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| Chapter LVII
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Chapter
LVII.
The Jew, moreover, in the treatise, addresses the
Saviour thus: “If you say that every man, born according to
the decree of Divine Providence, is a son of God, in what respect
should you differ from another?” In reply to whom we say,
that every man who, as Paul expresses it, is no longer under fear, as a
schoolmaster, but who chooses good for its own sake, is “a son of
God;” but this man is distinguished far and wide above every man
who is called, on account of his virtues, a son of God, seeing He is,
as it were, a kind of source and beginning of all such. The words
of Paul are as follow: “For ye have not received the spirit
of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption,
whereby we cry, Abba, Father.”3180
But,
according to the Jew of Celsus, “countless individuals will
convict Jesus of falsehood, alleging that those predictions which were
spoken of him were intended of them.” We are not aware,
indeed, whether Celsus knew of any who, after coming into this world,
and having desired to act as Jesus did, declared themselves to be also
the “sons of God,” or the “power” of God.
But since it is in the spirit of truth that we examine each passage, we
shall mention that there was a certain Theudas among the Jews before
the birth of Christ, who gave himself out as some great one, after
whose death his deluded followers were completely dispersed. And
after him, in the days of the census, when Jesus appears to have been
born, one Judas, a Galilean, gathered around him many of the Jewish
people, saying he was a wise man, and a teacher of certain new
doctrines. And when he also had paid the penalty of his
rebellion, his doctrine was overturned, having taken hold of very few
persons indeed, and these of the very humblest condition. And
after the times of Jesus, Dositheus the Samaritan also wished to
persuade the Samaritans that he was the Christ predicted by Moses; and
he appears to have gained over some to his views. But it is not
absurd, in quoting the extremely wise observation of that Gamaliel
named in the book of Acts, to show how those persons above mentioned
were strangers to the promise, being neither “sons of God”
nor “powers” of God, whereas Christ Jesus was truly the Son
of God. Now Gamaliel, in the passage referred to, said:
“If this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to
nought” (as also did the designs of those men already mentioned
after their death); “but if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow
this doctrine, lest haply ye be found even to fight against
God.”3181
There was
also Simon the Samaritan magician, who wished to draw away certain by
his magical arts. And on that occasion he was successful; but
now-a-days it is impossible to find, I suppose, thirty of his followers
in the entire world, and probably I have even overstated the
number. There are exceedingly few in Palestine; while in the rest
of the world, through which he desired to spread the glory of his name,
you find it nowhere mentioned. And where it is found, it is found
quoted from the Acts of the Apostles; so that it is to Christians that
he owes this mention of himself, the unmistakeable result having proved
that Simon was in no respect divine.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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