Cyprian of Carthage

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Cyprian (* around 200 or 210 probably in Carthage ; † September 14, 258 ibid), actually Thascius Caecilius Cyprianus , was Bishop of Carthage and an important church writer of the early church . He is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic , Old Catholic, and Orthodox (including the Armenian and Coptic ) Churches . He is also considered a memorable witness of faith in the Anglican and Evangelical Churches .

Icon representation of Cyprian of Carthage

Lore

Sources for the biography of Cyprian are the information in his own writings - especially in the letters - the biography of the deacon Pontius ( Vita Caecilii Cypriani ) and the proconsular acts of his martyrdom .

Life

Cyprian was probably born between 200 and 210 near Carthage in North Africa in what is now Tunisia . His original name was Thascius , he took the name Caecilius in memory of a presbyter of that name who is said to have converted him. He belonged to an old-believing (pagan) family , probably belonging to the upper class, and was a Roman citizen . His family gave him a good education, presumably with the aim of becoming a rhetorician . He confesses to Donatus in the Ad Donatum tract that he was not very chaste in his youth , but does not reveal anything about his love affairs. Under the influence of an old priest named Caecilius, he was converted to Christianity. His baptism took place in 245 or 248. Soon after his conversion, he gave a portion of his fortune to the poor and devoted himself to strict penitential rituals and the study of the Bible and early Christian authors, especially Tertullians . Shortly after his conversion, he wrote the Epistola ad Donatum de Gratia Dei , a treatise on the vanity of idols and controversial works against the Jews . Soon after his baptism he became a deacon and presbyter and in 248/249 he was elected Bishop of Carthage.

During the persecution of the Christians under Decius (January 250 to April 251) he escaped and his property was confiscated. His escape was not only interpreted by his internal church opponents as cowardice, betrayal and infidelity, especially since at the same time not a few African Christians suffered martyrdom. The Roman clergy, for example, expressed their disapproval for Cyprian in a letter. He, on the other hand, apologized by saying that he acted on the basis of visions and a divine command. From his exile he continued to lead his congregation with zeal and seriousness through loyal deacons, but his behavior remained questionable and made him very vulnerable in the eyes of many.

In the spring of 251 he was able to return to Carthage after the decian persecution subsided and begin to restore his authority as bishop. The virgin and later martyr Restituta of Africa is said to have been one of his students. The following years were marked by violent disputes with the Roman clergy , which were summarized under the name of heretics .

Persecution flared up again under Emperor Valerian . This time Cyprian was looking for martyrdom and was brought before the proconsul ( governor ) Aspasius Paternus on August 30, 257 . When asked by the proconsul who he was, Cyprian is said to have answered:

“Christianus sum, et Episcopus. Nullos alios deos novi, nisi unum et verum Deum, qui fecit caelum et terram, mare, et quae sunt in eis omnia. Huic Deo nos Christiani deservimus: hunc deprecamur diebus ac noctibus, pro nobis et pro omnibus hominibus, et pro incolumitate ipsorum Imperatorum. "

“I am a Christian and a bishop. I don't know any other gods than the one and true God who made heaven and earth, the sea and everything that is in it. We Christians serve this God, we implore him day and night, for us and all people, also for the well-being of the emperors. "

- Proconsular files

Cyprian must have been aware that this confession amounted to a death sentence. He was banished to Curubis by the proconsul and later interned on his estate.

On September 13, 258 he was sentenced to death by the new proconsul Galerius Maximus, the successor of Paternus, and beheaded publicly the following day at Carthage.

Theological positions

Cyprian's theological ideas were strongly influenced by Tertullian , and he in turn later influenced Augustine of Hippo . These three North Africans, who all worked in what is now Tunisia and Algeria, have decisively shaped the teaching and tradition of all of Western Christianity. In contrast to the other two, Cyprian also found broad approval in the East. All three are among the Church Fathers . Cyprian's influence on Christianity went much further beyond the “politics of the day” - for example, more than 1250 years later , Martin Luther and Johannes Calvin resorted to Cyprian's ideas, such as child baptism (which Cyprian advocates) and the idea of ​​faith to be regarded as a grace of God.

baptism

Just like Tertullian - but in contrast to the Roman bishop Stephanus  - Cyprian considered the baptism donated by heretics to be invalid - in contrast to Tertullian, however, Cyprian did not deal with Gnostics , but with schismatics . Under Cyprian’s presidency, several synods in Carthage 255 and 256 affirmed this view. The rivalry between the bishops of Rome and Carthage also played an important role in this " heretic controversy ". Cyprian tried hard to expand his influence to all communities in North West Africa and beyond. He received support from Firmilian , the bishop of Caesarea , the metropolis of Cappadocia .

