Philip Schaff (ed.) · 838 of 840

The City of God · Part 2

Gods, the, cities never spared on account of, 2, etc.; folly of the Romans in trusting, 3, etc.; the worshippers of, never received healthy precepts from, —the impurity of the worship of, 24; obscenities practised in honor of the Mother of the, 25; never inculcated holiness of life, 26; the shameful actions of, as displayed in theatrical exhibitions, 27; the reason why they suffered false or real crimes to be attributed to them, 28; the Romans showed a more delicate regard for themselves than for the, 29; the Romans should have considered those who desired to be worshipped in a licentious manner as unworthy of being honored as, 29; Plato better than, 30; if they had any regard for Rome, the Romans should have received good laws from them, 31; took no means to prevent the republic from being ruined by immorality, 36; etc.; the vicissitudes of life not dependent on, 37, etc.; incite to evil actions, 39, etc.; give secret and obscure instructions in morals, while their solemnities publicly incite to wickedness, 40; the obscenities of the plays consecrated to, contributed to overthrow the republic, 41;the evils which alone the pagans feared, not averted by, 43, etc.; were they justified in permitting the destruction of Troy? 43; could not be offended at the adultery of Paris, the crime being so common among themselves, 44; Varro's opinion of the utility of men feigning themselves to be the offspring of, 44; not likely they were offended at the adultery of Paris, as they were not at the adultery of the mother of Romulus, 45; exacted no penalty for the fratricidal conduct of Romulus, 45; is it credible that the peace of Numa's reign was owing to? 46; new, introduced by Numa, 48; the Romans added many to those of Numa, 48; Rome not defended by, 53, etc.; which of the, can the Romans suppose presided over the rise and welfare of the empire? 68, etc.; the silly and absurd multiplication of, for places and things, 68; divers set over divers parts of the world, 69; the many, who are asserted by pagan doctors to be the one Jove, 70, etc.; the knowledge and worship of the, which Varro glories in having conferred on the Romans, 75; the reasons by which the pagans defended their worshipping the divine gifts themselves among the, 77, etc.; the scenic plays which they have exacted from their worshippers, 77; the three kinds of, discovered by Scævola, 78, etc.; whether the worship of, has been of service to the Romans, 79; what their worshippers have owned they have thought about, 80; the opinions of Varro about, 81; of those who profess to worship them on account of eternal advantages, 108, etc.; Varro's thoughts about the, of the nations, 110, etc.; the worshippers of, regard human things more than divine, 111, etc.; Varro's distribution of, into fabulous, natural, and civil, 112, etc.; the mythical and civil, 113; natural explanations of, 116, etc.; the special officers of, 117; those presiding over the marriage chamber, 117, 118; the popular worship of, vehemently censured by Seneca, 119, 120; unable to bestow eternal life, 121; the select, 122; no reason can be assigned for forming the select class of, 123; those which preside over births, 123; the inferior and the select compared, 171; the secret doctrine of the pagans concerning the physical interpretation of, 125; Varro pronounces his own opinions concerning uncertain, 132; Varro's doctrine concerning, not self-consistent, 139, etc.; distinguished from men and demons, 153; do they use the demons as messengers? 158; Hermes laments the error of his forefathers in inventing the art of making, 161; scarcely any of, who were not dead men, 163; the Platonists maintain that the poets wrong the, 169; Apuleius' definition of, 170; does the intercession of demons secure the favor of, for men? 171; according to the Platonists, they decline intercourse with men,, 174, etc.; the name falsely given to those of the nations, yet given in Scripture to angels and men, 178, etc.; threats employed towards, 188; philosophers assigned to each of, different functions, 412.

Gods, the multitudes of, for every place and thing, 68, etc., 74, 75, 117, 118, 122, 123.

Gods, the invention of the art of making, 161.

Gog and Magog, 432.

Good, no nature in which there is not some, 409.

Good, the chief, 347; various opinions of the philosophers respecting, 397; the three leading views of, which to be chosen, 400, etc.; the Christian view of, 401, etc.

Good men, and wicked, the advantages and disadvantages indiscriminately occurring to, 5; reasons for administering correction to both together, 6, etc.; what Solomon says of things happening alike to both, 163.

Goods, the loss of, no loss to the saints, 7, etc.

Gospel, the, made more famous by the sufferings of its preachers, 391.

