A. D. 920. the first Malabar. again under 11. The immunities conferred on the Indian Christians by Ceram Peroumal, insured for them the enjoyment of a long and uninterrupted Baliartes, course of prosperity; during which they be- Christian came sufficiently powerful to assert their inde-king in pendence of their heathen rulers, whose yoke They fall they at length shook off, and succeeded in rais- heathen ing a member of their own body to the throne. Sovereigns. Their first Christian king was Baliartes, who assumed the title of Rajah of the Christians of St. Thomas. For some time they maintained their independence under their own kings, until one of them, having no children, adopted the Rajah of Diamper for his heir. This man was a heathen, and he succeeded to all the regal power over the Christians of India. By similar adoptions, a practice of frequent occurrence in that country, they became in the course of time subject to the heathen Rajah of Cochin, and other petty sovereigns of the country.1 12. As chronological accuracy is essential to the right understanding of history, and greatly augments its interest, it is to be regretted that we cannot always depend upon the dates assigned for the events just narrated. An historian will omit no opportunity to connect the annals of a church or nation with each particular circumstance that he records. It must be remembered, however, that this is not the leading design of history; its primary object being to distinguish between facts, and those legendary tales with which the weakness of the credulous, the imagination of the extravagant, or the craft of the fraudulent, have too often imposed upon mankind. And thus much, we may hope, is here accomplished, notwithstanding the un La Croze, pp. 47-49. The pri mary objects of civil and history here attained. ecclesiastical CHAP. certainty of the periods at which several of the incidents just narrated occurred. IV. Church of sertation on The history also of any particular church ought to consist of its polity, its doctrines, and its character. These constitute the chief subjects of interest in all ecclesiastical records. The Bible is the only authority to which Christians should refer in every matter relating to faith and godliness; and in the description of any local church, we are principally concerned to know how far it conformed to that infallible standard. If its annals be sufficiently authenticated, and its constitution and character are found to be in agreement with Holy Writ, the general object of history is attained, though the dates of particular events may be inaccurate or forgotten. Tried by this test, the impartial reader will be satisfied that the Syrian Church in India was a daughter of the primitive church of Christ. It partook, indeed, of that alloy which too soon corrupted the profession of Christianity in all parts of the world; yet we need not hesitate to affirm, that it would not suffer by comparison with any church in Christendom down to the period of its history at which we have now arrived. 13. Its polity was that of the primitive church, copal: Dis being governed by Bishops, and served by the subordinate orders of priests and deacons. Without entering here into the discussion, raised at the Reformation, as to the peculiar mode of 1 The leading Reformers admitted, that Episcopacy was the primitive mode of church government. Calvin, especially, has shown, that this was universally the polity of the church from the times of the Apostles to his own, though it existed in a much more simple form, and was more efficient, until corrupted by the Roman Church. No episcopalian could deplore ecclesiastical government established by the Apostles, which, it must be acknowledged, it is difficult to explain from the sacred text; we shall view it as an historical, rather than a scholastic question; and, by the concurrent testimony of all ages, beginning with that immediately succeeding the apostolic times, we find no church, whether orthodox or heterodox, that has existed under any other form of govern ment. The first church established out of Jerusalem was that of Antioch, where the disciples of Jesus Christ were first called Christians. The first Bishop1 of Antioch, after the apostle Peter, was Euodius, who continued chief pastor of that church twenty-three years, and died about the year of our Lord seventy. He was succeeded by Ignatius, who lived to preside over that church forty years. Ignatius is described as a devout and venerable man, and is said to have been the disciple and familiar friend of the Apostles. In a church, then, established by the immediate disciples of our Lord, and flourishing more than he did the utter subversion of primitive episcopacy, by the tyranny of the pope and hierarchy of Rome.