Page images
PDF
EPUB

COOKSON.

appofers of his having two at a time. But as we contett their authority in one particular concerning marriage, we ought, confifient ly with our curielves, to difcard it in another.

This leading pofition of the third volume (which I have at tempted to place in a proper point of view by a contemplation of its motives) I declare against, and fhall give my reasons to the Public, on which my oppoution is founded, that the folidity of them may be ascertained.

In fupport of this position, the author begins with producing what be calls the tettimony of St. Clement of Rome, the difciple of Peter, and the affeciate of the Apotles.

The dronge expreion that has occurred to me in reading this Epile is-Let not him that is chaße in the faj be paffed up swirb pride, kissing that it is auteur abat conferred on him the power of continence. This, even in a detached light, is confident with the rules of Chrit and his Acoale St. Paul. It is an injunction of general purity; and as applied to marriage, prohibits that date from being engaged in from motives of Jewdneis.

[merged small][ocr errors][ocr errors]

REVIEW.

quence enemies to polygamy: but tha, as Proteflants contest their. authority in one respect, they ought, confiftendy with their own principles, to difcard it in another.

In fupporting this position, which we have endeavoured to place in the clearest light, the author begins with producing the teltimony of St. Clement of Rome, the allociate of the Apolles.

The frongea expresion that bath occurred to as in reading this Epiltle... is the following: "Let not him who is chatte in the Aeth be lifted up with pride,: knowing, &c. &c." But is there any thing in this wife and falutary caution that is in the Lighted degree inconsent with the roles et Christ or bis Apolles?.. It is perfectiv applicable to that marriage which is honourable in all: that which is entered into, not from those groñer motives by which lewdncis is chiedy induerced, &c. &c.

We have been the longer in examining this iparicus tek mony, because it aands at the bead of all the other teamonies, and was defgrea to give the mod priking force to the inference that the author would deduce from them in favour of the leading principle of this volume,

Deprived

COOKSON.

It is worth remarking, that, deprived of St. Clement, Madan hath not one fingle apoftolical Father in the number of his advocates for virginity:-not a fingle name in his partial and erroneous history of the first century. I am not a little furprised that the Public were not prefented with an Hif tory of St. Paul-as well as not to fee him placed at the head of the oppofition to marriage, together with Thecla; and particularly Anna, whofe continence is recorded to her honour, Luke ii. 36, 37. These chate characters, as they would often have fuggefted to our author the idea of impious piety, fo they would have afforded him most delightful opportunities of displaying his wit, and indulging his raillery.

REVIEW.

Deprived of the fanction of St. Clement's authority, he hath not the name of one fingle Apoftolic Father to adorn his page. St. Clement ftands a folitary advocate for virginity in Mr. M.'s flender and erroneous history of the first century. ... We wonder we had not been prefented with the As of Paul and Thecla. They would have furnished him with illuftra tions ftill more replete with [what he calls] impious piety; and afforded him the mot delectable occafions for a difplay of that wit which grows fo frisky, and sports itself fo frothily, whenever he comes in the way of virginity!

On this laft paffage we must stop for a moment to expofe this Writer's ignorance:-the plagiarifm will expofe itfelf-By coupling Anna with Thecla there is a jumble of the ludicrous and the ferious. The Writer, not diftinguishing between the one and the other, confounds both.

We fhall give the Reader a fhort view of this matter.- Mr. Madan, to depreciate the opinions of the Fathers, reprefents them as favourers of celibacy. To give double efficacy to his arguments on this head, he reprefents St. Clement himfelf as its advocate. How doth he prove it? Why, by appealing to two Epiftles which were published under his name. But thofe Epiftles are evidently fpurious; and had been proved to be fo by Dr. Lardner. Befide the external evidence of their being forgeries, every proof of their being fuch arifes from their internal itructure, when compared with the genuine productions of that venerable writer. When this was hewn by the Reviewer, he rallied Mr. Madan for his credulity, or at leaft for his eagerness to catch at any authorities, however problematical, to fupport his hypothefis; and then afked him what, at full length would amount to the following queftions, viz.-- Why, fince he was in fearch of proofs, and rejected none that might ferve his purpofe, he had not appealed to other spurious authorities, fince fo many Jay in his way, and would equally have ferved his purpofe? Why, for example, did he not appeal to the Acts of Paul and Thecla ?-for they are full of injunctions to celibacy; and moreover, like Clement's two Epiftles to the Eunuchs, pretend a very early date, even the Apoftolical

Apoftolical age. Surely a man, who was hunting after all the teftimonies he could procure, fpurious as well as authentic, fhould not have overlooked what was fo much to his purpose !"

The judicious Reader perceives that we meant nothing but irony and the learned Reader knows, that the tract we refer to, called the Acts of Paul and Thecla, was a forgery of a later age, like the Letters of Clement: and if Mr. Cookfon wants further information on this point, we refer him to Grabe's Spicilegium.

As to the virtuous widow, Anna, we introduced her name in another place, and with all that reverence that was due to her character.

[blocks in formation]

Next in order comes Tertullian, whom, with the whole tect of the Montanists, readily give up.

REVIEW.

In direct oppofition to the rigid and fombrous principles of Tatian and his continents, Irenæus places the licentious fyftem of Bafilides and Corp crates, who, by teaching the lawfulness of polygamy, had run into the contrary extreme. Alii autem, &c. &c.

Next he speaks of Tertullian, whom we readily refign to Mr. M. with the whole fect of the Montanifts, &c. &c

Mr. Cookfon hath retailed all our fentiments relating to a very fingular paffage in Athenagoras, which we think hath been very generally mutaken by his tranflators; and by none more than Dr. Cave himself. We attempted to set it in its true light ; and we are happy to be informed that our interpretation hath been efpoufed by the learned.-But hear our penetrating and ingenuous author.

