may have sheep who belong to it in heart, and 
 would run to its visible protection if they did but 
 know it. How many such souls may there not be 
 in the Eussian and other Greek communions ? And 
 also amongst other separated communities ? Yet, of 
 late, in our own countries, the truth has been so 
 loudly proclaimed, that there is too much reason to 
 fear it is often rejected or put off. 
 The The doctrine of the Eoman Church is the only 
 
 Catholic . ^ ' n ^ Tm 1 
 
 Doctrine. consistcut or satisfactory explanation of the difficulty 
 expressed by Dr. Forbes, respecting goodness found 
 outside her, and it is a true and sufficient explanation. 
 The following extracts will not be out of place from 
 the pages of one more competent than I am to speak 
 on such a subject. In his ' Lectures on Anghcan 
 Difficulties,' ^ Dr. Newman says : — 
 
 'Grace is given for the merits of Christ all over tlie 
 earth ; tliere is no corner, even of Paganism, where it is 
 not present — present in each heart of man,in real sufficiency 
 for his ultimate salvation. Not that the grace presented 
 to eacli is sucli, as at once to bring him to lieaven ; but it 
 is sufficient for a beginning. It is sufficient to enable him 
 
 • Burns & Co. 1850. Lcct. III. ])p. 70-7-1.
 
 THE GRACE OP GOD. 79 
 
 to plead for other grace, and that second grace is such as 
 to impetrate a third grace ; and thus the soul is led on 
 from grace to grace, and from strength to strength, till at 
 length it is, so to say, in very sight of heaven, if the gift of 
 perseverance does but complete the work. Now, here 
 observe, it is not certain that a soul which has the first 
 grace will have the second ; the grant of the second 
 depends on its use of the first. Again, it may have the 
 first and second, and yet not the third ; or from the first 
 on to the nineteenth, and not the twentieth. We mount 
 up by steps towards Grod, and, alas I it is possible that a 
 soul may be courageous and bear up for nineteen steps, 
 and stop and faint at the twentieth. Nay, further tlian 
 this — a soul may go forward till it arrives at the very grace 
 of contrition, a contrition so loving, so sin-renouncing, as 
 to bring it at once into a state of reconciliation, and clothe 
 it in the vestment of justice ; and yet it ma}^ yield to the 
 further trials which beset it and fall away. 
 
 ' New, all this may take place even outside the Church, 
 and consider what at once follows from it. This follows 
 in the first place, that men there may be, not Catholics, 
 really obeying God and rewarded by Him, nay in His 
 favour, with their sins forgiven and with a secret union 
 with that heavenly kingdom to which they do not visibly 
 belong, who are, through their subsequent failure, never to 
 reach it. There may be those who are increasing in grace 
 and knowledge, and approaching nearer to the Catholic 
 Church every year, who are not in the Church and never 
 will be. The highest gifts and graces are compatible with 
 ultimate reprobation. As regards, then, the evidences of 
 sanctity in members of the National Establishment, on 
 which you insist. Catholics are not called on to deny them. 
 We think such instances are few, nor so eminent as you 
 are accustomed to fancy ; but we do not wish to deny, nor 
 have any difficulty in admitting, such facts as you have 
 to adduce, whatever they be. We do not think it neces- 
 sary to carp at every instance of supernatural excellence
 
 80 SPECIAL DISPOSITIONS ARE 
 
 among Protestants when it comes before ns, or to explain 
 it away ; all we know is, that the grace given them is in- 
 tended ultimately to bring them into the Church, and if it 
 does not tend to do so, it will not ultimately profit them ; 
 but we as little deny its presence in their souls as Pro- 
 testants themselves, and as the fact is no perplexity to us, 
 it is no triumph to them. 
 
 * And secondly, in like manner, whatever be the comfort 
 or the strength attendant upon the use of the national 
 ordinances in the case of this or that person, a Catholic 
 may admit it without scruple, for it is no evidence to him 
 in behalf of those ordinances themselves.' 
 
 He then explains the distinction between grace 
 conveyed through a sacrament ; as to an infant 
 through baptism ; and without a sacrament, through 
 ' the inward energetic act of the recipient.' The 
 Session xiv. cb. 4. Couucil of Trent refers to the case where ' contrition 
 is perfect through charity, and reconciles man with 
 God, before the Sacrament of Penance is actually 
 received.' Thus, this disposition of the heart obtains 
 the effects of that Sacrament without its actual re- 
 iiM.i. ch. 2. ccption, although, as the same Council states, it ' is as 
 necessary for those who have fallen after baptism, as 
 baptism itself for the unregenerate.' The Council 
 teaches, indeed, that, ' the said reconciUation is not to 
 be ascribed to that contrition, independently of the 
 desire of the sacrament which is included therein.' 
 Still, if in such a case God gives the grace without the 
 sacrament, lie may do so also in other cases where 
 men seek Ilim in good faith ; especially, in ordinances 
 where they think He is, though in truth lie is not 
 there. He visits llicm, in reward of their lovmi?
 
 REWARDED BY SPKCIAL GRACES. 81 
 
 search of Him, but it is not by the cliannel wherein 
 they seek Him, and through which they think they 
 find Him, Dr. Newman proceeds: — 
 
 ' Let me grant to you then, that the reception of your 
 ordinances brings peace and joy to the soul ; that it per- 
 manently influences or changes the character of the 
 recipient. Let me grant, on the other hand, that their 
 profanation, when men have been taught to believe in 
 them, and in profaning are guilty of contempt of that God 
 to whom they ascribe them, is attended by judgments ; 
 this properly shows nothing more than that, by a general 
 law, lying, deceit, presumption, or hypocrisy are punished, 
 and prayer, faith, contrition, rewarded. There is nothing 
 to show that the effects would not have been precisely the 
 same under the same inward dispositions, though another 
 ordinance, a love-feast or a washing the feet, with no pre- 
 tence to the name of a Sacrament, had in good faith been 
 adopted. And it is obvious to any one that, for a member 
 of the Establishment to bring himself to confession, 
 especially some years back, required dispositions of a very 
 special character, a special contrition and a special desire 
 of the Sacrament, which, as far as we may judge by out- 
 ward signs, were a special effect of grace, and would fittingly 
 receive from Grod's bounty a special reward, some further 
 and higher grace, or even remission of sins. And again, 
 when a member of the Establishment, surrounded by those 
 who scoffed at the doctrine, accepted Grod's word that He 
 would make bread His Body, and honoured Him by accept- 
 ing it, is it wonderful, is it not suitable to Grod's mercy, if 
 He reward such a special faith with a quasi sacramental 
 grace, though he ignorantly offered to a material substance 
 that adoration which He intended to pay to the present, 
 but invisible. Lamb of Grod ? ' 
 
 Thus, Eome requires no one to brand as ' devils' individual cases 
 bhnds' either Ken, or Herbert, or Andrewes, or any no criterion. 
 
 VOL. I. G
 
 82 INSTANCES OF GOODNESS 
 
 other. Nor yet men of another school, such as Henry- 
 Martin, Legh Eichmoncl, Wilberforce, and, in our 
 own day, the pious and meek Archbishop Sumner, 
 whose goodness was notorious. Yet tlie same Dr. 
 Sumner, on being consuUed officially as Archbishop 
 of Canterbury (after the Gorham decision), told the 
 believers in baptismal regeneration to continue to 
 teach that doctrine as heretofore ; only to allow to 
 those who differed, an equal freedom to deny it ; 
 just as the estabhshed English Church does now. 
 Presbyterians, I am surc that, witliout referring to the Lutheran 
 Gerhard, or to Spener the father of Protestant 
 German pietism, Dr. Forbes could have produced 
 many striking instances of rehgious fervour from 
 amongst the sectarians of his own land. There, in 
 the open air on a summer Sunday, the traveller still 
 may hnd the Gaelic preacher, and his crowds of 
 listeners ; children of those old Covenanters, who, 
 firm to the death in their resistance to ' Antichrist 
 and Prelacy,' met in multitudes to worship God on 
 the barren mountain side. Of them came the young 
 Talcs of MacKail, who, according to Sir Walter Scott, displayed 
 
 a 
 
 Grandfatiicr. a martyr's courage under cruel torture, and welcomed 
 the death to which, in the same cause, he was con- 
 demned, with the exclamation : — ' I shall speak no 
 more with earthly creatures, but shall enjoy the aspect 
 of the ineffable Creator Himself. Farewell father, 
 motlier, friends — welcome glory — welcome eternal 
 life — and welcome, death ! ' 
 Wesley What shall be said of John Wesley, with his 
 
 whitoficki. l)oinidless alms, his rice or Inscuit food, his bed on
 
 OUTSIDE THE CHURCH. 83 
 
 the floor, his constant toil and preaching, provinsj 
 the sincerity of his prayer : — ' Lord let me not live 
 useless ' ? There is Whitefield, again, with his early 
 ardour in visiting hospitals and prisons, his spirit- 
 moving sermons and his thousands of weeping 
 hearers. 
 
 In spite of such phenomena, the question for Personal 
 each one remams the same. We have not to answer ^''•''i'""'" ' '^y- 
 for others, excepting so far as w^e can influence them. 
 We have to answer for ourselves. — ' What must / do, 
 that I may be saved ? ' — Which is the Gospel of 
 Christ? — Where is the faith once dehvered to the 
 Saints ? For there is but one Gospel and one faith. If 
 a very angel from heaven preach another, ' let him be 
 anathema ! ' Thus are we warned by the Holy Ghost. 
 
 Cases of extraordinary goodness may be found 
 even amongst the unbaptized. There is a well-known Quakors. 
 instance in the life-long, ceaseless, labours of the 
 Quakeress, Mrs. Fry. Born to wealth, educated in Mrs. Fry. 
 accomplishments, at an early age she found herself, 
 in mind, she tells us, as ' a vessel without a pilot on a 
 stormy sea,' and she turned to scepticism ; but she was 
 brought back to religious convictions and a corre- 
 sponding hfe by an American fellow-Quaker ; and, 
 even at the age of eighteen, she opened a school for 
 eighty poor children, within her fixther's house. After 
 her marriage, the accounts of misery in the prisons 
 reached her ears; she fearlessly entered the dungeons of 
 Newgate, and found herself amongst I GO female prison- 
 ers and a number of cliildrcn, in a den of depravity and 
 
 g2
 
 84 BUT THEY SIIIXE NOT WITH 
 
 disorder. Her entrance raised a tumult, but lier noble, 
 loving mien and her gentle words controlled it. She re- 
 turned a second time with her Bible, and pointed to it 
 as the ground of her mission. She read to that wild 
 assembly the 20th chapter of St. Matthew; how Christ 
 calls all into His vineyard, how the last shall be first, 
 how He came to give His life for all, and how He had 
 compassion on the blind. She wearied not in her 
 work, and at length the dungeon changed its aspect, 
 and its inmates voluntarily undertook, at her sugges- 
 tion, the observance of a formal rule as if their 
 dwelhng had been a convent. Tims commenced her 
 life, and, ere it ended, it might be said of her that 
 she had done for the moral character of prisons wdiat 
 Howard had previously effected for their material 
 improvement. Her efforts were not confined to Eng- 
 land; they extended to France, Switzerland, Belgium, 
 Holland, Denmark, and a part of German}^ The 
 king of Prussia showed her especial honour. All tlie 
 while, she was earnestly practising her religious tenets, 
 and encouraging others in them. But up to the 
 time of her death, she assisted and consoled the poor 
 and distressed of all religions, and in her diary it was 
 found, recorded by hei'self — 'I never feel so happy 
 as when I have helped anotlier by the way, or relieved 
 the sufferings of some fellow-creature in affliction.' 
 She was honoured and beloved by high and low, and 
 ' her children rose up and called her blessed.' 
 
 Had not sucli a one the l);i])tism of will ? It may be 
 so. It is God's secret. l>ut we know that God is just,
 
 THE LUSTRE OF THE SALVTS. 85 
 
 and very merciful. Not even a cup of cold water, if 
 given for the love of Him, shall lose its sure reward. 
 God forbid we should ever decry goodness. God 
 forbid we should ever shrink fj'om extolling it as 
 from Him, wherever it may be found. But heap 
 together all the goodness, all the virtues, all the 
 sanctity that exists, or ever has existed, throughout 
 the globe, apart from the Church of Peter ; and, not 
 at its utmost, could the accumulation be compared 
 with the heroic, eagle-soaring holiness, and transcen- 
 dent unearthliness of life, which reveal the presence 
 of the hving God in the person of any smgle one of 
 those superhuman miracles of His grace, who are 
 to be found in communion with the Apostolic See of 
 Eome, and whom she recognises as His Saints, shining 
 in glory Hke the glittering stars of heaven. 
 
 My present purpose does not require me to analyse Greek missions. 
 the accuracy of tlie statements of Dr. Forbes and 
 others, respecting conversions effected by tlie Greek 
 Church. I need not now pause to prove how mistaken 
 is the idea entertained by some, that, in past ages, 
 Russia received her Christianity from Constantinople 
 at a period when that Church was severed from the 
 Eoman communion ; and that Bulgaria owed it to the 
 few schismatic priests who (together with other 
 religionists mingled with them) so perplexed the 
 Prince BoQ-oris as to induce him to address himself 
 to Pope St. Nicholas I. Nor need I inquire whether 
 more recent missionary efforts have surpassed the
 
 86 MISSIONARY ZEAL AND 
 
 limits of Eussian inlluence, even if they have ex- 
 tended beyond the bounds of her territory. Nor, 
 again, liow far their success may be due to the 
 tempting Eussian gold, or the formidable Russian 
 knout, — to hopes or to fears for which Eussia, not 
 heaven, supplies the motive. We need not go 
 beyond Catholic Poland to be convinced of her mis- 
 sionary ardour, or to learn the means which she 
 hesitates not to employ in the propagation of a faith 
 which is the handmaid to her politics. All this is 
 beside the question ; for though sterility is a clear 
 mark of error (since God's spirit can never be 
 inactive), yet fecundity is no sure mark of truth. 
 On the contrary, heresy, sectarianism, and every 
 other form of error, is usually more or less prohfic. 
 If, in any case, they can be pointed to as sterile, 
 it forms the exception, not the rule. Mahome- 
 tanism of old spread itself, like a withering bhght, 
 over the fairest regions of the East ; and, in 
 our own day, infidehty and irrehgion have under- 
 mined, and, alas ! still are undermining, the faith of 
 thousands, in the most civilised countries of the West. 
 Again, — the diffusion, the vitality, and the earnest- 
 ness of the ancient heresies, and their widespread 
 missionary work amongst the heathen, present an 
 aspect perfectly astonishing, and form a mystery in 
 our contemplation of God's deahngs, wliicli is un- 
 fathomable to tlie human understanding. 
 NcKtorians. Accordiug to Gibbou, the Nestoriau lieretics suc- 
 
 chiip! xivii.' cessfully preached Christianity ' to the Bactrians,
 
 VITALITY OF ERROII. 87 
 
 the Huns, the Persians, the Indians, the Persarmenians, 
 the Medes, and the Elamites : the barbaric churches, 
 from tlie Gulf of Persia to the Caspian sea, were 
 ahnost infinite ; and their recent faith was conspicuous 
 in the number and sanctity of their monks and 
 martyrs. The pepper coast of Malabar and the isles 
 of the ocean, Socotora and Ceylon, were peopled 
 with an increasing number of Christians.' He says 
 that, in a subsequent age, the Nestorian missionaries 
 ' pursued without fear the steps of the roving Tartar, 
 and insinuated themselves into the camps of the 
 valleys of Imaus and the banks of the Selinga ; ' that 
 they ' entered China by the port of Canton and the 
 northern residence of Sigan ; ' and that ' under the 
 reign of the caliphs, the Nestorian Church was 
 diffused fi'om China to Jerusalem and Cyprus ; and 
 their numbers, with those of the Jacobites, were 
 computed to surpass the Greek and Latin commu- 
 nions ' (at least in those countries). 
 
 Thomassin says that Marco Polo found many Nes- Disoip. d.. i-KuHs.-, 
 
 •^ "^ p. I. L. i. ch.xxiv. 7. 
 
 torian Churches in Tartary, in the Mogul coimtry, 
 
 and in China and its capital, under a Patriarcli whose 
 
 residence was at Mosul on the Tigris, from whence, 
 
 like another Pope, says the above-nn.med author, he 
 
 sent forth Archbishops and Bishops throughout tlie 
 
 province of Babylon, and the whole of the Indies. 
 
 He bore the title of the ' Catholicits.' The Franciscan 
 
 missionaries in the same (thirteenth) century, and at 
 
 the commencement of the fourteenth, (as quoted by j^^j^, 
 
 Fleury,) state, that they found the Nestorians still ^^'"^^j'^^-^^^: ''^'
 
 88 
 
 HERESIES AKE A SCOUKGE, AND 
 
 Jacobites. 
 
 Thomassin 
 Diseip. de I'Eglise, 
 P. I. L. i. eh. xxiv, 
 
 Gibbon, 
 cli. xlvii. 
 
 possessing a bishopric, and inhabiting fifteen towns, 
 in China ; degraded in morals and rehgion, but so 
 powerful that they would not permit any Christian 
 of a different rite to have an oratory there, however 
 small, or to preach any other doctrine than then- 
 own ; and the reason given for this is, that none of 
 the Apostles or of their disciples ever came into those 
 countries. In like manner, when the Portuguese 
 began their expeditions to the East Indies, all the 
 Bishops and Christians whom they found there were 
 Nestorians, under the Babylonian Patriarch at Mosul. 
 This primacy was however contested by the 
 Jacobite Bishop in the same city, who ruled that 
 rival heresy under the title of Maphrian, in subordi- 
 nation to the Patriarch of Antioch. This revival 
 of Eutychianism spread itself over the whole of 
 2. Asia and Africa, under the empire of the Saracens ; 
 and was said to have infected more than forty 
 kingdoms with its pestilential tenets. It derived its 
 appellation from* the Syrian monk, Jacobus Baradreus, 
 by whose labours ' was revived, and united, and per- 
 petuated the expiring faction ' of the Monophysites. 
 They had been befriended by the Emperor Anastasius, 
 and their rule of faith had been defined by Severus, 
 Patriarch of Antioch. But the succeeding Emperor 
 re-established Catholicity in the East, and Severus 
 fled into Egypt. Fifty-four bishops of his heresy 
 were swept from theu' thrones, and eight hundred 
 ecclesiastics cast into prison. It was from these 
 ])risoners, says the historian, that Jacobus Baradasus
 
 A FIERY TRIAL OF THE HEART. 89 
 
 ' received the powers of Bisliop of Edessa and Apostle 
 of the East, and the ordination of fourscore thousand 
 bishops, priests, and deacons, is derived from the same 
 inexhaustible source.' ' The successors of Severus, 
 while they lurked in convents or villages, while tliey 
 sheltered tlieir proscribed heads in the caverns of 
 hermits or the tents of the Saracens, still asserted, 
 as they now assert, their indefeasible right to the 
 title, the rank, and the prerogatives of Patriarch of 
 Antioch.' He adds that ' during five annual lents 
 both the clergy and laity ' of the Jacobites ' abstain 
 not only from flesh and eggs, but even from the taste 
 of wine, of oil, and of fish.' 
 
 All these things seem to be permitted as a scourge, Probatiou 
 and as a searching trial of men's hearts — ooxi[xacria. the faithful. 
 Tna-rcov — as St. Epiphanius says of the Arian troubles. Advers. Hares. 
 
 bcLx. n. 12. 
 
 From the very commencement of the world, the 
 
 elect have been tested by counterfeit imitations of 
 
 God's truth ; and so must it continue to the end, 
 
 even till 'that wicked one shall be revealed, whom ii.Thessaiou.u. 8-11. 
 
 the Lord Jesus shall kill with the spirit of His 
 
 mouth ; and shall destroy with the brightness of his 
 
 coming : him, whose coming is according to the 
 
 working of Satan, in all power, and signs, and lying 
 
 w^onders, and in all seduction of iniquity to them 
 
 that perish ; because they received not the love of 
 
 the truth that they might be saved. Therefore God 
 
 shall send them the operation of error, to believe 
 
 lying : that all may be judged who have not believed 
 
 the truth, but liave consented to iniquity.'
 
 90 
 
 SPREAD OF ARIAXISM 
 
 The Eaptism 
 
 of 
 
 Yalens. 
 
 Tillemont, 
 
 Hist, des Emp. 
 
 t. V. p. 89. 
 
 Arianism. How iiiarvellous WRS the spread of the Ariaii 
 
 heresy ! For more than 300 years (nearly the age 
 of modern Protestantism) it devastated the faith of 
 thousands, and it has been resuscitated in modern 
 Socinianism. 
 
 The Imperial Eussians, Olga and Wladimir I., 
 received their baptism from Constantinople when 
 that chmTh was in communion with Eome ; for the 
 schism of Photius had, for the time, been healed. 
 In the yeai' 368, the Latin Emperor Valens was bap- 
 tised, also, at Constantinople ; but it was by Eudoxius, 
 the Arch-Arian Bishop of that See, who, at the same 
 time, imposed on the Emperor a solemn oath, never 
 to renounce the Arian impiety, and to drive away 
 all its opponents. He kept the vow too well. 
 
 Through Valens the heresy was conveyed to 
 the Goths. It spread through their various tribes, 
 and envenomed them with so fierce a hatred of 
 Catholics, that their cruelties rivalled those of the 
 ancient Pagans. It was in one of these persecutions 
 (a.d. 58G) that the martyr St. Hermeuegild, who 
 had been converted from Arianism by his wife, met 
 his death at the command of his own father, Leovigild, 
 in consequence of his refusal to receive communion 
 from an Arian prelate. Yet in some respects the 
 vh'tues of these Arian Goths put to shame tlie evil 
 DeGub. Dei, likvii. livcs of too many Catholics, whose immorality, Sal- 
 vian tells us, was such as to shock the very barba- 
 rians ; and he asks of what use it is for such persons 
 to reproach the Goths and Vandals with heresy, 
 
 The Goths.
 
 &c 
 
 AMONGST THE GOTHS. 91 
 
 Avliilst tliey themselves are 'living in heretical de- 
 pravity.' Dr. Newman says that ' the barbarians ^^***y 
 Avere chaste, temperate, just, and devout ; tlie D' Toinpmcnt, 
 Visigoth Theodoric repaired every morning witli his 
 domestic officers to his chapel, where service was 
 performed by the Arian priests.' He adds that 
 they are recorded to have sustained defeat upon a 
 Sunday, owing to tlieir being engaged in religious 
 worship instead of preparing for battle ; and that 
 ' many of their princes were men] of great ability, as 
 the two Theodorics, Euric, and Leovigild.' 
 
 The instrument employed by Yalens for the riphiias. 
 original perversion of the Gothic tribes, was their Hist. Ecd. vi. p. eoo, 
 own Bishop Ulphilas, a man of extraordinary gifts, 
 and w^ho had seemed a very Saint. He had exposed 
 hnnself to an infinity of dangers for the conversion 
 of these peoples ; he had extended religion, civilized 
 manners, invented letters, and translated the whole 
 of the Bible into tlieir language, except portions 
 treating of war, which he omitted for fear lest the 
 recital of the JcAvish victories should inflame still more 
 the too ready ardour of the Goths for the battle- 
 field. Theii- veneration for him was unbounded ; 
 and when he yielded to the seductions of Valens 
 and the Arian Bishops, he found it easy to persuade 
 his flock that the points at issue were not essential. 
 The heretical pest was spread from tribe to tribe, 
 from multitudes to multitudes ; and when they esta- 
 bhshed themselves in the South of Europe and in 
 Afi-ica, their religion was a Christianity which denied
 
 92 THE HERESIES AND SCHISMS 
 
 the divinity of Christ, and sought to exterminate Ca- 
 thoHcity. 'Beliold,' observes Tillemout, 'liow a single 
 man drew down to hell this infinite number of the 
 northerns. . . . It is a fearful example of that which 
 the Truth Himself proclaims : that if tlie blind lead 
 the blind, both fall into the pit. And St. Augustin 
 had good reason so often to admonish both pastors 
 and people, of the necessity of attaching themselves 
 ■ to Jesus Christ alone, and to the truth of His Gospel, 
 and not to any man, whatever he may be, or how- 
 ever gifted by nature and by grace, since every man 
 is a liar, prone to error, and even to fall utterly, like 
 Ulphilas.' 
 
 Other heresies. I might furtlicr citc the iustauces of Gnosticism 
 and JSTovatianism in their day, as well as those of 
 other heresies. In fact, after the most that can be 
 made of Greeks and Eussians, their efforts fall short 
 of the usual activity of error, and it may be ques- 
 tioned whether their ardour equals that of the 
 acknowledged heretics above named. 
 
 The early ages. ThcTc are tliosc wlio drcaui of the early centuries 
 of the Church as of a golden age, when, if Christians 
 had more to endure through outward figlitings, they 
 were less embarrassed by inward fears. Such persons 
 picture to themselves the presence of Christ as 
 being then more visible and tangible, and the imity 
 of His Cliuicli as more apparent and undeniable. 
 But these are pure imaginings. Those early days 
 were full of perplexities and troubles; schisms and 
 heresies were on every side ; and perliaps there is no
 
 OF THE EARLY CENTURIES. Oo 
 
 period in Ecclesiastical history, in which the one 
 only Church stands out more visibly and evidently 
 than now. 
 
 I have already quoted Dr. Newman at some length Fourth century. 
 on a point of doctrine. His testimony will not be 
 considered less valuable respecting the history of 
 those ancient times, which, it is well known, have 
 formed a subject of his special studies. In his 'Essay -Pages 243-245. 
 on Development', he thus describes the state of the 
 Church in the fourth century. I give his words 
 with a slight abridgment : — ' Few indeed,' he tells us, 
 'were the districts in the orhis terrarum^ which did 
 not then, as in the Ante-Mcene era, present a number 
 of creeds and communions from which to select. In 
 Egypt, in the earlier part of the fourth century, the 
 Meletian schism numbered one-third as many Bishops 
 as were contained in the whole Patriarchate.' (These 
 were the followers of the Meletius condemned at the 
 Council of Mce — a totally different person from St. 
 Meletius of Antioch, who is referred to by Dr. 
 Forbes.) ' In Africa, towards the end of the same 
 century, the Donatists had 400 Bishops, the Catholics 
 466. Priscillianism was spread over Spain, and its 
 author honoured as a martyr. At Eorne and in Italy 
 were found Manichees, Marcionites, and Origenists. 
 Eome was moreover the seat of a Novatian, a Dona- 
 tist, and a Luciferian bishop, in addition to the true 
 Eoman pontiff. The Luciferians were sprinkled 
 over Christendom, from Spain to Palestine, and from 
 Treves to Lybia. Wlien St. Gregory Nazianzen
 
 94 DR. xewman's descriptiox of 
 
 began to preach at Constantinople, the Arians were 
 in possession of its hundred churches, and they had 
 the populace in their favour. The Novatians, too, 
 abounded there, and the Sabbatians had a church, 
 where they prayed at the tomb of their founder. 
 Apolhnarians, Eunomians, and Semi- Arians, were 
 there in great numbers. In the neighbouring pro- 
 vinces, popular feeling was with the Semi-Arian 
 Bishops, who had possession of the coast of the 
 Hellespont and Bithynia; and were found in Phrygia, 
 Isauria, and the neighbouring parts of Asia Minor. 
 Phrygia was the head-quarters of the Montanists, 
 and was overrun by the Messalians, who had 
 advanced thus far from Mesopotamia, spreading 
 through SjTia, Lycaonia, Pamphylia, and Cappadocia 
 in their way. In the lesser Armenia the same here- 
 tics had penetrated into the monasteries. Phrygia 
 too, and Paphlagonia, were the seat of the Novatians, 
 who besides were in force at Nica^a and Nicomedia, 
 were found in Alexandria, Africa, and Spain, and 
 had a bishop even in Scythia. The whole tract of 
 country from the Hellespont to Cilicia had nearly 
 lapsed into Eunomianism, and tlic tract from Cilicia 
 as far as Phoenicia to ApoUinarianism. The disorders 
 of the Church of Antiocli are well known : an Arian 
 succession, two orthodox claimants, and a bishop of 
 the Apolhnarians, Palestine abounded in Origenists, 
 if at that time they may properly be called a sect ; 
 Palestine, Egypt, and Arabia were oveiTun with 
 ]\Iarcionites; Osrhoene was occupied by the followers
 
 ANCIENT COUNTERFEITS OF THE TRUTH. 05 
 
 of Bardesancs and Harmonius, whose hymns so 
 nearly took the place of national tunes that St. 
 Ephrem found no better Avay of resisting the heresy 
 than setting them to fresh words. Theodoret in 
 Comagene speaks in the next century of reclaiming 
 eight villages of Marcionites, one of Eunomians, and 
 one of Arians. 
 
 'These sects were of very various character. 
 Learning, eloquence, and talent were the character- 
 istics of the Apollinarians, Manichees, and Pelagians ; 
 Tichonius the Donatist was distinguished in biblical 
 interpretation ; the Semi-Arian and Apollinarian 
 leaders were men of grave and correct behaviour ; 
 the Novatians had sided with the orthodox during 
 the Arian persecution ; the Montanists and Messa- 
 lians addressed themselves to an almost heathen 
 population ; the atrocious fanaticism of the Priscil- 
 lianists, the fury of the Arian women of Alexandria 
 and Constantinople, and the savage cruelty of the 
 Circumcellions, can hardly be exaggerated. They 
 had their orders of clergy, bishops, priests, and 
 deacons ; their readers and ministers ; their cele- 
 brants and altars ; their hymns and litanies. They 
 preached to the crowds in public, and their meeting- 
 houses bore the semblance of churches. They had 
 their sacristies and cemeteries ; their farms ; their 
 professors and doctors ; their schools. Miracles were 
 ascribed to the Arian Theophilus, to the Luciferian 
 Gregory of Elvira, to a Macedonian in Cyzicus, and 
 to the Donatists in Africa.'
 
 96 LAMEXTABLE STATE OF CHRISTENDOM 
 
 Such is Dr. Newman's account of the false Christs 
 and false Churches of the fourth centuiy. In the 
 same volume he concludes his picture of the fifth 
 and sixth centuries with the following summary : — 
 
 Fifth and sixth * Dreary and waste was the condition of the Church, 
 
 centuries. an(j forlorn her prospects, at the period which we have 
 5 314-317 been reviewing. After the brief triumph which attended 
 the conversion of Constantino, trouble and trial had re- 
 turned upon her. Her imperial protectors were failing in 
 power or in faith. Strange forms of evil were rising in 
 the distance, and were thronging for the conflict. There 
 was but one spot in the whole of Christendom, one voice 
 in the whole Episcopate, to which the faithful turned in 
 hope in that miserable day. In the year 493, in the 
 Pontificate of Gelasius, the whole of the East was in the 
 hands of traitors to Chalcedon, and the whole of the West 
 under the tyranny of the open enemies of Nicaea. Italy 
 was the prey of robbers ; mercenary bands had overrun 
 its territory, and barbarians were seizing on its farms and 
 settling in its villas. The peasants were thinned by 
 famine and pestilence ; Tuscany might be even said, as 
 Grelasius words it, to contain scarcely a single inhabitant. 
 Odoacer was sinking before Theodoric, and the Pope was 
 changing one Arian master for another. And as if one 
 heresy were not enough, Pelagianism was spreading with 
 the connivance of the Bishops in the territory of Picenum. 
 In the north of the dismembered empire, the Britons had 
 first been infected by Pelagianism, and now were dis- 
 possessed by the lieathen Saxons. The Armoricans still 
 preserved a witness of Catholicism in the west of Gaul ; 
 but Picardy, Champagne, and the neighbouring provinces, 
 where some remnant of its supremacy had been found, had 
 lately submitted to the yet heathen Clovis. The Arian 
 kingdoms of Burgundy in France, and of the Visigoths in 
 Aquitaine and Spain, oppressed a zealous and Catholic 
 clergy. Africa was in a still more deplorable condition 
 under the cruel sway of the Vandal Gundamond : the
 
 PICTURED BY DR. NRWMAX. 97 
 
 people indeed uncorrupted by tlie heresy, but tlieir clergy 
 in exile and their worship suspended. 
 
 While such was the state of the Latins, what had 
 happened in the East? Acacius, the Patriarch of Con- 
 stantinople, had secretly taken part against the Council of 
 Chalcedon and was under Papal excommunication. Nearly 
 all the whole East had sided with Acacius, and a schism had 
 begun between East and West, which lasted for thirty-five 
 years. The Henoticon was in force, and at the Imperial 
 command had been signed by all the Patriarchs and 
 Bishops throughout the Eastern empire. In Armenia the 
 Churches were ripening for the pure Eutychianism which 
 they adopted in the following century ; and in Egypt the 
 Acephali had already broken off from the Monopliysite 
 Patriarch, were extending in the east and west of the 
 country, and preferred the loss of the Episcopal Succession 
 to the reception of the Council of Chalcedon. And while 
 Monophysites or their favourers occupied the Churches of 
 the Eastern empire, Nestorianism was making progress in 
 the territories beyond it. Barsumas had filled the See of 
 Nisibis, Theodore was read in the schools of Persia, and 
 the successive Catholici' of Seleucia had abolished Mona- 
 chism and were secularising the clergy. 
 
 If, then, there is now a form of Christianity such, that 
 it extends throughout the world, though with varying 
 measures of prominence or prosperity in separate places ; — 
 that it lies under the power of sovereigns and magistrates, 
 in different ways alien to its faith ; — that flourishing nations 
 and great empires, professing or tolerating the Christian 
 name, lie over against it as antagonists ; — that schools 
 of philosophy and learning are supporting theories, and 
 following out conclusions, hostile to it, and establishing an 
 exegetical system subversive of its Scriptures; — that it has 
 lost whole Churches by schism, and is now opposed by 
 powerful communions once part of itself; — that it has been 
 altogether or almost driven from some countries ; — that in 
 others its line of teachers is overlaid, its flocks oppressed, 
 
 1 The title of the Nestorian Patriarchs. 
 VOL. I. H
 
 98 THERE JIUST ALWAYS BE SCAXDALS. 
 
 its churches occupied, its property held by what may be 
 called a duplicate succession ; — that in others its members 
 are degenerate and corrupt, and surpassed in conscien- 
 tiousness and in virtue, as in gifts of intellect, by the very 
 heretics whom it condemns; — that heresies are rife, and 
 bishops negligent within its own pale ; — and that amid its 
 disorders and fears there is but one Voice for whose 
 decisions its people wait with trust, one Name and one See 
 to which they look with hope, and that name Peter, and 
 that see Eome ; —such a religion is not unlike the Chris- 
 tianity of the fifth and sixth centuries.' 
 
 Trials Thus did tliG great Searcher of Hearts then try the 
 
 the Church. souls aiid Spirits of His people ; and the one sure 
 star He sent to guide them ^vas the Eome whicli 
 guides us now. I give the statements as I find 
 them. The comparison was drawn from outside tlie 
 Church, although its author was then close upon her 
 threshold ; but the more unfavourable the view, the 
 
 St. Luke xvii. 1. stronger becomes the argiunent. ' It is impossible,' 
 said our Lord, 'that scandals should not come,' and we 
 cannot lay claim to a present immunity from them. 
 Still, though the Church has unsound members, her 
 pale is free from heresies, nor can her existing hier- 
 archy be cliarged with negligence. Her children, in 
 general, are unsurpassed, in virtue at any rate, by any 
 
 Existing scandals otlicr. But, alas! tlicrc are cxccptious. In a country 
 Italy. pre-eminently Catholic, and by men who call them- 
 
 selves Catholic, the Ixoman Pontiff has been despoiled 
 of large tracts of territory, and his exhortations, nay, 
 even liis very excommunications, have been dis- 
 regarded and set at nought. Catholic hands have 
 sacrilegiously hiid hold of property which is conse-
 
 NOVELTf OF THE PRESEXT THEORY. 90 
 
 crated to the Most High God, and have impiously 
 and barbarously turned adrift on the wide world, 
 thousands of holy men and of religious women 
 from out of the hallowed precincts of the cloister ; 
 precincts now perchance resounding with the ribald 
 jest and the profane song, where so lately there went 
 up the voice of prayer and sacred psalmody, of inter- 
 cession for sinful man and of canticles to God's praise. 
 
 Nor are these the only scandals which now afflict Defections 
 the Church. She has to mourn over other unfaithful eminent men. 
 children, and even over some who were once looked 
 up to as the teachers and the guides of the people, but 
 who have fallen away and taken part in 'the contra- 
 diction of Core;' 'wandering; stars:' 'murmurers, full St. Judo. 
 
 ^ 1 . , „, , , Ep.v. 11.13. IG. 19. 
 
 of complaints. 'These are they who separate them- 
 selves, sensual men, having not the Spirit.' 
 
 Such trials ever have been, are, and will be a 
 portion of the Church's warfare on this earth. 
 
 The period previously described is precisely that Tiie cimrch's 
 which Anglicans regard as the Christian age of gold. It 
 forms a portion of those happy halcyon days, during 
 which they admit the outward visible unity of the 
 Church of God, and unhesitatingly reject, as heretics 
 and schismatics, all whom that Cliurch rejected as 
 such. It has been seen how the Christians of those 
 ages were divided and rent asunder by disunions and 
 divisions as great as there exist around us now. But 
 nowhere throughout that period is there discernible 
 among Cathohcs, the remotest trace of the acceptance 
 of such a theory as that on which Anglicans are 
 now tempted to repose in fiilse security. It was 
 
 h2 
 
 Golden Ago.
 
 100 ROME THE STAY OF THE FAITHFUL. 
 
 reserved for a later age to dream that a divinely 
 appointed note of the Church might be hidden for a 
 while, echpsed and lost to sight, withdrawn by God in 
 His displeasure at the wickedness of man : — that her 
 outward unity might be suspended, and mankind 
 reduced to the hope that, inwardly and invisibly, it 
 might in some way still subsist. On the contrary, 
 those ancient days abound in testimonies to the 
 necessity of the visible, tangible, unity of the one 
 Church, outward as well as inward, and to the hope- 
 lessness of salvation apart from her one fold. 
 Communion Neither can it be denied that the universal body of 
 
 with Home. _ •' 
 
 Christians which Anolicans themselves acknowled2;e 
 to have formed, at that time, the one only Church, 
 were always in outward communion with the Eoman 
 Pontiff. Passing differences or misapprehensions, 
 might indeed occasionally give rise to an interrup- 
 tion of cordiality ; and there were times of coldness 
 between the East and the West ; but early antiquity 
 does not afford one single instance of an entire, 
 systematic, and permanent suspension of outward 
 communion with Eome, excepting in the case of those 
 whom Anglicans themselves denounce as cut off from 
 the body of the faithful. History renders it evident 
 beyond a doubt, that, in those dark days of doubts 
 and fc^ars and perplexities, the one rallying point of 
 Catholics, the general standard round which they 
 gathered, was — Eome ; the test of their faith was — 
 communion with the Eoman See. 
 Ancient appellation Thcrc are cveii iustauces which i)rove that in 
 
 of _ * 
 
 ' Roman.' Ariau timcs, as now, the actual appellation of Eoman
 
 APPEAL TO THE PAST. 
 
 01 
 
 was distinctively ap[)lied to Catholics, denoLiiig 
 approbation or reproach, as the case might be. 
 Thus, in his sacva^ addressed to the Berrhoean Bisliop 
 Acacius, and others, at the time of tlie Council of 
 Ephesus, the Emperor Theodosius speaks of ' a])- 
 proved priests of the Roman religion.' Euinart, in 
 a note to his edition of St. Gregory of Tours, refers 
 to an Arian Council at Toledo, which gave direc- 
 tions respecting the reception of persons ' from the 
 Roman religion' into their party. St. Gregory of 
 Tours himself says, distinctly, — ' they are in the habit 
 of calling (vocitatit) men of our rehgion, Romans.' 
 Du Cange quotes an instance from the writings of 
 Lucifer of Cagliari, as follows : 
 that He ' (the Son) 
 Father.' He refers also to Victor Vitensis, and a 
 hfe of St. Eligius, to the same efiect. 
 
 JIanl. Cone. 
 t. 1, fol. 1087. 
 
 Hist. Franc, 
 col. 248. 
 
 De Gloria M;irt. 
 col. 748, cd. Ruin. 
 
 'We Romans say Glossar. sub vocem 
 „ , • 1 1 liomunus. 
 
 IS 01 one substance with the 
 
 It is said of Samson, in the Book of Judges, that 
 'he kiUed many more at his deaths than he had 
 killed before in his hfe.' The tenth century was 
 bad enough whilst it lasted, but since it has gone, it 
 has formed a perfect storehouse for weapons against 
 the Church — a repertory for scandalous histories, 
 by which others besides Dr. Forbes have too often 
 been led astray. Cardinal Baronius himself was 
 deceived by them. Its evils cannot be denied, but 
 they have been allowed to obscure the recollection 
 of the good, which atoned for them so amply, wliich 
 fought with them, and won the day. 
 
 Home was then a prey to factious and base 
 
 ITiio 
 
 Tenth Century. 
 
 Si-e 
 
 the remark 
 
 of 
 Dr. Forbes, 
 aboA-e, p. 73. 
 
 Koine in 
 
 tho 
 
 Tenth Century.
 
 102 THE POPES 
 
 intrigues. Thu tiara itself was at the bestowal 
 of the worldly and unwortliy, and the power of 
 God alone could have supported and preserved the 
 Church's centre, under a trial so severe. It is most 
 ^vo^tlly of note, and a visible sign of the Divine 
 protection, that, with all the enormities charged on 
 the lives of certain Popes of that age, not one 
 public or official act of any of them was derogatory 
 to the sanctity of St. Peter's chair. As regards 
 tlieir private characters, it is not investigation, but 
 the shallow credulity of prejudice, wliich they mostly 
 have to fear. So much as a century ago, the learned 
 Annaii Muratorl pointed out how little reliance can be 
 
 d" Italia. ^ 
 
 placed on the scandalous histories fished out from 
 defamatory libels and romances, and recorded by the 
 partisan Liutprand ; from whose writings they have 
 been repeated and multiplied by more recent autliors. 
 In particular, he vindicates the characters of those 
 much-abused Popes, Sergius III., and John X. 
 Sergius ui. The clironiclc of Frodoard (who lived nearer to 
 
 the time than Liutprand) describes the whole world 
 as rejoicing at the election and reign of Sergius. He 
 rebuilt the Lateran Basilica when all others despaired 
 of it, ' flying f(jr help,' says John the Deacon, ' to 
 the divine mercy in which he always confided.' His 
 ('pita])h records his love for his flock, and his re- 
 sistance against invaders of iioly things. 
 .7«hnX. John X. formed the league which decisively re- 
 
 pulsed the Saracens, the terror of tlie south of Italy 
 at tliat time ; and the panegyrist of Bcrengarius de- 
 scribes him as a Pontiff ' eminently illustrious in his
 
 OF THE TENTH CENTURY. 
 
 103 
 
 office, and full of wisdom.' After a reign of Ibuileen 
 years, he ended his life m prison, where he was con- 
 fined by Guy and Marozia, Avhose usurpations he had 
 resisted. The story ran that he was smothered. 
 Frodoard hesitates not to say that his soul esca[)ed 
 quickly to the throne decreed for him in heaven. 
 
 * Munificisqiie sacram decorans ornatibus aulam, 
 Pace nitet duni, Patricia deceptus inicjua, 
 Carcere conjicitur, claustrisque arctatur opacis. 
 Spiritus at ssevis letineri non valet antris; 
 Emicat immo ajthra decreta sedilia scandens.' 
 
 It was the same century whicli (himself unwilling) 
 saw the elevation to the Popedom of the pious Leo 
 VII. History depicts him as a man of prayer and 
 meditation, of large views and conciliatory manners, 
 and he has left fifteen epistles, still extant, which tes- 
 tify to his piety, zeal, and learning. Marinus IL, during 
 the three years of his pontificate, strove earnestly to 
 amend the ignorance of his times ; and he had a 
 worthy successor in Agapitus II., who reigned ten 
 years. Other Popes there were in tliat age whose 
 virtues were conspicuous. If so be (perhaps through 
 deficiency or partiality of evidence) that the good 
 fame of any is still obscured, we can but adore, with 
 Card. Bellarmine, the inscrutable wisdom of God, 
 which has permitted ' the gates of hell ' to do tlieir 
 worst, whether by open violence or insidious snares 
 of wickedness, in order that the world may perceive 
 and own the impotence of Satan against the Church ; 
 and may acknowledge that the rock of Peter, on 
 which it is built, is inviolable and im])regnablc. 
 
 Frodoardus 
 
 de 
 
 Roman. Pont if. 
 
 Muratori, an. 928. 
 
 Leo VIl. 
 
 and 
 
 other Popes. 
 
 Mifjno, 
 Patrol. La). 
 
 Prji'fat. in lib. 
 
 do 
 
 Sunim. Pont. 
 
 §8.
 
 104 IIOLIXESS WAS ALWAYS MANIFEST 
 
 because susUiiiied by Abiiighty strength, and one 
 with the everlasting rock, — with the Christ Who 
 cannot fail. 
 H(jiiness The Divlne Spirit of Holiness is always present 
 
 always nsiblc, . i ^ i, /-n i i • -i i -r-» tt t 
 
 With Gods Church, and visibly so. ±)ut Hohness 
 may vaiy in the degrees of its manifestation, to an 
 extent which Unity, from its very nature, never can 
 do. The line of demarcation between unity and 
 schism is evident and well defined, though men may 
 be more or less near to it on either side. There are 
 seasons when the Church's holiness shines out with 
 an unusual lustre, and others when it is not so 
 dazzling in its bright effulgence. Still that light is 
 never hidden. There is no age of the Christian era 
 which will afford any ground for the parallel appa- 
 rently implied by Dr. Forbes, — that Holiness was 
 hidden then, and that Unity may be hidden now : or 
 for his theory, — that the external manifestation of 
 either one or the other may be suspended, through 
 a lessening of Christ's presence. 
 
 I do not deny that the tenth century was an age in 
 which ' iniquity abounded, and many hearts grew 
 cold ' in love. But I maintain that heroic grace 
 abounded also, and that numberless hearts then burnt 
 with a charity whose flames burnt on in their succes- 
 sors, and have never since become extinct. It was a 
 period of fierce struggle ; sloth and worldliness in- 
 vaded the sanctuary, and doubtless many wished that 
 Christ should sleep. But it was not so, by any means, 
 with all, nor was the Avickedness consented to, or 
 unresisted. In this hour of need the Church's
 
 IN THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 
 
 105 
 
 holiness was displayed by the efforts of a niuUitude 
 of her children against tlie evil ; and our Lord's 
 presence was made manifest through His inspira- 
 tions, which led earnest and faithful hearts to arouse 
 Him by their cries. In that tenth century, prayers 
 w^ere put up, and deeds were done, and seeds were 
 sown, whose result and produce, alone, may testify 
 that their origin was from heaven, and that their 
 sowing (albeit in tears) was in no barren or unblest 
 soil. The Church must have succumbed had it not 
 been for her intrinsic and divine holiness ; whicli, 
 so far from being obscured, shines out more bright 
 and visible, from her trial and her triumph. Even 
 the vehement contemporary denunciations botli of 
 councils and of individuals, while they reveal to us 
 the evil, at the same time make manifest by their 
 existence that it was neither triumphant nor uni- 
 versal. Holiness was all the wliile active throughout 
 the Church — inwardly in the hearts of her children ; 
 outwardly and visibly in their works ; and audibly 
 in their denunciations of the abounding wickedness. 
 With aU its drawbacks, this same tenth century 
 witnessed the conversion to Christianity, of the 
 Normans, Muscovites, Swedes, Poles, Hungarians, 
 and other peoples. Harold, king of the Danes, Darras. Hist. G6n. 
 demanded a miracle from the Christian priest Poppo, I'Egiisc. 
 
 who was preaching to him the divinity of Christ. 
 The man of God, in reply, held in his naked hand 
 a red-hot iron, yet was not burned. The king em- 
 braced the faith, and Denmark received a Christian 
 
 Evidences 
 
 of 
 
 Holiness 
 
 in tlio 
 
 Tenth Century.
 
 lOG 
 
 THE TENTH CENTURY PRODUCED 
 
 Muratori, Annali 
 A.D. 924. 
 
 Saints 
 
 of the 
 
 Tenth Centuiy. 
 
 liierarchy. The rudeness of the age was redeemed 
 by many similar acts of heroic virtue. 
 
 The tenth century had its popular errors, but it 
 cannot be accused of having given birth to one single 
 heresy. It was not wanting in piety, as may be 
 gathered from the mention found in its chronicles, 
 of the practice (even among royal personages) of 
 assistincf at the nocturnal religfious offices. On one 
 occasion, the same ]^age of history affords a re- 
 volting example of the barbarity of the times in the 
 assassination of the Emperor Berengarius. Not dream- 
 ing of danger, he had chosen to pass the night in 
 a small room from which he could easily reach the 
 church, rather than in his palace which might have 
 been defended. He had refused to have any guard ; 
 and he rose, as was his wont, for the public prayers, 
 at the call of the midnight matins bell. He was 
 met on his way by a band of conspirators, and foully 
 murdered near the church's door. 
 
 These contrasts form a special character of the age. 
 Its scandals were grievous, but they were atoned 
 for by numerous examples of surpassing brightness. 
 
 The tenth centiuy can boast of the lioly Empress 
 Saint Mathilda, foundress of so many nunneries, 
 and motlier to the Emperor Otho. His wife was 
 St. Adelaide, and his brother was St. Bruno, the 
 great Archbishop of Cologne. In England there 
 reigned King Edgar the Peaceable, great in the 
 power of his sway when rowed up the river Dee 
 to the Church of St. John the Baptist, by eight
 
 .MANY ILLUSTRIOUS SAINTS. 107 
 
 otlier kings, his vassals ; but greater still in his 
 
 humility, when, in obedience to Holy Chm-ch, he 
 
 expiated a heinous crime by a seven years' public 
 
 penance. He was succeeded by his son, the pure and 
 
 holy Edward, enrolled as a Saint in the Church's 
 
 calendar; and popularly styled a martyr also, 
 
 through the love and veneration which his subjects 
 
 bore him. Nor must St. Edith be forgotten, half- Butior, 
 
 sister to St. Edward, who, when he was treacherously '^'^''^' ^ 
 
 slain in the year 978, refused to quit her cloister, 
 
 though invited to claim tlie throne. During this age, 
 
 Venice beheld two of her doges (one of them was St. 
 
 Peter Urseoli) put off their ducal robes and cvaps, 
 
 and hide themselves under the cowl and tonsure of 
 
 the cloister. At Constantinople, the century opened 
 
 with the passage to a higher throne of the sainted 
 
 Empress Theophania ; the year 925 was marked by 
 
 the decease of the Patriarch St. Nicholas, of the 
 
 same city ; and his place, but three years later, was 
 
 filled by St. Try phone. When the tenth age closed 
 
 on Hungary, it left her king, St. Stephen, busied in 
 
 rooting out idolatry from amongst his people ; whilst 
 
 he was cultivatin«' in his own heart all Christian vir- 
 
 tues and self-denial. In the same century were born 
 
 and nursed up St. Henry II., the German emperor, 
 
 and St. Cunegund, his spouse, — angelic examples of 
 
 virginity in holy wedlock. It was the age of St. 
 
 Adalbert, Archbishop of Magdeburg; and of liis 
 
 namesake, St. Adalbert, Bishop of Prague, called 
 
 the Apostle of the Prussians ; in whose country he
 
 108 
 
 OTHER EXAMPLES OP SANCTITY 
 
 Lives of the Saints. 
 Nov. 29. 
 
 St. Nicon 
 
 the 
 Metanoite. 
 
 Baronius, 
 an. 961, &c. 
 
 Bollandists, 
 May 25. 
 March 1. 
 April 22. 
 
 .St. Nil us 
 
 Butler, 
 
 Sept. 20 
 
 was honoured with a martyr's crown, St. Ulric of 
 Augsburg ; St. Wolfgang ; our own St. Dunstan, and 
 St. Oswald the Bisliop ; the Scotch St.Cadroe ; the Irish 
 St. Cormac, Bishop of Casliel and King of Munster ; 
 were amongst the many who adorned it. The virtues 
 of St. Eadbod, who governed the diocese of Utrecht, 
 rivalled those of the primitive Bishops, and he was 
 ' excessive,' says Butler, ' in his charity to the poor.' 
 
 In Greece, St. Nicon (called, from his constant 
 cry, the MsravosTre, or Do Penance), ^fter converting 
 the Armenians from prevalent errors, was evan- 
 gelizing Crete, (which had lately been rescued from 
 the yoke of the Saracens,) and working wonders in 
 the Peloponnese. 
 
 Spain and Portugal had their St. Gennadius and 
 others ; they had St. Eudisind the Bishop, and his 
 sister the Abbess, St. Senoriiia, to whom her holy 
 brotlier's decease was revealed by angeUc voices 
 chanting the Te Detcm, whilst she was at Compline 
 with her nuns. 
 
 In Calabria was found St. Nilus the younger. It 
 was he whom tlie Emperor Otlio visited, where he 
 dwelt amongst liis monks who lived around him 
 in poor scattered huts. The Emperor offered lands 
 and endowments, and bade the holy Abbot to ask 
 what favour he most desired. St. Nilus would acce}}t 
 nothing of this world, Ijut he did iKjt refuse to solicit 
 a favour of another kind. ' All that I ask of you,' he 
 said, ' is to save yoiu' own soul ; for, though Emperor, 
 you inii>t die and give an account to God.'
 
 DURING THE TENTH CENTURY. 
 
 100 
 
 At to 
 
 of 
 
 Vcrculli. 
 
 St. Romuald 
 
 and 
 Camaldoli. 
 
 Butlor, 
 Feb. 7. 
 
 Ill the north of Italy, Bisliop Atto of VorccUi, 
 after the example of many others, was loud in his 
 denunciation of the abuses of the age. 
 
 There, too, under the holy hermit Marinus, the 
 great St. Eomuald was commencing that austere but 
 loving life of heroic sanctity and contemplation, 
 which bore such abundant fruit both in his own 
 and ftiture generations. Multitudes were moved by 
 him to repentance ; whilst he went about, as if a 
 seraph in divine love, inflaming all who heard him 
 speak. In the Vatican gallery there hangs a paint- 
 ing — a masterpiece of Andrea Sacchi— wliich repre- 
 sents the vision, wherein St. Eomuald saw a ladder 
 like to Jacob's, ' standing upon the earth, and the to}) 
 thereof touching heaven ' ; whilst on it there went 
 up a white-robed long procession of his chikben in 
 Jesus Christ, an ascending train of holy monks from 
 the order which he founded, and which derived its 
 title from their monastery at Campo Maldoli, the two 
 words being contracted to Camaldoli. It was situated 
 in a large and retired valley, the gift of a rich 
 lord, named Maldoli, whose memory has been 
 thus happily perpetuated in connection with that 
 wonderfid religious foundation, wherein lives on to 
 our own day the spirit of their first holy Abbot — 
 St. Eomuald — offspring of tlie tenth century. 
 
 It was in the same age that the young Bernard, of 
 the chateau of Menthon in Savoy, son of a power- 
 ful baron, fled (like a second St. Alexis) from a Boiiandists. Act. ss. 
 sumptuous banquet at his father's liouse, on the eve 
 
 Tlio Hospico 
 
 of 
 St. BtTDanl. 
 
 15 Jiin.
 
 110 ST. BERNARD OF MEXTIIOX. 
 
 of the espousals destined for him, and wlien his father 
 was on the point of surrendering- to him the barony. 
 They sought him in the morning, and he was gone ; 
 but a writing met their eyes, which said : — ' 
 sweetest parents, I beg of you, rejoice. My King 
 and Saviour is my guide ; seek me no more, nor 
 spend on me your care. I wish not to marry ; I 
 wisli not to reign on earth ; I wish to reach high 
 heaven.' In obedience to a celestial vision, he 
 made his way to tlie Archdeacon of Aosta. In after 
 years he succeeded to the office ; and it was then 
 that, inspired with charity for the wayfaring, and 
 with zeal for God's glory, he either founded or 
 restored, amidst the Alpine snows and barren rocks, 
 the two hospices through which his name has since 
 been given to the passes of the Great and Little 
 St. Bernard. The former was previously called tlie 
 Hill of Jupiter ; and the legend tells of a .huge 
 infernal statue, or idol, on its simimit, tlie dread of 
 all travellers, which the holy Bernard in the might 
 of God destroyed. In the same strength he rooted 
 out from tliose regions tlie still lingering remains of 
 the heathen worship of Jupiter. He was styled the 
 ' Aj^ostle of the Alps,' and he was equally active 
 and successful in his missionary work in Lombardy. 
 He undertook a journey to Rome, to obtain the 
 Pontifical approbation of the rules for his monastic 
 institutions on the Alps, which lie placed under the 
 protection of his sure and never-deserted patron, 
 St. Nicholas. Those institutions have l)orne tlieir
 
 MONKS OP ST. GALL. ST. COXRAD. EINSIEDELN. 1 1 1 
 
 fruits. The glow of their divine charity, uiichilled 
 amidst the surrounding ice and snow, has ever 
 since been renowned and venerated throughout tlie 
 world. St. Bernard of Menthon died in a ucood old 
 age, ' full of days ' and full of holiness — of days each 
 one of which was full ; full of loving piety to his 
 God, and of loving service to his neighbour. 
 
