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002 - Chapters 1-10 · Against Celsus Book 1

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Speaker 1: Chapters one through ten of Against Celsus, Book One by Origin,
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Speaker 1: translated by Frederick Crombie. This LibriVox recording is in the
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Speaker 1: public domain. Read by David Ronald. The first point which
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Speaker 1: Celsus springs forward in his desire to throw discredit upon
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Speaker 1: Christianity is that the Christians entered into secret associations with
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Speaker 1: each other contrary to law, saying that quote of associations,
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Speaker 1: some are public, and that these are in accordance with
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Speaker 1: the laws, others again secret and maintained in violation of
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Speaker 1: the laws end quote. And his wish is to bring
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Speaker 1: into disrepute what are termed the quote love feasts end
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Speaker 1: quote of the Christians, as if they had their origin
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Speaker 1: in the common danger and were more binding than any oaths.
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Speaker 1: Since then he babbles about the public law, alleging that
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Speaker 1: the associations of the Christians are in violation of it.
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Speaker 1: We have to reply that if a man were placed
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Speaker 1: among Scythians whose laws were unholy, and having no opportunity
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Speaker 1: of escape, were compelled to live among them, such an
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Speaker 1: one would, with good reason for the sake of the
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Speaker 1: law of truth, which the Scythians would regard as wickedness,
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Speaker 1: enter into associations contrary to their laws with those like
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Speaker 1: minded with himself. So, if truth is to decide, the
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Speaker 1: laws of the Heathens, which relate to images and an
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Speaker 1: atheistical polytheism, are quote Scythian end quote laws, or more
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Speaker 1: impious even than these, if there be any such, it
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Speaker 1: is not irrational then to form associations in opposition to
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Speaker 1: existing laws, if done for the sake of truth, for
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Speaker 1: those persons would do well. Who should enter into a
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Speaker 1: secret association in order to put to death a tyrant
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Speaker 1: who had seized upon the liberties of a state. So
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Speaker 1: Christians also, when tyrannized over by him who is called
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Speaker 1: the Devil, and by false form leagues contrary to the
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Speaker 1: laws of the Devil, against his power, and for the
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Speaker 1: safety of those others whom they may succeed in persuading
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Speaker 1: to revolt from a government which is, as it were,
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Speaker 1: scythian and despotic. Celsus next proceeds to say that the
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Speaker 1: system of doctrine viz. Judaism upon which Christianity depends was
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Speaker 1: barbarous in its origin, and with an appearance of fairness,
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Speaker 1: he does not reproach Christianity because of its origin among Barbarians,
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Speaker 1: but gives the latter credit for their ability in discovering
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Speaker 1: such doctrines. To this, however, he adds the statement that
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Speaker 1: the Greeks are more skillful than any others in judging, establishing,
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Speaker 1: and reducing to practice the discoveries of barbarious nations. Now,
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Speaker 1: this is our answer to his allegations and our defense
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Speaker 1: of the truths contained in Christianity, that if any one
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Speaker 1: were to come from the study of Grecian opinions and
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Speaker 1: usages to the Gospel, he would not only decide that
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Speaker 1: its doctrines were true, but would by practice establish their truth,
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Speaker 1: and supply whatever seemed wanting from aggression point of view
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Speaker 1: to their demonstration, and thus confirm the truth of Christianity.
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Speaker 1: We have to say moreover, that the Gospel has a
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Speaker 1: demonstration of its own, more divine than any established by
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Speaker 1: Gretchen dialects. And this diviner method is called by the
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Speaker 1: apostle the manifestation of the Spirit and of power of
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Speaker 1: this spirit. On account of the prophecies which are sufficient
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Speaker 1: to produce faith in any one who reads them, especially
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Speaker 1: in those things which relate to Christ, and of power,
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Speaker 1: because of the signs and wonders which we must believe
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Speaker 1: to have been performed, both on many other grounds, and
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Speaker 1: on this that traces of them are still preserved among
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Speaker 1: those who regulate their lives by the precepts of the Gospel.
