232 Observance of the forty days of Lent CHAPTER VI. IN WHAT REGARD THE FORTY DAYS OF THE QUADRAGESIMA WERE OF APOSTOLICAL RECOMMENDATION, AND IN WHAT REGARD OF ECCLESIASTICAL CONSTITUTION. THAT Some Paschal or Lent i. e. spring fast before Easter was ever from the Apostles' time and of apostolical tradition and constitution, hath been sufficiently evinced both in the whole body of the discourse above and also in the whole fourth chapter of this Appendage. We proceed now to the consideration of the forty days, and to the declaration, how the observance thereof was ever in the Christian Church, as a special time of spiritual exercise and abstinence for the generality of Christian people, from recommendation apostolicali; howbeit the precept of such forty days' abstinence, and much more the precept of forty days' fast, as also of other ecclesiastical discipline and ecclesiastical administrations respecting penitents or catechumens, respecting public penances, absolutions, catechisings, solemn baptism, synods of bishops, and other the like, specially affixed and determined to that time, may well be allowed to be of ecclesiastical constitution. But 480 it is meet to begin with that which is, even in this of forty days also, of apostolical recommendation. For the proof whereof I might permit it to the judgment of any reader whether a great and sufficient number of the authorities by me above produced, though brought only to prove some Paschal or Lenten fast before Easter to have been of tradition and institution apostolical, have not evidenced that forty days abstinence, within which also we might best choose to us days for proper fasting, according to the measure of our bodily strength and devotion of our minds, comes unto us fairly recommended from tradition apostolical. In a word, this is proved from every author that hath given in testimony of the original apostolical of Teσoapaкoσтǹ, or Quadragesima ; which I have shewed never was understood in the Church of forty hours, and yet was for certain an aiming at least at some number of forty, within which Christian abstinence 1 Ab Apostolis traditum et commendatum, [vid. p. 101. sup.] how far of apostolical recommendation ; 233 should especially be exercised; but if not forty hours, there is nothing next that can be imagined less, nor indeed was it more, than forty days. Amongst such testimonies already produced there need be nothing asked for elder than the practice of the Religious in St. Mark's time, witnessed by Philo, who saw them and lived among them ; by Eusebius, who saw and cites many ancient records and monuments ecclesiastical which now are no where extant; and by St. Hierome, who made most curious search into the ascetical observances of the primitive religious Christians in Egypt, and wrote exactly the lives of many of the chief of them. All these three, Philo*, Eusebius', and St. Hieronem, do together make up this complete testimony", that far within the times of the Apostles, while yet St. John, yea St. Peter and St. Paul were alive, in the Church where St. Mark was set bishop by St. Peter, the religious Christians did διὰ ἑπτὰ ἑβδομάδων by the space of about seven weeks, speaking popularly, exercise special abstinence and devotions; not of precept indeed to all Christians, for we speak not now of that, but of recommendation certainly from their spiritual guides, which were apostolical persons sent to them from the Apostles, 481 and particularly St. Mark, a teacher inspired of God. For the time, Philo's words are, οὗτοι τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἀθροίζονται δι ̓ ἑπτὰ ἑβδομάδων·—οἶνος ἐν ἐκείναις ταῖς ἡμέραις οὐκ εἰσκομίζεται—καὶ τράπεζα καθαρὰ τῶν ἐναίμων, ἐφ ̓ ἧς ἄρτος μὲν τροφὴ, προσόψημα δὲ ἅλες·—ἔνιοι δὲ καὶ διὰ τριῶν ἡμερῶν οὐχ ὑπομιμνήσκονται τροφῆς,—καὶ μόλις δι ̓ ἓξ ἡμερῶν ἀπογεύεσθαι τροφῆς ἀναγκαίας·—ἁγνὴν γὰρ καὶ ἀειπάρθενον αὐτὴν [ἑβδομάδα] ἴσασιν· ἔστι δὲ προεόρτιος μεγίστης