shall be taken up into the heavens, and the second shall dwell in paradise, and the third shall inhabit the city; and that therefore our Lord has said, In my Father's abode are many mansions; for all things are of God, Who giveth to all their appropriate dwelling.

Philosophy a preparation for the Gospel.

L. 5

PHILOSOPHY then before the coming of the Lord was necessary to the Greeks for righteousness, but now it is profitable for piety, seeing that it is a sort of training for those who by means of demonstration have the enjoyment of faith, for 'thy foot shall not stumble,' says he, if thou 10 refer good things to providence, whether they be Greek or Christian. For God is the cause of all good things, but of some primarily, as of the old and new covenants, and of others indirectly, as of philosophy. Peradventure also it was given primarily to the Greeks in times before 15 the Lord called also the Greeks; for this was a schoolmaster to the Greek world as the law was to the Hebrews to bring them unto Christ. Philosophy therefore is a preparation, making ready the way for him who is being perfected by Christ. ... The way then of truth is 20 one; but into it as into a never-failing river flow the streams from all sides.

The true Gnostic.

He then who has first moderated his passions and trained himself for impassibility, and developed to the beneficence of gnostic perfection, is here equal to the 25 angels. Luminous already, and like the sun shining in the exercise of beneficence, he speeds by righteous knowledge through the love of God to the holy mansion.

XXXII.

Η μὲν οὖν πίστις σύντομός ἐστιν, ὡς εἰπεῖν, τῶν κατ επειγόντων γνῶσις, ἡ γνῶσις δὲ ἀπόδειξις τῶν διὰ πίστεως παρειλημμένων ἰσχυρὰ καὶ βέβαιος διὰ τῆς κυριακῆς διδασκαλίας ἐποικοδομουμένη τῇ πίστει εἰς τὸ ἀμετάπτωτον 5 καὶ μετ ̓ ἐπιστήμης καταληπτικὸν παραπέμπουσα. καί μοι δοκεῖ πρώτη τις εἶναι μεταβολὴ σωτήριος ἡ ἐξ ἐθνῶν εἰς πίστιν, ὡς προεῖπον, δευτέρα δὲ ἡ ἐκ πίστεως εἰς γνῶσιν· ἡ δὲ εἰς ἀγάπην περαιουμένη ἐνθένδε ἤδη φίλον φίλῳ τὸ γινῶσκον τῷ γινωσκομένῳ παρίστησιν. καὶ το τάχα ὁ τοιοῦτος ἐνθένδε ἤδη προλαβὼν ἔχει τὸ ἰσάγγελος εἶναι. μετὰ γοῦν τὴν ἐν σαρκὶ τελευταίαν ὑπεροχὴν ἀεὶ κατὰ τὸ προσῆκον ἐπὶ τὸ κρεῖττον μεταβάλλων εἰς τὴν πατρῴαν αὐλὴν ἐπὶ τὴν κυριακὴν ὄντως διὰ τῆς ἁγίας ἑβδομάδος ἐπείγεται μονήν, ἐσόμενος, ὡς εἰπεῖν, φῶς ἑστὸς 15 καὶ μένον ἀϊδίως, πάντη πάντως ἄτρεπτον.

Ibid. vii. 1o, p. 865.

20

XXXIII.

Κἂν τολμήσωσι προφητικαῖς χρήσασθαι γραφαῖς καὶ οἱ τὰς αἱρέσεις μετιόντες πρῶτον μὲν οὐ πάσαις, ἔπειτα οὐ τελείαις οὐδὲ ὡς τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὸ ὕφος τῆς προφητείας ὑπαγορεύει, ἀλλ ̓ ἐκλεγόμενοι τὰ ἀμφιβόλως εἰρημένα εἰς τὰς ἰδίας μετάγουσι δόξας, ὀλίγας σποράδην ἀπανθιζόμενοι φωνάς, οὐ τὸ σημαινόμενον ἀπ ̓ αὐτῶν σκοποῦντες, ἀλλ ̓ αὐτῇ ψιλῇ ἀποχρώμενοι τῇ λέξει, σχεδὸν γὰρ ἐν πᾶσιν οἷς προσφέρονται ῥητοῖς εὕροις ἂν αὐτοὺς ὡς τοῖς ὀνόμασι μόνοις προσανέχουσι τὰ σημαινόμενα ὑπαλλάτ25 τοντες, οὔθ ̓ ὡς λέγονται γινώσκοντες οὔθ ̓ ὡς ἔχειν πεφύκασι χρώμενοι, αἷς καὶ δὴ κομίζουσιν ἐκλογαῖς.

