The Mission and Expansion of Christianity in The First Three Centuries, Vol. 2, Harnack. (1908)
The Mission and Expansion of Christianity in The First Three Centuries, Vol. 2, Harnack. (1908)
The Mission and Expansion of Christianity in The First Three Centuries, Vol. 2, Harnack. (1908)
y~<^^i^^( /i^'^cKo^iSC^^-^uA^^
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THEOLOGICAL TRANSLATION LIBRARY
VOL. XX
HARNACK'S THE MISSION AND EXPANSION OF
CHRISTIANITY IN THE FIRST THREE CENTURIES
VOL. II
THE
MISSION AND EXPANSION
OF CHRISTIANITY IN THE
FIRST THREE CENTURIES
BY
ADOLF HARNACK
PROFESSOR OF CHURCH HISTORY IN THE ONIVERSITT OF BESLIX, AND
MEMBER OF THE ROYAL PRUSSIAN ACADEMY
VOL. II
BOOK IV
§ 3.
§ 4.
At Court
In the Army
Among Women
.......
......
42-52
52-64
64-84
94-96
§ 1. Palestine 97-120
§ 2. Phoenicia 120-125
§3. CCELE-SVRIA 125-140
§ 4. Cyprus 140-142
§ 5. Edessa (Osrhoene) and the East (Meso-
potamia, Persia, Parthia, and India) . 142-152
§ 6. Arabia 153-158
§ 7.
§ 8.
Egypt and
Pentapolis
Cilicia
......
the Thebais, Libya and
158-179
180-181
§9- Asia Minor in General. . . . 182-192
A. Cappadocia 192-196
B. Armenia, Diospontus, Paphlagonia,
PoNTUs Polemoniacus . . 196-210
C. BiTHYNIA 210-212
D. Galatia,
(with Lycaonia) ....
Phrygia,
PAGES
§ 18.
§ 19.
Africa,
Tripolitana
Spain
Numidia,
.....
Mauretania, and
274-297
297-306
Appendix I. The Spread of Christian Heretical
Unions and of Sectarian Churches. . . 307-311
SULARIS, ZeUGITANA.
The
Mission and Expansion of Christianity
BOOK IV
CHAPTER I
€Tn<TTev6r] ev Kocr/ua).
virapxovcriv.
[i.e., Tov KOCTiJLOv] opicrOei^Teg ev 'lr](rov ILpicTTOv yi/co/x^; eicrlv (" the
bishops settled in the utmost corners of the world are in the
mind of Jesus Christ ").
§ 10. PI i n Y s E^i.-£uL-Tra.j.^.JicvJ —(xcvii :"....
.
) visa est
enim mihi res digna eonsultatione, maxime propter periclitantium
numerum. multi enim omnis aetatis, omnis ordinis, utriusque
sexus etiam, vocantur in periculum et vocabuntur. neque
civitates tantum sed vicos etiam atque agros superstitionis istius
contagio pervagata est ; quae videtur sisti et corrigi posse,
certe satis constat prope iani desolata templa coepisse celebrari
et sacra solemnia diu intermissa repeti pastumque venire victi-
marum, cuius adhuc rarissimus emptor inveniebatur. ex quo
facile est opinari, quae turba hominum emendari possit, si sit \
all ages and ranks, and even of both sexes, are in risk of their
lives, or will be. The infection of the superstition has spread
not only through cities but into villages and country districts,
6 Se
yrji/
po/uo^
vojuo'^
TrXeioveg eyevofxeOa twv Sokovvtcov ex«i/ Oeov (" Our people then
seemed to be deserted by God whereas now, after believing, ;
GENERAL EVIDENCE 5
eTrap')(!.a Kal iroXei eicnv juloi reKi'a Kara Beov ("In every
province and city I have children towards God ""'). Compare
also the remark of Melito to Marcus Aurelius (in Eus., H.E.,
iv. 26), that many imperial rescripts had been published in
different cities regarding Christianity, and the fact that the
rescript of Pius to the Common Diet of Asia, which contains
a nucleus of truth, says that " many governors in the provinces
I
17. Iren. I. x. 2 : rovro ro Ky']pvyixa irapeiK^ipvla Kai ravrtjv
II. xxxi. 2 : ovK e(TTiv apidfj-ov eiTreiv tmv papieriJLaTociv &v kutu
iravTO^ Tov koctjuov r} eKKXrjcria wapa Oeov \a/3ov(Ta, k.t.X. (" It
is impossible to enumerate the gifts received by the church from
God over all the world," etc.), and III. iv. 1 :
" Quid autem si
now revealed to all, including Athens and Greece " (Trduru vvv
6 SiSdaKoXo^ KartjX'^i Km to irav t/St] 'A-Utjifai kui EXAa? yeyovev
TOO Xoyco) ; Sfrotn., vi. 18. 16T : o tov SiSaa-KaXov tov ^/ueTepov
Xoyo9 OVK efxeivev ev '\ov8aLa fiovi], KaBdirep ev Ttj EXAa(5t ^
(pi\o(TO(J)la, sxvQi} Se ava wacrav Ttjv oiKOv/meviji/ ireiOwv EAXj/koj^
re o/JLOv Kui ^ap^apcov /cara eOi/o? kul KU)/ii>]v kui ttoXiv iracrav,
o'lKov^ bXov^ KUI iSia eKucTTOv Twv e7raKt]KooT(ioi>, Kai avTMU ye
Tcov (f>iXo(T6(f)(i)V OVK oXlyov^ t'jSt] eiri aXi'fieiav jueOKXTO.^ (" The
word of our teacher did not remain in Judaea alone, as did
philosophy in Greece, but was poured out over the whole
universe, persuading Greeks and barbarians alike in the various
iTatTons and villages and cities, winning over whole households,
GENERAL EVIDENCE 7
i/yx^^.'^r-^yi^ - '
-r-^^^l^^— y /;A.v^,^/i-X
8 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
houses, villages, townships, markets, the camp itself, the tribes,
town councils, the palace, the senate, and the forum. All we
have left you is your temples. For what war should we not
have been fit and ready, even despite our inferiority in numbers,
we who are so willing to perish, were it not better, according
to our mind, to be killed rather than to kill ? We could have
fought you even without being rebels, simply by showing our
ill-will in For if such a force of
separating from your polity.
men had broken away from you to some distant corner
as ours
of the world, why, your empire would have been covered with
shame at the loss of so many citizens, no matter who they
were nay, your punishment would have been civic bankruptcy.
;
Christians that your foes ai'e fewer, sjnce nearly all the citizens
-of nearly all your cities are Christians
"). De Corona, xii. " Et :
the nations of the world believed, but on the Christ who has
already come ? . . . . with others as well as different races of
the Gaetuli, many tribes of the Mauri, all the confines of Spain,
and various tribes of Gaul, with places in Britain which,
though inaccessible to Rome, have yielded to Christ. Add
the Sarmatte, the Daci, the Germans, the Scythians, and many
::
domini " (" All nations now go up to the hill of the Lord ").
§ 21. Caecilius, in Minuc. Felix, ix. : "Ac iam, ut fecundius
nequiora proveniunt, serpentibus in dies perditis moribus per
universum orbem sacraria ista taeterrima impiae coitionis
adolescunt " (" And as the fouler a thing is, the faster it ripens,
while dissolute morals glide on day by day all over the world,
those loathsome rites of an impious assembly are maturing'';
also Octavius in xxxi. :
" Et quod in dies nostri numerus
augetur, non est crimen erroris sed testimonium laudis" ("That
OLU' numbers increase daily is a reason, not for charging us with
error, but for bearing witness to us with praise ") xxxiii. ;
videmur, sed deo admodum pauci sumus " (" Nor let us flatter
ourselves about our numbers. We seem many to our own eyes,
but in God's sight we are still few "),
^ 22. Origen, de Prkic, iv. 1. 1 f iraa-a 'EXAa? koi . :
' See also Hippol., Philos., x. 34; toioCtos b -n-epl rh 6e7oy a.\7]0rjs \6yos, S)
T-qv EvpwTrr)v, 'Aaiay re Kai Ai^vf)v KaroiKovvres (" Such is the true word regarding
nee apud Seras nee apud Ariacin " [Orientem, edd., but he
probably means 'Apta/oy, a region on the western coast of India]
GENERAL EVIDENCE 13
temeritatis est magnae " (" And this gospel of the kingdom
shall be preached in all the world, for a testimony to all nations,
and then shall the end come.*'"' " If anyone wishes to discuss
the meaning of 'all nations'' in this passage, he will find it
quite clear and sure, since the people of Christ are hated by all
nations, even by those dwelling in the uttermost parts of the
earth. Unless, may be, one declares that here too all is
it ' ""
to hear it. And thereafter the end will come For many
traitors have not yet arisen from the church. Many false
prophets have not yet arisen to deceive many. Nor yet have
all the nations dwelling in the uttermost parts of the earth
hated us for the sake of Christ"'s name ; nor yet has the gospel
of the kingdom been preached in all the world. For we are
not told that the gospel has been preached among all the
Ethiopians, particularly among those who are on the other side
of the River : nor among the Serae, nor in Ariace, has the tale
of Christ been heard. But what shall we say of Britain or
Germany, on the seaboard, or the barbarians, the Dacians,
the Sarmatse, and the Scythians, most of whom have not yet
heard the gospel, but are to hear it at the consummation of
the ages ? For see what he saith. And this gospel shall be '
6/uLoim roh TrdXai xpoVot? (" Since those who utter all kinds
of calumny against the gospel ascribe the present prevalence
of sedition tci,tke multitude of believers, and to the latter not
being persecuted by the authorities, as long ago they were ")
ibid.. III. xxix. : 6 Se TreVV^tt? tov 'IrjcroOi/ Geo? e/cXfcra? irairau
T)]v Tu>v SdijULOvcou eTTi/SovXrjv eTTOu'icre iravTaxov T^s" oiKov/ui€i'}]<;
e'nrep, " dv Suo arvp-cjioovSicriv e^ ^/ulcciv eiri Ttji yrj<i irepi iravTOg
7rpay/j.aT0<i ov eav aiTt](TOt)VTai yev^aeTai avTOi^ irapa tov ev
" vvv iravv
to]*; ovpavoh Trarpo? t/ XP*^ vofxi^eiv, ei ixr] juovov o)?
GENERAL EVIDENCE 15
\frux<^9 [cp. vol. i. p. 263]. III. viii. : SXlyoi Kara Kaipovg koi
<T<poSpa €vapi6jULt]T0i VTTep T^s ^picTTiavMi/ Oeocre/SeLas TeOiz/jKaai,
KCoXvovro^ Oeov to irav eKTroXe/urjOfji^at avTiov eOvo^ (" From time
to time a few, who can easily be counted, died for the sake of
Christian religion, God refusing to allow the whole people to
be exterminated "). III. x. : on jmev ouu crv/Kplaei tov e^fjg
disciples belonging to Simon Magus all over the world does not
amount at present, in my opinion, to thirty. Perhaps that is
even putting it too high. They only exist in Palestine, and
indeed only in extremely small numbers." For a passage from
Origen, quoted by Eusebius {H.E.^ iii. 1), see under § 27.
§ 23. Cypriaiij ad Dernetrian. xvii " Inde est quod nemo :
humana est, nulla regio tam remota, cui aut passio Christi aut
sublimitas maiestatis ignota sit (No race is so uncivilized,
""
" Nero cum animadverteret non modo Romae sed ubique cotidie
magnam multitudinem deficere a cultu idolorum et ad religionem
novam transire " (" Thence the disciples, who then numbered
eleven, scattered over all the earth to preach the gospel ....
and for twenty-five years, down to the beginning of Nero's reign,
laid the foundations of the church in every province and st ate.'*''
" When Nero noticed that not only at Rome but everywhere a
large multitude were daily falling away from idolatry and
:
GENERAL EVIDENCE 17
quo non religio dei penetrasset, nulla denique natio tarn feris
moribus vivens, ut non suscepto dei cultu ad iustitiae opera
mitesceret " (" There was now no nook or corner of the earth so
remote that the divine religion had not reached it, no nation so
rough in life that it was not mellowing to works of righteous-
ness by having accepted the worship of God''). Cp. Arnobius, /) ^]«/
"'
ii. 5: "lam per omnes terras in tarn brevi temporis spatio
inmensi nominis huius sacramenta diffusa sunt, nulla iam natio
est tam barbari moris et mansuetudinem nesciens, quae non eius
for this reason on the crops of the Gaetuli and the Aquitani,
VOL. II. 2
;
It
were divided between the Catholics and the Donatists.
§ 29. Eusebiusi (H.E., i. 3. 12): Christ has filled the whole
world with his holy name. i. 8. 19 : julovov avTOP e^ airavToov
TU)P 7ru)7roT€ e(V eVi Koi vvv irapa iraa-iv avOpwiroig KaO bXov tov
k6(Tjuov ^pioTTOv eTrKprj/ixi^ecrOai ojuoXoyeiaOaL re kg] fxapTvpeicrOai
TT/oo? aTravTwi/ exi Trj irpocrrjyopla irapa re "EAX>?cri Kai 3ap-
/3apoi? fJiVrifi-ovevecrQai, kqi e<? ert vvv irapa to?? ava Ttjv oiKOv/H€vr]v
avTov OiacrwTai? rifxacrdai p-ev w? (SacriXea, Oavpa^ecrOai Se virep
7rpo<p-)]r}]v, K.r-X- (" He alone of all who ever lived is still called
by the name of Christ among all men over the whole world
yea, confessedand witnessed to under this title, and com-
memorated by Greeks and barbarians, and even to this day
he is honoured as a king by his followers throughout all the
world, admired as Something greater than a prophet," etc.).
i. 4. 2 : Tyj? p.ev yap tov a-coTrjpo? })p.u)v '\t]aov j^piarrov irapovcria^
' We need only quote the most characteristic passages out of the large number
of relevant sections in the Church History, And even these are only given soriie-
tirnes in abbreviated form.
:
GENERA t EVIDENCE 19
elp7]i')]^ (TUf Qe'ia \apLTi Ta? KaO' oXrjq t^? oiKOVjuei't]^ SiaXa^ovcn]^
eKKXrjcriag, ore kg) 6 acoW/pio^ Xoyo? €k iravTO^ yevov? avOptinrwv
iracrau uTTJ/yeTO '^vxtjv eiri Trjv eva-eptj tou toov bXcov Beov
OptjCTKelav, locTTe tjSt] Kai to^p ctt] Pw/xj;? ev /uaXa irXovTco kqi
yevei SiarpavMu 'TrXeiov? eiri Trjv (T(pwv o/mocre yoipelv iravoiKi re
Kiu irayyevrj crcarrjpLav ("About the time of the reign of
Com modus our affairs changed foi' the better, and by God''s
grace the xihurches all over the world enjoyed peace. Mean-
while the word of salvation was conducting every soul from
every race of man to the devout worship of the God of all
over the rest of the world "). vi, 36. 1 : [in the reign of Philip
the Arabian] Tore SrJTa, ola koi eiKo^ tjf, TrXtjOvovu}]? r^?
7ri(TTe(jO(f, ireTrappriaiacriJLivov re tov KaO^ rj/xa^ irapa iracri Xoyov,
K.T.X. (" Then indeed, as was only fitting, when the faith was
increasing, and our doctrine being confidently proclaimed to
all men,"" etc.). vii. 10. 3: wag re o 01K09 avTov Oeoael^wv
TreirXrjpwTo kul ijv eKKXt](Tia Oeou (before Valerian turned perse-
cutor, he had been more friendly to the church than any
previous emperor, "and his whole house had been filled with
pious persons, being a very church of God"), viii. 1. 1 f.
oa-tjg fiev koi. oxo/a? x/oo tov kuO' tjuxag Siwyiuov [the Diocletian
persecution] (Jo'^j;? ojulov kcu Trappyjcrlag o . . . . tJJ? evcrejSeia?
How can any one depict those vast gatherings of people, the
crowds that assembled in every city, and the famous convoca-
tions held in the places of prayer ? So great were these, that,
dissatisfied with the old buildings, the people now proceeded
to erect from the foundation upwards in all the
churches
cities"), viii. Maxentius started as though he would
14. 1 :
profess our faith, " in order to please and flatter the people of
Rome" (e7r' dpecncela Km KoXaKeia tou Si'jixov Vcop-Lawv). l. 4. 2
(see above) : the Christians are now the most populous nation
in the world.^ llieophan., iv. 32: "In the whole world and
among all nations, in towns and in villages alike, have myriads
not only of men but also of women maintained holiness and
virginity intact, for the sake of the hope and expectation of the
heavenly kingdom " ; v. 26 :
" (The disciples) should teach the
Redeemer's commandments both in the villages and cities, some
of them to the Roman power (itself), and so apportion to them-
selves this city of the empire, others also to the Persians, others
to those among the Armenians, others to the nation of the
Parthians, and again to that also of Scythians, (that) some of
these should go forth, even as far as the extremities of the ,
{ ! ^i
1 In conclusion, we may set clown this further passage from Firmic. Matern., *--- Jj. D /
Dc Err. Prof, Relig. xx. , although it was written about twenty years after the
" Quis locus in terra est, quern non Christi possedcrit nomen?
'
' T ^
O ^
council of Nicrea :
qua sol oritur, qua occidit, qua erigitur septemtrion, qua vergit auster, totum
venerandi numinis maiestas implevit, et licet adhuc in quibusdam regionibus ^^
idololatriae morientia palpitent membra, tamen eo res est ut a Christianis
in
omnibus terris pestiferum hoc malum funditus amputetur'" ("What spot is there
upon earllv vdijch^is not_beld by the name of Christ ? Where the sun rises and
sets, in every quarter of the globe, the glory of his honourable heavenly majesty
has filled creation. And although the dying limbs of idolatry still quiver in some
countries, this deadly evil is to be cut off by Christians of every land").
— :
in my name."
Peter was the only apostle who reached the West. But the \^OC|^L^ )
The
testimonies collected under §§ 1-4, 6-9, and 11 repre-
sent the original and ancient conception of the rapid spread of
the gospel over all the world. They tell us hardly anything
about its actual spread, tliough they certainly bear witness to
its energetic character, and to the fact that the gospel had
already reached barbarians, Greeks, and Latins in the course of
its diffusion throughout the empire.
§ 3 (Matt. xxiv. 14) contains the general theory of the
mission, which is put into the lips of Jesus " the gospel has to
:
^ Are we not to understand the original form of the story of Pentecost (in Acts ii.
in —
some such sense? as though the end might come, now that representatives
from all the nations were gathered in Jerusalem, and had thus had the gospel
brought home to them all.
24 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
be preached to all the world for a testimony to the heathen.
Then coines the end." The eschatological picture drawn by the
author of the Apocalypse (§ 6, Apoc. vii. 9) corresponds to this.
The passages from Paul (1 Thess. i. 8 ; Rom. i. 8, xv. 19 f. ;
^
Cp. what has been already said on this passage in vol. i. pp. 73 f.
*
I shall not enter into any discussion of the legends underlying the apocryphal
^
Acts of the Apostles, since it is no longer possible to ascertain accurately even the
modicum of truth which may have been their historical kernel. A few details
will be discussed elsewhere. The legends regarding the distribution of the
apostles and their missionary spheres are exhibited by Lipsius in his Apokr.
Apostelgeschichten, i. i. pp, 11 f.
GENERAL EVIDENCE 25
—
ments particularly as he had good reasons for exaggerating the
movement,^ in order to dissuade the emperor from taking any
wholesale, bloody measures for its repression. Still, the main
later, to the effect that the Christians were more numerous than
the Jews (| 13). For, even if this notice represents a purely
^ To be perfectly prudent, one has to take this estimate as applying to the time
when the author of Acts wrote (i.e., about thirty years later), not to the days
of Paul.
- Just in the same way as he probably exaggerated the effects produced by the
^ The statement made by the martyr Papylus before the magistrate (§ i6) shows
that there were Christians in hisday in every province and town of Asia.
:
GENERAL EVIDENCE 27
the naive addition of the " many islands unknown to us, which
we are unable to reckon up" ("insularum multarum nobis
ignotarum et quae enumerare minus possumus").^ The general
^ Nevertheless it is noteworthy that Hippolytus also writes {Philosoph.^ x. 34)
TOiovTos b Trepl rb Qtiov aXridris \6yos, S> dvOpaiiroi "EWrjvfS re Kal jSdpPapot,
Xa\5aioi t( koI 'Acravpioi, AlyvTrrtoi re Kal Ai'/Siiey, 'IvSoi re Kal AlOlones, K^Aroi
T€ Kal oi <iTpaTTf]yovvTis Aarlvoi, iravTis re 01 ttjv Eupwn-rjj' 'Aaiav re Kal Ai^injy
KaToiKovvTes, oTs crvfi^ovXos e'ycb yiyonai (see above, p. lo). This passage does
not prove, of course, that there were local Christians in all these districts, but it
28 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
statement that the gospel had reached several barbarian tribes
may be accepted as trustworthy, but beyond that we cannot go.
Note also how though he does not base
Tertullian supposes —
upon statistics that Christians when put
his idea, of course, —
together would outnumber any people (also Cyprian's remark
in § 23).
The evidence of Origen (
§ 22) is all the more welcome, as he
jonns the Jirst and only Christian narrator ivho testifies to the
relative paucity of Christians. Indeed, in witnessing (i) to the
without the empire (" non solum barbarae, sed etiam nostrae ")
to which Christianity had not penetrated, or in which only a
very small fraction of people (perhaps the population on the
frontiers) had heard the gospel,^ Origen shakes off the dogmatic
theory already mentioned ; and this is all the more significant,
inasmuch as he accepts the legends about Thomas having gone
to the Parthians, Andrew to the Scythians, etc. In the second
place (ii) he shows that no such thing as an entirely Christian
—
town was yet in existence for such we must take to be the
meaning of the passage in c. Cels., III. xxx. (though it may also
shows how the Christian preacher and author felt he was the teacher of all nations,
not in an abstract but in quite a concrete sense, and how already his eye was fixed
on every individual. It is Cyprian's age that furnishes us with our first notice of
the number of Christians in a Christian community, viz., in that of Rome (Eus.,
/I.E., vi. 43). The notice, of course, is indirect, for the Roman bishop Cornelius
merely states the number of the clergy and tlie number of those supported by
the church (cp. below, chap. III., sect. 14).
^
It is instructive to find that among the nations whom he mentions in this
connection are some to whom Tertullian {/oc. cit. ) declares that Christianity had
penetrated. Origen, however, does not deny that certain individuals from these
nations had heard the gospel preached besides, adopting a looser way of speaking,
;
he writes several times as if Christianity had spread all over the world.
GENERAL EVIDENCE 29
^ He does mention evangelists (iii. 37. i f. ) who had preached to?s trt wd/xiTav
a.v7)K6ois Tov TTjs iTicTTfoos x6yov
age of the apostles
after the this denotes, ;
however, not lands and peoples hitherto unreached, but merely such parts of these
countries as had not yet heard anything of the gospel.
;
GENERAL EVIDENCE 31
CHAPTER II
this, and the apologists admit the fact.^ Even the officials of
the Christian church frequently belonged to the lowest class
(see above, vol. i. p. 168).^
Even Paul, however, implies that some people who were wise
and mighty and of good birth had become Christians.* And
'
j^ this is borne out by the book of Acts. The proconsul_Sfirgius
"si Paulus was brought over to the faith in Cyprus (xiii. 7-12),^
"^ionysius the Areopagite in Athens (xvii. 34), and " not a few
women of good position" in Thessalonica (xvii. 4). So with
Beroea (xvii. 12). From Rom^yi. 23 we learn that Erastus,
the city-treasurer of Corinth, became a believer. Priscilla, the
Churches " (Zi?//j. y«r Theol. u. Kirche, 1900, pp. 325 f. ), and the same writer's
Nachapostolisches Zeitalter (1905), pp. 64 f., with several sections in von
Dobschtitz's Die U7-christl. Ge///ei>iden[Kng. trans., Christian Life in the Primitive
Churches, 1 904]. The scarcity of material available for the apostolic and the
sub-apostolic ages, however, prevents us from gaining much more information
than what might be inferred a priori or deduced from one or two general state-
ments. In his volume on The Share taken by Ch}-istians in Public Life during
the fre-Constatt/ine Period (1902), Bigelmair also discusses (pp. 76 f. , 125 f.
® For Christian merchants who travel, cp. iv. 13 f. The frequent warning
against KKiovi\ia. (covetousness) which occurs in the primitive literature may
apply primarily to traders.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 35
also that they are unduly favoured even at the services of the
church. In Ronie, a. distinguished lady ("insignis femina,"
Tacit., Ann.^ xiii. 32), Pomponia Graecina, was converted,
followednot long afterwards by the consul Titus Flavius..
Clemens and his wife Domitilla (see under § 2). These and
similar results must ere long have attracted a large number of
adherents to the local Christian church from the better classes.^
^Ignatius^ in his epistle to the Roman church, assumes that it
was so influential as to have the power of hindering his
ijiartyrdom, a fear which would have been unreasonable had not
the church contained members whose riches and repute enabled
them to intervene in this way either by bribery or by the
exercise of personal influence. The "Shepherd'' of Hennas
shows that such people did exist at Rome. We read there of
Roman Christians who are "absorbed in business and wealth
and friendship with pagans and many other affairs of this~world "
{e^irecjivpixivoi TT/oay/x are/a i? Koi ttXovtw kuI cpiXiai^ edviKaU koI
aWai<i TToWaig irpayiuareiai^ tou aioovo? rovrou, Aland., x. 1),
and of others who "ha^e won riches and renown among
pagans" {irXovTrjcravre? Kal yevo/xevoL evSo^oi -wapa toi^ tdveaiv).'^
^Hermas_frequently has occasion to mention the rich members
of the church, and his reproofs of their conduct are severe.^
' Dio Cassius relates (Ixvii. 14) that many others, besides Clemens and Domitilla
who had apostatized to Jewish customs, were condemned by Domitian on the
score of "atheism": koX ol fxev airedavov, ol Se ruv yovy ovaiuv icTTrjp-fidricrav •
Glabrio, the senator and ex-consul also mentioned by Dio, was possibly a ClTristian
(cp. below, p. 46).
'^
He continues thus : vneprifpaviau ixiya\7\v iveSvcravro Kal v\pr)\6(ppovfs iyivovTo
Kol KareMirov rriv a.\i]6iMv kou ovk iKo\\-r}dr\(Ta.v to?s Sikuiois, fxera twj/ aWa
idvSiv ffvve^7](Tav, koX avrr] 7) 65hs rjSvrepa avTo7s icpaii/ero (" They invested them-
selves with a mighty pride and became high-minded, and abandoned the truth,
nor did they cleave to the righteous but held intercourse with pagans. Such
was the path of life which seemed more pleasant to them," Sim., viii. 9).
^ Stm. i.: Ti SSe u/xeTs kroitia^ire aypovs Kal Trapard^ns
Tro\vTeAe7s Kal oIko-
Sofias Kal olK^fxaTa ndraia [cp. vol. i. p. 97]; lYs., i. I. 8, ii. 2, iii, 6. 5 f,
,
a"\ ^^v^A (Tcpcov ofj-oa-e X'^pelv iravoiKi re Koi Trayyei/T] crcoTrjpiai'. This he
proceeds to illustrate by the case of Apollonius at Rome, who
belonged at any rate to the upper classes, and indeed was in
^^ likelihood a senator."^ Not much later than this, perhaps, we
iii. 9. 3 f. , iii. II. 3 ; Matid., viii, 3, xii. 1-2 ; Sim., ii., iv. , viii. S, ix. 20. i f.
should date the inscription from Ostia (see above, vol. i. p. 426),
which proves that some members of the gens Anna?a were
Christians ; in the same way it is indubitable that a number
of the Pomponii had died as Christians by the close of the
second century.^ Tertullian's language
tallies with this. He ^
1 See de Rossi, Jio//i. sott., ii. tab. 49/50, Nos. 22, 27, and tab. 41, No. 48. n^ >
"
Tertullian himself was a distinguished lawyer in Rome before he became a _
JJl^t--
Christian (Eus. , II.E.,'u. 4^'. There is nothing, in my judgment, to prevent the lo/uT^e,^ .
hypothesis that he is the lawyer whose works are quoted in the Digests.
^ Clement {Strom., vi. 18. 167) asserts that not a few philosophers had already
turned Christians and it must also be taken as a sign of the times, when we find
;
the governor of Arabia asking the prefect of Egypt to send Origen to him that he
might listen to his lectures (Eus., H.E., vi. 19). Compare the introduction to
pseudo-Justin's " Address to the Greeks," in the Syriac edition, which describes
the author as " Ambrosius, a high dignitary of Greece, who has become a
Christian," and tells how his " fellow-senators" had raised a protest against him.
^ Cp. ii. f. The Paedagogus also proves that the church, for which its instruc-
,
' In de Lapsis, vi., however, he draws a repulsive picture of the entirely secular
life of the rich Christians.
'^_Eus., H.E,, viii. 9: i^aiperus eKelvoi 6avfj.a(na>Tepot, oi ttKovt^ fiiv koX
evyeyfia koI S6^7], \6yw re Koi <pi\0(TO(pia Stairpe\pa.vres iravTa ye fjirjv SfVTtpa
defxivoi TTjs .... more wonderful were those who, though con-
TriffTioos ("Still
spicuous for their wealth, and high position, and though eminent in
birth,
learning and philosophy, yet ranked everything second to their faith "). Even
by the time that the Decian persecution broke out in Alexandria, there were
many local Christians among the leading people and officials of the city cp. ;
Dionys. Alex, in Eus., H.E., vi. 41. II woWoX fxev evdeais raiv TrepKpavea-Tepwv
:
01 /xev a.Tffii'Tcov Srjdi6res, 01 Se Sr^fxacrievovres iiirh rwv wpa^etav r\yowo (" And many
of the more eminent people came forward at once in terror, while others, in
government service, were induced by their public duties").
' The notice (in
the Acts of Calocerus and Parthenius) of a Christian consul
named ^milianus is untrustworthy, despite the alleged corroboration afforded by
the catacombs (cp. Allard's PersL^c, iii. pp. 241 f, Bigelmair's Die Beteil. der
;
Christen am offentl. Leben, 1902, 151 f.). There was a consul of that name in
248 A.D.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 39
^ Cp., e.g., the tale of Astyrius, who belonged to the senatorial order, in Eus.,
JI.£., vii. i6f.
^ Eus., H.E., viii. 9. 6 f., where he continues (see p. 38, note 2) : olos
&iKias TTJs @fioviTa>v eV/cArjcias (TriaKOTros, diairpfipas av))p rais Kara rrjv irarpiSa
iroAtTeiais re Kal \iiTovpyiais, (v re to7s Kara ^iKocrocpiav \6yois, k.t.A. (" Such a
man is Phileas, bishop of the church at Thmuis, a man eminent for his patriotism
and for the services he had rendered to his country, a man of philosophic attain-
ments also").
* On this bishop see Gomperz in Afzz.
d. k. Wiener Akad., Phil. -Hist., Klasse
bishop of Laodicea, also played a political role at Alexandria during this period
(Eus., H.E., vii. 32). Compare the description of bishop Phileas of Thmuis
(viii. 9). If one puts together what is known of Christianity at Alexandria during
the last third of the third century and the beginning of the fourth, one gets the
impression that the Alexandrian Christians were already a strong and influential
party in the city, with which the political authorities had to reckon.
—
govern (ra? toov eOvoiv rjyejULovlag), and exempted them from the
dxdy of offering saaifice.'''' ^ Unfortunately, Eusebius has not
told us what provinces were committed to Christian governors,
just as he fails to mention (in viii. 11)^ the name of that town
in Phrygia whose entire population, including officials, were
Christians. Only two Christians of high position are men-
tioned by him, viz., Philoromus of Alexandria,^ and a certain
Adauctus.*
We can see, then, how even prior to Constantine the Christian
religion had made its way into the government service,^ just as
it had found an entrance, thanlvs to Clement and Origen, into
^ The latter fact has not even yet been weighed properly in any estimate of the
situation previous to Constantine. It looks like a_recognid^n .of Christianity
along administrative lines. On the other hand, the fifty-sixth canon of Elvira
permits the acceptance of the duumvirate, but orders the magistrate to keep away
from church during his year of office ( " Magistratus vero uno anno quo agit
duumviratum, prohibendum placet ut se ab ecclesia cohibeat"). This is the final
compromise.
^ This valuable paragraph
runs as follows : llav^7)fiil navTis ol r^v troXiv
o'lKOvvTes, XoyiffT'fis re avrhs Kal arparriyhs ffvv toIs eV reXei iraai /cat oAy S^^ip
'X.pKniavovs <T<pa.s bfj.oXoyovvTes oii5' birwaTLOvv tois TvpoaTaTTovaiv (l5<a\o\aTpf7f
iweiOdpxovv (" All the inhabitants of the city, together with the mayor, the
governor, and all who
and the held office, entire populace to boot, confessed
themselves Christians, nor would they obey in the least those who bade them
worship idols ").
^_viiK.9-: *iAopco^os apxw Tiva ov tt)v rvxovaap rrjs /car' 'AAf^duSpeiav fiacriXiKris
BioiK7]afus eyKexeiptfr/xeVos, hs /uera rov a^iw/xaTos Koi rfjs 'Poo/uaiKrii Ti/xris iinh
ws Kal Tos Ka66\ov SioiKTiffeis rrjs Trap' avrots KaXovfxivqs fMayicrTpOTrjTos re koI
KadoKiK6rrjros a.jx4fj.TTrws 5ie\6e7v, K.r.K. (" And there was another Roman dignitary,
called Adauctus^ sprung from a noble Italian house, who had__passed Jhrough
every place of honour under the emperors, so that he had blamelessly filled the
general offices of the magistracy, as it is called and of minister of finance ").
Dorymedon was a member of the civic council in Synnada (cp. Ac/a Dorytn.), and
Dativus is described as a senator in the African Acta Sat. et Dativi (cp. Ruinart,
op. cit. p. 417)-
' For Christians who took the office of flamen, see the canons of Elvira, and
Duchesne's Zd concile cTElvire et les JlaminefTtfi'tiens (1887, Melanges Renier).
The council did not prohibit acceptance of this office, but it laid stringent con-
ditions on any Christians who were elected.
,
^
the world of learning, although_±liej^si_ majority of the aristo- «j,2>k^^
Qracy, by birth or position, still continued to be pagan. ^ This -jW^
is indirectly certified by Porphyry as well, and Arno])iiis writes.....—.
(ii. 5) to this effect : " Tarn magnis ingeniis praediti oratores,
grammatici, rhetores, consult! juris ac medici, philosophiae
etiam secreta rimantes niagisteria haec expetunt spretis quibus
paulo ante fidebant " (" Omiors of such high endowments,
scholars, rheto.ticians, lawyers, and doctors, these, too, pry into
the secrets of this philosophy, discarding what a little before /
:^
they relied upon "). We
know a whole series of names of
also
orators and grammarians who came over to Christianity. The
Antiochene " sop hist M aJLchioii, " the one man who was capable
'"
Irilust. Ixxx., and adv. Jovin. ii. 6). Arnobius himself was /A^yu^^-^fX '-^^^
orator, and only became a Christian in his later years. Possibly .,c„
Victo rinus of ^ettau also belonged to this class prior to his /Vv-%_^4/
Christian vocation. The author of the song " Laudes Domini "
isto be mentioned in this connection, while in the Gesta apud
Zenophilum (under Diocletian) a converted orator appears, who
is also described as a Latin grammarian.^
1 This is especially true of Rome. Even about 360 a.d. we find Augustine LA^Aa^^a^Ci
writing(Cci;{/^j-j'., viii. 2. 3: " sacris sacrilegis tunc tota fere Romana nobilitas inflata
inspirabat populo iam et '
omnigenum deum monstra'") of " the sacrilegious rites /^^ '
J^ I
to which at that time almost all the Roman were addicted. They inspired
nobility
the common people too with a passion for monstrous gods of all sorts."
^ About seventy years after Diocletian, the author of the pseudo-Augustinian
Qiiastiones in Vehts et Novum Testa?nentiim writes (nr. 114 at close): " Quodsi
odio digna res esset aut aliquid haberet fallaciae, quotidie ex Christianis fierent
pagani. porro autem, quoniam haec Veritas est, quotidie omni hora sine
intermissione deserentes Jovem, inter quos sophistae et nobiles mundi, qui eum
deum confessi erant, confugiunt ad Christum" ("If Christianity were deserving of
hatred or had any element of falsehood in it, Christians would daily turn to
paganism. Whereas, just because it is the truth, pagans turn to Christ at every
hour of the day, unceasingly, abandoning Jove ; amongst them sophists and nobles
who^rmerl)?_worshipped Jove as God "). This was true of the period circa
300 A. dT'
;
1 Cp. V. Engestrom's Om Judarne i Rom undre iildre tider och deras kata-
/Cw«/5^r (Upsala, 1876).
^ 2wa7(077? Auyuva-r-na-Looy C.I. G., 9902, 9903 ; cp. Fiorelli's Catalogo del Museo
:
Nazionale, Iscriz Lat., 1956, i960; Orelli, -^222 — Q,z.x\xzz\, Dissertaz., ii. 162. 12.
Engestrom, Nos. 3, 4, p. 31. Besides this, there was a awarfta'^^ 'AypnriT-na-iwy
in Rome {C./.G. 9907; Engestrom, No. 2, p. 31), connected, probably, with
Agrippa, the friend of Augustus. For other Jewish synagogues in Rome, consult
Engestrom and above, vol. i. p. 443.
;
No. 16; Lucilla, No. 44; Alexander, son of Alexander, No. 18; Valerius,
husband of Lucretia Faustina, No. 19; Gaius, No. 24 Julia, No, 27 Alexander, ; ;
Flavise, No. 38; Marcella, No. 41. On the Jews at the imperial court, see
Renan's Ant(^christ, p. 9 n. 2, pp. 125 f. (German ed.), Eng. trans., pp. 4 f., 62 f.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 43
been already observed (vol. i. pp. 58, 488), the Jews were probably
the great war, there were certainly many linl^ between the
Palestinian Jews and the imperial court, although subsequently,
during the next hundred years, they must have become fewer,
and finally disappeared altogether. Neither then nor after-
wards had they any direct bearing upon the connection of
Christians and the court.
This latter connection has been overgrown by a luxuriant
tangle of legend and romance.^ Peter and Paul are said to
have stood before Nero,* while John was condemned by
Domitian in person, and dozens of their contemporaries at the
^ No attempt has yet been made to collect the opinions of Christians on the
personal character and regulations of the various emperors, although ample
material lies in the apologists Melito, Tertullian, Origen, Lactantius, Eusebius,
Oracles and the Apocryphal Acts.
etc., as well as in the Sibylline
* So the Acta Petri Pauli (Kenan's Antichrist, ibid.) cp. especially c. 31.
et ;
36 f., 84. The legend assumes varied forms in many writers (cp. also the pseudo-
Clementine literature, which, in its extant shape, is not perhaps earlier than the
opening of the fourth century), and somewhere in the course of the sixth century
it was finally shaped in the Acta Psettdo-Lini and the Acta Ner. et Achill. In
the first book of the former Acts, Nero is only mentioned incidentallyj_but_many
n oble lad ies are described as converted, including four concubines of the prefect
'Sgrippa ( Agrippina, Eucharia, Euphemia, Dionis), and Xandippe, the wife of
Albinus, " Caesaris amicissimi." According to Book II., however, the preaching
of Christianity proved far more efficacious: "Paul was visited by a mighty con-
j:ourse from the imperial household, who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ
And besides, the instructor of the emperor [i.e., Seneca] was closely knit to him
by ties of friendship, recognizing that he possessed the mind of God " (" Concursus
quoque multus de domo Caesarii fiebat ad Paulum, credentium in dominum Jesum
Christum .... sed et institutor imperatoris adeo est illi amicitia copulatus,
videns in eo divinam sententiam "). A magister Caesaris reads aloud Paul's
writings, and many of Nero's personal retinue (" ex familiari obsequio Neronis")
follow the apostle. Patroclus, a former page of the emperor, who was then "ad
vini officium" (acting as wine-bearer), becomes a Christian. Barnabas, Justus, a
certain Paul, Arion Cappadox, Festus Gallata, are all Christian servants of Nero,
while a distinguished lady, named Plantilla, is a friend of Paul. A section of
44 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
imperial court are alleged to have become Christians. All this
we must simply ignore. More serious attention perhaps should
be paid to Tertullian's statement about Tiberius (in Apol. v.,
reproduced in Eus., H.E., ii. 2), but in the end one is obliged
to dismiss the whole account as unauthentic.
Paul's epistle to the Philippians closes with these words :
being relatives of Domitian which fired this train of fantasy, although, so far
as we know, it did not start till the close of the second century. Thereafter
x-r^r-r^
relatives of the emperor are part of the regular stock-in-trade of the apocryphal
rrck ^^^^ °^ Peter and Paul (cp. also the Acta Barnabce auctore Marco, e. 23 'lejSovir- :
(Tolos., (Tvyyeyrjs Nepcovos). Even Livia, Nero's consort, was reported to have been
^v"-*^ a convert. It is just possible that several Roman Christians, mentioned in the
were historical personalities. In chap. we read
€/v»- K oldest Acta Petri (Vercell.
'
' Dionysius et
),
senator nomine
:
Urion of Cappadocia, Festus of Galatia, the prefect Lagus, and the centurion
Cestus.
^ Perhaps they had entertained him. But one must bear in mind that the
town of Philippi was almost entirely Latin (or Roman), and that it would therefore
be in intimate relations with the capital (cp. Acts xvi. 21).
- Many scholars separate this chapter from the rest of the epistle, and take it as
a note to Ephesus. But the reasons for such a tour deforce do not appear to me
convincing.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 45
Herod the Great) was living then at the capital as a confidential --''S^S*^
friend of Claudius, it seems likely that these were the very two
persons whose households are mentioned here by the apostle.^
At the close of their epistle to Corinth (the so-called First
Epistle of Clement), in 95-96 a.d., the Roman Christians ex-
plain how they entrusted the delivery of the epistle to two - -^
seniors who had lived blameless lives among them from youth
upwards. At the latest, then, these men must have become
Christians by 50 a.d. They were called Claudius Ephebus and
Valerius Bito, and Lightfoot rightly assumes that they were
membei:s of the retinue of the emperor, as the wife of Claudius ,
Philippians.^ V^ ,
cases, his household would most probably pass into the hands of the emperor, still,
however, retaining the name of Narcissus. One member of the household appar-
ently is commemorated in an extant inscription TI CLAVDIO SP F: . . . .
in the New Testament. On the other hand, we may note, at this point, that the
early (though, of course, entirely fictitious) Ac/a Paidi of the second century
mention a queen Tryphsena who shows motherly kindness to
in Asiatic Antioch,
the Christian Thekla. She and described correctly, as a relative
is described,
of the emperor for Tryphsena, the consort of King Polemon of Asia Minor
;
(in the middle of the first century), was connected with the Emperor Claudius
Dio Cassius, Ixvii. 14; Suet., Domit. 15; Eus., H.E., iii. 17; Bruttius,
-^
in Eus., H.E., iii. 18. 5. Domitilla's person, lineage, and place of exile are
matters of dispute. Perhaps there were two Christian Domiiillas, both of whom
were exiled (?). For her lineage, see C.I.L., vi. i. No. 948.
2 Suet., Domit., 15. 17 ; Dio Cassius, Ixvii. 15-17 ; Philostr., J^ita ApolL,
viii. 25.
^ On the other hand, Acilius Glabrio, whom Domitian punished, was perhaps
a Christian (Suet, Domit. 10: " Complures senatores, in iis aliquot consulares,
interemit, ex quibus Salvidienum Orfitum, Acilium Glabrionem in exiho
quasi molitores no 'arum rerum "). There is a burial-niche of the Acilii in the
catacombs, but the iionnection of this with Acilius Glabrio is uncertain.
* Lamprid, " Christo templum facere voluit eumque inter deos
Alex, 43:
recipere. quod et Hadrianus cogitasse fertur, qui templa in omnibus civitatibus
sine simulacris iusserat fieri [which is possible], quae hodieque idcirco quia non
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 47
nonne ex eis quae Caesaris sunt habent utensilia et his qui non
habent unusquisque eorum secundum suam virtutem praestat?""
(" And what of those who in the royal palace are believers ?
Do they not get the utensils they use from the emperor"'s
property ? And does not each one contribute, according to his
ability, to those who have no such utensils?"'"'). Which proves
that there was quite a group of Christians at court, and that
their circumstances were good. For a number of years, too, the
royal concubine Mama (ovcra (piXoOeog TraWaKrj KojuoSov) was
habent numina dicuntur Hadriani, quia ille ad hoc parasse dicebatur" ("He
wished to erect a temple to Christ and to enrol him among the gods a project —
which Hadrian also is said to have entertained. For that emperor had ordered
temples without images to be erected in every city, and these are to this day called
'
Hadrian's,' since they have no idols, and since they are said to have been raised
by him for this purpose "). What follows may apply to Alexander rather than to
Hadrian. The legend may have arisen, not earlier than the third century, in
order to explain the Hadrianic temple nullius dei.
Wiinsch {Se^Amm'sche Verfluchungstafeln ans Rom., 1898, pp. 112 f.) refuses
'
For Marcia, see Neumann, o/>. c/L, pp. 84 f. Iler friendliness to Christians
^
' We knew already thai Julius Africanus had dedicated his Kecrroi to the
emperor, but now Grenfell and Hunt [Oxyrhynckus Papyri, vol. iii. , 1903, pp. 36 f.)
have discovered the conclusion of the eighteenth book of the Keo-rot on a papjrus
which seems to have been written between 225 and 265. We read here that
"(thou wilt find these Homeric verses) iv 'Pwf/.y irphs Ta7s 'AXe^avSpov depfxais
Africanus was also a friend of Abgar, king of Edessa, but he and his court had
been avowedly Christian since the beginning of the third century (cp. the local
Christian thinker and poet, Bardesanes).
- Naturally, there was a constant interchange between royal officials in the
1 capital and throughout the imperial possessions in the provinces. — For the landed
property of the emperors during the first three centuries, see Hirschfeld's study in
the Beitrcige z. alien Gesckkh/e, Bd. 2, H. I, pp. 45 f., H. 2, pp. 284 f. "The
imperial property in the provinces was far more valuable than it was in Italy.
Egypt deserves mention primarily in this connection, since Augustus had taken
it over in his capacity of assignee of the Egyptian kings But of all the
provinces of the empire (p. 295), none had so enormous an imperial property to
show as Africa."
3 In the Martyrdom of St Cotton (under Decius) it is stated that he was a
gardener in the royal garden at Magydus in Pamphylia (cp. von Gebhardt's Acta
Mart. Selecta, p. 130).
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 51
' "
''
See Jerome's Chron. ad ann. 2337 Licinius Christianos de palatio suo p ellit
: '
^ A good deal in Christianity would appeal to soldiers the rule of the one God,
:
His mighty acts of warfare as told by the Old Testament, the case with which the
religion could be transported from place to place, since it needed neither temple
nor images, the close bond which knit the adherents, etc.
'^
Of course, it was something to have the power of Christ displayed in the
devil's camp !
Acta Sebastiani. The bearing of the church's prayers upon this question need
not be exaggerated, however, since prayer was offered even for one's enemies, and
since one could have very different ideas about the " salus Romani exercitus"
and the army itself. Besides, the prayer for the army formed part of the vota
'
'
pro Csesare." The emperor, even from the apocalyptic standpoint, had a certain
divine right of existence as a bulwark against anarchy and the barbarian hordes ;
for the "pax terrena" was a relative good, even from the strictest Christian
standpoint, as being bound up with the desired "mora finis" (in the sense of
54 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
[ And yet, even though he managed to come to some terms
about the necessary regulations, the Christian soldier occupied
a more perilous position than the ordinary Christian. At any
moment his connection with the forbidden sect might occasion
summary proceedings against him besides, he might be expected
;
punitive judgment). Now the emperor needed soldiers to maintain this "pax
terrena." They were part and parcel of the "sword" which (Rom. xiii. 4) is
'
On the church's use of figures and descriptions drawn from the military
calling, see vol. i. pp. 414 f. The possibility of the language of the camp having
influenced the ecclesiastical dialect in Africa must be left an open question.
- Among the charges brought by Eusebius against Maximinus Daza {H.E., viii.
14. 11) is that of having rendered the army effeminate. Eusebius's feelings thus
are those of a loyal citizen of the empire.
^ Even at a later period the legion still had Christians in its ranks; cp. Eus.,
H.E., v. 5. I, and Gregory of Nyssa's Oral. II. in XL. Alartyras (opp. Paris,
1638, t. iii. p. 505 f.). The forty martyrs (see below) also belonged to this legion.
See my essay on this miracle of the rain in the Sitzimgsber. d. k Pr. Akad. d.
in that of the devil — nor can a man serve two masters by the
" sacramentum," or oath of loyalty. Furthermore, in disarm-
ing Peter, Christ stripped every Christian of his sword, and this
who came to John or to
renders every appeal to the soldiers
the centurion atCapernaum quite untenable (de Idolol. xix.).
The soldier who (in 211 a.d.) refused a military crown and
was executed^ for his refusal, was hailed with triumph by
Tertullian. He devoted a special treatise to this case — which ^
plainly proves that the case was quite unique, and that other
Christians in the army accepted the military crown without any
hesitation.
