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TOPIC: Post-Nicene Fathers Vol 07 (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 27.01.04 Lecture IV Part 2
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15. This Jesus Christ who is gone up shall come again, not from earth but from heaven: and I say, "not from earth," because there are many Antichrists to come at this time from earth. For already, as thou hast seen, many have begun to say, I am the Christhyperlink : and the abomination of desolationhyperlink is yet to come, assuming to himself the false title of Christ. But look thou for the true Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God, coming henceforth no more from earth, but from heaven, appearing to all more bright than any lightning and brilliancy of light, with angel guards attended, that He may judge both quick and dead, and reign in a heavenly, eternal kingdom, which shall have no end. For on this point also, I pray thee, make thyself sure, since there are many who say that Christ's Kingdom hath an endhyperlink .
Of the Holy Ghost.
16. Believe thou also in the Holy Ghost, and hold the same opinion concerning Him, which thou hast received to hold concerning the Father and the Son, and follow not those who teach blasphemous things of Himhyperlink . But learn thou that this Holy Spirit is One, indivisible, of manifold power; having many operations, yet not Himself divided; Who knoweth the mysteries, Who searcheth all things, even the deep things of Godhyperlink : Who descended upon the Lord Jesus Christ in form of a dove; Who wrought in the Law and in the Prophets; Who now also at the season of Baptism sealeth thy soul; of Whose holiness also every intellectual nature hath need: against Whom if any dare to blaspheme, he hath no forgiveness, neither in this world, nor in that which is to comehyperlink : "Who with the Father and the Son togetherhyperlink " is honoured with the glory of the Godhead: of Whom also thrones, and dominions, principalities, and powers have needhyperlink . For there is One God, the Father of Christ; and One Lord Jesus Christ, the Only-begotten Son of the Only God; and One Holy Ghost, the sanctifier and deifier of allhyperlink , Who spake in the Law and in the Prophets, in the Old and in the New Testament.
17. Have thou ever in thy mind this sealhyperlink , which for the present has been lightly touched in my discourse, by way of summary, but shall be stated, should the Lord permit, to the best of my power with the proof from the Scriptures. For concerning the divine and holy mysteries of the Faith, not even a casual statement must be delivered without the Holy Scriptures; nor must we be drawn aside by mere plausibility and artifices of speech. Even to me, who tell thee these things, give not absolute credence, unless thou receive the proof of the things which I announce from the Divine Scriptures. For this salvation which we believe depends not on ingenious reasoninghyperlink , but on demonstration of the Holy Scriptures.
Of the Soul.
18. Next to the knowledge of this venerable and glorious and all-holy Faith, learn further what thou thyself art: that as man thou art of a two-fold nature, consisting of soul and body; and that, as was said a short time ago, the same God is the Creator both of soul and bodyhyperlink . Know also that thou hast a soul self-governed, the noblest work of God, made after the image of its Creatorhyperlink : immortal because of God that gives it immortality; a living being, rational, imperishable, because of Him that bestowed these gifts: having free power to do what it willethhyperlink . For it is not according to thy nativity that thou sinnest, nor is it by the power of chance that thou committest fornication, nor, as some idly talk, do the conjunctions of the stars compel thee to give thyself to wantonnesshyperlink . Why dost thou shrink from confessing thine own evil deeds, and ascribe the blame to the innocent stars? Give no more heed, pray, to astrologers; for of these the divine Scripture saith, Let the stargazers of the heaven stand up and save thee, and what follows: Behold, they all shall be consumed as stubble on the fire, and shall not deliver their soul from the flamehyperlink .
