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Address to the Greeks

Tatian

Chapter 35

About this work

Tatian attacks Greek claims to cultural and philosophical superiority, defends Christian teaching about God, creation, resurrection, and ethics, and argues for the antiquity of biblical wisdom.

Author: Tatian
Date: c. AD 165–175
Origin: Rome or the eastern Mediterranean
Genre: Apology

Tatian Speaks as an Eye-Witness.

The things which I have thus set before you I

‹ Chapter 34 Chapter 36 ›

have

not

learned

at

second

hand

.

I

have

visited

many

lands

;

I

have

followed

rhetoric

,

like

yourselves

;

I

have

fallen

in

with

many

arts

and

inventions

;

and

finally

,

when

sojourning

in

the

city

of

the

Romans

,

I

inspected

the

multiplicity

of

statues

brought

thither

by

you

:

for

I

do

not

attempt

,

as

is

the

custom

with

many

,

to

strengthen

my

own

views

by

the

opinions

of

others

,

but

I

wish

to

give

you

a

distinct

account

of

what

I

myself

have

seen

and

felt

.

So

,

bidding

farewell

to

the

arrogance

of

Romans

and

the

idle

talk

of

Athenians

,

and

all

their

ill

-

connected

opinions

,

I

embraced

our

barbaric

philosophy

.

I

began

to

show

how

this

was

more

ancient

than

your

institutions

,

but

left

my

task

unfinished

,

in

order

to

discuss

a

matter

which

demanded

more

immediate

attention

;

but

now

it

is

time

I

should

attempt

to

speak

concerning

its

doctrines

.

Be

not

offended

with

our

teaching

,

nor

undertake

an

elaborate

reply

filled

with

trifling

and

ribaldry

,

saying

,

“

Tatian

,

aspiring

to

be

above

the

Greeks

,

above

the

infinite

number

of

philosophic

inquirers

,

has

struck

out

a

new

path

,

and

embraced

the

doctrines

of

Barbarians

.

”

For

what

grievance

is

it

,

that

men

manifestly

ignorant

should

be

reasoned

with

by

a

man

of

like

nature

with

themselves

?

Or

how

can

it

be

irrational

,

according

to

your

own

sophist

,

to

grow

old

always

learning

something

?

Notes

88
Chap. xxxi. [With what calm superiority he professes himself a barbarian! I honour the eye-witness who tells not only what he had seen, but what he felt amid such evidences of man’s degradation and impiety.]
89
Solon. Bergh., Poetæ Græc. Lyr., fr. 18. [The interest and biographical importance of this chapter must be apparent.]