Lectio Cypriani: De opere et eleemosynis

Although the contents and argumentation of the text De opere et eleemosynis are plain and simple, many questions still remain unanswered, such as for instance the work's date, to whom it was addressed and its literary genre. The paper traces the work and at the same time highlights fundamental aspects for the interpretation. In this perspective, Augustine’s evidence appears especially important: though in a different historical context and with different aims, he quotes extensive excerpts from the De opere et eleemosynis