19. And learn this also, that the soul, before it came into this world, had committed no sinhyperlink , but having come in sinless, we now sin of our free-will. Listen not, I pray thee, to any one perversely interpreting the words, But if I do that which I would nothyperlink : but remember Him who saith, If ye be willing, and hearken unto Me, ye shall eat the good things of the land: but if ye be not willing, neither hearken unto Me, the sword shall devour you, &c.hyperlink : and again, As ye presented your members as servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity, even so now present your members as servants to righteousness unto sanctificationhyperlink . Remember also the Scripture, which saith, Even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledgehyperlink : and, That which may be known of God is manifest in themhyperlink ; and again, their eyes they have closedhyperlink . Also remember how God again accuseth them, and saith, Yet I planted thee a fruitful vine, wholly true: how art thou turned to bitterness, thou the strange vinehyperlink ?
20. The soul is immortal, and all souls are alike both of men and women; for only the members of the body are distinguishedhyperlink . There is not a class of souls sinning by nature, and a class of souls practising righteousness by naturehyperlink : but both act from choice, the substance of their souls being of one kind only, and alike in all. I know, however, that I am talking much, and that the time is already long: but what is more precious than salvation? Art thou not willing to take trouble in getting provisions for the way against the heretics? And wilt thou not learn the bye-paths of the road, lest from ignorance thou fall down a precipice? If thy teachers think it no small gain for thee to learn these things, shouldest not thou the learner gladly receive the multitude of things told thee?
21. The soul is self-governed: and though the devil can suggest, he has not the power to compel against the will. He pictures to thee the thought of fornication: if thou wilt, thou acceptest it; if thou wilt not, thou rejectest. For if thou wert a fornicator by necessity, then for what cause did God prepare hell? If thou were a doer of righteousness by nature and not by will, wherefore did God prepare crowns of ineffable glory? The sheep is gentle, but never was it crowned for its gentleness: since its gentle quality belongs to it not from choice but by nature.
Of the Body.
22. Thou hast learned, beloved, the nature of the soul, as far as there is time at present: now do thy best to receive the doctrine of the body also. Suffer none of those who say that this body is no work of Godhyperlink : for they who believe that the body is independent of God, and that the soul dwells in it as in a strange vessel, readily abuse it to fornicationhyperlink . And yet what fault have they found in this wonderful body? For what is lacking in comeliness? And what in its structure is not full of skill? Ought they not to have observed the luminous construction of the eyes? And how the ears being set obliquely receive the sound unhindered? And how the smell is able to distinguish scents, and to perceive exhalations? And how the tongue ministers to two purposes, the sense of taste, and the power of speech? How the lungs placed out of sight are unceasing in their respiration of the air? Who imparted the incessant pulsation of the heart? Who made the distribution into so many veins and arteries? Who skilfully knitted together the bones with the sinews? Who assigned a part of the food to our substance, and separated a part for decent secretion, and hid away the unseemly members in more seemly places? Who when the human race must have died out, rendered it by a simple intercourse perpetual?
23. Tell me not that the body is a cause of sinhyperlink . For if the body is a cause of sin, why does not a dead body sin? Put a sword in the right hand of one just dead, and no murder takes place. Let beauties of every kind pass before a youth just dead, and no impure desire arises. Why? Because the body sins not of itself, but the soul through the body. The body is an instrument, and, as it were, a garment and robe of the soul: and if by this latter it be given over to fornication, it becomes defiled: but if it dwell with a holy soul, it becomes a temple of the Holy Ghost. It is not I that say this, but the Apostle Paul hath said, Know ye not, that your bodies are the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in youhyperlink ? Be tender, therefore, of thy body as being a temple of the Holy Ghost. Pollute not thy flesh in fornication: defile not this thy fairest robe: and if ever thou hast defiled it, now cleanse it by repentance: get thyself washed, while time permits.
24. And to the doctrine of chastity let the first to give heed be the order of Solitarieshyperlink and of Virgins, who maintain the angelic life in the world; and let the rest of the Church's people follow them. For you, brethren, a great crown is laid up: barter not away a great dignity for a petty pleasure: listen to the Apostle speaking: Lest there be any fornicator or profane person, as Esau, who for one mess of meat sold his own birthrighthyperlink . Enrolled henceforth in the Angelic books for thy profession of chastity, see that thou be not blotted out again for thy practice of fornication.