 At that period the Abbey of St. Gall, in Switzer- Switzeri.m.L 
 land, was celebrated for the learning, and eminent st. ci^ii'i. 
 for the piety and sanctity of its monks. In the early 
 part of the century, under the direction of the 
 Abbot, there abode in a small and neio;hbourin2: cell 
 the recluse St. Wiborada : the blessed Eachel was 
 her disciple. The year 976 was marked by the 
 death of the holy Bishop, St. Conrad, who, for forty- St. Conrad. 
 
 Butler 
 
 two years, had ruled the diocese of Constance with Nov 26. 
 unwearied watchfulness and zeal. Saint Gebherd 
 soon afterwards became its Bishop. 
 
 In the time of the above-named St. Conrad was Einsicdein. 
 founded the great Abbey of Einsiedeln, whose church 
 is said to have been consecrated by angelic or 
 Divine hands. It was built over the cell of St. 
 Meinrad, where, in the preceding century, that holy 
 hermit had sanctified his soul, and met his death 
 at the hands of assassins. St. Conrad has himself 
 recorded, that, during the night of September 14th, 
 948, which preceded his intended consecration of 
 the church, mysterious and marvellous voices reached 
 his ears ; and in the morning, when, after long 
 hesitation, he was at length about to commence the
 
 112 ST. WEXCESLAS OF BOHEMIA. GAXDERSIIEIM. 
 
 St. Ludmilla. 
 
 St. Wenceslas. 
 
 Brev. Eoiiian. 
 
 Sept. 28. 
 
 Gandcrshcini. 
 Roswitha. 
 
 ceremony, he was prevented by these words : — ' Stay, 
 brother ! God Himself has consecrated tliis chapel' 
 
 In Bohemia it was tlie age of St. Ludmilla and 
 St. Wenceslas, both of them of sovereign rank, and 
 martyrs. It was by love that the Duke St. Wen- 
 ceslas ruled his subjects, and it was love for God 
 and man which ruled supreme in his own breast. 
 He would rise by night in secret, and carry heavy 
 burdens of wood for fuel to the doors of the needy ; 
 he was a father to the orphan, a friend to the friend- 
 less and the captive, a consoler and helper of all in 
 distress. He bound himself by a vow of celibacy to a 
 life of angelic purity, and it is said that angels were 
 seen in attendance on him on more than one occasion. 
 He would go about to the churches by night, in the 
 snow and ice, with naked and bleeding feet, leaving 
 behind him their prints, which warmed the frozen 
 earth [sangiiinea et terrain calefacieiitia post se relin- 
 quens vestigia). It was in the year 938, at midnight, 
 in or near a church to which, as usual, his devotion 
 conducted him, that he was slauglitered by his own 
 brother, at the instigation of their unnatural and 
 pagan mother, Drahomira. It was by tlic hands of 
 her assassins, also, that his grandmother, St. Ludmilla, 
 who brought him up, had previously been strangled. 
 
 In that part of Lower Saxony, now called Bruns- 
 wick, the Convent of Gandersheim was exhaling the 
 sweet odour of sanctity all through this evil age. 
 Founded ill tlie latter lialf of the ninth century by 
 Duke Ijiutolf mid liis wife Od:i, and ruled succes-
 
 THE NUN ROSWITUA. CLUNY. 113 
 
 sively by three of their own dauglitcrs, its nuns 
 were consjiicuous for their monastic discipline, and 
 assiduous study of the Holy Scriptures. Here dwelt 
 the pious Eoswitha, the reputed authoress of a 
 series of Christian melodrames, which she composed, 
 says the preface attributed to her, in anxiety that the 
 talent with which she was entrusted should not be 
 eaten away by the rust of neglect, but rather that it 
 should resound with the Divine praise, under the con- 
 stant maUet of devotion. Sedulo ritalleo devotionis 
 percussum divinoe laudationis referret tinnitum. 
 
 The authenticity of these poems has recently been 
 called in question, but no doubt has been raised re- 
 specting the sanctity of the convent of Gandersheim 
 during the period before us. 
 
 At the very opening of the tenth century, the ciimy 
 
 virtues of Berno, the holy Abbot of Baume, attracted Aibois. 
 the notice of Duke William of Aquitaine, who so- 
 licited from him the foundation of a new monastery 
 within his own domain, on whatever site he should 
 select. It is said that the abbot fixed on the spot 
 then occupied by the Duke's kennels. 'You need 
 only,' said the man of God, ' turn out the hounds, and 
 let in the monks.' The Duke assented ; and thus, in 
 the year 909, was founded that great Abbey of 
 Cluny, nursery of Saints, and parent of numerous 
 oflfshoots. Its first abbot, the blessed Berno, governed 
 seven rehgious houses. At his death he was suc- 
 ceeded by the great St. Odo, who was three times 
 summoned to Rome by the Popes, to reconcile 
 
 VOL. I. I
 
 114 ABBOTS OF CLUNY. 
 
 dilTerences amongst princes, and to effect conventual 
 reforms. It was he who gave the caution to his 
 monks never to close their doors to the blind, the 
 sick, or the beggar, ' for these,' said he, ' will be tlie 
 doorkeepers of the kingdom of lieaven.' lie was a 
 lover of silence, which he called ' the father of holy 
 thoughts and of great deeds.' ' Peace and charity,' he 
 was wont to say, ' dwell in a community where silence 
 reigns.' He died in the year 912, and was succeeded 
 by St. Aymard. St. Mayeul followed in 9G5. He la- 
 boured with success in reforming and restoring various 
 monastic houses in Italy. The Pontifical throne was 
 offered to him, but he excused himself as unfitted*. 
 He died a.d. 991. His successor was St. Odilo, one 
 of the first promoters of the great truce of God, that 
 merciful alleviation to the miseries of the time. 
 Thus, all through the tenth century, tlie spirit of 
 sanctity was predominant amidst tlie holy monks 
 of Cluny ; and, after a brief period, there issued 
 forth from the same cloisters, as another giant 
 to run his course, tlie great reformer Hildebrand, 
 the high-minded St. Gregory VII., strong in truth 
 and justice, and in the power and grace of God. 
 Hidden Saiuts. Such are a few of the prominent marks of holiness 
 which adorned the tenth century, and made manifest 
 the active presence and assistance of the God of 
 holiness, in His one true Church ruled over by 
 the Eoman Pontiff. The catalogue is incomplete, 
 yet it is so long as to appear a digression. More 
 might be added from history ; and, besides this,
 
 HOLINESS WHICH IS UNRECORDED. 115 
 
 how much there must be tliat remains hidden to us ! 
 The name of each Saint enrolled in the Church's ca- 
 lendar, implies a host of hidden Saints, who are only 
 known in heaven. It implies an antecedent sanctity 
 from which the flame was caught ; it implies sanctity 
 in those around who helped to nurse it; it implies 
 both contemporary and prospective sanctity in the 
 many wliom that holy man instructed in the love of 
 God — in all who, by his precepts and example, were 
 helped to save their souls, whether in his lifetime or 
 after his decease. The same must be said of every 
 monastery which is founded — of every good work 
 which stands recorded. Such acts are never single 
 or isolated, in their origin or their existence. They 
 neither spring from nothingness, nor do they subsist 
 on nothingness, nor do they vanish into nothingness. 
 Each deed of grace whose memory has survived to 
 us involves many others, which, though lost to time, 
 are treasured for eternity, an unknown multitude, 
 to be revealed at the day of judgment. 
 
 I affirm, then, that during the tenth century, as in 
 all others, the Eoman Catholic, the one only. Church, 
 was not merely the fosterer, the refuge, and the home 
 of supernatural holiness ; its protector and its pre- 
 server; not merely was she the dispenser of the means 
 of holiness; the appointed guardian and keeper of 
 its divinely constituted channels ; but over and above 
 all this, the Spirit of holiness shone manifestly and 
 briglitly both within her and all around her — she was 
 visibly, and plainly, and distinctly, holy; then, as now, 
 
 I 2
 
 116 ST. PETER DAMIAN. 
 
 and as always; lioly in lier works; holy in her loving 
 patience ; holy in her exhortations ; holy in the lives of 
 her true children; holy in the supernatural and heroic 
 ■ grace of the many Saints who, hke shining hghts, never 
 ceased to illuminate the gross darkness of that period, 
 and who protested by their words and deeds against 
 its many and crying iniquities. And ere the tenth 
 century passed away, it gave birth to a very phoenix 
 of divine and burning love, w4io arose as it were from 
 St. Peter its ashes, the great and holy St. Peter Damian (bom 
 about the year 988), the precursor of St. Gregory 
 Vil. ; the denouncer of abuses, and reviver of interior 
 discipline, who, during the age which followed, like 
 another St. John Baptist, prepared the way for those 
 wonderful reformations which so happily character- 
 ised its close. Severe in life ; ardent in temperament, 
 which he subdued and converted into holy zeal ; a 
 lover of solitude, charity, and humility ; there are 
 few names more distinguished in the Church's annals, 
 and more eminent amongst her media3val Saints, 
 than his whose official signature is appended to a 
 Papal Bull, preserved at Monte Cassino, as — ' Peter 
 the sinner. Bishop of Ostia.' 
 
 Men It is impossible that any one note of the Church 
 
 may fall away, . • -i i mi 
 
 but can ever become mvi.sible. There may be certain 
 
 Christ's presence .,.,,. ,., tit 
 
 is not periods in Jier Instory whicli seem more clouded or 
 
 more bright than others ; seasons when her Lord 
 
 •^ippears to sleep, as well as others wdien He arises 
 
 to assuage the tempest. But, whether sleeping or 
 
 lessened.
 
 CASES OF APOSTASY. 117 
 
 waking, He is always there ; there, in ' tlie fuhiess 
 of His presence,' which is never 'lessened,' never 
 'abated;' never hidden, or eclipsed. 
 
 The Mahometan impiety of old, and the more recent 
 blasphemies of infidehty, are no such signs as Dr. 
 Forbes supposes, — of a lessening of Christ's presence p. 74, above, 
 with His one universal Church. Long ages previous, 
 whole hosts of angels were ' given over to ' the fires of 
 hell, yet God's presence was not lessened in those 
 courts from which they were expelled. — ' There was Apocalypse, 
 a great battle in heaven, Michael and his angels 
 fought with the dragon, and the dragon fought and 
 his angels : and they prevailed not, neither was their 
 place found any more in heaven. And that great 
 dragon was cast out, that old serpent, who is called 
 the devil and satan, who seduceth the whole world : 
 and he was cast unto the earth, and his angels 
 were thrown down with him.' — Here is the very 
 type, the root, the origin, the source, of all schism 
 and of all pride. Had heaven sinned, that its unity 
 was thus impaired ? 
 
 'Angels are bright still, though the brightest fell.' 
 
 What strange theory is this? Does the gospel 
 suit it, or it the gospel ? When Jesus taught the St. John, ch. vi. 
 great mystery of the holy Eucharist, and 'many of ibid. w. 67, 68, 71. 
 His disciples went back and walked no more with 
 Him,' was His blessed presence lessened with the 
 faithful remnant of whom He asked — ' Will you also 
 go away ? ' Was it lessened with the chosen twelve, 
 though He then declared that one of them was ' a
 
 118 CHRIST IS NEAREST WHEN NEED IS GREATEST. 
 
 devil ' ? And when that very one betrayed Ilim to 
 the cross, and wdien others fled and left Him, was He 
 less with His Church then, at the moment that He 
 died for her ? 
 
 Were there no schisms and heresies in the apo- 
 stolic age which followed, and to which Dr. Forbes 
 liimself appeals as a time of the fulness of Christ's 
 1 St. John ii. 18, 19. prcseucc ? Hear the beloved Apostle — ' As you have 
 heard that Antichrist cometh ; even now there are 
 become many Antichrists : whereby we know that 
 it is the last hour : They went out from us ; but they 
 Ep. ver. 19. wcrc iiot of US.' Again, St. Jude, — 'These are they, 
 who separate themselves, sensual men, having not the 
 Spirit.' And St. Paul speaks of it as a necessity, — 
 1 Cor. xi. 19. ' There must be also heresies : that they also, who 
 are reproved, may be made manifest among you.' 
 
 Our Lord never said that the vigour of the sap of 
 His one true vine should be abated, because of the 
 fruitless branches He cut off. When He threatened 
 the individual churches in tlie Apocalypse with 
 severance from the body. He never told His faithful 
 that the body itself should have less share in the out- 
 pouring and the indwelling of His Holy Spirit. 
 
 Nor when the early heresies sprang up was that 
 gracious presence lessened. Nay, the worse the 
 assaults of Satan, the nearer to us is our God. 
 ' Where wert tlioii, Lord,' asked St. Catherine of 
 Siena, ' when my soul was flooded and overwhelmed 
 with foul imaginings and evil thoughts ? ' 'In the 
 mid'st of thee,' was the reply, ' to preserve thee from
 
 CONFUSION OF THE AKIAN TIMES. 110 
 
 perdition.' So is it with the Church. God never 
 will suspend her living, acting, visible, unity, 
 whether subjective or objective, or of any khid 
 whatever. Her unity is Divine, and this embraces all 
 unities. This admits of no abatements or lessenings, 
 no severings or distinguishings, no splittings or 
 philosophiziugs. She is One, as God is One. 
 
 If the Church's visible unity coidd ever be sus- visible Unify 
 pended, it must have been so in those troublous days suspended. 
 of the fourth century, of which I have already 
 spoken. Contemporary authorities, both from West 
 and East, describe their miseral)le dissensions in the 
 most vivid colours. St. Hilary of Poitiers addresses 
 the Emperor Constantius in language well calculated 
 to convey an idea of their confusion. 
 
 He tells him : — 
 
 * We are in a condition most dangerous and deplorable ; Ad Constantiuni 
 for now there exist as many faiths as inclinations, as many "' ' '^' 
 
 doctrines as fashions, and there spring up as many causes of 
 blasphemies as there are vices 
 
 ' Whilst men fight in words, question about novelties, 
 dispute about ambiguities, complain about authors, strive 
 about pursuits, whilst tliere is difficulty in agreement, and 
 one begins to be anathema to the other : hardly any one 
 now is Christ's. For we fluctuate with the uncertain wind of 
 doctrines : if we teach, we disturb ; if we are taught, we go 
 astray. . . . Every year, nay every month, we decree new 
 faiths respecting God; when decreed we repent of them, we 
 defend the repentant, and we anathematise the defended ; 
 either in our own we condemn what belongs to others, 
 or in others we condemn what is our own; and biting 
 one another, we are now consumed of one another. 
 
 ' Then men seek for faith as if they possessed it not.
 
 120 STRIFES AND COXTENTIONS. 
 
 They require it to be written, as if it was not in their hearts. 
 We, who are regenerated through faith, are now taught re- 
 specting faith, as if our regeneration were without it.' 
 
 Further, lie designates, as among the chief causes 
 of their miseries, two evils, which are characteristic 
 of the present age also — viz. that men ' avoid behov- 
 ing concerning the Lord Christ those things which He 
 taught were to be believed about Him ; ' and that 
 ' under the specious name of peace they steal into a 
 unity which betrays the faith.' ^Per speciosum pads 
 no men in unitate perjidice siibrepimus.'' 
 
 . In the East there arose a corresponding cry from 
 St. Gregory Nazianzen : — 
 
 Orat. ii. 81. 'All things have become again as at the first, before the 
 
 world was, whilst as yet it was devoid of the form and 
 comely order we now behold ; but the chaotic and dis- 
 ordered mass required the form-bestowing hand and power. 
 Or, if you will, we are like men in a nocturnal combat, 
 who, under the faint rays of the moon, know not friends 
 from foes ; or, as if in a naval fight and stormy sea, stunned, 
 and perplexed, and deprived of an opportunity for manly 
 deeds by the blows of the winds, and the seething surge, 
 and the onrush of the waves, and the clashing of the ships, 
 and the thrusts of the poles, and the calls of the com- 
 manders, and the groans of the falling — alas, what grief! 
 we fall foul of one another, and are destroyed by one 
 another.' 
 
 Such is the testimony borne by two holy Bishops 
 and Doctors, then living, to the state of the Christian 
 world in the fourth century ; ere yet Anglicans would 
 consider Christ's presence to have ' lessened.' It pre- 
 pares us for the account given by a Pagan historian of
 
 DISTINCTNESS OF THE CHURCH'S LINEAMENTS. 121 
 
 the same age, who states that owing to their dissen- Ammianus 
 sioiis, the Emperor Julian ' found there were no wild LiK'sxii""/}" 
 beasts so dangerous to men as most of the Christians 
 were destructive to themselves.' ^ Nullas infestas 
 hominibus bestias, lit sunt sibi ferales plerique Chris- 
 tia?iorum, expertus.'' 
 
 Yet, when we contemplate those times from the 
 vantage ground of what was then a futurity of fifteen 
 centuries, we perceive, distinct and evident through 
 the mixed medley of contending parties, the clear 
 outlines of the one church ; the comely form of the 
 one spouse ; the well-fenced and visible fold of the 
 one shepherd ; in which alone were to be found the 
 waters of eternal life, and outside of which no wan- 
 derer could be Christ's. So will it be, in ages yet to 
 come, when generations now unborn look back upon 
 our present age. So is it now with the holy angels, 
 and with all those blessed ones who are looking down 
 upon us from the heavenly realms of peace. 
 
 There is a strange fallacy which runs through Dr. Distinction 
 Forbes's argument, and which arises from his not individuals 
 distinguishing between divine promises and precepts The Church. 
 to individual Christians or to individual churches, and 
 those which are addressed to the universal Church 
 of Christ. An individual Christian, thougli 'purcliased Scc extract, 
 by the blood of God that he should be holy,' may 
 forfeit his high heritage and defile ' the temple of the 
 Holy Ghost,' casting away the priceless gifts of ' love 
 and peace and all other fruits of the Spirit.' He may
 
 122 god's promises to the church are universal. 
 
 See above, 
 pp. 7-14. 
 
 The children 
 
 of 
 
 The Church 
 
 are 
 
 taught liy God. 
 
 See the extract, 
 
 above, p. 73. 
 
 sin against the distniguishing mark of Christ's disciple, 
 that of love to all the bretlii^en. Christ gave it as a 
 mark of His true followers, but He never promised 
 that each of them should always keep it. Whereas 
 it has been already shown, that, in a way which 
 pledged God's word in perpetuity, ' it was said of the 
 whole Church, " That they may be one as We are." ' 
 
 Again — surely no reasonable man would gather 
 from the prophecy or assertion that, ' the priest's lips 
 should keep knowledge,' that every priest was in- 
 falhble, but rather that such was the appointed and 
 ordinary channel through wliich the people were to 
 learn the knowledge of God. Whereas the declara- 
 tion that the Church's ' teachers shall not be removed 
 into a corner any more,' is manifestly a prophecy 
 which includes a solemn promise. 
 
 Dr. Forbes observes also that, ' if the gospel had 
 its fidl course, every priest should be holy, and " all 
 the children" of the Church " taught by God." ' Now, 
 there are few, if any, more striking proofs of the in- 
 d^vclling presence of God within the Eoman Catholic 
 Church, than the large, and ample, and literal fulfil- 
 ment within her, of the promise of divine teaching 
 and guidance for every individual soul who does not 
 wilfully turn away from it. It is fulfilled outwardly 
 and inwardly, collectively and individually. The 
 living voice of God is heard in ways most manifold, 
 through the organ of the Church His living temple, 
 'the teacher from God,' who speaks with God's 
 authority.
 
 DIVINE TEACHING AND GUIDANCE. 123 
 
 Through the Church's creeds, her dogmatic decrees, Outward tcadiing. 
 her sermons, lier catechisms, her offices, her practices, 
 her devotions, and the like, her children are, all of 
 them, ' taught by God,' Again, each one is ' taught 
 by God ' in that wonderful sacrament of surpassing, 
 superhuman mercy and condescension, the blessed 
 sacrament of penance, wherein the poor sinner pours 
 out his burdened heart to the minister of liis God and 
 Saviour ; or rather, through the ear of that minister 
 to the tender, yearning heart of that God and Saviour 
 Himself, of Jesus Who is there to enhghten His ser- 
 vant, and to pardon through His servant's lips. It 
 is there that the penitent unfolds the trials and 
 temptations of his Christian warfare ; and not only 
 does the cleansing blood of Jesus wash away his 
 stains, but through the self-same minister the voice 
 of God is heard ; guiding and directing; consoling or 
 warning; encouraging; and, if sometimes threatening, 
 ever loving, ever merciful. Thus, tlirough the out- 
 ward ear, is each one ' taught by God,' and led on 
 his own particular path to heaven ; and he is not 
 only taught it, but he is enabled to follow it, through 
 the grace which the sacrament conveys. 
 
 But there is another teaching still, and who shall inward teaching, 
 unfold its mysteries? God's inward voices to the 
 faithful Christian soul are far beyond all human 
 words, or human thoughts. The removal of every 
 obstacle to the hearing, or the understanding, or the 
 obeying of these heavenly whispers ; the interpreta- 
 tion of the divine wiU thus manifested in .secret ;
 
 124 THERE ARE MANY WHO WILL NOT HEAR. 
 
 counsel to promote and to assist each one, in the most 
 simple, childlike, and full co-operation -with the light 
 and grace thus lovingly vouchsafed ; — these are the 
 objects of the sublime office of the direction of souls, 
 which is divinely entrusted to the duly qualified 
 amongst the Chm-ch's ministers, through whom God 
 teaches the humble of heart, and preserves His che- 
 rished flock from being led astray by the delusions of 
 their own imaginations, or by false spirits which are 
 not from Him. Thus He assists His chosen people 
 to follow His leadings, and to correspond to the 
 calls and the workings of Hjs grace. 
 All Most truly and most fully, then, are all the 
 
 obTcircnt. Church's children ' taught by God.' But it is no- 
 where promised that all shall hsten or obey. We 
 are warned by our Lord Himself to expect the con- 
 st. Matthew, ch. xiii. trary. Hc has taught us expressly that His Church 
 on earth contains both the just and the wicked, and 
 Avill always do so till the last. Nor are His priests 
 exempted from this rule. They are called, it is true, 
 to an especial hohness, and their office is always 
 holy, but there is no more promise of hohness to 
 them individually, than there is to any other. Like 
 others, they may fall short of their vocation, and 
 prove unworthy of their sacred office ; and, as if to 
 forewarn us to be prepared for such scandals, we 
 find a Judas even amongst the apostles selected by 
 our blessed Lord in person. 
 The Church exists ' My tliouglits are iiot your thoughts : nor your 
 
 for 
 
 thobaivation ways luy wuys, saith the Lord. For as the hea-
 
 THE church's divixe commtssiox. 125 
 
 vens are exalted above the eartli, so are my ways of 
 
 exalted above your ways, and my thoughts above isaiasiv. 8-11. 
 
 your thoughts. And as the rain and the snow come 
 
 down from heaven, and return no more thither, but 
 
 soak the earth, and water it, and make it to spring, 
 
 and give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater : 
 
 so shall my word be, which shall go forth from my 
 
 mouth : it shall not return to me void, but it shall do 
 
 whatsoever I please, and shall prosper in the things 
 
 for which I sent it.' The Church is for man, not 
 
 man for the Church ; and the word of God which 
 
 called it into being ' shall prosper in the things for 
 
 which He sent it.' The Church is God's ambassador, 
 
 charged with His commission to preach the gospel 
 
 to the whole world, so long as time endures, and to 
 
 convey the means of grace to every soul that is 
 
 athirst for the heavenly streams of life. God's word 
 
 is pledged that His gospel shall never fail, therefore 
 
 that word guarantees to us that the Church, to whom 
 
 the gospel has been entrusted by Him, Avill never 
 
 forfeit or be deprived of any, be it even the least, of all 
 
 those endowments and prerogatives that are needed 
 
 for the end for wdiich He sent her. Had God Himself 
 
 not pledged His word, we might have feared lest the 
 
 sins of man should prove too much for His amazing 
 
 patience, and lest ' the blessings of the gospel ' should 
 
 become forfeited. But His thoughts are not om- 
 
 thoughts, nor our ways His ways. The deeper the 
 
 abyss of our miserj^, the fuller becomes the abyss of 
 
 His mercy. His word shall not return to him void :
 
 120 
 
 THE UXWORTHIXESS OF HER MEMBERS 
 
 God's promises 
 to the 
 Church 
 
 are 
 
 absolute 
 
 and 
 
 uucouditional. 
 
 like the fruitful rain that soaks into the earth, it shall 
 prosper in the things for which He sent it. The 
 Chui'ch collectively, as teacher of the nations and 
 stewardess of the sacraments, is not on her probation ; 
 though all her members are, priests as well as people, 
 from the supreme Pontiff on the chair of Peter, down 
 to the little child just washed in the baptismal font. 
 The Church collectively, has an end for which she 
 exists ; and so has each one of her members, indivi- 
 dually. Her children are here to save their souls, and 
 to reach the everlasting enjoyment of their God in 
 heaven, by knowing, and loving, and serving Him 
 faithfully in this life. This is the season of their 
 probation, and, if they fail, their end is lost for 
 ever. The Church is here to assist them in their 
 trial, to help them on their way, to conduct them to 
 their God, Who is their end and their beginning. For 
 this she exists and is on earth. The failure of the 
 Church in aught requisite for this, would be the 
 failure of God Himself, who constituted her for 
 this very purpose. It would be the failure of His 
 Word to the universal race of man. 
 
 Hence, no analogy whatever can be drawn between 
 God's promises to individuals, and His promises to 
 the universal Church. The former are dependent 
 and conditional, unless they affect the universal 
 interests. The latter are absolute and unconditional, 
 because they cannot be separated from the universal 
 interests. Tlius, there is no promise that an indi- 
 vidual priest shall not be a wicked man ; and, if he
 
 DOES NOT AFFECT THE CHURCll's ATTRIBUTES. 127 
 
 is SO, his judgment may be more severe than tliat of 
 others. But it is a great Catliohc truth — to ado[)t 
 the language of the Anghcan 26th Article — that 'the 
 unworthiness of the ministers hinders not the effect 
 of the sacraments ;'...' which be effectual,' as it 
 further says, ' because of Christ's institution and pro- 
 mise, although they be ministered by evil men.' The 
 sacraments were instituted for the universal good, 
 and no amount of individual evil can lessen their 
 intriiisic virtue. If the recipient is in evil disposi- 
 tions it will prevent their efficacy in his own case, 
 and may even turn the blessing into condemnation ; 
 but the fulness of the sacraments themselves will in 
 nowise be impaired, nor Christ's presence in them 
 lessened. So is it with the Church. Outwardly as 
 well as inwardly, she is always holy, though com- 
 prising a mixed multitude ; and though, so long as 
 the world shall endure, she will contain both the 
 \vicked and the good. Outwardly as well as in- 
 wardly, she is always one ; though many have fallen 
 away, and have gone out from her, who were not of i st. John ii. 19. 
 her. Always, — whatever may be the accumulation 
 and the heinousness of human wickedness — always 
 in the midst of her, in the fulness of the Divine 
 Presence, is Christ our God, and His ever-abiding 
 Spirit. He has sent her forth to overcome the uni- 
 versal evil, and, therefore, the stronger that evil 
 waxes, the more securely may she rely on the perse- 
 vering constancy of His assistance, from Whom alone 
 tjhe derives her strength, and in Whom alone she lives.
 
 128 EXTRAORDINARY GIFTS MAY BE WITHHELD. 
 
 Distinction Tlicre are doubtless times wlien tlie grace of God 
 
 between ordinary • i i i -en i ^ .i 
 
 and •' IS more largely and manifestly poured out than at 
 extraor inary gifts. Q|-]^Qpg^ — occaslous wlieu it may be said to over- 
 flow. It is not tliat it is ever lessened, for it is 
 always present in superabundance ; but it is that 
 there are seasons of its miraculous manifestation ; 
 or, to speak more exactly, when it becomes more 
 manifestly miraculous, for a miracle it always is. Dr. 
 Forbes seems to have overlooked tliis consideration, 
 See above, p. 74. wlicu he says that Christ ' is not with us as He was 
 with the Apostles, in that they were " full of the Holy 
 Ghost." Doubtless, the Apostles had extraordinary 
 gifts of the Holy Ghost, all of -which were not handed 
 down to their successors. Such gifts may have been in- 
 dependent of their apostolic office ; or else not required 
 for the Church's mission in the ages which were to 
 follow. But ' the fidness of God's presence ' does 
 not always bring these gifts. We are nowhere told 
 tliat they were communicated to St. Stephen, yet 
 Acts vi. 6. he is described, in express terms, as ' full of faith, 
 and of the Holy Ghost'' Now, unity is not one of 
 these extraordinary gifts. It is an unceasing mark 
 of the Church, and declared to be so in the Creed of 
 the Apostles. It belongs, therefore, to her essence, it 
 is necessary to her, and can never be withdrawn. It 
 distinguishes her fj'oin others ; therefore it never 
 can be hidden. Its continuance and its visibility 
 are requisite for her Gospel Mission ; therefore they 
 have their place among the ' faitliful mercies of 
 David,' guaranteed to us by the eternal Truth. 
 This, then, is the answer to Dr. Forbes's observa-
 
 ESSEXTIALS NEVER ARE WITHDRAWN. 120 
 
 tion tliat, tliougli our Lord has promised to bo Christ's prcsonco 
 
 never Viincs 
 
 always with us, ' He has not promised to be always in 
 
 present in the same degree or the same way.' The see rxirac't, 
 comment is true as regards the extraordinary effusions ^ °^^' ^^' ' ' ' ' 
 of God's grace, or manifestations of His power. It 
 is not true of all tliat is essential, or, in any need- 
 ful way, auxihary, to the life or the mission of His 
 Church. Tlierefore, it is not true of visible unity, 
 which forms one of her constituent parts and fea- 
 tures, which is one of her dearest and most cherished 
 prerogatives ; necessary for the fulfilment of her 
 mission ; a note that she is God's messenger, and a 
 characteristic of God's message. 
 
 The promise was made by Christ at the same St. Matt, xxviii. 20. 
 solemn moment that He sent forth His Church to 
 teach and to baptize all nations, and to instruct 
 them to observe all thing-s whatsoever He had com- 
 manded her. Therefore it manifestly imphes no 
 variation of His assisting presence in anything 
 which may be required for the fulfilment of that 
 commission. But it not only implies this, it expresses 
 it, by the word — ' alway^' — or, as more literally in 
 the Douay version, — '■all days.' — In the Greek it is 
 -TTOLO-ag roi.g T^fxipag. The words are too plain to admit 
 of any doubt. — Behold I am with you all days., even 
 to the consummation of the icorld. — It is not only — 
 I icill be with you, it is the unchangeable — / am — 
 that is to say : — as now, so for ever ; and that, ' in 
 the same degree and the same way,' as regards all 
 that is required for the fuirilinent of the conuuis.>iou 
 
 VOL. I. K
 
 130 WHETHER THE DAYS EE GOOD OR EVIL 
 
 then conferred. Every day, and in all the days, 
 whatever they may be ; in evil daj^s, and in good 
 days ; in days of persecution, and in days of tri- 
 umph ; in days when wickedness is found in the 
 highest places (as in Judas, among tlie Apostles), 
 and in days when Priest and Pontiff excel alike in 
 virtue, as in office ; in days when the Church is 
 mourning through the iniquity of faithless children 
 (though iniquity never shall prevail), and in days 
 when she is the admiration of the whole earth, 
 resplendent witli grace, and conspicuous for sanctity. 
 The promise is absolute and unconditional, that is, 
 if it requires any conditions for its fulfilment, it 
 includes a guarantee that they shall not be wanting. 
 God pledges His word to man. He strives to raise 
 man's fainting courage for the accomplishment of His 
 great ends of mercy, in which He makes him His 
 co-operator. Why, then, should men, poor faithless 
 worms of earth, explain God's blessed promise all 
 away ? God says, — ' I am with you all your days.' 
 Alas ! shall man reply, — ' True, Lord ; but you do 
 not say j'ou are always present in the same degree 
 or the same way ' ? Should we not do wrong to a 
 fellow-mortal if we thus questioned his generosity ? 
 We cannot trust too fully to the word of the eternal 
 God. We cannot interpret it too largely, in such a 
 case as this. He is not one to mislead us with 
 artificial lano;uaf]!;e — 
 
 To palter with us in a double sense ; 
 To keep tlie word of promise to our car, 
 And break it to our hope.
 
 CHRIST IS ALWAYS WITH HIS CHURCH. 131 
 
 I repeat, that I am not speaking of those especial 
 manifestations of His presence which, in His loving 
 wisdom, He vouchsafes or withholds as befits the 
 times and seasons, but of all that which appertains to 
 the constitution and essence of the Church, as is tlie 
 case with visible unity ; of all that is requisite for 
 her mission, to which visible unity is indispensable ; 
 and of all that belongs to her characteristic Notes, of 
 which Unity is one ; and it could not be a Note at 
 all if it were not visible. 
 
 Everj^ word of the promise is remarkable. It is The peculiar force 
 particularly to be observed that the expression — tiie words. 
 / am ivith you^ on the part of God, — has a special 
 force, wherever it is found throughout the pages of 
 Holy Scripture. It invariably conveys an assurance 
 of success by means of unfailing and extraordinary 
 divine assistance. On the other hand, the expres- 
 sion — I am not with you — is used in the reverse 
 sense. This has been exemplified by Professor Tractatus 
 Murray in a hstof texts which fill several pages, and Eccipsia*christi, 
 from which I select a very few. ^'^^^ "• p- ^^^' *^'■• 
 
 Thus, God says to Isaac, — ' Do not fear, for / am oon. xxri. 24. 
 with thee ' — and to Jacob, — ' Eeturn into the land of ch. xxxi. 3. 
 thy fathers and to thy kindred, and I will be with thee! 
 Again, when God sent Moses to deliver Israel; — 'And ExoJ. Hi. 11, 12. 
 Moses said to God : Wlio am I that I should go to 
 Pharao, and should bring forth the children of Israel 
 out of Egypt ? And He said to him : / will he with 
 thee.' Before Israel was defeated by tlie Amalekites, 
 God commanded Moses : ' Say to them : Go not u}), Deuuron. i. J2. 
 
 K 2
 
 132 INSTANX'ES OF THE SIGXIFICATION OF 
 
 and figlit not, for / am not icith you.' To Josiie, God 
 Josue i. 5. said : — ' As I have been with Moses, so idll I be with 
 thee.'' Wlien Israel sinned and fled before their 
 enemies, God showed His presence and assistance by- 
 removing the hindrance to their ultimate victory, by 
 Jos. vii. 12. threatening them through Josue : — ' Iicill he no more 
 u'ith you, till you destroy him that is guilty of this 
 wickedness ;' at the same time putting it into their 
 hearts to do as He commanded, and thus fulfilling 
 His previous promise. It was the greeting of the 
 
 Judges vi. 12. Angel to Gedeon : — ' The Lord is with thee, most 
 Ibid. 14-16. valiant of men.' And when God bade him go in his 
 strength and deliver Israel, Gedeon 'answered and 
 said : I beseech Thee, my Lord, wherewith shall I deli- 
 ver Israel ? Behold my family is the meanest in 
 Manasses, and I am the least in my father's house. 
 And the Lord said to him : / icill be luith thee : and 
 thou shalt cut off Madian as one man.' 
 
 This, too, was the Archangel's salutation to her, 
 from whom sprang the Saviour and Deliverer of 
 
 8t. Matt. i. 16. mankind ; to ' Maiy, of whom was born Jesus ;' 
 23. Whose name, also, was ' Emmanuel, which being in- 
 
 .<^t. Luke i. 28. tcrprctcd is, God with us.' — 'And the Angel being 
 come in, said unto her : Hail full of grace, the Lord 
 is with thee : Blessed art thou amoni? women.' — 
 ' XaT^s, xByjxpiTOi^ivr^' o KJpJoj /xsra cow.' 
 Acts X. 38. It is this which St. Peter spoke of the Christ Him- 
 
 self: — 'Jesus of Nazareth: how God anointed Him 
 with the Holy Ghost, and witli power, who went 
 about doing good, and healing all that were op-
 
 THE WORDS OF THE PROMISE. 133 
 
 pressed by the devil, /o/' God cvas icitli IHiu \ — on o 
 0sog ijv [J.ST auTQu. 
 
 It is tliis which the Lord Christ has promised to 
 His one Church, and which He will never fail to make 
 good in all its fulness : — ''Behold I am icith you ail 
 days, even to the consummation of the loorld.'' — All 
 days, Without any intermission, or suspension, or inter- 
 ruption, / am with you ; I, the Sun of Justice, who 
 know no setting, who change not like the moon, 
 now more, now less ; I, Emmanuel, am ivith you ; 
 not in different degrees or different ways, according 
 to the variations of the fickle human heart, or as if 
 dependent on its movements ; but, all days, I, the 
 great I AM, am with you. The very construction of 
 the sentence, in the Greek, is calculated to increase our 
 confidence. It is as if our dearest Lord made haste 
 to unite us with Him, to make both one, to enclose 
 us, as it were, in the midst of His own great and 
 awful, but most soul-assuring, eveiiasting Name — 
 I with you AM — iyco /xed' v/jlcoi/ el/jn irdaas ra? 
 rjfxepas-, ico9 Trj9 avvTeXela^ rod al(ovo9. 
 
 What need we more ? Yet Dr. Forbes teaches 
 that Holy Scripture ' does not say what degree of Soo abovo, p. 73. 
 shortcoming shall forfeit the blessings of the Gospel.' 
 However true this assertion as regards indivi- 
 dual churches or individual Christians, it is most 
 gratuitous and unfounded if applied to the universal 
 and everlasting Church of God. Pitiable indeed 
 would be the lot of the poor human race if for the 
 universal blessings of the Gos[)el they were de})en-
 
 134 THE TESTIMONY OF HOLY SCRIPTURE. 
 
 dent upon human merits. The sins of man did not 
 prevent tlie coming of the Messiah (though it is main- 
 tained that they did so by certain of the Jews), nor 
 shall they hinder the fulhlment of the work He came 
 to do, by lessening His blessed presence, or dividing 
 isaias xi. 10. His ouc fold. — ' Bchold the Lord God shall come 
 with strength, and His arm shall rule : behold His 
 reward is with Him and His work is before Him.' 
 
 If the words of Christ are not enough, if His prayer 
 and promise can be explained away, what remains 
 but to turn to the overwhelming testimony of those 
 
 2 St. Peter i. 19. diviuc prophccics of the ancient covenant, ' where- 
 unto,' says the Apostle, ' you do well to attend, as 
 to a hght that shineth in a dark place ' ? 
 Prophecies It may uot be amiss then, as briefly as possible 
 
 Old Testament, aiuidst sucli a profiisiou of choicc, to select a few of 
 the most prominent of those glowing pledges of the 
 constant, abiding, ever-present, faithful assistance of 
 our dear and loving God, which He has so lavishly 
 vouchsafed to us througli the voices of His ancient 
 prophets ; as if to relieve a Divine Heart overcharged 
 with love, and with fears lest man should lose 
 his confidence and trust ; lest, through sin and in- 
 firmity, he should be tempted to doubt of the long- 
 suffering, never-failing, never-tiring, never-exhausted, 
 never-suspended, infinite mercy and patience of Him, 
 
 i.siias XXX 18. Wlio ' waiteth that He may have mercy on us : 
 Psalm cii. aud shall be exalted sparing us : ' Who ' is compas- 
 sionate and merciful : long-suffering and plenteous in 
 mercy. .... Who hath not dealt with us accord- 
 ing to our sins : nor rewarded us according to our
 
 god's everlasting covenant. 135 
 
 iniquities For He kiiuwetli our frame, lie 
 
 remeniberetli that v^^e are dust.' 
 
 ' And Sion said : The Lord hath forsakeu me, and the Lord Isaias xlix. i i-io. 
 hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her infant, so as 
 not to have pity on the son of her womb ? and if she should 
 forget, yet will not I forget thee. Behold, I have graven 
 thee in my hands : thy walls are always before my eye&.' 
 
 'A child is born to us, and a son is given to us, and the ci,. jx. o, 7. 
 government is upon his shoulder : and his name shall 
 be called Wonderful, Counsellor, God the Mighty, the 
 Father of the World to come, the Prince of Peace. His 
 empire shall be multiplied, and there shall be no end of 
 peace : He shall sit upon the throne of David, and upon 
 his kingdom : to establish it and strengthen it with judg- 
 ment aad with justice, from henceforth and for ever: the 
 zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this.' 
 
 ' And now thus saith the Lord that created thee, Jacob, Isaias xliii. 
 and formed thee, Israel : Fear not, for I have redeemed 
 thee, and called thee by thy name : thou art mine. When 
 thou shalt pass through the waters, I will be with thee, and 
 the rivers shall not cover thee : when thou shalt walk in 
 the fire, thou shalt not be burnt, and the flames shall not 
 burn in thee : For I am the Lord thy Gfod ; the holy One 
 of Israel, thy Saviour.' 
 
 * Lift up your eyes to heaven, and look down to the Ibid. ch. li. g. 
 earth beneath : for the heavens shall vanish like smoke, 
 
 and the earth shall be worn away like a garment, and the 
 inhabitants thereof shall perish in like manner: but my 
 salvation shall be for ever, and my justice shall not fail.' 
 
 * I will make an everlasting covenant with you, the Isaias Iv. 3, 13. 
 faithful mercies of David. . . . and the Lord shall be 
 
 named for an everlasting sign, that shall not be taken 
 away.' 
 
 ' Because thou wast forsaken, and hated, and there was Ch. Ix. lo. 
 none that passed through thee, I will make thee to be an 
 everlasting glory, a joy unto generation and generation.' 
 
 'For as the new heavens, and the new earth, whicii I Cli. Ixvi. 22, 23. 
 make to stand before me, saith the Lord : so shall your
 
 loG god's oath not to be angry with his church, 
 
 seed stand, and your name. And there shall be month 
 after month, and sabbath after sabbath : and all flesh 
 shall come to adore before my face, saith the Lord.' 
 I^iiaslix. 20, 21. * And there shall come a redeemer to Sion, and to them 
 that return from iniquity in Jacob, saith the Lord. This 
 is my covenant with them, saith the Lord : My spirit that 
 is in thee, and my words that I have put in thy mouth, 
 shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of 
 thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the 
 Lord, from henceforth and for ever.' 
 Cb. liv. 9-13. 'This thing is to me as in the days of Noe, to whom I 
 
 swore, that I would no more bring in the waters of Noe 
 upon the earth : so have I sworn not to be angry with thee, 
 and not to rebuke thee. Fur the mountains shall be moved, 
 and the hills shall tremble : but my mercy shall not depart 
 from thee, and the covenant of my peace shall not be 
 moved : said the Lord that hath mercy on thee. 
 
 * poor little one, tossed with tempest, without all com- 
 fort, behold I will lay thy stones in order, and will lay thy 
 foundations with sapphires, and I will make thy bulwarks 
 of jasper : and thy gates of graven stones, and all thy bor- 
 ders of desirable stones. All thy children shall be taught 
 of the Lord: and great shall be the peace of thy children.' 
 I],jj 17 ' No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper: 
 
 and every tongue that resisteth thee in judgment, thou 
 shalt condemn. This is the inheritance of the servants of 
 the Lord, and their justice with me, saith the Lord.' 
 
 These magnilicciit prophecies are, of themselves, 
 a sufficient answer to any theory which is based on 
 the assumption that ' the blessings of the Gospel' can 
 be ' forfeited ' to the universal Church, or ' the ful- 
 ■ ness of the presence ' of her God within her ' lessened,' 
 or 'abated.' — Though the hills and mountains tremble, 
 yet God's ' mercy shall not depart from lier^ nor His 
 covenant of peace he moved.'' Wlicn God breaks His
 
 AND NOT TO REBUKE HER. 137 
 
 oatli to Noe, and siii brings back ' the waters of Noe 
 upon the eartli ;' then, and then only, will He forget 
 or fail hi His promise to the Church, — ' / have sworn 
 not to be angry with thee, and not to rebuke thee.' 
 Then only need we fear for a suspension of her out- 
 ward unity. He has laid her ' stones in order,' and 
 there shall be no division to displace them. 
 
 It is remarkable that the promise to Noe, to 
 which God here appeals in confirmation of His oath 
 to the Christian Clun-cli, is expressly grounded on 
 the frailty of man and his liability to evil. — 'And Gcut.s. viii. 21. 
 the Lord smelled a sweet savour, and said : I will 
 no more curse the earth for the sake of man : for 
 the imagination and thought of man's heart are 
 prone to evil from his youth : therefore I will no 
 more destroy ewerj living soul as I have done.' 
 
 The promises of God to His Church are in like 
 manner independent of human frailty. 
 
 Isaias is not the only one who is charged with 
 these glad messages. They have a place amidst 
 the divine strains of the sweet Psalmist of Israel : — 
 
 ' The mercies of the Lord I will sing for ever. I will r^ilm Lxxxviii. 1-0. 
 shew forth thy truth with my mouth to generation and 
 generation. For thou hast said : Mercy shall be built up 
 for ever in the heavens : thy truth shall be prepared in 
 them. I have made a covenant wdth my elect, I have 
 sworn to David my servant : Thy seed will I settle for 
 ever. And I will build up thy throne imto generation and 
 generation.' .... 
 
 'Then thou spokest in a vision to thy saints, and said.st: Ii). Lvx.wiii. 2o-3S. 
 I have laid help upon one that is mighty, and liave exalted
 
 138 THE FAITHFUL MERCIES OF DAVID. 
 
 one chosen out of my people. I have found David my 
 servant : with my holy oil I have anointed him. For my 
 hand shall help him : and my arm shall strengthen him. 
 The enemy shall have no advantage over him : nor the son 
 of iniquity have power to hurt him. And I will cut down 
 his enemies before his face ; and them that hate him I 
 will put to flight. And my truth and my mercy shall be 
 with him : and in my name shall his horn be exalted. And 
 I will set his hand in the sea : and his right hand in the 
 rivers. He shall cr}'^ out to me : Thou art my father : my 
 God, and the support of my salvation. And I will make 
 him my first-born, high above the kiDgs of the earth. 
 
 ' I will keep my mercy for him for ever : and my cove- 
 nant faithful to him. And I will make his seed to endure 
 for evermore : and his throne as the da^^s of heaven. And 
 if his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judg- 
 ments : If they profane my justices : and keep not my 
 commandments : I will visit their iniquities with a rod : 
 and their sins with stripes. But my mercy I Avill not take 
 away from him : nor will I suffer my truth to fail. Neither 
 will I profane my covenant : and the words that proceed 
 from my mouth I will not make void. 
 
 ' Once have I sworn by my holiness : I will not lie unto 
 David : his seed shall endure for ever. And his throne as 
 the sun before me : and as the moon perfect for ever, and 
 a faithful witness in heaven.' 
 
 These promises TliGSG promises are to the Christian Church, and 
 abiding. they guarantee to us that throughout the whole 
 period of her time-enduring existence, not any 
 ' decree of shortcoming; shall forfeit the blessino;s of 
 the Gospel.' It cannot be denied that amongst those 
 blessings, unity, in all its fulness, outward and inward, 
 visible and invisible, holds a pre-eminent position. 
 In the verses which follow the above, the inspired
 
 MAN S SIIOKTCOMINGS FORESEEX BY GOD. 1 ■]0 
 
 Psalmist bewails the apparent breach of God's cove- 
 nant; but his words are to be there understood in their 
 primary sense, as applied to the Jewish nation, and 
 the temporal David. It is thus that St. Augustine in- 
 terprets them, as intended to assure us that the pre- 
 vious promises belong to Christ and to His Church. — 
 ' Lest a Christian, who affirmed that these promises in Psaim. ixxxviii. 
 were spoken of Christ, should be answered that they Enarmt.Se™.ii.n.( 
 referred to David, and he shoidd fall into error if 
 he saw that they all were fulfilled in David ; for this 
 reason. He has brought to nought these promises in 
 David, in order that, when you perceive that those 
 things which necessarily must be fulfilled are not 
 fulfilled in him, you may seek another, in whom 
 they may be shown to be fulfilled.' — A little further 
 on ^he adds : ' Perhaps God was about to say to thee, 
 " I swore indeed and promised, but this one Avould 
 not persevere." What then, didst not Thou, the 
 Lord God, foreknow that this one would not perse- 
 vere ? Certainly Thou knewest It is 
 
 removed from this David, that it might not be 
 
 expected in this David. Expect, therefore, that 
 
 which I have promised.' — Present to the sight of 
 
 God was the whole course of tlie Christian Church ; 
 
 foreseen by Him were all the sins of her future 
 
 children, when He made witli her His ' everlasting isaias, iv. 3. 
 
 covenant, the faithful mercies of David.' 
 
 God has not promised His Church exemption The church 
 from worldly troubles. ' If his children forsake my exempt from 
 
 . , , , affliction. 
 
 law, &c., I Will Visit their iniquities with a rod : and
 
 140 THE BEAUTY AXD COMELY ORDER 
 
 Heb. xii. 6. their sins with stripes.' We know that ' whom the 
 Prov. iii. 12. Loi'd loveth, He chastiseth ; ' and Christ has told us : 
 
 St. John xn. 33. — <• l^ tlie woi'ld you shall have distress : but have 
 confidence, I have overcome the world.' 
 
 See above, p. 73. Dr. Forbcs says : — ' The body is mangled, but we 
 
 This chab^tisemeut j^g^gyg ^q^ scvcrcd, through loss of iutcrcommu- 
 temporai. nion.' — Chiist's body hung ' mangled ' on the cross ; 
 St. Joim xix. yet not ' a bone of Him ' was broken. Not one of 
 his blessed limbs or members sustained the ' loss of 
 intercommunion.' His seamless coat was at the 
 mercy of a rude soldiery ; yet, as if to show how 
 His providence would protect His Church's unity, 
 not one of tliem w^as suffered to divide it, or to rend it. 
 
 Cant. Cautie. i. 4. The Cliurcli is ' black ' through afflictions, but 
 always ' beautiful ; ' and without visible unity there 
 is no beauty, nor can there be any order. The 
 absence of unity and of order denotes the absence of 
 .Job X. 22. God. It is one of the characteristics of hell. ' A 
 land of misery and darkness, where the shadow of 
 death, and no order, but everlasting horror dwell- 
 eth.' Great are the trials, the sufferings, and the 
 afflictions of Christ's Church, but the words of the 
 Spouse shall ever remain divinely true concerning 
 
 Caul. Cautic. vi. 3. hcr : — ' Thou art beautiful, my love, sweet and 
 comely as Jerusalem : terrible as an army set in 
 array.' Wliere would be the terrors of an army 
 which had ' lost its intercommunion ' ? How could 
 it be sweet and comely, and terrible in its strong 
 array, if its outward unity were suspended ? The 
 Spouse Himself declares His beloved to be but One.
 
 ^' 
 
 OF THE OXE CATHOLIC CHURCH. 1 I I 
 
 ' One is my dove, ray perfect one is but one, she is Caut. Cantic. vi. s. 
 
 the only one of her mother, tlie cliosen of her tliat 
 
 bore her.' And, again, he recalls the goodly array 
 
 of an army terrible in its united ranks : — ' Who is ibid. 9. 
 
 she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair 
 
 as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army 
 
 set in array ' ? 
 
 Such is the picture of the Christian ChurcH, as 
 drawn by God's Spirit of truth. Can there be found 
 on earth any communion but one, which corresponds 
 to the delineation.? These words find their fulfil- 
 ment in the Eoman Catholic Church alone, and in 
 that one favoured creature, the Church's spotless 
 Queen and type ; the ever-blessed Mary ; Mother 
 of our God, and of ourselves ; who was herself the 
 firstfruits of the redeeming blood of that Son she 
 gave to man. 
 
 There are other prophecies which appear to pledge 
 God's word not only to the perpetual fulness of the 
 Gospel blessings, but also that He will Himself pre- 
 serve His Church from any such ' shortcoming ' as 
 might forfeit them. Thus God says by the prophet 
 Osee : — 
 
 * I will espouse thee to me for ever : and I will espouse Ch. ii. 10, 20. 
 thee to me in justice, and judgment, and in mercy, and in 
 commiserations. And I wall espouse thee to me in faith: 
 
 and thou shalt know that I am the Lord.' 
 
 By tlie mouth of Ezechiel, He says : — 
 
 * I will pour upon you clean water, and you shall he Ch. xxxvi. 20-29. 
 cleansed from all your filthiness, and I will cleanse you
 
 
 142 GOD PRESERVES HIS CHURCH IN HOLINESS. 
 
 from all your idols. And will give you a new heart, and 
 put a new spirit witliin j^ou : and I will take away the 
 stony heart out of your flesh, and will give you a heart 
 of flesh. And I will put my spirit in the midst of yon : 
 and I will cause you to walk in my commandments, and to 
 keep my judgments, and do them. And you shall dwell 
 in the land which I gave to 3^our fathers, and j^ou shall be 
 m}' people, and I wall be your Grod. And I will save you 
 from all your uncleannesses : and I -will call for corn, and 
 will multiply it, and will lay no famine upon you.' 
 
 The same prophet foretells also the unity of the 
 Church : — 
 
 Ezcchiel xxxvii. < I will make them one nation in the land on the moun- 
 tains of Israel, and one king shall be king over them all : 
 and they shall no more be two nations, neither shall they 
 be divided any more into two kingdoms. Nor shall they 
 be defiled any more with their idols, nor with their abomi- 
 nations, nor Avith all their iniquities : and I will save them 
 out of all the places in which they have sinned, and I will 
 cleanse them : and they shall be my people, and I will be 
 their God. And my servant David shall be king over 
 them, and they shall have one shepherd : they shall walk 
 in my judgments, and shall keep my commandments, and 
 shall do them. And they shall dwell in the land which I 
 gave to my servant Jacob, wherein your fathers dwelt, and 
 they shall dwell in it, they and their children, and their 
 children's children, for ever : and David my servant shall 
 be their prince for ever. And T will make a covenant of 
 peace with them ; it shall be an everlasting covenant with 
 them: and I will establish them, and will multiply them, 
 and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for ever. 
 And my tabernacle shall be with them : and I Avill be their 
 God, and they shall be my people. And the nations shall 
 know that I am the Lord the sanctifier of Israel, when my 
 sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for ever.' 
 
 Oil. xxxix. 2 '. ' And I will hide my face no more from them, for 1 have
 
 HE WATCHES OVER IT TO BUILD IT UP. 143 
 
 poured out my spirit upon all the house of Israel, saith the 
 Lord God.' 
 
 God's word is not less explicit tlirough the 
 prophet Jeremias : — 
 
 * Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : As yet Jerem. xxxi. 23-25. 
 shall they say this word in the land of Juda, and in the 
 cities thereof, when I shall bring Lack their captivity : The 
 Lord bless thee, the beauty of justice, the holy mountain. 
 And Juda and all his cities shall dwell therein togfetlier : 
 the husbandmen and they that drive the flocks. For I 
 have inebriated the weary soul : and I have filled every 
 hungry soul. . . . And as I have watched over them, to ibid. 28. 
 
 pluck up, and to throw down, and to scatter, and destroy, 
 and afflict : so will I watch over them, to build up, and to 
 plant them, saith tlie Lord.' 
 
 ' Behold the days shall come, saith the Lord, and I will H-i'l. 31-37. 
 make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with 
 the house of Juda : not according to the covenant which I 
 made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by 
 the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt : the 
 covenant which they made void, and I had dominion over 
 them, saith the Lord. But this shall be the covenant that 
 I will make with the house of Israel, after those days, saith 
 the Lord : I will give my law in their bowels, and I will 
 write it in their heart : and I will be their God, and they 
 shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every 
 man his neighbour, and ever}^ man his brother, saying : 
 Know the Lord : for all shall know me trom the least of 
 them even to the greatest, saith the Lord: for I will for- 
 give their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. 
 
 'Thus saith the Lord, who giveththe sun for the light of 
 the day, the order of the moon and of the stars, for the 
 light of the night : who stirreth up the sea, and the waves 
 thereof roar, the Lord of hosts is his name. If these ordi- 
 nances shall fail before me, .saith the Lord : then also the
 
 144 THE CTTAm OF ST. TETER 
 
 seed of Israel shall fail, so as not to be a nation before me 
 for ever. 
 
 ' Thus saith the Lord : If the heavens above cdn be 
 measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out 
 beneath, I also will cast away all the seed of Israel, for all 
 that they have done, saith the Lord.' 
 
