to Kapyong,
I also note Bernard interprets it as apologising for the delayed parousia. But Aristides doesn't actually make any such apology that I can find.
I did not say Aristides was apologizing by writing "short time". But he had to take in account the elapsed years and made them fit Christian belief (the parousia happening soon after Jesus & Paul preaching, at least before the last of their generation died) (I know, around 125 AD, it was a bit of a stretch).
I doubt Aristides' apology was sent to the emperor. But obviously it circulated among Christians and was copied. Aristides was not providing historical information to people like us, many centuries later, but concerned about his audience not losing hope about the second coming.
That is - I think he is explicitly saying that there was a new wave in Christianity - the Gospel(s), that have only been preached for a 'short time'. That the Gospels were specifically seen by Christians as a new expression of Christian beliefs, that came with (new) 'power'.
You might be right here. The gospels might not have been used much as a basis of preaching in the last part of the 1st century but may have become just that sometime at the beginning of the 2nd century. We have evidence for that from Aristides himself, who seems to know about each Synoptics and gJohn (as argued by Gakuseidon).
Other evidence in that regard would come from:
a) Cerinthus, an early Gnostic/Ebionite (late 1st to early 2nd century)
According to Irenaeus, 'Against Heresies', book I, chapter XXVI, 1:
"Cerinthus, again, a man who was educated in the wisdom of the Egyptians, taught that the world was not made by the primary God, ... He represented Jesus as having not been born of a virgin, but as being the son of Joseph and Mary according to the ordinary course of human generation, while he nevertheless was more righteous, prudent, and wise than other men. Moreover, after his baptism, Christ descended upon him in the form of a dove from the Supreme Ruler, and that then he proclaimed the unknown Father, and performed miracles ..."
b) Quadratus of Athens (120-130 AD):
Quadratus of Athens wrote also an apology at the same time of Aristides' one, according to Eusebius. A small fragment is preserved, containing probably the first reference (outside the gospels) of healing & resurrections by an earthly Jesus:
"Our Saviour's works, moreover, were always present: for they were real, consisting of those who had been healed of their diseases, those who had been raised from the dead; who were not only seen whilst they were being healed and raised up, but were afterwards constantly present. Nor did they remain only during the sojourn of the Saviour on earth, but also a considerable time after His departure ..."
c) Papias (110-140 AD) who knew about most likely gMark and had to explain why it looked out of order (probably as compared with gLuke, which claims to be in order).
d) Gnostics, such as Basilides & Valentinus ("teaching" from 120 AD), according to Hippolytus of Rome and Irenaeus:
See
http://historical-jesus.info/gospels.html under >> Basilides <<
Cordially, Bernard
