44 42 41 the prisons, and taking care of them; and this was enjoined on the deacons as a peculiar duty.1 If the lapsed (lapsi) 43 had been admitted by them to communion, there was a general aversion any longer to refuse them restoration to the privileges of the church.4 As it was an important point in the estimation of Christians generally to keep up the consciousness of enduring communion with their departed, this communion, accordingly, with the blessed martyrs, was especially valuable and dear to them. In this sense, families celebrated the remembrance of their departed members,45 churches that of their martyrs yearly on the day of their death,16 by prayers at the 41 Tertull. ad Martyres, c. 1, init. Inter carnis alimenta, benedicti martyres designati, quae vobis et domina mater ecclesia de uberibus suis, et singuli fratres de opibus suis propriis in carcerem subministrant, capite aliquid et a nobis, quod faciat ad spiritum quoque educandum. Carnem enim saginari et spiritum esurire non prodest. The excess of care which he here only refers to (cf. Lucian. de morte Peregrini, c. 12), he afterward censured with bitterness in the Psychics, de Jejunio c. 12: Plane vestrum est in carceribus popinas exhibere martyribus incertis, ne consuetudinem quaerant, ne taedeat vitae, ne novi abstinentiae disciplina scandalizenter. He even accuses them of endeavoring to put courage into the prisoners before their judges, condito mero tanquam antidoto. 42 Cypriani Ep. 11: Semper sub antecessoribus nostris factum est, ut Diaconi ad carcerem commeantes Martyrum desideria consiliis suis et scripturarem praeceptis gubernarent. So Perpetua relates in the Passio Perpetuae Felicitatis c. 3: Ibi tunc Tertius et Pomponius, benedicti Diaconi, qui nobis ministrabant, constituerunt praemio, ut paucis horis emissi in meliorem locum carceris refrigeraremus. 43 In opposition to the stantes, as Romans xiv. 4, 1 Cor. x. 12. 44 Epist. Eccl. Vienn. et Ludg. ap. Euseb. v. 2, § 3. Tertull. ad Mart. c. 1: Quam pacem quidam in 'ecclesia non habentes a martyribus in carcere exorare consueverunt. Idem de Pudicitia, c. 22: Ut quisque ex consensione vincula induit adhuc mollia, in novo custodiae nomine statim ambiunt moechi, statim adeunt fornicatores, jam preces circumsonant, jam lacrymae circumstagnant maculati cujusque, nec ulli magis aditum carceris redimunt, quam qui Ecclesiam perdiderunt. 45 Tertull. de Exhort. Cast. c. 11, to the man who had married a second time: Neque enim pristinam poteris odisse, cui etiam religiosiorem reservas affectionem, ut jam receptae apud Deum, pro cujus spiritu postulas, prò qua oblationes annuas reddis. Stabis ergo ad Deum cum tot uxoribus, quot in oratione commemoras, et offeres pro duabus, et commendabis illas duas. De Monogamia c. 10: Enimvero et pro anima ejus (mariti mortui) orat (uxor), et refrigerium interim adpostulat ei, et in prima resurrectione consortium, et offert annuis diebus dormitionis ejus. 46 Epist. Eccl. Smyrn. de martyr. Polyc. ap. Euseb. iv. 15, 15: Xpioтòv μèv yàp viòv ὄντα τοῦ θεοῦ προσκυνοῦμεν· τοὺς δὲ μάρτυρας ὡς μαθητὰς τοῦ κυρίου καὶ μιμητὰς ἀγαπῶμεν ἀξίως, ἕνεκα εὐνοίας ἀνυπερβλήτου τῆς εἰς τὸν ἴδιον βασιλέα καὶ διδάσκαλον, ὧν γένοιτο καὶ ἡμᾶς συγκοινωνούς τε καὶ συμμαθητὰς γενέσθαι. οὕτως τε ἡμεῖς ὕστερον ἀνελόμενοι τὰ τιμιώτερα λίθων πολυτελῶν καὶ δοκιμώτερα ὑπὲρ χρυσίον ὀστᾶ αὐτοῦ (Πολυκάρπου), ἀπεθέμεθα ὅπου καὶ ἀκόλουθον ἦν. ἔνθα ὡς δυνατὸν ἡμῖν συναγομένοις ἐν ἀγαλλιάσει καὶ χαρᾷ, παρέξει ὁ κύριος ἐπιτελεῖν τὴν τοῦ μαρτυρίου αὐτοῦ ἡμέραν γενέθλιον, εἴς τε τῶν προηθληκότων μνήμην, καὶ τῶν μελλόντων ἄσκησίν τε καὶ ἑτοιμασίαν. Tert. de Corona mil. 3: Oblationes pro defunctis, pro natalitiis annua die facimus, Cyprian. Epist. 