Passions; M Laurin's Essay, sect.wine which are in harvest to make 5 and 6, where this subject is mas-glad the heart of man. It would terly handled. be more agreeable to us to be alAFFLICTION, that which ways entertained with a fair and causes a sensation of pain. Cala-clear atmosphere, with cloudless mity or distress of any kind. The skies, and perpetual sunshine; yet afflictions of the saints are repre- in such climates as we have most sented in the scripture as appointed, knowledge of, the earth, were it 1st Thess. iii, 3. Job v, 6, 7; nume-always to remain in such a state, rous, Ps. xxxiv, 19; transient, 2d would refuse to yield its fruits; Cor. iv, 17. Heb. x, 37; and when nd, in the midst of our imagined sanctified, beneficial, 1st Pet. i, 6.scenes of beauty, the starved inPs. cxix, 67, 71. They wean from habitants would perish for want of the world; work submission; pro-lood. Let us, therefore, quietly duce humility; excite to diligence; submit to Providence. Let us stir up to prayer; and conform us conceive this life to be the winter to the Divine image. To bear of our existence. Now the rains them with patience, we should con-must fail, and the winds must sider our own unworthiness; the roar around us; but, sheltering ourdesign of God in sending themselves under Him, who is the "cothe promises of support under them; vert from the tempest," let us and the real good they are pro-wait with patience till the storms ductive of. The afflictions of a of life shall terminate in an evergood man, says an elegant writer, lasting calm. Blair's Ser. vol. v, never befal without a cause, nor ser. 5; Vincent, Case, and Addingare sent but upon a proper errand. ton, on Affliction; Willison's afflictThese storms are never allowed toed Man's Companion.

rise but in order to dispel some AGAPE, or LOVE FEASTS noxious vapours, and to restore sa- (from 1/2**, "love") feasts of chalubrity to the moral atmosphere.rity among the ancient christians, Who that for the first time beheld when liberal contributions were the earth in the midst of winter made by the rich to the poor. St. bound up with frost, or drenched Chrysostom gives the following in floods of rain, or covered with account of this feast, which he desnow, would have imagined that rives from the apostolic practice. Nature, in this dreary and torpid He says, "The first christians state, was working towards its own had all things in common, as we renovation in the spring? Yet we read in the Acts of the Apostles; by experience know that those vi- but when that equality of possescissitudes of winter are necessary sions ceased, as it did even in the for fertilizing the earth; and that apostles' time, the Agape or love under wintry rains and snows lie feast was substituted in the room concealed the seeds of those roses of it. Upon certain days, after that are to blossom in the spring;partaking of the Lord's supper, of those friuts that are to ripen in they met at a common feast; the the summer; and of the corn and rich bringing provisions, and the

AGENT, that which acts: opacted upon. posed to patient, or that which is

AGENTS, moral. See MORAL AGENT.

poor, who had nothing, being in-which a man lies under and obligavited." It was always attended tion to perform: thus we meet with receiving the holy sacrament; with the agenda of a christian, or but there is some difference be- the duties he ought to perform, in tween the ancient and modern in-opposition to the credenda, or terpreters as to the circumstance things he is to believe. It is also of time; viz. whether this feast was applied to the service or office of held before or after the commu- the church, and to church books nion. St. Chrysostom is of the compiled by public authority, prelatter opinion; the learned Dr. scribing the order to be observed; Cave of the former. These love and amounts to the same as ritual, feasts, during the three first cen- formulary, directory, missal, &c. turies, were held in the church without scandal or offence; but in after-times the heathens began to tax them with impurity. This gave occasion to a reformation of these Agapes. The kiss of charity, with which the ceremony used to end, AGNOETÆ (from agrosa, “to was no longer given between dif- be ignorant of") a sect which apferent sexes; and it was expressly peared about 370. They called in forbidden to have any beds or question the omniscience of God; couches for the conveniency of alleging that he knew things past those who should be disposed to only by memory, and things fueat more at their ease. Notwith-ture only by an uncertain prescistanding these precautions, the ence. There arose another sect of abuses committed in them became the same name in the sixth centuso notorious, that the holding them ry, who followed Themistius, (in churches at least) was solemn-deacon of Alexandria. They mainly condemned at the council of tained that Christ was ignorant of Carthage in the year 397. At-certain things, and particularly of tempts have been made, of late the time of the day of judgment. years, to revive these feasts; but It is supposed they built their in a different manner from the pri- hypothesis on that passage in Mark mitive custom, and perhaps, with xiii, 32-"Of that day and that little edification. They are, how-hour knoweth no man; no, not ever, not very general.

