The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (2475 page)

(
c.
160–
c.
225),
Christian
father
. He was born in Carthage and became a Christian before 197. He was the first important Christian writer in Latin, with a long and various list of works (the chronology of which is disputed). He eventually left the
Catholic
Church in favour of
Montanism
. His
Apology
(
c.
197) has the typical concerns of the
apologists
of the time, resting on the view that there is a natural basis for the recognition of God's action in Christ—i.e. the argument that there is ‘anima naturaliter Christiana’, the soul naturally Christian'. In his
Apology
there already appears the rigorous commitment to the faith summarized as ‘The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church’—though he wrote, ‘We grow just as much as we are mown down by you, the seed is the blood of the Christians.’ His moral and disciplinary works (e.g.
The Soldier's Crown
,
On Penitence
) are rigorous in their insistence on separation from pagan society. The corresponding rigour in his adherence to the faith is epitomized in his sentence,
Certum est quia impossibile est
, ‘It is certain because it is impossible’, (
De Carne Christi
). His theological works are mainly polemical. The most important are
De praescriptione haereticorum
(Against Heretics, following the model of
Irenaeus
), Against
Marcion
, and
Against Praxeas
(attacking
modalism
and formulating a doctrine of the
Trinity
).

 
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see
TITHES
.

 
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782–865)
. Ch’an/Zen master, dharma-successor (
hassu
) of Lung-t'an Chung-hsin. Originally trained in the Northern school (see
SOUTHERN AND NORTHERN SCHOOLS
), and learned in the
Diamond S
tra
, he was in some despair at its teaching that it may take thousands of
kalpas
to attain buddhahood. Hearing of the Southern school, he set out to learn more of it, meeting an old woman on the way who sent him to Lung-t’an. Lung-t'an handed him a paper torch, and as he took it, Lung-t'an blew it out. He received immediate enlightenment. Next day, he took his commentaries on the
Diamond S
tra
and set fire to them. After years of seclusion, he became abbot of Te-shan (hence his name), and taught many disciples in the style of
Ma-tsu
, with much use of sticks (
shippei
,
kyosaku
) and shouts (
katsu
: see
HO
).

 
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(Heb., ‘repentance’). The renunciation of sin, appeal for forgiveness and return to righteous living in Judaism. Repentance is an important theme in the Hebrew scriptures and is the theme of the Ten Days of
Penitence
. Forgiveness depends on true repentance, and, if another person is involved, restitution must be made.

 
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Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs
.

A
pseudepigraphical
writing relating in twelve books the message that each of the twelve sons of
Jacob
gave to his descendants on his deathbed.

 
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