count which he hath given of this religious rite; and the story of St. John's caldron might be made in Tertullian's days, to represent a figurative or metaphorical cup, and baptifm, or afflictions and martyrdom. Joannes Ciampini published an explication of an ancient marble monument, which he thinks to have been of the fixth century. It reprefents in Baffo Relievo an huge caldron or vessel, in which are a King and a Queen; and a man standing by it pours water upon the head of the King, who is praying, with his hands joined. This he fuppofes to describe the baptifm of fome Prince, performed by immersion and fuperinfufion. See Act. Erudit. 1698. p. 46.

Tertullian had no fmall fhare of credulity; he proves that the foul is corporeal, from the vifions of an illuminated fifter, who told him that she had seen a foul. De Anima, p. 311. He affirms roundly, conftat, fays he, Ethnicis quoque teftibus, that a fine city was feen for forty days, fufpended in the air over Jerufalem. This report of fome crazy Pilgrim or idle Stroller, he adopted, as a proof that the Millennium was at hand. Contra Marc. iii. 24. How can one' depend upon his teftimony in things which are of the pre-ternatural and miraculous kind?

St. John is called a martyr by fome ancient Chriftians; and fo he was, when he was banished to an island, and fuffered pænam capitalem.

A. D. 107. CONTEMPORARY With Ignatius was Papias, Bishop of Hierapolis, the FX 3

ther

ther of Traditions, and a man of fmall judg ment, who wrote an Expofition of the difcourfes of Chrift. He was extremely diligent in inquiring what the Ancients, what Andrew, Peter, Philip, Thomas, James, John, Matthew, and the rest of the Lord's Difciples had faid or taught, Apud Eufeb. iii. 39.

Mr. Whifton has fomewhere obferved, that Papias takes no notice of Paul, and therefore probably was of the fect of the Ebionites, who hated that Apoftle. His remark is, like many other of his remarks, ingenious; and Papias is faid to have made ufe of the Gospel according to the Hebrews, which was received by the Ebionites. Eufeb. But yet, in behalf of poor Papias, whom one would rather rank amongst the Simpletons than amongst the Heretics, it might be urged, that, as his defign was to collect all the unwritten fayings and actions of Chrift, he thought that nothing of that kind could be learned from St. Paul, who had not converfed with the Lord, as Peter, Matthew, etc. And indeed it is fcarcely conceiveable how Papias could reverence St. John, and yet be an Ebionite, fince the Gospel of that Apostle is so directly against the notions of the Ebionites.

E

A. D. 116. We have an Epiftle of Tiberianus, governor of part of Palæstine, and called Palaftina prima Præfes, to Trajan, in which he fpeaks of the invincible obftinacy of the Galilæans, or Chriftians, under his jurifdiction, with punishing and destroying whom he de

4

clares

clares himself quite tired. Pearfon, in his Vindic. Ignat. and fome late writers, and Dr. Middleton alfo, treat this Epiftle as genuine; which is an overfight, fince there are so many reasons to think it fpurious, as Dodwell has fhewed Differt. Cypr. xi. p. 244. We have it only from Suidas and Malela, two forry vouchers, and Eufebius knew nothing of it. See

Middleton, Inquiry p. 201. S. Bafnage Annal. ii. p. 38. and particularly Tillemont, who fairly gives it up, and informs us that Valefius accounted it the work of a blockhead and an impoftor. Eccl. Hift. ii. p. 170. 571. Le Clerc alfo, though he lets it pafs uncenfured in his Apoftolical Fathers, ii. p. 181. rejects it, where he gives an account of that edition: Il y a une Relation fuppofée de Tiberien Gouverneur de la premiere Paleftine à Trajan. Bibl. A. et M. So I hope we shall hear no more of it henceforward, either for or against the behaviour of the Martyrs.

xxi. 304.

QUADRATUS and ARISTIDES wrote Apologies for the Chriftian religion, and addreffed and delivered them to Adrian, A. D. 126. So Eufebius and Jerom inform us. See Tillemont H. E. ii. p. 232.

— τέτῳ Κοδράτο, λόγον προσφωνήσεις ἀναδίδωσιν, Σπολογίαν συνάξας. - Αρισείδης - Σπολογίαν τι Φωνήσας Αδριανῷ, καταλέλοιπε. Eufeb. iv. 3. Quadratus -nonne Adriano Eleufina facra invifenti librum pro noftra religione tradidit, et tanta admirationi omnibus fuit, ut perfecutionem X 4

gra

graviffimam illius excellens fedaret ingenium? Hieron. Ep. 84. goove is to dedicate a book, which may indeed be done without prefenting it. Τοσαῦτα βιβλία γράψας, ἐδενὶ τ βασιλέων προσεφώνησε, fays Diogenes Laertius of Chryfippus. Some of the Pagan philofophers dedicated Some of their books to Origen, fays Eufebius vi. 19. τότε με αυτῷ προσφωνένων τὰς ἑαυτῶν λόγος, fee alfo Eufeb. vii. 20.

Unfortunately thefe Apologies are loft. If they could be retrieved even at the expence of fome homilies and creeds and controverfial writings of the fourth and fifth centuries, it would be a cheap bargain.

It is not to be imagined that all the works of this kind, which were addreffed to the Emperors, were prefented by the authors, or that books in thofe days were as much spread and as well known as they are now, fince the art of printing; and yet the genteel civility and decency and politenefs which is fo obfervable in the Apology of Athenagoras, and in that of Melito (of which a fragment is preserved in Eufebius) feems to imply that they had a defign to offer them, or that they expected to have them perused by the Emperor. See Fabricius Bibl. Gr. v. 36. and Bayle's Dict. ATHE

NAGORAS.

Præfentem fane Cafaribus fuiffe Athenagoram, verba deprecantis oftendunt: Ὑμεῖς ἢ, ὦ πάντα ἐν

2

i Tertullian, compared to these two Fathers, in point of addrefs and courtesy, is a very clown, and fo is Juftin Martyr,

πᾶσι

πᾶσι φύσι καὶ παιδείᾳ χρησοὶ καὶ μέτριοι καὶ Φιλάνθρωποι, καὶ τῆς βασιλείας ἄξιοι, Διαλελυμένῳ μὲ τὰ ἐγκλήματα τώ βασιλικων κεφαλίω επινεύσατε. Vos vero, ο undequaque in omnibus naturá fimul et difcipliná boni, moderati, benigni, et imperio digni Principes, mibi, obfecro, qui crimina nobis objecta diffolvi, capitibus regiis annuite. S. Bafnage, Annal. ii. p. 161. A weak argument to prove that Athenagoras pronounced his Apology before the Emperor! If Bafnage had thought twice upon it, he would have blotted it out.

But it is not at all improbable that Quadratus and Ariftides delivered their Apologies into Adrian's hand, or at least that thofe Apologies were seen by him; for befides the teftimonies of Eufebius and Jerom, which favour. that opinion, it is to be obferved that Adrian is represented in history as one whofe knowledge was various and extenfive, and who was exceffively curious and inquifitive, curiofitatum omnium explorator; Tertullian, Apol. He had studied all magical arts, he had been initiated into Pagan myfteries, and he must have been inclined to know the true nature of Chriftianity, and to fee what the Learned of that sect had to fay for thernfelves. Julian, in his Cafars, banters Adrian for his pragmatical difpofition, little thinking that he was drawing his own picture, and not confidering that he was juft fuch another as Adrian in many refpects.

There was then no Edict or Law which particularly forbad Chriftians to write in their own. defence, or to read this or that book. Juftin Martvr