The Conditionalist Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 1

PART III (Chapters 29-43)

Th. Platonic Postulate

29. Greek Philosophy Reaches Summit of Pagan Thinking	529
I. Greek Thinking Exhausts Uninspired Speculative Reasoning	529
1. Imprinted Immortal-Soulism on World Thought	529
2. First Confined to Poets and Philosophers; Never Generally Held	531
3. Early Teaching Portrays Joyless Afterworld	531
4. Five Stages in Philosophical Development	531
5. This Chapter Based on Recognized Authorities	533
II. Preliminary Stage—Initiated by Poets, Cults, and Mysteries	534
1. Homer: Persistence of Life Beyond Death	534
2. Transmigration Theory Introduced by Dionysiac Cult	536
3. Orphics: Permeated With Pantheism and Reincarnationism	537
III. Philosophical Developments—Ionic, Eleatic, and Pythagorean Positions	540
1. Ionian School: “Air,” “Water,” “Fire,” “Infinite”	540
2. Eleatic School: Philosophy Becomes Pantheistic	541
3. Heraclitus: Soul Is Immortal Spark From Eternal Fire	543
4. Pythagoras: Eternity of Soul and Successive Transmigrations	545
30. Sophists React Against Conflicting Speculative Schools	547
I. Paralleling Tragic and Lyric Poets Buttress Positions	547
1. Tides of Poetic Opinion Ebb and Flow	547
2. Pindar: Soul Is “Image of Eternity”	548
II. Inevitable Reaction Under Compromisers, Atomists, and Sophists	549
1. Empedocles: Doomed by Sin to Transmigrations	549
2. Anaxagoras: Dualism and Dissolution of the Soul	551

3. Atomists: Conscious Existence Disappears at Death	553
4. Sophists: Bring Speculative Philosophy to a Standstill	554
5. Such a Survey Justifiable and Essential	556
6. Unparalleled Impact of Grecian Philosophy	557
31. Plato—Pagan Fountainhead of Innate-Immortality Streams	558
I. Interest Centered in Origin, Nature, and Destiny of Soul	560
1. Supreme Attempts to Interpret Riddle of Life	560
2. Impact on Jewish and Christian Thought	560
3. Background and Essence of Plato’s Immortal-Soulism	562
4. Present Life One Episode in Endless Sequence	562
5. Three Main Arguments of Indefeasible Immortality	563
II. Complex Involvements of Plato’s Immortality Postulates	564
1. Origin and Nature of the Cosmos	564
2. Conflicting Recitals of Creation of Man	564
3. Epitome of Plato’s Concept of Soul	566
4. Twofold Souls, Fixed Number, arid Transmigration	568
5. Weird Aggregation of Platonic Concepts	569
6. Mythical Tale of the Judgment Invoked	569
7. Dualism Involved in “Two” Eternal Souls	571
32. Pagan Philosophy’s Basic Arguments for Immortal-Soulism	573
I. The “Phaedo”—Peak of Plato’s Teaching on the Soul	573
1. Immortal-Soulism Not Originally Held by Plato	573
2. Distinctive Angles of Three Dialogues	574
3. “The Soul Is the Man”	574
4. Socrates Welcomes Death as “Initiation” to Afterlife	575
5. Death Declared “Final Step” Into “True Being”	575
6. Death: “Separation” of Soul From “Body”	576
7. Popular View: Soul Perishes at Death	576
8. Living Are Born “Only From the Dead”	577
9. Soul Declared “Immortal,” “Indestructible,” “Indissoluble”	577
10. Postulate of Soul’s Pre-existence Involved	577
11. Souls Must Have Existed Before Birth	578
12. “Soul” Invisible, Unchangeable; “Body” Visible, Changing	579
13. Souls “Imprisoned” in Succession of Animal Bodies	579
14. Soul “Wears Out” Succession of “Many Bodies”	580
15. Soul as Instrumental “Harmony” Argument Dismissed	581
16. Soul’s Immortality Connotes Indestructibility	582
17. Fancied Fate of Incorrigibly Wicked	582
