-U 
 
 The Bible Study Union Lessons 
 
 THE COMPLETELY GRADED SERIES 
 
 itnesses for Christ 
 
 MAY 2 7 J.; 
 
 What It Meant to be a Christian 
 In the Early Centuries 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS 
 
 97-599 FIFTH AVENUE NEW YORK 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 I^esson 1. Why the Christians were Persecuted in the Roman Empire 1 
 Lesson 2. An Invitation to a Supper ..... 7 
 
 Lesson 3. A Time When it was Dangerous to go to a Church . . 12 
 
 Lesson 4. A Robber Captain who was Converted . . .16 
 
 Lesson 5. A Christian Wife and a Heathen Husband . . . 22 
 
 Lesson 6. How Even the Weak were Strong Enough to Die for Christ 26 
 Lesson 7. Christian Leaders who were Faithful Unto Death . . 31 
 
 Lesson 8. A Roman Emperor who Became a Christian . . . 36 
 
 Lesson 9. A Great Empire Conquered by Barbarians ... 41 
 
 Lesson 10. A Christian Mother and Her Great Son ... 46 
 
 Lesson 11. How our European Ancestors were Converted to Christ 52 
 Lesson 12. The Christian Conquest of Europe. Review . . 57 
 
 The Bible Study Union Lessons (Completely Graded Series), Junior 
 Grade: Published by Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York; price 12 cents 
 each. 
 
 Copyright, 1913, by Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York 
 
r 
 
THE LAST TOKEN 
 From a painting^ by Gabriel Max 
 
Witnesses for Christ 
 
 WHAT IT MEANT TO BE A CHRISTIAN 
 IN THE EARLY CENTURIES 
 
 A Course of Study for Classes of Boys and Girls 
 Twelve to Fifteen Years Old 
 
 By HAROLD B. HUNTING 
 
 Charles F. Kent, Ph.D. 
 George A. Coe, Ph.D., LL.D. 
 
 Consulting Editors 
 
 New York 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 TO THE PUPIL 
 
 In the last thirty-six lessons of the Junior Bible, we have 
 followed the story of the disciples of Jesus down to about the 
 year 100 a.d. The later writings of the New Testament intro- 
 duced us to the beginning of one of the most thrilling chapters 
 in the world’s history, the life and death struggle between the 
 religion of Jesus and the heathenism of the Roman empire. If 
 we had stopped there in our study we would not have known 
 the trials which men and women had to endure to be Christians 
 in those early days. In the following pages, therefore, we shall 
 take up the story where the New Testament lets it drop. We 
 shall try to gain a vivid mental picture of the life of the Chris- 
 tians in the second, third and fourth centuries And we shall 
 find that this great period, from beginning to end, is a story 
 of marvelous Christian loyalty and heroism. 
 
 Most of our information regarding this history comes from 
 the Christian writers of those days, who are generally referred 
 to as “ the Fathers.” They wrote explaining Christianity and 
 its teachings and beliefs for the purpose of defending it against 
 the false statements of heathen enemies. These books defend- 
 ing Christianity are usually referred to as apologies.” The 
 Greek word apologia,” however, did not mean an apology” 
 in our sense of the word but rather a defense.” 
 
 On page 62 you will find a list of the early Christian writers 
 referred to in these lessons. 
 
/ ^ l)eOi / 
 
 J2.70 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 LESSON I. 
 
 WHY CHRISTIANS WERE PERSECUTED IN THE 
 ROMAN EMPIRE. 
 
 §1. Wicked Customs Among the Romans. 
 
 The ancient world, in the time of the Roman Empire, was in 
 many ways extremely corrupt, heartless, and cruel. There 
 were many persons indeed, who tried to live righteous lives; 
 but even the best of them thought nothing of many customs 
 which would be considered shocking and wicked, nowadays. 
 It is hard to believe, for example, that civilized men and women 
 could take delight in watching the death agonies of their fellow- 
 men. Yet the great Coliseum at Rome, and the amphitheatres 
 in all the leading cities, were continually thronged with spec- 
 tators. Here, protected from the sun with awnings, and 
 decked out in splendid robes and glittering jewels, the fashion- 
 able men and women of each city looked down from their 
 perfumed cushioned seats, into the arena, where condemned 
 criminals were torn by leopards, or tigers or lions, or wild boars; 
 or where perchance trained gladiators fell upon one another in 
 mortal combat. These cruel and terrible exhibitions were 
 what the people of those days called amusements. 
 
 §2. The Unpopularity of the Christians. 
 
 Into the midst of these evil practices came the Christians, 
 with their purer and better way of living. They refused to go 
 to these amusements’^ at the amphitheatres. They refused 
 to share in the degrading vices which were commonly practised. 
 As a result they were unpopular. This unpopularity was 
 greatly increased among those who found that they were losing 
 money because of the new religion. Idol makers, for example, 
 and priests in heathen temples hated the Christians, because 
 each new convert to Christianity meant so much less revenue 
 for them. There were many persons moreover, who were 
 
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 82205 1 
 
2 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 influenced against Christianity through misunderstandings 
 and falsehoods. The Christians were called atheists, because 
 they would not worship idols. They were even accused of all 
 kinds of horrible deeds. It was reported that little children 
 were killed and eaten at their meetings. Although these 
 statements were absolutely false they were believed by many 
 intelligent men. 
 
 § 3. The Christians and the Roman Government. 
 
 The Roman government permitted its subjects for the most 
 part to worship whatever gods they pleased. In Rome itself 
 all sorts of foreign religions flourished. One thing only was in- 
 sisted on: whatever special deity a man might choose to wor- 
 ship, he must also sacrifice to the old Roman gods, who were 
 supposed to protect the Roman Empire. Furthermore, all 
 Roman subjects were required to offer sacrifice, on certain 
 occasions, before the image of the emperor. These laws were 
 readily obeyed, by all except the Christians; they alone held 
 aloof and refused even to throw a pinch of incense on the altar 
 in worship of Csesar. To the Roman officials, this seemed like 
 treason against the government. Furthermore the Christians, 
 as we know, did really believe that Christ was soon to return, 
 and that He would overthrow the Roman Empire and all 
 earthly kingdoms, and establish His own heavenly kingdom. 
 When the Roman rulers heard about this belief, it was natural 
 for them to suspect that the Christians were actually plotting 
 against the government. 
 
 § 4. Laws Against the Christians. 
 
 So from the time of Nero, Christianity seems to have been a 
 ^Torbidden religion in the eyes of the law. The Emperor 
 Trajan, more wise and just than some rulers, gave orders that 
 the Christians were not to be sought out, but that when accused 
 and convicted, they were to be compelled to sacrifice to the 
 gods or else were to be put to death. Under this rule (about 
 110 A.D.), a Christian was left unmolested, unless some enemy 
 reported him to the local governor or prefect. They had many 
 enemies, however, and from time to time fierce attacks were 
 
INTERIOR VIEW OF THE COLISEUM 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2017 with funding from 
 
 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Alternates 
 
 https://archive.org/details/witnessesforchri01hunt 
 
Junior — Lesson One 
 
 3 
 
 made upon them. At no time, and under no circumstances, 
 could they feel secure. Many of them were cruelly tortured 
 and slain. They were torn with iron claws, hung upon crosses, 
 thrown to wild beasts, covered with skins of beasts and torn 
 by dogs, roasted over slow fires. No form of torture was 
 neglected which ingenuity could devise. 
 
 § 5. The Failure of these Laws to Check the Growth 
 OF Christianity. 
 
 In spite of these attacks the number of the Christians in- 
 creased at a remarkable rate. Christianity appealed not merely 
 to the educated but to the humble and lowly. The Christians 
 were noted for their kindness to the sick and to the poor. 
 Their Gospel aroused the consciences of men and offered them 
 forgiveness and a Saviour from sin. One of the most powerful 
 influences in the winning of new converts was the courage and 
 constancy of the Christians themselves in the face of persecu- 
 tion; and their willingness to die, if need be, for their faith. 
 Thus for every Christian put to death, many more converts 
 would often be won. 
 
 The impression made on heathen spectators by the death of 
 the Christians is well brought out by the following description 
 from ^^Quo Vadis’^ of a scene in the arena during the persecution 
 by Nero.* ^^The turn of the Christians was at hand. Since 
 that was a new spectacle for people, and no one knew how the 
 Christians would bear themselves, all waited with a certain 
 curiosity. The disposition of the audience was attentive but 
 unfriendly. Those people who were to appear had burned 
 Rome and its ancient treasures. They had drunk the blood 
 of infants, and poisoned water; they had cursed the whole 
 human race, and had committed the vilest crimes. The harsh- 
 est punishment did not suffice for their hatred; and if any fear 
 possessed people’s hearts it was this: that the torture of the 
 Christians would not equal the guilt of these ominous criminals. 
 
 ^^Now the prefect gave a sign. The same old man appeared 
 *Quotedfrom “Quo Vadis’^ by permission cf Little, Brown, and Company. 
 Copyright 1896, 1897, by Jeremiah Curtin, 
 
4 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 who had called the gladiators to death, and passing with slow 
 step across the arena amid silence, he struck three times again 
 on the door. 
 
 Throughout the amphitheatre was heard the deep murmur — 
 ^The Christians! the Christians!^ 
 
 ^'The iron gratings creaked; through the dark openings were 
 heard the usual cries of the scourgers, ^To the sand ’ and in one 
 moment the arena was filled with crowds of people covered 
 with skins of beasts. All ran quickly and reaching the middle 
 of the circle, they knelt one by another with raised hands. 
 The spectators judging this to be a prayer for pity, and enraged 
 by such cowardice, began to stamp, whistle, throw empty 
 wine vessels, bones from which the fiesh had been eaten, and 
 shout, ^The beasts! the beasts!^ But all at once something 
 unexpected took place. From out the shaggy assembly sing- 
 ing voices were raised, and then sounded that hymn, heard for 
 the first time in a Roman amphitheatre, ^ Christus regnat ’ 
 (^Christ reigns 0* Astonishment seized the spectators. They 
 saw faces pale, but as it were inspired. All understood that 
 those people were not asking for mercy, and that they seemed 
 not to see the circus, the audience, the senate, or Csesar. ‘ Chris- 
 tus regnat’ rose ever louder, and in the seats far up to the 
 highest, among the rows of spectators, more than one asked 
 himself the question, ^What is happening, and who is that 
 Christus who reigns in the mouths of those people who are about 
 to die.’ ” 
 
 § 6. Final Attempts to Stamp out Christianity, and 
 Their Failure. 
 
 Before the time of Decius (250 a.d.) no systematic attempt 
 was made by the government to search out the Christians. 
 During the reign of this emperor, however, there were many 
 great public calamities, as for example, a widespread pestilence. 
 ^^The Christians have brought these things on us,” people said, 
 ^^by their neglect of the gods.” So Decius issued an edict, 
 which was really a declaration of war against the new religion. 
 Christians were now hunted down like murderers all over the 
 empire. About fifty years later (303 a.d.), after a temporary 
 
Junior — Lesson One 
 
 5 
 
 respite, the Emperor Diocletian undertook to carry out the 
 same kind of campaign, with even greater energy. By that 
 time the Christians had begun to have church buildings. These 
 were destroyed. All copies of the New Testament that could 
 be secured were burned. Pastors and church officers were 
 punished with special cruelty. It was a terrible experience 
 for the Christians, but the majority of them proved true. 
 In fact many who had been lukewarm in their loyalty were 
 awakened to heroism. New converts flocked to the standard 
 of the cross. It is said that a certain actor had been hired to 
 take part in a play which ridiculed and slandered Christianity. 
 He knew these statements were false, however, and when the 
 time came for him to repeat them on the stage, his better 
 nature triumphed. Instead of going on with his part he came 
 to the front of the stage and declared his belief in Christianity 
 and his purpose to be a Christian. He was immediately seized 
 and put to death. As time went on the Roman authorities 
 began to realize that it was impossible to destroy a religion 
 which could awaken so dauntless a spirit as this. The per- 
 secution of Diocletian was the last of the great Roman per- 
 secutions. 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. Do you think the pagan Romans were naturally worse 
 people than we are to-day? 
 
 2. If you had lived in those days, would you have gone 
 to the shows held in the amphitheatre? Why? 
 
 3. What things do we do now which Christians living one 
 thousand years from now will consider wrong and wicked? 
 
 4. Why were the Romans offended at the Christians for 
 not taking part in the vices of those days? 
 
c 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 5. Would you have believed the stories about the Chris- 
 tians? If not, how would you have found out the truth? 
 
 Questions to Sum Up. 
 
 1. Mention three reasons why the Christians were unpopular. 
 
 2. Mention two reasons why the Roman officials passed laws 
 against them. 
 
 3. What was the ruling of the Emperor Trajan, regarding 
 the Christians? 
 
 4. What effect did these laws have? 
 
 5. Under what two emperors was there a systematic at- 
 tempt to root out Christianity? 
 
Junior — Lesson Two 
 
 7 
 
 LESSON 2. 
 