Gracchi, the civil dissensions occasioned by, 59.

Grace of God, the, the operation of, in relation to believers, 464; pertains to every epoch of life, 465; delivers from the miseries occasioned by the first sin, 500, 501.

Great Mother, the, the abominable sacred rites of, 137, 138.

Greeks, the conduct of the, on the sack of Troy, 3, 4.

Habakkuk, the prophecy and prayer of, 377.

Hagar, the relation of, to Sarah and Abraham, 325.

Haggai's prophecy respecting the glory of the latter house, 390.

Hadrian yields up portions of the Roman empire, 70, 80.

Ham, the conduct of, towards his father, 309; the sons of, 311.

Hannah's prophetic song, an exposition of, 339–343.

Hannibal, his invasion of Italy, and victories over the Romans, 56; his destruction of Saguntum, 56, 57.

Happiness, the gift of God, 121; of the saints in the future life, 406, 407.

Happiness, the, desired by those who reject the Christian religion, 34, etc.

Happy man, the, described by contrast, 66.

Heaven, God shall call to, 445.

Hebrew Bible, the, and the Septuagint, —which to be followed in computing the years of the antediluvians, 293, etc.

Hebrew language, the original, 317, etc.; written character of, 383.

Hebrews, the Epistle to the, 323.

Hecate, the reply of, when questioned respecting Christ, 416.

Heifer, goat, and ram, three years old, in Abraham's sacrifice, —the import of, 324.

Hell, 460; is the fire of, material? and if so, can it burn wicked spirits? 461.

Hercules, 365, 367; the story of the sacristan of, 115.

Here, 193.

Heretics, the Catholic faith confirmed by the dissensions of, 133, 134.

Hermes, the god, 164.

Hermes Trismegistus, respecting idolatry and the abolition of the superstitions of the Egyptians, 159, etc.; openly confesses the error of his forefathers, the destruction of which he yet deplores, 161, etc.

Herod, 393; a persecutor, 388, 389.

Heroes of the Church, the, 451.

Hesperius, miraculously delivered from evil spirits, 487.

Hippocrates quoted in relation to twins, 85.

Histriones, 30, note.

Holofernes, his inquiry respecting the Israelites, and Achior's answer, 319.

Holy Ghost, the, 259.

Homer, quoted, 43, 90.

Hope, the influence of, 403; the saints now blessed in, 414.

Horace, quoted, 3, 96.

Horatii and Curiatii, the, 49, 50.

Hortensius, the first dictator, 54.

Hosea, his prophecies respecting the things of the gospel, 375, 376.

Human race, the, the creation of, in time, 234; created at first in one individual, 241; the plenitude of, contained in the first man, 243.

Hydromancy, 142.

Hyrcanus, 388.

Ilium, modern, destroyed by Fimbria, 45, 46.

Image of the beast, the, 431.

Image of God, the human soul created in the, 241.

Images of the gods, not used by the ancient Romans, 81.

Imitation of the gods, 27.

Immortality, the portion of man, had he not sinned, 245, 254.

Incarnation of Christ, the, 195, 389; faith in, alone justifies, 453, etc.; the Platonists, in their impiety, blush to acknowledge, 199, etc.

Innocentia, of Carthage, miraculously cured of cancer, 486.

Innocentius, of Carthage, miraculously cured of fistula, 485, 486.

Ino, 368.

Intercession of the saints, —Of those who think that, on account of, no man shall be damned in the last judgment, 466, etc., 469, etc.

Io, daughter of, 363.

Ionic school of philosophy, the founder of the, 145.

Irenæus, a tax-gatherer, the son of, restored to life by means of the oil of St. Stephen, 489.

Isaac, and Ishmael, 285; a type, 286; the birth of, and import of his name, 328, 329; the offering up of, 329; Rebecca, the wife of, 330; the oracle and blessing received by, just as his father died, 331.

Isaiah, the predictions of, respecting Christ, 376.

Isis and Osiris, 164, 165, 186, 363, 364, 383, 384.

Israel, the name given to Jacob, —the import of, 333.

Israel, the nation of, its increase in, and deliverance from Egypt, 335, 336; were there any outside of, before Christ, who belonged to the fellowship of the holy city? 390, etc.

Italic school of philosophy, the, 145.

