the Church. (See CHURCH, AN ORGANIZATION OF CHRISTIANS.) This society was to last even unto the day of judgment; its duty was to teach all men, wherefore the Apostles appointed their successors and transmitted to them the authority received from Christ. As the primacy of Saint Peter was the firm foundation, necessary to insure the unity and stability of the Church, it too was to last forever. The power he received was for him and his successors. There never should come a time when the doctrine of Christ would be lost through corruption.

Whence we gather that there exists to-day a religious society, empowered to teach with certainty all the truths of Christianity, and that it is a visible body, united in its government and religious teachings. The members of this society submit to its infallible teaching by profession of the faith, to its sacred ministry by the reception of baptism (q.v.) and to its ecclesiastical rule by obedience. If all men are obliged to enter this society, it is evident that Christ provided some signs, notes, or marks by which His Church can become known to all earnest inquirers, by which it can be distinguished from other associations. Christ intended that His Church should be known by Unity. It was to be one in faith, one in government, one in worship, and one in the charity uniting all its members. It was to be known by Holiness. The Church is holy in its Founder; in its aim to lead men to God; in its means of sanctification, in the heroic virtue of many members, and in the permanence of miracles among them. It was to be Catholic; that is, conspicuously diffused everywhere. Finally it was to be Apostolic. The governing and teaching body is the continuation of the Apostolic body to which Christ gave His mission and with which He promised to remain until the end of time. Whoever is not in communion with the successor of Saint Peter cannot possess union with the Apostolic body. The obligation of becoming a member of the Church is often expressed in these words: "Out of the Church there is no salvation." They do not mean that all who die out of the visible communion are lost. God does not inflict punishment but for a wilful fault, and those who without fault cannot see their obligation of joining the Church, are not to blame. If, however, anyone, knowing this obligation, refuses to comply with it, he puts himself out of the way of salvation. The same holds true for those who neglect to examine properly into a matter of so great importance.

Catholics hold that the marks of the true Church of Christ are found only in the Church in which the bishop of Rome holds the primacy. The bishops of this Church all over the world are the successors of the apostles, possessing the right to teach, to rule, and to sanctify. The gift of infallibility, that is, the right to declare that certain doctrines have been revealed by God is not personal to each bishop, but belongs only to the whole body of bishops, whether gathered in general council or not. The consent of the universal Church according to Christ's promise is a sure criterion of revelation. To the Bishop of Rome as the successor of Saint Peter belongs the primacy of jurisdiction over the whole Church, complete, supreme, ordinary, and immediate over each and all the churches of the world, over each and all the bishops and the faithful.

In this primacy is included the supreme authority as teacher of the Church, or the prerogative of papal infallibility. By virtue of a special supernatural assistance of the Holy Spirit promised to Saint Peter and his successors, the pope cannot err when, as supreme teacher of the universal Church, he defines a doctrine concerning faith or morals to be held by the whole body of the faithful. Only when these four conditions are fulfilled is the pope infallible: First, he must speak not in his private capacity, not merely in his official character, but as supreme teacher. Secondly, the matter defined must concern faith or morals. Thirdly, the judgment must be delivered with the manifest intention of commanding intellectual assent. Fourthly, the definition must be given to the whole body of the faithful. It is clear that infallibility has absolutely no connection with the pope's personal qualities and is entirely distinct from impeccability, or incapability of sinning. The extent of papal infallibility is the same as that of the Church's infallibility. It embraces all the truths that God. has revealed as the object of faith, and extends to other truths and matters of faith without assurance of which it would be impossible or very difficult to preserve the deposit of revealed truth.