The clashes between the African Church, led by Cyprian, and the Roman position nearly led to the break, it was only by the erupting Valeria niche persecution, both Cyprian as the successor of the Roman bishop Stephen I, Sixtus (Xystus) II. Victim fell to be avoided.

Essential for the understanding of Cyprian's position in Ketzertaufstreit is the understanding of the Church as "sacramentum unitatis" which translated into German means something like "mystery of unity". The word sacramentum is here, however, the Latin translation of the Greek word mysterion , from the 5th chapter of the letter to the Ephesians , and therefore goes beyond the term “sacrament” in that it denotes the salvation context of the Church with Christ.

As a bishop, Cyprian saw himself not only committed to the apostolic succession , but also knew himself to be part of a worldwide community of bishops who are united in love but are not authorized to give instructions to each other. For him, each bishop was a “different Peter” who exercised the authority locally and acted completely self-sufficient, provided that he was bound to the church ( episcopalism ). The bishop of Rome was no exception here, although Cyprian emphasized the special position of Rome as the oldest foundation of the apostles.

Cyprian's position in the heretic controversy was later not accepted by the Catholic Church. Since the Synod of Arles (314) at the latest, the doctrine has been valid in the Catholic Church that a baptism donated in the right form and with the right intention is always valid, regardless of the person who gave the baptism.

The practice of infant baptism , witnessed and defended by Cyprian, was understood by Augustine as indirect evidence of the doctrine of original sin .

Penitential discipline

After the persecution by Emperor Decius, Cyprian was faced with the difficult task of dealing with the numerous lapsi , i.e. H. with those parishioners who fell from the faith during the period of persecution and sacrificed to the pagan gods (or the divinely venerated imperial statue) and thus not only in the eyes of Cyprian, but in the whole early Christian tradition one of the three particularly serious sins (idolatry, murder, Fornication). In contrast, he justifies the behavior of those who, like himself, fled the persecution. Cyprian strongly opposed the lax practice of readmission to the Church, as had been practiced by presbyters in Carthage during his absence. He demanded a credible, serious repentance from the lapsi and insisted on a regular penal procedure under the supervision of the bishop. In his letters from exile, Cyprian acted sharply (by pronouncing excommunications ) against his opponents within the congregation; after his return from exile he succeeded in getting a synod in Carthage to decide in his favor : the so-called libellatici , d. H. those who have a victim certificate (with the pagan officials libellus had bought), but not sacrificed, could by sincere repentance be resumed, the sacrificati however, which really had sacrificed would be resumed only in mortal danger.

Cyprian made it clear that as bishop he was solely responsible for the reconciliation of serious sinners with the community. This was mainly against the claims of confessors ( confessores directed) who had proven themselves during the persecutions and claimed as "friends of Christ", about the revivals of lapsi to decide in the community.

Office theology

Cyprian demanded from all clerics the complete renunciation of worldly occupations. The clergy live on gifts and donations from the community. Here the development of a full-time clergy, strictly separated from the world of the laity, is indicated.

The position of the bishop is emphasized by Cyprian. In his typical typological exegesis , which sees the Old Testament as an exact model for the conditions in the church, Cyprian basically compares the bishop with the Old Testament high priest , the other clergy with the Levites . Cyprian emphasizes that every bishop has a full share in the authority of the episcopate conferred by Christ: Episcopatus unus est, cujus a singulis in solidum pars tenetur (there is only one episcopate in which the individual bishops have an equal share).

Eucharist

Cyprian interpreted the celebration of the Eucharist essentially as a sacrificial event : In the Eucharist the sacrifice on the cross of Jesus Christ, the eternal high priest, is made present. The priest makes a real sacrifice. When Cyprian speaks of the Eucharist, he consistently uses sacrificial terminology ( oblatio / offerre ); he developed his views on the Eucharist especially in the 63rd letter. The interpretation of the Eucharist as a sacrifice is one of the most lasting effects Cyprian had on later theology.