25. Nor again, on the other hand, in maintaining thy chastity be thou puffed up against those who walk in the humbler path of matrimony. For as the Apostle saith, Let marriage be had in honour among all, and let the bed be undefiledhyperlink . Thou too who retainest thy chastity, wast thou not begotten of those who had married? Because thou hast a possession of gold, do not on that account reprobate the silver. But let those also be of good cheer, who being married use marriage lawfully; who make a marriage according to God's ordinance, and not of wantonness for the sake of unbounded license; who recognise seasons of abstinence, that they may give themselves unto prayerhyperlink ; who in our assemblies bring clean bodies as welt as clean garments into the Church; who have entered upon matrimony for the procreation of children, but not for indulgence.
26. Let those also who marry but once not reprobate those who have consented to a second marriagehyperlink : for though continence is a noble and admirable thing, yet it is also permissible to enter upon a second marriage, that the weak may not fall into fornication. For it is good for them, saith the Apostle, if they abide even as I. But if they have not continency, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burnhyperlink . But let all the other practices be banished afar, fornication, adultery, and every kind of licentiousness: and let the body be kept pure for the Lord, that the Lord also may have respect unto the body. And let the body be nourished with food, that it may live, and serve without hindrance; not, however, that it may be given up to luxuries.
Concerning Meats.
27. And concerning food let these be your ordinances, since in regard to meats also many stumble. For some deal indifferently with things offered to idolshyperlink , while others discipline themselves, but condemn those that eat: and in different ways men's souls are defiled in the matter of meats, from ignorance of the useful reasons for eating and not eating. For we fast by abstaining from wine and flesh, not because we abhor them as abominations, but because we look for our reward; that having scorned things sensible, we may enjoy a spiritual and intellectual feast; and that having now sown in tears we may reap in joyhyperlink in the world to come. Despise not therefore them that eat, and because of the weakness of their bodies partake of food: nor yet blame these who use a little wine for their stomach's sake and their often infirmitieshyperlink : and neither condemn the men as sinners, nor abhor the flesh as strange food; for the Apostle knows some of this sort, when he says: forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by them that believehyperlink . In abstaining then from these things, abstain not as from things abominablehyperlink , else thou hast no reward: but as being good things disregard them for the sake of the better spiritual things set before thee.
28. Guard thy soul safely, lest at any time thou eat of things offered to idols: for concerning meats of this kind, not only I at this time, but ere now Apostles also, and James the bishop of this Church, have had earnest care: and the Apostles and Elders write a Catholic epistle to all the Gentiles, that they should abstain first from things offered to idols, and then from blood also and from things strangledhyperlink . For many men being of savage nature, and living like dogs, both lap up bloodhyperlink , in imitation of the manner of the fiercest beasts, and greedily devour things strangled. But do thou, the servant of Christ, in eating observe to eat with reverence. And so enough concerning meats.
Of Apparel.
29. But let thine apparel be plain, not for adornment, but for necessary covering: not to minister to thy vanity, but to keep thee warm in winter, and to hide the unseemliness of the body: lest under pretence of hiding the unseemliness, thou fall into another kind of unseemliness by thy extravagant dress.
Of the Resurrection.
30. Be tender, I beseech thee, of this body, and understand that thou wilt be raised from the dead, to be judged with this body. But if there steal into thy mind any thought of unbelief, as though the thing were impossible, judge of the things unseen by what happens to thyself. For tell me; a hundred years ago or more, think where wast thou thyself: and from what a most minute and mean substance thou art come to so great a stature, and so much dignity of beautyhyperlink . What then? Cannot He who brought the non-existent into being, raise up again that which already exists and has decayedhyperlink ? He who raises the corn, which is sown for our sakes, as year by year it dies,-will He base difficulty in raising us up, for whose sakes that corn also has been raisedhyperlink ? Seest thou how the trees stand now for many months without either fruit or leaves: but when the winter is past they spring up whole into life again as if from the deadhyperlink : shall not we much rather and more easily return to life? The rod of Moses was transformed by the will of God into the unfamiliar nature of a serpent: and cannot a man, who has fallen into death, be restored to himself again?
