The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1868-03-18

traced their maternity not to Rome, bu
to the mother Church of Jerusalem, Up
233.) He also states the facts abOv
recited as to the Scottish missions Il
Saxon England, as follows, (p. 266.
But Oswald and bis Companions durin;
his Exile in Scotland were Baptized AM
brought up in the Christian Religion, ac
cording to the British Celtic lnstitu
ton. as it differed from the Roman, an,
being settled on his Throne by Cadwallial
sent to Scotland for Doctors to Conver
the remainder of his Subjects; to that ent
Aidanus and Finnan and Diuma ar,
sent, who were Monkes of British ISL
belonging to the Picts (Iona) who be
slowed the same on st. Columbanus (Co
lumba) who built monastery there =
where the Abbot was Superior 20 all the
Clergy of those parts anu ts-cSSse sS'-1s.shol
himself, and the Rites and Customs oi
the Brittains we're most strictly observed
and kept to the last" When it is re
membered that the Abbot or President Of
the College of Iona was simple Elder
it is plain that Prelacy was not part Of
those "Rites and Customs" for we have
here Presbyter ranking bishop ii
authority.
Of this mission of Aidan he says (p
269,) that he and Holy King Oswald
were the Chief Authors and Instrument
under God of the Conversion of tn
English to the Christian Faith over al
the Land, not only in Northumberland.
where they Reigned and resided, be.
over the rest of the English Heptarchies.
Again Up. 39O,) he speaks of the An.
cient, Apostolick, British Faith, which
the Scotch and Irish defended with US
heretofore against Monk Augustine ana
planted among the English, before he
and his Successors sowed their .Tare,
among them" (Jones's Rome, No MotL'
er Church to England, London, 1879 ,
Here then we have the candid test
mony of learned clergyman of tbe
Church of England, that "the Conver
sion of the English over all the Land,
was due to the Culdee missionaries {
the Scottish Church, an admission which
only the truth could have extorted froi
the Royal Chaplain of the Duke of Yorl
Hence unless the child can be older tina
its mother. it must follow that the Angl
can Church cannot claim as high an al
tiquity as the Scottish, and that tho,s
who trace their orders to that Chure
-have certainly no rights .onterd Tor az
Apostolic source any better, if as good
as those who derive their succession from
the Church of Scotland.
We now inquire what were the doc
trines of this Culdee Church? ? The facts
already cited prove that they were not
Romish, but so antagonistic as to be in
capable of Co existing with thoseof Rome.
Whether they were Prelatic, or Presby.
terian, is point that has been disputed,
and it may be sufficient to give the con,
clusons to which learned men in the
English and other Churches have come,
who could not be thought to be affected
by sectarian prejudice. The evidence is
too voluminous to be condensed into the
brief space left US, and we must content
ourselves with giving the opinions Of
competent witnesses who have examined
it in the original authorities.
That there were bishops in the old
Culdee Church is true, but it is equally
true that these bishops were not prelates
claimed and exercised no authority over
other presbyters, in word were Presby,
terian, not Prelatic bishops. This fact
is clear from many witnesses. Thus
Archbishop Usher admits that the Church
government of the churches founded by
St. Patrick was parochial, not diocesan
Episcopacy. He says, "We read ii
Nennius that at the beginning St. Patrick
founded 365 churches, and ordained 365
bishops and 5000 presbyters or elders. >
Here then was bishop and about twelve
elders to each church, which is Presbyte'
rianism, and as St. Patrick probably Dor.
rowed his system from thi@,-7@ rs eative
country, we see what the Church order Of
Scotland was at that time. This is fur.
ther conceded by the learned prelate in
the admission, that Palladius was sent il
the 9TH century to be the first (prelatic,
bishop of the Scottish Church, and if the
first, he had no predecessors. His mis-
sion failed however, as he died soon after
his arrival in Scotland.
Bishop Stillingdeet in his Irenicum
ch. 7, sec 6, states, "Some whole ma
tionS seem to have been without any biSh
ops at all, if we may believe IL cir owl
historians. So if we may believe the
great antiquaries of the Church of Scot
land, that Church was governed by theiI
Culdei, as they called their presbyters
without any bishop over them, for a long
time. Johannes Major says, "the Scots
we're instructed in the faith without bish
ops, by the priests and monks" but les