Jacob, and Esau, the things mysteriously prefigured by, 331, etc.; his mission to Mesopotamia, 332; his dream, 333; his wives, 333; why called Israel, 333; how said to have gone into Egypt with seventy-five souls, 334; his blessing on Judah, 334; his blessing the sons of Joseph, 335; the times of, and of Joseph, 363, etc.

Janus, the temple of, 46; the relation of, to births, 123; nothing infamous related of, 125; is it reasonable to separate Terminus and? 126; why two faces, and sometimes four, given to the image of? 127; compared with Jupiter, 127; why he has received no star, 131.

Japheth, 309.

Jeroboam, 359

Jerome, his labors as a translator of Scripture, 386; his commentary on Daniel referred to, 443.

Jerusalem, the new, coming down from heaven, 435, etc.

Jews, the, the kingdom of, founded by God, 82; what Seneca thought of, 120, 121; their unbelief, foretold in the Psalms, 356; end of the captivity of, —their prophets, 374, etc.; the many adversities endured by, 388, etc.; the dispersion of, predicted, 389; whether, before Christ, there were any outside of, who belonged to the heavenly city, 389.

Joseph, the sons of, blessed by Jacob, 335; the times of, 363; the elevation of, to be ruler of Egypt, 363; who were kings at the period of the death of? 364.

Joshua, 77; who were kings at the time of the death of? 366; the sun stayed in its course by, 459; the Jordan divided by, 459.

Jove, are the many gods of the pagans one and the same Jove? 70; the enlargement of kingdoms improperly ascribed to, 72; Mars, Terminus, and Juventas, refuse to yield to, 76, 80. See Jupiter.

Judah, Jacob's blessing on, 334, etc.

Judgment, ever going on, —the last, 421; ever present, although it cannot be discerned, 422; proofs of the last, from the New Testament and the Old, 423, etc.; words of Jesus respecting, 423, 424. 425, 426; what Peter says of, 437; predictions respecting, 441, etc., 443, etc., 445, etc.; separation of the good and bad in the, 447; to be effected in the person of Christ, 449, etc.

Julian, the apostate, 103; a persecutor, 393.

Juno, 69, 70, 123.

Jupiter, the power of, compared with Janus, 127, etc.; is the distinction made between, and Janus, a proper one? 128; the surnames of, 129; called "Pecunia," —why? 130; scandalous amours of, 368.

Justinus, the historian, quoted respecting Ninus's lust of empire, 67.

Juventas, 76, 79.

Keturah, what is meant by Abraham's marrying, after the death of Sarah? 330.

"Killeth and maketh alive, the Lord," 341.

Killing, when allowable, 15.

Kingdom, the, of Israel, under Saul, a shadow, 346; the description of 343; promises of God respecting, 348, etc., 350, etc.; varying character of, till the captivity, and finally, till the people passed under the power of the Romans, 359. 360.

Kingdom of Christ, the 430.

Kingdoms, without justice, 66; have any been aided or deserted by the gods? 67; the enlargement of, unsuitably attributed to Jove, 72; the times of, ordained by the true God, 82; not fortuitous, nor influenced by the stars, 84, 85; the three great, when Abraham was born, 321.

Kings, of Israel, the times of the, 336; after Solomon, 358; after the judges, 371; of the earthly city which synchronize with the times of the saints, reckoning from Abraham, 362, etc.; of Argos, 364; of Latium, 371.

Knowledge, the eternal and unchangeable, of God, 206, etc.; of our own existence, 220, etc.; by which the holy angels know God, 221, etc.

Labeo, cited, 31, 59, 153, 506.

Lactantius, quotations made by, from a certain Sibyl, 373.

Language, the origin of the diversity of, 312, etc.; the original, 317, etc.; diversities of, how they operate to prevent human intercourse, 405

Larentina, the harlot, 115.

Latinius, Titus, the trick of, to secure the re-enactment of the games, 78.

Latium, the kings of, 371.

Λατρεία and Δουλεία, 181, 182.

Laurentum, the kingdom of, 368.

Laver of regeneration, the, 464.

Law, the, confirmed by miraculous signs, 191, etc.; of Moses must be spiritually understood, to cut off the murmurs of carnal interpreters, 447, 448.

Lethe, the river, 201.

Lex Voconia, the, 75.

