^W^' (Jt liKfrtii ***: v., /I IP k ! 4 »«.»* -■■■ «•-■■♦ ^•*»«i>«*|fc«»-,^»r ^sfprv:*- •■*• ♦ -^m mmi^mm #>•!►-•• 41 CHRISTIAN PERSECUTIONS BEING A HISTORICAL EXPOSITION OF THE Principal Catholic Events From the Christian Era to the Present Time. Written from (in Unprejudiced Standpoint. BY ^^ ASA H. CRAIG,X^o,oETHsB»^ THIRD EDITION. THE M. H. WILTZIUS CO., MILWAUKEE. 1904. Nihil Obstat Simon Lebl, D.D., Censor Libroram ^tnpcinxaiuv, ►J< Fredericus Xaverius, Archiepiscopus Milwauchiensis 40AN STACK Entered according to an Act of Congress in the year 1899, hy ASA H. CRAIG. In the Office of tlie Librarian of Congress, at Washington. D. C. Copyright transferred to The M. H. Wiltzius Co., 1903. / 1^^ TO THE CAUSE OF HUMANITY AND THB (iu^rthrouj of Jntokr^anc^, ligotr^i) and Jignopn^e THIS VOLUME IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY THE AUTHOR. 722 The following Authors have been consulted, upon which the historic facts in this volume are based. For these favors I most cheerfully extend my thanks. Rollins' Ancient History. Two volumes. Meyers' Ancient History. Myers' Mediaeval and Modern History. Russell's Modern Europe. Two volumes. Ridpath's History of the World. Guizot's History of France. Parsons' Studies in Church History. Five volumes. Brueck's History of the Catholic Church. Two volumes. Deharbe's History of Religion. Library of Controversy. Four volumes. Cardinal Gibbons' Faith of Our Fathers. m The Jesuits, by Paul F^val. Miss Kirkland's History of France. Martin Luther, by Jacobs. Encyclopedia Britannica. Macaulay's History of England. Alzog's Universal Church History. Three volumes. A. H. Craig. CONTENTS. Page PREFACE 9 CHAPTER I. My Confession 15 II. Early Heresies 23 III. Persbcution 31 IV. Retrospect 36 V. The Tyrant Nero 42 VI. Early Christian Martyrs 57 The Conversion of Constantine 67 Julian, The Apostate 72 VII. The Crusades 76 VIII. The Crusades— Continued 89 The Second Crusade 93 The Third Crusade 95 The Fourth Crusade 98 The Children's Crusade 98 IX. The Reformation 104 X. Origin of the Reformation 113 XI. Martin Luther 119 XII. Martin Luther — Continued 137 XIII. John Calvin and Ulric Zwingli 150 Ulric Zwingli 152 John Calvin 162 XIV. Summary of the Reformation 168 XV. The Thirty Years' War 172 XVI. The Huguenots 181 XVII. The Spanish Inquisition 199 XVIII. The French Revolution 220 XIX. Napoleon Bonaparte 234 XX. Napoleon Bonaparte— Continued , 244 XXI, Origin of the English Church 254 CHAPTER XXII. XXIII. XXIV. XXV. XXVI. XXVII. XXVIII. XXIX. XXX. XXXI. XXXII. XXXIII. XXXIV. XXXV. Contents. Page Heirs of Henry VIII 262 Edward VI 262 Queen Mary 267 Heirs of Henry VIII— Continued 285 Queen Elizabeth...; 285 Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots 293 Irish Persecution 306 Irish Persecution — Continued 324 Cromwell in Ireland 324 William of Orange 329 Origin of the Greek Church 338 The Bible 354 The Temporal Powers of the Popes 371 The Temporal Powers of the Popes— Con- tinued 385 Infallibility of the Popes 398 The Virgin Mary 412 Sisters of Charity 430 The Jesuits 448 Confession 462 The Sacrifice of the Mass 485 PREFACE. N presentiog chis volume to the public the author has but one Idea to adrance and but one object to attain, and that, to destroy intolerance, bigotry and ignorance. By Intoleration'we mean, not a prohibition of rights and opinions, but the religious inconsistency and prejudice that exists in the political and social life of individuals. It is the in- toleration of the mind, the heart, the conscience. By Bigotry, — 'that obstinate and unreasoning condition in which an individual views his own belief and opinions, and opposes with narrow-minded intolerance the beliefs of others. It is a ihated opposition, without reason or commion sense. By Ignorance, — ^that pitiable condition whidh listens to fanati- cism, believes assertions, and analyzes nothing. It is the father of intoleratlon, bigotry, and srui>erstition. It Is the foundation of religious persecution, of idolatry, and of heresy. It breeds con- fusion, oppression, and persecution. From the first establishment of Christianity to the present day it has been one constant struggle against unbelief, against opposition, and against persecution. In the past there is a wonder- ful history of the sufferings, the trials, and the steadfastness of those who have been faithful to God, to Christ, and to his Holy Word. To write these histories is beyond the power of man. Hundreds of volumes have been issued and yet we have recorded only a part of the great work of Christianity, and the awful afflic- tions it has borne. But not once in all those two thousand years has the faith in Christ been lost or broken. While it has ap- parently met reverses, yet not once was there a defeat. These (2) 9 10 Preface. reverses were only God's