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BUT let us see how the same man addressed Novatus when he was
disturbing the Roman brotherhood. As he pretended that some of the
brethren were the occasion of his apostasy and schism, as if he had
been forced by them to proceed as he had, observe the manner in which
he writes to him:
"Dionysius to his brother Novatus, greeting. If, as thou sayest,
thou hast been led on unwillingly, thou wilt prove this if thou
retirest willingly. For it were better to suffer everything, rather
than divide the Church of God. Even martyrdom for the sake of
preventing division would not be less glorious than for refusing to
worship idols. Nay, to me it seems greater. For in the one case a
man suffers martyrdom for the sake of his own soul; in the other case
in behalf of the entire Church. And now if thou canst persuade or
induce the brethren to come to unanimity, thy righteousness will be
greater than thine error, and this will not be counted, but that will
be praised. But if thou canst not prevail with the disobedient, at
least save thine own soul. I pray that thou mayst fare well,
maintaining peace in the Lord."
This he wrote to Novatus.
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