Chapter VIII: Image-Worship And Other Superstitious Practices Of The (4)

Still they have not entirely despised them, for they pretend to have the bones of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the church of _St Maria supra Minervam_, at Rome. They also boast of possessing, at St John of the Lateran, the ark of alliance, with Aaron’s rod, though the same rod is also at the Holy Chapel in Paris, whilst some pieces of it are preserved at Salvatierra. Moreover, at Bordeaux they maintain that St Martial’s rod, which is exhibited in the church of St Severin, is no other than that of Aaron. It seems, indeed, that they would wish with this rod to perform another miracle; formerly it was turned into a serpent, whereas now they would convert it into three different rods! It is very likely that they may have other relics of objects mentioned in the Old Testament, but the few we have here alluded to show that they have treated them much in the same style as those belonging to Christian times.

I now beg to remind my readers of what I mentioned at the beginning of this work, that I have had no commissioners for visiting the numerous churches of the different countries enumerated by me, nor must my description be taken for a register or inventory of all that can be discovered respecting relics. I have mentioned about half-a-dozen towns in Germany, but three in Spain I think, about fifteen in Italy, and between thirty and forty in France, and even of these few examples I have not related all that I might concerning them. Now, let us only imagine what a mass might be raised out of all the relics which are to be seen in Christendom, if they were collected and arranged together in proper order. I speak, however, only of those countries which we know and frequent; for it is most important to observe that all the relics belonging to Christ and the apostles which are displayed in the west are also to be seen in Greece, Asia, and all other countries where Christian Churches are in existence. Now, what are we to say when the Eastern Christians assert their claims?

If we contradict them, alleging on our part that the body of such a saint was brought to Europe by merchants, that of another by monks, that of a third by a bishop, that a part of the crown of thorns was sent to a king of France by an emperor of Constantinople, and another part was carried off in time of war, and so on of every object of the kind, they would shake their heads, and laugh at us! How are such differences to be settled? In every doubtful case we can only judge by conjecture, and, in following this out, the adherents of the Eastern Churches are sure of success, because their claims are more probable than those of their opponents. It is indeed a difficult point for the defenders of relics to settle.

Finally, I beseech and exhort, in the name of God, all my readers to listen to the truth now clearly displayed before them, and to believe that, by God’s especial providence, those who have endeavoured thus to lead mankind astray have been rendered so blind and careless as to neglect a proper concealment of their deceptions, but that, like Midianites having their eyes put out, they run one against another, for we all know that they quarrel amongst themselves, and mutually injure each other. Whoever is not wilfully prejudiced against all reason must certainly be convinced that the worship of relics, whether true or false, is an abominable idolatry; yet should not this even be the case with him, he must nevertheless perceive the evident imposture, and whatever may have been his former devotion to relics, he must lose all courage in kissing such objects, and become entirely disgusted with them.

I repeat what I said at the commencement of this treatise, that it would be most important to abolish from amongst us Christians this pagan superstition of canonising relics, either of Christ or of his saints, in order to make idols of them; for this is a defilement and an impurity which should never be suffered in the Church. We have already proved that it is so by arguments, and also from the evidence of Scripture. Let those who are not yet satisfied look to the practices of the ancient fathers, and conform to their examples. There are many holy patriarchs, many prophets, many holy kings, and other saints mentioned in the Old Testament. God ordained at that time the observance of more ceremonies than are needed now. Even funerals were performed then with more display than at present, in order to represent symbolically the glorious resurrection, especially as it had not then been so clearly revealed by the Word of God as it is to ourselves.

Do we ever read in that book that these saints were taken from their sepulchres as idols? Was Abraham, the father of the faithful, ever thus raised? Was Sarah ever removed from her grave? Were they not left in peace, with the remains of all other saints? But what is more conclusive, was not the body of Moses concealed by God’s will, in such a manner that it never has been or can be discovered? Has not the devil contended concerning it with the angels, as St Jude says? Now, what was our Lord’s reason for removing that body from the sight of men, and why should the devil desire to have it exhibited to them? It is generally admitted that God wished to put away from his people of Israel all temptation to commit idolatry, and that Satan desired its introduction amongst them.

It may be said, however, that the Israelites were inclined to superstition. I ask, how stands the case now with ourselves? Is there not, without comparison, more perversity in this respect amongst Christians than there ever was amongst the Jews of old?

Let us call to mind the practice of the early church. It is true that the first Christians were always anxious to get possession of the bodies of the martyrs, lest they might be devoured by beasts or birds of prey, and decently to bury them, as we read was the case with the bodies of St John the Baptist and St Stephen. This solicitude was shown, however, in order to inter them in their graves, and there to leave them until the day of the resurrection; but they did not expose these remains to the sight of men for their adoration.

The unfortunate custom of canonising saints was not introduced into the Church until it had become perverted and profaned, partly by the folly and cupidity of its prelates and pastors, and partly because they were unable to restrain this innovation, as people were seeking to deceive themselves by giving their hearts to puerile follies, instead of to the true worship of God. If we wish, in a direct manner, to correct this abuse, it is necessary to abolish entirely what has been so badly commenced and established against all reason. But if it is impossible to arrive at once at such a clear comprehension of this abuse, let people at least have their eyes opened to discern what the relics are which are presented for their adoration.

This is indeed no difficulty for those who will only exercise their reason, for amongst the numerous evident impostures we have here mentioned, where may we find one real relic of which we may feel certain that it is such as is represented?

Moreover, all those that I have enumerated are nothing comparatively to the remainder yet untold by me. Even whilst this treatise is in the press, I have been informed of many relics not mentioned in it; and if a general visitation of all existing relics were possible, a hundredfold more discoveries would be made.

I remember when I was a little boy what took place in our parish. On the festival day of St Stephen, the images of the tyrants who stoned him (for they are thus called by the common people) were adorned as much as that of the saint himself. Many women, seeing these tyrants thus decked out, mistook them for the saint’s companions, and offered the homage of candles to each of them. Mistakes of this kind must frequently happen to the worshippers of relics, for there is such confusion amongst them that it is quite impossible to worship the bones of a martyr without danger of rendering such honours by mistake to the bones of some brigand or thief, or even to those of a horse, a dog, or a donkey.

And it is equally impossible to adore the ring, the comb, the girdle of the Virgin Mary, without the risk of adoring instead objects which may have belonged to some abandoned person.

Now, those who fall into this error must do so willingly, as no one can from henceforth plead ignorance on the subject as their excuse.(161)

POSTSCRIPT.