means of purifying the Church, of win- nowing the chaff from the wheat, of casting out the dross, the millstones, and all the acoumulations of unworthiness. Before the Reformation it was idolatrous persecution of Chris- tianity. Since that event it has been Christian against Christian, with the Pope and the Church of Rome as the great central figure, against which arose this opposition. The Whole force of the Reformation was to crush the power of the Catholic Church and its great head, the Pope. In return, the Church has sought to main- tain its supremacy, to extend its influence, and to establish its worship in all the nations of the earth. The warfare between these contending forces has been one of bitter hatred, and a history of deadly persecution. In this short volume it is impossible to give more than a general exposition of events; but I trust a sufficient explanation is herein given to demonstrate the fact that virtue is not recorded, alone, on one side and persecution on the other, but that the fanatic zeal of all classes of men was just as intolerant, just as unrea- sonable, and just as unchristian on one side as on the other. As we read history from an unprejudiced standpoint, we find that were we to recite the events which have transpired since the days of Martin Luther and John Calvin, and place this narrative before a Protesiant jury, the members of which had never read history, not one could distinguish those perpetrated by the Catholics from those committed by the Protestants; and should selections be made by this imaginary jury, it is the author's opinion that, as prejudice lies with the jury against the Catholics, they would select the Reform atrocities as instituted by the Church of Rome. But we must bear in mind that the oonditions that existed in those days were far different from those that exist at the present time. Then religion was the great central thought of action. If you were a Protestant it was heresy to be a Catholic, and if you were a Catholic it was heresy to be a Protestant; and as heresy Preface. 11 was a sin against the law, then by law it must be punished. Christians were ignorant of the divine teachings of Christ, who taught love, charity, and obedience. They were raised under the discipline of force, and force must be the means of converting men to the true worship of G-od. If men failed to observe the law of religion then there must be ajpplied the force of what we now call oppression and persecution, and when it was a bold declai"a;tion of heresy we find that it was regarded as a higher crime than treason. Men then looked upon treason as a crime against the State, but heresy as treason against God and his Holy Word, and as God was the greatest of all authority, so must heresy be the greart:est of all crimes. If we examine this question under the conditions then existing, we find a standard far different from the standard of to-day. It is here we make the great mistake in our understanding. We try to believe that, because things existed then, they may exist now, when in reality it is an impossibility. Times change, govern- ments change, educations change, and when we arrive at a new period we must throw off the old coat of the past and assume the new realities of the present. But, my friends, there are some who do not seem to know that we are living in the nineteenth century. They imagine that it is still the reign of John Calvin, Henry VIII, Elizabeth, Oliver Cromwell, William of Orange, or even the Spanish Inquisition! They do not realize that we have outgaown those old feudal tyrannies, and in the smallness of their vision see the future only as it is reflected by the past. If you analyze the past, do so with all the surroundings that then occurred ; and when you analyze the present, do so with wha;t exists now, and not with what belongs to the recollections of a dead and historic past. If you cannot believe as a Catholic, then believe as your own conscience shall dictate, but remember that wherever you go, or whatever you do, your aim should be to drop those old prejudices and those old persecutions. 