Cyprian & Lactantius · a new plain-English translation from the original language
For the rest, dearest brothers, let them turn away resolutely and shun the words and conversations of those whose talk creeps like a cancer, just as the apostle says: evil conversations corrupt good character. And again: after a first warning, avoid a man who is a heretic, knowing that such a person is perverse and sins, being condemned by his own judgment. And through Solomon the Holy Spirit speaks: the perverse man, it says, carries destruction in his own mouth and stores up fire in his lips. Likewise he warns again, saying: hedge your ears about with thorns and do not listen to a wicked tongue. And again: a bad man gives ear to unjust tongues, but the righteous man does not attend to lying lips. And though I know that our brotherhood there is, by your foresight, well guarded, and is besides sufficiently wary through its own watchfulness, so that it cannot be caught by the poisons of heretics nor deceived, and that the divine teachings and precepts hold sway among them exactly to the degree that they fear God — still, our concern for you together with our abundant love has led us to set down this counsel for your sake: let no dealings at all be struck up with people of that sort, let no meals or talk be shared with the wicked, and let us keep ourselves as far apart from them as they themselves have run off from the church — for it stands written, if he will not listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. Nor does the blessed apostle stop at merely advising this; he goes further and orders that such men be shunned outright, and his command runs thus: invoking the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ's own name, you are to withdraw from any brother whose conduct is disorderly and who spurns the tradition passed down from us. Faith can share no partnership with faithlessness. Anyone who does not stand with Christ, anyone hostile to Christ, anyone opposed to his peace and unity, has no place standing beside us. Should they approach bearing prayers and making amends, grant them a hearing; should they instead hurl abuse and menace, turn them away. I wish you, dearest brother, unfailing good health.
Letter LX. Cyprian to his brother Cornelius, greeting. Word has reached us, dearest brother, of the glowing proof your faith and courage gave, and the honor of your confession filled us with such joy that we now number ourselves among the sharers in your merit and your praise. For since we share one church, one united mind, and an undivided harmony, what priest would not rejoice in the praises of his fellow priest as though they were his own, or what brotherhood would not delight everywhere in the joy of its brothers? It cannot be expressed how great was the rejoicing here, how great the gladness, when we learned of your good and courageous doings — that you had stood there as leader of the brothers in confession, but also that the leader's confession had grown through the brothers' agreement with him, so that while you went ahead toward glory you made many companions of that glory and persuaded a whole people to become confessors: given that you stood ready before anyone else to make confession for the sake of everyone, we cannot decide which we ought first to proclaim in you — your ready and steadfast faith, or the inseparable love of the brothers. There the courage of the bishop who led was publicly proven, and the union of the brotherhood that followed was displayed. There, with a single mind and a single voice shared among you, the entire church of Rome gave its confession. It has become clear, dearest brother, the faith which the blessed apostle proclaimed concerning us. This praise of courage and this firmness of strength he already foresaw then in the spirit, and by testifying beforehand to your merits in that proclamation of things to come, he was, in praising the parents, calling the children forward. While you are thus of one mind, while you are brave, you have given the rest of the brothers great examples of unity and courage. You have taught them mightily to fear God, to cling firmly to Christ, for the people to stand by their priests in danger, for brothers not to be separated from brothers in persecution, that a harmony bound together cannot be conquered at all, and that God of peace grants to the peaceable whatever they ask of him together. The adversary had leapt forward with violent terror to throw Christ's camp into confusion. But he was driven back by the very force with which he had come, and as much terror and dread as he brought, so much courage and strength he found in return. He had believed he could once more trip up God's servants, and, as if they were raw recruits and untried, less prepared and less experienced, shake them as was his usual custom. He first attacked one alone, as a wolf tries to cut a sheep from the flock, as a hawk tries to separate a dove from the flying company — for whoever lacks sufficient strength against all seeks instead to surround the isolation of individuals. But repulsed by the faith and vigor alike of a united army, he understood that Christ's soldiers were now watching, sober and armed, standing ready for battle, unable to be conquered, able only to die, and unconquered precisely in this, that they do not fear to die, nor do they fight back against their attackers — since the innocent are not permitted to kill even a guilty man — but readily hand over both life and blood, so that, while such malice and savagery rage in the world, one may withdraw all the more swiftly from the wicked and the savage. What a glorious spectacle that was before the eyes of God, what joy in the sight of Christ for his own church, that against the battle the enemy had tried to bring, not individual soldiers but the whole camp together came forward. For it is agreed that all would have come if they had been able to hear the call, since whoever heard it ran there in haste and came. How many who had lapsed were restored there through glorious confession; they stood firm, and made braver for battle by the very pain of their repentance — so that it appears they had merely been taken by surprise and had trembled from the fear of a strange and unaccustomed trial, but afterward came back to themselves, and strengthened their true faith and their powers, gathered from the fear of God, steadily and firmly for every endurance — no longer standing for pardon of a crime, but for the crown of suffering. What does Novatian say to this, dearest brother? Does he now lay down his error? Or rather — as is the way of madmen — has he been driven all the more to fury by these very blessings and successes of ours, so that the more our love and faith flourish gloriously on this side, the more his madness of division and envy flares up afresh on that one? The wretched man does not tend to his own wound, but wounds himself and his followers still more gravely, clattering his tongue to the ruin of the brothers and hurling the poisoned darts of his eloquence — more hardened by the corruption of secular philosophy than softened by the peaceable wisdom belonging to the Lord — a man who has deserted the church, turned foe