St. Augustine, Of the citie of God vvith the learned comments of Io. Lod. Viues. Englished by I.H.

Of the filthinesse of this Great Mothers sacrifices. CHAP. 26.

NO more would Varro speake of the Ganymedes that were consecrated vnto the said Great mother, against all shame of man and woman: who with anoin∣ted heads, painted faces, loose bodies and lasciuious paces, went euen vntill ye∣ster-day vp and downe the streetes of Carthage, basely begging (a) of the people where-withall to sustaine them-selues. Of these haue not I (to my knowledge) (b) read any thing: their expositions, tongues and reasons were all ashamed and to seeke. Thus the Great mother exceeded all hir sonne-gods, not in greatnesse of deity, but of obscaenity. Ianus him-selfe was not so monstrous as this (c) monster: hee was but deformed in his statue: but this was both bloudy and deformed in her sacrifices. Hee had members of stone giuen him, but she takes members of flesh from all her attendance. This shame, all Ioues letcheries come short of: he besides his female rapes, defamed heauē but with one (d) Ganimede, but she hath both sha∣med heauen, and polluted earth with multitudes of (e) profest and publike Sodo∣mites. It may be thought that Saturne that gelded his father comes neere, or ex∣ceedes this filthinesse: O but in his religion men are rather killed by others then guelded by them-selues. He eate vp his sonnes say the Poets, let the Physicall say what they will: history saith he killed them: yet did not the Romaines learne to sacrifice their sonnes to him from the Africans. But this Great mother brought her Eunuches euen into the Romaine temple, keeping her bestiall reakes of cruelty euen there: thinking to helpe the Romaines to strength, by cutting away their strengths fountaines. What is Mercuries theft, Venus her lust, the whoredome and the turpitude of the rest (which were they not commonly sung vpon stages, wee would relate) what are they all to this foule euill, that the Mother of the gods onely had as her peculiar? chiefly the rest being held but poeticall fictions, as if the Poets had inuented this too, that they were pleasing to the gods? So the•…•…

it was the Poets audatiousnesse that recorded them, but whose is it to exhibite them at the gods vrgent exacting them, but the gods direct obscaenity, the deuills confessions, and the wretched soules illusions? But this adoration of Cibele by gelding ones selfe the Poets neuer inuented, but did rather abhorre it then men∣tion i•…•…: Is any one to bee dedicated to these select Gods for blessednesse of life hereafter, that cannot liue honestly vnder them here, but lies in bondage to such vncleane filthinesse; and so many dammed deuills? but all this (say they) hath reference to the world: nay looke if it be not to the wicked. (f) •…•…hat cannot bee referred to the world that is found to bee in the world? But we doe seeke a minde that trusting in the true religion doth not worshippe the world as his God, but commendeth it for his sake, as his admired worke, and being expiate from all the staines of the world, so approcheth to him that made the world: wee see these selected gods more notified then the rest: not to the aduancement of their me∣rits, but the diuul ging of their shames; this proues them men, as not onely Po∣•…•…es but histories also do explaine: for that which Virgill saith Aen. 8.

Primus ab aethereo venit Saturnus Olympo, Arma Iouis fugiens, & regnis exul ademptis.

An(g) Whence Saturne came Olimpus was the place, Flying Ioues armes, exil'd in wretched case.

d so as followeth, the same hath (h) Euemerus written in a continuate history, translated into latine by Ennius: whence because much may bee taken both in Greeke and also in Latine that hath bin spoken against these error, by others before vs, I cease to vrge them further.

L. VIVES.

B•…•…g. (a) Of.] These Galli were allowed to beg of the people by a law that Metellus made O•…•…id, shewes the reason in these verses.

Dic inquam, parua cur stipe quaerat opes? Contulit aes populus de quo delubra Metellus Fecit, ait, dandae mos stipis inde manet.

Tell me (quoth I) why beg they basely still? Metellus, built the shrine o' th' townes expence, (quoth he) and so the begging law came thence.

Cicero in his sacred and seuerest lawes (of those times) charged that None but the Idaean goddesses Priests should beg: his reason is because it fills the mind with folly and empties the purse of mony. [But what if Augustine or Cicero saw now how large and ritch societies go a begging to those on whome they might better bestow something? whilest hee (meane time) that giueth it sitteth with a peece of browne bread, and a few herbes, drinking out of an earthen put full of nothing but water, and a great sort of children about him for whose sus∣tenance he toyleth day and night: and he that beggeth of him is a ritch begger, fed with white and purest bread, patrridge and capons: and soaked in spiritfull and delicious wines?] (b) Red any thing.] Of their interpretation. (c) Monsters.] He seemeth to meane Priapus. (d) Ganimede.] Sonne to Troos King of Phrigia, a delicate boy: Tantalus in hunting forced him away, and gaue him to Ioue in Crete: Ioue abused his body: The Poets fable how Ioue catcht him vp in the shape of an eagle, and made him his chiefe cupbearer, in place of Hebe and Vulcan Iuno's children, and turned him into the signe Aquary. (e) Profest.] Openly avowing their bestiall obsc•…•…ity. (f) What cannot.] There is not any other reading true but this. (g) Whence Saturne.] E•…•…r to Aeneas. Uirg. Aenead. (h) Euemerus.] Some read Homerus, falsely: for it was Eue∣•…•…rus as I said that wrot the History called Sacred.

Notes

• [The Loua∣nists omit this.] Ganimede▪