-Institutiones Christianæ Religionis, Lib. iv. cap. 1, 4, 5. 1 The name is sufficiently descriptive of the office. Saxon bishop. Gr. 'EmíσкOTOS, an overseer, an inspector. When the disciples of the Lord were called Christians, (Acts xi. 26) XpioTavo, it is probable that the appellation was given in reproach, or contempt, as were Ναζαρηνοι and Γαλιλαίοι. Parkhurst, Greek Lex. 2 Eusebius, Eccles. Hist. Lib. iii. c. 22. 3 Ibid. c. 36. Apostolic Constitutions, Lib. vii. c. 47, p. 451. Mosheim, Cent. 1, pt. 2, c. 2, s. 20. See also the Acts of Ignatius, a piece of martyrology first published in 1647 by Archbishop Usher, "from two old manuscripts, which have stronger marks of credibility than is usual in such compositions."-Wake's Epistles. Milner's Church Hist. Vol. i. cent. 2. c. 1. p. 152. A. D. 920. CHAP. for some years under their personal supervision, we may expect to find that form of government established which they, to say the least, approved. That form is particularly described by Ignatius himself. In a letter which he addressed to the Magnesians, in favour of Damas,' their Bishop, who, like Timothy and Titus, was young for so responsible an office, he describes him as-" worthy of God," and goes on to remark, that "eminent grace in persons of tender years was sometimes in the primitive church distinguished by their advancement to the episcopacy." He thought it needful, however, after the example of St. Paul, to warn the Magnesians not to despise the youth of Damas, ." but to imitate the holy presbyters, who gave place to him, but not to him so properly, as to the Father of Jesus Christ. Some persons, indeed," he adds, "call a man a Bishop, but do every thing independently of him. Such seem to me to have lost a good conscience, because their assemblies are not regulated with stedfastness and Christian order." He also makes honourable mention of Bassus and Apollonius, as presbyters, and of Sotio the deacon, "whose happiness," " he adds, "may I partake of! because he is subject to the Bishop, as to the grace of God, and to the presbytery, as to the law of Jesus Christ." "Here, as elsewhere, he evidently points out three distinct ranks in the primitive church,-the Bishop, the presbyters, and the deacons ; and there is no reason to doubt, but every presumption in favour of the opinion, that the office, to which St. Paul appointed Timothy, is that Bishop of 1 Milner. Ch. His. Vol. i. p. 160, &c. 21 Tim. i. 3, 8. 2 Tim. ii. 2. Ephesus, and Titus,' Bishop of Crete, was similar to that which Euodius and Ignatius held at Antioch. The same constitution was adopted by every other primitive church whose authentic annals have come down to us; and during the first three centuries, we have catalogues of the Bishops in regular succession, who presided over the patriarchal churches of Antioch, Rome, Jerusalem, Byzantium, and Alexandria. In most other churches the succession of their Bishops has continued without intermission since their first foundation. We have the succession of the Bishops of every see in the collections entitled, Christian Gaul, Sacred Italy, and others of the same kind. Several churches have their particular histories; as to others, we from time to time meet with the names of the Bishops, in councils, and general histories, or other authentic acts.3 All these documents prove that episcopacy was the primitive constitution of the church of Christ; and, moreover, a fact already noticed tends to the same conclusion, that no church, whether orthodox or heterodox, is to be found. in the annals of Christianity under any other form of government, prior to the 16th century.4 1 Tit. i. 5, and iii, 10. Eusebius. Ecc. Hist. Cave's Dyptica Apostolica. 3 Fleury's Ecc. His. Discourse 3rd. This able and candid historian says of several Gallic churches, 'We can tell who have been the bishops of Lyons, from Potinus and Irenæus : of Tholouse, from Saturnine; of Tours, from Gratian; of Paris, from St. Denis. The churches likewise, whose origin is somewhat more obscure, have a known succession for about one thousand years." Discourse i. A thousand five hundred years and upward, the church of Christ hath now continued under the sacred regiment of Bishops. Neither for so long hath Christianity been ever planted in any kingdom throughout the world but with this kind of government alone; which to have been ordained of A. D. 920. |