That is, Isidore means only to say, that the miracles of his day were not of the same description as those of the Apostles; inferior perhaps in splendour, inferior in number, &c.; and that this may have been the case, I am very ready to admit. But the passage, as cited from Huss, would almost lead us to think, that the church in his days wrought scarcely any miracles, or no miracles whatever. This, it is clear, is not St. Isidore's meaning.

2. But, secondly, from St. Isidore's context this will be still clearer. Isidore is plainly speaking, throughout the chapter*, on the supposition that miracles continued to be wrought in his days. Thus he says, just before: "Even in the Apostles themselves, the grace of good works was more admirable than their miraculous powers: so, now also, in the Church, it is of more importance to live well, than to work miracles t." Thus he no more denies miracles in his own days, than in the days of the Apostles. Afterwards, he plainly recognises the use of miracles, at least for unbelievers: "Behold, a sign is not necessary for the faithful, because they have believed already; but for the unbelieving, that they may be converted And, at the end of the chapter, he plainly speaks of the time when miracles should cease, as not come when he wrote: "Before Antichrist appears,

for which Huss, as we have seen, has, Quod nunc ecclesia Dei miracula non facit, quæ, &c.

* De Summo Bono, cap. 27. (The edition of Huss, to which I have referred, quotes it as cap. 25).

"Et tamen in ipsis Apostolis plus erat mirabilis virtus operum, quam virtus signorum, ità et nunc in Ecclesia plus est bene vivere, quam signa facere.

"Ecce signum non est fidelibus necessarium, quia jam crediderunt, sed infidelibus, ut convertantur."

powers and signs will cease from the church *.” And that he regarded the time of Antichrist, when miracles were to cease, as future, may be clearly seen in his next chapter †, where he expressly speaks of Antichrist as yet to come. He says, even, that there are many members of Antichrist, who shall not see the times of Antichrist.-So utterly insufficient is this proof from St. Isidore against miracles, not to say in the fifth century, but in any other.

In this century happened the miracle recorded by Milner, of the faithful confessors of the truth, who had their tongues cut out by the roots, but were afterwards enabled to speak plainly. This miracle has recently been impugned; for no other reason, which I can discover, except that it makes so decidedly against the unhappy cause of those who impugn it. Here, however, I must be permitted to insert the narrative, were it only for the purpose of recording my conviction of the necessity of not giving up truth merely because it has been attacked. It stands, in Milner, with the marginal notes, "A miraculous interposition," opposite the first paragraph, and "Proofs of the miraculous interposition," opposite the second.

"At Typasa, the secretary of Cirila was ordained bishop by the Arians. The inhabitants, seeing this, transported themselves into Spain, as the distance was but small:

# 66 Antequam Antichristus appareat, virtutes ab ecclesia et signa cessabunt:" and again, "Cessabunt sub Antichristo ab ecclesia miracula."

t De Antichristo et ejus Signis.

"Plerique autem Antichristi tempora non visuri sunt, et tamen in membris Antichristi inveniendi sunt."

§ Milner's History of the Church of Christ. Ed. 1820, Vol. ii. p. 505. (cent. v).

some, who could meet with no vessels, remained in Africa. The new bishop laboured by courtesy to win their favour; but they, in contempt of his ministry, assembled themselves in a private house for public worship. Huneric, hearing of this by a message from the bishop, ordered their tongues to be cut out, and their right hand to be cut off, in the public market-place. He seems to have permitted them to retire to Constantinople, but to have been determined to prevent their open confession of the Trinity. Shall I, in compliance with modern prejudices, throw a veil on the rest, or shall I proceed according to historical veracity? IMPERIOSA TRAHIT VERITAS *. A miracle followed, worthy of God, whose majesty had been so daringly insulted, and which must at that time have much strengthened the hearts of the faithful, who needed indeed some peculiar consolations amidst such scenes of horrible persecution. The miracle itself is so well attested, that I see not how it can be more so. The reader shall have both the fact and its proofs. Though their tongues were cut out to the root, they spake as well as before. 'If any one doubt the fact,' says Victor of Vita, 'let him go to Constantinople, where he will find a sub-deacon, called REPARATUS, one who was thus treated, who speaks plainly, and who has a particular respect shewn him in the palace of the Emperor Zeno, especially by the Empress.'

