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his brethren, meeting. Both our common Iove and the reason
irom your knowledge nothing of those mattera Which are tran acted among us, that so me may hais a common plan for theaduantago of the administration of the choreh. For aster I Wroto to you tho letter Whicli I sent by Saturus the reader, and optatus tho su deacon, the combined temerity os certainos the lapsed, Who res e to repent and to malio satisfaction
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peace granted by the eonfessora dependa on0 upon grace and good-wili, is manifest froni the Det that the lapsedare referred to the bishops. The seditisus demand forpeaee made is Felieissimus is to be attributed to Detion. 1. The presbyters and deacons abiding at Rome, to sather Cyprian, Meeting. When, belοved brother, me caresullyread your letter Which you had sent by Fortunatus the su
the prerogative os communion, let them try to compare it Miththe gospei, stat so at length it may abundantly avail inem, itit is not out os harmony with the gospei laW. But on What principie can that give gospei communion which seems to bo tablished contrary to gospei truth Τ For since eVery pr rogative contemptates the privilege of association, preciselyon the assumption os iis not being out os harmony with ths
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2. Let them, then, see What it is they are t ing to do in this matter. For is they say that the gospei has establishedone decree, but the martyrs have established another; thenthey, setting the martyrs at variance With the gospei, will boin danger on both fides. For, on the one hand, the majes of the gospei Will Hready appear shattered and cast down, is it can bo overcome by the novelty of another decree; and, on the other, the glorious crown os confession mill betahen from the heads of tho martyrs, is they be nos found toliave attained it by the observation of that gospei Whenco
not sacrificing they may keep the peace of the churcii evento the shedding of their own blood, test, overcome by the suffering of the torture, by losing peace, they might loso salvation; on What principio do they thinh that tho salvation, whicli it they had sacrificed they thought that thou
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84THE EPISTLES OF CYPRIAN. in remitting them to tho bishop they conceived that in
to be maintained unimpatred. 3. But of your chari , brother, never desist from soothingine spirits of tho lapsed and affording to the erring the medicino os truth, although the temper of the sich is Wontio rejeci tho hind ossices of those Who Would heia them. This Wound of tho lapsed is as yet hesii, and the sors is stili rising into a tumour; and theresore We are certain, that lien, in the course of more protracted time, that urgeney of theira stiali have Wom out, they mill love that very delaywhicli refers them to a salthsul medicine; is only there bo
ing thom perversely, demand on their bellati, instoad of tho
salutary remedies of delan the fatal polsons of a premature communion. For me do not belleve, that without tho instigation os certain persons they Would ali have dared so petulantly to claim peace for them selves. We know tho faith of the Carthaginian church, me know her training, - knowher humili ; Whenco also me have marvellod that we should observe certain things someWhat rudely suggested against Du by letter, although we have osten become aware of your mutuat love and chari , in many illustrations os reciprocalaffection of one another. It is time, thereiore, that they should
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atio the others of the Roman elerta, during the vacan of the aee, after the death of Fabian.
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83THE EPISTLES OF CYPRIAM Cyprian, that you fhould do this, Who, With your usual modesty and inborn indust , have Wished that wo fhould be
in yοur good counself, because me entirely accord with them. In the fame way we are ali thought to have laboured in thalin Which we are ali regarded as alliod in the fame agreementos censure and disciplino. 2. For what is there either in peace so fuit te, or in amar os persecution So necessa , as to maintain tho duo
and by maintaining tho eve guarded rule of discipline itfel fas is it wero tho rudder of saseu in the tempest. Noris it now but lately that this counset has been considored by us, nor have these sudden appliances against the wichedbut recently occurred to us; but this is read os amongus as the ancient severi , the ancient fatili, the ancient discipline, since the apostle Would not have published sueti pratse concerning us, When he said that your fatili is spolien os throughout the whole morid, ' unless atready homthenco that vigour had borro ed the roots of faith hom inoso times; hom whicli pratse and glory it is a very great crimeto have become degenerate. For it is tess disgrace never toliave attained to the herat dry os praise, than to have fallenfrem tho height os prat se ; it is a sin alter crime not to have been honoured With a good testimony, than to have lost thohonour of good testimontes; it is tess discredit to havo lainwithout the announcement of Viriues, ignoble Without pratse, than, disinherited of the salth, to have lost our proper presses.
