President White Library, Cornell Universjty. ..CORIJELL UNrVERSITY LIBRARY A_1924 ^2 342 207 Cornell University Library rv»Ji The original of tliis book is in tlie Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924092342207 LIVES OF THE FATHERS All rights reserved LIVE S OF THE FAT HERS SKETCHES OF CHUECH HISTOEY IN BIOGEAPHY BY FEEDEEIC W. FAEEAE, D.D., FES. LATE FELLOW OF TRINITY COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE ; ARCHDEACON OF WESTMINSTER ; CHAPLAIN IN ORDINARY TO THE QUEEN ' The History of the Church is represented in certain respects by the history of her great men.' — Bishop Wordsworth, Ch. Hist. iv. 119. VOL. 11. EDINBURGH: ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK MDCCqLXXXIX c#''-" The , President White / :d3 CONTENTS PAGE XIII. St. Basil ... . . 1 Basil as Presbyter . .19 Basil as Bishop . 29 Basil and Valens . . , .46 Basil's Labours for the Church in general 62 XIV. St. Gregory of Nyssa . . 74 XV. St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan . 112 The Conflict' with the Arian Court . 141 Ambrose and Thbodosius . .159 Last Days op Ambrose . .176 XVI. St. Jerome 203 Monasticism and Asceticism . 215 Jerome at Aquilbia; and his Travels . 234 ' Jerome in the Wilderness of Chalcis, at Antioch, and at Constantinople . 243 Jerome at Rome . 268 Note on Vincentiu.? . . 301 Jerome's Journey towards the Holy Land . 302 Jerome at Bethlehem . . 308 Jerome's Controversies . . . 320 The Correspondence of Jerome and Augustine . 350 Further Controversies and Troubles 362 Last Days of Jerome .... 378 CONTENTS PAGE 403 XVII. St. AuGnsTiNE . . . . ■ Augustine as a Manicheb . .423 Augustine at Eomb . . • ^34 The CoNVERSiOJsr of Augustine • 442 Augustine at Cassiciacum . 452 Augustine after his Baptism . 465 Augustine as a Monk. . 472 Augustine as Bishop . . . 486 Augustine's Controversies with Manichbans . 496 Augustine and the Donatists . .514 The Pelagian Controversy . . 546 Closing Events in Augustine's Episcopate . .564 Last Days of Augustine . . . 583 Theology op Augustine . . 597 "Works of Augustine 607 XVIII. St. Chrysostom ..... 615 Chrysostom as an Ascetic and a Monk . . 624 Chrysostom at Antioch . 637 Chrysostom as Patriarch of Constantinople 659 Chrysostom in Exile . . . . 693 Notes on the early Bishops of Eome of the first Four Centuries . 707 Early Bishops of Alexandria . 715 Early Bishops of Antioch- . . 715 Brief Notes on the Heretics of the first Four Centuries 716 Index ..... 723 LIVES OF THE FATHEES XIII ST. BASIL 1 " "Zv yap [lava's tirov k^-qvas Kol jBiaTav /J,vd(ff KOI yStorijTt Xoyov." — Geeg. Naz. SECTION I BASIL'S YOUTH AND HIS LIFE AT ANliTESI Bach of the great Fathers, Saints, and Teachers, may stand as a type for a whole class of Christians. Macarius and Pachomius were the chief founders of the hermit-life ; 1 Editions of the Wobks of St. Basil. Tlie first complete edition ia that of Pronto Ducaeus, 2 vols. Paris, 1618. The best edition is the Benedictine, by Julian Gamier, Paris, 3 vols. 1721-1730, reprinted by Migne, Patrol. Graec. vols. 29-32. My references to the works of Basil are to the reprint of the Benedictine edition, 3 vols. Paris, 1839. Adthoeities foe the Life of St. Basil. S. Basilii Epistolae; S. Gregorii Nazianzeni, Orat. xliii. et Epistolae; S. Gregorii Nysseni, Be Vit. Sandae Macrinae; Cave, Lives of the Fathers, ii. ; Bphraem Syrus, Encomium in Magn. Basilium; Socrates, H. E. iv. 26 ; Sozomen, H. E. vi. 15-17 ; Theodoret, E. E. iv. 19 ; Philo- storgius, S .B. viii. 11-13; Jer. De Vir. ill 116; Photius, Cod. 141 ; Tillemont, vol. ix. ; Schrbckh, vol. xiii. ; Bohringer, Dei drei Kappadozier, 1875 ; Eugfene Pialon, AudeEist. et lAtt. stir St. Basile, 2°" ed. Paris, 1869 ; J. H. Newman, Church of the Fathers ; De Broglie, L'EgUse et I' Empire. VOL. II B 2 LIVES OF THE FATHEES XI« Athanasius was " the Father of Orthodoxy"; Origen was the many-sided student ; Cyprian the champion of hier- archy ; Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory of Nazianzus " the Theologians"; Jerome the scholar ; Augustine the Chris- tian philosopher ; Theodore of Mopsuestia the exegete | Chrysostom the orator. Basil in the East and Ambrose: in the West were pre-eminently the great bishops. | Basil was born in Cappadocia/ and, like his illustrious friend Gregory of Nazianzus, was far from satisfied with most of his countrymen. He describes them as timid and sluggish,^ and speaks of the severity of climate and heavy snowfalls, which kept them in their houses for months at a time. Libanius says that they breathe of 7jOtT7; and snow, and say to every one " I adore you."^ Yet there must have been homes among the Chris- tians of Cappadocia which bloomed with every virtue. Such was the home of Gregory the elder, Bishop of Nazianzus, in which " the theologian " and his brother Caesarius grew up under the holy care of their mother Nonna. Such, in a stiU more striking measure, was the home of Basil, which in three generations produced three saints among its daughters, and in one generation three bishops and three saints — Basil, Gregory of Nyssa, and Peter of Sebaste — among its sons. The family had produced not saints only but martyrs, and regarded this fact as a far higher distinction than that conferred upon it by rank and wealth. The elder Macrina, the paternal grandmother of Basil, was a Christian, as was also her husband. In the persecution 1 Some fix his birtli at an obscure " Helenopontus," others at Neo- caesarea, a " Pontic city," but included in the general name Cappadocia. (Cave, iL 216.) ■^dSiv Kal TO tSv (r(o/iaT(ov SvcrKivrjrov iTna-rdaevo's. ^ Ep. cccxlix. {Libanius Basilio) TrpotTKvvui ere. XIII ST. BASIL 3 of Galerius and Maximin they had been compelled to fly for safety into the wild woods of Pontus, and there for seven years they had maintained a scanty and perilous existence.'^ Their son BasU the elder became a famous teacher of rhetoric in Neocaesarea. He was wealthy, and possessed estates in Pontus, Cappadocia, and Lesser Armenia. He married Emmelia, who, as well as her mother-in-law and her daughter Macrina the younger, has received the honour - of canonisation. She was celebrated for her beauty, and was sought in marriage by many suitors, of whom she chose Basil as the most worthy.^ Of this union were born four sons — Basil, Nau- cratius, Gregory (of Nyssa), and Peter (of Sebaste) ; and five daughters. The eldest of the family was St. Macrina the younger. Basil was born about a.d. 330. The young Basil was endowed with the highest gifts of mind and body. While he was yet an infant he was seized with a most dangerous illness, but after earnest prayer his father saw Christ coming to him in a dream, and sajdng "Go, thy son liveth," and the child recovered. It was not usual for a father in those days to under- take the personal teaching or superintendence of his children tUl they had attained a certain age. Basil was consigned to the care and training of his grandmother Macrina, who lived on one of the family estates at Annesi, in Pontus. Macrina had been taught by hearers of Gregory Thaumaturgus, Bishop of Neocaesarea, and she brought up her grandchild in strict orthodoxy and in. admiration of Gregory and his successors, " who had shone like stars, one after another, on the episcopal 1 It was natural that they should regard their sustenance as partly miraculous. Greg. Naz. Orat. xliii. 7. 2 Gregory of Naz., who wrote an epitaph in her honour, calls her l/i/teAetas oVtcus (jjepiovvfwv. 4 LIVES OF THE FATHERS Xlli throne." ^ As Gregory Thaumaturgus had been a pro- found admirer of Origen, and had written a panegyric on him, no doubt Basil was also trained in traditions of admiration for the great Alexandrian. When he had grown up to boyhood he was trans- ferred to the care of his father, who was then regarded as the best and most virtuous teacher in Pontus, and who gave him a liberal training in grammar, that is especially in the language and literature of Greece.^ Few Easterns at that time condescended to learn Latin. None of the three great Cappadocian Fathers were acquainted with a language which the Greeks still despised as barbarous.^ Julian indeed learnt it, as an heir to the throne ; and it would have saved many bitter misunderstandings in councils and elsewhere if the Greek Fathers had taken the trouble to do the same. The Greek training was, however, excellent, and the young Christian was not debarred from the enjoyment of all that was great in conduct or pure in thought in Homer, Hesiod, and the tragedians, or in Herodotus and Thucydides, or in Demosthenes and the other orators — " Those ancient, whose resistless eloquence Fulmined o'er Greece, and shook the arsenal To Macedon and Artaxerxes' throne." In opposition to the views of some Fathers, and of many mediaeval and modern writers, Basil was an earnest defender of the lawfulness and advantage of the study Ep. cciv. 2 : Tp-qy6piov Aeyw toi/ irdvv koj, ocroi iffie^rjs e/cetvo) . . • aAAos eir' aAAOj Sitrirep rti/es axnipK IjravaTeXA.oi'Tcs. Greg. Naz. Orat. xliii. Sv koivov TraiSevrriv aptrijs o IIovtos rnvir Kavra 7rpov/3dX.\eTo. It is no doubt owing to Ms early training in Pontus, and Ms close relations with it, that Basil sometimes speaks of it as Ms own country, e.g. Ep. Ixxxvii. 3 Gregory of Naz. {Orat. xxi. 35) talks of the o-tcvo'ttjs Kal ovoiidriav TTivia of Latin. XIII ST. BASIL 5 of Pagan, literature. His great oration on the subject is full of interest, and he shows how possible it was even for a heathen sophist, much more for a Christian presbyter, to draw from the pages of the classic writers lessons not only in virtue but even in holiness. It would have been impossible for a teacher of experience like the elder Basil not to observe the un- usual intellectual gifts of his son ; and, being wealthy, he determined to give him the most perfect education which was then possible, by sending him for many years to the greatest centres of learning. He sent him first to Caesarea, the capital of Cappa- docia, at the foot of Mount Argaeus. The ancient name of the city was Mazaca, and it had been the residence of the former kings of Cappadocia. Its walls were in ruins, and Basil points to their debris, which were like the castles buUt by children on the sands, as a proof of the transiency of human magnificence. But it had grown under its new name of Caesarea into a mighty city of 400,000 inhabitants,-' and was regarded as one of the most flourishing centres of the Graeco- Roman culture and civilisation. Here his powers were still more brilliantly developed, as we learn from the eloquent panegyric of his friend. " Let those," he says, " relate who trained the man among them, and reaped the fruits of his training, all that he was to his teachers, all that he was to his companions, rivalling the former, excelling the latter in every branch of education ; how much glory he won for himself among all within a brief space of time both among the people and among the leaders of the State, displaying attainments greater than his years, and a stability of character greater than his attainments ; an orator among orators even before he sought the chair 1 Zonar. xii. 630. 6 LIVES OF THE FATHERS Xlii of rhetoric; a philosoplier among philosophers even before he learned the doctrines of philosophy ; and, what was greatest of all, a priest to Christians even before his priesthood. So much was conceded to him by all in all things. Yet to him eloquence was but a secondary consideration, and he only culled from it so much as to render it subservient to our philosophy. But our philo- sophy is earnestness, and to be severed from the world, and to be with God, earning the things above by those below, and acquiring things that are firm and permanent by these unstable things which flow away like a stream." ' It was at Caesarea that he first gained the friend- ship of Gregory, whose life was so closely linked with his ; and also of Eustathius, afterwards Bishop of Sebaste,^ whose religious and ascetic earnestness^ he admired, but who throughout life gave him much trouble, " and was carried hither and thither like the clouds with every changing wind of doctrine." * From Caesarea he went to Constantinople, where it is probable that he made the acquaintance of the eminent sophist Libanius. If the letters printed in Basil's correspondence were really interchanged between Basil and Libanius, they show how deep an impression the brilliant young Cappadocian so eloquent and so pure, made on the mind of the Pagan sophist.^ Their genuineness is, however, so dubious that we cannot rely upon them for biographical data. From Constantinople, with an insatiable thirst for 1 Greg. Naz. Orat. xliii. 13. 2 Sebaste (Siwas) was the capital of Lesser Armenia, on the Halys. ^ Ep. ccxxiii. 3. ■ * Up. ccxliv. 9. 5 See Epp. 335-359. Ep. ccexxxiii. Libanius says irdXai veov oVra ■q&ovjx-qv (Liban. Vit. 15). Socrates (iv. 26) and Sozomen (vi. 17), in saying that Basil studied at Antioch and was there a pupil of Libanius, make the mistake of confounding him (apparently) with Basil of Antioch, the friend of Chrysostom. xiii ST. BASIL 7 learning, Basil went to Athens. All our details for his life in that " golden city " are derived from the funeral oration of Gregory of Nazianzus, and have been already narrated in the Life of " the Theologian." The two young men lived together in the closest and friendliest intimacy, and as Gregory had preceded him, his Mend- ship saved Basil from many annoyances. His reputa- tion was already high, and was still further increased at Athens. His first sense of disappointment at the schools of that university soon wore off, and when he quitted the city after a stay of some years, it was with sincere regret. Under the Pagan Himerius of Bithynia and the Christian Proaeresius of Armenia he made great advance in eloquence and litera- ture, which he always regarded as a praeparatio evangelica. He was not deceived by the glamour of myth and morals which some of his teachers flung over the absurdities of heathen mythology, while he learnt much from their illustrations and their style. The city had many trials for a young Christian, but un- doubtedly it had valuable lessons of culture to teach. Lucian tells us how once a rich and pompous student came to the university in gorgeous habiliments, his hands glittering with rings, and his person always surrounded by a cortege of slaves, and how, in a very short time, he learnt better taste and less ostentation from the general example. "We may, says Mons. Fialon, apply the anecdote to the Oriental style of Gregory and Basil, which was chastened and polished by the teaching of classical models.-^ At Athens Basil made many friends besides Gregory,* 1 Kalon, tt. swr St. Basil, p. 29. See supra, i. 669-670. 2 Among them his correspondents HesycMus, Terentius, Sophronius, Eusebius, etc. 8 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xni and among their number was Julian, the future Emperor. He does not seem to have felt towards him the profound repulsion with which he inspired Gregory. Julian was at that time, from politic motives a nominal Christian, and he studied with Basil, not only the ancient classics; but also the sacred writings.^ At a later period Julian invited Basil to stay with him, but the invitation was not accepted.^ In another letter — if the correspondence be genuine — he speaks somewhat boastfully and menac- ingly, and orders BasU to have a thousand pounds of gold ready for him by the time he arrives at Caesarea on his way to the Persian war, otherwise he will destroy Caesarea. He sternly accuses Basil of speaking about him with contempt. He ends by telling him that he had read, understood, and condemned the writings which Basil had sent to him.^ Basil, in a defiant answer, ridicules the folly of demanding a thousand pounds from a man who possesses nothing, and lives on herbs and sour wine. He ends by saying, " what you read you did not understand, for had you understood you would not have condemned."* After a stay of nearly five years, about the year 358, Basil left Athens, not indeed without tears, but with no such wish as that which Julian expressed — that he might live and die there. He returned through Constantinople to Caesarea, hoping to find there the rhetorician Eustathius.^ In this hope he was disappointed, but he stayed at Caesarea, and, yielding to the wishes of his fellow-citizens, he gave 1 Ep. xli. 2 £^ xxxix. ^ Up. xli. dveyveov, c'yvcov, Kareyvrnv. Comp. Sozomen, v. 18, who refers to the story to a book of ApoUinaris — On the Truth. * "A ijAvtoi a.vkyvu>'s ovk eyveos' ei yap eyvcos ovk o.v Kareyvus. I men- tion these details here rather than in chronological order, because they depend on the doubtful genuineness of these letters. The supposed letter of Basil to Julian in the acts of the Second Nicene Council is spurious. ^ Ef.L ail ST. BASIL 9 bhem some specimens of his oratorical power, both as a pleader and a teacher of rhetoric. " Some concessions," 3ays Gregory, " we made to the world and to the stage, but only enough to satisfy the desire of many, for we bad no fondness for ostentation and publicity." It is clear, however, from a letter of Gregory to Basil that at this time he was not insensible to the pleasures and attractions of the capital, nor to the distinctions which be was earning among his fellow -citizens. His fame, indeed, was widely spread, and the people of Neo- caesarea sent him a deputation, earnestly requesting that he would undertake the training of their youth. He declined the request ; but his saintly sister Macrina was at this time deeply anxious lest he should devote himself to the world rather than to God. She saw that the besetting temptations of his character were pride and ambition, and that he was excessively inflated by his oratorical reputation. To her he seemed to despise aU dignities, and to look down from the height of his imaginary superiority on those who held brilliant court positions.^ But he did not long follow these shadows. About this time his heart was deeply stirred by the grace of God, and he received baptism, probably at the hands of his revered friend the aged Bishop Dianius.^ It is in his answer to the attacks of Eustathius of Sebaste that he teUs us most of this deepening of his religious experiences. ' ' When I had devoted much time," he says,^ " to vanity, and had wasted almost aU my youth in empty toil, which I spent in occupying myself with the attainment of the branches of a wisdom which God has 1 Greg. Nyss. Vit. S. Macr. 2 Be Spir. Sanet. xxix. 71. The story of Ids being baptized by Maxi- mus. Bishop of Jerusalem, in the river Jordan, and other details given by, the pseudo-Amphiloohius in his Life of Basil may be passed over in silence as entirely -nithout foundation. ^ Ep. ccxxiii. 2. 10 LIVES OF THE FATHEES Xlli blighted,— when at last, as though arising from a deep sleep, I cast my glance upon the marvellous light of the truth of the Gospel, and recognised the uselessness of the wisdom of the rulers of the world, who are being done away, — after having much bewept my miserable life, I prayed that guidance might be granted me to enter into the doctrines of holiness. Above all else, it was my care to bring about some amendment of my character, which had been perverted by long intercourse with evil. On reading the Gospel, therefore, and seeing that the selling of our goods and participation with our needy brethren, and indifference to this present Hfe is the best road to perfection, I prayed that I might find one of my brethren who had chosen this path, so that with him 1 might be conveyed across this brief wave of life. And indeed I found many at Alexandria, and many through- out the rest of Egypt, and others in Palestine, and Coele- Syria, and Mesopotamia. I admired their temperance in daily food, I admired their endurance in labours, I was amazed by their earnestness in prayers, how they mastered sleep, being subdued by no physical need', ever preserving lofty and unfettered the thought of their soul, in hunger and thirst, in cold and nakedness. Never caring for the body, nor condescending to spend any anxiety upon it, but living as though their flesh were not their own, they showed in deed what it is to live as aliens in things here, and to have their citizen- ship in heaven. Admiring this, and deeming the life of these men happy, because they really show that they are bearing about in the body the mortification of Jesus, I prayed that I myself also, as far as my powers would reach, might be an imitator of those men. On this account then, seeing that some in my native land were trying to emulate their deeds, I thought that I had :iii ST. BASIL 11 liscovered some aid to my salvation, and from wliat I iaw I deduced an inference about the things I did not see."^ One object of his journey to Alexandria — where le did not intend to stay long— was to see Athanasius. [n this he failed, for the great Patriarch was wander- ng in the desert during one of his exiles. But what le did see was that, even amid the incessant perils with ivhich his Hfe was threatened, the Archbishop of Alexan- iria could always find protection in the devotion of an irmy of monks. BasU thought that the Church was listracted, that many Christians were servants of Christ in name alone, and that monasticism was more calcu- lated than any other institution to defend the Mcene faith against the subtle and manifold assaults of heresies, which were springing up on every side.^ Had it not been for BasU, says Sozomen,^ the heresy of Eunomius svould have spread from the Hellespont to the Taurus, and the heresy of Apollinaris from the Taurus to Egypt. Basil was not the man to do anything by halves. When he gave himself to God, he did so wholly. What special influence had opened his heart to the grace of God he has not told us, but amid the uncertain chronology of his life we may assume that his convictions were much solemnised by the example and death of his second brother Naucratius. This youth, like the other members of his family, was endowed by nature with a fine understanding and a beautiful presence. He was eminent as an athlete, and at the age of twenty-two he 1 The allusion is to Eustathius of Sebaste, but he adds that he was mistaken in the supposition that an ascetic life could in any way vouch for a pure doctrine. 2 Basil, like other monastic founders, experienced later on that monks were not always peaceful, and that their zeal was sometimes singularly lacking iu discretion. ^ Sozomen, vi. 27. 12 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XIli began to display a remarkable eloquence. But he was suddenly seized with the prevalent fervour, and, throw- ing up every earthly prospect, he retired to a life of poverty, obscurity, and toil in the wooded hills of Pontus, near Annesi, (^Kwriaoi) where his mother and sister had fixed their home. On these hills lived a few sick, aged, and poverty-stricken hermits, and Naucratius devoted himself to their service as a hunter and fisher- man. For five years he lived in this manner, while at the same time he listened to all the behests of his mother and sister. One day he and his attendant Cry- saphius, who had followed him into the solitary life, were found dead, and were carried home. They had gone out fishing, and probably had been drowned by accident in the eddies of the rapid and treacherous river Iris.^ His mother Emmelia happened to be three days distant from her home ; when the news was sent to her she fainted away, and it needed all the efforts of Macrina to bring consolation to her bereaved spirit. Basil's determination to give up all to the glory of God was adopted with perfect deliberation, and indeed he and Gregory had vowed themselves to the monastic life even when they were students at Athens. Mon- asteries were as yet almost unknown in Asia Minor, and Basil determined to make a long journey to Egypt and Palestine, and see with his own eyes the mode of life pursued by the desert communities. At Alexandria he was detained by one of the numerous attacks of sickness to which he rendered himself liable by the exaggerated austerities which ruined his naturally fine and healthy physique. From the East he carried away two fruitful convictions — the one that men ought not to live in 1 Tlie Iris — now the Kasalmak — rises in the chain of Antitaurus in the south of Pontus. :in ST. BASIL 13 ibsolute solitude, the other, that fixed rules were lecessary to restrain the extravagances of enthusiastic self-sacrifice. At one time he seriously thought of sett- ing in the Tiberine district with Gregory, who was de- ;ained at Nazianzus by his duty towards his aged parents. But on a visit to Annesi he found the glorious and :omantic solitude on the banks of the Iris, of which he yives to his friend so poetic a description. The rarity jf such descriptions in the remains of classical an- tiquity indicates that Basil must have been peculiarly susceptible to the beauty of the scenes in which he lived. Such a spot seemed to him infinitely prefer- able to the flat and dreary neighbourhood of Nazianzus, and it had the additional advantage of being in the immediate vicinity of the home where Emmelia and Macrina were spending their saintly lives. To this spot, therefore, he retired with his brother Gregorj^ of Nyssa, and others who desired "to embrace philosophy" — that is, to live as monks— with him. The life which he lived was one of great severity. Of his earthly possessions he had retained only the garments which he wore. By night, that he might not be seen of men, he clothed himself in sackcloth. By day he had but one tunic and one outer garment. His pallet was laid on the bare ground, and the hours of darkness were often devoted to vigils. His drink was water, his food bread and salt, his occupation labour and study. In reply to the inquiries of Gregory, he has described his method of life.^ It had its joys and its sorrows. We have already seen the fervent yearning with which Gregory looked back upon it, and on the peaceful, happy hours under the golden plane-tree which they had planted.^ Yet it required sincerity and 1 ^p_ ii 2 Greg. Naz. Ep. vi. ; supra, i. 691-692. 14 LIVES OF THE FATHERS Xlii enthusiasm to put up with the necessary hardships — " the roofless and doorless hut, the fireless and smoke- less hearth, the walls dried with heat that the inmates might not be hit by the droppings of mud, in which they lived like condemned Tantaluses, thirsting amid waters." Gregory speaks of " the miserable and unnourishing banquet to which we, like shipwrecked mariners, were invited from Cappadocia, not as though to the penury of the lotus-eaters, but as to the table of Alcinous. I remember the loaves and the soup (for so they were called) and I shall always remember them, since my teeth slipped about the hunks and afterwards dragged them- selves out as though from mortar. You will yourself describe these things in tones of loftier tragedy, deriving your grand speech from your own calamities. Had not your mother, great and true nurturer of the poor, delivered us from this condition of things, appearing like a haven in due season to those tossed with storm, we should long ago have been dead, not so much being praised as pitied for our Pontic fidelity. How can I omit to mention those herbless and cabbageless gardens, and the clearing from the house of that Augean mire, when, with these necks and these hands, which still bear the traces of these toils, we dragged that mountain-like waggon (Oh earth and sun ! Oh air and Oh virtue ! — for I wiU tragedise a little !), not that we might yoke the Hellespont, but that we might make level the preci- pice."^ Basil spoke with scarcely less enthusiasm. He found in this "philosophy" the oak of Mamre, the ladder which mounted to heaven, the camp of Maha- naim, the Carmel of Elijah, the wilderness of the Baptist, the Mount of Olives.^ The aim of the monk was tranquillity of mind, by 1 Greg. Naz. Ep. v. 2 Basil, Ep. xlii. 5, xliii. ni ST. BASIL 15 xing the eyes of his soul on the one thing needful instead f distracting them with the thousand cares of the world, tie anxieties of marriage, the troubles of paternity, the overnment of servants, the frivolous quarrels of society, lie absorption of business. These were excluded from tie lonely life. " What then is more blessed than to nitate on the earth the concert of angels ; than to aste to prayer at the very dawn of day, and to honour le Creator with hymns and songs ; then, when the sun tiines clearly, turning to work in which prayer is ever resent, to spice our labours with hymns as with salt ? " hen how fruitful and undisturbed was the study of the cripture, how careful and restrained the right use of aeech ! The monks walked with modest and down- ist eyes, in a sordid garment, with unkempt hair, like lourners. They walked with slow footsteps, and they nly gave up one constantly varying hour of the iventy-four to a single meal of the very simplest and lost necessary food. " What I myself do," writes asil, " at this end of the earth I am ashamed to tell ou. For I have left my mode of life in the city as the mse of unnumbered evils, but I have not yet been able ) leave myself behind also. But I am like those at ia, who, from their inexperience in voyages, are dis- ■essed and sea-sick, and because they are uneasy at the ze of the vessel as though it caused the agitation of the aves, get out of it into the cockboat or galley, but are ia-sick and distressed everywhere, for the discomfort id the bile transfers itself with them wherever they go. hat, then, is very much my condition; for, carrying lout with me my own innate passions, I am every- here in the same perturbations, so that I have not laped any great advantage from this solitude."^ Alas I 1 Ep. ii. 2. 16 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xiii the experience of Basil must have been the experience of thousands. A man may change his habits, his circumstances, his country, but everywhere he carries with him his own self. It might have taught the monks that a man may be safer in the common duties of the world than in the self-absorbed monotony of the cloister — "Patriae quis exsul Se quoque fugitl''^ But Basil's conception of the monastic life was wiser and more moderate than that of his Egyptian and other contemporaries, and no rules are more sensible than those which he drew up with the assistance of Gregory, and which became the model for numberless Asiatic monasteries.^ Two lines of the Nazianzene indicate his ideal. " I walked," he says, " in the mid-path between the anchorets and the coenobites, seeking the contem- plativeness of the one class, the usefulness of the other. "^ Basil did not altogether approve of solitary hermits. He regarded their life as too selfish and purely- introspective ; as lacking the element of fraternal correction and example ; as deficient in opportunities for the exercise of charity.* Basil was practically the founder of monastic institutions in Pontus and Cappadocia. The extraordinary waverer, Eustathius of Sebaste, whose friendship he seems at this time to have 1 We learn from an anecdote told by Cassian (Instit. vi. 19, where Basil says, "Et muUerem ignoro et virgo non sum ") tliat lie had to face the same spiritual struggles as those which Jerome so vividly describes. 2 To Basil, however, seems to be due the institution of irrevocable vows, and that rule was one of very doubtful wisdom. See Helyot, Eist. des Ordres Monast. i. ch. iii. ; Montalembert, Moines d'Occident, i. 106. ^ Greg. Ca/rm. xi. — fiea-fjv Ttv' "qXOov a^vyiiiv koX fjuyaSwv Tcav fiAV TO (Tvvvovv rep(av. Comp. id. Orat. xix. 16. * Basil, Eegulae f-uskts tractatae. Resp. 1. XIII ST. BASIL 17 formed and whose ascetic strictness lie admired, had many followers, but they seem to have been neither hermits nor coenobites, nor migades {i.e. monks who moved from place to place), but to have lived together in towns and villages in little bodies of two or three.-' Basil, on the other hand, according to Eufinus, seems to have made a tour through the cities of Pontus, and to have built and established regular monasteries, which accepted his rules. During his retreat he was not stationary, but is believed to have visited Constan- tinople among other places, and to have aided Basil of Ancyra in his struggles against heresy at the council in 359. Most of his time, however, was spent in the monastery on the hills above the Iris. It was there that he laboured and read the Scriptures with the friend of his youth. The extracts from Origen called Philokalia were a fruit of their joint studies, and Basil also wrote his Moralia and many letters. His house was in fact an ascetic coUege or coenobium.^ There was little difficulty in finding monks. The times were trying and terrible ; military service involved intolerable burdens; there was intense poverty among the country labourers and city artisans. Orphans and other children were brought by their relatives to be trained in these severe and holy solitudes. Slaves were permitted by their masters to retire into their shelter. The growing belief that marriage was in itself either unholy or undesirable caused many married persons to separate and to retire from the world. 1 Eufin. H. E. ii. 9 ; Sozomen, vi. 16. From a genial little note of Gregory to Amphilooliius, it has teen inferred that each of Basil's monks had a separate cell, for in that note Gregory begs Amphilochius to send him some vegetables, since he is expecting the great Basil to come to supper. The note {Ef. xxv.) belongs, however, to another date. The Benedictine editors (ii. 23) correct the mistake of Baronius, Vit. Gregor. ap. Bolland, p. 387. ^ See supra, i. 693. VOL. II 18 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiii Besides this, the enthusiasm of the young often won their elders to join them. When Basil sent back to his mother the youthful Dionysius, he sent him with this charming little note : " There is," he said, " an art of catching doves of this kind. When the fowlers have caught one, and have made it so tame as to eat out of their hands, then, anointing its wrings with perfume, they let it join the rest of the flock. The fragrance of that perfume makes the whole flock the property of the man who has got the tame dove ; for the rest, too, foUow the scent of the perfume, and are shut up in the dovecot. But why do I .begin my letter thus ? Because having got your son Dionysius, and having anointed the wings of his soul with the Divine perfume, I have sent him to your worthiness, that you yourself too may fly with him and occupy the nest which he has built with us."^ The approval of monasticism was, however, far from universal. Pagan writers like Libanius and Eunapius were very severe on " the black men," and Zosimus said that for the good of the poor they had reduced to mendicity a great part of mankind. Even Christians asked why the monks could not live pure and happy lives in the world just as many priests and bishops did. Gregory of Nazianzus answered by a little apologue. The swallows, he said, rallied the swans on their loneli- ness, and on the extreme rarity of their song, while they, the swallows, twittered about every house in every town. " Frivolous creatures ! " replied the swans, " to hear the music we make when we give our wings to the sweet and harmonious breathing of the zephyr, men come even into the wilderness. We sing little and but to few, but we love melody, wisely and in measure, and we do not mingle music with tumult." ^ ^ Ep- 2. 2 Qreg, ija2. Ep. cxiv. XIII Continued BASIL AS PRESBYTEK " Apujrrevs TrepiSe^io?." — Gebg. Nyss. SECTION II It was hardly to be expected that such a man as Basil — so briUiant, so eloquent, so orthodox a theologian — should have been suffered to spend his life in a hut on a wooded hill in the wilds of Pontus. The Church needed his services. " The education of these Fathers," says Fialon, "took them in the cradle, and seated them at last on the steps of the episcopal throne. Thirty years of study were the preparation for scarcely twenty years of work ; the hardships of asceticism, the fatigues of the episcopate, the struggles of religious conflict soon exhausted these laborious lives." The condition of the Church, as described by Gregory and Basil, was in many respects deplorable. It was a time of anarchy. " There was no king in Israel," says Basil, " every one did that which was right in his own eyes." In matters of opinion, some were the merest traditionalists without any pretence of original inquiry, while others, with equal bigotry, were fierce against sound doctrine. Heretics, ignorant and rash, flung 20 LIVES OF THE FATHERS Xlii themselves like swine upon tlie pearls of truth. Others rejoiced in a feeble eclecticism. In Asia Minor the heretical writings of Eunomius of Galatia were in the hands of multitudes. Unworthy pastors trafficked with the word of God, and were hated by the multitude for their greedy rapacity.^ Simoniacal bishops ordained presbyters for money or from nepotism, and of these presbyters many sought ordination only that they might escape the burdens of military service.^ Some were so poor that being compelled to work for their own bread, they had no time to teach the people,^ but were occupied all day in sedentary arts.* Of the bishops, as Gregory so often and so bitterly complains, many were worldly, avaricious, and proud, looking down with disdain upon men far superior to themselves.^ Their intestine dissensions made them an object of ridicule on the stage, and of sorrow to good Christians. In such a state of things a great man like Basil was necessary, and could not be overlooked. His features and bearing — his lofty figure, pale face, keen eye, and grave demeanour — marked his patrician origin. The natural distinction of his character overawed his ene- mies and charmed his friends. Even his personal peculiari- ties were zealously imitated. He was a born ruler, who could hardly suppress by Christian humility the sense of his own superiority. His epithet, " the Great," is due less to his actual writings, which were exceeded both in depth and eloquence by those of others, but to the pro- found impression made by his conduct and character upon his contemporaries.^ He showed the rare mixture 1 Basil, Ep. ciii. 2 ^^_ ijjj_ 3 ^^_ j^xxi. * Ep. cxcviii. (KeWiV e'xovras rrjv dcf>opiJ.fjv tov kK^-q^epiov fSiov. 6 Orat. ii. 84, 85 ; xliii. 26 : ^ TrpoKa9e^eTat /cat rrjv Scjipvv aipei. Kara tZv /SeArtovajv. '^ He actually set tlie fashion to monks and bishops ! XIII BASIL AS PRESBYTER 21 of Eastern dignity with Greek quickness and charm. The little letter about the doves which I have quoted is only one of many, so bright and graceful that they might have come out of the Greek Anthology.^ "You used to write to me briefly," he says to Olympius, " but now not even briefly ; and your brevity, as it advances with time, seems likely to become perfect taciturnity. Ee- sume your old habit then. I will not blame your laconic style any longer, but wHl greatly value your little letters as signs of a great affection. Only write to me." ^ And again, " Each seasonable produce comes in its due season ; flowers in the spring, corn-ears in the summer, apples in the autumn ; so the fruits of winter are words." ^ To the Praefect Antipater he writes a letter of congratulation on his having been restored to health by cabbage and vinegar, " How excellent is philosophy, both on other accounts and because she does not allow her votaries even to be cured at great expense ; but with her the same thing is both a delicacy and efficacious for health. The proverb speaks ill of cabbage, but henceforth I shall think nothing of any value in com- parison to it, not even the Homeric Lotus, nay, not even that ambrosia, whatever it was, which saved the Olympians." * Basil had been made a " reader " in the second year of his retreat (359), and it was in that capacity that he had accompanied Eustathius of Sebaste and Basil of Ancyra who were sent as delegates from the Council of Seleucia to a council at Constantinople.^ Dianius 1 Fialon, p. 64. ^ Ep. xii. ^ Ep. xiii. * Ep. clxxxvi. * Athanasius was unable to be at the council, and Basil's position was tben too humble to allow of his making much head against such bishops as the Semi-Arians Eudoxius, Aetius, and Eunomius, nor could he prevent Constantius from imposing on the assembly the Semi-Arian creed of Rimini Eunomius charges Basil with cowardice and indifference, but 22 L17ES OF THE FATHEES Xlii Bishop of Caesarea, who was all the dearer and more venerable to him because he had received baptism at his hands on his return from Athens, wished to attach him permanently to the Church of Caesarea.^ Dianius was a man of sweet and noble character, frank, generous, and patient. Basil had been accustomed to look up to him as a model of virtue ; ^ but unhappily he was by no means a strong theologian, and in the innocence of his heart had been led by lack of knowledge and ability to join the CouncU of Antioch (341) in condemning Athanasius, and placing the worthless George of Cappadocia upon his episcopal throne. At Sardica in 347 he had shown similar weakness, and finally — at the instance of George and of Constantius — he had been misled (like the elder Gregory) into signing the creed of Eimini (359). It is probable that, like other sincerely pious bishops of his day, he failed to see the chasm of difference which lay between Homoousios and Homoiou- sios, not only from the superficial view that the peace of the Church was not to be troubled for the sake of an iota, but far more, because the Mcene Homoou- sians were suspected of leanings towards the heresy of Sabellius. But, however this may be, the error of a bishop whom he loved and honoured was a severe blow to Basil, and although he could not anathematise Dianius, he felt unable any longer to communicate with him, and fled from Caesarea, first to Gregory at Nazian- zus, and then to his Pontic solitude.^ It was probably sucli charges were probably due to theological hatred. All we know of the matter is from his brother, Gregory of Nyssa (c. Eunom. i. 312), and the Arian Philostorgius (iv. 12) who says of Basil tm tiJs yvw/iTjs ddapa-ii ttoos tovs koivovs vTrocrTeAAo/ievos dySva'S. His own allusion {Ep. ccxxiii. 5) implies that he had not been so inactive as Eunomius asserted. 1 De Spir. Sanct. 29. 2 ^^_ n 3 See Ep. viii., in which he apologises to the Caesareans for his XIII BASIL AS PRESBYTER 23 during this retreat that he wrote his three books against Eunomius. Meanwhile Constantius died (361), and Julian suc- ceeded. In the threatened revival of Paganism Dianius more than ever yearned for the support of the young and eloquent reader who had vainly tried to save him from his fatal concession to George of Cappadocia. He sent for Basil, and Basil came. He felt, as Gregory felt about his father in similar circumstances, that " the ink had not stained the soul." Dianius assured him that if he had signed an heretical document he had only done so in the simplicity and sincerity of his heart. He had merely failed to understand that by so doing he had compromised the faith. " I call God to witness," he said, " that I never intended any injury to the Nicene faith, and I pray that I may never be dissociated from the lot of the blessed 318 bishops who announced to the world that blessed doctrine." After this what could Basil do but return to communion with the good old man who was already laid on the bed of sickness ? Like Athanasius, he never showed hostility to those who merely failed through weakness or ignorance. " Such," says BasU, " were my relations to Dianius. But if any one charges me with any wrong against him let him not slavishly mutter about it in a corner, but coming out into open light, let him boldly convict me." ^ Not long afterwards Dianius died, probably in 362. The election of his successor was accompanied by the wild tumults which at that time were so disgracefully common. The people demanded the election of a magistrate named Eusebius, a man of high character, departure ; and Ep. li. in whicli lie tells the Bishop Bosporius that he never anathematized Dianius. ^ Eji. li. 2. 24 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xill but who was not even baptized. With the aid of soldiers they seized his person, hurried him to the church, pre-_ sented him to the assembled bishops, and by the force of clamour and menace, compelled them to baptize him, and place him on the archiepiscopal throne/ When the crowd retired, the bishops wished to annul the election, but were prevented from doing so by the stout good! sense of the aged bishop of Nazianzus. The Emperor Julian was already on his way to Caesarea, burning with indignation against the citizens because they had destroyed the Temple of Fortune. He was displeased at the election, because it deprived him of the services of a valuable officer, and he instructed the governor to order the bishops to set it aside. Once more the aged Gregory stood in the breach. "We acknowledge but one king, that is God," he wrote to the governor. "To Him alone we are responsible. There are many matters in which you may command and compel us, but not in such a question as this, in which our conduct has been regular and legal." The governor admired the manly boldness of the letter, and the Emperor was content to let the matter drop. Gregory says that he and Basil " had the honour of the Cyclops, to be reserved last for punishment."^ In 364 Basil was ordained presbyter by Eusebius. It was against his will, as we learn from a letter of his friend Gregory, who had been similarly forced to ascend " the sacred throne of the priesthood." Gregory advises his friend to acquiesce, as he himself had done, in this involuntary ordination, and to see in it the action of the Holy Spirit, although it put an end to all their dreams 1 Greg. Naz. Oral. xix. 36. 2 Id. ib. V. 39 : Trjv KVK\iiireiov ert/ias Tifi-qv. The letters of Julian to Basil would belong, if they were genuine, to this year. XIII BASIL AS PRESBYTER 25 of monastic solitude.^ Basil accepted this advice, and we never hear another murmur at an event which practically shaped and gave efl&cacy to the main work of his life. The unacquaintance with theology and with eccle- siastical affairs, which was inevitable in a man who had been an unbaptized civilian the day before he became archbishop, rendered it most necessary for Eusebius to have a trained scholar at his side. A vast amount of business was thus devolved upon Basil. "My letters to you," he writes to the sophist Leontius, " are rare, but not rarer than yours. Yet you have leisure, and I have none. It is no trouble to a sophist to write. A tongue that is both sophistic and Attic will converse with itself, even if no one is present, and will never be sUent, any more than the nightingales when the spring rouses them to song." ^ But, useful as Basil was, the new bishop did not at all like to see himself eclipsed. Everybody praised the young presbyter, to whom the bishop had resigned the chief part of the labour of preaching, and Eusebius could not control, much less suppress, the bitterness of jealousy. Gregory drops a veil over the rupture that followed. Finding the naturally imperious manner of Basil quite in- supportable, the bishop (according to Sozomen ^ ) drove him from the church, and covered him with insults. AU that Gregory says is, that he will not enter into the causes of the quarrel, but that Eusebius " suffered some- thing human in regard to Basil, since Momus seizes not only on the multitude, but even on the noblest." * Basil 1 Greg. Naz. Up. xi. ^ Ep. xx. ^ Sozom. vi. 17. * Greg. Orat. xliii. 28. Fialon (p. 76) conjectures that Basil was think- ing of Eusebius when, in Ms Commienta/ry on Is. i. sec. 57, he speaks of men who arrogantly think that they can do without advisers. 26 LIVES OF THE FATHERS Xlli might easily have resisted the bishop, whose election had been displeasing to many. He might have headed a party and founded a schism, but he found a good angel — now as always — in Gregory, to whom he went at once. In the quiet conversations at Nazianzus Gregory advised him to yield as a disciple of Him who said " Blessed are the peacemakers." Once more the two friends retired together to the beloved solitude of Annesi. Meanwhile fresh dangers threatened the hapless Church of Caesar ea. The death of Julian in 363^ was followed the next year by that of Jovian, and the Arian Valens became Emperor of the East. Baptized by Budoxius, the Arian Patriarch of Constantinople, the new Emperor determined to follow the bad example of his predecessors, and to use force for the propagation of his religious opinions. He marched through the provinces surrounded by his heretics. " A cloud full of hail, shrilling ruin, and crushing every church over which it burst, gathered over us — I mean the most gold-loving and Christ-hating Emperor, sick of the two greatest diseases, insatiableness and blasphemy; the persecutor Valens after the persecutor Julian, and after the Apostate, not, indeed, an apostate, but one no better for true Christians." Eusebius felt more than ever the need of a helper. The only man who could replace Basil was his friend Gregory, but when Eusebius wrote to Gregory, he (as we have seen) wrote a frank letter, in which he refused to assist one who was so unjust to his friend. The result of the correspondence was that Eusebius, in his extreme need, came to a better frame of mind. Basil, at his friend's request, met the bishop's advances half-way, and the 1 In tlie Alexandrian Ghronicon we have a story of Basil's vision of the death of Julian. It rests on no foundation. See Cave, ii. 223. XIII BASIL AS PRESBYTER 27 indispensable presbyter returned to the city, in wbicli his presence was so urgently needed. After this Basil was more humble and Eusebius less jealous. They worked together side by side, but in point of fact Basil became bishop in all but name, and Eusebius, who had learnt wisdom by experience, contented himself with the reality of honour and the semblance of power. ^ Then began for Basil several years of most honour- able activity. Independent towards rulers, he was kind to the poor, hospitable to friends and strangers, a careful guide to the virgins and the monks, a wise organiser of the institutions of his parish and the services of his Church. As a preacher he was indefatigable, touching the hearts of men by his earnestness, while he kindled their admiration by his eloquence, so that even the workmen of Caesarea crowded to hear him, and he was obhged to shorten his discourses that he might not trespass too long upon their available time.^ He preached on fasting, on drunkenness, and many other subjects, but his most famous sermons were the nine homilies on the six days' work of creation, in which he turned to practical considerations the exposition, which, however scientifically erroneous, was founded on the best knowledge which was then available. In 368 his fame shone out in its fullest splendour. Caesarea was afflicted with hailstorms, floods, earth- quakes, and finally by a terrible famine, which was increased by the wicked greed of the speculators in corn. Basil at this time received an invitation to visit his friend Eusebius, Bishop of Samosata, but he wrote that the duty of supporting the poor and destitute would prevent him from coming.^ It was during this time that he delivered his homily of consolation during the 1 Orat. xliii, 30. ^ Hexaem. iii. 1. ^ Ep. xxxi. 28 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xin time of drought. But he did more than console. He had inherited some property at the death of his mother, and this property he unhesitatingly sold in order to dis- tribute the money among the starving poor. In this way all were fed of every age and both sexes, and among them even the Jews of Caesar ea.-^ He touched the hearts of the rich, and induced them to open their stores, and he became a new Joseph for suffering Cappadocia.^ The death of his mother Emmelia was a terrible blow to him. "Were I," he writes to Eusebius of Samosata, "to detail to you all the causes by which up to the present time I have been detained, I should tell an interminable story — sicknesses one after another, the trouble of the winter, incessant business. . . . But now I have been deprived by my sins of the sole consola- tion in life which was left to me — my mother. Do not laugh me to scorn if even at this age I bewaU my orphanhood, but pardon me if I cannot bear with patience the separation from a soul to which I see nothing comparable in the things that are left me. Hence my attacks of sickness once more came upon me, and once more I am confined to my bed, . . . almost expecting from hour to hour the necessary ter- mination of my life." ^ But the most important epoch of BasU's life had not yet begun. 1 Greg. Nyas. m laud. Bos. 2 Qjgg yj^^. Orat. xliii. 34, 35. ^ Ep. XXX. XIII Continued BASIL AS BISHOP "'ATropovjxevoi dXX' ovk €^a7ro/Doi;/xevot." — 2 CoE. iv. 8. SECTION III In 370 Eusebius, Exarch of Caesarea, died, and the city was at once plunged into the usual tumult of intrigue, Every one must have felt that Basil was the fittest man to choose. He was the ablest, the most eloquent, the most learned candidate whom the diocese could produce, and, besides this, he had practically been the bishop and benefactor of Caeearea alike under Dianius and under Eusebius. The best of the people and of the clergy, together with the monks, were in his favour; but many were bitterly opposed to him. God honoured him as He has honoured many of His servants, by making all bad men his enemies. The wealthy and luxurious, whose vices and whose selfishness he had unsparingly attacked, desired a bishop of the worldly- pompous and not of the ascetic type. The mass of the populace wished for an Exarch — for the bishop held this authority — who would not incessantly oppose and denounce their circus and their amphitheatre. The governor of the city did not want to have in Basil a 30 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiii powerful rival. The majority of even tlie country bishops were unfavourable to his claims, because they knew his unflinching adhesion to the Nicene orthodoxy, while many of them were inclined to Semi-Arianism and to other heresies. Many other persons who had more or less voice in the selection of a bishop, were keenly aware that the Emperor Valens was a persecuting Arian, and that the government of such a man as Basil might tend to embroil the city with the civil power. Some of Basil's opponents objected to him on the ground of weak health, so that the elder Gregory had to ask them " whether they wanted a bishop or a gladiator ? " There can be no doubt that Basil himself was deeply anxious about the matter. He knew that there was one man whose fame and eloquence and counsel would give him most efi"ectual help — the friend of his life, Gregory of Nazianzus. But he knew that the shrinking, timid character of Gregory, joined possibly to the fear that he might himself be nominated, would be likely to keep him away from the theatre of action. He therefore took the strange and unworthy step of writing that he was ill, that he was dying, and that he wished to see Gregory to bid him farewell, while at the same time he did not say a word about the death of Eusebius. Over- whelmed with sorrow, Gregory instantly prepared to start for Caesarea. But meanwhile the bishops — who had to receive the suffrages of the clergy and people, and to take part in the consecration — had received official news of the vacancy, and were beginning to hurry from their dioceses to Caesarea. Gregory's eyes were at once opened to the true state of the case, and in a letter full of dignified severity he wrote to reproach his friend for this underhand method of procedure, and advised him to behave in the matter with more wisdom XIII BASIL AS BISHOP 31 and prudence. He saw, however, that in the election of Basil was involved the orthodoxy of the Church of Caesarea, and his father was even more anxious about the matter than he was. Probably both the bishop and Basil thought that the younger Gregory indulged too much in the luxury of a puerile scrupulosity. The old bishop threw himself heart and soul into the cause of Basil. He took two steps of the utmost im- portance. He wrote to Eusebius of Samosata, urging him at all costs to proceed at once to Caesarea ; and he addressed a powerful letter to the people of Caesarea, in which, while he apologised for addressing them since he was only the pastor of a poor and humble flock, he pressed upon them the fact that the choice of Basil was not only natural but necessary. These two letters went far to decide the election. Eusebius of Samosata, whose influence was great, hurried to the Cappadocian capital in spite of the severity of the winter, and im- mensely strengthened by his influence the party of Basil. The malcontent bishops wished to keep away the Bishop of Nazianzus, whose vigorous age and saintly straightforwardness they feared. But when the old man found that among all the other chorepiscopi three could not be found who were willing to join in the consecration of Basil, he determined to go in person as the third whose presence was demanded by the Nicene canon. He rose with difficulty from his bed of sickness, was conveyed to Caesarea in a litter, and carried out the ceremony. The defeated bishops held sullenly aloof, and were specially angry with the old man ; but he rejoiced with all his heart at an event which he regarded as "the triumph of the Holy Spirit." He felt that to himself and to his son — who had assisted him throughout — the result was in large measure due, and, so far from 32 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xiii being worn out by his journey, be returned almost re- juvenescent with heartfelt gratitude and joy/ Basil had now attained the summit of his ambition. He was Archbishop of Caesarea. As Exarch of the diocese his sway extended over Pontus, Armenia, Galatia, Paphlagonia, and Bithynia. There were fifty chor- episcopi who owned allegiance to him as metropolitan.^ The orthodox world rejoiced in his election, and he had the delight and honour to receive a letter of congratu- lation from the great Athanasius himself. Gregory indeed thought it best not to come in person to Caesarea, and at this Basil was incHned to take ofience. He was pacified by the reasons which Gregory gave, and when his friend came he offered to make him his chief presbyter. This offer Gregory declined. But Basil was very far from finding the throne of Caesarea a bed of roses. When Laud was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, and Strafford wrote to wish him many and happy days in his new ofiice, he wrote back somewhat sadly. " Truly, my lord, I hope for neither ; not for many, for I am in years and have had a troublesome life ; not for happy, for I have no hope to do the good I desire. . , . And in truth, my lord, I have had a heaviness hanging over me ever since I was nomi- nated to the place." The feelings of Basil were very similar to these. He writes to his brother : "I have entered into a life which wears away my body, and afflicts even my soul, because it exceeds my powers."' * Greg. Naz. Orat. xliii. 37 : veos lirdveiO-Lv, evcrdivrjs, avu) ^SAotmv. 2 There were in tlie Empire thirteen dioceses, subdivided into 100 provinces (eparchies), which were again subdivided into smaller parishes (TrapobKiai). The title of the head of a diocese was Exarch, Archbishop, or Patriarch ; the head of an eparchy was a Metropolitan. ^ Ep. Iviii. CIS /3iov TapriXdoji-ev crvvrpi/BouTa [liv rjfiSv to a-afM, KaKovvTa 8e Koi. tijv ^X'F ■>"irjcn,. 2 Basil (Ep. ccxxv.) vaguely says that in his sickness and pain " he was .compelled to be removed into some quiet spot." He was fortunate to get out of the hands of soldiers. 86 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiv not against Gregory, but against the bishops who had appointed him. Further, they told the governor plainly that, in any case, this was not a civil matter, but a purely ecclesiastical question with which he had no right to meddle. Basil also wrote to a powerful friend, Aburgius, to use his influence in Gregory's favour, and to save his gentle spirit from the misery of a public trial. ^ The appeals were fruitless. The governor knew that the Emperor would be in his favour, and as Gregory did not appear at Ancyra, he assembled a synod of Arian bishops at Nyssa in 376, by whom Gregory was deposed, and an Arian put in his place. Of this person Basil says that he was not so much a man as a slave worth only a few pence, and a corrupter of the faith. ^ Gregory was therefore banished by a decree of Valens, and his great brother could help him no farther. For two years he wandered about in a condition of restless misery. We have no detailed account of his life or occupations, but he bemoaned his hard fate to all his correspondents. One of his few extant letters gives us an insight into his wretchedness. He deplores the loss of home, and friends, and flock, and all that he held most dear. He dwells with fond affection on his little house in Nyssa, with its humble furniture, its fire and table, its bench and sackcloth, which he had been forced to exchange for a miserable den in which there was an abundance of nothing but cold and darkness. He has no hope but in the prayers of his friends, and meanwhile he is exposed to the most bitter scrutiny of enemies. They set all his faults in a notebook, and conned them by rote. His 1 Basil, Ep. xxxiii. 2 Id. Ep. ccxxxix. A little before lie says that nowadays the servants of servants (otKOT/3i/3a)v o'lKOTpiPai) are made bishops. XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 87 voice, his look, his dress, the movement of his hands, the position of his feet, were all made the subject of unfavourable comment; and he was treated (he says) with downright hostility if he were not perpetually sighing and groaning, or if he did not go about in slovenly and dishevelled guise. His allusions in this, as in other letters, are very vague, but they seem to imply that he is living in some monastic community in which his fellow-monks looked upon him with the hatred and suspicion which, as we learn from Jerome and others of the Fathers, were only too rife in some such nominal fraternities.^ Gregory of Nazianzus strove to comfort and strengthen him. In answer to a letter in which the deposed Bishop of Nyssa had compared himself to a log tossed about upon the waves, he begged him not to take so desponding a view. "A log tossed on the sea is carried hither and thither against its will, but your movements are decided by the providence of God; and though you have no settled home you yet may have the settled purpose of being a blessing to many. Who would think of blaming the sun for rolling in its benefi- cent orbit and scattering its healing light, or who would blame the planets for not being fixed stars ? " ^ He also wrote to beg him not to jdeld himself too much to the thought of his troubles, for troubles grieve us less the less we think of them. As for the heretics, who were doing mischief in his diocese, sunny days bring out the adders. If we leave all to God they will soon cease to hiss, and will creep back into their holes. He assured him that he was with him in sympathy and in prayer, though he was unable to share his exile. ^ The Bishop of Nazianzus was justified in his hope- 1 Ep. xviii. ^ Greg. Naz. JEpp. Ixxii. Ixxiii. ^ Id. Sp. Ixxxi. 88 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiv fulness. In 378 Valens perished in the frightful rout of Adrianople, and the young and orthodox Gratian suc- ceeded. Gratian permitted the exiled bishops to return. Gregory was received back by his people with open arms. They streamed out of Nyssa, crowded the roads, and wel- comed him with demonstrations of affection which were a source of much comfort to him in the trials which he had yet to face. The villages that lay along the river bank were thronged with the crowds that came forth to meet him with tears and cries of joy. A heavy fall of rain, which drove people into their houses, enabled him to enter the town of Nyssa unobserved, but no sooner had the people heard the sound of his chariot-wheels than they thronged the streets in such dense numbers that he could not proceed, and nearly fainted from fatigue and emotion. His first visit was paid to his church, and he says that it looked like a river of fire from the crowds of virgins who came to welcome back their beloved teacher and who carried lighted tapers before him as he slowly made his way to his episcopal throne.-^ When Gregory was suggested to Basil as a fit person to be one of his envoys to Damasus at Eome in 375, the Bishop of Caesarea set aside the suggestion. ^ " I know him well," he wrote ; " he is entirely inexperienced in ecclesiastical affairs. A man of right judgment would be sure to respect him and value his intercourse. But he knows not how to flatter ; and of what use would such a man be in negotiations with a prelate so haughty as the Bishop of Eome, who will not listen to those who tell him the truth from humble places ? " ^ The year 379 was marked for Gregory by two strokes of terrible sorrow. He lost in that year his 1 Ep. vi. (Migne, iii. 1035). 2 Basil, Up. ccxv. ^ Id, Sp. ccxv. 1, iii/'ijA6ij^axr0ai ttjv kiri,Xv)(yiov tv-xapuniav Trpodvfxov- XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 93 her limbs. She had left instructions with one of the nuns, named Lampadia, about her obsequies, which were of the simplest and humblest character. A noble widow named Vestiana, who had joined the nunnery, shared with Gregory the duty of laying out the body. They flung over her corpse a black cloak which had belonged to her mother, feeling that she would have disliked any costlier covering, and admiring the beautiful dead face which shone out all the more brightly from the humble bier. Besides her poor worn garments they found that her sole ornaments were an iron cross and an iron ring which hung round her neck. To Vestiana Gregory gave the cross and kept the ring for himself, because it too had a cross carved upon it. "You have chosen right," said Vestiana, "for the ring is hollow, and under the cross carved upon it is a fragment of the wood of the true Cross." Miracles were wrought by her remains, some of which are mentioned by Gregory, but others, of a more sublime character, are passed over, because he thinks that they would be received with incredulity.-^ I have taken the narrative from the "Life of St. Macrina " which Gregory wrote in a letter to the monk Olympius. In the dialogue " On the Life and the Eesurrection," which he also called " The Makrinia," he adds further particulars. He there records the arguments with which she had reproved his outburst of grief for Basil's death, and the discourse which she poured forth as from a fountain of Divine inspiration. It is towards the conclusion of this discourse that we find the remarkable eschatological opinions to which we shall have occasion to refer later on. Assisted by Araxius, the bishop of 1 Texier says that at Melebuthi in Cappadocia, near Nyssa, St. Macrina is still worshipped, but Gregory is almost forgotten. 94 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiv the diocese, and by two of the clergy, Gregory carried the bier of his beloved sister to the Chapel of the Forty Martyrs, where she was buried in the grave of the parents whom he had so truly loved. Deep was the sorrow in the little monastery where the nuns had lived together in prayer and praise, without hatred, without envy, united in peace and holy aspirations in a life like the life of the angels. Of Gregory's fortunes between the death of Macrina and the Council of Constantinople in 381 we have no details, unless the events described in his nineteenth letter belong to this period.^ We there learn that on his return to his diocese he was troubled by the heresies which had been industriously sown among his people by the Galatians. He also took part by invitation in an election by the people of Ibora to the bishopric of their vacant see. He was himself elected by them, and the election ended apparently in violent tumults and mili- tary intervention, of which no particulars are narrated. It was perhaps in this interval that he also carried out the commission assigned to him by the Council of Antioch, to visit the Church " of Arabia," or rather, as it appears, of Babylon. Gregory's gentleness and sim- plicity unfitted him for delicate negotiations, and above all for dealings with violent and unreasonable persons.^ He seems to have efi"ected nothing by his long and painful journey. He speaks of the Christians of Baby- lon in terms of utter disgust and despair, dwelling especially on their brutish barbarism and their addiction to habitual lies. On his return he was able to visit the Holy Land. He had an unwonted opportunity for 1 Ep. xix. To the Bishop John. 2 XpTjo-TOTijs and dirAdrrjs are the characteristics ascribed to him by Basa. XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 95 doing this, since his journey was at the public expense, and the Emperor had put at his disposal a public vehicle. During the entire journey he retained his monastic habits, so that the carriage served him and his attendants " both for a monastery and a church," and they were able not only to fast and to chant the psalms, but also to observe the stated hours of prayer. So far from feeling the rapture which Jerome and Paula had felt in visiting the holy places, the sight even of Golgotha and Bethlehem and the Mount of Olives failed to disenchant him of the profound disgust which he felt for the Christians who lived at Jerusalem, and the pilgrims who visited it. Even Cyril of Jerusalem, though he had now resumed the office from which the Arians had so often succeeded in deposing him, was unable to cope either with the heresy or the gross immorality of the Holy City. Then, as in so many ages, it was a sink of wickedness, and that wickedness was increased by the demoralisation which ran riot among the bands of promiscuous pilgrims. In defence of the faith Cyril had to contend not only against the Arians but also against the followers of the learned ApoUinaris of Laodicea, who charged the orthodox with regarding Jesus as a mere man. The intervention of the Bishop of Nyssa, whose main object in visiting Jerusalem had been to help the Church, was entirely without avail. Gregory was an honest and outspoken as well as an able man, and though he was deeply influenced by the ecclesiastical superstitions of his age, yet when he saw the truth he had the courage to strike out against the stream of popular error. The thoughts with which he had been impressed by his visit to the Holy Land found expression in two letters — one to three ladies who lived in Jerusalem, and the other " On those Who go to 96 LIVES OP THE FATHERS XIV Jerusalem." Pilgrimages were rapidly coming into vogue, and Gregory saw that they were not only inefficacious for any real promotion of religious ends, but were even dangerous to the character of many who took part in them. His letter, of which the genuine- ness is no longer disputed, is almost unique in the literature of early Christianity. He begins by laying down the principle that no life can be regarded as truly religious which is not spent in accordance with the pre- cepts of the Gospel. Now it had become a recognised notion that for the perfection of the ascetic life it was necessary to visit the holy places. But Christ had never given any such command. It was an arbitrary human ordinance, entirely destitute of Scriptural authority, and full of perils. Men and women had to travel together, to live together, to frequent the same small and inconvenient inns and hospices, to hear many vile words, to witness many unseemly sights. And for what purpose ? Did Christ's bodily presence linger in Palestine ? Was the Holy Spirit poured forth in special fulness upon the dwellers in Jerusalem ? On the con- ■ trary, to judge by appearances, God was nearer to the dwellers in Cappadocia. If God were specially to be found at Jerusalem, the residents ought to excel in holiness, whereas the worst sins which, afflict humanity — cunning, adultery, theft, idolatry, poisoning, envy, and murder — were there most prevalent, and that to such an extent that the citizens were like wild beasts thirsting for blood. If he had himself visited Jerusalem it was not as a pilgrim, but as a friend of the Church. Nor had he gained any increase of faith by his visit ; nay, he had gained nothing but the conviction that more piety was to be found at home than in the Holy Land, for the changing of places brings God no nearer to us. He can XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 97 come to us wherever we seek Him. He who with evil thoughts in his heart stands even on Golgotha, or Olivet, or in the Chapel of the Resurrection, is as far from Christ as though he were an infidel. A faithful Christian who lived in Cappadocia had no heed whatever to leave it for Palestine, and would receive the gifts of grace in pro- portion to his faith, with no reference to any pilgrimage.^ This letter has well been called a pearl among the writings of Gregory, and of greater value than all his allegoric and ascetic treatises, because it breathes the true spirit of the Gospel. He wrote to Eustathia and two other ladies, whom he had known at Jerusalem, to pour out the grief which he felt at the thought that, whereas elsewhere all Christians were united ia the faith of the Trinity, in Jerusalem there raged between brother and brother a hatred which ought to be reserved for sin and the devil. His views expressed in these two letters are original and independent. Scarcely anything like them is found in the writings of the fourth century or throughout the Middle Ages. They run sharply counter to the views ex- pressed by Jerome in his letter to Pauliuus of Nola.^ But Gregory could not resist the logic of facts. He could not approve of a religious fashion which had no Diviae sanction in its favour, and which increased the perils even of "the religious " without in any way ad- vancing their holiness. Let us be thankful that the fourth century produced at least one warning against one form of religious materialism. In 381 we find Gregory occupying a most honoured ^ The genuineness of this letter is admitted by Baronius and TUlemont. 2 Elsewhere Jerome has a few phrases which point in the same direc- tion as Gregory's treatise. He says, for instance, " Et de Britannia et de Hierosolymis aequaliter patet aula coelestis." VOL. II H 98 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xiv place at the Council of Constantinople. At this period lie had come to be regarded as " the common pillar of the Church." He rejoiced unfeignedly at the promotion of the Bishop of Nazianzus to the patriarchate, and it was during this visit that he read part of his book against Eunomius to Gregory and Jerome.'' He delivered the inaugural oration on Gregory's election, and the funeral oration on the death of Meletius, the much-loved Primate of Antioch. He is usually regarded as the author of the clauses which were added to the Nicene Creed at this council, and although this cannot be maintained on the sole and late authority of Nice- phorus Callistus, yet it was no doubt in great measure owing to his influence as a theologian that they were adopted.^ On July 30, 381, the Bishop of Nyssa received the supreme honour of being named by Theo- dosius as one of the acknowledged authorities on all matters of theological orthodoxy, and he was appointed to regulate the affairs of the Churches in Asia Minor, conjointly with Helladius of Caesar ea and Otreius of Melitene.^ Communion with these bishops was to be regarded as the test of orthodoxy. But few further particulars are known of the life of Gregory. We find that he was again in Constantinople in 383, when he preached his sermon on the Godhead of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, and again in 385, for in that year he pronounced the funeral orations over the remains of the little Princess Pulcheria, and of her mother Flaccilla, the wife of Theodosius, who died shortly afterwards. At Constantinople he became acquainted 1 Jer. De Virr. ilhistr. 128; Phot. Cod. 67. 2 Niceph. Call. H. E. xiii. 13. 3 God. Theod. 1. iii. t. vi. p. 9 ; Socrates, H. E. v. 8 ; Labbe, Condi, ii. 956. XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 99 with the noble deaconess Olympias, the friend of Chrysostom, and it was at her request that he began his commentary on the Song of Songs. One of the chief trials of his later life arose from the rudeness and hostility of his metropolitan Helladius. This bishop was an unworthy successor of Basil, and we hear but little in his favour. He caused bitter offence to G-regory of Nazianzus, first by displacing Sacerdos, whom Basil had appointed governor of his great hospital, and afterwards by opposing the consecration of Eulalius, Gregory's successor at Nazianzus.^ He incurred the strong displeasure of Ambrose and of Chrysostom by having appointed the adventurer Gerontius to the bishopric of Nicomedia.^ This appointment was not only bad but scandalously simoniacal, for it was pur- chased by a place in the army which Gerontius, then a court favourite and quack physician at Constantinople, had procured for the son of Helladius. Probably the jealousy of Helladius had been excited by the fact that Gregory, who was only bishop of the obscure town of Nyssa, had been named with himself as defining the rule of orthodoxy ; nor is it at all unlikely that Gregory's simplicity and want of tact left Helladius under the impression that his colleague despised him, which was, indeed, not far from the truth. The alien- ation led, however, to a painful incident, which is described by Gregory in an indignant letter to Flavian. In the year 393 he visited Sebaste, to be present at the anniversary celebration of his brother Peter's death. Being informed that Helladius spoke of him with 1 Greg. Naz. Epp. coxix. ccxx. 2 Ambrose had censured Gerontius for spreading a story about a goblin with ass's legs — an Empusa {pvoa-KeXk) who had attacked bim one nigbt, but whom he had seized, shaved, and flung into a mill ! (see Sozom. M. E. viii. 6, Phot. Cod. 59). 100 LIVES OP THE FATHEES xiv habitual bitterness, he thought it his duty to pay him a visit before returning to Nyssa. But on hearing that the primate was at a place in the mountains called Andomokinoe, keeping the Festival of Martyrs, he determined to wait untO. he could see him in Caesarea. Meanwhile a rumour reached him that Helladius was ill, and then without hesitation he left his vehicle, and with all the speed in his power, partly on foot, partly on horseback, along precipitous roads, and travelling both by day and night a distance of many miles, he reached the place at dawn. From a mound which over- hung the village he caught sight of Helladius with two other bishops preaching in the open air, and he and his attendants immediately dismounted and led their horses to the spot. Meanwhile the sermons had ended, and Helladius had returned home. Gregory despatched to him a messenger to announce his arrival, and gave the same message to one of Helladius's deacons, whom he accidentally met. Expecting an immediate answer to his announcement, he sat down in the open air, oppressed by fatigue and drowsiness, and the centre of a gaping and nudging group composed of the rustics of the place. In this condition he was left till noon, in spite of his weary journey and the burning heat, and he could not help feeling deeply depressed, and bitterly reproaching himself for having brought such indignities on his own head. At noon the " shrine," as Gregory calls it, was opened, and he was admitted into Helladius's presence, other visitors being excluded. He was so tired that his deacon had to support his footsteps. In this guise he saluted his metropolitan, and, as he was left standing, and not even asked to take a seat, he went and sat down on a bench at a distance, waiting till some word of greeting should be addressed to him. " Not a word was XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 101 uttered. There was a silence as of the night, a tragic gloom of countenance, amazement, and astonishment, and an absolute dumbness, and, as in some midnight gloom, there followed a speechless interval." Helladius did not so much as utter the most commonplace saluta- tion, and " the stillness was as oppressive as among the dead. Nay, more so ; for among the dead there are no small jealousies or inch-high distinctions." The scene was becoming intolerable. It was like breathing the murky atmosphere of a prison, especially when Gregory recalled his own high privileges, distinguished position, and universal fame. What had become of Christian humility and of the example of Christ's lowliness, who visited the house of the leper, and endured the traitor's kiss? Was Gregory a leper? Was Helladius so im- measurably his superior in rank, in intellect, in character, that he was entitled to display this sublime arrogance ? It was with difficulty that the Bishop of Nyssa suppressed the natural indignation with which his heart began to swell, by reminding himself of what St. Paul says about the law in our members which wars against the law of our minds. He asked Helladius whether his visit prevented him from taking refreshment, and whether he should retire. " I want no refresh- ment," rudely answered Helladius. Gregory replied in a few conciliatory words, in answer to which Helladius broke into a storm of reproaches against him. Gregory answered that he had been misled by false reports, and that so clear was his conscience on the subject of any wrongs to Helladius, that while he prayed that his other sins might be pardoned, he was quite content that any- thing which he had ever done against Helladius might remain unpardoned for ever. It was now time for the mid -day meal; the bath was being prepared, and an 102 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiv elegant banquet was being made ready, for the day was a Sabbath and a martyr's festival. But still Helladius gave no word of invitation to his tired and starving guest, who silently contrasted this haughty animosity with the merciful tenderness of the Lord. At last Gregory rose to go. The rain was falling fast when he left the house, and it was not tUl evening that he reached his comrades, wet through, and utterly worn out. He was shocked and grieved that the Bishop of Caesarea should have been guilty of conduct so churlishly inhuman ; and that towards a fellow- bishop, and one whom the CouncU of Constantinople had clothed with an authority equal to his own. Surely such inflated pride could only go before a terrible fall ! But he leaves the punishment of it in God's hands : oVw? B' av ^kvono TOVTO 6 em fJLeKrjcrei.^ There are no other incidents to record. We have no trace of Gregory after the year 394, in which he was present at Constantinople during the synod held at the consecration of the Church of Eufinus. On this occa- sion he preached at the request of Nectarius, the suc- cessor of Gregory of Nazianzus in the see of Constanti- nople.^ We learn no particulars about his death, which probably took place in 395. Gregory was in some respects the most gifted mem- ber of his gifted family. Of the practical ability which marked the distinguished career of Basil he was indeed entirely destitute. He was too simple and too good to cope with astute and intriguing ecclesiastics ; but in originality and intellectual force he was not only greater than his brother, but greater than perhaps any 1 Ep. i. 2 The sermon sometimes called " On Ms Ordination " should be called " On the Consecration." XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 103 of the Fathers except Origen, Athanasius, and Augus- tine.^ Indeed this eminence was fully recognised, as is shown by the title "Father of Fathers," which was given to him by the seventh General Council. Two contrary streams of tendency are observable in his character — on the one hand a deep spirituality and a thorough independence, on the other submissive and superstitious credulity. His independence and spiritu- ality are illustrated in his views on eschatology, and his vigorous disapproval of pilgrimages so far as they were regarded as necessary or meritorious ; his super- stition in the ready credence with which he accepted the miracles wrought by the (often dubious) relics of martyrs, as well as those which he believed on hearsay to have been wrought at the grave of his sister Macrina. In his sermon " Against those who defer Baptism," he shows himself less liberal than Ambrose. In the case of Valentinian II., Ambrose argued that the sincere desire for baptism, if accidentally frustrated, practically secured the blessings of that sacrament. But Gregory tells a story of a young nobleman of Comana, named Archias, who, when shot to death by the Scjrthians, kept crying out in agony, " Mountains and rocks bap- tize me ! woods and rocks give me the grace of the sacrament !" In his books On Virginity and his ser- mon on Gregory Thaumaturgus and on the Forty Martyrs he shows himself the unquestioning child of his age, eager to accept without enquiry its least tenable portents ; yet in his theologic treatises he be- trays his inabihty to accept any form of faith of which the foundations could not also be laid in the human reason. Like many other original thinkers, he is not always consecutive or consistent. Even on such funda- 1 See Bbhringer, Oreg. von Nyssa, 184. 