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Fragments of the Lost Works 1 I adjure you who will transcribe this book, by our Lord Jesus Christ, and by His glorious coming, when He comes to judge the living and the dead, that you compare what you have transcribed, and correct it carefully against this copy from which you have transcribed; and that you transcribe this oath likewise, and place it in the copy. 2 These doctrines, Florinus, to speak with restraint, are not of sound judgment; these doctrines are inconsistent with the Church, plunging those who are persuaded by them into the greatest impiety; these doctrines not even the heretics outside the Church have ever dared to declare; these doctrines the presbyters before us, who also were disciples of the apostles, did not hand down to you. For I saw you when I was still a boy, in lower Asia with Polycarp, doing brilliantly in the royal court, and trying to stand well with him. For I remember the events of that time better than those of recent years, for the things learned from childhood grow up with the soul and become united with it, so that I am able to tell even the place where the blessed Polycarp sat and discoursed, and his goings out and his comings in, and the character of his life, and the appearance of his body, and the discourses which he made to the people, and how he reported his association with John, and with the others who had seen the Lord, and how he remembered their words; and what things he had heard from them concerning the Lord, and concerning His miracles, and concerning His teaching, as Polycarp had received them from the eyewitnesses of the life of the Word, he reported all things in harmony with the Scriptures. These things I eagerly heard at that time, through the mercy of God which was upon me, making notes of them, not on paper, but in my heart; and ever, by the grace of God, I ruminate on them faithfully. And I am able to bear witness before God, that if that blessed and apostolic presbyter had heard anything of this kind, he would have cried out and stopped his ears, and saying according to his custom, "O good God, for what times have you kept me, that I should endure these things," he would have fled from the place where, sitting or standing, he had heard such words. And from his letters, which he sent either to the neighboring churches, strengthening them, or to some of the brethren, admonishing and exhorting them, it can be shown. 3 For the dispute is not only about the day, but also about the very form of the fast. For some think they ought to fast for one day; others for two, others for still more, and others for forty; they count their day as including daytime and nighttime hours. And such a variety of observers did not begin in our time, but much earlier, in the time of those before us, who, as is likely, not ruling precisely, established a custom for posterity out of simplicity and private judgment; and nonetheless, all these lived in peace, and we live in peace with one another; and the disagreement in the fast commends the agreement of the faith. ... And the presbyters before Soter, who presided over the church of which you are now the leader, we mean Anicetus and Pius, Hyginus and Telesphorus, and Xystus, neither observed it themselves, nor did they permit those after them to do so. And nonetheless, though they did not observe it, they were at peace with those from the dioceses in which it was observed when they came to them, although observing it was more of an opposition to those not observing it; and no one was ever cast out for this reason. But those presbyters before you, who did not observe it, sent the Eucharist to those from the dioceses who did observe it. And when the blessed Polycarp visited Rome in the time of Anicetus, and they had a few minor disagreements about some other things, they were immediately at peace, not being contentious with one another over this main point. For neither could Anicetus persuade Polycarp not to observe it, inasmuch as with

