Opening the library…

Home Bible Corpus Discover You

Search the Bible

The Shows, or De Spectaculis

Tertullian

Chapter 18

About this work

Author: Tertullian

But if you argue that the racecourse is mentioned in Scripture

‹ Chapter 17 Chapter 19 ›

,

I

grant

it

at

once

.

But

you

will

not

refuse

to

admit

that

the

things

which

are

done

there

are

not

for

you

to

look

upon

:

the

blows

,

and

kicks

,

and

cuffs

,

and

all

the

recklessness

of

hand

,

and

everything

like

that

disfiguration

of

the

human

countenance

,

which

is

nothing

less

than

the

disfiguration

of

God’s

own

image

.

You

will

never

give

your

approval

to

those

foolish

racing

and

throwing

feats

,

and

yet

more

foolish

leapings

;

you

will

never

find

pleasure

in

injurious

or

useless

exhibitions

of

strength

;

certainly

you

will

not

regard

with

approval

those

efforts

after

an

artificial

body

which

aim

at

surpassing

the

Creator’s

work

;

and

you

will

have

the

very

opposite

of

complacency

in

the

athletes

Greece

,

in

the

inactivity

of

peace

,

feeds

up

.

And

the

wrestler’s

art

is

a

devil’s

thing

.

The

devil

wrestled

with

,

and

crushed

to

death

,

the

first

human

beings

.

Its

very

attitude

has

power

in

it

of

the

serpent

kind

,

firm

to

hold

—

tortures

to

clasp

—

slippery

to

glide

away

.

You

have

no

need

of

crowns

;

why

do

you

strive

to

get

pleasures

from

crowns

?