34: Sacrificia pro eis (martyribus semper, ut meministis, offerimus, quoties martyrum passiones et dies anniversaria commemoratione celebramus. Comp. Cyprian's 47 graves, and by agapae. So high an estimation of martyrdom induced many Christians to give themselves up to the authorities, thus furnishing cause for the charge of fanatical enthusiasm brought against them by the heathen.48 This mode of proceeding, however, was for the most part discountenanced, in consequence of the express command of Christ (Matt. x. 23).49 instructions to his clergy how they should take care of the confessors. Epist. 37: Officium meum vestra diligentia repraesentet, faciat omnia quae fieri oportet circa eos, quos in talibus meritis fidei ac virtutis illustravit divina dignatio. Denique et dies eorum quibus excedunt annotate, ut commemorationes eorum inter memorias Martyrum celebrare possimus -et celebrentur hic a nobis oblationes et sacrificia ob commemorationes eorum quae cito vobiscum Domino protegente celebrabimus. Further notices of the martyrs were the af fairs of private individuals; and the representation of Anastasius (liber Pontificalis in vita Clementis) originated in the respect paid to saints in later times. Hic fecit vii. regiones dividi Notariis fidelibus Ecclesiae, qui gesta Martyrum sollicite et curiose, unusquisque per regionem suam, perquirerent (cf. vitae Anteri and Fabiani), which was afterward copied into martyrologies. How few genuine histories of the martyrs may be expected from this age is evident from Augustini sermo xciii. de diversis : Hoc primum primi Martyris (Stephani) meritum commendatum est charitati vestrae : quia, cum aliorum Martyrum vix gesta inveniamus, quae in solemnitatibus eorum recitare possimus, hujus passio in canonico libro est. Gregorius M. lib. viii. ep. 29, ad Eulogiam Episc. Alex.: Praeter illa quae in Eusebii libris de gestis SS. Martyrum continentur, nulla in archivo hujus nostrae Ecclesiae, vel in Romanae urbis bibliothecis esse cognovi, nisi pauca quaedam in unius codicis volumine collecta. Nos autem paene omnium martyrum, distinctis per dies singulos passionibus, collecta in uno codice nomina habemus, atque quotidianis diebus in eorum veneratione missarum solemnia agimus. Non tamen in eodem volumine, quis qualiter sit passus indicatur, sed tantummodo nomen, locus, et dies passionis ponitur. The cause of this may not indeed have been that assigned by Prudentius tepì oregávwv, i. v. 75: Chartulas blasphemus olim nam satelles abstulit, Ne tenacibus libellis erudita saecula Ordinem, tempus, modumque passionis proditum, Cf. Casp. Sagittarius de natalitiis martyrum in primitiva ecclesia. Jen. 1678, auctius ed. J. A. Schmid. 1696. 4. 47 Hence the cry of the heathen: Areae non sint. s. Tertull. ad Scapul. c. 3. 48 Tertull. ad Scapulam, c. 5. Arrius Antoninus (at the time of Hadrian) in Asia cum persequeretur instanter, omnes illius civitatis Christiani ante tribunalia ejus se manu facta obtulerunt, cum ille, paucis duci jussis, reliquis ait: & dethoì, ei Véλete úñolvýokeiv, кρnμvois й Врóxois exere. In like manner, Justin makes the heathen say to the Christians, Apol. ii. 4 : πάντες οὖν ἑαυτοὺς φωνεύσαντες πορεύεσθε ἤδη παρὰ τὸν θεὸν, καὶ ἡμῖν πράγ· иата μǹ паρÉɣεTE. Afterward the Montanists especially, see Tertull. 1. c. de fuga in perκατα παρέχετε. Cf. S. F. Rivini diss. de professoribus veteris Ecclesiae martyribus. Lips. sec. &c. 1739. 4. 49 Epist. Eccl. Smyrn. c. 4 : Οὐκ ἐπαινοῦμεν τοὺς προσιόντας ἑαυτοῖς, ἐπειδὴ οὐχ οὕτως Sidúokeɩ Tò Evayyéλov. (Eusebius, an admirer of such transactions, has omitted this sentence). Clemens Alex. Strom. iv. p. 597, vii. p. 871, ed. Potter. THIRD DIVISION. FROM SEPTIMUS SEVERUS TO THE SOLE DOMINION OF CONSTANTINE. A.D. 193-324. INTRODUCTION. § 54. CONDITION OF HEATHENISM. While the Roman empire appeared hastening to its fall, the throne being occupied by soldiers, the provinces devastated by barbarians, and the government changed into the most arbitrary despotism, the kingdom of superstition, in which alone the men of that time sought for peace and security from the dangers that surrounded them, had established itself firmly. Not only were the emperors themselves addicted to this superstition, but they also openly confessed it, and in part introduced even foreign rites into Rome.1 The Platonic philosophy, which had confined itself till now to a defense of the popular religions, and to securing for the wise a more elevated worship of deity, endeavored, since the beginning of the third century, to give to the people's religion a higher and more spiritual form, under the pretense of bringing it back to its original, purer state. This philosophy had been unquestionably forced to this by the spiritual preponderance of Christianity. With this view, Philostratus 1 P. E. Müller de hierarchia et studio vitae asceticae in sacris et mysteriis Graec et Rom. latentibus, Hafn. 1803. Abschn. 3 (translated in the N. Bibl. d. schön. Wissensch. Bd. 70. S. 3, ff.) The Jewish religion also was continually incorporated into this religious mixture (comp. above, § 17, note 9), see Commodiani (about 270) instructiones adv. gentium deos pro christiana disciplina (in Gallandii Biblioth. vett. Patr. T. iii.) : Inter utrumque putans dubie vivendo cavere, 3 the elder composed the life of Apollonius of Tyana (220), in which the latter was represented as the reformer of heathenism.2 But all the preceding tendencies of philosophy, and this also, were perfected in the so-called new-platonic school.3 The founder of it, Ammonius Saccas, Zakkaç (i. е., σаккоpóрos) of Alexandria († about 243), an apostate from Christianity to heathenism, appears to have borrowed the pattern of his heathenism defending philosophy principally from the Christian Gnostics. He communicated his system only as a secret; but by his disciple, the Egyptian Plotinus († 270), it was farther developed, and spread abroad with incredible rapidity. With no less renown, Plotinus was followed by his disciple, Porphyry of Tyre (Malchus † 304), and he by Jamblichus of Chalcis († 333), who survived the overthrow of paganism." The leading principles of the theology of these philosophers, who wished to find the absolute, not by a process of thought, but by immediate intuition, like the Christian Gnostics, are the following: From the highest existence (Tò έv) arises intelligence (ô vous), and from this the soul (ʼn yʊxý). The highest world of intelligence or understanding (kóoμos vontós), is the totality of all intelligences, of the gods as well as of human spirits. By the soul of the world (hence called the Snuovpyós), the visible world was formed. The gods are divided into those dwelling above the world (ἄϋλοι, νοητοί, ἀφανεῖς), and those inhabiting the world (περικόσμιοι, αἰσθητοί, ἐμφανεῖς). To the latter the different parts of the world are intrusted for oversight (hence Oɛoì pɛpikoí, μέριστοι, ἐθνάρχαι, πολιοῦχοι); and from them the various nations 2 Comp. § 14, note 10, and Baur's treatise there quoted. Tzschirner's Fall. d. Heiden thums, i. 405, 461. 3 Concerning this comp. Tiedemann's Geist der specul. Philosophı. iii. 262. Tennemann's Gesch. d. Philos. vi. Ritter's Gesch. d. Philos. iv. 535. C. Meiner's Beitrag zur Gesch. d. Denkart d. ersten Jahrh. n. Chr. G. Leipzig 1782. 