| EDICT
OF MILAN Freedom of worship granted to all Christians ( AD 313 ) |
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( Munro & Bramhall in Translations and Reprints..., IV, Philadelphia, 1898, pp. 29-30 ). |
When
I, Constantine Augustus, as well as I, Licinius Augustus, had fortunately
met near Mediolanum (Milan), and were considering everything that pertained
to the public welfare and security, we thought that, among other things
which we saw would be for the good of many, those regulations pertaining
to the reverence of the Divinity ought certainly to be made first, so
that we might grant to the Christians and to all others full authority
to observe that religion which each preferred ; whence any Divinity
whatsoever in the seat of the heavens may be propitious and kindly disposed
to us and all who are placed under our rule. And thus by this wholesome
counsel and most upright provision we thought to arrange that no one
whatsoever should be denied the opportunity to give his heart to the
observance of the Christian religion, or of that religion which he should
think best for himself, so that the Supreme Deity, to whose worship
we freely yield our hearts, may show in all things His usual favor and
benevolence. Therefore, your Worship should know that it has pleased
us to remove all conditions whatsoever, which were in the rescripts
formerly given to you officially, concerning the Christians, and now
any one of these who wishes to observe the Christian religion may do
so freely and openly, without any disturbance or molestation. We thought
it fit to commend these things most fully to your care that you may
know that we have given to those Christians free and unrestricted opportunity
of religious worship. When you see that this has been granted to them
by us, your Worship will know that we have also conceded to other religions
the right of open and free observance of their worship for the sake
of the peace of our times, that each one may have the free opportunity
to worship as he pleases ; this regulation is made that we may
not seem to detract aught from any dignity or any religion. Moreover,
in the case of the Christians especially, we esteemed it best to order
that if it happens that anyone heretofore has bought from our treasury
or from anyone whatsoever, those places where they were previously accustomed
to assemble, concerning which a certain decree had been made and a letter
sent to you officially, the same shall be restored to the Christians
without payment or any claim of recompense and without any kind of fraud
or deception, Those, moreover, who have obtained the same by gift, are
likewise to return them at once to the Christians. Besides, both those
who have purchased and those who have secured them by gift, are to appeal
to the vicar if they seek any recompense from our bounty, that they
may be cared for through our clemency. All this property ought to be
delivered at once to the community of the Christians through your intercession,
and without delay. And since these Christians are known to have possessed
not only those places in which they were accustomed to assemble, but
also other property, namely the churches, belonging to them as a corporation
and not as individuals, all these things which we have included under
the above law, you will order to be restored, without any hesitation
or controversy at all, to these Christians, that is to say to the corporations
and their conventicles :— providing, of course, that the
above arrangements be followed so that those who return the same without
payment, as we have said, may hope for an indemnity from our bounty.
In all these circumstances you ought to tender your most efficacious
intervention to the community of the Christians, that our command may
be carried into effect as quickly as possible, whereby, moreover, through
our clemency, public order may be secured. Let this be done so that,
as we have said above, Divine favor towards us, which, under the most
important circumstances we have already experienced, may, for all time,
preserve and prosper our successes together with the good of the state.
Moreover, in order that the statement of this decree of our good will
may come to the notice of all, this rescript, published by your decree,
shall be announced everywhere and brought to the knowledge of all, so
that the decree of this, our benevolence, cannot be concealed. |
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