WE have already looked at various things that may have operated on the minds of the pagans, as reasons why the Christians should be persecuted, and why Christianity should be stamped out as far as man could do it.
But besides the dislike to Christianity which existed in those who gave the supremacy to the laws of the state, and besides the hatred indulged in by the mass of the people, surrounded with all the show of their pagan worship, which contributed to their lusts, if it did not satisfy their consciences-there was quite a distinct class of opposers, namely, the philosophers.
There had been many systems of philosophy, each supposed to be something in advance of its forerunners. We see from the short account given in Acts 17, the curiosity of the philosophers at Athens as to the new religion Paul preached. "What will this babbler say?" they exclaimed: "he seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods, because he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection." Nevertheless, they would give him a hearing in their own court. But when he had spoken to them of the true God, and had called upon them to repent; for there was a judgment day appointed, when the Man whom God had raised from the dead should judge the world in righteousness-some mocked at the very idea of a resurrection, and others said they would hear him again another time.
This is not really to be wondered at, for God Himself had declared that Christ crucified was to the Greeks-the wise men of the earth-foolishness: something altogether contrary to their notions of what a religion suitable to a reasoning man ought to be. But it is interesting to see the form which the opposition towards the great plan of salvation by God through the Lord Jesus Christ took with some of these wise men in the early days of the church.
Let us look first at CELSUS. He objected to Christians because they made so little of human reason. He said they were ever repeating, "Do not examine, only believe: thy faith will make thee blessed." This is a false way of speaking of Christianity. It fears no examination; but since God has spoken we are expected to believe, and receive His word because He has spoken, not because it falls in with our ideas of right and wrong, which, as we know, are often very faulty.
Again, he said, in all other religions, that one is invited who is "free from all stains, who is conscious of no wickedness, who has lived a good and upright life:" whereas in Christianity, the call was to "Whosoever is a sinner, whoever is foolish, unlettered, in a word, whoever is wretched-him will the kingdom of heaven receive." Yes, blessed be God, whosoever will is invited to partake of the water of life freely. Poor Celsus knew nothing of the fall of man, and that there was indeed not "a sinless man" upon the earth to be invited.
He seemed to see that a real moral change was needed in man, but he had no idea of the transforming power of Christianity. Thus he said, "It is manifest to every one, that it lies within no one's power to produce, even by punishment to say nothing of mercy, an entire change in a person to whom sin has become a second nature, for to effect a complete change of nature is the most difficult of things; but the sinless are the safer companions of life." No, it cannot be produced by man; he must be born again: there must be a new creation ere man can be raised out of his fallen condition. But this, and much more, is found in the remedy God has graciously provided, had men but eyes to see it.
Unhappily the philosopher had one objection that was too true: it was the division of the saints into sects. "In the outset," he says, "when the Christians were few in number, they may perhaps have agreed among themselves, but as their numbers increased they separated into parties, mutually attacking and refuting each other, and retaining nothing in common but their name, if indeed they did that."If this could be truly said by an opponent in the second century, alas, how it has increased in this our day!
Thus much for Celsus. We have only picked out what was decently consistent in a poor fallen man using his reason. Alas for him, his philosophy did not stop here, but extended to scoffs and opposition to Christ, His Person, and His work, raking up all that was offensive from scoffing Jews and blaspheming enemies.
Another of the philosophers who wrote against Christianity was PORPHYRY. In one work he took great pains to collect all the apparent discrepancies in scripture, especially the differences in the Gospels. Christians had often put allegorical interpretations on parts of the Old Testament, to shew that the Old agreed with the New. This seemed to give Porphyry a handle, to say how different the two must be in order to need such fanciful interpretations. This is a point well worthy of attention, for many a Christian has unwisely placed a weapon in the hands of opponents by giving a false interpretation to scripture.
Another curious work of Porphyry was the judging of Christians by the replies given by the heathen oracles, which were supposed to be direct answers from their gods. Perhaps the reader will be interested in a short account of these oracles.
The Oracle of Delphi.
The oracle at Delphi was one of the most renowned. A smoke, doubtless accompanied by a gas, issued from the ground. It is reported that this was discovered by some shepherds in the neighborhood, who found that if a sheep wandered too near to the spot, it fell into convulsions. Well, in some way this came to be regarded as a means by which the gods might be communicated with. A temple was erected over the spot, with attendant priests or prophets, and a woman, through whom the god was supposed to communicate his mind. A seat on three legs was set over the place where the smoke arose, and the Pytha, as the woman was called, sat on this seat, and when she was more or less overcome by the fumes, gave her answer to the question asked. She prepared herself by fasting three days, and bathing herself in a particular well. She burnt laurel leaves and flour of barley on the altar. Those who consulted the oracle had also to offer up an animal to Apollo.
Such was the faith placed in the above and other oracles, that the heathen would never enter on any important undertaking without consulting the oracles. We can hardly wonder then that when a new religion was being pressed upon them they should consult their gods in this way.
