I shall direct my speech to those who are well versed in this matter. To rouse the lazy is foolish; and to whip up the eager would be more foolish still. But I do not abandon the subject because of the labor; I take it up because of the duty.

Not to every one, my friends, does it belong to philosophize about God; not to every one, the subject is not so cheap and low, and, I will add, not before every audience, nor at all times, nor on all points; but on certain occasions, and before certain persons, and within certain limits.

Not to all men, because it is permitted only to those who have been examined, and are passed masters in meditation, and who have been previously purified in soul and body, or at the very least are being purified. For the impure to touch the pure is, we may safely say, not safe; just as it is unsafe to fix weak eyes upon the sun's rays.

And when? Whenever we are free from the mire and noise without, and our commanding faculty is not confused by illusory, wandering images, leading us, as it were, to mix fine writing with garbage, or sweet-smelling spices with foul substances. For we must really be at leisure to know God; and when we can catch the opportunity, to discern the path of true religion.

And to whom? To those for whom the subject is of real concern, and not those who make it a matter of pleasant gossip, like horse racing or theatres, after the races, the cheers of the crowd, and the silly disputes of the spectators. Among such people are those who make these mighty mysteries an opportunity for cleverness of speech, throwing out questions to be wrestled with not in earnest, but as a contest of words.