brunt of all these fatigues. "In the first place (says she) being assisted by the help [or influence] that is from above, ὑπὸ τῆς ἄνωθεν βοηθεμένη ροπῆς· and then also the comfort which I had by the continual sight and company of you, my son, did not a little contri bute to it." But here is nothing but what might be properly said by a Christian woman, in reference to those times in which she had been a Heathen; since God Almighty employs his providence in relieving the necessities not only of Christians, but of all men and other creatures that know him not. She does not mention in all that long speech, any praying to God, or use of his word, that she had made in those days; which to me is a greater proof that she was not at that time a Christian, than the foresaid words are that she was. At least, here is nothing that can near countervail the argument from the foresaid words of Libanius concerning this John's heathen profession, at first rehearsed by Sozomen; and Sozomen is a good witness in this case, having lived part of his time together with Chrysostom; for he had wrote several books before that history, and he had completed that history in 440 [340]; so that he must have been born before St. Chrysostom died, which was anno 407 [307]. Of St. Ambrose. There is no Account of his Parents being Christians St. Ambrose's case is just the same with that of Nectarius; and he himself, after he had heard how Nectarius was chosen Bishop of Constantinople, * said, "I was utterly unwilling to be ordained; and when there was no remedy, desired that at least my ordination might be delayed for a longer time. But the rule of the church could not prevail; - the force of the people prevailed. Yet the western bishops have ap ་་་་ proved of my ordination by their consent; and the eastern by their doing the same thing." The rule or prescription that he speaks of, is that mentioned by St. Paul, 1 Tim. iii 6; which canon, it seems, the people would by force have to be dispensed with, when they had an extraordinary opinion of a man. He was a layman, and was governor under Valentinian the emperor, of some provinces of Gallia Cisalpina; and when the people of Milan (which was one of the cities under his government) were, after the death of Auxentius their bishop, in a tumult about choosing another, he came to keep the peace, and persuaded them to quietness and concord; he spoke to them so handsomely and so gravely, that all parties agreed on a sudden to pitch upon him for bishop [274]. He opposed it what he could; but they sent to the emperor for his consent, because he was at that time the emperor's minister; and he said, "He was very glad that the men he chose for governors were so well liked by the people, that they would choose the same for bishops." So he gave his consent, but yet he would not determine the choice, as being a thing out of his sphere; he ordered the bishops then present in or about that city to direct the choice of the people, who continued resolute for Ambrose. But Ambrose was not as yet baptized; he received baptism at the hands of Simplicianus †, and within eight days was ordained bishop. Our business being to enquire why he was not baptized in infancy?-the Antipædobaptists would have it that he was born of Christian parents; and some of them stick not to say, that Paulinus, in his Life, says he was; but Paulinus does not say so. What he says of his father is this: that he was a nobleman of Rome, and governor of Gallia [233]. But he was the less likely to be a Christian for that; the senate and great * Paulinus in Vitâ. Rufinus, lib. 2, c. 11. Soc. lib. 4, c. 30, Sozomen. Theodoret, lib. 4, c. 6. + Augustin. Confess. lib. 8, c. 2. men of Rome being the last body of men in the empire that came over to the Christian faith [291]; insomuch, that a long time after this, when St. Ambrose was an old man, Valentinian the Second had much ado to withstand the attempt made by the senate to bring again into fashion the Heathen worship. So says St. Ambrose at his funeral:-"Before his death he refused to grant the privileges of the temples, when such men stood up for them, of whom he might well be afraid; whole crowds of Heathen men came about him; the senate petitioned; he was not afraid for the sake of Christ to incur the displeasure of men." If one may guess by circumstances, he lost the empire and his life in this quarrel; Eugenius the usurper, that prevailed against him, having all the Heathen party on his side; who restored those Heathen altars which Valentinian had denied, and set up † temples of Jupiter, And Argobastes had threatened, if he overcame Theodosius, to make the great church at Milan (the St. Paul's of that city) a stable for his horses; because they would not communicate with Eugenius, nor receive his offering, as being an usurper; but better news came to town quickly, as I shewed before, § in the history of Valentinian. I bring in this to shew, that when Paulinus makes St. Ambrose's father to have been a great man at Rome, that is no argument that he was a Christian. But indeed Paulinus, or whoever wrote that Life (for Erasmus || takes it to be a forgery of some late monk, as I observed before) knew so little of his father's concerns, that he did not know his name; he makes his name to be Ambrosius, because the son's was so; but his name, if his son knew better T, was Symmachus. Though the life-writers, copying one out of another, * Orat. in obitum Valentiniani. § Sect. 3. § 3. do to this day call him Ambrosius. He seems to have died while St. Ambrose was young. But at the time when St. Ambrose was come to man's estate, Paulinus does indeed say that his mother was a widow, who dwelt at Rome, and was then a Christian; if that would avail any thing to prove that her husband or she were so formerly, when he was born. On the contrary, a strong proof that they were not, is that which he says of himself, That he was not brought up in the bosom of the church; for in his second book De Pænitentia, c. 8, speaking of his own unworthiness, and unfitness to be a bishop, he says it will be said of him, Ecce iile, non in ecclesiæ nutritus sinu, &c. Lo!- this man, that was not brought up in the bosom of the church!' &c. As for what St. Ambrose's own thoughts were of the necessity of infant baptism, it appears by his words cited before, that he made it a great question, " Whether a child could be sayed without it? * Of St. Hierom. There is no Proof to the contrary, but that he St. Hierom, who wrote the lives of several persons of note that had been before him, found none of the antients that came after him, so kind as to write his; for that life which was formerly published with his works, is a mere fable; yet he having wrote a great many occasional letters, which for the goodness of the style, and the learning contained in them, are preserved, many of the chief passages of his life may be picked out of them. In all that be bas said of himself, or the anonymous author of the life aforesaid, or any body else has said of him, there is no ground to question his baptism in infancy, except an obscure passage, mentioned twice in *Part 1, ch. 13. the same words, and those ambiguous ones, in two letters that he wrote to Pope Damasus. The occasion was this:St. Hierom being retired from Rome into Syria [260], in order to lead a monk's life there, found the people of those parts much divided, not so much in opinions of religion, as in disputing which of several that were set up, was the lawful Bishop of Antioch, with whom they ought to hold communion. Some acknowledged Meletius; others refusing him, followed Paulinus; and others adhered to Vitalis. . Another difficulty was, they thereabouts expressed their faith in the Trinity by acknowledging three Hypostases. Being asked by the Latins, What they meant by Hypostases?-they answered, Personas subsistentes, -Persons subsisting.' St. Hierom and the other Latins answered, That they had the same faith, and owned three persons subsisting. This was enough; they would have them express the word it self, three Hypostases. St. Hieroin scrupled the doing that, because Hypostases, among secular authors, had signified substance or essence; and "who (says he) will, with a sacrilegious mouth, preach up three substances:" And again, "If any one by Hypostases, meaning Ousiam, essence [or being] does not confess that there is but one Hypostasis in three persons, he is estranged from Christ. About these things he writes to Damasus, [272] who had in the mean time been made Bishop of Rome (epist. 57) desiring to know whether he and the church of Rome (for he is resolved to go by their example) do allow of this word Hypostasis for person; and also which of the aforesaid parties, viz. of Meletius, Paulinus, or Vitalis, they would communicate with; for he would do the same. And this I do," (says he) Inde nunc meæ anima postulans oibum, unde olim Christi vestamenta suscepi. 'Desiring now food [or instruction] for my 'soul from that place where I formerly took upon me "the garments of Christ.' 66 4 |