his substance is I have already declared that God created the Universe by the power of his word the operation of his wisedome and the vertue of his power The ancient Wise-men also were of this opinion that the word and wisedome which they named of one onely word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is to say the word did make the World Zenon saith this word is the Authour of that order and admirable disposition we see in nature also that the same that is called Destiny is God the mind of Jupiter and necessity of all things Cleanthes makes a spirit that goes into all the parts of this Universe As for us as wee say God hath made all things by his word wisedome and vertue wee attribute to the word wisedome and vertue of God a Spirit that is their proper substance and which is the word to command the wisdom to dispose and the vertue to give perfection to his workes Wee have learnt that God hath produced this spirit which we call the word that God in producing it hath begot it and therefore it is the Sonne of God and also God in regard the substance of God and his owne Son are but one selfe same substance because God is also a Spirit it is even as of a beame comming from the body of the Sun this Planet in producing the same gives it a portion of its light which notwithstanding it cannot lose for it is alwayes in its beame because the beame is alwayes a beame of the Sun the substance of the light is not separated but spreads forth So in the internall generation of the word the spirit derives from the spirit and God derives from God as the light of a Candle is taken from another Candle which hath comunicated to it its light the light remains all intire in the Candle from whence it is taken and suffers not any diminution although men borrow the quality to distribute it to many Candles It is even so of God that which comes from him is God the Son of God and both together God and his Sonne are one and the selfe same God From whence it follows that this distinction of spirit to spirit of God to God is not in the substance but person makes not a division in God but only a distribution of the qualities of Father and Son not a diversity of conditions between Father and Son but onely an order of God the Father to God the Son and finally that God the Son springeth and is not separated from the substance of God wherefore the beame of God being come downe into the body of a Virgin and incarnate in her womb is come likewise into the world Man and God together This marvellous composure of mortal flesh the spirit of God hath been nourished brought up grown in years spoken taught wrought is this Man Jesus Christ Take if you wil this truth for a fable you may receive it in the mean time till we bring further proofs of our Master as wee receive many tales made touching those gods you confess This wonder was knowne to them of whom you hold all the follies you believe of a Deity They have invented them by a sacrilegious emulation to destroy the eternall truth of a God-man in exposing to them the lies which have some relation with them If then you will have witnesses of the incarnation of the Son of God we tell you the Jews knew it from the mouths of the Prophets that hee was to be borne among men and they expect him still and the greatest difference between them and us is that they doe not believe he is already come The holy Scriptures make mention of two commings of the Son of God the first when he appeared in the weakness of humane nature and condition of a very low humility The second which to bring with it the end of all times and wherein he will shew himselfe with all the splendor of his God-head The Jewes have not heard of the first and they hope for the second which hath been so clearly declared perswading themselves that the Son of God should come this onely time on the earth Their sins are the just cause of their blindness they have deserved by their crimes committed against God not to understand this first comming yet without doubt they would have believed this glorious Mystery if they had uhderstood it and if they Would have believed it he had acquired for them eternall salvation This punishment was foretold them and they may read in the holy Scripture that God hath threatned they should not know his secrets that their understanding should not comprehend them that they should have eyes and not see his light eares and not heare his word Now as they could not imagine him whom they saw in this low humility to be a God so they took him only for a man whom when reflecting upon them the effects of his power they gave out that he used Magick and by the helpe thereof cast Divels out the bodies of men restored sight to the blinde cleansed the Lepers healed them that were sicke of the Palsey raised the dead made the Elements obey him appeased Tempests went upon the waters all actions by which hee shewed himselfe to be the ancient Word the first born accomplished with vertue and wisdome as also informed with the spirit of God himselfe The Doctors of the Law and the greatest among the Jewes who saw when he preached that he confounded their errours and that an infinite multitude of people followed him were so incensed against him that in conclusion they accused him before Pontius Pilat the then Governour