12 Preface. In this enlightened age we cannot afford to question a man because of his religion, or because of the religion of his ancestors, but to recognize him for Ms worth to government, to education, to society, and to Christianity. The only difference that exists between our religious denominations, outside of religious belief, is prejudice — not a prejudice that exists by the acts of to-day, but from condi- tions which existed ages ago. It is a prejudice more in the line of superstition than of any reality. It is a prejudice handed down from parent to child and from preacher to preacher. As the people have been taught to be prejudiced, and appear to ignore present con- ditions, we feel more like pitying their mental condition rather than censuring what to them seems a reality. As individuals, we are prone to listen to what we hear or read, rather than ask ourselves: Is this true? Can these things exist? Is this judgment based upon present conditions, or is it based upon what once existed? If we depend wholly upon what fanatics explain, then we remain in the same intolerant condition as they, but if we depend upon what really exists, wtiat we see, what is in accordance with reason, then we outgrow prejudice and inconsist- ency, and meet all forms of Christianity upon the same level of equal rights and justice. Again I say, this volume is not written in the interest of any creed,, but in the interest of facts as they have existed, and as they exist to-day. It is written to dispel these three enemies of Chris- tianity — Intoleration, Bigotry, and Ignorance, and while I am not a member of any churcih, and have never received the blessings of baptism, yet I will do all within my power to hasiten the day when perseoution shall cease, and the grand trutlhs of God will be known to all men. Therefore I will say to my Protestant friends, study these questions from a real desire for knowledge, cast off your preju- dices, and be guided by what is in existence to-day. If you do this, when you analyze the foundation of religion, and of faith, you can clasp the hand of your Catholic friend, and see in him, as he sees in you, the desires of a true Christian. Preface. 13 I may not succeed in convincing you that these conditions, as herein described, do actually exist, yet I trust you will not cast this book aside as unworthy a careful study. If I have made a single statement which seems to you as inconsistent, as a fallacy, or as a misstatement, it is my earnest desire that you look to the historic facts concerning it. While I believe the records of history will sus- tain my position, yet it is your duty to convince yourself, as 1 have done. I do not ask that you shall become a Catholic, or a Protestant, but that you shall seek the truth, and in seeking, you will not for- get the duties of a true Christian. ^ ^ /V • lohc^^ Mukwonago, Wis., December 25, 1898. CHAPTER T. MY CONFESSION. AS I review the pages of this book I cannot understand how I could have conceived the idea of writing this short history of some of the trials and persecutions of the Catholic Church. I know of no reason why this subject should have suggested itself to me. Up to this time I had not discussed it with individuals, as I felt there was a history I did not care to disclose. I frankly admit I carried a prejudice, not from anything I had ever seen, but from the teachings of those who professed to have made it a study. I had never stopped to consider whether bare assertions were facts or not. I had 'had no inclination to investigate, and while I paid very little attention to the wild expressions of intoleration, yet it unconsciously left an impression that somewhere in the misty past the Catholic Church was not what it ought to have been. And why should I not feel this impression? I took no Cafholic literature; I asked no Catholic advice; and what I learned was from a source calculated to prejudice and not to enlighten me on the facts. The teaching was one-sided in all its details, without contradiction, and as I now find it, without confirmation. It was largely the invention of imag- ination, and I dare say many of those teachers honestly believed in their own statements. But if they will do as I have done, reject the writings of extremists, they will find a condition and causes different from what they now see. 15 16 Christian Persecutions. So I say to my readers and to the world, drop assertions made to foment feeling, or analyze them on the basis of your own investigation. Do not let others assume that they know the history of the past, the present, and the future. Accept the present as you see it, analyze the past as it existed, and you need have no care for the future. But I will return to the causes which led me to think, to read, and to write: The thought came to me one night when, during one of my wakeful hours, I lay thinking of almost everything conceivable. I thought of life, of death, of immortality, and of God. In these thoughts I asked myself, What is God? What is the Church of Christ? Who are the true teachers of the Bible and of God? Here we have a legion of churches — are they all the true expositors of im- mortality? When did they come into existence? Are not churches and creeds made by men? What was the Reforma- tion? How did the Reformation affect the Catholic Church? What is the Catholic Church anyway? What is its mission? Is it a church of persecution, and of intolerance? What was it in the early years of Christianity? What was it in the Dark Ages? In the sixteenth century? In the days of Napoleon Bonaparte? What is it to-day? These thoughts led me to think of investigation, of reading, and of inquiry. In the study of history, did I consider the story of the his- torian infallible? Are not historians liable to err? Is it not a common error of mankind to believe what we read or hear when we are in a condition to become favorably prejudiced? Are we not full of prejudices? Do we not transmit these prin- ciples to our children? When we listen to the minister in the My Confession. 