SCORPION

St. Irenaeus hints at the necessity of instruction before Baptism, as in the case
of Philip and the Eunuch, in these words : " Nothing else but Baptism was want-
ing to him who had already been instructed by the prophets ; he was not ignorant
of God the Father, nor of the rules of proper life, but was merely ignorant of the
advent of the Son of God."* This advent of the Son of God was part of the great
mystery, according to St. Paul, (I. Tim. iii. i6;) and St. Cyril of Jerusalem, in his
fourth Catechetical Lecture, speaks of the esoteric doctrine thus: '*To hear the
Gospel, is indeed permitted to all ; but the glory of the Gospel is set apart for
Christ's genuine disciples only. The Lord spake in parables to those who would not
hear; but privately explained these parables and similitudes to His disciples. The
fulness of the glory belongs to those who are already illuminated ; the blindness is
that of unbelievers. These mysteries the Church communicates to him who is going
out of the class of catechumens. Nor is it customary to reveal them to the heathen ;
for we do not tell to any heathen the secret mysteries concerning the Father, and
the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Neither do we openly and plainly speak of them
among the catechumens, but only in a covert and secret manner, so that the faithful
who know them may not be injured." And St. Basil the Great, in speaking of cer-
tain rites of the Church appertaining to Baptism and the Eucharist, which he
claims were received by tradition from the Apostles, says expressly that they were
guarded in reverent silence and dignity from all intrusion of the profane and unin-
itiated, so that they might not fall into contempt."

Clement of Alexandria speaks of the necessity of hiding in a mystery the wis-
dom which the Son of God has taught ; of the hindrances which there were in his

> Cent, Celsum, Book I. e. 7. * Adv. Her, Book IV. c aj.

^DeSpiritu Sancto, c. 27, pp. 311-12. Lipsise, 1854.



Disciplina Arcani: The Mysteries. 8i

day in the way of his writing about this wisdom, lest he should cast pearls before
swine ; of the reason why the Christian Mysteries were celebrated at night, like the
Pagan ones, because then the soul, released from the dominion of the senses, turns
in upon itself, and has a truer intelligence ; of the mystery of God hid for ages
under allegory and prophecy, but as now revealed by Jesus Christ ; and which St.
Paul would only speak of among such as were perfect, giving milk to babes, and
meat to men of understanding; and of these mysteries as entered upon through the
tradition of the Lord, u e.^ by means of Baptism and Divine illumination.*

In this account of the Christian Mysteries there must be included the allusions
made to them by Christ and His Apostles in the New Testament. There was
something in them to be sought after most diligently, asked for most importu-
nately, dug for as for hidden treasure, implying the stern and awful truth that these
secret things could not and would not be forced upon the vicious, idle, inattentive,
and frivolous portion of mankind who cared nothing about them. Twenty-eight
times are the words Mystery and Mysteries used in the New Testament, in such
various ways as these : ** Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the King-
dom of Heaven, but to them it is not given," (St. Matt. xiii. ii ; Mark iv. ii ;
Luke viii. lo ;) This mystery, viz. : the temporary rejection of Israel, (Rom. xi. 25 ;)
The revelation of the mystery which was kept secret since the world began, (Rom.
xvi. 25 ;) The testimony or mystery of God, i, ^., the Gospel of salvation, (I. Cor. ii.

1 ;) The wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, (I. Cor. ii. 7 ;) Stewards
of the mysteries of God, (I. Cor. iv. i ;) Understand all mysteries, (I. Cor. xiii.

