causes of the persecution of Christianity.

Without repeating what has been already men. tioned, of the reverence of the Roman princes and governors for the temple of Jerusalem, we shall only observe, that the destruction of the temple and city' was accompanied and followed by every circumstance that could exasperate the minds of the conquerors, and authorize religious persecution by the most speeious arguments of political justice and the public safety. From the reign of 'Nero to that of Antoninus Pius, the Jews discovered a fierce impatience of the dominion of Rome, which repeatedly broke out inthe most furious massacres and insurrections. Humanity is shocked at the recital of the horrid cruelties which they committed in the eities of Egypt, of Cyprus, and of Cyrene, where they dwelt in treacherous friendship with the unsuspecting natives * ; and we are tempted to. applaud the severe retaliation which was exercised by the arms of the legions against a race of fanatics, Whose dire and credulous superstition seemed to render them the implacable enemies not only of

the Roman government, but of humankind d. The enthusiasm of the Jews was supported by the opinion, that it was unlawful for them to pay taxes to an idolatrous master; and by the flattering promise which 'they deriVe-d from their ancient oracles, that a conquering Mesiiah Would soon arise, destined to break their fetters, and to

invest the faVOurites of heavenwith the empire'

of the earth; It was by 'announcng himself as their long-expected deliverer, and by calling on all the descendants of Abraham to assert the hope of Israel, that the famous Barchochebas collected a formidable army, with which he resisted during two years the power of the emperor Haa drian3.

Notwithstanding these repeated proVocations, the resentment of the Roman princes expired after the victory; nor Were their apprehensions continued beyond the period of war and danger. By the general indulgence of polytheism, and by the mild temper of Antoninus Pius, the Jews were restored to their ancient privileges, and 'once more obtained the permisiion of circumcising their children, with the easy restraint, that

The numerous remains of that people, though they were still excluded from the precincts of Jerusalem, were permitted to form and to maintain considerable establishments both in Italy and in the provinces, to acquire the freedom of Rome, to enjoy municipal honours, and to obtain at the same time an exemption from the burdensome and expenfive offices of society. The moderation or the contempt of the Romans gave a legal sanction to the form of ecclesiastical p'olice which was instituted by the vanquished sect. The patriarch, who had fixed his residence at Tiberias, was empowered to appoint his subordinate mi\nisters and apostles, to eXercise a domestic jurisdiction, and to receive from his dispersed brethren an annual contribution 5. New synagogues were frequently erected in the principal cities of the empire; and the sabbaths, the fasts, and the * festivals, which were either commanded by the Mosaic law, or enjoined by the traditions of the Rabbis, were celebrated in the most solemn and public manner 6. Such gentle treatment insenfibly assuaged the stern temper of the Jevvs. Awakened from their dream of prophecy and bonquest, they assumed the behaviour of peaceable and industrious subjects. Their irreconcileable hatred of mankind, instead of flaming out in acts of blood and violence, evaporated in less dangerous gratisications. They embraced every opportunity of over-reaching the idolaters in trade; and they pronounced secret and ambiguous imprecations against the haughty kingdom of Edom'. '

Since the Jews, who rejected with abhorrence the deities adored by their sovereign and by their fellowzsubjects, enjoyed however the free exercise of their unsocial religion; there must have existed some other cause, which exposed the disciples of Christ to those severities from which the posterity of Abraham was exempt. The difference between them is simple and obvious; but, according to the sentiments of antiquity, it was of the highest importance. The Jews were a nation; the Christians were a sect: and if it was 'natural for every community to respect the sacred institutions of their neighbours, it was incumbent on them to persevere in those of their ancestors. The voice of oracles, the precepts of philosophers, and the authority of the laws, unaa nimoufly enforced this national obligation. By their lofty claim of a superio'r sanctity, the Jews