LUKEWARMNESS, appli

LUCIANISTS, or LUCANISTS, a sect so called from Lucia-ed to the affections, indifference, nus, or Lucanus, a heretic of the or want of ardor. In respect to second century, being a disciple of religion, hardly any thing can be Marcion, whose errors he follow-more culpable than this spirit.ed, adding some new ones to them. If there be a God possessed of unEpiphanes says he abandoned Mar-speakable rectitude in his own nacion, teaching that people ought||ture, and unbounded goodness tonot to marry, for fear of en-wards his creatures, what can be riching the Creator; and yet oth- more inconsistent and unbecoming er authors mention, that he held than to be frigid and indifferent in this error in common with Mar- our devotions to him? Atheism, cion and other Gnostics. He de- in some respects, cannot be worse nied the immortality of the soul, than lukewarmness. The Atheasserting it to be material. ist disbelieves the existence of a There was another sect of Lu-God, and therefore cannot worcianists, who appeared some time ship him at all; the lukewarm after the Arians. They taught, owns the existence, sovereignty, that the Father had been a Father and goodness of the Supreme Bealways, and that he had the name ing, but denies him that fervour even before he begot the Son, as of affection, that devotedness of having in him the power and fa-heart, and activity of service, which culty of generation; and in this manner they accounted for the eternity of the Son.

the excellency of his nature demands, and the authority of his word requires. Such a character, therefore, is represented as absolutely loathsome to God, and obnoxious to his wrath, Rev.iii, 15,16.

LUCIFERIANS, a sect who adhered to the schism of Lucifer, bishop of Cagliari, in the fourth century, who was banished by the The general signs of a lukeemperor Constantius, for having warm spirit are such as these: Nedefended the Nicene doctrine con- glect of private prayer; a prefercerning the three persons in the ence of worldly to religious comGodhead. It is said, also, that pany; a lax attendance on public they believed the soul to be cor- ordinances; omission or careless poreal, and to be transmitted from perusal of God's word; a zeal the father to the children. The for some appendages of religion, Luciferians were numerous in while languid about religion itGaul, Spain, Egypt, &c. The self; a backwardness to promote occasion of this schism was, that the cause of God in the world, Lucifer would not allow any acts and a rashness of spirit in censurhe had done to be abolished.ing those who are desirous to be There were but two Luciferian useful. bishops, but a great number of

If we enquire the causes of such

priests and deacons. The Luci-a spirit, we shall find them to beferians bore a great aversion to worldly prosperity; the influence the Arians. of carnal relatives and acquaint

ance; indulgence of secret sins; the fear of man, and sitting under an unfaithful ministry.

serious impressions, and tinctured with somewhat of that religious melancholy which delights in the solitude and devotion of a monastic life, he retired into a convent of Augustinian friars; where he acquired great reputation not on

The inconsistency of it appears if we consider, that it is highly unreasonable; dishonourable to God; incompatible with the genius of the gospel; a barrier to improve-ly for piety, but for love of ment; a death blow to usefulness; knowledge, and unwearied applia direct opposition to the com- cation to study. The cause of mands of scripture; and tends to this retirement is said to have the greatest misery. been, that he was once struck by lightning, and his companion killed by his side by the same flash. He had been taught the scholastic philosophy which was in vogue in those days, and made considerable progress in it: but happening to find a copy of the Bible which lay neglected in the library of his monastery, he applied himself to the study of it with such eagerness and assiduity, as quite astonished the monks; and increased his reputation for sanctity so much, that he was chosen professor first of philosophy, and afterwards of theology, in Wittemberg, on the Elbe, where Frederic, elector of Saxony, had founded an universitv.

To overcome such a state of mind, we should consider how offensive it is to God; how incongruous with the very idea and nature of true religion; how injurious to peace and felicity of mind; how ungrateful to Jesus Christ, whose whole life was labour for us and our salvation; how grievous to the Holy Spirit; how dreadful an example to those who have no religion; how unlike the saints of old, and even to our enemies in the worst of causes; how dangerous to our immortal souls, since it is indicative of our want of love to God, and exposes us to just condemnation, Amos vi, 1.

