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against the renowned, the foolish against the prudent, the young against the old' (iii. 8). With a view to restoring order, the Church of Rome despatched legates to Corinth, bearing with them the Letter, which tradition ascribes to St. Clement of Rome. It may be thus conveniently divided. After a brief salutation, St. Clement, in what we may call the Prologue, draws a vivid picture of the former glories of the Church of Corinth (I-III). Then comes the body of the Letter (IV-LXI) which may be sub-divided into two parts-the first part (IV-XXXVI) being of a general character—the second (XXXVII-LXI) entering more in detail into the controversies that agitate the Church of Corinth. Lastly, the Epilogue (LXII-LXV) briefly sums up the whole Epistle and expresses the hope that the legates will soon return with news that order has been restored.

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'The Church of God which sojourns in Rome, to the Church of God which sojourns in Corinth, to those who are called and sanctified by the will of God through Our Lord Jesus Christ. Grace and peace from God Almighty be multiplied to you through Jesus Christ.' Thus our Epistle begins. And this simple salutation contains a great truth. It matters little whether the Church of Rome interfered spontaneously in the affairs of Corinth, or whether the Corinthians appealed to Rome. In either case, the Prima Clementis remains a strong de facto proof of the Primacy of the Roman Church. To use the expressions of a distinguished Patrologist, Elle est . . . l'épiphanie de la Primauté Romaine.' A dissension arises in the Church of Corinth, and immediately the Roman Pontiff sends his legates to restore order. Perhaps the Beloved Disciple, the last of the Apostles, is still governing the see of Ephesus. And yet, not Ephesus, but Rome speaks, and that with authority. Here we have the first link in the chain of traditional evidence for the Primacy of Rome. And were the utility of our Letter confined to this, it would still be a most precious document.

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Even in the time of St. Paul, there were dissensions in the Church of Corinth. Is Christ divided?' exclaimed the great Apostle. Clement has not forgotten these early

1 Note this beautiful expression. It occurs also in Polycarp, Epist. ad Phil., and in Epist. Ecclesiae Smyrnensis de Martyrio S. Polycarpi. Cf. 2 Cor.,

6.

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troubles; he will recall them at the proper time.1 in his prologue, doubtless to win their hearts and prepare them for the correction that is to follow, he rather dwells on the many noble virtues that adorned that glorious Church.

For who has stayed with you [he writes] without making proof of the virtue and steadfastness of your faith? Who has not admired the sobriety and Christian gentleness of your piety? Who has not reported your character so magnificent in its hospitality? For you did all things without respect of persons, and walked in the laws of God, obedient to your rulers, and paying all fitting honour to the older among you.2 And you were all humbleminded and in no wise arrogant, yielding subjection rather than demanding it, giving more gladly than receiving, satisfied with the provision of Christ, and paying attention to His words you stored them up carefully in your hearts, and kept His sufferings before your eyes.3

...

But soon lamentable sedition disturbed this heavenly peace. All glory and enlargement was given to you and that which was written was fulfilled; the beloved ate and drank, and he was enlarged and waxed fat and kicked (Deut. xxxii. 15). From this arose jealousy and envy, strife and sedition, persecution and disorder, war and captivity.'

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In the first part of the Epistle proper (IV-XXXVI) St. Clement sets himself resolutely to combat this spirit of envy and pride. The evil effects of jealousy, the necessity of repentance, of obedience, of humility, and peace are set forth with a force and pathos that bespeak the heart of the father yearning for the welfare of his erring children. The Old Testament furnishes him abundant examples. In the very dawn of history, we see the demon of jealousy prompting Cain to raise his hand against his brother Abel. You see, brethren, jealousy and envy wrought fratricide. Through jealousy our father Jacob ran from the face of Esau his brother. Jealousy made Joseph to be persecuted to death and come into slavery. 95 From sacred history, also, the holy Pope gives striking instances of repentance and obedience.

Let us, therefore [he concludes] be humbleminded, brethren, putting aside all arrogance and conceit and foolishness and wrath. . . especially remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, which He spoke when He was teaching gentleness and long suffering. For he spoke thus: Be merciful, that you may obtain mercy. Forgive, that you may be forgiven. As

1 Cf. xlvii.

2 i. 2, 3.

3 ii. 1.

4 iii. 1, 2.

iv. 7, 8, 9.

you do, so shall it be done unto you. As you give, so shall it be given unto you. As you judge, so shall you be judged. As you are kind, so shall kindness be shown you. With what measure you mete, so shall it be measured to you.1

On the humility of Christ he dwells long and lovingly. Of this virtue he draws examples again from the pages of the Old Testament-the humility of Abraham, of Job, and of Moses, but especially the humility of the famous David.' Sublime in its simplicity, full of tenderness, and worthy of the Vicar of the Prince of Peace, is the exhortation to peace which follows:

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The humility and obedient submission of so many men of such great fame, have rendered better not only us, but also the generations before us, who received his oracles in fear and truth. Seeing, then, that we have received a share in many great and glorious deeds, let us hasten on to the goal of peace, which was given us from the beginning, and let us fix our gaze on the Father and Creator of the whole world and cleave to his splendid and excellent gifts of peace, and to his good deeds to us. Let us contemplate him with our mind; let us gaze with the eyes of our soul on his long-suffering purpose, let us consider how free from wrath he is towards all his creatures. The heavens moving at his appointment are subject to him in peace; day and night follow the course allotted by him without hindering each other. Sun and moon and the companies of the stars roll on according to his direction in harmony, in their appointed courses, and swerve not from them at all. The earth teems according to his will at its proper seasons, and puts forth food in full abundance for men and beasts and all the living things that are on it, with no dissension, and changing none of his decrees. The unsearchable places of the abyss and the unfathomable realms of the lower world are controlled by the same ordinances. The hollow of the boundless sea is gathered by his working into its allotted places, and does not pass the barriers placed around it, but does even as he enjoined on it; for he said: Thus far shalt thou come, and thy waves shall be broken within thee (Job xxxviii. 11). The ocean which men cannot pass and the worlds beyond it, are ruled by the same injunctions of the Master. The seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter give place to one another in peace. The stations of the winds fulfil their service without hindrance at the proper time. The everlasting springs, created for enjoyment and health, supply sustenance for the life of man without fail; and the smallest of animals meet together in peace and concord. All these things did the great Creator and Master of the universe ordain to be in peace and concord, and to all things does he do good, and more especially to us who have fled for refuge to his mercies through Our Lord Jesus Christ.*

Many other truths of our holy religion are_set_forth in this section of our Epistle. The dogma of the Resurrection is shown to be foreshadowed in nature, symbolized in the story of the phoenix, and promised in the Sacred

1 xiii. 1, 2.

2 xiv.

3 xvii., xviii.

4 xix., XX.

Scriptures.1 Clement reminds the Corinthians of the omniscience of God, of their duties and privileges as Christians, and of the faith of the Patriarchs. He exhorts them to continue in good work, and dwells on the reward that awaits them-a reward which is granted through Jesus Christ.2

Through him we fix our gaze on the heights of heaven, through him we see the reflection of his faultless and lofty countenance; through him the eyes of our hearts are opened; through him our foolish and darkened understanding blossoms towards the light; through him the Master willed that we should taste the immortal knowledge: who being the brightness of his majesty is by so much greater than the angels as he hath inherited a more excellent name (Heb. i. 3, 4).

In the next section of his Letter (xXXVII-LXI) St. Clement deals more directly with the divisions in the Church of Corinth. The tact, the prudence, the sweetness, and the firmness, withal, with which he handles the difficult situation, call forth our highest admiration. He writes with the tenderness of a father, and yet decides with all the authority of a judge. Rome speaks, and there is no mistaking her voice. Face to face, as he is, with rebellion -and that of the gravest kind, to wit, the rebellion of subjects against their ecclesiastical superiors, the Pope insists on the necessity of subordination. The Church is an army, a body, a flock. And as unity and subordination are of the essence of every army, of every body, and of every flock, so, too, are they of the essence of the Church.

Let us, then, serve in our army, brethren, with all earnestness, following his faultless commands. Let us consider those who serve our generals, with what good order, habitual readiness, and submissiveness they perform their commands. Not all are prefects, nor tribunes, nor centurions, nor in charge of fifty men, or the like, but each carries out in his own rank the commands of the emperor and of the generals. . . . Let us take our body; the head is nothing without the feet, likewise the feet are nothing without the head; the smallest members of our body are necessary and valuable to the whole body, but all work together and are united in a common subjection to preserve the whole body."

Further on St. Clement cries out: Why do we divide and tear asunder the members of Christ, and raise up strife against our own body, and reach such a pitch of madness as to forget that we are members of one another? '6 'Learn to be submissive,' he says again, 'putting aside

1 xxiv.-xxvi.

2 xxviii.-xxxii. 3 xxxiii.-xxxvi. 1.

5 xxxvii. 1, 2, 3, 5. Cf. 1 Cor. xii. 12 sqq.

4 xxxvi. 2.
6 xlvi. 7.

the boastful and the haughty self-confidence of your tongue, for it is better for you to be found small but honourable in the flock of Christ, than to be pre-eminent in repute, but to be cast out from his hope'in other words, outside the flock there is no hope, outside the Church there is no salvation.2

The most important passage in this section-and perhaps in the whole Epistle-is that in which St. Clement explains the origin of the hierarchy. In the opinion of many nonCatholics, the idea of the hierarchy was foreign to the mind of Christ and the Apostles. It arose out of necessity; its origin was merely human. Far different is the doctrine of St. Clement. This Apostolic Father clearly asserts the divine origin of the Christian hierarchy.

The Apostles [he writes] received the Gospel for us from Our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus the Christ was sent from God. The Christ, therefore, is from God, and the Apostles from Christ. . . . They went forth in the assurance of the Holy Spirit preaching the good news that the kingdom of God is coming. They preached from district to district, and from city to city, and they appointed their first fruits to be Bishops and deacons of the future believers.

A hundred years later Tertullian thus epitomises this argument: Ecclesia ab apostolis, Apostoli a Christo, Christus a Deo.' Another passage relative to the mode of succession in the hierarchy is equally interesting and important. The Apostles knew by divine revelation that there would be strife for the title of Bishop.

For this cause, therefore, ... .. they appointed those whom we have already mentioned (i.e., the first fruits of their ministry), and afterwards added the codicil that if they should die, other approved men should succeed to their ministry. We consider, therefore, that it is not just to remove from their ministry those who were appointed by them, or later on by other eminent men, with the consent of the whole Church, and have ministered to the flock of Christ without blame, humbly, peaceably, and disinterestedly, and for many years have received a universally favourable testimony."

Hence, in Corinth, towards the close of the first century, we find the Church made up of two distinct groups-the

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4 There is considerable difference here in the readings of the various MSS. vou seems the most probable. The ancient Latin version reads legem Cf. Vizzini, op. cit., p. 178.

5 xliv. 1-3.

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