AGAPETÆ, a name given to certain virgins and widows, who in

the ancient church associated them-
selves with and attended
on eccle-

the angels which are in heaven, The meaning of which, most proneither the Son, but the Father." bably, is, that this was not known

to the Messiah himself in his husiastics, out of a motive of piety unction, as any part of the mysteman nature, or by virtue of his and charity. See DEACONESSES.ries he was to reveal; for, consi

AGENDA, among divines and dering him as God, he could not philosophers, signifies the duties be ignorant of any thing.

AGNUS DEI, in the church of of the whole action or celebration Rome, a cake of wax, stamped of the supper. with the figure of a lamb support- ALBANENSES, a denomiing the banner of the cross. The nation which commenced about name literally signifies, "lamb of the year 796. They held, with the God." These cakes, being con- Gnostics and Manicheans, two secrated by the pope with great so-principles, the one of good and the lemnity, and distributed among other of evil. They denied the dithe people, are supposed to have vinity and even the humanity of great virtues. They cover them Jesus Christ; asserting that he with a piece of stuff cut in the form was not truly man, did not suffer of an heart, and carry them very on the cross, die, rise again, nor devoutly in their processions. The really ascend into heaven. They Romish priests and religious de-rejected the doctrine of the resur rive considerable pecuniary advan-rection, affirmed that the general tage from selling these agnus dei judgment was past, and that hell to some, and presenting them to torments were no other than the others. evils we feel and suffer in this life. AGONISTICI, a name given They denied free will, did not adby Donatus to such of his disciples mit original sin, and never admias he sent to fairs, markets, and nistered baptism to infants. They other public places, to propagate held that a man can give the Holy his doctrine. They were called Spirit of himself, and that it is unAgonistici from the Greek ayor lawful for a christian to take an "combat," because they were sent, oath.

as it were, to fight and subdue the This denomination derived their people to their opinions. See Do-name from the place where their spiritual ruler resided. See MAAGONYCLITÆ, a sect of NICHEANS and CATHERIST

NATIST.

christians in the seventh century,

ALBANOIS, a denomination who prayed always standing, as which sprung up in the eighth centhinking it unlawful to kneel. AGYNIANI, a sect which ap- part of the Manichean principles. tury, and renewed the greatest peared about 694. They condemn ed all use of flesh and marriage as not instituted by God, but introduced at the instigation of the devil.

They also maintained that the world was from eternity. See MANICHEANS.

ALBIGENSES, a party of reALASCANI, a sect of Anti-lu- formers about Toulouse and the therans in the sixteenth century, Albigeois in Languedoc, who whose distinguishing tenet, be-sprung up in the twelfth century, sides their denying baptism, is and distinguished themselves by said to have been this, that the their opposition to the church of words, "This is my body," in the Rome. They were charged with institution of the eucharist, are not many errors by the monks of those to be understood of the bread, but days; but from these charges they

are generally acquitted by the Pro-schedule annexed to it, he gives testants, who consider them only this account:-That it was writas the inventions of the Romish ten, as tradition informed them, church to blacken their character. by Thecla, a noble Egyptian lady The Albigenses grew so formida- about 1300 years ago, not long ble, that the Catholics agreed after the council of Nice. But upon a holy league or crusade this high antiquity, and the auagainst them. Pope Innocent III, thority of the tradition to which desirous to put a stop to their pro- the patriarch refers, have been gress, stirred up the great men of disputed; nor are the most accuthe kingdom to make war upon rate biblical writers agreed about them. After suffering from their its age. Grabe thinks that it persecutors, they dwindled by lit- might have been written before tle and little, till the time of the the end of the fourth century; reformation; when such of them others are of opinion that it was as were left fell in with the Vau-not written till near the end of dois, and conformed to the doc- the fifth century, or somewhat trine of Zuinglius, and the disci-later. See Dr. Woide's edition ples of Geneva. The Albigenses of it. have been frequently confounded with the Waldenses; from whom

