5

8

6

this was added the error of estimating many virtues as well as errors too much according to external circumstances, since the temptation was easy to confound the ecclesiastical estimate of them,1 which could only proceed upon the external form of the transactions, with the moral standard. The distinction between a higher and lower virtue did not, indeed, develop for a long time all the germs of corruption which it bore within itself; yet it must even already have perplexed the ideas of morality, since men began to place the higher virtue chiefly in certain external asceticism. As too great value was attributed to this external asceticism, so also the steadfast endurance of persecution for the sake of Christianity was overvalued. Although it is certain that many had worked themselves up to undergo martyrdom, from motives not wholly pure," and although the confessors also were not always morally good men, yet it was a general opinion that by the external fact of suffering, they not only blotted out Isti ergo veniunt ad Jesum cum omnibus vetustatibus suis, et orant ab eo hoc tantum ut salventur. In quorum figura tale mihi aliquid videtur ostendi. Sunt quidam in Ecclesia credentes quidem et habentes fidem in Deum, et acquiescentes in omnibus divinis praeceptis: quique etiam erga servos Dei religiosi sunt, et servire iis cupiunt, sed et ad ornatum Ecclesiae, vel ministerium satis promti paratique sunt, in actibus vero suis et conversatione propria obscoenitatibus et vitiis involuti, nec omnino deponentes veterem hominem cum actibus suis-praeter hoc, quod in Deum credunt, et erga servos Dei, vel Ecclesias cultum videntur esse devoti, nihil adhibent emendationis vel innovationis in moribus. Istis ergo Jesus Dominus noster salutem quidem concedit, sed quodammodo salus ipsa eorum notam non evadit infamiae. Cf. c. 3. In Matthaeum commentariorum series, c. 120 (ad Matth. xxvii. 15): Illud quaeramus, si tale aliquid fiat et in judicio Dei, ut omnis Ecclesiae petere possit aliquem peccatorem, ut solvatur a condemnatione peccati, maxime autem si quando habeat perditionis caetera opera, ad benefaciendum autem Ecclesiae impiger sit. Tales enim invenies saepe in potentibus constitutos, alias quidem peccatores, tamen pro Christianis, quantum possibile iis est, multa agentes. Hoc si videtur alicui dignum requisitione, requiret. Quod autem manifestum est, omnes curare tentemus, ut ex petentibus inveniamur esse, et in ordine eorum, qui bene vixerunt, magis quam ex illis, pro quibus petitur, quasi pro hominibus malis. Nam etsi concedatur aliquis peccatorum ad preces Ecclesiae, non tamen justum est gloriam et beatitudinem consequi eum, qui hujusmodi est: sufficit enim quod a poena dimittitur.

4 Comp. especially the Canones Illiberitani, de Wette's Geschichte der christl. Sittenlehre. Erste Hälfte, S. 176, ff.

5 See § 73, note 11.

6 De Wette, 1. c. S. 184, ff.

7 Clem. Strom. vii. p. 871: Οἱ μὲν γὰρ φιλοδοξίᾳ (ἐμμένουσιν ὁμολογίᾳ), οἱ δὲ εὐλαβεία κολάσεως ἄλλης δριμυτέρας, οἱ δὲ διά τινας ἡδονὰς καὶ εὐφροσύνας τὰς μετὰ θάνατον vñoμévovтes, naïdes év пiorεl. Comp. above, § 72, note 26.

8 Cyprian de Unit. eccl. Caeterum numquam in confessoribus fraudes et stupra et adulteria postmodum viderimus, quae nunc in quibusdam videntes ingemiscimus et dolemus. Epist. 7, ad Rogatianum presb. et caeteros confessores: Cum quanto enim nominis vestri pudore delinquitur, quando aliquis temulentus et lasciviens demoratur, alius in eam patriam; unde extorris factus est, regreditur, ut apprehensus non jam quasi Christianus sed quasi nocens pereat. Cf. Epist. 6, ad Clerum suum.

11

their own sins before God, but were likewise able to atone for the sins of others.9 Hence, the fanatical self-devotion to martyrdom (profiteri) always found admirers,1o although it was disapproved by most.1 On the other hand, in times of peace, many attached themselves to the church,12 allured in part by external advantages, who were internally at a distance from it,13 both regarding their relation to it as a thing simply external, and showing themselves lukewarm and indifferent.14

13

While we can not overlook these moral defects, we still find

9 See above, § 70, note 15, ff.

10 Comp. above, § 53, note 48. Euseb. de Martyr. Palaest. c. 3. eccl. vii. c. 12.

11 Comp. § 53, note 49. Cyprian. Ep. 83. Petri Alex. Epist. canon. c. 9. Mensurius, bishop of Carthage, see § 72, note 26. Can. Illiberitan. c. 60: Si quis idola fregerit, et ibidem fuerit occisus, quatenus in evangelio scriptum non est, neque invenitur ab Apostolis unquam factum placuit in numero eum non recipi martyrum.