104 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiv mental propositions as those on which he based his eschatology he varies from himself. At one time he treats Evil much as was done by Erigena, as something non-existent, a pure negation, and on this conception he founds his Theodicaea ; but when he is treating of the purification wrought by death, he speaks of Evil almost as if it were a veritable substance from which the body had to be cleansed by disintegration. Again, his ascetic proclivities make it very difiicult for him to strike the balance between the glorification of celibacy and the honour due to marriage. His theological views were more profoundly influ- enced by Origen than by any other teacher. His idealism, his allegorical exegesis, his doctrine of human freedom, his belief in the ultimate restitution of all things, were borrowed from the great Alexandrian. But even in his development of these views Gregory was much more than a mere borrower. He was a close reasoner, and well acquainted with the science of his day.^ He thought out each subject for himself, and he had the advantage of living in a period when the con- sciousness of the Church had arrived at more definite dogmatic conclusions than were possible in the days of Origen. In general his whole system of theology turned on the belief that the existing world is not the ideal world of God, but a world which has been ruined by the Fall ; that the Fall was a consequence of man's freedom of will; and that the scheme of redemption was wrought out by a process both Divine and human, rendered possible by the Incarnation of Christ, who in this world of sin appeared as the negation of all evil, and the concentration of all good. And the redemptive process wiU continue untU the material passes wholly 1 In Ms Hexaemeron and De Horn. opif. XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 105 into the spiritual, and the spiritnal into the Divine.^ Gregory, as Mons. VUlemain says, was a mystic, but a mystic by the reasoning faculty only, a mystic without being an enthusiast. He has none of that Oriental colouring which charms us in some of the great orators of the Greek Church.^ The works of Gregory fall under five divisions — 1. Dogmatic ; 2. Exegetic ; 3. Ascetic ; 4. Orations ; and 5. Letters. 1. Of these the dogmatic works are of the greatest importance. They are partly polemic and partly apologetic, and they place Gregory in the highest rank of theologians. i. Of his polemical works the two chief are the great treatises against Eunomius and against ApoUi- naris, which are the main source from which we derive our knowledge of the views held by those heresiarchs. ii. His chief apologetic work is the Sermo Cate- cheticus, which is a manual of theology of which the form was perhaps suggested by Origen's De principiis. It deals with the great questions of theology, Christ- ology, and eschatology. He treated of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity in his book On the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, addressed to the tribune Simplicius, and also in brief works addressed to Ablavius and Eusta- thius. In an important little book, addressed to his brother Peter, he draws a distinction between ousia and hypostasis.^ It was his express object to defend the 1 Bohringer, vhi supra. 2 Villemain, Tabl. de V£oquence, 125. Gregory of Nyssa was one of the earliest to express the well-kiio-wii sentiment of the mystics — of which St. Theresa was so fond — that we ought to love God for His own sake without any slavish {hovXoirpiTruis) reference either to the hope of re- compense or the fear of torments. See De Vit. Mos. {0pp. i. 298), adfinem. The passage is a fine one, but is too long to quote. 3 He admits that the two words were often confounded, but he 106 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xiv orthodox doctrine against the charges both of tritheism and Sabellianism, maintaining against the Heathen the unity of the Divine essence, against the Jews the dis- tinction of Persons. And yet, so difficult was it in the controversies of those days to steer between the colliding rocks of various heresies, that in some passages G-regory seems to have gone dangerously near to Mono- physitism and the language of Eutyches.^ As regards Gregory's eschatology, it is distinctly based on the views of Plato and of Origen, which Gregory believed to be revealed in Scripture. He accepted without reserve or subterfuge the full state- ment of St. Paul that God should ultimately be iravra iv iracTiv, "All things in all men and all things." He regarded death as a moment in the process of perfection- ment, and in this respect his views closely resembled those arrived at by Dr. Pusey from a very opposite point of view. In death God deals with the clay as the potter does, breaking up the marred vessel, getting rid of its defective elements, and forming it anew — a simile which he hardly attempts to co-ordinate with his other opinion that evil is in reality a semblance, a thing which has no essential existence.^ In answering the prefers to keep ovaia in the senBe of Essence, and to use i&TrocrTao-is to express tlie distinctive peculiarity, making it equivalent to irpocrbmov or " Person." The Arians said that the Essence was different, because the Hypostases are different ; the Sabellians say that " there can be only one Hypostasis because there is only one Essence." But the Essence (pva-ia) should be used for the common element ; the Hypostases are the centres of unity of two distinctive peculiarities ((rvvSpofi.fi tUv irepl eKaa-rov ISmp-dnav), and are incommunicable in relation to each other. See Domer, On the Person of Christ (E.T.), ii. 314. 1 See Neander, iv. 115 (E.T.). Hooker, Bed. Pol. v. liii. 2, ventured to doubt whether Gregory could have written the passage in his letter to Theophilus of Alexandria (in the c. Apollin.), in which he says that the humanity of Christ was lost in His Divinity like a drop of vinegar in the great ocean. 2 Compare the lines which Mr. Browning puts into the mouth of the old XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 107 question as to the place of the soul's abode after its separation from the body, he dwells on the immaterial character of the soul, and, denying the existence of any local Hades, speaks of Hades as a metaphor descriptive of a state. It might be said that the disembodied soul is with God ; but Gregory imagines that it remains as a watcher of the material elements of its earthly organism. The dissolution of those elements offered no difficulty to Gregory, because he held that the immaterial soul could retain its observation of those elements however much scattered and however impalpable they might become. Hell and heaven are to him conditions and characters. He does not understand literally the worm and fire of future retribution, but considers that they are processes of ultimate purification, by which souls shall be saved so as by fire. He leaves this view side by side with his doctrine of the freedom of man's will, but holds fast his belief in the Palingenesia which shall involve the final disappearance of all sin, and ail rebellion against God.^ Germanus of Constanti- nople in his avoOevTO'i, and others since his day, endea- voured to get rid of the disturbing circumstance that a canonised saint of the Church, a Father whose views were in his own day regarded as the norm of orthodoxy, a Father who was called Father of Fathers by the seventh General Council, a Father who exercised predominant influence in the second of the four great CEcumenical Councils, and had his share in the very clauses of the Pope in The Ring and the Booh. He says of the villain Guido Franceshini that possibly the stroke of death may flash saving conviction into him— "Else I avert my face nor follow him Into that sad obscure sequestered state, Where God unmakes but to remake the soul Be else made first m vain; which must not be." 1 Ap. Phot. God. 233. 108' LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiv Nicene Creed which deal with the future life, was yet a declared Universalist. They tried to maintain that the passages in which this view is expressed were the inter- polations of heretics. But this attempt is now aban- doned. Neander regards it as "among the worst ex- amples of arbitrary caprice, regardless of history."^ There is no scholar of any weight in any school of theology who does not now admit that two at least of the three great Cappadocians believed in the final and universal restoration of human souls, though they said nothing of the two peculiar views of Origen which alone were condemned as heretical — namely, the Platonic doctrine of the Prae-existence of souls, and the salvability of the Spirit of Evil.^ The fuller expression of Gregory's views on these subjects is found in The Mahrinia, a treatise on the soul and the Eesurrection, consisting chiefly of long speeches addressed to him by his sister to console him in the thought of Basil's death. ^ And the remarkable fact is that he developed these views without in any way imperilling his reputation for orthodoxy, and without the faintest reminder that he was deviating from the strictest paths of Catholic opinion. 2. The specific exegesis of Gregory is of but smaU value. He wrote an apologetic supplement to the Hexaemeron of Basil ; a treatise On the Creation of Man ; On the Superscriptions of the Psalms ; On the Witch of Endor; and On 1 Cor. xv. 28. He also wrote 1 Neander, Ch. Hist. iv. 456 (E.T.) 2 See De Horn. opif. 28. Gregory also shows the independence of Ms Origenism by rejecting Origen's denial of a bodily resurrection. In Gant. Horn. 1. 8 See De anima, ad finem (,0pp. ed. Migne, iii. 159 and 103) ; De, Horn. opif. 21 ; Oral. Oatech. 8 and 35 ; Horn, in 1 Cor. xv. 28. I need not here print the passages again, for I have done so in dealing specially with the opinions of the Fathers on these subjects {Mercy and Judgment, pp. 256-561). XIV GREGORY OF NYSSA 109 homilies On the Beatitudes, On the Lord's Prayer, On Ecclesiastes, and Canticles, and the Life of Moses. 3. His chief ascetic work is the treatise On Virginity, of which I have already spoken. 4. His orations are the funeral panegyrics on Basil, Meletius, the Empress Flaccilla, the Princess Pulcheria ; and the sermons On St. Stephen, the Forty Martyrs, St. Gregory Thaumaturgus, and St. Ephraem.'; There are also a few moral sermons On Purity, On Harsh Censures, On Usury, and On Almsgiving, and others on the chief festivals, and against those who postpone baptism. Many of these contain interesting details and allusions, but the taste of Gregory was not superior to that of his contemporaries, and as a sacred orator he stands far below his brother Basil and his friend of Nazianzus in force and majesty. His illustrations, however, are sometimes striking and sometimes very lively. In his sermon " On the Consecration," in apologising for his inferiority to others who had filled the pulpit, he points out that the richness of gold is sometimes enhanced by a leaden foil, and pointing to the roof enriched with polychrome, he says, "Do you see this roof over your heads, how fair it is to look upon, how the gilding of it blooms with fretwork? Though it is all apparently of gold, yet it has been engraved with many encircling polygons of azure. What purpose of the artist was served by the azure ? It was to throw out the gold into more vivid relief by the contrast. If then the azure mingled with the gold makes the brilliancy more striking, so too may the dark line of my address enhance the brightness of the previous orations." ^ 1 His orations against Arius and Sabellius, and against the Mace- donians, belong to his theologic works. They were first published by A. Mai. ^ 0pp. ed. Migne, iii. 545. no LIVES OF THE FATHERS xiv In his sermon "On the Profession of a Christian "he illustrates the occasional self-betrayal of hypocrisy by a story on which few modern preachers would venture. He says that an ape which had been taught to wear a mask and to dance like a woman by a mountebank at Alexandria, instantly betrayed its true nature when one of the spectators flung some almonds on the stage.-' 5. His letters are few — even after the addition of fourteen made to them by Zacagni in 1698, and of eight more by Caraccioli, in 1731 — but they are full of charm and naturalness. The most important are the one to the monk Olympius which describes the life and death of his sister Macrina ; the one to Flavian about the mis- conduct of Helladius ; ^ those to the three ladies of Jeru- salem;^ and that "On those who visit Jerusalem."* His letter to Amphilochius, in which he describes a beautiful and elaborate chapel which he was building in honour of the martyrs, shows his technical knowledge of architecture, and is the most detailed account we possess of an ecclesiastical structure in the fourth century.^ His twentieth letter, that to Adelphius, shows the romantic love of natural beauty which he shared with his brother and his namesake of Nazianzus. It describes a vUla and garden in Galatia, named Vanota, and was written when he had retired to his bedroom after a delightful day spent amid the fascinations of the place. He declares it to be lovelier than the valley of the Peneus, or the Sicyonian plain, or the fabled islands of the blest. The river Halys flowed through the grounds " gleaming like a ribband of gold through a deep purple robe." Over the banks hung an oak -crowned hill, and the 1 0pp. ed Migne, iii. 239. Photius speaks highly of him as an orator, and Sophronius calls him a "river of words." 2 ^^_ j_ (MjgngN ^ Ep. iiu * E2}. ii ^ Ep. xxv. XIV GEEGOEY OF NYSSA lU lower growth of brushwood came down to the plain. The fields were green with vines, of which some were at that time laden with rich bunches of grapes, while others still showed their green clusters. Chapels of the martyrs were erected in various places, and the villa buildings were of the finest description, surrounded by beds of flowers. Pears, apples, and peaches hung on the boughs of the fruit-trees, and banquets were laid out under the planes. In the fishponds were fish so tame that they came at the call of a youth, and allowed him readily to touch them. In the sunny portico, which was adorned with paintings, an elegant feast was laid out for the guests, and there they were again delighted with the gambols of the fish in a clear lake. Gregory evidently felt a most genuine delight as he paced along the green where the treUised vines were intertwined with roses, where the birds were singing, and fruits of many kinds showed their bright and varied colouring. Doubtless he would have reckoned the quiet day in this lovely villa as among the happiest which he had ever spent. Note to p. 80. A strange glimpse of the irregularities of the fourth century may be derived from the enactments of the Council of Gangra. The date of this councO. is uncertain, but it was probably held about 379, and was in- tended to check the errors and extravagances of the followers of Eustathius of Sebaste. We learn from its canons that there were some who not only blamed marriage, but said that a woman, living with her husband, cannot be sa/oed ; that others separated themselves from the communion of married priests, and refused to partake of elements which they consecrated ; that they embraced a life of virginity from horror of the married state ; and that they insulted married persons. We also find anathemas against women who, under pretence or religion, wore men's clothing, cut oflf their hair, and forsook their children. These canons are undoubtedly genuine, and are contained in the codes both of the Greek and Latin Churches.^ ^ Labbe, Cone. ii. 413. XV ST. AMBEOSE, BISHOP OF MILAN ^ " Ambrosius Mediolanensis, virtutum sanotus Episcopus, arx fldei, orator Catholious." — CoMlTis Mabcbllini, ex Ghron. Goss. Arcad. iv. et Honor. Hi. " Et Mediolani mira omnia ; copia rerum, Innumerae cultaeque domus, faecunda virorum Ingenia, antiqui mores." — Ausonius. St. Ambeose in the West furnishes an almost exact counterpart of St. Basil in the East. Both were great ecclesiastical statesmen ; both were men of high spiritual aims carried out with vigorous activity ; both showed a 1 Editions of the Works of St. Ambrose. Amerbach, Basle, 1492 ; Erasmus, Basle, 1527 ; tlie Roman (begun by Pope Sixtus V. when a monk), Eome, 1580-5 ; the Benedictine, Paris, 1686-1690, Venice, 4 vols. 1748-51, 8 vols. 1781 ; Migne, 2 vols. 1843; Angelo Ballerini, Mediol. 1875 (a fine edition, founded on the Bene- dictine). My references will be to the Benedictine edition, Paris, 1686- 1690. Lives of St. Ambrose. Paulini, Vita S. Ambrosii ; Tillemont, M^moires, voL x. Venice, 1732 ; Du Pin, Nouv. EM. ii. ; Baronius, Annates (printed in the Eoman edition) ; Gibbon, Decline and Fall ; the Benedictine, Vita Ambrosii ex ejus potissi- w/wm scriptis colleda (in Migne, vol. ii.) ; Cave, Lives of the Primitive Fathers, London, 1683 (ii 359-440); Alban Butler, Lives of the Saints (Dec. 7) ; Ba.vnaT&, Der Seil. Ambrosius, 1ST S ; 'Boh.ringeT, Die Alte Kirche, Ambros. Erzbischof v. Mailand. Stuttgart, 1877 ; Silbert, Das Leben des Hdligen Ambrosius,Wien, 1841 ; Hermant, Paris, 1678 ; Ebrster, Ambrosius Bischof von Mailand. HaUe, 1884; J. LI. Davies, in Diet, of Ghiistian Biography ; Plitt, in Herzog's Encyclop. (ed*^ 2). XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OP MILAN 113 fondness for power, combined with capacity for rule ; both had a certain grandeur of personality, and what would be called by some a magnetic influence; both were dauntless defenders of orthodoxy against the Arians and the Emperors who had embraced the Arian heresy ; both produced a permanent impression on the Church, but more by their lives than by their writings. They knew and respected each other. In calm gravity and perfect straightforwardness Ambrose was the superior, although he was very far inferior to the great Bishop of Caesarea in depth and originality of thought. Basil recognised in Ambrose a kindred character, and Ambrose made large use of the works of Basil. The Western Church received for centuries the stamp of this commanding character. Gregory VII. was in many respects a follower of Ambrose, and centuries after- wards another sainted Archbishop of Milan, St. Carlo Borromeo, felt his influence and reproduced some both of his errors and of his virtues. Ambrose was born about the year 340.^ He was the scion of an illustrious family — perhaps the Gens Aurelia — which boasted Consuls and Praetors among its ancestors, and which had embraced Christianity for several generations. His father, also named Ambrosius, was Praetorian Praefect of the Gauls, and in that capacity occupied one of the four highest administrative posts in the Empire, and exercised aU but supreme power over a large part of Europe. There is no trace in the writings of Ambrose that he felt any pride in this noble birth, 1 The chief datum for his birth is slight. In Ep. lix. 3 he says he was fifty-three, and that while Campania is quiet, "nos ... in medio versamur omnium molestiarum freto." This suits well with the year 393, when Arbogast and his puppet Eugenins ente];'ed Milan. If this date be rightly fixed, Ambrose was born in 340, three years after the death of Constantine. VOL. II I 114 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv but there is no doubt that to it was due in part bis habit of command, and that stamp of distinction and superi- ority which characterised his whole tone of mind, and made him "the last of the Eomans" in a truer sense than many to whom the title has been given. On the other hand, he gloried in the fact that among the circle of his family he could count a martyr — his great-aunt Sotheris, who had suffered for her faith in the Diocletian persecu- tion. Ambrose was probably born at Treves, the head- quarters of his father's Gallic praefecture.^ He was the third of three children. The eldest was his sister Marcellina, of whom he draws a picture in his third book On Virgins;"^ the second was Satyrus, also called Uranius, who became a Eoman lawyer of great eloquence and dis- tinction,^ and rose to be governor of a province, which he administered with conspicuous gentleness and justice.* The three children of the noble Praefect were united to each other by the closest bonds of affection, which con- tinued unbroken throughout their lives. A life of Ambrose was written by his pupil and secretary Paulinus, who must have had the fullest oppor- tunity of knowing him.^ But this biography is perhaps interpolated, and the value of it is greatly impaired by the feeble credulity which led ecclesiastics of that age 1 Exhort. Vvrg. 12, sec. 82 ; Be Virg. iii. 7, sec. 39. ^ Basil, Ep. ad Anibros. Paulin. Vit. Ambrose. ^ De Virg. iii. 4, sec. 15 sqq. * De excessu Satyri, 49. 5 Paulinus (not to be confounded with. Paulinus of Nola) had also opportunities for securing the beat information from Marcellina, the sister of Ambrose, and others. But he was too credulous and too exclu- sively eulogistic, and Forster thinks that there are interpolations in his work as late as the eighth century. The Church historians — Socrates, Sozomen, Theodoret — add but little of what is new, and cannot be always relied upon. Of modern historians, Gibbon is very unjust to Ambrose. There are notices of him in Richter, Gesch. d. Westrom. Eeiches, and Gulden- penning u. Ifland, d. Kaiser Tlieodosius, 1878. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 115 to find miracles everywhere. The reader of Paulinus is embarrassed on almost every page by supernatural events narrated without any adequate testimony, which he is either forced to throw aside altogether as being wholly devoid of an historical character, or to regard as superstitious exaggerations and inaccurate distortions of natural events. In this biography, as in those of the hermits and many mediaeval saints, we are repelled by the uncertainty thrown over the simplest facts from their being found in contact with absurd prodigies : Paulinus begins with a story of this kind. He says, that while the infant Ambrose was lying in his cradle, asleep and open-mouthed, a swarm of bees settled on his face, and crept in and out of his open mouth ! The Praefect, who was walking in the courtyard with his wife and daughter, observed the circumstance, and forbidding the nurse to drive the bees away, waited for the issue of the miracle. After some time the bees soared up into the air so high that no gaze could follow them. " Terrified by this por- tent, the father exclaimed, ' If that little child lives, he will be something great.' For even then the Lord, in the infancy of his little servant, was working for the fulfil- ment of that text of Proverbs, 'Favi mellis sermones honi.'^ For that swarm of bees was generating for us the honeycombs of his writings, which should announce celestial gifts and uplift the minds of men from earthly things to heaven." Thus does Paulinus at once furnish us with a measure of his qualifications ! The story, as he teUs it, is absurd on the face of it. It is told of Plato and many others, and is a simple specimen of rhetoric and metaphor translated into impossible and prosaic fact. The elder Ambrose died about a.d. 352, when his 1 Prov. xvi. 24, "Pleasant words are as an honeycomb.'' 116 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV younger son was but twelve years old. His widow — whose name has not been preserved — left Treves with her family and went to Rome. Here Marcellina took the vow of virginity, and received the veil at the hands of Pope Liberius.-^ Ambrose was deeply attached to his sister, and it was no doubt from love of her that he derived that intense admiration for the virgin, life which led him to found so many nunneries and to write so largely on the subject. He was trained at Eome in all the branches of a liberal education, especially in grammar, jurisprudence, and rhetoric, with a view to the same civil career in which his father and many of his ancestors had gained distinction. The natural seriousness and dignity of his character, together with the sweet and ennobling influ- ences of a Christian home, saved him from those dissipa- tions of great cities into which Jerome fell in Rome and Augustine in Carthage. The life of the noble Roman boy was not only pure but earnest, nor did he deign to mix himself up with the tricks and tumults of the young students. Only one anecdote of his youth is preserved to us. His mother lived with Marcellina and another virgin named Candida. The caste character which had already begun to be assumed by the presbyterate had led to the custom of women kissing the hands of the clergy when they parted from them. One day when the three ladies had kissed the outstretched hand of a clerical visitor, the boy extended his right hand to Candida, and playfully said, " Kiss my right hand too, for I too shall be a bishop."^ His sister rejected the offer, but, says Paulinus in his solemn style, " the spirit of the Lord, who was nurtur- ing him for the priesthood, was speaking in him." In his youth, as well as in later years, he must have 1 De Virg. iii. 1, sec. 1. 2 This probably occurred in 353. when Ambrose was thirteen. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 117 been a diligent student of Pagan authors. Virgil seems to have been Ms special favourite, for he constantly uses his words and phrases as well as direct quotations from him.^ Fortunately for his future work he was also well trained in Greek literature. When his studies were over, Ambrose entered on his profession as a lawyer, and, aided by his connexions and his ability as a speaker, rose so rapidly that Probus, the Praetorian Praefect of Italy, made him one of his assessors. When he was but thirty years old Probus was so much struck with his administrative gifts that he recom- mended him to the Emperor Valentinian I. for the post of Governor of the provinces of Liguria and Aemilia, which conferred on him the rank and ensigns of a proconsul. His predecessors in the office had acted oppressively, and Probus said to Ambrose when he started for his province, " Go ; act not as a judge but as a bishop." These words were afterwards regarded in the light of a prophecy, but they are somewhat surpris- ing on the lips of so doubtful a personage as the Prae- fect Probus.^ He administered this office with integrity and distinc- tion for four years. In 374 Auxentius, the Arian Bishop of Milan, died.^ He owed his post to the Arian Con- stantius, who had banished the orthodox bishop Dionysius in 355. Auxentius had been the chief supporter of Arianism in the West, and on his death the Arians and the Catholics naturally made supreme efforts that his successor should be one of their own 1 See Wordsworth, Oh. Hid. iii. 70, wio quotes BiragM, " Ambrogio con singolar passions studiato aveva Virgilio, di cui k perpetuo sfioratore." 2 On Probus, see Amm. Marc, xxvii. 11 : "insidiator dirus . . . cupiditates immensas " ; xxx. 5, " plus adulation! quam verecundiae dedit." 3 The orthodox bishop Dionysius died in exile the same year. 118 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV party. It was the duty of Ambrose to preside at the election, and to suppress the tumults which on such occasions frequently ended in massacre. He went to the church, and while he was addressing the people on the duty of maintaining order, a voice was suddenly heard — Paulinus says that it was the voice of a child — exclaiming, "Ambrosius bishop ! " ^ Ambrose was very popular as a governor. The adherents of both sides knew that in him they would have a firm, upright, and able prelate. They knew also that he possessed ample domains, and that if he were elected these would become the property of the Church. His high rank, distin- guished birth, and pure life had won him universal respect, and, accepting the child's voice as a Divine intimation, Arians and Catholics alike with marvellous unanimity exclaimed, " Ambrosius bishop ! Ambrosius bishop ! " Ambrose was overwhelmed with astonishment. He was not yet baptized ; he was only a catechumen ; he was but thirty-four ; he had risen while yet a youth to the highest civil functions ; he had never thought of enter- ing the ranks of the clergy. There can be no doubt that his reluctance to become a bishop was sincere, and his opposition to the popular demand strenuous ; but whether he really took any of the steps attributed to him by his weak biographer must remain doubtful. According to him, Ambrose first wished to escape by leaving the church, ascending his Proconsular tribunal, and (contrary to his custom), ordering some of the accused to be put to the torture in order to persuade the people that he was cruel. But the people only shouted, " Your sin be upon us ! " because, says Paul- 1 Similar incidents have occurred at the election of American Presi- dents, and not unfrequently at that of Popes. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 119 inus, they knew that all his sins would be washed away when he was baptized. Then he pretended a wish to become a philosopher, but this also failed. Then — and this is the lowest depth of his secretary's absurdity — he ordered women of notorious character to be publicly brought to his palace that the people might see them and withdraw their choice. They, however, still persisted in shouting, "Your sin be upon us!" He then made preparation to fly at midnight to Ticinum, and imagined that he was on the way thither, but next morning found himself at the Eoman gate of Milan. ^ Here he was seized by the people and kept under guard till the election was referred to the Emperor. Valentinian and Probus alike approved warmly of the choice, but meanwhile Ambrose had again fled and had hidden him- self in a country-house belonging to an illustrious citizen of Milan named Leontius. Leontius, yielding to the pressure of the general desire, betrayed his hiding-place. Ambrose was taken back to Milan, and determined no longer to resist what he now saw to be the call of God. How much of this story is true the reader must decide for himself. Some of it — like many incidents in the work of Paulinus — is nothing better than morbid and monkish fiction. Ambrose doubtless endeavoured, as did Chrysostom, to avoid what he regarded as an awful burden ; but he would not have belied the manly gravity of his whole nature by taking the unworthy and immoral steps which his secretary ascribes to him. Accordingly Ambrose was baptized, taking care that the ceremony should be performed by an orthodox 1 This accident is not impossible. It happened to a friend of my own, who, starting at night from Cambridge to walk to London, waited all night, and, having taken wrong turns, found himself next morning enter- ing Cambridge by another road. 120 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv bishop. Passing through the various ecclesiastical offices in succession, he was consecrated bishop on Dec. 7, 374, eight days after his baptism. When next he visited Eome, he went to see his sister and Candida — for meanwhile his mother had died ; and when Candida kissed his hand, he reminded her of his boyish remark, and said, " See ! as I used to tell you, you are kissing the hand of a priest ! " The bishops of the Eastern and "Western Churches alike approved of the consecration of Am.brose, regard- ing his case as exceptional.^ The letter written by BasU in answer to his formal announcement is still extant. He " thanks God for the election. God, who had made a prophet out of the herdsman Amos, had now made a bishop of Ambrose, a man of noble birth, of high office, of lofty character, and of astonishing eloquence, who nevertheless despised all these earthly distinctions that he might win Christ. . . . Take courage, then, man of God ! " 2 So, with one bound, the Governor of Milan had become the Bishop of her Church. Both parties had called him to his office with perfect confidence in his ability and experience. The change of position, as we see in the case of many ecclesiastics who have also been statesmen, was not without its perils. Ambrose had had at least eleven predecessors in the see,^ and, since 1 Ep. Ixiii. sec. 65. It is true that the ordination was formally uncanonical, but the canon of the Nicene Council had made a special exception when the nomination was divinely directed (eic rtvos deiov) or a Oeia tp^rfyo's. See Cave, Lives of the Fathers, ii. 363. 2 Basil, Ep. Iv. 5 Romish tradition says that the first Bishop of Milan was Barnabas, and that there had been fourteen bishops before Ambrose. On the general history of the Church of Milan, see Forster, Amhrosius, pp. 1-7. He refers to Pertz, Monument. German.; Ughelli, Italia Sacra (Venice, 1719); Muratori, Annali d'ltalia, ii.(l762) ; Rihamonti, Hist. Eccles. Medial, etc. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 121 the days of Maximian, the Clmrcli of Milan had pro- duced many martyrs, among whom was St. Sebastian.^ But it had been governed for twenty years by an Axian, and the importance of the Church was exceptional at this moment, both because its bishop was a metropolitan and because Eome had been distracted by the raging factions of Damasus and Ursiuus. He dedicated himself at once, heart and soul, to the duties of his office, and, as a preliminary step, at once got rid of all worldly cares by distributing his possessions. The silver and gold was assigned to the poor. The estates were given to the Church, the usufruct alone being reserved for his sister as long as she Hved. The administration of his household and of all his concerns was handed over to Satyrus, who, with true brotherly affection, had left the brilliant career which was opening before him at Eome to govern the house and support the sacred position of his younger brother.^ The Eoman world of that day was a distracted, a perishing, an afflicted world ; it had need of the support of men who were true Christians, and yet had in them the strong fibre of the old Eoman dignity and courage. He at once became a most diligent student. He frankly confesses that, as he had been snatched from the tribunal to the episcopate, he had received little or no theological training and had to learn while he was teaching.* He had probably been taught the truths of religion as a youth in Eome by Simplicianus, whom he had loved as his father, and who now came to help him at Milan, and ultimately became his successor. Augustine describes the bishop sitting in his house during the brief 1 In. Ps. 119, exp. xx. 44 ; "Hie Mediolanensis oriundus est." 2 Be excess. Sat. 20, 25. 3 Be offic. i. 1, sec. 4 : " Ut prius docere inciperem quam discere." 122 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv intervals of incessant business with his eyes fixed on his book, and oblivious of everything which was going on around him.^ Sometimes Ambrose felt it necessary to retire into country solitude, and he used to quote the saying of Cicero, that "he never felt less alone than when he was alone, nor less at leisure than when at leisure." ^ He fasted continually, but not ostentatiously, or when he was exercising hospitality to strangers. When first appointed, he used to receive numbers of invitations, but he declined them all because he wished to give no countenance to luxury. Yet he considered it a duty to exercise hospitality, and received the greatest functionaries at his house, because he thought it desirable, in the interests of the Church, to keep on friendly relations with such persons. He worked at his ordinary episcopal duties so strenuously that on Easter Eve he baptized as many catechumens as would have wearied five ordinary bishops. He received the holy communion daily. On Sundays he always preached once, some- times twice. ^ He devoted a great part of the night to prayer, meditation, and authorship — which latter he regarded as one of his obvious duties.* He was so successful in his dealings with heretics that Arianism almost ceased to exist in his diocese. He was specially solicitous about the preparation of catechumens, and not a few of his books are founded on the addresses which he delivered to them. The poor found in him a protector and a friend. He regarded them as his 1 Aug. Conf. vi. 3, sec. 3 : " Sic eum legentem vidimus tacite et aliter nunquam : sedentesque in diuturno silentio . . . discedebamus." Comp. Epp. xxix. xlvii. ^ j^g ig^o mortis, ch. 3, sec. 1 1 ; Up. xlix. 8 Aug. Gonf. L 0. Ambr. Admon. in libr. de Mysteriis. For the effect produced by bis sermons on tbe mind of Augustine, see Conf. v. 13 ; vi. 1, sec. 8 ; c. Julian. Pelag. i. Z ; De doctr. Christ, iv. 46-50. His style was calm, ornate, dignified ; but there is a certain crudity about some of his earlier writings. * Epp. xxix. 1, xlvii. 1 ; De offic. i. 1, sec. 3. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 123 stewards and treasurers/ The deplorable confusion of the times, especially after the battle of Adrianople, caused many Eomans to become prisoners of their enemies. Ambrose felt a peculiar pity for these un- fortunates, and especially for those who fell into the brutal hands of the Taifals. He spent large sums in paying their ransom, and did not hesitate to sell or melt even the Church plate to provide funds for this purpose. When the Arians charged him with sacrilege on this account, because they were glad of any excuse for attacking him, he asked them, " Which they considered to be the more valuable, Church vessels or living souls, and whether the validity of the sacraments depended on the gold of the chalice and pattens ? " ^ He was also industrious in extending the growth of nunneries, and he had not been consecrated three years before virgins came to Milan from Placentia, from Bologna, and even from Mauretania, to receive the veil from his hands. ^ His writings on virginity were largely inspired by those of Basil and Gregory of Nyssa, whom he held in the highest estimation. Augustine gives us a delightful glimpse of the daily life of Ambrose. The first thing in the morning, after his private devotions, he used to perform the daily service and administer the Holy Communion. This done, he sat down to read at a table in his hall, eagerly studying the Scriptures by the aid of the Greek commen- tators, and especially of Origen and Hippolytus, and of his contemporaries Didymus and Basil. He also read the works of Plato with warm admiration. His doors were ^ Ep. xviii. 16 : " Possessio ecclesiae sumtus est egenorum." 2 De affic. ii. 28, sec. 136: "In invidiam incidimus quod confli- gerimus vasa mystica, ut captives redimeremus." ^ De Virg. i. ch. x. sec. 57. 124 LIVES OP THE FATHERS XV always open, and his time belonged to the community in general. Every one might see, and every one might consult him. When any one came to ask his aid, he instantly left off reading, gave his whole attention to the case, and then plunged once more into his studies, without troubling himself with the fact that many of his visitors lingered about the room, and watched him at his work with idle curiosity. He fasted every day till the evening, except twice a week. When his one meal was over, he sat down to write his sermons and his books, but, unlike most of his contemporaries, he wrote everything with his own hand because he did not think it right to burden others with the wakefulness of the long hours of night. Augustine himself was anxious to ask his advice on many points of importance, but when he saw him thus absorbed in incessant duties, he hung back with modest reserve and was unwilling to interrupt the diligence which knew no real leisure. He only ventured to ask him about minor questions which did not require a moment to answer.^ The Eoman sternness and dignity in the character of Ambrose led him to use the sacredness of his office to serve the best ends of the old tribunes of the people. His bearing towards the barbarians was that of a Eoman senator as well as of a Christian bishop. All other institutions might be reeling in the shocks of earth- quake, but while the surge of the sea was roaring, and men's hearts were failing them for fear, he determined that the Church at any rate should be a rock of defence for the miserable and the oppressed. Very early in his episcopate he showed his dauntless independence by addressing the soldier-emperor, Valentinian I., in church, and pointing out to him the misdeeds of ministers who 1 Aug. Gonf. vi. 3, Ep. xlvii. 1. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OP MILAN 125 abused the imperial authority. " I knew long ago," replied the Emperor, " your independent spirit ; yet, so far from opposing, I approved of your election. Hence- forth apply your medicine to the faults of our souls, as the Divine law ordains."-' We read in the heathen historian of the singular savagery which marked the character of Valentinian I. Among other marks of his cruelty, we are told that he kept two bears which were fed on human flesh. He called them Mica Aurea, "golden flake," and Innocentia, and kept them with extreme care in dens near his own bed - chamber. Innocentia devoured so many corpses that at last Valentinian, from an impulse of gratitude, allowed her to be turned loose in her native woods. ^ On one occasion he ordered the hand of a poor young groom to be cut ofi" because it had come in contact with him while the youth was trying to hold a rearing horse. On another he executed a skilled workman because a steel corselet was a trifle under weight. Such was the temper of the man whom Ambrose, at the very beginning of his career, ventured to confront with perfect boldness. But there must have' been elements in the character of the Emperor which would lead him to admire Ambrose. He had himself torn off a part of his uniform, under Julian, when a priest of Jupiter had accidentally sprinkled him with lustral water. Ambrose was a strong opponent of heresy. If the Arians, in promoting his election, had imagined that, as a man of the world, he would be ready to treat them with a politic tolerance, they were mistaken. He would not be baptized by any of their faction, and from the 1 Theodoret, H. E. iv. 7. 2 Amm. Maro. xxix. 3, sec. 9. Valentinian became more savage and morose as Ms reign advanced (Zosimus, iv. 1 6). 126 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv first he discountenanced their views to the utmost of his power. When Valentinian I. died, in 375, he left two sons — Gratian, aged seventeen, and Valentinian II., aged four. In 378 the Arian Valens met his fearful end in the battle against the Goths at Adrianople. Hearing of his uncle's danger, Gratian marched to his assist- ance, and Valens had hastened the battle because he envied Gratian's reputation and did not wish him to share in the expected victory. Gratian, just before starting — since he was going to aid an Arian Emperor — begged Ambrose to write him a book of instructions in the faith. Ambrose, " though preferring to exhort to the faith than to discuss it," sent him the first two books of his De Fide, to which the young Emperor attached the utmost value. Gratian had also requested him to write " On the Holy Spirit." He was unable to do so at the time, but subsequently composed his treatise on the subject, in which he was greatly indebted to the works of Didymus and Basil. Ambrose was always allowed ready access to the Emperor when he was at Milan. On one occasion he went to intercede for a Pagan who, in a fit of anger, had abused Gratian, and called him unworthy of his father. He was refused access by the chamberlain, Macedonius, and said to him, "You too shall come to the church, and shall find no means of entering it." The prophecy was afterwards fulfilled, and meanwhile Ambrose got into the palace by a secret gate, with some of the Emperor's huntsmen, and gained his point. ^ After the death of Valens, the gentle and amiable Gratian, thinking it impossible for him to support the weight of the double Empire of the East and West, had summoned Theodosius from the Spanish farm to which he had been driven by the cabals which had 1 The story rests on the authority of Paulinus, Vit. Amir. 37. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 127 mined his father, and had invested him with the purple on Jan. 19, 379. It was much to his credit that he took this resolve, in which the charming and well- educated boy, as Niebuhr calls him, almost rose to the level of a great man. He was largely under the in- fluence of Ambrose, and he refused the robe of Pontifex Maximus, though he clung to the title, just as Henry Vni. clung to the title of Defender of the Faith. ^ The omen-loving multitude afterwards recalled the speech of the priest who brought the robe, " There will, never- theless, soon be a Pontifex Maximus " : words which they applied to the usurper by whose rebellion Gratian fell. The Catholics placed their highest hopes in the known orthodoxy of Theodosius, but the Axians relied on the influence of Justina, the mother of the younger Valentinian. She was a vehement Arian, although Valentinian I., who married her for her beauty, had compelled her, during his lifetime, to conform to the Nicene faith. She revenged herself for this enforced obedience by warmly espousing the cause of the heretics after her husband's death. This brought her into immediate conflict with the Bishop of Milan. Sirmium, the capital of Illyria, had long been governed by Arian bishops, and when a vacancy occurred in 380, 1 A genealogy may here be useful. Gratian of Cibalis in Pannonia. \ I I Severa or Marina = Valentiniah' I. = Justina, Valbns. widow of Magnentius. A daughter = Gratian = Laeta. Valentinian II. Galla= Theodosius I. of Constan- nominated Emperor 375, tius II. Augustus 367, murdered 392. murdered 883. Galla Placidia. I Valentinian III. 128 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV Justina, who seems to have been residing there at the time, did her utmost to secure another Arian election. She was defeated by the energy o£ Ambrose, who at once hastened to the town, and by his influence carried the consecration of the orthodox Anemius. Justina tri^d to terrify him by a show of armed force, but he defied the soldiery, and extricated himself by calm courage from a yet more pressing danger. Ambrose had mounted the tribunal in the church of Sirmium, when one of the Arian virgins, " more impudent," says Paulinus, " than the rest," followed him, seized hold of his robe, and tried to drag him to that part of the church where the other virgins were seated, who, almost with the fanaticism of monks, were prepared to beat him and drive him out of the sacred precincts. But the holy virago was daunted by the bearing of the prelate. " I," he said, " am unworthy of this high office, but it is unbecoming alike to you and to your profession to lay hands on any priest whatever. You ought to be afraid of the judgment of God, lest some harm should happen to you. The virgin, according to Paulinus, died a day or two afterwards, and Ambrose himself, repaying evil with good, performed the funeral ceremony ; but the incident struck terror into the Church of Sirmium, and greatly assisted Ambrose in his efi"ort to defeat the Arian candidate.^ "^/JSTor was he less successful in thwarting the attempt of the Arian bishops Palladius and Secundinus, who had tried to induce Gratian to summon an Oecumenical 1 If we can accept the authority of Paulinus, two of the Emperor's Arian chamberlains challenged him to a discussion of the Incarnation in the church. He was present at the appointed time, and, though the young men did not appear, he delivered the sermon found in his works. The two chamberlains had purposely gone out for a ride. Their horses fell, and both of them were killed on the spot. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OP MILAN 129 Council, in the hopes that by the aid of Eastern Arians they might revive the Arianism of the West. The council "was confined to the West, and arranged very much as Ambrose directed. Only a small number of bishops met at Aquileia, but they were aU orthodox. The two Arian bishops and a presbyter named Attalus were deposed. This was in 381. The council seems to have done little else, but was deceived by Maximus the cynic " philosopher," who had procured a surreptitious consecration of himself as Bishop of Constantinople, until Theodosius set them right on that matter.-^ But the peaceful unanimity of the bishops at Aquileia, com- pared vdth the wild dissensions of those at Constantinople, enables us to measure the force of the influence of Ambrose as compared with the shrinking fastidiousness of Gregory of Nazianzus. Theodosius declined, with a gentle reproof, the demand of the Western bishops for a council at Eome to decide the affairs of Antioch and the East, telling them that they were ill acquainted with the real points at issue. The only Eastern bishops who went to the council at Rome in 382 were PauUnus, Epiphanius, and Acholius of Thessalonica. Ambrose seems to have gone to Eome, but he was detained in bed for many months by an illness, so that he took no part in the deliberations. There he may have met Jerome, and there he formed a close friendship with Acholius, who had baptized Theodosius in 380. On his death in 383 Ambrose wrote a letter of condolence to his Church, in which he speaks of him with the highest regard.^ 1 See Ep. xiii. 5. Ambrose subsequently recognised his mistake, The acts of the Council of Aquileia are often published among the letters, of Ambrose on Maximus. See supra, i. pp. 647, 652. 2 See Epp. XV. xvi. VOL. 11 K 130 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv Ambrose had suffered a severe domestic calamity in the ■death of his brother Satyrus in 379. Shortly after his consecration as bishop, a man named Prosperus, think- ing perhaps that he would have no more time to look after his affairs, had defrauded him of a part of his patrimony, and sailed away. Satyrus was determined that under his administration his brother should not be a loser, and, in spite of the remonstrances of Ambrose, he sailed in pursuit of the defaulter, though it was winter, and the only available ship was wholly un- seaworthy. The ship ran upon shoals and instantly went to pieces. Satyrus had not yet been baptized, but, sharing the superstitious view of the sacraments which was then common, he begged some of those who had been baptized to give him the sacred elements by way of a magic amulet. These he tied in a napkin (orarium), hung it round his neck, and flung himself into the sea.^ He was the first to be saved, and, after having helped to rescue others from danger, he immediately sought for baptism, refusing, however, to accept it at the hands of a Luciferian schismatic. The grace of this baptism, says Ambrose, he never lost.^ After this he fell seriously ill, and Ambrose also ; for so close was the bond between the brothers that it was noticed that their feelings seem to have been communicated to each other by secret sym- pathy, and that when one was ill the other felt ill also. Marcellina came from Rome to nurse Ambrose, and the two were deeply distressed with anxiety about Satyrus. He recovered, in consequence of a vow to the martyr St. Lawrence ; and Ambrose is, only grieved to think that he did not also ask for long life, which he 1 De excess. Sat. 24, 36-43. On tlie orarium, see tlie note of tlie Benedictine editors (0pp. ii. 1125), and comp. Ep. xxii. 9. 2 i^_ 52. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 131 might have gained as easily as recovery from sickness.^ As soon as he was able he returned to Italy, and Symmachus, who treated him like a son, would not let him go on to Milan, because Italy was in danger of immediate invasion by the usurper Maximus. After a short time Satyrus braved this danger, and made his way to Milan. But his constitution had been weakened by all that he had gone through; he was seized with a fatal illness, and in a few days he was dead. It seemed as if his life had been prolonged for the sole object of seeing once again his brother and sister. Their grief was very great, and Ambrose found it hard so far to control his grief as to pronounce in his honour the tender and pathetic oration which is stiU extant. It was delivered before a vast assembly, with the corpse lying before him in the church, its face uncovered. Seven days afterwards, in another oration at the funeral, he dwelt upon the way in which we should bear the death of those whom we love. Satyrus had refused to make any will, so that his great wealth came to Ambrose and Marcellina. They would not regard themselves as the heirs, but only as the stewards of it, and thought that they could render no higher service to their beloved brother than by distributing it among the poor.^ Gratian was deprived of the personal aid of Theo- dosius, because the latter was fully occupied with the troubles of the East, and had his headquarters at Thessalonica. He himself lingered in Treves, and ceasing to rule, allowed business to take its course. He was charged by his enemies with too great devotion 1 De excess. Satyr. 17. ^ In his sermon (id. 38) lie describes tlie likeness whicli often caused them to be mistaken the one for the other, and (id. 23) the eager way in which they used to converse together. " Quis te aspexit, qui non me visum putaret 1" 132 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xv to the useless pleasures of the chase, and gave deep oflfence by his partiality for the Franks and for Frankish manners. He was, in fact, the earliest victim of the jealousy of Eomans against Germans. Under these circumstances the Spaniard Maximus, who had the com- mand of the army in Britain, was saluted Emperor by his soldiers, and crossed over into Gaul. Abandoned and betrayed, Gratian fled to Lyons, where he was seized and murdered by the Governor Andragathius (Aug. 25, 383). He was only twenty-four, and had reigned seven years and nine months. During the years 378-381 he had lived at Milan, leaning on the strong arm of Ambrose and passing many religious laws in which the bishop's hand is visible. Ambrose in many passages of his writings deplores his untimely murder, and tells us that in his last days the unhappy young man constantly referred to him and called him by his name.^ Theodosius was too much occupied at the time to avenge his death, but Maximus made him a promise that he would confine himself to the Praefecture of Gaul, and would leave Valentinian 11. in undisturbed possession of Africa, Italy, and western lUyria. Justina, in the first agony of grief and terror, turned instinctively to Ambrose as the one brave and strong man among aU her subjects who would be best able to help her and her young son. She came to him in tears, placed her boy in his arms, and entreated him to go as an ambassador to Maximus.^ No ambassador would be more likely to carry weight than a man of such commanding character, 1 De obit. Valent. 39, 79 : " Tu in tuis extremis me requirebas." In tlie Apologia Prophetae David and in Enarr. ad Psalm Ixii. 22 the stories given of the manner of his death differ considerably. One was that he had been stabbed by Andragathius, Maximus's master of the horse. Ambrose says : " lUe inter convivia, dapes, et pocula constitutus innocentis convivae necem moliebatnr." 2 j)^ gjj^f^ Valent. 28. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 133 who united the dignity and eloquence of a great Eoman official with the sacred character of a bishop. The task was not without peril, for every one felt that Maximus at the best would only bide his time. Ambrose, however, went to Treves. Maximus on his arrival re- fused to see him privately, and would only give him an audience in public ; and Ambrose, for the common good, tolerated the indignity, which was the more galling be- cause Valentinian had sent back unharmed Marcellinus, the brother of Maximus, who was in his power. Ambrose was met by the complaint that Justina and Valentinian had not come in person.^ He pointed out the unreason- ableness of the demand that a widow and a boy should he asked to take a long journey over the Alps during a severe winter ; but, as Maximus determined to send Count Victor as an ambassador to Milan, Ambrose was obliged to await his return and to spend the winter in Trfeves.^ On this occasion he showed the inflexible grandeur of his religious ideal. Maximus desired to join him in the Holy Communion.^ It would have been an advantage to the usurper, and a lesser man than Ambrose might well have imagined that it would be in all respects a politic concession. But Ambrose refused to communicate with Maximus, whom he well knew to have been guilty of having shed the innocent blood of his master Gratian. He further refused to communicate with his clergy — ■ the followers of the Spanish bishops Ithacius and Idatius — who, to the indignation of the great prelate, had been the first Christians to imbrue their hands in the blood of brethren whose opinions differed from their 1 "En vrai parvenu il voulait se donner la jouissance d'humilier sa victime tout en I'^pargnant, et de voir k ses pieds le fils de son ancien maitre" (De Broglie, vi. 54). 2 jjp_ xxiv. 7. 2 It is probable tbat these circumstances belong to the second, not to the first embassy of Ambrose. See infra, p. 156. 134 LIVES OP THE FATHERS XV own/ Ambrose hated heresy as much as they did. He did not feel the least sympathy with the Priscillianists in their asserted errors. He did not shrink from in- tolerance or even from some forms of persecution for the suppression of heresy; but he felt the natural horror of the unsophisticated Christian conscience at the thought of punishing religious opinion by the infliction of death. Alas, the conscience of ecclesiastics soon became utterly callous on that subject ! They soon learnt to approve of that guilty cruelty which was destined to deluge the world with rivers of massacre, until the white robes of the Church were stained through and through with the blood of the innocent. Martin, the saintly Bishop of Tours, entirely agreed with Am- brose. "Let us have no bloodshed," he said, "in matters of religion." ^ The embassy of Ambrose produced great results, for Bauto, the general of Valentinian, was enabled by the delay to secure the possession of the Alpine passes. It is probable indeed that Maximus was allowed to add Spain to his dominions, but he afterwards reproached Ambrose with having prevented him from the invasion of Italy. ^ To this complaint Ambrose replied that he could pay him no higher compliment, and that, had it been possible, he would have barred his passage over the Alps with his own body. 1 Seven persons were beheaded and others banislied for Priscillianism in 385, among them Euohrotia, widow of the poet Delphidius. Snip. Sev. ii. 48 ; Pacatus, Panegyrici Veteres, xii. 29 ; Auson. Oarm. v. 37 {De Profess. Burdigal.) See the Life of St. Martin. 2 Sulp. Sev. Hist. Sacr. ii. 72, 73. Sulpicius speaks most unfavour- ably of the two Spanish bishops, and Maximus was tempted to sanction their criminal innovations partly because he thought it would please the orthodox, and partly from the greed of confiscation. 2 " Me lusisti : si ego, quando venisti, non fuissem retentus, quis mihi obstitisset ? " XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 135 During the lull of momentary security both the Pagans and the Arians endeavoured to push their own interests, which seemed comparatively easy while the Emperor was a minor, and a woman was regent. At the head of that aesthetic, rationalising, and nominal idolatry which had superseded the old heathenism in all intelHgent minds, stood Quintus Aurelius Sym- machus, the Praefect of Eome, a man of high character and distinguished eloquence. Without being genuine Pagans, the cultivated classes of Rome were sincere in their rejection of Christianity and in their romantic hereditary attachment to the ancient customs. The chief object of contention between the two religions was the famous altar and golden statue of Victory,^ which had been brought from Tarentum and had stood from time immemorial in the senate. Constantine had left it untouched ; Constantius, to the disgust of the Pagans, had ordered it to be removed ; Julian had replaced it ; Valentinian I. had tolerated it ; Gratian had commanded its destruction, and had given a further shock to Pagan sentiment by abrogating the privileges and confiscating the incomes of the priests and vestals. In 382 Symmachus had headed an embassy to Gratian to induce him to repeal these edicts, but the Christian senators, who formed a distinguished mino- rity of the senate, had sent a counter -petition to the Emperor, which was forwarded to Ambrose by Pope Damasus. By the bishop's influence Gratian had even declined to give a hearing ^ to the ambassadors of the Pagans. But Symmachus thought that there was now an ^ ' ' Aurea quam™ Marmoreo in templo rutilas Victoria pennas Explicet." — Prudentius, in SymmacA, ii. 48. 2 Ep, xvii. 136 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xv opportunity for recovering lost ground, and in the year 385, with more or less privacy, he addressed to Valen- tinian II. a refined and eloquent appeal — the well- known Relatio Symmachi — that the altar should be rebuUt, and the priests and vestals reinstated in their former position. Ambrose instantly wrote a strong letter to dissuade Valentinian from granting the request. He asked for a copy of Symmachus's treatise, and when it was sent him he answered it point by point. ^ He tore away the delicate veils of rhetoric and poetry in which Symmachus had shrouded his request ; he scat- tered the dubious appeals and shed the clear light of the Christian faith on the clouds of allegory. " For the deified visions of human imagination he substituted the reality of the Incarnate Christ, and for the sterile mel- ancholy of regrets the hope which looks forward and commands the future." ^ In these two pamphlets — the one feebly and fas- tidiously elegant, the other full of strength and fire — the leaders of the Pagan and of the Christian world are matched with each other. An effete idolatry could have found no more attractive defender than the poetic and Hterary Praefect, nor could Christendom have produced a more convinced and powerful pleader than the Bishop of Milan. Symmachus identifies Paganism with the past greatness of Rome, and pleads for the immemorial tradi- tions by which Romans had profited, and which they had inherited from their fathers. The oaths of senators had been taken at the altar of Victory, and would not the oaths be regarded as less bindingly sacred if the altar was removed ? As each soul had its guardian genius, so also had each nation, and Victory was the protecting genius of Rome. Then he puts into the ^ JEp. xviii. 2 j)g Broglie, vi. 67. XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OF MILAN 137 mouth of ancient Eome herself a pathetic appeal to the Emperors to reverence the altar which she had reared in faith, and which had become dearer throueh the faith of generations. Turning to the case of the priests and vestals, he treats the forfeiture of their incomes as a dangerous, ungrateful, and ungenerous economy, and traces the severe famine of the previous year to the anger of the offended gods. Ambrose rephes with the rough strength of per- fect conviction that the question is one between the true God on one side and demons on the other ; between the source of salvation on the one hand, and on the other lies and deceit. How could a Christian Caesar doubt for a moment which side to take ? God must be placed above the wishes of men, however distinguished. To yield to the petition would be to condone idolatry, and the Emperor must take his choice between Christ and devils. " When the question," he said, " is one of religion, think of God."^ Symmachus had put his pleadings in the mouth of ancient Rome, but had her gods saved her? Did they keep Hannibal from the walls, or the Gauls from the Capitol ? It was the geese who saved the Capitol, not Jupiter ; or did Jupiter per- chance speak by the tongue of the geese ? ^ Had the gods saved Eegulus from the Carthaginians ? Ancient Eome was not too old to blush for her past errors, and to learn better lessons. Her Emperors had now become Christians. Had a Heathen Emperor ever reared an altar to Christ? If not, why should a Christian -Emperor rear an altar to false gods ? But Paganism was antique ? What did that matter ? We hate the cere- monies of Neros. As for the priests and vestals, why 1 " Quando de religions traotatum est, Deum cogita.'' 2 " Ubi tunc erat Jupiter ? an in ansere loquebatur 1 " 138 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV should Heathen priests need to be supported by State revenues when Christian priests were not ? There were but seven vestal virgins, and what need had they of State incomes when there were thousands of Christian virgins who never dreamed of receiving any rewards ? When a Christian became a presbyter he gave all his goods to the poor ; why then should a Heathen priest be paid out of the treasury? Symmachus talked of justice ; had it then been just for Pagans in former days to reduce Christians to poverty, put them to death, and even refuse them burial ? Lastly, the argument of Symmachus, when he attributed the famine to the anger of Pagan deities, was ridiculous. If they had been angry last year, why had they given so splendid a harvest this year ? and why were there such good crops in one part of the Empire though there was famine in another ? But there was something quite as powerful as argument on the side of Ambrose. He had ended with a distinct threat the letter in which he asked for a copy of the petition of Symmachus. He tells Valentinian that if he yields he will be practically excommunicated, for that the bishop cannot condone a decision adverse to religion. " You may come in that case to the Church ; but there you will not find a priest, or you will find one who resists you." The petition of Symmachus was rejected. He had urged all that could be urged in the best possible man- ner, though without warmth and without conviction. He had appealed with poetic emotion to old tradition, to beloved customs, to justice, to tolerance, and the interests of the State and of the Emperor. He had done all that an artistic plea and an artificial eloquence could do for a dying cause. But a tone of unreality, of half- heartedness, had run through all his pleadings, and there XV ST. AMBROSE, BISHOP OP MILAN 139 was a certain ring of hoUowness in Ms most elaborate sentences. Ingenious elegance could not stay the ebbing tide. Very different was the tone of the fine, strong, careless periods of Ambrose. They are entirely devoid of the rhetorical euphuism which marked the style of Symmachus, but they are inspired with the grandeur of a triumphant cause — they are fuU of fire and energy and life. We see in them the half-scornful confidence of a living faith which, with scarcely the slightest effort, strikes the weak rapier of aestheticism out of the hands of its antagonist and leaves him weaponless. It is true that, judged by later standards, the answer of Ambrose has its own weaknesses and limitations. He shows, like all his contemporaries, a very defective forbearance, a total absence of sympathy with those who cannot accept opinions which on all points he regards as infallible. He laughs to scorn the notion of Symmachus that the greatness of Rome was due to its gods, yet he throughout betrays the same kind of false view that God is a God of particularism, not the God of aU man- kind ; that He rewards with earthly success and pros- perity those who have right opinions about Him ; that the Christians only are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hands. How far short do all the Fathers fall of the teaching of Him who loves all as the Lover of souls ; who maketh His sun to shine on the evU and on the good, and sendeth His rain on the just and on the unjust ; who hath made of one all nations of men if haply they might feel after Him and find Him ; who is no respecter of persons, but in every nation he who feareth Him and worketh righteousness is accepted of Him! The opposition of Ambrose was successful. Victory 140 LIVES OP THE FATHERS XV deserted her own Pagan champion. ^ Though Justina was an Arian — though the court was mainly composed of Germans, and though the majority of the officials favoured the request of Symmachus, yet Valentinian, who was not yet fourteen, was so much under the in- fluence of Ambrose that he refused permission for the restoration of the altar. To Symmachus, Ambrose was indebted about this time for an event which greatly enhanced his glory. His name is inseparably connected with the conversion and baptism of Augustine. All the circumstances of the intercourse between the great bishop and the young African will be narrated in the Life of Augustine. It was to the favourable opinion of Symmachus that Augustine owed the nomination to a professorship at Milan, which brought him under the spell of Ambrose during the great religious crisis of his life. 1 ' ' Dicendi palmam Victoria tollit amioo ; Transit ad Ambrosium ; plus favet ira Deae. " Ennodius, in Migne, Ixiii. 360 (quoted by Bishop Wordsworth). XV Continued THE CONFLICT WITH THE AEIAN COURT ' 6 TTJs ev 6e(fi irapprjO-ia'S yvojfiwv aKtvrjTOS . . . 'A/i/3/Doo-us." Photius, Cod. ccxxxi. SECTION II The combat with Paganism in its decrepitude cost Ambrose no effort, but against tbe Arianism of the court he had a long and deadly struggle. It began in earnest when he had been for more than ten years on the episcopal throne. Justina, the Empress-mother, was, as we have seen, a convinced and passionate Arian. She surrounded her- self with Arian ecclesiastics, Arian ministers, and an Arian bodyguard of Goths. She saw with extreme disgust the gradual extinction of Arianism in Italy, through the teaching and influence of the great Bishop of Milan. During the lifetime of Gratian, who loved Ambrose like a father, she had not ventured to take any overt steps, but now that she had secured peace with Maximus, and was regent for a boy who was largely under her authority, she thought herself entitled to claim for Arianism some recognition as a distinct 142 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv form of Christianity-. Deep as were her obligations to Ambrose, she disliked his person and was jealous of his power. She did not consider that she was at all bound by any claims of gratitude to refrain from demanding for her religion what she regarded as a small concession. Nor did she pause to estimate the political imprudence of her conduct, certain as it was to alienate the vast majority of her son's future subjects, to render his position still more precarious, and to offend the Emperor Theodosius, on whose protection she chiefly relied. She considered nothing but her own views, and followed the unfortunate advice of a person named Mercurinus. This man called himself an Arian bishop, though Ambrose says that he could neither make out who he was nor that he was a bishop at all.^ A Scythian by birth, he had dropped the name of Mercurinus and adopted that of Auxentius — in honour, he said, of the late Arian Bishop of Milan, but, as others said, because he had very good reasons to blush for his former ap- pellation.^ Under this man's guidance, Justina determined to make a last effort. She was well aware that she would find in Ambrose an almost insuperable obstacle to her plans, and Paulinus says that, among other designs for getting him out of the way, a certain Euthymius had hired a house near the church, and had a chariot in readiness, into which Ambrose was to be entrapped and taken out of the .city. The plan broke down, and for some reason or other Euthymius himself was banished and carried away in the chariot which he had prepared for the bishop.^ 1 E2:). xxi. 8. - Serm. c. Auxent. 22 : " Exuit lupum, sed induit lupuni ; et quid sit agnoscitur." " Unum portentum est, duo nomina." ^ Paulinus adds that Ambrose assisted him in his adversity. XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE ASIAN COURT 143 However this may be — and in reading Pauliniis we have to be constantly on our guard against the fabu- lous gossip of vain credulity — Justina determined at Easter 385 to demand that the Portian Basilica/ which was outside the walls of ]\Iilan, should be ceded to the Arians. The demand was unwise and ill-timed, for nothing could have prevented Justina from building a church, if she so desired and if the Arians required one. It was true that in former days Emperors, both Arian and orthodox, had taken and restored basilicas at their wiU and pleasure ; but they had not had an Ambrose to deal with, nor a whole people to resist their demand to the death. Ambrose calmly but decidedly refused the request, and also declined to discuss it in the Emperor's consistory.^ The rumour of the Empress's requisition had aroused a violent popular movement, which it needed all his authority to repress, for the people regarded the Church as their chief protection against the tyranny of the civil power. Infuriated by opposition, and be- lieving that it was Ambrose who had stirred up the people, on the Friday before Palm Sunday Justina sent some Counts of her consistory to make the further demand, not now for the use of the Portian Basilica, but for the new and large basilica which lay inside the walls. ^ Ambrose replied that " God's temple could not be abandoned by His priest." * The request — but this time 1 The Ch-urcli of S. Victor, to the west of the city (San Vittore al Corpo), now stands on its site. The gates, from which Theodosius was after- wards repeUed, are said to have been removed to the Church of S. Arnbrogio. 2 Ep. -y-ri 20 : " Ego in consistorio nisi pro te (an aUusion to the embassy to Maximus) stare non possum, qui palatii secreta non quaero nee novi." There is a touch of Eoman haughtiness in the tone. 2 This Basilica Kova had been built by Ambrose, and dedicated to the Apostles. It was destroyed by Attila, and the Duomo is said to stand on its site. It was near the baptistery where Augustine was baptized. * See Ep. IX. where Ambrose tells the whole incident. The lesson for 144 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV only for tlie Portian Basilica — was renewed next day by the Praetorian Praefect Neoterus. It was made in the old basilica, and Neoterus hurried back to inform the court of the popular anger which it had excited. The next morning, while Ambrose was calmly preparing the candidates {competentes) for the approaching Easter baptism, news was brought him that the Emperor's servants were engaged at that moment in hanging tapestry (vela) in the new basilica, to show that it was imperial property/ He paid no attention to the news, but quietly continued his exposition of the creed to the catechumens, and then began celebrating the Holy Communion.^ A second messenger informed him that a tumult was going on, and that the people had seized an Arian presbyter named Castulus. Horrified at the thought that blood might be shed, Ambrose with tears offered up a prayer that if any life were lost it might be his own, and sent some of his deacons to secure the liberation of Castulus. In this they succeeded. Eegard- ing the event as a sedition, Justina threw many of the citizens into prison, ordered all public functionaries to confine themselves to their houses, and inflicted upon the guild of merchants a heavy fine of 200 pounds of gold. The people clamoured that they would pay fines if they were left undisturbed in their faith, and showed so the day had been the story of Naboth's vineyard, " God forbid that I should give thee the inheritance of my fathers." "Ad imperatorem palatia pertinent, ad sacerdotem eoclesiae." 1 They are also called cortinae, Ep. xc. 19. Wordsworth thinks that they were banners bearing the imperial effigy ; Gibbon, that they were "the splendid canopy and hangings of the royal seat." The " decani" (if the reading be right) are apparently lictors. (See 0pp. ii. 853, note.) 2 His account of the event is remarkable as containing one of the earliest occurrences of the word " mass." " Ego tamen mansi in munere, missam facere coepi." XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE AEIAN COURT 145 mutinous a disposition, that Justina once more sent a body of counts and tribunes to urge Ambrose to make some concession. They insisted that the Emperor was acting perfectly within his rights, and so far they only stated the facts. Theodosius — the beloved and orthodox Theodosius— had with a stroke of his pen commanded all the Arians to give up every church in Constantinople, though they were in the majority in that city. Why might not Justina request the favour of having one single church ceded to the use of her co-religionists 1 If Ambrose had warmly approved the autocratic com- mand of Theodosius, how could he so strongly denounce the mild request of Justina ? To this there could be practically no answer but the ultimate one that, in the opinion of Ambrose, the Catholics were absolutely in the right and the Arians absolutely in the wrong. When an Emperor was in the right such a demand showed laud- able piety ; when he was in the wrong it showed profane obstinacy. Ambrose only held the views which were universal in his day, and acted in strict accordance with the degree of enlightenment which the conscience of men had then attained. That Arians should be forced to give up any number of churches to the orthodox was just ; but it was monstrous profanity for the orthodox to hand over one to the Arians. " If the Emperor demanded my gold," he answered — remembering probably the famous answer of Basil to Valens — " I would not resist him, though all that I possess belongs to the poor ; but the Emperor has no power over that which belongs to God. If he wants my patrimony, take it ! If he thirsts for my life, I am ready to follow you. Do you wish to throw me into fetters ? To lead me to death ? Be it so, and gladly ! I will not surround myself with the people as with a bulwark ; I will not take refuge at the altar to VOL. II L ~i^ 146 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv preserve my life ; far rather would I let myself be sacri- ficed for the altar." Then, turning to the Gothic tribunes, he exclaimed : " Is this the reason why the soil of Eome has welcomed you ? is it that you may make yourselves the agents of general confusion ? " " AVell," they said to him, " at least hold in check these popular tumults." " It is in my power," he answered, " not to stir them up ; but it is only in God's power to mitigate them when they are once aroused. But, if you think that I am the ringleader of them, it is your duty to punish me, or send me into exile." With these answers the messengers returned, and Ambrose, who had spent the whole day in church, went back to his house in the evening, that they might find him ready if they decided to banish him. But the court was reduced to perplexity. For two days nothing was done. On each day of Passion Week there were services and sermons, and at dawn on Wednesday Ambrose went to the old church, and was told that the new basilica was surrounded by soldiers.^ He threat- ened them with excommunication if they used the least violence, and they hurried to him — greatly alarm- ing the women of the congregation — to implore his pardon. The crowd in the new church increased, and there were loud cries that Ambrose should come ; but he would not go, although the boys were insultingly tearing down the royal hangings.^ It was his duty neither to give it up, he said, nor to defend it by force. Mounting the ambo, he preached from the passage of Job which had been the lesson for the day, and " few of the multitude could avoid the application to Justina when he spoke of the mischief done by women — Eve, 1 Aug. Ep. xliv. 2 Ep. XX. 24 : " Scissae ab illudentibus pueris cortinae regiae." XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE AEIAN COURT 147 Job's wife, Jezebel, and Herodias."^ He declared that notbing sbould induce bim to give up a cburcb to tbe Arians. Tbe palaces belonged to tbe Emperor, but tbe cburcbes to tbe priest. To avoid giving any provoca- tion, be would not go to tbe besieged basilica, but be sent some of bis presbyters tbere to represent bim. This deeply offended tbe court. A secretary was sent to bim wbo overwbelmed bim \n.th. reproacbes, and called bim a tyrant. " I bave no weapons," be answered, "but tbe power of Cbrist. Tbe tyranny of a priest is bis weakness. Wben I am weak, as tbe Apostle says, tben am I strong." ^ He bad to spend tbat nigbt in tbe old basilica, for be could not get back to bis bouse witbout incurring tbe danger of coming across tbe soldiers, and so exciting a sedition. He and bis clergy occupied tbe long bours of darkness in praying and singing psalms. Tbe next day (Aprd 10) was Green-Tbursday, wbicb was kept as a general fast. Service began as usual. Tbe lesson of tbe day was from tbe book of Jonab, and Ambrose tells us ^ tbat be began bis sermon witb tbe words, " Brethren, we bave just been listening to a book wbicb tells us bow sinners once were converted and turned to repentance." He bad not finished when tbe news was brousfbt bim that tbe soldiers had been witb- drawn from the new basilica, the fine of tbe merchants renutted, tbe money restored which had been already paid, and the imprisoned citizens set free. The court party bad evidently recoiled before tbe firmness of the bishop, tbe faithfulness of tbe laity, and the evident 1 Allusions hardly less pointed cost Chrysostom his banishment and death. ^ Ep. xx. 23 : "Tyrannis saeerdotis infirmitas est." ^ Ep. XX. The letter was ^^•Titten to Marcellina in full brotherly con- fidence while the events were still fresh in his mind. See too the sermon against Auxentius, De Badlicu tradendis. 148 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv signs of indignation shown by the orthodox soldiers. They had recoiled, because Justina herself had been made to feel that Ambrose and his party were too strong to be cowed into submission. But the imperial family were filled with the bitterest indignation, and Ambrose felt that the battle was not over. Among the adherents of the Arians were men .who were quite ready to play the part which Henry the Second's knights played towards Thomas k Becket. The eunuch Calligonus, the groom of the chamber to Valentinian, became their spokesman. " Do you dare," he said, " while I live to despise Valentinian ? I will have your head." To which Ambrose answered with a courage mixed with the lordliest scorn, " May God allow you to fulfil your threats ; for then I shall suffer as beseems a bishop, and you will act as beseems a eunuch." To this person Ambrose obliquely alludes in his book On Joseph,^ and we learn from Augustine that he afterwards came to a violent and disgraceful end.^ Meanwhile the bishop had too much knowledge of the world to feel secure. The man whom his sovereign has called a tyrant is in a precarious condition. It is said that when the young Emperor was advised to go in person to the church and overawe Ambrose by his authority he replied, " I believe that if Ambrose only gave the word the people would at once seize me and throw me into prison." " Think," writes Ambrose to his sister, " what I have to expect after such expressions ! 1 "Ne ipsius mei sermonis meminisse delectat, quein, tunc temporis, vel effiiderit dolor, vel extorserit ecclesiae contumelia " (De Joseph, vi. 33). Ep. XX. 2 AvLg. in Julian. Pelag. 14: "Gladio novimus ultore punitum, con- fessione meretricis conviotum." On the whole event, see, besides the letters of Ambrose, Aug. Gonf. ix. 7 ; Muratori, Annali ad aim. 385, 386 ; Richter, Westrom. 603 ff ; Glildenpenning u. Ifland, Theodosim, 149 if ; Gibbon, ii. 547. XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE AEIAN COURT 149 May God keep back all enemies from the cliurcli ; may tkey turn all their -weapons against me ; may they sate their thirst with my blood ! " ^ Xo more steps were taken that year ; but on Jan. 23 of the next year (386) the Catholic world was horror- stricken by the publication of a decree which permitted all Arians — all who held to the views of the Council of Rimini- — full freedom to hold religious assemblies in churches, and which threatened vdih death any attempts to oppose them. This law, which Ambrose called "a bloody edict," was drawn up by Auxentius.^ The task had indeed been entrusted to the chancellor Benevolus,* but he absolutely declined to undertake it. He was threatened with banishment if he refused compliance, and, indignantly flinging the girdle, which was his ensign of office, at the feet of the Arian Empress, he retired to his native town of Brescia. " Take back your honours," he said, "and leave me my conscience."* The law was promulgated in February, and the Emperor went with his mother to Ticinum, perhaps to see how it would be received.^ It fell rather flat, for it was an anachronism. A generation had passed away, and the Council of Eimini was half forgotten. But on the re- turn of Justina, Dalmatius the imperial secretary came to Ambrose with a command that he should choose judges, as "Auxentius" had done, in whose presence he and Auxentius should argue the merits of Arianism and the I\ icene faith ia the presence of Valentinian. Ambrose ' Ep. XX. ad fin. ^ The colourless fornmla of Arianism was " that the Son was W;e the Father (ofioLov rw Ilo.rpt) in all things, as the Scriptures say and teach." 