ἑορτῆς ἣν πεντηκοντὰς ἔλαχεν, &c. μετὰ δὲ τὸ δεῖπνον τὴν ἱερὰν ἄγουσι παννυχίδα· these assemble themselves especially by the space of seven weeks;-wine in those days is not brought in unto their tables ;-and their table hath not any thing of that which had" sensitive life, or "blood, but bread for their food, and salt for that which they eat with their bread;—some * In his book περὶ τοῦ βίου θεωρητικοῦ, ἢ ἱκετῶν, [vid. p. 24, sqq. sup.] In lib. ii. Histor. Ecclesiast. c. 17. " In lib. ii. advers. Jovinian. c. 39. n Add to these Sozomen, lib. i. c. 12. [p. 26.] Τοιαύτην παρίστησιν, οἵαν καὶ ἡμεῖς νῦν παρὰ τοῖς ̓Αιγυπτίων μοναχοῖς πολιτευομένην ὁρῶμέν — καὶ ὁ μὲν Φίλων ὡδέπη ἱστορῶν ἔοικεν ὑποφαίνειν τοὺς κατ ̓ αὐτὸν ἐξ Ἑβραίων χριστιανίσαντας· —παρ ̓ ἄλλοις γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν εὑρεῖν ταύτην τοῦ βίου τὴν διαγωγήν. 234 viz. generally, as a special time for the space of three days eat no food: and scarce” sometimes "by the space of six days did they refresh themselves. with their natural food;-a week they observed by a pure and holy virginal observance; which was preparatory to the greatest feast"-which with Philo and Eusebius in the Jews' and Christians' language was known to be the feast of Easter "which was followed with the fifty days' solemnity;" Tò dè ἐξ ἑωθινοῦ μέχρις ἑσπέρας διάστημα σύμπαν ἐστὶν αὐτοῖς ἄσκη σις· ἐντυγχάνοντες γὰρ τοῖς ἱερωτάτοις γράμμασι, καὶ θ' ἑξ. εἷς γενόμενος χορὸς τοὺς εὐχαριστηρίους ὕμνους εἰς τὸν Σωτῆρα Θεὸν ᾔδον—ἀεὶ μὲν οὖν ἄληστον ἔχουσι τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ μνήμην "the whole space with them from morning unto evening is" a spiritual "exercise; for being intent on the Holy Scriptures,” &c.-“making one choir they sing eucharistical hymns to God their Saviour;-ever they have God in perpetual remembrance.” This Philo wrote, who in the days of Claudius came to speech with St. Peter in Rome; and he wrote of those οὐκ εἰδὼς μόνον “ not only whom he had seen,” ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀποδεχόμενος ἐκθειάζων τε καὶ σεμνύνων τοὺς κατ ̓ αὐτὸν ἀποστολικοὺς ἄνδρας ἐξ Εβραίων, " but also setting forth, admiring and reverencing the apostolical men of the Hebrew nation which lived there where St. Mark did," saith Eusebius", who writeth farther on this wise: “ταύτας τοῦ 452 Φίλωνος σαφεῖς καὶ ἀναντιῤῥήτους περὶ τῶν καθ' ἡμᾶς ὑπάρ χειν ἡγούμεθα λέξεις· εἰ δ ̓ ἐπὶ τούτοις ἀντιλέγων τις ἔτι σκληρύνοιτο, καὶ οὕτως ἀπαλλαττέσθω τῆς δυσπιστίας, ἐναργεστέ ραις πειθαρχῶν ἀποδείξεσιν, ἃς οὐ παρὰ τισὶν ἢ μόνῃ τῇ τῶν Χριστιανῶν εὑρεῖν ἐστὶ κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον θρησκεία—καὶ τὰς ἐξ ἔθους εἰσέτι καὶ νῦν πρὸς ἡμῶν ἐπιτελουμένας ἀσκήσεις, ἃς διαφερόντως κατὰ τὴν τοῦ σωτηρίου πάθους ἑορτὴν ἐν ἀσιτίαις καὶ διανυκτερεύσεσιν, &c. ἅπερ ἐπακριβὲς τὸν αὐτὸν ὃν καὶ εἰς δεῦρο τετήρηται παρὰ μόνοις ἡμῖν τρόπον ἐπισημηνάμενος,—καὶ μάλιστα τὰς τῆς μεγάλης ἑορτῆς παννυχίδας, καὶ τὰς ἐν ταύταις ἀσκήσεις—ὅτι δὲτὰ-ἀρχῆθεν πρὸς τῶν ̓Αποστόλων ἔθη παραδεδομένα καταλαβὼν ὁ Φίλων ταῦτ ̓ ἔγραφε, παντί τῳ δῆλον “ these words of Philo we deem to be manifestly and undeniably meant concerning those which are of us" Christians; “which if any shall be so hardy to deny, let him yield of spiritual exercise and abstinence; 235 to these clear demonstrations (and cease to be hard of belief), viz. of such things as are not to be found with any but in the religion of Christians only, according to the Gospel ;-even such ascetical abstinences which are of custom performed amongst us even until now, which more eminently are observed about the solemnity of our Saviour's passion, in fastings and whole night watches," &c.