Epistle XLV.313    Oxford ed.: Ep. xlix. a.d. 251.

Cornelius to Cyprian, on the Return of the Confessors to Unity.

Argument.—Cornelius Informs Cyprian of the Solemn Return of the Confessors to the Church, and Describes It.

1. Cornelius to Cyprian his brother, greeting. In proportion to the solicitude and anxiety that we sustained in respect of those confessors who had been circumvented and almost deceived and alienated from the Church by the craft and malice of that wily and subtle man,314    Novatian. was the joy with which we were affected, and the thanks which we gave to Almighty God and to our Lord Christ, when they, acknowledging their error, and perceiving the poisoned cunning of the malignant man, as if of a serpent, came back, as they with one heart profess, with singleness of will to the Church from which they had gone forth. And first, indeed, our brethren of approved faith, loving peace and desiring unity, announced that the swelling pride of these men was already soothed;315    Baluz.: “Announced the swelling pride of some, the softened temper of others.” yet there was no fitting assurance to induce us easily to believe that they were thoroughly changed. But afterwards, Urbanus and Sidonius the confessors came to our presbyters, affirming that Maximus the confessor and presbyter, equally with themselves, desired to return into the Church; but since many things had preceded this which they had contrived, of which you also have been made aware from our co-bishops and from my letters, so that faith could not hastily be reposed in them, we determined to hear from their own mouth and confession those things which they had sent by the messengers. And when they came, and were required by the presbyters to give an account of what they had done, and were charged with having very lately repeatedly sent letters full of calumnies and reproaches, in their name, through all the churches, and had disturbed nearly all the churches; they affirmed that they had been deceived, and that they had not known what was in those letters; that only through being misled they had also committed schismatical acts, and been the authors of heresy, so that they suffered hands to be imposed on him as if upon a bishop.316    [i.e., for episcopal ordination and consecration.] And when these and other matters had been charged upon them, they entreated that they might be done away and altogether discharged from memory.

2. The whole of this transaction therefore being brought before me, I decided that the presbytery317    [See Ep. xvii. p. 296, supra.] should be brought together; (for there were present five bishops, who were also present to-day;) so that by well-grounded counsel it might be determined with the consent of all what ought to be observed in respect of their persons. And that you may know the feeling of all, and the advice of each one, I decided also to bring to your knowledge our various opinions, which you will read subjoined. When these things were done, Maximus, Urbanus, Sidonius, and several brethren who had joined themselves to them, came to the presbytery, desiring with earnest prayers that what had been done before might fall into oblivion, and no mention might be made of it; and promising that henceforth, as though nothing had been either done or said, all things on both sides being forgiven, they would now exhibit to God a heart clean and pure, following the evangelical word which says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”318    Matt. v. 8. What remained was, that the people should be informed of all this proceeding, that they might see those very men established in the Church whom they had long seen and mourned as wanderers and scattered. Their will being known, a great concourse of the brotherhood was assembled. There was one voice from all, giving thanks to God; all were expressing the joy of their heart by tears, embracing them as if they had this day been set free from the penalty of the dungeon. And to quote their very own words,—“We,” they say, “know that Cornelius is bishop of the most holy Catholic Church elected by Almighty God, and by Christ our Lord. We confess our error; we have suffered imposture; we were deceived by captious perfidy and loquacity.  For although we seemed, as it were, to have held a kind of communion with a man who was a schismatic and a heretic, yet our mind was always sincere in the Church. For we are not ignorant that there is one God; that there is one Christ the Lord whom we have confessed, and one Holy Spirit; and that in the Catholic Church there ought to be one bishop.”319    [Episcopatus unus est. One bishop, i e., one episcopate. See the note, Oxford translation of this letter, p. 108, and Cyprian’s theory of the same in his Treatise on Unity.] Were we not rightly induced by that confession of theirs,320    Baluzius reads, without authority: “Who would not be moved by that profession of theirs,” etc. to allow that what they had confessed before the power of the world they might approve when established in the Church? Wherefore we bade Maximus the presbyter to take his own place; the rest we received with great approbation of the people. But we remitted all things to Almighty God, in whose power all things are reserved.

3. These things therefore, brother, written to you in the same hour, at the same moment, we have transmitted; and I have sent away at once Nicephorus the acolyte, hastening to descend to embarkation, that so, no delay being made, you might, as if you had been present among that clergy and in that assembly of people, give thanks to Almighty God and to Christ our Lord. But we believe—nay, we confide in it for certain—that the others also who have been ranged in this error will shortly return into the Church when they see their leaders acting with us. I think. brother, that you ought to send these letters also to the other churches, that all may know that the craft and prevarication of this schismatic and heretic are from day to day being reduced to nothing. Farewell, dearest brother.

EPISTOLA XLVI. EPISTOLA VI. SANCTI CORNELII PAPAE AD CYPRIANUM CARTHAGINENSEM EPISCOPUM. (Erasm. III, 11., Pamel. Rigal. Baluz. XLVII, Paris. XLV, Oxon. Lips. XLIX, Coustant. I, col. 135-139, Galland. Biblioth. vett. PP. III, p. 337; Routh. Reliq. scr. III, p. 6 et 23.)

