THE REFUTATION OF ALL HERESIES. [BOOK I.]

reasonable opinion and their profane attempt.One manuscript has: "the profane opinion and unreasonable attempt." But since I perceive that they have not been abashed by our forbearance, and have disregarded how God is long-suffering—even when blasphemed by them—in order that they might either repent out of shame or, should they persevere, be justly condemned, I am forced to proceed in my intention of exposing those secret mysteries of theirs. They deliver these to the initiated with a great deal of plausibility, not disclosing them until they have kept the person in suspense for a period of necessary preparation. By then, having made him blasphemous towards the true God, they have acquired complete power over him and see him eagerly panting after the promised disclosure. Only then, when they have tested him and found him enslaved by sin, do they initiate him, putting him in possession of the perfection of wicked things. Previously, however, they bind him with an oath neither to divulge the mysteries nor to hold communication with any person whatsoever, unless that person first undergoes similar subjection, even though, once the doctrine has been clearly delivered, there is no longer any need for an oath. For he who was content to submit to the necessary purgationSome suggest "to learn" here. and so receive these perfect mysteries will, by the very act itself and in reference to his own conscience, feel sufficiently obligated not to divulge them to others. If he were to disclose wickedness of this description to any man, he would neither be counted among men nor deemed worthy to behold the light; for not even irrational animals would attempt such an enormity, as we shall explain when we come to treat of such topics.

Since, however, reason compels us to plunge into the very depth of this narrative, we conceive we should not be silent. Instead, by expounding the tenets of the several schools with minuteness, we shall reserve nothing. It seems expedient, even at the expense of a more protracted investigation, not to shrink from labor, for we shall leave behind us no trifling tool for human life against the recurrence of error. By doing so, all will behold, in an obvious light, the clandestine rites of these men and the secret orgies which they retain under their management and deliver only to the initiated. But none will refute these save the Holy Spirit bequeathed unto the Church, which the Apostles, having first received, have transmitted to those who have rightly believed. We, as their successors and as participants in this grace, high-priesthood, and office of teaching,This passage is often cited by those who question the attribution of this work to Origen, on the grounds that he was never a bishop. It is not, however, certain that the words refer to the episcopal office exclusively. as well as being reputed guardians of the Church, must not be found lacking in vigilance or disposed to suppress correct doctrine.

Not even by laboring with every energy of body and soul do we tire in our attempt to render our Divine Benefactor a fitting return. And yet, we do not fully requite Him in a becoming manner unless we are diligent in discharging the trust committed to us: by being careful to complete the measure of our particular opportunity and to impart to all, without grudging, whatever the Holy Ghost supplies. We do this not only by bringing to light, through our refutation, matters foreign to our subject, but also by showing what the truth has received by the grace of the Father and ministered to men. These we shall also unabashedly proclaim, illustrating them by argument and providing testimony through letters.

In order, then, to prove them atheists—both in opinion, in their mode of treating a question, and in fact—and to show whence their attempted theories have accrued, we must demonstrate that they have endeavored to establish their tenets taking nothing from the Holy Scriptures. Nor is it by preserving the succession of any saint that they have hurried headlong into these opinions. Rather, their doctrines have derived their origin from the wisdom of the Greeks, from the conclusions of those who have formed systems of philosophy, from would-be mysteries, and from the vagaries of astrologers. It seems advisable, in the first instance, to explain the opinions advanced by the philosophers of the Greeks to satisfy our readers that such views are of greater antiquity than these heresies and more deserving of reverence regarding the divinity. In the next place, we shall compare each heresy with the system of each philosopher, so as to show that the earliest champion of the heresy, by availing himself of these theories, has turned them to advantage by appropriating their principles and, being impelled from these into worse ideas, has constructed his own doctrine. The undertaking is admittedly full of labor and requires extended research.