31. Heed not those who say that this body is not raised; for it is raised: and Esaias is witness, when he says: The dead shall arise, and they that are in the tombs shall awakehyperlink : and according to Daniel, Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall arise, some to everlasting life, and some to everlasting shamehyperlink . But though to rise again is common to all men, yet the resurrection is not alike to all: for the bodies received by us all are eternal, but not like bodies by all: for the just receive them, that through eternity they may join the Choirs of Angels; but the sinners, that they may endure for ever the torment of their sins.
Of the Laver.
32. For this cause the Lord, preventing us according to His loving-kindness, has granted repentance at Baptismhyperlink , in order that we may cast off the chief-nay rather the whole burden of our sins, and having received the seal by the Holy Ghost, may be made heirs of eternal life. But as we have spoken sufficiently concerning the Laver the day before yesterday, let us now return to the remaining subjects of our introductory teaching.
Of the Divine Scriptures.
33. Now these the divinely-inspired Scriptures of both the Old and the New Testament teach us. For the God of the two Testaments is One, Who in the Old Testament foretold the Christ Who appeared in the New; Who by the Law and the Prophets led us to Christ's school. For before faith came, we were kept in ward under the law, and, the law hath been our tutor to bring us unto Christhyperlink . And if ever thou hear any of the heretics speaking evil of the Law or the Prophets, answer in the sound of the Saviour's voice, saying, Jesus came not to destroy the Law, but to fulfil ithyperlink . Learn also diligently, and from the Church, what are the books of the Old Testament, and what those of the New. And, pray, read none of the apocryphal writingshyperlink : for why dost thou, who knowest not those which are acknowledged among all, trouble thyself in vain about those which are disputed? Read the Divine Scriptures, the twenty-two books of the Old Testament, these that have been translated by the Seventy-two Interpretershyperlink .
34. For after the death of Alexander, the king of the Macedonians, and the division of his kingdom into four principalities, into Babylonia, and Macedonia, and Asia, and Egypt, one of those who reigned over Egypt, Ptolemy Philadelphus, being a king very fond of learning, while collecting the books that were in every place, heard from Demetrius Phalereus, the curator of his library, of the Divine Scriptures of the Law and the Prophets, and judged it much nobler, not to get the books from the possessors by force against their will, but rather to propitiate them by gifts and friendship; and knowing that what is extorted is often adulterated, being given unwillingly, while that which is willingly supplied is freely given with all sincerity, he sent to Eleazar, who was then High Priest, a great many gifts for the Temple here at Jerusalem, and caused him to send him six interpreters from each of the twelve tribes of Israel for the translationhyperlink . Then, further, to make experiment whether the books were Divine or not, he took precaution that those who had been sent should not combine among themselves, by assigning to each of the interpreters who had come his separate chamber in the island called Pharos, which lies over against Alexandria, and committed to each the whole Scriptures to translate. And when they had fulfilled the task in seventy-two days, he brought together all their translations, which they had made in different chambers without sending them one to another, and found that they agreed not only in the sense but even in words. For the process was no word-craft, nor contrivance of human devices: but the translation of the Divine Scriptures, spoken by the Holy Ghost, was of the Holy Ghost accomplished.
