Lives changed, in philosophy and in the Church
If we are going to reproach those who have changed with the life they led before, then it is time for us to accuse Phaedo as well, even though he became a philosopher, since, as the story goes, Socrates brought him over from a brothel to the study of philosophy. We shall also reproach philosophy with the dissolute life of Polemon, who succeeded Xenocrates, though there too we ought to welcome this in philosophy: that the reasoning of those who won them over had the power to draw men who had been held fast by such great evils away from them.
Among the Greeks there was one Phaedo, and I do not know whether a second, and one Polemon, who turned from a dissolute and utterly wicked life and took up philosophy. But with Jesus it was not only the twelve at that time; it has always been many times as many, who have become a company of the self-controlled and say of their former lives: “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to all kinds of desires and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another; but when the kindness and love for humankind of God our Saviour appeared” (Titus 3:3–4), then “through the washing of rebirth and renewal of the Spirit, which he poured out on us richly” (Titus 3:5–6), we became what we are. For God “sent his word and healed them, and rescued them from their corruptions” (Psalm 107:20), as the one who prophesied in the Psalms taught.
To what has been said I might add this. Chrysippus, in his book on the treatment of the passions, in order to check the passions of the soul in human beings, tries to treat those held fast by the passions according to the various schools, without laying claim to know which doctrine is the true one. He says that even if pleasure is the end, the passions must be treated in this way; and even if there are three kinds of goods, those caught in the passions must, on this reasoning, be freed from them in this way none the less.
But the accusers of Christianity do not see in how many people the passions are checked, and in how many the flood of wickedness, and how many people’s savage characters are tamed, by means of the word. They, who boast of their public spirit, ought to have given it thanks for turning people away from many evils by a new method, and to have borne witness to it, if not that it is true, at least that it is of benefit to the human race.
Greek
Εἰ δ᾿ ἐπὶ τῷ προτέρῳ βίῳ ὀνειδίζειν μέλλοιμεν τοῖς μεταβαλοῦσιν, ὥρα καὶ Φαίδωνος ἡμᾶς κατηγορεῖν καὶ φιλοσοφήσαντος, ἐπεὶ, ὡς ἡ ἱστορία φησὶν, ἀπὸ [οἰκήματος] στέγους αὐτὸν μετήγαγεν εἰς φιλόσοφον διατριβὴν ὁ Σωκράτης. ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν Πολέμωνος ἀσωτίαν, τοῦ διαδεξαμένου Ξενοκράτην, ὀνειδίσομεν φιλοσοφίᾳ· δέον κἀκεῖ τοῦτ᾿ αὐτῆς ἀποδέξασθαι. ὅτι δεδύνηται ὁ ἐν τοῖς πείσασι λόγος ἀπὸ τηλικούτων μεταστῆσαι κακῶν τοὺς προκατειλημμένους ἐν αὐτοῖς. καὶ παρὰ μὲν τοῖς Ἕλλησιν εἷς τις Φαίδων καὶ οὐκ οἶδα εἰ δεύτερος καὶ εἷς Πολέμων μεταβαλόντες ἀπὸ ἀσώτου καὶ μοχθηροτάτου βίου ἐφιλοσόφησαν, παρὰ δὲ τῷ Ἰησοῦ οὐ μόνοι τότε οἱ δώδεκα ἀλλ᾿ ἀεὶ καὶ πολλαπλασίους, οἵτινες γενόμενοι σωφρόνων χορὸς λέγουσι περὶ τῶν προτέρων· „ἦμεν γάρ ποτε καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀνόητοι. ἀπειθεῖς, πλανώμενοι, δουλεύοντες ἐπιθυμίαις καὶ ἡδοναῖς ποικίλαις, ἐν κακίᾳ καὶ φθόνῳ διάγοντες, στυγητοὶ, μισοῦντες ἀλλήλους· ὅτε δ᾿ ἡ χρηστότης καὶ ἡ φιλανθρωπία ἐπεφάνη τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν θεοῦ,“ „διὰ λουτροῦ παλιγγενεσίας καὶ ἀνακαινώσεως τοῦ πνεύματος. οὗ ἐξέχεεν ἐφ᾿ ἡμᾶς πλουσίως,“ τοιοίδε γεγόναμεν. „ἐξαπέστειλε“ γὰρ ὁ θεὸς „τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἰάσατο αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐῤῥύσατο αὐτοὺς ἐκ τῶν διαφθορῶν αὐτῶν,“ ὡς ὁ ἐν ψαλμοῖς προφητεύσας ἐδίδαξε. καὶ ταῦτα δ᾿ ἂν προσθείην τοῖς λεγομένοις, ὅτι Χρύσιππος ἐν τῷ περὶ παθῶν θεραπευτικῷ πειρᾶται ὑπὲρ τοῦ καταστεῖλαι τὰ ἐν ἀνθρώποις πάθη τῶν ψυχῶν, μὴ προσποιησάμενος ποῖόν τι τῆς ἀληθείας ἐστὶ δόγμα, θεραπεύειν κατὰ τὰς διαφόρους αἱρέσεις τοὺς ἐν τοῖς πάθεσι προκατειλημμένους καί φησιν ὅτι, κἂν ἡδονὴ τέλος ᾖ, οὑτωσὶ θεραπευτέον τὰ πάθη· κἂν τρία γένη τῶν ἀγαθῶν, οὐδὲν ἧττον κατὰ τὸν λόγον τοῦτον τῶν παθῶν οὕτως ἀπαλλακτέον τοὺς ἐνεχομένους αὐτοῖς. οἱ δὲ κατήγοροι τοῦ χριστιανισμοῦ οὐχ ὁρῶσιν, ὅσων πάθη καὶ ὅσων χύσις κακίας καταστέλλεται καὶ ὅσων ἄγρια ἤθη ἡμεροῦται προφάσει τοῦ λόγου. ᾧ ἔδει αὐχοῦντας αὐτοὺς τὸ κοινωνικὸν χάριτας ὁμολογεῖν, καινῇ μεθόδῳ πολλῶν κακῶν μεταστήσαντι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, καὶ μαρτυρεῖν γε αὐτῷ εἰ καὶ μὴ ἀλήθειαν ἀλλὰ τὸ λυσιτελὲς τῷ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένει.