excelled, perhaps, Boniface himself, in his knowledge of the true religion of Christ; and he is, therefore, not improperly placed by many among the witnesses for the truth in this barbarous age. Both this Epistle was fabricated by the enemies of Adalbert, and palmed upon him for the sake of injuring him. This, however, is doubtful. The heading of the Epistle purports, that it is an epistle of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, which fell down at Jerusalem, and was found by the archangel Michael near the gate of Ephraim; that a priest read it, transcribed it, and sent it to another priest, who sent it into Arabia. After passing through many hands, it came at length to Rome, &c. Accompanying this letter, as transmitted by Boniface to the pope, was a biography of Adalbert; which stated, that his mother had a marvellous dream before his birth, which was interpreted to signify that her child would be a distinguished man: also a prayer, said to have been composed by him, in which he invoked four or five angels by name, that are not mentioned in the Bible. The letter of Boniface, containing the accusation against both Adalbert and Clement, states, that Boniface had now laboured thirty years among the Franks, in the midst of great trials aud opposition from wicked men; that his chief reliance had been on the protection of the Roman pontiffs, whose pleasure he had always followed: that his greatest trouble had been with two most base public heretics and blasphemers of God and the catholic faith,' Adalbert, a Frenchman, and Clement, a Scotchman, who held different errors, but were equal in amount of criminality. And he prays the pontiff to defend him against these men, and to restrain them by imprisonment and excommunication from annoying the churches. 'For,' said he, 'on account of these men, I incur persecution, and the enmity and curses of many people; and the church of Christ suffers obstructions to the progress of the faith and holy doctrine.' Of Adalbert he says: The people say, respecting him, that I have deprived them of a most holy apostle, patron, and intercessor, a worker of miracles, and a shower of signs. But your piety will judge from his works, after hearing his life, whether he is not one clad in sheep's clothing, but within a ravening wolf. For he was a hypocrite in early life, asserting that an angel, in human form, brought to him from distant countries relics of marvellous sanctity, but of whom it was uncertain; and that, by means of these relics, he could obtain from God whatever he asked. And then, with this pretence, as Paul predicted, he entered into many houses, and led captive silly women, laden with sins and carried away by divers lusts; and he seduced a multitude of the rustics, who said that he was a man of apostolic sanctity, and wrought signs and wonders. He next hired some ignorant bishops to ordain him, contrary to the canons, without assigning him a specific charge. He now became so insolent, as to assume equality with the apostles of Christ, and disdained to dedicate a church to any apostle or martyr, and reproached the people for being so eager to visit the thresholds of the holy apostles. Afterwards he ridiculously consecrated oratories to his own name; or rather defiled them. He also erected small crosses, and houses for prayer, in the fields, and at fountains, and wherever he saw fit, and directed public prayers to be there offered; so that great multitudes, despising the bishops, and forsaking the ancient churches, held their religious meetings in such places, and would say, The merits of St Adalbert will aid us. He also gave his nails and locks of his hair to be kept in remembrance of him, and to be placed with the relics of St. Peter, the prince of apostles. And, finally, what appears the summit of his wickedness and blasphemy against God, when people came and prostrated themselves before him, to confess their sins, he said: I know all your sins, for all secrets are known to me; return securely, and in peace, to your habitations. And all that the holy Gospel testifies as done by hypocrites, he has imitated in his dress, his walk, and his deportment.'-The Epistle then describes the wickedness of Clement, thus: "The other heretic, whose name is Clement, opposes the catholic church, and renounces and confutes the canons of the church of Christ. He refuses to abide by the treatises and discourses of the holy fathers, Jerome, Augustine, and Gregory. Despising the decrees of councils, he affirms that, in his opinion, a man can be a Christian bishop, and bear the title, after being the father of two sons, begotten in adultery [i.e. in clerical wedlock]. Introducing Judaism again, he deems it right for a Christian, if he pleases, to marry the widow of his deceased brother. Also, contrary to the faith of the holy fathers, he maintains that Christ, the Son of God, descended into hell, and liberated all that were there detained in prison, believers and unbelievers, worshippers of God and wor shippers of idols. And many other horrible things he affirms respecting divine predestination, and contravening the catholic faith.' See Harduin's Concilia, iii. 1936-1940. Tr.] The errors of Clement are enumerated by Boniface, Epist. cxxxv. p. 189. Among were condemned by the Roman pontiff Zacharias, at the instigation of Boniface, in a council at Rome, A.D. 748. And both, it appears, died in prison. § 3. Much greater commotions were produced in Spain, France, and Germany, towards the close of the century, by Felix, bishop of Urgel, in Spain, a man distinguished for his piety. Being consulted by Elipandus, archbishop of Toledo, respecting his opinion upon the sonship of Christ, the Son of God, he answered, in the year 783, that Christ, as God, was by nature, and truly, the Son of God; but that as a man, he was the Son of God only in name, and by adoption. This doctrine, which he had imbibed from his preceptor, Elipandus disseminated in the provinces of Spain, while Felix himself, its author, spread it in Septimania.' But in the view of the pontiff Hadrian, and of most of the Latin bishops, this opinion seemed to revive the error attributed to Nestorius, and to divide Christ into two persons. Hence Felix was judged guilty of heresy, and required to change his opinion; first, in the council of Narbonne, A.D. 788, then at Ratisbon, in Germany, A.D. 792; also at Frankfort-on-the-Main, A.D. 794; and afterwards at Rome, A.D. 799; and lastly in the council of Aix-laChapelle. He did change his opinion ostensibly, but not in reality; for he died in it, at Lyons, whither he was banished by Charles the Great. No rule of faith could be imposed upon Elipandus by the Christians, because he lived under the Saracens in Spain. Many believe, and not without reason, that the disciples of Felix, who were called Adoptianists, differed from other Christians, not in reality, but only in words, or in the mode of stating their views. But as Felix was not uniform in his language, those who accuse him of the Nestorian error have some grounds to go upon. these errors, there is certainly no one that is capital. See Jac. Ussher, Sylloge Epistolar. Hibernicar. p. 12, and Nouveau Dictionnaire Histor. Crit. tom. i. p. 133, &c. [For the history of the controversy with both Adalbert and Clement, see Walch's Hist. Ketz. x. 3-66. Tr.-Mosheim's inference as to Clement's superiority in knowledge to Boniface is entirely groundless. Ed.] [Or Languedoc. Tr.] 2 The authors who have treated of the sect of Felix, are enumerated by Jo. Alb. Fabricius, in his Bibliotheca Lat. Medii Evi, ii. 482. To these add Peter de Marca, in the Marca Hispanica, iii. c. 12, p. 368, &c. Jo. de Ferreras, Histoire générale d'Espagne ii. 518. 523. 535, 536. 560. Jo. Mabillon, Acta Sanctor. Ord. Bened. t. v. Præf. p. ii. &c. Of Felix, in particular, account is given by Domin. Colonia, Histoire Littér. de la Ville de Lyon, ii. 79, and by the Benedictine monks, in Histoire Littér. de la France, iv. 434, &c. [Walch, Hist. Ketz. ix. 667-940, and Historia Adoptianorum, Gotting. 1755, 8vo. See also Schroeckh, Kirchengesch. xx. 459-498. Tr.] 3 Jo. Geo. Dorscheus, Collat. ad Concilium Francof. p. 101. Sam. Werenfels, de Logomachiis Eruditor. in his Opp. p. 459. Jac. Basnage, Præf. ad Etherium, in Henr. Canisii Lectionibus Antiquis, t. ii. pt. i. p. 284. Geo. Calixtus, in his Tract on this subject, and others.-[Walch, in his Historia Adoptianor, considers Felix as not a Nestorian; and yet he regards the controversy as not merely about words. The substance of Felix's views he thus states: Christ as a man, and without regard to the personal union of the two natures, was born a servant of God, though without sin. From the condition of a servant, he passed into that of a free person, when God, at his baptism, pronounced him his dear Son. This transaction was his adoption, and likewise his regeneration. The title of God belongs to him, indeed, as a man; but not properly, for he is God only nuncupatively. Thus did Felix utter something unsuitable and new; but his innovation was not a ground for so great an alarm throughout the whole church, as if he had assailed the fundamental doctrines of Christianity. Tr.] NINTH CENTURY. PART I. THE EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH. CHAPTER I. THE PROSPEROUS EVENTS IN THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH. § 1, 2. The Swedes, Danes, and Cimbrians converted— § 3. The Bulgarians, Bohemians, and Moravians - § 4. The Slavonian tribes, the Russians-§ 5. Estimate of these conversions. § 1. So long as Charles the Great lived, which was till the year 814, he omitted no means which seemed requisite, to propagate and establish Christianity among the Huns, the Saxons, the Frieslanders, and others. But it is to be regretted that he did not omit to employ violence and war. His son Lewis the Meek, though greatly below him in other respects, had the same zeal for propagating Christianity. Under this prince, a convenient opportunity was presented for planting Christianity among the northern nations, especially the Danes and Swedes. Harald Klack, a petty sovereign of Jutland, being expelled his kingdom by Reyner Lodbrock, in the year 826, applied For [Among these must be included the Carinthians. They had indeed partially received Christianity, in the preceding century, from Virgilius bishop of Salzburg. Boruth, the duke of Carinthia, when he committed his son Corastus to the Bavarians, as a hostage, requested, that he might be baptized and educated as a Christian; and he also requested the same, in regard to his nephew Chetimar. Now, as both these afterwards became dukes of Carinthia, it may be readily conceived, that