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ASIA

the Jewish communities furnished the first nucleus of Christian proselytes. From Syria, Christian propaganda spread into Phcenicia and Asia Minor, and through the effective preaching of St. Paul, it penetrated into the principal cities of the Medi- terranean coa.st and Asia Minor, crossing the borders of Asia and reacliing into the very lieart of the Roman Empire. From the Acts of the Apostles it can be conclusively shown that as early as the second half of the first century of the Christian Era, Christian <'omm\mities existed in the following Asiatic cities: Jerusalem (Acts, passim). Damascus (Acts, ix), Samaria and Samaritan villages (Acts, viii), Lydda {ix), Joppe (ib.), Saron (ib.), Cjesarea in Palestine ■(Acts, x), Antioch in Syria (xi), Tyre (xxi), Sidon ■(xxvii), Tarsus (ix,xi, xv), Salamina in Cyprus (xiii), Paphos in Cyprus (xiii), Perge in Pamphylia (xiii, xiv), Antioch in Pisidia (xiv), Iconium (xiii, xiv), Lystra (xiv), Derbe (xiv), several unnamed localities in Galatia (Gal., i, I Peter, i), in Cappadocia (I Peter, i), Ephesus (Acts, and Paul's Epp.), Laodicea (Paul's Epp.), Hierapolis in Phrj'gia (Paul's Epp.), Smyrna (Apoc), Sardis (ib.), Philadelphia in Lydia (ib.), Thyatira in Lydia (ib.), etc., and very probably also in Ashdod in Philistia, Seleucia, Attalia in Pamphylia, Amphipolis, Apollonia, Assus, Malta, and other islands of the Mediterranean. From Syria and Asia Minor the activity of the early Christian missionaries spread north, south, east, and ■west through Edessa, Mesopotamia, Armenia, Assyria, Babylonia, Media, Persia, Arabia, Ethiopia, Egypt, Africa, Greece, Italy, and the West. As regards Asia, we have historical evidence that, towards the middle of the second century, Christian communities were established also in Edessa, various cities of Mesopotamia, along the Tigris and the Euphrates, Melitene, Magnesia, Tralles in Caria, Philomelium in Pisidia, Parium in Mysia, Nicomedia, Otrus, Hierapolis, Pepuza, Tymion, Ardaban, Apamea, Cumane, and Eumenea in Phrygia, Ancyra in Gala- tia, Sinope, Amastris in Pontus, Debeltum in Thrace, Larissa in Thessalia, Myra in Lycia, etc. (See Hamack, Expansion of Christianity in the First Three Centuries, II, 240 sqq.) From the signatures of the various Asiatic bishops who assisted at the Council of Nicsa (325) we have conclusive evidence that towards the year 300, and in fact considerably earlier, there existed in the following Asiatic pro- vinces and cities not only Christian communities, but also well-organized churches, dioceses, and ec- clesiastical centres: Jerusalem, Ceesarea, Samaria- Sebaste, Lydda-Diospolis, Joppe, Saron, Emmaus- Nicopolis, Sichem-Neapolis, Scythopolis, Jamnia, Azotus, Ascalon, Gaza, Gadara, Capitolias, Bethle- hem, Anea, Anim and Jattir, Bethabara, Sichar- Asker, Batanea, Pheno, and many other episcopal sees in Asia Minor, Cyprus, Syria, Palestine, Arabia, Edessa, Mesopotamia, Babylonia, etc. In the last three mentioned regions, in fact, we have posi- tive traces of fully organized dioceses and churches as early as tlie first half of the third century, with many illustrious saints and martyrs.