 AN INVITATION TO A SUPPER. 
 
 § 1. The Spirit of Brotherhood Among the Early 
 Christians. 
 
 The heathen writer Lucian said of the Christians Their 
 master has persuaded them that they are all brothers. In 
 this lesson, let us try to get a vivid idea of what this Chris- 
 tian brotherhood meant, and especially what it would mean to 
 a poor man. Let us imagine for example, a poor bricklayer, 
 who has been living in a village in northern Italy. Suppose we 
 call him Lycidas. 
 
 § 2. A Poor Bricklayer, Out of Work, Homeless and 
 
 Hungry. 
 
 This man, Lycidas, let us say, belonged to a little band of 
 Christians in his native village, who had been converted by a 
 traveling missionary. One summer the crops were very poor. 
 People had no money to build houses, and Lycidas could find 
 no work. So he decided to come to Rome. The missionary, 
 on one of his visits, gave him a letter to a member of the church 
 in Rome who would help him to find work. When he reached 
 
 the great city, however, and went to the house to which he had 
 been directed by the missionary, he found that the man had 
 moved. With a sinking heart; he set out alonC; to look for a 
 
8 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 job. First he found a cheap lodging, a small, dirty room, in a 
 three-story tenement house. Then he began to walk the streets 
 inquiring for opportunities to work at his trade. Days passed, 
 however, and he could find no work of any kind. It is not 
 pleasant to find oneself alone in a great city, with no friends and 
 with little money. Lycidas grew pale and haggard. Finally 
 his money was all spent, and his landlord put him out of his 
 room on the street, a helpless, homeless beggar. Winter was 
 coming on, and there are some cold winter days even in sunny 
 Italy. 
 
 § 3. A Secbet Countersign. A Joyful Discovery. 
 
 Lycidas though sad and discouraged did not give up his 
 weary search for work. That afternoon, as he passed by a cer- 
 tain house, he noticed above the door a small drawing of a fish. 
 His heart was filled with joy and hope. For among the early 
 Christians a picture of a fish was used as a secret countersign. 
 The letters in the Greek word for fish formed the initials of the 
 words meaning Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour.^’ 
 Was this perhaps a house where Christians lived? Lycidas 
 decided to knock, and a kind-faced woman opened the door. 
 ^‘1 noticed the carving over your door,’^ said Lycidas, too 
 am one of the brothers.’^ The woman hesitated; for there were 
 spies who made it their business to search out Christians and 
 betray them. came from northern Italy,^^ continued Ly- 
 cidas. have a letter from the missionary Linus to a Chris- 
 tian here named Clement. But when I went to his house, I 
 found he had moved. At this the woman clapped her hands 
 with joy. Clement has told us about you,^^ she said, stretch- 
 ing out her hand to welcome the stranger. “He himself re- 
 ceived a letter from Linus about you, and he asked us all to be 
 on the lookout for you. We are so sorry that you have been 
 alone in the city all these weeks. IsnT it fortunate that 
 you noticed the sign of the fish over our door.” 
 
 § 4. A Church Supper; the Love Feast of the Early 
 Christians. 
 
 So Lycidas at last found himself among friends. What did 
 it mean to him? Perhaps we can best find out by going with 
 
Junior — Lesson Two 
 
 9 
 
 him to the weekly church supper to which the kind-faced woman 
 invited him. Let us suppose that it is held that very evening. 
 Lycidas does not hesitate to accept the invitation, for in spite 
 of the bread and milk which the good woman has already given 
 him, he is still ravenously hungry. Suppose then, that we go 
 with him, as the hour approaches. We open the door and an 
 eager welcome awaits us. ^^Here are our new members, 
 some one cries, and we receive a cordial hand clasp from every 
 one in the house. A fire is burning in an open fire-pan called a 
 brazier, and the room is warm. A table is spread in the large 
 central hall, and we take our places around it. Here are rolls 
 and honey, roast mutton, beans, cheese, dates and figs. Each 
 family has brought what it could, and all has been put together 
 in a common stock. How good that mutton tastes to Lycidas, 
 who really has not had enough to eat since he came to Rome. 
 Here are, perhaps, two dozen people, men, women and children. 
 Here are laborers, like Lycidas. Here are slaves. Over there 
 is a Jewish merchant. Yonder is a teacher of rhetoric. ^Hn 
 Christ, there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither bond nor free.^’ 
 There are some, perhaps, whose manners are rude. They are 
 new converts and have not yet learned the ways of the Chris- 
 tians. It is a merry company. Jests are passed back and 
 forth. One member has brought a lyre and plays and sings. 
 Among those present is Clement, for whom Lycidas rece ved 
 the letter from the missionary. He is a foreman in charge of 
 the construction of a new aqueduct near Rome. He promises 
 Lycidas work and tells him to bring his trowel and commence 
 laying bricks the very next day. 
 
 § 5. The Lord’s Supper. 
 
 At the close of the supper, the president of the church rises 
 in his place and stands by the table. Before him is a plate of 
 bread and a cup of wine. A silence falls upon the company. 
 Even the voices of the children are hushed. 
 
 ^^Fellow-believers,” he says, ^Hhis bread and this wine sym- 
 bolize the presence with us of our Lord Jesus. Our pleasant 
 fellowship with each other should make us the more conscious 
 of Him. For wherever Christians sit down to eat together in 
 
10 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 the spirit of mutual love, their table is the Lord’s table, and their 
 unseen Lord is present with them.” After a brief but earnest 
 prayer, the bread is passed around, and then the wine, each 
 one taking a small portion. Then they all rise from the table, 
 and sing a hymn, and are dismissed. Lycidas goes no doubt 
 with Clement. 
 
 § 6. What Brotherhood Meant to the Christians of 
 Those Days. 
 
 Thus we see that Christian brotherhood meant food to the 
 hungry. It meant the chance to work and earn one’s own 
 bread. It meant the pleasure which comes from being with 
 other people, and realizing their love. It meant danger and 
 sometimes death. Finally, however, and best of all, it meant 
 fellowship with God. For it is chiefly through the brotherly 
 love of men, that we come to realize the fatherly love of God. 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. Even though Lycidas could not furnish any of the food 
 for the supper, in what way could he show a brotherly spirit 
 on that occasion? 
 
 2. If Lycidas had died, some years later, leaving a wife and 
 little children with little or no money, how would the Christians 
 have shown their brotherhood? 
 
 3. Suppose some member of the church had been lazy, 
 and had made no attempt to find work. Do you think the 
 Christians would have supported him in idleness? 
 
 4. Compare this story of Lycidas with Jesus’ story of the 
 Good Samaritan. Which illustrates the more nobly the spirit 
 of brotherhood? Explain. 
 
Junior — Lesson Two 
 
 11 
 
 5. How may we show the brotherly spirit to-day? 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. How did Lycidas discover the house where a Christian 
 family lived? 
 
 2. Why did the Christians use the picture or carving of a fish 
 as an emblem of their religion? 
 
 3. How did the Christians provide the food for their church 
 suppers? 
 
 4. What religious ceremony was observed on these occa- 
 sions? 
 
 5. What benefits did Christian brotherhood bring to the 
 members of the early Christian churches? 
 
12 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 LESSON 3. 
 
 AN AGE WHEN IT WAS DANGEROUS TO GO TO 
 CHURCH. 
 
 §1. Going to Church Nineteen Centuries Ago. 
 
 Going to church is not generally considered an exciting expe- 
 rience in these days. There was a time, however, in the history 
 of Christianity, when being present at church worship was an 
 adventure which might end in death. Suppose we attend, in 
 imagination, one of the Sunday services of the early Christians 
 at Rome. Here is a Christian mother gently awakening her 
 twelve-year-old son, long before daylight, on Sunday morning. 
 Her husband is not a Christian and her boy is going to the serv- 
 ice with her. There were many such mothers with their 
 sons at the meetings of the Christians. Swiftly and silently 
 they dress and steal out into the dark, narrow street. Some of 
 the larger avenues in the city are lighted, and carts have been 
 moving to and fro all night. These two, however, make their 
 way through the side streets, lest they should be recognized. 
 It is necessary for them to be very cautious for some suspicious 
 official might trace them to the house where the meeting is to 
 be held, and then not only they but all the other Christians 
 present might be arrested. ^^Hark! is that some one following 
 us?’^ The mother seizes her boy^s arm and draws him back 
 into the dark shadows of an overhanging doorway. The steps 
 draw nearer; the man does not stop, however, as he passes 
 them. Whoever he is, he goes on down the street. 
 
 § 2. Where the Christians Held Their Meetings. 
 
 Soon they reach the house where the meeting is to be held. 
 It is not a regular church building, like ours, but a private 
 house where one of the Christians lives. Perhaps it is the house 
 where we saw the supper in our last lesson. At the door the 
 mother knocks three times. It is opened, but only a few inches. 
 
 Peace be with you,^^ says the mother. Peace be with whom?’’ 
 says a voice within. ^‘The faithful,” answers the mother. 
 Then they are admitted. ‘^Have they all come?” says the 
 mother, as she looks around the circle. Where is Glaucus? 
 
Junior — Lesson Three 
 
 13 
 
 Oh, here he is! Where is Miriam?^’ ^^She is sick,’^ some one 
 answers. All the members, then, are accounted for. The first 
 part of the adventure is over. All who are coming to the meet- 
 ing have safely reached the house. The service may now begin. 
 We will be interested in watching it. 
 
 § 3. An Ancient Christian Gathering. 
 
 We see that there are perhaps twenty or thirty people gath- 
 ered in a semi-circle around a table on which are a lamp and 
 several rolls of papyrus. The room is crowded. Some are 
 sitting on the floor. Others are standing in the rear. The 
 shadows from the flickering lamp flit weirdly across their faces. 
 Some of those present are not yet Christians, but are sincerely 
 interested in the new religion and have been brought to the meet- 
 ing by their friends. One of the older men steps to the table 
 and reads a passage from one of the rolls, which is a copy of 
 the Book of Isaiah. He reads the passage about the Servant 
 of Jehovah, who was despised and rejected of men. Then 
 he takes another roll, and reads a selection from the Gospels, 
 or from one of the Epistles of Paul. Then another man rises 
 and preaches a short sermon. Even in the dim light, we can 
 see his eyes flash, as he warns his hearers to beware of the evils 
 which are practised by their heathen neighbors, and tells them 
 of a power from on high which can guide and strengthen them. 
 In the course of his sermon, he may very likely have spoken 
 words like the following which are quoted from the Epistle to 
 Diognetus, Chapter 10, written about 150 a.d. 
 
 § 4. Extract from an Ancient Christian Sermon. 
 
 ^‘Do not be surprised that a man may become an imitator 
 of God. He can, if he is willing. For it is not by ruling over 
 his neighbors, or by seeking to hold the supremacy over those 
 who are weaker, or by being rich and showing violence toward 
 those who are inferior, that happiness is found; nor can any one 
 by these things become an imitator of God. But these things 
 do not at all constitute God’s majesty. On the contrary, he 
 who takes upon himself the burden of his neighbor, he who, in 
 whatever respect he may be superior, is ready to benefit another 
 
14 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 who is deficient; he who distributes to the needy whatever 
 things he has received from God, and thus becomes a god to 
 those who receive, — he is an imitator of God/^ 
 
 After the sermon several persons pray. Perhaps the bread 
 and wine are again passed around, “in memory of the Lord.^’ 
 A collection is taken up to buy food and medicine for sick 
 Miriam. Then they rise and sing a hymn, — one of the “Psalms 
 of David.^^ 
 
 § 5. An Interrupted Hymn. 
 
 But, hark, what is that noise at the door? The worshipers 
 do not hear it at first, because of the sound of their voices in the 
 
 Interior of the Mamertine Prison. 
 
 Plan op the Mamertine Prison. 
 
 The Mamertine prison was below ground, and its lowest dungeon could be entered only 
 through a hole in the floor of the upper chamber (X in cut) through which prisoners were 
 let down. The tradition is that both Paul and Peter were confined there, and that the 
 spring of water now there (XX in cut) was miraculously produced by Peter so that he 
 might baptize converts made in the prison. The event is commemorated in the bas-relief 
 over the altar. This dungeon is 19 feet long by 10 feet wide and 6 1-2 high. Here pris- 
 oners were left to perish. Sometimes they were chained to the stone post with iron bars 
 about it to the left of the altai . This horrible dungeon is now entered by stairs from the 
 outside. 
 
 hymn. Suddenly there is a crash, as the door is forced open 
 and the soldiers from the prefect rush in. That was a spy, 
 then, who followed the mother and her son. He was shadow- 
 ing them just as she feared, and when they went into the house, 
 he sent in haste for the soldiers. Heavy hands are laid upon 
 trembling, unresisting forms. The whole company, men, women. 
 
