of initiating men into their religion.-XIII. From the correfpondence between the churches.-XIV. From the long lives of feveral of Chrift's Difciples, of which there are two inftances. 1. IT now therefore only remains to confider whether these learned men had means and opportunities of informing themselves of the truth of our Saviour's hiftory; for unless this point can be made out, their teftimonies will appear invalid, and their enquiries ineffectual. II. As to this point, we must confider, that many thoufands had feen the tranfactions of our Saviour in Judæa, and that many hundred thousands had received an account of them from the mouths of those who were actually eye-witneffes. I shall only mention among these eye-witneffes the twelve Apostles, to whom we must add St. Paul, who had a particular call to this high office, though many other difciples and followers of Chrift had also their fhare in the publishing this wonderful hiftory. We learn from the ancient records of Chriftianity, that many of the Apostles and Difciples made it the express business of their lives, travelled into the remoteft parts of the world, and in all places gathered multitudes about them, to acquaint them with the hiftory and doctrines of their crucified mafter. And, indeed, were all Christian records of thefe proceedings entirely loft, as many have been, the effect plainly evinces the truth of them: for how elfe during the Apostles lives could Chriftianity have spread itfelf with fuch an amazing progrefs through the feveral nations of the Roman empire? How could it fly like lightening, and carry conviction with it, from one end of the earth to the other. III. Heathens therefore of every age, fex, and quality, born in the most diftant climates, and bred up under the most different inftitutions, when they faw men of plain fenfe, without the help of learning, armed with patience and courage, instead of wealth, pomp, or power, expreffing in their lives thofe excellent doctrines of morality, which they taught as delivered to them from our Saviour, averring, that they had feen his miracles during C 2 his his life, and converfed with him after his death; when, I fay, they faw no fufpicion of falfehood, treachery, or worldly intereft, in their behaviour and converfation, and that they fubmitted to the moft ignominious and cruel deaths, rather than retract their teftimony, or even be filent in matters which they were to publish by their Saviour's especial command, there was no reason to doubt of the veracity of thofe facts which they related, or of the Divine Miffion in which they were employed. IV. But even these motives to faith in our Saviour would not have been fufficient to have brought about in fo few years fuch an incredible number of converfions, had not the Apoftles been able to exhibit ftill greater proofs of the truths which they taught. A few perfons of an odious and defpifed country could not have filled the world with believers, had they not shown undoubted credentials from the Divine Perfon who fent them on fuch a meffage. Accordingly we are affured, that they were invefted with the power of working miracles, which was the most short and the moft convincing argument that could be produced, and the only one that was adapted to the reafon of all mankind, to the capacities of the wife and ignorant, and could overcome every cavil and every prejudice. Who would not believe that our Saviour healed the fick, and raised the dead, when it was published by those who themselves often did the fame miracles, in their prefence, and in his name! Could any reasonable person imagine that God Almighty would arm men with fuch powers to authorize a lie, and establish a religion in the world which was difpleafing to him, or that evil spirits would lend them fuch an effectual affittance to beat down vice and idolatry? V. When the Apostles had formed many assemblies in feveral parts of the Pagan world, who gave credit to the glad tidings of the gofpel, that, upon their departure, the memory of what they had related might not perish, they appointed out of thefe new converts, men of the best fenfe, and of the most unblemished lives, to prefide over these several assemblies, and to inculcate without ceafing what what they had heard from the mouths of these eye-witneffes. VI. Upon the death of any of thofe fubftitutes to the Apotles and Difciples of Chrift, his place was filled up with fome other perfon of eminence for his piety and learning, and generally a member of the fame church, who, after his deceafe was followed by another in the fame manner, by which means the fucceffion was continued in an uninterrupted line, Irenæus informs us, that every church preferved a catalogue of its bishops in the order that they fucceeded one another; and (for example) produces the catalogue of those who governed the church of Rome in that character, which contains eight or nine perfons, though but a very small remove from the times of the Apoftles. Indeed the lifts of bifhops, which are come down to us in other churches, are generally filled with greater numbers than one would expect. But the fucceffion was quick in the three first centuries, because the bifhop very often ended in the martyr: for when a perfecution rofe, in any place, the first fury of it fell upon this order of holy men, who abundantly