2 Serm. c. Aux. 17. * Enf. sec. 16. -' Sozom. vii. 13 ; Eufinus, H. E. ii. 16. ^ At Ticinum Justina seems to have tried to wrest a deposit out of the hands of the bishop, and to have been once more defeated by the interven- tion of Ambrose, Be offic. ii. 29, sec. 150. 150 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xv did not choose to argue in sucli a consistory before Goths, women, courtiers, and Arians. After consulting the bishops and presbyters who were present at Milan, Ambrose drew up a letter to the Emperor in which he gave the reasons why they refused to consent to the proposal.^ The palace was not the proper place for such a conference. Constantius had greatly injured the Church by such private conclaves and audiences, and if any one wished to hear the arguments of Ambrose he had only to attend the church of Milan, where he con- stantly preached upon the subject. Foiled in every particular, the court obstinately fell back on the demand that at least the Portian Basilica should be given up to the Arians, and on that matter Ambrose had already shown his absolute inflexibility. "If Naboth," he said, "would not resign the heritage of his fathers, how could I give up that which I have inherited from Dionysius, who died in exile, and the confessor Eustorgius, and other bishops, my predecessors ? " The imperial party saw that they had no chance of carrying out their purpose except by getting rid of Ambrose. On his way to his church and to the graves of the martyrs he daily passed by the palace ; yet they never ventured to lay hands on him. At last Justina sent a military tribune to him with the positive order that he must leave the city, adding that he might go where he liked. He declined to leave his flock, and a rumour was spread that violence was intended. He was only safe in the church, and there he stayed in the midst of his people. The basilica was guarded by soldiers, who allowed any one to go in but no one to come out. Among the weeping, praying, chanting crowd which surrounded him day and night was Monica, the mother of Augustine. ^ Ep. xxi. XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE ARIAN COURT 151 He did all that he could to rouse their drooping spirits. He assured them that nothing should induce him to give way. He comforted them by the examples of EHsha and of Peter, and denounced Mercurinus and his counsels in the sternest terms. His enemies, he said, had charged him with winning the adhesion of the multitude by gifts. If that meant that he had given largely to the poor, he accepted the taunt. The poor were his trea- sures ; their prayers were his protection ; the bhnd and the lame, the crippled and the old, would fight for his cause more effectually than the mightiest warriors. "Tribute l^elonged to the Emperor, but churches belonged to Grod. Caesar should have the things that are Caesar's, not the things that are God's. What prouder honour could Caesar have than to be a son of the church ? He was in the church, not above it." ^ Such harangues were well fitted to rouse the courage and allay the anxieties of the terrified throng who had taken up their abode in the basilica and its precincts during those perilous days in which they found themselves in conflict with the awful divinity which still hedged in the person of an Emperor. An excited Arian was converted because he saw — so he declared — an angel standing beside the bishop and suggesting to him what he should say. But something more was needed to occupy and to encourage the people, and Ambrose conceived the happy thought of employing them in antiphonal psalmody. The custom was entirely new in the West, but had long prevailed in the Eastern churches. Ambrose had largely introduced into Christian teaching the views of Didymus, Basil, and other Greek Fathers ; he now enriched the Western Church with one of the most blessed practices of the Eastern service. What was the exact character 1 Serm. c. Auxent. de Easilicis, sec. 31. 152 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV of the Ambrosian chanting, or how it differed from the G-regorian, we cannot definitely say, but certain it is that the more refined artistic and congregational manner of singing psalms and hymns was now introduced, and spread from this centre throughout the churches of Italy, Gaul, and Spain.^ These were the spiritual songs which thrilled even to tears the heart of Augustine and lingered so sweetly in his memory.'' Nor was Ambrose con- tented with the music ; he also wrote hymns to which it was the accompaniment. He shares with Hilary the high distinction of being the father of Latin hymno- logy, and his hymns and tunes were a precious out- come of this prolonged contest. Arius had set the example of writing hymns in his Thalia, which were meant to familiarise the people with his heretical views. Ambrose felt that such hymns were a powerful engine of doctrine, and he wrote in praise of the Holy Trinity. The culmination of his victory was brought about in a manner very accordant with the deepening superstition of the times. It was one of the great bishop's weak- nesses that he had a fanaticism for very dubious relics of unknown martyrs. After this agitated Easter he had a presage in June 386 that he would find in a certain church the bones of two brother martyrs^ named Protasius and Gervasius, of whom no one knew anything 1 " Hoc in tempore primum antiphmiae . . . celebrari coeperunt " (Paulin. Vit. Ambr. 13). Socrates (vi. 8) says that Ignatius introduced antiplional chanting after seeing a vision of angels. 2 Conf. ix. 7 : " Quantum flevi hymnis et oanticis suave sonantis eoclesiae commotus acriter. . . . Tunc hymni et psalmi ut canerentur more orientalium institutum est et ex illo in hodiernum retentum, multis jam et paene omnibus gregibus tuis et per caetera orbis imitantibns." (Comp. Be Civ. Dei, xxii. 8.) 2 Ep. xxii. "Veluti cujusdam ardor praesagii." Augustine says "a XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE ARIAN COURT 153 certain.^ Some bones were found, and near them some bones of gigantic size (" like those," says Ambrose, " of the men of a past age "), and were transferred to the basilica amid so many miracles that the court abandoned their struggles.^ The sick were healed; numbers of devils were exorcised ; and a blind butcher, touching the cerecloths, recovered his sight.^ The Arians did not credit these asserted miracles, but they were believed by the multitude, and the victory of Ambrose was com- plete. " The storm is calmed," he said ; " unity speeds on her way, faith fills the sails. The sailors emulously seek again the havens of faith which they have left."* 1 Some aged persons declared that Protasius had been beheaded and Gervasius beaten to death with leaded scoirrges {plumbatae). It is difficult to know how much is historical. Loose as were the views of many of the Fathers as to the permissibility of "pious fraud," I should be far from charging St. Ambrose with imposture, as is done by Le Clerc, Mosheim, Isaac Taylor, and Henry Rogers ; but I find it equally impossible to attach any real belief to these miracles. See Robertson, C% Hist. Bk. ii. ch. v.; MUman, Hist, of Christianity, iii. 160 ; and on the other side Tillemont, Fleury, and Dr. Newman. 2 Aug. Be Civ. Dei, xxii. 8, Conf. ix. 7 ; Paulin. Vit. Amhr. v. sec. 1 4, " ut nomina, ita etiam sepulcra incognita erant." ^ Greg. Turon. Lib. Mirac. i. i. The fondness for relics was greatly increased by the examples of Ambrose and Paulinus of Nola, until the abuse became so deplorable that in 386 Theodosius had to pass a strong edict against it. The language of De Broglie on the subject {L'Eglise et VEfrnpire, vi. 115) is very strong. "Tout oratoire nouvellement 41evd voulait avoir sa depouille sacree, et on venait de loin sur le theatre des grandes scenes de persecution acqu^rir un cadavre a deniers comptants. On le baptisait un peu a% hasard du now, d'un saint," etc. There could be nothing but imposture or credulity in the notion that they possessed the rehos of Samuel and of Joseph ! CaecUian of Carthage had reproved a wealthy devotee named Lucilla for kissing the J supposed bone of a martyr, and Martin once compelled an imaginary martyr to confess that he had been a criminal who was executed for his crimes ! See too Eunapius, Vit. Mdesii, pp. 73-75. * Expos, in Luc. ix. 32. What are we to think of these ecclesiastical miracles ? Those who wish to see them ingeniously defended will find the case best put by Cardinal Newman, On Eccles. Miracles. In many instances I merely narrate them as the current belief of the day. The evidence in their favour is generally (as in this case) very vague, and in 154 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV The Arian party had all along taken a wrong ground. If they had aimed solely at religious edification, nothing would have been more fitting than that they should have built a church for the worship of those who held their views. Their object was difi"erent. It was to extort a recognition of their faith, as though it stood on a par with orthodox Christianity, and to do this by imperial authority and violence, in opposition to the views of the vast majority of the people. They failed ignominiously, as they deserved to fail, though they might have succeeded against any antagonist less resolute than Ambrose. He maintained the truth that Arianism is not Christianity ; he resisted in this instance the impious claim of a government to dictate religious opinion ; and he show"ed how the Christian Church may be made the bulwark of spiritual freedom. The Easter of the following year (387) was brightened by an event which must have caused deep joy to Ambrose, though he little knew its vast future import- ance to the world — the baptism of Augustine. He waS also engaged in continuous literary activity, and wrote details slight, suspicious, contradictory. Unliappily too we cannot always be quite sure whether, in accordance with the unfortunate tendency to employ " oeconomy " and even religious fraud for supposed good ends (see Chrysost. Be Sacerdot. i. 5, and other passages quoted by Gieseler, i. 235), there may not have been a little manipulation of agents and of evidences. Exaggeration and credulity there certainly were, and these could easily create miracles out of very small occurrences of the unusual. Any one who will compare the allusions of Paulinus, Ambrose, and Augustine will find marked discrepancies. As to the supposed veniality and even meritoriousness of pious falsehoods, see the chapter in Cassian on " Quod venialiter menclacio sancti tamquam elleboro usi sint " (flollat. xvii. 17), and the sections which follow and elaborately defend that bad position. Augustine, Ambrose, and their biographers Paulinus and Possidius, abound in details of miracles, but Chrysostom, though he is not consistent on the subject, states it as notorious that miracles had long ceased ; and so said Augustine in his De Ver. rel. 25, though he afterwards retracted his remark, Betractt. i. 13. XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE ARIAN COURT 155 among other treatises his book De bono mortis. In the singularly encouraging tone of this little work we catch an echo of the larger hopes of Origen and of Gregory- of Nyssa. Latin theology produced nothing which breathed such genial comfort till, in the ninth century, Johannes Scotus Erigena wrote his great work De Divi- sione Naturae. Meanwhile public affairs became more and more gloomy. Masimus was evidently preparing to invade Italy. Among other politic endeavours, he vainly attempted to hoodwink the orthodox by complaints of Justina's attempts at Milan. Once more Justina felt that she could find no such ambassador as Ambrose. Little as he was indebted to the courtiers, he at once accepted their entreaty with loyal heart, and went a second time to the usurper.^ He dealt with him so plainly and sternly that this time the tyrant curtly ordered him to return at once. He himself relates the stormy interview between them.^ As before, Maximus would not give him the private audience which was due to custom and the dignity of his rank, both as a bishop and as an ambassa- dor. But when Ambrose entered the audience-chamber Maximus embraced him. "Why do you embrace a man whom you have not acknowledged ? " asked Ambrose ; " had you acknowledged my claim, you would not have seen me in this place." " You are perturbed, bishop," replied the usurper. " Not," answered Ambrose, 1 Paulinus says that a sorcerer named Innooentius confessed under torture that Justina had employed him to stir up odium against Ambrose ; that the hand of a man sent to murder the bishop had withered and been restored by Ambrose, etc. etc. 2 Ep. xxiv. The relations between Maximus and Martin of Tours belong to another biography. Paulinus says that Ambrose had excom- municated Maximus during his first embassy (383), but this is doubtful. Efip. xxiv. 12 ; XXV. 3. See supra, p. 133. 156 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv " b)- the wrong, but by finding myself in a place unsuit- able to me." " I saw you in public at your first embassy also ; why did you not then complain ? " " Because then I came to beg on the part of a suppliant, but now to treat in the name of an equal." " If Valentinian is my equal," said Maximus in his fury, "to whom does he owe that?" "To God," answered Ambrose, "who has preserved for him the power He gave him." " It was you who j)revented me from invading Italy." " If so, I glory in it. God bids me to defend the widow and the orphan. Gladly with my own body would I have barred your crossing over the Alps." He then demanded the restoration of the corpse of Gratian, that it might receive funeral honours. " He restored to you your living brother ; give him back his dead brother." " It would create too much feeling," said Maximus. " What ! " answered Ambrose, " would those who abandoned a master while he was living rise in his defence now that he is dead ? " He was ordered to quit the city, and with him the aged and almost dying Hyginus, for whom Ambrose interceded in vain.^ The Bishop of Milan left Treves openly by broad daylight by the ordinary road, though he had received many warn- ings that he might be assassinated on the way. But Ambrose had seen through his designs, and wrote to Justina and Valentinian that the usurper's pro- fessions of peace were only the cloak for war. They meanwhile — having been beguiled into the belief that Ambrose had been too peremptory and haughty — had sent a second ambassador, the Syrian Domninus, who was completely deceived by the specious words of 1 Hyginus, Bishop of Cordova, had been opposed to Prisoillian, but had become his friend, for Ithacius, who was Bishop of Ossonoba, wished to exGommimicate him. Sulp. Sev. ii. 47, Schepps, Priscillian, p. 18. XV THE CONFLICT WITH THE AEIAX COURT 157 Maximus, and became the dupe and agent of his desions to such an extent that he himself was put in nominal command of some of the legions which Masimus was sending to Italy. Xo sooner had he secured the passes of the Alps by this transparent device than Maximus swiftly moved his army towards the Alps, laughing secretly at the foolish simplicity of the ambassador who had smoothed his path. Justina, with her son Yalen- tinian and her beautiful daughter Galla, fled to the protection of Theodosius at Thessalonica. He warned them of the evil consequences caused bv their Arianism, but espoused their cause, and, having lost his wife Placidia, he married Galla. Justina died shortly after- wards ; but Ambrose credited Theodosius with the glory of not only restoring the kingdom to Valentinian, but also winning him back to the orthodox faith.^ Maximus had advanced to ]\Iilan, but, though he had often breathed the most violent threats against Ambrose, he left him undisturbed. Theodosius crossed over to Italy with Valentinian, defeated Maximus at Siszek and Pettau, and drove him to Aquileia. There he was seized by his own soldiers ; the purple robe was torn off his back, the purple sandals from his feet, the purple and jewelled diadem from his head, and he was dragged, bound hand and foot, into the presence of Theodosius. It was on Aug. 25, 388, almost exactly five years since Gratian had suffered the same fate. Theodosius looked at him with a mixture of pity and disgust, and, after a few disdainful questions, dismissed him without decid- ing his fate. His captors therefore took the law into their own hands and struck off his head outside the imperial tent. Ambrose used his best influence for the 1 Ep. liiL " Gratias . . . reddidi quod eum non solum regno reddi- disses, sed, quod est amplius, restituisses fidei." 158 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv common herd of the vanquished, and thanked Theodosius for having liberated large numbers from exile, prison, and the sentence of death, at his request/ 1 Ep. xl. 25. Andragathius, the actual murderer of Gratian, com- manded the fleet of Maximus, and on hearing of his defeat drowned himself in the Adriatic. XV Continued AMBEOSE AND THEODOSIUS " NiMl in sacerdotibus plebeium requiri, nihil populare." Ep. xxviii. ad Iren. SECTION III Theodosius took up his abode at Milan, and Ambrose had now to show how he would bear himself before an Emperor so orthodox, so passionate, and so strong. He had been frank with Valentinian I. ; he had dauntlessly confronted the blood-stained Maximus ; he had braved the passionate fury of Justina and Valentinian II. ; but would he be able to hold his own against a conqueror so eminent and so powerful as Theodosius, a man whose wiU was as strong and whose faith was as orthodox as his own ? Maximus, anxious to secui^e support from every quarter, had granted the petition so often urged through Symmachus by the Pagan senators at Eome, that the altar of Victory in the senate house should be restored.-' 1 The Pagans said that Maximus had now become Pontifex because Gratian had insulted the gods by refusing the insignia of Pontifex Maxi- mus. In that age such plays on words were esteemed important. Zosimus, iv. 36. See supra, p. 127. Theodosius, however, called liim- self Summus Pontifex.- See Hodgkin, i. 150. 160 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV The matter was referred to Theodosius, who promised to take it into consideration. But Ambrose at once exerted his influence so strongly on the other side that Theodosius refused the request, and also passed stringent edicts against the toleration of Pagan worship.-' It was not long before Ambrose had to address him- self to the Emperor, and this time he came into more serious conflict with his proceedings. " Who," he asks, "will dare to tell you the truth if a priest does not dare ? " ^ In 389 a tumult had occurred at a little town called CaUinicum, in Mesopotamia, and the Christians, irritated by the Jews, had — apparently with the cognis- ance of the bishop, and the aid of certain monks — burnt down the Jewish synagogue and a church of the Valentin- ian Gnostics.^ Theodosius was a man of violent temper, and in his sudden transports of fury he was often tempted to take measures of which he repented in cooler blood. He was always peculiarly irritated by violations of the public peace, and, without even hearing the case, he ordered the governor of the district to punish the monks, and to make the Bishop of CaUinicum rebuild the synagogue at his own expense. Ambrose at the time was at Aquileia, but the moment that he heard of this he wrote an indignant letter to the Emperor.* It was a matter in which God's cause was concerned, and he could not be silent. A bishop ordered to build a synagogue, and so left with no alternative but to be either a traitor to God or a martyr — it was monstrous ! To destroy a synagogue; was that guilt ? If so, Ambrose approved of the guilt. What a shame to the Church, 1 Be obit. Theod. 38. ^ i:p. xl. 4. 3 Paulinus (cli. 22) says " lucus Valentinianorum," and lie adds, with extreme unfairness, that " the Valentinians worship thirty gods." Ambrose says more fairly, " triginta et duos eonas . . . quos appellant Deos." 4 ;gp_ xl. XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 161 what a triumph to the enemies of Christ, to see a synagogue built by a bishop! Julian had been prevented from rebuilding the Temple of Jerusalem by fire from heaven ; is not Theodosius afraid of a similar judgment ? How many churches had been burnt down by the Jews in Julian's days ; they had been met by no avenger, and now was an Emperor to interfere for the rebuilding of a miserable synagogue ? On a synagogue so built the Jews might well put the inscription : " Templum impietatis factum de manubiis CJiristianorum." Maxi- mus had caused a Jewish synagogue to be rebuilt at Eome, and the Christians had called him " a king of the Jews." Theodosius had forgiven the far more outrageous crimes against order at Antioch ; ought he to be so hard on these Christians ? Was this the Emperor's grati- tude for all the mercies which Christ had bestowed upon him ? ^ Ambrose was perhaps all the more indig- nant because very recently the Arians had burnt down the house of the Patriarch at Constantinople, and had been forgiven at the request of Arcadius, who begged that the beginning of his reign might not be stained by cruel measures. Even this letter did not make Theodosius yield. Then Ambrose, who had returned to Milan, openly appealed to him, in a sermon at which he was present, to do justice and show mercy. ^ " You have been preach- ing against me, bishop," said the Emperor, as the bishop descended the steps of the ambo.^ " Not against you," 1 Six xli. ^ _Ejj. xlii. sec. 26 : " Ut jam non solum de te sed ad te verba oonver- tam." 5 Paulin. vii. sec. 23 : "Contra nos proposuisti hodie Episoope" (Ep. xlii. sec. 27). It might be tbougbt from this narrative that Ambrose was intolerant of the opinions of others. This was not the case, as we see from De Fide, ii. 11, sec. 89. He looked on these questions more from the side of imperial unity. VOL. II M 162 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv he answered, "but for you." Theodosius promised to mitigate his decree, which he admitted to be too severe, but one of his courtiers, Timasius, exclaimed that the turbulent monks ought at least to be punished. " Silence ! " exclaimed Ambrose, with great haughtiness ; " I am not talking to you, but to the Emperor, of whom I know that he fears God. When I wish to speak with you, I will do so in another manner." Then, turning to Theodosius, he conjured him so to act as to allow him, with a good conscience, to " offer the sacrifice." The Emperor nodded assent, but Ambrose was not satisfied till he had received an absolute, promise. " I will alter the edict," said the Emperor. " That is not enough," replied the bishop. " G-ive me your word that it shall be repealed." " I give you my word," said the Emperor. " I rely on it," answered Ambrose. " Do so," repeated Theodosius ; and Ambrose then consecrated the Eucha- ristic elements. "But," he writes to his sister, " I should not have done so if he had not given me his full promise." ^ It is impossible not to admire the noble courage and firmness of the man ; and yet there were dangerous elements in his line of conduct. Theodosius had been too hasty, and he himself saw that there was something severe and unseemly in ordering a Christian bishop to build a Jewish synagogue, especially before he had been heard in his own cause. ^ On the other hand, Ambrose was dangerously and extremely in the wrong when he confused illegal turbulence with holy zeal. The prin- ciple which he asserted, that the judgment of the civil ruler must be subordinated to religious zeal (cedat oportet 1 Up. xlii 28 : " Aio illi Ago fide tua, et repetivi ; Ago fide tua. Age, inquit, fide mea." 2 " Eevera de synagoga reparanda ab episcopo durius statueram." XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 163 censura devotioni, Ep. xl. ii.), is wholly indefensible, and would open the door to the worst excesses of intemperate fanaticism. When, at the Council of Aquileia, he laid it down as a law that " priests ought to judge laymen, not laymen priests," he was enun- ciating a rule quite contrary to the repeated teaching of Scripture, and fatally adapted to turn the world upside down. Even so loyal a Eomanist as the Duke de Broglie condemns the principle on which Ambrose relied. " The Church," he says, " in her maternal prudence is far from having ratified in these delicate points all the anathemas of Ambrose." Having never imposed on the faithful the obligation of destroying with their own hands the temples of error, she does not forbid them to keep the engagements contracted, or to repair the wrongs com- mitted in the eye of the law. The bishop and the monks were transgressing laws both human and Divine when they burned down the property of men who held a different faith, and Ambrose, in defending their con- duct, was on the high road to the hideous persecutions which afterwards disgraced the annals of Christianity, with such crimes as the Albigensian crusades. By easy and fatal steps men began to confound the Church with themselves, themselves with the episcopate, the episco- pate with the Papacy, and to make religious convictions, which often were grossly erroneous, a pretext for the interference with life and liberty, and the abnegation of all civil rights. They forgot the great eternal principle that " thoughts are toll-free " ; that man is responsible for his religious beliefs only to his conscience and to his God. Men who have recognised the absolute and unique supremacy of that allegiance have often been in the right when they stood up single-handed, not only against the world, but also against the all but unanimous voices of 164 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv corrupted and erring Churches, which tried to defend gross errors and flagrant crimes by the vaunt of catho- licity. But if in this matter Ambrose was partly in the wrong, there occurred in 390 an event which shows him at the very summit of his moral grandeur, and in which he was splendidly and heroically in the right/ No ecclesiastical errors, no fanatical exaggeration, detracted from the glory of his championship of the cause of outraged humanity against the ungovernable passion of his Emperor. He became the personified conscience of all who were noblest in the Eoman Empire and the Christian world. Botherich, the brave and upright Governor of lUyria, had thrown into prison a charioteer of Thessalonica, who had been accused by his cup - bearer of one of those enormities which were the plague-spot of Pagan antiquity. The people of Thessalonica, passionately devoted to the games of the circus, demanded the liberation of their favourite, and when this was refused, they rose in tumult, murdered Botherich, and many of the chief officials of the city, and dragged their corpses with insults through the streets. The crime was of the most heinous character. It was one which was certain to awaken the utmost wrath of the Emperor. He had been baptized at Thessalonica, and had long made his residence in that city. The people ought to have been bound to him by gratitude for many benefactions, and yet they had foully murdered his officers and his personal friend. Those who knew the storms of fury to which he was liable might well tremble for the very existence of the city. 1 It -was about this time that Ambrose wrote his Hexaemeron, and also condemned Jovinian. XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 165 It happened at the time that some Ligurian bishops were assembled at Milan, under the presidency of Ambrose, to discuss the consecration of Fehx as Bishop of Treves by some Ithacian bishops. No sooner was the news of the riot at Thessaloniea brought to this council than Ambrose and the other bishops wrote to implore the clemency of the Emperor. They begged that in the punishment to be inflicted he would not confound the innocent with the guilty. He promised them that he would behave with moderation ; but meanwhile all his hottest feelings were inflamed by his courtiers, and especially by his minister Eufinus, who represented the rebellion as an act of the most pernicious and perilous insolence on the part of an entire population, to which exemplary vengeance was due. In a moment of mad infatuation, which clouded all his best instincts, Theo- dosius, who had, perhaps purposely, left Milan, sent avengers of blood to Thessaloniea. Like the Athenians when they had despatched their atrocious mandate to Paches to massacre the whole people of Mitylene, he repented, and sent to recall his fatal edict. But, unlike the messengers of mercy sent by the Athenians, the envoys of the Emperor's repentance were too late. There was to be another great race in the circus at Thessa- loniea. The people were assembled in thousands to witness it. Then the gates of the circus were closed, and the soldiers of Theodosius entered with drawn swords. The scene which ensued was one of the most horrible recorded in history. The crowd in the circus were massacred, alike the guilty and the innocent, alike citizens and strangers. For three hours of indescribable horror the work of hell went on. On the lowest com- putation, seven thousand feU.^ 1 Theodoret, v. 17. Theophanes says 15,000. 166 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv The narratives of the raassacre abounded in touching incidents. One of these was long remembered. An unhappy father had taken to the circus his two young sons. When the assassins came up to him, he succeeded in moving them to spare one at least of the two boys. But when he was ordered to make his choice between them his heart failed him. He could not select one of his own boys to be murdered. They were equally dear to him. He offered them both, with himself, to the swords of the brutal executioners.-' A cry of horror arose throughout the Empire when the news of this blood bath was brought to them. None felt it more keenly than the bishops assembled in Milan. ^ Were they living in the days of Theodosius or in those of Nero and Caligula ? Had such an atrocity stained even the days of the Apostate Julian 1 Ambrose was overwhelmed with shame and anguish. The bishops had assembled to denounce the murder of a few Priscillianists for heresy under Maximus, and here was an indiscriminate massacre of 7000, innocent as well as guilty, by Theodosius. The Emperor was absent from Milan, but his return was expected in a few days. Every one looked to Ambrose to avenge the crime. The bishop behaved with consummate tact as well as with perfect firmness. He would not await the arrival of the Emperor. He gave out that he was ill, and, indeed (he writes), he was ill with a sickness which it required a gentler hand than that of Theodosius to cure. He re- tired — perhaps to the house of his sister Marcellina in Rome — in order to leave time for the Emperor's con- science to work, and for his repentance to awaken. He 1 On the massacre of Thessalonioa, see Ambr. Ep. li. ; Theodor. v. 17 ; Sozom. vii. 25; Eufin. ii. 18. 2 " Nemo non ingemuit, nullus mediocriter accepit " {Ep. li. 6). XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 167 would arouse no public scandal whicli might defeat his purpose altogether, but he penned a letter worthy at once of a wise statesman and of a Hebrew prophet.^ He writes, he says, with his own hand what is meant for the Emperor's eye alone. The bishops of the council would have justly blamed him if he did not warn the Emperor to make his peace with God. He is obliged to avoid the Emperor's presence, thankfully and joyously as he would under other circumstances have welcomed it. "I persuade, I entreat, I exhort, I admonish, because it is a grief to me that the perishing of so many of the innocent is no grief to you ; I dare not offer the sacrifice if you are to be present " ; nay, he had even been for- bidden to do so by a Divine intimation on the night when he left Milan. " I cannot deny," he says, " that you have a zeal for the faith, that you fear God ; but you have a naturally passionate spirit, which when miti- gated is easily moved to compassion, but which becomes ungovernable when it is once excited. I would gladly have left you to the workings of your own heart, but I dare not either keep silence or make light of your offence. So bloody a scene as that at Thessalonica is unheard of in the world's history. I had warned and entreated you against it ; you yourself recognised its atrocity ; you endeavoured to recall your decree. And now I call on you to repent. Remember how David repented for his crime. Will you be ashamed to do what David did ? You can only atone for your sin by tears, by penitence, by humbling your soul before God. You are a man, and as you have sinned as a man you must so repent. No angel, no archangel, can forgive you. God only can forgive you, and He forgives those who repent. Ah, 1 Ep. li. There are also allusions to these events in the Ena/rrationes in xii. psalmos. 168 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv how must I grieve that you, who were an example of special piety, you who were unwilling that even one innocent person should suffer, should not repent that so many of the innocent have been slaughtered ! Brave in battle, praiseworthy in all things else, yet goodness was the crown of all your conduct. The evil spirit envied you these noblest of your blessings. Overcome him while yet you may! ... I love you; I esteem you from my heart ; I pray for you. If you believe it, accept what I say. If you believe it not, pardon me for preferring God to you." ^ What answer Theodosius returned to this noble letter we do not know ; but when Ambrose had come back to Milan the Emperor as usual presented himself at the hour of service. Ambrose met him in the porch.^ " It seems," he said, " Augustus, that you have not repented of the heinousness of your murder. Your imperial power has darkened your understanding, and stood between you and the recognition of your sin. Consider the dust from which you spring. Do not let the glory of the purple blind your eyes to the weakness of the mortal body which it covers. You have sinned against your fellow-men, and One is Lord and King of us all. With what eyes will you look on His temple ? With what feet will you tread His courts ? How can you uplift in prayer the hands which yet drip with innocent blood ? or receive into such hands the Body of the Lord ? Depart ! add not sin to sin. Find in re- 1 Ef. li. 4 : " Habes naturae impetum quern si quis suscitat revocare vix possis." Theodosius was aware of Ms own vehement temper. See Claud. in iv. Cons. Honor. 266. 2 The cypress-wood gates of the basilica of San Ambrogio Maggiore in Milan are traditionally believed to be the very gates at which this scene took place. An old mosaic in this church represents the legend of Am- brose seeing in a trance the obsequies of St. Martin of Tours. XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 169 pentance the means of mercy which, can restore you to health of soul." "David sinned," said the Emperor, "yet David was forgiven." "You have imitated him in his sin," answered Ambrose, "imitate him also in his repentance." The Emperor humbled himself. He had sinned before the world ; his repentance should be as public as his sin. For eight months, as a penitent, he abstained from presenting himself at divine service.^ But when the Christmas festival returned he went once more to the church, for while banished thence he felt as though he were banished from the kingdom of heaven. But Ambrose was still inflexible. The time of penance had not yet elapsed. Theodosius felt the exclusion bitterly. His minister Kufinus surprised him one day bathed in tears, and could hardly conceal the disdainful smile which rose to his features. "You smile," said Theodosius, " because you do not feel my misery. The Church of God is open to slaves and beggars ; to me it is closed, and with it the gates of heaven." Theodosius com- plained of the severity of Ambrose, and Eufinus tried to soften the bishop's heart. He was unsuccessful. Ambrose repelled with angry disdain the evil genius of his master, the counsellor of his crime. ^ "I will refuse the Emperor leave to enter the body of the church," he said. "If he likes to act as a tyrant I am prepared to die." The Emperor came to one of the side buildings of the basilica, and Ambrose again met him. " What \" said Ambrose, " have you come to defy 1 Theodoret, E. E. v. 18. De Broglie, with great ingemiity, points to some of the anti-ecclesiastical laws of these eight months as a proof that a struggle was going on in the mind of Theodosius between his pride and his penitence. L'Eglise et V Empire, vi. 313-315. 2 On Rufinus, see Thierry's Nowueaux BAcits. Claudian has handed him down to execration. 170 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xv the laws of God ? " "I have not come to defy them," answered Theodosius, " only I beg you not to close to me the door which God opens to all who repent." " And what penitence hast thou shown?" asked Ambrose. " Tell me what I ought to do," answered the Emperor, "and I will do it." Ambrose bade him take his place in church openly among the penitents, and also to renew an admirable law once passed by Gratian, but since suffered to fall into desuetude, that an interval of thirty days must always elapse between judgment and punishment. The Emperor accepted these conditions. He laid aside his ensigns of royalty. Prostrate on the ground, he bewept in the church the sin into which he had been misled by the treachery of others. " My soul cleaveth to the dust," he cried. " God, quicken Thou me according to Thy word ! " With groaning and tears he implored pardon. What private persons blush to do, the Emperor did not blush to do, namely, to perform penance in public ; nor was there any day after- wards on which he did not grieve for his error. ^ It may be true that the circumstances of this memorable scene are to a certain extent dramatised. The accounts of the various historians differ in minor details. But the central fact is undoubtedly true, and is vouched for by the letters and sermons of the prin- cipal actor. He braved, without quailing, the possible fury of a man who was liable to transports of passion so violent that at times his children fled from him in terror. During these paroxysms his own Empress, Flac- cilla, dared not face him, and his sister-in-law Serena, the wife of Stilicho, alone ventured to confront his 1 Be ohit. Theodos. 34. In reading such passages I cannot agree with Plitt (Herzog, Eeal Encyld. i. 332) that the story of the repulse of Theodosius from the basilica and from the choir are " offenbar fabulos." XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 171 wrathful mood.-' There have been other instances in which brute force has been overawed by moral as- cendency ; in which the loftiest of earthly powers, in all its plenitude of majesty, has bowed before the spiritual strength of the humblest prophet. Seven centuries later Henry IV. of Germany stood shivering in the snow before the closed gates of the remorseless G-regory VII. at Canossa. We may have seen the spot " Where Barbarossa took his mantle off And, kneeling, on his neck received the foot Of the proud pontiff." Our own Henry II. suffered himself to be scourged by the monks of Canterbury before the shrine of St. Thomas a Becket. But none of these and similar events have the impressive grandeur and solemnity of the repulse of Theodosius by Ambrose from the gates of Milan. It was less than a hundred years since Christianity had been acknowledged by the imperial power. The Emperors were still invested with an almost super- human dignity in the eyes of the world. They were irresponsible autocrats wielding the undisputed right of life and death. Theodosius himself was not a puppet in the hands of others, but every inch a ruler and a conqueror, the foremost man by far at that moment in aU the world. And yet where there is an Ambrose there will always be a Theodosius. The bishop stood before the Emperor like the embodiment of his own moral sense. The hands which were red with innocent blood were impotent to strike, and in the person of Ambrose the might of weakness became 1 Claudian, Laus Serenae, 134 — " Et quoties rerum moles ut publica cogit Tristior, aui ira tumidus jlagrante redihat Cwm ■patrem nati fugerent atque ipsa ttmeret Commotam FlacciUa virurn." 172 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV irresistible because it was armed with the thunders of Sinai. Theodosius was no weak criminal like Henry IV. of Germany, nor was Ambrose an implacable Pope like Gregory. The two men were friends who honoured and loved each other, and in Ambrose the mighty Emperor recognised the ideal of all that was best and noblest in himself. He never forgot the massacre of Thessalonica or thought of it without remorse.^ In one more slight but characteristic incident the relation between the two men was illustrated.^ Theodosius, now forgiven and reinstated in Church privileges, had been admitted to the Holy Communion, and had mounted the chancel steps to present his offering. Having done this he remained in the sacrarium among the presbyters. It might have been thought that, considering the extraordinary power claimed and exercised by the Emperors in religious matters — considering too the Old Testament analogies on which half the supernatural claims and privileges of the priesthood had been based — the position which he took might have been regarded as justifiable. But Ambrose was never guided by motives of worldly policy where he considered that a principle was involved. He at once sent a presbyter to the Emperor to point out to him that his assigned place of honour was below the steps, and that the chancel was reserved for the use of ■^ On tlie otlier hand, the name of the holy Ambrose has often been used as a battle-cry against the civil power. For some weighty remarks on the dangerous side of the conduct of Ambrose, see Dean Merivale's Lectures on Early Church, History, pp. 38-43. He quotes Bungener, Stances Historiques, p. 190 (1858) : " Quand Innocent III. pousse k I'extermination des Albigeois — Theodose, Th^odose ! Quand les 6vSques d'Angleterre poussent Henri VIII. h I'extermination des Luth&iens du pays — Thdodose, Theodose ! Quand L^on X. pousse Frangois I. k I'extermination des Luth&iens en France — Theodose ! Quand, Bossuet, enfin, celebre Louis XIV— Theodose, Theodose ! " 2 Theodoret, E. JS. v. 18 ; Sozomen, E. E. vii. 25. XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 173 tlie clergy. " The purple," said the messenger, " makes Emperors, not priests." Theodosius at once obeyed, and rose to purer grandeur by the readiness with wbicb lie took the lower room. So little did he resent this public admonition that he honoured Ambrose all the more because of it. He recognised a man when he saw one. Not long after, in the basilica of Constan- tinople, he was invited by the worldly and half- secular prelate Nectarius — who, like Ambrose, had been forcibly caUed to the episcopate from a high civil office — to take his seat within the sacred enclosure of the holy table. The Emperor declined. "I know no bishop except Ambrose'' was his subsequent remark. The relations between them were never afterwards disturbed. Let us not overlook the immense significance of these scenes. They mark the final triumph of the Christian religion over the Roman world. Heretofore the Church had appealed as a suppliant ; now she commanded like a ruler. Before she had asked for pity, now she demanded reparation. Athanasius, Basil, Ambrose himself, had on former occasions resisted imperial omnipotence on behalf of the rights of the Church ; by their lips she had opposed the violation of her faith, the seizure of her possessions, the wrongs of her ministers. But in this case she spoke in the common defence of mankind against the excesses of a legitimate authority. Theodosius had used the sword with the cruelty of an executioner, but he had neither violated the sanctuary nor laid hands on the censer. He had rested in his own proper domain, even while he bathed it in human blood. Into that domain — the independent domain of secular justice and political sovereignty — now for the first time a simple priest had 174 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV entered, with dauntless voice and forehead, his hand uplifted to pardon or to curse in the name of that moral law which rules all, and from which no human being can claim to escape, even under the shelter of a throne. It was the first appearance in the world of a right, delicate and supreme, which lies hidden on the obscure confines, where political and spiritual powers conflict with one another. In the infancy of modern Europe this right was a bridle of barbarism, sometimes serving as an excuse for ambitious tentatives, but henceforth powerful in the counsels of potentates.-' How far have we already advanced from the days when Constantius had exclaimed in a burst of anger, "My will is just as much a canon as any other, and the Eastern bishops are glad that it is so " ! This same year (390) was marked by a singular proof of the bishop's widespread fame, for he received a visit from two of the wisest and most eminent of the Persians. They came to Milan solely to see and consult him, and went away full of admiration. In the year 391 Ambrose published his book On the Duties of Ministers. A single passage will show how strenuous was the episcopal autocracy which he exercised. He tells his clergy that they will remember a friend of theirs, who seemed to recommend himself by active services, whom yet Ambrose refused to ordain because he did not approve of his personal bearing ; and of another whom he found among the clergy and forbade even to walk in front of him, because he could not tolerate the arrogance- of his strut. He was right, he says, in both instances. One of the two apostatised to the Arians during the persecution of Justina ; the other was guilty of dubious pecuniary transactions, 1 See De Broglie, vi. 320. XV AMBROSE AND THEODOSIUS 175 and refused to submit himself to sacerdotal juris- diction.-' Other ecclesiastical events marked the year. Ambrose had founded a convent at Milan, and two of the monks, Sarmatio and Barbatian, deserted the monastery, forsook the monastic ideal, and became conspicuous (it is said) for their bad example.^ Ambrose took part this year in the Council of Capua. It was summoned to see what could be done towards ending the Antiochene schism; but the Western Fathers felt themselves so hopelessly unable to follow the wind- ings of that long controversy that they could do nothing better than leave the decision in the hands of the bad and wily Theophilus of Alexandria. The councU also condemned Bonosus for not accepting the Aeipartheiiia of the Virgin. 1 De off. i. 18, sec. 72. These anecdotes show that Ambrose was a wonderfully good judge of character (nee fefellit sententia). "Lucebat in iUorum inoessu imago levitatis." 2 Ep. Mii. 7 ; Enarr. in Psalm, xxxvi. sec. 49. We must remember that we have only the story of a bitter opponent. XV Continued LAST DAYS OF AMBEOSE " Fateberis non ilium martyrio, sed martyrinm illi defuisse." Ecld. Benedict. SECTION IV But the chief events of the year 392 were political. Theodosius, with the integrity which marked his character, after defeating Maximus had left his young brother-in-law Valentinian in undisturbed possession of his Western dominions, and had assigned to the barba- rian Count Arbogast the duty of being his military pro- tector. The weak character of the young Emperor unfitted him for rule, but he soon found it intolerable to submit to the undisguised dominance of the haughty Frank. He tried in vain to shake off the yoke of this Mayor of the Palace. One day with angry trepidation he cancelled his appointment. " I did not receive my office from you" said Arbogast, " and it is not in your power to dismiss me from it." With these words he tore up his written dismissal and insolently trampled it under his feet. Valentinian was at Vienne in Gaul, and in great alarm from the threats of barbarian irruption. Since the death of his mother Justina XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 177 he tad been fully reconciled to the orthodox faith, and had learnt to look up to Ambrose as to a father.^ He now earnestly desired to receive baptism at his hands, preferring him to all the bishops by whom he was surrounded. He felt himself to be no better than a puppet in the hands of Arbogast, and a prisoner in his own palace. It was perhaps with a presentiment of approaching death that he wrote to implore Ambrose to cross the Alps and come to him, exclaiming frequently to his friends, " Shall I be so happy as to see my father again." - He sent his letter by one of that portion of his guards who were called silentiarii, and this emissary was bidden to place his letter in no hands but those of Ambrose himself Ambrose started as soon as he received the letter, and was crossing the Alps when he received the grim intelligence that on May 15 the unfortunate youth — he was but twenty years old — had been found strangled on a lonely walk beside the banks of the Rhone at Vienne. He had been engaged in athletic sports with his soldiers when he was slain "with some little semblance of a possible accident." Terrible indeed was the oft -repeated tragedy of these days ! "To-day the purple robe, the radiated crown, the epithets 'Augustus,' 'Pius,' 'Felix,' 'Invictus,' 'Pater Patriae' and all the cant of conventional courtliness ; to-morrow the headless trunk, the dagger-stabs in the purple, the murdered children, and a legion in the adjoining province greedily fingering their new donative, and shouting the names of another pious, happy, and unconquered Emperor who had been mad enough to climb the»slippery slope."* 1 Ep. liii. 2 Ambr. Be obit. Valent. " Tu me inter pericula requirebas ; tu in tuis extremis me appellabas." ^ Some seem to have believed tbat lie died by suicide. Aug. De Civ. Dei, V. 26. VOL. II N 178 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV Ambrose returned to Milan in great distress of mind, and thither tlie remains of the young Emperor were conveyed. By the order of Theodosius they were en- closed in a sarcophagus of most precious porphyry, and honoured with splendid obsequies.^ The funeral oration which Ambrose delivered is deeply touching ; we almost seem to hear his sobs as he speaks of the love, the virtue, and the trust of the two young and murdered Emperors. "0 my Gratian, my Valentinian, beautiful and most dear, how brief was your term of life ! . . . how closely your deaths followed on each other ! how near are your sepulchres ! Gratian, I say, Valentin- ian, I love to linger on your names, and to rest on the celebration of your goodness ! Inseparable in life, not separated in death ! Gratian, my son, to me most sweet, I grieve for thee. Very many signs of thy affec- tion hast thou given me ! Thou in thy last moments didst long for my presence ! And I grieve also for thee, my son Valentinian, to me truly beautiful. Thou thoughtest that I could rescue thee from thy peril. Thou not only lovedst me as a father, but didst hope in me as a deliverer. . . . Woe is me, what pledges have I lost ! How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished !" Singular that a simple bishop should be thus openly regarded as the sole effective protector of Emperor after Emperor ! In this oration Ambrose specially consoles Justa and Grata, the young Emperor's sisters, in the trouble caused by his having died unbaptized. " It was enough," said the bishop, " that he had desired baptism, and that baptism of ^ " Est Mc porphyreticum labrum pulcherrimum,'' writes Ambrose to Theodosius {Ep. liii. 4) " sunt tabulae porpbyreticae pretiosissimae quibus vestiatur operculum." XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 179 sincere desire was no less efficacious than baptism itself."^ Christ had baptized him since human services were lack- ing. The doctrine was perhaps more liberal than would have been allowed by the majority of the bishop's con- temporaries, but it will strongly remind the reader of the " crede et manducasti " of St. Augustine. The murder of Valentinian was no doubt hastened because Arbogast wished to prevent his declared intention of returning to Milan, where he would have been safe under the protection of Ambrose. Being a Frank, the general did not dare to assume the diadem after the murder of his young master. He chose "as a suitable block on which to hang the imperial purple " a puppet named Eugenius, a grammarian and rhetorician.^ Eugenius at once wrote a letter to Ambrose, who did not conde- scend to reply to this " lacquey of the barbarian." But when Eugenius, as the bishop foresaw would be the case, took up the cause of the Pagans, replaced the altar of Victory in the Eoman Senate-house, and restored the priests and vestals to their incomes and privileges, he wrote him a bitter and indignant letter.^ Hearing that Eugenius and Arbogast were on their way to Milan, and not choosing to have any dealings with them whatever, he retired first to Bologna and then to Florence, nor did he return till August, when they had departed.* They had been refused communion by the Church of Milan, and such was their fury that Arbogast threatened on his return to stable his horses in the basilica and make 1 De ohit. Valent. Gonsolatio, 30 : " Non amisit gratiam quam poposoit " ; 51, " Dicite mihi quid aliud in nobis est nisi voluntas, nisi petitio ? " See Hooker, Eccl. Pol. v. ix. 4. ^ He had been magister icriniarum, or trihunus notariorwm ; but was not even an illustris. 2 Ep. Ivii. Ad Eugenium Invperatorem. Eugenius was de facto Em- peror, and Ambrose could not refuse Mm tbe title. * Epp. Ixi. Ixii. 180 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xv soldiers of tlie clergy.^ It is doubtful whether, under the worst circumstances, they would have ventured to carry out their threats. Paulinus tells us, on the autho- rity of a young cup-bearer of Arbogast, that when the Frank had defeated his own nation in battle, one of their chieftains asked him at a banquet " if he knew Ambrose." "Yes," answered the general, "I know him well, and fre- quently sit at his table." " That is why you are victori- ous, Count," replied the chief; "because you are beloved by the man who says to the sun ' Stand !' and it stands." Meanwhile in 394 Theodosius had arrived in Italy as the avowed champion of Christianity against Eugenius and the Arian and Pagan party. ^ Stilicho was one of the commanders of the Eoman troops ; Gainas of the barbarian auxiliaries. Among these served a chieftain, as yet of little note, whose name was Alaric, who then first learnt the way to the West. On Sept. 6, 394, Theodosius fought a bloody but undecided battle at the Frigidus, near Aquileia.^ The superiority seemed to be so clearly on the side of Arbo- gast that even the brave Stilicho counselled a retreat. Theodosius refused. The banner of the Cross, he said, should not give way before the banners of Hercules and Jupiter. He spent the night in prayer, and towards morning dreamed that the Apostles James and Philip, mounted on white horses, had appeared, and promised him the victory. One of his soldiers had dreamed the same dream. As at Hastings so at Aquileia, 1 Enarr. m Ps. xxxvi. sec. 25 ; Paulin. Vit. ii. 33 ; Sozom. vii. 22 ; Ambr. sec. 31. See Eiifin. H. E., Theodoret, v. 24. 2 He had sent to ask tlie advice of the hermit, John of Lycopolis, •whose answer had been affirmative as to the v^ar, but had implied the death of Theodosius. See Claudian, in Eutrop. 312 ; Sozom. vii. 22, etc. 3 On this battle, see the fine verses of Claudian, De tert. cons. Hono'-ii, 90. The site is probably near the village of Heidenschafft. XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 181 one camp resounded with, prayer and the other with festivities. In the morning the battle was renewed, and aided by such generals as the Vandal Stilicho and the Goths Gainas and Alaric — aided too by an Alpine storm, the well-known and dangerous Bora of those regions, which whirled snow in the faces of the enemy — Theodosius won a signal victory.^ " Where is the Lord God of Theodosius ? " shouted the Emperor as he rode to the first day's battle ; and God had granted him the victory — one of the two only which the East gained over the West — by an interposition like that which enabled Joshua to triumph over the five kings at Beth-horon. The puppet-Emperor Eugenius was taken and beheaded. Arbogast fled into the mountains, and finally, in despair, fell on his own sword. Ambrose had returned to his post in August, and Theodosius at once re- quested him to offer up public thanks to Almighty God. Ambrose tells him that he had laid his letter on the altar, and carried it in his hand while he " offered the sacrifice," ^ that the Emperor's faith might speak by his voice. Theodosius not only granted his friend's entreaty that he would make a merciful use of his victory, but piously abstained from off'ering himself at the Lord's table because of the blood which he had recently shed.^ When Ambrose hurried to Aqudeia to see him, the Emperor flung himself at his feet, and said that it was to his merits and prayers that he owed his deliverance. The aesthetic recognition of Jupiter and Hercules by the phantom Eugenius was " the last recrudescence of Paganism." It was the conviction of the power and the 1 Enarr. in Ps. xxxvi. sec. 25 ; Aug. Be Civ. Dei, v. 26 ; Oros. vii. 35. See Claudian, Paneg. de Hi. cons. Honorii, 93. For a full and pleasing account of these events, see Hodgkin, Italy and her Invaders, i. 158-169. 2 Ep. Ixi. 5. 3 x»e ohit. Theodos. 34. 182 LIVES OF THE EATHERS XV destiny of the Christian faith which inspired Theodosius even in the face of apparent defeat. It was the indignity of seeming to retire before idols which had decided him to face the second battle. He as firmly believed that on the second day of the battle the Apostles fought for him as the Eomans believed that the Great Twin Brethren had fought for them at the battle of the Lake Eegillus. Eugenius had placed in the Alpine passes statues of Jupiter, of which the hands were in act to hurl a golden thunderbolt. Theodosius overthrew the statues, and contemptuously gave the golden thunderbolts to his out- riders. "By such lightnings," said the well-pleased soldiers, " may we be often struck ! " The great Emperor unbent from his stateliness and joined in their merriment. Thus did Paganism perish in a burst of laughter ! ^ Early the next year the Emperor fell ill, and on Jan. 17, 395, while he was still in the flower of his days, " his life lies like a ruined sea-wall amidst the fierce bar- barian tide, leaving ravaged lands beyond." He breathed his last in the arms of Ambrose, commending to him with his last breath the interests of his orphaned sons Arca- dius, aged eighteen, and Honorius, aged eleven, between whom he divided the Empire which was never again reunited. Honorius had hurried from Constantinople to the death-bed of his father. Forty days after Theodosius had expired Ambrose delivered his funeral oration in the presence of the new Emperor, his court, and his army. The corpse lay in the basilica preparatory to its removal 1 We owe tte anecdote to Augustine {De Civ. Dei, v. 26) ; see Hodgkin, i. 169. We notice tliat the year of tlie death of Theodosius was also that in which Augustine was consecrated Bishop of HippO, and Jerome had completed half of his twenty years' toil on the Vulgate. " Thus three of the four greatest Latin Fathers — Amhrose, Augustine, Jerome — saw the heginning of the downfall of the Empire, while the fourth, Gregory (540-604), after two centuries, saw its ruin completed by the invasion of the Lomhards." XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 183 to the tombs of the Emperors in the Eastern capital. Never was there an occasion more impressive. If the funeral oration of Ambrose was less magnificent than that which Massilon delivered before the coffin which contained the mortal remains of Louis XIV., it was more sincere, and the eulogy was far better deserved. Whatever may have been his faults, Theodosius was a truly great man and a benefactor of his race. In the East he had saved the Empire from the terror of the Goths ; in the West he had avenged the murder of Gratian on the usurper Maximus, and the murder of Yalentinian II. on the barbarian Arbogast and his creature Eugenins. He had restored and reunited in his own person the Empire of Constantine. He had trampled out the last embers of Paganism, and within the limits of the Empire, though not beyond its boundaries, he had secured the dominance of the Nicene faith over the Arian, which had gained so greatly from the tyrannous despotism of a Constantins, a Valens, and a Justina. He had finished the work which Constantine had begun. Ambrose had never feared, had never flat- tered, had often withstood him, but he had loved him with deep regard, and spoke of him with heartfelt honour. And well might he have been filled with the gloomiest thoughts if he could have foreseen the horrors of the future ! The successors of the strong and up- right soldier were the sullen, stupid Arcadius, the half- imbecile and pale-blooded Honorius. They had inherited the lymphatic temperament and vapid character of their mother FlacciHa. Nothing roused either Emperor except some transport of jealousy against the men who overshadowed their insignifiance. At the court of Honorius, overtowering all others in eminence and integrity, was the valiant Vandal — 184 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv " Emicuit Stilichonis apex, et cognita fulsit Canities." Arcadius, cajoled by the greedy E-ujSnus, crippled Stilicho on the very eve of a great victory. Honorius, swayed by the suppler ruffian Olympius, in the year 408 basely assassinated the protector of his youth, the father of his consorts, the bulwark of his kingdom. When Honorius, two years later, heard from an agitated officer the news of the fall of Rome, he was quite startled, and thinking that his favourite hen was dead, exclaimed, "Rome perished ! why she was feeding out of my hand only an hour ago !" "It is the city Rome which has been de- stroyed by Alaric." " Oh," said the Emperor with a sigh of relief, " I thought you meant my foiol Rome."^ Such was the imperial epitaph on the Eternal City ! But Ambrose might have wept far more bitter tears if he could have realised the slow deterioration of the Christian character which had come from its infection by the hollow glitter and deathfulness of the courts of Ravenna and Byzantium. The new type of the Chris- tian politician and the Christian litterateur which were then coming to the front were not pleasant specimens to contemplate. " Salt like this, which had utterly lost its savour, was in a certain sense worse than anything which had been seen on the dunghill of Pagan imperial Rome, and was fit for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of man." ^ We have but few remaining records of the bishop's life. Paulinus tells us some more of his miraculous stories. Among others he narrates that a certain Cresconius had taken refuge in the church, and that Stilicho, seizing the opportunity of the absence of the people in consequence of an exhibition of wild beasts 1 Procopius, De Bella Vandalico, i. 2. 2 Hodgkin, i. 337. XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 185 given by Honorius, sent soldiers to tear him from the sanctuary. Prostrate before the altar Ambrose was indignantly mourning over the violation of the asylum when news was brought him that the leopards had burst with a sudden spring upon the soldiers in the amphitheatre and grievously mangled them. Stilicho was so much struck with the circumstance that he restored Cresconius to the sanctuary. A bright and happy circumstance of the year 397 — the last year of the life of Ambrose — was the embassy sent to him by Fritigil, Queen of the Marcomanni. She had heard of the bishop from some Italian Chris- tians, and begged him to write to her an account of the Christian religion. He did so in the form of a cate- chism. She was so much struck with this, that not only did she and her husband submit herself to the Empire, but they travelled to Milan for the sole purpose of enjoying the personal intercourse of their instructor. They arrived too late. By the time they reached Milan Ambrose was dead. " It is a death-blow for all Italy," exclaimed Stilicho ; and he was right.^ It is said that StUicho entreated the friends of Ambrose and the chief citizens of MUan to go to the bishop and induce him to pray to God that his life might be prolonged. " I have not so lived among you," he answered, " that I am ashamed to live ; nor do I fear to die, because we have a merciful Lord."^ One day, as he lay iU, four of his deacons were whispering together in low tones at a great distance from his sick bed, about the person who was most fit to be his successor. Among others they mentioned Simph- 1 Paulin. Vit. p. 45 : "Cornea Stilicho dixisse fertur quod tanto viro recedente de corpore interitus immineret Italiae." ^ Paulin. sec. 45 j Possid. Vit. Aug. 27. 186 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV cianus, when they were amazed to hear the bishop exclaim three times, " An old man, but a good." On another occasion he was praying with a bishop named Bassianus when he told him that he saw the Lord Jesus approaching him with a smile upon his face. On the day of his death. Good Friday, April 4, 397, he lay from five o'clock in the afternoon till late at night with his arms outstretched in the form of a cross. His lips moved, but his friends could not hear his voice. Honoratus, Bishop of Vercellae, had laid himself down to sleep in the upper part of the house when he fancied that he heard a voice thrice say to him, " Else, make haste, he is on the point of death." He rose and ad- ministered the sacrament to his dying friend. Im- mediately after he had received the elements Ambrose expired. He was in the fifty-seventh year of his age, and had been Bishop of Milan for twenty- two years. His body was carried to the Church dedicated to Protasius and Gervasius,^ and there on Easter Eve the children who were to be baptized fancied that they saw him seated on his episcopal throne, while others said they saw a star shining above his corpse. When Ehadagaisius was besieging Florence Ambrose appeared to one of the citizens, and promised that they should be delivered the next day : a vision which was fulfilled by the complete victory of Stilicho. Again, when Mascezel was leading his army against Gildo in Africa, and was in utter despair, he told Paulinus and other priests that he had seen Ambrose come to him with a stafi" in his hand, and thrice strike the ground with the words, "Here, here, here." Accordingly, on that very spot, three days afterwards, Mascezel won a complete and 1 Now the Chiesa di S. Ambrogio. It is believed that his body rests under the altar. XV LAST DAYS OP AMBEOSE 187 filial victory. These and other semi-miraculous narra- tives about him are related by his biographer. If they show nothing else, they at least show the intense im- pression which he had left on the minds of his contem- poraries. Even his spirit was looked upon as a guardian angel of the Church and Empire, which in his lifetime he had so often protected. But Ambrose needs not the pale and sickly gleam of ecclesiastical miracles to enhance the glory of his memory.^ Paulinus, amid a crowd of prodigies, tells us that a few days before his last sickness he had seen him expounding in church the 43d psalm, and that while he was speaking a lambent fire like a shield shone round his head and made his countenance as white as snow. This transfiguration was purely subjective. The aureole was but a reflexion of the reverence felt by the secretary for his great master, but few have better deserved the golden light with which painters surround the brows of saints. Ambrose had his weaknesses like all other men. In his relic-worship, his extravagant estimate of the intrinsic merits of virginity and of asceticism, his dan- gerous assumption of priestly autocracy, and his confu- sion of the Eucharist with the sacrifice of the mass, he shared in the errors of his times. He was not a deep or a consecutive thinker; he was in no respect an 1 There are states of mind to whicli, as Mr. Fronde says, "the distinction between objective and subjective truth has no existence." The miracles related by Paulinus of Ambrose, by Sulpioius Severus of Martin of Tours, and by Pontius of Cyprian, are not pure inventions. Sometimes they are rhetoric turned into logic ; or metaphors translated into fact ; or spiritual events clothed (as in the Pilgrim's Progress) in ob- jective garb ; or simple exaggerations of actual but uncommon occurrences. We do not reject them because they are miraculous, but because they are often meaningless and contrary to the known method of God's deal- ings even in His supernatural manifestations, and, above all, because they are without a single tittle of adequate evidence. 188 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xv original teacher ; ^ he sometimes pushed his hierarchical pretensions into arrogant intolerance. But his merits far outweighed the harm done by his intellectual limi- tations. He restored all Italy to a firm and true faith.^ He was the bulwark of the cause of the Church.^ He maintained the testimony of Christ even before kings, and was not ashamed. He showed how feeble was imperial despotism before the dauntless impotence of a spiritual power. He presents us with one of the highest types of a great Christian bishop, who by his faith, goodness, and disinterested self-denial, became a bul- wark alike of his nation and of the Church. He was every inch a man. The firm dignity of a Eoman senator and the stern mission of a Hebrew prophet was in him softened by the compassionate sympathy of a true servant of Christ. A Eoman by birth, a magistrate in rank, a bishop by election, he was the precursor of a new social order, and he combined in his single person the daring independence of a Thomas of Canterbury with the loyal usefulness of a Suger.* He was at once a spiritual ruler and a devoted statesman. He faced in turn the opposition of Valentinian I., of Justina, of Valentinian XL, of Maximus, Eugenius, Arbo- gast, and Theodosius himself; but to three of these sovereigns, as well as to his much loved Gratian, he was a faithful servant and a paternal adviser. Ambrose was a voluminous, but for the most part 1 To this fact Jerome makes some almost insulting allusions, and in Ms De Virr. illustr. coldly says — " De quo, quia superest, meum judicium subtraham, ne in alterutram partem aut adulatio in me reprehendatur aut Veritas." ^ Jer. Chronic. Grat. Hi. et Equit. coss. " Post Auxentii seram mortem, Mediolani Ambrosio constitute, omnis ad rectam fidem Italia cqnvertitur." ' Rufin. Invect. ii. in Hieron. " Qui non solum Mediolanensis Ecclesiae verum etiam omnium Ecclesiarum columna quaedam et turris inexpugnabiKs fuit." * See De Broglie, vi. 453. LAST DAYS OF AMBEOSE 189 a second-hand writer. He wielded the bishop's crozier more powerfully than the author's pen. His ethical system is largely based on that of the Stoics ; his doc- trine is chiefly that of Basil ; his ascetic views those of Gregory of Nyssa ; his exegesis that of Philo and Origen. But lack of intellectual independence was partly com- pensated by wide culture. Among Greek classic writers he quotes Thales, Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Homer, Euripides, and others ; among Latins, Virgil, Cicero, Pliny, and others. He had also some knowledge of the popular science of the day. He said with perfect modesty to his people, " I have begun to teach you what I have not yet learnt." ^ Yet he considered authorship to be a distinct part of his ministerial and episcopal duty. His works fall under six divisions, which are not, however, very distinctly marked.^ They are — De offic. i. 1. 2 Works of St. Ambeose (with Approximate Dates). 376, 377. 378, 379, 381. 382. 383. 355. 386. 3.S7, De Paradiso. De Cain et AbeL De Tobia. De Virginibus. De Vidius. De Virginitate. De Fide, lib. 1-5. De exoessu fratris Satyri. De Noe et Area. De Spiritu Sancto. De incamationis dominicae Sacra- mento. De interpellatione Job et David, lib. 1-4. De Poenitentia. Expositio in Psalm. 119. Expcs. Evang. sec. Lucam lib. 1-10. 388. De Abraham, lib. 1, 2. De Isaac et anima. De bono mortis. De fuga saeculi. De Jacob et vita beata, lib. 1, 2. De Joseph patriarcha. Debenedictionibns patriarchaium. De mysteriis. 390. 392. 395. Hexaomeron, lib. 1-6. De tlia et jejunio. De officiis ministrorum, lib. 1-: De institutione Virgiuis. De obitu Valentiniani. Exhortatio Virginitatis. De Nabuthe. De obitu Theodosii. Enarrationes in 12 psalmos. Epistolae xci. Hymni. Works of doubtful genuineness are De Sacramentis, lib. ■ 1 - 6 ; De lapsu Virginis consecratae ; Apologia Prophetae David. Some of his worts are lost, as, for instance, the one (Aug. Sp. xxxi.) in which he showed that Christianity was in no respect borrowed from Plato. The Commentary on St. Paul's Ep- istles, De 42 mansionibus, De Trinitate, and Sermones, are by Ambrosiaster. 190 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV 1. Sermons. — These — whether dogmatic, exegetic, or occasional — are always practical in their tendency, but are less remarkable for eloquence than for edifica- tion. They are the sermons of a Eoman and a ruler, and one who had known the world. ^ It was the forthrightness of them, the tone of sincerity ringing through them, which, joined to the singular personal attractiveness and ascendency of the speaker, charmed the ear and touched the heart of Augustine. The ^do<; — what Americans call the magnetism— of the speaker must have constituted their chief force. In many instances they must have told with an effect all the more thrilling upon the mind of the congregation at Milan because they abound in allusions to the trials and ever-shifting alarms of the time. Their chief value consists in their manly and practical directness. Often — as in his Hexaemeron — Ambrose chose the same texts or treated the same subjects as Basil, but, if he did so with less learning, with fewer allusions, and less literary grace and culture, he did so in a more useful and sober manner. Take, for instance, his remarks on almsgiving. The eulogies on that great duty were far too sweeping and indiscriminate in the sermons of the great teachers of the fourth century. But Ambrose, while he admired almsgiving no less than they, is yet careful to point out that almsgiving to impostors and vagabonds, doles given without due enquiry and con- sideration, are a premium offered to greed, deceit, and vice.^ 1 Ricliter, Gesch. d. Westrom. Reichs, 602, speaks of " priesterlich- theatralisohen Pathos, Uebertriebung und uiigeschmack" ; but his eloquence won the Arians from Justina, made Theodosius quail, helped to convert Augustine, and was so powerful that mothers kept their daughters from church lest he should persuade them to take the veil. 2 Be off. ii. 16. Ozanam says " Dans sa langage il y a je ne sais quel miel attique," and Ebert goes so far as to call him "the Christian Cicero. " XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 191 2. Letters. — These have not the charm and sweetness which often marks the letters of Gregory and Basil, nor have they the fiery personalities and imaginative vivid- ness which give such strange interest to those of Jerome ; but they have a special interest of their own, and are full of value alike for the history of those times, and as illustrations of the character of this great ecclesiastic.^ They are mostly letters of a public character, like those of Cyprian. 3. Exegetic writings.^ — These are of less value than any which have come from the pen of Ambrose. In Scripture interpretation he was of necessity serus studiorum, and he borrows his principles of exegesis exclusively from the Greek Fathers, Hippolytus, Origen, Didymus, and especially the three Cappadocians, of whom the two Gregorys were largely influenced by the allegorising fancies of Origen.* His exposition belongs to the genus which Sixtus Sevensis defines as " thematica." It endeavours to find in one particular fragment of Scripture the complete portrayal of the matter specially in hand.* He adopts the already- current and arbitrary threefold method of interpretation, so as to find in each passage an historic, moral, and spiritual or mystic meaning. The spiritual meaning is 1 Symmaolius once wrote to thank Theodosius for sending Sarmatian captives to fight in. the arena, and often writes to others about the purchase of race-horses, wUd beasts, and gladiators. How different are the letters of Ambrose ! ^ The Commentary on the Epistles of St. Paid, written when Damasus was Pope (see on 1 Tim. Hi. 1 5) was long attributed to Ambrose, and printed with his works. The author is now quoted as Amhrosiaster, but it is not certain who he was. 8 Jer. Ep. Ixv., ad Pammachium. " Nuper Ambrosius sic Hexaemeron Origenis compilavit, ut magis Hippolyti sententias Basiliique sequeretur." The passage in which he is compared to a crow, decked out in alien colours but toticg ipse tenebrosus, is quoted by Rufinus, Invect. ii. * Sixt. Sevens. Bibl. Sand, iii ; Meth. 22. 192 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XV in many places so exclusively insisted on, that hardly any of the historic sense remains. This is specially observable when he deals with the lapses of Old Testament saints, such as the drunkenness of Noah, the concubinage of Abraham, the incest of Lot.^ The only method known to the Fathers of escaping the insulting criticism of the Manichees was to give to such narratives an explanation almost exclusively allegorical. Augustine tells us that it was from Ambrose that he learnt this strange method of illustrating the misapplied and misinterpreted text : " The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." He had not known how to answer the Manichean objections till he heard Ambrose " spiritually unfolding, by a removal of the mystic veil, the things which, taken literally, seemed to teach perversity."^ Any value which may attach to the exegetic treatises of Ambrose is purely secondary. It lies in accidental and separable remarks, not by any means in the radically unsound method of interpretation which he adopts, and which his influence helped to perpetuate for so many years. But he did for Latin theology what Cicero did for Latin philosophy, by enriching it from the stores of Greek literature.^ 1 In preachmg against extravagance in dress, lie imagines that the ladies will say to him, " Oh, but bishop, Rebecca had earrings and bracelets ! " and he proceeds to tell them that Rebecca's earrings were pious attention and her bracelets good deeds ! {De Abrah. i. 9). So Mesopo- tamia is a type of the Church, which is " dudbus stipata flurainibus, lavacro gratiae et fletu poenitentiae, (id. i. 87). 2 Aug. Gonf. vi. 4. This method is specially illustrated in the earlier books of Ambrose, De Noe et Area, De Isaac, De henedictionihuspatriarcharum, etc. The method is due partly to the obstinate pride of Rabbinism, but chiefly to allegorising processes borrowed by Philo from the Stoics. For instance, Ambrose elaborately compares the structure of the Ark with that of the human body ! 8 Wordsworth, Ch. Hist. iii. 70. Plitt says of Ambrose's comment- aries : " AUe diese Schriften sind in der damals herrschenden allegorisen- den Art gehalten, aber wir finden auch viele vortreiilichen Bemerkungen." XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 193 4. Ascetic writings. — These show St. Ambrose on his weakest side. They are even more devoid of origi- nahty than his other works. Deep as was his passion for the virgin life — a passion due, no doubt, in great measure to the early influence exercised over him by his sister Marcellina, — and ecstatic as are the praises which he heaps upon it, he has nothing to say or to urge in its favour but what had been already said more powerfully by Basil and Gregory of Nyssa. His view of virginity and asceticism is not quite so fantastic and unevangelical as Jerome's.'' It is based to a large extent on the unconscious Manicheism which had tainted the thought of his age, and which was the result of alien Eastern influences, defended, as an afterthought, by irrelevant and misinterpreted texts in defiance of the entire general tenor of Holy Writ. Ambrose, however, dwelt more on the worries and troubles of marriage, and made the wise remark that marriage was for nearly all, virginity only for the few.^ Ambrose, who was a foe to all individualism, condemned Jovinian, as Siricius had condemned him at Eome and Jerome had raved at him from Bethlehem. Nevertheless, whatever may have been the errors into which Jovinian may have been driven, as men usually are, by the necessary vehemence of a righteous but one-sided reaction, yet, in his view of the Christian's union with Christ, of the indifference of meats, of the equal honourableness of marriage and celibacy, of the danger of a legalistic will-worship, of the evil of a twofold standard of morality — one for the masses and the other for the few — and of the extravagant importance 1 See Be Virginibus, I. viii. sees. 34, 35 ; De Abrah. i. 3, sec. 19 : " Discant tomines conjugia non spemere." ^ De Virg. 1. c. " Ergo dissuades nuptias ? ego vero suadeo et eos damno qui dissuadere consuerunt." VOL. II O 194 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv attached to external actions, he was far more in the right than those by whom he was anathematised. The future did justice to the views which the present reviled indeed but could not refute. 5. Dogmatic writings. — In these writings there is again little originality. They are derived almost ex- clusively from the Greek Fathers.-^ In the De Fide and De Spiritu he closely follows Basil. The extent to which Ambrose was indebted to others made Jerome compare him to a crow in borrowed feathers. He shared the views of his time, but expresses them with none of the systematic precision and inferential compactness and hardy acceptance of extremest consequences which mark the dogmatism of Augustine. He makes the wise remark that it has not pleased God to reveal to us His plan of salvation in dialectical form.^ Theoretically he holds that no one can be saved without baptism; yet he will not condemn unbaptized infants to eternal punishment, and he considers that Valentinian's desire to be baptized was practically baptism. In the Lord's Supper, if we may accept literally his rhetorical ex- pressions, he seems to have sunk into the doctrine of tr an substantiation, or something not easily distinguish- able from it.^ He paid high respect to the see of Rome, though in a perfectly independent way. He says of St. Peter's confession, " Strive that thou too be a rock, and so seek the rock, not without thee, but within thee. Thy rock is thy conduct and thy mind. On this rock thy house is built."* And again, "Faith, 1 He accepts the unfortunate doctrine of a ransom paid to tlie devil in tlie Atonement, and his being tricked by the Incarnation. Expos, in Luc. iv. sees. 12, 16. 2 De Fide, i. 5, sec. 42 : " Non in dialectica complacuit Deo salvum facere populum suum." 3 De Myst. i. 9, sec. 53 : "Nos conficinius corpus Ohristi." * De Incarn. Dom. iv. 32: "Petrus primatum egit confessionis non XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 195 then, is the foundation of the Church ; for it is said, not of the flesh of Peter, but of faith, that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Perhaps his most original book is On the Blessing of Death, in which he takes a singularly mild view of the future punish- ment of the wicked, expresses his belief in a purifying fire, and argues that, whatever that punishment be, it is a state distinctly preferable to a sinful life.^ His eschatology was deeply influenced by the larger hopes of Origen, though he did not blindly follow him.^ But the dogmatic teaching of Ambrose has no independent authority. It is simply what he caught up entire from his Greek teachers when he — an un- baptized catechumen — was transferred in eight days from the civil tribunals to the most influential bishopric of the West. " I must at once learn," he says, " and teach, since I had no leisure to learn before." ^ He was far more a practical teacher than a scientific theo- logian.* 6. As a moral teacher we see Ambrose at his best. His chief ethical book is that On the Duties of the Clergy. It is avowedly founded on Cicero's De officiis, and only differs from it in its Christian standpoint and its Scriptural illustrations. It abounds in noble pre- cepts, but lacks the specifically Christian impress. In honoris ; fidei non ordinis " (whicli Baunard renders non seulement . , . mais aussi ! Plitt). In Luc. Exp. vi sec. 98. "Enitere ergo ut et tu petra sis." 1 Be Bono mortis, sec. 38. In this book he is influenced by the un- canonical Fourth Book of Esdras. He believes in the efficacy of prayer for the dead. See De Excess. Sat. 80. ^ See Forster, Ambrosivs, 113 £F. Thus he rejects material torments. Expos, in Luc. lib. vii. 204 f. ^ De off. i. 1, sec 4. See Pruner, Die Theologie des H. Ambrodits, Eichstatt, 1862. * "Ein Vorkampfer fiir die kirchlichen Interessen, weniger ein specu- lativer Kopf und systematischer Denker." — Forster, p, 124. 