18. Drinks the Hemlock and Faces “Journey”	584
33. Immortal Human Souls Part of World-Soul	585
I. “Phaedrus”—Mythical Flights of Composite Winged Souls	585
1. Crucial Conflicts Between “Parts” of Soul	585
2. Tripartite Division of Soul Built on “Myth”	585
3. “Fault” in “Wings” and “Black Steed”	586
4. Soul Not “Derived,” Hence Not “Destructible”	587
5. “Two Souls“: One “Good,” One “Evil”	587
6. “Self-motion” Is “Essence” of Soul	588
7. “Immortal Soul” Plus “Mortal Body” Equals “Living Being”	588
8. Wing Their Way With the Gods	589
9. Vicissitudes of Disembodied Souls and Wings	589
10. Time Schedule of Progressive Incarnations	589
11. Second Incarnation After Thousand Years	590
12. Souls Become Like the Gods They Follow	591
II. “Timaeus”—“Human Soul” Diluted Part of “World-Soul”	592
1. Plato’s Theory of Universe and Man	592
2. “World-Soul” With Stars as “Divine Souls”	593
3. Dualism: Evil Will Never Cease to Be	594
4. “Soul” Is Source of All Motion	595
5. “Intermediate” Existence Between “Being” and “Becoming”	595
6. Immortal Part of Man Fashioned by Primal Creator	596
7. Successive Births in Scale of Transmigratory Degradation	597
8. All Animated Life Included in “Living Beings”	598
9. Man’s “Immortal Soul” Declared Housed in Head	598
34. Skeptical Reactions Erupt Against Platonism	599
I. Aristotle Abandons Plato’s Postulate of “Personal” Immortality	599
1. Questions Plato’s Reasoning on Immortality	600
2. Aristotle in Sharp Contrast With Plato	601
3. Soul Is the “Principle of Life”	602
4. Only Divine Reason Is Immortal	602
5. Separated Soul Has No “Independent Existence”	603
6. Tripartite Nature: Body, Soul, and Mind	604
7. Rohde Summarizes Aristotle’s Position	604
8. Zeller on Pre-existence, Incarnations, and “Personal Immortality”	604
9. Westcott Agrees With Zeller, Rohde, and Draper	605
10. Other Scholars Agree in Foregoing Evaluations	605
11. Centuries-old Conflict Over Aristotle’s Position	606
II. Widespread Opposition by Stoics, Epicureans, and Skeptics	607

1. Stoicism: Materialistic Pantheism; Ultimate Loss of Personality	607
2. Periodic Reabsorptions Into Deity	608
3. The Soul a Fragment of the Divine	608
4. Eternal Soul-Essence Loses Personal Individuality	609
5. Hopelessness and Inadequacy of Stoicism	610
III. Epicureanism—Gross Materialism and Cessation of Soul	610
1. Death Brings Permanent Cessation of Life	610
2. World Formations Result of Blind Chance	611
3. Pleasure Canonized Without Restraint	612
4. Separated Soul Utterly Ceases	612
5. May Reappear as Another Person	613
6. Irreconcilable Clashes Between Stoics and Epicureans	613
IV. Skeptics—Pyrrho Undermines Basis of Immortal-Soulism	614
35. Pathetic Despair Predominant Among Roman Thinkers	617
I. Widespread Revolt Against Platonic Positions	617
1. Barren Comfort of Stoics, Epicureans, and Skeptics	618
2. Manilius: Holds a Fatalistic Pantheism	619
3. Cicero: Vacillates Between Belief and Doubt	619
II. Lucretius—Bleak Materialism and Eternal Death-Sleep	621
1. Book Synopsis Reveals Stark Materialism	622
2. The Terrifying Issues of “Death”	623
3. The “Idle Fancy of Fools”	623
4. “Rarified Wind” Leaves Body at Death	624
5. Both Spirit and Body Are Mortal	624
6. Ridicules “Immortal Spirits” Seeking Bodies	624
7. Death: Eternal Sleep With No Awakening	624
III. Skepticism, Pantheism, Emanation, Refusion—All Intermingled	625
1. Catullus and Horace: Death, Sleep of Eternal Night	625