COOKSON,

If we view this [paffage] as applied to divorce, it is perfectly confiftent with the New Tefta ment, and the doctrines of Chrift, to which it makes a dire& and formal appeal. Contemplated in any other way, it is impertinent, abfurd, and contradictory.

Indeed the paffage of Athenagoras fpeaks for itself;-if it is only rendered according to the common acceptation of the words, it will be found to speak the language 1 barve advanced: the whole I fhall put in the margin,

REVIEW.

Viewed in the light in which it is now placed, nothing is more confiftent with the univerfal tenor of the New Testament, and that particular authority of our Lord to which it makes a direct and formal appeal. Confidered in any other view, the quotation is impertinent, and the reafoning on it perverfe and ridiculous.

IN R. The whole paffage in the Greek is printed in the margo of the Review; and a tranflation, with a paraphrafe, is offered Afterwards the to explain it. Reviewer fays" Is it not clear that the whole paffage is pointed for entirely

COOKSON.

for the inspection of the learned reader, who will have an immediate opportunity of judging of the folidity of what I bave advanced on this fubje&.

REVIEW.

entirely against fecond marriage that take place under the fanction of a divorce?" Vid. Rev. p. 176.]

We pass over the other teftimonies, with the reafonings on them, in which the Author hath implicitly followed the Review, without a fingle obfervation that may be called his own, and proceed to the conclufion.

COOKSON.

Finally the teftimony of the Fathers, fo far as my prefent argument is concerned in order to foape an aufwer to Thelyphthora, is merely a teftimony to a matter of fact, to which they are competent evidence, if we only allow them the credit due to hiftorians. They are all witnesses of a general practice, obvious, unquestioned. What I contend for is not the teftimony of a few only; it is the concurrent testimony of all: it is given in the cleareft language by the first and greatet lights of the church, whofe prejudices could not mifreprefent, nor their ignorance mistake, an obvious fact. Hence, notwithftanding their other diffen ions, we here find the greatest harmony, which fully proves, that the fact was too notorious either to be mistaken or mifreprefented.

REVIEW.

We confider them [the Fathers], and the prefent argument requires nothing more, as credible hiftorians.... Nor is it the tellimony of an individual, whofe ignorance might really mistake, or whofe prejudices might misreprefent, even a matter of fact; but it is the concurrent teflimony of the firft and greatest lights of the Chriflian church: it is the testimony of all who have written on the fubje&; for here, amidst all their diffenfons, they perfectly accord; and the only reafon that can be given for fo univerfal a harmony is this

the fact was fo obvious, there could be no mistake; and fo common, there could be no difagrees ment.

Mr. Cookfon hath done us the favour of new dreffing an expreffion of ours, in the beginning of our critique on Mr. Madan: as a recompenfe for his pains, we return it back to him as his own due; and with it conclude our respects to

HIMSELF:

'I will not be fo unceremonious as to fay, that this difingenuous conduct carries upon the face of it the evident intention to deceive mankind; but I think politenefs itfelf would aver, that it hath very much the appearance of it.'

ART.

(30)

ART. VI. Conclufion of A General Hiftory of Mufic, from the earlie Ages to the prefent Period, &c. By Charles Burney, Muf. D. F.R.S. Vol. II. See Rev. for Sept. 1782.

A

MONG the many mufical curiofities contained in the 2d chapter of this work, we meet with ancient fpecimens of Welch mufic, taken from a MS. in the poffeffion of Richard Morris, Efq; of the Tower, which contains pieces for the harp that are in full harmony or counterpoint. They are written in a peculiar notation, by letters of the alphabet, fomewhat refembling the tablature for the lute. Some few of them are easily to be decyphered, as appears evident from two fpecimens here given by the Author, and which he has explained in modern mufical characters. These pieces are fuppofed to be as old as the year 1100; though the Author thinks that this Welch counterpoint, however artless it may feem, is too modern for fuch remote antiquity as is given to it. In a memorandum, however, which he found in it, fome parts of it are faid to have been "tranfcribed in the time of Charles the First, by Robert ap Haw, of Bodwigen, in the isle of Anglefea, from William Penllyn's book:" and, in an English note, it is added, that the manuscript con tains "the mufic of the Britons, as fettled by a congrefs, or meeting of Mafters of Mufic, by order of Gryffidd ap Cynan, Prince of Wales, about the year 1100; with foine of the most ancient pieces of the Britons, supposed to have been handed down to us from the British Bards."-But the Author propofes to give a farther account of this curious MS. when he treats of national mufic, in his third volume.

Here too the Author treats of the introduction of the Pneumatic organ into Europe. The first inftrument of this kind that we hear of was fent into France, by the Emperor Conftantine VI. as a prefent to King Pepin, father of Charlemagne, in the year 757. We are told, fays the Author, by Notker, the Monk of St. Gal, a writer of the 10th century, that Charlemagne fent ambaffadors to the Emperor Michael, at Conftantinople, purpofely to folicit fo precious a gift. After its arrival, it is defcribed by the Monk in such a manner as not to be miftaken. Indeed it feems to have had imitative powers, resembling, at leaft, if not equal, to thofe produced by different ftops in modern organs. Adduxerunt etiam" (fpeaking of the Ambaffadors) illud Muficorum Organum præftantiffimum, quod doliis ex are conflatis, follibufque taurinis, per fiftulas areas mire perfianti

William Penllyn, as appears from Mr. Pennant's Tour, was one of the fuccefsful candidates on the harp, at the Seffion of the Bards and Minstrels, in North Wales, in the ninth year of Queen Eliza

beth.

bus,

« PreviousContinue »