8, S. 47, ff. Imm. Fichte de philosophiae novae Platonicae origine. Berol. 1818. F. Bouterwek Philosophorum Alexandrinorum ac Neo-Platonicorum recensio accuratior in the Commentatt. Soc. Reg. Scient. Gotting. recentiores, vol. v. (1823) p. 227, ss. Tzschirner's Fall. d. Heidenth. i. S. 404, ff. K. Vogt's Neoplatonismus u. Christenthum. Th. i. Neoplatonische Lehre. Berlin. 1836. 8. 4 Porphyrius contra Christianos ap. Euseb. vi. 19: 'Aμμóvios μèv yàp Xpioтiavòs ¿v Χριστιανοῖς ἀνατραφεὶς τοῖς γονεῦσιν, ὅτε τοῦ φρονεῖν καὶ τῆς φιλοσοφίας ἥψατο, εὐθὺς πρὸς τὴν κατὰ νόμους πολιτείαν μετεβάλετο. On the other hand, Eusebius: τῷ ̓Αμμωνίῳ τὰ τῆς ἐνθέου φιλοσοφίας ἀκέραια καὶ ἀδιάπτωτα καὶ μέχρις ἐσχάτης τοῦ βίου διέμενε Tελεvrηs. Here Eusebius evidently refers to another Ammonius, probably to the author of the Gospel Harmony. 5 Vita Plotini by Porphyrius in Fabric. Bibl. Gr. vol. iv. Eunapii (about 395) vitae Sophistarum, rec. et illustr. J. F. Boissonade. Amst. 1822. 8. 6 have derived their peculiar character. Lower than the gods. stand the demons, some good, and others bad. While the people worship the highest god only in their national deities, and that with propriety, the wise man must, on the contrary, endeavor to attain to immediate union with the highest deity. While Neo-platonism endeavored in this way both to prop up heathenism, and to give it a higher and more spiritual character, it adapted itself, on the one hand, to the grossest popular superstitions, and, on the other, adopted the purest ideas respecting the supreme deity. Accordingly, it communicated, at the same time, the most excellent precepts regarding the moral worship of God, and recommended asceticism and theurgy, in order to elevate its votaries to communion with the deity, and to obtain dominion over the demons. It can not well be doubted, that Christianity influenced the development of the purer aspect of the neo-platonic doctrines, when we look at the striking agreement of many of these doctrines with those of Christianity." This source, however, was not acknowledged by the new Platonists, who wished that the root of their doctrine should be considered as existing only in the national philosophy, and, along with it, in the oldest Chaldean and Egyptian wisdom. In consequence of this view, neo-platonic productions appeared sometimes in the form of Chaldean oracles, and in the name of Hermes Trismegistus.9 6 Lobeck Aglaophamus, i. p. 104, ss. 8 7 Mosheim, Diss. de studio ethnicorum Christianos imitandi, in his Diss. ad hist. eccl. pertinentes, i. 351. Ullmann über den Einfluss des Christenth. auf Porphyrius, in the theol. Stud. u. Krit., 1832, ii. 376. 8 Respecting the Xaλdaïkà 2óyia among the New Platonists, see J. C. Thilo, Comm. de coelo empyreo, pp. iii. Halae. 1889, 40. 4. 9 Hermes Trismegistus was the concentration of the old Egyptian wisdom, in whose .name works of very different kinds were composed. The philosophic portion of them belongs to the New Platonism: Asclepius and Poemander are the most important (Opp. gr. lat. ed. Adr. Turnebus. Paris. 1554. 4. Colon. 1630. fol. Hermes Trismegists Poemander, von D. Tiedemann. Berlin. 1781). Even in them we find many ideas borrowed from Christianity, so that they are erroneously, in part, attributed to Christian authors. Comp. Casauboni exercitatt. ad Baronium, p. 69. Chr. Meiner's Religionsgeschich. d. aeltesten Voelker, bes d. Aegyptier. Göttingen. 1775. S. 202. Tennemann's Gesch. d. Philos. vi. 464. Baumgarten-Crusius de librorum Hermeticorum origine atque indole (a Jena Easter-programm), 1827. 4to. |