 Well might St. John Chrysostom declare that, — 
 
 Horn. deCapt. 'Nothing is stronger than the Church.' 'Nothing 
 
 Hora!^Xte Exii. IS morc powcrful than the Church.' ' The Church is 
 
 stronger than heaven itself.' ' The Church is more 
 
 loved by God than heaven itself.' 
 
 Jeremias also foretells, as distinctly as others, the 
 continuity of succession in the house of David, which 
 manifestly must be understood of a spiritual suc- 
 cession, since the temporal has ceased long ago. 
 This is clearly fulfilled in the person of Christ ; but 
 in Him it is fulfilled continuously, whereas the pro- 
 phecy appears to point to a succession of occupants 
 of the throne of David, which can only have its 
 fulfilment in the Supreme Pontiff who sits on the 
 chair of St. Peter, established on Jesus Christ the 
 Son of David, and from which He Himself rules in 
 the person of His Vicar. 
 
 Jerrmias * Behold the days come, saith the I^ord, that I will per- 
 
 xxxiii. it-22. form the orood word that I have spoken to the house of 
 Israel, and to the house of Juda. In those days, and at that 
 time, I will make the bud of justice to spring forth imto 
 David, and he shall do judgment and justice in the earth. 
 In those days shall Juda be saved, and Jerusalem shall 
 dwell securely : and this is the name that they shall call 
 him, The Lord our just one. 
 
 ' For thus saith the Lord : There shall not be cut off from
 
 IMIEKITS THE COVENANT MADE WITH DAVID. 145 
 
 David a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel. 
 Neither shall there be cut off from the priests and Levites 
 a man before ray face, to offer holocausts, and to burn sa- 
 crifices, and to kill victims continually. 
 
 'And the word of the Lord came to Jeremias, saying: 
 Thus saith the Lord : If my covenant with the day can be 
 made void, and my covenant with the night, that there 
 should not be day and night in their season : also my 
 covenant with David my servant may be made void, that 
 he should not have a son to reign upon his throne, and 
 with the Levites and priests my ministers. As the stars of 
 heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea be 
 measured : so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, 
 and the Levites my ministers.' 
 
 Lastly, as if our dear God would still further 
 protect us from the fear that our ' shortcoming ' 
 might ' forfeit the blessings of the Gospel,' He puts 
 into the mouth of this prophet also, a direct assur- 
 ance that He will evermore preserve us from so dire 
 a curse, promising that He will not cease to do His 
 people good, and will never suffer them to revolt 
 from Him : — 
 
 ' They shall be my people, and I will be their God. And Joromi.is 
 
 I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may 
 fear me all days : and that it may be well with tliem, and 
 with their children after them. And I will make an ever- 
 lasting covenant with them, and will not cease to do them, 
 good : and I will give my fear in their heart, that they 
 may not revolt from me. 
 
 ' And I will rejoice over them, when I shall do them 
 good: and I will plant tliem in this land in truth, with my 
 whole heart, and with all my soul. 
 
 < For thus saith the Lord : as I have brought upon this 
 people all this great evil : so will I bring upon them all 
 the good that I now speak to them.' 
 
 VOL. I. h 
 
 xxxii. oS-42.
 
 14G WIIEX GOD HAS TLEDGED HIS WORD, 
 
 God appeals to His past fidelity to His word, wliich 
 He evinced in punishing His people's sin. Under tlie 
 old covenant, heavy judgments were foretold and 
 threatened to the Je^\'ish nation as attendant on the 
 breach of God's law. The people broke it and the 
 judgments fell upon them. Under tlie new covenant, 
 there are still threats of judgment to individual un- 
 repentant sinners, and to individual churches ; but 
 there is not the remotest allusion to them as affecting 
 the Universal Church. On the contrary, our God 
 Vide supra. sccms ucvcr to wcary of assuring us that His cove- 
 nant of peace with us shall be everlasting ; His 
 sanctuary in the midst of us for ever. ' And 
 I will no more hide My face from ^/i^?//, for I have 
 poured out My spirit upon all the house of Israel, 
 saith the Lord God.' He appeals to His fidehty to 
 the covenant of justice, in order to increase our con- 
 fidence in His fidelity to the covenant of mercy. 
 St. James ii. 13. For His ' mcrcy exalteth itself above judgment' He 
 tells us that the new covenant shall not be like the 
 old one wdiich our fathers ' made void ' ; ' but this 
 shall Ijc the covenant that I will make witli the house 
 of Israel after those days, saith the Lord : I will give 
 my law in their bowels, and I will write it in their 
 heart : and I will be their God, and they shall be 
 my people ' ; and He adds, that it shall be as sure 
 in its duration as the order of the sun that lights 
 the day, and of tlie moon and the stars by night. 
 
 In the fulness of the ages ' our God was seen 
 upon earth,' clothed in our flesh and ljl(wd, and ere
 
 UNBELIEF IS INEXCUSABLE. 
 
 ir 
 
 ' He ascended on high,' and carried our liuman nature 
 to His throne of glory, He summed up all the long 
 centuries of prophecy, type, and promise, in one sure 
 pledge of His everlasting love : — Beliold I am with 
 you all days, even to the consummation of the world. 
 
 It has been shown that these prophecies included 
 the promises of unity, and of holiness, and that there 
 should never be any cessation of God's benefits : — 
 
 ' / will give them otie heart ajid one icay, that they ^''"ie supra, p. 1 1.->. 
 may fear me all days : and that it may be well with 
 them., and with their children after them. And I will 
 make an everlasting covenant with them, and will not 
 cease to do them good : and I will give my fear in 
 their heart, that they may not revolt from me.^ 
 
 This and much more has He pledged to us : this 
 and much more must be answered, by any who 
 think to plead before tlie judgment seat of Christ, 
 as an excuse for separation from His visible fold, 
 that man's sin has overcome God's mercy ; that 
 ' the fulness ' of Christ's presence is ' abated ' in His 
 Church ; that ' He has not promised to be always 
 present in the same degree and the same way' ; and 
 that ' Holy Scripture does not say what degree of 
 shortcoming shall forfeit the blessings of the gospel.' 
 
 These promi.ses 
 
 leave 
 
 no excuse. 
 
 Every Christian must agree with Dr. Forbes's ex- 
 hortation not ' to shape the gospel into a theory that 
 suits us.' Let us then apply the gospel test to the 
 theory now before us. Let us see whether such a 
 theory is compatil)le witli tlie divine words and the 
 
 The theory 
 teste-. 1. " 
 Vide tupra, p. 71.
 
 148 A IvINGDOil WHICH IS TO STAND FOR EVER, 
 
 divine precepts of the gospel ; whetlier it is possible, 
 at oue and the same time, to beheve the said words, 
 and to maintain tlie said theory ; to act on the said 
 theory, and to obey the said precepts. 
 The theory The gospel says that ' tliere shall be one fold and 
 
 ineonsistont onc slicphcrd' ; and Clirist's dying prayer is a pledge 
 
 Gospel doctrine, to US, that sucli Unity cau neither be hidden, nor 
 Seeaiiove'ri^. 7-u. ever faih The theory declares that this fold has 
 become outwardly divided; with flocks who no longer 
 feed or dwell together, and shepherds who are at dis- 
 agreement with one another. — For ' one fold and one 
 shepherd,' it points to separated flocks, with separated 
 folds and separated shepherds. 
 Daniel ii. 44. The prophct Daniel foretells that Christ's kingdom 
 
 upon earth ' shall never be destroj'ed,' . . . 'it 
 shall break in pieces, and shall consume all these 
 kingdoms : and itself shall stand for ever.' Now, a 
 kingdom is a reality ; it is visible, and tangible ; it 
 imphes a head to govern it. Is it replied that the 
 Church is ruled by Christ, invisibly, from above? 
 Be it so : but it requires a visible head to rule 
 a visible kingdom, and to preserve its visible exis- 
 tence. Whereas, according to the theory before 
 us, Christ is represented on earth by many and di- 
 vided Viceroys, and the peo])le and the rulers who 
 are said to form His one kingdom, are broken up 
 
 See extraf-n p. 73. jnto bodics ' uot at oiic witli aiiotlicr ' 'even in 
 grave things' ; amongst others, 'not at one' even as 
 to the visible church which His subjects are to obey 
 in His Name ; ' not at one ' as to the constitution of
 
 CANNOT BE DIVIDED AGAINST ITSELF. 140 
 
 their Master's kiiigduin ; ' not at one ' as to wlietlier 
 it is true that He elected one chosen Apostle for His 
 Vicar, and ordained that the said Vicariate should 
 always continue, vested in that Apostle's successors ; 
 and therefore ' not at one ' as to His will concerning 
 men's obedience to the Apostolic See, which many 
 of them fear not to accuse of arrogant presumption. 
 Many more ' grave things ' there are, as will be 
 shown, on which Chiistian Bishops and Christian 
 peoples are, evidently, ' not at one with one another.' 
 If these all belong to one king ; if these all make up 
 one kingdom ; it must be to a king whose commands 
 may be interpreted after the varying pleasure of His 
 diverse subjects ; it must be a kingdom whose mem- 
 bers are ' not at one with another'! What is this, in 
 other words, but a kingdom divided against itself? 
 
 How then shall the prophecy be fulfilled ? How 
 then shall Christ's kingdom ' stand for ever ' ? Three 
 of the gospels repeat His own solemn words : — 
 'Every kingdom divided against itself shall be st. Matt, xii.'i.). 
 made desolate : and every city or house divided 
 against itself shall not stand.' — ' If a kingdom be st. Mark iii. 2-(, 2.5. 
 divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 
 And if a house be divided against itself, that house 
 cannot stand.' — ' Eveiy kingdom divided against itself St. Luke xi. 17. 
 shall be brought to desolation, and house upon house 
 shall fall.' — Which alternative is to be accepted ? The 
 word of God, or the theory of man ? God has said 
 that ' every kingdom divided against itself shall be 
 made desolate ' and ' cannot stand ' : yet that Christ's
 
 150 LN'COMrATlBlLITV OF SUCH A THEORY 
 
 kingdom ' shall stand for ever.' If both these words 
 of the eternal Truth, be true, then that theory must 
 be false which assumes, that Christ's Idngdom can be 
 Via. sup. pp. 73, 74. di\nded ; its rulers and })eople, ' even in grave things, 
 not at one witli one another ' ; its ' unhappy divisions ' 
 such, ' tliat we cannot meet, even to heal them.' 
 
 Such divisions are inconsistent with the gospel 
 picture of the Church, nor can it be wrested into a 
 shape to suit the theory that these visibly divided 
 bodies still are inwardl}^ one in Christ. 
 St. :Miitt. xvi. 18. Christ has promised that ' the gates of hell shall 
 not prevail against His Church.' Wliat are the ' gates 
 of hell ' but sins, and heresies, and schisms ; ' divi- 
 sions and want of love ' ? These have their place out- 
 side, they appertain not to Christ's kingdom. They 
 may find insidious entrance into the hearts of indi- 
 viduals within His fold, but they never shall prevail 
 within her, or against her, so that ' the fulness ' of her 
 Lord's 'Presence' should thereby become 'abated.' 
 The thooi7 Cut morc, — tlicrc are precepts of the gospel, which, 
 
 inconi!istont if this thcory were true, it would be utterly impos- 
 Gospdpocept.s. sible to obey. 
 St. .Mi.ik ivi. 1,3, 10. Christ sent forth His Apostles, saying : — ' Go ye 
 into the whole w(3rld and preach the gospel to every 
 creature. He that believetii and is baptized, shall be 
 saved : but he that belie veth not shall be con- 
 Kt. Matt, xviii. 17. demned.' Christ taught to His disciples : — ' If tliy 
 brother will not licar the Chiu'ch, let liim be to thee 
 as the heathen and publican.' When lie sent forth 
 .''t. i.uk.- X. 16. the gospel messengers, lie lold tlicm : — 'He that
 
 WITH TllK PRECEPTS OP THE GOSPEL. 151 
 
 lieareth you, lieareth Me : uirI ho that despisctli you, 
 despiseth Me. And he that despiseth Me, dcspiseth 
 Him that sent Me.' 
 
 St. Paul accordingly admonishes us, — ' Eemember Heb. xiii. 7-9. 
 your prelates who have spoken the word of God to 
 you : whose foith follow, considering the end of 
 their conversation, Jesus Christ yesterday, and to- 
 day : and the same for ever. Be not led away with 
 various and strange doctrines.' . . . ' Obey n^i^^- 17. 
 your prelates and be subject to them.' — At the same 
 time, He, elsewhere, cautions us most emphatically, 
 ' Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach a Cai. i. 8, 9. 
 gospel to you besides that which we have preached to 
 you, let him be anathema. As we said before, so now I 
 say again : If any one preach to you a gospel, besides 
 that which you have received, let him be anathema.' 
 
 Now, by what means are we to discern between 
 ' another gospel,' which is ' anathema,' and ' the faith 
 once delivered to the saints,' which ' he that believeth 
 not shall be condemned ' ? Clearly, through the 
 teaching of Christ in that one Church which legiti- 
 mately represents to us the college of the Apostles, 
 to which he confided that great deposit ; and which 
 St. Paul declares to be ' the Church of the hving 
 God, the pillar and ground of the truth.' It is ad- 1 Tim. iii. lo. 
 mitted, on all sides, that the Eoman Catholic Church 
 belongs to this Church of Christ, although Anglicans 
 claim the same privilege for the national Church 
 of England. They do not call in question the apo- 
 stohcal descent of theKoman Catholic Bishops, though
 
 152 LMPOSSIlilLlTV OF OBEDIENCE 
 
 they maintain tliat tlie Cliiirch of England possesses 
 a like succession. The theory maintains that Eome 
 and England are one in Christ. But these two 
 societies teach opposite doctrines on vital points. How 
 then is the true faith to be ascertained ? How are 
 we to distin<T;uisli it from ' various and stranoje doc- 
 trines ' ? If it is replied that the points of difference 
 are not vital, I answer that the Eoman Catholic 
 Church teaches that they are so, and that this varia- 
 tion, of itself, constitutes a discrepancy which is vital. 
 According to this theory of inward unity under 
 outward division, it is impossible for any man now to 
 ' hear the Church.' How can we hearken in true 
 obedience to the Church in communion with Eome, 
 and at the same time listen dutifully to a community 
 which renounces her allegiance ? The Eoman Catholic 
 Church asserts that to her alone the gospel message 
 is committed ; that she speaks with Divine authority, 
 as the true and only representative of those who 
 were sent forth by Christ ' into the whole world, to 
 preach the gospel to every creature,' with the 
 warning that ' he that beheveth not shall be con- 
 demned.' England denies her exclusive mission, 
 refuses to bow to her authority, and disbelieves her 
 testimony to the gospel message. I repeat that, if 
 both these communions form })art of the one Church 
 of God, it has now become impossible for any man to 
 ' hear the Church ' in obedience to the commands of 
 Christ. This is eiunigh to prove the falsehood of 
 the theory, for God never connnands impossibilities.
 
 WHEN RULERS ARE DIVIDED. 153 
 
 Again, — if the Arclibishop of Westminster and the 
 Archbishop of Canterbury are, both of them, pre- 
 lates in the one church (tliough outwardly differing), 
 it follows that every Enghsh Christian is bound in 
 conscience to follow ' the faith ' of them both, to 
 ' obey ' them both, and to ' be subject to ' them both. 
 If not, he is disobedient to the voice of God through 
 St. Paul. But no man can serve two masters, or 
 be subject to two prelates whose commands are in 
 direct opposition to each other. Ko man can follow 
 the faith of those who are at variance respecting the 
 faith. If both churches are one in Christ, then the 
 Prelates of both speak equally in the name of Christ, 
 Who said : — ' He that heareth you, heareth Me : 
 and he that despiseth you, despiseth Me.' How, 
 then, shall we escape ' despising ' Him who is our iVll, 
 if both these messengers are from Him ? How are 
 we to ' hear ' Westminster without ' despising ' Can- 
 terbury? How listen to Canterbury without 'de- 
 spising ' Westminster ? Nay, Anglicans acknowledge 
 Kome, at least as their Patriarchal See, yet they 
 refuse to ' hear ' its Bishop ; and the majority of 
 their communion w^ho visit the city, ' despise ' the 
 voice of its Pontiff; acting as if the great centre of 
 Christendom were, for them, a mere portion of the 
 diocese of Gibraltar. If it be replied that Eomc 
 has no title to the position which she claims, what is 
 this but to ' despise ' the voice of the Eoman Catholic? 
 Bishops throughout the w^orld, whose divine com- 
 mission is nevertheless acknowledged ?
 
 154 GOSPEL PROMISES. 
 
 These are practical questions, and the gospel is a 
 practical religion ; and not only practical, but prac- 
 ticable. IIow will tliis llicory teach men to obey it ? 
 
 Is this the gospel of peace, waited for with the 
 expectancy of long and weary ages, by Saints, and 
 Seers, and Sages of all time ? This, the fulfilment of 
 God's sure and universal promises ? — 
 isaias xxx. 20. ' Thy cycs sliall see thy teacher.' — ' The work of 
 
 Ibid, xxxii. 17, 18. justicc sluill bc pcacc, and the service of justice 
 quietness, and security for ever. And My people 
 shall sit in the beauty of peace, and in the tabernacles 
 of confidence, and in wealthy rest.' — When com- 
 pared with such a prophecy, is not the theory plainly 
 ' another gospel ' ? Hear again the prophet Eze- 
 Ezeeh. xxxix. 13, chicl : — ' I will feed them in the mountains of Israel, 
 by the rivers, and in all the habitations of the land : 
 I will feed them in the most fruitful pastures, and 
 their pastures shall be in the high mountains of 
 Israel : there shall they rest on the green grass, and 
 be fed in fat pastures ujmjii the mountains of Israel. 
 I will feed My sheep : and I ^vill cause thein to he 
 down, .saith the Lord God.' 
 
 Ibid. 2:5, 24. ' AXD I WILL SET UP ONE SlIEPIIEKD OVER THEM, 
 
 and he shall feed them, even my servant David : he 
 shall feed tliem, and he shall be their shepherd. 
 And I the Lord will be their God : and My servant 
 David tlie prince in the midst of them : I the Lord 
 have .spoken it.' 
 
 Neither the ])rophets nor the gospel tell of an out- 
 wardly divided Church. Let us accept their divine 
 teaching with the ^imphcity oi" children.
 
 ROME AND ENGLAND AUE DIVIDED IX FAITH, lo') 
 
 The theory in question idliiins tliat, in spite of Diff.TcnccR 
 
 , . . T • • 1 1 ••IT- respecting faith. 
 
 their serious divisions, the three principal rehgious 
 
 communions of Christendom still are inwardly one in 
 
 the faith. Dr. Forbes says : — ' We bear separate See extract above, 
 
 p. 73. 
 witness still to the One Faith which Christ gave to 
 
 His Church, the faith of the Creeds ; we all look to 
 
 Him as truly present in His Sacraments, truly giving 
 
 His own Body and Blood ; we all hold to the Apostles' 
 
 doctrine and fellowship, teaching those same truths 
 
 which they taught, and holding sacred the descent 
 
 from them.' 
 
 It is a painful necessity when a wound must be 
 probed. Still, in a case of life or death, the opera- 
 tion is preferable to self-deception. When God's 
 truth is concerned, He wills not that men should 
 delude themselves or one another, by the cry of 
 ' Peace, Peace,' where in His sight no peace exists. 
 It is with the differences between England and Pome 
 that Ave are most immediately and practically con- 
 cerned, and it would be a false charity to shrink from 
 exposing either their nature or their extent. Far be 
 it from me to widen the division or to add fuel to 
 the fire of strife, but a deadly wound cannot be 
 healed by concealment, nor are hindrances to recon- 
 ciliation removed by being ignored. 
 
 It is true that in one sense, the difficulties are less 
 than they are often imagined to be. For, if the 
 teaching of Pome were rightly understood, it would 
 commend itself to all true Christian hearts, and, so ftir 
 from deterring, it would draw them to her fold. Yet 
 it is a fallacy and a delusion to suppose that England
 
 15G FAITH COMES BY IIEAIUXG. 
 
 Difference aiicl Eoiiie tu'c imvaixlly united in one faitli. They 
 iiu' ground of faith, are at variance not only respecting the articles of 
 the faith, but also, as to the actual foundation of the 
 faith ; as to the ground on which mankind are to accept 
 the Scriptures, and the Creeds, and the whole of the 
 Divine revelation, — the -whole of Christianity. 
 
 Eonian Catholics accept it all on the ever-living 
 ever-present, testimony of the Church of God ; of 
 that Church whose infallibility Anglicans assert to be 
 suspended. Here, at the commencement, is an irre- 
 concilable discrepancy on a subject which lies at the 
 root of the whole Christian life. 
 Eoin.ms X. 14, 15. St. Paul asks how men are to believe without 
 having heard ? And how hear ' without a preacher.^ ' 
 ' And how shall they preach unless they be sent ? ' 
 
 Catechism Evcry Catliolic child is authoritatively taught in 
 
 of 
 
 cim!<tiau Doctrine, his Catechisiii that faith is ' to believe without doubt- 
 ing whatever God has revealed ' ; and that we are to 
 know what God has revealed, ' by the testimony and 
 authority of the Catliolic Churcli, which Christ has 
 appointed to teach all nations.' Here then is the 
 preaclicr sent by Christ Himself, without whom, as 
 St, Paul tells us, we cannot even hear God's truth, 
 and therefore cannot possibly believe it to salvation. 
 Thus far, it may be, both sides are agreed. But there 
 remains the essential question : — Where at this 
 moment is to be found this authorized preacher of 
 (Jiirist's gospel ? Wliere is now the voice of the 
 Catholic Clnn-ch ? On this point Eome and England 
 arc (hvidcd, and tlic dilTcrence is insuperable. The 
 Catechism I have ju.st quoled, and whose exclusive
 
 THE CHANNEL OF THE WORD OF GOD. 1 57 
 
 use is enjoined by authority for English Catholics, 
 thus instructs us on the subject : — 
 
 Q. What is the Catholic Cliurch ? Ninth Article 
 
 A. The union of all the fiiithful under one Head. Creed* 
 
 Q. Who is that Head ? 
 
 A. Christ Jesus our Lord. 
 
 Q. Has not the Church a visible head on earth ? 
 
 A. Yes ; the Bishop of Eome, who is the Vicar of 
 Christ. 
 
 Q. Why is the Bishop of Eome the head of the Church ? 
 
 A. Because he is the successor of St. Peter, whom Christ 
 appointed to be the head of the Church. 
 
 Q. How do you prove that Christ appointed St. Peter to 
 be the head of the Church ? 
 
 A. Because he said to him : 'Thou art Peter, and upon Slatt. xvi. is, u». 
 this rock I will build my Chiu'ch, and the gates of hell 
 shall not prevail against it : and to thee will I give the 
 keys of the kingdom of heaven.' 
 
 Q. What is the Bishop of Rome called ? 
 
 A. He is called the Pope, which word signifies Father. 
 
 Q. Is then the Pope our spiritual Father ? 
 
 A. Yes ; he is the spiritual Father of all the faithful. 
 
 This is Eome's formal faith respecting the consti- 
 tution of the Catholic Church. Is it true that the 
 ' Church of England' bears ' separate witness ' to this 
 same faith ? Does she accept the above as a true 
 description whereby to discern, in this nineteenth 
 century, the one exclusive Church of Christ ? From 
 that Church alone can we learn God's revelation. 
 Therefore, if we differ as to the essential marks by 
 which that Church must be recognised, or as to the 
 infallibility of her present voice, we differ as to the 
 very ground of all Christian belief, — we differ as to 
 the channel through which, at this present moment,
 
 158 TIIR FAITH OF THE CREEDS 
 
 ' the faith once delivered to the saints ' is divinely 
 explained to man. How can they be one in the faith, 
 who are at variance respecting the teacher of the faith? 
 
 It is asserted by Anglicans that the Church, in 
 which men are to believe, has lost her powder of 
 speech, or that her language is now rendered inco- 
 herent, through external division. Amongst Eoman 
 Catholics it is taught to be of faith, that the Church 
 is ahvays visibly united, under tlie visible ride of the 
 Eoman Pontiff; and that she is now, as ever, our 
 audible teaclier, our infalhble guide in faith and in 
 morals. The former hold that, for the present, her 
 voice is suspended ; that each man must gather her 
 teaching from memories long since past, as seems 
 right in his own eyes ; and that her ' unhappy divi- 
 sions ' are such, ' that we cannot meet, even to heal 
 them.' The latter believe in her constant outward 
 unity, and constant unerring voice. 
 
 Thus Eome and England are at variance as to the 
 foundation of the wliole Christian faith. Are they 
 a2;reed as to its individual Articles ? 
 Ubi supra. I^r. Forbcs saj^s : — ' We bear separate witness still 
 
 to the one faitli which Clirist gave to His Church, the 
 faith of the Creeds.' Now, such witness cannot be 
 given without iiiutual agreement respecting the full 
 sense of tlie Creeds. Mere outw^ard agreement in tlie 
 v:ords of the Creeds may exist without agreement as 
 to tlieir meaning, or as to the faith which they express. 
 Thus the Creed of tlie Apostles is explained by 
 llie Xicene Creed and llic Atliaiiasian; and no one 
 can be said to bear wilncss to the faitli of the first,
 
 EXPLAIN[<:D by ROME. l')!) 
 
 unless he cordially accept the two latter as one with it. 
 Is it then true that Eome and England are agreed as 
 to ' the faith of tlie Creeds ' ? It can be only one 
 faith. Is it a fact that they 'bear separate witness ' to 
 it as such ? Do they interpret those Creeds alike ? 
 
 The large latitude which exists in the ' Cluu'ch of 
 England ' renders it difficult to define her teaching 
 very precisely. At tlie same time, there are certain 
 salient points of difference, which render clear and 
 apparent the vital separation tiiat exists in matters of 
 doctrine, between herself and the Eoman Catholic 
 Church, whose faith is definite and marked, and is 
 professed with no uncertain voice. 
 
 The following declarations, as to certain articles 
 of the Eoman faith, are taken from sources whose 
 authority cannot be called in question. They form 
 a portion of her formal and dogmatic teaching, and 
 I shall not hesitate to give them at greater length 
 than, perhaps, may seem absolutely necessary, in 
 order that they may be the better understood. I 
 begin with the authoritative Profession of Faith some- 
 times called the Creed of Pope Pius TV. After 
 reciting the Nicene Creed, which, amongst other 
 articles, professes belief in ' One, Holy, Catholic, and 
 Apostolic Church,' it proceeds as follows : — 
 
 * I most steadfastly admit and embrace the apostolical 
 and ecclesiastical Traditions, and all other observances and 
 constitutions of the same Church. 
 
 ' I also admit the Holy Scriptures, according to that sense 
 which our holy mother the Church hath held and doth 
 hold, to whom it belougeth to judge of the true sense and 
 interpretation of the Scriptures : neither will I ever take
 
 100 FORMAL TROFESSION OF THE FAITH, 
 
 and interpret tliem otlierwi.se tlian according to the unani- 
 mous consent of the Fathers. 
 
 *I also profess that there are truly and properly Seven 
 Sacraments of the new law, instituted by Jesus Christ our 
 Lord, and necessar}' for the salvation of mankind, though 
 not all for every one : to wit. Baptism, Confirmation, the 
 Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Order, and Matri- 
 mony : and that they confer grace : and that of these. 
 Baptism, Confirmation, and Order cannot be repeated 
 without sacrilege. I also receive and admit the received 
 and approved ceremonies of the Catholic Church, used in 
 the solemn administration of the aforesaid sacraments. 
 
 ' I embrace and receive all and every one of the things 
 which have been defined and declared in the holy Council 
 of Trent concerning original sin and justification. 
 
 ' I profess, likewise, that in the Mass there is offered to 
 Grod a true, proper, and propitiatory sacrifice for the living 
 and the dead. And that in the most holy Sacrament of 
 the Eucharist there is truly, really, and substantially the 
 Body and Blood, together with the soul and divinity, of 
 our Lord Jesus Christ ; and that there is made a conversion 
 of the whole substance of the bread into the Body, and of 
 the whole substance of the wine into the Blood ; which 
 conversion the Catholic Church calleth Transubstantiation. 
 I also confess that under either kind alone Christ is received 
 whole and entire, and a true Sacrament. 
 
 ' I constantly hold that there is a Purgatory, and that the 
 souls therein detained are helped b}^ the suffrages of the 
 faithful. 
 
 ' Likewise, that the Saints reigning together with Christ 
 are to be honoin-ed and invocated, and that they otfer 
 prayers to God for us, and that tlieir relics are to be had 
 in veneration. 
 
 ' I most firmly assort that the Images of Christ, of the 
 Mother of (iod ever ^'irgin, and also of other Saints, ought 
 to be had and retained, and that due honour and venera- 
 tion are to be given them.
 
 OUT OF AVFTICIT NO ONE CAN BE SAVED. 
 
 ^Q^ 
 
 ' I also affirm that the power of Indulgences was left l)y 
 Christ in the Church, and that the use of them is most 
 wholesome to Christian people. 
 
 ' I acknowledge the Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, Eoman 
 Church for the mother and mistress of all Churches; and I 
 promise true obedience to the Bishop of Rome, successor of 
 St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles, and Vicar of Jesus Christ. 
 
 ' I likewise undoubtingly receive and profess all other 
 things delivered, defined, and declared by the sacred Canons 
 and Greneral Councils, and particularly by the holy Council 
 of Trent. And I condemn, reject, and anathematize all 
 things contrary thereto, and all heresies which the Church 
 hath condemned, rejected, and anathematized. 
 
 ' I, N. N., do at this present freely profess and sincerely 
 hold to this true Catholic faith, out of which no one can be 
 saved : and I pi-omise most constantly to retain and confess 
 the same entire and inviolate, by Grod's assistance, to the 
 end of my life.' 
 
 Now, if England really bore witness to this faith, 
 and taught this doctrine to be the true sense of the 
 Creeds, there would be no need of further argument. 
 If her members will but accept it, and render the true 
 obedience here promised to the Vicar of Jesus Christ 
 in the person of the Eoman Pontiff, the separation 
 will be at end. If not, how can it be asserted that 
 such separation is merely outward ? 
 
 To pass on. Do Eorae and England ' bear sepa- 
 rate witness ' to one faith respecting the Sacraments ? 
 
 The grace of Baptism is now, practically, an open 
 question in the Church of England. Therefore, what- 
 ever may have been her witness formerly to that 
 article of the Creed, it is for the present at any rate 
 suspended. 
 
 Tho 
 Supreme Pontiff. 
 
 Tlu" 
 Sacraments. 
 
 Jiaptisni. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 M
 
 162 
 
 Till-: SACREDNESS OF HOLY CHRISM. 
 
 Confirmation. 
 
 Catech. Trident. 
 P. II. c. 3. 
 
 Acts vi. 
 
 Cont. litt. Tc-Iil. 
 Lib. ii. n. 239. 
 
 I know not how the Church of Eughmd bears 
 witness that Confomation is a Sacrament, ' instituted 
 by Jesus Clmst.' In any case she has grievously muti- 
 lated the manner of its administration. Though re- 
 taining an imposition of hands and a form of prayer, 
 she has wholly rejected the signing on the forehead 
 with chrism, which is commonly taught to be essential 
 to the matter of the Sacrament ; and she has altered 
 the form of words, which, with the Greeks, is — Signa- 
 culum doni Spiritus Sancti ; and with the Latins — / 
 sign thee icith the sign of the cross, and I conjirm 
 thee with the chrism of salvation : In the name of the 
 Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. 
 
 This is that Holy Chrism, which, it has been said, 
 was delivered to the Apostles by Christ Himself; 
 and which, in each diocese, Hjs representative, the 
 Bishop, blesses every year with mysterious and 
 impressive rites during the Mass of Maund}" Thurs- 
 day. It is composed of oil and balsam, and can be 
 blessed on no other day. The oil fur tlie sick is 
 previously blessed in the same Mass ; but the chrism 
 immediately after the Communion. Twelve priests 
 assist the Bi.s]iop, six on either liand, representing the 
 Apostles. Behind liim are seven deacons, in memory 
 of the seven they ordained ; and behind these, seven 
 sub-deacons, as ministers. This sacred chrism is 
 used in all solemn consecrations, and receives pe- 
 culiar reverence as a special emblem of God the 
 IL^ly Ghost. St. Augustine terms Confirmation, the 
 Sacrament of Chrism.
 
 NECESSITY OF SACRAMENTAL CONFESSION. lOo 
 
 The above-cited Profession of Faith is exphcit Tiio 
 
 on the doctrnie of the Eucharist. God be praised, 
 there may be many Anghcans now who will not on 
 that account turn away, as did the unbelieving disci- 
 ples in the gospisl. But how does their Church as a 
 body, bear witness to this article of the faith ? As 
 a rule, is it not contradicted by her authorities, at 
 least in its fulness, though there may be happy excep- 
 tions? May it not, in general, be denied by her clergy 
 with greater impimity than it can be maintained ? 
 
 God again be praised, that so many hearts in the Penance. 
 Church of England are awakened and awakening to 
 the unspeakable blessings of auricular confession, and 
 the importance of priestly absolution ! But wliere is 
 her authoritative testimony to the divine institution of 
 the blessed Sacrament of Penance ; and to the absolute 
 necessity for the fallen to have recourse to it in order 
 to obtain the remission of their mortal sins ? Is this 
 maintained or taught, even by any of those who are 
 laudably foremost in the advocacy of its use ? If so, 
 it must be from their own conviction ; it cannot in any 
 sense be said that the ' Church of England ' bears wit- 
 ness to this essential portion of the faith, or is at one 
 with Eome in her behef respecting it. The Council 
 of Trent enunciated, as follows, the formal doctrine 
 of the Eoman Cathohc Church on tliis subject, which 
 is of supreme importance to man's salvation : — 
 
 ' This sacrament of Penance is, for those who have fiillen Session xiv. cli. 2. 
 
 „ , . , 1 ,• 1 i- -i. ir AVatorworth's 
 
 after baptism, necessary unto salvation ; as baptism itselt TianslMtion, 
 is for those who have not as yet been regenerated.' p- 9*- 
 
 M 2
 
 104 
 
 TKACIIIXG OF TFIE COUNCIL OF TRENT 
 
 Session xiv. 
 
 Canon I. 
 Ibid. p. 107. 
 
 Session xiv. 
 Canon VI. 
 Ibid. p. 108. 
 
 ' If any one saith, that in the Catholic Church Penance is 
 not truly and properly a sacrament, instituted by Christ our 
 Lord for reconciling the faithful unto God, as often as they 
 fall into sin after baptism ; let him be anathema.' 
 
 ' If any one denieth, either that sacramental confession 
 was instituted, or is necessary to salvation, of divine right ; 
 or saith, that the manner of confessing secretly to a priest 
 alone, which the Church hath ever observed from the be- 
 ginning, and doth observe, is alien from the institution and 
 command of Christ, and is a human invention ; let him be 
 anathema.' 
 
 If this be the faitli of tlie Church of England, liow 
 awful is the o-uilt of her silence ! 
 
 Extreme Unction. 
 
 Session xiv. 
 Waterwortb's 
 Transljition, 
 pp. 104-107. 
 
 It manifestly cannot be asserted that the Church of 
 England bears any kind of witness to the same faith 
 with Eome respectmg the blessed Sacrament of Ex- 
 treme Unction : which was instituted by our merciful 
 Lord to convey help and spiritual support to the 
 sick in the hours of their decisive trial ; to heal and 
 strengthen their souls ; to fortify them against the 
 assaults of Satan in their last agony ; or to restore 
 them to bodily health if God should see it expedient. 
 
 The holy Council of Trent, after treating of the 
 Sacrament of Penance, proceeds to instruct the 
 faitliful respecting that of Extreme Unction, upon 
 wliich sul)ject I extract tlie decrees in full : — 
 
 . ' ON TUE SACRAMENT OF EXTREME UNCTION. 
 
 ' It hath also seemed good to the holy Synod, to subjoin, 
 to the preceding doctrine on Penance, the following on the 
 sacrament of Extreme Unction, which by the Fathers was 
 regarded as l)eing the completion (consummativum), not 
 only of penance, but also of the whole Christian life, which
 
 ON THE SACRAMEXT OF EXTREME UNCTIOX. ^^'u^ 
 
 ought to be a perpetual penance. First, therefore, as re- 
 gards its institution. It (U^clares and teaches, that our most 
 gracious Redeemer, — who would have His servants at all 
 times provided with salutary remedies against all the wea- 
 pons of all their enemies, — as, in the other sacraments, He 
 prepared the greatest aids, whereby, during life. Christians 
 may preserve themselves whole from every more grievous 
 spiritual evil, so did He guard the close of life, by the 
 sacrament of Extreme Unction, as with a most firm defence. 
 For though oar adversary seeks and seizes opportunities, 
 all our life long, to be able in any way to devour our souls ; 
 yet is there no time wherein he strains more vehemently all 
 the powers of his craft to ruin us utterly, and, if he can pos- 
 sibly, to make us fall even from trust in the mercy of God, 
 than when he perceives the end of our life to be at hand.' 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 ON THE INSTITUTION OF THE SACRAMENT OF EXTREME 
 UNCTION. 
 
 'Now, this sacred unction of the sick was instituted by 
 Christ our Lord, as truly and properly a sacrament of the 
 new law, insinuated indeed in Mark, but recommended and 
 promulgated to the faithful by James the Apostle, and 
 brother of the Lord. Is any man, he saith, sick among St. James v. 1 1, lo. 
 you'? Let J dm bring in the priests of the Church, and let 
 them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name 
 of the Lord: and the prayer of faith shall save the sick 
 man ; and the Lord shall raise him up ; and if he be in 
 sins, they shall be forgiven him. In which words, as the 
 Church has learned from apostolic tradition, received froni 
 hand to hand, he teaches the matter, the form, the proper 
 minister, and the effect of this salutary sacrament. For 
 the Church has understood the matter thereof to be oil 
 blessed by a Bishop. For the unction very aptly repre- 
 sents the grace of the Hf)ly Grhost, with which the soul of 
 the sick person is invisibly anointed ; and furtheruioi'c, that 
 those words, " By this miction," &c. Sic, are the form.'
 
 lOG TEACIIlX(i OF Tilt: COUNCIL OF TKENT 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 ON THE EFFECT OF THIS SACRAMENT. 
 
 ' Moreover, the thing signified {res) and the effect of this 
 sacrament are explained in those words ; And the prayer 
 of faith shcill save the sick man, and the Lord shall raise 
 him iq?, and if he he in sins they shall he forgiven him. 
 For the thing here signified is the grace of the Holy Ghost; 
 whose anointing cleanses away sins, if there be any still to 
 be expiated, as also the remains of sins ; and raises up and 
 strengthens the soul of the sick person, by exciting in him 
 a great confidence in the Divine mercy ; whereby the sick 
 being supported, bears more easily the inconveniences and 
 pains of his sickness ; and more readily resists the tempta- 
 Geii. iii. 1'). tions of the devil, who lies in wait for his heel; and at 
 times obtains bodily health, when expedient for the welfare 
 of the soul.' 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 ON THE MINISTER OF THIS SACEAMENT, AND ON THE TIME 
 WHEN IT SHOULD BE ADMINISTERED. 
 
 * And now as to prescribing who ought to receive, and 
 who to administer, this sacrament, — this also was not ob- 
 scurely delivered in the words above cited. For it is there 
 also shown, that the proper ministers of this sacrament are 
 the Presbyters of the Church ; by which name are to be 
 understood, in that place, not the elders by age, or the fore- 
 most in dignity amongst the people, but, either bishops, 
 1 Tim. iv. 11. or priests by bishops rightly ordained hythe imposition of 
 the hands of the priesthood. It is also declared, that this 
 imction is to be applied to the sick, but to those especially 
 who lie in such danger as to seem to be about to depart 
 this life ; whence also it is called the sacrament of the 
 (k'[)arting. And if the sick should, after having received 
 this unction, recover, they may again be aided by the suc- 
 cour of this sacrament, when they fall into another like 
 danger of death. Wherefore, they are on no account to be 
 hearkened to, who, against so manifest and clear a sentence
 
 ON THE SACRAMENT OF EXTREME UNCTION. 107 
 
 [sententiam) of tlie Apostle James, teach, either tliat tliis 
 unction is a human figment or is a rite received from the 
 Fathers, which neither has a command from Grod, nor a 
 promise of grace : nor those who assert that it has already 
 ceased, as though it were only to be referred to the grace 
 of healing in the primitive church ; nor those who say that 
 the rite and usage which the holy Eoman Church observes 
 in the administration of this sacrament is repugnant to the 
 sentiment of the Apostle James, and that it is therefore to 
 be changed into some other : nor, finally, those who affirm 
 that this Extreme Unction may without sin be contemned 
 by the faithful : for all these things are most manifestly at 
 variance with the perspicuous words of so great an apostle. 
 Neither, assuredly, does the Eoman Church, the mother and 
 mistress of all other churches, observe aught in adminis- 
 tering this unction, — as regards those things which con- 
 stitute the substance of this sacrament, — but what blessed 
 James has prescribed. Nor indeed can there be contempt 
 of so great a sacrament without a heinous sin, and an 
 injury to the Holy Ghost Himself. These are the things 
 which this holy CEcumenical Synod professes and teaches 
 and proposes to all the faithful of Christ, to be believed and 
 held, touching the saci-aments of Penance and Extreme 
 Unction. And it delivers the following canons to be in- 
 violably preserved ; and condemns and anathematizes those 
 who assert what is contrary thereto.' 
 
 Two of the canons here referred to, respecting 
 Penance, have already been given. I subjoin the 
 three first of those which regard Extreme Unction : — 
 
 ' Canon I.^ — If any one saith, that Extreme Unction is Ibid. pp. no. in. 
 not truly and properly a sacrament, instituted by Christ 
 ovir Lord, and promulgated by the blessed Apostle James ; 
 but is only a rite received from the Fathers, or a human 
 figment ; let him be anathema.' 
 
 * Canon IL — If any one saith, that the sacred unctiuu
 
 108 IT IS A CELESTIAL MEDICIXE 
 
 of the sick does not confer grace, nor remit sins, nor com- 
 fort {alleviare, raise up) the sick; but that it has already 
 ceased, as though it were of ohi only the grace of working 
 cures ; let him be anathema.' 
 
 * Canon III. — If any one saith, that the right and usage 
 of Extreme Unction, which the holy Roman Church ob- 
 serves, is repugnant to the sentiment of the blessed apostle 
 James, and that it is therefore to be changed, and ma}^, with- 
 out sin, be contemned by Christians ; let him be anathema.' 
 
 Eireiiioon, Dr. PiisGy appcars to think that there is no ground, 
 
 pp. — , - , L c, ^ g^^pQpt tl^Q custom of the Church, why Extreme 
 
 Unction should not be used in England.' It is 
 perfectly certain, as has been before observed, that 
 there is no single point on which the Roman doc- 
 trine on any subject, need create a difficulty amongst 
 earnest-minded and rchgious men, if only it were 
 rightly understood. But as things are and have been 
 for the last three centuries, it certainly cannot be 
 maintained that the Church of England has borne 
 any sort of witness to the same faith as that of Rome 
 respecting this holj* sacrament ; and, if she beheves 
 in it at all, it is inconceivable how she can have so 
 systematically withheld it from her members. 
 ExpiiinatioiiK. This leads to a digression, which I hope will 
 
 n(jt be thought unseasonable. An opportunity for 
 exi)lanation should never be allowed to escape ; and 
 the remarks upon this subject in the ' Eirenicon,' 
 expressly invite an explanation. 
 Object First, I ask permission to correct the error into 
 
 Kxtmno Unction, wliicli tlic Icumed autlior of that work has fallen 
 Kirciiicou, p. 223. wlien lie says, that ' the Roman Church j^ractically
 
 FOR TlIK SOUL AM) FOK THE J30DV. Kit) 
 
 looks upon Extreme Unction as a mere preparation 
 for death.' 
 
 The practice of the Roman Cliurcli is at one witli 
 lier doctrine. The teaching of the Council of Trent 
 has been already stated. Pope Eugenius IV. also 
 instructed the Armenians, at the Council of Florence, 
 that the effects of Extreme Unction were — ' the ifaniouin, 
 healing of the mind ; and, so far as it is expedient, of Tom. ix. coi. 440. 
 the body itself also. — Effectus vera est mentis sanatio ; 
 et, in quantum auteni expedite ipsius etiam corporis. 
 
 The first provincial council of Cologne (a.d, 1536), Pars \\\. cap. 49, 
 
 . , „,-, Hardoiiin ix. 
 
 after treatuig of the other sacraments, says : — ' ihere coi. 2011. 
 remains Extreme Unction, which (since in death 
 there is the last conflict) is applied, that either the 
 sick may recover, if God see fit, or in faith and good 
 hope may fall asleep in the Lord.' 
 
 Hugo of St. Victor writes respecting it : — ' First, De Sacramentis, 
 the soul is cured, then the body is healed. The body He aii-d A.n. ii'4i>. 
 is sick for the correction of the soul. Therefore, in 
 order to obtain the health of the body, the soul must 
 first be cured. And if, perchance, the body is not re- 
 established in its former vigour, there is no danger 
 if only the soul shall have received its healtli.' 
 
 The Eoman Eitual teaches as follows : — 
 
 'The Sacrament of Extreme Unction, which was iusti- Kitualc Romamim, 
 
 -.. . T 1 1 1- 1 T • r i.1 Do Saoniiiirnto 
 
 tuted by Christ our Lord, as a celestial medicine, tor the irxtnniK Luctionis 
 
 health {salutaris) not only of the soul, but also of the 
 
 body, is with all zeal and diligence to be applied to 
 
 those who are dangerously sick; and, indeed, if possible, 
 
 at that time when their mind and reason are still in full 
 
 vigour : so that, in order to their fuller reception of the
 
 170 IT WAS INSTITUTED ONLY FOR 
 
 grace of the sacrament, they may also on their part con- 
 tribute faith, and tlie pious will of the mind, whilst they 
 are anointed with the holy oil.' 
 
 Extreme Unction can never be given to anyone 
 whose life is endangered otherwise than by sickness, 
 as it would be if ' practically looked npon as a mere 
 preparation for death.' I subjoin the teaching of 
 the Tridentine Catechism on this point, and as to the 
 proper time for its aclministration : — 
 
 r. II. chap. %-i. * The faithful are to be taught that, although this 
 
 sacrament appertains to all, certain classes of persons are 
 excepted, to whom it is not to be administered. And in 
 the first place are excepted persons in sound health ; for 
 that to them Extreme Unction is not to be given, the 
 
 St. James V. li. Apostle also teaches, when he says: "Is any one sick 
 among you ? " and reason shows, for it was instituted to be 
 medicinal not only to the soul, but also to the body. As, 
 then, those onl}^ that labour under disease have occasion 
 for cure, so also this sacrament ought to be administered 
 to those who seem to be so dangerou.sly ill that it may be 
 feared lest their last day of life should be near. Those, 
 however, sin very grievously {r/ravissirae — a word which 
 denotes raortal sin) who are wont to observe that time of 
 anointing a sick person when, all hope of recovery having 
 been already lost, he is beginning to grow dead and sense- 
 less ; for it is obvious that it avails very much to a more 
 abundant reception of the grace of the .sacrament, if the sick 
 man be anointed with the sacred oil whilst the mind and 
 rea.'jon are .still in vigour, and he can bring to its reception 
 faith and the religious will of tlie mind. Wherefore, parish 
 priests must take care to apply this heavenly medicine, by 
 its own power at all times most salutary, then especially 
 when they see that its efficacy will also be increased by the 
 piety and devotion of those to whom it is to be administered. 
 'To no one, therefore, who is not visited bv grievous sick-
 
 PEKSOXS DANGEROUSLY SICK. 171 
 
 ness, is it lawful to give the sacrament of Unction, even 
 though he is about to incur risk of life ; either by under- 
 taking a perilous voyage, or by engaging in battle from 
 which certain death may impend over him, or even though, 
 condemned to capital punishment, he should be hurried off 
 to execution. Furthermore, all who want the use of reason, 
 are not fit to receive this sacrament ; nor are children, who 
 are not guilty of any sins, from the remains of which they 
 would have occasion to be healed by the remedial efficacy 
 of this sacrament ; nor yet idiots nor madmen, unless they 
 have sometimes the use of reason, and then in particular 
 give signs of piety, and ask to be anointed with the sacred 
 oil. For a person who, from his very birth, never had the 
 use of his mind and reason, is not to be anointed ; but if 
 the sick person, whilst yet in sound mind, wished to be 
 made a partaker of this sacrament, and subsequently 
 became insane and delirious, he is to be anointed.' 
 
 Cardinal Bellarmine's teaching is the same : — 
 
 ' Many,' he says, ' fall into a great error, in not wishing Explanation 
 
 to receive this Sacrament till the moment of their passing r,, • ,- "V, ^ • 
 
 1 _ * Christian Doctrine, 
 
 away ; but the proper time to take it is when the physicians revised 
 
 judge the malady to be dangerous, and when human reme- '^ i^lPfhp 
 
 dies do not appear to be sufficient ; and therefore recourse Van. Consrepition 
 
 is then had to heavenly remedies, and so, not seldom it 
 
 happens that the sick person is healed by means of the holy 
 
 oil. Therefore this holy sacrament should not be asked 
 
 for, when we are not in danger of death, nor yet ought it 
 
 to be postponed till there is no more any hope. And this 
 
 is the reason why the holy oil is not given to those who are 
 
 about to be executed, because such persons are not sick, 
 
 nor have they any hope of life.' 
 
 The matter of the Sacrament is oil (which must 
 be from olives only) blessed by a bishop. This 
 blessing is given with ceremonial and great solemnity 
 during the mass of Maundy Thursday, the bishop 
 
 of the Eeform.
 
 172 Tin-: matter and form of extreme unction. 
 
 leaving the altar for the purpose between the conse- 
 cration and communion. The Eoman (Tridentine) 
 Catechism observes, concerning the holy oil : — 
 
 Part II. chapter vi. « This matter most aptly signifies that which is effected 
 inwardly in the soul hy virtue of the Sacrament. For as 
 oil is very efficacious in mitigating bodily pain, so does the 
 virtue of this ISacrament alleviate the sadness and anguish 
 of the soul. Oil also restores health, brings cheerfulness, 
 and affords, as it were, food to light ; whilst it is also very 
 well calculated to restore the strength of a wearied body. 
 All which things declare the effects produced in the sick 
 person by divine power through the administration of this 
 Sacrament.' 
 
 The form of the Sacrament of Extreme Unction 
 consists in the following prayer, which is repeated 
 at the anointing of each organ of the senses : — 
 ' Through this holy unction t^t and through His most 
 loving mercy, may the Lord forgive (or indulge) thee 
 [indulgeat tibi) whereinsoever thou hast trespassed 
 [quidquid deliquisti) by sight, hearing, &c. &c.' — 
 These words breathe more than the mere forgive- 
 ness of the guilt of sin ; they imply a fulness of 
 merciful indulgence. 
 
 The Eoman Catechism observes that the depreca- 
 tory form is intimated by St. James, and thus ex- 
 plains it : — 
 
 ULi suiira. ' Nor let anyone be surprised tJjat, whilst the form of 
 
 tiie other sacraments either absolutely signifies what the 
 sacrament effects, as when we say, " I baptize thee ; " or " I 
 sign thee with the sig)i of the cross; "or is pronounced, 
 as it were, by way of conminiid, as wlien,in administering 
 the Sacrament of Order, it is said, " Eeceive power ; " this
 
 'THE TRAYER OF FAITH SHALL SAVE THE SICK.' ITo 
 
 form alone of Extreme Unction is accomplislied l)y a 
 certain prayer. For with very good reason has that been 
 ordained ; for since this sacrament is administered, in order 
 that, besides the spiritual grace whicli it imparts, it may 
 also restore health to the sick ; yet because it does not 
 always follow that the sick recover from their illness, there- 
 fore does the form consist of a prayer in order that we may 
 obtain from the goodness of God that which the virtue of 
 the sacrament is not wont to effect in a constant and con- 
 tinual order. Peculiar rites, however, are employed in the 
 administration of this sacrament also, but the chief part of 
 them contains prayers which the priest uses to obtain health 
 for the sick person. For there is no other sacrament which 
 is accomplished (coyificiahvr) with more prayers ; and with 
 reason, for at that time most especially are the faithful to 
 l)e assisted by pious prayers. Therefore also all others who 
 may happen to be then present, and paiticularly parish 
 priests, ought to pray to Grod with all their heart, and with 
 all earnestness to commend to the divine n.ercy the life 
 and salvation of the sufferer.' 
 
 In the Eoman Eitual, immediately after the order 
 for administering Extreme Unction, there follow the 
 seven penitential psalms with the litanies, under the 
 heading — 'For the sick, whilst they are being 
 anointed with the sacred oil, or for other necessity.' 
 
 I have dwelt at some lengtli on the special pro- 
 minence given to prayer in connection with Extreme 
 Unction, because it tends to explain certain passages 
 in wliicli its effects appear to be attributed to the 
 prayer, apart from the anointing. But, just as the 
 term ' holy oil,' which is only the matter of the 
 sacrament, is frequently used to express the sacra- 
 ment itself, without mention of the prayer which is its
 
 174 THE PRAYERS OF THE RITUAL COXTAIX 
 
 essential form., so it may easily happen that the single 
 word oratio is likewise employed at times, as suffi- 
 ciently designating the whole of the Sacrament.-^ Thus 
 Ch. V. 15. St. James, in his Epistle, seems to use the expression 
 in this sense ; and the Eoman Catechism also, in 
 the following exhortation to faith and confidence : — 
 
 ULi supra. ' Let parish priests strive to persuade the sick man to 
 
 offer himself to the priest to be anointed, with that faith 
 with which of old those who were to be healed by the 
 Apostles were wont to offer themselves. But first there 
 is to be sought the salvation of the soul, then the healtli 
 of the body, with this adjunct, if it should be profitable for 
 eternal glory. Nor indeed ought the faithful to doubt, 
 that those holy and solemn prayers are heard by God, 
 which are' used by the priest, not in his own person, but 
 in that of the Church, and of our Lord Jesus Christ.' 
 
 Two, if not all, of the three following collects, used 
 
 after the anointiiiii, i)ray expressly for the healing of 
 
 the body : — 
 
 Rituale Romainim, ' Lord God Almighty, who hast spoken b}^ thine Apostle 
 
 Ordo Extmn. James, saying: "Is any man sick among you? let him 
 
 bring in the priests of the Church, and let them pray over 
 
 ' In a note at p. 22G of the ' Eirenicou,' the following quotation 
 is given from ' a catena ' to .show, that, ' in Victor, the efficacy is 
 ascribed to the prayer': — 'The oil, then, wherewith one is 
 anointed, signifies both the mercy from God and the healing of 
 the disease, and the illumining of the heart. For that 2JJai/er 
 irorketh all is plain to evei-yone ; hut the oil is the symhol of these 
 thiufjs.' The passage is from the Catena Aurea of St. Thomas 
 Aquinas on St. Mark vi. 13, and it is there attributed to St. John 
 Chrysostom ; but critics say it is from Victor of Antioch. I 
 subjoin the original : — ' Significat autem oleum imctionis Dei 
 misericordiam, infirmitatis medelani, et cordis illuminationem ; 
 f/i/od totum (ii-alio ope rat nr.'' The word oratio is evidently here 
 tisod for the whole S.-ifnnnciit. The italics are my own.
 
 SPECIAL MENTION OF BODILY HEALING. 175 
 
 him, anointing- him with oil in tlie name of the Lord, and 
 the prayer of faith shall save the sick man ; and the Lord 
 shall raise him up : and if he be in sins, the}'- shall be fur- 
 given him :" cure, we beseech thee, our Eedeemer, by the 
 grace of the Holy Spirit, the languors of this sick man ; 
 heal his wounds, and forgive his sins : drive out from him 
 all pains of mind and body, and mercifully restore to him 
 full health, inwardly and outwardly, that, being recovered 
 by the help of thy mercy, he may return to his former 
 duties. Who, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, livest 
 and reignest Grod, world without end. Amen.' 
 
 * Regard, we beseech thee, Lord, thy servant, N. 
 exhausted under the infirmity of his body, and revive the 
 soul which thou hast created ; that being amended by 
 chastisements, he may perceive himself to be saved by thy 
 remedy. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.' 
 
 ' holy Lord, Almighty Father, eternal God, who, bs^ 
 infusing the grace of thy blessing into sick bodies, dost 
 preserve, by thy manifold goodness, the work of tliy hands, 
 graciously be present at the invocation of thy name, that, 
 delivering thy servant from sickness, and bestowing health 
 upon him, thou mayst raise him up by thy riglit hand, 
 strengthen him by thy might, defend him by thy power, 
 and restore him to thy Holy Church, with all desired jiro- 
 sperity. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.' 
 
