Τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἁγίου Ἰουστίνον Φιλοσόφου καὶ Μάρτυρος Ἀπολογία ὑπὲρ Χριστιανῶν πρὸς τὴν Ῥωμαίων Σύγκλητον.

 [1] Καὶ τὰ χθὲς δὲ καὶ πρώην ἐν τῇ πόλει ὑμῶν γενόμενα ἐπὶ Οὐρβίκου, ὦ Ῥωμαῖοι, καὶ τὰ πανταχοῦ ὁμοίως ὑπὸ τῶν ἡγουμένων ἀλόγως πραττόμενα ἐξηνάγκασέ

 [2] Γυνή τις συνεβίου ἀνδρὶ ἀκολασταίνοντι, ἀκολασταίνουσα καὶ αὐτὴ πρότερον. ἐπεὶ δὲ τὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ διδάγματα ἔγνω, αὐτὴ ἐσωφρονίσθη καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα ὁμ

 [3] Κἀγὼ οὖν προσδοκῶ ὑπό τινος τῶν ὠνομασμένων ἐπιβουλευθῆναι καὶ ξύλῳ ἐμπαγῆναι, ἢ κἂν ὑπὸ Κρίσκεντος τοῦ φιλοψόφου καὶ φιλοκόμπου. οὐ γὰρ φιλόσοφον

 [4] Ὅπως δὲ μή τις εἴπῃ: Πάντες οὖν ἑαυτοὺς φονεύσαντες πορεύεσθε ἤδη παρὰ τὸν θεὸν καὶ ἡμῖν πράγματα μὴ παρέχετε, _ἐρῶ δι' ἣν αἰτίαν τοῦτο οὐ πράττομ

 [5] Εἰ δέ τινα ὑπέλθοι καὶ ἡ ἔννοια αὕτη ὅτι, εἰ θεὸν ὡμολογοῦμεν βοηθόν, οὐκ ἄν, ὡς λέγομεν, ὑπὸ ἀδίκων ἐκρατούμεθα καὶ ἐτιμωρούμεθα, καὶ τοῦτο διαλύ

 [6] Ὄνομα δὲ τῷ πάντων πατρὶ θετόν, ἀγεννήτῳ ὄντι, οὐκ ἔστιν: ᾧ γὰρ ἂν καὶ ὄνομά τι προσαγορεύηται, πρεσβύτερον ἔχει τὸν θέμενον τὸ ὄνομα. τὸ δὲ πατὴρ

 [7] Ὅθεν καὶ ἐπιμένει ὁ θεὸς τὴν σύγχυσιν καὶ κατάλυσιν τοῦ παντὸς κόσμου μὴ ποιῆσαι, ἵνα καὶ οἱ φαῦλοι ἄγγελοι καὶ δαίμονες καὶ ἄνθρωποι μηκέτι ὦσι,

 [8] Καὶ τοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν Στωϊκῶν δὲ δογμάτων, ἐπειδὴ κἂν τὸν ἠθικὸν λόγον κόσμιοι γεγόνασιν, ὡς καὶ ἔν τισιν οἱ ποιηταὶ, διὰ τὸ ἔμφυτον παντὶ γένει ἀνθρώπ

 [9] Ἵνα δὲ μή τις εἴπῃ τὸ λεγόμενον ὑπὸ τῶν νομιζομένων φιλοσόφων, ὅτι κόμποι καὶ φόβητρά ἐστι τὰ λεγόμενα ὑφ' ἡμῶν ὅτι κολάζονται ἐν αἰωνίῳ πυρὶ οἱ ἄ

 [10] Μεγαλειότερα μὲν οὖν πάσης ἀνθρωπείου διδασκαλίας φαίνεται τὰ ἡμέτερα διὰ τοῦ τὸ λογικὸν τὸ ὅλον τὸν φανέντα δι' ἡμᾶς Χριστὸν γεγονέναι, καὶ σῶμα

 [11] Οὐκ ἂν δὲ οὐδὲ ἐφονευόμεθα οὐδὲ δυνατώτεροι ἡμῶν ἦσαν οἵ τε ἄδικοι ἄνθρωποι καὶ δαίμονες, εἰ μὴ πάντως παντὶ γεννωμένῳ ἀνθρώπῳ καὶ θανεῖν ὠφείλετ

 [12] Καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸς ἐγώ, τοῖς Πλάτωνος χαίρων διδάγμασι, διαβαλλομένους ἀκούων Χριστιανούς, ὁρῶν δὲ ἀφόβους πρὸς θάνατον καὶ πάντα τὰ ἄλλα νομιζόμενα φ

 [13] Καὶ γὰρ ἐγώ, μαθὼν περίβλημα πονηρὸν εἰς ἀποστροφὴν τῶν ἄλλων ἀνθρώπων περιτεθειμένον ὑπὸ τῶν φαύλων δαιμόνων τοῖς Χριστιανῶν θείοις διδάγμασι, κ

 [14] Καὶ ὑμᾶς οὖν ἀξιοῦμεν ὑπογράψαντας τὸ ὑμῖν δοκοῦν προθεῖναι τουτὶ τὸ βιβλίδιον, ὅπως καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις τὰ ἡμέτερα γνωσθῇ καὶ δύνωνται τῆς ψευδοδοξί

 [15] [Καὶ τοῦ ἐν τῷ ἐμῷ ἔθνει, ἀσεβοῦς καὶ πλάνου Σιμωνιανοῦ διδάγματος κατεφρόνησα.] ἐὰν δὲ ὑμεῖς τοῦτο προγράψητε, ἡμεῖς τοῖς πᾶσι φανερὸν ποιήσαιμε

Chapter XI.—How Christians view death.

