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Contra Celsum

16.

Ποῖα δὲ παντοδαπὰ ἐπισπώμεθα ἢ τίνα συμπλάσσομεν δείματα, ὡς ἀναποδείκτως γράφει ὁ Κέλσος, παραστησάτω ὁ βουλόμενος. Εἰ μὴ ἄρα τὴν περὶ δικαστοῦ θεοῦ καὶ δικαζομένων ἀνθρώπων ἐφ' οἷς ἔπραξαν πᾶσι διδασκαλίαν μετὰ κατασκευῆς ποικίλης, πῇ μὲν τῆς ἀπὸ τῶν γραφῶν πῇ δὲ καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ εἰκότος λόγου, δείματα βούλεται λέγειν ὁ Κέλσος συμπεπλασμένα. Καίτοι γε – φίλη γὰρ ἡ ἀλήθεια – φησὶ πρὸς τοῖς τελευταίοις ὁ Κέλσος ὅτι μήτε τούτοις εἴη μήτ' ἐμοὶ μήτε ἄλλῳ τινὶ ἀνθρώπων ἀποθέσθαι τὸ περὶ τοῦ κολασθήσεσθαι τοὺς ἀδίκους καὶ γερῶν ἀξιωθήσεσθαι τοὺς δικαίους δόγμα. Ποῖα οὖν δείματα, ἐὰν ἀνέλῃς τὸν περὶ κολάσεως λόγον, συμπλάττοντες ἐπισπώμεθα τοὺς ἀνθρώπους; Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπὰν λέγῃ ὅτι τὰ τοῦ παλαιοῦ λόγου παρακούσματα συμπλάττοντες τούτοις προκαταυλοῦμεν καὶ προκατηχοῦμεν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ὡς οἱ τοὺς κορυβαντιζομένους περιβομβοῦντες, φήσομεν πρὸς αὐτόν· ποίου παλαιοῦ λόγου παρακούσματα; Εἴτε γὰρ τοῦ ἑλληνικοῦ, καὶ διδάξαντος περὶ τῶν ὑπὸ γῆν δικαστηρίων, εἴτε τοῦ ἰουδαϊκοῦ, μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων καὶ περὶ τῆς ἑξῆς τῷ βίῳ τούτῳ ζωῆς προφητεύσαντος, οὐκ ἂν ἔχοι παραστῆσαι ὅτι ἡμεῖς ἐν παρακούσμασι γενόμενοι τῆς ἀληθείας, ὅσοι γε πειρώμεθα μετὰ λόγου πιστεύειν, πρὸς τὰ τοιαῦτα ζῶμεν δόγματα.

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Origen Against Celsus

Chapter XVI.

"But what the legends are of every kind which we gather together, or the terrors which we invent," as Celsus without proof asserts, he who likes may show. I know not, indeed, what he means by "inventing terrors," unless it be our doctrine of God as Judge, and of the condemnation of men for their deeds, with the various proofs derived partly from Scripture, partly from probable reason. And yet--for truth is precious--Celsus says, at the close, "Forbid that either I, or these, or any other individual should ever reject the doctrine respecting the future punishment of the wicked and the reward of the good!" What terrors, then, if you except the doctrine of punishment, do we invent and impose upon mankind? And if he should reply that "we weave together erroneous opinions drawn from ancient sources, and trumpet them aloud, and sound them before men, as the priests of Cybele clash their cymbals in the ears of those who are being initiated in their mysteries;" ¹ we shall ask him in reply, "Erroneous opinions from what ancient sources?" For, whether he refers to Grecian accounts, which taught the existence of courts of justice under the earth, or Jewish, which, among other things, predicted the life that follows the present one; he will be unable to show that we who, striving to believe on grounds of reason, regulate our lives in conformity with such doctrines, have failed correctly to ascertain the truth. ²