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Contra Faustum Manichaeum libri triginta tres

21.

Nam quod etiam hinc nobis calumniatur Faustus, quod martyrum memorias honoramus, in hoc dicens nos idola convertisse, non tam me movet, ut huic calumniae respondeam quam ut ipsum Faustum ostendam studio calumniandi etiam ab ipsius Manichaei vanitatibus exorbitare voluisse et in vulgarem atque poeticam paganorum opinionem, a quibus se alienissimum cupit videri, nescio quo modo incautum incidisse. Cum enim dixisset nos vertisse idola in martyres, quos votis inquit similibus colitis; defunctorum umbras vino placatis et dapibus. Sunt ergo umbrae defunctorum? Numquam hoc in vestris sermonibus audivimus, numquam in litteris legimus; p. 561,29 immo contradicere soletis talibus opinionibus, asserentes animas mortuorum malas minusve purgatas aut in revolutiones ire aut in graviores aliquas poenas, bonas autem in naves imponi et in caelo navigantes transire hinc in illud phantasma terrae luminis, pro qua pugnando perierant, ita nullas animas circa suorum corporum sepulcra detineri. Unde igitur umbrae defunctorum? Quae substantia earum? Qui locus? Sed maledicendi cupiditate Faustus quid profiteretur, oblitus est; aut forte dormitans umbras somniando dictavit nec, cum verba sua legeret, evigilavit. Populus autem christianus memorias martyrum religiosa sollemnitate concelebrat et ad excitandam imitationem et ut meritis eorum consocietur atque orationibus adiuvetur, p. 562,10 ita tamen, ut nulli martyrum, sed ipsi deo martyrum quamvis in memoriis martyrum constituamus altaria. Quis enim antistitum in locis sanctorum corporum assistens altari aliquando dixit: Offerimus tibi, Petre aut Paule aut Cypriane, sed quod offertur, offertur deo, qui martyres coronavit, apud memorias eorum quos coronavit, ut ex ipsorum locorum admonitione maior affectus exsurgat ad acuendam caritatem et in illos, quos imitari possumus, et in illum, quo adiuvante possimus. Colimus ergo martyres eo cultu dilectionis et societatis, quo et in hac vita coluntur sancti homines dei, quorum cor ad talem pro evangelica veritate passionem paratum esse sentimus; sed illos tanto devotius, quanto securius post certamina omnia superata, quanto etiam fidentiore laude praedicamus iam in vita feliciore victores quam in ista adhuc usque pugnantes. p. 562,24 At illo cultu, quae graece λατρεία dicitur, latine uno verbo dici non potest, cum sit quaedam proprie divinitati debita servitus, nec colimus nec colendum docemus nisi unum deum. Cum autem ad hunc cultum pertineat oblatio sacrificii, unde idolatria dicitur eorum, qui hoc etiam idolis exhibent, nullo modo tale aliquid offerimus aut offerendum praecipimus vel cuiquam martyri vel cuiquam sanctae animae vel cuiquam angelo; et quisquis in hunc errorem delabitur, corripitur per sanam doctrinam, sive ut corrigatur, sive ut caveatur. Etiam ipsi enim sancti vel homines vel angeli exhiberi sibi nolunt, quod uni deo deberi norunt. p. 563,7 Apparuit