Learning and Faith

Πῶς δὲ οὐχὶ ἀποδοχῆς ἄξιοι οἵ τε μαθεῖν ἐθελοντες, οἵ τε δυνάμενοι, κατὰ τὸν Σολομῶντα, γνῶναι σοφίαν καὶ παιδείαν, νοῆσαι τε λόγους φρονήσεως, δέξασθαι τε στροφὰς λόγων, νοῆσαι τε δικαιοσύνην ἀληθῆ; ὡς οὔσης καὶ ἑτέρας τῆς μὴ κατὰ τὴν ἀλήθειαν διδασκομένης πρὸς τῶν νομῶν τῶν Ἐλληνικῶν, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν φιλοσόφων. Καὶ κρίματα, φησὶν,  εὐθῦναι, οὐ τὰ δικαστικα, ἀλλὰ τὸ κριτήριον τὸ ἐν ἡμῖν, ὑγιὲς καὶ ἀπλανὲς ἔχειν δεῖν μηνυει· Ἵνα δῷ ἀκὰκοις πανουργίαν, παιδὶ δὲ νέῳ αἴσθησιν τε καὶ εὔνοιαν. Τῶνδε γὰρ ἀκούσας σοφὸς ὁ ὑπακούειν ταῖς ἐντολαῖς πεπεισμένος, σοφώτερος ἔσται κατὰ τὴν γνῶσιν· ὁ δὲ νοήμων κυβέρνησιν κτήσεται· νοήσει τε παραβολὴν καὶ σκοτεινὸν λόγον, ῥήσεις τε σοφῶν καὶ αἰνιγματα. Οὐ γὰρ κιβδήλους οἱ ἔπιπνοι ἐκ Θεοῦ λόγους προφέρουσιν, οὐδ' οἱ παρὰ τούτων ἐμπορευόμενοι· οὐδὲ μὴν πάγας, αἶς οἱ πολλοὶ τῶν σοφιστῶν τοὺς νέους ἐμπλέκουσι, πρὸς ούδὲν ἀληθὲς σχολάζοντες· ἀλλ' οἱ μὲν τὸ ἅγιον Πνεῦμα κεκτημένοι, ἑρευνῶσι τὰ βάθη τοῦ Θεοῦ, τουτέστι, τῆς περὶ τὰς προφητείας ἐπικρύψεως ἐπήβολοι γινόμενοι. Τῶν δὲ ἃγίων μεταδιδόναι τοῐς κυσὶν ἀπαγορεύεται, ἔστ' ἄν μἐνῃ θηρία· οὐ γὰρ ποτε ἐγκιρναναι προσήκει φθονεροῖς καὶ τεταραγμένοις, ἀπίστοις τε ἔτι ἤθεσιν, εἰς ὑλακὴν ζητήσεως ἀναιδέσι, τοῦ Θείου καὶ καθαροῦ νάματος τοῦ ζῶντος ὕδατος. 'μὴ δὴ ὑπερεκχείσθω σοι ὑδατα ἔξω πηγῆς σου· εἰς δὲ σὰς πλατεὶας διαπορευέσθω σὰ ὕδατα.' Οὐ γὰρ φρονέουσι τοιαῦτα πολλοὶ, ὀκόσοι ἐγκυρσεύουσιν· οὐδὲ μαθόντες, γινώσκουσιν· ἑαυτοῖσι δὲ δοκέουσι, κατὰ τὸν γενναῖον Ἡράκλειτον. Ἅρ' οὐ δοκεῖ σοι καὶ οὔτος τοὺς μὴ πιστεύοντας ψέγειν; Ὁ δὲ δίκαιος μου ἐκ πὶστεως ζήσεται, ὁ προφήτης εἴρηκε. Λέγει δὲ καὶ ἄλλος προφήτης· Ἐὰν μὴ πιστεύσητε, οὐδὲ μὴ συνῆτε. Πῶς γὰρ τούτων ὑπερφυᾶ θεωρίαν χωρήσαι ποτ' ἄν ψυχὴ, διαμαχομένης ἔνδον τῆς περὶ τὴν μάθησιν ἀπιστίας;   Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, Στρωματεων, Λογος Δευτερος, Κεφ β'.

But how entirely worthy of praise are they who are willing to learn, those able, according to Solomon, 'to know wisdom and instruction, to perceive words of wisdom, to grasp twisting words, and to perceive true righteousness,' there being another righteousness, not according to the truth, but taught by the laws of the Gentiles and the other philosophers. 'And to guide judgments,' it is said, not those of the courts, but he means the critical faculty within us, that we must preserve it sound and free of error. 'That I may give subtlety to the innocent, to the youth sense and good understanding.' 'For having heard these things the wise man who has been persuaded to obey the commandments 'will become wiser by knowledge; and the intelligent man will acquire rule, and will understand a parable and an obscure saying, the words and enigmas of the wise.' 1 For it is not deceitful words those inspired by God bring forth, nor do those who deal with them, nor is it the traps in which many of the sophists entangle the young, that they waste their time on nothing true, but those who possess the Holy Spirit search the deep things of God, 2 that is, they grasp the things hidden in the prophecies. 'To give holy things to dogs' 3 is forbidden, while they remain beasts, for never should those who are envious and perturbed and still faithless in conduct, shameless in howling at investigation, touch the divine and clear stream of the living water. 'Let not the waters of your fountain overflow, your waters spreading over your streets.' 4 For it is not many who understand whatever things they encounter; or having learned them know them, though it seems to them that they do, according to the worthy Heraclitus. Does not even he seem to fault those who do not believe? 'My righteous one shall live by faith,' 5 the Prophet said. And another Prophet says, 'If you do not believe, you will not understand.' 6 For how could the soul admit the transcendental contemplation of such things, while within struggled unbelief of what was to be learned? Clement of Alexandria, Stromata, Book 2, Ch 2.  1 Prov 1:2-6 2 1 Cor 2:10 3 Mt 7.6 4 Prov 5:16 5 Hab 2:4 6 Isa 7:9