-
^ Qr igen, too, was one of the stricter party. When Celsus
^ Apol.yixxy\\.: " Vestra omnia implevimus .... castraipsa," xlvii. " Non :
sumus Brachmanae aut Indorum gymnosophistae .... mililamus vobiscum " [cp.
vol. i. p. 270]. For Christians in the _arm^t_Lambesej see ad Scap. iv. Here,
however, he is concealing his own opinions (just as in the Apologia, where he
simply says that Christians pray "pro mora finis he is also concealing that fervid
'"'
;
longing for the advent of Christ's kingdom which finds expression in his exposition
of the words, "Thy kingdom come"). His private views on the army are given
in de Idolol, xix. and de Co7-otia Militis (cp. also de Pallio, v. non milito). :
^ Probably this soldier, who would not break any other military rules, really
wanted to secure for Christians in the army the same consideration as was shown
to adherents of Mithra ; cp. my Militia Christi, p. 68.
^ This is brought out with still greater clearness in that view of the subject which
was current in Christian circles (ch. i.). " Abruptus, praeceps, mori cuiiidus,"
such a soldier was dubbed ("headstrong, rash, and eager for death"). " Mussi-
tant denique tam bonam et longam sibi pacem periclitari .... ubi prohibemur
coronari?" ("They murmur at their prolonged and happy peace being en-
dangered Where, they ask, are we forbidden to get crowned?"). In
ch. xi. Tertullian expounds still more sharply than in the treatise de Idololatria,
the incompatibility of Christianity and the military calling. Here, too, he dis-
cusses the question, What is a soldier to do who is converted when a soldier?
At one moment it seems as if he might remain a soldier (Luke iii. 14 Matt. viii. ;
10; Acts x. I f.). There is always the possibility that one might take all precau-
tions against committing any irreligious action as a soldier. But Tertullian
recommends only two ways out of the difficulty either resigning one's post ("ut
:
a multis actum " =as has been done by many) or suffering martyrdom.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 57
^ It is quite obvious from this that Christians were charged with a disinclination
army, and the charge was undoubtedly well founded.
to serve in the In actual life,
however, collisions ofthis kind were rare, for there can hardly have been many
cases of Christians being impressed against their will. See Mommsen's J?om.
Staatsrecht, ii, 2'^', pp. 849 f. ; and in Hennes, xix. (1883), pp. 3 f. ; also Neumann,
op. cit., i. pp. 127 f.
^ c. Cels., VIII. Ixxiii. For Christians as "priests of peace " (sacerdotes pacis),
see also Tert., de Sped. xvi.
^ The martyrdom corresponds to that of the soldier in the treatise
story of his
de Corona, For some reason or another, Basilides (such was his name) was chal-
lenged by a fellow-soldier to take an oath, which, as a Christian, he refused to do.
His refusal was at first construed as a jest. But when he persisted in it, pro-
ceedings were instituted against him (Eus., H.E,, vi. 5).
* A somewhat similar incident is already told by Eusebius (vi.
41. 16) in con-
nection with the death of the apostle James, It is taken from Clement of
Alexandria.
58 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
persecution in the Egyptian capital, where the whole of a small
commando {(TvvrayiJ.a a-rparicoTiKov), which had been mustered
for the trial of some Christians, turned out to be composed
either of Christians or of their friends. " And when one who
was being tried as a Christian inclined to deny his faith, they
gnashed their teeth, made signs to him, held out their hands,
and made gestures with all their limbs. Whereupon the
attention of everybody was directed to them, but, before they
could be seized by anyone, they rushed to the dock and avowed
that they were Christians" (Eus., H.E., vi. 41. 22 f). As
there had not been any intention, of course, of specially
Cp. viii, 4 • irXficTTovs Tvaprjv rSiv iv arpaTiiais Spay aafxevecrrara rhv ISiuiTLKhi/
Trpoa(nra^ofJ.evovs ^iov, ws av fxrj ^^apuoi y^voivro tyjs irepl rhv tuv oXwv St] ixiovpyhu
ivaeffiias '
iis yap 6 (7TpaToiriSdpxr]s, '6(Ttls irore i\v iKe7vos [cp. Jerome's CIuov.
ad ann. 2317: " Veturius niagister militiae Ciiristianos milites persequitur, paulatim
ex illo iam tempore persecutione adversus nos incipiente " = Veturius, the military
chief, persecutes Christian soldiers, and the persecution now gradually begins to
be directed against us], apri irpuTov 6Vf;^6ip€t tc^ Kara twv aTpanvfia/rtov Stony jji.(p,
(pvKoKpivwv Kol StUKadaipccv tovs eV to7s (rrpaTOTreSois ava(pepofj.ii'ovs, alpeaiv Tt
SiSoi/s ^ ireiOapxovffiv its fierriv avTois airoXaveiy rifMris ?) rovvavTiov (TTepearOai
ravTr}s, el avmarTOivTo tw Kpoffrd.yp.aTi, KKtlffroi 'dcroi ttjs XpiaTov ^aat\t'tas
(TTpaTiSiTat. rrjv eis avrhv 6/J.o\oyiay, /j-t] /xiWriaai'Tes, rrjs SoKovcrris 5(^|7js Kal
(virpayias, dxov, avafx(pi\6y<»s Kpovrinriaai' ("Many soldiers were to be met
tjs
with who cheerfully accepted the private life of civilians that they might not deny
the reverent piety due to the creator of the universe. For when the general,
whoever he was, started his persecution of the soldiers, separating them into tribes
and purging those enlisted in the army, he gave them a choice either they :
were to obey and thus reap the honour which was their due, or else to lose that
meed of honour if they disobeyed orders. Whereupon a vast number of soldiers
belonging to the kingdom of Christ unhesitatingly made up their minds at once
to prefer his confession to the seeming glory and good fortune which they were
enjoying"). Presently executions commenced, which had not originally been
contemplated. In Mari, Fa/., xi. 20, Eusebius incidentally mentions one confessor
from the army.
;
Lactantius, that the persecution arose and his account bears all
;
soldiers in the cities), i.e., the police-officers and guardians of the peace, whose
importance, like that of the court officials, became steadily superior with every
decade to that of the civil service.
^ No passage in this Testament indicates that it was written by, or that it
originated with, soldiers (cp. Bonwetsch, Neue kirchl. Zeitschrift, iii. 12, pp. 705 f. ;
record of the martyrdom, which must be used with care and caution, is printed
on pp. 171 f. of von Gebhardt's volume.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 61
^ Repeated have been made to save some part of the legendary material
efforts ; /
f., as against Hanck's Kirchengesch. Deutschlandi,
cp. Bigelmair, op. cit., pp. 194 /~^
\Pi, p. 9, note I p. 25, note i.
;
One or two martyrdoms of soldiers may underlie A'
the legend (cp. Linsenmayer's Die Bekdnipfung des Christentums ditich d. rom.
Staat, 1905, pp. 181 f.), but even this is doubtful.
" Of the Meljtene Jegmn eg. Conybeare's Apol. and Acts of ApoUonius (1S94),
'
;
"
pp. 123 f. /V-- •**--^
^f^/: '^ •
^ Cp. Ruinart, op. cit., pp. 340 f. ("Thevesti in foro" = Before the court at
Theveste). " Fabius Victor temonarius est constitutus cum Valeriano Quintiano
praeposito Caesariensi cum bono tirone Maximiliano filio Victoris quoniam ;
vis scire nomen meum ? mihi non licet militare, quia Christianus sum. Dion
proconsul dixit apta ilium,
: cumque aptaretur, Maximilianus respondit non :
possum militare, non possum maleficere, Christianus sum. Dion proconsul dixit :
quinque [quinos?], uncias decern [so that he was able-bodied]. Dion dixit ad
officium signetur.
: cumque resisteret Maximilianus, respondit Non facio non : ;
possum militare" ("Fabius Victor, collector of the military exemption tax, was
brought up with Valerianus Quintianus, prefect of Csesarea, and with Maximilianus
the son of Victor, a good recruit. As he is a likely man, I ask that he be
'
Christian.' Said the proconsul, Let him be measured.' And after he had been
'
measured, the attendant read out he is five feet ten. :Then said Dion to the
attendant, 'Enrol him.' And M. cried out, 'No, no, I cannot be a soldier "). '
See also what follows. " Milito deo meo non accipio signaculum iam habeo ; ;
signum Christi dei mei si signaveris, rumpo illud, quia nihil valet
non licet mihi plumbum collo portare post signum salutare domini mei" ("I am a
soldier of my God. I refuse the badge. Already I have Christ's badge, who is my
God. If you mark me, I shall annul it as invalid I cannot wear aught
leaden on my neck after the saving mark of my Lord '"). To the proconsul's
question as to what crime soldiers practised, Maximilianus replied, "You know
quite well what they do" (" Tu enim scis quae faciunt "). Here we have a scene —
of forcible conscription.
•*
Cp. Ruinart, pp. 343 f. ("in civitate Tingitana"). On the emperor's birth-
day, when everybody was feasting and " Marcellus quidam ex centuri-
sacrificing,
onibus legionis Traianae reiecto cingulo militari coram signis legionis,
quae tunc aderant, clara voce testatus est, diceus Jesu Christo regi aeterno :
vestris desisto et deos vestros ligneos et lapideos adorare contemno. si talis est
front of the regimental standards, and testified in clear tones that he was a soldier
of Jesus Christ, the King Eternal. He also threw away the centurion's staff and
arms, adding, '
Henceforth I cease to be a soldier of your emperors. I scorn to
worship your gods of wood and stone. be a condition of military service to
If it
be obliged to do sacrifice to your gods and emperors, then hereby I throw off my
staff and arms. I give up the colours, I refuse to be a soldier "). When on '
trial, he added that was unbecoming for a Christian, who served his captain
it
" Maximo praeside Dorostori Moesiae. non possum praecepta divina contemnere
et infidelis apparere deo meo. etenim in vana militia quando videbar errare,
in annis xxvii nunquam scelestus aut litigiosus oblatus sum judici. septies in
bello egressus sum, et post neminem retro steti nee alicuius inferior pugnavi.
princeps me non vidit aliquando errare " ("I cannot set at naught the commands of
God, and appear disloyal to my God. For even during all the twenty-seven years
of my vanity and military service, I was never shown to the judge as a scoundrel
or quarrelsome fellow. Seven times I took the field, and never yielded place to
anyone, nor fought less bravely than anyone else. My captain never saw me going
wrong").
* Cp. Analect. BoIIand., ix. (1890), pp. Ii6f. : Tigabis in Mauretania, The Acts
are of doubtful authenticity.
^ Cp. Ruinart,
pp. 451 f. (The Acts are late and poor.) When the judge
y-.
iT
asked what was his position, he replied crrpaTLOiTiKris
Christian, I now choose to wear ordinary dress "). To the further question, how
he had ever gained his freedom, Tarachus replied: "I besought Fulvian the
taxiarch, and he dismissed me " {iSe-fidrji' ^ovX^iovos tov Ta^idpxov, koI avfXvae
fj.t). He met the threats of the judge with the remark (p. 464) : et /cal to fxaMffra
oiiK ?|€(rTi (Tot Kara rod ffd/xarSs fxov, ar par idir iKhv ovra ovroos irapavducos Pacravlc^eiv
[cp. the rescript of Diocletian to Salustius], ir\^v oh trapairov/nai crov ras airoyoias,
TTparre h de\eis ("Though it were ever so unlawful for you to put my body to
the torture, yet I do not deprecate your insensate breach of military law. Wreak
your will on me ").
*
Cp. Ruinart, pp. 571 f. (The Acts are untrustworthy.) Upon the judge
remonstrating that the emperor had ordered sacrifices, Nicander replies: "This
injunction is designed for those who are willing to sacrifice. But we are
Christians, and we cannot be bound by an injunction of this kind " (" Volentibus
sacrificare haec praeceptio constituta est, huiuscemodi
nos vero Christiani sumus, et
and have displayed early zeal and laid aside their military belts,
position for the sake of their Christian confession and had sub-
sequently gone back to the ranks. In the second place, the
canon refers to soldiers serving in the army of Licinius, who
had given up their military belts when the emperor purged the
army of Christians (which is perhaps alluded to in the expression
^ Pachomius served (cp. his "Life") in the army of Constantine that fought
Maxentius. He have been won to Christianity by the brotherly love
is said to
which the Christian soldiers showed. Thereafter he became a monk, and the
founder of the famous monastic settlement at Tabennisi.- The Acta Arc/ie/ai open —
with a narrative in praise of Marcellus at Carrhse. This wealthy Christian is said
to have ransomed over 7700 military prisoners of war an act which made a deep —
impression upon them. " lUi admirati et amplexi tarn immensam viri pietatem
munificentiamque et facti stupore permoti exemplo misericordiae commonentur, ut
plurimi ex ipsis adderentur ad fidem domini nostri Jesu Christi derelicto militiae
cingtdo, alii vero vix quarta pretiorum portione suscepta ad propria castra dis-
cederent, caeteri autem parum omnino aliquid quantum viatico sufficeret accipientes
abirent" ("Astounded with admiration for the man's extraordinary piety and
generosity, which they enjoyed, and overcome by his example of humane kind-
ness, the most of them were led to join the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, by
casting away the jnilitary belt ; others made off to their own camp after little more
than a fourth part of the money had been paid, while almost all the rest took as
much as they needed for their journey, and departed "). The story is fiction, in
all likelihood
; still, it is not without value.
^ Cp. Cypr., Ep. xxxix. 3 (on Celerinus) "Item patruus eius et avunculus
:
nection with the eleventh canon, which treats of those who fell
away eirl r^? rvpavviSo? AikivIov (" during the reign of Licinius ").
Our canon fits in very closely to this one. The relation between
the church and the state, as regards the army, concluded with
the enactment of the church in the third canon of the great
synod at Aries " Those who throw away their weapons during
:
^ Cp. the discussions on " Widows and " Deaconesses " also Zscharnack, Der
" ;
DieJist der Fraic in d. ersten Jahr. christ, Kirche (1902); Achelis, Virgines
d.
szibintrodiutae (1902) ; von der Goltz, Der Dienst der Fran in der christI. Kirche
(1905); and Knopfs Nachapost. Zeitalter, pp. 72 f. On Christian women as
martyrs and oti virgins, with their treatment by criminal law, cp. Augar in Texte
«. Unters., xxviii. 4.
Even within Judaism there were many women proselytes, especially from the
-
upper classes. Josephus {Bell. Jitd., ii. 20. 2) says that the women in Damascus
were almost all inclined to Judaism. Cp. Acts xiii. 50 ol 5e 'loi/Saroi irapwrpwav :
tAs ai^oixivas yvvoLKas ras eiia'X'h/^ovas Kal tovs Trpwrovs ttjs noKeccs (Antioch in
Pisidia), koI in'fiyeipai' Siccy fxhy eirl rhv Tlav\ov koI Bapva^av, also Acts xvi. 13
(Philippi in Macedonia). Cp. Strabo's generalization upon women as the leaders
in religious superstition (i. 7. p. 297) a-KavTis yap rfis : SetaiSatfioyiasapxvyovs
olovrat ras yvvalKas. Clement of Alexandria emphasizes their important role in
the mission of the apostolic age {Stro»i., III. vi. 53) : 5ta tcSv yvvaiKS>v koI eh rriv
in public (xi. 5 f.). This fact and this permission may seem to XM^^v-U
contradict the evidence of xiv. 34 f. (" Let the women keep /^'v^^je (ii^
silence in the congregations : for they are not allowed to speak, ' r
iKKKi\aia, fxia ffcccppocrvvr), alScbs fxia, t] rpo(p^ KOiv^, ydfios crv0yios, avanvo^, otpis,
cLKoii, jvwcris, fKTris, viraKO'fi, aydirri, 3/ioia irdpTa. S)v Se Koivhs fxev & ^lSs, Kotv^ Se ri
xdpts, Koiv)] Se Koi T) tovtuv koI t) aperrj koI r) ayooyi) (" Our judgment
ffcoTripia, kolv))
is that the virtue of man and of woman is one and the same. For, if the God of
both is one, the Instructor of both is also one one church, one temperate self- :
control, one modesty, common food, marriage an equal yoke; breath, sight,
hearing, knowledge, hope, obedience, love — all things are alike to them. Those
whose life is common have also a common grace and a common salvation ; their
virtue and their training are alike").
^ Luke xxiii. 2 {KwXvovra (p6povs Kaiaapi SiS6pai) Kal airoarpicpovrci, ras ywaiKas
Koi TO. reKva. The gloss occurs in Marcion's text and the Latin MSS. Palat. ,
and Colbertinus.
'^
Cp. Tertullian's de Virginibus Velafidis (and the Liber Pontif., s.v. Linus :
" Hie ex praecepto beati Pauli constituit, ut mulier in ecclesia velato capite
introiret" = This he ordained by the injunction of the blessed Paul, that women
must come to church with veiled heads),
VOL. II. 5
—
66 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
and Prisca (Priscilla), together with the church in their house
at Ephesus, send greetings. This passage already mentions the
^wife along with the husband (although after him), which is
noteworthy, for as a rule the husband alone is mentioned in
such cases. The woman must therefore have been of some
importance personally and in the church at their house, a fact
on which some light is presently thrown by the epistle to the
Romans.^
In Rom. xvi. 1 f a certain Phoebe is commended, who is
.
' In I Cor. i. 1 1 Paul mentions ol ttjs X\6t]s, who brought him special informa-
tion about the state of matters'ln the Corinthian church but we do not know if ;
Chloe was herself a Christian, nor can we tell where to look for her.
^ Further details on Prisca in my essays on " The two Recensions of the Story of
Prisca and Aquila in Acts xviii. 1-27 " [Siizungsb. d. Freuss. Akad. d. Wiss.,
1900, January ll), and " Probabilia uber die Adresse u. den Verfasser des
Hebraerbriefs," Zeits. f. d. NTlicht Wissensch., i. (1900), pp. 16 f.). Cp. above,
vol. i. pp. 79, 433.
I
^
^ their own.
'
Three women, therefore, took part in the founding of the church at Philippi —
Lydia, Euodia, and Syntyche. Lydia, however, may be a cognomen, in which
case she might be identified with either Euodia or Syntyche.
^ Aquila alone is described as a Jew from Pontus. Does this mean that his
wife was of other and higher origin ?
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 69
^ In Heb. xi. women are included among the heroic figures of the faith, e.^.,
Sarah and Rahab the harlot ; cp. the remarkable verse 35.
'''^Clem. Rom., vL_^2j. Sia ^rjXos Siaix^ertrat yvvaiK€s Aava'iSes Koi AipKai [.i.e.,
Christian women whom Nero murdered by making them appear in these mytho-
logical displays], alKiafxara Seii/a koI a,v6ffia iradovcrat, iirl rbv rrfs iritrTeuis ^e^aiov
Sp6fji,oy KaT7]VTTi]crav Koi eXafiou yepas yivfoiov at acrOevtls rep crcofxari (" By reason
of jealousy women were persecuted, and after suffering fearful and unholy insults
as Danaids and Dircae, attained the goal of faith's course, receiving a noble
reward, though weak in body "). Cp. also Iv. 3 : ttoAAoI yvvaiKes fvSvyaixu>de7<rai
Sia T^s x°-P'-'^°^ ''""'^ ^^""^ eTrfreXe(ravro iroWa avSpeTa. Their prototypes were
Judith and Esther.
This reading is more probable than Tai'ias.
"^
70 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
thing very attractive, too, in Lightfoofs further conjecture
th^t Gabia is to be identified with the wife of the procurator
(" mention is made in the inscriptions at Smyrna of an
officer called eircTpoTrog crTparriyo? or eiriTpoiro^ Ttjs crTpaTtjyias ;
^ Though many expositors find a local church here, not a woman at all.
" Also by an earlier editor of Acts cp. my remarks in the Sitzungsberichte (as
;
the next clause, however ('lya crwcppovi^oicriv ras veas (piAwSpovs elvai, (piXoreKvovs,
K.T.K.), which shows that the writer does not mean teaching in the church.
^ This voiced an idea which operated still further and was destined to prove
disastrous to the Catholic church. Tertullian already writes thus {de Ctdtii Femifi.,
I. i.) :
" Evam te esse nescis? vivit sententia dei super sexum istum in hoc seculo :
the devil himself had not strength to assail. So lightly did you destroy God's
image. For your deceit, for death, the very Son of God had to perish"). The
figure of Mary the mother of Jesus rose all the more brilliantly as a foil to this.
The wrong done, in this view, to the whole sex, was to be made good by the
adoration paid to Mary. must not be forgotten, apropos of Tertullian's
But it
revolting language, that his rhetoric frequently runs away with him. Elsewhere
in the same book (II. i.) he writes " Ancillae dei vivi, conservae et sorores meae,
:
fellow-servants and sisters, the law that sets me, most unworthy, in your ranks,
emboldens me as your fellow-servant to address you").
72 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
" virgines," who are perhaps referred to as early as 1 Cor. vii.
1 Recently this passage has been often discussed, e.^: , by Grafe in Theol. Arbeit,
aus d. rhein. Pi-edigerverein, N.F.
Heft 3 (1899), pp. 69 f, and Julicher in
,
Lectra in Iconium, and above all of the " apostle " Thekla at
Iconium. We are told that Thekla baptized herself, and that she
afterwards laboured and died as a missionary, " after enlightening
many with
It is unlikely that the
really
God "'"'
been a
{iroKKov^ (pooTia-atra tic Xoyo) Oeov).
romancer simply invented
girl
this figm-e.^
converted by a Paul at
fh
^I'^^r^
/j^ a
Iconium, whose name was Thekla, and who took an active part in ^^ AA^-^
the Christian mission. As for the later apocryphal Acts of the C^^""^
'
Apostles, they simply swarm with tales of how women of all ranks / a
were converted in Rome and in the provinces ; although the ^ CV>
details of these stories are untrustworthy, they express correctly
enough in general the truth that Christianity was laid hold of
by women in particular, and also that the percentage of Christian
women, especially among the upper classes, was larger than
that of Christian men. " Both sexes " (" utriusque sexus ") are
emphasized as early as Pliny's letter, and other opponents of
the faith laid stress upon the fact that Christian preaching was
specially acceptable to widows and to wives.^ This is further
attested by the apologists, who have a penchant for insisting
that the very Christian women, on account of whom Christianity
is vilified as an inferior religion, are better acquainted with
divine things than the philosophers.^ Women who read the
Bible are frequently mentioned.^ The apologists and Christian
teachers numbered women among their audience. A woman called
Charito belonged to Justin's pupils {Acta Justini, iv). Dionysius
[sc. Porphyry] cunctam diabolicam societatem vel nosse vel fidenter arguere,
quam quaelibet anicula Christiana nee cunctatur esse et liberrime detestatur
("Hard was it for so great a philosopher to understand or confidently to assail
the whole fraternity of devils, which any Christian old woman would unhesitatingly
describe and loathe with the utmost freedom ").
•
Cp., ^.^. ,
Jerome's remark on Pamphilus (y//^?/. adv. Libros Ruji7ii, i. 9):
" Scripturas sanctas non ad legendum tantum, sed et ad habendum tribuebat
promptissime, non solum viris, sed et feminis, quae vidisset lectioni deditas " (" He
readily provided Bibles, not only to read but to keep, not only for men but for any
woman whom he saw addicted to reading ").
74 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
of Corinth wrote a letter to a certain Chrysophora, TncrTOTdrrjv
aSe\(p}]v (" a most faithful sister,"" Eus., H.E., iv. 23). Ptolemaeus
the gnostic wrote a profound theological letter to a woman
named Flora (Epiph., Hcer., xxxi. 3 f.), which gives a high
impression of her culture. Probably he was the same Ptolemaeus
who converted a prominent lady in Rome. Origen's women-
pupils are often mentioned ;
^ he even dedicated his essay on
prayer to a woman called Tatiana (Koa-fxiwrdrt] koi avSpeioTarij).
Marcella, the wife of his great friend Ambrosius, also shared his
s'tudies. He spent two years in Caesarea (Cappadocia), in the
house of a lady called Julia, who evidently had literary interests
in Christianity (Eus., H.E., vi. 17, Palladius, Hut. Lmis., 147).
Methodius dedicated his treatise on the distinction between
foods to a lady (cp, Bonwetsch, Methodkis, i. p. 290), and opened
with the remark " Thou knowest, Frenope, as thou hast shared
:
follows that there were even ecclesiastics about 180 a.d. who did
not disapprove ofwomen teaching and doing missionary work,
or of them acting as prophetesses in the gatherings of the
church. Even prior to the rise of monasticism we hear of
women who gave up all they possessed in order to live in
voluntary poverty. As Porphyry put it angrily (Macar. Magnes.,
III. v.): "Not in the far past, but only yesterday. Christians
read Matt. xix. 21 to prominent women, and persuaded them to
share all their possessions and goods among the poor, to reduce
^ For the wealthy woman who adopted him as a boy and had theological lectures
delivered in her house, cp. Eus., H.E., vi. 2.
2 The '
' rights " of women in the early church have been most thoroughly
investigated by Zscharnack, perhaps from rather too modern a point of view.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 75
13, etc.). For the appearance of white-robed women, carrying torches, in the yj^Fi '.'?
Montanist church, cp. Epiph., Hcer., xlix. 2 ; they were prophetesses and preachers
of repentance.
^ Epiph. HcBr. xlix. But her personality is uncertain.
,
most concerned about women, and that, too, women of rank and position and
wealth"). i. 13. 7 '•
^v roiis kuB' 7]fj.as KAifiacri ttjs 'PoSafovaias iroWas e|r)ira-
riiKaffi yvpalKas ("In our district of the Rhone they have deluded many women").
On the compulsory consecration of women to the prophetic office, till they
actually felt they were prophetesses, see i. 13. 3.
^ The fj.a6i]rptai play a role of their own in these writings, alongside of the fiadrjTai
of Jesus, which may suggest the importance of the feminine element in these sects.
—^Jerome (£/. cxxxiii. 4) has put together all that was known of the prominent
heretical women: "Simon Magus haeresim condidit, Helenae meretricis adiutus
auxilio. Nicolaus Antiochenus, omnium immunditiarum repertor, choros duxit
femineos. Marcion Romum praemisit mulierem, quae decipiendos sibi animos
praepararet [a fact otherwise unknown]. Apelles Philumenam suarum comitem
habuit doctrinarum. Montanus immundi spiritus praedicator multas ecclesias per
Priscam et Maximillam nobiles et opulentas feminas [?] primum auro corrupit,
deinde haeresi poUuit Arius, ut orbem deciperet, sororem principis ante
decepit. Donatus per Africam, ut infelices quosque foetentibus pollueret aquis,
Lucillae opibus adiutus est. In Hispania Agape Elpidium, mulier virum, caecum
caeca, duxit in foveam, successoremque qui Priscillianum," etc.
ON THE INWARD SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 77
missed " (" post transacta solemnia dimissa plebe," de Anima, ix.).
Origen also forbids women to teach, and rejects the appeal to
Deborah, Miriam, Huldah, Hannah, and the daughters of
Philip (Cramer, Cat. in Ep. I. ad Cor., p. 279).
Nevertheless, women still continued to play a part in some of
the subsequent movements throughout the church. Thus a
sempstress in Carthage, called Paula, had to be excommunicated
for agitating against Cyprian {Ej). xlii.), whilst " that factious
woman ""
(" factiosa femina "") Lucilla "-
was also responsible for
poisoning the Carthaginian church with the Donatist contro-
versy at the very outset.Even by the end of the third century
we hear of a famous woman teacher in the church, whose lectures
were well attended,^ while the Iberians in the remote Caucasus
reported (in the fifth century, cp. Sozom., ii. 7) that they owed
their Christianity to a woman who was a prisoner of war.
Unters., ii. 5- PP- 28 f. : Sre ^rr\(Tiv 6 StSdffKaAos rhv 6,pTov Kot rh iroTriptov Kal
7]v\6yri(Tev avra A^yoop •
tovt6 eari rh ffca/xa jxov koI rh aTfia, ovk iirerpexpe tois
yvvai^l ffvarrivai ^^71'= "When the Lord asked for the bread and the cup and
blessed them, saying, This is my body and my blood, he did not bid women
associate themselves with us ").
a. V. Oettingen, 1898, p. 323): "Come and let me tell you what I once heard
in Lycia. The virtue of a woman who was learned in the Scriptures, self-controlled
[i.e., ascetic), and a philosophic teacher of the Lord's doctrine," etc.
"
:
has delighted in the anklet will bear the pressure of the gyves. I fear that the
neck roped with pearls and emeralds will have no room for the sword ").
:
anger at his wife having gone over to this sect " (" Claudius
L. H. in Cappadocia indigne ferens uxorem suam ad hanc
seetam transisse Christianos crudeliter tractavit," ad Scap. iii.).
Hippolytus narrates how some Christians who had gone out into
the desert in an apocalyptic frenzy, would have been executed as
robbers by a Syrian governor, had not his wife, who was a
believer (oucra -irLcrTu), interceded on their behalf (Comw. in Dan.,
iv. ^18). From the Acts of Philip (bishop of Heracl.) we see
that the wife of Bassus the proconsul was a Christian (ch. viii., cp.
Ruinarfs, Act. Mart., Ratisbon, p. 444). Eusebius has preserved
for us the story of the Christian wife of the prefect of Rome
under Maxentius {H.E., viii. 14; Vit. Const., i. 34), who, like a
second Lucretia, committed suicide in order to avoid dishonour.
And Justin (JpoL, II. ii.) tells of a distinguished Roman lady
who had herself divorced from a licentious husband. In all these
cases the husband was a pagan, while the wife was a Christian.^
Neither in the pre-Decian period nor in subsequent years was
there any difference made between men and women in a
persecution.^ This is one of the best-established facts in the
^ Cp. also Mart. Saturn, et Z)a!/zVi (Ruinart, p. 417): " Fortunatianus, sanc-
tissimae martyris Victoriae frater, vir sane togatus, sed a religionis Christianae ....
cultu .... alienus " (" F., the brother of that most holy martyr, Victoria, was
indeed a Roman citizen, but he was far from sharing in the worship of Christian
religion "). The emperor Julian bitterly complained that the wives of many
pagan priests were Christians ohx ^Kia-ra ^x^^"""" i«'-^ ttoWcov Upewv
(Soz., v. 16:
Xpt(TTiavi^eiu OLKOvuiv ras ya^eras). In Porphyry's treatise, 7} iK Koyiaiv (piXocrotpia
(cp. Aug., de Civit Dei, xix. 23), an oracle of Apollo is cited, which had been
vouchsafed to a man who asked the god how to reclaim his wife from Christianity
"Forte magis poteris in aqua impressis litteris scribere aut adinflans leves pinnas
per aera avis volare, quam pollutae revoces impiae uxoris sensum. pergat quo
modo vult inanibus fallaciis perseverans et lamentari fallaciis mortuum deum
cantans, quem iudicibus recta sentientibus perditum pessima in speciosis ferro
vincta mors interfecit " ("Probably you could more
easily write on water or
manage on wings through the air like a bird, than win back to a right
to fly
feeling the mind of your polluted impious spouse. Let her go where she pleases,
sticking to her idle deceptions and singing false laments to her dead god, who
was condemned by right-minded judges and who perished most ignominiously
by a violent death "). The difficulties met by a Christian woman with a pagan
husband are dramatically put by Tertullian, ad Uxor., ii. 4 f. (partly quoted above,
vol. i. pp. 160, 385). Cases in which the husband was a Christian, while his
wife was pagan, or nominally Christian, must have been infrequent cp., however,
;
the Acta Marciani et Nicandri and the Acta Irencei (above, vol. i. pp. 397 f. ).
^ Cp. Augar {loc. cit.). Origen {Horn, in Jud., ix. i, Lomm., vol. xi. p. 279)
writes: "We have often seen with our own eyes women and girls of tender age
80 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Ai history of early Christianity. Consequently the number of
1 female martyrs is, comparatively speaking, very significant.
I
^r^ Thekla passed as the first of these, though it was said that she
%Kf^ was miraculously preserved. After her, in the ranks of women
martyrs, came JDomitilla, Agnes, and Cecilia in Rome,
''
suffering torture and being martyred by tyrants their unripe years and their sex
;
^ " It k agreed that believers who marry pagans are guilty of fornication, and
are tp.Jbe excluded from any intercourse with the brotherhood " cp. de Corona, ;
xiii. " Ideo non nubemus ethnicis, ne nos ad idololatriam usque deducant, a
:
qua apud illos nuptiae incipiunt " ("Therefore we do not marry pagans, lest
they lead us astray into that idolatry which is the very starting-point of their
nuptials"). The allusion is to the pagan ceremonies at a wedding.
'^
The passage in de Lapsis vi. proves, of course, that the church could not always
interfere ; at any rate, she did not instantly excommunicate offenders. In the
gloomy picture drawn by Cyprian {de Lapsts, vi. ) of the condition of the
Carthaginian church before the Decian persecution, mixed marriages do not fail
to form one feature of the situation (" Jungere cum infidelibus vinculum matri-
monii, prostituere gentilibus membra Christi " = Matrimonial ties are formed with
unbelievers, and Christ's members prostituted to the pagans).
^ These are strict canons. Jews and heretics are worse than pagans ; worst of
all are pagan priests, of course, since the Christian position of their wives was
hopelessly compromised.
:
cp. canon xi. " De puellis fidelibus, qui gentilibus iunguntur, placuit, ut
:
^ Cp. the sarcastic remark of Tertullian the Montanist (in de Vifg. Vel. xiv. )
that the place on which it stood was a Christian house or site even in the first
century, for the Christian tradition at Antioch was uninterrupted.
Many items of evidence from the very beginning of Christianity prove this.
^
^ Tradition affords no secure basis for the view that worship was usually held
in hired or bought school-buildings (trxoXot), so that the form of such buildings
determined the later structures of the churches. 'EKi;j^3yria and ^&a.aKa.\CLov were
always distinct from one another, though the distinction tended sometimes to be
tlurred (cpTvol. i. pp. 357 f. ).
85
86 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
far back as we can go, several meeting-places are to be found.
How the unity of the church was preserved under these cir-
cumstances, we do not know. All that can be said on this
point partakes of the nature of a priori conjecture. One thing
isclear, and that is, that the idea of a special place for worship
had not yet arisen. The Christian idea of God and of divine
service not only failed to promote this, but excluded it,
while the practical circumstances of the situation retarded its
development.^
After the close of the second century, things were different.
Our information about Edessa, and the writings of Tertullian,
Hippolytus, Minucius Felix, Origen, and Cyprian,- show that
henceforth there were special places or buildings for worship,
called " domus dei," " ecclesia," or " dominicum " (KvpiaKov)-
The period of their rise in all probability coincides with that of
the church's gi-eat expansion during the reign of Commodus, as
1 The passage in the Acts of Justin (ch. iii.) is explicit on this point. The
prefect Rustian asks, nov ffwepx^crdi (" Where do you meet ?"). Justin replies :
prefect retorts eiTre, ttov (Twepx^o'S^ ^ f 'J iroToy rSirov aOpol^fis tovs ^iadr]Tas
:
(Tov ;
Justin answers, €701 eVava) fxevoa rivhs Mapriyov tov Ttnodiuov ^aXavdov,
(cat Trapa iravTO. rhv XP^'">^ tovtov oii yiyvuffKw &\\riv rtva (TvvfKevaiv (I fxri ttjv
tKiivov [cp. abovCj vol. i. p. 357]. This passage throws light on the well-known
passage in the Apol., I. Ixvii. (ttj tov tjKIov Xsyofievri riixfpa Trdvrwv Kara. irSKtis
fl &ypovs ix(v6vro}v iirl rb aiirh cvvi\ivais y[viTai = Oi} Sunday, all who stay in
the towns or the country gather together). Nothing is said of one or more
meeTTiig-places for worship in a town.
'"
Passages in Muller ; only one or two can be added, viz., Orig., Horn. ix. in
two sites and ruins throughout the East and in Africa (and
Rome ?).
These hall-churches did not last beyond _ the reigu. , of
Gallienus. The growth of the Christian congregations, the
ecclesiastical consciousness, and the complicated requirements of _
the priesthood and. the cultus (which approximated more than
ever to those of paganism), involved not only larger buildings ^
but buildings for special purposes {e.g., chapels for the martyrs).'-^
The age admitted of their erection, for an almost unbroken
peace reigned from Gallienus to the beginning of the fourth
century. Partly on ground which belonged to private in-
dividuals, partly on sites which were the property of the
^ Cp. the interesting remark of the pagan (Porphyry) in Mac. Magnes, IV. xxi :
0AA.0 Kal ol XptcTTiavol ixiixovjifvoi tos KaracTKivas tSiv vaSiv fiiylcrrovs oXkovs
olKoSofxoviTiv, fis ovs (TvuiovTis itixovTUi, Ka'iTOi f/.r]Sivhs KcoAvovTos er Tais olKiats
TovTo Kpa.TTiiv, Tuv Kvp'iov SjjAo^Jti iravTax^^f^ olkovovtos ("Christians too, imi-
tating the temple edifices, construct large buildings, where they meet for prayer,
though there isnothing to hinder them from meeting in their own homes, since
their Lord is confessedly able to hear them anywhere ").
^ Cp. especially Eus., Mar/. Pal.
p. 102 (Violet in Texte ii. Uniers., xiv. 4), and
Sozom,, V. 20. From the latter passage we can see that several oIkoi eiiKT-fjpiot
were erected on one site, so that they must have been often quite small chapels.
88 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
church (for such were certainly in existence during the second
half of the third century), large churches now arose, in the
shape and under the name of _basij[cas.^ Eusebius says ex-
.plicitly (and we could infer it even apart from his evidence) that
this was going on from the time of Gallienus. Naturally, it
was not done all at once ; it was very gradual, so much so that
even decades afterwards many congregations had only quite
") . modest buildings. The basilica was not a product of the age
^ of Constantine ; it had already made its appearance within
ii^^^ Christian architecture. The origin of the form would never
^^ have occasioned so much perplexity, had it not been for the word
" basilica," which even yet has not been satisfactorily explained.'^
The basilica itself rested on the hall-church, just as that in its
turn went back to the simple chamber or atrium.
-+- . Let me only add that this survey brings out the fact that no
^^^U conclusions upon the size of any Christian congregation can be
drawn from the small size of its church-buildings, even when
j^C^-y^ the existence and use of such buildings can be proved for any
-*«^ given period. Even when a church edifice can be shown to
VL have been the only one in the town, no such inferences can
"^ safely be drawn (down to the beginning of the third century);
JA i-U v"^"
I
for we do not know whether worship may not have been also
conducted in private houses, as a makeshift, nor do we know,
as a rule, the special circumstances which may have induced a
congregation to endure privation for a time and to make a
poor building serve their purposes. On the other hand, the
establi shm ent of numerous churches in a town is a fact of great
importance for the history of the spread of Christianity.
Anything that is known about the separate churches will be
found in the following pages, in connection with their respective
towns.
1 The name "basilica" was not confined lo a church of some size ; it denoted
small churches as well.
- Large, stable, and sumptuous basilicas weie^jiot erected, of course, prior to
Constantine the great church in Nicomedia could be demolished in a few hours,
;
(cp. Lact., deMort. 12, and Socrat., ii. 38, where we are told how rapidly a church
was removed from one place to another). The .age pf Constantine thus marks a,
certain epoch in the history of ecclesiastical buildings ; cp. the description of the
buildings in Tyre, by Eusebius {H.E,, x. 4).
—
CHAPTER III
^ I should hold it proven, with regard to the provinces of Asia Minor, that the c^-
network there was firm and fast by the time of Constantine. There were about
four hundred local bishoprics by the end of the fourth century, so that if we can
prove, despite the scantiness and fortuitous nature of the sources, close upon
one hundred and fifty for the period before 325 a.d., it is highly probable that
the majority of these four hundred were in existence by that time. This calcula-
tion is corroborated by the fact that during the fourth century Asiji Minor yields
evidence of the chor^episcopate being vigorously repressed arid dissolved, but
rarely of new bishoprics being founded.
90 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Chron., ii. 33: "Hoc temporum tractu mirum est quantum
invaluerit religio Christiana " = during this period the Christian
religion increased at an astonishing rate). As for the extent to
which Christianity spread throughout the various provinces,
while the following pages exhibit all that really can be
established on this point, no evidence upon the
available
number of the individual churches (or bishoprics) would make
itpossible to draw up any accurate outline of the general
situation ; our information is better regarding some provinces,
inferior in quantity as regards others, and first-rate as regards
none. Had I drawn the limit at 381 a.d., or even at 343 a.d.,
a much more complete conspectus could be furnished. But in
that case we would have had to abandon our self-imposed task
of determining how far Christianity had spread by the time
that Constantine granted it toleration and special privileges.^
^ One of the most important aids to this task is the list of signatures to the
council of Niccea in 325 a.d,, an excellent critical edition of which has recently
appeared {^Patrum Nicanortitn nomina latine, grace, coptice, syriace, arabice,
armeniace, by H. Gelzer, Hilgenfeld, and O. Cuntz Leipzig, 1898; cp. also ;
Jerusalem. |
Antioch in Syria (Acts xi., etc.).
his stay in Arabia. Holsten's view is that Paul in Arabia was simply reflecting on
the relation of the gospel to the Old Testament, but the inevitable inference to
be drawn from Gal. i. 16 is that Paul had already preached to pagans in Arabia.
Still, this is not quite certain. Luke, at any rate, does not hold that the Gentile
mission had now begun (Acts ix. 19-29, xi. 20 f. ). It is likely that Paul was
referring primarily to Arabia when he spoke (Rom. xv. 19) of his preaching avh
'itpovaaXrjij. Kal kvk\ci> — for KVK\cf), in spite of all that the excellent Antiochene
expositors urge, can hardly mean "in a circle as far as lUyria." Jerusalem he
neither could nor would ignore as his starting-point ; but as he really never
laboured there in the role of a missionary, he adds eV kvkXcc, which may quite
well denote Arabia, whose boundaries (viewed from a geographical elevation)
adjoined Jerusalem and which included Jews among its population.
- Ramsay {C/iurc/i in the Roman Empire, 1S93,
pp. 211, 235) shows the likeli-
of churches when these seven letters were written" (Ramsay on "The Seven
Churches of Asia," Expositor, vol. ix. p. 22).
w-
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 93
^ This is not quite certain: (nrovSacrov fAOe?!' irpos fie els 'NikSitoKiv exf? y^p
KeKpiKa irapaxi^f^O'O-ai. An early note appended to the epistle to Titus runs :
and countries described there and nowhere else as districts in which missions are
said to have existed as early as the apostolic age.
^ It is disputed whether Paul carried out his design (Rom. xv. 24, 2S) of doing
missionary work in Spain. To judge from Clem| Rom. v. and the Muratorian
fragment, I think it probable that he did. See also Acfa Petri (Vercell.), vi.
\A^ We should have to include Gaul here, if FaWlav (Sinait., C. minuscc. and Latt.
were the true reading in 2 Tim. iv. 10, or if FaAaria were European Gaul (so
Euseb., Epiph. Theod., and Theodoret).
, But the reading is uncertain. Cp.
Lightfoot's edition of Galatians (5th ed.), p. 31.
"
^ scholars, like Pearson and Vitringa, would take " Babylon
Some well-known
(in I Egyptian town of that name. But, in spite of the tradition
Pet. V.) as the
that Mark laboured in Egypt (he is mentioned with Babylon in i Peter), this
hypothesis is quite baseless.
^ Cp. below, on Map I.
r-^ ^ CHRISTIANITY
//
95
i Nicomedia
Eus., H.E.,
(Dionys. Cor., in Amastris
]).
in Pontus
Cor., in Eus., H.E., iv. 23).^
(Dionys.
iv. 23).
Otrus in Phrygia (anti-Mon- Debeltum in Thrace (Serapion,
tanist, in Eus., H.E., v. l6).2 in Eus., V. 19).
Hieropolis in Phrygia (probably, Anchialus in Thrace (ihid.).^
1 The proximity of Derbe and Lystra, as well as the remarks of Eusebius {H.E.^
vi. make it highly probable that a
19), Christian community existed here before
180 A.D.
2 Ramsay (5/ Paul the Traveller, etc., third ed., 1897, pp. vii. f. ): "Christi-
anity spread with mar vellous rapid ity at the end of the first and in the second
century in the parts -Hirygia that lay along the road from Pisidian Antioch to
.pi
Ephesus, and in the neighbourhood of Iconium, whereas it did not become power-
ful in those parts of Phrygia that adjoined North Galatia till the fourth century."
^ Though this church is not mentioned till afterwards (Alexander in Eus., H.E.,
vi. 19), our information about it, together with the size of the town, justify its
position as above. Cp. also the remarks of Dionysius in Eus. H.E. vii. , , 7.
* Myrra in Lycia perhaps had a Christian community (cp. Acta Paiili).
^ 'H 6/f/c\rjcria r\ ira.poiKOvaa.'' h.fj.a.a-rpiv d/xa rais Kara Uovtov [iKKXTjaiats]. Thus
Dionysius proves that several Pontic churches were in existence by 170 a.d.
^ Byzantium, too, had probably a church of its own (cp. Hippol., Philos., vii.
35 ;
perhaps one should also refer to Tert., ad Scap., iii.).
"^
'H eKKX^crla ri irapoiKovcra TSpTwav a/xa raTs \oiira7s /caret KpTjrrjt' irapoiKiats —
evidently there were a number of churches in Crete by this time. It is highly prob-
)
able also that Christian churches existed in Cyrenaica before i8o a.d. (cp, beloSv,
under " Cyrenaica "). Kt;p^[j'jj] occurs in the Acta PaiiU (Coptic, K. Schmidt's
ed., p. 65) beside Syria, but the context is in too bad a state to permit of any
inferences being drawn from it.
^ In greater Greece, Clement of Alexandria (f. 160?) met a Christian teacher
from Syria and another from Egypt {Strom., I. i. 11). Hence there must have
been Christians in one or two of the coast towns of Lower Italy, otherwise no
Christian teachers would have stayed there.
^ It is extremely probable that Uthina, Lambese, Hadrumetum, and Thysdrus
should also be included, since Tertullian [de Monog. xii. ad Scap. iii.-iv. .
implies that there were churches there. Cirta, too, would have to be added to
their number.
^ Renan [Marc. Aurcle, p. 452) declares " Le Bretagne avait sans doute deja
:
[/.£., before 180 a.d ] vudes missionnaires de Jesus." But his evidence, the Quarto-
deciman controversy, is quite insufficient. " Sans doute " has a " possible," like
itself. "II est possible que les premieres eglises de Bretagne aient dil leur
origine a des Phrygiens, a des Asiates, comme ceux qui fonderent les eglises de
Lyon, de Vienne." "Possible" Why not? One needs to be a Breton to lay
!
§ 1. Palestine.^
1
Cp. Map III.— See Schiirer's Gesch. d. jiid. Volkes, 1.(3) (1900), II.<3) (iJ
Mommsen's Rom. Geschichte, v. pp. 487 f. [Eng. trans., vol. ii. pp. 151 f.];
Marquardt's Rom. Staatsverwaltimg, pp. 247 and the map i. f. ; in Klostermann's
edition of the Otioniasticon of Eusebius (1904).
'^
His episcopal chair was still shown in the days of Eusebius {H.E,, vii. 19).
^ Details in my Chronologic, i.pp. 129 f. 218 f. ,
••
Zahn's {Forschwtgen, vi. 300) idea is that the number includes the names of
contemporary bishops throughout Palestine.
* Cp. Knopf, Nachapost. Zeit alter,
pp. 25 f.
VOL. II. 7
98 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
de Mens, et Pond, xv., after Hegesippus or Julius Africanus), and
emigrated to Pella ^ ; it was only a small number who eventually
returned after the city had once more risen from its ruins,^ In
any case, the local church was small. We have no means of
ascertaining its previous size, but the exodus of 68 a.d. precludes
^^ oW^'"^ The new pagan city of ^^lia Capitolina, founded on the site
^ At the outbreak of the Jewish war Pella, like some other Hellenistic and
pagan towns, was surprised by the Jewish revolutionaries, but it can hardly have
been in the hands of the rebels when the Christians took shelter there. They
sought refuge in a pagan town. This is all we can say with any show of proba-
bility. According to Renan {Antichrist, p. 237), "no wiser choice could have
been made." Scythopolis and Pella were the nearest neutral cities to Jerusalem.
" But Pella, by its position across the Jordan, must have offered much greater
quiet than Scythopolis, which had become one of the Roman strongholds. Besides,
Pella was a free city, though apparently it had allied itself to Agrippa II. To
take refuge here was to express open horror at the revolution."
- This is clearly brought out by Epiph., Hctr., xxix 7 also de Mens, et ;
Pond., xiv. f. where we learn that there were only seven poor synagogues and
,
one little church in Jerusalem when Hadrian visited the city prior to the revolt
of Barcochba. The church was on Mount Zion, and the congregation is said to
have been composed of those who had returned from Pella {koX a-(\p.tia. fnyaKa
eirfTeXovi/). Eusebius {Demonstr. III. v. 108), on the other hand, relates: ko!
,
^ IffTopla Se (caTe'xei, i>s Kal fxiyi(TT7\ ris ^v iKK\T)Tia. XptCTOv iu to7s 'lepoffoKvfiois
iinh 'louSfttoiv (TvyKpoTov/xfvri fJ-exP^ '^'^^ XP*''''*"' ''"'J^
""''"' 'ASptavb*' iro\topKias (cp.
