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teaching them to observe ali things whais ver Ι havo commanded you. y Wherefore, ii me misit to math in tho lightos Christ, let us not depari from His precepis and monitions, giring thanks that, While He instrucis for the future What me ought to do, He pardons for the past Wherein mo inour simplici have erred. And cause atready His secondeoming draWs near in us, His benign and liberal condescension is more and more illuminating our hearla with tho lightos truth. 19. There re it bessis our religion, and our Dar, and the place itself, and the office of our priesthood, dearest brother, in mixing and offering the cup os the Lord, to keep the truthof the Lord's tradition, and, on the warning of the Loes, to
1. Cyprian to Epictetus his brother, and to the peopleostablished at Assurae, greeting. I Was gravely and grievoustydisturbed, dearest brethren, at learning that Fortunatianus, formerly bishop among you, after the sad lapse os his sali, Was now wishing to aci as ii he were found, and beginning to
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222-E EPISTLES OF CYPRIAMelaim for himsolf ths episcopale. Whicli thing distrassed me;
in the fidit place, on his oWn account, Who, Wretched man
devit, or deceived by the sacrilegious persuasion os certain persons; When he ought to be mahing atonement, and to ovehimself to tho work of entreating the Lord ni t and danis inars, and supplications, and prayers, dares stili to claimio himself tho pri thood which he has botrved, as is it Meroright, irem the altars of tho devit, is approach to the altar o God; or as is ho Would not provoke a greater Wrath and indignation of the Lord against himself in tho day of judo ment, Who, not being able to be a guide to tho brethren in fiath and virtuo, stands forin as a Dacher in perfidy, in bold-
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he can aci as a priest of God who has obeyed and served thopriesis of tho devit; or how does he thinh that his hand canbs transferred to tho sacrifice of God and the prayer os tho Lord whicli has been captive to sacrilege and to crime, When in the sacred Scriptures God sorbids the priesis to approachio sacrifice even is they have been in lighter gulit; and says in Leviticus: Tho man in whom there stiali bo any blemisti or stain shali not approach to offer insis to God Also in Exodus: μ And let the priosis Whicli come near tothe Lord God sanctisy themselves, test perchance the Lord
or the Loraes precepta, Who havo dented the Lord. Theydestre gisis, and offerings, and gain, for Whicli sormerly th walched insatiably; they stili long also sor suppers and banqueis, Whose debauch, in the indigestion latoly lest to thodan they belched sorth, most manifestly proving no thatthey did not besore servo religion, but rather their belly and
gain, Willi profane cupidity. Whence also Wo perceive and bellovo that this rebuko has come from God's fearching out, that they might not continue to stand at the altar; and any further, as unchaste persons, to have to do With modesty; asperfidious, to have to do Mith faith; as profane, With reli-
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224 THE EPISTLES OF CYPRIAN. on; as earthly, With things divine; as sacrilegio , missithings sacred. That such persons may not rerum again tocte profanation of the altar, and to the contagion of thobrethren, me must heep Watch With ait our po ere, and strive
run into tho totis of their error, in separate them from theireontagione since netther can the oblation be consecratta
here tho Holy Spirit is not; nor can the Lord avail toany one by the prayers and supplications of one Who himself has done despiis to the Lord. But is Fortunatianus,
erime, or become a minister and servant of tho devit fordeceiving the brotherhood, shali persevero in this his mad-ness, do Τοu, as far as in you lies, strive, and in this daansmof thes rago of tho devit, recati the minds of tho brothren immereor, that they may not eastly consent to the madnem ofanother; that they may not mahe themselves partisere intho crimes os abandoned men; but being sound, let themmaintain the constant tenor of their salvation, and of the
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the pride of the deaeon who had provoked him Vith his insulis, and to compei him to reperit of his bol iness:
taking ocearion to repeat onee more what er he has auid in the pretious letter, about the sacerdotal or episcopalpower. At what time, however, this letter .as Uritten istincertain, unk8s we may gather fram the aimilar commenement in both letters, that it was written at the fame
synod with the following one. 1. Cyprian to his brother Rogatianus, meeting. I and
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226 THE EPISTLES OF CYPRIAM in Which you complained of your deacon, that, formital ofyour priestly station, and unmindiui of his own ossico and minist , he had provohed yon by his insulis and injuries.
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as He was in respect of falso priesis. 3. But deacons ought to remember that tho Lord choso osties, stat is, bistops and overseers; While apostles appotnted for themselves deacons after the ascent of the Lord into heaven,
as ministers of their episcopa and of the church. But ii wo may dare anything against God Who mahes bishops, deaconsmay also dare against hom they are made; and ther fore it behoves the deacon of Whom you write in repent of his audacity, and to achnowledge tho hono of the priest, and
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228THE EPISTLES OF CYPRIAM to satis y tho bishop set ovor him Mith fuit humility. For
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1. Cyprian to the presbyters, and deacons, and peopleabiding at Furni, Meeting. I and my colleagues Who merepresent Mith me Were greatly disturbed, dearest brethren, as
departing this lise, had named Geminius Faustinus the presbyter executor to his mili, although long since it Was decreed, in a coiincit of tho bishops, that no one aliould appoint any of the clero and the ministers of God executor or Mardian δis his Will, since every one honoured by the divine priest-hood, and ordained in the clerical service, ought to Serve onlytho altar and sacrifices, and to have leisum for prayers and supplications. For it is mcliten : No man that warreth sor
tho olovon tribos dividod tho land and shared tho possessions, tho Lovitical tribe, which Was tost fres for the temple and tho altar, and for the divine ministries, received nothing srom that portion of the division ; but while othera cultivxted the soli, that portion only cultivaled the favour of God, and received the tithes frem tho oloven tribes, for their food and main-tenance, iram the fruits Whicli grew. Alt which was dono is divine authori and arrangement, so that they Who Waitedon divine services might in no respect be called away, nor bocompelled in consider or in transact secular b iness. Whichplan and rule is no maintained in respect of the clery,
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230 THE EPISTLES OF CYPRIAM that they Who ars promoted by clerical ordination in thochureli of tho Loes may bo called off in no respect from stodivine administration, nor bo lied down is Worldly anxieti and mattere; but in the honour of the brethren who co tribute, receiving as it mero tentiis of the fruits, they may notmithdraW hom tho altars and sacrifices, but may serve day
and night in heavenly and spirituat things. 2. The biinops our predecessors religiousty considering this, and wholesomely providing sor it, decided that no brothordepisting should name a cleric for executor or guardian; andii any ono fhould do this, no offering should bo made sor him, nor any sacrifice be celebrated for his repose. For he do not deserve to be named at the altar of God in the prayer os the priesis, Who has Wished to cali aWay the priesis and ministere frem the altis. And therelare, since Victor, contrary to the rule lately mado in councti by the primis, has dared in appotnt Geminius Faustinus, a presbyter, his eXecutor, it is not allo ed that any offering be made by you sor his repose, nor any prayer be made in the church in his name, that so the decree of the priesis, religiousty and needfullymade, may be hept by us ; aud, at the sams time, an eXamplebo given to the rest of tho brethren, that no one inould callaway to secular anxieties tho priosis and ministers of Godwho ars occupied With the service of Ηis altar and church. For caro mill probably bo taken in timo to como that this happen not with respect to the person of clerica any more, ii What has noW been dono has been punished. I bid Du, dearest brethren, ever heartily fareKeil.