196 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xv its applications, little reference is made to tlie professed truths on which it is based. He is hampered through- out by the adoption of the ancient fourfold division of virtues into wisdom, justice, courage, and prudence — a classification not exhaustive — and abounding in cross- divisions. His illustrations are taken almost exclusively from the Old Testament, and the ideal of Christ Himself is perpetually fading and vanishing from his pages. To produce a book of Christian ethics was an original, a valuable, and a fruitful attempt; but the attempt is carried out in a very imperfect manner. Ambrose is betrayed into fatal error by the feebleness of the exe- gesis of his age. He has, if possible, even less percep- tion than many of his contemporaries of the relation of the Gospel to the Law. This deficiency, together with a misapprehension of one or two isolated passages in the Gospels, led him into the dangerous error of distinguishing between ordinary duties and counsels of perfection — an error which deeply vitiated the view of his age, and led, on the one hand, to the belief in "works of supererogation," with all the boundless hierarchical abuses deduced from it ; and, on the other, to many deep and terrible corruptions of monastic practice and monastic theory. 7. Lastly, Ambrose is the author of hjnnns which have been of inestimable advantage to the Christian Church. The practice of antiphonal congregational singing, which he introduced from the East, has not only added an untold beauty and sweetness to Christian worship, but from the days of Augustine downwards has influenced the hearts of many who could not have been 'touched by any other means. They were distinctly I intended to teach the truth. " They say," he remarks, " that the people has been deceived by my hymns. I XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 197 do not in the least deny it. That is a great incantation, and none is more potent. What is more potent than a confession of the Trinity which is now heard daUy on the lips of aU the people ? All therefore have been (by these verses) made teachers, who before were scarcely able to be learners." ^ He deserves to share with Hilary the proud title of "the Father of Latin Hymnology";^ and Latin hymnology, if less imaginative, is also less fantastic, more "simple, sensuous, passionate" than Greek hymnology.^ It speaks the language of the deep- est and most sincere emotions. Many indeed of the so-called " Ambrosian hymns " are not by Ambrose, but they are imitations of his rhythm and of his man- ner; and he who wrote the morning hymn Mterne rerum conditor, the evening hymn Deus creator om- nium, and the Christmas hymn Veni redemptor gen- tium,*" would have been a benefactor of the Church even if this had been the only service which he had ever rendered. In the case of Ambrose it was but one of the smallest services in the long and noble life of the Basil of the West, — the precursor of 1 There is a play on tlie double meaning of carmen, a hymn and an incantation. ^ See Diet, of Christian Anth. s. v. v. "Ambrosian Music" and " Liturgies." Hilary of Poictiers is also said to have written a Hymna- rium (Jer. De Virr. illustr.) His hymns are written in iambic dimeter acatalectic — " Deus creator omnium." Biraghi (Inni dnceri di S. Ambrogio, MUan, 1862) says of them that " they are like ancient inscriptions written on marble monuments in few but incisive verses. No glittering flashes, but the calm light of spiritual enthusiasm." The "Ambrosian Liturgy" still used at Milan is traced back by tradition to St. Barnabas, but there is no very ancient MS. of it. See supra, i. 626. ^ See Ozanam, La Civilisation au V Sihcle, ii. 263. Bishop Words- worth [Ch. Hist. iii. 74), traces the influence of Ambrose in the thoughts of Keble. * See Trench, Sacred Latin Poetry, 80-86. The Te Bewm, which is legendarily said to have been composed by Ambrose at the baptism of Augustine, is certainly not by Mm. 198 LIVES OF THE FATHEES XV Gregory VII., but with a larger and more liberal in- telligence. In 824 another Bishop of Milan, Angilbert II., exhumed his remains from the spot where they lay between the martyrs Gervasius and Protasius and placed them in a sarcophagus of porphyry. Such a sarcophagus was discovered in 1864, and it is believed to be the one in which his body lay. It was opened in 1871, and declared to be genuine by the Pope in 1873.^ He is always painted as a bishop with pallium, mitre, and crozier. He is generally to be recognised by the beehive at his feet, alluding to the legend of his infancy ; or the knotted scourge of three thongs in his hand, to imply his victory over the Arians ; or with two bones in his hand, to indicate the discovery of the bodies of SS. Gervasius and Protasius. The most famous picture in which he is represented is the magnificent Rubens in the Belvedere Gallery, Vienna, in which he repels Theodosius from the porch of the basilica. In this picture he does indeed appear as "le fougueux ev6que qui osa fermer les portes de r:figlise h Theodose" (Diderot).^ This is a fitting place at which to pause and to point out the general eff'ect produced by the conversion of the Eoman Empire on the society and history of the fourth century. The misery of that epoch was intense. The whole framework of society was affected by the long atrophy of Paganism. There existed on all sides the terrible 1 Biraghi, I tre sepolcri Santambrosiani, Mil. 1864. ^ Oq tlie representations of St. Ambrose in painting, see Mrs. Jame- son's Sacred and Legendary Art, L 300-308. XV LAST DAYS OF AMBEOSE 199 contrast — always a dark omen for any land — between boundless wealth on tbe one hand and grinding poverty on the other. The middle classes had to a great extent disappeared, and since manual labour was regarded as dishonourable, there was little to bridge the deep chasm between the owners of vast estates and the idle depend- ent herd of slaves and servUe clients. The vast imports of wheat rendered agriculture unprofitable, and conse- quently it was neglected. Upon the peasantry the burden of taxation fell with terrible iucidence, and was made much worse by the irresponsible exactions of a vulture -crowd of officials intent only upon enriching themselves. The proceeds of these taxes went to support the insolence of a half -barbarian army and the enormous luxury of an unwieldy court. The Em- peror in his isolated splendour was unapproachable by the mass of the population, and besides, being himself in many cases a helpless puppet in the hands of un- scrupulous ministers, he might be as ignorant as Louis XV. of the despotic crimes and untold misery which existed at his very gates. The cities were constantly growing in size ; the country was depleted and desolate ; mendicancy increased on every side ; and in the general despair as to amelioration the barbarians were looked to by many in the light of deliverers. The Church, and the Church alone, cared for the poor, and of this fact the Emperor Julian is an unsuspected witness. Her charity might often be indiscriminate and unsuccessful, but she protected those whom the State oppressed, and relieved those whom the State abandoned. When rich men were hoarding their corn stores even in the days of famine — when neither sophist nor Emperor nor Pagan priest reproved their greed — the voices of BasU and Ambrose and Chrysostom forced them for very shame 200 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xv to open their granaries. The bishops alone tried to heal the eating ulcer of usury. ^ They were rightly regarded as the true defensores civitatis. The Church waited with her gentlest and unwearied ministrations by the miserable deathbed of the ancient world. No one was more active than Ambrose in these works of mercy. No nobler representative of the Church in its best aspects could be found. Constantly was his voice raised against the oppression of the rich whUe he faithfully warned against the lying imposture of the mendicants.^ When men were unjustly perse- cuted, he extended to them the rights of asylum. When multitudes were taken prisoners in the incessant battles against rebels and invaders, he unhesitatingly melted down the sacred vessels to purchase their ransom.^ No- body spoke more boldly against vice. He denounced the customs of drinking toasts,* and put down the vice of revelling on the feast days of martyrs. He rebuked the perfumed and luxurious youths ; ^ the women who reclined on silver couches and drank in jewelled cups ;^ the men who delighted in porphyry tables and gilded fretwork, and cared more for their hounds and horses than for their fellow -Christians.'' Nor did he less faithfully denounce the idle multitude who patronised the madness of the circus and the vice of the theatre.^ To the rich he said : " You clothe the walls of your houses and leave the poor unclad ; the naked waU at your gates, and your only thought is of the marble with which you shall overlay your floors ; he begs for bread, and your horse has a golden bit. Costly apparel delights 1 Ambr. Be Tohia, 7. ^ j)g o^_ ministr. ii. 15. Jer. Ep. ad Nepotian. 8 Id. ih. 21. * "Videtur non amare Imperatorem qui pro ejus salute non biberit." 5 Be Elia. 12. ^ Be Nabuthe, 5, 13. 7 jj. 13. * Be fug. saec. XV LAST DAYS OF AMBROSE 201 you, while others lack food. The very jewel in your ring would protect from hunger a mass of people." ^ To the poor he preached : "Be sober, be diligent, awake to -worthier efforts and nobler aims." It may be said, and said with truth, that on the other side of the picture must be set some evils. Among these we must reckon the growth of half-Pagan super- stitions thinly veiled under Christian sanctions ; the deepening tendency to usurp and tyrannise on the part of a clergy who had now been elevated from humble ministers into a supernatural caste ; and, perhaps above all, the tendency to look on the ascetic and monastic life as necessary for all who aimed at perfection. It was mainly from this cause that "religion" ran the risk of becoming supercilious and exclusive ; and while on the one hand there were thousands of monks and virgins and celibate priests, who often enjoyed a reputation for holiness without the reality, there were on the other a countless multitude who came to think that " religion " was not for them, and who were only nominally influ- enced by the truths of the Gospel.^ It has often been a question whether Christianity must be reckoned or not among the causes which over- threw the empire of the Latin world. That such was the case can hardly be doubted. It exercised on the sway and the institutions of Paganism a benumbing and disintegrating force. Men who had once felt con- fident in the protection of Mavors and Eomulus and Victory were now profoundly disheartened. The anchor of their old polytheism was rudely torn up, and they drifted on the open sea of doubt. The general indifier- 1 Be Nabuthe, 6, 7. 2 On the subject of these paragraphs, see Forster, Ambros. 1-16 ; and Hodgkin, voL ii 202 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xv ence to all things earthly caused by too predominant and exclusive a love for the world beyond the grave, tending ever to multiply the inert masses of monks and solitaries, was another weakening influence. All this had long been fore-ordained in the plans of the Eternal Providence. Long had the fiat gone forth — " Eome shall perish ! Write that word In the blood that she hath spilt ! Perish hopeless and abhorred Deep in ruin as in guilt." Nothing could alleviate the long slow agony of that decay, in which " Rome herself was bane unto herself, And she, whom mighty kingdoms curtsied to. Like a forlorn and desperate castaway Did shameful execution on herself." It was written in the decrees of God that the Gospel of His Son should hasten the final fall of the Old World ; that amid its crumbling ruins it might rear fairer and nobler kingdoms which He Himself would " build with fair stones and lay their foundations with sapphires." XVI ST. JEEOME^ SECTION I YOUTH AND EDUCATION OF JEEOME Steidon was a little town on the borders of Dalmatia and Pannonia, in the diocese of Aquileia. It was destroyed by the Goths even in the days of St. Jerome, and its site is unknown. When the saint speaks of "his native land," he seems to speak of Pannonia. 1 St. Jerome's Works. Ed. Princeps, Bishop Andreas, and Theodorus of Gaza, Rome, 1470. This, like the editions of 1476, 1479, and others in the fifteenth century, was very incomplete. The first comparatively complete editions were that of Erasmus, 1516-20, 9 vols, folio, 2d ed. 1565, Basle ; Marianus Vic- torius, 1565 fi'. (often reprinted), Rome ; P. H. Calixt and Tribbeohovius, Frankfort, 1684 ff. 12 vols. foUo ; Martianay, 1693-1706; Vallarsi, Veron. 1734-1742, 11 vols. foHo, 2d ed. Venice, 1766-1772; Migne, Patrologia Latina, xxvii.-xixiii. Paris, 1845 (mainly a reprint of the second edition of Vallarsi). The Quaestiones Hieronymianae of Le Clerc was published at Amsterdam, 1700. There are lives of St. Jerome attributed to Gennadius and Eusebius of Cremona, which are reprinted, together with various apocryphal letters of Augustine, Cyril of Jerusalem, etc., in Vallarsi, vol. xi. 1-280 ; Migne, vol. 1 {Patrologia Latina, vol. xxvii.), and in other editions. There are separate lives by Baronius, Du Pin, Martianay, Tillemont, Ceillier, Seb. Dolci, Stilt- ing, Schrockh ; Engelstoft, Hieron. Stridonemis, Havn. 1797 ; D. v. Colhi, in Ersch. u. Gruber, Encychp. sec. ii. vol. 8, Leipzig, 1831 ; Hagen- bach, in Herzog, Bealencycl. ; J. "W. Baum, Ewronymi Vita, Strasburg, 204 LIVES OF THE EATHEES XVI Domnus, one of the bishops who subscribed to the creed of Nice, calls himself " a bishop of Stridon from Pannonia," but there was no bishop of Stridon in Jerome's day, and the superscription is of doubtful genuineness.'' Whether we regard Jerome as a Pannonian or as a Dalmatian, he had a very low opinion of the moral con- dition of the people among whom he lived. " In my country," he says, " rudeness is indigenous, the god is the belly ; men live for the present only ; the richer a man is the more saintly is he."^ He goes on to say, " like people, like priests." Lupicinus, the bishop, was as bad as his flock. "The worm-eaten vessel had a weak pilot, and the blind led the blind into the ditch." Even after making allowance for the splenetic mood in which Jerome often poured forth his thoughts, it is clear that he had no great affection for the place of his birth. He scarcely ever alludes to Stridon. When he was called there by duty his chief friends and his chief interests were at the neighbouring towns of ^mona and Aquileia. ^mona was a fortified market town, larger and more important than the modern Laybach, which stands upon its site ; Aquileia, which is now a straggling village of fourteen hundred inhabitants, was in Jerome's dav a splendid commercial emporium, of which the ruined 1835; Montalembert, ies Moines d'Ocddent, i. 144-187, Paris, 1861 ; J. T. CoUombet, Hist, de St. Jerome, Paris, 1844 ; Otto Zbokler, Hierony- mus Sein Leben und Wirken, Gotha, 1865 ; Am^d^e Thierry, St. Jerome, Paris, 1867; Fremantle, Did. of Ghrist. Biography, iii. 29-50, London, 1882. There are sketcheB of the life and works of St. Jerome, more or less complete, in the works of Alban Butler, Neander, Gieseler, Schaflf, Mihnan, De Broglie, and Mohler. 1 Ep. vii. 4, 5. It cannot be the Sidrona of Ptolemy (ii. 1 7) which was in Liburnia. Nor can it be Sdrigna in Istria, where the inhabitants show a tomb which they assert to be that of Eusebins, the father of Jerome. See Zbckler, p. 20. 2 ^p_ yjj_ 5_ XVI ST. JEEOME 205 fragments attest the ancient magnificence. It had a mint of its own, and as the capital of Venetia stood fourth among the great cities of Italy. Its military strength ^ enabled it to defy the army of Maximus in the third century (a.d. 238), and to baffle for three months the tremendous assault of Attila in the fifth (a.d. 452). In the churches, the monastery, and the stirring life of this city Jerome found an escape from the dulness and provincialism of his native Stridon. His exact name is uncertain. He is often called Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus. Eusebius was the name of his father, and was perhaps given to the son. ^Vhether he ever bore the name Sophronius is very doubt- ful. He, never calls himself by that name, and it may possibly have arisen from some confusion with the Soph- ronius who, even in his lifetime, translated some of his works into Greek. ^ The date of his birth is a matter of dispute. His younger contemporary Prosper, who is followed by many modern authorities, says that he was born a.d. 331, and that he died at the age of ninety-one.* Others — especi- ally Baronius and THlemont — think that he did not live beyond his seventy -eighth year, and therefore place his birth a.d. 342. Vallarsi furnishes many reasons for supposing that he was not born earlier than 346. This date seems the most probable, although there are not sufficient data for arriving at an exact decision.* 1 Amm. Marc. xxi. 12. ^ See De Virr. ill 134 (ad. 392). 8 The life attributed to Gennadius says that he died at eighty-eight (in Migne, xxii. 184). * Prosper's statement is obviously mistaken, for Jerome tells us (Ep. lii.) that he wrote his famous letter to Heliodorus (Ep. xiv.) when he was "adolescens immo poene puer" (Ep. lii. 1), and the date of this letter is a.d. 373. His first literary attempt — the letter to Innocentius — was written A.D. 370, and, according to Prosper's date, he would then have been 206 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi We can get but few and passing glimpses into the interior of the household in which Jerome passed his infancy and boyhood.^ His father and his mother were both Christians, and he testifies that he was educated in the strictest Christian principles ; " nurtured on Catholic milk from his very cradle, and all the more a Churchman because he had never been a heretic," although the Arians were making great exertions on every side.^ But he shows a certain reticence about his early years.^ Unlike Augustine, who tells us so much about his mother Monnica, unlike Gregory of Nazianzus, who dwells with such deep affection on the memory of his mother Nonna, St. Jerome has never even told us his mother's name, nor does he make any direct allusion to her in all his voluminous writings. It is possible that she died while he was yet a young man.* Of his father Eusebius he says scarcely anything. It is clear, however, that the family was in easy circumstances. Whatever may have been Jerome's other trials, he was never in want of money. He was able to travel over a great part of Europe and Syria, and even to carry with him a choice library which he could not have acquired without considerable expense.^ He never grudged the thirty-nine years old. Further, he says that he was a hoy learning gram/mar when Julian died, a.d. 363 ; whereas, if we accept Prosper's date, he was then thirty-two. Prosper was misled by some general and rhetorical expressions, as, for instance, when Jerome tells Augustine that he was to him "delate fllius" {Ep. cv. 5). ^ He says : " Quis nostrum non meminit infantiae suae," and tells us how in hia later years he used to dream of himself as a boy (eomatulus) ; but he has preserved very few anecdotes of his early years. 2 Ep. Ixxxii. 2. ^ The chief allusions are in Epp. Hi. Ixviii., and some passages in his commentaries collected in Vallarsi, xi. 8 sqq. * She was alive in 373 when he started for the East. Ep. xxii. 30 : " Cum . . . parentibus, sorore, cognatis . . . me castrassem." ^ Ep. xxii. 30: " Bibliotheca, quara mihi Romam summo studio ac XVI ST. JEROME 207 outlay necessary for teachers and secretaries. He tells us of the luxurious table which he had enjoyed in his earlier years, but which he voluntarily abandoned.^ He inherited an estate^ which supplied all his wants, though when he sold it to support the influx of monks to Bethlehem, he modestly describes it as consisting of " half-ruined cottages which have escaped the hands of the barbarians."* But, though the parents of Jerome were weU-to-do, there is a suspicion that they were of servile rank. Certain it is that John, Bishop of Jeru- salem, in his complaints about the ordination of Pauli- nianus, the younger brother of Jerome, said that " he had been made a cleric from a slave." * If there had been no ground whatever for the taunt Jerome could instantly have answered it by an indignant disclaimer. Instead of this he only replies that others also of servile rank had been admitted to the presbyterate, and that Onesimus was ordained deacon by St. Paul. It is difii- cult to get over the inference that no oiher answer could be given to those who knew the facts. ^ It is true, indeed, that Jerome elsewhere uses the phrase " servilis nequitia" of Palladius,^ and says of his friend Hylas, who had been a servant of Melania, that "he had washed away by the purity of his morals the stain of slavery." I see nothing in these remarks to render it improbable that the father and mother of Jerome labore confeceram, carere omnino non poteram." He says in one place that he had emptied his purse in buying the works of Origen. 1 E-p. xxii. 30 : " Consuetudine lautioris cihi." 2 "Parentum . . . census " (^^. Ixvi. 14). ^ Ep. l^yi. 14. * Ep. Ixxxii. 2 : " E servo clericum factum criminatur." ^ Zockler ingeniously conjectures that Paulinianus had been taken captive by the Goths in the total sack of Stridon in a.d. 377 (comp. Ep. cxxiii. 17), when he was a child of eight years old. But surely this would not have branded him with the name of " slave." ^ Proem. Dial. c. Pelagianos. 208 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi belonged to the class of wealthy freedmen, and this may account for Jerome's comparative silence about his earlier years. In the first book of his answer to Eufinus he tells us that he remembers how he ran in and out of the little cells of slaves at play when he should have been at work/ It has been gratuitously assumed that these slaves belonged to his father. It is just as probable that they belonged to his wealthy foster- brother Bonosus, and I think it probable that Eusebius and his wife may have been emancipated members of that "familia." The household consisted of Eusebius and his wife, Jerome, and a sister. The second son Paulinianus was born twenty years after Jerome.^ His mother had a sister named Castorina, between whom and her nephew there was a deep estrangemeat which he tried to remove by an appeal to the duty of Christian charity.^ The relations of the members of this little household to one another do not seem to have been happy. Paulinianus indeed attached himself to his brother, and lived with him at Bethlehem for many years. The only sister, whose name is not mentioned, fell into some serious sin, of which Jerome speaks as a wound inflicted by the devil, and which rendered him deeply solicitous about her.* She had, however, been "recalled from death to life " by Julian, a deacon of Aquileia,^ while she was still in early youth ; and Jerome commends her to the special care of the Bishop Valerian, and of his friends Chromatius, Eusebius, and Jovinus, who with their mother^ and sisters were living an ascetic life.^ 1 Inv. c. Eufin. i. 30. 2 Paulinianus was thirty when he was ordained at Bethlehem by Epiphanius in 399. Ep. Ixxxii. 8. 8 Ep. xiii. A.D. 374, I follow Vallarsi's dates. * Ep. vi. 4 : " Huio ego . . . omnia etiam tuta timeo." 5 Sp. vi. 6 ^p_ yii_ 4_ XVI ST. JEROME 209 The little Jerome, like so many other eminent men, had a very severe schoolmaster, to whom he gives the name of Orbilius. To the wrathful tuition of this pedagogue the young truant had sometimes to be dragged back by force from the bosom of his indulgent grandmother.^ It is clear, however, that Jerome must have profited greatly from the training of his childish years. He early began to lay up the stores of classical knowledge of which he made such excellent use in later times. Among his first reminiscences he men- tions a terrible earthquake, which caused an incursion of the sea, and threw down the walls of Areopolis. He also alludes to the anecdote of an event which he says had occurred in his "infancy" at Alexandria.^ When the hermit Antony came to Alexandria at the invitation of Athanasius to help in confuting the Arians, he received a visit from Didymus the Blind, and after admiring his genius and knowledge of the Scriptures, asked him "whether he felt sad because of his blind- ness?" Didymus remained silent ; but on being pressed he admitted that it was a heavy trial. "Strange!" said the hermit, " that you should grieve at the loss of a gift which flies and ants possess, and not rather rejoice in possessing a knowledge which only saints and Apostles have deserved!" The anecdote is probably apocryphal. After learning all that the local " Orbilius " could teach him the youth was sent to complete his education at Eome. The course of study, according to the fashion of that day, was mainly grammatical and rhetorical. He studied the Latin classics under the guidance of the 1 Apol. c. Buf. i. 30 : "Et ad Orbilium saevientem de aviae sinu tractum esse captivum." 2 A.D. 355, when Jerome was about ten years old. Ep. Ixviii. 2. VOL. II P 210 LIVES OF THE FATHEBS xvi celebrated Donatus/ whose Ai^s Grammatica, in three books, was the torment of schoolboys down to the days of Corderius and the Eeformation, and whose name passed into the substantive "donat," which means a lesson of any kind.^ He was constantly engaged on declamations upon all sorts of subjects in the schools of eloquence, and frequented the law courts to hear the great forensic orators.^ He also studied logic* So far his education corresponded to the old Trivium, " Gram, loquitur, Bia. vera, docet, Bhet. verba colorat." Besides this he went through an eclectic course of philosophy, including works of Plato, Diogenes, Clito- machus, Carneades, Posidonius, the commentaries of Alexander Aphrodisiensis, and the Isagoge of Por- phyry.^ Here, too, he began to collect the library which was the chief delight and solace of his life. He copied out many books with his own hand.* It is evident that during this period of his educa- tion at Eome two counter forces were struggling in his mind — the temptations to sensuality which he encoun- tered in the unholy city, and the influences of religion which he had derived from his early training. It was the unfortunate custom of that day to post- pone baptism, partly from a belief in its magical efficacy to insure the forgiveness of prae-baptismal sins, partly 1 C. Buf. i. 16 ; in Eccles. i. p. 390. 2 Bishop Pecock called one of his books "The Donat into the Christian Religion." ^ Gomm. in Gal. ii. 13 ; c. Pelagianos, i. 2. * He mentions the " septem modes conclusionum," the sorites, and sophistic tricks like the Pseudomenos, etc. (c. Rvf. i. 30). In Ep. cxix. 1, he speaks slightingly of rhetoric as " canina facundia." s Epp. Ix. 5, 1. 1. It seems clear that he must have learnt Greek yoimg, in spite of what Rufinus says, Invect. ii. p. 365 : " Ante . . . quam converteretur . . . literas Graecas et linguam penitus ignorabat." Epp. xxii. 30, V. 2. XVI ST. JEROME 211 from the notion that it involved obligations of which many in their earlier years believed themselves incapable. The provincial student was a youth of passions so ardent that even in mature age they had not been wholly subdued by enfeebled health, and had been only increased by the morbid reactions from extreme asceticism. In the freedom of his Epistles he tells us, as frankly as Augustine, that during what we should call his University course at Rome he fell into grievous temptation. Nor are his confessions only general, as when he writes that Eufinus who had been recently baptized, is "pure as driven snow," while he himself, stained with all the foulness of sin, is awaiting day and night the paying of the last farthing.^ He does not conceal the fact that at Rome he lived an impure life " during the slippery journey of his youth." ^ When he urges upon Helio- dorus the beauty of a virginal soul, he confesses that he himself had suffered loss and shipwreck in the Charybdis of luxury and the Scylla of lust.^ He admits to Pammachius that the only virginity which he can try to preserve is that which is subsequent to the second birth of baptism.* He tells Pope Damasus that Isaiah, who had sinned in speech only, had need to speak of " unclean Ups," but that he has sinned in eye, and foot, and hand, and all his members, and deserves a second baptism of fire, because he has defiled his baptismal robe.* When he was a hermit in the desert of Chalcis he groans over the polluted heart which he had carried away from these Eoman orgies of his youth. Yet all the while the Spirit of God was struggling within him. He never forgot the lessons of his Christian childhood nor forsook the assemblies of Christian wor- 1 Ep. iv. 2. 2 Ep. vii 4. ^ Ep. xiv. 6. * Ep. xlviii. 20. * Ep. iviii. 11. 212 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi ship. When the Sunday brought some relaxation of the dreary round of grammar, logic, and declamation, he used to wander about Eome with Pammachius and other friends of his own age, to visit the tombs of the Apostles and Martyrs. To find the latter he had to descend into the darkness of the Catacombs, which he compares to going down alive into the pit.-' Even in these early years Jerome had caught the spirit of his age. He regarded the martyrs with a feeling akin to positive worship ; cherished relics with a devotion which stirred the contempt of the Pagans ; and identified spiritual perfection with an ascetic discipline of the utmost severity. Jerome witnessed the brief revival of Paganism under the Emperor Julian. At Rome he had seen the altars of heathen deities smoking with the blood of victims. The news of the early death of Julian in the midst of peril and disaster came like a thunderbolt alike to Pagans and Christians. The story that his last words were "Vicisti Galilaee!" or, " Oh Sun ! thou hast deceived me!" ^ or "Be satisfied!" have no authority. All that is certain is told us by Ammianus Marcellinus, who was an eyewitness of the scene. ^ Nevertheless the current belief among Christians that he in some way or other cursed his gods, and confessed his failure, corresponds with the impression made by his death even upon the supporters of his Pagan reaction. Jerome tells us that when Eome was startled by the news that the persecuting Emperor was slain, a Gentile met him, and 1 In Ezech. xl. 2 Sozom. R. E. vi. 2 ; Zonaras, xiii. 13 ; Philostorgius (vii. 15) says that he exclaimed Kopia-drjri, ! 8 Amm. Marc. xxv. 3. All the historians except Marcellinus say- that on receiving his fatal wound he looked up to heaven and fell fainting with a great cry. XVI ST. JEROME 213 asked "how the Christians could possibly speak of Christ as a gentle and forgiAdng God, when nothing was more clear than the swiftness and severity of the vengeance which he inflicted upon his enemies ? " ■^ Jerome has not given us the story of his conversion, as Augustine has given his. We do not therefore know whether his decision to live a pure and faithful life was taken suddenly or not. The date of his baptism is un- certain, but probably he was baptized by Pope Liberius or one of his clergy when he was about the age of twenty, and before he had completed his Roman education. The movements of Jerome when he left Eome are nowhere recorded. Possibly he returned for a short time to Stridon and Aquileia, and then started for a long tour in Gaul, where he visited all the chief cities, and stayed for some time at Treves.^ There he copied out the book of St. Hilary On Synods for his friend Eufinus, and found it excessively prolix. He also copied Hilary's Commentary on the Psalms. Bonosus was his companion in this journey, and they had every- thing in common. On " the semi-barbarous banks of the Ehine," he tells us, he first " began to wish to serve God." ^ By this he does not mean that he there felt the first stirrings of the Spirit of Grace within him, but that he began to form his resolution of becoming "a, religious " in the mediaeval sense of the word, by with- drawing himself from the world and taking a vow of celibacy and poverty. To " serve God " in Jerome's sense, meant to become a monk, and " servants of God " had already been specialised into this significance in religious circles. 1 In Abac. i. 10. ^ j;^^. yj. 5^ y. 2 (cxxiii. 16). ^ Ep. iii. 5 : " Post Komana studia . . . ut ego primus coeperim velle Te colere." 214 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi By this time his bent towards Scriptural studies was fully formed, and it was while he was still a young man that he wrote the Commentary on Obadiah, of which he was afterwards ashamed. " I interpreted Obadiah allegorically," he says, " because I was ignorant of the historic sense." ^ Wherever he travelled he looked on all things with an observant eye, and in later years he was always ready with his reminiscences. In one place he mentions that he had seen the brutal cannibalism of the British Atticotians ; in another he tells us that the Galatians spoke the same vernacular as the people of Treves." ^ 1 Praef. Gomm. in Abd. (Vail. vi. 360). 2 G. Jovin. ii. 7 ; Praef. I. ii. Gomm. in Galat. XVI Continued MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM " Tliey who from wilful disesteem of life Affront the eye of solitude, shall find That her mild nature can be terrible." Wordsworth. SECTION II The minds of thousands of Christians in the fourth and fifth centuries were filled with monastic fervour. Al- most every great Father and historian of this period eulogises the retired, the celibate, the ascetic life. Basil's life received a new impulse from his visits to the ceUs of Eastern solitaries. Eufinus wrote a history of the hermits.^ Palladius visited them, and wrote of them with enthusiasm in his Historia Lausiaca. Theodoret composed biographies of thirty monks and ascetics in his Historia Religiosa. Sulpicius Severus in his three dialogues gave an account of the monks of Egypt and of St. Martin of Tours. Gassian drew up his Conversations and Institutions.^ The Life of St. Antony, attributed to the great Athanasius, had exer- cised a profound influence over the imagination of 1 Historia Eremetica. - Institutiones coenobiales and Collationes Patrum. 216 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi multitudes. The great Cappadocian Fathers, and Chrysostom and Isidore of Pelusium, caught the same enthusiasm. The Greek ecclesiastical historians, Socrates and Sozomen, naturally consider the subject at some length and with most favourable bias.^ The writings of Ambrose, Augustine, and Jerome abound in praises of solitude and vows. I must here speak of some of the aspects of monastic asceticism, because no one was more influential than Jerome in disseminating the opinions which caused its immense development. The ascetic tendency is found very early in the history of all religions. Even Hottentots, negroes, and North American Indians practise voluntary fasting with a view to the propitiation of offended deities. The companions of Alexander found hermits and ascetics in the Indian gymnosophists.^ Monachism attained large proportions among the Buddhists, an- choretism among the Brahmins. The jogis and fakirs of Hindostan far exceeded the most self-tormenting of the mediaeval saints in the ingenuity and intensity of the self-degrading tortures to which they submitted their miserable lives. The bonzes of China and the lamas of Thibet held much the same views as the monks about the virtue of self-inflicted agonies. The fine sense of the Greeks saved them from grosser and more revolting forms of fanaticism, but a spare diet was among the chief means adopted by Pythagoreans, Stoics, and Cynics, for the acquisition of a complete and tranquil empire over their lower passions. Judaism had its Nazarites, its Essenes, its Therapeutae ; Moham- 1 Sozomen, i. 12 ; Socrates, iv. 23. See Bingham, Ghristian Anti- quities, Bk. vii. 2 Arrian, Exped. vii. 1-3 ; Pliny, H. N. vii. 2 ; Plut. Alexander, ch. 64 ; Aug. De Giv. Dei, xiv. 17, xv. 20 ; Porphyry, De Abstinent, iv. 17. XVI MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 217 medanism still glories in its howling dervishes and its solitary saints. The causes which led to asceticism were manifold ; but the deepest cause which, heretical as it is, exercised a strong though half-unconscious influence over many Christians in the early centuries was the Zoroastrian, Dualistic, Manichean, and Gnostic conception of the inherent corruption and malignity of matter. The body, which the gift of the Indwelling Spirit has elevated into a temple of the Holy Ghost, was regarded as a polluting tomb.^ It was treated as the source of all evils ; and because it is a duty to subdue the appetites of the flesh, it was most erroneously regarded as meritorious to crush the body in which they originate. In Egypt, the dreamy home of insatiable curiosity, in Alexandria, the seething hotbed of conflicting theories, Christianity became deeply tainted with errors, which flowed from the impure streams of Eastern speculation. In vain had St. Paul — alike in the Epistle to the Colossians and in the Pastoral Epistles — given the strongest warnings against external, mechanical, artificial rules for securing that spiritual victory which could only be won by union with the risen Christ.^ In vain had he argued that it was an apostasy from Christian freedom to be over- ridden by petty and anxious ordinances about food and drink and external things — rules derived, not from God 1 The identification of o-w/ua, " body," and cr-^/ua, " tomb," was a favourite one. / 2 Col. ii. 20-2.3 : " If ye died witli Christ, from the rudiments of the world {i.e. rudimentary ordinances about matters of sense) why are ye overridden with ordinances — 'Touch not,' 'Taste not,' ' Handle not' (which things are destined for corruption in the consuming) according to the commandments and teaching of men ? which sort of things, having a reputation for wisdom in self-imposed service, and abjectness, and hard treatment of the body, are not of any real value to remedy indulgence of the flesh." See Bishop Lightfoot, ad loc. Comp. Matt. xv. 1-20 ; Mark vii. 1-23 ; Gal. iv. 3-9, v. 1 ; 1 Tim. iv. 3. 218 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi or from the Gospel, but from Gnosticism and the Talmud. We may well wonder how any one can read the teaching of Christ and the Apostles and yet consider that organisation, or ceremonialism, or monastic celibacy, or needless self-torture have anything to do with the perfectness of the spiritual life ; yet so it was. In vain had the great Apostle insisted on the sacredness of marriage, even on the validity, and, in many cases, the desirability of second marriages. In vain had he laid down the principle that to the pure all things are pure. In vain had Christ himself lived the common life of men, eating and drinking, joining in the marriage festival, going to the banquets alike of the publican and Pharisee, braving the empty taunt of the formalists who called Him a glutton and a wine-bibber. In vain had He poured contempt on timorous observances and petty ritual, treating with indifference the morbid scrupulosity of minute ceremonies, endless services, frequent fast- ings, incessant ablutions, and repetitive prayers. In vain had He taught Peter, by that memorable vision at Joppa, that he was not to call common the things which God had cleansed, and in vain had he uttered the parable about inward defilement and the undefiling character of food — making all meats clean. The Bible contains a literature so wide and diverse that it is never difficult either to choose counter-texts to those which forbid the distinctions between clear duties and imagin- ary works of supererogation, or to defend, by exorbitant inferences, the views which spring from the eternal Pharisaism of the human heart. The modes of life which kindled the enthusiastic admiration of Jerome and the multitudes whom he has influenced, owe their origin to Oriental theosophy and were supported by per- versions of the sacred text. The very passage in which XVI MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 219 St. Paul had specially warned the early converts that ostentatious humility and body-torturing rigour were of no value for the remedy of carnal desires was hopelessly misunderstood. Even such influential Fathers as Hilary and Ambrose, blinded perhaps by the erroneous tenden- cies of their day, actually enforce as Christian duties the " Touch not, taste not, handle not," which the Apostle is denouncing as a vain semblance of wisdom, resting only on the doctrines and commandments of men ! ^ It is true that these views derived their strength, not from their erroneous elements, but from the truths with which they were inextricably entangled. Aliena- tion from all personal hopes and interests, and the entire abandonment of earthly goods, never have been the duty of all men, but only of those who have been specially called by the voice of God to face such conditions for the good of the world. The Gospels themselves abundantly show that the command, " Sell all that thou hast, and give to the poor," was a special test proposed to one ambitious and self-deceiving youth, and not, as it was often represented to be, a direction to all Christians. The abandonment of marriage might become a positive duty to the wandering missionary, or to the Evangelist who had been consecrated to a life which, in ages of peril and persecution, could only be effect- ive when it was emancipated from all encumbrances. But it was a deep mistake to maintain that celibacy is in any sense superior in inherent sanctity to honourable marriage. The exaltation of virginity as a thing in- trinsically precious to God, and deserving of a pre- eminent reward, was an instance of the " will- worship " ^ 1 Fortunately Tertullian {adv. Marc. v. 1 9), Jerome (ad loc), Augustine (Ep. cxix.) had given the true explanation. See Bishop Lightfoot's invaluable notes on this remarkable passage. ^ iOekodprjo-Keia. 220 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVI which followed the aberrations of heathenism and heresy by making idols of human traditions. When the legendary Antony retired into the desert, as though it were hopeless to live in a doomed world, and as though it were as much the duty of the Christian to flee from "the world" — even from the Christian world — as it was Lot's duty to flee from Sodom, he was misled by giving an erroneous universality to commands which our Lord's own teaching and example prove to have been exceptional. Self-sacrifice is indeed so fruit- ful, and so contrary to the ordinary impulses of human nature, that, in that dreadful epoch of crime and con- fusion, the better side of the example of the hermits taught a needful lesson. It taught the world the in- finite value of the individual soul. But the errors on which the whole theory was based produced a crop of terrible evils. Nature avenged herself on those who violated her laws. The indolence of morbid speculation ; the perpetual sickness of self-introspection, undisturbed by the paltry industry of weaving palm-leaves into baskets ; the glorification of dirt ; the confusion of sanctity with abhorrent self -mortifications ; the daring disruption of natural and sacred ties ; the violation of the innocent laws of human intercourse ; the expansion of selfishness to infinitude,- — these were prolific of disastrous consequences. God branded the ambitious attempt with sterility and failure. Men who aimed at making their life better than that which Christ had taught, or the Apostles practised, sank into a condition which was often worse than that of the beasts which perish. A short experience showed the best monks that though men might fly from their fellow-men, they could not fly from themselves.^ The self-degraded body reacted oil 1 See the Confessions of Basil, E^J. 2 of Jerome, Ep. 18 of Nilus, XVI MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 221 the enfeebled mind.^ No faith became too revolting, no maceration too frightful, no contradiction of the natural aflFections too violently extreme. It is impossible to read without pity and horror of the foul condition to which the stylites and grazing monks reduced the image of God, as though Christ were to be pleased by the wildest exaggerations of the Phariseeism which He so burningly denounced, or as though a humble walk with God were to be attained by the Nebuchadnezzar-curse of a self-inflicted lycanthropy. The impulse which filled the - deserts of Egypt with anchorites and monks and nuns became in time an unmixed evil. The motives which led to it were not only mistaken, but even in many cases cowardly and insincere. The times were terrible ; the struggle for life was intense ; taxa- tion almost insupportably heavy. The perpetual dread of barbarian incursions made property insecure and family life an incessant source of anxiety. It seemed an easier thing to fly from the world than to face its perils and miseries. Dreamy idleness, and the pride of fancied superiority, and the admiration of men had their attractiveness to many. Why should not they too work miracles, as they were told that Nilus and Hilarion had done ? Why should not mourning lions scratch graves for them, as Jerome said they had done for the hermit Paul ? It was one of the evUs of desert monas- ticism that it filled the pure atmosphere of Christianity with a miasma of gross superstition, which was fed with Ep. 95 {ad Rusticum), Epp. lib. ii. 140. Philo has already gone through a similar experience, and says ovSev iovrja-a. Leg. alley, iii. 1102. 1 No epithet but loathly can be applied to such stories as those told us about Simeon the Stylite (Theodoret, Hist. Bel. 26); the younger Macarius (Palladius, Hist. Lausiaca, 20) ; the /3o(tkoi who received the special eulogy of Ephraem Syrus (of. Sozomen, H. E. vi. 33) ; Akepsismas of Cyprus (Theodoret, H. B.) ; and others (Sulp. Sev. Dial. i. 11). 222 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi a crop of lying legends. It diverted the true energies of Christianity from its natural and social mission. It darkened the lives and consciences of millions who, living in the world, were taught to believe that they Avere only aiming at an inferior sanctity, and would only receive a second-rate or dubious reward. It altered the perspective and centre of gravity of the Christian life. Macarius prayed a hundred times a day ; Paul the Simple three hundred times, which he counted by peb- bles ; and he was greatly distressed to hear of a vir- gin who prayed seven hundred times a day. A specta- tor once saw Simeon Stylites make twelve hundred and forty -four genuflexions — and then stopped counting. So far as the conception of goodness was purely quanti- tative, it may be that the Publican who off'ers up from the heart his one brief cry may go down to his house justified rather than the others.^ The large part played by Jerome in fostering the notions which led to ascetic monachism rendered it necessary to touch upon the subject. We shall see hereafter that his arguments are untenable, and that much of his influence was exercised for unwise ends. It will be sufficient here to show that the Eeformed Churches of later times have been wisely guided in rejecting the manifold corruptions of the fourth century, together with the false principles on which they were founded. Mistaken views of duty and a mistaken estimate of sin were an intolerable and needless burden to the indi- vidual, and in many instances tended to hinder rather than promote the spiritual life. Taking Cassian as an enthusiastic exponent of the glories of monachism we 1 These errors culmmated in the heresy of the Euchites or Messalians iihout 360. XVI MONASTICISM AXD ASCETICISM 223 cannot share the exultation ^Yith which he tells his stories of monks and their obedience. He tells us how, at the command of his superior, the Abbot John while yet a novice spent day after day for a whole year in fetching water from long distances, in all weathers, to water an old rotten log of wood. To us it seems that an aged abbot might have given a less absurd in- junction, and a religious youth have better employed his time. We see nothing to admire but everything to reprobate in the infliction of severe reprimand and public penance for the sin of having accidentally dropped three grains of pulse. The story of Mucins, whose little son of eight years old was purposely left dirty and neglected by his brother monks that the father might be disgusted with him, and who was constantly beaten by them for nothing that he might always be in tears, is to us inexpressibly revolting ; and the triumphant climax of the story that Mucius, at the abbot's com- mand, flung the child into a river, only shows how intolerably Pagan and unnatural was the condition of mind which could regard as holy such violations of all Divine and human laws.^ The experience of thousands of monks confirmed the wisdom of St. Paul's warnings against false methods of attaining to saintly purity. Serapion, in the fifth of Cassian's collations, shows that of the eight principal vices which infest the human race — gluttony, unclean- ness, avarice, anger, melancholy, despair, vainglory and pride — not one lost any of its power among 'the desert solitaries. Melancholy and despair above all — so Serapion tells us — unprovoked by any assignable cause, are known to vex the dwellers in the desert frequently and with the utmost bitterness ; ^ and he adds that any 1 Cassian, De Instit. MonacM, iv. 20-31. ^ id. Collat. v. 9. 224 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi one who lives in solitude, and experiences the struggles of the inward war, soon discovers this for himself. This anxiety of heart, which they call by the Greek name acedia, was considered by the poor hermits to be the " demon that walketh in the noonday " of David's psalm. It made them callous and apathetic, filling them with contempt for their brethren, horror of their abode, dis- gust for their cell.^ It paralysed their souls with despair about themselves, their duty, their choice of life. It is the dreadful reaction of a nature occupied with alternate self-conceit and self-disgust, resulting from conditions which God never intended for our human life. "The depths of forests, the summits of hills," says Ivo de Chartres, " make not a man blessed, if he have not with him a solitude of the mind, a Sabbath of the heart, a calm of conscience, and inward aspirations. Without these all solitude is attended by listless des- pair, vainglory, and perilous storms of temptations."^ Antony himself (so his legend tolls us) used to quote the verse, " Woe unto him that is alone when he falleth, for he hath not another to help him up." ^ We are not surprised to learn that conditions so unnatural frequently produced shipwreck of mind as well as of body. Avarice, which men had thought to conquer by the sacrifice of all their earthly possessions, sometimes reasserted itself in extravao;ant selfishness about a knife or a pen, the mere touching of which by another caused an outbreak of violent anger. Extra- vagant self-mortification sometimes reacted with fierce rebound into profligate self-indulgence. Artificial hum- ility developed into fanatical pride.* 1 Cassiaii, De Instit. Monachi, a. 2 Ep. 192, quoted by Montalembert, Monks of the West. 2 Ecoles. iv. 10. * We can have no more unsuspected testimony on these subjects than XVI MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 225 The weakened brains of the hermits were disturbed by visitations of hellish monsters, and their sleepless nights affrighted by hideous sights and sounds. Not unfrequently, like the unhappy Stagirus — the friend of Chrysostom — they found that the desertion of the wholesome common life of men only ended in a state which they regarded as demoniacal possession.^ They often imagined that they worked prodigious miracles. Jerome tells Eusticus that damp cells, immoderate fasting, over-reading, and weary solitude turned some of them into hypochondriacs, and made them fit subjects rather for the servants of Hippocrates than the teachers of monachism.^ He tells Demetrias that he has known both monks and nuns who had gone mad from extrava- gant asceticism, so that they no longer knew what to do or whither to go, what they ought to say or what to leave unsaid. We find from some curious stories in Cassian that monks and hermits sometimes committed the most terrible crimes, which, under the influence of demonic delusion, they took for heroic acts of virtue.^ Nilus and Pachomius — unexceptionable because favour- able witnesses — testify that many monks ended their career in lunacy and suicide,* which took the form of ripping themselves open, and hurling themselves over precipitous rocks or into wells. Ambrose says that that in the chapters of Cassian in the temptations of ascetics to impurity, avarice, gloom, acedia, kenodoxia, etc., in Ms Be cwpitalibus Vitiis and his Collationes. Nilus too (1. c.) speaks of the aTrpoae^ia and aSiaKpurCa of the mind in solitude. 1 Chrys. ad Stag, a daemone vexatum, 0pp. i. 153 ; Jer. Vit. MalacM, 5. ^ Ep. cxxv. 16. 3 Cassian, Oollat. ii. 5-8. See Gieseler, I. ii. 352 ; Burton, Anat. of Melancholy, ii. 510. * Nilus, Ep. 140 ; Pachom. Vit. 61. Kal iroWol e^avarcoo-ai' latn-otis, o /Jtev iwavrndev Trerpas pixpa^ kavTov (is CKO-TariKOs, koI aAAos aayaipi} aTrkirrv^iv Trjv KoiXCav aiJTOi! koI aTrWavev Kai aXXot, aAA(os. VOL. II Q 226 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi many drowned themselves,^ and Grregory of Nazianzus speaks also of deaths by hanging.^ Heathens even gave to Christians the taunting name of Biothanatoi or self- murderers. But the saddest fact of all is that even those monks and solitaries who were sincere increased instead of diminishing the moral difficulties which they sought to avoid. The effects of the compulsory celibacy of the clergy have been proved to be in countless instances disastrous, by a volume of testimony of which every item may be derived, not from Reformers or Latitu- dinarians, but from Popes, bishops, monks, and canonised saints of the early and mediaeval Church. From the first it led to the gross scandals connected with the spiritual sisters (agapetae, aSeX^al av^vyoi, avvetaaKTai, subintroductae), against which so many Fathers gave their warning,'' and so many canons of councils were passed in vain.* It is not now my painful task to show what horrors resulted from these unsanctioned ordi- nances, or by what steps an ambitious error became a tyrannous tradition. But it is clear that in two ways the ascetics endangered the purity which they so highly eulogised — namely, by bodily disorder and by mental absorption in the conceptions which should most have been avoided. " If you rumple the jerkin you rumple the jerkin's lining." A weakened system is less able to 1 De Virginibus ad Marcellinam, iii. ^ Garm. xlvii. 100 sqq. For these and other passages, see Zookler, Krit. Gesch. der Askese, p. 220 (Prankf. 1863). The name fiioOdvaTOL is a late corruption of /SLaioddvaroL. See Ducange s. v. 5 The mischief began among Valentinians and Encratites, Iren. Haer. I. i. 12 ; Epiphan. Haer. 67 ; but it soon became virulent among Catholics also. TertuU. Dejejun. 17 ; Cyprian, Ep. 2 ; Euseb. E. E. vii. 2, 30 ; " Agapetarum pestis," Jer. Ep. xxiL 14. * E.g. in the Councils of Eliberis, Ancyra, Nice, Tours, etc. See Zockler, Gesch. d. Ascese, p. 232. XVI ilONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 227 resist assault, and especially if the unstrung mind is morbidly sensitive to every sensual impression. The biographies of monks and hermits show decisively that their temptations to sloth, pride, and impurity were sorer and more continuous than those which ever occur amid the beneficent and well-regulated activities of a Christian life, lived in accordance with Christ's example and God's demands. Can there be any clearer proof of these views than the strange confessions of Jerome himself in his letter to Bustochium on the preservation of virginity ?i " Oh, how often," he exclaims, " set in the desert, and in that vast soUtude which, burnt by the fierce rays of the sun, afforded to monks a horrid dwelling-place, did I think that I was in the midst of the delights of Rome ! I was sitting alone because I was filled with bitterness. My unsightly limbs were rough with sackcloth, and my squalid skin had grown dark as an Aethiop's flesh. Tears day by day, groans day by day, and if ever sleep had overcome me in spite of my eff'orts my bare loose skeleton fell to the ground with a clash. I say nothing of food and drink, since even invalid monks use only cold water, and it is luxury to taste anything warmed. I then, who, from fear of hell, had condemned myself to such a prison, a comrade only of scorpions and wild beasts, was in imagination among dances of girls. My face was pale with fasting, yet my mind was heaving with desires in my frigid body, and before a man already prematurely dead in the flesh, the fires of concupiscence alone were bursting forth. And so, deprived of all aid, I used to lie at Jesus' feet, watered them with my tears, wiped them with my hair, and subdued my resisting flesh with a seven days' fast. I do not blush to confess 1 Ep. xxii. 7. 228 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi the wretchedness of my misery. Nay, rather I lament that I am not what I was. I remember that I frequently spent the day and the night in cries, and never ceased from beating my breast till, at God's bidding, tranquillity returned. I used to dread even my own cell, as though it were conscious of my thoughts. Angry and severe with myself, I penetrated the deserts alone. Wherever I observed the depths of valleys, the steeps of moun- tains, the precipices of rocks, there was my oratory, there the slave-prison of my most wretched flesh. And as God himself is my witness, after many tears, after a long gaze upon the sky, I sometimes seemed to be among the choirs of angels, and sang blithe and joyful, ' We will run after thee for the savour of thy per- fumes.' " Remedies at once so intense and so ineffectual would have been rendered needless by a sounder wisdom, and a humbler observance of the will of God. Nor was impurity the only temptation which assailed the devotees of asceticism, and by which even the most stringent of them were fatally defeated. No less an authority than Cardinal Newman has described the fre- quent results of the fasting with which he has long been familiar. " Such mortifications," he says, " have at the time very various effects on different persons, and are to be observed not from their visible benefits, but from faith in the word of God. Some men are subdued by fasting ; but others find it, however slight, scarcely more than an occasion of temptation. It often makes a man irritable and ill-tempered. What often follows from it is a feebleness which deprives him of his command over his bodily acts, feelings, and expressions. It makes him seem to be out of temper when he is not ; I mean because his tongue, his lips, nay his brain, are not in his power. He does not use the words he wishes to use, XVI MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 229 nor the accent, nor tlte tone. He seems sharp when he is not. Again, weakness of body may deprive him of self-command in other ways ; perhaps he cannot help smiling or laughing when he ought to be serious ; or when thoughts present themselves his mind cannot throw them oif, any more than if it were some dead thing; but they make an impression on him which he is not able to resist. Or again, weakness of body often hinders him from fixing his mind on his prayers, instead of making him pray more fervently ; or again, weakness of body is often attended with languor and listlessness, and strongly tempts a man to sloth. Yet I have not mentioned the effects which may follow from even the moderate exercise. ... It is undeniably a means of temptation," and may expose Christians to thoughts " from which they would turn with abhorrence and horror." It is true that in spite of these sad and grave admissions Dr. Newman still thinks that fasting is enjoined on Christians as a duty, and that, therefore, it may be a source of supernatural grace. But here, surely, is the mistake. If such be the results of fasting, we can hardly wonder if we find on examination that while absti- nence and self-denial are constantly enjoined, lengthened and severe fasts are never enjoined in the New Testa- ment ; and that some, at least, of the passages in which fasting is referred to are interpolations due to the ascetic bias of early scribes.^ 1 The substajitive "fasting" (vrjcrTeia) occurs but six times in tlie New Testament, exclusive of 1 Cor. vii. 6, 2 Cor. vi. 5, where it probably refers to spells of involuntary hunger. In three of these passages it is of uncertain genuineness ; in two more it alludes only to Jewish customs. In one alone does it refer to a special Christian fast on a special occasion (Acts xiv. 23, comp. xiii. 3). Apart from the two passages in the Corinth- ians, fasting is not once mentioned in all the Epistles. Apart from the temptation in the wilderness, it is only alluded to in one incident of the 230 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi Before leaving the subject I may refer to a beautiful legend of Antony, of which there is a duplicate in the life of the elder Macarius. To check the tempta- tion to spiritual pride, he was told in vision that after all his self-denials he had not attained to the holiness of a certain poor cobbler in Alexandria. Vexed and astonished, the hermit made his way to the city, and asking the cobbler the secret of his holiness, was told in reply that, on the contrary, he regarded himself as the worst sinner in Alexandria, and was constantly lament- ing to God that all other men were better than himself In the story of Macarius the vision reveals to him that two poor women surpassed him in God's approval. Seeking them out, he finds that they are two poor married washerwomen, who knew of no other merit than that of doing their work and living faithfully with their husbands, but who had bound themselves by a vow never to speak evil of any one. It is refreshing to come on such anecdotes in the midst of childish miracles, grim demonologies, and revolting details. They show that, after all, the greatest of the hermits had learnt for them- selves that there was another and a better way of serving God than that of which they had set the example, and that the rewards of simple humility and unnoticed love might be greater and better than those of self-absorbed and unwarranted devotion. But if the ascetic life was injurious to many, and Gospels (Matt. ix. 14, 15; Mark ii. 18, 20; Luke v. 33, 35); and there the Fathers rightly saw that " the days when the hridegroom shall be taken from them" can only be applied to the Christian dispensation by a complete error of exegesis. In the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. vi. 16, 18) our Lord is primarily alluding to the Jewish custom of his own day. The fact that the Pharisees and disciples of John fasted, while His disciples fasted not, is alone sufficient to prove that fasting was not meant to be permanent or excessive. " I fast twice in the week " was only the boast of the reprehended Pharisee. XVI MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 231 fatal to some, it also produced very mixed results upon society, and it must be feared that the evils it produced outweighed its benefits. Augustine admits that if some of the monks and nuns whom he had known were the best persons in the world, others were the worst. Let it be freely allowed that many holy souls embraced the " religious " life, and that by virtue of their holiness they conferred conspicuous blessings on the world, and conse- crated to the cause of God a splendid enthusiasm which won many victories over the forces of evU. The mon- asteries sent forth great missionaries ; they trained great bishops ; they produced noble hymns and spiritual books of devotion ; they had their share in the conversion and remoulding of the barbarian conquerors of the Empire ; they kept alive the flickering lamps of learning, of literature, and of art. On the other hand, they were responsible for the prevalence of many errors and of much torpid ignorance. Many of even the better monks were misled by Manichean principles. They spoke and acted as though matter were inherently evil and marriage intrinsically polluting.^ They reduced rehgion to the concentrated selfishness of mere individualism, which, in their conduct towards others, often degenerated into a morose pride. " Fanatical self-torture was the natural parent of sanguinary ferocity." Many were led by remorse and terror and disgust to assume the monastic life who had no vocation for it, and who were deteri- orated by it; many others entered it as a cloak for impure license, base greed, exemption from pubHc burdens, and the enjoyment of admiration for their "philosophy." The history of the fourth and fifth centuries abounds in events in which monks took a per- 1 The Eustathians were condemned for these views at the Council of Gangra. See supra, p. 111. 232 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvi nicious and dishonourable part. " There arose in each diocese," says De Broglie, " real powers, with no other claim than a reputation for sanctity, but which none the less put forth pretensions to rule the faithful, and braved bishops as well as magistrates. At the smallest inci- dent which piqued their curiosity these false saints left their cells, ill closed against the noises of the world, to come and dogmatise at the gate of councils, and to harangue the crowd in public places, always showing themselves inclined to confound intrigue with zeal and fanaticism with courage." Grossly ignorant, hopelessly superstitious, brutally fanatical, the monks of Egypt became as a body the vilest instruments of the worst character in ecclesiastical history, the Patriarch Theo- philus of Alexandria. The infamies of the Council of Robbers were chiefly due to the turbulent opinionative- ness of these outrageous incendiaries. Monks murdered Hypatia, and lent the chief support to the ambitious terrorism of Cyril. Monks worried and vexed the epis- copal life of Basil. Monks attacked the refuge of Chrysostom, troubled his sickness, and assailed his life. Their morose pride, impenetrable ignorance, and sullen bigotry made them the terror of the civil government, to which they paid no tax and rendered no services. The stupidity of anthropomorphism found among them its almost exclusive supporters. Mariolatry, saint- worship, relic-worship, terrors of demons, dream-divina- tions, lying legends, invented miracles, and every form of crude superstition acquired strength from their suj)port. The ever -increasing multitude of vagrants and bigots, whose squalid virtues were repaid by a sort of adoration, denuded the Empire of its natural defenders, and left it a prey to the barbarians. Valens was more than half right in rescinding the immunity from military service which XVI MONASTICISM AND ASCETICISM 233' constituted for so many the temptation to monasticism, and in sweeping thousands of these sturdy idlers from Egyptian deserts into the ranks of his army. He called them, without any circumlocution, "the followers of laziness" {ignaviae sectatores). Synesius speaks of them as barbarous, indolent, and brutal. Salvian shows how much the monks were hated, and the fury with which Pagans like Libanius, Eunapius, Zosimus, and Rutilius speak of them is explained if it be not excused by the scathing pictures drawn by all the greatest of the Fathers of the Remoboth, the Massal- ians, the Gyrovagi, and other classes of criminals and hypocrites who lived under the shelter of the monk's cowl. Hermits, monks, and even nuns lived in a state of revolting dirt, which they regarded as one proof of their piety. They left a most unfavourable impression on the cultivated heathen. Eunapius speaks of their "swiaish life," their tyrannous self-assertion, their neglect of public decency, their filth and nakedness. The horror with which men of wisdom and refinement regarded the semi-brutal " grazing monks" and " piUar- saints " may be imagiued ; and those forms of fanaticism were discouraged and put down by the good sense of Western piety.-' If even the little monasteries of Augustine and of Jerome produced scandals of the darkest dye, was it not a sign that the institution itself was in some respects unsound ? And if these things were done in the green tree, what should be done in the dry ? ^ 1 The bishops of Gaul very sensibly demolished a pillar set up for this purpose by a certain Wulfilaioh. Even Nilus, in 430, warns the Stylites very plainly. Epp. ii. 114, 115. ^ Be Ouhernat. Dei, viii. "In monachis . . . Afrorum probatur odium, quia irridebant scilicet, maledicebant, inseotabuntur detesta- bantur, etc." Ambrose, Ep. xli. " Monachi multa scelera faciunt " (the complaint of a minister of Theodosius). XVI Continued JEROME AT AQUILEIA ; AND HIS TRAVELS (A.D. 372-374) "'IXGYOS filius."— Jbb. Ep. SECTION III At the end of his sojourn in Gaul, about the year 372, Jerome returned to Stridon. Domestic duties, the care of his patrimony, of his sister, and of his infant brother Paulinian, seem to have made it impossible for him to retire at once from the world.^ He lived, however, mostly at Aquileia, in a little monastic society of inti- mate friends. First among these friends in learning, age, and dignity was Rufinus, afterwards a monk at Jerusalem and a presbyter of Aquileia. He had been baptized before Jerome, and Jerome felt for him an admiration which he expresses in the warmest terms. Jerome was a man who never loved or hated by halves, and he lavished on his friend an ardent affection, which was perhaps deepened by the entire dissimilarity of their gifts and natures. Jerome was passionate, emotional, poetic, sar- 1 Ep. iii. sn JEROME AT AQUILEIA ; AXB HIS TBATELS 233 easfae, impetwHis : Bnfiuos \ras Iiazd, logical, mattEi^- £iet. Fram tilie iramiest of fiiends thev afterwards lieeame, to tbe scandal of tiie Ouistian Tsrold, the m<^ Tiralent of enemies. In his eadier letreis Bufinns b ernnpthing idiat is nu^ dear : Jerome cannot even esti- mate Ms Tiitaes ; he has tlie stamp of saindiood upon him : and Jratmie — dust and ashes and mnd as he is — is etmtent if h^ weak sight can gaze on tlie s^eaidoor of sudi a dbaiactar.^ The fhoog^t of meeting him again, gtasping h^ dear hands, k^ng his ehe^s, sojojing hkeiHiTetsation,£Ds Jerome witJitianspQart^ After tbe qnandl he becomes not Enfinn^ bnt Giynaeos, ''the Gnmter/" a sort of odious, greedy, bjpociitieal T^otuffe. Enai after he is dead in Sidly Jerome has no other ^pitaqph for him than that " The Sctapion is laid in tiie earth between Ae lebd ^anis ^celadus and Pcff- phyrius. and the hydra of many heads has at length, ceased to hi^ against me.'' "^ Sbidly 1^ deso*, and haqpply witli an nnbtokea ftieodship, was Jerome's well-botn and wealthy £^t)a> iHother, Bonc^o^ tibie companion of his B(Hnan studies and his Gallie tour. He was a man of moderate gifils, bur of so serious an ^itfaD^n^aa that he was tiie first of tire little band of fiiends to carry out tie idea of hafmit life. Jerome rapturously teDs Bufinns that^ de^pdng his motb^ his sisrer, his dearest barotb^ Bon^sus had du^en for he scdifeary retreat a roeky islei shipwre<±Bd in lube sea which echoed round it. where tbere was not even one re^deat shepherd . xlii. ; Aug. c, Julian. Pelay. i. 2. 2 It was preposterously supported by Ezek. xliv. 2 (Aug. Enchir. 34). 8 Eph. V. 28-33 ; 1 Cor. vii. 2, 7, ix. r, ■ i Tim. iii. 2, 4, 12-16 ; iv.' 1-4 ; Titus i. 6 ; comp. John ii. 1-11, Heb. xiii. 4, etc. XVI JEEOilES COXTKOVERSIES 329 except a fe\r hesitatinglv- expressed and profoundly- misinterpreted phrases, for which the Apostle disclaims any Divine authority, which are contradicted by advice given in other passages, and which, at the most, are given as suggestions suitable for temporary emergencies.^ Augustine, in his book On the Blessing of JIarriage, admitted all that Jovinians position required when he said that a man like Abraham might be absolutely pure and continent though married. Chrvsostom himself had said much the same as Jovinian, for he said " Enjoy the married state with due moderation and you shall be jirst in the kingdom of heaven, and entitled to all its blessings." ^ Jovinian had simply been disenchanted by experience, just as others were, and he saw that the exaltation of an ideal which was only possible for the few became a source of demorahsation for the many.* In the whole of his first book against Jovinian Jerome shows his worst defects. He begins with abus- ing the barbarisms of Jovinian, his " most filthy style," and his unintelligible method of reasoning; and he proceeds to the Scriptural establishment of his own views in a series of imblushing sophisms, A single text, " A bishop must be the husband of one wife — against the simple clearness of which he wnthes in vain — is enough to scatter all his plausibility to the winds. What are we to think of a controversialist who can quote such a verse as Matt, xxiv, 19 as a condemnation of marriage ? or could any one but a mediaeval monk repeat with satisfaction the disgraceful remark that St. Peter "washed off the filth of marriage in the blood of martyrdom " ? An earlier Father — Clement of Alexan- 1 In 1 Cor. Tii. - Chivs. if .>m. Tii. fi>&. sec. 4. S' "7?.0Ti:SST ctl ^ro miTiof against tie MLiTiicheej. lie iiad i^isisred sTToiiirlv on nee-wiU as rie origin of sin. It vras onlv when the Pelagians sa^sv too exclusively in free-will tie source of good as well as of eTil that he insisted too exolnsivelv on the irresisrible grace of G^OHi. And he then ran into ihe peril of ieirraiinir free-mil into an impotence of ^eked tendency wnollv dependent on a craee predetermined by eternal election. And whatever may hare been ihe rashness and miwisdom of Coelesiins, he maintained with tmiiL That nis enxTS. if errors they were, only aJiecr-ed matters of opinion — matters on which no Clinrch had as yet delivered a formal decision, so that even if he were mistaiien he conld not be hereticaL Trie Greek Ciurck has alwavs leaned to Semi-Pelagian views, and was in- .jinerent to tne entire contxoversv. Pelairianism was indeed con-iemned in The Comicil of Ephestts. 431. bnt in the East the question was bnt little discnssed. TJiongh Theodore of Mojsnestia ia 419 wrote againsx the views of Jerome.^ ■ The English Chnreh, " says Dr. Zseale. •'has from its earliest infancy evinced a tendency to Pelagianism." * And snrelv the world has leamt by this time that while there is in tins matter no pracrieal difficnlty — ^that while TO ;tii intents and pnxpC'Ses man is jra;-~ca^y free to refuse the evil and to choose the good, since the irrace of God by which this can be done is always and freelv accorded to all alike — yet in tie theory of the question there hes an insolnlde antinomy : it enus. like evexv otiei onesri-tn. ia a mystery which transcends tie feeble capaciries of man to nnderstani 1 CtiT rri-zic^ts of T-ecdcr-i'; tori re^iiiin. Phot Cjc. 177; Miri-; M'rra:;r'; ^indir:- -IcPome, ei TaZlirji. ii S:"-5:4 , It -k-ss aaLei -prj --"is Atyoi-raj cai-ti nil ov ;•". ^'-i-J rra.etr tovj dj-?.--,-:,-?. VOL. n - 562 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvn The two disputants were wholly unlike each other. Pelagius, whether he was or not (as some said) physic- ally exempt from sensual temptation, was a man of northern temperament, a severe logician, a clear, calm, consequent, unimaginative thinker, who had lived from childhood upwards the peaceful life of a monk and an ascetic. Augustine, on the other hand, had lived in thunderstorms ; he had been a sensualist, a doubter, a Manichee, a rhetorician, an Academic, a man in whose veins ran the hot blood of Africa, and whose whole life had been spent in wild struggles against himself and against his enemies. The Hamartiology of Pelagius could hardly fail to misunderstand the Hamartiology formed in the burning fiery furnace of Augustine's temptations. There was enough, then, in the dis- positions and past experience of the two men to account for wide divergencies in their conceptions of life and of all its moral and spiritual problems ; but beside this they approached the question from wholly dif- ferent points of view — Pelagius from the side of morals and practice, Augustine from the side of dialectics and of philosophical speculation.-^ And the extremes of both were dangerous. Pelagianism might make a man un- spiritual ; Augustinianism might produce a fanatic and a fatalist. Augustine fearlessly rushed forward, or was driven by his antagonists, sometimes changing his opinions as he advanced.^ Partly from the reasonings of 1 On the whole subject, see especially Vossii Historia Pelagiana. I have been much indebted to the lucid and able sketch of these contro- versies in Bohringer, Die Alte Kirche, xi. xii. 2 Thus, "at first," as Hooker says, he attributed predestination to God's foresight of merits, but this he aftervi'ards retracted (Betractt. i. 23 ; De Praedest. Sand. 3) for the view that all mankind was polluted and accursed, and God, electing some, abandoned the rest to perdition merely by His own wish {De Bap. et Grat. 5 ; c. Julian, v. 6). It is impos- XVII THE PELAGIAN CONTEOVERSY 563 a new religious philosophy, partly by general inferences from limited phrases in the sacred writings, he framed a complete, and, as far as its own consistency went, a harmonious system. But it was the inevitable tendency of this system to give an overpowering importance to " problems on which Christianity, wisely measuring, it would seem, the capacity of the human mind, had de- clined to utter any final or authoritative decree." ^ He insisted on the acceptance of dictatorial axioms on some of the most mysterious problems which can cross the horizon of human thought, and did his best to identify Christian orthodoxy with inferential logic and vague speculation. Yet there is one feature of his writings which redounds absolutely to his credit. Dialectical, severe, peremptory, dogmatic, as is his tone, he scarcely ever sinks, as Jerome so often does, and as religious partisans do so frequently, into the abusive rancour of personal hostility. sible not to contrast this cruel and wretched view witli tlie larger and nobler conceptions of Clement and the school of Alexandria. ^ Milman, Hist, of Ghristianity, iii. 173. XVII Continued CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE " Deus semper idem, noverim me, noverim te !" — Solil. ii. 4. SECTION XII It was necessary to dwell at some lengtli on these three great controversies, because they occupied almost all the years of Augustine's episcopal life. Yet such was his in- comparable versatility, energy, and diligence, that, among the many books which he poured forth on these subjects, he still had time to produce other works of more en- during greatness, while he neither neglected his wide correspondence nor his multitudinous duties as a bishop and pastor of his special flock. He was at one and the same moment the greatest preacher, the greatest writer, the greatest theologian, the greatest bishop, and the most commanding personality in the Churches of the West, while he was constantly preaching simple sermons and performing simple duties among the poor artisans and fishermen of Hippo. His personal life was chequered, like that of all men. XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 565 with joys and sorrows. Men of a nature like his are always deeply beloved and intensely hated. But if he had many bitter opponents among Manichees, Donatists, and Pelagians — if books full of violent invective were published against him by Petilianus and Julian — on the other hand he enjoyed the passionate admiration of men like Orosius ; the warm, unvarying friendship of beau- tiful souls like Alypius ; Evodius, Bishop of Uzala ; his future biographer Possidius, Bishop of Calama; and Severus, Bishop of Mileum, "his second soul," "his other I." With Paulinus of Nola, whom he never saw, he maintained a delightful correspondence, and his fine spirit of humility and gentleness calmed the tumultuous jealousy of Jerome, and turned a possible enemy into an appreciative friend. With the Bishops of Eome, except Zosimus, he was in 'kindly relations, and though he had a theoretic respect for the decision of the see of St. Peter, he maintained as strongly as Cyprian and as Hincmar the independence of national Churches. In 419 he induced an African council to protest against the pride as well as against the unwarranted inter- ferences of the Bishop of Eome. We have seen already that terrible troubles arose even in the little circle of his monks and clergy. The duplicity of his presbyter Januarius, who practically retained his property whUe professing to have abandoned it, caused him a severe pang. The unworthiness of the youthful Antonius, whom he had trained from boyhood and recommended for the bishopric of Fussala, almost induced him to emphasise his regretful sorrow by resigning his own see. The grave scandal caused by the mutual accusations of Spes and Bonifacius filled him with shame and anguish. These and other similar circumstances might have served as a warning that it was a hopeless attempt to enforce 566 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvn on all his clergy the monastic regulations of poverty, celibacy, and asceticism, which formed his own lofty ideal of a Christian life.^ Augustine was a believer in dreams, prodigies, por- tents, miracles, the efficacy of relics, and the intercession of martyrs. In one of his sermons he details prodigies which had occurred at Jerusalem. In his City of God, and one of his sermons, he tells a curious story. A relic-monger had brought from Palestine some bones, which were asserted to be those of the martyr St. Stephen. They were consigned to a chapel in the church at Hippo, on which Augustine placed an inscrip- tion of four verses to tell the people of all the miracles which God had permitted to be wrought by these bones, at the reception of which he pronoimced a solemn dis- course. In this sermon he mentions " only " three dead persons by name who were recalled to life in the first two years after the arrival of the relics, but he specially narrates the miraculous recovery of Paulus and Palladia.^ In the Cappadocian "Caesarea there was a well- known family consisting of a father and mother, seven sons, and three daughters, of whom Paulus was the sixth and Palladia the seventh. Very shortly after the father's 1 I have already referred to Lea's Clerical Celibacy for an absolutely overwhelming mass of evidence on the undesirability of enforced clerical celibacy and the inevitable abuses of the monastic system. It is enough to refer to such books as Giraldus Cambrensis, Gemma Ecclesiae (Brewer's ed. iii. xlii. seqq.) He says : " Nunquam, hostis ille antiquus in aliquo articulo adeo Ecclesiam Dei ciroumvenit sicut in voti illius admissione." Even a Pope — Pius II. (jEneas Sylvius) — says : " Non erravit Ecclesia primitiva quae sacerdotibus permisit uxores," Ep. cxxx. For terrible mediaeval evidence, see the works of St. Peter Damiani, and especially one horrible book. Even the Fathers furnish the strongest proofs of the danger of the theory that a beneficent God created a species which could only prolong its temporal existence by forfeiting or impairing its promised eternity. See Cypr. Ep. iv., and De Hah. Virginum, passim; Tert. De Virg. vel. xv. ; Lact. Div. Instt. vi. ; Cone. Antioch (Harduin, i. 198); Niceph. H. E. xiv. 50. 2 j)g q^^^ 2)ei, xxii. 8, 20-22. XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 567 death all the sons were at home, and the eldest so brutally forgot himself as to violently abuse and even beat his widowed mother, while not one of her other sons inter- fered for her protection. In a tumult of fury the un- happy woman hastened to the baptismal font at cock-crow to curse her eldest son.^ There a demon, in the form of her husband's brother, met her, and asking where she was going, heard her story, and persuaded her to curse all her children alike. " Inflamed with his viperous counsel, she prostrated herself at the font, and with dishevelled locks and bared bosom she entreated God with all her might that we might aU be banished from our country, and going through all lands might terrify the whole race of men by our example." God heard in anger the evil prayer. During his sleep the eldest son was seized with a tremulous palsy ; then within the year all the other brothers and sisters in succession were smitten with the same disease. The wretched mother, cursed by the full granting of her prayer, hanged herself. The horror-stricken children, ashamed to meet their fellow-citizens, wandered all over the Roman Empire, making their misery a spectacle to all. The second brother was cured by the relics of St. Lawrence at Eavenna. Paulus and Palladia went about visiting aU places where miracles were performed, and became celebrated for their misery.