In his work De lapsis, Cyprian testified to the practice of the Church of Carthage to give communion to young children at the celebration of the Eucharist.

No salvation outside the church

His most frequently quoted message can be found in the letters ( Epistulae ), in epist. 73,21: extra ecclesiam salus non est  - “Outside the church there is no salvation”; often with the same meaning, but with different wording, cited as extra ecclesiam nulla salus . "Salvation" is to be understood primarily as recta doctrina ("right doctrine") and legitima sacramenta ("legitimate sacraments") - according to Cyprian, both can only be found within the community associated with the legitimate bishop. Already Origen had formulated: "Outside the Church no one is saved." Later, the phrase of Cyprian became the frequently used designation of the Catholic Church as a single saving church .

In the sense of an exclusive limitation of the possibilities of salvation to the visible church, this sentence was not accepted in Catholic theology (doctrine of the extraordinary ways of salvation, baptism of desire).

Literary meaning

In contrast to Tertullian, for example, Cyprian's writings are less distinguished by bold word creations and original theological ideas. However, he has special merit in the development of a Christian Latin literary language. Cyprian synthesizes his classical rhetorical training with a Christian tradition shaped by the biblical language. Cyprian's style is particularly praised by Prudentius (in his martyr prize poems Peristephanon ):

Dum liber ullus erit, dum scrinia sacra litterarum, te leget omnis amans Christum, tua, Cypriane, discet. (As long as there is a book at all, as long as there are scriptures, everyone who loves Christ will read you, O Cyprian; may he study your (scriptures))

Ennodius ( Hymn 1, 12) expresses himself similarly about Cyprian.

Hieronymus praises Cyprian in De viris illustribus , 67: “You don't have to say many words about your mind, since his works surpass the shine of the sun.” ( Hujus ingenii superfluum est indicem texere, cum sole clariora sint ejus opera ).

Augustine writes in Sermo 335 K: Quam eloquens sanctus Cyprianus, quam fulgens framea eius in litteris eius apparuit. (German: how gifted Saint Cyprian was, how radiant his spear shows in his letters).

Works

Cyprian's writings - the dating of the writings given here goes back to the information provided by B. Altaner and A. Stuiber, Patrology - comprise two groups:

The collection of letters ( Epistolae ) , 81 letters, partly by Cyprian, partly (16 letters) written to him. The collection was only created after Cyprian's death and contains only a (probably quite small) part of his correspondence. The compiler was apparently trying to put Cyprian in the most favorable light possible, including

  • Letters from the Roman clergy and the Roman Bishop Cornelius from the years 250/253,
  • Letters from the time of the Decian persecution, which Cyprian addressed to the clergy and the people from his place of refuge (January 250 to March 251),
  • Letters from the time of the Novatian schism and the heretic controversy

The tracts (treatises on individual topics):