 It is, then, evident, that the healing of the body, 
 when God sees lit, is prominently regarded as one 
 of the effects of Extreme Unction. But undoubtedly, 
 as with all the sacraments, its primary end is spiri- 
 tual ; nor can the words of St. James be restricted 
 to the body. It is a healing balm for all spiritual 
 Avounds ; a celestial cordial for all spiritual languors. 
 In the words of our Entrlish Catechism : — ' It com- chupiti- vi.
 
 170 
 
 ^nSTAKRX MOTIVES FOR THE 
 
 forts the soul in her last agony, it remits sin, and 
 also restores health when God sees it to be expedient.' 
 The Church's practice accords with her teaching. 
 Her working clergy could produce instances in abun- 
 Eirenieon, p. 219. dauce, rescmbliug the one quoted on the authority of 
 a Eussian Priest of a man raised up three times from 
 dangerous illness by means of Extreme Unction. 
 
 Practice 
 of the 
 Church. 
 
 Postponement 
 
 of the 
 Sacraments. 
 
 Custom 
 
 previous to 
 
 the 
 
 Council of Trent. 
 
 Eiren. p. 22 
 
 The Chiuxh, as may be seen above, urgently 
 exhorts her children not to postpone the reception 
 of Extreme Unction to the last moment of their 
 lives. But we all know how often sick men will 
 not own themselves in danger ; and how the false 
 kindness of friends conceals from them their peril, 
 and shrinks from calling thefr attention to the neces- 
 sity of preparation, whether as to their spiritual or 
 even their temporal concerns. Thus, if the sacra- 
 ments are too often delayed till the end, it is not 
 through the fault of the Church or of her ministers, 
 but it arises from the human weakness of so many of 
 her individual children. Nor is this reluctance to 
 contemplate the approach of death by any means 
 peculiar to Cathohcs. 
 
 The 'Eirenicon' refers to an 'abuse before the 
 Counril of Trent, Avhcn Extreme Unction was cus- 
 tomarily athninistered to those only, of whom there 
 was a moral certainty that they could not recover ; 
 and, if they should recover, it was a question whether 
 it ^^liould be again administered to them when they 
 should af^ain l)e sick.' 
 
 The 'Eirenicon' docs not imply that this abuse
 
 posTPO^'^]^rEXT of extreme uxctiox. 1 1 7 
 
 was in any way sanctioned by authority ; but it may 
 
 be questioned how far it had become 'customary' 
 
 excepting witli the ignorant. Certainly it would he 
 
 manifestly contrary to the mind of the Church. It 
 
 may be seen above how strongly it is condemned in 
 
 the Eoman Catechism ; and tlie afore-cited decree of Hard. Acta Concii. 
 
 Pope Eugenius IV., a century before tlie Council of 
 
 Trent, expressly taught, that the proper subject for 
 
 extreme unction is ' a sick person for whose deatli 
 
 there is apprehension (de cujus morte timetur).' 
 
 But, it is undoubtedly a fact, that tlie abuse of 
 putting off tliis sacrament to tlie last, was too common 
 at one time, amongst the more ignorant of the people. 
 Benedict XIV. observes, that but a slight knowledge instit.Ecciesiast. 
 of ecclesiastical history will suffice to show, that the 
 evil custom of putting off Extreme Unction till tlie 
 very j^oint of death, arose out of a false notion 
 whicli pervaded Great Britain in tlie 13th century, 
 that a sick person who recovered after receiving it, 
 must afterwards lead a life of entire continence, even 
 if married ; and must never more eat flesh meat, or 
 walk with naked feet (perhaps out of respect for the 
 holy oil with which the feet had been anointed). He 
 says elsewhere that this foolish idea seized upon De Synod. Dicp^-cs. 
 many minds. It was productive of great evil ; leading ' ' ^'"' '^^' '' 
 ignorant persons to postpone, and incur a risk of alto- 
 gether losing, the Sacrament of Extreme Unction ; as 
 is stated in the decrees of the Synods of Worcester Hard. Acta Concii. 
 (an. 1240) and Exeter {an. 1287), both of which coi. saTanVi'iosi. 
 condemn the error as heresy. They speak also of 
 
 VOL. I. N
 
 liS THE CIIUKCH HAS WAKNED HER CIOLDREX 
 
 tlic twofold end of this sacrament, both for soul 
 
 and body; and the last-named Synod further enjoins 
 
 on parish priests to instruct their people that it may 
 
 lawfully be repeated. Directions against the same 
 
 Quoted i.y crror are found also in the Constitutions of Eichard, 
 
 inTo'co citato. Bishop of Sahsbury, a.d. 1217. Later, there arose a 
 
 foolisli notion, tliat no one could make a will after 
 
 Hard. Acta Concii. haviug receivcd Extreme Unction. This was con- 
 
 toni. X. col. 1746. ^ -^^ i • a -I -\r T -ir>r\<-r 
 
 demned by a l5elgian feynod, at JMalmes, a.d. 10U7. 
 De Synod. Dioeces. ' In our owu age,' adds Benedict XIV., ' the faithful 
 
 Ubi eupra. „ „ , . -■ . , 
 
 are n'ee from these prejudices, but nevertheless the 
 enemy of man has instilled the notion into many 
 ignorant and uncultivated minds, that there is an end 
 of this life for any one who is anointed, and that the 
 tomb alone remains for him.' He then shows that one 
 effect of the sacrament is to heal the body as well as 
 the soul, if God sees it expedient ; and concludes : — 
 ' Therefore the end of hfe, when he is now breathing 
 his last, is not to be waited for for the anointing 
 of the sick : for tlie sacrament does not work this 
 effect by way of miracle, as would be necessary 
 under those circumstances, but by a certain virtue — 
 supernatural it is true, but in some sense ordinary — 
 which assists the natural causes.' 
 Sum. Theoi. St. Autoniuus tauglit :— 'This sacrament (of Extreme 
 
 Unction), when devoutly received, increases grace, 
 which is the health of the soul ; nay, it also sometimes 
 remov^es the sickness of the body, gradually restoring 
 its strength, when indeed it is decreed for any one to 
 rf"^overfrom sickness, and if siicli l)e profitable for the 
 
 Pars. IJI. Tit. 14, 
 cap. viii. 
 He died 
 
 A.D. H.JO.
 
 AGAINST THESE DEVICES OF Till': EXEMV. 17'.) 
 
 salvation of his soul, which is prinripally to be sought 
 for. But even if it should be decreed that they should 
 die, yet death is not hastened by receiving this sacra- 
 ment, as is thought by some foolish people. Nor 
 ought it to be deferred till the last, when understand- 
 ing and devotion are no longer possible.' 
 
 This is one with the doctrine of our own day. Prieipot. Thcoiog. 
 Thus, Father Perrone teaches, that, although Ex- cap. ii. 43. 
 
 -r-r . ■ r .1 • i • i T " • • Ed. 31ma Taur. et 
 
 treme Unction is tor the grievously sick alone, it is Mcdioi. 1866. 
 
 not meant that it should be postponed till tlie very 
 
 last. ' Such mode of acting,' he adds, ' is against the 
 
 mind of the church, and contrary to the secondary 
 
 end of the sacrament, which is to confer health, if 
 
 expedient to the salvation of the soul. For since 
 
 this sacrament does not produce this effect by way 
 
 of miracle, it ought not to be deferred till a miracle 
 
 may be necessary.' 
 
 Benedict XIV. says that, towards the end of tlie Thedoctrino 
 eleventh and early part of the twelfth century, and repetition of 
 
 , n • • xi . T^ ' . t^i'*^ Sacrament. 
 
 even later, some were 01 opuuon that iixtrcme De Synod. Diceoes. 
 Unction could not be repeated. On the other hand, ' ' ^"'" ^^^'' 
 there were those who thought that it might be re- 
 peated even during one and the same state of danger 
 from illness. Sardagna, however, observes that it isThcoi. Dogm.-Poiem. 
 
 ^ ... . De Extrem. Unct. 
 
 uncertain whether the repetitions in question were No. 395. 
 not merely ceremonial. However this may be, 
 Benedict XIV. states also that the usually received 
 and approved doctrine was that which was afterwards 
 infallibly confirmed by the Council of Trent — viz. 
 
 n2
 
 180 KXTHKMK UNTTION CAN' BE REPEATED 
 
 that Extreme Unction can be repeated if the sick 
 
 should recover after receiving it, on the recurrence of 
 
 ' another hke danger of death.' The instruction in 
 
 De Sacramento the Eomau Pdtual interprets this by the direction, 
 
 Estremse Unctionis. , . i • i -n i 
 
 that It cannot be repeated \n the same ilmess unless 
 
 it be one of long duration, in wliich the sick person 
 
 after recovery shall relapse into danger of death. 
 
 The manner in wliich the subject was discussed by 
 
 IV. Lib. Sentent. Peter Lombard, the Master of the Sentences, shows 
 
 TJist. xxiii. 
 
 that in his day (the twelfth century) there was a de- 
 gree of doubt upon it (arising from a fear of dis- 
 respect to the sacrament). But he says that Extreme 
 Unction ' is repeated often in nearly all the Church 
 (in onini pene Ecclesid scepe repetitur).' In the 
 thirteenth century, St. Thomas taught precisely the 
 same doctrine on this point as that which the Church 
 confirmed at Trent in the sixteenth. He says : — 
 
 3ti;e partis Kupplp- * No Sacramental, or sacrameut which has perpetual 
 in'i'Lib .^Tpnt effect, ought to be repeated, because thus it would appear 
 ili.st. xxiii. q. ii. that the sacrament was not of sufficient efficacy for that end, 
 and so a wrong would be done to that sacrament. Rut a 
 sacrament whicli has an effect which is not perpetual, may 
 be repeated without wrong to it, that the effect whicli is lost 
 may be recovered by its repetition : and since the health 
 of body and mind {sanitas corporis et mentis), which are 
 the effects of this sacrament, may be lost after they have 
 been wrought by the .sacrament, therefore this sacrament 
 may be repeated without aii}- wrong to itself.' 
 
 Again he say.s : — 
 
 It'id. ' This sacrament does not regard the sickness alone, but 
 
 also the state of the sickness, because it ought only to be 
 given to those sick persons, who, according to human
 
 WITHOUT DISRESPECT TO THE SACRAMENT. ISl 
 
 judgment, appear to be drawing uear to death. For some 
 sicknesses are not lingering ; so that if the sacrament is 
 given in these cases, at the time that the person arrives 
 at a state when he is in danger of death, he does not 
 leave that state unless the sickness is cured, and so he ought 
 not again to be anointed : but if he should sutFcr a relapse, 
 it will be another attack of the sickness, and there can be 
 another anointing. But some sicknesses are of long dura- 
 tion, as hectic fevers, and dropsy, and others of this sort ; 
 and in such diseases the unction should only be made when 
 they appear to bring on danger of death ; and if the person 
 passes that point while the same sickness lasts, and is again 
 reduced to a similar state by that sickness, he can again be 
 anointed, because it is, as it were, another state of sickness, 
 although it is not simply another sickness.' 
 
 Such was llie doctrine of the Angelic Doctor ; and 
 it was that also of St. Bonaventure, styled the Sera- 
 phic Doctor, and of others ; tliree centuries before 
 the Council of Trent. 
 
 The ' Eirenicon ' very reasonably asks for an expla- sins remitted 
 
 bv 
 
 nation of the dogma that Extreme Unction ' remits Extreme'unciiou 
 sins ; ' it beins; a sacrament for persons in a state of Eirenieon. 
 
 , , . . . • 1 • , IT- 223-227. 
 
 grace, and not being ' given to remit venial sin. 
 Bellarmine also is quoted to show that theologians 
 differ as to what is intended by ' remains of sin.' 
 
 Now the Canon defines that Extreme Unction Explanation. 
 remits sins, but it does not say, deadly sins ; nor 
 that the remission of sins, either venial or mortal, is 
 the primary object for which it is given. All that is 
 of faith is, that remission of sins is one of the effects 
 of Extreme Unction. There is no question thai a 
 conscious state of mortal fiuilt is an obstacle to its
 
 182 INSTANCES IN AVIIICII EXTREME UNCTION 
 
 graces. But it is conmiouly tauglit tluit it will remit 
 even mortal sin in one invincibly ignorant of it^ and 
 otherwise properly disposed ; or in one become 
 incapable of any moral act, provided that, at the 
 moment wlien he lost his mental faculties, he pos- 
 sessed that imperfect contrition which, under such 
 circumstances^ would suffice for this sacrament, but 
 of itself, be insufficient for justification. It is un- 
 necessary to discuss whether, under the pressure of 
 Eircn. p. 224. sickucss or mortal agony, even ' one of well-instructed 
 conscience ' might not be invincibly ignorant of a 
 state of mortal sin. For many dying pei'sons who 
 receive the sacraments are, unhappily, without the 
 habits of a well-instructed conscience. 
 
 It is true that opinions differ as to how far such 
 
 guilt appertains to the ' remains of sin,' and as to 
 
 the mode in which the sacrament of Extreme Unction 
 
 remits it ; but this difference does not regard the 
 
 De Synod. Diceces. dogina. Sucli points, saj^'S Benedict XIV., curiose 
 
 lib. viii. cap. 7. , ... . , 
 
 niagis, qiiam utihier, investigant ScJiolastici. 
 
 The Eoman Ritual expressly refuses Extreme 
 Unction ' to the impenitent, to those who die in 
 manifest mortal sin, to the excommunicated, and to 
 I'ait ii. i-bap. 6. tlie unbaptized.' ' Kothing,' says the Tridentine Cate- 
 cliism, ' is more opposed to the grace of this sacra- 
 ment than tlie consciousness of any mortal sin.' 
 Accordingly, if possible, it is invariably preceded 
 l^y sacramental c(jnfession and absolution ; and, by 
 })rescnt custom, the Holy Eucharist is also previously 
 administered. But these sacraments may have been 
 defectively I'eceived ; the sick man nuiy have un-
 
 WILL RKMIT EVKX GRIEVOUS .SL\S. 183 
 
 consciously failed in the requisite dispositions ; or, 
 tlirougli cidpable iguoi'ance, or even knowingly, lie 
 may have concealed some mortal sin, thus adding 
 guilt to guilt. Or, strong temptation may have 
 betrayed him into some mortal sin of thought, even 
 after a good confession and communion. He may 
 have subsequently lost his reason before he has made 
 a sign ; but not before God's watchful mercy has 
 aroused him (if only through the fear of judgment) 
 to some degree of sorrow, together with hope of par- 
 don, and resolution not to sin again. In short, his 
 dispositions in themselves may be insufficient for 
 justification, but such as to become sufficient through 
 the grace of the sacrament. In which cases Ex- 
 treme Unction remits guilt, supplies defects, and 
 rescues the immortal soul from the jaws, as it were, 
 of hell. 
 
 Again, a man's reason may fail utterly, or be sus- 
 pended by delirium. An unforeseen accident or 
 sudden lit may paralyze the senses and take away 
 all consciousness. No confession can be made nor 
 wish for absolution manifested. Eternity is at the 
 door and mortal guilt is on the soul. But that same 
 grace of attrition may have been in tlie heart when the 
 moral action ceased ; and if God has seen it there, 
 Extreme Unction will remit the guilt. Such is the 
 case referred to, as follows, by Pope Benedict XIV. : — 
 
 ' It is to be presumed of every one of the faithful, eon- De Syuo<l. I)i..v.s, 
 cerning whom the contrary is not manifest, that he would ^''^- ^''"" *^"'*P" ^''' '^• 
 have sought this sacrament if he could. All, as it seems to 
 us, should be furtitied with Extreme Unction, who, l)eing
 
 ISi THE rowKii OF extheme lwction. 
 
 oppressed by the suddeu force of disease, are deprived of 
 their senses, and unable to signify any desire for the sacra- 
 ment ; and those especially whose known piety and faith 
 afford an evident argument of their desire, which they would 
 signify if they could. This practice indeed is approved by 
 instnut.Extr.Unct. St. Thomas, all the Ivituals, &c., &c., and St. Charles 
 P. 2. De Sacramentis, Borronieo. — Nay, Suarez observes that it is most neces- 
 '''^' ' 8 • sj^i-y to assist such a sick person, deprived of his senses 
 and incapable of the other sacraments, with the remedy of 
 Extreme Unction : "Because," he says, "one of the princi- 
 pal ends of this sacrament is to supply the place of the 
 Sacrament of Penance, either when that cannot be applied, 
 or when, in fact, it is not applied with sufficient utility." 
 On this account many theologians permit a priest to inter- 
 rupt mass, in order to administer Extreme Unction to a 
 sick person near to death, to whom no other sacrament 
 could be given ; because in such case, by Extreme Unc- 
 tion alone, if he have sufficient attrition, he can obtain 
 the first grace of justification, which it is possible he may 
 stand in need of.' 
 
 St. James V. 15. It shoulcl be obscrved, that the words of the Tri- 
 dentine decree, like those of St. James, are condi- 
 tional : — ' If lie be in sins, they sliall be forgiven him.' 
 
 Riinains of Hill. Thcolugians eonnuonly understand by the 're- 
 mains of sin,' in the first ])lace, the evil effects which 
 sins have wrought upon the soul; sucli as mental 
 languor, torpoi', sadness, over-anxiety, trouble ofcon- 
 sc;ience, blindness and deadness to spiritual things, 
 di-ead of the world to come, weakness and inability 
 to raise the mind to heaven, distrust of God, de- 
 sjwndency, and the like ; which are wont to oppress, 
 iind (li^lmb. and ener\ate the spiiit, and tempt the 
 soul t()des])air, especially at the jipproach of death.
 
 IT REMOVIOS THE KEMAIXS Of SINS. 185 
 
 St. Alphoiisiis Ligiiori says : — ' Ba])ti5m aud Pen- Thooi. MoimI. 
 ance differ from Extreme Unction, inasmuch as tliey Tract v. x.i. 731. 
 are instituted principally to blot out actual or original 
 sin ; but Extreme Unction (as St. Thomas teaches) is 
 instituted principally to remove tlie remains of sins — 
 namely, the debility and infirmity which remain 
 from actual sin ; but because the remains cannot be 
 removed when sin is found in the soul unless the sin 
 be first removed, therefore, as a consequence (eu: 
 consequenti), this sacrament takes away sin.' 
 
 Father Perrone explains the meaning of the term Prseieet. Theoiog. 
 ' remains of sin,' as follows : — ' By this name is under- eaix ii' 4.5. Note '3, 
 stood that languor and infirmity of the mental 
 faculties, by which we are draAvn away from doing 
 right, and from tlie pursuit of virtue ; as well as that 
 perverse and preposterous inchnation of the will, 
 through which we have a propensity for vice, and 
 are impelled, as it were by a kind of pressiu'e, to 
 the gratification of our passions. But the more 
 hurtful this twofold affection of the mind, Avhich is 
 contracted from a multitude of sins, the more ought 
 it to be healed by a seasonable remedy ; especially 
 when, being afflicted by grievous disease, there 
 impends over us the danger of the loss of life. For 
 we very much fear to die ; and this fear is increased 
 both by the consciousness of our past life, and by 
 our anxiety and reflection concerning the dreadi'ul 
 judgment of God, shortly after to be undergone. 
 Therefore, lest the mind should be overwhelmed with 
 these fears, and that it may the rather ex[)ect death
 
 18G IT DOKS NOT DESTROY EXISTING HABITS, 
 
 Avitli tranquillity, it ought to be encouraged and 
 
 raised up, filled ^vitli a certain pious and holy joy, 
 
 and freed from the remains of sin.' 
 
 In lib. iv. Sent. St. Tliouias says, that, ' as baptism is a certain 
 
 Q.'i, Art. 2. spiritual regeneration, and penance a certain spiritual 
 
 3iuE partis^upp em. j.ggi^jgQ<;Qj;iQji^ go extrcmc uuctiou is a certain spiritual 
 
 healing or medication [qucedam spiritaalis sanatio, 
 vel inedicatio) ;' and that, 'the principal effect of this 
 sacrament is the remission of sins as regards the 
 remains of sin, and, by way of consequence, as regards 
 the guilt also, if it should find it.' 
 
 It is important, however, to observe that it is not 
 intended that the evil habits, engendered by past 
 sins, are in such sense removed and taken away by 
 Extreme Unction, as that the sick person, if he 
 recover, need not fear any relapse into them ; it is 
 Tiuoi. Dogni. Poiem.not fas has been explained bv Sardasrna) that this 
 Extrem. Unct. sacramcnt works any change in the natural habit and 
 
 No. 398. T. . . f 1 1 n 7 1 • . 1 
 
 tlisposition ot the body ; but that it gives strength 
 and vigour against the evil, and the remains of sin 
 are taken away, inasmuch as the Holy Unction heals 
 and gladdens and fortifies the soul, rendering it 
 strong under its own weakness. It does not destroy 
 existing habits, nor aff(jrd security against a relapse 
 into evil practices ; but it gives strength to overcome 
 those habits and the difficulties and temptations which 
 arise from tliem in the last decisive stru^jii-le. 
 In li!.. iv. s.i|t<nt. I'hu.s, St. Tlioiiias adds : — 'Dispositions remainini*- 
 
 Ui.vt. xxm. >- *^ 
 
 Q. i.Art. 2. from acts, which are ceitain commenced habits, are 
 
 3tia- partis supplcni. 
 
 (J. XXX. not what are here called remains of sin, but a certain
 
 BUT GIVES GKACK TO TR1L':\IIMI OVKI{ THEM. 187 
 
 spiritual debility existing in the mind itself, on the 
 removal of which the mind cannot so easily be in- 
 clined to sins, even by the same habits and dis- 
 positions that remain.' 
 
 Bellarmine and some others luiderstand, also, by 
 ' remains of sin,' any actual sins which may remain 
 after other sacraments, or be otherwise found upon 
 the soul as previously explained, and which Extreme 
 Unction (if received in proper dispositions) will re- 
 move, being, 'as it were, the complement of the Sa- St. Charles Boi-romoo, 
 rament of Penance.' But this is simply a question of uiict. 
 
 terms, since it is of faith that this sacrament ' remits 
 sins,' whether considered as ' remains of sin ' or not. 
 Father Perrone says, that theologians everywhere in Iol-. oit. n. 2. 
 teach that it remits venial sins per se ; but deadly 
 sins secundario or j^er accidens. He observes that it ibidem, 
 may ' truly be called, as it were, a medium between 
 the sacraments of the living and the dead.' 
 
 The Eoman Catechism thus beautifully explains the ^ Effects of 
 
 Extreme Unction. 
 
 efiects of Extreme Unction : — 
 
 ' Pastors therefove will teach that by this sacrament is iin- Civteeh. Cone. TriJ. 
 
 1 , . . , • II • 1 1 1- 1 i^ Pai'.s II. cap. VI. 
 
 parted grace that remits sms, and especially incieea lighter, 
 or as they are commonly called, venial sins. For mortal sins 
 are removed by the Sacrament of Penance ; nor was tliis 
 sacrament instituted primarily for the remission of heavier 
 crimes ; but only Baptism and Penance effect this hy their 
 proper power {vi sua). 
 
 'Another advantage of the Sacred Unction is, that it 
 liberates the soul from the languor and infirmity which it 
 contracted through sins, and from all the other remains 
 of sin. But the time to be considered most opportune for 
 this cure is wlien we are afflicted with severe illness, and
 
 188 Till-: iFAXV AND GREAT BEXEHTS 
 
 dauj^er to life impends. For it has been implanted by na- 
 ture in man to dread no human visitation so much as death. 
 But the recollection of our past sins greatly augments 
 this dread, especially when the most poignant accusation of 
 Wisdom iv. 20. our conscience goads us; for, as it is written — "They shall 
 come with fear at the thought of their sins, and their ini- 
 quities shall stand against them to convict them." Another 
 source of vehement anguish is the anxious thought that 
 we must soon after stand before the judgment seat of God, 
 who will pass on us a sentence of strictest justice according 
 to our deserts. It often happens that, struck with this 
 terror, the faithful feel themselves wonderfully agitated. 
 But nothing conduces more to a tranquil death than to cast 
 off sadness, and await with a joyous mind the coming of our 
 Lord, and to be ready willingly to surrender our deposit 
 whensoever it shall be His will to demand it back. To free 
 the minds of the faithful from this solicitude, and to fill the 
 soul with pious and holy joy, is then an effect of the sacra- 
 ment of Extreme Unction. 
 
 ' From it, moreover, w'e derive another advantage, which 
 may justly be deemed the greatest of all. For although 
 the enemy of the human race never ceases, whilst we live, 
 to meditate our ruin and destruction, yet at no time does 
 he more violently strain every nerve utterly to destroy us, 
 and, if possible, deprive us of hope of Divine mere}', than 
 when he sees the last da}^ of life approach. Therefore are 
 arms and strength supplied to the faithful through this 
 sacrament by which they may be enabled both to break 
 the violence and impetuosity of the adversary, and to 
 fight bravely against him. For the spirit of the sick 
 person is relieved and encouraged by the hope of the 
 Divine goodness, strengthened by which he bears more 
 lightly all the inconveniences of sickness, and eludes with 
 greater ease the ai-tifice and cunning of the devil, who lies 
 Gen. iii. 1'). in Wait for his " heel." 
 
 'Finally, the recovery of health, if indeed advantageous, 
 is another effect of this sacrament. However, should
 
 OP THE SACRAMKNT OF FA'TRKMR UxXCTIOX. 1 S'.l 
 
 tlie sick not recover it iu these days, that is to be at- 
 tributed, not to any defect of the sacrament, but rather 
 to the weaker faith of a great part of those who are 
 anointed with the sacred oil, or by whom it is administered. 
 For theEvangelist bears witness that the Lord "wrouglit not St. Matt. xiii. /iS. 
 many miracles" amongst His owoi, " because of their un- 
 belief." Although it may also be said with reason that 
 the Christian religion, since it has struck its roots as it 
 were more deeply in the minds of men, stands now less in 
 need of the aid of miracles of this kind, than would seem 
 to have been formerly necessary at the commencement of 
 the rising Church. But, nevertheless, faith is here to be 
 strongly excited ; for, however it shall happen by God's 
 counsel and will with regard to the health of the bod\% 
 the faithful ought to rely on a sure hope of attaining, by 
 virtue of this sacred oil, spiritual health ; and of e.xpe- 
 riencing, should the hovu' of their departure from life be at 
 hand, the fruit of that glorious assurance, b}' which it is 
 written : " Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord I " ' Apoc. xiv. is. 
 
 St. Charles Borromeo teaches as follows : — 
 
 ' The first benefit and effect of this sacrament is that Acta Ercles. Mediol. 
 it takes away the remains of sin, as if the complement instruct E t 
 of the Sacrament of Penance. Which remains are under- Unct. 
 
 stood to be sins, whether mortal or venial, which remain 
 after other sacraments ; for it may happen that mortal 
 sin may remain, the one who committed it being in 
 ignorance of it, or not being able to confess ; in blotting 
 out which he is so assisted by this sacrament, tliat it may 
 come to pass that a man is saved through this sacrament, 
 who otherwise would have been damned. 
 
 * These remains are also torpor, grief, and a certain 
 anxiety which is left from sin, and afflicts a man when 
 close to death. 
 
 ' There are many things besides which, in various ways, 
 afflict a sick man; both the natural fear of death, and the
 
 100 ST. CHARLES BORUOMKO 
 
 dread of God's judg-meiit by wliicli he is exceedingly 
 alarinetl, and the power of the disease, whicli so depresses 
 him that at times he cannot take up tlie thoughts of 
 Crod and of divine and lieavenly things, and of the salva- 
 tion of his soul. And it sometimes happens that, harassed 
 by the disease, he is impelled hither and thither b}' some 
 trifle, now to complainings, now to suspicions, now to im- 
 patience, and to other like perverse affections which hurt 
 his soul. 
 
 'Against all these inconveniences also, this sacrament 
 avails as a most wholesome medicine, and it is divinely 
 endowed with power to enable the sufferer to bear them 
 more easily. 
 
 * Another advantage of it is that, when the devil, who 
 has learnt by daily practice the condition, the natural 
 disposition, and the liabits of the sick man, attacks him 
 variously in all manner of ways in that his last hour, in 
 order that he may distract him, disturb him b}'^ despera- 
 tion, and despondency of mind, or exalt him with too 
 much presumption and a certain elation ; the sick person 
 receives througli this sacrament supplies of divine strength, 
 which enable him. boldly to resist the adversar3\ 
 
 * And, as it strengthens the soul against the enemy, so 
 also, when profitable for the soul, it sometimes heals the 
 body.' 
 
 The same holy bishop thus beautifully explains 
 tlic matter and form of this sacrament : — 
 
 In loco citato. 'The Organs of the senses are anointed with oil, because 
 
 the sotd is filled with the grace of the Holy Ghost, w' icii 
 is commonly signified by oil, in order that sins and there- 
 mains of sins may be wiped away, and tlie soul raised up 
 and strengthened. 
 
 'A form which contains a prayer is added, since St. James 
 said, Let thempray over them, &c. And since this sacrament 
 is a kind of fninplcnirnt of pciKincc, and the sick, especially
 
 ON THE SACRAMENT OF EXTREME UNCTION. 11 1 1 
 
 at that time, cannot do works of penance, tliey expect 
 remission from mercy only, which is implored by prayer. 
 
 'The cross also is impressed when the anointini;- with tlie 
 sacred oil is administered, in order that we may know tliat 
 these gifts are granted to us through the merits of the cross 
 and passion of the Lord ; and that we may fortify our 
 senses wdth that sign, and use it in the combat to be sus- 
 tained against the adversary ; and also that we may carry 
 the sign of the cross to the tribunal of Christ our Jndge, 
 by which we may show that we have fought under the 
 standard of the cross constantly even unto death.' 
 
 These pages would be incomplete without uieution Suarez 
 
 of the very clear teaching of the eximius doctor, Extremrunotion. 
 Suarez. Eesting on the spiritual sense of tlic W()iTlspai./2iCDiTp"xil i. 
 of St. James, and on the decrees of the Councnl of J'^l*r'?''^'Z' 
 
 ' pp. 1 1- 1 < . 
 
 Trent, he says that Extreme Unction was instituted, 
 primarily^ to comfort and assist the souls of the sick 
 against the difficulties which beset the hour of death, 
 as wrestlers are anointed for the combat. He calls 
 it the Sacrament of Hope, because it especially 
 strengthens that virtue ; he says that it also promotes 
 cheerfulness, heals and fortifies the soul, and gives 
 promptitude and vigour to overcome the temptations 
 of the devil, then most grievous. He says that, 
 secondarily, it was instituted to pre[)are the soul fin- 
 glory, for which the removal of sin is most necessary. 
 Therefore, that it will remit even mortal sin (where it 
 finds the proper dispositions), not per se, as Baptism 
 and Penance ; nor yet altogether 2?er accidens, as 
 is probable with other sacraments, but because so 
 intended by the Institutor under such cir('iiiH>t;inces.
 
 102 THE DOCTRIXE OF RUAREZ 
 
 Tlie coiKlitional form, ' //' lie be in sins, they shall be 
 forgiven him,' shows that their remission was not 
 intended to be the primary end of the sacrament ; 
 wliilst the promise of forgiveness if sin be there, 
 renders it evident tliat such remission is in some way 
 peculiar to it, and in some way intended in its insti- 
 tution. He observes (m a previous paragraph), that 
 the conditional ' if'' indicates that this remission ex- 
 tends to mortal as well as venial sins, since hardly 
 anyone can be found without the latter. — ' Herein,' 
 he adds, ' is very greatly magnified the prudence and 
 the anxiety of Christ our Lord concerning the ever- 
 lasting salvation of mankind ; for since eternity 
 de]:>ends upon that moment, and a loss then incurred 
 concerning eternal salvation is irreparable, and from 
 many causes it may happen that either other remedies 
 cannot be applied, or certainly that they may be 
 applied witliout effect, therefore to this last remedy 
 He imparted a virtue of its own [propriam) to supply 
 this defect, and to rescue man when ]:)laced in so 
 great peril.' 
 
 He says that Extreme Unction remits also the 
 temporal punisliincnt due to sin, not always entirely, 
 as Baptism, but according to tlie disposition and 
 devotion (jf tlie recipient. Also, that it removes 
 other remains of sin ; not that it takes away the 
 fonies^ or the evil habits, or the effects on the imagi- 
 nation, or changes the natural disposition of tlie 
 body; Imt it gives strength and vigour, and in this 
 wav is instituted against tlie weakness left bv sin,
 
 ON TITK EFFECTS OF EXTRKAfF UNCTIOX. 193 
 
 not by removing it in itself, as it removes guilt or 
 temporal punishment, but by adding more force to 
 overcome it. ' It may also be said,' he continues, 
 ' that it remits these remains, so far as, on account of 
 his sin, it was due to the man to be left to his own 
 frailty and weakness, and to be deprived of the helps 
 of grace, especially of extraordinary and super- 
 abundant helps. This debt of sin is so discharged 
 through this sacrament that, on account of it, these 
 helps are the rather due to the man, to fortify him 
 against such remains when he falls into that state of 
 sickness.' He teaches that this grace belongs to 
 the primary end of the sacrament of Extreme 
 Unction, and that no other sacrament is ordained 
 to convey it, since it is reserved for ' the special ne- 
 cessity and weakness of one who is sick.' 
 
 Subsequently he treats of the restoration of bodily Ubi supra, soct. 4. 
 health, when God sees lit, as another effect of Ex- 
 treme Unction. 
 
 Thus does this holy sacrament heal and sustain it is 
 
 the soul, and, when expedient, bring back health to ' of 
 
 • • siicci3j1 iiiorcv 
 
 the body also. Thus does it wipe out any remainmg 
 guilt, if it finds the necessary sorrow. Thus does it 
 bring grace to prevent relapse into sin, and to turn 
 the sorest temptation into a source of highest triumph. 
 Nay more — it wins for the sufferer merit and ever- 
 lasting glory, even out of his past transgressions; by 
 enabling him to overcome their bad effects, to hold 
 on, and to fight his way to heaven, through the 
 throng of i)1iantasms and foul imaginations which 
 VOL. 1.
 
 104 
 
 THE MERCY AND LOVE OF GOD 
 
 Father Faber. 
 The Creator 
 
 and 
 
 the creature, 
 
 p. 304. 
 
 Lukewannness 
 
 respecting 
 this Sacramenl. 
 
 rise up around him from their remains, hke mists 
 from the pit of helL It inspires him with acts of 
 the opposite virtues and of earnest hope in God — 
 gems to adorn liis future crown. So ingenious is 
 the love of the Divine heart of Jesus, in repairing 
 our losses, and increasing our reward — Confitemini 
 Domino, quoniam bonus: quoniam in sceculum mi- 
 sericordia ejus! 
 
 It has been beautifully said : — ' Death too, with 
 its imknown necessities, must have a sacrament which 
 it can call its own, as well to finish the demolition 
 of sin, as to anoint the failing warrior with a heavenly 
 unguent for his last dire combat, and enable him, in 
 defiance of earthly calculations, to elude the hold 
 which the unseen powders of evil lay upon him in 
 that hour. If w^e ever need help, will it not be in 
 that dreadful agony, for neither earthly love nor 
 earthly power can help us then ? With many, doubt- 
 less, the battle has gone hard, though they who 
 stood around neither heard nor saw the mortal 
 wrestle; and with manj^ it was the secret strength of 
 that holy oil, the hidden operation of that sacra- 
 mental grace, which turned the scale, and consigned 
 to tlie Good Shepherd's arm that slieep which is now 
 His own for ever.' 
 
 These, then, are the benefits of this most blessed 
 saci'ament of Extreme Unction. Who that believes 
 in them, and is mindful of his last end, would not 
 yearn for its Divine support in those moments of his 
 agony wlicii all support from man is failing fast, and
 
 ARE PRE-EMINENT IN THIS SACRAMENT. 
 
 11)0 
 
 when Satan is near ' having great wrath, knowing 
 that he hath but a short time ? ' Yet even the pious 
 author of the ' Eirenicon ' expresses no desire for it ; 
 he is neither ' cold nor hot ' towards it ; he thinks 
 tliere need be no objection to it ; and, in comparing 
 Eome with England in this particular, he observes, 
 that ' the only real difference is mainly practical in 
 regard to the anointing of the sick.' But this 
 practical difference involves the omission of a sacra- 
 ment which sustains and perfects the just in tlieir 
 perseverance, and of which St. Charles Borromeo and 
 others have affirmed, that a penitent sinner, in ignor- 
 ance of his state of guilt, or not then able to con- 
 fess, is by it ' so assisted in blotting out mortal sin, 
 that it may come to pass that one is saved througli 
 this sacrament who would otherwise be damned.' 
 
 It is observed in the ' Eirenicon ' that, if Extreme 
 Unction be ' looked upon as a mere preparation for 
 death, not as a means, if God so will, of restoring 
 the sick, one does not see what there can be lacking 
 to our dying,' if we h*ave the sacraments of Penance 
 and the Holy Eucharist. Its author would never 
 have said this if lie had been one in the faith witli 
 Eome. It is true that Penance is ordained to absolve 
 from sin, and that the Holy Eucharist contains tlie 
 very fount and centre of all those graces, of whicli 
 the other sacraments are the channels. But, even 
 when both these sacraments have been received with 
 the most perfect dispositions, who that believes what 
 has been stated respecting that of Extreme Unction 
 
 o 2 
 
 Eiron. p. 219. 
 
 Vide supra. 
 
 Eiren. p. 223. 
 
 Difft'renco as to 
 faith.
 
 lOG EACH SACRAMENT HAS ITS PROPER END. 
 
 can at the same time question how it is lacking, for soul 
 as well as body ? Every sacrament has a spiritual 
 end, peculiar to itself. They wlio believe that their 
 Divine Eedeemer mercifully instituted this one for 
 thek hour of greatest need, cannot neglect the gift 
 without neglecting Him who gave it. It is one of 
 the streams whicli flow from Calvary — one of the 
 channels of His most precious Blood. It is one of 
 the sacraments of the New Law, and the Council 
 of Trent has pronounced ' anathema ' against any 
 who deny it to have been ' instituted by Christ our 
 Lord.' Did He institute it to be laid aside, as if 
 superfluous ? 
 
 Tlie mercy of our God and Saviour abides with 
 us to the last. In the hour of death, as all through 
 life, is the ' angel of His presence ' ever near to save us. 
 Well may the great Apostle call out, ' How shall we 
 escape, if we neglect so great salvation? ' How shall 
 men answer it before the judgment-seat of Christ, if 
 tliey show themselves content to fojfeit tlie aid of 
 such a sacrament, which He has Himself ordained 
 and purcliased for tliem ? In the days of helpless 
 jj.-iit. xxxiii. 27. iufaucy. His ' everlasting arms " enfold us ; and He 
 makes us His by the grace of Holy Baptism ere yet 
 our reason dawns. And when our reason's liglit is 
 failing, and our senses waxing dim, and death seems 
 near at hand, again ' the everlasting arms ' embrace 
 us ; again tliey sustain our second childhood's weak- 
 ness, tlirongli tlie lioly sacrament of our anointing. 
 All iliroiigli our life tlicy liave been ' underneath' us ; 
 
 God's mercy 
 never fails. 
 
 Isaias Ixiii. 9. 
 Heb. ii. 3.
 
 THE CHURCH S CARE FOR THE DVli\(i. Ill* 
 
 He has ' carried us and lifted us up all our days '; and i.s. ixiii. 9. 
 now in our last moments He 'is the same.' This is. xivi. 4. 
 sacrament fulfils and completes His promise, — ' I ii,i,i. 
 
 have made you, and I will bear. I will carry and 
 will save.' Ag;ain and a^ain have Christ's sacraments 
 restored, and quickened, and sustained us ; but now, 
 when our lifelong penance may be drawing to its 
 close, and we seem close upon the threshold of ' the Eccies. xii. .5. 
 house of our eternity ;' then in a more special manner 
 our God draws near us, and His divine grace fortilies 
 us in this sacrament of healing and of strengthening 
 and of His own loving consummation of our imper- 
 fect penance. Our Jesus thus assists us that He 
 may not lose our dearly-purchased souls ; and that 
 we may not lose our crown, then so close within our 
 reach, if only we surmount that severest of our trials, 
 on which depends— ETEENITY ! 
 
 Can any Christian believe in this, who has it not, 
 and 3^et say, without emotion, that he sees not what 
 is lacking to his dying ? 
 
 Li the city of Eome, when (death seeming to Rome 
 
 be near) the Holy Unction has been given, the ' Moti^r. 
 priest leaves behind him his stole on the bed of the 
 sick person ; and there it remains till the end, be it 
 recovery, or be it the world to come. Thus is the 
 sufferer cheered in his strufro;le, and tau2;ht to confide 
 in the nearness of Christ, and in His love : — ' Though i***"!'" x^"- 
 I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, 
 I will fear no evils, for Thou art with me. Thy rod 
 and thy staff, they have comforted me. Thou hast
 
 198 MAxVIFEST I'RACTICAL DIFFERENCES. 
 
 prepared a table before me, against them that afflict 
 me. Thou hast anointed my head with oil ; and my 
 chalice, which inubriateth me, how goodly is it!' 
 
 Which is it of the two — is it England or is it 
 Eome — which proves herself man's mother in his 
 hours of direst need ? If England is of one faith with 
 Eome as regards this sacrament, how can she explain 
 or justify its three centuries' systematic cessation? 
 Would not such neglect show contempt for it ? 
 
 Holy Orders. In reference to the sacrament of Holy Orders : — 
 
 if England was of one faith with Eome, she woidd 
 hardly remain so regardless of the fact already 
 referred to, that Eome (wdio believes the repetition 
 of Ordination to be a sacrilege) never fails uncon- 
 ditionally to ordam all Anglican clergy who come 
 back to her, and who are admitted to her ministry. 
 Thus Eome practically denies that the ' Church of 
 England ' possesses this sacrament. 
 
 Matrimony. If the Established Church of England really be- 
 
 lieved, with Eome, that a true, ratified, and consum- 
 mated Christian marriage is indissoluble, it is hardly 
 credible that slie would take so little pains to pre- 
 serve her members from the iniquities of a Divorce 
 Court. Had slie believed such divorce a sin and 
 liad she acted as if she believed it, that Court 
 could never have become established, when it did. 
 IJut, after all, the Divorce Court was based on no 
 j)ihiciple that was new to her. Slie liad already con-
 
 INDULGENCES. PURGATORY. THE SAINTS. 11)9 
 
 sciited to such divorces, and liad invoked God's 
 blessing on the subsequent so-called marriages of 
 the divorced with other persons, whenever the civil 
 power allowed it. The recent Act contained nothing 
 new in principle, but it extended the existing evil, 
 and gave a greater facility for the sin which had 
 already been sanctioned. Thus, as regards the Sacra- 
 ment of Holy Matrimony, again the two religions are 
 found at variance. 
 
 To pass on. — If England believes with Eome ' that imiuicrcnces. 
 
 , ^ 1 f. 1 /-(I • • 1 Sec above, p. 161. 
 
 the power or indulgences was leit by Christ in the 
 Church, and that the use of them is most wholesome 
 to Christian people' ; why does she so neglect them ? 
 She makes no such provision for relieving penitent 
 sinners from the temporal punishment still due after 
 the eternal is remitted. She takes no pains to 
 remove misunderstanding concerning them. 
 
 Again : — if the national Church of England Pm-triitoiy. 
 ' constantly holds,' with Eome, ' that there is a 
 Purgatory, and that the souls therein detained are 
 helped by the suffrages of the faithful,' how comes it 
 that she has no express and formal pubhc prayers in 
 their behalf? How comes it that, if such prayers are 
 said at all, it is on sufferance ? She takes no pains to 
 recommend them ; she hardly dares avow them. 
 
 So also, as to the Communion of Saints. If England invocation 
 believes with Rome respecting it, how comes she to ])e Snints,
 
 200 RESPECTING Tllii liLESSKD VIRGIN MARV, 
 
 SO remiss as uever even to exhort her children to have 
 recourse to the powerful intercession of the Siiints 
 who reiiji'n together w^itli Christ ? 
 Neglect. Truly, if England's faith in all these portions of the 
 
 means of grace, crccd Still Hvcs, her cliarity must be dead ; she bears 
 no witness to it in her works ; she neglects these 
 several means of grace ; she never leads her perishing 
 flocks to these many streams of living waters. Does 
 she not scare them from drawing near ? 
 
 Faith Where is England's separate witness to the one faith, 
 
 Btes^ed virgin ^s regards that sinless one, the most favoured and most 
 
 ^^^^'^' exalted of all favoured and sublime creatures ; her, 
 
 wliom all generations of the faithful hail as Blessed? 
 
 England is not at one with Eome, nor with the great 
 
 i)e natiira et gratia, St. Austiu, wlicu lie says : — ' For the honour of the 
 
 cap. xxxvi. n. 42. , ... , . ., . , 
 
 Lord, i Will have no question at an entertamed con- 
 cerning the Holy Virgin Mary, when there is any 
 discussion about sins.' Exceptd itaque sanctd viryine 
 Marid^ de qua propter honorem Domini nullam pror- 
 sus cum de peccaiis agitur^ haberi volo qucestionem. 
 The Scarce twenty years have fled, since the letters of 
 
 Conception. thc llomaii Poiitiff' Went forth over the whole earth, 
 asking the testimony of every Bishop as to the tradi- 
 tionary faith of his own particular diocese, respecting 
 the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin 
 Mary: — Whethei- for one single moment, the great 
 Mother of our God and Saviour had been under 
 Satan's tlu'aldom? — Whether the-re w^as ever one 
 single instant, during which her blessed soul was 
 defiled with Adam's sin?
 
 CONCbllVEU WITHOUT ORIGINAL SIX. 2Ul 
 
 The universal globe made answer ; and the 
 Supreme Pontiir, aided by the light of God, 
 discerned the ' mind of Christ,' the divinely ap- i Cor. ii. le. 
 pointed moment, and the movement of the Holy 
 Ghost, 
 
 A vast assembly is convened atEome, and around 
 the great Apostle's earthly resting-place large multi- 
 tudes are thronging into the noblest of God's temples. 
 The solemn but joyful rites commence, and in mea- 
 sured cadence there swells up from that crowed of 
 Christian men as if they had one only voice, the cry 
 for aid from Heaven — ' Veni Creator Spiritus.' It 
 ceases, and all is still. Then arises in the strength of 
 the Lord God, as if filled with that blessed Spirit, the 
 holy and august Pontiff of old Home, and he pro- 
 claims to the universe, by a power not his own, tliat 
 after prayers and fastings, and earnest supplications 
 from himself and the Church to Almighty God 
 through Jesus Christ His Son, he now, assisted by 
 the Holy Ghost, declares, that : — 
 
 ' To the honour of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, Litt. Apost. 
 to the dignity and glory of the Virgin Mother of God, Dogmat. Defin. 
 to the exaltation of the Catholic Faitli, and the in- "^"^' °"''" "^' "^" 
 crease of the Christian religion, by the authority of 
 our Lord Jesus Christ, of the blessed Apostles Peter 
 and Paul, and Our Own, we declare, pronounce, and 
 define that the d(jctrine which maintains that the most 
 blessed Virgin Mary in the first instant of her con- 
 ception was, by the singular grace and privilege of 
 Almighty God, in consideration of the merits of 
 Christ Jesus, the Sa\iour of the human race, preserved
 
 202 THE UNIVERSAL JUBILEE. 
 
 exempt iVom all stain of original sin, is a doctrine 
 revealed by God, and therefore to be firmly and con- 
 stantly believed by all the faithful. Wherefore, if 
 any, which may God avert, shall presume to entertain 
 m their hearts an opinion at variance with this doc- 
 trine which we define, be it known to such persons, 
 and let them moreover understand, that they are 
 condemned by theh: own judgment, that they have 
 suffered sliip wreck concerning the faith, and have 
 fallen off from the unity of the Church. . . 
 
 'Therefore, let no man infringe upon this our decla- 
 ration, publication, and definition, or with rash daring 
 oppose and contradict it. But if any one shall pre- 
 sume to attempt it, be it known to hmi that he will 
 incur the indignation of the Omnipotent God, and of 
 the blessed Peter and Paul, His Apostles.' 
 
 The Pontiff ceased, and the gorgeous vaults re- 
 echoed with the Te Deum of thanksgiving from the 
 thousands who were gathered under that stupendous 
 dome. The strain was caught up outside ; it was 
 boi'iic on throuuhout the universe; and the pure 
 angehc vaults of heaven re-echoed the joy of Chris- 
 tian hearts below, that none amongst them now could 
 have a doubt that God's Mother was Immaculate; 
 that their own Mother, Mary, was always without a 
 stain. 
 
 What part has the so-called 'Church of England' 
 taken in this triumphant hymn of praise resounding 
 throughout all space ? How has she borne her 
 ' separate witness ' to this article of the one faith ?
 
 THESE DIFFERENCES ARE ESSENTIAL. 203 
 
 Nay, what testimony does slie give at all to the filial 
 love and veneration due to Mary, "which nature itself 
 should teach to all who believe in their heart that of 
 her ' was born Jesus,' and that Jesus is their God ? 
 
 These are not idle questions ; nor is it any idle impoi'tauce 
 motive which has induced me to explain these dif- considerations, 
 ferences so fully. My object is to dispel the mis- 
 chievous delusion which is raising a mist before the 
 eyes of so many earnest Christians, and cheating 
 into rest those who are in a position of schism and 
 of heresy. I do not seek by these expressions to 
 give offence, but I vnah. to call things what they 
 are. I have shown, from authorities whose testi- 
 mony cannot be questioned, the doctrine which 
 Eome teaches to be the faith on the points wliich 
 have been mentioned. She teaches it as the one only 
 faith ; the ftxith of the Apostles, ' once delivered to the 
 saints.' She teaches it as the original revelation of 
 the eternal God of Truth, through Christ ' the light 
 of the world,' and through the Holy Spirit on the 
 Day of Pentecost. She teaches that there is no 
 salvation for those who wilfully reject this faith. If 
 England accepts it, then why does she remain apart? 
 Would not this alone be schism? If England rejects 
 it, then in what sense can it be said that ' w^e bear 
 separate witness still to the one faith which Christ 
 gave to His Church, the faith of the creeds'? 
 
 I am prepared for the reply. It will be said that Tiie tiuoiy 
 the points to which England objects are additions to to be false.
 
 204 THERE IS NO CHRISTIAN L'NITV WHERE 
 
 the one fuitli ; thut they are not true explanations, but 
 alterations of the creeds. Such an answer shows at 
 once how fallacious is the theory of an imaginary 
 objective luiity, invisibly existing, through Christ the 
 unseen Head. Can those be one in Christ, who are 
 di\'ided as to the interpretation of the articles of the 
 saving faith which Christ revealed and taught ? 
 
 On this point I rejoice to be able to appeal to the 
 testimony of Dr. Puse3\ In his explanation of the 
 theoiy before us, he teaches that it maintains unity of 
 Eiren. pp. 53-56. faith to be esscntial. He says distinctly, — ' They have 
 not the same Lord, who do not believe the same 
 truth as to Him ' ; and he shows that he intends by 
 this, more than the faith respecting His Divine Person, 
 since he refers to the Pelagians as not believing ' in 
 what He wrought for us, and the Donatists ' as deny- 
 ing ' the existence of that mystical body, whereof He 
 was the Head.' 
 
 He proceeds : — ' The ftiith, St. Paul says, is one, 
 one unchangeable faith, admitting neither of enlarge- 
 ment nor (liiniiiulioii, so that eitlicr wliat the Apostles 
 believed and taught the wliole Cliurch as faith, should 
 cease to be faith, or that anything should become 
 faith which they, full of the Holy Ghost, knew not 
 and taught not as the faith. But since the faith is 
 one, one whole, then whosoever parteth with, or 
 altereth any ])i)rli()ii of tlic one faith, in fact changes 
 the whole, so that it is not the same faith, whence the 
 .stress in the Athanasian Creed on "keeping the faith 
 whole and undefiled."' He includes among those 
 things which ' if any wilfully reject, they reject
 
 THERE IS DIVISION OX POINTS OF FAITH. 205 
 
 Christ,' ' one comiuoii faitli, that wliicli was given 
 once for all, with the anatliema that we hold no 
 doctrine at variance w^ith it, although an angel from 
 heaven were to preach it.' 
 
 Dr. Forbes asserts the same. lie says that ' ob- vide sup. p. 70. 
 jective unity' 'requires, on our part, continuity of 
 the commission which Christ gave to His Apostles, 
 and perseverance in the faitli whicli lie committed 
 to the Church.' 
 
 It has been seen that Eome teaches, as a portion 
 of the faith, that Christ committed to the Apostle 
 Peter, and his successors, the charge of the whole 
 ' flock of God,' Vv'itli supreme authority over tlie 
 Universal Church ; and that every baptized Christian 
 owes ' true obedience to the Bishop of Eome ' as 
 'Vicar of Jesus Christ.' England rejects this portion 
 of the faith, and will not acknowledge this commis- 
 sion. What then becomes of unity between tlie two ? 
 
 It has been showii further that, in other respects 
 also, either Eome has added to the faith, or England 
 has taken away from it. So that, according to the 
 ' Eirenicon ' itself, either one or the other has 
 ' changed the whole faith,' and botli ' cannot have 
 the same Lord, who do not believe tlie same truth 
 as to Him.' 
 
 Which of the two is right? Has England 'rejected 
 Christ ' ? Or is Eome ' at variance witli the faith '? 
 Is there no one left on earth to teacli infallibly 
 what that one faith is, whicli ' Christ commitled to 
 the Church;' which 'the Apostles believed and 
 taught ; ' and ' out of which no one can be saved ' ?
 
 206 
 
 THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH IS 
 
 The Sacraments 
 
 may exist 
 
 outside 
 
 Clirist's Church. 
 
 See above, 
 pp. 15, 16. 
 
 De Eapt. 
 
 contra 
 Donatistas, 
 Lib. iv. n. 1. 
 
 It is perfectly true as regards individual Christians 
 that baptism made tliein one in Cluist. On this 
 very groinid, as has been already stated, the one 
 only Church lays claim to them all as her children. 
 By whomsoever they may have been baptized, tlie 
 Roman Catholic Chiu'ch alone is the Church of their 
 baptism and their spiritual Mother. 
 
 I venture to add another extract to those I have 
 already produced from the works of that great 
 Doctor, St, Augustine, on this subject. In refer- 
 ence to a passage in an Epistle of St. Cyprian's, 
 he observes : — ' The comparison of the Chmxli to 
 Paradise is an indication to us that men can truly 
 receive her baptism even outside her, but no man 
 can either obtain or hold fast beatific salvation 
 {salutem beatitudinis) outside her. For the rivers 
 also from the fountain of Paradise flowed largely 
 even outside it, as Scripture testifies. In fact, they 
 are commemorated by name, and eveiy one knows 
 what lands they flow through, and tliat tlieir streams 
 have been established outside Paradise ; yet neither 
 in Mesopotamia nor in Egypt, whither those rivers 
 reach, is there the felicity of hfe which is remem- 
 bered in Paradise. Thus it comes to pass, that, 
 though the water of Paradise is outside Paradise, still 
 there is no beatitude excepting it be inside Paradise. 
 So tiien, tliere may be the Baptism of tlie Church 
 outside the Church, but the gift of a blessed life is 
 nowhere found unless inside the Church {sic ergo 
 Oaptiwius Ecclesiw potest esse extra Ecclesiaw^ rmmus
 
 THE ONLY ARK OF OUR SALVATION. 207 
 
 autein heatce vitw non nisi intra Ecclesiam reperitur) : 
 which also is founded on the rock, which has re- 
 ceived the keys of binding and of loosing.' 
 