But neither should we be put to death, nor would wicked men and devils be more powerful than we, were not death a debt due by every man that is born. Wherefore we give thanks when we pay this debt. And we judge it right and opportune to tell here, for the sake of Crescens and those who rave as he does, what is related by Xenophon. Hercules, says Xenophon, coming to a place where three ways met, found Virtue and Vice, who appeared to him in the form of women: Vice, in a luxurious dress, and with a seductive expression rendered blooming by such ornaments, and her eyes of a quickly melting tenderness,19    Another reading is πρὸς τὰς ὄψεις, referring to the eyes of the beholder; and which may be rendered, “speedily fascinating to the sight.” said to Hercules that if he would follow her, she would always enable him to pass his life in pleasure and adorned with the most graceful ornaments, such as were then upon her own person; and Virtue, who was of squalid look and dress, said, But if you obey me, you shall adorn yourself not with ornament nor beauty that passes away and perishes, but with everlasting and precious graces. And we are persuaded that every one who flees those things that seem to be good, and follows hard after what are reckoned difficult and strange, enters into blessedness. For Vice, when by imitation of what is incorruptible (for what is really incorruptible she neither has nor can produce) she has thrown around her own actions, as a disguise, the properties of virtue, and qualities which are really excellent, leads captive earthly-minded men, attaching to Virtue her own evil properties. But those who understood the excellences which belong to that which is real, are also uncorrupt in virtue. And this every sensible person ought to think both of Christians and of the athletes, and of those who did what the poets relate of the so-called gods, concluding as much from our contempt of death, even when it could be escaped.20    Καὶ φευκτοῦ θανάτου may also be rendered, “even of death which men flee from.”

[11] Οὐκ ἂν δὲ οὐδὲ ἐφονευόμεθα οὐδὲ δυνατώτεροι ἡμῶν ἦσαν οἵ τε ἄδικοι ἄνθρωποι καὶ δαίμονες, εἰ μὴ πάντως παντὶ γεννωμένῳ ἀνθρώπῳ καὶ θανεῖν ὠφείλετο: ὅθεν καὶ τὸ ὄφλημα ἀποδιδόντες εὐχαριστοῦμεν. καίτοι γε καὶ τὸ Ξενοφώντειον ἐκεῖνο νῦν πρός τε Κρίσκεντα καὶ τοὺς ὁμοίως αὐτῷ ἀφραίνοντας καλὸν καὶ εὔκαιρον εἰπεῖν ἡγούμεθα. τὸν Ἡρακλέα ἐπὶ τρίοδόν τινα ἔφη ὁ Ξενοφῶν βαδίζοντα εὑρεῖν τήν τε ἀρετὴν καὶ τὴν κακίαν, ἐν γυναικῶν μορφαῖς φαινομένας. καὶ τὴν μὲν κακίαν, ἁβρᾷ ἐσθῆτι καὶ ἐρωτοπεποιημένῳ καὶ ἀνθοῦντι ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων προσώπῳ, θελκτικήν τε εὐθὺς πρὸς τὰς ὄψεις οὖσαν, εἰπεῖν πρὸς τὸν Ἡρακλέα ὅτι, ἢν αὐτῇ ἕπηται, ἡδόμενόν τε καὶ κεκοσμημένον τῷ λαμπροτάτῳ καὶ ὁμοίῳ τῷ περὶ αὐτὴν κόσμῳ διαιτήσειν ἀεὶ ποιήσει. καὶ τὴν ἀρετὴν ἐν αὐχμηρῷ μὲν τῷ προσώπῳ καὶ τῇ περιβολῇ οὖσαν εἰπεῖν: Ἀλλ' ἢν ἐμοὶ πείθῃ, οὐ κόσμῳ οὐδὲ κάλλει τῷ ῥέοντι καὶ φθειρομένῳ ἑαυτὸν κοσμήσεις ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἀϊδίοις καὶ καλοῖς κόσμοις. καὶ πάνθ' ὁντινοῦν πεπείσμεθα, φεύγοντα τὰ δοκοῦντα καλά, τὰ δὲ νομιζόμενα σκληρὰ καὶ ἄλογα μετερχόμενον, εὐδαιμονίαν ἐκδέχεσθαι. ἡ γὰρ κακία, πρόβλημα ἑαυτῆς τῶν πράξεων τὰ προσόντα τῇ ἀρετῇ καὶ ὄντως ὄντα καλὰ διὰ μιμήσεως ἀφθάρτων περιβαλλομένη (ἄφθαρτον γὰρ οὐδὲν ἔχει οὐδὲ ποιῆσαι δύνατα), δουλαγωγεῖ τοὺς χαμαιπετεῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων, τὰ προσόντα αὐτῇ φαῦλα τῇ ἀρετῇ περιθεῖσα. οἱ δὲ νενοηκότες τὰ προσόντα τῷ ὄντι καλὰ καὶ ἄφθαρτοι τῇ ἀρετῇ: ὃ καὶ περὶ Χριστιανῶν καὶ τῶν ἀπὸ τοῦ ἄθλου καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων τῶν τοιαῦτα πραξάντων, ὁποῖα ἔφασαν οἱ ποιηταὶ περὶ τῶν νομιζομένων θεῶν, ὑπολαβεῖν δεῖ πάντα νουνεχῆ, ἐκ τοῦ καὶ τοῦ φευκτοῦ καταφρονεῖν ἡμᾶς θανάτου λογισμὸν ἕλκοντα.