Chapter I.—Object of the author.

Although human nature at first received a union of intelligence and safety to discern the truth, and the worship due to the one Lord of all, yet envy, insinuating the excellence of human greatness, turned men away to the making of idols; and this superstitious custom, after continuing for a long period, is handed down to the majority as if it were natural and true. It is the part of a lover of man, or rather of a lover of God, to remind men who have neglected it of that which they ought to know. For the truth is of itself sufficient to show forth, by means of those things which are contained under the pole of heaven, the order [instituted by] Him who has created them. But forgetfulness having taken possession of the minds of men, through the long-suffering of God, has acted recklessly in transferring to mortals the name which is applicable to the only true God; and from the few the infection of sin spread to the many, who were blinded by popular usage to the knowledge of that which was lasting and unchangeable. For the men of former generations, who instituted private and public rites in honour of such as were more powerful, caused forgetfulness of the Catholic1    i.e., the doctrine that God only is to be worshipped. faith to take possession of their posterity; but I, as I have just stated, along with a God-loving mind, shall employ the speech of one who loves man, and set it before those who have intelligence, which all ought to have who are privileged to observe the administration of the universe, so that they should worship unchangeably Him who knows all things. This I shall do, not by mere display of words, but by altogether using demonstration drawn from the old poetry in Greek literature,2    Literally, “history.” and from writings very common amongst all. For from these the famous men who have handed down idol-worship as law to the multitudes, shall be taught and convicted by their own poets and literature of great ignorance.

Τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως τὸ κατ' ἀρχὴν συζυγίαν συνέσεως καὶ σωτηρίας λαβούσης εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν ἀληθείας θρησκείας τε τῆς εἰς τὸν ἕνα καὶ πάντων δεσπότην, παρεισδῦσα εἰς εἰδωλοποιΐας ἐξέτρεψε βασκανία τὸ ὑπερβάλλον τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων μεγαλειότητος, καὶ πολλῷ χρόνῳ μεῖναν τὸ περισσὸν ἔθος ὡς οἰκείαν καὶ ἀληθῆ τὴν πλάνην τοῖς πολλοῖς παραδίδωσι. Φιλανθρώπου δὲ ἢ μᾶλλον φιλοθέου ἔργον ἐστὶν ὑπομνῆσαι τοὺς ἅπερ ὤφελον εἰδέναι παραλελοιπότας. Ἦν μὲν γὰρ καθ' ἑαυτὴν ἀρκετὴ ἡ ἀλήθεια δεικνύναι ἐκ τῶν συνεχομένων ὑπὸ τὸν πόλον τὴν τοῦ δημιουργήσαντος ταῦτα τάξιν, λήθη δὲ διὰ τὸ μακρόθυμον τοῦ θεοῦ περικρατήσασα τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων γνώμης ἐρᾳδιούργησε, τὸ μόνῳ τῷ ὄντως θεῷ πρέπον ὄνομα ἐπὶ θνητοὺς μεταφέρουσα. Καὶ δι' ὀλίγων νομὴν πονηρίας ἔσχον οἱ πολλοί, ἀμαυρούμενοι τῇ εἰς τὸ βέβαιον καὶ ἄτρεπτον γνώσει ὀχλικῇ συνηθείᾳ: οἱ μὲν γὰρ τὸ κατ' ἀρχὴν εἰς τιμὴν τῶν ὑπερεχόντων τελετὰς καὶ λειτουργίας τελοῦντες ἀμνηστίαν τοῖς μετ' αὐτοὺς τῆς καθολικῆς δόξης ἐνέβαλον. Ἐγὼ δέ, ὡς μικρῷ πρόσθεν ὑπέστην, φιλοθέῳ τῇ γνώμῃ κεχρημένος φιλανθρώπῳ χρήσομαι τῇ φωνῇ, καὶ παρίστημι τοῖς γε νοῦν ἔχουσι, δέον ὑπάρχειν πᾶσι τοῖς κεχρημένοις τῇ τῶν ὅλων διοικήσει, ἄτρεπτον ἔχειν τὴν εἰς τὸν πάντων γνώστην θρησκείαν. Τοῦτο δὲ οὐ λόγῳ καλλωπίζων φράσω, ἀποδείξει δὲ τῇ ἐκ τῶν κατὰ τὸ παλαιὸν εἰς τὸ παντελὲς τῆς ἑλληνικῆς ἱστορίας ποιήσει κεχρημένος, ἐκ τῶν πᾶσι κοινῇ δεδομένων γραμμάτων: ἐξ ὧν γὰρ οἱ πάνυ τῆς τῶν εἰδώλων θρησκείας νόμον τοῖς πολλοῖς παρέδοσαν, μαθόντες ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀγνῶτες νοῦ ἐλεγχθήσονται ὑπὸ τῶν παρ' αὐτοῖς ποιητῶν καὶ μελογράφων.