Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 5.djvu/284

 EASTEEWINE

240

EATA

in the East will be maintained even more firmly than in the past.

On the other hand, in spite of occasional outbm-sts of anti-papal feeling on the part of the various chiefs of these Churches, it is certain that the vision of unity is beginning to make itself seen very widely in the East. In the first place, education and contact with Western Europeans inevitably breaks down a great part of the old prejudice, jealousy, and fear of us. It was a Latin missionary who said lately: "They are finding out that we are neither so vicious nor so clever as they had thought." .\nd with this intercourse grows the hope of regeneration for their own nations by contact with the West. Once they realize that we do not want to eat them up, and that their miliil are safe, whatever happens, they camiot but see the ad- vantages we have to offer them. And with this feel- ing goes the gradual realization of something larger in the way of a Church than their own milal. Hitherto, it was difficult to say what the various Eastern schis- matics understood by the '"Catholic Church" in the creed. The Orthodox certainly always mean their own communion only ("Orth. Eastern Church", 366-370); the other smaller bodies certainly hold that they alone have the true faith; every one else — especially Latins — is a h^etic. So, presumably, for them, too, the Catholic Church is only their ovra body. But this is passing with the growth of more knowledge of other countries and a juster sense of perspective. The Nes- torian who looks at a map of the world can hardly go on believing that his sect is the only and whole Church of Christ. And with the apprehension of larger is- sues there comes the first wish for reunion. For a Church consisting of mutually excommunicate bodies is a monstrosity that is rejected by everyone (except perhaps some Armenians) in the East.

The feeling out towanls the West for sympathy, help, and perhaps eventually communion, is in the di- rection of Catholics, not of Protestants. Protestant- ism is too remote from all their theologj', and its principles are too destructive of all their system for it to attract them. Harnack notes this of Russians: that their more friendly feeling towards the West tends Romeward, not in an Evangelical direction (Reden und Aufsatze, H, 279); it is at least equally true of other Eastern Churches. When the convic- tion has spread that they have everj-thing to gain by becoming again members of a really universal Church, that union with Rome means all the advantages of Western ideas and a sound theological position, and that, on the other hand, it leaves the national millet untouched, un-latinized, and only the stronger for so powerful an alliance, then indeed the now shadowy and remote issues about nature and person in Christ, the entirely artificial grievances of the Filioque and our azj-nie bread will easily be buried in the dust that has gathered over them for centuries, and Eastern Christians may some day wake up and find that there is nothing to do but to register again a union that ought never to have been broken.

Eastern Churches in General. — Kattenbusch, Lehrbuch der vergleichendcn Confessionskunde (Freiburg im Br., 1892), I; SiLBERXAGL, Verfassung und gcqenwartiger Bestand sdmtlicher Kirchen des Orients (2nd ed., Ratisbon, 1904); Dolunger, Ueber die Wiedervereinigung der christlichen Kirchen (Munich, 1888); Duchesne SfffwM.Scparccs (Paris, 1S96). tr. Mathews, The Churches Separated from Rome (London. 1908); Lequien, Oriens Christianus (3 vols., Paris, 1740); d'Avrjl, Les iglises autonomes et aiUoc^phales (Paris, 1895).

Separate Churches. — FoRTEacCE, The Orthodox Eastern Church (London, 1907). and works mentioned in the biblio- eraphy, pp. xv-xxvii; Denzinger, liitus Orienlalium (2 vols., Wiirzburg, 1863); Assemani, liibliolheca Orienlalis (Rome, 1719-2S); Badger, The Nestorians and their Ritual (2 vols., Ixindon. 1852); Perkins, A Residence of Eight Years in Persia among the Neslorian Christians (New 'V ork, 1843); Wigr.\m, The Doctrinal Position of the Assyrian or East Syrian Church (London, 1908); Vansleb, Histoire de I'eglise d' Alexandrie (Paris, 1677); .\BfDACHN'A, llistoria Jacobitarum seu Cop' torum in .Egypto, Lybia, Xubia^ .Ethiopia habitantium, ed. Seelen (LQbcck, 1733); Werner, Lehre und Geschichle der AbeseinisiJien Kirche in Zeilschrift fur kath. Thcol. (1892). For

the Syrian Jacobites, see Asse&iani, op. cil. supra, 11; Kletn, Jacobus Baradeus de Stichter der Syrische monophysietische Kerk (Leyden, 1882); Lt.vch, Armenia (2 vols.. London, 1901); Germann, Die Kirche der Thomaschristen (Gutersloh, 1877); Rae, The Syrian Church in India (London, 1892).

