12. Victory ensued.-CLOVIS was, the same year, baptized at Rheims, with three thousand of his subjects, who followed his example. It is said that Remigius, bishop of Rheims, having preached to CLOVIS, and those who had been baptized with him, a sermon on the sufferings and death of Jesus; the king in hearing him, cried out "If I had been there with my Franks, that should not have happened."

CHAP.

II.

13. This may serve as a specimen to show the spirit that animated these bloody converts, as well as their ignorance of Christ and his harmless religion. But this is not all wonderful miracles are said to have been wrought at the baptism of this first Christian king of France: which lying tales, Mosheim observes, are utterly unworthy of credit." He further adds, that, "Pious frauds were very commonly Ecel. practised in Gaul and Spain at this time, in order tory, vol. a. p. 7, 8. 'to captivate the minds of a rude and barbarous peo'ple, who were scarcely susceptible of a rational 'conviction."

14. "The impudence of impostors, in contriving ibid.p.1 'false miracles, was artfully proportioned to the cre'dulity of the vulgar; while the sagacious and the 'wise, who perceived these cheats, were obliged to 'silence by the dangers that threatened their lives ' and fortunes, if they detected the artifice.-The 'prudent are silent, the multitude believe, and im'postors triumph."

ibi.

15. In the sixth century, the conversion of several barbarous nations is dated. Among whom were the p. 91, 92 Abasgi, the Heruli, the Alans, the Lazi and Zani. Mosheim says, "These conversions, indeed, how

ever pompously they may sound, were extremely 'superficial."

16. "All that was required of these darkened na'tions, amounted to an oral profession of their faith ' in Christ, to their abstaining from sacrificing to the 'gods, and their committing to memory certain forms ' of doctrine. So that, even after their conversion 'to christianity, they retained their primitive ferocity ' and savage manners, and continued to distinguish 'themselves by the most horrid acts of cruelty and ra 'pine, and the practice of all sorts of wickedness.",

CHAP.

11.

tory, vol.

p. 94.

17. Surely, when such religion as this is called christianity; and such ferocious, savage, horrid, cruel, and rapacious wretches are called Christians; it should seem that the meek, mild and harmless folJowers of Jesus ought to have some other name: rather call them heretics, fanatics, wild enthusiasts, or persons disordered in their brains. And must not the whole succeeding history of christianizing, converting, illuminating, and churching the nations, appear as great a romance in the eyes of sensible men, as the Arabian Nights, or Fairy Tales?

18. In this (sixth) century also, a vast multitude of Jews were converted to Christianity, and added to the Eccl.His church. "Many (says Mosheim,) were brought over to the truth, by the persuasion and influence of the emperor Justinian." That these pretended Christians were converted to the darkest scheme of hypocrisy, and brought over into error worse than the first, let Mosheim himself testify.

2,93,94.

19. It must however be acknowledged, (says he) that of these conversions, the greatest part were owing to the liberality of Christian princes, or to 'the fear of punishment, rather than to the force of argument or to the love of truth. In Gaul, the 'Jews were compelled by Childeric to receive the or'dinance of baptism; and the same despotic method of converting was practised in Spain."

20. About the same time, this Catholic gospel was propagated in Britain, among the Anglo-Saxons, the Picts and Scots; and also in Germany, among the Bohemians, Thuringians, and Boii. But it must be bid. p. confessed, even by Mosheim, "That the converted 'nations, now mentioned, retained a great part of 'their former impiety, superstition and licentiousness; and that, attached to Christ by a mere outward and nominal profession, they, in effect, re'nounced the purity of his doctrine, and the author. ity of his gospel, by their flagitious lives, and the superstitious and idolatrous rites and institutions which they continued to observe.”

21. Here then, we have a fair statement of the nature of these great conversions. These barbarous nations, through the despotic power of their more

II.

barbarous conquerors, are compelled to make a mere CHAP. outward and nominal profession of Christianity, without mending their lives or quitting their former idolatries! What can such christianizing be but the beastly work of Antichrist, at the head of which stood the bishop of Rome?

22. GREGORY THE GREAT sent into Britain, A. D. 596, forty Benedictine monks with Augustin* at their head." After his arrival in England (says Maclaine,) he converted the heathen temples into places of Christian worship." And GREGORY THE GREAT, in his epistle to the Anglo-Saxon converts, permits them to sacrifice to the saints, on their respective holidays, the victims which they had formerly offered to the gods.

ii. p. 150.

23. The same account of the celestial light and the Eccl. Hie divine gospel runs through the seventh century; and tory, vol. St. Gal, St. Kilian, and other Great Saints are said to convert Franks, Frieslanders and other nations to the religion of Jesus.

p. 151.