2. Vergil: Spark of World-Soul Fire Returns to Source	626
3. Ovid: Divine Spark Gave Being to Man	626
4. Seneca: Uncertainty and Contradiction Mark Witness	627
5. Pliny: Pantheistic Universe; Man Part of God	627
6. Epictetus: Refusion of Soul Immediate at Death	628
7. Plutarch: Idea of Annihilation Is Intolerable	628
8. Marcus Aurelius: Soul Reabsorbed Into World-Soul	629
9. Tacitus: Believer in Fatalistic Principle	629
10. Conclusion: Both Views Lead to Extinction of Personality	630
36. Alexandrian Jews Forsake Ancestral Platform	632
I. The Tragedy of the Great Departure	632
II. Character and Significance of Apocryphal and Pseudepigraphal Teachings	633
1. Prophets Followed by Priests and Priestly Struggles	633
2. Apocryphal and Apocalyptic Writings Appear	637
3. Pseudepigrapha Invokes Prestige of Former Prophets	638
4. Influenced by Thinking of Surrounding Nations	639
5. Apocrypha Excluded From Palestinian Canon	639
6. Extensive Coverage Justified and Imperative	640
III. Historical Background of Jewish Captivities and Decline	640
1. Subjugation by Babylon, Then by Persia	640
2. Syrian Oppression and Maccabean Revolt	641
3. Rome’s Dominance, Jerusalem’s Destruction, and the Diaspora	641
IV. Triple Exposure to Immortality Postulate in Three Captivities	643
1. Egyptian Immortal-Soulism and Transmigration	643
2. Persian Retributionism and Deadly Dualism	644
3. Greek Immortalism Based on Philosophical Speculation	644
4. Antiochus Seeks to Replace Jewish Usages With Grecian	644
5. Apocryphal Writings Emerge During Maccabean Period	645
6. Pagan Dualism Makes Its Impress	646
V. Alexandria—Intellectual Center of Learned World	647
1. Alexander’s Vision of Greek Intellectual Dominance	647
2. Ptolemies and Seleucids Struggle for Mastery	647
3. Hebrew Students Inducted Into Greek Learning	649
VI. Process Whereby the Jews Changed Their Anthropology	649
1. Shifting From the Ancestral Foundations	649
2. Presented Religious Views in Philosophical Setting	650
3. Transmitted From Jews to Christians	650
4. Philo Fuses It Into a System	651
VII. Source of Revolutionary Concepts of Unseen World	652
1. Revolutionary Concepts Developed in Time of Maccabees	652
2. Persian Impact Strengthens Resurrection Concept	653
3. Speculations Crystallize as to Intermediate State	653
4. Climax Reached in Platonic Concepts Under Philo	654
5. Eternal-Hell Concept a Pagan Invention	655
6. Successive Exiles Leave Permanent Impress	655
37. Alien Note Injected Into Inter-Testament Writings	657
I. Pseudo-Sibyllines-—“Mortal” Man’s Role in Drama of the Ages	659
1. A Reflection of One View of the Soul	659
2. Portrayed Drama of the Judgment	660

II. Fateful Destiny of AH Mankind Portrayed	661
1. Man Is Mortal; God Is Immortal	661
2. Fateful Judgment Day Tries “Mortal” Men	662
3. Resurrected After Fire Reduces to Ashes	662
4. Four World Powers and Eschatological End	663
III. Variant Positions Presented by Minor Writers	664
1. “Tobit“: Grave Is Eternal in Annihilation Effects	664
2. “Sirach“: No Remembrance in the Grave	664
3. “Judith”—Supports Eternal-Torment Concept	665
IV. Differing Books of Maccabees Exemplify Divergencies	666
1. “2 Maccabees”—Innate Immortality With Prayers for Dead	667
2. Believes Both in Immortality and in Resurrection	667
3. Prayer to and Sacrifices for the Dead Commended	667
4. Vicarious Suffering Expiates God’s Anger	668
5. Hope of “Seven Brothers” Based on Resurrection	668
38. Innate Immortality Established by Last Century B.C	671