-" which accurately after the same manner are performed even until now, and with us Christians only ;-the vigils and abstinences belonging to that great solemnity;-and even such customs hath Philo there written, which were delivered in the beginning from the Apostles." The time, Philo tells us, was about the space of seven weeks before that feast, which was Easter; that space of time-exempting one day in every seven, which Philo there saith they did πανιερὸν καὶ πανέορτον νομίζειν, hold as very sacred and festival-gives us the forty days, with two only (as with us) preparatory to the forty. And this being before the number of forty mentioned by Irenæus in the matter of the fast, adds reason to the authority of that ancient record which B. Rhenanus lighted on, that interpreted the forty hours, which Irenæus noted as a change from the former plain and 483 simple custom, to have been a substitution of forty hours for forty days; or else to that reading of some's fasting forty days, and those so many superpositions, such observance of seven weeks (that is, with such exemption as above, forty days) being, as Eusebius there pronounces1, inter τà åpõî¤ev πρòs τῶν ̓Αποστόλων παραδεδομένα· which was the proposition here undertaken; that forty days' observance was, though not of precept-wherefore variations therefrom were borne withal by the Church, saith Irenæus-yet from apostolical recommendation. Here I shall esteem it no bar to what hath been said if any shall observe with me in those newconverted zealous Christians, being Philo's countrymen, of the nation of the Jews, which dwelt in and about Alexandria in the greatest numbers with Philo the Jew himself, some part of zeal left in them towards something of their ancient Judaical rites, which in new-converted Jews the Apostles themselves did bear with; this is no more than Eusebius and S [Vid. p. 222. sup.] t [Vid. p. præced.] 236 shewn from the language of Philo; Sozomen themselves, who magnify their Christianity, did observe in the lovdaïkóтeρóv Ti it is sufficient that these their observances of fastings and watchings and devotions by the space of seven weeks before Easter, were no part of their Judaical rites; let any shew us any such observance of any sect of the Jews or of any other religion in the world, before Christianity brought in this; so far therefore was this from any thing of Judaical rite, that from this itself Eusebius collects, as from one of his "ἐναργέστεραι ἀποδείξεις ἃς οὐ παρὰ τισὶν ἢ μόνῃ τῇ τῶν Χριστιανῶν εὑρεῖν ἔνεστι κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέ Xov Opnokela, their indubitable Christianity. Next I may here be allowed to suppose that I have already shewn in the foregoing chapter, in Irenæus's Epistle to Victor3, a fair intimation of forty days' abstinence or fasting, as the plain and simple manner of keeping the Paschal fast, as long before his time as the Apostles were. They which are so confident that no mention of forty days, that no such number of days was at first observed, or can be shewn so early as in Irenæus's days, should consider whether what St. Austin wrote, quadraginta diebus jejunare monemur; hoc Lex, cujus persona est in Moyse, hoc prophetia, cujus personam gerit Elias, hoc ipse Dominus monet, qui tanquam testimonium habens ex Lege et prophetis, medius inter illos in monte tribus discipulis videntibus atque stupentibus claruit; "we are admonished to fast forty 484 days; this the Law, whose person Moses bare; this the Prophets, whose person Elias sustained; this the Lord Himself admonisheth us, who as receiving witness from the Law and the Prophets, shone forth in the midst betwixt those two in the mount, the three disciples beholding with astonishment;" and what St. Hierome writes, est Dominus,-qui quadraginta diebus Christianorum jejunium sanctificavit; ipse quoque Dominus-jejunat quadraginta dies, et hæreditatem nobis jejunii derelinquens ad esum corporis sui sub hoc numero nostras animas præparat; Dominus totidem [quadraginta] diebus in solitudine jejunavit, ut nobis solennes jejuniorum dies relinqueret, "the Lord fasted forty days in the wilderness, and hath t hereby sanctified the Christians' fast, and left to us the |