ATH 



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A T II 



Vlicnago- dour, if we may judge from appearances, was equal to 

 his zeal, and infinitely superior to that of most con- 

 troversialists either ancient or modem. For on care- 

 fully perusing the sacred volume, reflecting on the 

 important ana long-desired discoveries which it con- 

 tains, and weighing impartially the arguments of the 

 primitive fathers against the absurditiesof polytheism ; 

 M philosopher became a convert to the reason 

 of his antagonists, and thenceforward became a power- 

 ful champion of the cross. He is said to have been 

 the founder of the Alexandrian school, and to have 

 had Clemens Alcxandrinus among his disciples. 



The church being about this time greatly oppress- 

 ed in the East, Athenagoras wrote a remonstrance on 

 the subject, addressed to the Emperors Marcus Aur 

 relius Antoninus, and Lucius Aurelius Commodus. 

 This remonstrance, containing the principles of Chris- 

 tianity, and a justification of secession from paganism, 

 was presented, according to the opinion of some wri- 

 ters, by Athenagoras in person, who, it is asserted, 

 had for that purpose been sent at the head of an em- 

 bassy to the imperial court, about A. D. 168. Others 

 however reject this opinion, on the grounds that such 

 an embassy is not once alluded to in history ; that the 

 common title of the piece (xpeiiu*) is in some manu- 

 scripts *-o>.o-/itf, or " defence ;" and that even Tr^irfiact, 

 which may signify " request" as well as " embassy," is 

 never applied to the instructions of an ambassador, but 

 to his mission. Be this however as it will, the apology 

 or embassy still exists, and is couched in language of con- 

 siderable elegance. The frequent inversions and paren- 

 theses betray, a little too sensibly, the art of the rheto- 

 rician :- the epithets, too, bestowed on the emperors, are 

 unwarrantably strained, andbordering even on blasphe- 

 my ; but with all these defects, which indeed belong 

 to the period rather than to the man, the style has 

 undoubted pretensions to the character of Attic ; and 

 the train of reasoning, particularly in exposing the 

 pagan superstition, is remarkably forcible and happy. 

 Athenagoras wrote also a book on " The Resurrec- 

 tion of the Dead." In this treatise, which is also 

 preserved, the author properly confines himself chiefly 

 to mere reason, since in a controversy with infidels, an 

 appeal to scripture were evidently fruitless. 



The Platonic philosophy influenced, in no small 

 , the theological tenets of Athenagora3. He 

 endeavoured to explain, on the principles of that 

 school, the nature of the Deity, the particular energy 

 of the Logos in the divine mind, and the eternal and 

 necessary coexistence of the Father and the Son. He 

 maintained, in opposition to the Peripatetics and 

 others, the entire and absolute distinction between 

 God and matter ; and he supposed that these two 

 principles, one spiritual and intelligent, the other im- 

 perfect and untractable, were connected by interme- 

 diate existences, partaking of the nature of both, 

 beings he considered as good or evil according 

 ;is spirit or matter predominated. The evil kind he 

 further subdivided into two classes, of which one 

 consifted of those angels who originally transgressed 

 the divine command-; and the other, of the souls of 

 those giants who were produced by the intercourse 

 of the angels with the daughters of men. This phi- 

 losopher was one of those who recommended and 

 practised celibacy as a piece of meritorious mortifica- 



tion, and viewed second marriages with the utmost Alhtnotta. 

 abhorrence. Altogether, the writings of Athena- rus - 

 goras savour strongly of that subtlety which distin- 

 guished the Grecian schools. He never, it is said, 

 could sink the lofty philosopher into the plain Chris- 

 tian, but retained, even in his dress, the badges of 

 that profession to which he had been educated. 



The two remaining treatises of Athenagoras have 

 undergone many impressions, of which the reader 

 will find a long list in Fabricius. The best is that 

 published at Oxford in 1706. The romance, en- 

 titled, " True and Perfect Love," has, we know not 

 why, been ascribed to the same Athenagoras. It .is 

 for the most part but a compilation of passages from 

 Herodotus, Plutarch, Q. Curtius, Jamblichus, and 

 Heliodorus, and has all the appearance of being the 

 production of some modern Greek. There are ten 

 or twelve more of the same name mentioned by au- 

 thors ; but few of them are of any note. 



See Athenag. Philos. Atheniensis Opera, passim. 

 Cave, H. L. v. i. Fabricii Bib/. Grcec. vol. v. 1. 5. 

 Baronii Annal. Eccles. v. ii. Dict.de Bayle. Lard- 

 ner's Works, v. ii. Brucker's Hist. Philos. by En- 

 field, v. ii. (e) 



ATHENODORUS, an eminent Stoic philoso- 

 pher, and the intimate friend of Augustus. He was 

 born at a village near Tarsus, in Cilicia, whence he 

 obtained the surname of Cananita. When young, he 

 displayed a remarkable instance of generosity. His 

 brother being convicted of a crime for which his 

 property was confiscated, Athenodorus gave him the 

 half of his ; and overlooking the ingratitude with 

 which he received it, continued to treat him with 

 unabated kindness. On going to Rome, the excel- 

 lence of his character procured for him the friendship 

 of Augustus, that discerning patron of merit ; who 

 loaded him with honours, and made him preceptor to 

 Tiberius. 



Being indulged by the emperor with an unlimited 

 freedom of expressing his sentiments, he availed himself 

 of this liberty, on one occasion, in rather an extraor- 

 dinary manner. It happened one day that Athenodorus 

 met a senator of his acquaintance, who was thrown into 

 the greatest alarm, because the emperor had sent for his 

 wife, who was remarkable for her beauty. Nobody, it 

 seems, ever thought of resisting such a mandate ; so 

 formidable was the tyrant's resentment. But the 

 philosopher resolved to give him a strong hint ; for 

 arming himself with a naked sword, and slipping in- 

 to the chair instead of the lady, he was thus carried 

 into the presence of Augustus. Athenodorus rushed 

 out of the chair, and furiously brandishing the sword, 

 seemed to be on the point of dispatching him. The 

 emperor was at first greatly terrified; but on learn- 

 ing the intention, he received the admonition with 

 much deference, and behaved, it is said, more pru- 

 dently for the future. 



Having continued at court till he was far advanced 

 in years, Athenodorus obtained permission to return 

 to his native country. Before he went away, he ad- 

 vised Augustus to be on his guard against anger; re- 

 commending to him, whenever he felt the commence- 

 ment of that passion, to repeat the four-and-twenty 

 letters of the alphabet : upon which, the emperor, 

 taking him by the hand, said to him in the kindest 