It follows from what we have hitherto said that whoever wishes to know Christ's doctrine must appeal to the living authority. The Church as teacher, that is, the bishops now living in union with the pope, can alone tell us what doctrines were revealed. This knowledge is not acquired from new revelations, but with the assistance of the Holy Ghost from various sources, chief among which is the preaching of the Gospel, by which the doctrines of Christ are handed down as a sacred heritage from age to age. Thus, even if nothing had ever been written, we should have to-day, uncorrupt and infallible, the means of preserving religious truth which Christ established, namely Tradition. However, it was natural that those who were commissioned to teach should also set down their teaching in writing. Hence we possess many documents and monuments from which we learn what the Church taught in past ages and what it now teaches; the truths revealed remain unchanged. Moreover, we learn from the Church that God Himself provided, by means of men, certain writings, containing revealed truth, and gave them to the Church for the instruction and direction of the faithful. (See BIBLE.) From it alone we learn what books have been so inspired and constitute Holy Scripture; the Church alone can authoritatively interpret these writings. Tradition, therefore, is prior to the Christian scriptures both in time and in thought. It is wider in its scope, for it embraces Scripture as an instrument by which, tradition is handed down and on the other hand contains matters which are not in Scripture. First and principally, tradition teaches us the authoritative character of Scripture itself. Even were all the copies of Scripture destroyed, the living voice would still proclaim the entire Christian teaching. Catholics yield to none in their esteem of Holy Writ, as the inspired word of God, but they so esteem it because of what they learn concerning it from tradition. The chief sources from which this tradition is learned are the acts of councils, the writings of the

popes, of the Fathers of the Church, inscriptions, monuments, pictures, liturgies, rites, and pious customs, in a word, every way in which the Church is wont to profess her faith.

The Chief Doctrines of the Catholic Faith. Catholics believe in one, true, living God, the Creator and Lord of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible, almighty, eternal, immense, and incomprehensible; infinite in will and intellect, and in all perfection, who, being one, singular, absolutely simple and unchangeable spiritual substance is to be regarded as distinct really and in essence from the world, infinitely happy in and from Himself and unspeakably elevated above all things that exist or can be conceived. He knows all things in the most perfect manner, by one allembracing act of His intellect, from eternity to eternity ever the same. He knows His own being, all things that are possible, past, present, and future, and all things that are not and never have been nor will be, but which would be if some condition were fulfilled. He is allwise, all-holy, all-just, true, faithful, and bountiful. Moreover, in God as there is one divine nature, so there are three divine persons, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, really distinct from one another, perfectly equal to one another. Nevertheless there are not three Gods, but one God. The father is unbegotten, the Son is begotten of the Father, and the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son. (See TRINITY, DocTRINE OF THE.) This one true God of His goodness and by His omnipotent power, not in order to increase His happiness, not to acquire perfection, but to manifest it by the good which He imparts to His creatures, in accordance with His absolutely free decree, at once from the beginning of time framed out of nothing as to the whole of their substance, two kinds of creatures, spiritual and material, the angels and the world, and then man, in whom spirit and matter were united. God preserves and governs by His providence all things that He has created.

To the angels He gave sanctifying grace and with it the power to merit eternal happiness by free service. Many of them rebelled and were cast into everlasting fire, the rest were confirmed in grace and admitted to the beatific vision of God. God "formed the body of the first man out of the slime of the earth.» He created his soul immediately, as He creates the soul of every man; the soul is a spirit, endowed with intellect and free-will, and immortal. All men are descended from Adam (q.v.) and Eve. Like the angels, our first parents were also raised to a supernatural state by the infusion of sanctifying grace into their souls, being made adopted children of God, destined to the enjoyment of the beatific vision. This is the principle of supernatural life, whereby man produce works that merit a heavenly reward. Moreover, God bestowed on man other preternatural gifts: great powers of mind and infused knowledge, complete control of the passions, immortality, and exemption from suffering and decay. This original justice our first parents lost by mortal sin, that is, by a grievous, wilful violation of God's law; in consequence of Adam's sin all of his descendants were deprived of those privileges, are conceived in original sin, and cannot of themselves enter the kingdom of heaven.

can

To atone adequately for the grievous insult to God and to repair the evil done to mankind, the second person of the Trinity became man. Jesus is true God and true man, one Divine Person subsisting in two natures, divine and human, not by the conversion of Divinity into flesh, but by the assumption of humanity unto God. He was born of the Virgin Mary, who was truly the Mother of God and remained a Virgin in conceiving and bearing her divine Son and ever after till the end of her life. By singular privilege of God through the merits of Christ, the Redeemer, the Blessed Virgin was preserved free from original sin (q.v.), that is, in the first moment of her conception, when her soul was created, it was endowed with sanctifying grace. By further privilege she was never guilty of any actual sin, mortal or venial. See MARY; IMMACULATE CONCEPTION.

