BOOK VII.

Their Religion.

CHAP. I.

The Hiftory of the Propagation of Christianity among the Anglo-Saxons.

1.

T has been often remarked as a peculiar merit C HAP. of the Christian religion, that it neither arofe from ambition, nor was propagated by the fword. It appealed unoffendingly to the reafon, the fenfibility, the virtue, and the interest of mankind; and it established itself in every province of the Roman empire.

WHEN the torrent of barbarians overspread Europe, to the deftruction of all arts and knowledge, Christianity fell in the general fhipwreck. Soon however, in fome diftricts, fhe raifed her mild and interesting form, and the favages yielded to her benign influence.

AMONG the Anglo-Saxons her conqueft over the fierce and wild paganism which our ancestors adored was not begun, till France and even Ireland had fubmitted to her laws, but it was accomplished in a manner worthy of her benevolence and purity.

GENUINE piety feems to have led the firft miffionaries to our fhores. Their zeal, their perfeverance, and the excellence of the fyftem they diffufed, made their labours fuccefsful.

BOOK

VII.

GREGORY the Great was one of the few popes whose character has been diftinguished by fincere religion. In fome we fee little else than the politician, the voluptuary, and the hypocrite. But most of the earlieft poffeffors of the papal dignity display a nobler life; and among thefe Gregory is remarkable for a zeal that never flept, and for a piety that, though always eminently active, was yet injudiciously auftere'.

His father was a nobleman, who educated him for civil offices. He was always ftudious, though fond of coftly habits of filk and gold; and he began his political life by discharging the office of the city pretor.

RELIGION exciting his attachment, he abandoned the fcenes of ambition and the ornaments of luxury, and devoted himself to an ecclefiaftical life. His father's death allowed him to purfue his own wishes.

OUT of his rich inheritance he built and liberally endowed fix monasteries in Sicily, and one in Rome. In this he unambitiously entered as a private monk, appointing another to be its abbot. Having provided for the fupport of these establish

'Our Venerable Bede has given a flight sketch of the Pope's Life in his hiftory, L. 2. c. 1. Gregory of Tours, a ftill more ancient writer, fupplies us with more information, L. 10. c. 1. Ifidorus, Paulus Diaconus, Archbishop Ado, Simon Metaphraftes, and others, have also recorded him. But his most elaborate, though not most judicious biographer, is Joannes Diaconus, whofe life, with the other accounts, is prefixed to the edition of Gregory's works in Jarge folio. Paris, 1640.

ments, he fold the reft of his property, and divided CHA P. it among the

poor 2.

His fevere abftinence, watchings, prayer, and studies, occafioned apreffure of disease, which made his life a continued indifpofition. Though poffeffed of all the means of the ampleft indulgence, he used nothing for his daily food but raw pulse, fent by his mother. In this extreme aufterity there is nothing to admire but the motive. So much felf-restraint as will produce felf-government is wife and falutary. All feverer mortification makes a phantom of terror of that religion whofe natural character is to attract mankind by her fmiles, her fociability, her benignity, and her suitability to every climate of nature, and every class of mankind.

2

Greg. Touron. L. 10. c. 1. Joan. Diac. L. 1. This latter writer has crowded the life of Gregory by a series of miracles, which have as few of the graces of fancy as of truth. This author closes the life with a vision, which he boldly claims to have happened to himself.-The devil came to him as he had finished his fourth book, teized and terrified him by putting out his light. Gregory himself and two other perfons immediately appeared to him, re-illuminated and confoled him! As he had given about a hundred miracles very liberally to Gregory, he feems to have thought it allowable to take the credit of a little one to himself.

3 Gregory himself fays, in a letter to Leander, prefixed to his Job, "Many years have rolled over me, during which "I have been frequently tormented with internal pains. σε Every hour, every moment I languifh under the evils of

a weak and disordered ftomach. I am in a flow, but per"petual fever. But in thefe afflictions I recollect that God "chaftifeth every fon whom he receives; and I trust that "the more I am oppreffed with prefent evils, the more ar"dently I fhall pant for a happy eternity."

BOOK

VII.

THE accidental fight of English youth expofed to fale in the market-place at Rome, excited his first wishes for the converfion of the Anglo-Saxons. He was ftruck with their fair and beautiful countenances he inquired who they were, and was informed that they came from Britain, where the inhabitants were all of the fame complexion. When he heard that fuch an interefting race were ftill pagans, he groaned heavily, and exclaimed, "Why fhould the prince of darkness have fuch "fplendid fubjects! Why fhould the mind be "fo dark, when the perfon is fo beautiful!”

His fenfibility was excited. On learning that their name was Angles, the found immediately affociated itself with their perfonal appearance, and his religious impreflions. "Angles! that is to fay angels. They have angel countenances, and ought to join the angelic companies."

THAT fuch a people ought to be in the poffeffion of a religion which Gregory confidered to be the nobleft gift of happiness to man, was his next affociation. The name of their province, Deira, was a confonancy that struck him. "De ira, from wrath! "Yes, from the wrath of God they must be

plucked, and brought to the grace of Christ." While this new and benevolent idea was floating in his mind, he heard that their king's name was Ella; and with all the ardour of that fincere piety which governed his actions he exclaimed, "Alleluia!"they muft fing Alleluias there in praise of their "Creator 4.39

Bede, L. 2. c. 3.

I.

GREGORY obtained leave from the pope to vifit CHA P. England as a miffionary. But the Roman people, disturbed that a man who was their favourite fhould undertake fuch a perilous enterprise, raised so much clamour at his departure that it was thought prudent to recal him; and he was afterwards fent to Conftantinople as the apoftolical legate, where he compofed his expofitions on the book of Job.

His correspondence embraced the principal regions of the known world in the different stages of his life. We have his letters to perfons in Italy, Sicily, Malta, France, Spain, Naples, Corfica, Sardinia, Dalmatia, Illyricum, Corinth, Antioch, Conftantinople, Numidia, and other parts of Africa. His numerous letters and writings, which fill fome folio volumes, display an intellectual activity that, in a more enlightened age, and with a happier education, would have obtained no fmall proportion of literary celebrity.

BEFORE he was pope he gave fome teftimony that his compaffionate admiration of the English captives was not a mere tranfient impreffion.

A LETTER of his to a dignitary in Gaul is ftill extant, in which he defires him to buy fome cloaths for the poor Angle youths of 17 or 18 years of age, that they might be taken into monasteries".

BUT when he was chofen to the pontifical dignity he determined to realize the favourite purpose of his youth. He selected Auguftine and fome other monks to proceed to England to preach Christianity. See his Letters, p. 166.

Jo. Diac H. L. 1. C. 22m