 The theory says that England and lionie are united 
 in the faith and tlie holy sacraments. It has been 
 above shown that the facts on both sides contradict it. 
 But, even if England possessed the fulness of the 
 faith, and the entirety of the sacraments ; even this 
 w^ould afford no guarantee that she was united with 
 the one Church. On this point also we have the au- 
 thority of St. Augustine, who says that everything, 
 except salvation, may be found outside tlie Clun-cli. 
 The following passage, though frequently quoted, 
 has never yet been answered: — 'A man may have s. Aup:. Sonno 
 everything outside the Catholic Church, except sal- EcciesiiePiebem.ii.G. 
 vation. He may have honour, he may have sacra- 
 ments, he may sing Allehiia, lie may answer Amen, 
 he may hold the gospels, he may both have the 
 faitli and preach it in the Name of the Father, 
 and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; but, no- 
 where except in the Catholic Church, will he be able 
 to find salvation. For all these things pass away, my 
 brethren.' Extra Ecclesiam Catholicam totiun potest 
 prceter salutem. Potest habere honorem, potest habere 
 sacramentum^ potest cantare Halleluia^ potest respon- 
 dere Amen, potest Evangelium tenere, potest in nomine 
 Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti Jidem et h<(bere et 
 prwdicare : sed nusquam, nisi in Ecclesid Catholicd 
 salutem p>oterit invenire. Transeunt enini omnia 
 ista,fr aires mei
 
 208 A VISIBLE BODY XEKDS A VISIBLE HEAD. 
 
 Coutra Littcras ' "Wliat caii be iiiore mad,' he asks elsewhere, ' tlian 
 lib. ii!n."i'26. to commiuiicatc in tlie sacraments of the Lord, and 
 not to communicate in the words of the Lord ? ' 
 
 There are certain rehgionists who profess union 
 with Christ, althougli they deny the necessity of 
 baptism and of any sacrament. The answer given by 
 Anghcans in such case, will apply also to their own 
 assertion, that they hold to Christ the Head although 
 severed from His visible representative on earth. 
 They acknowledge a visible church, and visible 
 sacraments ; yet they deny the necessity of visible 
 Seo extract, above, unity. They profcss that Christ Himself speaks and 
 
 Eirenicon, p. 60. acts tlirougli a visible and external ministry for the 
 teaching of tlie faithful, and the administration of 
 the sacraments ; but tliey will not believe that He 
 has constituted one visible external head, through 
 whom He rules and governs the whole body, as 
 tlie crown of the Church's hierarchy, and the centre 
 of her unity. The Eoman teaching is more con- 
 sistent. It is as follows : — 
 
 Catechism 
 
 of the 
 
 Council of Trent, 
 
 part i. ch. x. 
 
 St. John xxi 
 
 ' Shoultl any one object that the Church, content with 
 one liead and spouse, Jesus Christ, requires no other besides 
 Him, tlie answer is at hand. For, as we have Christ the 
 Lord not only the author of every one of the sacraments, 
 but also their inward giver (for He it is that baptizes and 
 that absolves, and yet He institutes men the external 
 ministers of the sacraments) ; so has He placed over His 
 fhurch, which He Himself rules hy His indwelling Spirit, 
 a man to be the vicar and minister of His power ; for 
 since a visible Cbiuch re([iiires a visible head, therefore 
 our Saviour constituted Peter head and pastor of the 
 universal family of the faitlifid, when He entrusted to him
 
 CHRIST IS REPRESENTED BY HIS VICAR. 209 
 
 His sheep to be fed, in terms most full, so that He evidently 
 willed that whoever should succeed him should have the 
 same power of ruling- and governing the whole Church.' 
 
 The theory which we have been discussing asserts The theory 
 the possibihty of unity between Christian Churches doubly fallacious, 
 without visible intercommunion ; and maintains that 
 rehgious bodies may be united to the Church 
 through Christ above, although visibly disunited 
 from the Vicar of Christ on earth. Thus it reverses 
 the doctrine of the great St. Thomas, who says : — 
 ' The unity of the Church consists in two things Snmm.a 
 
 ... , , 1' \ ^ ■ ^ 1 2'3a 2<l^ Q. 39, Art. I. 
 
 [in auoous attenaitur), namely, m the mutual connec- 
 tion of the members of the Church with one anotlier, 
 or communication [communicatione) : and again in the 
 order of all the members of the Church towards 
 one head, according to what is said. Col. ii.: — 
 ' Puffed up by the sense of his flesh, and not 
 holding the head, from Avhich the whole body, by 
 joints and bands being supplied with nourishment 
 and compacted, groweth unto the increase of God.' 
 — But this Head is Christ Himself, whose Vicar in 
 the Church is the Supreme Pontiff. And therefore 
 they are pronounced to be schismatics who refuse 
 to be under [subesse) the Supreme Pontiff, and wlio 
 will not join the communion (commimicare) of the 
 members of the Church who are subject to him.' 
 
 Divine Providence is wont to select the simplest 
 means for the attainment of its ends of wisdom ; 
 ' ordering all things sweetly.' The Churrh is com- Wisdom viii. i. 
 posed of human elements, though animated by a 
 
 VOL. I. P
 
 210 NECESSITY OF A SUPREirE AUTHORITY 
 
 Divine Spirit. Her members and her ministers are 
 men, not angels ; and men are liable to differences 
 and divisions. 
 
 Christ willed His Cluircli's unity to be abiding ; 
 and He did not neglect to make provision for that 
 end. He selected for her the organization best 
 calculated to preserve her unity, and, with the 
 help of divine grace, to ensure its unceasing main- 
 tenance. There can, ordinarily, be no lasting union 
 amongst men without a supreme authority ; and 
 there is no reason why the Church should form 
 an exception to this rule. The Church requires an 
 interpreter, as Holy Scripture does ; and Christ has 
 not neglected to provide her with an ever-present 
 final tribunal, wdiose judgment is decisive and in- 
 fallible on all tilings which concern man's salvation. 
 It is true she has her general councils. But who is to 
 interpret their meaning on any disputed question re- 
 specting it, if there is no abiding supreme authority ? 
 Nay, who is to declare with certainty of any one 
 particular council that it is ecumenical and duly 
 represents the universal Church ? To refer the 
 solution of such points to another future council, is 
 simply to postpone tlie difficulty. Who, in turn, is to 
 interi)ret tliat future council's decisions ? Who is to 
 assure men tliat it is ecumenical ? Take the instance 
 of the addition of tlie words Jilioque to the Creed, 
 and the question as to whether that addition was in 
 opposition to the decrees of early councils. The 
 Council of Florence defined that it was not so ; and
 
 TO REMOVE THE OCCASION OF SCHISM. 211 
 
 the Popes had previously permitted it. CathoHcs 
 regard this decision as the teacliing of God ; for tlie 
 Pope confirmed the comicil But those who reject 
 the Pope's authority, reject the council also ; and 
 what can remain for them but private judgment and 
 its natural consequences ? If men refuse obedience 
 to a sovereign authority, they must accept the alter- 
 native of perpetual division and never-ending dis- 
 cord. Therefore, as St. Jerome says, although the Adv. Jovin. i. 20. 
 Church is founded and solidly estabhshed on tlie 
 Apostles collectively, who all received the keys, 
 ' yet one amongst the twelve is chosen, that a head 
 being constituted, occasion of schism may be re- 
 moved.' Tame?! propterea inter duodecim unus eli- 
 gitur^ lit capite coiistituto, schismatis tollatur occasio. 
 
 III. 
 
 Pleec est Ecclesia Romana, cui qui non communicat, lia?reticu» 
 est. Illius interest consulere omnibus, judicare de omnibus, 
 omnibus providere, ad quam in Petro vox ista dirigitur : Et tu 
 aliquando conversus confirma fratres tuos. 
 
 S. Aelredi Serm. 23 in Isaiam. 
 
 The dissensions which at various times have arisen Historical 
 between different portions of tlie Cathohc Churcli, 
 are appealed to by Anglicans as precedents for the 
 existing divisions of Christendom ; and as instances 
 of the acknowledged subsistence of real though in- 
 visible unity, in the case of outwardly separated 
 comnumions. 
 
 p 2
 
 212 THE ENTiLISlT 8('TTTRM IS COMPLETE. 
 
 Dr. Pusey observes : — 
 
 Eiroii. p. r^9. ' No one, in the face of Ohnrch-history, can or does 
 
 maintain that all interrnptions of intercommunion destroy 
 unity. For Chiirch-hLstor}^ records too many such inter- 
 ruptions, which (although never probably without fault, 
 on the one side or on both) yet did not exclude either side 
 from the body of Christ. Unlove began its work even 
 in Apostles' times. At Corinth, already our Lord's words, 
 " B}^ this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if 
 ye have love one to another," were in a degree eclipsed. 
 Divisions began within the single Church. In the next 
 century was that first wider rent in the Christian body, 
 when the Bishop of Rome, against the remonstrance of 
 many Bishops, renounced the communion of the Asiatic 
 Churches, because they followed, as to the keeping of 
 Easter, a tradition different from that of Rome and of the 
 A.lv. ITwr. other Churches. " The East," says St. Epiphanius, " dif- 
 '• • • ^- '^- fcring from the West, they received not from each other 
 tokens of peace." The strife ceased not until the Council 
 of Nice,' 
 
 Tho instancos Uncloubtetll}' there are various steps and degrees 
 
 aiiMiogoiis. of dissension Avhich fall short of an absolute breach 
 of unity. But the existing rents of Christendom are 
 far more serious in their nature, and amount to 
 notliing less than absolute and consummated schism. 
 It will be found on investigation, that the instances 
 which are })roduced from history, do not afford 
 authority for tliat systematic and persevering repu- 
 diation of the divinely constituted authority of the 
 Koman See, which characterises tlie ' Church of 
 England;' nor Inr her foimal and lasting breach 
 of communion with that universal body of the 
 Spctherrofcssionof Aiithful whicli ' acknowlcdijes the Holy, Catholic, 
 
 Faith, p. 101.
 
 CORIXTII Al'PICALED TO ROME. 21-] 
 
 Apostolic, Eomaii Church for tlie mother and mis- 
 tress of all Churches ;' and renders 'true obedience 
 to the Bishop of Eome, successor of St. Peter, Prince 
 of the Apostles, and Vicar of Jesus Clnist.' 
 
 The local dissensions at Corinth involved no breach Diss^cnsions 
 of communion with the universal Church. They Cui-iuth. 
 continued, however, or were renewed after St. Paul 
 had received his crown ; and it was to Rome that 
 Corinth turned for succour. We learn this from the 
 words of the reply of Pope St. Clement I., written Ep. div. ciementis 
 in the name of the Eoman Church ; where he ex- CorinUiios i. i. 
 plains the causes of delay in giving attention to 
 ' tho.se matters respecting whicli,' he says, ' they 
 enquired, and to the abominable and unlioly dis- 
 cord ' whicli caused ' their honoured and well-known 
 name to be greatly evil spoken of.' This is that 
 celebrated epistle which of ancient practice used Eusob. iiist. EwIos. 
 
 . . iv. 23. 
 
 to be read in the church at Corinth ; and of 
 which St. Irenasus tells us, that 'the Church which Cont. Hyeres. in. :i. 
 is in Eome wrote under Clement to the Corinthians 
 most powerful letters, reconciling them in peace 
 amongst themselves, renewing their faith, and an- 
 nouncing to them the tradition which she had 
 recently received from the Apostles.' 
 
 The great Apostle and Evangelist St. John, sur- 
 vived St. Clement. Why did the Church of Corinth 
 pass him by, and appeal to Eome ? lie was the 
 disciple ' whom Jesus loved ; ' who leaned upon His 
 bosom, and learnt from His sacred heart that lesson
 
 214: THE TESTIMONY OF ST. 1REXJ5US. 
 
 of love, which, even till he joined his Lord in glory, 
 he never ceased repeating, — ' Little children, love one 
 another.' Who more fit than he to teach that lesson 
 to the divided church at Corinth ? He was, more- 
 over, the last of the long line of God's inspired 
 prophets, the eagle-sighted Seer to whom was re- 
 vealed the great vision of the Apocalypse. He was 
 the last remaining of the blessed twelve, the one 
 sole Apostle left on earth. Yet it was not to him 
 that Corinth turned in her distress ; it was to Eome ; 
 to that church which Tertullian hailed as pre-emi- 
 De Praesci-ipt. iicret. ncutly ' happy, ou wliich the Apostles have poured 
 forth all their doctrine with their blood ' {ista quam 
 felix Ecclesia ! cui totam doctrinam Apostoli cum 
 sanguine suo profuderunt) ; and with which St. 
 c.nt. iia-r. III. 2. Ircnoius declared it to be ' necessary for the whole 
 Church to agree, on account of its more excellent 
 pre-eminence.' Ad lianc enim Ecclesiam propter 
 potiorem principalitatem necesse est omnem convenire 
 Ecclesiam. 
 
 St. Victor The degree to which the difference extended be- 
 
 Abiiitic Churches, twccu St. Victor and the Churches oi Asia Minor, is 
 a well-known matter of discussion amongst ecclesias- 
 tical historians. Dr. Puscy appears to have over- 
 rated it, and to have fallen into some inaccuracy. 
 It is by no means certain that the Asiatic churches 
 were even momentarily cut off by St. Victor from 
 ecclesiastical communion ; but the whole case aflbrds 
 remarkable and important testimony to the manifest
 
 JUDAICAL OBSKRVANCE OF EASTKH. '215 
 
 exercise, and tlie iniquestioiiiiig ackiiowledguient oi" 
 tlie power and authority of the Eomau See, even at 
 that early period (a.d. 198). 
 
 The Chiirclie.s of Asia Minor retained down to tiio prouuds 
 that time, a peculiar custom — which had originated, tiio ditiewncc. 
 perhaps, in tender consideration for the converts from 
 Judaism — of celebrating the Pasch at the period of 
 the Jewish Passover, being the 14th of the month 
 Nisan, on whatever day of the week it might happen 
 to fall ; and they terminated their fasts on the same 
 day, whether it was a Sunday or otherwise. When 
 St. Polycarp visited Eome, this point was discussed 
 between himself and Pope St. Anicetus, but without 
 any definite conclusion ; and that holy Pope is said to 
 have tolerated the difference in discipline so far, as 
 even to have permitted the Asiatics then resident in 
 Eome to follow their own usage. This may have been 
 through respect for the aged and great St. Polycarp, 
 since the conversions from Judaism, at that period, 
 were no longer so numerous as formerly amongst the 
 additions to the Cliurch. 
 
 But not many years afterwards there arose a mani- 
 fest danger of the practice becoming confounded witli 
 the tenets of a party which had sprung up amongst 
 the Ebionite heretics, and which maintained that Gosdiier. 
 
 , /-ii • • 11 Diet. Theol. Catliol. 
 
 it was mcumbent upon (Jiuistians not onJy to keep Art. Piiqucs. 
 their Easter on the day of the Jewish Passover, but 
 also to continue the legal observance of the Passover 
 itself; asserting, in opposition to the orthodox, tliat 
 Christ had done so in person before He suffered. This
 
 216 SYNODS WERE EVERYWHERE CONVOXED, 
 
 evidently went beyond a mere diirereiice in disci- 
 pline ; and, though it does not appear that the Asia 
 Minor Churches can be accused of these Judaizing 
 notions, yet it seems not improbable that an attempt 
 was made to introduce them into Eome itself by one 
 Blastus ; a priest who had been educated in Asia. 
 This Blastus was degraded from the sacerdotal func- 
 tions by Pope St. Eleutherius, the immediate prede- 
 cessor of St. Victor, for causing a schism in that city 
 and attempting to Judaize (a.d. 180). 
 The conduct The carly heresies were commonly connected with 
 
 St. Victor. Judaism ; and the Pope was probably apprehensive 
 lest further toleration of the practice peculiar to 
 Asia Minoi' might be productive of danger to the 
 faith. 
 Ecciesiast. Histor. Euscbius statcs that synods and assemblies of 
 
 lib. V. cap. 23. '' 
 
 Bishops Avere held upon the subject, both in the 
 East and in the West, and that (with the exception 
 of Asia Minor) they were unanimous in their doctrine 
 ' that the mystery of Our Lord's resiuTection should 
 be celebrated on no other day than the Lord's Day ; 
 and that on tliis day alone we should observe the 
 close of the Paschal fasts.' 
 
 Amongst the synodical Epistles to this effect still 
 Ecci. Hist. V. 23. extant at his own time, Eusebius makes particular 
 mention of one from the Bishops of Palestine, Theo- 
 ])liilus of Caisarea, Narcissus of Jerusalem, Cassius 
 of Tyre, Clarus of Ptolemais, and others. lie says 
 that, after treating at length of the tradition con- 
 cerning the Pasch, which had comedown to tliem l)y
 
 APPARENTLY, IN OBEDIENCE TO PvOME. 217 
 
 continuous suc^cession from tlie Apostles, at the close 
 of the Epistle, they added these words : — ' Endeavour 
 that copies of our epistle may be sent throiigliout 
 the whole Church, that we may not liavc to answer 
 for those who easily mislead their own souls. And 
 we inform you that in Alexandria also, they observe 
 the same day as we do ; for letters are conveyed from 
 us to them and from them to us, so that we cele- 
 brate the holy day with one mind and at one time.' 
 
 The innnediate vicinity of these Bishops to Asia 
 Minor gave them full opportunity for information, 
 and it would appear from their language that they 
 regarded the matter as of more serious import than 
 an ordinary divergence in discipline. 
 
 It is also to be remarked that, although the same 
 Bishops were desirous that copies of their Epistle 
 should be sent ' throughout the whole Church,' they 
 did not address it to the faithful in general ; but to 
 one particular Church, or person, to whose central 
 authority and jurisdiction they appealed to publish 
 it universally. Tliis can have been none other than 
 the Church of Rome, presided over by St. Victor. 
 
 If the short account of this synod, appended to 
 a treatise by St. Bede, is authentic, St. Victor sent 
 authority [direxit auctoritatem) to Theophihis, by 
 virtue of which he convoked the Bishops of his 
 own and other provinces, and when all were as- 
 sembled, he ' produced the authority of Pope Victor 
 which had been sent to him, and explained tlie busi- 
 ness which had been enjoined upon him : jirotulit 
 
 Rccofjnition 
 
 of ;i 
 
 central authority. 
 
 De Paseli<e 
 
 celcbratiouo libiT, 
 
 sivo 
 
 do seqxiinoctio vernal i.
 
 218 
 
 TllK KKl'LV UF THE ASIATICS. 
 
 The Synod 
 
 of the Bishops 
 
 in 
 
 Asia Minor. 
 
 Eccl. Hist. V. 24. 
 
 The letter 
 
 of 
 Polycrates. 
 
 liuseb. Eccl. Hist. 
 V. 24. 
 
 auctoritatem ad se missam Victori6- papce, et quid sibi 
 operis faisset injunctiim ostendit' 
 
 As regards Asia Minor, there can be no question 
 according to Eusebius, that the Synod held there 
 under Polycrates was convoked in response to a 
 communication from St. Victor. It is expressly de- 
 clared in the synodical letter, which he records as 
 addressed by Polycrates, in his own name and that of 
 the other Bishops, ' to St. Victor and the Church of 
 the city of Eome.' Polycrates says, towards its con- 
 clusion : — ' I could mention also the names of the 
 Bishops assembled, whom you desired to be called 
 together under me, and whom I called ' — otg u[x£7g 
 Yi^iwrraTz^ [xiTaH7\.rjSrjvai 'W e/Jtou, xai [J.srixa7^s<rd[xriv. 
 
 This Epistle was not calculated to allay the appre- 
 hensions of the Pope. It alone, amongst the many 
 synodical letters on the subject, maintained not only 
 the correctness but the duty of keeping Easter accord- 
 ing to the day of the Jewish Passover, regardless of 
 the Sunday. 'Not tlioughtlessly, at all events,' wrote 
 Polycrates, ' do we observe the day, neither adding 
 nor taking awa3\' He appealed to those great hglits 
 who had gone before him, and affirmed that they ' all 
 observed the Pasch on the fourteenth day, according 
 to the Gospel^ deviating in no respect, but following the 
 rule of fait! I.' He referred to seven of his relatives, 
 who had been Bishops as well as himself, and who 
 
 ' Valesius translates tliis word by ^ petitstis,' Avliidi does not 
 give its full force. According to Liddell and Scott, its Latin 
 equivalent would be po.ituldstis.
 
 THE CONDUCT OF TllK I'd'E. 21 'J 
 
 always, lie said, ' observed the day, at the time when 
 the people' (i.e. the Jews) 'put aside the leaven.' 
 'I therefore, brethren,' he proceeds, 'being sixty- 
 five years in the Lord, and having conversed with 
 the brethren from tlie whole world, and liaving gone 
 through the whole of the Sacred Scriptures, am not 
 alarmed at the things which are threatened ; for 
 greater than I have said, " We ought to obey God 
 rather than man." ' — From such expressions it might 
 naturally be inferred that these Asian Bishops looked 
 upon the observance of their own custom as a matter 
 of divine obligation. St. Victor appears to have re- 
 garded their letter in this light, for, accordinsc to 
 Eusebius, he forthwith attempted (7r=<para/) to cut off ubi supra, 
 these Churches, as heterodox, from the common unity, 
 and proclaimed by letters that they were excommuni- 
 cated. But the same writer adds, that this was not 
 pleasing to all the Bishops ; and in particular he 
 mentions St. Irenasus, who, writing in the name of 
 those over whom he presided in Gaul, maintained 
 that the mystery of the resurrection of the Lord 
 ought to be kept only on the day of the Lord ; but, 
 at the same time, 'becomingly (TrporrTjr-o'vrcy^) recom- 
 mended to Victor not to cut off (wg ^jlt] aTroxoTrroi) 
 whole churches of God, who observed the tradition 
 of an ancient custom.' Ecclesiastical historians are 
 divided on the question as to whether St. Victor ac- 
 tually pronounced the excommunication ; or whetlier 
 he only threatened it ; or whether he tlioiiglit it 
 sufficient to suspend, as St. Epiphanius says, the
 
 220 THE AUTHORITY OF THE POPE WAS UNDISPUTED 
 
 B\pr,yiKa. or letters of peace between himself and tlie 
 Asiatics, without fully excommunicating them.^ 
 
 Whatever may have been the natm^e and extent 
 of the measures he adopted, we have here the re- 
 corded fact of a Eoman Pontiff of the second century 
 sending out letters to Asia Minor, and, as it would 
 appear, to other Churches also, to convoke pro- 
 vincial councils on the question of the time of 
 Easter ; which councils were accordingly assembled, 
 even amongst those who varied from the Eoman 
 practice on the point to be debated ; and the 
 reply of the same dissentient Bishops was duly 
 returned to the Eoman See. Nor does their reply 
 afford the slightest symptom that they considered 
 Eome to have assumed any undue pre-eminence, 
 although it speaks of threats having been used 
 towards them. It defends the disregard of those 
 threats, not by calling in question the authority of 
 the Eoman See, but by appealing directly to the 
 authority of God. The appeal was unjustifiable, and 
 betrayed the obstinacy of the Asiatics in their ad- 
 herence to private opinion; but it would Iiave had 
 no meaning unless addressed to a superior. 
 
 Neither do the liishops who agreed with St. Victor, 
 but de[)recated extreme measures, seem to have ex- 
 pressed any doubt of the legitimate power of the 
 Pope to excommunicate the Asiatic churches. Speak- 
 ing in the name of himself and the Bishops of Gaul, 
 
 ' Tlierc wore degrees ol'exconiiiiunicutioii vvliicli did not eutiiil 
 i3e]juruliou I'rom the Church. Sec below, p. 311.
 
 AS RULEPv OF THE UMVEKSAL CTTURCII. 2l^l 
 
 tlie great St. Ircii03us tacitly acknowledges tliis power 
 and authority as belonging to the See of Eomc, by 
 the very fact of his urging St. Victor to abstain from 
 the exercise of it on this occasion. 
 
 The language of Eusebius in like manner indicates tih- langimgo 
 the exercise of supreme authority on the part of Eusebius. 
 St. Victor, and does not in any way question the ■^'''''" ^^'**^" ^' ^*" 
 legitimacy of his conduct. That ancient historian 
 appears to say, that St. Victor actually pronounced 
 excommunication against the Asiatic churches, but 
 was persuaded not to enforce it by the repre- 
 sentations of St. IrenaBus and others. He states 
 that ' he tried to cut them of, as heterodox, from 
 the common unity ' [aTroTsixvsiv mc srsf^fj^o^oua-oig rijg 
 xoiuijg svwo-ecog ttsi^oLtoh), and that he published 
 letters ' proclaiming them wholly excommunicated ' 
 (^axQivcovriTOug oip^rjv TravroiC rovg sxiirrs dvaxrjp'jfr(rntv 
 ctOrXcJ^oui,-). Such a proceeding implied the conscious- 
 ness of universal jurisdiction. 
 
 St. Jerome speaks of the same Pope as ' rulinfj the De viris iiiusfrii.us 
 Church,' in the following passage: — 'Victor the '■''P-^^^'^- 
 Thirteenth' (more usually comited as Fifteenth), 
 ' Bishop of the Eoman city, who wrote on the question 
 of Easter, and some other small works, ruled the 
 Church (rexit Ecclesiam), under the Prince Severus, 
 for ten years.' 
 
 Cardinal Orsi says it is commonly believed that, Result 
 
 mainly through the efforts of St. Irena^us, peace was tiio controversy. 
 
 Orsi. 
 
 speedily re-established between St. Victor and the istoria Sesiast. 
 Asian Bishops; the Asiatics renouncing the error of 
 
 lib. V. 12.
 
 222 TERMINATIOX OF THIS PARTICULAR DIFFERENCE, 
 
 He refers 
 
 to 
 
 Bueher. 
 
 de 
 
 doctr. temp. 
 
 Eusebius 
 
 de 
 
 Vita Constantini, 
 
 lib. iii. cajD. 19, 
 
 et 
 
 Thcodoreti 
 
 Hist. Eccl. 
 
 I. 10. 
 
 Ep. de Synodis, n. 5, 
 Ad Afros Episc. n. 2. 
 
 regarding their custom as divinely instituted, and as 
 prescribed by Christ in the Gospel; and St. Victor con- 
 senting to tolerate the different usage, as a matter 
 of mere external discipline. He states that St. Ana- 
 tolius, who flourished during the latter half of the 
 succeeding (third) centm-y, clearly ascribed to St. 
 Irenasus the glory of having brought about this 
 reconciliation. St. Anatolius says, further, that, up 
 to his time, the Asians continued to observe Easter 
 on the fourteenth moon after the vernal equinox. 
 
 About fifty years after St. Anatolius, it was 
 stated in the Epistle of the Emperor Constantine 
 respecting the Mcene Synod, that the observance of 
 Easter was, at tliat time, the same in the Asian 
 diocese as in Eonie, Italy, Britam, &c., and Cilicia. 
 On the other hand St. Athanasius in two of his writ- 
 ings speaks of the Cilicians as following the Jewisii 
 custom at the period of the Council, as well as the 
 Syrians and people of Mesopotamia ; and he says 
 that the settlement of this question was one of tlie 
 objects for which the Council of Nice was convoked. 
 
 But although tlie difference of custom continued 
 down to that period, yet it did not then involve 
 any interruption of communion, if such indeed was 
 at any time the case. In addition to the above- 
 mentioned St. Anatolius (who wrote about the year 
 27G), we have earlier testimony as to what passed, in 
 the well-known Epistle ascribed to Firmilian, so far 
 as it may be relied upon. Those who appeal to that 
 Epistle as -au authority in the mnttoi- of St. Cyprian,
 
 BEFORE THE DECISIOX OP THE GENERAL QUESTIOX. 223 
 
 cannot consistently reject it in tlie present instance. 
 It purports to have been written about the year 255, 
 being fifty-seven years after tlie aflair of St. Victor 
 and the churches of Asia Minor, and seventy years 
 previous to the Council of Nice whicli was cele- 
 brated A.D. 325. As an argument against the conduct 
 of St. Stephen it asserts that, although there was a Op. d. Cypriani. 
 diversity between the practice of Eome and tliat of Ed. Baiuz^'p! 1 1 1. 
 otlier places, ' concerning the days of Pasch to be 
 celebrated (circa celebrandos dies Paschoe) and many 
 other things ;' ' yet there was never, on tliat account, 
 any departure from the peace and unity of the 
 Catholic Church [nee tamen propter hoc ah ecclesia', 
 catholicce pace atque imitate aliquando discessum est).' 
 It is true that the exao:g-erated and inaccurate Ian- 
 guage of the said Epistle, in general, renders its evi- 
 dence very doubtful as regards historical facts ; but it 
 can hardly be maintained that Firmilian would have 
 written thus, if any breach of unity had existed on 
 the subject at the period when he wrote, which was 
 nearer to the past times of St. Victor than to the 
 then future Council of Nice. 
 
 The Council of Nice decided that Easter sliould Soo Gosciiier. 
 always and everywhere be kept at the time then "^ Art. PAq«es, 
 generally observed ; that is to sny, on the Sunday D^^t. des°Conciirs, 
 after the 14th day of tlie moon first following the and p!.'Sicuiariy 
 vernal equinox, and not on the 14th day itself which ^Appendix ' 
 was that of the Jewish Passover ; so that, when tlie '" '^'.""?- ^.V- 
 14th fell upon a Sunday, the Christian Easter should f^oiosmr-nsis. 
 be kept on the Sunday following. The point at issue
 
 224 ALLEGED DECREE OF THE COUNCIL OF NICE. 
 
 had then become more comphcated, through a 
 
 clifference in tlie mode of calculating the return of 
 
 Prolog. Paschal, the propcp pcriod, and, according to St. Cyril of 
 
 op. de Alexandria, the Council decreed that the Church of 
 
 T. il" p! -Ji'^!^ ^ 'Alexandria ' which excelled in astronomical science, 
 
 should make known every year by letters to the 
 
 Eoman Church, the days of the calends or ides, 
 
 according to which Easter should be celebrated ; so 
 
 that the Universal Church throughout the world 
 
 might learn from Apostolic authority, witliout any 
 
 disputing, the day that was fixed for the celebration 
 
 of Easter.' — Here, again, we find a recognition of the 
 
 Primacy of the Eoman Church, and the title of 
 
 Apostolic peculiarly applied to her. 
 
 But notwithstanding the authority of St. Cyril, it 
 is very doubtful whether such a decree was ever 
 made. For a long time after the Nicene Council, 
 Eome and Alexandria differed in their astronomical 
 calculation of the Paschal season, though perfectly 
 agreed that Easter should be kept only on the Sunday 
 following the 14th moon of the vernal equinox. 
 
 Such are the facts of the case of St. Victor and 
 the Asiatics, which is aj^pealed to in support of the 
 theory of invisible unity. 
 
 St. Stephen, Dr. Puscy rcfcrs also to the discussions respecting 
 
 St. Cyprian and thc Validity of Ba])tism when administered by here- 
 
 Eir.n.' P^Jy. tics, with proper form and matter, which agitated the 
 
 Cluirch, and gave rise to serious though passing 
 
 dissensions, in tlie third century.
 
 THE DIFFERENCES RESPECTING BAPTISil. 225 
 
 There is more analogy between a thunderstorm 
 which roars amongst the mountains, and an earth- 
 quake whicli severs continents ; than there is between 
 the few short years of the Cyprianic contest on a single 
 undecided question, and the more than three cen- 
 turies' fundamental rent which separates England 
 from the Universal Church. It is most probable 
 that St. Stephen never actually excommunicated 
 the dissentients, though he seems to have threat- 
 ened it. The letter ascribed to Firmilian appears 
 to assert that he did so, but the inaccuracies of that 
 docmnent on other points, as well as its excited 
 tone of language and its questionable authenticity, 
 greatly diminish the value of its testimony. 
 
 St. Dionysius of Alexandria, writing to St. Sixtus 11. Euscb. Ecd. Hist, 
 (the immediate successor of St. Stephen), says that " "' '^'*^'' "' 
 St. Stephen wrote ' concerning Helenus and Firmilian, 
 and all those from Cihcia and Cappadocia, and 
 Galatia, and all the adjoining nations, as nhoui to 
 refuse to communicate with them [wg ourA exuvoig 
 xoivcovrio-cuv),' because they rebaptized heretics. This 
 epistle has been only partially reproduced by Euse- 
 bius, but, so far as he has cited it in his history, it 
 does not say whether St. Stephen afterwards actually 
 pronounced the excommunication which it so dis- 
 tinctly states that he threatened against the inno- 
 vators. It may, however, be inferred that the 
 historian was not aware of his having done so, since 
 he does not mention it when describing St. Stephen's 
 sentiments. In a previous chapter respecting St. ii>i(i. cap. 3. 
 
 VOL. I. Q
 
 226 THE TESTIMOXY OF ANCIENT AUTHORS 
 
 Cyprian and the Bishops with him, who considered 
 tliat converts from heresy ought not on any condition 
 to be admitted before they were rebaptized, Eusebius 
 mentions only that ' Stephen, thinking that no inno- 
 vation ought to be made contrary to the tradition 
 which prevailed from ancient times, was full of indig- 
 nation at this (sVl TovTui hiriyavaxTsi).^ He does not 
 even hint at any interruption of outward communion. 
 This view agrees witli the lansuao;e of St. Angus- 
 tine in reference to St. Stephen and St. Cyprian. He 
 De B:ipt. cont. Donat. says that ' Stephen thought that those were even 
 1 .\. cap. .0, n. . ^^ 1^^ excommunicated, who were endeavouring to 
 overthrow the ancient custom concerning heretics 
 who were to be received ; but he (Cyprian), being 
 moved by the difficulty of the question itself, and 
 most largely endowed with the holy bowels of charity, 
 thought that unity was to be preserved with those 
 who were of a different opinion. So that, although 
 angrily, but at the same time fraternally indignant, 
 still the peace of Christ conquered in their hearts, 
 that in such a dispute no evil of schism miglit arise 
 between them.' lia quamvis commotius sed tamen 
 fraterne indignaretw\ vicit tamen pax Christi in cor- 
 dibus eorwn, ut in tali disceptatione nullum inter eos 
 Epist. xciii. malum schismatis oriretur. Elsewhere he observes 
 vinc'entium that, thougli it is uot fouud Oil rccord that St. Cy- 
 lul: "sif, 40.' prian corrected his opinion, yet it may not unsuitably 
 be beheved of such a man that he did correct it, and 
 that perhaps the fact was suppressed by tliose persons 
 who were too ready to take pleasure in liis error, and
 
 RESPECTING THE CYPRIANIC CONTROVERSY. 227 
 
 who wore unwilling to lose the patronage of one 
 who was so great. There were not wanting those, 
 he says, who maintained that St. Cyprian never held 
 these opinions, but that the letters on the subject 
 were forged and put forth as his, just as many things 
 were forged in the names of the Apostles ; and he adds 
 that, in any case, either ' his opinion was other than 
 has been said ; or else he afterwards corrected it by 
 the rule of truth ; or else he entirely covered over 
 this spot (so to speak) in his most pure breast, with 
 the bosom of charity, whilst he most abundantly 
 defended the unity of the Church which was in- 
 creasing in all the world, and most perseveringly 
 maintained the bond of peace. For it is written, 
 Charity covereih a multitude of sins. There is to be i st. Peter iv. 8. 
 added also, that as a most fruitful branch, if there 
 was anything in him to be corrected, the Father 
 purged him with the sickle of His passion. For every St. John xv. 2. 
 branch, saith the Lord, that heareth fruit in Me, that 
 one will my Father 'purge, that it may bring forth 
 more fruit. Whence, but that keeping fixed in the 
 expansion of the vine, he deserted not the root of 
 unity ? For, though he should deliver his body to be 1 Cor. xiii. 3. 
 burned, and not have charity, it would profit him 
 nothing.' 
 
 St. Jerome says that ' those selfsame Bishops, who Diai.adv.Lucif.n.2:?. 
 had decided with St. Cyprian that heretics were to 
 be rebaptized, having returned to the ancient custom, 
 sent forth a new decree.' 
 
 Our own Venerable Bede, though he does not give 
 
 Q 2
 
 228 IF INTEKCOMMUXION WAS SUSPENDED 
 
 Quaestionum Liber his autliority, statcs it US a fact tliat, through the 
 abundance of his good works, St. Cyprian ' merited 
 to be speedily corrected, and to be brouglit back to 
 the universal law of Holy Church, by the instruction 
 of spiritual men.' 
 
 Kp. ixxxii. Ed. Baiuz. It is cvidciit from one of the Epistles of St. 
 C3'prian, that he had communication through mes- 
 sengers with Eome, at the time of the persecution 
 under Valerian, which commenced in the year 257 
 and in which the Pope, St. Stephen, as well as his 
 successor, St. Sixtus 11. , suffered martyrdom. 
 
 A reference to dates will show that, if there was 
 any suspension of communion at all between the 
 Eoman See and St. Cyprian, it can have been only 
 of momentary duration. St. Stephen was elected 
 Pope A.D. 253. St. Cyprian's friendly letter, urging 
 hi in to depose Marcion of Aries, is placed by Tille- 
 mont A.D. 254. The quarrel does not appear to have 
 then commenced. It is thought that St. Stephen 
 gained his heavenly crown in the year 257, having 
 been beheaded in his pontifical chair whilst cele- 
 brating the holy mysteries. St. Cyprian followed 
 Hist. Ecciesiast. him A.D. 258, and, as Tillemont remarks, ' the Eoman 
 om. u.p. . Q]j^j.(.]-^ jj^g always shown such great veneration for 
 St. Cyprian, that there can be no doubt that he 
 died in unity with her ; not only through the dis- 
 position of his heart, but also through external 
 connminioii.' 
 
 He was martyred on the 14th of September, six 
 years to a day after tlie Eoman Pontiff, St. Cornehus.
 
 ITS SUSPENSION WAS ONLY MOMENTARY. 'J21J 
 
 The Roman Cliurcli delights to hnk St. Cyprian 
 with St. Cornehus. Iler martyrology names them 
 together on their birthday to eternal life, and de- 
 scribes St. Cyprian as ' most illustrious for learning 
 and sanctity.' The same pages again unite their 
 names on the 16 th of September, when the Church 
 honours both in one festival, one mass, one office, 
 and one collect. Side by side, too, have they been 
 depicted by ancient piety in their sacerdotal vest- 
 ments, and indicated by name in the Eoman cata- 
 comb of St. Cahxtus ; and, in the most solemn canon Dc Rossi, 
 of her mass, amongst the few illustrious Saints whose " christiaiX"*^^ 
 intercession before God is expressly invoked therein, "^Roma, 18G4! 
 daily does the Roman Church commemorate St. 
 Cornelius and St. Cyprian. 
 
 The 'Eirenicon' speaks of the dissension as having Tiie lotter 
 arisen ' through the Bishop of Rome, of whom one, Fimiiiiiin. 
 now counted a saint, said, — " Wliile thinking that all 
 may be excommunicated by him, he excommunicated 
 himself alone from all." ' Did the learned author of 
 that work forget that the Bishop of Rome, to whom 
 he thus alludes, is himself enrolled amongst the 
 saints ? — that the Universal Church conformed to his 
 judgment on the question? — and that his conduct 
 affords one of the most striking amongst the nume- 
 rous examples of the vigilance and the authority of 
 the Roman See, from which even the great and holy 
 St. Cyprian could not be exempted ? 
 
 The letter from which Dr. Pusey extracts this sen- 
 tence has been alluded to already. It is ascribed to
 
 230 THE DOUBTFUL AUTHENTICITY OF 
 
 Finnilian, Bishop of Ca3sarea in Cappadocia, and it 
 El. Baiuz. forms Epistle No. 75 in the works of St. Cyprian, by 
 Pans, 1726. -^yhom it is Said to have been translated from the ori- 
 ginal Greek. Firmilian, its reputed author, was one 
 of the most eminent men of his age. His memory is 
 honoured in the Greek Menology, though his name 
 lias not been placed amongst the saints of the Eoman 
 Calendar. The Epistle in question is so utterly un- 
 worthy of his high reputation that it seems quite in- 
 credible he should have written it, or that the great 
 St. Cyprian should have translated it. It appears, 
 however, to be accepted as genuine by the majority of 
 the learned ; though others have maintained it to be 
 a forgery of some Donatist, subsequent to the time 
 of St. Augustine but in the same century. That great 
 doctor never speaks of it, and it is argued that if it 
 had then been extant, the Donatists could hardly have 
 failed to have used it against him, as they used the 
 Epistles on the same subject which are attributed to 
 St. Cyprian. Nor is tlie letter mentioned by Diony- 
 sius of Alexandria, though he speaks of Firmilian — 
 nor by Eusebius — nor by St. Cyprian himself; and 
 the Greek version, from which it is said to have been 
 translated, has never been discovered. But, who- 
 ever compounded it, it is inaccurate as to facts, pas- 
 sionate as to temper, and, in language, exaggerated 
 beyond bounds. Still, with all this, it bears testi- 
 mony to the then existing claims of the Eoman See. 
 1'. 1 IS L !. ciiat. ' I i^iTi justly indignant,' says the writer, ' at this so 
 open and manifest folly of Stephen — that he who so 
 glories in the place of his Episcopate, and contends
 
 THE EPISTLE OF FIRMILIAN. '231 
 
 that he holds the succession of Peter upon whom 
 the foundations of the Church have been hiid, sliould 
 bring in many other rocks, and should set up the 
 new edifices of many churches, inasmuch as he main- 
 tains by his authority that baptism exists in them.' 
 
 The excited and unworthy tone of the letter may 
 be perceived from the following passage, the con- 
 cluding sentence of which has been deemed worthy 
 of a place in the ' Eirenicon.' The words are ad- 
 dressed to the Eoman Pontifi*, St. Stephen : — ' Thou iiid. p. 150. 
 fearest not,' so it runs, ' the judgment of God, 
 giving testimony to heretics against the Church, 
 though it is written : A false witness shall not be Prov. xix. 9. 
 unpunished. Nay, thou art worse tlian all here- 
 tics. Quin immo tu hcereticis omnibus pejor es. 
 For when many, having perceived their error, come 
 from thence to thee, that they may accept the true 
 light of the Church, thou helpest on the errors 
 of those who come ; and, having obscured the light 
 of the Church's truth, thou addest to the darkness of 
 heretical niglit. And when they confess themselves 
 to be in sin and that they have no portion of grace, 
 and that on this account they come to the Churcli, 
 thou withdrawest from them the remission of sins 
 which is given in baptism, whilst thou say est that 
 they are already baptized and that they have ob- 
 tained the grace of the Church outside the Church. 
 Nor dost thou understand that, wlien the day of 
 judgment shall come, their souls are to be required 
 at thy hand, who hast denied the drink of the Church 
 to the thirsty, and hast been cause of death to those
 
 232 ITS AXGRY DECLAMATION. 
 
 who wished tu live. And moreover thou art in- 
 dignant. Behold with what ignorance (irnperitia) 
 thou darest to censure those who are striving for the 
 truth against falsehood. For who ought with the 
 more justice to be indignant against the other? 
 Whether, indeed, he who joins with the enemies of 
 God, or he who combines for the truth of the Church 
 against him who joins the enemies of God ? Unless 
 it be manifest that the ignorant (imperitos) are also 
 angrj^ and passionate, whilst through want of prudence 
 and of speech [consilii et sermonis) they are easily 
 moved to anger, so that of none other more than of 
 Prov. xxix. 22. thcc dotli the diviuc scripture say : A passionate 
 man 2:)repareth strifes^ and an angry man heapeth up 
 sins. For how many strifes and dissensions hast thou 
 prepared for the chm'ches of the whole world ? How 
 great sin hast thou heaped up for thyself when thou 
 hast separated thyself from so many flocks? For 
 thou hast cut off thyself. Do not deceive thyself. 
 If, indeed, he is truly schismatic who shall make 
 himself an apostate from the comnuniion of eccle- 
 siastical unity. For whilst thou thinkest that all 
 can be excommunicated by thee, thou hast excom- 
 municated thyself alone from all.' 
 
 The letter contains other passages of like character, 
 and it is from such unseemly railing against God's 
 ti'uth and its holy defender, that it has been sought to 
 wrest a weapon against the authority of the Koman 
 See ; whereas the quotation in question, when taken 
 ^vith its context, bears witness to the existence of
 
 IT TESTIFIES TO THE ROMAN PllLMACY. 233 
 
 that aiitliority, at the period when it was written. 
 The words would lose their force unless applied to 
 a superior. It would be a meaningless truism to 
 tell an ordinary bishop that he would cut himself 
 alone off from unity if he excommunicated all 
 others. Nor can it be supposed that St. Steplien 
 would have threatened the excommunication of dis- 
 tant churches without a consciousness and certainty 
 of unquestioned universal jurisdiction. It is to be 
 remarked that the letter distinctly states that St. 
 Stephen ' thought he could excommunicate all.' A 
 few lines subsequently, it openly acknowledges liis 
 primacy ; observing ironically, ' how diligently 
 Steplien has fulfilled the commands and wholesome 
 admonitions of the Apostle, practising m the Jirst 
 place " humility and mildness " (humilitatem sensus Ephes. iv. 2. 
 et lenitatem primo in loco servans).' 
 
 Besides all this, looking merely to the historical 
 fact of the respective numbers, the assertion was 
 flagrantly false. It is notorious not only that St. 
 Stephen did not stand alone, but that his doctrine 
 was that of the vast majority of bishops. 
 
 Thus, St. Augustine speaks of tlie party of St. 
 Cyprian, as some ' fifty orientals, and seventy or a 
 few more Africans, against many thousands of 
 bishops, to whom this error was displeasing through- 
 out the Avhole world.' It is only the blindness of 
 passion or the over-zeal of a forgerer, wliich can 
 account for the hyperbolical assertion ascribed to 
 Firmilian, that St. Ste])hen had cut himself off from all.
 
 234 THE EMINENCE OF FIRMILIAN. 
 
 If all this be taken into account, and if it is 
 
 remembered, further, that the doctrine of the Pope 
 
 thus scandalously denounced as heretical, has been 
 
 subsequently acknowledged by the Universal Church 
 
 as an article of the faith ; and that, on the other 
 
 hand, the opinion defended by the writer of the 
 
 letter ascribed to Firmilian has been rejected as 
 
 heresy; it will not be difficult to estimate the actual 
 
 value of tliat writer's angry exclamation against 
 
 Pope St. Stephen, which has been brought forward 
 
 as the saying of ' one now counted a Saint.' 
 
 The respect The letter in question is not a saintly one, who- 
 
 i-'irmiiian. Gvcr may liavc been its author. Even saints whilst 
 
 in this mortal life are liable to human weakness. 
 
 The epistle stands self-condemned ; but far be it 
 
 from me to speak disparagingly of a Bishop whose 
 
 name holds so high a place in the Church's annals, 
 
 as that of the great Finnilian of Cappadocia. He 
 
 De vita is mentioned by St. Gregory of Nyssa as the early 
 
 ,. Ti.g. lauma urgi.^.^^^^^^^ ^^ g^^ Grcgory thc Wonder-worker, and as 
 
 his companion in relinquishing the vain philosophy 
 of the world for the true philoso[)hy of the Cross. 
 He says that Firmilian resembled him in disposition, 
 ' as he showed by his after life when he was the 
 ornament of the Church of the Cassareans.' Eusebius 
 iii«t. EltIcs. vii. 28. mentions him first amongst the most eminent Eastern 
 Bishops who were assembling at Antioch against 
 the heresy of Paul of Samosata, when he fell sick 
 upon the way and died at Tarsus about the year 269. 
 iM(i. cap. 30. The synodical letter of tlie same council, wliich is
 
 EOME's office is UXIVERSAL. 
 
 235 
 
 addressed to Dionysius Bishop of the Eoman city, 
 to Maximus of Alexandria, and to the Universal 
 Catholic Church, makes especial mention of Firmilian, 
 as one of those whose presence had been solicited by 
 letters. It says that he had twice before come to 
 Antioch and condemned the novelty. It names him in 
 company with St. Dionysius of Alexandria, and styles 
 them together, ' men of blessed memory.' It is not 
 probable that one thus spoken of in an epistle of 
 such a nature, formally addressed to the Eoman 
 Pontiff and the whole Churcli, can liave died out of 
 visible communion with Eome. 
 
 As in the case of St. Victor and the Asiatics, the 
 points on which the Cyprianic contest is appealed to 
 by Dr. Pusey are involved in great obscurity, wdiilst 
 the office which the providence of God has entrusted 
 to the Eoman See, is clearly illustrated thereby. 
 Apart from that office, what was there in this matter 
 to induce Eome to raise a voice of authority through- 
 out Africa and the East? On what other ground 
 were Africa and the East so disturbed by Eome's de- 
 nunciation of their novelties ? As regards his personal 
 influence, who will compare St= Steplien to the great 
 and the eloquent St. Cyprian ? The error more- 
 over was supported by Synods, and by Bishops 
 illustrious for virtue, many of whom as well as St. 
 Cyprian were afterwards found worthy of the martyr's 
 crown ; it rested on plausible arguments, and ap- 
 parently just interpretations of Holy Scripture. 
 
 To human eyes it might seem, on the other hand. 
 
 Evidence 
 
 of 
 
 the office 
 
 of the 
 
 Roman See.
 
 236 CHRIST HAS entrusted ROME WITH 
 
 that the cau^>e of truth was inadequately represented 
 by the simple declaration of St. Stephen, in few 
 but decided words condemning novelty, maintaining 
 tradition, setting aside the opinion of St. Cyprian 
 and of all the Bishops of his party throughout 
 Africa, Asia, and the whole world, wherever they 
 might profess it. But this simple declaration was 
 the voice of Christ in His Vicar. In opposition 
 to it, all the Synods, all the learning, all the emi- 
 nence, all the holiness, all the plausible appeals to 
 Scripture, even of Bishops like C}^3rian, prove as 
 nothing ; they become as dreams ; they add but 
 another page to the history of human weakness, 
 human error, and human impotence apart from God. 
 Rome instructs the nations. At times her word of 
 truth may seem to lie dormant iu men's hearts ; but, 
 like all that is divine, if its work is silent it is strong. 
 As in the case before us, it is often found that those 
 who at first oppose it, after a few brief years have 
 passed, are brought to confess its power, and to pro- 
 claim that Eome's teaching is the word of the 
 living God. Why does Eome prove always right, 
 and Asia, Africa, Cyprian, Firmilian, and others 
 who oppose her always wrong ? It is not from any 
 human super-excellence; not from any superior 
 human talents ; not from any greater human power. 
 It is, because to Peter, and through him to Eome, 
 and not to Carthage or to Asia, or elsewhere 
 throughout the globe, was the conunand of Christ 
 addressed : — ' Feed my lambs, Feed my sheep ;' —
 
 THE GUARDIAXSIIIP OV ITTS FAITH. 237 
 
 ' Strengthen and confirm tliy brethren.' It is beoanse 
 
 to Peter, and to none other, was it said : — Ego dico St. Matt, xvi.is. 
 
 tibi^ quia tu es Petrus^ et super hanc petram cediji- 
 
 cabo ecclesirun meam, etportCB inferi non prcevalebunt 
 
 adversus earn. 
 
 The universe has to learn its faith from Eome, 
 because to Eome has its guardianship been entrusted 
 by a power which is divine. Rome liolds it not for 
 herself alone, but for the good of the human race ; 
 therefore that divine power unceasingly assists her, 
 and preserves her from unfaithfulness to the light 
 and grace, which are superabundantly bestowed upon 
 her for the fulfilment of her high commission. 
 
 St. Vincent of Lerins points to the conduct of St. Commonitormm. 
 Stephen in this matter, as one out of many examples 
 afforded by those blessed ones who ' shine, like the 
 seven-branched candlestick with the sevenfold light of 
 the Holy Spirit ; ' examples which most plainly show 
 to posterity how, in spite of vain words, the audacity 
 of profane novelty may be trampled under foot by 
 the authority of hallowed antiquity. — ' Such ex- 
 amples,' he says, '-abound ; but, not to be tedious, 
 let us fix on one, and that the rather from the 
 Apostolic See, that all may perceive more clearly 
 than the hght, with how great strength, witli how 
 great zeal, with what earnest striving, the blessed 
 succession of the blessed Apostles will always defend 
 the integrity of the religion once received.' 
 
 'At one time, then, Agrippinus, Bishop of Car- circa a.d. 217. 
 thage, of venerable memory' (a predecessor of St.
 
 238 ST. STEPHEN FIRST IN FAITH, AS IN AUTHORITY. 
 
 Cyprian, in that See), ' tlie first of all mortals, in 
 contradiction to the divine canon, in contradiction 
 to the rule of the Universal Church, in contradiction 
 to the sentiments of all his fellow-priests, in contra- 
 diction to the custom and the institutions of ancestors, 
 judged that baptism was to be repeated. Which pre- 
 sumption brought in so much evil as to have afforded, 
 not only an example of sacrilege to all heretics, but 
 also an occasion of error even to certain Catholics. 
 When therefore, on all sides, every one was ex- 
 claiming against the novelty of the thing, and all 
 Priests in all directions were resisting it, each one 
 according to the measure of his zeal ; then Pope 
 Stephen, of blessed memory, who presided over the 
 Apostolic See, withstood it, together indeed Avith the 
 rest of his colleagues, but yet before the rest ; es- 
 teeming it fitting, as I imagine, if he should surpass 
 the others as much in the devotion of his faith, as 
 he excelled them in the authority of his position. 
 In short, in the letter which was then sent to Africa, 
 he decreed [sanxit) in these words : — Let there 
 be no innovation on what is handed down. Nihil 
 novandum, nisi quod tradituin est. For the holy 
 and prudent man understood that the rule of piety 
 admits of nothing else, except that all things should 
 be consigned to tlie children with the same fidelity 
 witli which they have been received from the fathers ; 
 and that we ought not to lead religion where we 
 will, but ratliei' to follow wherever it may lead us ; 
 and that it belongs to Cliiistiaii modesty and gravity.
 
 THE ULTIMATE CONCLUSION OF THE CONTROVERSY. 230 
 
 not to hand down to posterity what is from ourselves, 
 but to preserve entire those things which have been 
 received by us from our ancestors. What, then, was 
 the end of the whole business ? What indeed, but 
 the usual and accustomed end ? Antiquity, forsooth, 
 is maintained ; novelty is rejected.' 
 
 The rescript of St. Stephen does not appear to 
 have been intended by him as a definition of dogma, 
 but as a practical rule to be followed under the 
 existing circumstances. Such is the opinion of 
 Cardinals Orsi and Bellarmine Ihe latter says that De irreform. Rom. 
 
 n r< n , T -> • ^ ii •!/• Pont.judicio.l.iii.c. 4. 
 
 St. Stephen ' did not wish i o make the matter itseli ^^ summo Pontif. 
 of faith, without a General Council: but he wished Lib.iv.cap.7,11. lo. 
 only that in the meantime the ancient custom should 
 be observed.' 
 
 The Council of Aries (a.d. 314), at which 
 C^cilianus of Carthage and several other African 
 Bishops assisted, put forth a decree to the same 
 eflfect as St. Stephen's rescript ; viz. that converts 
 from heresy were not to be rebaptized, but only re- 
 ceive imposition of hands, excepting in the case of 
 defect in the essentials of their previous baptism. 
 The Ecumenical Council of Nice (a.d. 325) practi- 
 cally confirmed this decree : for it made no allusion 
 to baptism in its canon respecting the reception of Conc. Niccn. can. 8. 
 converts from the Cathari ; whereas in the case of 
 the Paulianists (whose baptism was defective) it is 11 ad. can. 19. 
 enjoined, that they are by all means to be baptized 
 when they come to the Church. 
 
 It would not be right to pass on without observing
 
 240 THE DOCTRINE OF ST. CYPRIAN 
 
 that there are authors, worthy of consideration, who 
 maintain that the letters of St. Cyprian on this subject, 
 as well as tlie letter of Fii-railian, were forged by 
 ancient heretics. Their opinion is not commonly 
 
 Vide supra, ]). 227. acccptcd, but, as may be seen above, it existed even in 
 
 the time of St. Augustine, who does not absolutely 
 
 Ep. xeiii. reject it, but says that he himself does not deny that 
 
 Vincent. Eogat.n. 39. sucli wcrc the scntimcnts of St. Cyprian, for two 
 reasons : first, because the style resembles his ; and, 
 secondly, because the letters attributed to him render 
 the argument against the Donatists the more invin- 
 cible by showing, that not even the reception of 
 converts whom he considered as unbaptized, could 
 induce St. Cyprian to separate from the Universal 
 Church. 
 
 The said epistles have been appealed to as evi- 
 dence that St. Cyprian was opposed to the claims of 
 the Eoman See. But the real sentiments of a writer 
 are to be gathered from the habitual expression of 
 his thoughts in moments of calm, rather than from 
 occasional passages penned at a time of trial and 
 strong excitement. The works of St. Cyprian, and 
 even these very letters, afford undeniable testimony to 
 his faith in the primacy of St. Peter and of St. Peter's 
 .successors at Pome. lie observes to Quintus that 
 EpiHt.ixxi. ed. ciut. ' Peter whom the Lord elected first, and upon whom 
 He built His Church (Petru.s, quern prwium Donii- 
 nus ekf/it, et super quern cedijicavit ecdesiam suam), 
 when Paul afterwards contended witli him respecting 
 circumcision,' diil not anogantly answer that 'he
 
 ON THK CENTRE OK rXlTV. 211 
 
 held the primacy (.9^ j?r/yy/rt^?</>? tenere) and oiiglit 
 rather to be yielded to by new disciples posterior to 
 himself.' — He writes to the Numidian Bishops: — 
 ' There is one baptism, and one Holy Ghost, and one Kp. ixx. ihid. 
 Chnrch, founded by Christ the Lord u])on Peter, for 
 the origin and rule of unity {una ecclesia a Christo 
 Domino super Petruni^ origine iinitatis et ratione fun- 
 data).'' — To Jubaianus, after observing that ' it is Ep. ixxiii. ibid, 
 manifest where and by whom remission of sins can be 
 given,' he proceeds : — Tor to Peter first upon whom 
 He has built the Church, and whence he institutes and 
 shows the origin of unity, the Lord gave this povv'er 
 that that should be loosed in heaven which he should 
 have loosed on earth.' Nam Petro primum Domi- 
 nus, super quern wdijicavit ecclesiam, et unde unitatis 
 originem instituit et osteiidit, poiestatem istam dedit 
 ut id solveretur in coelis quod ilk solvisset in terris. 
 After thus specially distinguishing St. Peter, he passes 
 on to say that after the resurrection also the power St. Joim xx. 21-23. 
 of remitting sins was conferred on the apostles. St. 
 Cyprian seems to delight in bringing forward this 
 prerogative of St. Peter as an attribute of the Church, 
 even when it seems superfluous. Thus, in his book, 
 ' De Bono Patientige,' in quoting the words of the Op. d. cvp. p. 200, 
 
 ^ ° «!. citata. 
 
