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Valentinus proceeded from the "living Aeon," as the true source. He still conceived the Aiwv as a unit, like the Gnostics of Irenæus. The unity of the Aeon is, however, by no means devoid of distinction. The primitive being is the "only good Father. This Father has a Son, through whose revelation alone he can become present. At least very near to the Father and. the Son stands the Logos, but also the pre-existing Anthropos. Thus the fragments point to a plurality of Aeons. The material body was regarded by Valentinus neither as an immediate nor as a perfect creation of the true God, but as a defective imitation of the living Aeon, executed, as it were, by a painter according to a model furnished by the highest Majesty, but stamped with the name of God, and authenticated by the invisible One. The painter is the creator of the material world, the first of a plurality of angels of the same kind. These angels fashion the created man upon the name of the pre-existing Anthropos. The latter (or the Son, or the Logos) invisibly fits man out with the seed of the Supreme (divine) Being. Adam, therefore, immediately startles his creators by lofty words, so that they disfigure or even destroy their work. The disfiguration of the original creation of men is the earthly Even the cosmic man is inspired with fear and trembling by statues and pictures, as well as by every thing that is framed by hands in the name of God. Into the hearts of man many unclean spirits or demons walk in and out, as in a hostelry, and work things improper. Nevertheless, the seed of the Supreme Being remains in a part of the human race. The "Only Good" becomes present to the race of earthly men through the Son in order to purify the hearts even up to the intuition of God. The Son, indeed, does not become a real man. But he founds a congregation among men, which is kept together not only by an external word or law of God, but by internal words of the heart, and by an inner law, and which is united with the Son in mutual love. Even after the appearance of the Son upon earth, the divine Logos is incarnated in man, who develops in himself the seed of the Divine Essence, may have the consciousness to be elevated above what is transitory, and to have assumed mortality only to overcome it. All difference of the spiritual and the material world may be traced back to a transcending and controlling unity.

man.

The first article of this number is from the pen of Edward von Hartmann, who, as the author of the "Philosophy of the Unconscious," and as the founder of a new atheistic and pessimistic philosophy, has become widely known. The readers of the Journal, of course, may be surprised to see his name among the contributors, and Professor Hilgenfeld, therefore, deems it necessary to explain, in a prefatory note, that he does not share the views of E. von Hartmann on Christianity, and that his contribution was not solicited by him. But as periodicals are regarded by him as a kind of debating halls, he thinks the admission of an essay by one of the most eminent philosophers to be justifiable, although his views entirely differ from his own, and from those of his theological friends.

1

French Reviews.

REVUE CHRETIENNE, (Christian Review.) March, 1880.-1. GODET, The Recent Hypothesis of M. Renan in Regard to the Origin of the Fourth Gospel. 2. AsTIC, Correspondence of Doudan, (Second Article.) 3. Bois, An Answer to Fouillée's Article on "Reparative Justice." 4. JUNDT, The Friends of God in the Fourteenth Century: A Reply to M. Bouset-Maury. 5. LICHTENBERGER, German Chronicle.

April.-1. SCHMIDT, Primary Instruction in the Rural Districts of Lorraine a Hundred Years Ago. 2. BOEGNER, Bishop Patteson of Melanesia, a Martyr of the Nineteenth Century. 3. MAD. Bonzonne de GARDONNE, A Revolt of Conscience. 4. E. W., English Chronicle.