^ Among other places where St. Stephen performed miracles, they visited Ancona in Italy, and Uzala in Africa ; but in vain. Then on Jan. 1, 426, Paulus saw a vision. "A person bright to look upon, and venerable with white hair, told me that I should be cured in three months, and your Holiness " (he is addressing Augustine) "appeared also to my 1 Paulus himself relates the story in his Libellus Gurationis. Aug. Serm. cccxxii. ^ Be Giv. Dei, xxii. 8 ; Serm. cocxxiii. 568 LIVES OF THE FATHEKS xvil sister in a vision exactly as we now see you, wliicli signified to us that we were to come to Hippo. I too, as we passed through other cities, frequently saw your Beatitude in dreams, just as I see you now/ Admon- ished therefore by Divine authority, we came to this city about fifteen days ago." During this fortnight the brother and sister had frequently visited the church, and especially the memorial chapel to St. Stephen, which had been built by the deacon Heraclius, imploring God with tears to pardon their sin and restore their health. Their case had become notorious, and at Hippo they were the observed of all observers. On Easter Sunday the youth, while praying in the presence of a crowded congregation at the screen of the memorial chapel, sud- denly sank in a swoon, but without the tremor which usually marked his sleep. In a short time he awoke perfectly healed before them all. A number of persons one after another burst into the vestry to narrate the miracle to Augustine, and at last Paulus with a crowd of followers. He fell at the knees of Augustine, who raised him up and kissed him. The church re- sounded with praises, and when silence was restored the lessons were read, and Augustine preached a short but joyous sermon, wishing the people to hear as it were only " the eloquence of God." ^ Fatigued with toils and fasting, he says that he could not have even delivered that very brief address without the help of the prayers of St. Stephen, for, as Possidius tells us, he had been baptizing such a multitude as would have wearied five 1 Augustine, not unnaturally, was seen in dreams by various persons, and always speaks as if it were really himself who came to them, though he was unconscious of it. When he first returned to Africa the gram- marian Eulogius, who had been his pupil, told him that he, while he was at Milan, had come to him in a dream, and explained a difficult passage of Cicero. — De Rhetorica; De curd pro mort. ger. 13. ^ gg,^„i_ cccxx. XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 569 bishops instead of one. He took Paulus home to dine with him, and requested him to put the whole story into writing. Some days after he placed Paulus on the steps of the pulpit with himself, and Palladia, who had not yet been healed. All the congregation could see the one perfectly cured, the other still trembling. The story of Paulus was read aloud, and it ended with a request to the people to thank God for him, and to pray for his sister. They descended from the pulpit, and Palladia went to pray before the memorial chapel. Then Augustine preached on the subject, and told the people not to honour him, because he had appeared to them in dreams without his own consciousness. " Who am I ? I am a mere man, one of many, not one of the great." While proceeding to speak of the miracles wrought in honour of St. Stephen at Ancona and Uzala, he was again interrupted by shouts, " Thanks to God ! Praise to Christ ! " For Palladia had hardly knelt be- fore the screen of St. Stephen's chapel than she too had sunk into a sleep and had risen healed, and was now led to the pulpit once more. For some time the emotion of the weeping congregation was intense, and Augustine could only add very few words. Do not these exciting scenes read as if they had occurred but yesterday at Lourdes or La Salette 1 Shortly before his death Augustine narrated another miracle to Alypius.^ A certain Dioscorus had a daughter who became dangerously ill, and though he had been a scoffer against Christianity, he vowed to Christ that if she recovered he would become a Christian. She re- covered, and he hardened his heart. He was struck with sudden blindness, and confessing his sin, promised, if his sight was restored, that he would fulfil his vow. ^ Ep. ccxxvii. 570 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvii His sight was restored, and again his heart was hardened. He was indeed received into the faith, but pretended that he could not learn the creed by heart. He was then stricken with complete paralysis, and being unable to speak, was admonished by a dream to write down a confession that this had happened to him because of his crime. After this written confession the use of all his limbs was restored, but not his power of speech ; he then wrote down again that he really had the creed by heart, and still remembered it. Having thus con- fessed, he was finally restored. Nay, more, Augustine himself worked miracles. When he lay ill in bed, says Possidius, a person came to him with a sick man, on whom he asked him to lay his hand and heal him. Augustine answered that if he had possessed such power he would have exercised it before. "But," replied the man, "I was bidden to do this in a dream, in which some one said to me, ' Go to Bishop Augustine, that he may lay hands on your sick friend, and he will be healed.'" Augustine no longer hesitated, and the man went away healed.^ This is the only miracle directly attributed to St. Augustine. It must be classed with similar incidents and similar testi- monies in all ages, even down to our own. Possidius adds that, both as a presbyter and as a bishop, Augus- tine had often been requested to pray for persons possessed with the devil, and that when he had suppli- cated God with tears the demons had gone out of them. The multiplication of these miraculous stories is one of the many proofs of the deepening superstition of the age. The miracles performed by fourth -century saints and bishops, or by the supposed bones of martyrs, in their age, stand exactly on the same level as those of 1 Possid. Vit. Aug. 29. XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 571 the Port Eoyalists, or those of Edward Irving, or those wrought at the exhibitions of the Holy Coat of Treves. One circumstance which overwhelmed Augustine with grief was the judicial murder of his highly esteemed friend Marcellinus, who, as Imperial Commissioner, had presided over the anti-Donatist conference at Carthage. When Heraclianus, the Count of Africa, had revolted from the Emperor, and sailed with a fleet of 3000 ships to besiege Eome, he had been routed by Marinus, and afterwards executed. Marinus returned to Africa to trample out the last sparks of the rebellion, and he arrested Marcellinus and his brother, who were perfectly innocent, on the charge of having been accomplices in the rebellion. It is said that he was bribed to take this step by the Donatists, who could not forgive Marcellinus for the hostile decision which he had given at the con- ference.^ However that may be, the friends of the Church, knowing the piety of Marcellinus, and grateful for the many services which he had rendered, used every exertion in his favour. Augustine wrote an earnest letter to Caecilianus, an intimate friend of Count Mari- nus, entreating him to use his influence to secure the liberation of the two prisoners. Caecilianus believed that he had succeeded, and Augustine began to breathe more freely. One day he visited the prisoners. The brother of Marcellinus had said to the Count, " If I am imprisoned as a punishment of my sins, how is it that you, who are so true a Christian, have been brought into the same calamity ? " " Even supposing your kind testimony were true," answered Marcellinus, " is it not a Divine boon that my sins should be punished on earth, and perhaps even by my blood, and not reserved for future judgment ? " Augustine, thinking that perhaps 1 Jer. Dial. c. Pelag. 3 ; Orosius, Hist. vii. 42. 572 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvii Marcellinus may have fallen in his youth into sins of impurity, affectionately urged him to penitence, if such had been the case. But Marcellinus, with a grave and modest smile, took Augustine's right hand in both of his, and said, " I call to witness the sacraments which this hand administers, that I have never been guilty of such sin either before or after my marriage." ^ Marinus, however, had determined that the brothers should die, and, anticipating that the Church would interfere on behalf of Marcellinus, as she had once done on his own, he had them led out to an unusual spot on the eve of St. Cyprian's Day, and there they were executed. He pretended a necessary obedience to the Emperor's command, but this was false. He was immediately recalled from Africa, and deprived of all his dignities. Augustine, overwhelmed with grief, immediately left Carthage, and Marcellinus received the honours of a martyr.^ At a later period of his life another incident occurred which was a source of deep grief to Augustine. Seeing the disturbed and perilous condition of Eome before its capture by the Goths, the elder Melania had left it with her family. Like " a Christian Sibyl," Apocalypse in hand, she prophesied the coming destruction of the city. Her daughter-in-law, Albina, and Pinianus, who was married to her granddaughter the younger Melania, accompanied her in her flight. By incessant appeals and objurgations she had succeeded in inducing them to sell most of their goods, and to devote their lives to God. They were persons of the highest nobility and of great wealth. The history of the family was briefly this, as we find it in the letters of Jerome and the Historia Lausiaca 1 E]3. cli. 9. 2 Oros. vii. 42 ; Aug. Ep. cli. XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 573 of Palladius.^ The elder Melania, adopting from Jerome and other teachers the extravagant views which regarded a rupture of every public and domestic tie as a necessary part of holiness, had abandoned her young son Publicola to the care of the public praetor, and established herself in a convent on the Mount of Olives. Under the spiritual direction of Rufinus, Publicola, in spite of her neglect of her maternal duties, had grown into a good Christian and an illustrious senator. He had married Albina, daughter of the heathen Pontifex, and had two children, the younger Publicola and the younger Melania. This young lady, at the age of thirteen, had been married to Pinianus, a youth of seventeen, son of a former Praefect of Africa. They had no children, and the one object of the grand- mother was to separate the young people and turn them into ascetics. Their parents and aU their relations strongly and unanimously opposed this suggestion, and the aged devotee had " to fight with wild beasts," as PaUadius expresses it, in order to carry her point — the wild beasts being, as he proceeds to tell us, the senators and their wives. By the force of a terrible persistence and a constant appeal to their fears, she succeeded in persuading them to sell all their goods, even a country villa which was specially dear to them. Thus their vast estates in various parts of Spain and Gaul were sold, and the proceeds distributed to the poor. They manu- mitted no less than 8000 slaves, retaining those only who preferred to stay with them, and they only reserved their estates in Sicily, Campania, and Africa, to support monasteries and the poor. Melania could not, however, persuade them to bury themselves in a cloister, and, after they had left Eome, she returned indignantly to Pales- tine, where she died within forty days in her monastery. 1 Hist. Laus. ch. 119. 574 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xvii After a residence in Sicily, Pinianus, his wife, and Albina crossed to Africa, and spent the winter of 414 at Tagaste with the Bishop Alypius, whom they had known in Italy. The times were depressed, and the bishop, with his people, profited in every way by the piety and generosity of their noble guests. Not content with immense donations to the poor, they enriched the Church of Tagaste with estates, and presented gorgeous vestments, enwoven with gold and precious stones, for the use of the presbyters. They also founded and en- dowed a monastery for a hundred monks, and a nunnery for one hundred and thirty virgins, together with various hospitals, so that alike the ecclesiastics and the citizens of Tagaste were highly pleased.^ One of their main objects in visiting Africa had been to see Augustine, but he was unable to come to Tagaste to pay them his respects. He was getting old ; his hair was white ; his health was infirm. He had always been peculiarly susceptible to cold, and the winter had been severe. Further than this, he had several times incurred the censures of his people for his long absences from Hippo, though he never left them except for health, or on the afiairs of the Church. He tells us that his flock was always infirm and unstable. On one occasion he found it " periculosissime scandalisatum" by one of his absences; and all the more because he had many detractors who never missed an opportunity of alienating from him the afi"ections of those who seemed to love him.^ This state of things was very painful to him, and he wrote to the noble Eomans a letter of apology, saying that though he could not then come to welcome them to Africa, he hoped that, sooner or later, he should meet them in some other city. 1 EiJp. 124-126 ; Pallad. Hist. Lam. 119 ; Surius, Vit. Sanct. ^ Ep. oxxii. 1. XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 575 Under these circumstances, Pinianus and Melania came to Hippo, accompanied by Alypius. Age and ill health prevented Albina from coming with them, and this, as the event proved, was unfortunate, for she was a person of stronger mind and calmer judgment than her daughter. If she had been with them, Pinianus might have been saved from weak compliances, and Augustine from an ordeal out of which he did not escape unblamed. The unwarrantable practice of seizing persons against their will, and making presbyters and bishops of them, had now become chronic, and though it had succeeded well in the case of Augustine, of Paulinus, of Ambrose, and others — and doubtless also in instances where it was a sort of pre-arranged farce, like that which still prevails in the Coptic Church — yet it was fertile of simo- niacal motives and hypocritical abuse. Aware of his peril, and perhaps putting less trust in Augustine and his rude population of sailors and fishers than in his friend Alypius, Pinianus exacted from his host a pledge, in the presence of Alypius, that he would never ordain him presbyter against his will ; nay, more, that he would never, by any advice or influence, press him to take orders.^ Pinianus had been supremely generous at Tagaste, and he knew enough of human nature to be sure that Hippo longed to share the advantages which he had bestowed upon the neighbouring diocese. Although only a fraction of his vast wealth and that of Melania was left to them, it was still sufficiently ample to excite cupidity, and this cupidity was still further inflamed by the benefactions which he now gave to Augustine, and which the bishop divided among the clergy, the monks, and the poor. The Hipponenses had thus as it were " tasted blood," 1 Ep. cxxvi. 1. 576 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvii and a plot was got up — in which there is reason to fear that some of the beneficiaries among the monks and clergy had a large share — to secure the advantage which would accrue to the city from the permanent residence of the noble and wealthy devotees. Why should all that stream of gold flow into the coffers of the Church of Tagaste ? If Alypius and the Tagastenses had foregone the blessed opportunity of securing a millionaire and a patrician for their presbyterate, so much better was the chance for Hippo. Who could be very scrupulous when the object in view was so pious? Whenever a man became a presbyter or a bishop public opinion expected, and indeed at Hippo demanded, that he should at once give up his entire possessions to the common good of the Church. Augustine indeed had openly proclaimed to the people that he would neither admit any one among the body of his clergy, nor retain him in it, unless he succumbed to this exacting and autocratic regulation. Here then was a chance for the monks, the clerics, the paupers of this turbulent town. Estates in Sicily, estates in Campania, estates in Africa — all this Pactolus of wealth would become the ecclesiastical property of the Christians at Hippo, and they would number a descendant of the noblest families of Eome among their ministers, if they could only be successful in one pious coup d'etat ! They seized their opportunity, and all the circum- stances are frankly described to us by Augustine himself At one of the Church assemblies Pinianus, Melania, and Alypius were present, and there was a great throng of people. Augustine was seated in his episcopal chair at the end of the apse, and Pinianus felt himself secure in the promise he had received. The bishop, however, had not yet dismissed the catechumens, when there began to arise a great shout, " Pinianus for presbyter ! Pinianus xvn CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 577 presbyter ! " Augustine at first behaved worthily of himself. He rose from his seat, advanced to the choir- screen, and said to the people, " I have promised Pini- anus that he shall not be ordained against his will. If you ordain him I wUl resign my bishopric." Having said this he again retired to his seat. For a moment, but for a moment only, the conspiracy was checked. It broke out again like a suppressed flame, because, he tells us, the people either hoped to force him to break his promise, or at any rate to force Alypius to ordain his guest. Some of the leading members of the congrega- tion now mounted the steps of the choir and tried to persuade him to yield, but he said, " I will not break my word to Pinianus, nor will I suffer any other bishop to ordain him without my express permission. Even if I did permit it, I should still be breaking my pledge. Be- sides, a forcible ordination will but drive him away from Hippo and from Africa." But the hot-blooded and self-interested mob were now too much infuriated to listen to reason, and Augustine — ^not to his credit, as he himself must have felt — began to waver and to lose his head. The people pressed upon Alypius with dangerous menaces, accusing him of the very greed of which they themselves were now so flagrantly guilty. "You want to keep Pinianus to yourself," they shouted, " that you may dip your hands in his purse." Augustine was over- whelmed with shame when he heard the gross insults with which, in his own cathedral church, his unruly flock assailed a brother bishop whom he esteemed and loved. He admits that the tumult terrified and confused him, and he afterwards entreated the prayers of Alypius that he might be forgiven.^ He felt extreme alarm lest 1 Ep. cxxvi. i. " In fratrem meuin Alypium multa contumeliosa et indigna clamabant." Comp. cxxv. 2. VOL. II 2 P 578 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvil Aljrpius and his friends should suffer personal violence in his very presence, and he was so paralysed by the dread of the church being wrecked by the baser part of the mob that he was ready to catch at any straw. He would not indeed say one word to influence the decision of Pinianus, but on the other hand it remains a blot on his courage and on his character that he did not ascend his pulpit — as a Chrysostom would have done, and did, under similar circumstances — and repress the violence of these simonists by his immense personal authority. He thought of leaving the church, but feared that, if he did, murder might take place ; nor could he even venture to go out side by side with Alypius — which would have necessarily ended the whole scene — ^lest one of the rioters should assault him. He sat on his episcopal throne over- whelmed with grief and incapable of decision,^ when a sudden message from Pinianus, brought to him by one of his monks, seemed to offer a loophole of escape. Pinianus sent to tell him that, if he were forced into ordination, he would take an oath to leave Africa, which would render their greedy violence of no avail. Augus- tine again showed weakness. He would not announce the message to the people for fear of infuriating them yet more ; but as Pinianus entreated his protection, he left the apse where he was sitting and came to him. Meanwhile the young Roman, who also showed timidity, had sent him a second message by another monk, named Timasius — and it is a suspicious circumstance that these monks, who would have been the chief gainers by his bounty, seem to have been swarming round him^ — that 1 Up. cxxvi. 3 : " Inter lios aestus meos gravemque moerorem et nullius coasilii respirationem. ..." 2 Augustine says that he could not find that any of the monks or clergy were in the plot. XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 579 he was willing to swear further that he would remain at Hippo if he were not ordained hy force. Could there be a more transparent proof of the fact that the violence which in such cases was often represented as an impulse of the Holy Spirit was dictated by greed alone ? The message came to Augustine like a refreshing breeze in the midst of his perplexity/ He hurried as fast as he could to Alypius to tell him of this new promise/ thinking, he says, that he ought to prefer the acceptance of a spontaneous offer to the de- struction of his church. Alypius, however, knowing what he owed to his friends, and also that Augustine was responsible for maintaining order and protecting them, curtly refused to give any advice.* Then Augustine felt bound to mount the pulpit and tell the people what Pinianus promised. They, however (so disinterested was their desire that he should be ordained !), after a little muttering among themselves, wanted him to add to the oath that, if ever he consented to ordination, it should be at Hippo only. They could trust themselves to force further concessions out of him at a later time. Pinianus agreed ; the people demanded an oath ; but here Pinianus wavered again. " How if necessary circumstances should force him to leave Hippo ? how if there should be an invasion of Goths ? How," added Melania, " if there should be a plague ? " but this last suggestion was rejected by her husband. " I dare not suggest the possibility of invasion to the people," answered Augustine ; "it would be a bad omen, and would look like an excuse." It was decided, however, 1 Ef. cxxvi. "Hie ego in tantisangustiis quasi aura spirante recreatus." ^ Id. " Gradu concitatiore." Augustine's movements through the church — in spite of what he calls the "furens et constipatus populue," and their " perseverantissimus et horrendus fremitus" — seem to have been perfectly unimpeded. ^ Id. " Hinc me, inquit, nemo consulat" 580 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVll to try the popular feelings on the subject, and no sooner had he come to the words "necessary circumstances" than there rose a shout, and the tumult recommenced. Pinianus again gave way and persuaded Augustine to come forward with him, in spite of fatigue, and to stand by his side. The oath that he would stay at Hippo unconditionally — an oath disgraceful to the people and discreditable to Augustine himself, who had thus seen the rights of hospitality violated in his presence — was publicly taken. The people shouted " God be thanked !" and demanded that the oath should be signed by Pini- anus. The catechumens were dismissed. Then the people, by the mouths of the faithful, begged the two bishops to subscribe also. Augustine took the stylus, and had half written his name, when Melania interfered, and prevented him from finishing it. Augustine tells us that he could not imagine what difference it would make, but the lady had probably some dim feeling that " litera scripta manet," and wished to save him from what she not unnaturally regarded as a permanent dis- grace. She and her husband openly complained that the whole scene, ending as it did in the deplorable fiasco of extorting from a Roman patrician, in a church, and in the presence of two bishops, an enforced oath that he would live in a particular town, was nothing more nor less than a piece of brigandage, all the more infamous because it was hypocritical. Augustine evidently felt some pangs of conscience. He was sensible of the disgrace, and admitted the violence, only trying (and very unsuc- cessfully) to shelter his people from the charge of greedy hypocrisy. Alypius, deeply and justly ofi'ended by the menaces and insults which had been addressed to him, at once left Hippo, and soon afterwards Pinianus secretly followed him. This gave the Hipponenses an opportu- XVII CLOSING EVENTS IN AUGUSTINE'S EPISCOPATE 581 nity for fcesli riots, to which they added the publication of disgraceful calumnies. Whether Pinianus merely claimed the right of any other citizen to go and return when he liked, or whether he doubted the cogency of a forced oath, is uncertain. The latter had probably something to do with it, for Alypius wrote a dignified but reproachful letter to Augustine, in which he men- tioned this as a question to be discussed, and argued that at any rate Pinianus was not to be treated as if he were a public slave. Albina was much more outspoken. She upbraided Augustine with not having kept a pro- mise which he had distinctly made. She charged his people with barefaced greed in their desire to keep her son-in-law among them either as a presbyter or as a rich layman, in order that they might be the gainers in money by what she did not hesitate to call his " exile " or " relegation," or even his " deportation " ; and she too asked whether he was bound to keep an oath which had been simply wrung out of him by force. Augustine replied that no one would believe the oath of a bishop, or any one else, if it were not regarded as binding in all cases ; but the extreme weakness of his reply to Albina's plain speaking — for which he thanked her — seems to show that, though not guilty of any share in the gross misconduct of his people, he felt in his conscience that he had acted with a lack of firmness of which his friends had good right to complain. How the afiair ended we do not know. If Pinianus felt himself bound to return to Hippo it must have been with feelings of the deepest disgust. It is probable that Augustine prevailed on the Hipponenses to liberate Pinianus from an oath which testified to their disgrace and his own pusillanimity. Perhaps the young Roman lost the remainder of his property from the violent 582 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvn exactions of Count Heraclian, and when lie was reduced to poverty there was no more reason for detaining him. However that may be, it is certain that a year or two later Albina, Pinianus, and Melania were with Jerome in Palestine. They wrote to ask the advice of Augus- tine about a discussion which they had held with Pelagius, and also sent him kind messages through Jerome. We are glad to know that they were recon- ciled after so severe a grievance. Probably Augustine did not so readily forgive himself. Deprived of all things, the husband and wife at last separated. Melania died seven years after in a convent — perhaps that founded by her grandmother — in Jerusalem. Pinianus became the abbot of a little community of thirty monks. XVII Contmued LAST DAYS OF AUGUSTINE " Lo my one holiday ! " oft the old man cried ; "When shall the bishop's holiday come again ?" When the fierce Huns are on the mountain-side, And he lies sick to death in autumn • — when The cactus flowers of Hippo 'neath the blue Are steeped with crimson blood-drops through and through. Bishop or Dkrrt. SECTION XIII Besides his private griefs, which were many and severe, Augustine, in common with all his Western contem- poraries, was afflicted by the perils and miseries of his time. The perpetual advance of the hordes of bar- barians, and the many intrigues, infamies, murders, and seditions, which marked the reigns of the feeble Arcadius and the yet feebler Honorius, were a perpetual source of terror. Stilicho was the one bulwark of the West, and even before his disgraceful assassination Jerome was openly and secretly sneering at him because he was by birth a half-barbarian.-' When Stilicho was murdered there was nothing to defend Rome from its destruction by Alaric on Aug. 24, 410. We have seen how that tre- 1 See supra, pp. 384, 387. 584 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xvil mendous event shook the heart of Jerome, and forced him to cry, " God, the heathen have come into Thine inheritance." ^ Augustine felt no less deeply the horror of the time. In 409, distressed beyond measure by the wars and rumours of wars on every side, and the alarm caused by the Circumcellions in the diocese of Hippo, the presbyter Victorinus had written to ask him for counsel and consolation. What was he to think of, what answer was he to give to, the taunts of Pagans, when news kept coming in of monks being massacred and consecrated virgins seized by ruffians ? Augustine answered that the sins of Pagans and Chris- tians alike deserved punishment, but that those of Pagans, who knew not God's will, were less flagrant than those of Christians, who knew it. The Christians of that day could not, he said, match themselves with men like Daniel and the Maccabees, who yet had to sufier great calamities and confessed to God that they deserved them. Let Victorinus take refuge in prayer and duty. The seizure of virgins might even redound to God's glory. Thus a niece of Severus, Bishop of Sitifa, had been captured by barbarians, and immediately three brothers of the house in which she was kept as a captive fell grievously ill. The mother entreated the captive virgin to pray for them, promising that if they re- covered she should be restored to her parents. She prayed and fasted and was heard. The barbarians returned her with honour and uninjured to her own family.^ But if we ask how it was that imperial Rome bowed herself into the dust before hordes of rude barbarians, beneath her by an immeasurable inferiority in all but courage and manhood, the answer is that on the one 1 Jer. Ezelc. iii. Praef. See supra, p. 388. ^ ^^_ (.^^_ i^_ XVII LAST DAYS OF AUGUSTINE 585 hand Paganism was effete with an absolute decrepitude, and that Christianity, as it was then understood and in part perverted, did not supply the old heroism and battle-brunt which enables every living nation to find an unpenetrable bulwark in the strong arms of her sons. The energies of Christians in the fourth century were no longer political or national. The Christian Emperors, except Theodosius, were for the most part feeble and wretched puppets in the hands of bigots, women, eunuchs, and priests. The popular form of Christianity was monastic and superstitious. It cooled the patriot- ism or hampered the energies of statesmen and warriors. The pure stream of the Gospel was rendered turbid by unnatural and effeminating influences, and ecclesiastical dominance was ill fitted to preserve social order. There was too indiscriminate a mixture of civil and sacerdotal interests. " Men forgot strong virtues for monacal abstinences, their country for the cloister, and war for controversy. The age of theological splendour was the prelude of barbarism. So true is it that religion, a Divine support for the human soul, is not an all-sufficing instrument for politics, and cannot supply for any nation the need of freedom and of toil." ^ We must not, how- ever, forget that if Christianity helped to destroy the Empire, it helped also to rebuild it on truer foundations. "The Eoman Empire," says Montalembert, "without the barbarians, was an abyss of servitude and corrup- tion. The barbarians without the monks were chaos. The barbarians and the monks united recreated a world which was to be called Christendom." ^ After the capture of Rome Augustine preached several times to his people on that subject,^ and the 1 ViUemain, p. 507. See Hodgkin, Italy and her Invaders, ii. cli. ix. 2 Monki of the West, i. 283. ^ Serm. de Urbis Excidio. 586 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvil circumstance which most afflicted him was the ground which it gave to Pagans to set down all these catastro- phes to the anger of their ofieuded gods against the votaries of the new religion. This was the theme of the last Pagan historians Eunapius and Zosimus, and of the last Christian poet Merobaudes/ It was the desire to refute this taunt which gave occasion to Augustine's greatest book, the City of God. The young Spanish priest Orosius, in writing the celebrated history which Augustine had encouraged him to undertake, began with the words " Divina providentia agitur mundus et homo." This rule of Divine Providence over the world and man was the central conception which Augustine desired to illustrate. Orosius's history was chiefly meant for a comment on the eleventh book after the first ten had been separately published. Augustine meant to address the work to his friend Marcellinus, but his judicial murder took place in 413, before he had finished the second book. When finished the De Civitate Dei occu- pied twenty-two books, and though he began it " in a flame of zeal for God " against the blasphemies of the Pagans, it was often interrupted by other duties.^ In his Retractations he tells us that the first five books were meant to refute polytheism, and the charges brought by its defenders against the supposed perils caused by Christianity.' The second five books were addressed to those who, admitting that human cata- strophes had occurred and would occur in all ages, said that polytheism was necessary to secure the happiness of the future life. The remaining twelve books are positive, and not, like the first ten, mainly negative. 1 The taunt was bandied on both sides. A statue was erected to Merobaudes in Eome in a.d. 435. 2 Epp. cxxxvi. cxxxviii. clxix. 1. ^ Betmctt. ii. 41. XVII LAST DAYS OF AUGUSTINE 587 They contrast the two cities — the city of God and the city of the world — in their origin (11-14), in their develop- ment (15-18), and in their final destiny (19-22). The whole book deals with the two cities, but receives its name from the true and eternal City of God. Many such books have since been written, notably the great Discours sur I'histoire universelle of Bossuet ; but the conception of so grand a design is due to the fertile brain of the Bishop of Hippo. The opening words, Gloriosissimam Civitatem Dei, are, as has been truly said, a keynote to the whole book. It is Augustine's concep- tion of what a history of the Church should be, as well as of the lessons which he learnt from the manifestation of God in the history of the world. It abounds in erudition and in eloquence. His argument throughout the earlier books re- sembles that in the Book of Wisdom. He says that sorrows and calamities fall alike on Christians and heathens, but that their effect is different. The fire that melts the gold hardens the clay ; the fire that purges the wheat destroys the chafi". God means the trials of Christians to be for their blessing and amelioration, those of heathens to be for their punish- ment.^ Rome had become half Pagan during its siege by Alaric, and even when Rome was nothing but a Pagan city it had been taken by the Gauls and burnt by Nero. And, after all, the conquerors of Rome on this occasion, though heretics, were still Christians. Thanks to the brave Arian bishop Ulfilas, they had the Bible in their hands. Augustine was awed by the fall of Rome, but it did not cause him anything like the horror and distress which it caused to Jerome. He regarded 1 This is the line of argument somewhat sophistically urged in the Book of Wisdom, xiv. sqq. 588 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvil it, in fact, as a Divine judgment upon a decrepit Paganism. In these books he gives a sweeping survey of the Eoman Empire and its history, to prove that selfishness was its ruling principle. Then he examines the general idea of heathenism, exposes its deep-seated corruption, and identifies its deities with demons. On the other hand, he finds the centre of Christianity in Christ Him- self, and traces it through the sacred history. Finally he ends the entire aeon of mortality in an eternal dualism — the unchangeable and irremediable separation of the bad from the good. His whole philosophy of history reduces itself to an irreconcilable antagonism. The city of evil is left to its own fate. Its very virtues are unworthy of praise. The beauty and profundity of Greek litera- ture, the earnestness with which philosophers had knocked at the doors of truth, the splendid instances of virtue and self-sacrifice which illuminate the early history of the Eoman Republic, nay, even the fact that his own conception of God came mainly from Neo-Pla- tonic teachers, might have sufficed to show him that his fundamental conception was narrow and imperfect. Humanity is the same everywhere. Its elements are identical in the evil and the good, and as the good often triumphs in the individual man it triumphs also even in the heathen world. Even in this great work we find the taint of the Manichean conceptions in which Augustine had been so long entangled. God is One, not two. Throughout His whole Universe with equal love He makes His sun to shine on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. It is a world in which even while we were yet sinners Christ died for all, Christ died for the ungodly. Nor does Augustine touch on the deep failure of the Church of XVII , LAST DAYS OF AUGUSTINE 589 God itself, so far as it is a visible community, although it was becoming so degenerate that thirty years later Salvian called it not a placatrix but an exacerbatrix Dei. But still the Civitas Dei is a splendid monument of the genius of the writer, and a landmark in the progress of history. It contains a Christian philo- sophy of history, imperfect, indeed, and in many respects mistaken, yet strikingly suggestive. " It is the funeral oration of the Roman Empire pronounced in a cloister ; the interpretation of the past by the new genius which changed the world." It illustrates in a very marked degree the diflFerence between the old order and the new. It shows how in the new belief the interests of the City of God had superseded those of the Empire, and " all the moral energy which remained in the civilised world was turned towards pious contemplation, and yielded the Empire to the barbarians." Augustine had more and more need, as the years darkened round him, to take refuge in the thoughts and hopes which he has enshrined in this his greatest work. At the time of the conference against the Donatists Alaric was preparing to invade Africa, and fix at Carthage the seat of a new empire. A storm destroyed his fleet in the short voyage between Rhegium and Messina, and he died. The ruin of that smiling land and of its flourishing church was destined to be accom- plished by Genseric, a barbarian far less generous and more ruthless than the conqueror of Eome. The fortunes of Hippo and of all Africa were involved in the conduct of a man whom Augustine had loved and honoured, and were the indirect and unforeseen result of advice which he himself had innocently given. This man was Count Bonifacius, who is praised both by Pagan and Christian historians, and who with his 590 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvii treacherous friend and rival Aetius is called by Procopiiis " the last of the Romans." ^ Augustine and Alypius alike regarded him as a sincere Christian, and more than once he seemed on the point of forsaking the world in which he occupied so splendid a position, and turning monk.^ Shortly after the death of his wife he met the two bishops at Tubunae, and told them his desire to abandon war and public life, and to occupy himself with the combat against demons in the saintly solitude of a monastery. They dissuaded him from his purpose, and told him that he could best serve the Church by repressing the incursions of barbarians and helping to crush the schism of the Donatists.^ The advice proved supremely fatal to themselves, to Boni- face, to Africa, to the whole Roman Empire. This was in 417. But for that quiet interview between the war- like count and the Christian bishops there might have been a diflference in the history of the world. In 422 Boniface was sent to fight under Castinus against the Vandals in Spain, and he would probably have defeated them entirely, had he not thrown up his command in disgust at the arrogant incompetence of his commander. He returned to Ostia, and thence to Africa. During the brief usurpation of John he held Africa for the Empress-Regent Placidia and her young son Valentinian III., who had taken refuge at Constanti- nople. This procured him the highest honour, but also the extreme envy of Felix, the master of the soldiers, who with his wife Padusa and a deacon named Grun- nitus ruled the palace. Aetius, too — a Sarmatian who had risen to the highest military rank in the Roman 1 Procop. Hist. Vand. i. 1 95 ; Olympius, 42 ; Prosp. Aquit. Chron. a.d. 422 ; Vict. Vitensis, De Persec. Vand. i. 6. 2 Epp. clxxxv. 1, clxxxix. 7, 8. ^ Up. clxxxv. XVII LAST DAYS OF AUGUSTINE 591 army, and had great influence over the Huns, among whom he had lived as a hostage — was jealous of Boniface, though they had once been brothers in arms. The count had been sent by Placidia on an embassy to the Vandals of Baetica. They were virulent and persecuting Arians, and at the Vandal court Boniface met and wooed as his second wife a beautiful and wealthy Spanish lady named Pelagia, who was a niece of Genseric. She was an Arian. He thought that he had won her over to the Mcene faith, but unhapj)ily he was mistaken. The house of Boniface began to be filled by Arians. His daughter was baptized by an Arian bishop, and to the intense horror of the African Church some Christian virgins were also rebaptized by the heretics. These circumstances increased the jealousy and suspicion which were carefully fostered by the rivals of Boniface at the court, and Aetius advised Placidia to send for him, while at the same time he sent to the count a secret message that if he came he would be assassinated. Boniface refused to come, and prepared for war. At first successful in his revolt, he was after- wards defeated, and meanwhile Africa was plunged in unspeakable miseries. His soldiers had to be maintained as well as the imperial armies. The tribes of Mount Atlas seized the opportunity given them by these distractions to rush down on the defenceless country. Harvests were burnt and trampled, towns destroyed, churches pillaged. Terror and desolation reigned on every side. Full of anguish, Augustine at last found an oppor- tunity to write to his former friend. The character of Boniface had deteriorated in every way, and it was even rumoured that he had not only broken his vow of continence by his second marriage, but had plunged 592 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvu into gross licentiousness. All that could be urged by a Christian bishop was expressed by Augustine with pathetic eloquence and earnest appeal. Alas ! it was now too late to recall Boniface to his former state of mind. Unable to hold his own against the native tribes of Africa on the one side, and the imperial forces on the other, he turned traitor to his country, and let loose the whirlwind by summoning the Vandals to his assistance. In May 428, 50,000 wild Vandals, Alans, and Goths landed in Africa under their king Grenseric. They had been carried over from Spain in the ships of Boniface, and in two years became masters of the province, which they held for a century. They at once made common cause with the native Mauretanians and the Donatist Circumcellions, and they all turned their common hatred against the Church. Then followed scenes of unspeak- able horror which Possidius and others have described. Armed with weapons of all kinds, the brutal hosts of barbarians poured themselves over that smiling land which had been for so many ages the granary of Eome. Victor Vitensis gives us a frightful picture of this Vandal invasion.^ Towns were destroyed and their inhabitants massacred or scattered abroad ; churches were deprived of their ministers, of whom some had been slain with tortures, others by the sword, while a yet more wretched number had been driven to apostasy, and had become the slaves of their Arian captors. Hymns and praises were heard no more, and in most places the churches themselves had been reduced to ashes. The sacraments were no longer administered, for none sought them. Many fled into forests and mountain caves, where they died of hunger and privation. Bishops and clergy, no longer able to help the poor, were themselves reduced 1 S. Victor Vitensis, Historia Persecutionis Vandalicae. XVII LAST DAYS OF AUGUSTINE 593 to indigence and even to beggary. Three cities only — Carthage, Hippo, and Cirta — were able to hold out for a time. Augustine sometimes solaced himself with the remark which he had heard from some wise man " that a man could hardly be great who felt surprise that timbers and stones fall or that mortals die " ; but every gleam of happiness had vanished from his life. Tears were his food day and night, while men daily said unto him, "Where is now thy God?" But misery did not make him neglect his duty. He preached frequently to his terrified and despairing people, and did his best to advise and teach them if he could not alleviate their miseries.^ When Quodvultdeus wrote to ask him what congregations and their ministers ought to do when hard pressed by the enemy, he replied that if the people wished to fly into fortified places it was not for the bishops to forbid them, but they ought themselves to abide by their flocks and churches as long as it remained in their power to discharge any of the duties of their oflfice. Honoratius, Bishop of Thiave, wrote to ask " of what use was it for bishops to stay merely to witness deeds of massacre and outrage which they could not hinder, and to be tortured to death for not delivering up treasures which they did not possess ? " He gave the same reply as to Quodvultdeus, and when Honoratius quoted to him the command of Christ, "When they persecute you in one city, flee to another," he wrote back to say that there were but two circumstances in which he considered the flight of a bishop to be justifiable — one, as in the case of Athanasius and Cyprian, when ^ When Victor Vitensis says, Hist. Persec. Vandal, i. 3, " Tunc illud eloquentiae quod ubertim per omnes carrvpos ecclesiae decwrrebat ipso metu nccatwm, est flutmnp lie can only be referring to the period of Augustine's Dlness. He says that up to that time he had written two himdred and thirty-two books, besides innumerable letters, homilies, and expositions. VOL. II 2 Q 594 LIVES OF THE FATHEES XVll the bishop only was attacked, and his sacred functions could be discharged by those who were not persecuted ; and the other, when all their people have left them. Otherwise, no bishop ought ever to leave his people at the very time when they most needed his ministrations. Nor did Augustine neglect his controversial duties even in these days of labour, trouble, rebuke, and blasphemy. He answered the books of Julian of Eclanum. He wrote against and disputed with the Arians whom the Vandal irruption had once more brought into prominence. He continued, but in a tone of unwonted mildness, his arguments against the Semi- Pelagian monks of Marseilles. At the request of Quodvultdeus he even began a book on heresies, which he was never able to finish. When Count Darius was sent from Eavenna to try and restore peace Augustine helped him with his best advice, and interchanged with him a pleasant corre- spondence, during which he sent to Darius some of his books and received from him some valuable medicines. The visit of Darius put an end to many delusions. Boniface showed him the treacherous letter of Aetius which had driven him into rebellion, and he became reconciled to Placidia, who was now alarmed by the ambitious designs of Aetius. Boniface endeavoured to undo the frightful mischief which he had caused. He offered Genseric a vast sum of money if he would retire to Spain ; but G-enseric laughed in his face. Then he tried threats, which were equally unsuccessful. At last he took up arms against the Vandals to whom he had betrayed the most necessary province of the Empire. But his old success had deserted him. He was defeated and driven into Hippo, which was at once besieged by Genseric both by land and sea. This was at the beginning of June 430. XVII LAST DAYS OF AUGUSTINE 595 Augustine was now surrounded in his monastery by a number of bishops who had fled from the conflagration of their churches and the ruin of their cities. Among them was his biographer, Possidius, who had enjoyed his friendship for forty years. They all wept and fasted and prayed together, imploring God to help them under this terrible tribulation. " I have but one prayer to God amid these calamities," said Augustine to them ; " either that He would set free this city from the enemy, or if not, that He would make His servants strong to bear His will, or at least that He would take me to Himself from this world." Towards the end of August, when the siege had lasted three months, he fell ill, and was able to preach no more. He had often told his friends that no baptized Christian, not even the saintliest bishop, ought to leave this life without a worthy and ample penitence. He acted up to his ideal. As soon as he felt that the fever was dangerous he had the seven penitential psalms written out for him in large letters and hung on the walls around his bed, that he might be able constantly to read them. Ten days before he died he begged his friends to visit him no more, except when the physicians came, or his food was brought to him. He spent his whole days in prayer and meditation, untroubled by any earthly business. He had no wOl to make, for he had no possessions to leave, and several years before he had commended to his people the choice of his valued presbyter Heraclius as his successor in the see of Hippo. The end of his busy and troubled life was at hand, though he was in full possession of sight, hearing, and all his faculties. He died on Aug. 28, 430, in the seventy-sixth year of his age, and the thirty -fifth of his episcopate. From early 596 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xvil manhood to old age he had lived in the service of his Church. In the June of the following year the Vandals aban- doned the siege from want of supplies. Boniface, who had received reinforcements from Rome and Constanti- nople, once more fought a pitched battle with them. He was defeated, and returned to Italy, where in 432 he fell by the lance-thrust of Aetius. Hippo was deserted by its inhabitants, and burnt to the ground by the Van- dals. The only thing which escaped the conflagration was the library which Augustine had consecrated to the use of the Church. Carthage fell before the Vandals in 439. The Church of northern Africa was destroyed, and the country fell back into a desolation and barbarism from which it has never fully emerged. Augustine was spared the anguish of witnessing the final destruction of the city which he had loved so long and the Church which he had served so faithfully. He had done his day's work, and God sent him sleep. He was the last Bishop of Hippo. The people escaped by sea, and in the seventh century the town ceased to exist. When he died there were five hundred Catholic bishops in the province. Not twenty years later there seem to have been only eighteen. Not long ago Bona fell into the hands of the French, and it has been proposed to build a cathedral over the supposed site of Augustine's grave. ^ He is still tra- ditionally remembered in the neighbourhood as Rumi Kebir, " the great Christian." 1 On the translation of Ms relics from Pavia to Bona, see Poujoulat, Hist, de St. Aug. i. 413. XVII Contimied THEOLOGY OF ST. AUGUSTINE " Quid habet orbis Cbristiamis hoc auotore magis aureum vel augustius ? " Erasmus, Ep. Dedics. 1529. SECTION XIV Augustine had been endowed by God with a rich and many-sided nature, and his life was extraordinarily full of the most varied labours. In him a heart glowing like that of the cherubim, and an intellect keen, subtle, and casuistical as that of a schoolman, acted and re- acted upon each other, and lent their combined force to an African nature, passionate as that of TertuUian, and a wiU of indomitable energy and persistence. And these elements of his temperament were powerfully affected by the moral and intellectual history of his life. It was a life of violent reaction from violent extremes of practice and of theory. He had plunged at an early age into sensual dissipation, from which at one bound he passed into an exaggerated estimate of the intrinsic value of monastic asceticism. He had lived in haughty self-reliance ; the reaction, aided by contro- versy, had carried him into a conception of God which 598 LIVES OP THE FATHERS XVII annihilated the freedom of the human will. As a Manichee he had appealed exclusively to the reason, and after a brief interspace of scepticism and Neo-Platonism (each of which left its own influence), he ended by an extravagant reliance on external authority. The vary- ing phases of his life, the oscillations of opinion which necessitated many subsequent rehandlings, the sporadic manner in which his opinions were expressed, the extent to which they were modified by the dialectic exigencies of incessant polemical encounters, render it difiicult to frame any exact system from his writings. Hence the most opposite parties — Eeformers and Eomanists, Jansenists and Jesuits, the adherents of Molina and those of Bajus, the admirers of Petavius and those of Calixt, Sacramentarians and Zwinglians, Tridentines and Anglicans — have alike claimed his authority. He profoundly influenced writers so unlike each other as Erigena and Anselm, Aquinas and Bona- ventura. Luther seized on his doctrine of Justification, Calvin on his theory of Predestination, the Schoolmen on his systematising methods, the Mystics on his burn- ing spirit of devotion, the Popes on his idea of the Church. He anticipated some of the views and argu- ments alike of Descartes, of Leibnitz, and of Butler; he is at once the founder of Scholasticism and the first of the Western Mystics.^ It is not easy to state with any exactitude the opinion of Augustine about the Sacraments. He re- garded Baptism as a necessary condition of salvation, 1 See Cunningham, St. Austen, p. 35 ; Wiggers, August, u. Pelag. i. 27 : " The cogito ergo sum " of Descartes repeats the Si enim fallor sum of Augustine, and " Tu qui scis te nosse, scis esse te ? Sdo. Unde seis ? Nescio. SimpUcem te sentis ? Nescio. Moveri te scis ? Nescio. Gogitare te scis ? Sdo " {Solil. ii. 1). See Ueberweg's Hist, of Philos. i. 333-346 (E.T.) XVII THEOLOGY OP ST. AUGUSTINE 599 and it almost seems as if he attributed to it an ex opere operato validity. Of the Lord's Supper he speaks partly as the sacrament of unity with the body of Christ and partly as a sacrifice. In the first aspect the Holy Com- munion is the Sacrament of Incorporation in the Church, which he defines as Christ's body difi"used throughout the world. He does not regard the Eucharist as the sacrifice of Christ's actual body (of which there seems to be no trace in Augustine's works), but the sacrifice by the Church of herself as the body of Christ. A few passages in the notes may help to throw light upon his views.^ The only shadow of a complete system which he has left is in his brief Enchiridion to Laurentius. But in all his works he deals more (except so far as mere occa- sional words go) with God and with man — with theo- logy and anthropology — than with the special work of Christ. He does indeed deal in a practical manner with the doctrine of the Trinity, but his main thought is the transcendent supremacy, and, so to speak, aloofness, of God, which he had learnt in no small measure from the Neo-Platonists. He exalts God's decree to the absolute annihilation of any real human freedom. Hence his Hamartiology — the doctrine of sins to which he devoted so much elaborate discussion — is radically vitiated ; and 1 The Church as the body of Christ, Serm. 272 : " Panis est corpus Christi, calix est sanguis Christi. . . . Vos autem estis corpus Christi." Tract, in Joann. xxv. sec. 12 : "Quid paras dentes et ventrem ? crede et manducasti." xxvi. sec. 1: "Credere in eum, hoc est manducare panem vivum." Sec. 15: "Hunc itaque cibum et potum socieiatem vult intelligi corporis et membrorum suorv/m." Enarr. in Psalm Hi. sec. 1 : " In quo (convivio) corporis et sanguinem figurofm discipulis . . . tradidi." c. Adim. 12, sec. 3 : "Non dubitavit Deus dicere hoc est corpus meum, cum signvmi daret corporis sui." Ey. xcviii. 9 : " Secundum quemdam modwm sacramentwm corporis Christi corpus Christi est." For many other passages, see Dorner, Augustinus, pp. 263-276. 600 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvil his Soteriology — his doctrine of a Saviour — though so orthodox that his very words were largely adopted by the Council of Chalcedon, was reduced to practical impotence. Augustine's Saviour is not the Saviour of the world. He is only the Saviour of the Church, and even in the Church itself the Saviour only of a mere handful of the elect, whom He saves only under strictly ecclesiastical conditions. It is the Church, not the living Christ, which becomes in the Augustinian system the one Mediator between God and man. This, in fact, is the worst blot upon Augustine's theology. Much as he speaks of Christ, he robs Him of His most Divine prerogatives. So far from being the Redeemer of all mankind. He becomes a mere instru- ment which enabled God to carry out for a very small number in a very small Church a predestination to individual election, entirely apart from any merit oi demerit of their own. Unhappily, Augustine, though a marvellously acute and subtle, was not a consecutive or homogeneous thinker, but developed, and sometimes improvised, his convic- tions according to polemical needs. In his argument with the Manicheans he never lost his tendency to pes- simism, while in his controversy with the Donatists he had elaborated his Church system, and in that with the Pelagians he had thought out the novelties about pre- destination and original sin. An external fact — Adam's single sin — had, by some unique quality of its own, so totally depraved, distorted, vitiated, and empoisoned the whole nature of all his millions of descendants in all ages, that they were incapable of any good whatever, and could only be changed by an external act, baptism, which was so indispensable that every person dying unbaptized is eternally lost; and even infants dying XVII THEOLOGY OF ST. AUGUSTINE 601 unbaptized cannot be saved. The result is that mankind as a whole is a lost and condemned mass, doomed even before they were born to endless agonies.^ Naturally, therefore, an almost unfathomable cleft was drawn by the new Pharisaism between the so-called secular and the so-called religious life. In the developments of this system, marriage and the possession of property were half-tolerated, half-disparaged; and utterly anti- Scriptural views both of God and of life gave the name of " religious " or " servants of God " only to monks, or virgins, or those who gave up their lives to an austere, morbid, and unnatural self-maceration. The theology of Augustine, and hence also that of the Middle Ages, was penetrated through and through with Dualism, and for the majority of the human race with practical despair. To all this scholastic rigidity of formal doctrines and burdensome will-worship he was partly swept by the currents of superstition, and partly driven step by step by the confidence in his own inferential logic under the stress of never-ending disputes. Augustine was so in- cessantly occupied with proving the countless errors of individuals and of sects, that he came to regard theo- logy as a series of propositions as clear and as exactly definable as those of Euclid.^ The gate of the Church 1 He says (De Civ. Dei, xxi. 12) that punisliments are not meant to purify but ever to illustrate the Divine justice ; that it would not be unjust if all men were eternally punished, but that a very few are saved to illustrate the Divine mercy. The majority " praedestinati sunt in aeter- num ignem ire cum diabolo." It has often been said that Augustine was overshadowed to the last by the Manicheism of his early manhood. See, however, Neander, iv. 290. Mr. Cunningham points out that Wesley, though he had little sympathy with Augustine {Works, vi. 310), yet saw that he was no Calvinist. 2 " He did not allow the unity and simplicity of his answers to be at all interfered with by large and inclusive views of truth. To the 602 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xvil began to bristle with a fence work of finely-articulated dogmas, many of them arrived at by pure sophistry, defended with hard intolerance, and enforced by sheer authority. In each of his chief controversies he mingled a great error with great truths. The Mani- chees, and not he, were right when they refused to regard the Eomish episcopal community as the depositary of all truth. The Donatists were right, and not he, when they denied that the Church was justified in resorting to persecution. The Pelagians were in the right, and not he, when they refused to admit an unmixed corrup- tion and absolute depravity of human nature as the result of Adam's sin.^ And of the true nature of the Church Augustine had a very narrow conception. He confounded the Church mainly with the clergy, and dwarfed the ideal of Christ into the founder of the dwindled Church instead of the Saviour of all mankind. He had not entered into the large conception of that Church of Christ into which many were to come from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south — of that Church in which there were many folds and many mansions — above all, of that Church to which belong vast multi- tudes of those who are not ostensibly within its pale. The Church as represented by Ambrose overawed his wavering scepticism by its authoritative claim to be the sole possessor of truth. ^ The Church to him was an extreme contradictory on the one side lie gave the extreme contradictory on the other." — Mozley, Ruling Ideas in the Early Ages. 1 At the Hampton Court Conference the bishops refused to admit the Puritan gloss into Article XVI. It may, however, be said that the " total depravity " of Calvin differs from the view of Augustine, who held " that sin is the defect of a good nature, which retains elements of goodness even in its most diseased and corrupted state." " Esse natura in qua nullum bonum sit non potest " (De Giv. Dei, xix. 13). 2 The sentence " Ego vero Evangelio non crederem nisi me Catholicae XVII THEOLOGY OF ST. AUGUSTINE 603 external establishment, subjected to the autocracy of bishops, largely dependent on the opinion of Rome. It was a Church represented almost exclusively by a sacer- dotal caste, devoted to the aggrandisement of its own power, cut off by celibacy from ordinary human interests, armed with fearful spiritual weapons, and possessing the sole right to administer a grace which came magic- ally through none but mechanical channels. And this Church might, nay was bound to enforce the acceptance of its own dogmas and customs even in minute details and in outward organisation. It was justified in en- forcing unity by using the arm of the State to fetter free consciences by cruel persecution. And outside this Church, with its many abuses, its few elect, its vast masses arbitrarily doomed to certain destruction, its acknowledged multitudes of ambitious, greedy, ignorant, and unworthy priests — there was no salvation ! Augus- tine substituted an organised Church and a supernatural hierarchy for an ever-present Christ. To Augustine more than any one is due the theory which was most prolific of the abiding curse inflicted on many genera- tions by an arrogant and usurping priestcraft. The outward Church of Augustine was Judaic, not Christian. The whole Epistle to the Hebrews is a protest against it. And all that was most deplorable in this theology and ecclesiasticism became the most cherished heritage of the Church of the Middle Ages in exact proportion to its narrowest ignorance, its tyrannous am- bition, its moral corruption, and its unscrupulous cruelty. Ecclesiae commoveret auctoritas " (c. Epist. Manich. 6), throws a disastrous light on Augustine's theology. He seems to have no conception of truth except as a " deposit " in the hands of an episcopate ; nor of the Spirit as illuminating all true souls, but only as speaking by the decision of the orthodox bishops. His notes of the Church (as given in c. Epist. Manich. 5) are consistent with a Church as corrupt as that of Alexander Borgia. 604 LIVES OP THE FATHEKS xvii But thougli Augustinianism triumphed in the Church, it did not triumph without protest, nor did it triumph completely. Vehement as were his attacks on the Pelagians, the Greek Church could not be induced to share his opinions. Two synods — those of Jerusalem and Diospolis — accepted the explanations of Pelagius, and one Pope, Zosimus, until he was frightened into changing sides, not only declared his innocence but rebuked his opponents. Theodore of Mopsuestia, the greatest exegete of the ancient Church, rejected Augus- tine's doctrine of original sin, and charged him Math teaching ignoble thoughts of God which even human jus- tice would condemn.^ Vincent of Lerins, whose defini- tion of what is Catholic in doctrine — " quod semper, quod ubique, quod ah omnibus " — has become proverbial, drew it up as a test which sufficed for the rejection of Augustine's novelties, since they had hitherto been held never, nowhere, and by none.^ The extreme view of predestination, and of God as arbitrary will, belongs rather to Calvinism than to Christian doctrine. The notion that mercy is only a form of Divine Egoism, which has in view God's glory, not man's happiness, is more Mohammedan than Catholic. The doctrine of endless torments for all but the few, to which he first gave fixity in opposition to the opinion then prevalent even in the Western Church, has ever been confronted by God's revelation of Himself as a God of Love to the individual soul.' Semi-Pelagianism, in spite of his 1 See Gieseler, i. 339 (E.T.) 2 See Migne, Patrolog. i. 640 ; Tracts for the Times, i. 592. ^ As in Calvin and Jonathan Edwards, the blessed are to he in- different if not delighted spectators of these torments {De Giv. Dei, ii. 30). How different was the whole system of Augustine from that of Origen ! The system of Origen is mainly occupied with God and Hope ; that of Augustine with punishment and sin. Origen yearns for a final unity, XVII THEOLOGY OF ST. AUGUSTINE 605 arguments, has been and is the general doctrine of the Christian Church.^ Happily there was another and a far brighter side to the religious work of his life. As a bishop he diligently ruled his Church ; as a preacher he surpassed all his con- temporaries in practical usefulness ; as a metaphysician he anticipated some of the best thoughts of Leibnitz and Malebranche. We may deplore the extremes of his theology, but the whole world has gained from the example of his holiness and the outpourings of his religious genius. He was a mystic as well as a school- man, and shows a rare combination of passionate fervour with intrepid dogmatism and dialectical subtlety. If the ambitious priest, and ruthless inquisitor, and hard predestinarian, can claim his authority for much that obscures the mercy of God and darkens the life of man, on the other hand he has supported the faith and brightened the love of thousands who have been ignorant of his Church theories, and totally uninfluenced by his theo- logical dogmatism. He was less firm than Athanasius, less learned than Jerome, less eloquent than Chrysostom, less profound than Gregory of Nazianzus, less clear- sighted than Theodore of Mopsuestia, less forcible in administration than Basil or Ambrose : yet in univer- sality of grasp, in the combination of brilliant qualities, and in the intensity of personal religious conviction, he surpassed them all. No Pagan of his day can for a moment be compared to him. He was the last great man of Africa, and after him the reign of barbarism commenced. Augustine acquiesces in an eternal Dualism. Origen can scarcely bear the thought that even the devil should be unsaved ; Augustine is undisturbed in contemplating the endless torments of nearly all mankind ! 1 See Bright, Anti-Pelagian Treatises, Ixiv. 606 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvn In Art, the special attribute of Augustine is a trans- pierced or flaming heart, to show his ardent devotion and poignant repentance. One of the famous subjects of his life is his vision of the Child Jesus trjdng to empty the ocean into a hole in the sands to rebuke Augustine for endeavouring to fathom the mystery of the Trinity. This subject has been exquisitely treated by Murillo, and in Garofalo's picture in our National Gallery, and by Albrecht Durer, Eubens, Vandyck, and Eaphael. Of modern pictures in which he is introduced the most famous is that by Ary SchefFer in 1845, which represents him at the window in Ostia with his mother Monnica. See Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, i. 308-315. XVII Contimied WOEKS OF AUGUSTINE " Deum et animam scire cupio. Nihilne plus ? Nihil omnino." Solil. i. 7. " Roman his speecli — not as men talked at Rome : Here an Apostle spake, and there a psalm ; And hero Philosophy had made its home : Passion and thought he packed in epigram, Marring the stone of speech wherewith he wrought, But perfecting the likeness of his thought." Bishop op Deret. SECTION XV Augustine was a prolific writer. He felt it necessary to pray to God, "Libera me, Deus, a multiloquio " (Be Trin. xv. 21). Even in his Retractations lie mentions 93 works, in 232 books, and this does not include all his writings, nor his numerous letters and sermons. His works fall into no less than eight divisions, and I have not thought it necessary to mention all of them, omitting some which are of smaller importance. I. Philosophical. 386. Against the Academics — 3 books. On a Happy Life. On Order. 387. On the Immortality of the Soul. On the " Quantity " of the Soul.^ ^ He also wrote in 419 0?i iAe Soul and its Origin. On his style see Ozanam, Hist. Civil, c. iv. 608 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvii 389. On Music— 8 books. These books are of quite subordinate importance. They were written after his conversion, but before, or immediately after, his baptism, and are still largely dominated by Platonic conceptions. II. Apologetic. — To this class belongs his best work. On the City of God — 22 books. This treatise, of which I have already spoken, was begun in 413, but not completed till 426, when he was 72 years old. III. Polemic. 1. Against the Manicheans. 388. On the Morals of the Manicheans. 391. On the Usefulness of Believing. 392. On the Two Souls.i Against Adimantus. 397. Against the Epistle of "the Foundation." Against the Letter of a Manichee. 404. Against Faustus— 33 books. Against Felix — 2 books. On the Nature of the Good. Against Secundinus. Against Fortunatus. 2. Against the Donatisis. 393. An Alphabetical Psalm against the Donatists. Against the Letter of Donatus. 400. Against the Letter of Parmenian — 3 books. On Baptism — 7 books. Against the Letter of Petilian — 3 books. 402. On the Unity of the Church. 406. To the Grammarian Cresconius — 4 books. On One Baptism. 411. The Conference with the Donatists — 3 books. After the Conference. 417. On the Correction of the Donatists. 420. Against Gaudentius. ^ The Manicheans believed that there were two souls, one of which was a part of God, and the other from the race of Darkness. Betractt. i. 15. XVII WORKS OF AUGUSTINE 609 3. Against the Pelagians.''- 410. On the Deserts of Sin, and on Eemission — 3 books. On Marriage and Concupiscence — 2 books. Against Semi-Pelagians. 413. On the Spirit of the Letter. 415. On Nature and Grace. On the Doings of Pelagius. On the Presence of God. 422. To Valentius, on Grace and Free-WilL 427. On Grace. Against Gaudentius — 2 books. Against Two Letters — 4 books. 428. On Predestination. On the Gift of Perseverance. Against Pelagius and Coelestius. Doings with Emeritus. 429. Against Julian — 6 books. 4. Against the Heathen. Questions explained against the Pagans. 5. Against the Priscillianists and Origenists. 411. To Orosius. 6. Against Arians. 416. On the Trinity— 15 books. Against a Sermon of the Arians. 428. Conference with the Arian Maximin. Against the Arians. Against Maximin — 2 books. 7. Against Marcionists, 420. Against an Enemy of the Law and the Prophets. IV. Dogmatic. 426. On Christian Doctrine — 4 books. This important work is a sort of sketch of Hermeneutics and Homiletics, and may be regarded as an introduction to Augustine's Commentaries. 1 In many of these treatises (mainly written, between 412-429) Augustine might wisely have remembered his own rule : " Melius dubitare de occultis, quam litigare de incertis." VOL. II 2 E 610 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVII 389. On the Master (Matt, xxiii. 10). 390. On True Eeligion.i On the Spirit and the Letter. On Seeing God. 393. On Faith and the Creed. 395. On Free Will. 400. On Catechising the Uninstructed. It is addressed to a young deacon. 408. On the Grace of Christ. 413. On Faith and Works.^ 420. Enchiridion ; or, on Faith, Hope, and Love. To the Enquiries of Januarius — 2 books. 421. On the Care for the Dead. This book was addressed to Paulinus. It contains one of the earliest authoritative statements of the belief in an intermediate state between blessedness and damnation, and in the benefit to be gained from the prayers of the faithful by those in this condition. On the Grace of the New Testament. On the Divination of Demons. On the Origin of the Soul, and a Text of James — 2 books. 410. On the Soul and its Origin — 4 books. 416. On the Trinity— 15 books. Augustine begins this book with the remark that it is difficult, and will be understood by few, in consequence of its highly specu- lative character. 429. On Heresies, to Quodvultdeus. V. Moral and Ascetic. 390. On Lying. 3 395. On Continence. 396. On the Christian Contest. On Virginity.* 1 In this book he had said that in his day miracles had ceased (xxv. sees. 45-46). This he retracts, in consequence of the miracles wrought by the relics of Gervasius and Protasius, especially a blind man's recovery of sight. {Gonf. ix. 7, sec. 16 ; Betractt. i. 13, sec. 7). 2 In this work occurs the famous sentence, " Bona opera sequuntur justifioatum, non praecedimt justificandum." ^ He was not at all pleased with this book, and at one time tried to suppress it. " Obsourus et anfractuosus et omnino molestus mihi videbatur" (Id. i. 27). * This treatise, and those on analogous topics, were partly XVII WORKS OF AUGUSTINE 611 400. On the Work of Monks. A censure of idle and vagabond monks and relic-mongers. 401. On the Blessing of Marriage. 411. On consulting Demons. 414. On the Blessing of Widowhood. 419. On Adulterous Unions.^ 420. Against Lying. In these books Augustine shows himself superior to the general moral standpoint of his age by arguing against the view of the PrisciQiamsts that a falsehood is not allowable under any circum- stances, and not even to our worst enemies, or for a supposed good purpose. 396. On the Christian Warfare. 418. On Abstinence. On Patience. VI. EXEGETIC. On Eighty-three Questions. Questions of the Gospel — 2 books. 393. On the Sermon on the Mount — 2 books. On Parts of the Epistle to the Romans. 394. On the Epistle to the Galatians. 397. On different Questions. To Simplicianus — 3 books. 400. On the Agreement of the Evangelists — 4 books. 401-405. On Genesis, taken literally — 12 books. 410. On the Psahns. On Job. On Forms of Expression in the Scriptures — 7 books. Questions — 7 books. 412. On the Spirit and the Letter. 416. On the Gospel of St. John — 124 homilies. Begun 406. 417. Homilies on the First Epistle of St. John. We have already had occasion to notice some of the character- istics of Augustine's exegesis. He held, but in a loose and elastic way, the doctrine of the " plenary inspiration " of Scripture, yet he points out that it was possible for the hermits to do without Scrip- ture altogether, and says that when men are upheld by faith, hope, and charity, they only need Scripture for the instruction of others.^ written because, as Augustine says in his Retractations (ii. 22), some of the answers to Jovinian too much depreciated marriage. He evidently refers to Jerome. " Praeceptum Domini," he says, " de virginibus nullum est." 1 He felt the question to be full of difficulty. Retractt. ii. 57. ^ De Boctr. Christ, i. 39. See my History of Literpretation, pp. 236-239. 612 LIVES OF THE EATHEES xvil VII. Sermons, circ. 400. They are homilies, of which 183 are on passages of Scripture, 88 on Festivals, 69 on Saints, 23 on occasional subjects. Admir- ably adapted for their immediate purposes, often interesting, and never without some marks of the ability of the preacher, they are yet the least important division of Augustine's writings. " Many of them were published from the notes or shorthand reports of his hearers." They do not for a moment pretend to be great and deep orations like the masterpieces of the Greek Fathers, but are models of country sermons addressed to the middle classes and the poor of Hippo in a terse and simple style. VIII. Autobiographical. Letters. These are 270 in number, and are spread over a space of forty years. They furnish us with a vivid picture, both of Augustine himself and of the times in which he Hved. They are addressed to bishops, clerics of all ranks, statesmen, ladies, and private friends, and they range over all the public and private events of his day. They abound in points of interest. For instance, in the 22d he begs the Bishop of Carthage to forbid the revels at wakes and at the tombs of the martyrs. Of the correspondence with Jerome I have already spoken. In the 38th he pleads for some allowance in ritual diversities. The 47th deals with justifi- able homicides. The 53d gives the succession of the Bishops of Eome, from St. Peter to Anastasius. In the 54th he touches on a question now frequently discussed. He tells us that the Holy Communion was received fasting, yet that on the eve of Good Friday it was not so received, and he does not venture to lay down such a rule. The Church of England " has so ordered her services that the Holy Communion is commonly administered at noon," and Augustine says, " Si quis die dominico jejunandum putaverit non parvo scandalo erit Ecclesiae." His rule was, "Whatsoever cannot be shown to be contrary to the faith or to good morals is to be regarded as indifferent." The 54th is on the mysteries of numbers. The 60th on the character produced by monasticism. The 65th, 77th, and 78th are on criminous clerks. The 90th is on heaven and the heavenly life on earth. In the 93d Epistle occurs the sophistical plea of the Inquisition, "Melius est cum severitate diligere {f) quam cum lenitate decipere." In the 98th Epistle he repudiates the notion of any continuation or repetition of Christian sacrifice, in spite of the popular phrase, " the sacrifice of the altar," implying, as in his book against Faustus (xx. 18), that "in the oblation and participation of the Body of Christ, Christians peradi sacrificii XVII WORKS OF AUGUSTINE 613 memoriam celebrant." In the 101st letter he confesses his ignorance of Hebrew. The 146th is memorable as being addressed "domino diledissimo et desideratissimo fratri," namely to Pelagius ! In the 149th he explains Col. ii. 18-23, and refers, as he rarely does, to the Greek text and its divergent readings. In the 157th he dwells on the lawfulness of divorce for fornication and infidelity, and severely reprobates the monastic disparagements of marriage. In the 159th he makes some remarks on the appearance of ghosts. In the 165th and 166th he shows his leaning to the doctrine of trOr- ducianism (as also in Upp. 180, 202), though he appeals to Jerome for his opinion, and says " Boce me ut doceam." He also speaks of the punishment of infants dying unbaptized. In the 169th he speaks of Christ as the Eock on which the Church is built. The 189th is on the lawfulness of war. In the 197th and 199th, "On the End of the "World," he expresses opinions which practically seem to exclude the doctrines of purgatory and prayers for the dead. The 204th is on suicide. The 209th on the appointment of a bishop suffragan. His choice of a monk named Antony was so un- happy that it caused him the acutest distress, and almost drove him to resign his see. Augustine superseded him, and wrote to Pope Caelestine not to accept his appeal. The 211th deals with the disorder of a sisterhood. The 213th is about the appointment of a successor. The 220th is a reproof to Count Boniface. The 228th on flight in persecution. The last (221) is addressed to Count Darius, with a copy of his Confessions} 387. Soliloquies. 400. Confessions — 13 books. Of this most remarkable and all but unique work I have already spoken. It has been better known in all ages and to all classes of readers than any other of his voluminous writings. 427. Eetractationes — 2 books. This work also is of an unusual and interesting character. About the year 427, when Augustine had already reached the limit of old age, it occurred to him to revise his own books with some- thing of a judicial severity. He had been a very prolific writer, and, thinking of the words of St. Paul, " If ye judged your own selves, ye should not be judged by the Lord,"^ he admitted that he was afraid of the warnings against " every idle word," ^ and also of the text : " In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin." * He was well aware that from his many treatises many things could be collected, 1 A further account of these and other letters is to be found in Bishop Wordsworth's Church History, iv. 34-69. 2 1 Cor. xi. 31. 3 Matt xii. 36. * Prov. x. 19. 614 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xvii which, if not false, could yet certainly be proved to be unnecessary. He does not apply these remarks to his sermons. -"^ He had begun to speak to the people while he was yet young, and had rarely been permitted to be silent on any public occasion. He therefore passes in review his principal works. In his books against the Academics he regrets that he has so often spoken of " fortune," and that he had used the word " omen," which he does not find in the sacred writings. He thinks, too, that he should not have praised Plato and his followers so highly, seeing that they were Pagans. In the dedica- tion of his treatise On a Happy Life to Manlius Theodoras he had been too complimentary. In his book On Order he had attached too high an importance to a liberal education, since many who had no such education were great saints, and many who had greatly advanced in it were not saints at all. Also he should not have spoken of the Muses as though they were goddesses, nor have spoken of wonder as a vice, nor have spoken of the philosophers as illustrious for virtue, though they had not true piety. His book On the Immor- tality of the Soul was so brief and obscure that in some places he could not even understand it himself. As to others of his books he is obliged to enter into subtle, and not always very satisfactory, explanations, to show that they cannot be quoted by the Pelagians in favour of their views about free-will. Yet, on the whole, the Re- tractations are a noble sacrifice laid on the altar of truth by a majestic intellect. 1 On the design of the book, see Ep. cxliiL 2 (to Marcellinus). XVIII ST. CHEYSOSTOMi " The great clerk and godly preacher, St. John Ohrysostom." Homily i. " Quest' altri fuochi tutti contemplanti TJomini fuoro, accesi di quel caldo Che fa nascer i fiori e i frutti santL" Dante, Parad. xxii. SECTION I YOUTH AND EAELY MANHOOD (A.D. 347-370) John — -who was as exclusively known to his contem- poraries by that name as he is to us by his compliment- ^ Editions of St. Chrtsostom. Savile, 8 vols. fol. Eton, 1612 (first complete edition); Fronto Ducaeus, 12 vols. fol. Paris, 1609-1633 and 1636 (completed by P. and 0. Morel); Benedictine, 13 vols. fol. 1718-1738, reprinted at Venice, 1734, 1755, and Paris, 1834-1839, prepared by Bernard de Montfaucon ; Migne, 13 vols. 8vo, Paris, 1860. Of separate works, the best editions of the Homilies on St. Matthew, and on the Epistles to the Eomans, Corinthians, and Ephesians, are those of the Rev. Canon Pield (Cambridge, 1839, and Oxford, 1838, sq.) The Chief Adthohities foe the Life op St. Cheysostom are — ■ The Dialogue of Palladius, Bishop of Helenopolis (possibly the author of the Historia Lausiaca) ; the ecclesiastical historians, Socrates (vi. 3-21), 616 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii ary title of Chrysostom, or the "golden-mouthed"^ — is one of the most splendid and interesting figures in the early history of the Church. Less profound a theologian than Athanasius, or Augustine, or Gregory of Nazianzus ; less independent a thinker than Theodore of Mopsuestia; less learned than Origen or Jerome; less practically successful than Ambrose, he yet combines so many brilliant gifts that he stands almost supreme among the Doctores Ecclesiae as an orator, as an exegete, as a great moral reformer, as a saint and con- fessor who — " For the testimony of truth has borne Universal reproach, far worse to bear Than violence ; for this was all his care To stand approved in sight of God, though worlds Judged him perverse." The general purity and practical wholesomeness of his doctrines, the loftiness of his moral standard, the in- domitable courage of his testimony against the vices of all classes, the glory of his oratory, the prominent position which he occupied in his own generation, the tragedy and failure of his life, surround his name with a halo as bright as that of any of the great ecclesiastical leaders of the early centuries. He was the ideal preacher to the great capital of the world. Sozomen (viii. 2-23), Theodoret (v. 27-31) ; a letter of Isidore of Pelusium, Ep. xlii. ; the lives written by Erasmus {Opp. v. 1150), Tillemont {M^m. Eccl. xi. 1-405), and Montfaucon {0pp. xiii. 91-178); Butler (iiVes of the Saints, Jan. 27) ; Cave (Lives of the Fathers, iii. 237) ; Neander, Der heilige Ghrysostomus, third ed. Berlin, 1848 ; Am. Thierry, St. Jean Ghrysostome et Vim/p^ratrice Eudoxie, second ed. Paris, 1874 ; W. E. Stephens, Life of St. Ghrysostom, Lond. 1872 ; Bbhringer, Johann. Ghrysostomus (Kirchengesch. in Biogr. second ed. ix). Among other works on St. Chrysostom, we may mention Th. Forster, Ghrysost. in Seinem Verhdltniss zwr antiochenischen Schule, Gotha, 1869 ; Villemain, Tableau de I'^loguence chr^tienne dans le quatriime siicle, Paris, new ed. 1867. 