WhichofthesetwosensesisthatwhichSt。JohnintendedtoassigntothewordlogosinthefirstchapterofhisGospel，andinallhiswritings?
St。JohnwasaJew，bornandeducatedinPalestine；hehadnoknowledge，atleastverylittle，ofthephilosophyoftheGreeks，andthatoftheGrecizingJews:hewouldnaturally，then，attachtothewordlogosthesenseattachedtoitbytheJewsofPalestine。If，infact，wecomparetheattributeswhichheassignstothelogoswiththosewhichareassignedtoitinProverbs，intheWisdomofSolomon，inEcclesiasticus，weshallseethattheyarethesame。TheWordwasintheworld，andtheworldwasmadebyhim；inhimwaslife，andthelifewasthelightofmen，c。i。v。10—14。ItisimpossiblenottotraceinthischaptertheideaswhichtheJewshadformedoftheallegorizedlogos。Theevangelistafterwardsreallypersonifiesthatwhichhispredecessorshavepersonifiedonlypoetically；forheaffirms\"thattheWordbecameflesh，\"v。14。Itwastoprovethisthathewrote。Closelyexamined，theideaswhichhegivesofthelogoscannotagreewiththoseofPhiloandtheschoolofAlexandria；theycorrespond，onthecontrary，withthoseoftheJewsofPalestine。PerhapsSt。John，employingawell—knowntermtoexplainadoctrinewhichwasyetunknown，hasslightlyalteredthesense；itisthisalterationwhichweappeartodiscoveroncomparingdifferentpassagesofhiswritings。
Itisworthyofremark，thattheJewsofPalestine，whodidnotperceivethisalteration，couldfindnothingextraordinaryinwhatSt。JohnsaidoftheLogos；atleasttheycomprehendeditwithoutdifficulty，whiletheGreeksandGrecizingJews，ontheirpart，broughttoitprejudicesandpreconceptionseasilyreconciledwiththoseoftheevangelist，whodidnotexpresslycontradictthem。ThiscircumstancemusthavemuchfavoredtheprogressofChristianity。Thusthefathersofthechurchinthetwofirstcenturiesandlater，formedalmostallintheschoolofAlexandria，gavetotheLogosofSt。JohnasensenearlysimilartothatwhichitreceivedfromPhilo。TheirdoctrineapproachedveryneartothatwhichinthefourthcenturythecouncilofNicecondemnedinthepersonofArius。—G。
M。GuizothasforgottenthelongresidenceofSt。JohnatEphesus，thecentreoftheminglingopinionsoftheEastandWest，whichweregraduallygrowingupintoGnosticism。SeeMatter。Hist。duGnosticisme，vol。i。p。154。St。John\'ssenseoftheLogosseemsasfarremovedfromthesimpleallegoryascribedtothePalestinianJewsasfromtheOrientalimpersonationoftheAlexandrian。ThesimpletruthmaybethatSt。Johntookthefamiliarterm，and，asitwereinfusedintoitthepeculiarandChristiansenseinwhichitisusedinhiswritings。—M。]
[Footnote21:SeeBeausobre，Hist。CritiqueduManicheisme，tom。
i。p。377。TheGospelaccordingtoSt。JohnissupposedtohavebeenpublishedaboutseventyyearsafterthedeathofChrist。]
[Footnote22:ThesentimentsoftheEbionitesarefairlystatedbyMosheimp。331andLeClerc，Hist。Eccles。p。535。TheClementines，publishedamongtheapostolicalfathers，areattributedbythecriticstooneofthesesectaries。]
[Footnote23:Stanchpolemics，likeaBull，JudiciumEccles。
Cathol。c。2，insistontheorthodoxyoftheNazarenes；whichappearslesspureandcertainintheeyesofMosheim，p。330。]
[Footnote24:ThehumbleconditionandsufferingsofJesushavealwaysbeenastumbling—blocktotheJews。\"Deus……
