deed we shall find, that when Christianity became the established religion of the Roman Empire, and took the place of paganism, it assumed, in a great degree, the forms and rites of paganism, and participated in no small measure of its spirit also. Christianity as it existed in the dark ages, might be termed, without much impropriety of language, baptized paganism.

"At the head of all the sects," says Dr. Mosheim, "which disturbed the peace of the church, stand the Gnostics. Under this appellation, are included all those in the first ages of the church, who modified the religion of Christ, by joining with it the Oriental philosophy, in regard to the source of evil, and the origin of this material universe." They were divided into a number of particular sects or parties, but seem to have held the following errors in common. They taught that Jesus Christ is inferior to the Father; that he did not possess a real body, and consequently did not really suffer; that evil dwells essentially in matter; and therefore they denied the future resurrection of the body, and enjoined severe bodily penances and mortifications, and held other notions of like character, derived from that false philosophy which they professed, and upon which they attempted to ingraft Christianity.

The followers of Simon Magus are reckoned by some, among the Gnostic sects, which, in this century, corrupted the gospel. But, according to the best evidence we possess, Simon, after the memorable rebuke given him by the apostle, (Acts viii. 20-23,) became, not a corrupter, but a persevering enemy of Christianity.

The Nicolaitans are generally supposed to have been a branch of the Gnostics, although this

uncertain. They rather appear to have been a class of Antinomians, who turned the grace of God into lasciviousness. The Docetae, a Gnostic sect, received their name from their distinguishing tenet, that Jesus had not a real, but only an apparent human body, and that consequently his sufferings on the cross were only in appearance. Cerinthus, who was cotemporary with John, the apostle, taught, on the contrary, that Jesus had a real body, and indeed was merely a man, the son of Joseph and Mary; but that, at his baptisin, the Christ, a being of superior nature, descended on him in the form of a dove, remained in him during his public ministry, and leaving him, when he was apprehended by the Jews, ascended again to heaven; so that not Christ, but Jesus died. It is related by Irenæus, on the authority of Polycarp, who was acquainted with John, that this aged apostle once going into a bath at Ephesus, discovered Cerinthus there; upon which, leaping out of the bath, he hastened away, saying, he was afraid lest the building should fall on him, and crush him along with the heretic.

The Nazarenes and Ebionites were Judaizing Christians, that sprung up in the first century, but were not organized into distinct sects, until the second century. The Nazarenes differed little from the orthodox, except that they adhered to the rites of the Mosaic law. The Ebionites denied the Divinity of Christ, rejected the Jewish Scriptures, except the five books of Moses, and all of Paul's epistles.

The writers of the first century are the apostles and apostolic fathers. At what time, and by whom the books of the New Testament were collected into one vo ume, is uncertain; but it is certain

that before the middle of the second century, the most of them were read in every Christian church, and regarded as the divine rule of faith and practice. The apostolic fathers are, Clement, bishop of Rome, and author of the Epistles to the Corinthians; Ignatius, disciple and companion of the apostles, who suffered martyrdom under Trajan, being exposed to wild beasts in the theatre at Rome; Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, who suffered martyrdom at an extreme age, in the middle of the second century. Several works ascribed to these fathers, are known to be spurious; others are doubtful; and those, which are generally received as genuine, are not free from interpolations.

VI. From the very beginning, the church has been called to suffer persecution. This was first from the Jews, and about the time that Stephen was stoned to death, persecution seems to have raged very high; so that the disciples were compelled to make their escape, and to flee into distant countries. After this, we are told (Acts xii. 1.) that "Herod the king stretched forth his hand to vex certain of the church." James he killed with the sword, and Peter he imprisoned. And this he did to gain favour with the Jews. But the Jewish power was then limited, and soon after destroyed, by the utter destruction of their city and temple by Titus, and the final dispersion of their nation. Nero was the first Roman emperor that persecu. ted the Christians; and his cruelty was extreme. He falsely accused them of setting fire to the city of Rome, of which crime he was guilty himself. Multitudes were put to the most excruciating death in a variety of ways. The streets of the city, and his pleasure gardens, were illuminated at night by

the burning of those whom he cause to be sewed up alive in garments covered over with tch. This persecution commenced about A. D. 64, and raged until the death of Nero, about four years. Paul and Peter are said to have suffered martyr dom at Rome during this persecution; the one by decapitation, the other by crucifixion, with his head downwards. This manner he chose, as being less honourable than that in which his Lord had been crucified. The fury of this persecution subsided after the death of Nero, until it was renewed, near the end of the century by Domitian; a character little inferior to Nero for baseness and cruelty. Under this persecution the apostle John was banished to the isle of Patmos, where he wrote the Revelation. It has been said upon the authority of Tertullian, that he had been previously thrown into a caldron of boiling oil, and came out unhurt. But this is doubted.

CENTURY II.

1. Spread of the Gospel.--2. Persecution under the Roman Emperors.-3. Rise of Monachism.-4. Origin of the dis tinction between Bishop and Presbyter.-5. Fathers-6. Rites and Ceremonies.-7. Heretics.

I. THE obscure lights of the early history of the church do not enable us to decide with certainty, what nations received Christianity during the second century; but there are unexceptionable witnesses who inform us, that in the early part of this century, in nearly all the East, and among

the Germans, the Spaniards, the Celts, the Britons, and other nations, Christ was worshipped as God. About the middle of this century, Pothinus, Irenæus, and others went from Asia into Gaul, and established churches in Lyons and Vienne. Pothinus was the first bishop of Lyons, and Irenæus succeeded him after his death, A. D. 177. About this time Lucius, a king or nobleman of England, sent to Rome, or to Gaul, as some think more probable, for a supply of religious instructors. The rapid propagation of Christianity is ascribed by the writers of the second century, almost exclusively to the efficient will of God, the energy of divine truth, and the miracles wrought by Christians. The Scriptures were translated into various languages at an early period. The Italic, the Syriac, the Egyptian, and Ethiopic, are the most noted versions of this age; but at what time they were severally made, is not ascertained. It seems to be established on undoubted authority, that the power of working miracles continued to some extent in the church during this century.

II. The Roman Emperors of this century were Trajan, Adrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius, Verus, Commodus, and Severus. The first four of these were remarkable for their gentle and equitable character; yet the Christians suffered not a little under each of them. The celebrated letter of Pliny, governor of Bithynia, to Trajan, asking instruction how he should proceed in regard to the Christians, who had become very nu. merous, has been often published. Trajan directs that they should not be sought after but when regularly accused and convicted, if they refused to return to the religion of their fathers, they hould be put to death The Pagan priests who