ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 



313 



Theophy- 

 lact. 



Ecclesiasti- Before Monacliism was corrupted in the highest de- 

 al History. g r ee, the friars sometimes discharged the duty of the 

 '<""" ' secular clergy. These last seem almost to have forgot- 

 ten that they had any duty to discharge : they were, 

 in truth, equally ignorant and remiss, and, in many in- 

 stances, distinguished by all the vices which character- 

 ize the period iii which they lived. Even on those rare 

 occasions when they entered the pulpit, they conducted 

 themselves in the most impious and shameless manner. 

 The G ^ ec '- Of this we have a remarkable example in the case of 

 : the Grecian Patriarch Theophylact. The prelate al- 

 luded to was by no -means famous, either for his virtues 

 in private life, or for his public performances as a func- 

 tionary of the church. He sold, without scruple, every 

 ecclesiastical benefice as soon as it became vacant, and 

 converted the money to his own use. The writers of 

 his times, (the 10th century,) have told us nothing of 

 his dexterity as a patriarch in managing his clergy, of 

 his integrity as a judge in the episcopal courts, of his 

 commanding oratory or persuasive address ; but they 

 have given us very particular information about his ex- 

 ceUenlslud. He was, indeed, the very Nimrod of the mid- 

 dle ages, a mighty hunter ; he had no fewer than 2000 

 horses in his stables, and these he fed with pig-nuts, pis- 

 tachios, dried grapes, and figs steeped in wine One 

 Holy Thursday, when engaged in celebrating high 

 mass, a groom brought him the intelligence that a fa- 

 vourite mare had foaled ; upon which he instantly stopt 

 short, threw down the liturgy, and running to the sta- 

 ble in an ecstasy of curiosity and dispatch, ascertained, 

 by ocular demonstration, that the joyful news was true. 

 And being now assured that a real and living foal was 

 actually produced, he returned to the altar, took up the 

 liturgy, and finished the service. It must be owned, 

 however, that such flagrant instances were rare. Idle- 

 ness and luxury, a tendency to political intrigue, and an 

 insatiable ambition, are the vices with which the secu- 

 lar clergy are more justly charged. To these qualities 

 must be added a most profound ignorance. They sel- 

 dom preached, for they could not compose ; and they 

 never studied, because they could not read. In the 

 12th, 13th, iind 14th centuries, the sacred scriptures 

 were little known. The volume of the New Testament 

 was rarely to be found ; many bishops had never once 

 seen it in their whole lives : what they knew of its doc- 

 trines and precepts, they learnt solely from their mis- 

 sals. The people had no learning, and no sense of its 

 value. At first the friars were somewhat more atten- 

 tive to their duty than the secular clergy, enjoining at 

 le;i>t the exercises of fasting and prayer. They even at- 

 tempted to instruct the people in public ; but their dis- 

 courses had scarcely any relation to the Christianity of 

 the sacred books, being chiefly occupied with the ex- 

 ploits of the saints ; their power over the devil, especially 

 in single combat ; their watching, fasting, and flagel- 

 lations. When thf topics failed, they had recourse to 

 the virtues of holy water, crossing, and chrism. By de- 

 L'n-is, however, all public instruction was given up : 

 the darkness spread itself, thick and heavy, over the 

 kingdom* of Europe; the intellect was degraded and 

 c-n- laved ; the curiosity asleep ; and, at the period of the 

 Ket'onn.-.tion, it seems to have been universally held, 

 that to repeat credo* and are mar ins, in rapid succession] 

 to undertake pilgrimages, to observe the holidays ap- 

 pointed |.y the church, and to pay the tithe* and perqui- 

 i' the clergy, constituted the sum of religious du- 

 ty, and formed the principal, if not the only excellen- 

 cies of the flu-ii-tian character. 



VOL. VIII. PAHT I. 



f thecc- 



Were we required to select any individual out of the Ecclesiasti- 

 whole fraternity of ascetics and recluses, who had in- cal History, 

 fluenced, in any remarkable degree, the opinions and """"Y"""'' 

 the conduct of men, we could not fail to make choice of 

 Peter the Hermit. And should we be asked to specify 

 any one of the religious societies, whose principles and 

 zealous activity have produced the most striking effects, 

 we should be constrained to give, as our example, the 

 society of the Jesuits. Let us now, therefore, introduce 

 a short account of the extraordinary individual whose 

 name we have mentioned, and of this notable so- 

 ciety. 



Peter, commonly called the Hermit, was born at Peter the 

 Amiens in Picardy. In his youth he had been a soldier, Hermit, 

 and had served with reputation under the Counts of 

 Boulogne. It is not, however, in his military capacity, 

 that we are at present to view him. In truth, he very 

 soon relinquished the sword, and all worldly employ- 

 ments along with it. He made a tedious and painful 

 pilgrimage to Jerusalem ; and during his residence in 

 that city and in Palestine, he beheld, with inexpressible 

 concern, the sufferings which the Christians endured, 

 from the tyranny and insolence of the Saracens. Im- 

 mediately upon his return, he conceived the design of 

 arming the sovereigns, and the people of Europe, in or- 

 der to rescue the holy sepulchre from the pollution of 

 tin- infidels. For this purpose he travelled from kingdom 

 to kingdom, representing the sufferings of the pilgrims, 

 and calling aloud for vengeance. He declared that he 

 was willing to lead the armies himself, if no better ge- 

 neral could be found : he spoke with confidence of spe- 

 cial revelations, and preternatural assurances of suc- 

 cess. 



As he travelled from place to place, the Hermit exhi- Character of 

 bited, in his own person, the most complete specimen of 'he Henjiit, 

 monkish abstemiousness and frantic enthusiasm. His and effects 

 body, which was covered with a coarse garment, seemed 

 wasted with fasting ; his head was bare, his feet na- 

 ked ; he bore aloft in his hand a large and weighty 

 crucifix ; and his prayers were frequent, long, and 

 loud. He accosted every person whom he met; and 

 entered, without hesitation, both the palaces of the 

 great and wealthy, and the cottages of the poor. If 

 the power of eloquence is to be estimated by the effects 

 which it produces, it certainly did not expire with De- 

 mosthenes and Cicero. The exhortations of the Hermit 

 to repentance and to arms, roused the people from their 

 lethargy : he painted the sufferings of the pilgrims in 

 such glowing colours, that every heart was melted into 

 compassion ; and touching, with the hand of a master, 

 the chivalrous spirit of the age, he challenged the brave 

 to rescue their brethren from oppression, and to pro- 

 tect the holy earth in which their Saviour had been in- 

 terred. Every eye kindled with indignation as he 

 spoke, and the sword was already drawn to carry into 

 effect the purpose of vengeance. Nor were these the 

 only arts which were practised by this enthusiastic 

 preacher. We have already hinted, that he built his 

 BHH of success upon the assurances of heaven. He 

 affirmed that Jesus Christ, and the holy Virgin his mo- 

 ther, had both appeared to him ; and he mentioned the 

 names of many saints with whom he had personally 

 conversed. He even produced a letter, which he as- 

 sured the people was written in heaven : it was address- 

 ed, he said, tr- all true Christians residing upon the 

 earth : n<l its only object was to rouse their courage, 

 and to animate their zeal, in the great and pious work 

 which he urged them to undertake. This letter, we- 



