PL 5 · cols. 183–190

Epistola Caii papae ad Felicem episcopum

Editors' preface

EPISTOLA CAII PAPAE AD FELICEM EPISCOPUM.

Letter of Pope Caius to Felix, Bishop.

Quod pagani non possint Christianos accusare: de accusatione episcopi, ejusque accusatoribus, de expoliatione aut expulsione, et de incarnatione Domini.

That pagans may not accuse Christians: on the accusation of a bishop and his accusers, on despoiling or expulsion, and on the incarnation of the Lord.

I. Paganos et haereticos non posse accusare Christianos.

I. That pagans and heretics cannot accuse Christians.

II. Episcopum non accusandum apud judices saeculares.

II. That a bishop is not to be accused before secular judges.

III. De episcopo, presbytero, aut diacono, vel reliquis clericis apud episcopos accusandis.

III. On a bishop, presbyter or deacon, or the other clerics, who are to be accused before bishops.

IV. De his qui negant verbi Dei incarnationem.

IV. On those who deny the incarnation of the Word of God.

V. Quod ad spem vitae aeternae perveniri non possit, nisi per mediatorem Dei et hominum Christum Jesum.

V. That the hope of eternal life cannot be attained except through the mediator of God and men, Christ Jesus.

VI. De ordinibus ecclesiasticis.

VI. On the ecclesiastical orders.

Dilectissimo fratri Felici episcopo Caius.

Caius to his most beloved brother Felix, bishop.

Directas ad nos tuae charitatis (Vigilius, ep 2), epistolas plenas catholicae inquisitionis sollicitudine, gratanter accepimus, benedicentes Domini nostri clementiam: quia tales ab extremis mundi partibus dignatur suis ovibus providere pastores, per quos et pascuis valeant salutaribus abundare, et ab iniqui lupi rapacitate servari, ut insidias nequeant ejus subreptionis incurrere. Unde certum est, quia promissae vos beatitudinis gratia subsequatur, quando a vobis coelestium perfectio doctrinarum, tam votiva suscitatione perquiritur. Scriptum est enim: Beati

The letters of your charity directed to us (Vigilius, ep. 2), full of the solicitude of catholic inquiry, we have gladly received, blessing the clemency of our Lord, because from the farthest parts of the world He deigns to provide for His sheep such shepherds, through whom they may both abound in wholesome pastures and be kept from the rapacity of the wicked wolf, so that they cannot fall into the snares of his stealthy approach. Hence it is certain that the grace of the promised beatitude follows you, when the perfection of heavenly doctrines is sought out by you with so devoted an eagerness. For it is written: Blessed

Editors' notes and page, col. 183

Footnotes

(1) ‹anchor: EPISTOLA› · call in col 183 (title)

Supposita ab Isidoro. LABB.

Forged by Isidore. LABBE.

(printed under page 94)

(a) ‹anchor: ab iniqui lupi› · call in col 183

Antiqni hostes Labb.

"of the ancient enemy" Labbe.

(printed under page 94)

Editors' prose

QUOD PAGANI NON POSSINT CHRISTIANOS ACCUSARE: DE ACCUSATIONE EPISCOPI, EJUSQUE ACCUSATORIBUS, DE EXPOLIATIONE AUT EXPULSIONE, ET DE INCARNATIONE DOMINI.

That pagans may not accuse Christians: on the accusation of a bishop and his accusers, on despoiling or expulsion, and on the Incarnation of the Lord.

I. Paganos et haereticos non posse accusare Christianos.

I. That pagans and heretics cannot accuse Christians.

II. Episcopum non accusandum apud judices saeculares.

II. That a bishop is not to be accused before secular judges.

III. De episcopo, presbytero, aut diacono, vel reliquis clericis apud episcopos accusandis.

III. On a bishop, priest or deacon, or the other clerics, who are to be accused before bishops.

IV. De his qui negant verbi Dei incarnationem.

IV. On those who deny the incarnation of the Word of God.

V. Quod ad spem vitae aeternae perveniri non possit, nisi per mediatorem Dei et hominum Christum Jesum.

V. That the hope of eternal life cannot be reached except through the mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus.

VI. De ordinibus ecclesiasticis.

VI. On the ecclesiastical orders.

Page

running head: 183 EPISTOLA CAII PAPAE AD FELIC[...] (cut off at the image edge)
marginal letters: A ‹lythi, exorcistae, lector›; B ‹fungi, non tam cito fiebant›; C ‹Quod pagani non possint›; D ‹Directas ad nos tuae charitatis›
old-edition numerals: (none)
other: a full-width band stands across cols 183/184 in mid-page: the 1 paragraph(s) above it in col 184 and the 1 above it in col 183 belong to the previous unit and were cut on receipt (not set here); the band itself (its title lines) was not set by the volunteer page and is now set at the head of the letter in col 183 (settle round 2)
other: the column opens with the end of the previous work (another unit); not set here: the unit begins at Quod pagani non possint Christianos accusare
other: misprint kept as printed in footnote (a): Antiqni (for Antiqui)

PL 5:184

qui perscrutantur testimonia ejus, et in toto corde exquirunt eum (Psal. CXVIII). Hoc ergo, frater charissime, propositum tuae consultationis tota mente tractantes, de te quoque provenire confidimus, qui regulam catholicae fidei iisdem studes tenere vestigiis, quibus eam in apostolica sede cognoscis esse fundatam. Et quamvis sonus eorum toto orbe diffusus, et usque ad fines orbis terrae verba eorum distensa (Psal. XVIII, ex vers. Hier.), dilectionis tuae corda Christo probaverunt esse fidelia: tamen si quid ex his in Ecclesia, quae tuae gubernationi, Domino auxiliante, commissa est, necdum plena luce claruerit, ad eumdem fontem, de quo illa salutaris manarat lympha, recurritis, id est, quod debita charitate sumus amplexi: quia fiducialiter de his, unde apud vos observantiam esse dixistis ambiguam, nostra voluistis responsione firmari. Quapropter dilectionem tuam in Domino salutantes, de singulis, quid juxta catholicam disciplinam teneat apostolicae sedes auctoritas, subjectis aliquibus etiam sanctorum capitalis regularum, credimus instruendum.