35. Of these read the two and twenty books, but have nothing to do with the apocryphal writings. Study earnestly these only which we read openly in the Church. Far wiser and more pious than thyself were the Apostles, and the bishops of old time, the presidents of the Church who handed down these books. Being therefore a child of the Church, trenchhyperlink thou not upon its statutes. And of the Old Testament, as we have said, study the two and twenty books, which, if thou art desirous of learning, strive to remember by name, as I recite them. For of the Law the books of Moses are the first five, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. And next, Joshua the son of Navehyperlink , and the book of Judges, including Ruth, counted as seventh. And of the other historical books, the first and second books of the Kingshyperlink are among the Hebrews one book; also the third and fourth one book. And in like manner, the first and second of Chronicles are with them one book; and the first and second of Esdras are counted one. Esther is the twelfth book; and these are the Historical writings. But those which are written in verses are five, Job, and the book of Psalms, and Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Songs, which is the seventeenth book. And after these come the five Prophetic books: of the Twelve Prophets one book, of Isaiah one, of Jeremiah one, including Baruch and Lamentations and the Epistlehyperlink ; then Ezekiel, and the Book of Daniel, the twenty-second of the Old Testament.
36. Then of the New Testament there are the four Gospels only, for the rest have false titleshyperlink and are mischievous. The Manichaeans also wrote a Gospel according to Thomas, which being tinctured with the fragrance of the evangelic title corrupts the souls of the simple sort. Receive also the Acts of the Twelve Apostles; and in addition to these the seven Catholic Epistles of James, Peter, John, and Jude; and as a seal upon them all, and the last work of the disciples, the fourteen Epistles of Paulhyperlink . But let all the rest be put aside in a secondary rank. And whatever books are not read in Churches, these read not even by thyself, as thou hast heard me say. Thus much of these subjects.
37. But shun thou every diabolical operation, and believe not the apostate Serpent, whose transformation from a good nature was of his own free choice: who can over-persuade the willing, but can compel no one. Also give heed neither to observations of the stars nor auguries, nor omens, nor to the fabulous divinations of the Greekshyperlink . Witchcraft, and enchantment, and the wicked practices of necromancy, admit not even to a hearing. From every kind of intemperance stand aloof, giving thyself neither to gluttony nor licentiousness, rising superior to all covetousness and usury. Neither venture thyself at heathen assemblies for public spectacles, nor ever use amulets in sicknesses; shun also all the vulgarity of tavern-haunting. Fall not away either into the sect of the Samaritans, or into Judaism: for Jesus Christ henceforth hath ransomed thee. Stand aloof from all observance of Sabbathshyperlink , and from calling any indifferent meats common or unclean. But especially abhor all the assemblies of wicked heretics; and in every way make thine own soul safe, by fastings, prayers, almsgivings, and reading the oracles of God; that having lived the rest of thy life in the flesh in soberness and godly doctrine, thou mayest enjoy the one salvation which flows from Baptism; and thus enrolled in the armies of heaven by God and the Father, mayest also be deemed worthy of the heavenly crowns, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to Whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Footnotes
54 Ps. cx. 1.
55 Matt. xxiv. 5.
56 Matt. xxiv. 15. Compare Cat. xv. 9, 15.
57 Compare xv. 27, where the followers of Marcellus of Ancyra are indicated as holding this opinion.
58 In xvi. 6-10, Cyril gives a long list of heresies concerning the Holy Ghost.
59 1 Cor. ii. 10.
60 Matt. xii. 32.
61 This clause is not in the Creed of Nicaea, but is added in the Creed of Constantinople, A.D. 381.
62 Col. i 16.
63 qeopoio/n is omitted in Codd. Roe, Casaubon, and A.
64 The Benedictine Editor argues from Cat. i. 5, "that thou mayest by faith seal up the things that are spoken;" and xxiii. 18: "sealing up the Prayer by the Amen," that Cyril means by "this seal" the firm belief of Christian doctrine. Compare John iii. 33. But Milles understands by the "seal" the Creed itself, which agrees better with the following context.
65 h 9 swthri/a ga\r au!th th\j pi/stewj h 9mw=n, which might be rendered, "this our salvation by faith," or, with Milles, "this safety of our Faith." For the rendering in the text compare Heb. iii. 1: a'rxiere/a th\j o 9mologi/aj h 9mw=n. On eu 9resilogi/a, see Polybius xviii. 29, § 3.: dia/ th\j proj a'llh/louj eu 9resilogi/aj.