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Fragmenta deperditorum operum 1 Ὁρκίζω σε τὸν μεταγραψόμενον τὸ βιβλίον τοῦτο, κατὰ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ κατὰ τῆς ἐνδόξου παρουσίας αὐτοῦ, ἧς ἔρχεται κρῖναι ζῶντας καὶ νεκροὺς, ἵνα ἀντιβάλης ὃ μετεγράψω, καὶ κατορθώσῃς αὐτὸ πρὸς ἀντίγραφον τοῦτο, ὅθεν μετεγράψω, ἐπιμελῶς· καὶ τὸν ὅρκον τοῦτον ὁμοίως μεταγράψῃς, καὶ θήσεις ἐν τῷ ἀντιγράφῳ. 2 Ταῦτα τὰ δόγματα, Φλωρῖνε, ἵνα πεφεισμένως εἴπω, οὐκ ἔστιν ὑγιοῦς γνώμης· ταῦτα τὰ δόγματα ἀσύμφωνά ἐστι τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ, εἰς τὴν μεγίστην ἀσέβειαν περιβάλλοντα τοὺς πειθομένους αὐτοῖς· ταῦτα τὰ δόγματα οὐδὲ οἱ ἔξω τῆς ἐκκλησίας αἱρετικοὶ ἐτόλμησαν ἀποφήνασθαί ποτε· ταῦτα τὰ δόγματα οἱ πρὸ ἡμῶν πρεσβύτεροι, οἱ καὶ τοῖς ἀποστόλοις συμφοιτήσαντες, οὐ παρέδωκάν σοι. Εἶδον γάρ σε παῖς ὢν ἔτι, ἐν τῇ κάτω Ἀσίᾳ παρὰ τῷ Πολυκάρπῳ, λαμπρῶς πράττοντα ἐν τῇ βασιλικῇ αὐλῇ, καὶ πειρώμενον εὐδοκιμεῖν παρ' αὐτῷ. Μᾶλλον γὰρ τὰ τότε διαμνημονεύω τῶν ἔναγχος γινομένων, αἱ γὰρ ἐκ παίδων μαθήσεις συναύξουσαι τῇ ψυχῇ ἑνοῦνται αὐτῇ, ὥστε με δύνασθαι εἰπεῖν καὶ τὸν τόπον, ἐν ᾧ καθεζόμενος διελέγετο ὁ μακάριος Πολύκαρπος, καὶ τὰς προόδους αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰς εἰσόδους, καὶ τὸν χαρακτῆρα τοῦ βίου, καὶ τὴν τοῦ σώματος ἰδέαν, καὶ τὰς διαλέξεις ἃς ἐποιεῖτο πρὸς τὸ πλῆθος, καὶ τὴν μετὰ Ἰωάννου συναναστροφὴν ὡς ἀπήγγελλε, καὶ τὴν μετὰ τῶν λοιπῶν τῶν ἑωρακότων τὸν Κύριον, καὶ ὡς ἀπεμνημόνευε τοὺς λόγους αὐτῶν· καὶ περὶ τοῦ Κυρίου τίνα ἦν ἃ παρ' ἐκείνων ἀκηκόει, καὶ περὶ τῶν δυνάμεων αὐτοῦ, καὶ περὶ τῆς διδασκαλίας, ὡς παρὰ τῶν αὐτοπτῶν τῆς ζωῆς τοῦ λόγου παρειληφὼς ὁ Πολύκαρπος, ἀπήγγελλε πάντα σύμφωνα ταῖς γραφαῖς. Ταῦτα καὶ τότε διὰ τὸ ἔλεος τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ ἐπ' ἐμοὶ γεγονὸς σπουδαίως ἤκουον, ὑπομνηματιζόμενος αὐτὰ, οὐκ ἐν χάρτῃ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῇ ἐμῇ καρδίᾳ· καὶ ἀεὶ διὰ τὴν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ γνησίως αὐτὰ ἀναμαρυκῶμαι. Καὶ δύναμαι διαμαρτύρασθαι ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅτι εἴτι τοιοῦτον ἀκηκόει ἐκεῖνος ὁ μακάριος καὶ ἀποστολικὸς πρεσβύτερος, ἀνακράξας ἂν καὶ ἐμφράξας τὰ ὦτα αὐτοῦ, καὶ κατὰ τὸ σύνηθες εἰπὼν, Ὦ καλὲ Θεὲ, εἰς οἵους με καιροὺς τετήρηκας, ἵνα τούτων ἀνέχωμαι, πεφεύγοι ἂν καὶ τὸν τόπον, ἐν ᾧ καθεζόμενος ἢ ἑστὼς τῶν τοιούτων ἀκηκόει λόγων. Καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἐπιστολῶν δὲ αὐτοῦ, ὧν ἐπέστειλεν ἤτοι ταῖς γειτνιώσαις ἐκκλησίαις, ἐπιστηρίζων αὐτὰς, ἢ τῶν ἀδελφῶν τισι, νουθετῶν αὐτοὺς καὶ προτρεπόμενος, δύναται φανερωθῆναι. 3 Οὐ γὰρ μόνον περὶ τῆς ἡμέρας ἐστιν ἡ ἀμφισβήτησις, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τοῦ εἴδους αὐτοῦ τῆς νηστείας. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ οἴονται μίαν ἡμέραν δεῖν αὐτοὺς νηστεύειν· οἱ δὲ δύο, οἱ δὲ καὶ πλείονας, οἱ δὲ τεσσαράκοντα· ὥρας ἡμερινάς τε καὶ νυκτερινὰς συμμετροῦσι τὴν ἡμέραν αὐτῶν. Καὶ τοιαύτη μὲν ποικιλία τῶν ἐπιτηρούντων, οὐ νῦν ἐφ' ἡμῶν γεγονυῖα, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολὺ πρότερον ἐπὶ τῶν πρὸ ἡμῶν, τῶν παρὰ τὸ ἀκριβὲς, ὡς εἰκὸς, κρατούντων, τὴν καθ' ἁπλότητα καὶ ἰδιωτισμὸν συνήθειαν εἰς τὸ μετέπειτα πεποιηκότων· καὶ οὐδὲν ἔλαττον πάντες οὗτοι εἰρήνευσάν τε, καὶ εἰρηνεύομεν πρὸς ἀλλήλους· καὶ ἡ διαφωνία τῆς νηστείας τὴν ὁμόνοιαν τῆς πίστεως συνίστησι. ... Καὶ οἱ πρὸ Σωτῆρος πρεσβύτεροι οἱ προστάντες τῆς ἐκκλησίας, ᾗς νῦν ἀφηγῇ, Ἀνίκητον λέγομεν καὶ Πίον, Ὑγῖνόν τε καὶ Τελεσφόρον, καὶ Ξύστον, οὔτε αὐτοὶ ἐτήρησαν, οὔτε τοῖς μετ' αὐτοὺς ἐπέτρεπον. Καὶ οὐδὲν ἔλαττον αὐτοὶ μὴ τηροῦντες, εἰρήνευον τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν παροικιῶν ἐν αἷς ἐτηρεῖτο, ἐρχομένοις πρὸς αὐτοὺς, καίτοι μᾶλλον ἐνάντιον ἦν τὸ τηρεῖν τοῖς μὴ τηροῦσι· καὶ οὐδέποτε διὰ τὸ εἶδος τοῦτο ἀπεβλήθησάν τινες. Ἀλλ' αὐτοὶ μὴ τηροῦντες οἱ πρὸ σοῦ πρεσβύτεροι τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν παροικιῶν τηροῦσιν ἔπεμπον εὐχαριστίαν. Καὶ τοῦ μακαρίου Πολυκάρπου ἐπιδημήσαντος ἐν τῇ Ῥώμῃ ἐπὶ Ἀνικήτου, καὶ περὶ ἄλλων τινῶν μικρὰ σχόντες πρὸς ἀλλήλους, εὐθὺς εἰρήνευσαν, περὶ τούτου τοῦ κεφαλαίου μὴ φιλεριστήσαντες ἑαυτούς. Οὔτε γὰρ ὁ Ἀνίκητος τὸν Πολύκαρπον πεῖσαι ἐδύνατο μὴ τηρεῖν, ἅτε μετὰ