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Against the Donatists
St Optatus of Milevis, tr. Vassall-Phillips, 1917
Book 3, The Severities Against the Donatists Were Provoked by Themselves, and Catholics…
I have written in my second Book (as I think, at sufficient length) concerning the Church, which is the Bride of Christ, and about her Endowments, and of the Saviour’s inheritance. It remains for me to show, in the first place, the errors of the schismatics; secondly, to point out how it came to pass that unity was enforced; and thirdly, to prove who brought it about that an armed force was sent.
That much severity was shown by the makers of unity cannot be denied. But why impute this to Leontius, Macarius or Taurinus1? Ascribe it rather to your own ancestors, who, as the prophet has written, ‘have themselves eaten sour grapes, that your teeth may be set on edge.’2
They are primarily responsible, who divided the people of God and built basilicas which were not wanted.3
Secondly, Donatus of Carthage ought to be blamed, for it was in consequence of his appeal4 that an attempt was made to enforce unity at the next opportunity.
Thirdly, Donatus of Bagaia, who got together a mob of madmen, so that Macarius asked for the help of an armed force, in order to protect himself and the interests which had been committed to his care.
Then came armed men ‘with their quivers,’5 and ‘every town was filled with those who shout.’6 Unity was proclaimed, and you all ‘took to flight.’7 To no man was it said ‘Deny God’; to none was the commandment given ‘Burn the Scriptures’; to none was it said ‘Place incense in the censer’; or ‘Pull down the basilicas.’ These are the commands which give birth to martyrs. Unity was proclaimed. There were merely exhortations that the people should assemble in one place, to pray together to God and His Christ. At first there were no threats8; no one had seen a weapon or a prison; there were, as I have said, exhortations merely. Yet you were all filled with fear; you fled; you trembled----so that which has been written in the fifty-second Psalm was certainly said of you:
‘They trembled for fear where there was no fear.’9
Then all your Bishops, with their clergy, ‘took to flight.’ Some died. The ‘more hardy’ were ‘captured and banished to a distance.’10
Notes
- We find the names of Ursacius and Paulus joined to those of Macarius and Leontius in iii, 4. (Cf. also iii, 10, and for Taurinus iii, 4; iii, 12.)
- Jeremiah xxi, 29: ‘ut vobis stupescerent dentes, ipsi uvas acidas comederunt.’ The Vulgate has: ‘Patres comederunt uvam acerbam et dentes filiorum obstupuerunt.’
- Basilicas non necessarias. We find this expression many times in Optatus. It is first used by him in i, 10, where the churches of heretics are said to have no relationship with Christ and are contrasted with His lawful Bride. Elsewhere it is a technical phrase and means simply that the Donatist churches are ‘not wanted.’ It evidently is a quotation----probably from a judgement, either of Miltiades or of Arles----or possibly the words were those of Eunomius and Olimpius (i, 26). The Donatists erected new churches, refusing to go to the old ones. There is no doubt a μείωσις. The intention of the inventor of the expression was to avoid hurting the feelings of the Donatists by calling their new churches schismatical. They are simply non necessariae----‘ not wanted.’
- qui provocavit----to the Emperor----to his horror (cf. Appendix, pp. 393, 396,397).
- Cf. Is. xxii, 6: et Elam sumpsit pharetram.
- repleta est unaquaeque civitas vociferantium. St. Optatus in his next chapter thus quotes Is. xxii, 2. Du Pin must have forgotten this when, without MS. authority, he supplied clamoribus after vociferantium.
- Is. xxii, 3.
- terror (in active sense).
- Ps. lii, 6.
- qui fortiores sunt etc. Cf. Is. xxii, 3----quoted thus in the next chapter: ‘Omnes principes tui in fugam conversi sunt, et qui capti sunt graviter alligati et fortiores tui longe fugati sunt.’