Origen (185-254) says (Vol. IV., p. 652), “Celsus would also have us to offer first-fruits to demons. But we would offer them to Him who said, ‘let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself upon the earth.’ And to Him to whom we offer first-fruits we also send up our prayers.” He is also quoted in Smith and Cheetham’s Dictionary of Christian Antiquities as saying (Hom. XI., in Numeros), “How then is our righteousness abounding more than that of the Scribes and Pharisees, if they dare not taste the fruits of their land before they offer first-fruits to the priests, and tithes are separated for the Levites; whilst I, doing none of these things, so misuse the fruits of the earth that the priest knows nothing of them, the Levite is ignorant of them, the divine altar does not perceive them”? Cyprian (200-258) in his treatise “On the Unity of the Church” (Vol. V., p. 429) states the condition of the Church in his time as follows: “But in us unanimity is diminished in proportion as liberality of working is decayed. Then they used to give for sale houses and estates; and that they might lay up for themselves treasures in heaven, presented to the apostles the price of them, to be distributed for the use of the poor. But now we do not even give the tenths from our patrimony; and while our Lord bids us sell, we rather buy and increase our store. Thus has the vigor of faith dwindled away among us; thus has the strength of believers grown weak.” The Apostolic Constitutions, connected in a literary way with The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, belong, at least so far as the first six books are concerned, to the third century. Dr. Riddle says: “The first six books are the oldest; the seventh, in its present form, somewhat later, but, from its connection with the teaching, proven to contain matter of a very ancient date. The eighth book is of latest date. It now seems to be generally admitted that the entire work is not later than the fourth century, although the usual allowance must be made for textual changes, whether by accident or design.”