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bable reason for it is found in the character of Tertullian 

 himself. In his writings composed before his Montanism 

 he shows many traces of that zeal and asceticism which 

 formed the peculiar characteristic of the Montanists. It 

 has been doubted whether he remained a Montanist to his 

 death. Some have thought that he returned to the catholic 

 church, and others suppose that he at last settled down 

 into opinions intermediate between those of the Montanists 

 and those of the orthodox. For neither of these suppo- 

 sitions is there any sufficient proof. There existed indeed 

 at Carthage, in the fifth century, a sect called Tertul- 

 lianists ; but between them and Tertullian there appears 

 to have been no historical connection. 



Whether he remained a Montanist or not, he continued 

 to be held in the greatest respect by the African churches. 

 In fact it is to his influence that we must trace the cha- 

 racteristics which distinguished those churches from other 

 Christians, and which at length, through Augustin, gave 

 a tone to the Christianity of the West. His influence was 

 especially great upon Cyprian, in whose writings there is 

 much which closely resembles some of Tertullian's, and of 

 whom Jerome says that in asking for the works of Tertul- 

 lian he was wont to say, ' Da magistrum' ('Give me my 

 master'). 



The date of Tertullian's death is unknown, but we are 

 told by Jerome that he lived to a great age. One of his 

 works (' Ad Scapulam') was written as late as 216 A.D. 



A large portion of his works have come down to us, and 

 these maybe divided into three classes : (1) apologetic, 

 (2) practical, and (3) doctrinal or controversial. The same 

 iication is sometimes stated differently, as follows : 

 ritings against the heathen ; (2) writings on the na- 

 ture, morals, rites, &c. of the church ; and (3) writings 

 airainst heretics. It is important to distinguish, if possible, 

 between the works which he wrote before he became a 

 Montanist and those which he wrote afterwards. This dis- 

 tinction has been attempted by Neander and Biihr. On 

 the other hand, a few writers have thought that all the 

 works of Tertullian were composed after he adopted the 

 opinions of Montanus. (J. G. Hoffmann, Diss. omnia 

 Tertull. in Mvntanismo scripta videri, Wittenberg, 1738.) 

 I. Of Tertullian's Apologetic Works the following ap- 

 pear to belong to the earlier part of his life, and to have 

 been written in the reign of Septimius Severus. They are 

 free from the peculiar tenets of Montanism : 



(1.) ' Ad Martyres;' for the encouragement and vindica- 

 tion of those who suffered for being Christians. 



(2.) ' De Speetaculis ;' written about 198, against the 

 Roman games and festivals, and to dissuade Christians 

 from being present at them. 



(3.) ' De Idololatria ;' an exposure of the character and 

 influence of idolatry, with an exhortation to Christians to 

 avoid every approach to participation in it. 



(4.) ' Apologeticus adversns Gentes pro Chi istianis ;' his 

 principal work of this class, and one of the best of all his 

 works, is a powerful refutation of the accusations made 

 against the early Christians, and a warm remonstrance 

 persecutions they suffered, addressed to the Ro- 

 man magistrates. It was written in the year 198, and has 

 been deservedly held in very high esteem both in antient 

 and modern times. 



(5.| Ad Nationes Libri II.' These two books, which 



were discovered in manuscript by James Gothofred, and 



printed by him at Geneva, 162."^ 4to., form a kind of 



supplement to the ' Apologeticus.' The first contains 



much the same matter as that book, sometimes expanded, 



sometimes abridged, and sometimes newly arranged ; the 



second takes up the general subject of heathen theology. 



The date of these books appears to be about 199, if they 



.vritte.n after the ' Apologeticus ;' but, some writers of 



high authority, as Neander and Miinter, suppose that they 



were written before the latter work, in the year 198. 



(6.) The treatise ' De Testirrionio Animae ' may be 



riled as another supplement to the 'Apologeticus,' the 



17th chapter of which contains in fact the fame argument 



er form. Its object is to prove that there exists 



originally in the human mind, to a certain extent, a know- 



ue God, and that this knowledge of God 



confirms the Christian doctrine of his character. 



Thy remainder of Tertullian's apologetic works appear 

 e ITCH written after he became a Montanist. They 

 are : 

 (7.) ' DC Corona Militis ;' a vindication of a Christian 



soldier, who refused to wear a crown which had been 

 awarded to him, on the ground that it was a badge of 

 heathenism, and who was imprisoned for his refusal. This 

 work contains remarks on other questions relating to the 

 duties of a Christian citizen under a heathen government. 