The following extract from the _Ecclesiastical Gazette_ of Vienna has been reproduced in an Extraordinary Supplement of the _Allgemeine Zeitung_, of Augsburg, for the 11th May 1854. I subjoin a translation of it in a postscript, as an additional evidence of the persecution to which the Greek Church united with Rome has been subjected in Russia, and which I mentioned on page 161 of this work:—

“Spies appointed for this especial purpose transmitted, in their
reports to the Government, lists of such individuals as were
suspected to be Catholics at heart; and if all the exaggerated
accounts which had been made of the Spanish Inquisition were true,
they would be thrown into the shade by the proceedings that were
adopted against the above-mentioned individuals. And indeed it is
an averred fact, that many of them fell a victim to starvation,
blows, and other cruel treatment. The Catholic inhabitants of
Worodzkow were forced with stripes, by the Governor and his
satellites, to sign a _voluntary_ petition, expressing their
ardent wish to be received into the pale of the orthodox Russian
Church. The names of those who could not write were signed by
others, and whoever showed the slightest manifestation of his
desire to remain a Catholic, after having performed this
_voluntary_ act, was treated as one guilty of high treason. The
same proceedings as at Worodzkow were adopted in a hundred other
places, whose _voluntary_ petitions were obtained with bloody
stripes of the knout. The unfortunate petitioners were, in order
to perform this operation, dragged from their homes, sometimes to
a distance of 18 or 20 versts (1-½ verst to an English mile), and
those who steadfastly refused to sign were treated by the Russian
papas with the utmost cruelty and indignity. They were put into
irons, barred up in cold prisons without any fire, starved, thrown
into large tubs filled with an icy and stinking water, and most
mercilessly beaten, so that many, in order to escape from such
torments, signed the _voluntary_ petition, with hearts as bleeding
as their bodies. Many succumbed under these fearful persecutions,
which were not much inferior to that which the Christians had
suffered under the reign of Diocletian. The Papa Stratanovich
extorted the signatures made by the feverishly agitated hands of
the clerical victims, whilst his lay associate, Waimainich
Zokalinski, performed the same charitable office to other
unfortunate individuals. Some of these miserable persons were
reduced by starvation and every kind of ill-treatment to such a
condition, that they were almost unconscious of what they did in
signing the _voluntary_ petitions for the reception into the pale
of the Russian Church, all of which were obtained by more or less
similar means.

“It appears from a great mass of documentary evidence, containing
the names of localities and persons, that the proselytism of 1841
was carried out in the following manner:—Military authorities, and
Russian papas or priests, visited Catholic villages, and having
called together the Catholic peasantry and landowners of the
neighbourhood, declared that they must join the Russian Church,
throwing into prison those who resisted the summons. In the most
part of cases, a petition for this object was signed by some hired
wretches in the name of all the community, of whom many often knew
nothing about this business, but when they behaved as Catholics,
they were punished, as guilty of high treason.”

The _Allgemeine Zeitung_ states, in giving this extract from the _Ecclesiastical Gazette_ of Vienna, that this periodical contains many well-authenticated cases of religious persecution against the Roman Catholics of Russia; and I have little doubt that if the Protestants of Western Europe had taken as much pains to ascertain and denounce the persecution of their brethren in the Baltic provinces of Russia, which I have mentioned on p. 162, as is done, be it said to their great honour, by the Roman Catholics, they would find many acts of persecution directed against the above-mentioned Protestants, as flagrant as those which have just been described.

LIST OF WORKS PUBLISHED BY JOHNSTONE, HUNTER, & CO., EDINBURGH.

MAGAZINES:—

*The Christian Treasury*; Containing Contributions from Ministers and Members of various Evangelical Denominations. Edited by HORATIUS BONAR, D.D. Super royal 8vo. Monthly Parts, £0 0 6. Weekly Numbers, 0 0 1.

*The Children’s Hour*; A Monthly Magazine for our Young Folks. Edited by M. H., Author of “Rosa Lindesay,” etc. Crown 8vo. Beautifully Illustrated, 0 0 3.

*The Reformed Presbyterian Magazine*; Containing Home and Missionary Intelligence relating to the Reformed Presbyterian Church in Scotland. Demy 8vo. Monthly, 0 0 4.

J. H. & CO.’S SIXPENNY SERIES.

Super royal 32mo, cloth limp. Illustrated.

1. JEANIE HAY, THE CHEERFUL GIVER. And other Tales.

2. LILY RAMSAY; OR HANDSOME IS WHO HANDSOME DOES. And other Tales.

3. ARCHIE DOUGLAS; OR, WHERE THERE’S A WILL THERE’S A WAY. And other.

4. MINNIE AND LETTY; OR, THE EXPECTED ARRIVAL. And other Tales.

5. NED FAIRLIE AND HIS RICH UNCLE. And other Tales.

6. MR GRANVILLE’S JOURNEY. And other Tales.

7. JAMIE WILSON’S ADVENTURES. And other Tales.

8. THE TWO FRIENDS. And other Tales.

9. THE TURNIP LANTERN. And other Tales.

10. JOHN BUTLER; OR, THE BLIND MAN’S DOG. And other Tales.

11. CHRISTFRIED’S FIRST JOURNEY. And other Tales.

12. KATIE WATSON, THE CONTENTED LACEMAKER. And other Tales.

13. BIDDY, THE MAID OF ALL WORK.

14. MAGGIE MORRIS: A TALE OF THE DEVONSHIRE MOOR.

J. H. & CO.’S SHILLING PACKETS OF REWARD BOOKS.

Super Royal 32mo, in Illuminated Covers.

1. SHORT TALES TO EXPLAIN HOMELY PROVERBS. By M. H. A Series of Twelve Penny Books. Illustrated.

2. SHORT STORIES TO EXPLAIN BIBLE TEXTS. By M. H. A Series of Twelve Penny Books. Illustrated.

3. WISE SAYINGS, AND STORIES TO EXPLAIN THEM. By M. H. A Series of Twelve Penny Books. Illustrated.

4. LITTLE TALES FOR LITTLE PEOPLE. A Series of Six Twopenny Books. Illustrated.

*J. H. & CO.’S ONE SHILLING SERIES.*

Super royal 32mo, extra cloth, bevelled boards, Illustrated.

1. THE STORY OF A RED VELVET BIBLE. By M. H.

2. ALICE LOWTHER; OR, GRANDMAMMA’S STORY ABOUT HER LITTLE RED BIBLE. By J. W. C.

3. NOTHING TO DO; OR, THE INFLUENCE OF A LIFE. By M. H.

4. ALFRED AND THE LITTLE DOVE. By the Rev. F. A. Krummacher, D.D. And THE YOUNG SAVOYARD. By Ernest Hold.

5. MARY M’NEILL; OR, THE WORD REMEMBERED. A Tale of Humble Life. By J. W. C.

6. HENRY MORGAN; OR, THE SOWER AND THE SEED. By M. H.

7. WITLESS WILLIE, THE IDIOT BOY. _By the Author of __“__Mary Matheson,__”__ etc_.

8. MARY MANSFIELD; OR, NO TIME TO BE A CHRISTIAN. By M. H.

9. FRANK FIELDING; OR, DEBTS AND DIFFICULTIES. By Agnes Veitch.

10. TALES FOR “THE CHILDREN’S HOUR.” By M. M. C.

11. THE LITTLE CAPTAIN: a Tale of the Sea. By Mrs George Cupples.

12. GOTTFRIED OF THE IRON HAND: a Tale of German Chivalry.

13. ARTHUR FORTESCUE; OR, THE SCHOOLBOY HERO. By Robert Hope Moncrieff.

14. THE SANGREAL; OR, THE HIDDEN TREASURE. By M. H.

15. COCKERILL THE CONJURER; OR, THE BRAVE BOY OF HAMELN.

16. JOTTINGS FROM THE DIARY OF THE SUN. By M. H.

17. DOWN AMONG THE WATER WEEDS. By Mona B. Bickerstaffe.

J. H. & CO.’S EIGHTEENPENCE SERIES.

Super royal 32mo, extra cloth, richly gilt sides and edges, Illustrated.

