north of Africa, the cradle of a discursive construction that begins with Tertullian,
is apprehended and reproduced by Minucius Felix, Cyprian, Arnobius, and
Lactantius, and reaches its full development in St. Augustine. Of these, Tertullian is
the oldest writer and his apologies, the two books of Ad nationes and Apologeticum,
and De spectaculis, constitute privileged texts to observe this procedure, because
the references to Roman religion found in them stem substantially from the literary
tradition, and hence these works also offer a space for reflection on literature as a
means of religious diffusion, reflection, and criticism.
Although the oldest documents in Christian Africa are the first Latin versions of
the Bible, which regrettably no longer exist, and the martyr acts, the importance of
these apologetic writings by African authors resides in the fact that they are the first
Christian works written in Latin that have reached us. For this reason, these works
constitute the point of departure for the approach to the vision and treatment of
Roman religion by Christians living, observing, and fighting for Christianity against
Roman religion outside Rome, though under Roman dominion, that is, in a Roman
province of the west of the empire. However, this Latin Christian literature has its
precedents in Greek Christian literature. When at the end of the second century the
Christian writers in the north of Africa begin writing in Latin, Christian literature,
whose language until then had been Greek, already had a consolidated tradition of
apologetic works which had begun to appear in the first half of the second century.
Greek apologetic works, unlike previous Christian texts, which had been directed to
the inner circles of the Christian community for the edification and invigoration of
the faithful, were for the first time directed to the outer world, to a non-Christian
public, entering the domain of culture, of philosophy, and of the science of the time.
Thus, with the aim of refuting the calumnies spread about the empire regarding
Christians and responding to the accusation that Christians were a danger to the
Roman state, the Greek apologists began a controversy with philosophy, mythology,
and pagan religious practices, especially Greek religion and oriental cults. With regard
to behavior and practices, the apologists drew attention to the Christians’ virtuous
way of life and insisted on the fact that faith in one god only was necessary for the
preservation and well-being of the world, the emperor, and the state. As regards philo-
sophical argument, they exposed the different religions, the nature of their gods,
and the myths of their divinities as absurd and immoral, demonstrating that only
the Christians had a correct idea of god.
In this sense, the Africans belong to this Greek-oriental Christian tradition and
the first Latin apologies present many of the characteristics common to Greek apolo-
getic works. However, Latin apologies had some important differences, especially
concerning Roman religion. Although Greek apologies are formally addressed to
the emperor, Roman religion is not an issue in these works. Besides, the reception
of Latin texts by Greek authors is very limited and, therefore, unlike the apologies
written in Greek, apologies in Latin do not argue as much with Greek philosophers
as with Latin authors, so the treatment of systematic representations of Roman reli-
gion constitutes the originality of this Christian literature which begins to develop
in the west. Two very important Roman writers of the late republican era, Varro
and Cicero, have a place here, although many Latin authors are quoted and argued
against: Seneca, Virgil, Pliny, Livy, Tacitus, and Suetonius, among others.
458 Cecilia Ames