Chapter forty-six
Exposing pagan worship, consulting idols, superstitious legends, satanic works, magic, and pagan philosophy, from the time of the incarnation. While we see the ancient worships confined to their local places and independent of each other, we see the worship of Christ as comprehensive and in one way.
1 - When did people begin to abandon the worship of idols except when the true word of God came?(1) Among humans? Or when did consulting idols cease?(2) Among the Greeks and everywhere, it became meaningless until the Savior revealed himself on earth?
2 - Or when did it become apparent that those whom the poets called gods and heroes were in reality nothing but mere mortals except when the Lord completed His victory over death and preserved the body that He had taken incorruptible, and for this reason He raised it from the dead?(3)
3 - When did the deceptions and madness of devils become despised?(4) Except when the power of God - the Word - descends, who is the master and master of all things as well(5)Condescension for human weakness(6) And he appeared on the ground? Or when did the craft and teaching of magic begin to be trampled underfoot except after the divine manifestation of the Word among humans?(7)
4 - In short, when did the wisdom of the Greeks become foolish?(8) Except when the wisdom of the true God revealed Himself on earth? In the past, the entire world was led astray everywhere by worshiping idols, and people believed that only idols were gods, but now(9) We find people everywhere abandoning the superstition of idols and coming to Christ, and as they worship Him as their God, through Him they also know the Father, whom they were ignorant of.
5 - The surprising thing is that while the deities were diverse and numerous - as each place had its own idol, which was considered a god among them, this idol had no authority over the neighboring place to convince the neighboring peoples to worship it. Rather, it was hardly worshiped among its own people only, as no one worshiped a god. He was never his neighbor. On the contrary, each one was tied to his own idol and believed that he was the master of all. We see that Christ alone is worshiped among all peoples as one God for all in every place. What the weak idols could not do - that is, convince those who live in their regions to worship them - Christ did, as he convinced not only those who live near him, but also convinced the entire inhabited world to worship only one Lord, and through him they worship God, his Father.(10).
Chapter forty-seven
Eliminating, with the sign of the cross, various witches and ghosts that they imagine will appear in their places of worship, etc. Proof that the ancient gods are just humans. Exposing magic. While philosophy could only convince a limited, local group of immortality and goodness, some people with limited competence were able to convince numerous masses in all churches of the principle of life beyond nature.
1 - While in ancient times every place was filled with the deception of astrology, and what Delphi, Dodna, Botia, Lycia, Libya, and Egypt were famous for, and what people admired about the works of divination in Capri and Pythia, this madness has now stopped, since the preaching of Christ began everywhere, and it no longer exists. No one among humanity yet performs astrology(11).
2- While demons misled human minds in ancient times by using springs and rivers(12) And trees and stones(13)Thus, she influenced the simple people with her temptations, and her deceptions have now been invalidated after the divine appearance of the Word, because even an ordinary person can expose her errors with the sign of the cross alone.(14).
3 - While in the past, humans believed in Zeus(15) And Kronos(16) And Apollo(17) The heroes mentioned in their poetry are gods, and they went astray by worshiping them(18) Now that the Savior has appeared among the people, the matter of those people has been revealed, and it has become clear that they are dead humans, and the humans know that Christ alone is the true God, the Word of God.
4 - Or what can we say about the magic that used to amaze people? Before the word came among us, magic had its power and influence among the Egyptians, Chaldeans, and Indians, and it aroused awe in everyone who witnessed it. However, after the coming of the truth and the appearance of the word, magic was completely refuted and completely abolished.
5 - As for Greek wisdom and the chatter and noise of philosophers, I do not think that anyone needs us to present proofs to him. This is because the miracle is clear before everyone's eyes. While the Greek sages were unable to convince even a small number of people through their many writings about the reality of immortality(19) And life according to virtue(20)Christ alone, in His ordinary language, and with people who were not fluent in speech, convinced many groups of people to despise death and to care about things that do not die or perish, to turn a blind eye to what is temporal, to turn their attention to eternal things, and not to think about earthly glory. Rather, they only strive for things that do not perish.