In the fourth, fifth, sixth, and the beginning of the seventh century, until the rise of Islam, Christianity became the dominant and generally accepted re- ligion of Western Asia, with the exception of Arabia. The Christian Church, however, was subject politi- cally to two mighty rival powers, the Roman anti the Persian. To tlie first of these, the whole; of Pales- tine, Syria, North-w-est Arabia) wcst-ICviphratcan- Mesopotamia, and Asia Minor, were subject; while to the latter belonged esist-lMiphratean-Mesopotamia, rortli-east Arabia, Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, iind Media. The endle.ss rivalry and wars of these two powers proved indeed fatal to the progress of Christi- anity and In the permanent unity of the two great Christian Churches, the Roman and the Persian.

These obstacles notwithstanding, the Christian Church of Persia, from its very beginning down to the middle of the fifth century, was dependent on the Patri- arch of Antioch and consequently in communion with Rome, although it had its own metropolitan, the great Catholicos of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, in Baby- lonia. But the Nestorian and Monophysite heresies of the fifth century broke this union asunder. Nes- torianism, vmable to gain any permanent footing in Syria, Asia Minor, and the W'est, found a strong ally and defender in the Sassanian kings of Persia and in the Mesopotamian Church, which, towards the end of the fifth century, had already completely estranged itself from Antioch and Rome, and had become an independent national Church, having for its ecclesiastical head the great Catholicos of the East, i. e. of Seleucia-Ctesiphon. In the mean- while, Monophysitism began to rage in Sj-ria, Ar- menia, Arabia, and Mesopotamia alike, forming thus another independent heretical Church. Soon after, the Nestorian and the Monophysite Churches of Western Asia prospered and developed to such an extent as to compete in greatness and influence with most Christian Churches, the Roman excepted.

With the advent of Islam, however, and the rapid conquest of the Moliammedan armies (seventh century), Christianity in Arabia, Mesopotamia, Per- sia, Armenia, Syria, and Asia Minor suffered most severely. Soon after the death of Mohammed, all these provinces fell, one after the other, into the hands of the Moslems, who threatened, for a while, the entire extinction of Christianity in Wes- tern Asia. Thanks, however, to the tolerant atti- tude of the majority of the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs of Damascus and Bagdad respecti\ely, Christianity in the Mohammedan Empire rose gradu- ally to a new and unprecedented life and vigour, and in the eighth, ninth, and tenth centuries the Nestorian and the Monophysite Churclies, but especially the first, reached their highest degree of prosperity. Nestorian and Jacobite theologians, philosopheis. and men of letters soon became the teachers of the conquering Arabs and the pioneers of Islamo-Arabic science, civilization, and learning. Nestorian physi- cians became the attending physicians of the court, and the Nestorian patriarch and his numerous bishops were regarded in Asia as second to none in power and authority. From Western Asia, Nes- torianism spread into India, Ceylon, Socotra, and the Malabar coast, China, Mongolia, and Tatary, where it soon became extremely infiuential and pos- sessed numerous churches and well-organized bishop- rics. So that as early as the ninth and tenth cen- turies, the jurisdiction of the Nestorian Catholicos of Seleucia extended over Central, Southern, west- Central, and Sovith-western Asia, as far as Syria, Arabia, Cyprus, and Egypt, and had more than two hundred subordinate bishops and metropolitans. In the meanwhile, the Monophysite Church held sway in Syria, Egypt, North Meso])iitamia, and Armenia, where it develoi)e<l strength, if not equal, certainly not very inferior, to that of the Nestorian.

In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the Mongolian and Tatar invasions and devastations in Central and Western Asia put an end to Arabic dominion, dealing, at the same time, a deadly blow- both to the Nestorian and the Jacobite Churches, and causing havoc and consternation among Asiatic Christian.^ in general. Hvmdreds of thousands of these Christians were massacred, their churches and moniisleries ruined, and a great number of the waver- ing coriipellc<l to renoimce their faith and embrace Mohaniinedanism. The weakened condition of both the Nestorian and Jacobite Churches paved the way to their return to the Catholic I'aith, and many of their patriarchs and bisbops thanks to the incessant and salutary work of the early Catholic Miissionaries.