wherein all the reason and philosophy of atheism is confuted, and

478 'The Pagans phantaflick; Book I.and difguife this difference, and by allegorizing the poetick fables of theo-ods, to bring that thtolcigy into fome fecming contormity with the naturaland philofopiiick ; but what they could not in this way reconcile, was bythem excufed upon the neceHuy ot the vulgar.The fabulous theology both of the Greeks and Romans did not only generateall the other gods, but even Juiiter himfelf alfo, their fupreme Numen,it affigning him both a fatlier and a mother, a grandfather and agrandmother. And though thi Romans did not plain y adopt this intotheir civil theology, ytt are they taxed by St. Aitjlin ' for fuff^ring the flatueof Jupiter^s nurfetobe kept in the Capitol for a religious monument. Andhowever this differ'd nothing at all from that atheiliick dodriiie of Evemerus*, I'hat all the gods were redly no other than mortal men, yet was it toleratedand connived at by the politicians, in way ot necefiliry compliancewith clie vulgar, it being fo extremely difficu't for them to conceive any fuchliving being or animal, as was never made, and v\ithout beginning. Infomuch,ihdi Calliwachiis', who would by no means admit ot Jupiter^sicpulchre,either in Crete or Arcadia (but look'd upon ii as a foul reproach tohim) for thisreafjn,"L'j ij' a OiuE-r, ETS"! ycr.^ ail'.fBecaufe he was immortal and could never die ; did notwithftanding himfelfattribute a temporary generation and nativity to him, as Origen * and othersobferve. Nevcrthclefs, the generality of the more civilized and intelligentPagans, and even of the poets themfelves, did all this while conffantly retainthus much of the natural and true theology amongft them, that Jupiterwas the father both of gods and men -, that is, the maker of the wholeworld, and conlequently himfelf without father, eternal and unmade, accordingto that Peleadean oracle before cited out of Paufanias,Zi'j; VJ, Zrj; £(7Tj, ZcW is-rsrxi'Again the civil theology of the Pagans, as well as the poetick, had notonly many phantaftick gods in it, but alfo an appearance of a plurality ofindependent deities; it making leveral fupreme in their fevcral territoriesand funftions ; as one to be the chief ruler over the heavens, ano:her overthe air and winds, another over the fea, and another over the earth andhell •, one to be the giver of corn, another of wine ; one the god of learning,another the god of pleafure, and another the god ot war ; and fo forall other things. But the natural theology of tlie Pagans (fo clled) thoughit did admit a plurality of gods too, in a certain fenfe, that is, of inferiordeities fubordinate to one fup-t-eme ; yet did it neither allow of more independentdeities than one, nor own any gods at all, but fuch as were natural,that is, fuch as had a real exiftence in nature and the world without,and' DeCivitate Dei, Lib. V.Cap Vll. p. 119. » Hymno in Jovem, Verf. 9.*Apud Augullin. ubi fupra Adverf. Cclfum, Lib. III. p. 137.3