 ^ Baliizius concludes from ancient autlioritics that the correct 
 reading is here Petriun, and not petram, as in some editions 
 (notes to St. Cyprian, p. 497). The meaning of the sentence 
 would not however be affected by reading petram, since the 
 terms are synonymous. The other quotations in the text testify 
 abundantly that St. Cyprian believed and taught that the Church 
 is founded upon Peter as the rock, and as the centre of unity. 
 
 VOL. I. E
 
 242 ROME THE TRlXCirAL CHURCH. 
 
 beloved disciple, he gives liiin the simple appellation 
 of ' John the Apostle,' but when he quotes St. Peter 
 in llie next sentence, he describes him as ' Peter, 
 upon whom the Clnu^ch is built by the judgment of 
 the Lord,' Itew Petnis, super quern ecclesia Domini 
 dignatione fundata est, in epistola sua ponit et 
 dicit, cj'f . 
 
 It is evident also that St. Cyprian did not regard 
 these prerogatives as confined to the person of St. 
 Peter alone, but that he considered them to be 
 inherited by his successors in the Eoman See ; for he 
 expressly speaks of the Eoman Pontiffs as occupying 
 the place of Peter. He says of Pope St. Cornelius, who 
 
 Ep. lii. ed. citat. succccdcd St. Fabian, that lie was elected ' when tlie 
 place of Fabian, that is, when the place of Peter and 
 the rank of the sacerdotal chair, w^as vacant.' Cinn 
 Fahiani locus, id est, cum locus Petri et gradus cathe- 
 drce sacerdotalis, vacaret. Elsewhere he speaks of 
 
 Ep. iv. ed. citat. tliosc who ' darc to sail and to carry letters from 
 schismatic and profane persons to the chair of Peter 
 and to the principal Church, from whence the sacer- 
 dotal unity hath arisen, nor consider that they are 
 Piomans whose faith has been praised in the Apostle's 
 preaching, to whom faithlessness cannot have access.' 
 Navigare aiident, et ad Petri cathedram atque ad 
 ecclesiam principalem, unde unitas sacerdotalis exorta 
 est, a schismaticis et prophanis litteras ferre, nee 
 cogitare eos esse Pomanos quorum fides apostolo p)rw- 
 dicante laudata est, ad quos peifidia habere non 2)ossit 
 accessum.
 
 DISSENSIOX AMONGST THE CATHOLICS OF ANTIOCH. 2-4o 
 
 Otlier well-known passages might be added from 
 the same holy father, and, for the simple-minded, 
 there needs no comnaent on them ; but such as are 
 guided by preconceived opinions will explain away 
 the clearest language and the most patent facts. May 
 God preserve us from eyes that see not, ears that 
 hear not, and hearts that will not understand His 
 voice ! 
 
 During the latter half of the fourth century, the St. Mdotius 
 Cathohcs of Antioch were divided into two parties tho diSons in 
 respecting the rival claims of St. Meletius and Pau- Autioc.b. 
 linus to the episcopate of that important diocese. 
 The title of Paulinus is said to have been preferred 
 in the West, and that of St. Meletius in the East. It 
 is a portion of history which is imperfectly known 
 and which particularly demands attention, since the 
 case of St. Meletius and liis party is appealed to as fur- 
 nishing a precedent for the separated position of the 
 established Church of England, and as affording an 
 instance of outwardly divided unity. 
 
 It is unreservedly affirmed in the 'Eirenicon' that, Eiivn.p. co. 
 ' St. Meletius out of communion with Eome, presided 
 (as it w^ere, marked out by God) at the second general 
 council ;' and that, ' when departed, he was owned 
 to be a Saint by those who, in his lifetime, owned him 
 not as a Bishop,' — alluding to Eome and the West. 
 
 Dr. Forbes observes : — ' Subjective unity was sus- s.c extract, above, 
 pended during the schism at Antioch, yet objective ''' ' 
 
 unity is maintained; for the blessed Meletius is a Saint.' 
 
 k2
 
 council. 
 
 244 THE rOSlTlOX of ST. MELETIUS with ROME. 
 
 St. Meiefius The scliism ill question was internal, and neither 
 
 Eoman Catholic siclc was cut ofT, as is the case witli England, from 
 many^yrarr before Bome and tliB Universal church. There is undeniable 
 second gpnerai pi'oof that before the period of the second general 
 council, St. Meletius was in formal and acknowledged 
 ' communion mth Eome ; ' nor can it be assumed 
 that he was personally out of her communion, even 
 when she demurred respecting his claims to the 
 Bishopric of Antioch. It is notorious that after his 
 early errors had been redeemed by his subsequent 
 sufferings for religion and formal profession of the 
 Nicene faith, for a long time before the second 
 general council, St. Meletius enjoyed, and was 
 known at Eome to be enjoying, the constant and 
 intimate communion of St. Basil the Great and other 
 eminent Catholic Bishops, without any interruption 
 of their own acknowledged episcopal communion with 
 the Eoman See. This shows that, even at that time, 
 St. Meletius was not out of communion with Eome. 
 
 It was never denied that Meletius was a Bishop. 
 The only question at issue Avas whether he or Paulinus 
 ought to be considered the rightful Bishop of Antioch. 
 Eome never pronounced a formal judgment on the 
 case, and her silence implied toleration. Eome and 
 the whole Catholic world now venerate Meletius as a 
 Saint, though Eome and the West, perhaps influenced 
 by the great St. Athanasius, would not prefer his 
 claims to those of Paulinus in respect to the See of 
 Antioch. There is no evidence however that Mele- 
 tius was ever condemned by Eome, or cut off by her
 
 AXTIOCn FORMED AN EXCEI'TIOXAL CASE. Ii45 
 
 from ecclesiastical coininunion, or placed uiidei- any 
 censure. It is not recorded tliat Eomc remon- 
 strated with any of the Eastern Catholic Bishops in 
 consequence of their open espousal of his communion 
 and advocacy of his claims. Eome received commu- 
 nications expressly from Meletius and other Bishops 
 of his party, on the affairs of the East in general ; 
 nor did the Pope even reject the deacon of i\Ieletius 
 himself, who was sent to him upon that errand. 
 
 This miserable schism respecting the Bishopric of 
 Antioch formed an exceptional case in an exceptional 
 period. Great spiritual interests were at stake, and 
 it was extremely difficult for those who were at a 
 distance to obtain accurate information respecting the 
 facts. It is not therefore surprising that the anomaly 
 should have been tolerated for a while, and that the 
 ecclesiastical law which forbade the co-existence of 
 two Bisliops in one diocese should have been looked 
 upon as temporarily suspended through the necessi- 
 ties of the case. Such appears to have been the 
 view which was taken, liome ultimately assented 
 to, and even seems to have recommended, a com- 
 promise, without any positive adjudication of tlie 
 rival claims. 
 
 After explaining the commencement of the divi- 
 sion, and briefly noticing one or two points in its 
 after history, I shall produce incontrovertible evi- 
 dence that the communion and ecclesiastical position 
 of Meletius were distinctly recognised by Kome be- 
 fore the assembling of the second general council.
 
 240 COTII SIDES IN ANTIOCII VISIBLY IX THE CHURCH. 
 
 No argument Tliis exceptional and transitory period of the 
 
 for the existence ^., i ? i • • a • i i it> i 
 
 of Lliurcns history in Antioch does not aiiord any sup- 
 
 ' unity. poi't to the present theory of an outwardly divided 
 
 unity. It is true that the Catholics of that diocese 
 were visibly divided within themselves, and outwardly 
 separated into two parties. But, as has been said of 
 St. Meletius, the members of both these parties were 
 visibly and outwardly one with the universal church. 
 Each of the divided Catholic parties of Antioch was in 
 full and unquestioned outward communion with, at 
 least, either the Eastern, or the Western, Bishops ; 
 and, though the difference of opinion may have pro- 
 duced, or increased, a degree of coldness between 
 these Bishops, it did not occasion an interruption of 
 their mutual, and visible, ecclesiastical communion. 
 vi.ic infra, Tlicrc IS 110 rcasou to suppose that, after the pro- 
 mulgation of the mdulgence accorded to the abjurors 
 of Arianism, in the year 3G2, either Meletius or 
 raulinus, or any of their individual followers, were 
 regarded on either side as cut off from Catholic 
 communion, either in the West or in the East. 
 
 Both parties were represented in the one universal 
 body. St. Basil upheld the claims of Meletius. St. 
 Athanasius and St. Epiplianius befriended Paulinus. 
 Yet these great fathers and doctors of the Church, 
 along with many others who respectively preferred 
 one or other of the differing Catholic sides at Antioch, 
 were all the time united by the ties of a saintly friend- 
 ship, as well as by the bonds of communion in the 
 Cliurch. In short, it is notorious that all the great 
 
 l-p. 282-284.
 
 ENGLAND IS VISIBLY SI:PA11ATI::D FROi[ IT. 1!4:7 
 
 champions of the fiiith, and all the Catholic Ijishops of 
 the world, whether they respectively favoured Meletius 
 or upheld Paulinus, were nevertheless in outward and 
 visible communion both with each other and with 
 Eome. This could not have been the case if either 
 Meletius or Paulinus, or either of their respective par- 
 ties, whether inside or outside of Antioch, had been out 
 of the communion of Eome and the Universal Church. 
 
 The division between the Catholics of Antioch arose Contrast betwoeu 
 
 Antioch 
 
 und 
 EiiRlunJ. 
 
 from local and internal differences. It was so to "ukI^ 
 
 speak a family quarrel, deplorable in itself but sepa- 
 rating neither side from the great paternal home. It 
 bore no sort of resemblance to the subsequent schism 
 of the Greeks ; nor can it justly be pleaded as a 
 precedent for the separation of the so-called Chiu'ch 
 of England from her parent stock and stem, and from 
 the universal Christian family. 
 
 England is in a position of isolation excepting from isolation 
 the religious bodies of her own creation. She liiids < church of 
 neither advocate nor defender in the whole of Catholic ' "^ ""' ' 
 Christendom. England makes no appeal to Eome ; 
 England claims no communion with Eome ; England's 
 communion is rejected by every individual Bishop 
 who is in communion with Eome ; and no single 
 member of the estabhshed English Church can be 
 lawfully communicated with in sacred things, by any 
 single individual of the faithful in comnmnion with 
 Eome. IIow different was the position of each of 
 the Catholic parties at Antioch ! 
 
 In the case of Antioch, there wns internal division, CompHrison.
 
 '248 Till-: CATHOLICS UF ANTIOCII WERE 
 
 but no sevcTuiicc from the orbis terraram, and both 
 sides looked up anxiously to Eome. 
 
 In tlie case of England, there is a notorious sepa- 
 ration from the univei'sul cliurch, and an avowed 
 rejection of the authority of the Eoman See. 
 The grounds Again, as regards the grounds of dissension, no 
 
 dissens^ion aiialogy wliatcvcr exists between the two. In 
 ■.n'-'L^nl the sixteenth century, England cut herself off from 
 Eome and the Universal Church, rejecting the 
 authority of the Apostolic See, and adopting her 
 own private interpretation of the Scriptures, and of 
 the voice of primitive Christianity. This severance 
 continues — and it must continue so long as England 
 asserts the claim of an isolated independence. Such 
 was not the case with any of the Catholics at 
 Antioch. History does not record one single word 
 or act by which either Meletius, or Pauhnus, or any 
 of tlieir respective followers, ever called in question 
 tlie supreme authority of Eome, or manifested any 
 difference from her on any point of doctrine. Both 
 these parties eagerly sought her fiivour ; both pro- 
 claimed themselves in her communion. We are as- 
 Hiiist.xvi. sured of the latter fact by St. Jerome, in one of his 
 
 ed. Valliirn. Vcron. i-. o ta i • /• • i 
 
 1734, &e. letters to rope St. Damasus, asking tor guidance 
 
 Vide iufry, p. 326. t , . i ., 
 
 under his perplexity. 
 
 Nor was tliere any })()int uf faitli respecting which 
 the Catholics of Antioch disagreed amongst them- 
 selves, or differed from Eome and the Universal 
 Churcli. 'Hicir division was upon a question of 
 rightful local jurisdiction, mixed up, no doubt, witli
 
 XOT DIVIDED IN TIIHIR FAITH. 240 
 
 personal feeling on both sides. It was aggravated 
 by the dispute respecting the number of the divine 
 Hypostases^ but in the case of the Antiochians this did s. AtimiKisii 
 not involve the faith. Meletius and his adherents Antiwhensos. 
 employed the word to designate the divine persons^ ^v.'^m, 289. 
 and consequently maintained that there were three. 
 Paulinus and his party interpreted it of the divine sub- 
 stance^ and therefore affirmed there was but one. Tlie 
 prevalence of the Sabellian and Arian heresies had 
 given rise to this question respecting the most appro- 
 priate mode for the definition of one and the same 
 truth. The two parties at Antioch differed upon 
 that point, but, as regards actual Catholic doctrine, 
 they were equally and ahke orthodox, as is testified 
 by Theodoret and others. Ecci. iiist. iii. 4. 
 
 There is extant a contemporary seniion, preached Testimony 
 by St. Gregory Nazianzcui, at Constantinople, in the st.GregoiyNazianzen. 
 year 379, which bears witness to the unity of faith 
 of the Cathohcs of that city, although they were 
 divided into two parties respecting Meletius and 
 Pauhnus. It speaks also of the disposition of the 
 heretics of the day to exaggerate the extent of the 
 dissension. It may be presumed tliat, besides those 
 of Constantinople to whom it was addressed, its 
 remarks would apply to the Catholics of Antioch to 
 whose pastors it refers, and whose division had been 
 extended to Constantinople. Thus it further affords 
 strong presumptive evidence, to say the least, in fiivour 
 of the usually received opinion that a reconciliation 
 had been effected in the same year between Meletius
 
 250 TIIEY DIFFERED CONCERXIXO THEIR PASTORS. 
 
 and Piiiiliiius, tlioiigli the contest was unhappily 
 renewed b}' the partisans of the former immediately 
 after his decease. 
 
 This St. Gregory — styled, pre-eminently, ' The 
 Theologian ' — was an ardent lover of peace, which he 
 Oi-atio 22, i. dcscribcd as a blessing extolled by all, but preserved 
 by few. He eloquently bewailed its loss ; more, he 
 said, than Jacob bewailed the loss of Joseph, or 
 David the death of his friend Jonathan, or that of 
 Absalom his son. He greatly loved and admired 
 Meletius, but his end and aim was peace ; and when, 
 at last, it was restored in Constantinople, he delivered 
 the oration to be found in his works, under the title 
 of ' The Third Peace Discourse, on the agreement 
 which we, of the same faith, made after the conflict.' 
 
 orat. 23, iii. iv. ' Wc difTcTed uot,' lic says therein, ' respecting the 
 
 cd. Benc'd. Paris, . . n i » r^ 
 
 1778. divme nature, but respecting goodly order. . . . ' Con- 
 
 cerning the divine nature, we no less consent and 
 agree than does the Godhead with itself, if this be 
 not a great thing to say.' . . . 'But there were matters 
 upon which we differed. Nor will I deny that it 
 was bad enough to quarrel even about them ; for 
 not any entrance or handle ought to be given to the 
 wicked one, nor license to evil tongues ; still, it was 
 not so Ijad as it appears to those who traduce our 
 conduct. For since, being men, we are liable to sin, 
 our fault was that of loving our pastors to excess, 
 and that we could not discover which of two good
 
 THE MACHINATIONS OF THE ARIANS. 25 L 
 
 men was tlie most to be preferred, until we agreed 
 
 to admire them both alike. This is tlie complaint 
 
 against ns. Let anyone who pleases censnre or 
 
 acquit us on these points. Tliis is the security of tlie 
 
 heretics — rouro rcou alptrixcov tJ d(r(pa.7vsia. But, 
 
 however much you may desire it, besides this there 
 
 is nothing. " Dead and rotten flies," saith the Ecc1.-s. x. i. 
 
 preacher, ." make oil to stink ; " and envy will try to 
 
 give an ill savour to things that are good, but it will 
 
 not be able. For, as appears to Esdras and to me, 
 
 " the strongest of all things is truth." ' 
 
 The seeds of the schism between the Catholics of The origir. 
 Antioch were sown by the impiety of the Arians. nie schistn. 
 
 St. Vincent of Lerins observes that ' the profane Commonitorium, 
 
 T f A • • TT -r» n T-i prope principium, 
 
 novelty oi Arianism, like some Ueilona or -bury, 
 having first taken captive the Emperor, and then 
 subjugated all the highest posts of the palace to its 
 new laws, from thenceforth never ceased to confound 
 and disturb all things, private and public, sacred and 
 profane ; to show no distinction towards what was 
 good and true, but to smite whomsoever it would, 
 as if from a higher region.' — An exemption from 
 this fiery trial could hardly be expected in the case 
 of the third ecclesiastical city of Christendom, pecu- 
 liarly hateful to the devil, as is observed by St. Episi. cdriii. 
 
 . Epipliaiiio episc. 
 
 Basil, because it was the birthplace of the name of 
 Christian. 
 
 No sooner had the Arians been condemned in the 
 great council of Nicsea than they formed the ini- 
 quitous design of intruding the favourers of their
 
 252 BANISHMENT OF ST. EUSTATHIUS FROM ANTIOCH. 
 
 heresy into tlie sees of the Gatliohc bishops, wher- 
 ever they could devise the means. Their first efforts 
 were directed against St. Eustathius, who had dis- 
 tinguished himself as one of the earliest and most 
 vigorous of their opponents, and who at that time 
 occupied the aforesaid very eminent and important 
 TheodoretiEcci. Hist, see of Autiocli. About tlic year 330, Eusebius of 
 SocratisHist.Ecci. Nlcomcdia, witli otlicFs of that party, assembled a 
 Sozomeni nrst. Ecci. concihabule at Antioch, in which they unlawfully 
 hb. 11. 19. obtained the deposition of Eustathius by means of 
 false and shameful accusations, supported, in part, by 
 a suborned witness, who afterwards openly confessed 
 her guilt. They maligned him to the Empero]', and 
 ' obtained his banishment into a distant country. 
 One of their own bishops was then thrust into his 
 place, and for a period of thirty years the great 
 episcopal chair of Antioch continued in the un- 
 disturbed possession of a series of Arian or Eusebian 
 prelates. Eudoxius, of unhappy memory, belonged 
 to this line of bishops. Having left, or been expelled 
 from, the see of Antioch, he obtained tliat of Con- 
 stantinojDle, a.d. 359, or early in the year 360. 
 Election Thcodorct relates that the Emperor Constant! us 
 
 Mekiiub. afterwards called together the bishops, enforcing the 
 Theod. ii.3i. uuivcrsal rcjcction of both the extreme terms — 
 Sozom!iv. 28. Iiomoousiou and heterousion (apvr^6r;va/ Travras xa) 
 TO 'j[xrj(j-jrri'jv avayKu^inv xai to sTJj^oojo'ioi/). He says, 
 that many bishops being thus assembled from various 
 ])i()vinces, they proposed in the first place to provide 
 a pastor for the see of Antioch, and tliat, tlnough
 
 THE ORIGIX OF ST. MELETIUS. 25:> 
 
 the influence of tlie Arjans, thougli witli the concur- 
 rence of certain of the orthodox, Meletius Avas accord- 
 ingly elected to fill the place left vacant byEudoxius. 
 
 Meletius came originally from Melitine, in the 
 Lesser Armenia, and it appears that he was of noble 
 birth, and in the possession of an estate. According 
 to the general opinion amongst writers of authority, 
 he Avas first consecrated bishop to the see of Sebaste, 
 in Armenia ;^ but beino; unable to endure the unruli- 
 ness of the people, he had found repose in the city 
 of Beroea in Syria, where he was residing when sum- 
 moned to the ecclesiastical throne of Antioch. 
 
 There cannot be any question that, during his 
 earlier life, Meletius Avas intimately connected Avith 
 the Arian faction, thougli it is uncertain to AAdiat 
 extent he AA^as involved in their errors. Even his 
 Avarm-spoken panegyrist, St. Gregory Nazianzen, is 
 compelled to interrupt the strain of his praises in 
 order to acknoAvledge, in a parenthesis, that ' to a Carmen de vita suA, 
 slight extent he Avas led astray by the stranger's ^'ed."puris,'i84o!* ' 
 hand.' 
 
 But this remark Avould apply only to the earlier 
 part of his career, and not to the period after his 
 election to the bishopric of Antioch, during Avhich 
 he boldly confessed, and suffered for, the faith. 
 
 1 Baronius (an. 360, n. 48) seems to suggest that Meletius may 
 have been transhited from Bercea to Sebaste, but there is not 
 sufficient ground for such a supposition. See Valesius, Annot. in 
 Socrat. lib. ii. c. 44 ; and Tillemont, note iii. suv S. INIelece.
 
 254 MELETIUS IX Ills EAKLY LIFE 
 
 Eccies. Hist. V. 1. 5. TliG Ariaii historian Philostorgius, says that Mele- 
 tius at one time ' feignedly professed the heterousion ' 
 Hist. Ecci. ii. 44. ('''^ BTs^oyxTiov uTTSKzlvzTo). According to Socrates, 
 Meletius was present at the concihabule of Seleucia, 
 and signed the Arian and semi-Arian profession of 
 faith therein pnt forth by the Acacians. But thougli 
 
 litres, ixxiii. 25, 26. the said document is recorded by St. Epiphanius, 
 with the signatures of forty-three bishops, that of 
 Meletius does not appear amongst them, nor is it 
 certain whether he was at that time a bishop at alL 
 Ibid. 27, 2S. St. Epiphanius, however, mentions him as belonging 
 to the party of Acacius, which he numbers amongst 
 those whose 'whole work was full of fraud.' He 
 also states that Meletius was made bishop of Antioch 
 by Acacius and his party, and that they considered 
 him at the time to be of the same opinion as them- 
 selves. 
 
 It is certain that before his elevation to the see of 
 Antiocli, Meletius had done nothing openly in de- 
 fence of the truth, even if he had taken no active 
 part against it ; and thougli he may never have 
 committed himself to any overt profession of heresy, 
 yet, if he was always a Catholic at heart, he must 
 have been guilty in his earlier career of culpable 
 indulgence towards error, and of unworthy dissimu- 
 lation respecting his actual sentiments. This is 
 manifest from the fact that the Arians universally 
 accounted him as their own, until after the period of 
 his election to the see of Antioch. According to Ni- 
 iiibt. Ecci. ix. 48. cei)horus Calli.stus, lii.s original creation as bishop, to
 
 WAS ACCOUNTED TO EH AX AKIAX. 255 
 
 the see of Sebaste, was owing to the siifTragcs of the 
 Arians. This statement may have been derived from iiist. Ecc-:. iv. 2.5. 
 Sozomen, who, in mentioning certain appointments 
 tliat were made by the extreme Arian party, called 
 after their leader, Eudoanans, includes as one of them 
 that of Meletius to the rule of tlie church of Sebaste. 
 There can be no doubt that Meletius was at that 
 time commonly reputed to be an Arian, both in doc- 
 trine and communion, and that he was elevated to 
 the episcopal chair of Antioch through the combined 
 influence of the different sections of Arianism. St. 
 Epiphanius, as above mentioned, attributes his said 
 elevation to the semi- Arian Acacius and his party. 
 Philostorgius also recounts it as the work of Acacius, in loco citato, 
 observing, in the bitterness of his own more extreme 
 heresy, that Acacius endeavoured everywhere to 
 appoint those who professed the doctrine of tlie con- 
 substantiality. Sozomen attributes the election of 
 Meletius as bishop of Antioch to the Eudoxians, wlio, 
 he says, first placed him at Sebaste, and to whom, Hist. Ecci. iv. 25, 2s. 
 he says, ' it seemed well to transfer Meletius from 
 Sebaste to Antioch, as one who was skilful in speech 
 and in powers of persuasion, good in liis manner of 
 life, and hitherto of their own way of thinking. For 
 they altogether hoped by the estimation of tlie man 
 to entrap into their own heresy the inhabitants of 
 Antioch and the cities round about, and especially 
 those who were called Eustathians, whose doctrine 
 respecting God was according to the tradition in the 
 synod of Nictea.' St. Jerome records m his Chronicle
 
 256 MELETIUS WAS ELECTED TO AXTIOCH 
 
 s. iiieron. Op. omn. that ' Meletiiis, Bisliop of Sebaste, in Armenia, was 
 ed. Vaiiars.' transferred to Antiocli by the Aiian Bishops Acacius 
 and George.' T]ie George here mentioned was pro- 
 bably the extreme Arian bishop of Laodicaea. 
 
 Thus, though certain Catholic bishops concmTcd 
 in this election of Meletius, it cannot be denied that, 
 in itself, it was essentially the act of the Arians, who 
 in like manner ejected him at once when he professed 
 the Catholic doctrine. The Catholics were powerless 
 in both instances. 
 
 Theodoret is the only one of the early ecclesias- 
 tical historians who mentions the concurrence of any 
 of the Catholics, and the only name which he has 
 recorded amongst them, is that of St. Eusebius of 
 Samosata. Father Bollandus, who is himself the 
 Boiianri author of tlic ' Life of St. Meletius,' in the work 
 
 Acta Sanctorum. ,-, i i • i i • i i 
 
 Fci.. xii. through which his own name has become immor- 
 talized, says that St. Eusebius of Samosata attended 
 the assembhes of the heterodox, in order to rescue 
 from heresy any he might be able to rescue, es- 
 pecially such as had fallen rather through ignorance 
 than throucrh malice. He observes that the same 
 St. Eusebius may have been instrumental in the con- 
 version of Meletius. 
 
 Friendly and direct intercourse must undoubtedly 
 have taken place between Meletius and the Catholics 
 referred to, for they were aware of his orthodoxy ; 
 at the same time, it is evident that the change which 
 had been effected in him was kept as a secret, for if 
 the Arians had known of it, they would unquestion-
 
 TimOUGTI THE IXFLUEXCE OF THE ARIAXS. 257 
 
 ably liave selected some otlier person as the successor 
 of Eiidoxius in Antiocli. The transaction is tlius re- 
 lated in the ' Ecclesiastical History ' of Theodoret : — Lib. ii.'si. 
 
 ' At that time the divine Meletius, bishop of some 
 city in Armenia, being subsequently unable to bear 
 the contumacy of his flock, was living elsewhere in 
 repose. The Arians, surmising {uTroTowr^aavns) that 
 he was of one mind with their party, besought Con- 
 stantius to commit to him the government of the see 
 of Antioch. For, without any restraint, they violated 
 every law, in their endeavours to strengthen their 
 impiety ; and the transgression of the laws was the 
 foundation of their blasphemy ; and many such inno- 
 vations they made in many places.^ But the main- 
 tainers of the Apostolic dogmata, both being aware 
 of the soundness in doctrine of tlie great Meletius, 
 and of course being well acquainted with his holiness 
 of life and richness in virtue, voted with the others, 
 and took the greatest possible care that the act should 
 be written out, and that it should be signed by all ; 
 and both one side and the other delivered it as a sort 
 
 * The essential flaw in the title of Meletius to the see of 
 Antioch was the fact of his having been elected by the Arians, 
 and that as a partaker of their commnnion. But since the Arians 
 themselves would not account this to be any fault, it is not easy 
 to see in what sense it is implied by Theodoret that they con- 
 sciously violated the Chiirch's laws in this particular instance. 
 Perhaps he considered them to blame for requesting the inter- 
 ference of the emperor; or he may have intended to allude to the 
 translation (if siich it really was) of Meletius from Scbasto to 
 Antioch, which seems to have been one of the charges against 
 him. See Tilleraont, Ilist. Eccl., note iv. sur S. Mclece. 
 
 VOL. L S
 
 2o8 LAXITY OF CErvTAlX CATHOLICS 
 
 of mutual compact to the custody of Eusebius, tlie 
 bishop of tlie Samosatians, a noble man, a contender 
 for the tnith.' 
 Theod. Wlien Meletius afterwards declared himself a 
 
 Eccl. Hist. ii. 32. ^, 1 ,. , , . Til 1 
 
 Lathohc, the Aiians persuaded the emperor to des- 
 patch a messenger in hot haste for the surrender of 
 this document. But St. Eusebius would not give it 
 up, and when threatened, through a second mes- 
 senger, with the loss of his right hand if he persisted, 
 he held out both his hands to be cut off, repeating 
 his refusal to abandon it. The threat was only 
 intended to terrify, and it was not put into execu- 
 tion. But the firmness of the lieroic and foithful 
 bishop excited the admiration of the heretical 
 emperor. 
 
 However excellent may have been the motives of 
 these Catholic bishops, they appear to have acted, on 
 this occasion, without any sufficient authority ; and 
 their zeal for the advancement of the faith seems to 
 have" betrayed them into unlawful communication 
 with the promoters and propagators of heresy. The 
 majority of the Catholics of Antioch exhibited a 
 similar laxity, by mixing in the Ainan assemblies, 
 though they did not adopt the Arian tenets. This 
 party raised no oljjection to the election of Meletius, 
 idtliouph the subordinate co-operation in tliat act of 
 the aforesaid Catholic bishops was insufficient to 
 cffiice the l)rand of Arianism, whirh rendered it 
 invalid in the; eyes of the Cliurch. 
 Tiio EusJiithiiii.-^. TI lore was, however, an important section of the
 
 IX COMMUXICATIXO WITH TIIK AllIAXS. 250 
 
 faithful ill Antioch who would not consent to ac- 
 knowledge Meletius as their lawful bisliop, on account 
 of his connection witli the Arians. This party was 
 tlie only one in the city whose conduct appears to 
 have been in strict accordance with the Church's 
 laws. It was in fact the old Catholic party, and 
 consistent in its line of action as such. It was 
 steadfast in its rejection of the communion of tlie 
 Arian prelates and their followers, and in its ad- 
 herence to the rightful claims of the exiled St. 
 Eustathius. Hence this faitliful body of Catholi<^s 
 acquired the appellation of Eustathians, though to- 
 tally unconnected with the sect so called after another 
 Bishop Eustathius, of Sebaste. Dm-ing the thirty 
 years which had elapsed from the period of the 
 unlawful deposition of St. Eustathius of Antioch, to 
 that of the elevation of Meletius to the same see, too 
 many of the Catholics in the city had so far con- 
 formed to the altered state of things as to unite with 
 the Arians in their public worship, though Sozomen Hist. Ecci. iii. 20. 
 relates tliat, whilst they sang psalms together with 
 the Arians, tliey asserted the Catholic doctrine in the 
 concluding doxology ; the others in the same manner 
 giving utterance to their heresy. ' Being arranged,' 
 he says, ' in choirs, as was the custom in singing to 
 God, at the end of the hymns they showed forth 
 their particular opinions. The one party gave glory 
 to Father and Son, as worthy of equal lionour ; but 
 the other gave glory to the Father in the Son. 
 denoting, by the insertion of the preposition, tliat
 
 260 PAruxrs axd the eustathians 
 
 the Soil \vas inferior to the Fatlier.' The Eustathians 
 would not consent to tliis species of union Avitlioiit 
 unity. Tliey Avithstood the seducing influences of 
 an accomphshed fact, and, remaining true to their 
 principles, they altogether refused to follow the other 
 Catholics into the churches thus occupied by the 
 Arians. Though a minority, they were mimerous 
 and united ; and they persevered with an admirable 
 constancy in holding aloof from all communion with 
 the intruded line of bishops, and consequently from 
 Meletius, who formed one of that line, and who owed 
 his election to the authors of it. 
 
 Twenty-three years had elapsed since the death of 
 St. Eustathius, when Meletius was elected to Antioch, 
 A.D. 361. It is generally considered that Eustathius 
 died in exile certainly not later than the year 338, 
 but the commonly assigned date is a.d. 337.^ No 
 successor had been appointed to him as the Catholic 
 bishop of Antioch, but raulinus was universally 
 recognised to be the leader of the Eustathians, 
 although not elevated above the priesthood for a few 
 
 ' There seems to be no doii])t tliat Socrates (iv. 14.) and 
 Sozomen (vi. 13.) are mistaken in representing St. Eustatliius to 
 have been alive, and in Constantinoi)le, at the period of the death 
 of Eudoxius, A.D. 370. They probably confounded him with 
 another Eustathius. Theodoret states positively (iii. 4.) that St. 
 Eustathius of Antioch was dead before the ordination of Meletius, 
 and though the precise date of his decease has not been ascertained, 
 there are sufficient grounds for concluding that it cannot have 
 occurred later than during the year 338. See Tillemont, note v. 
 sur S. Eustathe; Valesius, not. in Socrat. iv. M; ]'>()llnnd. 
 Acta Sanct. Jul. xvi.
 
 »'OI 1 
 
 Kulini Hist. Ecel. 
 I'J. 
 
 WERE BEFRIENDED BY' ST. ATllAXASlUS. 20 1 
 
 years subsequent to the election of Meletius. He liad 
 received his ordination as priest tlirough the luuuls 
 of St. Eustathius. His doctrine was unimpeachable, 
 his character was exemplary, and liis conduct was 
 untainted by any connnunion with heretics. He 
 enjoyed the confidence and protection of St. Atha- 
 nasius, who adhered constantly to his communion 
 and that of the Cathohcs under his guidance. 
 
 When St. Athanasius went to Antioch in the year st. AtiiMimsius 
 349, to meet the Emperor Constantius, who had re- Eiisuithians. 
 called him from exile, he would have no religious sozom. iii. 20. 
 communication with the Arian bishop Leontius, nor Tiu-'i^Kii! vi. 
 with that section of the Catholics who assembled with 
 the Arians in his churches ; but he united in commu- 
 nion with the Eustathians, who at that time held their 
 religious assemblies in private houses, and he endea- 
 voured to obtain for them a separate chiu'ch. It is 
 related that the Arians persuaded the emperor to 
 request St. Athanasius to give up one of the churches 
 of Alexandria to themselves, since they objected to 
 hold communion with him, and that the Saint in 
 wisdom replied, that no one could resist the com- 
 mands of the emperor, but tliat in return he had 
 himself to make the petition that one of the 
 churches in Antioch, and, according to Socrates, in 
 every other city also, should be given up for the use 
 of those who objected to communicate witli tlie 
 Arians. Constantius was disposed to assent, but tlie 
 Arians, perceiving that such an arrangement avouUI 
 not be for their own advantage, preferred to })ost-
 
 2G2 TUE EXPECTATIONS WHICH AVERE RAISED BY 
 
 pone the matter, or to let it drop. It docs not 
 appear whether a cluirch in Antioch was at that 
 time secured for Pauhnus and his followers, but 
 Hist. E.-cies. iii. 9. Socrates states that, when Meletius returned to An- 
 tioch in the year 362, after his first period of exile, 
 Pauhnus was in possession of one of the small 
 churches within the city, from which the newly- 
 intruded Arian bishop Euzoius had not ejected him, 
 out ot motives of personal respect. 
 
 The Catholic bishops who took part in the election 
 of Meletius, may have been influenced by the desire 
 of rescuing ft-om communion with the Arians, that 
 majority of their fellow-Catholics in Antioch which 
 liad been so unhappily betrayed into it ; and they 
 probably entertained tlie hope that the orthodoxy of 
 the new bishop's sentiments w^ould overcome tlie 
 objections of the Eustathians ; whilst they may have 
 considered that the urgency and the peculiar circum- 
 stances of the case afforded sufficient excuse for the 
 irregularity of wliich they lliemselves were guilty, in 
 imiting with the Arians for his election. The Arians, 
 on the other hand, believing Meletius to belong to 
 tliemselves, were sanguine in their expectations that 
 his personal powers of persuasion would win over 
 the Eustathians, as well as many others, to their 
 communion. Judging from the description of Me- 
 K.'tius wliich lias come down to us, it cannot be 
 denied that there was ground for these anticipations 
 on both sides ; and, as regards the Catholics, their 
 lio))es were to some extent justified by the result.
 
 TllK FvErUTATlOX OF MKLETIUS. 2(j:j 
 
 The exceptional character of ' tlie great Melelius ' Dc^ciipfioi, 
 forms one of the most important features of this y,. MuLuus. 
 altogether exceptional passage in the Church's history. 
 Its lustre was obscm-ed until his noble confession at 
 Autioch, but ever afterwards it shone with a bright- 
 ness rendered the more brilliant from its contrast 
 with the early mists of error which it had so glo- 
 riously dispelled and broken through. The excellence 
 of tliis remarkable man, after his elevation to the see 
 of Antioch, has been depicted in glowing colours by 
 the most eminent of his contemporaries in the East ; 
 and the West has testified her assent by the addition 
 of his name to her martyrology, where it is mentioned 
 with distinction. 
 
 Ten years after the election of Meletius to Antioch, 
 St. Basil the Great described him as faultless in Kpi^t- ixvii. 
 his faith, and so excellent m his mode of life that (ordonovus.) 
 none of the others could be compared with liim. 
 St. Epiphanius took the part of Paulinus, but he 
 speaks of the honour due to Meletius on account of Haeresis Lxxiii. c. 3.5. 
 his high reputation, his excellent morals, his holy 
 and admirable life which was extolled as divine by 
 all men, and which rendered liiiu in every way 
 longed for by the people. Meletius was then in exile. 
 
 After the decease of Meletius St. Gregory of "ETnTd/ioj A(o-..j 
 
 f(i Tol' 
 
 Nyssa was unsparing in his praises. He reminds his ^ev^ MeAeVi,.^ 
 hearers of his sanctity, his struggles for the faith, his 'AvTfo.xcas. 
 chastity, his eloquence. ' You know,' he exclaims, 
 ' what manner of man he was. Noble and high-born 
 from the rising of the sun, blameless, just, true, fearing
 
 xii. Feb. 
 
 2G4 Tin: tkaisks of st. mkletius. 
 
 God, and abstaining Iruni all evil.' IIu recalls ' the 
 sweet serenity of his eyes, the bright smile upon his 
 lips, the affable extension of his right hand, and the 
 fingers so ready to convey the benediction which 
 his mouth pronounced.' He describes his ' eye as bent 
 on heavenly things, his ear as open to the voice of 
 God, his tongue as devoted to the proclamation of 
 divine truth.' 
 oriitio in laiidera St. Johu Chrysostoui rcuiinds the people of Antioch 
 ii<jiiaiid. Act. ss. liow, from the first time that Meletius entered the 
 city, it became a custom for parents to call their 
 children after him, accounting them more dear for 
 the sake of that name, which they looked upon as 
 an ornament and protection, as a safeguard and a 
 solace ; as a light amidst darkness, a treasury of 
 innumerable blessings, and a weapon against evil 
 thoughts and desires ; so that its sound was heard 
 on all sides, in the streets and in the forum, 
 in the fields and in the roads ; and that, not 
 content with this, his image was depicted by 
 many on tlieir rings, their cups, their bowls, 
 and upon the walls of their rooms. lie relates 
 how Meletius displayed his meekness and mildness 
 in warding off with his cloak the stones of the in- 
 dignant populace from the head of the prefect who 
 was bearing him away to exile, on one occasion. 
 He says that ' to gaze on that holy countenance was 
 ii source of the greatest delight and enjoyment ; for 
 tliat not only the teaching and conversation, but 
 even tlie appearance alone, of this blessed man, was
 
 HE IS SU.^JMO^'KD TO ANTIUCII. 1^05 
 
 enough to introduce the whole knowledge of virtue 
 into the souls of the beholders.' 
 
 St. Gregory JSTazianzen, in the poem already re- Carni.-n (!,• vita mu, 
 ferred to, describes Meletius as 'simple, artless in his 
 ways, full of God, calm and confident yet modest 
 in his aspect, showing the culture of the spirit.' 
 He says 'he was what he was called, and he was 
 'called what he was — honied in manners and in 
 name.' 
 
 ' Many things,' he adds, ' did he endure in behall" 
 of the Divine Spirit (tliough to a slight extent led 
 astray by an alien hand), brightening grace by 
 illustrious combats.' 
 
 The historian Theodoret styles him ' the divine Ecd. iiist. v. 3. 
 Meletius,' the 'meekest of all men;' and Sozomen Hist. Ecd. iv. 28. 
 tells of the goodness of his life and his powers of 
 speech and of persuasion. 
 
 Such proved to be the character of the bishop 
 whom the Arians obtained for the see of Antioch, 
 relying on the assistance of his powerful advocacy 
 for the promotion of their own heresy. Nor is it 
 surprising that those of the orthodox who did not 
 scruple to act in conjunction with them, sliould have 
 concurred in their election of Meletius, being secretly 
 aware of his conversion to the truth. 
 
 The imperial letters were issued to summon tlie The entrance of 
 
 i- _ Jllc'letius 
 
 newlv-chosen prelate to Antioch ; and, since such into 
 
 •^ ^ ... Antiocli. 
 
 was the custom with Constantius, it is to be pre- Ammiani .Marc-iiini 
 
 . . , Lib. xii. c. 16, n. 18. 
 
 sunied that he was conveyed on his journey m tlie
 
 '26G lllS KECEPTIOX BY THE PEOPLE. 
 
 public carriages. The report of his gifts and virtues 
 
 had arrived there before him, and when he reached the 
 
 city, tlie ways were thronged with tlie thousands who 
 
 Theod. ii. 31. luid issucd forth to meet him. JSTot only the bishops 
 
 Sozom. iv. 28. . , . i i t • a • i • i 
 
 Nicepii.Caiiist.ix.48. and piicsts at that time assembled m Antioch, with 
 all the different ranks of ecclesiastics, but the whole 
 of the people, including even the Jews and pagans, 
 and many of the followers of Paiilinus, went out to 
 see the person of the far-famed Meletius ; a ]3ortion 
 of this mixed multitude being led by curiosity, 
 and others being; desirous to hear from him a 
 declaration of his sentiments, for the rumour had 
 now got abroad that he was in favour of the Nicene 
 In loco citato, faitli, — ' Tlicu,' says St. Gregory of Nyssa, 'the 
 Church of Antioch beheld a countenance formed 
 truly in the image of God ; she beheld charity gush- 
 ing forth as from a fountain ; grace diffused upon 
 his lips ; the extreme height of humility ; one after 
 whom there is nothing more to be imagined. She 
 beheld in hiiu the mildness of David; tlie under- 
 standing of Solomon ; tlie goodness of Moses ; the 
 exactitude of Samuel ; the chastity of Joseph ; the 
 wisdom of Daniel ; the zeal for the faith of the great 
 Elias ; the bodily ])urity of tlie sublime John ; the 
 invincible love of Paul. She beheld so great a col- 
 lection of \iitucs ill this one soul; she was smitten 
 witli a blessed love, loving her s])ouse with a chaste 
 and holy affection ! ' 
 
 Even allowing for Eastern hyperbole, no ordinary 
 character could liave called forth this encomium. 
 
 I
 
 HE COLDLY rilOCLALMS THE TliUTll. 2(i7 
 
 Theodoret says that the emperor requested Mele- iiispui.iioprofcsMon 
 this, togetlier with other eminent preachers, to ex- Ecei.VLst'"ii!'3L 
 pound to the people a certain text from the Proverbs, Cb. viii. 22. 
 which at that time formed one of the special subjects 
 of controversy, and that he appointed practised writers 
 to take down the words of each. George, the Bishop 
 of Laodica3a, was the first to speak, and he vomited 
 forth the ill savour of poisonous heresy. Acacius of 
 Ca3sarea followed next, and he framed his speech in 
 a middle course, avoiding the blasphemy of the ex- 
 treme party, but not retaining the [;ure and genuine 
 mark of Apostolic doctrine. After these arose Mele- 
 tius, and he boldly set forth the rule of truth, unhesi- 
 tatingly makicg manifest the orthodoxy of his belief. 
 Loud were the applauses of the Catholics, and great 
 Avas the confusion of the heretics. According to 
 Sozomen, it was said that the archdeacon of the iiist. Ecci. iv. 28. 
 clergy of Antioch rushed up to Meletius in fury, 
 and stopped his mouth ; upon which Meletius, hold- 
 ing up at first three of his fingers and then only 
 one, proclaimed the same faith still more clearly by 
 this action, than he had previously done by his words 
 so Ions: as his voice w^as free. The archdeacon then 
 hastening to seize upon his hand, involuntarily set at 
 liberty his lips, and so. enabled Meletius again to 
 give verbal testimony to the faith. lie proclaimed 
 it still more strongly and more plainly than before, 
 loudly exhorting his hearers to maintain steadfostly 
 the doctrines of Nica^a, and protesting that such as 
 were otherwise minded erred concerning the truth.
 
 208 
 
 HE IS BA>'ISIIED IX COXSEQUEXCE, 
 
 Wliilst Meletiiis was thus preaching the CathoHc 
 faith, by speech and by gesture alternately, as the 
 violence of the archdeacon allowed him, ' tlie Eu- 
 stathians,' proceeds Sozomen, ' cried out aloud and 
 leaped for joy, but the Arians were downcast.' Thco- 
 doret does not mention the story of this unseemly 
 Eeci. Hist. ii. 31. couduct of tlie arclideacou, but he says that the 
 multitude greatly applauded the sermon of Meletiup, 
 and entreated liini to give tliem a compendium of 
 his teaching, upon which, ' displaying three fingers, 
 then closing two of them and leaving one extended, 
 he uttered the praiseworthy sentence — " There are 
 three understood by the mind, but we reason as of 
 one : Tp/a ra voov[xei/a * cog sv) Ss S/aXryo^jts^a." ' 
 
 The Arians at first endeavoured to induce Meletius 
 to retract his profession of the CathoUc faitli. But 
 finding that he remained firm, and that he would in 
 no wise alter his sentiments, they persuaded the 
 Emperor to expel him from the cliurch, and he was 
 banislied to his own country, Melitene, when scarce 
 thirty days had elapsed since his public entry into 
 Antioch as its newly-elected bishop. The arch- 
 heretic Euzoius, the friend of Arius, and who, when 
 a deacon in Alexandria, ]iad been condemned to- 
 gether with him by St. Alexander then archbishop 
 of tliat see, was now summoned by tlie emperor 
 and tlniist into the bishoj)ric of Antioch ; the whole 
 being tlie work of those selfsame persons, who had 
 been forenio.^t in tlie clioice of Meletius when they 
 BUppo.sed liim to entertain their own opinions. 
 
 Euzoius 
 
 made 
 
 Arian Eishop 
 
 of 
 
 Antioch. 
 
 Theod. ii.31. 
 
 Sozom. iv. 28. 
 
 Socrat. ii. 44. 
 
 Philostorg. V. 5.
 
 BY THE DISAPPOINTFJ) APtlANS. 
 
 200 
 
 AooHsatiuns 
 
 agjiinst 
 
 MeKtius. 
 
 lu loc. citat. 
 
 In Inc. eitiit. 
 
 Theodoret says that the accusation now made 
 against Meletius was that of the profession of Sabel- 
 hanism. It was a charge which the Arians very 
 frequently brought against the orthodox ; but in tlie 
 present instance their principal motive may liave 
 been that whicli is mentioned by their own partisan, 
 Philostorgius, who relates tliat ' Meletius, Bisliop of 
 Antioch, was banished by Constantius, who was tlien 
 residing at Antioch, to his own covmtry, Melitene, as 
 being convicted of perjury, and because that " wliilst 
 going out of his way he set forth the homoousion, he 
 conformed himself to the heterousion " (rr. o/xoomo-zov 
 Trpea-fisucov sHTOTrwg, ro STsCfOumov xarscyr^^aar/^sra/).' 
 It is not easy to acquit Meletius from the reproacli 
 of duplicity before his election to the see of Antioch ; 
 or to justify liis acceptance of tliat bishopric at tlic 
 hands of the Arians, whilst he allowed them at tlie 
 same time to assume that he was one of themselves. 
 Nor is it surprising that they shoidd have been filled 
 with indignation, and have been eager to depose liim, 
 when they discovered the mistake which they had 
 made. 
 
 The above-mentioned sermon of Meletius has been 
 preserved by St. Epiphanius in his celebrated work 
 against heresies. It commences with the praise of n^ros. ixxiii. 2o,&, 
 peace and an exliortation to love God and keep His 
 commandments, and afterwards it proceeds to speak 
 of doctrine. After reciting tliis discourse at leiigtli, 
 St. Epiphanius says tliat the Arians, now liiidiiig 
 Meletius to be ' an ollence to them instead oi" a source 
 
 II is sermon. 
 
 IIm.I. c. .TI.
 
 270 ADVERSE EUMOURS AGAIXST MELETIUS. 
 
 of joy and repose,' stirred up the emperor and turned 
 liim out of the bishopric ; adding that he was carried 
 off into banislnnent by night, and was then still 
 living^ in exile in his own country, honoured and 
 prized both on account of what he had accom- 
 [)lished, and of the true and genuine faith which was 
 maintained by his flock in Antioch, In a sub- 
 ibiti. c. 35. sequent passage, St, Epiphanius observes respecting 
 this sermon of Meletius, that there are found in it 
 two or three reprehensible sayings, though he does 
 not know Avhether they escaped unnoticed in the 
 excitement of preaching, or whether they arose out 
 of the simplicity of the preacher's mind. 
 0p.omu.t.\^ii.p.78o, gt. Jerouic, in the opening page of his continua- 
 tion of the Chronicle of Eusebius, names Meletius 
 simply as one of the intruded Arian line, remarking 
 that he should consider them 'rather as the enemies 
 iind. p. 805 of Christ than as bishops ; ' and in a subsequent pas- 
 sao;e, after statin<>; that Meletius was transferred to 
 Antioch by the Arian bishops, Acacius and George, 
 he says, that not long after, having 'received priests 
 wlio liad IjCL'ii deposed by his predecessor, Eudoxius, 
 he gave a false colouring to a most just cause of exile 
 by a sudden change of faith {exiliijustissimam causam 
 subitafidei 'mutatione dehmt).' St. Jerome appears 
 to have derived this information from the people of 
 
 * Meletius had returned from his first hanishment several years 
 before this account of it was written by St. Epiphanius, but he 
 had again been banished twice, and was then undergoing his third 
 and last period of exile. .See Tilloniont, note vi. sur S. Meleee.
 
 TIIEY WERE DISREGARDED BY ST. EPIPIIAXIUS. 271 
 
 whom St. Epiplianius says that he cannot tell wliether iioercs. ixxiii. 3r>. 
 they were carried away by hatred or envy, or wliether 
 they wished to advance their own cause, but that 
 they insinuated certain things, such as that the move- 
 ment against Meletius was not on account of his 
 orthodoxy, but because, they said, of canonical mat- 
 ters and trouble between himself and his clergy, and 
 because he received some whom he had previously 
 rejected and anathematized. St. Epiphanius adds, 
 that he paid no regard at all to these things, chiefly 
 because of the ensuing daily amendment amongst the 
 followers of Meletius, and their confession of the faith. 
 There was a subsequent charge against the orthodoxy 
 of Meletius, which was equally unfounded. 
 
 It is essential to bear in mind the currency of 
 such stories at the time, as well as the acknowledged 
 previous connection of Meletius with the Arians, in 
 order to form a just estnnate of the conduct of 
 Eome and the West, under the very perplexing com- 
 bination of circumstances which ensued. The early 
 errors of Meletius were nobly atoned for ; and the 
 later charges against him were doubtless misrepre- 
 sentations ; but it must be remembered that, how- 
 ever unjust the accusations might be, they would 
 wear a greater semblance of truth from the fact of 
 his culpable antecedents, and that the conflicting 
 evidence, and the circumstances of the times, ren- 
 dered it extremely difficult for persons in a distant 
 country to arrive quickly at a positive conclusion. 
 
 The ways of Providence are inscrutable, but God
 
 272 ST. .ArELETIUS REFOrv^fED THE LAXER CATHOLICS, 
 
 acts tlirough liumaii means, and, as is sucrgested by 
 Tilleraont, it may have been in expiation of the faults 
 of his yoiitli that St. Meletius was permitted to remain 
 for the greater part of liis hfe, without any formal 
 and express acknowledgment of his ecclesiastical 
 position on the part of the see of Eome ; and tliat he 
 never enjoyed direct and formal episcopal communion 
 with St. Athanasius ; for although at one time lie 
 seemed on the point of it, it was unaccountably 
 j)Ostponed, and that illustrious confessor was called 
 to his reward above, before the position of St. 
 Meletius in Antioch had been universally recognised. 
 The change effected The expectations of the Catholics were in no small 
 Antioch. dcgrcc fulfilled through the benefits which religion 
 derived from the election of Meletius to Antioch. 
 oratio in landom St. Johu Chrysostom reminds the people of that city 
 
 S. Meletii. . . i/.ii- i 
 
 liow, dunng the short mterval ot the thirty days, or 
 less, which elapsed between his entrance and his 
 exile, he had succeeded in cutting off from the 
 Church corrupt and incurable members, and in re- 
 storing health to the multitude : and how he had so 
 firmly imp^.antcd the truth in the hearts of the faith- 
 ful, that it was not hencef<^rth to be rooted up by 
 the violence of future storms, or corrupted through 
 Rufin. X. 24. the subtlety of future temptations. He had com- 
 Viiies. annot.'in loc. plctcly wou ovcr thosc many Catholics whom he had 
 
 Soenit. ii. 44. n i • i • 'iia* i j. 
 
 Sozom. iv. 28. louiid HI outwai'd eommuiuou with tJie Arians, but 
 
 Tillemont, 8. Vital et , , i . -i Px -i i • i i. 
 
 s. Phiiogono. "^^'ho returned to them no more alter the banishment 
 of ]\li'letius. Such of the faithful as acknowledged 
 him for tlieir l)isli()p, rejected with firmness the
 
 BUT THE EUSTATIIIANS STILL HELD ALOOF. 27 o 
 
 communion of the newly-intruded Euzoius, and 
 assembled apart for their religious worship in the old 
 church of the old town, which was at that time a 
 suburb outside the city gates, and w^as called the 
 Palasa (rj TraXond), ou account of its antiquity. The 
 church appears to have been frequently designated 
 by the same title, though Theodoret styles it the 
 ' Apostolic Church,' and it is said to have occupied 
 the place of a church of apostolic origin, in which 
 the chair of St. Peter was first established. 
 ■ The Eustathians, under their priest Paulinus, held 
 aloof from Meletius, whilst they rejected Euzoius ; 
 and, in fact, neither the present orthodoxy of the 
 former, nor yet his sufferings in behalf of the faith 
 and noble confession of the Nicene Creed, were suffi- 
 cient of themselves to remedy the essential invalidity 
 of his election by the Arians, until the application of 
 the formal indulgence accorded for such cases by the 
 subsequent council of Alexandria. It was on this 
 account, together, it was said, with some hesitation 
 respecting Arian baptism, that the Eustathians could 
 not be persuaded to unite with the Catholics under 
 Meletius, though they were at one with them respect- 
 ing the faith. ' One,' says Theodoret, ' was the 
 confession of faith on both sides. For each party 
 contended for the doctrine expounded at Mcaja.' 
 Socrates states, that after the banishment of Meletius, 
 'those who retained their disposition towards him, 
 abandoning the congregation of the Arians, held their 
 assembhes by themselves ;' those who had believed in 
 
 VOL. I. T 
 
 Tho Eustathians 
 
 remain apart, 
 
 tliough the 
 
 Melctians 
 
 confess the same 
 
 faith. 
 
 Theod. iii. 4. 
 
 Socrat. ii. 44. 
 
 Sozom. iv. '28. 
 
 Nicoph.Callist.ix. 48.
 
