Cyprian’s Testimonies from Scripture Books One and Two

Before his conversion Thascius Caecilianus Cyprianus, better known as Cyprian, was a wealthy, unmarried, aristocrat and rhetorician born sometime around A.D. 200. As a result of knowing a Carthaginian pastor, Caecilius, he became a Christian in 246. Two years later he was elected bishop of the church in Carthage and remained in his post until his martyrdom in 258.

While Cyprian inherited much of the theological and moral outlook of Tertullian, his spirit is perhaps closer to that of Ignatius. His was a wartime bishopric, for in A.D. 250, the Decian persecution began and the government attempted to force Christians to sacrifice or be severely punished. As though that wasn’t enough, a plague broke out in Carthage and there was schism in the Church of Rome. Through these trials, Cyprian remained committed to defending the faith and purity of the Church, holding steady in his conviction and steering the faithful through difficult moral and theological issues.

In this episode, you will find a collection of Scripture references from Cyprian. This was written to Quirinus, abridged from a larger work, and intended to provide a volume to support many of the theological and practical teachings of the Church. The text itself consists of a series of statements followed by Scripture references which support each claim. It is a fitting work to end this journey with Cyprian who, throughout his tenure as Bishop in Carthage, leaned heavily on the Word of God to shepherd his flock through persecution, plague, and partisanship.

These references are broken up into three separate books. The first demonstrates that the Israelites rejected God and that the favor of God now rests with the Church. The second book describes the coming of Christ and how he was foretold in the Old Testament. The third book shows from Scripture how Christians ought to act in this life.

Finally, it is important to note that many of the Deuterocanonical books appear in Cyprian’s list of Scripture. Writing this side of the Reformation, it is easy to see how accepting works like Judith and Tobit as authoritative would lead to Cyprian’s understanding of Baptism and the need to continually cleanse oneself by good works. This also speaks to the fact that, as will be described in more detail by Eusebius of Caesarea, there was no agreed-upon canon of Scripture for the Early Church.

If you would like to read more of the writings of the Early Christian Fathers, please visit ccel.org to view the full collection.