1. SHORT TALES TO EXPLAIN HOMELY PROVERBS. By M. H.

2. SHORT STORIES TO EXPLAIN BIBLE TEXTS. By M. H.

3. ALFRED AND THE LITTLE DOVE. By the Rev. F. A. Krummacher, D.D. And WITLESS WILLIE, THE IDIOT BOY. By the Author of “Mary Matheson,” etc.

4. THE STORY OF A RED VELVET BIBLE: and HENRY MORGAN; OR, THE SOWER AND THE SEED. By M. H., Editor of “The Children’s Hour.”

5. ARTHUR FORTESCUE; OR, THE SCHOOLBOY HERO. By Robert Hope Moncrieff. And FRANK FIELDING; OR, DEBTS AND DIFFICULTIES. By Agnes Veitch.

6. MARY M’NEILL; OR, THE WORD REMEMBERED. By J. W. C. And other Tales.

7. ALICE LOWTHER; OR, GRANDMAMMA’S STORY ABOUT HER LITTLE RED BIBLE. By J. W. C. And other Tales.

8. NOTHING TO DO; OR, THE INFLUENCE OF A LIFE: and MARY MANSFIELD; OR, NO TIME TO BE A CHRISTIAN. By M. H.

9. BILL MARLIN’S TALES OF THE SEA. By Mrs George Cupples.

10. GOTTFRIED OF THE IRON HAND. And other Tales.

11. THE STORY OF THE KIRK: a Sketch of Scottish Church History. By Robert Naismith.

12. THE HIDDEN TREASURE. And other Tales. By M. H.

13. LITTLE TALES FOR LITTLE PEOPLE. By Various Authors.

14. WISE SAYINGS, AND STORIES TO EXPLAIN THEM. By M. H.

*J. H. & CO.’S HALF-CROWN SERIES.*

Extra fcap. 8vo, handsomely bound in cloth.

1. ROSA LINDESAY, THE LIGHT OF KILMAIN. By M. H. Illustrated.

2. NEWLYN HOUSE, THE HOME OF THE DAVENPORTS. By A. E. W. Illustrated.

3. ALICE THORNE; OR, A SISTER’S WORK. Illustrated.

4. LABOURERS IN THE VINEYARD. By M. H. Illustrated.

5. THE CHILDREN OF THE GREAT KING. By M. H. Illustrated.

6. LITTLE HARRY’S TROUBLES. By the Author of "Gottfried." Illustrated.

7. SUNDAY SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHS. By the Rev. Alfred Taylor, Bristol, Pennsylvania.

8. WAYMARKS FOR THE GUIDING OF LITTLE FEET. By the Rey. J. A. Wallace.

9. THE DOMESTIC CIRCLE; OR, THE RELATIONS, RESPONSIBILITIES, AND DUTIES OF HOME LIFE. By the Rev. John Thomson. Illustrated.

10. SELECT CHRISTIAN BIOGRAPHIES. By the Rev. James Gardner, A.M., M.D. Illustrated.

11. OCEAN LAYS. Selected by the Rev. J. Longmuir, LL.D. Illustrated.

12. WILBERFORCE’S PRACTICAL VIEW OF CHRISTIANITY. Complete Edition.

13. COMMUNION SERVICES, ACCORDING TO THE PRESBYTERIAN FORM. By the Rev. J. A. Wallace.

14. ATTITUDES AND ASPECTS OF THE DIVINE REDEEMER. By Rev. J. A. Wallace.

15. THE REDEEMER AND THE REDEMPTION. By the Rev. Alex. S. Patterson, D.D.

16. A PASTOR’S LEGACY. Edited by the Rev. J. A. Wallace.

17. JAMES NISBET; A STUDY FOR YOUNG MEN. By the Rev. J. A. Wallace.

18. NOBLE RIVERS, AND STORIES CONCERNING THEM. By Anna J. Buckland. Illustrated.

*J. H. & CO.’S THREE SHILLING SERIES.*

Extra fcap. 8vo, richly gilt sides and edges.

1. MISS MATTY; OR, OUR YOUNGEST PASSENGER. And other Tales. Illustrated.

2. HORACE HAZELWOOD; OR, LITTLE THINGS. And other Tales. Illustrated.

3. ROSA LINDESAY, THE LIGHT OF KILMAIN. By M. H. Illustrated.

4. NEWLYN HOUSE, THE HOME OF THE DAVENPORTS. By A. E. W. Illustrated.

5. ALICE THORNE; OR, A SISTER’S WORK. Illustrated.

6. LABOURERS IN THE VINEYARD. By M. H. Illustrated.

7. LITTLE HARRY’S TROUBLES. By the Author of “Gottfried.” Illustrated.

8. THE CHILDREN OF THE GREAT KING. By M. H. Illustrated.

9. THE DOMESTIC CIRCLE; OR, THE RELATIONS, RESPONSIBILITIES, AND DUTIES OF HOME LIFE. By the Rev. John Thomson. Illustrated.

10. SUNDAY SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHS. By the Rev. Alfred Taylor, Bristol.

11. WAYMARKS FOR THE GUIDING OF LITTLE FEET. By the Rev. J. A. Wallace.

12. SELECT CHRISTIAN BIOGRAPHIES. By the Rev. James Gardner, A.M., M.D. Illustrated.

13. CARDIPHONIA; OR, THE UTTERANCE OF THE HEART. In a Series of Letters. By John Newton. A New Edition, bevelled boards, cut edges.

14. FOUND AFLOAT. By Mrs George Cupples. And other Tales. Illustrated.

15. JAMES NISBET; A STUDY FOR YOUNG MEN. By the Rev. J. A. Wallace.

16. THE WHITE ROE OF GLENMERE. By Mona B. Bickerstaffe. And other Tales. Illustrated.

17. NOBLE RIVERS, AND STORIES CONCERNING THEM. By Anna J. Buckland. Illustrated.

*J. H. & CO.’S FIVE SHILLING SERIES.*

Bound in cloth, bevelled boards, richly gilt sides and edges.

