originators of idols were those who conferred this honor on the dead, and thus superstitiously worshiped their memory.16 Of course, I admit that this perverse custom was very ancient, nor do I deny that it was a torch with which to fire men’s mad dash into idolatry all the more; yet I do not concede that this was the original source of the evil. For it appears from Moses that idols were in use before this eagerness to consecrate images of the dead prevailed, which is frequently mentioned by secular