DIANA OR CHRIST 
 From a painting by Edwin Long 
 
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Junior — Lesson Three 
 
 15 
 
 and children, are hurried off to prison. The interrupted music 
 of the psalm is continued and finished in the darkness of a 
 dungeon. 
 
 Some days later, as the little band was led out into the arena 
 to be put to death in cruel ways, certain of the heathen soldiers 
 noticed the look of peace and happiness upon all their faces. 
 They were hot like ordinary criminals, going with cringing 
 steps to the place of execution. They walked like princes and 
 princesses on the way to a coronation. The heathen onlookers 
 could but wonder at it. They did not know that in the hearts 
 of these Christians still was ringing the music of that inter- 
 rupted hymn; ^^Yea, though I walk through the valley of the 
 shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.^^ 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. Why did the Christians hold their meetings before day- 
 light? 
 
 2. Compare the meeting described in the lesson with some 
 meeting which you have attended in one of our modern churches. 
 Mention the similarities and the differences. 
 
 3. Why were the Christians willing to risk their lives, 
 rather than be absent from any of these meetings? 
 
 4. What part of the meeting would you have liked best? 
 
 5. How may a person get as much help as possible from a 
 church service? 
 
16 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. In what buildings did the early Christians hold their 
 services for worship? 
 
 2. On what day of the week did they meet? 
 
 3. At what time of the day? 
 
 4. What took place at these meetings? 
 
 5. Why was it dangerous to go to them? 
 
 LESSON 4. 
 
 HOW A ROBBER CAPTAIN WAS CONVERTED. 
 
 §1. The Good News of God's Forgiveness. 
 
 When Jesus was preaching in Galilee and Judea, one of the 
 most important parts of His work was to proclaim to sinners 
 the Heavenly Father's eagerness to forgive. Jesus also re- 
 quested His followers to preach this same Gospel, or Good News, 
 and thus win sinners to repentance. Were the later Christians 
 true to this purpose of Jesus? We may answer the question 
 in part by the following incident which is told by Clement of 
 Alexandria. 
 
Junior — Lesson Four 
 
 17 
 
 § 2. A Christian Teacher and His Boy Friend. 
 
 In the city of Smyrna there lived a promising young lad: 
 handsome, athletic, quick witted. Suppose we call him Lucre- 
 tius. One day he went with friends to a meeting of the Chris- 
 tians. Among the Christian teachers, there was a man named 
 John. Clement says that it was John the Apostle but it was 
 probably some other John. At any rate, whoever he was, the 
 boy and the man became good friends, and the boy never for- 
 got the older man's warm, hearty handclasp and kindly eyes. 
 Through John's influence he became a Christian; and after 
 being instructed in the Christian life was baptized and received 
 into the church. 
 
 § 3. A Lad Who Fell in with Bad Companions. 
 
 Shortly after this, unfortunately, John was compelled to 
 leave Smyrna for several years. Before he went away he asked 
 the pastor of the church to watch over Lucretius with special 
 care. ^^For my sake," he said, ^^be a good friend to him. Give 
 him help and counsel and encouragement." This pastor, how- 
 ever, was not so earnest a Christian as John, and he forgot 
 about Lucretius; and as time went on the boy fell in with idle 
 companions of his own age, and began to yield to their influence. 
 First they took him to heathen entertainments, and gradually 
 led him deeper and deeper into wrongdoing. Finally, one 
 night while he was with them, they killed and robbed a wealthy 
 traveler, on a lonely road. Thus he felt that his hands were 
 stained with blood, and as Clement says, “he now entirely 
 despaired of salvation, and from the greatness of his nature, 
 having gone aside from the right path, he took the bit between 
 his teeth, like a hard-mouthed and powerful horse, and rushed 
 with all the more force into the depths." He organized his 
 companions into a regular band of robbers. He himself be- 
 came their captain, and was known as the fiercest, cruelest, 
 and bloodiest of them all. 
 
 § 4. Going to Seek the Wanderers. 
 
 Years passed, and John came back to Smyrna. He was an 
 old man now. He had not forgotten about Lucretius, however, 
 
18 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 but very soon after his arrival inquired of the pastor regarding 
 him. The pastor could not but hang his head in grief and 
 shame. ^^He is dead/^ said he, ^^not dead in body, but dead to 
 God. For he turned to wickedness, and became a robber, and 
 even now he and his robber band have taken possession of 
 that mountain yonder in front of the city. No one dares to go 
 along the road by that mountain any more.’^ Of course John 
 was shocked and indignant. If he himself could only have 
 stayed in Smyrna, he knew that the boy would not have gone 
 astray. ^^It was a fine guard I left,^’ he said, “over a brother's 
 soul. But bring a horse, and find some one to guide me to that 
 mountain.’’ “No, no,” cried the pastor, “you must not go there. 
 You are an old man, and those bandits are desperate.” But 
 John insisted; so the pastor finally brought a horse and the old 
 man climbed into the saddle. Let us hope that the pastor was 
 brave enough to go along himself, to act as guide. 
 
 § 5. Visiting a Camp of Bandits. 
 
 About halfway up the mountain, one of the robbers, who 
 was stationed there as an outpost, came rushing, sword in hand, 
 and seized the bridle of John’s horse. “Take me to your cap- 
 tain,” said John. So in a little while they reached the rough 
 board shanty at the summit of the mountain, where Lucretius 
 was carousing with his men. His handsome face was hard and 
 cruel, and he wore a dagger in his belt. “Ah ha,” he shouted, 
 as John was brought into the dirty, disorderly room, “another 
 prisoner for ransom.” But just then he looked into the pris- 
 oner’s face, and in spite of the gray hairs, and other changes, 
 recognized his friend; and he stood with downcast eyes. “You 
 fellows get out of here,” he said; “I want to talk to this man 
 alone”; and they knew very well that it would be dangerous 
 to disobey. “My dear son,”'Said John, “I have come to bring 
 you back to your Heavenly Father’s love.” But Lucretius 
 would not even allow him to touch his hand. “I am not wor- 
 thy that you should touch me,” he said. The brave old man 
 would not be rebuffed, however, and kept on pleading with him 
 with tender and thrilling words. “Believe me, my boy, Christ 
 has sent me for you. For you I would gladly lay down my life, 
 
 1 
 
Junior — Lesson Four 
 
 19 
 
 even as the Lord endured death for us all. It is not too late for 
 you to begin again to live the Christian life. Come.’^ And 
 strange and wonderful as it may seem, Lucretius yielded to 
 John^s pleadings, and with many of his followers turned once 
 and for all from his former evil life and became again a true 
 and loyal Christian. 
 
 § 6. A Christian Slave Girl Who Converted Her 
 Mistress. 
 
 This incident was but a single example of the constant efforts 
 of the Christians to bring to sinners the good news of God’s 
 forgiving love. Pray without ceasing,” wrote Ignatius, ^^on 
 behalf of other men, that they may repent and find God. See 
 that they be taught by your deeds, if in no other way. While 
 we take care not to imitate their conduct, let us show ourselves 
 their brothers in all true kindness.” This was the spirit of 
 the Christians. Wherever a Christian went, his life was an 
 influence for good among his heathen neighbors. Here for 
 example is a Christian slave girl. “How is it, girl,” says her 
 mistress one day, “that you never steal from me, as other 
 slaves do?” “I used to do those things,” she answers. ^^But 
 now I have an unseen Master, who is holy and good. It would 
 grieve Him, if I should steal.” “What talk is this, girl?” 
 says the mistress. “Who is this unseen Master of yours?” 
 Then the maid tells her of this new religion of Jesus; how 
 this wonderful person Jesus lived in the land of the Jews; 
 how He had held up before His followers the ideal of being hon- 
 est, pure, and unselfish, as children of the holy and loving God; 
 and finally, how He died on the cross to save men from their 
 sins. The mistress is impressed by her maid-servant’s words; 
 for her own life has been selfish. Her conscience gives her no 
 rest. “You should come to our meeting to night, mistress,” 
 the girl finally adds. “You should listen to our teacher; he 
 can explain these things far better than I.” So perchance it 
 comes to pass that the mistress goes to the meeting of the Chris- 
 tians with her maid-servant and is converted. 
 
20 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 § 7. The Testimony of a Heathen Writer. 
 
 The heathen writer Celsus supposed that he was reproaching 
 the Christians when he said of them: “ Every one who is a sinner, 
 every one who is devoid of understanding, and every one who 
 is in any way unfortunate, him will the Christians receive into 
 the kingdom of God.’^ ^^What others,’^ says Celsus, would a 
 man invite if he were sending out a proclamation for an as- 
 sembly of robbers?^ ^ It was the same reproach that the Phari- 
 sees had brought against Jesus, namely, ^^He is a friend of 
 sinners.’^ In short, the Christians, for the most part, were 
 true to the spirit and purpose of their Master, and, like Him, 
 tried to ^^seek and to save the lost.’’ 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. He felt that his hands were stained with blood — and now 
 entirely despaired of salvation.” Mention one thing that you 
 would have said to Lucretius at this time, if you could have 
 talked with him? 
 
 2. Why was John able to win him back to the Christian life? 
 
 3. Notice the argument of Celsus against the Christians 
 (p. 7). How would Celsus have treated Lucretius if he had 
 had the opportunity? 
 
 4. How would you answer the argument of Celsus? 
 
 5. What light does this lesson throw on the question of bad 
 companions? Should we avoid them, or should we make 
 friends with them and try to wield a good influence over them? 
 
Junior — Lesson Four 
 
 21 
 
 Notice first, how Lucretius was led into wrong-doing, and 
 second, how a heathen mistress was led to become a Christian. 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. What was one of the chief aims of Jesus? 
 
 2. What Christian writer tells the story of the conversion 
 of the robber captain? 
 
 3. About what period in history did Clement live? (See 
 appendix.) 
 
 4. Who was partly to blame that the young man (Lucretius) 
 fell into evil ways? 
 
 5. What kind of a young man was he, naturally? 
 
 6. How did it come about that be was finally won back to 
 Christ? 
 
 7. What was one of the chief means whereby new converts 
 were won to Christ, in the early days? 
 
22 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 8. What did the heathen writer Celsus say against the 
 Christians? 
 
 9. Who made a similar charge against Jesus? 
 
 LESSON 5. 
 
 A CHRISTIAN WIFE AND A HEATHEN HUSBAND. 
 § 1. Customs in Which the Christians Could not Join. 
 
 Any one who tries to live a Christian life among non-Christian 
 companions must come into almost daily conflict with their 
 customs. This was especially true of the Christians in the 
 Roman empire. The spirit of heathenism was everywhere. 
 If a Christian went out on the street, he saw images of the gods 
 standing there, and met processions in which these images were 
 solemnly carried about. All who passed by paid their homage; 
 the Christian could not do this. If he entered a courtroom 
 there stood an altar with incense and wine. Custom required 
 one in passing to strew incense and offer a libation, that is, 
 pour out the wine as an offering. If he stepped into a tavern 
 or store, or shop, to make a purchase, or leave an order, he al- 
 ways found an altar and idols, which he was expected to worship. 
 Or perhaps he was invited by heathen friends or relatives to a 
 family party. If he did not go, he gave offence; if he went, he 
 still could not but displease them by refusing to take part in 
 the sacrifices and libations. If a Christian wished to borrow 
 money, he was expected to take an oath in the name of the 
 heathen god. A Christian schoolmaster was expected to cele- 
 brate certain holidays in honor of the gods. Many a person 
 found that he had to give up his former occupation entirely, 
 in order to become a Christian; for example, laborers in heathen 
 temples, idol-makers, sellers of incense, Many others must 
 
Junior — Lesson Five 
 
 23 
 
 have lost much money, simply because of the general dislike 
 felt for them. Christian merchants must have lost many 
 heathen customers. A Christian working man would find it 
 hard to get a job. Tertullian gives us a vivid picture of the 
 unpopularity which Christians had to face. good man,^ 
 
 says one, Ms Gains Seius, only that he is a Christian.^ So 
 another, ^ I am astonished that a wise man like Lucius should 
 have suddenly become a Christian.’ ” 
 
 § 2. A Wife who Became a Christian Against Her 
 Husband’s Wish. 
 
 The Christian had a particularly hard problem to face if the 
 other members of his own family were not Christians. In such 
 a case, the words of Jesus were literally fulfilled; came to 
 set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter 
 against her mother — and a man’s foes shall be they of his own 
 household.” 
 
 In the writings of Justin Martyr there is a story of a certain 
 married couple who lived in the city of Rome, about 150 a.d. 
 The wife was a Christian and the husband a heathen. For con- 
 venience sake, let us name them Lucia, and Julian. At the 
 time of their marriage, neither of them was a Christian. They 
 had money, and their lives were selfish and intemperate. Later 
 on, Lucia became acquainted with a Christian teacher named 
 Ptolemaus, and through his influence was converted to Chris- 
 tianity. When, however, she tried to win her husband to her 
 new Master, he only ridiculed and abused her. 
 
 § 3. A Hard Fight Against Heathen Influences. 
 
