A new history of ecclesiastical writers containing an account of the authors of the several books of the Old and New Testament, of the lives and writings of the primitive fathers, an abridgement and catalogue of their works ... also a compendious history of the councils, with chronological tables of the whole / written in French by Lewis Ellies du Pin.

Cf several Books attributed to Prochorus, Linus, and Abdias, and of the Acts of the Passion of St. Andrew.

IN the time of the Apostles there lived a certain Person named Prochorus, one of the Seven first Deacons, and there is now extant a Book under his name, containing the Life of St. John, which * 1.1 is Printed among the Orthodoxographa, and in the Bibliotheca Patrum. But Baronius, Bellarmin, Lorinus, The Master of the Palace, and in a word, all those that have written concerning Ec∣clesiastical Authors both Roman Catholicks and Protestants unanimously agree, that it is a suppositi∣tious Book, and unworthy of him whose Name it bears; and indeed, it is a Narrative full of ab∣surd Fables and Tales. It is related there, that St. John cast himself at the Feet of the Apostles, de∣siring to be exempted from going into Asia; That after he was taken out of the Caldron of boiling Oyl, a Church was built in Honour of him; That he composed his Gospel in the Isle of Patmos, &c. The Stile of this Book argues its Author to be a Latin or a Greek, and not an Hebrew. Lastly, we find therein the words Trinity and Hypostasis.

The two Books attributed to Linus concerning the Passion of St. Peter, and St. Paul are likewise generally rejected, as fictitious and full of Fables. They say, that Agrippa was Governor of Rome in the time of St. Peter, who suffered Martyrdom without the knowledge of Nero; That this Empe∣ror was offended that he was put to Death; That part of the Roman Magistrates were Christians; and that the Wife of Albanus departed from her Husband against his Will, following the advice of St. Peter. In fine, both these Books are full of Errors, Falsities, Fictions, and notorious Untruths; in the last of which mention is made of the Epistles of St. Paul to Seneca, and of Seneca to St. Paul.

We must likewise give the same Judgment upon the Book imputed to Abdias, that contains di∣vers extremely fabulous Relations concerning the Lives of the Apostles, and was Printed by it self in the years 1557, 1560, and 1571; at Basil, Anno 1532, and at Paris in 1583; it is also inserted in the Bibliotheca Patrum. At first they tried to make it pass for a Book composed in Hebrew, by a Disci∣ple of Jesus Christ, named Abdias of the City of Babylon, Translated into Greek by Eutropius, and

into Latin by Julius Africanus; but now the whole World is convinced of this Error, and it is ge∣nerally agreed, that it was forged by an Impostor, that falsly pretends to be a Disciple of Jesus Christ, who nevertheless cites Hegesippus, and Julius Africanus, whom he could not have seen if he had li∣ved in our Saviours time; and lastly, he relates many fabulous Narrations concerning the Life of Jesus Christ and his Apostles, which it would be too tedious here to rehearse.

Men are divided in their Censures upon the Acts of the Passion of St. Andrew written by the Priests of Achaia, which are inserted in the History of the Saints published by Surius, Baronius, Bel∣larmine, and some other Criticks of the Church of Rome admit them as authentick, but they are rejected by many. The ancient Ecclesiastical Writers know no other Records of St. Andrew than those that were corrupted by the Manichees, mentioned by St. Augustine, Philastrius, and Pope Inno∣cent a 1.2, and which are reckoned by Gelasius in the number of Apochryphal Books. But it is cer∣tain that those were different from these whereof we now discourse; It is also evident, that these last Acts of the Passion of St. Andrew, have been cited by none but Authors that lived since the Seventh or Eighth Century, as by Remigius Altissiodorensis. Petrus Damianus, Lanfrank, St. Bernard, and Ivo Carnutensis, which is the cause that we can have no assurance that they are very ancient. Thirdly, the Mystery of the Trinity is not only explained in these Acts after such a manner as gives us occa∣sion to suspect, that he that wrote them lived after the Council of Nice; but he likewise propagates the Error of the modern Greeks, in affirming, that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father, and remains in the Son. It is indeed objected, that there are Manuscripts wherein these words are not ex∣pressed, but who knows, whether they have not been omitted in some, rather than added in others? Therefore this History ought at least to be esteemed, as a dubious Writing, that cannot be applied (as St. Jerome declares) to prove any Doctrine of Faith.

The account of the Life and Death of St. Matthias was forged by an Author who pretends to have received it from a Jew that Translated it out of the Hebrew Tongue. We ought also to place in the rank of Apocryphal and fabulous Books, the Life of St. Mark, and the History of St. Clement, toge∣ther with that of Apollinarius, setdown in the Collection of ancient Histories compiled by Laurentius de la Barre. And we need only read them over to be convinced of their falsity.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Prochorus, Linus, Ab∣dias, &c.
• a 1.2

  MEntioned by St. Augustin, Philastrius, &c.] St. Aug. lib. de Fide contr. Manichaeos. Phi∣lastr. lib. de Haeres. N. 40. Innocentii I. Epist. ad Ex∣up. Gelasius in conc. Roman.