I. “The Book of Jubilees”—Soul Survives; Resurrection Abandoned	671
1. Innate Immortality Already Firmly Established	672
2. Body Rests; Spirit Lives On Independently	672
II. “4 Maccabees”—Presses Immortal-Soulism Beyond All Predecessors	673
1. Men Go to Respective Rewards at Death	673
2. Righteous Immediately Received Into Heaven	674
3. Wicked Punished With Eternal Torture	674
III. “The Wisdom of Solomon”—Strange Combination of Glaring Contradictions	675
1. Curious Admixture of Truth and Error	676
2. Immortality Is for the Righteous Only	676
3. “Translation” of Some Is Alluded to	677
4. Destruction of Wicked Is Utter End	677
5. Immortality Is Fruit of Righteousness and Obedience	677
IV. Innate Immortality and Noxious Involvements	678
1. Unabashedly Avows Innate Immortality	678
2. “Wisdom” the Source of Immortality	679
3. The Righteous Only Seem to Die	679
4. Assumes Pre-existence of the Soul	680
39. Majority Adhere to Historic Conditionalism	681
I. “Ethiopic Enoch”—Underworld Torments End in Annihilation	681
1. Somber Scenes of Judgment Day Depicted	682
2. Resurrection Expressly Portrayed	682
3. Wicked to Be Utterly Consumed	683
4. Torments of Accursed in Underworld	684
II. “Slavonic Enoch”—Eternal Heaven and Unending Hell for Immortal Souls	685
1. First Jewish Propounder of “Six-Thousand-Year” Theory	685
2. Souls Prepared for Eternity Before World’s Formation	686
3. Free Will, Death, Punishment, and Reward	686
4. Righteous “Live Eternally” in Paradise	686
5. “Merciless Tortures” Are “Eternal Inheritance” of Wicked	686
III. “Syriac Baruch”—Conditionalist View; Righteous Sleep Till Resurrection	687
1. Death, Sleep, and Resurrection	688
2. Eschatological View of the Last Things	688
3. Righteous Dead Sleep Until Messiah’s Return	689
IV. Sets Forth the Conditionalist School of Immortality	689
1. Epitome of Baruch’s Hope of Judaism	689
2. Prays for End of Mortality and Corruption	690
3. Coming Judgment and Messiah’s Advent	690
4. Resurrection and Assemblage of Righteous Dead	690
5. The Dust Gives Up the Dead	691
6. The Punishment of the Wicked	691
7. Body Raised Immortal and Incorruptible	691
8. A “Terminable Retribution” Indicated	692
40. “2 Esdras” Maintains the Conditionalist View	693
I. “2 Esdras”—Immortalization of Righteous and Destruction of Wicked	693
1. History Explained in Light of Original Sin	694
2. World’s End, Final Judgment, and Results	694
3. “Mortal” World Succeeded by “Immortal” Age	695
II. Documented Evidence of Ezra’s Conditionalist Position	696
1. “Mortal Man” in a “Corruptible World”	696
2. “New Age” and the Intermediate State	696
3. Righteous to Live, While Ungodly Perish	697
4. General Resurrection and Final Judgment	697
5. “Sleepers” in the “Dust” Called Forth	697
6. The Wicked Are Doomed to Destruction	697
7. Wicked, as a “Flame,” Ultimately “Extinguished”	698
8. “Treasures of Immortality” Made Manifest to Ezra	699
9. Wicked Brought to “Death by Torment”	699
10. Wicked Perish Because of Disobedience	700
11. Ezra’s Single Prophecy Deals With Eschatology	700
12. Time’s Last Hours, and Mortality	701

41. Neoplatonism’s Development—Jewish, Pagan, and Christian	703
I. Alexandria—Seat of Two Paralleling Schools	703
1. Greek Philosophy Takes Root in Roman Empire	703
2. Neoplatonic School Result of Eclectic Choice	704
3. Alexandria the Center of Conflicting Cultures	705
4. Pagan Neoplatonisrn Becomes Anti-Christian	706
II. Pagan Neoplatonism—Greek Philosophy’s Last Stand	707
