ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY THERE are two aspects in which the church of Christ There are two aspects in which the church of Christ presents itself to the notice of impartial history. It may either be regarded in its connection with the civil and political establishments existing in the world, or it may be viewed as a separate and distinct society, reared upon its own principles, and possessing a character and features exclusively belonging to it. Ecclesiastical his tory therefore respects, either the support which Chris tianity has received from the secular power, together with the benefits or the disadvantages resulting from this support ; or as it respects the internal administration of the church, its constitution and discipline, its doctrine and its worship. Under the first of these heads, we shall be able to trace the rise and the decline of priestly usurpation, and especially that of the papacy ; and un der the second, we shall have it in our power to mark the revolutions of theological opinion, connected as they have uniformly been with those of philosophy and litera ture, during the long period of eighteen centuries.
Under the one or the other of the divisions now men. tioned, almost every thing interesting or profitable in ecclesiastical history may be conveniently introduced. In the following article, therefore, we shall endeavour to keep these divisions steadily in view.
The period of eighteen centuries, above alluded to, may be separated into four great portions. The first extends from the birth of Christ to the reign of Con stantine, A. D. 325, when Christianity became the re ligion of the empire. The second reaches onward from the time of Constantine to the year 755, when the supremacy of the Pope was acknowledged, and his tern poral dominion established. The third portion extends from the acknowledgment of the Pope's supremacy and the establishment of his temporal dominion, to the era of the Reformation, about the year 1580. And the last portion includes the interval between the era of the re formation and the present time.
The History of !Pe Church from the Birth of Christ to the reign of Constantine, A. I). 325, when Christianity became the Religion of the .Empire.
In the 753d year of Rome, and in the reign of Au gustus Cxs.i•, Jesus Christ was born. The place of
his nativity was Bethlehem in Judea, and his reputed Lulu r was Joseph, a carpenter of Galilee. At the time of his birth, the whole world was at peace. The events of our Saviour's life, which arc recorded in the four evangel:col histories that have come down to us, arc well known to his followers, and it is upon the efficacy of his vicarious sufferings and propitiatory death, that all true Christians build their hopes of everlasting hap piness. Some time previous to his ascension into heaven, the founder of our religion gave a charge to his apostles, commanding them to preach the doctrine which he had taught them, and assuring them that they should be furnished with extraordinary gifts as the evidences of their commission. The words of the charge, which has been preserved by the enangelist Matthew, are these, " Go ye, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." And another of the inspired writers informs us, that they were instructed to wait at Jerusalem, till they should " receive power" by miraculous communi cation from heaven. In obedience to their Master's in junction, we find the apostles remaining in the Jewish capital, and " when the day of Pentecost was fully come" they were all assembled in one place. " And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rush ing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting; and there appeared unto them clo ven tongues, like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and did speak in tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance." In this way the promise of Jesus was accomplished. The Holy G host was poured forth in mighty strength upon the apostles. They were furnished with extra ordinary powers, and especially with the gift of tongues. And Saul of Tarsus having seen Jesus after his ascen sion, " as one born out of due time," and having been miraculously called to the apostleship, those first mis sionaries of the faith, proceeded in the great work of turning mankind from darkness to light, from ignorance and wickedness, to knowledge, to righteousness, and to peace.