alexandria and her schools-第13节

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ure　of　their　race；　a　literature　which　I　firmly　believe；　if　I　am　to　trust　the　experience　of　1900　years；　is　destined　to　explain　all　other　literatures；　because　it　has　firm　hold　of　the　one　eternal　root…idea　which　gives　life；　meaning；　Divine　sanction；　to　every　germ　or　fragment　of　human　truth　which　is　in　any　of　them。　　It　did　so；　at　least；　in　Alexandria　for　the　Greek　literature。　　About　the　Christian　era；　a　cultivated　Alexandrian　Jew；　a　disciple　of　Plato　and　of　Aristotle；　did　seem　to　himself　to　find　in　the　sacred　books　of　his　nation　that　which　agreed　with　the　deepest　discoveries　of　Greek　philosophy；　which　explained　and　corroborated　them。　And　his　announcement　of　this　fact；　weak　and　defective　as　it　was；　had　the　most　enormous　and　unexpected　results。　　The　father　of　New　Platonism　was　Philo　the　Jew。



LECTURE　IIINEOPLATONISM



We　now　approach　the　period　in　which　Alexandria　began　to　have　a　philosophy　of　its　ownto　be；　indeed；　the　leader　of　human　thought　for　several　centuries。

I　shall　enter　on　this　branch　of　my　subject　with　some　fear　and　trembling；　not　only　on　account　of　my　own　ignorance；　but　on　account　of　the　great　difficulty　of　handling　it　without　trenching　on　certain　controversial　subjects　which　are　rightly　and　wisely　forbidden　here。　　For　there　was　not　one　school　of　Metaphysic　at　Alexandria：　　there　were　two；　which；　during　the　whole　period　of　their　existence；　were　in　internecine　struggle　with　each　other；　and　yet　mutually　borrowing　from　each　other；　the　Heathen；　namely；　and　the　Christian。　　And　you　cannot　contemplate；　still　less　can　you　understand；　the　one　without　the　other。　　Some　of　late　years　have　become　all　but　unaware　of　the　existence　of　that　Christian　school；　and　the　word　Philosophy；　on　the　authority　of　Gibbon；　who；　however　excellent　an　authority　for　facts；　knew　nothing　about　Philosophy；　and　cared　less；　has　been　used　exclusively　to　express　heathen　thought；　a　misnomer　which　in　Alexandria　would　have　astonished　Plotinus　or　Hypatia　as　much　as　it　would　Clement　or　Origen。　　I　do　not　say　that　there　is；　or　ought　to　be；　a　Christian　Metaphysic。　　I　am　speaking；　as　you　know；　merely　as　a　historian；　dealing　with　facts；　and　I　say　that　there　was　one；　as　profound；　as　scientific；　as　severe；　as　that　of　the　Pagan　Neoplatonists；　starting　indeed；　as　I　shall　show　hereafter；　on　many　points　from　common　ground　with　theirs。　　One　can　hardly　doubt；　I　should　fancy；　that　many　parts　of　St。　John's　Gospel　and　Epistles；　whatever　view　we　may　take　of　them；　if　they　are　to　be　called　anything；　are　to　be　called　metaphysic　and　philosophic。　　And　one　can　no　more　doubt　that　before　writing　them　he　had　studied　Philo；　and　was　expanding　Philo's　thought　in　the　direction　which　seemed　fit　to　him；　than　we　can　doubt　it　of　the　earlier　Neoplatonists。　The　technical　language　is　often　identical；　so　are　the　primary　ideas　from　which　he　starts；　howsoever　widely　the　conclusions　may　differ。　　If　Plotinus　considered　himself　an　intellectual　disciple　of　Plato；　so　did　Origen　and　Clemens。　　And　I　must；　as　I　said　before；　speak　of　both；　or　of　neither。　　My　only　hope　of　escaping　delicate　ground　lies　in　the　curious　fact；　that　rightly　or　wrongly；　the　form　in　which　Christianity　presented　itself　to　the　old　Alexandrian　thinkers　was　so　utterly　different　from　the　popular　conception　of　it　in　modern　England；　that　one　may　very　likely　be　able　to　tell　what　little　one　knows　about　it；　almost　without　mentioning　a　single　doctrine　which　now　influences　the　religious　world。

