Vigils Reading – SS Cornelius & Cyprian

St. Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage – from Butler=s Lives of Saints ^[1]

Caecilius Cyprianus was born about the year 200, probably at Carthage. According to St. Jerome, he was a native of Proconsular Africa. Very little is known of his life before he became a Christian. He was a public orator, teacher of rhetoric, and pleader in the courts, and engaged to the full in the life of Carthage, both public and social. God=s instrument of his conversion, somewhere about middle age, was an old priest, Caecilian, and Cyprian ever reverenced him as his father and guardian angel. Caecilian, in turn, had the greatest confidence in his virtue and on his deathbed recommended his wife and children to Cyprian=s care and protection. A complete change came over Cyrpian=s life. Before his baptism he made a vow of perfect chastity, which greatly astonished the Carthaginians.

With the study of the Holy Scriptures St Cyprian joined that of their best expositors, and in a short time became acquainted with the works of the great religious writers. He particularly delighted in the writings of his countryman Tertullian. Cyprian was soon made a priest, and in 248 he was designated for the bishopric of Carthage. At first he refused and sought to flee, but ultimately yielded and was consecrated.

The Church continued to enjoy peace for about a year after Cyprian=s promotion to the see of Carthage, till the Emperor Decius began his reign by raising a persecution. Years of quiet and prosperity had had a weakening effect among the Christians, and when the edit reached Carthage there was a stampede to the capitol to register apostasies with the magistrates, amid cries of ACyprian to the lions@! from the pagan mob. The bishop was proscribed and his goods ordered forfeited, but Cyprian had already retired to a hiding-place, something that brought upon him much adverse criticism both from Rome and in Africa. He felt placed on the defensive, and set out justifying reasons for his actions in several letters to the clergy.

During the absence of Cyprian a priest who had opposed his Episcopal election, named Novatus, went into open schism. Some among the lapsed, as well as some who were displeased at Cyprian=s discipline toward the former, adhered to him, for Novatus received all apostates who desired to return to the communion of the Church without requiring any canonical penance. Cyprian denounced Novatus, and at a council convened at Carthage when the persecution slackened he read a treatise on the unity of the Church.

The leaders of the schismatics were excommunicated, and Novatus departed to Rome to stir up trouble there, where Novatian had set himself up as antipope. Cyprian recognized Cornelius as the true pope and was active in his support both in Italy and Africa during the ensuing schism. With Dionysius, Bishop of Alexandria, he rallied the bishops of the East to Cornelius, making it clear to them that to adhere to a false bishop of Rome was to be out of communion with the Church. In connection with these disturbances he added to his treatise on Unity one on the question of the Lapsed.

Cyprian complained in many parts of his works that the peace that the Church had enjoyed enervated some Christians in the watchfulness and spirit of their profession, and had opened the door to many converts who had no true spirit of faith, and many lacked courage to stand the trial. These, whether apostates who had sacrificed to idols or those who had purchased for money certificates that they had offered sacrifice, were the lapsed, who gave rise to the great controversy which raged during and after the Decian persecution. On the side of excessive leniency Novatus went into schism, while Novatian=s severity crystallized into heresy that the Church cannot absolve an apostate at all. At this time those guilty of less heinous sins than apostasy were not admitted to assist at the holy Mysteries before they had gone through a rigorous course of public penance, consisting of several years penance. Relaxations of these penances were granted on extraordinary occasions, and it was also customary to grant Indulgences@ to penitents who received a recommendation from some martyr, or some confessor in prison for the faith. In Cyprian=s time this custom degenerated into an abuse by being granted in too vague and peremptory terms, without examination or discernment.

Cyprian condemned these abuses severely, yet he himself pursued a middle way, and in practice was considerate and lenient. After consulting the Roman clergy, he insisted that his episcopal rulings must be followed without question until the matter could be brought up for discussion by all the African bishops and priests. This was eventually done in 251, at the Council of Carthage.

Between the years 252 and 254 Carthage was visited by a terrible plague. Cyprian organized the Christians of the city and spoke to them strongly on the duty of mercy and charity, teaching them that they ought to extend their care not only to their own people, but also to their enemies and persecutors.

In August 257 was promulgated the first edict of Valerian=s persecution, which forbade all assemblies of Christians and which required bishops, priests and deacons to take part in official worship under pain of exile. On August 30 the bishop of Carthage was brought before the proconsul. Paternus ordered him into exile, but when Galerius replaced him ads proconsul, Cyprian was recalled from exile and again put on trial. Once more, however, he refused to offer sacrifice to pagan gods, and on this occasion he was sentenced to death by beheading. The sentence was carried out immediately. It was September 14, 258.

^[1] Butler=s Lives of the Saints, Revised edition, edited by Michael Walsh, Harper, San Francisco,

1991m p. 289