der to fee him act fo out of character, and more like a Pedant than a Prince. Suidas, et Philoftr. Vit. Sophift. 1. ii. 556. We are told that Marcus Aurelius, without repealing the old laws which condemned convicted Chriftians, made an Edict, that whofoever accused a Christian should be put to death; and that about ten years after, under his fon Commodus, who yet was favourable to the Christians, one Apollonius, a man of eminence, being publicly accused of Christianity by a slave (as Jerom fays) the Delator had his legs broken for his information, and was executed; and that Apollonius, perfifting in his religion, was condemned by the Senate. Tertullian Apol. Eufebius v. 5. 21. Le Clerc Hift. Eccl. p. 786. Strange! that fo wife a prince as Marcus Aurelius fhould make fo abfurd `an Edict, who might have made a reasonable one in four words, NOLVMVS CHRISTIANOS AMPLIVS VEXARI. Had he not fo much intereft with the Senators as to gain their confent? That is not to be fuppofed of an Emperor fo much beloved by his fubjects. And if he could not have gained it for this reafonable Decree h, neither could he The forger of this ftory had his head full of the Book of Efther, and of the Law of the Medes and Perfians which altereth not, and imagined that the only way by which the Emperor could protect the Chriftians was to punish their ac cufers. Gallienus, being favourably difpofed towards the Chriftians, gave a Refcript which, without thefe abfurdicies, fecured them in fome meafure from perfecution. Eufeb. vii. VOL. I. Bb have have gained it for the other, which, fuch as it was, would have been very ferviceable to the. Chriftians. It is alfo ftrange that the Informer, knowing the certain death to which he exposed himself, should venture on fuch a mad and defperate attempt. There must be fome mistake in this confufed and unaccountable representation. i Shall we then reject the whole story of the martyrdom of Apollonius? We need not go fo far: we may rather fuppofe that as the Romans under bad Emperors had suffered intolerably from the bafe villainy and perjuries of Informers, and had the whole crew in abomination; and as there had been Edicts made against Delators by Titus, Nerva, and Trajan; the perfons then in authority might strain a point to cut off this obfcure and detefted villain, and yet might not be willing to fpare Apollonius after he had been publicly accufed; for the Senate in general was never favourable to Christianity, and therefore fome Emperors, who were not void of good qualities, oppreffed the Chriftians, to gain the esteem of that Body, and to pafs for zealous defenders of the Roman laws and cuftoms. 13. Could not Marcus have done as much, if he had been fo minded? Tacitus hated them heartily, and calls them, genus bominum publico exitio repertum, et pænis nunquam fatis coërcitum, The younger Pliny was of the fame mind-but men of honour have ever agréed in difliking and fhunning fuch vermin, tho' men of power have fometimes been fond of them. See Cicero Orat. pro Rofcio, 20: The Senate might condemn Apollonius by Trajan's Refcript to Pliny, and yet not care to encourage informations. If Apollonius was accused by his own flave, the flave, I think, by the Roman laws, was liable to be put to death. Cod. L. x. Tit. xi. and the Notes. The Emperor Tacitus afterwards ordered that flaves fhould not bear witness against their mafters, even in crimes of high treafon. In eadem oratione cavit ut fervi in dominorum capita non interrogarentur, ne in caufa majeftatis quidem. Vopifcus Tacito, p. 608. Trajan forbad the Chriftians to be fought after, that is, he teftified his dislike of it, but he made no law against the accufers of Christians, and subjected them to no penalties. When Cyprian was brought to his trial before the Proconful of Afric, that Magiftrate afked him to give him the names of the Prefbyters of Carthage. Cyprian replied that he would not difcover them, and that even the Civil Laws justly condemned Delators. A&t. Cypr. The death of Apollonius is a proof that the Epiftles which we have of Antoninus Pius and of Marcus Aurelius, which exprefly forbid Chriftians to be put to death for their religion, were forgeries; for the Refcripts of Emperors, unless repealed, were in fome measure Roman laws. Quod principi placuit, legis habet vigorem. Inftit. i. Tit. ii. See Schulting, Differt. pro Refcriptis. Bb 2 IN IN the time of Marcus Aurelius lived Lucian and Apuleius. Lucian was partly a Sceptic, partly an Epicurean, an elegant, ingenious, loofe, and immodeft writer. It is no wonder that he did not like Christianity; yet he hath faid fo much, in the way of ridicule, against fuperftition, and the worship of the Gods, and the fophiftry of the Philofophers, that he may poffibly be confidered in that respect, as a kind of Apologist, who contributed, though undefignedly, to the advancement of religion, if it be allowed that Virtus eft vitium fugere, et fapientia prima The notion that he was an Apoftate from Christianity is groundless. See the Life of Lucian by Reitzius. Bourdelotius on this occafion, fays, Qui mendaciis fuis invicem credunt, Chriftianum fuiffe arbitrantur, fuppofititiorum pravitate decepti. Sawcy enough! Qui mendaciis Juis invicem credunt, is taken from Minucius Felix, and is the character which the Pagan in the Dialogue bestows upon all the Chriftians in general. Apuleius paffed for a philofopher and a magician. The first of these characters he defired and deferved; the fecond he loudly disclaimed. Some Pagans after his time were fo very filly as to oppose to the miracles of Chrift thofe of Apuleius, of which there was not one upon record. Bayle's Dict. APULEIUS. *He praifes and extolls Epicurus in his Alexander. Auguftine Augustine seems to have had a small doubt whether Apuleius was really tranfmographied into an afs. If he had lived in the days of Apuleius and had said so, the Philofopher would have returned the compliment upon him. Apuleius in Libris, quos Afini aurei titulo infcripfit, fibi ipfi accidiffe, ut accepto veneno, humano animo permanente, afinus fieret, aut indicavit, aut finxit. Hac vel falfa funt, vel tam inufitata, ut merito non credantur. De Civ. Dei, xviii. 18. But in the time of Auguftine fome Christian miracles were related by himself, and received by the populace, which for improbability were not at all inferior to the transformation of Apuleius. The elegantftory of Cupid and Psyche in Apuleius is undoubtedly myftical and allegorical. Porphyry wrote a Poem, which is loft, called iegos yáμ, the Sacred Nuptials, by which I fuppofe was meant the mysterious union of the Soul with the Deity; and the enthufiaftic fublimity of the poem made fome readers conclude that the Author was mad; but Plotinus, who was an adept, greatly admired it. Holftenius, Vit. Porph. c. 10, Irenæus, fpeaking of the initiations and myfteries of fome old Heretics, fays, Οἱ μὲν αὐτῶν νυμφῶνα κατασκευάζεσι - και πνευματικὸν γάμον φάσε κεσιν εἶναι τὸ ὑπ ̓ αὐτῶν γινόμενον, καὶ τὰ ὁμοιότητα τῶν ava σvvy,av. Quidam eorum thalamum nuptialem conftruunt eafque fpirituales nuptias effe affir 1 Concerning the Metamorphofis and the Apology of Apuleius, fee Mr. Warburton Div. Legat. vol. ii. |