{"author":null,"backreferences":[{"context_html":"<p class=\"c006\">Let us see what Celsus further says of God, and how he\r\nurges us to the use of those things which are properly called\r\nidol offerings, or, still better, offerings to demons, although, in\r\nhis ignorance of what true sanctity is, and what sacrifices are\r\nwell-pleasing to God, he call them “holy sacrifices.” His\r\nwords are, “God is the God of all alike; He is good, He stands\r\nin need of nothing, and He is without jealousy. What, then,\r\nis there to hinder those who are most devoted to His service\r\nfrom taking part in public feasts?” I cannot see the connection\r\nwhich he fancies between God’s being good, and independent,\r\nand free from jealousy, and His devoted servants taking\r\npart in public feasts. I confess, indeed, that from the fact\r\n<span class=\"pageno\" id=\"Page_509\">509</span>that God is good, and without want of anything, and free from\r\njealousy, it would follow as a consequence that we might take\r\npart in public feasts, if it were proved that the public feasts\r\nhad nothing wrong in them, and were grounded upon true\r\nviews of the character of God, so that they resulted naturally\r\nfrom a devout service of God. If, however, the so-called public\r\nfestivals can in no way be shown to accord with the service of\r\nGod, but may on the contrary be proved to have been devised\r\nby men when occasion offered to commemorate some human\r\nevents, or to set forth certain qualities of water or earth, or the\r\nfruits of the earth,—in that case, it is clear that those who\r\nwish to offer an enlightened worship to the Divine Being will\r\nact according to sound reason, and not take part in the public\r\nfeasts. For “to keep a feast,” as one of the wise men of\r\nGreece has well said, “is nothing else than to do one’s duty;”<a id=\"r1600\"></a><a class=\"c008 pginternal\" href=\"#f1600\"><sup>[1600]</sup></a>\r\nand that man truly celebrates a feast who does his duty and\r\nprays always, offering up continually bloodless sacrifices in\r\nprayer to God. That therefore seems to me a most noble\r\nsaying of Paul, “Ye observe days, and months, and times,\r\nand years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon\r\nyou labour in vain.”<a id=\"r1601\"></a><a class=\"c008 pginternal\" href=\"#f1601\"><sup>[1601]</sup></a></p>","headings":["The writings of Origen, Vol. 2 of 2","BOOK VIII.","Chapter XXI."],"marker_anchor":null,"paragraph_id":"pg70693-paragraph-568"}],"canonical_references":[],"date_end":null,"date_start":null,"deduplication_fingerprint":"a6ca3674ab3aa84215c174730aeb65059772f666a0fafa07be9f8796c78b8102","edition_title":"The writings of Origen, Vol. 2 (of 2)","edition_translators":["Frederick Crombie","W. H. Cairns"],"edition_year":1872,"explicit_reference_candidates":[{"book":"GAL","chapter":4,"kind":"unreviewed","source_notation":"Gal. iv. 10","verse":10,"verse_end":10}],"headings":[],"id":"pg70693-f1601","license_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html","public_import_allowed":false,"record_kind":"original-editor-translator-note","review_required":["work and recension attribution","original-work chronology","Bible reference numbering and citation kind","English edition rights and attribution"],"review_status":"needs_review","rights_evidence":"Project Gutenberg metadata: Public domain in the USA. Existing 1872 English edition; listed translators died 1889 and 1872. Electronic transcription subject to Project Gutenberg reuse terms.","source_anchor":"f1601","source_ebook":70693,"source_html":"<div class=\"footnote\" id=\"f1601\">\n<p class=\"c007\"><span class=\"label\"><a class=\"pginternal\" href=\"#r1601\">1601</a>. </span><abbr title=\"Galatians\">Gal.</abbr> <abbr title=\"four\">iv.</abbr> 10, 11.</p>\n</div>","source_sha256":"76ed9a9fd752c1d5095189e38fe3dcbbea0fd23d6be719db17360e4da14552fa","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/70693/pg70693-images.html#f1601","text_sha256":"95f704a71a7d1f4282e2046c5ec3ca46bda1fef9ce3263d1e61d229420c613e8","verified":false,"work_id":null}