1. THE CHILDREN’S HOUR ANNUAL. First Series. 656 pp. Extra fcap. 8vo. Illustrated.

2. THE CHILDREN’S HOUR ANNUAL. Second Series. 640 pp. Extra fcap. 8vo. Illustrated.

3. SKETCHES OF SCRIPTURE CHARACTERS. By the Rev. Andrew Thomson, D.D. Crown 8vo. Illustrated.

4. STARS OF EARTH; OR, WILD FLOWERS OF THE MONTHS. By Leigh Page. Crown 8vo. With Original Illustrations by the Author.

5. ELIJAH; THE DESERT PROPHET: A Biography. By the Rev. H. T. Howat. Crown 8vo. Illustrated.

Afflicted’s Refuge (The); or, Prayers adapted to various Circumstances of Distress. Fcap. 8vo, cloth, £ 0 2 6.

Alfred and the Little Dove. By F. A. Krummacher, D.D. And the Young Savoyard. By Ernest Hold. Translated from the German by a Lady. Royal 32mo, cloth. Illustrated, 0 1 0.

Alice Lowther; or, Grandmamma’s Story about her Little Red Bible. By J. W. C., Author of “Mary M’Neill,” etc. Royal 32mo, cloth, Illustrated, 0 1 0.

Alice Thorne; or, A Sister’s Work. Extra fcap. 8vo, cloth, Illustrated, 0 2 6.——Extra cloth, gilt edges, 0 3 0.

Archie Douglas; or, Where there’s a Will there’s a Way. And other Tales. Super Royal 32mo, cloth, Illustrated, 0 0 6.

Arthur Fortescue; or, The Schoolboy Hero. By Robert Hope Moncrieff. Royal 32mo, cloth, Illustrated, 0 1 0.

Authorised Standards of the Free Church of Scotland: Being the Westminster Confession of Faith and other Documents. _Published by Authority of the General Assembly._ Demy 12mo, cloth limp, 0 1 3.——Cloth boards, 0 1 6.——Superior Edition, Printed on Superfine Paper, extra cloth, bevelled boards, antique, 0 2 6.——Full calf, lettered, antique 0 5 0.

Biddy, the Maid of All Work. Super Royal 32mo, cloth, Illustrated, 0 0 6.

Bill Marlin’s Tales of the Sea. By Mrs George Cupples. Super royal 32mo, extra cloth, gilt edges, Illustrated, 0 1 6.

Brodie (Rev. James, A.M.) The Antiquity and Nature of Man: A Reply to Sir Charles Lyell’s Recent Work. Extra fcap. 8vo, cloth, 0 2 6.

——Papers Offered for Discussion at the meeting of the British Association at Dundee. Extra fcap. 8vo, boards, 0 1 0.

The Rational Creation: An Inquiry into the Nature and Classification of Rational Creatures, and the Government which God exercises over them. Crown 8vo, cloth, 0 5 0.

An Inquiry into the Apocalypse, with an Endeavour to ascertain our present Position on the Chart of Time. Royal 8vo, sewed 0 2 0.

Brodie (Rev. James, A.M.) Memoir of Annie M’Donald Christie, a Self-taught Cottager. Demy 18mo, cloth, £0 1 6.

Buckland (Anna J.) Noble Rivers, and Stories concerning Them. Extra fcap. 8vo, cloth, with Illustrations, 0 2 6.——Extra cloth, gilt edges, 0 3 0.

Burns (Rev. George, D.D.) Prayers for the Use of Sabbath Schools. 18mo, sewed, 0 0 4.

Catechisms—

THE ASSEMBLY’S SHORTER CATECHISM; with References to the Scripture Proofs. Demy 18mo, stitched, 0 0 0-½.

THE ASSEMBLY’S SHORTER CATECHISM; with (_Italicised_) Proofs from Scripture at full length; also with Additional Scripture References, selected from Boston, Fisher, M. Henry, Paterson, Vincent, and others. Demy 18mo, stitched, 0 0 1.

THE ASSEMBLY’S LARGER CATECHISM; with (_Italicised_) Proofs from Scripture at full length. Demy 12mo, sewed, 0 0 6.

CATECHISM OF THE EVIDENCES OF REVEALED RELIGION, with a few Preliminary Questions on Natural Religion. By William Ferrie, D.D., Kilconquhar. 18mo, stitched, 0 0 4.

CATECHISM ON BAPTISM: in which are considered its Nature, its Subjects, and the Obligations resulting from it. By the late Henry Grey, D.D., Edinburgh. 18mo, stitched, 0 0 6.

THE CHILD’S FIRST CATECHISM. 48mo, stitched, 0 0 0-½.

SHORT CATECHISM FOR YOUNG CHILDREN. By the Rev. John Brown, Haddington. 32mo, stitched, 0 0 0-½.

PLAIN CATECHISM FOR CHILDREN. By the Rev. Matthew Henry. 18mo, stitched, 0 0 1.

FIFTY QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE LEADING DOCTRINES AND DUTIES OF THE GOSPEL; with Scripture Answers and Parallel Texts. For the use of Sabbath Schools. 18mo, stitched, 0 0 1.

FORM OF EXAMINATION BEFORE THE COMMUNION. Approved by the General Assembly of the Kirk of Scotland (1592), and appointed to be read in Families and Schools; with Proofs from Scripture (commonly known as “Craig’s Catechism”). With a Recommendatory Note by the Rev. Dr Candlish, Rev. Alexander Moody Stuart, and Rev. Dr Horatius Bonar. 18mo, stitched, 0 0 1.

THE MOTHER’S CATECHISM; being a Preparatory Help for the Young and Ignorant, to their easier understanding The Assembly’s Shorter Catechism. By the Rev. John Willison, Dundee. 32mo, stitched, 0 0 1.

WATTS’ (DR ISAAC) JUVENILE HISTORICAL CATECHISMS OF THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS; with Numerous Scripture References, and a Selection of Hymns. Demy 18mo, stitched, 0 0 1.

A SCRIPTURE CATECHISM, Historical and Doctrinal, for the use Of Schools and Families. By John Whitecross, Author of “Anecdotes on the Shorter Catechism,” etc. 18mo, stitched, 0 0 1.

A SUMMARY OF CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE AND DUTIES; being the Westminster Assembly’s Shorter Catechism, without the Questions, with Marginal References. Fcap. 8vo, stitched, 0 0 1.

Children of the Great King (The): A Story of the Crimean War. By M. H., Editor of “The Children’s Hour.” Extra fcap. 8vo, cloth, with Illustrations, 0 2 6.——Cloth extra, gilt edges, 0 3 0.

Children’s Hour (The) Annual. First Series. 656 pp., and upwards of 50 Illustrations. Extra fcap. 8vo, cloth, gilt edges, £0 5 0.

