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Name:
Celsus
Dates:
Born: ?
Died: ?
Biography:
Celsus was a pagan thinker who wrote the first real polemical work in opposition to
Christianity, True Discourse, in 177 or 178 CE. Sadly, when Christians came to power in
the Roman Empire, all of his works were destroyed (along with many others), thus depriving us of
first-hand information about what pagans of the time really thought about Christianity.
Fortunately, however, when Origen wrote Contra-Celsum to answer Celsus' arguments, he also quoted Celsus at length - without this, we would have no idea what his ideas were. We still do not know anything about his personal history or any of his other beliefs, though.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
Related Resources:
What is Christianity?
What are the various Christian groups, denominations, sects and heresies? What are some key concepts in Christian theology? What are some of the most important events in Christian history? All of this and more are covered in the Christianity FAQ.What is the Philosophy of Religion?
Sometimes confused with theology, the Philosophy of Religion is the philosophical study of religious beliefs, religious doctrines, religious arguments and religious history. The line between theology and the philosophy of religion isn't always sharp, but the primary difference is that theology tends to be apologetical in nature, committed to the defense of particular religious positions, whereas Philosophy of Religion is committed to the investigation of religion itself, rather than the truth of any particular religion.What is Theism?
What is the difference between monotheism and monolatry? Between pantheism and panentheism? How about between animism and shamanism? Or theism and deism? What the heck is henotheism?What is Religion?
A system of human beliefs, ideals and practices which is harder to define than it may at first appear. Read more about how dictionaries, scholars and others have tried to define and explain religion.