Ibid. vii. 16, p. 891.

Faith and Knowledge.

FAITH is then, so to speak, a compendious knowledge of the essentials; and knowledge is the strong and sure demonstration of what is received by faith, built upon faith by the Lord's teaching, conveying [the soul] on to unchangeableness, and scientific comprehension. And, in 5 my view, the first saving change is that from heathenism to faith, as I said before; and the second, that from faith to knowledge. And the latter terminating in love, here in this life introduces as friend to friend, that which knows to that which is known. And, perchance, such an one has 10 already attained the condition of 'being equal to the angels.' At any rate, after the highest excellence in the flesh, changing always duly to the better, he hastens to the ancestral hall, through the holy Hebdomad to the Lord's own mansion; to be, so to say, a light, steady, and con- 15 tinuing eternally, entirely and in every part immutable.

Misuse of Scripture by Heretics.

AND if those also who follow heresies venture to avail themselves of the prophetic Scriptures; in the first place they will not make use of all the Scriptures, and then they will not quote them entire, nor as the body and texture of 20 the prophecy prescribe. But, selecting ambiguous expressions, they wrest them to their own opinions, gathering a few expressions here and there; not looking to the sense, but making use of the mere diction. For in almost all the quotations they make, you will find that they attend to the 25 words alone, while they alter the meanings; neither knowing how they are spoken, nor using the quotations they do bring according to their natural meaning.

XXXIV.

Ur de origine aliquid retractemus eiusmodi legum, vetus erat decretum, ne qui deus ab imperatore consecraretur, nisi a senatu probatus. Scit M. Aemilius de deo suo Alburno. Facit et hoc ad caussam nostram, quod apud 5 vos de humano arbitratu divinitas pensitatur. Nisi homini deus placuerit, deus non erit; homo iam deo propitius esse debebit. Tiberius ergo, cuius tempore nomen Christianum in saeculum introivit, annuntiatum sibi ex Syria Palaestina, quod illic veritatem illius divinitatis revelaverat, 10 detulit ad senatum cum praerogativa suffragii sui. Senatus, quia non ipse probaverat, respuit; Caesar in sententia mansit, comminatus periculum accusatoribus Christianorum. Consulite commentarios vestros; illic reperietis primum Neronem in hanc sectam cum maxime Romae 15 orientem Caesariano gladio ferocisse. Sed tali dedicatore damnationis nostrae etiam gloriamur. Qui enim scit illum, intelligere potest, non nisi grande aliquod bonum a Nerone damnatum. Tentaverat et Domitianus, portio Neronis de crudelitate; sed qua et homo, facile coeptum repressit, ao restitutis etiam quos relegaverat. Tales semper nobis insecutores, iniusti, impii, turpes, quos et ipsi damnare consuestis, et a quibus damnatos restituere soliti estis. Ceterum de tot exinde principibus, usque ad hodiernum divinum humanumque sapientibus, edite aliquem debella25 torem Christianorum. At nos e contrario edimus protectorem, si litterae M. Aurelii gravissimi imperatoris

Bad Emperors the only Persecutors.

To say something of the origin of laws of that sort. There was an old decree, that no god should be consecrated by any general without the approval of the Senate. M. Aemilius found it out with his god Alburnus. This too helps our case, that with you divinity depends on 5 human judgement. Unless a god pleases men, he shall not be a god at all-man will positively have to be propitious to his god. Tiberius then, in whose time the Christian name came into the world, referred to the Senate the news which had reached himself from Palestine of the 10 events which had revealed the truth of Christ's divinity, with the recommendation of his own vote in favour of it. The Senate refused, because it had not itself approved. Caesar held to his opinion, and threatened punishment to the accusers of Christians. Consult your own records. 15 There you will find that Nero was the first who raged with the imperial sword against our sect, just when it was coming into notice at Rome. But we are proud indeed of having such a man to inaugurate our condemnation; for any one who knows him can understand that what 20 Nero condemned cannot but have been something very good indeed. Domitian tried it too, another Nero for cruelty; but as having some humanity too, he soon stopped his effort, and even restored those whom he had exiled. Our persecutors are always men of this sort, unrighteous, 25 impious and shameful; men whose memory even you are used to brand with infamy, whose judicial victims it is your custom to restore. However, out of all the emperors from that time to the present who have tasted of divine and human wisdom, name a single one as an antagonist 30 of Christians! Nay, we, on the contrary, name one as á protector, if you will call for the letter of the grave and reverend emperor M. Aurelius, in which he bears witness