sect, her bishops addressed numerous apologies to the Roman Emperors,
in which they claimed tolerance from the government on the ground that
their form of worship was virtually the same as the established
religion. But after Constantine's pretended conversion its hierarchy
began to labor for the recognition of Christianity as the state
religion, and to give to their demand some show of consistency they
insisted that their scriptures were really historical, and that there
was no resemblance whatever between the two forms of worship; while
theirs was of Divine authenticity the Pagans was purely a human
institution.

For centuries after the convocation of the council of Nice the peace
and harmony of the several churches were disturbed by the rancorous
discussion of the same old questions of Trintarianism and Unitarianism,
the Western church adhering to the former while a majority of the
Eastern congregations maintained their faith in the latter; but
ultimately the Trinitarian party, gaining the ascendency, and
persecuting the adherents of the Unitarian faith, the greater part of
them retired into northern Arabia where they founded numerous
monasteries; and from history we learn that, having impressed their
Unitarian faith upon the populace of that country, it was ultimately
incorporated into the Koran, the sacred book of Mohammedanism; and,
while becoming votaries of that form of worship, still retained the
belief that Christ was but one of the prophets.

The cultured adherents to the established form of worship, becoming
alarmed at the growing power and influence of the Christians and at the
prospect of such an ignorant and vicious rabble obtaining control of
the government, regardless of their pledge to keep the Gnosis secret,
publicly announced that the Gods were mythical and the scriptures