Page:The Nestorians and their rituals, volume 1.djvu/326

272 well say this, since you have desired to inquire after our state, being prompted to do so by your wishes for the union of spiritual love, which love has been broken off since the fourth century until now through the envy of those who hate what is good, and the malice of the scatterer of 's flock which our purchased with His most precious blood. And we may truly say for our own part, that had not the left us a remnant we should have been even as Sodom, and like unto Gomorrah. Yet hath not all this befallen us otherwise than by the Divine permission. And now we may say that the measure is full, and is running over; for, as saith the Divine Apostle: Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound; yet it is not of him that willeth, neither of him that runneth, but of which showeth mercy.

"And now we would briefly describe to you our condition, since you have requested to know the same from us. Be it then known unto you that, by the grace of, we are holding fast the true faith of the Apostles, as it has been transmitted to us by the holy Fathers, and by the general councils; and that until now we have kept ourselves clean from all heretical defilement, having strong hope that we may continue established in this faith until the second coming of the , since we have the promise from the mouth of : Lo, I am with you always even unto the end of the world. But you are not ignorant that from the fourth to the end of the seventh century the Lord gave Asia into the hands of the Greeks, and during this interval the country was distracted, and the Church separated into different communities of Chaldeans, Syrians, Greeks, Copts, Armenians, Maronites, and others, and when Islamism was introduced all Christians were oppressed and persecuted, becoming slaves to the Moslems when before they were as the kings of the earth. And in the fierceness of the persecution all the true and orthodox shepherds were destroyed, the colleges and schools abolished; and especially did this evil take place in our Eastern parts, so that knowledge perished therefrom. After this came the ravenous wolves in sheep's clothing, who, having found a seasonable opportunity, began to preach up the papal supremacy, and the universal jurisdiction of Rome. And seventy years ago these wolves came hither also, and have caused the sheep to stray from