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The foremost of the philosophers agree with us about the spiritual
felicity enjoyed by the blessed in the life to come; it is only the
resurrection of the flesh they call in question, and with all their
might deny. But the mass of men, learned and unlearned, the world's
wise men and its fools, have believed, and have left in meagre
isolation the unbelievers, and have turned to Christ, who in His own
resurrection demonstrated the reality of that which seems to our
adversaries absurd. For the world has believed this which God
predicted, as it was also predicted that the world would believe, a
prediction not due to the sorceries of Peter, since it was uttered so
long before. He who has predicted these things, as I have already
said, and am not ashamed to repeat, is the God before whom all other
divinities tremble, as Porphyry himself owns, and seeks to prove, by
testimonies from the oracles of these gods, and goes so far as to call
Him God the Father and King. Far be it from us to interpret these
predictions as they do who have not believed, along with the whole
world, in that which it was predicted the world would believe in. For
why should we not rather understand them as the world does, whose
belief was predicted, and leave that handful of unbelievers to their
idle talk and obstinate and solitary infidelity? For if they maintain
that they interpret them differently only to avoid charging Scripture
with folly, and so doing an injury to that God to whom they bear so
notable a testimony, is it not a much greater injury they do Him when
they say that His predictions must be understood otherwise than the
world believed them, though He Himself praised, promised,
accomplished this belief on the world's part? And why cannot He
cause the body to rise again, and live for ever? or is it not to be
believed that He will do this, because it is an undesirable thing,
and unworthy of God? Of His omnipotence, which effects so many
great miracles, we have already said enough. If they wish to know
what the Almighty cannot do, I shall tell them He cannot lie. Let
us therefore believe what He can do, by refusing to believe what He
cannot do. Refusing to believe that He can lie, let them believe
that He will do what He has promised to do; and let them believe it
as the world has believed it, whose faith He predicted, whose faith
He praised, whose faith He promised, whose faith He now points to.
But how do they prove that the resurrection is an undesirable thing?
There shall then be no corruption, which is the only evil thing about
the booty. I have already said enough about the order of the
elements, and the other fanciful objections men raise; and in the
thirteenth book I have, in my own judgment, sufficiently illustrated
the facility of movement which the incorruptible body shall enjoy,
judging from the ease and vigor we experience even now, when the body
is in good health. Those who have either not read the former books,
or wish to refresh their memory, may read them for themselves.
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