Ante-Nicene Fathers/Volume VIII/Pseudo-Clementine Literature/The Clementine Homilies/Homily XIX/Chapter 19
Chapter XIX.—Some Actions Really Wicked.
And Peter said: “A man ought to punish himself through self-restraint,[1] when his lust wishes to hurry on to the injury of another, knowing that[2]the wicked one can destroy the wicked, for he has received power over them from the beginning. And not yet is this an evil to those who have done evil; but that their souls should remain punished after the destruction, you are right in thinking to be really harsh, though the man who has been fore-ordained for evil should say that it is right.[3] Wherefore, as I said, we ought to avoid doing injury[4] to another for the sake of a short lived pleasure, that we may not involve ourselves in eternal punishment for the sake of a little pleasure.” And Simon said: “Is it the case, then, that there is nothing either bad or good by nature, but the difference arises through law and custom? For is it not[5] the habit of the Persians to marry their own mothers, sisters and daughters, while marriage with other women is prohibited[6] as most barbarous? Wherefore, if it is not settled what things are evil, it is not possible for all to look forward to the judgment of God.” And Peter said: “This cannot hold; for it is plain to all that cohabitation with mothers is abominable, even though the Persians, who are a mere fraction of the whole, should under the effects of a bad custom fail to see the iniquity of their abominable conduct. Thus also the Britons publicly cohabit in the sight of all, and are not ashamed; and some men eat the flesh of others, and feel no disgust; and others eat the flesh of dogs; and others practice other unmentionable deeds. Thus, then we ought not to form our judgments with a perception which through habit has been perverted from its natural action. For to be murdered is an evil, even if all were to deny it; for no one wishes to suffer it himself, and in the case of theft[7] no one rejoices at his own punishment. If, then, no one[8] were at all ever to confess that these are sins, it is right even then to look forward of necessity to a judgment in regard to sins.” When Peter said this, Simon answered: “Does this, then, seem to you to be the truth in regard to the wicked one? Tell me.”
Footnotes
edit- ↑ Dressel translates viriliter, “manfully.”
- ↑ This word is supplied by conjecture.
- ↑ This passage is hopelessly corrupt. We have changed δικαίως into δικαιοῖς, the verb, and τὸν προδιωρισμένον into τοῦ προδιωρισμένου.
- ↑ We have adopted Wieseler’s emendation of ἄδικον into ἀδικεῖν.
- ↑ This is a conjectural filling up of a blank.
- ↑ This is partly conjecture, to fill up a blank.
- ↑ The text is likely corrupt.
- ↑ Uhlhorn changed οὖν ἑνός into οὐδενός. We have changed καὶ τρίτην into καὶ τότε τήν. Various emendations have been proposed.