Chapter forty-eight
Other facts. Chastity of Christian virgins and hermits. Martyrs. The power of the cross against demons and magic. Christ demonstrated by His power that He is greater than humans and spirits, and greater than magicians, because all of these are completely subject to His authority. So it is the word of God.
1 - And what we have presented(21) It is not just talk, there are tests(22) Activity testifies that it is true.
2 - Whoever wants, let him go and see the proof of virtue in the virgins of Christ and the young men who live a life of holy chastity.(23)It is also seen in choirs(24) Many martyrs of Christ, certainty and confidence in immortality(25).
3 - And whoever wants to test our previous statements in a practical way, let him - in the presence of the deception of devils, the errors of astrologers, and the marvels of magic - use the sign of the cross, which they mock, and speak only in the name of Christ.(26)He will see how demons flee from his name, astrology will be nullified, and all magic and divination will disappear.(27).
4- So who is this Christ and how great is he? The one in whose name and with his presence obscures and vanishes all things(28)And He alone has power over all things, and He has “illuminated” the entire inhabited earth with His teaching?(29) Let the Greeks who delight in mocking without shame tell us.
5 - If he were a human(30) How could one person be able to prevail over all those whom the Greeks thought were gods?(31)And to expose them with his power and show that they are nothing? But if they called him a magician(32) How can a magician annihilate all acts of magic instead of supporting them? Because if he had defeated specific magicians, or defeated only one magician, they would have been permitted to claim that he surpassed the rest with his greater skill.(33) Of their skill
6 - But if his cross gained victory over all magic at all, and even in the name of magic itself, then it must be clear that the Savior is not a magician.(34)The demons themselves - who are summoned by magicians - flee from him (as) he is their master(35).
7 - So let the Greeks, who confined their minds to mockery, tell us who he is? They might say that he too was a devil, and that this was the reason for his power. Let them say whatever they want, for their mockery will backfire on them. It is possible to put them to shame again by our previous proofs, because how can someone who casts out demons be a devil?
8 - Because if he had only cast out certain demons, it could have been said that through the ruler of the demons he had defeated the weaker demons, and this is what the Jews said to him when they wanted to insult him.(36). However, if by simply mentioning his name all the demonic forces were uprooted and driven away, then it became clear here also that the Greeks were wrong, and that our Lord and Savior Christ is not a satanic force, as they think.
9 - Therefore, if the Savior is not just a man, nor is he a magician, nor a devil, but through his divinity he has nullified the teachings of the poets, the errors of the devils, and the wisdom of the Greeks, and cast them into darkness, then it must be clear and everyone must acknowledge that this is who he truly is, the Son of God.(37)The Father's word, wisdom, and power. This is why his deeds are also not the deeds of man, but rather they are very superior to the deeds of man, and they are truly the deeds of God, whether in terms of the nature of these deeds themselves or in terms of comparing them to the deeds of other human beings.(38).
Chapter forty-nine
His birth and miracles. You call Askleippus, Hercules, and Dionysius gods because of their deeds. They compared their actions to the actions of Christ, the miracles that were performed at his death, etc.
1 - Which human being was ever born and formed a body for himself from only a virgin?(39) Or has any human being ever cured diseases like those cured by the Lord of All? Or who perfected a deficiency in human creation and made the blind from birth see?(40)
2 - The Greeks considered Asclepius a god(41) Because he practiced medicine and discovered herbs to treat sick bodies, and he did not create these herbs from the ground, but rather discovered them with experience from nature. What is this work compared to what the Savior did, who instead of healing a wound, perfected the nature of a man blind from birth and restored his body healthy?(42)
3 - The Greeks worshiped Heracles as a god because he fought humans like him(43) He killed wild animals with his deception. Where does this compare to what the Word did in expelling diseases, demons, and even death itself, from man? They worship Dionysius because he taught man to drink alcohol(44)As for the true Savior and Lord of all who taught chastity and moderation, these people mock him.
