Nestorius believed that Mary was the mother of Christ and that Christ had two natures, perfect G.o.d and perfect man, united with each other but not mingled. He rejected pictures and statues representing Christ, Mary or the saints. Upon this basis he was anathematized in the council of Ephesus in 431 A.D. In the council his friends were absent and Nestorius refused to attend as his enemy Cyril presided at the council and had power to rule it. Nestorius then united himself with the Syrian church whose doctrines agreed with his own. He soon became a prominent leader among this sect and the name Nestorians was given to the sect by enemies. Many learned men in the Syrian church of to-day are not willing to be called by this name. Not because they reject any of Nestorius"s doctrine but because they say it is not right for a nation to be called after the name of a stranger. But most uneducated people glory in being called Nestorians. The true origin of the Nestorians was in the old a.s.syrian nation. The a.s.syrians were descendants of Arphaxad the son of Shem.
THEIR PLACE.
They originally dwelt in or near the cradle of mankind, in eastern Mesopotamia, a.s.syria and Syria. At times their empire extended nearly to Babylon and Nineveh and the great empire of a.s.syria was established.
LANGUAGE.
All a.s.syrian scholars believe or suppose that the original language spoken before the confusion of tongues was a.s.syrian, while some other scholars believe it was the Hebrew language. It is believed that in time it will be generally agreed that a.s.syrian was the original language. It is evident that Abraham was a descendant of Aber, grandson of Arphaxad, third son of Shem. The a.s.syrian language was spoken in purity until the time of Abraham. When he left his parents by command of G.o.d to dwell in Canaan and Egypt it is an inevitable truth that Abraham spoke the language of his a.s.syrian parents. But when he dwelt in Canaan and Egypt his speech became mixed with words of those languages. The Old Testament was written by this confused language of a.s.syria and Egypt which was called holy language. Therefore we see names in the Old Testament both of a.s.syrian and the mixed language of Abraham.
CHAPTER II.
THEIR HISTORY.
St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew from the twelve apostles, and the St.
Eddi and St. Maree from the seventy apostles have been called the apostles of a.s.syria. Their first patriarch was St. Maree whose residence was in Ktispon on the river Tigris which was for a long time capital of the Sa.s.sanites dynasty. St. Maree expired in A.D. 82. After his death his disciples went to Jerusalem and chose Abriz as their patriarch. He served from A.D. 90 to 107. After Abriz from A.D. 130 to 132, Abraham, a relative of the apostle James, became their patriarch.
His successor was James, a just man, and a relative of the Virgin Mary, mother of our Lord. Akhad Abowoy became their patriarch from 205 to 220. During this period there was a severe war between the Romans and Persians. The latter then ruled over Persia, a.s.syria and Babylonia. The patriarch of Jerusalem, a subject of Rome, advised the a.s.syrians who were under the Parthians to elect a patriarch who was a subject of the Parthians. The Parthians ruled over Persia from 220 B.C. until 226 A.D.
In all the changes of government the a.s.syrians have kept in office a succession of patriarchs even to the present time. The residence of their first Patriarch was in Ktispon and since that time at various places as Baghdad, Babel, Nineveh, Mosoel and for a long time at Elkosh, the town of the prophet Nahum. He now resides in Kurdiston mountain in the village of Kudshanoos. His home is located on a hill surrounded by much beautiful scenery. The church in which Marshimon administers is called St. Ruben, a building made of granite.
[Ill.u.s.tration: NESTORIAN ARCHBISHOP.]
CHAPTER III.
CLERGY.
The a.s.syrian church believe they have an apostolic succession from St.
Thomas and St. Bartholomew. There are seven orders in the clergy. The patriarch, metropolitan, episcopas, archdeacon, elder, deacon and reader.
The first three are forbidden marriage. The eating of meat is prohibited but fish, b.u.t.ter and eggs can be used. In olden times the presence of twelve metropolitans was required at the ordination of a patriarch, but to-day they require only four metropolitans and a few episcopas. The patriarch ordains the metropolitans and episcopas and these in turn ordain the lower clergy. It is the duty of the patriarch to overlook the entire church. Much of his time is also taken up in sending messages to Kurdish priests and to Turkish officials about wrongs that have been committed against his people. The patriarch is highly respected and his messages receive prompt attention. His income consists of a small annual fee of five to twenty cents from all the men who belong to his sect. Fifty years ago it was a custom for elders to marry a virgin and not a widow. This custom is not observed now. They have seven orders of monks. In ancient times these were the strength of the church. The monks are pure men and learned. There are a few nuns, one of the most faithful of whom is a sister of the present patriarch.