Liber, the god, 109; and Libera, 11I7, 123, 124, 368.

Liberty, the, which is proper to man's nature, 411, etc.

Life, the end of, whether it is material that it be long delayed, 9; the vicissitudes of, not dependent on the favor of the gods; but on the will of the true God, 37.

Life, eternal, the gift of God, 121; the promise of, uttered before the eternal times, 236.

Light, the, the division of, from the darkness, —the significance of this 215; pronounced “good”—meaning of this, 216.

Lime, the peculiar properties of, 454, 455.

Livy, quoted, 78.

Loadstone, the, 455.

Locusts, a fearful invasion of Africa by, 62.

Lot, the parting of Abraham and, 322; the deliverance of, from captivity, by Abraham, 323.

Lot's wife, 328.

Love and regard used in Scripture indifferently of good and evil affections, 266.

Lucan's Pharsalia, quoted, 10, 48, 60.

Lucillus, bishop of Sinita, cured of a fistula by the relics of St. Stephen, 488.

Lucina, the goddess, 70, 123.

Lucretia, her chastity and suicide, 13.

Lucretius, quoted, 455.

Lust, the evil of, 275; and anger, to be bridled, 277, etc.; the bondage of, worse than bondage to men, 134.

Lying-in woman, the, her god-protectors, 117.

Maccabæus, Judas, 388.

Maccabees, the Books of, 382.

Madness, the strange, which once seized upon all the domestic animals of the Romans, 59.

Magic art, the impiety of, 15; the marvels wrought by, 457.

Magicians of Egypt, the, 185.

Magnets, two, an image suspended between, in mid air, 457.

Malachi, 445.

“Mammon of unrighteousness,” 477, 478.

Man, though mortal, can enjoy true happiness, 173; recentness of the creation of, 233, etc.; the first, 243, etc.; the fall of the first, 245; the death with which he first was threatened, 250; in what state made, and into what state he fell, 251; forsook God before God forsook him, 251; effects of the sin of the first, 262, etc.; what it is to live according to, 264, etc. See First Man.

Manichæans, the, references to, 217; their view of the body, 265, etc.

Manlius, Cneius, 58.

Manturnæ, the goddess, 117, 118.

Marcellus, Marcus, destroys Syracuse, and bewails its ruin, 4.

Mares, the, of Cappadocia, 456.

Marica, the Minturnian goddess, 38.

Marius, 37. 38; the war between, and Sylla, 60, 61.

Marriage, as originally instituted by God, 278; among blood relations in primitive times, 297; between blood relations, now abhorred, 298.

Marriage bed-chamber, the, the gods which preside over, 117, 118.

Mars, Terminus, and Juventas, refuse to yield to Jove, 77, 80; and Mercury, the offices of, 130.

Martial, a nobleman, converted by means of flowers brought from the shrine of St. Stephen, 488.

Martyrs, the honor paid to, by Christians, 164, etc.; the heroes of the Church, 193; miracles wrought by, 491, 492.

Marvels related in history, 454, 455. 458; wrought by magic, 457.

Massephat, 347.

Mathematicians, the, convicted of professing a vain science, 87.

Mediator, Christ the, between God and man, 173; the necessity of having Christ as, to obtain the blessed life, 176; the sacrifice effected by, 193, etc.

Melchizedek, blesses Abraham, 323.

Melicertes, 368.

Men, the primitive, immortal, had they never sinned, 254; the creation of, and of angels, 479, 480.

Mercury, and Mars, 130; the fame of, 365.

Metellus, rescues the sacred things from the fire in the temple of Vesta, 56.

Methuselah, the great age of, 292.

Millennium, the, and note, 426.

Mind, the capacity and powers of, 502.

Minerva, 69, 124, 131, 139, 365.

Miracles, wrought by the ministry of angels, 185, etc., 188, etc., 190; the, ascribed to the gods, 191; the, by which God authenticated the law, 191, etc.; against such as deny the, recorded in Scripture, 192, etc.; the ultimate reason for believing, 200, 201; wrought in more recent times, 227–234; wrought by the martyrs in the name of Christ, 234, etc.

Miseries, the, of this life, Cicero on, 401; of the human race through the first sin, 499–501; deliverance from, through the grace of Christ, 501; which attach peculiarly to the toil of good men, 501, etc.

