perfons, aggrieved by new edicts published throughout Afia, and never before practifed, now fuffer perfecution. For audacious fycophants, and men who covet other perfons' goods, take advantage of these proclamations openly to rob and spoil the innocent by night and by day. If this be done through your order,-let it stand good;—for a just emperor cannot act unjustly; and we will cheerfully fubmit to the honour of fuch a death:-This only we humbly crave of your Majefty, that, after an impartial examination of us and of our accufers, you would juftly decide whether we deferve death and punishment, or life and protection. But, if these proceedings be not yours, and the new edicts be not the effects of your perfonal judgment,―edicts which ought not to be enacted even against barbarian enemies-in that cafe we intreat you not to defpife us, who are thus unjuftly oppreffed." He afterwards reminds him of the juftice done to Chriftians by his two immediate predeceffors. From this account it is evident that Marcus, by new edicts, commenced the perfecution, and that it was carried on with mercilefs barbarity in thofe Afiatic regions which had been relieved by Pius. There is nothing pleasant that can be fuggefted to us by this view of the cruel treatment of Chriftians and of the author of it, except one circumftance-that the effufion of the Spirit of God ftill continued to produce its holy fruits in thofe highly-favoured regions. In the two next chapters I propofe to defcribe diftinctly two scenes of this emperor's perfecution; and I fhall now conclude this general account of him, with briefly mentioning the remarkable ftory of his danger and relief in the war of the Marcomanni*. He and his army being hemmed in Eufeb. B. 5. C. 5. by by the enemy, were ready to perish with thirst; when fuddenly a storm of thunder and lightning affrighted the enemies, whilft the rain refreshed the Romans. It is evident that the victory was ob. tained by a remarkable providential interpofition. The Chriftian foldiers in his army, we are fure, in their distress would pray to their God, even if Eufebius had not told us fo. All Chriftian writers speak of the relief as vouchfafed in answer to their prayers, and no real Chriftian will doubt of the foundness of their judgment in this point. I have only to add, that Marcus, in a manner agreeable to his ufual fuperftition, afcribed his deliverance to His gods. Each party judged according to their own views; and thofe moderns who afcribe the whole to the ordinary powers of nature, or to accident, judge alfo according to THEIR ufual profaneness or irreligious turn of thinking. Whether the Divine interpofition deferves to be called a miracle or not, is a question rather concerning propriety of language than religion. This feems to me all that is needful to be said on a fact, which on one fide has been magnified beyond all bounds; and on the other has been reduced to mere infignificancy. It happened in the year 174. The em- A. D. peror lived five years after this event, and as far as 174. appears, continued a perfecutor to the laft. CHAP. СНАР. V. MARTYRDOM OF POLYCARP. THE year 167, the fixth of Marcus, Smyrna was diftinguished by the martyrdom of her bishop Polycarp. We mentioned him before in the account of Ignatius. He had fucceeded Bucolus, a vigilant and industrious bifhop, in the charge of Smyrna. The Apostles, and we may fuppofe St. John particularly,-ordained him to this office. He had been familiarly converfant with the Apoftles, and received the government of the Church from those who had been eye-witneffes and minifters of our Lord; and he continually taught that which he had been taught by them*. Ushert has laboured to fhew that he was the ANGEL of the church of Smyrna addreffed by our Saviour. If he be right in this, the character of Polycarp is indeed delineated by a hand divine; and the martyrdom before us was particularly predicted. By this account he must have prefided 74 years over that Church:-certainly, as we fhall hereafter fee, his age must have been extremely great: he long furvived his friend Ignatius; and was referved to fuffer by Marcus Antoninus. Some time before that event he came to Rome to hold a conference with Anicetus, the bishop of that See, concerning the time of obferving Eafter. The matter was foon decided Eufeb. 4. C. 14. In his Prolegom, to Ignatius. decided between them, as all matters fhould be, which enter not into the effence of godlinefs. They each obferved their own cuftoms without any breach of charity between them, real or appaBut Polycarp found more important employment while at Rome. The herefy of Marcion was ftrong in that city; and the teftimony and zealous labours of one who had known so much of the Apostles were fuccessfully employed against it; and many were reclaimed. It was not in Marcion's power to undermine the authority of this venerable Afiatic. To procure a feeming coalition was the utmoft he could expect; and it was as fuitable to his views to attempt this, as it was to thofe of Polycarp to oppofe fuch duplicity and artifice. Meeting him one day in the street, he called out to him, "Polycarp, own us." "I do own thee," fays the zealous bifhop, "to be the firft-born of Satan." I refer the reader to what has been faid already of St. John's fimilar conduct on fuch occafions; and shall add only that Irenæus, from whom Eufebius relates the story, commends his conduct, and fpeaks of it as commonly practifed by the Apostles and their followers. Irenæus informs us that he had a particular delight in recounting what had been told by thofe who had feen Chrift in the flesh; that he used to relate what he had been informed concerning his doctrine and miracles; and when he heard of any heretical attempts to overturn Christian fundamentals, he would cry out, "To what times, O God, hast thou reserved me!" and would leave the place. Indeed when it is confidered what Marcion maintained, and what unquestionable evidence Polycarp had against him in point of matter of fact, we shall fee he had juft reafon to testify his difap Irenæus's Epiftle to Florin. difapprobation. This man was one of the DoCETE: According to him Chrift had no real human nature at all: He rejected the whole Old Teftament, and mutilated the New. He held two principles, after the manner of the Manichees, in order to account for the origin of evil. If men, who affert things fo fundamentally fubverfive of the Gofpel, would openly difavow the Chriftian name, they might be endured with much more composure by Chriftians; nor would there be any call for fo fcrupulous an abfence from their fociety; -for St. Paul has fo determined the cafe *. But for fuch men, whether antient or modern, to call themfelves Chriftians, is an intolerable infult on the common fenfe of mankind.-We know nothing more of the life of this venerable bishop:- Of the circumstances of his death we have an account, and they deferve a very particular relation. • The greatest part of the antient narrative is preferved by Eufebius t. The beginning and the end, which he has not given us, have been reftored by the care of archbishop Ufher. It is an epiftle written in the name of Polycarp's Church of Smyrna: I have ventured to tranflate the whole myfelf, yet not without examining what Valefius, the editor of Eufebius, and archbishop Wake, have left us on the fubject. It is doubtless one of the most precious ornaments of antiquity; and it feemed to deserve fome notes and illuftrations. "The Church of God which fojourns at Smyrna, to that which fojourns at Philomelium, and in all places where the Holy Catholic Church fojourns throughout the world, may the mercy, peace, and love 1 Cor. v. 10. A city of Lycaonia. reader the precife term + B. iv. Eufeb. Hift. Ch. XV. It was the ufual language and the fpirit too of the Church at that time. |