who search His testimonies, and seek Him with the whole heart (Ps. 118:2). Considering therefore with our whole mind, dearest brother, this purpose of your consultation, we trust that it proceeds from you too, who strive to hold the rule of the catholic faith in the same footsteps on which you know it to be founded in the apostolic see. And although their sound spread through the whole world, and their words stretched out to the ends of the earth (Ps. 18:5, from Jerome's version), have proved the hearts of your Love faithful to Christ, yet if anything in the Church which, with the Lord's help, has been committed to your governance has not yet shone out in full light, you have recourse to the same fountain from which that saving water had flowed, that is, to what we have embraced with due charity: because you have wished to be confidently confirmed by our reply concerning those matters on which you said the observance among you is doubtful. Wherefore, greeting your Love in the Lord, we believe you should be instructed on each point as to what the authority of the apostolic see holds according to catholic discipline, with some chapters of the rules of the saints also appended.

I. Primo quidem scias, paganos et haereticos (2, q. 7. Pagani et haeretici) non posse Christianos accusare, aut vocem eis infamationis inferre.

I. First, indeed, know that pagans and heretics (2, q. 7, Pagani et haeretici) cannot accuse Christians, or bring against them a charge of infamy.

Editors' notes and page, col. 184

Footnotes

(1) ‹anchor: scias, paganos› · call in col 184

Bar. in notis ad 31 Januarii. an. 351, ait Optatum hac voce primum fuisse usum, tum Prudentium, Aug., etc., nec ante impp. Chr. tempora usurpatam.

Baronius, in the notes for 31 January, year 351, says that Optatus was the first to use this word, then Prudentius, Augustine, etc., and that it was not used before the times of the Christian emperors.

LECTIONES VARIANTES.

VARIANT READINGS.

(printed under page 94)

(b) ‹anchor: regularum, credimus› · call in col 184

Credidimus Labb.

"we have believed" Labbe.

(printed under page 94)

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running head: [EPISTOLA CAII P]APAE AD FELICEM EPISCOPUM. 184 (left part cut off at image edge)
marginal letters: A Zosimique tempora Gelasius; B est : « Si quis clericatum; C qui perscrutantur testimonia ejus; D tis ambiguam, nostra voluistis
old-edition numerals: (none)
other: the 1 paragraph(s) of this column above the full-width band are set under col 183 (reading order, moved on receipt)

PL 5:185

II. Deinde nemo umquam episcopum apud judices saeculares, aut alios clericos, accusare praesumat.

II. Next, let no one ever presume to accuse a bishop, or other clerics, before secular judges.

III. Et si quis episcopus, presbyter, aut diaconus, vel quilibet clerici, apud episcopos (quia alibi non oportet a qualibet persona quae rite recipienda est) fuerint accusati (haec et similia ex cod. Theod. et Aniano Hadr., cap. 22), quicumque fuerit, sive ille sit sublimis vir honoris, sive ullius alterius dignitatis, qui hoc genus illaudabilis intentionis arripuerit; noverit, probationis documenta se debere inferre. Si quis ergo circa hujusmodi personas non probanda detulerit, aucteritate hujus sanctionis intelligat se jacturam infamiae sustinere, ut damno pudoris, aestimationis dispendio discat, sibi alienae verecundiae impune insidiari, saltem de caetero non licere. Nam qualiter ad concilium veniatur, aut qualiter de suis rebus expoliati (3. q. 1. Episcopus suis rebus expoliatus), vel ejecti a sedibus propriis, aut qui accusatores sint recipiendi, quive non sint, aut qualiter ejectis et expoliatis sint omnia legibus redintegranda, quae eis ablata sunt: et quia priusquam hoc factum fuerit, nullum crimen eis objici poterit, et qualiter illis induciae post integram instaurationem anniversariae, vel sex mensium, indulgendae sint, et qualiter sua omnia licenter et pacifice, absque ullius gravi impedimento disponere, et suorum amicorum et ecclesiasticorum patrum conciliis uti debeant, sufficienter ab apostolis, eorumque successoribus, ac nostris praedecessoribus statutum esse putamus. Super his autem non reor amplius nunc fore disputandum, nisi si surrexerint talia, quae adhuc non sunt manifesta. Si eorum autem statuta non habueritis mittite fidelissimos scriptores, qui haec coram fidelibus testibus excipere, vobisque reportare sub stipulatione valeant.

III. And if any bishop, presbyter or deacon, or any clerics whatever, have been accused before bishops (because it is not fitting elsewhere, by any person whatever who is properly to be received) (these and similar things from the Theodosian Code and Anianus, Hadr., ch. 22), whoever he may be, whether he is a man of lofty rank or of any other dignity, who has taken up this kind of unpraiseworthy purpose, let him know that he must bring forward the proofs of his case. If, therefore, anyone brings charges against such persons that are not to be proved, let him understand that by the authority of this sanction he suffers the loss that infamy brings, so that through damage to his good name and forfeiture of his standing he may learn that, at least from now on, he is not permitted to lay snares with impunity against another's honour. For how one is to come to a council, or how those who have been despoiled of their property (3, q. 1, A bishop despoiled of his property), or expelled from their own sees, [are to be treated], or which accusers are to be received and which are not, or how all the things that were taken from the expelled and despoiled are to be restored to them by law: and that before this has been done no charge can be brought against them; and how a respite of a year, or of six months, is to be granted them after full restoration; and how they ought freely and peaceably, without serious hindrance from anyone, to arrange all their affairs and to make use of the counsels of their friends and of the fathers of the Church, we consider to have been sufficiently laid down by the apostles and their successors, and by our predecessors. On these matters, however, I do not think there is need of further dispute now, unless such things should arise as are not yet clear. But if you do not have their statutes, send most faithful scribes, who may be able to take these down in the presence of faithful witnesses and bring them back to you under solemn pledge.

