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hold converse mitti the flesl, about the common salvation, thinhing no longer of tho troubles of tho prison, but of the wrestis and conflict for Which they are the preparation. Thoflesti, perhaps, Will d ad the mercilem sWord, and the los eross, and the rage of the wild beasti, and that punishment of the flames, of ali most terribie, and ali tho skill of tho executioner in torture. But, on the other fide, let the spiritsot cloarly belare both itself and the flesh, hoW these things, though exceeding painful, havs yet been calmly endured by many,-nay, haVe even been eagerly destred for the sine offame and glory; and this not only in the case of men, but ofWοmen toο, that you, o holy Women, may be Worthy Os your
violated Lucretia, in the presen ce of her hinsfolli, plunged the knifo into heraeit, that she might have glory sor her chasti . Mucius burned his right hand on an altar, that this deed of his might dwoli in fame. Tho philosophers have been out-stripped,-for instance Heraclitus, Who, smeared with co dung, burned himseli; and Empedocles, who leapi down intotho firos of AElna; and Peregrinus, Who not long ago stre himself on the funerat pile. For Women even have despised the flames. Dido did so, test, aster the death of a limband very dear to her, she should be compelled to marry again; and sodid the wiis of Hasdrubal, who, Carthage now on fire, statshe might not belloid her husband suppliant at Scipio's seet, rushed with her children in to the conflagration, in Which hernative city Was destroyed. Regulus, a Roman generat, Whohad been taken prisoner by tho Carthaginians, declined tobe excitanged for a large number os Carthaginian captives, choosing rather to be given bach to the Enemy. He Wascrammed into a sori os chest; and every here pierced by nails driven hom tho ouiside, he endured Eo many crucifixions. Woman has volunt ly sought the wild beasis, and evenasps, those serpents Worse than bear or buli, whicli Cleopatra
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sear of tortum. And so tho Athenian courtegan succumbed tothct executioner, When, subjected to torture by the tyrant fortiaring tahen part in a conspiracy, stili mining no bewayaloi her consederates, she at last bit off her longue and spatit in tho tyranes face, that he might be convinced of the us lemnem of his tormenta, ho ever long they should be continued. Eve body knows What to this day is the meat Lacedaemonian solemnity-the διαμαστίγωσις, οr scou ing; in whicli sacred rite the Spartan youilis are beaten mitii scourges betam the altar, their parenis and hinsmen standing by and exhorting them to stand it bravely out. For it Will be always counted more honourable and glorious, that the foui rather
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been tortured fit st, yes, and trealed mith overy fori os comtumely l one mav even suffer in the cause of a man what he hssitates to suffer in the cause of God. In reference tothis indoed, let tho present times bear testimony, When somany persons of rank havε met With death in a mere human
in s cause, and that though fram their birin and dignities anil dily condition and age such a fate Memed most unlihely; either suffering at his hanct ii they have tahen pari againsthim, or Irom his enemies is they have been his partisans.
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views of tho heathens, Who in this matter are Wont to pressus with such arguments as these : That the exquisite enjoyments of ear and eyo we have in externat things aro not in
the least opposed in religion in the mind and conscienco; and that surely no offence is offered to God in any human enio ment, at any of our pleas es Whicli, With ali duo reverenco and honour secured to Him, it is not sinsul in partahe os in iis own time and placo. But this is precisely What me amready to prove-that thess things are not consistent With truo religion, and true obedience to the true God. There are somowho imagine that Christians, a sori os peopte ever ready todie, ars trained in to the abstinenco they practise, With no other object than that os making it less difficult to despiss life tho fastonings to it being, as it Were, severed, i quenching alidestre sor What they have emptied. so sar as they are con- cerned, of ali that is destrabie ; so it is thought to bo rather
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sion to a plan so sultabie, to a rule so excellent.
