05 - Book II, Part 2

CHURCH HISTORY by EUSEBIUS OF CAESAREA by ARTHUR CUSHMAN MACGUIFFERT. Book 2, Part 2, Chapters 10-17. Chapter 10. Agrippa, who was also called Herod, having persecuted the apostles, immediately experienced the divine vengeance. The consequences of the king's undertaking against the apostles were not long deferred, but the avenging minister of divine justice overtook him immediately after his plots against them, as the Book of Acts records. For when he had journeyed to Caesarea, on a notable feast day, clothed in a splendid and royal garment, he delivered an address to the people from a lofty throne in front of the tribunal. And when all the multitude applauded the speech, as if it were the voice of a god and not of a man, the scripture relates that an angel of the Lord smote him, and being eaten of worms, he gave up the ghost. We must admire the account of Josephus for its agreement with the divine scriptures in regard to this wonderful event, for he clearly bears witness to the truth in the 19th book of his Antiquities, where he relates the wonder in the following words. He had completed the third year of his reign over all Judea when he came to Caesarea, which was formerly called Strato's Tower. There he held games in honor of Caesar, learning that this was a festival observed in behalf of Caesar's safety. At this festival was collected a great multitude of the highest and most honorable men in the province. And on the second day of the games he proceeded to the theater at break of day, wearing a garment entirely of silver and of wonderful texture. And there the silver, illuminated by the reflection of the sun's earliest rays, shone marvelously, gleaming so brightly as to produce a sort of fear and terror in those who gazed upon him. And immediately his flatterers, some from one place, others from another, raised up their voices in a way that was not for his good, calling him a god, and saying, Be thou merciful, if up to this time we have feared thee as a man, henceforth we confess that thou art superior to the nature of mortals. The king did not rebuke them, nor did he reject their impious flattery. But after a little, looking up, he saw an angel sitting above his head. And this he quickly perceived would be the cause of evil as it had once been the cause of good fortune. And he was smitten with a heart-piercing pain. And straightway distress, beginning with the greatest violence, seized his bowels. And looking upon his friends he said, I, your god, am now commanded to depart this life. And fate thus on the spot disproves the lying words you have just uttered concerning me. He who has been called immortal by you is now led away to die. But our destiny must be accepted as God has determined it. For we have passed our life by no means ingloriously but in that splendor which is pronounced happiness. And when he had said this he labored with an increase of pain. He was accordingly carried in haste to the palace, while the report spread among all that the king would undoubtedly soon die. But the multitude, with their wives and children, sitting on sackcloth after the custom of their fathers, implored God in behalf of the king, and every place was filled with lamentation and tears. And the king, as he lay in a lofty chamber and saw them below lying prostrate on the ground, could not refrain from weeping himself. And after suffering continually for five days with pain in the bowels, he departed this life, in the fifty-fourth year of his age and in the seventh year of his reign. Four years he ruled under the emperor Caius, three of them over the tetrarchy of Philip, to which was added in the fourth year that of Herod, and three years during the reign of the emperor Claudius. I marvel greatly that Josephus, in these things as well as in others, so fully agrees with the divine scriptures. But if there should seem to anyone to be a disagreement in respect to the name of the king, the time at least and the events show that the same person is meant, whether the change of name has been caused by the error of a copyist, or is due to the fact that he, like so many, bore two names. CHAPTER XI. THE IMPOSTER THEUDAS AND HIS FOLLOWERS Luke, in the Acts, introduces Gamaliel as saying, at the consultation which was held concerning the apostles, that at the time referred to, rose up Theudas boasting himself to be somebody, who was slain, and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered. Let us therefore add the account of Josephus concerning this man. He records in the work mentioned just above, the following circumstances. While Phaedus was procurator of Judea, a certain imposter called Theudas persuaded a very great multitude to take their possessions and follow him to the river Jordan. For he said that he was a prophet, and that the river should be divided at his command, and afford them an easy passage. And with these words he deceived many. But Phaedus did not permit them to enjoy their folly, but sent a troop of horsemen against them, who fell upon them unexpectedly and slew many of them and took many others alive, while they took Theudas himself captive, and cut off his head and carried it to Jerusalem. Besides this he also makes mention of the famine which took place in the reign of Claudius, in the following words. Chapter 12 HELLEN, THE QUEEN OF THE OSROENIANS. And at this time it came to pass that the great famine took place in Judea, in which the queen Helen, having purchased grain from Egypt with large sums, distributed it to the needy. You will find this statement also in agreement with the Acts of the Apostles, where it is said