a sect of eastern Christians who follow the Syrian rite, and
are subject to the pope; their principal habitation being on Mount
Libanus, or between the Ansarians to the north and the Druses to the
south. Mosheim informs us, that the Monothelites, condemned and exploded
by the council of Constantinople, found a place of refuge among the
Mardaites, signifying in Syriac _rebels_, a people who took possession
of Lebanon, A. D. 676, which became the asylum of vagabonds, slaves, and
all sorts of rabble; and about the conclusion of the seventh century
they were called Maronites, after Maro, their first bishop; a name which
they still retain. None, he says, of the ancient writers, give any
certain account of the first person who instructed these mountaineers in
the doctrine of the Monothelites; it is probable, however, from several
circumstances, that it was John Maro, whose name they have adopted; and
that this ecclesiastic received the name of Maro from his having lived
in the character of a monk, in the famous convent of St. Maro, upon the
borders of the Orontes, before his settlement among the Mardaites of
Mount Libanus. One thing is certain, from the testimony of Tyrius, and
other unexceptionable witnesses, as also from the most authentic
records, namely, that the Maronites retained the opinions of the
Monothelites until the twelfth century, when, abandoning and renouncing
the doctrine of one will in Christ, they were reädmitted into the
communion of the Roman church. The most learned of the modern Maronites
have left no method unemployed to defend their church against this
accusation; they have laboured to prove, by a variety of testimonies,
that their ancestors always persevered in the Catholic faith, and in
their attachment to the Roman pontiff, without ever adopting the
doctrine of the Monophysites or Monothelites. But all their efforts are
insufficient to prove the truth of these assertions, and the testimonies
they allege will appear absolutely fictitious and destitute of
authority.
The nation may be considered as divided into two classes, the common
people and the _shaiks_, by whom must be understood the most eminent of
the inhabitants, who, from the antiquity of their families, and the
opulence of their fortunes are superior to the ordinary class. They all
live dispersed in the mountains, in villages, hamlets, and even detached
houses; which is never the case in the plains. The whole nation consists
of cultivators. Every man improves the little domain he possesses, or
farms, with his own hands. Even the _shaiks_ live in the same manner,
and are only distinguished from the rest by a bad peliss, a horse, and a
few slight advantages in food and lodging; they all live frugally,
without many enjoyments, but also with few wants, as they are little
acquainted with the inventions of luxury. In general, the nation is
poor, but no one wants necessaries; and if beggars are sometimes seen,
they come rather from the sea coast than the country itself. Property is
as sacred among them as in Europe; nor do we see there those robberies
and extortions so frequent with the Turks. Travellers may journey there,
either by night or by day, with a security unknown in any other part of
the empire, and the stranger is received with hospitality, as among the
Arabs: it must be owned, however, that the Maronites are less generous,
and rather inclined to the vice of parsimony. Conformably to the
doctrines of Christianity, they have only one wife, whom they frequently
espouse without having seen, and always without having been much in her
company. Contrary to the precepts of that same religion, however, they
have admitted, or retained, the Arab custom of retaliation, and the
nearest relation of a murdered person is bound to avenge him. From a
habit founded on distrust, and the political state of the country, every
one, whether _shaik_ or peasant, walks continually armed with a musket
and poinards. This is, perhaps, an inconvenience; but this advantage
results from it, that they have no novices in the use of arms among
them, when it is necessary to employ them against the Turks. As the
country maintains no regular troops, every man is obliged to join the
army in time of war; and if this militia were well conducted, it would
be superior to many European armies. From accounts taken in late years,
the number of men fit to bear arms, amounts to thirty-five thousand.