66 iv. 4.
67 In the Clementine Homily xvi. 16, the soul having come forth from God, clothed with His breath, is said to be of the same substance, and yet not God. In Tertull. c. Maricon II. c. 9, the soul is the affatus (pnoh/ not pneu\ma) of God, i.e. the image of the Spirit, and inferior to it, though possessing the true lineaments of divinity, immortality, freedom, its own mastery over itself.
68 Tertull. c. Marc. II. 6:It was proper that he who is the image and likeness of God should be formed with a free will, and a mastery of himself, so that this very thing, namely freedom of will and self-command, might be reckoned as the image and likeness of God in him.
69 Compare Aug. de Civ. Dei. v. 1, where he says that the astrologers (Mathematici) say, not merely such or such a position of Mars signifies that a man will be a murderer, but makes him a murderer. See Dict. of Christian Antiq., "Astrology."
70 Is. xlvii. 13.
71 "The Orphic poets were under the impression that the soul is suffering the punishment of sin, and that the body is an enclosure or prison in which the soul is incarcerated and kept (sw/zetai) as the name sw\ma implies, until the penalty is paid." Plato, Cratyl. 400. Clement of Alexandria (Strom. III. iii. 17), after referring to this passage of Plato, quotes Philolaus the Pythagorean, as saying: "The ancient theologians and soothsayers also testify that the soul has been chained to the body for a kind of punishment, and is buried in it as in a tomb."
72 Rom. vii. 16.
73 Is. i. 19, 20.
74 Rom. vi. 19.
75 Rom. i. 28.
76 Rom.i. 19.
77 Matt. xiii. 15.
78 Jer. ii. 21.
79 Apelles, the heretic, attributed the difference of sex to the soul, which existing before the body impressed its sex upon it. Tertall. On the Soul, c. xxxvi.
80 Irenaeus I. vii. 5: "They (the Valentinians) conceive of three kinds of men, spiritual, material, and animal.... These three natures are no longer found in one person, but constitute various kinds of men. . . . And again subdividing the animal souls themselves, they say that some are by nature good, and others by nature evil." Origen on Romans, Lib. VIII. § 10: "I know not how those who come from the School of Valentinus and Basilides. . . suppose that there are souls of one nature which are always safe and never perish, and others which always perish, and are never saved."
81 See iv. 18.
82 On the impure practices of the Manichees, see vi. 33, 34.
83 Fortunatus, the Manichee, in August. Disput. ii. 20, contra Fortunat. is represented as saying, What we assert is this, that the soul is compelled to sin by a substance of contrary nature.
84 1 Cor. vi. 19.
85 mona/zontej. Compare xii. 33; xvi. 22. The origin of Monasticism is usually traced to the time of the Decian persecution, the middle of the third century. Previously "there were no monks, but only ascetics in the Church; from that time to the reign of Constantine, Monachism was confined to the auchorets living in private cells in the wilderness: but when Pachomius had erected monasteries in Egypt, other countries presently followed the example. . . . Hilarion, who was scholar to Antonius, was the first monk that ever lived in Palestine or Syria." Bingham, VII. i. 4.
86 Heb. xii. 16.
87 Heb. xiii. 4.
88 1 Cor. vii. 5.