 274 MELETIUS IS RECALLED FROM EXILE. 
 
 tlie homooiision from the first being unwilling to 
 communicate with them, ' because Meletius had been 
 ordained through the vote of the Arians, and because 
 his followers had been baptized by them.' ' In this 
 way,' he adds, ' the church in Antioch also was 
 divided into two parts, each of them holding one and 
 the same doctrine.' Sozomen says precisely the same. 
 Nicephorus Calhstus, who, though a more recent 
 author, sometimes throws light on the ancient histo- 
 rians, states that ' though both sides were united in 
 doctrine, yet they were separated on the sole account 
 of the election of Meletius.' In the preceding sen- 
 tence, how^ever, he mentions also the Arian baptism 
 as one of the grounds of separation. This would 
 appear to have been an unfounded objection, if it 
 reall}^ was made ; otherwise it could hardly have 
 failed to have been noticed in the subsequent letter 
 from the council of Alexandria to the Antiochians, 
 which makes no mention of it. 
 Retnni The first exile of Meletius was not of long dura- 
 
 exi lid bishops, tion. The Emperor Constantius died towards the 
 close of the year 361, and his successor, the apostate 
 Julian, permitted all bishops then in banishment 
 for religion, to return to the occupation of their 
 Ainmiiin. MarceiL sccs. Accordiug to thc pagan liistoriau, he wished 
 to leave the Christians to their internal dissensions 
 that he might have the less to fear from the unani- 
 mity of the people. Meletius therefore was recalled 
 from Melitene, in Armenia, to which he had been 
 l)aiiis]ied, and lie returned to Antioch in tlie year
 
 RELEASE OF EUSEBIUS AND LUCIFER. 27') 
 
 302. The same event released also the two great 
 Western bishops, Eusebiiis of VercelH, and Lucifer 
 of Cagliari, from their exile in tlie Upper Thebais. 
 Lncifer had been one of the papal legates at tlie Baron. Annai. E^d. 
 council of Milan in the year 355. Eusebius of ""' '^""' 
 Vercelli had joined the apostolic legates on that 
 occasion, and had taken a prominent part in tlie 
 proceedings. Together with the papal legates he 
 had distinguished himself in the council by his firm- 
 ness in refusing to communicate with the Arians, or 
 to condemn St. Athanasius in his absence ; he had 
 been banished in consequence, as well as Lucifer 
 and others, and he had suffered incredible hardships. 
 
 The division between the Catholics of Antioch EflfiMs to reunite 
 could not tail to prove a source or griei and of Antioch. 
 solicitude to these holy confessors, as well as to the 
 universal body of the orthodox, and it formed an 
 object of special attention in the important synod 
 which was held at Alexandria in the year oG2. 
 
 Cardinal Baronius considers that the Pope Liberius Annai. F/vIos. an. 
 
 , , , , c ,^ ' 1 • 1 • 3G2, nn. clxxvii, ccvi. 
 
 was the author and promoter ot this synod, m his 
 anxiety to repair the damages whicli the Catholic 
 cause had sustained at Eimini. There are stronger 
 reasons for supposing this to have been the case 
 than those which are adduced by the learned car- 
 dinal. 
 
 The same eminent author is further of opinion that Tiio lopjtions 
 Eusebius, the bishop of VerceUi, and Lucifer, tlieEns,i.iM.^nn.iLm-itVr. 
 bishop of Cagliari in Sardinia, were nominated by 
 the Pope as liis legates for the above-named Alexan- 
 
 T 2
 
 276 THE LEG ATI XE TOWERS OF 
 
 drian council, and he also considers that the active 
 and prominent part which was taken by these noble 
 and indefatigable warriors of Christ in behalf of the 
 Catholic cause throughout the East, and particularly 
 by Lucifer in tlie affairs of Antioch, was in virtue of 
 the same legatine authority. The conduct of these 
 two Western prelates, and the manner in which their 
 assistance was universally received and accepted, 
 are plain indications that they were entrusted by the 
 Apostolic See with powers of extra ordinaiy jurisdic- 
 tion and authority in the East; nor is there wanting 
 more direct evidence in justification of this conclusion. 
 
 De concord. Sacerd.et It must bc obscrvcd, that Dc Marca is of opinion that 
 they acted in virtue of former legatine faculties not 
 
 Discip. de I'Egiise, yct bccomc cxtiuct. Thomassiu refers to him, and 
 adopts the same view. But this explanation is un- 
 satisfactory, to say the least. The dignity conferred 
 by the office would certainly remain in a lesser degree 
 attached to the person of the bearer after the office 
 itself had ceased. But the ecclesiastical faculties 
 given with it, could only continue for the period 
 and the purpose for which they had originally been 
 granted. It seems hardly probable that the powers 
 delegated bj'^ the Pope to his representatives in a 
 Western council, should have extended so far as to 
 confer upon them futm-e authority in questions which 
 had not then arisen, and future jurisdiction over 
 Eastern churches, which, at that time, there was no 
 idea of their visiting. Moreover, it does not appear 
 that Eusebius was ever constituted one of the papal
 
 EUSEBIUS AND LUCIFKR. 277 
 
 legates at Milan, though he was undoubtedly most 
 closely associated with the previous cognate embassy 
 from the Pope to Constantius in Gaul. This embassy 
 occurred in the year 354, after the lapse, which 
 happily proved but temporary, of the Pope's legate, 
 Vincentius of Capua, and its object was to obtain the 
 consent of the emperor for the celebration of a 
 council, which was held in the following year at 
 ]\Iilan. The legates originally appointed by Liberius 
 for this embassy were Lucifer, Bishop of Cagliari, the 
 priest Pancratius, and the deacon Hilarius. Eusebius 
 of Yercelli, was himself a native of Sardinia, wliicli 
 would form a further motive for his union with 
 Lucifer, in addition to the burning zeal for tlie faith 
 which filled the hearts of both. Liberius wrote ex- coustant. 
 pressly to Eusebius to solicit him to accompany his ^pLI. 'LiberirPapsB 
 legates to Constantius, and the language of the Pope '"• '^^ ^■"• 
 makes manifest how highly he estimated the virtues 
 of the holy Bishop of VerceUi. He greets Eusebius 
 with an earnest expression of the consolation he had 
 derived from his uncouquered faith, ' by which,' says 
 the Pope, ' following the precepts of the Gospels, 
 thou liast in no way deviated from the fellowship of 
 the ApostoHc See. Me, frater carissime, ad sola- 
 tium vita^ prcesentis erigit invicta jides iua, qua 
 secutus Evangeliorum jjra^cepta, nullo genere, a con- 
 sortia sedis apostolicce discrepasti' In a subsequent 
 letter he more especially commends to Eusebius tlie 
 above-named legates, begging of him to accompany 
 them on their mission, to unite himself to their fellow-
 
 278 THE pope's confidence in eusebius. 
 
 ship, that, wherever it may be, he may be also, and 
 tliat 'united in conference and in counsel, they may 
 perform that which is pleasing to God and His 
 angels, and expedient for the Catholic Church.' 
 Eusebius replied with an assent to the request, upon 
 which the Pope honoured him with another letter, 
 expressive of his satisfaction, and of his confidence 
 that the cause would be more prosperous since 
 Eusebius would not desert his brethren, and he bade 
 him to ' labour as a good soldier who expects the 
 reward of the eternal Emperor.' ' Holding,' adds the 
 Pope, ' this hfe in contempt, show yourself a truth- 
 speaking priest, that through your joint labours for the 
 state of the Church the council may be celebrated.' 
 It is therefore evident that Eusebius was formally 
 associated by Liberius with his legates in this embassy 
 to Constantius, and that, in this way,- a special lega- 
 tion was, on that occasion, entrusted to him, although 
 
 Coustant. col. 423. hc is uot mcutioued in the letter sent by the Pope to 
 the emperor through Lucifer, in wliich the names of 
 the other legates are expressly enumerated. It does 
 not, however, appear that Eusebius occupied the 
 office of a papal legate in the council which was con- 
 
 r.AY.m. Ann. Ecci. vcucd during the subsequent year at ]\Iilan. At the 
 first he hesitated to attend it, but his presence being 
 especially sohcited by the .synod and the emperor, as 
 well as by the papal legates, he ultimately went up 
 to tlie council in (.'ompany with the legates, and dis- 
 tinguished himself in union with them by his coura- 
 geous defence of the Nicene faith.
 
 THE church's customs ILLUSTRATH HER HISTORY. 27 'J 
 
 The epistle sent by Liberius to Eusebius and Ep. vii. CouHtant. 
 Lucifer, together with Dionysius, during their subse- *"" ' *""'" 
 quent exile in the East, contains no instructions on 
 ecclesiastical matters. But it is supposed to have been 
 written in the very year of their banishment, a.d. 
 355, seven years previous to the synod of Alexandria 
 now in question, and it is impossible to say what 
 subsequent communications may have been trans- 
 mitted to Eusebius and Lucifer, from Eome, either 
 through letters now lost, or orally through confi- 
 dential messengers. The difficulties of the times and 
 the consequent importance of secrecy frequently 
 rendered it unadvisable to entrust such matters to 
 writing ; and this circumstance, together with the 
 loss of documents to an extent of which we can form 
 no idea, will account for our ignorance respecting 
 many perplexing passages in the Church's early 
 history. A candid enquirer after truth will not 
 refuse to explain any such doubtful point according 
 to the established constitution of the Church, and 
 her existing laws and customs, rather tlian appeal to 
 it as a ground for disbelieving in them, or as an 
 excuse for disobeying them. 
 
 In the instance before us, however, we are in Historical tosiimoi.y 
 possession of positive historical evidence as to the fact their ligations, 
 of the legations of Eusebius and Lucifer in the East, 
 though we have not any record of the time or tlie 
 manner in which they were conferred upon them. 
 Father Papebrochius, in the Bollandist life of Acta sanctorum. 
 
 . n 1- • • .1 r n • 1 DiexxMaii.c.v.n.l.J. 
 
 Lucifer ol Cagliari, gives the loiiowmg words, as
 
 280 EUSEBIUS AND LUCIFER ENDEAVOUR 
 
 attributed to St. Honoratus, who was a disciple 
 of St. Eusebius, and tlie second successor to his 
 bishopric. The words are taken from a Hfe of St. 
 Eusebius preserved in the archives of Vercelh, and 
 they may be hterally translated as follows : — ' St. Eu- 
 sebius was present and presided in the Alexandrian 
 council with Athanasius, and he had four legations, 
 one to Constantius with Lucifer the Sardinian; another 
 with the same to the Alexandi'ian synod ; another, 
 after the synod, to the Oriental Churches ; the fourth, 
 afterwards, into the West. But the first three he had 
 with Lucifer, the last indeed alone, without any com- 
 panion.' Papebrochius appears to think it ques- 
 tionable whether these words really came from St. 
 Honoratus. However this may be, they bear in- 
 ternal evidence of their accuracy, in the fact that 
 they do not ascribe to Eusebius any legation to the 
 council of Milan, which a careless or unscrupulous 
 eulogist would certainly have been apt to do. To 
 say the least, the document must be accepted in 
 evidence of the local tradition of the period to which 
 it belongs, and, unless proved to be a forgery, of 
 wliich there does not appear to be any suspicion, its 
 authority cannot reasonably be set aside ; especially 
 since the statement which it contains, derives con- 
 firmation from the conduct of Eusebius and Lucifer 
 in the East, as recorded in ecclesiastical history. 
 Had they acted as tliey did without authority from 
 the Roman Pontiff, they would have grievously vio- 
 lated the laws of the Church, and not only the eastern
 
 TO RESTORE PEACE AND DISCIPLIXE IX THE EAST. 281 
 
 bishops would liave loudly protested against their 
 interference and denounced their proceedings, Ijut 
 Eome herself would have been foremost in con- 
 demning them. 
 
 When Eusebius and Lucifer were released from ti.c 
 
 their exile, they took counsel between themselves, ''''''Yr''''^ 
 and with others of the orthodox, respecting the ^"tiI;!";"?;^ i'f"'' 
 means to be adopted for the reinforcement of the '""^80x0111''^'''^' ^' 
 ecclesiastical laws and the restoration of peace to the ^^^^- '• ^^-^ '^'^• 
 church, especially as regarded Antioch, wliich occu- 
 pied the first position in the East, and where, in the 
 words of Theodoret, ' the sound body of the church 
 was separated into two parts.' It was finally de- 
 cided for Lucifer to proceed to Antioch, and for 
 Eusebius to go to Alexandria, ' in order,' says 
 Socrates, ' that, together with Athanasius, having 
 assembled a synod, the dogmata of the church 
 might be strengthened.' He afterwards states that, 
 ' when Eusebius had reached Alexandria, he quickly, 
 along with Athanasius, called together the synod.' 
 Sozomen says the same. We learn, however, from 
 Theodoret and Eufinus, that Eusebius at the first 
 asked Lucifer to accompany him to Alexandria, but 
 that Lucifer would not accede to his request, being 
 intent on the settlement of the affaks of Antioch. 
 He sent, however, his deacon to the synod in his 
 stead, and agreed to acquiesce through him in its 
 acts. The historians speak of one deacon only as 
 sent by Lucifer, though the letter from the synod to 
 the Antiochians expressly gives the names of two.
 
 282 THE DELIBERATIONS AT ALEXANDRIA. 
 
 The two bishops, Cymatius of Paltiis, and Anatohus 
 
 of Eiibcea, are associated witli Lucifer and the others 
 
 in the address of the same letter, and since they are 
 
 not named as present in the council, they may per- 
 
 ha]3s have accompanied Lucifer to Antioch, or may 
 
 have met him in tliat city. 
 
 Council Tills celebrated synod of Alexandria is described 
 
 Alexandria, by Eufiuus as a ' couucll of coufcssors, few in 
 
 A.D. ;562.' number, but perfect in faith, and many in merits.' 
 
 Hist. Eccl. 1. (x.) 28. ' ■"■ . \ 
 
 Besides giving their attention to such points of doc- 
 trine as required it, without adding to what was 
 done at Nicasa, the assembled bishops applied them- 
 selves especially to deliberate upon the best measures 
 to be taken for the restoration of tranquillity through- 
 out the church, and for the reparation of the damage 
 which had been sustained through the Arians. 
 Tliey had before them a question of incalculable 
 importance respecting the manner in which converts 
 returning from heresy were to be dealt with, and 
 particularly as to wliether such as had received 
 ordination, were to be admitted according to their 
 rank amongst tlie Cathohc clergy. There were 
 those whose zeal for the faith led them to counsel 
 that, though tlie orders could not be forfeited, such 
 persons should be suspended from the ecclesiastical 
 office as unworthy. Others more imbued with 
 apostolic charity maintained, that those who had 
 remained steadfast should stoop to lift up the fallen, 
 and should humble themselves in order to recover 
 the feeble wlio had been led astray. Such was the
 
 INDULGENCE TO THE LAPSED ON THEIR REPENTAXCR. 283 
 
 course best suited to the interests of the Christian 
 people in general, who would have been strongly- 
 opposed to any measure which, on account of a 
 culpable weakness now lamented, would have 
 severed from them pastors whom they loved, and 
 whom they knew to have renounced then- error. 
 After careful discussion the side of mercy was pre- 
 ferred, at the same time that a just distinction was 
 drawn between the deceivers and the deceived. 
 Pardon was proclaimed for all who penitently sought st. Athanas. Epiht. 
 for reconciliation ; but such as had been chiefs and Hufiuiauuni. 
 leaders among the heretics were not to be admitted 
 to a place amongst the clergy. Those, however, 
 who had fallen through violence or surprise, and 
 now repented of their error, were to be admitted 
 not only to pardon, but were also to be received 
 to their rank amongst the clergy, particularly, says 
 St. Athanasius, since such persons alleged in excuse 
 that they had yielded to the Arians in order to pre- 
 vent the corruption of the church and the ruin of 
 the people, through the appointment of most im- 
 pious pastors in their stead. All who came back 
 from heresy, or from communion with heretics, were 
 further required to make a profession of the faith of 
 Nica2a, and to anathematize the contrary errors. 
 This wise and salutary indulgence thus conceded by 
 the assembled bishops, was universally approved and 
 welcomed, and it was confirmed by tlie authority 
 of the Eoman See. St. Jerome declared it to l)e Dialog, advers. 
 the salvation oi the church. ' ihe West, tie says,
 
 284 iMELETIUS WAS VIRTUALLY ENTITLED TO IT. 
 
 The case of 
 
 Meletius. 
 
 Hard. Act. Concil. 
 t. iv. coll. 63, 64. 
 
 ' assented to this decision, and by this so necessary 
 council the world was rescued from the jaws of 
 Satan.' 
 
 The principle on which this concession was grounded, 
 applied manifestly to the position of Meletius and his 
 friends. We have evidence that such was the tradi- 
 tional opinion at Eome, in the appeal which was made 
 to the case as a precedent by the papal legate in the 
 seventh general council, the second of Nicsea, a.d. 
 787. The same question of the reception of repentant 
 heretics being then under discussion, and various 
 authorities being produced in testimony of the former 
 l)ractice of the church, it is recorded in the acts 
 of the said council, that — 
 
 ' Peter the priest, most dear to God, and represen- 
 tative of Adrian the most holy Pope of Eome, said, 
 " As say the historians, the holy Meletius was ordained 
 by the Arians, and he ascended the ambo and pro- 
 claimed the homoousion, and the ordination was not 
 rejected." 
 
 ' Theodore, the most holy Bishop of Catana, and 
 they who were with him, the bishops of Sicily, said, 
 " The archpriest of the apostolic chair has spoken 
 truly." 
 
 'Tarasius,the most holy patriarch, said, "In nothing 
 d(j we find the holy fathers disagreeing," ' &c. &c. 
 
 Ijiit l)esides the concession of tlie indulgence in 
 general, and its consequent application to Meletius, 
 the position of the chuicli in Antioch called for and 
 received the particuhir attention of the bishops as-
 
 ESrECIAL ATTENTION IS CilYEN TO ANTIOCII. 285 
 
 sembled in Alexandria. Tliey carefully examined the 
 questions connected with it, and the conclusions at 
 which they arrived were summed up, after many of 
 the bishops had departed for their dioceses, by those 
 who were left in Alexandria, in a letter replete witli 
 the spirit of wisdom and charity, and which appears 
 to have been written by St. Athanasius himself. Be- 
 sides being found in the collections of the councils, 
 this letter is published amongst the works of St. t. i. p. ii. p. 015. 
 
 AT • ^ 1 -1 '/^ \ \ >4 ~ cd. Pat;n-. 1777. 
 
 Athanasms, under the title, O Trpog mvg AvTio-^sig 
 r6fJt.og 'A5avao-/oy ^Af/^iSTritrxoTrou 'AXs^avO^s/a^. 
 
 It is stated at the close of the epistle that it was The tomo 
 written to the five following bishops : — ' Eusebius, of st. Ati^m.-isius 
 Vercelli, a city of Gaul;^ Lucifer, of the island of Antiociiians. 
 Sardinia ; Asterius, of Petra in Arabia ; Cymatius, 
 of Paltus in Coelesyria ; and Anatohus, of Euboea.' 
 It is observable that precedence is here given to the 
 names of Eusebius and Lucifer, and after them to 
 that of Asterius, who was to accompany Eusebius to 
 Antioch. It is also stated that those who sent the 
 epistle were — 'Pope Athanasius and those who 
 were with him in Alexandria, Eusebius himself, and 
 Asterius, and the rest,' whose names then follow. 
 Eusebius and Asterius, having assisted at the council, 
 were numbered amongst the bishops who sent the 
 letter ; though, being also entrusted with the execu- 
 tion of the decrees, they were necessarily at the 
 same time included amongst those to whom it was 
 
 '&"- 
 
 1 That is to say, of Cisalpine Gaul, a part of Italy
 
 286 THE FATHEES I\ ALEXANDRIA 
 
 addressed. In a preceding paragraph it is mentioned 
 that the document was also subscribed by the two 
 deacons sent to the Council by Lucifer, as well as by 
 two other deacons from Paulinus, who, though only 
 a priest, was thus represented at the synod, as the 
 head of the acknowledged Cathohc party in Antioch, 
 the bishopric being, strictly speaking, vacant.^ There 
 is no express mention of Meletius, nor of his having 
 been in any way represented in the council. 
 Commencement Tlic bishops iu Alexandria conmienced the letter 
 epistle. by expressing their confidence in the ability of 
 the bishops they were addressing to set in order 
 all the affairs of the Church, but added, that 
 they considered it necessary to write as they did in 
 
 ' Baroniixs (an. 3G2, nn. 180, 215, 21G.) considers that Paiilinus, 
 before sending his deacons to the council of Alexandria, had 
 been consecrated bishop by Lucifer, and that the council ap- 
 proved of his consecration. Valesius also thinks (Annot. in 
 Socrat. Hist. Eccl. iii. 5) that the consecration of Paulinus by- 
 Lucifer preceded the mission of the deacons to the council. But 
 this opinion appears to be untenable. It does not accord with 
 the circumstances related by the early historians, and it is also 
 at variance with the whole tenor of the letter of the same synod 
 to the Antioch ians. That document mentions Paulinus and his 
 party, but it never speaks of him as a bishop. He is not styled 
 brother, or fellow-minister, by its authors in any portion of it. It 
 assigns him no part in the task of the reception of the converts from 
 heresy or from heretical communion, Avhich was one that belonged 
 essentially to the office of the bishop. If, at the time when the 
 epistle was written, the bishops who sent it had ]>een aware of and 
 had approved the consecration of Paulinus, they would certainly 
 have expressly recognised his episcopal rank, and they would 
 have included his name amongst those of the bishops they were 
 addressing. See Tillemont, Ilist. Eccl. t. vii. note ii. sur Lucifer 
 de Cagliari ; also, Pagi, Not. in Baron. Anna). Eccl. in loc. citat.
 
 COUNSEL CLEJIEXCY AND ^lODERATIOX. 2S7 
 
 consequence of the good tidings which had readied 
 them, tliat many formerly separated from tlicm 
 through party spirit (8ia (piy^ovsixlav) were now 
 desirous for reconcihation, and that many also were 
 abandoning the Arian heresy, and seeking theii- 
 communion. They say that they wish they coukl 
 join the other bishops in person, but that, as they 
 have stated in otiier letters, they are prevented by 
 the necessities of the church, and they express their 
 gratitude to Eusebius and Asterius, who, instead of 
 returning to their own dioceses, have agreed at tlieir 
 request to proceed to Antioch in their place, on 
 account of the church's urgent need, adding, — ' We 
 are consoled by their consent, because when they 
 and yourselves are there, we account ourselves all to 
 be present with you.' 
 
 The epistle then proceeds : — ' Call to you all instructions 
 therefore who desire to make peace with us, and Antioeh. 
 especially those who assemble in the Palcea ' (the Me- 
 letians), 'and those who fly from the Arians, and 
 receive them as fathers would receive their sons, and 
 as their teachers and guides accept them back, and, 
 uniting them to our beloved Paulinus and those who 
 are with him [a-uva-^avrsg aurohg roig aya-^r^roig r][x(nv 
 Toig TTsp) nauXTvov), demand nothing more from them 
 than to anathematize the heresy of the Arians, and 
 to profess the faitli professed by the holy fathers at 
 Nicasa,' and to anathematize also the existing here- 
 sies against the Holy Gliost, with those of Sabcllius 
 and others. 'When these things are done,' add tlic
 
 288 TIIEY EXPLAIN CERTAIN DIFFICULTIES, 
 
 fathers, ' all evil suspicion will be removed on all 
 sides, and there will be shown forth only the pure 
 faitli of the Catholic Church.' After observing that 
 no one can be ignorant that they themselves, as well 
 as those who have always been in communion witli 
 them, hold the same faith, the Alexandi'ian fathers 
 say again: — 'Since, then, we rejoice with those who 
 desire to be united with us, with all such indeed, but 
 especially with those who assemble in the Pala3a, and 
 we have very exceedingly given glory to the Lord, 
 both on account of all, and because of the good pur- 
 pose of these, we exhort you that concord may be 
 established on these conditions, and that nothing 
 more than these, as we have before said, be required 
 by you of those who assemble in the Paltea ; and that 
 Paulinus and his party put forward nothing different, 
 and nothing more than was put forward at Nica3a.' 
 Tliey declare that a certain writing attributed to the 
 Council of Sardica is spurious, and not to be ac- 
 knowledged or brouglit forward at all, nor yet any- 
 thing else besides the Nicene profession of faith. 
 The question The fatlicrs tlicu pass on to treat of the difference 
 
 of tlio , '■ 
 
 Hypostases. conccming the Hypostases. They state that, having 
 examined into the doctrine of those who were accused 
 of Arianism because they maintained tliat tliere were 
 three divine Hypostases, it became evident that the 
 term was applied by them to the Divine Persons, and 
 that tliey acknowledged the unity of the Divine Sub- 
 stance ; and that having afterwards questioned the 
 others who were charged with Sabellianism because
 
 AND SEEK TO ESTABLISH PEACE. 280 
 
 they maintained one only hypostasis in the Godhead, 
 they found tliat the term was apphed by them to 
 the Divine Substance, and that tliey never intended 
 to deny tliat tliere were three distinct and Divine 
 Persons in the one God. Thus, both these parties 
 were found to unite in the CathoHc doctrine, and 
 merely to differ respecting the application of the 
 term, and both of them alike anathematized Arius, 
 and Sabellius, and the other heretics. ' After these 
 explanations,' proceeds the letter, ' all, by the grace 
 of God, agreed that the profession of faith of the 
 fathers at Nica^a was better and more accurate than 
 terms of this kind, and that for the future they ought 
 in preference to be satisfied with the words of that 
 council, and to make use of them.' 
 
 After treating of another point, which was con- Exhortation 
 nected with the Apollinarian heresy, and which con- avoid idle questions, 
 cerned the doctrine of the Incarnation, the fathers in 
 Alexandria earnestly exhorted the bishops they were 
 addressing, to dissuade the people from entertaining 
 mere questions about words, and as faithful servants 
 and stewards of the Lord, to prevent all such occasions 
 of offence and of discord, and to prefer peace to every- 
 thing of the kind, provided the faith was sound. 
 
 Finally, they gave directions to the said bishops to Conclusion 
 read the letter in public, in the place where they were the epistle, 
 accustomed to assemble in Antioch, and to have all 
 men called there to them. ' For it is right,' said the 
 fathers, ' that the epistle should first be read there, 
 and that there those who wish and seek for peace 
 
 VOL. L U
 
 200 THE LETTER FRO^I THE COUNCIL RECOGNISED 
 
 should be united with one aiiotlier ; and afterwards 
 when they are united together, tliat the assembHes 
 should be concluded wherever it may be pleasing to 
 all the people, your excellencies being present, and 
 that the Lord should be glorified by all in common.' 
 The salutation which then follows appears to indicate 
 that the letter was Avritten by St. Athanasius, in the 
 name of the other bishops : — ' The brethren who are 
 witli me salute you. I pray that you may be well, 
 and that you will make mention of us to the Lord. I 
 Athanasius : likewise the other bishops assembled 
 too-ether have subscribed,' See. Eusebius further sub- 
 scribed separately to a short Latin form of acquies- 
 cence in the decision respecting the Hypostases, and 
 other points connected with the faith, to Avhich 
 Asterius added his assent. There is also subjoined to 
 the document a subsequent profession of faith from 
 Paulinus. 
 
 Hist. Ecci. i. (x.) 29. It is statcd by Eufinus that, after the bishops had 
 arrived at their decision, b}^ a decree of the council 
 tlie charge (procuraiio) of the East, was committed to 
 Asterius and those who were with him, and that of 
 the West, to Eusebius. This, no doubt, refers to the 
 promulgation of the acts of the synod. But nothing 
 
 Tiiipmont.Hist.Ecci. morc is heard of Asterius. It is conjectured that he 
 
 St. Athanase. , ,.,. tt n ^ i • 
 
 art. xcix. may liave tlied nmnediately aiterwards, and it ap- 
 pears from subsequent events that Eusebius took 
 charge of the matter in the East, as well as in the 
 West 
 
 In addition to its general importance, this letter is
 
 THE POSITION OF THE EUSTATIIIANS. 201 
 
 particularly valuable as a testimony to the judgment RemarkH 
 of leading Catholic bishops of the day, including "^'°" 
 the great St. Athanasius, upon the position of eccle- 
 siastical ailliirs in Antioch at the period when it was 
 written. It is especially to be observed that this letter 
 distinctly recognised Pauhnus and those under him, 
 as forming the Catholic body in Antioch, and that 
 it required the others to be united with them be- 
 fore any further step was taken. But no sort of sub- 
 mission was required to Paulinus individually, nor were 
 his personal claims in any way put forward. It is also 
 to be remarked that the letter contained no allusion to 
 Meletius or to the question of the bishopric. But 
 so soon as the reconciliation had been effected, the 
 choice of the church for the concluding thanks- 
 giving was to be left to the people in general. They 
 were therefore left at liberty to select the church 
 occupied by the Meletians, and, provided Paidinus 
 and his party had consented, the fathers would, in 
 all probability, have rejoiced to have seen all the 
 Catholics of Antioch united under Meletius as their 
 bishop, after he had fulfilled the few and easy con- 
 ditions which were imposed by the council. At 
 the same time they would not be disposed to press 
 such an arrangement upon the Eustathians against 
 their will, out of deference to their long and un- 
 swerving fidelity, and to their position as the old 
 Cathohc party ; a position which rendered the case 
 of Antioch peculiar and exceptional, and, in foct, 
 which constituted the difficulty. It is evident, how- 
 
 u2
 
 292 THE DlFFia'LTV INCREASED BY 
 
 ever, from the above-cited epistle, tliat the Meletians 
 were desirous to be reconciled with the great Catholic 
 body, and if all parties had been guided by the 
 spirit which prevailed in the council, it may reason- 
 ably be supposed that some mode would have been 
 discovered of terminating the local dissension, espe- 
 cially since any necessary concessions for the sake of 
 peace, might have been hoped for from one of the 
 character of Meletius. But an event which had 
 occurred without the knowledge of the synod, ren- 
 dered fruitless all its endeavours for a speedy recon- 
 ciliation. 
 Lucifer consecrates Thc ardcut zcal of thc cntliusiastic and severe 
 Lucifer, could not brook the delay which was cal- 
 culated to prove most conducive to the successflil 
 accomplishment of his mission ; nor could he curb 
 his natural eagerness into the patience which appears 
 to have been called for by the circumstances, involving 
 as they did many obvious considerations of charity and 
 of wisdom. Whilst the bishops were dehberating at 
 Alexandria, Lucifer was acting at Antioch. Without 
 waiting for the decisions of the council, or even for 
 the assistance of his more aged and more prudent, 
 but certainly no less devoted colleague St. Eusebius, 
 he freely exercised the authority which had been 
 delegated to liim. 
 Thf'fMi. iii. .5. Apparently wearied with the fruitlessness of the 
 
 s<«om v.'i'i! repeated discourses upon concord, by which at first 
 Ji.if.n. I. (x.) 27. -j^^^ ]j,^Q vainly endeavoured to reconcile the divided 
 Catholics of Antioch, and finding the Eustathians to
 
 THE rilEClPlTANCE OF LUCIFKR. 203 
 
 be firm in tlie maintenance of their claims, he conse- 
 crated bishop their leader Paulinus, having obtained 
 the assistance of two other bishops for the pnrpose, 
 as is mentioned by St. Jerome, wlio thus records it in Op.onm. i. viii 
 his Chronicle : — ' Eusebius and Lucifer return from ed. cilat. 
 exile, of whom Lucifer, two other confessors ^ being 
 procured, makes bishop on the Catholic side at An- 
 tioch, Paulinus, presbyter of bishop Eustathius, wlio 
 had never defiled himself by communion with here- 
 tics.' Meletius had not yet returned to Antioch from 
 his place of banishment, and it is possible that Lucifer 
 wished to anticipate that event. The personal excel- 
 lence of Paulinus does not appear to have been called 
 in question. But in one respect this even tended to an 
 increase of the difficulty ; because it strengthened the 
 claims of the Eustatliians, which, on the one hand 
 could not be set aside, and on the other, could not be 
 acknowledged so fully as strict justice might have 
 required, without the exercise of an undue and repul- 
 sive severity towards Meletius and his followers who 
 were desirous for reconciliation. At the very moment 
 when mutual concessions miglit have healed and 
 terminated the schism, it was aggravated and pro- 
 lonsred through this mistaken zeal of Lucifer. Tlieo- 
 
 ' It is stated in a note on this passjige that Scaliger found 
 the names of these two bishops in a very ancient codex, given 
 as Gorgonius de Germania (qy. Germanicia, in Syria ?), and 
 Cymatius de Gabala. Tillemont thinks this may have been the 
 .same Cymatius who was one of the five to whom the letter Avas 
 addressed from Alexandria, and who was therein styled, of Falhis, 
 which was not far from Gabala. Tillemont, Lucii". de Cagl. iv.
 
 294 
 
 THE DISPLEASURE OF ST. EUSEBIL'S 
 
 Eusebius aiTiTcs 
 
 in 
 
 Autioch. 
 
 Socrat. iii. 9. 
 
 Sozom. V. 13. 
 
 Rufin. i. (x.) 30. 
 
 Thcod. iii. 5. 
 
 doret says, that Lucifer, ' not doing well {oux eZyz 
 TTouov),' consecrated Paulinus bishop for the Eusta- 
 thians. ' This,' he adds, ' prolonged that dissension, 
 for it lasted for five-and-eighty years,' &c. He 
 counts from tlie time of the banishment of St. 
 Eustathius, a.d. 330-1. Eufinus says that the two 
 dissentient Catholic parties in Antioch were hoping 
 that unity might be restored, if such a bishop could 
 be chosen for them as would prove agreeable not 
 only to one side but to both, wlien Lucifer, ' in over 
 haste [prceproperus) made Paulinus bishop, a Cathohc 
 indeed and a hoty man, and in all respects worthy of 
 the episcopate, but yet one in whom both parties 
 amongst the people could not acquiesce.' 
 
 Wlien the proceedings of the council had termi- 
 nated in Alexandria, St. Eusebius of Vercelli went 
 immediately to Antioch. On learning what had 
 been done there, he was greatly distressed, and de- 
 clined to acknowledge either party. According to 
 Rulinus, he liad visited that city before the council 
 was assembled, and liad led the people to anticipate 
 from it a satisfactory terniiiiatioii of tjieir dissensions. 
 He was greatly disturbed that the rashness of Lucifer 
 sliould have frustrated these designs of peace. Ru- 
 fiiuis thus relates the occurrence: — 'liut when 
 Eusebius returned to Antioch, and found a bishop 
 ordained there by Lucifer, contrary to \vhat was 
 promised, driven off both by sliame and indignation, 
 he departed, opening his comnuinion to neither side, 
 l)erause wlien lie went awav lioni thence, he had
 
 AT Till'] CONSECRATION OF TAULINUS. 205 
 
 promised that he would bring it to pass in tlie coun- 
 cil that such a bishop sliould be ordained for them 
 as would be declined by neither party.' It appears, 
 however, from Socrates and Sozomen, that Eusebius 
 did not leave Antioch till he had made every possible 
 exertion to unite the divided parties, but unhappily 
 without success. At length, ' perceiving,' says Theo- 
 doret, 'that the evil had become well-nigh incurable 
 through faulty treatment,' he went away, after pro- 
 claiming to both sides that the position of afliiirs 
 should be set straight in a synod of bishops. The 
 respect which he entertained for Lucifer deterred 
 him from giving vent in public to any expression of 
 his displeasure. Eusebius, together with the other 
 bishops, had recognised the communion of Pauli- 
 nus and his party in the letter from the Alexan- 
 drian synod, and it is therefore evident that in 
 holding aloof from it on his arrival in Antioch, he 
 was actuated by the strong disapprobation with 
 which he regarded the consecration of a bishop 
 in whom both parties could not agree, and pro- 
 bably also by the desire of making it known tliat 
 he had not himself consented to the act. Lucifer 
 was very greatly offended and displeased in conse- 
 quence, but it would lead me too far from my 
 subject to enter on his future history, whicli is in- 
 volved in great obscurity.^ 
 
 1 According to ancient historians, the above-mentioned dif- 
 ference respecting the consecration of Paulinus, gave rise to the 
 subsequent schism of the Liiciierians, who separated thcm.selves
 
 296 THE CONSECRATION OF PAULINUS, 
 
 The position Tlioiigli IK) question coiilcl arise as to the validity 
 
 raui'inus. of the cpiscopal order conferred upon PauUnus by his 
 consecration, a very serious question might arise 
 respecting the vahdity of his jurisdiction. Had 
 Lucifer acted as a simple bishop without extraordi- 
 nary faculties, he could have given the orders, but 
 he could not have given jurisdiction. He could 
 have made Paulinus a bishop, but he could not 
 have made him bishop of Antioch. It cannot, 
 however, be supposed for a moment that Lucifer 
 would have acted as he did unless special authority 
 
 from the church on account of the indulgence accorded to the re- 
 pentant Arians. But though that sect unhappily took its name from 
 Lucifer of Cagliari, it is by no means certain that he himself Avent 
 so far, or that he was ever guilty of schism, or, if he fell into it at 
 all, that he died in it. On the contrary, there have not been want- 
 ing grave authorities Avho maintained that Lucifer died not only 
 in communion with the church, but even in the odour of sanctity. 
 His life, with the express title of Saint applied to him, is found 
 in the Bollandist Acta Sanctorum of the 20th of May, from the 
 pen of the learned Papebrochius. The controversy respecting 
 his sanctity at one time grew so warm, particularly in the island 
 of Sardinia, that, after the matter had been carefully considered 
 by the Koman Intjuisition, Pope Urban Vlil. issued a decree, 
 bearing date the 20th of June 1G41, by which he formally pro- 
 hibited anything fiuther to l)e written either for or against the 
 alleged sanctity of Lucifer, or that there should be any further 
 public discussion respecting it in any way, under pain of excom- 
 munication ii)SO facto, until it should be otherwise ordained by 
 the Holy See. The decree at the same time states explicitly 
 that ' His Holiness does not intend thereby to declare or decide 
 anything concerning the alleged sanctity of Lucifer, or in oppo- 
 sition to it, but he wishes it to remain in the state in which it is 
 found.' For this decree, with further particulars, see the cele- 
 brated work of Benedict XIV., ' De Canonizatione,' t. i. lib. i. 
 
 CJIJ). xl.
 
 THOUGH HASTY, WAS LEGITIMATE. 207 
 
 had been delegated to liini by the Eomaii Poiitin'. 
 Otherwise the whole East would have called out in 
 indignation against such unwarrantable interference 
 on the part of an individual Western bishop in her 
 principal and presiding diocese ; and Eome would 
 have loudly condemned and repudiated his conduct, 
 Lucifer was blamed for his precipitancy, but there is 
 no record of his having been even accused of an undue 
 assumption of authority. For this reason, and others 
 already referred to, it may be concluded that, liow- 
 ever imprudent the conduct of Lucifer, he never- 
 theless validly and legitimately conferred upon Pau- 
 linus not only the episcopal order, but the episcopal 
 jurisdiction also which appertained to the see of 
 Antioch It might, however, be questioned whether 
 that jurisdiction was not affected by the intervening 
 decision at Alexandria, and tlie conduct of Eusebius 
 of YercelH. There is no reason for supposing that 
 the legatine powers of Eusebius were less ample or 
 less general than those possessed by Lucifer ; indeed, 
 precedence is given to the name of Eusebius in the 
 letter from the council to tlie Antiocliians. Now 
 Eusebius did not approve tlie consecration of Pauh- 
 nus, and declined to communicate with him as bishop 
 of Antioch. But he did not go so far as to repudiate 
 him ; he suspended his judgment, leaving the matter 
 to be decided by a competent tribunal. So that the 
 jurisdiction of Paulinus does not appear to have 
 been interfered with, and yet the position of ]\Ieletius 
 did not suffer detriment in consequence.
 
 298 THE CLAIMS OF MELETIUS. 
 
 The position By his bolcl professioii of the faith of Nicasa, and 
 
 Meietiiis. coiisequeiit banishment immediately after his election 
 to Antioch, Meletius had anticipated the conditions 
 of the indidgence afterwards accorded by the Church, 
 and had virtually placed himself in a position to lay 
 claim to its benefits. But, through the undue haste 
 of Lucifer, Paulinus was consecrated before Meletius 
 had had the opportunity o^ formally availing himself 
 of the indidgence, since the decrees of the council of 
 Alexandria had not been promulgated. It would, 
 however, have been manifestly unjust to have thrust 
 Meletius out of the bishopric on this account, although 
 on the other hand, the recognised Catholic position of 
 the Eustathians rendered it impossible altogether to 
 reject the claims of their newly-made bishop Paulinus. 
 It cannot be assumed as certain that it was the inten- 
 Ecci. Hist. iii. 5. tioii of Lucifcr to rcjcct Meletius. Theodoret says 
 that, in consequence of the opposition of the Eusta- 
 thians to his proposals for the union of both parties, 
 he consecrated Paulinus for them (e^sipoTovrjO-ev 
 auTo7g). It is by no means impossible that he deter- 
 mined at any rate to provide a bishop for the Eusta- 
 thians, leaving the rest an open question. However 
 this may have been, the practical effect of the course 
 adopted afterwards by Eusebius, was to leave the 
 whole matter in abeyance, till a favourable oppor- 
 tunity should arise for a solution of the difficulty, 
 without interfering in the meanwhile wit] i the episco- 
 pal i"unctions either of Meletius or Paulinus. By 
 witliliolding ])is jjrivatc communion from both, lie
 
 IMPORTANCE OF THE CONDUCT OF EUSEBIUS. 299 
 
 excluded, neither of tliein, but he suspended judg- 
 ment between them. lie could not formally re- 
 cognise them both, but he might tolerate the tem- 
 porary continuance of a false position, which (iould 
 not have been avoided without the danger of 
 incurring a very much greater evil. This conduct 
 on the part of St. Eusebius of Vercelli, constitutes 
 one of the most important features of the history. 
 It has been seen how highly he was esteemed by 
 the Pope, 'and how important his presence in the 
 council of Milan w\as considered to be, on all sides. 
 He appears, as before said, to have been invested 
 with delegated authority from Eome, at least equal 
 to that of Lucifer; and he would certainly represent, 
 far more truly than Lucifer, not only the views of 
 Eome and of the West, but those also of St. Atliana- 
 sius and of the bishops whom, together with him, he 
 had so recently assembled in council in Alexaiidi-ia. 
 He had arrived at Antioch direct from that said 
 memorable council, which has always been held in 
 veneration by the Church. He had taken a leading 
 part in its deliberations, whilst Lucifer was absent. 
 He was thoroughly imbued with its spirit, and the 
 course which he pursued may be looked upon as 
 dictated by that spirit. It may, at the same time, be re- 
 garded as an indication of the judgment which would 
 be formed upon the subject in the West. On his 
 return to Italy it would be the duty of Eusebius to 
 ffive an account of the whole matter to the Pope, and 
 the subsequent conduct of the Poman See shows her
 
 ;oo 
 
 KETURX OF EUSEBIUS TO ITALY. 
 
 The labours of 
 St. Eusebius. 
 
 Socrat. iii. 9. 
 
 Sozom. V. 13. 
 
 Rufin. i. (x.) -M. 
 
 Adv. Lucif. n. 19. 
 
 approval of his behaviour under these difficult cir- 
 cumstances. Eoine in fact adopted the policy of 
 Eusebius ; prudently abstaining from forcing on a 
 crisis, and so leaving time for the sweetly disposing 
 haiul of Providence to work the required changes. 
 She appears to have considered that the exigencies of 
 the case justified, in the meanwhile, the toleration 
 of the anomaly of two rival Catholic bishops in 
 the one See of Antioch, and therefore to have tacitly 
 permitted each of them to exercise the power and the 
 jurisdiction which belonged to that exalted bishopric. 
 It is a striking instance of the maternal solicitude of 
 the Church, not to scare away feeble Christians from 
 her bosom through an over-rigorous enforcement of 
 the letter of her laws, when mercy in some particular 
 instance pleads that their spirit will be more truly 
 fulfilled, if she tolerates a temporary suspension of 
 their outward observance. 
 
 When Eusebius left Antioch he journeyed through 
 the East, where, in the language of the ancient 
 historians, he fulfilled tlie offices both of a good 
 physician and a priest, receiving back the lapsed, 
 strengthening the weak in faith, estabhshing and 
 teaching the doctrines of the Church, He then 
 proceeded to Illyricum, from wliich he passed to 
 Italy, everj^iere per.severing in his unwearied la- 
 bours for Christ. So higlily was he esteemed that 
 St. Jerome, in speaking of the liberation of the 
 confessors from exile, says, ' at the return of Euse- 
 l)ius, Italy put ofi" her robes of mourning.' . . .
 
 EETURN AND SUBSEQUENT EXILES OF J^fELETIUS. HOI 
 
 Tunc ad reditum Eusebii luguhres vestes Italia 
 mutavit. 
 
 There a^^pears to have been a delay in the return The return 
 of St. Meletiiis from his place of exile, for he did not st. Mdetius. 
 reach Antioch till Eiisebius, having arrived there Socrat. iii. 9. 
 
 f. . 1 , . , ... Sozom. V. 13. 
 
 irom Aiexandria, was endeavouring m vain to unite Rutin, i. (x.) 30. 
 the divided Cathohc parties. When Meletius came 
 back, he presided over the assemblies of his followers 
 in the Palosa, outside the gates. 
 
 It seemed to me desirable to explain fully the 
 origin and the first development of the lamentable 
 division we are considering, but it would require the 
 space of a separate volume to relate all the details of 
 its subsequent history. 1 therefore confine myself, 
 though reluctantly, to a short mention of a few of 
 the most prominent events connected with it, till I 
 arrive at the proof that St. Meletius died in acknow- 
 ledged communion with Eome. 
 
 St. Meletius was thrice exiled from Antioch on The three exiles 
 account of the faith. His first exile, under Con- st. Meletius. 
 stantius, has already been described. It is equally 
 certain that the third took place under Valens. 
 But there is a difference of opinion respecting Notex.surS.Meieco. 
 the date of the second. Tillemont thinks that he Aeta Sanct. Feb. 12. 
 was twice banished by Valens. Father Bollandus, 
 on the other hand, places the period of his second 
 exile under the reign of Juhan, soon after his return 
 from the first, and this appears to be the most 
 probable opinion, though in such case the second
 
 302 ST. MELETIUS AND OTHER BISHOPS 
 
 exile must have been very short in its duration, for 
 St. Meletius was in Antioch in the year 3G3. It is 
 said that he was then especially favoured by Julian's 
 successor, the Emperor Jovian, who gave to him and 
 to his followers the possession of a church which 
 had been recently built at Antioch. 
 Council of Antioch, An cvcut occurrcd at this time which threw con- 
 siderable suspicion upon the orthodoxy both of St. 
 Meletius of Antioch and of St. Eusebius of Samosata. 
 After the accession of Jovian to the imperial throne, 
 Acacius of Ca3sarea, with others of the same party, 
 proposed to Meletius to unite with him in a public 
 profession of the Nicene faith. They were probably 
 desirous to comply with the conditions of the in- 
 didgence accorded by the Council of Alexandria to 
 those who had been contaminated with Arianism. 
 They may have been actuated by real conviction ; 
 but they have not escaped the imputation of the 
 more unworthy motive of fear lest they should other- 
 wise be driven from their sees. An orator of the 
 day spoke of some who were worshippers not of God 
 but of the Imperial piu'ple, and who changed sides 
 like the waters of the Euripus^ under the influence 
 of the tides. A council was accordingly held at 
 Antioch, by which a letter was addressed to Jovian 
 and signed by the assembled bishops, the signatures 
 of Meletius and of Eusebius of Samosata being the 
 foremost. This epistle has been preserved in the 
 Lik vi. ca}.. •!. ccclcsiastical history of Sozomen, as well as in that 
 
 ' 'Hic Siiaits of Nogrojtunt.
 
 MAKE raOFESSION OF THEIR FAITH. 303 
 
 of Socrates. It recited the Niceiie symbol, and pro- Lii.. iii. cnp. 2-.. 
 fessed the adlierence of its authors to the same. But 
 it prefixed to the symbol an interpretation of the word 
 consuhstantial which did not adequately express the 
 full Catholic doctrine on that most essential point ; for 
 it stated that the w^ord o/7.oouV/o^, ' which appeared 
 strange to many, had been safely interpreted by the 
 fathers to signify that the Son was begotten from the 
 substance of the Father, and that he is of like sub- 
 stance with the Father (ojw.010^ xar ou<rlav no Trarpl).' 
 This term of siiuilar in substance {hixoioua-ioQ) was 
 admitted by the Semiarians and Macedonians, who 
 rejected the blasphemous teaching that the Son of 
 God was different (avoixoios) in substance ft^om the 
 Father, but would not consent to the Catholic dogma 
 that He was of the self-same substance^ with the 
 Father (o/xoouVkj^). This, no doubt, gave occasion for 
 the statement recorded in the chronicle of St. Jerome 
 (who appears to have been prejudiced against Mele- 
 tius), that ' a synod was held at Antioch by Meletius 
 and his party, in which, rejecting the homousion and 
 anomoeon, they maintained the intermediate homoiou- 
 sion, the Macedonian dogma.' It can hardly be 
 beheved that such was really the intention of Mele- 
 tius and Eusebius, both of whom are honoured bj' 
 the Church for their noble defence of the Catholic 
 faith, and their heroic sufferings in its behalf. Nor 
 does the document in question contain a simple and 
 unqualified affirmation of the homoioiision ; on tlie 
 contrary, it states, in conjunction with it. tliat t1i(> S(^ii
 
 304 THE QUALIFICATION WHICH THEY ATTACHED 
 
 Ep. deSyuodis, u. 41. is begottcii of tliG siibstaiiCG of the Father. St. Atha- 
 uasiiis asserts that men who teach this are not to be 
 looked upon as enemies, when they only hesitate 
 as to the icord 01x0060- lov, but to be argued with as 
 brothers wlio difler merely respecting the use of 
 a term. For that those persons who confess the 
 Son to be uncreated, of the substance of the Father, 
 and One with Him from all eternity, are not far 
 from accepting the word 6[xoou(riog, 
 
 It cannot however be denied, that the declaration 
 of the Synod was insufficient, although it might be 
 reconcilable with Catholic doctrine. It would natu- 
 rally give rise to cavil on the part of those who 
 were adverse to Meletius, and expose both St. 
 Eusebius and himself to the danger of being con- 
 sidered as doubtful in their foith, by Catholics at a 
 distance who were imperfectly acquainted with the 
 facts. That these great men were in reality mis- 
 understood or misrepresented in consequence, is 
 rendered still further evident by a document to be 
 Tom. ii. p. 24, foiiiid aiiK)n_!i'st the works of St. Athanasius, entitled, 
 ' A refutation l)y our holy father Athanasius, Arch- 
 bishop of Alexandria, of the liypocrisy of Meletius and 
 Eusebius of Samosata and their party, concerning the 
 homousion.' Tlie attribution of its autliorship to 
 St. Athanasius is considered to be an error, but it 
 is thouglil tliat it was written by some other person 
 ill tlie year 3G4, immediately after tlie synod at An- 
 tic )c]i. It contains no mention of the names of Meletius 
 and Eusel)ius, or of nny others, excepting in the title.
 
 EXPOSED TIIEiM TO FALSE ACCUSATIONS. 305 
 
 but it argues against the homoiousion as opposed in 
 meaning to consuhstantial. The word was undoubt- 
 edly objectionable, because open to such an interpre- 
 tation ; but there is no shadow of a proof that tlie 
 two holy bishops, who are so unreservedly charged 
 with hypocrisy in the title of the aforesaid document, 
 ever intended their language to convey two meanings, 
 or to be understood in a sense which was not per- 
 fectly in accordance with the Catholic faith of Nica^a. 
 
 By this profession of the Nicene faith Meletius 
 formally complied with the requirements of the 
 Alexandiian Council, if he had not previously done 
 so. But the above-mentioned accusations were cal- 
 culated greatly to retard the action of Eome and 
 the West in his favour. 
 
 In fact, it is evident from one of the epistles of St. Charge of heresy 
 Basil that these accusations reached the ears of the st.^eiTtius 
 Pope. In the year 377, when St. Basil's messenger st. Ei?"biiis of 
 Dorotheus was in Eome, and was urging the claims s. B?ibiii'i' 
 of St. Meletius ; Peter, the Archbishop of Alexandria, ^^.^'Jll^l'st 
 the immediate successor of St. Athanasius, was also in 
 that city, having taken refuge there from the violence 
 of the governor of Alexandria. In the presence of the 
 Pope St.Damasus, and of the above-named Dorotheus, 
 Archbishop Peter denounced Meletius and Eusebius 
 as members of the Arian faction. Dorotheus rej)lied 
 in terms of so great warmth that the Archbishop 
 complained of it to St. Basil,who, in the epistle referred 
 to, expressed his deep regret that such should liave 
 been the case. At the same time, he strongly viiidi- 
 
 VOL. I. X
 
 306 
 
 SIGNS OF INTERCOMMUXION' 
 
 Intorchauge 
 
 of 
 
 communication 
 
 between 
 
 St. Meletiug 
 
 and 
 
 Home. 
 
 Evagrrius 
 
 of 
 
 Antiocli. 
 
 S. Eusilii Ep. clvi. 
 
 Tillemont, 
 
 Vie de 
 
 S. Basil le Grand, 
 
 Art. ci. 
 
 cated the orthodoxy of Meletius and Eusebius, appeal- 
 ing in evidence of tlie same to the persecutions which 
 they had endured from tlie Aiians, and calhng God 
 and his own ears to Aptness, tliat there was no word of 
 true doctrine wliich lie luul not heard tliose men most 
 freely proclaim ; and he added, tliat he would not have 
 admitted their communion for an hour, if he had found 
 them halting in the faith. 
 
 This happened on the occasion of one of the many 
 embassies despatched by St, Basil with a view to 
 induce the Pope to send bishops to the East, in 
 order to restore ecclesiastical discipline and peace 
 in those distracted regions. St. Meletius also took a 
 leading part in these embassies, as occupier of the 
 principal See amongst the churches in the East, and it 
 was one of his deacons who, in the first instance, was 
 charged wilh the management of- the business in 
 Eome. Messengers w^ere also sent from Eome to 
 St. Meletius and the Eastern bishops. On both sides 
 they were received, and the title ' brotlier ' was be- 
 stowed on them in the formal documents. In all 
 these transactions there is no sign whatever of any 
 formal interruption of communion. 
 
 An instance in point occurs in the case of the priest 
 Evagrius of Antioch, if the words which St. Basil 
 addressed to him in one of his epistles have been 
 rightly understood. Evagrius had accompanied St. 
 Eusebius of Vercelli on liis return to tlic West in the 
 year 303 or 304, and liad done good service in the 
 CathoHc cause. About tlie aulunni of the year 373
 
 BETWEEN THE WEST AND ST, MELETIUS. 307 
 
 he returned to the East, and brought back to St. Basil 
 from Rome certain papers wliich had been sent tlicrc 
 by tlie Orientals. He requested another letter in their 
 place, since they had not given entire satisfaction to 
 those who were most strict amongst the Westerns. 
 Evagrius suggested also an embassy of more important 
 persons than had hitherto been sent, to solicit a visi- 
 tation from the West. He conferred with St. Basil 
 respecting the affairs of Antiocli, but on his ariival 
 in that city he did not join the communion of 
 Meletius. In the letter above referred to, St. Basil 
 expressed his sorrow at having learnt this, and 
 observed that, if he remembered aright, it was not the 
 same course which they had talked of when together. 
 HaiTQi ou roKxuTa ■jJ/xTv r^v to. coixiXri [xsva, si ri sy<o 
 [xi[xvrj[xai. From this remark it is reasonably inferred 
 that Evagrius, before leaving St. Basil, had expressed 
 to him his intention to communicate in Antioch with 
 St. Meletius ; and although he afterwards joined Pauli- 
 nus and became his successor in the episcopate, yet 
 it is evident that if Meletius had been formally sepa- 
 rated from the Eoman communion, the devoted 
 Catholic Evagrius newly arrived from Bome and 
 Italy, and entrusted with a message by the Westerns, 
 must necessarily have been aware of the foot, and 
 could not under such circumstances have hesitated 
 as to which of the two communions he would join, 
 or have held out any expectations to St. Basil tliat 
 he would unite himself to Meletius. 
 
 It is also to be observed tliat, notwithstanding his 
 
 X 2
 
 308 FALSE ACCUSATIOXS AGAIXST TAULIXUS. 
 
 Ep. civi. disappointment, St. Basil in the same letter addresses 
 Evagriiis as ' a brotlier truly most religions and much 
 desired by us (aT^riSCog euXa^lo-rarf xa\ TroXtjxo'^vjTe 
 r)a7v aOsAc^e).' 
 s. Bas. Ep. cexiv. 2. In a subsequent epistle to Count Terence, St. Basil 
 speaks of Paulinus and his followers, as belonging to 
 those ' of the household of the faith ' with whom 
 especially he desires to be in charity. 
 