Theophan., v. 45).
•^
Eusebius and Epiphanius (or their authorities) explicitly assert that all the
Christians of Jerusalem withdrew to Pella. The statements of Acts41, 47 ; (ii.
The " myriads'' of Christians mentioned in xxi. 20 are not simply Jerusalemites,
but also foreigners who had arrived for the feast. But even so, the number is
exaggerated.
•*
Cp. the collection for Jerusalem, which Paul promoted so assiduously. Gal. ii.
10 is a passage which will always serve as a strong proof that the name " Ebionite ''
is not derived from a certain "Ebion," but was given to Jewish Christians on
account of their poverty. (As against Hilgenfeld, and Dalman : Wertejesu, 1898.
p. 42 Eng. trans., pp. 52, 53).
;
' Cp. Mommsen's Korn. Geschichte, v. p. 546 [Eng. trans., ii. 225] :
" The new
city of Hadrian continued to exist, but it did not prosper."
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 99
Tuiv eKK\t]aiu)i> Tov Qeov twv ov(jwv ev tij lovSala ei' ^piarco
Itjcrov, oTi Ta avra eiraOeTe Kai vfxeh viro tmp iSiwi^ (TVjU(pv\€TU)v,
In the post-Neronic age some other towns acquired the rank of independent
communes e.g., Neapolis (Sichem), Capitolias in the Decapolis, Diospolis (Lydda)
;
mission cp. i Cor. ix. 5) played a leading role also in these Christian com-
;
munities outside Jerusalem as may be inferred even from the epistle of Africanus
;
to Aristides (Eus., //.£., i. 7), where we are told how the relatives of Jesus from
Nazareth and Kochaba scattered over the country (tt?' \onrr) yrj (7ri4>oiTr}cravrfs),
and how they bore the title of Sfcnroawoi (§ 14). The tradition of Hegesippus
is quite clear. He begins by recounting that wphs yevovs Kara ffdpKa tov Kvpiov
ol
(Eus., J7.E., iii. 11 : "Those who were related to the Lord in the flesh") met
100 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
ask what became of the Jewish Christians who could not agree
\
to this transition,^ obhged to cast back for a moment
we are
Xt' to the removal of the Christian community from Jerusalem.
yjfiy Eusebius writes as follows {H.E.^ iii. 5) : tov Xaov tj?? ev
-^ lepoa-oXuiuoi^ e/c/cXj/o-Za? Kara Tiva xpWf^ov toIi? avToOi SoKifioig
Si' air OKaXvylrem eKdoOevTa irpo tov 7ro\e/ui.ov jj-eravatTTrivai r^?
TToAeco? KUi Tiva T>]9 TLepaia^ ttoXiv oiKetv KeKeXevcrjua'av, IleXXai'
after the death of James to elect his successor (" for the greater number of them
were alive," ir\elovs yap /cai tovtoiv nepnio'av ilaeTi. rdre TCf 0tw).
still Then he
tells of two grandsons of Jude, the brother of Jesus, who were brought before
Domitian (iii. 19, 20). Finally, he states that, after being released by Domitian,
they " ruled over the churches, inasmuch as they were both witnesses and also
relations of the Lord" (iii. 20. 8: tovs airoXvOevras TjyfjffacrOai rwv (KKKT]ai(iiv,
uxTOLV 5^ fidpTvpas bjxov Ka\ dLirh ytvovs ouras tov Kvplov) ; cp. also iii. 32. 6 :
fpxovrai ovv Ka\ irpo-qyoiivrai. iracrris ^KKXrjcnas ojs jxapTvpes Koi airh yevovs rod
Kvpiov ("So they come and assume the leadership in every church as witnesses
and relatives of the Lord "). This statement about ruling is vague, but it is
hardly possible to lake irpo-i\yovvrai merely as denoting a general position of
honour. Probably they too had the rank of "apostles " in the Christian churches ;
in I Cor. ix. 5, at any rate, Paul groups them with the latter as missionaries.
'
A priori, it iswere also Jewish Christians who spoke Greek
likely that there
gospel according to the Hebrews existed daring the second century. Outside
Palestine and the neighbouring provinces (including Egypt), Jewish Christians who
held aloof from the main body of the church were, in all likelihood, so few during
the second century that we need take no account of them in this connection.
Jerome (.ff/i. ad Aug. 112, c. 13) does assert that Nazarenes were to be found in
every Jewish synagogue throughout the East. "What am I to say about the
Ebionites who allege themselves to be Christians ? To this day the sect exists in
all the synagogues of the Jews, under the title of '
the Minim '
; the Pharisees
still curse it, and the people dub its adherents '
Nazarenes,'" etc. (" Quid dicam
de Hebionitis, qui Christianos esse se simulant ? usque hodie per totas orientis
synagogas inter Judaeos heresis est, quae dicitur Minaeorum et a Pharisaeis nunc
usque damnatur, quos vulgo Nazaraeos nuncupant"). But this statement is to
be accepted with great caution, and it must be qualified. Jewish Christianity
also got the length of India = South Arabia or perhaps the Axumite kingdom,
(
KOI e/c TiJ9 ToiavTt]9 VTroOea-ew^ Tip Ylepalav oiKi'icravTe? eKeicre to?
(" For wjien all who believed in Christ had down about
settled v*
that time in Peraea, the majority of the emigrants taking up
their abode at Pella, a town belonging to the Decapolis men-
tioned in the gospel, near Batanea and the district of Basanitis,
Ebion got his excuse and opportunity. At first their abode
was at Kochaba, a village in the district of Carnaim, Arnem,
and Astaroth, in the region of Basanitis, according to the
information which we have received. But I have spoken, in
other connections and with regard to other heresies, of the
102 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
locality of Kochaba and Arabia"). Al.so_Epiph., (76' Mens, et
Pond., XV. : rjvLKa yup ejueXXev t) Tro'Xi? uXia-KeQui inro tow
Pw/uLaicof Kui ept^ixovarduL 7rpoexp>]/ui-UTi<T0>]<Tav utto ayyeXcw
iruvTC'^ ol /maOijTUi ixeTarrTrjvai airo t/;9 TroXeto? u.eXKov(Tt}<i apSrjv
UTToXXucrOai, o'[rive<i /JLeravaarTai yevojULevot WKtjcrai' ev JleXXr}
^ The Christian inscriptions found in Batanea include some from the pre Con-
stantine period ; cp. Le Bas, No. 2145.
- P'or examples of these, see Zahn's Forschiinge)i, vi. p. 270, and Kenan's Les
Evangiles, pp. 39 f.
therefore, to take this as the village mentioned by Africanus (in Eus., H.E., i.
7)
along with Nazareth. We
can hardly think of the Kokaba of Epiphauius, which
lay east of the Jordan, as Africanus mentions Nazareth and the other village in the
same breath as the home of the relatives of Jesus, who were Galileans. It must
therefore be regarded as accidental that the home of the relatives of Jesus and
also a place east of the Jordan, where many Christians afterwards resided, were
called by almost the same name. —
Note, as a curious detail, that Conon, whose
martyrdom is put by legend under Decius, and who lived and died as a gardener
at Magydus in Pamphilia, declared at his trial that he came from Nazareth and
was a relative of Jesus (cp. von (iebhardt's Ada Marl. Sdecta, p. 130).
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 103
about twenty kilometres [i2h miles] ^.W. of Damascus (cp. Baedeker, pp. 295, 348,
and the map), where Paul's conversion was located during the Middle Ages, for
this spot disagrees with the detailed statements of Epiphanius, and, besides,
Eusebius writes as follows in his Onomasticon : Xco^d, 7} eVrij/ eV apia-Tepa
Aafji.a(TKOV. effri 5e koI Xw^a Kdofiri ev tojs avrols fxfpiffiv iv 77 eicrli/ 'E^paioL ol
(Is XptfTThv TTKnixxTavTis 'E^iuvaToi KaXovfiivoi (" Khoba, whichon the left is
Jerome). This Khoba, as Fiirrer kindly informs me, is the modern Kabun,
north of Damascus. With this all the statements of Epiphanius agree (see further,
Har., xl. I eV t^ 'Apa^ia iv Kwxi^JI, eu6a at tUv 'E/Sioicat'coj' re Koi Na^ctipaiaiv
:
(ti^ai fvijp^avTo = In Arabia at Kochaba, where the origins of the Ebionites and
Nazarenes lay). The locality, however, has not been re-discovered. Its site
awaits future research, very possibly westward of Adraa (Der'at ; cp. Baedeker,
p. 186) and in the vicinity of Tell-el-Asch'ari, which lies not far N.N W.
from Der'at, and may be identified with Karnaim-Astaroth (Baedeker, p. 183).
Basanitis, or Batansea, belonged to Arabia in the days of Epiphanius. Zahn
{Fofsch., i. pp. 330 f.) is inclined to look for Kochaba much farther south ; but
in order to make such a site probable, he has to cast doubts upon the precise
language of Epiphanius. For this there is no obvious reason, especially as
Epiphanius {Hcer., xxx. 2) observes that elsewhere he has given an explicit
topographical account of Kochaba. Fiirrer kindly informs me that "Kochaba,,.,
or Chorabe in Hebrew, may be identified with Kharaba about 8 kilometres N.W,
of Bostra. Kharaba, indeed, lies pretty far from Astaroth (Tel Astura) and
Karnaim (Dschuren in Ledscha), E. and S. of these places. The name favours
the identification. The form Kochaba has disappeared in the course of time."
Cp. Renan, 43 f.
^ It is doubtful if this migration took place at so early a period. It may have
occurred later. Jerome found Jewish Christians in Bercea {de Vir. III. 3).
•
Moabitis owes its mention perhaps to the impression produced by the fact
that the Elkesaites (Sampsaeans) were mainly to be found there ; cp. Hcer., liii. I :
SauiJ/aTot T(V6S iv T7? rigpaia .... iripav ttjj 'AAh/ctjs riroi NiKpas Ka\ovfx.evTjs
daXacrarts, iv ttj MojajSiViSt xcopa, irtpl rhv x^^P-'^PP'^vv 'Apvuv koI iireKeiva 4v ry
^Irovpala koI NaySariTiSt ("Certain Sampsaeans in Peraea beyond the Dead Sea
in Moabitis, in the vicinity of the Arnon torrent and across the borders in Ituraea
104 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
hatred and persecution at the hands of the Palestinian Jews,
they rightly supposed that they would fare, not comfortably
indeed, but at least better in the Greek towns of the East and
in the country. This migration, which had been carried out
once before in the dispersion of the Jerusalem church after the
outburst against Stephen, was i-epeated in a later age, when a
number of Christian heretics during the fourth and fifth
centuries fled from the state chmxh into the eastern districts
across the Jordan. All these movements of flight presuppose
,a group of people comparatively small in numbers, with little
" Jerusalem " also occurs) ; which shows that even the church
^ Cp. with this TertulliajLS. notice {de Ajiima, 7)— though it is not, of course,
equally important —of the ^ssci, of. Menander, which must be also sought in
Palestine (Samaria) especially. He calls Menander's adherents " paucissimi," and
adds " Suspectam faciara tantam raritatem securissimi et tutissimi sacramenti \i.e.,
:
Menander's baptismal rite] .... cum contra omnes iam nationes adscendant in
montem domini" ("I think it is suspicious when a rite of such protective and
saving efficacy is so seldom observed .... when, on the contrary, all nations are
going up to the mountain of the Lord ").
^ The episcopal list (cp. my Chronologic^ i. pp. 220 f.) up to 250 A.D. shows
nothingbut Greco-Roman names : Cassianus, Publius, Maximus, Julianus, Gaius,
Symmachus, Gaius, Julianus, Capito, Maximus, Antoninus, Valens, Dolichianus,
Narcissus, Dius, Germanion, Gordius, Alexander. Then come four names—
Mazabanes, Hymenajus, Zabdas, and Hermon — two of which, of course, are
Syrian.
Ar
V
Yv^^-^^'^'^'^
[2
106 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
at first held that the old tradition had been broken.^ Never-
theless, as is well known, the sacred Christian sites ^ were sought
out during the second and third centuries ; some of them were
actually found and visited. A certain amount of theological
activity is attested by the existence of a library which bishop
Alexander established in ^Elia at the opening of the third
r century (Eus., H.E., vi. 20).=^
lj>-^,
AA*''^clear, from the history of Eusebius, that the bishop of JElia not
C<^r Uierely stood next to him, but somehow shared with him the
^ By 300 A.D. the name "Jerusalem" had become wholly unfamiliar in wide
circles. A good example of this is afforded by Mart. Pal., xi. 10, which tells
.Ambros. H. 150. Inf. Ssec. IX. "In commentariis Victorini inter plurima haec
:
* Tli£_£restige^of Csesarea dates from the days of Herod the Great, who rebuilt
the city on an imposing scale. It was the headquarters of the Roman pro-
curators,and consequently became the ecclesiastical capital. Tacitus (Hisf., ii. 78)
,^»^ calls it " JudseK caput" while after Severus Alexander it was the capital of the
;
vf^"^ *
Lhence it was possible to master and massacre the local Jews at the outbreak of the
- Jewish war. Acts relates how the first real Gentile Christian was converted at
Caesarea, and that his conversion became the basis of the Gentile mission (Acts x.).
e was the military captain of the place The troops under command of the
!
^ The metropolitan nexus cannot be traced earlier than c. 190 a.d. (the
Paschal controversy). Eusebius (v. 23) tells how Theophilus of C3esarea and
Narcissus of Jerusalem were then at the head of the Palestinian churches and
synod. In noticing the synodal communication (v. 23), he puts Narcissus first,
while he distinguishes the bishops of Tyre and Ptolemais, who attended the
synod, from the Palestinian bishops. The communication is interesting, as it
According to Socrates (iii. 23), who depends upon Eusebius, the later Neoplatonist
Porphyry was beaten by Christians in Cassarea.
ry!>\\^'
108 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
In Acts we hear of Christians, outside Jerusalem, at Samaria
(and in Samaritan villages ; cp. viii. 25), Lydda (Diospolis),
Saron,^ Joppa, and Caesarea. Codex D of the New Testament
locates Mnason, the old disciple (Acts xxi. 16), at an unnamed
village between Caesarea and Jerusalem.
At Nicaga there were present the bishops of Jerusalem,
Neapolis^ (Sichem), Sebaste (Samaria),^ Caesarea, Gadara, Ascalon,
Nicopolis, Jamnia, Eleutheropolis, Maxiniianopolis, Jericho^.
Sebulon, Lydda, Azotus, Scjthopolis, Gaza, Aila, and Capitolias^
Elsewhere we have direct or inferential evidence ^ for the presence
of Christians (though in very small numbers at particular spots)
at Sichar ('Asker), Bethlehem, Anea near Eleutheropolis in the
district ofBeth Gubrin, Batanea*^ near Caesarea (Aulana), Anim,
Jattir, and Phasno. Eusebius (H.E., vi. 11. 3) mentions bishops
of churches which were situated round (irepi^) Jerusalem, even
in the year 212/213; but we do not know who are meant.
Similarly, in Maii. Pal., i. 3, he mentions apxovTef twv
e-jTixoopidov eKKX)]cnu)i', "rulers of the country churches" (i.e., of
churches in the neighbourhood of Caesarea), who were martyred
at Caesarea under Diocletian, But unfortunately he does not
specify the localities. Nor do we know anything about the
1 Acts ix. 35 seems to take Saron as a group of places.
- The birthplace of Justin the apologist. Epiphanius {Hcer., Ixxviii. 24) de-
scribes a peculiar local cult : Ovaias ol firix<iptoi nXodffiy els 6vo/xa rris KSpris,
Srjdev e/f -rrpocpacrtws rris Ovyarphs 'lecpOae . . , koI tols r)TTa''"f)iJi.4vois rovro yeyovsv
tls liKdfiriy elSa)\o\aTpeias koI KtvoXarpiias. He can also report a remarkable
statement about Sichem (Hccr., Ixxx. l) : aAA.a kuI npocnvxvs t6xos eV 2i/ci/uotj,
«V rfi vvv Ka\ovfxevTi NeairoAej e|co rris irSKews, eV ttsSiciSi, a>s anh ffr^/xiiwv Svo,
tjj'
OfarpoeiSris, ovtcos iv aepi koL alOpicf tStcj) iffrl KaraaKevaardfls I'inh rwv 'S.ap.apenSiv
iriivTa TO rciv 'lovSaiwu fjn^ovfuepoi.
3 The signatures to the Nicene council (Gelzer, Hilgenfeld, and Cunitz, 1898,
p. Ix.) give a double entry : Map?f os and Taiavhs l,e0a(XTrjs. Schwartz
'^efiaffTtivis
(Zur Gesch. des Athanas., VI. p. 286) thinks that the town and the district formed
—
two churches which is quite likely.
^ The presence of bishops or Christians in several of these towns is attested also
by Alexander of Alexandria (in Athanas., de Synod. 17, and Epiph., Hcer.,
Ixix. 4), and Eusebius {Mart. Pal.).
^ I leave out the pseudo-Clementines.
® " Batanea near Cresarea maybe identified with Khirbet Bethan (Ibthan) it is ;
the one ruin S. of Zeita, and W. of Attil, in the district of Saron, about 4 hours
E.S.E. from Csesarea. But this identification seems to me problematical. I
would have rather discovered the holy springs of Betasenea (Batanea) " so Flirrer ;
This can hardly mean the persecution under Julian, as the bishop in question
^
6<c«Xr)(7»ax, Sia rh fi'fiTe "E\\r]va, ixijTi 2a,uap€iT7ji/, jx^ts XpiaTiavhi/ fiicrop ahrSiv
eivai • TOVTO 5e fiaKicTTa ev Ti/SepiaSt Kal ev ALOKaiffapiia, tjj koi '2,eir(povpiv, Kol eV
Ka^ipvaoh/j. (pvXaffcreTat irap' avrols rov elvai riva
edvovs).
fir) &Wov
This is not
contradicted by the statement of Epiphanius himself (xxx. 4) regarding a " bishop
whose district adjoined that of Tiberias " {iiriaKowos ir\ri(TL6xa>pos rrjs Tt^eplcui' iii>),
in the pre- Constantine period for this bishop was not exactly bishop of Tiberias.
;
There must have been numerous purely Jewish localities in Palestine thus Origen ;
' But apriori it is likely that originally there was a Jewish Christian community
at Capernaum, and a passage in the Jerusalem Talmud confirms this supposition.
110 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
they were extremely scanty in the territory stretching away
to the south of Jerusalem,^ then it is impossible to speak of
Palestine being Christianized before the time of Constantine.
Save for a few exceptions, the lowlands were Jewish, while
in Jewish towns and localities Christians were only tolerated
against the will of the inhabitants, if they were tolerated at
all. In Diocaesarea, e.g.^ even under Constantine, the Jews
were numerous that they essayed a rising (Socrat.,
still so
H.E.^ and Theodoret {H.E., iv. 19) relates how in the
ii. 33) ;
^ On some exceptions to this (Anim and Jattir), see below. — For idolatry in
Mamre, see Vit. Const., iii. 51-53. Constantine had a church built at Mamre.
Sozomen [H.E., ii. 4) describes the summer festival attended by Christians,
pagans, and Jews there.
- The seaport of Gaza, Majuma, undoubtedly belonged to this group of churches.
But other towns and townships in the vicinity were still pagan entirely. Thus
Sozomtn {H. E .
, v. 15) declares that his grandfather and his grandfather's family
were the first converts in Bethelia : (ccojuj? Ta^aio KoKvavGpdirrtf re ovar) koI Itpk
e-xovcrr] opx'"'^''''''''' ""^ KaraffKevri trefiva rois KarotKoTxn, Koi ixaKiara rh Uavdfov.
Incidentally, we learn that Jews as well as pagans resided there.
^ A Christian woman " from the country of Gaza " {rrjs Ta^^aloiv x«^paO is men-
tioned in Eus., Alart. Pal., viii. 8.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. Ill
' Eus., Marl. Pal., iii. 3, supports the view that in the seacoast towns of
Palestine Christianity was to be found among the floating population rather than
among the old indigenous inhabitants. Six Christians voluntarily reported them-
selves to the governor for the fight with wild beasts. "One of them, born in
Pontus, was called
Timolaos Dionysius, another, came from Tripolis in
;
besides these there were two Egyptians, Paesis and Alexander, and another
Alexander from Gaza." Hardly any of the martyrs at C^sarea were citizens of
the town. —
The relations between Palestine (Caesarea) and Alexandria were
drawn still closer by Origen and his learning. We also know that Africanus
went from Emmaus to Alexandria in order to hear Heraclas, and so forth.
- Old Testament names— after the end of the third century, at least do not prove —
the Jewish origin of their bearers; cp. Mart. Pal., xi. 7 f. "The governor got :
by way of answer the name of a prophet instead of the man's proper name. P'or
instead of the names derived from idolatry, which had been given them by their
parents, they had assumed names such as Elijah, or Jeremiah, or Isaiah, or
Samuel, or Daniel."
•*
See some data upon this in V. Schultze's Gesch. des Untergangs des griechisch-
r'dmischen Heideiitiims (1892), ii. pp. 240 f., and especially the " Peregrinatio
Silvise " (ed. Gamurini, 1887).
^
Tvyxiivovris (cp. p. 74. 15), "The Christians of that day were few and easily
counted." It is also noted (p. 20. 2) that Porphyry added 105 Christians in one
year to the original nucleus of 127. Compare the following numbers on p. 29. 10 :
there are sixty named, on p. 52. i thirty-nine, then on p. 61. 16 we have one year
with three hundred converts, koI 6| eVeiVou Ka6' fKaffrov eras av^rjcriv tTreSexf'o
TO.XpicTiavwv ("And thenceforward every year saw an increase to the strength
of local Christianity ").
^ Vit. Porphyr., p. 16. 7 : K\t]a'iov Fa^rjy Kajfiai ruyxa-i'ovffi irapa Tr]v dSby
ahives VTrdpxovffiu rrjs ilSuAofiavias (''Near Gaza there are wayside villages
which are given over to idolatry").
*
Sozomen {//.£., v. 15) does mention Christians at Ascalon who venerated
his grandfather, but this refers to the second half of the fourth century.
^ Cp. Socrates. H.E., ii. 33 : ol iv AioKaiaapiia ttjs TlaXaKTTivqs 'lov5a7ot, Kara
'Pu/j.aia)!' '6ir\a a.vTfjpav koI TTtp\ tout TtJirouj (Kiivovs KaTfrpexof ' aA.Xa tovtovs
fxfu TdWoi 6 Ka\ KivvaTdvTtos, '6v Kalirapa KaTaa-rrirras 6 /SacriAsus fis rijv k(fav
e^anfffTfthey, Svfauip a.Tro(rTei\as KaTT}ya)yiaaTO Kal tV Tt^Aiv avrcei' AtoKatTapfiav
;
(who succeeded Domnus in the same reign, and took part in the
synods against Paul of Antioch, Eus., vii. 14. 28, 30 ; vii. 32.
6(s eSa^os Kareuix^nvai eKiXiVffiv ("The Jews who inhabited DiocKsarea took
up arms against the Romans, and began to lay waste the neighbourhood. Galhis,
however, who was also called Constanlius, whom the emperor had sent to the
East after creating him Caesar, despatched an armed force against them and
routed them whereupon, by his orders, their city, Diocsesarea, was razed to the
;
ground ").
^
Cp. Sozom., V. 9 irapair\r]crioiis (as at
: Gaza) TTjuiKavTa Tif ''E.\\riviafj.<f
Xalpoutra Kot irepl Tr;j' Bepaireiav twv ^oavoov eino-t]nevr).
" During the second century in particular, these Gentile Christian churches
were certainly to some extent infinitesimal. They were exposed to the double fire
of local Jews and pagans, and they had no relations with the Jewish Christians.
The following decision of the so-called Egyptian Church-Constitution is scarcely
to be referred to Egypt. It rather applies to Palestine or Syria. 'Eav 6\tyavSpi,a
virdpx]} Kol iJ.r)nov irXrjdos rvyxo-vr] Toiiv Swafieuaiv ^pri<l>l<raffdai irepl iTri(TK6.wov fvrhs
j)3' eh ras ir\ri(riov eKK\7}crias, oirov tv/x"-^^'' TreinjyvTa, ypacpeTwcrav, k.t.A.
avSpciv,
("Should there be a dearth of men, and should it be impossible to secure the
requisite number of twelve capable of taking part in the election of a bishop,
let a message be sent to churches in the neighbourhood"); Texie ti. Unlers.,
ii. 5. 71 f.
YOt, It, 8
;
^ Eusebius (Violet's ed., p. 42) tells how the miracle of the corpse of Appianus
the martyr took place before the eyes of the whole city, "and the whole city
(young men and old, women of all ages, and virgins) gave with one accord the
glory to God alone, and confessed with loud voice the name of Christ," Cp. also
pp. 69 f.
^ Simon Magus came from,Q|tta, aSajaaritan village, and Menander from the
village of Capparetasa.
^ The biblical Beth-san (Baischan, Besan),
;
round Gaza, the seaport of Majuma was noted for its large
number of Christians).^
Aila (a seaport on the north-east corner of the Red Sea, in-
cluded in Palestine at that period ; Counc. Nic, bishop Petrus).
Gadara (Zacchasus a local deacon, Violet, p. 8 ; Counc. Nic,
bishop Sabinus).
Capitolias (perhaps = Beter-Ras ; Counc. Nic, bishop Anti-
ochus).
^ Clermont-Ganneau, Co/npt. rend, de VAcad. desIiiscr. et Bell. Lettr., 1904,
Jan. -Feb. pp. 54 f. recently discovered inscriptions have laid bare the opening
,
;
of this city's era (199 A. 1;.), when, as we now know, Septiinius Severus was in
Egypt and Palestine and conferred autonomy on the city. Epiphanius was born —
^tBe sand uke,- a
place near Eleutheropolis, c. 320 A. D. (accordingtoTHe~^'Cife''l,
probably of Christian parents, but possibly of Jewish.
^ It may be the town between Ceesarea (Straton's Tower) and Scythopolis.
Probably it is. But we may also think of the town N. of Bostra in the S. Hauran
(now es-Suweda, cp. Baedeker, p. 191).
^ ^Sabulon ." says Fiirrer, " I take to be the Zabulon of Josephus, which is the
'
same as his Chabolo, the modern Kabfll, on the border of the plain xaf Ptolemais."'
•*
St Hilarion was burn (about 250 A.D. J afTTabalha, "a village lying about
5000 paces from Gaza," but his parents were pagan. Commodian calls him
" Gasseus," but this has nothing whatever to do with Gaza.
''
On account of its Christianity, Julian took away its civic rights and attached
theni ICL Gaza. Eusebius {Vita 37-38, and after him Sozomen, ii. 5,
Coz/.f/. , iv.
V. 3) tells how the local pagans suddenly were converted to Christianity under
Constantine, and how the town received from the emperor its civic rights and the
name of Constantia. Naturally, being a seaport, it contained a number of
Christians before it openly professed the Christian faith. Constantine made it
independent, in order to injure the pagan Gaza,
116 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Bethlehem (the existence of local Christians is deducible from
Orig., r. Cels., I. li.).^
p. 525).
Anim and Jether, two villages south of Hebron (on Jether or
Jethira or Jattir, see Baedeker, p. 209; Anim = Ghuwin = Ruwen,
as Seybold kindly informs me (so Guerin) ; cp. BuhFs Geogr.
Pal., p. 164), which Eusebius, in his Onomasticon, declares
were exclusively inhabited by Christians. This is a striking
statement, as we are not prepared for Christians in these of all
districts.' We
must not, however, measure the density of the
Christian population on the soil of Palestine by this standard.
These two villages must have formed an exception. to the general
rule,^ although it remains a notable fact that there were villages
already which were completely Christian.*
) writes
^^^Teptullian {adv. Jiid. xiii. Animadvertimus autem nunc neminem de
:
'
'
case since all Jews were prohibited from lingering even in the confines of the
district "). Constantine had a church built on the grotto of the birth ( Vita, iii. 41).
- Ftirrer, however, calls attention to the fact that many famous rabbis had also
fled south.
•*
Eusebius (vii. 12) tells of three Palestinian martyrs (Priscus, Malchus, and
Alexander) in the reign of Valerian, stating expressly that they lived on the land,
and that they were reproached for thus enjoying an unmolested life whilst their
brethren in the city were exposed to suffering. Hence they voluntarily betook
themselves also to Caesarea, etc. Unfortunately, Eusebius has not specified their
original home.
* Fi'irrer writes to me as follows : "There is a slight confusion about Anim,
Anea, and Anab. In the Onomasticon we read that Anab was in the district of
Eleutheropolis, d\Xa koX 'hva^a eVrJ Kiiifxri 'lovSaiwf neyiarr) /coXoUjueVr; (eV tcJ?)
Aapco/j-^Trphs v6tov XeBpwv a-rrh cTr]iJi.eiaiv 9'. Then, on Anim (pv\ris 'lovSa. ^AAr; :
'Avaia TrArjcrioc ttjs irpOTepas, ^ vvv oAtj 'KpiariavSiv rvyx'^vei, oixra dvaroAi/CTj ttjs
irpoTfpas. Anim has for long been identified with Ghuwin in the south of Hebron.
There are an upper and a lower Ghuwin. The former is north-east of the latter, and
would be the Christian Anim. (In Anab, about six hours south of Eleutheropolis,
there are ruins of a church which seem to date from the Roman period.) They
were distinguished by their sites on two hills separated by a small valley the ;
aforesaid ruins lie on the eastern hill. I would be disposed to look for the two
Aneas here. In the west, Jews resided in the east, Christians. On the western
;
hill there are also ruins of a shrine, which afterwards served as a mosque the traces ;
;
of its Christian origin are still distinct," — In the Onoviasticon (p. 58. 18) Eusebius
writes thus : B7)6aa/3apa,
''''
o-kov i\v 'lojai/j/rjs ^aTTTt^'oii'," " Trepai/ toC 'lopStii'oi'," kq.\
Joh., vi. 50, and Preuschen in D. Berliner Philol. IVochenschrift, 1903, col. 1358^.
^ In the larger recension of the Mart. Pal. (Violet,
pp. 105 f.) we are told that
the Coptic prisoners of Ph^no were for a time together at Zoara ( = Zoar).
" Much people were with them, some who had come from elsewhere to see them,
and many others who provided them with what they required, sought them out
affectionately, and ministered to their wants. The whole day they spent in
prayer, worship, teaching, and reading .... they lived all the while as if it
were a festival and convocation. But God's enemy could not bear this. Forth-
with a governor was sent to them. His first act was to separate them," etc.
" Phffino has been again discovered
; it lay in Eastern Edom, at a place where
two valleys meet. The ruins are now called " Phenan " (Fiirrer).
^ In one town, Au.lQna,-Petrus Balsamus is said to have been martyred. He
came from the district of Eleutheropolis (according to the longer Syriac recension
of the Mart. Pal., he was born " in the district of Beth Gubrin "). The name of
the place is perhaps misspelt, and we may identify it with Anea (see above).
me, however, that there isa Beth-'AIam S. E. of Eleutheropolis, which
[Fiirrer tells
reminds one of Aulona so that Aulona perhaps should be distinguished from
;
^Anea.] Nor was he martyred there. It was, on the contrary, the place of his
birth. No chor-episcopi from Palestine took part in the council of Nicsea. Was
it because there were none at all, or very few, in Palestine? If so, it is a fresh
corroboration of the fact that Christianity had penetrated but slightly into the
(Jewish) population of the country. One can hardly refute this by appealing to
—
had for the most part withdrawn across the Jordan. Amid the
Greek population, again, Christianity had not as yet any
numerical preponderance ^ evidently it drew its adherents
;
from the fluctuating, poorer classes, rather than from the ranks
of stable and propertied people.- It is perfectly obvious, to
judge from the treatise on the Palestinian martyrs (see above),
the bishop " of the churches round Gaza " (see above), for probably in Gaza itself
there could not be any bishop. Still, there were churches in the country districts
we have seen, and in all likelihood they had bishops.
of Palestine, as
1 Wemust not, indeed, underestimate their numbers, for Eusebius would never
have been able to say that " Christians are nowadays, of all nations, the richest
in numbers" {H.E., i. 4. 2), unless this factor had been both noticeable and
superior to the religious associations of the country. The historian could not
have pronounced such a verdict, if Christianity had been an insigniticant factor in
his own surroundings at Csesarea. From Eus., H.E., ix. 18 (fxeyas n Kal fx6yos
aX-nOrts 6 XpiffrLavHv di6s : "The Christians' God is great, and the only true
God "), it follows also that public feeling, in Csesarea at any rate, was not absolutely
unfavourable to Christians; cp. also the passage quoted above (p. 114), with
ix. I. II (cos Kol Tuiis Trporepov Kad' rifiuiv (poviovras, rh 6av/j.a TrapA iraaav opoovrts
iKwiSa, ffvyxaip^i" ^ors yiyevrjixevois : "So that even those who formerly had
raged against us, on seeing the utterly unexpected come to pass, congratulated
us on what had occurred"), and especially ix. 8. 14 {6e6v re toov XpitTTiaviiiv
5o|o^eir, evaefieTs Tf Koi f^Sfovs QeocTi^els rovrovs dA.7j0wj trphs clvtHiv iKiyx^^vT"-^
Twi/ irpayixcLTuiv 6fj.o\oyf7v :
" Glorify the Christians' God, and acknowledge, under
the demonstration of the facts themselves, that Christians were truly pious and the
only reverent folk ").
Aramaic (Syriac), a statement which also proves that the service- >
"J
books were still {c. 300 a,d.) untranslated into the vernacular. 04\a.JI^
Translated they were, but orally.^ This statement also shows [h
that
hhflt the n^ translation
npprl of
fVip need nnf yet
frnnslfltinn was not vpf pressing.
nvpscino" n cl n _ "^
Transla
H^Tti ^^^f"^
tions of the Scriptures into the Palestinian Aramaic dialect
(I pass over what is said in Epiph,, Hoer., xxx. 3, 12) were
^
§ 2. Ph(enicia
knows only Syriac, therefore, since the bishop, though he knows Syriac, always
speaks in Greek and never in Syriac, a presbjter always stands beside him to
interpret his Greek into Syriac, so that all the congregation may know what is
being said. Also, as the readings from Scripture in the church have to be in
Greek, a Syriac interpreter is always present for the benefit of the people, that
they may miss nothing of the lessons. Indeed, in case Latins here [in Jerusalem],
i.e. people who know
neither Greek nor Syriac, should be put out, the bishop
expounds them by themselves, since there are other brethren and sisters, Graeco-
to
Latins, who expound to them in Latin").
Cp. Lewis and Gibson, 7'he Palestinian Syriac Lectionary of the Gospels (1899),
'
city in the East for manufactures and trade, made it the <"-
cM^
ecclesiastical capital of the province ; but it is questionable if JZ ^ '^
Tyj;e_eiijoyed.jthis pj^e-^minence as early as the second century, .
jurist and this martyr were not the only Tyrians who bore this
name), vii. 1 (Theodosia, the woman martyr). Origen died
at Tyre and was buried there. It is curious also to note that
the learned Antiochene priest Dorotheus, the teacher of Euse-
bius^.was appointed by the emperor (Diocletian, or one of his
immediate predecessors) to be the director of the purple-dying
trade in Tyre (Eus., H.E., vii, 32). A particularly libellous
edict by the emperor Daza against the Christians, is
issued
(ix. 7), who copied it from the pillar in
preserved by Eusebius
Tyre on which it was cut, and the historian"'s work reaches
its climax in the great speech upon the reconstruLc_tion of the
church at Tyre, "by far the most beautiful in all Phoenicia"
(x. 4). This speech is dedicated to Paulinus, bishop of Tyre,
in whose honour indeed the whole of the tenth book of its
' In the pseudo-Clementine Homilies, the island of Aradus (xii. 12), Orthosia
(xii. and Paltus (xiii. i), the frontier-town between Syria and Phoenicia, are
l),
all mentioned. Whether Christians existed there at that early date is uncertain.
- Phoenicia, .was then.attached to Syria; it was not a separate province
of the
empire. We should expect the local bishops to associate with those of Syria
daring the second century, but this was not so. Were they specially invited
to the Palestinian synod, or did they take part in its proceedings as regular
members? In the matter of Origen, they were at one with the bishops of
Palestine (cp. p. 120, note 3), while the Syrian bishops seem to have condemned
Origen. -
1:^2 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
history is written. Unfortunately we get no information
whatever, in this long address, upon the Christian community
at Tyre. We can only infer the size of the community from
the size of the church building (which may have stood where
the ruins of the large crusading church now astonish the
traveller; cp. Baedeker's Palestine, pp. 300 f.). Tyre as a
Christian city was to Phoenicia what Ca?sarea was to Palestine.
It seems to have blossomed out as a manufqxrturing and trading
centre during: the imperial age, especially in the third century.
A number of passages in Jerome give characteristic estimates of
1 Where is this town to be sought for? Perhaps the name is misspelt. Perhaps
we are to think of Alalis on the Euphrates (N.E. of Palmyra), for the province of
Syro-Phcenicia reached thus far, probably, in the third century.
2 The last-named is not quite certain (see Gelzer, op. cit., pp. Ixv. f.). Perhaps
a twelfth still falls to be added, some MSS. is genuine, and if we
if the &e\€T} of
may identify it with " Thelsea,"' or " Thelsese," near Damascus {/tin. Aiit., 196. 2).
So far as I am aware, we cannot tell where to look for the Phoenician locality
mentioned by Eusebius in Vit. Cons/., iv, 39: ravrov Se Ka] erfpai irXiiovs Sie-
TTpaTTOVTO x^P"'^' ^^ V f""! Tov ^otviKwy idvovs ai'Tov QacriXeios eircDvvixos, i)S oi
a bishop being appointed even at Heliopolis. Then he proceeds "In his zealous :
care to have as many as possible won over to the doctrine of the gospel, the
emperor gave generous donations for the support of the poor at this place also,
so as even thus to stir them up to receive the truths of salvation. He, too, might
almost have said with the apostle, Whether in pretence or in truth, let Christ
'
as follows :
' /nsc. Grec. et Lalines, iii. 1S70, No. 2558, p. 5S2 ; cp. Harnack in Zeitschr.
can be traced, lay on the coast ; i.e., they were towns ^ with a
strong Greek population. In the large pagan cities, Emesa and
Heliopolis, on the other hand. Christians were not tolerated.
Once we leave out inland localities where " heretics," viz.,
Marcionites and Jewish Christians, resided, the only places in
the interior where Christians can be found are Damascus, Paneas, ^. 1.,
_and Palmyra. Damascus, the great trading city, was Greek (cp.
Momnisen's Nam. Gesch., v. p. 473; Eng. trans., ii. 146) ; so was J/'t
Greek infusion, was well disposed not towards the Greek - but ^
towards the scanty indigenous Christians of Syria, as may be
inferred from the relations between Paul of Samosata and
Zenobia, no less than from the policy adopted by Rome against
him. The overthrow of this metropolitan bishop meant a
-'
victory for Hellenism. -^ >y[/^
xi.), the greatest city of the East and the third city* in the ,
-w /
Roman empire, ere a few years had passed over its head. It was J^^
in Antioch that it got its name, which in all probability was
originally a nickname ; ^ for Antioch was a city of nicknames
1 The names of the Phoenician bishops and Christians known to us are Greco-
Roman, with two exceptions. Bishops Zeno, ^Eneas, Magnus, Theodorus,
Hellenicus, Philocalus, Gregory, Marinus, Anatolius attended the council of Nicaea ;
the bishop of Alassus alone has a Semitic name, "Thadoneus" (not given in Pape-
Benseler), while "Zenobius" may be the Greek form of a Semitic name. It was
in Phoenicia as in Palestine ; Christianity appears as a Greek religion.
For the great catholic federation of churches must at that time have been felt
^
as 180 A.D. took the name "Christian" as a term of ridicule {irepl rod (t«
KanyeXav /jLOV, KaXovyra fie XpiffTtav6i', ovk olSas t Aeyeis).
—
paganism who were called "Christians" (cp. vol. i. pp. 411 f).
Here Barnabas laboured. Here the great apostle~Paul found
his sphere of action for some years, and ere long the Christian
community became so important, endowed with such a vigorous
self-consciousness and such independent activity, that its repute
rivalled that of the Jerusalem church itself.- Between the
churches of Jerusalem and Antioch the cardinal question of the
Gentile Christians was debated ; it wg,s^the church of Antioch
mentioned along with Syria and Cilicia in Acts xv. 23, and the
only city noted in this connection — which took the most decided
step forward in the history of the gospel ; and as early as the
second century it gave further expression^ to its church-
consciousness by designating the apostle Peter as its first bishop
—although, to judge from Gal. ii. 11 f., it was no glorious role
that he had played in Antioch. One of its churches was traced
back to the apostolic age (see above, p. 85).
We know next to nothing of the history of Christianity in
Coele-Syria during the first three centuries,* but a succession of
data is available for Antioch itself. We possess, for example,
the list of the Antiochene episcopate,^ and the very names
^ We hear of this in the reign of Julian.
^ In this connection special moment attaches to Acts xi. 27 f. (where the
wealthier church of Antioch supports the brethren in Judaea), and further, to
Acts xiii. I f : 'Hctoj' ^v 'Avrtoxfif Kara TT]y ovcrav (KK\riaiav irpofpriTai koI
SiSdffKaKot re Bapvdfias Koi 2t/;Uecbi' 6 KaKovfJLfvos Niyep. Koi Aovkios 6 KvprjvaTos,
'6
Kal SavAor fls rb epyoy, k.t.\. At the very outset a certain Nicolaus, -rrpuarjKvTos
pp. 50 f. —
We have frequent evidence that church music spread from Antioch
throughout the whole church. Socrates (vi. f<) notices the legend that Ignatius
the local bishop learned responsive chanting from the angels.
•
We know that a seat, or the seat, of the sect of the Elkesaites was at Apamea,
whence the Elkesaite Alcibiades travelled to Rome (Hipp.. Philos., ix. 13). The
Elkesaites, however, belong to the history of Jewish Christianity. They were not
a sect of the Catholic church.
''
Cp. my Chro7iologie, i. pp. 208 f. and elsewhere.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 127
Greek, and Greek was the language of the church. Its fame fj
1 The Apology oi pseudo-Melito (Otto's Corp. Apol. ix.), composed about the
beginning of the third century, was probably written in Syriac originally (and in
Coele- Syria), but it is the only Syriac writing which can be named in this connec-
tion (cp. my Chronologie, i, pp. 522 f., ii. pp. 129 f. ). Investigations into the
Acts of Thomas have not yet advanced far enough to enable us to arrive at any
certain decision upon the question whether they belong to the province of Edessa
or to that of Western Syria. The great probability is, however, that they were
composed in Syriac,and that they belong (cp. my Litt. Gesck,, i. pp. 545 f., ii. 2.
pp. 175 f. ) to Edessa —
in fact, to the circle of that great Eastern missionary and
teacher, Bardesanes ; cp. Noideke in Lipsius' Apokr. Apostelgeschichten, ii. 2.
pp. 423 f. and Burkitt in \hQ Journal of Theological Studies, i. pp. 280 f
, The
Syriac version of the gospels also belongs to Edessa, rather than to Western Syria.
The gnostic Saturninus (Satornil) also belonged to Antioch (cp. Iren., I. xxiv. i),
and other gnostic sects and schools (Ophites, etc.) originated in Syria. Their
language was Greek, but interspersed with many Semitic loan-words.
128 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Antioch also took part in the great general controversies, the
MoHtanist, the Origenist (siding against Origen), the Novatian,
the baptismal, and the Christological, and it maintained a vital
intercourse with other churches. It mediated between the
church at large, which was substantially Greek, and the Svriac
East, just as the Roman church did between the former and the
Latin-speaking West.^ Further, unless the evidence is deceptive,
itwas the <ihurch of .Antioch which introduced into the cultus
of Greek Christendom its strongly rhetorical element an —
element of display and fantasy. Once more, it was in this
church that the dynamic Christology received its most powerful
statement ; here Arianism arose ; and here the ablest school of
exegesis flourished. Thanks to the biblical scholarship of
Lucian, the teacher of Arius, Antioch acquired a widespread
importance for the development of exegesis and theology in the
East (Arianism, the Antiochene school of exegesis, Nestorianism).
The central position of the church is reflected in the great
synods held at Antioch from the middle of the third century
onwards, Dionysius of Alexandria (Eus., H.E.^ vi. 46) wrote
to Cornelius of Rome that he had been invited to a synod at
Antioch (251 a.d.) upon the baptism of heretics, by Helenus
of Tyre and the other bishops of the country, as well as by
Firmilian of Cappadocia and Theoktistus, a Palestinian bishop
(of Caesarea). The outcome of the synod is described by him
in a letter to Stephen of Rome {ibid., vii. 5) :
" Know that all
the churches of the East, and even beyond it, which previously
were divided, have once more become united. All over, the
bishops are harmonious and unanimous, greatly delighted at
the unexpected restoration of peace among the churches." He
then proceeds to enumerate the bishops of Antioch, Caesarea,
^Elia, Tyre, Laodicea, Tarsus, " and all the churches of Cilicia,
besides Firmilian and all Cappadocia — for, to avoid making my
letter too long, I have merely named the most prominent bishops.
Add all Syria and Arabia, .... with Mesopotamia, Pontus, and
Bithynia." Setting aside the two last-named provinces, we may
^ It is instructive to note how Cornelius of Rome plumes himself upon the
greatness of Rome, in writing to Fabius of Antioch (Eus., If.E., vi. 43). He had
reason to do so, in face of Antioch's prestige.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 129
say that this forms a list of the provinces over which the influ-
ence of Antioch normally extended.^ To the last great synod
at Antioch against Paulus, the Antiochene bishop, no fewer
than seventy or eighty bishops gathered from all the provinces,
^ This also serves to explain the well-known passage in the sixth canon of
Nicxa.[ dfji.oiois Se Kal Kara 'AvriSxeiav Kal eV rats &\\ats iirapxiais to. irpiafi^la
(rd)Ce(T0at Ta7s fKKXfiffiais (" Likewise with regard to Antioch and throughout the
other provinces, the churches are to have their due prerogatives secured to them ").
did come from the later diocese of Pontus, but the Alexandrian bishop Dionysius
only seems to have been invited out of regard for his high personal reputation).
Even when there was reason to make common cause against the bishop of Antioch
at a synod, Antioch was chosen as the meeting-place cp. the cases of Fabius
and Paul of Samosata. (2) When Antioch had to be passed over, and another
;
city selected as the place of meeting, the bishop of Antioch still presided over the
l^
Synod, as at Ancyra and Neo-Caesarea in the beginning of the fourth century.
(Llibeck's contention, pp. 104 f., that the pre-eminence of Antioch grew up
gradually out of the synodal custom, seems to me to confuse cause and effect.
The starting-point of it certainly lay in the prestige of the city as the capital of
"vj^
what was an exceptionally large province at the beginning of the imperial period,
as well as in the primitive importance of the local church. It is surprising that
Antioch does not come forward at the Paschal controversy of 190 a.d. when the ,
Antiochene bishop was the right of ordaining the metropolitans of the Eastern
provmces (and even this is not quite certain), the privilege of summoning Eastern
synods, and the exercise of a certain control over them, together with the super-
vision of the propaganda (as missionary archbishop). For a true account of these
functions, cp, Ll'ibeck, pp. 134 f. The distinctive and superior privileges of the
Antiochene bishop, over against the metropolitans, must have consisted in practice
VOL. II. 9
,
and custom rather than in definite, prescribed functions in this respect he differed
;
from the bishops of Rome and Alexandria. Hence, in the sixth canon of Nicsea
Rome is bracketed with Alexandria, not with Antioch it is with reference to ;
Alexandria as well as to the whole church (Eus., H.E., vii. 30) mentions, in its
address, the names of Helenus (Tarsus), Hymenseus (Jerusalem), Theophilus (? per-
haps Tyre), Theoteknus (Csesarea), Maximus (Bostra), Proclus (?), Nicomas (?),
.(Elianus (?), Paulus (?), Bolanus (?), Protogenes (?), Hierax (?), Eutychius (?),
Theodorus (?), Malchion (presbyter of Antioch), and Lucius (probably also a
presbyter of Antioch). Unfortunately, the bishoprics of most are unknown, nor
do we know why these alone are mentioned. Did the Eastern metropolitans,
with some presbyters of Antioch, name themselves alone as the senders of the
document? Photius thinks these were only a few prelates who ratified the
deposition ; he mentions twelve.
^ According to later Oriental sources (cp. Westphal, Unters. iiher die Qtiellen
und die G latibwih'digkeit der Pati-iarchalchi-oniken des Mdri ibn Sulaitndn, etc.
r\ 1901, pp. 62 f. ), Demetrianus, Paul's predecessor in the see of Antioch, was exiled
to Persia. This tradition, which answers to the general situation (the city was
sacked by the Persians in 260 a.d.) and has nothing against it, proves that about
260 A.D. both the church of Antioch and its bishop possessed some political
weight. Labourt, however, questions its authenticity {Le Christianisme dans
r empire Perse, 1904, p. 19).