89 The condemnation of a second marriage, which the Benedictine Editor and others import into this passage, is not to be found in it. tou\j deute/rw ga/mw sumperienexqe/ntaj neither means "qui ad secundas nuptias ultro se dejecere," nor even "who consented to," - or, "consented together in - a second marriage," without any intimation of censure. See V. 9; VI. 13: Ecclus. xxv. 1; gunh\ kai\ a 9nh=r e'autoi\j sumperifero/menoi); 2 Macc. ix. 27; Euseb. H. E.ix. 9, 7: a'necika/kwj kai\ summe/trwj sumperife/rointo auQtoi\j; Zeno, ap. Diog. Laert. vii. 18; to\ sumperiferesqai toi\j fi/loij. Diog. Laert. vii. 13: eu'sumperiforoj. Polyb. IV. 35, § 7, and II. 17, § 12. The gentleness with which Cyril here speaks of second marriages is in striking contrast with the passionate vehemence of Tertullian in the treatise de Monogamia, and elsewhere. Aug. de Haeresibus, cc. 26, 38, reckons the condemnation of second marriage among the heretical doctrines of the Montanists and Cathari. In the treatise de Bono Viduitatis, c. 6, he argues that a second marriage is not to be condemned, but is less honourable than widowhood, and severely rebukes the heretical teaching on this point of Tertullian, the Montanists, and the Novatians. De Bono Conjugali, c. 21: Sacramentum nuptiarum temporis nostri sic and unum virum et unam uxorem redactum est, ut Ecclesiae dispensatorem non liceat ordinare nisi unius uxoris virum. On the practice of the Church at various times see Bingham, IV. v. 1-4; Suicer, Thesaur. Digami/a.
90 1 Cor. vii. 8, 9.
91 The Nicolaitans (Apocal. ii. 14, 20); and the Valentinians, of whom Irenaeus (II. xiv. 5), says that they derived their opinion as to the indifference of meats from the Cynics. See also Irenaeus I. vi. 3; and xxvi. 3.
92 Ps. cxxvi. 5.
93 1 Tim. v. 23.
94 1 Tim. iv. 3.
95 The various sects of Gnostics, and the Manichees, considered certain meats and drinks, as flesh and wine, to be polluting. Vid. Iren. Haer. i. 28. Clem. Paed. ii. 2. p. 186. Epiph. Haer. xlvi. 2, xlvii. 1, &c., &c., August. Haer. 46, vid. Canon. Apost. 43. "If any Bishop, &c., abstain from marriage, flesh, and wine, not for discipline (di 0 a!skhsin) but as abhorring them, forgetting that they are all very good, &c., and speaking blasphemy against the creation, let him amend or be deposed," &c. R. W. C.
96 Acts xv. 20, 29. The prohibition of blood and things strangled has continued to the present day in the Eastern Church, though already disregarded by the Latins in the time of S. Augustine (lc. Faustum. xxxii. 13).
97 Tertullian (Apologeticus, c. 9) speaks of those "who at the gladiator shows, for the cure of epilepsy, quaff with greedy thirst the blood of criminals slain in the arena," and of others "who make meals on the flesh of wild beasts at the place of combat:" and contrasts the habits of Christians, who abstain from things strangled, to avoid pollution by the blood.
98 XVIII. 9.
99 Compare xviii. 6, 9; Athenagoras, On the Resurrection of the Dead, c. 3.
100 XVIII. 6. John xii. 24; 1 Cor. xv. 36.
101 XVIII. 7.
102 Is. xxvi. 19.
103 Dan. xii. 2.
104 Gr. loutrou\ meta/noian. Other readings are lu/tron metanoi/aj, "redemption by repentance," and loutro\n metanoi/aj "a laver (baptism) of repentance."
105 Gal. iii. 24. The Paidagwgo/j is described by Clement of Alexandria (Paedag. i. 7) as one who both conducts a boy to school, and helps to teach him, - an usher: "under-master" (Wicliff).
106 Matt. v. 17.
107 tw=n a'pokru/fwn. The sense in which Cyril uses this term may be learned from Rufinus (Expositio Symboli, § 38), who distinguishes three classes of books: (1) The Canonical Books of the Old and New Testaments, which alone are to be used in proof of doctrine: (2) Ecclesiastical, which may be read in Churches, including Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, Tobit, Judith, and the Books of the Maccabees, in the Old Testament, and The Shepherd of Hermas, and The Two Ways in the New Testament. (3) The other writings they called "Apocryphal," which they would not have read in Churches. The distinction is useful, though the second class is not complete.
