St Athanasius the Great LETTERS, Part I, Complete

Translated by Cardinal Newman.

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Page 84

Letter IV.--For 332. Easter-day vii Pharmuthi [4023] , iv Non. Apr.; AEra Dioclet. 48; Coss. Fabius Pacatianus, Maecilius Hilarianus; Praefect, Hyginus [4024] ; Indict. v.

He sent this Letter from the Emperor's Court by a soldier [4025] .

I send unto you, my beloved, late and beyond the accustomed time [4026] ; yet I trust you will forgive the delay, on account of my protracted journey, and because I have been tried with illness. Being hindered by these two causes, and unusually severe storms having occurred, I have deferred writing to you. But notwithstanding my long journeys, and my grievous sickness, I have not forgotten to give you the festal notification, and, in discharge of my duty, I now announce to you the feast. For although the date of this letter is later [4027] than that usual for this announcement, it should still be considered well-timed, since our enemies having been put to shame and reproved by the Church, because they persecuted us without a cause [4028] , we may now sing a festal song of praise, uttering the triumphant hymn against Pharaoh; 'We will sing unto the Lord, for He is to be gloriously praised; the horse and his rider He hath cast into the sea [4029] .'

[4023] The Syriac text has 17th instead of 7th. There is the same error in the index. The correct day is given towards the end of the Letter.

[4024] There is sometimes a difficulty, in the absence of independent testimony, in ascertaining the exact orthography of the proper names, from the loose manner in which they are written in the Syriac. Here, however, it is clearly Hyginus, as in Sozomen, lib. ii. c. 25, Larsow writes it Eugenius. He has also the 46th instead of the 48th of the Diocletian AEra. The word 'Fabius' is not clear. In Baronii Annal. Eccles, however, we find it Ovinius.

[4025] See note 6 at the end of the Letter.

[4026] In the index it is stated that the third, but not that the fourth, Letter was sent late, but see Letter 3, note 1.

[4027] i.e. too late to give notice of the beginning of Lent, infr. S:5, and Letter 5, S:6.

[4028] Constantine, in his letter, supr. p. 133, speaks of the envy of the accusers of Athan. and of their unsuccessful efforts to criminate him.

[4029] Exod. xv. 1.

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