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Speaker 1: After this, Celsus proceeding to speak of the Christians teaching
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Speaker 1: and practicing their favorite doctrines in secrets, and saying that
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Speaker 1: they do this to some purpose, seeing they escape the
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Speaker 1: penalty of death which is imminent. He compares their dangers
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Speaker 1: with those which were encountered by such men as Socrates
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Speaker 1: for the sake of philosophy. And here he might have
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Speaker 1: mentioned Pythagoras as well, and other philosophers. But our answer
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Speaker 1: to this is that in the case of Socrates, the
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Speaker 1: Athenians immediately afterwards repented, and no feeling of bitterness remained
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Speaker 1: in their minds regarding him, as also happened in the
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Speaker 1: history of Pythagoras. The followers of the latter indeed, for
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Speaker 1: a considerable time established their schools in that part of
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Speaker 1: Italy called Magna Graecia. But in the case of the Christians,
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Speaker 1: the Roman senate and the princes of the time, and
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Speaker 1: the soldiery and the people and the relatives of those
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Speaker 1: who had become converts to the faith made war upon
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Speaker 1: their doctrine, and would have prevented its progress, overcoming it
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Speaker 1: by a confederacy of so powerful a nature, had it not,
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Speaker 1: by the help of God, escaped danger and risen above it,
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Speaker 1: so as finally to defeat the whole world in its
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Speaker 1: conspiracy against it. Let us notice also how he thinks
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Speaker 1: to cast discredit upon our system of morals, alleging that
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Speaker 1: it is only common to us with other philosophers, and
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Speaker 1: no venerable or new branch of instruction, in reply to
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Speaker 1: which we have to say that, unless all men had
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Speaker 1: naturally impressed upon their minds sound ideas of morality, the
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Speaker 1: doctrine of the punishment of sinners would have been excluded
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Speaker 1: by those who bring upon themselves the righteous judgments of God.
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Speaker 1: It is not, therefore, a matter of surprise that the
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Speaker 1: same God should have sown in the hearts of all
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Speaker 1: men those truths which He taught by the prophets and
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Speaker 1: the Savior, in order that at the divine judgment every
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Speaker 1: man may be without excuse having the requirements of the
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Speaker 1: law written upon his heart, a truth obscurely alluded to
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Speaker 1: by the Bible. In what the Greeks regard as a myth,
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Speaker 1: where it represents God as having with his own finger
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Speaker 1: written down the commandments and given them to Moses, and
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Speaker 1: which the wickedness of the worshippers of the calf made
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Speaker 1: him break in pieces, as if the flood of wickedness,
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Speaker 1: so to speak, had swept them away. But Moses, having
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Speaker 1: again hewn tables of stone, God wrote the commandments a
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Speaker 1: second time and gave them to him the prophetic word,
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Speaker 1: preparing the soul, as it were, after the first transgression,
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Speaker 1: for the writing of God a second time. Treating of
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Speaker 1: the regulations respecting idolatry as being peculiar to Christianity, Celsus
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Speaker 1: establishes their correctness, saying that the Christians do not consider
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Speaker 1: those to be gods that are made with hands, on
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Speaker 1: the ground that it is not in conformity with right
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Speaker 1: reason to suppose that images fashioned by the most worthless
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Speaker 1: and depraved of workmen, and in many instances also provided
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Speaker 1: by wicked men, can be regarded as gods. In what follows, however,
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Speaker 1: wishing to show that this is a common opinion and
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Speaker 1: when not first discovered by Christianity, he quotes a saying
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Speaker 1: of Heraclitus to this effect quote, that those who draw
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Speaker 1: nearer to lifeless images as if they were gods act
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Speaker 1: in a similar manner to those who would enter into
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Speaker 1: conversation with houses end quote. Respecting this, then we have
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Speaker 1: to say that ideas were implanted in the minds of men,
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Speaker 1: like the principles of morality, from which not only Heracleitus,
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Speaker 1: but any other Greek or Barbarian might, by reflection, have
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Speaker 1: deduced the same conclusion. For he states that the Persians
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Speaker 1: also were of the same opinion, quoting Herodotus as his authority.