17 pulpit preaching on Catholic infidelity to mankind, are we not listening to a prejudiced illustration of his thoughts and his story? Did he interpret the causes in the true Hght of Christianity? Or was it to build up his own faith at the expense of others? Is it a part of his stock in trade, and must he advertise his goods by crying down the goods of his neighbor? Is there any selfish interest in his mode of operation? Is your Catholic neighbor any different from any other neighbor? Is he different in the next town, in the next State? Is he different anywhere on God's earth? If he is proven by companionship as a true friend, an obliging neigh- bor, and a patriotic citizen, has he not then been misrepre- sented? While I know that some of my dearest friends are Catho- lics, and I know and feel their love and devotion, am I not prejudiced when I think evil of those who are abroad? Is this a just judgment? Have I a right to be prejudiced be- cause of the teachings of others? Am I to be unreasonable and inconsistent when my surroundings prove the opposite? Is history true? Isn't it true that two men, or twenty men, may write history and fail to agree except in the bare fact of an incident? Are not facts and causes two distinct ele- ments in the exposition of history? If history is written by a fanatic, are not his causes based upon fanaticism? If written by a faction, is it not in the interest of that faction? Does it not make a vast difference how we view a subject, how our feelings run in the controversy? If we look through a red glass is not tlie vision red? If through any other color, or controlled by any faction or prejudice, is not the result exactly in line with the cause of inspiration? 18 Christian Persecutions. Have I a right to listen to others and not ask myself through what glass is the speaker looking? Then, in sum- ming up all those prejudices, am I not unjust in harboring thoughts of unworthiness? And now, to speak in plain lan- guage, are not the Protestant Churches arrayed against the Catholic wholly on the hnes of prejudice? And is it not fair for me to suppose that this opposition is due, in some small degree at least, to a stock in trade? Isn't preaching a profession, and do not all men apply their abilities in the advancement of themselves in their pro- fessions? How many ministers look for a call except to bet- ter their condition? Is preaching, as now conducted, for humanity or for self? These are dreadful questions to ask, but is there not some truth in them? Then, as we view this whole line of opposi- tion, of prejudice to the Catholic Church, is it not persecu- tion? Not such persecution as in the days of Nero, or of the sophistry of Voltaire, of Paine, or of Ingersoll, but of that of one form of Christianity against another? In this respect, is not this Church persecuted by all the other Churches? As these thoughts came to me I resolved to read, not through the eyes of others, but through my own eyes. I purchased books and literature. I called up the history of encyclopedias. I borrowed books, and in my research I resolved to take facts, and, as far as possible, to reject the prejudices of others, I laid aside the most enthused Catho- lic writers as having their glasses too highly colored. I sought for causes, because I wanted to satisfy myself, to satisfy my own mind, and not the mind of others. My Confession. 19 I read Robert G. Ingersoll in order to gather the sub- stance of his teachings. I took ancient history; the history of the Apostles; the Dark Ages; the life of Martin Luther; the history of France; the history of the Huguenots; tJlie history of England; the history of Henry the VIII; the history of the Catholic Church; the life of Pope Leo XIII, and many mag- azines and papers. Some books I threw away and would not read. They were too full of malignant vituperation to be of any service to me. These books only served to more con- clusively impress me with my convictions that I had been looking through colored glasses. Once I might have believed these assertions, but now I had gone beyond this field of extravagance. I could see the venom, the sting, the old animosity, and the old prejudice. I had no time to read such trash, and I threw them away as not suited to my