This union of the body and blood of Chrift with the, bread after confecration, is, by the Lutherans, called confubftantiation. The Calvinifts hold, on the contrary, that the man Christ is only prefent in this ordinance, by the external figns of bread and wine. III. They differ in their doctrine of the eternal decrees of God, refpecting man's falvation. The Lutherans maintain, that the divine decrees, respecting the falvation and mifery of men, are founded upon a previous knowledge of their fentiments and characters. The Calvinifts, on the contrary, confider the divine decrees as free and unconditional. [See Calvinifts.] [For an account of the particulars, in which Luther' differed from Zuinglius, fee Zuinglians.] The Lutherans are generally divided into the moderate and the rigid. The Moderate Lutherans are thofe, who fubmitted to the Interim,t publifhed by the Emperor Charles V. Melanchthon was the head of this party. They were called Aliaphorifts. The Rigid Lutherans are thofe, who would not endure any change in their mafter's fentiments. Matthias Flacius was the head of this party. To thefe are added another divifion, called LutheroZuinglians, because they held fome of Luther's tenets, and fome of Zuinglius's. The Lutherans are alfo fubdivided into a variety of denominations. [See Amfdorfians, Calixtins, Flacians, Ofiandrians, Synergifts, and Ubiquitarians.] [For Luther himself frongly maintained the doctrines of grace, original fin, and predeftination. Hence they have been called, the doctrines of the Reformation. But as the Lutherans afterwards abandoned them, they are now generally known by the name of Calviniflic doctrines. This was a name given to a confeffion of faith, enjoined upon the Protef tants after the death of Luther, by the Emperor Charles the Vth. It was fo called, because it was only to take place in the interim, till a general council should decide all the points in question between the Catholics and Protestants. L [For an account of the extent of the Lutherans, fee Part II.] Luther on Galatians, p. 142, 144. History of Popery, vol. i. p. 226. Mofheim's Ecclefiaftical History, vol. iii. p. 331. vol. iv. p. 108, 109. Robertfon's History of Charles V. vol. ii. p. 42. Broughton's Hiftorical Library, vol. ii. p. 33, 36. Priestley's Corruption of Christianity, vol. i. p. 320, MA ACEDONIANS, a denomination, which arose in the fourth century; fo called from Macedonius, bishop of Conftantinople. He confidered the Holy Ghost as a divine energy, diffused throughout the univerfe, and not as a diftinct perfon proceeding from the Father and the Son. Mofheim's Ecclefiaftical History, vol. i. p. 346. MANICHEANS, a denomination founded by one Manes or Manicheus, in the third century, and fettled in many provinces. He was a Perfian by birth, educated among the Magi, and himself one of the number, before he embraced Chriftianity. His genius was vigorous and fublime, but redundant and ungoverned. He attempted a coalition of the doctrine of the Magi, with the Chriftian fyftem, or rather the explication of the one by the other; and in order to fucceed in the enterprize, affirmed, that Chrift had left the doctrine of falvation imperfect and unfinished; and that he was the Comforter, whom the departing Saviour had promifed to his difciples, to lead them into all truth. The principles of Manes are comprehended in the following fummary : That there are two principles, from which all things proceed; the one, à most pure and fubtle matter, called light; and the other, a grofs and corrupt fubftance, called darkness. Each of these are fubject to the dominion of a fuperintending Being, whofe exiftence is from all eternity. The Being, who prefides over the light, is call ed ed GoD: He that rules the land of darkness, bears the title of Hyle, or Demon. The Ruler of the light is fupremely happy, and in confequence thereof, benevolent and good. The prince of darkness is unhappy in himself, and defiring to render others partakers of his mifery, is evil and malignant. Thefe two beings have produced an immenfe multitude of creatures, refembling themselves, and diftributed them through their refpective provinces. The prince of darkness knew not, for a long feries of ages, that light exifted in the univerfe; and no fooner perceived it, by means of a war kindled in his dominions, than he bent his endeavours towards the fubjecting of it to his empire. The Ruler of the light oppofed to his efforts an army, commanded by the firft man, but not with the highest fuccefs; for the generals of the prince of darkness seized upon a confiderable portion of the celestial elements, and of the light itself, and mingled them in the mafs of corrupt matter. The fecond general of the Ruler of the light, whofe name was the Living Spirit, made war with more fuccefs against the prince of darkness, but could not entirely difengage the pure particles of the celestial matter, from the corrupt mafs, through which they had been difperfed. The prince of darkness, after his defeat, produced the