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The Divine Institutes

Lactantius

Book 3 · Chapter 30

About this work

A large Latin presentation of Christian teaching that criticizes pagan religion and philosophy while treating justice, God, creation, Christ, worship, ethics, and the final destiny of humanity.

Author: Lactantius
Date: c. AD 303–311
Origin: North Africa and Nicomedia
Genre: Apology

Chap. XXX.—The Conclusion of the Things Before Spoken; And by What Means We Must Pass from the Vanity of the Philosophers to True Wisdom, and the Knowledge of the True God, in Which Alone are Virtue and Happiness.

I have taught, as far as my humble

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talents

permitted

,

that

the

philosophers

held

a

course

widely

deviating

from

the

truth

.

I

perceive

,

however

,

how

many

things

I

have

omitted

,

because

it

was

not

my

province

to

enter

into

a

disputation

against

philosophers

.

But

it

was

necessary

for

me

to

make

a

digression

to

this

subject

,

that

I

might

show

that

so

many

and

great

intellects

have

expended

themselves

in

vain

on

false

subjects

,

lest

any

one

by

chance

being

shut

out

by

corrupt

superstitions

,

should

wish

to

betake

himself

to

them

as

though

about

to

find

some

certainty

.

Therefore

the

only

hope

,

the

only

safety

for

man

,

is

placed

in

this

doctrine

,

which

we

defend

.

All

the

wisdom

of

man

consists

in

this

alone

,

the

knowledge

and

worship

of

God

:

this

is

our

tenet

,

this

our

opinion

.

Therefore

with

all

the

power

of

my

voice

I

testify

,

I

proclaim

,

I

declare

:

Here

,

here

is

that

which

all

philosophers

have

sought

throughout

their

whole

life

;

and

yet

,

they

have

not

been

able

to

investigate

,

to

grasp

,

and

to

attain

to

it

,

because

they

either

retained

a

religion

which

was

corrupt

,

or

took

it

away

altogether

.

Let

them

therefore

all

depart

,

who

do

not

instruct

human

life

,

but

throw

it

into

confusion

.

For

what

do

they

teach

?

or

whom

do

they

instruct

,

who

have

not

yet

instructed

themselves

?

whom

are

the

sick

able

to

heal

,

whom

can

the

blind

guide

?

Let

us

all

,

therefore

,

who

have

any

regard

for

wisdom

,

betake

ourselves

to

this

subject

.

Or

shall

we

wait

until

Socrates

knows

something

?

or

Anaxagoras

finds

light

in

the

darkness

?

or

until

Democritus

draws

forth

truth

from

the

well

?

or

Empedocles

extends

the

paths

of

his

soul

?

or

until

Arcesilas

and

Carneades

see

,

and

feel

,

and

perceive

?

Lo, a voice from heaven teaching the truth, and displaying to us a light brighter than the sun itself. Why are we unjust to ourselves, and delay to take up wisdom, which learned men, though they wasted their lives in its pursuit, were never able to discover. Let him who wishes to be wise and happy hear the voice of God, learn righteousness, understand the mystery of his birth, despise human affairs, embrace divine things, that he may gain that chief good to which he was born. Having overthrown all false religions, and having refuted all the arguments, as many as it was customary or possible to bring forward in their defence; then, having proved the systems of philosophy to be false, we must now come to true religion and wisdom, since, as I shall teach, they are both connected together; that we may maintain it either by arguments, or by examples, or by competent witnesses, and may show that the folly with which those worshippers of gods do not cease to upbraid us, has no existence with us, but lies altogether with them. And although, in the former books, when I was contending against false religions, and in this, when I was overthrowing false wisdom, I showed where the truth is, yet the next book will more plainly indicate what is true religion and what true wisdom.

Notes

1
[A noble utterance from Christian philosophy, now first gaining the ear and heart of humanity.]