——Second Series. 640 pp., and upwards of 70 Illustrations. Extra fcap. 8vo, cloth, gilt edges, 0 5 0.

Children’s Hour (The) Series of Gift Books.

1. MISS MATTY; OR, OUR YOUNGEST PASSENGER. And other Tales.

2. HORACE HAZELWOOD. And other Tales.

3. FOUND AFLOAT. And other Tales.

4. THE WHITE ROE OF GLENMERE. And other Tales. Extra fcap. 8vo, cloth, gilt sides and edges, Illustrated—each 0 3 0.

Christfried’s First Journey. And other Tales. Super royal 32mo, cloth, Illustrated, 0 0 6.

Christian Treasury (The) Volumes 1845 to 1860. 16 Volumes, royal 8vo, cloth—each 0 5 0.

A complete Set will be forwarded to any part of the country, carriage paid, on receipt of £3, 3s.

——Volumes 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865, and 1866. Super royal 8vo, cloth, green and gold—each 0 6 6.

Cockerill the Conjurer; or, The Brave Boy of Hameln. By the Author of “Little Harry’s Troubles.” Super royal 32mo, cloth, bevelled boards, Illustrated, 0 1 0.

Confession of Faith (The) agreed upon at the Assembly of Divines at Westminster. Complete Edition, with the _Italics_ of the elegant Quarto Edition of 1658 restored. (Authorised Edition.) Demy 12mo, cloth limp, 0 1 0.

——Cloth boards, 0 1 3.——Superior Edition, Printed on Superfine Paper, extra cloth, bevelled boards, antique, 0 2 6.——Full calf, lettered, antique, 0 5 0.

Dill (Edward Marcus, A.M., M.D.) The Mystery Solved: or, Ireland’s Miseries: Their Grand Cause and Cure. Fcap. 8vo, cloth, 0 2 6.

——The Gathering Storm; or, Britain’s Romeward Career: A Warning and Appeal to British Protestants. Fcap. 8vo, cloth, 0 1 0.

FOOTNOTES

1 An English translation of this Treatise was published under the
following title:—“A very profitable Treatise, declarynge what great
profit might come to all Christendom yf there were a regester made
of all the saincts’ bodies and other reliques which are as well in
Italy as in France, Dutchland, Spaine, and other kingdoms and
conntreys. Translated out of the French into English by J. Wythers,
London, 1561.” 16mo. I have made my translation from the French
original, reprinted at Paris in 1822.

2 It is well known that more than half a million of pilgrims went to
worship the holy coat of Treves in 1844, and that many wonderful
stories about the cures effected by that relic were related. Several
of these stories are not altogether without foundation, because
there are many cases where imagination affects the human body in
such a powerful manner as to cause or cure various diseases. It was
therefore to be expected that individuals suffering from such
diseases should be at least temporarily relieved from their ailings
by a strong belief in the miraculous powers of the relic. Cases of
this kind are always noticed, whilst all those of ineffectual
pilgrimage are never mentioned.

3 A translation of this letter was published in the _Allgemeine
Zeitung_ of Augsburg.

4 Thus St Anthony of Padua restores, like Mercury, stolen property; St
Hubert, like Diana, is the patron of sportsmen; St Cosmas, like
Esculapius, that of physicians, &c. In fact, almost every profession
and trade, as well as every place, have their especial patron saint,
who, like the tutelary divinity of the Pagans, receives particular
honours from his or her _protégés_.

5 In his Treatise given below.

6 “Quod legentibus Scriptum, hoc et idiotis, præstat pictura, quia in
ipsa ignorantes vident quid sequi debeant, in ipsas legunt qui
litteras nesciunt,” says St Gregory.—_Maury, Essai sur les
Legendes_, &c., p. 104.

7 “Quoniam talis memoria quæ imaginibus fovetur, non venit es cordis
amore, sed ex visionis necessitate.”—_Opus illustrissimi Caroli
magni contra Synodum pro adorandis imaginibus_, p. 480, (in
18—1549),—a work of which I shall have an opportunity more amply to
speak.

8 See his chapter on the “Ill Effects of Solitude on the
Imagination”—English translation.

9 Ibid.

10 “Fleury Histoire Eccles.,” lib. xxi. chap. 15.

11 The author of this sketch says himself, in a note, “Yet this
idolatry is far from having entirely disappeared. Pilgrimages, and a
devotion to certain images, but particularly to that of the Virgin,
are still continuing,” &c. This was said in 1843. I wonder what he
will say now, when this idolatry is reappearing, even in those parts
of Europe where the Calvinists had, according to his expression,
struck at its very root.

12 “Essai sur les Legendes Pieuses du Moyen Age,” par Alfred Maury, pp.
111, _et seq._

13 “Chateaubriand Etudes Historiques,” vol. ii. p. 101.

14 “Histoire de la Destruction du Paganisme dans l’Empire d’Orient,”
par M. Chastel, Paris, 1850, p. 342 _et seq._

15 “Histoire de la Destruction du Paganisme en Occident,” par A.
Beugnot, Member of the French Institute, Paris, 1835, 8vo, 2 vols.

_ 16 Translator’s Note._—Was not the introduction of pagan rites into
the church the indirect way to idolatry alluded to in the text?

_ 17 Author’s Note._—The festivals of the martyrs was a very large
concession made to the old manners, because all that took place
daring those days was not very edifying.

_ 18 Translator’s Note._—I shall give in its proper place a more ample
account of Vigilantius.

_ 19 Author’s Note._—These compromises were temporary, and the church
revoked them as soon as she believed that she could do it without
inconvenience. She struggled hard against the calends of January,
after having for a considerable time suffered these festivities; and
when she saw that she could not succeed in abolishing them, she
decided to transport the beginning of the year from the first of
January to Easter, in order to break the Pagan customs.

_ 20 Author’s Note._—“The Saturnalia, and several other festivals, were
celebrated on the calends of January; Christmas was fixed at the
same epoch. The Lupercalia, a pretended festival of purification,
took place during the calends of February; the Christian
purification (Candlemas) was celebrated on the 2d of February. The
festival of Augustus, celebrated on the calends of August, was
replaced by that of St Peter _in vinculis_, established on the 1st
of that month. The inhabitants of the country, ever anxious about
the safety of their crops, obstinately retained the celebration of
the _Ambarvalia_; St Mamert established in the middle of the fifth
century the _Rogations_, which in their form differ very little from
the _Ambarvalia_. On comparing the Christian calendar with the Pagan
one, it is impossible not to be struck by the great concordance
between the two. Now, can we consider this concordance as the effect
of chance? It is principally in the usages peculiar only to some
churches that we may trace the spirit of concessions with which
Christianity was animated during the first centuries of its
establishment. Thus, at Catania, where the Pagans were celebrating
the festival of Ceres after harvest, the church of that place
consented to delay to that time the festival of the Visitation,
which is celebrated everywhere else on the 2d July.”—_F. Aprile
Cronologia Universale di Sicilia_, p. 601. I would recommend to
those who wish to study this subject the work of _Marangoni_, a very
interesting work, though its author (whose object was to convince
the Protestants who attacked the discipline of the Roman Catholic
Church on account of these concessions) tried to break the evident
connection which exists between certain Christian and Pagan
festivals.

