71

having been a student,3.5.89 is said to have recorded the discourses of Peter concerning the deeds of Jesus; who, having come to that part of the history, in which Jesus asked who people say he is, and what opinion his own disciples had concerning him, when Peter answered, that he was the Christ, he writes that Jesus answered him nothing nor said anything to him, but that “he charged them, that they should tell no one about him.” 3.5.90 For Mark was not present at the things spoken by Jesus, nor did Peter think it right to offer the things spoken to him and about him by Jesus through his own testimony. But what things were said to him Matthew declares through these words: “But who do you say that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said to him, Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed it to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it, and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” 3.5.91 So many things having been said to Peter by Jesus, Mark, mentioning none of these things, because Peter, as is likely, did not relate these things in his teachings, see what he says: when Jesus asked, “Peter answered and says, You are the Christ. And he charged them, that they should tell no one about him.” 3.5.92 These things, therefore, Peter reasonably thought fit to pass over in silence; which is why Mark also omitted them. But he proclaimed to all people the things concerning his own denial, since he also wept bitterly over it. 3.5.93 And so you would find Mark relating the following about him: “And while Peter was in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest comes to him, and seeing him warming himself, she looked at him and says, You also were with Jesus of Nazareth. But he denied it, saying, I neither know nor understand what you are saying. And he went out into the outer forecourt, and a rooster crowed. And again seeing him, the servant girl began to say to those standing by, This man is one of them. 3.5.94 But he denied it again. And after a little while again those standing by were saying to Peter, Truly you are one of them, for you are also a Galilean. But he began to curse and to swear, I do not know this man of whom you speak. And immediately for the second time a rooster crowed.” 3.5.95 Mark writes these things, but Peter testifies these things about himself; for everything in Mark is said to be the memoirs of Peter's discourses. Those, then, who reject the things that seemed to bring them good reputation, but record for an unforgotten age the slanders against themselves, and who publicly denounce against themselves the accusations for their own failings, which no one afterwards would have known unless he had learned them from their own voice—how would they not justly be acknowledged to be beyond all self-love and falsehood, and to have provided clear and manifest proofs of a truth-loving disposition? 3.5.96 But those who think that such men were fabricators and liars, and who try to blaspheme them as deceivers, how could they not become ridiculous, being found to be friends of envy and malice, but enemies of truth itself, who suppose that men so guileless, and who demonstrated through their own words a truly unfeigned and sincere character, were certain cunning and terrible sophists, as having fabricated things that were not, and as having graciously attributed to their own teacher things not done by him? As it seems to me well said, one must believe everything the disciples of Jesus say, or not; and if these men alone are to be disbelieved, then so must all, whoever among Greeks or barbarians have written lives and sayings and memoirs of those who at various times were celebrated for some good achievements. Or is it reasonable to believe the others, but these alone

