fent out feparately, into feveral diftant parts of the world, should in a few years bring over to the fame Faith in Chrift, and obedience to him, vast numbers in every countrey where they came, of all ages, degrees and conditi ons of life, of different profeffions, perfuafions and Religions, notwithstanding the prejudices of former Custom and Education, against all the Power, Intereft, Authority and Learning of the world, and amidst all the malicious contrivances of Men and Devils, continually oppofing and raising perfecution againft it; and that this Faith fhould make fo deep an impreffion upon the minds of men, as immediately to change their Principles and Practices, and in a compendious manner, to make them fhew fuch a true Philofophy in their lives and actions, and fuch a Conftancy in adhering to it, even unto death, as the most learned among the Heathens, after much ftudy, could do little more than talk of; these are fuch effects, as no confidering and unprejudiced man, can eafily deny to be the work of God. Therefore it must be concluded, either that the original of this Doctrine, and the Miracles by which it was confirmed, and by which the Apostles were enabled to plant and propagate it, were fuch as they are in Scripture repre reprefented to be; or else, that this wonderful effect, of which the marks are still so plain and lafting, was produced in a manner, if poffible, yet more miraculous, that is, without any fuch means at all. Now is it not really much more probable, as well as more agreeable, to all the accounts which History gives us of those times, that fuch Miracles were wrought at the first planting of the Gospel, and that divers of them continued to be wrought for a confiderable time, (as we are told they did, till great numbers were every where convinced of the Power of the Spirit which went along with Chriftianity, and the prejudices of men against it were fomewhat abated) than that it fhould gain fuch a strong and lasting establishment, as we fee in fact it has done, contrary to all probable Human means, and yet be without fuch Divine evidence? I obferved, in the clofe of my laft Difcourfe, that fome of the ancient and bitter enemies of Christianity have, by their very way of writing against it, given Teftimony to the Miracles of our Bleffed Saviour, in point of fact, in afcribing them to magick, and setting up, in competition with them, ftrange feats faid to have been done by Pythagoras, Abaris, Arifteas, or Apollonius, and the like. Now that 1 that which led them into this way of oppofing Christianity was not, as I conceive, barely the relation which the Apoftles give of the Miracles of Chrift; but the notoriety of fact, that both the Apoftles themfelves, and many other Chriftians, for a confiderable time after them, did continue to work Miracles in the name of Jefus: For Origen, in many places, testifies, that divers miraculous powers did continue till his time. This the most inquifitive Heathens could not tell how to deny ; and therefore to avoid the force of the Arguments which the Chriftians drew from thence, to prove that Jefus was a Divine Perfon, and his Doctrine from God, and to keep up the finking credit of Gentile Philofophy,upon which they valued themselves among the people, fome of them had recourfe to these two Methods; which yet in the end turned to the establishment of the Gospel, and the utter confufion of Pagan Idolatry. 1. They raked together all the old ftories, they could meet withal, of ftrange things done by fome ancient Philofophers, or even Magicians and Impoftors, to which they add new ones of their own, and these they set up in oppo Vide Orig. contra Celf. pag. 5, 34, 53, 124, 337, &c. oppofition to the Miracles of Chrift and his Apoftles. To this purpofe Celfusk brings in the ftory of Arifteas from Herodotus, who tells us, he heard fuch a story told at Proconnefus, that Arifteas died there, but that his body could not be found dead or alive, for seven years; but that afterwards he appeared and made verfes, then disappeared again; and above three hundred years after was feen at Metapontum, where he ordered them to erect an Altar to Apollo, and a ftatue for himfelf clofe by it, telling them he had once been the Crow which came with Apollo into Italy, and after he had faid this he vanished again. To this Celfus adds the story of Abaris, riding in the air upon an arrow of Apollo over fea and land, (as Porphyry malfo relates it) and of Hermotimus Clazomenius, whofe foul often left the body, and wandered up and down without d Thefe ftrange ftories Celfus makes a fhew of believing; and fo does Hierocles after him; who for the fame purpose highly commends the life of Apollonius Tyanaus, writ by Philoftratus. Now this way of argu ** Orig. contra Celf. p. 125, 06. ing A ing from thefe ftories was this: a If fuch great men as these, of whom fuch firange and wonderful things are related, are not worshipp'd as Gods, why should the Chriftians account JESUS a God, and pay him Divine Honour, only for having done fuch wonders as they relate of him? This was the sum of their argument, fuppofing the facts related of these famous men were believed to be true, as they pretended to think them, But it would have ferved their purpose as well, if they were falfe, provided they could but thereby have reduced the Miracles of Jefus to the fame level with these impostures. And I make no question but it was with this view, that Philoftratus writ the life of Apol lonius; which he did so many years after his death, that he might fay what he pleased of him. And with the like defign both Porphyry and Jamblichus may be justly suppofed to have writ the life of Pythagoras, fo full n of this fee Origen against Celfus in the third book at large; and the following words of Hierocles, in his book against the Christians, as they are preferved by Eufebius in his anfwer, are to the fame purpose, Tiv Fv évexa rúrwv iuvialu; ira ἐξῇ συγκρίνειν τ' ἡμετέραν ἀκριβῆ καὶ βεβαίαν ἐφ' ἑκάτῳ κρίσιν, κα * Χρισιανών κεφότητα· εἴπερ ἡμεῖς μὲ τὰ τοιαῦτα πεποιηκότα, • Θεὸν ἀλλὰ Θεοῖς κεχαρισμθμον ἄνδρα ἡγέμεθα· οἱ 3 δι' ὀλίγας περιλείας τινὰς τ Ἰησὸν Θεὸν ἀναγορεύωσι. Vide Eufeb. contra Hieroclem. cap. 2. |