Wesley Corpus

2. Of this you seem not insensible already, and therefore fly away to your favourite supposition that 'they were not cured at all, that the whole matter was a cheat from the beginning to the end.' But by what arguments do you evince this The first is, 'The heathens pretended to do the same'; nay, and 'managed the imposture with so much art, that the Christians could neither deny nor detect it, but insisted always that it was performed by demons or evil spirits' (ibid.). But still the heathens maintained, 'the cures were wrought by their gods--by Aesculapius in particular.' And where is the difference seeing, as was observed before, 'the gods of the heathens were but devils.' 3. But you say, 'Although public monuments were erected in proof and memory of these cures at the time when they were performed, yet it is certain all those heathen miracles were pure forgeries' (page 79). How is it certain If you can swallow this without good proof, you are far more credulous than I. I cannot believe that the whole body of the heathens for so many generations were utterly destitute of common sense any more than of common honesty. Why should you fix such a charge on whole cities and countries You could have done no more, if they had been Christians!