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“world-rulers” and “the spiritual hosts of wickedness” and he who is the chief of wickedness over them all were considered the greatest of gods among all men, and the memory of the long-dead was deemed worthy of greater wo5.2.5 rship. Of these, the forms of the dedicated images in the cities were thought to bear the likenesses of their bodies, but the evil demons impersonated their souls and their divine and incorporeal powers through much wonder-working, as their worshippers and priests were always increasing the vanity arising from illusion and were indeed contriving many things by the evil arts of sorcery, since the evil demons themselves had first taught these things to their worshippers. These, therefore, also became the cause of the primeval evil of sorcery throughout the whole life of men, just as the preceding argument has demonstrated. 5.3.1 3. THAT THE SUPERSTITION CONCERNING THE GODS ESTABLISHED AMONG THE GREEKS WAS MANIFOLD AND OF MANY OPINIONS Therefore, of these wicked and earthly demons, and of the aerial and subterranean spirits, whom the divine oracles call “world-rulers” and “spiritual hosts of wickedness,” “principalities,” and “powers,” since they sometimes impersonated good demons, and at other times were fashioned as celestial gods, and again at other times were transformed into heroes, and at times openly showed the proof of their wickedness through their actions, it was natural that the delusion came upon men even more, some confessing them to be gods, others heroes and demons but not gods, and of the demons, calling some good and others evil, except that they said it was necessary to propitiate the evil ones also because of the harms from them, so that their entire deification fell into several kinds: 5.3.2 first, that from the luminaries appearing in the sky, whom they say, because they “run” (theein), that is, to be in motion, and because they are the causes of seeing things that are seen, were proclaimed the first gods; second, that which was honoured on account of its benefits, as they say, to the common life, which they themselves also confess to have sprung from men, the so-called heroes, bringing forward Heracles and the Dioscu5.3.3 ri and Dionysus, and others like them among the barbarians. From these, having set apart and distinguished the more shameful things that are recorded about them, they supposed a third kind of deification, calling it the mythical. Being ashamed of this, though it was true and most ancient, they have changed it, as they say, to the more physical by means of figurative allegories, having devised certain theo5.3.4 ries. But it was not enough for them to stop at this point of their error, but now, having debased the revered and worshipful name of god even to their own passions, they further devised a fourth mode of deification, not even worthy of refu5.3.5 tation, since it brings with it its own manifest shame; if indeed they proclaimed as gods a certain Eros and Aphrodite and Pothos, their own shameful and licentious desires, and named speech Hermes, and reason Athena, and have included these things in their own theology, just as they also fabricated the fifth kind from human activ5.3.6 ities. For having personified activities, both warlike and artistic, they assigned them to gods, to Ares and Athena the warlike ones, and to Hephaestus and certain 5.3.7 others the artistic ones. In addition to all these, a sixth and seventh kind, the demonic, was introduced by them, being truly versatile and multiform, at one time impersonating gods, at another the souls of the dead, and contributing nothing to us for virtue of soul, but always mocking and carrying us over cliffs 5.3.8 by means of deceitful