4 - Even more than that, what do they say about the other miracles of his divinity? For what human being did the sun darken and the earth quake at his death?(45) Which of the people who die every day from ancient times until now?(46) Something strange happened when he died?!
5 - As we leave behind the works that He completed in His body, let us remember those works that were completed after His resurrection. What human being's teaching prevailed and spread everywhere, and it is the same one teaching from one end of the earth to the other, to the point that his worship has spread throughout all countries?(47)
6 - Or if Christ was a human being, as they claim, and not God the Word, then why could their gods not be able to prevent the worship of Christ from extending to the same countries in which those gods were worshiped? Rather, the Word, by appearing here, stopped its worship and exposed its error with his teaching?(48)
Chapter fifty
With the death of Christ, the weakness and rivalries of the fallacies were exposed. His resurrection is unparalleled even in Greek mythology.
1 - Before Christ, there were kings and tyrants(49) There are many in the world, and history has recorded the names of many wise men and magicians among the Chaldeans, Egyptians, and Indians(50). Who among them was able not only after his death, but also during his life(51)To fill the entire inhabited earth with his teaching and to turn all those huge crowds away from the falsehoods of idols, as our Savior did, when he transferred them from idolatry to his own person?
2 - The Greek philosophers wrote many writings wisely(52) Clear and skillful, did these writings have an impact like the great impact of the Cross of Christ?(53) The philosophy and ideas they taught were accepted only until their death, but even during their lifetime this great influence was the subject of mutual competition between them. Because they were jealous of each other and attacked each other(54).
3 - As for the Word of God, it is very strange that while it was taught in a simpler language(55) However, with the light of his teaching he obscured (the influence of) the greatest philosophers, and by drawing everyone to himself, he filled his churches while emptying their schools. The amazing thing is that he descended to death as a human being(56) Nullify the voices of philosophers and their teachings about idols.
4 - Is there someone whose death expels demons? Or who is the one whose death the demons were terrified of, as they did at the death of Christ? Where the name of the Savior was named(57) There every demon is cast out. Who is the one who freed humans from their psychological desires so that adulterers became chaste?(58) And murderers no longer carry the sword(59) Those who were previously cowardly became brave?(60)
5 - In general, what convinced the inhabitants of barbarian countries and pagans everywhere to abandon their insane violence and incline to peace except faith in Christ and the sign of the cross? Or what gave humans such certainty of immortality as did the cross of Christ and the resurrection of his body?(61)
6 - Although the Greeks(62) They spoke of all kinds of false myths, but they were unable to create myths that attributed resurrection to their idols, as it never occurred to them that the body could also live after death.(63). And here we accept what they say, because with these words they reveal the weakness of their pagan worship, and this leads to the recognition of Christ’s bodily resurrection, and thus it is also known to everyone that he is the Son of God.
(1) 1 In Chapter 11/3, Saint Athanasius explains that because humans completely abandoned God, they wronged themselves and invented false gods for themselves and worshiped them. When the true Word of God came, He ended all these worships.
(2) 2 Consulting idols (divination) is, of course, part of idol worship. See Chapter 11/6. This divination was widespread everywhere. See Chapter 47/1.
(3) 3 Through the resurrection of Christ, it became clear that the pagan gods are false (see Chapter 5/6), and that they are mortal humans (see Chapter 47/3).
(4) 4 See Chapter 47/3.
(5) 1 On the sovereignty of Christ over unclean spirits and idols, see Chapter 32/4.
(6) 2 The Lord condescended for the sake of human weakness, see Chapter 8/2.
(7) 3 About Christ’s victory over witchcraft, see Chapter 48.
(8) 4 See 1 Corinthians 1:18-24. See chapter 15/1, where Saint Athanasius uses the same witness.
(9) 5 يجرى القديس أثناسيوس مقارنة بين ما كان يحدث “في القديم” وما يجرى “الآن”، وسبق أن تحدث عن هذا في فصل 21/1.