contrariiscoloribusMessiamdepinxerat:futuruseratRex，Judex，Pastor，\"&c。SeeLimborchetOrobioAmicaCollat。p。8，19，53—76，192—234。ButthisobjectionhasobligedthebelievingChristianstoliftuptheireyestoaspiritualandeverlastingkingdom。]
[Footnote25:JustinMartyr，Dialog。cumTryphonte，p。143，144。
SeeLeClerc，Hist。Eccles。p。615。BullandhiseditorGrabeJudiciumEccles。Cathol。c。7，andAppendixattempttodistorteitherthesentimentsorthewordsofJustin；buttheirviolentcorrectionofthetextisrejectedevenbytheBenedictineeditors。]
[Footnote26:TheAriansreproachedtheorthodoxpartywithborrowingtheirTrinityfromtheValentiniansandMarcionites。
SeeBeausobre，Hist。deManicheisme，l。iii。c。5，7。]
[Footnote27:NondignumestexuterocredereDeum，etDeumChristum……nondignumestuttantamajestaspersordesetsqualoresmulieristransirecredatur。TheGnosticsassertedtheimpurityofmatter，andofmarriage；andtheywerescandalizedbythegrossinterpretationsofthefathers，andevenofAugustinhimself。SeeBeausobre，tom。ii。p。523，Note:ThegreaterpartoftheDocetaerejectedthetruedivinityofJesusChrist，aswellashishumannature。TheybelongedtotheGnostics，whomsomephilosophers，inwhosepartyGibbonhasenlisted，maketoderivetheiropinionsfromthoseofPlato。ThesephilosophersdidnotconsiderthatPlatonismhadundergonecontinualalterations，andthatthosewhogaveitsomeanalogywiththenotionsoftheGnosticswerelaterintheiroriginthanmostofthesectscomprehendedunderthisnameMosheimhasprovedinhisInstit。Histor。Eccles。Major。s。i。
p。136，sqqandp。339，sqq。thattheOrientalphilosophy，combinedwiththecabalisticalphilosophyoftheJews，hadgivenbirthtoGnosticism。TherelationswhichexistbetweenthisdoctrineandtherecordswhichremaintousofthatoftheOrientals，theChaldeanandPersian，havebeenthesourceoftheerrorsoftheGnosticChristians，whowishedtoreconciletheirancientnotionswiththeirnewbelief。Itisonthisaccountthat，denyingthehumannatureofChrist，theyalsodeniedhisintimateunionwithGod，andtookhimforoneofthesubstancesaeonscreatedbyGod。Astheybelievedintheeternityofmatter，andconsideredittobetheprincipleofevil，inoppositiontotheDeity，thefirstcauseandprincipleofgood，theywereunwillingtoadmitthatoneofthepuresubstances，oneoftheaeonswhichcameforthfromGod，had，bypartakinginthematerialnature，alliedhimselftotheprincipleofevil；andthiswastheirmotiveforrejectingtherealhumanityofJesusChrist。SeeCh。G。F。Walch，Hist。ofHeresiesinGerm。t。i。p。
217，sqq。Brucker，Hist。Crit。Phil。ii。p639。—G。]
[Footnote28:ApostolisadhucinsaeculosuperstitibusapudJudaeamChristisanguinerecente，etphanlasmacorpusDominiasserebatur。CoteleriusthinksPatresApostol。tom。ii。p。24
thatthosewhowillnotallowtheDocetestohaveariseninthetimeoftheApostles，maywithequalreasondenythatthesunshinesatnoonday。TheseDocetes，whoformedthemostconsiderablepartyamongtheGnostics，weresocalled，becausetheygrantedonlyaseemingbodytoChrist。
Note:ThenameofDocetaewasgiventothesesectariesonlyinthecourseofthesecondcentury:thisnamedidnotdesignateasect，properlysocalled；itappliedtoallthesectswhotaughtthenon—realityofthematerialbodyofChrist；ofthisnumberweretheValentinians，theBasilidians，theOphites，theMarcionites，againstwhomTertullianwrotehisbook，DeCarneChristi，andotherGnostics。Intruth，ClementofAlexandrial。iii。Strom。c。13，p。552makesexpressmentionofasectofDocetae，andevennamesasoneofitsheadsacertainCassianus；