to mercy, slain repentance, taught pride, corrupted truth, and destroyed love. Does he even recognize now who is a priest of God, what the church and house of Christ is, who are the servants of God whom the devil harasses, who are the Christians whom antichrist assails? For he does not seek out those he has already subdued, nor does he trouble to overthrow those he has already made his own. As the church's enemy and foe, he looks past and scorns the very people he drove out of the church into captivity and defeat; instead he presses his attack against those in whom he sees Christ dwelling. And yet, even if any of these men should be arrested, he has no cause to flatter himself as though in a confession of the Name, since it is agreed that if such people are killed outside the church, it is not the crown of faith but rather the penalty of faithlessness, and that those we watch tearing themselves away in discord's fury from that peaceful, God-given family will find no place in God's house among people of a single mind. We urge you plainly, dearest brother, as far as we are able, through the mutual love binding us together, that — seeing how the Lord's own warning providence is teaching us, and the merciful counsels of heaven, wholesome as they are, are alerting us that the day of our struggle and contest draws near — we ought not to stop persisting, together with the whole people, in fasting, keeping watch, and prayer. Let us apply ourselves to constant groaning and frequent supplication. For these are our heavenly weapons, which make us stand and persevere with courage; these are the spiritual defenses and divine darts that protect us. Let us be mindful of one another, of one heart and one mind together, let us always pray for one another on both sides, let us relieve pressures and hardships through mutual love; and if any of us here should go ahead, by the swiftness of divine favor, may our love persevere with the Lord, and may our prayer not cease before the mercy of the Father on behalf of our brothers and sisters. I wish you, dearest brother, continual good health.
Letter LXI. Cyprian, together with his colleagues, to his brother Lucius, greeting. Not long ago, dearest brother, we rejoiced with you when divine favor established you, with a double honor, as both confessor and priest in the governance of his church. But now we rejoice no less over you, your companions, and the whole brotherhood, seeing that the Lord's kindly and generous protection has restored you once more to your own people, with all the glory and praise you carried before — restored as a shepherd to his flock, a helmsman to his ship, a ruler to those he governs — so that your exile might appear ordained by God's hand, not to strip the church of a bishop banished and cast out, but to send him back to the church greater still. For the dignity of martyrdom was no less in the three young men because their deaths were foiled and they came out of the furnace unharmed, nor did Daniel's merit fall short, for though thrown to the lions as their prey, the Lord shielded him and he lived on into glory. In Christ's confessors, delayed martyrdoms do not lessen their merit as confessors, but rather display the mighty works of divine protection. We see fulfilled again in you what those brave and illustrious young men proclaimed before the king — that they themselves were indeed ready to burn in the flames rather than serve his gods or worship the image he had made, yet that the God whom they worshiped, whom we too worship, was powerful enough to snatch them from the furnace and free them from the king's hands and from the punishments then at hand. We see this same pattern play out again now, through the faith your confession showed and the protection the Lord kept over us: though you stood ready and prepared to endure every punishment, the Lord instead drew you back from that penalty and held you in reserve for his church. Your homecoming did nothing to lessen the bishop's dignity as confessor; rather, his priestly authority grew all the greater, so that he who stands at God's altar as bishop might urge the people toward the weapons of confession and the accomplishing of martyrdom not merely by words but by deeds, and, with antichrist pressing near, might ready the soldiers for battle not only through the encouragement of speech and voice but through the example of faith and courage. We understand, dearest brother, and see clearly, with every ray of light our heart holds, the saving and holy counsels of the divine majesty — why a sudden persecution should have broken out there recently, why worldly power should have burst out so suddenly against the church of Christ, against Bishop Cornelius, that blessed martyr, and against all of you — so that, to confound the heretics and beat them back, the Lord might show what the church is, who its one bishop is, chosen by divine ordination, who the presbyters are who are joined to the bishop in priestly honor, who are the united and true people of Christ, joined together by their love for the flock that belongs to the Lord, who are those the enemy assails, and against whom he strikes precisely so as to spare those he calls his own — since Christ's foe pursues and attacks nothing except the camp and soldiers of Christ; heretics, once thrown down and claimed as his, he disdains and passes over. He seeks instead to cast down those he sees standing firm. And would that the opportunity were given now, dearest brother, for us who love you with mutual affection to be present there for your return, so that we ourselves might share, together with the rest, in the most joyful fruit of your arrival. What rejoicing of all the brothers there must be, what a running together and embracing of everyone who comes to meet you! No embrace, however tightly people cling and kiss you, could ever feel like enough; nor could the crowd's own eyes and faces ever grow satisfied simply watching the joy your return brings. There the brotherhood has begun to learn what sort and how great will be the joy to follow when Christ comes; and because his coming has drawn near so swiftly, a kind of image of it has already gone before among us, so that just as John, his forerunner and herald, proclaimed by his coming that Christ had come, so now, with the Lord's confessor and priest returning, it may appear that the Lord himself is now returning. As for us, I and my colleagues and the whole brotherhood send you this letter in our stead, dearest brother, and, representing our joy to you by letter, we express the faithful service of our love; here too, never pausing in our sacrifices and prayers, we offer thanks to the Father who is God and to his Son Christ, our Lord, and alike we pray and ask that he who is perfect and who perfects may guard and perfect in us the glorious crown of your confession — he who perhaps called you back to this very purpose, that your glory might not remain hidden, as it would have if your consummate martyrdom of confession had taken place away from us. For a sacrifice that offers the brotherhood an example of both courage and faith ought to be offered up in the presence of the brothers. We wish you, dearest brother, continual good health.
