that bear so little relation to Christianity; for hitherto their way has been marked by nothing that deserves the name. The duty of a Christian missionary to the Gentiles is defined in the instructions given to the Apostle Paul, by our Lord from heaven: "To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me." 6 When this object is not attained, Christianity is not propagated, whatever time. or talent may be expended in the endeavour. Nevertheless, if the appointed means have been used with diligence and integrity, they are entitled to as honourable a record in the page of Christian History as the achievements of the most successful teacher. But in the operations of these Jesuits, nothing seems to have entered less into their design than the propagation of the Gospel. We have seen, that they everywhere sowed tares, instead of wheat; and, by their own showing, they reaped a corresponding harvest. They boast indeed of thousands of proselytes, but they give no explanation of any Scriptural teaching that was calculated to convert the soul to God, nor of any religious motives that actuated their disciples in embracing the Christian faith. It no where appears that these missionaries themselves understood the fundamental principles of the Gospel; how then could they enrich others with a treasure which they did not possess? The primary object of their machinations was, as is already too manifest, to promote the interests of their own order. They respected the papal supre A. D. 1656. CHAP. macy only so long as they could make it subservient to their primary design: for when it threatened to interfere with their jesuitical policy, it soon appeared how lightly they regarded it. It does not seem once to have entered into their contemplation to convert "the sinner from the error of his ways;" for they give no account of their converts' humble penitence, of their renunciation of sin and idolatry, of their simple faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for pardon, or of their laying hold of the hope set before them in the Gospel. On the contrary, it is confessed by one of their own brethren, as already shown in this chapter, that the character of their proselytes was deteriorated, instead of amended, upon their embracing Christianity. Consequently, the accommodating system of those men proved worse than useless in regard to the interests even of morality-for it actually proved injurious to the ordinary society of the country. It is for this reason justly questioned, whether their progress ought to form any part of a History of Christianity in any section of the world. Since, however, they have always boasted of their success, as far exceeding that of any other order of missionaries and seeing that they have been regarded by others as among the most eminent of those who have undertaken to propagate the Gospel in the world; the omission of their exertions might be complained of by themselves as an injustice, and it would, probably, disappoint the expectation of those persons who have entertained a favourable opinion of their talents and exertions. It is important also that the Christian public should be enabled to form a more correct esti 7 James v. 20. ; mate of the character of their measures and achievements and surely few impartial readers can come to any other conclusion than thisthat they compromised, rather than promoted, the interests of Christianity. May God, of His infinite mercy, deliver their successors from the infatuation with which they are persevering in a course, that can terminate only in their own discomfiture, and in the ruin of all whom they delude! A. D. 1656. CHAPTER IV. MISSION TO THE MOGUL EMPIRE. 1. THE next mission to be described is that which the Jesuits established in the dominions and under the auspices of Akbar, the Great Mogul.' This monarch ascended the throne of the Mogul empire, in the year of our Lord 1552. Possessed of an energetic character, and entertaining liberal sentiments, he soared far above the circumstances of his birth and situation. Observing the superiority of Europeans over the natives of India, he resolved to avail himself of their services; and at one time he ap 1 Sometimes spelled Moghol, (Fraser, History of Nadir Shah), and the Moghul, (Malcolm, History of Persia.) The account here given is taken principally from M. Manouchi's Life of Akbar, in his History of the Great Mogul. M. Manouchi was a native of Venice, and chief physician to the Emperor Orangzeb above forty years. As he had access to the records of the Mogul empire, and was allowed to translate whatever he chose into Portuguese, the authenticity of his means of information is unquestionable. In the Marsden MSS. at the British Museum, already referred to in this work (Book ii. chap. 3.), there is an extensive account of this mission in the original correspondence of Jerome Xavier, written from Agra and Lahore, and other missionaries. See Vol. 9854. The next Vol. 9855, contains a summary of the affairs of the Mogul empire as late as 1684. This also is in the original hand-writing of the missionaries. At what period this application was made is uncertain: but it could not have been so early as would appear from M. Manouchi's History (p. 136), as the English factory was not established at Surat before 1612. plied to the English authorities at Surat, where A. D. 1582. A. D. 1582. His letter to the King 2. 2" Letter from the King of Kings to the of Portugal. Ruler of the Franks." 3 Glory inconceivable to God, the true king, 2 Mr. J. Fraser translated this letter from the 1st Tome of Abul Fazl's Collection of Letters. It is given also in the History of Mohammedanism by W. C. Taylor, from which work it is here transcribed, pp. 319-323. 3 The inhabitants of India used formerly to designate all natives of Europe by this appellation, which was subsequently |