first parents of the human race. The beings, engendered from this original stock, confist of a body, formed out of the corrupt matter of the kingdom of darkness, and of two fouls, one of which is fenfitive and luftful, and owes its existence to the evil principle; the other, rational and immortal, a particle of that divine light, which was carried away by the army of darkness, and immerfed into the mafs of malignant matter. Mankind, being thus formed by the prince of darkness, and those minds, that were the productions of the eternal light, being united to their mortal bodies, God created the earth out of the corrupt mafs of matter, by that living Spirit, who had vanquished the prince of darknefs. The defign of this creation was to furnish a dwelling for the L 2 human human race; to deliver, by degrees, the captive fouls from their corporeal prifons; and to extract the celestial elements from the grofs fubftance, in which they were involved. In order to carry this defign into execution, God produced two beings, of eminent dignity, from his own fubftance, which were to lend their aufpicious fuccours to imprisoned fouls. One of thefe fublime entities was Chrift, and the other the Holy Ghoft. Chrift is that glorious intelligence, which the Perfians called Mythras: He is a moft fplendid fubftance, confifting of the brightness of the eternal light; fubfifting in and by himfelf; endowed with life; enriched with infinite wifdom; and his refidence is in the fun. The Holy Ghoft is also a luminous, animated body, diffufed through every part of the atmosphere, which furrounds this terreftrial globe. This genial principle warms and illuminates the minds. of men, renders alfo the earth fruitful, and draws forth gradually from its bofom, the latent particles of celeftial fire, which it wafts up on high to their primitive station. After that the Supreme Being had, for a long time, admonifhed and exhorted the captive fouls, by the miniftry of the angels and holy men, raised up and appointed for that purpose, he ordered Chrift to leave the folar regions, and to defcend upon earth, in order to accelerate the return of thofe imprifoned fpirits to their celeftial country. In obedience to this divine command, Chrift appeared among the Jews, clothed with the fhadowy form of a human body, and not with the real substance. During his ministry, he taught mortals how to difengage the rational fouls from the corrupt body, to conquer the violence of malignant matter; and he demonftrated his divine miffion by ftupendous miracles. On the other hand, the prince of darkness used evrey method to inflame the Jews against this divine meffenger, and incited them, at length, to put him to death upon an ignominious crofs; which punishment, however, he fuffered not in reality, but only in appearance, and in the opinion of men. When Chrift had fulfilled the purposes of his miffion, he returned to his throne in the fun, and appointed a cer táin number of chofen apoftles, to propagate through the world, the religion he had taught during the course of his ministry. But before his departure, he promised, that, at a certain period of time, he would fend an apostle, fuperior to all others in eminence and dignity, whom he called the Paraclete, or Comforter, who should add many things to the precepts he had delivered, and dispel all the errors, under which his fervants laboured, with respect to divine things. This Comforter, thus exprefsly promised by Chrift, is Manes, the Perfian, who, by the order of the Moft High, declared to mortals the whole doctrine of falvation, without exception, and without concealing any of its truths under the veil of metaphor, or any other covering. Thofe fouls, who believe Jefus Chrift to be the Son of God, renounce the worship of the God of the Jews, who is the prince of darkness, obey the laws delivered by Christ, as they are enlarged and illuftrated by the Comforter, Manes, and combat, with perfevering fortitude, the lufts and appetites of a corrupt nature, derive from this faith and obedience the ineftimable advantage of being gradually purified from the contagion of matter. The total purification of fouls cannot indeed be accomplished during this mortal life. Hence it is, that the fouls of men, after death, muft pafs through two states more of probation and trial, by water and fire, before they can afcend to the regions of light. They mount, therefore, first into the moon, which consists of benign and falutary water; whence, after a luftration of fifteen days, they proceed to the fun, whofe purifying fire removes entirely all their corruption, and effaces all their ftains. The bodies, compofed of malignant matter, which they have left behind them, return to their first state, and enter into their original mass. On the other hand, those fouls, who have neglected the falutary work of their purification, pafs, after death, into the bodies of animals, or other natures, where they remain until they have expiated their guilt, and accomplifhed their falvation. Some |