"so a bishop should minister as a servant, to his fellow servants." His complaint of those bishops and presbyters, who were unlearned and flagitious may have provoked his own bishop, by whose obloquy his character was assailed. Had the office of Demetrius been by ordination, or resulted from seniority, those jealousies would probably never have arisen; nor had the church at Alexandria been deprived of the unrivalled learning, and exemplary piety of Origen.

That there should be one, however designated among the plurality of equals, in every public body, to facilitate their operations, or lead in duties, is suggested by the experience of all assemblies, civil and ecclesiastical. The Greeks denominated him gosols, president, the identical term adopted by the first Christian presbyteries for their primus. The seven apocalyptic churches were indirectly addressed, through that officer, by the name angel, chosen because less publicly known, but we have found not one instance in any uninspired writing of the use of that name in the same sense. To show how this unordained presidency over equals, grew into parcohial episcopacy, all the credible evidence which has hitherto occurred, has been presented. But every effort to discover, even the existence of lay elders, or of any inferior grade of presbyters, has totally failed; neither has there been found a single word of such a diversity, nor the idea of such an officer, in any church. If such a class of men had existed in the apostolic churches, it could not have escaped detection. If the Scriptures had been understood, by the apostles and evangelists to warrant it, the grade must have existed, and would certainly have appeared. The conclusion is consequently undeniable, that those, who find lay presbyters in the New Testament, have made a discovery of that, of which the inspired men, who wrote it, never entertained an idea.

i Tract 31, on Matt.

k Tract 15, on Matt.

SECTION VIII.

Cyprian was chosen bishop of his church by the people, against a majority of the presbyters.-The great promoter of episcopal power. He presided over one church or congregation only, and had no idea of diocesan episcopacy.Professing it his duty to act only with the presbyters, he availed himself of every opportunity of acting prior to them.-He often justified his conduct by the pretences of visions, suggestions, and dreams.—The presbyters of Carthage over whom he presided, had not distinct assemblies; the flock was one, and no more. This bishop was chosen by the people from among the presbyters, and Cyprian is the first and earliest authority for bishops being commissioned by other bishops; how it was done, is not shown; and five of the eight presbyters being opposed to him, it is not discernible how otherwise it could have been effected.—The apostolical constitutions had probably no existence at this period.

THASCIUS CYPRIANUS was a native of Africa, and a celebrated teacher of rhetoric in Carthage. Convinced by Caecilius, a presbyter, about the middle of the third century, he adopted his name at his baptism; was, in the compass of a year, ordained a presbyter; and, in the next, made bishop by the suffrage of the people, but against the opinion of five of the eight presbyters of the church. He soon deserted his charge, retiring from persecution. Censured by his people, and the Christians at Rome, he alleged, among other defences, a divine admonition, revealed by vision. His sudden change from Gentilism, and almost simultaneous promotions; his conscious possession of superior talents, with consequent impatience of instruction and ignorance of evangelical doctrines, rendered him the victim of numerous and destructive errors. His native ambition, stimulated by opposition, and supported by mistaken conceptions of priestly power, led him to employ the protracted period of his retirement in epis

a Vide Epist. 43. p. 227,

tolary correspondence, not only with his own forsaken charge, but with the bishops and presbyters of all the churches in the civilized world, wherever there existed inquietude. With him heresy and schism appeared convertible terms, and discipline, rather than truth, the proper instrument of their destruction. The bishops and church at Rome were successively dependent on his guidance, or jealous of his influence. The numerous bishops of Africa found him a bond of union, nor were the churches of Spain and Cappadocia, opposite extremes, insensible of his ascendency. His ideas of episcopal unity, and of the necessity of intercourse and mutual support among bishops, then every where parochial, probably laid the foundation of hierarchy in the church of Christ. The multiplication of presbyters became necessary in the cities, as the number of Christians increased, more churches than one being in them now prohibited. The danger in times of persecution of convening in multitudes, the instruction of catechumeni apart from the church, the frequency of schisms, and other circumstances, evince, that different presbyters conducted worship, at least, occasionally, in separate places. But neither has diocesan episcopacy, nor a solitary instance of a ruling or lay elder as yet occurred. Had there existed more than one congregation in Carthage or Rome, they must have appeared in Cyprian's letters; for it is not probable that any other schisms, or heresies arose in either of those cities, within the period of his letters, than those which he has mentioned. The minuteness of his descriptions of persons and things, renders it certain, that had he been placed over more than one church, it would have appeared. On the contrary, no separate churches, no diversity of communions, no seduction of any particular section of his charge are seen; but though convening in small numbers, and possibly in different places, they are considered one church, having the same officers.

