Showing results by author "Minucius Felix" in All Categories

Dive into this captivating ancient Roman dialogue that unfolds as a profound religious debate between Octavius, a Christian lawyer, and Caecilius, his skeptical pagan friend. With Caecilius expressing doubts about both traditional Roman paganism and the emerging Christian faith, Octavius passionately defends his beliefs and addresses his friend’s challenges. The author, Marcus Minucius Felix, takes on the role of an observer, guiding the conversation. This early Latin text not only explores the tenets of Christianity but also situates the new religion within the broader social landscape of ...

The Octavius, which is here translated, is a supposed argument between the heathen Cæcilius and the Christian Octavius - the writer being requested to arbitrate between the disputants. Of the literary character of the dialogue, it is sufficient to quote the testimony of the late Dean Milman: “Perhaps no late work, either Pagan or Christian, reminds us of the golden days of Latin prose so much as the Octavius of Minucius Felix.”