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An Address to Demetrianus

Cyprian of Carthage

Section 13

About this work

Author: Cyprian of Carthage

13. What is this insatiable madness for blood-shedding,

‹ Section 12 Section 14 ›

what

this

interminable

lust

of

cruelty

?

Rather

make

your

election

of

one

of

two

alternatives

.

To

be

a

Christian

is

either

a

crime

,

or

it

is

not

.

If

it

be

a

crime

,

why

do

you

not

put

the

man

that

confesses

it

to

death

?

If

it

be

not

a

crime

,

why

do

you

persecute

an

innocent

man

?

For

I

ought

to

be

put

to

the

torture

if

I

denied

it

.

If

in

fear

of

your

punishment

I

should

conceal

,

by

a

deceitful

falsehood

,

what

I

had

previously

been

,

and

the

fact

that

I

had

not

worshipped

your

gods

,

then

I

might

deserve

to

be

tormented

,

then

I

ought

to

be

compelled

to

confession

of

my

crime

by

the

power

of

suffering

,

as

in

other

examinations

the

guilty

,

who

deny

that

they

are

guilty

of

the

crime

of

which

they

are

accused

,

are

tortured

in

order

that

the

confession

of

the

reality

of

the

crime

,

which

the

tell

-

tale

voice

refuses

to

make

,

may

be

wrung

out

by

the

bodily

suffering

.

But

now

,

when

of

my

own

free

will

I

confess

,

and

cry

out

,

and

with

words

frequent

and

repeated

to

the

same

effect

bear

witness

that

I

am

a

Christian

,

why

do

you

apply

tortures

to

one

who

avows

it

,

and

who

destroys

your

gods

,

not

in

hidden

and

secret

places

,

but

openly

,

and

publicly

,

and

in

the

very

market

-

place

,

in

the

hearing

of

your

magistrates

and

governors

;

so

that

,

although

it

was

a

slight

thing

which

you

blamed

in

me

before

,

that

which

you

ought

rather

to

hate

and

punish

has

increased

,

that

by

declaring

myself

a

Christian

in

a

frequented

place

,

and

with

the

people

standing

around

,

I

am

confounding

both

you

and

your

gods

by

an

open

and

public

announcement

?