Arius the Libyan: A Romance of the Primitive Church

by Nathan C. Kouns

The boy read this passage: "Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, and said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and show John again those things which ye do hear and see: the blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached unto them. And blessed is he whosoever shall not be offended in me."

Then said Ammonius, "What lesson dost thou understand to be taught in this place, Arius?"

"Obviously it teacheth," answered the boy, "that John desired to know of Jesus whether he might be 'he that should come,' that is, Christ. In place of answering the question directly, he pointed them to the miracles which they saw him even then performing, as if he knew that these wonderful works would be sufficient to satisfy John of his divinity. This and other passages seem also to show that miracles are the only proper evidence that can be offered that Jesus is the Christ."

"All that is on the surface," answered Ammonius, "and is well enough. But canst thou see nothing deeper in the words? Is there nothing strange in the answer of Jesus that provoketh inquiry, or needeth comment? Read the passage again, Arius, and see what else thou canst find in it."

Then the lad reread the passage very carefully, and he said: "The blind receive sight: a miracle; the lame walk: a second miracle; the lepers are cleansed: a third miracle; the deaf hear: a fourth miracle; the dead are raised up: a fifth and greater miracle. It seemeth strange to me that our Lord should add, as if it were a greater miracle than all the others, and the crowning proof of his Messiahship, the fact that the poor have the gospel preached unto them. Is it a fact, father, that before the coming of Jesus the gospel had never been preached unto the poor? Was the Jewish scripture only for the rich?"

Ammonius smiled, but answered: "The rolls of the law, the Jewish scriptures, were read on the Sabbath-day in every synagogue, and both the rich and the poor were required to be present and hear it. Perhaps the gospel of which Jesus speaks was not in the Jewish scriptures, or else was only taught in laws and prophecies which the Jews had not correctly interpreted."

"But it could not have been our gospel," said Arius, "for no part of the New Testament was then written. I wonder what this gospel was; and why it was good news to the poor rather than to the rich; and why our Lord said that whoever should not take offense at the gospel was blessed. Why should any one take offense at it? Why did they crucify him for proclaiming it? Why did the chief priests and rulers of the people so bitterly hate the gospel?"

"If thou wilt follow up these questions and learn the true answers thereto," said Ammonius, "thou wilt get hold of a fine, large truth!"

"Wilt thou aid me therein?"

"Yea, so far as I am able to do so; and to that end I ask thee if thou canst tell what reason is repeatedly given in the gospels why the Pharisees 'were offended' at our Lord's teachings; why they 'derided' him; in a word, why they hated him and his gospel?"