12 Origines c. Cels. i. p. 53 : Τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Ἰησοῦἐμποιεῖ θαυμασίαν τινὰ πραότητα, καὶ καταστολὴν τοῦ ἤθους, καὶ φιλανθρωπίαν, καὶ χρηστότητα, καὶ ἡμερότητα ἐν τοῖς μὴ διὰ τὰ βιωτικὰ ἤ τινας χρείας ἀνθρωπικὰς ὑποκριναμένοις, ἀλλὰ παραδεξαμένοις γνησίως τὸν περὶ Θεοῦ καὶ Χριστοῦ καὶ τῆς ἐσομένης κρίσεως λόγον.

13 On the time before the Decian persecution Cyprianns de Lapsis writes: Dominus probari familiam suam voluit, et quia traditam nobis divinitus disciplinam pax longa corruperat, jacentem fidem et paene dixerim dormientem censura coelestis erexit.-Studebant augendo patrimonio singuli, et-insatiabili cupiditatis ardore ampliandis facultatibus incubabant. Non in sacerdotibus religio devota, non in ministris fides integra, non in operibus misericordia, non in moribus disciplina.-Jungere cum infidelibus vinculum matrimonii, prostituere gentilibus membra Christi: non jurare tantum temere, sed adhuc etiam pejerare, caet. Origenes in Jerem. Hom. iv. 3: Kaì ảλŋ0ŵç ¿ùv kρívwμev тà πрáɣμаTа ἀληθείᾳ, καὶ μὴ ὄχλοις,—ὀψόμεθα νῦν, ὡς οὐκ ἐσμὲν πιστοί· ἀλλὰ τότε ἦσαν πιστοὶ, ὅτε τὰ μαρτύρια τῇ γενεᾷ ἐγίνοντο, κ. τ. λ.-Τότε ἦσαν πιστοὶ ὀλίγοι μὲν, πιστοὶ δὲ ἀληθῶς.-Νῦν δὲ, ὅτε γεγόναμεν πολλοὶ,—ἐκ τοῦ πλήθους τῶν ἐπαγγελλομένων θεοσέ βειαν σφόδρα εἰσὶν ὀλίγοι, οἱ καταντῶντες ἐπὶ τὴν ἐκλογὴν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὴν μακαpiórηTα. On the peaceful times before the Diocletian persecution, Eusebii H. E. viii. 1 : *Αλλας ἐπ' ἄλλαις προσετιθέμεν κακίας.

14 Origenes in Gen. Hom. x. 1: Ubi vel quando vestrum tempus inveniam (ad distribuendam in tempore tritici mensuram Luc. xii. 42)? Plurimum ex hoc, imo paene totum tempus mundanis occupationibus teritis in foro, aliud in negotiatione consumitis: alius agro, alius litibus vacat, et ad audiendum Dei verbum nemo, aut pauci admodum vacant. Sed quid vos de occupationibus culpo? Quid de absentibus conqueror? Praesentes etiam et in Ecclesia positi non estis intenti, sed communes ex usu fabulas teritis, verbo Dei vel lectionibus divinis terga convertitis.-Sine intermissione orandum Apostolus praecipit. Vos, qui ad orationes non convenitis, quomodo impletis sine intermissione, quod semper omittitis ?-quid faciunt hi, qui diebus tantum solemnibus ad Ecclesiam conveniunt? In Num. Hom. xii. 2: Aliqui vestrum ut recitari audierint, quae leguntur, statim discedunt.Alii ne hoc ipsum quidem patienter expectant, usque quo lectiones in Ecclesia recitentur. Alii vero nec si recitantur, sciunt, sed in remotioribus dominicae domus locis saecularibus fabulis occupantur. Hom. xiii. 3: Quanti modo hic praesentes sumus, et sermo Dei tractatur? Sunt, qui concipiunt corde, quae lecta sunt, sunt, qui omnino non concipiunt, quae dicuntur, sed est mens eorum et cor aut in negotiis, aut in actibus saeculi, aut supputationibus lucri: et praecipue mulieres quomodo, putas, corde concipiunt, quae tantum garriunt, quae tantum fabulis obstrepunt, ut non sinant esse silentium? Jam quid de mente earum, quid de corde discutiam, si de infantibus suis, aut de lana cogitent, aut de necessariis domus ?