Christ, the God-man, became our Redeemer, not by the mere effect of His preaching and example, but by His bloody death on the cross. He made Himself our mediator with His Father, offering atonement for the sins of all men. This satisfaction is not applied to those who have use of reason without their free employment of the means ordained by Christ. He merited for us the remission of sins, sanctifying grace, and all other graces conferred on man. After His death, He rose again on the third day, ascended into Heaven, where He sits at the right hand of the Father, whence He shall come with glory to judge the living and the dead, and of His kingdom there shall be no end. He founded a Church and confided to it the task of teaching His doctrines and applying to men's souls the means of sanctification. This Church is the guardian and interpreter of revelation; for though the existence of God can be known with certainty by the light of reason, it has pleased the Divine Wisdom to reveal many natural truths as well as all those that regard our supernatural life. This revelation is contained both in written books and in unwritten traditions. The books of the old and New Testament, held by the Church to be sacred and canonical, were written by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost and have God as their author. In matters of faith and morals the true meaning of Scripture is that which is maintained by the Church. All interpretations at variance with the unanimous consent of the Fathers, when they speak as witnesses of tradition, are false and forbidden.

Whatever is presented to us by the Church as revealed truth must be accepted by the free assent of the intellect, not because of its intrinsic truth seen by the light of reason, but on the authority of God who has given the revelation, and who can neither be deceived nor deceive. This divine revelation has been made credible by external proofs, especially by miracles and prophecies; yet as faith is a supernatural virtue, the act of faith requires the assistance of divine grace, enlightening the intellect and strengthening the will and making our act supernatural. Without faith there is no justification, but as God wishes all men to be saved, all receive, either proximately or remotely, the grace to believe. Among revealed truths some are mysteries that cannot be demonstrated by human reason, but must be believed. The demonstrations of reason cannot contradict

revelation, hence any assertions of human science that are at variance with what the Church teaches to be revealed must be false.

As grace is necessary for the beginnings of faith, and even for the pious affection toward believing, so it is needed to make our good works deserving of a supernatural reward. Grace is needed even for the just to avoid sin. 'Final perseverance is a special privilege of dying in the state of grace. Apart from a special revelation, no one can know that he will receive this blessing. Without grace, however, it is possible to resist less urgent temptations and perform acts that have natural goodness; hence all works done before justification are not sins. According to Catholic doctrine, actual grace is a real influence exerted by the Holy Ghost upon the soul, but it does not destroy the free-will of man. A grace may be fully sufficient for a supernaturally good act, but if a man refuse to act with it, the grace will not be efficacious. God will not save us without our co-operation. See GRACE OF GOD.

Actual graces aid us to obtain habitual or sanctifying grace, that is, to be justified by the remission of original sin or of grievous actual sin. This sanctifying grace makes us like unto Christ, holy and supernaturally pleasing to God, and brings with it the infused virtues and the gifts of the Holy Ghost (q.v.). There are many grades of habitual grace; it may be increased by good works, and on the other hand may be entirely lost by mortal sin. God in His mercy offers to man supernatural happiness and makes this offer known by the preaching of His Church, which he accompanies by an interior stirring grace. When a man co-operates with this grace, he believes the truth with absolute certainty and is moved by the thought of God's love; he sees reasons to fear God's justice and throws himself on God's mercy, trusting in the merits of Christ; hence he conceives a love of God and a detestation of sin. Thus by the working of grace and the co-operation of man's free will, the way is prepared for justification; and, provided that man puts no obstacle, the Holy Ghost works this justification by infusing charity into his soul, thereby destroying sin. Thus purified, he enters on a virtuous life, hoping by the merits of Christ to enter heaven, but he has no absolute certainty of his salvation. In the process of justification, the first grace cannot be merited at all; for no supernatural reward is due to natural acts. With the aid of grace both sinners and just can merit further actual grace, but only congruously and not with any strict right in justice. The just, that is, those in a state of grace, can merit final perseverance congruously, and, because of God's promises, can merit in justice the increase of habitual grace, eternal life, and increase of glory. By mortal sin, all merit is lost.

