4.3.1
ΙΙΙ. Τραϊανοῦ δὲ ἐφ’ ὅλοις ἔτεσιν εἴκοσι τὴν ἀρχὴν μησὶν ἓξ δέουσιν κρατήσαντος, Αἴλιος Ἁδριανὸς διαδέχεται τὴν ἡγεμονίαν. τούτῳ Κοδράτος λόγον προσφωνήσας ἀναδίδωσιν, ἀπολογίαν συντάξας ὑπὲρ τῆς καθ’ ἡμᾶς θεοσεβείας, ὅτι δή τινες πονηροὶ ἄνδρες τοὺς ἡμετέρους ἐνοχλεῖν ἐπειρῶντο· εἰς ἔτι δὲ φέρεται παρὰ πλείστοις τῶν ἀδελφῶν, ἀτὰρ καὶ παρ’ ἡμῖν τὸ σύγγραμμα· ἐξ οὗ κατιδεῖν ἔστιν λαμπρὰ τεκμήρια τῆς τε τοῦ ἀνδρὸς διανοίας καὶ τῆς ἀποστολικῆς ὀρθοτομίας. ὁ δ’ αὐτὸς τὴν καθ’ ἑαυτὸν ἀρχαιότητα παραφαίνει δι’ ὧν ἱστορεῖ ταῦτα ἰδίαις φωναῖς· “τοῦ δὲ σωτῆρος ἡμῶν τὰ ἔργα ἀεὶ παρῆν ἀληθῆ γὰρ ἢν, οἱ θεραπευθέντες, οἱ ἀναστάντες ἐκ νεκρῶν, οἳ οὐκ ὤφθησαν μόνον θεραπευόμενοι καὶ ἀνιστάμενοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀεὶ παρόντες, οὐδὲ ἐπιδημοῦντος μόνον τοῦ σωτῆρος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπαλλαγέντος ἦσαν ἐπὶ χρόνον ἱκανόν, ὥστε καὶ εἰς τοὺς ἡμετέρους χρόνους τινὲς αὐτῶν ἀφίκοντο.” 1 τοιοῦτος μὲν οὗτος· καὶ Ἀριστείδης δέ, πιστὸς ἀνὴρ τῆς καθ’ ἡμᾶς ὁρμώμενος εὐσεβείας, τῷ Κοδράτῳ παραπλησίως ὑπὲρ τῆς πίστεως ἀπολογίαν ἐπιφωνήσας Ἀδριανῷ καταλέλοιπεν· σῴζεται δέ γε εἰς δεῦρο παρὰ πλείστοις καὶ ἡ τούτου γραφή.
III. When Trajan had reigned for nineteen and a half years, Aelius Hadrian succeeded to the sovereignty. To him Quadratus addressed a treatise, composing a defence for our religion, because some wicked men were trying to trouble the Christians. It is still extant among many of the brethren, and we have a copy ourselves. From it can be seen the clear proof of his intellect and apostolic orthodoxy. He shows his early date by what he says as follows in his own words: “But the works of our Saviour were always present, for they were true: those who were cured, those who rose from the dead, who not merely appeared as cured and risen, but were constantly present, not only while the Saviour was living, but even for some time after he had gone, so that some of them survived even till our own times.” Such was he. Aristides too, a man of faith and devoted to our religion, has, like Quadratus, left behind a defence of the faith addressed to Hadrian. His writing, too, is still preserved by many.