and annihilation of all her pains to say, "I am a Christian, and no evil is committed among us." The most barbarous indignities were inflicted upon Sanctus the deacon, to extort from him something injurious to the gospel, which he sustained in a manner more than human; and such was the firmness with which he resisted the most intense sufferings, that to every question which was put to him by his tormentors, he had uniformly one reply, "I am a Christian." This provoked the executioners so much, that they applied red hot plates of iron to the tenderest parts of his body, till he was one wound, and scarcely retained the appearance of the human form. Having left him a few days in this ulcerated condition, they hoped to make him more exquisitely sensible to fresh tortures. But the renewal of these while he was dreadfully swelled, was found to have the effect of reducing him to his former shape, and restoring him to the use of his limbs. Biblias, a female, was one of those who had swerved from her profession at the commencement of the persecution. She was now pitched upon, as being one that was likely to accuse the Christians; and the more effectually to extort from her that confession which they wished her to make, this weak and timorous creature was put to the torture. The fact which was pressed upon her to acknowledge was, that the Christians ate their children. "In her torture she recovered herself," it is said, " and awoke as out of a sleep, and in answer to their interrogations, thus remonstrated, "How can we eat infants-we, to whom it is not lawful to eat the blood of beasts."* She now recovered her for * A late ecclesiastical historian (Mr. Milner) has the following remark upon this passage. "Hence it appears that the eating of blood was not practised among the Christians at Lyons; and that they understood not Christian liberty in this point." But with all due deference to Mr. Milner, I cannot help wishing that he had shewn us, "Who gave Christians the Liberty of eating things strangled and blood." Nothing can be more ex SECT. II.] Persecution at Lyons and Vienne. 167 titude, avowed her Christianity, and "was added to the army of martyrs." The ten persons who had swerved from their profession in the hour of trial, and denied that they were Christians, not being credited by the magistrates, were refused the benefit of their recantation. They were insulted for their cowardice, and led to punishment along with the rest, as murderers, though not as Christians, on the evidence which had been produced of their eating human flesh. They proceeded with countenances full of shame and dejection, while those who suffered for their attachment to Christianity, appeared cheerful and courageous, so that the difference between them was perceptible to all the by-standers. After this, no Christian who was apprehended, renounced his profession, but persevered in it to the last. press than the prohibition, Acts xv. 28, 29. Can those who plead their “Christian liberty" in regard to this matter, point us to any part of the word of God, in which this prohibition is subsequently annulled? If not, may I be allowed to ask, " By what authority, except his own, can any of the laws of God be repealed?" Mr. M. held that" the church has power to decree rites and ceremonies, and to settle controversies in matters of faith," and doubtless that church which has power to make new laws in Christ's kingdom, cannot want authority to abolish old ones; but where they obtained this power and authority, I have yet to learn. The following remark of a sensible writer discovers that he is far from agreeing with Mr. Milner in thinking that blood eating is any part of Christian liberty." This (i. e. eating the blood of animals) being forbidden to Noah, appears also to have been forbidden to all mankind; nor ought this prohibition to be treated as belonging to the ceremonies of the Jewish dispensation. It was not only enjoined before that dispensation existed, but was enforced upon the Gentile Christians by the decrees of the apostles, Acts xv. 20. To alledge, as some do, our Lord's words, that "it is not that which goeth into a man which defileth him," would equally justify the practice of cannibals in eating human flesh.-Blood is the life, and God seems to claim it as sacred to himself. Hence, in all the sacrifices, the blood was poured out before the Lord, and in the sacrifice of Christ, he shed his blood, or poured out his soul unto death." Fuller's Disc, on Genesis, ix. 3, 4. ر The populace becoming clamorous to have the Christians thrown to the wild beasts in the amphitheatre, that favourite spectacle was at length provided for them on this occasion, and Maturus, Sanctus, Blandina, and Atta lus, were brought out for this purpose. But previous to the wild beasts being produced, Maturus and Sanctus were put to the torture in the amphitheatre, as if it had not been applied to them before; and every thing that an enraged multitude called for having been tried upon them, they were at last roasted in an iron chair, till they sent forth