exercising for her ruin his arts as a magician, but whom she converted to Christianity, and who afterwards became Bishop of Carthage. The sentence is parenthetical, and no reference is made to the Virgin Mary's help in what precedes or follows it on the contrary, the orator expressly states, that Justina, forsaking all other aid, betook herself only to God. Still, if the oration is genuine, this parenthesis must be allowed to carry that degree of evidence as to the practice of the preceding century which each individual may consider it legitimately to bear. The objections, however, to its being regarded as the genuine production of Gregory the Theologist, seem to us insurmountable. But here a question naturally forces itself upon the mind. If there is so much uncertainty as to the authenticity and genuineness of this oration, will not the undisputed works of Gregory enable us to infer what were his own sentiments as to the invocation of the Virgin Mary? Will not his compositions, either in prose or in verse, inform us whether he addressed the Virgin in prayer himself, or was aware that the Christian Church, as a body and in its members, so addressed her? And may we not satisfy ourselves as to his own real opinion on the immediate subject of our inquiry?

Undoubtedly Gregory has left quite enough upon record in his own undisputed works to enable any one to answer these questions for himself. The result of a diligent inquiry is, that there is no intimation whatever that Gregory looked for any help or aid to the Virgin Mary, or ever invoked her himself; nor does he ever allude to her worship by others his contemporaries as a practice with which he was acquainted.

But the nature and circumstances of Gregory's

works take his testimony out of the common class of negative evidence, and invest it with a force of no ordinary cogency. The course of his arguments often led him to speak of the union in Christ of the divine and human nature, and consequently of the birth of Christ. On all these occasions he speaks of the Virgin Mary as a being of untainted purity in body and mind, using often expressions which, though not in themselves and of necessity implying anything contrary to sound doctrine, yet are liable to misinterpretation, and which, perhaps, made the descent to error in a subsequent age more easy, but none of which imply any trust in her mediation, or any invocation of her aid.

Gregory, moreover, has left behind him a large number of poems on religious and moral subjects, of unequal merit as compositions, still breathing throughout the spirit of an enlightened, pious, and holy Christian. Among these are, at least, thirty hymns of prayer and thanksgiving. Yet, among these it is in vain to search for any invocation to the Virgin, or any address to her, or any recognition of her influence as intercessor, or any power given to her as the dispenser of blessings or mercies. In the variety of his petitions he seems to ask for all things needful both for the soul and body. It is interesting and edifying to compare these prayers, not only with the less solemnly authorized hymns of prayer and praise offered to the Virgin in Roman Catholic churches, but even with the authorized prayers of the Liturgy of Rome. Gregory prays for guidance in his journey, for protection from his enemies, for a pure heart and life, for help and acceptance in the hour of death; but we find no Mary, mother of grace, protect us from our

66

* See vol. i. p. 728; vol. i. p. 852; vol. ii. p. 85.

enemies, make our life pure, prepare for us a safe journey, receive us in the hour of death." Every address is made to God his Saviour: no mention occurs of the Virgin's name, no allusion to her advocacy. God in Christ is, from first to last, the beginning and the end, the alpha and omega of Gregory's worship and invocation. There are, however, both in his prose and in his verse, references made to Mary, and we are unwilling to omit any one of them.

In his oration on the Nativity he uses this strong expression: "Christ is born of a Virgin. Ye women, live as virgins that ye may be mothers of Christ."*

In a short poem, speaking of his mother, he says, "Nonna, praying at this table, was taken away, and now shines, (with Susanna, Mary, and the Annas,) a support of women."†

In one verse he applies to Mary an epithet which the translator renders "like to God," but which in the note we are properly directed to interpret "pious."

In another poem, § written in honour of the virginstate, as an example of the offspring surpassing its parent in excellence, he says:

"And Christ is indeed of Mary, but far more excellent

Not only than Mary, and those who are clothed with flesh,

But also than all the intellects which the spacious heaven inveils."||

Surely these are not the addresses and the sentiments of one who invoked the Virgin or sought her aid in supplication.

We will only refer to one more passage. In his

* Orat. xxxviii. p. 664.

Vol. ii. p. 308. v. 199.

To this passage the index

Christ, superior to all others."

+ Vol. ii. p. 1134. Carm. Ixix.

§ P. 336. v. 694.

refers us thus: "

Mary inferior to Her inferiority is expressed in the

text; of her superiority Gregory says not a word.

sermon on the Nativity he calls upon the Christian to honour Bethlehem and the manger; to hasten with the star, and offer with the Magi, and to worship with the shepherds, and sing with the angels and archangels "Let there," says the preacher, "be one united celebration made by the powers of heaven and earth; for I am persuaded that they join in this festival."* Of Mary he there says nothing.

SECTION IV.-EPHRAIM THE SYRIAN, 370–380.† Ephraim the Syrian is said to have been born at Nisibis in Mesopotamia, and (as a tradition, which is much questioned, states) was ordained deacon by Basil. It is generally believed that he was never ordained priest. The place of his ministry was Edessa, and his death probably happened between the years 375 and 380. His works, as they are now offered to us, are written partly in Greek, partly in Syriac, though many of the learned seriously question the fact of his having written himself any work in Greek. A legend, involving a miraculous interposition, and which has not improperly been said to savour of the fabulous, records that he spoke only his own language till he was ordained by Basil, when he suddenly spoke Greek as fluently and as accurately as his native tongue.§

The great difficulty which every one must feel in searching for Ephraim's own sentiments on any subject

* Orat. 38, p. 674.

+ Rome, 1732, six vols. fol.; Oxford, Thwaites, 1709; Vossius, Cologne, 1603.

Theodoret, 1. iv. c. 26, and Sozomen, 1. iii. c. 16, say that Ephraim was unacquainted with Greek. See Tillemont, 1. viii. p. 743. And Jerome says, that Ephraim wrote in Syriac, and that he had himself read a work of Ephraim's on the Holy Spirit, translated into Greek. § See Fabricius, vol. viii. p. 217.

of theological interest, is the arduous and almost hopeless task of separating his genuine works from those supposititious productions with which they are mingled. Another Ephraim, called the Younger, lived about the middle of the sixth century; and we are assured that many of the works, now ascribed to the elder Ephraim of Edessa, would with more justice be considered as the productions of the younger Ephraim, if not of some yet later writer.

*

Some writers reject all those works as unauthentic which are found only in Greek translations; others have set their stamp of authenticity on writings ascribed to Ephraim, which many upright judges find themselves compelled to pronounce spurious. Cardinal Bellarmin says he had only read some few of the works of Ephraim; and declares himself unable to pronounce whether they were all genuine, or mingled with some spurious compositions. Among those who would go far towards banishing the works, now published as Ephraim's, from the catalogue of witnesses to primitive Christian doctrine, are Rivet and Tentzel ;‡ while the Roman editor, Asseman, seems bent on admitting as genuine, with few exceptions, whatever has been handed down under the name of Ephraim. It is very disappointing to find one, who had at his command so great a variety of valuable means for forming a correct judgment, suffering his zeal for the doctrines of the Roman Church to force upon him the office of advocate, and to divest him of the character of an upright and impartial arbiter.§

* See Fabricius, vol. viii. p. 540. See Tillemont, p. 746.

† Op. Eph. vol. i. p. lvii.

§ Had the sound principles which guided Baronius and the Benedictine editor in giving their verdict on some of the works of Athana