Arnobius — Against the Nations 2.5
What do you say, O ignorant ones, even most worthy of tears and pity? Do you so not fear that perhaps these things are true which are contempt to you and furnish matter for laughter? Do you not at least turn over with yourselves under dark thoughts that what today you refuse with stubborn perversity to believe, late time may refute and irrevocable repentance chastise?
Do not even these at least make for you arguments of believing: that already through all lands in so short a span the sacraments of this immense name have been poured out; that there is now no nation of so barbarous custom and ignorant of gentleness that has not, turned by love of it, softened its harshness and migrated into peaceful senses with assumed calm; that orators, grammarians, rhetoricians, jurisconsults and physicians endowed with such great talents, and those probing philosophy’s secrets, seek these teachings, having scorned those they trusted a little before; that slaves prefer to be afflicted by masters with whatever tortures they decree, spouses to be loosed from marriages, children to be disinherited by parents rather than break Christian faith and lay down the sacraments of the saving warfare; that though so many kinds of punishments have been set by you for those following this religion’s laws, the matter grows the more and against all threats and bans of fears the people push more courageously and are spurred to the zeal of believing by the very stimuli of prohibition?
Or do you believe these things happen at random and emptily, that these minds are taken by chance assaults? Is that so not divine and sacred? Or without their God do such conversions of souls happen that, though the butcher’s hooks and other countless tortures, as we said, hang over those about to believe, seized as by a certain sweetness and love of all virtues they accept the known reasons and prefer the friendships of Christ to all the world’s affairs?
Latin
5.1. Quid dicitis, o nescii, etiam fletu et miseratione dignissimi? Ita non extimescitis, ne forte haec vera sint quae sunt despectui vobis et praebent materiam risus? Nec saltem vobiscum sub obscuris cogitationibus volvitis, ne quod hoc die credere obstinata rennuitis perversitate, redarguat serum tempus et inrevocabilis paenitentia castiget?
2. Nonne vel haec saltem fidem vobis faciunt argumenta credendi, quod iam per omnes terras in tam brevi temporis spatio inmensi nominis huius sacramenta diffusa sunt ; 3. quod nulla iam natio est tam barbari moris et mansuetudinem nesciens, quae non eius amore versa molliverit asperitatem suam et in placidos sensus adsumpta tranquillitate migraverit; 4. quod tam magnis ingeniis praediti oratores grammatici rhetores consulti iuris ac medici, philosophiae etiam secreta rimantes magisteria haec expetunt spretis quibus paulo ante fidebant; 5. quod ab dominis se servi cruciatibus adfici quibus statuerint malunt, solvi coniuges matrimoniis, exheredari a parentibus liberi quam fidem rumpere Christianam et salutaris militiae sacramenta deponere; 6. quod cum genera poenarum tanta sint a vobis proposita religionis huius sequentibus leges, augeatur res magis et contra omnes minas atque interdicta formidinum animosius populus obnitatur et ad credendi studium prohibitionis ipsius stimulis excitetur? 7. An numquid haec fieri passim et inaniter creditis, fortuitis incursibus adsumi has mentes? itane istud non divinum et sacrum est?
8. aut sine deo eorum tantas animorum fieri conversiones, ut, cum carnificis unci aliique innumeri cruciatus quemadmodum diximus inpendeant credituris, velut quadam dulcedine atque omnium virtutum amore correpti cognitas accipiant rationes atque mundi omnibus rebus praeponant amicitias Christi?