hoc in Paulo et Barnaba, cum commoti miraculis, quae per eos facta sunt, Lycaonii tamquam diis immolare voluerunt; conscissis enim vestimentis suis confitentes et persuadentes se deos non esse ista sibi fieri vetuerunt. Apparuit et in angelis sicut in apocalypsi legimus angelum se adorari prohibentem ac dicentem adoratori suo: Conservus tuus sum et fratrum tuorum. Ista sibi plane superbi spiritus exigunt, diabolus et angeli eius, sicut per omnia templa et sacra gentilium ‹fit›; quorum similitudo in quibusdam etiam superbis hominibus expressa est, sicut de Babyloniae quibusdam regibus memoriae commendatum tenemus. Unde sanctus Danihel accusatores ac persecutores pertulit, quod regis edicto proposito, ut nihil a quoquam deo peteretur nisi a rege solo, deum suum, hoc est unum et verum deum adorare deprecarique deprehensus est. p. 563,22 Qui autem se in memoriis martyrum inebriant, quomodo a nobis approbari possunt, cum eos, etiamsi in domibus suis id faciant, sana doctrina condemnet? Sed aliud est, quod docemus, aliud, quod sustinemus, aliud, quod praecipere iubemur, aliud, quod emendare praecipimur, et donec emendemus, tolerare compellimur; alia est disciplina christianorum, alia luxuria vinolentorum vel error infirmorum. Verumtamen et in hoc ipso distant plurimum culpae vinolentorum et sacrilegorum. Longe quippe minoris peccati est ebrium redire a martyribus quam vel ieiunum sacrificare martyribus. Sacrificare martyribus dixi, non dixi: sacrificare deo in memoriis martyrum. Quod frequentissime facimus illo dumtaxat ritu, quo sibi sacrificari novi testamenti manifestatione praecepit; quod pertinet ad illum cultum, quae latria dicitur et uni deo debetur. p. 564,8 Sed quid agam et tantae caecitati istorum haereticorum quando demonstrabo, quam vim habeat, quod in psalmis canitur: Sacrificium laudis glorificabit me, et illic via est, ubi ostendam illi salutare meum? Huius sacrificii caro et sanguis ante adventum Christi per victimas similitudinum promittebatur, in passione Christi per ipsam veritatem reddebatur, post ascensum Christi per sacramentum memoriae celebratur. Ac per hoc tantum interest inter sacrificia paganorum et Hebraeorum, quantum inter imitationem errantem et praefigurationem praenuntiantem. Sicut autem non ideo contemnenda vel detestanda est virginitas sanctimonialium, quia et Vestales virgines fuerunt, sic non ideo reprehendenda sacrificia patrum, quia sunt et sacrificia gentium, quia, sicut inter illas virginitates multum distat, quamvis nihil aliud distet, nisi quae cui voveatur atque reddatur, sic inter sacrificia paganorum et Hebraeorum multum distat eo ipso, quod hoc solum distat, quae cui sint immolata et oblata; p. 564,25 illa scilicet superbae impietati daemoniorum id ipsum sibi ob hoc arrogantium, quo haberentur dii, quia divinus honor est sacrificium; illa vero uni deo, ut ei offerretur similitudo promittens veritatem sacrificii, cui erat offerenda ipsa reddita veritas in passione corporis et sanguinis Christi.

