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Chapter X.
He next continues: “You see how Plato,
although maintaining that (the chief good) cannot be described in
words, yet, to avoid the appearance of retreating to an irrefutable
position, subjoins a reason in explanation of this difficulty, as even
‘nothing’4325
might perhaps be
explained in words.” But as Celsus adduces this to prove
that we ought not to yield a simple assent, but to furnish a reason for
our belief, we shall quote also the words of Paul, where he says, in
censuring the hasty4326
believer,
“unless ye have believed inconsiderately.”4327
Now, through his practice of repeating
himself, Celsus, so far as he can, forces us to be guilty of tautology,
reiterating, after the boastful language which has been quoted, that
“Plato is not guilty of boasting and falsehood, giving out that
he has made some new discovery, or that he has come down from heaven to
announce it, but acknowledges whence these statements are
derived.” Now, if one wished to reply to Celsus, one might
say in answer to such assertions, that even Plato is guilty of
boasting, when in the Timæus4328
he
puts the following language in the month of Zeus: “Gods of
gods, whose creator and father I am,” and so on. And if any
one will defend such language on account of the meaning which is
conveyed under the name of Zeus, thus speaking in the dialogue of
Plato, why should not he who investigates the meaning of the words of
the Son of God, or those of the Creator4329
in
the prophets, express a profounder meaning than any conveyed by the
words of Zeus in the Timæus? For the characteristic
of divinity is the announcement of future events, predicted not by
human power, but shown by the result to be due to a divine spirit in
him who made the announcement. Accordingly, we do not say to each
of our hearers, “Believe, first of all, that He whom I introduce
to thee is the Son of God;” but we put the Gospel before each
one, as his character and disposition may fit him to receive it,
inasmuch as we have learned to know “how we ought to answer every
man.”4330
And there are
some who are capable of receiving nothing more than an exhortation to
believe, and to these we address that alone; while we approach others,
again, as far as possible, in the way of demonstration, by means of
question and answer. Nor do we at all say, as Celsus scoffingly
alleges, “Believe that he whom I introduce to thee is the Son of
God, although he was shamefully bound, and disgracefully punished, and
very recently4331
was most
contumeliously treated before the eyes of all men;” neither do we
add, “Believe it even the more (on that account).”
For it is our endeavour to state, on each individual point, arguments
more numerous even than we have brought forward in the preceding
pages.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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