Letter LXII. Cyprian to his brothers Januarius, Maximus, Proculus, Victor, Modianus, Nemesianus, Nampulus, as well as Honoratus, greeting. With the deepest groaning of our spirit, and not without tears, we read your letter, dearest brothers, which you sent us out of concern for your love, about our brothers and sisters taken captive. Who indeed would fail to grieve over troubles of this sort, or who would not treat a brother's suffering as though it were his own, when the apostle Paul speaks and says: if one member suffers, all the other members suffer with it; and if one member rejoices, all the other members rejoice with it? And in another place he asks: is anyone weak, without my sharing in that weakness? Therefore now the captivity of our brothers must be reckoned our own captivity, and the suffering of those in danger must be counted as our own suffering, since our union is indeed one body, and it is not love alone but our very religion that ought to spur and strengthen us to ransom the members of our brothers. For since the apostle Paul says again: do you not know that you are God's temple and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? — even if love alone were not enough to drive us to bring aid to our brothers, it must still be considered in this matter that what has been taken captive are temples of God, and that we ought not allow, through long delay and neglected grief, God's temples to remain captive for long, but should labor with what strength we can and act swiftly, so that we may earn Christ our judge and the Lord our God through our service. For since Paul the apostle teaches that all who have received baptism into Christ have clothed themselves in Christ, it is Christ himself who must be recognized in our captive brothers and must be ransomed from the danger of captivity — he who ransomed us from the danger of death — so that he who stripped us from the jaws of the devil may now himself, who remains and dwells within us, be freed from the hands of barbarians and be ransomed with a sum of money, he who ransomed us with his cross and blood; and he allows this to happen for a time he permits this so our faith may be tested — whether every one of us would act for a fellow believer as we ourselves would wish someone to act on our behalf, were we ourselves held captive among the barbarians. For who, mindful of common humanity and moved by mutual love, would not, if he is a father, reckon that his own children are held there now; or, if he is a husband, consider that his own wife is held captive there, with grief equal to the love of the marriage bond? And how great is the shared mourning and anguish among all of us over the danger to the virgins who are held there, for whom not only the loss of freedom but the loss of chastity must be lamented — and it is not so much the chains of the barbarians as the violations of pimps and brothels that must be wept over, lest limbs consecrated to Christ, devoted in chaste virtue to the eternal honor of continence, be defiled by the contagion of others' lust? Weighing all this in the light of your letter and examining it with sorrow, our brotherhood here promptly, willingly, and generously contributed monetary help for the brothers — always indeed inclined, according to the firmness of their faith, toward the work of God, but now roused all the more to works of salvation by contemplation of so great a grief. For if the Lord says in his Gospel, I was sick and you visited me, think how much fuller a reward our labor will earn when instead he says, I was held captive and you ransomed me. And if he says elsewhere, I was in prison and you visited me, imagine the greater measure once he comes to say: I lay shut up and bound in the prison of captivity, held among the barbarians, and you set me free from that enslaving prison — for on the day of judgment they shall receive their reward from the Lord. In short, we give you the greatest thanks for wishing us to share in your concern and in so good and necessary a work, in that you have offered us rich fields in which to sow the seed of our hope, expecting to reap a harvest from the abundant fruits that come from this heavenly and saving work. We have sent a hundred thousand sesterces, raised here from the offerings of the clergy and people living alongside us, in this church that we preside over through the Lord's own indulgence — funds you will dispense there according to your own diligence. And indeed we hope nothing like this happens again, and that the Lord's majesty will shield our brothers, keeping them safe from dangers of this kind. Yet if, to test the love of our heart and examine the faith of our breast, something of this kind should occur, do not hesitate to inform us of it by your letter, being certain and assured that our church and the whole brotherhood here pray that such things not happen again, and, if they do happen, are ready to offer help willingly and generously. And so that you may keep in your prayers, and always keep, our brothers and sisters who promptly and willingly worked at this so necessary task, and repay them in kind for their good work through your sacrifices and prayers, I have added the names of each — and likewise of our colleagues and priests, who, being themselves present, also contributed something from their own resources on behalf of their own people; I have added their names too, and noted and sent along, besides our own contribution, the small sums that were theirs as well — all of whom, according to what faith and love demand, you ought to remember in your prayers and supplications. We wish you, dearest brothers, continual good health in the Lord, and ask that you remember us.