IV. Caeterum, ut satisfaciam consultis tuis de verbo incarnationis et veritatis, quicumque illi sunt ita obcaecati, et a lumine veritatis alieni, ut Verbi Dei a tempore incarnationis denegent veritatem, ostendant in quo sibi christianum nomen usurpent, et cum Evangelio veritatis qua ratione concordent, si beatae Virginis partu, aut caro sine deitate, aut deitas est orta sine carne. Sicut enim negari non potest, evangelista dicente, quod Verbum caro factum est, et habitavit in nobis (Joan., I), ita negari non potest beato apostolo Paulo praedicante, quod Deus erat in Christo, mundum reconcilians sibi (II Cor., V). Quae autem reconciliatio posset esse qua humano generi repropitiaretur Deus, si hominis causam mediator Dei hominumque non susciperet? Qua vero ratione veritatem mediatoris impleret, nisi qui in forma

IV. Furthermore, to answer your enquiries concerning the word of the incarnation and of truth: whoever they are who are so blinded, and estranged from the light of truth, that they deny the truth of the Word of God from the time of the incarnation, let them show in what respect they claim the Christian name for themselves, and by what reasoning they agree with the Gospel of truth, if in the childbearing of the blessed Virgin either flesh arose without Godhead or Godhead without flesh. For just as it cannot be denied, since the evangelist says, that The Word was made flesh, and dwelt in us (John 1:14), so it cannot be denied, since the blessed apostle Paul preaches, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself (2 Cor. 5:19). But what reconciliation could there be by which God might be made propitious again to the human race, if the mediator of God and men did not take up the cause of man? And by what means would He fulfil the truth of a mediator, unless He Who in the form

Editors' notes and page, col. 185

Footnotes

(1) ‹anchor: quicumque illi› · call in col 185

Quicumque illi sunt. Haec verba quibus Pauli Samosateni aliorumque haereticorum Filii Dei incarnationem negantium sententia doctissime ex Scriptura convincitur ac refutatur, hinc usque ad finem epistolae haberi epistola I Leonis ad Leonem Augustum, in margine hujus epistolae Surius annotavit. (SEVER. BINIUS.)

"Whoever they are." Surius noted in the margin of this letter that these words, by which the opinion of Paul of Samosata and of the other heretics who deny the incarnation of the Son of God is most learnedly convicted and refuted from Scripture, from here to the end of the letter, are found in Leo's Letter I to the Emperor Leo. (SEVERINUS BINIUS.)

(printed under page 95)

(2) ‹anchor: ita obcaecati› · call in col 185

S. Leo, ep. 97, ex qua jam supra quaedam delibata in I Eutychiano papae tributa epistola. Vide pag. 914, C.

St Leo, letter 97, from which some things were already excerpted above in the first letter ascribed to Pope Eutychian. See page 914, C.

(printed under page 95)

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running head: 185 EPISTOLA CAII PAPAE AD FEL[...] (cut off at the image's right edge)
marginal letters: A ‹II. Deinde nemo umquam episcopum apud judices›; B ‹qualiter ad concilium veniatur, aut qualiter de suis›; C ‹si surrexerint talia, quae adhuc non sunt manifesta›; D ‹Christo, mundum reconcilians sibi (II Cor., v)›
old-edition numerals: (none)

PL 5:186

Dei aequalis est Patri (Philipp., II) in forma servi particeps esset et nostri, ut mortis vinculum, unius praevaricatione contractum, unius morte (qui solus morti nihil debuit) solveretur? Effusio enim justi sanguinis Christi, tam fuit dives ad pretium, ut si universitas captivorum in redemptorem suum crederet, nullum diaboli vincula retinerent: quoniam, sicut Apostolus ait: Ubi abundavit peccatum, superabundavit et gratia (Rom., V). Et cum sub peccati praejudicio nati, potestatem acceperint ad justitiam renascendi, validius factum est donum libertatis, quam debitum servitutis. Quam itaque sibi in hujus sacramenti praesidio spem relinquunt, qui in Salvatore nostro negant humani corporis veritatem? Dicant quo sacrificio reconciliati: dicant quo sanguine sint redempti. Quis est, ut ait Apostolus, qui tradidit semetipsum pro nobis oblationem et hostiam Deo in odorem suavitatis (Ephes., V)? Aut quod unquam sacrificium sacratius fuit, quam quod verus et aeternus pontifex altari crucis per immolationem suae carnis imposuit? Licet in conspectu Domini pretiosa justorum mors fuit (Psal. CXV), nullius tamen insontis occisio, redemptio fuit mundi. Acceperunt justi, non dederunt, coronas. De fortitudine fidelium exempla nata sunt patientiae, non dona justitiae. Singulares quippe in singulis mortis fuerunt, nec alterius quisquam debitum suo fine persolvit, cum filius hominis, unus solus Dominus noster Jesus Christus, qui vere erat Agnus immaculatus, extiterit, in quo omnes crucifixi, omnes mortui, omnes sepulti, omnes etiam sunt suscitati. De quibus ipse dicebat: Cum exaltatus fuero a terra, omnia traham ad meipsum (Joan., XII). Fides etenim justificans impios, et creans justos, ad humanitatis retracta participium, in illo acquirit salutem, in quo solo homo se invenit innocentem, liberum habens per gratiam Dei de ejus potentia gloriari, qui contra hostem humani generis in carnis nostrae humilitate congressus, his victoriam suam tribuit, in quorum corpore triumphavit. Licet ergo in uno Domino nostro Jesu Christo, vero Dei atque hominis Filio, Verbi et carnis una persona sit, quae inseparabiliter atque indivise communes habeat actiones, intelligendae tamen sunt ipsorum operum qualitates, et sincerae fidei contemplatione cernendum est, ad quae provehatur humilitas carnis, et ad quae inclinetur altitudo deitatis: quid sit, quod caro sine Verbo non agit; et quid sit, quod Verbum sine carne non efficit. Sine Verbi enim potentia nec conciperet Virgo, nec pareret, et sine veritate carnis, obvoluta pannis infantia non jaceret; sine Verbi potentia, non adorarent magi puerum, stella indice declaratum; sine veritate carnis, non juberetur transferri in Aegyptum puer, et ab Herodio persecutione subduci; sine Verbi potentia non diceret vox Patris, missa de coelo: Hic est Filius meus dilectus, in quo mihi complacui, ipsum audite (Matth. III et XVII), et sine veritate carnis non protestaretur Joannes: Ecce agnus Dei ecce qui tollit peccata mundi (Joan., I). Sine Verbi