that the disciples at Antioch, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brethren that dwelt in Judea, which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Paul. But splendid monuments of this Helen, of whom the historian has made mention, are still shown in the suburbs of the city which is now called Elea. But she is said to have been queen of the Adiabene. Chapter 13 SIMON MAGUS. But faith in our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ having now been diffused among all men, the enemy of man's salvation contrived a plan for seizing the imperial city for himself. He conducted thither the above-mentioned Simon, aided him in his deceitful arts, led many of the inhabitants of Rome astray, and brought them into his own power. This is stated by Justin, one of our distinguished writers who lived not long after the time of the Apostles. Concerning him I shall speak in the proper place. Take and read the work of this man, who in the first apology, which he addressed to Antonine in behalf of our religion, writes as follows. And after the ascension of the Lord into heaven, the demons put forward certain men who said they were gods, and who were not only allowed by you to go unpersecuted, but were even deemed worthy of honors. One of them was Simon, a Samaritan of the village of Ghito, who in the reign of Claudius Caesar performed in your imperial city some mighty acts of magic by the art of demons operating in him, and was considered a god, and as a god was honored by you with a statue, which was erected in the river Tiber, between the two bridges, and bore this inscription in the Latin tongue, Simoni Deo Sancto, that is, to Simon the holy god. And nearly all the Samaritans, and a few even of other nations, confess and worship him as the first god, and there went around with him at that time a certain Helena, who had formerly been a prostitute in Tyre of Phoenicia, and her they call the first idea that proceeded from him. Justin relates these things, and Irenaeus also agrees with him in the first book of his work, Against Heresies, where he gives an account of the man and of his profane and impure teaching. It would be superfluous to quote his account here, for it is possible for those who wish to know the origin and the lives of the false doctrines of each of the heresiarchs that have followed him, as well as the customs practiced by them all, to find them treated at length in the above-mentioned works of Irenaeus. We have understood that Simon was the author of all heresy. From his time down to the present, those who have followed his heresy have feigned the sober philosophy of the Christians, which is celebrated among all on account of its purity of life. But they nevertheless have embraced again the superstitions of idols, which they seem to have renounced, and they fall down before pictures and images of Simon himself and of the above-mentioned Helena who was with him, and they venture to worship them with incense and sacrifices and libations. But those matters which they keep more secret than these, in regard to which they say that one upon first hearing them would be astonished, and, to use one of the written phrases in vogue among them, would be confounded, are in truth full of amazing things, and of madness and folly, being of such a sort that it is impossible not only to commit them to writing, but also for modest men even to utter them with the lips on account of their excessive baseness and lewdness. For whatever could be conceived of viler than the vilest thing, all that has been outdone by this most abominable sect, which is composed of those who make a sport of those miserable females that are literally overwhelmed with all kinds of vices. Chapter XIV. The Preaching of the Apostle Peter in Rome The evil power who hates all that is good and plots against the salvation of men constituted Simon at that time the father and author of such wickedness, as if to make him a mighty antagonist of the great inspired apostles of our Saviour. For that divine and celestial grace which cooperates with its ministers by their appearance and presence quickly extinguished the kindled flame of evil, and humbled and cast down through them every high thing that exalted itself against the knowledge of God. Wherefore neither the conspiracy of Simon nor that of any of the others who arose at that period could accomplish anything in those apostolic times. For everything was conquered and subdued by the splendors of the truth and by the divine word itself, which had but lately begun to shine from heaven upon men, and which was then flourishing upon earth and dwelling in the apostles themselves. Immediately the above-mentioned imposter was smitten in the eyes of his mind by a divine and miraculous flash, and after the evil deeds done by him had first been detected by the Apostle Peter in Judea, he fled and made a great journey across the sea from the east to the west, thinking that only thus could he live according to his mind. And coming to the city of Rome, by the mighty cooperation of that power which was lying in wait there, he was in a short time so successful in his undertaking that those who dwelt there honored him as a god by the erection of a statue. But this did not last long, for immediately during the reign of Claudius, the all-good and gracious Providence, which watches over all things, led Peter, the strongest and greatest of the apostles, and the one who on account of his virtue was the speaker for all the others, to Rome against this great corruptor of life. He, like a noble commander of God, clad in divine armor, carried the costly merchandise of the light of the understanding from the east to those who dwelt in the west, proclaiming the light itself, and the word which brings salvation to souls, and preaching the kingdom of heaven. CHAPTER XV. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK And thus when the divine word had made its home among them, the power of Simon was quenched and immediately destroyed, together with the man himself. And so greatly did the splendor of piety illumine the minds of Peter's hearers, that they were not satisfied with hearing once only, and were not content with the unwritten teachings of the divine gospel, but with all sorts of entreaties they besought Mark, a follower of Peter, and the one whose gospel is extant, that he would leave them a written monument of the doctrine which had been orally communicated to them. Nor did they cease until they had prevailed with the man, and had thus become the occasion of the written gospel which bears the name of Mark. And they say that Peter, when he had learned, through a revelation of the spirit, of that which had been done, was pleased with the zeal of the men, and that the work obtained the sanction of his authority for the purpose of being used in the churches. Clement, in the eighth book of his Hypotypes, gives this account, and with him agrees the bishop of Hierapolis named Poppius. And Peter makes mention of Mark in his first epistle which they say that he wrote in Rome itself, as is indicated by him when he calls the city by a figure Babylon, as he does in the following words, The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you, and so does Marcus my son. CHAPTER XVI. MARK FIRST PROCLAIMED CHRISTIANITY TO THE INHABITANTS OF EGYPT. And they say that this Mark was the first that was sent to Egypt, and that he proclaimed the gospel which he had written, and first established churches in Alexandria. And the multitude of believers, both men and women, that were collected there at the very outset, and lived lives of the most philosophical and excessive asceticism, was so great that Philo thought it worthwhile to describe their pursuits, their meetings, their entertainments, and their whole manner of life. CHAPTER XVII. PHILO'S ACCOUNT OF THE ASCETICS OF EGYPT. It is also said that Philo, in the reign of Claudius, became acquainted at Rome with Peter, who was then preaching there. Nor is this indeed improbable, for the work of which we have spoken, and which was composed by him some years later, clearly contains those rules of the church which are even to this day observed among us. And since he describes as accurately as possible the life of our ascetics, it is clear that he not only knew, but that he also approved, while he venerated and extolled, the apostolic men of his time, who were, as it seems, of the Hebrew race, and hence observed, after the manner of the Jews, the most of the customs of the ancients. In the work to which he gave the title On a Contemplative Life or On Suppliants, after affirming in the first place that he will add to those things which he is about to relate nothing contrary to truth or of his own invention, he says that these men were called Therapeutae, and the women that were with them Therapeutrates. He then adds the reasons for such a name, explaining it from the fact that they applied remedies and healed the souls of those who came to them by relieving them like physicians of evil passions, or from the fact that they served and worshipped the deity in purity and sincerity. Whether Philo himself gave them this name, employing an epithet well suited to their mode of life, or whether the first of them really called themselves so in the beginning, since the name of Christians was not yet everywhere known, we need not discuss here. He bears witness, however, that first of all they renounced their property. When they begin the philosophical mode of life, he says, they give up their goods to their relatives and then, renouncing all the cares of life, they go forth beyond the walls and dwell in lonely fields and gardens, knowing well that intercourse with people of a different character is unprofitable and harmful. They did this at that time, as seems probable, under the influence of a spirited and ardent faith, practicing in emulation the prophet's mode of life. For in the acts of the apostles, a work universally acknowledged as authentic, it is recorded that all the companions of the apostles sold their possessions and their property and distributed to all according to the necessity of each one, so that no one among them was in want. For as many as were possessors of lands or houses, as the account says, sold them and brought the prices of the things that were sold and laid them at the apostles' feet, so that distribution was made unto every man according as he had need. Philo bears witness to facts very much like those here described, and then adds the following account. Everywhere in the world is this race found, for it was fitting that both Greek and barbarian should share in what is perfectly good. But the race particularly abounds in Egypt, in each of its so-called gnomes, and especially about Alexandria. The best men from every quarter immigrate, as if to a colony of the Therapeutes' fatherland, to a certain very suitable spot which lies above the Lake Maria upon a low hill excellently situated on account of its security and the mildness of the atmosphere. And then a little further on, after describing the kind of houses which they had, he speaks as follows concerning their churches, which were scattered about here and there. In each house there is a sacred apartment which