- Paperback: 160 pages
- Publisher: OUP USA; New Ed edition (23 Mar 1995)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0195041518
- ISBN-13: 978-0195041514
- Product Dimensions: 20.6 x 13.8 x 1.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 588,419 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
The works of many early critics of the Christian church were burned by ruling emperors or otherwise destroyed in the second and third centuries, but the writings of the Greek pagan philosopher, Celsus, have survived indirectly through his eloquent opponent Origen of Alexandria. In his apologetical treatise, Contra Celsum, Origen argues against the ideas set forth by Celsus and quotes from Celsus' The True Doctrine at length. Through this treatise, Celsus has come to represent the detached pagan voice of the ages. In this translation, Professor Hoffmann has, for the first time, painstakingly reconstructed the main order of the philosopher's argument. Celsus' discourse shows him to be an eclectic philosopher--a dabbler in various schools of thought, including Platonism and Stoicism, and a student of the history and religious customs of many nations. Hoffman supplements this definitive translation with an informative introduction, summarizing Celsus' premises and placing the identity of Celsus in its historical context.
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It is not difficult to reconstruct the main lines in the development of early anti-Christian polemic from the writings preserved to us in the New Testament. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
It is not difficult to reconstruct the main lines in the development of early anti-Christian polemic from the writings preserved to us in the New Testament. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Hoffmann’s translation of Celsus’ “Alethes Logos”, recovered from quotations in Origen’s “Contra Celsum” is at once excellent yet severely deficient. The body of the text should speak for itself, and to review something written eighteen centuries ago would be presumptuous. Suffice it to say that Celsus’ arguments and ripstes are both enlightening, witty and also surprisingly modern (as Phillip Schaff, the Church historian also notes, as is mentioned in Hoffmann’s introduction).
Hoffmann’s introduction, however, I find deficient. He writes at length on the state of Christianity at the time yet does not cover but briefly the rest of the religious milieu which Christianity found itself in at the time- save a brief excursus on Celsus’ own supposed philosophy.
He also presents his own views on Celsus’ work, a practice I find arogant in translators- in my opinion it is better to let the work speak for itself. Would a modern English translation of the Iliad critique the style of Homer? While I am unaware of Hoffmann’s own religious beliefs, he does seem rather contemptuous of Celsus, a current of tacit support for Christianity runs through the introduction and notes, albeit subtly, which to me is rather distasteful. Rather than labelling Celsus as “repetititve” and “facile”, a better practice would have been to let the reader draw their own conclusions.
On the whole, Hoffmann presents a good reconstruction and translation of Celsus'work, but would have been better to keep his opinions to himself.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a translation of an early critique of christianity by a pagan writer, famously argued against by Origen in Contra Celsum. A marvellous vision of how earliest christianity was viewed by the pagans around them.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
We are told about the Christian books being burned way back during the Roman empire. What we have not been told about is that the Chyristians repaid the compliment as soon as they could.
This book was among the books the Christians hated and burned. But they forgot to burn the books containing their polemics against it, so it has been more or less reconstructed.
The Chruch's hatred of science is nothing new. It goes back to the earliest Christianity. See History of the Conflict between Religion and Science. Here is a gratis ebook version History of the Conflict Between Religion and Science. It is from the nineteenth century but well worth reading.
This book was among the books the Christians hated and burned. But they forgot to burn the books containing their polemics against it, so it has been more or less reconstructed.
The Chruch's hatred of science is nothing new. It goes back to the earliest Christianity. See History of the Conflict between Religion and Science. Here is a gratis ebook version History of the Conflict Between Religion and Science. It is from the nineteenth century but well worth reading.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
No arguments, only faith
Celsus's tract `On the True Doctrine - A Discourse Against the Christians' could be partly recovered from the treatise by Origin of Alexandria `Contra Celsum'. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Luc REYNAERT
Really rather good
It is good to at least have a translation of this book - the earliest criticism of xtianism. Although I originally gave this two stars I feel on reflection that five may be more... Read more
Published on 13 April 2009 by opus
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