The Institutes of Lactansius

In the Institutes of Lactansius, he says explicitly that his aim is to use such rhetorical gifts as he has to attack pagan belief and uphold Christianity. He sneers at Socrates' dying request to sacrifice a rooster to the god Esclepius. As for Plato, Lactan can provoke his audience's scorn by simply mentioning the Republic's idea that women should be shared among men in an ideal state. Yet, Lactannus can't help admiring certain philosophers, in particular Cicero.