"Eneas, of Gaza, a Platonic philosopher, a cautious and prudent person, was at that time at Constantinople, and writes thus in the conclusion of his Dialogue on the Resurrection: 'I myself saw them, heard them speak, and wondered, that their utterance could be so articulate. I searched for the organ of speech, and, not trusting my ears, was resolved to have the proof of the eyes. Causing them to open their mouths, I saw that their tongues were plucked out even by the roots, and was then more surprised, that they could live, than that they could speak.' Is this sufficient evidence? Hear more: Procopius, the historian, in his history of the Vandalic War, says, Huneric

* Imperious truth constrains.

ordered the tongues of many to be cut out, who were afterwards seen in the streets of Constantinople when I was there, talking without any impediment, or feeling any inconvenience from what they had suffered. Count Marcellinus, in his Chronicon, says, 'I have seen some of this company of faithful confessors at Constantinople, who had their tongues cut out, but spake nevertheless without any imperfection in their utterance.' To name only one more witness, the great Emperor Justinian, in a constitution published by him for Africa, after it had fallen into his dominion, testifies, that he had beheld the same."-Milner's History of the Church of Christ. Ed. 1824. Vol. ii. p. 505, (Cent. V.)

But, though Mr. Noel would be the last man to wish to mislead his readers, a person who formed his opinion, respecting the views entertained by the Fathers on the subject of miracles, from the few extracts given in his present work, would in all probability receive a false impression, and come to an erroneous conclusion. In the hope, therefore, of throwing some further light on this subject, I must beg permission, ere I conclude the present chapter, to offer a few more extracts from the Fathers, in addition to those which he has brought, especially from Augustine.

With regard to AUGUSTINE, if a miracle or miraculous answer to prayer be alleged, he does not reject it, even when the person to whom it has been granted is not a believer. For example: he by no means denies the reality of all the " prodigies of deceitful spirits," even, which he speaks of in the passage, cited, and (as we have already seen) wrested, by Fuller. On the contrary, he goes on to say, in the very same sentence, "for either the things which are alleged are not true,

D

or, if heretics have wrought any wonderful works, we should be the more on our guard*." And just after, speaking of miraculous answers to prayer, he says that many receive such answers, in various ways; "not only members of the true church, but also pagans, and Jews, and heretics, though abandoned to various errors and superstitions. These answers to prayer, however, they receive either from seducing spirits (who nevertheless can do nothing, unless they are permitted by God, who supremely and ineffably decrees what is to be allotted to each), or from God himself, either for the punishment of their wickedness, or for the consolation of their misery, or for admonition to seek eternal salvation. But no one really comes to salvation, and to life eternal, unless he have Christ for his Head t." Nor, because Augustine sometimes speaks of miracles as being wrought at the tombs of saints, &c. must we too hastily conclude that he therefore takes a superstitious view of the subject: for he says, Moreover, if any one obtain an answer to prayer, praying at the tombs of heretics, he receives good or bad" [as the case may be], "not according to the merit of the place, but according to the desert of his own petition ‡.

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*"Aut enim non sunt vera quæ dicuntur, aut, si hæreticorum aliqua mira facta sunt, magis cavere debemus."

"Exaudiuntur ergo multi et multis modis, non solum Christiani Catholici, sed et pagani, et Judæi, et hæretici, variis erroribus et superstitionibus dediti. Exaudiuntur autem vel ab spiritibus seductoribus qui tamen nihil faciunt, nisi permittantur Deo sublimiter atque ineffabiliter judicante quid cuique tribuendum sit, sive ab ipso Deo, vel ad pœnam malitiæ, vel ad solatium miseriæ, vel ad monitionem quærendæ salutis æternæ. Ad ipsam vero salutem ac vitam æternam nemo pervenit, nisi qui habet caput Christum."-Tom. vii. p. 3, col. 4.

แ Porro si aliquis in hæreticorum memoriis orans exauditur, non