SECT. X. The heathen religion rejected, because it failed of its
own accord, as soon as human assistance was wanting.
BESIDES those things already alleged, the heathen religion affords
us a very strong argument against itself, in that wheresoever human force was wanting,
it immediately fell, as if its only support were then taken away. For, if you turn
your eyes towards all the Christian or Mahometan empires, you will find heathenism
no where mentioned but in books: nay, history informs us, that in those times when
the emperors made use of force and punishment, as the first emperors did, or of
learning and cunning, as Julian did, to support the heathen religion; even then
it continually decreased; no force being made use of against it, no greatness of
family, (for it was commonly believed that Jesus was the son of a carpenter), no
flourish of words, no bribes, (for they were poor), no flattery, for they on the
contrary despised all advantages, and said there was no adversity but they ought
to undergo, upon account of their law. And now, how weak must the heathen religion
be, to be overthrown by such weak forces? Nor did the vain credulity of the heathens
only vanish at this doctrine, but spirits themselves came out of men, at the name
of Christ;516516 were silenced; and being asked the reason of their silence, were forced
to own, that they could do nothing when Christ was invoked.517517
This book has been accessed more than 2630 times since August 22, 2007.