purpose. They only confirmed my first sus- picion of stock in trade; now, however, they were shop-worn, dirty, out of style, and not worth an examination. The world was grov/ing to a more intelligent, more reasonable, and more tolerant condition. The old superstitions, vagaries, and prejudices must bid good-bye to the new lessons of true inspiration, true benevolence, and true Christianity. We are not what we were centuries ago, or even in the past generation. The days of bodily persecution are over, and soton tihe days of bigotry will follow the long line of jealousies, misrepresentations and abuse. We are entering a field of intelligence where we are having a broader thought, a grander elevation of faith, and a nobler manhood. The day of estabiishing new creeds and new isms will now \ 20 Christian Persecutions. close, and the grand thought of Refonners will be, not how much can be torn down, but how much can be built up, how nuich can be united, how we can better work together, and how cement the religious desires of all men. The evil of the world is united and travels the same broad road to destruction. Sometimes it seems to me as though it was growing stronger and stronger each year, while Chris- tianity has been quarrelling over who shall save the wicked, relieve distress, and preach the true doctrine of repentance. But as years go by there will be a gradual strengthening of the bonds of union in the great cause of Christ and the gospel of truth. It is even whispered now that the Episcopal Church of England is leaning to its old rival, the Church of Rome, and it is not impossible that the powerful Greek Church of Russia may yet return to its first love. And so we may say of every new creed and ism, tiliere is a change of sentiment going on contmually. Although almost imperceptible at times, yet it is approaching the time when we are coming nearer and nearer to a perfect union, when the hatred and animosi- ties shall cease, and when the dread suspicion of intolerance shall be no more. - As I now stand I see the Catholic Church as I never saw it before. I see that in all its trials and persecutions it comes out stronger and stronger in its discipline, and stronger in its bond of union. I read Martin Luther and see that if the Church had adopted his ninety-five theses, then John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, and other reformers would have demanded a recog- nition of their ideas, and there would have been no Church, My Confession. 21 only a confusion of individual ideas and individual theology. Had the Church yielded to Henry the VHI, there would have been a compromise in crime, and by its permission of sin it would have gone down in disgrace and ruin. Individ- uals may err, sin, and fall, but because of this we have no right to condemn others, or to condemn the church that seeks to build them up, to sustain them in their weakness, and to bring them to repentance. In all the trials which have existed, and all the persecu- tions that have been hurled against the Catholic Church, not one has struck a fatal blow. While the Church may have staggered in its adversity, yet in the dawn of its recovery, the sun of Christianity has shone brighter, its rays have been purer, and its influence more lasting. And now, if by these efforts I may be the means of eliminating some of the old prejudices which still cradle their thoughts in the minds of men, then good will result to all. We ought to be broad enough to throw aside the incon- sistencies of to-day and accept the results as they are, and not what may have been told us in ages past. It matters not what may have been the objects and desires of the Churches hundreds of years ago. Those conditions cannot exist at tihe present. What may have been required then is not required now. The world was not broad then — it was narrow and contracted; but we are now grown beyond tliie ignorance of petty jealousies, and. ought to know and feel that prejudice and bigotry must sooner or later be consigned to the past. With freedom of speech, of press, and of religion, there is no longer an excuse for misrepresentation, intoler- ance, and persecution. 