'
business. Thus he
treats piety as a means of makiBg—some
.profit. He haughty and puffed up
is he is invested with
;
probably in the very year, when the Persians captured Antioch. As soon as the
Persians retreated, Gallienus appointed Odsenathus to a position of practically
independent authority over Palmyra and the East. Paul must have understood
admirably how to curry favour with this ruler and his queen Zenobia, for, in spite
A ntioch.
M
of his episcopal position, he was imperial pr ocurator in
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 133
the church eV T17 which the tyrants had destroyed. Philogonius, his suc-
XioXaia^
cessor, completed the buildings" {os koX y)\v iv rp Ua\ai^ KaraXvOilffav virh ruv
rvpavvwv (pKoSi/XTjcnv iKK\riffiai'. ^LXoySvios Se fiera tovtov rriv irpoeSpiav Aa^aiv
tA t6 Kiiiroixiva T-p oIkoSoixIo. irpocTTedeiKi). The words may also be understood
to mean, of course, that 7; iKKK-riaia iv t§ YlaXaia was the only local church.
^ Cp. Schultze {op, ciL, ii. p. 263); Gibbon {The Decline and Fall, Germ,
trans, by Sporschil, ii. p. 219) takes the 100,000 to represent the total of the
Christians in Antioch itself.
— —
^ This was the case with the Marcionites and several gnostic sects, as is shown
by the works of Theodoret, who boasts (e.g. in £p. cxiii. ) that over a thousand ,
Marcionites had been converted in his diocese alone, and also by the writings of
later authors (even in Arabic).
^ ]E<ven^ ill the Greek cities there were bishops who spoke Greek with a Syrian
accent ; cp. Socrates, vi. ii, on Severianus, bishop of Gabbala 'S.ffi-qpiavhs SokHv
:
wiiratSfvcrOai, ou irdvv Trj (paivrj ttjv €\\riviKr)V i^erpdvov yAoocrffav, dWa kclI
few districts {e.g., Commagene, Samosata, etc.) did without new Greek names."
•
It was in alliance with Greek that Syriac literature first arose cp. Wright, ;
(1899).
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 135
Edessa (see below) rather than from Antioch, unless we are /r ')
was consequently evangelized from two centres during the third 1/^ ^VX^
century from Antioch in the West by means of a Greek
;
'O^vfi
Christian^ propaganda, and from Edessa in the East by means
of one which was Syro -Christian. The inference is that the
larger towns practically adopted the former, while the country
towns and villages went over to the latter. At the same time
there was also a Western Syrian movement of Christianity,
though it did not amount to much, both in and after the days
of Paul of Samosata and Zenobia.
The work of conversion, so it would appear, made greater
headway in Ccele-Syria, however, than in Phoenicia. No fewer
than twenty-two bishops from Coele-Syria attended Nicaea (two
chor-episcopi, observe!), including severalwho had un-Hellenic -j
^ The peculiarity of the Antiochene (upper) bishop in early days was that his
interest in missions, extending as far as Mesopotamia, was confined to the spread
church. This was where Edessa came in. But I think it too much to say, with
Burkitt {Early Eastern Christianity, p. lo), that "the church of Antioch was, so
far as we know, wholly Greek. The country districts, where there was a Semitic-
speaking population, seem to have remained unevangelized. Where the Jews had
settled, the new Jewish heresy followed, but the country-side remained pagan."
^ Eustathius, Zenobius, Theodotus, Alphius, Basanius, Philoxenus, Salamanes,
Piperius, Archelaus, Euphrantion, Phaladus, Zoilus, Bassus, Gerontius, Manicius,
Eustathius, Paulus, Siricius, Selencus, Petrus, Pegasius, Bassones.
^ In a fragment from a debate with Paul of Samosata, which Pitra {Anal., III.
p. 6oo f.) has edited, Malchion is called Trpio-fivTipos 'A\xeuv. Is this the name
of some unknown place near Antioch ?
— :
^,LV
>' (1) -Acts (xv. ) already mentions churches in Syria besides
Antioch.
(2) Ignatius, apropos of Antioch {ad Philad. 10), mentions
"churches in the neighbourhood" {eyyiarTa eKKKijaiai) which
had already bighpps of their own.^ These certainly included
Seleucia, the seaport of Antioch mentioned in Acts xiii. 4.
p. 62).
(4) Dionys. Alex, (in Eus., H.E., vii. 5) observes that the
Roman church frequently sent contributions to the Syrian
churches.^
(5) The document of the Antiochene synod of 268 (Eus.,
vii. 30) mentions, in connection with Antioch, "Jbishops of the^
1 If the Qidascalia Apost. , pubHshed a scholarly
of which Achelis has just
edition {Texie u. Unters., xxv. 2), belongs to it would supply a
Western Syria,
large amount of information on the ecclesiastical situation and the spread of local
Christianity during the third century. But I think it more likely (though I am
not sure) that it belongs to the province of Arabia (see below).
^ Some scholars, however, place these iyyicna eKK\r]<Tiat in Asia Minor.
^ Unfortunately, we know no particulars. Were they town churches or country
churches, Greek or Syrian ? Had the Persian invasion reduced churches in Syria
to the need of begging? Did the Roman bishop intervene of his own accord?
In any case, we can understand Aurelian's edict still better when we put it beside
this remark of Dionysius al 2upia< '6Kai (/.<?., not merely Coele-Syria) koi r;
:
^Apa^ia, oils iirapKe'iTe (you, Romans) kKO-aron koI ols vvv eTrso-rejAare. It
' It is, of course, the Laodicea on the sea-coast that is meant, not that on the
Lebanon (S. W. of Emesa).
'^
For the names, cp. Cuntz ( " Stadiasmus Maris Magni") in Texle it. Unters.,
xxix. I. p. 9.
* For the local events in Julian's reign, cp. Theodoret, H.E., iii. 7.
In Apamea it would seem to have been particularly keen. Even for the period
c. 400 A.D., Sozomen (vii. 15) observes 'S.-uptav 5e fxaKicrTa ol tov vaov 'Airafj.(tas
•
:
ovs invdofxrjv 4ir\ (pvAaKTi tuv irap avTols vawv crvpif/.ax^a-is XP'^'^"-'^^"-'-
''^oWaKiS
Ta\t\aici}v auSpuv Ka\ rhv Aifiavov KUifiuy, rh Se TeXevTcuov eirl ToffovTOV
rwv Trepi
irpoeXdflv tJA/utjx ws MdpKtWov rhy ttjSc ivlffKonov av(\i'iy (" I have been told
138 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
—
H.E.^ ix. 9) for we must understand the experiences under-
gone by the churches of Syrian Antioch and Asia Minor, when
we read the emperor's words about crxedov aTruvrag avOpdoTTovg
KaToXeicpOeicnji t?]^ tow Oewv OprjaKcia? rw eOvei rwv jLpi(TTiavo)v
eavTOu^ (rv,ajUL€iuiixoTa'} (" almost all men abandoning the worship
of the gods and attaching themselves to the Christian people ").
This remark is not to be taken simply as a rhetorical flourish.
For after speaking in one place about the first edict of Dio-
cletian, Eusebius proceeds as follows : ovk et? fiaKpov 8e erepwv
KUTa Trjv M.e\iTrivi^v ouTco KaXoufxevrjv X(*>p(^^ ''^ct' (^^ iraXiv aXXcov
ajULtpi Tt-jv ^vpcav eirKJivrivaL rrj ^acriXeia TreTreipajmevociv, rovg
iravTaxocre tow eKK\>]criwu TT/aoecrTcora? elpKTUcg Kai Secriu-ol^
that the Syrian inhabitants ol Apamea often employed the men of Gahlee and the
Lebanon villages to aid them in a military defence of their temple, and that at
last they actually went so far as to slay the local bishop") [who had had the
temple demolished].
^ The spelling of this name as " Thelymitres " occurs in Pape-Benseler (in
seduced his fellow-members into the wilderness with their wives and children in
order to meet Christ. The local governor had them arrested, and they were
almost condemned as robbers, had not the governor's wife, who was a believer
(yutra iriaTi}), on their behalf. Unfortunately, Hippolytus does not
interceded
name the locality. —
There were also Novatian churches in Syria (cp. the
polemical treatise by Eusebius of Emesa, in the fourth century Fabius of ;
Antioch had sided with the Novatians). But we do not know where to look
for them.
^ Cp. my
study of it in the Sitzungsberichte d. k. Pr, Akad. IViss., 1891,
pp. 361 and Chro7iologie, ii. 133 f
f. , The epistle is only complete in the Syriac
version, but we have large fragments of the Greek original.
>A^
Each, as a rule, preached one exclusive god ; the relig ion was a
kind of monotheism. The Syrian Greeks were also enamoured
of this itinerant and commercial life, as philosophers, orators,
litterateurs, and jurists. When one recollects that Antioch
was the mother-church of Gentile Christianity, the spread of
Christianitycan be illustrated even from the standpoint of
Syrian trade activity. The Romans and the Greeks did not
esteem the Syrians very highly. Cicero reckons them among
the nations which were born to be slaves. " Yet even this
characteristic guaranteed to them the future," says Renan
(Les Apotres, Germ, ed., p. 308), "for the future belonged
then to slaves."
^
§ 4. Cypeus
'"
which insisted on autocephaly {i.e., the right of self- ordination) ^ >
as against the jurisdiction of Antioch. The Cypriote bishops
at Ephesus (431 a.d.) declared they had exercised this right j
'^i^ti- ^^^^
Socrates (i. 12), and Sozomen all tell us about the facetious and
breezy__Spyridon. He was a wealthy yeoman and herdsman, ^ Ci r^'
Tr6Ket SiaTpifpas ("An eloquent and learned man who had spent many years at
Berytus in studying law"). Cp. the Life of Gregory Thaumaturgus. — Ledrse =
Leucontheon.
^ Athanas., ApoL c. Arian. 50.
142 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Mark and Matthew, but a number of terms in the gospels were
still offensive to cultured Greeks.
(ii. 1. 7) that the entire city had been Christian from the apos-
tolic age to his own time. But the statement must hold true of
the age at which he wrote. In part, also, it has an earlier
reference. For there is no doubt that even before 190 a.d,
Christianity had spread vigorously within Edessa and its sur-
roundings,* and that (shortly after 201 or even earlier the .'')
1
Cp. Map. IV. — Mommsen's Geschich/e, v. pp. 339 f. (Eng. trans., ii.
pp. 30 f. ) ; Burkitt's Early Christianity outside the Roman E»ipire (1899), and
his Early Eastern Christianity (1904; the best work on the subject which we
possess) Duval's ZTw/. cfJ^desse (iSgz)
; Labourt's Le Christianisme dans Pewf ire
;
Perse sous la dynastie Sassattide, 224-632 (1904); and Chabot on " Synodicon
Orientale " in Reciuil des actes synodaux de Pt'glise de Perse, Notices et extraits des
MSS., tome 37, with Hallier's Untersuch. iiber die edess. Chronik. (in the Texte u.
Unters.,'\yi. i, 1892), and E. Meyer's article on "Edessa" in Pauly-Wissowa's
Lexicon. Labourt also gives a map of the western provinces of the Persian empire
(Mesopotamia).
'^
An earlier parallel is the conversion of the royal house of Adiabene to Judaism
in the reign of the emperor Claudius (see above, vol. i., p. 2).
^ It still finds defenders, — At
comparatively early date the tomb of
however. a
the apostolic missionary was also shown at Edessa, but there was great diversity of
opinion upon his identity (Judas Jacobi, Thomas, or Thaddaeus?).
•
The undoubtedly formed a basis for the spread of
strong local Judaism
Christianity and still farther eastward to the bounds of Persia
both here
(cp. Schiirer, III. pp. 5 f., Eng. trans. II. ii. pp. 222 f. Acts ii. 9 f. Joseph., ; ;
Aiitiq., xi. 5. 2, XV. 2. 2, xv. 3. i). Schiirer thinks the Jews in these provinces
numbered millions, not thousands their headquarters were Nehardea (NoapSa)
;
—
and Nisibis. The Aramaic element always predominated in the population of
Edessa only a thin Greek stratum overlaid it (cp. Chrysostom's remark on
;
Edessa, -KoWthv aypoiKorepa, eucrf/Seorepa 5e, ii. p. 641). Caracalla put an end
to the semi-regal native dynasty of the Abgars (semi-Syrian, semi-Arabian) in
216 A.D. but Edessa had already been for long under the suzerainty of Rome, while
;
Mesopotamia remained as it was till Septimius Severus, After 216, Edessa and
"
rojal house joined the church/3a that Christianity became the Ajul/Ct
state-religion ; while even during the Easter controversy {c. - ^ -.
for the Syrian church, while the latter established and acclima-
tized Christianity by dint of his keenness in teaching, his fanci-
ful theology, and his sacred songs. (Bardesanes was closely r''
connected with the school of Valentinus. His party in Edessa 1
"^
was called the Valentinian party; cp. Julian's Ep. xliii.). "
Osrhoene were a Roman ]5rovince till the Persian conquest in the seventh century.
The names of Mesopotamia who attended the council
the bishops from Edessa and
of NicEea show a mixture of Aramaic and Greek /Eithilas (Edessa), Jacobus, :
pp. 161 f. The great church-buildings were not erected till 313 (cp. the chronicle
of Edessa in Texie 71. Un/ers., ix. i. p. 93), but there was a Christian church as
early as 201 (cp. ibid., p. 86). The same chronicle contains some other interest-
ing items on the church and the church-buildings. Julius Africanus had already
claimed the Christian king Abgar as his friend (cp. Eus. Chroii., 2234-2235) ,
while the Liber Potttific. preserves an ancient tradition (which was misunderstood
and applied to Britain) to the effect that this Abgar corresponded with bishop
Eleutherus of Rome (cp. my essay in the Sitztmgsberichte d. Preuss. Akademie,
1904, pp. 909 f.).
first catholic bishop. Tlie beginnings of the Christianizing of Edessa may still
be made out in vague outline from this native "Doctrina Addaei" (legendary
material of the fourth century), the Acts of Scharbel, and the martyrdom of
Barsamya, together with the chronicle of Edessa (cp. Burkitt's Eastern Christi-
anity, lecture
i. ). First we have an apostolic missionary, subsequently identified
with a well-known apostolic personality then a native teacher and leader, Aggai
;
•
Habbib was martyred (cp. the old Syrian Kalendariiim of 411 a.d.). Qona was
succeeded by Sa'ad (died 324). —
The mission to Eleutheropolis in Palestine,
under Tiberius, with which the Abgar- Addjeus-Aggai legend commences, may be
historical, but it belongs to the reign of Septimius Severus (so Burkitt, rightly), as
is plain from the mention of Eleutheropolis and the name of Serapion of Antioch.
As the legend puts only one teacher and missionary before Palut, the Christianiz-
ing of Edessa cannot have begun much before the middle of the second century.
The legend antedates itself by far more than a century as a result, it puts under
;
Trajan what happened under Decius. In the chronicle of Michael the Syrian
(died 1 199) two bishops are mentioned before Palut in connection with Bardesanes,
viz. Hystaspcs, who is said to have converted Bardesanes and his predecessor
^
Cp. Nestle's article on "Translations of the Bible" in Pro^. Real-
Encykl^^\ iii. pp. 167 f. and Merx, Die vier kanonischen Evangelien nach ihrem
;
dltesten bekannten Texte, ii. I (1902), pp. x. f. Burkitt (in his second lecture)
shows that, prior to Tatian, Edessa probably had no version of the gospels at all
(though the Peshitta of the Old Testament was probably earlier than Tatian), that
the translation of "The Separated (ones)," Acts, and the Pauline epistles goes
back to Palut or to his age (the version of "The Separated (ones)" is extant in
Syr. Cur. and Syr. and that the Peshitta is the revision completed
Sin.),
by Rabbula. The Syr. Cur. and Syr. Sin. show plainly how
differences in
necessary a revision and adaptation of the current Greek text had come to be, but
the Diatessaron was still the most widely circulated text of the gospels about
400 A.D. Syr. Sin. and Syr. Cur. have no liturgical traces they were not ;
'
Haran was predominantly pagan even as late as Justinian's age (Procop.,
de Bella Pers., ii. 13). Christianity could never get a firm foothold there
(cp. Chwolson, Die Ssabier U7td der Ssabismns, 1856).
- (=Antiochia Mygdonia) where Ephraem, the famous Syrian author, was born
eh tA Upa. <poiTW(Tiv 7Trrei\7](T€ (sc. the emperor Julian) fx.)) fio-r\df7v, k.t.X. ("He
threatened that he would not help the people of Nisibis, since they were entirely
Christian and neither opened their temples nor frequented the sacred places ").
' Reference may also be made to Acts ii.
9 ("Parthians and Medes and
Elamites and the dwellers in Mesopotamia "), but the results among those who
were born Jews cannot have been large, here any more than elsewhere. A passage
from the Jerusalem Talmud (cp. Graetz's Hist, des Juifs, III. p. 51, quoted by
Labourt, p. 16) seems to corroborate this. Hananias, a nephew of rabbi Joshua,
is said to have attached himself to the Christian church in Capernaum, and, in
order to withdraw hi>n from Ckiistian influences^ his uncle sent him to Babylon.
No reliable data can be got from the history of the Mandseans (cp. Brandt,
Die fnanddische Religion, etc., 1889) bearing on the history of early Christianity
in Persia. All we learn is that this pagan sect was influenced by Christianity.
But it is not necessary to assume that this took place in the second or the third
century. Sozomen {H.E., ii. 8) puts it cautiously: koX X\.ip<Twv 5t xP"''''''°»'''''a«
T^v apxh^ r]yov/u.at '6<Toi rfj Trpocpdaet ttjs 'OffpoTivuiy Kal 'ApjUevicSf ljr(^i|ias, ws
(ik6s, Tois avrSdi Bdots avSpdinv uifiikriffav Kal ttjs avrSiv apeTrjs iir€ipd6r]cray
("I think the introduction of Christianity among the Persians was due to their
intercourse with the people of Osrhoene and Armenia, in all probability ; associ-
ating with these godly men they were incited to imitate their virtues also "). It
is natural to suppose that after the conquest of Western Syria by the Persians,
many Christians of the district (together with bishop Demetrianus of Antioch,
cp. above, p. 130) were deported to Mesopotamia and Persia. For the " Mes-
salians " inMesopotamia, see the confused accounts in Epiph. ffter. Ixxx. (which ,
>v-^-^^^)r
(cp. Eus., Prccp. Evang., vi. 10. 46),^ and Eusebius himself
^^viii. 12) mentions martyrs in Mesopotamia after the rise and /
jtj ^CTC-l
k. Gesch., xxvi. 95) " No one will believe that Nestorius converted or baptized
:
all the districts and peoples under this patriarchate. We had our Christianity
about 500 years (!) before Nestorius was born, and about twenty years after the
ascension of our Lord." Which is absurd.
^ Gyre ol iv Hapdla XpicTTiavol iroXvyaixovai, Tldpdoi Tvyx^vovres, ovd' ol eV
M7)5ia Kval irpoTiOeacri Toiis ytKpovs, ovx ol iv HipffiSi ya/novai ras Ovyarepas
avTcov, Hepcrai oVTes, ov irapa Ba/crpois Koi Tri\ois (pdiipovcri rous yd/xovs, (c.t.A..
(" Nor are the Parthian Christians polygamists, nor do Christians in Media expose
their dead to dogs, nor do Persian Christians marry their daughters, nor are those
in Bactria and among the Gelse debauched," etc.).
"^
The Persians are referred to in Constantine's remark ( 77/. Const., ii. 53) that
the kardan'ans nowadays boasted of having taken in the refugees from the Roman
empire during the Diocletian persecution, and of having detained them in an
extremely mild form of captivity, permitting them the unrestricted practice of
their religion and all that pertained thereto.
^ According to Sozom., ii.
13 (cp. Marutha), the chor-episcopus Mareabdes was
taken captive and killed by the Persians, in the persecution under Sapur, together
with his bishop Dausas of Bethzabde and about 250 clerics.
• Manichseism
showed a decidedly anti-Christian and anti-catholic front from
the very first, though some time afterwards it modified its anti-Christian
tendency. Hence Christianity must have been already an important factor in
Persian life.
148 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
^^^ M^ : Christians." Finally, reference must be made to Aphraatea.>__
^
^^"^ ~X ^ ,j^kj^t>
^^^^- iv. 13; cp. iv. 8: irv96jxevos ye rot irapa rcji Tlepawv fdvfi
Const.,
^-V JO ^
^
\j itXriQiveiv ras tov Oeov iKK\T]fflas \aovs re /xvpiavSpovs rats Xpiffrov irol/xvais
" ^'ivayeXdCecrOai, k.t.\. ("On learning that churches of God abounded among
'
' '
the Persians, and that thousands of people were gathered into the fold of
Christ," etc.).
" The place of their composition (in Mesopotamia, within the Persian realm) is
uncertain ;
possibly it was the monastery of Mar Mattai, about four hours north
from the ruins of ancient Ninive (cp. Tex/e u. Unters., iii. 3. 4. pp. xvii. f. ).
His fifth homily shows plainly, as indeed we can easily understand, how the
•*
sympathies of the Syrian Christians in the territory of Sapur were entirely with
the Romans in the Persian war. The characteristics and idiosyncrasies of the
ancient Syrian church have been excellently described by Burkitt (in his third and
fourth lectures ; cp. also Labourt, pp. 31 f. ), who has discovered fresh items (in the
works of Ephraem and Aphraates) bearing upon the theology of the church,
especially upon the doctrine of marriage and the sacraments. The prirnitive Jewish
ChxisLian substratum of Syrian Christianity comes out even in Aphraates it ;
confirms the opinion that during the brief initial epoch of Christianity in Eastern
Syria (of which we know nothing), the converts were principally drawn from
I^Si
V v/ converted fe:ws. One very remarkable trait is that of sexual asceticism (derived
from Tatian, of course, not from Judaism). Baptized persons are not to marry ;
any one who desires to marry is to abstain from baptism, for baptism is a spiritual
^ marriage with Christ. Burkitt (p. 126) rightly speaks of a deliberate reservation
of baptism for the spiritual aristocracy of Christendom " (cp. also his conclusions
"'
upon the b'nai Q'yama). This standpoint goes far beyond that of the Novatians,
but it is quite in keeping witlTtHa't of Eustathius of Sebaste ; it denotes a common
Oriental type of primitive Christianity, which probably was focussed at Edessa
(cp., however, the account of the preaching of repentance at Csesarea Cappadocia in
Socrates, v. 22). A doctrinal and practical position of this kind must have made
it difficult to oppose the Marcionites, who were numerous in Eastern Syria, for
they too refused to baptize any except unmarried persons. From the works of
Ephraem and the heresy-catalogue of Maruta of Maipherkat (Texte ti. Unlers.,
xix. I, 1899) we can judge how heresies swarmed in Eastern Syria and Persia
even in the third century. — Monastjcism^t'ntered Mesopotamia at the latest under
Constantine, thanks to Mar Awgin [Eugenius] cp. Butler's Laiisiac History of
;
Palladiiis (1S98), p. 218, and Budge's Book of the Governors, p. xliv. Mar
Awgin came from Egypt he was a pupil of Pachomius and subsequently a friend
;
before 250 a.d. must have been small. ^ In one or two localities
we can definitely assume the presence of Christians before 325,
as, e.g., at^^Amida ( = Diarbekir; cp. the Abgar legend, Acta
Thadd. 5 ; the retrospective inferences are certain),'- and above
all at Gjundeschabur (Beth Lapath), whither the captive Western
Syrians were chiefly deported (Labourt, pp. 19 f.), and Seleucia-
Ctesiphon (as may certainly be inferred from Aphraates, the
history of bishop Papa, and the episcopal lists, which are not
wholly useless). The Persian bishop at Nicasa, however, did o
not come from Seleucia.^ The existence of Christians at Batana, „^^ ^ ^
1 Labourt, however, seems to me to go too far when he denies that there were
any organized churches in Persia before the Sassanid dynasty ("Tout nous porte
a croire qu'avant I'avenement de la dynastie Sassanide, I'empire perse ne contenait
pas des cominunautes chretiennes organisees," p. 17).
^ According to Ebed Jesu, both the bishop of Amida and the bishop of Gustra
Seleucia had three successive bishops who were relatives of Jesus (!). They were
called Abres, Abraham, and Jacob. Which shows us what to make of them On !
so forth). Labourt has recently criticized these legends (pp. 13 f.). Even from
falsified sources and unreliable traditions, however, we can still see, as I have
pointed out, that the Persian church of Mesopotamia must have been loosely
organized before the great persecution of the fourth century. Thus there were
two bishops in Gundeschabur about the year 340, both of whom were martyred
together and this is not the only instance of the kind. Bishop Papa was probably
;
kind enough to write me as follows (Sept. 27, 1901) "It is a bold venture to :
attempt to exhibit the spread of Christianity in close detail, but you have certainly
fixed a large points. Scarcely any serious aid is to be got from
number of
the East few reliable sources which are older than the fourth century
as the
yield very little in this connection beyond what is generally known. Aphraates
and the early Acts of the martyrs certainly suggest that in the districts of the
Tigris Christianity was widely diffused, with an organization of bishops and clergy,
about the middle of the fourth century ; but it is a sheer fable to assert that these
Persian Christians constituted at that period a definite church under some catholicus.
Simeon bar Sabta'e was merely bishop of Seleucia and Ctesiphon. The erection
of churches, which subsequently became Nestorian,
did not take place until the
beginning of the fifth century, and at a still later period the Christian church of
Persia (whose origin is unfortunately obscure) declined to submit to the catholicus.
The stubborn adhesion of the people of Haran to paganism was partly due,
perhaps, to a feeling of local jealousy of Edessa, which had early been won over
to Christianity. It is a pity that none of the original Syriac writings of the pagans
in Haran ('Sabians'), dating from the Islamic period, have been preserved."
Mesopotamia was ihe birthplace of the monk Audius, who started a religious move-
ment of his own in the days of Arius (cp. Epiph., Hcsr., Ixx. i). The figures —
relatin<T to the martyrs during the persecution of Sapur are quite useless, but it
still described as the chief instigators
is remarkable to find that here the Jews are
of the persecution.
*
Cp. Westphal, p. 34 ; Labourt, p. 20. Kaschkar lay on the great canal between
the Euphrates and the Tigris in the district 'Ziraaivov Xdpa^, and the discussions
between Manichreans and Christians about 270 a.d. are said to have taken place
there. In the Arta Archelai a village called Diodoris in the region of Kaschkar
is also mentioned. One account of a martyrdom mentions a martyr in Sibapolis.
Does this mean India (the god Siva?).
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 151
since it was common among Jews and pagans alike, either in its
fuller form x'PlNt^' (2e iXa?, Palmyra) or abbreviated into vh^^
(Gk. SeiXa?, 2<Xa?). It is remarkable that Abraham, which
the Jews of that age still refrained from using as a common
name, occurs five times here, with Isaac (five times) and Jacob
(twice). The two latter were common among the Jews. The
occurrence of an Ithamar, which is from the Old Testament but
was not used by the Jews, is very remarkable. We cannot make
much of the list with regard to the Jewish environment. I must
admit I had expected more from it." ^
The Syro-Persian church deserves our unqualified sympathy. "^
It was tlie only large church which never enjoyed the official
protection of the state. It maintained the traditions of Anti-
Ck
152 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
ochene exegesis, it translated the works of Christian antiquity
into Syriac with great assiduity, and it could pride itself on
knowing Justin, Hippolytus, Methodius, Athanasius, Basil,
the three Gregorys, Chrysostom, Diodorus, Aniphilochius,
Ambrose, and Theodore as well as the Greeks did themselves
(cp. the evidence of the Nestorian patriarch Timotheus I., who
died in 823). It also assimilated_Greek philosophy and science,
which it transmitted to the Arabians. At the present day it
^y^ ^;^The same holds true of India. Of course the India to which
L ^.ysMJPantaenus journeyed from Alexandria (Eus., v. 10) may be South
*"
j
Arabia (or even the Axumitic kingdom). But the India where
the early (third century) Acts of Thomas locate that apostle''s
work is the N.W. territory of our modern India (for it is only
Cod. Pani, 1617, of the Martyrdom of Thomas, that drags in
Axum ; cp. Bonnet, p. 87). Andrapolis is mentioned in Acta
Thorn. 3 as the scene of the apostle's labours ; for other localities
mentioned there, see Lipsius, ApoTir. Apostelgesch., i. p. 280
(after Gutschmid). I pass over the traditions about Andrew,
which mention various localities, as well as the traditions about
Simon and Judas (cp. my Chronologie, i. pp. 543 f.). They are
all posterior to Constantine.^ It cannot be shown that the
"Thomas-Christians," discovered in^Tndia in the sixteenth
century, go back to the third century. I
apud Seras nee apud Ariacin audierunt Christianitatis sermonem." Note that —
the first Protestant history of missions, published in Germany, was devoted to
India, viz., M. V. La Croze, /I/s/. dti Christ, des Indes, 1724 (cp. Wiegand in
the Beitrdge z. Ford, chrisll. Theol., vi. 3. pp. 270 f. ). La Croze, however,
hardly touches the primitive age, as he regards the legends about Thomas as
unauthentic.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO S25 A.D. 153
...^TX
6. Arabia ^
civilized —
they were not even subdued by the Romans, with —
the exception of the country lying east of the Jordan and
several positions south of the Dead Sea (cp. Mommsen's Rom.
Gesch., V. pp. 471 f. Eng. trans., ii. pp. 143 f ).
; Consequently
we can look for Christians during our epoch only in the districts '^
^ Cp. Map III. — For the changes in the political terminology and the metro-
politan organization in Arabia, cp. Llibeck, o/>. cit., pp. 42 f.
, 75, 86 f., 91,
101, 161.
^ There ar e no Arab ic versions of the Bible previous to Islam, a fact which
proves irrefragably that in its primitive period Christianity had secured no footing
at all among the Arabs. Indeed it never secured such a footing, for the Arabic
versions were not made forArabs at all, but for Copls and Syrians who had
become Arabians.
•''
Mommsen, p. 485 (Eng. trans., ii. 158) : "At this eastern border of the empire
there was thus secured for Hellenic civilization a frontierdomain which may be
compared to the Romanized region of the Rhine the arched and domed buildings ;
of eastern Syria compare admirably with the castles and tombs of the great mea
and merchants of Belgica. " Bostra flourished greatly after the downfall of
Palmyra. The emperor Philip (the Arab) made his birthplace, a small town, into
a city called Philippopolis, which rapidly increased in size. We do not know
whether this emperor's friendly attitude towards Christians was due to memories
and impressions of his childhood, but his correspondence with Origen makes this
probable.
^ What drove Paul to Arabia, and what he did there, we simply do not know.
1 retract my former conjecture that he retired to a region in which he might hope
to avoid Jews.
—
with the proceedings against Origen it decided in the latter's favour (cp. Jerome's
;
Ep. Qrigen was known personally by that time to the Arabian bishops,
xxxiii. 4).
fqr about 215 a.d. he had travelled as far as Arabia at the request of the Roman
governor, before whom he laid his views (Eus., H.E., vi. 19).
^Whatever we may think of those two characteristic doctrinal views put forward
in Bostra and "Arabia," in opposition to the Alexandrian theology, they furnish
"
has not been discovered ; Usdum, south of the Dead Sea ?).
From the north there were the l^shops of Bostra, the most
important and finely situated city * of the whole country, and
a strong proof, at any rate, of independence and mental activity among the 4 ^^'
"Arabian" Greeks. We may rank them with the pecuHar buildings whose
ruins are to be found in Bostra, as evidence of a distinctive civilization. We do
not know whether was widely current in Arabia during the fourth
the idea, which
century (Epiph., ffcer., Ixxviii.), that Mary became the real wife of Joseph after
the birth of Jesus, goes back to Jewish-Christian traditions. For Mariolatry in
Arabia, cp. under Thrace. —
Photius (Cod. 48) calls Caius eiriffKoiros tuv eOvwv,
which is a twofold confusion: Caius = Hippolytus, and Hippolytus = Beryllus of
Bostra. The latter must have been described in some contemporary source as
iiria-KOTTos rav idvaiv (bishop of the Gentiles), which perhaps refers to widely
"
^'1
venientes a vobis [sc. DonatistisJ esse rebaptizatos ? ("What of the province of 1,1 i
" Cariathaim is now an entirely Christian village close to the Arabian city of
^-
Madaba, and called Karaitha.
^ Epiphanius {Hcer. Ixxxv. , and Epitome) observes that in Bakatha [Bakathus]
firiTpoKccfiia ttjs 'Apa^ias ttjj ^iAaSe\<pias [or eV BaKciOots rrjs ^i\a5e\<pr]yrjs
Xitipas TTfpav Tov 'lopSdvov], the sect of the Valesians resided.
* It was the
capital cp. Lubeck, pp. 43 f., 86 f., 91.
; In a petition to the
emperor Julian bishop Titus observes, apropos of Bostra, ifafiiWov ehai rw
156 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
rv^ ^ ^ ionysias. The Nicene lists further contain, under Arabia, the
name of a bishop called Sopater Beretaneus. Where this place
(Beritana ?) lay we do not know, for it cannot be identified
with Bereitan (equivalent to Berothai ? Baedeker, p. 358), which
was situated in Lebanon. One tradition, which is not of course
entirely trustworthy, makes an Arabian bishop from Zanaatha
(? =Thana, south-east of the Dead Sea) attend Nicaea,^ but
nothing is known of such a place. Finally, we may conclude,
although the conclusion is not certain, from Epiph. li. 30 that
there were Christians at Gerasa. It is impossible to prove that
Christians lived in the Nabatean city of Petra earlier than
Constantine ; - but Sozomen (vii. 19) says there were bishops
even in the villages of Arabia.
The efibrts made to introduce Christianity among the nomad
.tribes, efforts that were both rare and rather fruitless, fall
Arabia, about 180 a.d., and that many Jewish colonists and
^^«A^ many more proselytes were living in the latter district (Eus.,
-/^ H.E., V. 10. 3). " He is said to have found there, among
some of the inhabitants who were acquainted with Christ, the
gospel of Matthew, which had reached that country before him.
'
The names of the bishops (Nicomachus, Cyrion, Gennadius, Severus, Sopater,
another Severus, and Maron) are all Greek or Latin.
According to Sozomen (vii. 5) the inhabitants of Petra and Areopolis
"
in Oehler, Appendix, t. ii. p. 631), after describing the festival of the Virgin
who had given birth to the ".^on," proceeds as follows : rovro koI ev Ufrpa t^
ir6\ei [fj.7jTp6iro\LS Se iffTi rrjs 'ApajSi'os) fv rcfi iKe7(Ti flSai\'i(f) ovtcus yli/frai Kal
writer knew some bishops who did take them. The list of
those from whom no gift was to be taken (c. 18, p. 89, Achelis)
is instructive ; it shows the sort of people who either belonged
to the churches or gave them money. They included people
who were imprisoned for debt, masters who were tyrannical to
their slaves, public prostitutes (even of the male sex), dishonest
traders, criminal advocates, unjust prosecutors, factious lawyers,
painters and bronze-workers and jewellers who worshipped idols
^
Cp. Map V. —
Politically, Pentapolis (Cyrenaica) belonged to Crete ; but I
group it as above, since ecclesiastically, so far back as we can see, it gravitated
to Alexandria and was added by Diocletian to Egypt. Apart from several sea-
;
hardly be proved in the case of any one of them with clearness.^ /rC. ^ r
The following items ^ sum up all our knowledge of the ^
ports, it was a dismal region; cp. Dionys. Alex, in Eus., H.E., vii. il. 14,
b AluiXiai'hs els Tpax^repovs fiei^ ws eSJ^ei, Kal AtfiuKcoTtpovs rifias tottovs fjiLra-
(TTTjaai iPov\.T]6ri. The independence of Egypt within the empire (from Augustus
to Diocletian), as well as its secluded position, can be made out from ecclesiastical \
as well as from civil history. Hence one must take care to avoid postulating for )>^
Egypt the general ecclesiastical condition which prevailed throughout the empire.
The characteristic division into nomes, the primacy of Alexandria, and the lack
of towns, .vvere also of great significance for the development of local Christianity. ,
Renan {Les Apotres, Germ, ed., pp. 297 f. cp. Les ^vangiles, p. 158) thinks
'
;
that Christianity must have at first been slow to take any hold of Egypt, and
refers for proof of this to the scanty intercourse maintained by the Alexandrian and
the Palestinian Jews (!), as well as to the fact that the Judaism of Egypt
" developed to a certain extent along its own lines it had Philo and the Thera-
:
peutse, and that was all its Christianity." He also believes that the Egyptian
religion, as it then existed, afforded no favourable basis for Christianity (!), But
it is very doubtful whether the scanty notices of Christianity in Egypt prior to
180 A.D. justify us in holding that Christianity was really weak and scanty. Even
supposing that a long interval elapsed during which it was comparatively small,
we would not be in a position, I think, to offer any explanation of the fact.
^ So that we also lyMW next to nothing of the relations between the powerful
Judaism of Egypt and of Alexandria and the development of the church. It is
more than a conjecture, however, that a larger number of Jews were converted to /JU
Christianity in the Nile valley than anywhere else for (i) the inner development
;
in a —
Greek version in Egypt during the second century which implies the existence ' '
;~
to Jerome {de Vir. 111. viii. " Alexandriae prima ecclesia adhuc iudaizans").
:
-^
^ Cp. also the recently discovered " Sayings of Jesus " among the papyri.
• Reference
may be made to ApoUos of Alexandria (Acts xviii. 24), who
appears to have /oined the Baptist's followers in Alexandria (though this is not
160 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
(i)There was ajocal gospel, described by Clemeiit_of_ Alex-
"
andria and others as " the gospel according to the Egyptians
(evayyeXiov Kar AiyuTTTiovg), but orthodox Christians had
already dropped it from use by the end of the second century.
The heretical asceticism and Modalism which characterize it
throw a peculiar light upon the idiosyncrasies of early
certain). We should possess an important account (though one which would have
to be used with caution) of early Christianity in Alexandria, were Hadrian^epistle
to Servianus authentic. This is controverted, however, and consequently cannot
be employed except for the third century. The passage in question runs as
follows {I'ita Saturn. 8): " Aegyptum, quam mihi laudabas, totam didici levem
pendulam et ad omnia famae momenta volitantem. illic qui Serapidem colunt
Christiani sunt et devoti sunt Serapidi qui se Christi episcopos dicunt ;nemo illic
archisynagogus Judaeorum, nemo Samarites, nemo Christianorum presbyter, non
mathematicus, non haruspex, non aliptes. ipse ille patriarcha cum Aegyptum
venerit, ab Serapidem adorare, ab aliis cogitur Christum
aliis unus illis
deus nummus est hunc Christiani, hunc Judaei, hunc omnes venerantur et
;
gentes" (" Tl;e_^gypt which you praised tome, I have found altogether fickle,
flighty, and blown about by every gust of rumour. There people who worship
Serapis are Christians, while those who call themselves bishops of Christ are
adherents of Serapis. There no chief of a Jewish synagogue, no Samaritan, no
Christian presbyter, but is an astrologer, a soothsayer, a vile wretch. When the
patriarch himself visits Egypt, he is forced by some to worship Serapis, and
by others to worship Christ Christians, Jews, and all nations worship this
—
one thing money" cp. vol. i. p. 275). ;
1 Clement still used both side by side, but he sharply distinguishes them from
the canonical.
- Such is the opinion advocated by Bardenhewer, Gesch. der alikirchl. Litt.,
i. p. 387 ; but I do not think it probable. It is incredible that the provincial
^
iv Tfj Tcov AiyuTTTicov X'^P'} '^^f SiaTpi&a<i eTroieiTO, elra epx^rai
€19 ra juepr] rod UpoarwirtTOV koi 'AOpi^iTOU, ov iui]v aWa Koi.
Muratorian
Arsinoe ;
Canon, who says that Valentinus was born at
but the meaning of the phrase is not quite certain. \l^
^
J
V. (iv) Justin {ApoL, I. xxix.) relates how an Alexandrian Chris- H^^^^^^T-
tian had recently applied to the proconsul Felix for per- '^/lA-^t/'^
interpret the title of the gospel /car' Alyvirriovs in the light of this. ./ h ly^.
know.
VOL. II. 11
!
V evidently
(originally
a sort
extant,
of
so
province.
far as
Africanus, and therefore dating at the latest from the reign of
(viii)
we know,
An
in
Alexandrian
the Chronicle of
list
202 f.). Such is the sum total of our knowledge regarding the
history of early Christianity in Egypt
Matters become clearer with the entrance of Clement of
Alexandria and of the long-lived Demetrius (bishop from
188/189 to 231) upon the scene.^ But unfortunately the
^ The same passage mentions local work on the part of Barnabas,
'^
The names are partly Greek and partly Roman : Arrianus, Abilius, Cerdo,
Primus, Justus, Eumenes, Marcus, Celadion, Agrippinus, Julianus, and Demetrius.
The predecessor of Demetrius is quite unknown to us.
^ The importance of Alexandria throughout the church at large begins also at
^.J!.,A this period. We do not know how old was the custom, attested by Dionysius of
Alexandria, of the local bishop fixing the date of Easter for the whole church, but
perhaps it began with Demetrius (cp. the Coptic-Arabic Synaxarium on the lOth
Hatur). Origen made the school of Alexandria a standard for the East, and it held
this positioneven after he left the city. We learn incidentally, for example, that
Julius Africanus (Eus., H.E., vi. 31) hurried thither to hear Heraclas. The church
^^^*^~*''*-''^
and the school, which hitherto had not always co-operated, were closely united
^ J ^ by Dionysius, who also succeeded by means of his personal influence, his learning,
^AvC ^'^ wisdom, and discretion, in acquiring an authoritative position throughout Chris-
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 163
18. 167) that Christianity had spread "to every nation and
village and town " {Kara eQvo<i koi Koo/uLrjv koi ttoXiv iraa-av),
gaining whole households and families, and including even
philosophers in its membership. As regards the local organiza-
tion, so much is certain, viz., that throughout the province
(including the Thebais and Libyas) the Christian churches in
each nome were at first, and for a long while, ruled simply by
^1^'
presbyters and deacons, or by presbyters and teachers (cp. Dion.
Alex, in Eus., H.E., under the supervision, we may
vii. 24), d-^"^
assume, of the Christian church in Alexandria. How old the
monarchical episcopate is here, we cannot tell, for no certain
conclusions, unfortunately, can be drawn from the relevant
statements in Clement. Possibly it was instituted by, or
shortly before, Demetrius. But once it was set up, all the
.'
i
powers of use and wont hitherto exercised by the Alexandrian
tendom which was challenged only by the Roman bishop. This lofty position
the see of Alexandria managed to retain under Petrus, while it was secured for
quite a century by the powerful authority of Athanasius. The subordination of
Egypt to the diocese of the "East" {i.e., under Antioch) could not upset the
authority and independent position of the patriarch on the contrary, the latter
;
could attempt to gain control over the entire political diocese of the " East," and
thus to add a fresh chapter to the perennial conflict between Syria and Egypt.
When the victory was wellnigh over, the Chalcedon catastrophe occurred. During
the fourth and the first half of the fifth century, Egypt was a semi-sovereign
ecclesiastical state.
^ The Marcionites and the Montanists both made their
way to Egypt. Clement
mentions the Valentinians, the followers of Basilides and Marcion, the Peratse,
the Encratites, the Docetists, the Haimatites. the Cainites, the Ophites, the
Simonians, and the Eutychites. Eusebius, in describing the youth of Origen,
tells an interesting story about an Antiochene heretic called Paul in Alexandria
{/I.E., vi. 2).
164 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
church were transferred to it.^ The course of affairs seems to
have been as follows. Alexandria at first and alone had a
monarchical bishop, who very soon came to rank himself and
to act ^ as the counterpart of " the chief priest of Alexandria
and all Egypt." ^ This bishop then began to consecrate other
bishops for the chief towns in the various nomes. " Like the
towns, the nomes also became the basis of the episcopal dioceses,
in the Christian epoch " (Mommsen, p. 546 ; Eng. trans., ii.
114 f.). I do not know what to make of the statement in Epiph., Hcer., Ixviii. 7,
iifO^
that Alexandria, unlike other cities, never had two bishops. With regard to the /(/^ '
metropolitan powers of the bishop of Alexandria, one gets the impression that A
they were not only as despotic as those of the apxiepevs irdcr-ns Alyvirrov, but as // |
those of the emperor in the sphere of politics. Cp. e.^:, Epiph., Har., Ixviii. I :
,
j
Tovto edos itrri, rhv eV Trj 'A\i^avSpeia apxtiTriffKOirov irdcrris re AlyinrTov Koi
©TjjSai'Soy, Mapeu'TOv re Kal At^vrjs, MapidriSSs re Kal nifTaTrSAeus
'A/j,fj.<vviaKris,
ex*"' TT)!/ iKKK7}(na(TriK-qv SioiKticrtv ("The custom is for the archbishop of all
Egypt, the Thebais, Mareotis and Libya, Ammoniace, iVIareotis and Pentapolis,
to have his ecclesiastical headquarters at Alexandria "). This confirms the evi-
dence of the sixth canon of Nicsea. Schwartz (p. 185) deletes Mareotis twice ;
"^ Dionysius also mentions " presbyters and teachers " of the
brethren in the villages of the Arsinoe nome. Christianity had
thus penetrated into the low country.
The Thebais (see above).
(in Eus., //.E., vii. 21) upon the great plague of 260 A.D. : "Yet people are
astonished .... at our great city no longer containing such a multitude of
inhabitants — even if one now includes little children and very old people in the
census — as formerly it could number of those who were merely in the prime of
life, In those days people between forty and seventy constituted so
so called.
large a majority of the inhabitants that their number cannot be made up nowadays
s even by the inclusion of people between fourteen and eighty in the list compiled
for the purposes of public charity —
those who, to appearance, are quite young,
being now, as it were, coeval with those who formerly were full of years [so that
the dispensing of food was extended to such persons]. Yet, although they see
how the human race continues to diminish and waste away, they tremble not at
the destruction of mankind which is ever advancing upon themselves." We
must accordingly assume that a very serious diminution took place in the popula-
- tion of Alexandria about the middle of the third century.
* 'Ev
fxev oZv TCf! 'Apcrevoe'iTTi yev6fj.(vos, eyOa irph ttoWov tovto firfiro\a^i rh
SSy/xa [chiliasm], iis /col crxic/iaTo /coi airo(Traffias '6\(iiv (KK\7icnwv [so that there
were several, or many, local churches even before 250 A. D ], crvyKa\eaas tovs
irpefffivTepovs Ka\ StSacTKaXovs ran/ iv ra7s Ktiifj-ais a,Si\<paiv, izapdvTwv koX tuv
^ovKofxevoov a5(\<poov,S/j/xotria r^y f^eraffiy iroffitraffBai tov \6yov 7rpo€Tpe<|'aju'7»'
("When was at Arsinoe, where this view had been current for a long while,
I
so that there had been schisms and apostasies of whole churches, I summoned the
presbyters and teachers of the brethren in the villages, and when those who were
willing had gathered, I exhorted them to examine the doctrine openly").
,
Alex, wrote to Colon, the bishop of the local church (Eus., vi. 46).
Nilus [Nilopolis] : Chaeremon, the local bishop, is mentioned
by Dionys. Alex, in Eus., H.E.^ vi. 42.^
Ptolemais in Pentapolis : Christians lived here, according to
Dionysius (in Eus., vii. 6).
k6ttcji Kal ilmv virh Tr);/ auxTjc ttoKiv oos vapoiKiai (" M. is a district of Alexandria.
It contains a very large number of populous villages, in which there are many
splendid churches. These churches are under the jurisdiction of the bishop of
Alexandria, and are subject to his city as parishes"). On the Christians in
Mareotis, see also Athanas., op. cit., Ixxiv. , and Epiph., H<zr., Ixviii. 7 (a number
of local churches as early as 300 A. D. ).
168 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Berenice in Cyrenaica : a local bishop, called Ammon
(Dionysius, ibid., vii. 26).
pp. 173 f., the latter of whom infers, from the Passio employed
in the " Martyr. Hieros.," that the Christians in Oxyrhynchus
/
j
during the great persecution were still extremely few. Only
seventeen are said to have been resident there. From the
letter of Peter, publishedby Schmidt, one gets a different idea
of the situation (the town having a bishop, and the presbyters
being partly drawn from the better class of the citizens). But
as the letter is unauthentic, its descriptions count for nothing.
