stantinople and drawn with ropes through the principal streets for the scorn of the people. The heathen priests were cast out, dispersed and banished. Every place of power and trust in the state and army, which had before been filled by heathen, was now occupied by the professed followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. Immense and splendid Christian temples were every where erected and richly endowed; and the greatest honour was put upon all preachers of the Gospel. Constantine put an end to pagan rites; to sorcery and divination, those great supports of false religion; publicly exposed the mysteries which had been kept secret; stopped the savage fights of gladiators; ordered the strict observance of the Lord's day; furnished the churches with copies of the sacred scriptures; stood up with respectful silence to hear the gospel from Eusebius of Cesarea; dedicated Christian temples himself with great solemnity; yea, made Christian orations; one of which, of considerable length, is preserved to us; and taught all the soldiers of his army, to pray to the God of the Christians.

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The religious sincerity of the man, who, in a short period, effected such amazing changes in the religious world, is best known to Him who searches the heart. Certain it is, that his subsequent life furnished no evidence of conversion to God. He waded without remorse through seas of blood, and was a most tyrannical prince. If it be asked, Why he so patronised Christians? The answer may be found in the state of the world. Paganism had nearly expired. Christianity had gained deep root in the earth, and how could he with the least worldly policy do otherwise than he did, especially as all his opposers were the supporters of Paganism ?

But with him, we have but little concern. The work was the Lord's. He was indeed the distinguished instrument of effecting it. Happy for him, if he had a saving interest in that Redeemer, whose cause he so illustriously upheld. But every circumstance shews the mighty power of God. That little sect, which three centuries before, sprang up in Judea, and seemed in the eyes of the world, too contemptible for notice, now filled the earth with its glories. That little seed which was then planted, had sprang up and become a great tree, under whose branches the nations reposed for comfort. The success was in strict accordance with prophecy, and proved to the nations that it was the Lord God that had set up his kingdom on the ruins of the kingdom of Satan, and would ultimately triumph from the river to the ends of the earth.

The joy felt by Christians throughout the Roman empire, at this unexpected revolution, was beyond the power of language

to express. They had hitherto been only suffered to live. Few privileges were theirs. Few enjoyments but those which sprang from communion with God;-while they were often obliged to hide in the rocks and caves of the earth, from whence they were dragged forth to suffer the most cruel deaths. Could the truly pious among them have looked forward to the issue, and seen all this worldly magnificence operating as poison to the very vitals of the Church, they would have lamented the change, and preferred the endurance of further trials; but all were impressed with the belief, that now Christ was coming to take to himself the kingdom, and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven. The worldly-minded among them, saw every thing in the change to gratify their pride and ambition; rushed with avidity into all places of power and dominion, and hailed Constantine as the greatest of human benefactors.

At the change, Satan gnawed his tongue for pain. The heathen priests and vast crowds of subordinate officers, who had gained their subsistence in the idol worship, saw their darling gods trampled in the dust; their own consequence at an end, and their means of support entirely cut off. Great multitudes, indeed, were mere warriors and courtiers who were attached to the heathen superstition because it was the religion of the state, and were zealous in it because zeal gained them promotion. Such, readily renounced it and became Christians, when they saw their Emperor fighting successfully under the banner of the cross. Others, more intelligent and reflecting, had long, in their hearts, despised the whole system of idol worship, while they had prostrated themselves with apparently the profoundest reverence. Such rejoiced to see the establishment of ages overturned, though they knew not what would arise in its stead. But others, some from interest, and some from sincere attachment, struggled vehemently for the expiring cause. They beheld with indignation and grief the destruction of their temples and gods. They aspersed the Emperor in the foulest language, and predicted the greatest calamities to his family and kingdom. They were never again able to persecute the Christians as they had done, but they occasionally rallied, and grew terrible for a season, until at length, through the excellency of Christianity and the power of the state, and the contempt into which their own gods and rites had sunk, they dwindled away and were found no more.

CHAPTER VI.

Result of the revolution under Constantine. Rise of Arianism. Council of Nice. Death of Constantine. Succeeding Emperors. Julian's attempt to restore Paganism. His defeat in rebuilding the temple at Jerusalem. Persecutions in Persia. Eusebius. Basil. Chrysostom. Jerome. Augustine. Pelagianism. Civil revolution in Europe. Daniel's vision of the ten horns. Conversion of the barbarous nations. Franks. Irish. Britons. Progress of error and superstition in the 5th and 6th century.

