intelligible metaphyfical jargon into the Christian Theology which hath obfcured it's brightness, and made the clearest Truths become matters of the darkest litigation. Now it was that the abstruce Philofophic Terms of Subftance, Effence, and the like, were brought into Chriftian Divinity; and as thefe could never be explained, Contentions about them were never to cease. So foon did our watchful Enemy fow Tares with the good Seed; and they have afforded him a moft plentiful Crop of mischief every Day fince. St. Paul certainly forefaw this, when he advised the Coloffians, Beware left any man spoil you through Philofophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Chrift. This Humorof Philofophizing foon fhewed itfelf in a vaft variety of Sects or Herefies which fprung up in the Primitive Church, all soccafioned by departing from the Revelation of the Mind of God as contained

in the Holy Scriptures, and forming, every one of them, Schemes of Belief according to their feveral notions in Philofophy; and hence St. Cyprian in his 67th Epiftle fays of the Heretic Novatian, who had been a Stoic Philofopher, that he retained more obftinacy and conceit from his worldly, than he had gained gentleness and peaceableness from his Christian, Philofophy. The Greek Philofophers, in their Metaphysical Treatifes, frequently made ufe of the words Hypoftafis Subftance, and Oufia Effence: but as they could not form different Ideas of them, they used them promifcuously for each other, which was still the occafion of much wrangling amongst them. But the first time these words were publicly offered amongst the Chrif tians to explain their Doctrine was in the Year 270, at the fecond Council of Antioch, in which Paulus Samofatenus, Bishop of that See, was depofed, for saying, that Jefus Chrift was the Creature of God

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God the Father. Some of that Council then propofed, and amongst the rest Paul himself, that Jefus Chrift, fhould, by their Decree, be acknowledged as color of the fame Subftance or Effence with the Father. This occafioned much al tercation amongst the Bishops, but it was at laft carried in the negative, and this word was rejected as productive of endlefs difputes. The account which Dr. Cave gives us of this affair, from Athanafius, Bafil and others, is very curious, and I have therefore inferted it at the bottom of this page. Difputes concerning these words, were, we may easily

imagine,

Ex Athanafio (De Synod. 708.) multi colligunt Samofatenum To quociov in Chrifto agnoviffe. Verum non aliud eo loco dicit Athanafius quam Paulum ex detorto Catholicorum vocabulo Sophifticum argumentum contra Chrifti Divinitatem ex. cogitaffe; nempe nifi confiteremur Chriftum, ex homine Deum factum effe, fequeretur ipfum Patri effe ouоáciov, ac proinde tres effe fubftantias, unam

quidam.

imagine, carried on in private from this time. But in about fifty years they became very public. After the Death of Achillas Bishop of Alexandria two of the Prefbyters of that City, Arius and Alexander, were fet up in nomination, by the Clergy and People, to fucceed him. Philoftorgius, the Arian Historian, poffitively fays that Arius had most votes, but that he generously and modeftly declined it in favor of his Competitor. Be that as it will, Alexander became C 6 Bishop

quidam primariam, duas ex illa derivatas: JNMalixas enim & craffo fenfu vocabulum acceptit, quafi in Effentia Divina, perinde ac in rebus corporeis ufu venit, ut ab una fubftantia, altera, eaque diverfa, derivetur. Quo circa ne hac voce hæretici ulterius abuterenter, filentio fupprimendam cenfuerunt Patres Antiocheni; non quod Catholicum vocis fenfum damnarent, fed ut omnem fophiftice cavellandi occafionem haereticis praeriperent,! ut ex Athanafio, Bafilio, aliifque abunde liquet.

HISTORIA Litteraria. Sacc. Novat. Paulus

Sam

Bifhop. As it was the Cuftom for every body there, we may eafily fuppofe that He and Arius had attended the Philofophic and Catechetic Schools established in that City. Here they were early inftructed in Philofophy as well as Chriftianity, and had got the common failing, viz. an Itch for harangueing and difputing on the most abstruse Subjects. It happened one Day that Alexander dif courfing, in the prefence of his Prefbyters and the reft of the Clergy, on the Trinity, afferted that in the Trinity there was an Unity; Arius, fuppofing the Bishop to mean it in the * Sabellian Senfe, contradicted him and disputed against his affertion in this manner, that if the Father begat the Son, then the Son had a beginning of Subsistence, and

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* Sabellius was an Egyptian Philofopher, and maintained that there was but one Υπότασις or Substance in the Deity, and that the Diftinction of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, proceeded from his different ways of manifefting himself.