According to the prelude of the festal epistles of Athanasius
(ed. Larsow, p. 26) there were Christians in the small and in
the large oasis by 329 a.d. We now know, as of course one
might conjecture a priori (since the oases served as places of
exile), that as early as the days of the persecutions, in Diocletian's
reign or even previously, Christians and Christian presbyters
(one called Psenosiris) were to be found at Kysis in the southern
part of the great oasis, and possibly also in other quarters of
the same district.^ Perhaps there were Christians also in Syene
(Deissmann, p. 18) then. A very large number languished in
the dye-factories of the Thebais during the persecution of
Maximinus Daza '^
(Eus., H.E., viii. 9; Alaji Pal., viii. 1,
ix. 1), while crowds were deported from Egypt to the mines
dentally, for example, we find (in Eus., H.E., vii. 11. 17) that
" special meetings " were regularly held " in the more remote
suburbs " of Alexandria (ej/ Tryooacrre/ot? iroppceTepoo Keijuevoi^
Gesck., i. and Pbow, however, are to be fixed within that period (not
pp. 405 f. )
later than c. 320 A.D. ), and we are also told how Pachomius was converted at
Schenesit.X.= Chenoboscium) on the Nile in the Thebais district. It lay near the
town of Diospolis parva in .Southern Thebais (cp. Griitzmacher, Pachomius und
das dltesle Kloslerleben, 1S96). —
I hesitate to infer from the Coptic- Arabic Synax-
arium the localities which it connects with the stories of the Diocletian martyrs,
170 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
As regards the Egyptian episcopal hierarchy at the opening,
of the fourth, century, we find ourselves in a particularly
fortunate position. The episcopal lists certainly give a most
imperfect idea of the spread of Christianity in Egypt, as each
nome had at first only one bishop, while many large churches,
in town and country alike, were governed by presbyters, and
small villages had not even so much as a presbyter. But, on
the other hand, we have to take account (i) of the statement
!/
of Alexander (of Alex.) in his encyclical letter, that he had
gathered, c. 320 a.d., a synod of almost 100 bishops (Socrat.,
H.E., i. 6). Then (ii) there is the corroborative statement of
Athanasius, for the age of the synods of Sardica (and especially
for the earlier synod of Alexandria in 339), that " there are
close upon 100 bishops in Egypt, the Thebais, Libyae, and
Pentapolis."" See Apol. 1 and 71.c. Arian, Thus there were
no bishoprics founded between 320 and 340. This is important
evidence. Had not the episcopal organization been fully
organized in Egypt by the opening of the fourth century, we '
J^
should have expected a number of bishoprics to be establishea
just between 320 and 340. At the synod of Sardica 94
Egyptian bishops were actually present, or subsequently signed
the resolutions (so Apol. c. Ar., 50, where their names but not
their dioceses are given). Athanasius had all his bishops
summoned to that council, (iii) There is also the fragmentary
record, compiled by Meletius, of his adherents among the
Egyptian hierarchy, which was laid by him before the council
of Nicaea (325). This list includes twenty-nine or thirty
bishops (cp. Athan., op. cit., 71); viz., in
as legend (connected with graves and relics) may have invented a good deal. For
example (Wtistenfeld, Syiiaxariiim, i. pp. 18-19), on 8 and 9 Tut it is noted :
hypothesis, especially Butler {The Lausiac History of Palladius, 1898, pp. 215 f.).
Antony, the father of all monks, began his significant work c 305, after
twenty years' sojourn in the wilderness. Thus the monastery of Antonius {i.e., the
colony of monks) near the Red Sea, in the latitude of Heracleopolis, was founded
at the beginning of the fourth century. The monastic settlements in the Nitrian
and Scetic deserts belong to c. 330 A.D.
/ ^-KiP^i-^^^
r-jijL^^ a- j
;
ever assigned to Ptolemais, though it was the second city in Egypt. This omission
cannot be a mere accident. The city perhaps for long sharply excluded Christianity.
Meletius, bishop of Lycopolis, discharged the duties of metropolitan in the Thebais,
under Diocletian. As the town was not the political capital of the Thebais, Schwartz
(p.185) conjectures that Petrus delegated his metropolitan functions to him.
^ Quentin {Anal. Boll., xxiv. 1905, pp. 321 f.) has recently discovered and edited
the Passio Dioscuri. The scene is in Cynos (Anacipolis in Mart. Hietoti.),
" praeside Culciano " (305-306), apparently in upper Cynos (p. 331). The father
of D. was reader there, and he himself " debitor fisci" in virtue of his position as
" curialis" (pp. 327, 329).
* " No heretic or pagan is to be found there: all the citizens are Christians."
The continued existencepagan conventicles at Oxyrhynchus, assumed by
of
Wilcken [Archiv f. Papyriisforschung, i. 3. pp. 407 f. ), rests, in my opinion, upon
a misinterpretation of ira'ya.viKa). avvTfXeiat, an expression which occurs in a
document of 426 A.D.
;
outside Athanasius.
^ In the notices of martyrdom during the great persecution, as well as in
Eusebius (Dionys. Alex.), some further Egyptian episcopal names are preserved,
but the localities are unknown cp., e.g., the names in Eus. H.E., viii. 13.
;
The ,
Lycopolis (Plusianus),
erenice (Daces),
Barce (Zopyrus),
Antipyrgos (Serapion),
Tauche = Arsinoe (Secundus),
Paraetonium (Titus),
Marmarika (Theonas),**
^ It is surprising that Ptolemais, the capital of Pentapolis, occurs here, and not
in its proper place before Berenice. We must not think of Ptolemais Hermia, as
at first we might be inclined to do ; for the bishop's name (Secundus) is definitely
fixed as that of the metropolitan of Pentapolis at that date (cp. above, p. 171).
^ For Memphis, see Constantine's speech to the holy synod (c. 16) : roiydproi
Kapirhv ijpavTo rhv irpocr^KovTa tjj roiavrr] OpijffKfia Me^icpLS Ka\ Ba$u\civ, iprjfio)-
di7(rai Kol a.(TiKT)Toi KaTaAT)<p6e7(TaL fUTo, twv varpificov dtcjiiv. koX ravra ovk e| aKoris
Xe-yco, dAA.' avT6s t€ Trapuv Koi larop'tiffas eVoTrrrjs re yevSfieyos ttjs oiKTpas
rwv
Tr6Xe(ev tvxi]s. Me/j.(pis iprjixos. The
Marcus came from Memphis he
heretic ;
went to Spain and there gained a noble lady. Agape, and an orator, Helpidius,
who thereupon won over Priscillian (cp. Sulp. Sev. , C/tron., ii. 46).
^ I follow here the Coptic recension.
* An inscription
was found here in 1902, which shows that a Jewish community,
modelled on Greek lines, existed here as early as Ptolemy Euergetes (247-
222 B.C.). It had a synagogue of its own, "in honour of the king, the queen,
and their children."
^ Antseopolis (cp. the Coptic list) is uncertain ; it is only attested by a single
witness.
® The latter six are from Libya superior and inferior. — The names of the
bishops are obviously not Egyptian, but almost entirely Greco-Latin. Paphnutius,
bishop of an unknown town in Upper Thebais, was also at Nicasa. —Very likely
there were Christians, and a Christian bishop also, at Darnis (Dardanis) before
325 A.D., as it was the metropolitan's headquarters for Libya II. during the days
of Athanasius (cp. the 39th [367] festal letter of Athanasius, published by Schmidt
in the Nachr. d. Gesells. d. Wiss. zu Giitt., 1901, 3. p. 5). — Immediately after
174 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
)k} Down to 325 a.d., therefore, we may assume Christians to
'
have existed about fifty towns (or nomes) of these provinces,
in
more than forty of which were episcopal sees.^ In Alexandria
there was quite a number of churches (cp. also Eusebius, as
above, p. 162, on Mark's work at Alexandria), and we have
actual knowledge of those in which Arius preached, besides
those of Dionysius and those of Pierius, called after the famous
head of the local school (cp. my Litf.-Gesch., i. p. 439), and
several others."^ The Novatians also had several churches in
Alexandria, which Cyril had ultimately closed (Socrat., vii. 7).
325 we get evidence for Christian churches (cp. Athan., Apol. Ixiv. ) at the follow-
ing Egyptian localities (none of which, in spite of great efforts, can be identified ;
so far as I know, they are never mentioned elsewhere ; they were in the vicinity
of Alexandria, viz., in Mareotis), viz., Dikella, Phasko, Chenebri, Myrsine, and
Bomotheus. .\dA Taposiris (see above). Hypselis, where Arsenius, the opponent
of Alhanasius, was a bishop, may also be added to the places which possessed a
church previous to 325.
^
Philostorgius {H.E., vii. 13) mentions a bishop of Thebes, Heron by name,
who fell away in the reign of Julian. In the 12th (19th) festal letter of Athanasius
the following bishoprics, hitherto unmentioned, occur (it is true that we cannot
be sure if they existed prior to 325 a. D. , but (he great likelihood is that they did,
them 7-efer to successors of dead occupants of the respective sees)
as the notices of :
Paralus (at the extreme north of Egypt), Bucolia (not far east of Alexandria,
on the coast, but deserted), Thebes, Apollonopolis inferior (where?), Aphroditon
(east of Memphis, north of Nilopolis), Rhinocorura (on the Philistine border),
Stathma (where ? near Rhinocorura?), Garyatis orient, and merid. (both in Mar-
niarika, but, so far as I know, unidentified), Syene, Latopolis, Hypselis, Prosopitis
(cp.above, p. 161), Diosphacus ("which is on the sea-border," Athanasius adds:
the place was evidently unfamiliar, and seems still to be unidentified), Saites (cp.
above, p. 161), Xois (north of Sais), and Clysma (to the north of the Red Sea).
These seventeen names bring up the number of bishoprics in Egypt, prior to the
Nicene council, to about sixty.
- Epiph., Hcer., Ixix. 2 : ejVl TrAeious r'bv aptOfxhv iv rri 'A\<;^ai/5piia iKK^rjalai
.... Atovvffiov KaXovfxevT) fKK\y)<ria, koX 7} rov ©eoovS koI 7; XXupiov koX ^epavioivos
Kol rj TTJs Uepcralas Kal t] tov Ai^v koI t) tov MevSiSiov nai 7\ ^hwiavov koI t] ttjj
Theonas [cp. Theod., H.E., iv. 22], of Pierius and Serapion, of Persaia, of Dizus,
of Mendidius, of Annianus, of Baucalis, etc. in one there was a certain Colluthus,
;
iroXKaX eKK\-r](Tiai, vvv Se irKiiovs (" For Arius was presbyter in Baucalis, the
church so named in Alexandria for one presbyter is appointed to each church.
;
There were >nany churches then, but there are more ttow"). The statement of
the Coptic- Arabic Synaxarmui (Wtistenfeld, II. pp. 210) that the believers had
to meet in private houses and holes (? ?) till the era of bishop Theonas {i.e., the
reign of Diocletian), and that Theonas built the first church in Alexandria (in the
name of the Virgin), may be untrustworthy, but it deserves notice. Theonas
may have built a church to Mary, and it may have been the first large build-
ing. For the Alexandrian churches in the fourth century, cp. Schwartz
{Athanas., I. 336).
* Cp. Snellmann, Der Anfang des arianischen Streits {\()Oi\), p. 49.
"
^ Even in Origen there are several passages which incidentally prove that
Christianity was welcomed even by the native Egyptians; e.g., Horn. XII. iti
Lucavi. {0pp. v. p. 128, Lomm.); cp. above, p. 154.
2 "The Berlin Sahidic MS. of the Apocalypse of John certainly belongs to the
fourth century, and the Apocalypse was by no means the first scripture translated
by the Copts into their vernacular. In fact, we know MSS. of the Psalter and
the Wisdom of Solomon which may be very little later than that of the Apocalypse.
3 "This version was, even in the fifth century, the memorial of a decaying
dialect, and was practically supplanted by the Sahidic." The Akhmimic version
contains the oldest writings extant in any Coptic MS.
^ "I think it very likely that it is just as old as either the Akhmimic or the
Sahidic."
—
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 177
with all its peculiarities, which had long ago become quite
meaningless,^ did not possess the same powers of attraction and
resistance as certain of the Syro-Phoenician cults evinced.
We know nothing about the early history of Christianity in
Pentapolis (Cyrenaica), where a very large numljer of local Jews
had already created an atmosphere for the new faith. ^ Irenaeus
(i. 10) declares there were Christians in Libya.^ But the fact
Eus., H.E., vii. 20 ; Routh's Reliq. Sac, iii."' pp. 223 f.) shows
For the religion of Egypt, see Erman {Die aegypt. Religion, 1905). Its final
^
period, together with the social and political position of the natives from the third
to the fifth century, may be seen most clearly in Leipoldt's Schemitc von Atripe
{Texle u. Unlers., xxv. i. 22 f. 26 f., 29 f.). , —
It is extremely remarkable how
—
Roman empire in early Christian literature. Even Christian Greek gnosticism,
so powerfully influenced by the lore of Syrian and Asiatic rites, betrays few traces
of the Egyptian cultus, apart from magical spells (yet cp. the Pistis Sophia). The
lattermust have been disintegrated during the second and third centuries, j'ielding
place to Hellenism, and in part to rude household cults. Reitzenstein's Foimandres
(" Studien zur griech.-agypt. u. frlihchristl. Lileratur," 1904) has certainly un-
earthed some lines of connection which had hitherto lain unobserved ; but he
goes too far, I think, with his bold speculative constructions
^ Cyrene is mentioned in the N.T. (Acts ii. 10), which proves, at any rate, that
converted Jews from this district were known about 100 A.D. cp. also the ;
synagogue of the Cyrenians (Acts vi. 9) in Jerusalem, as well as the fact (noted in
Acts xi. Jews from Cyrene and Cyprus were the first (in
20) that converted
Antioch) to preach the gospel to pagans. Finally, Acts knows of a Christian
teacher, Lucius of Cyrene, in Antioch (xiii. i) while the gospel mentions a Simon
;
of Cyrene (Mark xv. 21 and parallels) who was obliged to carry the cross of Jesus. \
The Bible Christian Africans (like the negroes in America) nowadays honour this ]
Simon as their hero. Jews and Greeks and Romans shared in the crucifixion of I
^ There is some likehood that Tertullian's story about the proconsul Pudens
{\nad Scapulam, iv.)had been enacted even in Cyrenaica previous to 166 a.d.,
which would prove the existence of Christians there at that period. But the
transference of the tale is not quite assured. Crete also might be meant cp. ;
Constantine period ; cp. Smith and Porcher, History of the Recent Discoveries at
—
Cyrene (London, 1864). The coast of the Syrtes was as barren and barbarous
then as it is to-day. "Vacua humano cultu omnia .... ubi aversa quaedam a
mari promuntoria ventis resistunt, terra aliquantulum solidior herbam raram atque
hispidam gignit ea ovibus pabulum est satis utile incolae lacte vivunt " (Sulpic.
: ;
ere this to certain " Ethiopians" on the borders. Origen seems to know of such
cases having occurred. He writes " Non fertur praedicatum esse evangelium
:
apud omnes Aethiopas, maxime apud eos, qui sunt ultra flumen"("The gospel
is not said to have been preached to all the Ethiopians, especially to such
as live beyond the River"; in Alalth. Comment., Ser. 39, t. iv. pp. 269 f., ed.
Lommatzsch).
180 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
^
§ 8. CiLICIA
^
Cp. Map VI.
- Under Domitian or Trajan even the Koivhv KiXiKias, or Diet of Cilicia, met
at Antioch.
^ There was a large number of Jews in Cilicia, and especially in Tarsus
(cp. Acts vi. 9, and Epiph., IIi^r. xxx.). The house of Paul was of course
pointed out here (cp. Soz., vii. 19),
••
For Rhossus, see above, p. 139.
:
^ The bishop of Anazarbus, shortly after the Nicene council, was Athanasius,
the pupil of Lucian (Philost. , loc. cit.). For Borboriani in Cilicia, see the same
passage.
^ According to Amm. Marcell. (xxii. ii. 3), Georgius, the bishop who opposed
Athanasius, was born here. Bishop Amphion was a confessor at the time of the
Nicene council (so Sozom. , i. 10).
* Cp. the unauthentic Ignatian epistles.
*
Alexander, subsequently bishop of Jerusalem (in the first half of the third
century), is by some authorities to have been bishop of Flavias at an earlier
said
period. But this can hardly be correct.
^ The predecessor of the Macedonian in this see was Auxentius,
of whom
Philostorgius (in Suidas) has given an interesting account. He was originally
a high officer under Licinius, and was obliged to resign. He was then made
bishop of Mopsuestia.
^ Cp. the destruction of the local temple to ^Esculapius by Constantine also ;
the Acta Claudii et Asterii (Ruinart's Ada Mart., Ratisbon, 1859, pp. 309 f. ).
But is the ^gea of this martyrdom really the ^gse of Cilicia ? The trial is con-
ducted by Lysias, " praeses provinciae Lyciae." I have not, however, been able
to find any .^gea or .^gse in Lycia.
''
The Neronias as Narcissus of Irenopolis, but
register doubles Narcissus of
the two towns are identical. The names
of the bishops are as follows
Theodorus, Amphion, Narcissus, Moses of Castabala [evidently a Jew by birth]
Nicetas, Paulinus, Macedonius, Tarcodimantus of ^gse [a Cilician by birth !
^
Cp. Map VI. — Mommsen's Rom. Gesch., v. pp. 295 f. (Eng. trans., i.
pp. 320 f.), and the copious instructive article on " Asia Minor" by Joh. Weiss in
the Prot. Reai.-EncykL^^\ wo\. x. The collocation of districts so heterogeneous
as the above can only be justified on the ground that the results of Christian pro-
paganda were fairly uniform. The collocation is thus at best provisional.
- One must also notice at how late a period the whole eastern section of the
province became really Romanized. Avowedly by 100 B.C., but actually not for
two centuries later, did the Romans win practical and entire possession of Cilicia.
Cappadocia was not secured till the reign of Tiberius Western Pontus was added
;
church) rightly perceives that " in the end the Christian organization (in Asia) was
obliged to resemble that of the imperial cultus in several, though not in many,
respects : apparently it leant on the cultus, though it was quite unconscious of any
such deliberate purpose [?]." Still, it cannot be proved that the seven churches
addressed in John's Apocalypse were selected by John on account of their position
and relation to the cultus of the ruling power and the emperor (so Liibeck,
pp. 26 f. ). Ramsay has put forward a fresh and independent view of this choice
("The Seven Churches of Asia," in Expositor, vol. ix. pp. 20 f.), and in his
large work on The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia, 1 904, pp. 171 f.). He
regards each church as the representative of a group of adjoining churches, as in
jact a~lort of metropolitan church. This was not the original grouping of John,
however these seven churches must have been already recognized as " the seven
;
Laodicea for the Lycus valley and for central Phrygia Ephesus for the Cayster;
and lower Maeander valleys and coasts Smyrna for the lower Hermas valley
;
and the North Ionian coast, perhaps with Mitylene and Chios."
184 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
in any other country, did Christianity amalgamate with Hellen-^
isin, and the result was that an actual transition and fusion
took place, which, contrary to the development at Alexandria,
affected, not merely religious philosophy, but all departments
of life. This is evident from the Christian theology, the cultus,
the mythology, and the local legends of the saints. The proof
of it comes out and in fact at the end of the third
in the fourth,
century, in the way in which paganism was overcome. Here
paganism was absorbed. There were no fierce struggles.
Paganism simply disappeared, to emerge again, in proportion
to the measure of its disappearance, within the Christian church.
Nowhere else did the conquest and " extirpation " of paganism
occasion so little trouble. The fact is, it was not extirpation
at all. It was transformation.^ Asia Minor, in the fourth
century, was the first pui'ely Christian country, apart from some
outlying districts and one or two prominent sanctuaries which
managed to survive. The Greek church of to-day is the church
of Constantinople and Asia Minor, or rather of Asia Minor,
Constantinople itself derived its power from Asia Minor in the
vi., 1900), which is not free from exaggerations and doubtful assertions. "The
Asiatic presbyters who had seen the apostles " (so Papias, followed by Irenseus and
the Muratorian canon) form a group which we can no longer make out clearly.
Cp. my Chronoloi^ie, i. 320-381.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 185
of Ramsay.
^ For the Apocalypse of John never mentions Tralles, Magnesia, or Colossae.
Consequently, it must have also omitted other cities, even although these had
churches of their own. Ignatius, too, merely gives a selection. Both he
{Tratt. xii. Polyc. viii.) and the address of i Peter poin t to the existence of other
,
churches in Asia.
186 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISllANITY
; / the Ignatian writings. The epistle to Laodicea (Apoc. iii. 17)
/ '
sets before us a church which had ah'eady compromised with
the world, and which felt itself to be rich and satisfied. For
the John of the Apocalypse, for Ignatius, and unknown
for the
1 Paul did not found this church ; it arose after several of the other Asiatic
Christian communities (Polyc, Ep. xi. 3).
- This epistle shows unquestionably that Christianity had spread to some extent
Y ,
as the letters near it in the collection are dated from this district (Amastris?
Amasia ?),
^ He wanted the e mperor to approve of his comparatively lenient treatment
of
the Christians.
188 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
have had to mention too many. And the Christian writers
are so reticent that these gaps in our knowledge remain unfilled,
^nisus in Pontus is the only place at which we can prove from
Christian sources, with some show of probability, tliaJLChristians
existed about 100 a.d, (cp. Ramsay's The Church in the Roman
Empire, 1893, pp. 211, 225). (^j
h U f^ f j
Between Trajan and the death of ^Marcus Aurqliii's,^ our
sources supply fourteen fresh names of Asiatic towns containing
Christian communities, in addition to the seventeen already
noted —an infinitesimally small number in view of the riumei'ous
new churches which must have been planted throughout Asia
Minor during these eighty years. Those named are Si nop e on
the Black Sea (the home of Marcion, whose father is said to
>v have been the local bishop; Hippol., in Epiph., Hivr., xlii. 1),
Philomelium in Pisidia (cp. the epistle of the Smyrniote church
upon Polycarp's death), Parium_in_Mysia (for in this connection
we may trust the Acta Onesiphori),'^ Njcomedia (cp. the epistle
of bishop Dionysius of Corinth to the local church in Eus.,
H.E., iv. 23), Amastris "and the other churches in Pontus"
(the epistle of Dionysius to them, loc. cit. ; here the metro-
politan organization was in working order by the reign of
M. Aurelius), Phrygia (however one may view
and Hieropolis in
o(Vx'^''a!s eVte^e ("Christianity, it may almost be said, ciushed the whole world
with its shame "). l"he designation of Christians as rh eBvos roiy Xpia-navoiv occurs
pretty frequently in the imperial rescripts of that period.
^ Even if one assumes that the petitions were really meant to be taken seriously,
with their demand for the formal ejection of all Christians, no light is yet thrown
upon the number of Christians. We must remember, by way of comparison,
how strong the Huguenots were in France, when the general policy was to root
them out. One always reckons in such cases upon the majority abandoning
their faith. )
190 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
pp. 426 f., thinks of Eumenea) in this province, which was
Christian, was burnt during Diocletian's persecution ('^Stj yovv
o\y}V ^pi(TTiavu>v iroKiv avTavSpov afKpi t>]v ^pvytav ev kvkXo)
7repi/3a\ovTei OTrXcrai, irvp re v<})a'yp-avTe<; KaTe(j)\e^av avTOvq
dfjia vrjTTcoii; KOI yvvai^l, tov ^piarov e-Tri^ooojUievovg).^ Even
eighty years earlier (for so, I take it, we must understand the
authority cited in Epiph., Hcer.^ li. 33), Thyatira was practically
a Christian (i.^., a Montanist) city.
conventiculo concremavit " ("One burned up a whole town in Phrygia, with its
assembly and all ").
- Throughout the towns it is obvious that the churches generally were quite_
small ; for Licinius (
Ft/a Constaniiiii., I. liii. ), pleading hygienic reasons, decreed
that Christians were to conduct their worship in the open air. On his part, this
was purely a pretext for either ridding the towns of their presence or throwing
obstacles in the way of their worship.
^
(T) Palpably, the reaction under Julian failed to get any %^k^
footing in Asia Minor, owing to the strong hold of the country /^, j
^ i^jj^
things, why the names of the bishoprics, which we can verify /
for Asia Minor, determine the actual number of these bishoprics
still less accurately than is the case with the other provinces.
If a large number of the Eastern provinces generally fell under
the verdict —a verdict which cannot, of course, be strictly proved
— that by about 325 a.d. the network of the episcopal hierarchy
had been completed, leaving few meshes to be added at a later
period,^ then Asia Minor comes pre-eminently within the sweep
'
An admirably comprehensive work upon the Christian inscriptions of Asia
Minor has been written by Cu mont Les Ijiso Chn't. de PAsie tninetire, Rome,
: ,
(pp. 26 f.) : "La paix relative ou vecurent ces communautes, n'y laissa pas
grandir comme ailleurs la haine contre I'Etat remain. On pouvait devenir
Chretien et rester bon citoyen ; on aimait a faire I'eloge de sa ville natale, on y
exer9ait des fonctions publiques, on deposait aux archives la copie de son testa-
ment, on stipulait contre les violateurs de son tombeau des amendes au profit de
la caisse municipale ou du tresor publique Rien d'etonnant que dans un
pareil milieu les idees et les coutumes antiques se soient plus qu'ailleurs melees
aux convictions nouvelles, que dans la vie journaliere on ait cherche un compromis
entre le passe et le present."
'^
Cp. above, p. 158, on Egypt. There are but few traces of new bishoprics
having been founded in the East by Constantine or his sons. Most of the sees
had evidently been created previously. The main concern of the first Christian
emperor was the building of churches [i.e., new buildings or the enlargement of
old ones), and their equipment.
192 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
of such a judgment. Still, to avoid the introduction of un-
certain data, I shall refrain from adducing, by way of evidence,
the diocesan distribution of the Asiatic provinces, since our
knowledge of this dates only from a later period. I shall merely
add an allusion to such towns and localities as
in this connection
can be clearly proved to have had Christian communities up to
'
325A.D.1
A. Cappadocia
^ Hilary, who wrote during his exile in Asia, declares (in de Sftiodts) that, "apart
from Eleusius of Cyzicus and a few of his company, the ten Asiatic provinces in
which I stayed had really no knowledge of God." If this was the state of
matters, it is a melancholy testimony against the real Christianity of the Asiatic
Christians, but the passage must not be connected with the problem of the spread
of Christianity. Augustine {£p. xciii. 31 f.) properly brushed aside the Donatist
Vincentius in Mauretania, who concluded from the passage that there were practi-
cally no Christians in these ten provinces, and thus tried to give it an anti-catholic
bearing.
- Mommsen, v. p. 306 (Eng. trans., i. 332); "Cappadocia itself was hardly
more Greek at the beginning of the imperial age than Brandenburg and Pomerania
were French under Frederick the Great." But matters were entirely changed by
the third and fourth centuries.
•*
The last-named town
is doubtful, however. Still, there is no doubt that there
were by the middle of the third century, for such were to be found
local Christians
..I
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 193
fevered with worms eating his vitals, and would cry out, Let '
none know of it, lest the Christian men rejoice and Christian
wives take heart.' Subsequently, he came to see his error in
having forced some to give up their faith by means of torture.
And he died almost a Christian himself").
The bishopric of Caesarea, which was the metropolis of
Cappadocia and " the medium of the busy traffic between the
and the region of the Euphrates,"
seaports on the west coast ^
92 f.) was bi.shop at Caesarea^ Avhen quite a youth (c. 200 a.d.);
he was a friend of Clement and of Origen ; and as bishop of
Jerusalem he died full of years, after having founded a library
in Jerusalem. Clement stayed with him, after leaving Alex-
andria, and took part in mission-work at Caesarea. Alexander
distinctly says that he added to the local church (Eus., H.E.,
vi. II. 6). J'irmilian. who also was a man of Alexandrian
culture and an ardent admirer of Origen (c. 230-268), was con-
nected with the most prominent people in all the church, even
with Cyprian of Carthage (cp. my Litt.-Gesch.^ i. pp. 407 f.
ii. 2. 102 f.). Thanks to his episcopal efforts ^ Caesarea became a
centre of theological culture and it was here that the learned
;
maiden Juliana resided, who harboured Origen ^ for two years and
received one or two books from Symmachus. A good deal of
information upon the history of the Cappadocian church during
the first half of the third century is yielded by Firmilian's letter
to Cyprian (Ep. Ixxv.), where we read of synods, persecutions,
heretics, and fanatics. Special interest attaches to his account
of a prophetess (c. 10) connected with the earlier prophetesses
of Phrygia, who stirred up the whole Christian population
\^ during the reign of^Maximinus Thrax, and even captured a
presbyter and a deacon. In the controversy over the baptism
The most famous
of heretics, Firmilian sided with_Cyprian.
Cappadocian martyr was Mamas,^ a simple shepherd (in the
days of Valerian ?). But unfortunately we have no J eta at
our disposal.
Alexander and (especially) Firnijlian were responsible for
the theological importance of the Caesarean and Cappadocian
^ Eusebius did not know, at any rate he did not say, what place it was, but
Gregory of Nyssa (Migne, xlvi. p. 905) mentions it.
^ Gregory of Nyssa calls him a " distinguished " Cappadocian. He lived to see
the terrible invasion of Sapur and the siege of Caesarea. The raid of the Goths
and the invasion of the province by the Persians were simultaneous.
* Origen stayed at Caesarea (in the house of a certain Juliana), by the request of
Firmilian, " for the good of the churches" (Eus., H.E., vi. 17 cp. Pallad., Hist.
;
* With the high rank of these men and their successors we may perhaps compare
the special position of the pagan high priest of Cappadocia in earlier days. The —
Arian sophist Asterius also was a Cappadocian.
- It is remarkable and instructive to find how Eusebius {Vi/. Const., iv. 43),
in describing the bishops who assembled for the dedication of the church at
Jerusalem by their provincial origins, or in grouping them by one distinctive
feature, speaks thus of the Cappadocians koX Kaw-iraSoKciu 5' 01 Trpwroi TratSevaa
:
\6yci)t> /xeffoi Tols iracri Siiirpeirov (" And these were the chief of the Cappadocians,
pre:eminent amongst the rest for learned eloquence "). They were the successors
of Firmilian, and the predecessors of the Gregorys. Eunomius also came from
—
Cappadocia (Philostorg. iii. 20). According to Philostorgius (ix. 9), his grand-
,
[Pasa, Paspasa = the villa Pompali of the Bordeaux Itinerary, 333 a.d.], "unde
veniunt equi curules" cp, Ramsay's ^/V. Geogr. of Asia Minor, p. 347, Gregoire
pp. 55 f.
— "une population d'eleveurs de chevaux rendait un
;
(253-260), avait laisse un souvenir tres vivace." An 'OpffdSoov Kco/x^fj also occurs
in the legend, which Gregoire tries to identify with Olba in Cilician Isauria
(Ramsay, p. 364), in the region of Cetis, near Seleucia, This Olba was also called
196 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
especially in the letter of Basil to Glycerins {Ep. clxix. [ccccxii,]).^
Following in the wake of Gregory Thaumaturgus, their teacher,^
these Cappadocians were skilled in adjusting Christianity to
Hellenism in the interests of the cultured, Hellenism being
viewed as a preparation for the gospel. They understood how
to Christianize the cults. But above they knew how to
all,
{H.E., vi. 46), that Dionysius Alex, wrote " to the brethren in
Urba, Orba or Orbas, and Urbanopolis. Alternative forms like Thymbrias and
Thymbriada, Thebasa and Tibassada, are preserved in these districts, as well as
altered forms like Amblada and Ambladon, Nasada and Nasadon, Lausanda and
Lausadon.
'
Cp. Ramsay, TAe Church in the Roman Empire, pp. 443 f.
- See under the following section.
^-jfulian (cp. Sozom., v. 4) is said to have "deleted Csesarea from the list of
towns, taken its name from it, and persecuted the inhabitants with bitter hatred,
because they were all Christians and had long ago destroyed the local temples "
(ois TTovSTj/iel '^pia-T laviCfiVT as koX iraAaj Ka.Qi\6vTas rovs irip' avrols Viws). The
last temple, that of Fortune, was not destroyed, however, till Julian's day, when
the pagans were still tuopi'O/xTjToi ;uoAa in the city.
*Hippolytus (Philos., vii. 31) calls Bardesanes "the Armenian." But this is
out of the question. Bardesanes was a Syrian (see above).
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 197
7th Jan. ; Conybeare's ^/(j/. and Acts of ApoUonins and other Monuments of Early
Christianity, 1894, London, pp. 123 f. ; Aube's Polyeticle dans Fhistoire, Paris,
1882; and Acta SS., Febr. T. ii. pp. 650 f.). If we may trust a remark in what
is, relatively speaking, the best recension of the Acta Polyeuctes, to the effect that
he was the first martyr at Melitene, then Christianity must have been able to
develop there uninterrupted till the reign of Decius. The statement of Eus. H.E., ,
viii. 6. 8, that there were numerous clergy everywhere about 300 a.d., refers to
A77/0S, y^ovVi.wv, 'laidvy-qs, and NikolWos (?). Twice we get a very characteristic
phrase of the period, in "6 Kai" {Aeoi/rios 6 koI ©etJ/cTJcrTos) (Bi/cparios o Kal
Bi^iavSs).
* As the following passage {Tes/. iii. ) is almost unique, I shall cite it here:
wpo(Tayopivofj.ei/ rhv Kvpiov rhv irpiff^impov ^iKimrov koI HpnKXiavhv koI Atoytyrju
ajxa Tp ayia 4KKKr\aia. '
irpocrayopivofx.ti' Thv Kvpiov VlpoKAiavhv iv t(j5 X'^P^V ^vSi\a
afjia T'p ayia eKKArjcrlcf, fiira twv iSioiiv. irpoaayopivofxey Ma^L/xov ixfra rrjs e/f/cAT/ff/oj,
Mayvoy fiera rr/s e/c/cArjtri'ax. 7rpoffo.yopivoiJi.ev A6fj.vov /j-era rwv ISiwy, ''l\r]v rhv
irarepa r]/x(t>y Kal Ova,\7]y yuera rrjs eKKAriaias. TrpoffayopevcD Kal iyw MfAerios tovs
ffvyyiyiis fiov Aovrdyioy Kpi'tnrof Kal T6pStoy fura rooy iSiaiv. "Kpoffayoptvoixey Koi
TOVS iv T(f x^P^V ^aptiv, rhv irpecr^vTepoy ;U6Ta Twy ISiwv, tovs SiaKoyovs fieTa twv
iSiwy, Md^ifioy /xeTU twv iSiaiv, 'Uffvx'ov /xera rw;' ISitey, KvpiaKbv yuera tuv iSicoy,
lovXiav Kal tovs a.St\(poiis fiov KvpiWov 'Povcpoy Kal 'PiyKoy Kal KvpiKXav Kal T^y
yvij.<priv /xov BaffiAeiav Kal tovs SiaKovovs K\avSiov, Kal "Poviplvov, Kal IlpoirXov,
Trpoffayopevo/j.ev Kal tovs virr]peTas tov 6eov ^airpiKtov {tIv tov) 'A/j.fj.wyiov Kal
twv ISiwv (" We hail the presbyter Philip and Proclianus
Vfyefftov, Kal 'Zwffdvyav /xeTo,
and Diogenes, with the holy church ; Proclianus in the district of Phydela, with the
holy church and his own people Maximus with his church, Magnus with his church,
;
Domnus with his own people lies, our father, and Vales, with his church. I,
;
Meletius, hail my kinsmen Latanius, Crispus, and Gordius, with their households.
We hail also those in the district of Sarin, the presbyter and his people, the
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 199
deacons and their people, Maximus with his people, Hesychius with his people,
and Cyriacus and his people. We further hail all in Caduthi by name, all in
Carisphone by name. I, /Etius, hail my kinsfolk Marcus and Aquilina and
in Zimara, my
mother Julia, and my brothers Cyril, Rufus, Riglos, and Cyrilla,
my bride Basileia, and the deacons Claudius, Rufinus, and Proclus. We also
hail and salute God's servants Sapricius (the son of ?) Ammonius and Gencsius,
and Susanna with her household '').
^ The Testament of the Forty is inscribed {rols) /cora iraffav tt6Kiv koI x^P°'''
:
Not to be confounded with the Pontic and Colchian Sebastopolis. The son
'^
and successor of Eulalius, bishop of Sebaste (in Armenia Major bishoprics were
also hereditary as a rule), was Eustathius, the pupil of Arius, who founded
monasticism Armenia Minor and Paphlagonia and Pontus(Sozom., H.E., iii. 14.
in
31). He was born about 300 a.d. His dogmatic development and his relation
to Basil of Caesarea are discussed by Loofs {Eustathius von Sebaste, 1898).
Socrates (ii. 48) and 24) both make the mistake of assigning
Sozomen (iv.
ascertained that the Armenians had been Christians long ago (ttoAij' TvpSrepov).
Judaism seems to have previously wrought here also among the Armenian
aristocracy (cp. pp. 136 f. remains
of Gelzer's essay undermentioned). But it still
to be seen whether the strong Jewish influences were really pre-Christian and not
of an Old Testament Christian nature. Certainly they cannot be put farther down
than the fourth century. —
Moses Choren. (cp. my Litt.-Geschichte, i. p. 188) relates
that Bardesanes fought against the pagan cultus in Armenia, but he found no trace
of it locally.
200 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
describes the attack made by Maxi minus Daza as a religious
war ^ (H.E., ix. 8. 2 " In addition to this the tyrant was obliged
:
to make war upon the Armenians, men who had been old allies
and friends of Rome. Being Christians and earnest in their
piety towards God, this foe of God tried to force them to
offer sacrifice to idols and demons, thus turning friends into
foes and allies into enemies"). When Constantine recognized
and granted privileges to Christianity, he was only following
in the footsteps of the Armenian king. Unfortunately the
Greek sources for the Christianizing of Armenia are extremely
reticent (yet see Sozom,, ii. 8), while no account need be taken
of the late Byzantine or the romancing Armenian chroniclers.
We merely learn (from the Nicene lists) that two bishops from
Armenia Major took part in the Nicene council, their names
alone (Aristakes, who is said to have been the son of Gregory
the Illuminator, and Akrites) ^ being mentioned, not their sees.^
Authentic statements by Armenian historians are not in-
frequent, and we can still make out the main facts. ^ The
headqiiarters of the Christian mission in Armenia during the
third century, and (so far as the mission survived) during the
fourth, were Caesarea in Cappadocia ^ (with Sebaste in Armenia
KOT6(rT7j(raTo.
^ Both names are Armenian, Grecized.
^ It is uncertain, and indeed unlikely, that Aschtischat was the permanent
^ '*
Cp. Gelzer in ProL J?ea/-£ncyk/J-\ ii. pp. 74 f. and also his essay on "The
Beginnings of the Armenian Church " {Berichte d. k. Sachs. Gesellsch. d.
IFissensck., 4th May 1895); Weber, Die kathol. Kirche in Armenien, ihr
,
armenische Kirche in ihrer Beziehung zitr byzaniinischcn (1892) and Erwand Ter- ;
and Cappadocia and the neighbouring provinces at the close of the third century,
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 201
the ecclesiastical language. The great missionary, or rather the ' ' ^
great church-founder, of Armenia was Gregory the Illuminator, y^^- i^
who had fled before the Persians from his native land. He a
^^^^ ^ *
stood by the king (Trdat, 261-317), who was only hostile to 7X*-*>*« i
when the Armenian monarch resolved to elevate it to the position of the state-
religion in his country !
ence. '
afterwards secured high office in the church, and that their language for a while
almost threatened to become the language of the church. But we know no
particulars about the rivalry of the Greek and Syrian influences in the early
period.
^ The Armenians afterwards identified him with the man (Gregory ?) who wrote
to Aphraates and received the latter's homilies by way of answer (the letter
is printed in the introduction to the Homilies; cp. Texte u. Unters., iii. 3-4,
pp. I f., xxi. f.) ; but chronological reasons alone make the identification
impossible.
* Armenia was a feudal state, with a strong aristocracy and a wealthy
priesthood.
("^W^
—- 1
1
nobihty, which was crushing the royal power. Under Trdat and his son
Chosrow this poHcy was attended with decided success " (Gelzer, p. 133). But
there were pagan reactions and insurrections. The women of the upper classes
were especially devoted to the old faith, e.§:, Chosrow's own wife and also the
mother of king Pap.
- The civil position and powers of Csesarea in relation to Armenia are obscure.
They cannot have been strictly defined. Even Gregory's ordination by Leontius
is not indisputable (cp., however, Gelzer, p. 165, against tlie scepticism of
Gutschmid), while Aristakes was not consecrated catholicus in Caesarea. He was
set apartby his father Gregory. The subsequent patriarchs, down to Narses, how-
ever,were all consecrated in Csesarea. Then came the rupture, under king Pap
and the catholici of the house of Albianus. The political independence of the
country must have prevented Csesarea from becoming metropolis of Armenia in
the strict sense of the term.
Aschtischat was in the territory of Taron.
^ —
The tradition that Gregory was
led by a vision of Christ to make Valarschapat, the old royal town (afterwards
Etschmiadzin), the headquarters of the church, probably dates from a later age
(in Agathangelus it occurs in a section which Gutschmid recognizes to be an
apocalyptic fragment from the middle of the fifth century). It is a tendency-
the district of Taron," " the first, the most eminent, and the chief seat of worship,
since here a holy church was first of all built and an altar erected in the name of
the Lord." Thus it is called "the chief altar, the princely throne of the
patriarchs " with the local saints John the Baptist and Athenogenes, whose relics
Gregory had brought from Cappadocian Csesarea. Here, in this southern town,
the first provincial synods of Armenia were also held. The centre of gravity of
the country then lay in the south, where king Tiran (326-337), the successor of
Chosrow (3 1 7-326), was particularly fond of staying. It is possible, however,
that Faustus has exaggerated the importance of Aschtischat, owing to his
partiality for the town.
' Or were there not so much twelve bishoprics as twelve bishops who were
constantly with the catholicus ? The complete organization of the Armenian
church does not go back to Gregory, but he certainly founded some bishoprics.
- The dignity of catholicus (as the Christian high-priest, who enjoyed royal
honours) belonged to the family of Gregory. These high-priests were therefore
married mea, though this was not always the case. The grandsons of Gregory
succeeded to the throne when they were still boys. The Armenian bishoprics
were frequently hereditary even in other cases.
^ The names are naturally Greek Philadelphus, Petronius, and Eupsychius.
:
204 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
chui'ch at Gangra, too, about 325 a.d. ; for, as the town had
a metropolitan circa 350 a.d., it cannot have been entirely
pagan some twenty-five years earher.^ Hippolytus (Comm. in
Dan., p. 232 f., ed. Bonwetsch) has preserved for us one episode
from the history of Christianity in Pontus, an episode which
reminds us very strongly of the incident of the prophetess in
Cappadocia and of the Montanist movement in Phrygia, and
which proves at the same time how readily the Chiistian
population of Asia Minor were disposed to take up with such
fanaticalmovements. Unfortunately he does not name the
town whose bishop enacted the movement in question.^ The
Novatians were particularly numerous in Paphlagonia (see
' was only by accident, therefore, that the bishop was absent from Nicaea.
It
The synod_held at Gangra in 343 a.d. (cp. Braun in His/, /a/iri. [Gorres. Gesell.],
vol. xvi., 1895, pp. 5S6 ) mentions, in its communication to the Armenian
f.
bishops, thirteen members of that synod, giving their names but unfortunately
not their sees. Even the names have not been accurately transmitted to us.
The monastic movement which the bishops censured was in opposition to the
popular semi-pagan Christianity which had shot up to a rank growth especially
in Pontus, Armenia Minor, and Armenia Major. The movement was also
directed against the cult of the martyrs and the festivals of the martyrs
(can. 20), which were particularly popular in these districts as a substitute for the
pagan cultus.
^ "Erepos TLS dfxoiais iv rcji TlSvrCf} Koi alrhs irpotcrrccs eKK\r](rias, evKa^rjs /j-fv
avijp Kal TaTr€tv6((>pci>u, furi irpocrext^i' 5e aacpaActis rats ypa<pa7s, aWa to7s opdfiacriv
ols avrhs kwpa fxaWov iiriarevev. eiriTuxcor yap i<p iv\ Ktxi SeuTepCfj Kal Tpiro)
iveffrriKev i) Tjfxepa rod Kvpiov, /xera KXavdfjLdiv Kal odvpficov iSeovTO tov Kvpiov j/vKrhs
Koi T]/ji.epas irph (XpdaKfxSiv fX"'''''^^ '''V" eTrfpxofJ-evriv rrjs Kpicrecos rjfjapav. Kal eis
TOffovTov ^yayev d>6^os koX Sei\ia roiis aheKcpovs, Surre eacrai aircov ras x'^P"-^ 'f<*^
roxis aypovs ipi)fi.ovs, to. re KTr]fxara avrwv ot TrAei'ous KaTeirwKriaav. 6 5e e<^rj
avrols '
iav yUTj yfvrjrai Kadats iiirov, /xTj/ceTi /xijSe to?s ypacpals TrjtrTei^ffTjTe, aWa
iroielToi iKaaros vp.wv h fiovKerai .... at Se ypa<pal ecpdvqffav aXridevovaat, ol Se
aSe\<pol evpedriffav ffKavSaXt^jxevot, SiffTe Koiirhv Tas irapdevovs avrtov yrj/jLai Kal
Tovs 6.vdpas eirl r-qv ytoipyiav ;^a)p^o'ai ot Se etwp ra eavTwv KTri/xara TroikiiffavTes
on being proved wrong he said, Know, my brethren, that the judgment will take
'
place after the space of one year.' So, when they heard his address, how that
'the day of the Lord is at hand,' with tears and cries they besought the Lord
night and day, having before their eyes the imminent day of judgment. And to
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 205
Socrat., ii. 38), and they had regular churches. They were
strongest in Mantinium.^
Three bishops from Diospontus attended Nicaea, from Amasia
and Comana and Zela.^ The last-named was also present at
the synod of Ancyra in 314. Amasia^ even in the days of
Gregory Thaumaturgus (circa 240 a.d.), was an episcopal see
and the metropolis of Diospontus, while Comana had got a
bishop from Gregory (cp. Gregory of Nyssa Vita Gregorii, ;
such a pitch were the brethren worked up by fear and terror, that they deserted
their fieldsand lands [being evidently a country church], most of them selling off
their property. Then said he to them, 'If it does not happen as I have said,
never trust the Scriptures again, but let each of you live as he likes. The year, '
however, passed without the prophesied event occurring. The proph.et was .
proved to be a liar, but the Scriptures were shown to be true, and the brethren
found themselves stumbling and scandalized. So that afterwards their maidens
married and the men went back to their husbandry, while those who had sold off
their goods in haste were ultimately found begging ").
^ This place, so far as I know, is unidentified.
^ Migne, vol. xlvi. pp. S93 f. cp. also Rufinus' Church History (vii. 25), the
;
surrounding country, to find out if there were any who had not accepted the faith.
On discovering that there were not more than seventeen, he thanked God that he
had left his successor as many idolaters as he had found Christians when he himself
began." Basil {loc. cit.) says he converted the entire nation, not only in the cities
but in the country.
^ Atheaodorus also took part in the work. He was Gregory's brother, and
bishop of some unknown place in Pontus.
* Mary and John appeared to him, and he turned such visions to good account.
So far as I know, this is the first c^s&of a vision of the Virgin in the church.
CHRISTIANITY
r^ I
strain upon those ivho had accepted the yoke of the faith, in order
to let them enjoy good cheer in life. For, as he saw that the raw
and ignorant multitiide adhered to idols on accotmt of bodily
pieassures, he permitted the people —so as to secure the most vital
matters, i.e., the direction of their hearts to God instead of to a vain
worship—permitted them to enjoy themselves at the commemoration
of the holy martyrs, to take their ease, and to amuse themselves,
since life would become more serious and earnest naturally in
process of time, as the Christian faith came to assume more control
of it.'''' Gregory is know of, during these
the sole missionary we
first three centuries, who employed such methods ^ and he was ;
^ On the blending of religions in Asia, cp. also Texfe u. Unters., N.!". , iv. i
iis fj.T]Se (rx'»7M"Ta)j' Sta/xelyat rh elSos, rwv ^Ujxwv rhv tvkov tovs vw avBpdirovs
fXTiSe
eiriaTaadat '
ai 5f tovtohv v\ai KaOwirtcodriffav rots twp /xaprvpccv CTj/cois. roiis yap
every year we all go outside the city, with our wives and children, to pray to the
one, invisible God, and to beseech him for enough rain for ourselves and our
crops"). The sequel shows that they fasted' and spent the night there.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 209
C. BriHYNIA
After we pass the first epistle_of Peter and the authentic and
surprising testimony furnished by Plinj to the wide diffusion of
Christianity in this province (see above), which was wholly
Hellenized in the imperial age, we practically come upon no
further traces of it till the age of Diocletian. All we know is
^ Socrates (i. 20) and Sozomen (ii. 7) furnish an account of the conversion of
Iberia, which is pure legend. But the fact and the date of the conversion are
correct.
:
that Origen s pent some_time here {Ep. Or'ig. ad Jul. Afric.) about
the year 240 a.d.^ The outbreak of Diocletian's persecution,
however, reveals Nicomedia as a semi-Christian city, the imperial
court itself being full of Christians.'- From the very numerous
martyrdoms, as well as, above all, from the history of Nicomedia
duringThe age of Constantine and his sons (the historical source
here being quite trustworthy and ample), we are warranted in
holding that this metropolis must have been a centre of the
church. The calendar of the majority of churches goes back
to"the festal calendar of the church of Nicomedia.^ And what
holds true of the capital, holds true of the towns throughout
the province; all were most vigorously Christianized. Con-
stantine located his new capital at Constantinople, for the
express reason that the opposite province was so rich in
were there, who trampled down the truth as it lay prostrate and low "). The one
was Hierocles, but the other's name is not given.