of God is equal to the Father (Phil. 2) might in the form of a servant become a sharer also in what is ours, so that the bond of death, contracted through the transgression of one, might be loosed by the death of One (Who alone owed nothing to death)? For the shedding of the righteous blood of Christ was so rich as a price that, if the whole body of captives believed in their Redeemer, the chains of the devil would hold no one: since, as the Apostle says: Where sin abounded, grace also superabounded (Rom. 5:20). And since those born under the prior judgement of sin have received power to be reborn unto righteousness, the gift of freedom has been made stronger than the debt of servitude. What hope, then, do they leave themselves in the protection of this sacrament, who deny in our Saviour the reality of a human body? Let them say by what sacrifice they have been reconciled; let them say by what blood they have been redeemed. Who is it, as the Apostle says, Who gave Himself up for us as an offering and a victim to God for an odour of sweetness (Eph. 5:2)? Or what sacrifice was ever more sacred than that which the true and eternal High Priest laid upon the altar of the cross through the immolation of His own flesh? Although in the sight of the Lord the death of the righteous was precious (Ps. 115:15), yet the slaying of no innocent man was the redemption of the world. The righteous received crowns; they did not give them. From the fortitude of the faithful have arisen examples of patience, not gifts of righteousness. For their deaths were individual, each in each, and no one paid off another's debt by his own end, since there stood forth the Son of Man, our one and only Lord Jesus Christ, Who was truly the Lamb without blemish, in Whom all were crucified, all died, all were buried, all were also raised up. Of these He Himself said: When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all things to Myself (John 12:32). For faith, which justifies the ungodly and creates the righteous, drawn back to participation in [His] humanity, acquires salvation in Him in Whom alone man finds himself innocent, having freedom through the grace of God to glory in the power of Him Who, having joined battle with the enemy of the human race in the lowliness of our flesh, granted His victory to those in whose body He triumphed. Although, then, in our one Lord Jesus Christ, true Son of God and of man, there is one person of the Word and of the flesh, which has its actions in common inseparably and undividedly, yet the qualities of the works themselves must be understood, and it must be discerned by the contemplation of sincere faith to what the lowliness of the flesh is raised and to what the height of the Godhead stoops: what it is that the flesh does not do without the Word, and what it is that the Word does not accomplish without the flesh. For without the power of the Word the Virgin would neither conceive nor bring forth, and without the reality of the flesh the infancy wrapped in swaddling clothes would not lie there; without the power of the Word the magi would not adore the child, made known by the star as its sign; without the reality of the flesh the child would not be ordered to be carried into Egypt and withdrawn from the Herodian persecution; without the power of the Word the voice of the Father, sent from heaven, would not say: This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased; hear Him (Matt. 3:17 and 17:5), and without the reality of the flesh John would not declare: Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him Who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). Without the power of the Word

Editors' notes and page, col. 186

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running head: PAPAE AD FELICEM EPISCOPUM. 186
marginal letters: A ‹Dei aequalis est Patri›; B ‹dempti. Quis est›; C ‹De quibus ipse dicebat›; D ‹tur altitudo deitatis›
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other: column begins with the complete word "Dei"; the truncated left column (col. 185) is not set; between "quod" and "unquam" a raised black spacing mark is printed and is not a lost letter, so set as "quod unquam"; "mortis fuerunt" set as printed (perhaps for "mortes"), UNSURE whether this is a misprint; "pretiosa justorum mors fuit" and "Herodio persecutione" set as printed; column ends mid-sentence at "Sine Verbi"; no full-width line; no editors' matter

PL 5:187

potentia non fieret redintegratio debilium, et vivificatio mortuorum, et sine veritate carnis, nec cibus jejuno, nec somnus esset necessarius fatigato (Matth. IV; Joan., XI; Marc., IV; Joan., X et XIV). Postremo; sine Verbi potentia non se Dominus Patri profiteretur aequalem, et sine veritate carnis non idem diceret Patrem se esse majorem, cum catholica fides utrumque suscipiat, utrumque defendat, quae secundum confessionem beati Petri apostoli, unum Christum Dei filium, et hominem credit et Verbum (Matth., XVI). Quamvis itaque ab illo initio, quo in utero Virginis Verbum caro factum est (Joan., I) nihil umquam inter utramque formam divisionis extiterit, et per omnia incrementa corporea, unius personae fuerint totius temporis actiones; ea ipsa tamen ut ita dicam, quae inseparabiliter facta sunt, nulla permixtione confundimus, sed quid cujusque formae sit, ex operum qualitate sentimus. Dicant ergo isti hypocritae, qui caecis mentibus lumen nolunt recipere veritatis, in qua forma crucis ligno Dominus majestatis Christus affixus sit, quid jacuerit in sepulchro, et revoluto lapide monumenti, quae tertia die caro resurrexerit, et in qua post resurrectionem suam non credentes quosdam discipulos arguebat, et haesitationem cunctantium confutabat, cum diceret: Palpate et videte, quia spiritus carnem et ossa non habet, sicut me videtis habere (Joan., XIX; Matth., XXVIII); et apostolo Thomae: Infer manum tuam in latus meum, et vide manus meas et pedes, et noli esse incredulus, sed fidelis (Luc., XXIV; Joan., XX); qua utique manifestatione corporis sui, jam haereticorum mendacia destruebat, ut universa Ecclesia Christi innovanda doctrinis, hoc sibi non dubitaret credendum, quod apostoli susceperant praedicandum.

