fying a star, but who was in other respects a murderer and robber. But by means of his assumed title, among a degraded race, now reduced to the condition of slaves, he pretended to many miracles, as if he were a light descending from heaven, whose object was to cheer them in their oppression. But in the eighteenth year of the reign of Adrian, when the war had reached its height at the city of Bitthera, a very strong fortress, not very far from Jerusalem, the siege was continued for some time, and the revolters were driven to the last extreme by hunger and famine. The author of their madness had also suffered his just punishment, and the whole nation from that time were totally prohibited, by the decree and commands of Adrian, from even entering the country about Jerusalem, so that they could not behold the soil of their fathers even at a distance. Such is the statement of Aristo of Pella. The city of the Jews being thus reduced to a state of abandonment for them, and totally stripped of its ancient inhabitants, and also inhabited by strangers; the Roman city which subsequently arose, changing its name, was called Ælia, in honour of the emperor Ælius Adrian; and when the church of the Gentiles was collected there, the first bishop after those of the circumcision was Marcus.

CHAPTER VII.

THOSE WHO WERE CONSIDERED LEADERS IN FALSE DOCTRINE AT THIS TIME.

As the churches now were reflecting the light like splendid luminaries throughout the world, and the faith of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ was spreading so as to embrace the whole human race, the malignant spirit of iniquity, as the enemy of all truth, and always the most violent enemy to the salvation of men, was now devising every species of machination against the church, as he had already armed himself against it by former persecutions. When, however, cut off from these, he

then waged a war by other methods, in which he employed the agency of wicked impostors as certain abandoned instruments and minions of destruction. Intent upon every course, he instigated these insidious impostors and deceivers, by assuming the same name with us (Christians), to lead those believers whom they happened to seduce to the depths of destruction, and by their presumption, also to turn those, that were ignorant of the faith, from the path that led to the saving truth of God. Hence a certain double-headed and double-tongued serpentine power, proceeding from that Menander whom we have already mentioned as the successor of Simon, produced two leaders of different heresies; Saturninus, a native of Antioch, and Basilides, of Alexandria. The former of these established schools of impious heresy in Syria, the latter in Egypt. Irenæus, indeed, states, that in most respects Saturninus held the same false doctrines with Menander, but that Basilides, under the pretext of matters too deep to be divulged, stretched his inventions to a boundless extent, in his astonishing fictions of impious heresy, But as there were at the time many ecclesiastical writers, who contended for the truth, and defended the doctrine of the apostles and the church, with more than common learning, so there were also some who, by publishing their writings, furnished preventives by the way against these heresies. Of these, the best refutation of Basilides that has come down to us, is that of Agrippa Castor, one of the most distinguished writers of that day. In his refutation he fully exposes the dreadful imposture of the man, and reveals his pretended mysteries. He says, that he composed twenty-four books upon the gospels, and that he mentions Barcabbas, and Barcoph, as prophets, and invents others for himself that never existed. That he also gave them certain barbarous names, in order to astonish those the more who are easily ensnared by such things as these. That he taught also, it was indifferent for those that tasted of things sacrificed to idols, and were betrayed unwarily, to abjure the faith

in times of persecution. Like Pythagoras, he enjoined, also, upon his followers, a silence of five years. Other accounts, similar to these, are given by the above-mentioned author, respecting Basilides, in which he ably exposes the fallacy of his heresy. Irenæus also writes, that Carpocrates was contemporary with these, who was also the father of another heresy, called the heresy of the Gnostics.

These did not, like the former, wish to retain the magic arts of Simon in secret, but thought that they should be made public. So that, as if it were something great and glorious, they boasted of preparations of love potions, and of tutelary and dream-exciting dæmons, and other similar magic rites.