_ 21 Author’s Note._—“There are at Rome even now several churches which
had formerly been pagan temples, and thirty-nine of them have been
built on the foundations of such temples.”—_Marangoni_, pp. 236-268.
There is no country in Europe where similar examples are not found.
It is necessary to remark, that all these transformations began at
the end of the fifth century.

_ 22 Author’s Note._—At Rome four churches have pagan names, viz:—_S.
Maria Sopra Minerva_, _S. Maria Aventina_, _St Lorenzo in Matuta_,
and _St Stefano del Cacco_. At Sienna, the temple of Quirinus became
the church of _St Quiricus_.

_ 23 Translator’s Note._—And still more to their corruption.

_ 24 Translator’s Note._—Christ has said, “Come unto me, all ye that
labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke
upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye
shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden
is light.”—Matt. xi. 28-30. I would ask the learned author, whether
these words of our Saviour are not sufficiently mild, tender, and
consoling, and whether there was any necessity to _consecrate_ some
new ideas in order to temper their severity?

_ 25 Author’s Note._—Amongst a multitude of proofs I shall choose only
one, in order to show with what facility the worship of Mary swept
away in its progress the remnants of Paganism which were still
covering Europe:—Notwithstanding the preaching of St Hilarion,
Sicily had remained faithful to the ancient worship. After the
council of Ephesus, we see eight of the finest Pagan temples of that
island becoming in a very short time churches dedicated to the
Virgin. These temples were, 1. of Minerva, at Syracuse; 2. of Venus
and Saturn, at Messina; 3. of Venus Erigone, on the Mount Eryx,
believed to have been built by Eneas; 4. of Phalaris, at Agrigent;
5. of Vulcan, near Mount Etna; 6. the Pantheon, at Catania; 7. of
Ceres, in the same town; 8. the Sepulchre of Stesichorus.—V. _Aprile
Cronologia Universale di Sicilia_. Similar facts may be found in the
ecclesiastical annals of every country.

_ 26 Translator’s Note._—The time when the church is to accomplish this
purification has, alas! not yet arrived.

27 Beugnot, vol. ii., book xii., chap. 1, pp. 261-272.

28 The opinions of different writers on the number of Christians in the
Roman empire at the time of Constantine’s conversion greatly varies.
The valuation of Staudlin (“Universal Geshichte der Christlichen
Kirche,” p. 41, 1833) at half of its population, and even that of
Matter (“Histoire de l’Eglise,” t. i. p. 120), who reduces it to the
fifth, are generally considered as exaggerated. Gibbon thinks that
it was the twentieth part of the above-mentioned population; and the
learned French academician. La Bastie (“Memoires de l’Academie des
Inscripter,” &c.) believes that it was the twelfth. This last
valuation is approved by Chastel (“Histoire de la Destruction du
Paganisme en Orient,” 1850, p. 36) as an average number, though it
was much larger in the East than in the West. The celebrated passage
of Tertullian’s “Apology,” in the second century, where he
represents the number of Christians in the Roman empire to be so
great, that it would have become a desert if they had retired from
it, is considered by Beugnot (vol. ii. p. 188) as the most
exaggerated hyperbole which has ever been used by an orator.

_ 29 Translator’s Note._—Expression of St Jerome, Op. iv. p. 266. It
would be curious to know what this father of the church would have
said of the present Rome.

30 Beugnot, vol. i., p. 86.

31 “Ludorum celebrationes, deoram festa sunt.”—Lactantius,
_Institutiones Divin._, vi., 20, _apud_ Beugnot.

32 “Adite aras publicas adque delubra, et consuetudinis vestræ
celebrate solemnia: nec enim prohibemus preteritæ usurpationis
officia libera luce tractari.”

33 The _labarum_ was a cross, with the monogram of Christ.

34 The Græco-Russian church has, however, given him a place in her
calendar on the 21st May, but only in common with his mother Helena.
This was done only a considerable time after his death.

35 Beugnot, upon the authority of Ausonius, vol. i., p. 321.

36 Thus Symmachus, one of the leaders of the old aristocracy of Rome,
celebrated for his learning, virtues, and staunch adherence to the
national polytheism, was invested by Theodosius with the dignity of
a consul of Rome; the well known Greek orator, Libanius, was created
prefect of the imperial palace; and Themistius, who had been
invested with the highest honours under the preceding reigns, was
created by Theodosius prefect of Constantinople, received in the
senate, and entrusted for some time with the education of Arcadius.
These distinguished polytheists never made a secret of their
religious opinions, but publicly declared them on several occasions.
Many of Theodosius’ generals were avowed Pagans, but enjoyed no less
his confidence and favour.

37 Fallmerayer, “Geschichte der Morea,” vol. i., p. 136.

_ 38 Vide supra_, pp. 30-32.

39 I think that it will not be uninteresting to my readers to know how
the Roman Catholic Church explains this prohibition, and which may
be best seen from the following piece of ingenious casuistry, by one
of her ablest defenders in this country:—“Canon xxxvi. of the
Provincial Council held in 305, at Eliberis, in Spain, immediately
refutes the error of Bingham. (Bingham maintained the same opinion
on the images which is expressed in the text.) The pastors of the
Spanish church beheld the grievous persecution that Diocletian had
commenced to wage against the Christian faith, which had for a
lengthened period enjoyed comparative repose, under the forbearing
reign of Constantius Cæsar, father of Constantine the Great. They
assembled to concert precautionary measures, and amongst other
things, they determined that, in the provinces under their immediate
jurisdiction, there should be no fixed and immovable picture
monuments, such as fresco paintings or mosaics, no images of Christ
whom they adored, nor of the saints whom they venerated, on the
walls of the churches which had been erected and ornamented during
the long interval of peace which the Christians had enjoyed.
‘Placuit,’ says the council, ‘picturas in ecclesia esse non debere,
ne quod colitur et adoratur, in parietibus depingatur,’ (Con. Elib.,
_apud Labbeum_, tom i. p. 972.) This economy was prudent and adapted
to the exigency of the period. The figures of Christ and of his
saints were thus protected from the ribaldry and insults of the
Pagans. But this well-timed prohibition demonstrates, that the use
of pictures and images had already been introduced into the Spanish
church.”—_Hierurgia, or Transubstantiation, Invocation of Saints,
Relics, &c., expounded by D. Rock, D.D._, second edition, p. 374,
_note_. There can be no doubt that the enactment in question proves
that images were used at that time amongst the Spanish Christians,
as a law prohibiting some particular crimes or offences shows that
they were taking place at the time when it was promulgated; but the
opinion that the above-mentioned enactment was not a prohibition of
images, but a precautionary measure in their favour, must be
supported either by the other canons of the same council, which
contain nothing confirmatory of this opinion, or by the authority of
some contemporary writer, and is without such evidence quite
untenable, and nothing better than a mere sophism, I have given this
explanation of the Council of Elvira by a Roman Catholic writer as a
fair specimen of the manner in which all other practices of their
church, derived from Paganism, are defended.