In religious matters the Maronites are dependent on Rome. Though they
acknowledge the supremacy of the pope, their clergy continue, as
heretofore, to elect a head, with the title of _batrak_, or patriarch of
Antioch. Their priests marry, as in the first ages of the church; but
their wives must be maidens, and not widows; nor can they marry a second
time. They celebrate mass in Syriac, of which the greatest part of them
comprehend not a word. The Gospel, alone, is read aloud in Arabic, that
it may be understood by the people. The communion is administered in
both kinds. In the small country of the Maronites there are reckoned
upward of two hundred convents for men and women. These religious are of
the order of St. Anthony, whose rules they observe with an exactness
which reminds us of earlier times. The court of Rome, in affiliating the
Maronites, has granted them a _hospitium_ at Rome, to which they may
send several of their youth to receive a gratuitous education. It should
seem that this institution might introduce among them the ideas and arts
of Europe; but the pupils of this school, limited to an education purely
monastic, bring home nothing but the Italian language, which is of no
use, and a stock of theological learning, from which as little advantage
can be derived; they accordingly soon assimilate with the rest. Nor has
a greater change been operated by the three or four missionaries
maintained by the French capuchins at Gazir, Tripoli, and Bairout. Their
labours consist in preaching in their church, in instructing children in
the catechism, Thomas a Kempis, and the Psalms, and in teaching them to
read and write. Formerly, the Jesuits had two missionaries at their
house at Antoura, and the Lazarites have now succeeded them in their
mission. The most valuable advantage that has resulted from these
labours is, that the art of writing has become more common among the
Maronites, and rendered them, in this country, what the Copts are in
Egypt, that is, they are in possession of all the posts of writers,
intendants, and _kaiyas_ among the Turks, and especially of those among
their allies and neighbours, the Druses.
Mosheim observes, that the subjection of the Maronites to the spiritual
jurisdiction of the Roman pontiff was agreed to with this express
condition, that neither the popes nor their emissaries should pretend to
change or abolish any thing that related to the ancient rites, moral
precepts, or religious opinions of this people; so that, in reality,
there is nothing to be found among the Maronites that savours of popery,
if we except their attachment to the Roman pontiff. It is also certain
that there are Maronites in Syria, who still behold the church of Rome
with the greatest aversion and abhorrence; nay, what is still more
remarkable, great numbers of that nation residing in Italy, even under
the eye of the pontiff, opposed his authority during the seventeenth
century, and threw the court of Rome into great perplexity. One body of
these non-conforming Maronites retired into the valleys of Piedmont,
where they joined the Waldenses; another, above six hundred in number,
with a bishop, and several ecclesiastics at their head, flew into
Corsica, and implored the protection of the republic of Genoa, against
the violence of the inquisitors.
are subject to the pope; their principal habitation being on Mount
Libanus, or between the Ansarians to the north and the Druses to the
south. Mosheim informs us, that the Monothelites, condemned and exploded
by the council of Constantinople, found a place of refuge among the
Mardaites, signifying in Syriac _rebels_, a people who took possession
of Lebanon, A. D. 676, which became the asylum of vagabonds, slaves, and
all sorts of rabble; and about the conclusion of the seventh century
they were called Maronites, after Maro, their first bishop; a name which
they still retain. None, he says, of the ancient writers, give any
certain account of the first person who instructed these mountaineers in
the doctrine of the Monothelites; it is probable, however, from several
circumstances, that it was John Maro, whose name they have adopted; and
that this ecclesiastic received the name of Maro from his having lived
in the character of a monk, in the famous convent of St. Maro, upon the
borders of the Orontes, before his settlement among the Mardaites of
Mount Libanus. One thing is certain, from the testimony of Tyrius, and
other unexceptionable witnesses, as also from the most authentic
records, namely, that the Maronites retained the opinions of the
Monothelites until the twelfth century, when, abandoning and renouncing
the doctrine of one will in Christ, they were reädmitted into the
communion of the Roman church. The most learned of the modern Maronites
have left no method unemployed to defend their church against this
accusation; they have laboured to prove, by a variety of testimonies,
that their ancestors always persevered in the Catholic faith, and in
their attachment to the Roman pontiff, without ever adopting the
doctrine of the Monophysites or Monothelites. But all their efforts are
insufficient to prove the truth of these assertions, and the testimonies
they allege will appear absolutely fictitious and destitute of
authority.