In accordance with these things, they also taught, that the basest deeds should be perpetrated by those that would arrive at perfection in the mysteries, or rather that would reach the extent of their abominations. So that, as they were accustomed to speak, one could in no other way escape the rulers of the world, unless by performing his part of obscenity to all. By the aid of such coadjutors, it happened, that the spirit of wickedness enslaved those that were led astray by them to their own destruction; whilst to the unbelieving Gentiles, they afforded abundant scope to slander the truth of God, as the report proceeding from them extended with its infamy to the whole body of Christians. In this In this way it happened, therefore, for the most part, that a certain impious and most absurd suspicion was spread abroad among the unbelievers respecting us, as of those who had unlawful commerce with mothers and sisters, and made use of execrable food. These artifices, however, did not continue to advance far, as the truth nevertheless established itself, and in process of time shed abroad its own light more and more. Indeed, the machinations of its enemies were almost immediately extinguished by the power of truth; one sect rising after another, the first always passing away, and one in one way, and another in another,

evaporating into speculations of many modes, and as many forms. But the splendour of the universal and only true church constantly advanced in greatness and glory, always the same in all matters under the same circumstances, and reflected its dignity, its sincerity, its freedom, and the modesty and purity of that divine life and temper which it inculcates, to all nations, both Greeks and barbarians. At the same time with the above heresy, the aspersions upon our religion were suppressed. For the doctrine that we hold has alone survived, has prevailed over all, and been universally acknowledged as surpassing all in dignity and gravity, in divine truths that evince a genuine and sound philosophy. So that no one, down to the present time, has dared to affix any calumny upon our faith, nor any such slander, such as was formerly so eagerly applied by those that rose up against us. Nevertheless, in those times the truth presented many champions that undertook its defence, not only by unwritten argumentations, but, also, by their written demonstrations against the prevailing heretical impieties.

CHAPTER VIII.

THE ECCLESIASTICAL WRITERS THEN FLOURISHING.

AMONG these, Hegesippus holds a distinguished rank, many of whose writings we have already quoted, where we have given some things as he has delivered them from apostolic tradition. This author compiled, in five books, the plain tradition of the apostolic doctrine, in a most simple style of composition, and clearly shows the time in which he lived, where he writes respecting those that began to erect idols, as follows: "To whom they made cenotaphs and temples, as we see to this day. Among whom was Antinous, the slave of Adrian the emperor, to whose honour likewise games are celebrated, which has been done in our own days. For he (Adrian,) also built a city, called after Antinous, and instituted prophets." At this time also, Justin, a true lover of

sound philosophy, whilst he yet continued exercising himself in the literature of the Greeks, likewise shows this very time in his Apology to Antonine, as follows: "I do not think it out of place here, to mention Antinous of our own day, whom all, notwithstanding they knew who and whence he was, yet affected to worship as a god." The same author adds this remark, speaking of the Jewish war: 66 And, indeed, in the Jewish war which has happened in our times, Barchochebas, the leader of the Jewish revolt, commanded the Christians alone to be led to severe and dreadful tortures, unless they would deny and blaspheme Christ Jesus." In the same work, also, showing his own conversion from the Greek philosophy to religion to be the effect of cool deliberation and judgment, and not without good reason, writes as follows: "For whilst I was delighted with the doctrines of Plato, and heard the Christians calumniated, but at the same time saw them intrepid at the prospect of death, and every thing deemed terrific, I reflected that it was impossible they should live devoted to vice and voluptuousness. For what lover of pleasure, or intemperate man, or what man deeming human flesh a delicacy, could embrace death in order to be deprived of the objects of his own desires; and would not rather strive to live always to escape the eye of the magistrate, and not inform against himself, in the expectation of certain death." The same author, moreover, relates, that Adrian, having received letters from Serenius Granianus, the most illustrious proconsul, respecting the Christians, in which he states, that it did not appear just to put the Christians to death without a regular accusation and trial, merely to gratify the outcries of the populace; wrote back to Minucius Fundanus, proconsul of Asia, enjoining upon him to put no one to death, without an indictment and lawful accusation. Of this epistle, also, he (Justin,) adds a copy in the Latin tongue, in which it was written. He also premises the following explanation. "Although we have good cause from the epistle

K