Sophia Scriptura

Octavius 23.13

Minucius Felix · Octavius · ca. 197–250 · Rome · Read in context

Summary: An idol becomes a 'god' only when people choose to dedicate it.

Latin text · CSEL 2:34

quando igitur hic nascitur? ecce funditur, fabricatur, sculpitur: nondum deus est: ecce plumbatur, construitur, erigitur: nec adhuc deus est: ecce ornatur, consecratur, oratur: tunc postremo deus est, cum homo illum uoluit et dedicauit.

English · Claude translation

When, then, is this god born? See, it is cast, fabricated, sculpted: it is not yet a god. See, it is soldered with lead, put together, set up: it is still not a god. See, it is adorned, consecrated, prayed to: then at last it is a god, when man has willed it and dedicated it.

About this passage

Source
CSEL 2:34 · Karl Halm, ed., M. Minucii Felicis Octavius; Iulii Firmici Materni Liber de errore profanarum religionum, CSEL 2 (Vienna: Gerold, 1867), 1–56 · Latin text: K. Halm (CSEL 2, 1867), digitized by Open Greek and Latin, University of Leipzig (csel-dev), CC BY-SA 4.0
Text
As printed in CSEL 2. Manuscript variants and the editor's apparatus are not reproduced; no textual problem is noted in this passage.
Translation
Claude translation (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-27 · Translated by Claude from the Latin text of CSEL 2; made independently of existing English translations.
Compare
Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 4 (1885) (an older public-domain English translation, whole volume at CCEL; checked against ours only after ours was made) · Divided there by chapter only.
Scripture

Cite this passage

Minucius Felix, Oct. 23.13 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/23/13/).

Plain text
Minucius Felix, Oct. 23.13 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/23/13/).

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