CHAPTER IV.
CHURCHES AND ORDINANCES.
THEIR FAITH.
Their faith as it is described in some ancient MSS about 500 years old was entirely evangelical. They believed in the trinity, G.o.d the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three persons, equal in power and nature, working together for the salvation of mankind. Some western historians have made the error of stating that the a.s.syrians deny the divinity of Christ or believe that He has two personalities.
From the beginning until the present time they have believed in the merit of saints. Their clergy does not claim the power to forgive sins.
They accept the creed of the apostles and it is recited by the clergy and by religious men. Many days of fasting are observed, as fifty days before Easter, twenty-five days before Christmas, and others. On these days old people take no food until noon. In times of persecution their schools and books were destroyed and the people became ignorant.
Catholics introduced among them their literature which changed prevailing doctrines.
THEIR CHURCHES.
Many of their churches are built of stone while others are made of brick and clay. Some of the buildings are 1300 years old and will stand many years to come. The walls are about eight feet thick at the base gradually tapering toward the top. In the older churches the doors are quite low and it is necessary for a man to stoop in entering. It is believed by some that the doors were built in this way that the church might be used as a place of refuge, rolling stones in the doorway after entering. Others say the object was to prevent horses, cattle and other animals from entering. These churches are regarded as most sacred places and are called houses of G.o.d. There is an interior stairway leading to the roof, which is necessary for repairing the roof or shoveling off snow. The yard in front of a church is shaded with elm-trees; the yard is used as a graveyard. Extending from each corner of the roof is a pair of horns from a wild goat, which is a sign of sacrifice. There is a small room in the rear of the building which is called the most holy place. In this room the priests carry on certain ceremonies and no other people are allowed to enter it at any time.
Before this room is a small pulpit on which are placed a cross, Bible, and other ceremonial books. The only windows are a few small openings just below the room. Candles are burned during hours of service to light the room, and incense is burned as a ceremonial and to produce a pleasing odor. There are no pictures on the walls but there are some decorations in the way of finely embroidered silk towels brought by some of the worshipers. Reading Scripture and prayer-book, and chanting Psalms are the main features of worship. There is no music except a number of small bells on the walls which the worshipers ring as they enter the building. The audience sits on the floor or stands through the service.
a.s.syrians believe the two chief ordinances are the Lord"s supper and baptism. The ordaining of priests and marriage are ordinances that rank next in importance.
Baptism is administered by bishops and elders. All the children of a member are baptized by immersing three times. Some believe that baptism regenerates a child, while others say it will have a good effect provided the parents give the child proper training thereafter.
The Lord"s supper is administered with much ritual on festival days such as Easter, Christmas and Ascension day. This ceremony is more highly honored than any other ordinance as it commemorates the death and victory of Christ. Both wine and bread are used. A few years ago (and even now in some places) it was a custom to make the bread and wine from gleanings brought in from the fields and vineyards by virgins. This was considered pure and more acceptable as it had belonged to no man. They do not believe with the Catholics that the bread and wine become the flesh and blood of Christ, but they put much emphasis on these ingredients after the same have been consecrated.
They are then holy.
On the night previous to communion day, the priest and deacons go to the church shortly after midnight and entering into the most holy place, make the bread for use on the next day. The priest himself kneads the dough. This bread is considered more sacred than that made in the ordinary way. After the bread has been made, the remainder of the night is spent in chanting psalms, Scripture and prayer-book. An hour before sunrise the people flock to the church. When the church is full of worshipers the priest mounts the pulpit, chants the sacred words for an hour or more. The audience remains in perfect silence until he reaches the end of a psalm or the end of the service, when all the people say "Amen." The priest and a deacon stand in the pulpit to administer the sacrament. Communicants come forward one by one and the priest puts a small piece of bread in their mouths, and the deacon gives the wine. Children under seven years of age do not partake of the sacrament. On these occasions the priest and deacon wear long white robes of silk or cotton, tied about with a long silk girdle. A turban is worn on the head.
