Page:Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1827) Vol 2.djvu/209

 OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE. 191 of Commodus. The celebrated Marcin, the most fa- CHAP. vourcd of his concubines, and who at lengtli contrived L_ the murder of her imperial lover, entertained a singular affection for the oppressed church ; and though it was impossible that she could reconcile the practice of vice with the precepts of the gospel, she might hope to atone for the frailties of her sex and profession, by de- claring herself the patroness of the christians''. Under the gracious protection of Marcia, they passed in safety the thirteen years of a cruel tyranny ; and when the empire was established in the house of Severus, they formed a domestic but more honourable connection with the new court. The emperor was persuaded tliat, in a dangerous sickness, he had derived some benefit, either spiritual or physical, from the holy oil witii which one of his slaves had anointed him. He always treated with pecvdiar distinction several persons of both sexes who had embraced the new religion. The nurse as well as the preceptor of Caracalla were christians ; and if that young prince ever betrayed a sentiment of humanity, it was occasioned by an incident which, however trilling, bore some relation to the cause of Christianity ''. Under the reign of Severus, the fury of the po])ulace was checked ; the rigour of ancient laws was for some time suspended ; and the provincial governors were satisfied with receiving an annual pre- sent from the churches within their jurisdiction, as the price, or as the reward, of their moderation'. The controversy concerning the precise time of the celebra- tion of Easter armed the bishops of Asia and Italy against each other, and was considered as the most P Dion Cassius, or rather his abbreviator Xiphilin, 1. Ixxii, p. 1206. Mr. IMoyle (p. 266.) has explained the condition of the church under the reign of Commodus. •> Compare the life of Caracalla in the Augustan History, with the epistle of Tertullian to Scapula. Dr. Jortin (Remarks on Ecclesiastical History, vol. ii. p. 5, etc.) considers the cure of Severus, by the means of holy oil, with a strong desire to convert it into a miracle. ■■ Tertullian ile Fuga, c. 13. The present was made during the feast of tiie satiirnaliu ; and it is a matter of serious concern to Tertullian, that the faithful should be confounded with the most infamous professions which purchased the connivance of the government.