there would be no restoration of the infirm and no bringing to life of the dead, and without the reality of the flesh neither would food be necessary for Him when fasting nor sleep when weary (Matt. 4; John 11; Mark 4; John 10 and 14). Finally; without the power of the Word the Lord would not profess Himself equal to the Father, and without the reality of the flesh the same One would not say that the Father is greater than He, since the catholic faith accepts both and defends both, which, according to the confession of the blessed apostle Peter, believes the one Christ, Son of God, to be both man and Word (Matt. 16). Although, therefore, from that beginning when in the Virgin's womb the Word was made flesh (John 1) there was never any division between the two forms, and through all the stages of bodily growth the actions of the whole time were those of one person; yet those very things, so to speak, which were done inseparably, we confound by no intermingling, but we perceive from the quality of the works what belongs to each form. Let these hypocrites, then, who with blind minds refuse to receive the light of truth, say in which form Christ, the Lord of majesty, was fastened to the wood of the cross, what lay in the sepulchre, and, when the stone of the tomb had been rolled away, what flesh rose again on the third day, and in what [flesh] after His resurrection He rebuked certain disciples who did not believe, and refuted the hesitation of those who wavered, when He said: Handle and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see Me to have (John 19; Matt. 28); and to the apostle Thomas: Put your hand into My side, and see My hands and feet, and do not be unbelieving, but believing (Luke 24; John 20); by which manifestation of His body He was indeed already destroying the lies of the heretics, so that the whole Church of Christ, to be renewed by these teachings, should not doubt that it must believe what the apostles had undertaken to preach.

V. At si in tanta luce veritatis tenebras suas haeretica obduratio non relinquit, ostendant unde sibi spem vitae polliceantur aeternae, ad quam nisi per mediatorem Dei et hominum (I Tim., IV), hominem Jesum Christum, non potest perveniri. Sicut enim ait beatus Petrus apostolus: Non est aliud nomen datum hominibus sub caelo, in quo oporteat nos salvos fieri (Act., IV); nec est redemptio captivitatis humanae, nisi in sanguine ejus, qui dedit semetipsum redemptionem pro omnibus, et qui, sicut praedicat Apostolus (I Tim., II; Phil., II), cum in forma Dei esset, non rapinam arbitratus est esse se aequalem Deo, sed semetipsum exinanivit, formam servi accipiens, in similitudinem factus, et habitu inventus ut homo, humiliavit semetipsum, factus obediens Patri usque ad mortem, mortem autem crucis: propter quod et Deus exaltavit illum et donavit illi nomen, quod est super omne nomen, ut in nomine Jesu omne genu flectatur, caelestium, terrestrium, et infernorum, et omnis lingua confiteatur quia Dominus Jesu Christus in gloria est Dei Patris. Cum ergo unus sit Dominus Jesus Christus, et verae deitatis, veraeque humanitatis in ipso una prorsus

V. But if, in so great a light of truth, heretical obstinacy does not abandon its darkness, let them show whence they promise themselves the hope of eternal life, which cannot be reached except through the mediator of God and men (1 Tim. 4), the man Jesus Christ. For as the blessed apostle Peter says: There is no other name given to men under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4); nor is there any redemption of human captivity except in the blood of Him Who gave Himself as a redemption for all, and Who, as the Apostle proclaims (1 Tim. 2; Phil. 2), when He was in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal to God, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in likeness, and found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, made obedient to the Father unto death, even the death of the cross: for which reason God also exalted Him and gave Him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of things in heaven, of things on earth, and of things below, and every tongue confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father. Since, therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ is one, and of true deity and true humanity there is in Him one altogether

Editors' notes and page, col. 187

Footnotes

LECTIONES VARIANTES.

VARIANT READINGS.

(printed under page 96)

(a) ‹anchor: Christi innovanda› · call in col 187

Imbuenda Labb.

"to be imbued" Labbe.

(printed under page 96)

Page

running head: 187 EPISTOLA CAII PAPÆ AD FELIC (cut off at the image edge)
marginal letters: A potentia non fieret redintegratio; B ut ita dicam, quae inseparabiliter; C qua utique manifestatione corporis; D rapinam arbitratus est esse
old-edition numerals: (none)
other: ligature doubt raised by the check (text not changed): caelo | coelo
other: ligature doubt raised by the check (text not changed): caelestium | coelestium