LUTHERANS, those Christians who follow the opinion of While Luther continued to enMartin Luther, the celebrated re-joy the highest reputation for sancformer of the church, in the six-tity and learning, Tetzel, a Domiteenth century. In order that we nican friar, came to Wittemberg may trace the rise and progress of in order to publish indulgences. Lutheranism, we must here refer Luther beheld his success with to the life of Luther himself. Lu- great concern; and having first ther was a native of Eisleben, in inveighed against indulgences from Saxony, and born in 1483. Though the pulpit, he afterwards publishhis parents were poor, he received ninety-five theses, containing ed a learned education, during the his sentiments on that subject. progress of which he gave many These he proposed not as points indications of uncommon vigour fully established, but as subjects and acuteness of genius. As his of enquiry and disputation. He mind was naturally susceptible of appointed a day on which the

learned were invited to impugn || gustinians to check, by his authothem either in person or by writ-rity, the rashness of an arrogant ing; and to the whole he sub- monk, which brought disgrace joined solemn protestations of his upon their order, and gave offence high respect for the apostolic see, and disturbance to the whole and of his implicit submission to church. its authority. No opponent appeared at the time prefixed: the theses spread over Germany with astonishing rapidity, and were read with the greatest eager

ness.

From these letters, and the appointment of his open enemy Prierias to be his judge, Luther easily saw what sentence he might expect at Rome; and therefore discovered the utmost solicitude to have his cause tried in Germany, and before a less suspected tribunal. He wrote a submissive letter to the pope, in which he promised an unreserved obedience to his will, for as yet he entertained no doubt of the divine original of the pope's authority; and by the intercession of the other professors, Cajetan, the pope's legate in Germany, was appointed to hear and determine the cause. Luther appeared before him without hesitation; but Cajetan thought it below his dignity to dispute the point with a person so much his inferior in rank; and therefore required him, by virtue of the apostolic powers with which he was clothed, to retract the errors which he had uttered with regard to indulgences and the nature of faith, and to abstain for the future from the publication of new and dangerous opinions; and at the last forbad him to appear in his presence, unless he proposed to comply with what had been required of him.

Though Luther met with no opposition for some little time after he began to publish his new doctrines, it was not long before many zealous champions arose to defend those opinions with which the wealth and power of the clergy were so strictly connected. Their cause, however, was by no means promoted by these endeavours: the people began to call in question even the authority of the canon law, and of the pope himself. The court of Rome at first despised these new doctrines and disputes; but at last the attention of the pope being raised by the great success of the reformer, and the complaints of his adversaries, Luther was summoned, in the month of July, 1518, to appear at Rome, within sixty days, before the auditor of the chamber. One of Luther's adversaries, named Prierias, who had written against him, was appointed to examine his doctrines, and to decide concerning them. The pope wrote at the same time to the elec- This haughty and violent mantor of Saxony, beseeching him ner of proceeding, together with not to protect a man whose here- some other circumstances, gave tical and profane tenets were so Luther's friends such strong reashocking to pious ears; and en- sons to suspect that even the imjoined the provincial of the Au-perial safe-conduct would not be

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safety.

