Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

THE FIRST AGE OF THE MARTYR CHURCH.197Now a contemporary of Antoninus declaresthat in his time, that is, about the year 150, therewas no race of men, ' either barbarians or Greeks,none even of Scthian nomads roaming in waggons,or of pastoral tribes dwelling in tents, amongwhom prayers and thanksgivings were not offeredto the Father and Creator of the universe in thename of the crucified Jesus.19 Thus, in aand twenty years the Church had outstripped thelimits of the empire. The germ which in the timeof S. John was rooted in the chief cities, hadspread out thence and increased, taking more andmore possession of the soil in all directions. Stillwe must consider the Christian Church in eachplace of its occupation as a small minority of thepeople : nor is there any reason to doubt the statementmade by Celsus, that at the period whenhe wrote, the middle of the second century, theChristian Faith counted few of the educated, distinuished,and rich amon its adherents ;20 forOrigen, in replying to him, alleges no specific exampleto the contrary. Yet, here too we mustconsider the t/ justice of Origen's c remark.21 thatthese classes are everywhere few in proportionto the poor and ignorant, and that Christianitybeing the day-star arising on every soul tookof all classes alike. "So much, then, as to the19 Justin, Dialog, with Tryphon, 117. Tertullian, 50 years later, adc.Judaos, 7, goes beyond this.20 Kellner, Ilellenismus und Christentlium, p. 85.21 Origen coat. Gels. i. 27.