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Speaker 1: We also can add to these Zeno of Sithium, who
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Speaker 1: in his polity says, quote, and there will be no
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Speaker 1: need to build temples, for nothing ought to be regarded
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Speaker 1: as sacred, or of much value or holy, which is
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Speaker 1: the work of builders and of mean men. It is evident, then,
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Speaker 1: with respect to this opinion, as well as others, that
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Speaker 1: there has been engraven upon the hearts of men by
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Speaker 1: the finger of God, as sense of duty that is required.
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Speaker 1: After this, through the influence of some motive which is
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Speaker 1: unknown to me, Celsus asserts that it is by the
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Speaker 1: names of certain demons and by the use of incantations,
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Speaker 1: that the Christians appear to be possessed of miraculous power,
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Speaker 1: hinting I suppose at the practices of those who expel
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Speaker 1: evil spirits by incantations. And here he manifestly appears to
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Speaker 1: malign the Gospel. For it is not by incantations that
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Speaker 1: Christians seem to prevail over evil spirits, but by the
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Speaker 1: name of Jesus, accompanied by the announcement of the narratives
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Speaker 1: which relate to him. For the repetition of these has
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Speaker 1: frequently been the means of driving demons out of men,
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Speaker 1: especially when those who repeated them did so in a
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Speaker 1: sound and genuinely believing spirit. Such power, indeed does the
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Speaker 1: name of Jesus possess over evil spirits, that there have
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Speaker 1: been instances where it was effectual when it was pronounced,
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Speaker 1: even by bad men, which Jesus himself taught would be
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Speaker 1: the case when he said, many shall say to me
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Speaker 1: in that day, in thy name, we have cast out
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Speaker 1: devils and done many wonderful works. Whether Celsus omitted this
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Speaker 1: from intentional malignity or from ignorance, I do not know.
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Speaker 1: And he next proceeds to bring a charge against the
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Speaker 1: Savior himself, alleging that it was by means of sorcery,
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Speaker 1: that he was able to accomplish the wonders which he performed,
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Speaker 1: and that, foreseeing that others would attain the same knowledge
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Speaker 1: and do the same things, making a boast of doing
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Speaker 1: them by help of the power of God, he excludes
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Speaker 1: such from his kingdom. And his accusation is that if
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Speaker 1: they are justly excluded, while he himself is guilty of
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Speaker 1: the same practices, he is a wicked man. But if
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Speaker 1: he is not guilty of wickedness in doing such things,
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Speaker 1: neither are they who do the same as he. But
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Speaker 1: even if it be impossible to show by what power
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Speaker 1: Jesus wrought these miracles, it is clear that Christians employ
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Speaker 1: no spells or incantations, but the simple name of Jesus
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Speaker 1: and certain other words in which they repose faith according
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Speaker 1: to the Holy Scriptures. Moreover, since he frequently calls the
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Speaker 1: Christian doctrine a secret system of belief, we must confute
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Speaker 1: him on this point. Also, since almost the entire world
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Speaker 1: is better acquainted with what Christians preach than with the
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Speaker 1: favorite opinions of philosophers, for whose ignorant of the statement
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Speaker 1: that Jesus was born of a virgin and that he
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Speaker 1: was crucified, and that his resurrection is an article of
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Speaker 1: faith among many, and that a general judgment is announced
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Speaker 1: to come, in which the wicked are to be punished
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Speaker 1: according to their deserts, and the righteous to be duly rewarded.
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Speaker 1: And yet the mystery of the resurrection not being understood
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Speaker 1: is made a subject of ridicule among unbelievers in these circumstances.