1. Philo: Precursor, Builds Upon Emanation Theory	707
2. Lucius: Asserts “World-Soul” Principle	708
3. Numenius: Incarnations Punishments for Previous-Life Sins	708
4. Ammonius: Lays Foundations for Neoplatonism	709
5. Plotinus: Orientalism. Dualism, Emanation, Reabsorption	709
6. Porphyry: Skeptic, Vet Holding to Universal Soul	713
7. Iamblichus: Mytchology, Astrology, Necromancy	713
8. Julian: Suppresses Christianity, Exalts Paganism	714
9. Proclus: Mystic Union of Soul With Deity	714
III. Paralleling Christian Catechetical School	715
1. Alexandrian Center Exerts Powerful Influence	715
2. Characterized by Speculation and Allegorization	716
3. Shadows Deepen Into Midnight of Middle Ages	716
42. Philo Judaeus Fuses Platonic Philosophy With Judaic Doctrine	718
I. Alexandria, Seat of Two Paralleling Schools	718
1. On Borderline of Old and New	718
2. Blends Various Views Into Single System	719
3. Pre-eminent Champion of Immortal-Soulism	719
II. Basic Features of Philo’s Teaching Concerning Man	720
1. “Revelation” the Distinguishing Principle of Neoplatonism	720
2. Philo’s Concept of God Was a Synthesis	722
3. Greek and Hebrew Thought Blended by Allegorization	722
4. Strange Conflicting Concepts of Logos	723
5. Flash Pictures of Philo’s Immortal-Soulism	724
6. Philo’s Responsibility in the Great Departure	726
III. Scope and Significance of Philo’s Innovation	727
1. Contrives “Agreement” of Biblical and Philosophical “Truth”	727
2. Strikes at Origin and Destiny of Man	728
3. Genesis Narrative of Creation Vitiated	729
4. Like All Living Creatures Man Has “Animal” Soul	730
5. Man Also Has Immortal “Rational Soul”	731
6. Curious Theory of “Unbodied Souls”	732
7. Role of Unbodied Soul-Angels	733
8. Definition and Function of Rational Soul	734
9. Immortality Defined as “Eternal Persistence”	734
10. Resurrection and Immortality of Soul	735
11. Definitive Meaning of “Fatherland” of Soul	735
12. Souls Return to Realm of “Unbodied”	736
13. Merges Immortality and Resurrection	737
14. Endless Punishment of the Wicked	737
15. Attested by Scholarly Authorities	739
16. Twin Streams Merge at Alexandria	740
43. Dead Sea Scrolls—Permeated Throughout With Conditionalism	741
I. Timing and Teaching of Essene Brotherhood	742
1. Views of the People of the Scrolls	743
2. Like Waldenses of Medieval Times	743
3. Approaching End of Present Age	744
4. Major Emphasis Is on Last Things	745
5. Prominent Place Given to Angels	745
II. Comprehensive Witness of Scrolls on Man’s Nature and Destiny	746
1. Sinners “Perish”; Righteous “Destined” for “Life Eternal”	746
2. Righteous Stand in God’s Presence Forever	746
3. Man Created for Eternity	747
4. No “Escape” for Wicked in “Final Doom”	747
III. Fate of Wicked Is Utter Extinction	748
1. Wicked to Be “Found No More,” “Cut off.” Wiped Out	748
2. Burned Until They Be “Destroyed”	749
3. Righteous “Never Die”; Wicked “Wither”	749
4. Angels Brought to Judgment and Hell	750
IV. Eternal Redemption and Utter Extinction	750
1. “Dust” Return to “Dust”	750
2. “Perdition Eternal” vs. “Enduring” for All Time	750
3. Iniquity Cannot Exist in God’s Presence	751
4. “Mortal Flesh” Redeemed Forevermore	751
V. Wicked Cease and Wrong Disappears Forever	752
1. Wicked Will Cease to Exist	752
2. Final Clash of Good and Evil	752
3. “Everlasting Redemption” vs. “Annihilation”	752
4. Wrong Will Disappear Forever	753
5. Significance of the Great Digression in Jewry	753