This has been demonstrated by Duchesne with regard to the ancient Syriac
•*
author at all. But in the martyr-Acts of Domna and Inda (Migne, Gr. Tom.,
116. p. 1073, cp. 1076 A) a letter of his is mentioned, full of kindly encourage-
ment, which he wrote during his concealment in a village.
212 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
At the same time, apart from Nicomedia, not a single Christian
community in Bithjnia is heard of before the great persecution,
i.e., before 325 a.d.^ No Christian writer mentions any. The
reason for this, however, is that no prominent bishop or author
was vouchsafed to that country before the days of Eusebius
in the Acfa
Tryphonis et Respicii (Ruinart's Acta Mart., Ratisbon, 1859,
pp. 208 f.), we must presuppose a Christian church at Apamea (Bithynia), a town
—
with Roman civic rights though these two saints came not from the town itself
but "de Apameae finibus de Sansoro [Campsade?] vico" (from the borders of
Apamea, from a village called Sansorus). There was also a Christian community
at Drepana ( = Helenopolis), which had a church of the martyrs {Vii. Const.,
iv. 61).
^ Before he became bishop of Nicomedia, he had been bishop of Berytus in
Phoenicia. He was a friend of Arius, and a pupil of Lucian. He was also
distantly connected with the royal family (Amm.
Marcell., xxii. 9).
''
Local martyrdoms are reported, as at Nicaea. Both Apollonia and Adriani
are also assigned to Mysia.
* Their names are : Eusebius, Theognius, Maris, Cyril, Hesychius, Gorgonius,
Georgius, Euethius, and Rufus. — From the ]^ita Const., iv. 43, it is plain that the
number of the bishoprics was large.
^ The names of Phrygia and Galatia were often employed in a broader or a
narrower sense, without any regard to the legal and current political divisions. I
refrain here from entering into the question of what " Galatia" means in Paul and
elsewhere. Renan, Hausrath, Ramsay, Zahn, Weiss, and many others hold that
J.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 213
e'xei ' ovSe yap LTnroSpo/ut.iai ovSe OeuTpa (JTrovSa^ovrai vvv Trap'
auT0i9 .... (Of fxvcros e^alariov irap avTol^ rj Tropve'ia vojui^erai'
Lycaonia. Iconium was a Phrygian town, and the Lycaonian language which
Paul heard at Lystra (Acts xiv. ii) was probably Phrygian.
^ The epistle of the churches at Lyons and Vienne
(177/178), which describes
their sufferings, is addressed to the churches of Asia and Phrygia. We may
perhaps assume that Phrygia here means simply the south-west section.
^ The inhabitants of Phrygia, even in the second century, were decried, together
with the Carians, as barbarians. Cp. Justin's £>m/, cxix. ovk (UKaTa(pp6vnTos
:
SrjfiSs efffiiv ov5i ^apfiapov 4>v\ov ovde onola. Kapwv ^ ^pvyoiv edi/rj. So even
Homer's Iliad, ii. 867 (Kapij' ^77j(raTo $ap^apo<p(ivuv) and the adage quoted by
Cicero in Pro Flacco, 27 " Phrygem plagis fieri solere meliorem."
:
* Wherever the movement spread throughout the empire, it was known as the
(reprinted from ihe. Journal of Hellenic Studies, vol. xxv., 1905), and also Miss A. M.
Ramsay's The Early Christian Art of Isaura Nova (reprinted from i\ve Journal of
Helle7iic Studies, xxiv. 1904). ,The sketch-maps appended to these volumes are
particularly serviceable. What has elsewhere been achieved by the combined
effortsand agencies of an academy, one man has achieved here single-handed.
^ Phrygia, pp. 667 f.
RafflSay, " Akmonia, Sebaste, Eumeneia, Apameia,
:
Dokimion, and Iconium are the cities where we can identify Jewish inscriptions,
legends, and names."
^ The anti-Montanist (in Eus., v. if.. 4) found the church of Ancyra quite
carried away by Montanism.
5 Tliyatira fell entirely into their hanis (Epiph., Hir., li. 33).
! — ;
" Plurimi simul convenientes in Iconio diligentissime traclavimus" (" The majority
of us have carefully handled this, gathering together in Iconium "). Dionys. Alex.
(in Eus., vu. 7 • fJ-ffJ-adriKa koI tovto, '6ti /xt) vvv oi ev ^Afpp'iKrj fj.6vov rovro irapn-
orriyayov, aWa ttoWov Kara tovs trph 7}ixu>v eKtffKOirovs eV Tors iroXvavOpai-
Koi irpo
jTOTarats iKK\T]criais koI tois (rw65ois rwv aSeKcpwi/ eV 'lKoui(f> Kal ^vvydSois Kal
TTOpa -iroWo^s tovto eSo^iv) "I also learnt that this was not a recent practice
:
introduced by those in Africa alone, but that long ago, in the days of the bishops
who were before us, it was resolved upon by the most populous churches, and by
synods of the brethren at Iconium and Syrnada, and by many others."
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 217
facti sunt " (children at Ancyra who were martyred from their
mother's womb). A large synod was held here in 314, whose
Acts are still extant.^
Malus (a village near Ancyra, t^9 TroXecog airwKLrr fxevov
^ Cp. Routh, Reliq. SacrP\ iv. pp. 113 f. Of the twenty-five canons of this
synod, three bear specially on the history of the local expansion of Christianity,
viz., the 13th, the 7th, and the 24th. The first contains regulations for the chor-
episcopi, delimiting their powers (for the first time in their history), while the
two latter prohibit pagan sacrificial feasts and all pagan superstitions (7 : irepJ
Tojr (rvi/effTtaOfj/Twp iv eopTr} iOviKTj, iv T6ircji a<puiptffij.fvcf> toIs 46viko7s, i5m 0pw-
fiara iiriKo/juffafifvaiv Kal (paySvTooy [evidently this was a protective custom !],
e5o|€ SiiTiau vTroTTeaovras Bf')(^9r\vai. 24 : ol Kara/^i.a.i'TevS/J.ei'ot Kal tois trvvrjOiiais
Tiiiv (dvSiv i^ano\ov6ovvres rj iiffdyovres rivas els rovs eavru'v oIkovs eV) avivpecni
(papixaKeiwu f) Eighteen or nineteen bishops signed these
koI KaOdpaei, k.t.\.).
resolutions, viz., the bishops of Syrian Antioch, Ancyra,
Cassarea (Cappad.),
Tarsus, Amasia, Juliopolis (Gal.), Nicomedia, Zela (Pont.), Iconium, Laodicea
(Phryg. ), Antioch (Pisid.), Perga, Neronias, Epiphania, and Apamea (Syr.),
though not all of these localities can be proved indubitably. Galatia, Syria, Cappa-
docia, Cilicia, Diospontus, Bithynia, Pisidia, Phrygia, Paraphilia (perhaps Cyprus
as well), were thus represented. The names are Greco-Latin : Vitalis, Marcellus,
Agricolaus, Lupus, Basilius, Philadelphus, Eustolus, Heraclius, Petrus, Nunechius,
Sergianus, Epidaurus, Narcissus, Leontius, Longinus, Amphion, Alphius,
Selaus (?), and Germanus. The Marcellus of this list is the famous bishop of
Ancyra, who made so effective an appearance at Nicaea. The picture of the church
at Ancyra given by the Ac^a T/ieodoii {ed. Franchi de Cavalieri, 1902, Rome) is
instructive, though the Ac^a themselves are unauthentic and quite legendary.
They warn us against forming extravagant ideas of the size of the church. It was
ruled by the huckster Theodotus. Apart from the local church or churches there
were also two oratories, a fxaprvpiov tu>v irarpiapx^y and a fi. tSiv iraTepoov (c. x6).
Franchi has shown that the latter was probably a re-consecrated pagan shrine, and
even the local saint Sosander (c. 19) may have been a re-consecrated hero.
— ;
/ PapiasT Apollinaris of Hierapohs ; Eus., iii. 31, 36, 39, iv. 26,
J V. 19, 24 bishop Flaccus at Nicaea). ;
fr Colossas (Paul).
( Otrus (Eus., H.E., v. 16).
— Hieropolis (inscriptions).
^w-;-
never mentioned at the synods of Ancyra or of Nicaea. Even otherwise the town
is ignored in the early Christian literature. But it is clear from the epistle of
town was at that time extremely backward
the emperor Julian to Arsacius that the
as regards the worship of the "Magna Mater" i.e., it was substantially Christian ;
(cp. Soz. V. 1 6). Hence it must have had both Christians and a bishop at an
,
earlier date.
^ Duchesne {Orig. dii ciilte, p. ii) rightly observes : "La Phrygie etait a peu
pres chrelienne que la Gaule ne comptait encore qu'un tres petit nombre d'eglises
organisees." Cp. Ramsay, as cited above (p. 95). — For Phrygian martyrs in
Palestine (including a Thekla) under Diocletian, cp. Alari. Pal. (ed. Violet,
pp. 18 f.
,
48). A Phrygian, Alexander, was martyred at Lyons (Eus., H.E.,
v. i) under Marcus Aurelius.
"*
The three churches at Laodicea, Hierapolis, and Colossse were closely con-
nected in their origin (cp. Col. iv. 13). Paul did not found them himself; he was
never there (Col. ii. i). It was his disciples who founded them e.g., Epaphras the
;
missionary in Colossse. — In the Mart. Sy?: for 27th June we read: "In Laodicea
Phrygiae e numero .... Kadapwv [i.e., Novatians] in persecutione secundum
.... uniti sunt et adnumerati ecclesiae, deinde confessi sunt Theophilus episcopus
et Philippus et alii quinque."
*
Hierapolis was the birthplace of Epictetus.
^
,
I \J /f 9 '
/
161).
[Stektorion] (inscriptions; cp. Ramsay, pp. 719 f.).
Bishop Agapetus of Synnada, who was inclined to Aiianism and was famous
'
for his miracles, was perhaps the predecessor of Procopius. I'liilostorgius men-
tions him {HE., ii. 8). He was originally a soldier, then a presbyter, and then a
bishop. Cp. the fragment about him excerpted from Philostorgius by Suidas, s.v.
a.yaTrr]T6s, where it is narrated how he almost fell a victim, as a soldier and a
Christian, to the persecution of Daza.
^ Merus (between Cotiseum, Appia, and Amorium) must also have had a
Christian church by 325 a.d. It cannot be identified with certainly (cp. Kiefert's
map). What Socrates relates about the reign of Julian {H.E., iii. 5 cp. Soz. ;
unidentified), since some of the Phrygian Novatians (or Montanists) met there for
a synod about the middle of the fourth century (Socrates, H.E., iv. 28, v. 21).
— ;
56^ f., 621 674; for the pagan reaction here in 314 a.d.,
f.,
cp. ibid., pp. 506 f., and Deux jours en Phrygie, pp. 8 f.).
Tiberiopolis (martyr).
Amorion (martyr).^
[Cheretapa (Socr., ii. 40 ; Philostorg., vii. 6 ; in Southern
Phrygia, on the Pisidian border) had a bishop in Juhan's day.
,
It cannot be identified with certainty; perhaps = Dioc3esarea,
^yjJSfcp. Kieferfs map.]
jV ^ _. J
and Lycaonia ^
^ Pisidia :
for Limense [Limnae], p. 251 ; for Pappa, p. 254 ; for Baris and Seleucia, p. 256 ;
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 221
for Amblada, pp. 264 f. ; for Vasada Isaur., p. 266 ; for Humanades Isaur., pp. 268 f.
Further, cp. Ramsay's great study of Lycaonia (which discusses Isauria also).
For Laranda, cp. pp. 70 f. ("the leading city of Southern Lycaonia, had the title
of metropolis from the time of M. Aurelius and perhaps earlier ") for Derbe and ;
Passala, pp. 73 f. ; for Isauropolis, pp. 77 f. ; for Barata, pp. 82 f. ; for Gdmaua
Gal., p. 97 for Coropassus, p. 100 and for Cybistra Capp., pp. 113 f.
; ;
^ Lystra and Derbe were the first Christian communities which were almost
entirelycomposed of Christians who had been born pagans (cp. Kenan's Paitl,
Germ, ed., p. 90).
^ Amblada was in bad repute. Constantine banished MWns thither (eKfl /caKcD?
airopp7)|a( toi' ;8iof, Sia rh 0ap0apov Kal fjuffdvQptairov tSjv evoiKOVvToiv, avx/J-ov
Se Kal Aoifiov ttjj/ x'^P^"
^X""'^'^^ avviroiffrov). So still in the days of Philostorgius
(v. 20), though at the beginning of the fourth century it had a bishop.
^ This bishop occurs aho in the Isaurian list of the Nicene council, and indeed
with more right there than here.
222 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
the inscriptions and ruins of the fourth century,
it must have been
K
of Polycrates, bishop of Ephesus, to Victor of
aster controversy (cp.
clearly the dignity
Eus., H.E.,
and the self-consciousness of the church at
Ephesus. Ephesus was the custodian of ^the ^reat memories of
v.
Rome
24) brings out very
during the
Nicene list (before Asia), so that we now find, under ^Aaias, the bishop of Cyzicus
before the bishop of Ephesus (cp. Llibeck, p. 77, and Schwartz, Zt/r Gesch. des
Athafias., vi. p. 267).
2 The traditions that "John" organized the church in Asia, and that he ruled
over the churches as a mission-superintendent, are above suspicion. Eventually
(cp. 3 John) he came into conflict with the local organization.
2 Cp. Clare, de Rebus Thyatirenorum, and Ramsay, Detix jours en Phrygie,
pp. 9 f.
*
Paul's epistle to the Ephesians (whose address is admittedly unauthentic, as
we read it to-day) was sent to several Asiatic churches perhaps it was the same
;
letter as the Colossians (Col. iv. 16) were to expect from Laodicea and to read.
;
the date of this Vita, we can believe there was a bishop at Teos
in the third century.
1
In the A/ari. Pionii a village called Karina is mentioned as having a Christian
presbyter.
2 The discussion of the Vita Polycarpi (per Pionium) has entered on a new
phase, owing to the efforts of Corssen {Zeits. f. NTlicke IViss., v. pp. 266 f.)
and Schwartz {De Pionio et Polycarpo, Gottinger Programm, 7th June 1905),
both of whom regard Pionius, the Decian martyr, as the author of the treatise.
According the Vita, Bucolus was the predecessor of Folycarp (preceded by
to
the disciple of Paul, Strataas [a son of Lois], who had laboured as a teacher of
the church. The list, according to the Apost. Constit., runs thus: Ariston,
Strataas, the son of Lois, Ariston [another?]).— In the Vita, ch. xxi., bishops
tS>v irepi| iriKiwv are mentioned on the occasion of Polycarp's choice as bishop
of Smyrna, as well as Christian yx^<" Tajv iriKiniv koX Koofxuv Kal aypwv (cp. 27 :
Tj Kara tos Kcofias fKKX7)(TiSiv (ppovris). This is quite credible, for the third
century. Against Corsscn's hypothesis, see Hilgenfeld in his Zeits. fiir Wiss.
Theol. (1905), xlviii. pp.444 f.
3 There were Christians in the town of Parethia on the Hellespont (Parium?),
but it has not been identified. Cp. Achelis, Mart. Hier., p. 117.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 225
^ Christianity in this town or its jurisdiction must have still been in a weak
state, for under Julian a proposal was brought forward to restore the pagan temple
(Sozom. , V. 15).
VOL. II. 15
226 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
(another: =Dascylium? bishop Marinus), Hypaepa (Mithres),
Anaea (Paulus), Bagis (Polhon), Tripolis (Agogius), Ancjra
ferrea (Florentius), Aurelianopolis (Antiochus), Standus
[ ? Silandus ? Blaundus ?
]
(bishop Marcus), Hierocaesarea
(Antiochus).^ In Caria : Antioch (Eusebius), Aphrodisias
(Atnmonius ; martyrs [Mart. St/r.] and Christian inscriptions),
Apollonias (Eugenius), Cibyra (Laetodorus : inscriptions ; cp.
pp. 129 f.), Side (since this town is mentioned shortly afterwards
as the metropolis of Pamphylia, it probably had a church circa
325 A.D.),2 Attalia (Mart.).
Isaii7'iaj It is amazing that Christianity had spread so far /
J
in this wild province that thirteen bishops and four chor-episcopi
came from it to the council of Nicasa. For Ramsay's investiga-
tions, cp. above, pp. 215, 220. Laranda (Alex, of Jerus., in Eus.,
H.E., vi. 19, Nic. bishop Paulus), Barata, Koropissus, Claudi- J-
(p. 77), and his Pisidia and the Lycaonian Frontier (pp. 266 f.),
on this question. The latter scholar thinks that the two neigh-
bouring cities of Isaura nova and Corna had bishops at an
earlier period, " but were submerged in the great autocephalous
^
bishoprics of Isaura palaea sometime after 381.''
^
§ 10. Crete and the Islands (including the Ionian)
For Isaura nova = Dorla, cp. Ramsay, Topog7\ and Epigr. of Nova Isaura
^
6 deov <pi\os. By a custom of the pagan priests, his name is not given. Or w^as
he called Theophilus? The monument must be pre-Constantine, as its general
character and the ornaments prove. The inscription for rhv iva<n (piKov iirlffKOTrov
Ma/j-nay (pp. 269 f ) also seems to be pre-Constantine, possibly too that on bishop
.
Sisamoas (p. 272). The other antique monuments which have been discovered
and described belong also to the years 250-400 A.D. The rarity of Greek names
on them is extremely striking the Latin are more numerous. For that very
;
Cephallenia through his mother, koI 0ehs eV Sct/xj? rrjs Ke<poi.X\rjvias TiTifiriTat,
ivOa avTcf liphv pvToiiu Xidaiv, ^oofioi, Te/xeVrj, fxovcrelov cfKoS6fj.riTai re Koi KaQUpunai,
Koi ffvvi6vTts its rh liphv 01 Kij'aWTJi'es Kara vovfirivlav yeviOXiov aTodetcaiv Qvovaiv
^Eiri(pdvei, cnreVSoucri t£ koI fvooxovvrai Kal He is honoured as
vfjivoi Kiyovrai ("
a god in Same huge stones, with altars and
of Cephallenia, where a shrine of
precincts and a museum, has been erected for him, and consecrated. And the
Cephallenians celebrate his birthday at new moon, assembling at his shrine, doing
sacrifice, pouring forth libations, and feasting, with song of hymns to him ").
f. K. Gesch., 1891, pp. 520 f.) and Gelzer {Zeits. f. IVtss. Theol., xxxii., 1892,
xii.,
pp. 419 f.), refer to a later period, but even the period previous to 300 may have
some light cast on it by the list (Duchesne, p. 14), which assigns to Euboea three
bishoprics (Chalcis, Carystus, Porthmus), to Attica one (Athens), to Northern
Greece ten (Megara, Thebes, Tanagra, Platsea, Thespise, Coronia, Opus, Elataea,
Scarphia, Naupactus), to the Peloponnese seven (Corinth, Argos, Lacedsemon,
Messina, Megalopolis. Tegsea, Patras). TertuUian {de Virg. Vel. ii.) writes thus:
" Per Graeciam et quasdam barbarias eius plures ecclesiae virgines suas abscond-
unt." As he means by " Graecia " in ch. viii. Greece proper {i.e., Corinth, etc.),
we should probably locate these churches among the neighbouring barbarians in
the northern half of the Balkan peninsula.— Could we avail ourselves of the
episcopal list of Sardica, we should be able to verify a large number of bishoprics
for Achaia, Macedonia, and the provinces farther north. But (cp. above, p. 90)
tJ-
* synagogue of the province; Paul; Antoninus Pius wrote to
yj^ this city, forbidding any rising against the Christians [Melito,
in Eus., H.E., iv.
26J ;the metropolitan Alexander was present
at Nicaea, and also at the dedication of the church of Jerusalem,
Vit. Const., iv. 43).
J^ Beroea (Paul).
L^
^thens ^ (Paul). From the outset the church here was small^
and small it remained, for in this city of philosophers Christianity
could find little room. According to Dionysius of Corinth, )
y/> ceeded Publius in the episcopate, testifying that the church had
5> K \ been gathered together again by his zealous efforts and had
gained new ardour for the faith." The apologist Aristides came
from Athens (0tAocro^o? 'AOrjvaio^). So did Clement of Alex-
andria, perhaps. Origen, who spent some time in Athens * (Eus.,
r
vi. 23. 32), mentions the local church in c. Cels., III. xxx. " ThqQi^a-^ :
* For " Macedonia," see J. Weiss's article in the Fro t. Real-Encyk.^^\ vol. xii.
Philippi gave Paul his first experience of a city which had a considerable Latin
/^ element in it.
U \Jr< 2 ggg tj^g instructive article on "Greece in the Apostolic Age," by
J. Weiss,
;
ibid., vol. vii. Apart from Corinth, Greece was in a reduced position by the time
p it came into contact with Christianity.
^ This edict, designed by Pius for Thessalonica, Athens, Larissa, and "the
Greeks" (the scope of this address is unfortunately obscure), shows that the
strength of Christianity in these cities must not be underrated. Of course, one
has to bear in mind the intolerance of Greeks in all matters of religion.
^ He found a version of the Old Testament hitherto unknown to him.
^ According to Epiph. Hcer., liv. i, Theodotus abjured his faith during a perse-
,
cution (hence there was one before 190 in Byzantium, i.e., perhaps under Marcus
Aurelius).
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 235
may refer also to Tert., ad Scap. iii,] local martyrs, cp. Mart. ;
Syr. and Eus., Vit. Const.., iii. 48 on Alexander, the local bishop ;
1 Cp. the pretty legend in Philoslorg. H.E., , ii. 9 : KoovffTavTlvov rhv vipifioXov
dpt^vevov, fidSriv re ireptieyai, rh Sopv X*'P^ (pfpovra
rrj eTrel 5« to7s iiroixtvois
'
iS6Kei /xei^oj/ i) irpoaTiKe rh fieTpov eKTiivew, wpo(Te\6i7y Tt alnif riua /cot Siawv-
Bdviffdai, ioos TTOv, diffiTOTa •
Thv 5e awoKpivd/j.tvoi' 5iappr]5T]v (pdvai, kics &i/ 6
f/XTrpoaOfv jxov (Try, iiriSri\oi' jroiovvTa, oij ^vvafits aVTOv tis ovpavia irporiyoLTO,
Tov TrparrofjLevov SiSdffKaKos (" Constantine, he says, went out on foot to mark
the circuit of the city, carrying a spear in his hand. When his attendants thought
he was measuring too much ground, one of them came up to him, and aslced him,
How far, O prince ? He replied, Until He who precedes me stops. By this
answer he signified that some divine power was leading him on and instructing
him what to do ").
'^
The presence of Christians at Chalcis in Euboea, under Decius or Valerian, may
be inferred with some likelihood from Jerome {de Vir. Inl. Ixxxiii. ) a passage in —
which Methodius of Olympus seems to be confused with a certain Methodius of
Chalciswho was martyred under Decius or Valerian.
^At Tricca in Thessaly, a certain Heliodorus was bishop (according to Socrates,
H.E., V. 22). If he is to be identified, as Socrates declares he is, with the author
of the romance, he must have lived at the close of the third century, for the
romance dates from the reign of Aurelian, and was a youthful work. Rohde,
however, doubts this identification.
236 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Thracian Christianity was that of Bithynia.^
•V-, No distinctive
Macedonian or Greek Christianity ever arose, hke the Christi-
anity of Asia Minor, or of Syria, or of Pontus- Armenia, or of
Egypt, vigorous as the missionary efforts of the Thessalonian
church may have been. The martyr- Acts furnish one or two
indications of Christianity as it developed at Thessalonica and
elsewhere.
Kol P\aff<l>'fin<j> ewixfipi^i' ir payfiar i Ka\ tls vvofxa avrris iepovpyelv 5ia yvfaiKoiv).
Cp. Map VII.
-
^:.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 237
(in modern Styria) had a bishop chxa 300 a.d., and in Victorinus j
it had one who was famous as a theologian and author, well ^
versed in Clraek Christian literature. Pannonia was Romanized,
but the last offshoots of Hellenism may have penetrated to
this province.
It is extremely surprising how few bishops from Moesia or
Pannonia (even from the provinces mentioned under § 11) were
present at Nic*a. Was the emperor indifferent to their
presence ? Or had they themselves no interest in the questions
to be debated at the council ? We cannot tell. Nevertheless,
the fourth century saw a large part of the mental interchange
between East and West realized in the church of one province,
and that province was Moesia.
The likelihood is that the number of bishops (and con-
sequently of churches also) was still small (see above). — It
is intrinsically probable^ that Christianity also penetrated
irpe&fiivfiv tJ) S6yfia, ruiv Xpi(TTtava>v oi ytvi^juvoi ko/to. Kaiphv 'Pa)fj.aiots n Kal
a\\o(pv\ois iwl rrjs FaWfftvov fiytfiovias Kal twv (ht' avrhu fiaffiKfcov ("Almost
allthe barbarians professed to honour Christianity, from the date of the wars
between the Romans and the foreign tribes under Gallienus and his successors").
2 Cp. Map VIII.
communities of the Roman world at large. " Ecclesia Romana semper habuit
primatum," i.e., it possessed it, as soon as the circumstances of the political
organisation and authority began to be important and normative for the churches
of the Roman empire, while at the same time a sort of politico-ecclesiastical unity
began to prevail in all the churches.
1 One remarks upon the population of Rome: "Jubeistos
recollects Seneca's
omnes ad nomen unde domo quisque sit quaere ; videbis maiorem partem
citari et
esse quae relictis sedibus suis venerit in maximam quidem et pulcherrimam urbem,
non tamen suam" (" Have them all summoned by name, and ask each his birth-
place. You will find the majority have left their homes and come to the greatest
—
and fairest of cities yet a city which is not their own"), adv. Helv. 6.
I have discussed the origin of the first 48 (47) popes in the Sitzungsber. der K.
"^
Preuss. Akad. d. IVissensck. (1904), 14th July, pp. 1044 f. The fQllaffling;._2?^"
Nicene bishops are described in the list as "Groeci," viz. (Anacletus), Euaristus,
Telesphorus, Hyginus, Elcutherus, Anterus, Xystus II., and Eusebius Anicetus ;
is said to have been a Syrian, Victor and Miltiades Africans, Gaius a Dalmatian.
The rest are " Romani " (Cletus, Clement, Alexander, Xystus I., Zephyrinus,
Callistus, Urbanus, Pontianus, Fabianus, Cornelius, Lucius, Stephanus, Felix,
Marcellinus, Marcellus, and Sylvester) or " Itali " (Linus and Pius) or
" Campanus " (Soter) or "Tuscus" (Eutychianus). The origin of Dionysius is
undefined. From Victor onwards (perhaps even earlier) the majority of the
vol,. II. 1^
242 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
some hold, later). ^ The Roman clergy did not become pre-
dominantly Latin till the episcopate of Fabian (shortly before
the middle of the third century), and then it was that the
church acquired her first Latin writer of importance in the
indefatigable presbyter Novatian.^ Long ere this, of course,
there had been a considerable Latin element in the church.
Since the middle of the second century, there must have been
worship in Latin at Rome as well as in Greek,^ necessitating
ere long translations of the Scriptures. But the origins of the
Latin versions of the Bible are wrapt in mystery. They may
have commenced in Northern Africa earlier than in Rome itself.
Greek at least, the author never mentions bilingual worship, though he might
;
have done so. Still, the Latin versions of his own book, of Clemens Romanus,
and of the baptismal symbol, fall probably within the second century.
•*
It is very remarkable that the founders of the Roman church are never
mentioned. The list of persons saluted in Rom. xvi. opens with Prisca and
Aquila (and the church in their house). Though this indicates that they were the
"most prominent" Christians in Rome, yet they are specially mentioned for their
services not to the local church but to Paul (and with Paul). If the " church in
their house" probably was the oldest circle within the Roman church (though this
is not certain), Prisca and Aquila certainly were not the first Christians in Rome
or the founders of the church as a whole. Then comes Epsenetus, " the first-
fruits of Asia for Christ." Obviously there was a Christian elite; this descrip-
tion of Epzenetus (who was either a temporary or permanent resident) explains
why he was put second. Then comes a woman who has deserved well of the
church, Mary then two " apostles," older in point of Christianity than Paul him-
;
"
self, Andronicus and Junias. These, however, cannot have been the founders of
the Roman church. They only came to Rome later, after having once been in
prison with Paul. The Roman church had really no proper founders or else ;
those who might have claimed this title were insignificant people who perhaps
were already dead.
^ Many scholars, of course, refer this chapter to Ephesus, but I cannot perstiade
myself that ol e'/c ran/ 'ApiffToPovXov and ol in tSov Hapxiffaov (lO-li) are to be
looked for anywhere except at Rome.
^ The Roman Christians Claudiu s_E|3hesus and Valerius Biton, mentioned in
Clem. Rom., would also belong to this group. They are aged and honoured
circa 95 A.D.
^ T. Flavius Clemens and Domitilla, cp. above,
p. 46. —
The first Chiijtian
catacombs at Rome were already begun. It is impossible to discuss them here.
Let me only say that the number, the size, and the extent of the Roman catacombs
244 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
This consciousness on the part of the Roman church, which
was justified by the duties which it discharged, was recognized
by other churches. Ignatius, the bishop of Antioch, extols it
about 115 A.D. in extravagant language as being the "leading
church in the region of the Romans" {TrpoKaOijrat ev to'ttod
' He is explaining Isa. liv. i, partly of the Jews, partly of the Christians; and
in this connection he observes, eprj^uos e56K(i dyai airh tov 6iov 6 \ahs 7)fiwv, vvv\
Se TTicrrevcravTis irKiioves iyiv6fjL(0a rwy SoKouvrwy ex^'-" ^^^^ (^ce above, p. 4).
^ An almost complete survey is given by Caspari in his Quellen z, Gesch. des
Taufsymbols , vol. iii. (1875)-
* Cp. the fresh evidence for the size of the Roman church circa 180 A.D. in the
Coptic Acta Palling. Schmidt, p. 83). But the most important testimony to the size
and prestige of the Roman
church is that of Irenigus (iii. 3) " Sed quoniam valde
:
the series of bishops in all the churches, we confound all who in any way ....
otherwise than they ought, meet for worship, by pointing out the tradition (which
it holds from the apostles) of the most great and ancient and universally known
church founded and established at Rome by the two most glorious apostles, Peter
and Paul, and also the faith declared to men which comes down to our own day'
through the episcopal successions. For to this chtirch, on account of its more
246 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
thrust on had she not spontaneously assumed it.
her, even
s pesides, her position in the city grew stron ger day by day. In
^^'^ connection the age of Commodus marked an epoch by itself.
//i U '
'
Eusebius relates (v. 21) how "our affairs then became more
favourable, while the saving word led an uncommonly large
^^ number of souls of every race to the devout worship of God.
i ic
^^ In fact, a number of those who wei'e eminent at Rome for their
^
,»^.^.0<^*^"' wealth and birth, began to adopt the way of salvation, with
their whole households and families." It is well known, e.g.,
how much influence the Christians (cp. above, pp. 47-48) had
, , . ^ with Marcia, the " devout concubine " ((piXoOeo^i TraAAa/o/) of the
I
emperor.^ The growing and prestige of the church soon
size
question.-
f
A powerful lead, every church, i.e., the faithful everywhere, tiiust resort ; since in it
\j I
the apostolic tradition has been preserved by those who are from everywhere "). Cp.
U t my essay in the Sitzungsber. d. K. Preuss. Akad. d. Wiss. (1893, 9th October).
^ Hippol., Philos,, ix. 12. Thg^Rom an bishop Victor went to and from her
freely. One gathers from this passage also that the Roman church kept a list of
all'who languished in the mines of Sardinia. The archives of the Roman church
certainly went far back cp. my study of the origins of the popes (above, p. 241).
;
p. no), that Victor then held a Roman synod (for which there is other evidence),
attended by fourteen bishops and a number of presbyters. The statement may
be correct, though the number is so low.
3 The statement of the papal catalogue about Callistus having built a church in
Rome across the Tiber ("trans Tiberim ") may be quite authentic. It is quite
authentic, at any rate, that under Zephyrinus he was put in charge of a KotfiT]TTipiov
at Rome, and that he ordained bishops for Italy (Hippol., Philos., ix. 12),
*
He writes, e.g., of the emperor Septimius " Sed : et clarissimas feminas at
clarissimos viros, sciens huius sectae esse, non modo non laesit verum et testimonio
exornavil " {ad Scap. iv. ; cp. above, p. 48).
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 247
Hippolytus.
After the reign of -Commodus and the episcopate of Victor, ( ^ A
f
the reign of Philip the Arabian and the episcopate of Fabian ^
(236-250) form the next stage in the story (cp. Protest. Real-
I
EMcyMop}^\ V. pp. 721 f.). Two phases of organization mark
[
the growing size of the church at Rome. One is the creation t ./v/w^
I
^ \ of the l ower cl ei:£a._wijbh their five orders, the other is the ^jl
t- division of the Roman church into seven districts (or 7 X 2), ^ .
Rome, in a letter (Eus., vi. 43), to the effect that " there were / <;
conibus et fecit vii subdiacones." — Apropos of Clement I., the papal list had
noted : "Hie fecit vii regiones, dividit notariis fidelibus ecclesiae [sic], qui gestas
martyrum soUicite et curiose unusquisque per regionem suam diligenter perquireret."
The statement, of course, is valueless. See further under " Euarestus."
^ So we learn from Cyprian, Ep. Iv. 9. With this antithesis we may compare
a remark of Aurelian, preserved by Flavius Vopiscus {Aurelian, c. xx.) :
" Miror
vos, patres sancti, tamdiu de aperiendis Sibyllinis dubitasse libris, proinde quasi
in Christianorum ecclesia, non in templo deorum omnium tractaretis" ("I am
astonished,holy father, that you have hesitated so long upon the question of
opening the Sibylline books, just as if you were debating in the Christian
assembly and not in the temple of all the gods").
248 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
So far as regards statistics, this passage is the most important
in our possession for the church-history of the first three
centuries. In 251 a.d. the Roman church had evidently 155
clergy (with their bishop), who were maintained and fed, to-
gether with over 1500 widows and needy persons. From this I
should put the number of Christians belonging to the catholic
church in Rome at not less than 30,000,^ The forty-six priests
perhaps denote as many places of worship in the city ;
^ for,
as we see from Optatus (ii. 4), there were over forty basilicas
in Rome about the year 300 (" quadraginta et quod excurrit
basilicas ""), This large number indicates the great size of the
church.^
The great Novatian schism split the Roman church, but only
a minority went over to the " Purists." From a letter of bishop
Cornelius to Fabius, bishop of Antioch (Eus., H.E., vi. 43), we
learn that Novatian was conseci-ated by three imported bishops
from " a small and very limited district
'"'
of Italy {^paxv n
/nepoi? Koi. eXdxKTTOv), whom Cornelius deposed, ordaining others
in their place and sending them to the aforesaid dioceses.* In
' So too Renan {Marc-Aurele, p. 451). Probably this estimate is too
low (Renan: 30,000-40,000). At Antioch, Chrysostom narrates {0pp.,
as
vii. pp. 658, 810), the 3000 persons in receipt of relief were members of one
church consisting of over 100,000 souls. In the case of Rome, then, we might
put the total at about 50,000, which is the estimate of Gibbon, followed by
Friedlander and Dollinger '{Hippolyt und Callist, p. 24). One may assume,
however, that the readiness of Christians to make sacrifices was greater about 250
in Rome than it was about 380 in Antioch, so that I should exercise caution and
calculate only 30,000, which would amount — if one puts the population of Rome
very roughly at 900,000 — to about a thirtieth of the population. FriedlJinder's
[Siltengesch., iii. p. 531) calculations bring out a twentieth (50,000 to a million).
He may perhaps be right; at any rate, the total about 250 A.D. lies somewhere
between a twentieth and a thirtieth (from 5 to 3 per cent.). But between
250 and 312 an extraordinary increase of Christianity certainly occurred every-
where, including Rome, which I doubt not is at least equivalent to a doubling of
the previous total (from 10 to 7 per cent.).
^ For the reasons which led to an increase of presbyters in any town, cp.
Schafer [P/arrkirche u. Stift, 1903). His work deals with the mediaeval situa-
tion, butit also throws light upon the early Christian church. He also discusses
(pp. 85 f ) the Kavwv of the council of Nicsea (can. 16, 17).
^ Athanasius {ApoL 2 adv. Artait) mentions the church of Biton the presbyter
at Rome as which a synod was held.
one in
*
This proves once more that the Roman bishop possessed and practised
(i)
the right of ordination, in fact under certain circumstances the right of appoint-
ment, in Italy (2) that he himself was ordained by Italian bishops, that any
;
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 249
he gives their names and also the diocese which each represented.
He also gives the names of those who did not put in an appear-
ance at Rome, but gave their assent in writing to the decision
of those already mentioned — together with the town from which t^ '
the third centui^' Italy possessed at least nearly one hundred il^W"^
bishops ; for the absentees and the adherents of Novatian i I
'
time fixed the episcopal dioceses under the metropolitan see of /^^n
caoital. the former task
the capital, being comoleted by
beinsr completed bv Marcellus V
v k
s
Liber diiinms, j). 24, the bishop of Ostia usually consummated the ordination,
while the bishops of Albano and Portus offered up the prayers. But we cannot
decide whether this custom obtained as early as the third century. Incidentally,
we find that bishop Ursinus was ordained by the bishop of Tibur in the middle
of the fourth century.
' In the Coptic- Arabic Synaxariuin for the 1 2th of Kihak (Wustenfeld, II.
pp. 172 f. ) the number of presbyters, with the sixty bishops, is put at eighteen.
The Roman synod at which Athanasius vindicated his character numbered " mpre_
than fifty bishops " (/f/^/. c. A>-zan,\.). The numerical agreement is remarkable,
but perhaps it is no more than an accident. The two synods were almost a
century apart.
- There is no occasion to go into details with regard to these churches,
as we
have no sources bearing upon their further statistics. But their large number is
;
j^ the third century they show, better than all other evidence,
;
a basis for the census. The sharp contrast between Italy and the provinces thus
remained unaltered. Special districts were only created ad hoc for definite
administrative purposes. The "urbica diocesis" for chancery cases is an
exception during the second and third centuries it embraced Latium, Campania,
;
and Samnium. Furthermore, the territory up to the looth milestone along the
city-roads formed a special sphere for the " praefectus urbis." But neither this nor
the "urbica diocesis," so far as we can judge, has any bearing" on the metro-
politan position of the Roman bishop, who enjoyed from the very outset the
advantages accruing to him from the lack of any Italian provincial divisions. He
was the archbishop of all Italy. Here, too, the political organization is reflected
in the history of the ecclesiastical. It was through the provincial redistribution of
Italy under Diocletian that the position of the Roman bishop was first threatened
indirectly ; he now encountered rivals whom he had to subdue. Let me distinctly
252 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
of the practical primacy enjoyed by the Roman bishop, as that
comes out in his relations with Africa, Spain, Gaul, and the East,
in the middle of the third century.
Such are perhaps the most weighty testimonies available for
Jtrl the increase, the extent, and the importance of the Roman
{(/uv^^ church. At the same time it must not be overlooked thatJ;he
\ ^^ majority of the aristocracy were still pagans (cp Aug., Confess.^
i^
jurisdiction " cannot properly be used with reference to any of the Western
/ provinces, for there was really no metropolitan class in the West before 325 a.d.,
as there was in the East. All that transpired was the accruing of certain powers
to Rome (and Carthage) under the practical exigencies of the situation. We
must think of these powers as in part less, in part greater, than those of the
Oriental metropolitan centres, but in any case they were still indefinite an —
indefiniteness which lasted down to the beginning of the fourth century, and which
told in favour of Rome subsequently. The position of Rome as the higher
metropolitan and superior church has been recently discussed by LUbeck, op. cit. ,
in the papacy. Novatian (Cypr., Ep. xxx. 8) says of it: "Nos .... et quidem
multi et quidem cum quibusdam episcopis vicinis nobis et adpropinquantibus et quos
ex aliis provinciis longe positis persecutionis istius ardor eiecerat" (" We ....
in large numbers, and moreover with some neighbouring bishops [so that there
must have been some in the adjoining towns] and some within reach, and some
who had been driven away by the heat of that persecution from other provinces
at a long distance '"). It is remarkable that bishops, when forced to flee, made
Euteol4-.(Acts xxviii. 13 ly
JSaples (the catacombs render it likely that there were
Christians here as early as the second century ; see also Liber
Pontif., s.v. " Sylvester." The local Jews must have been
numerous from a very early period).
Antium (Hippol., Philos., ix. 12 ; the local cemetery [above
ground] was probably very old, cp. Bullett.^ 1869, pp. 81 f.).'*
confined to Italy. One of the teachers of Clem. Alex, was a Syrian who, during
the second half of the second century, stayed in Greater Greece {St?-o/>i., i. 1 cp. ;
Eus. V. 11). Another in the same country came from Egypt. Skily first came
,
6 -KM Lm
into the history of the church in connection with the "Sicilian bee," Pantsenus
{loc. cit.).
^ Nissen {Italiscke Landeskunde, II. i. (1902), p. 122) ranks Puteoli in the first
class of Italian towns, with regard to the number of inhabitants. Puteoli had a
strong community of Jews, and the Acta Petri, vi. (Vercell.) presuppose the
existence of local Christians. For Pompeii, cp. above, p. 93.
•
Jews (cp. Schol. on Juv., Satir., iv. 117 f.), but not Christians (despite the
Acta Petri, vi. ), are to be traced at Aricia.
^ For the signatures to the council of Aries, cp. Routh's Reliq. Sacr.'^\ iv.
pp. 312 f.
century (middle of), Tibur must have had a bishopric by the date of the Nicene
council.
;
^ The bishop stood between the bishops of Prreneste and Ostia ; hence the
Tres Tabernse in question is that on the Via Appia, not any of the other places of
thisname.
"^
Perhaps = Quintiana on the coast, north of Centumcellse.
^ It is looked for near Rome, but I know no place of this name. We cannot
suppose any misspelling (Urbinum).
• The earliest proof of any Christian churches in Sicily is furnished by Cyprian's
thirtieth epistle, c. 5, although the sites of the Christian catacombs may actually
go back as far as the second century. This epistle informs us that during the
Decian persecution letters were sent by the Roman clergy to Sicily. As Syracuse
is known to have been the capital of Sicily in the fourth century, there must have
been a local church in existence about 250 A.D. Cp. Fiihrer's Forsch. zur Sicilia
Sotteranea (1897), pp. 170 f. He shows that one catacomb-structure in Syracuse
was made shortly after 260 a.d. "While the smallnumberof Christians in the town,
during the first centuries of our era, contented themselves, to all appearance, with
a series of small subterranean chambers or isolated catacombs of no great size as
burial-places, —
such as have been preserved near the erstwhile Capuchin monastery
—
and southwards along the railway to Catania, the need for larger cemeteries was
first felt during the era of peace which followed the stormy persecution of Valerian
—
,
but when one reflects that there were certainly about a hundred
bishops in Italy circa 250 a.d., and still more circa 325 a.d., it
becomes a priori probable, on this ground alone, that these
towns had Christian churches in them. They are as follows :
Ancona.
Aquila. p^ A j
Ascoli [Asculum] in Picenum. '^\ .
\ ^
/^ fV*-*- /
I
Assisi. ^ ^
s^vellino [Abellinum]
Bassano (Baccanae in Etruria).
Bettona.
Camerino [Camerinum] ?
Catania^
( ^^.l..\^)
and added a host of new adherents to the Christian faith. Thus it was after
260 A.D. that the oldest part of the cemetery of S. Maria di Gesu was founded, as
well as the foundations of the elaborate catacombs of Vigna Cassia. " Of all the
other Sicilian catacombs which Fiihrer has enumerated and described (" and no
province of the Roman Empire," says N. Muller, "is as rich as Sicily in sub-
-terranean graveyards, large and small '"), there is not one which I would venture
to assign with any confidence to the pre-Constantine period, although Schultze
{Archao!. Siudien, 1880, pp. 123 f ) believes that he can deduce from the evidence
of the monuments the existence of a Christian community at Syracuse by the
second century, and even by the opening of that century.
^ For Christians in the mines of Sardinia, cp. Hipp., Philos.,\^. 12; Catal.
Liber,, s.v. " Pontian ";
probably also, at an earlier date, Dionys. Cor., in Eus.
H.E,, iv. 23. Catacombs in Cagliari. —
Eusebius, who became bishop of
Vercelli in 340, came from Sardinia. Paganism long survived in this province.
Pope Symmachus (498-514) was a Sardinian (cp. the Lib. Poftlif.). From his
Apolog. adv. Anast. we learn that on reaching Rome ("veniensex paganitate")
he was baptized.
^ According to the Acta Euplii. I no longer employ the Acta Felicis episc.
{Rev. Arch^ol., fourth series, v., 1905, May, June, pp. 335 f.) has shown that the
second part of them is unauthentic, and that in the towns of Italy which are in
256 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Cum«. [
»--^ \^}^)
Fano.
Ferentino.
Fermo.
Foligno ?
Forli ?
Salerno.
Sipontum.
Spoleto.
Teano.
Terni.
Todi.
Trani.
We can probably assume that a Christian church existed at
Clusium (in Etruria), as the cemetery of St Catherine appears
to belong to the third century (see Bormann in Co7-p. Inscr. Lat.,
question (also Messina and Catania) it was not Felix himself, but only his relics
which were taken round. Still, there is a certain likelihood that both Girgenti and
Taormina had bishops before 325 a.d. I have passed over the bishops (or bishoprics)
mentioned in the Lzder Predest., but as it is probable that ch. xvi. rests upon a
sound, though misunderstood, tradition, and as it mentions bishop Eustachius of
Lilybreum and Theodorus of Panormus, there is some probability of bishoprics
having existed in these places about the year 300, and of a Sicilian synod having
been held about that time. —On the post-Constantine date of the Maltese cata-
combs in general, see Mayr, Rovt. Quartahchrift, XV. iii. pp. 216 f. But there
were certainly Christians in Malta prior to Constantine.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 257
were usually two, or at most three bishops, at first — a state of matters which pre-
vailed till recently in most of the Western provinces, and which may be found still
in one or two of them. As time went on, however, bishops were ordained not
only in towns but also in small districts." The fourth canon of Nicaea pre-
supposes that in none of the Eastern provinces were there fewer than four bishops.
— For the rapid Christianizing which went on during the fourth century, a passage
in the eighth sermon
of Gaudentius, bishop of Brescia, is very instructive (Migne,
Lat. XX. col. 892): "Constat populum gentium ex errore idololatriae, in quem
fuerat olim devolutus, nunc ad christianae veritatis cultum celeritate rotae cuiusdam
properare currentis."
VOL. IT. 17
258 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
have no trustworthy account of any Christians in Piedmont
and Liguria.^ The sole exception is Genoa, and even that
is doubtful. The first bishopric in Piedmont was not estab-
lished till after the middle of the fourth century (cp. Savio's
Gli antkhi vescovi (T Italia. II Piemonte, 1898),^
derived (" auctoritas praesto erat ") hardly from Rome (at least,
not exclusively) but from the Balkan peninsula. Ecclesiasti-
contrary, it was not till then that, owing to the new political
conditions of the age, the Roman church exerted any preceptible
1 The statement of Sulpicius Severus (C/%ra«., ii. 32) about the divine religion
being received only at a late period on the other side of the Alps (" serius trans
Alpes dei religione suscepta," see below) may also be referred to the Maritime
Alps.
^ At the synod of Milan (355A.D.), Dionysius, bishop of Alba (Pompeia), was
present and Socrates (ii. 36) describes Alba as rj 'IraXuv /j.riTp6iro\is. In spite
;
of this, however, we have no guarantee that Alba had a bishopric before 325 a.d.
In fact there is the less reason to assume this, as Socrates is most probably wrong
in making Dionysius bishop of Alba. He was bishop of Milan. Or, had he pre-
—
viously been bishop of Alba? Vercelli ("olim potens, nunc raro est habitatore
semiruta," Jer., £p. i. 3) became an episcopal seat in 355 a.d., and Eusebius
("ex lectore urbis Romae," Jer., de Vir. III. xcvi.) was probably the first bishop.
In his Kirchetrgeschichte Deiilschlafids, I.*^' (p. 26), Hauck thinks he can prove
from Ambrose, Epist. i. 63, that some of the bishoprics in Upper Italy had not been
long in existence by the time of Ambrose. I do not doubt this. Only I would not
rest on the passage in question. Ambrose is writing to the church of Vercelli "I :
am consumed with grief, because the church of God in your midst has not a priest
yet, it being the only one destitute of such an official in all Liguria or Emilia or
Venetia or the rest of the lands bordering on Italy" ("Conficior dolore, quia
ecclesia domini, quae est in vobis, sacerdotem adhuc non habet ac sola nunc ex
omnibus Liguriae atque Aemiliae Venetiarumque vel ceteris finitimis partibus Italiae
huiusmodi eget officio"). Hauck recalls, correctly enough, that the bishopric of
Vercelli was several decades old when Ambrose wrote, so that "adhuc non
habet" means simply a temporary vacancy; but he infers from "nunc ex
omnibus" that the bishoprics of all the Upper Italian churches were of recent
origin. Yet, if "adhuc non" merely denotes a temporary vacancy, one can
hardly take what follows in a different sense. Indeed, one might infer from the
passage that the Christians in all the larger communities of these districts had now
bishops of their own.
