neglected, the scandals he has occasioned, the time he has lost, and the idle words he has used. If the soul is in a state of grace, it will receive everlasting happiness as its reward—if otherwise, it will be condemned to eternal misery in hell. Paradise is the abode of the blessed spirits, who, having been purified in purgatory from the least spot of sin, live for ever. Hell, which is the abode of devils, becomes also that of the lost souls who are condemned to an eternal separation from God. This separation is the death of the soul, which consists not in destruction, but in suffering, for as Jesus Christ has said: "Their worm dieth not, and their fire is not extinguished." (St Matt. viii. 43, 45, 47.) Such has been the doctrine of the apostles. They thus accomplished the mission which had been left them to do, not limiting themselves to writing, but preaching and teaching with the authority with which Christ had invested them. We possess not only the New Testament, in which are the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, their Epistles, and the A-poc-a-lypsel of St John; but we have likewise the traditions which the apostles wished to have preserved, and the institutions which they founded. We have, moreover, the Church, that Divine structure, of which the faithful are the materials, and Jesus Christ the corner or head-stone. Upon this foundation rests Peter, to whom our Lord said, "Upon this rock (or Peter) I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." It is built upon a rock, so that neither the storms of persecutions nor of heresies 2 shall ever shake it. Jerusalem, on the contrary, has seen her towers, her walls, and her temple destroyed. Daniel predicted the fall of Jerusalem five hundred years before it came to pass. And Jesus Christ referred to the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet, when he said to his disciples: "This generation shall not pass away, till all these things be done." (St Matt. xxiv. 15, 34.) And accordingly Jerusalem was taken A.D. 70, at which date several of the apostles were still living, and St John's life was prolonged until the end of the century, when he died at Ephesus, under Trajan, about the year A.D. 101. 1 Apo, from; kalupto, I cover. I uncover. 2 From hairesis, a taking, a choosing, having one's own way. POST-APOSTOLIC1 AGE. THE PERIOD OF THE PERSECUTIONS. A.D. 106. Third Persecution. 303. Tenth Persecution. 313. Conversion of Constantine and Establishment of Christianity. CHAPTER XXXVI. THE Lord had said to His apostles: "Behold, I send you forth as lambs in the midst of wolves." The first preachers of the gospel were therefore not surprised at meeting with persecution, which they endured and overcame with the prudence of the serpent and the harmlessness of the dove. These persecutions were raised against them wherever they went; but the Emperors of Rome were the chief adversaries 2 of God and of His Christ. History records 3 ten epochs in particular, during which these persecutions were revived with increased animosity.4 The first persecution took place under Nero, A.D. 64, in which, as we have seen, both St Peter and St Paul received the crown of martyrdom. The second general persecution was begun by Do-mi'-ti-an. towards the end of the first century. It was during this persecution that St John was brought to Rome and plunged into a caldron of boiling oil without sustaining 5 any injury. The third persecution was begun A.D. 106, under Trajan, about fourteen years later. Amongst the first martyrs was St Simeon, Bishop of Jerusalem, who had reached his 120th 1 Post, after. Post-apostolic age means the age immediately succeeding the apostles. 2 Ad, to, against; verto, I turn, I go. 3 Re, back; cors, cordis, the heart. Hatred, from animus, spirit, impetuosity. 5 Sub, under; teneo, I hold. year. Soon after, the celebrated St Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, was taken in irons to Rome, and exposed to wild beasts in the Roman amphitheatre.1 The persecutions were resumed towards the end of the reign of An-to-ni'-nus Pius; and the illustrious martyrdom of St Felicitas and her seven sons took place at Rome A.D. 150. The fourth persecution was revived by the Emperor Mar'-cus Au-re'-li-us, A.D. 166, and was very violent. Amongst the most illustrious victims 2 were St Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, and a disciple of St John, and St Justin the philosopher 3 and martyr. The fifth persecution was raised by Sep-ti'-mi-us Se-ve'-rus, A.D. 202. The cruel and unrelenting 4 character of this emperor caused this persecution to be of extraordinary severity. It numbers amongst its martyrs Le-on'-i-das, the father of Origen, with seven of his pupils, at Alexandria; St Per-pet'-u-a and St Fe-li'-ci-tas at Carthage; 5 St Iren-æ'-us, Bishop of Lyons, a disciple of St Polycarp, and many others. The The sixth persecution, A.D. 235, was severe, but brief. Christians were now very numerous, hence the fury of the Emperor Max'-i-min fell chiefly on their bishops and priests. Pope St Pont'-i-an and his successor, Pope St An-the'-ri-us, were both martyred. The seventh persecution was begun, A.D. 249, by the Emperor Decius. Pope St Fabian, successor of Pope St Antherius, St Alexander, Bishop of Jerusalem, and St Bab'-y-las, Bishop of Antioch, with many more, suffered martyrdom. The eighth persecution was ordered by the Emperor Va-le'ri-an about A.D. 257. Pope St Stephen and his successor, Pope St Sixtus II., together with four deacons, amongst whom was St Laurence, were sufferers under the cruel edicts of this reign; also the great St Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage; and some refer to this persecution the martyrdom of St Denis, 1 Amphi, around; theatron, a theatre, a place of spectacle, a show-place. Amphitheatres were oval theatres, where the wild-beast fights took place. 