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His fuccefs was great, and his end was worthy of his profeffion. Lambert, a fon of the duke, murdered him at length with favage barbarity. He had been offered a large revenue and a fettlement at Ratisbon by Theodo, which he had refused, declaring that he only wished to preach Chrift crucified.

Marinus and Anian, two Egyptians, came into Bavaria, and were very fuccefsful in the fame caufe. But the exceffive aufterity, which they brought with them from the eaft, must have been detrimental to their work. The former at length was murdered by robbers; the latter died a natural death. Eloi, bishop of Noyon, carefully vifited his large diocefe, efpecially the Pagan parts of it, and was very fuccefsful among the Flemings, the Antwerpers, and the Frifons. At first he found them fierce and exceedingly obftinate. But God was with him both in life and doctrine. Every Eafter he baptized great numbers, who had been brought to the knowledge of God in the preceding year. Very aged perfons, amidst crowds of children, came to be baptized, and there is the fairest evidence of his evangelical fuccefs. This is all that I can find, with certainty, of the propagation of the Gospel in the feventh century in Germany and the neighbouring countries. The cenfures of Motheim, as if the greatest part of the miffionaries were not fincere, or as if many of the monks covered their ambition with the cloak of mortification, appear to me illiberal and unfounded*, and would have been more worthy of a modern fceptic. Superftition and an exceffive attachment to the Roman See is very visible among them. But the little account of facts, which we have, bears teftimony to their

Mofheim, Id. I find no juft reafon to fufpect any of them except Wilfrid, bishop of Yoik, mentioned in the last Chapter,

their uprightness. Where is that charity which hopeth all things, if we are to fuppofe men to be wrong, against all appearances? If ecclefiaftical hiftorians had delighted as much in recording good as they have in recording evil, it is probable a more ample refutation of the inconfiderate afperfions of this author might have been exhibited to the reader.

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CHAP. III.

THE GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH IN
THIS CENTURY.

PHOCAS, the Greek emperor, was depofed and A.D

flain by Heraclius in the year 610: he was one 610. of the most vicious and profligate tyrants, and may be compared with Caligula, Nero, and Domitian. Since the days of Conftantine fuch characters had been exceeding rare. For fuch was the benign influence of the Gofpel, that even amidst all the corruptions and abuses of it, which were now fo numerous, a decency of character and conduct, unknown to their Pagan predeceffors, was fupported by the emperors in general. Heraclius, the fucceffor of Phocas, reigned thirty years. In the beginning of his reign the Perfians defolated the eastern part of the empire, and made themselves mafters of Jerufalem. While Afia groaned under their cruelties and oppreffions, and was afflicted with fcourge after scourge, for her long abuse of the best gift of God, an opportunity was given for the exercife of Chriftian graces to a bishop of a Church, which had long ceafed to produce Chriftian fruit.

This was John, bishop of Alexandria, called the Almoner, on account of his extensive liberality. He daily fupplied with neceffaries those who flocked into Egypt, after they had escaped the Perfian arms. He fent to Jerufalem the most ample relief for fuch as remained there: he ranfomed captives;

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tives; placed the fick and wounded in hofpitals, and visited them, in perfon, two or three times a week. He even feems to have interpreted too ftrictly the facred rule, " of giving to him that afketh of thee." His fpirit however was noble "Should the whole world come to Alexandria," faid he, "they could not exhaust the treasures of God."

The

The Nile not having rifen to its ufual height, there was a barren feafon; provifions were fcarce, and crowds of refugees ftill poured into Alexandria. John continued, however, his liberal donatives, till he had neither money, nor credit. prayer of faith was his refource, and he still perfevered in hope. He even refused a very tempting offer of a perfon, who would have bribed him with a large prefent, that he might be ordained deacon. "As to my brethren the poor," faid the holy prelate, "God, who fed them, before you and I were born, will take care to feed them now, if we obey him." Soon afterward he heard of the arrival of two large fhips, which he had fent into Sicily for corn. "I thank thee, O Lord," cried the bishop in a rapture of joy, "that thou haft kept me from felling thy gift for money."

From the beginning of his bishopric he maintained 7500 poor perfons by daily alms. He was acceffible to them on all occafions; and what is moft material, divine faith feems to have influenced his acts of love. "If God," faid he, "allow us to enter into his houfe at all times, and if we wish him speedily to hear us, how ought we to conduct ourfelves toward our brethren ?" He conftantly ftudied the Scriptures, and, in his conversation, was inftructive and exemplary. Slander and evilfpeaking he peculiarly difliked. If any perfon in his prefence was guilty in this refpect, he would give another turn to the difcourfe. If the perfon

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ftill perfifted, he would direct his fervant not to admit him any more.

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The long courfe of herefy, licentiousness, and ambition, which had filled the Alexandrian Church, fupported by the shameful examples of fuch paftors as Theophilus and other profligate men, must have reduced it to the lowest ebb; and I wonder not to find, that perfons behaved indecently even in public worship. John, one day seeing feveral leave the church after the reading of the Gofpel, went out alfo and fat down among them. dren," faid he, "the fhepherd fhould be with his flock; I could pray at home, but I cannot preach at home." By doing this twice, he reformed the abuse. Let it be marked, as an evidence of the zeal of this prelate, who, like another Jofiah, feems to have been sent to reform a falling church, that the preaching of the word engaged much of his heart, and let it moreover be obferved, that the contempt of preaching is a certain token of extreme degeneracy.

A canon was made at Paris, in a council, in the A.D. year 614, the fame year in which Jerufalem was 614. taken, which enjoins that he fhall be ordained to fucceed a deceased bishop, who shall be chofen by the archbishop, together with the bishops of the province, the clergy and the people, without any profpect of gain: if the ordination be conducted otherwife through compulfion or neglect, the clection fhall be void. The intelligent reader will hence judge of the state of ecclefiaftical polity at

that time.

In 616 John the Almoner departed from Alex- A.D. andria, for fear of the Perfians, and died foon after 616.. in Cyprus, in the same spirit in which he had lived; and with him ends all that is worth recording of the church of Alexandria.

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