buteverythingleadsustobelievethatitwasnotadistinctsect。PhilastriusdeHaeres，c。31reproachesSaturninuswithbeingaDocete。Irenaeusadv。Haer。c。23makesthesamereproachagainstBasilides。EpiphaniusandPhilastrius，whohavetreatedindetailoneachparticularheresy，donotspeciallynamethatoftheDocetae。Serapion，bishopofAntioch，Euseb。
Hist。Eccles。l。vi。c。12，andClementofAlexandria，l。vii。
Strom。p。900，appeartobethefirstwhohaveusedthegenericname。Itisnotfoundinanyearlierrecord，thoughtheerrorwhichitpointsoutexistedeveninthetimeoftheApostles。
SeeCh。G。F。Walch，Hist。ofHer。v。i。p。283。Tillemont，MempourserviralaHistEccles。ii。p。50。BuddaeusdeEccles。
Apost。c。5&7—G。]
Thedivinesanction，whichtheApostlehadbestowedonthefundamentalprincipleofthetheologyofPlato，encouragedthelearnedproselytesofthesecondandthirdcenturiestoadmireandstudythewritingsoftheAtheniansage，whohadthusmarvellouslyanticipatedoneofthemostsurprisingdiscoveriesoftheChristianrevelation。TherespectablenameofPlatowasusedbytheorthodox，^29andabusedbytheheretics，^30asthecommonsupportoftruthanderror:theauthorityofhisskilfulcommentators，andthescienceofdialectics，wereemployedtojustifytheremoteconsequencesofhisopinionsandtosupplythediscreetsilenceoftheinspiredwriters。Thesamesubtleandprofoundquestionsconcerningthenature，thegeneration，thedistinction，andtheequalityofthethreedivinepersonsofthemysteriousTriad，orTrinity，^31wereagitatedinthephilosophicalandintheChristianschoolsofAlexandria。Aneagerspiritofcuriosityurgedthemtoexplorethesecretsoftheabyss；andtheprideoftheprofessors，andoftheirdisciples，wassatisfiedwiththesciencesofwords。ButthemostsagaciousoftheChristiantheologians，thegreatAthanasiushimself，hascandidlyconfessed，^32thatwheneverheforcedhisunderstandingtomeditateonthedivinityoftheLogos，histoilsomeandunavailingeffortsrecoiledonthemselves；thatthemorehethought，thelesshecomprehended；andthemorehewrote，thelesscapablewasheofexpressinghisthoughts。Ineverystepoftheinquiry，wearecompelledtofeelandacknowledgetheimmeasurabledisproportionbetweenthesizeoftheobjectandthecapacityofthehumanmind。Wemaystrivetoabstractthenotionsoftime，ofspace，andofmatter，whichsocloselyadheretoalltheperceptionsofourexperimentalknowledge。Butassoonaswepresumetoreasonofinfinitesubstance，ofspiritualgeneration；asoftenaswededuceanypositiveconclusionsfromanegativeidea，weareinvolvedindarkness，perplexity，andinevitablecontradiction。Asthesedifficultiesarisefromthenatureofthesubject，theyoppress，withthesameinsuperableweight，thephilosophicandthetheologicaldisputant；butwemayobservetwoessentialandpeculiarcircumstances，whichdiscriminatedthedoctrinesoftheCatholicchurchfromtheopinionsofthePlatonicschool。
[Footnote29:SomeproofsoftherespectwhichtheChristiansentertainedforthepersonanddoctrineofPlatomaybefoundinDelaMotheleVayer，tom。v。p。135，&c。，edit。1757；andBasnage，Hist。desJuifstom。iv。p。29，79，&c。]
