Note 13 — Lecture II. The Literary Opposition of Heathens Against Christianity in the Early Ages.

The question of Lucian's intention to injure Christianity has been discussed and maintained by Krebsius in a Dissertation, De Malitioso Luciani Consilio Religionem Christianam scurrili dicacitate vanam et ridiculam reddendi, Opusc. Acad. p. 308 seq. The contrary view is maintained by Eichstadt in a dissertation, Lucianus num scriptis suis adjuvare voluerit Religionem Christianam, Jena, 1822. Krebsius is extravagant in interpreting many unimportant references in Lucian as relating to Christianity. See Tzchirner, Opusc. Acad. p. 290. Neander also states his opinion on the question, Kirchengesch. i. 269 seq.

The same subject has been discussed with great care and learning by Adolph Planck, dean of Heidenheim in Würtemburg, Lucian und Christenthum, a contribution to the church history of the second century; originally published in the Studien und Kritiken, 1851, and translated in the American Bibliotheca Sacra, April and July, 1853. He there studies Lucian's tract, the Peregrinus, (1) in the character which it offers of Peregrinus as a Cynic, for the purpose of examining the probability of his death being a parody on Christian martyrdom; (2) in his character as a Christian, in order to exhibit Lucian's opinion of Christianity and of the traits of Christian life brought out; (3) with a view to ascertain the sources and amount of Lucian's knowledge of Christianity; discussing fully, by means of quotations, the evidence of Lucian's acquaintance with the early Christian literature.

The analysis of the Peregrinus Proteus is as follows: It professes to be a letter from Lucian to Cromius narrating Peregrinus's death. Peregrinus had gone to Olympia, with the pompous design of displaying his death before the assembly at the games. Lucian lets us hear the speeches, descriptive of Peregrinus's life, delivered before the decisive act. A certain Theagenes, an admirer of Peregrinus, delivers a bombastic eulogy, § 3-7, repelling the charge of vanity imputed to him, and comparing his proposed death with that of Hercules, &c. Lucian opposes to this some invectives delivered by another, whose name he professes to have forgotten, which refer, § 7-30, to the history of Peregrinus to which Theagenes had alluded; tracing his crimes, his journeys from land to land, his turning Christian in Syria, his expulsion for disobedience, his subsequent wanderings and crimes, and the universal contempt which he had brought upon himself. Theagenes replies to this speech; but Lucian preferred to go to see the wrestling-match. Afterwards however he heard Peregrinus pronounce his own eulogy, and boast of his sufferings on behalf of philosophy. Then, after most of the guests had left Elis, § 35, &c. Peregrinus proceeded to erect his own funeral pile, and consumed [pg 403] himself on it. Lucian after seeing the end went away, and added a legend about the appearance of a hawk; which story he soon afterwards found had already gained credence. The moral which he draws is, that Cromius ought to despise such people, and impute their conduct to love of fame.

The passages of the work which have specific reference to Christianity are, § 11-13, which describe Peregrinus's intercourse with the Christians; and § 35-41, which describe his martyrdom. The references are to Dindorf's ed. Paris 1840.