As a means of justification Christ has entrusted to His Church seven Sacraments (q.v.), or sensible rites, instituted by Him to effect in the soul the grace which they signify. When the necessary conditions are placed, the Sacrament works by its own efficacy and not through the piety of the minister nor of the recipient. The Sacraments are Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, and Matrimony. Baptism and Penance remit sin; the others cannot lawfully be received in mortal sin. Baptism, Confirma

tion, and Holy Orders can be received only once, because they imprint on the soul an ineffaceable mark, called the sacramental character. All the Sacraments, if properly received, give sanctifying grace or increase it, if already in the soul. Since the promulgation of the Gospel, justification cannot be obtained without Baptism of water, which blots out original sin and all actual sin. Infants who die without Baptism cannot enjoy the supernatural vision of God. In adults, when baptism of water cannot be received, pardon of sin can be obtained by the baptism of desire, which consists in a perfect love of God and a sorrow for sin, including, at least implicitly, the desire of the Sacrament. Remission of sin is also granted to all who suffer martyrdom for Christ. Sins committed after baptism are remitted by the Sacrament of Penance (q.v.), in which the sinner confesses with contrition all his mortal sins to the duly authorized priests of the Church, from whom he receives absolution. Sins are also remitted by perfect contrition, but the obligation of Divine Law requires that even then, if possible, they must be confessed. Penance pardons the guilt of sins confessed and repented of, infuses or increases sanctifying grace, remits eternal punishment, if it was due, secures actual graces to avoid sin in future, and may also remit, wholly or in part, the temporal punishment still to be undergone for sins the guilt of which has been pardoned. The whole punishment is not always remitted with the fault; for the remaining debt satisfaction is made to God by sufferings patiently borne or voluntarily inflicted. For this purpose also the Church has the power of granting indulgences, which are not a remission of sin, much less a permission to commit sin, but the remission of the whole or part of the temporal punishment which may be due for sins, after the guilt has been pardoned. See INDULGENCE.

In the Holy Eucharist there is really and substantially present the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, under the appearances of bread and wine. By the words of the priest at the consecration, there is effected a conversion of the whole substance of the bread into the Body and of the whole substance of the wine into the Blood, which conversion is called transubstantiation (q.v.). By force of the words, the Body is under the species of the bread and the Blood under the species of the wine, but in virtue of the natural connection and concomitance by which the parts of Christ are linked together, He exists whole and entire under each species and every part of the species. In the Mass (q.v.) there is offered to God a true proper, and propitiatory sacrifice for the living and the dead. To offer up this sacrifice, Christ instituted a visible and external priesthood and the Sacrament of Holy Orders (q.v.); the minister of this Sacrament must be a bishop, who has received the fulness of the sacred ministry. The various orders constitute the Hierarchy. Priests cannot ordain or confirm. Other orders are the diaconate, subdiaconate, and the minor orders (Acolyte, Exorcist, Lector, and Ostiarius). Before the minor orders, the tonsure is conferred as a sign of enrolment among the clergy, who are separated from the rest of the faithful, called the laity. The right to exercise the sacred functions within appointed limits is

called jurisdiction; it is required for the lawful performance of all functions and for the validity of some The Roman pontiffs have, by Divine institution, universal jurisdiction. The other bishops have power to govern the dioceses to which they have been assigned by the pope.

Marriage between Christians was raised by Christ to the dignity of a sacrament. Its essence lies in the contract freely made between man and wife; the grace conferred is first an increase of sanctity, and, secondly, actual grace to fulfill the duties of the married state. The bond of Christian marriage after consummation is absolutely indissoluble; it is also exclusive, no man can have several wives, no woman several husbands, at the same time. Those who, with the aid of God's grace, fulfil the obligations of virginity or celibacy live in a state more holy and better than the state of matrimony. From the fact that Christian matrimony is a Sacrament, it follows that it has been intrusted to the Church and is subject to the laws of the Church, not to those of the State; hence the Church has the power of assigning conditions necessary for the validity or lawfulness of the contract between those who have been baptized. See MARRIAGE.

The means of sanctification are given to men to enable them to live and die in the state of sanctifying grace. At the hour of death each soul is judged by Christ, and if in mortal sin, is condemned to hell to be punished by eternal torments, varying in intensity according to the degree of guilt. Those who die free from all sin, mortal and venial, and from all the temporal punishment for sin, are admitted at once to life everlasting, to perfect beatitude in the vision of God. The saints and angels in heaven offer up prayers for men, and it is good and useful to invoke their intercession that we may obtain favors from God through Jesus Christ, who is our sole Redeemer and Saviour. Catholics honor and worship the saints and angels, and especially the Blessed Virgin Mary, because God loves and honors them, and because of their own personal sanctity; not, however, with the supreme worship that belongs only to God. Because of their special connection with holy persons, honor is also given to relics of the saints, to images and paintings of Christ and His saints. If men die in venial sin, or temporal punishment be still due, their souls are detained in Purgatory (q.v.) until expiation is made. In this state they can no longer merit for themselves, but can be assisted by the prayers and good works of the faithful and particularly by the holy sacrifice of the Mass. The Church has the power to apply indulgences for their relief. In addition to the particular judgment, immediately after death, there will be a general judgment at the end of the world. The body will rise from the grave reunited to the soul, and share for eternity either happiness in heaven or punishment in hell.