[Footnote30:Doleobonafide，Platonemomniumheraeticorumcondimentariumfactum。Tertullian。deAnima，c。23。PetaviusDogm。Theolog。tom。iii。proleg。2showsthatthiswasageneralcomplaint。Beausobretom。i。l。iii。c。9，10hasdeducedtheGnosticerrorsfromPlatonicprinciples；andas，intheschoolofAlexandria，thoseprincipleswereblendedwiththeOrientalphilosophy，Brucker，tom。i。p。1356，thesentimentofBeausobremaybereconciledwiththeopinionofMosheim，GeneralHistoryoftheChurch，vol。i。p。37。]
[Footnote31:IfTheophilus，bishopofAntioch，seeDupin，BibliothequeEcclesiastique，tom。i。p。66，wasthefirstwhoemployedthewordTriad，Trinity，thatabstractterm，whichwasalreadyfamiliartotheschoolsofphilosophy，musthavebeenintroducedintothetheologyoftheChristiansafterthemiddleofthesecondcentury。]
[Footnote32:Athanasius，tom。i。p。808。Hisexpressionshaveanuncommonenergy；andashewaswritingtomonks，therecouldnotbeanyoccasionforhimtoaffectarationallanguage。]
I。Achosensocietyofphilosophers，menofaliberaleducationandcuriousdisposition，mightsilentlymeditate，andtemperatelydiscussinthegardensofAthensorthelibraryofAlexandria，theabstrusequestionsofmetaphysicalscience。Theloftyspeculations，whichneitherconvincedtheunderstanding，noragitatedthepassions，ofthePlatoniststhemselves，werecarelesslyoverlookedbytheidle，thebusy，andeventhestudiouspartofmankind。^33ButaftertheLogoshadbeenrevealedasthesacredobjectofthefaith，thehope，andthereligiousworshipoftheChristians，themysterioussystemwasembracedbyanumerousandincreasingmultitudeineveryprovinceoftheRomanworld。Thosepersonswho，fromtheirage，orsex，oroccupations，weretheleastqualifiedtojudge，whoweretheleastexercisedinthehabitsofabstractreasoning，aspiredtocontemplatetheeconomyoftheDivineNature:anditistheboastofTertullian，^34thataChristianmechaniccouldreadilyanswersuchquestionsashadperplexedthewisestoftheGreciansages。
Wherethesubjectliessofarbeyondourreach，thedifferencebetweenthehighestandthelowestofhumanunderstandingsmayindeedbecalculatedasinfinitelysmall；yetthedegreeofweaknessmayperhapsbemeasuredbythedegreeofobstinacyanddogmaticconfidence。Thesespeculations，insteadofbeingtreatedastheamusementofavacanthour，becamethemostseriousbusinessofthepresent，andthemostusefulpreparationforafuture，life。Atheology，whichitwasincumbenttobelieve，whichitwasimpioustodoubt，andwhichitmightbedangerous，andevenfatal，tomistake，becamethefamiliartopicofprivatemeditationandpopulardiscourse。Thecoldindifferenceofphilosophywasinflamedbytheferventspiritofdevotion；andeventhemetaphorsofcommonlanguagesuggestedthefallaciousprejudicesofsenseandexperience。TheChristians，whoabhorredthegrossandimpuregenerationoftheGreekmythology，^35weretemptedtoarguefromthefamiliaranalogyofthefilialandpaternalrelations。ThecharacterofSonseemedtoimplyaperpetualsubordinationtothevoluntaryauthorofhisexistence；^36butastheactofgeneration，inthemostspiritualandabstractedsense，mustbesupposedtotransmitthepropertiesofacommonnature，^37theydurstnotpresumetocircumscribethepowersorthedurationoftheSonofaneternalandomnipotentFather。