of Judea under the authoritie of the Emperour Tiberius and by violating justice forced him to deliver them Jesus to bee nailed on the Crosse Hee foretold they should thus unworthily use him but it may be 't would not be enough if the Prophets had not declared it a long time before yet Jesus being on the crosse gave many signes by which he shewed hee was truly the Son of God for after making that great exclamation when a dying he rendered of his own accord his spirit to God his Father preventing therby the Executioners accustomed to breake the thighs of those that were crucified to hasten the end of their lives and deliver them from the pains of a longer punishment Moreover in that very moment wherein Jesus expired which was at noone the Sun lost his light and the Earth was covered with darkness even they who knew not this prodigy should happen at his death and that revealed before to the Prophets did take it for a miracle and because unwilling to discover the reason thereof they denied it that came to pass But you cannot make this wonder suspected seeing your owne Calenders have remarked it and your selves retaine the testimonies thereof in your owne registers The Jews having took Jesus from the Crosse and put him into the sepulchre encompass'd it with a great number of Souldiers
opinion it is another kind of fury to leape over consecrated towers to a deity then to precipitate ones slle from a prophane house that it is another sort of rage to cut off ones privy parts and armes then to cut ones throat in truth the despaire both of the one and the other meet both in one as it is but one cause that transports them But hitherto we have made use of nothihg but wordes now wee must make use of the things themselves and demonstrations to shew you that your gods and divels are but one substance and that they differ but in name If a man should bring before your Tribunalls one that were truely possessed of a Divell if a Christian should comand him to speake this wicked spirit wil confess then that he is a Devill with as much truth as he saith falsely at another time he is a God Let them present any one of these they believe to be wrought upon within by a deity that in the ceremony of the sacrifices they offer on the Altars have the vertue of a God in senting the smell which goes out of the sacrifices who with force belch out words out of their stomacks within breathing declare oracles if this heavenly virgin who promiseth raine if this AEsculapius that teacheth the secrets of Physicke that preserves the lives of them who must lose the same soone after confesse not by the mouths of these impostors Whose fained inspirations deceive the world that they are but devills if the presence of a Christian takes not from them the boldnesse of lying wee are willing that in the same place you shed the bloud of this Christian and punish him as a wicked person What demonstration is clearer then this what proofe more infallible truth shines there in its purity it is afficted with this force that is not proper but for her selfe there is nothing heere to bee evill thought on Say then it is done by the power of Magick or by some such like tricke if your eyes or eares will let you But I pray what can you say against a thing that shews it selfe so cleare and without artifice if these spirits are gods indeed why do they falsely say they are devills is it to obey us they do so on this accout the deity receives law from the Christians but they should not honour with this title a nature that is under the government of man I might add that is subect to the power of his enemies if it causeth shame If on the other side these spirits are Divels or Angels how comes it when they speake to others then to us they would passe for gods for as those to whom divine honour is rendred wou'd not be avowed Divels if in truth they were gods because gods cannot take the qualitie of Divels without putting off their majesty so yit the names they give themselves whom you acknowledge to bee Divels were the names of true gods they could not bee so rash as to take and to put them in the rank of a Deitie because these gods would without doubt bee their Soveraignes and they would feare to offend the majestie of them whose power they should dread Acknowledge then that the Deitie you honour is not a Deitie because if it were the Divels would not attribute it to themselves and the gods would not disavow it So seeing both the one and the other concur in acknowledging this truth that those the world acknowledge for gods are none you must confess then they are Divels and therefore you must resolve to seek Deities somewhere else seeing you now see what is the condition of them you take for gods Now seeing by our meanes your gods discover to you they are no gods and that all the other to whom men erect Altars are none in like manner but this at the same time they make you know who the true God is if it be this only God that we that are Christians worship if we must believe of him what the Christians believe if hee must bee served as their Lawes ordaine When you conjure your gods in the name of Jesus Christ doe they aske who is that Jesus Christ doe they call the History of his life a Fable doe they say hee is a man of the same condition as other men that