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On the Lapsed

Cyprian of Carthage

Section 16

About this work

Cyprian addresses Christians who sacrificed or obtained certificates during persecution, balancing rebuke, repentance, pastoral restoration, the claims of confessors, and the discipline of the church.

Author: Cyprian of Carthage
Date: c. AD 251
Origin: Carthage, North Africa
Genre: Theological Treatise

16. All these warnings being scorned and contemned,—

‹ Section 15 Section 17 ›

before

their

sin

is

expiated

,

before

confession

has

been

made

of

their

crime

,

before

their

conscience

has

been

purged

by

sacrifice

and

by

the

hand

of

the

priest

,

before

the

offence

of

an

angry

and

threatening

Lord

has

been

appeased

,

violence

is

done

to

His

body

and

blood

;

and

they

sin

now

against

their

Lord

more

with

their

hand

and

mouth

than

when

they

denied

their

Lord

.

They

think

that

is

peace

which

some

with

deceiving

words

are

blazoning

forth

:

that

is

not

peace

,

but

war

;

and

he

is

not

joined

to

the

Church

who

is

separated

from

the

Gospel

.

Why

do

they

call

an

injury

a

kindness

?

Why

do

they

call

impiety

by

the

name

of

piety

?

Why

do

they

hinder

those

who

ought

to

weep

continually

and

to

entreat

their

Lord

,

from

the

sorrowing

of

repentance

,

and

pretend

to

receive

them

to

communion

?

This

is

the

same

kind

of

thing

to

the

lapsed

as

hail

to

the

harvests

;

as

the

stormy

star

to

the

trees

;

as

the

destruction

of

pestilence

to

the

herds

;

as

the

raging

tempest

to

shipping

.

They

take

away

the

consolation

of

eternal

hope

;

they

overturn

the

tree

from

the

roots

;

they

creep

on

to

a

deadly

contagion

with

their

pestilent

words

;

they

dash

the

ship

on

the

rocks

,

so

that

it

may

not

reach

to

the

harbour

.

Such

a

facility

does

not

grant

peace

,

but

takes

it

away

;

nor

does

it

give

communion

,

but

it

hinders

from

salvation

.

This

is

another

persecution

,

and

another

temptation

,

by

which

the

crafty

enemy

still

further

assaults

the

lapsed

;

attacking

them

by

a

secret

corruption

,

that

their

lamentation

may

be

hushed

,

that

their

grief

may

be

silent

,

that

the

memory

of

their

sin

may

pass

away

,

that

the

groaning

of

their

heart

may

be

repressed

,

that

the

weeping

of

their

eyes

may

be

quenched

;

nor

long

and

full

penitence

deprecate

the

Lord

so

grievously

offended

,

although

it

is

written

,

“

Remember

from

whence

thou

art

fallen

,

and

repent

.

”

Notes

37
By some, the rest of the sentence after this word (“priest”) is placed at the beginning of the paragraph, after the word “contemned.”
38
Venditant.
39
Apoc. ii. 5.