Canon XCII. (Greek
xcv.)
Form of convening the Donatists.
That bishop of that church
said: What by the authority of that most ample see we shall have
impetrated, we ask your gravity to have read, and that you order it to
be joined to the acts and carried into effect. When the jussio
had been read and joined to the acts, the bishop of the Catholic
Church,470
| 470 i.e. Carthage.
Migne reads “of that Church” and differs in what
follows. |
said: Vouchsafe to listen to the
mandate to be sent through your gravity to the Donatists, and to insert
it in the acts, and to carry it to them, and informs us in your acts of
their answer. “We, sent by the
authority of our Catholic
Council, have called you together, desiring to
rejoice in your
correction, bearing in
mind the
charity of the
Lord who said:
Blessed are the
peacemakers, for they shall be called the
children of
God; and moreover he
admonished through the
prophet those who say they
are not our
brothers, that we ought to say: Ye are our
brethren. Therefore you ought not to
despise this pacific
commonitory coming of
love, so that if ye think we have any part of the
truth, ye do not hesitate to say so: that is, when your
council
is gathered together, ye delegate of your number certain to whom you
intrust the statement of your case; so that we may be able to do this
also, that there shall be delegated from our
Council who with them
delegated by you may discuss peacefully, at a determined place and
time, whatever
question there is which separates your
communion from
us; and that at length the old error may receive an end through the
assistance of our
Lord God, lest through the animosity of men,
weak
souls, and ignorant people should
perish by sacrilegious
dissension. But if ye shall accept this
proposition in a fraternal spirit, the
truth will easily shine forth,
but if ye are not willing to do this, your distrust will be easily
known.” And when this had been read, all the
bishops
said: This pleases us well, so let it be. And they
subscribed: I, Aurelius,
bishop of the Carthaginian
Church, have
consented to this
decree, and having read it, have subscribed it.
Likewise also the
rest of the
bishops signed.
This synod sent a legation to the Princes against the
Donatists.
The most glorious emperor Honorius Augustus, being
consul for the sixth time, on the Calends of July, at Carthage in the
basilica of the second region. In this council Theasius and
Euodius received a legation against the Donatists. In this
council was inserted the commonitorium which follows.
Notes.
Ancient Epitome of Canon
XCII.
What things should be said to the Donatists are
these: “We greatly desire to rejoice in your conversion;
for we have been commanded to say even to those not desiring to be our
brethren, ‘Ye are our brothers.’ We come therefore to
you and we exhort you that if you have any defence to make, ye should
appoint certain persons to whom this should be entrusted, who, at a
fixed time and place, shall urge your case; otherwise your distrust
wilt be thenceforward patent.”
This canon is Canon ij. of the Synod of Carthage of
August 25, a.d. 403.
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