PL 5:188

eademque persona sit, exaltationem tamen, qua illum (sicut doctor gentium dixit) : Exaltavit Deus, et donavit illi nomen, quod est super omne nomen (Phil., II), ad eam intelligimus pertinere formam, quae ditanda erat tantae glorificationis augmento. In forma quippe Dei aequalis erat Filius Patri (Joan., X), et inter genitorem atque unigenitum nulla erat in essentia discretio, nulla in majestate diversitas : nec per Incarnationis mysterium aliquid decesserat Verbo, quod ei Patris munere redderetur. Forma autem servi, per quam impassibilis deitas sacramentum magnae pietatis implevit, humana humilitas est, quae in gloriam divinae potestatis evicta, est in tantam unitatem, ab ipso conceptu Virginis, deitatis et humanitatis conserta, ut nec sine homine divina, nec sine Deo agerentur humana. Propter quod, sicut Dominus majestatis dicitur crucifixus, ita qui ex sempiternitate aequalis est Deo, dicitur exaltatus : quia inseparabiliter manente unitate personae, unus atque idem est et totus hominis Filius propter carnem et totus Dei Filius propter unam cum Patre deitatem. Quidquid ergo in tempore accepit Christus, secundum hominem accepit, cui, quae non habuit, conferrentur. Nam secundum potentiam divinitatis, indifferenter omnia, quae habet Pater, etiam habet Filius (Joan., V) : et quae in forma servi a Patre accepit, eadem in forma Dei etiam ipse donavit. Secundum Dei enim formam, ipse et Pater unum sunt (Joan., X); secundum formam autem servi, non venit facere voluntatem suam, sed voluntatem ejus qui misit eum (Joan., IV, V, VI). Secundum formam Dei, sicut Pater habet vitam in semetipso, sic dedit et Filio vitam habere in semetipso (Joan., V); secundum formam servi, Tristis est anima ejus usque ad mortem (Matth., XXVI). Et idem ipse est, sicut Apostolus praedicat, et dives et pauper (II Cor., VIII). Dives, quia evangelista dicente : In principio erat Verbum, et Verbum erat apud Deum, et Deus erat Verbum : hoc erat in principio apud Deum. Omnia per ipsum facta sunt, et sine ipso factum est nihil (Joan., I). Pauper vero, quia propter nos Verbum caro factum est, et habitavit in nobis (Ibidem). Quae autem est exinanitio ejus, quaeve paupertas, nisi formae servilis acceptio, per quam, Verbi majestate velata, dispensatio humanae redemptionis impleta est? Nam quia captivitatis nostrae resolvi originalia vincula non poterant, nisi existeret homo nostri generis nostraeque naturae, quem peccati praejudicia non tenerent, et qui immaculato sanguine suo chirographum lethale dilueret, sicut ab initio erat divinitus praeordinatum, ita est in plenitudine temporis perfectum, ut multis modis significata promissio in diu expectatum veniret effectum : nec posset esse ambiguum, quod continuit testificationibus semper fuerat nuntiatum. In magno autem sacrilegio se versari haereticorum manifestat impietas, cum sub specie divinitatis honorandae humanae

and the same person, yet the exaltation by which Him (as the teacher of the Gentiles said): God exalted, and gave Him the name which is above every name (Phil. 2), we understand to pertain to that form which was to be enriched by the increase of so great a glorification. For in the form of God the Son was equal to the Father (John 10), and between the Begetter and the Only-begotten there was no distinction in essence, no diversity in majesty; nor through the mystery of the Incarnation had anything departed from the Word which would be restored to Him by the Father's gift. But the form of a servant, through which the impassible Godhead fulfilled the sacrament of great piety, is human lowliness, which, raised into the glory of divine power, has been joined, from the very conception by the Virgin, into so great a unity of Godhead and manhood that neither were divine things done without man, nor human things without God. For this reason, just as the Lord of majesty is said to have been crucified, so He Who from eternity is equal to God is said to have been exalted: because, the unity of the person remaining inseparably, one and the same is both wholly Son of man on account of the flesh and wholly Son of God on account of the one Godhead with the Father. Whatever, therefore, Christ received in time, He received according to the man, on whom the things which He did not have were to be conferred. For according to the power of the divinity, the Son also has without distinction all things which the Father has (John 5); and what He received from the Father in the form of a servant, the same He Himself also gave in the form of God. For according to the form of God, He and the Father are one (John 10); but according to the form of a servant, He came not to do His own will, but the will of Him Who sent Him (John 4, 5, 6). According to the form of God, as the Father has life in Himself, so He has given also to the Son to have life in Himself (John 5); according to the form of a servant, His soul is sorrowful unto death (Matt. 26). And He is one and the same, as the Apostle proclaims, both rich and poor (2 Cor. 8). Rich, because, as the evangelist says: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God: this was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made (John 1). But poor, because for our sake the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (ibid.). What then is His emptying, or what His poverty, except the taking of the servile form, through which, the majesty of the Word being veiled, the dispensation of human redemption was fulfilled? For since the original chains of our captivity could not be loosed unless there existed a man of our race and of our nature whom the prejudgements of sin did not hold, and who with His own spotless blood would wash away the deadly bond, as it had been divinely preordained from the beginning, so it was accomplished in the fullness of time, so that the promise signified in many ways should come to its long-awaited effect; nor could that be doubtful which had always been announced by continuous testimonies. But the impiety of the heretics shows that they are engaged in great sacrilege, when, under the pretext of honouring the divinity, they deny the truth of the human

Editors' notes and page, col. 188

Footnotes

(b) ‹anchor: divinitatis honorandae› · call in col 188

Cum speciem deitatis honorando Labb.

"when, by honouring the appearance of deity" Labbe.

