ed ram from a great flock, a burnt offering acceptable to God Almighty, said, O Father of thy beloved and blessed son Jesus Christ, through whom we have attained the knowledge of thee, O God of angels and principalities, and of all creation, and of all the just who live in thy sight, I bless thee that thou hast counted me worthy of this day and this hour, to receive my portion in the number of martyrs, in the cup of Christ, for the resurrection to eternal life both of soul and body, in the incorruption of the Holy Ghost; among whom may I be received before thee this day as a sacrifice well savored and acceptable, which thou, the faithful and true God, hast prepared, promised beforehand, and fulfilled accordingly! Wherefore I praise thee for all these things; I bless thee, I glorify thee, by the eternal High priest, Jesus Christ, thy wellbeloved Son: through whom be glory to thee both now and for ever. Amen! And when he had pronounced Amen' aloud, and finished his prayer, the officers lighted the fire; and a great flame bursting out, we, to whom it was given to see, and who also were reserved to relate to others that which happened, saw a wonder. For the flame, forming the appearance of an arch, as the sail of a vessel filled with wind,

6

44

GREEK CELEBRATION

was a wall round about the body of the martyr; which was in the midst, not as burning flesh, but as gold and silver, refined in the furnace. At length, the impious observing that his body could not be consumed by the fire, ordered the confector to approach and to plunge his sword into his body."* Standing on the spot which witnessed this memorable event, the Christian must be cold indeed whose heart does not kindle with a fervent desire that a double portion of the spirit of Polycarp may rest upon him!

The martyrdom took place on the seventh day before the calends of March, A. D. 167, which the Greeks celebrate on the twenty-third of February, according to the intention expressed by Polycarp's disciples in the letter just quoted, who write, "The Lord will grant us in gladness and joy to celebrate the birthday of his martyrdom, both in commemoration of those who have wrestled before us, and for the instruction and confirmation of those who come after." The use of the word "birthday" in this quotation strikingly evinces that the early Christians regarded death as the gate of life, and felt that in commemorating a day of mar

Epistle from the Church at Smyrna to the Church at Philomelium, a city of Lycaonia, preserved by Eusebius and translated by Milner.

OF POLYCARP'S MARTYRDOM.

45

tyrdom they were celebrating a nativity to glory. Archbishop Usher has endeavoured to prove that Polycarp, who was appointed bishop of Smyrna by St. John and was his intimate friend, was "the angel of the church of Smyrna" addressed by our Lord. If so, (which may be doubted,) his martyrdom was expressly predicted, accompanied by a promise well calculated to sustain him in such an hour; "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” *

The progress of religion has not kept pace with its early advances in this once hallowed spot; and yet there is not one of the seven churches of Asia Minor within whose sacred precincts the trumpet of the gospel now gives so distinct and certain a sound. While Mohammed is acknowledged in twenty mosques, and Jews assemble in several synagogues, the faith of the Messiah is taught in Armenian, Greek, and Catholic churches. Yet it is not in the exhibition of Christianity thus perverted and

* Rev. ii. 10.

The Armenians have one; the Greeks five large, and several smaller, churches; and the Catholics two. These are allowed the privilege, granted to neither Greeks nor Armenians, of having bells attached to their sacred edifices.

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CHRISTIANITY IN SMYRNA.

dishonored that we can rejoice: happily, her doctrines are set forth, sabbath after sabbath, in a purer form, in English, French, and Italian, in two Protestant chapels; one connected with the English, the other with the Dutch consulate.

Thus it appears that, as regards religious privileges, no less than commercial importance, Smyrna is in a condition far superior to that of any other of the seven apocalyptic churches. Ephesus, Sardis, and Laodicea are no more. In Pergamus and Thyatira the lamp of truth glimmers but faintly in a single Greek and Armenian temple; and, though in Philadelphia there are several Greek churches under the superintendence of an archbishop, yet service is performed in a language not understood by the people; and in fact, though not in name, the "candlestick" is removed out of its place. In Smyrna alone, Greeks, Armenians, and Catholics are instructed in intelligible accents; and five resident Protestant ministers labor as missionaries, striving, at however humble a distance, to tread in the footsteps of "the blessed Polycarp."

CHAPTER XVII.

THE APOCALYPTIC CHURCHES. SARDIS.

Preparations for journey in the interior of Asia Minor.— Posting. Travelling accoutrements.-Leave Smyrna.

Turkish douane.-Diana's bath.

Camels.-Vale of Hajilar. Soil. Caféné.-Turks from Morea. -Fez.-Coffee. -Mount Sipylus.-Volcanic disturbances.-Plain of Magnesia. Tartar.-View of town.

Ancient and modern

magnet and magnesia.- Streets.- Mosques. - Population. -Accommodations.-Schools.- Carah Othman Oglou.Interview.-Mode of eating. - Shoes.-Doctors. -Visit to moolla. His authority and extortions. Leave Magnesia. Sepulchral caverns.- Tmolus. Strings of camels. Buffaloes.-Word kine.- Sheep called by name.

-

Moun

Ce

tain scenery.-Volcanic effects. View of Kasabah. meteries. Decrease of population. - Melons. House of œconomus.-Attendants.-Sweetmeats offered. Road. Caravans.-African guard.-Tumuli.-Approach to Sardis. - Prophecy fulfilled. Remarkable change of climate.Turcomans.- Sheeahs and Sunnees.- Utter desolation of Sardis.-Historical and prophetical associations.— Gygæan

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