The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-08-02
is IT 4 FORGERY
The Genuineness of the Teaching Of the
Apostles Called in Question.
,onstantinople Letter in Boston Advertiser.

Constantnope Letter in Boston Advertiser
During this century no literary discovery,
genuine or spurious, has excited more interest
than that of the Didache ton Dodeka 'Apostolon,
or the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles Not
withstanding the details of the supposed dis
covery may be familiar to the readers OF the
Advertiser, they are all so important IN them
selves and also so importantin connection with
what shall say further on that wish to re-
capitulate briefly. In 1883 Bishop Philotheos-
family name Bryennios metropolitan of Nico
media, published in Constantinople, with a
lengthy introduction and copious notes, the
Didache ton Dodeka Apostolon, or Teaching of
the Twelve Apostles. This work Philotheos
claimed to have discovered ten years previously,
that is III 1873 when he was making researches
in the library belonging to the Monastery Of the
Holy Sepulchre. This monastery, though sit
uated in Constantinople, is the property OF the
patriarchate Of Jerusalem and hence, In his
notes upon the manuscript, Philotheos speaks of
IT as the Jerusalem manuscript The re-
print was dedicated by the editor
Philotheos to two wealthy and
enterprising Greek bankers, who are called IN
the dedication sthe ornaments pegkall,oplsmasll
of our nation and who are reported to have
furnished the money for its publication. The
manuscript wherein the Teaching was found
did not consist of that treatise alone, but OF
many others. Altogether, one hundred and
twenty leaves were covered by eighteen different
treatises. In the ancient ecclesiastical writings
leaves and not pages are counted, one side OF the
76tn leaf Tor example. being numbered 16a and
the other side FOB. What we should call the
LIST page would be 76f and the 152d page would
be 76b The Teaching" commenced on the mid
die Of 76a and ended at the close Of sob, thus oc
cupying nine and a half pages at the very mid
die of the manuscript
Some time ago DR. Philip Schaff of New York,
wrote to friend in Constantinople, saying he
should bevery glad to havea page of the Didache
manuscript which he could publish with an arti-
Gle he was preparing. Application was at once
made for permission to photograph page This
permission was courteously and speedily accord
ed Neither Philotheos, who, although titular
Bishop of Nicomedia resides, at Constantinople,
nor the arehimandrite Polycarp the epitropos
or superior of the monastery, nor the priest
Sophronios, the librarian, hesitated in fix
ing day on which they would permit the photo
graph to be taken. This was to be done by q
gentleman whose name withhold, but who is
we'll known in this empire and in America.
Who in addition to other varied and versatile
literary attainments, possesses much skill IN
photography On the day appointed he went to
the librafy with his Photographic apparatus.
The archimandrite and librarian were as bland
as ever. but would not permit the gentleman TO
touch the manuscript Selecting a certain page,
and tying sheets Of paper around the volume so
that only the one open page was visible, and so
that if taken in the hand, unless the strings
were cut or broken, nothing could be seen but
this page, the archinlandrite said Now. if
you please, you can photograph that
page. The gentleman did so. feeling sure
he was photographing a portion of the
Teaching The cursive writing of the elev-
enth century is not easily read. After he re-
turned home the gentleman was too busy with
other duties to do more than strike off his pho
tographs and commit them to the friend of Dr.
Schaff, to be sent to America. After few days
he had more time at his disposal and he com
menced to read one of the copies he had made.
Behold! to his establishment the photograph he
had before him was not from the end Of the
Teaching as he had been informed, nor from
any part Of the Teaching at all 1t might be
but at hest, il was more part of 1t than the
concluding chapter of the Apocalypse is a part of
the gospel Of St Mark notwithstanding they
may be found together in the same book
Determined to correct at once what he thought
nigh. be an unintentional error, he invited me
to accompany him on journey Of rectifcation
to the monastery This invitation l gladly ac-
cepted. We grasped the first opportunity and
went together. Again there was the samesuave,
graceful welcome which none know better how
TO extend to each welcome or unwelcome guest
than the ecclesiastics of the East. The bishop
Philotheos does not live in the monastery, and
was not present. We were received by the
archiinandrite Polycarp and the priestly libra
POSoADlU
the object of our visit, both archimandrite and
librarian stoutly asserted that the photograph
was taken from the concluding part of the
Teaching, aud that we were mistaken in think
ing it was not Though we talked with them in
Greek they had no idea we were able to read
the foreign and grotesque characters of the text.
When we did read the photograph to them. how
ever, and demonstrated clearly that instead of a
page from the Teaching we had photograph
of the concluding page from one of st. Ighatius's
epistles-that to the Romans they changed
their ground and asserted it made no difference,
inasmueh as the Teaching" and the epistle
were in the same manuscript and had been
copied there by the same SCRIBE At last they
allowed us to take the manuscript into our hands
and turn over the pages these two chiefs and
four other priests watching US most narrowly all
the time. Then they declared that they had
never given or intended to give permission to
photograph any part of the Teaching itself,
but only page from the manuscript wherein
the Teaching was found Then we entreated
we might be ollowed to photograph what Of the
Teaching was found on leaf ga lpage I5ll, con
ssting Of only three lines We were courte.
0usly but absolutely refused. These three lines;
though apparently by the hand Of the same pen
man, were written with Ink of different color
from what preceded. To our earnest
argument that such refusal on their
part would be calculated to throw suspicion
on the genuineness of the work, they kept repeat
ing, We cannot allow it; we cannot allow it
tDen 'eimporoumen den eimporoumenl. Re
quest, entreaty were utterly ia vain. It was inn
possible to move them IN tho least Both my
friend and tried every argument that would
have any weight with an Eastern mind. 1t was
all in vain.
One of two things was evident either the per-
mission to photograph had not originally been
granted in good faith, being given with deliber-
ate purpose to avoid its fui6llment, or, If at first
given in good faith, for some reason they had
afterward changed their minds, and gone back
on their promise One thing we did accom- plish.
fof1r
chat was the originalof Philotheos's .'Teachine;a
not the first original, Of course, but the copy
supporting 10 have been finished on the filth of
Of June, in the year 1894 ll056 A. D.) by the
hand of Leo notary and sinner the very
manuscript Philotheos claims he discovered
For perhaps seven minutes altogether ! had the
manuscript in my hand. never used my Dyes