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one, uniess they are maintained by anxious and caretal pains, swolt up into the odium of the greatest crime. 3. Τhat Wo are not saying this dishonestly, our formor letters have proved, Wherein me have declared our opinion to Fou With a Very plain statement, both against those Who had botrved themselves as unsaithsul by the unlawful present tion os Wiched certificates, as is they thought that they Would escape those ensnaring nets of the devit; Whereas, not less
and against those Who had used those certificates When made,
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Wretched Mings, in their greater overthrow. For Where cantho medicine os indulgence profit, is even the physician himself, is intercepting repentance, malim easy Way for ne tanger'-ii he only hides the wound, and does not suffer the necessary remedy of timo is close the scar This is notio cure, but, is Wo Wish in speah the truth, in flay. 4. Neveriheless, you hmo letters agrising With our letterasrom the confessors, Whom the digniu os their consession has stili inui up here in prison, and whom, lar the gospel co test, their fiath has once Hready cromed in a glorious eo fession; letters Wherein they have maintainta the severi
os the gospes discipline, and have revohed the unia sulpetitions, so that they might not be a disgrace to the church. Unless they had done this, the ruins of gospes disciplinis
Would not eastly be restored, especialty since it Was to nonoso fitting Io maintain the tenor os evangelicat vimur uni-
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appeam to have digresseri you fhail find subjoined the sortos letters that we also sent to Sicily; although upon us is incumbent a greater necessity os delaying this assair; havinnsince the departure of Fabian os most nobie memo , had nobishop appotnted as yet, on account of the dissiculties Massaim and times, Who can arrange ali things of this End, and who can tahe account of those who are lapsed, With authori and wisdom. HOWEVer, What you also have yourseis declared in so important a matrer, is satisfactory to us, that the Mace of the church must firat be maintained; then, that anassembly for counset Ming gathered together, With bishops, presbytera, deacon' and confessore, as Weli as With tho lai Who stand fast, WE should deal With the case of the lapsed. For it seems extremely invidious and burdensomo in examine into What Mems to have been committed by mann exceptis the advico of many; or that ono fhould give a sentence When so great a crime is known to have gone fortii, and tobe diffused among so many; since that cannot M a firmdecree which shail not appear in have had the consent of Very many. Look upon almost the whole morid devastated, and observo that the remaius and the ruina os the fallenare lying about on every fide, and consider that there ore an extent of counset is asked for, large in proportion as sto crime appeam to be widely propagared. Let not the media cine bo lem than the wound, let not the remedies be fewerthan the deaths, that in the fame manner as those Who fell, seli for this reason that they wero ino incautious missi a blindrashnes' so those Who strive is set in order this mischietinould use every moderation in counself, test mything dono
6. Thus, With one and the fame counset, With the samo pruers and wars, let us, Who up to the present time Mem tohave escaped the destruction os these times of oura, as wellas those Who appear to have fallen into thoso calamities of
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may not be tempted to such a degree M to be destroyed; lotus pray that those Who are said to have fallen may acknowledgethe greatness of their sin, and may perceive stat it ne a nomomentary nor ove hasty cure; let us pray that penitencemay follow also the effecis of the pardon of the lapsed ; that so, When they have understood their oWn crime, they may bowilling to have patience With us for a While, and no longer disturb tho fluctuating condition of the church, test they may seem themselves to have inflamed an internat persecution forus, and the fact of their unquietness be added to the heap of their sins. For modesty is very greatly stting sor them in whose sins it is an immodest mind that is condemned. Letthom indeod knoch at the doors, but assuredly let them notbreah them doWn; let them present themselves at the threshesd
have been desertera; let them resume tho trumpet of their prayers, but let them not therewith sound a potnt of war; let them arm themselves indeed with the weapons of modesty,
that are even noW armed belleve that they are armed against
their loe, the devit, not against the church, Which grieves over their fall. A modest petition mill much avail them,-abashful entreaty, a necessam humility, a patience Whicli is
their sufferings ; let groanings, brought forin from their deopest heari, discliario the ossice of advocate, and provetheir griei and shamo for tho crime they have committed.
7. Nay, ii they shudder at the magnitudo of tho Miltincurrod; is mitti a truly medicinal hand they deat withthe deadly wound of their heari and conscience and the deeprecesses of the subile mischiel, let them bluin evon to ash; excepi, again, that it is a matrer of greater rish and shame not