Epistles of Cyprian and Cornelius about the middle of the 3d century. Their office was to prepare the sacred vessels and utensils of the Altar, and deliver them to the Deacon in time of divine service, but they were not allowed to minister as Deacons at the Altar, nor so much as to come within the rails of it to set a paten or cup, or the oblations of the people upon it. They were often sent by the Bishops with their letters to foreign Churches.

Acolythists. This order (as distinct from Subdeacons, who were probably sometimes so called in the Greek Church) was peculiar to the Latin Church. Their office was to light the candles of the Church, and to attend the Minister with wine for the Eucharist.

Exorcists. During the three first centuries the Bishops and Presbyters were the usual Exorcists of the Church, but towards the end of the third century, they were accounted a distinct order, though one of the inferior. Their office was to lay hands upon the Energumens, or persons possessed with evil spirits, and to repeat over them the prescribed form of words.

Readers. Tertullian and Cyprian mention Readers as one of the orders of the Church in their time. Their office was to read the Scriptures to the people from the Ambo or Pulpitum, i. e. the reading desk, which stood in the middle of the church.

Doorkeepers. This order is not mentioned before the third or fourth century. Their office was to open and shut the doors of the church, and to give notice of the times of prayer and church assemblies.

Singers. These are first mentioned about the beginning of the fourth century, in the Council of Laodicea. Their office was to regulate the Psalmody of the Church, and to take part in it themselves. Their station in the church was in the Ambo or reading desk.

Copiata or Fossarii. Their office was to take care of funerals, and to see that all persons had a decent burial. Especially they were obliged to perform this office for the poor, without exacting anything of their relations on that account.

Parabolani. These are reckoned by some amongst the inferior orders of the Clergy. Their office was to attend upon the sick,

and minister to them, whence their name, from the danger attending their office in infectious disorders.

Catechists. These were not any particular order, but persons who were appointed particularly to instruct the Catechumens in the first principles of religion, and to prepare them for Baptism. They were sometimes chosen from the inferior orders, sometimes were Priests or Deacons, and sometimes the Bishop himself performed the office.

Besides these various orders which were reckoned amongst the Clergy, there were several officers belonging to the Church, whom it may be as well to mention here, and who were sometimes Clergymen and sometimes Laymen.

Economus.

Steward. This officer was always chosen out of the Clergy, and his office was to manage the revenues of the Church, under the Bishop: and during a vacancy of the see, to look after and take care of the income of the Church, that it might be preserved safe for the succeeding Bishop.

Defensor, was an officer of the Church, sometimes a Clergyman, but not always, whose office it was to act as an advocate at law, to defend the rights of the poor, and the liberties of the Church against all aggressors and invaders.

Paramonarius, Villicus, or Bailiff. It is not certain what the particular business of this officer was, but the more probable opinion seems to be, that he was a bailiff or steward of the lands of the Church.

The Sceuophylaces, or keepers of the sacred utensils, were usually Priests.

The Interpreters, whose office was to render one language into another as there was occasion, both in reading the Scriptures, and in the Homilies which were made to the people.

The Notaries, were a sort of Secretaries and short hand writers, who took account of the processes against the Martyrs, and afterwards assisted at Councils, writing the Acts, and recording the speeches and disputations, and reading the petitions and other documents produced before the Council.

The Apocrisarii, were a sort of Proctors for Bishops, who resided at the imperial City, and managed in the imperial courts

the causes in which their principals might happen to be engaged.

XVI. 1. A Virgin.] There were two kinds of sacred Virgins in the ancient Church; the first, although they devoted themselves to God, and to the service of the Church, and were therefore enrolled in the Canon, or list of the Church (whence they were called Ecclesiastical and sometimes Canonical Virgins), still lived in their fathers' houses, and were supported by them. The other sort, who had their origin after the establishment of Monasteries, lived in communities, and were supported by their own labor, and were called Monastics. All these Virgins made a solemn profession of virginity, but were not bound by any positive vow. They do not appear to have been subjected in early times to any direct ecclesiastical censure if they abandoned their profession and married; but the laws of the Church gradually increased in strictness, and according to some Canons, they were subjected to the same term of penance as Digamists. Their marriages, however, were not considered null. Bingham, b. vii. c. 4.

XVII. 1. Newly erected.] It being the ordinary rule in the ancient Church, that there should be a Bishop in every city, whose Parish or Diocese, comprised the city itself, and those villages and districts which were under the civil jurisdiction of the city, the meaning of this part of the canon seems to be, that if any new city were erected, or any place raised to the dignity of a city by imperial authority, it ought also to have its Bishop, the limits of whose jurisdiction should be coextensive with those of the city, the decree of the former part of the Canon with respect to ordinary cases notwithstanding.

