Page:Apocryphal Gospels and Other Documents Relating to the History of Christ.djvu/34

xxx in his treatise on the "Incarnation of the Word," refers to the downfall of idols in Egypt, when Christ went thither: "Who, among righteous men or kings, went down into Egypt, and at his coming the idols of Egypt fell?" etc. In his fourth oration against the Arians, also, he mentions the fear of the keepers of Hades when Christ descended to the underworld. Elsewhere he mentions that Christ arose from the dead at midnight. He may not really have read any of our extant false Gospels, but he knew some of the traditions contained in them. It is when we come to later writers that we find the apocryphal traditions set forth as verities. John of Damascus, Nicephorus, and a host of others might be mentioned in this connection. Hence it has come to pass that, short of a place among the books of the New Testament, many apocryphal writings have been elevated to the highest possible dignity. If some of the false Gospels and revelations have not been formally adopted, stories from them, as told by John of Damascus and others, have been transferred to the Roman Breviary. It is well known that the Legenda Aurea drew largely from several of the