 Henceforth her experiences became harder and harder to 
 bear. From other Christian writers we know what she must 
 have suffered. Every day, she was compelled to clash with her 
 husband in regard to some matter of personal conduct or of 
 household arrangements. He wished her to go with him as 
 usual to the theatres. But there were no plays in those days, 
 fit for a Christian to see. He wished her to go with him to 
 heathen banquets, but these banquets were intemperate and li- 
 centious, and of course she could not attend them. She, on her 
 
24 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 part, wished to go to the meetings of the Christians, especially 
 the Sunday services; in fact, she tried to observe Sunday as the 
 Lord’s Day, a day of worship, and to some extent, a day of 
 rest. Her husband, however, would do his best to keep her 
 from the meetings. When she went out to visit the sick and 
 the poor among her fellow Christians, he reviled her for enter- 
 ing the houses of “low-down freedmen and laborers.” There 
 was a family shrine in the dining room and at each meal, the 
 husband would offer a portion of the food to the household god, 
 but how could a Christian eat food which had been consecrated 
 to an idol before her very eyes? Yet how could she avoid it, 
 if she were not to starve? In their pathetic distress, many of 
 the Christians found a way out of this difficulty by bringing 
 home tiny portions of the bread from the Lord’s Supper. They 
 hoped that by eating this sacred bread, the rest of the food on 
 the table would be cleansed from the pollution of idolatry. 
 The heathen husband, however, would sooner or later notice 
 his wife secretly eating her tiny crumb of special bread, and 
 would suspect her of practising magic in order to invoke a 
 curse on the family meal. 
 
 § 4. What It Cost to be True to Christ. 
 
 Thus this man Julian grew more angry and abusive day by 
 day, while Lucia grew more and more discouraged. She began 
 to fear that with such a husband she could not continue much 
 longer to live the Christian life. It occurred to her that she 
 might leave him, but her friends urged her not to do this. 
 “Perhaps even yet you can win him to Christ” they said. In 
 the midst of her perplexity, however, the man went away for 
 some weeks, on a business trip to Alexandria. During his 
 absence, Lucia gathered up a few belongings and went away 
 to the home of a Christian friend in another part of the city. 
 When Julian returned and found that his wife had left him he 
 was furious. He went immediately to a prefect, named Ur- 
 bicus, and laid charges against her as being a Christian, and also 
 against her teacher Ptolemaus. Lucia, apparently, had in- 
 fluence with the emperor, perhaps through aristocratic relatives, 
 and the charges against her were not pressed, at least not at 
 
Junior — Lesson Five 
 
 25 
 
 that time. But Ptolemaus, and two others who were asso- 
 ciated with him, were condemned and put to death as Christians. 
 Thus we see that to a Christian of those early days, the heathen 
 life around him was like some monstrous octopus, whose num- 
 erous tentacles or arms reached out to draw him back again to 
 the old heathen sins. Very often the only escape was death. 
 These people, however, were true followers of Him who said, 
 ‘Hf thy right eye cause thee to stumble, pluck it out,^^ and ^Tf 
 any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take 
 up his cross. 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. ^^At each meal, the husband would offer a portion of the 
 food to the household god.^^ In view of the fact that an ^Tdol 
 is nothing,^’ was there any good reason why the Christian wife 
 could not join in the meal? 
 
 2. In what other matters besides idolatry did the Christians 
 come into conflict with heathen customs? 
 
 3. What sacrifices and dangers did Lucia encounter in leav- 
 ing her husband? 
 
 4. Was it right for her to leave him? 
 
 5. Mention some modern custom in which a Christian 
 should not join. 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. Mention six occasions in the course of the day when an 
 early Christian would have had to make himself conspicuous 
 by his peculiar conduct. 
 
26 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 2. Tell the story of the woman whom we have called Lucia. 
 
 (а) What sort of a life had she and her husband lived before 
 she became a Christian? 
 
 (б) How did her husband treat her after she became a 
 Christian? 
 
 (c) Why did she not leave him at once? 
 
 id) What was the result, when she finally did leave him? 
 
 LESSON 6. 
 
 HOW EVEN THE WEAK WERE STRONG ENOUGH TO 
 DIE FOR CHRIST. 
 
 § 1. Perpetua of Carthage, a Brave and Beautiful 
 Christian Woman. 
 
 One of the most thrilling stories of early Christian heroism is 
 that of the persecution which broke out in the year 202 a.d., 
 in the city of Carthage. Among those who were arrested and 
 thrown into the dungeon was a beautiful young woman named 
 Vivia Perpetua. She was of aristocratic family and well edu- 
 cated. Her brother was also a Christian, and possibly other 
 members of her family. Her father, however, was still a 
 heathen in religion. At the time of her arrest she was twenty- 
 two years of age. She was married and had a little baby boy. 
 It is possible that her husband was a Christian and that he 
 shared her fate. 
 
 § 2. Thrown into a Dark Dungeon for the Sake 
 OF Christ. 
 
 In the account of this persecution (written by one of the mem- 
 bers of the church at Carthage), there are several extracts 
 from the diary which Perpetua herself kept after her arrest. 
 She tells a pathetic story of her experiences; how frightened 
 she was when the rough soldiers seized her; how she shuddered 
 
Junior — Lesson Six 
 
 27 
 
 when they thrust her down into the dark dungeon; and, worst 
 of all, how she was torn with anxiety for her little baby, who had 
 not yet been weaned, and who was now deprived of his mother. 
 Two fellow Christians helped her, however, in her trouble. 
 The ''blessed deacons, Tertius and Pomponius,'' who had not 
 yet been arrested, gave a fee to the jailor and the Christians 
 in the dungeon were all brought up into " a pleasanter part of 
 the prison.’’ Here her mother came with the baby, and per- 
 mission was granted that it might stay, for a time at least, 
 with its mother in the prison. 
 
 § 3. The Tears of an Aged Father. 
 
 Before the day of the trial, Perpetua’s aged father came to 
 see her many times and kept begging her to give up this new 
 religion. The poor white-haired old man was almost crazed 
 with grief and anxiety. Perpetua had been his darling. He 
 thought of the times when, as a little girl, he had held her in his 
 arms, and how she had grown to beautiful maidenhood and 
 womanhood, and then he thought of the leopards and the other 
 fierce beasts in the arena, among which she was to be thrown, 
 and it nearly drove him mad. With haggard face and blood- 
 shot eyes he knelt at her feet in the prison, and covered her 
 hands with kisses. "Pity me, daughter,” he begged, "pity 
 your mother. Think of your little son, who is not yet weaned 
 and will die if you are taken from him.” Perpetua was "grieved 
 over the gray hairs of her father,” and tried to comfort him. 
 But one thing she could not do, even for her father; she could 
 not swerve from her loyalty to Christ. 
 
 § 4. The Trial Before the Procurator. 
 
 A few days later, with the other Christian prisoners, she was 
 taken to the town hall, to be tried before the procurator, Hil- 
 arianus. This officer was seated on a platform. Close by 
 there was an image of the emperor, and beside it was an altar 
 on which a fire was burning. On a stand was a box of incense 
 powder. At the foot of the steps leading to the platform was 
 Perpetua’s father with his little grandson in his arms; and as 
 his daughter mounted the steps, he begged her once more to 
 
28 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 pity the little child, and sacrifice to the emperor. But she 
 could only shake her head. When her turn came to be exam- 
 ined, the procurator said to her, ^^Just take a pinch of 
 this incense here, and throw it into the flames in honor of 
 Caesar and I will set you free. What harm can there be in throw- 
 ing a pinch of powder into the fire?’^ But Perpetua answered, 
 ^^No, I cannot.’’ In anger, the procurator gave orders that 
 her father should be seized and beaten with rods before her eyes, 
 as though to punish him for having so obstinate and wicked a 
 
 Showing the raised platform on which the judge sat, with lictors carrying the fasces, 
 the emblem of authority, on either side. These basilicas, which were the largest Roman 
 halls of meeting, are said to have been copied by the early Christians for their churches, 
 many of which are still called basilicas. 
 
 daughter. So Perpetua must needs look on in helpless agony, 
 while her own father writhed beneath the lash, knowing all the 
 time she had only to throw a little of that incense on the altar, 
 in worship of Csesar, and his sufferings would cease. But 
 though her heart might break, she could not deny Christ. 
 She remembered His words, Every one therefore who shall 
 confess me before men, him will I confess before my Father who 
 is in Heaven.” 
 
 § 5. Butchered to Make a Roman Holiday. 
 
 So at last, sentence was pronounced. Perpetua and her com- 
 panions were to be thrown to the wild beasts in the amphi- 
 theatre, on the birthday of the emperor’s son, Geta Csesar. 
 Meanwhile they were taken back to the dungeon; nor was 
 Perpetua’s baby brought to her again. When the day came for 
 
From National Geographic Magazine, Washington, D. C. Copyright, 1911 
 
 THE ROMAN ARENA, CARTHAGE 
 Cross shows where Christian martyrs were thrown to wild beasts, 202 A. D 
 
Junior — Lesson Six 
 
 29 
 
 the execution, the prisoners were sent out one by one, or in 
 small groups. Among the first was a young man named 
 Saturus, a friend of Perpetua. A leopard was loosed upon him 
 and blood streamed over his body^ wounded by the savage 
 teeth and claws. As he lay fainting on the sand, somebody 
 in the crowd shouted, washed and saved,’’ referring to the 
 belief of the Christians that their sins were washed away 
 through the blood of Christ. The great assemblage of specta- 
 tors caught up the mocking cry, and shouted in derision, 
 
 Washed and saved^ washed and saved.” Perpetua and a 
 young slave girl named Felicitas were exposed to the attack of a 
 fierce cow. They were tossed and trampled and badly hurt, 
 but were not killed. So at last, with a little group of others 
 who were still alive, they were brought out to be killed with a 
 sword. When the young gladiator came to Perpetua, he 
 hesitated. He was hardened to deeds of blood, but at the sight 
 of her youth and beauty and innocence, his hand trembled. 
 So Perpetua herself guided his wavering sword to her throat. 
 
 §6. “The Blood of the Christians is the Seed of 
 THE Church.” 
 
 The Christian writer Tertullian was living in Carthage at 
 this very time. He may have been thinking of Perpetua, 
 when he wrote the last paragraph of his famous defence of 
 Christianity: “Go zealously on, good rulers. You will stand 
 higher with the people, if you shed the blood of Christians; 
 crucify us, rack us, crush us, stamp us under foot. The more 
 ingenious your cruelty, the more numerous we are. The more 
 you mow us down, the faster we grow. The blood of Christians 
 is the seed of the church.” 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. What do you think was the hardest part of the experience 
 for Perpetua to endure? 
 
 2. What do you think was the effect of her heroic death on 
 her fellow-Christians? 
 
30 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 3. What was probably its effect on the non-Christians in 
 Carthage? 
 
 4. How may we to-day confess Christ before men? 
 
 5. In what ways does it help the cause of Christ, to declare 
 oneself His disciple? 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. In what city did Perpetua live? 
 
 2. In what year was she put to death? 
 
 3. How old was she at the time? 
 
 4. What members of her family were Christians? 
 
 5. When she was brought before the Roman procurator, 
 how might she have gained her freedom? 
 
 6. What efforts were made to influence her to renounce 
 Christ? 
 
 7. Where and how was she put to death? 
 
THE CHRISTIAN MARTYRS 
 From a painting by Frances Leon Benouville 
 

 
 
 
Junior — Lesson Seven 
 
 31 
 
 LESSON 7. 
 
 CHRISTIAN LEADERS WHO WERE FAITHFUL UNTO 
 
 DEATH. 
 
 § 1. The Special ^Perils Faced by Christian Leaders. 
 
 If it was dangerous to be a Christian in the Roman empire, 
 how much more dangerous it must have been to be a Christian 
 leader. In any time of persecution, the leaders, the prominent 
 men, would be among the first victims. To realize how danger- 
 ous their position was, glance at the list of the Christian writers, 
 on page 62. Notice how few of them escaped martyrdom. 
 In this lesson we shall learn something regarding the lives of two 
 of these leaders, namely. Polycarp and Justin. 
 
 § 2. The Early Life of Polycarp. 
 
 Polycarp was a bishop in the church at Smyrna. Tradition 
 says that when he was a boy, he was offered for sale in a slave 
 market in Smyrna, and was purchased by a Christian woman, 
 named Callisto, and brought up as her own son. At any rate, 
 as he grew older, he won the love and respect of his fellow 
 Christians in that city because of his enthusiasm and wisdom 
 and became their leader. 
 
 § 3. The Christians in Smyrna Persecuted. 
 