The chief duties of Christian life are expressed in the Ten Commandments of God and the commandments of the Church. Many laws have been imposed by the Church on particular classes or for special purposes; all Catholics, however, are bound, under pain of mortal sin, to hear Mass and rest from servile work on Sundays and Holydays of obligation, to fast and to abstain from certain food on the days

appointed, to confess all mortal sins at least once a year, and to receive the Holy Eucharist during the Easter time.

A Catholic must believe all the truths God has revealed and teaches through His Church. Denial of one such would mean either the denial of God's veracity or of the Church's infallibility. But it is not necessary that he should know explicitly more than the principal truths; all others are included in his acceptance of the Church as a divine teacher, alone capable of declaring what truths are contained in the deposit of faith handed down from the apostles. The definition of a dogma by the Church brings no change in doctrine; for no truth once taught as of faith is ever given up nor can any point be added which was not contained, at least implicitly, in the original teaching. However, the Church's infallibility is not limited merely to revealed doctrines; she can also speak infallibly on matters necessary to safeguard revealed teaching. Belief in such decisions is called vine or ecclesiastical faith, there are many subecclesiastical faith. Outside the domain of dijects of pious belief among Catholics. Some of these may perhaps belong to the deposit of faith, but they are not yet authoritatively proposed. Others depend on human testimony, which the testimony warrants. and are accepted with that degree of certitude

In the expression of revealed truths and in the defense of faith from the charge of conflict with demonstrated truths of science and philosophy, the Church makes use of terms derived from the philosophy current among its subjects. Thus it has come about that the dogmas are expressed in the terms of scholastic philosophy and officially in the Latin language. As its doctrines can be taught in any language, so, too, the expression of them may be harmonized with whatever is found to be true in any system of philosophy.

In the worship, liturgies, discipline, and practices of the Church, some regulations may be of divine origin, others are of ecclesiastical origin, and still others arise from the voluntary piety of individuals. Besides the ordinary obligations of Christian life, she invites those of her children who feel the call from God to bind themselves by vow to His service. The principal vows are those taken to observe the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Those who have thus bound themselves in approved congregations or religious orders are called religious. (See ORDERS, RELIGIOUS.) As a matter of discipline all those in Sacred Orders in the Latin portion of the Church are bound to observe celibacy. In the Greek portion, to-day, no priest can marry, but married men may receive Holy Orders, except episcopal consecration.

External Organization of the Church.- Supreme jurisdiction, as we have seen, resides in the Pope; the bishops are the rulers of dioceses, which are subdivided into parishes or missions under a parish priest or rector, assisted by curates. The dioceses are united into provinces, over each of which is an archbishop or metropolitan, the other bishops being called his suffragans. The archbishop convokes provincial synods, hears certain appeals from the episcopal court, watches over the observance of ecclesiastical law in some particulars, and, under certain circumstances, appoints an administrator when a

suffragan dies. The patriarchate is to-day only an honorary rank. The Pope is represented in some countries by apostolic delegates, to whom are referred appeals from the lower courts and through whom the Pope sends his communications. In some countries there are apostolic nuncios, who deal directly with the various governments that have their representatives at Rome.