There were many other oracles besides the one at Delphi, and other ways of ascertaining the will of their gods, such as examining the entrails of the animals slain in sacrifice. From the passage in Acts 16:16, it would also appear that persons were similarly employed, apart from any temple or sacrifice. And it is remarkable that the female slave mentioned in this passage bears the same name, or very nearly, as the prophetess at Delphi-Pithon or Pitha. (See margin.)
Many of the answers given were very vague, leaving the person who asked the question quite in the dark as to whether the advice of the god was favorable or not, But other answers were quite plain, and led to important results, altogether apart from their being prophecies in any sense of the word. Various theories have been raised as to from whom the answers really came.
We can come to no other conclusion than that the prophetess spoke either as simply dictated by her own sense, or by judging of the wishes of the questioner; or by the direct agency of Satan himself. In the case recorded in the Acts, there can be no question that the damsel was possessed by a demon; and when he was cast out, all her powers of soothsaying came to nothing, as her owners soon saw. And again, the apostle Paul declares that the things the Gentiles offered they sacrificed to demons, and not to God. So there can be little doubt but that the oracles, where there was anything more than the cunning craftiness of man, were under the immediate control of Satan.
Still the poor heathen thought he was consulting his god-we believe he was consulting Satan; but let us see a few of the replies given touching Christianity. It was not an unfrequent occurrence that a wife was converted to Christianity before the husband, and in one case a husband consulted the oracle as to what god he should propitiate in order to get his wife to abandon her religion. The answer is recorded to be, "that he might sooner write on the flowing stream, or fly on the empty air, than change the mind of his wife after she had once become impure and godless;" adding a most irreverent expression, that he was to let her alone to lament her God who had died, profanely alluding to the death of Christ.
Another question was, whether the judges who condemned Christ did right or wrong. The answer was they did right in condemning Him as a revolter against Judaism: "for the Jews acknowledged God at least more than the Christians." This was a common thought with the heathen, because the Christians believed in Christ, whom they accounted to be only a man.
At another time the question was, why Christ had suffered death, when the reply was, "To be subject to the weaker sufferings is always the lot of the body, but the soul of the pious rises to the fields of heaven." An answer that might at first sight seem to be not unfavorable; but in reality it is so, because it refers His death to mere human suffering common to man, in direct opposition to His death being sacrificial.
Hierocles
Hierocles was another who wrote against the Christians, in a book entitled "Words to the Christians from a lover of truth." But it is simply an attack on Christianity, repeating much that had been said by Celsus and Porphyry. He especially attacked the miracles of Christ, and declared that they were no proofs that He was God; for one named Apollonius had also done works of the same sort, and the Greeks did not consider him to be a god on that account, but only a man particularly beloved by the gods. And many such assertions are based on tradition.
Such then were some of the early attacks upon Christianity by heathen philosophers. In modern times the very same objections have been urged, not indeed by philosophers, but by skeptics and infidels. Thank God, Christianity stands upon such a basis that none of these efforts of poor fallen man can in any way affect it, though they may (alas!) stumble and injure those who prefer to listen to man rather than to God.
Let us now see how the Christians defended Christianity.
The Apologies.
During the persecutions of the church by the pagans, several addresses were written to the emperor and the Roman people in defense of Christianity. These have been called "Apologies," not of course in the sense of excuses for Christianity, but to let the pagans know somewhat of Christianity, and to defend the Christians against the false accusations constantly raised against them. Apology originally meant a defense.
The three principal charges against the Christians were:-
1. That they were atheists, because they had no gods made by man, and because they would pay no respect to the gods the pagans worshipped.
2. That they ate their own children.
3. That at their private meetings gross immoralities were practiced.
It is easy to see, as we have seen, that the Romans with the multitude of gods they could behold, could not understand how the Christians could worship an unseen God. The other two were pure calumnies and had simply to be denied. In these Apologies, the first thing that strikes one is their length, which makes one wonder whether the emperors ever read them. Perhaps the earliest handed down to us is that of -
Justin Martyr.
His first Apology, in an English translation, occupies more than sixty pages of print. He is supposed to have had before him three subjects, namely:-
1. That christian doctrines are true, and are to be received, not on account of their resemblance to the sentiments of poets or philosophers, but on their own account. He quotes many passages of scripture to show the purity of the christian doctrines.
2. That Jesus Christ is the incarnate Son of God and our Teacher. He quotes many of the prophecies respecting our Lord, and shews how they were truly fulfilled.
3. That before the incarnation of Christ the demons, having some knowledge of what He would accomplish, enabled the heathen poets and priests in some points to anticipate, though in a distorted form, the facts of the incarnation. This is the most curious part of the Apology. He says that the pagan poets spoke of the sons of Jupiter, and that certain of them ascended to, and descended from, heaven. And after our Lord had appeared, Satan enabled others to do wonderful things, that they might be on a level with Christ. Thus Justin speaks of one Simon, who did such wonderful things at Rome, before the senate and people, that they accounted him to be a god, and honored him as such. We shall have occasion to quote from this Apology on the forms of worship, &c.
