Sophia Scriptura

Octavius 16.1

Minucius Felix · Octavius · ca. 197–250 · Rome · Read in context

Summary: Octavius begins his reply by pointing out that Caecilius contradicted himself.

Latin text · CSEL 2:19–20

Et Octauius: Dicam equidem, ut potero pro uiribus, et adnitendum tibi mecum est, ut conuiciorum amarissimam labem uerborum ueracium flumine diluamus- nec dissimulabo principio ita Natalis mei errantem, uagam, lubricam nutasse sententiam, ut sit nobis ambigendum, utrum uersutia turbata sit, an uacillauerit per errorem.

English · Claude translation

And Octavius said: "I will speak, indeed, as well as I can with my strength, and you must strive with me to wash away the most bitter stain of these insults with a river of true words. Nor will I conceal at the outset that the opinion of my friend Natalis has wavered so erratically, so vaguely, so slipperily, that we must be in doubt whether it was confused by cunning or tottered through error.

About this passage

Source
CSEL 2:19–20 · 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.

Notes

Translation notes

  • Natalis is Caecilius's cognomen (Caecilius Natalis).

Cite this passage

Minucius Felix, Oct. 16.1 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/16/1/).

Plain text
Minucius Felix, Oct. 16.1 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/16/1/).

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