[CONTRA LITTERAS PETILIANI DONATISTA CORTENSIS, EPISCOPI.] CIRCA A. D. 400. TRANSLATED BY THE REV. J. R. KING, M.A., VICAR OF ST. PETER'S IN THE EAST, OXFORD; AND LATE FELLOW AND TUTOR OF MERTON COLLEGE, OXFORD. CONTENTS OF ANSWER TO LETTERS OF PETILIAN PAGE THE THREE BOOKS OF AUGUSTIN, BISHOP OF HIPPO. IN ANSWER TO THE LETTERS OF PETILIAN, THE DONATIST, BISHOP OF CIRTA. Written c. 400 A.D., some say 398 A.D., but Augustin places it some time after the treatise on Baptism: Retractt. Bk. ii. xxv. From the same, we gather the following points as to the origin of this treatise: Before A. had finished his books on the Trinity and his wordfor-word commentary on Genesis, a reply to a letter which Petilian had addressed to his followers, only a small part of which however had come into A.'s hands, demanded immediate preparation. This constitutes Book First. Subsequently the whole document was obtained, and he was engaged in preparing the second Book, c. 401; but even before the full treatise of Petilian had been secured, the latter had obtained A.'s first book, and afterwards put an epistle abusive of A. in circulation. The answer to this latter is Book Third, c. 402. Petilian was originally an advocate. The opponents charged him with having become a Donatist by compulsion, with assuming the title of Paraclete, and with endeavoring to prevent all access on their part to his writings. WRITTEN IN THE FORM OF A LETTER BOOK I. ADDRESSED TO THE CATHOLICS, IN WHICH THE FIRST PORTION OF THE LETTER WHICH PETILIAN HAD WRITTEN ΤΟ HIS ADHERENTS IS EXAMINED AND REFUTED. Augustin, to the well-beloved brethren that belong to the care of our charge, greeting in the Lord: CHAP. I.-I. Ye know that we have often already in times past rendered themselves wished to bring forward into open notoriety, unworthy by dissenting from the Church; nor and to confute, not so much from our own yet in terms of reproach, but of a conciliatory arguments as from theirs, the sacrilegious character, with the view that, having discussed error of the Donatist heretics; whence it came the question with us which caused them to to pass that we wrote letters even to some of break off from the holy communion of the their leaders,-not indeed for purposes of whole world, they might, on consideration of communion with them, for of that they had the truth, be willing to be corrected, and |