1-4:4
Ὀνόματος μὲν οὖν προσωνυμίᾳ οὔτε ἀγαθὸν οὔτε κακὸν κρίνεται ἄνευ τῶν ὑποπιπτουσῶν τᾷ ὀνόματι πράξεων· ἐπεί, ὅσον γε ἐκ τοῦ κατηγορουμένου ἡμῶν ὀνόματος, χρηστότατοι ὑπάρχομεν. Ἀλλ ἐπεὶ οὐ τοῦτο δίκαιον ἡγοίμεθα, διὰ τὸ ὄνομα, ἐὰν κακοὶ ἐλεγχώμεθα, αἰτεῖν ἀφίεσθαι, πάλιν, εἰ μηδὲν διά τε τὴν προσηγορίαν τοῦ ὀνόματος καὶ διὰ τὴν πολιτείαν εὑρισκόμεθα ἀδικοῦντες, ὑμέτερον ἀγωνιᾶσαί ἐστι, μὴ ἀδίκως κολάζοντες τοὺς μὴ ἐλεγχομένους τῇ δίκῃ κόλασιν ὀφλήσητε. Ἐξ ὀνόματος μὲν γὰρ ἢ ἔπαινος ἢ κόλασις οὐκ ἂν εὐλόγως γένοιτο, ἢν μή τι ἐνάρετον ἢ φαῦλον δι ἔργων ἀποδείκνυσθαι δύνηται. Καὶ γὰρ τοὺς κατηγορουμένους ἐφ ὑμῶν πάντας πρὶν ἐλεγχθῆναι οὐ τιμωρεῖτε· ἐφ ἡμῶν δὲ τὸ ὄνομα ὡς ἔλεγχον λαμβάνετε, καίπερ, ὅσον γε ἐκ τοῦ ὀνόματος, τοὺς κατηγοροῦντας μᾶλλον κολάζειν ὀφείλετε. Χριστιανοὶ γὰρ εἶναι κατηγορούμεθα· τὸ δὲ χρηστὸν μισεῖσθαι οὐ δίκαιον Καὶ πάλιν· ἐὰν μέν τις τῶν κατηγορουμένων ἔξαρνος γένηται τῇ φωνῇ μὴ εἶναι φήσας, ἀφίετε αὐτὸν ὡς μηδὲν ἐλέγχειν ἔχοντες ἁμαρτάνοντα, ἐὰν δέ τις ὁμολογήσῃ εἶναι, διὰ τὴν ὁμολογίαν κολάζετε· δέον καὶ τὸν τοῦ ὁμολογοῦντος βίον εὐθύνειν καὶ τοῦ ἀρνουμένου, ὅπως διὰ τῶν πράξεων ὁποῖός ἐστιν ἕκαστος φαίνηται. Ὃν γὰρ τρόπον παραλαβόντες τινὲς παρὰ τοῦ διδασκάλου Χριστοῦ μὴ ἀρνεῖσθαι ἐξεταζόμενοι παρακελεύονται, τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον κακῶς ζῶντες ἴσως ἀφορμὰς παρέχουσι τοῖς ἄλλως καταλέγειν τῶν πάντων Χριστιανῶν ἀσέβειαν καὶ ἀδικίαν αἱρουμένοις. Οὐκ ὀρθῶς μὲν οὐδὲ τοῦτο πράττεται· καὶ γάρ τοι φιλοσοφίας ὄνομα καὶ σχῆμα ἐπιγράφονταί τινες, οἵ οὐδὲν ἄξιον τῆς ὑποσχέσεως πράττουσι· γινώσκετεδ ὅτι καὶ οἱ τὰ ἐναντία δοξάσαντες καὶ δογματίσαντες τῶν παλαιῶν τᾷ ἑνὶ ὀνόματι προσαγορεύονται φιλόσοφοι. Καὶ τούτων τινὲς ἀθεότητα ἐδίδαξαν, καὶ τὸν Δία ἀσελγῆ ἅμα τοῖς αὐτοῦ παισὶν οἱ γενόμενοι ποιηταὶ καταγγέλλουσι· κἀκείνων τὰ διδάγματα οἱ μετερχόμενοι οὐκ εἴργονται πρὸς ὑμῶν, ἆθλα δὲ καὶ τιμὰς τοῖς εὐφώνως ὑβρίζουσι τούτους τίθετε
By the mere bestowal of a name nothing is judged good or evil, apart from the deeds that fall under the name; for as far as our accused name goes, we are most excellent men. But since we do not think it just, on account of the name, to ask acquittal if we are convicted of evil, so likewise, if we are found to do no wrong either by reason of our designation or by our way of life, it is your concern to take heed lest, by unjustly punishing