1 Proclus describes him as ^pva-ov^ rijv yXwTTav, about A.D. 437. The name 'XfiviTocrTofio's was first used by Joannes Moschua about a.d. 630. XVIII ST. CHKYSOSTOM BIT The life of Chrysostom falls into well-marked periods — his youth, his life as a hermit, his diaconate of six years, his priesthood of twelve years (a.d. 386-398) at Antioch, his episcopate of six years at Constantinople, and his three years' exile. He was born at Antioch. Although the exact date of his birth is unknown, we may fix it with tolerable certainty about the year 347, a date which best accords with the known events of his career.^ His father — Secundus — was an " illustris " and a " master of the soldiers," and had, therefore, attained to high military rank; but he had no influence on the training of his son, for he died while Chrysostom was yet a young child. His wife's name was Anthusa, and she too was of noble birth. She was little more than twenty years of age when her husband left her a widow with two children, of whom the daughter was the elder. The position of a youthful widow of good means in a town so desperately profligate as Antioch was one of great difficulty and danger, and Anthusa keenly felt the responsibility of having to train her children, govern her household, restrain the turbulence of her slaves, and face the exactions of greedy tax-gatherers. Under such circumstances few widows would have refused the easy remedy of a second marriage, but Anthusa, with noble resolution, declined all ofi'ers, and faced all her difficulties. She devoted herself, heart and soul, to the care of her young children. The girl seems to have died early, for she is not again mentioned, but Anthusa saw in her boy the image of her husband, and sacrificed every other consideration for his sake. She must rank with Monnica, and Nonna, and Emmelia, with Gorgonia and Macrina, in the annals of Christian womanhood ; 1 Jerome was bom about a.d. 347. 618 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvili ' but her task was more difficult than theirs. They had all adopted, to a greater or less degree, the ascetic ideal, but Anthusa lived in the world of Antioch though she was not of it. It was the story of her pure and noble life which wrung from Libanius the impassioned testi- mony, "Heavens ! tvhat women these Christians have!"^ She doubtless found other Christian ladies to support her by their countenance and example. From the days of Phoebe, deaconess of Cenchreae, and Priscilla, joint- founder of the Church of Ephesus, and Lydia of Philippi, the cause of Christianity has owed a deep debt to the religious fervour and zealous activity of women-converts. Julian and Libanius found, to their cost, that women would remain true to their faith even when it was easy to break down the fidelity of men.^ Anthusa gave her son the best education in her power. He learnt philosophy from a certain Andraga- thias, and he owed his literary culture to Libanius, certainly the first Pagan orator and sophist of his day. Under Libanius he was trained in eloquence and in classical learning. He occasionally quotes from the greatest classic writers, but he seems to have felt no special fondness for them, and perhaps gained more from them as a stylist than as a thinker. He attained so brilliant a reputation by his progress in oratory that Libanius not only bestowed the warmest praise on his youthful Panegyric on the Emperors, but even gave him the palm over all his other pupils.^ When asked on his deathbed whom he would regard as most worthy to succeed him, he answered, " John, if the Christians had not stolen him from us." So remarkable a testi- mony speaks highly for the Christian influence of 1 Ba^at, ofat -irapa XptcTTtavots yuvaiKes e'uri. Chrys. ad vid. jun. 0pp. i. 340. 2 Julian, Misopogon, p. 363. 3 Isidore Pel. ii. ; Ep. 42. XVIII ST. CHRYSOSTOM 619 Anthusa. It is clear that, from his earliest chUdhood, she raust have farailiarised his mind with the Holy Scriptures, and must have instilled into him such sound doctrine as enabled him to withstand the ghttering intellectual fascination of the refined and ideahsed Paganism which was taught in the most celebrated of the schools of rhetoric. As yet, however, Chrysostom experienced no fore- shadowings of the career which lay before him. So. far from feeling any proclivities to the asceticism which was then regarded in Christian circles as the one "true philosophy," he began his career, like BasU the Great, as a public advocate. His gifts as an orator opened to him the prospect of the highest worldly success, and his early efforts were so universally admired that, if he had continued to practise at the bar, he would have won his way into the front rank of civil distinction. He was as yet unbaptized, for, though both his parents were Christians, they shared the common superstition which made it seem a peril and a disadvantage to be washed in the " laver of regeneration " until the feverish years of youth had passed. There was nothing, therefore, to restrain him from plunging, as many Christians did, into a worldly career. He was keenly desirous of admiration and applause, and, among other dangerous tendencies, felt a passionate enthusiasm for the loose relaxations of the theatre of Antioch. From these perilous seductions he was saved by two influences, — his study of Scripture, and his afiection for a youthful friend. It was probably the result of his mother's influence that even at this period of his life he continued to be a student of Holy Writ, so that — to use his own favourite metaphor — his soul was still watered from that pure 620 LIVES OF THE EATHEES xvill fountain. What he learnt in those sacred pages soon made the life of a lawyer intolerable to him in a city which seethed with litigiousness and immorality. '^ The conscience of Chrysostom was not of that texture which made it as easy for him as it was for others to be con- tent with a purely professional standard of truth and honour. Custom and conventionality were not sufficient in his eyes to sanction chicanery and greed. His friend bore the common name of Basilius, and he only emerges for a moment into the light of history at this brief period of the life of Chrysostom.^ Basilius was emphatically the friend of his youth. They studied together, talked together, walked with each other to and from the lecture-rooms, and shared the inmost counsels of each other's hearts.^ They remained inseparable until Basilius embraced the monastic life, which had often formed the topic of their youthful conversations. This step produced a deep effect on the mind of Chrysostom, already wearied with the artificiality of his profession. He could not indeed at once make up his mind to give up all and follow Christ in the manner demanded by the fervid impulse of his age, but the world became more and more distasteful to him, and he began to with- draw from public life and to spend more hours in devo- tional duties. His impressions were deepened by the beautiful character and pure moral teaching of the gentle Meletius, who in 367 returned from his second exile and resumed the duties of his see.* He was a man so dearly loved that, as Chrysostom mentions in a homily to his memory, men gave his name to their children, painted his portrait on their walls, and en- ^ See Amm. Marc. xxx. 4. ^ De Sacerd. i. 4. ^ Eor all these particulars, see Chrys. De Saeerdot. i. 1. * See supra, i. 568; il. 257, 258. xviii ST. CHEYSOSTOM 621 graved it on their signet rings. Chrysostom was deeply impressed by the saintliness of this beloved prelate, and it is not impossible that he might have been baptized earlier if there had been a bishop of Antioch who could have won the confidence of his youth. He offered him- self to Meletius as a catechumen, and after three years of training and probation he was baptized, at the age of twenty-three, about a.d. 370. His baptism was a culminating point in his career. It was practically a decision that he would devote his Hfe exclusively to God's service. Shortly after he had been baptized the bishop appointed him a reader. It was the humblest of ecclesiastical dignities, and only entitled him to read the Scripture lessons from the ambo in the part of the service which preceded the Holy Communion ; but it definitely engaged him in the service of the Church. His friend and biographer Palladius says that after his baptism he never again swore, or told a falsehood, or uttered a calumny, or joined in loose conversation. It was hardly likely that a youth of such a tempera- ment as Chrysostom's, and in such a city as Antioch, should long remain unattracted by the imaginative charm of the monastic life. It is in youth especially, and in the glow of early convictions, that such self- sacrifice has an infinite fascination. " It was thus that Massillon, in the first fervour of his faith, quitted the repose of the seminary for the austerities of La Trappe. It was thus that Fenelon in his youth was ambitious of the perilous task of missions in the East." He was drawn to asceticism all the more powerfully by the example of his friend BasUius, whose ardour was earlier than his own. The result of constant intercourse in then- case, as in that of Gregory of Nazianzus and BasU the 622 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvill Great, was a plan that they should both abandon their homes and embrace " the true philosophy." Chrysos- tom's affection for the widowed mother to whom he owed so much does not seem to have ever occurred to him as an obstacle ; or, if it did, he only regarded it as a temptation to be overcome. But when Anthusa heard of the plan she determined if possible to prevent a separation which would frustrate the whole joy and purpose of her life. Chrysostom himself describes the scene. She took him by the hand, led him into her private chamber, and bade him sit down near the bed in which he had been born. Then bursting into a flood of tears, and with her voice intercepted by groans, she reminded him of the early age at which she had been left husbandless ; how perilous and trying was the position of a widow ; how, nevertheless, she had borne all burdens and braved all risks, and devoted herself ex- clusively to the difficult task of educating her only son. Often might she have taken another husband, but amid the fiery furnace of her trials it was her sufficient consola- tion to gaze on the face of her child. Yet she had squandered nothing of his patrimony, but had paid out of her personal means the heavy expenses of his liberal education. She did not cast these benefits in his teeth, but only entreated him not to plunge her in a new and more painful widowhood, but to wait for her death before he entered on the ascetic seclusion. Were he to act otherwise, were he to defy the wishes and neglect the misery of his mother, would not God be angry with him ? Nor could he pretend that she was tempting him from a religious life to worldly cares ; on the contrary, she would give him the amplest opportunities for retire- ment and contemplation in his own home.^ 1 Be Sacerd. i. 5. XVIII ST. CHRYSOSTOM 623 Chrysostom was moved by these passionate en- treaties. Nor could he persuade himself to set them at naught, though Basilius urged him to do so. The young men, however, approached as nearly to the ideal which they had set before themselves as circumstances per- mitted. They placed themselves under the spiritual guidance of the great Diodorus of Tarsus, one of the chief founders of the sounder system of spiritual inter- pretation which is known as that of the " school of Antioch." Diodorus, a man of noble birth and great learning, was a friend of Meletius, and was at that time president of a monastery. He was an ascetic, and the Emperor Julian ridiculed the pale face, sunken cheeks, and emaciated frame of the great scholar as though they were a mark of the anger of the gods.-'- But his genius and high character combined with his self-mortification to win the confidence of Basilius and Chrysostom, and they were joined by two other students who, like themselves and their teacher, afterwards became bishops — Maximus, the future Bishop of Seleucia, and the celebrated Theo- dore of Mopsuestia. The youths formed themselves into a little religious community like those of the Moravians, the German Pietists, and the Methodists at Oxford in later days. Without being yet an actual monk, Chrysostom practised all the austerities of a monk in his own home, and, among other things, we are told that he, like Gregory of Nazianzus, maintained for long periods an almost unbroken silence to cure him- self of the bad habit of detraction. 1 Carterius (Soor. vi. 3), -who seems to have been a sort of joint-abbot ■with Diodorus, is less known. XVIII Continued CHEYSOSTOM AS AN ASCETIC AND A MONK (A.D. 370-381) " Dark cells, dim lamps, A stone floor one may writiie on like a ■wt)rm : No mossy pillow blue with violets." Browning, Paracelsus. SECTION II Not even tlie immense weight of custom and the entire current of an age are always strong enough to over- throw the influence of love and nature. We have already seen that Gregory of Nyssa married, and was not weaned without a struggle to monastic celibacy. Theo- dore underwent a similar struggle. He fell in love with a maiden named Hermione and formed the purpose of marrying and entering into the ordinary life of the world. On hearing this, Chrysostom in a flame of zeal wrote him his celebrated letter "ad Theodorum lapsum." He argued with Theodore with the same im- passioned enthusiasm as Jerome had infused into his letter to his friend Heliodorus. He speaks as if Theo- dore had been guilty of an immense crime, and urges him with the thought of heaven and hell, and stories of xviii CHEYSOSTOM AS AN ASCETIC AND A MONK 625 the repentance of those who had similarly fallen, and lessons of the vanity of life, and the danger of looking back after having put the hand to the plough.^ The fervid appeal — so powerful in itself, though founded on principles which were to some extent erroneous — ^rings with the accent of sincerity. It is more eloquent and less rhetorical than Jerome's letter. It produced the desired effect. Hermione was sacrificed, and Theodore lived to become a celibate bishop and to earn the glory of being one of the best exegetes of the ancient Church.^ In 370 Meletius was banished for the third time, and Diodorus bravely and gratuitously undertook the care of his discouraged and scattered flock. The ap- proach of Valens, the Arian Emperor, made it desir- able for the Catholics to appoint orthodox bishops. It was natural that they should cast their eyes on youths so fervent, blameless, and learned as BasUius and Chry- sostom, who viewed with alarm the prospect of being seized and consecrated to the episcopal office against their will.^ Sharing each other's thoughts in all things they talked the matter over, and Chrysostom secretly determined that his friend should be consecrated and not himself. To compass this end he did not hesitate to use fraud. He told Basilius that the matter was not immediately urgent, and that they could consult about it at some later time. Meanwhile, he promised him that whatever happened they would act together and share the same fate. He adopted this extraordinary 1 Most writers of Churcli history — though Tillemont is an exception — ^identify this Theodore with the Bishop of Mopsuestia. 2 Among the Nestorians he was called " The Interpreter." ^ Chrysostom was only a "reader," but Augustine made a reader Bishop of Fassula (Ep. 261), and sometimes even laymen were raised to the most exalted primacies — as Ambrose to that of Milan, Eustathius to that of Caesarea in Cappadocia, and Nectarius to that of Constantinople. VOL. II 2 S 626 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xviii course without the smallest twinge of conscience, because he held that BasUius was worthy of the dignity, but that he himself was unworthy. Accordingly, not long afterwards, when emissaries came from the electors to seize the two friends, Chrysostom effectually concealed himself and left his companion to be captured. BasHius resisted to the utmost, whereupon the delegates, adopt- ing the same method of deceit, and with equal uncon- sciousness that their conduct was disgraceful, told BasiKus that they were surprised at his holding out through pride, and making so violent an opposition when his much more tumultuous friend had meekly obeyed the behest of his fathers. Basilius accordingly accepted the office, but when he learnt the truth he went to Chrysostom in deep emotion, and with bitter tears upbraided him for his treachery. His reproaches produced no effect what- ever. Chrysostom simply indulged in a hearty laugh, seized his friend's right hand, embraced him, and thanked God that his little plot had succeeded ! In vain Basilius complained that such conduct had overwhelmed him with confusion, and that he hardly dared to look his acquaintances in the face. They criticised both his conduct and that of Chrysostom very unfavourably from many points of view, and he felt that he had a right to more loyalty and consideration than had been shown him. Chrysostom replied, without the least compunction, that deceit was sometimes justi- fiable in a good cause, and that victories won by intellectual stratagem are more creditable than those won by force. When Basilius naturally answered that he was not an enemy to be conquered in this way, Chrysostom proceeded to show that fraud was also exer- cised quite justifiably to friends, and that physicians XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AS AN ASCETIC AND A MONK 627 had sometimes saved the lives of patients by deceiving them. Such devices ought not to be regarded as deceit, but as management (olKovofila) ; and that such " manage- ment " was sanctioned in Scripture, as for instance, by St. Paul when he circumcised Timothy, and fulfilled the ceremonies of the Mosaic law (Acts xxi. 26, xxvi. 3 ; Gal. ii. 2 ; Phil. iii. 6). Paul, he argued, was no more to be called a deceiver on this account than Phinehas to be called a homicide, though he shed blood, or Elijah, or Abraham, or Moses.^ " It is often," he said, " neces- sary to deceive, and by this art to achieve great ends. By too great rigidity one may positively injure a friend." 2 The young bishop more or less acquiesced in these weak, unworthy, and unscriptural views, because neither he nor Chrysostom at that time and in that branch of morals rose to a loftier height than the mass of their contemporaries in the Eastern Church. "Well, then," he asked, "tell me what advantage are we supposed to have derived from this management or wisdom of yours, or whatever you choose to call it." ^ The answer to this very natural question is one of St. Chrysostom's finest books — that On the Priesthood. Between the priesthood and the episcopate he draws no marked line of distinction, but the office of a presbyter seems to be chiefly in his thoughts.* He draws a glowing and solemn picture of the grandeur, the duties, and the perUs of the priestly office, which seems to him 1 These loose views of the admissibility of " oeconomy " in dealing with truth are found also in Horn. vi. in Col. ii. 8. 2 Be Sacerd. i. 9. ^ The date of this event is uncertain, but probably it was not later than A.D. 374. * Bishop Wordsworth thinks, on the other hand, that the title might be better rendered On the Episcopate. 628 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii the most pre-eminent of all dignities. It requires a great soul, and lie feels himself to be as wholly inade- quate for it as his friend was consummately qualified. It was through no disrespect that he had evaded the mandate of the electors, nay, it was to save them from blame for appointing a mere raw youth (fieipaKiov) like himself. So far from being actuated by pride and vain- glory, such feelings would rather have influenced him to accept the function. But when he read about the dignity of priesthood in the Old Testament, and Christ's commission, " Feed my sheep," in the New, and felt the power of the office, and the awfulness of its functions, he had trembled as even Paul had done (2 Cor. xi. 3 ; 1 Cor. ii. 3), though he was "a man of the third heaven " (2 Cor. xii. 2). Priests were tempted to avarice and many sins ; they needed the utmost wisdom, abstinence, self-control, prudence, and fortitude. How difficult was the due care and guidance of widows and virgins ; how deep the need for exercising a wise judgment ! What diligence was necessary ! what eloquence ! what learn- ing ! Then, after an interesting digression about the gifts of St. Paul, he speaks of the labour required for composing sermons ; the liability of a bishop to false accusations ; the extent to which such a man is exposed to envy ; the danger of his becoming too fond of praise and popularity ; the exceptional burden of his responsi- bility, both for others and for himself.^ How could he, ^ In speaking of the administration of tlie Holy Communion, he calls it " offering the tremendous sacrifioe," and speaks of " the Lord Himself sacrificed and lying there, and the priest standing at the sacrifice, and the receivers reddened by the blood." Such language is entirely unscriptural, and its popular and rhetorical character does not accord with his more careful theological language on Heb. x. 9, where he says " We do not offer another sacrifice, but we make a commemoration of a sacrifice " ; see "Words- worth, iv. 129. Theodoret, whose views agreed with those of Chrysostom, says, " The symbol is not only called body, but bread of life," and Chrysos- XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AS AN ASCETIC AND A MONK 629 SO inexperienced, so imperfect, face the requirement for so much purity, prudence, and virtue ? How could he sustain the weight of such cares ? The very thought of it had filled him with fear. BasUius replied, weeping, that Chrysostom had but deepened his anxieties and regrets by such a picture ; but his friend encouraged him with a smile, kissed him on the head, and bade him feel perfect confidence in Christ, who had called him to that high office. For himself he felt sure that from this ministry Basil would acquire such confidence as one day to receive his imperilled friend into celestial habitations. Such is a rough outline of this remarkable book, but it must be read through to enjoy its power and brightness. Historically it proves both the immense development of the sacerdotal idea — for Chrysostom speaks of priests as wielding a power to bind and loose which had not even been granted to archangels, while at the same time he shows how many priests fell infinitely far short of the ideal. He describes them as shipwrecked on the sunken reefs of vainglory, flattering the great, laying themselves out to win the intriguing ecclesiastical in- fluence of women, and putting into play all the enginery of subtle ambition, and yet, after all, exposing them- selves to the peculiar virulence of jealous observance and envious attack. Interesting, too, is his picture of the dangers and difficulties which beset the preacher, whether he be famous or mediocre. He draws the general conclusion that the life of a monk in his blessed obscurity was far calmer and safer, especially for such an one as himself, who, in entering on a warfare in which there was no discharge, keenly felt his many torn, in Ms letter to Caesarius (if that be genuine), says, " It is esteemed worthy to be called the Lord's body, although the nature of bread remains in it." 630 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii infirmities, and, above all, his irritability, bis impulsive- ness, and bis too keen susceptibility to tbe influences of praise and blame. Of Basilius, strange to say, we bear no more. Cbry- sostom offered bim all tbe belp and counsel in bis power, but bis name is not again mentioned. He must bave been very young wben appointed to bis bisbopric, and tbe probability is tbat be died early. Cbrysostom promised to visit bim frequently, so tbat bis see must bave been near Antiocb. Baronius conjectures tbat it was Eapbanea. In 373 Cbrysostom bad a narrow escape. It was in 372 that there occurred tbe wild outburst of panic about magical arts which disgraced and terrified the reign of Valens. It shows tbe morbid state of men's minds at that epoch, and is closely analagous to tbe persecution of witches in the days of Sprenger, and the madness of suspicion which marked tbe history of the Popish Plot. It was at Antiocb that Pagan sorcery bad endeavoured to divine the name of tbe successor of Valens, and tbat the magic ring was supposed to bave vibrated tiU it touched in succession the letters @EOA. The meeting: and its issue were whispered abroad. Theodorus, and others whose names began with tbe fatal letters, were put to death, though Theodosius, the actual successor of Valens, escaped unnoticed in his secluded Spanish farm. The trade of the informer became hideously com- mon, and to avoid tbe possibilities of torture and death, which unsupported accusation too often involved, many persons destroyed their whole libraries, lest the uncon- scious ownership of a single magic-book should plunge them and their families into ruin. It is believed that many of the great works of antiquity were lost or mutilated in consequence of this alarm. One youth was XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AS AN ASCETIC AND A MONK 631 executed for having copied a book of incantations; another for using a love spell to win a lady's affections. A proconsul put an old woman to death because she had cured his daughter's fever by a crooning song. A philo- sopher was executed for ending a letter to his wife with the words, " Take care to crown the gate with flowers," as though some great event was expected ; and a young man, for trying to cure himself of a stomach-ache by muttering the vowels of the Greek alphabet. The paroxysm of alarm was at once grotesque and horrible.^ - While it was at its worst, and the city was full of spies and soldiers, Chrysostom was walking with a friend along the banks of the Orontes to the Church of the Martyr Babylas. Noticing the white fragments of some book floating down the river, they had the curiosity to fish it out, and then saw with horror that it was covered with magic formulae, and that a soldier was close at hand. Fearing that they had fallen victims to the trap of an informer, they hastily flung the book back into the river. Their agonised apprehensions were not ful- filled, but years afterwards, in his Homilies on the Acts, Chrysostom heartily thanks God for this great deliverance.^ ^ It must have been very soon afterwards that Chrysos- tom carried out his long-cherished intention of becoming a monk. Whether Anthusa was now dead, or whether she was unable any longer to resist the impetuous torrent of her son's convictions we do not know, for Chrysostom never mentions her again. No doubt the impulse to escape from the world was strengthened in him as in many others by the deplorable condition of the Empire, but it had its origin in the invincible Dualism of the Eastern temperament. The 1 Amm. Marc. xxix. 2, 22-28. ^ Horn. 38 in Act. Apost. ad fin. 632 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii Essenes and the Therapeutae were ascetics, and from early Christian days men had lived the ascetic life without abandoning their homes. But when persecu- tion after persecution rendered the condition of cities more and more wretched the tendency to eremitism was confirmed by the legendary stories of Antony and Paul, and such stories also gave an impulse to the wiser coenobitism which was organised by Pachomius. The rules of Pachomius were introduced by Balarion into Syria, and the visit of Athanasius and his two monks to Eome introduced the monastic system into the West, whence it was subsequently extended by Cassian into southern France. Chrysostom shared the admiration of his age for the tendency which in his opinion had made the Egyptian desert — studded with its monastic lauras — more beautiful than the midnight sky with its unnum- bered stars. On the wooded hills which surrounded Antioch he saw the city of the virtues, the tabernacles of the saints. The monastery over which Diodorus of Tarsus pre- sided was of the Pachomian type, and Chrysostom joined it. The life practised by the monks was one of extreme simplicity, self-denial, toil, chanting of psalms, and prayer. The monasteries were situated on the healthy mountain heights of Silpius and Casius, which poured down into the city their multitudes of springs. Here, in his garment of skin and hair over a linen tunic, Chrysostom devoted six years to study, labour, fasting, and contemplation, having chosen an aged monk named Syrus as his trainer in ascetic practices. He was happy, for he was living up to his own ideal. He found the peace of his monastery angelic when com- pared to the tumultuous and disordered life of Antioch. His letters to Demetrius and Stelechius were the first XVIII CHEYSOSTOM AS AN ASCETIC AND A MONK 633 fruits • of his retirement, and they powerfully delineate the blessedness which was to be found in seclusion as compared with life in a world where already much of the Christianity had become purely nominal, and where every one of the ten commandments, while professedly honoured in the letter, was grievously broken in the spirit. The letter to Demetrius dwells mainly on the shame and misery of the world, that to Stelechius on the exalted joy of the ascetic life. Stdl more important was his work against the oppugners of monasticism called forth by the decree of Valens against the immunities of the monks. There can be no doubt that whUe many of the monks were sincere and holy men, large numbers of them were ex- ceptionally bad. They had adopted monasticism from base motives of ambition, and they abused it for the vile ends of self-interest. Through them the whole system incurred the just hatred of the majority. To Pagans they were specially detestable as the representatives of all that was insolent and ruffianly in ignorant super- stition ; worldly Christians felt even for sincere monks the aversion always kindled by the tacit reproach of a self-denjdng example ; fathers and mothers disliked and dreaded the intrigues by which they insinuated them- selves into the confidence of families ; statesmen and governors saw the force of the Empire perilously denuded by countless throngs of religious idlers. The decree of Valens, which was provoked by the inherent evils and abuses of the system, called forth a chaos of hatreds, and in many places the monks were actually persecuted. Such conduct inspired Chrysostom, then in the early fervour of his noviciate, with extreme horror, and he once more contrasted the wickedness and turbulence of cities with the holy repose of those who had given up 634 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvin the world. He appeals especially to parents, and points out to them alike the perils which their sons encountered in the life of the world, and the influence which they might gain by becoming monks. Was worldly success to be placed in the balance against moral ruin ? Like all Chrysostom's works, the book derives its chief charm from the characteristics of illustration, eloquence, and sincerity. Experience of monasticism had as yet not brought to him any disillusion. He had deliberately placed himself under the spiritual guidance of Syrus because his mortifications were more severe than even those of his brethren. He lived mainly on bread and water, devoting his whole time to deep study and the duties of devotion. Not content with this, at the end of four years he withdrew to one of the mount- ain caves, and exchanged the life of a community for the solitude of the hermit. For two years longer he endured the unnatural privations of this condition. After that his health hopelessly broke down. The only chance of prolonging his life lay in his return to his home in Antioch. Whatever may have been his inward reluctance, he did not feel justified in continuing a self- mortification which had become equivalent to suicide. His friend Stagirius was in even a worse case. Falling a victim to " the satiety of penitence," he showed all the epileptic symptoms of a disordered frame and a haunted imagination, which were regarded as the signs of demoniacal possession. Chrysostom wrote to console and encourage him. He bids him visit the prisons and lazar-houses, and there to take note that his excess of sorrow was but the wantonness of melancholy, and that by suppressing it he would disarm the demon. These frequent proofs of the revolt of nature against the violation of her sweet and simple laws had no effect XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AS AN ASCETIC AND A MONK 635 in weakening his enthusiasm. What happened to the miserable Stagirius we do not know, but Chxysostom almost congratulates him on an affliction which he attributed to the energy of his struggles against the assaults of sin. As for Chrysostom himself, he carried, indeed, out of his six years of monastic and hermit life, a burning con- viction of the reality of things unseen, an unrivalled knowledge of Scripture, and a clear insight into the workings of the human heart ; but he carried away also the physical disaster of broken health, the anguish of incessant dyspepsia, the intellectual disadvantage of deficient practical experience in dealing with men. He emerged from his cavern solitude with manners, habits, and views of life which were little suited to the high station he was destined to fill. These results were in no small degree the cause of the ruin and misery which marked the external fortunes of his fature life. Never- theless, sincerity and self-denial never miss their high reward. Solitude, if it often ended in h3rpochondria, was also "the mother of great thoughts." From the depths of the wilderness issued forth strong saints as well as hopeless maniacs. Doubtless, from the standpoint of a higher existence, St. Chrysostom would have considered that his losses were more than compensated by his spiritual gains, and the experiences of his early man- hood, whatever may have been the pains and trials which resulted from them, would not have diminished the fervour with which he was at last able to exclaim Aofa To3 060) TrdvTOJv evexa — " Glory to God for all things." Yet on the subject of monasticism and celibacy the enthusiastic ardour of his youth was abated by the wisdom of a larger experience. He deplored in later 636 LIVES OF THE PATHEES xviii days the deep cleft between tlie conceptions of a religious and a secular life, as thougli the monks and hermits only were "the religious," and as though an altogether lower and poorer standard of Christianity sufficed for the remainder of mankind. XVIII Continued CHEYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH (A.D. 381-398) " Phoebeae lauri domus Antiochia Turbida . . . et amentis populi male sana tumultu." AusoN. Ori. Nob. Urb. SECTION III Chrysostom was now thirty-five, and in a.d. 381 was admitted by Meletius into the order of deacons. The post was humble, its functions mostly mechanical. Deacons were sacrists and subordinate attendants in the sanctuary. Their highest office was, on rare occasions, to read the Gospel and to baptize, while their ordinary duty was to take charge of the church, its property, and the order of the services, and to take their stand by the chair of the priest or bishop in order to do his bidding. ^ But outside the church the deacons discharged the im- portant and honourable duty of searching out, visiting, and relieving the poor ; and some at least of the extra- ordinary popularity of Chrysostom with the multitudes at Antioch may have been due to his assiduity in this blessed ministry. The years of preparation for his 1 See Neander's Chrysostom, pp. 59-71. 638 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvill career had been long ; they had occupied a longer period than that destined to be spent in actual service. But that work influenced the fature religious history of the world. Antioch was in those days one of the loveliest, stateliest, most magnificent, and most voluptuous cities of the Eastern Empire, and it displayed to the full the two disastrous characteristics of other great cities in the glaring contrasts between splendid wealth and abject poverty, and in the co-existence of professed Christianity with entire frivolity and unbridled vice.^ From his work as a deacon Chrysostom derived an ever-deepening impression of the misery of the world, and his epitaph on all its ambitions is written in his solemn and beauti- ful Letter to a Young Widow, whose husband Therasius had died five years after her marriage.^ In this treatise he alludes to the recent and awfiil death of Valens (a.d. 378), and shows the impression left by the rout of Adrianople on the minds of all men. Few passages of this letter are more interesting than that in which he points out, as was also done by St. Ambrose and others, the fact that the fourth century was one of great calami- ties ; those calamities were even wider and more terrible than he depicts. The superhuman exaltation of the Emperors was nothing but a dizzy precipice. Glancing through the century, we see that among Constantine's predecessors Diocletian, after finding that cabbage-grow- ing at Salona caused a happiness unknown to the purple, 1 Julian (ap. Liban. i. 469 ed. Reiske) describes it as "full of all vices, violence, drunkenness, incontinence, impiety, avarice, and imprudence." We see what the city was in Chrysostom's Romilies on the Statues, and in Julian's Misopogon; comp. Renan, Les ApStres, i. xii. The Christians constituted about half the population ; the rest were Jews and Pagans. For some account of the Antioch of the first century, see my Life of St. Paid, i. 288-296. 2 It is supplemented by the treatise Against renewing Marriage. XVIII CHEYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 639 died perhaps by suicide ; Maxentius was drowned by the weight of his armour in the muddy waves of the Tiber at the battle of the Milvian Bridge ; Licioius, in violation of a solemn promise, was executed by his conqueror. Constantine, indeed, died in his bed, but not till he had imbrued his hands in the blood of his eldest son. Constantius inaugurated his reign by a general massacre of the seed-royal, and died while hurrying to suppress the revolt of Julian. Constantius II. perished in the attempt to invade the domain of his brother Constans. Constans was murdered by his soldiers. GaUus was beheaded by Constantius. Julian, at thirty-seven, died in disastrous failure, perhaps by the arrow of one of his own soldiers ; his successor Jovian, at thirty-two, after a reign of only eight months, was suffocated by the fames of a brazier in a cold half-finished house. Valen- tinian I. died in a burst of fury at an imaginary insult ; his brother Valens was burnt to death in the terrific rout at Adrianople ; of his sons — Gratian was murdered by his own guards at twenty-four, and Valentinian IL, at the age of twenty, was found dead on the banks of the Rhone. The widows of some of these imperial personages died by poison, or of despair, or of broken hearts. The fate of the many usurpers and military leaders had been similarly disastrous. Nepotian, Sylvanus, Eugenius, Procopius, Maximus, Andragathius, Grainas, Arbogast, aU came to untimely ends; and the powerful ministers Rufinus, Eutropius, Olympius, Aetius, Stilicho, Bonifacius, fared no better. Ammianus says that in those days the very vultures were accustomed to be fed on corpses.^ Two Emperors only of the whole epoch — Constantine and Theodosius 1 " Dirae volueres . . . aesnetae illo tempore cadaveribus pasci." On some of these disasters, see swpra, p. 177. 640 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii — died in their beds in peace. Vanity of vanities was written large over the entire annals of the epoch ; and Chrysostom points the moral with powerful effect.^ Like other great Fathers he too wrote On Virginity. On this subject he shared the errors of his age. Neither he nor his contemporaries saw with perfect clearness that there is no question of superiority or inferiority in the virgin or wedded state ; that marriage is God's appointed ordinance for the vast majority of mankind, in accordance with His own eternal laws ; that there is not the slightest inherent merit either in celibacy or in marriage in them- selves, but only as either condition is accepted in obedi- ence to God's commands. Chrysostom speaks less unguardedly than Jerome ; but he too writes from that inferior estimate of both womanhood and of matrimony which was the almost inevitable result of the imperfect institutions of the East. His pictures of the little trials and difficulties of the marriage state are, . like those of Gregory of Nyssa, generally exaggerated and sometimes absurd. TertuUian was nearer the mark when he spoke of marriage as a condition singularly blessed by the love of God. To this period of his life belongs also his work On the Martyr Babylas. Babylas, Bishop of Antioch, had been put to death about a.d. 250, in the Decian persecu- tion,^ and by the order of Gallus his remains had been transferred to that famous grove of Daphne-by-Orontes 1 In the morbid state of superstition induced by uncertainties and catastrophes, people seized eagerly on omens. It was thought an omen of the fate of Valens that a street oath at Antioch was "May Valens be burnt alive if I stand this " and that " Bring wood, bring wood, to heat the baths of Valens " was a common cry. ^ According to Eusebius {H. E. vi. 39) he died in prison. In forcing the Emperor Philip to do penance for the murder of Gordian before he could be re-admitted into Church communion, Babylas (if the story be true) had anticipated the courage of Ambrose (id. vi. 34). XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 641 in 351. From that time forth the oracle was dumb, and in 362 Julian received the answer that this was due to the proximity of the martyr's corpse. Julian therefore ordered the groves to be cleared of all dead bodies/ and the Christians who obeyed his commands carried the remains of the martyr to a church in Antioch, chanting fierce psalms in denunciation of idolatry. On the same night the temple and idol perished in a conflagration caused by lightning, and Julian in revenge closed the great church of Antioch. The untouched martyr-chapel stood by the ruined and blackened idol-shrine. Libanius had written a lamentable oration on the catastrophe, which Chrysostom holds up to unsparing scorn. These writings abundantly proved that Chrysostom possessed great powers of oratory. Hitherto as a deacon he had not preached, but there must have been many who knew his brilliant reputation in the school of Libanius, and his early fame at the bar. He had now attaiued the ripe age of forty, and in 386, after a diaconate of six years, he was ordained a priest by Flavian, who — in spite, it is said, of a distinct oath to the contrary — had accepted the bishopric, and thus perpetuated the unhappy schism. Chrysostom's inaugural discourse has come down to us, and although it doubtless suited the taste of an age which expended boundless admiration on the sophists, and compared their style to "a mosaic of gold," or " a stream of gems," or " the purple robe and girdle of Hera," it is to most modern readers an un- worthy specimen of his genius. He protests and flatters too much, and when we have subtracted from his sermon both the depreciation of himself as " a cheap and abject youth," ^ and the eulogies of Flavian spoken to his face, there is not much left that is profitable for edification. 1 Amm. Marc. xxii. 13. ^ /xeipa/cto-Kos eOTeA^s /cat aTre/optjuei'os. VOL. II ~ 2 T 642 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvill Fortunately this was a style which, he hardly ever adopted after this occasion. It was the wise plan of the ancient Church to adapt a man's work in all possible cases to his abilities. The rulers of the Church of Antioch at once recognised that in Chrysostom they possessed an orator of the highest calibre. They therefore made preaching his chief func- tion, reserving the other duties of the pastorate — equally or more blessed, but requiring the possession of other gifts — to those who were less capable of reaching the ears and hearts of the multitude. For twelve years Chrysostom was mainly working as a preacher at Antioch.' The 200,000 inhabitants of this regenerate " Athens of the East" heard a call to repentance more powerful than had been heard since the death of the Apostles. An immense number of his sermons and homilies have come down to us, and they place him in the fore- front of Christian orators and Christian exegetes. The greater part of them belong to this period of his life. Besides his funeral orations, of which the one pronounced on Meletius is a specimen, his sermons chiefly fall under the two divisions of theological and practical. The theo- logical discourses against Pagans,^ against the Jews,^ and against the various sects of Arians, were necessitated by the heresies to which his people were tempted to succumb. They are characterised especially by their orthodoxy and the profound acquaintance with Scripture, which was the preacher's most irresistible weapon. His 1 Horn. xi. in Act. Apol ad fin. ^ Chrysostom had no need to argue at great length against Pagans. Their weak and dying cause had been still further crippled by the repress- ive edicts of Theodosiusin 381, 385, and 392. Even the two chief apolo- gists of Paganism, Symmachus in the West and Libanius in the East, were only aesthetic Pagans — Pagans on national and classical grounds. ^ The Jews of Antioch seem to have been of a very low class ; and Chrysostom deals with them in language of the extremest severity. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 643 practical discourses are incomparable specimens of the manner in which he fulfilled his duty as a prophet and a moral teacher by boldly rebuking vice. The vivid style and direct method of Chrysostom enable us to form a clear picture of the temptations which assailed Chris- tians at a time when many were still wavering between two opinions, and were guided to a large extent by political considerations in the choice of their nominal faith. Professed believers were as anxious in those days as at all times to effect a convenient working compro- mise between the Church and the world. They thronged to hear the splendid oratory which awoke their admira- tion even when it did not touch their hearts, but they absented themselves from the prayers and turned their backs systematically upon the Holy Communion. They listened so intently that the pickpockets were able to ply a busy trade among them,^ but they forgot the prac- tical application of what they heard. ^ They broke out into tumults of applause,^ but what they admired was the rhetoric, not the spiritual truth which it was in- tended to convey. To less gifted preachers they were far less attentive. Some Christians, as we learn from Origen, only attended church on feast-days, and not always then. Some left before the sermon, or remained in knots at the farther end of the sacred building, which was assigned to the heathen and the unbaptized. Turn- ing their backs on the Word of God, they busied them- selves with secular gossip. Women, he says, were specially troublesome, making such a noise with their chattering about their children, their wool-work, and their domestic afi"airs, that he was sometimes barely able 1 Adv. Arianos Horn. iii. 7, Horn. iv. 6. 2 Horn. iv. ad fin., Horn. xvii. in Matt, Horn. xxxi. in Acts. ^ See Suicer, s. v. KpoToi, and Bingham, Antig. 644 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii to collect his thoughts. ^ Chrysostom also has much to complain of. His hearers would adjourn from the church to sit side by side with Jews, Pagans, and here- tics amid the fierce excitements of the circus, and at the immoral shows of the theatre. They believed in ridicu- lous omens ; they adopted heathenish ceremonies ; they consulted magic boo"ks ; they came to the Eucharist only two or three times in the year at the great festivals, and after pushing and jostling each other to get first to the Holy Table, they hurried out before the final blessing. They made even the beginning of the New Year and Christmas Day — a feast of which the observance had only recently become popular — an excuse for all kinds of intemperance and excess. Among the mongrel popu- lation of Greeks, Orientals, Jews, Pagans, heretics, and only nominal Christians, of whom the population of Antioch was composed, the task of Chrysostom was one of severe labour and immense responsibility. The Christians alone numbered 100,000 souls, and of these he was the main teacher in the most important church of the city. No man could have discharged this great duty with more power and faithfulness, and probably his ten years as the Savonarola of Antioch were the happiest and most fruitful of his life. It is interesting to know that he usually preached twice a week, though sometimes oftener. Being short of stature, he addressed the congregation from an ambo, not from the steps of the sacrarium. He rarely trusted to the inspiration of the moment, nor did he ever flatter himself that he could do without careful preparation. Sometimes, perhaps, he read his sermons.^ Great as he was, Theodosius— like all the Emperors 1 Orig. in Exod. Horn. xiii. 3 ; Philokal i. 8 ; Eedepenning, ii. 229. 2 Montfaucon, t. xiii. 99, 128 ; Wordsworth, iv. 130. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 645 — was compelled to pay court to the army by donatives on special occasions, and these donatives absorbed enor- mous sums of money from an exhausted exchequer. In order to avoid the claim for two donatives, he resolved to combine the celebration of the fifth year of the nominal reign of his son Arcadius with that of his own tenth year on the throne; but to raise the requisite sum of money he was obliged to levy a subsidy from the wealthiest cities of the East — especially from Alex- andria and Antioch. Both cities were violently hostile to the claim. At Alexandria the incipient revolt was quelled by the firmness of the Praefect Cynegius. At Antioch the Emperor's edict was proclaimed on Feb. 26, 387, and the sullen silence with which it was listened to was soon broken by the wail of women who declared that the city would be ruined. As Bishop Flavian was absent from his home, the mob, finding themselves unable to appeal for his intercession with the Emperor, surrounded the praetorium of the governor, and then, at the instigation of those "lewd fellows of the baser sort" who form the scum of crowds, they rushed to the great public baths and aimlessly wrecked them. Thence they returned to the praetorium, and it was only by escaping through a back door that the governor got beyond the reach of their fury. Bursting into the judgment-hall, they were for a moment awed into silence by the statues of Theodosius and the imperial family by which the empty tribunal was sur- rounded. The spell was broken by some wanton boy who flung a stone which struck one of the statues. Instantly the mob, goading themselves to fury, rushed upon the images, hurled them from their pedestals, battered their faces, and finally, with the grossest in- sults, broke them to pieces and dragged them through 646 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii the mire of the streets. They then attacked the equestrian statue of Count Theodosius, the father of the Emperor, the brave defender of the Empire, who had fallen a victim to the ungrateful jealousy of Valen- tinian I. They hacked his statue to pieces amid derisive gibes. They were proceeding to fire the city, and the three hours' sedition would have ended in irreparable catastrophe, when the return of the governor with a single company of archers made them fly to their homes. Eemorse, anguish, and terror succeeded the wild outburst, which, beginning in aimless petulance, had ended in senseless fury.^ They could expect no mercy, and were compelled to await in awful suspense the weight of a punishment which might be signal beyond all precedent. There was not another city in the Empire which would sympa- thise with them, for the supreme and deified autocracy of the Emperors was the sole bond of union, the sole element of peace and order, throughout the world. They had violated the most sacred majesty which the world had ever reverenced. Theodosius was known indeed to be just and generous, though he was liable to stormy gusts of passion. Had the insult been dealt to him only it might have been just possible that, in some genial mood, he would make comparatively light of the ofi"ence, as the great Constantine had done, who, on being told that the mob of Alexandria had pelted his statues, raised his hand to his head, and replied with a smile, " Strange that I do not feel hurt ! " But what the Emperor might forgive if it had only been directed against his own person became in his eyes an offence 1 We have aliimdaiit authorities for this tumult, both Pagan and Christian . Lihan. Orat. xii. p. 395 ; xxi. p. 527 ; Zosim. iv. 41 ; Theo- doret, vii. 20 ; Sozom. vii. 2.3. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 647 peculiarly detestable, when it had been directed against the sweet and holy Empress whom he had so tenderly loved and so recently lost/ and against the noble father whose deliverance of the Empire from peril had been rewarded only by his death. The Antiochenes might be doomed to decimation and destruction ; the loss of all their privileges and the exaction of a crushing burden was the least that they could expect. And it was only too possible that Theodosius, listening to his more pas- sionate advisers, might condemn the whole city to con- flagration, and order the plough to be driven over its remains. There was but one authority which could possibly afford them any shadow of protection— it was that of the Church. Her bishops had often thrown over the helpless the aegis of a Divine protection, and perhaps the Emperor, even in his angriest moments, could hardly refuse at least to listen to the intercession of the venerable Flavian. It was in truth no light task for an old man to travel 800 miles in the winter from Antioch to Constantinople, to leave behind him a dying sister, and to delegate to other hands the pressing duties of Lent ; but Flavian and the Christians alike felt that in such a case " mercy is better than sacrifice." The messengers who bore to the Emperor the dreadful tidings of the sedition had fortunately been detained by a fall of snow which blocked the passes of Mount Tatirus ; even now, if Flavian travelled with unbroken speed on his momentous mission, he might be able to over- take them, and to prevent the Emperor from passing some terrible edict in the first transports of his just indignation. 1 Flaccilla — that "fidelis anima Deo," as Ambrose calls her {De obit. Theodos. 40)— had died on Sept. 14, 385. 648 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvill Many days must elapse before the city could be relieved from the agony of its suspense, and it fell to Chrysostom to utilise the occasion, to deepen the reli- gious impressions of that solemn moment, to uplift and to console. His flock needed the exertion of all his powers, for already, before the news could reach the Emperor, the governor and his magistrates were begin- ning to inflict terrible vengeance on the ringleaders, and on all who were charged with direct complicity in the riot. If Chrysostom's words are to be taken literally, even boys were burnt or flung to the wild beasts. But meanwhile, day after day, from the ambo or the altar stairs, the great preacher, in orations full of the highest dramatic power, was playing on the emotions of the multitude as on the strings of a harp, now elevating them to fortitude and resignation, now kindling their earthly hopes by describing the motives which might move the Emperor to clemency, now awakening the heavenly aspirations in which alone their souls could find permanent repose ; and above all, warning them to renounce the greed and luxury, the hypocrisy and immorality, the cruelty and superstition, which had perhaps brought this judgment upon them.^ Never perhaps was any Lent kept with deeper solemnity than that observed by the Christians of Antioch in the year 387, when the danger of death by the hands of the executioner hung over many of them, and the fear of ruin over all. The preacher's impassioned appeals often woke applause, but this he endeavoured to repress. The people thronged to the Church of the Apostles. 1 Chrysostom's most frequent denunciations are directed against the strange passion of the Antiochenes for rash oaths. Other vices were their shameful inhumanity towards slaves and their fondness for amulets, both Pagan and Christian. xviii CHRYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 649 Chrysostom made a glorious use of his opportunity. The tension of the audience is illustrated by the fact that a panic one day arose at the false news that the troops were entering the city, and the wild alarm of the Christian congregation had, to their shame and the indignation of Chrysostom, to be allayed by the Pagan governor. In this way some twenty-two days had elapsed when the imperial commissioners, Hellebichus and Caesarius, entered the city at the head of their troops. The selec- tion of such officers had in it an element of hope, for they were Christians and men of compassion. They entered the weeping city in deep silence, while the multitude up- lifted to them their supplicating hands. They announced at once that henceforth Laodicea was to supersede Antioch in the rank of capital of Syria ; that all the baths, circuses, theatres, and places of amusement, were to be closed, and that judicial proceedings were to begin the next day. The wives and children of the accused, in squalid robes, weeping, and sprinkled with ashes, stood in groups about the court. The advocates all shrunk from the duty of defence. Libanius alone ven- tured to appear, and Caesarius, who knew him, whispered a few words of comfort in his ear.^ The next morning saw a memorable scene. As the two commissioners were riding to the court, a ragged and dwarfish old man seized the bridle of one of their horses and ordered them to dismount. At first they took him for a maniac, and on being informed that he was a hermit named INIacedonius, the Barley-eater, they alighted, feU on their knees, and begged his blessing. " Go to the Emperor," said the undaunted old man — whose courage Chrysostom triumphantly contrasts with the cowardly flight of the Pagan cynics — "and tell him 1 Liban. Orat. xxi. 650 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii that man was created in the image of God. Statues that have been destroyed can be replaced, but he cannot restore so much as a single hair of those whom he puts to death." ^ Nothing can more strongly illustrate the strength of the influence exercised by the hermits than the fact that their intercession alone was sufficient to induce the commissioners to postpone the execution of their edict till the result of the appeal to the Emperor was known. Caesarius himself, leaving his colleague in Antioch, undertook to convey to Theodosius the letter signed by the hermits, in which they professed their readiness to ransom the guilty city if need be by their own lives. Chrysostom meanwhile did not relax his vigilance. He reproved the citizens for womanish lamentations over the lost privileges and curtailed pleasures of Antioch, when they ought rather to have been grateful for having escaped more deadly calamities. He pointed out to them the early Christian memories and traditions which constituted the true glory of their city, and showed them that by purity, integrity, and self-denial they might invest it with a pre-eminence which could neither be surpassed nor taken away. Caesarius travelled to Constantinople with such zealous speed that he traversed the 800 miles in a week, but meanwhile Flavian had preceded him. Chry- sostom himself has described to us, no doubt with rhetorical amplitude, yet with general accuracy, the interview between the Emperor and the Patriarch. When admitted into the imperial presence the aged bishop stood afar off, weeping, bending low, and cover- ing his face with his hands. He listened with streaming tears to the complaint of Theodosius about the ingrati- tude of the Antiochenes to one who had always treated 1 Theodor. v. 20. xviii CHRYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 651 them with, lenity, and to his denunciation of the brutal levity which they had shown in insulting the statues of his father and his wife. Flavian in reply did not attempt to extenuate the offence, but appealed to the Emperor's pity, dwelt on the glory of forgiveness, and entreated him to raise in the hearts of the people a memo- rial of gratitude which would be more enduring than any statues. He recalled to his memory the clement words of the great Constantine on a similar occasion, and his own noble acts of kindness. He reminded him how, at a former Easter-tide, in proclaiming an amnesty to criminals and prisoners, he had regretted that he had no power to re-awaken the dead, and how he might do so now by sparing those who were at the point to die. He appealed to him to illustrate in his own person the beneficence of Christianity, and to extend to his fellow-men the forgiveness which he him- self daily implored from God. He declared lastly that unless the Emperor pardoned Antioch he himself would never return to the city.^ The naturally kind heart of Theodosius could not resist these appeals. The first outburst of his indigna- tion had already expended itself. He reminded himself of the compassion of Christ, accorded to the city a free pardon, and begged Flavian to hasten back with the message of mercy. The bishop requested that the young Prince Arcadius might be allowed to accompany him, the better to assure the people that they were forgiven. This petition was refused, but Theodosius promised that when his military duties had been brought to a happy ending by the prayers of Christians he would visit the city in person. 1 Horn. xxi. 1-4. No doubt the speech put into the mouth of Flavian by Chrysostom is in the main dramatic. 652 LIVES OF TllK FATHERS xviii The courier who procodwl Flavian wokci Anliocli from its stupor of aiii^iiish and ,sus])cns('. The l)ish()|) arrived soon afterwards in time foi' (lie lower but that of the Church of (!lirist could have appf^aJed effectually to the Emperor for the forgiveness of a, crime which was among the darkest in the aiiiials of sedition. If the Emperor had controlled liis ]ia,tura,l iiidignaXion, in spite of having been wounded in his d(!e|i('Ht sensibilities, it was because he Avas a sineeri! (!liristia,ii. Wo a,i'e not surprised to hear that majiy Pagans wei'e stiaick with these facts, and that having IxM^n a,ttra,et(!(l to the churches during the time that th(! baths and theatres and circuses were sliut, they had been d(;eply iidhienc(!(l by the noble reasoning a,nd th(; ini|)a,ssion(;d exhortation of the greatest of Christian prea,(;h(!rH. Chrysostom, on the return of Flavian, ]iad to face the ]iea,vy la,bour of preparing for baptism an unwonted nmuber who olfeic.d themselves as catechumens. For ten years more, after the stirring scenes in which the light of Chrysostom's genius had shone forth with such meridian splendour, he continued his bleHS(;(l work in the great city. To this p(!riod of ha,])py activity belong his ninety homilies on St. Matthew which contain his best expository work ; his eighty-eight on St. John ; xvm CHRTSOSTOM AT JLSmOCH 653 and those on the Epistles to tiie Romans, Galatians. Corinthians, Ephesians, Timothy, and Etus. Thev occupy &om the serentli to the eleventh volumes of Ms works, -wliich tilso contain the inferior homilies on Acts and Hebrews delirered at Constantinople. Thev show an incomparable industry, and a deep practical insight into the doctrines and precepts of OmsTianirT, It would be difficult to produce anything to eo[ual them from the works of any Father, and they form tiie staple of the Catenae of Theophylaet, CEcumenius. and others. which served in lieu of original commentaries. In the fourth, fifth, and sixth volumes of his works axe con- tained the homilies on parts of the Old Testamejit — Genesis, the Psalms, and Isaiah, — most of which were also delivered at Antioch, though the latter were written before he was ordained priest. In the Life of St. Ambrose we have watched some of the events which took place during those ten years. " Ees inoompositas, fateor, tomidasqae reliqni" is the confession which Claudianputs into the mouth of the shade of Theodosius,* and neither the somnolent Arcadius nor the small-minded Honorius was at all capable of bearing the immense weight of empire. Arcadius was first ruled by Rufinus and then by Eutropius : Hcnorius first by Stilieho, then by Olympius and Eusebius. These ministers suffered the miserable fate which befel nearly all who domb in those troubled days to the ■'diead summits of Caesarean power." Eufinus was murdered by Grainas and the imperial troops, and in the dreadful irony of history the moment of his ruin was the very one in which the Aquitanian adventurer seemed to have the diadem in his grasp. He was 1 Cknd. Ik BtlL GSd. 293. 654 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvill succeeded by the eunuch Eutropius, who had risen from the lowest degradation by the most menial arts of intrigue, and who has been branded for all time by the scathing satire of Claudian's tremendous invective. In 397 he stood at the summit of his influence, and had managed, by delation, murder, and banishment, to get rid of all his enemies. In this year he achieved the one good deed of his life, and the deed which nearly saved him from destruction in his hour of ruin. For in this year Nectarius, the Patriarch of Constanti- nople, died. Nectarius resembled one of the easy arch- bishops of our own Church in its days of torpor. By ofi"ending none, by taking a poor average standard of life, by speaking smooth things, and more or less answer- ing the world according to its idols, he lived in splendour and died in the odour of sanctity. To be Patriarch of Constantinople was to be in possession of magnificent revenues, to be surrounded by flatterers and parasites, to be the dispenser of much valuable patronage, to have an acknowledged rank equal to that of the highest princes, and to wield a power far greater and more dreaded than theirs. The occupier of such a bishopric had — as most men have — two courses open to him. He might avoid all controversies by "steering through the channel of no meaning between the Scylla and Charybdis of Yes and No," and he might avoid all worldly opposition by taking care that his rebukes lacked all point, and that no person and no class was ofi"ended by his denunciations. If he did this he lived a life truly delightful for men who are content with so vulgar an average. The king- doms of the world and the glory of them were his. All lips praised him. He lived in luxury and ease ; he died regretted and eulogised. All this Nectarius had enjoyed for sixteen years. It was true that he did little or no XVIII CHRYSOSTOil AT ANTIOCH 655 good ; that men and cities and nations were none the better for his influence ; that the Church lost all its meaning by thus " walking arm in arm with the world, the flesh, and the devil " ; that no wrong was righted, no \ice restricted, no creeping error checked, no true convert gained. But Nectarius had been during the great part of his life a civilian, and even when sum- moned to the patriarchate had not yet been baptized. It is probable that his conscience was one of that aver- age stamp which is not troubled by the haunting of great ideals. He was popular in a torpid Church and a corrupt city, and amid a circle of worldly and in- triguing clergy who were content with external functions and verbal profession. He probably valued himself on his easy-going prudence, and judged of his own ^\dsdom and goodness by the estimate not of God but of the world. On the other hand, when a bishop was a bishop indeed, he might look to the certainty of having to face ten thousand enmities. The whole world in its vice and worldliness would be in arms against him. Every selfish interest which he opposed, every fashionable sin which he denounced, every immoral custom which he resisted, would stir up against him the hornet-nest of irritated hypocrisy.-' The opposition of the nominal Church, and of the whole faction of the clergy, whose errors and follies he confronted, would be even more bitter, more unscrupulous, and more uncompromising. 1 See Aug. Ep. xxL ad Valerium: " Xiidl esse in hac vita et maxim e hoc tempore facilius et laetius et hominibus acceptabilius episcopi aut presbyteri aut diaconi officio, si perfunctorie atque adulatorie res agatur ; sed nihil apud Deum miserius, et tristius, et damnabilius. Item nihil esse in hac vita, et maxima hoc tempore, difficilius, laboriosius, peri- culosius . . . sed apud Deum nihil beatius, si eo mode militetur, quo noster Imperator jubet." 656 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii In those days, and in most days, the episcopate became to slothful, vulgar, and worldly men a bed of roses, but to the best and truest men a crown of thorns. " I have loved righteousness and hated iniquity," said the undaunted Hildebrand, " and therefore I die in exile." And this was the fate which Chrysostom was now called upon to experience as Patriarch of Constanti- nople.^ When Nectarius died the flood-gates of base intrigue were opened.^ Every hungry, greedy, worldly-hearted ecclesiastic was on the alert, until the Church became, as Chrysostom says, a Euripus of storms and varying currents. There was an endless amount of canvassing, whispering, plotting, contriving, and secret wire-pulling, into which multitudes of noble partisans, ladies, and the active coryphaei of ambitious Church-parties .threw all their energy.^ Among other bad characters, the detest- able Patriarch of Alexandria — Theophilus — ■ appeared upon the scene. He did his best to secure the election of his presbyter Isidore, who was in possession of one of his guilty secrets, since he had been his agent in an act of constructive treason.* But the eunuch - minister 1 The title " Patriarch. " is first used in ecclesiastical history in the Council of Constantinople at the ordination of Nectarius ; Socr. v. 8. But patriarchal authority was older than the title itself. 2 The only notable act of the episcopate of Nectarius was the aboli- tion of the office of penitentiary or receiver of public confessions, who heard voluntary confessions in private, and ordered public penance. Auricular confession was not made obligatory by the Church of Rome, even once a year, till a.d. 1215. Chrysostom advises his flock "to confess their sins to God." See Bingham, Bk. xv. 8, sec. 6. 3 Chrys. De Sacerd. iii. 15, 17 ; Pallad. Vit. Chrys.; Socr.vi. 7; Sozom. viii. 2. * Theophilus had sent Isidore with a letter of congratulation which was to be given either to Theodosius or to Maximus, according as either won the victory in a.d. 388 ; Socr. vi. 2. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM AT ANTIOCH 657 Eutropius had other views. During a visit to Antioch he had heard one of the magnificent harangues of Chrysostom, and partly out of genuine admiration, partly from the desire to secure a friend in the patri- archate, partly from the wish to do a popular act, he suggested to Arcadius the name of Chrysostom. Chry- sostom was already famous, and all the better portion of the clergy and of the people desired to be under the ecclesiastical government of a true and a great man, rather than under some miserable hireling or intriguing partisan. It would indeed have been difficult to resist the unscrupulous influence of Theophilus, but Eutropius knew how to deal with him in a characteristic fashion. It was not so easy to overcome the possible reluctance of Chrysostom himself, and the certain opposition of Antioch, unwilling to lose the great orator to whom it owed so deep a debt. But these, too, were difficulties which Eutropius had skill enough to manage. He wrote to Asterius, the Count of Antioch, bidding him to get Chrysostom secretly out of the city, and to despatch him under a strong escort to Constantinople. Accord- ingly Asterius invited the unsuspecting presbyter to visit with him a martyr-chapel outside the walls, and when he had arrived took possession of his person, and conducted him to Pagrae, the first stage on the road to Constantinople. There he was hurried in spite of all remonstrances into an imperial chariot, which they found ready, in charge of soldiers and palace emissaries, and was driven off at full speed from stage to stage until they arrived at the capital of the East. By this time he seems to have resigned himself to an elevation which he must have regarded as a call of God. The rank and splendour of the archbishopric had no attraction for him whatever, and he well knew his VOL. II 2 u 658 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVIll perils. His prognostications fell far short of the calamities which were in store for him. He might have said with Pope Adrian VI. that n'o misfortune had ever befallen him so great as his nomination to his primatial see. XVIII Continued CHEYSOSTOM AS PATRIAECH OF CONSTANTINOPLE (A.D. 398-404) " Confortare et esto vir." — 3 Reg. ii. 2. SECTION IV The arrival of Chrysostom in Constantinople was wel- comed with enthusiasm by the people, and resented with dismay by the bishops and the rival candidates. Theophilus, filled with envy and chagrin, positively refused to ordain him, and complained to the Emperor that the liberty of episcopal election had been invaded. " Nevertheless," said Eutropius, " you will yourself ordain him,, or ; " taking the Patriarch aside he showed him evidence against himself so damaging that Theophilus saw no choice left him between obedience and death. On Feb. 26, 398, Chrysostom was enthroned as Patriarch of Constantinople, and delivered a sermon to the assembled multitudes, which is no longer extant, but in which he promised to combat heresy with the weapons not of violence but of Scripture.-' 1 Socr. vL 2 ; Sozom. viii. 7. 660 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVlll From the earliest days of his episcopate he began to display that missionary ardour which is a beautiful feature in his character. From the first he was deeply interested in the Goths, and one day when he saw some of their fair-haired and blue-eyed converts kneeling in prayer in his cathedral he ventured to prophesy that to them belonged the future of the Empire. He could not address them in their own language, but he preached to them through an interpreter, and consecrated UnUas, one of their own nation, to be their missionary bishop. He ordained clergy to work among them, and tried to co- operate with Leontius of Ancyra in sending missionaries to the nomad Sc3rthians on the banks of the Danube. He also strove to put down the Paganism of Phoenicia, and the heresy of the Marcionites in Cyprus. In works like these he found a happier sphere of action than among the nominal Christians of his own turbulent and erring flock. For, indeed, Chrysostom was hardly seated on his episcopal throne before he began to experience that while it might be a luxurious position for a commonplace and faineant bishop, it would be a stormy seat for one who desired with all his heart to do his duty. No bishop who was so determined as he was to carry out great and necessary reforms could have escaped bitter opposition, but the fury which he aroused against himself was partly personal. It was due to an ardent temperament, a quick irascible manner, a forcible mode of expression, and a genuine indignation against compromises and shams.^ He was a monk, an ascetic, not unaware of the power for which he was responsible, not uncon- scious of the exceptional gifts with which he was en- dowed. He felt that as a Christian he could not tolerate 1 See Socrates, H.E. vi. 3, 21. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF COXSTAXTINOPLE 661 the taint of neutrality in the cause of God. By training and disposition he was devoid of tact, and there was something imperious in the demeanour of a man who relied on his own perfect innocence and strong convic- tions. Besides all this, he had the temptations of the orator to use vehement and impulsive language which wisdom and prudence might have toned down without real injury to the cause of truth. Like Gregory of Nazianzus, he lacked that imposing appearance which is always of advantage to a ruler. Like St. Paul and Melancthon, he was what Luther called " ein armer durrer mdnnlein." He was dwarfish of stature and emaciated (to use his own expression) as a spider {apaxvd>Bri<;), though his high forehead and keen eyes gave a certain dignity to his pale and worn features. He felt the self-confidence of perfect recti- tude ; but in worldly matters he was no match for the envious jealousy of Theophdus, the sullen dulness of Arcadius, the underhand craftiness of Severus of Gabala, and the feminine spleen of Eudoxia and her parasites. From the first he gave off'ence to all classes, but especially to the clergy. Such a man could not fail to be miserable in such surroundings. Clergy and people alike were accustomed to a lordly prelate, whose hospi- tahty was lavish and his table magnificent. Chrysostom had a very different ideal. He revolted from luxury and despised ostentation. His playful geniality was reserved for a select and intimate circle of friends. His manner to strangers was distant and abrupt. Sharing with his age the confusion of charity with indiscriminate almsgiving, he thought it a supreme virtue to give at all times and under all circumstances to the poor, and in common with many of the best men of his age he prob- ably increased pauperism, mendicancy, and mendacity, 662 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xvill by lavishing money und clothing without inquiry on all who begged from him.^ To gain means for thefle largesses he gave no sumptuous banquets, mthI dined alone on frugal fare. He was so much occupied that often — like Sir Isaac Newton — he forgot to take his scanty meal until evening. The sybarites of Constanti- nople could not understand this anchorite. His attire was mean, and he not only stripped his palace of its rich hangings and plate and furniture, but even sold the precious vessels and ornaments of churches if he con- sidered them too magnificent. Nectarius had provided some splendid marbles for the Church of Anastasia, the scene of the triumphs of Gregory of Nazianzus. Chry- sostom sold them, and with the proceeds founded a hospital for sick strangers. His enemies charged him with peculation and embezzlement, and declared that his pretence of lonely meals only disguised the reality of " orgies like those of a Cyclops." For all such attacks on his personal character Chrysostom, strong in the sense of innocence, cared nothing. J5ut a man with such views and of so strong a will was not likely to rest content with setting a good example. He began to grapple with the vices of the clergy, and denounced their greed, parasitism, and self-indulgence in a way to which they had long been unaccustomed. He also increased their labours by trying to counteract the popular hymns and open-air services of the Arians with antiphonal services in the churches at night. They rebelled against these extra burdens. Many of them he suspended ; to others he refused the Eucharist. In three months they were up in arms against the moral strictness which they regarded as tyranny.^ They had fallen into the scan- 1 Ep. iv. '-^ How fully they deserved his severity is shown by the term applied XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OP CONSTANTINOPLE 663 dalous habit of consoling their nominal celibacy by living with widows or consecrated virgins, who were called "beloved," or "female companions." Their rela- tions with these feminine devotees, whom they called "adopted sisters," may often have been innocent, but even when this was the case they gave room for the grossest scandal. It was disgraceful to see priests leaving the houses of their own mothers to live in these dubious intimacies, and virgins deserting the homes of unmarried brothers to live under the same roof with clerks to whom they were not related.^ That the intimacy must have been often criminal is certain, or Chrysostom would not have ventured on branding these women as " unmarried wives," and even by darker names ; nor would he have publicly declared that he regarded a bishop who sanctioned such a cus- tom as worse than a "pander."^ The clergy must have shrunk under the scathing sarcasm with which Chry- sostom described their subservience to these " beloved " ; their visits to do errands in the shops of drapers, jewellers, and perfumers ; and the pompous fussiness with which they made way for their ladies in public assemblies. But it was a far more galling attack when Chrysostom said that celibacy under such conditions was a cloak for the most immoral license. The " widows," too, came in for their share of castigation. The archbishop summoned them into his presence, examined their claims, upbraided some with using the title of " widow " to secure a greater freedom in dissi- to them by the witty and indignant Palladius, who classes them among the " belly-worshippers and table-giants and women-hawks " (KotXioXarpat Kal TpaTrefoyiyavTcs Kal yvvaiKoupaKes) who were offended by the prelate's abstinence. ^ See Jer. Ep. ad Eustoch. ^ See Bingham, Bk. xvii. ch. v. sec. 20. Paul of Samosata had partly been deposed for having these Syneisadae in his house. 664 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvill pation, and finally cashiered some of them with the advice that they should marry again as quickly as they could. The clergy were further galled by the advice which he gave to Olympias and other wealthy persons not to lavish their gifts too promiscuously on the clergy, but to be their own almoners ; ^ nor was their rebellious indignation soothed when they heard the vehement archdeacon Serapion — who was often the evil genius of the archbishop^ — say to him in a clerical assembly, " Bishop, you will never control these men till you have driven them all away with one rod." A roar of malediction rose against him on every side, and the clergy and bishops did their best to excite it. Chrysos- tom had only done what his duty required, but there have been others who achieved great reformations with- out perishing in the storm of opposition. He had indeed the sovereign innocence which is needful for such tasks, but he wanted the geniality, the tact, the sympathy, which are hardly less essential. If he could have blended more of the suaviter in modo with the fortiter in re — had he been more sympathetic and less autocratic, calmer and less passionate, in his severity and invective — he would have accomplished greater ends at a less painful cost. It was too much to expect that the masses of shepherds who fed themselves could be ever as he was — frugal and content. Nor did the archbishop stand on much better terms with the world in general. When in 398 the city was shaken with earthquake he attributed this to the wrath of God against the crimes and prodigality of the upper classes. He attacked avarice and luxury until a cry arose that he was trying to set the poor against the rich. He fulminated against immorality in 1 Sozom. viii. 9. 