expressing our regret that the faith and love of the gospel received, toward the close of it, a dreadful blow from the encouragement of this unchristian practice.

CHAPTER XXI.

Testimonies to the Church of Christ from its Enemies.

THE fastidious indifference, at least, if not the virulent enmity shewn to the gospel by the great men of Greece and Rome, during the three first centuries, leaves one little reason to expect much account of christians through the channel of their writings. A few cursory, sarcastic, and ill-informed reflections are all that can be found, in our days, concerning more modern revivals and propagation of evangelical truth and godliness, in writers of polite estimation. Something however of this sort is to be gleaned up which may throw some light on the state of religion in the second and third centuries. One writer indeed, Celsus, particularly in the extracts of him preserved by Origen, will shew us perhaps more than all the rest put together. Dr. Lardner has laboured abundantly in this point, for the purpose of establishing the general credibility of the gospel. My views in throwing together a few quotations must be for a different purpose; to illustrate the character of real christians, and point out some of the effects of the work of the Holy Spirit upon them. Lardner's Collections will however be serviceable to my plan as well as to his own.

In the former part of the second century flourished the stoic philosopher Epictetus. Arian has published his discourses. In one passage he occasionally speaks of "the Galilæans, as indifferent to sufferings from madness or from habit."

These Galilæans are obviously christians. For what cause they were indifferent to sufferings, we shall be

willing to learn from those who better understand the subject. Indeed they took joyfully the spoiling of their goods, because they knew in themselves that they had in heaven a better and enduring substance. Christian faith and hope afford motives truly deserving a better name than madness or habit. But the fact is attested by this prejudiced philosopher, that christians were then exposed to singular sufferings, and that they bore them with a composure and serenity so astonishing, that philosophers knew not how to account for their patience. Strengthened they were indeed with might, by the glorious power of their God, to all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness.

In the same century Apuleius, a ludicrous author, in his Metamorphosis speaks of a baker, a good sort of man, troubled with a bad wife possessed of every vice, perverse, a drunkard, lewd, a follower of vain observances, who pretended that the Deity was only one.

I suppose Apuleius would not have noticed her other crimes, had she not been guilty of this last. See the difference which christianity has made in the world. Through Europe the character of any man's understanding would be much impeached at present, who should seriously assert a plurality of Gods. The belief of the Divine Unity is, by a polite author of the second century, classed with an assemblage of vices. What have you been doing, philosophers, that you never could rid mankind of polytheism, which every philosopher now despises? But let the philosopher know, that God has effected this by the gospel. This baker's wife is evidently a christian, therefore loaded with reproaches, probably unjust: her husband is as plainly a Pagan, therefore a good sort of man, as the world generally allows its ollowers to be; "if ye were of the world, the world would love its own."

The extracts from Celsus, who wrote in the latter end of the second century, preserved in Origen's work against him, are very valuable in the light which I have stated. Take a few of them, and consider what may justly be inferred from them concerning the nature of

the gospel and the characters of its professors. I shall select a few, partly from my own observations, and partly as Dr. Lardner has given us them in his Collections. A particular reference to each of them will be needless. The reader must be prepared to hear bitter things. A more spiteful calumniator hardly ever existed; but he may serve a purpose which he never intended.

"If they say, "Do not examine," and the like, in their usual manner, it is however incumbent on them to teach what those things are which they assert, and whence they are derived."

"Wisdom in life is a bad thing, but folly is good.' "Christ was privately educated, and served for hire in Egypt;* got acquainted with miraculous arts there, returned, and for those miracles, declared himself God." "The apostles were infamous men, publicans and abandoned mariners."

"Why should you, when an infant, be carried into Egypt, lest you should be murdered? God should not fear being put to death."

"You say that God was sent to sinners; but why not to those who were free from sin? What harm is it not to have sinned?"

"You encourage sinners, because you are not able to persuade any really good men; therefore you open the doors to the most wicked and abandoned.".

"Some of them say, do not examine, but believe, and thy faith shall save thee."

"These are our institutions," (speaking of christians with a sneer) "let not any man of learning come here, nor any wise man, nor any man of prudence; for these things are reckoned evil by us. But whoever is unlearned, ignorant, and silly, let him come without fear." Thus they own that they can gain only the foolish, the vulgar, the stupid slaves, women and children. They who conversed with him when alive, and heard his voice, and followed him as their master, when they saw

The authenticity of St. Matth. ch. ii. which has been unreasonably denied, is established by this passage.

him under punishment and dying, were so far from dy.. ing with him or for him, or being induced to despise sufferings, that they denied that they were his disciples; but now you die with him.”

"He had no reason to fear any mortal now, after he died, and as you say he was a God."

"He persuaded only twelve abandoned sailors, and publicans, and did not persuade even all these."

"At first when they were but few they agreed. But when they became a multitude they were rent again and again, and each will have their own factions; for factious spirits they had from the beginning.'

"They are now so split into different sects, that they have only the name left them in common."

"All wise men are excluded from the doctrine of their faith; they call to it only fools and men of a servile spirit."

He frequently upbraids christians for reckoning him who had a mortal body to be God, and looking on themselves as pious on that account.

"The preachers of their Divine Word only attempt to persuade fools, mean and senseless persons, slaves, women, and children. What harm can there be in being learned, well-informed, and both in being and appearing a man of knowledge? What obstacle can this be to the knowledge of God? Must it not be an advantage?

"We see these itinerants shewing readily their tricks to the vulgar, but not approaching the assemblies of wise men, nor daring there to shew themselves; but wherever they see boys, a crowd of slaves and ignorant men, there they thrust in themselves and shew off their doctrine."

"You may see weavers, tailors, and fullers, illiterate and rustic men in their houses, but not daring to utter a word before persons of age, experience, and respectability; but when they get hold of boys privately, and silly women, they recount wonderful things, that they must not mind their fathers or their tutors, but obey them, as their fathers and guardians are quite ignorant

and in the dark, but themselves alone have the true wisdom. And if the children obey them, they pronounce them happy, and direct them to leave their fathers and tutors, and go with the women and their play-fellows into the chambers of the females, or into a tailor's or fuller's shop, that they may learn perfection."

"In other mysteries, the crier uses to say, whoever has clean hands, and a good conscience, and a good life, let him come in. But let us hear whom they call. "Whoever is a sinner, a fool, an infant, a lost wretch, the kingdom of God will receive him”—“ An unjust man, if he humble himself for his crimes, God will receive him; but a just man who has proceeded in a course of virtue from the beginning, if he look up to him he will not be received."

He compares a christian doctor to a quack, who promises to heal the sick, on condition that they keep from intelligent practitioners, lest his ignorance be detected.

"You will hear them, though differing so widely from one another, and abusing one another so foully, making that boast, "the world is crucified to me, and I to the world."'*

"The same things are better said by the Greeks, and without the imperious denunciation of God, or the Son of God."

"If one sort introduce one doctrine, another another, and all join in saying, "Believe, if you would be saved, or depart ;" what are they to do, who desire really to be saved? Are they to determine by the throw of a die? Where are they to turn themselves, or whom to believe?"

"Do you not see, that any man, that will, may carry you away and crucify you and your demon, as you say, the Son of God gives you no help ?"

But enough of Celsus. He would not deserve a moment's attention, were it not for the light which he throws on the history of the christians of his own times, that is, of the second century.

* Gal. vi.