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Speaker 1: To speak of the Christian doctrine as a secret system
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Speaker 1: is altogether of s. But that there should be certain
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Speaker 1: doctrines not made known to the multitude, which are revealed
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Speaker 1: after the exoteric ones have been taught, is not a
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Speaker 1: peculiarity of Christianity alone, but also of the philosophic systems,
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Speaker 1: in which certain truths are exoteric and others esoteric. Some
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Speaker 1: of the hearers of Pythagoras were content with his ipsey dixit,
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Speaker 1: while others were taught in secret those doctrines which were
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Speaker 1: not deemed fit to be communicated to profane in insufficiently
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Speaker 1: prepared ears. Moreover all, the mysteries that are celebrated everywhere
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Speaker 1: throughout Greece and barbarous counties, although held in secret, have
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Speaker 1: no discredit thrown upon them. So that it is vain
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Speaker 1: that he endeavors to caluminate the secret doctrines of Christianity,
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Speaker 1: seeing he does not correctly understand its nature. It is
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Speaker 1: with a certain eloquence, indeed, that he appears to advocate
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Speaker 1: the cause of those who bear witness to the truth
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Speaker 1: of Christianity by their death in the following words quote
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Speaker 1: and I do not maintain that if a man who
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Speaker 1: has adopted a system of good doctrine is to incur
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Speaker 1: a danger from men on that account, he should either
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Speaker 1: apostize or feign apostasy, or openly deny his opinions. End
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Speaker 1: quote and he condemns those who, while holding the Christian views,
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Speaker 1: either pretend that they do not or deny them, saying
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Speaker 1: that quote he who holds a certain opinion are not
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Speaker 1: too feign recantation or publicly disown it. End quote and
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Speaker 1: here Celsus must be convicted of self contradiction, for from
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Speaker 1: other treatises of his it is ascertained that he was
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Speaker 1: an Epicurean, but here because he thought that he could
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Speaker 1: assail Christianity with better effect by not professing the opinions
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Speaker 1: of Epicurius. He pretends that there is something better in
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Speaker 1: man than the earthly part of his nature, which is
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Speaker 1: aChn to God, and says that quote they in whom
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Speaker 1: this element viz. The soul, is in a healthy can condition,
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Speaker 1: our ever seeking after their kindred nature, meaning God, and
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Speaker 1: are ever desiring to hear something about him and to
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Speaker 1: call it to remembrance end quote. Observed now the insincerity
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Speaker 1: of his character. Having said a little before that quote,
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Speaker 1: the man who had embraced a system of good doctrine,
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Speaker 1: ought not, even if exposed a danger on that account
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Speaker 1: from men, to disavow it or pretend that he had
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Speaker 1: done so, nor yet openly disown it. End quote. He
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Speaker 1: now involves himself in all manner of contradictions, for he
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Speaker 1: knew that if he acknowledged himself an Epicurean, he would
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Speaker 1: not obtain any credit when accusing those who in any
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Speaker 1: degree introduced the doctrine of providence and who place a
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Speaker 1: God over the world. And we have heard that there
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Speaker 1: were two individuals of the name of Celsus, both of
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Speaker 1: whom were Epicureans, the earlier of the two having lived
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Speaker 1: in the time of Nero, but this one and that
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Speaker 1: of Adrian and later. He next proceeds to recommend that
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Speaker 1: in adopted opinions, we should follow reason and a rational guide,
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Speaker 1: since he who assents to opinions without following this course
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Speaker 1: is very liable to be deceived. And he compares and
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Speaker 1: considerate believers to Metrogeierte and soothsayers, and milthray and sabadeans,
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Speaker 1: and to anything else that one may fall in with,
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Speaker 1: and to the phantoms of Hakati or any other demon
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Speaker 1: or demons, For as amongst such persons are frequently to
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Speaker 1: be found wicked men, who, taking advantage of the ignorance
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Speaker 1: of those who are easily deceived, lead them away whither
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Speaker 1: they will. So also, he says, is the case among Christians.
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Speaker 1: And he asserts that certain persons who do not wish
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Speaker 1: either to give or receive a reason for their belief
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Speaker 1: keep repeating quote, do not examine, but believe end quote,
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Speaker 1: and quote your faith will save you end quote. And
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Speaker 1: he alleges that such also say, quote the wisdom of
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Speaker 1: this life is bad, but the foolishness is a good
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Speaker 1: thing end quote, to which we have to answer that
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Speaker 1: if it were possible for all to leave the business
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Speaker 1: of life and devote themselves to philosophy, no other method
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Speaker 1: ought to be adopted by any one but this alone.