the Christian religion had made considerable progress there, before this century. In 803, Charles came to Salzburg, and confirmed to Arno his ecclesiastical jurisdiction over Slavonia, or Carinthia in lower Pannonia. The presbyters, whom bishop Arno sent into Carinthia, to build up the churches there, adopted a singular artifice, to render Christianity respectable, and paganism contemptible, in the eyes of the people. They allowed Christian slaves to sit at table with them, while their pagan masters had to eat their bread and meat without the doors; and had to drink out of black cups, whereas the servants drank from gilded cups. For the presbyters told the masters, 'You unbaptized persons are not worthy to eat with those that are baptized.' This enkindled such a desire to become Christians, that great numbers of them were baptized. See the Life of St. Ruprecht, in Canisii Lectionibus Antiq. t. vi. of the old ed. 4to. Schl.] 2 [Ebbo, archbishop of Rheims, who had travelled as an imperial envoy in the north to the emperor for assistance. Lewis promised it, on condition that he would embrace Christianity himself, and admit teachers of that religion into his country. Harald acceding to the terms, not only was baptized at Mentz, A.D. 826, together with his brother, but also took home with him two preachers of Christianity, Ansgarius, a monk and schoolmaster of Corbey in Saxony, and Autbert, a monk of old Corbie; which monks preached among the inhabitants of Jutland and Cimbria, for two years, with great success. § 2. On the death of his fellow-labourer Autbert, in the year 828, the indefatigable Ansgarius went over to Sweden; and there was equally happy in pleading the cause of Christ. Returning into Germany, Lewis the Meek constituted him, in the year 831, archbishop of the new church of Hamburg, and of all the North; and in the year 844, the episcopal see of Bremen was annexed to that of Hamburg. The profits of this high station were small, while its perils were very great, and its labours immense. For Ansgarius, while he lived, took frequent journeys among the Danes, the Cimbrians, the Swedes, and other nations; and laboured, though at the ern countries, made an attempt, as early as 822, to spread Christianity there; and, together with Halitgar of Cambray, he obtained from pope Paschal a full power for this purpose. See Acta Sanctor. Antw. ad 3. Februar. and Mabillon, Acta Sanctor. sæc. iv. pt. ii. p. 79, 90. Schl.] 2 [In Picardy. S.] [The Christians who were carried into captivity by the Norsemen, undoubtedly contributed much to give this people a favourable disposition towards Christianity; and especially by recounting to them the wealth and the power of the Christian countries, which were ascribed to their religion. This will account for what historians affirm, that Swedish ambassadors came to king Lewis, and stated among other things, that many of their people had an inclination towards Christianity, and that their king would cheerfully permit Christian priests to reside among them. Anscharius and Witmar were sent thither, with rich presents. Their voyage was unfortunate; for they fell into the hands of pirates, who plundered them. Yet they finally reached the port of Biork, which belonged to the king, Bern or Biorn. There they collected a congregation and built a church, in the course of six months; the king having given liberty to his subjects to embrace the new religion. On the return of these missionaries, the congregation in Sweden was without a teacher, till Ebbo sent them his nephew Gausbert, who, at his ordination to the episcopate, took the name of Simon; but he was, soon after, driven out of Sweden. Schl.] constituted him his legate for Sweden, Denmark, the Faroe islands, Iceland, &c. as also among the Slavians, and the northern and eastern tribes. See the Acta Sanctor. Feb. t. i. and Mabillon, 1. c. Schl.] [Lewis the Meek assigned him the reve nues of a monastery in Brabant, towards the expenses of his mission. But the income was very small; and ceased altogether on the death of Lewis. Anschar must therefore have been in want of resources. He at last received a small estate, from a pious widow, in Ramelslob near Bremen. Schl.] 5 [The violent persecution, to which the Danish Christians were exposed, was one occasion for his repeatedly visiting that country. He was himself driven from Hamburg (by an invasion of the Norsemen), and the city being wholly laid waste, he had to reside some time at Bremen. He was at length permitted to enter Denmark, by king Eric; and being allowed to preach there, he erected a church at Hadeby or Schleswig, in 850. But this king being slain in 856, during the minority of his son Eric Baern, there was fresh persecution, and the church of Schleswig was shut up. When this king began to reign in person, he was more favourable to the Christians, and permitted Anschar to return, and to erect a new church at Ripen, A.D. 860. Tr.] [To Sweden he sent the priest Ardgarius; and likewise went there himself, a second time, in the character of envoy from king Lewis to king Olaus; who was induced by presents, to support Anschar in two imperial Swedish diets, at which the establishment of Christianity was decided by casting lots. He now re-established Christian worship at Biork, and left Herimbert there as a Christian teacher. Schl.] |