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«κοσμοκράτορες» καὶ «τὰ πνευματικὰ τῆς πονηρίας» ὅ τε ἐπὶ πᾶσιν αὐτοῖς τῆς κακίας ἐξάρχων θεῶν οἱ μέγιστοι παρὰ τοῖς πᾶσιν ἐνομίζοντο ἥ τε τῶν πάλαι νεκρῶν μνήμη τῆς μείζονος ἠξιοῦτο θε5.2.5 ραπείας. ὧν τὰς μὲν τῶν σωμάτων ἰδέας οἱ τῶν κατὰ πόλεις ἀφιε ρωμένων εἰκόνων φέρειν ἐδόκουν τύποι, τὰς δὲ ψυχὰς καὶ τὰς ἐνθέους καὶ ἀσωμάτους δυνάμεις οἱ φαῦλοι δαίμονες καθυπεκρίνοντο διὰ πολλῆς τῆς τερατοποιίας, καὶ αὐτῶν ἤδη τῶν θεραπευόντων καὶ ἱερωμένων αὐτοῖς ἐπὶ τὸ μεῖζον αἰεὶ τὸν ἐκ τῆς φαντασίας τῦφον ἐπαγόντων καὶ δὴ καὶ γοητικαῖς κακοτεχνίαις τὰ πολλὰ συσκευαζόντων, τῆς καὶ τούτων διδασκαλίας αὐτῶν πάλιν τῶν φαύλων δαιμόνων τοῖς θεραπεύουσι προκαταρξάντων. οἵδε γοῦν καὶ τῆς ἀρχεκάκου γοητείας παντὶ τῷ τῶν ἀνθρώπων βίῳ κατέστησαν αἴτιοι, ὡσπεροῦν ὁ πρὸ τούτου διήλεγξεν λόγος. 5.3.1 γʹ. ΟΤΙ ΠΟΛΥΣΧΙ∆ΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΠΟΛΥΓΝΩΜΩΝ Η ΠΕΡΙ ΘΕΩΝ ΤΟΙΣ ΕΛΛΗΣΙΝ

ΣΥΝΕΣΤΗ ∆ΕΙΣΙ∆ΑΙΜΟΝΙΑ Τούτων τοιγαροῦν τῶν μοχθηρῶν καὶ περιγείων δαιμόνων τῶν τε ἀερίων καὶ καταχθονίων πνευμάτων, οὓς «κοσμοκράτορας» καὶ «πνευματικὰ πονηρίας ἀρχάς» τε καὶ «ἐξουσίας» οἱ θεῖοι λόγοι προσαγορεύουσιν, τοτὲ μὲν [εἰς] ἀγαθοὺς δαίμονας ὑποκρινομένων, τοτὲ δὲ εἰς οὐρανίους θεοὺς σχηματιζομένων καὶ πάλιν ἄλλοτε εἰς ἥρωας μεταμορφουμένων, ἔστιν δ' ὅπη ἄντικρυς διὰ τῶν δρωμένων τῆς μοχθηρίας τὸ δεῖγμα παραφαινόντων, εἰκότως πολὺς ὁ πλάνος ἀνθρώποις ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐπῄει, τῶν μὲν θεοὺς εἶναι, τῶν δὲ ἥρωας καὶ δαίμονας, ἀλλ' οὐ θεοὺς ὑπάρχειν ὁμολογούντων καὶ τῶν δαιμόνων τοὺς μὲν ἀγαθοὺς ἐπιφημιζόντων, τοὺς δὲ φαύλους ἐπικαλούντων, πλὴν ἀλλὰ δεῖν φασκόντων καὶ τοὺς φαύλους ἐξιλεοῦσθαι διὰ τὰς ἐξ αὐτῶν βλάβας, ὥστε τὴν πᾶσαν αὐτοῖς θεοποιίαν εἰς εἴδη πλείονα καταπίπτειν· 5.3.2 πρῶτον μὲν τὸ ἐκ τῶν φαινομένων κατ' οὐρανὸν φωστήρων, οὓς καί φασι διὰ τὸ θέειν, ὅπερ ἐστὶ τρέχειν, διά τε τὸ αἰτίους εἶναι τοῦ θεωρεῖν τὰ ὁρώμενα πρώτους θεοὺς ἀνηγορεῦσθαι· δεύτερον τὸ διὰ τὰς εἰς τὸν κοινὸν βίον, ὥς φασιν, εὐεργεσίας ἐκτετιμημένον, ὃ δὴ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων γεγενῆσθαι καὶ αὐτοὶ ὁμολογοῦσι, τοὺς καλουμένους ἥρωας, παραφέροντες Ἡρακλέα καὶ ∆ιοσκού5.3.3 ρους ∆ιόνυσόν τε καὶ τοὺς παρὰ βαρβάροις ὁμοίους. ἐξ ὧν ἀφορίσαντες καὶ διαστειλάμενοι τὰ περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν αἰσχρότερα μνημονευόμενα τρίτον εἶδος θεοποιίας ὑπέθεντο, μυθικὸν αὐτὸ ἐπικαλέσαντες. ὃ δὴ ἐπαισχυνθέντες, καίπερ ἀληθὲς καὶ παλαίτατον τυγχάνον, ἐπὶ τὸ φυσικώτερον, ὥς φασι, μεταβεβλήκασι τροπικωτέραις ἀλληγορίαις, θεωρίας δή τινας εὑρησιλογή5.3.4 σαντες. ἀλλ' οὐδ' εἰς τοῦτο πλάνης αὐτοῖς ἀπήρκει στῆναι, ἤδη δὲ καὶ μέχρι τῶν οἰκείων παθῶν τὸ σεβάσμιον καὶ προσκυνητὸν ὄνομα τοῦ θεοῦ καταβαλόντες τέταρτον θεοποιίας προσεπενόησαν τρόπον, οὐδὲ ἀντιρρή5.3.5 σεως ἄξιον τῷ καὶ αὐτὸν προφανὲς ἐπάγεσθαι τὸ αἶσχος· εἰ δή τινα Ἔρωτα καὶ Ἀφροδίτην καὶ Πόθον, τὰς αἰσχρὰς καὶ ἀκολάστους αὐτῶν ἐπιθυμίας, θεοὺς ἀνειπόντες καὶ τὸν μὲν λόγον Ἑρμῆν, τὸν δὲ λογισμὸν Ἀθηνᾶν ἐπονομάσαντες καὶ ταῦτα τῇ οἰκείᾳ παρειλήφασιν θεολογίᾳ, ὡς καὶ τὸ πέμπτον ἐκ τῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις γιγνομένων πραγμάτων ἀναπλασάμενοι. 5.3.6 τὰς γὰρ ἐνεργείας τάς τε πολεμικὰς καὶ τὰς τεχνικὰς ἀνειδωλοποιήσαντες θεοῖς ἀπένειμαν, Ἄρει μὲν καὶ Ἀθηνᾷ τὰς πολεμικάς, Ἡφαίστῳ δὲ καί τισιν5.3.7 ἑτέροις τὰς τεχνικάς. ἐπὶ πᾶσι τούτοις ἕκτον καὶ ἕβδομον εἶδος αὐτοῖς τὸ δαιμονικὸν παρεισήχθη, πολύτροπον ἀληθῶς τυγχάνον καὶ πολύμορφον, τοτὲ μὲν θεοὺς ὑποκρινόμενον, τοτὲ δὲ ψυχὰς τεθνηκότων, καὶ μηδὲν μὲν ἡμῖν εἰς ἀρετὴν ψυχῆς συμβαλλόμενον, ἐπιτωθάζον δὲ ἀεὶ καὶ κατὰ κρημνῶν 5.3.8 φέρον διὰ τῆς ἀπατηλοῦ