(10) 1 In this paragraph, Saint Athanasius summarizes what he previously mentioned in detail in his article Against the Pagans: 23. Everything that was happening was compared to what Jesus Christ did when he appeared in the flesh, as he convinced the entire inhabited world to worship him alone, for he is able to teach the whole world about the Father (see Chapter 14/3). Although he was born in Judaism, he began to be worshiped everywhere (see Chapter 37/5).
(11) 1 في هذا الفصل وما يليه يشرح القديس أثناسيوس ما تحدث عنه باختصار في الفصول السابقة ويوضح أن العرافة قد أبطلت بمجيء السيد المسيح، ويشير القديس أثناسيوس إلى نفس هذا الأمر في كتابه “حياة أنطونيوس” فصل32 حيث يشرح الفرق بين أن يتنبأ أحد بالحوادث وبين أن يتكهن بوقوعها.
(12) 2 See Against the Gentiles, chapter 24/2.
(13) 3 See Chapter 4:11. In his book The Life of Anthony, Chapter 23, Saint Athanasius mentions that demons try to mislead Christians, especially monks, by taking other shapes and forms than those mentioned here.
(14) 4 Saint Athanasius explains in detail the aspects of victory over the delusions of demons by the sign of the cross. See Chapters 48, 50. See also Life of Antony: 78.
(15) 1 is the god Saturn.
(16) 2 is the god Mercury.
(17) 3 The ancient Greek god of beauty, masculinity, poetry, and music.
(18) 4 In his article Against the Pagans, Chapter 15/2, Saint Athanasius mentions that poets and writers did not content themselves with mentioning the names of these gods, but rather recorded their scandalous deeds and the depravity of their lives, which led astray and corrupted the lives of every human being who worshiped them. In Chapters 11 and 12 of the same article, he had previously reviewed all of these works.
(19) 5 When a rational person thinks about immortal life, he easily abandons fleeting things. See Against the Gentiles 1:32.
(20) 6 The reason why the Greek sages were unable to convince anyone of the life of virtue is that they themselves wrote about the moral scandals of their gods, and not only that, but they imitated them. See Against the Gentiles: Chapters 11 and 12.
(21) 1 means what was presented in the previous two chapters.
(22) 2 The word “test” was mentioned.Pe'raIn Chapter 28/3, in the context of talking about practical experience to confirm something.
(23) 3 Saint Athanasius gives great importance to chastity as a Christian virtue, and this is evident through texts, some of which are attributed to him and translated into Syriac and Coptic.
(24) 4 choirs choir collection. In his article Against the Pagans: 43, Saint Athanasius likens the harmony that occurs between creatures, which testifies to the divinity of the Creator Word, to the harmony of voices issued by a choir of singers.
(25) 5 Saint Athanasius previously pointed out that the life of chastity lived by young men and virgins and their willingness to be martyred in the name of Christ is evidence of the victory of the crucified Christ and the power of the resurrection. See Chapter 27.
(26) 6 See Mark 16:17 and see chapter 6/30.
(27) 1 Origen also mentioned in his response to Celsius that the divination and astrology of the Magi were abolished and disappeared as soon as Christ was born. See the response to Kilis 1/60.
(28) 2 Jesus Christ is the Word of God, who, with his presence in the flesh, covered with his deeds all the deeds of the humans who preceded him. See chapter 7:15.
(29) 3 هذا السؤال الموجه هنا لليونانيين يقابل السؤال ” مَن ذا الذي … ” الموجه في فصل 35 لليهود.
(30) 4 Regarding the lack of faith of the Jews and their belief in the inadequacy of manning the Word of God, see Chapter 33. In Chapter 14/3, Athanasius sees that it is impossible for a mere human to teach the whole world about the Father and to lead it back into error, as this work is greater than the ability of a mere human.
(31) 5 Humans invented human gods for themselves. See Chapter 15/2.
(32) 6 Many have previously claimed that Christ uses magic. The apologists and church writers responded to them. See, for example: Justin Martyr in his dialogue with Trypho, chapter 69, and Origen in his response to Celsius 1/6, 1/38, 1/68.