2 j,|_ XVIII CHEYSOSTOM PATRIAUCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 665 terms which seemed intolerable. He spoke of the popu- lar shows of the theatre and the circus with energetic execration. Nothing was too small for his indignant satire. He denounced the use of earrings, which would have maintained a thousand of the poor. He ridiculed the gold bits used for horses, the gold bracelets on the arms of menials, the rich carpets on the floors of the palaces, the walls incrusted with marble and ivory, the silver couches, the gold utensils. He advised the dandies of Constantinople to wear their magnificent boots on their heads instead of on their feet. He re- buked the ladies for their silk robes and gold em- broideries. He drew vivid pictures of the prevalent gluttony and frivolity. He did not hesitate to make his hearers laugh at their own follies, while at the same time he gave vent to unsparing invective on the idle church attendance which led to no moral amelioration, and evaporated in excited applause or " crocodilian tears." If Eutropius had vainly fancied that all men have their price, and that his share in the promotion of Chrysostom had secured him a friend in the Patriarch, he soon found himself grievously mistaken. The all- powerful eunuch could hardly doubt that some of Chrysostom's terrible invectives touched him very closely; and when he endeavoured in 398 to abrogate the rights of churches to afi"ord an asylum to political criminals, Chrysostom became his open and strenuous opponent, though he could not succeed in extorting from the Emperor the entire rescindment of the obnox- ious decrees. As yet, however, the archbishop had not openly broken with the imperial family. It is true that he paid them no adulation, and never went near the court except when he had some demand to make or some 666 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvill disapproval to express. But tlie Empress Eudoxia — young, beautiful, ambitious, anxious above all things to overthrow the galling dominance of Eutropius — was eager to gain so powerful an ally, and endeavoured in all ways to win his approbation. Her chamberlain, Amantius, was a pious and honourable man, and by his hand Eudoxia sent magnificent gifts to the churches and to the poor. She even took up the habits of a devotee, and in Sept. 398, when some relics were being translated to a martyry outside the walls, she followed the procession unveiled and with bare feet, and so de- lighted Chrysostom that his sermon contained a burst of eulogy upon her glorious piety. ^ He spoke in the most glowing terms of the torch- light procession, which resembled a river of fire, of the multitudes pressing on eack other's footsteps like the waves of the sea, of the Empress walking humbly like a handmaid of the Lord, touching the urn which held the' relics or the veil by which they were covered. The passionate words with which he began his harangue after the deposition of the relics were afterwards made one of the charges against him. " What shall I say," he exclaimed ; " what shall I speak ! I exult and am mad, but with a madness better than wisdom. Flying and dancing I am borne on high; in a word, I am drunken with this spiritual delight." No doubt such expressions sounded as reprehensible as the metaphors quoted against Demosthenes by jEschines when they were retailed to those who were not under the spell of the orator's enthusiasm. 1 In this oration {0pp. xii. 468-473) lie speaks of miracles at the tombs of the martyrs. Elsewhere he speaks of miracles as having prac- tically ceased. (See the passages quoted in Lardner's Credibility, ii. 616, 617.) XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 667 The delusion did not last long, for the fall of Eutro- pius was at hand, and it came like that of Enfinus, when he seemed to have attained the very zenith of his success. To the unspeakable disgust of the Western world, Arcadius yielded to his chamberlain's ambitious wishes by nominating him to the consulship. That a eunuch should be consul, that the annals of the year should run in the name of one who had been a degraded slave, seemed to Stilicho and Claudian and even to Honorius a horrible degradation, sufficient to make the Cassii and Fabii uneasy in their graves.^ Eome refused to recognise more than one consul that year — the Eoman noble MalUus Theodoras. Eutropius, on the other hand, was intoxicated with this immense honour, and has- tened his own downfall. When Tribigild, chief of the Ostrogothic Gruthonges, came to court to ask for pro- motion, Eutropius treated him with indifference and sent him away empty-handed. Stung by the taunts of his wife, Tribigild revolted, and Gainas the Goth — now as savagely exasperated against Eutropius as he had been against Eufinus, whose murder he had caused — embraced the quarrel of his kinsman. The eunuch, affecting to make light of the peril, and saying that it required the intervention of a judge rather than of a general, sent a fat and incompetent plebeian named Leo to suppress the Gruthonges.^ Tribigild surprised his camp and in- flicted on him a total defeat, in flying from which Leo was drowned in a swamp. Gainas refused to resist the advancing enemy unless Eutropius was put to death. Arcadius was reduced to despair by these calamities, 1 Claud, in Eutrop. i. 459 sqq. "Eunuchi vestros habitus, insignia sumunt Ambigui Romana mares." 2 Id. ii. 377: "Crassa mole Leo . . . doctissimus artis quondam lanificae." 668 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii complicated as they were by the accession of a hostile king to the throne of Persia, and the rumours that Stilicho was about to march upon Constantinople to avenge the wrongs of the insulted West. Eutropius, with the in- fatuation which so often precedes doom, chose this moment to break finally with the Empress, and to make to her the insolent remark that the hand which had raised her to the throne could hurl her from it. Eudoxia was well aware that she owed her elevation to the deep intrigues and skilful manoeuvres of the eunuch, but for whom Arcadius would certainly have married the daughter of Rufinus. But she, the orphan daughter of the Frank general Bauto, had all the pride and passion of her race. She had not ascended the throne to be the slave of a slave. Haughtily waving him aside, she rushed to the chamber where lay her two children — Flaccilla aged three, and the infant Pul- cheria.^ Snatching the children in her arms, she hurried with them into the Emperor's cabinet, and there amid sobs and cries and floods of tears scarcely found voice to tell Arcadius the insult she had received. Roused for once into passion by the painful scene, the Emperor instantly sent for Eutropius, cashiered him on the spot 1 A genealogy may here be useful — Theodosius, Magister Equitum, beheaded by Valentinian I. 376. ^1 I I Flaccilla;:^ Theodosius I. = Galla, Honorius. d. of Justina, | widow of Valen- Serena = Stilicho. tinian I. 1 I I Arcadius =Etjdoxi A. Maria, = HoNOEius = Tlielmantia, Galla =Constan- d. of stilicho. d. of Stilicho. Placidia. I I i Theodosius II. =Eudocia. Flaccilla. Pulcheria. tins III. Valentinian III. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 669 from all his offices, and bade him leave the palace in- stantly on pain of death. The news of his fall spread like fire amid the throngs of courtiers and menials, and the miserable man, who had so long wielded the whole force of the Empire, knew that, amid the hatred of the thousands whom he had wronged, his life was not worth a moment's purchase. Though he had himself abolished the right of asylum for criminals charged with treason, he fled headlong to the Church, and there defiling his gray hairs with dust took refuge in the inmost sanctuary and grasped one of the marble columns which supported the altar (Jan. 399). Chrysostom was immediately summoned, and arrived just in time to save the wretched suppliant. Already the church began to ring with menacing voices, and some even of the clergy murmured that such a man deserved no shelter from condign retribution. But the archbishop at once flung over him the robe of his protection, and reminded the clerics that the whole situation illustrated alike the power and the mercy of the Church. The crowds momently increased, for the throng in the great amphitheatre had heard the news, and all joined with the soldiers in frantic demands for the head of the minister. But the undaunted de- meanour of the archbishop overawed even the insolence of the soldiery. "You shall not slay Eutropius," he exclaimed, " unless you first slay me. Take me to the Emperor." Weary of the struggle, they at last con- sented to reserve the decision to the Emperor, and Chrysostom was conducted to the palace between a double hedge of swords and spears. The Emperor dwelt on the enormity of the off"ences committed by Eutropius, but Chrysostom replied that human laws could not supersede the Divine, and that the downfall of Eutropius 670 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii furnislied a striking proof of these truths. Arcadius could not resist the ascendency of the prelate, and he commanded that the asylum should not be violated. The soldiers almost broke out into revolt on hearing his decision, but the Emperor preferred to face them rather than refuse the demand of Chrysostom, and when his arguments had failed he implored that the life of Eutro- pius should be at least granted as a favour to himself Only when the soldiers saw the Emperor weeping did they consent to relinquish their fierce design. Next morning the cathedral was filled with an enormous and agitated crowd. Seating himself in the ambo, Chrysostom ordered the curtains of the sanctuary to be drawn, and pointing to the poor fallen eunuch as he grovelled at the foot of the altar in abject terror, he poured forth an impassioned stream of eloquence on the vanity of human wishes, in which he addressed sometimes the unhappy supplicant, some- times the surging multitude, and tried to enforce by that striking scene the transitoriness of earthly glory and the duty of compassion. "The altar," he said, "is more awful than ever, now that it holds the lion chained." Never was there a more powerful sermon or a more impressive scene. The pathos of the occasion was far deeper than that when Massillon moved his vast audience to tears by the first words he spoke as he leant from his pulpit over the narrow coffin of Le Grand Monarque. Chrysostom was saving the life of his enemy, not without peril to his own. His persecutors afterwards accused him of having insulted the unfortunate ; the charge was not true, but possibly a man of less stern and inflexible temperament might have used more sparingly the lan- guage of reproach to one fallen from such a height. '^ 1 Two Homilies on Eutropius are extant (Opp. iii. 454, 482). XVIII CHRYSOSTOil PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 671 But Eutropius had sinned too deeply to hope for safety. Either because he was tempted by vain pro- mises, or because he distrusted the security of his asylum, he left the sanctuary, was seized, and banished to Cyprus. There he was tried on the fresh charge of treason involved in his having mingled imperial insignia with those of his consulate. He was sent back to Chalcedon and beheaded. His enormous wealth was confiscated to the imperial treasury, the acts of his consulship were cancelled, his name erased from the lists, and his statues thrown down and broken to pieces. His ofiices, at the suggestion of Eudoxia, were shared between Aurelian and Count John, of whom the latter was popularly beheved to be the father of her children. She herself became the dominant person in the Empire, and was guided by a coterie of three wealthy, evil-minded, and intriguing women named Castricia, Eugraphia, and Marsa. These middle-aged coquettes had been driven to fury by the pulpit denunciations of vanity, vice, and luxury, which they well knew that the people applied to them. They had trembled when they heard the archbishop declare that he would repel from the Eucharist mere painted and bedizened Jezebels who came to the Lord's table with rouged cheeks and eyes blackened with antimony like Egyptian idols. They raged against Chrysostom with all the fury of drunken maenads.-' This new tyranny of Eudoxia did not at all suit the views of Gainas, who now joined TribigUd in menacing Constantinople, and demanded the surrender of Aurelian, Count John, and Saturninus, the husband of Castricia (a.d. 400). To prevent worse perils, the three nobles ^ yr^pai fJAV OLvSpoirXovTOi Si . . . Tapa^dvSpLai Kai avaaeiiTTpiai, . . . KaOairep (fyiikay^ oivopMivy^s- 672 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii surrendered themselves. The barbarians were induced to be content with the banishment of Saturninus, but Count John was forced to taste all the bitterness of death. G-ainas, in ferocious jest, forced him to lay his head on the block before his executioner, who, while he awaited the deadly stroke, merely scratched his neck with the sword. The preservation of their lives was possibly due to the efforts of Chrysostom,^ who also exerted himself to defeat the demand of Gainas — that a church should be assigned to the Arians within the city walls. Gainas strangely prided himself on his skill in theological argument, but he was completely silenced by the dauntless superiority of the archbishop. From this moment the courage of Gainas seemed to be broken, and he too went down the path of ruin. He had met for the first time one who was not in the least afraid of him. Chrysostom, with almost brutal frankness, re- minded him of " the rags in which he had crossed the Danube," reproached him with his faithlessness, perjury, and ingratitude, and plainly told him that his rewards far exceeded his deserts. The spell of the Goth's arro- gance was thus effectually broken. He never again showed himself the same man, but quailed before the unwonted discouragement of having found an opponent who was more than his niatch.^ The inhabitants of Constantinople, stung beyond endurance by his insolent exactions, attacked his Goths and gained several advantages. The Emperor was so fortunate as to secure the aid of another Gothic chieftain named Fravitta, who had married a Eoman lady. Fra- 1 Zosimus, V. 18. John was banished into Thrace, but returned after the death of Gainas, and saved his life by flight from a popular ^meute. Chrysostom was falsely charged with having betrayed his hiding-place to the soldiers. Phot. Bibl. 59. See the Homily on these events {0pp. iii. 482-487). 2 Theodoret, v. 32 ; Sozomen, viii. 4. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 673 vitta harassed and defeated Grainas, and finally drove him to take shelter on the icy banks of the Borysthenes. There he was hunted down by Uldin, King of the Huns, and finally killed. His head was sent on a lance-point to the city in which he had similarly displayed the head of Kufinus. Fravitta was made consul, and Eudoxia at last reached the summit of her ambition by being pro- claimed with the title Augusta. Meanwhile Chrysostom had not been wholly ab- sorbed by the claims of moral reformation among his own clergy and his own flock. He had found time to enhst Theophilus of Alexandria, Acacius of Beroea, and the Western bishops, in a successful endeavour to pro- cure the recognition of Flavian, and so to end the deplorable schism of Antioch. He had obtained from the Emperor fresh decrees for the suppression of Pagan- ism, and he had sent forth missionaries to various lands, and, above all, to labour among the Goths, in whom his prophetic insight saw the future heirs of the Eoman civilisation. These works gave the highest scope for his efforts. His supreme desire was the spiritual good of his people. "You," he said to them in the homily delivered before his exile, " are my fathers, my brothers, my sons, my limbs, my body, my life, my crown, my consolation, my anointing, my light." The charge that he was trying to play the part of a dema- gogue was flagrantly untrue. From the vulgar ambition of worldly dominance he was entirely free. Had it been otherwise — had he deigned to combat men like Theophilus and women like Eudoxia with their own weapons — he might have been the most powerful person in Constantinople, and have controlled the destinies of the Eastern Empire as decisively and as beneficently as Ambrose had done in the West. But Ambrose was a VOL. II 2 X 674 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xviii born ruler, who had enjoyed the training of a states- man, and Chrysostom had come into corrupt cities from a mountain cave. The story of the iniquities with which Chrysostom had to grapple, as told by his friend Palladius of Helen- opolis, in the dialogue in which he gives an -account of the Patriarch's life, is one of the saddest and most de- plorable among the many sad and deplorable narratives which deface the ecclesiastical history of the fourth century. It exhibits the prevalence among bishops and clergy of an almost inconceivable amount of greed, worldliness, and disorder. I shall hurry as rapidly as possible over these records of envy, hatred, malice, and all uncharitableness, which are never more odious than when they flourish in religious circles and among reli- gious partisans. Before the death of Gainas, in May a.d. 400,^ there had been a synod of twenty-two bishops in Constan- tinople, and at this synod a paper of seven accusations had been presented by Eusebius, Bishop of Valentin- opolis, against one of their number, Antoninus, Bishop of Ephesus. Eusebius charged him with having melted sacred vessels to provide his son with plate, with using marble and columns which belonged to churches for his own bath and dining-room, seizing Church property, sell- ing bishoprics, and not living a celibate life. Not content with pressing his accusation with unseemly vehemence, Eusebius even thrust the paper upon Chrysostom in the cathedral, adjuring him with oaths to investigate these charges, which Antoninus and other inculpated bishops absolutely denied. Prevented by an order from the court from proceeding in person to Asia Minor to en- 1 To this period belong Chryaostom's somewhat hasty Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles. xvm CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 675 quire into the matter, Chrysostom appointed a com- mission of three bishops to act as judges. Meanwhile Eusebius accepted a bribe from Antoninus, and joined him in the endeavour to defeat the action of the com- mission by every form of vexatious hindrance and delay. Antoninus and the clergy of Ephesus entreated Chrysos- tom to come in person. This he was allowed to do in 401. He appointed one of his deacons, Heracleides, to the vacant bishopric, and proceeded to set in order the gross irregularities which he found existing on every side. He deposed at least six bishops, who had simoniac- ally bought their sees, and a medical adventurer named Gerontius, who had intrigued himself into the bishopric of Nicomedia, and had induced Helladius of Heraclea to consecrate him by getting an army appointment for his son. By these stern but necessary acts he had deepened the hatred with which he was regarded, and he seems to have assumed a responsibility which, though sanctioned by long custom, was of doubtful legality. His preced- ence had been fixed by the Council of Constantinople as next to that of the Bishop of Eome ; but the jurisdiction of the see was left undefined. No doubt by this visita- tion he raised up against himself a host of implacable enemies, and contributed to his own ultimate fall. His predecessor had indeed exercised a sort of primacy over the dioceses of Thrace and Asia, but what might be done without offence by the mild, courtly, and indolent Nectarius, assumed a very different aspect in the hands of the stern and fervid Chrysostom. When he came back, after three months' absence, he found Constan- tinople full of hostile cabals. A certain Severian, Bishop of Gabala, envious of the reputation for eloquence gained at Constantinople by Antiochus, Bishop of Ptolemais, ■fished to display his own capacities before a motropoh- 676 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii tan audience. Having prepared a number of striking discourses, lie went to the capital, and by universal flattery intrigued himself into such popularity that he was appointed to act as deputy during the absence of Chrysostom. He used his delegated authority to under- mine the archbishop's position. One person — the faithful Serapion — saw through the man and all his base designs. On one occasion, when Serapion did not rise as the Bishop of Gabala passed through the room, Severian in a burst of anger exclaimed, " If Serapion dies a Christian, Jesus Christ was not incarnate." The last clause only of this grossly improper remark was overheard, and Chrysostom ordered Severian to leave the city. Had he not done so, the Bishop of Gabala would probably have fallen a victim to the fury of the indignant populace. Eudoxia, however, determined to support a sycophant who had flattered her, and placing her son Theodosius on the knees of Chrysostom, adjured him to rescind his order and to re-admit Severian to communion. Out of respect for imperial authority Chrysostom did so ; but Severian remained one of his deadliest enemies.^ Another episcopal foe was the aged Acacius of Beroea, who had once been his warm admirer, and who had been sent to Pope Siricius to announce his eleva- tion. About this time he had paid a visit to the arch- bishop, and found his frugal fare and homely surround- ings so distasteful that he chose to regard them as a personal insult to himself He even forgot himself so far as to exclaim, in the hearing of the clergy, iym avTw apTV(o ^(iiTpav, " I'll cook a dish for him !" ^ These and other spirits, if possible more wicked than themselves, found a fitting leader in Theophilus of Alexandria. 1 Homil. de recipiendo Severiano {0pp. iii. 492-494). ^ Like the Frencli, Je lui prepare un plat de ma f agon. Pallad. Dial. 6. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 677 Every engine of slander was put into play. The faults of Chrysostom were magnified, his virtues misre- presented, his words distorted into dangerous meanings. He was charged with avarice, parsimony, irascibility, and haughtiness. His enemies said that he had behaved rudely to Gainas, and mercilessly to Eutropius. Most dangerously of all, they asserted that he had been guilty of treasonable language against the sacred majesty of the Augusta, and had insulted her under the thin disguise of an invective upon Jezebel.^ The archbishop had to experience " furens quid foemina possit." It must be admitted that there was sometimes a want of perspective in his pulpit denunciations, and that while he had to combat the flagrant immoralities of the circus and the theatre, as well as the sins of an immoral clergy, it was hardly worth while to lash himself into fury against the rouge and false hair of the ladies, and the gold- embroidered boots of the youthful fops. His standard was far higher than any to which Constantinople had been accustomed, and it was enforced in a manner too haughtUy uncompromising. He became as intoler- able to worldly Christians as a lamp to sore eyes.^ It is also probable that the vividly graphic style of Chrysos- tom's rhetoric lent itself readUy to personal applications. When he was painting in language of humorous scorn the picture of some faded and bedizened dowager, or of some " lisping hawthorn-bud " of the court, there were ladies and courtiers who would grow uneasy, and would understand the smiles and meaning glances of their 1 In denouncing Severian and Antioclius in his usual unmeasured way he had compared them to " the priests who ate of Jezebel's table " ; and his remarks on Naboth's vineyard seem also to have had their appK- cation to some rapacious act of the Empress. Leont. Orat. de Vit. Chrys. 2 Pallad. Vit. xviii. (p. 62) : fiapv's yap avTOi^ rjv koI (jiaLvopevoi;, KaOcurep Xv-)(yoi Xrip.LWcri.v op.p.ao'iv. 678 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii particular friends. Eudoxia, and the three ladies who formed her council — Marsa, Castricia, and Eugraphia — vowed revenge, and joined themselves heart and soul with the enemies of Chrysostom. They even sent a spy — a monk named Isaac — to Antioch to see if they could rake up any old scandals in his youthful life. But this part of their plot was a signal failure. On the other hand, the circle of the friends of Chry- sostom was not large, and nearly all of them — Hera- cleides, now of Ephesus, Cassian, Serapion, and others — with whom he lived on terms of delightful intimacy, were involved in his subsequent ruin. Among the ladies at Constantinople he found true supporters in Pentadia, wife of the Consul Timasius, Salvina, daughter of Count Gildo, and the famous deaconess Olympias. This noble and beautiful woman was the granddaughter of the Praefect Ablavius. She had lost her husband Count Nebridius about 386, and thenceforward devoted her life to works of charity. She had enjoyed the friend- ship of Gregory of Nazianzus,^ and now became the attached follower of Chrysostom, paying special atten- tion to the bodily wants which, in spite of his many injSrmities, he was constantly tempted to neglect. Her immense wealth attracted the attention of many design- ing persons, of whom the Patriarch Theophilus was one, and Chrysostom deepened his unpopularity by warning her against an indiscriminate attention to the applica- tions made to her by bishops and clergy. But the bursting of the storm was due to the deeply- seated spite and hatred of the Patriarch of Alexandria.^ 1 Greg. Naz. Epp. Ivii. Iviii. ^ Dr. Neale {Hist, of the Holy Eastern Church, i. sec. xxvi.) tries to say all tliat can. be said in mitigation of the judgment of posterity upon Theophilus, but even his admissions are terribly condemnatory. XVIII CHKYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OP CONSTANTINOPLE 679 The narrative of the rest of Chrysostom's life forms one of the most painful chapters in the history of the Church. Intrigue, violence, and baseness triumphed, and saintly virtue was humiliated to the dust. Theophilus had once been an ardent Origenist, and had even directed a pastoral letter against the ignorant Anthropomorphites, who could only conceive of a cor- poreal God. But when first Aterbius and then Epiphanius came heresy-hunting into Palestine, and flung the apple of discord into a peaceful and flourishing Church ; when Jerome in his terror of the charge of heresy had begun in his turn to denounce Origen ; and when Theophilus had been himself terrified by the savage violence of the Anthropomorphite monks, he suddenly (in 398) turned round and became one of the fiercest opponents of the followers of Origen.-' He had thereby earned his popular nickname of Amphallax, or " The Trimmer." Private reasons of a darker character probably influenced this bad man's mind. The aged and saintly Isidore — a man universally respected and beloved — had received from an Alexandrian widow a large sum of money to be spent on clothing the poor, upon the one condition, confirmed by an oath, that the rapacious Patriarch should not be told of it. Theophilus, however, heard the fact from his spies, and demanded the money. ^ Isidore, bound by oath, refused to give it up, and Theophilus determined to ruin him on a charge of infamy, which he pretended had been brought against him eighteen years before, and of which he now attempted to suborn a witness by a bribe of gold. The conscience of the young witness and of his mother revolted against the wickedness of accepting money in order to blight the character of an innocent ^ The story of this shameful tergiversation is told by Socrates {H. E. vi. 7). 2 jjg ^as an insatiable builder. XidofMvij's. Isid. Ep. i. 152. 680 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvili man, and the charge broke hopelessly down. In spite of this, Theophilus procured the degradation of Isidore, and he was forced to fly from Alexandria. The next victims of the Patriarch were the four " Tall Brothers" — Ammonius, Dioscorus, Eusebius, and Euthymius — who were known throughout the whole Church for their exemplary virtues and self-denials, and whom Theophilus himself had loaded with eulogies and honours.^ He had compelled the two last to be presbyters in Alexandria, and hearing that they were prepared to request leave to retire into the desert out of sheer disgust at his crimes, he burst into a torrent of invectives, and charged them with Origenism.^ Failing in his attempt to force them to bear false witness against Isidore, he turned pale and livid, fell with fury upon the aged Ammonius, and smote him in the face with blows so violent as to draw blood, yelling at him, " Heretic, anathematise Origen ! " He then summoned a synod of his creatures, who excom- municated them as magicians and heretics, and finally he raised a brutal band of rogues and drink-maddened fanatics, and attacked their refuges in the deserts of Nitria, burnt and pillaged their cells, wrecked their chapels, f>,nd destroyed their libraries. The brothers and some of their monks, after narrowly escaping with their lives, fled first to Jerusalem, then to Scythopolis, and being 1 Ammonius was no less a person than the monk who had accom- panied Athanasius in his exile, and whose austerities had struck the Romans with astonishment (Socr. iv. 23.) He was called TrapMrrjS be- cause he had cut off an ear to escape being made a bishop (Pallad. Hist. Laus. 12). He had been a confessor in the days of Valens. 2 The reader must not fall into the vulgar mistake of confounding Origenism with Universalism. Origen's Universalism was never con- demned in any creed, or at any council, or by any great teacher. The two views which were accounted heretical were his belief in (1) the prae- existence of souls, and (2) the salvability of the devil — both of them purely scholastic and speculative questions. See supra, p. 337. XVIII CHBYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 681 hunted from place to place by the relentless rage of their persecutor, took refuge at last in Constantinople, and implored the protection of Chrysostom. The arch- bishop behaved with kindness and compassion, but with the utmost caution, and wrote to Theophilus begging him to make peace with the monks. Theophilus made no reply, but used every exertion to blacken and defame the character of Chrysostom, and to bring about his destruction also on the charge of Origenism. He enlisted not only Jerome but also the arrogant and narrow-minded Epiphanius in the same unholy cause. The monks, finding Chrysostom unable or unwilling to create a schism in the Church by the adoption, of their cause, appealed to the Emperor, and brought many terrible charges against Theophilus. He was summoned to come and answer for himself at Constantinople, but Chrysostom declined to sit in judgment upon him. Indeed the conduct of Chrysostom towards Theophilus is marked by a moderation and almost a timidity which is in strange contrast with his usual vehement fearless- ness, so often displayed to the Emperor and the court. There is little doubt that he might at any time have swept Theophilus and his followers out of the city by appealing to the people. He suffered things to go against him almost by default. Theophilus took ad- vantage of this. By the unctuous intimation that Epiphanius had rescued him from his Origenism,^ the Egyptian prelate induced the feeble old man to go and accuse Chrysostom of heresy in his own capital. Theo- philus determined to come not as the accused, but as the accuser. On the arrival of Epiphanius at Constan- tinople (April 403) Eudoxia showed him flattering attentions, and his conduct was so disorderly that we 1 Sozom. viii. 13. 682 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvili can only suppose that his reason was enfeebled by age, and his head turned by adulation and spiritual pride. By ordaining a deacon in Constantinople he flagrantly violated the 16th canon of the Council of Nice.-^ But the expostulation of the Goth Theotimus, Metropolitan of Scythia, the bold appeal of the monks to his better reason, the calm but manly remonstrances of Chry- sostom, and the obvious risk that his intrusive conduct would arouse a tumult, at length opened the old man's eyes to the unwarrantable folly and irregularity of his intrusion into the diocese of a bishop in every way his superior.^ To Ammonius, the eldest survivor of the Tall Brothers, he was obliged to make the pitiful con- fession — a confession not unknown to us even in our own days — that he had never read the writings or taken the trouble to ascertain the real views of the men whom he had left his diocese to denounce ! He had fancied himself a champion of orthodoxy, and, after hav- ing been guilty of more than one petulant and illegal act, he found himself the dupe and tool of an unscru- pulous intrigue. He left Constantinople, but he left it in anger. As he stepped on board the vessel which was to bear him back to Cyprus, he exclaimed to the bishops who accompanied him, " I leave to you the city, and the palace, and hypocrisy ; but I go, for I must make haste." ^ We can hardly believe the story of Sozomen 1 See, too, Gan. Apost. xxxv. 2 Socr. vi. 14; Sozom. viii. 14. The charge made by Theophilus and Ms clique that Chrysostom called Epiphanius " a fool and a demon " is incredible, though it is likely enough that the irritating obstinacy and intrusiveness of the Bishop of Salamis may have provoked him into iras- cible expressions. Theophilus himself had once expressed open contempt for Epiphanius, and had denounced him to Pope Sirioius for his narrow bigotry. ^^ Sozom. viii. 15 : d(j)[rjfj.i v^iv rrjv irokiv Kal tol jSarrlXita koX tijv vTTOKpuriv (TirevSo) yap irdw (rirevSai. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATEIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 683 and Socrates that, on parting, Chrysostom said to Epiphanius, " I hope that you will not return to your diocese," and that the old man replied, "I hope that you will not die a bishop." But if such stormy words did pass between them they were sadly fulfilled. Epiphanius died on his voyage home, and Chrysostom in exile. Chrysostom saw the gathering of the storm by which he was to be overwhelmed. He knew, and he afterwards told his people, that the real reason for the hatred against him was because he had lived in humble simplicity ; that he had not strewn his palace with rich carpets, or clothed his apparitors in silk and gold, or flattered the efieminacy and sensuality of the rich. He had been as an Elijah in the court of Jezebel. " And what had he to fear ? " he asked, much in the same tone as Ambrose and Basil. Was he to fear death? Christ was his life. Or the loss of his goods ? He had brought nothing into the world, and could carry nothing out. He had no desire but to live for the good of their souls. If, however, his homily on the vices of women in general was delivered immediately after the departure of Epiphanius, it was, to say the least, ill-timed. It has not come down to us ; perhaps it was regarded as too dangerous to preserve. The most ordinary prudence might have warned Chrysostom that every word of it would be applied directly to the Empress, and that it could not but precipitate his fall. Theophilus was kept aware by his spies, and by criminous priests whom Chrysostom had deposed, that the archbishop's enemies were daily increasing in number and influence. He therefore collected twenty-eight of his dependent bishops and sailed to Constantinople, where he was welcomed in Aug. 403 by the rabble of 684 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xvni Alexandrian sailors and by all the bad and disaffected clergy. Haughtily rejecting the courteous invitation of Chrysostom, he took up his abode in the palace of Placidia at Pera.^ He had come, says Palladius, laden, like a beetle with dung, with all the best things of Egypt, and even of India,^ and threw himself heart and soul into his disgraceful task of cajoling and bribing all the worst of the clergy to conspire against their bishop. Chrysostom declined to examine the crimes laid to the charge of Theophilus, thinking that he should be judged in his own province, but also partly, no doubt, to avert a schism in the Church.^ Theophilus therefore gave the name of a council to his packed and pitiful following of twenty-three subservient Egyptians and seven others from Armenia, Persia, and Mesopotamia. The place chosen for the so-called council was Chalcedon, chiefly because the Bishop of Chalcedon was an Egyptian and a relative of Theophilus, a man of fickle and violent character named Cyrinus, who had accompanied Chrysos- tom in 401 into Asia, but had for some reason become one of his most deadly foes. The opening deliberations were marked by a grim and ominous incident. While Cyrinus was in the midst of an acrimonious harangue, Maruthas, Bishop of Mesopotamia, passing by him, trod on his foot. Maruthas was a heavy man, and very prob- ably his sandals were studded with nails. The wound gangrened, and the foot had to be amputated. Cyrinus ^ Pallad. Dialog. 2 : ovx ■^fuv o-uve-yevero, o^ Xoyuiv /tCTeScoKcv, ovk ev)(TJs, ov KotvMvias. Coiif. Ghrys. Ep. ad Innocent. {0pp. iii. 530). ^ KaOamp Kcivdapos iret^oprw/ili'os Trji Koirpov. 5 Theopliilua himself insisted that if he were to be judged it could only be by Egyptian bishops — a safe stipulation, since they were all absolutely under his authority. Yet he had no hesitation to come " seventy-five days' journey " to sit in judgment on Chrysostom. — Pallad. Dial. 7. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 685 was thus prevented from taking part in the opening proceedings. He never recovered from this injury, and died three years later after great agony and a renewal of the amputation. To the last he continued to pursue Chrysostom with his hatred, and was one of the four who goaded Arcadius into his second decree of banish- ment. Theophilus assembled his creatures in the palace of Rufinus, known as "the Oak," and proceeded to arraign and condemn the archbishop in defiance of the protest sent to Chalcedon by forty bishops who were assembled at Constantinople. Chrysostom behaved with the utmost calmness and forbearance, and meekly bore the outrageous insolence to which he was subjected by the so-called " Synod of the Oak." He refused, how- ever, to acknowledge or submit to the pretensions of Theophilus and his creatures, or to pay any attention to their citation, unless they excluded from their number his open and notorious enemies.-^ They proceeded in his absence to try him on twenty-nine charges, for the most part preposterous as well as false, the most perilous charge being that he had called the Empress Jezebel, and that he had treasonous] y played upon her name by talking of adoxia} The charges were brought by a dubious monk named Isaac, and an archdeacon named John whom Chrysostom had once deposed for cruelty to a slave. ^ That he should be condemned by such a body 1 Especially Theophilus, Severian, Acacius, and Antioohus. ^ On one occasion, just hefore his first banishment, he nsed the phrase ei's dSo^iav kvrpk\ei. It would have been but common prudence to avoid a word which might at once have reminded his hearers of the Empress. The jester of King Charles got into very serious trouble for saying, " Much glory to God and little lavd to the devil." ^ Curiously enough the one charge which Chrysostom repudiates with the most feverish energy is the purely ecclesiastical and artificial offence of having administered the Sacrament after having eaten (ifp. 125) ; and yet he shows quite clearly in the same epistle that, even if he had done so, he 686 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii of persons was a foregone conclusion ; and wlien the wicked farce was ended, Theophilus, having no more need to persecute the Tall Brothers, pretended to be reconciled to the two of them who survived, and shed hypocritical tears over the two who had succumbed to his relentless persecution — admitting that Ammonius was the holiest monk he had ever known ! Now that the charge of Origenism, the orthodox fury of Epiphanius, and the sensitive timidity of Jerome had served his turn, he returned to his own study and admiration of Origen without any disguise. The Emperor ratified the decree of the Synod of the Oak, and after preaching farewell sermons in which he strove to calm the excited feelings of his people, Chrysostom quietly slipped out of the church at noon, yielded himself to the Emperor's ofl&cers, and was con- veyed after dark first to Hieron in Bithynia, then to Praenetus, opposite Nicomedia. He only yielded to the Emperor because he wished to prevent tumult and bloodshed. Not all the vile arts of Theophilus or Severian could repress the burst of indignation caused by the success of their nefarious proceedings, and it proved that had Chrysostom been such a man as Theo- would have done nothing blamable, since our Lord was not fasting when He instituted the Lord's Supper. To the accusation of immorality he replied that his emaciated frame had long been dead to all carnal desires, and yet he was charged with privately indulging in " Cyclopean orgies " of gluttony, intemperance, and lust ! Another charge, brought by Isaac, was that he promised forgiveness to repentance, however often the offender sinned. This was simply based on those descriptions of " the abyss of God's mercy" to penitent sinners which had earned him the title of " John of repentance." The acts of this deplorable assembly of ecclesiastics are preserved in Photius (Bibl. God. 59, see Baronius on a.d. 403). Some of the charges are as grotesquely frivolous as those brought against Bishop Farrar, the Marian martyr. Chrysostom is accused of dressing and undressing himself and eating a lozenge on his episcopal throne ; of having charged three deacons with stealing his pallium, etc xviii CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 68V philus he might have caused a revolt in Constantinople before which his enemies and the Empress herself would have been swept away like chaff. He yielded only in order to prevent rebellion and bloodshed ; but when once he had been conveyed out of the city, his friends might have been unable to help him had it not been for an earthquake which shook espe- cially the palace and the bedchamber of the Empress.^ The superstitious feelings of Eudoxia were alarmed, and she wrote in eager haste to assure Chrysostom, truly , or falsely, that she was guiltless of his expulsion, and had fallen at the feet of the Emperor to secure his restoration. He returned, but was at first unwill- ing to enter the city until his deposition should have been cancelled by a general council. Such, however, was the menacing attitude of the populace that the Emperor and Empress entreated him to abandon this scruple. He was conducted back in magnificent triumph, and preached once more to his people in the Church of the Apostles. Eudoxia and Chrysostom for the last time exchanged words of glowing eulogy. Sixty bishops declared the illegality of the Synod of the Oak, and meanwhile Theophilus, whose life was no longer safe even amid his rabble of Egyptians, slunk away by night to incur the fresh guilt of other and more successful intrigues, which filled to the full the cup of his iniquity.^ But the little gleam of prosperity which had shone on the life of Chrysostom was swallowed up almost im- mediately in the blackest clouds. Two months had 1 See Socr. vi. 16 ; Sozom. viii. 18 ; PaUad. p. 75 ; and see Chrysos- tom's Sermo post reditum. 2 Pallad. Dial. 2 : XdOpa fika-ov vvktwv ets a/cartov kavTov ifi/SaXwv oijTws drreSpa. He says that the Constantinopolitans were ready to throw him into the sea. 688 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVIll barely elapsed before Eudoxia, who had by that time recovered from the superstitious terror caused by the earthquake, was raging with even more than her former virulence. Intoxicated by the dizzy heights of power to which she had now scaled her way, she procured the erection of a porphyry column surmounted by a silver statue of herself It was placed opposite the Church of St. Sophia, and uncovered in Sept. 403 amid the tumult of Pagan ceremonies which marked the cult of imperial personages. Chrysostom was disgusted alike by the heathenish character of the rejoicings and by the disturbance thus caused to the church services, and he complained to the city praefect. So far from assisting him, the praefect only reported his complaints to the Empress in the most invidious and exaggerated form. Whether Chrysostom had or had not ever used the celebrated words (now found in two homilies of dubious authenticity), "Again Herodias dances, again she rages, again she demands the head of John,"^ it is clear that in his denunciations of vice and luxury, and especially in his orations against the sins of women, he had used many phrases which malice might distort into insults against Eudoxia. Here, however, was a more tangible offence, and in concert with her evil female friends, and yet more evil ecclesiastical abettors, Eudoxia determined to play the farce of procuring the condemnation of the archbishop by the semblance of a general council packed with enemies of Chrysostom and ambitious creatures of the court. Finding that any renewal of the attempt to blacken his character could only lead to dangerous failure, the 1 Socr. H. E. vi. 15. Montfaucon and Tillemont reject the sermon which, begins with these words. Chrysostom would surely have known that it was not Herodias who danced, but Salome. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE 689 hostile bishops, inspired by Theophilus and led by Acacius and Severian, took the ground that Chrysostom had incurred deposition by returning to his see under protection of the civil power after having been deposed by a synod. Chrysostom's answer was overwhelmingly cogent. The canon appealed to by his enemies had only been passed by the Arianising Council of Antioch (a.d. 341), influenced by a strong Arian faction, and with no other intention than that of ruining the great Athanasius.^ Further, it had been contemptuously re- pealed by the Council of Sardica ; and, even if this had not been the case, Chrysostom had been acquitted by sixty-five bishops and only condemned by a miserable and malignant body of thirty-nine. The canon urged against him was therefore invalid and inapplicable. The synod which had pretended to condemn him was illegal and unjust, and he had all along appealed to a general council, not to reverse the decree of the Synod of the Oak, but to proclaim his innocence of the charges which had been trumped up against him. But the righteousness of his cause was of no avail against the hatred of Eudoxia, the stupid suUenness of Arcadius, and the reckless falsehoods of his unscrupulous enemies. Professing to regard Chrysostom's position as illegal, the Emperor refused to communicate at the Christmas festival of 403, and to prevent him from being hindered by the same scruple at Easter, 404, it was decided to suppress Chrysostom at all costs. He could not obey the command to absent himself from the Easter services and so to desert his 3000 catechumens. That Easter- 1 Socr. ii. 8. The aged and faithful Elpidius, Bishop of Laodicea, greatly embarrassed Acacius and Antiochus, and made them turn livid with rage, by asking whether they would subscribe to the same faith as the majority of the Council of Antioch. VOL. II 2 Y 690 LIVES OF THE FATHEES xviii tide of April 16, 404, was polluted by scenes of brutal violence. The soldiery scattered and beat and robbed the assemblies of Christians who refused to recognise the commands of the court to show approval of the degradation of their bishop. The clergy were assaulted and driven out of the baptisteries ; the congre- gations were plundered and beaten ; the catechumens were driven half naked into the streets ; the consecrated elements of the Eucharist were profaned by Pagan hands ; the lustral water of the fonts was stained with blood. Eude Thracian barbarians desecrated the Church of St. Sophia and hunted the worshippers from the baths of Constantine, to which they had adjourned. During these disastrous weeks Chrysostom was in constant peril. His life was twice attempted ; he was imprisoned in his own palace ; and at last, on June 5, A.D. 404, in spite of the entreaties of faithful bishops who pleaded his cause with tears and warnings, he was deposed and banished. Arcadius would have been too timid to resort to this last measure had not the four bishops, Acacius, Antiochus, Cyrinus, and Severian, taken the whole responsibility on their own heads. Chrysostom meekly obeyed, saying with Job, "The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; blessed be the name of the Lord." In order that no blood might be shed, he quietly slipped out of the cathedral by a postern at a distance from the great west door, at which his horse stood waiting, and he surrendered him- self secretly after a touching farewell to his weeping friends and deaconesses. He was conveyed to the Asiatic shore, accompanied only by Cyriacus of Synnada and Eulysius of Apamea, and, as Palladius says, " the Angel of the Church went out with him." ^ The golden 1 ^vve^eXOovTos avT(f Kal tov 'AyyeAov. In his last visit to the XVIII CHRYSOSTOM PATRIARCH OP CONSTANTINOPLE 691 candlestick of the Church of Constantinople was quenched for many years. But his precautions were in vain. When it was discovered that the archbishop had yielded to the imperial mandate and had left the city, a riot arose in which the great cathedral was reduced to ashes, and the flames spread to the senate house and calcined many of the Pagan statues in the forum. Chrysostom, who was then in Bithynia, was absurdly charged with the guilt, and, with the two bishops who were with him, was kept in chains. They were sent to Chalcedon, tried, and found innocent; but every engine of persecution was put into play against Chrysostom's adherents. Arsacius, an old man and a brother of Nectarius, was nominated to the see of Constantinople by the Emperor, though he had taken an oath to his brother that he would never accept a bishopric. He was a man whom Palladius describes as being more dumb than a fish and incapable than a frog,^ and Simeon Metaphrastes as an old block ; ^ yet Arcadius threatened confiscation and exile to any bishop who refused to communicate with the feeble Arsacius, the execrable Theophilus, and the bad adventurer Porphyry of Antioch. The faithful Christians who refused to recognise the intruder were maimed, muti- lated, and subjected to frightful tortures, under which the presbyter Tigrius and the young reader Eutropius died after the infliction of inhumanities which would have disgraced the Hurons or the Iroquois.^ The unfor- Chuicli of St. Sophia he had said to his friends, " Come, let us pray and bid farewell to the Angel of the Church." 1 'I'X^Ovo's dcjxovoTipo'; /cat /3aTpd)(OV dirpayoTepo^. Socrates (vi. 20) and Sozomen (viiL 27) speak of him more favourably. 2 Ap. Nioeph. Call. xiii. 26. ^ One persecuting decree was partly cancelled in Aug. 404, but it was renewed on Sept. 11. Bbhringer (C/wi/sosf. p. 79) compares the per- secution to that of the Jansenists by the Jesuits and the court. 692 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii tunate archdeacon Serapion, although he was then living in the Thracian Heraclea, of which he had been appointed bishop, well knew that he would be a mark for the fury of Chrysostom's enemies. For a time he concealed himself in a convent of Gothic monks, but when discovered he was taken to Constantinople and tortured. His eyebrows and the skin of his forehead were torn off with pincers, his teeth were pulled out, and he was then banished to Alexandria to be placed under the tender mercies of Theophilus. The deacon- esses Olympias and Pentadia were only saved from a similar fate by the dauntlessness with which they con- fronted their base accusers. Others had all their goods confiscated and were driven into exile and the hardest poverty,^ while many succumbed to the fear of death and torment, and rendered a nominal allegiance to the new bishop, under whom began that long decline from which the Church of Constantinople never recovered. 1 Among these was Briso, brother of Palladius of Helenopolis, Chrysostom's biographer. XVIII Continued CHEYSOSTOM IN EXILE (A.D. 404-407) " There did remain another loftier doom — Pain, travail, exile, peril, scorn, and wrong ; Glorious before, but glorified by these." Abp. Trench, St. Chrysostom. SECTION V Meanwhile Chrysostom received the open sympathy of all the best men throughout the Church. Innocent I., the great Bishop of Rome,^ Venerius of Milan, Chromatins of Aquileia, and indeed the whole body of Western bishops, sympathised with him. Innocent rebuked Theophilus, disannulled the deposition of Chrysostom, and nobly used his utmost endeavours to support and console the exile. But the Roman bishop was as powerless as was the Western Emperor to take any effectual steps to remedy these gross acts of intrigue and tjmnjxj. The power of Honorius, even though he had a Stilicho to defend him, was paralysed by the menacing attitude of Alaric and Rhadagaisus, whose armies lowered like thunderclouds upon his frontiers. 1 He succeeded to the papacy in May A.D. 402. 694 LIVES OP THE FATHERS xviii He sent a deputation of five bishops and a deacon, accompanied by four of the persecuted Eastern bishops, to demand from his brother the summoning of a general council at Thessalonica. But Arcadius knew the im- potence to which Honorius was reduced. He treated his episcopal legates with consummate insolence and cruelty, and sent them back unheard, while the four Eastern bishops were exiled to distant places of banish- ment with every aggravation of insulting malice. Their one consolation was the justice of their cause and the belief that heaven itself was showing its wrath against their persecutors. In Sept. a.d. 404, Con- stantinople was terrified by an awful hail -storm. Eudoxia died in Oct. 404, after suffering terrible agony and bearing a dead child. Arsacius died on Nov. 11, 405, after a feeble and disgraceful episco- pate of only a year and four months. Cyrinus of Chalcedon, after horrible agonies, died about the same time. Another of Chrysostom's episcopal enemies was killed by being thrown from a horse ; another died of a purulent dropsy ; a third of severe erysipelas ; a fourth of cancer in the tongue, after confessing the crime of which he had been guilty. When Arcadius wrote to Mount Sinai to ask the prayers of Nilus, the hermit refused to pray for the persecutor of Chrysostom or for the city which God was visiting with retributive judg- ment of fire and earthquake.^ Arsacius was succeeded by an equally commonplace bishop named Atticus, but the persecution still raged in the wretched Church of Constantinople. Meanwhile, on June 20, Chrysostom was removed to Nice,^ and, on 1 Nilus, Ep. coxxxiii. 2 The friends who accompanied him had been chained and sent back to Constantinople. xvni CHRYSOSTOM IN EXILE 695 July 4, was informed that his destination was to be the bleak and paltry village of Cucusus, in Lesser Armenia, in one of the valleys of Mount Taurus, a place not only remote and lonely but harassed by incessant inroads of Isaurian marauders, to whose attacks it was perhaps secretly hoped by Eudoxia that he would fall a victim, either on the journey or after his arrival. ^ But amid all his trials and miseries, Chrysostom continued to labour for the Church to the utmost of his power. Sickness of body and anguish of mind seemed alike to vanish when there was work to be done for Christ. The missions in Phoenicia and the discourage- ment of heresy greatly occupied his thoughts during the brief interval between his detention at Nice and the beginning of July when he started for his place of exile. The itinerary of his journey had been purposely drawn up in such a way as to cost him the utmost misery. Sick, weary, forced to feed on black bread steeped in unwholesome water, shaking with feverish ague, he was in constant peril from his ecclesiastical and other enemies. Leontius, Bishop of Ancyra, unmoUified even by the affliction of the great man whom he had helped to ruin, terrified him with threats of violence as he traversed the burning and treeless wastes.^ He com- plained that his hardships were worse than those of the convicts who worked in chains in the public mines. ^ " The bishops," he writes, " except a few, were his chief terror."* But he was consoled at times by the sympathy of friends, and he at last reached the Cappadocian Caesarea. There he was welcomed with warm enthusi- asm by the people, but was subjected to the shameful 1 Cucusus, now Coesou, was sixty-two miles from Comana of Cappa- docia. ^ See Chrys. Ep. xiv. ad Olymp. 3 Ep. cxx. ad Theodos. * Ep. xiv. 696 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVlll craftiness of the bishop, Pharetrius, who was trying to run with the hare and hunt with the hounds. This man, who disgraced the chair of St. Basil, under the guise of friendly hospitality seems to have goaded the brutal monks of the district to attack the house in which the exile was trying to recover from his exhaustion. Hunted from house to house by the episcopal plotter, he at last had to make his escape at midnight along the dark and rugged mountain paths. Torches could not be used for fear of the Isaurians ; his mule stumbled, and he was raised from the ground in a swoon that re- sembled death. When roused, he could only be half-led, half-dragged along by the hand of his friend, the pres- byter Evethius. During the remainder of the journey he was tended also by a physician who accompanied him from Caesarea. It took him thirty days more of painful travel to reach Cucusus, but at this miserable frontier village, bleak and imperilled as it was, he found kindness and sympathy which cheered his weary heart. The bishop, Adelphius, treated him with veneration, and Dioscorus, the leading resident of the town, gave up to him his house, and did his utmost to render it acceptable to the great sufferer. Visitors from Antioch, and even from Constantinople, came to see him, and his friends took care that his wants should be as well supplied as the circumstances of the place permitted. A mass of correspondence remains to us, in which he pours out his heart to Olympias and other friends, upholding their courage by his own indomitable energy and resignation. When a man thus reveals his inmost heart he will inevitably betray some of his own per- sonal defects and weaknesses as well as those which are the vitia temporis non hominis. We have to make occasional allowance for Oriental exaggeration of eulogy. XVIII CHRYSOSTOM IN EXILE 697 and for opinions which are not always expressed with the theological caution and precision which mark his more serious writings; but these letters reveal to us a picture of a good and great man confronting his destiny in the purest spirit, and rising superior to the temptation to yield to unmanly complaints. For three years he continued to write and to toil amid deep privations and cruel infirmities, yet not uncheered by the sense of God's presence, and consoled by the ardent sympathy of a great part of the Christian world. He corresponded with the Bishops of Jerusalem, Scythopolis, Adana, Corinth, Thessalonica, and many other cities both in the East and West, and with many bodies of monks. He also corresponded with the Bishops of Carthage, Milan, Aquileia, Brescia, and Rome. To Innocent I. he wrote, in the third year of his exile, that " amid exile, famine, war, pestilence, sieges, indescribable solitudes, and daily perils from the swords of the Isaurians, he was consoled and delighted by his charity." His enemies soon became discontented with the measure of their triumph. " See," they said, "this dead man who scares the living and his con- querors." ^ Chrysostom at Cucusus still continued to be greater, more influential, and more beloved than Atticus at Constantinople, and the attention of the Church was transferred from the capital of the Empire to an Armenian village. " All Antioch is at Cucusus," was the angry comment of Porphyry of Antioch. It was determined once more to strike a blow at his happiness and influence. That the truest saint and greatest orator of the Church should be afflicted with sickness by the inclemency of his place of exile, and ^ "ISere veKpov (f>ol3epov Toil's fwi/Tas koI KparovvTas SiaTrTOvvra. — Pallad. Dial. 11 ; see Chrys. Epp. 69-127. 698 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii agitated by constant apprehension of the surrounding brigands, was too little for the revenge of the clique who had resolved upon his destruction. And yet the severity of his sufferings might have moved to pity a heart of stone. In the winter of 405, the inhabitants of Cucusus were so terrified by the threats of the Isaurians that the majority of them fled. Chrysostom shared their flight, and after a terrible journey amid snow- encumbered passes and frozen forests, he reached Arabissus, a famine-stricken fort which was worse than a prison. There he suflered some months of ex- treme torment. But for the acts of kindness which he received, and especially the loving care of Evethius and of his relative the deaconess Sabiniana of Antioch — who had followed him to Cucusus — he would probably have succumbed earlier to the miseries of his lot. The order went forth in June 407 that he was to be hurried with the utmost speed by two praetorian soldiers to Pityus on the Eastern Euxine. To compel an old man of sixty, enfeebled by asceticism, misfortune, and ill- ness, to take such a journey on foot was a horrible act of persecution. Indeed, his guards seem to have received express directions to hurry the martyr pitilessly onward, with every form of insult and hardship, fever- stricken and bareheaded under the blazing sunlight, in the hopes that he might die on the journey without its being called murder. In spite of a little relenting on the part of one of the two " leopards," the order was brutally carried out. When they had got five miles beyond Comana, in Pontus,^ the archbishop was so ill that they were compelled to stop at the martyry of Basil- iscus, and it is said that the martyred bishop appeared to Chrysostom to cheer him with the promise of a speedy 1 Now Gumeulk, about seven miles north-east of Tocat. XVIII OHRYSOSTOM IN EXILE 699 relief from his sufferings. Next morning, in spite of his pitiable condition, the exile was once more ruthlessly hurried on his way, but after his guards had dragged him along for a short distance, he was so evidently a dying man that he was taken back to the martyry/ He was clothed by his own request in the white robes of baptism, and, after receiving the Eucharist, died, on Sept. 14, 407, with the memorable words upon his lips — Glory to God for all things. Amen. He was buried as a martyr in the martyr's grave. ^ He was sixty years old. For three years and three months he had been an exile, and for nine years and six months a bishop. Arcadius died nine months later. In 412 Theophilus was found dead in his bed, and in the same year died his like-minded accomplice in intrigue and crime, Porphyry of Antioch. Theophilus, in the letter which Jerome disgraced himself by translating into Latin, had described Chrysostom as an impure demon, whose words rolled in a torrent of filth ; a traitor, like Judas ; a man who, like Satan, had transformed himself into an angel of light, who had persecuted his brethren with the infernal spirit of Saul ; a man stained, impious, corrupted, mad ; a madman whose crimes were worse than those of brigands, and the enemy of mankind. God has judged and posterity has judged between these two men. Theophilus is regarded as nearly the worst 1 The circumstances of the death of Chrysostom curiously resemble in some features the death of Henry Martyn. He too was inexorably hurried through the same region by an unrelenting gtiide, in spite of fatigue and fever, and he died at Tocat. 2 Athanasius had died in 373, Basil in 379, Gregory of Nazianzus in 390, Diodorus of Tarsus in 394, Gregory of Nyssa in 395, Ambrose in 397. 700 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii character among the many bad bishops of this epoch, Of Chrysostom it may be said that " fools thought his life madness and his end to be without honour ; — how is he numbered among the children of God, and his lot among the saints ! " Then began the tardy repentance of the Church, which had for the most part acquiesced in his disgrace- ful persecution. Even Atticus, his unworthy successoi in the see, was compelled, in 414, to restore his name to the diptychs of the Church, which was a practical recognition of his innocence, and of the illegality of his deposition. More than thirty years after his deati (a.d. 438), the Emperor Theodosius II. consented to the translation of his remains from Comana to Constan- tinople. His ashes were buried near the altar in the Church of the Apostles, and, bending over them, the Emperor and his sister Pulcheria implored that the wrongs which their parents had inflicted on this greal saint of God might be forgiven. The fathers murdei the prophets ; the sons build their tombs. It would be impossible to enter into a detailed account of the numerous works of this most voluminous and most eloquent of the Fathers ; but we may briefly glance at the general characteristics of his writings. They fall into four classes : — 1. Treatises, and Letters which assume the dimensions o; treatises. These chiefly belong to his early days. I have already spokei of his letter to Theodore {ad Theodm-um lapsum), and other writingi of a monastic and ascetic tendency. By far the most importan book of this period is that On the Priesthood, in six books which is the most popular and best known of all his writings.^ 1 Jerome, in his Be Viris illustrihus (eh. 129), devotes a line and a hal xvin WORKS OF CHRYSOSTOM 701 To this fruitful period belong his treatise against those who oppose the monastic life ; the letters " to an unfaithful " and " to a faithful father," in the latter of which he draws so frightful a picture of the morals of Antioch ; his comparison between a king and a monk ; his exhortations to Stagirius and Stelechius ; to " a young widow " ; his book On Virginity ; and his biography of the Antiochene martyr St. Babylas (founded mainly on floating tradition). 2. EXEGETICAL WRITINGS. — As an exegete Chrysostom attained his purest fame. Many of his commentaries have perished. They appear to have covered the whole field of Scripture, and are mostly in the form of homilies. The most important of those now extant are the 67 homilies on Genesis (a.d. 386) ; the 90 on St. Matthew; the 33 on the Epistle to the Eomans; and the 74 on the two Epistles to the Corinthians. Those on the Acts of the Apostles are the poorest, though Erasmus goes beyond the mark when he says of them: " Ebrius et stertens scriberem meliora." His expository sermons exceed 600 in number. As an interpreter of Scripture, Chrysostom is the chief glory of the school of Antioch. That school, beginning, perhaps, with Malchion (a.d. 269), continued by Lucian and Diodore of Tarsus, can boast of the great names of Theodore of Mopsuestia and his brother Polychronius of Apamea, of Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrus, and of Chrysostom, whom Theodoret calls " the great teacher of the world." For sobriety of interpretation, for thorough general knowledge of the contents of Scripture, for his steady determination to elicit the sense of the sacred writers, and not to introduce into them a meaning of his own, Chrysostom is unrivalled. He fully recognised the human element in Scripture, and he was thus better able to see the importance of studying every passage with its con- text, and of estimating the special usage of words. No writer has contributed so large an amount to the current catenae, or exercised a more wholesome influence upon the traditions of interpretation.^ to Chrysostom, in which he says : " Multa componere dicitur, de quibus Trepi Jepojtnjvijs tantum legi." He was afterwards guilty of translating and praising the shameful libel of Theophilus, of which fragments are preserved by Facundus of Hermiane {Def. trium. caff, vi.) ■* In the brief space at my disposal in the History of Interpretation (pp. 220-222) I referred to the chief characteristics of his exegesis, and to some of the authoritative opinions as to his importance. Since that time Mr. Chase, in his Chrysostom, a study in the History of Biblical Interpretation, 1887, has devoted a full and valuable monograph to the subject. 702 LIVES OF THE FATHERS XVlli 3. Of Chrysostom's Sermons few are directly and exclusively- doctrinal, though there are 1 2 against the Anomoeans and 8 against the Jews. His occasional homilies, especially those On the Statues, show the full splendour of his eloquence as an unrivalled preacher. His panegyrical homilies are less pleasing, from the Oriental extravagance of adulation. Both at Antioch and at Constan- tinople he endeavoured to wield the utmost power of the Christian pulpit for the purposes of spiritual edification and moral reform. If he was occasionally carried away by the passion of the successful orator into the use of unmeasured and ill-considered expressions, we can hardly be surprised. Sermons in the fourth century were harangues addressed to an eager and excitable multitude. The unseemly custom of expressing applause or disapproval had triumphed over all remonstrances. To some preachers it gave a fatal pleasure ; on all preachers alike it exercised an unfavourable influence. Chrysostom frequently alludes to the laughter, the tears, or the stamping (K(OOTos)"of his hearers. He deplores the levity with which they left the churches to plunge afresh into the very vices of which the denunciation had just aroused their cheers. Indeed, none of his sermons was more loudly applauded than one in which he had strongly reprehended the custom of thus venting their feelings, and thus turning sermons into mere oratorical dis- plays. But if the custom of applauding in church was now general, it must have been difficult for an Eastern audience to restrain them- selves while they listened to the masterpieces of an eloquence so noble, so natural, and so vivid, as that which was poured forth with equal ardour and facility by this " mouth of gold." We cannot wonder that eloquence so powerful saved Antioch, swayed the vicious populace, overawed the barbarians, and flung a last gleam of radiance over the corrupt and degraded Empire. As a preacher he was un- wearied in his assiduity, and the pulpit was the chief engine of his spiritual force. His sermons have none of the severe order and powerful logic which mark those of Bourdaloue, nor the finish and sublimity which we admire respectively in Massillon and Bossuet, but they were probably far more adapted to the taste of those days and the countries in which he laboured. Their abandon and directness, the abundance of their imagery, the ardour of their sentiments, the passion of their appeals, the Asiatic luxuriance of their language, may sometimes interfere with their perfection as works of art, but undoubtedly added to the sole effectiveness which Chrysostom desired for them — the effectiveness of being practically useful in spreading the kingdom of God. We know that he prepared his sermons with much care, but in XVIII WORKS OF CHRYSOSTOM 703 form many of them must have been extempore, for he was often called upon suddenly to occupy the pulpit. Occasionally too he burst into an extempore digression, as when in his fourth homily on Genesis he reproves the people for looking away from him, and giving their whole attention to the acolyte who was lighting the lamps. One great charm of his eloquence consisted in its vivid plain- ness. He was not an orator who beat the air, or who dealt in sounding generalities which hurt the consciences of no one. He dealt downright blows at the vices of the clergy, the court, the millionaires, and the multitudes. It is chiefly from his pages that we learn the consummate splendour and slothful voluptuousness which marked the life of the wealthy, and the consequent decadence of all manly nobleness among them ; but we have pictures no less vivid of the vices and amusements of the vulgar, the debasements and the pollutions of the theatre, and the frantic partisanship of the hippodrome. He shows us even that the rope-dancers, jugglers, and mountebanks performed much the same tricks 'fifteen centuries ago as they do in London streets to-day.i 4. The Letters of Chrysostom — 242 in number — belong chiefly to the period of his exile (A.D. 403-407). The most impor- tant of them are the 17 letters to Olympias, and the 2 to Pope Innocent I. They are full of interesting autobiographical notices, and they give us a thorough insight into his episcopal activity, as well as into the beauty and grandeur of his character. While they often describe his misfortunes, they never breathe the unmanly spirit of complaint, nor do they show any hatred to his enemies. The famine, war, pestilence, continuous assaults, boundless solitude, barbarian incursions, and daily death, of which he speaks to Innocent, did not break down his indomitable faith, or make him unworthy of himself. As a theologian Chrysostom thoroughly deserves his place among the four great doctors of the Greek Church.^ Isaac Taylor, whose judgments on the Fathers are too severe, sees in his writings the conflict between opposing tendencies — evangelical and ecclesiastical. " Few great writers," he says, " offer so little repose ; few present contrasts so violent ; as if his cynosure had been a binary star, shedding contrary influences upon his course." ^ 1 See Montfauoon's Ohrys. ii. 232, vii. 422, xiii. 193 ; Bingham, Bk. xiv. 4. ^ I do not mention his " Liturgy," which is based on St. Basil's, and " it is doubtful whether it can be even in part ascribed to St. Chrysos- tom." 3 Ancimt Ohristia/nity, i. 249. 704 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii Fortunately for his usefulness and peace of mind, lie lived in that period in which there was a lull between the two fierce series of controversies on the Trinity and on the twofold nature of Christ. In the practical tendency of his writings, he is more allied to the great teachers of the West, just as Augustine, by the speculative turn of his mind, is allied to the teachers of the East. " In the nature and personality of this Father is revealed alike the Greek and the Christian, the twin-force, the double light of beauty and of love." The very centre of his theology was that he "believed in the soul, and was very sure of God " ; and there was no truth which more needed to be impressed on the age in which he lived than the infinite value of each human soul. He treats every question with a view to immediate edification ; and for the inflexibility of his censorship over morals has been called "the Christian Cato." But his chief power lay in the loftiness of his ideal and in his thorough knowledge of Holy Writ. He was not a great ecclesiastical states- man like Ambrose. He was not a reformer of superstitions — indeed in many of the superstitions of his age he shared. He was neither a Luther, nor a Paul, nor a John, though he has often been called " another John." The tone of his teaching more resembled that of the Epistle of St. James.^ He has been compared with F6nelon and Spener, but he was far greater than either in eloquence and genius, though of a less gentle disposition. The only heresy with which he was charged was an inclination to Origenism, of which he was far less guilty than his assailants Theophilus and Jerome. He had, indeed, been trained by so illustrious a leader of the school of Antioch as Diodorus of Tarsus, and he had spent his youth among men who did justice to the unrivalled merits of the .great Alexandrian. But, unlike most of the Greek Fathers, Chrysostom had little or no fondness for allegory or abstract speculation. The whole turn of his mind was practical. In later days he might have been charged with Pelagianism or Nestorianism ; but, in point of fact, he wrote on topics which touched on those views in much the same way as had been done by others before the actual controversies had arisen. He had no time for the' elaboration of theological theories and definitions. Neander has truly pointed to him as one in whose teaching dogma and ethics, exegesis and practical exhortation, were admirably combined. "Hence his exegesis was guarded against barren philosophy and dogma, and his pulpit discourses were free from doctrinal abstraction and empty rhetoric." A worthy pupil 1 See Bohringer, Ghrysost. p. 159. XVIII WORKS OF CHRYSOSTOM 705 alike of Diodorus and of Libanius, he subordinated both the methods of his interpretation and the fervour of his oratory to the one object of furthering the spiritual growth of his hearers. St. Chrysostom, like St. Athanasius, was a man of small stature, pale, emaciated, wrinkled, bald, with piercing but deep-set eyes. In art St. Chrysostom is usually represented with the Three other great Greek Fathers — St. Athanasius, St. Basil, and St. Gregory of Nazianzus. The two finest pictures in which he is separately represented are that by Sebastian del Piombo over the high altar of San Gian Grisostomo in Venice, and that by Rubens. " He is in the habit of a Greek bishop ; in one hand he holds the sacramental cup, and the left hand rests on the gospel. The celes- tial dove hovers near him, and two angels are in attendance." The pictures of Lucas Granach, Behan, Albrecht Diirer, represent- ing " the penitence of St. John Chrysostom," are either due to some confusion of him with another John, or are due to stories in- vented by ignorant monks who knew no more of the great orator than they learnt from the abusive letter of Theophilus, and its translation into Latin by St. Jerome. ^ In parting witli St. Chrysostom we part witli one of the noblest, wisest, and most eloquent of the Fathers. I have endeavoured to set them before the reader truth- fully, as they were. I have not painted them with any imaginary aureole around their brows, but as they stand in the truth of history, noble men, but, like all men, imperfect ; saints, yet like even the greatest of the saints, also sinners. " What are the saints," says Luther, " compared with Christ ? They are but shining dew- drops in the locks of the bridegroom, entangled among his hair." No true man would wish to be described with artificial reverence or indiscriminate eulogy. At the same time, all men would wish to have their story told by one who feels for them a profound respect and admi- ration — as I have always felt for these Fathers and Teachers — rather than by one who adopts a hostile, cold, ^ See Mrs. Jameson, Sacred and Legendary Art, pp. 325-335. VOL. TI 2 Z 706 LIVES OF THE FATHERS xviii or unsympathising attitude. It is at once our duty and our happiness, as Ernesti rightly says, " in viris egregiis bona potius quaerere atque laudare, quam mala inda- gare et reprehendere." It is in that spirit that I have endeavoured to make these leaders and champions of the Church of the first four centuries better known — not to scholars who are thoroughly familiar with Church his- tory and biography — but to many of my fellow-country- men for whom the characters and events of those cen- turies have been in great measure a sealed book. NOTES ON THE EARLY BISHOPS OF ROME OF THE FIRST FOUR CENTURIES i " Nou fu la Sposa di Cristo allevata Del sangue mio, dl Lin, di quel di Cleto Per essere ad acquisto d'oro usata : Ma per acquisto d'esto viver lieto E Sisto, e Pio, Callisto, ed Urbano Sparser lo sangue dopo molto fleto." Dante, Farad, xxvii. 40-46. 1. The Apostle St. Peter is claimed in the Pseudo-Clementines as the first Bishop of Rome, but on grounds purely traditional. We find from the Acts of the Apostles that he was at Jerusalem A.D. 49, and in Antioch about A.D. 53. The Epistles, taken in conjunction with the Acts, seem to prove that he was not at Rome during the first or second imprisonments of St. Paul. If " Babylon " in 1 Peter v. 1 3 means Babylon, and is not a cryptogram for Rome — which cannot be positively proved — then St. Peter was in Babylon about A.D. 63. That he was not the actual fouvder of the Church of Rome is clearly indicated by St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans. It cannot be proved that he ever visited Rome before A.D. 63, but the strength of tradition makes it highly probable that he died in Eome. The presbyter Gaius, in the second century, refers to the " trophies " of St. Peter and St. Paul as visible in the Via Ostia. But that Peter was in any sense of the word " Bishop " of Rome, or even of the Jewish community of Rome, for twenty-five years (the famous " years of St. Peter " first exceeded by Pius IX., who was Pope from 1846-1878) is an assertion absolutely without founda- tion. We may mention generally that according to Roman tradi- tion all the first thirty Popes except two (Anteros and Dionysius) were martyrs. Irenaeus, however, only mentions Telesphorus as a martyr, and we have no certain evidence of any other martyred Pope till the eighteenth — Pontianus. 1 Ap. Euseb. H. E. xi. 25. 708 LIVES OF THE FATHERS Spurious decretals and letters are attributed to many of these Popes in the forgeries of Pseudo-Isidore, which, though now dis- owned by all respectable authorities, were for centuries of immense use in supporting the Papal pretensions. 2. Linus, c. a.d. 62. — He is identified by Irenaeus with the Linus who sends greetings to Timothy in 2 Tim. iv. 21, and is said (Euseb. iii. 13) to have been bishop for twelve years. The Acts of the Martyrdom of St. Peter and St. Paul attributed to him are spurious. 3. Cletus or Anencletus, c. a.d. 79. — Of this bishop nothing is known. 4. Clement of Eome, c. A.d. 91. — He is precariously identified by Origen and others with the Philippian Clement mentioned by St. Paul (Phil. iv. 3), and is the author of the Epistle to the Corinth- ians, known only through the Alexandrian MS. presented by the Patriarch Cyril Lucar to Charles I. in 1625. A second epistle was discovered by Bishop Bryennios in 1 875, but is in reality a fragment of a very ordinary homily, and is as little genuine as the two encyclical letters on virginity, and the other pseudo-Clementine viTitings — the Liturgy, the Apostolical Constitutions and Canons, the Homilies, Eecognitions, and the decretal letters. The story of his martyrdom is spurious. 5. EvARiSTTJS, c. A.D. 100. — He is said to have been a Greek of Antioch, to have divided Eome into parishes, and appointed deacons. 6. Alexander L c. a.d. 109. — Nothing is known of this bishop. 7. SiXTUS or Xystus, c. a.d. 109. — He is said to have been martyred in the cemetery of Praetextatus. To him are attributed the Proverbs, which are more probably the work of the Stoic philosopher of that name. 8. Telesphorus, c. a.d. 128. — He is the first Bishop of Rome who is mentioned as a martyr by Irenaeus (Saer. iii. 3). He is said to have been the first who ordered the keeping of the Lenten fast. 9. Hyginus, c. a.d. 139. — Nothing is known about him, but it was during his episcopate that the heretics Valentinus and Cerdon came to Eome. 10. Pius I. c. a.d. 142. — During his rule Marcion arrived at NOTES ON THE EARLY BISHOPS OF ROME 709 Rome and extended the teaching of Cerdon. Hermas is said to have been his brother, and to have written his Shepherd at this time. 11. Anicetus, c. A.D. 157.— He is the bishop who kindly received Polycarp on his visit to Rome, and respected his Quartodeciman practice (see swpro, i. 81). At this period occurred the martyrdom of Ptolemaeus and Lucius, narrated by Justin Martyr (2 Apol. 2). ^ 12. SOTER, c. A.D. 168. — Dionysius of Corinth speaks of his generosity in assisting those who were reduced to poverty and con- demned to the mines during the persecution of M. Aurelius. During his episcopacy Montanism began to appear. 13. Eleutherus, c. a.d. 177. — He was, according to Hegesippus {ap. Euseb. H. E. iv. 22), originally a deacon of Anicetus. It was to him that the Christians of Lyons and Vienne sent by the hands of Irenaeus their plea for gentle dealings with the Montanists. He is supposed to be the bishop who, as Tertullian tells us (c. Prax. i.) was inclined to pay attention to the prophecies of the Montanists until he was perverted by the arrival of Praxeas (see supra, i. 98). During his episcopacy Valentinus and Marcion were twice ex- communicated at Rome, and Florinus and Blastus were degraded. According to Bede, he sent teachers to Britain at the request of King Lucius. 14. Victor L c. a.d. 190. — For his imperious action towards the Asiatic Quartodecimans, and the letters of Polycrates and Irenaeus to him, see supra, i. 99, 109. It is clear that by his arro- gant intolerance in this matter he gave general offence. According to Eusebius {H. E. v. 28) he excommunicated the Byzantine shoe- maker Theodotus, the first Gentile convert who denied the Divinity of Christ. 15. Zephyrinus, a.d. 202.i — During his weak rule he seems to have been under the influence of Callistus, and though he opposed Montanism he did not keep equally clear from Monarchi- anism. His name is chiefly remembered in connexion with Hippolytus, who spoke of him with great contempt (see supra, i. 1 1 8), and if he be the Bishop of Rome angrily referred to by Tertullian, he most seriously relaxed the bonds of ancient discipline by freely admitting heinous off'enders into Church communion. The heretic Artemon gained a following at Rome in his days, and Origen paid a visit to Rome. It is difficult to judge of Zephyrinus, because 1 The dates cannot always be regarded as certain. 