 (8.) ' De Fuga in Persecutione ;' a statement of the 

 Montanist opinion that Christians, when persecuted, might 

 neither attempt to save their lives by flight nor by money. 

 Written about 202. 



(9.) ' Contra Gnosticos Scorpiace ;' an answer to the 

 slurs thrown upon the martyrs in the persecution of Septi- 

 mius Severus, by those scorpions the Gnostics. 



(10.) ' Liber ad Scapulam ;' a defence of the Christians, 

 addressed to Scapula, the proconsul of Africa, who perse- 

 cuted them. 



II. Practical Works, relating to Christian morals and 

 discipline. The following were written before he became 

 a Montanist : 



(11.) ' De Patientia ;' on Christian patience. 

 (12.) ' De Oratione;' tin prayer: one of Tertullian's 

 earliest works. 



(13.) ' De Baptismo ;' on baptism : a defence and ex- 

 planation of the rite. 



(14.) ' De Poenitentia ;' on repentance : a manual for 

 Catechumens and newly-baptized Christians. 



(15.) ' Libri Duo ad Uxorem ;' exhorting his wife not to 

 marry a second time, if he should die before her. 



The two following works were, in Neander's opinion, 

 most probably written after Tertullian became a Mon- 

 tanist : 



(16.) 'De Cultu Feminarum;' on female attire : consist- 

 ing of two books, the first of which is sometimes denoted 

 by a separate title, namely, ' De Habitu Muliebri.' 



( 17. ) ' De Virginibus Velandis ;' on the veiling of virgins : 

 in opposition to the custom then prevalent at Carthage, of 

 virgins appearing in church with the face exposed. 



The remaining works of this second class are undoubtedly 

 Montanistic : 



(18.) ' De Exhortatione Castitatis ;' dissuading a friend 

 from marrying a second time. To the same purport are 

 (19.) ' De Monogamia;' and (20.) ' De Pudicitia.' 

 (21.) ' De Jejunitate,' or ' De Jejuniis ;' recommending 

 the severe practices of the Montanists, in preference to the 

 milder doctrine of the orthodox respecting fasts. In this 

 work, and others of his writings, he applies to the ortho- 

 dox the term ' psychici' (i//i'xroi), carnal, which is used by 

 Paul ( 1 Cor., ii. 14) in opposition to ' spiritual.' 



(22.) 'De Pallio,' composed in the year 208, is a treatise 

 recommending the wearing of the Greek pallium in pre- 

 ference to the Roman toga. It contains much information 

 respecting the form of these garments. 



III. Horksnn Christian Doctrine and Polemics. The 

 only one of this class which seems to have been written 

 before his Montanism is 



(23.) 'De Praescriptione (or Praescriptionibus) Haereti- 

 corum ;' against heretics in general, and especially the 

 Gnostics and Marciouites. 



He continued his attacks upon the heretics, and espe- 

 cially the various sects of Gnostics, after he became a Mon- 

 tanist, in the following works: 



(24.) ' Adversus Marcionem Libri V.' 

 (25.) ' Adversus Valentinianos ;' which Semler supposes 

 to be a close imitation of Irenaeus, ' Contra Haeieses.' 



(26.) ' De Carne Christ!,' and (27.) ' De Resurrectione 

 Carnis,' are treatises on the resurrection, in opposition to the 

 Gnostics. 



(28.) 'Adversus Hermogenem ;' against the doctrine 

 held by a Gnostic of that name, that matter is eternal, and 

 that out of this eternal matter not only all sensible things, 

 but also the souls of men are made, the latter being 

 besides endowed with a divine principle of life (irviti/ia). 

 Against this doctrine concerning the soul Tertullian wrote 

 another work, from which only some quotations have come 

 down to us : ' De Censu Animae.' Our loss is the less, as 

 we have a fuller treatise by Tertullian on the same sub- 

 ject, (20.) 'De Anima;' in which he discusses the theories 

 of heathen philosophers concerning the sou], and oppi 

 to them all the doctrines of Christianity, that it is spiritual, 

 immortal, and received direct from God. 



There is also a work by him on the doctrine of the 

 Trinity. 



(30.) ' Adversus Praxean ;' written about 201 or 205, 

 against the doctrine of Praxeas, which was in l;-et esscn- 



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