0716A

ARGUMENTUM.---Qui confessores Maximus presbyter, Urbanus et Sidonius ejurarint schisma, et in Ecclesia catholica suscepti sint.

CORNELIUS CYPRIANO FRATRI SALUTEM.

I. Quantam sollicitudinem et anxietatem sustinuimus 0717A de iis confessoribus, qui dolo et malitia hominis callidi et veteratoris fuerant circumventi, et pene decepti, et ab Ecclesia alienati; tanta laetitia affecti sumus, et Deo omnipotenti et Christo Domino nostro gratias egimus, cum ii, cognito suo errore, et intellecta hominis maligni, velut serpentis, astutia venenata, ad Ecclesiam, unde exierant, sicuti ipsi ex suo corde profitentur, simplici voluntate venerunt. Et 0718A primo quidem fratres nostri probatae fidei, amantes pacem, unitatem optantes, tumorem illum horum mollitum jam annuntiabant: fides tamen non idonea || ut facile nobis credere daretur , illos penitus esse mutatos. Postea vero Urbanus et Sidonius confessores ad presbyteros nostros venerunt, affirmantes Maximum confessorem et presbyterum secum pariter cupere in Ecclesiam redire: sed quoniam multa 0719A praecesserant ab eis designata, quae tu quoque a coepiscopis nostris et litteris meis cognovisti, ut non temere eis fides haberetur; ex ipsorum ore et confessione, ista, quae per legationem mandaverant , placuit audiri. Qui cum venissent, et a presbyteris quae gesserant exigerentur ; novissime quod per omnes ecclesias litterae calumniis et maledictis plenae eorum nomine frequentes missae fuissent, et pene omnes ecclesias perturbassent; circumventos se esse affirmaverunt, neque in istis litteris quid inesset scisse: tantummodo circumductos se commisisse quoque schismatica, et haeresis auctores fuisse; ut paterentur ei manus quasi in episcopum imponi. Qui, cum haec et caetera fuissent exprobrata, ut abolerentur et de memoria tollerentur deprecati sunt.

0719B II. Omni igitur actu ad me perlato placuit contrahi 0720A presbyterium (adfuerunt etiam episcopi quinque, qui et hodie praesentes fuerunt), ut firmato consilio, quid circa personam eorum observari deberet, consensu omnium statueretur. Et ut motum omnium et consilium singulorum dignosceres, etiam sententias nostras placuit in notitiam vestri perferri, quas et subjectas leges. His ita gestis in presbyterium venerunt Maximus, Urbanus, Sidonius , et plerique fratres qui eis se adjunxerant , summis precibus desiderantes, ut ea quae ante fuerant gesta, in oblivionem cederent, nullaque eorum mentio haberetur; proinde atque si nihil esset vel commissum vel dictum, invicem omnibus remissis, cor mundum et purum jam Deo exhiberent, sequentes evangelicam vocem dicentem, beatos esse puros corde, quoniam ipsi Deum videbunt 0721A (Matth., V, 8). Quod erat consequens, omnis hic actus populo fuerat insinuandus, ut et ipsos viderent in Ecclesia constitutos, quos errantes et palabundos jam diu viderant et dolebant. Quorum voluntate cognita, magnus fraternitatis concursus factus est. Una vox erat omnium gratias Deo agentium, gaudium pectoris lacrymis exprimentes, complectentes eos quasi hodie poena carceris fuissent liberati. Et ut ipsorum propria verba designem: «Nos, inquiunt, Cornelium episcopum sanctissimae catholicae Ecclesiae electum 0722A a Deo omnipotente et Christo Domino nostro scimus. Nos errorem nostrum confitemur: nos imposturam passi sumus, circumventi sumus perfidia et loquacitate captiosa. Nam etsi videbamur quasi quamdam communicationem cum schismatico et haeretico homine habuisse; sincera tamen mens nostra semper in Ecclesia fuit. Nec enim ignoramus unum Deum esse, unum Christum esse Dominum , quem confessi sumus, unum Spiritum sanctum, unum episcopum in catholica Ecclesia 0723A esse debere.» Ista eorum professione non moveremur ; ut quod apud potestatem saeculi erant confessi, in Ecclesia constituti comprobarent? Quapropter Maximum presbyterum locum suum agnoscere jussimus: caeteros cum ingenti populi suffragio 0724A recepimus. Omnia autem remisimus Deo omnipotenti, in cujus potestate sunt omnia reservata.

III. Haec igitur, frater, eadem hora eodem momento, ad te, scripta transmisimus, et Nicephorum acolytum descendere ad navigandum festinantem, de 0725A statione ad vos statim dimisi; ut nulla procrastinatione habita, velut praesens in isto clero et in isto populi coetu, Deo omnipotenti et Christo Domino nostro gratias ageres. Credimus autem fore, quin immo jam pro certo confidimus, caeteros quoque, qui in hoc errore sunt constituti, in Ecclesiam brevi reversuros, cum auctores suos viderint nobiscum agere. Has litteras puto te debere, frater, et ad caeteras ecclesias mittere: ut omnes sciant schismatici hujus et haeretici dolum et praevaricationem de die in diem evacuari. Bene vale, frater charissime .