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Reply to Faustus the Manichaean

21.

As to our paying honor to the memory of the martyrs, and the accusation of Faustus, that we worship them instead of idols, I should not care to answer such a charge, were it not for the sake of showing how Faustus, in his desire to cast reproach on us, has overstepped the Manichaean inventions, and has fallen heedlessly into a popular notion found in Pagan poetry, although he is so anxious to be distinguished from the Pagans. For in saying that we have turned the idols into martyrs, he speaks of our worshipping them with similar rites, and appeasing the shades of the departed with wine and food. Do you, then, believe in shades? We never heard you speak of such things, nor have we read of them in your books. In fact, you generally oppose such ideas: for you tell us that the souls of the dead, if they are wicked, or not purified, are made to pass through various changes, or suffer punishment still more severe; while the good souls are placed in ships, and sail through heaven to that imaginary region of light which they died fighting for. According to you, then, no souls remain near the burying-place of the body; and how can there be any shades of the departed? What and where are they? Faustus' love of evil-speaking has made him forget his own creed; or perhaps he spoke in his sleep about ghosts, and did not wake up even when he saw his words in writing. It is true that Christians pay religious honor to the memory of the martyrs, both to excite us to imitate them and to obtain a share in their merits, and the assistance of their prayers. But we build altars not to any martyr, but to the God of martyrs, although it is to the memory of the martyrs. No one officiating at the altar in the saints' burying-place ever says, We bring an offering to thee, O Peter! or O Paul! or O Cyprian! The offering is made to God, who gave the crown of martyrdom, while it is in memory of those thus crowned. The emotion is increased by the associations of the place, and love is excited both towards those who are our examples, and towards Him by whose help we may follow such examples. We regard the martyrs with the same affectionate intimacy that we feel towards holy men of God in this life, when we know that their hearts are prepared to endure the same suffering for the truth of the gospel. There is more devotion in our feeling towards the martyrs, because we know that their conflict is over; and we can speak with greater confidence in praise of those already victors in heaven, than of those still combating here. What is properly divine worship, which the Greeks call latria, and for which there is no word in Latin, both in doctrine and in practice, we give only to God. To this worship belongs the offering of sacrifices; as we see in the word idolatry, which means the giving of this worship to idols. Accordingly we never offer, or require any one to offer, sacrifice to a martyr, or to a holy soul, or to any angel. Any one falling into this error is instructed by doctrine, either in the way of correction or of caution. For holy beings themselves, whether saints or angels, refuse to accept what they know to be due to God alone. We see this in Paul and Barnabas, when the men of Lycaonia wished to sacrifice to them as gods, on account of the miracles they performed. They rent their clothes, and restrained the people, crying out to them, and persuading them that they were not gods. We see it also in the angels, as we read in the Apocalypse that an angel would not allow himself to be worshipped, and said to his worshipper, "I am thy fellow-servant, and of thy brethen." ¹ Those who claim this worship are proud spirits, the devil and his angels, as we see in all the temples and rites of the Gentiles. Some proud men, too, have copied their example; as is related of some kings of Babylon. Thus the holy Daniel was accused and persecuted, because when the king made a decree that no petition should be made to any god, but only to the king, he was found worshipping and praying to his own God, that is, the one true God. ² As for those who drink to excess at the feasts of the martyrs, we of course condemn their conduct; for to do so even in their own houses would be contrary to sound doctrine. But we must try to amend what is bad as well as prescribe what is good, and must of necessity bear for a time with some things that are not according to our teaching. The rules of Christian conduct are not to be taken from the indulgences of the intemperate or the infirmities of the weak. Still, even in this, the guilt of intemperance is much less than that of impiety. To sacrifice to the martyrs, even fasting, is worse than to go home intoxicated from their feast: to sacrifice to the martyrs, I say, which is a different thing from sacrificing to God in memory of the martyrs, as we do constantly, in the manner required since the revelation of the New Testament, for this belongs to the worship or latria which is due to God alone. But it is vain to try to make these heretics understand the full meaning of these words of the Psalmist: "He that offereth the sacrifice of praise glorifieth me, and in this way will I show him my salvation." ³ Before the coming of Christ, the flesh and blood of this sacrifice were foreshadowed in the animals slain; in the passion of Christ the types were fulfilled by the true sacrifice; after the ascension of Christ, this sacrifice is commemorated in the sacrament. Between the sacrifices of the Pagans and of the Hebrews there is all the difference that there is between a false imitation and a typical anticipation. We do not despise or denounce the virginity of holy women because there were vestal virgins. And, in the same way, it is no reproach to the sacrifices of our fathers that the Gentiles also had sacrifices. The difference between the Christian and vestal virginity is great, yet it consists wholly in the being to whom the vow is made and paid; and so the difference in the being to whom the sacrifices of the Pagans and Hebrews are made and offered makes a wide difference between them. In the one case they are offered to devils, who presumptuously make this claim in order to be held as gods, because sacrifice is a divine honor. In the other case they are offered to the one true God, as a type of the true sacrifice, which also was to be offered to Him in the passion of the body and blood of Christ.