Wesley Corpus

III. 1. You are, 'thirdly, to show the particular characters and opinions of those Fathers who attest these gifts.' Suffer me to remind you that you mentioned nine of these--Justin, Irenaeus, Theophilus, Tertullian, Minutius Felix, Origen, Cyprian, Arnobius, and Lactantius. You are therefore now to show what were 'the particular characters and opinions of these Fathers.' Indeed, I should think their opinions had small relation to the question. But, since you think otherwise, I am prepared to hear you. You premise 'that an unexceptionable witness must have' (page 26) both judgement and honesty; and then, passing over the apostolic Fathers as supposing them on your side, endeavour to show that these other Fathers had neither. 2. You begin with Justin Martyr, who, you say, 'frequently affirms that the miraculous gift of expounding the Holy Scriptures or the mysteries of God was granted to himself by the special grace of God' (page 27). Upon which I observe: (1) It has not yet been agreed among learned men that declaring 'the mysteries of God' is the same thing with 'expounding the Holy Scriptures.' (2) It is not clear that Justin does affirm his being endued either with one or the other--at least, not from the passages which you cite. The first, literally translated, runs thus: 'He hath revealed to us whatsoever things we have understood by His grace from the Scriptures also.' [jApekavlmyen ejn hJmi'n pavnta o{sa kaiV ajpoV tw'n grafw'n diaV th'" cavrito" aujtou' nenohvkamen (Dial. Part ii).] The other: 'I have not any such power; but God has given me the grace to understand His Scriptures.'[OujdeV gaVr duvnami" ejmoiV toiuvth ti" e[stin, ajllaV cavri" paraV qeou" ejdovqh moi eij" toV sunievnai taV" grafaV" aujtou' (Dial. Part ii.).] Now, sir, by which of these does it appear that Justin affirms he had the miraculous gift of expounding the Scriptures