Octavius 14.6 · Sophia Scriptura

Summary: Disillusionment with arguments should not become distrust of everything, as disillusion with people can.

Latin text · CSEL 2:19

igitur nobis prouidendum est, ne odio identidem sermonum omnium laboremus ita, ut in execrationem et odium hominum plerique simpliciores efferantur. nam incaute creduli circumueniuntur ab iis quos bonos putauerunt: mox errore consimili iam suspectis omnibus ut improbos metuunt etiam quos optimos sentire potuerunt.

English · Claude translation

So we must take care not to suffer from a hatred of all arguments in such a way as many simpler people are carried into cursing and hatred of men. For, credulous without caution, they are cheated by those they thought good; soon, by a like error, now suspecting everyone, they fear as wicked even those whom they could have found to be the best.

About this passage

Source

CSEL 2:19 · Karl Halm, ed., M. Minucii Felicis Octavius; Iulii Firmici Materni Liber de errore profanarum religionum, CSEL 2 (Vienna: Gerold, 1867), 1–56 · Latin text: K. Halm (CSEL 2, 1867), digitized by Open Greek and Latin, University of Leipzig (csel-dev), CC BY-SA 4.0

Text

As printed in CSEL 2. Manuscript variants and the editor's apparatus are not reproduced; no textual problem is noted in this passage.

Translation

Claude translation (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 · Translated by Claude from the Latin text of CSEL 2; made independently of existing English translations.

Compare

Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 4 (1885) (an older public-domain English translation, whole volume at CCEL; checked against ours only after ours was made) · Divided there by chapter only.

Cite this passage

Minucius Felix, Oct. 14.6 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/14/6/).

Plain text

Minucius Felix, Oct. 14.6 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/14/6/).