(printed under page 96)

Page

running head: …PAPAE AD FELICEM EPISCOPUM. 188
marginal letters: A eademque persona sit; B sine Deo agerentur humana; C misit eum (Joan., IV, V, VI); D solvi originalia vincula
old-edition numerals: (none)

PL 5:189

carnis in Christo denegant veritatem: et religiose existimant credi, si dicatur in Salvatore nostro verum non esse, quod salvat; cum ita secundum promissionem omnia saecula praecurrentem, mundus sit Deo reconciliatus in Christo (I Cor., V), ut nisi Verbum dignaretur caro fieri, nulla possit caro salvari. Omne enim sacramentum christianae fidei, magno (ut haeretici volunt) decoloratur obscuro, si lux veritatis sub mendacio putatur latuisse phantasmatis. Non ergo quisquam sibi erubescendum existimet Christianus de nostri in Christo corporis veritate, quia omnes apostoli, apostolorumque discipuli et praeclari ecclesiarum quique doctores, qui ad martyrii coronam, vel ad confessionis meruerunt gloriam pervenire, in hujus fidei lumine splenduerunt, consonis ubique sententiis intonantes, quod in Domino Jesu Christo deitatis et carnis una sit confitenda persona. Qua autem rationis similitudine, qua divinorum voluminum portione haeretica impietas se existimat adjuvari, quae veritatem negat corporis Christi, cum hanc non lex testificari, non propheta praecinere, non Evangelia docere, non ipse destiterit Christus ostendere? Quaerant per omnem seriem Scripturarum, quo tenebras suas, fugiant, non quo verum lumen obscurent: et per omnia saecula ita veritatem invenient coruscantem, ut magnum hoc et mirabile sacramentum ab initio videant creditum, quod est in fine completum. De quo cum sanctarum litterarum nulla pars sileat, sufficit quaedam consona veritatis signa posuisse, quibus diligentia fidei in splendidissimam latitudinem dirigatur, et sincerae intelligentiae luce perspiciat, quod in Filio Dei, qui se incessabiliter Filium hominis, et hominem profitetur, non sit Christianis erubescendum, sed constantissime gloriandum: quoniam, sicut ait beatus Apostolus (I Tim., III): Magnum est pietatis sacramentum, quod manifestatum est in carne, justificatum est in Spiritu, apparuit angelis,

flesh in Christ: and they think it is piously believed if it is said that in our Saviour that by which He saves is not true; whereas, according to the promise running ahead of all ages, the world has thus been reconciled to God in Christ (2 Cor. 5:19), so that unless the Word had deigned to become flesh, no flesh could be saved. For the whole mystery of the Christian faith is discoloured by a great darkness (as the heretics would have it), if the light of truth is thought to have lain hidden beneath the lie of a phantom. Let no Christian, therefore, think that he must blush over the truth of our body in Christ, since all the apostles, and the disciples of the apostles, and each of the illustrious doctors of the churches, who were found worthy to attain to the crown of martyrdom or to the glory of confession, shone in the light of this faith, thundering everywhere with harmonious pronouncements that in the Lord Jesus Christ one person of Godhead and flesh is to be confessed. By what likeness of reasoning, then, by what portion of the divine volumes does the heretical impiety which denies the truth of the body of Christ think itself helped, when the law has not ceased to testify to it, nor the prophet to foretell it, nor the Gospels to teach it, nor Christ Himself to show it? Let them search through the whole sequence of the Scriptures for a way by which to escape their own darkness, not a way by which to obscure the true light: and through all the ages they will find the truth so shining forth that they will see that this great and wonderful mystery, which was fulfilled at the end, was believed from the beginning. And since no part of the holy writings is silent about it, it is enough to have set down certain concordant signs of the truth, by which the diligence of faith may be directed into the most splendid breadth, and may perceive by the light of sincere understanding that in the Son of God, Who unceasingly professes Himself Son of man, and man, there is nothing for Christians to blush at, but rather to glory in most constantly: since, as the blessed Apostle says (1 Tim. 3): Great is the mystery of godliness, which was manifested in the flesh, was justified in the Spirit, appeared to angels,

praedicatum est gentibus, creditum est in mundo, assumptum est in gloria.

was preached among the nations, was believed in the world, was taken up in glory.

VI. De episcopum vero, et presbyterorum, diaconorumque, et sequentium clericorum ordinationibus, sanctos apostolos et successores eorum, et praecipue Anacletum (Epistolae 2. Nullius fidei apud doctos), et praeterea alios, sufficienter statuisse cognoscimus: et idcirco non est necesse nunc replicari, nisi quod illi non statuerunt. Illud tamen nos statuentes vobis et omnibus servare mandamus, ut ad ordines ecclesiasticos sic ascendant in Ecclesia; qui ordinari merentur, id est, si quis episcopus esse meretur, sit primo ostiarus, deinde lector, postea exorcista, inde sacretur acolythus, demum vero subdiaconus, deinde diaconus, et postea presbyter, et exinde, si meretur, episcopus ordinetur. Et regiones, sicut in hac urbe fecimus, per singulas urbes, quae populosae fuerint, diaconibus dividantur. Et quaecumque difficiles quaestiones per singulas provincias exortae fuerint (Innocentius, ep. II), semper ad sedem apostolicam referantur (S. Leo, ep. LXXXIV, c. 7; Vigilius, ep. II). Bene vale, frater, et ora pro nobis. Data kalendis martii, Diocletiano sexto et Constantio secundo viris clarissimis consulibus.

VI. Now concerning the ordinations of bishops, presbyters and deacons, and of the clerics who follow them, we know that the holy apostles and their successors, and especially Anacletus (Epistle 2. Of no credit among the learned), and others besides, have laid down sufficient rules. For that reason there is no need to repeat them now, except for what they did not lay down. This, however, we lay down, and we command you and all to observe it: that in the Church men are to ascend to the ecclesiastical orders in this way. Those who deserve to be ordained, that is, anyone who deserves to be a bishop, should first be a doorkeeper, then a lector, afterwards an exorcist, then be consecrated acolyte, next a subdeacon, then a deacon, and afterwards a presbyter, and after that, if he deserves it, he should be ordained bishop. And as we have done in this city, the regions in each city that is populous are to be divided among deacons. And whatever difficult questions arise in the several provinces (Innocent, Ep. 2), they are always to be referred to the apostolic see (St Leo, Ep. 84, ch. 7; Vigilius, Ep. 2). Farewell, brother, and pray for us. Given on the kalends of March, in the consulship of the most illustrious men Diocletian, for the sixth time, and Constantius, for the second.

