all those pretended Martyrs wherewith the Churches of France have fill'd their Breviaries. The latter tells us plainly, that it was not till the Empire of Decius, about the year 250, that the City of Tholouse had for her first Bishop Saturninus, who was sent from Rome in company of six others, into the Coun∣try of the Gauls, to preach the Gospel, to wit, Gatian at Tours, Trophimus at Arles, Paul at Narbon, Dionysius at Paris, Austre∣moine at Clermont, and Martialis at Limoges. This is that which is clearly proved from the Acts of the Martyrdom of St. Satur∣ninus, cited by Gregory Bishop of Tours.
These Testimonies of two antient Authors, the one of the 5th Century, and the other more antient, viz. the same who wrote the Martyrdom of St. Saturninus, have made such an Impression upon some of the Learnedest Men of the Ro∣man Communion, viz. upon Bosquet Bishop of Montpellier, Sirmond, and Launoy the famous Doctor of the Faculty of Paris, as to make them with Scorn reject those Legends, which ascribe more antient Founders to these Churches, notwith∣standing that they are the greatest Ornament of the Breviaries of the Gallican Church, and that they cannot lose their Cre∣dit, without shaking the belief of abundance of Miracles, and the Authority of a great number of Devotions.
And indeed, what reason is there to own a Tradition for authentick, which we scarcely find back'd with any Witness for the space of above 700 years? Besides, don't we know, that it was the Dispute about Precedency between the Chur∣ches in the 8th and 9th Century, and which we find lasted till the 12th, that engaged the several Parties to devise this great Antiquity, and boldly change that, which before had been the current Belief of their Churches, because it did not answer their Pretensions, nor comport with their Vanity, to substi∣tute instead thereof fabulous Originals, under whose shelter they might maintain a Dispute with more advantage against those that were on even ground with them?
But however it be difficult to fix the certain Original of these Churches, for the Gothick Liturgy, which was used in these Provinces, assures us that St. Saturninus came from Smyrna, from whence it should seem that the first Founders of the Churches