 He was an old man at the time of the outbreak against the 
 Christians which cost his life. (This probably occurred in the 
 year 155 a.d.) At first he yielded to the entreaties of his friends 
 and took refuge in a farmhouse a few miles from Smyrna. 
 The authorities arrested as many of the other Christians as they 
 could find, and put to death eleven of them in the city arena, in 
 the presence of a. great crowd, after first torturing them in order 
 to compel them to deny Christ. With only one exception, they 
 all remained faithful to the last. Then the mob became exasper- 
 ated: ^‘Away with the atheists,’’ they shouted. Let Poly- 
 carp be sought out.” They knew that Poly carp was the leader. 
 So the soldiers found out where he was staying. As they were 
 approaching the farmhouse he was warned, and took refuge 
 in another house near by, so the soldiers seized a poor slave boy 
 
32 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 and tortured him, until he confessed where the old man was 
 hiding. Polycarp would flee no further, and as evening drew 
 on, the soldiers found him and brought him back to the city. 
 The next day, some of the leading officials of Smyrna came and 
 begged him to yield. ^^What harm is there,’^ they said to him, 
 ^Tn sacriflcing to Lord Caesar.’^ But he only replied, shall 
 not do as you advise me.^^ 
 
 § 4. The Death of Polycarp. 
 
 In the arena, also, the proconsul tried to persuade him to deny 
 Christ. We do not wish to slay an old man like you,’^ he said. 
 
 Swear by the fortune of Caesar, and say, ^^Away with the 
 Atheists.’ ” In reply. Poly carp turned and pointed to the mob, 
 and said, ^^Away with the Atheists.” Then the proconsul said 
 once more, ^^Only swear, and reproach Christ, and I will set 
 you free.” Polycarp answered, Eighty-six years have I served 
 Him, and He has done me no wrong. How then can I blas- 
 pheme my King and my Saviour?” When at last they saw that 
 neither threats nor arguments would move him, they gathered 
 a great pile of wood, and bound him to a stake in the center of 
 it. The fire was kindled and blazed up, fanned by the wind. 
 Owing to the direction of the wind, the flame arched itself above 
 him, and did not immediately envelop him with the full fury 
 of the heat. One of the soldiers, perhaps in pity, ended his 
 sufferings with a sword thrust. Then the body was burned. 
 Some of the bones were gathered up by the Christians as sacred 
 relics, and the annual anniversary of his martyrdom was ob- 
 served for many years by the Christians in Asia Minor. 
 
 § 5. A Man who Defended His Fellow Christians. 
 
 In the early church there were not many persons who were 
 sufficiently well educated to write books. So except through ^ 
 private conversations, the Christiains could not defend them- 
 selves against the false and wicked slanders which were cir- 
 culated about them. They greatly needed the help of men of 
 special ability and learning, and, we may add, of special cour- 
 age also. For if it was not safe to be even a humble unknown 
 Christian, much less a bishop like Polycarp, how much courage 
 
Junior — Lesson Seven 
 
 33 
 
 it must have required to publish books defending Christianity. 
 One of the first of these brave men who wrote apologies/’ 
 that is defences of Christianity, was Justin, commonly known, 
 from the manner of his death, as Justin Martyr. 
 
 § 6. The Conversion and Writings of Justin. 
 
 He was born in the province of Samaria. In his youth^ he 
 went to Ephesus and studied with Greek teachers, in that city. 
 During these student days, he formed the habit of going for 
 walks in the country, along the seashore. Here one day he met 
 a certain venerable man, who told him about the teachings of 
 Jesus. Justin was deeply impressed. It seemed to him that 
 Jesus was the Great Teacher, greater than Plato, or any of the 
 other philosophers whom he had studied. So he became a 
 Christian. In the course of his life he wrote many books ex- 
 plaining Christianity and defending it against false statements. 
 For example, in reply to the charge that the Christians were 
 atheists, he answered, of course, that they indeed refused to 
 worship the false gods of the heathen, but that they did worship 
 the true God, and were seeking to persuade all other men to 
 worship Him. In reply to the dreadful slander that the Chris- 
 tians slew little babies and devoured them at their feasts, 
 Justin retorted that it was rather the heathen Greeks and Rom- 
 ans who should be charged with such crimes as these. For it 
 was a common practice among them to abandon new born 
 children in the streets, either to perish, or to be picked up and 
 raised as slaves. The Christians, however, taught that this 
 practice was cruel and wicked. On the other hand, Justin told 
 of the pure and holy teachings of Jesus, which the Christians 
 tried to obey. He also pointed out that many of the Greek 
 philosophers had taught doctrines very similar to the doctrines 
 of the Christians. For example, they had ridiculed idolatry, 
 saying that men ought not to worship the works of their hands, 
 “for the workman is greater than his work.” Justin explained 
 in a very wise and beautiful way these similarities between the 
 Christian teachings and those of the great writers of the Greeks. 
 He said that the spirit of Christ had been in the hearts of men 
 in every race, long before Jesus lived. 
 
34 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 § 7. The Death of Justin. 
 
 In the latter part of his life, Justin went to Rome. He was in 
 that city, when the Christian teacher Ptolemaus was put to 
 death, at the instigation of the heathen husband whose wife 
 (“Luciano had become a Christian. (See Lesson 5.) Justin 
 published a book protesting fearlessly against this injustice, 
 and addressed it to the emperor. “I too,'' he writes in this 
 book, ^'expect to be plotted against and fixed to the stake by 
 some of those whom I have mentioned." Very likely he was 
 thinking of the heathen husband and his friends. At any rate 
 he was brought before a prefect named Rusticus, with six other 
 Christians whose teacher he had been, ^^in his room above a 
 certain Martinus." As none of them would renounce Christ; 
 they were scourged, and then led away and beheaded (165 a.d.). 
 
 Thus we see that the front rank of the Lord's army in those 
 days was no place for cowards. These men were not cowards. 
 In death, as in life, they were true leaders inspiring their fol- 
 lowers to be loyal to the Master, ^^even unto death." 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. What facts in the story of Polycarp show that he was a 
 man of considerable influence among the heathen, as well as 
 the Christians, in Smyrna? 
 
 2. What sentence shows the ruling motive in the life of 
 Polycarp? 
 
 3. How was Justin well fitted by his early education to ex- 
 plain and defend Christianity? 
 
 4. Which of Justin’s arguments probably had the greatest 
 influence on heathen readers? 
 
Junior — Lesson Seven 
 
 35 
 
 5. Why did not Polycarp flee entirely from Smyrna, and 
 Justin from Rome, during periods of specially severe persecu- 
 tion? 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. In what city did Polycarp live? 
 
 2. Where did he hide when persecution broke out against the 
 Christians? 
 
 3. What led the people to shout, ^^Let Polycarp be sought 
 ouU’? 
 
 4. What efforts were made to persuade him to renounce 
 Christ? 
 
 5. What was his answer to the proconsul? 
 
 6. How was he put to death? 
 
 7. Where was Justin born, and how and where was he edu- 
 cated, in his youth? 
 
 8. What arguments did he use in his books to defend 
 Christianity? 
 
36 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 9. What did he say to the Roman emperor regarding the per- 
 secution of the Christian woman Lucia/’ and her teacher, 
 Ptolemaus? 
 
 10. How was Justin put to death? 
 
 LESSON 8. 
 
 A ROMAN EMPEROR WHO BECAME A CHRISTIAN. 
 
 § 1. The Last of the Persecutions. 
 
 The last and most terrible persecution which the Christians 
 suffered at the hands of the Roman government was that under 
 the Emperor Diocletian, beginning about 300 a.d., and lasting 
 about ten years. (See Lesson 1.) Even while this persecution 
 was going on, a young prince named Constantine was being 
 secretly trained as a Christian by his Christian mother, Helena. 
 Some two years after the persecution ceased Constantine was 
 encamped with an army not far from the city of Rome. Across 
 a river lay another army, with a rival prince, named Maxentius. 
 The winner of the battle, which was to be fought the next day, 
 would be the ruler of the Roman empire. 
 
 § 2. Roman Legions Fighting Under a New Standard. 
 
 As Constantine slept in his tent that night he dreamed that 
 he saw in the sky a shining cross, and above it, this motto: 
 
 hoc signo vinces” (^^Through this sign, conquer.”) The 
 next morning he caused a banner to be prepared, called the 
 Labarum, bearing the sign of the cross, and a monogram stand- 
 ing for the word Christ. With this banner he led his army to 
 the battle and, winning the victory of Milvian Bridge, became 
 the Roman Emperor. Shortly afterward he issued an edict 
 permitting all persons to choose whatever religion they might 
 
THE ARCH OF CONSTANTINE, ROME 
 

Junior — Lesson Eight 
 
 37 
 
 prefer. Later, he even published a general exhortation, urg- 
 ing all his subjects to become Christians. Thus the crucified 
 Carpenter of Nazareth had conquered, outwardly at least, 
 the great empire which had so mercilessly persecuted His 
 followers. 
 
 § 3. The Genuine Triumphs of the Man of Galilee. 
 
 Was this a real triumph over the hearts of men, or was it in 
 part a mere matter of outward profession? In answer it should 
 be said that Constantine himself was probably a sincere Chris- 
 tian. He may indeed have been influenced somewhat by the 
 desire to get political advantages. Moreover, in personal 
 character, he had many faults. But he certainly made many 
 laws which really embodied the Christian spirit. Crucifixion 
 as a punishment was abolished. Criminals were no longer 
 branded on the forehead; the reason given for this law was that 
 God had created the human countenance in His own image, 
 and it was sinful to disfigure it. The abandonment of new- 
 born babies was prohibited. Courts and government offices 
 were closed on Sunday. The bloody gladiatorial combats, 
 against which all the Christian leaders had protested, were 
 indeed kept up, but Constantine decreed that criminals should 
 no longer be put to death in this way. After about seventy- 
 five years the Christian spirit triumphed over all kinds of 
 gladiatori^ combats. This came about as follows: A combat, 
 between hired gladiators was being exhibited as usual, in the 
 Coliseum at Rome, when an aged Christian named Telemachus 
 leaped into the arena and separated the gladiators. The blood- 
 thirsty mob of spectators, angry that their sport had been inter- 
 rupted, rushed upon the old man and literally tore him to pieces. 
 The brutal deed seemed to awaken the conscience of the people, 
 and these combats were abolished. Thus we see that Christian- 
 ity had indeed become a mighty force for good in the lives of 
 men. The world had actually been lifted somewhat nearer 
 the Christian standard. 
 
 § 4. The Temptations of Prosperity. 
 
 On the other hand, the conversion of Constantine brought 
 the Christians a new temptation. They had endured persecu- 
 
38 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 tion with heroic faithfulness; could they stand the test of pros- 
 perity? The temptation was all the more severe, because 
 Constantine gave much money and land to the church, and his 
 example was followed by his successors, who hoped in this way 
 to buy the moral support of the Christian bishops. It was 
 natural, under such conditions, that many persons should pro- 
 fess themselves Christians, just because it was easy and popular. 
 Great numbers thronged into the church for wholly selfish 
 reasons, and lived thoroughly evil lives. Moreover, even the 
 best of the Christians failed in many ways to understand the 
 real spirit of Christianity. 
 
 § 5. The Mistake of the Monks. 
 
 One of the worst mistakes was the idea that Christians 
 should if possible get away from the evils of the world and live 
 in monasteries. Jesus, we are sure, would have told them to 
 go back into the midst of the world with all its evils, and try to 
 cure them. In the century following Constantine, however, 
 hundreds of monasteries and convents were built, and great 
 numbers of the noblest Christians in the churches renounced 
 the comforts and joys of home life and became monks or nuns. 
 They spent their lives in hardship and self-denial. They slept 
 on stone beds; tortured themselves with hair shirts; and lacerated 
 their backs with scourges; some lived in lonely cayes on the 
 sides of steep cliffs; all in the mistaken belief that by such 
 means the soul could be purified. We cannot but admire their 
 courage, but after all, their religion was partly selfish. In- 
 stead of seeking first of all the kingdom of God, in order that 
 God’s will might be done on earth as it is in heaven, each one 
 of them was seeking to gain for his own soul the joys of a future 
 life. Intent on this narrow purpose, it is not surprising that 
 they were careless of the needs of the world outside of their 
 monasteries. 
 
 § 6. Men who Rebuked Worldliness. 
 
 There were indeed certain men who protested against the 
 tendency towards worldliness in the church and against the evils 
 which they saw around them. Such a man was John Chry- 
 
Junior — Lesson Eight 
 
 39 
 
 sostom, the great preacher of Constantinople, of whom some day 
 you will read. Such a man was the Christian writer Salvian. 
 ^'Some one may urge,” says Salvian, “that the times are quite 
 changed, and that it is not expected now that we should undergo 
 for Christ's sake what the apostles suffered. That is very true. 
 For the governors are not now pagans, nor persecuting tyrants; 
 the blood of the saints is not now poured out, nor is our faith 
 tried by torture. Therefore,” he adds, “ since princes are now 
 become Christians, and there is no such thing as persecution, 
 and religion is not disturbed, we who are not compelled to 
 bear more severe trials, ought at least to please God by all 
 manner of lesser duties. And he who readily discharges these 
 lesser duties would probably perform the greater also, if he 
 should be called upon.” It was chiefly through such men as 
 these that the true Christian spirit was kept alive in the midst 
 of the temptations and trials and perplexities of that trying age. 
 In the remaining lessons of this course, we shall see what prob- 
 lems they had to face, and with what success they solved them. 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. Resolved: That Constantine was a sincere Christian. 
 Choose the affirmative or the negative side of this question, and 
 briefly state your reasons. 
 