The situation of our reformer, in the mean time, became daily more and more alarming. He knew very well what were the motives which induced the elector to afford him protection, and that he could by no means depend on a continuance of his friendship. If he should be obliged to quit Saxony, he had no other asylum, and must stand exposed to whatever punishment the rage or bigotry of his enemies could inflict ; and so ready were his adversaries to condemn him, that he had been declared a heretic at Rome before the expiration of the sixty days allowed him in the citation for making his appearance. Notwithstanding all this, however, he discovered no symptoms of timidity or remissness; but continued to vindicate his own conduct and opinions, and to inveigh against those of his adversaries with more vehemence than ever. Being convinced, therefore, that the pope would soon proceed to the most violent measures against him, he appealed to a general council, which he affirmed to be the representative of the Catholic church, and superior in power to the pope, who, being a fallible man, might err, as St. Peter, the most perfect of his predecessors, had done.

able to protect him from the le- || covered great concern for Luther's gate's power and resentment, that they prevailed on him secretly to withdraw from Augsburg, where he had attended the legate, and to return to his own country. But before his departure, according to a form of which there had been some examples, he prepared a solemn appeal from the legate, ill-informed at that time concerning his cause, to the pope, when he should receive more full intimation with respect to it. Cajetan, enraged at Luther's abrupt retreat, and at the publication of his appeal, wrote to the elector of Saxony, complaining of both; and requiring him, as he regarded the peace of the church, or the authority of its head, either to send that seditious monk a prisoner to Rome, or to banish him out of his territories. Frederic had hitherto, from political motives, protected Luther, as thinking he might be of use in checking the enormous power of the see of Rome; and though all Germany resounded with his fame, the elector had never yet admitted him into his presence. But upon this demand made by the cardinal, it became necessary to throw off somewhat of his former reserve. He had been at great expence and bestowed much attention on founding a new university, an object of considerable importance to every German prince; and fore- The court of Rome was equalseeing how fatal a blow the re-ly assiduous, in the mean time, to moval of Luther would be to its crush the author of these new reputation, he not only declined doctrines, which gave them so complying with either of the much uneasiness. A bull was ispope's requests, but openly dis-sued by the pope of a date prior to

Luther's appeal, in which he mag-place for eighteen months, though perpetual negotiations were carried on during this interval, in order to bring the matter to an amicable issue. The manner in which these were conducted having given our reformer many opportunities of observing the corruption of the court of Rome, its obstinacy in adhering to established errors, and its indifference about truth, however clearly proposed or strongly proved, he began, in 1520, to utter some doubts with regard to the divine original of the papal authority, which he publicly disputed with Eccius, one of his most learned and formidable antagonists. The dispute was indecisive, both parties claiming the victory; but it must have been very mortifying to the partizans of the Romish church to hear such an essential point of their doctrine publicly attacked.

nified the virtues of indulgences, and subjected to the heaviest ecclesiastical censures all who presumed to teach a contrary doctrine. Such a clear decision of the sovereign pontiff against him might have been very fatal to Luther's cause, had not the death of the emperor Maximilian, which happened on January 17, 1519, contributed to give matters a different turn. Both the principles and interest of Maximilian had prompted him to support the authority of the see of Rome; but, in consequence of his death, the vicariate of that part of Germany which is governed by the Saxon laws devolved to the elector of Saxony; and, under the shelter of his friendly administration, Luther himself enjoyed tranquillity; and his opinions took such root in different places, that they could never afterwards be The papal authority being once eradicated. At the same time, as suspected, Luther proceeded to the election of an emperor was a push on his inquiries and attacks point more interesting to the pope from one doctrine to another, till (Leo X) than a theological con- at last he began to shake the firmtroversy which he did not under- est foundations on which the stand, and of which he could not wealth and power of the church foresee the consequences, he was were established. Leo then began so extremely solicitous not to irri- to perceive that there were no tate a prince of such considerable hopes of reclaiming such an ininfluence in the electoral college corrigible heretic, and therefore as Frederic, that he discovered a prepared to pronounce the sengreat unwillingness to pronounce tence of excommunication against the sentence of excommunication him. The college of cardinals against Luther, which his adversaries continually demanded with the most clamorous importunity.

From the reason just now given, and Leo's natural aversion to severe measures, a suspension of proceeding against Luther took

was often assembled, in order to prepare the sentence with due deliberation; and the ablest canonists were consulted how it might be expressed with unexceptionable formality. At last it was issued on the 15th of June, 1520.