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has come to be, and they found a way to bring forth to every race of men, to reveal and to fulfill and to preach the knowledge to all, so that from their own teaching, even now at the present time, in all the nations on earth, countless multitudes not only of men, but also of women and children, of servants and rustics, so far from obeying that of Plato, as to know only the maker and "creator of this universe" as God, and to worship only Him, and to theologize only through Christ. These were the achievements of the new and strange sorcerer, such were the enchantments of the supposed deceiver, and such were the disciples of Jesus, from whom one must learn what kind of teacher he was. 3.6.26 But come, let us investigate the argument in this way as well. You say he is a sorcerer, O sir, but you also call him a terrible magician and a deceiver. Was he then the first and only inventor of the practice, or must we by all means trace back the causes to teachers, as is logical? For if, with no one teaching him, he himself was the first and only inventor of this enterprise, having learned nothing at all from others nor borrowing from the ancients, how could one not confess him to be of a divine nature, who without books and discourses and teachers has appeared as a self-taught and self-learned inventor of such things? And yet, it is not possible to take up the learning of a mechanical art, or of a rational science, or even of the first elements, without some guide and teacher, unless one has transcended the common nature. 3.6.27 At any rate, no self-taught teacher of grammar has ever come before us, nor indeed an orator who has not learned, nor a self-made physician, nor a carpenter, nor a craftsman of any other art. And yet these are small and human things; but to say that the teacher of true human piety, who performed such wonders during the time he sojourned in this life, and performed such strange marvels as we have just recounted, grew to be such a one automatically, neither borrowing from the ancients nor being helped by recent teachers who had done similar things before him, what else is it but to testify and confess that what is shown was truly a divine thing, and has surpassed all human nature? 3.6.28 But you say that he attended to deceitful teachers, and that the wisdom of the Egyptians and the secrets of what was said among them of old did not escape him, from which he collected things and was shown to be such a man as the argument presents. What then? Have some others appeared who were better than he, and earlier in time, and his teachers, whether in Egypt or somewhere else? 3.6.29 Why then did not the fame of those men, before this man's accusation, reach all people, or why is not their glory still sung now in a way similar to ours? But what sorcerer from eternity, barbarian or Greek, ever became a teacher of such students and an author of such laws and sayings, as the power of our Savior has demonstrated? And who is ever recorded to have accomplished so many healings and such marvelous acts of kindness as ours is remembered to have done? 3.6.30 And whose acquaintances and eyewitnesses of the events confirmed the truth for which they testified through the trial of fire and iron, as did the disciples of our Savior, who endured all tortures, and bore all kinds of torments, and finally through their own blood confirmed the things testified by them concerning him? 3.6.31 Furthermore, let him who opposes us in this argument say, what sorcerer ever even conceived of establishing a new nation in his own name. And not only to conceive this, but also to accomplish what was willed, how would this not surpass all human nature? But to set laws against idolatry in opposition to the decrees of kings and ancient lawgivers, philosophers, poets, and theologians, and to strengthen them, and to show them to be invincible and unconquerable for a long age, who ever

