Source edition
Cyprian. Saint. S. Thasci Caecili Cypriani Opera omnia, Pars I (Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, Volume 3.1). Hartel, Wilhelm von, editor. Vienna: Gerold, 1868.
Source data
Open Greek and Latin · CC BY-SA 4.0
Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.
Summary
This document records the official opinions delivered by eighty-seven bishops at the Council of Carthage in the mid-third century, focusing on the validity of baptism administered by heretics and schismatics. The discussion opens with Cyprian, who leads the council, emphasizing the autonomy of each bishop and encouraging them to express their views freely. Subsequently, the bishops one after another declare that the grace of baptism belongs exclusively to the Catholic Church and that any baptism performed outside its fold is utterly invalid. They argue that baptizing those who return from heresy to the Church is not a "rebaptism" but rather the conferring of the only true and valid sacrament. Through various biblical references and theological arguments, they warn of the dangers of communicating with heretics without proper purification. The work concludes with Cyprian summarizing the debate and reaffirming his own epistles, consolidating the bishops' unanimous stance on the necessity of orthodox baptism.