hee was a Magician that after dead his Disciples tooke away his body privately from the Sepulchre and that he is now in Hell say they not rather hee is in Heaven that hee must discend to the terrour of all the world with horrour to the Universe with the lamentation of all men but Christians and that hee shall come downe on the earth full of Majestie as the vertue of God the spirit of God the Word Wisdome Reason and Son of God your gods must doe as you doe deride all these things denie all the souls that liv'd since the Creation of the world should take their bodies againe that Jesus Christ must judge them they should say it belongs to Radamanthus and Minos according to the opinion of Plato and the Poets at least they should discharge themselves of the shame of this sin and infamy of their condemnation not avowing they are spirits of corruption although it sufficiently enough appeares by the condition of their meats they seed on the bloud smoake stinking sacrifices of beasts and impure tongues of their Divines that they are so and in the end not confess they are already condemned to the pains of Hell expecting the universall judgement where they shall receive the just recompence of their wickedness with all them that have sinned as they and worshipped them Now all the power we have of them is the name of Jesus Christ who gives it us it is the threatning we give them of the evils God is readie to powre on their heads and which one day Jesus Christ must declare to them As they feare Jesus Christ in God and God in Jesus Christ they are under the government of the servants of God and of Jesus Christ so by the onely touch of our hands and breath of our mouths the Divel seized with feare at the sight of the flames that environ them are forced to obey us to come our of the bodies they possess in dispite of them and with murmuring to suffer this shame in our presence You that are wont to believe them when they lie believe them when they speake of thenselves No body will tell a lie to get shame by it but rather to gaine honour one will sooner beleve them that confesse against their owne interest then those that denie to their advantage These Testimonies which we have of your Gods make men to bee Christians for wee cannot give a full beleese to what they say without believing in Jesus Christ our master Your gods kindle in our hearts the faith which the Holy Scripture teacheth us they strengthen our hope and confirme us in the assurance wee have of our salvation As for you to honour them
Emperours their Ministers the magistrates that have the exercise of their power for the polliticke estate the tranquillity of the Empire the retarding of the generall dissolution that must put an end to all things Wee assemble together to read the holy Scriptures and wee read them according to the condition of the times what serves either to admonish or confirme the faithfull In effct the Scriptures nourish our faith lift up our hope and assure the confidence wee have in God neverthelesse we cease not to confirme our discipline by the strength of precepts we continually repeate In these assemblies wee make exhortations and threatnings and exercise Divine censure that banisheth sinners and excludes them from our communion wee judge them with very much circumspection because we know that God is in the midst of us and sees what we doe and certainly it is a great fortelling of the judgement God will one day pronounce against the wicked when the Church moved with the enormity of their crimes darts out upon wilfull sinners the thunderbolts of excommunication and deprives them from the participation of its prayers its society and all sort of holy commerce with it In our assemblies there are Bishops that preside and have authority over all the faithfull committed to their charge they are approved by the suffrages of them whom they ought to conduct and it is not bribes that acquire them this honor but testimonies given of their good life For in the Church of God nothing is done by the allurement of gifts if there be among us any kind of treasure the money layd up makes our Religion not ashamed neithercan it be sayd what brought unto us is a tribute or price payed to participate of its ho inesse everyone contributes a little sum at the end of the month or when hee will but it is if hee will and can for none are constrayned to give if wee get any almes it is of good will riches gathered in this manner are as the pledges of piety wee do not confound them in eating and drinking with excesse we make not use of them for the fowle and loathsome exercise of gluttony but we employ them in feeding the poore and burying them in comforting children that are destitute of parents and goods in helping old men who have spent their best dayes in the service of the faithfull in helping the poore that have lost by shipwracke what they had and in assisting them that serve in the mines are banished into Islands or shut up in prisons because the professe the Religion of the true God that during the time they suffer for the confession of his name they may be nourished with the stocke of the Church But it s a strang thing that this charity among us gives occasion to som to blame us See say they how they love one another this astonitheth them because