May. 1. E. SCHMIDT, Primary Instruction in the Rural Districts of Lorraine a Hundred Years Ago, (Second Article.) 2. A. BOEGNER, A Martyr of the Nineteenth Century: Bishop Patteson of Melanesia, (Second Article.) 3. MAD. BONZONNE DE GARDONNE, A Revolt of Conscience, (Second Article.) 4. SABATIER, The Crisis of Faith. 5. MAD. REY, née BONNET, The Young Girl: A Poem. The monthly Historical Record (Revue de Mois) of the Revue Chrétienne, in the May number, refers to the introduction of unsectarian schools into France. "The triumph of the lay school in France," it says, "will be undoubtedly a great moral revolution. We must not forget that at the present time we have only denominational schools. It is not the State which gives primary instruction, but the Churches which impart it under the control of the State. The latter wants to take back this right, as it has taken back others. By doing so, it only obeys the logic of the French Revolution. We understand why a political conflict breaks out between the State and the Catholic Church, because the latter asserts her sovereign right

and reclaims a monopoly. But we cannot understand why a conflict should break out between the lay State and Protestantism, which is precisely the radical negation of these theocratic pretensions. Between the government and Protestantism there can be no conflict of principles, but only negotiations for practical application. We (the Protestants) do not know this fatal distinction between priests and laymen. This word cannot have for us the meaning of antireligious, which it has in the eyes of the municipal Council of Paris, and in those of the ultramontanes. Theoretically, we have nothing against the lay school, or against the schools conducted by a teacher who, though in the pay of the government, may nevertheless be an excellent Christian. From a practical point of view, Protestantism can do nothing but reclaim for the pastor the right of going to the school and giving to those children whom their parents wish to intrust to him religious instruction. In this way, it seems to us, the State would reconcile two things which it should regard as equally essential. First, it would acknowledge that there can be no real moral education without religious instruction; and, secondly, it would uphold the true liberty, which consists in respecting the beliefs and the rights of every This, in our opinion, is the just and the liberal solution of the question.'

one.

ART. VIII-FOREIGN RELIGIOUS INTELLIGENCE.

THE PARSEES.

AMONG the religious denominations of the present age the Parsees are, numerically, one of the smallest and most insignificant, but in point of the interest taken in the history of religious beliefs by the civilized world they rank very high. The doctrines of Zoroaster were the State religion of the great Persian Empire, which under Cyrus and some of his successors appeared to have a prospect of becoming the ruler and mistress of the world. After being displaced during five hundred years by the rude Parthians, it was reinstated in the third century, and remained the State religion of the Persians under the dynasties of the Achæmenidae and Sassanidae, until it was crushed by the victories of Mohammedanism. The majority of the worshipers of Ormuzd were gradually compelled to embrace the Islam; most of those who remained faithful to the traditional religion emigrated to India, and only a small handful remained in their native country.

But it is not only their glorious history which secures

the remnants of the Parsees an abiding interest; their religion is generally regarded by those who have studied the ancient Oriental systems as the most remarkable which profane antiquity produced, as the most ethical form of heathenism. (See "Methodist Quarterly Review," art., The Zendavesta, 1879, pp. 115-299.) It is a very remarkable fact that even before the Christian era all distinct traces of the age, the character, and the doings of Zoroaster had been lost, and the first work which really sheds light on the subject was not published until the year 1700. Since then the knowledge of Zoroastrianism and its holy book, the Zendavesta, has been revived by the learned works of Anquetil du Perron in the eighteenth, and of Burnouf, Westergaard, Spiegel, and Haug in the nineteenth centuries. While the past history of the Parsees is fully sufficient to secure them for all time to come the interest of thinking and educated men, the present small remnant adds to this interest by its remarkable intelligence. The "Gazette of Augsburg" has recently (March 31, April 1, 2, 3) published an interesting article on "The Remnants of the Old Parsees in Persia," from the pen of E. Baron. von Gödel-Lannoy, a German writer living in Teheran, Persia, from which we take a few extracts. The writer states that he has received many details on the manner and customs of the Parsees from the chief of the Guebers or Parsees in Teheran, Mr. Manuktshee Limdjee.

