Source edition
Tertullian. Quinti Septimi Florentis Tertulliani opera, Pars I (Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, Volume 20). Reifferscheid, August; Wissowa, Georg, editors. Prague, Vienna, Leipzig: F. Tempsky, G. Freytag, 1890.
Source data
Open Greek and Latin · CC BY-SA 4.0
Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.
Summary
This apologetic work seeks to prove the truth of Christian doctrine through the testimony of the "simple, untutored soul" of human beings, untouched by worldly learning. Rather than relying on complex literary or theological debates, the author focuses on the everyday language and customs of ordinary pagans. He highlights how their subconscious expressions reveal an instinctive fear of the one true God, an awareness of demons, and an intuitive acceptance of the soul's survival and bodily resurrection after death. This testimony of the soul is presented as a manifestation of universal truth derived from nature and God, pre-dating any formal education or writing. Finally, the author concludes that since all humans carry this testimony within themselves, those who persecute Christians will have no excuse and will be found guilty on the Day of Judgment.