The bishop and presbyters at Carthage sat on the same bench, were all, in the language of the day,

priests, to instruct and administer ordinances, acted in concert in all judgments, excommunications, and restorations; and, except when Cyprian assumed the power, but for which he always offered an excuse, they joined in ordinations. In the absence of the bishop, we find the presbyters refusing the communion to Gaius a co-presbyter, and to a deacon, in which Cyprian acknowledges, they acted uprightly and by rule.b Though evidently not scrupulous in the assumption of power, he trespassed only where he was sure of support, and never ventured to ordain.a presbyter, but in the presbytery.

When omitting bishops, readers, subdeacons, acolythes, he names only præpositi and diaconi, it is evidence that the two original orders were not forgotten. "Since it becomes all to be observant of good order, much rather is it proper that the presbyters and deacons, præpositos et diaconos, should take care of this, who may afford an example and proof to others, by their conversation and manners.' At first opposed by the majority of his co-presbyters, and not yet secure of new ones in whom he could confide, his language was very different from his after conduct. He declared "that he had resolved from the commencement of his episcopate, to do nothing privately by his own opinion, without the counsel of his presbytery, and without the consent of the people." This representation, extorted by circumstances, was in unison with those established customs, in the changing of which he was too successful. Hitherto each original church was governed by its presbytery, the president, newɛorws, of which is called in Cyprian, sometimes præpositus, but chiefly episcopus. Such presbytery, with its president, had been heretofore competent to the manage

d

b. Page 217, Ep. 34.-Integre et cum disciplina fecistis.

C

Ep. 4. p. 174.

d Quando à primordio episcopatus mei statuerim, nihil sine consilio vestro, et sine consensu plebis, meâ privatim sententia gerere -de iis quæ vel gesta sunt vel gerenda, sicut honor mutuus poscit in commune tractabimus. p. 192.

ment of the ecclesiastic government and worship of the Christians in each city, because of the paucity of their number. Cyprian, by the erroneous principle, that where a church has been planted no other ought to be erected, professedly an antidote to schism, at the same time enhanced episcopal influence, and laid the foundation of what he did not foresee, diocesan government. Though tumid with self-importance, and enamored of ecclesiastical influence, it is possible that his opposition to the erection of a second altar, church, and bishop, in any place, was at least primarily to suppress heresy. He wrote to Cornelius at Rome, who had informed him of the ordination of Novatian there, that it was irregular, because where there is one bishop there cannot be another, and pronounces him a spurious and rival head, out of the church.e He argues that Cornelius succeeded -Fabianus, and that Novatian had no predecessor at Rome. His crime was, therefore, that of Jeroboam. If Novatian worshipped the true God, so did Korah. Why there could not have been a second church at Rome, if the number of converts had justified it, was neither asked, nor answered. That all new assemblies were heretical, soon became, by his influence, the popular opinion. Cyprian contended that those who are in error, have not the Holy Spirit; that this is necessary to him who baptizes, because he who baptizes, remits sins. He affirmed also, that the water must be made clean, sanctified by the priest; "that it may be able to wash away the sins of him who is baptized," which is proved by the passage, "I will pour clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean." From such reasonings he concluded, that their ordinations and their baptisms were void. Firmilianus, bishop of Cæsarea in Cappadocia, in his letter to Cyprian, says

e Adulterum et contrarium caput extra ecclesiam. Page 231. f Pages 295, 296, 300.

g Epist. 75.-" In ecclesia constituta sit, ubi præsident majores natu, qui et baptizandi, et manum imponendi, ordinandi possident potestatem."