2 ;) In the spirit he speaketh mysteries, (I. Cor. xiv. 2 ;) I show you a mystery, (1.
Cor. XV. 51 ;) The mystery of His will, (Eph. i. 9 ;) By revelation he made known
to me the mystery ; the mystery of Christ, (Eph. iii. 3 and 4 ;) Fellowship of the
mystery hid in God from the beginning. Who created all things by Jesus Christ, i. e,,
the world and the church, by which the manifold wisdom of God might be made
known, (Eph. iii. 9 and 10 ;) This is a great mystery, i. e., Christ and His Church
like husband and wife, (Eph. v. 32 ;) Mystery of the Gospel, (Eph. vi. 19 ;) The
mystery hid from ages and from generations, (Col. i. 26 ;) The riches of the glory
of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you the hope of glory, (Col.
i. 27;) The acknowledgment of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of
Christ, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, (Col. ii. 2 and
3 ;) To speak the mystery of Christ, (Col. iv. 3 ;) The mystery of iniquity, (II. Thes.
ii. 7;) Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience, (I. Tim. iii.9 ;) Great
is the mystery of godliness, (I. Tim. iii. 16;) The mystery of the seven stars, and of

* Sirontaia, Books I. c. 12 ; IV. c. 22 ; V. cc. 9 and 10 ; VII. c 17.
11



82 Monumental Christianity.

the seven golden candlesticks, /. e., the seven bishops, and seven churches of Asia
Minor ; (Rev. i. 20 ;) The mystery of God should be finished ; (Rev. x. 7 ;) Mystery,
Babylon the Great ; (Rev. xvii. 5 ;) The mystery of the woman. (Rev. xvii. 7.)

With but three exceptions, then, all this mystery relates to God, to Christ, to
the Gospel, and to the Church. It is the whole doctrine of God's existence and
manifestation, from first to last. And to teach all this great doctrine was the special
object of the Primitive Church in her Disciplina arcani, precisely as it was the prim-
ary object of the Pagan Mysteries. The great and only difference between them
was, that the Christian Mysteries were for all who desired the Divine knowledge,
without distinction ; while the Pagan Mysteries were restricted to a few. The one
transcendent mystery as to the being of God is that of the Trinity, the grand secret
imparted at Baptism ; and allied with this is that other great mystery of the Divine
manifestation on earth in the Incarnation of the Son of God, involving as it does
the whole question of human redemption in soul and body as symbolized in the
Sacraments of the Church, which are the main channels of gr.ce to mankind.

There can be no doubt, therefore, that besides the grand secret as to the Trin-
ity preserved in the Christian Mysteries, like the mystic AUM of the ancient Hindus,
which was only thought of in reverent silence, and never audibly pronounced, there
was equal reserve as to the doctrine of the Eucharist, to which none but the /////-
minatiy or such as had been baptized and anointed, or confirmed, were ever
admitted. The Competentes were such as had undergone their preparation for Bap-
tism. So that there were three general classes of Christians in the Primitive
Church, viz., the Catechumens, the Competentes, and the Illuminati, or Mystae, or
Faithful. Not only was the Eucharist guarded from all intrusion of the Pagans,
but even the different grades of catechumens were not permitted to be present at
its celebration. Whether or not the doctrine of Christ's real presence in the Eu-
charist, or Transubstantiation, was then taught, we have no definite means of ascer-
taining, the assertions of an "Irish Gentleman in Search of a Religion," to the con-
trary notwithstanding.' The reserve on this question is entirely too close to open !
The monuments are no more explicit than the Fathers are. But for all this there
was something mysterious about the Eucharist as related to the Incarnation
and Resurrection of Christ, and His union with the church, which could only be
appreciated by the highest exercise of faith ; and therefore none but the faithful
were admitted to the high privilege of its participation. No explanation of it is
given by the Fathers ; no explanation appears in the monuments. It still remains

*Tom Moore's, vol. I. oc. 12 and 13. 2nd Ed. Longman's, 1833. For another account see G. S. Faber's
" Apostolicity of Trinitarianism** vol. I. c. 8. London, 1832,



Disciplina Arcani: The Mysteries. 83

where the Lord left it,a profound mystery, like the union of soul and body, spirit
and matter, God and man, Christ and His Church.

