. and SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST, and his APOSTLES, mec. 421 The EVIDENCES upon which CHRISTIANITY iS founded ; including a Complete Defence of Chriftianity, together with plain and fatisfaaory Anfwers to all Objeaions made againft our holy Religion by Jezus, Athens, . De s, Infidels, Free-Thinkers, &c. &c. AMONGST other undoubted authori- ties concerning our Saviour and his miracles, extant amongfl Pagan writers, the particulars which follow, are all attefled by force one or otherof thofe Heathen au- thors, who lived in or near the age of our Saviour and his difciples. " That Auguflus. Ca far had ordered the whole empire to be cenfed or taxed," which brought our Saviour's reputed parents to Bethlehem : this is mentioned by feveral Roman hiftorians, as Tacit.us, Suetonius, and Dion. " That a great light, or a new fiar appeared in the Eafl, . which direfed the wife men to our Saviour:" this is re- corded by Chalcidius. That Herod, the king of Palefline, fo often mentioned in the Roman hiflory, made a great (laughter of innocent children," being fo jealous of his fucceffor, that he put to death his ownfons on that account: this charaEter of him is given by feveral hiftorians, and this cruel fa& mentioned by Macrobius, a Heathen author, who tells it as a known thing, with- out any mark or doubt upon it. ° That our Saviour had been in Egypt :" this, Cel- fus, though he raifes a monflrous Rory upon it, is fo far from denying, that he tells us our Saviour learned the arts of magic in that country. " That Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea ; that our Saviour was brought in judgment before him, and by him condemned and crucified :" this is re- corded by Tacitus. " That many mira- culous cures and works, out of the ordi- nary courfe of nature, were wrought by him :" this is confeffed by Julian the apof- tate,- Porphyry, and Hierocles, all of them not only Pagans, hut profeffed enemies and perfecutors of ChriRianity. " That our Saviour foretold feveral things which came to pars according to his prediEtions :" this was attefled by Phlegon in his annals, as we are allured by the learned Origen againft Celfus. " That at the time when' our Saviour died, there was a miraculous darknefs, and a great earthquake :" this is recorded by the fame Phlegon the Trallian, who was likewifeaPagan, and freeman to No. .1G, Adrian the emperor. We may here ob-, ferve, that a native ofTrallium, which was not fituate at fo great a diflance from Pa lefline, might very probably be informed of fuch remarkable events as had palled amongft the Jews in the age immediately preceding his own times, time feveral of his countrymen with whom he had con- verfed, might have received a confufed re- port ofour Saviour before his crucifixion, and probably lived within the (hake of the earthquake, and the fhadow of the eclipfe, which are recorded by this author. " That CHRIST was worfhipped as a God among(} the .Chriflians ; that they would rather Puf- fer death than blafpheme him ; that they received a facra;nent, and by it entered into a vow ofabflaining from fin and wick- ednefs," conformable to the advice given by St. Paul; " that they had privateaffem- blies of worfhip, and ufed to join together in hymns :" this is the account which Pliny the younger gives of Chriflianity in his days, about feventy years after the death of CHRIST, and which agrees in all it's circumflances with the accounts we have in holy writ, of the firfl Rate ofChriflianity after the crucifixion of our bleffed Saviour. That St. Peter, whofe miracles are many of them recorded in holy writ, did many wonderful works," is owned by Julian the apoflate, who therefóre reprefents him as a great magician, and one who had in his poffeffion a book of magical ferrets, left him by our Saviour. " That the devils or evil fpirits were fubjeft to them," we may learn from Porphyry, who objeasto Chrif- tianity, that fince JEsus had begun to be worfhipped, Æfcu apius and the reif of the gods did no more converfe with men : nay, Celfus himfelf affirms the fame thing in ef- fea, when he Pays, that the power which feemed to refide in Chriflians, proceeded from the ufe ofcertain names, and the in- vocation of certain daimons. Origen re- marks on this.paffage, that the author doubt- lefs hints at thofe Chriflians who put to flight evil fpirits, and healed thofe who were poffeffed with them ; a fael which had 5 K been
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