Christ the Educator

Chapter 11

CHRIST THE EDUCATOR 189 and cheaper articles? You do not know what is truly beautiful and good. The foolish eagerly seek what seems to be good, rather than what is really good, like the insane who believe that black is white. Chapter 11 ( 116) There are women who manifest a very similar vanity in their footwear, thereby revealing considerable shallowness of character. It is a matter for shame to have sandals plated with the costliest gold, and even worse to decide, as some do, to have nails hammered into the soles in a circular pattern. Many even engrave love messages on them so that they mark the earth in recurring pattern as they walk, and stamp the eroticism of their own hearts upon it with their footprints. We must give up such foolish artistries of golden and gem-studded sandals, of Attic and Sicyonian boots, and buskins, and Persian and Tyrrhenian slippers as well. We must first set before our eyes what our true goal is, according to the truth, and then choose what conforms to nature. Sandals are used for two things: one, as a covering for the feet, and the other, as a precaution against stumbling and against the roughness of climbing uphill, to protect the soles of the feet. (117) We permit women the use of white sandals, unless they are traveling, when they should use sandals anointed with oil. They also need footwear that has soles nailed on, for their traveling. Otherwise, they should always use sandals, because it is unbecoming for women to expose their bare foot, and also because they are more easily hurt. But it is certainly permissible for a man to go about without sandals, unless he 190 CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA is on some military expedition. Being sandaled, in fact, is much like being bound. It is very frequent among athletes to go barefooted, both for the sake of their health and for greater freedom of movement; so, no necessity should prevent us from doing the same. But, if we are not traveling and are wearing shoes, we should wear the slipper or the white shoe. Athenians call them dust shoes because, I believe, they keep the feet close to the dust. When we put them on, the prayer that should be said is drawn from the witness given by John, who confessed that he was not worthy to loose the latch of the sandals of the Lord. For, He who suggested the model of true philosophy to the Hebrews did not wear anything elaborate on His feet. This means something here, but it will be explained more fully in another place. Chapter 12 ( 118) It is pure childishness to let ourselves become fascinated by gems, whether they are green or dark red, and by the stones disgorged by the sea, and by metals dug up out of the earth. To set one's heart on shining pebbles and peculiar colors and irridescent glass is simply to play the part of a man without intelligence, easily spell-bound by gaudy appearances. Just so, little children are attracted by the brillance of a fire they see, not realizing, in their immaturity , the danger of touching it. That holds true, too, of the stones that silly women hang about their necks on chains, and the amethysts and ceraunites that they string together on necklaces, as well as the jasper and topaz and 'the Milesian emeralds, the most valuable of all wares.'l I Adesp. 109. TGF. ...