moneri voce voluifti: Moyfis libri quinque, &c. Cætera autem quæ vel fub nomine Matthæi five Jacobi Minoris, vel fub nomine Petri & Joannis, quæ a quodam Leucio fcripta funt, &c. non folum repudianda, verum noveris effe damnanda. are they, concerning which you defired to be informed, viz. The five books of Mofes, &c. But as for those which go under the name of Matthew, or James the Lefs, or under the name of Peter and John, which were wrote by one Leucius, know, that they are not only to be rejected, but condemned. Whether these words will prove that Leucius was the author of these books under the name of James, or whether they only affert those ascribed to Peter and John to have been written by Leucius, is not very easy to determine. The former appeared moft probable to Dr. Milla, and perhaps not without reafon, if we confider, that this Leucius was the author of a great many forgeries under the Apoftle's name, as will appear fully hereafter under the letter L. Although therefore there is nothing more particular known concerning these books, yet from what is faid, it is plain, they were spurious, and confequently Apocryphal by Prop. IV, V, and VI. It may perhaps be objected, that Leucius cannot be fuppofed to be the author of these books, and confequently that Epiphanius and Pope Innocent do not mean the fame, because the former fays, they were forged by the Ebionites, but it does not appear that Leucius was one of this fort. To which I fhall think it enough to answer, that Leucius feems to have formed his books with defign to be received by all forts of hereticks, and, therefore, mixed the peculiar principles of each most celebrated party together in them; whence, as the incomparable and most excellent writer among the antients, I mean Photius, the Patriarch of Conftantinople, obferves, his forgeries are full of foolish and filly contradictions, and he may be justly esteemed as the fource or author of every heresy. Numb. XXVI. The ACTS of JOHN the APOSTLE. F thefe fpurious Acts there is frequent mention in the old Chriftian writers, who lived within the limits of my time; but inasmuch as they appear evidently to have been the forgery of Leucius, I fhall refer the confideration of them to their proper place under the name Leucius in the letter L. Numb. XXVII. Other BOOKS under the Name of JOHN. THESE appearing to have been compofed by the fame person with the former, fhall be confidered in the fame place. Numb. XXVIII. The GOSPEL of JUDAS ISCARIOT. THIS Apocryphal book is mentioned by Irenæus and Epiphanius, as peculiar to one of the moft monftrous and inconsistent sects, who ever took upon them the Christian name. The account given by Irenæus is as follows 2. Alii autem rurfus Cain a fuperiore principalitate dicunt; & Efau & Core & Sodomitas, & omnes tales cognatos fuos confitentur, & propter hoc a Factore impugnatos neminem ex eis male acceptos: Sophia enim illud, quod proprium ex ea erat, abripiebat ex eis ad femetipfam. Et hæc Judam proditorem diligenter cognoviffe dicunt, & folum præ cæteris cognofcentem veritatem ■ Adv. Hæref. lib. 1. c. 35. I fupply this word out of Theodoret, fome word being neceffary But there are other hereticks, who fay, Cain (was delivered b) by a Heavenly Power, and who acknowledge Efau, Corah, and the Sodomites as their pattern (or kindred), who though they were fought against by the Creator, yet received no damage thereby: for Wisdom took from them whatever belonged to it. These things, they say, Judas, who betrayed Chrift, careful to be fupplied to make the sentence perfect. perfeciffe perfeciffe proditionis myfteri- ly obtained the knowledge of; um; per quem & terrena & cæleftia omnia diffoluta dicunt, & confictionem afferunt hujufmodi, Judæ Evangelium illud vocantes. and as he was the only one of the Apostles who knew the truth, he accomplished the mystery of betraying Christ. By him (viz. Judas) they say, all things in heaven and earth were diffolved; and agreeable to these sentiments they próduce a certain forgery, which they call the Gospel of Judas. a Epiphanius discourfing of these fame hereticks relates much the fame thing as Irenæus, and in the fame myftical unintelligible language; of which he in like manner fays, they affirmed Judas to have had a perfect knowledge; adding, Καὶ τέτον γὰρ θέλεσιν εἶναι γράμματα ὡσαύτως πλάτ]ον- That they will have him to be their relation, and efteem him to have obtained extraordinary knowledge, inasmuch as they produce a certain book under his name, which they call the Gofpel of Judas; be fides, they have forged many pther fuch writings, &c. Mr. Toland has not failed to adorn his catalogue of Books, which he would perfuade us are as valuable as any now received, with the title of this Gospel he has introduced it thus: That none of the Apostles might be thought unable to write a Gofpel, we find one alledged by the Caianites, a fect of the Gnofticks, under the name of Judas Iscariot. Artfully faid indeed! A set of impious, beaftly, prophane wretches, abandoned to all the exceffes of vice and immorality, forged a piece under the name of Judas; and this is to be ranked in the fame class with those which contain the fublime doctrines and holy precepts of Christianity! But let us a little see what sort of perfons these Caianites were: They called the Creator of all things Hyftera, and wrote several books against him; they affirmed, no man could be faved, who did not make trial of all forts of vice; accordingly they reckoned it virtue to commit the most notorious immoralities and crimes; and feigning to themselves a great number of Angels, they attributed to each a particular fin, which when they were about to commit, they invoked that Angel's regard and patronage: they applauded the action of Judas in betraying Chrift, &c. Such were their ridiculous fentiments; from whence it is easy to form a notion of their Gospel, and to see reason to reject it. See Prop. IV, V, VI, and especially VIII. and IX. a He who has a mind, may read this, and more of the fame ridicu lous kind, in the places of Irenæus and Epiphanius last cited. CHAP. CHAP. XXI. The Acts of the Apostles under the Names of Leucius, Lentitius, Leontius, and Leuthon, proved to be one and the fame Book, because these were all the fame Perfon's Name corruptly written. They contained the Acts of John, Andrew, Thomas, Peter, Paul, James, and others. Their Spurioufnefs proved. Leucius their Author lived in the fourth Century. His Principles and Tenets. A Remark on Dr. Mill's Greek Teftament. Leucius and Leonides the fame Name. Leonides proved to be a corrupt Writing inftead of Leucius. Nexocharis or Xenocharis proved to be a corrupt Way of writing Charinus, the Surname of Leucius. Numb, XXIX. The ACTS of the APOSTLES by LEUCIUS. Numb. XXX. The ACTS of the APOSTLES by LENTITIUS. Numb. XXXI. The ACTS of the APOSTLES by LEONTIUS. Numb. XXXII. The ACTS of the APOSTLES by LEUTHON. Numb. XXXIII. The BOOKS of LENTITIUS. ACH of these differing titles being to be found in the antient writings, I thought it most agreeable to my defign to produce them distinctly, though they are unquestionably only mistaken writings of the fame person's name, viz. Leucius. I fhall, according to my method, first produce the places, and then form the best judgment of them which I can. The first is that of, I. St. Austin, who gives the following account of the Acts under the Apostles' names written by Leucius, received by the Manichees a. a Lib. de Fid. cont. Manich, c. 38. Multum |