 It cannot be supposed that St. Basil would in 
 either case have used such language, if he had not 
 considered l)oth of the mutually divided Catholic 
 parties in Antioch, to have been united in visible 
 communion with Eome and tlie universal church. 
 Paulinus The ortliodoxy of Paulinus was called in question, 
 
 "'"'^of hisThir'"'' as well as that of Meletius, but he abundantly refuted 
 the early accusations against him, by subscribing a 
 Adv. haeresfs, profcssiou of faith which, according to St. Epiphanius, 
 ' ixsvii. u. 20?^'^ was written by the hand of St. Athanasius himself, and 
 which is appended to the before-mentioned sj^nodical 
 letter from the Council of Alexandria to the Antio- 
 chians. 
 Later accusations Souic fourtccn ycars aftcrwards, a.d. 377, in one of 
 Paulinus. thc cpistlcs froui tlic Eastcm to the Western bishops 
 .p. cc xiii. o. (contained in the works of St. Basil, it is observed that 
 the Westerns themselves could say whether there had 
 been anything reprehensible concerning the ordina- 
 tion of Paulinus,^ but that the writers of the epistle 
 
 ' From this remark it may he perceived that the Easterns did 
 not call in question tlie jurisdiction of the Koman See over tliat 
 o\' .\iiliiicli, liut left the point to its decisidu.
 
 lire. 
 Diet. (Ics Sciences 
 
 ST. ATIIANASIUS COMES TO ANTIOCII. 309 
 
 bewailed liis propensity for llie doctrine of Marcelhis, 
 and tlie fact that lie admitted tlie followers of 
 Marcellus indiscriminately to his communion. Now 
 Marcellus had been declared free from all imputation oi; 
 
 of heresy, both by Pope Julius I. and the Council '"^ ' e^^iZ 
 of Sardica ; and though certain of his disci})les proved Evtq^VtrAneyro. 
 to be less orthodox, it does not appear whether 
 there was sufficient foundation for accusing Paulinus 
 of participation in their error. In those days, how- 
 ever, such accusations abounded on all sides, and 
 even the great St. Basil did not escape without 
 suffering his share of calumny. Nor can it fail to 
 be observed, that Eome was the central authorit}' to 
 which all the disputants appealed. It was the earnest 
 desire of St. Basil, and an object of his strenuous 
 efforts, to persuade Eome to send over a connnission 
 to regulate the affairs of the East. 
 
 To return once more to the days of Athanasius. «t. Atiianasius 
 
 •^ ami 
 
 Shortly after that great saint had been recalled to st. sioietius. 
 
 his see by the newly elected Emperor Jovian, in a 
 
 letter expressive of admiration, he undertook tlie 
 
 journey from Alexandria to Antioch to confer with 
 
 Jovian on the affairs of the clnirch, prompted by 
 
 his zeal, and, perhaps, also urged by a request from 
 
 the emperor, who testified his satisfaction upon his 
 
 arrival by the marks of esteem and affection with 
 
 which he received him. It has already been stated 
 
 that Jovian is said to have been friendly to Meletius ; 
 
 and it is mentioned in one of the letters of St. 
 
 Basil, that Athanasius ' wholly desired to be reconciled Ki\ c^iviii.
 
 310 HE WISHES FOR COMMUNION AVITII MELETIUS. 
 
 in communion ' with Meletius, apparently on this oc- 
 casion, but that through the fault of advisers their 
 union was deferred to another season. ' Would that 
 it had not been so ! ' adds St. Basil ; but he does not 
 state the reason of the postponement. In another 
 Epist. ixxxix. n. 2. of Ills L'pistlcs lic montions a certain bishop, called 
 Athanasius, whom the Meletians dismissed without 
 their communion. It has been thought that the bishop 
 thus alluded to was the same St. Athanasius the 
 istoria Eccios. Great ; and Cardinal Orsi concludes that St. Athanasius 
 must liave required conditions to which the Meletians 
 Hist. Eccies. Avoiild uot acccdc. Tillcmout, however, thinks that 
 
 St.-Melece, art. ix. . i * i • i t 
 
 it must have been another AtJianasius who was dis- 
 missed without communion by the Meletians. He 
 says that the idea of Meletius having rejected the 
 communion of St. Athanasius of Alexandria, ' is so 
 strangely opposed both to the piety and to all the 
 interests of St. Meletius, that ' the occurrence spoken 
 of by St. Basil, ' may be better understood of an 
 Athanasius who had been engaged in the error, and 
 the party of the Macedonians.' This explanation, 
 liowever, does not satisfactorily agree with the tenor 
 of St. Basil's epistle last referred to. 
 
 In any case the person spoken of in his previously 
 mentioned letter is plainly St. Athanasius the Great, 
 and the willingness of one so highly esteemed at Home 
 to communicate witli St. Meletius, forms an important 
 feature ill tlic liisloiy of this transaction. 
 DifiFtTcnt degrees IV'rluips it sliould liuNc Ijocu prcviously remarked 
 iutcrruption tluit tlid'c WLi'e diniiviil (Icgrccs of excommunication
 
 GREATER AND LESSER EXCOMMUNICATIONS. 311 
 
 in the early churcli. In tlic case of individuals there of 
 
 was the excommunicatio mortalis, now called inajoi\ coni'nuinion. 
 which involved entire separation from the church; Lih.iv.Tit. xviii. 
 and there was the excommunicatio medicinalis^ t. ill'pp.'^iso-lss. 
 now called minor ^ which was simply a suspension of ^'^•^'^'"''"•"'"''**-^• 
 the use of the sacraments, and sometimes also of 
 public participation in the prayers of the faitliful, in 
 which case the penitent took his place with the 
 catechumens. This did not involve separation from 
 the church ; and of this nature was the interruption 
 of communion which sometimes arose between one 
 bishop and another, or one local church and another. 
 It was a mutual division, which did not involve any 
 ecclesiastical censure, provided there was no eccle- 
 siastical superiority on either side.^ 
 
 The division between St. Athanasius and Meletius, 
 and that between St. Basil and Paulinus, appertained 
 
 ' I state tLis on the authority of the Instit. Canon, of Devoti, 
 a work published and approved in Rome. He says {uhi supra, 
 § 5) : ' Erat enim niedicinalis, aut minoris excommunicationis 
 loco ilia unius Episcopi, aut Ecclesiaj, ab alio Episcopo, Ecclesiaque 
 separatio, per qviam fiebat, ut duo Episcopi inter se neque darent, 
 neque acciperent literas formatas, nequc alter altcrius ab se 
 separatas Ecclesiaj filios ad communionem adniitteret. Ilujusmodi 
 excommunicatio locum habebat, si aliqua Ecclesia, aut Episcopus 
 aliam Ecclesiam in fidem, aut in disciplinam peccare intelligerct. 
 Sed mutua ha'C excommunicatio, si Ecclesia} sibi iiivicem sub- 
 jectse non essent, proprie ccclesiastica censura non erat, scd tjvn- 
 tum erat divisio, et separatio communionis, quam una Ecclesia 
 alteri, cui non subesset, denegare poterat.' He refers, as an 
 instance, to St. Epiphanius (Epist, ad Joan. Episc. Hierosol.), 
 who rejected the communion of John, Bishop of Jerusalem, be- 
 cause he understood that he defended tlie errors of Origen.
 
 312 ST. BASIL ^YRITES WAEMLY 
 
 only to the lesser of the above-named degrees. In 
 the case of a church which had jurisdiction over 
 anotlier, as Eome over Antioch and universally, it 
 would naturally rest with the superior church to 
 extend the excommunication or to limit it at dis- 
 cretion. If Eome in any degree withheld her 
 communion from Meletius at the period in question, 
 of which I have found no sufficient evidence, it could 
 only have been in the lesser degree, not to the extent 
 of complete separation from the body of the faithful. 
 It is needless to observe, that such a case is very 
 different in its nature from that of the consum- 
 mated and complete separation which exists between 
 Eome and the established Church of England. 
 St. Basil The letter which mentions the desire of St. Atha- 
 
 held strongly 
 
 to nasius to be reconciled with Meletius, Avas written 
 
 St. Meletius. lo-n-i n-n-i- t- 
 
 by bt. iiasii to fct. Jiipiphamus, and it contains 
 remarks which assist to the better understanding of 
 tlie position of the two divided Catholic parties in 
 Antioch and their upholders. I therefore subjoin the 
 whole paragraph, with the exception of the last 
 sentence, wliich has reference to tlie Hypostases : — 
 
 St. Bas. Ep. cclviii. 3. ' But, as regards the church at Antioch, that I say which 
 agrees in the same doctrine, may the Lord grant that we 
 n)ay souietime see it united. For it stands in especial 
 danger from the snares of the enemy, who bears ill-will 
 to it because there first was established the title of Chris- 
 tian. And indeed heresy is divided against orthodoxy, 
 and ortliodoxy also is divided against itself. But for us* 
 tlie most reverend Meletius is bishop, since he first boldly 
 defended the truth and fiju^^ht that tjood fi'dit in the times
 
 IN FAVOUR OF ST. MELETIUS. 813 
 
 of Constantius, and my church has always held to his 
 communion, having loved him above measure, on account 
 of that strong and unconquered firmness. By the grace 
 of God we hold his communion till now, and, if God will, 
 we will continue to hold it. For also the most blessed 
 Pope Athanasius, when he came from Alexandria, alto- 
 gether wished to be reconciled in communion with him, 
 but through the wickedness of counsellors their union was 
 put off to another season, which I wish had not been the 
 case. But we have never yet held communion with any of 
 those who came after, not because we accounted them 
 unworthy, but because we had no reason for condemning 
 the other. We have heard indeed many things from the 
 brethren, but we do not give credit to them because the 
 accused do not stand before the accusers, as it is written : 
 Our law does not judge any man, unless it first hears st. Johu vH. 5i. 
 Imn and knows ivhat he doth. Wherefore we cannot send 
 letters to them ' (meaning to Paulinus and his followers), 
 * most honourable brother, nor ought we to be compelled 
 thereto. But it would be fitting to your peaceful proposal, 
 not to unite with one and divide with the otlier, but 
 to bring those who are divided to their former imion. 
 Wherefore, first beseech, and then so far as you are able 
 exhort, that casting away ambition from their souls, they 
 may be reconciled with one another, in order both to 
 restore strength to the church, and to repress the fury of 
 her enemies.' 
 
 If Meletius had been out of coinmunion witli Th'^rowns 
 
 . . . Mil a -t^ •^ ^ i i i "° inttTniption 
 
 Eome, it IS impossible that ot. liasil should have so of 
 
 warmly espoused and held to his communion with- between the frk-nds 
 out sharing in the same excommunication. St. eacii*i.arfy. 
 Epiphanius held to the communion of Paulinus, and 
 it would seem from the above letter that he luid en- 
 deavoured to persuade St. Basil to join it. St. Basil
 
 314 ST. BASIL DESIRED THE UXION 
 
 decidedly declines, but not in such a manner as to 
 imply that he regarded Paulinus and his followers as 
 out of the church. Nor did the fact of their holding 
 respectively to the two opposite Cathohc communions 
 in Antioch, occasion any rupture between St. Basil 
 and St. Epiphanius. Indeed, the whole of the pas- 
 sage which has been quoted shows plainly, that the 
 dissension was regarded as merely local and inter- 
 nal. Can it be conceived that two eminent Eoman 
 Cathohc Bishops, such as St. Basil and St. Epipha- 
 nius, would in like manner differ in their views, and 
 exchange friendly communication respecting their 
 difference, as regards the relative position of the 
 Eoman and Anglican conmiunions in this country ? 
 Such an occurrence would be impossible ; but such 
 difference and such communication actually occurred 
 in the case of Antioch, because neither Mcletius nor 
 Paulinus was formally severed from Eome and the 
 universal church, as is the case with the Anglican 
 communion. 
 TheoLjcct St. Basil considered that the hrst step towards 
 
 St. Basil. healing the disorders of the East was to strive for 
 the restoration of concord to the divided chin^ch of 
 Antioch, so that, to use his own words, that church, 
 Ej.. ixvi. 2. like a head Avhich had been strengthened, might 
 sup])ly health to the whole body. lie desired to 
 accomplish this end by the union of all parties under 
 Meletius. This Avas his object fi^om the very first, 
 and, in the year 372, he had written to urge St. 
 Alliana^t^ius to assist him in his application to pro-
 
 OF BOTH SIDES UNDER MELETIUS. 315 
 
 cure the interference of Eome for tlic purpose, lie i:i-. i-wii. 
 said at that time that Meletius in reahty presided 
 over, so to speak, the whole body of tlie clnirdi in 
 Antioch ; that the others were, as it were, segments 
 of parts, and that they ought to be joined to Mele- 
 tius like small rivers to great, being treated in a be- 
 coming manner, and the people being pacified. He 
 added that St. Athanasius was aware such a course 
 ' was pleasing to his friends of one soul (o/jt.o\}/u;/o/j) 
 in the West, as the letters brought by the blessed 
 Sylvanus to the Easterns made manifest.' "VVe possess 
 no further information respecting these letters ; but 
 whatever may have been the disposition of Eome 
 (which in the present instance is synonymous witli the 
 West) at the period referred to by St. Basil, it is plain 
 that she would not subsequently consent to the exclu- 
 sion of the claims of Paulinus, though I cannot find 
 sufficient ground for believing that she ever regarded 
 Meletius and his followers as out of her comnui- 
 nion. The commonly received opinion that at one 
 time she did so, may in great measure have arisen 
 from a circumstance which will be found, upon 
 examination, to give no sufficient warrant for such 
 a conclusion. 
 
 The circumstance to which I allude drew forth from Rmiinus 
 
 nci'ives It'tters 
 
 St. Basil a letter to Count Terence, to which is as- fn.m 
 
 signed the date a.d. 3 / 5 ; and it is irom tins letter s. ijiu«. Kp. wxiv. 
 chiefly that tlie circumstances have become known. 
 St. Basil states therein that a rumour has readied liim 
 that the followers of raulinus were carrying about
 
 31G 
 
 ST. BASIL WRITES TO COUXT TEEEXCE 
 
 St. Athanasius 
 
 addressed a letter 
 
 to 
 
 Paulinus. 
 
 See above, p. 308. 
 
 Adv. hjEr. 
 Ixxvii. nn. 20, 21. 
 
 St. Athanase, 
 art. 103. 
 
 St. I5:isil 
 
 defends the position 
 
 of 
 
 St. Meletius. 
 
 letters wliich they had received from the West, and 
 "wliich attributed the episcopate of the church of 
 Antioch to Pauhiius, setting aside ' Meletius, the most 
 admirable bishop of the true church of God.' He 
 says he is not surprised at this, since tlie Westerns 
 were misinformed as to the real position of affairs in 
 the East. He then refers to a letter written to 
 Paulinus by St. Athanasius the Great, which, as he 
 appears to think, influenced the conduct of the 
 Western bishops, and he says it is not unhkely that 
 the persons from whom they derived their information 
 ' either were ignorant of the true state of the case, or 
 even concealed the reason through which the most 
 blessed Bishop Athanasius came to write to Paulinus,' 
 St. Basil does not mention that reason, but St. Epi- 
 phanius informs us that the profession of faith 
 already mentioned, which Paulinus had produced to 
 liim in reply to the charge of Sabellianism, and which 
 he has recorded verbatim, had been previously made 
 by Paulinus to St. Athanasius as his justification, aTro- 
 y^oylag x.df>iv ; and Tillemoiit concludes that this may 
 have been the occasion on which St. Athanasius wrote 
 the letter referred to by St. Basil, and which he seems 
 to imply had been unduly used by certain parties, as 
 an argument with the Westerns in behalf of Pauhnus. 
 St. Basil further requests Count Terence, who was 
 a person of influence, to inform himself respecting 
 what had been done in Antioch by the bishops in the 
 reign of Jovian. It may be that tliis remark was 
 prompted by llie iniputalions of heresy against Mele-
 
 RESPECTING THE LETTERS TO TAULINTS. ol7 
 
 tins which arose out of that transaction, as has already 
 been noticed, and from which St. Basil would be See above, p. 304, &c. 
 desirous that St. Meletius should be cleared ; or it 
 may be that he appealed to the said council as being 
 a formal profession of the Nicene faith, and such as 
 would entitle St. Meletius to the indulgence accorded 
 in the year 362 in Alexandria, as before mentioned. 
 He then congratulates Paulinus and his followers on 
 having received letters from Home, observing that he 
 accuses no man, yea desires to maintain charity with 
 all, especially with those of the household of faith, 
 and expressing his hopes that the great and honour- 
 able testimony those letters bear to them is true, and 
 confirmed by their works. But, he adds, that he 
 cannot on that account ever be persuaded to ignore 
 Meletius or forget the church over which he pre- 
 sides, or to consider the questions from which the 
 dissension first arose as trifling and of little moment 
 to rehgion. For, he says, if any one not sound in 
 the faith should be puffed up by an epistle not only 
 from men but from heaven, he could not on. that 
 account consider him as a partaker of the communion 
 of the Saints, unless he professed sound doctrine. 
 These remarks perhaps allude to the question of the 
 Hypostases, of whicli St. Basil proceeds to treat in 
 the same letter, and which, under the circumstances 
 of the times, he appears both here and elsewhere to 
 have regarded as of greater importance than it 
 had been considered by the fathers in Alexandria, Seoaiwro. 
 
 .,, , , , 11 • PP- '-'88, 289. 
 
 A.D. 362. It will have been observed tJiat iii a
 
 318 THE SAID LETTERS APrEAR TO HAVE BEEN 
 
 previous sentence, St. Basil had spoken of Paulinus 
 and his followers as of the household of faith. 
 Consequently the language which he afterwards used 
 can hardly have been intended in its literal sense, if 
 it is meant to apply to the same persons. 
 
 This letter from St. Basil was written as soon as he 
 had learnt the report to which it refers ; and before 
 he appears to have had an opportunity of examining 
 the letters fi^om the West. It would not therefore be 
 surprising if the tenor of the said letters was exag- 
 gerated, in the rumour through which St. Basil was 
 informed of them. 
 
 St. Basil wrote also to St. Meletius informing him 
 that he had received letters, from which he learnt 
 that letters had been brought to Paulinus from the 
 West, as signs of a certain priority [cornrs^ nvos ap;^% 
 o-uy^rj/xara), and that the leaders of that party were 
 much elated and gloried in the said letters, so as to 
 propose a form of faith, and express tlieir readiness 
 on its acceptance to be united with the other side. 
 He adds that he also heard that the most excellent 
 man Terence had been led away by them to take 
 their part, and that he had quickly written to him 
 rcstraiiiinuf his haste, and informing: him of their 
 fraud. As has been seen, he considered Eome to 
 have been misinformed respecting the' facts. 
 The only letter pxtint There is cxtant a letter of Pope St. Damasus to 
 St. i);imasus to Pauliuus ill rcfercncc to the reception of Vitalis to 
 his cominuiiiou, wliicli alUides to a former letter 
 
 Letter of 
 
 St. Basil 
 
 to 
 
 St. Meletius. 
 
 Ep. ccxvi. 
 
 Sue above, p. 31G. 
 
 Constant, 
 
 Ep. Pontif. Konian. 
 
 coll. 507 &c. 
 
 sent to him ])y means o 
 
 r the 
 
 same 
 
 Vitali> 
 
 (1 t 
 
 11(1 to a
 
 WRITTEN IN REFERENCE TO VITALIS. 319 
 
 subsequent short message or letter sent through one 
 Petronius, a })riest, expressing some inieasiness in 
 reference to Vitahs. We know of no other com- 
 munications from the West to Paulinus during 
 the lifetime of Meletius than these, about the 
 year 375. Dora. Constant gives only the latest of 
 them, so that the others seem to have been lost. 
 The one he publishes contains an evident recognition 
 of the communion of PauHnus, speaking of union 
 with him as being union with Pome ; but it does not 
 exclude tlie communion of Meletius, unless one of tlie 
 clauses m the exposition of faitli which it contains, 
 must be construed as directed ao;ainst liim. 
 
 The said clause declares that Eome holds all those ci-niso 
 
 who have migrated from one diocese to another, as ciiiinpo^'of 
 alien to her communion, until they return to tlieir own 
 diocese, and that if a successor in the meantime has 
 been appointed, the one who has migrated shall be 
 without the sacerdotal dignity, so long as the said suc- 
 cessor survives. It is certain that Meletius was Bishop 
 of Sebaste before his elevation to the See of Antioch, 
 but it is not so certain that his promotion to Antioch 
 could be considered as a migration, since Theodoret 
 intimates that he had resigned the See of Sebaste, 
 and was residing privately at Beroea wlien elected to 
 Antioch. The causes for his resignation may have 
 been sufficient to excuse it ; so that, even if the canon 
 of the church had been, strictly speaking, violated, 
 his case may still have formed a justifiable exception. 
 It is to be observed tliat St. Damasus does not enter 
 
 benefices.
 
 320 THE ELATIOX CAUSED BY THESE LETTERS 
 
 Why the letters 
 
 were addressed 
 
 to 
 
 Paulinus. 
 
 The manner 
 in which the 
 
 letters 
 were received 
 
 indicates 
 the uncertainty 
 of _ 
 the position. 
 
 upon these considerations. He simply re-affirms an 
 established canon of the Church, leaving it entirely an 
 open question as to whether it applied to Meletius or 
 not. Moreover, the clause is so abruptly introduced, 
 and has so httle to do with the context which precedes 
 and follows it, as to wear the appearance of an inter- 
 polation, though it cannot be proved that it is so. 
 
 There was a manifest reason why the affair of 
 Vitalis should have been referred by the Pope to 
 Paulinus rather than to Meletius. Vitalis had been 
 a disciple of Meletius, and had left him, as will be ex- 
 ]:»lained. It would therefore not be through Meletius 
 that he would seek admission to the Eoman commu- 
 nion. However, he was attempting to deceive, and he 
 does not seem to have complied with the conditions 
 which the Pope required from him through Paulinus. 
 
 But whilst there is no sufficient ground for regard- 
 ing this communication as excluding Meletius from 
 the Eoman communion, it would appear from the 
 triumph of the followers of Paulinus, that this was 
 the first occasion on which Pome had thus formally 
 recognised their position. This is an important 
 consideration, for some thirteen years had then passed 
 since tlie first consecration of Paulinus. Yet his 
 followers were elated at the reception of these letters, 
 as at something which was new ; and St. Basil, the 
 friend of Meletius, was disappointed. Let the analogy 
 between Antioch and England be tested by tliis fact. 
 Is tliere any unusual elation amongst the s])iritual 
 sul)jects of the Archbisliop of Westminster wlien he
 
 MARKS THEM AS A XRW FEATURE. 321 
 
 receives an official communication fromEome? Is 
 the Anglican communion on the other hand, in any 
 way disappointed thereat ? Does it in any way lay 
 claim to, or expect, a like recognition ? 
 
 It is plain that if the communion of Paulinas had 
 been known as the communion solely recognised by 
 Eome, and that of Meletius had been known to have 
 been excluded by her, the Pope's letters which have 
 been spoken of, could not have given rise to any elation 
 in the former, nor have caused any disappointment to 
 the friends of the rival Catholic bishop. It must 
 further be borne in mind, that whilst this is the first 
 occasion on which we have evidence of any direct 
 communication between Rome and the communion 
 of Paulinus, we find Meletius and his friends in 
 direct communication with Eome, interchanging 
 epistles and embassies with the West, both before 
 and after this event, on matters connected with tlio 
 faith, and the ecclesiastical affairs of the East. 
 
 Thus, the exultation of the followers of Pauhnus 
 on the receipt of these letters, and their eagerness to 
 interpret them as adverse to Meletius, betray the 
 fact of their uncertainty as to their actual position. 
 Excepting in reference to the reports connected 
 with the said letters, which he does not appear to 
 have seen when lie wrote, St. Basil nowhere intimates 
 that Eome had disavowed the position of Meletius ; 
 but he would not himself rest contented without 
 the exclusive recognition of Meletius as sole bishop 
 of Antioch, and the union of both sides under him 
 
 VOL. I. T
 
 322 DEFECTION AND HERESY OF VITALTS. 
 
 as such. This was the end for which, as has been 
 said, he wrote and laboured ; whilst on the other 
 hand, Eome and the West, though they did not for- 
 mally reject Meletius, held communion at the same 
 time with Paulinus and his party. 
 vitaiis Vitalis, above mentioned, had been one of the 
 
 Antioch. priests under Meletius, and remarkable both for his 
 Sozomen, Hist. Ecci. well-re2rulated life and for the diliorence with which 
 he fulfilled the duties of his pastoral charge. It is 
 said that he took offence at being refused access to 
 the bislio}) by his fellow presbyter, Flavian. He left 
 Meletius, drawing many persons after him, and, 
 attaching himself to ApoUinaris, became involved 
 with him in heresy. He was ultimately consecrated 
 by ApoUinaris as bishop of his sect in Antioch. This 
 defection of Vitalis, and the leading position which 
 he assumed, created another centre of division in the 
 city, which now contained four different sections of 
 Christians, two of which were Catholic. Euzoius and 
 his party were notoriously Arian ; but the heresy 
 of Vitalis was not so generally known, at least not 
 for some time. By means of a verbally orthodox pro- 
 fession of faith, which he privately interpreted in an 
 heretical sense, he succeeded for a while in deceiving 
 Pope St. Damasus, and also St. Gregory Nazianzen, 
 but the fraud was afterwards discovered. 
 Afiv. Haro-. 77, St. Epipliauius spcaks in high terms of the hfe and 
 
 tin. 20, 22, 23. , , . ,._:.,. ■ ^ ^ i -, ^ ^ 
 
 li:il)ils (j1 \ itaii.<, with whom he conversed when he 
 visited Antioch ; and it was not until after a series 
 of questionings, which the saint has recorded, that
 
 LETTERS OF ST. JEROME TO ST. DAM ASUS. 323 
 
 Vitalis avowed to him, and maintained by argument, 
 the heretical tenet tliat tlie Godhead occupied the 
 place of a human mind in the person of Jesus Christ. 
 Vitalis professed to be in communion with the Ro- 
 man See. This is evident from t]ie letters of St. 
 Jerome to the Pope St. Damasus, in which he im- 
 plores to be informed witli wliicli of the three lie is 
 to hold communion, Vitalis, Meletius, or Paulinus. 
 He does not mention Euzoius or his party, since they 
 notoriously belonged to the Arians. 
 
 These letters afford so striking and unanswerable 
 a testimony to the doctrine of St. Jerome respecting 
 the necessity of communion with Eome, and respecting 
 her office as guardian of the faith, that they deserve 
 very special attention. 
 
 Amidst the deserts of Syria, in his penitential re- 
 tirement, St. Jerome was disturbed and harassed by 
 the surrounding dissensions, and the contention re- 
 specting the hypostases. Finding it hard, he says, to 
 ascertain which is the true Church of Christ in tliose 
 regions, and to discern the fountain which is sealed 
 from the broken cisterns whicli have no water, he 
 has determined ' to consult the chair of Peter, and 
 the faith which was praised by the mouth of an 
 apostle ; now asking food for my soul from thence, 
 whence formerly I received the clothing of Christ.' 
 He thus urges the fact of his having been baptized 
 in Eome as an enhancement of his claim upon the 
 Pope for a reply ; but the context proves beyond a 
 doubt, that his motive in consulting St. Damasus was 
 
 y 2 
 
 Testimony of 
 
 8t. Jerome 
 
 to the authority 
 
 of the 
 
 Roman See. 
 
 Epist. XV. n. 1, 
 ed. Veron. 1734.
 
 324 ST. JEKOME's unreserved SUBillSSION 
 
 derived from his faith in the divinely constituted 
 office and authority of the Eoman See. ' I,' he says, 
 
 Ibid. n. 2. ' following uo chicf but Christ, am united in the 
 communion of your blessedness, that is, of the chair 
 of Peter. Upon that rock I know that the Church 
 is built. ^Vliosoever sliall eat the lamb outside tliis 
 house is profane. If anyone be not in the ark of 
 Noe, he shall perish when the deluge prevails. . . . 
 Here I follow your colleagues, the Egyptian con- 
 fessors, and beneath those laden vessels I lie hid in a 
 little skiff. I know not Vi talis ; I reject Meletius ; I 
 am a stranger to Paulinus. Whosoever gathereth 
 not with thee scattereth ; that is, whoso is not 
 Christ's is Antichrist's.' 
 
 He then enters on the question of the hypostases ; 
 and, though he contends most strongly that only one 
 ought to be professed, he submits the matter unre- 
 
 ibid. n. 4. servedly to the judgment of the Pope. ' Decree it, I 
 beseech you,' he says, ' if it be your pleasure, and I 
 will not fear to confess three hypostases. If you 
 command it, let a new post-Nicene faith be made, and 
 let the orthodox make use of the same words as the 
 Arians.' This language is so strong that it might 
 have been regarded as ironical, if the sequel had not 
 shown it to be intended in its literal sense. ' If it be 
 your pleasure,' proceeds St. Jerome, in the same para- 
 graph, after further argument in behalf of his opinion ; 
 ' if it l)e your pleasure, let tliere be silence respecting 
 three hypostases, and let one be maintained. . . . 
 But if you think it right that we ought to confess
 
 TO THE VOICE OF THE ROMAN PONTIFF. 325 
 
 three hj^ostases with tlieir interpretations, we refuse 
 not. But bcHeve me, there lurks poison under the 
 honey, &c.' 
 
 He concludes : — ' Wherefore I conjure your bless- ibu. n. 5. 
 edness by the crucified Saviour of the world, by the 
 consubstantial Trinity, that authority may be given 
 me by your letters either to be silent respecting the 
 hypostases or to confess them. . . . Also, that you 
 will signify to me at the same time with whom I 
 ought to communicate in Antioch.' 
 
 The question of the hyjiostases did not regard the 
 subject of the faith itself, but only the mode of ex- 
 pressing it.- Still, the form of expression affected 
 the safe keeping of the faith, and it could only there- 
 fore be determined by the competent authority to 
 whom the guardianship of that faith had been en- 
 trusted by God. 
 
 St. Jerome's opinion on the question was strong and 
 decided. Yet he professed his unreserved submission 
 of the matter to the Eoman See, in language wliicli 
 would be exclaimed against as extreme if it came 
 from the pen of a modern Eoman Catholic. There 
 cannot then be the shadow of a doubt, that this great 
 and free-spoken doctor of the church hooked up to 
 the Apostolic See of Eome, as the divinely consti- 
 tuted guardian of the faith. 
 
 He afterwards wrote again to Damasus, earnestly 
 beseeching him to say with which of the three he was 
 to communicate in Antioch. He reminds him how Epi-t. xvi. n. 1. 
 the importunate woman in the Gospel at last deserved
 
 326 THE EARNESTNESS OF HIS APPEAL. 
 
 to be heard, and how the friend who knocked at the 
 door at midnight, at last obtained the loaves he asked 
 for ; how God was overcome by the prayers of the 
 publican, and Ninive was saved by tears ; how Christ 
 gave Paradise to the penitent thief, embraced the re- 
 turning prodigal, bore the recovered sheep upon his 
 shoulders, and turned the persecutor Paul into a 
 preacher. ' This he does,' he says, ' that the great may 
 look upon the small, and the rich pastor not despise 
 Ibid. n. 2. the sheep that is sick.' He remarks, as in his former 
 letter, that it was in Eome he first put on the gar- 
 ments of Christ ; and he says, that he has sought the 
 barbarous boundary of Syria in penance. But he com- 
 plains that his incessant enemy has followed him even 
 there, so that he suffers still greater conflicts in his 
 solitude. ' For here,' he says, ' the Arian fury rages, 
 supported by the protection of the world. Here the 
 Church spUt into three parts is eager to draw me to 
 itself. The ancient authority of the monks who dwell 
 around rises up upon me. I, meanwhile, exclaim, if 
 anyone be joined to the chair of Peter, he is mine. 
 Meletius, Vitalis, and Paulinus say that they adhere to 
 3^ou ; if only one of them asserted this, I could believe 
 liim. But now, either two of them speak falsely or all 
 of them. Therefore I conjure your blessedness, by the 
 cross of the Lord, by the necessary glory of our faith, 
 the passion of Christ, that you who succeed to the 
 fipostles in honour, will succeed to them also in merit ; 
 so may j'ou sit with tlic Twelve on tlie throne of 
 judgment ; so when old may another gird you with
 
 THE EMPEROR VALHXS IS BURXT ALIVE. 327 
 
 Peter ; so with Paul may you obtain tlie citizenship 
 of heaven ; as by your letters you shall signify to me 
 with whom I ought to communicate in Syria. Do 
 not despise a soul for whom Christ died.' 
 
 There is no existing record of the reply of St. 
 Damasus ; but St. Jerome was afterwards ordained 
 priest by Paulinus, and became his ardent friend 
 and admirer. 
 
 The fraud of Vi talis has already been spoken of, 
 and there was, unquestionably, no genuine foundation 
 for his profession of communion with Eome. But it 
 is hardly credible that a bishop so holy and great as 
 Meletius, would have made a similar assertion in his 
 own case if it had not been true. 
 
 The letters above quoted must have been written Date 
 
 by St. Jerome before the death of the heretical letters. 
 
 Emperor Valens, which occurred a.d. 378, for they 
 refer to the protection afforded by him to ' the Arian 
 madness.' 
 
 ' May Valens be burnt alive ! ' — Such was the The death 
 customary malediction of the people on that empe- Vaiens, 
 
 ror whilst he was in Antioch ; and so it came to consequent recuU 
 pass, according to the more generally received s^. MeietiuB. 
 opinion. Having been wounded by an arrow in the iiist!d.TEn.p. 
 battle which he lost against the Goths at Adria- Vaieus. An. xx. 
 nople, it is said that he was carried into tlie house 
 of a peasant ; that the barbarians set fire to it witli- 
 out knowing that the Emperor was inside ; and that 
 there he perished miserably in the flames, together
 
 328 
 
 FINAL PvKTURN OF ST. MELETIUS. 
 
 Gratian 
 recalls the exiled 
 Catholic Bishops 
 
 In laudem 
 
 S. Meletii. 
 
 Bulla nd. Act. SS. 
 
 xii. Feb, 
 
 witli all around him save one youth, who escaped 
 alone to tell the tale. The historian, Orosius, calls 
 attention to the just judgment of God, who thus 
 punished Valens through those same Goths w^liom he 
 had infected with the Arian heresy. 
 
 The emperor Gratian, who had hitherto only ex- 
 ercised government over the West, now succeeded 
 the^East. Valcus in that of the East, and one of his first acts 
 Emp.Gratlra°A'^t.^^ii.'^^^^^ ^-^^"^ relcasc of the cxiled Catliolic Bishops. Me- 
 letius accordingly returned to Antioch, where he was 
 received with acclamations of delight by the people. 
 ' All the city,' says St. John Chrysostora, ' went forth 
 to meet him. Some indeed drew near and seized his 
 feet, and kissed his hands, and heard his voice ; but 
 others, hindered by the multitude, only beholding 
 him, went back contented, as if they had received a 
 sufficient blessing from his aspect, and possessed no 
 less than those who had been near ; and what was 
 done in the Apostles happened also in him. For as 
 with the Apostles, in the case of those who could not 
 go forward and draw nearer, when their shadow was 
 extended and touched them being afar off, they 
 drew from it the same grace, and went away in like 
 manner healed; so now, also, those who could not 
 approach, perceiving, as it were, a certain spiritual 
 glory emitted from that holy head, and reaching 
 even to tliose who were furthest off, all likewise de- 
 parted from him filled witli all benediction from his 
 aspect alone.' 
 The question It is usually supposcd that shortly after the return 
 
 of
 
 PROPOSED ARRAXGEMEXT WITH PAULIXUS. 320 
 
 of Meletius on tins occasion, a compact was entered th^ compact 
 into between himself and Paulinus, whereby it Avas Mei.tiu'^&Pauiinuh 
 agreed that they should both continue to govern 
 as Bishops in Antioch ; but that, when one or the 
 other of them should depart to the Lord, the sur- 
 vivor should have the sole charge of the whole 
 church of Antioch, both the divided Catholic bodies 
 being united under his rule. It does not, however, 
 appear by a;ny means certain that such an agreement 
 was actually concluded. 
 
 According to Theodoret, Meletius proposed the Ecci. Hist. iv. 3. 
 above arrangement to Paulinus, but did not succeed 
 in obtaining his consent. On the other hand, it is 
 stated by Socrates and Sozomen that an agreement soc. EccI. Hist. v. 5. 
 
 J -I r 11 i.1 c ii • , Sozom. Eccl. Hist. 
 
 was made, and connrmed by oath, tor the survivor to vii. 3. 
 
 succeed to the sole episcopate. Both of these last 
 named writers give substantially, and almost verbally, 
 the same account. I subj oin the words of the former : — 
 
 *At the same time there was a serious contention at 
 Antioch, in Syria, on account of Meletius. We have 
 before said that Paulinus, the Bishop of Antioch, because 
 of his exceeding sanctity, was not sent into exile. But 
 Meletius, after his recall by Julian, having again been 
 banished by Valens, was lastly recalled by Gratian ; 
 and when he arrived at Antioch he found Paulinus 
 grown old. All his followers, therefore, immediately en- 
 deavoured that Meletius should occupy the episcopal 
 throne together with Paulinus. But when Paulinus said 
 that it was contrary to the canons to admit to the same 
 chair one who had been consecrated by the Arians, the 
 people employed force, and caused Meletius to be en- 
 throned in one of the churches outside the city. When
 
 330 DIFFICULTY OF ASCERTAINING 
 
 this was done there arose much contention. But after- 
 wards the i3eople came to agreement on mutual conditions. 
 Assembling- those likely to be chosen for the episcopate, 
 they found the number in all to be six, amongst whom 
 was also Flavian. These they bound by oath not to aim 
 at the episcopate when either of the two bishops should 
 die,' (and, Sozomen adds, *not to accept it if elected by 
 others,') 'but to permit the survivor to occupy the throne 
 of the one who was deceased. The oaths being thus made, 
 the people became unanimous, and were no longer divided 
 from one another.' 
 
 It is difficult to discern which account is most 
 Vide supra, pp. 249, wortliy of Credit. The passage previously quoted 
 from the sermon of St. Gregory Nazianzen ' on the 
 agreement,' may be cited as evidence that some com- 
 pact must have been entered into. On the other 
 hand, the priest Flavian, who is named as having 
 been one of those who took the oath, was actually 
 consecrated bishop on the decease of St. Meletius, 
 during the lifetime of Paulinus ; and, since he was a 
 person of distinguished piety, it is not easy to believe 
 that he would have fallen into the guilt of perjury. 
 It is also very remarkable, if such a compact really 
 existed, that it should not in any way have been re- 
 ferred to by the same St. Gregory Nazianzen, in the 
 Carmen dc Vita sua, account wliicli hc has Icft US of his vcr}'' decided 
 pp. 7.58,&c., torn. ii. oppositiou to tlic saiQ elcction or Flavian. ^ 
 
 Ed.Caillau,Par.l842. 
 
 ' It may be remarked, that the pas.sage in St. Gregory's 
 writing.s here referred to, and its context, contain several ob.ser- 
 vations in reference to the -want of concord between the Ea.st and 
 the West, but notliing which could legitimately be construed as 
 indicative of any positive interruption of ecclesiastical communion.
 
 WHETHER A COMPACT WAS REALLY MADE. o.'U 
 
 Yet we find a similar compact alluded to in one of i^abLc^ c-t Cossnrt, 
 the epistles addressed by the council of Aquileia to I'aris.' iiir,. 
 the emperors, a.d. 381. It is therein stated that tlie 
 Western bishops had received letters from those ' wlio 
 differed in the Church of Antioch ; ' and that, but for 
 the disturbed state of the times, they would have sent 
 a commission to endeavour to heal the division, but, 
 since they were prevented, they say they have asked 
 of the emperor that, according to the agreement of the 
 parties^ when one of the bishops dies, the churches 
 may remain in the hands of the survivor, and no 
 further ordination may be attempted. Juxta par- 
 tium pactum poposcimus^ nt altero decedente penes 
 supe^-stitem ecclesice permanerent, nee aliqua super- 
 ordinatio attentaretur. This evidence might be 
 regarded as conclusive, excepting that it is quite 
 possible the Westerns may have been mistaken in 
 supposing that the proposal made by Melctius had 
 been accepted by Pauhnus. 
 
 We are not in possession of information which 
 will satisfactorily solve the difficulty, and it is there- 
 fore impossible to arrive at any certain conclusion 
 respecting the fact. But it is of more importance to 
 the question before us to observe, that we have posi- 
 tive and undeniable evidence, both in the above 
 cited document, and in another letter to be referred 
 to, that Eome was agreeable to a similar compact. 
 This certainly would not have been the case, if either 
 Meletius or Paulinus had been absolutely out of her 
 communion. It is plain that the Western bishops
 
 332 THE WEST ACKNOWLEDGES BOTH BISHOPS. 
 
 A similar arrange- expressGcl their tlesirc, and strongly recommended, 
 that such an arrangement should be made. For 
 
 recommended 
 
 by the 
 
 Western bishops. 
 
 S. Ambros. Epist, 
 xiii. 2. 
 
 besides the above document, there is extant a 
 letter addressed to the Emperor Theodosius by ' St. 
 Ambrose and other bishops of Italy,' in which they 
 introduce their complaint of the appointment of a 
 successor to Meletius after his decease, whilst PauH- 
 nus was still alive, as follows : — 
 
 ' We had written,' they say, ' not long ago that 
 since the city of Antioch had two bishops, Paidinus 
 and Meletius, whom we accounted to be of one accord 
 in the faith, either peace and concord should be 
 agreed to between the same, without detriment to 
 ecclesiastical order ; or certainly, in case of the de- 
 cease of either of them whilst the other survived, no 
 election should be made in place of the defimct 
 during the lifetime of the other.' 
 
 ' Scripseramus dudum, tit quoniam Antiochena 
 civitas duos haheret episcopos, Paidinum atque Me- 
 letium, quosjidei concinere piitabamus, aut inter ipsos 
 pax et Concordia salvo ordine ecclesiastico conveniret: 
 aut certe, si quis eorum^ altero superstite, decessisset, 
 nulla suhrogatio in defuncti locum, superstite altero, 
 gigneretur' 
 
 It is perfectly evident, that if either Paulinus or 
 Meletius had been personally rejected by Eome, 
 such instructions could not have been written by the 
 Itahan bishops. They certainly would not have con- 
 sented to the succession of either survivor, without 
 distinction l^ctween the two, much less would they
 
 SYNOD UNDER ST. MELLTIUS. 333 
 
 have recommended it, if either of tliese bishops had 
 been actually out of communion with Eome. 
 
 But though this testimony might be considered 
 conchisive, we are in possession of still more impor- 
 tant evidence. 
 
 About two years prior to the second general 
 council, an important synod w^as assembled at An- 
 tioch. Its acts, which were afterwards deposited 
 in the archives of the Roman Church, afford a 
 more formal proof than even the above-mentioned 
 letter, of the fact that the communion of St. ]\Ieletius 
 was at that time fully acknowledged by the Eoman 
 See ; and, as it would appear, his position as Bishop 
 of Antioch, also. 
 
 St. Gregory of Nyssa states that he was present 
 at this synod, and that it assembled nine months or 
 a little more after the death of St. Basil the Great ; 
 consequently about the month of September, a.d. 
 379. The second general council at which Meletius 
 presided at Constantinople, and during which lie 
 died, took place in the year 381. 
 
 In the aforesaid synod of Antioch, A.D. 379, St. 
 Meletius and the bishops assembled under him sub- 
 scribed to a synodical letter or exposition of foith 
 (of which fragments are still extant), which had been 
 drawn up in a Roman synod held under Pope St. 
 Damasus during the preceding year. This docu- 
 ment is distinct both in its date and its subject from 
 another synodical epistle which is sometimes prefixed 
 
 Proof 
 
 of the 
 
 visible communion 
 
 of 
 
 St. Meletius 
 
 with the 
 
 Roman See. 
 
 Council of Antioch, 
 
 A.D. 379. 
 
 De 
 
 Vit.v S. Miicriua?. 
 
 Subscription 
 
 to the 
 
 epistle of 
 
 the 
 
 Roman synod.
 
 epp. xc. xcn. 
 
 334 LETTERS FROM ROME TO THE EAST 
 
 to it ; but which is actually the copy of one ad- 
 dressed to the bishops of Illyiicum, by a former 
 Eomaii synod held under St. Damasus, a.d. 372, and 
 sent to Illj^ricum by the hands of Sabinus, a deacon 
 of Milan. Sabinus afterwards proceeded as legate 
 to the East with a copy of the epistle, addressed 
 from Damasus and others assembled in Eome, ' to 
 the Catholic bishops throughout the East.' A reply 
 s. Basil. Cfesar. was immediately returned to Eome, expressing entire 
 assent on the part of St. Meletius and other Eastern 
 bishops. In the collections of councils these two 
 documents are not unfrequently placed together, 
 under a date considerably earher than that of the 
 later one, which should properly be given as belong- 
 ing to the Antiochian synod of the year 379, by 
 which it was accepted in the East. At the same 
 time it is by no means impossible that the former 
 epistle also, may have been formally signed in con- 
 junction with the latter, by the bishops of the same 
 synod of Antioch, a.d. 379, in fuller confirmation of 
 the assent which they had previously expressed to it.^ 
 It will suffice for the present purpose to recite the 
 paragraph appended by the synod of Antioch, a.d. 
 
 ^ Both of these synodical letters, that is to say, the first of 
 them, which was brought to the East by Sabinus in the year 
 372, and immediately assented to by St. Meletius, St. Basil, and 
 others ; and the other, which Avas transmitted to the East from 
 the Roman synod under St. Damasus, a.d. 378, and subscribed 
 by St. Meletius and the bishops assembled under him at Antioch, 
 in the year 379 ; with full explanation and jiarticulars prefixed 
 to each, may be found nniongst the Epistolas Romanorum Ponti- 
 ficum of Dom. Constant, Paris, 1721, coll. 477-500.
 
 WERE FORMALLY SUBSCRIBED AT ANTIOCH. 335 
 
 379, to the exposition of faith of the Eomaii synod, 
 held A.D. 378 ; with the signatures of Meletius and 
 the other bishops, and the notification that tliey were 
 deposited in the Eoman archives. The following is 
 a literal translation : — 
 
 ' Here ends this epistle or exposition of tlie Eoman Constant, 
 synod held under Damasus the Pope, and transmitted cd. sol!, n/a!*' ' 
 to tlie East, in which all the Eastern Church, a synod 
 having been convened at Antioch, beheving with 
 one accordant faith, and all so consenting to the 
 same faith above set forth, confirm this eacli with 
 his subscription.' 
 
 Then follow the signatures : — 
 
 ' I, Meletius, Bishop of Antioch, consent to all 
 things above written, so believing and thinking ; and 
 if any one holds opinions contrary to these doctrines, 
 let him be anathema.' 
 
 St. Eusebius, Bishop of Samosata, Pelagius of Lao- 
 dicaea, Zeno of Tyre, Eulogius of Edessa, Bematius 
 of Mallo, and Diodorus of Tarsus, subscribe after 
 him to the same effect, and it is added : — 
 
 ' In like manner also CXLVI other Eastern bisliops 
 subscribed, whose subscription in the original is now 
 preserved in the archives of the Eoman Chuich. 
 
 ' Here ends the Eoman and Antioch ian synod.' 
 
 This proves beyond doubt that the communion of 
 Meletius was then recognised by Eomc ; and it is to 
 be observed that the signature of Meletius tlius 
 formally accepted, bears the title of Bishop of 
 Antioch r — Episcopus Antiochenus.
 
 336 FURTHER HISTORY OF THE SCHISM. 
 
 Continuation The scliism Continued after the death of St. Mele- 
 
 the schism. tius. In spitc of the earnest remonstrance of St. 
 
 emon , le Q^ggQ^-y JSTazianzcn, the Easterns consecrated Fla- 
 
 ^"SeldEcthS^^ liis place, though PauUnus was still alive. 
 
 Socrat'^'Eeci. Hist. Thcodorct sajs, that they rephed to the objections of 
 
 Sozom EcJf'Hi«t P^ulinus, by reminding him that he had refused the 
 
 vii. 11, 15, Tiii. 3. proposals of IMclctius. Sozomen says, it was done in 
 
 spite of the oath to the contrary, and that many in 
 
 consequence left Flavian, and joined the communion 
 
 of Pauhnus. He adds that the Pope and the Westerns 
 
 were greatly indignant ; that they addressed synodical 
 
 letters to Paulinus, but would send none to Flavian. 
 
 Eome withheld her communion from the Bishops who 
 
 had taken the principal part in his consecration. 
 
 Pauhnus died about the year 388, having conse- 
 crated as his successor the same Evagrius who has 
 been mentioned in the foregoing pages. He did not 
 long survive, and no successor was appointed in his 
 stead. Through the intervention of St. John Chry- 
 sostom when elevated to the See of Constantinople, 
 Eome and Egypt became reconciled to Flavian and 
 his adherents, in the seventeenth year of his episco- 
 pate. But the Eustathians, tliough no longer sup- 
 ported by Eome and the West, still kept themselves 
 apart, notwithstanding the earnest efforts of Flavian 
 to win tliem over, and they continued to do so 
 during the whole time of Porphyiy, the successor 
 of St. Flavian, a.d. 404. About the year 413, Por- 
 ph}Ty was succeeded in the bishopric of Antioch 
 by Alexander of honoured memory, who had the
 
 ST. MELETIUS IN THE ROMAN MARTYROLOCiV. 3o7 
 
 happiness of uniting to liis communion the greater ti.o 
 
 portion of the Eustathians. After many exliortations 
 and persuasions, he assembled his own clergy and 
 laity, and proceeding to the Church of the Eusta- 
 thians, took part with them in tlicir psalms. Thus he 
 drew them into unity, and according to Theodoret, 
 from the Western gate to the principal church, the EcpI. iiist. v. 3.). 
 united congregations formed as it were a river of 
 men, to the sorrow of the Jews, Arians, and Pagans, 
 who saw the other streams thus flowing into tlie ocean 
 of the Church. This was about the year 415, but 
 Tillemont states that a few still kept apart until the 
 year 482, when the relics of St. Eustathius Avere 
 brought to Antioch, on which occasion the division 
 was completely healed. 
 
 During his episcopate, St. Flavian had placed on Tiiifmont, 
 
 . , ^vluj refers to 
 
 the sacred diptychs of the church, the names of boths. Cyr. Aiex. cii. 66. 
 his rival bishops, Paulinus and Evagrius. 
 
 The testimony already produced renders it abun- 
 
 Me 
 
 the communion 
 
 of 
 
 St. MoK-tius 
 
 with the 
 Roman Sc«. 
 
 Testimony 
 
 dantly evident that Meletius was in acknowledged Roman Mnrtyroiosy 
 communion with Eome before the period of the 
 second general council. But even if this testimony 
 were wanting; if it had been unrecorded or lost, as 
 so much else has been lost in the gidf of the fifteen 
 centuries which have elapsed since that period, there 
 still remains the fact that tlie name of Meletius stands 
 enrolled with honour in Rome's golden book of 
 Saints. He could not have been commemorated in 
 the Eoman Martyrology if he had not died in tli 
 VOL. I. z
 
 338 
 
 TESTnrOXY OF CARDINAL BARONIUS. 
 
 Revision 
 of t lie 
 
 Eoman comnuiiiion. No Eoman cliiircbmaii would 
 ill sucli case have proposed the insertion of liis 
 name within her sacred canon, and no Eoman Pontiff 
 ^vould have permitted it, at any period of the 
 Church's history. Since the so-called Reformation, 
 the Eoman Martyrology has more tlian once under- 
 gone careful revision and correction, but the name 
 of Meletius is found there to this day. 
 
 When Pope Gregory XIII. had completed liis 
 Roman MartjToiogj- Celebrated reformation of the calendar, he applied 
 Gregory XIII. himsclf, with the assistance of learned historians, to 
 the correction and republication of the Eoman Mar- 
 tyrology, as he himself states in the decree prefixed 
 to it, which is dated January 14, 1584. It is also 
 preceded by a treatise from Cardinal Baronius, ' re- 
 specting the Eoman Martyrology,' the tentli chapter 
 of which is entitled, ' Concerning the false martyrs 
 of heretics, and their pseudo-martyrologies.' No one 
 will question that to the mind of Cardinal Baronius, 
 communion witli tlie Church necessarily implied com- 
 nuniion with the Eoman See, and separation from the 
 Eoman See involved separation from the Church. It 
 is this, therefore, that he intends when, in the above- 
 mentioned chapter, he appeals to the teaching of the 
 fathers, that no one can be a martyr who is not in 
 unity with tlie Church, and quotes to that effect the 
 words of St. Cyprian : — ' lie cannot be a martyr who 
 is not in the Churcli ; he cannot arrive at the king- 
 dom who abandons her who is about to reign.' This 
 was always the doctrine of the Eoman Church ; and 
 
 I,il>. do Unitato 
 liJcrlosise.
 
 THE CASE OF ST. MELETIUS WAS WELL KNOWN. 33'J 
 
 if she would not acknowledge as a martyr one wlio 
 died in torments for liis relimon outside her visible 
 pale, she certainly would not honour as a confessor 
 any bishop, however zealous, who did not die in her 
 visible communion. 
 
 Now this revision of the Martyrology took place 
 shortly after the outbreak of a schism and heresy 
 which prominently denied the necessity of comnnii ii( )i i 
 with the Eoman See. It was conducted, under the 
 eye of the Pope himself, by men who were pre-emi- 
 nent for their historical learning, and who had free 
 access to the records and stores of information accu- 
 mulated in the Eoman archives. Moreover, the case 
 of Meletius and the schism in Antioch was well known, 
 and could not have been overlooked, particularly in 
 connection with the newly developed heresy. It is 
 therefore inconceivable that the memory of Meletius 
 should have been again put forth at that time, 
 as requiring public veneration and honour from all 
 faithfid Catholics, unless it had been made evident 
 and certain, from the ancient tradition of the 
 Eoman Church, or from well-estabhshed iacls of 
 history, that there was no ground whatever for sup- 
 posing him to have died out of visible and acknow- 
 ledged communion with the Eoman See. 
 
 The above-mentioned edition of the Eoman Mar- tI'<' 
 
 Rdman Martyrology 
 
 tvrolosv published by the order of Gregory XII I., lurain 
 
 J ^J ^ *' revised and anicudwl. 
 
 was again revised by the authority of his successors,' 
 Urban VIII. and Clement X., and ultimately added 
 to and amended by the learned Toiie Deneihct XI\'.
 
 340 STRICTNESS AS TO THE NAMES ADMITTED. 
 
 The Bull On this occasiou, Benedict XIV. issued the Bull,^ 
 
 Vo^e Benodict x\\. Po-'<tquam intellexiinus^ 'on the new edition of the 
 Martyrology,' dated July 1, 1748, and addressed to 
 King Joini V. of Portugal, at wliose instance the work 
 had been undertaken. It eives reasons for several 
 additions and changes then made, and examines into 
 certain cases of difficulty. Amongst these occurs the 
 question respecting the admission of the renowned 
 Clement of Alexandria to a place in the Martyrology. 
 Litterse Apostoiicse His claim, howcver, is rejected, on account of some 
 Nov. Martyroi. Ed. doubt as to liis entire freedom from error in doc- 
 trine ; and the Pope refers to the case of the Emperor 
 Constantine the Great, whose name, he says, was 
 found in the menology of the Greeks, and who was 
 undoubtedly venerated as a saint in the Eastern 
 Clun^ch, but whose commemoration was never trans- 
 ferred to the Eoman Martyrology, because certain 
 suspicions existed tluit he liad been inclined towards 
 Arianism. 
 
 These instances show the scrupulous caution always 
 exercised by the Eoman Cliurch as regards every 
 name in her strictly guarded Martyrology. Had there 
 been the slightest groiuul for suspecting Meletius to 
 luive died out of lier visible communion, it is per- 
 fectly certain that tlie Roman Church would not 
 have ranked liim amongst those to whose intercession 
 
 ' This document, together with tlie others above mentioned, 
 will be found prefixed to the excellent edition of the Koman 
 IMartyrology publislied, cum approbatione, by Mens. Dessain, of 
 Maliiie.«, in the year IH.OO, alrer the Koman edition of the year 
 1»15.
 
 ST. MELETIUS IS STILL COMMEMORATKD. 341 
 
 in the courts of heaven she es})ecially looks up, and 
 whose names she year by year recites in daily course, 
 wherever her world-wide sway extends, as examples 
 to all her children, and as demanding from them the 
 religious veneration and the worship due only to the 
 Saints of God. 
 
 St. Meletius is commemorated in the lionian 
 Martyrology, on February 12, as follows: — 'At 
 Antioch the festival of St. Meletius, Bishop, who, 
 having often suffered exile for the Catholic faith, at 
 length, in Constantinople, passed to the Lord : whose 
 virtues were celebrated with highest praise by St. 
 John Chrysostom and Gregoiy of Nyssa.' 
 
 Antiochice sancti Meletii Episcopi, qui pro fide 
 catholica scepe exilium passiis, deinum ComtcDiti- 
 nopoli migravit ad Doniinum: cujus virtutes sanctus 
 Joannes Chrysostomus et Gregorius Nyssenus sum- 
 mis laudibus celebrdnmt. 
 
 END OF THE FIEST VOLUME. 
 
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