Editors' notes and page, col. 189

Footnotes

[Epistola Caii papae ad Felicem] (printed under page 97)

(1) ‹anchor: not visible in the page-foot image› · call in col 189 or 190

Huc usque verba S. Leonis, ex quibus videas aliter olere catulos.

Up to this point the words are St Leo's; from them you may see that puppies smell different (that is, the borrowed text betrays itself).

(printed under page 97)

(2) ‹anchor: Illud tamen nos› · call in col 189 or 190

Illud tamen nos. Quod hic et supra in vita Caii de hierarchia ecclesiastica constituta, a Caio pontifice instituta dicantur, nequaquam sic sunt intelligenda, quasi ipse primus instituerit, ut ad summum ordinem ascensurus, per inferiorum ordinum gradus sublime sacerdotii conscenderet: nam ejusmodi hierarchiae ordinem, temporibus apostolorum in Ecclesia stabilitum fuisse, supra pluribus locis est enarratum. Caii igitur decretum nihil aliud constituisse videtur, quam quod ad tronum episcopalem nemo proveheretur, nisi qui in singulis inferioribus ordinibus, debito ac consueto tempore ministrasset. Vide Baron., anno 296, numero 2. SEVER. BINIUS.

"Yet this we." What is said here and above in the Life of Caius about the ecclesiastical hierarchy that was set up, as instituted by Pope Caius, is by no means to be understood as though he were the first to institute that one who is to ascend to the highest order should climb to the height of the priesthood through the steps of the lower orders: for that such an order of hierarchy was established in the Church in the times of the apostles has been related above in several places. Caius's decree therefore seems to have laid down nothing other than that no one should be advanced to the episcopal throne unless he had ministered in each of the lower orders for the due and customary time. See Baronius, year 296, number 2. SEVERINUS BINIUS.

(printed under page 97)

(3) ‹anchor: not visible in the page-foot image› · call in col 189 or 190

Verba Pontificalis.

Words of the Pontifical (the Liber Pontificalis).

(printed under page 97)

(4) ‹anchor: Diocletiano sexto› · call in col 190

An. Christi 296

In the year of Christ 296.

(printed under page 97)

(a) ‹anchor: omnia saecula praecurrentem› · call in col 189

Percurrentem Labb.

"running through" Labbe.

(printed under page 97)

(b) ‹anchor: nunc replicari› · call in col 190

Nos replicare nisi Labb.

"that we repeat, except" Labbe.

(printed under page 97)

(1) ‹anchor: verbis expressit› · call in col 189 (in the Prolegomena on Commodian below the title band: the next unit's note, not this unit's; kept here as a pointer only)

Gennad., de Scriptor. Eccles., cap. 15.

Gennadius, On Ecclesiastical Writers, chapter 15.

(printed under page 97)

Page

running head: 189 DE COMMODIANO GAZÆO, (cut off at the right edge)
marginal letters: A ‹carnis in Christo denegant›; B ‹sententiis intonantes, quod›; C ‹suisse, quibus diligentia›; D ‹ARTICULUS I.›
old-edition numerals: (none)
other: heavy ink smudging in the first lines (denegant veritatem, Salvatore, secundum, omnia, possit) and at "in splendidissimam" (printed like "fu"); the words are read from their context and the visible letters. "latuisse" is blurred and might be printed "latnisse"; unsure. The reference (I Cor., V) is printed so, although the quotation is 2 Cor. 5:19. "quo tenebras suas, fugiant" set with the comma as printed. A full-width title, DE COMMODIANO GAZAEO, ORIGINE AFRO, / PROLEGOMENA, stands between the variant note and Articulus I and is not set. The Prolegomena (Articulus I, Ejus Vitae Synopsis, De Commodiano quid veteres meminerint?) belong to the next unit and are NOT set here. The column ends mid-word at paga-.
other: misprint kept as printed in footnote (2): tronum (for thronum)
other: a full-width band stands across cols 189/190 in mid-page: the 2 paragraph(s) above it in col 190 are set here, after the 1 above it in col 189 (reading order, moved on receipt); the band itself (its title lines) is not set by the volunteer page: set it here, at the move, with full_width
other: the column continues with ARTICULUS I. (another unit); not set here

PL 5:190

Editors' notes and page, col. 190

Footnotes

(4) ‹anchor: Diocletiano sexto› · call in col 190

An. Christi 296

Year of Christ 296

LECTIONES VARIANTES.

VARIANT READINGS.

(printed under page 97)

(b) ‹anchor: nunc replicari› · call in col 190

Nos replicare nisi Labb.

"we (are to) repeat, unless" Labbe.

[De Commodiano Gazaeo, origine Afro, Prolegomena] (printed under page 97)

(1) ‹anchor: auctores secutus› · call in col 190

Ac sane Papiam sequitur, probans dogma de mille annis cap. ultimo. Tertullianum vero in multis, quae de gentium diis disputat. De Lactantio equidem dubito (inquit perdoctus Albertus Fabricius in Bibl. med. et infim. latinatis, tom. I, pag. 406, edit. Patavinae, 1754), licet Gennadio hac in parte suffragatus primum est etiam Rigaltius (nam in curis secundis (continues)

And indeed he follows Papias, approving the doctrine of the thousand years in the last chapter; and Tertullian in many of the things he argues about the gods of the gentiles. About Lactantius I am in doubt (says the very learned Albert Fabricius in the Bibliotheca mediae et infimae latinitatis, vol. I, p. 406, Padua edition, 1754), although Rigault too at first supported Gennadius on this point (for in his second thoughts (continues)

(printed under page 97)