Chapter XXI.—Idols Not Animated by the Divine Spirit.

“For many say, We do not worship the gold or the silver, the wood or the stone, of the objects of our worship.  For we also know that these are nothing but lifeless matter, and the art of mortal man.  But the spirit that dwells in them, that we call God.  Behold the immorality of those who speak thus!  For when that which appears is easily proved to be nothing, they have recourse to the invisible, as not being able to be convicted in respect of what is non-apparent.  However, they agree with us in part, that one half of their images is not God, but senseless matter.  It remains for them to show how we are to believe that these images have a divine spirit.  But they cannot prove to us that it is so, for it is not so; and we do not believe them when they say that they have seen it.  We shall afford them proofs that they have not a divine spirit, that lovers of truth, hearing the refutation of the thought that they are animated, may turn away from the hurtful delusion.