the offensive effluvia of burnt flesh. Upon Sanctus, however, the only effect produced was a declaration of his former confession that he was a Christian; and at length death terminated his sufferings. Blandina was then produced, and on being fastened to a stake, a wild beast was let loose upon her; but this she bore with the greatest composure; and, by her prayers, encouraged others to bear with fortitude whatever might befal them but, as the wild beast did not meddle with her, she was remanded back to prison. At length Attalus was loudly called for; and he was accordingly led round the amphitheatre, with a board held before him, on which was inscribed, THIS IS ATTALUS THE CHRISTIAN. It appearing, however, that he was a Roman citizen, the president remanded him to prison, until the emperor's pleasure should be known concerning him, and others who were in the same predicament. In this respite they so encouraged many who had hitherto declined this glorious combat, as it was justly called, that great numbers voluntarily declared themselves Christians. The emperor's answer was, that they who confessed themselves to be Christians should be put to death; but that those who denied it should be set at liberty. Upon this, a public assembly was convened, attended by a vast, SECT. II.] Persecution at Lyons and Vienne. 169 concourse of people, before whom the confessors were produced, when such of them as were found to be Roman eitizens were beheaded, and the rest thrown to the wild. beasts. But to the astonishment of all present, many who had previously renounced their Christianity, and were now produced only to be set at liberty, revoked their recantation, and declaring themselves Christians, suffered with the rest. These had been greatly encouraged so to do, by Alexander, a Phrygian, who had shewn himself particularly solicitous for the perseverance of his brethren. The multitude became greatly enraged at this; and Alexander being called before the tribunal, and confessing himself a Christian, he was sentenced to be thrown to the wild beasts; and on the following day he was produced in the amphitheatre for that purpose, together with Attalus, whom the people had insisted upon being brought out once more. Previous to their exposure to the wild beasts they were subjected to a variety of tortures, and at last run through with a sword. During all this Alexander said nothing, but evinced the greatest firmness of mind. And, when Attalus was placed in the iron chair, he only said, in allusion to the vulgar charge against the Christians of those days, of murdering and eating infants, “This, which is your own practice, is to devour men ; we neither eat men, nor practice any other wickedness." On the last day of the show, Blandina was again produced, together with a young man of the name of Pon- · ticus, about fifteen years of age, who had been brought out daily to be a spectator of the sufferings of others. This youth, being required to acknowledge the heathen deities, and refusing to do so, the multitude had no compassion for either of them, but subjected them to the whole circle of tortures, till Ponticus expired in them; and Blandina, having been scourged, and placed in the VOL. I. Ꮓ hot iron chair, was put into a net, and exposed to a bull; and after being tossed for some time by the furious animal, she was at length dispatched with a sword. The spectators acknowledged that they had never known any female bear torture with such fortitude. When this scene was over, the multitude continued to show their rage by abusing the dead bodies of the Christians. Those who had been suffocated in prison were thrown to the dogs, and watched day and night, lest their friends should bury them. The same was done with the bodies that were left unconsumed by fire; that had been mangled or burned, with the heads only of some, and the trunks of others. Even in this horrid state the heathens insulted them, by asking where was their God, and what their religion had done for them. The mangled carcasses having been exposed in this manner for six days, were then burned; and being reduced to ashes, the latter was cast into the river, to disappoint them, as was fondly imagined, of their hopes of a resurrection. From what was done in this place, says Eusebius, we may form an estimate of what was transacted in others.* The prisons were now glutted with the multitude of the Christians-they were thrust into the darkest and most loathsome cells, and numbers were suffocated; even young men who had been lately seized, and whose bodies had been unexercised with sufferings, unequal to the severity of the confinement, expired." Pothinus, one of the elders of the church at Lyons, upwards of ninety years of age, though very infirm and asthmatic, was dragged before the tribunal; "his body," says the narrative, "worn out indeed with age and disease, yet he retained a soul through which Christ might triumph." After being grossly ill-treated by the soldiers and the rabble, who unmercifully dragged him about, insulting Euseb. Hist. ›b. v. ch. 1.: |