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From the Work on Things Created

Methodius of Olympus

Section 5

About this work

Author: Methodius of Olympus

V. But come now, since by the favour of

‹ Section 4 Section 6 ›

God

we

have

arrived

at

this

point

in

our

discourse

;

let

us

suppose

a

beautiful

statue

standing

upon

its

base

;

and

that

those

who

behold

it

,

admiring

its

harmonious

beauty

,

differ

among

themselves

,

some

trying

to

make

out

that

it

had

been

made

,

others

that

it

had

not

.

I

should

ask

them

:

For

what

reason

do

you

say

that

it

was

not

made

?

on

account

of

the

artist

,

because

he

must

be

considered

as

never

resting

from

his

work

?

or

on

account

of

the

statue

itself

?

If

it

is

on

account

of

the

artist

,

how

could

it

,

as

not

being

made

,

be

fashioned

by

the

artist

?

But

if

,

when

it

is

moulded

of

brass

,

it

has

all

that

is

needed

in

order

that

it

may

receive

whatever

impression

the

artist

chooses

,

how

can

that

be

said

not

to

be

made

which

submits

to

and

receives

his

labour

?

If

,

again

,

the

statue

is

declared

to

be

by

itself

perfect

and

not

made

,

and

to

have

no

need

of

art

,

then

we

must

allow

,

in

accordance

with

that

pernicious

heresy

,

that

it

is

self

-

made

.

If

perhaps

they

are

unwilling

to

admit

this

argument

,

and

reply

more

inconsistently

,

that

they

do

not

say

that

the

figure

was

not

made

,

but

that

it

was

always

made

,

so

that

there

was

no

beginning

of

its

being

made

,

so

that

artist

might

be

said

to

have

this

subject

of

his

art

without

any

beginning

.

Well

then

,

my

friends

,

we

will

say

to

them

,

if

no

time

,

nor

any

age

before

can

be

found

in

the

past

,

when

the

statue

was

not

perfect

,

will

you

tell

us

what

the

artist

contributed

to

it

,

or

wrought

upon

it

?

For

if

this

statue

has

need

of

nothing

,

and

has

no

beginning

of

existence

,

for

this

reason

,

according

to

you

,

a

maker

never

made

it

,

nor

will

any

maker

be

found

.

And

so

the

argument

seems

to

come

again

to

the

same

conclusion

,

and

we

must

allow

that

it

is

self

-

made

.

For

if

an

artificer

is

said

to

have

moved

a

statue

ever

so

slightly

,

he

will

submit

to

a

beginning

,

when

he

began

to

move

and

adorn

that

which

was

before

unadorned

and

unmoved

.

But

the

world

neither

was

nor

will

be

for

ever

the

same

.

Now

we

must

compare

the

artificer

to

God

,

and

the

statue

to

the

world

.

But

how

then

,

O

foolish

men

,

can

you

imagine

the

creation

to

be

co

-

eternal

with

its

Artificer

,

and

to

have

no

need

of

an

artificer

?

For

it

is

of

necessity

that

the

co

-

eternal

should

never

have

had

a

beginning

of

being

,

and

should

be

equally

uncreated

and

powerful

with

Him

.

But

the

uncreated

appears

to

be

in

itself

perfect

and

unchangeable

,

and

it

will

have

need

of

nothing

,

and

be

free

from

corruption

.

And

if

this

be

so

,

the

world

can

no

longer

be

,

as

you

say

it

is

,

capable

of

change

.