2. Then, again, every one is ready With the argument stat ali things, as Wo inach, Were created by God, and givento man for his use, and that they must ait be good as continguli from so good a fource, but that among them are found this
various constituent elements of the public shows, such ns
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that os primat puri , just becauso there is a vast diffQrencs belween tho Creator and the corrupter. Why, ait soris ofoviis, whicli as indubitably eviis even the heathens prohibit, and against whicli they guata themaeives, come from theworks of God. Tahe, for instance, mutaer, Whether committed by iron, by poison, or by magical enchantinents. Iron and heres and demons are ali equalty creatures of God. Has the Creator, Withat, provided these things for man's destructioni Nay, He pnis His interdici on every sorb of man-killing by that ono summam precepi, Thou shali nothili.' Moreover, Who but God, tho Maher of the Worid, putin it Mid, brass, silve' ivory, Wood, and ali the other materials used in the manufactum os idols Yot has Ηo done this that men may set up a Worship in opposition to Himself onthe contra , idolatry in His eyes is the crowning sin. Whatis there offensius to God whicli is not God's But in offend-
hom his Mahor. For Wo did not get eyes to minister to lus and the longue for speahing evil With, and eam to be thereceptacle of evit speech, and the throat to serve tho vice of
gluttony, and the belly to be gluttony's atly, and the genitals
for unchaste excesses, and handa for deeds of violence, and
righteous exactor of innocence, hales everything like malidi
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DE SPECTACULIS 11bsyond a doubi, that, os ali illings that have como Dom His
demnation that the creaturo misuses the creation. We,
demantis direct authority irom Seripture for inving up theshows, and holds out that the matter is a doubisul one, b cause aucti abstinence is not clearly and in Moias imposedupon God's servants. Well, we never find it expressed withthe fame precision, Thou shali not enter circus or theatre,
thou shali not look on combat or ahowas it is plainly laiddoκ Thou shali not kili; thou shali not worship an idol; thou shali not commit adultery or fraud.' But we find thatthat first word os David Mars on this very fori of thing : Blessed,' he says, is the man who has not gone into theassembly of the impious, nor stood in the way of sinners, norsat in the seat os scorners. y For thongli ho seems is have predicted besoreliand of that just man, that he took no partin the meetings and deliberations of the JeWs, inhing counselabout the flaying of our Lord, yet divine Scripture has eversa maching applications: after the immediate sense has been exhaustia, in ali directions it fortifies the practico of the religious lise, so that here alm you have an ulterance Whicli is
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12 TERTULLIANUS not far hom a plain intordicting of tho fhows. For is lio
called thom sew Jews an assem bly of the wiched, hoW muchmore mill he so designate so vast a gathering of heathensi Aro the heathens less impious, tess sinners, tess enemies of Christ, than the Jews mere then And see, too, hoW otherthings agree. For at the shoWs they also stand in the way. For they cali the spaces betWeen the seara Ming round theamphitheatre, and the passages Whicli separate the peoplexunning doWn, Ways. The place in the curve Where matrons sit is called a chair. Theresore on the contrary it holds, un-blessed is hs who has entered any councit of Wiched men, and has stood in any way of sinners, and has sat in any chair of
scorvers. We may understand a thing as spolien generally,eVen when it requires a certain special interpretation to bogiven to it. For somo things spolien with a special referenco
car with it the conclusion that our renunciatory testimonyin tho laver of baptism has reference to the shows, Whichthrouo their idolatry have been inven over to the devit, and his pomp, and his angels. We shali set fortit, then, thei P
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5. In the matter of their orions, as these are some hat obscuro and but litilo known to many among us, our investigations must go bach to a remote antiqui , and our authorities bo nono other than books of heathen litorature. Various authors are extant who have published Works on tho
subjeci. The origin os the games as given by them is this. Timaeus telis us that immigranis from Asia, under the leademship os Tyrrhenus, Who, in a contest about his native hinydom, had succumbed to his brother, setiled down in Etruria.
Weli, among other superstitious observances under the nameos religion, they set up in their neW home public alio s. The Romans, at their oWn request, obtain from them skilled
to festat dus and temples, and objecta os religious Vener tion. However, it is of littis consequenco the origin of thename, When it is certain that tho thing springs from idolat . For tho Liberalia, under the generat designation of Ludi, clearly declared the glory of Father Bacchus ; for to Bacchus these festivities were first consecrated by gratesul peasanis, in return for the boon he conferred on them, as they say, mahing known the pleasures of Mne. Then the Consualia mero called Ludi, and at first mere in honour of Neptune, for Neptune has the name of Consus also. Thereiater
Romulus dedicated the Equiria to Mars, though they claim the Consualia too sor Romulus, on the ground that he com
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14 TERTULLIANUS.secratia them to Consus, the god, as they mill have it, os
si Om a son of Μam. Even noW, at the fidit turn ing-post in the circus, them is a subterranean altar to this sanae Consus, with an inscription to this effeci: Consus great in counset,
Mars in batile, migh tutelar deities.' The priosis of thostate sacrifice at it on the non es of July; the primi os Romulus and the Vestals on the twelsth besore the Kalends of Se tember. In addition to this, Romulus instituted games inhonour os Jupiter Feretrius on the Tarpeian Hill, accordingto the statement Piso has handed doun to us, callod both Tarpeian and Capitoline. Astor him Numa Pompilius instututed games to Mars and Robigo for they have also invented a goddess of rust) ; then Tullus Hostilius; then Ancus Martius; und various others in succession did the liho. Asto the idols in whoso honour these games were establisbed, ample insorination is to be found in the pages of Suetonius
Tranquillus. But we need say no more to prove the accusation os idolatrous origin.
6. To the testimony of antiquit' is added that os latergames instituted in their turn, and betraying their Originirona the titi hicli they bear even at the present day, in whicli it is imprinted as on their very sace for What idoland sor what religious obj0ct games, whether of the one hindor the other, mere designe l. You have festivals bearingille name of tho great Mothor and Apollo, of Ceres too, and Neptune, and Jupiter Latiaris, and Flora, ali celebrated fora common end ; the others have their religious origin in thebii th lays and solemtiities of hings, in public successes, in municipat holidays. There are also testamentary exhibitions, in Whicli funerat honoum are rendered in the memories of private persona; and this according to an institution os ancient