Golden Epistles of the Ancient Christians

[has] been. We did not want to pass this over entirely, because it contains a very beneficial reminder.

VII. and VIII. The original uses the Roman numeral "IIX" for 8.

Dionysius—called "of Corinth" original: "Corinthius" to distinguish him from others of this name, because he was also Bishop of Corinth around the year of Christ 170—receives magnificent testimony from the ancients, such as in Eusebius's Church History, Book IV, Chapter 21; Nicephorus, Book IV, Chapter 8; Jerome; Honorius of Autun, and others. Many signs of his godliness, apostolic power, gifts, and faithfulness also shine through the fragments of his epistles that Eusebius has preserved for us; without these, we would know nothing of this man's writings or history. Jerome took what he wrote in his Book on Illustrious Men original: "Lib. de Script. Eccl. cap. 27." from him. He calls these epistles Catholic, or universal and valid for all, because of the authority and impact they had among the ancients. What is repeated here is only what can still be found in Eusebius; nothing more is encountered in any other ancient writings.

IX. X. and XI.

1. To this Dionysius, it is fitting to add others of the same name, specifically the one who became Bishop of Alexandria around the year of Christ 247. He also endured fierce persecution from the pagans and especially a three-year exile relegation; a form of banishment under Roman law where a person was sent to a specific place but did not necessarily lose their property or citizenship under Emperor Valerian.

2. To be sure, he is not approved in all matters, because out of excessive fervor in disputing against Sabellius Sabellius was a 3rd-century theologian who taught "Modalism"—the idea that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are merely different roles or "modes" of a single person, rather than three distinct persons in one God., he fell into an error,