Chapter XXV.

Seated where there is nothing of God, will one be thinking of his Maker? Will there be peace in his soul when there is eager strife there for a charioteer?  Wrought up into a frenzied excitement, will he learn to be modest? Nay, in the whole thing he will meet with no greater temptation than that gay attiring of the men and women. The very intermingling of emotions, the very agreements and disagreements with each other in the bestowment of their favours, where you have such close communion, blow up the sparks of passion. And then there is scarce any other object in going to the show, but to see and to be seen.  When a tragic actor is declaiming, will one be giving thought to prophetic appeals? Amid the measures of the effeminate player, will he call up to himself a psalm? And when the athletes are hard at struggle, will he be ready to proclaim that there must be no striking again? And with his eye fixed on the bites of bears, and the sponge-nets of the net-fighters, can he be moved by compassion? May God avert from His people any such passionate eagerness after a cruel enjoyment!  For how monstrous it is to go from God’s church to the devil’s—from the sky to the stye,22    [De Cælo in Cænum: (sic) Oehler.] as they say; to raise your hands to God, and then to weary them in the applause of an actor; out of the mouth, from which you uttered Amen over the Holy Thing, to give witness in a gladiator’s favour; to cry “forever” to any one else but God and Christ!

CAPUT XXV.

An ille recogitabit eo tempore de Deo, positus illic ubi nihil est de Deo? pacem, opinor, habebit in animo contendens pro auriga; pudicitiam ediscet, attonitus in mimos. Imo in omni spectaculo nullum magis scandalum occurret, quam ipse ille mulierum et virorum accuratior cultus: ipsa consensio, ipsa in favoribus aut conspiratio aut dissensio inter se de commercio scintillas libidinum constabellant . Nemo denique in spectaculo ineundo prius cogitat, nisi videri et videre. Sed tragoedo vociferante , exclamationes ille alicujus prophetae 0656C retractabit, et inter effoeminati histrionis modos psalmum secum comminiscetur, et cum athletae agent, 0657A ille dicturus est repercutiendum non esse (Matth. V)? Poterit et de misericordia moneri defixus in morsus ursorum et spongias retiariorum ? Avertat Deus a suis tantam voluptatis exitiosae cupiditatem. Quale est enim de Ecclesia Dei in diaboli Ecclesiam tendere? de coelo (quod aiunt) in coenum? illas manus quas ad Dominum extuleris , postmodum laudando histrionem fatigare? ex ore quo amen in Sanctum protuleris , gladiatori testimonium reddere, εἰς αἰῶνας απ᾽ αἰῶνος alii omnino dicere nisi Deo Christo?