Constantine’s Letter to Sapor, King of Persia, about the Christians

“By guarding the holy faith I share in the light of truth, and by following the light of truth I come to know the faith more fully. So, as the facts prove, I recognize that most holy worship as the teacher of the knowledge of the most holy God. This is the service I profess. With the power of this God as my ally, I began at the farthest shores of the ocean and, one region after another, brought every part of the world to life with hope. Now all the peoples who were once enslaved by many tyrants, worn down by daily miseries and almost wiped out, have been given fresh life by receiving the protection of the state. [a] “The God I revere is the one whose emblem my troops, dedicated to him, carry on their shoulders. They march wherever the cause of justice leads them, and they repay me with splendid victories. I confess that I revere this God and keep him always in remembrance. He lives in the highest heavens, and I contemplate him with a pure and undefiled mind. I call on him on bended knee, and I shun all abominable blood, all foul and ill-omened smells, all fire of incantation, and every pollution by which unlawful and shameful error has destroyed whole nations and hurled them down to hell. [b]

“In his kind providence God has given people gifts to supply their needs, and he does not allow those gifts to be twisted to suit every person’s desire. All he asks of people is a pure mind and a spotless soul, and by these he weighs their deeds of virtue and piety. He is pleased with gentleness and modesty. He loves the meek and hates those who stir up quarrels. He loves faith and chastises unbelief. He breaks every power of boasting and punishes the arrogance of the proud. He utterly overthrows people who are puffed up with pride, and he rewards the humble and the patient as they deserve. He sets great value on a just rule, strengthens it with his help, and guards the counsels of princes with the blessing of peace. [d]

“I know I am not mistaken, my brother, when I confess that this God is the ruler and the Father of all people. Many who held the imperial throne before me were so deluded by error that they tried to deny it. But their end was so dreadful that they have become a fearful warning to all humanity, to keep others from the same wickedness. “I count among them that man whom the wrath of God, like a thunderbolt, drove from here into your country, and who made notorious the memorial of his shame that stands in your own land. Indeed it seems to have been well ordered that the age we live in should be marked by the open and evident punishment of such people. I have myself seen the end of those who persecuted the people of God by unlawful decrees. That is why I thank God all the more, because by his special providence he has now given peace back to those who keep his law, and they glory and rejoice in it. [e]

“I am led to expect future happiness and safety whenever God in his goodness unites all people in practicing the one pure and true religion. So you can well understand how greatly I rejoice to hear that the finest provinces of Persia are richly adorned with people of this kind. I mean Christians; it is of them I am speaking. “All is well, then, with you and with them, for you will find the Lord of all merciful and kind toward you. Since you are so mighty and so pious, I commend the Christians to your care and leave them under your protection. Treat them, I beg you, with the affection that suits your goodness. Your faithfulness in this will bring you and us blessings beyond words.”

This excellent emperor cared so much for all who had embraced the true religion that he watched over not only his own subjects but the subjects of other rulers as well. For this reason he was blessed with God’s special protection, so that although he held the reins of all Europe, of Africa, and of the greater part of Asia, all his subjects were loyal to his rule and obedient to his government. Foreign nations came under his sway, some by submitting of their own accord, others conquered in war. Trophies were set up everywhere, and the emperor was given the title Victorious.

But many other writers have proclaimed the praises of Constantine, and we must take up the thread of our history again. This emperor, who deserves the highest fame, gave his whole mind to concerns worthy of the apostles. Meanwhile men who had been raised to the dignity of the priesthood not only failed to build up the church but tried to tear it up from its very foundations. They invented every kind of false charge against those who governed the church according to the teaching of the apostles, and did their utmost to depose and banish them. Their envy was not satisfied with the infamous lie they had invented against Eustathius. They used every trick to bring down another great bulwark of religion. I will now tell these tragic events as briefly as I can.