(33) 7 الترجمة الحرفية ” بمهارته الأفضل “. وهنا يستخدم القديس أثناسيوس كلمة الأفضل “kre'twn“To describe the skill of Jesus Christ compared to the skill of magicians in terms of quantity only, he did not use the word greatest.”me‹zwn “ بينما في محاربته للبدعة الآريوسية وفي سياق شرحه للآية “صائراً أفضل من الملائكة” عب3:1 (حسب الأصل اليوناني) شدّد على أن استخدام كلمة “أفضل” في المقارنة بين شيئين يوضح الفرق في النوع بينما استخدام كلمة ” أعظم ” يوضح الفرق في الكم.
(34) 1 In this paragraph, the thought of Saint Athanasius becomes clear that the annihilation of all acts of magic indicates that the Lord Christ is not the greatest among the magicians, otherwise he would have had to support these works. It is also clear that the difference between the Lord Christ and the magicians is not in the number of works that each of them performed, but rather In the quality of these works (in chapters 18 and 38, Saint Athanasius focused on the fact that Christ healed all diseases).
(35) 2 When the spirits acknowledge that the Lord Christ is their master (see also Chapter 32), this means that the Lord Christ is not among the magicians, as these magicians ask for the help of these spirits in the work that they do.
(36) 3 انظر مت24:12، مر22:3، لو15:11. ” وعندما عاينوا معجزاته الإلهية أنكروا لاهوته ونسبوا هذه المعجزات للشيطان “… وأهانوه. راجع رسائل القديس أثناسيوس إلى الأسقف سرابيون عن الروح القدس. رسالة 22/4.
(37) 1 See Mark 15:39, which is the testimony and confession of the centurion, who was the first Gentile to acknowledge the divinity of Jesus Christ at the cross.
(38) 2 With this paragraph, Saint Athanasius concludes his talk about the apparent facts that prove the divinity of the incarnate Word. What he previously talked about in Chapters 15 and 45 regarding comparison with other human beings, he will explain in the following chapters.
(39) 1 See Chapters 20/4, 35/7
(40) 2 See Chapter 38/3, where Saint Athanasius mentions Isaiah’s prophecy about the coming of Christ and the work of miracles, especially the miracle of healing the man born blind. And also Chapter 18/4, where it mentions the many healing miracles that Christ performed, including this miracle.
(41) 3 About the Greeks taking ordinary humans as their gods. See Against the Pagans: 18.
(42) 4 And what Jesus Christ did proves, of course, that He is the Creator. See Chapter 18/4.
(43) 5 Any human being proves that he is not just a human being when he overcomes not humans like him, but rather those who are thought to be gods, see Chapter 48/5.
(44) 1 The Indians more than others worshiped Dionysus as the god of wine. See Against the Pagans 24/2. Saint Athanasius mentions on the authority of Bishop Anthony that simply talking about wine and meat was considered a luxury for him. See Life of Anthony: 7.
(45) 2 See Chapter 19/3, and see also Chapter 37/7.
(46) 3 means from the fall until now.
(47) 4 Saint Athanasius repeats in this paragraph what he previously pointed out in chapter 46/5.
(48) 5 See Chapter 31/2.
(49) 1 In his article Against the Pagans: 9-11, Saint Athanasius talks about many kings and tyrants whom humans established as their own gods and worshiped them.
(50) 2 In Chapter 47/4, Saint Athanasius mentioned that the magic that was widespread among the Chaldeans, Egyptians, and Indians inspired fear and dread in everyone who witnessed it.
(51) 3 In Chapter 49/5, Saint Athanasius compares (in the form of a denouncing question) between the deeds of Jesus Christ that were accomplished after his death and resurrection and the deeds of any other human being. Here in this chapter (and also using a denouncing question) he compares the works of Jesus Christ that he did during his life in the flesh with the works of humans.
