Christianity: Its Evidences, Its Origin, Its Morality, Its History Part 10

"'That there is but one G.o.d, and that we ought to love and serve him, and to endeavour to resemble him in holiness and righteousness; that this G.o.d rewards humility and punishes pride.

"'That the true happiness of man consists in being united to G.o.d, and his only misery in being separated from him.

"'That the soul is mere darkness, unless it be illuminated by G.o.d; that men are incapable even of praying well, unless G.o.d teaches them that prayer which alone can be useful to them.

"'That there is nothing solid and substantial but piety; that this is the source of all virtues, and that it is the gift of G.o.d.

"'That it is better to die than to sin.

"'That it is better to suffer wrong than to do it.

"'That the "Word" ([Greek: Logos]) formed the world, and rendered it visible; that the knowledge of the Word makes us live very happily here below, and that thereby we obtain felicity after death.

"'That the soul is immortal, that the dead shall rise again, that there shall be a final judgment--both of the righteous and of the wicked, when men shall appear only with their virtues or vices, which shall be the occasion of their eternal happiness or misery.'"

It is this Logos who was "figured in the shape of a cross on the universe" (ante, p. 358). The universe, which is but the materialised thought of G.o.d, is made by his Logos, his Word, which is the expression of his thought. In the Christian creed it is the Logos, the Word of G.o.d, by whom all things are made (John i. 1-3). The very name, as well as the thought, is the same, whether we turn over the pages of Plato or those of John. Philo, the great Jewish Platonist, living in Alexandria at the close of the last century B.C. and in the first half of the first century after Christ, speaks of the Logos in terms that, to our ears, seem purely Christian. Philo was a man of high position among the Jews in Alexandria, being "a man eminent on all accounts, brother to Alexander the alabarch [governor of the Jews], and one not unskilful in philosophy" (Josephus' "Antiquities of the Jews," bk. xviii., ch. 8, sec. 1). This "Alexander was a princ.i.p.al person among all his contemporaries both for his family and wealth" (Ibid, bk. xx, ch. 5, sec. 2). He was the princ.i.p.al man in the Jewish emba.s.sage to Caius (Caligula) A.D. 39-40, and was then a grey-headed old man. Keim speaks of him as about sixty or seventy years old at that time, and puts his birth at about B.C. 20. He writes: "The Theology of Philo is in great measure founded on his peculiar combination of the Jewish, the Platonic, and the Neo-Platonic conception of G.o.d. The G.o.d of the Old Testament, the exalted G.o.d, as he is called by the modern Hegelian philosophy, stood in close relations to the Greek Philosophers' conception of G.o.d, which believed that the Supreme Being could be accurately defined by the negative of all that was finite. In accordance with this, Philo also described G.o.d as the simple Ent.i.ty; he disclaimed for him every name, every quality, even that of the Good, the Beautiful, the Blessed, the One. Since he is still better than the good, higher than the Unity, he can never be known _as_, but only _that_, he is: his perfect name is only the four mysterious letters (Jhvh)--that is, pure Being. By such means, indeed, neither a fuller theology nor G.o.d's influence on the world was to be obtained. And yet it was the problem of philosophy, as well as of religion, to shed the light of G.o.d upon the world, and to lead it again to G.o.d. But how could this Being which was veiled from the world be brought to bear upon it? By Philo, as well as by all the philosophy of the time, the problem could only be solved illogically.

Yet, by modifying his exalted nature, it might be done. If not by his being, yet by his work he influences the world; his powers, his angels, all in it that is best and mightiest, the instrument, the interpreter, the mediator and messenger of G.o.d; his pattern and his first-born, the Son of G.o.d, the Second G.o.d, even himself G.o.d, the divine Word or Logos communicate with the world; he is the ideal and actual type of the world and of humanity, the architect and upholder of the world, the manna and the rock in the wilderness" ("Jesus of Nazara," vol. i., pp. 281, 282).

