aid who was mother {293} of
God, and yet remained a virgin. But the object present to the author's
mind was so exclusively God manifest in the flesh, that he does not
throughout even mention the name of Mary, or allude to any honour paid
or due to her. [Cantab. 1720. Sec. 11. p. 689. and Sec. 19. p. 703.]

ATHANASIUS, bent ever on establishing the perfect divinity and humanity
of Christ, thus speaks: "The general scope of Holy Scripture is to make
a twofold announcement concerning the Saviour, that He was always God,
and is a Son; being the Word and the brightness and wisdom of the
Father, and that He afterwards became man for us, taking flesh of the
Virgin Mary, who bare God ([Greek: taes theotokou])." [Athan. Orat. iii.
Cont. Arian. p. 579.]

The work which we have already examined, called The Apostolical
Constitutions, compiled probably about the commencement of the fourth
century, cannot be read without leaving an impression clear and powerful
on the mind, that no religious honour was paid to the Virgin Mary at the
time when they were written; certainly not more than is now cheerfully
paid to her memory by us of the Anglican Church. Take, for example, the
prayer prescribed to be used on the appointment of a Deaconess; the
inference from it must be, that others with whom the Lord's Spirit had
dwelt, were at least held in equal honour with Mary: "O Eternal God,
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of male and female, who didst
fill with thy Spirit Miriam, and Hannah, and Holda, and didst not
disdain that thy Son should be born of a woman," &c. [Book viii. c. 20.]
Thus, {294} too, in another passage, Mary is spoken of just as other
women who had the gift of prophecy; and of her equally and in
conjunction with the others it is said, that they were not elated by the
gift, nor lifted themselves up against the men. "But even have women
prophesied; in ancient times Miriam, the sister of Aaron and Moses;
after her Deborah; and afterwards Huldah and Judith; one under Josiah,
the other under Darius; and the mother of the Lord also prophesied, and
Elizabeth her kinswoman; and Anna; and in our day the daughters of
Philip; yet they were not lifted up against the men, but observed their
own measure. Therefore among you also should any man or woman have such
a grace, let them be humble, that God may take pleasure in them." [Book
viii. c. 2.]

In the Apostolical Canons I find no reference to Mary; nor indeed any
passage bearing