2 Victim, from vinco, I bind. It means properly the bound offerings sacrificed by the ancients in religious worship. 3 Philo, I love; sophia, wisdom. Unrelenting, unforgiving. A large and ancient city in Africa, opposite Sicily, near Tunis, founded by the Phoenicians. It was conquered by the Romans. On the Rhône, in France. or Di-on-y'-si-us, who was the first Bishop of Paris and called the Apostle of Gaul.1 The ninth persecution was authorised 2 by the Emperor Aurelian, A.D. 274 or 275. St Co-lum'-ba suffered martyrdom at Sens, in Gaul, St Momas at Antioch, and Pope St Felix at Rome. The tenth and last persecution took place under the Emperor Dio-cle'-ti-an, A.D. 303, and it was the last and crowning assaults made by the imperial power on the Church of God. St Agnes and St Sebastian at Rome, St Quen'-tin in Gaul, and St Alban, the first English martyr, all sealed their faith with their blood. The slaughter of the Thebean 4 legion and St Maurice, their chief, is referred to this persecution. The Church was now to triumph visibly, and to overthrow Paganism. The blood of the martyrs was the seed of the Church. CHAPTER XXXVII. This CONSTANTINE the Great was the first Emperor of Rome who embraced Christianity. He began to reign A.D. 312. Whilst fighting against Max-en'-ti-us, the son of Maximin, who reigned with Diocletian, Constantine prayed to the God of the Christians for aid, and his prayer was heard. As he was marching at the head of his army, a cross of fire was seen in the cloudless sky at noonday, and on it these words: "Through this sign thou shalt conquer."5 It was visible to the whole army. gave him confidence in the Divine protection; and after defeating the tyrant Maxentius, he entered Rome as a conqueror. He did not at once profess Christianity, but he published an edict of toleration, recalled Christians who had been banished, rebuilt churches, and gave the Pope the palace of Lateran as a residence. Thus Paganism gave way before the gradual extension of the holy religion of Christ, and the cross, which had been for more than three hundred years an object of contempt and detestation, became the proudest decoration 7 of the hitherto 2 Permitted. 3 Attack. 1 Gaul, the ancient name for France. 4 It received its name from being raised in Thebais, or Upper Egypt. 5 Ἐν τούτῳ νίκα. 6 Strong hatred. 7 Decoration, ornament. Decus, honour, modesty. pagan emperors of Rome. In this reign the first general council was assembled at Nice, in Asia Minor, A.D. 325. St Hel'-ěna, the mother of Constantine, was a convert, like her son. She built many churches, and was a model of charity and piety. When in her eightieth year, she made a pilgrimage 1 to the Holy Land. Her great wish was to discover the cross on which the Redeemer of the world had suffered for our sins. Her researches were rewarded, and her faith recompensed, A.D. 326. She sent a portion of the true cross to her son, and enclosed the remainder in a silver shrine, to be preserved in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which she built, as well as two other churches, one on the spot of our Lord's Ascension, the other at Bethlehem, on the site of the Nativity. In the year 330, the newly-built city of Con-stan-ti-no'-ple2 was solemnly dedicated and named by Constantine, who removed the seat of government from Rome to the new capital in the East. This led before the end of the century to the final division of the empire into East and West, and to its rapid 3 decline.4 Christ had foretold that His Church would be always persecuted, yet never vanquished.5 No sooner did external persecution cease, than heresies arose within it. Ju'-li-an the apostate, a nephew of Constantine, made vain attempts to undermine and destroy Christianity. He had been brought up in the Christian religion, but forsook his faith, and thought, by degrading it, to bring back Paganism 6 in its place. In order to falsify Christ's prophecy, that the ruin of Jerusalem was to be final, he undertook to rebuild the Temple; but each time that the work was begun, the labourers were either killed by an earthquake, which buried them under the materials collected for building, or were dispersed by an outburst of subterranean 7 fire. Julian was not permitted by God to reign long. He was killed in Persia, in his thirty-second year, A.D. 363. Almost his last words were: "Galilean, Thou hast conquered." 1 Peregrinus, a wanderer. From per, through; ager, field. Pilgrimages were pious journeys to visit shrines. 2 Constantine's city; polis meaning city in Greek. 3 Rapid, quick. 5 4 Decline, falling off. De, down; clino, I lean. Conquered. From the French vaincre, and Latin vinco, I conquer, I bind. Paganism. All the religions of the Roman empire differing from Christianity were so-called from the peasantry, pagani, who were the last to cling to the old heathenism. 7 Sub, under; terra, the earth. |