 2. What statement in section 4 helps to explain the sudden 
 increase in the number of monks and nuns, described in sec- 
 tion 5? 
 
 3. What is the good element in the life of a monk or a nun? 
 
 4. Mention some opportunities for self-denial which come 
 to us to-day. 
 
40 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 5. What sentence in section 6 applies with special force to 
 our lives to-day? 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. About how much time elapsed between the beginning of 
 the persecution of Diocletian, and the Edict of Toleration, 
 issued by Constantine? 
 
 2. Describe the dream or vision which led to Constantine’s 
 conversion. 
 
 3. Mention some laws enacted by Constantine which showed 
 the influence of Christianity. 
 
 4. Tell how gladiatorial combats were abolished. 
 
 5. What new temptations did the reign of Constantine bring 
 to the Christians? 
 
 6. What mistaken idea of Christianity did many sincere 
 Christians have? 
 
 7. Mention two men who protested against worldliness in 
 the church. 
 
Junior — Lesson Nine 
 
 41 
 
 LESSON 9. 
 
 A GREAT EMPIRE CONQUERED BY BARBARIANS. 
 
 § 1. Keeping Back the Floods. 
 
 During all the centuries of which we have been studying, the 
 shadow of a great fear hung over the Roman empire. Beyond 
 its frontiers, but pressing against it on all sides, as the sea 
 presses against the dykes in Holland, were the barbarians. 
 Especially dreaded were the Germans and the Goths. These 
 tribes were then at about the same stage of civilization as the 
 American Indians when America was discovered. They lived 
 in rude huts, wore garments of skins, and obtained their food 
 chiefly by hunting and fishing. They were never conquered 
 by the Romans, although they were driven back again and 
 again to their homes in the forests of the north. 
 
 § 2. Will Christianity Save the Empire? 
 
 As time went on, however, and especially in the century fol- 
 lowing Constantine (from 300 to 400 a.d.), it seemed more and 
 more difficult to repulse them. Bands of Franks and Goths 
 kept breaking past the military forts along the Rhine and the 
 Danube, to plunder the rich cities beyond. This was the very 
 century when Christianity became the official religion of the 
 empire. One might naturally suppose that through the in- 
 fluence of Christianity, the nation would be stronger, and better 
 able to solve its problems. The actual course of events, however, 
 is well illustrated by the following incident, the main facts of 
 which are told by Salvian: 
 
 § 3. A Poor Immigrant, and His Rich Roman Neighbor. 
 
 About 425 A.D., there lived in the province of Gaul, near the 
 city of Marseilles, a certain poor farmer whom we will call 
 Ursus. His father had come down from Germany, and had 
 adopted the customs of the Romans. The farm was a small 
 one; nevertheless, for a long time Ursus had managed to sup- 
 port himself. As the years passed, however, he found himself 
 poorer and poorer. The governor of the province lived in a 
 palace, and wasted much money in extravagant luxuries, while 
 poor farmers like Ursus were forced to pay very high taxes. 
 
42 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 Finally, one year, Ursus’ wife fell sick. In order to secure 
 money to pay for medicine, Ursus went to a rich neighbor of his, 
 whom we will call Demas. ^'Lend me a little money, he said, 
 ''and you will save my wife.'' Now Ursus and Demas were 
 both members of a Christian church in Marseilles. As Demas 
 gave liberally to the church, and was highly spoken of as a de- 
 vout man, Ursus naturally hoped that he would treat him 
 kindly, as a brother Christian, as well as a neighbor. "Cer- 
 tainly" said Demas, " I will lend you money . Only sign this 
 agreement and I will let you have what you need." When 
 Ursus read the agreement, he found that it would require him 
 to pay a very high rate of interest every month, or else forfeit 
 his little farm. It was a hard bargain; nevertheless, the poor 
 man was in desperate need of the money. He loved his wife 
 dearly, and his heart was heavy. So at last he signed the paper. 
 
 § 4. Driven from Home 
 
 Six months later, the day came which Demas had been waiting 
 for. Ursus had no money to pay the interest, and he received 
 notice to move out of his home, with his wife and babies, and 
 all their possessions. Where could they go? What could they 
 do? In his distress, Ursus thought of the pastor of his church 
 who was none other than Salvian. Going to the pastor's house, 
 Ursus begged for help. "Will you not go to Demas," he said 
 when he had told him the circumstances, "and intercede for 
 me?" "Indeed I will," replied Salvian, for he was a just man 
 and a true Christian. 
 
 § 5. A Champion of Justice Repulsed. 
 
 At the earliest possible moment, therefore, Salvian went to 
 the fine house where Demas lived. "Why do you devour this 
 poor man's possessions?" he demanded. "Have you no mercy? 
 Do you not know that he has nothing else wherewith to keep 
 himself and his little ones from starving? I pray you do not 
 rob him of his home." In spite of Salvian's rebuke, however, 
 Demas did not seem in the least ashamed of himself. On the 
 contrary, he glared at the pastor, as though he had presumed 
 to ask a favor. "Do you mean that barbarian Ursus?" Demas 
 
Junior — Lesson Nine 
 
 43 
 
 said. ^^Well, I cannot grant your request.’’ ^^Why not?\ 
 asked Salvian. Those barbarians are ruining the country/’ 
 replied Demas; “and I have sworn by Christ, to take away 
 from this man everything which he possesses. Pray, is it 
 lawful for me to leave undone, what I have sworn by that Holy 
 Name to do?” When Salvian heard this astonishing piece of 
 hypocrisy and impudence, he was speechless with anger.* Turn- 
 ing on his heel, he walked away without a word. “What could 
 I say,” he asks in his story of the incident, “having heard the 
 reason of so religious a piece of villainy?” Sad at heart, he 
 could only go to Ursus and confess that he had failed. The 
 little family was driven out from their home to beg or starve. 
 
 § 6. A Harvest of Disaster. 
 
 The next year a horseman came riding posthaste into Mar- 
 seilles. “The Goths are coming ” he cried. “They have cros- 
 sed the Alps, and a large band of them is marching towards this 
 city.” At this news, the governor and his rich nobles bestirred 
 themselves. “We must gather an army,” they said; and 
 Demas was appointed among others to organize a company of 
 soldiers. Demas thought of Ursus. That fellow would make a 
 good soldier. No doubt he would know of others. But where 
 was Ursus? Where did he live, since that little trouble about 
 the farm? Alas, Ursus was nowhere to be found. Afterwards, 
 it was discovered that he had gone over to the Goths. In fact, a 
 great many native Romans who, like Ursus, had been unjustly 
 treated, had followed his example. When the Goths came, they 
 burned Marseilles to the ground, after helping themselves to 
 whatever they wanted, in the houses of Demas and his friends. 
 A part of the invaders moved on to burn and plunder elsewhere. 
 Others settled down in the neighborhood, and made it their 
 permanent home. For centuries, however, the city lay for the 
 most part in ruins. Of all its buildings, only the church had 
 been spared. The people lived in huts and hovels. 
 
 § 7. The Beginning of the Dark Ages. 
 
 Such events as these were taking place all over the empire. 
 The old Roman civilization was being destroyed. Christianity 
 
44 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 had failed to cure it of corruption and injustice. The centuries 
 from this period until about 1000 a.d., are known in history as 
 the Dark Ages. Imagine New York and London and Chicago 
 lying for the most part in ruins; the grass growing on the rail- 
 road tracks; the government destroyed; the doors of the school- 
 houses closed; not one person in a thousand ever learning to 
 read and write; no protection for property, and no man^s life 
 ever safe; thus we may, perhaps, understand what befell the 
 world when the old Roman civilization was broken up, and the 
 Dark Ages set in. Had there been more Christian leaders 
 like Salvian, this might never have happened. The strength 
 of the nation would not have been weakened by injustice to- 
 ward the poor. But alas too many of the Christians were 
 like Demas. Others, as we have seen, were shut away in 
 monasteries trying to save their own souls instead of trying 
 to help their country. Nevertheless, loyalty to Christ had by 
 no means died out altogether. We shall see in a later lesson 
 that although the Roman empire passed away, Christianity 
 lived on. In fact, the Christian church was in a measure puri- 
 fied by the disasters and trials which she encountered during 
 these Dark Ages. 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. ^Hn his distress, Ursus thought of Salvian the pastor of 
 the church.’’ What had Salvian probably done on previous 
 occasions, to win the friendship and confidence of Ursus? 
 
 2. Those barbarians are ruining the country.” Of the char- 
 acters in this story, what ones were really doing most to ruin 
 the Roman empire? 
 
 3. Suppose Salvian had succeeded in his errand to Demas; 
 suppose Ursus had not been driven from his home; suppose 
 justice had ruled among all the people of Marseilles: what differ- 
 ent outcome might there have been when the Goths came? 
 
Junior — Lesson Nine 
 
 45 
 
 4. How do you think Demas would have answered the ques- 
 tions, ^^What does religion consist in? What must a religious 
 man do?” 
 
 5. How would Salvian have answered this question? 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. What great fear overshadowed the Roman empire in the 
 latter part of its history? 
 
 2. Mention some of the barbarian tribes who invaded the 
 empire. 
 
 3. What kind of people were they? How were they accus- 
 tomed to live? 
 
 4. What injustice was inflicted on the poor immigrant Ursus, 
 by his rich neighbor Demas? 
 
 5. Who protested against this injustice? 
 
 6. What was the excuse of Demas to Salvian. 
 
 7. What was the result of this act of injustice, and others 
 like it, when the savage Goths invaded Marseilles? 
 
46 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 8. What is meant by the Dark Ages? 
 
 9. What caused the decay and ruin of the old Roman civiliza- 
 tion? 
 
 10. Why did not Christianity prevent this decay? 
 
 LESSON 10. 
 
 A CHRISTIAN MOTHER AND HER GREAT SON. 
 MONICA AND AUGUSTINE. 
 
 § 1. The Christian Home. 
 
 One of the greatest blessings which Christ gave to the world 
 was a new reverence for womanhood and a nobler ideal of home 
 life. The homes of the early Christians were happy homes, and 
 in the new atmosphere of Christianity there were many women 
 who distinguished themselves for their character and ability, 
 and who rose to positions of influence. Behold,^’ exclaimed a 
 heathen writer, ^^what women these Christians haveJ’^ These 
 ideals were kept alive all through the Middle Ages, and are 
 among the chief glories of our modern civilization. As an illu- 
 stration of what Christianity meant for womanhood, and for 
 the home, let us turn to the story of Monica and her son Augus- 
 tine. 
 
 § 2. A Boy who Loved His Mother. 
 
 Augustine was born in the village of Tagaste, in North Africa, 
 some twenty years after the death of Constantine (354 a.d.). 
 His father, Patricius, was not a Christian. Nevertheless, he 
 sacrificed his personal comforts to send his son away to school, 
 
Junior — Lesson Ten 
 
 47 
 
 and thus showed himself a good father. Moreover, he became a 
 Christian not long before his death. It was the Christian 
 mother, Monica, however, who wielded the greatest influence 
 in the boy’s life. Her character was strong and beautiful. 
 Augustine tells of her kindness to the poor, and to all in distress. 
 He tells how on a certain stormy se.a voyage, she was the sun- 
 shine of the entire ship’s company, both passengers and crew. 
 Her whole life was like sunshine in dark places. 
 
 § 3. A Boy in Bad Company. 
 
 As a boy, Augustine was like other boys. He was fond of 
 ball-playing, in fact he sometimes played hookey” from school, 
 in order to play ball. Yet he was fond of books too, and shed 
 tears over the sorrows of Dido, the heroine of Virgil’s great 
 story, “The ^Eneid.” As he grew older, he fell in with a gang 
 of boys of his own age; and they led each other into many pranks 
 which would better have been left undone. One night for 
 example, they robbed a neighbor’s pear tree which was loaded 
 with fine pears. Augustine tells us that he could have had even 
 better pears at home; but the other boys kept saying “Let’s 
 go and do it,” and he was ashamed not to join them. One 
 thing led to another, of course, and the boys gradually fell into 
 worse practices. People called them “wild.” Monica indeed, 
 talked to her son about the temptations which boys encounter, 
 and warned him against these wild ways. Augustine loved 
 his mother. Indeed she afterwards testified that she “had 
 never heard a harsh or reproachful word come out of his mouth 
 against her.” Nevertheless, at this time, he thought his moth- 
 er’s words were only “womanish counsels,” and so kept on in 
 his wilful headstrong life. 
 
 § 4. An Ambitious but Selfish Young Man. 
 
