P. 112. A Danish scholar, Dr. J. P. Jacobsen (_Afhandlinger og Artikler_,
p. 490), seems to think that Euhemerus’s theory was influenced by the
worship of heroes. But there is nothing to show that Euhemerus supposed
his gods to have continued their existence after their death, though this
would have been in accordance with Greek belief even in the Hellenistic
period; he seems rather to have insisted that they were worshipped as gods
during their lifetime (comp. Jacoby, _loc. cit._).
P. 114. Euhemerism in Polybius: xxxiv. 2; comp. x. 10, 11.—Relapse into
orthodoxy: xxxvii. 9 (the decisive passage); xxxix. 19, 2 (concluding
prayer to the gods); xviii. 54, 7-10; xxiii. 10, 14 (the gods punish
impiety; comp. xxxvii. 9, 16). There is a marked contrast between such
passages and the way Polybius speaks of Philip’s destruction of the
sanctuary at Thermon; he blames it severely, but merely on political, not
on religious grounds (v. 9-12). Orthodox utterances in the older portions
of the work (i. 84, 10; x. 2, 7) may be due to that accommodation to
popular belief which Polybius himself acknowledges as justifiable (xvi.
12, 9), but also to later revision.—Influence of Stoicism: Hirzel,
_Untersuchungen zu Ciceros philos. Schriften_, ii. p. 841.
P. 115. Cicero’s Stoicism in his philosophy of religion: _de nat. deor._
iii. 40, 95.
P. 116. Sanctuary to Tullia: Cic. _ad Att._ xii. 18 foll.; several of the
letters (23, 25, 35, 36) show that Atticus disapproved of the idea, and
that Cicero himself was conscious that it was unworthy of him.
P. 117. Euhemeristic defence: _fragm. consol._ 14, 15.—Augustus’s
reorganisation of the cults: Wissowa, _Religion u. Kultus d. Römer_, p.
73. Recent scholars, especially when treating of Virgil (Heinze, _Vergils
ep. Technik_, 3rd ed. p. 291; Norden, _Aeneis_, vi. 2nd ed. pp. 314, 318,
362), speak of the reform of Augustus as if it involved a real revulsion
of feeling in his contemporaries. This is in my opinion a complete
misunderstanding of the facts. Virgil’s religious views: _Catal. v.,
Georgics_, ii. 458.
P. 118. Pliny: _hist. nat._ ii. 1-27. The passages translated are §§ 14
and 27.
P. 122. Seneca: fragm. 31-39, Haase.—Stoic polemic against atheism:
Epictetus, _diss._ ii. 20, 21; comp. Marcus Aurelius, vi. 44.—Later
Cynicism: Zeller, iii. 1, p. 763.—Oenomaus: only preserved in excerpts by
Euseb. _praep. evang._ 5-6 (a separate edition is wanted).—His polemic
directed against the priests: Euseb. 5, p. 213_c_; comp. Oenomaus himself,
_ibid._ 6, p. 256_d_.
P. 123. Lucian: see Christ, _Gesch. d. griech. Litt._ ii. 2, p. 550 (5th
ed.), and R. Helm, _Lukian u. Menipp_ (see note to p. 110).
P. 124. Timon: ch. x.
P. 126. On Lucian’s caution in attacking the really popular gods, see
Wilamowitz, in _Kultur d. Gegenwart_, i. 8, p. 248.—The Jews atheists:
Harnack, _Der Vorwurf d. Atheismus in den 3 ersten Jahrh_. (_Texte u.
Unters._, N.F., xiii. 4), p. 3.
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