"Man is fallen.... There is no man who is without sin, and even the perfect man, if he should be born, does not escape from it.... Yet there is a redemption, willed by G.o.d himself, and brought to pa.s.s by the act of a wise man. Adam's successors still preserve the types of their relations.h.i.+p to the Father, although in an obscure form, each man possesses the knowledge of good and evil and an incorruptible judgment, subject to reason; his spiritual strength is even now aided by the Divine Logos, the image, copy, and reflection of the blessed nature.

Hence it follows that man can discern and see all the stains with which he has wilfully or involuntarily defiled his life, that man by means of his self-knowledge can decide to subdue his pa.s.sions, to despise his pleasures and desires, to wage the battle of repentance, and to be just at any cost, and by the fundamental virtues of humanity, piety, and justice, to imitate the virtues of the Father.... In such perfection as is possible to all, even to women and to slaves, since no one is a slave by nature, the wise man is truly rich. He is n.o.ble and free who can proudly utter the saying of Sophocles, G.o.d is my ruler, not one among men! Such a one is priest, king, and prophet, he is no longer merely a son and scholar of the Logos, he is the companion and son of G.o.d.... G.o.d is the eternal guide and director of the world, himself requiring nothing, and giving all to his children. It is of his goodness that he does not punish as a judge, but that, as the giver of grace, he bears with all. With him all things are possible; he deals with all, even with that which is almost beyond redemption. From him all the world hopes for forgiveness of sins, the Logos, the high priest, and intercessor, and the patriarchs pray for it; he grants it, not for the world's sake, but of his own gracious nature, to those who can truly believe. He loves the humble, and saves those whom he knows to be worthy of healing. His grace elects the pious before they are born, giving them victory over sensuality, and steadfastness in virtue. He reveals himself to holy souls by his Spirit, and by his divine light leads those who are too weak by nature even to understand the external world, beyond the limits of human nature to that which is divine" ("Jesus of Nazara," pp.

283-287). Such are the most important pa.s.sages of Keim's _resume_ of Philo's philosophy, and its resemblance to Christian doctrine is unmistakeable, and adds one more proof to the fact that Christianity is Alexandrian rather than Judaean. It will be well to add to this sketch the pa.s.sages carefully gathered out of Philo's works by Jacob Bryant, who endeavoured to prove, from their resemblance to pa.s.sages in the New Testament, that Philo was a Christian, forgetting that Philo's works were mostly written when Jesus was a child and a youth, and that he never once mentions Jesus or Christianity. It must not be forgotten that Philo lived in Alexandria, not in Judaea, and that between the Canaanitish and the h.e.l.lenic Jews there existed the most bitter hostility, so that--even were the story of Jesus true--it could not have reached Philo before A.D. 40, at which time he was old and gray-headed.

We again quote from Mr. Lake's treatise, who prints the parallel pa.s.sages, and we would draw special attention to the similarity of phraseology as well as of idea:

_Ident.i.ty of the Christ of the New Testament with the Logos of Philo._

Philo, describing the Logos, The New Testament, speaking says:-- of Jesus says:--

'The Logos is the Son 'This is the Son of G.o.d.'

of G.o.d the Father.'--De John i. 34.

Profugis.

'The first begotten of G.o.d.' 'And when he again bringeth --De Somniis. his first-born into the world.'--Heb. i. 6.

'And the most ancient of 'That he is the first-born all beings.'--De Conf. Ling. of every creature.'--Col. i. 15.

'The Logos is the image 'Christ, the image of the and likeness of G.o.d.'--De invisible G.o.d.'--Col. i. 15.

Monarch. 'The brightness of his (G.o.d's) glory, and the express image of his person.'--Heb.

i. 3.

'The Logos is superior to 'Being made so much the angels.'--De Profugis. better that the angels. Let all the angels of G.o.d wors.h.i.+p him.'--Heb. i. 4, 6.

'The Logos is superior to 'Thou hast put all things all beings in the world.'--De in subjection under his feet.'

Leg. Allegor. --Heb. ii. 8.

