Traduction Masquer
Reply to Faustus the Manichaean

4.

One is shocked at your wild fancies about this First Man changing the elements which he brought, that he might conquer his enemies by pleasing them. So you make what you call the kingdom of falsehood keep honestly to its own nature, while truth is changeable in order to deceive. Jesus Christ, according to you, is the son of this First Man. Truth springs, forsooth, from your fiction. You praise this First Man for using changeable and delusive forms in the contest. If you, then, speak the truth, you do not imitate him. If you imitate him, you deceive as he did. But our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the true and truthful Son of God, the true and truthful Son of man, both of which He testifies of Himself, derived the eternity of His godhead from true God, and His incarnation from true man. Your First Man is not the first man of the apostle. "The first man," he says, "was of the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven, heavenly. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy; as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. As we have borne the image of the earthy, let us also bear the image of the heavenly." ¹ The first man of the earth, earthy, is Adam, who was made of dust. The second man from heaven, heavenly, is the Lord Jesus Christ; for, being the Son of God, He became flesh that He might be a man outwardly, while He remained God within; that He might be both the true Son of God, by whom we were made, and the true Son of man, by whom we are made anew. Why do you conjure up this fabulous First Man of yours, and refuse to acknowledge the first man of the apostle? Is this not a fulfillment of what the apostle says: "Turning away their ears from the truth, they will give heed to fables?" ² According to Paul, the first man is of the earth, earthy; according to Manichaeus, he is not earthy, and is equipped with five elements of some unreal, unintelligible kind. Paul says: "If any one should have announced to you differently from what we have announced let him be accursed." Therefore lest Paul be a liar, let Manichaeus be accursed.

Edition Masquer
Contra Faustum Manichaeum libri triginta tres

4.

Iamvero illa sacrilega deliramenta quis audiat, quod primum hominem vestrum dicitis secundum hostium voluntatem, quo eos caperet, elementa quae portabat mutasse atque vertisse, ut regnum quod dicitis falsitatis in sua natura manens non fallaciter dimicaret, et substantia veritatis mutabilis appareret ut falleret?

Huius primi hominis filium credi vultis dominum Iesum Christum.

Huius commenticiae fabulae filiam dicitis veritatem.

Hunc primum hominem, quem laudatis quia mutabilibus et mendacibus formis cum adversa gente pugnavit, si verum dicitis, non imitamini; si autem imitamini, et uos mentimini. p. 257,7

Quapropter dominus et salvator noster Iesus Christus, verus et verax dei filius, verus et verax hominis filius, quod utrumque de se ipse testatur, et de vero deo divinitatis aeternitatem et de vero homine carnis originem duxit.

Non novit apostolica doctrina primum hominem vestrum. Audite apostolum Paulum: Primus homo inquit de terra terrenus; secundus homo de caelo caelestis. Qualis terrenus, tales et terreni ; qualis caelestis, tales et caelestes. Sicut portavimus imaginem terreni, portemus et imaginem eius qui de caelo est.

Primus itaque homo de terra terrenus ille Adam de limo formatus, secundus autem homo de caelo caelestis dominus Iesus Christus.

Qui dei filius venit ad carnem, qua suscepta et homo exterius fieret et deus interius permaneret, ut et dei filius verus esset, per quem facti sumus, et hominis filius verus fieret, per quem refecti sumus. p. 257,22

Cur ergo primum hominem vestrum commenticium nescio unde producitis et primum hominem, quem doctrina apostolica docet, non vultis agnoscere? An ut compleatur in vobis, quod ipse apostolus ait: _A veritate quidem auditum suum avertentes, ad fabulas autem convertentur?_Paulus adnuntiat primum hominem de terra terrenum, Manichaeus adnuntiat primum hominem non terrenum, nescio quibus fallacibus elementis quinque vestitum.

Et Paulus dixit: _Si quis vobis adnuntiaverit praeterquam quod adnuntiavimus vobis, anathema sit._Ergo ne Paulus mendax sit, Manichaeus anathema sit!