teftified, by their deaths and fufferings, that they did not undertake thefe offices out of any temporal views, that they were fincere and fatisfied in the belief of what they taught, and that they firmly adhered to what they had received from the Apostles, as laying down their lives in the fame hope, and upon the fame principles. None can be fuppofed fo utterly regardlefs of their own happinefs as to expire in torment, and hazard their eternity, to fupport any fables and inventions of their own, or any forgeries of their predeceffors who had prefided in the fame church, and which might have been eafily detected by the tradition of that particular church, as well as by the concurring teftimony of others. To this purpose, I think it is very remarkable, that there was not a fingle martyr among thofe many heretics, who difagree with the apoftolical church, and introduced feveral wild and abfurd notions into its doctrine, of Christianity. They durft not take their present and C 3 future future happinefs on their own chimercial operations, and did not only fhun perfecution, but affirmed that it was unneceffary for their followers to bear their religions through fuch fiery trials. VII. We may fairly reckon, that this firft ftate of Apoftles and Difciples, with that fecond generation of many, who were their immediate converts, extended itfelf to the middle of the fecond century, and that feveral of the third generation from thefe laft mentioned, which was but the fifth from Chrift, continued to the end of the third century. Did we know the ages and numbers of the members in every particular church, which was planted by the Apostles, I doubt not but in most of them there might be found five perfons who in a continued feries would reach through these three centuries of years, that is, till the 265th from the death of our Saviour. VIII. Among the accounts of those very few out of innumerable multitudes, who had embraced Chriftianity, I fhall fingle out four perfons eminent for their lives, their writings, and their fufferings, that were, fucceffively, contemporaries, and brings us down as far as to the year of our Lord 254. St. John, who was the beloved Difciple, and converfed the most intimately with our Saviour, lived till Anno Dom. 100. Polycarp, who was the difciple of St. John, and had conversed with others of the Apostles, and difciples of our Lord, lived till Anno Dom. 167, though his life was shortened by martyrdom. Irenæus, who was the difciple of Polycarp, and had converfed with many of the immediate difciples of the Apostles, lived at the lowest computation of his age, till the year 202, when he was likewife cut off by martyrdom: in which year the great Origen was appointed regent of the Catechetic school in Alexandria, and as he was the miracle of that age, for industry, learning and philofophy, he was looked upon as the champion of Christianity, till the year 254, when, if he did not fuffer martyrdom, as fome think he did, he was certainly actuated by the fpirit of it, as appears in the whole courfe of his life and writings; nay, he had often been put to the torture, and had undergone trials trials worse than death. As he converfed with the most eminent Christians of his time in Egypt, and in the East, brought over multitudes both from herefy and heatheniẩm, and left behind him feveral difciples of great fame and learning, there is no question but there were confiderable numbers of those who knew him, and had been his hearers, scholars, or profelytes, that lived till the end of the third century, and to the reign of Conftantine the Great. IX. It is evident to those who read the lives and writing of Polycarp, Irenæus, and Origen, that these three fathers believed the accounts which are given of our Saviour in the four Evangelifts, and had undoubted arguments that not only St. John, but many others of our Saviour's difciples, published the fame account of him. To which we muft fubjoin this further remark, that what was believed by these fathers on this fubject, was likewife the belief of the main body of Chriftians in those fucceffive ages when they flourished; fince Polycarp cannot but be looked upon, if we confider the refpect that was paid him, as the reprefentative of the eastern churches in this particular, Irenæus of the western upon the fame account, and Origen of thofe eftablished in Egypt. X. To thefe I might add Paul the famous hermit, who retired from the Decian perfecution five or fix years before Origen's death, and lived till the year 343. I have only difcovered one of thofe channels by which the hiftory of our Saviour might be conveyed pure and unadulterated, through thefe feveral ages that produced thofe Pagan philofophers, whofe teftimonies Í make use of for the truth of our Saviour's hiftory. Some one or other of these philofophers came into the Chriftian faith during its infancy, in the several periods of these three first centuries, when they had fuch means of informing themselves in atl the particulars of our Saviour's history. I must farther add, that though I have here only chofen this fingle link of martyrs, I might find out others among those names which are still extant, that delivered down this account of our Saviour in a fucceffive tradition, till the whole Roman empire became Christian; as there is no question but |