Mithridates, the edict of, enjoining the slaughter of all Roman citizens found in Asia, 58.

Monstrous races, —are they derived from the stock of Adam, or from Noah's sons? 54. 55.

Moses, miracles wrought by, 185; the time of, 335, 336. who were kings at the period of the birth of? 364; the time he led Israel out of Egypt, 366; the antiquity of the writings of, 383.

Mother of the gods, the obscenities of the worship of, 25, etc.; whence she came, 48.

Mucius, and king Porsenna, 99.

Mysteries, the Eleusinian, 125; the Samothracian, 133.

Mystery, the, of Christ's redemption often made known by signs, etc., 140.

Mystery of iniquity, the, 437, 438.

Nahor, 318.

Nakedness of our first parents, the, 276.

Nathan, his message to David, 348;: the resemblance of Psalm lxxxix. to the prophecy of, 349, etc.

Natural history, curious facts in: —the salamander, 454; the flesh of the peacock, 454; fire, 454; charcoal, 454; lime, 454 the diamond, 455; the loadstone, 455; the salt of Agrigentum, 456; the fountain of the Garamantæ, and of Epirus, 456; asbestos, 456; the wood of the Egyptian fig-tree, 456; the apples of Sodom, 456; the stone pyrites, 456; the stone selenite, 456; the Cappadocian mares, 456; the island Tilon, 456; the star Venus, 459.

Nature, not contrary to God, but good, 227; of irrational and lifeless creatures, 228; none in which there is not good, 409, 410.

Natures, God glorified in all, 228.

Necessity, is the will of man ruled by? 92.

Necromancy, 142.

Neptune, 131, 139, and Salacia, and Venilia, 134.

Nero, the first to reach the citadel of vice, 101; curious opinions entertained of him after his death, 438.

New Academy, the uncertainty of, contrasted with the Christian faith, 413.

New heavens, and new earth, the, 434, 435, etc.

Nigidius, cited in reference to the birth of twins, 86.

Nimrod, 311, 312, 317.

Nineveh, 311; curious discrepancy between the Hebrew and Septuagint as to the time fixed for the overthrow of, in Jonah's prophecy, 387; spared, 467; how the prediction against, was fulfilled, 471.

Ninus, 362.

Noah, commanded by God to build an ark, 306; whether after, till Abraham, any family can be found who lived according to God, 309; what was prophetically signified by the sons of? 309; the nakedness of, revealed by Ham, but covered by Shem and Japheth, its typical significance, 310; the generation of the sons of, 311, etc.

Noctes Atticæ, the, of Aulus Gellius, quoted, 167, 168.

Numa Pompilius, the peace that existed during the reign of, is it attributable to the gods? 46; introduces new gods, 47, etc.; the Romans add new gods to' those introduced by, 48; the story of finding the books of, respecting the gods, and the burning of the same by the senate, 141, etc.; befooled by hydromancy, 142.

Numantia, 58.

Numitor and Amulius, 371, 372.

Ogyges, 365.

Old Testament Scriptures, caused by Ptolemy Philadelphus to be translated out of Hebrew into Greek, 385, 386.

Opimius, Lucius, and the Gracchi, 59.

Oracles of the gods, responses of, respecting Christ, as related by Porphyry, 415, etc.

Order and law, the, which obtain in heaven, and on earth, 410.

Origen, the errors of, 217, 218.

Όρμή, 402.

Orpheus, 368.

Pagan error, the probable cause of the rise of, 132, 133, 163.

Paradise, man in, 272; would there have been generation in, had man not sinned? 279–281; Malachi's reference to man's state in, 446.

Paris, the gods had no reason to be offended with, 44.

Passions, the, which assail Christian souls, 169, etc.; which agitate demons, 169.

Paterfamilias, 411.

Patricians and Plebs, the dissensions between, 32, 33, 53.

Paulinus, 8.

Paulus and Palladia, members of a household cursed by a mother-in-law, miraculously healed at the shrine of St. Stephen, 490, 491.

Peace, the eternal, of the saints, 406, 407; the fierceness of war, and the disquietude of men make towards, 407–409; the universal, which the law of nature. preserves, 409, etc.; the, between the heavenly and earthly cities, 412, etc.; the, of those alienated from God, and the use made of it by God's people, 419; of those who serve God in this mortal life, cannot be apprehended in its perfection, 419; of God, which passeth all understanding, 507.