'The Logos is the instrument 'All things were made by by whom the world was him (the Word or Logos), made.'--De Leg. Allegor. and without him was not anything made that was 'The divine word by whom made.'--John i. 3 all things were ordered and disposed.'--De Mundi Opificio. 'Jesus Christ, by whom are all things.'--i Cor. viii. 6.

'By whom also he made the worlds.'--Heb. i. 2.

'The Logos is the light of 'The Word (Logos) was the world, and the intellectual the true light.'--John i. 9.

sun.'--De Somniis.

'The life and the light of men.'--John i. 4.

'I am the light of the world.'

--John viii. 12.

'The Logos only can see 'He that is of G.o.d, he G.o.d.'--De Confus. Ling. hath seen the Father.'--John vi. 46.

'No man hath seen G.o.d at any time. The only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him."--John i. 18.

'He is the most ancient 'Now, O Father, glorify of G.o.d's works.'--De Confus thou me with thine own self Ling. with the glory which I had with thee before the world 'And was before all things.' was.'--John xvii. 5.

--De Leg. Allegor.

'He was in the beginning with G.o.d.'--John i. 2.

'Before all worlds.'--2 Tim. i. 9.

'The Logos is esteemed 'Christ, who is over all, the same as G.o.d.'--De G.o.d blessed for evermore.'

Somniis. --Rom. ix. 5.

'Who, being in the form of G.o.d. thought it no robbery to be equal with G.o.d.'--Phil.

ii. 6.

'The Logos was eternal.' 'Christ abideth for ever.

--De Plant. Noe. --John xii. 34.

'But to the Son he saith, Thy throne, O G.o.d, is for ever and ever.'--Heb. i. 8.

'The Logos supports the 'Upholding all things by world, is the connecting the word of his power.'--Heb.

power by which all things i. 3.

are united.'--De Profugis.

'By him all things consist.'

'The Logos is nearest to --Col. i. 17.

G.o.d, without any separation; being, as it were, fixed upon 'I and my Father are one.'

the only true existing Deity, --John x. 30.

nothing coming between to 'That they may be one as disturb that unity."--De we are.'--John i. 18.

Profugis.

'The Logos is free from 'The only begotten Son, all taint of sin, either who is in the bosom of the voluntary or involuntary.'--De Father.'--John i. 18.

Profugis.

'The blood of Christ, who 'The Logos the fountain offered himself without of life. spot to G.o.d.'--Heb. ix. 14.

'It is of the greatest 'Who did no sin, neither consequence to every person to was guile found in his strive without remission to mouth.'--1 Pet. ii. 22.

approach to the divine Logos, the Word of G.o.d above, who 'Whosoever shall drink of the is the fountain of all wisdom; water that I shall give him, that by drinking largely shall never thirst, but the of that sacred spring, instead water that I shall give him of death, he may be rewarded shall be in him a well of with everlasting life.'--De water springing up into Profugis. everlasting life,'--John iv. 14.

'The Logos is the shepherd 'The great shepherd of the of G.o.d's flock. flock... our Lord Jesus.'-- Heb. xiii. 20.

'The deity, like a shepherd, and at the same time 'I am the good shepherd, and like a monarch, acts with the know my sheep, and am known most consummate order and of mine.'--John x. 14.

rect.i.tude, and has appointed his First-born, the upright 'Christ ... the shepherd and Logos, like the subst.i.tute of guardian of your souls.'-- a mighty prince, to take care 1 Pet. ii. 25.

of his sacred flock.'--De Agricult. 'For Christ must reign till he hath put all his enemies under The Logos, Philo says, is his feet.'--1 Cor xv. 25.

'The great governor of the world; he is the creative and 'Christ, above all princ.i.p.ality, princely power, and through and might, and dominion, and these the heavens and the every name that is named, not whole world were produced.' only in this world, but in the --De Profugis. world to come .. and G.o.d hath put all things under his feet.'-- Eph. i. 21, 22