It is very seldom, indeed, that either the doctrine of the Trinity or the celebra-
tion of the Eucharist appears in the monuments of the Primitive Church ; and the
reason is so well given by a French writer on the subject, that I cannot forbear to
cite it: "The rule of the Secret Discipline applied as well to the monuments as to
the catechumens, u ^., the law of prudence and reserve, not to divulge the secrets
of Christianity. Epitaphs, sculptures, and paintings had to be equally reserved as
to these mysteries as oral teaching was, because the rule was established when the
Christian assemblies took refuge in the Catacombs. Two views of this law of
secrecy here present themselves, (i.) That the Secret Discipline prescribed great
caution in the monuments themselves, because the Church so precisely observed
the rules prescribed for the gradual instruction of the catechumens. It is true that
those of the first class, called Day scholars {fxternes), were not permitted to enter
the churches; but this exclusion did not apply to the other classes. The second
class, viz. : that of hearers {audttores\ could remain in the churches with the congre-
gation of the faithful to hear the reading of .some parts of Holy Scripture and their
exposition, after which they retired. The privilege of remaining there longer, and
of uniting in the common prayers, was accorded, with some restrictions, to the
class called Prostrates or Prostrants. When the time came for them to depart, the
Competentes, or class of the Elect continued some time longer praying in the
interior of the church ; but they could not assist at the most sacred part of
the mysteries. If the churches of the Catacombs were too small to be constantly
used for the simultaneous reunions of the faithfdl and the catechumens, this mate-
rial obstacle, though opposed to the entire execution of the rule, did not destroy
the rule itself which authorized these classes of catechumens to enter the churches
when they were not otherwise occupied by the faithful. With greater reason these
reunions ought to take place in the sepulchral chapels ornamented with paintings
and epitaphs. But if these paintings and epitaphs had there revealed, in any ex-
plicit manner, the doctrines which could not orally be communicated to the cate-
chumens, then the law of the Secret Discipline would have been violated, by tracing
on the walls those truths which could only be taught them where they had the
right to be admitted. At the same time it is very possible that the right conferred
upon them by the general rules of the Discipline, had not been in habitual use
within the innermost recesses of the Catacombs. The churches, or the chapels, by
reason of their small dimensions, having thus been for the exclusive use of the
faithful, special places had to be assigned in other parts of the Catacombs for the
meetings of the catechumens. Whatever probability may attach to this opinion,



84 Monumental Christianity.

it is not necessary to conclude from it that the paintings and inscriptions could, for
this reason, be free from the reserve recommended by the law of the Secret Dis-
cipline. For when the catechumens were admitted into the Catacombs, it might
happen that, in spite of the established order, they would from time to time pene-
trate into the corridors, into the sepulchral chambers even, where the paintings and
inscriptions would reveal to them prematurely certain doctrines, if these doctrines
had there been clearly expressed.

(2.) The other view is that the Christians feared the Pagans would enter these
sacred subterraneans, which did happen more than once. But whatever may have
been the motive of these incidental precautions, it is enough to say, that the gen-
eral spirit of the rules followed them in the matter of the Liturgy, and forces the
conviction that this spirit imperiously preserved a great prudence or secrecy as to
the monuments of Christian piety. The Liturgy, or at least its most integral part,
was so secret that it was not committed to the most confidential writings. A letter
of Pope Innocent L furnishes the most decisive proof of this. A certain bishop
named Decentius consulted the Pontiff upon the rites of the Sacraments, and this
answer was made, viz., "That instead of asking for explanations in writing about
the secret things, he should have contented himself, during his sojourn at Rome,
with observing what took place in the celebration of the Mysteries, at which he had
several times assisted.*' * Nevertheless, the Pontiff answered on some points of
the Ritual, yet preserved the greatest reticence on others. " You assure me,** he
says. " that some of your priests wish to give themselves the blessing of peace, and
to have it given to the people, before the consecration of the Mysteries, when it
must be given after all those things about which I cannot write." Again he says,
" As to the other things about which we are not permitted to write, you will ask
us when you come here, and we will be able to answer. A written communication
would betray the secret.*' ¦

Such then was the order followed at the beginning of the fifth century, at a
time when publicity would have caused much less inconvenience than before, and
when society almost entirely was on the eve of professing Christianity. Why then
this secret of the Liturgy, if it did not contain some doctrinal matter?" And how
then could the Church, in times of persecution, resolve to paint on the walls of its
chapels, a permanent declaration of those things which she refused to entrust to
the letters which she addressed, not only to private Christians, but to bishops, after
the triumph of Christianity — letters which could have been destroyed, if necessary,

* Innocent I. was the thirty-ninth bishop of Rome, during the time of the younger Theodosius, A.D, 402-17.