ALKORAN. See KORAN.
ALL-SUFFICIENCY OF

it is said they differ in many re- GOD, is that power or attribute of spects, both as being prior to them his nature whereby he is able to in point of time, as having their communicate as much blessedness origin in a different country, and to his creatures as he is pleased to as being charged with divers he- make them capable of receiving. resies, particularly Manicheism, As his self-sufficiency is that wherefrom which the Waldenses were by he has enough in himself to deexempt. See WALDENSES. nominate him completely blessed, ALEXANDRIAN MANU-as a God of infinite perfection, so SCRIPT, a famous copy of the his all-sufficiency is that by which scriptures, in four volumes quarto. he hath enough in himself to saIt contains the whole Bible in tisfy the most enlarged desires of Greek, including the Old and New his creatures, and to make them Testament, with the Apocrypha, completely blessed. We practicaland some smaller pieces, but not ly deny this perfection, when we quite complete. It is preserved are discontented with our present in the British Museum: it was condition, and desire more than sent as a present to king Charles God has allotted for us, Gen. iii, I, from Cyrillus Lucaris, patriarch 5. Prov. xix, 3.-2. When we seek of Constantinople, by Sir Thomas blessings of what kind soever in an Rowe, ambassador from England indirect way, as though God were to the Grand Seignior, about the not able to bestow them upon us year 1628. Cyrillus brought it in his own way, or in the use of with him from Alexandria, where lawful means, Gen. xxvii, 35.probably it was written. In a 3. When we use unlawful means

to escape imminent dangers, 1st||dred years after his entrance upon Sam. xxi, 13. Gen. xx and xxvi.earth; and that in the thirteenth -4. When we distrust his provi-century the age of the Holy Spirit dence, though we have had large commenced, in which the sacraexperience of his appearing for us ments and all external worship in various instances, 1st Sam. xxvii, were to be abolished; and that 1. Ps. lxxviii, 19. 2d Chron. xvi,every one was to be saved by the 3. 2d Chron. xiv, 9, 13. Josh. vii, internal operations of the Holy 7,9.-5. When we doubt of the Spirit alone, without any external truth or certain accomplishment of act of religion.

the promises, Gen. xviii, 12. Ps. ALMONER, a person employlxxvii, 74. Is. xlix, 14.-6. Whened by another in the distribution of we decline great services, though charity. In its primitive sense it called to them by God, under a denoted an officer in religious pretence of our unfitness for them, houses, to whom belonged the maJer. i, 6, 8. nagement and distribution of the

The consideration of this doc-alms of the house. trine should lead us, 1. To seek ALMS, what is given gratuithappiness in God alone, and not ously for the relief of the poor. in human things, Jer. ii, 13.-2. Alms, in the early ages of christiTo commit all our wants and trials anity, were divided into four parts; to him, 1st Sam. xxx, 6. Heb. xi, one of which was allotted to the bi19. 2d Cor. xii, 8, 9.-3. To be shops, another to the priests, a courageous in the midst of danger third to the deacons and subdeaand opposition, Ps. xxvii, 1.-4. cons, and the fourth was employed To be satisfied with his dispensa-in relieving the poor, and in retions, Rom. viii, 28.-5. To per- pairing the churches. In giving severe in the path of duty, how-of alms, the following rules should ever difficult, Gen. xvii, 1. Ridg-be observed: first, they should be ley's Body of Div. ques. 17; Sau- given with justice; only our own, rin's Ser. ser. 5, vol. i; Barrow's to which we have a just right, Works, vol. ii, ser. 11. should be given.-2. With cheerALMARICIANS, a denomi- fulness, Deut. xv, 10. 2d Cor. ix, nation that arose in the thirteenth 7.-3. With simplicity nnd sincecentury. They derived their origin riey, Romans xii. Matt. vi, 3.-4. from Almaric, professor of logic With compassion and affection, Is. and theology at Paris. His adver- lviii, 10. 1st John iii, 17.-5. Seasaries charged him with having sonably, Gal. vi, 10. Prov. iv, 29. taught that every christian was-6. Bountifully, Deut. xviii, 11. obliged to believe himself a mem- 1st Tim. vi, 18.-7. Prudently, acber of Jesus Christ, and that with-cording to every one's need, 1st out this belief none could be sav-Tim. v, 8. Acts iv, 3.5. See Dr. ed. His followers asserted that the Barrow's admirable Sermon power of the father had continued Bounty to the Poor, which took him only during the Mosaic dispensa-up three hours and a half in preachtion, that of the Son twelve hun-ing; Saurin's Ser. vol. iv, Eng.

on