710 LIVES OP THE FATHERS we only know him through the reports of his theological opponents. The curious story of Natalis, the heretical Theodotian bishop who repented after being scourged by the angels, is connected with this period. 16. Callistus, A.D. 218. — If we are to believe the story told of Callistus by his rival Hippolytus, he had been a slave of Carpo- phorus, a Christian of Caesar's household, and had been intrusted with the charge of a bank. Detected in fraudulent dealing with the money deposited by his fellow-Christians, he escaped on board ship, was followed by Carpophorus, and in despair attempted to commit suicide by throwing himself into the sea. Eescued from this fate, he was scourged by Carpophorus and sent into a pistrinum or slave-mill. Liberated on the pretext of recovering money from his creditors to repay the sums which he had embezzled, he raised a riot in a Jewish synagogue, and was condemned to the mines of Sardinia by the City Praefect Fuscianus. When Marcia, the Oiocrt^rj's iraWaK-q of Commodus, procured the liberation of the banished Christians, he got himself released though he was not on the list of those who were amnestied. Victor, to get rid of him, sent him to Antium, and gave him a monthly allowance. Zephy- rinus, perhaps needing the aid of his practical ability, recalled him, made him a sort of archdeacon among the clergy, and set him over the cemetery which still goes by the name of St. Callistus, in which thirteen out of eighteen of the Eoman bishops of this period are buried. In this position he fomented the dissensions of the Church, hoping to play off one party against another to his own advantage. He personally sided with Sabellius, urged him farther and farther into Monarchianism, called Hippolytus a ditheist, and put vacillating and ambiguous utterances into the mouth of Zephy- rinus. By the aid of these intrigues he got himself elected Bishop of Rome on the death of Zephyrinus, A.D. 218. He then expelled Sabellius and proclaimed a new heresy, saying that the Father and the Son were one, who together made the Spirit which became incarnate in the Virgin's womb. Further, he went to still greater lengths in relaxing Church discipline ; admitted digamists and even trigamists to marriage, relaxed marriage laws in general, and allowed second baptisms. Such is the dark story of St. Callistus told by St. Hippolytus. We may safely believe that it was capable of a much more innocent interpretation, but we do not know the real facts. According to tradition, Callistus was martyred A.D. 223, having been scourged in a popular rising, thrown out of the window of his house, and flung into a well. This may be true, since his epitaph is not found among those of the Popes buried in his own cemetery. • NOTES ON THE EARLY BISHOPS OF ROME 711 17. Urban I. a.d. 223.— The name of this bishop is mixed up by tradition with that of St. Caeoilia, whose husband Valerian, and his brother Tiburtius, he is said to have converted and bap- tized. In the late Acts of his Martyrdom he is said to have led to 5000 martyrdoms by his teaching and encouragement, and to have been beaten and imprisoned for accepting the legacy of St. Caecilia's possessions, which he distributed among the poor. He Converted his jailor Aurelinus, and was beheaded. 18. PoNTiANUS, A.D. 230.— He was banished with Hippolytus to the mines of Sardinia in the persecution of Maximus, and there died. This was probably the Pope who consented to the condem- nation of Origan by Demetrius (see supra, i. 414). 19. Anteros, A.d. 234. — He is said to have been Pope for only a month, from Nov. 21, A.D. 235, to Jan. 3, A.D. 236. 20. Fabian, A.d. 236. — He is said to have been an unknown layman from the country, and only to have been marked out for consecration by a dove settling on his head (Euseb. H. E. vi. sqq.) The story is suspicious, for a similar story is related of Zephyrinus (Eufinus, H. E. vi. 21). Legend says with great improbability that he baptized the Emperor Philip and his son. That he died by martyrdom is attested by Cyprian {Ep. 39), and he was one of the first victims of the Decian persecution (Jan. 256). Fragments of his memorial slab have been found in the " Papal Crypt " of the catacomb of St. Callistus. 21. Cornelius, a.d. 251. — His acceptance of the bishopric showed courage, for, as Cyprian says {Ep. Iv. 7), " He sat fearless at Rome in the sacerdotal chair, at that time when a tyrant, a per- secutor of the priests of God (Decius), . . . would with more patience hear that a rival prince was raised against himself than a bishop of God established at Eome." His differences with Cyprian and his relations to Novatus and Novatian (the Antipope) are narrated in the Life of Cyprian (see supra, i. 305). He died in exile at Cen- tumcellae, and is regarded as a martyr. 22. Lucius I. A.d. 252. — He underwent a short banishment in the Decian persecution (Cyprian, Ep. Ixi.) He is said to have been beheaded by Valerian. 23. Stephen I. a.d. 253. — For the views of this haughty bishop, see the Life of Cyprian {supra, i. 317-319), who came into conflict with him on the questions of the rebaptism of heretics and matters of discipline. Both Cyprian and Firmilian speak of him with severity. He is said to have been martyred under Valerian, as he sat in his episcopal chair in the cemetery. 712 LIVES OF THE FATHERS 24. SiXTUS II. A.D. 257. — He was martyred in the cemetery of Praetextatus in the reign of Valerian, Aug. 6, 258. Cyprian {Ep. 80) speaks of him in contrast with Stephen, as " bonus et pacificus sacerdos," and his conciliatory tone restored peace to the Church. The deacon St. Laurence was perhaps associated with him in martyrdom (Ambrose, Be off. Minist. i. 41), as were the deacons Agapetus, Felicissimus, and others (see supra, i. 321). 25. DiONYSius, A.D. 269. — He was a Greek by birth, and is chiefly known by his correspondence with Dionysius of Alexandria (see supra, i. 466). 26. Felix I. a.d. 269. — The most important event in which he was concerned was the deposition of Paul of Samosata from the see of Antioch. 27. EUTYCHIAN, A.D. 275. — He is said to have appointed the blessing of fruits upon the altar, and to have buried 462 martyrs. 28. Caius, a.d. 283. — Little or nothing is known of him. 29. Marcellinus, A.d. 296. — He was charged by the Donatists with having sacrificed and given up sacred books in the Diocletian persecution, but it is said that after a few days repented and was beheaded. Augustine treats the charge as a calumny (c. lit. Petit, ii. 202). In the Eoman breviary (April 26) we are told that among three hundred assembled bishops no one dared to con- demn him. They therefore exclaimed, " Tuo te ore, non nostra judicio, judica ; nam prima sedes a nemine judicatur"; whereupon he did so, with ashes on his head. The whole story is a later invention (see Dollinger, Papst. Fabeln, p. 50). After his death there was a vacancy in the see for some years. 30. Marcellus, A.D. 308. — The legend about him is that, after being beaten with cudgels by Maxentius for refusing to sacri- fice, he was made to tend the imperial horses in a church which had been turned into a stable. 31. EuSEBius, A.D. 310. — After four months he was banished by Maxentius to Sicily, and died there. The tumults which caused his banishment may have risen on the question of re-admitting those who had lapsed in the Diocletian persecution. 32. Melchiades, A.D. 311. — In his episcopacy took place the conversion of Constantine the Great and the close of the Diocle- tian persecution. The Christian cemeteries were restored to his keeping. The edict of toleration at Milan was promulgated by NOTES ON THE EARLY BISHOPS OF ROME 713 Constantine and Licinius, A.D. 313. Constantine wrote to him a letter full of vexation about the Donatist dissensions, which is pre- served by Eusebius. Augustine warmly praises his gentleness and equity {Ep. 43). In A.D. 314 he summoned the Synod of Aries to end the controversy. The Donatists falsely charged him with having surrendered the sacred books, and so being a traditor. 33. Sylvester I. a.d. 314. — He was represented at the Council of Aries by two of his presbyters, but the letter addressed to him by the council is probably spurious or interpolated. At the Council of Nice, A.D. 325, he was unable to be present through age, but sent two presbyters (see mpra, i. 477). The legend of him says that he cured Constantine of a leprosy and baptized him, having received in reward that " Donation of Constantine " which was regarded for centuries as the foundation for the Pope's temporal power. The forgery is now unanimously rejected. Every one will recall Milton's translations from Dante — "Ah Constantine, of how much ill was cause, Not thy conversion but those rich domains That the iirst wealthy Pope received of thee ! " and from Ariosto — "Then passed he to a flowery mountain green. Which once smelled sweet, now stinks as odiously ; This was the gift, if you the truth will have. Which Constantine to good Sylvester gave." 34. Marcus, A.d. 336. — -He appears as a saint and confessor, but little is known of him. 35. Julius I. a.d. 337. — He was the friend and defender of Athanasius, and received the recantation of his two bitter opponents, Valens and Ursacius. His letters to the followers of Eusebius and the Alexandrians are still extant (see supra, i. 523-528). 36. LiBERiUS, A.D. 352. — An account of this Pope, of his first constancy and orthodoxy and subsequent fall, will be found in the Lives of Hilary and Athanasius. Several of his letters are still extant, as well as a discourse on virginity preserved by Ambrose {De Virginibus, iii. 1), and delivered when his sister Marcellina made her profession of virginity (see supra, i. 634-537). 37. Damasus, A.D. 366. — An account of this literary and powerful Pope, together with some notice of the Antipopes Felix and Ursinus, will be found in the Life of Jerome (supra, p. 260). 38. SiRiCiUS, A.D. 384. — He issued the first genuine Papal V14 LIVES OF THE FATHERS decretal on matters of discipline in the Spanish Church, and was the first to use — even more haughtily than Victor and Stephen — the arrogant language of Roman dominance founded on the supposed succession of St. Peter. He took strong measures against the Mani- cheans and against Jovinian. He was unfavourably disposed to Jerome and patronised Rufinus. He gave the first powerful im- pulse to the compulsory celibacy of the clergy (see supra, pp. 298-345). 39. Anastasius I. a.d. 398. — Rufinus referred to him in the controversy about Origen, and Anastasius in reply condemned Origen (see supra, p. 345). 40. Innocent I. A.d. 402. — In a.d. 404 Honorius retired to Ravenna, which greatly increased the power of the Popes at Rome. He asserted his claims to dominance in Illyria, Gaul, Spain, and Africa, and the East. He supported the claims of St. Chrysostom against his opponents (see Life of St. Chrysostom, supra, p. 697). He was absent from Rome during its disastrous sack by Alaric, Aug. 24, 410. 41. ZosiMUS, A.D. 417. — He first tolerated but finally rejected Pelagianism (see the Life of St. Augustine, supra, p. 555). He also interfered in the affairs of Gaul, where he endeavoured to secure metropolitan jurisdiction to the see of Aries. 42. Boniface I. A.d. 418.^ — Eulalius had been consecrated at the same time by three bishops, and Honorius, on the report of the Praefect Symmachus, decided in his favour. But the people sided with Boniface, and his election was ratified. He supported Augus- tine against the calumnies of the Pelagians, and sent him the slan- derous letters to which Augustine replied {Ep. x. 411). He was a strenuous maintainer of the rights of the Roman see. 43. Celestine I. A.D. 422. 44. SiXTUS III A.D. 432. 45. Leo the Great, a.d. 440. EARLY BISHOPS OF ALEXANDRIA^ St. Mark . Anianus Albinus Cerdo Primus Justin Eumenius . Marcian Claudius Agrippinus Julian Demetrius ^ c. A.D. 40 62 84 98 . 102 119 136 143 153 167 179 . 189 Heraclas ^ Dionysius l . Maximus Theonas Peter Martyr Achillas Alexander^ Athanadus^ Peter IIA Timothy . Theophihis ^ Cyril 231 247 265 282 300 312 313 326 373 380 385 412 '■ The list is taken from Le Quien's Oriens Christianus and Dr. Neale's Holy Eastern Church. Some account of these bishops will be found in the Lives of Origen, Athanasius, and Chrysostom. EARLY BISHOPS OF ANTIOCH^ St. Peter. Fabius. Euphonius. Euodius. Demetrius. Placillus. St. Ignatius.^ Paulus. Stephanus. Heron. Domnus. Leontius. Cornelius. Timaeus. Anianus. Eros. Cyril. Meletius. Theophilus. Tyrannus. Euzoius. Maximus. Vitalis. Meletius (again). | Paulinus. V Dorotheus. ) Serapion. Philogonus. Asclepiades. Paulinus. Philetus. Eustathius. Flavian. 1 Evagrius. J Zebennus. Eulalius. Si;. Babylas. Eusebius. ' From Le Quien. ^ The bishops whose names are in italics are spoken of in the Lives of Igna- tius, Athanasius, Chrysostom, and Jerome. BRIEF NOTES ON THE HERETICS OF THE FIRST FOUR CENTURIES. As various heretics are frequently alluded to in the previous pages, I here throw into the briefest possible form some account oi their principal heresies. Heeetics of the First Century. I have spoken elsewhere of those heresies of which the germs were latent even in the Apostolic age (1 John iv. 3, 1 Cor. xv. 12, 2 Peter ii. 1), especially of the Colossian and other forms of incipient G-nosticism (Jude iv., Rev. ii. 14 and 15). The Nazarenes were hardly heretics, but a marked type of narrow and Judaising Chris- tians. Ebionism is a particularistic contraction of the Christian reli- gion; Gnosticism a vague expansion of it. The one is a gross literalism and realism ; the other a fantastic idealism and spiritualism. Ir the former the spirit is bound in outward forms ; in the latter it revels in licentious freedom. Ebionism makes salvation depend or observance of the law ; Gnosticism on speculative knowledge Ebionism denies the Divinity of Christ, and sees in the Gospel onlj a new law ; Gnosticism denies the true Humanity of the Redeemer, and makes His person and His work a mere phantom, a Docetic illusion.^ Ebion simply means "poor," and Tertullian was mis- taken in supposing that there ever was a person of that name, Others supposed it to mean "apostates," from ^rh, "to deny." The word Elxai, according to Gieseler, means " hidden power " ('OS Tn^ which applies to the Holy Spirit.^ The Elkesaites wert Judaising Essenes, and their views are perhaps reflected in th« pseudo-Clementine homilies. They were specially opposed to th( doctrine of St. Paul. They were also called Sampsaeans, because ii praying they turned towards the sun {^^^). 1 Schaff, Ante-Nicene Christianity, ii. 430. 2 Life of St. Paul, i. 444-459 ; Early Days of Christianity, ii. 336-353. BRIEF NOTES ON HERETICS 717 The two chief heretics of the first century are Simon Magus and Cerinthus. Of these and of Nicolas of Antioch I have spoken else- where. Hegesippus, in a curious passage {ap. Euseb. iii. 32), says that until the days of Trajan, and the death of Symeon, Bishop of Jerusalem at the age of 120, the Church continued to be "a pure and uncorrupted virgin," but that after this she was corrupted by Thehuthis., who was disappointed because he was not elected bishop. As we know nothing whatever of any person of this name, Credner has gone so far as to conjecture that Thebuthis is only meant for a collective idea for opposition or corruption.^ The chief heretics of the second century are the Gnostics of Syria, Asia Minor, and Egypt ; the Montanists and Manicheans, and Patripassians. They are merely enumerated here for purposes of convenient reference. I. Syrian Gnostics. 1. Saturninus taught under Hadrian in Antioch. The chief features of his system are Dualism and Asceticism. From the Un- known God emanated seven planetary angels, the Demiurge or God of the Jews, and other ^ons and spirits. Satan is the ruler of the Hyle, the world of matter, darkness, and evil. 2. Bardesanes and his son Harmonius. — ^A Dialogue on Fate still extant is attributed to Bardesanes. He and his son were poets, and the founders of Syrian hymnology. He is charged with Valentinianism, and he wrote against Marcion. Little is known about his views, and he can hardly be regarded as a heretic on essential points. 3. Tatian — See supra, i. 129. He founded the hyperascetic sect of the Encratites (Abstainers) or Apotadici (Denouncers), who, from their objection to the use of wine, even at the Eucharist, were also called Hydroparastatae or Aquatians. They condemned marriage as intrinsically wrong. II. Gnostics of Asia Minor. 1. Cerdo. — He came to Rome about a.d. 141. He was a Dualist, and exercised an unfavourable influence over Marcion in his contrast of the Old with the New Testament. 2. Marcion. — He came to Eome about a.d. 155. For an ac- count of Marcion, the first of the Eationalists, see the Lives of Ter- tullian and Polycarp (supra, i. 79, 225). 1 Chaid. Knan. 718 LIVES OF THE FATHERS 3. LuciAN. — He was a presbyter first at Antioch, and then at Nicomedia. He died a martyr A.D. 311. The Arians claimed him as a teacher, and Bishop Alexander of Alexandria associates him with Paul of Samosata. He was a great critic, and it is extremely doubtful whether he was a heretic. Even Baronius {Ann. A.D. 311) defends his orthodoxy. He was the founder of the school of Antioch. 4. Apelles. — A disciple of Marcion who added fantastic ele- ments to his master's system. III. Egyptian Gnostics. 1. Basilides, fl. A.D. 117-138. — The account of his system given by Hippolytus in the Fhilosophumena differs from those of Irenaeus and Epiphanius. He was the first fully-developed Gnostic, and by a system of seven ^ons attempted to account for the origin of evil. The abyss between God and mian was bridged over by 365 orders of angels. He borrowed from the Pythagoreans a belief in the mystic sacredness of numbers, and is the inventor of the magical Abraxas ( = 365). His son Isidore was his only important follower. 2. Carpocrates and his son Epiphanes represent the " extreme left " of the Gnostics, who in their contempt and hatred for matter, treated sin as a matter of no consequence, and substituted unbridled licentiousness for rigid asceticism. They were the first who broke through the reserve of Christians by having pictures of Christ. ^ 3. Valentinus. — He was at Eome with Cerdo and Marcion between a.d. 137-154. He was the ablest of the Gnostics, and developed the most powerful and elaborate system. This system hardly pretended to objective reality.^ It was a gorgeous philo- sophic dream of emanations (see Life of Irenaeus, supra, i. 1 1 2). Herac- leon, Ptolemy, Marcus, Colobarsus, and others, as well as Bardesanes, are reckoned among his followers. Lesser and wilder sects of the Gnostics were called Ophites (Naasenes, or serpent-worshippers), Lethites, Peratae, and Eremites, whose aberrations, at once foul and absurd, deserve no further notice (see Life of Irenaeus, supra, i. 114- 117). Forms of heresy not directly Gnostic in the second and third centuries were those of — 1. The MoNARCHiANS, Or Unitarians, who in some form or other denied the Divinity of Christ. 1 Hippol. Philos. vii. 32 : eiKova's KaTaa-KTivd^ovcri. tov XpLo-rov XeyovTes vtto TliXaTOV r<^ Kaipui Ikcivo) yevktrdai, 2 See a brief sketch of his views in the Life of Irenaeus. BRIEF NOTES ON HERETICS 719 2. The Alogians ; if the title of the sect be not a mere play of words adopted by Epiphanius to imply that they were both " unreasonable " and denied the doctrine of the Logos. 3. The Theodotians, founded by Theodotus, a cobbler {a-Kvrevs) of Byzantium (a.D. 170), who held that Christ was a man, though supernaturally begotten as the Messiah. He was excommunicated by Bishop Victor at Eome. 4. The Melchizedekians, founded by a younger Theodotus, who placed Melchizedek above Christ. 5. The Artemonites, founded by Artemon, who attempted by philosophy and geometry to give a more intellectual basis to the doctrine of Theodotus. He was excommunicated by Zephyrinus. 6. The Paulicians, founded by Paul of Samosata, a.d. 260. Paul was a Ducenarius Procurator, a high civil officer, who was chosen Bishop of Antioch a.d. 260. He treated the Logos and the Holy Spirit as mere Powers of God having no personality. It was because of his use of the word homoousios to identify Christ with the Father that the Synod of Antioch rejected the word in the Sabellian sense. He acted as viceroy to Zenobia, Queen of Pal- myra, at Antioch. He seems to have yielded to boundless vanity, arrogance, and avarice, even allowing hymns in his own honour to be sung in church. He was deposed by the third Synod of Antioch, A.D. 269, but his deposition could not be carried out till the victory of Aurelian over Zenobia, a.d. 272. 7. The Patripassians. — This was a name of scorn given to the Sabellians, because their doctrine virtually involved the crucifixion of the Father. They looked on the Son as a self-limitation of the Father, the Father veiled in the flesh, and charged their opponents with being Diiheists, believers in two Gods. i. Their first prominent teacher was Praxeas (on whom see the Life of TertuUian, supra, i. 229). He had so much influence at Eome as even to gain the partial sympathy of Bishop Victor, Zephyrinus, and Callistus. ii. NoETTJS, who in favour of his doctrine appealed to Eom. ix. 5, and asked a synod assembled to condemn him " What evil, then, am I doing in glorifying Christ ? " Hippolytus charges him with pantheistic views borrowed from Heraclitus. iii. Sabellius. — Though we know but little of him personally, he was " by far the most original, profound, and ingenious of the Ante-Nicene Unitarians, and his systeni the most plausible rival of 720 LIVES OF THE FATHERS orthodox Trinitarianism." His ablest opponent was Bishop Diony- sius of Eome. His views were pantheistic, and drew some of then elements from Pagan philosophy. He regarded the Trinity " not as a simultaneous Trinity of essence, but as a successive Trinity of reve- lation, returning back to Unity." 8. Macedonius, Bishop of Constantinople, was deposed (a.d. 360) for denying the Divinity of the Holy Spirit. He founded the temporary sect known as IIvev/iaTo/taxot, "fighters against the Spirit." He was condemned by the clauses added to the Nicene Creed by the Council of Constantinople, a.d. 381. 9. Apollinaeis, Bishop of Laodicea, a.d. 362, denied the per- fectness of Christ's manhood, saying that in Him " God the Word ' took the place of the human spirit. He was condemned in the Council of Constantinople (a.d. 361), and in the clause of the Athanasian Creed which describes Christ as "of a reasonable sou] and human flesh subsisting." As regards other heresies and schisms, an account of the MoNTANiSTS will be found in the Life of TertuUian ; of the No- vatians in the Life of Cyprian ; of the Manicheans, Pelagians. and DoNATiSTS in the Life of Augustine ; of Arius, and the manj shades of Arianism, in the Lives of Athanasius, Hilary, and Basil of ViGlLANTius and JoviNlAN, who cannot in any sense be callec either heretics or schismatics, in the Life of Jerome ; and oJ Priscillian and his followers in the Lives of Ambrose and Martir of Tours. Eeferences will also be found to Photinus, who helc that a Divine Emanation ("the Word") was united to the mar Jesus, and said that the Holy Ghost was an energy, not a person and to Aetius and Eunomius, who asserted that Christ was a created being. The Nestorian heresy, which " divides the substance of Christ ' (" who, although he be God and Man, yet is he not two, but on( Christ"), condemned in the Council of Ephesus, A.D. 431, and th( Eutychian heresy, which " confounded the Persons," and was con demned at Chalcedon, A.D. 451, belong to a later period than thai here treated. The contrasts of the Arian and the Catholic doctrines respect ing the nature of Christ have been conveniently summed up ai follows : — Arian doctrine describes Christ as being — 1. A Created Being, though created out of nothing (ktutih £g OVK OVTdlv). BRIEF NOTES ON HERETICS 721 2. Not eternally existent {^v tote ore oi5k ^v — there was [a time] when He was not). 3. Not of the same essence with the Father (dvoiioiovcnos, dvofj-ows). Catholic doctrine defined Christ as being — 1. Begotten, not made (yewij^ets ov 7rot?j^ets). 2. Begotten before all worlds (yew-qdil's irpb irai/Twv tSv aluivoiv). 3. Of the same essence with the Father (ofioovcrtos tu irarpi). INDEX Abeboius, Bishop of Hieropolis, epi- taph of, i. 10 Adelphius, Gregory of Nyssa's letter to, ii. 110 Adeodatus, Augustine's son, ii. 420 ; taken from his mother, 446 ; takes part in discussions at Cassiciacum, 460 ; becomes candidate for bap- tism, 463 ; is baptized, 466 ; death of, 478 Alaric, his invasion of Italy, ii. 385 ; on fall of Rome, 390 Alexamenos, figure of, i. 239 Alexander I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 708 Alexander, Bishop of Alexandria, i. 452 Alexandria, university of ancient world, i. 350 - 55 ; catechetical school of, 356 ; early bishops of, ii. 715 Alke, virgin, friend of Ignatius, i. 42, 53 Alogians, ii. 719 Alypius, friend and pupil of Augustine, ii. 423, 425; at Milan, 437-50; joins Augustine at Cassiciacum, 453 ; is baptized, 466 Ambrose, St., life of, by Paulinus, ii. 114 ; birth and parentage of, 113 ; his training at Rome, 116 ; Governor of Lignria and Aemilia, 117 ; elected Bishop of Milan, 118 ; baptized, 119 ; his theological studies, 121 ; his daily life as described by Augustine, 123 ; his attitude towards Valentinian I., 124; his book De Fide, 126; opponent of Arianism, 125, 128, 154 ; relations with Gratian, 132 ; in- terview with Maximus, 133, 134 ; on persecuted Priscillianists, 134 ; reply toSymmachus, 136 ; baptizes Augus- tine, 140, 154 ; his conflict with Justina, 128, 143 ; is ordered to leave Milan, 150 ; introduces anti- phonal psalmody, 151 ; his relic- worship, 152 ; as a hymn writer, 152 ; his De bono mortis, 155 ; second embassy to Maximus, 155 ; letter to Theodosius on synagogue at Callinicum, 160-62 ; on Thessaloniea riot and massacre, 165, 166 ; his dealings with Theodosius, 167-72 ; his work' On the Duties of Ministers, 174; is visited by Persians, 174; summoned by Valentinian II., 177 ; his funeral oration on Valentinian II., 178 ; at death of Theodosius, 182 ; preaches the funeral oration, 183 ; miraculous stories about, 184, 187 ; his death, 186 ; character and work, 188 ; compared with Basil, 112 ; list of works, with dates, 189 ; as awriter, 189 ; his letters, 191 ; sermons, 190 ; exegetic writings, 191 ; ascetic writings, 193 ; dogmatic writings, 194 ; ethical works, 195 ; as hymn writer, 196 ; as economist and social reformer, 200 ; in art, 198 Ambrosius, friend of Origen, i. 407 Anastasius, Bishop of Rome, ii. 714 Anicetus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 709 Anomoeans, i. 610 Anteros, Bishop of Rome, ii. 711 Anthusa, mother of Chrysostom, ii. 617 Antioch, early bishops of, ii. 716 ; Council of, i. 611 ; revolt at, iL 387, 645 Antiphonal psalmody, Irenaeus and, i. 36 ; Ambrose and, ii. 151 Antony, hermit, doubts respecting, i, 451 ; legend concerning, ii. 230 Apelles, disciple of Marcion, ii. 718 Apollinaris of Hierapolis, early Chris- tian writer, i. 9 Apollinaris of Laodicea, ii. 720 ; con- 724 INDEX secrates Vitalis Bishop of Antioch, ii. 259 Apostasy, Cyprian on, i. 273, 298 Apostles, Teaching of the Twelve, anonymous work, i. 1 Apostolic Fathers, the, i. 1-10 Aquarians, Cyprian on, i. 334, 339 Aquileia, victory of Theodosius near, ii. 181 Aquitania described, i. 573 Arbogast, Count, ii. 176 Arcadius succeeds Theodosius, ii. 182 Arianism, i. 455 sqq.; ii. 47, 720 Arius, presbyter, account of, i. 456 ; death of, 615 Aristotle, Tertallian and Luther on, i. 220 Aries, Synod of, i. 162 Arsacius, successor of Clirysostom, ii, 691 Artemonites, ii. 719 Asceticism in religion, ii. 216 ; how encouraged in Christendom, 217 ; its evils, 220 ; Jerome's, 222 Asella, Eoman friend of Jerome, ii. 292 Astrology, Augustine's belief in, ii. 427 Athanasius, St., birth and education, i. 445-48 ; infliience of the Meletian schism on, 448-50 ; theological training of, 451 ; story of his bap- tism, 452-54 ; his treatises Against the Gentiles and On the lyicarna- tion, 454 ; at Council of Nice, 478 ; elected Bishop of Alexandria, 496 ; character, popularity, and power, 497 ; visit to the Thebais, 498 ; story of visit from Antony the hermit, 500 ; persecution and plots, id. ; refuses Arius re - admission, 502 ; charged with murder and magic, 505 ; appears before Council at Tyre by command of Constantine, 507 ; goes to inter- view with Emperor at Constantinople, 510 ; new false charge of stopping food - supply, 511 ; banished to Treves, 512; return to Alexandria, 520 ; flight to Eome, 523 ; sum- moned to Milan, 525 ; second re- turn to Alexandria, and festivities, 527, 528 ; labour in diocese, 529 ; condemned by Council at Aries, 532 ; condemned anew by Council at Milan, 533 ; flight of, 641 ; life in desert, 543 ; literary labours, 645-48; third return, 558,559 ; fifth exile, 566 ; return, 567 ; closing years, death, and character of, 667- 71 ; his good influence in Eome during his exile, ii. 290 Athenagoras, early Christian apologist i. 9 Augustine, St., birth and parentage, ii 403,404 ; childhood and school edu cation, 409-11 ; on educational us( of heathen literature, 411 ; his idli year, 412 ; life in Carthage, 414 415; "reads Cicero's ^orferestMs, 416 lapses into Manicheism, 417 ; forms an illicit union, 420 ; teaches gram- mar at Tagaste, 423 ; his anony. mous friend there, 424 ; removes tc Carthage as teacher of rhetoric, 425; gains poetic prize, 426 ; belief ir astrology and dreams, 427-29; begins to lose faith in Manicheism, 430 ; writes his first book, On the Fit- ting and t!ie Beautiful, 430 ; his opinion of the Manicheans, id. ; his relations with Paustus, Manicheau bishop, 432 ; withdi'aws secretly to Eome, 435 ; nominated by Sym- machus to a professorship at Milan, 436 ; his visit to amphitheatre, 437; his prayer for purity, 449 ; becomes friend and constant hearer of Am- brose, 442,443 : la engaged to be married, and dismisses his mistress, 445, 446 ; iniluence of Simpliciauus, on, 447 ; his study of St. Paul, id. ; conversation with Pontitianus, 448 ; his prayer in the garden, 450 ; re- tirement to Cassiciacum, 453 ; books On a Sappy Life and Against tht Academicians, 454, 465 ; his discus- sion On Order, 454-56 ; cures himseli . of habit of profane swearing, 463 ; becomes candidate for baptism, 463 ; writes On the Immortality of the Soul, 466 ; is baptized, id. ; with his mother at Ostia, 467 ; death of his mother, 469, 704; writes On the Morals of the Catholic Church and On the Morals oj Manicheans, 470 ; On the Quantity of the Soul, and On Free- Will, 471 ; his account of the miraculous cure of Innocentius, 472 ; returns tc Carthage, and sells his paternal estate, 472-74; three years o\ monastic retreat at Tagaste, 474-76 writes on Genesis, on music, oii true religion, and other works, 476 removes to Hippo Eegius, 477 receives ordination, and is allowec to preach for, and in presence of his bishop, 478, 479 ; troubles wit! his monks, 480-82 ; his correspond ence with Jerome, 351, 361, 484 INDEX 725 ■writes On Two Souls and On the Usefulness of Believing, 485 ; is con- secrated coadjutor-Bishop of Hippo, 486 ; writes On Lying, 485 ; ceases to te a monk, 487 ; habits and manner of life as Wshop, 488-90 ; as preacher, 492 ; his private minis- trations, 494 ; his exalted conception of episcopal office and authority, 495 ; becomes sole bishop, 496 ; his controversies with Pagans, 497 ; with dissentient Christians, 499 ; his early treatises against Manicheism, 507 ; personal disputatious with the Mani- cheans, Fortunatus and Felix, 508- 10 ; criticism on Mani's letter, The Foundation, 510 ; work against Faustus, 511 ; writes On the Nature of the Good, 512 ; his answer to Secundinus, 613 ; results of his anti- Manichean controversy, 513 ; rela- tions with Proculeianus, Donatist Bishop of Hippo, 520 ; his anti- Donatist works On Baptism, Against the Letter of Parmenian, and On the Unity of tlie Church, 521-23 ; attends conference between Donatist and orthodox bishops, 528 ; temper and theology evilly affected by the controversy, 531 ; his in- tolerance and persecution, 536; approves condemnation of Pelagian teaching of Coelestius, 550 ; writes On the Spirit and the Letter and On the Punishment and Forgiveness of Sins, 550 ; writes On Nature, On Nature and Grace, and On the Per- fection of Sunhan Righteousness, 553 ; letter to Paulinus of Nola formulating theory of predestination, 554 ; contrasted with Pelagius, 562 ; his story of the relics of St. Stephen, 566 ; as a, miracle worker, 570 ; grief at death of Marcellinus, 571, 572 ; affair of Pinianus, 577-81 ; his sermons on fall of Eome, 585 ; the De Civitate Dei, 586 ; his relations with Count Bonifacius, and his demeanour during the V&ndal invasion, 589-95 ; last illness and death, 595 ; his theology discussed, 597 sqq. ; on the sacraments, 598 ; on the Church, 602 ; religious genius of, 605 ; in art, 606 ; philosophical works enu- merated, 607 ; apologetic works, 608 ; polemic works, id. ; dogmatic works, 609 ; moral and ascetic works, 610 ; exegetic works, 611 ; autobiographi- cal works, 612 ; sermons, id. Avitian, Count, relations with Martin, 1. 645 Baetlas the Martyr, Chrysostom's oration on, ii. 640 Baptism, TertuUian on, i. 169, 332 ; question of rebaptism, 318, 346 Barcochba, false Messiah, i. 22 Bardesanes, Syrian Gnostic, ii. 717 Ba/mahas, Fpistle of, i. 2, 5 Basil, St., origin of epithet "The Great," ii. 20, 90 ; birth, parentage, and early training, 2, 3 ; at Caesarea, 5 ; Constantinople, 6 ; Athens, 7 ; is baptized, 9 ; pleader and teacher of rhetoric at Caesarea, 9 ; visits Egypt and Palestine, 12 ; life at Annesi, 13 ; his conception of the monastic life, 16 ; is made a "reader," 21 ; writes against Bunomius, 23 ; is ordained presbyter against his will, 24 ; his relations with Eusebius, his bishop, 25 ; is elected and con- secrated bishop, 31 ; his troubles in office, 33-5 ; his reforms, 36 ; dis- pute with Gregory of Nazianzus about bishopric of Sasima, 36 ; relations with Bustathius of Sebaste, 39 ; his orthodoxy impugned, 42 ; his treatise On the Holy Spirit, 43 ; his relations with Valens, 50, 55, 57 ; his appear- ance before Modestus, 52 ; his treat- ment of Demosthenes the eunuch, 55, 56 ; his banishment ordered, 57 ; his letters, 59 ; Ms ill health in later years, 62 ; as writer of liturgies, 63 ; his eiforts to restore Church unity, 65 ; his correspondence with Pope Damasus, 67 ; death and funeral, 70, 89 ; Gregory of Nazianzus on works of, 71 ; character of, 72 ; legends concerning, 73 ; in Byzan- tine art, 73 ; compared with Am- brose, 112 Basilides, Egyptian Gnostic, ii. 718 Basilius, friend of Chrysostom, ii. 619, 623, 630 ; made Bishop of Antioch, 626 Bishops, early, of Alexandria, ii. 715 ; of Antioch, id. ; of Borne, 707- 714 Blaesilla, Eoman friend of Jerome, ii. 284, 296, 297 Boniface I., Bishop of Eome, ii. 714 Bonifacius, Count, ii. 589 ; defeated and driven into Hippo, 594 Bonosus, friend of Jerome, ii. 235 CaTOS, Bishop of Eome, ii. 712 726 INDEX Callinicum, synagogue of, Ambrose's letter to Theodosius on, ii. 160 CaUistus, Bishop of Eome, ii. 710 Carpocrates, Egyptian Gnostic, ii. 718 Catacombs, i. 13 sqq. Cassiciacum, Augustine's retreat, ii. 453 Celestine I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 714 Celibacy, Jovinian on, ii. 328 Cerdo, Gnostic of Asia Minor, ii. 717 ChUiasm, Dionysius of Alexandria on, i. 347, 348 Christ, representation of, forbidden, i. 21 ; traditional sayings of, 63, 154 Christianity, in Epistle to Diognetus, i. 7 ; its illegal character till a.d. 261, 21 ; its rapid spread, 24 ; why Paganism intolerant to, 66 - 68 ; triumph of, 69 ; its effect on stability of Eoman Empire, ii. 201 Christians, early, testimony of cata- combs to, i. 13 ; joyousness of, 15, 16 ; universal charity of, i. 17 ; heathen ignorance concerning, i. 29 Chromatins, friend of Jerome, ii. 237 Chronology, table of, I. zxi. -xxv. Chrysostom, John, St., birth and parent- age, ii. 617 ; early education, 618 ; his study of Scripture, 619 ; begins life as an advocate, id. ; influence of liis friend Basilius, 620 ; his baptism, 621 ; joins Basilius and others in forming a small religious community, 623 ; his letter to Theodore, 624 ; his conduct in the matter of Basilius, 626 ; writes On the Priesthood, 627 ; narrowly escapes a false accusation, 630 ; becomes a monk, 631 ; his de- fence of monasticism and maturer opinion of it, 633-36 ; becomes a deacon in Antioch, 637 ; his Letter to a Young Widow, 638 ; writes On the Martyr Babylas, 640 ; On Virginity, id. ; is ordained priest by Flavian, 641 ; his sermons, 642- 48 ; is made Patriarch of Constan- tinople, 657 ; his missionary ardour, 660, 673 ; his personal appearance, 661 ; his relations with his clergy, 663 ; on public morals, 665 ; his re- lations -vvith the court, 666, 670; his efforts to heal Meletian schism, 673 ; is accused of heresy, 681 ; con- demned and deposed, 685 ; quits Constantinople, 686 ; his return, 687 ; on the unveiling of Eudoxia's silver statue, 688 ; intrigues renewed against, 689 ; deposed and banished, 690 ; correspondence from exile. 697 ; death near Comana, Pontus, 699 ; remains removed to Constan- tinople, 700 ; treatises and letters of, 700 ; exegetical writings of, 701 ; sermons of, 702 ; as a theologian, 703 ; Origenism of, 704 Church, Augustine's conception of the, ii. 602 Cicero's Sortensius, effect of on Augus- tine, iL 416 City of Ood, Augustine's, ii. 586, 587 Clergy, of Constantinople, ii. 662 ; Augustine's, 490 Clement, Epistle of, i. 1-5 Clement, Bishop of Eome, ii. 708 Clement of Alexandria, birth, parent- age, education, i. 357, 358 ; conversion, 358, 359 ; his erudition, 360 ; retires during persecution, 361, 362; his tra- vels, 362, 363; informal canonisation of, 363 ; his lost works, 364 ; encyclo- paedic character of his extant works, and their philosophic aim, id. ; his Exhortation to the Greeks, 366- 71 ; The Tutor, 371 - 75 ; The Miscellanies, 375 - 81 ; Outlines, id.; tract on the "Eich Man," 382 ; his limitations and defects, 382 - 86 ; his views on unwritten tradition, 383 ; his doctrine of the Incarnation, and the education of the world, 386 ; his works, and the depth and breadth of their Christian philosophy, characterised, 387-90 Cletus, Bishop of Eome, ii. 708 Coelestius, friend and follower of Pela- gius, becomes presbyter of Carthage, ii. 549, 550; his teaching condemned, 550 ; is banished the Empire, 555 Coenobites, class of monks, ii. 244 ; their spread in Africa through Augustine's example, 476-80 Confessions, Augustine's, ii. 408 Constantine and Arianism, i. 470 sqq. ; baptism and death of, 517, 518 Cornelius, Bishop of Eome, ii. 711 Cross, the, not in the catacombs unless in disguised forms, i. 19 ; earliest certain Latin, id. Crucifix, no certain, before sixth cen- tury, i. 19 Cucusus, Chrysostom's exile at, ii. 696 Cyprian, St., compared with TertuUian his master, i. 248, 249; birth, parent- age, and education, 250 ; studies for the bar, is of senatorial rank, teaches rhetoric, id. ; his conversion to Chris- tianity, 251, 252 ; his tract On Idols, and letter to Donatus " On the Grace INDEX 727 of God," sells his possessions and gives to the poor, 257, 258 ; his asceticism notextreme, 259; ordained a presbyter within a year of his bap- tism, id. ; his Testimonies againsb,the Jews, 259-60 ; made Bishop of Car- thage, 260-62 ; becomes chief cham- pion of monarchical episcopacy, 262 ; his tact and activity, 263 ; his letter about a presbyter made guardian to orphans, and its unscriptural char- acter, 264-66 ; letter as to training boys for the stage, 266 ; letter as to a troublesome deacon, id. ; " brides of Christ," 267, 268 ; his tract On the Dress of Virgins, 268, 269 ; his conduct during the Decian persecu- tion, 271 sqq. ; the coming persecution revealed to him in a vision, 272 ; his self-sacrificing retirement from the scene of persecution, 275-77 ; his constant communication with and help to the persecuted, 277, 278 ; doubtful wisdom of his unbounded eulogy of the martyrs, 278-80 ; the right of martyrs to grant "letters of peace " to the lapsed, 281, granted indiscriminately, 282 ; his firm conduct in relation to this lack of discipline, 283-92 ; his book On the Lapsed, 286-91 ; his statesman- like prudence, 291-93 ; the schism of Felicissimus, 293-97 ; his criminal charges against schismatics who, as " brethren," had been unblamed, 295-97 ; end of the Decian persecu- tion, 297 ; his return, 298, 299 ; his tract "About the Lapsed," id.; presides at a Council at Carthage in A.D. 251, 299-301 ; the council and the lapsed, 300 ; the council and Feli- cissimus, 301 ; outburst of emotional eloquence, 302-4 ; his views of Nova- tian's consecration and schism, 304, 305; his doctrine of true Christianity and the visible Church, 305-7 ; his relations with Florentius Pupianus, 307-9 ; his exaltation of episcopacy, 310 ; a true representative of Latin theology, id. ; outbreak of pestilence, 313, conduct of the Christians and Pagans during, 313, 314 ; refutation of the attack of Demetrianus, 314, 315 ; pamphlet on good works and alms, 316 ; his great moral influence, id. ; supports Epiotetus, Felix, and Secundus against the decision of his " colleague " the Bishop of Eome, 317 ; tells the Bishop of Rome his duty in regard to Martianus, id. ; views on re- baptism, 318 ; resistance of en- croachments of Roman see, 320 ; Valerian, and new persecution, 321 sqq. ; banishment, 323 ; dream of martyrdom, id. ; hides himself, and why, 325 ; shows himself publicly, id. ; his arrest and trial, 326-27 ; respect and sympathy of the Pagans, 327 ; his martyrdom, id. ; and burial, 328 ; personal appearance, id. ; character as man, ecclesiastic, theologian, and author, 329-41 ; his influence on the Church, 329 ; his formalism, 331 ; Jewish and unspiritual views of Christianity, 332 ; on baptism, id. ; invests the Lord's Supper with magical proper- ties, 333 ; Judaising notions of priesthood, 335 ; of sacrifice and altar, 337 ; no exegete, 338 ; letter to Caecilius against the Aquarians, 338, 339 ; " Outside the Church no salvation," 340, n. 349 ; style, 340 ; his sincerity, 341 Damasus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 713 ; Jerome'sletter to, on Meletian schism, 260 ; stimulates literary activity of Jerome, 270 ; his correspondence with Basil, 67 De Broglie, on evil influence of monks, ii. 232 Demetrius, letter of Pelagius to, ii. 557 Demons, Tertullian on, i. 233 n. Demosthenes the eunuch, Basil's treat- ment of, ii. 55, 56 Desposyni, or "relations of the Lord," i. 66, 126 Didymus of Alexandria, as a teacher of Jerome, ii. 307 ; his work On the Holy Spirit translated by Jerome, 315 Diodorus of Tarsus, Chrysostom's teacher, ii. 623 Diognetits, Epistle to, i. 7, 130 Dionysius of Alexandria, "the great bishop," i. 343-49 ; converted from Paganism by reading St. Paul, 343 ; his banishments in the Valerian per- secution, id. ; festal letters to the Alexandrian brethren, 345 ; advice to Novatian, id. ; on rebaptism of heretics, 346 ; on Sabellianism, id. ; regarding Paul of Samosata, 347 ; on Millenarianism, id. ; and Chiliasm, 348 ; on the Revelation of St. John, id. ; gratitude and fidelity to Origen, 349 728 INDEX Dionysius, Bishop of Eome, ii. 712 Diospolis, Synod of, acquits Pelagius, ii. 375, 553 Dissentient Christians, Augustine's argu- ments with, ii. 499 Divination, instances of, mentioned by Augustine, ii. 426 Domnion, Eoman friend of Jerome, ii. 284 Donatism, origin of, ii. 514 ; measures against, 526 ; conference between opposing bishops, 528 ; schism ter- minated by Vandal invasion, 530 ; merits of the controversy, 531 ; its effect on Augustine, 531 Donatus, letter of Cyprian to, i. 254 Dreams, Augustine's belief in, ii. 428 Elibeeis, Council of, forbids repre- sentations of Christ, i. 21 ; on vigils, ii. 369 Bleutherus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 709 Emperors, Roman, chronological table of, I. xix. Enchiridion of Augustine, ii. 599 Ephraem Syrus, visits Basil in Caesarea, ii. 64 Epiphanes, Egyptian Gnostic, ii. 718 Bpiphanius, Bishop of Salarais, his zeal against Origenism, ii. 339 ; at Con- stantinople, 681, 683 Episcopacy, Ignatian epistles on, i. 58- 61 ; Cyprian's views of, 329 Episcopate, pomp and luxury of, in time of Jerome, ii. 253 Eucharist, Ignatian epistles on, i. 63 ; Irenaeus on, 105 ; Justin Martyr on, 151 ; Cyprian on, 333 Eudoxia, Empress, ii. 666, 671, 673 ; silver statue of, 688 ; death of, 694 Eusebius, Bishop of Rome, ii. 712 Eusebius of Cremona, ii. 349 Eustochium, Roman friend of Jerome, ii. 295 ; her pilgrimage to Palestine, 302 ; settles at Betlilehem, 308 ; Jerome's letter to, on virginity, 227, 277 ; death of, 390 Eutropius the eunuch, ii. 654, 657 ; ' fall and death of, 667, 671 Eutychian, Bishop of Rome, ii. 712 Evagrius, i. 742 ; ii. 239 Evaristus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 708 Ezetiel, Jerome on, ii. 384 Fabian, Bishop of Rome, ii. 711 Fabiola, Roman friend of Jerome, ii. 293 Fasting, in New Testament, ii. 229 ; Cardinal Newman on, 228 ; Jo- vinian's i-iews on, 327, 332 ; Ter- tuUian's work on, i. 209 Father, title of, i. 724 Faustus, Manicheau bishop, ii. 432; Augustine's work against, 511 Felicissimus, Carthaginian deacon, i. 293 Felix I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 712 Felix, Manicheau, his debate with Augustine, ii. 510 Firmilian, Bishop of the Cappadocian Caesarea, friend of Origen, i. 341 ; his letter to Cyprian on rebaptism, 342 ; presides at the second Council of Antioch, id. ; eminent as >t. theo- logian and philosopher, id. Flavian chosen successor to Paulinus of Antioch, ii. 268 ; his interview withTheodosius on behalf of Antioch, 650 Florentinus, Novatian confessor, i. 307 Fortunatus, Manichean, his debate with Augustine, ii. 509 Frescoes, in catacombs, i. 18 Furia, Roman friend of Jerome, ii. 295 Future punishment, Irenaeus on, i. 106 Future rewards, equality of, Joviniaii on, ii. 327, 332 Gennadius, dream of, related by Augustine, ii. 428 George of Cappadocia, i. 542 Glycerins the deacon, story of, ii. 44 Gnostics of Egypt, Syria, and Asia Minor, i. 355 ; ii. 717, 718 Goths, Chrysostom consecrates Unilas missionary to, ii. 660 Gourd of Jonah, discussions about, be- tween Augustine and Jerome, ii. 355, 359 Gratian, his relations vrith Ambrose, ii. 132 Gregory, St. , of Nazianzus ; his birth- place,!. 659-61 ; birth and parentage, 661 - 65 ; early religious training, dream of purity and chastity, 665 ; education at Caesarea of Cappadocia, Caesarea in Palestine, Alexandria, and Athens, 666-80 ; in danger of drowning, superstitious views of baptism, 667 ; sophisto - mania at Athens, 669-72 ; "initiation," 672-74; friendship mth Basil, 674 - 80 ; acquaintance with Julian, 677 ; re- turns home, 632; his brother Caesar- ius, id. ; love of contemplative life, 683-86 ; correspondence with Basil, 686-91 ; visit to Basil in Pontus, INDEX 729 691-93 ; restores peace between his father and the monks in his diocese, 694-96 ; compnlsorily ordained, flies, and returns, 696-99 ; Julian's hos- tUityto the Church, 699-706 ; writes two books against Julian, 706-10 ; breach with Basil, 711-26 ; death of his brother, sister, mother, and of Basil, 727-32 ; his use of the pulpit as a tribune of the people, 729 ; at Constantinople, spiritual condition of the town, 732-35 ; his flock, 736 ; his personal appearance, 737 ; his conduct and trials, 738-45 ; Patri- arch of Constantinople, 746-64 ; his love of nature, 747 ; Council of Con- stantinople, 752-62 ; his resignation and farewell oration, 757-61 ; last days, in retirement, defence of his resignation, 765; his poems, 766,770; the Church at Nazianzus, 768 ; his death, 771 ; his last will, id. ; char- acter, 772 ; as a theologian, 773-77 ; his works — poems, letters, and ora- tions, 777-81 ; representations of, in Byzantine art, 781 ; his sermons, 781 ; on writings of Basil, ii. 71 Gregory, St., of Neocaesarea, surnamed Thaumaturgus, birth of, i. 439 ; Je- rome's biography of, id. ; conversion, 440 ; pupil of Origen, id. ; false charge against, 441 ; letter from Origen to, id. ; elected Bishop of Neocaesarea, 442 ; flight during Decian persecution, id. ; sanctions martyr-feasts, 443 ; death, id. ; his miracles,-id. ; missionary labours, 444 Gregory, St., of Nyssa, birth and early training of, ii. 75 ; teacherof rhetoric, 78 ; reader, id. ; his marriage, 79 ; en- ters on the monastic life, 80 ; his work On Virginity, 81, 103 ; his forged letters to Basil, 82 ; is consecrated Bishop of Nyssa, 83 ; deposed and banished, 86 ; his return, 88 ; his funeral oration on Basil, 89 ; his treatise against Eunomius, 90 ; death of sister, Macrina, 90 ; his "Life of St. Macrina," 93 ; his visit to Church of " Arabia " or Babylon, 94 ; his treatise on pilgrimages, 95 ; at Council of Constantinople, 98 ; his relations with his metropolitan Hel- ladius, 99 ; his death, 102 ; inde- pendence and superstition of his character, 103 ; his dependence on Origen, 104 ; his works classified, 105 ; his eschatology, 106 ; his ora- tions, 109 ; his letters, 110 Hamartiologt of Augustine, ii. 599 Harmonius, Syrian Gnostic, ii. 717 Heathen literature, Augustine on edu- cational use of, ii. 411 Heliodorus, friend of Jerome, ii. 236 ; Jerome's correspondence with, 251, 322 Helladius, relations with Gregory of Nyssa, ii. 99 Helvidius, writer against the perpetual virginity of the Virgin Mary, ii. 271 Heretics of first century, ii. 716 ; of second century, 717 Hermas, Shepherd of, i. 2, 6 Hilary, St., of Poictiers, birth and education, i. 573-75 ; conversion to Christianity, 575-77 ; early life and marriage, 575 ; dissatisfaction with philosophy, 576 ; studies the Bible and is converted by St. John's Gospel, 577 ; life as a layman and bishop, id. ; value as an exegete, 579 ; friendship with St. Martin, 581 ; firmness and lofty spirit in re- lations with Constantius, 582-85 ; Synod of Aries, 586 ; bishops or- dered to subscribe condemnation of Athanasius, Hilary's decisive action and defiant "decree," 587 ; letter to Constantius in self-defence, 588 ; synod of bishops at Biterrae, 588 ; banished, 589-93 ; writes his master- piece, On the Trinity, 594-96 ; treatise On Synods, 599-602; Synod of Seleucia, and embittered discussion on Homoousios, Homoiousios, and Anomoios, 603-8 ; permission to re- turn home, 609 ; his return, 614- 20 ; synod of Gallic bishops at Paris, 621 ; at Milan, 622 ; book Against Auxentius, 623 ; commentary on the Psalms and other writings, 624-26 ; last years, death, character, 626-27 Hippolytus, St., i. 91, 98 ; flourished between a.d. 198 and 236, 118 ; voluminous controversialist and great theologian, id. ; heard the lectures of Irenaeus, id. ; his antagonism to two Popes, id. ; himself either a presbyter or a bishop, 119 ; his statue, id. ; his PhilosophwmencL, 120 ; borrows from Irenaeus and Sextus Empiricus, id. ; a diligent compiler, id. ; his import- ance, id. ; urges the study of Scrip- ture as a whole, 121 ; his works, and their influence, id. ; whether to be identified with Cains, 122 Hippo Regius, Augustine removes to, 730 INDEX il. 477 ; his clerical training school at, 480 ; besieged by Genseric, 594 ; deserted and burnt, 596 Holy Spirit, TertuUian on, 1. 229 Homilies of Chrysostom, ii. 652, 692 Homoeans, i. 610 Homoionsians, i. 610 Homoousios, Homoousians, i. 467, 609 sqq. Honorius, succeeds Theodosius, ii. 182 ; rescript of, banishing Pelagius and Coelestius, 555 ; unsuccessful in- tervention of, on behalf of Chrysos- tom, 694 Sortensius of Cicero, Augustine on, ii. 416 Hosius of Cordova, i. 534, 596 Huns, irruption of, in the East, ii. 322 Hyginus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 708 Hymns by Ambrose, ii. 152 Hypostasis, theological meaning of, ii. 260 Ignatius, St., Apostolic Father, i. 1 ; editions of, and authorities, 31 ; his conviction of need for "episcopal" supremacy, 32 ; enthusiasm for martyrdom, 48 - 50 ; his impetu- ous spirit, id. ; his name, and stories connected therewith, id. ; fictitious interview with Trajan narrated, 35 ; second (or third) Bishop of Antioch, 36 ; said to have introduced anti- phonal singing into the Church of Antioch, id. ; probable cause of his condemnation, id. ; why sent to die at Rome, id.; his journey, 38-54; discussion at Philadelphia with Judaisers, 39 ; permitted to con- verse with Christians in every city, 40 ; held by them in highest consi- deration, id. ; at Smyrna, 41 ; met there by deputies from Tralles, Magnesia, and Ephesus, id. ; kindness of the Church of Smyrna, 42 ; writes four letters, 43 — to the Ephesians, 43-46, to the Magnesians, 46, to the Church of Tralles, 47, to the Romans, 47-60 ; passionate desire for martyrdom, 48-50 ; unwhole- some influence exercised by letter to the Romans, 50 ; at Alexandria Troas, 61 ; writes to the Churches of Philadelphia and Smyrna and to Polycarp, 51-53 ; at Philippi, 53 ; his martyrdom and burial, 54, 65; epistles of — exist in three forms, 55 ; forged letters, id. ; the letters characterised by Calvin, id. ; proofs of their genuineness, 57, 58 ; their exaltation of episcopacy no sacerdotalism, 58 ; their view of episcopacy congregational and local, 69, 60 ; their style and literary value, 61 ; theology of — Docetism the only heresy alluded to, 62 ; his glorying in the Cross, Passion, and Resurrection of Christ, id. ; his absolute belief in the Divinity and Humanity of our Lord, id. ; Christ "generate and ingener-. ate," 63 ; the Eucharist, id. ; the Agape or love-feast, 64 ; no tinge of sacerdotalism, id. Incarnation, the, Athanasius on, i. 454 ; Clement of Alexandria on, 386 ; TertuUian on, 230 Innocent I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 714 Innocentius, his miraculous cure de- scribed by Augustine, ii. 472 Inscriptions, early Christian, i. 17 Irenaeus, St., date of birth, i. 91 ; his influence in the establishment and formulation of Catholic doctrine, id. ; youth in Smyrna, id. ; pupil of Polycarp, id. ; letter to Plorinus, 92 ; his learning, 93 ; presbyter at Lyons, 94 ; sent to intercede with the Bishop of Rome on behalf of the Montanists, 96 ; lectures against heresy, 98 ; elected successor to Pothinus as Bishop of Lyons, id. ; his long, peaceful, industrious life as bishop, 99 ; writes to Pope Victor a letter of reproof, id. ; his character, 117 ; lived till seventy or eighty, id. ; title of " martyr " doubtful, id. ; chiefly illustrious as a theologian, 100 ; a millenarian, id. ; earliest Church writer who quotes from al- most every book of the New Testa- ment, id.; his views of the relation between the Old and New Testa- ment, id. ; of inspiration, 101 ; of the Christian presbyterate and the Jewish priesthood, id. ; of St. Paul, id.; of bare literalism and Gnostic allegorising, id. ; of our Lord's "accommodation" to His hearers, id.; of explaining obscure passages by clearer, 102 ; not quite free him- self from Gnostic methods, id. ; his reliance on tradition, id. ; as "bishop," id.; on the infallibility of the visible Church, id. ; earliest traces of our present creeds found in him, 104 ; his works, id. ; the true gnosis, 105 ; the Eucharist, INDEX 731 id. ; the Incarnation, 106 ; eternal punishment, 106, 107 ; his contro- versy "with the Montanists, 107, about the Quartodecimans, 107-11, with the Gnostics, 111-17 ; Valen- tinianism, 112-16; earliest writer in whom we meet a complete outline of Christian theology, 117 Isaiah, Jerome on, ii. 384 Ischyras, story of, i. 503 Jebohe, St., his name, birth, and parentage, ii. 205 ; school life at Stridon, 209 ; studies and manner of life in Eome, 209 ; Commentary on Obadiah, 214 ; letter to Eustoch- ium on preservation of virginity, 227 ; life at Aquileia, 234 ; ac- quaintance with Melauia, 238 ; first literary essay, 238 ; flight from Aquileia, 239 ; travels in the East, 241 ; retires to wilderness of Chalcis, 242 ; baptism, 213 ; early struggles as a hermit, 243 ; acquirement of Hebrew, 245 ; dream renunciation of classical studies, 247 ; life of Paul the Hermit by, 250 ; conduct in Meletian schism, 259-64 ; studies at Constantinople under Gregory of Nazianzus, 264 ; is ordained presby- ter at Antioch, 264 ; makes ac- quaintance of Gregory of Nyssa, 265 ; goes to Eome, 268 ; literary activity there, 270 ; controversial treatise against Helvidius, 272 ; waning popularity in Rome, 274, 298, effected by his version of the Latin Scriptures, 275, by his satires on the Eoman clergy, 276 ; his letter to EustocMum on the preservation of virginity, 277 ; his female friends in Rome, 284 ; his influence for good on Roman society, 284 ; leaves Rome, 300 ; at Antioch, 302 ; accompanies Paula and Eustochium to Palestine, 306; settles at Bethlehem, 308; occu- pations there, 309 ; Commentaries on Philemon, Oalatians, JSphesians, and Titus, 312, cm Ecclesiastes, 313 ; work On the Site and Names of Hebrew Places, 314 ; Hebrew Ques- tions on Genesis, id. ; treatise On the Interpretation of bebrew Names, id. ; translates Didymus On the Holy Spirit, 315; his Seven Treatises on Psalms x.-xvi., 315; his Cata- logus, 316 ; his retranslation of Bible, id. ; critical labour on the Lxx., id. ; CoTn/rmnta/ry on the Prophets, 318 ; Prologus Galeatus, id. ; Com- mentary on Jonah, 320 ; on Obadiah, id. ; on the Ten Visions of Isaiah, id. ; on Matthew, id. ; letters to Paulinus of Nola, 321 ; letter to Nepotianus on the life of clerics and monks, id. ; letter to Heliodorus on death of Nepotianus, 322 ; contro- versy with .Tovinian, 324 ; takes part in Origenistic controversy, 336-43 ; Apology against Rufams, 347 ; his first letter to Augustine, 353, his second, 356, his third, 358 ; close of correspondence with Augustine, 361 ; reply to Vigilantius, 371 ; share in Pelagian controversy, 373 ; dia- logue against the Pelagians, 374 ; letter concerning Syaeisaktae, 380 ; letter to Sabinianus, 381 ; books on Zechariah, Malachi, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Daniel, 383 ; Commentary on Isaiah, 384, on EzeMel, id. ; sup- posed treasonable reference in his Commentary on Daniel, id. ; how affected by Isaurian invasion of Palestine, 385 ; on fall of Rome, 388 ; death and burial, 391 ; his style, 392 ; as a linguistic critic, 394 ; as an exegete, 395 ; as a theo- logian, 398 ; as an ethical writer, 399 ; two opposite views of his character, 400 ; in art, 401 John, Bishop of Jerusalem, preached against by Epiphanius, ii. 340 ; his relations with Jerome, 342 Jonah's " gourd," Augustine and Jerome on, ii. 355-59 Jovinian, Jerome's controversy with, ii. 324 Julian, Emperor, at Athens, i. 677 ; proclaimed Emperor, 558 ; his apostasy, 562 ; death of, 565 ; rela- tions with St. Martin, 631 ; rela- tions with Gregory of Nazianzus, 694 sqq. Julian of Eclanum carries on Pelagian controversy, ii. 555 Julius I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 713 Justin, St.,theMartyr,his parents natives of Palestine, i. 131 ; a heathen by birth and education, 132 ; converted to Christianity in manhood, id. ; his study of philosophy, id. ; his expe- riences in the search for philosophi- cal guidance, id., 133 ; his delight in Platonism, id. ; how drawn to enquire about Christianity, 134 ; meets a Christian teacher, 135 ; account of their conversation, id.. 732 INDEX 138 ; lie feels the "terrible power" of Christ's words, and " the sweetest rest " which they afford, id. ; con- tinues a philosopher, regarding Christianity as the only true philo- sophy, 139 ; carries on the worlc of a Christian evangelist, id. ; whether ordained, doubtful, id. ; his travels, 140 ; at Eome, 141 ; a severe ascetic, id. ; his second Apology, its origin, 142 ; account of his martjTdom, 143-46 ; his writings, 146, 147 ; his character described, id. ; his jSrst and second Apologies, 148 ; his theology, id. ; Trinity, Christology, Holy Ghost, 149 ; the germinal Word, partaken of by all men, id., 155 ; his ideas about angels and demons, 150 ; on "the Church," 151 ; the Eucharist, id. ; a Chiliast, 152 ; a literal mil- lenarian, id. ; on eternal punishment, id. ; singular view of inspiration, id., 153 ; his Gnostic exegesis, id., 154 ; quotes of the New Testament only the Apocalypse by name, id. ; uni- versal inspiration of Christians, id. ; his views of the Old Testament, id., 155 ; his tolerance, id. Justina, Empress-mother, her Arian- ism, ii. 141 ; her demands for the Portian basilica, 143, 147, 150 ; orders Ambrose to leave Milan, 150 Kataphbtgiass, or Montanists, i. 179 ; oomp. Montanism Legacies, Augustine's example with reference to, ii. 490 Leo the Great, Bishop of Eome, ii. 714 Letters, of Augustine, ii. 612 ; of Chry- sostom, 700, 703 Liberins, Bishop of Rome, i. 534 ; ii. 713 Licentius, pupil of Augustine, ii. 453, 456, 461 Linus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 708 Literature, heathen, Augustine on edu- cational use of, ii. 411 Lueian, Carthaginian confessor, rela- tions of, with Cyprian, i. 282 sqq. Lueian, presbyter of Antiooh, ii. 718 Lucifer of Calaris consecrates Paiilinus Bishop of Autioch, ii. 258 Luciferians, i. 611 Lucius I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 711 Luther on Aristotle, i. 220 n. ; on Origen, 426 Macaeius, legend concerning, ii. 230 Macarius, Roman monk, ii. 344 Macedonius the hermit, in Antioch, 649 Macedonius, ii. 720 Macrina, St., sister of Basil and Gregory, death of, ii. 90 ; life of, by Gregory of Nyssa, 93 Magical arts, panic about, in reign of Valens, ii. 630 Makrinia, work of Gregory of Nyssa, ii. 93 Mani, Manes, Manichaeus, sketch of his career and system, ii. 500 Mani, his letter called The Foundation criticised by Augustine, ii. 510 Manicheans, Augustine's early treatises against, ii. 507 ; his personal dis- putations with, 508 ; on the char- acter of, Augustine's work, 430 Manicheism, spread of, ii. 507 ; Augus- tine's lapse into, 416, and contro- versy against, 513 Marcella, friend of Athanasins and Jerome, foundress of first nunnery at Eome, ii. 290 ; her anti-Origen- istic zeal, 345 Marcellinus, Ammianus, on decline of Rome, ii. 389 Marcellinus, Roman friend of Jerome, ii. 283 ; judicial murder of, 571 Marcellinus, Bishop of Eome, ii. 712 Marcellus, Bishop of Eome, ii. 712 Marcion, Gnostic, ii. 717 ; a native of Pontus, i. 221 ; TertuUian's contro- versy with, 221-28 ; personal char- acteristics of, with notices of his life, 224-25 ; his heresy, 225 ; genuine Scriptural difficulties, 225-26 ; eter- nity and essential corruptness of matter, 227 ; the suddenness and want of order in his system, id. ; received but one Gospel, St. Luke, id. ; accepted but ten of St. Paul's Epistles, id. ; repudiated marriage, id. ; used only water in the Eucha- rist, 228 ; fasted on the Sabbath, id. ; allowed reiterated baptisms, id. ; be- lieved in a merely phantasmal Christ, id. Marcus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 713 Marriage, Augustine on, ii. 329 ; Chrysostom on, id. ; Jerome on, 334 ; Jovinian on, 327, 328 ; Marcion on, i. 227 ; Montanistio view of, 189, 190 ; TertuUian on, 204, 206 ; Council of Gangra on, 111 Martin, St., of Tours, birth, early piety, and life as a soldier, i. 629-32 ; leaves the army, and puts himself INDEX 733 under the spiritual guidance of Hilary of Poictiers, 632 ; an exor- cist, 633 ; conversion of a robber, id. ; converts bis mother, and others of his native town, 634 ; beaten and driven from Sabaria and Milan for fidelity to the Nicene Creed, becomes a hermit in the- island of Gallinaria, and in Corsica, 634, 635 ; goes to Eome to seek for Hilary, finds him at Poictiers, 635 ; founds monas- tery, 636 ; visions and demonic assaidts, 635-39 ; thaumaturgic feats, 639-41 ; made a bishop, 641-42 ; con- tinues the monastic life, 643-45 ; re- proves Count Avitian, 646 ; seeks Valentinian I. by "divine intima- tion," 647 ; case of Priscillian, 647- 50 ; at the consecration of Felix, Bishop of Treves, 651 ; consents to dine with Maximus, 652 ; Empress serves him, and sits at his feet, 653 ; case of Brictio, 654 ; death, and character, 655-58 ; parallel between him and the Cure d'Ars, 658 Martyrs, early, courage and rapture of, i. 71-73 MaximiUa, Montanist prophetess, i. 181 Maximus, his relations with St. Martin, i. 652 ; his reception of Ambrose, ii. 155 ; his defeat and death, 157 Megalius opposes Augustine's consecra- tion, ii. 487 Melania, Roman friend of Jerome, ii. 238, 284, 292, 573 Melania the younger, Augustine's friend, ii. 573, 582 Melchiades, Bishop of Eome, ii. 712 Melchizedekians, ii. 719 Meletian schism in Egypt, i. 448 Meletian schism in Asia Minor, ii. 253 ; Chrysostom's efforts to heal, 673 ; Jerome's conduct in, 269 Meletius, elected Bishop of Antioch, ii. 257 ; accepts Nicene doctrine, is accused of Sabellianism, and is ban- ished, 258 ; presides over second CBoumenical Council, 258 ; Chrysos- tom on, 620 MeUto of Sardis, i. 9, 110 . Milan, Council of, i. 612 Millenarianism, Dionysius of Alexandria on, i. 347, 348 Mkacles, ecclesiastical, ii. 153; related by St. Augustine, 569 Modestus, Praefect, story of murder of eighty presbyters by, ii. 52 ; Basil's appearance before, id. Monarchianism in theology, ii. 718 Monasticism, apologue of Gregory of Nazianzus on, ii. 18 ; Pagan writers on, 18 ; in fourth and fifth centuries, 215 ; spread of, in Africa through Augustine's example and influence, 476, 480 ; defence of, by Chrysos- tom, 633 Monnioa, St., mother of Augustine, ii. 405, 420 ; arrives in Milan, 443 ; accompanies him to Cassiciacum, 453 ; her death at Ostia, 469 Montanus, calumnies regarding, i. 179- 81 ; his general orthodoxy, 182 ; claimed inspiration, id. ; zeal against Gnostic rationalism and Catholic laxity, 183 ; continuous inspiration of the Holy Spirit, 184, 185 ; an un- progressive Church dead, id. ; belief in visions, 186, 187 ; his truer views liable to a threefold degeneracy into superstition, 187, into rigorism, 189, 190, into spiritual pride, 190, 191 ; the failure and "success" of his system, 191, 192, 215, 216 Nebuchadnezzar's golden image, Je- rome on, ii. 384 Nectarius, Patriarch of Constantinople, i. 762, 763 ; ii. 654 Nepotianus, Jerome's letter to, on life of clerics and monks, ii. 321 ; death of, Jerome's letter on, 322 Newman, Cardinal, on fasting, ii. 228 Nice, Council of, i. 476-94 Noetus, ii. 719 Novatian, schismatic Bishop of Eome, i. 304 Numidicus, story of, i. 291-93 Nunnery, first, in Eome, founded by Marcella, ii. 290 ; first, in Africa, founded by Augustine, ii. 483 Oak, S)-nod of the, at Constantinople, ii. 685 Oceanus, Eoman friend of Jerome, ii. 283 Ophites, ii. 718 Origen, birth, parentage, education, i. 392-94 ; conduct when a boy dur- ing persecution, 394 ; becomes a teacher of " grammar," 395 ; presi- dency of the Catechetical School, 396 ; great success, id. ; indefatigable study and asceticism, 397 ; dubious story of, 397 - 401 ; courageous fidelity to martyrs, 402 ; extensive range of studies, 402-4 ; visit to Eome, 404, and Arabia, 405 ; 734 INDEX visit to Julia Mammaea at An- tiocli, id. ; flight from Egypt to Palestine, 406 ; gives public lec- tures during the Church services' — his bishop's dissatisfaction, id. ; his return, 407 ; commences authorship, id.; munificent aid of Ambrosius, 408 ; literary labours, 409 ; visit to Achaia, 410; irregularly ordained presbyter at Caesarea, id. ; visits Athens and Ephesus, and Antioch, 410, 411 ; his return, Demetrius's jealousy and synods, 411-16 ; for- bidden to teach in Alexandria, 413 ; excommunicated, id. ; goes to Pales- tine — pathetic incident at Jerusalem, 416 ; teaches at Caesarea, 417 ; public exposition of Scripture, 418 ;on salvability of Satan, id. 429 ; travels, 419 ; persecutions under Maximin — flight to Cappadocia, 420 ; studies two years in hiding in the house of Juliana, id.; second visit to Athens, 421; public disputation with Bassus, id. ; Julius Africanus and the Book of Susanna, id. ; visits to Arabia in regard to errors on the Incarnation and the Resurrection, 422 ; persecu- cution under Deoius, 423 ; arrested at Tyre and tortured, id.; a true "martyr" — ^his death and resting- place, 424 ; his influence, 426-35 ; fixed the type of popular exposition, 425 ; made first attempt at a sys- tematic view of the Christian faith, id. ; his criticism and interpretation epochal, 426 ; various merits, id. ; praise and execration of, 426-31 ; his eschatology, 431 ; on the Trinity, 432 ; as an expositor of Scripture, 433-35 ; his writings classified and described, 436-39 ; later contro- versy as to his orthodoxy, ii. 336 Origenism of Chrysostom, ii. 704 Orosius, opponent of Pelagius, ii. 552 ; historical work of, 586 Orpheus, made use of by early Chris- tians as a symbol, i. 19 Ostia, Augustine and Monnica at, ii. 467 Ousia, theological meaning of, ii. 260 Pagans, Augustine's controversies with, ii. 497 Pammachius, Roman friend of Jerome, ii. 283 Pantaenus of Alexandria, i. 356, 359 sqq. ; his allegorical method, 384, Papias, i. 2, 3, 6, 85 Paris, Council of, i. 613 Patricians, Roman, meanness of, in Jerome's time, ii. 286 Patricins, father of Augustine, ii. 404 Patripassians, ii. 719 Paul the Hermit, friend of Jerome, ii. 237 ; life of, by Jerome, 250 Paula, Roman friend of Jerome, ii. 284, 295 ; her pilgrimage to Pales- tine, 302 ; settles at Bethlehem, 308 ; death and burial of, 362 Paulicians, ii. 719 Paulinus of Nola, Jerome's letters to, ii. 321 ; Augustine's letters to, on theory of predestination, 554 ; his life of St. Ambrose, 114 Pelagian controversy, merits of, ii. 559 ; effects of, 547 ; Jerome's share in, 373 ; Augustine's, 650 sqq.; carried on by Julian of Eclanum, 555 Pelagius, heretic, account of, ii. 373, 548 ; is acquitted by Synod of Dios- polis, 375 ; his letter to Demetrius, 551 ; his intercourse with Jerome and John of Jerusalem, 551 ; ban- ished the Empire, 555 ; contrasted with Augustine, 562 Peratae, ii. 718 Persecution, brave endurance of, i. 10 ; even when not actively persecuted, Christianity was illegal, 21 ; and Christians had to suffer contempt and hatred, 26 ; Neronian persecu- tion, 21 ; Trajan's instructions to Pliny, 23 ; crucifixion of Bishop Symeon, id.; persecution at Lyons and Vienne, 25, 94 ; persecution at Alexandria, id. ; furious persecutions of Maximin, of Diocletian, and his colleagues, id. ; varying conduct of the Emperors explained, 33 ; three centuries of, 65 ; no persecution possible after accession of Constan- tine, id. ; under the Praefect Urbious, 142, 143 ; fierce trials of the Church between A.D. 188 and a.d. 212, 175, 176 ; cruelties of Scapula, a pro- consul, 234 ; TertuUian's work on flight in persecution, 202 ; Valerian's edicts, 322, 324 ; chronology of sub- sequent persecutions, 328 ; persecu- tions of Septimius Severus, 361, 394; under Maximin, 420 ; under Decius, 423 Peter as Bishop of Rome, ii. 707 Philochares, his charges against Gregory of Nyssa, ii. 85 INDEX 735 Photinians, i. 611 PUgiimages, Gregory of Nyssa on, ii 95 Pinianus, husliand of tlie younger Melania, Augustine's friend, ii. 572 ; Ms extorted oath to remain in Hippo, 580 Pins I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 708 Pliny, writes to Trajan for advice as to punishing Christians, i. 22 ; his picture of their hlameless life, 23 Polycarp, St., life of, ascribed to Pionius, i. 74; a Christian from earliest youth, 75 ; probably born about 70, id. ; a hearer of St. John, id. ; his delight in recalling this intercourse in later life, id. ; and his intercourse ■with others who had seen the Lord, 77 ; appointed Bishop of Smyrna by St. John, 76 ; his letter to the PhUippians, id. ; his intercourse with Ignatius, id. ; Irenaeus's recollections of, 77, 78 ; relations with Marcion, 79 ; visit to Anicetns, Bishop of Home, 80, 81 ; his martyrdom in extreme old age, 82-86 ; his letter to the Philippians, 87 ; its genuineness, id.; his theology, 89; his "un- original receptivity " providential, id. Pontianus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 711 Pontitianus, his conversation with Augustine, ii. 448 Praxeas, heretic, ii. 719 ; TertuUian's tract against, i. 229 Preaching by presbyters discouraged in Africa, ii. 479 Priesthood, Chrysostom on the, ii. 627 Priscillianists, and St. Martin, i. 647 ; Ambrose's attitude towards, ii. 134 Pristinus, Tertullian on death of, i. 279 Proculeianus, Donatist Bishop of Hippo, ii. 520 Prologue Oaleatus, Jerome's, ii. 318 Protasius and Gervasius, relics of, found at Milan, ii. 152 Prosopon, theological meaning of, ii. 260 Psalmody, antiphonal, introduced by Ambrose, ii. 161 Relics of St. Stephen at Hippo, ii. 566 Relic-worship, Ambrose's influence on, ii. 153 ; Vigilantius on, 368 Remoboth, class of monks, Jerome's opinion of, ii. 244 Resurrection, the Phoenix as an emblem of, i. 4, 15 ; Athenagoras's treatise on, 9 ; peacock as emblem of, 15 ; Tertullian on, 233 ; Origen on, 422 Retractations of Augustine, ii. 613 Rewards, future, equality of, Jovinian on, ii. 327, 332 Rimini, Council of, i. 612 Roman Empire, causes of decline of, ii. 584 ; effects of its conversion, 198 Rome, Bishops of, ii. 707 ; chronolo- gical table, I. XX Rome, social condition of, in time of Jerome, ii. 289 ; 285 Rome, fall of, ii. 385, 387 ; Ammianus MaroeUinus on, 389 ; Augustine's ser- mons on, 585 ; Jerome on, 388 Rufinus, early friend of Jerome, ii. 234; translates part of Apology of the ■martyr Pamphylus, 344 ; translates Origeu's four books On Principles, 344 ; his allusion to Jerome's Origenism, 345 ; summoned to answer for his orthodoxy, 346 ; his invectives against Jerome, id. Sabellianism, Dionysius of Alexan- dria on, i. 346 SabeUius, ii, 719 Sabinianus, story of, ii. 381 ; Jerome's letter to, id. Saint, title of, i. 723 Sardica, Council of, i. 611 Satan, salvability of, Origen on, i. 418, 429 ; St. Martin and Bums on, i. 637 sqq Satuminus, Syrian Gnostic, ii. 717 Satuminus of Aries, i. 586-620 Satyrus, brother of Ambrose, story of, ii. 130 Secundinus, defender of Manicheism, Augustine's answer to, ii. 513 Seleucia, Council of, i. 612 Semi-Arians, i. 610 Sermons of Augustine, ii. 492, 612 ; of Chrysostom, 642, 702 Sethites, ii. 718 Simplicianus, influence of, on Augustine, ii. 447 Sinlessness after baptism, Jovinian on, ii. 331 Siricius, Bishop of Rome, ii. 298, 713 Sirmium, Council of, i. 612 ; second Synod of, 612 Sixtus, Bishop of Rome, i. 3 ; ii. 708 Sixtus II., Bishop of Rome, ii. 712 Sixtus III., Bishop of Rome, ii. 714 Soter, Bishop of Rome, ii. 709 Soteriology of Augustine, ii. 599 Stephen, St., relics of, at Hippo, ii. 566 736 INDEX Stephen I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 711 Stridon, birthplace of Jerome, ii. 203 Substantia, ambiguity of word, ii. 48 Sylvester I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 713 Symbols, early Christian, i. 15 Symmachus, Q. A., his embassy to Gratian, ii. 135 ; his Relatio, 136 ; nominates Augustine to a professor- ship at MUan, 436 Syneisaktae, Jerome's letter concern- ing, ii. 380 Syrianus, Duke, in Alexandria, i. 540 Tatian, i. 8, 9 ; ii. 717 Telesphorus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 708 Tertullian, birth, parentage, and educa- tion, i. 159 ; his ignorance of and contempt for philosophy and philo- sophers, 159, 160 ; his character as a controversialist, id. ; youthful sensu- ality, id. 163 ; his love and subse- quent detestation of public spec- tacles, id. 162 ; on confession and penitence, id. ; his conversion, 163 ; his apostrophe to the soul "naturally Christian " quoted, id. 164 ; its virtues, 163 - 5, 196 ; his views on dreams and visions, 166 ; psycho- logical explanation of the preponder- ance of fear over the spirit of love in his mind and writing, id. ; a lawyer by training, a soldier by tempera- ment, 167 ; his description of patience, 168 ; his literary life spent in controversies, id. ; his travels, 170 ; a married man — his description of the felicity of mar- riage quoted, id. ; his changed views of matrimony, 171 ; his inferior ideal of womanhood, 172 ; whether a presbyter, 173 - 75 ; his conduct during fierce persecutions, 175, 176 ; his Apologeiicus, 177, 194 ; his lapse to Montanism, the chief fact of his life, 179 ; causes of separation from the Catholics, 193, 194 ; his previous writings, 194-96 ; on the dress of women, 196 ; second and mixed marriages, id., 204, 206, 212; asceticism, id. ; two parties in the Churches, 197 ; his work On the Crown of the Soldier, 197-201 ; his work About Flight in Persecution, 201 - 3 ; his tract Se Virginibus Velandis, 204 - 6 ; his tract On Monogamy, 206 - 8 ; his book On Fasts, 209-12 ; Ms tract On Chastity, 212,213; his tract De Pallia, 213-15; " TertuUianists," 216 ; his book On the Praescriptions, 217-21; his treatise against Marcion, 221 - 28 ; his tract Against the Valentinians, 228 ; his tracts Against Praxeas and On the Flesh of Christ, 229, 230 ; the Trinity, 229 ; the Incarnation, 230 ; his tract against Hermogenes, a painter, id. ; his antagonism to literature and art, id. ».; his Scor- piace, against the Gnostic sect of Cainites, 231 ; religion no theosophy or philosophy, but a rule of life, id. ; his work On the Soul, 231-33 ; his tract On the Resurrection of the Flesh, 233 ; his address to Scapula, perhaps the last of his writings, 234-37 ; value of his writings for knowledge of Church of the second century, 238, 241 ; his picture of the early Christian assemblies, 240 ; on prayer, 241 ; idolatry, id. ; his style, 241-45 ; contrasted with Origen, 246, 247 ; lived to a great age, 247 ; separated from the Montanists, id. ; " TertuUianists," id. Theodore, Chrysostom's letter on pro- posed marriage of, ii. 624 Theodore of Mopsuestia, his share in Pelagian controversy, il 376 Theodosius, edict of, i. 748 ; his victory over Maximus, ii. 157 ; does penance for massacre of Thessalonica, 169; is excluded from chancel by Am- brose, 173; his victory near Aquileia, 181 ; death of, 182 ; estimate of his work, 183 Theodotians, ii. 719 Theophilus of Alexandria, ii. 656, 659; in Constantinople, 679, 683 ; death of, ii. 699 Thessalonica, riot and massacre at, ii. 164-67 Thought-reading, instances of, men- tioned by Augustine, ii. 426 Toleration, Gallienus's edict of (a.d. 261), i. 21 ; Galerius's (a.d. 311), 25 Traditores, name of those who gave up their Bibles in persecution of Dio- cletian, ii. 514 Trajan, his instruction to Pliny as to punishing Christians, i. 23 Trygetius, pupil of Augustine, ii. 453, 456, 461 Tyre, Council of, Athanasius at, i. 507 Urban 1., Bishop of Rome, ii. 711 Ursaoius, Arian, i. 529 sqq. INDEX 737 Valbns and Ursaoius, Arians, i. 529 sqq. Valens, Emperor, his Arianism, ii. 50 ; his treatment of Basil, 51 ; in the church at Caesarea, 55 ; attempts to banish Basil, 57 ; his withdrawal of monastic immunities, 232 Valentinian I., his savage character, ii. 125 ; death of, at Vienne, 177 Valentinus, Egyptian Gnostic, il. 718 ; TertuUian's tract against, i. 228 Valerian, friend of Jerome, ii. 237 Vandals, their invasion of Africa, ii. 530, 592 Vereoundus lends Cassioiacum, his country house, to Augustine, ii. 453 Victor I., Bishop of Rome, ii. 709 Victorinus, Simpliciauus gives story of conversion of, to Augustine, ii. 448 Vigilantius, account of, ii. 363 ; his hook, 366 Vigils, Council of Bliberis on, ii. 369 ; Vigilantius on, ii. 367 Vincent of Lerins on Tertullian, i. 246 Vincentius, friend of Jerome, ii. 301 Virginity, Chrysostom on, ii. 640; Jovinian on, ii. 327, 328 Vitalis, consecrated Bishop of Antioch by Apollinaris, ii. 259 Vulgate translation, Jerome's, ii. 317 Widowhood, Jovinian on, ii. 327 Women, public ministration of, i. 175 Women, Roman, in Jerome's time, ii. 288 ; Jerome's friends among, 284 Xtstus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 708 Zephteinus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 709 Zosimus, Bishop of Rome, ii. 714 ; intervention of, in Pelagian contro- versy, ii. 555 THE END Printed by'R. & R. Clark, Edinburgh. WORKS BY AROHDEAOON FARRAR. THE LIFE OF CHRIST. Thirty-second Edition. Library Edition. Two Vols. 8vo. Price 243. Illustrated Edition, cloth, 21s.; calf or morocco, £2 : 2s. Popular Edition, 6s. (Cassell and Co.) THE LIFE AND WORK OF ST. PAUL. Nineteenth Thousand. Two Vols. 8vo. 24s. Illustrated Edition, 21a. Popular Edition, 6s. (Cassell and Co.) THE EARLY DAYS OF CHRISTIANITY. Ninth Thousand. Two Vols. 24s. Popular Edition, 6s. (Cassell and Co.) MY OBJECT IN LIFE. Heart Chords Series. Is. (Cassell and Co. ) THE HISTORY OF INTERPRETATION. Being the Bampton Lec- tures, 1885. Demy 8vo. 16s. (Macmillan and Co. ) SERMONS AND ADDRESSES DELIVERED IN AMERICA. With an Introduction by Phillips Bkooks, D.D. Crown 870. 7s. 6d. (Macmillan and Co. ) MERCY AND JUDGMENT. A Few Last Words on Christian Escha- tology with reference to Dr. Pusey's " What is of Faith ? " Second Edition. Crown 8vo. 10s. 6d. (Macmillan and Co.) EPHPHATHA ; or, The Amelioration of the World. Sermons preached at Westminster Abbey, with Two Sermons preached in St. Margaret's Church at the Opening of Parliament. Crown 8vo. 6s. (Macmillan and Co. ) ETERNAL HOPE. Sermons in Westminster Abbey. November and December 1877. Crown 8vo. 63. Twenty -sixth Thousand. (Macmillan and Co.) SAINTLY WORKERS. Lent Lectures delivered at St. Andrew's, Holborn. March and AprU 1878. Third Edition. Crown 8vo. 6s. (Macmillan and Co.) SEEKERS AFTER GOD. The lives of Seneca, Epiotbtits, and Mak- ous AuEBLius. With Illustrations. Eleventh Edition. Crown 8vo. 6s (Macmillan and Co.) " IN THE DAYS OF THY YOUTH." Sermons on Practical Subjects, Preached at Marlborough College from 1871 to 1876. Eighth Edition. Crown 8vo. 9s. (Macmillan and Co. ) THE FALL OF MAN: and Other Sermons. Fifth Edition. Crown 8vo. 6s. (Macmillan and Co.) THE WITNESS OF HISTORY TO CHRIST. Hulsean Lectures for 1870. Seventh Edition. Crown 8 vo. 5s. (Macmillan and Co. ) THE SILENCE AND VOICES OF GOD. University and Other Ser- mons. Seventh Edition. Crown 8vo. 6s. (Macmillan and Co.) THE GOSPEL OF ST. LUKE. Fcap. 8vo. 4s. 6d. Cambridge Bible for Schools. (Cambridge Press. ) THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. 3s. 6d. (Cambridge Press.) GREEK GRAMMAR RULES. Drawn up for the Use of Harrow School. Eighteenth Edition. 8vo. Is. 6d. (Longmans and Co.) A BRIEF GREEK SYNTAX AND HINTS ON GREEK ACCI- DENCE ; with some reference to Comparative Philology, and with Illus- trations from various Modern Languages. Tenth Edition. 12mo. 4s. 6d. (Longmans and Co. ) LANGUAGE AND LANGUAGES ; being " Chapters on Language " and "Families of Speech." With two Philological Maps and three Tables of Languages. New Edition. Crown 8vo. 6s. (Longmans and Co. ) THE ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA. NINTH EDITION. Edited by THOMAS SPENCER BAYNES, LL.D., and W. EOBERT- SON SMITH, LL.D. Assisted by 1145 Contributors. Illustrated with Plates, Maps, and Wood Engravings. In TWENTY-POUR VOLUMES 4to. The complete set (A to Z) in 24 Volumes, 4to, cloth, price £36 ; in half russia or half morocco, =£44. Can also be had in half levant morocco or polished tree calf. *^* A General Index to the ENOYOLOPiEDiA BeitanSica, embodying all the minor referenees scattered throughout the worTe, is now in the Press, and will be ready for publication in March 1889. "When [the Index volume is published] there will remain nothing more to be desired. "We shall possess a treasure of varied learning, contributed for the most part by the first authorities in the several subjects, and accessible in the handiest form — or is it irony to speak of a quarto as ' handy ' ? — for reference. "We congi-atulate the Editor on the satisfactory completion of the Herculean task to which he has succeeded. No one can be surprised if it has proved a little longer than was at first anticipated. It has taken fourteen years to complete instead of seven, and has required twenty-four instead of twenty-one volumes. That was the number in the last edition, which was finished in 1860. But know- ledge of all kinds has made vast strides since that date — which is only a year after the first publication of the ' Origin of Species ' — and its progress is no more than fitly represented by the addition of three volumes and seven years to the original plan, interrupted, as it has been also, though certainly not deteriorated, by a change of Editors in its course. It is now so exhaustive and so well brought up to the most recent level of thought that its purchasers may fairly hope that many years will elapse before a tenth edition is demanded." — The Guardian. " "We have mentioned only a few examples to show how fully abreast of the age, how thoroughly consonant with the prevailing spirit of our time, is this new edition of the EN0Y0LOP.fiDiA Britannioa. For the English-speaking peoples all over the world there is no book of reference that can be compared with it. In this respect it is thorough cosmopolitan, and we believe that in the conduct of the work the publishers have had this aim constantly in view. The fact that they have succeeded is shown by its universal acceptance in the United States and the Colonies as the most exhaustive and best authority even on subjects specially relating to those countries." — The Times. "The Enoyclop^dia Britannioa is a splendid monument of scientific and historical method applied to every subject of human interest. ... It is the simple truth to say that this vast store of knowledge is recognised as the standard work of reference for the English-speaking race in both hemispheres." — Standard. Full particulars of the Work, with specimen pages, will be found in the general Prospectus, which may be had on application. EDINBURGH: ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK. "?>tW?