FourscoreyearsafterthedeathofChrist，theChristiansofBithynia，declaredbeforethetribunalofPliny，thattheyinvokedhimasagod:andhisdivinehonorshavebeenperpetuatedineveryageandcountry，bythevarioussectswhoassumethenameofhisdisciples。^38TheirtenderreverenceforthememoryofChrist，andtheirhorrorfortheprofaneworshipofanycreatedbeing，wouldhaveengagedthemtoasserttheequalandabsolutedivinityoftheLogos，iftheirrapidascenttowardsthethroneofheavenhadnotbeenimperceptiblycheckedbytheapprehensionofviolatingtheunityandsolesupremacyofthegreatFatherofChristandoftheUniverse。ThesuspenseandfluctuationproducedinthemindsoftheChristiansbytheseoppositetendencies，maybeobservedinthewritingsofthetheologianswhoflourishedaftertheendoftheapostolicage，andbeforetheoriginoftheAriancontroversy。Theirsuffrageisclaimed，withequalconfidence，bytheorthodoxandbythehereticalparties；andthemostinquisitivecriticshavefairlyallowed，thatiftheyhadthegoodfortuneofpossessingtheCatholicverity，theyhavedeliveredtheirconceptionsinloose，inaccurate，andsometimescontradictorylanguage。^39
[Footnote33:Inatreatise，whichprofessedtoexplaintheopinionsoftheancientphilosophersconcerningthenatureofthegodswemightexpecttodiscoverthetheologicalTrinityofPlato。ButCiceroveryhonestlyconfessed，thatalthoughhehadtranslatedtheTimaeus，hecouldneverunderstandthatmysteriousdialogue。SeeHieronym。praef。adl。xii。inIsaiam，tom。v。p。
154。]
[Footnote34:Tertullian。inApolog。c。46。SeeBayle，Dictionnaire，aumotSimonide。HisremarksonthepresumptionofTertullianareprofoundandinteresting。]
[Footnote35:Lactantius，iv。8。YettheProbole，orProlatio，whichthemostorthodoxdivinesborrowedwithoutscruplefromtheValentinians，andillustratedbythecomparisonsofafountainandstream，thesunanditsrays，&c。，eithermeantnothing，orfavoredamaterialideaofthedivinegeneration。SeeBeausobre，tom。i。l。iii。c。7，p。548。]
[Footnote36:Manyoftheprimitivewritershavefranklyconfessed，thattheSonowedhisbeingtothewilloftheFather。
SeeClarke\'sScriptureTrinity，p。280—287。Ontheotherhand，Athanasiusandhisfollowersseemunwillingtograntwhattheyareafraidtodeny。Theschoolmenextricatethemselvesfromthisdifficultybythedistinctionofaprecedingandaconcomitantwill。Petav。Dogm。Theolog。tom。ii。l。vi。c。8，p。587—603。]
[Footnote37:SeePetav。Dogm。Theolog。tom。ii。l。ii。c。10，p。
159。]
[Footnote38:CarmenqueChristoquasiDeodiceresecuminvicem。
Plin。Epist。x。97。ThesenseofDeus，Elohim，intheancientlanguages，iscriticallyexaminedbyLeClerc，ArsCritica，p。
150—156，andtheproprietyofworshippingaveryexcellentcreatureisablydefendedbytheSocinianEmlyn，Tracts，p。
29—36，51—145。]
[Footnote39:SeeDailledeUsuPatrum，andLeClerc，BibliothequeUniverselle，tom。x。p。409。ToarraignthefaithoftheAnte—Nicenefathers，wastheobject，oratleasthasbeentheeffect，ofthestupendousworkofPetaviusontheTrinity，Dogm。Theolog。tom。ii。；norhasthedeepimpressionbeenerasedbythelearneddefenceofBishopBull。
Note:Dr。Burton\'sworkonthedoctrineoftheAnte—Nicenefathersmustbeconsultedbythosewhowishtoobtainclearnotionsonthissubject。—M。]
ChapterXXI:PersecutionOfHeresy，StateOfTheChurch。