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and in fhort to call upon mankind to exert their whole ftrength in the love and adoration of that one Being, from whom they derived their exiftence, and on whom only they were taught to depend every moment for the happiness and continuance of it? Was it the bufinefs of magic to humanize our natures with compaffion, forgivenefs, and all the inftances of the most extenfive charity? Would evil fpirits contribute to make men fober, chafte, and temperate, and in a word to produce that reformation, which was wrought in the moral world by thofe doctrines of our Saviour, that received their fanction from his miracles? Nor is it poffible to imagine, that evil fpirits would enter into a combination with our Saviour to cut off all their correfpondence, and intercourfe with mankind, and to prevent any for the future from addicting themfelves to those rites and ceremonies, which had done them fo much honour. We fee the early ef fect which Chriftianity had on the minds of men in this particular, by that number of books, which were filled with the fecrets of magic, and made a facrifice to Chriftianity by the converts mentioned

in the Acts of the Apoftles. We have likewise an eminent inftance of the inconfiftency of our Religion with magic, in the history of the famous Aquila. This perfon, who was a kinfman of the Emperor Trajan, and likewife a man of great learning, notwithstanding he had embraced Christianity, could not be brought off from the ftudies of magic, by the repeated admonitions of his fellow-chriftians: fo that at length they expelled him their fociety, as rather choofing to lofe the reputation of fo confiderable a Profelyte, than communicate with one who dealt in fuch dark and infernal practices. Befides we may obferve, that all the favourers of magic were the most profest and bitter enemies to the chriftian religion. Not to mention Simon Magus and many others, I fhall only take notice of thofe two great perfecutors of chriftianity, the Emperors Adrian and Julian the Apoftate, both of them initiated in the myfteries of divination, and skilled in all the depths of magic. I fhall only add, that evil fpirits cannot be fuppofed to have concurred in the eftablishment of a religion which triumphed over them, drove them out of the places they poffeft,

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and divested them of their influence on mankind; nor would I mention this particular, though it be unanimously reported by all the ancient christian Authors did it not appear from the authorities above-cited, that this was a fact confest by heathens themselves.

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V. We now fee what a multitude of Pagan teftimonies may be produced for all thofe remarkable paffages, which might have been expected from them : and indeed of several, that, I believe, do more than answer your expectation, as they were not fubjects in their own nature fo exposed to public notoriety. It cannot be expected they fhould mention particulars, which were tranfacted amongst the Difciples only, or among fome few even of the Difciples themfelves; fuch as the transfiguration, the agony in the garden, the appearance of Chrift after his refurrection, and others of the like nature. It was impoffible for a heathen author to relate these things; because if he had believed them, he would no longer have been a heathen, and by that means his teftimony would not have been thought of fo much validity. Befides, his very report of facts fo

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favourable to Christianity would have prompted men to say that he was probably tainted with their doctrine. We have a parallel cafe in Hecateus, a famous Greek hiftorian, who had feveral paffages in his book conformable to the hiftory of the Jewish writers, which when quoted by Jofephus, as a confirmation of the Jewish hiftory, when his heathen adverfaries could give no other answer to it, they would needs fuppofe that Hecataus was a few in his heart, though they had no other reafon for it, but because his hiftory gave greater authority to the Jewish than the Egyptian Records.

GILADICI DACASTO

SECTION III.

I. Introduction to a fecond lift of Pagan Authors, who gave teftimony of our Saviour.

II. A paffage concerning our Saviour, from a learned Athenian.

III. His converfion from Paganifm to ChriStianity makes his evidence ftronger than if be bad continued a Pagan.

IV. Of another Athenian Philofopher converted to Chriftianity.

V. Why their converfion instead of weakening, ftrengthens their evidence in defence of Chriftianity.

VI. Their belief in our Saviour's biftory founded at firft upon the principles of biftorical faith.

VII. Their teftimonies extended to all the particulars of our Saviour's biftory. VIII. As related by the four Evangelifts.

I. O this lift of heathen Writers, who make mention of our Saviour, or touch upon any particulars of his life, I fhall add thofe Authors who were at first Heathens, and afterwards converted to Christianity; upon which account, as I fhall here fhew, their teftimonies are to be looked upon as the more authentic. And in this lift of evidences, I fhall confine myself to fuch learned Pagans as came over to Christianity in the three first centuries, because those were the times in which men had the best means of informing themselves of the truth of our Saviour's hiftory, and because among the great number of philofophers who came in afterwards, under

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