1-68:68
Καὶ εἰ μὲν δοκεῖ ὑμῖν λόγου καὶ ἀληθείας ἔχεσθαι, τιμήσατε αὐτά· εἰ δὲ λῆρος ὑμῖν δοκεῖ, ὡς ληρωδῶν πραγμάτων καταφρονήσατε, καὶ μὴ ὡς κατ ἐχθρῶν κατὰ τῶν μηδὲν ἀδικούντων θάνατον ὁρίζετε. Προλέγομεν γὰρ ὑμῖν, ὅτι οὐκ ἐκφεύξεσθε τὴν ἐσομένην τοῦ θεοῦ κρίσιν, ἐὰν ἐπιμένητε τῇ ἀδικίᾳ· καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐπιβοήσομεν·Ὃ φίλον τῷ θεῷ, τοῦτο γενέσθω! Καὶ ἐξ ἐπιστολῆς δὲ τοῦ μεγίστου καὶ ἐπιφανεστάτου Καίσαρος Ἀδριανοῦ, τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν, ἔχοντες ἀπαιτεῖν ὑμᾶς καθὰ ἠξιώσαμεν κελεῦσαι τὰς κρίσεις γενέσθαι, οὐκ ἐκ τοῦ κεκρῖσθαι τοῦτο ὑπὸ Ἀδριανοῦ μᾶλλον ἠξιώσαμεν, ἀλλ ἐκ τοῦ ἐπίστασθαι δίκαια ἀξιοῦν τὴν προσφώνησιν καὶ ἐξήγησιν πεποιήμεθα. Ὑπετάξαμεν δὲ καὶ τῆς ἐπιστολῆς Ἀδριανοῦ τὸ ἀντίγραφον, ἵνα καὶ κατὰ τοῦτο ἀληθεύειν ἡμᾶς γνωρίζητε. Καὶ ἔστι τὸ ἀντίγραφον τοῦτο. Μινουκίῳ Φουνδανῷ. Ἐπιστολὴν ἐδεξάμην γραφεῖσάν μοι ἀπὸ Σερηνίου Γρανιανοῦ, λαμπροτάτου ἀνδρός, ὅντινα σὺ διεδέξω. Οὐ δοκεῖ οὖν μοι τὸ πρᾶγμα ἀζήτητον καταλιπεῖν, ἵνα μήτε οἱ ἄνθρωποι ταράττωνται καὶ τοῖς συκοφάνταις χορηγία κακουργίας παρασχεθῇ. Ἄν οὖν σαφῶς εἰς ταύτην τὴν ἀξίωσιν οἱ ἐπαρχιῶται δύνωνται διϊσχυρίζεσθαι κατὰ τῶν Χριστιανῶν, ὡς καὶ πρὸ βήματος ἀποκρίνεσθαι, ἐπὶ τοῦτο μόνον τραπῶσιν, ἀλλ οὐκ ἀξιώσεσιν οὐδὲ μόναις βοαῖς. Πολλῷ γὰρ μᾶλλον προσῆκεν, εἴ τις κατηγορεῖν βούλοιτο, τοῦτό σε διαγινώσκειν. Εἴ τις οὖν κατηγορεῖ καὶ δείκνυσί τι παρὰ τοὺς νόμους πράττοντας, οὕτως διόριζε κατὰ τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ ἁμαρτήματος· ὡς μὰ τὸν Ἡρακλέα, εἴ τις συκοφαντίας χάριν τοῦτο προτείνοι, διαλάμβανε ὑπὲρ τῆς δεινότητος καὶ φρόντιζε ὅπως ἂν ἐκδικήσειας
這些事你們若以為合乎理性與真理，就當尊重;但你們若以為是無稽之談，就當把它當作荒謬之事而輕看，不要把那些並無過犯的人當作仇敵判處死刑。因為我們預先警告你們：你們若執迷於不義，必不能逃脫神將來的審判;我們這一面則要呼喊：「凡神所喜悅的，願其成就!」雖然我們從你們的父、那至大至顯赫的凱撒哈德良的信中，有權要求你們照我們所請求的下令審理案件，但我們提出此請求，並非因為這是哈德良所頒令的，乃因我們知道所請求的乃是公義的，所以我們才作此陳情與說明。我們也附上哈德良信件的抄本，使你們知道我們在這事上也是說真話的。抄本如下：「致米努基烏斯·豐達努斯。我收到那至顯赫之人塞瑞紐斯·格拉尼亞努斯——就是你所接替的那位——寫給我的信。我認為此事不當不加查究就置之不理，免得百姓受擾，並使誣告者得著行惡的機會。所以，倘若各省的人能明確地對基督徒提出這控告，以致能在公堂前作答，就讓他們專行此途，而不可單憑要求與喧嚷。因為若有人願意提出控告，由你來查究此事是更為合宜的。所以倘若有人控告他們，並指明他們行了甚麼違法之事，你就當照其過犯的輕重作出裁斷;但是，憑赫拉克勒斯起誓，若有人為了誣陷而提出此事，你就當裁定其惡行，並留心加以懲處。」
And if these things seem to you to be in accord with reason and truth, hold them in honor; but if they seem to you to be nonsense, despise them as nonsensical matters, and do not, as against enemies, decree death against those who do no wrong. For we forewarn you that you will not escape the coming judgment of God if you persist in injustice; and we for our part will cry out, "Whatever is pleasing to God, let it be done!" And although, from the letter of the greatest and most illustrious Caesar Hadrian, your father, we have the right to demand that you order the trials to be conducted as we have requested, nevertheless we have not made this request because it was decreed by Hadrian, but rather because we know that what we request is just, and so we have made our address and exposition. And we have appended also the copy of Hadrian's letter, so that you may know that in this also we speak the truth. And this is the copy: "To Minucius Fundanus. I received a letter written to me by Serenius Granianus, a most illustrious man, whom you have succeeded. It does not seem to me, then, that the matter should be left without inquiry, lest people be disturbed and an opportunity for villainy be furnished to informers. If, then, the provincials are able plainly to sustain this charge against the Christians, so as to give answer before the tribunal, let them turn to this course only, but not to mere demands and outcries. For it is much more fitting, if anyone wishes to bring an accusation, that you should examine into this. If, then, anyone accuses them and shows that they are doing anything contrary to the laws, determine accordingly, according to the gravity of the offense; but, by Hercules, if anyone brings this forward for the sake of slander, decide concerning his villainy, and take care to punish it."