But　far　greater　is　my　fear；　that　to　a　modern　British　auditory；　trained　in　the　school　of　Locke；　much　of　ancient　thought；　heathen　as　well　as　Christian；　may　seem　so　utterly　the　product　of　the　imagination；　so　utterly　without　any　corresponding　reality　in　the　universe；　as　to　look　like　mere　unintelligible　madness。　　Still；　I　must　try；　only　entreating　my　hearers　to　consider；　that　how　much　soever　we　may　honour　Locke　and　his　great　Scotch　followers；　we　are　not　bound　to　believe　them　either　infallible；　or　altogether　world…embracing；　that　there　have　been　other　methods　than　theirs　of　conceiving　the　Unseen；　that　the　common　ground　from　which　both　Christian　and　heathen　Alexandrians　start；　is　not　merely　a　private　vagary　of　their　own；　but　one　which　has　been　accepted　undoubtingly；　under　so　many　various　forms；　by　so　many　different　races；　as　to　give　something　of　an　inductive　probability　that　it　is　not　a　mere　dream；　but　may　be　a　right　and　true　instinct　of　the　human　mind。　　I　mean　the　belief　that　the　things　which　we　seenature　and　all　her　phenomena　are　temporal；　and　born　only　to　die；　mere　shadows　of　some　unseen　realities；　from　whom　their　laws　and　life　are　derived；　while　the　eternal　things　which　subsist　without　growth；　decay；　or　change；　the　only　real；　only　truly　existing　things；　in　short；　are　certain　things　which　are　not　seen；　inappreciable　by　sense；　or　understanding；　or　imagination；　perceived　only　by　the　conscience　and　the　reason。　　And　that；　again；　the　problem　of　philosophy；　the　highest　good　for　man；　that　for　the　sake　of　which　death　were　a　gain；　without　which　life　is　worthless；　a　drudgery；　a　degradation；　a　failure；　and　a　ruin；　is　to　discover　what　those　unseen　eternal　things　are；　to　know　them；　possess　them；　be　in　harmony　with　them；　and　thereby　alone　to　rise　to　any　real　and　solid　power；　or　safety；　or　nobleness。　　It　is　a　strange　dream。　　But　you　will　see　that　it　is　one　which　does　not　bear　much　upon　〃points　of　controversy；〃　any　more　than　on　〃Locke's　philosophy；〃　nevertheless；　when　we　find　this　same　strange　dream　arising；　apparently　without　intercommunion　of　thought；　among　the　old　Hindoos；　among　the　Greeks；　among　the　Jews；　and　lastly；　when　we　see　it　springing　again　in　the　Middle　Age；　in　the　mind　of　the　almost　forgotten　author　of　the　〃Deutsche　Theologie；〃　and　so　becoming　the　parent；　not　merely　of　Luther's　deepest　belief；　or　of　the　German　mystic　schools　of　the　seventeenth　and　eighteenth　centuries；　but　of　the　great　German　Philosophy　itself　as　developed　by　Kant；　and　Fichte；　and　Schelling；　and　Hegel；　we　must　at　least　confess　it　to　be　a　popular　delusion；　if　nothing　better；　vast　enough　and　common　enough　to　be　worth　a　little　patient　investigation；　wheresoever　we　may　find　it　stirring　the　human　mind。

But　I　have　hope；　still；　that　I　may　find　sympathy　and　comprehension　among　some；　at　least；　of　my　audience；　as　I　proceed　to　examine　the　ancient　realist　schools　of　Alexandria；　on　account　of　their　knowledge　of　the　modern　realist　schools　of　Germany。　　For　I　cannot　but　see；　that　a　revulsion　is　taking　place　in　the　thoughts　of　our　nation　upon　metaphysic　subjects；　and　that　Scotland；　as　usual；　is　taking　the　lead　therein。　　That　most　illustrious　Scotchman；　Mr。　Thomas　Carlyle；　first　vindicated　the　great　German　Realists　from　the　vulgar　misconceptions　about　them　which　were　so　common　at　the　beginning　of　this　century；　and　brought　the　minds　of　studious　men　to　a　more　just　appreciation　of　the　philosophic　severity；　the　moral　grandeur；　of　such　thinkers　as　Emmanuel　Kant；　and　Gottlieb　Fichte。　　To　another　Scotch　gentleman；　who；　I　believe；　has　honoured　me　by　his　presence　here　to…night；　we　owe　most　valuable　translations　of　some　of　Fichte's　works；　to　be　followed；　I　trust；　by　more。　　And　though；　as　a　humble　disciple　of　Bacon；　I　cannot　but　think　that　the　method　both　of　Kant　and　Fichte　possesses　somewhat　of　the　same　inherent　defect　as　the　method　of　the　Neoplatonist　school；　yet　I　should　be　most　unfair　did　I　not　express　my　deep　obligations　to　them；　and　advise　all　those　to　study　them　carefully；　who　wish　to　gain　a　clear　conception　either　of　the　old　Alexandrian　schools；　or　of　those　intellectual　movements　which　are　agitating　the　modern　mind；　and　which　will；　I　doubt　not；　issue　in　a　clearer　light；　and　in　a　nobler　life；　if　not　for　us；　yet　still　for　our　children's　children　for　ever。

The　name　of　Philo　the　Jew　is　now　all　but　forgotten　among　us。　　He　was　laughed　out　of　sight　during　the　last　century；　as　a　dreamer　and　an　allegorist；　who　tried　eclectically　to　patch　together　Plato　and　Moses。　The　present　age；　however；　is　rapidly　beginning　to　suspect　that　all　who　thought　before　the　eighteenth　century　were　not　altogether　either　fools　or　impostors；　old　wisdom　is　obtaining　a　fairer　hearing　day　by　day；　and　is　found　not　to　be　so　contradictory　to　new　wisdom　as　was　supposed。　　We　are　beginning；　too；　to　be　more　inclined　to　justify　Providence；　by　believing　that　lies　are　by　their　very　nature　impotent　and　doomed　to　die；　that　everything　which　has　had　any　great　or　permanent　influence　on　the　human　mind；　must　have　in　it　some　germ　of　eternal　truth；　and　setting　ourselves　to　separate　that　germ　of　truth　from　the　mistakes　which　may　have　distorted　and　overlaid　it。　　Let　us　believe；　or　at　least　hope；　the　same　for　a　few　minutes；　of　Philo；　and　try　to　find　out　what　was　the　secret　of　his　power；　what　the　secret　of　his　weakness。

First：　　I　cannot　think　that　he　had　to　treat　his　own　sacred　books　unfairly；　to　make　them　agree　with　the　root…idea　of　Socrates　and　Plato。　Socrates　and　Plato　acknowledged　a　Divine　teacher　of　the　human　spirit；　that　was　the　ground　of　their　philosophy。　　So　did　the　literature　of　the　Jews。　　Socrates　and　Plato；　with　all　the　Greek　sages　till　the　Sophistic　era；　held　that　the　object　of　philosophy　was　the　search　after　that　which　truly　exists：　　that　he　who　found　that；　found　wisdom：　　Philo's　books　taught　him　the　same　truth：　　but　they　taught　him　also；　that　the　search　for