_ 40 Translator’s Note._—And yet the same writer has defended this
manner of recruiting the church.—_Vid. supra_, p. 17.

_ 41 Translator’s Note_.—And yet this system of concession has been
called by the same author _true wisdom._—_Vid. supra_, p. 18.

_ 42 Translator’s Note._—It dated from the time when the Christian
church began to make a compromise with Paganism.

43 Who would defile themselves by the impious superstition of the
idols.

44 An ecclesiastical writer of the fifth century.

_ 45 Translator’s Note._—Importing usually into the Christian church
that leaven of Paganism which is mentioned in the text.

_ 46 Translator’s Note._—Retaining meanwhile, however, the thing itself.

_ 47 Translator’s Note._—It is a great pity that the author leaves us in
the dark about the time when this great improvement in the Roman
Catholic Church to which he alludes took place.

48 St Augustinus relates, in the fourth book of his Confessions, chap,
iii., that he was diverted from the idea of studying astrology by a
pagan physician, who made him understand all the falsehood and
ridicule of that science.

49 A similar custom is still prevalent is Russia. _Vide infra_, “On the
Superstitions of her Church.”

_ 50 Author’s Note._—In 1215, Buondelmonte was murdered by the Amidei at
the foot of the statue of Mars. This murder produced at Florence a
civil war, which, gradually spreading over all Italy, gave birth to
the factions of the Guelphs and Ghibelines.

51 Basnage, “Histoire de l’Eglise,” p. 1174.

52 An interesting account of Vigilantius was published by the Rev. Dr
Gilly, the well-known friend of the Waldensians.

_ 53 Vide supra_, p. 8.

54 Gibbon’s “Roman Empire,” chap. xlix.

55 The Greeks and Russians worship their images chiefly by kissing
them, and it was probably on this account that it was ordered to
raise them to a height where they could not be reached by the lips
of their votaries, because this means could not prevent them from
bowing to them.

56 It is related that the women were the most zealous in defending the
images, and that an officer of the emperor, who was demolishing a
statue of Christ placed at the entrance of the imperial palace, was
murdered by them.

57 Gibbon and some other writers think that Constantine survived for
some time the loss of his eyes, but I have followed in the text the
general opinion on this event.

58 Irene was a native of Athens.

59 Vol. ix. p. 429, _et seq._

60 Extracts from the works of this celebrated monk, and his life,
_apud_ Basnage _Histoire de l’Eglise_, p. 1375.

61 Theodora, on being appointed by her husband regent during the
minority of her son, was obliged to swear that she would not restore
the _idols_. The Jesuit Maimbourg, who wrote a history of the
iconoclasts, maintains that, in restoring the worship of images, she
did not commit a perjury, because _she swore that_ she would not
restore the _idols_, but not _images_, which are not idols.

62 I may add, as well as the Russo-Greek Church, which, as I shall have
an opportunity to show afterwards, is no less opposed to
Protestantism than her rival, the Church of Rome.

63 Thus, for instance, the well-known work of the celebrated patriarch
Photius, written in the ninth century, contains extracts from and
notices of many works which have never reached us.

64 “Edinburgh Review,” July, 1841, p. 17.

65 According to the author of “Hierurgia,” Cassianus suffered martyrdom
under the reign of Julian the Apostate; we know, however, from
history, that no persecution of Christians had taken place under
that emperor. Cassianus’ body is still preserved at Imola, but
according to Collin de Plancy he has besides a head at Toulouse.

66 “Hierurgia,” by D. Rock, D.D., second edition, p. 377, _et seq._

67 Prudentius was known as a man of great learning, and had filled some
important offices of the state.

68 The title of this book is—“Opus illustrissimi Caroli Magni, nutu
Dei, Regis Francorum, Gallias, Germaniam, Italiamque sive harum
finitimas provincias, Domino opitulante, regentis, contra Synodum
quæ in partibus Greciæ, pro adorandis imaginibus, stolide sive
arroganter gesta est.”

69 I think that it has recently been completed at Brussels.

70 The title of Ruinart’s work is—“Acta primorum Martyrum sincera et
selecta ex libris, cum editis, tum manuscriptis, collecta eruta vel
emendata.” 4to, Paris 1687, and several editions afterwards.

71 The most important of these Apocrypha of the New Testament, some of
which have reached us, whilst we know the others from the writings
of the fathers, are the Gospels according to St Peter, to St Thomas,
to St Matthias, the Revelations of St Peter, the Epistle of St
Barnabas, the Acts of St John, of St Andrew, and other apostles.

72 Mabillon on the Unknown Saints, p. 10. _Apud_ Basnage, p. 1047.

73 “Vie de St François Xavier,” par le Pere Bouhours, 1716. _Apud_
Maury, p. 22.

74 “Liber Aureus Inscriptus, Liber Conformitatum Vitæ Beati ac
Seraphici Patris Francisci, ad Vitam Jesu Christi Domini Nostri.” It
went through several editions.

75 The title of this curious work is “Histoire de St François d’Assise,
par Emile Chavin de Malan.” Paris: 1845.

76 “Edinburgh Review,” April 1847, p. 295.

77 History of St Waltheof, p. 2 in the 5th vol. of the collection.

78 Ibid., p. 24.

79 Life of St Augustine of Canterbury, Apostle of the English, p. 237,
in the 1st volume of the English Saints, mentioned above.

80 There is a German story which is evidently a parody of this legend.
It says that an individual who was passionately fond of playing at
nine-pins committed a crime for which he was sentenced to be
beheaded. He requested, as a favour which was usually granted to
culprits before their execution, to indulge once more in his
favourite game. This demand being conceded, he began to play with
such ardour that he entirely forgot his impending execution. The
executioner, who was present, got tired of waiting for the culprit,
and seizing a moment when he stretched his neck picking up a ball
from the ground, cut off his head. The culprit was, however, so keen
in the pursuit of his game, that he seized his own head, and having
made with it a successful throw, exclaimed, “Haven’t I got all the
nine?”

81 An old German ballad gives a fair specimen of the ideas which people
entertained of the joys of heaven. It says, amongst other
things:—“Wine costs not a penny in the cellar of heaven; angels bake
bread and cracknels at the desire of every one; vegetables of every
kind abundantly grow in the garden of heaven; pease and carrots grow
without being planted; asparagus is as thick as a man’s leg, and
artichokes as big as a head. When it is a lent day, the fishes
arrive in shoals, and St Peter comes with his net to catch them, in
order to regale you. St Martha is the cook and St Urban the
butler.”—See Maury, p. 88.