  • Ad Donatum (An Donatus): In this writing Cyprian contrasts - shortly after his baptism - the enthusiasm of the new life of the baptized with paganism; so he castigates war by comparing murder with the much greater cruelty of general bloodshed.
  • De habitu virginum (On the attitude of virgins), similar to Tertullian in De cultu feminarum , Cyprian opposes excessive cleaning addiction of women, especially of the consecrated virgins (249)
  • De lapsis (About the Fallen): Important for Cyprian's position on the question of Christians who fell under the pressure of persecution (i.e. those who made pagan sacrifices and thus denied the Christian faith), addressed to the Roman confessors (251);
  • De ecclesiae catholicae unitate (On the unity of the Catholic Church): Cyprian's main work, (written 251 at the time of the Synod of Carthage ) an urgent admonition on the unity of the Church, guaranteed by the unity of the episcopate. “Habere non potest Deum patrem qui ecclesiam non habet matrem.” (Whoever does not have the church as a mother, cannot have God as a father, De unit. Eccl. 6). The writing was probably written in 251 and is directed both against the schism of Novatian in Rome and against Cyprian’s internal opponents; The double tradition of the "primacy chapter" is particularly controversial in research: in the 4th chapter, part of the tradition reflects an attitude that meets Rome's claims to primacy ; in another part of the traditional manuscripts, the primacy of the bishop of Rome is shown in this chapter treated less positively. Current research assumes that both versions presumably come from Cyprian, with the primate-friendly presumably the older, and later revised during the dispute with Bishop Stefan I of Rome.
  • De dominica oratione (On the Lord's Prayer): Statement by the Our Father and general remarks on the subject of prayer, heavily influenced by Tertullian's De oratione ;
  • Ad Demetrianum (An Demetrius): Apologetic writing, polemic against attacks by the pagans, especially against the accusation that the crisis and catastrophe scenarios that became clear in the middle of the 3rd century in the Roman Empire were the neglect of the ancient gods and thus the Christians ; similar:
  • Quod idola dii non sint ;
  • De mortalitate (On mortality): consolation in the face of a disease that occurred as a pandemic in the Roman Empire around 252 to 261, which came from Ethiopia, the symptoms of which he describes and which is called the Cyprian plague ;
  • De opere et eleemosynis (About good works and alms): admonition for (financial) support within the Christian community;
  • De bono patientiae (On the good of patience), influenced by Tertullian's De patientia ;
  • De zelo et livore (On jealousy and envy), a little sermon-style script (251/52 or 256/57);
  • Ad Quirinum, testimoniorum libri tres (An Quirinus, three books of Scriptural Proofs ): A collection of biblical passages, particularly valuable because they reflect the typological way Cyprian used the Bible, v. a. the Old Testament. The first book is an apology against the Jews, the second is devoted to questions of Christology and the third to Christian duties and virtues (249/50);
  • Ad Fortunatum (An Fortunatus): also a collection of Bible quotes (on the subject of persecution and martyrdom; probably originated during the exile in Curubis), from 253 or 257;
  • Sententiae episcoporum numero LXXXVII de haereticis baptizandis (statements of the 87 bishops on the baptism of the heretics): minutes of a Carthaginian synod (256 AD) on the subject of the so-called sgn. Heretic baptism.

The biblical parody Cena Cypriani, which was widespread in the Middle Ages, was wrongly attributed to Cyprian .

Adoration

Reliquary of the skull of St. Cyprianus in Kornelimünster

Cyprian is venerated as a saint ( martyr ) in the Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, and Orthodox (including the Armenian and Coptic) Churches ; He is also an important witness of faith in the Anglican and Evangelical Churches.

At the place of his execution a basilica with an altar was later built, the Mensa Cypriani (table of Cyprian) was called non, quia ibi est unquam Cyprianus epulatus, sed quia est ibi immolatus ( Augustinus Sermo 113; German: “not because Cyprian there would have eaten, but because he was sacrificed there ”). This Cypriani cafeteria developed into a popular place of pilgrimage from the 4th century onwards. Augustine preached there several times at the annual commemorations and praised the importance of Cyprian.

His relics are venerated in Compiègne (near Paris), his head in Kornelimünster near Aachen . His name is mentioned in the Canon Romanus , in the prayer of the Roman mass .

“Carthagine, passio sancti Cypriani, episcopi, sanctitate et doctrina clarissimi, qui funestissimis temporibus Ecclesiam optime rexit, confessores fidei in ærumnis firmauit et, Valeriano et Gallieno principibus, post durum exsilium, gladam frequentissimo populoussau a procuertium. eius memoria perendie celebratur. ”

“In Carthage the suffering of Saint Cyprian, the bishop, in holiness and in doctrine took place brilliantly, who at the saddest times led the Church in the best possible way and strengthened the confessors of the faith in the distress. When Valerianus and Gallienus were rulers, he suffered martyrdom after a severe exile after being sentenced to death by the proconsul in front of a large crowd. His memorial day should be celebrated the day after tomorrow. "

- Martyrologium Romanum , entry for September 14th

Memorial days

  • Roman Catholic: September 16, also September 14 as the day of death,
Sunday after Epiphany
  • Orthodox: August 31st, also September 14th as the day of death

literature

Work editions

  • S. Thasci Caecili Cypriani Opera Omnia, CSEL Vol. III, ed. Hartel , Vienna 1868/1871
  • ML Hannan: Thasci Caeli Cypriani De Mortalitate. A Commentary with Introduction and Translation. Washington 1933.
  • Individual works of Cyprian are also in the ranks Edition CCSL and Sources Chrétiennes published