22 Christian Persecutions. With this statement of the condition of what has been and what ought to be, and my carefully-arranged narrative of the facts of history drawn upon the basis of honest inquiry, and not from the side of a partisan or fanatic, I most ear- nestly dedicate this book. May its pages be the means of producing thought, independent of what others may say, or have said. May we all think, and feel, and talk from the standpoint of to-day, and may its influence assist in elevat- ing mankind, uniting the influences of good, and thus advanc- ing the cause of true Christianity. CHAPTER II. EARLY HERESIES. |\ yi ARTYRDOM is the fiery ordeal throiig-h which the * '^ * power of God in Christianity is gloriously made mani- fest. It is proof of the wondrous stability of the Church, the undying, the imperishable and immortal faith that is the base of its foundation. It is not the passion of blind fanaticism, or heretical fidelity to imagination, but is the genuine testi- mony of the glorification of the Christian Church, It is God's testimony to the world that even persecution and death cannot raise a barrier against His Holy Word. It is an evi- dence of the all-consoling truth that the gates of hell shall never prevail against it. While the Roman emperors sought to destroy the Chris- tian religion by the sword and persecution, the sophists and philosophers, its enemies, sought by arguments to confute the teachings of Christ, just as the unbelievers of the present day seek to play upon the passions of men and proclaim that religion is the result of imagination, and cannot be, and yet no persecution of fire or sword, no power of sophistry and cunning, could prevail against the everlasting truth. The literary talents of eminent pagans were employed to prejudice the world against Christianity, They were to testify against the divinity of Christ, against his power of salvation and against the resurrection. They were to repre- sent him as a man incapable of divine power, incapable of 23 24 Christian Persecutions. performing miracles and incapable of being the Son of God. Of the production of these eminent writers, three were so cunningly devised that many were persuaded against the faith, and the spread of Christianity seemed at a standstill, but from the slow power of recovery there arose a more perfect union between God and man. The power of dis- cernment between sophistry and truth grew plainer and plainer until the foundation of the Church was made to endure forever. The first great work against Christ was by the philosopher Celsus, who, in the year 150, wrote a tirade of malignant abuse, not in the language of base antagonism, but in that of subtle craftiness. He represented as having discov- ered the foundation of Christ's authority and his power of performing miracles. It was represented as an educational treatise based upon a careful study and analysis of the con- ditions, and while to Christians it was an exposition of mali- cious calumnies, yet the frankness of rebutting testimony had more the appearance of truth than a wilful design against our Blessed Savior. This was, perhaps, the most logical interpretation ever prepared by pagan opposition. It was eloquent in appeal, manly in demonstration and dangerously subtle in its dis- cussion. Christ was represented as a skillful conjurer, a powerful magician, a wily exponent of heresies, and of sus- picious origin. He described his manner of travels and teach- ings as beneath the dignity of a Divinity; He went about with a miserable company of poverty-stricken publicans and fishermen, performing, by the art of witchcraft, fictitious mir- acles, and finally dying by the hand of the executioner. Early Heresies. 25 He logically demonstrated the impossibility of a Divine being coming from poverty and associating himself with the vilest element of society. He described the followers of Christ as a class of people living upon the excitement of the day, without moral principles, a class of heretics, dregs of society, and proselytes made in the most shameless manner. That Christ worked upon the ignorance and superstitions, and being associated with poverty and wretchedness, his followers must be composed of criminals and vicious people He discussed the absurdity of the declaration that Christ's religion would be known of all nations of the earth, and in God's own time would subdue paganism and establish this new creed. This author, in his book, "The Word of Truth," asserts that the moral law of Christians is neither holy nor new, con- sisting of fables and absurdities, opposing every rational prin- ciple, and calculated to captivate simple and stupid people. The object of the book was to generate prejudice and destroy conversions, which were rapidly swelling the ranks of the Qiristians. While it represented Christ as of suspicious origin, yet it portrayed him as being possessed of a mythical god, who had fallen into disfavor, and now sought to direct his powers of craft and to assist him in the development of startling revelations. 