82 Zimmerman’s “Solitude Considered with respect to its Dangerous
Influence upon the Mind and Heart.” English translation. Ed. 1798,
p. 102, _et seq._

_ 83 Vide supra_, p. 17.

84 “Mandat sancta synodus omnibus episcopis et caeteris, ut juxta
catholicae et apostolicae ecclesiae usum, a primaevis Christianae
religionis temporibus receptum, de legitimo imaginum usu fideles
diligenter instruunt, docentes eos, imaginis Christi et Deiparae
Virginis, et aliorum sanctorum, in templis praesertim habendas et
retinendas, eisque debitum honorem et venerationem impertiendam; non
quod credatur inesse aliqua in divinitas, vel virtus, propter quam
sint colendae; vel quod ab iis aliquod sit petendum; vel quod
fiducia in imaginibus sit figenda, veluti olim fiebat a gentibus,
quae in idolis (Psalm cxxxv.) spem suam collocabant: sed quoniam
honos, qui eis exhibetur, refertur ad prototypae, quae illae
representant, ita ut per imagines, quae osculamur, et coram quibus
caput aperimus et procumbimus, Christum adoremus; et sanctos quorum
illae similitudinem gerunt veneremur.”—Sessio xxv. _de Invocatione
Sanc. et Sacr. Imag._

85 The following description of this little idol is given by a
well-known French writer of last century:—“This morning, when I was
quietly walking along a street towards the capitol, I met with a
carriage, in which sat two Franciscan monks, holding on their knee
something which I was unable to distinguish. Every body was stopping
and bowing in a most respectful manner. I inquired to whom were
these salutations directed? ‘To the _Bambino_,’ I was answered,
‘whom these good fathers are carrying to a prelate, who is very ill,
and whom the physicians have given up.’ It was then explained to me
what this _Bambino_ is. It is a little statue, meant for Jesus, made
of wood, and richly attired. The convent which has the good fortune
of being its owner has no other patrimony. As soon as any body is
seriously ill, the _Bambino_ is sent for, in a carriage, because he
never walks on foot. Two monks take him and place him near the bed
of the patient, in whose house they remain, living at his expense,
until he dies or recovers.

“The _Bambino_ is always driving about; people sometimes fight at
the gate of the convent in order to get him. He is particularly busy
during the summer, and his charges are then higher, in proportion to
the competition and the heat, which I think is quite
right.”—_Dupaty, Lettres sur l’Italie_, let. xlviii.

The _Bambino_ continues to maintain his credit; and I have read not
long ago in the newspapers, that an English lady of rank, who had
joined the communion of Rome, was performing the duties of his dry
nurse on a festival of her adopted church.

_ 86 Insolitam imaginem._ I have made use in the text of the English
Roman Catholic translation of the canons of the Council of Trent, by
the Rev. Mr Waterworth.

87 “Omnia hæc impia sunt et cultus idolorum, alloqui ipsas statuas aut
ossa, aut fingere Deum aut sanctos magis in uno loco, seu ad hanc
statuam alligatos esse quam ad alia loca. Nihil differunt
invocationes quæ fiunt ad Mariam Aquensem seu Ratisbonensem ab
invocationibus ethnicis, quæ flebant ad Dianam Ephesiam, aut ad
Junonem Platæensem, aut ad alias statuas.”—_Respon. ad Articul.
Bavaric_, art. 17, p. 381.

88 Middleton’s “Miscellaneous Works,” vol. v., p. 96, edition of 1755.

89 Ibid., p. 97.

90 Hospinian, “De Origine Templ.,” lib. ii. cap. 23; _apud_ Middleton,
_loco citato_.

91 Beugnot, vol. i. p. 231, on the authority of Sosomenes.

92 There are some Protestant writers who attach great value to the
apostolic canons, as, for instance, Dr Beveridge, Bishop of St
Asaph, who wrote a defence of them.

93 “Institutiones Christianæ,” lib. vi., cap. 2; apud, “Hospinian de
Origine Templorum,” lib. ii., cap. 10.

94 This date is a mistake, and I would have taken it for a misprint if
the author had not said before, that “Vigilantius attacked the
practices of the church in the fourth age.” I have, in speaking of
this subject, p. 71, followed the authority of the great historian
of the Roman Catholic Church, Fleury, who says that Jerome answered
Vigilantius in 404.

_ 95 Vid. supra_, p. 14, _et seq._, the opinions of Chateaubriand and
Beugnot on the same subject.

96 The appellation of _regina cælorum_, queen of heaven, is frequently
given to the blessed Virgin in Roman Catholic litanies and hymns
addressed to her. The queen of heaven mentioned by Jeremiah is
supposed to be the same as Astarte, or the Syrian Venus.

97 Herodot., lib. ii., p. 36,—

“Qui grege linigero circumdatus et grege calvo,
Plangentis populi currit derisor Anubis.”

_Juvenal_, vi. 532.

98 He describes in it the well-known Roman Catholic practice of
flagellation or self-whipping, which has been, and is still, done by
the priests and votaries of several Pagan deities.

99 “Namque omnia loca quae thuris constiterit vapore fumasse, si tamen
ea fuisse in jure thurificantium probabitur, fisco nostro adsocianda
censemus,” &c.—_Vid._ also _supra_, p. 48.

100 I give these numbers on the authority of the Almanac de Gotha.

101 The facts of this curious affair have never been published, but they
are preserved in the ecclesiastical archives of Moscow, and a copy
of them in the ecclesiastical academy of St Petersburgh.—_Strahl’s
Beyträge zur Russischen Kirchengeschichte_, p. 239.

102 Hermann Geschichte von Russland, 1853, vol. v., p. 89.

103 Anointment with oil makes a part of the Greek ritual of baptism.

104 These regulations may appear strange in a country like this, but in
Russia all the population is divided into various classes, and
nobody can pass from one of them into another without the
authorization of the Government; as, for instance, if a peasant or
agriculturist wishes to become a burgher by settling in a town. The
peasantry in the Baltic provinces were emancipated under the reign
of the Emperor Alexander, but the landowners still maintain a
certain authority over them.

105 The Pope, book iv., chap. 1.

106 Bodenstedt’s Morning Land; or, Thousand and One Days in the East.
Second Series, vol. i., p. 61, _et seq._, a work which is
particularly interesting at the present time.

107 Studien über Russland, vol. i., p. 101.

108 The Russians of that time were known as slave dealers, according to
Benjamin of Tudela, a Jewish traveller of the same period.

109 Travels of Ibn Foslan, German translation, by Frähn, p. 7.

110 “Die Völker des Kaukasus,” p. 284.

111 It owned before the confiscation of the church estates more than a
hundred thousand male serfs.