Now yethe fall of rise of yethe Apostasy in point of religion was on this manner. When yethe Drago Sun Moon & Stars of yethe Heathen Roman empire were spmitten by & the great red Dragon that old serpent called yethe Devil & Satan who deceived the whole world was cast out of heaven by Michalel & his Angels (in yethe wars between cConstantine yethe great & Licinius) c overcom & cast out of yethe heaven of yethe Roman throne then did the Devil come down o & in its room the Christian religion by that was in its room exalted to yetthat throne: then did yethe honour, & riches, power & preferments temporal advantages draw daily tempt yethe more loose & of this re of this religion begin to tempt the heathens & chiefly the more hypocritical to turn dayly to turn Christians; & in such converts lying in profession in outward profession without a in outwar out of temporal interest. And those heathens who fl in that time thus heathens flowed into yethe Church who for temporall interest thus flowed into yethe Church being the most hypocritical sort of men & under the profession of their new religion Christianity retaining their old heathen manners their vices & their inclination to all kinds of superstition, they were yethe Devil be which now came down amongst yethe inhabitants of yethe earth & sea in Churches that is amongst yethe Christian people of yethe Eastern & Western Empires called yethe inhabitants of yethe earth & sea. For such converts being yethe most hypocritical sort of men & under yethe profession of Christianity retaining their old vices heathen manners, their vices & their inclination to all kinds of superstition, they were still heathens in reality thô in profession Christians, they were ytthat For such fals converts are truly a & may deservedly be called the synagogue of Satan who say they are Iews (that is Christians) & are not but do lye. & they were that Devil who now came down amgongst yethe inhabitants of yethe earth & sea.

In IDioclesian's persecution of ten years wchwhich was far greater then all others put together the Woman cried in heaven being with child of a Christian Empire cried travailing in birth & pained to be delivered & at yethe same time yethe great red Dragon with his tail (or of att train of attendants civil & military) drew the third part of yethe starrs of heaven or (the saints of yethe Greek empire wchwhich was yethe third part of yethe whole) & cast them to yethe earth. And yethe woman brought forth a man-child [the Chr Western Christian empire & yethe under yethe dominion of Constantine yethe great] & the woman Dragon or Greek Empire under Licinius was ready [by the treacheries of Licinus] yethe Greek emperor against Constantine as Eusebius relates) to devour her child as soon as it was born: And yethe manchild was caught [by yethe victory of Constantine over Licinius] was caught up unto God & to his throne. [For at that time, [as we explained above] there was war in heaven: between Michael [or the Manchild] & his Angels fought against yethe Dragon & yethe Dragon fought & his angels, & the great Dragon was cast out that old Serpent called yethe Devil & Satan [the heathen religion] wchwhich deceived yethe whole world. he was cast out & his angels & I he was cast out unto yethe earth [over wchwhich he rein of yethe eastern Empire] And there was heard a loud voice in heaven saying Now is come Salvation [from yethe persecuting Dragon] & strength & the Kingdom of orour God [ a Christian Empire] & yethe power of his Christ [or dominion of his mystical body yethe Christians:] For yethe accuser of orour brethren is cast out who [in yethe persecution] accused them before orour God & they overcame him by yethe blood of yethe Lamb [slain afresh in his mystical body in that persecution] & by yethe word of their testimony [the testimony of confessors & martyrs] & [in yethe persecution] they loved not their lives unto yethe death. Therefore rejoyce ye heavens & ye ytthat dwell in them [the victors over yethe Dragon, as many of ymthem as are truly saints.] Wo to yethe inhabitants of yethe earth & Sea [the hypocritical part of Christians & such as should not endure yethe following temptation] for yethe Devil [whom Michael cast out of heaven] is [by yethe flowing in of dissembling heathens who say they are IChristians & are not but do lye] come down among unto you with great wrath because he knoweth ytthat he hath but a short time [to reign among you untill he be cast in chains into the bottomless pit.] And From these fals converts the Empire still keeps yethe name of yethe Dragon, the Manchild in being caught up into heaven soon vanishing out of sight. So then the Dragon in being cast out of heaven ceases not but begins a new on earth among yethe Christian inhabitants of yethe earth & sea, the empire from th the converts still keeping yethe name of yethe Dragon & yethe Man-child in being caught up to heaven soon vanishing out of sight – – – – – – –

Now the

– While yethe Empire continued heathen Ch the small encouragements for hypocrites to turn christians was no guard upon yethe s kep was a guard upon yethe Christian religion to keep it from growing corrupt. For yethe mystery of iniquity wchwhich then worked could not grow to any maturity for want of hypocrites to work upon: & but after yethe yethe heathen religion wchwhich thus withheld the revelation of this mystery, was taken out of yethe way that mystery no longer wanting a fit people to work upon must begin to grow proportionally to yethe increase of hypocrites & so as in a short time by the prevailing of fa such fals christians to be revealed. For in a dayly flow of such converts into yethe Churches it could not be but that in a few years they would hypocrites would be more then double or triple to yethe sincere not to say more then ten or twenty times yethetheir number. Now by this influx of fals converts yethe mystery of iniquity grew in these respects.

