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| Quotations from Athanasius' 'Defense of his Flight.'
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Chapter
VIII.—Quotations from Athanasius’ ‘Defense
of his Flight.’
On this occasion Athanasius
read to those present the Defense which he had composed some
time before in justification of his flight; a few passages from which
it may be of service to introduce here, leaving the entire production,
which is too long to be transcribed, to be sought out and perused by
the studious.483
See the daring enormities of the impious persons! Such are their
proceedings: and yet instead of blushing at their former clumsy
intrigues against us, they even now abuse us for having effected our
escape out of their murderous hands; nay, are grievously vexed that
they were unable to put us out of the way altogether. In short, they
overlook the fact that while they pretend to upbraid us with
‘cowardice,’ they are really criminating themselves: for if
it be disgraceful to flee, it is still more so to pursue, since the one
is only endeavoring to avoid being murdered, while the other is seeking
to commit the deed. But Scripture itself directs us to flee:484
and those who persecute unto death, in attempting to violate the law,
constrain us to have recourse to flight. They should rather, therefore,
be ashamed of their persecution, than reproach us for having sought to
escape from it: let them cease to harass, and those who flee will also
cease. Nevertheless they set no bounds to their malevolence, using
every art to entrap us, in the consciousness that the flight of the
persecuted is the strongest condemnation of the persecutor: for no one
runs away from a mild and beneficent person, but from one who is of a
barbarous and cruel disposition. Hence it was that ‘Every one
that was discontented and in debt’ fled from Saul to David.485
Wherefore these [foes of ours] in like manner desire to kill such as
conceal themselves, that no evidence may exist to convict them of their
wickedness. But in this also these misguided men most egregiously
deceive themselves: for the more obvious the effort to elude them, the
more manifestly will their deliberate slaughters and exiles be exposed.
If they act the part of assassins, the voice of the blood which is shed
will cry against them the louder: and if they condemn to banishment,
they will raise so everywhere living monuments of their own injustice
and oppression. Surely unless their intellects were unsound they would
perceive the dilemma in which their own counsels entangle them. But
since they have lost sound judgment, their folly is exposed when they
vanish, and when they seek to stay they do not see their wickedness.486
But if they reproach those who succeed in secreting themselves from the
malice of their blood-thirsty adversaries, and revile such as flee from
their persecutors, what will they say to Jacob’s retreat from the
rage of his brother Esau,487
and to Moses488
retiring into the land of Midian for fear of Pharaoh? And what apology
will these babblers make for David’s489
flight from Saul, when he sent messengers from his own house to
dispatch him; and for his concealment in a cave, after contriving to
extricate himself from the treacherous designs of Abimelech,490
by feigning madness? What will these reckless asserters of whatever
suits their purpose answer, when they are reminded of the great prophet
Elijah,491
who by calling upon God had recalled the dead to life, hiding himself
from dread of Ahab, and fleeing on account of Jezebel’s menaces?
At which time the sons of the prophets also, being sought for in order
to be slain, withdrew, and were concealed in caves by Obadiah;492
or are they unacquainted with these instances because of their
antiquity? Have they forgotten also what is recorded in the Gospel,
that the disciples retreated and hid themselves for fear of the Jews?493
Paul,494
when sought for by the governor [of Damascus] ‘was let down from
the wall in a basket, and thus escaped the hands of him that sought
him.’ Since then Scripture relates these circumstances concerning
the saints, what excuse can they fabricate for their temerity? If they
charge us with ‘cowardice,’ it is in utter insensibility to
the condemnation it pronounces on themselves. If they asperse these
holy men by asserting that they acted contrary to the will of God, they
demonstrate their ignorance of Scripture. For it was commanded in the
Law that ‘cities of refuge’ should be constituted,495
by which provision was made that such as were pursued in order to be
put to death might have means afforded of preserving themselves. Again
in the consummation of the ages, when the Word of the Father, who had
before spoken by Moses, came himself to the earth, he gave this express
injunction, ‘When they
persecute you in one city, flee unto another:’496
and shortly after, ‘When therefore ye shall see the abomination
of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place
(let whosoever reads, understand), then let those in Judea flee unto
the mountains: let him that is on the house-top not come down to take
anything out of his house; nor him that is in the fields return to take
his clothes.’497
The saints therefore knowing these precepts, had such a sort of
training for their action: for what the Lord then commanded, he had
before his coming in the flesh already spoken of by his servants. And
this is a universal rule for man, leading to perfection, ‘to
practice whatever God has enjoined.’ On this account the Word
himself, becoming incarnate for our sake, deigned to conceal himself
when he was sought for;498
and being again persecuted, condescended to withdraw to avoid the
conspiracy against him. For thus it became him, by hungering and
thirsting and suffering other afflictions, to demonstrate that he was
indeed made man.499
| 499Abbreviated from Athanasius.
|
For at the very commencement, as soon as he was born, he gave this
direction by an angel to Joseph: ‘Arise and take the young child
and his mother, and flee into Egypt, for Herod will seek the
infant’s life.’500
And after Herod’s death, it appears that for fear of his son
Archelaus he retired to Nazareth. Subsequently, when he gave
unquestionable evidence of his Divine character by healing the withered
hand, ‘when the Pharisees took council how they might destroy
him,501
Jesus knowing their wickedness withdrew himself thence.’
Moreover, when he had raised Lazarus from the dead, and they had become
still more intent on destroying him, [we are told that] ‘Jesus
walked no more openly among the Jews,502
but retired into a region on the borders of the desert.’ Again
when the Saviour said, ‘Before Abraham was, I am;’503
and the Jews took up stones to cast at him; Jesus concealed himself,
and going through the midst of them out of the Temple, went away
thence, and so escaped. Since then they see these things, or rather
understand them,504
(for they will not see,) are they not deserving of being burnt with
fire, according to what is written, for acting and speaking so plainly
contrary to all that the Lord did and taught? Finally, when John had
suffered martyrdom, and his disciples had buried his body, Jesus having
heard what was done, departed thence by ship into a desert place
apart.505
Now the Lord did these things and so taught. But would that these men
of whom I speak, had the modesty to confine their rashness to men only,
without daring to be guilty of such madness as to accuse the Saviour
himself of ‘cowardice’; especially after having already
uttered blasphemies against him. But even if they be insane they will
not be tolerated and their ignorance of the gospels be detected by
every one. The cause for retreat and flight under such circumstances as
these is reasonable and valid, of which the evangelists have afforded
us precedents in the conduct of our Saviour himself: from which it may
be inferred that the saints have always been justly influenced by the
same principle, since whatever is recorded of him as man, is applicable
to mankind in general. For he took on himself our nature, and exhibited
in himself the affections of our infirmity, which John has thus
indicated: ‘Then they sought to take him; but no man laid hands
on him, because his hour was not yet come.’506
Moreover, before that hour came, he himself said to his mother,
‘Mine hour is not yet come;’507
and to those who were denominated his brethren, ‘My time is not
yet come.’ Again when the time had arrived, he said to his
disciples, ‘Sleep on now, and take your rest: for behold the hour
is at hand, and the Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of
sinners.’508
… So509
that he neither permitted himself to be apprehended before the time
came; nor when the time was come did he conceal himself, but
voluntarily gave himself up to those who had conspired against him.510
… Thus also the blessed martyrs have guarded themselves in times
of persecution: being persecuted they fled, and kept themselves
concealed; but being discovered they suffered martyrdom.
Such is the reasoning of Athanasius in his apology for
his own flight. E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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