THE revolution under Constantine was one from which almost every thing, which the Christian values, might be hoped; but, alas! such is the depravity of human nature, it was one in which almost every thing of evangelical worth was lost. Constantine brought the world into the Church, and the Church was paralyzed. The number of nominal Christians was indeed increased, a thousand fold. A new spring was given to missionary effort; and, in this century, a number of barbarous tribes, among the Armenians, the Ethiopians, the Geor gians, the Goths and the Gauls, were partially enlightened by the Gospel of Christ. The work of translating and circulating the Holy Scriptures also received great encouragement; though, for the former, few had learning and industry sufficient. The latin version of Jerome, though far from being correct, stands pre-eminent over all others that were made. Schools were established and libraries were formed for Christian youth; and the study of philosophy and the liberal arts was encouraged, that Christianity might not suffer by a comparison of her advocates with the erudition and skill of the sages of paganism. Immense and splendid temples were erected and richly endowed; and a great priesthood was regularly organized and liberally supported. The body existed, but the spirit had fled, Constantine set up an immense national Church; but the humility and faith and spirituality of the age of Polycarp had passed away. Constantine did not find it in the Church which he thus raised to worldly glory; and how could he create it there by those very means which always destroy vital piety?

Among the more retired, in the humble walks of life, there was, no doubt, much true religion. There must have been much to support the sufferers through the Dioclesian persecution. Many of these sufferers with their children, were humble followers of Christ for many years. Some of the ministers were

worthy of a better age. But the most of those who were exalted to places of power and trust, were engaged in pompous rites and ceremonies, and knew but little of the humiliating and sanctifying doctrines of Christianity. Indeed, their elevation to wealth and power was followed by an amazing increase of luxury and vice. Bishops contended with bishops about the extent of their jurisdictions; vied with princes in their style of living, and shewed that they placed their heaven upon earth. Having such spiritual guides, the mass of the people soon became exceedingly corrupt. Shoals of profligate men, allured by gain or driven by fear, pressed into the Church; discipline ceased, and superstition reigned without control. The Gentile converts to nominal Christianity, brought into the Church a taste for the public processions and prayers, by which they had been accustomed to appease their gods; hastily transferred the virtues which had been supposed to belong to their temples and their ablutions to Christian churches and Christian ordinances; and were at once disposed to deify the apostles and early Christians, as they had been accustomed to do the heroes of antiquity. The old Christians found themselves associated with a new world of admirers, who knew nothing about their religion, and who were easily subjected to the most abominable impositions. Prodigies and miracles, therefore, beyond number were multiplied. The bones and relics of dead saints performed wonders. Dust and earth, brought from Palestine, was viewed as a certain and powerful remedy against the violence of wicked spirits. And, before the close of the century, the great business of the lower order of priests was to impose, in ten thousand ways, in the vilest manner, upon the credulity of the ignorant multitude.

The erection of splendid temples, and introduction of a splendid worship, gave rise also to a vast variety of additional rites and ceremonies. These, in general, were copied from the heathen worship, and such was the amalgamation of the two religions, as to differ very little in their external appearance. Gorgeous robes, mitres, tiaras, wax tapers, crosiers, processions, lustrations, images, gold and silver vases are mentioned, as common to both Christian and heathen churches. What deplorable degeneracy from the simple worship of the Apostles !

The great festivals were five in number;-commemorating the birth, death, resurrection and ascension of Christ, and the day of Pentecost, but were rather days of public licentiousness than of pious exercises. Fasts were greatly multiplied, under the idea that they repelled evil spirits.

From being the outpourings of a broken heart and a contrite

spirit, the public prayers degenerated into vain bombast; and in consequence of an intimate connexion with the Grecian schools, the sermons of the divines partook of the nature of an oration, and were clapped and applauded, as were orators in the forum, by the Christian assemblies.

Two principles were introduced into the Church which helped her on in her downward course, and led brother to imbrue his hands in brother's blood; and this too, thinking that he did God service. The first was, "That it is an act of virtue to deceive and lie, when, by that means, the interests of the Church may be promoted;"—the other, that "Errors in religion, when maintained and adhered to, after proper admonition, are punishable with civil penalties and corporeal tortures." Strange that men, who professed to serve an holy master, and to be looking toward an holy heaven, should so soon set at defiance the solemn denunciations of Christ, against the fearful, the unbelieving, the abominable, and all liars; and, that, with scorched flesh and broken limbs, they should kindle the fires of persecution against their own companions !

In such a degenerate period, it could not be expected that the fundamental doctrines of the Gospel should remain uncorrupt. They had before lost much of their influence over the minds of men; but until this time, they had remained entire in most of the churches. A number of violent dissensions had arisen on account of discipline; and sentiments, extremely erroneous, had been formed and advocated by a few powerful minds; but hitherto, no large churches had been seen to deny the fundamental doctrines and to build their hopes of salvation on a different faith from that which had been generally received as the faith of the primitive churches.

Two parties, the Donatists and the Meletians, were formed in Africa about the commencement of the fourth century, by contentions about power and place, which for a long time were persecuted and oppressed as dangerous schismatics; but it does not appear that they adopted any corrupt sentiments. Among them probably was much true piety.

But there was at this time a great departure from the ancient faith relating to the divinity of the Saviour.

As early as the days of John, there were those who denied the divinity of Christ; and, in every succeeding period, there were ingenious minds, fond of giving some new explanation of the doctrine of the Trinity, which should free it from its inherent mystery; but none had made much impression on the churches.

In the church of Alexandria, was a presbyter named Arius ;