71

φοιτητὴς γεγο3.5.89 νὼς ἀπομνημονεῦσαι λέγεται τὰς τοῦ Πέτρου περὶ τῶν πράξεων τοῦ Ἰησοῦ διαλέξεις· ὃς ἐλθὼν ἐπ' ἐκεῖνα τῆς ἱστορίας, ἐν οἷς ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐρωτήσας, τίνα φασὶν αὐτὸν οἱ ἄνθρωποι, καὶ αὐτοὶ δὲ οἱ αὐτοῦ μαθηταὶ τίνα δόξαν ἔχοιεν περὶ αὐτοῦ, ὑπακούσαντος τοῦ Πέτρου, ὡς περὶ Χριστοῦ, οὐδὲν ἀποκρινάμενον τὸν Ἰησοῦν οὐδὲ λέγοντα αὐτῷ γράφει, ἀλλ' ὅτι «ἐπετίμησεν αὐτοῖς, ἵνα μηδενὶ λέγωσιν περὶ αὐτοῦ». 3.5.90 οὐ γὰρ παρῆν ὁ Μάρκος τοῖς ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ λεχθεῖσιν, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ Πέτρος τὰ πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ περὶ αὐτοῦ λεχθέντα τῷ Ἰησοῦ ἐδικαίου δι' οἰκείας προφέρειν μαρτυρίας. τίνα δὲ ἦν τὰ πρὸς αὐτὸν λεχθέντα Ματθαῖος δηλοῖ διὰ τούτων· «ὑμεῖς δὲ τίνα με λέγετε εἶναι; ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ Σίμων Πέτρος εἶπεν, σὺ εἶ ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος. ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτῷ, μακάριος εἶ Σίμων Βὰρ Ἰωνᾶ, ὅτι σὰρξ καὶ αἷμα οὐκ ἀπεκάλυψέν σοι, ἀλλ' ὁ πατήρ μου ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς. καὶ ἐγώ σοι λέγω, σὺ εἶ Πέτρος, καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτην τὴν πέτραν οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς, καὶ δώσω σοι τὰς κλεῖς τῆς βασιλείας τῶν οὐρανῶν, καὶ ὅσα ἂν δήσῃς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἔσται δεδεμένα ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, καὶ ὅσα ἂν λύσῃς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἔσται λελυμένα ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς». 3.5.91 τοσούτων εἰρημένων τῷ Πέτρῳ ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, ὁ Μάρκος μηδενὸς τούτων μνημονεύσας, ὅτι μηδ' ὁ Πέτρος ταῦθ' ὡς εἰκὸς ἐν ταῖς αὐτοῦ διδασκαλίαις ἐξηγόρευσεν, ὅρα τί φησίν· ἐρωτήσαντος τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, «ἀποκριθεὶς ὁ Πέτρος λέγει, σὺ εἶ ὁ Χριστός. καὶ ἐπετίμησεν αὐτοῖς, ἵνα μηδενὶ λέγωσιν περὶ αὐτοῦ». 3.5.92 ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ὁ Πέτρος εἰκότως παρασιωπᾶσθαι ἠξίου· διὸ καὶ Μάρκος αὐτὰ παρέλιπεν. τὰ δὲ κατὰ τὴν ἄρνησιν αὐτοῦ εἰς πάντας ἐκήρυξεν ἀνθρώπους, ἐπεὶ καὶ ἔκλαυσεν ἐπ' αὐτῇ πικρῶς. 3.5.93 εὕροις δ' οὖν τὸν Μάρκον ἱστοροῦντα περὶ αὐτοῦ τάδε· «καὶ ὄντος τοῦ Πέτρου ἐν τῇ αὐλῇ ἔρχεται πρὸς αὐτὸν μία τῶν παιδισκῶν τοῦ ἀρχιερέως, καὶ ἰδοῦσα αὐτὸν θερμαινόμενον. ἐμβλέψασα αὐτῷ λέγει, καὶ σὺ μετὰ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Ναζωραίου ἦς. ὁ δὲ ἠρνήσατο λέγων· οὔτε οἶδα οὔτε ἐπίσταμαι τί σὺ λέγεις. καὶ ἐξῆλθεν εἰς τὴν ἔξω πρόαυλιν, καὶ ἀλέκτωρ ἐφώνησεν. πάλιν δὲ ἰδοῦσα αὐτὸν ἡ παιδίσκη ἤρξατο λέγειν τοῖς παρεστῶσιν· οὗτος ἐξ αὐτῶν ἐστιν. 3.5.94 ὁ δὲ πάλιν ἠρνήσατο. καὶ μετὰ μικρὸν πάλιν οἱ παρεστῶτες ἔλεγον τῷ Πέτρῳ· ἀληθῶς ἐξ αὐτῶν εἶ, καὶ γὰρ Γαλιλαῖος εἶ. ὁ δὲ ἤρξατο ἀναθεματίζειν καὶ ὀμνύειν, ὅτι οὐκ οἶδα τὸν ἄνθρωπον τοῦτον, ὃν λέγετε· καὶ εὐθέως ἐκ δευτέρου ἀλέκτωρ ἐφώνησεν». 3.5.95 Μάρκος μὲν ταῦτα γράφει, Πέτρος δὲ ταῦτα περὶ ἑαυτοῦ μαρτυρεῖ· πάντα γὰρ τὰ παρὰ Μάρκῳ τῶν Πέτρου διαλέξεων εἶναι λέγεται ἀπομνημονεύματα. οἱ δὴ οὖν τὰ μὲν δόξαντα αὐτοῖς ἀγαθὴν φέρειν φήμην παραιτούμενοι, τὰς δὲ καθ' ἑαυτῶν διαβολὰς εἰς ἄληστον αἰῶνα καταγράφοντες, καὶ τῶν πλημμεληθέντων αὐτοῖς τὰς κατηγορίας, ἃς οὐκ ἄν τις ἔγνω τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα εἰ μὴ διὰ τῆς αὐτῶν ἔμαθεν φωνῆς, καθ' ἑαυτῶν στηλιτεύοντες, πῶς οὐ φιλαυτίας μὲν ἁπάσης καὶ ψευδολογίας ἐκτὸς γεγονέναι ἐνδίκως ἂν ὁμολογοῖντο, φιλαλήθους δὲ διαθέσεως σαφῆ καὶ ἐναργῆ τεκμήρια παρεσχηκέναι; 3.5.96 Οἱ δέ γε τοὺς τοιούσδε πεπλάσθαι καὶ κατεψεῦσθαι νομίζοντες, καὶ οἷα πλάνους βλασφημεῖν πειρώμενοι, πῶς οὐκ ἂν γένοιντο καταγέλαστοι, φίλοι μὲν φθόνου καὶ βασκανίας, ἐχθροὶ δὲ αὐτῆς ἀληθείας ἁλισκόμενοι, οἵ γε τοὺς οὕτως ἀπανούργους, καὶ ἄπλαστον ὡς ἀληθῶς καὶ ἀκέραιον ἦθος διὰ τῶν οἰκείων λόγων ἐπιδεδειγμένους, πανούργους τινὰς καὶ δεινοὺς ὑποτίθενται σοφιστάς, ὡς τὰ μὴ ὄντα πλασαμένους, καὶ τῷ οἰκείῳ διδασκάλῳ τὰ μὴ πρὸς αὐτοῦ πραχθέντα κεχαρισμένως ἀναθέντας; ὡς εὖ μοι δοκεῖ εἰρῆσθαι, πάντα χρὴ πιστεύειν τοῖς τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθηταῖς, ἢ μή· καὶ εἰ μόνοις τούτοις τοῖς ἀνδράσιν ἀπιστητέον, καὶ τοῖς πᾶσιν, οἵτινες ποτ' ἄρα παρ' Ἕλλησιν ἢ παρὰ βαρβάροις βίους καὶ λόγους καὶ ἀπομνημονεύματα τῶν κατὰ χρόνους ἐπί τισιν ἀγαθοῖς κατορθώμασι βοηθέντων συνεγράψαντο. ἢ τοῖς μὲν ἄλλοις πιστεύειν εὔλογον, μόνοις δὲ τούτοις