First yethe Churches by yethe mixture & allay of such converts soon became very corrupt in manners. They that please to read yethe Book of Salviāan De Providentia Dei an author very sober, cordate & pious will find that within less then an hundred years after yethe Constantines victory the Christians all over the Empire so far as his information reacht were grown as much or more debaucht in manners (whoring, drinking, swearing, lying, gaming, cheating, injustice oppression) then even the barbarous nations & old heathens & yethe various sorts of heretical christians. For This Salvian shews to satisfy his readers that God was just in subjecting yethe Romans to yethe violence & dominion of yethe less wicked Barbarous nations who in yethe yeare 407 invaded yethe western empire. And if you will be at yethe pains to compare him wthwith what you may find to yethe same purpose scatered upon & down in yethe Ecclesiastical historians, Gregory Nazianzen, Oph Faustinus his Libellus precum, Ierom, Austin Guildas & other authors of those times, as well concerning yethe ambition pride ambition, contentionusness & other ill misdemeanoanners of yethe Clergy & Monks, as those of yethe rest of yethe people; you will find sufficient reason to beleive that what Salvian wrote yethe truth impartially. He wrote not in a peevish way to accuse his age but in a pi sober way to answer an objection made by many of his own age about yethe justice of God & to satisfy them by relating the matters of fact which they to whom he wrote were judges of as well as he. Nor is't a wonder that Christians should become so vitious in so short a time seing yethe most immoral of yethe heathens would be most apt to turchturn Christians for interest & yethe most ambitious Christians would seek most for preferment in yethe Churches. Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical history tells us that Christians betwen yethe persecutions of Decius & Dioclesian through a respite of 30 or 40 years from persecution began to grow corr very corrupt in manners. And & much more would they grow corrupt after Constan in a more lasting peace when they were not only freed from persecution but reigned over yethe world flourished in rices & honours & dominion over yethe world & were daily allayed & corrupted by yethe influx of the most hypocritical & consequently yethe worst of heathens. It may be said indeed ytthat yethe manners of Christians were corrected by yethe persecutions they suffered under Constantius Iulian & Valens: but I answer in those persecutions sufferings were only in yethe east not much in yethe west & but for a time & not directly for religion but upon accusations for various crimes, as Basil tells us of yethe sufferings under Valens & Athanasius & Hilary of those under Constantius. And yethe same method was used by yethe King of yethe Vandals against yethe Africans. He cau For when conside he would persecute them he caused their sacred virgins were to be searched by midwives & those who were found vitiated, were to be forced by tortures to confess with whom they had layn with them2 them saying dDicite quomodo sacerdotes vestri concumbunt vobiscum & then upon their confession about four thousand Priests & of their Bishops & Priests were banished together as Victor relate de Persecutione Vandalica relates. This I mention in confirmation of what Salvian affirms of yethe Africans. For he describes them yethe unchastest of all yethe Romans & ytthat God's was most just judgment was conspicuous in subjecting them to yethe Vandals who were yethe chastest of all yethe Barbarians & by their laws had almost made yethe Africans themselves chast. I might instan [ And the cruelty of Valens the Emperor anot & those about him in causing 80 Presbyters to be burnt intogether in a ship would afford us another notable instance of yethe immorality of yethe those times were it not that I find in Gregory Nazianzen tells yethe story of (who lived in yethe time & when yethe thing was done & neare yethe place where twas done) tells ytthat yethe story ap ytthat yethe first report was at first reported but of one Presbyter & makes him sentenced to be burtnt wthwith a ship in yethe sight of at Sea & of many people standing upon yethe shore to see yethe execution done. wchwhich circumstance of throwing away a ship to no purpose looks very something hard & suspicious [But an earlier instancinstance we have in yethe accusation of contentions about Athanasius & some others for various crimes. For whilst Athanasius was accused of killing Arsenius &c & contended ytthat Arsenius was alive & the Eusebians in yethe Councel of Tyre pro in confutation thereof produced (not yethe hand of Arsenius in a bag as yethe vulgar story is) but) the a corps wchwhich they pretended to be Arsenius's for them to view who pre for them to view who pretended to know Arsenius, the strange contentions as Athanasius & three hundred Bishops of Egypt & yethe West in yethe letter of yethe Council of Sardica to yethe affirm: the strange heats in managing these & such like disputes & at length yethe easy consent of all yethe world is a stran against Athanasius (even those few who were banished for him off] The strang controversies about Athanasius Paul of Constantinople Photius & some others It would require a large deserves a set discourse to describe fully the manners of this age according & I shal but ✝ But in yethe mean time yethe book of Salvian alone compared wthwith what we have said may suffice to shew that yethe prophesy of yethe Apostle Paul began in that age yethe a in yethe age reign of Constantius Valens Theodosius & his sons the Prophesy of Pau yethe Apostle Paul began to began to be fulfilled, that in yethe last days perillous times should come wherein men should be lovers of their own selves, covetous, proud boa boasters, proud, blasphemers &c. fals accusers, fie incontinent, fierce, despisers of those ytthat are good. tra lovers having a form of gobdliness but denying the power thereof:

A second In yethe next place yethe Churches began in this age to inclined som to superstition placing much of religion in in abstinceabstinence in forbidding to marry & commanding immoderate abstinence from meats. For such was yethe discipline of yethe Monks & in some measure of yethe clergy. How yethe monks began to grow first in Egypt & then oth in other places in yethe reign of Constantine yethe great & his sons as in that age a few years increased to an immense multitude I need not describe. The first institution is still by many applauded by but I find it faulty in these things. Moderate fasting of priva single private men in private secret or of yethe whole church openly upon set occasions is commendable: but for private anany private man or sect of men to make a publick profession of fasting & devotion not common to yethe whole church is ytthat singularity of the ch reprehended by Christ in yethe Pharisees hypocriticesal Pharisees who loved to pray standing in yethe synagogues & in yethe corners of yethe streets & difigureddisfigured their faces that by their sad couuntenancescountenances they might appear unto men to fast, & therefore had their reward in yethe this world in yethe applause of men. And Secondly the by perusing yethe histories of these Monks I find the first Monks (written by & of in I find that it was a general complaint among them ytthat so soon upon their entring into yethe profession of Monks a Monastick life they found themselves more tempted in yethe flesh then before & those who became strickter professors thereof & on that account removed went by degrees further into yethe wildernesses then others did, complained most of all of temptations. The reason they gave of it was that yethe devil tempted them most who went were most his enemies: but & fought most against him: but yethe true reason was partly that the desire was inflamed by p prohibition of lawfull marriage, & partly that yethe profession of chastity & perpetual daily fasting on ytthat account put them perpetually in mind of what they strove against, & partly their idle lives gave liberty to their thoughts to follow their inclinations. & whilst The way to chastity is not to struggle directly with incontinencty thoughts but to avert yethe the thoughts by some some imployment, or meditation as or by reading, otr meditating on other things, or by convers. Men are By immoderate fasting the body wa is also put out of its due temper & for want of natural sleep the fansy is was invigorated about whatever it sets it self upon & by degrees inclines towar so much towards a delirium & insomnil in so much that those Monks ytthat who fasted most at length arrived to a state of hea seing apparitions of weomen & devils their shapes & of hearing their voices in such a lively manner as made them often to think the visions true apparitions of yethe Devil tempting them to lust. Thus while we pray that God would not lead us into tentation, these men ran themselves headlong into it. And as In short And as I have I not not met with more uncleanness superstition ignorance & sottishness folly in any sort of men then in yethe lives of yethethese first Monks written by their admirers Palladius, Theodoret & others, so it may suffice that their profession of forbidding to marry & teaching to abstein from meats wchwhich God has created in R is by yethe Apostle condemned & made yethe character of such as in yethe last times should depart from yethe faith.

In yethe third place it is observable that whereas the in this age yethe heathen doctrine of dæmons was brought into yethe Churches by fals miracles. lying signes & wonders. For after ytthat yethe miracles of yethe Apostolick age were ceased for one or & for 200 years were scarce heard of in yethe churches, there began in Egypt in yethe latter end of Constantius's reign a great cry new fame of strange miracles of a different kind done in Egypt & Syria at yethe tombs of yethe martyrs; whereupon yethe miracle working reliques of yethe Egyptian martyrs were about the beginning of yethe reign of Valentinian & & Valens sent from thence into all yethe world &, new martyrs dayly found out in several regions & their reliques carried up & down by all places yethe wandring mMonks carrying their reliques up & down. And so great was yethe noise of yethe miracles done by these reliques that D. Augustine And wthwith yethe noise of these miracles came into yethe Churches yethe beleife of yethe Ghosts of saints being about their tombs & reliques & of their being able to heare & help those ytthat invoked ymthem. whence And to these supersititionssuperstitions, through yethe habitual propension of yethe heathen converts, being through education & custome propen very propense, they grew so fast in yethe Churches that it may be safely said that before yethe final division of yethe empire the invocation of saints was grown customary. At yethe same time came in alloalso the superstitious use custome superstition of of making working miracles by yethe signe of yethe cros, to scare away yethe Devil & do othe cure diseases & perform other miraculous effects & the humour of writing legendary stories, & of receiving that age receiving such witingswritings wthwith applause. And lastly at that time began Christians to kill men for religion as you may see by yethe two sanguinary Edicts of Honorius against yethe Donatists & all others Africans Roman communion & by the proceedings against them both before & after. And whilst be their churches & A the Donatists assembled in their churches were beseiged there & their churches burnt over their heads3 heads

