To Quirinus: Three Books of Testimonies preface
Latin text: CSEL 3.1 (Latin text: W. von Hartel (CSEL 3.1, 1868), digitized by Open Greek and Latin, University of Leipzig (csel-dev), CC BY-SA 4.0).English: Claude (claude-opus-5-5), public domain (CC0). Compare: Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 5 (1886).
To Quirinus 0
0CSEL 3.1:35–37
CVPRIANVS QVIRINO FILIO SALVTEM. Obtemperandum fuit, fili carissime, desiderio tuo spiritali inpensissima petitione diuina magisteria poscenti, quibus nos Dominus per scripturas sanctas erudire et instruere dignatus est, ut a tenebris erroris abducti et luce eius pura et candida luminati uiam uitae per salutaria sacramenta teneamus. et quidem sicut petisti, ita a nobis sermo conpositus et libellus conpendio breuiante digestus est, ut quae scribebantur non copia latiore diffunderem, sed quantum mediocris memoria suggerebat, excerptis capitulis et adnexis necessaria quaeque colligerem, quibus non tam tractasse quam tractantibus materiam praebuisse uideamur. sed et legentibus breuitas eiusmodi plurimum prodest, dum non intellectum legentis et sensum liber longior spargit, sed subtiliore conpendio id quod legitur tenax memoria custodit. conplexus sum uero libellos duos pari qualitate moderatos: unum quo ostendere enisi sumus, Iudaeos secundum quae fuerant ante praedicta a Deo recessisse et indulgentiam Domini, quae sibi et pridem data et in posterum promissa fuerat, perdidisse, successisse uero in eorum locum Christianos fide Dominum promerentes et de omnibus gentibus ac de toto orbe uenientes. item libellus alius continet Christi sacramentum, quod idem uenerit, qui secundum scripturas adnuntiatus est, et gesserit ac perfecerit uniuersa, quibus intellegi et cognosci posse praedictus est: quae legenti interim prosint ad prima fidei liniamenta formanda. plus roboris tibi dabitur et magis ac magis intellectus cordis operabitur scrutanti scripturas ueteres ac nouas plenius et uniuersa librorum spiritalium uolumina perlegenti. nam nos nunc de diuinis fontibus inpleuimus modicum quod tibi interim mitteremus. bibere uberius et saturari copiosius poteris, si tu quoque ad eosdem diuinae plenitudinis fontes nobiscum pariter potaturus accesseris. opto te, fili carissime, semper bene ualere.
Cyprian to his son Quirinus, greeting.
I had to comply, dearest son, with your spiritual desire, which asked with most earnest request for the divine teachings by which the Lord has deigned to instruct and train us through the holy Scriptures, so that, led away from the darkness of error and enlightened by his pure and shining light, we may keep to the way of life through the saving sacraments. And indeed, as you asked, I have composed this discourse and arranged a little book in a short compendium, so as not to pour out what I wrote at greater length, but, as far as a modest memory suggested, to gather everything necessary under headings drawn out with passages attached to them; so that we may seem not so much to have written a treatise as to have supplied material to those who write them. Brevity of this kind also profits readers very much, since a longer book scatters the understanding and attention of the reader, while a tenacious memory keeps what is read in a more concise compendium. I have included two little books of equal size. In one we have tried to show that the Jews, according to what had been foretold, departed from God and lost the Lord's favor, which had been both given to them long ago and promised for the future, while in their place have succeeded the Christians, who win the Lord's favor by faith and come from all nations and from the whole world. The other book contains the sacrament of Christ: that he has come who was announced according to the Scriptures, and has done and accomplished everything by which it was foretold that he could be understood and recognized. May these meanwhile help the reader to form the first outlines of faith. More strength will be given to you, and the understanding of the heart will work more and more, as you search the Scriptures old and new more fully and read through the whole volumes of the spiritual books. For we have now filled from the divine fountains only a little to send you for the present. You will be able to drink more abundantly and be filled more fully if you too come to the same fountains of divine fullness to drink with us. I wish you, dearest son, good health always.
Notes and citation
Summary: Cyprian sends Quirinus two books of Scripture passages arranged under headings: one on the Jews and the church, the other on Christ.
- “Sacrament of Christ” means the mystery of Christ's person and work. Book 1 argues, in the polemical terms of its time, that the church has taken Israel's place; it is translated as written.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (misread letter in the digital text; stray colon in the digital text; stray period in the digital text): ac nonas → ac nouas; intellec.tum → intellectum; quod tibi: interim → quod tibi interim.
Topics: Scripture and canon
Cite (SBL): Cyprian, Test. pref. (CSEL 3.1:35–37; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/cyprian-testimonia/0/#p-0).
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Translation: Translated by Claude from the Latin text of CSEL 3.1; made independently of existing English translations.