 When he was about nineteen years old, his father, at a 
 financial sacrifice, as we have said, sent him to the city of 
 Carthage to study. Here at first, he continued in much the 
 same kind of life as at home. He was very fond of fine clothes 
 and gay times. Nowadays we should have called him “a 
 sport.” In the course of his studies, however, he came upon a 
 great book by the Latin philosopher Cicero, on the search after 
 
48 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 truth. He was deeply impressed and resolved to spend less 
 time in frivolous follies. Only one thing troubled him. ‘‘The 
 name of Christ’’ was not in this book of Cicero. With 
 all his wilfulness, he had not forgotten what he had learned 
 about Jesus, as a child on his mother’s knee. “The name of 
 my Saviour, my tender heart had drunk in even with my moth- 
 er’s milk. And whatever was without that name, however 
 learned, polished or truthful, took not complete hold of me.” 
 From this time on, however, he began to study with more pur- 
 pose, and shortly afterwards returned to Tagaste to be a teacher 
 of rhetoric. He was very successful, not only in his home 
 town, but also in Carthage, whither he went some years later, 
 and finally in Rome itself. His life during this period was not a 
 happy one, however. He had to do many things, as a teacher 
 of rhetoric, of whjch his conscience did not approve. Pupils 
 came to him to learn tricks of speech with which to gain unjust 
 decisions in court. As a rhetorician he was once called upon to 
 deliver an address praising the emperor, who was a bad man. 
 In this speech, says he, “I was to speak many a lie, and lying, 
 was to be applauded by those who knew I lied.” Such tasks 
 as these were distasteful to him. In other ways also, his life 
 was still evil. When he went to Rome, his mother begged him 
 to take her with him, as her husband Patricius was now dead, 
 and she was lonely. She went with him, indeed, as far as the 
 sea; but by a trick, he took ship alone, leaving her weeping on 
 the shore. “I had lied to my mother,” he writes, “and such a 
 mother.” Later on, however, she came to live with him in 
 Italy. 
 
 §5. An Inward Struggle: Shall I Become a Christian? 
 
 When he was about thirty-three years old, he came to the 
 supreme crisis and turning-point in his life. A better position 
 as a teacher was offered him in the city of Milan, in Northern 
 Italy; and he went there with his mother. He had received 
 letters to the bishop of the church in that city, whose name was 
 Ambrose, a good man and a true minister of Christ. Augustine 
 found him exceedingly warm hearted and friendly, and liked 
 him so much that he went to hear him preach. After that he 
 
THE CATHEDRAL, MILAN 
 In this city Augustine was converted 
 
Junior — Lesson Ten 
 
 49 
 
 went to church every Sunday and his heart was deeply touched. 
 His mother Monica, and the good preacher Ambrose, became 
 great friends, and their united influence over the young man 
 grew stronger and stronger. He grew more and more dis- 
 contented with the life he was living, and conscience told him 
 to become a Christian. But there were certain pleasures which 
 he was then enjoying which he felt to be sinful; softly they 
 whispered to him, ^^Canst thou part with us?’’ Could he give 
 them up? Like many a young man at such a time, he kept 
 postponing his decision. ^^Presently, lo presently,” he would 
 say to the voice of God in his heart. Leave me a little 
 while.” ^‘But my ^presently, presently’ had no present, and 
 my 4eave me a little while’ went on for a long while.” One 
 day when his distress was at its worst, he went out into the gar- 
 den, back of his house, with a friend named Alypius, and a 
 little later he left Alypius and went on further into the garden, 
 and flung himself down, weeping, under a fig tree. ^^How 
 long, how long?” he cried. To-morrow, and to-morrow? 
 Why not now? Why is there not this hour, an end to my un- 
 cleanness?” 
 
 § 6. Augustine’s Conversion. 
 
 “I was saying these things,” he writes, ^^and weeping in the 
 most bitter contrition of my heart, when lo, I heard the voice 
 as of a boy or girl, coming from a neighboring house, chanting 
 and oft repeating, ^Take and read, take and read.’ Imme- 
 diately I ceased to weep, and I began to ask myself most ear- 
 nestly whether it were usual for children in any kind of game 
 to sing such words, nor could I remember ever to have heard 
 the like. So I rose up, interpreting it in no other way than as a 
 command to me from heaven to open the^book [that is, the 
 Bible] and to read the first chapter I should light upon. So I 
 returned quickly to the place where Alypius was sitting; for 
 there had I put down the volume of the Apostles. I grasped, 
 opened, and in silence read that paragraph on which my eyes 
 first fell, — ^Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering 
 and wantonness, not in strife and envying; but put ye on the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfil 
 the lusts thereof.’ No further would I read, nor did I need; 
 
e50 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 for instantly, as the sentence ended, by a light as it were of 
 security infused into my heart, — all the gloom of doubt vanished 
 SLWScy” Thus Augustine became a Christian in that garden. 
 
 Almost his first act after his conversion was to go into the 
 house and tell his mother. Her joy we can well imagine. All 
 these years she had been praying for her son, with many tears. 
 She had believed in Christ that before she departed this life 
 she would see him a believer.’’ And now her prayers were 
 answered, and her faith rewarded. The story of Augustine’s 
 latter life may be found in other books. He became one of the 
 greatest leaders in Christian history, and one of the world’s 
 greatest thinkers. It should never be forgotten, however, 
 that there could have been no Saint Augustine, as he is known 
 in history, had it not been for the loving, faithful, tender, 
 influence of the Christian mother, Monica. 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. If Augustine had refused to join the other boys in robbing 
 the pear tree, what would they probably have said? 
 
 2. Where did he get the idea that his mother’s words were 
 only womanish counsels”? 
 
 3. Suppose Augustine’s father had been a Christian as well 
 as his mother, in what way might his life have been different? 
 
 4. Why did not Augustine wish to have his mother live with 
 him in Rome? 
 
 5. Is it probable that Augustine was sometimes influenced 
 by his mother when he did not realize it? When, for example? 
 
Junior — Lesson Ten 
 
 51 
 
 6. How does this story of Augustine^s early life show the 
 providential care of God? 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. Where and when was Augustine born? 
 
 2. Tell what you can about his father. 
 
 3. What kind of a woman was Monica, his mother? 
 
 4. By what forces for evil was Augustine influenced in his 
 boyhood and youth? 
 
 5. By what good influences was he helped? 
 
 6. Tell the story of his conversion, in the garden? 
 
52 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 LESSON 11. 
 
 HOW OUR EUROPEAN ANCESTORS WERE 
 CONVERTED TO CHRIST. 
 
 When the barbarians invaded the Roman empire, the leaders 
 of the Christian churches were aroused to the fact that they 
 had a duty to perform. These northern tribes were worshipers 
 of Woden and Thor, and the other deities of Norse mythology. 
 To them, the ideal life was one of fighting and carousing; and 
 they dreamed of a future Valhalla, after death, where those who 
 fought bravely in this life might conquer their enemies, and 
 drink strong liquor, forever and ever. These idolaters had to 
 be converted to Christ, or Christianity would perish. The pe- 
 riod of the Dark Ages, therefore, with all its darkness, was a 
 time of splendid Christian missionary activity. Unfortunately, 
 few records of this missionary work were kept. Some interest- 
 ing facts, however, have been handed down to us in the old 
 annals. 
 
 § 2. The Bible Translated into Gothic. 
 
 The Goths, who came down into Italy, Southern France and 
 Spain, were converted to Christianity before they left their 
 former home in Eastern Europe. This was accomplished in 
 part through the efforts of a missionary named Wulfila, or 
 Ulfilas (Little Wolf). He invented an alphabet for the Gothic 
 language, and translated the Bible into it. In this translation, 
 he omitted the stories in the Book of Kings, about the bloody 
 wars of the Hebrews, lest they should stir up the warlike pas- 
 sions of the Goths. Who knows how much more cruel and mur- 
 derous they might have been, as they forced their way down 
 into their new homes in Southern and Western Europe, had it 
 not been for the teachings of this brave apostle of the Prince 
 of Peace. 
 
 § 3. Heathen Angleland Becoming Christian England. 
 
 Britain had been partially Christianized while under the rule 
 of the Romans. Later, however, while the Goths and Franks 
 were invading the rest of the empire, the Angles and Saxons 
 came swarming into the British Isles and brought heathenism 
 
Junior — Lesson Eleven 
 
 53 
 
 with them. These newcomers learned of Christianity, as the 
 result of the following incident. Shortly before the year 590 
 A.D. a monk named Gregory was passing a slave-market in 
 Rome, where he saw three fair-haired, handsome boys. ^^Who 
 are these, and where did they come from?’^ he asked. ^^They 
 are Angles,’^ was the answer. Indeed,’^ said Gregory, “they 
 look like angels.’^ Some years later, when he became a bishop 
 of the Roman church, or the Pope, he sent a band of mission- 
 aries to Angleland, or England. The leader of the band was a 
 certain Augustine (not the Augustine of whom we learned in 
 Lesson 10). 
 
 § 4. St. Patrick in Ireland. 
 
 Christianity was carried to Ireland by Patricius or Patrick, 
 whose ancestors had been Christians since the days when the 
 Romans were in Britain. As a boy he was taken captive from 
 Scotland, and sold as a slave in Ireland. For six years he fed 
 cattle for his master. Amidst the hardships of his life, he found 
 comfort in the teachings of Christ, which he remembered from 
 his childhood in a Christian home. Later in life, having es- 
 caped from slavery, he felt himself called of God to go back to 
 Ireland, and tell the heathen tribes there about the Gospel. 
 He was very successful as a missionary. One of his disciples, 
 St. Columba, carried the Gospel to Scotland. In fact, Ireland 
 became a center of missionary work; bands of zealous Irish 
 missionaries went to many parts of Europe. 
 
 § 5. A French Chilftain who Wanted to Avenge the 
 Death of Jesus. 
 
 Christianity became the tribal religion of the Franks (or the 
 French) through the conversion of their king Clovis. He had 
 married a Christian princess named Chlotilda, who came from 
 a tribe further south, and through her had learned something 
 of the Christian religion. Just before a battle with a hostile 
 tribe, he prayed to Jesus Christ for aid, and promised, if his 
 prayers were answered, to be baptized as a Christian. It hap- 
 pened that he did indeed, win the victory, and on the following 
 Christmas Day he was baptized with three thousand of his war- 
 riors. It is plain enough that such a wholesale conversion as 
 
54 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 this was chiefly a matter of outward profession, rather than of 
 inward purpose. Yet these people had begun to learn some- 
 thing of the meaning of Christianity. It is said that when King 
 Clovis first heard the story of the crucifixion of Jesus, he was 
 deeply stirred. Would that I had been there with my Franks,” 
 he said, ^Ho avenge Him.” 
 
 § 6. Cutting Down the Oak Tree of Thor. 
 
 The chief missionary to the Germans w^as an English monk 
 named Winfred, better known as St. Boniface, who established 
 monasteries in many parts of Germany. In the course of his 
 travels he found a certain great oak tree which was sacred to 
 the Thunder-God, Thor. Winfred saw an opportunity to 
 strike a death blow against the old northern heathenism. Hav- 
 ing gathered a great assembly around this oak tree, he appeared 
 on the scene with an axe, and with his own hand felled it to 
 the ground. When the people saw that Thor was unable to 
 defend his tree, they abandoned the old worship, and accepted 
 Christianity. After a long life of active missionary work, 
 Winfred was beheaded by the Frisians, a tribe which at that 
 time was hostile to Christianity. 
 
 § 7. How Winfred Preached to the Germaus. 
 
 Some of Winfred^s missionary sermons have been preserved, 
 and the following extracts show how practical they were: 
 
 These are the commandments which you shall keep and fulfil: 
 to love God with all your heart, all your soul and all your 
 strength, and to love your neighbor as yourselves. Be patient, 
 have mercy, be kind, chaste, pure. Teach your sons to fear 
 God, teach your whole family to do so. Make peace wherever 
 you go, and let him who sits in court give a just verdict, and 
 take no presents, for presents make even a wise man blind. 
 Keep the Sabbath and go to church to pray, but not to prattle. 
 Give alms according to your power, for a^ms extinguish sins, 
 as water does fire. Show hospitality to travelers, visit the sick, 
 take care of widows and orphans, pay your tithes to the church 
 and do to nobody what you would not have done to yourself. 
 Cling to the Lord’s Prayer and the Creed, and teach them to 
 
WINFRED AND HIS FOLLOWERS ON A MISSION TOUR 
 
Junior — Lesson Eleven 
 
 55 
 
 your children. Keep the fast, love what is right, stand up 
 against the devil, and partake from time to time of the Lord’s 
 Supper. Such are the works which God commands you to do 
 and fulfil.” 
 
 § 8. Building a New Christian Civilization. 
 