'From this source his followers were deceived as to his origin, his power and his divine attributes. And while it seems a sacrilege to associate Christ with the sophistry of pagan invention, yet in the persecution of Christian faith we find the logic of enemies as powerful as (3) 26 Christian Persecutions. bodily crucifixion. The persecution of Nero destroyed the body, while the log"ic of Celsus poisoned tihe mind with the seeds of prejudice, irreverence, and idolatry. While one wrought physical pain, the other destroyed Christian influence, the hope of salvation and the soul of man. Failing to accomplish the destruction of faith by the logic of argument and absurdities, another writer, Lucian, appears some years later and adopts a new line of defense. He is witty and sarcastic, and where the old calumnies and mis- representations fail to impress he creates attention by ridicule and witty utterances. He describes the Qiristians as harm- less and good-hearted blockheads, ready to become the vic- tim of every charlatan; that their enthusiasm was due to a simpleness of mind; born without reason and fit subjects for impostors and false demonstration. This frivolous scoffer makes levity of their martyrdom, ascribing the cause to blind fanaticism, but in his recognition of their love for one an- other he unintentionally contributes to- the beautiful testi- mony of the virtue of Christianity and the abiding faith of its followers. Where argument could not prevail ridicule found lodgment, and Lucian deterred many from embracing Christianity. The attempt to destroy the teachings of Christ by vin- dictive and malicious declarations having failed, and the crafty cunning of wit and sarcasm having lost its power, ai new plan is presented by the enemies of Christ. They see the nakedness of the religion of mystical gods, therefore it is proposed to reorganize the pagan faith by making it purer and more acceptable to the people, and all the philosophers were Early Heresies. , 27 again called to publish a system more in harmony with the advancement of Christianity. It must be something new, pleasant and enticing. The old objections must be stricken out, the number of gods diminished and some form of a Christ instituted to represent more than the Christians' Christ. Comparison was now the question under discussion, and in this comparison superiority for the pagan was always ren- dered. As an illustration, we find one character in particular who is set up as a demig'od, who was born in a miraculous manner, who passed his youth in holy retirement, preached a sublime doctrine, worked miracles and ended his life in a mysterious manner. Also, we find the philosopher Pythagoras as idolized and invested with all the attributes of a divine being. He was described as a supernatural hero, who appeared on earth in human form, who prophesied coming events, wrought mir- acles and founded common justice to all men. Pythagoras was proclaimed greater than Christ, and Christians were ex- horted to follow him. It was pointed out that he possessed everything possible with Christ, that he was superior in birth, in the following of men, and in his departure from earth. Had Christ contained the divinity of Pythagoras he would have saved himself from crucifixion. The one fell a victim of execution; the other, by his own miraculous power, as- cended to heaven. Thus failed all the skillful contrivances to deceive the people in the worship of the true God. Their crafty plays upon the imagination and their artful and in- genious testimony of falsehood was of no avail. The Church of God was founded upon the rock of Peter, and all sophistry 28 Christian Persecutions. of pagan philosophy and all the persecution of Roman tyrants could not prevail against it. The first system of religion, or rather doctrine, outside of pagan mythology and its reorganization, which seriously threatened the existence of the Church, was the heresy of Gnosis, one of the so-called philosophers in the first ages of Christianity. This self-ordained philosopher evolved a new doctrine which he termed a true philosophical interpretation of the Christian religion. He claimed a deeper wisdom than all the disciples of Christ, and strove to explain the existence of God and his creations, to explain Christ and his mission, to demonstrate the difference between mind and matter, and lastly, to explain the soul and its relation to God. These were great questions, but in his broad assurances and boldness of declaration he won admiration, then expres- sions of belief, in his great exposition of infinite knowledge. This Gnostic doctrine combined Oriental theoloigy and Greek philosophy with the doctrine of Christianity. They held that all natures, intelligible, intellectual, and material, are derived from Deity by successive emanations, which they call Eons, or divine spirits. They represent the Supreme Being as Bythos, who stands at the head of all creation in a world of spirits. With him it is either a principle of good or evil. Fitim Bythos emanates the world of spirits, called Eons, who assist in governing the universe. The god, Demiurgus, is the author of the body and Bythos the producer of the soul. As the