To these instances may be added yethe history of yethe Banishment of Chrysostom; the contentions carriage between Íerom & Ruffin; the manners & carriage of Peter Bishop of Alexandria described by Gregory Nazianzen; the wars between Basil & bishop of Tyana about yethe limits of their Bishopricks described by yethe sanesame Gregory; the blood through wchwhich Pope Damasus waded to yethe Bishoprick of Rome touched upon by Ammianus & some others & fully described in yethe Libellus precum of ; The burning of yethe Churches of Constantinople & Egypt; the endeavo passionate and sometimes seditious writings of some of yethe greatest men & their being approved of by the age: The The endeavours of yethe western Churches to exalt their jurisdiction jurisdiction & dom authority above yetthat of yethe Eastern, & ytthat appeales should be made by all yethe world to yethe Bishop of Rome; tThe stirring up Emperor against Emperor in matters of so as to endanger engaging them in a civil war about Church concerns; The And the strange carria histories of yethe Councels of Tyre & Sardica; & the great inconstancy of yethe Romans in point of faith they being carried about with every wind of doctrine First the novel definitions of Arius met wthwith such reception as to make him in a letter to Constantine before yethe Councel of Nice boast of yethe multitude, then the upon yethe Emperors writing a publick letter against him to be proclaimed in posted up in every city & calling yethe Councel of Nice, they condemned him more almost unanimously & at yethe Emperors motion received yethe word homousios Consubstantial into their Creed. Then the p the wind turning again they at yethe Council of Ariminum they rejected yethe same word as universally And To & soon after upon a new turn of affairs they received embraced it again: the same men in one Councel subscribing under oath to a one thing in another to yethe Contrary. Which shews that yethe age was as the west complying wthwith Valentinian & Liberius, Ægypt wthwith Athan the East first with Valens & then Athanas with Theodosius; the same men in one Councel subscribing under oath to one thing in another to yethe contrary & being allowed to do so. Which shews that yethe were as age was perfectly such as Nazianzen describes it to be, ready for any side according to yethe turn of yethe times, as ready to turn for interest to any Christian party as a little before from heathenism to Christianity for for yethe same interest. Whence we need not wonder at ytthat in yethe short reign of Constantius over yethe west yethe world should turn so universally as to make Athanasius f occasion yethe proverb, Athanasius contra Mundum, & make Nazianzen of opinion ytthat Athanasius (soon after yethe death of Constantius) was yethe first that discovered & manifested lyed to by divine inspiration discovered & manifested to yethe world the Deity of yethe Holy Ghost, yethe world not bearing in Church in its more tender age not bearing wthwith so great a mystery.

[* the error of yethe western Churches from yethe sense of yethe Nicene Councel in yethe sense of yethe word Homoüsios they]

I hope I have now sufficiently proved that the times age from yethe first Conversion of yethe Empire to Christianity declined perpetually in manners by yethe influx of immoral & hypocritical heathens: so as wthwithin 30 or 40 a few years to even become as immoral as perhaps orour own times & wthwithin 80 or 100 to have become more degenerate if it exceeded us become more corrupt become as hypocritical & vitious as or perhaps more immoral then our own times at least: the most immoral vitiou immoral of yethe heathens being apt to turn first & so make yethe Churches more deg so by their convers to make yethe rest of y Christians more as much or corrupt the this at least as yethe heathens wchwhich remained unconverted. In shewing this I have insisted upo most upon yethe manners of yethe Catholicks, there being no need to prove yethe corruptness of yethe rest. And whilst I compare those times wthwith orour own it makes me like orour own yethe better & honour orour clergy yethe more, accounting them not only men of better morals & but also far more judicious & knowing. Tis yethe nature of man to admire most least what he is least most acquainted with: Men & this makes us always think yethe worst of orour own times yethe worst. Men are not sainted till their mor vices be forgotten. & then dying same superstition that The old heathens first commemorated their dead men then admired them, afterwards adored them as Gods, then raised them above newer Gods so as to make them GosGods celestial & at length equalled them to yethe the first of them to yethe supreme God, as yethe Egyptians did Osiris, the Assyrians Baal, the Greeks Iupiter).