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The Epitome of the Divine Institutes

Lactantius

Chapter 6

About this work

A condensed presentation of Lactantius’s apologetic project, summarizing his case against pagan worship and his account of divine providence, true religion, justice, and Christian hope.

Author: Lactantius
Date: Early 4th century
Origin: Nicomedia or Gaul
Genre: Apology

Chap. VI.—Since God is Eternal and Immortal, He Does Not Stand in Need of Sex and Succession.

These testimonies, therefore, so many and

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so

great

,

clearly

teach

that

there

is

but

one

government

in

the

world

,

and

one

power

,

the

origin

of

which

cannot

be

imagined

,

or

its

force

described

.

They

are

foolish

,

therefore

,

who

imagine

that

the

gods

were

born

of

marriage

,

since

the

sexes

themselves

,

and

the

intercourse

between

them

,

were

given

to

mortals

by

God

for

this

reason

,

that

every

race

might

be

preserved

by

a

succession

of

offspring

.

But

what

need

have

the

immortals

either

of

sex

or

succession

since

neither

pleasure

nor

death

affects

them

?

Those

,

therefore

,

who

are

reckoned

as

gods

,

since

it

is

evident

that

they

were

born

as

men

,

and

that

they

begat

others

,

were

plainly

mortals

:

but

they

were

believed

to

be

gods

,

because

,

when

they

were

great

and

powerful

kings

,

on

account

of

the

benefits

which

they

had

conferred

upon

men

,

they

deserved

to

obtain

divine

honours

after

death

;

and

temples

and

statues

being

erected

to

them

,

their

memory

was

retained

and

celebrated

as

that

of

immortals

.