The Ignatian Epistles Entirely Spurious | Page 5

nebulous. Professor Harnack--who has already
reviewed his pages in the Expositor, and who, to a great extent, adheres
to the views which they propound--admits, notwithstanding, that he has
"overstrained" his case, and has adduced as witnesses writers of the
second and third centuries of whom it is impossible to prove that they
knew anything of the letters attributed to Ignatius. [9:1] As a specimen
of the depositions which Dr. Lightfoot has pressed into his service, we
may refer to the case of Lucian. That author wrote about sixty years
after the alleged date of the martyrdom of Ignatius, and his Lordship
imagines that in one of his works he can trace allusions to the pastor of
Antioch under the fictitious name of Peregrinus. "Writing," says he
"soon after A.D. 165," Lucian "caricatures the progress of Ignatius
through Asia Minor in his death of Peregrinus." [9:2] This Peregrinus
was certainly an odd character. Early in life he had murdered his own
father, and for this he was obliged to make his escape from his country.
Wandering about from place to place, he identified himself with the
Christians, gained their confidence, and became, as is alleged, a
distinguished member of their community. His zeal in their cause soon
exposed him to persecution, and he was thrown into prison. His
incarceration added greatly to his fame. His co-religionists, including
women and children, were seen from morning to night lingering about
the place of his confinement; he was abundantly supplied with food;
and the large sums of money, given to him as presents, provided him
with an ample revenue. After his release he forfeited the favour of his
Christian friends, and became a Cynic philosopher; but he could not be
at peace. He at length resolved to immortalize himself by voluntary
martyrdom. Meanwhile he despatched letters to many famous cities,
containing laws and ordinances; and appointed certain of his
companions-- under the name of death-messengers--to scatter abroad

these missives. Finally, at the close of the Olympian games he erected a
funeral pile; and when it was all ablaze, he threw himself into it, and
perished in the flames. "There is very strong reason for believing" says
Dr. Lightfoot, "that Lucian has drawn his picture, at least in part, from
the known circumstances of Ignatius' history." [10:1] The bishop
returns again and again to the parallelism between Ignatius and
Peregrinus, and appears to think it furnishes an argument of singular
potency in favour of the disputed Epistles. "Second only," says he, to
certain other vouchers, which he produces, "stands this testimony."
[11:1] From such a sample the judicious reader may form some idea of
the conclusiveness of the bishop's reasoning. Peregrinus begins life as a
parricide, and dies like a madman; and yet we are asked to believe that
Lucian has thus sketched the history of an apostolic Father! When
Lucian wrote, Ignatius had been dead about sixty years; but the pagan
satirist sought to amuse the public by sketching the career of an
individual whom he had himself heard and seen, [11:2] and who must
have been well known to many of his readers. About the middle of the
second century the Church was sorely troubled by false teachers,
especially of the Gnostic type; and it may have been that some
adventurer, of popular gifts and professing great zeal in the Christian
cause, contrived to gather around him a number of deluded followers,
who, for a time, adhered to him with wonderful enthusiasm. It may be
that it is this charlatan to whom Lucian points, and whose history he
perhaps exaggerates. But there is nothing in the life of Peregrinus
which can fairly be recognised even as a caricature of the career of one
of the most distinguished of the early Christian martyrs. Were we to
maintain that the pagan satirist was referring to the Apostle John, we
might be able to show almost as many points of resemblance. The
beloved disciple travelled about through various countries; acquired a
high reputation among the Christians; was imprisoned in the Isle of
Patmos; wrote letters to the seven Churches of Asia; and was visited in
his place of exile by angels or messengers, who probably did not repair
to him empty-handed. John died only a few years before Ignatius, and
was connected with the same quarter of the globe. We have, however,
never yet heard that Lucian was suspected of alluding to the author of
the Apocalypse. If Bishop Lightfoot thinks that he can convince
sensible men of the genuineness of the Ignatian Epistles by bringing

forward such witnesses as Lucian and his hero Peregrinus, we believe
he is very much mistaken. The argument is not original, for it is pressed
with great confidence by his predecessor Pearson, and by others more
recently. But its weakness is transparent.