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γέγονεν, καὶ εὑροῦσιν εἰς πᾶν γένος ἀνθρώπων ἐξενεγκεῖν ἀνακαλύψαι τε καὶ πληρῶσαι καὶ κηρῦξαι τὴν γνῶσιν πᾶσιν, ὥστε ἐκ τῆς αὐτῶν ἐκείνων διδασκαλίας εἰσέτι νῦν κατὰ τὸν παρόντα καιρὸν ἐν ὅλοις τοῖς ἐπὶ γῆς ἔθνεσιν μυρία πλήθη οὐ μόνον ἀνδρῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ γυναικῶν καὶ παίδων, οἰκετῶν τε καὶ ἀγροίκων, τοσοῦτον τῷ τοῦ Πλάτωνος μὴ πείθεσθαι, ὡς τὸν ποιητὴν καὶ «δημιουργὸν τοῦδε τοῦ παντὸς» μόνον θεὸν γνωρίζειν καὶ μόνον σέβειν καὶ μόνον διὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ θεολογεῖν. ταῦτ' ἦν τοῦ νέου καὶ καινοῦ γόητος τὰ κατορθώματα, τοιαῦτα τοῦ νομιζομένου πλάνου τὰ γοητεύματα, καὶ τοιοίδε οἱ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθηταί, ἀφ' ὧν δεῖ τὸν διδάσκαλον ὁποῖός τις ἦν γνωρίζειν. 3.6.26 Φέρε δ' ἔτι καὶ ταύτῃ τὸν λόγον διερευνησώμεθα. γόητα φῂς αὐτόν, ὦ οὗτος, ἀλλὰ καὶ φαρμακέα δεινὸν καὶ ἀπατεῶνα καλεῖς. ἆρ' οὖν πρῶτος αὐτὸς καὶ μόνος εὑρετὴς κατέστη τοῦ πράγματος, ἢ πάντως που κατὰ τὸ ἀκόλουθον εἰς διδασκάλους ἀναπέμπειν χρὴ τὰ αἴτια; εἰ μὲν γὰρ μηδενὸς διδάξαντος αὐτὸς πρῶτος καὶ μόνος εὑρετὴς γέγονε τῆς ἐπιχειρήσεως, μηδὲν μηδαμῶς παρ' ἑτέρων μαθὼν μηδ' ἐκ παλαιῶν ἐρανισάμενος, πῶς οὐ θείας φύσεως χρῆν ὁμολογεῖν αὐτόν, ὃς ἄνευ βίβλων καὶ λόγων καὶ διδασκάλων αὐτοδίδακτος καὶ αὐτομαθὴς τοιούτων πραγμάτων εὑρετὴς ἀναπέφηνεν; καὶ μὴν οὔτε βαναύσου τέχνης οὔτε λογικῆς ἐπιστήμης οὐδέ γε τῶν πρώτων στοιχείων τὴν μάθησιν δίχα ποδηγοῦ καὶ διδασκάλου τινὸς ἀναλαβεῖν δυνατόν, μὴ οὐχὶ τὴν κοινὴν ἐκβεβηκότα φύσιν. 3.6.27 οὐδεὶς γοῦν τῶν πώποτε αὐτοδίδακτος ἡμῖν γραμματικῆς παρῆλθεν διδάσκαλος, οὐδέ γε ῥήτωρ μὴ μεμαθηκώς, οὐδ' αὐτοφυὴς ἰατρός, οὐδὲ τέκτων, οὐδ' ἑτέρας δημιουργὸς τέχνης. καίτοι μικρὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἀνθρώπεια· τὸ δὲ φάναι τὸν τῆς ἀνθρώπων εὐσεβείας ἀληθοῦς διδάσκαλον τοιαῦτα τεθαυματουργηκότα, καθ' ὃν ἐπεδήμει τῷ βίῳ χρόνον, καὶ τοιαύτας παραδόξους τεραστείας πεποιηκότα, ἃς ἀρτίως διεξήλθομεν, ἐκ τοῦ αὐτομάτου τοιοῦτον φῦναι, μήτε παρὰ παλαιῶν ἐρανισάμενον μήτ' ἐκ νέων διδασκάλων ὠφελημένον, τὰ ὅμοια καὶ πρὸ αὐτοῦ πεποιηκότων, τί ἄλλο ἢ μαρτυρούντων ἐστὶ καὶ ὁμολογούντων θεῖον ἀληθῶς χρῆμα γεγονέναι, καὶ πᾶσαν ἀνθρώπου φύσιν ὑπερβεβηκέναι τὸν δηλούμενον; 3.6.28 Ἀλλὰ διδασκάλοις αὐτὸν φῂς προσεσχηκέναι πλάνοις, μηδὲ λαθεῖν αὐτὸν τὰ σοφὰ τῶν Αἰγυπτίων καὶ τῶν πάλαι παρ' αὐτοῖς λεγομένων τὰ ἀπόρρητα, παρ' ὧν συλλεξάμενον, ἄνδρα τοιοῦτον, οἷον ὁ λόγος παρίστησιν, ἀποδειχθῆναι. τί δῆτα οὖν, ἦ τινες ἄλλοι κρείττους αὐτοῦ πεφήνασιν καὶ πρότεροι τῷ χρόνῳ καὶ αὐτοῦ διδάσκαλοι, εἴτ' ἐπ' Αἰγύπτου εἴθ' ὅπῃ δή; 3.6.29 τί οὖν οὐχὶ κἀκείνων, πρὸ τῆς τούτου κατηγορίας, ἔφθασεν εἰς πάντας ἀνθρώπους ἡ φήμη, ἢ τί μὴ οὐχὶ κἀκείνων εἰσέτι νῦν τὸ κλέος ᾄδεται τῷ ἡμετέρῳ παραπλησίως; Τίς δὲ τῶν ἀπ' αἰῶνος πώποτε γόης, βάρβαρος ἢ Ἕλλην, τοιούτων κατέστη διδάσκαλος φοιτητῶν καὶ τοιούτων νόμων καὶ λόγων αὐθέντης, οἵων ἡ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν ἐπιδέδεικται δύναμις; ἰάσεις δὲ τοσάσδε καὶ παραδόξους εὐεργεσίας τοιάσδε, οἵας ὁ ἡμέτερος πεποιηκὼς μνημονεύεται, τίς πώποτε διαπραξάμενος ἱστορεῖται; 3.6.30 τίνος δὲ οἱ γνώριμοι καὶ τῶν πραγμάτων αὐτόπται διὰ πυρὸς καὶ σιδήρου δοκιμῆς τὴν ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐμαρτύρησαν ἀλήθειαν ἐπιστώσαντο ὥσπερ οὖν οἱ τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν μαθηταί, πάσας μὲν αἰκίας ἀνατλάντες, πάσας δὲ βασάνων ἰδέας ὑπομείναντες, καὶ τέλος διὰ τοῦ ἰδίου αἵματος τὰ περὶ αὐτοῦ μαρτυρηθέντα αὐτοῖς πιστωσάμενοι; 3.6.31 Ἔτι πρὸς τούτοις ὁ τῷ δι' ἐναντίας ἡμῖν λόγῳ παριστάμενος λεγέτω, τίς τῶν πώποτε γοήτων κἂν εἰς νοῦν ἐβάλλετο νέου ἔθνους ἐπὶ οἰκείῳ ὀνόματι σύστασιν ποιήσασθαι. τὸ δὲ μὴ μόνον ἐννοῆσαι τοῦτο, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατορθῶσαι τὸ βουληθέν, πῶς οὐ πᾶσαν ἀνθρώπου καλύπτοι ἂν φύσιν; Βασιλέων δὲ δόγμασιν καὶ παλαιῶν νομοθετῶν φιλοσόφων τε καὶ ποιητῶν καὶ θεολόγων ἐξ ἐναντίας θέσθαι νόμους τοὺς κατ' εἰδωλολατρίας, καὶ τούτους κρατῦναι, ἀμάχους τε καὶ ἀηττήτους εἰς μακρὸν ἐπιδεῖξαι αἰῶνα, τίς πώποτε