To Diognetus 4.1

Anonymous · To Diognetus · ca. 150–200 (disputed) · place unknown · Read in context

Summary: Jewish food laws, sabbaths, circumcision, and fasts are dismissed.

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Greek text · Lake, LCL 25:356

Ἀλλὰ μὴν τό γε περὶ τὰς βρώσεις αὐτῶν ψοφοδεὲς καὶ τὴν περὶ τὰ σάββατα δεισιδαιμονίαν καὶ τὴν τῆς περιτομῆς ἀλαζονείαν καὶ τὴν τῆς νηστείας καὶ νουμηνίας εἰρωνείαν, καταγέλαστα καὶ οὐδενὸς ἄξια λόγου, οὐ νομίζω σε χρῄζειν παρʼ ἐμοῦ μαθεῖν.

English · Claude translation

But as for their scrupulousness about foods, and their superstition about sabbaths, and their pride in circumcision, and their pretense about fasting and the new moon, which are ridiculous and not worth any discussion, I do not think you need to learn from me.

About this passage

Source: Lake, LCL 25:356 · Kirsopp Lake, ed. and trans., The Apostolic Fathers, vol. 2, LCL 25 (London: Heinemann; New York: Macmillan, 1913), 350–379 · Greek text: K. Lake, The Apostolic Fathers (LCL, 1912-1913), digitized by the Perseus Digital Library and published by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0
Translation: Claude translation (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-26 · Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 25, 1913); made independently of existing English translations.

Notes

Translation notes

The author's tone toward Jewish practice is dismissive and polemical, typical of some second-century Christian apologetic.

Cite this passage

Diogn. 4.1 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/diognetus/4/1/).

Plain text

Diogn. 4.1 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/diognetus/4/1/).

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