 Beside these missionaries named above, there were of course 
 hundreds of others, who carried the teachings of the Gospel to 
 all parts of Europe; wherever they went they cut down trees 
 and built monasteries. Each monastery became a kind of 
 Christian school. Here the people in the neighborhood were 
 taught to till the soil and build houses. Here the weak could 
 fiee for refuge from the murderer and the oppressor. Here. law 
 and order prevailed, and men gained some notion of the bles- 
 sings of government. Schools, also, were established, and in 
 each generation, at least a few learned to read and write. 
 Libraries were collected, and copies of the Bible and other 
 ancient writings were preserved — a service for which we in our 
 day can never be too grateful. In short, although the Christian 
 church was unable to preserve the old Roman civilization from 
 corruption, it was itself awakened to a new life by the shock of 
 the barbarian invasions; and the religion of Jesus became one 
 of the chief forces which helped to build a new and grander 
 civilization. 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. Which of the missionaries mentioned in this lesson was per- 
 haps the one who converted your own ancestors to Christ? 
 
 2. How did these missionaries show their courage and faith? 
 
 3. What other reasons besides love for Christ may have in- 
 fluenced some persons among these northern tribes to call 
 themselves Christians? 
 
56 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 4. On the other hand, what facts show that the missionaries 
 exerted a genuine Christian influence upon the moral character 
 of many? 
 
 5. How did Ulfilas help the Roman empire as well as the 
 Goths? 
 
 6. How do foreign missions help our own country, to-day? 
 
 To Sum Up. 
 
 1. Describe the religion of the northern barbarians who 
 conquered Rome. 
 
 2. How was the church compelled to send missionaries to 
 them? 
 
 3. What missionaries are mentioned in this lesson? 
 
 4. In what country did each of them work? 
 
 5. Mention one or two of the precepts of Winfred, as quoted 
 in the extract from his missionary sermons. 
 
 6. What is meant by the sentence, ^^Each monastery became 
 a kind of Christian school ’7 
 
Junior — Lesson Twelve 
 
 57 
 
 LESSON 12. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN CONQUEST OF EUROPE. 
 Review. 
 
 Christianity began as the religion of a little band of disciples 
 of Jesus, in an upper room in Jerusalem. As Jews, they be- 
 longed to a despised race. They were despised and hated even 
 by the leaders of their own race. The Master whom they wor- 
 shiped had been a carpenter, and carpenters were looked down 
 upon, in those days, as peasants. Worse still,SHe had been 
 crucified between two thieves, — executed as a criminal. 
 
 To-day, Christianity is the leading religion of the leading 
 nations of the world. In every city, in every civilized land, 
 Christ is worshiped in great and beautiful churches. Although 
 many un-Christian acts are performed every day, nevertheless, 
 outwardly at least, the name of Christ is everywhere revered; 
 and there are multitudes who sincerely try to be His disciples. 
 
 How has this come about? We have answered this question 
 in the lessons of this course. We have seen that this great 
 victory has been won at the cost of blood and torture and death, 
 on the part of countless humble Christian men and women. 
 Yet we should not close our study with a sense of pity for those 
 early Christians. They were perhaps the happiest people who 
 have ever lived. They were so completely enraptured by the 
 glory of the cause which they served, that they seem scarcely 
 to have felt the pain and suffering which their persecutors 
 sought to inflict. It was this spirit of enthusiasm which con- 
 quered the Roman empire, and the continent of Europe, for 
 the Christian religion. This same spirit, in our hearts, will 
 help each one of us to be a conquering influence for the Christian 
 life. Surely if the Christians could sing for joy, amidst the tor- 
 tures of the arena, that same power of Christ can make us tri- 
 umphant over the petty trials and temptations which come to 
 us day by day. 
 
 ^^When brambles vex me ^ore, and anguish me. 
 
 Then I remember those pale martyr feet. 
 
 That trod on burning shares, and drank the heat, 
 
 As it had been God’s dew, with ecstasy.” 
 
58 
 
 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 Questions and Topics. 
 
 1. Into what three periods may we divide the history which 
 we have been studying in this course? 
 
 2. In which of these periods were the Christians most Christ- 
 like? Explain why?. 
 
 3. How do you explain the fact that in about two and a half 
 centuries, a despised religion of a crucified carpenter became the 
 leading religion of the Roman empire? 
 
 4. How do you explain the fact that when the barbarians 
 conquered Rome, they themselves and all the northern lands 
 from which they came, were conquered by Christianity? 
 
 5. From Jerusalem to Damascus; from Damascus to Antioch; 
 from Antioch, all over the Roman empire; from the Roman 
 empire all over Europe; from Europe to America — how long 
 and how far will this triumphal march of Christianity continue? 
 
 Final ^^Sum Up.’^ 
 
 1. Mention three reasons why the Christians were persecuted 
 in the Roman empire? 
 
 2. When did the Roman government first attack Christianity? 
 
Junior — Lesson Twelve 
 
 69 
 
 3. What was Tragan’s rule regarding the Christians? 
 
 4. Under what emperor were the Christians persecuted most 
 severely? 
 
 5. How did the early Christians show the spirit of brotherly 
 love? 
 
 6. Where did they hold their meetings for worship? 
 
 7. What did they do at these meetings? 
 
 8. How did they win converts to Christ? 
 
 9. To whom did they offer the blessings of the Gospel? 
 Was the Gospel merely for those who were already righteous? 
 
 10. What story is told of a robber chieftain near the city of 
 Smyrna? 
 
 11. By what temptations were the Christians constantly 
 surrounded? 
 
60 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 12. How and when and in what city was Perpetua put to 
 death? 
 
 13. By what act could she have gained her freedom? ' 
 
 14. Tell what you can about the death of Polycarp? of 
 Justin? 
 
 15. With what arguments did Justin, in his writings, defend 
 his fellow Christians, and the Christian religion? 
 
 16. Tell the story of the conversion of Constantine? Was it 
 sincere? 
 
 17. When did this occur? 
 
 18. Why was Rome so easily conquered by the barbarians? 
 
 19. Why did not the Christian religion preserve the old 
 Roman civilization from destruction? 
 
 20. What kind of a man was Salvian? 
 
J unior — Lesson Twelve 
 
 61 
 
 21. Tell the story of Salvian and the poor farmer whom we 
 called Ursus. 
 
 22. Where and when was Augustine born? 
 
 23. What person wielded the strongest influence over his 
 life? 
 
 24. Tell what you know regarding his boyhood and early 
 education. 
 
 25. What profession did he choose? 
 
 26. Mention three other influences, beside Monica^s, that 
 led to his conversion. 
 
 27. Tell the story of his experience in the garden in Milan. 
 
 28. Mention the names of early missionaries to the following 
 countries: England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany? 
 
 29. What is a monastery? How did missionary monasteries 
 build up European civilization? 
 
 30. What is the error in the monastic idea of religion? 
 
62 Witnesses for Christ 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 List of Chukch Fathers Mentioned in these Lessons. 
 
 Ignatius was a bishop of the church in Antioch. He was 
 taken to Rome and put to death as a Christian about 117 a.d. 
 
 Polycarp was a bishop in the church at Smyrna, when Ignatius 
 was put to death. He himself was put to death as a Christian, 
 about 155 A.D. 
 
 Justin Martyr was a younger contemporary of Polycarp. 
 He lived in Ephesus and Rome. He was beheaded about 166 
 
 A.D. 
 
 Tertullian was a Roman lawyer, in the city of Carthage in 
 North Africa. He became a Christian about 190 a.d., when he 
 was about thirty or forty years old. He was not called upon to 
 die for his religion, but died in old age, about 220 a.d. 
 
 Clement of Alexandria was the president of a Christian 
 school in that city, where catechumens, that is, persons who 
 wanted to learn about Christianity, were instructed in its doc- 
 trines. He lived about the same time as Tertullian. 
 
 Origen was a pupil of Clement in his school at Alexandria, and 
 later took Clement’s place as president of the school. He was 
 a man of remarkable learning and genius. About 250 a.d., he 
 was cruelly tortured by the Roman authorities and condemned 
 to be burned as a Christian. Although this sentence was not 
 carried out, he died shortly afterwards, as the result of his 
 injuries. 
 
 Augustine was born in 354 a.d., and died in 430 a.d. Like 
 Tertullian he spent most of his life in North Africa, not far 
 from Carthage. 
 
 Salvian was born in Gaul about 400 a.d. He became a priest 
 in the city of Marseilles. 
 
Christian Life and Conduct 
 
 Christian Life and Conduct is an analysis of the particular Biblical 
 rules and principles which all Christians should undertake to follow. 
 Though our religion is not a set of rules, nevertheless the Christian 
 purpose includes a determination to do certain things and to abstain from 
 others. 
 
 At the age of fourteen there is a tendency in boys and girls to break 
 away from restraint and to resent authority. They are passing rapidly 
 from the period when they follow rules of conduct merely because they 
 have been so trained, to the period when they should follow them of 
 their own desire. They are unwilling to be children any longer. They 
 desire the freedom of men and women, while as yet they do not under- 
 stand the adult point of view. The aim of Christian Life and 
 Conduct is to assist the pupil to make the transition from childish conduct 
 to that of young men and women who desire to live as Christians. 
 
 partial list of topics 
 
 Part I. LIVING ACCORDING TO THE STANDARDS OF LAW 
 
 Here the pupil surveys in a new way the great laws of the Scriptures. 
 Frequent reference is made to our common law which is largely founded 
 upon 'the* Bible. 
 
 2. The Si^ht to Property 5. The Rl^bt to Truth 
 
 3. The Ri{iht to Fair Dealing 7. The Rights of Parents 
 
 4. The Ri^ht to Rest 9. The Rights of the Unprotected 
 
 Part II. LIVING ACCORDING TO THE STANDARDS OF THE 
 PROPHETS AND SAGES 
 
 Here emphasis is laid upon the duty of doing good to others instead of 
 merely refraining from injuring them. The lesson material is from the 
 Old Testament. 
 
 13. Nc^lidence and its Results 16. The Power of the Tondae 
 
 14. The Cultivation of Habits 20. The Brotherhood of Man 
 
 15. The Importance of Self-control 22. False and True Worship 
 
 Part HI. LIVING ACCORDING TO THE STANDARDS OF JESUS 
 
 The course is brought to a culmination by the application of the 
 standards of Jesus to everyday life. The lesson material is from the New 
 Testament. 
 
 25. The Christian and his Leader 31. The Ambition of a Christian 
 
 27. The Christian and his Friends 34. The Life of Faith 
 
 30. The Christian and his Thouilhts 35. The Christian and his Heavenly 
 
 Father 
 
 Complete in thirty-six lessons 
 
 PRICES 
 
 PupiVs Book in three parts, each containing twelve lessons. Price 12}4 cents per 
 part. Complete In one volume, cloth, 60 cents net. 
 
 The BibU Study Manual, the teachers’ aid, is indispensable for teaching the lesson. 
 In three parts, price 15 cents per part. Complete in one volume, cloth, 60 cents net. 
 
 Send postal to-day for free specimen lessons 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS - - New York 
 
3 0112 072453704 
 
 Heroes of the Faith 
 
 By Herbert Wright Gates 
 
 A Course of Forty-eight Lessons for Intermediate Pupils. 
 
 Abraham 
 
 David Livingstone. 
 Moses. 
 
 John Howard. 
 Florence Nightingale. 
 Guido F. Verbeck. 
 Elijah. 
 
 Amos. 
 
 Jeremiah. 
 
 John Wyclif. 
 
 Girolamo Savonarola. 
 Martin Luther 
 Gaspard de Coligny. 
 John Knox. 
 
 Paul. 
 
 John Eliot. 
 
 William Carey. 
 Adoniram Judson. 
 Marcus Whitman. 
 William Taylor. 
 
 John G. Paton, 
 Jonathan. 
 
 Esther. 
 
 Judas Maccab.®us. 
 Chinese Gordon. 
 William Penn. 
 
 George T. Angell. 
 Frances E. Willard. 
 Everyday Heroes. 
 
 Experience has shown that at about I 
 the age of thirteen a radical change! 
 in the 'subject studied is of great ad-j 
 vantage in securing a sustained in-| 
 terest. Boys and girls will return to| 
 the study of the Bible with fresh in-i 
 terest if they pause here to study the I 
 working of Biblical principles in other ! 
 lives than those included in the Bib-| 
 lical records. 
 
 The HEROES OF THE FAITH? 
 has been constructed in view of this[ 
 need. Its purpose is, by brief sketchesl 
 of heroic and grandly religious char-j 
 acters, to kindle in the pupil the) 
 spirit by which these men and women] 
 were animated, and to encourage its^ 
 expression in similar virtues and deeds. J 
 A constant effort is made in these 5 
 studies to bring the heroic down to 
 everyday life, rather than to exalt it 
 beyond the reach of common men. 
 The lessons aim to impress the possi-| 
 bility and need of heroism in any 
 kind of situation— in the home or 
 school, on the street or the playground.] 
 
 Send postal to-day for free sample^ 
 lessons and examine yourself 
 these interesting studies 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS! 
 597-599 Fifth Avenue, ' New York