they hate one another See say they how they are ready to die one for another hut as for them they are ready to kil one another I think they have nothing to say against the name of Christian we give one another for with them paternal names the affinity that blood produceth expresseth but a fained affectiō disguised amity It must not seeme strange to you if wee call one another brethren seeing wee are all your brethren by the right of nature which is mother to us all Wee have the same principles as you but you renounce the humanity common to us because you are evill brethren to us but with how much more reason are they called and esteemed brethren who acknowledge one same father to wit the living God that have received the same spirit of Sanctitie who being shut up in the same darkenesse and ignorance as children in the belly of their mother came forth happily and in opening their eyes were frighted at the sight of the same light which is that o◠truth But it may bee it is not believed we are brethren indeed because there are no tragedies that speake of the bloody disorders of Christians or because wee are brethren but unto the common usage of the goods of the world which with you have the power to dissolve the union of brotherhood therefore as we live with the same intelligence as if we had all but one spirit and one soul we make no difficulty to put all things betweene us in common we have nothing in particular but our wives of all things in the world there is nothing but wives whereof wee reject community and on the contrary among them of their wives onely there is community with other men for as they have used to desile the mariages of their friends they prostiture also marriages with very much patience to the unchastitie of their friends that which they have learnt if I be not deceived in the schoole of a Greeke Socrates and Roman Cato who have sometimes lent their wives to their friends those they married to have children by to bee engendred by others then themselves and out of their houses I know not if they lent them against their wills for why should they have any care of their chastity whom their husbands abandon so lightly O famous example of a Grecians wisdome and Roman severitie A Philosopher and a Censor make a shamefull trade of the chastitie of their wives Now seeing wee live together with so much charity that all our goods are common why should they wonder if wee make good cheere for it is one of the excesses you reproach us with besides the infamous crimes where of you accuse our repasts you reproove us with prodigality it may bee it is of us Diogenes hath said the Megarians make feasts as if they would die tomorrow and they build also as if they would never die Certes each of you fees easier the straw in his neighbours eye then the beame in his owne The aire is corrupted with the ill sents that goe out of the mouths of so many people that spew in the streets What the Saliens could not make one repast unlesse they found some body that lent them money to supplie their expences your stewards would bee troubled to make ready the accounts of the money spent in feasts where you vow the tenth of your goods to Hercules In Athens they chuse the excellentest cookes to celebrate the feast of the Apaturies wherein the midst of their deboystnes they call upon the Deity of father Denis the souldiers who have the charge of watching by night to hinder the burning of the City are troubled at the sight of the smoake that riseth in the aire in making ready supper in honour of Serapis And yet they will talke of nothing but the excesse of the Tables of the Christians But you need but consider the name given to our repast to know the quality thereof They express themselves with the same word that signifies dilection with the Greekes whatsoever the cost is that is made it is profitable for they gaine alwayes
given way to his thoughts changed and corrupted the truth to follow their owne motions but wee must not wonder if Philosophers have made this worke of the oracles of the old Testament seeing wee have amongst us people who shew themselves children worthy of such fathers infecting the purity of our new Gospell with the corruption of their owne opinions animated with the spirit of Philosophy and who by this onely way which brought to the knowledge of the truth have drawn many crooked paths wherein men cannot engage themselves without losing themselves whereof I would willingly advertise you that the diversity found betweene us makes you not imagine our profession is like that of the Philosophers and that you judge not ill of the truth because wee desend it by different meanes and are divided in our doctrine These people that are seperated from us have violated the faith of Jesus Christ and wee beat downe their crrours by this onely exception that the true rule of truth is that which hath beene taught by our Master and transmitted to us by these holy persons who had the happinesse to heare his word and receive his Divine instructions We shall shew in another place that all which is not conformable to this rule hath beene invented by new Doctors who came not till after the blessed companions of the son of God to destroy the truth men have made use of truth it selfe by the suggestions of the