those who are not convicted, you incur the punishment of justice. For from a name there could not reasonably come either praise or punishment, unless something virtuous or base can be shown by deeds. Indeed, all who are accused before you, you do not punish before they are convicted; but in our case you take the name as a proof, though, so far as the name is concerned, you ought rather to punish the accusers. For we are accused of being Christians; but to hate what is excellent [Greek: chrēston, punning on 'Christian'] is not just. And again: if any of the accused denies, saying with his voice that he is not one, you release him, having nothing of which to convict him as an offender; but if anyone confesses that he is, you punish him on account of the confession—though you ought to examine the life both of him who confesses and of him who denies, so that by his deeds it may appear what each man is. For just as some, having received from Christ their teacher the instruction not to deny under examination, exhort others to this, in the same way perhaps those who live wickedly give occasion to others who choose to charge all Christians with impiety and injustice. Yet this too is done wrongly; for some who inscribe upon themselves the name and form of philosophy do nothing worthy of their profession—and you know that those of the ancients who held and taught the most contrary opinions are all called by the one name 'philosophers.' Some of these even taught atheism, and the poets who have lived proclaim Zeus to be licentious together with his children; yet those who follow such teachings are not restrained by you, but you bestow prizes and honors on those who eloquently revile these gods.
單憑名稱的稱呼，並不能斷定一件事是善是惡，除非看那名稱底下所含的行為；因為單就我們所被控的名稱而論，我們乃是極為良善的人。但我們既不以為只憑名稱、在被定罪行惡時就求開釋是公正的，照樣，我們若無論按名稱的稱呼或按生活方式都查不出有何不義，你們就當謹慎，免得你們無理地懲罰那些未被定罪的人，反招來公義的刑罰。因為單憑一個名稱，既不能合理地帶來稱讚，也不能帶來懲罰，除非藉著行為顯出有德或卑劣。事實上，凡在你們面前被控告的人，未經定罪你們都不懲治；惟獨對我們，你們卻把名稱當作罪證——其實單就名稱而論，你們倒應當懲罰那些控告者。因為我們被控為「基督徒」；但恨惡那美善的（按希臘文「基督」與「良善」諧音），實在不公。又如：被控的人中若有人否認、口稱自己不是基督徒，你們便釋放他，因無可指證他為犯人；但若有人承認自己是，你們便因這承認而懲治他——其實你們應當查驗那承認者與那否認者的生活，好使各人的為人由其行為顯明出來。因為正如有些人從他們的教師基督領受了教訓，受審時不可否認，便如此勸勉別人；照樣，那些生活敗壞的人，或許也給了別人把柄，使他們選擇控告所有基督徒不敬虔、行不義。然而這樣行也是不對的；因為也有些人給自己冠上哲學的名與形，所行卻全無配得起這名分的——你們也知道，古人中持守並教導彼此最相反之見解的人，都同被稱為一個名「哲學家」。這些人中有的甚至教導無神論，而曾活著的詩人也宣揚宙斯與他的兒女一同行淫亂；可是那些隨從這等教訓的人，你們並不禁止，反倒把獎賞與尊榮賜給那些用美妙言辭辱罵這些神明的人。