The Uniats. — Missiones CatholiccE (Rome, Propaganda Press, 1907); KoHLEK, Die kathol. Kirchen des Morgenlandes (Darm- stadt, 1898); Werner, Orbis Terrarum Catholicus (Freiburg im Br., 1890), x, .\i, xv, xvi-xxiv; Silbernagl, op. cit., Pt. II, 325-85; Nilles, Kalendarium manuale (2nd ed., 2 vols., Inns- bruck, 1896—7), contains valuable notes and statistics of Uniat Churches; d'Avril. Documents relatifs aux eglises d'OrierU (3rd ed., Paris, 1SS5), a selection of documents to illustrate their relations with Rome; George Ebedjesu Khatyath, Syri orientates sen Chald<ei Xestoriani et Rom. Pontifieum primatus (Rome, 1870); Giamil, Genuincc relaliones inter sedem Apostoli- cam et Assyriorum orientalium seu Chaldceorum eoclesiam (Rome, 1902); Verxier. Histoire du patriarcat armenien calholique (Paris, 1891); MUR-AD. Xolice historique sur I'origine de la nation Maronite (Paris, 1844); Debs, Les Maronites du Liban (Paris, 1S75).

Adrian Fortescue.

Easterwine (or EosTER-mxi), Abbot of Wear- mouth, was the nephew of St. Benedict Biscop ; b. 650, d. 7 March, 6S6. Descended from the noblest stock of Northimibria, as a young man he led the life of a soldier in the army of King Egfriil, the son of Oswy. When twenty-four years old he gave up the soldier's profession to become a monk in the monastery of Wearmouth, then ruled over by St. Benedict Biscop. He is described as a noble youth, conspicuous for his humility and bodily activity, but withal infinitely gentle; a most exact observer of rule and one who loved to perform the lowliest work. He was ordained priest in the year 679, and in 682 St. Benedict ap- pointed him abbot of Wearmouth as coadjutor to him- self. As superior "when he was compelled to reprove a fault, it was done with such tender sadness that the culprit felt himself incapable of any new offence which should bring a cloud over the benign brightness of that beloved face". In the year 686 a deadly pesti- lence overspread the country; it attacked the com- munity at Wearmouth and the youthful abbot was one of its victims. He bade farewell to all, the day before he died, and passed away on 7 March, when only thirty-six years old. St. Benedict was absent in Rome at the time of his death and Sigfried was chosen by the monks as his successor. Easten\'ine is not known to have been the author of any works.

M0NT1.LEMBERT, The Monks of the West (London, 1847), IV, 450 sqq.; Bede. Ti/T abbalum in Wiramutha et Girvum in Opem Omnia, \II; Acta SS. (Venice, 1735\ March, VIII, 650.

G. E. Hind.

Easton, Ad-UI, Cardinal, b. at Easton in Norfolk; d. at Rome, 15 Sept. (according to others, 20 Oct.), 1.397. He joined the Benedictines at Norwich. He probably accompanied Archbishop Langham to Rome and, being a man of learning and ability, obtained a post in the Curia. He was made Cardinal-priest of the title of St. Cecilia bv Urban VI, probably in Dec., 13S1. On 7 March, 1.381 or 1382, he was nominated Dean of York. In 1385 he was imprisoned by Urban on a charge of conspiring with five other cardinals against the pope and was deprived of his cardinalat« and deanery. The next pope, Boniface IX. restored his cardinalate 18 Dec, 1.389, and for a time Easton returned to England, where he held a prebend in Salis- bury cathedral, which he subsequently exchanged for the Hving of Heygham in Norwich. He wrote many works, none of which are extant, and is stated to have composed the Office for the Visitation of Our Lady.

ClACroxirs, Vitee Pontif. (Rome. 1677); Godwin, Jc Proww/i- bus Anglia; (London, 1742), 793; Wiluams, Lives of the Eng- lish Cardinals (Ix)ndon, 1868), I, vii; Creighton, Histoni of the Papacy (Loudon, 1882), 1, S(> sqq.; Poole in Did. Nat. Biog., s. V.

Edwin Burton.

East Syrian Rite. See Syri \n Rite.

Eata, S.UNT, second Bishop of Hexham; date of birth unknown; d. 26 October, 686. Whether this disciple of St. Aidan was of the English, or of the abo-