Peacock, the antiseptic properties of the flesh of, 454.

Pecunia, 125; Jupiter so named, 129.

Peleg, 317, 318.

Peripatetic sect, the, 152.

Peripatetics, and Stoics, the opinion of, about mental emotions, —an illustrative story, 167, 168.

"Perish," or, "Vanquish," 385.

Periurgists, 190.

Persecution, all Christians must suffer, 392; the benefits derived from, 392; the " ten persecutions," 393; the time of the final, hidden, 394.

Persius, quoted, 26, 27.

Perturbations, the three, of the souls of the wise, as admitted by the Stoics, 267; in the souls of the righteous, 268, etc.; were our first parents before the fall free from? 371.

Peter, ridiculously feigned by the heathen to have brought about by enchantment the worship of Christ, 394; heals the cripple at the temple gate, 395.

Petronia, a woman of rank, miraculously cured, 489.

Philosopher, origin of the name, 145.

Philosophers, the secret of the weakness of the moral precepts of, 26; the Italic and Ionic schools of, 145, etc.; of some who think the separation of soul and body not penal, 252; the discord of the opinions of, contrasted with the concord of the canonical Scriptures, 384, 385.

Philosophy, Varro's enumeration of the multitudinous sects of, 397–399.

Phoroneus, 363.

Picus, king of Argos, 368.

" Piety," 181.

Pirate, the apt reply of a, to Alexander the Great, 66.

Plato, would exclude the poets from his ideal republic, 30, etc.; his threefold division of philosophy, 146, etc.; how he was able to approach so near Christian knowledge, 151, etc.; his definition of the gods, 152; the opinion of, as to the transmigration of souls, 200; the opinion of, that almost all animals were created by. inferior gods, 243; declared that the gods made by the Supreme have immortal bodies, 252, 505; the apparently conflicting views of, and of Porphyry, if united, might have led to the truth, 506.

Platonists, the opinions of, preferable to those of other philosophers, 147, etc.; their views of physical philosophy, 148, etc.; how far they excel other philosophers in logic, or rational philosophy, 149; hold the first rank in moral philosophy, 149; their philosophy has come nearest to the Christian faith, 150; the Christian religion above all their science, 150; thought that sacred rites were to be performed to many gods, 152; the opinion of, that the souls of men become demons, 171; the three qualities by which they distinguish between the nature of men and of demons, 172, etc.; their idea of the non-intercourse of celestial gods with men, and the need of the intercourse of demons, 174, etc.; hold that God alone can bestow happiness, 180; have misunderstood the true worship of God, 182; the principles which, according to, regulate the purification of the soul, 194; blush to acknowledge the incarnation of Christ, 199; refutation of the notion of, that the soul is co-eternal with God, 201, 202; opinion of, that angels created man's body, 243; refutation of the opinion of, that earthly bodies cannot inherit heaven, 492, etc.

Players, excluded by the Romans from offices of state, 28, 29.

Plays, scenic, which the gods have exacted from their worshippers, 78.

Pleasure, bodily, graphically described, 102.

Plebs, the dissensions between, and the Patricians, 32, 33, 52; the secession of, 53.

Plotinus, men, according to, less wretched than demons, 171; regarding enlightenment from above, 181.

Plutarch, his Life of Cato quoted, 16; his Life of Numa, 81.

Pluto, 139.

Πνεϋμα, 259, 260.

Poetical license, allowed by the Greeks, restrained by the Romans, 27, 29.

Poets, the, Plato would exclude from his ideal republic, 30, etc., 153; the theological, 368.

Pontius, Lucius, announces Sylla's victory; 38.

"Poor, He raiseth the, out of the dunghill," 341.

Porphyry, his views of theurgy, 185, etc., 186, etc.; epistle of, to Anebo, 187, etc.; as to how the soul is purified, 194; refused to recognize Christ, 195; vacillation of, between the confession of the true God and the worship of demons 196; the impiety of, 197; so blind as not to recognize the true wisdom, 198; his emendations of Platonism, 200, etc; his ignorance of the universal way of the soul's deliverance, 202, etc.; abjured the opinion that souls constantly pass away and return in cycles, 240; his notion that the soul must be separated from the body in order to be happy, demolished by Plato, 249, etc.; the conflicting opinions of Plato and, if united, might have led to the truth, 250; his account of the responses of the oracles of the gods concerning Christ, 415–418.