Overview representations

Individual questions

  • Eva Baumkamp: Communication in the Church of the 3rd Century. Bishops and parishes between conflict and consensus in the Roman Empire (= STAC 92), Tübingen 2014. ISBN 978-3-16-153686-1 .
  • Henneke Gülzow : Cyprian and Novatian , Tübingen 1975.
  • A. Hoffmann: Church structures and Roman law with Cyprian von Karthago , Paderborn-Munich-Vienna-Zurich 2000.
  • JW Jacobs: Saint Cyprian of Carthage as Minister. A Study of Cyprian's Language for the Problem of Christian Living and Pastoral Concerns and Relationships , Diss., Ann Arbor / Wed. 1978.
  • Brigitte Proksch: Christ in the writings of Cyprian of Carthage . LIT, Vienna / Berlin 2007, ISBN 978-3-8258-1103-7 .
  • J. Rist: Cyprian of Carthage and Paul of Samosata. Reflections on the understanding of the episcopate in the 3rd century . In: Raban von Haehling (ed.), Rome and the heavenly Jerusalem. The early Christians between adaptation and rejection , Darmstadt 2000, pp. 257–286.
  • C. Schuler: Cyprian: the Christian view of contemporary history . In: Martin Zimmermann (ed.), Historiography and Political Change in the 3rd Century AD (Historia Einzelschriften 127), Stuttgart 1999, pp. 183–202, ISBN 3-515-07457-0
  • W. Simonis: Ecclesia visibilis et invisibilis. Investigations on ecclesiology and the doctrine of the sacraments in the African tradition from Cyprian to Augustine , Frankfurt 1970.
  • Robert Walz: Preparation for the martyrdom of Cyprian of Carthage: a study on 'Ad Fortunatum' . Lang, Frankfurt / M. 2013, ISBN 978-3-631-63987-0 .
  • U. Wickert: Sacramentum unitatis. A contribution to understanding the church in Cyprian (= Beih. ZNW 41), Berlin 1971.
  • M. Ziegler: The vita et passio Cypriani: Intentional statement and historical background . In: Klio 91 (2009), pp. 458-471

Web links

Commons : Saint Cyprian  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ acta proconsularia sancti cypriani on ultramontes.pl, accessed on August 2, 2018
  2. ^ Adalbert Hamman: The Church Fathers / Small Introduction to Life and Work , Herder Verlag, Freiburg i. Br., 1967, pp. 62 and 63
  3. ^ Travel tip Ischia on Süddeutsche.de
  4. ↑ Walther von Loewenich : The History of the Church, Volume I, Altertum und Mittelalter , Siebenstern Verlag, Hamburg, 4th edition, 1971, p. 64
  5. ↑ In ep. 64, 2, Cyprian recommends baptizing newborns on the second or third day after birth.
  6. ↑ Augustine, Sermon 294
  7. ↑ for example in ep. 1
  8. ↑ De unitate catholicae ecclesiae , 5.
  9. ↑ Origen, In Jesu Nave 3,5; PG 12,841.
  10. ↑ Peristephanon XIII
  11. ^ German text of the letters according to the BKV edition
  12. ↑ See the introduction by Paolo Signiscalco in the French / Latin edition of De Unitate catholicae ecclesiae, Sources chrétienne s No. 500, Paris 2006 ( Latin text on the Internet )
  13. ^ Wolfgang Wegner: Cyprian of Carthage. In: Werner E. Gerabek , Bernhard D. Haage, Gundolf Keil , Wolfgang Wegner (eds.): Enzyklopädie Medizingeschichte. De Gruyter, Berlin / New York 2005, ISBN 3-11-015714-4 , p. 282.
  14. ^ Text of the BKV translation
personal data
SURNAME Cyprian of Carthage
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Thascius Caecilius Cyprianus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bishop of Carthage and Father of the Church, Latin church writer of the old Church, saint
DATE OF BIRTH between 200 and 210
PLACE OF BIRTH uncertain: Carthage
DATE OF DEATH September 14, 258
Place of death at Carthage