CHAPTER V.
a.s.sYRIAN OR NESTORIAN COLLEGE.
The golden age of this church was the period from the fourth to the thirteenth century. They had twenty-five flourishing colleges. The most important schools were located at Oddessa, Nesibis, and Urhai. The latter was called the queen of schools. These schools, while they flourished, were the secret of the churches" strength. The instructors were the most learned men of their age. Aiwaz and St. Basil of Nesibis and Urhai were among the most learned teachers. The a.s.syrian, Arabic and Greek languages were taught cla.s.sically. Medicine, astronomy, and mathematics including geometry were taught. Especial attention was given to the study of theology. There were as many as 2,000 monks and students in some of these inst.i.tutions. Their doctors of medicine were given high positions under the Arabian and Persian governments.
Literature in the eastern languages was rich. From these schools came great church fathers who defended the church from the heretics of the age. There is one MSS 900 years old in the library of the Presbyterian Mission which is called "Persecuted Simon." It was written by Simon, a student in one of these colleges. It contains twelve lectures all against the heretics of his age. During that period about 700 such MSS were written. There are to-day in Europe many MSS written by these scholars that are from 300 to 1500 years old. The New Testament was translated into the a.s.syrian language in the middle of the second century. These MSS are skillfully executed and show the beauty and antiquity of this church. Only three of these ancient MSS are now to be found in Persia, but there are many of them scattered in the libraries of Europe.
CHAPTER VI.
a.s.sYRIAN MISSIONARY SPIRIT.
The aim of the schools mentioned in the preceding chapter was to educate monks to become missionaries and spread the gospel. These schools were fountains from which flowed living waters for a thirsty land. There was no other nation in their age that possessed such a spirit of Christian vitality. Zeal for the spread of the gospel was burning in their hearts as a divine flame. There was a cla.s.s of bishops appointed by their leaders to awaken and keep alive this missionary spirit. "The dying love of Christ for sinners" was the text from which they preached. Also His last commission to His disciples, Matt. 28:19, 20. These bishops preached with an inspiration from G.o.d, and enflamed many hearts until they were ready to sacrifice their lives for Christ.
These missionaries wore sandals on the feet, carried a staff of peace in the hand, and a knapsack on the shoulder containing bread and ma.n.u.scripts of sacred writing. Thus equipped, they journeyed into heathen lands, following the command of their Nazarene teacher. The church was very poor and had no board of foreign missions to guarantee even a small income. The missionaries went forth trusting in their heavenly Father. If He took care of the birds of the air, how much more would He care for the heralds of His gospel. The week before departure was spent in fasting and prayer and consecration. On the last day they partook of communion from the hand of their leader, and solemn advice was given by the bishop. In parting the bishop kissed the missionary"s brow, and the latter kissed the bishop"s hand; and the bishop would say: "The Lord G.o.d of the prophets and apostles be with you; the love of Christ defend you; the Holy Spirit sanctify and continually comfort you." Some of the missionaries went to distant lands, requiring eight to twelve months to make the journey on foot. They worked in China, India, Tatariston, Persia, Bloogistan, Afghanistan, and northern Africa. Success followed their work. In the territory between China and Tatariston, they converted 200,000 heathen. Not long ago a monument was unearthed in China which had been set about 600 years ago by one of these pioneers of the cross. On it were engraved the names of many of their leaders, and also the creed, doctrine of the Trinity, and incarnation of Christ. They established twenty-five churches in northern Persia. In southern India is a small church planted at that time. These followers are now called the disciples of St. Thomas, and sometimes their young priests come to Persia to be ordained by the patriarch, who resides in the Kurdiston mountains. This spirit which was shining as the sun in heaven began to languish in the tenth century, and by the fourteenth century had entirely died. At that time some of the church"s true sons in lamentation said: "How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!" Hundreds of their missionaries had become martyrs of Christ in a heroic spirit. They would enter fire singing praises to G.o.d, believing their shed blood would be the seed of the church.
CHAPTER VII.
THEIR PERSECUTIONS.