The Pope is assisted immediately by the Sacred College of Cardinals and by the Sacred Congregations. The College of Cardinals, when complete, contains 70 members: 6 Cardinal Bishops of the Suburban Sees, 50 Cardinal Priests, and 14 Cardinal Deacons. The Sacred Congregations, 21 in number, are committees of Cardinals to whom special affairs are entrusted. They were arranged, almost as at present, by Pope Sixtus V. The Cardinals alone cast votes for the final decisions, but they are assisted by secretaries and consultors. The Pope himself acts as prefect of some congregations (the_Inquisition, the Apostolic Visitation, and the Consistorial). A Cardinal presides over each of the others. The acts of all congregations are submitted to the Pope for his approval. These acts, unless promulgated in a solemn manner as the acts of the Soverign Pontiff himself, are subject to change; though not infallible, they must be received by the faithful with an internal assent, such as is due to religious authority and obeyed as laws of the Church. The more important congregations are: the Holy Roman Inquisition (the supreme tribunal to judge of heresy and crimes allied with heresy), the Consistorial (which selects the matters that are presented and sanctioned by the College of Cardinals assembled in the Papal Consistories), the Apostolic Visitations, Bishops and Regulars, the Council of De Propaganda Fide (which cares for missionary countries), Sacred Rites, the Index (which prohibits the reading of books condemned as contrary to faith or good morals), Indulgences and Relics, and the congregation of Studies.

The Church and Civil Anthority. The Church was established by Christ as a perfect, independent religious society. Its authority depends on God's ordinances alone; wherefore it has always denied any right on the part of the state to interfere in its internal affairs. In Catholic countries, the church claims immunity for its officials from the authority of civil tribunals; in past ages this immunity was often absolutely necessary for their just protection. Sometimes the Pope makes a Concordat with temporal rulers; that is, a treaty whereby, in consideration of certain promises of these rulers, the Pope abstains from urging certain of his rights. To exercise the prerogatives which we have described, the Pope, his Cardinals, and other officials must be exempt from the jurisdiction of any civil tribunals. Practically this cannot be secured without the Temporal Power (q.v.), or better, the Temporal Independence of the Sovereign Pontiff. It is not enough for the Pope to be free, he must be known to be free: suspicion of being under the influence of a sovereign would be fatal to his influence. This independence he possessed for more than 15 centuries; it was assured by the recognition of his sovereign authority in the states of the Church. Since the usurpation of these states by the Italian Government, the Popes, Pius IX., Leo

XIII., and Pius X., have not ceased to proclaim: (1) that this seizure was an act of injustice; (2) that the Pope no longer possesses the freedom, security, and independence demanded by his dignity, his rights, and for the proper exercise of his authority; and (3) that the Holy See must insist on these facts and look forward to some efficient remedy for the injustice and indignity of present conditions. To deal rightly with Catholics of all nations, the Pope must be extra-national. As the seat of our general government, the District of Columbia, is independent of all the States, so the seat of the general government of the Church should be independent of all the countries of the earth.

History. The history of the Roman Catholic Church may be divided into three great epochs: (1) Christian Antiquity, embracing the first seven centuries, during which Christian civilization was chiefly Greek and Roman. (2) The Middle Ages, from the 8th century to the 16th, characterized by the church's action among the various peoples of north and central Europe, who were molded into organized nations by hei influence. (3) The Modern Age, from the rise of Protestantism to the present day, during which the Germanic nations separated from the Church and attached themselves to various sects, and the Church has had to struggle against the modern, infidel spirit in science and government.

The first epoch contains two periods. First comes an era of persecution, during the struggle with paganism, which was terminated by the edict of Milan (313); then, an era of development in definitions of dogma against the attacks of heresy. The second epoch embraces four periods: I. The conversion of the barbarians. II. The development of the Western Empire and the Church's struggle to maintain her independence (800-1073). III. The supremacy of the Church maintained (1073-1300). IV. Attacks on the Church's supremacy, from Boniface VIII. to Protestantism.

During the third epoch three periods may be distinguished: I. The period of religious warfare, ending with the Peace of Westphalia, 1648. II. From 1648 to the French Revolution, the era of established Churches. III. Dawn to the present day: Neo-paganism in science and life, the age of unrestrained freedom to accept or deny the truths of religion.

Even while the Church was undergoing cruel persecution, she was also developing her discipline and defending her doctrines against the pagans and heretics. From the first three centuries have come down to us the valuable works of Ignatius, Polycarp, Justin, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Tertullian, Cyprian, and many others. The mightier struggle with heresy, and her marvellous growth after she emerged from the catacombs, gave renown to Athanasius, Basil, the Gregories in the East and West, Chrysostom, the Cyrils, Hilary, Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, Leo, and a host of other Christian writers, of whose works the modern world knows very little. The growth of monasticism (q.v.) is one of the glories of this age. Monks and nuns consecrated their lives to God's service by prayer and study and labor, thus preserving the ancient civilization from utter destruction by the barbarians, and preparing for the Church the means of converting these barbarians and transforming them into the