Martyrs Mirror 296THE BLOODY OPPRESSION OF THE BELIEVERS, WHICH IT APPEARS, OCCURRED IN THE TIME OF THE TEACHER, FULGENTIUS, A. D. 498

It appears that at this time the persecution and martyrization of those who were baptized according to the ordinance of Christ was still in progress; of which the God fearing teacher Fulgentius makes mention to his contemporaries. Bapt. Hist., 2d part, page 464, num. 12, from D. Vicec., lib. 3, cap. 3, from Fulgentius, lib. de fide ad petrum, cap. 30.

"Rest assured of this," he writes, "and doubt not that those who,, for the name of Christ are baptized in their blood, without which no man shall receive eternal life, that is, who has not previously been converted from his sins through repentance and faith, and redeemed through the sacrament of faith and repentance, that is, through baptism."

When Fulgentius here speaks of those who, for the name of Christ are baptized in the blood, etc., he plainly indicates thereby, that blood was shed then inasmuch as people were baptized with it as it were, that is, such people as he speaks of further on, namely, "who are converted through repentance and faith, and redeemed through the sacrament of faith and repentance, that is, through baptism," etc.

However, if to any one the above words of Fulgentius appear rather too obscure for the purpose in view, we leave him to the free and unrestrained enjoyment of his own judgment.

NOTE. At this time, namely about the close of this century, those who opposed infant baptism were so hated by the Roman church, that in a certain council of Carthage, two persons, whose names we for certain reasons omit, were condemned, because they had denied infant baptism. Bapt. Hist. 2d part, page 436, taken from the 9th chapter van de Doop gerbruyken der Roomsche Kerke, fol. 460.

As to the persons themselves that were condemned, we commit them to God, since our only aim is to show how exceedingly the aforementioned doctrines were hated, and those, who defended them, oppressed, yea, condemned at that time. With this we conclude our account of the martyrs of the fifth century.