The nation may be considered as divided into two classes, the common
people and the _shaiks_, by whom must be understood the most eminent of
the inhabitants, who, from the antiquity of their families, and the
opulence of their fortunes are superior to the ordinary class. They all
live dispersed in the mountains, in villages, hamlets, and even detached
houses; which is never the case in the plains. The whole nation consists
of cultivators. Every man improves the little domain he possesses, or
farms, with his own hands. Even the _shaiks_ live in the same manner,
and are only distinguished from the rest by a bad peliss, a horse, and a
few slight advantages in food and lodging; they all live frugally,
without many enjoyments, but also with few wants, as they are little
acquainted with the inventions of luxury. In general, the nation is
poor, but no one wants necessaries; and if beggars are sometimes seen,
they come rather from the sea coast than the country itself. Property is
as sacred among them as in Europe; nor do we see there those robberies
and extortions so frequent with the Turks. Travellers may journey there,
either by night or by day, with a security unknown in any other part of
the empire, and the stranger is received with hospitality, as among the
Arabs: it must be owned, however, that the Maronites are less generous,
and rather inclined to the vice of parsimony. Conformably to the
doctrines of Christianity, they have only one wife, whom they frequently
espouse without having seen, and always without having been much in her
company. Contrary to the precepts of that same religion, however, they
have admitted, or retained, the Arab custom of retaliation, and the
nearest relation of a murdered person is bound to avenge him. From a
habit founded on distrust, and the political state of the country, every
one, whether _shaik_ or peasant, walks continually armed with a musket
and poinards. This is, perhaps, an inconvenience; but this advantage
results from it, that they have no novices in the use of arms among
them, when it is necessary to employ them against the Turks. As the
country maintains no regular troops, every man is obliged to join the
army in time of war; and if this militia were well conducted, it would
be superior to many European armies. From accounts taken in late years,
the number of men fit to bear arms, amounts to thirty-five thousand.
In religious matters the Maronites are dependent on Rome. Though they
acknowledge the supremacy of the pope, their clergy continue, as
heretofore, to elect a head, with the title of _batrak_, or patriarch of
Antioch. Their priests marry, as in the first ages of the church; but
their wives must be maidens, and not widows; nor can they marry a second
time. They celebrate mass in Syriac, of which the greatest part of them
comprehend not a word. The Gospel, alone, is read aloud in Arabic, that
it may be understood by the people. The communion is administered in
both kinds. In the small country of the Maronites there are reckoned
upward of two hundred convents for men and women. These religious are of
the order of St. Anthony, whose rules they observe with an exactness
which reminds us of earlier times. The court of Rome, in affiliating the
Maronites, has granted them a _hospitium_ at Rome, to which they may
send several of their youth to receive a gratuitous education. It should
seem that this institution might introduce among them the ideas and arts
of Europe; but the pupils of this school, limited to an education purely
monastic, bring home nothing but the Italian language, which is of no
use, and a stock of theological learning, from which as little advantage
can be derived; they accordingly soon assimilate with the rest. Nor has
a greater change been operated by the three or four missionaries
maintained by the French capuchins at Gazir, Tripoli, and Bairout. Their
labours consist in preaching in their church, in instructing children in
the catechism, Thomas a Kempis, and the Psalms, and in teaching them to
read and write. Formerly, the Jesuits had two missionaries at their
house at Antoura, and the Lazarites have now succeeded them in their
mission. The most valuable advantage that has resulted from these
labours is, that the art of writing has become more common among the
Maronites, and rendered them, in this country, what the Copts are in
Egypt, that is, they are in possession of all the posts of writers,
intendants, and _kaiyas_ among the Turks, and especially of those among
their allies and neighbours, the Druses.
Mosheim observes, that the subjection of the Maronites to the spiritual
jurisdiction of the Roman pontiff was agreed to with this express
condition, that neither the popes nor their emissaries should pretend to
change or abolish any thing that related to the ancient rites, moral
precepts, or religious opinions of this people; so that, in reality,
there is nothing to be found among the Maronites that savours of popery,
if we except their attachment to the Roman pontiff. It is also certain
that there are Maronites in Syria, who still behold the church of Rome
with the greatest aversion and abhorrence; nay, what is still more
remarkable, great numbers of that nation residing in Italy, even under
the eye of the pontiff, opposed his authority during the seventeenth
century, and threw the court of Rome into great perplexity. One body of
these non-conforming Maronites retired into the valleys of Piedmont,
where they joined the Waldenses; another, above six hundred in number,
with a bishop, and several ecclesiastics at their head, flew into
Corsica, and implored the protection of the republic of Genoa, against
the violence of the inquisitors.