This Apology was addressed to Antoninus Pius. We know not what effect it had on the emperor. He did not persecute the Christians himself, but in parts of Asia the persecution continued; and he himself wrote thus to the Common Council of Asia concerning the persecution: "I am clearly of opinion, that the gods will take care to discover such persons as those to whom you refer. For it much more concerns them to punish those who refuse to worship them, than you, if they be able. But you harass and vex the Christians, and accuse them of Atheism and other crimes, which you can by no means prove. To them it appears to be an advantage to die for their religion, and they gain their point, while they throw away their lives rather than comply with your injunctions. As to the earthquakes, which have happened in times past or more recently, is it not proper to remind you of your own despondency when they happen; and to desire you to compare your spirit with theirs, and observe how serenely they confide in God?”
No one was to be molested unless he attempted "something against the Roman government." If any person accused another merely as a Christian, the accuser was to be punished, and the Christian to be acquitted. Thus God, in His providence caused a heathen emperor to defend the Christians. It is strange that such a man should not have embraced Christianity when he could say, that the gods would defend themselves if they were able.
Minucius Felix
Minucius Felix also wrote an Apology, but in the shape of a dialog between a heathen and a Christian, while another sits as judge. This writer had been a Roman orator, and his work is described as eloquent and elegant. An extract or two will give an idea of how he handled the subject of Atheism. He admitted that the Christians did despise the gods: "The mice," said he, "the swallows, and the bats, gnaw, insult, and sit on your gods, and unless you drive them away they build their nests in their mouths: the spiders weave their webs over their faces. You first make them, then clean, wipe, and protect them, that you may fear and worship them. Should we view all your rites, there are many things which justly deserved to be laughed at; others call for pity and compassion.”
On the other hand, the God of the Christians is thus spoken of: "When you lift up your eyes to heaven, and survey the works of creation around you, what is so clear and undeniable as that there is a God, supremely excellent in understanding, who inspires, moves, supports and governs all nature? Consider the vast expanse of heaven and the rapidity of its motion either when studded by the stars by night or enlightened with the sun by day: contemplate the almighty hand which poises them in their orbs and balances them in their movements." He then speaks of the sun and the moon, the light and the darkness, and the beautiful order of the seasons; the sea also with its ebb and flow, the fountains and rivers running into the ocean. Then of the animal world, each creature suited to its sphere, and lastly of the beautiful structure of man-all proclaim a divine Author, and that Author is the God of the Christians.
Athenagoras
Athenagoras had been a heathen philosopher and purposed to write against the Christians, and that he might the better carry out his purpose he began to examine the books of the Christians-the scriptures. In doing this, God opened his eyes, and instead of attacking the Christians, he defended them in an Apology addressed to Marcus Aurelius. He makes ample reference to the heathen philosophers and poets. "Why should you be offended at our very name?" said he: "the bare name does not deserve your hatred: it is wickedness alone that deserves punishment. If we are convicted of any crime, less or more, let us be punished, but not merely for the name of a Christian; for no Christian can be a bad man unless he acts contrary to his profession.”
In another part, contrasting the conduct of the Christians with that of the heathen, he says: "Among us you will find uneducated persons, and artisans, and old women, who, if they are unable in words to prove the benefit of their doctrine, yet by their deeds they exhibit the benefit arising from their persuasion of its truth: they do not rehearse speeches, but exhibit good works; when struck they do not strike again; when robbed, they do not go to law; they give to those that ask of them, and love their neighbors as themselves.”
Tertullian
Tertullian also wrote an Apology about A.D. 198. He ends it with “Do your worst, and rack your inventions for tortures for Christians. It is all to no purpose; you do but attract the notice of the world, and make it fall the more in love with our religion. The more you mow us down, the thicker we spring up. The Christian blood you spill is like the seed you sow: it springs from the earth again and fructifies the more. That which you reproach in us as stubbornness, has been the most instructive mistress in proselyting the world; for who has not been struck with the sight of what you call stubbornness, and from thence were prompted to look into the reality and ground of it? And who ever looked well into our religion that did not embrace it? and who ever embraced it that was not ready to die for it? For this reason it is that we thank you for condemning us, because there is such a happy variance and disagreement between the divine and human judgment, that when you condemn us upon earth, God absolves us in heaven.”
Tertullian was presbyter of a church in Carthage, and wrote several other works. One against Manion the heretic is quite a volume, with a constant reference to scripture. Some of his other writings are, however, unimportant.
By means of these Apologies the emperors had the truths of Christianity more or less plainly put before them, and this makes it the more manifest that the work of persecution was of Satan, as indeed our Lord had foretold when speaking of this phase of the church's history: "The devil shall cast some of you into prison," &c. (Rev. 2:10.) But, blessed be His name, the faithful should have a "crown of life.”