in allusion to the words of the Apostle, "As many "As many as are baptized into Christ, have put on Christ." It was from this custom that the name or word of Whit-Sunday took its rise, which is now one of the great festival in the Christian church. When baptism was over, the white garment was laid up in the church, that it might be an evidence against such as denied that faith which they had made a solemn profession of; of this we have a remarkable instance under the Arian persecution in Africa. Elpidophorus, a citizen of Carthage, had lived many years in communion with the faithful, but having joined himself to the Arians, became a › most cruel persecutor. Among others whom he put to the rack, was one Militas, an aged venerable deacon, who, previous to the torture, pulled out the white garment in which Elpidophorus had been baptized, and with tears in his eyes, thus addressed him before all the people:

"These, Elpidophorus, thou minister of error, are the garments that shall accuse thee, when thou shalt appear before the majesty of the great judge; these are they, which girt thee, when thou camest

pure out of the holy font: and these are they which shall bitterly pursue thee, when thou shalt be cast into the place of flames; because thou hath cloathed thyself with cunning as with a garment, and hast cast off the sacred obligation of thy baptism.”

Sprinkling first came into use in consequence of some people being converted on their death beds, which often happened; for whatever the heathens said of the primitive Christians, yet their faith and exemplary conduct put them to the blush, and they were glad to take part with them in the hour of death.

So much for the origin of baptism in the Christian church, and we shall, in the progress of this work, point out the ceremonies used in different parts of the world. The only inference we would here draw is, that men ought not to be too forward in asserting the belief of what they may consider to be true; nor let them be too hasty in condemning those who differ from them. We are but fallible creatures, and many things will be revealed to us in a future state which we do not at present comprehend.

THE

HESE ancient nations have been long celebrated in history both sacred and profane, although under a variety of names. Sometimes they made a part of the Persian and Median empire; but when Rome declined in her glory, they set up princes of their own, some of whom have still descendants among them. In general, they are at present, subject to the Turks, and it is, from these countries, that the seraglio of the grand seignor is supplied with beautiful women.

Armenia is a very extensive country, and generally divided into the greater and lesser, but taking both together, they are bounded in the following manner. It has Georgia on the north; on the south mount Taurus, which divides it from Mesopotamia, on the west the river Euphrates, and on the east by the Caspian mountains..

Georgia has the Caspian sea on the east, the Euxine sea on the west, on the north Circassia, and on the south part of Armenia. The river Cur, or Cyrus, so called from the emperor of that name,. runs through it, dividing it into two equal parts.

Circassia, is parted from Georgia by an outlet of the Black-sea, and mount Cocassis; on the north by the great river Don, on the east by the Caspian sea, and the mouth of the Wolga, and on the west by the streights of Coffa. It is divided into several principalities, and sometimes they do homage to the Turks, but most commonly to the Russians.

The inhabitants of these countries, like all others except the Jews, were, a the time of our Saviour's incarnation, heathens; and we are told by several ancient authors, that they worshipped Noah under the name of Janus, on account of his having invent

ed

ed the use of wine, and his wife Aretia, whom they called Vesta, or the earth. There is no doubt but both Noah and his sons were worshipped after their deaths when idolatry began to prevail in the world; but as these nations are situated so near Persia and Assyria, we may naturally conclude, that there was but very little difference between them.

The Christian religion was taught here soon after our Saviour's ascension, and probably by St. Peter or some of his disciples; for we find in Eusebius, that they had many flourishing churches before the reign of Constantine the Great. Like the other parts of the Christian world, they admitted useless rites and ceremonies, and embraced notions contrary to the simplicity of the sacred scriptures. Their most leading notions are the following:

1.-Like the Greeks, they assert that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the father alone.

2.They believe, that when Christ descended into hell, he granted a reprieve to all damned souls, which is to continue to the end of the world, when they are to be sent again into eternal flames.

3.They assert, that the souls of the righteous shall not be admitted into everlasting happiness till after the general resurrection; and yet they burn lamps before their images, adore them as objects of worship, and pray for their assistance.

4.-They confess their sins to the priests, much in the same manner as in the Greek church.

5.--In baptism, the plunge the child three times in the water, and make the cross on its forehead with consecrated oil.

6.-They give the cup as well as the bread to the laity, and they observe a vast number of festivals.

They have Monks, who follow the order of St. Basil, and they have several nunneries for religious women. The Monks wear the same habit as the Greeks, and instead of spending their time in idleness, some of them dress their gardens, others perform Divine service, while the more aged and infirm instruct the children in the villages. The Nuns have great privileges; for they are permitted to baptize, and to cross the child with the holy oil. They wear a loose black robe, and are alway veiled when they appear in places of public worship; but they are not permitted to visit company, nor to converse with men besides their priests, when they come to hear their confessions.