is called a sanctuary and monastery, where, quite alone, they perform the mysteries of the religious life. They bring nothing into it, neither drink nor food, nor any of the other things which contribute to the necessities of the body, but only the laws and the inspired oracles of the prophets, and hymns and such other things as augment and make perfect their knowledge and piety. And after some other matters, he says, the whole interval, from morning to evening, is for them a time of exercise, for they read the holy scriptures, and explain the philosophy of their fathers in an allegorical manner, regarding the written words as symbols of hidden truth which is communicated in obscure figures. They have also writings of ancient men, who were the founders of their sect, and who left many monuments of the allegorical method. These they use as models and imitate their principles. These things seem to have been stated by a man who had heard them expounding their sacred writings, but it is highly probable that the works of the ancients, which he says they had, were the gospels and the writings of the apostles, and probably some expositions of the ancient prophets, such as are contained in the epistle to the Hebrews and in many others of Paul's epistles. Then again he writes as follows concerning the new psalms which they composed, so that they not only spend their time in meditation, but they also compose songs and hymns to God in every variety of meter and melody, though they divide them, of course, into measures of more than common solemnity. The same book contains an account of many other things, but it seemed necessary to select those facts which exhibit the characteristics of the ecclesiastical mode of life. But if anyone thinks that what has been said is not peculiar to the gospel polity, but that it can be applied to others besides those mentioned, let him be convinced by the subsequent words of the same author, in which, if he is unprejudiced, he will find undisputed testimony on this subject. Philo's words are as follows. Having laid down temperance as a sort of foundation in the soul, they build upon it the other virtues. None of them may take food or drink before sunset, since they regard philosophizing as a work worthy of the light, but attention to the wants of the body as proper only in the darkness, and therefore assign the day to the former, but to the latter a small portion of the night. But some, in whom a great desire for knowledge dwells, forget to take food for three days, and some are so delighted and feast so luxuriously upon wisdom, which furnishes doctrines richly and without stint, that they abstain even twice as long as this, and are accustomed, after six days, scarcely to take necessary food. These statements of Philo we regard as referring clearly and indisputably to those of our communion. But if after these things any one still obstinately persists in denying the reference, let him renounce his incredulity and be convinced by yet more striking examples, which are to be found nowhere else than in the evangelical religion of the Christians. For they say that there were women also with those of whom we are speaking, and that the most of them were aged virgins who had preserved their chastity not out of necessity as some of the priestesses among the Greeks, but rather by their own choice, through zeal and a desire for wisdom, and that in their earnest desire to live with it as their companion they paid no attention to the pleasures of the body, seeking not mortal but immortal progeny, which only the pious soul is able to bear of itself. Then, after a little, he adds still more emphatically, they expound the sacred scriptures figuratively by means of allegories. For the whole law seems to these men to resemble a living organism, of which the spoken words constitute the body, while the hidden sense stored up within the words constitutes the soul. This hidden meaning has first been particularly studied by this sect, which sees, revealed as in a mirror of names, the surpassing beauties of the thoughts. Why is it necessary to add to these things their meetings and the respective occupations of the men and of the women during those meetings, and the practices which are even to the present day habitually observed by us, especially such as we are accustomed to observe at the feast of the Saviour's Passion, with fasting and night watching and study of the divine word? These things the above-mentioned author has related in his own work, indicating a mode of life which has been preserved to the present time by us alone, recording especially the vigils kept in connection with the great festival, and the exercises performed during those vigils, and the hymns customarily recited by us, and describing how, while one sings regularly in time, the others listen in silence, and join in chanting only the close of the hymns, and how on the days referred to they sleep on the ground on beds of straw, and to use his own words, taste no wine at all, nor any flesh, but water is their only drink, and the relish with their bread is salt and hyssop. In addition to this, Philo describes the order of dignities which exists among those who carry on the services of the church, mentioning the diaconate and the office of bishop, which takes the precedence over all the others. But whosoever desires a more accurate knowledge of these matters may get it from the history already cited. But that Philo, when he wrote these things, had in view the first heralds of the gospel and the customs handed down from the beginning by the apostles, is clear to everyone. End of book 2 part 2