Octavius 31.8 · Sophia Scriptura

Summary: Christians know each other by virtue and love each other as brothers in God.

Latin text · CSEL 2:45

sic nos denique non notaculo corporis, ut putatis, sed innocentiae ac modestiae signo facile dinoscimus: sic nos mutuo, quod doletis, amore diligimus, quoniam odisse non nouimus: sic nos, quod inuidetis, fratres uocamus, ut unius Dei parentis homines, ut consortes fidei, ut spei coheredes. uos enim nec inuicem adgnoscitis et in mutua odia saeuitis, nec fratres uos nisi sane ad parricidium recognoscitis.

English · Claude translation

So, finally, we easily recognize one another not by a mark on the body, as you think, but by the sign of innocence and modesty; so we love one another with mutual love, which pains you, since we do not know how to hate; so we call one another brothers, which you envy, as men of one God and Parent, as sharers in faith, as co-heirs of hope. For you neither recognize one another and you rage in mutual hatreds, nor do you acknowledge yourselves as brothers, except indeed for fratricide.

About this passage

Source

CSEL 2:45 · 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

John 13:35 · echo, low confidence

Topics

Ethics

Cite this passage

Minucius Felix, Oct. 31.8 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/31/8/).

Plain text

Minucius Felix, Oct. 31.8 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/minucius-octavius/31/8/).