—
^ St Martin of Tours, when a lad of ten {i.e., circa 326-329 a.d.), stayed at
Jay ia
> along with his father, who was an officer of high rank. As Sulpicius
Severus ( Vita Martini, 2) remarks that " he fled to the church against his parents'
wishes, when a lad of ten, and demanded to be received as a catechumen " (" cum
esset annorum decem, invitis parentibus, ad ecclesiam fugit seque catechumenum
fieri postulavit"), follows that there must have been a Christian church in those
it
days at Pavia. — The first bishop of Padua of whom we possess reliable information
lived in the reign of Constans. There is no trace of bishoprics at Como or
Bergamo till the age of Theodosius 1.
260 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Ambrosius a Florentinis ad Tusciam usque descendit .... in
eadem civitate basilicam constituit, in qua deposuit reliquias
martyrum Vitalis et Agricolae, quorum corpora in Bononiensi
civitate levaverat. posita enim erant corpora martyrum inter
corpora Judaeorum, nee erat cognitum populo Christiano, nisi se
sancti martyres sacerdoti ipsi revelarent "). The Christian
community Bologna would seem therefore at the time of
at
the Diocletian persecution to have still been so small that it
had no churchyard of its own.^
^
§ 16. Gaul, Belgica, Germany, and Rh.etia
1 must avoid entering into any details upon the previous history of the church
I
in the three great centres Ravenna, Milan, and Aquileia. The legend of Ravenna
assigns the eleventh and twelfth bishops a reign, between them, of 1 16 years,
in order to run the twelve bishops (dating back from 348 A.D. ) back to
Peter. If the twelfth bishop of Ravenna attended the synod of Sardica, the local
church may have been founded by the opening of the third century or the end of
the second. In the early Byzantine period, Milan claimed to have been founded
by the apostle Barnabas, and consequently to be the only directly apostolic church
in the West, besides Rome. This claim, however, is untenable. The fact of
seven bishops having ruled till 316 A.D. suggests that the bishopric (and the
church) was founded during the first half of the third century. -The founding of
the church at the large town of Aquileia came at a still later period, probably
not until the Diocletian era, or shortly before it. Still, a reconstruction of the
local church had to be undertaken in 336 a.d., as the older building was no
longer adequate (Athanas., Apol. ad Const, imp., 15).
2 Cp. Map IX.
^ On Hellenism in Southern Gaul, cp. Mommsen's Rom. Gesch., v. pp. 100 f.
(Eng. trans., i. no f. ), Caspari's Quellen zur Gesch. des Taufsymbols, vol. iii.
(1875), and Zahn's Gesch. des neuiest. Kanons, i. pp. 39 f., 44 f. At the opening
of the fifth century, monasticism in the maritime districts of Southern Gaul was
still with Eastern monasticism, which is the last clear proof of a
in close touch
vitalconnection between that seaboard and the East. Even in the third century,
however, Greek must have been the language of educated people in'lSouthern
Gaul far more than Latin.
* For Christians in the valley of the Rhone, see Irenaeus (I. xiii. 7), who speaks
of the vicious activity displayed by adherents of the gnostic Marcion : eV rots
Ka6' rifxas Khifxaai ttjs 'PoSavovcrlas iroWas i^rTiraT-fiKaffi yvvaTKas ("In our own
districts of the Rhone they have deluded many women ").
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 261
Wiss., 1895, pp. 381 f.).* I single out the following points.
1. The church must have been predominantly Greek in the
days of Irenaeus. This follows from the Greek language of the
Mommsen's
Greek
A'om.
h
Geschichte, v. pp. 79 f. (Eng. trans., i. p. 87 f.). The percentage of inhabitants
who spoke Greek have been large, as "unlike any other in
in XrYons cannot
Northern Gaul, and unlike the large majority of the Southern, it was founded
from Italy, and was a Roman city, not only as regards its rights but in origin
and character." The local church, nevertheless, was still predominantly Greek
circa 190 A.D. :A-i
^ We should have a much earlier witness, if the reading YaK>Jia.v were correct
in 2 Tim. iv. 10 (where Crescens, Paul's helper, goes ets P.), but probably FaAaTiaj/
is the true reading (cp. above, p. 94). Renan allows himself to imagine that
Paul visited a seaport of Gaul on his way to Spain {Antichrist., Germ, ed., p. 85).
* Cp. also Montet, La Ligende (flrhiie et fintrod. du Christianisme h Lyon
(1880).
14 P^ "^.Pay
262 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
letter and of the works of Irenaeus, as well as from the names
of those who perished in the persecution. Still, as these names
indicate, a Latin element was not awanting either. We look in
vain for any Celtic names.^
2. The church cannot have been large ; for, although the
persecution was extremely severe, and although it aifected the
whole church, the number of the victims did not amount to more
than forty-nine. Hirschfeld, who {p-p. cit.^ pp. 385 f.) has made
an accurate^udy of the list of their names, so far as these have
been handed down, throws out the conjecture, which is not
Gregory of Tours, Hist. Franc, i. 31, says that Lercadius, a senator of Bourges,
was a descendant of his], Macarius, Alcibiades, Silvius, Primus [or Silvius
Primus], Ulpius, Vitalis [or Ulpius Vitalis], Cominius, October [or Comin. Oct.],
Philumenus, Geminus, Julia, Albina [or Julia Albina], Grata [Rogata?], ^Emilia,
Potamia [or JExn. Pot ], Rodana, Biblis, Quartia, Pontica, Materna, Helpis quae
et Ammas, Sanctus diaconus (from Vienne), Attalus [a Roman citizen], Alexander,
Ponticus, Blandina, Aristaeus, Cornelius, Zosimus [or Corn. Zosimus], Titus, Julius,
Zoticus [or Tit. Jul. Zot.], Apollonius, Geminianus, Julia, Auxentia [z'.i. Ausonia,
perhaps = Jul. Aus.], Emilia, Jamnica [or .Emilia Jam], Pompeia, Donina [or
Pomp. D.], Mamilia, Justa [or Mam. Justa], Trophima, Antonia.
^ Cp. also Chron,, II. 33 (of Constantine's reign): "Hoc temporum tractu
mirum est quantum invaluerit religio Christiana."
" :
Toulouse) we also read —" .... after the sound of the gospel
stole out gradually and by degrees into all the earth, and the
preaching of the apostles shone throughout our country with
but a slow progress, since only a few churches in some of the
and these thinly filled with Christians, stood up together
states,
for the faith " (" Postquam sensim et gradatim in omnem terram
evangeliorum sonus exivit tardoque progressu in regionibus
nostris apostolorum praedicatio coruscavit, cum rarae in
paucorum Christianorum devotione
aliquibus civitatibus ecclesiae
consurgerent "). We
must reject, as totally untrustworthy, the
statement made by Gregory of Tours {Hist. Franc. i. 29 ^
from Lyons called Voccius (Vocius .^), with his deacon Petulinus. C ''C^
Irenaeus relates that he had to preach in Celtic,^ that there
were churches Ke Arot? (I. x. 2), and that there were Christians
ev J^
among the Celts, who possessed the orthodox faith " without ink
or paper." ^ The statement that his emissaries reached Valentia
and Vesontio is perhaps trustworthy (see Hirschfeld, pp. 393 f),
pp. 460 f.), except as meaning that when the Paschal controversy
was raging, about the year 190, there were several bishoprics in
Gaul {toov kqtu TaXXlai^ irapoiKioov, a? Yiiprjuaio^ eTrecr/coTret,
"parishes in Gaul superintended by Irenaeus," cp. v. 24. 11),
and that their occupants held a synod at that period under the
presidency of Irena^us. For these bishops we must look in the
first instance to provincia Narbonensis, and the sixty-eighth
epistle ofCyprian proves that about the year 255 a.d., at least,
there was a bishopric at Arles.^ Rightly read, this epistle
further proves that there was an episcopal synod held not only
in the province of Narbonensis but also in that of Lyons, while
ci7-ca 190 A.D. they stil seem to have formed a single synod.
Hence it follows that several Gallic bishoprics, whose origin
Duchesne would relegate to the second half of the third century,
arose as early as the first half of that century, in fact even by
the end of the second century. A priori, it is probable that at
one time Lyons had the sole episcopal see in the provincia
Gaul during the days of Pope Xystus II., and their founding of the churches of
Tours, Aries, Narbonne, Toulouse, Paris, Clermont, and Limoges.
'^
The poem " Laudes Domini" (cp. my Chronologie, ii. pp. 449 f.) was written
by a Gallic Christian orator of Autun, during the reign of Constantine. In
Antun also bishop Reticius resided, who wrote against Novatian and composed a
commentary on the Song of Solomon {ibid., p. 433). Hence Latin Christian
literature in Gaul must have begun about 300 A.D. The conflict with Novatianism
(see below) shows that the Gallic church stood in the general current of ecclesias-
tical movements.
^ Bishop Marcianus of Aries was inclined to Novatianism, and this inclination
the deacon).
266 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Eauze (Aries, bishop Mamertinus and
Leontius the deacon).
Mende (Aries, Genialis the deacon).
Bourges (Aries, bishop Mamertinus and
Leontius the deacon).
In Belgica: —Treves (Aries, bishop Agroetius and Felix the
exorcist).
Rheims (Aries, bishop Imbetausius [ Ambitausus .?
'
At the same time, if even a small town like Die had a bishop in 325 (who was
[ = the deacon Nicasius, at Aries 314?] a personal friend of Constantine — for this
is the only natural explanation of the fact that he was the sole bishop from Gaul
at the Nicene council), then we must assume that the episcopate was much more
widely spread throughout Gaul than we are able to prove in detail. By the time
of Hilary of Poitiers (359 A.D.) the episcopal organization of the country had made
great strides, but there is certainly plenty of time between 312 and 359 for the
addition of many bishoprics (according to Alhanasius, A/oL c. Avian. 50, the
orthodox resolutions of Sardica were approved by thirty-four Gallic bishops ;
he
gives their names, but not, unfortunately, their dioceses). Important towns may
have had Christian communities, without any bishops, for a long while, but one can
scarcely appeal with much
confidence in favour of this conjecture to the declaration
of bishop Proculus of Marseilles before the synod of Turin (in 401 a.d.). In order
to justify his claim to metropolitan rights over Narb. II., he speaks of " easdem
ecclesias vel suas parochias fuisse vel episcopos a se in iisdem eccelsiis ordinatos."
We do not know where these parishes (" parochise") are to be sought they may ;
have been small towns in the immediate vicinity of Marseilles. This holds good
whether these Acts are genuine or, as is very likely, unauthentic.
- Wolfram (in \k\& Jahrb. d. Gesellsch.f. Lothr. Geschichte tind Alterlmnskunde,
xiv., 1902, pp, 348 f. ) tries to show that a columnar structure in the local amphi-
theatre goes back to ci7-ca 300 A.D. and represents a Christian church. The latter
is likely enough, but it is impossible to be sure that the structure dates from
circa300 A.D.
^ When Martin became bishop of Tours, there were martyrs' graves at a spot
near the city (Sulpicius Severus, Vit. Mart, ii.), but he did not believe they were
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 267
The entire diocese was stillalmost wholly pagan about 375 a.d. ; / Q^'
cp. Sulpic. Severus, Vita Mmiini, 13 ("Ante Martinum pauci
admodum, immo paene nulli in illis regionibus Christi nomen
receperant quod adeo virtutibus illius exemploque convaluit, ut
:
iam ibi nullus locus sit, qui non aut ecclesiis frequentissimis aut
monasteriis sit repletus. nam
ubi fana destruxerat, statim ibi
aut ecclesias aut monasteria construebat " = Before Martin, few,
indeed hardly any, had received the name of Christ in these
regions. But and example gave such an impetus
his virtues
to Christianity that there is no district now which is not filled
with numerous churches or monasteries. For where he destroyed
the shrines, he built churches and monasteries at once).^ Were
there martyrs at Amiens ? or at Agen (Agannum) ?
-
Const., i. 16-17).^
By the opening of the fourth century the church must have
come to play a role of its own in the towns of Southern Gaul.
This is suggested by one consideration of a psychological nature.
Would Constantine, it may be asked, have declared himself in
favour of the church, if he had had always to associate with an
genuine and forbade the people to worship there. Probably it was an old pagan
sacred shrine, so that it is precarious to infer the existence of Christians at Tours
or in theneighbourhood prior to Constantine.
Martin of Tours, the bishop of war and peace, had the same weight in middle
1
Gaul that Gregory Thaumaturgus, the astute philosophic bishop, had in N.E.
Asia Minor. Over a century separates them, so far did the Christianizing of Gaul
linger behind that of Asia Minor.
2 The martyrs of the Thebaic legion cannot even yet be left alone ; I agree with
Hauck {Kirchengesch. Deiitschlands, I. '2) p. 9) that the tradition about them is
entirely unauthentic.
^ best proof that Christians were not persecuted by this emperor personally
The
is be found in the address of the Donatist bishops (at the beginning of the con-
to
troversy) to his son Constantine: "Pater [tuus] inter ceteros imperatores perse-
cutionem non exercuit et ab hoc facinore imniunis est Gallia^' (Opt., i. 22).
268 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
spent in Gaul ^ immediately previous to his great change of
front ? I doubt it. The Oriental traces of the church's early
size are insufficient. But, in any case, one must not argue
directly from its importance to its size,- nor must one forget the
necessity of carefully distinguishing between the various towns
(occasionally in process of transition from military encampments
to actual towns ^) and districts, especially between those of
the north and of the south. Certainly in Belgica the church
was still in a very humble way about 300 a.d., as is plain
from its most important town, Treves, a Roman colony,'* whose
bishopric (first occupied by Eucharius and Valerius) ^ was not
founded till the second half of the third century. " Even by
the opening of the fourth century, the number of members in
this church was small. One little building sufficed for their
worship down to 336 a.d., nor were steps taken towards the
erection of a new edifice till Athanasius stayed there, during
his banishment " (A than., Jpo/. ad Constant. 15; cp. Hauck's
KG. Deutschlands *-',
i. p. 28). Ti:e\'es dD£S- not seem tohava got
4ts_second church till the beginning of the4fth -centmy (so
Hauck, after Sulp. Sev., Vita Mart. 16, 18, Dial. iii. 11). During
all the fourth century the town remained substantially pagan,
and what ^\ as true of Treves was practically true of Gaul itself,
^ In spite of Arnobius (i. i6), who speaks of "innumerable Christians " in Gaul.
^ On the cantonal divisions of Gaul, see Mommsen, op. cil., pp. 8i f. (Eng.
trans. , i. pp. 90 f. ).
^ Since Diocletian it was the capital of the entire West, and the imperial city.
But we know nothing about its history prior to Diocletian.
'^
These are the only names known to us before Agroetius, for that of Maternus
is probably to be deleted.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 269
^ For the overthrow of paganism in Gaul, see Schultze, op. cit., ii. pp. loi f.
adviser, for it was he who, together with the bishops of Rome, Aries, and Autun,
was entrusted with the preliminary investigation into the Donatist dispute. But
the bishop's personal importance does not determine the size of his episcopate.
From Theod. Cod., xvi. 8. 3, we find that there was a synagogue also at Cologne
in the reign of Constantine.
^ " Silvanum extractum aedicula quo exanimatus confugerat, ad conventiculum
ritus Christiani tendentem densis gladiorum ictibus trucidarunt."
270 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
^ Even the notices of martyrs in Germany (at Cologne and Treves) are quite
uncertain, if not absolutely untrustworthy. Hauck {op. cit., p. 25) considers that
only the account of Clematius at Cologne is even " fairly authentic." It describes
(inan inscription of the fourth or fifth century) the spot " where the holy virgins
shed their blood for the name of Christ" (" ubi sanctae virgines pro nomine
Christi sanguinem suum fuderunt "). It also mentions an old dilapidated basilica,
or memorial chapel, perhaps built in honour of these virgins during the reign of
Constantine, or shortly before then, which Clematius had entirely rebuilt.
^chdi^QX {Pfarrkhrhe u. Stift im deutschen Miiielalter, 1903, pp. 137 f) writes as
follows: " It seems to me quite inadmissible for Hauck to argue from a remark
of Ammianus the pagan about a conventiculum ritus Christiani that only one
'
'
there were the churches of (i) St Gereon, (2) St Ursula, and the cathedral of the
pre-Constantine age (bishop Maternus and the eKK\r]<Tiat eV to7s Ffp/xaviais
ISpvfievai of Irenaeus). How dangerous Hauck's interpretation of Ammianus
may prove, is plain from Harnack's pages, which deduce important inferences
from this passage as to the scanty diffusion of Christianity in the Rhine-land."
On this I remark (i) that while St Gereon goes back to the Roman period, there
isno evidence to prove that the church existed previous to Constantine (2) St ;
Ursula was entirely rebuilt by Clematius in the fourth or fifth century— if the
church was at that time entirely dilapidated, though it was a hundred years old, the
older building probably was no more than a small martyr-chapel of light construc-
tion "the cathedral of the pre-Constantine age" belongs to the realm of
; (3)
Schjifer's imagination —
in place of it we must supply the "conventiculum" which
—
Ammianus mentions. The small number of Christian inscriptions (Hauck,
pp. 27, 34) also proves that the church at Cologne was small Kraus, who ;
The exaggeration is obvious. There was not a single church throughout the
^
only one probable cp. also his note on n. 32." We have no evidence that there
;
-£v^0 4,~»-k.
were Christians at Strassburg either, before 325 a.d. We should have to point for
evidence to the statement (of Arnobius, i. 16) that there were about 300 Christians
among the Alemanni. 1 C trv,A/0
2 Hauck {oJ>. cit., pp. 346 f.) writes: "The scanty and scattered tribes who
inhabited the Alpine valleys and upper plains of Rhsetia offered little resistance to
the superior force of Rome (cp. ample proof of this in the large number of Roman
place-names 100 Roman to every 10 or 15 Rhsetian, according to Steub in Allg.
:
l- - Cyu<J^-^-y^ KXM^^t-^^^--^
272 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
St Afra the martyr beyond doubt,^ and graves of martyrs
is
§ 17. Britain^
^ The Martyr-Acts are of no use, but the fact of the martyrdom is well attested.
The bishopric (only attested at a late date) shows an early and evident connection
with Aquileia. Hence it is hardly older than the fourth century.
^ Even the third-century origin of the ancient bishopric of Sabiona (Seben, near
Klausen) cannot be established. In the great enumeration of the ecclesiastical
provinces given by Athanasius {Apol. c. Arian. i.), Germany is never mentioned,
although even Britain is included. This is the less accidental, as Germany is also
passed over in the similar enumeration of Vita Const., iii. 19, where both Gaul
and Britain are named. So still in Optatus, de Schism., ii. i and iii. 9. For
Origen, see above, pp. 12 f.
^ Cp. Map IX., also the article on "The Celtic Church," by Zimmer, in the
Protest. Real-Encykl.^^\ x. pp. 204 f.
*
Early Christian inscriptions are totally lacking (cp. Hiibner's work).
Cp. Origen, vol. xi. p. i40(Lomm.): "in Britannia .... in India."
•''
/ 8 "The language and customs that penetrated thither from Italy remained an
exotic growth in the island even more than upon the continent" (Mommsen,
op. cit., V. p. 176 ; Eng. trans , i. 193).
''
Origen (Horn. iv. i in Ezech., xiv. p. 59, Lomm.) seems to know of British
Christians: " Quando terra Britanniae ante adventum Christi in unius dei con-
sensit religionem ? quando terra Maurorum ? quando totus semel orbis ? nunc vero
propter ecclesias, quae mundi limites tenant, universa terra cum laelitia clamat ad
dominum Israel" ("When, prior to the advent of Christ, did the land of Britain
agree to the worship of the one God? or the land of the Mauri? or the whole
—
;
round earth ? But now, thanks to the churches which occupy the earth's bounds,
the whole earth shouts with joy to the Lord of Israel ").
For other information about this legend of Albanus, cp. W. Meyer on "The
'
Legend of St Albanus" in Abhandl. der Gott. Gesell. d, IViss., N.F., viii. i (1904).
The utter silence of our sources upon the church-history of Britain during the
third century is not inexplicable. " Hardly anything is told us about the fortunes
of the island, from the third century " (Mommsen, p. 172; Eng. trans., i. 189).
The Alban cannot be pronounced quite authentic, as the oldest
Mart_^dopi,.of_
fy^ i>-"^
1^
sources declare that no martyrdoms occurred during the reign of Constantius
Chlorus. Still, this statement does not preclude the occurrence of one or two.
Even previous to Gildas (r. 430 a.d.), relics of the saint can be shown to have
existed.
- In accordance with the division of the country into shires, the Latin towns of
Britain rose just as gradually as those of Gaul. York was the headquarters of
the army, while Camalodunum may have formed the civil capital. It is noticeable
that traces of a bishop are to be found at the former town and at the trading
centre of London at a comparatively early period. Also, the three other places
where equally early traces of Christians are to be found are stations of the Roman
army.
' It is perhaps worthy of notice that, when the synod of Rimini met
(359 A.D.),
with an attendance of over four hundred bishops, three British bishops alone
accepted the imperial provision for the upkeep of members (Sulpic. Sever.,
Chron., ii. 41 " Inopia proprii publico usi sunt" = they availed themselves of
:
the public fund, owing to lack of private means which appeared unbecoming, —
"indecens," to their fellow bishops). This implies that their churches were still
poor. There were other British bishops at Rimini, however. We find, from the
law of Gratian (5th July 379 A.D. ; Theod. Cod., xiii. i. 11), that the bishops of
Italy and lUyria were richer than those of Britain, Gaul, and Spain.
VOL. II. 18
274 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
the native population became practically Christian, while the
tribes of Germany continued almost entirely pagan. Gildas
{Chron. Min., III. 32) states definitely that Arianism inflicted
grievous wounds upon the church in Britain. It must have
stood, therefore, in the stream of the general ecclesiastical move-
ment.^ Zimmer has proved beyond doubt that Christianity
reached Ireland from Britain as early as the fourth century,
and it may have been there even earlier.
The strip of coast lying between the sea and the mountain-
range upon the southern coast of the western Mediterranean
belongs to Europe, not to Africa. During the imperial age, the
I
most important province in this region, i.e.^ AfciciuprQconsularis,
was a second Italy. The country, with Carthage its capital,^
There no foundation for the idea that it was written during his lifetime, but it
is
proves that Arianism threatened the British church at an early period. The letter
is also printed in /^£v. d'AisL eccUs., vi. (1905), pp. 691 f.
" Cp. Maps X. and XL — C.I.L., viii. 1881 f. (with supplement). Older works
by Morcelli and Miinter. Cp. Tissot {G^ographie cotnpar^e de la Prov. Rom.
d^Afrigiie, 2 vols., 1884, 18S8), Mommsen (v. pp. 620 f. Eng. Trans., ii. pp. 320 f.),
;
Reinach [Atlas arcMol. de la Tuttisie, 1892 f.), Schwarze {Unt. iibei- die diissere
Entw. d. afric. Kirche, 1892), Toutain (Les citis romaines de la Tunisie, 1895),
Monceaux {Hist. Litt. de V Afriqne chrH., 2 vols., 1901-2, and " Enquete sur
I'epig. chret. d'Afrique " in Rev. arcJiM. (1903*2'); PP- 59 f-i 240 f., (1904'"), 354 f.),
Guignebert (
Tertitllien, ^tude sur ses seutim. a figard de V empire et de la sociiti
civile, 1901),Audollent {Carthage Romaiue, 146 B.C.-698 a.d., 1901), Leclercq
{V Afrique In no other province of the empire at that time
chr^t., 2 vols., 1904).
have archaeological investigations been so thoroughly and successfully prosecuted
as by the French explorers in Africa. For further literature on the subject,
cp. Schwarze's article on "The Church of North Africa" in Protest^ Real-
__Enc^kl. ^^\ xiv.
^ Ter t. de
.
" Principes semper Africae, viri Carthaginienses, vetustate
Pallia, i. :
versarum [Africae] urbium princeps et quasi mater, ilia scilicet Romanis arcibus
semper aemula, armis quondam et fortitudine, post splendore ac dignitate,
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 275 ^ f
reached its zenith of prosperity between the end of the second
and the close of the third century.^
During this period, when the Romanizing of the country
made its greatest advances,^ the Christian church attained a
growthovithi n^ this wide and fruitful province which was only
4jiinia, XXX., a passage which refers primarily to Africa " Certe quidem ipse orbis
:
in promptu est, cultior de die et instructior pristino. omnia iam pervia, omnia nota,
omnia negotiosa, solitudinas famosas retro fundi amoenissimi obliteraverunt, silvas
arva domuerunt, feras pecora fugaverunt, harenae seruntur, sexa panguntur,
paludes eliquantur, taniae urbes qtiantae non casae qit07idam. iam nee insulae
horrent ubique domus, ubique populus, ubique respublica, ubique vita, summum
:
have driven out wild beasts sandy spots are sown rocks are planted bogs are
; ; ;
drained. Large cities now occupy land hardly tenanted before by cottages. Islands
are no longer dreaded houses, people, civil rule, civilization, are everywhere.
;
Thick population meets the eye everywhere. We overcrowd the world. The
elements can hardly support us. Our wants increase and our demands are keener,
while Nature cannot bear us"). So in de Pallio, ii. (at the close). Salvian., de
Gitbern., vii. 6o " Tam divitem quondam Africam fuisse, ut mihi copia negotia-
:
tionis suae non suos tantum sed etiam mundi thesauros videatur implesse " ( " Africa
was once so rich that its wealth of trade seems to me to have filled not only its
own treasuries but those of the world ").
Many natives even of the better classes still spoke Latin with reluctance in
'^
the 'second century ; cp. Apuleius, Apol. Ixviii. (of a young man), "Loquitur
numquam nisi punice, et si quid adhuc a matre graecissat enim Latine neque;
vult neque potest" ("He never speaks anything but Punic or a smattering of
Greek picked up from his mother Latin he neither can nor will attempt "). The
;
language of educated people, with which the superimposed Latin of these North ^ , I '
African provinces had to reckon, was Greek. The " suaviludii," or lovers of the '^Q^^^'^
play, at Carthage in Tertullian's day (cp. de Corona, vi. ), preferred to read Greek
rather than Latin, and for their benefit Tertullian wrote his de Spectaculis in Greek 4^ii^ ^/v
(see Zahn's Gesch. des neutest, Kanons, i. p. 49). The Barbary vernacular had
been long ago displaced from public usage by the Punic inhabitants. It waned
still further under the Roman regime, though it survived amid the changes of
Reasons for this rapid growth may be conjectured, but the question is,
'
whether they are really relevant. Monceaux (i. lo) and Leclercq (i. p. 42) both
hold, and adduce some evidence for their contention, that a monotheism lay sub-
meri^ed below the polytheism of Africa. But was not this also the case then in
other provinces, especially during the third century? Leclercq replies, " Un-
doubtedly. But they [these monotheistic traits] do not appear to have been so
strongly marked, nor above all so customary and popular, anywhere as in Africa,
The—Christian propaganda must have profited by the deep affinities between
Christianity and the local religions ; it found a secret ally in the very conscience
of its foes." This is possible, but uncertain. It is surprising, indeed, that the
incontinent desertion of the shrines of Baal (the African Saturn) coincides with the
growth and consolidation of the African church under Cyprian in the middle of
the third century cp. Toutain, De Saturni dei hi Africa romana cultu (1896),
;
pp. 138 f. and the same writer's Les citis roniaines de la Tiinisie, pp. 228 f. ("It
,
was the people, the lower classes and the poor, who were first converted. The
first African bishops were, with very rare exceptions, plebeian. The religion of
Christ was welcomed and confessed especially among the classes which remained
most loyal to the old Carthaginian religion "). Leclercq further points out that
" we find in the epigraphic texts material proof of this affinity between African
terminology and Christian. Toutain ascribes
worshippers of Saturn the to the
dedicatory inscriptions which appear to us rather capable of being taken to
favour Christian epigraphy" {.e.g., the inscriptions with " deus sanctus aeternus"
or " aeternus" — are these all Christian or not?).
- Particular account must be taken of v. " Tanta hominum multi-
ad Sca^. u. :
tudo, pars paene maior civitatis cuiusque"'^" Such are our numbers, amounting
almost to a majority of the citizens in every city"): "Tanta milia hominum, tot
viri ac feminae omnis sexus, omnis aetatis, omnis dignitatis" ("So many
thousands of people, so many men and women, people of both sexes, of every age,
of every rank"): "Quid ipsa Carthago passura est, decimanda a te" ("What
will Carthage herself suffer, if you must decimate her?"): " Parce Carthagini, si
non tibi, parce provinciae, quae visa intentione tua obnoxia facta est concus-
sionibus" ("Have mercy on Carthage, if not on yourself; have mercy on the
province which, by the disclosure of your purpose, has been rendered liable to
acts of extortion"). remarks occur even in his earlier (197 A. D.
Similar
Apology ; and xxxvii. In de Pnvscr. xx. he is able to declare that
cp. chaps, ii.
new churches were being founded everyday, and (xxix.) that " thousands upon
thousands " had been baptized in vain, if the heretics were right. Both passages
reflect his estimate of African Christendom, even in his outlook on Christianity as
a whole. —
Unfortunately, we have not the slightest information upon the relations
subsisting between primitive AfricanCRristianity and the numerous synagogues of
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 277
From its very foundation, a special tie must have bound the African church to
''
direct connection between the African churches and the Eastern arc equally airj'.
Naturally, there always was intercourse between them, partly direct, partly via
Rome. Montanism, Praxeas the Modalist, and Hermogenes the lieretic, all came
to Carthage trom the East. Tertullian knew Christian writings composed in Asia
Minor (besides those of Rome and the great work of Irenasus), e.g., those of
Melito of Sardis, the Acta Pauli, etc. Especially as a Montanist, he was well
acquainted with the conditions of the Greek churches ; he knew comparatively
unimportant proceedings and features of their life. If the first African Christians
really spoke Greek for the most part during several decades, we cannot infer that
a direct Oriental mission went on in Africa. The African Jews also seem to have
spoken more Greek than Latin, and Christianity all over the West found its first
foothold among the more or less floating Greek jiopulation.
278 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Scilium (a town which must have been situated in proconsular
Nuniidia) were all put to death.^ We have thus evidence for
Christians in Nuniidia as early as for Christians in Carthage.-
The works of Tertullian prove the existence of Christian
churches in four towns of Africa, and only four, viz., Had-
jrumetuni, Thysdrus, Lambaese, and Uthina. All of these were
places of importance, Lambajse in Numidia being the chief
military depot in Africa.^ As Hadrumetum and Thysdrus lay
in Byzacium {ad Scap. iii.-iv.), the latter province must also
^ From the Vita Cypriani per Pontiuvt (i., cp. xix.) it follows that no-deiip
was martyred at all in Africa, previous to Cyprian, i.e., to 258 a.d. This is very
remarkable. The clergy knew how on good terms with the authorities, as
to live
is plain from the bitter complaints about the " deer-footed " clergy and their method
of evading a threatening persecution by means of bribery (Tert., de Fuga in
Persecut.). Tertullian's treatise ad Martyres shows that up till the date of its
composition there had been very few martyrs in Africa. He refers not to early
given by the writings of Cyprian and the primitive sources. The names of the
eighty-seven bishops at the council of Carthage in 256 A.D. are for the most part
Latin ; but we get Polycarp, Nicomedes, Theogenes, Eucratius, Eugenius,
Adelphius, Demetrius, Jader, Paul, Ahymnus, Irenaeus, Zosimus, Therapius, Peter,
and Dioga (=Diogas, Diogenes?). The two bishops called Peter and Paul of
course took their names from the apostles (so, possibly, Polycarp, from the famous
bishop of Smyrna, but it is unlikely). None of the twelve who bore Greek names
can be certainly said to have been Greek. Some of these names were by this time
quite common even in the West among Latins (slaves and the lower classes). Jader
and Ahymnus are Berber (Libyan) names (as, e.g., elsewhere, and even at a
comparatively early period we get Christians called Baric, Mettun, Namphamo,
Namgedde, Gudden [feminine], Miggin, and Sanae). Thus we have no guarantee
that there was only one native Greek among the bishops of that age. But there
were hardly more than half a dozen. The Greek element was either absent or
A- vanishing. It is very remarkable that not a single Jewish name occurs among
vexatur hoc nemen" = for even at present our Name is being harried by the
governor of Legio), The Spaniards take it to be their Leon, which is impossible.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 279
proved by several passages in Tertullian, e.g., that in de Fiiga, xi. which speaks ,
"^
functionaries existed.^ ^
y
From the writings and correspondence of Cyprian we can ^ tv* I u i
Eng. trans., ii. pp. 332 f. Cp. also Barthel, Ziir Gesch. der r'om. Stddte in Africa,
Greifswald, 1904). Among other reasons why the church_J]ailed„to.-niQt,.kseJf
atnong the Berbars, we may, perhaps, include this, that thesji^JjabasJield chiefly
to the hills and steppes and lacked any municipal organization they simply ;
Augustine who first put a stop to this quasi-canonisation of Cyprian (cp. E/>-,
xciii. 36, etc.), for all his veneration of the man.
^ The central position in Christendom occupied by Carthage about the middle
of the third century is entirely due to Cyprian, who corresponded with bishops in
Rome, Spain, Gaul, and Cappadocia, and took pains to bring his letters upon the
question of apostates "to the notice of all the churches and all the brethren"
("in notitiam omnibus et universis fratribus," £/>. Iv.
ecclesiis 5). He governed
the churches of Northern Africa from the Syrtes to Mauretania.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 283
this list has not been engrossed along with the letter, so that
we do not possess it.^ According to Ep. lix. 9, he furnished
Cornelius of Rome with a list of all the African bishops who
had held aloof from the Novatian schism. But this list also
has been lost. No item can be gleaned from the records of the
African synods which were held before the great synod upon
heretical baptism. We learn nothing from the fact that an
" ample number of bishops (" copiosus episcoporum numerus ''),
""
1
Uhl horn {Die christ. Liebestdtigkeit in der alien Kirche, p. 153 ; En^'. trans.,
Cyprian] have been large. Cyprian remarks in passing that he knew every member
of it— which proves that at most it amounted to three or four thousand souls."
Uhlhoin has Ep. xh'. 4 in view, but we cannot possibly infer from this passage
that Cyprian knew all the members of the church. In my opinion, three or four
thousand is too low an estimate. The passages upon the persecution, as well as
others (including those upon the heretics), give one the impression that Uhlhorn's
estimate is put too low, even were one to regard it as equivalent to the number
of independent males, in which case it would need to be trebled or quad-
rupled. Still, Uhlhorn is right in pointing out that, to judge from the letters of
Cyprian, the Carthaginian church cannot have numbered its members by tens
of thousands. .Statistical calculations such as those of Munter {Primordia eccl.
Afric, which put the number of African Christians at the beginning of the
p. 24),
third century atmore than 100,000, are entirely baseless. It is also inadmissible
to infer, as Renan does (Marc. Aurile, p. 451), from Tert., ad Scap. v., that the
Christian population of Carthage amounted to one-tenth of the total population
in 212 A.D.
284 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Mauretania, while Numidia reveals quite a considerable
number.^ We are justified also in assuming that this great
African council was attended by the majority of the bishops in
these provinces who were favourable to Cyprian, unless special
circumstances prevented them from putting in an appearance.
Those favourable to heretical baptism naturally absented them-
selves, and we do not know how strong they were.- But they
were certainly not in the majority. As for the total number of
African, bishops in the days of Cyprian^ we<;€tn hardly put-that
above a hundred and fifty.^
'
Numidia proconsularis and Numidia itself, when put together, seem to have
embraced hardly fewer bishoi:)rics than Africa proconsularis (?'.t'. Zcugilana and ,
to the council, but which nevertheless are not to be considered as having had no
bishop. We may therefore conjecture that such bishops were opposed to Cyprian
on the question of heretical baptism.
* Cp. the sections in Leclercq (especially I. 3S1-432), who has made careful
use of all the relevant material.
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 285
and Mauretania y^.E.y viii. 6). Once it was over, back flowed
the crowd of apostates. But it is the Donatist movement
which shows most plainly the extent to which the new religion
had permeated the people, and even the Punic population.
People actually began to represent it as a national palladium.
Paganism, quite apart from the Berbers, was not of course
1 Several churches in Cyprian's day were certainly still poor, or very insignificant.
Why, Cyprian deems it possible, and in fact likely, that the church in one town
willbe unable to furnish the minimum living wage to support a Christian (a teacher
of the dramatic art, who was to abandon his profession) The town is not !
named, but its bishop is called Eucratius and a certain bishop of Thense, called
;
" Basilicas had been erected by this time in towns like Zama and Furni {Acta
Piirgai. Felic. iv. ). When the Donatist controversy began, there were several
churches, as we might expect, in Carthage. The city had special Christian
churchyards by the end of the second century (Tert., Apol. xxxvii. ad Scap. iii.). ,
The greatest activity in church -building throughout Africa prevailed in the fourth
and the beginning of the fifth century, as we learn from the ruins. For a
Christian "area" in Carthage and other African Christian " areas, "cp. Leclercq,
I. pp. 55 f. Church-buildings must have been common on these "areas," even
during the third century. An accurate description of the "area" in which
Cyprian's corpse was laid is given in Acta proconsul. Cypnani, v.
•*
Seventy African bishops, e.g., apostatized (cp. August., £p. xliii.). For the
martyrs, cp. Aug., Ep. Ixxviii. 3: " Numquid non et Africa sanctorum martyrum
corporibus plena est ? "
^A,
Note in passing that Cyprian's writings never mention any
wxitship of the martyrs' bodies or relics in this respect Africa was probably behind
;
the East. But Cyprian's letters show that in Africa, as elsewhere, the martyred
dead were worshipped and invoked.
—
286 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
extinct even by the fourth century, but the resistance en-
countered by Christianity seems upon the whole to have been
lesshere than elsewhere. We must regard the pagan reactions
at Calama and Sufes (Aug., Ep. xc, xci., 1.) as exceptional.
As for the number of bishoprics, almost, a hundred can be
shown to have existed by 258 a.d., and by the beginning of the
"^ ' '^
fouiih century twenty-five more were added. But the places
where bishops can be traced were not all the places where
bishoprics existed (see above). This is shown by the following
consideration. In his work against the Donatists, Optatus
happens to mention seventeentowns in which there were
bishoprics at the date of the great persecution. Of these
seventeen, only eight occur in Cyprian. The other nine he
vM\ never mentions. Hence it follows with some probability that
^ /A) the number of bishops in Africa was nearly doubled between
258 and 303 a.d. while, if one postulates (see above) about
;
^Carthage (Tertullian).
here any classification of the ancient episcopates of Northern Africa ; the investi-
gations which have been undertaken in this field enable us to conclude that the
numerous questions arising out of this problem do not yet admit of any definite
settlement."
'^
In marking the provinces in which the various towns lie, I have followed the
map in C.I.L., vol. viii. Cp. the exact delimitation of the provinces in Leclercq,
I. pp. 84 f.
:
ad Scap. iv. :
" Nam et nunc a praeside Mauretaniae vexatur
hoc nomen."'''
this conjecture is corroborated Xi) by the well-known fact that'Tn Numidia the
oldest bishop always discharged the duties of the metropolitan and (2) by the ;
remark that the bishop (of Cuicul) who voted as No. 71 emphasized the "recent
origin" ("novitas") of his episcopate ("Novitas episcopatus effecit, ut susti-
nerem quid niaiores iudicarent"), as did the seventy-eighth bishop ("quod et ipsi
scitis, non olim sum episcopus constitutus "). A comparison of the names of the
bishops at the earlier councils shows, however, that this principle of seniority
cannot have been strictly adhered to in every case. Monceaux (ii. pp. 7 f—
remarks, on the list of the eighty-seven bishops, that "the majority of these
bishoprics may be identified to-day with modern localities, which allows us to
study the geographical redistribution and to draw up, at any rate in outline, a map
of Christian Africa at the middle of the third century. If we first follow the coast
from the great Syrtis to the frontier of Mauretania, we come upon nearly twenty
bishoprics : Leptis magna, Sabrata, Oea, Girba, in Tripolitana Macomades, ;
Carpis, on the peninsula of Cape Bon then, north of Carthage, Utica, Thinisa,
;
its affluents, and on the adjoining plains, Thuburbo, Furni, Sicilibba, Membressa,
—
In proconsular Numidia Bulla, Sicca, Lares, Obba, and Assuras. Finally, in
Numidia proper —
in the north and centre, Milev, Cuicul, Cirta, Nova, and
Gazaufala ; on the southern slope of Aur^s, Tubunse, Lamasba, Lambsese,
;
Capsa ( = Gafsa in Africa procons. Byz. cp. Tissot, ii. pp. 663, ;
[j>^^^ \Vk
'
^ j^
^Cedias (in Numid. ; cp. Tissot, ii. p. 817).
Chutlabi (unknown).
Cibaliana (unknown ; procons.).
Cirta (in Numidia ; the existence of several basilicas previous
to the great persecution is proved by Optatus, i. 14. Native
place of Caecilius Natalis, the disputant in the Octavius of
Minucius Felix ; see also C.I.L. viii., Nos. 7094-7098, and Dessau
Thamugadi, Mascula, Bagai, Cedias, and Theveste, with Badis to the south of
Aures. —
To these sixty-three bishoprics which can be located, we must add
twenty-four others which have not been identified, twelve of them in provincia
proconsularis, six in Numidia, and six which are quite indeterminate."
^ Others identify Aggya with Oppidum Aggense, not with Agbia.
VOL. II. 19
;
( = Lectis), Sabrata, and Oea, cp. Jahrb. d. A'ais. Dcutschen Archdol. Instituts,
xix. 2. (1904), pp. 117 f. —
In Leptis Achseus was the bishop; he wrote on the
festival of Easter. Cp. my Litt.-Geschkhte, i. p. 776 Leclercq, IL p. 344. But ;
liCptis minor (Africa procons. Byz. ; cp. Tissot, ii. pp. 49,
168, 171, 728, 810).
Luperciana (unknown).
Macoinades (Numid. ; cp. Tissot, ii. p. 477 ; perhaps M.
minores on the coast of Africa procons. Byz. ; we are not to
think of M. Syrtis).
Mactaris (Africa procons. Byz. ; cp. Tissot, ii. pp. 586, 620,
819).^
Marazana (Africa procons. Byz. ; cp. Tissot, ii. p. 629).
Marcelliana (unknown).
Mascula (Nuniid. ; cp. Aug., Eii. liii. 4 ; Tissot, ii. pp. 480 f.,
505, 817).
Membressa (Africa procons. Zeug. ; cp. Tissot, ii. pp. 325,
774, 812).
Midila (or Madili, Medeli, Medila. In the fifth century
there was a Numidian bishopric of Midili, but here we are
perhaps to think of the pagus Mercurialis Veteranorum Mede-
litanorum lying not far from the modern Tunis ; cp. Tissot, ii.
p. 591).
Milev (in Numidia).
Misgirpa (or Miscirpa, Migiripa, Migirpa, in procons.
unknown).
Muguae near Cirta in Nuniidia (known through the Mart.
Mariani et Jacobi).
1 Cp. the description of the local ruins in von Eckhardt's Von Karthago nach
Kairnan (1894), pp. 148 f.
;;
437, 564).
- Signs (a mine near this town south-east of Cirta : Cypr.,
Ep. Ixxix. ; Tissot, ii. p. 424 ; cp, Leclercq, I. pp. 218 f.).
ii. p. 656).
Thelebte (Africa procons»_Byz. ; cp. Tissot, ii. pp. 49, 648 f.,
676,783).
Thenae (Africa._Eirocons. Byz. ; cp. Tissot, ii. pp. 2, 16, 190,
811).
Thpj^pstp (in Nnm iHia ; see Mmi. Maximiliani, also Optatus,
ii. 18).
p. 590)7'
Thinisa (probably Thunisa ; Africa procons. Zeug. ; cp.
Tissot, ii. p. 86).
Thubunae (in extreme south-west of Numidia ; cp. Tissot,
ii. p. 719).
Thuburho- (either Th. minus in Africa procons. Zeug. cp. ;
^ The father of Novatus died in a village ("vicus"; cp. Cypr., £j>. Hi. 3)
which is not named. — We must look in Mauretania for the bishop " incerti loci"
to whom Cyprian's seventy-first epistle is addressed (cp. £/>. Ixxii. 1) ;
perhaps,
too, for bishop Jubajan {£p. Ixxiii.), who occupied a see at a great distance from
Carthage.
: ;
that. In 313 A.D. Theophilus was bishop of the Italian Beneventum but where ;
are we to look for an African town of that name ?], Thuburbo, Pocofeltoe [where
is it ?], Legisvolumen in Numidia [unidentified], and Verum [if this town belongs
to Africa].
2 The town was still almost entirely Greek in Juba's day. Leclercq (I. p. 173)
thinks that the local churchyard goes back to the age ot Septimius Severus. From
Retract., II. 77, it follows that the town in Augustine's time had at least two
churches (" ecclesia maior ").
;)
^ Monceaux (in J?ev. Archiol., fourth series, v., 1905, May-June, pp. 335 f.
^
Numidia have the majority of the bishoprics Tripolitana and :
Mauretania have but a few. With map in hand we can see the
equable distribution of Christianity over the various provinces
(with the exception of Mauretania), equable, i.e., when we take
into account the nature of the soil and the presumed density of
1 There is a dated (322 A.D.) Christian inscription in Satafis = Ain Kebira in
Mauretania Sitif. (cp. C.l.L. viii., Suppl. III. No. 20,305). Should we not
also regard as Christian the inscription from Auzia in Mauretania Cses. {loc. cit..
No. 20,780), dated 318 A.D., with the formula D S ', rendered as "donis '
M '
memoriae spiritantium " ? For Tipasa and its female martyr Salsa, see loc. cit.,
Nos. 20,914 and 20,903. Some Christian inscriptions (third century) are said to
have been discovered at Henschir-Tambra, as well as one of Ain-Mziges near
Zaghuan {Acad, des Inscr. et Bell. Lettr., Cotnpte rendu 1904, pp. 186 f.), but
I doubt if the third century inscriptions {e.g., that of Giufi = Henschir-Mscherga,
C. I. L., No. 870) which contain the name '
' Quod vultdeus " are necessarily Christian
(otherwise Leclercq, I. p. 51). As the modelling of this inscription upon an
expression in the Acta Perpetuce is quite uncertain, I would not afiirm that
Pescennia Quodvultdeus, the wife of the proconsul C. Quintilius Metellus (before
227 A.D.), was a Christian. Near Sousse a catacomb has been discovered, after
the Roman style, with inscriptions which are alleged to be pre-Constantine {op. cit.,
1903, pp. 637 f. ; Rom. Quart., xviii. 2. 1904, p. 154). Catacombs are very rare in
Africa cp. Leclercq, I. p. 55.
;
" In Numidia," the same writer declares (I. 390 f ),
"only three inscriptions can be held, with any show of probability to be prior to
the peace of the church an inscription of Ksar Sbai (the Gadiaufala of
: one is
16,589 " Curtiae Saturninae quae hie fuit ann. Ix. Maevius Faustus coniugi
:
fidelissimse, cum filiis fecit. — Maevii Octavianus Fortunatus Petrus Paulus Saturni-
nus) ; finally, there is the curious inscription of Marinianus, in the museum of
Philippeville (C./.Z., No. 8191 :
" Bono ispirito Mariniani deus refrigeret "). In
Eastern Mauretania, at Setif (Sitifis), we find an epitaph of Sertoria (C./.Z., No.
8647). The other inscription recently discovered at Taksebt, in the Kabyles'
country, near the site of Rusucurru, is the epitaph of a certain M. Julius Bassus,
to whom his brother Paulus raised a pillar. This epitaph is dated the 6th of the
Ides of November, in the year 260 (of the province) or 299 (of our era),— Of all
the ruins of churches and basilicas discovered in the African provinces, I do not
\
know one which can be traced back to the third century with any probability, not
/ ; even the church of Henschir-el-Atech ( = Ad Portum).
CHRISTIANITY DOWN TO 325 A.D. 297
2
§ 19. Spain
" Here, also, the republic had from the very first contemplated
the conquest of the whole peninsula." " If any preliminary
stepshad been taken by the republic which facilitated the
—
Romanizing of the West, that movement of world-wide signi-
ficance which belonged to the subsequent imperial age, — these
steps were taken in Spain." " In no other province, during the
imperial age, was the Romanizing process so keenly urged by the
authorities as in Spain," " When
Augustus died, the Roman
language and Roman customs predominated in Andalusia,
Granada, Murcia, Valencia, Catalonia, and Arragon and a ;
^ Only we must observe that Carthage retained the same importance for the
Christianizing of Africa as for the Romanizing of the province. Churches were
most numerous in the vicinity, near and remote, of the metropolis. /1A-^\3
^ Cp. Map X.— No certain Christian inscriptions of the preConstantine period
^\^~C^^
have as yet been found work on the inscriptions). Leclercq's work
(cp. Hijbner's
{L' Espagne Ckrdtienne, 1906), which treats of the church-history of Spain down \/
to the Arab invasion, I have been unable to use. But it provides no fresh material
for the first three centuries. The appended map (" L'Espagne vers I'epoque de la \yv^t*^^
domination Gothique ") is most helpful.
