Difference between revisions of "Coelicolae"

<p> <b> Coelicolae. </b> The death of Julian (a.d. 363) was followed by a reaction in favour of the [[Christians]] and against the Jews. The fierce bitterness of the edicts of [[Constantine]] and [[Constantius]] was never perhaps renewed, but the decrees of Theodosius the Great (379–395) and his son [[Honorius]] (395–423) were sufficiently strong and cruel to make it evident how the Roman emperors were influenced, both theologically and politically. The Christians convinced themselves that a stand must be made more earnestly than ever against any heresy which would seduce their members in the direction of either [[Judaism]] or paganism. The possible confusion of [[Christianity]] with either was by all means to be avoided. Most especially should this be the case as regarded Judaism. The scandal at [[Antioch]] which roused the holy indignation of St. Chrysostom—Christian ladies frequenting the synagogues and observing the [[Jewish]] festivals, [[Christian]] men bringing their lawsuits by preference before the judges of [[Israel]] (Grätz, <i> Gesch. d. Juden </i> , iv. 315)—found its reflection in many of the chief centres of the Eastern and Western empires. Hence the effort became more and more strenuous to suppress not only such open approximation of the two religious bodies, but also such sects as indicated, by their forms and doctrines, the intention of presenting a compromise with the truth. St. [[Augustine]] ( <i> Op. </i> ii. <i> Ep. </i> xliv. cap. vi. § 13, ed. Migne) wrote to the "Elder" of one of these sects, the <i> Coelicolae, </i> inviting him to a conference. Edicts of Theodosius and Honorius denounced the "new doctrine" of the sect, which was said to be marked by "new and unwonted audacity," and to be nothing else than a "new crime of superstition" ( <i> Cod. Theod. </i> xvi. t. v. viii. x. <i> Cod. Justin. </i> i. tit. ix.). Happily there is reason to believe that kinder counsels moderated the severity of such intolerance (Grätz, p. 386 seq.; Levysohn, <i> Diss. Inauguralis de Jud. sub [[Caesar]] Conditione </i> , pp. 4 seq.). </p> <p> It is difficult to ascertain precisely the views of the Coelicolae. In one edict they are classed with the [[Jews]] and the Samaritans, in a second with the Jews only. But it would be a mistake to consider them simply Jews. The Romans, it is well known, called the Jews worshippers of idols through a mistaken notion that the Jewish use of the word "Heaven" for "God" (Buxtorf, <i> Lex. Rabb. </i> s.v. t) שׁמים , p. 2440; Jost, <i> Gesch. d. Judenthums </i> , i. 303) indicated the worship of some created embodiment of heaven (Vitringa, <i> de Synag. </i> i. 229). The [[Coelicolae]] proper would therefore be easily included by the Romans under the one general title " Jews." From St. Augustine's letter it would seem that the Coelicolae used a baptism which he counted sacrilege— <i> i.e. </i> they probably combined a Christian form of baptism with the Jewish rite of circumcision. Such a compromise would appear most objectionable and dangerous to St. Augustine. If, moreover, as their name may indicate, the Coelicolae openly professed their adhesion to the Jewish worship of the One God and rejected the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, this would be an error for which their abhorrence of pagan forms of idolatry would not compensate. </p> <p> More than this it seems impossible to ascertain. The Coelicolae of Africa, like their congeners the Θεοσεβεῖς of [[Phoenicia]] and Palestine, and the [[Hypsistarii]] of Cappadocia, were soon stamped or died out. [[J. A]]  Schmid, <i> Hist. Coelicolarum </i> ; [[C. G. F]]  Walch, <i> Hist. Patriarcharum Jud. </i> pp. 5–8; Bingham, <i> Orig. Eccles. </i> vii. 271; Niedner, <i> [[K. G]]  </i> p. 321 n. (1866); Hase, <i> [[K. G]]  </i> p. 121; Hasse-Köhler, <i> [[K. G]]  </i> i. 103; Herzog, <i> [[R. E]]  </i> s.v. "Himmelsanbeter." </p> <p> [J.M.F.] </p>

<p> ("worshippers of heaven"), the name of an African sect in the 4th century, who appear to have blended together some parts of Judaism and [[Paganism]] with Christianity. An edict of Honorius [[(A. D]]  408) forbids their assemblages and demands their disbandment. As they are counted in this edict among the heretics, and as they were not subject to the jurisdiction of the Jewish patriarch, but had their own chiefs, called majores, and as they had a kind of baptism, they are by some regarded as a Christian sect. By others they are regarded as an offshoot of the Essenes. See Schmid, Historia Caelicolarum (Helmst 1704). '''''—''''' Gieseler, Church History, 1, '''''§''''' 73; Bingham, Orig. Eccl. 16:6, 2. </p>