XXII. 1. By former Canons.] The common reading here is Tois Tapadaμßávovo, the sense of which is not clear; Beveridge therefore adopts the reading of some Mss. τοῖς πάλαι κανόσιν, which gives a good sense, referring to such Canons as the 40th Apostolical.

XXVIII. The holy Fathers.] Before the passing of this Canon, as Beveridge observes, the Bishop of Constantinople, although he had an honorary precedence granted to him on account of the dignity of the city, and had also occasionally exercised an authority in the ordination of the Metropolitans in certain Dioceses,

had never been canonically raised to the rank of Patriarch, or had any particular Diocese under him. By this Canon however he was raised to that rank, and his patriarchal power was extended over the three Dioceses of Pontus, Asia, and Thrace. This Canon is not found in the collection of John of Antioch, nor in the Arabic paraphrase, nor in the Latin version of Dionysius Exiguus. It exists however in all the other Greek collections, and in the old Latin version before that of Dionysius, but it there occurs among the Canons of Constantinople. There cannot however be any doubts of its authenticity, for the passing of it was strongly but unsuccessfully opposed at the time by the Legates of the Bishop of Rome, and occasioned many remonstrances afterwards, on the part of Leo the then Bishop of that See. The account of what took place at the passing of the Canon is given at length among the Acts of the Council, in the 16th Action: and as the matter is of some importance in its bearing upon the question of the Papal supremacy, an abridged account of it may not be uninteresting,

Upon the meeting of the Council (on the day when the discussion took place), Paschasinus and Lucentius, the Roman Legates, addressed themselves to the imperial Judges, and complained, that on the preceding day, after they, as well as the Judges, had left the meeting, certain things had been brought forward and decreed, contrary to the Canons of the Church, and they requested the Judges to institute an inquiry respecting them. Upon this Aetius, Archdeacon of the Church of Constantinople, said, that it was the common practice in Synods, after settling the more important and necessary matters relating to the Faith, to make also such regulations in other matters as were necessary. That on this occasion the Church of Constantinople had had certain matters to transact, and that they had requested the Roman Bishops to take part in their proceedings, but that those Bishops had refused to do so, alleging that they had no authority for this purpose from the Bishop of Rome. That they had then referred the matters to the imperial Judges, who had desired them to proceed with their business, and they had accordingly done so fairly, openly, and canonically. The Judges desired the account of the proceedings to be read; and Beronicianus, Secretary of

the Consistory, read this 28th Canon, with the subscriptions of all the Bishops who attended the Council annexed to it. Lucentius then asserted, that the Bishops had been forced to subscribe against their inclinations; but all the Bishops cried out immediately that no one was forced. Lucentius then objected further, that this Canon was contrary to that of the Nicene Council, and founded only upon the decisions of the Constantinopolitan Fathers, which had been passed only eighty years before, and which were not reckoned amongst the Synodical Canons. Aetius, the Archdeacon of Constantinople, then asked the Legates whether they had received any instructions relating to this matter from the Bishop of Rome; and the Presbyter Boniface, who was joined with Lucentius and Paschasinus in their mission, said, that amongst other things they were charged by the Pope, not to suffer the decision of the holy Fathers to be in any way infringed, but to maintain his dignity; and, "if any persons, presuming upon the splendor of their cities, should make any attempt at usurpation, to resist them with proper firmness." The Judges upon this desired both parties to read the Canons of Nice and the Roman Legates then read the 6th Canon, beginning it with these words, "That the Church of Rome has always had the Primacy." Constantine, Secretary of the Consistory, then read the same Canon from a copy furnished by Aetius, as it is read in the genuine Canons. (See the note upon the 6th Canon of Nice.) He then proceeded to read from the Synodical book of the Council of Constantinople, the three first Canons of that Council. The Judges then asked the Bishops of the Asian and Pontic Dioceses, whether they had been in any way compelled to subscribe the Canon in question; and they all declared that they had signed it voluntarily, and without any compulsion. Upon this the Judges gave their decision to the following effect: "That the Primacy and the chief honor should by all means be preserved, according to the Canons, to the Archbishop of Old Rome, and that the Archbishop of the imperial city of Constantinople, New Rome, should enjoy the same privilege of honor. That he should also have power of his own authority to ordain the Metropolitans in the Asian, Pontic, and Thracian Dioceses, who should be elected by the Clergy, and proprietors and most

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