A Plea for the Christians 31
Summary: Answering the charges of cannibalism and incest: virtue has always been slandered; Christians, who expect God's judgment and eternal life, would not even think of such sins.
Greek text · Otto 7:160–164
Ἔτι δὲ καὶ τροφὰς καὶ μίξεις λογοποιοῦσιν ἀθέους καθʼ ἡμῶν, ἵνα τε μισεῖν νομίζοιεν μετὰ λόγου καὶ οἰόμενοι τῷ δεδίττεσθαι ἢ τῆς ἐνστάσεως ἀπάξειν ἡμᾶς τοῦ βίου ἢ πικροὺς καὶ ἀπαραιτήτους τῇ τῶν αἰτιῶν ὑπερβολῇ τοὺς ἄρχοντας παρασκευάσειν, πρὸς εἰδότας παίζοντες ὅτι ἄνωθέν πως ἔθος, καὶ οὐκ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν μόνον, κατά τινα θεῖον νόμον καὶ λόγον παρηκολούθηκε, προσπολεμεῖν τὴν κακίαν τῇ ἀρετῇ. Οὕτω καὶ Πυθαγόρας μὲν ἅμα τριακοσίοις ἑτέροις κατεφλέχθη πυρί, Ἡράκλειτος δὲ καὶ Δημόκριτος, ὁ μὲν τῆς Ἐφεσίων πόλεως ἠλαύνετο, ὁ δὲ τῆς Ἀβδηριτῶν, ἐπικατηγορούμενος μεμηνέναι, καὶ Σωκράτους Ἀθηναῖοι θάνατον κατέγνωσαν. Ἀλλʼ ὡς ἐκεῖνοι οὐδὲν χείρους εἰς ἀρετῆς λόγον διὰ τὴν τῶν πολλῶν δόξαν, οὐδʼ ἡμῖν οὐδὲν ἐπισκοτεῖ πρὸς ὀρθότητα βίου ἡ παρά τινων ἄκριτος βλασφημία· εὐδοξοῦμεν γὰρ παρὰ τῷ θεῷ. Πλὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς ταῦτα ἀπαντήσω τὰ ἐγκλήματα. Ὑμῖν μὲν οὖν καὶ διʼ ὧν εἴρηκα εὖ οἶδα ἀπολελογῆσθαι ἐμαυτόν. Συνέσει γὰρ πάντας ὑπερφρονοῦντες, οἷς ὁ βίος ὡς πρὸς στάθμην τὸν θεὸν κανονίζεται, ὅπως ἀνυπαίτιος καὶ ἀνεπίληπτος ἕκαστος ἡμῶν ἄνθρωπος αὐτῷ γένοιτο, ἴστε τούτους μηδʼ εἰς ἔννοιάν ποτε τοῦ βραχυτάτου ἐλευσομένους ἁμαρτήματος. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἕνα τὸν ἐνταῦθα βίον βιώσεσθαι πεπείσμεθα, κἂν ὑποπτεύειν ἐνῆν δουλεύοντας σαρκὶ καὶ αἵματι ἢ κέρδους ἢ ἐπιθυμίας ἐλάττους γενομένους ἁμαρτεῖν· ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐφεστηκέναι μὲν οἷς ἐννοοῦμεν, οἷς λαλοῦμεν, καὶ νύκτωρ καὶ μεθʼ ἡμέραν τὸν θεὸν οἴδαμεν, πάντα δὲ φῶς αὐτὸν ὄντα καὶ τὰ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ἡμῶν ὁρᾶν, πεπείσμεθα τοῦ ἐνταῦθα ἀπαλλαγέντες βίου βίον ἕτερον βιώσεσθαι, ἀμείνονα ἢ κατὰ τὸν ἐνθάδε καὶ ἐπουράνιον, οὐκ ἐπίγειον (ὡς ἂν μετὰ θεοῦ καὶ σὺν θεῷ ἀκλινεῖς καὶ ἀπαθεῖς τὴν ψυχήν, οὐχ ὡς σάρκες, κἂν ἔχωμεν, ἀλλʼ ὡς οὐράνιον πνεῦμα, μενοῦμεν), ἢ συγκαταπίπτοντες τοῖς λοιποῖς χείρονα καὶ διὰ πυρός· οὐ γὰρ καὶ ἡμᾶς ὡς πρόβατα ἢ ὑποζύγια, πάρεργον καὶ ἵνα ἀπολοίμεθα καὶ ἀφανισθείημεν, ἔπλασεν ὁ θεός. Ἐπὶ τούτοις οὐκ εἰκὸς ἡμᾶς ἐθελοκακεῖν, οὐδʼ αὐτοὺς τῷ μεγάλῳ παραδιδόναι κολασθησομένους δικαστῇ.
English · Claude translation
They also invent godless feasts and unions against us, so that they may seem to have reason for hating us, and they think that by frightening us they will either draw us away from our way of life or make the rulers harsh and implacable by the enormity of the charges. But they are trifling with people who know that from of old, and not in our case only, it has been the rule, by a kind of divine law and reason, that vice makes war on virtue. So Pythagoras was burned with three hundred others; Heraclitus and Democritus were driven out, the one from the city of the Ephesians, the other from that of the Abderites, who charged him with madness; and the Athenians condemned Socrates to death. But just as they were no worse in point of virtue because of the opinion of the many, so the indiscriminate slander of some casts no shadow on the uprightness of our life; for we are in good repute with God. Nevertheless I will answer these charges too. To you, I know well, I have already made my defense by what I have said. For you, who surpass everyone in understanding, know that those whose life is ruled by God as by a measuring line, so that each of us may be blameless and irreproachable before him, will never even entertain the thought of the slightest sin. If we were convinced that we would live only this present life, one might suspect us of sinning, as slaves to flesh and blood or overcome by gain or desire. But we know that God watches over what we think and what we say, night and day, and that, being wholly light, he sees even what is in our hearts. So we are convinced that when we are released from this life we shall live another life, better than the one here, heavenly and not earthly (for we shall abide with God and in God's company, steadfast and free from passion in soul, not as flesh, even though we have flesh, but as heavenly spirit); or else, if we fall with the rest, a worse life, in fire. For God did not make us like sheep or beasts of burden, as a by-product, only to perish and be destroyed. In view of this, it is not likely that we would choose to do wrong and hand ourselves over to the great Judge to be punished.
About this passage
Notes
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (missing elision mark): ἀλλ ὡς οὐράνιον → ἀλλʼ ὡς οὐράνιον.
Cite this passage
Athenagoras, Leg. 31 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athenagoras-legatio/31/).
Plain text
Athenagoras, Leg. 31 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/athenagoras-legatio/31/).
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