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Speaker 1: For in the Christian system also it will be found
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Speaker 1: that there is not, to speak at all arrogantly, at
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Speaker 1: least as much of investigation into articles of belief, and
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Speaker 1: of explanation of dark sayings occurring in the prophetical writings,
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Speaker 1: and to the parables in the Gospels, and of countless
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Speaker 1: other things which either were narrated or enacted with the
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Speaker 1: symbolical signification, as is the case with other systems. But
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Speaker 1: since the course alluded to is impossible, partly on account
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Speaker 1: of the necessities of life, partly on account of the
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Speaker 1: weakness of men, as only a very few individuals devote
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Speaker 1: themselves earnestly to study, what better method could be devised
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Speaker 1: with the view of assisting the multitude than that which
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Speaker 1: was delivered by Jesus to the heathen. And let us
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Speaker 1: in with respect to the great multitude of believers who
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Speaker 1: have washed away the mire of wickedness in which they
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Speaker 1: formerly wallowed, whether it were better for them to believe
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Speaker 1: without a reason, and so to have become reformed and
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Speaker 1: improved in their habits through the belief that men are
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Speaker 1: chastised for sins and honored for good works, or not
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Speaker 1: to have allowed themselves to be converted on the strength
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Speaker 1: of mere faith, but to have waited until they could
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Speaker 1: give themselves to a thorough examination of the necessary reasons.
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Speaker 1: For it is manifest that on such a plan, all men,
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Speaker 1: with very few exceptions, would not obtain this amelioration of
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Speaker 1: conduct which they have obtained through a simple faith, but
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Speaker 1: would continue to remain in the practice of a wicked life. Now,
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Speaker 1: whatever other evidence can be furnished of the fact that
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Speaker 1: it was not without divine intervention that the philanthropic scheme
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Speaker 1: of Christianity was introduced among men, this also must be added,
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Speaker 1: for a pious man will not believe that even a
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Speaker 1: physician of the body, who restores us sick to better health,
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Speaker 1: could take up his abode in any city or country
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Speaker 1: without divine permission. Since no good happens to men without
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Speaker 1: the help of God. And if he who has cured
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Speaker 1: the bodies of many or restored them to better health,
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Speaker 1: does not affect his cures without the help of God,
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Speaker 1: how much more he who has healed the souls of many,
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Speaker 1: and has turned them to virtue, and improved their nature,
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Speaker 1: and attached them to God who is over all things,
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Speaker 1: and taught them to refer every action to his good pleasure,
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Speaker 1: and to shun all that is displeasing to him, even
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Speaker 1: to the least of their words or deeds, or even
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Speaker 1: of the thoughts of their hearts. In the next place,
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Speaker 1: since our opponents keep repeating those statements about faith, we
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Speaker 1: must say that, considering it as a useful thing for
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Speaker 1: the multitude, we admit that we teach those men to
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Speaker 1: believe without reasons who are unable to abandon all other
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Speaker 1: employments and give themselves to an examination of arguments, And
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Speaker 1: our opponents, although they do not acknowledge it, yet practically
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Speaker 1: do the same. For who is there that, on betaking
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Speaker 1: himself to the study of philosophy and throwing himself into
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Speaker 1: the ranks of some sect, either by chance or because
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Speaker 1: he is provided with a teacher of that school, adopts
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Speaker 1: such a course for any other reason, except that he
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Speaker 1: believes his particular sect to be superior to any other.
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Speaker 1: For not waiting to hear the arguments of all the
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Speaker 1: other philosophers, and of all the different sects, and the
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Speaker 1: reasons for condemning one system and for supporting another, he
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Speaker 1: in this way elects to become a stoic or a
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Speaker 1: Platonist or a parapetatic, or an Epicurean, or a follower
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Speaker 1: of some other school, and is thus born, although they
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Speaker 1: will not admit it, by a kind of irrational impulse
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Speaker 1: to the practice, say of Stoicism, to the disregard of
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Speaker 1: the others, despising either Platonism as being marked by God
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Speaker 1: greater humility than the others, or Peripetaticism as more human
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Speaker 1: and as admitting with more fairness than other systems the
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Speaker 1: blessings of human life. And some also alarmed at first
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Speaker 1: sight about the doctrine of providence from seeing what happens
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Speaker 1: in the world to the vicious and to the virtuous,
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Speaker 1: have rashly concluded that there is no divine providence at all,
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Speaker 1: and have adopted the views of Epicurius and Celsus. End
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Speaker 1: of chapters one through ten of Against Celsus by Origin
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Speaker 1: read by David Ronald