PROGRESS OP MONACHISM. 3OI 



had been to make men friendly, helpful, companionate, 

 and kind, in civil fociety, was no longer obferved, or 

 no longer under flood. ^Egypt, Syria, Palaeftine, Me- 

 fopotamia, Pontus, Cappadocia, and Armenia, fhortly 

 teemed with armies of monks, marching under the 

 banners of Paul, of Antonius, and their brainhck fuc- 

 ceffors, who renounced all the affairs and accommoda- 

 tions of life, withdrew from all fociety, endured hun- 

 ger and want, diftreffes and torments* for meriting the 

 kingdom of heaven, or at leaft for acquiring influence 

 and reverence on earth by idlenefs and floth. No 

 longer new platonlc philofophers, but beggars, vaga- 

 bonds, boors, ragged pedlars, day-labourers, Haves, 

 tinkers, thieves, malefactors, every thing that had 

 been fubjecl to hunger, poverty, ftripes, and the hardeft 

 labour, or had fied from condign punifhment, hermi- 

 tized in iEgypt, or took up the monadic life. The 

 vileft fcoundrel acauired reverence through the habit 

 of a monk ; and the greatelt criminal was worihiped as 

 a faint, as foon as he put on the cowl. 



Auguftine fays, that many of the monks refufed to' 

 work with their hands ; in hopes that idlenefs would 

 procure them a maintenance, and their inftruetive ex- 

 ample deferve a handfome reward. Their great advo- 

 cate and friend Athanafius, writes to Dracontius tlie 

 monk, who was elected a bifhop againft his will : Now 

 thou art a bifhop, I would recommend to thee to fait 

 and to drink no wine. We have known bifhops that 

 failed and monks that indulged in eating: bifhops 

 who abflained from wine, and monks that drank it ; 

 bifhops who wrought miracles, and monks who 



wrought 