in the church a living Christianity prevailing, and in consequence thereof, fine moral phenomena which are sought for in vain out of its pale at this period.15 In particular, that philanthropy which Christianity awakened in its professors, 16 deserves so much the more honorable mention,17 as it was not confined

15 Origines c. Celsum, i. p. 21 : Εἰ δ' ὁ εὐγνωμόνως ταῦτα κατανοῶν συγκαταθήσεται τῷ, μηδὲν κρεῖττον ἐν ἀνθρώποις γεγονέναι ἀθεεί· πόσῳ πλέον τὸ τοσοῦτον περὶ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ θαῤῥῶν ἀποφανεῖται, συνεξετάζων πολλῶν προσερχομένων αὐτοῦ τῷ λόγῳ ἀρχαιοτέρους βίους μεταγενεστέροις, καὶ κατανοῶν, ἐν ὅσαις μὲν ἀκολασίαις, ὅσαις δὲ ἀδικίαις καὶ πλεονεξίαις ἕκαστος τῶνδε ἦν, πρὶν, ὥς φησι Κέλσος,—ἀπατηθῶσι ἐξ οὗ δὲ παρειλήφασι τὸν λόγον, τίνα τρόπον γεγόνασιν ἐπιεικέστεροι καὶ εὐσταθέσε τεροι; Ρ.50: Οἱ κατήγοροι τοῦ Χριστιανισμοῦ οὐχ ὁρῶσιν, ὅσων πάθη, καὶ ὅσων χύσις κακίας καταστέλλεται, καὶ ὅσων ἄγρια ἤθη ἡμεροῦται προφάσει τοῦ λόγου. Arnobius adv. Gentes, ii. 4: Nonne vel haec saltem fidem vobis faciunt argumenta credendi, quod jam per omnes terras in tam brevi temporis spatio immensi nominis hujus sacramenta diffusa sunt? quod nulla jam natio est tam barbari moris, et mansuetudinem nesciens, quae non ejus amore versa molliverit asperitatem suam, et in placidos sensus assumpta tranquillitate migraverit?

16 Thus the Roman church, in the middle of the third century, had (Cornelius Ep. Rom. ap. Euseb. vi. 43, 5, χήρας σὺν θλιβομένοις ὑπὲρ τὰς χιλίας πεντακοσίας, οὓς παντας ἡ τοῦ δεσπότου χάρις καὶ φιλανθρωπία διατρέφει, and sent help besides even to the churches in Syria, Arabia (see Dionys. Alex. b. Euseb. vii. 5, 1), and Cappadocia (Basil. M. Ep. 70). Comp. above, § 53, note 9. Cyprian in exile, Ep. 36, ad Clerum: Viduarum infirmorum et omnium pauperum curam peto diligenter habeatis. Sed et peregrinis, si qui indigentes fuerint, sumptus suggeratis de quantitate mea propria, quam apud Rogatianum compresbyterum nostrum dimisi. Quae quantitas ne forte jam universa erogata sit, misi eidem-aliam portionem, ut largius et promptius circa laborantes fiat operatio. Epist. 60. He sends to the Numidian bishops to ransom the captive brethren from the barbarians, sestertia centum millia nummorum, which he had collected in his church. Et optamus quidem nihil tale de caetero fieri :-si tamen-tale aliquid acciderit, nolite cunctari nuntiare haec nobis literis vestris, pro certo habentes, ecclesiam nostram et fraternitatem istic universam ne haec ultra fiant precibus orare, si facta fuerint, libenter et largiter subsidia praestare. Epist. 61, ad Euchratium, bishop of Thenis, in reference to a converted actor who had been obliged to give up his employment: Quod si illic ecclesia non sufficit ut laborantibus praestet alimenta, poterit se ad nos transferre, et hic quod sibi ad victum atque ad vestitum necessarium fuerit accipere.

1′′ Comp. Vita S. Cypriani per Pontium Diac. c. 9, on the conduct of Cyprian and his church on occasion of a desolating plague: Aggregatam primo in loco uno plebem de misericordiae bonis instituit, docens divinae lectionis exemplis, quantum ad promerendum Deum prosint officia pietatis. Tunc deinde subjungit, non esse mirabile, si nostros tantum debito caritatis obsequio foveremus: eum perfectum posse fieri, qui plus aliquid publicano vel ethnico fecerit: qui malum bono vincens, et divinae clementiae instar exercens, inimicos quoque dilexerit: qui pro persequentium se salute, sicuti, Dominus monet et horatur, orarit. Oriri Deus facit jugiter solem suum, et pluvias subinde nutriendis seminibus impertit, exhibens cuncta ista non suis tantum, sed etiam alienis: et qui se Dei etiam filium esse profitetur, cur non exemplum patris imitatur? Respondere, inquit, nos decet natalibus nostris, et quos renatos per Deum constat, degeneres esse non congruit; sed probare potius in sobole traducem boni patris aemulatione bonitatis. Cap. 10: Multa alia, et quidem magna praetereo. Quod si illa gentiles pro rostris audire potuissent, forsitan statim crederent. Quid christiana plebs faceret, cui de fide nomen est? Distributa sunt ergo continuo pro qualitate hominum atque ordinum ministeria. Multi qui angustia paupertatis beneficia sumtus exhibere non poterant, plus sumtibus exhibebant, compensantes proprio labore mercedem divitiis omnibus cariorem.---Fiebat itaque exuberantium operum