Throughout the whole of these extensive countries,' there is to be found an order of Monks called Jacobites, from one Jacob, a Syrian, who lived about the middle of the sixth century, but they are divided into diffent sects. Some of them follow the rites of Roman church, others follow those of the

Greek, and a third deny the authority of both. They have generally two rival patriarchs, and each pretend to be endued with infallibity, so that they are constantly disputing and quarrelling. As to their belief, they hold that there is but one nature in Jesus Christ, and with respect to the purgatory and prayers for the dead, they are of the same opinion with the Greeks, and the other eastern churches, which may serve to shew that they were once one and the same people in their religious sentiments. They do not admit that auricular confession is of Divine institution, and they use leavened bread in the eucharist. They perform part of their service in the Chaldean language, but part of their mass is said in Hebrew. They believe in transubstantiation, and they administer the eucharist in both kinds, both to grown persons and to children. When they administer this ordinance, they make a large cake, and when it is cut into small pieces, they distribute it to the people in commemoration of Christ's body and soul having been separated by death on the cross, to make an attonement for sin.

They have written offices of devotion, for the art of printing is yet unknown amongst them; but with respect to the history of their religion, it is conveyed by the priests to the people, in the way of narrative, traditions, and legends.

Legends consisted originally of the lives of Saints and Martyrs; and it was the practice in the fourth century, to read these in Christian churches. As every church was dedicated to some particular Saint, so the priest availed himself of keeping a list, or record of their actions, of which we shall mention the following instances.

The golden legends, written about the year 1298, contains a collection of the most ridiculous stories, said to have been read in the eastern churches, after the time of Constantine the Great; but even the Roman Catholics are now so much ashamed of it, that it is seldom used but in the most obscure country churches.

The priests at Mentz in Germany, have a legend, which is sincerely believed by the people, namely, that one day, a profligate fellow swore he would kill the first man he met, and a crucifix being carried through the streets in procession, he struck at it with his sword, which brought blood from it. Immediately the fellow sunk up to the knees in earth, where he stood fixed till the magistates apprehended him, he was condemned, and burnt alive at a stake.

At Landsberg, a considerable town in Bavaria, there is a crucifix in the church of the Franciscan Friars, placed over the altar, and the person who

shews

At Aken in Germany, there is a legend of a very extraordinary nature, transmitted down from one generation to another.-Travellers are shewn a large pair of brass gates, one of which has a crack, occasioned by the following circumstance: when Charles the great, commonly called Charlemagne, had given orders for the building of this church, the devil came one day and asked him what he intended it for? To which the emperor answered, for a gaming house; and the devil went away, seemingly well satisfied. A few days afterwards, the devil came again, and seeing some altars, erected, asked what they were for? The emperor answered, for gaming-tables, which encouraged the devil to lend his assistance towards the building. Accordingly he brought a large pair of brass gates on his shoulders; but happening to see a crucifix, he flung them down and took to his heels, and one of the gates received the crack which is still shewn. This story is related by the priests, in as serious a manner as if it was part of the sacred history.

In Calabria is a city named St. Agatha, where the priests belonging to the church shew a piece of a pillar, kept in a glass frame, which they tell you shined when Paul preached in that place. The Jesuits wanted to remove this relic to their college; but although only a few pounds in weight, yet twenty men were not able to move it, though one man carried it into the place where it now stands. Another legend, equally extraordinary and ridiculous, is the following, related by the people of Malta, and firmly believed by them. Three young genflemen, knights of Malta, having been taken prisoners by the Turks, were brought before the grand seignior, who ordered one of his priests to convert them to the Mahometan religion, but they continued stedfast in their opinions. Being brought into the seraglio, the grand seignior's daughter fell in love with them, and told her father, that if he

No. 3.

In Armenia, Georgia, and Circassia, there are many such ridiculous legends; and indeed almost every church has a feigned history of the saint to whom it is dedicated. This will not seem strange, when we consider how ignorant the people are of the first principles of religion; nay, they are now little better than barbarians; sentiments they have few, and their ceremonies are ridiculous. In their marriages they use the ring, which seems to have been the practice of the most early ages, it being an emblem of eternity.

The priest performs the marriage ceremony in the church, and he anoints both the bride and the bridegroom, by pouring consecrated oil on their heads, and marking the sign of the cross on their breasts. The relations of both parties come dressed in white, and the young women accompany the bride with natural, or artificial garlands, according to the season of the year; and when the ceremony is over, they place them under their feet at the church door. On their return home, songs of love are sung before the new married couple, and the evening is spent in every sort of festivity. During these feasts, they still retain some pagan customs, such as offering plates with corn and wine to the bridegroom, thereby pointing out, that the duty of man consists in all temporal things to cultivate the fruits of the earth, and the women to prepare them for proper use. That this was a practice observed by the heathens, will appear in the subsequent part

of this work; but still we have some instances of it among the Jews, where we are told by the prophet, that corn shall make the young men chearful, and new wine the virgins. This may serve to shew, that there is, and always has been, a sort of affinity in religious sentiments, among all ancient nations, although they were not always placed upon the proper object, nor directed to the proper end.

They have many ridiculous ceremonies in burying their dead; but when we compare some of them with what we find in our own country, perhaps we are as ridiculous as they. They hire peoQ

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