spirits of error who have inspired them to fight with it with its owne armes they are they who have excited them to corrupt so saving a dâ—ctrine they are they have invented fables wherewith its holinesse hath been prophaned that by their resemblance they take away the beliefe from truth or rather get it for themselves They would ruinate faith by this detestable tricke perswading men they must not believe Christians by the same reason not believe the Poets nor Philosophers or rather wee should believe the Poets and Philosophers because not believe the Christians It is this sacrilegious imitation that makes them laugh at us when wee preach the last judgement the Poets and Philosophers upon the ground of this truth set up a tribunall in Hell They mocke at us also when wee threaten them with eternall torments which are those hidden flames the earth shuts up in her bosome and are reserved by the justice of God as in a treasure for the punishment of the wicked for these prophaners have invented that there is is hel a River of burning fire if wee speake to them of Paradise a place fild with agreeable and Divine beauties ordained to be the residence of the soules of the blessed and seperated from the world by the interposition of this Zone of fire which God hath put before it presently the Elysian fields comes in their thoughts they imagine that there is that delicious place wee declare unto them Tell mee I pray you where the Poets and Philosophers have drawn these things so like to our doctrine if it bee not from our bookes and Discipline if they have drawne them from our Discipline they have without doubt the prerogative of antiquity upon them therefore it followes that what wee teach is truer and ought to have more beliefe then all these vaine opinions In effect these opinions are but the shaddowes of truth and seeing the world hath given faith to these vailes they ought rather to believe the truth that is the substance If the Poets and Philosophers are the first authors of these things which they have written it must bee then that our Discipline is but the figure of that which is come after it which nature permits not because the shadow is not before the body and the figure cannot have beene before the truth from whom it takes its originall CHAP. XLVIII IT must bee acknowledged that the usage wee receive from you and that you give the Philosophers are very different if a Philosopher sets out what Laberius left in writing according to the opinion of Pythagoras that a mule is changed into a man a woman into an adder if he displayes al the cunning of his eloquence if hee sets out with addresse all his arguments to settle this opinion is it not true that hee moves your minds that he drawes you to his partie that hee forceth you to believe you must abstaine from the flesh of beasts and that after there are some found with you that make some scruple to tast it because in eating a peece of beese they feare to devoure some of their auncestors contrarily if a Christian assures you a man that is dead shall live againe one day that hee that is in the grave shall come out and take againe the same forme he had hee is abused by the people not onely with blowes of the fist but also with stones cast at him Now mee thinkes there is much blindnesse in receiving the opinions of these Philosophers and in condemning the Doctrine wee propose to you upon the point of the resurrection for if there bee reason perswades that the soule of a dead man reenters into a body why may not wee believe it enters into the same body again and returnes into the same matter from whence it is seperated seeing the effect of a true Resurrection is to be that which it was before the soules after they have changed their bodies according to the opinion of Pythagoras and his Disciples are no more the same they were heretofore because they could not become what they are not unlesse they cease to be what they were wee might find wherewithall to jest on this subject if disposed to sport our minds and entertaine our leasure with mirth it wou'd bee a very pleasant thing to enquire in what beasts persons have beene changed that lived before us but it is better we resolve to determine the truth of this proposition We say then it is more convenient to the dignity of our nature to believe man shall become man againe that every one in particular shall rise againe to be the same he was and informed with the same soule that animated him with the same qualities wherewith he was endowed although the body receive some change in his exterior figure In sum the designe of the Universall judgement being the effectuall reason of our resurrection it is necessary the same man that is dead live againe that God may recompence or punish for his good or evill actions the same persons And the same bodies that are in the dust of the grave must appeare at this judgement because the soule cannot suffer alone and without a sensible matter that is to say without its flesh and as it hath not sinned but in its flesh it also hath not merited but with its flesh the punishments the justice of God hath ordained for its crimes But you say to mee how can it bee that a matter reduced to dust should represent it selfe consider with thy selfe O man that makest this objection to me