Ever since Persia has been conquered by the Mohammedans the Parsees have been subjected to a cruel persecution, and these persecutions still continue, with a view to forcing them to embrace the Islam. At the close of the year 1879 the Parsees took a census of their numbers, when it was found that they numbered in Yezd and about twenty surrounding villages, 6,483; in Kirman and the neighborhood, 1,498; in Sheeraz, 30; in Busbeer, 12; in Kashaw, 15; in Teheran, 150; total in Persia, 8,188. The Parsees are a beautiful race. They are mostly tall, strong, sinewy men, whose mild, sympathetic features remind one of the antique heads on the sculptures of Persepolis, as well as on the Sassanide coins. The fine oval of the face, the strong, slightly-bent aquiline nose, high eyebrows over the beautifully cut dark eyes, the sad clouded looks of which reflect a thousand years' servitude, the full though not luxurious beard, are external ornaments of this people which are expressly mentioned by travelers and writers. The Guebers still represent the old Persian people, since they absolutely disfavor marriage with people of other religions, and have kept themselves pure and unmixed, while the other Persians have suffered a very considerable infusion of Arabic, Turkish, Mongolian, Afghan, and other elements.

Intellectually, the present Guebers of Persia are inferior to the Mohammedan Persians, which may be explained by the fact that for centuries they have had no opportunity for obtaining an education. But they exceed the Mohammedans morally. Like their forefathers, they detest lying, and are undoubtedly the most honest people of Persia, while the modern Persians appear to have no understanding of honor, truth, or honesty. They have two classes of priests, Dasturs (priests of a higher

rank) and Mobeds, (priests of a lower rank.) There are only two dasturs in Persia, one in Yezd and one in Kirman. Their dignity has gradually become hereditary, although, according to the description of Zoroaster, the man who can exhibit the largest number of good works should be elected. A dastur who makes himself unworthy of his position can be deposed. The dasturs are regarded as the most prominent of their race, and, therefore, act also as judges, being frequently called upon to settle as arbiters difficulties among their coreligionists concerning national and hereditary laws. This judicial power is conceded to them by the Persian Government all the more readily as, according to Mohammedan principles, the judicial power emanates from the ecclesiastical. Even in the theocratic government of old Persia, the Magi, who were regarded as mediators between Ormuzd and his people, had a great power in secular affairs. The doctrine of Zoroaster was, like the Koran, the fundamental law of the State, which was explained to the king by the Dasturan Dastur, (chief of the Magi.) Thus the chief legislative power was really vested in the head of the religion. The Koran probably received the idea of a fusion of the State and religious principles, like many other institutions, from the religion of Zoroaster. Mobeds, or priests of the lower rank, are found in every congregation of Guebers, and their functions are limited to divine worship. Fire-temples are only allowed to exist in their chief seats, and even there not publicly, but they are tacitly tolerated in private dwellings. At present there are twenty-six fire-temples in Yezd and the surrounding villages, and three in Kerman and its vicinity. Their structure and arrangement is very plain. The congregation assembles for prayer in a room which resembles a hall, and which adjoins a circumvallated yard. In a corner of this room stands an altar upon which a mobed kindles a small flame six times within twenty-four hours. This main room is connected with a smaller, dark room, the sanctuary, where the holy fire is preserved under a heap of ashes upon an altar. Only the priests have access to this room. The numerous ceremonies which attended the divine worship in ancient times have gradually been simplified, and the people, who are mostly poor and uneducated, also dispense with the very incommodious washings, of which there were several kinds, according to the degree of the contracted impurity. Only the priests continue to observe somewhat more accurately the old precepts. Education among the Guebers of Persia is at present in a very unsatisfactory condition, because great obstacles are put in their way. In Yezd and Kirman the mobeds generally take charge of the elementary instruction of the children, and also endeavor to acquaint them with the fundamental tenets of their religion. Some years ago the chief of the Guebers in Teheran, Mr. Manuktshee Limdjee, a native of Bombay, was enabled, by the protection of the English embassy, to establish a school, in which about one hundred children of Guebers from all parts of Persia were instructed in religion, national history, and especially in the Persian language. The school has, however, recently been discontinued, and the Guebers of Persia are thus left without any