prelates, who alone seemed to have some temperance and modesty left.2 These dissensions were greatly owing to the emperors, and particularly to Constantius, who, confounding the pure and simple Christian religion with anile superstitions, and perplexing it with intricate questions, instead of reconciling different opinions, excited many disputes, which he fomented as they proceeded with infinite altercations.3 This grew worse in the time of Justinian, who, not to be behind the bishops to the fifth and sixth centuries in zeal, thought it no crime to condemn to death a man of a different persuasion from his own.4 This corruption of doctrine and morals in the princes and clergy, was necessarily followed by a general depravity of the people;5 those of all conditions making it their sole business to get money by any means, 2 Prideaux's preface to his Life of Mahomet. 3 Vide La Vie de Mahommed, par Boulainvilliers, p. 219, &c. 4 Vide Simon, Hist. Crit. de la Créance, &c. des Nations du Levant. 1 Ammian. Marcellin. l. 2I. Vide etiam Euseb. Hist. Eccles. l. 8, c. I. Sozom. l. I, c. 114, &c. Hilar. and Sulpic. Sever. in Hist. Sacr. p. 112, &c. 2 Ammian. Marcellin. lib. 27. 3 Idem, l. 2I. 4 Procop. in Anecd. p. 60. 5 See an instance of the wickedness of the Christian army, even when they were under the terror of the Saracens, in Ockley's Hist. of the Sarac., vol. i. p. 239. and then to squander it away when they had got it in luxury and debauchery.6 But, to be more particular as to the nation we are now writing of, Arabia was of old famous for heresies;7 which might be in some measure attributed to the liberty and independency of the tribes. Some of the Christians of that nation believed the soul died with the body, and was to be raised again with it at the last day:1 these Origen is said to have convinced.2 Among the Arabs it was that the heresies of Ebion, Beryllus, and the Nazaræns,3 and also that of the Collyridians, were broached, or at least propagated; the latter introduced the Virgin Mary for GOD, or worshipped her as such, offering her a sort of twisted cake called collyris, whence the sect had its name.4 This notion of the divinity of the Virgin Mary was also believed by some at the council of Nice, who said there were two gods besides the Father, viz., Christ and the Virgin Mary, and were thence named Mariamites.5 Others imagined her to be exempt from humanity, and deified; which goes but little beyond the Popish superstition in calling her the complement of the Trinity, as if it were imperfect without her. This foolish imagination is justly condemned in the Korân6 as idolatrous, and gave a handle to Mohammed to attack the Trinity itself. Other sects there were of many denominations within the borders of Arabia, which took refuge there from the proscriptions of the imperial edicts; several of whose notions Mohammed incorporated with his religion, as may be observed hereafter.