24 But again Mosheim confesses of these gospeli- ibid. Dzers, that, "Many of them discovered, in the course of their ministry, the most turbulent passions,—arArogance and ambition,-avarice and cruelty.

And

instead of gaining souls to Christ, they usurped a 'despotic dominion over their obsequious proselytes; 'and exercised a princely authority over the countries 'where their ministry had been successful."

25. "The conversion of the Jews seemed at a ibid. 'stand in this century.-Though in many places, p. 152. they were barbarously compelled by the Christians, "[or rather Antichristians,] to make an outward and 'feigned profession of their faith in Christ."

26. "The emperor HERACLIUS, incensed against 'that miserable people, by the insinuations, as it is 'said, of the Chris.ian doctors, persecuted them in a 'cruel manner, and ordered multitudes of them to 'be inhumanly dragged into the Christian churches, in order to be baptized by violence and compulsion. 'The same odious method of converting was practised in Spain and Gaul."

This monk Augustin, on account of his labours in propagating the catholic gospel in Britain, is stiled the British Apostle, and was the first Archbishop of Canterbury.

CHAP.

p. 201.

27. In the eighth century, " Boniface, on account ' of his ministerial labours and holy exploits, was disEccl. Hitinguished by the honourable title of the Apostle of tory, vol. the Germans."-But notwithstanding the " eminent 'services" he is said to have rendered to christianity, Mosheim confesses, that he " often employed vio'lence and terror, and sometimes artifice and fraud, ' in order to multiply the number of Christians."

Fbid.

p. 202.

bid.

28. It would be endless to pursue these Catholic gospelizers through all their tyrannical movements. Charlemagne, in the same century, commenced hostilities in behalf of the church, against those Saxons who inhabited Germany: "That valiant people, (says 'Mosheim,) whose love of liberty was excessive, and 'whose aversion to the restraints of sacerdotal au" thority was inexpressibic."

29. Yet this valiant people, who had hitherto stood their ground against the fraud and violence of monks p. 203, & and bishops; at last overcome by the terror of punNote (ishment, and the imperious language of victory, they

suffered themselves to be baptized, though with the greatest reluctance. For according to the iniquitous law which these bloody gospelizers had enacted, “ev66 ery Saxon, who contemptuously refused to receive "the sacrament of baptism, was to be punished with "death."

30. Such were the exploits of Charlemagne in the service of Christianity, for which, "succeeding genp. 204..erations (says Mosheim,) canonized his memory, and

turned this bloody warrior into an eminent saint.” If Dr. Mosheim truly saw the absurdity of such an impious turn, how was it possible that he could canonize millions of such beastly characters, in his history, under the name of Christians, and turn their absurd and ridiculous doctrines, with their pernicious effects, into the gospel of Christ, and the benign religion of Jesus ?

I

NE

CHAPTER III.

The Subject continued.

III.

Eccl.His

tory, vol.

EAR the beginning of the eleventh century, CHAP. BOLESLAUS, king of Poland, entered into a bloody war with the Prussians, and " obtained by the 'force of penal laws and of a victorious army, what 'Adalbert, bishop of Prague, could not effect by ex'hortation and argument. He dragooned this savage 'people into the church.”

6

ii. p. 425.

2. WALDEMAR I. king of Denmark, unsheathed ibid. vol. iii. p.2,3,4 'his sword, (in the twelfth century) for the propagation and advancement of christianity; and where'ever his arms were successful, there he pulled 'down the temples and images of the gods, destroy'ed their altars, laid waste their sacred groves, and 'substituted in their place, the Christian worship, 'which deserved to be propagated by better means than the sword."

3. These are the words of Mosheim, and he might with more propriety have said that, their beastly and bloody religion deserved to be called by some other name than that of christianity. But he continues his narrative in the same catholic strain. "The island ' of Rugen submitted to the victorious arms of Wal'demar, A. D. 1168; and its fierce and savage in'habitants, who were, in reality, no more than a 'band of robbers and pirates, were obliged, by that prince, to hear the instructions of the pious and learned doctors that followed his army, and to re'ceive the Christian worship."

4. "The Finlanders received the gospel in the 6 same manner they were also a fierce and savage 'people. After many bloody battles, they were totally defeated by ERIC IX. and were commanded to embrace the religion of the conqueror, which 'the greatest part of them did, though with the ' utmost reluctance. The founder and ruler of this 'new church [of fierce, savage robbers and pirates,] was Henry, archbishop of Upsal, who accompanied the victorious monarch in that bloody campaign."