This letter was produced by the Donatists at the Conference in 411 ( Coll. Carthag. Diei iii, dlvi, dlviii; Brev. iii, 41, 42). St. Augustine gives us the complete text ( con. Crescon. iii, lxx. Cf. Ep. lxxxviii, 4; ad Donat. 19). |426
Letter of the Emperor Constantine to Probianus the Pro-Consul of Africa.
The Emperors Constantine Maximus and Valerius Licinius Caesars to Probianus the Pro-Consul of Africa.
Your predecessor Aelianus at a time when he was discharging the duties of that most worthy man, Verus our Vicar, in consequence of his ill-health, thought well (and with reason), amongst other matters, to investigate and determine the business----that is, the charges----brought by envy against Caecilian, a Bishop of the Catholic Church. For after he had secured the presence of Superius the centurion, and Caecilianus the Magistrate of Aptunga, and Saturninus who was formerly Curator, and Calidius the younger Curator, and Solon a public official of that city, he gave them a fair hearing----so that when it was alleged as an objection against Caecilian that he had been raised to the Episcopate by Felix, who was accused of the Betrayal and burning of the Divine Scriptures, the innocence of Felix was proved. Finally, when Maximus charged Ingentius, a decurion of Ziqua, with having falsified a letter of Caecilianus formerly Duovir, we have learned from the Acts of the Proceedings that this Ingentius was prepared for torture, and was only saved by his statement that he was a decurion of Ziqua. Wherefore it is our will that you should despatch this Ingentius, under suitable escort, to my Court of Constantine Augustus, so that it may be made quite clear, in the presence and hearing of those who are concerned with this affair, and for some time past have been incessantly appealing to me, that it is to no purpose that they show their malice against Caecilian |427 the Bishop and have been pleased to bestir themselves against him with violence. So will it be brought to pass that these disputes having ceased, as is right, the people may without any dissension serve their religion with the reverence that is its due. |428
APPENDIX XV. A.D. 312
We have here a letter of the Emperor Constantine to the Pro-Consul Anulinus, commanding that restitution should be made of their property to the Catholic churches. It has been preserved by Eusebius ( H.E. x, 5). |429
An Imperial Decree
Hail, Anulinus, most highly esteemed by us! After this manner is our benevolence, that we will that those things which by just title belong to others should not only remain unmolested, but also, when necessary, be restored, most esteemed Anulinus! Wherefore we decree that, so soon as you have received this letter, if any of those things which belong to the Catholic Church of the Christians, in the several cities or other places, are held by Decurions or by any others, these you shall cause immediately to be restored to their churches. For we have determined that whatever these same churches formerly possessed shall be restored in accordance with justice. When therefore your Fidelity has understood that this decree of our orders is most clear, you will make haste to see that everything, whether gardens or houses, or whatever else belongs to these churches, be restored to them as soon as may be possible----that we may learn that you have attended to, and most carefully carried into execution, this our decree. Farewell, my most esteemed and beloved Anulinus. |430
APPENDIX XVI. A.D. 312 OR 313
Letter of the Emperor Constantine to the Pro-Consul Anulinus, concerning the Immunity of Clerics belonging to the Catholic Church at Carthage, where Caecilian was Bishop.
This letter has been preserved by Eusebius ( H.E. x, 7). |431
A Copy of a Letter of the Emperor Constantine, in which he orders that all those holding office in the Churches should be exempt from all Civil Duties.
Hail, Anulinus, most highly esteemed by us! Whereas from many incidents it is abundantly clear that whenever the religion, by which the supreme reverence due to the Divine Majesty is guarded, has been held in contempt, the greatest perils have overtaken the State, and whereas this religion, when it has been duly accepted and protected, has, through the goodness of God, conferred the highest prosperity on the Roman name and has given their chief benefits to all human affairs----We have resolved that those men, who with due piety and careful observance of this Law, have given their service to the divine worship, should receive the recompence for their labours, O most esteemed Anulinus!
Wherefore it is our will that those men called Clerics, who within the Province entrusted to your care serve this most holy religion in the Catholic Church, over which Caecilian presides, shall be held totally exempt from all public offices, to the end that they may not, through some mistake or sacrilegious deviation, be drawn away from the service which is due to God Most High; but may be free to serve their own Law without any disturbance. For through their showing supreme reverence to God, the very greatest advantage will accrue to the Commonwealth. Farewell, my most esteemed and beloved Anulinus!
[Footnotes have been moved to the end and renumbered]
1. Aelafio. We do not meet this name elsewhere. It is almost certainly an error of the copyists. Du Pin (without giving any reason for his choice) suggests Ablavio. Mgr. Duchesne, however, (p. 61) with, his usual acumen, identifies this Aelafius of the corrupt Ms. with the Aelius Paulinus of whom we have read at the beginning of the Acta Purgationis Felicis (cf. Opt. i, 27). For the recipient of this letter evidently was Constantine's Vicar in Africa, and no one else could be charged with the public conveyance of Bishops of Numidia, Byzacium, and Mauritania. Now Patritius was Vicar from the end of 312 to the beginning of 313 (cf. S. Aug. con. Cresc. iii, 81 etc.), Verus was Vicar in February 315. Shortly before Verus, Aelius Paulinus. It is therefore in all probability his name which is hidden beneath the group of letters Aelafius. The following then is the succession of Vicars of Africa in the early years of Constantine. (1) Patritius, (2) Aelius Paulinus=Aelafius, (3) Verus, (4) Domitius Celsus, (5) Eumelius, (6) Verinus.
2. Episcopus. The MS. reads episcopi ----of course this is a mistake.
3. Cf. Opt. i, 26 (n. 4, p. 29).
4. minus dignus idem Caecilianus cultu sanctissimae religionis habeatur.
5. Cf. p. 328, n. 1.
6. consensumque debent = they owe him their approval as Bishop.
7. aliquantos ex suis.
8. data evectione publica.
9. nihilominus ( = huiusmodi, in the same way).
10. his in singulis Episcopis singulas tractorias tribuas. In his History of the Conference at Carthage, a.D. 411 (reprinted by Du Pin in his Optatus), Balduinus writes as follows: 'Nolo hoc loco praeterire quod ipse Augustinus in Lib. post Collat. cap. 24 ait Donatistas a Primate suo per Tractoriam fuisse evocatos. Tractoria verbum est iuris nostri, sicuti et in eadem prope significatione, Evectio, quo etiam verbo utitur Augustinus lib. 5 Confess. Significat autem libellum vel diploma ut missis aut evocatis detur viaticum de publico, et ut uti possint cursu publico. Exstat lib. xii. Cod. Titul. de Tract. ubi Interpres praeterea refert quoddam fragmentum cuiusdam edicti Constantini facientis memoriam Tractoriarum et Evectionis publicae dandae Donatistis propter caussam Caeciliani.' Constantine gave the same right of public conveyances to the Bishops for Nicaea, and his successors did the same for all the great Councils of the Church----they had the Bishops conveyed at the public cost in the regular imperial post-chaises. So this letter of Constantine with regard to the Council of Arles is rendered more interesting from the fact that thereby he set the example for future Emperors.