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Pseudo-Cyprian

Section 7

About this work

Author: Pseudo-Cyprian

7. It is not sufficient for lust to make use of

‹ Section 6 Section 8 ›

its

present

means

of

mischief

,

unless

by

the

exhibition

it

makes

its

own

that

in

which

a

former

age

had

also

gone

wrong

.

It

is

not

lawful

,

I

say

,

for

faithful

Christians

to

be

present

;

it

is

not

lawful

,

I

say

,

at

all

,

even

for

those

whom

for

the

delight

of

their

ears

Greece

sends

everywhere

to

all

who

are

instructed

in

her

vain

arts

.

One

imitates

the

hoarse

warlike

clangours

of

the

trumpet

;

another

with

his

breath

blowing

into

a

pipe

regulates

its

mournful

sounds

;

another

with

dances

,

and

with

the

musical

voice

of

a

man

,

strives

with

his

breath

,

which

by

an

effort

he

had

drawn

from

his

bowels

into

the

upper

parts

of

his

body

,

to

play

upon

the

stops

of

pipes

;

now

letting

forth

the

sound

,

and

now

closing

it

up

inside

,

and

forcing

it

into

the

air

by

certain

openings

of

the

stops

;

now

breaking

the

sound

in

measure

,

he

endeavours

to

speak

with

his

fingers

,

ungrateful

to

the

Artificer

who

gave

him

a

tongue

.

Why

should

I

speak

of

comic

and

useless

efforts

?

Why

of

those

great

tragic

vocal

ravings

?

Why

of

strings

set

vibrating

with

noise

?

These

things

,

even

if

they

were

not

dedicated

to

idols

,

ought

not

to

be

approached

and

gazed

upon

by

faithful

Christians

;

because

,

even

if

they

were

not

criminal

,

they

are

characterized

by

a

worthlessness

which

is

extreme

,

and

which

is

little

suited

to

believers

.

Notes

13
[Compare Clement, vol. ii. p. 248, note 5, and p. 249, notes 2, 11.]
14
[This touches a point important to the modern question. It is said, “Oh! but these Fathers denounced only those heathen spectacles of which idolatry was part,” etc. The reply is sufficiently made by our author.]