merely to the Christian brethren, but manifested itself in noble traits toward the heathen.

largitate, quod bonum est ad omnes, non ad solos domesticos fidei, etc. Dionysius Alex. ap. Euseb. vii. c. 22, gives a similar account of the conduct of the Alexandrian Christians at the time of a pestilence. Among other things, οἱ γοῦν πλεῖστοι τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἡμῶν δι' ὑπερβάλλουσαν ἀγάπην καὶ φιλαδελφίαν ἀφειδοῦντες ἑαυτῶν καὶ ἀλλήλων ἐχόμενοι, ἐπισκοποῦντες ἀφυλάκτως τοὺς νοσοῦντας, λιπαρῶς ὑπηρετούμενοι, θεραπεύοντες ἐν Χριστῷ, συναπηλλάττοντο ἐκείνοις ἀσμενέστατα τοῦ παρ' ἑτέρων ἀναπιμπλάμενοι πάθους, καὶ τὴν νόσον ἐφ' ἑαυτοὺς ἕλκοντες ἀπὸ τῶν πλησίων, καὶ ἑκόντες ἀναμασ σόμενοι τὰς ἀλγηδόνας.-Τὰ δέ γε ἔθνη πᾶν τοὐναντίον· καὶ νοσεῖν ἀρχομένους ἀπω θοῦντο, καὶ ἀπέφευγον τοὺς φιλτάτους, κἂν ταῖς ὁδοῖς ἐῤῥίπτουν ἡμιθνῆτας· καὶ νεκροὺς ἀτάφους ἀπεσκυβαλίζοντο, τὴν τοῦ θανάτου διάδοσιν καὶ κοινωνίαν ἐκτρεπόμενοι.

SECOND PERIOD.

FROM CONSTANTINE TO THE BEGINNING OF THE CONTROVERSIES CONCERNING IMAGE WORSHIP. A.D. 324-726.

For the general history of the middle ages: Ed. Gibbon History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. London. 1776-88. 4to. Translated into German with remarks, by F. A. W. Wenk, K. G. Schreiber, and Ch. D. Beck. Leipz. 1788-1807. 19 Theile 8vo.-F. Ch. Schlosser's Weltgeschichte in zusammenhängender Erzahlung. Frankf. a. M. 1815, ff. 8. from the second volume onward. Fr. Rehm's Handbuch. d. Geschichte des Mittelalters, 4 Bde. Marburg. 1821-39. 8. H. Leo's Lehrbuch der. Gesch. des Mittelalters, 2 Theile. Halle. 1830. 8.

FIRST DIVISION.

TO THE COUNCIL OF CHALCEDON. A.D. 324–451.

SOURCES.

1. Greek ecclesiastical historians: The continuators of Eusebius: Socrates Scholasticus, of Constantinople, Hist. Eccl. libb. vii. from 306-439. Hermias Sozomenus, lawyer in Constantinople, Hist. Eccl. libb. ix. 323-423. (Both edited by H. Valesius. Paris. 1668. Mogunt. 1677. Amst. 1700. fol.) Theodoretus, bishop of Cyprus, Hist. Eccl. libb. v. 322-429 (in Theodoreti Opp. ed. Jac. Sirmondus. Paris. 1642, ss. fol. tom. 3, p. 2-in edit. Schulzii cura J. A. Noesselt, t. 3, p. 719, ss. Halae. 1771. 8).1 The Arian Philostorgius, Hist. Eccl. libb. xii. 318-425 (preserved only in the extracts of Photius Cod. 40. ed. Jac. Gothofredus. Genev. 1643. 4.)

Farther continuators: Theodorus Lector in Constantinople made extracts from Socrates, Sozomen, and Theodoret, in two books, and continued the history in two books more till A.D. 518. (Fragments of the continuation have been pre

1 F. A. Holzhausen comm. de fontibus, quibus Socrates, Sozomenus, ac Theodoretus in scribenda historia sacra usi sunt, adjuncta eorum epicrisi. Gotting. 1825. 4.