OP THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

complaining that his spiritual functions wereperpetually interrupted by the invidious labourof deciding the claim or the possession of silverand gold, of lands and cattle. 4, The ancientprivilege of sanctuary was transferred to theChristian temples, and extended, by the liberalpiety of the younger Theodosius , to the pre-cincts of consecrated ground.* The fugitive,and even guilty, suppliants, were permitted toimplore, either the justice, or the mercy, of thedeity and his ministers. The rash violence ofdespotism was suspended by the mild interpo-sition of the church ; and the lives or fortunesof the most eminent subjects might be protect-ed by the mediation of the bishop.

v. The bishop was the perpetual censor of themorals of his people. The discipline of pen-ance u as digested into a system of canonicaljurisprudence/ which accurately defined theduty of private or public confession, the rulesof evidence, the degrees of guilt, and the mea-sure of punishment. It was impossible to exe-cute this spiritual censure, if the Christian pon-

1 See Cod. Theod. 1. ix, tit. xlv, leg. 4. In the works of Fra. Paolo(tom. iv, p. 192, &c.) there is an excellent discourse on the origin,claims, abuses, and limits of sanctuaries. He justly observes, that an-cient Greece might perhaps contain fifteen or twenty azyla or sanctua-ries ; a number which at present may be found in Italy within the wallsof a single city.

y The penitential jurisprudence was continually improved by thecanons of the councils. But as many cases were still left to the discre-tion of the bishops, they occasionally published, after the example ofthe Roman prattor, the rules of discipline which they proposed to ob-serve. Among the canonical epistles of the fourth century, those of Ba-sil the Great were the most celebrated. They are inserted in the Pan-dects of Beveridge (tom. ii, p.47-151), and are translated by ChardonHist, des Sacremens, tom. iv, p. 219-277.

295

CHAP.

XX.

v. Spiri-tual cen-sures.