THANKSGIYING.— The true ideal of human life, as inter|ircted in the NT, is to make it a great service of thanksgiving. The thanksgivings of our Lord, culminating in His in^^titution of the Eucharist, which was typilied in His thanksgiving prajers at the feeding of the crowds, )ire]iared the Church for this thought, linking worship with work.
It has been finely said : ' As prayer is a recogni- tion of our dependence upon God amid the dark- ness and uncertainties of the future, i^o thankful- ness is a recognition of our indebtedness to Hiin for the blessings of the past.' * St. Paul's Epistles are full of a deep spirit of joy which is the con- stant reward of a truly thankful spirit. All his letters addressed to churches, with the exception of the Ejiistle to the Galatians, begin with words of thanksgiving. We note this especially in "2 Co 1", when the dark cloud of grief over the back- sliders at Corinth is passing (cf. 4").
He regards unbroken and universal thanksgiving as 'the will of God in Christ Jesus' (1 Th 5'«). He traces one root of the degradation of the heathen world to lack of thanksgiving (Ro l-')- In Ro 14" he demands that the scrupulous man no less than the Christian who is indillerent to ordin- ances about meats or days should show thankful- ness.
The great collection for the poor saints in Jeru- salem is to be motived by thanksgiving, and will produce results beyond the material odering in the recipients as in the givers : ' Ye being enricheil in everything unto all liberality which maketh through us thanksgiving to God ' ('2 Co 9"- '-). In Eph S'''" he teaches that thanksgiving is the in- spiration of Christian poetry and music, in which it found its most characteristic expression.
That St. Paul feels that it cannot be carried too far is proved by such strong expressions as Col 2', 'abounding in thanksgiving,' for the glory of the faith in Christ. His main line of thought is always ' in the name of the Lord .Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him ' (3"). He expects that the universality of our intercessions will be matched by equal universality in our thanksgivings (1 Ti 2').
Finally, we note that, when writing to the Philip- plans, whose unwavering loyalty was a constant solace to him in many trials, his thanksgiving (Pb P'') was ' more than usually earnest. The .Apostle dwells long and fondly on the subject. He rejieats words and accumulales clauses in the intensity of his feeling' (Lightfoot, ad loc).
In Rev 11"- '» 'the Elders represent the Church in her great function of eixapiarla ' (Swete, ail lor. ) and respond to the gieat voices of the living creatures in stirring strains.
The Apostolic Fathers strike the same note, e.g. Clement of Rome (Ep. ad Cor. i. 3S) : 'Seeing therefore that we have all these things from Him, we ought in all things to give thanks to Him, to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.' The Ignatian Epistles are redolent of the spirit of thanksgiving, especially for the Revelation in Christ and 'the love of the churches ' (Uo 9) (see
" II. P. Liddon, Sermons on Somt Word* of Christ, London,
1892. p. 217.
568
THEATRE
TIIEUPUILUS
Epistle of Barnabas, 7, quoted under Praise). See also art. Puayer.
LiTRRATPRK. — E. von Dobschutz, Chri-ittan Life in the Prijnitive Church, IvOndon, 19U4 ; W. H. Frere aud A. L. lUingTworth, Surnum C'orda, do., 11)11 ; W. Law. A ScriotLS Coil to a Devout and Holy Life, do., 1BU9 ; A. J. Worlledge, Prayer, do., 1902, pp. 219-223. A. E. BURN.
THEATRE.— The ancient Greek theatre (lit. 'a i)lace of spectacle,' ' a belioldiiig place ') was regu- i.arly a Imildins; of semicircular ground-plan, open to the sky. On the diameter were the stage and everj'tliing pertaining to it. The inner part of the semicircle below the level of the stage had an altar in the middle on which incense was burnt. Around this central part the tiers of stone seats rose to the top, intersected at regular intervals by passages to enable the spectators to reach their places. The entrances for spectators were at the ends of the stage. In origin theatrical exhibitions were in honour of the god Dionysos, and were held only on the days of his festivals. Attendance at the theatre on such occasions was an act of worship. Only in course of time did the theatre become a place of amusement entirely, divorced from all connexion with religion. Tlie size of a theatre varied accord- ing to the size of the population of the city in which it was. As a general rule it was of necessity the largest building in the city, and, as on most days of the year it was not required for play-acting, it was available for public meetings. In Athens tlie meetings of the public assembly (iKKk-qaia) took place in the theatre. So at Ephesus (Ac 19), when the disturbance aroused by Demetrius took place, it was the most natural thing in the world that a rush should be made to the theatre (v.''").
LiTERATORE.— A. E. Haigh, The Attic Theatre^, ed. A. W. Pickard-Cambridge, Oxford, 1907. A. SOUTER.
THEFT.— See Stealing.
THEOPHILUS.— Theophilus is the name of the person to whom the author of the Lucan Gospel and the Acts addressed his treatises. It is not certain whether Theophilus was a real person or a literary figment. The same doubt applies to otlier books in early Christian literature whicli seem to have been intended for a general public but are addressed to an individual, e.g. the Epistle to Diorj- netus. There is, however, no proof that the fiction of an imaginary address was a common literary artifice.