• Migne*s Patrology, tom. XX. p. 51. Res. ad Dicentium.

' Rothe insists upon it that the Sacraments were secret only dogmatically, De Dis, Arcan, p 20, c. ZI,



Disciplina Arcani: The Mysteries. 85

or placed in the sacred archives? On the other hand, the sacred monuments could
not wholly abstain from all expression of some religious truth. Has the Church
ever been able to construct sepulchres and oratories without that Christian senti-
ment which feels the need of stamping them with the seal of her Faith ? The
utility of a language that speaks to the eyes, and which leaves such a lively impres-
sion on the soul, makes itself felt in all times. Christianity is not only composed
of the sentiments which it excites in the heart ; it also includes truths lodged in
the mind, in order to be the controlling principles of these feelings and sentiments.
Yet both seek expression as much as possible through all the means of outward
manifestation which God has put at human disposal. The Primitive Church, as
we shall see, meant thus to make her Christian Art ser\'e as the exponent of her
Faith, and the expression of her piety. This law of manifestation modified the law
of secrecy. Its two needs thus reciprocally restricted it, and made some agree-
ment necessary. This conciliation would conduce to the adoption of symbolical
signs, which painting, above all, was the proper medium of furnishing. Symbolism
is a veiled expression. The pictures invested with symbolical characteristics, were
so traced on the walls as to reveal truth, and yet not indiscreetly divulge it. Sym-
bolism, then, was obligatory. We might affirm that it must have existed, even
though its existence could not be actually established.

But besides this. Christian antiquity has left us, beyond these obviously em-
blematic signs and images, a monument by which we may determine the meaning
of symbols, in the lettered inscriptions which often accompany them. Thus the
word Petrus^ written on a glass painted with a representation of Moses striking the
rock, may refer to Baptism, Peter being to the new dispensation what Moses was
to the old. A simple method seems to have been adopted by the piety of early
Christianity of attaching a doctrinal meaning to certain miracles which made it un-
necessary to go outside of Scriptural facts to learn or understand the doctrines.
Thus the miracle of the healing of the man born blind furnishes a figurative repre-
sentation of Baptismal Regeneration, by which man passes from darkness to light.
The healing of the Paralytic signifies the remission of sins committed after Baptism.
The manna which nourished God's people in the desert, and the miracle of the
multiplication of bread, furnish an emblem of the Eucharist. To the initiated these
analogies were so striking that it would have been impossible to create, by any
effort of the imagination, a symbolism more satisfactory, so to speak, than that
which they found already made and furnished in the Bible itself. On the other
hand, these pictures did not betray the secrets of initiation and of the Liturgy.
If they had a doctrinal meaning for those who were fully initiated in the Christian
Mysteries, they only afforded to others some of the historical features of religion,



86 Monumental Christianity.

some miraculous facts, which would create no disorder, and which the Christians
used in their discussions with the Pagans themselves. This system of paintings,
therefore, which revealed the doctrines of Christianity to the initiated, and covered
them as with a pious veil from all others, was then called for by the two needs of
the Church, which she had to satisfy, viz., secrecy and edification, a two-fold rule
which she herself prescribed." *

I have no doubt that these two needs of the Primitive Church modified the
Secret Discipline, making it more rigid at some times than others ; but of its exist-
ence from the beginning, in some form, there can be no doubt whatever. If the
Pagan Mysteries preserved what little pure knowledge of God, of immortality, and
of the doctrine of future rewards and punishments there was left in the heathen
world, so are we much more indebted to the Christian Mysteries and symbols of
the Primitive Church for all our superior knowledge of these, and other vital sub-
jects.

' " Esquisse de Rome Chr/tienne," by Mgr. Ph. Gerbet, Bishop of Perpignan, vol. II. c 8. 5th Ed. Paris.
1866. The Primitive Liturgies were wholly restricted to the Eucharist.