REL 1350 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Stoicism
Document Summary
Early christian intellectuals and defenders of the faith. Christians" rejection of the old gods seemed like atheism: christians" worship of god was mainly private and they didn"t believe in the old gods. Refusal to join emperor worship seemed like treason. Christian doctrine of lord"s supper/eucharist seemed like cannibalism. Hebrew scriptures were reflective of the poor and uncultured people who wrote them. Jesus was a magician and worker of wickedness, a crime in the roman empire (celsus, 2nd century greek philosopher) The women who witnessed jesus" resurrection were hysterical and couldn"t be trusted (celsus) Those who find the cross offensive are fools. For christians, the cross is the power of god. Because the greeks worship wisdom and philosophy, he says that god is the most wise and the great debater . That even god"s foolishness is wiser than humans. Apologist is not one giving an apology but giving an intellectual defense for their beliefs.
