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THERE is no doubt but that Athanasius was beloved of God, and
endowed with the gift of foreseeing the future. More wonderful facts
than those which we have related might be adduced to prove his intimate
acquaintance with futurity. It happened that during the life of
Constans, the Emperor Constantius was once determined upon
ill-treating this holy man; but Athanasius fled, and concealed
himself with some one of his acquaintances. He lived for a long time
in a subterraneous and sunless dwelling, which had been used as a
reservoir for water. No one knew where he was concealed except a
serving-woman, who seemed faithful, and who waited upon him. As the
heterodox, however, were anxiously intent upon taking Athanasius
alive, it appears that, by means of gifts or promises, they at length
succeeded in corrupting the attendant. But Athanasius was forewarned
by God of her treachery, and effected his escape from the place. The
servant was punished for having made a false deposition against her
masters, while they, on their part, fled the country i for it was
accounted no venial crime by the heterodox to receive or to conceal
Athanasius, but was, on the contrary, regarded as an act of
disobedience against the express commands of the emperor, and as a
crime against the empire, and was visited as such by the civil
tribunals. It has come to my hearing that Athanasius was saved on
another occasion in a similar manner. He was again obliged for the
same reason to flee for his life; and he set sail up the Nile with the
design of retreating to the further districts of Egypt, but his
enemies received intelligence of his intention, and pursued him.
Being forewarned of God that he would be pursued, he announced it to
his fellow-passengers, and commanded them to return to Alexandria.
While he sailed down the river, his plotters rowed by. He reached
Alexandria in safety, and effectually concealed himself in the midst
of its similar and numerous houses. His success in avoiding these and
many other perils led to his being accused of sorcery by the pagan and
the heterodox. It is reported, that once, as he was passing through
the city, a crow was heard to caw, and that a number of pagans who
happened to be on the spot, asked him in derision what the crow was
saying. He replied, smiling, "It utters the sound eras, the
meaning of which in the Latin language is, 'tomorrow'; and it has
hereby announced to you that the morrow will not be propitious to you;
for it indicates that you will be forbidden by the Roman emperor to
celebrate your festival tomorrow." Although this prediction of
Athanasius appeared to be absurd, it was fulfilled; for the following
day edicts were transmitted to the governors from the emperor, by which
it was commanded that the pagans were not to be permitted to assemble in
the temples to perform their usual ceremonies, nor to celebrate their
festival; and thus was abolished the most solemn and magnificent feast
which the pagans had retained. What I have said is sufficient to show
that this holy man was endowed with the gift of prophecy. After
Athanasius had escaped, in the manner we have described, from those
who sought to arrest him, his clergy and people remained for some time
in possession of the churches; but eventually, the governor of Egypt
and the commander of the army forcibly ejected all those who maintained
the sentiments of Athanasius, in order to deliver up the government of
the churches to those who favored George, whose arrival was then
expected. Not long after he reached the city, and the churches were
placed under his authority. He ruled by force rather than by priestly
moderation; and as he strove to strike terror into the minds of the
people, and carried on a cruel persecution against the followers of
Athanasius, and, moreover, imprisoned and maimed many men and
women, he was accounted a tyrant. For these reasons he fell into a
universal hate; the people were so deeply incensed at his conduct,
that they rushed into the church, and would have torn him to pieces;
in such an extremity of danger, he escaped with difficulty, and fled
to the emperor. Those who held the sentiments of Athanasius then took
possession of the churches. But they did not long retain the mastery
of them; for the commander of the troops in Egypt came and restored
the churches to the partisans of George. An imperial shorthand writer
of the notary class was afterwards sent to punish the leaders of the
sedition, and he tortured and scourged many of the citizens. When
George returned a little while after, he was more formidable, it
appears, than ever, and was regarded with greater aversion than
before, for he instigated the emperor to the perpetration of many evil
deeds; and besides, the monks of Egypt openly declared him to be
perfidious and inflated with arrogance. The opinions of these monks
were always adopted by the people, and their testimony was universally
received, because they were noted for their virtue and the
philosophical tenor of their fives.
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