108 The The original source of this account of the Septuagint version is a letter purporting to have been written by Aristeas, or Aristaeus, a confidential minister of Ptolemy Philadelphus, to his brother Philocrates. Though the letter is not regarded as genuine its statements are in part admitted to be true, being confirmed by a fragment, preserved by Eusebius (Praeparatio Evangelica, ix. 6.), of a work of Aristobulus, a Jewish philosopher who wrote in the reign of Ptolemy Philometor, 181-146, B.C. Upon these testimonies it is generally admitted that "the whole Law," i.e. the Pentateuch was translated into Greek at Alexandria in the reign either of Ptolemy Soter (323-285, B.C.), or of his son Ptolemy Philadelphus (285-247, B.C.), under the direction of Demetrius Phalereus, curator of the King's library.
109 Up to this point Cyril's account is based upon the statements of the Pseudo-Aristeas. The fabulous incidents which follow, concerning the separate cells, the completion of the whole version by each translator, the miraculous agreement in the very words, proving a Divine inspiration, are found in Philo Judaeus, Life of Moses, II. 7.. Josephus, Antiquities, XII. c. ii. 3-14, following the letter of Aristeas, gives long descriptions of the magnificent presents sent by Philadelphus to Jerusalem, and of his splendid hospitality to the translators, but makes no allusion to the separate cells or miraculous agreement. On the contrary he represents the 72 interpreters as meeting together for consultation, agreeing on the text to be adopted, and completing their joint labours in 72 days. The slightest comparison of the Version with the original Hebrew must convince any reasonable person that the idea of divine inspiration or supernatural assistance, borrowed by Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and other Fathers, apparently from Philo, is a mere invention of the imagination, disproved by the facts. Compare the article "Septuagint" in Murray's Dictionary of the Bible.
110 The rendering "trench not" (R. W. C.) agrees well with the etymology of the verb (paraxara/ssw). Its more usual signification seems to be "counterfeit," "forge." The sense required here, apart from any metaphor, is "transgress" (Heurtley).
111 The name "Nun" is represented by "Nave" in the Septuagint, which Cyril used.
112 The two books of Samuel.
113 The Epistle of Jeremy, which now appears in the Apocrypha as the last chapter of Baruch. On the number and arrangement of the Books of the Old and New Testaments the student should consult an interesting Essay by Professor Sanday (Studia Biblica, vol.. iii.), who traces the introduction of a fixed order to the time when papyrus rolls were superseded by codices, in which the sheets of skin were folded and bound together, as in printed books. This change had commenced before the Diocletian persecution, A.D. 303, when among the sacred books taken from the Christians codices were much more numerous than rolls. On the contents of the Jewish Canon, see Dictionary of the Bible, "Canon." B. F. W. "Josephus enumerates 20 books `'which are justly believed to be divine.
0'" One of the earliest attempts by a Christian to ascertain correctly the number and order of the Books of the O.T. was made by Melito, Bishop of Sardis, who travelled for this purpose to Palestine, in the latter part of the 2nd Century. His list is as follows: - "Of Moses five (books); Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Jesus son of Nave, Judges, Ruth, four Books of Kings, two of Chronicles, Psalms of David, Solomon's Proverbs, which is also called Wisdom, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Job, Prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, the Twelve in one Book, Daniel, Ezekiel, Esdras." (Eusebius, H.E. III. cap. 10, note I, in this s.) Cyril's List agrees with that of Athanasius (Festal Epistle, 373 A.D.), except that Job is placed by Ath. after Canticles instead of before Psalms.
114 Gr. yeudepi/grafa. For an account of the many Apocryphal Gospels, see the article by Lipsius in the "Dictionary of Christian Biography," Smith and Wace, and the English translations in Clark's Ante-Nicene Library.
115 Cyril includes in this list all the books which we receive, except the Apocalypse. See Bishop Westcott's Article "Canon," in the Dictionary of the Bible, and Origen's Catalogue in Euseb. Hist. vi. 25 (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, vol. i.).
116 Compare xix. 8. where all such acts of divination are said to be service of the devil.