.;
;
coUegae nostri [Spanish bishops, who had arrived at Carthage] adseverant utque
alius Felix de Caesaraugusta fidei cultor ac defensor veritatis litteris suis significat,
Basilides et Martialis [the accused bishops] nefando idololatriae libello contaminati
sint, Basilides adhuc insuper praeter libelli maculam [the Decian persecution] cum
God when he was prostrated by sickness, and confessed that he had blasphemed ;
and then, owing to his wounded conscience, gave up his episcopate of his own
accord, betaking himself to repentance and supplicating God, thankful even to be
permitted to communicate as a layman. Martialis, too, besides his long-continued
300 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
(ch. 5). Even in Spain people were Roman. ^ If we examine
further the chaos of Spanish legends relating to the martyrs,
we can safely say that Tarragona (where Fructuosus the local
bishop was martyred under Valerian), Seville, Cordova, Cala-
horra,Complutum, and Saragossa were towns where Christian
communities existed, while martyrdoms, and consequently
Christian communities, may be probably assigned also to
Italica, Barcelona, and Gerunda ( = Gerona). A priori, we
should expect this in the case of the majority of these towns.^
These scanty notices (together with the not very illuminating
"
remark of Arnobius, i. 16, that there were " countless Christians
in Spain) would exhaust our knowledge of the Spanish church's
history previous to Constantine —
a history with no famous
bishop, not a single Christian author,and no trace whatever of
independent life had we ^
—
not the good fortune to possess the
Acts and signatures of a Spanish synod previous to Constantine,
viz., the synod of Elvira (Illiberis = Granada).*
attendance at the shameful and lewd feasts of the pagans in their halls, besides
placing his sons there, in foreign fashion, among profane tombs and burying them
beside strangers, has also admitted, in depositions before the ducenarian procurator,
that he gave way to idolatry and denied Christ. Inasmuch, too, as there are many
other grave crimes in which Basilides and Martialis are held to be implicated,"
etc.). When one recollects that this is the first appearance of the Spanish church
in history, we are forced to admit that no other provincial church makes so poor
a start. But this may be accidental.
^ It was in opposition to this appeal that the Spanish bishops turned first of all
to the African synod. — The history of the church in Africa in other respects, how-
ever, stands entirely apart from that of the Spanish church. The Donatist move-
ment did not pass beyond the Straits of Gibraltar in fact, it barely reached
;
Mauretania Tingitana. Upon the other hand, the Novatian movement penneated
the Spanish church just as thoroughly as the other churches (cp. the writings of
Pacian, bishop of Barcelona, at the close of the fourth century). It is not quite
certain how far back the roots of Priscillia ni.sm-^riscillian died c, 385), the special
Spanish heresy, may .reach. So far as the history of literature is concerned, its
Chretiens (1886) Duchesne has shown that the synod probably took place not
long before 303 A.D. Nineteen bishops and twenty-four presbyters (representing
their bishops) are said to have attended it.
^ But cp the names of Sanagius and Evexes.
"^
"The ecclesiasticalsituatjogjii-Ta*xacoii£nsis, thanks to Pliny's precise state-
ments and their admirable elucidation by Detlefsen in Philologus (xxxii., 1873,
pp. 606 f. ), is. better known to us than any other province of the empire. It
^ Instead of " Urcitanus," the variant " Corsicanus" has been preserved. But
this is incredible. Corsica did not belong to the Spanish provinces.
•
The -episcopal seat of Hosius, the well-known court-bishop and "minister
of religious affairs" under Constantine. He was the only Spanish bishop at / 1 , ,^ 1,^^
Nicsea. We
do not know how he came to be in such close touch with the '
\| ^ , >
emperor. In Zosimus, II. 29, the pagan priests tell Constantine that his crimes ^ J
admit of no expiation, but "an Egyptian from Iberia who came to Rome
fc*irJ'
and got intimate with the ladies of the court, had Constantine convinced by
argument that the glory of Christians did away with every vice " {^hLyvirrios
Tis €| l^rjpias els Trjf 'Pci/Li,r}P ikOaiy Kal rais (Is to, fiacrlXeLa yvuai^hi/ a-uviibTis
yiyojxivos, ivrvx^^ t^ K(iiv(na.vTivcf iratrrjs afxaprd^os avaiperiK^u elvai T-i)i' rwv
^^i^y^V^'X The earliest source available for the history of the Spanish
^ church reveals a serious process of secularizing, and the eighty-
^ A comparison of the order of the Spanish signatures in the Acts of the council
of Aries, in addition to some other evidence, suggests that the Spanish bishops at
Elvira voted in the order of the age of their respective episcopates (cp. Gams, II.
pp. 173 f ; Dale, pp. 47 f. ). Acci (Guadix) would then be the oldest, followed by
Cordova, Seville, Tucci (Martos), etc.
^ Scgalvinia and Drona. The signatures — in the MSS. (leaving out the names
of the bishops and clergy) run as follows :
— Episcopus Accitanus, Cordubensis,
Hispalensis, Tuccitanus, Egabrensis, Castulonensis [Catraleucensis], Mentesanus,
lUiberitanus, Urcitanus [Corsicanus], Emeritanus, Csesaraugustanus, Legionensis,
Toletanus, de Fibularia (Salaria), Ossonobensis, Elborensis, de Eliocrota (Elio-
croca), Bastitanus [Bassitanus], Malacitanus. Presbyter de Epora, Ursona,
Illiturgi, Carula, Astigi, (A)teva, Acinipo, Eliocrota (Eliocroca), Lauro, Barbe,
a Gabro, ab Ajune, a Municipio (perhaps Elvira itself), Ulia, Segalvinia, Urci,
Gemella, Castulo, Drona (Brana?), Baria, Solia, Ossigi, Caithagine, Corduba.
Possibly by accident, Italica, the birthplace of Hadrian, quite near Seville (His-
palis), is omitted. From the Rev. cThist. eccUs., vi. (1905), pp. 709 f., I see that the
Spanish Commission on Monuments is said to have discovered (M. M. F. Lopez)
in Italica a Christian churchyard dating from the second century [Excavaciones
en Italica (ano 1903), Seville, 1904].
^ In the introduction to the Passio of S. Leocadia (Toletum, during the reign
of Diocletiar the doctrine of Christianity is said to have reached Spain late.
But this introduction is modelled upon that of the Passio of S. Satuminus of
Toulouse cp. Gams, I. pp. 337 f.
;
* The Spanish churches had not all bishops several, indeed, were governed by
;
the remarkable fact that local Christians discharged the office of ^ u/V^-A.
flamen and other pagan priestly offices (whose religious character _^
had faded), besides the duumvirate (cp. canons ii.-iv., Iv., Ivi.),
with all their detail, the canons draw no distinction between the various provinces,
is that a certain amount of uniformity prevailed. — Acci appears in legend as the
oldest Spanish bishopric (see p. 302, note i).
1 This canon, however, shows the poverty of many Spanish clerics and
churches :
" Episcopi, presbyteres, et diacones de locis suis negotiandi causa non discedant,
nee circumeuntes provincias quaestuosas nundinas sectentur sane ad victum sibi
;
conquirendum aut filium aut libertum aut mercenarium aut amicum aut quemlibet
mittant, et si voluerint negotiari, intra provinciam negotientur " (cp. above,
vol. i. p. 307).
—
slaves retain their idols, while canon xlix. relates to those who
have their fields blessed by Jews. Slackness or utter neglect of
church attendance (xxi,, xlvi.) ; catechumens who for a long
while (" per infinita tempora,"' xlv.) ^ never came near the church ;
^ evident from this canon, moreover, that lists of catechumens were kept no
It is
longer,owing to their large numbers and their loose connection with the church.
Yet they were held to be already Christians (cp. canon xxxix.).
"
(about 330 a.d.), who composed an epic —the first Latin Christian ^/o,
imposed by the synod of Elvira upon the churches may look im-
^ In canon xv. we read: " Propter copiam puellarum gentilibus minime in
matrimonium dandae sunt virgines Christianae, ne aetas in flore tumens in ad-
ulterium animae resolvatur" [see above, pp. 82 f.]. But no punishment is threatened
as in the case of marriages with heretics and Jews. It is noticeable that the
female sex in Spain, as elsewhere, appears to have taken a keener interest in
Christianity than did the men.
VOL. II. 20
306 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
pressive to many people, but we are quite ignorant of its effects,
* Sulpicius Severus portrays the Spanish bishop Ithacius as follows {Chron. II.
50) :
" Certe Ithacium nihil pensi, nihil sancti habuisse definio : fuit enim audax,
loquax, impudens, sumptuosus, ventri et gulae plurimum impertiens. hie stultitiae
eo usque processerat, ut omnes etiam sanctos viros, quibus aut studium inerat
lectionis aut propositum erat certare ieiuniis, tamquam Priscilliani socios aut dis-
cipulos in crimen arcesseret." He concludes {Chron. II. 51) with the following
scathing words upon the state of the Spanish churches " Inter nostros perpetuum
:
MONTANISM 309
on the
vii.
The Npyatian
12).
lines
church, which had a fully equipped hierarchy
of the catholic organization, arose in 250 a.d., and
1^
zr
gradually fused itself with the remains of Montanism, especially
in Phrygia. We can prove its existejnce in Rome [" infelicissimi
pauci " is its name in Sixtus II.'s phrase (ad Novat. 2), but they
were quite numerous ; they had several churches in Rome even
by -the_ppening of the fifth century, and of course a bishop of
their own ; there is ample evidence to attest their importance
during the fourth century], Afric a (even in Mauretania ; cp.
I^eo I., Ep. xii. 6), Spain (Pacian), ^aul (Marcian of Aries,
Reticius of Autun, the letter of Innocent I. to Rouen, Ep. ii. 11),
Upper Italy (Ambrose, de Pceyiit.), Alexandria [where they had
several churches, and where they were numerous in the days of
bishop Cyril], Syria (cp. the refutation of Novatianism by
^^rvading.
But the Christian Greeks could not Hellenize the Syrians,
Copts, Armenians, and Goths, even while they Christianized
them. These nations had to make versions of the Bible for
themselves and to create a liturgical speech of their own,^ and
this meant a steady weakening of Hellenism it involved very ;
against the Latin gods. When the devil appeared to tempt the
saints in Gaul or Germany, he was in the guise not of a Gallic
or German god but of Jupiter, Mercury, Venus, or Minerva
(cp. Vita Martini., 22). Hence, in Christianizing the nations
subsequently (viz. the Franks, the Anglo-Saxons, the Upper
and Lower Germans), both popes and bishops availed them-
selves of a principle which had been long established and which
was consequently a matter of course. The rigorous ecclesiastical
process of Romanizing all converts rested not on any " lust of
power" or sacerdotal despotism but on an extremely elementary
basis —
on the insignificance of all Western cults, and the victory
'
won by the Roman religion over these cults prior to the Chris-
tian mission. In the East, upon the contrary, when Christianity-
came upon the scene the local cults (which were occasionally of
great influence and at any rate most impressive) had been
bai'ely Hellenized ; their liturgical language was the vernacular.
In Lydia, in the temples of Anahita, the priests sang /Sdp^apa
Kol ovSajuM? ^uv€Tu "EXXtjaiv (" hymns which were barbaric and
quite unintelligible to Greeks "") ; Elagabalus spoke Syriac, the
Armenian gods spoke Armenian, and Mithra was ovSe eWijvl^oou
It was the same in Egypt.
Tt] (poovrj. The Copts who became
Christians were for the most part untouched by the Greek spirit.
Even when the Oriental deities migrated to foreign countries,
they frequently retained their language and compelled their
worshippers either to learn it or to worship in dumb show.^
When won her great triumphs in Syria and Phoe-
the church
nicia, Edessa and Armenia, Egypt and the Thebais, she drove
out the local gods and desecrated their shrines. But she failed
to substitute Greek for the vernacular of these new believers,
who retained part of their former worship under the new modes
^ Cumont has certainly shown, in his work on Mithraism, that Greek was the
normal language of that cult but it is doubtful whether this was so from the
;
first in regions where Greek was not spoken cp. Roese, ^der Mtthrasdienst
;
(1905), p. 20.
DIFFERExNCES IN PROVINCIAL CHURCHES 315
the Roman bishops took great pains (so, even in the second
century, Anicetus and Victor) to maintain uniformity (after the
Roman model, of course), while large synods in the middle of
the third century and shortly after the presecution of Diocletian
attempted not unsuccessfully to enforce discipline and order in
the most important matters under dispute. But the majority of
the bishops were of the opinion of Irenaeus, that, provided there
was unity in and provided love was supreme, any
doctrine,
difference of customs was irrelevant or had to be put up with.
Cyprian, indeed^ carried this principle so far that he would even
have opposite views on the validity of heretical baptism tolerated
by the church. Firmilian of Caesarea (in Cypr., Ep. Ixxv.) writes,
circa 250 a.d. " Nee observari Romae omnia aequaliter quae
:
' But Cumont underestimates, I think, the efforts made by the church in the
direction of Hellenizing.
316 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Hierosolymis observantur, secundum quod in caeteris quoque
provinciismulta pro locorum et hominum diversitate variantur "
("All things are not observed at Rome alike which are observed at
Jerusalem, just as in many other provinces also there are great
varieties due to the variety of places and of people"). He does not
take umbrage at this.we learn from Sozomen (v. 3)
Incidentally
that Gaza and its port of Majuma had a festal calendar of their I
own while it is clear, from August., Ep. xxxvi. 32, that there
;
APPENDIX III
cult of Mithra could not gain the day, and why its religion
could not but be weak, despite the wide extent of its diffusion.
For almost the entire domain of Hellenism was closed to it, and ni^«
consequently Hellenism itself Greece, Macedonia, Thrace, ^ L^rxx^
Bithynia, Asia, the central provinces of Asia Minor (apart from . , .
Flavian house, circa 80 A. D. when Commagene and Armenia Minor, after Cappa-
,
docia and Pontus, had been added by Vespasian to the empire (cp. Roese, p. 27).
It is a remarkable coincidence that the earliest Roman Christian writer, Clement,
was also, in all probability, a freedman of the Flavians ; cp. also the consul
F. Flavius Clemens and his wife Domitilla, and also the fact that a Mithrseum
underlies the ancient Clementine church at Rome.
318 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
Cappadocia), Syria, Palestine, and Egypt ^
— none of these ever
had any craving for the cult of Mithra. And these were the
civilized countries kut' e^oxw- They were closed to Mithra,
and as he thus failed ^ to get into touch at all, or at an early
stage at any rate, with Hellenism, his cult was condemned to the
position of a barbarous sect or conventicle. Now these were the
very regions in which Christianity found an immediate and open
welcome, the result being that the latter religion came at once
into a vital contact with Hellenism, which led before long to a
fusion of the two. Lay a map of the spread of Mithraism (in
the East) beside a map of the spread of Christianity, and you
what is marked white in the one
will observe that is black in the
other,and vice versa. The historian at once sees that the
former had to perish, and the latter to survive. Throughout
the regions lying between the south coast of the Adriatic and
the Taurus, between Pontus and the cataracts of the Nile, there
was never any struggle at all between Mithraism and Christi-
^ second century its diffusion is still limited. But after the reign
of Commodus it increases at a rapid rate, occupying province
after province. From Cumont^s map we can plainly see that
soldiers were the real supporters or missionaries of the cult.
the third century, when Mithra became Demiurgus, Logos, etc., it was too late.
—
CHRISTIANITY AND OTHER RELIGIONS 319
Did it form, we may ask, any real rival to Christianity H^olI Aa-v
throughout the West To this question, in spite of the swift
.?
"^
accurate information upon the numerical strength of the
Christian churches. Secondly, despite the deep significance of n '^ A.y-A.,.^
its mysteries and conceptions — which, on a superficial view, X/,^^,^/
reveal many points of resemblance to those of Christianity ^
^ The fathers of the church do not seem to me (as against Roese, p. 28) to
display any serious apprehensions about Mithraism, aUhough of course they are
astonished at several points of resemblance between it and Christianity. See,
e.g., Tert., de Prcescr. " Tingit diabolus quosdam, utique credentes et fideles
xl. :
Persian religion on Judaism ; but how far?). Yet (ii.) the historical and Biblical
conceptions of Christianity had nothing to do with Mithraism. (iii. ) The rites an4_
worship of the church show no trace of Mithra's influence any coincidences are
;
either specious or, so to speak, natural (due to the essence of both religions and
contemporary feeling, as well as to the religious substratum common to both).
to
So far as there is anything more than coincidences, it is more likely that
/- (iv.)
Mithraism borrowed from the church than vice versa. This is Roese's opinion
also. He writes as follows (pp. 28 f.), after depicting the coincidences and
resemblances {e.g., the mystery of a divine sacrificial death, eternal bliss won by
conflict with fleshly lusts, crypts, priests, church, candles, lamps, catechumens,
^
Ca
baptism, the meal of brotherhood with bread and wine, the reckoning of the
A V J^' week, Sunday, dies solis invicti = 25th December, birth in cave, the shepherds,
_-'/\^^ apotheosis, etc.]: "What was the origin of these resemblances? In both re-
^^/U ligions the fundamental idea of a redemption is so essential, in its similarities
and diff"erences alike, to the origin and characteristic nature of each, that any
derivation seems out of the question. With regard to the details of the sacred
^^ tradition and the external forms of worship, further investigation is needed to
1 ^' i \ prove whether Mithraism borrowed from Christianity or Christianity from
v/i ^vi\ V^ Mithraism, and if so to what extent. Two reasons, in my opinion, favour the
. I %'. conclusion (in spite of Cumont's and Dietcrich's scepticism) that the scale will
\\ Y^ incline in favour of Christianity in this new sphere of inquiry : (i) the extra-
. "I ordinary adaptation Mithraism to the religions of those countries, from
of
[^
( V"^"^ H , Babylonia to Italy, through which it hurried in triumph ^^(2) as regards details,
*
» the circumstance that, e.g., the representation of shepherds at the birth of Mithra
occurs only on sporadic altar-pictures of the cult, and even there only
large
furtively, whereas, had
been a genuine part of the Mithra-legend, it would
it
occur more or less plainly in all the crypts. Further, although the celebration
1 of a mystic meal can be shown to have formed part of other Oriental forms
of worship {e.g. that of Jupiter Dolicheus), still, the religious celebration of a
,
A,'^^' name. This made it about 300 a.d. really the most dangerous
yT \j. opponent of the church. Did its cardinal weakness consist in
jLv the fact that it came too late upon the scene, since the church
i^^T.- ^ !^^ already appropriated the idealist philosophy as its own, had
I
vvwvr^ Cw*^ already shaped its organization and penetrated deeply into the
*Vj r^*^r masses of the people ? ^ Or was it that Neoplatonism lacked the
I ^ Origen (Horn. xiv. 3, in Genes,, t. 8, p. 255) has given a very characteristic
P' v\ >-'l
T l^'v'.^Lr V opinion on the relation of Christian theologians to the idealist philosophy:
"^j ys. " Philosophy is not in all points opposed to the law of God, nor in accord with
I V w* \ it. For many philosophers write that there is one God, the Creator of all things.
1 1 \ \1^^ S:'"^
^^ ^^^^ ^^^y agree with the law of God. Some add that God made and rules all
CHRISTIANITY AND OTHER RELIGIONS 323
V'
exclusive note ? To exclude Christianity alone was no use ; the
vagueness remained irreparable. Or again, was it weak because
it was in a sense esoteric, though it vainly tried to throw off this
esoteric element ? Was it really unable to reach the common
people ? Was a philosophy rather than a religion ?
it Or,
finally, did it lack a " praesens numen,'*' the Son of God made son
of man (filius dei factus filius hominis) ? This was Augustine's
conviction. But the previous we have mentioned all
factors
co-operated. Perhaps, however, the matter was still more simple.
Perhaps it was not a question of one religion against another
but simply of the state. The state withdrew its state-religion,
and this meant the downfall of every religion which had hitherto
been protected, together with its philosophy. All that was left
was the religion which hitherto had neither been a state-religion
nor enjoyed the protection of the state. The opposition party
became now the ruling party. And yet the great revolution —
was not carried out quite so smoothly. We have good reason
to define precisely the content and the value of the rival powers.
Nevertheless it remains true that while the church encountered
opposition from other religions, none of them was specially
dangerous to her, whilst her strongest opponent, Neoplatonism,
came too late upon the scene and proved too aristocratic.
things by His word, and that it is by the word of God that all things are
regulated. In this their arguments agree not only with the law of God, but with
the gospels. Nay, moral and so-called physical philosophies agree in nearly all
respects with But they differ from us in asserting that matter is co-eternal
us.
with the deity, in denying that God cares for mortal affairs, but that His
providence is restricted to spheres above the moon. They differ from us in
making the lives of men at birth depend on the courses of the stars, and in
alleging that this world is eternal, and destined to no end. In many other
respects they agree with us or differ from us" ("Philosophia neque in omnibus legi
dei contraria est, neque in omnibus consona. multi enim philosophorum unum
esse deum, qui cuncta creaverit, scribunt. In hoc consentiunt legi dei. Aliquanti
etiam hoc addiderunt, quod deus cuncta per verbum suum et fecerit et regat, et
verbum dei sit, quo cuncta moderentur. in hoc non solum legi, sed etiam evangeliis
consona scribunt. moralis vero et physica quae dicitur philosophia pene omnia,
quae nostra sunt, sentiunt. dissident vero a nobis, cum dec dicunt esse materiam
coaeternam. dissident, cum negant deum curare mortalia, sed providentiam eius
supra lunaris globi spatia cohiberi. dissident a nobis, cum vitas nascentium ex
stellarum cursibus pendunt. dissident, cum sempiternam dicunt hunc mundum et
nullo fine claudendum. sed et alia plurima sunt, in quibus nobiscum vel dissident
vel concordant "). Origen says nothing about the incarnation or the resurrection.
CHAPTER IV
^
RESULTS
use fo r our present purpose. Apart from Rome, their number appears to be quite
small till we come down to the beginning of the third century. After that they
may be of some importance (as is fairly certain, e.g., in the case of Asia Minor),
but we are not in a position to distinguish between those of the third and the fourth
century ; hardly any of them are dated, while the internal criteria which have
been drawn up with regard to those of Rome, Asia Minor, and North Africa are
not quite so reliable from the positive side as they are from the negative.
324
RESULTS 325
this, at the opening of the third century (cp. vol. i. pp. 3 f. ) —and considerably
short of half the entire population of the empire on the other. In the East, the
number rose above the former limit ; while in the West, as will be evident, we
must put it considerably lower than the latter.
' "Syprian c^jrroborates this j-adgaient of Origen to this extent, that we may
inferfrom his correspondence that the church at Carthage cannot have amounted
to many tens of thousands. Including women and children, it may have been
from ten to fifteen thousand strong. This enables us to form a rough idea of the
strength of Christianity in Proconsular Africa and in Numidia during the days of
Cyprian ; perhaps it may have amounted to something between three and five
per cent, of the population in the cities. XfitUiihan^s flourishes,, of, cours e, rea ch
a far higher percentage ; but no reliance is to be placed on him.
RESULTS 327
religion of tozans and cities ; the larger the town or city, the
larger "(even relatively, it is probable) was the number of the
Christians. This gave it an extraordinary advantage. But
besides this, Christianity naJ already~"pusEeci Tax into the
country districts throughout a large number of the provinces,
as we know definitely with regard to the majority of the pro-
vinces in Asig^Minor, no less than as regards Armenia, Syria,
Egypt, Palestine, and Northe^ft Africa (with its country towns).
WHerever we possess sources bearing on the inner history of the
churches in a given province, we light upon a series -o£-small
placeSj_iiiJierwige unknown, with Christian inhabitants, or
villages which either contain Christians or are themselves
entirely Christian. Compare, for example, the history of
"
Montanism in Phrygia, the " Sententice Ixxxvii episcopo?'um
in the works of Cyprian, the treatise of Eusebius upon the
Palestinian martyrs, the Testament of the Forty Martyrs
in Armenia, and the Meletian Acts (for Egypt). All this
_shows_Jiaa!—deeply—Christianity- had penetrated the country
districts in a number of provinces during the course of the
third century, while at the same time it warns us to multiply
considerably the number of such places as we happen to know
of, ifwe want to get any idea of the extent to which Chris-
tianity had diffused itself locally.
Instead of attempting to give actual percentages, I shall
up ^ur categories or. classes- of provinces and
rather try to draw
districts (1) Those in which Christianity numbered nearly
:
^[ L )
reaction under Julian was unable to
Middle Italy which adjoined Rome, the fact that sixty Italian
bishops could be got together as early as 251 a.d. —bishops who
resided in out-of-the-way districts — enables us to argue the
existence of quite a considerable Christian population circa
300 A.D. This population would be denser wherever Greeks
forniedan^_appreciable percentage of the inhabitants, i.e., in
the maritime towns of Lower Italy and Sicily, although the
Latin-speaking population would still remain for the most part
pagan. The fact that the Christian church of Rome was pre-
dominantly Greek till shortly before the middle of the third
century, is proof positive that up till then the Christianizing
of the Latin population in Middle and Lower Italy must have
been still in an inchoate stage, although it certainly made rapid
strides between 250 and 320. (4) Africa proconsularis and
Numidia. —We may unhesitatingly reckon these provinces in
the present category, since the facts prove that the majority
330 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
of these towns contained Christian communities by the opening
of the fourth century, and that the whole country was divided
over the Donatist controversy. One might even be disposed to
add these provinces to those of the first category, were it not
for the inscriptions, which warn us against over-estimating the
amount of Christianity in individual towns during the third
century. True, the inscriptions are no reliable guide even here.
How much Christianity, nay, how much early Christianity
even, may lie hid in them ! Only, we are no longer able to lay
hands on it. -J^S^S^pain. — The canons of the synod of Elvira,
together with the lists of that synod, justify us (though upon
this point I am not quite certain) in including the Spanish
provinces within this category, since these canons show the
extent to which Spanish Christianity had become mixed up
with local civilization by the year 300, and also how deeply it
had made its way into all the relationships of life, ifi) The
—
overwhelming probability is to judge from the situation as
—
we find it in the fourth century that certain (i.g., the maritime)
parts of J^ijmia, Thessaly, Macedonia, and the islmtds are
similarly to be reckoned in this category, as well as the southern
coast of Gaul.
Our third category will embrace (1) Palestine, where some
Greek towns like Caesarea had a considerable number of
Christians, as well as one or two purely Christian localities.
Upon the whole, however, the country offered a stout resistance
to Christianity. (2) Phoemcia, where the Greek cities on the
coast had Christian communities, while the interior, dominated
by a powerful and hostile religion, continued to be but slightly
c affected by Christianity. (3) Arabia, where Christianity of a
kind unfolded itself amid the Greco-Latin cities with their
distinctive civilization. (4) Certain districts in Mesopokmiia,
\ j(5-12) the interiorof Achaia, of Macedonia, and of Thessaly,
with Ep'irus, Dardania, Dalmatia, Moes'm, and Pannonia. The
two last-named large provinces adopted Christianity at a com-
paratively late period (see above, pp. 236 f ), but it must have
shot up rapidly once it entered them. (13) The northe?^
districts of Middle Italy and the eastern region of Upper Italy.
(p. 268), and also to compare the facts noted with regard to the
church of Cologne. But let me at this point set a small problem
in arithmetic. Treves was the most important city in all these
provinces, and yet the sole church there certainly cannot have
included more than from 500 to 1000 members. Probably an
even smaller total is to be fixed. Now,
we assume that twelve
if
its problems upon the West during the fourth century, but it also brought the
West the wealth of its own gifts. Even by the close of the fourth century, the
Latins in the church — apart, of course, from Rome and the Roman bishop — felt
themselves quite inferior in many respects to the Greeks. Rufinus writes the
closing books of his church-history as though the history of the Greek church
were really the one thing that mattered, all else being a quantity n^gligeable.
RESULTS 333
shown) made its way into the very heart of the army, then it is
^ The first edition of this book was read, chapter after chapter, by Mommsen,
who communicated his opinions to me by word and letter. When he finished it,
he remarked (on 27th October 1902) to me that it contained a serious indictment of
Christianity. Christianity first destroyed the empire then and thereby it destroyed
;
nationality —
in that sense it is indeed to be understood as "the third race." All
the distinctions created by the state and nationality were to be overthrown, and
only religious distinctions were now to be valid. It meant the setting-up of a
theocracy, or rather —as Mommsen finally put it
— "the Centre" party was
founded even at that period. This is quite true, but it is equally true that the
church fostered the Hellenizing and Romanizing process, and that the state would
have been unable to carry it on in the fourth century had it not been for the
church. The church was only responsible to a slight degree, if at all, for the
weakness of the former during the third century.
334 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
and this, so far from being a fanciful idea, was a supreme
reality.
For a number of years previous to his epoch-making "flight"
to Gaul, Cons tan t ine stayed at the court of Diocletian in
Nicomedia. In our sense of the term, he was no longer a youth
when he lived there. He kept his eyes open in a city and a
province in which he was confronted everywhere with a church,
with her episcopate, and with her sway over the minds of men.
Jlis A siatic impi^ioris^accompanied him to Ganl^ where they
reappeared in the form of political considerations which led to
his decisive resolve.^ His chief oppon ent, Maximinus D aza, the
Augustus of the East, was unteachable but that verymct ;
made him the most useful tutor Constantine could have had.
For the career of Daza showed Constantine in capital letters
what were the methods which could not, and therefore must
not, any longer be employed in dealing with Christianity.
It is idle to ask whether the church would have triumphed
even apart from Constantine. Sjonve Constantine^ -£)r—-other
would have had to come upon the scene. Only, as one decade
succeeded another, it would be all the easier for anyone to
be that Constantine. Throughout^ Asia MiiM>r,—at— any rate,
the victory of Christianity was achieved before Con stant ine
came on the scene at all, whilst it was assured throughout the
countries mentioned in our second class. It is quite enough to
^ As Delbriick shows in his military history, the Roman army and the Roman
legions, in the ancient sense of the term, had long ceased to exist. Upon what
then was any ruler to depend, who aimed at something better than reigning only
from one day to another, or over a single province? Even Constantine only
possessed regiments they had no traditions. Now the church and the episcopate
;
were fixed and powerful ; they had traditions, authority, and an obedient people
behind them. There still remained one city indeed, where remnants of the power
wielded by the ancient state and the ancient gods still survived as a great memory.
But Constantine could not ; his aim
at the outset ally himself with this authority
was to conquer Rome, and one hope of vanquishing the city lay in bringing a
his
stronger force into play against it. This stronger force of Christianity had
numerous adherents within Rome itself. When Constantine attached the cross to
the Roman colours before the battle at the Milvian bridge, he told the Christian
priests that henceforth he would reign with them he told the Christians in Kome
;
that he came to deliver them, and that Christ was to triumph over Jupiter
Capitolinus.
RESULTS 335
should not only be deprived of such privileges, but be restrained and held in
check," etc.).
^ Augustine, in his rhetorical fashion, thinks Christianity must have reproduced
itself by means of miracles, for the greatest miracle of all would have been the
extraordinary extension of the religion apart from any miracles. See what has
been said above (pp. 21 f., the passage from the Theophany of Eusebius).
336 MISSION AND EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY
years latei' still, the Paschal controversy reveals the existence
of a Christian federation of churches, stretching from Lyons to
Edessa, with its headquarters at Rome. Seventy years later,
again, the emperor Decius declared he would sooner have a
rivalemperor in Rome than a Christian bishop [vol. i. p. 277].
And ere another seventy years had passed, the cross was attached
to the Roman colours.
It has been our task to decipher the reasons for this astonish-
ing expansion. These reasons, on the one hand, were native
to the very essence of the new religion (as vital monotheism
and as evangel). On the other hand, they lay in its versatility
and amazing powers of adaptation. To say that the victory of
Christianity was a victory of Christ is true ; but it is also true
had hitherto been undreamt of, and at the same time by pro-
mulffatino; monasticism. Such were the standards under which
it led the nations forward into the Middle Ages.
1 A brilliant example of how to treat the lofty problems set by the influence of
the moral and religious consciousness upon the material conditions of life, with
adequate breadth and insight, is given by Max Weber in his essays upon
"Protestant Ethics and the 'Spirit' of Capitalism" {Archiv fiir Soziahviss. u.
Sozialpolitik, vol. xx. No. i, vol. xxi. No. i, 1904- 1905).
VOL. n.
ADDENDUM
Vol. i. p. Hermas " add " A whole
355, line 23 from top, after " :
passage {Strom., i. 11) which also shows how international they were:
* My work is meant to give a simple outline and sketch of those
clear, vital discourses and of those blessed and truly notable men
whom I have been privileged to hear. Of these, one, an Ionian,
—
was in Greece two others were in Magna Graecia one of them
;
came from Ccele-Syria, the other from Egypt. Others, again, I met
in the East one came from Assyria, the other was a Hebrew by
:
338
INDEXES
(a) NEW TESTAMENT PASSAGES
340 NEW TESTAMENT PASSAGES
Acts — cofitinued
NEW TESTAMENT PASSAGES 341
Ephesians
342 NEW TESTAMENT PASSAGES
,
{b) GENERAL
Abgar of Edessa, i. 71, 90, 102 ; ii. Augustus, i. 20, 259 f 262 , ; ii. 182 f.,
i. 208 f., 226 f., 363 f 223 f., 361 f., 436 f 445 f. ii. 89 f. ;
,
Apostates, i. 440 f., 496 f. ii. 285. ; Book, the religion of a, i. 221 f.,
Apostles, Christian, i. 319 f., 445 f. 278 f.
Apostles, Jewish, i. 3, 15, 58 f., Books, censorship of, i. 306.
327 f. " Brethren," i. 405 f., 421.
Apostolic Council, i. 60 f. Buildings, church, ii. 85 f 109, 285, ,
205, etc.
Arcadia, ii. 234. " Ccesariani," ii. 38, 49, 51.
Arianism, ii. 274. Calamities, Christians and, i. 271,
Aristides, the orator, i. 500 f 499 f-
(home), 505 (on Porphyry); ii. 'J2i'> Celsus, i. 104, 242, 501 f. ; ii. 321 f
282, 315 f., 335. etc.
344 GENERAL INDEX
Cemeteries, i. 203 ; ii. 249, 254 f., Diatessaron, ii. 143 f.
277, 287, 294. " Didascalia Apost.," ii. 157 f.
Charity, i. 121 f., 150 f. ; ii. 248. AiSaffKaKela, Christian, i. 255, 358,
Chiliasm, i. 92-93. .443-
Chloe, ii. 66. Diognetus, epistle to, i. 247, 253 ;
84 f. 513-
Christians, charges against, i. 498 f. Ebionites, i. 402 ii. 100 f. ;
Church and churches, the, ii. 80 f., Egyptian religion, ii. 178, 321.
87, 312 f., 333 f. Egyptian versions, ii. 176 f.
Church, heightened value of, i. 435 f. 01, i. 410.
'EKK\r](ria<TTiKvi,
Church, social power of, ii. 337. Elkesaites, ii. 103-104, 126.
" Church,' use of term, i. 407 f. Elvira, synod of, ii. 300 f.
Churches, schismatical, ii. 307 f. Employments, secular, i. 303 f. ; ii.
Daza, Maximinus, i.
495 f. ; ii. 118, Extension of Christianity, rapidity
189, 334- of, ii. 32 f., 257, 335.
Deaconesses, i. 161.
Deacons, i. 122 f, 161. Faith, power of blind, i. 213 f.,
Decalogue, i. 282. 219 f.
Foreign churches, care for, i. 178 f. 183, 229, 270, 271, 284, 296, 298,
Forgeries, i. 217, 365, 377 f. 324-
Francis of Assisi, i. 38. Irenceus, 70 (on Old Testament),
i.
93f-> 316 f.
Goethe, i. 218. James, the Lord's brother, ii. 97.
Jesus, relatives of, ii. 91 f 99.
Gospel, individual and social, i.
,
206 f
Guardian spirits, belief in, i. 136. John, the presbyter, i. 81 f.
Josephus, on Christianity, i. yo
ii. I.
Hall-churches, ii. 87. Judaism, a philosophy, i. 1 1 f , 267.
Healing, Christianity as a religion Judaism, a universal religion, i. 9 f.,
of, i. loi f.
16 f.
Hebrews, epistle to the, i. 53 ; ii.
Judaism and public opinion, 266 i. f.
307 f.
spread of Christianity).
Hermas, view of" prophets," i. 339 f.
Heroes, spiritual,
216, 359, etc. i.
KadapoL 01, ii. 2 1 8.
Holiness, development of idea of,
i. 211 f.
Labour, emphasis on, i. 173 f.
Hospitality, i. 177 f.
Language, the problem of, ii. 312 f.
House-churches, i. 443 ii. 85 f.
Latin Christianity,
;
ii. 275 f, 313 f.,
Huguenots, ii. 189.
331 f-
Hypsistarii, i.
3 ; ii. 195, 309. Laxity, Christian, i. 311, 509 f. ;
ii. 299 f.
Idolatry, attacks on, i. 138, 290 f., Laymen, functions of, i. 361, 441 ;
304 f 214.
ii.
Ignatius, i. 189 f., 196, 470, etc. Letters, function of, i. 191, 372 f.
Imitation of Christ, i. 88. Library at ^lia, ii. 106, 194 ;
(at
Immorality, crusade against, i. 205 f., Csesarea), i. 375.
290 f. Literature, circulation of, i. 376 f.
346 GENERAL INDEX
Love, Christian, 123, 149. i. Names of Christians, i. 422 f.
Lucian (the Christian), 357, 361 i.
;
Names of Nicene bishops, i. 428 f. ;
ii. 225. 2 50 f.
322 f.
Macaritis Magnes, i.
34 (on mono- New Testament, i. 288.
theism), 155, 212, 222, 276, 299 f., Novatians, ii. 212, 248 f., 264 f., 311.
317, etc. Numenius, 498, 506. i.
293 f 492 f. ,
; ii. 304 f 10 f. (on spread of Christianity),
Martyrs, i. 210 f., 367 f., 492 f. ; ii. 165, 194 (early life), etc.
120, etc.
Mathematics, i. 305. " Pagan," origin of term, i. 416 f.
Ma077Ta/,
i. 399 f. Paganism, survivals of, in Christi-
Maxentius, li. 250 f. (cp. 31 f). anity, i. 316 f ; ii. 184, 195 f., .
263. 36s f-
Mysteries, the pagan, i. 235 f Philosophers, pagan, see under
Myths, i. 30 f. Celsus, Porphyry, etc.
,
Prisoners, care of, i. 163 f. ii. 1 17. ; Socrates, i. 209, 295, 420.
Prophecy, fulfilment of, i. 283 f Soldiers, see under Army.
Prophets, the Christian, i. 331 f Sc^TTjp,
i. 103 f 259. ,
Tatian, i. 137, 281 f., (school) Unity of the church, ii. 312 f.
357- Universalism, Christian, i. 36 f., 513.
Teacher, Christ the, i. 399 f. Upper classes, Christianity among,
Teachers, Christian, i. 226 f., 255, 33 f-
ii.
TertuUian, i. 126 (on visions), 137 ii. 36, 161 f., 307 f.
78 (on luxury), 319 (on Mith- Women and Christianity, i. 363 f.,
Thomas, Acts of, ii. 129, 152. Worldliness, see under Paganism.
Timothy, i. 79 f. Worship, Christian, i. 434 f.
Xenocrates, i. 129.
(r) GEOGRAPHICAL
Abbir Cellense, ii. 288. Alba, ii. 258. Andrapolis, ii. 152.
„ Germaniciana, Albanians, ii. 210. Anea, ii. 11 6-1 17.
ii. 287 f. Albano(-um), ii. 253. Angers, ii. 266.
„ maius, ii. 288. Albans, St, ii. 273. Anim, ii. 108, 1 16.
„ minus, ii. 288. Alcheis (?), ii. 135. Antaeopolis, ii. 173.
Abila, ii. 99. Alemanni, ii. 17, 271. Antaradus, ii. 122.
Abiocatense oppidum, Aleppo, 139. ii. Anthedon, ii 99.
ii. 294. Alexander- Insula, ii. Antinoe, ii. 166, 171 f.,
Abitini(-a), 1.
363, 397 ;
167. 177.
ii. 288,295. Alexandreiopolis, ii. Antioch (Isaur.). ii. 227.
Abthugni, ii. 294. 161 f.
„ (Car.), ii. 226.
Abyssinia, ii. 157, 179. Alexandretta, ii. 180 f. „ (Pisid.), ii. 220
Acbia, ii. 289. Alexandria, 4 f., 357 i. f.
Acci, ii. 301, 302. f.; ii. 38f., 56f., 158 „ (Syrian), i. 52
Achaia, ii. 89 f., 234, f., 328. f, 182 f. ;
Ategua (Ateva), ii. 301. Barcelona, ii. 300 f. Borissus, ii. 195.
GEOGRAPHICAL INDEX 351
Bosphorus, ii. 239 f. Capitolias, ii. 99. 115. Chios, ii. 230.
Bostra, ii. 154 f. Cappadocia, i. 165 f. ;
Chulabbi, ii. 289.
Bourges, ii. 266. ii. 192 f., 239 f. Cibaliana, ii. 289.
Brana, ii. 302. Capparetea, ii. 1 14. Cibalis, ii. 237.
Brescia, ii. 259. Capsa, ii. 288, 289. Cibyra, ii. 226.
Bretagne, ii. 96. Capua, ii. 254. Cicabis (Ticabae), ii.
Bruzus, ii. 219. Carpis, ii. 288, 289. Cirta, ii. 285, 288 f.
Bubastus, ii. 172. Carrhai, ii. 63, 145. Civita Vecchia, ii. 255.
Bucolia, ii. 174, 177. Cartenna, ii. 295. Claudiopolis, ii. 227 f.
Bulla, ii. 288-289. Carthage, i. 165, f., 172 Cleopatris, ii. 171.
Buruc, 289.
ii. f., 377; ii. 8f.,274f., Clermont, ii. 264, 266.
Busiris, 172. ii. 280 f., 286, 326. Clusium, ii. 256.
Buslacena, ii. 289. Carthagena, ii. 301. Clysona, ii. 174.
Buththrotum, ii. 235. Carthagena (Span. Cnidos, i. 2.
Butis, see Bella. prov.), ii. 301. Cnossus, i. 197 ii.
95, ;
Gaul, i. 452 f. ; ii. 260 f., Haran, ii. 145 f. Hypselis, ii. 174.
330 f., 334. Harba Q'dam, ii. 137. Hyrgalis, ii. 219.
Gaza, i. 464 f. ; ii. 99, Harbath Glal, ii. 150.
no, 112 f., 115, Hebron, ii. 1 16. Iberia, i. 460 ; ii. ']'],
229 f.
ii. Hesbon, see Esbon. 329 f.
Karina, ii. 224. Leontion, ii. 256. Majuma, ii. no, 115,
Karkha dh Bheth Leontopolis, ii. 171. 316.
Slokh, ii. 150. Leptis magna (maior), Malaga, ii. 301.
Karnaim Astaroth, ii. ii. 287 f., 290. Malta, ii. 93.
103. „ minor, ii. 288, Malus, ii. 217.
Kaschkar, ii. 147, 150. 291. Mamre, ii. 1 10.
Kephar Sechanja, ii. Lesbos, ii. 230. Mangan^ea, see Ba-
109. Letopolis, ii. 171. tanea.
Keramon Agora, ii. 220. Libyse, ii. 163 f. Mantinium, ii. 205.
Kerioth, ii. 155 f. Liguria, ii. 258 f. Marasch, see Ger-
Kerkuk, ii. 1 50. Lilybceum, ii. 256. man icia.
Kharaba, ii. 103. Limata, ii. 294. Marazana, ii. 288, 291.
Khirbet Bethan,ii. 108. Limenas, ii. 221. Marcelliana, ii. 291.
Khoba, ii. 103, 124. Limoges, ii. 264, 266. Marcianopolis, ii. 236.
Khoraba, ii. loi. Lincoln (Lindiensium Marcomanni, the, ii. 7,
Kina, 217.
ii. Colonia), ii. 273. etc.
Kius,ii. 212. Livias, ii. 99. Mareotis, ii. 167.
Kochba, ii. loi f. London, ii. 273 f. Margaritatum, ii. 137.
Kokab, ii. 103. Lorca, ii. 301. Marmarika, ii. 173.
Kokab el Hawa, ii. 102. Lorsch, ii. 238. Mar Mattai, ii. 148.
Ksar Sbai, ii. 296. Lucania, ii. 257. Marseilles, ii. 261,266.
Kurejat, ii. 155. Lucca, ii. 256. Martos, ii. 301.
Kysis, ii. 168. Lud, see Lydda. Mascula, ii. 289, 291.
Lugdunensis, ii. 265 f. Masil, ii. 170.
Lacedeemon, ii. 231, Luna, ii. 242. Mauretania, ii. 277 f.,
Naples, ii. 253. Oases, small and great, Parium, ii. 188, 224.
Narbonensis, i. 445 f. ;
ii. 155. Parnassus, li. 192.
ii. 264, f. Obba, ii. 288, 291. Parthia, i. i f. ; ii. 152.
Narbonne, ii. 264, 266. Octavum, ii. 292. Pasmasus (Pasa, Pas-
Naro, 3. i. Oea, ii. 287 f., 290, passa. Villa Pom-
Naupactus, ii. 231. 292. pali), ii. 195.
Nazareth, i. 402, f. ; ii. Olba, ii. 195 f. Passala, ii. 221.
109, 113. Olympus (Lycia), ii. Patara, ii. 227, 228.
Nazianzus, ii. 193. 226 f. Patmos, ii. 230.
Neapolis (Pisid.), ii.
„ (Bithynia), Patras, ii. 231.
221. ii. 212. Pavia, ii. 259.
„ (Tripol.),ii. Opus, ii. 231. Pazus, ii. 219.
287, 291. Orange, ii. 265. Pbow, ii. 169.
356 GEOGRAPHICAL INDEX
Pele, ii. 235. Pisidia, ii. 212 f. Romagna, ii. 257.
Pella, ii. 98, 99, 100 f. Pispir, ii. 173. Rome, 5 f., 105 f.,
i. 357,
Pelusium, 172 f. ii. Pityus, ii. 210. 369f.,485f.;ii.24of.,
Pentapolis(j-ifi? Cyrene), Platsea, ii. 231. 308 f., 329.
i. 461 f.; ii. 158 f., 164 Pocofeltas, ii. 294 f. Rostoces, ii. 167.
f., lySf. Pompeia (Alba), ii. 258. Rotarium, ii. 294.
Pepuza, ii. 188, 218. Pompeii, ii. 93. Rouen, 265.ii.
Philippi,ii. 68, 231 f. Puteoli, ii. 253, 257. Saragossa, see Caesar-
Philippopolis (Arabia), Pydna, ii. 235. augusta, ii. 299. f.
ii. 153. Sardica, ii. 236.
„ (Maced.), Quintianum, ii. 254. Sardinia, i. 5, 7 f., 164 ;
Scythia, ii. 152, 239. Siscia, ii. 237. Teano, ii. 256.
Scythopolis, ii. 98, 99, Sitifis, ii. 295, 296. Teba (Teva), ii. 301.
114, 119. Smyrna, i. 3, 189 f .
;
Tebessa, ii. 296.
S^baste (Arm.), ii. 197. ii. 69 f., 186 f., 223 f. Tegasa, ii. 231.
(Phryg.),ii.2i9. Sodom, ii. 155. Tell Astura, ii. 103.
{see Samaria), Soissons, ii. 266. Tell-el-Asch'ari, ii. 103.
ii. 99, 114, Solia, ii. 302. Tentyrse, ii. 171.
Shargerd, ii. 150. Syria, i. 188 f.; ii. 125 f., 122.
Sibapolis, ii. 150. 328. Thelebte (Thelepte), ii.
Tliyatira, ii. 190, 215. Troyes, ii. 266. Vaspurakan, ii. 197,
Tliysdrus, ii. 278, 287. Tucca, ii. 288, 293. Venetia, ii. 258.
Tiberias, ii. 99, 109. „ (Terebenthina), Venosa, ii. 257.
Tiber-insula, i. 105. ii. 293. Vercelli, ii. 258.
Tiberiopolis, ii. 220. Tucci, ii. 301 f. Verdun, ii. 266.
Tibur, ii. 253. Tuscany, ii. 259. Verona, ii. 259.
Tiburnia, ii. 238. Tyana, ii. 192. Verulam, ii. 273.
Ticabas (Tigab^e), ii. Tymion, ii. 188, 218. Verum, ii. 294 f.
295. Tyre, i. 502 ; ii. 121 f. Vesontio, ii. 263.
Tigisis (Numid.), ii. Victoriana, ii. 293
294. Uarba, ii. 227. Vicus (Augusti), ii. 293 ;
Tours, ii. 264, 266. Usada ( = Vasada), ii. Zama (Regia), ii. 285,
Trachonitis, ii. 120. 221, 227. 288, 293.
Trajanopolis, ii. 219, Usduin, ii. 155. Zanaatha, ii. 156.
220. Uskiib (Scnpi), ii. 235. Zeita, ii. 108.
Tralles, ii. 185 f. Uthina, ii. 278 f., 287 f. Zela, ii. 198, 205.
Trani, 256.
ii. Utica, ii. 288, 293. Zeugitana, ii. 284 f.
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