(52) 4 في الفصول 71ـ79 من كتابه ” حياة انطونيوس ” يسرد القديس أثناسيوس الحوار الذي جرى بين الأنبا انطونيوس واثنين من الفلاسفة اليونانيين وفي الفصول 77ـ79 يورد رد الأنبا انطونيوس فيما يتعلق بعلاقة الإيمان بالحجج الفلسفية فيقول ” إننا نحن المسيحيين نتمسك بالسر لا في حكمة الحجج الفلسفية بل في قوة الإيمان أننا نحن الآن مدعمون بالإيمان بالمسيح أما أنتم فتعتمدون على مماحكاتكم الكلامية، هوذا خرافات الأوثان قد تلاشت، أما إيماننا فيمتد في كل مكان. هوذا أنتم بحججكم ومماحكاتكم لم تحولوا أحد من المسيحية إلى الوثنية أما نحن فإذ ننادى بالإيمان ندحض خرافاتكم. لأن الجميع يعترفون بأن المسيح هو الله وابن الله، وبينما أنتم بفصاحتكم لا تعطلون تعليم المسيح فإننا نحن فبمجرد ذكر المسيح مصلوباً نطرد كل الشياطين التي تخشونها كأنها آلهة. فحيث وُجدت إشارة الصليب ضعف السحر وتلاشت قوة العرافة” (فصل78).
(53) 1 The cross showed victory over death. See Chapter 29/1.
(54) 2 يرى القديس أثناسيوس أن عدم اتفاق اليونانيين فيما بينهم يدل على عدم صحة تعاليمهم، وعلى العكس من ذلك فإن اتفاق آباء الكنيسة على العقيدة السليمة يؤكد صحتها وحقيقتها، فيقول في كتاب دفاعه عن مجمع نيقية فصل 4: ” إن اليونانيين إذ لا يشهدون لنفس العقائد بل يشكك كل منهم في تعاليم الآخر فإن تعاليمهم لا تحوى أي حقيقة، أما القديسون الحقيقيون والذين يعلنون الحقيقة فهم متفقون معاً ولا يختلفون فيما بينهم فبالرغم من أنهم عاشوا في أزمنة مختلفة، إلاّ أنهم يتبعون نفس الطريق لكونهم أنبياء لله الواحد ويبشرون برأي واحد عن الكلمة.
(55) 3 See Chapter 47/5.
(56) 4 The physical death of Jesus Christ was considered by both Jews and pagans to be a weakness and evidence that Jesus Christ was not God. See Chapters 31 and below. However, what is amazing is that through death on the cross came victory over death. See chapters 27-29.
(57) 5 See Mark 17:16 and see chapter 30/6.
(58) 1 Here Saint Athanasius clarifies what was previously mentioned in Chapter 49/3 about the difference between the teachings of Jesus Christ and the teachings of philosophers regarding moral matters.
(59) 2 استخدام السيف لا يدل على أن المرء يتمتع بفكر راجح ” كما لو أصيب إنسان بآفة في عقله وطلب سيفاً ليشهره ضد كل من تعبه وظن أن هذا هو العقل السليم ” انظر ضد الوثنيين4/1، كما أن السيف مؤذٍ ” فاليد تستطيع أن تستل السيف والفم يقدر أن يذوق السم لكن كليهما لا يعرف أن هذه مؤذية إن لم يقرر العقل ذلك ” انظر ضد الوثنيين31/5. والوثنيون تلطخت أذهانهم بالخطية انظر فصل14 ولهذا لم يستطيعوا أن يردوا الإنسان للصواب ويقنعوه بتغيير مسلكه.
(60) 3 In Chapter 30, Saint Athanasius mentioned that this transformation in human lives is proof of the reality of resurrection and the abolition of death. See also chapter 28/1, where it refers to the courage of young men in facing death after they became weak by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In Chapter 47/5, he focuses on the fact that the teachings of philosophers did not convince anyone to despise death, contemplate immortality, ignore temporalities, and look to eternities.
(61) 4 See Chapter 27.
(62) 5 He means the Greek philosophers
(63) 6 فعلى سبيل المثال يصف كيلسس القيامة بأنها أمر ” رجس ومنفر ومستحيل انظر رد أوريجانوس على كيلسس 5/4 وراجع أيضاً 8/49.