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Contra Faustum Manichaeum libri triginta tres

3.

Hic dicturus es: Genealogia ipsa consideretur duorum evangelii librorum, utrum sibi conveniat. p. 740,16 Iam hinc alibi in hoc opere diximus, quod dicendum fuit. Neque enim vos movet, nisi quemadmodum duos patres potuerit habere Ioseph. Quod si cogitantibus non occurrisset unus, qui genuit, alius, qui adoptavit, nec sic facile debuistis adversus tantam auctoritatem praeproperam proferre sententiam, nunc vero si vel admoniti cogitatis, quam hoc fieri potuerit, evangelio simpliciter credite et vos potius tam male ac perverse argumentari desistite.

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Reply to Faustus the Manichaean

3.

Here you will say, Examine the genealogy as given in the two Gospels, and see if it is consistent with itself. The answer to this has been given already. ¹ Your difficulty is how Joseph could have two fathers. But even if you could not have thought of the explanation, that one was his own father, and the other adopted, you should not have been so ready to put yourself in opposition to such high authority. Now that this explanation has been given you, I call upon you to acknowledge the truth of the Gospel, and above all to cease your mischievous and unreasonable attacks upon the truth.