False Prophets in Lucian and Lewis

Abstract

Sometimes a writer feels called upon to denounce a religious leader as a hypocrite and a fraud. The target is sometimes a specific person, sometimes a generic fictional type. The methods of attack have changed very little from ancient times to the present, as may be seen from a comparison oí Alexander the False Prophet by Lucian of Samosata (composed about 180 A.D.) with Sinclair Lewis' Elmer Gantry (published in 1927).1 The subject of Lucian's diatribe is an actual historical figure, Alexander of Abonutichus, who flourished in Asia Minor from c. 150 to c. 170 A.D.2 His influence was great for a generation, as is attested by inscriptions and coins of the era; but since he is almost forgotten today (except by those specialists whose works are mentioned in notes 2 and 3), a brief sketch of his career is in order.3