Portents, strange, 62; meaning of the word, 459.

Possidonius, the story of 85.

Postumius, the augur, and Sylla, 38, 39.

Præstantius, the strange story related by, respecting his father, 370.

Praise, the love of, why reckoned a virtue? 96; of the eradication of the love of human, 97.

Prayer for the dead, 470.

Predictions of Scripture, 203.

Priest, the faithful, 344.

Priesthood; the, the promise to establish it for ever, how to be understood, 345; of Christ, described in the Psalms, 355.

Proclus, Julius, 51.

Projectus, Bishop, and the miraculous cure of blind women, 488.

Proletarii, the 54.

Prometheus, 364.

Promises, the, made to Abraham, 320, –322.

Prophetic age, the, 337.

Prophetic records, the, 336.

Prophecies, the threefold meaning of the, 338, 339; respecting Christ and His gospel, 375, 376. 377, 379, 380.

Prophets, the later, 360; of the time when the Roman kingdom began. 375.

Proscription, the, of Sylla, 61.

Proserpine, 133, 135.

Protasius and Gervasius, martyrs, a blind man healed by the bodies of, at Milan, 485; a young man freed from a devil by, 487.

Providence of God, the, 93, 447; not disturbed by the wickedness of angels or men, 282.

Prudence, 402.

Psalms, the, David's concern in writing, 352.

Ptolemy, Philadelphus, causes the Hebrew Scriptures to be translated into Greek, 385. 386.

Puberty, was it later among the antediluvians than it is now? 296, etc.

Pulvillus, Mafcus, 100:

Punic wars; the; the disasters suffered by the Romans in, 55; the second of these, its deplorable effects, 56, etc.

Punishment, eternal, 452; whether it is possible for bodies to last forever in burning fire, 452; whether bodily sufferings necessarily terminate in the destruction of the flesh, 452, 453; examples from nature to show that bodies may remain unconsumed and alive in fire, 454; the nature of, 460, etc.; is it just that it should last longer than the sins themselves lasted? 462, etc.; the greatness of the first transgression on account of which it is due to all not within the pale of the Saviour's grace, 463, etc.; of the wicked after death, not purgatorial, 463, 464; proportioned to the deserts of the wicked, 465; of certain persons, who deny, 466; of those who think that the intercession of saints will deliver from, 466, and note; of those who think that participation of the body of Christ will save from, 467; of those who think that Catholic baptism will deliver from, 467; of the opinion that building on the "Foundation" will save from, 468; of the opinion , that alms-giving will deliver from, 468; of those who think that the devil will not suffer, 468; replies to all those who deny, 469, 472, etc., 473.

Punishments, the temporary, of this life.; 464; the object of, 465.

Purgatorial punishments, 445, 446, 470.

Purification of heart, the, whence obtained by the saints, 194; the principles which, according to the Platonists, regulate, 194; the one true principle which alone can effect, 195.

Purifying punishment, the, spoken of by Malachi, 445.

Pyrites, the Persian stone so called, 456.

Pyrrhus, invades Italy, —response of the oracle of Apollo to, 54; cannot tempt Fabricius, 100.

Pythagoras, the founder of the Italic school of philosophy, 145.

Queen, the, the Church, 354.

Quiet, the temple of, 72.

Radagaisus, king of the Goths, the war with, 104.

Rain, portentous, 62.

Rape of the Sabine women, the, 48; 49.

Rebecca, wife of Isaac, 330; the divine answer respecting the twins in the womb of, 330.

Recentness of man's creation, an answer to those who complain of, 233.

Regeneration, the laver, or font of, 487.

Regulus. as an example, of heroism, and voluntary endurance for religion's sake, 10, etc:; the virtue of, far excelled that of Cato, 16.

Reign of the saints with Christ for a thousand .years, 382, etc.

Religion, 181; no true, without true virtues, 418.

Religions, false, kept up on policy, 341.

Republic, Cicero's definition of a, —was there ever a Roman, answering to? 414, 415; according to what definition could the Romans or others assume the title of a? 418.

Resting on the seventh day, God's, the meaning of, 209.

Restitutus, presbyter of the Calamensian Church, a curious account of, 280, 281.