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A SELECT LIBRARY

NICENE AND POST-NICENE FATHERS

THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.

Second levies.

TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH WITH PROLEGOMENA AND EXPEANATORY NOTES.

VOLl'MES l.-VII.
UNDER THE EDITORIAL SUPERVISION OF

PHILIP SCHAFF, D.D., LL.D., AND HENRY WACE.D.D.

Professor of Church History in the Principal of King's College,

Union Theological Seminary, Neiv York. London.

IN CONNECTION WITH A NUMBER OF PA TRISTIC SCHOLARS OF EUROPE

AND AMERICA.

VOLUME XII.

LEO THE GREAT.
GREGORY THE GREAT,

NEW YORK:

THE CHRISTIAN LITERATURE COMPANY.

OXFORD AND LONDON;

PARKER & COMPANY.

1895.

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THE

LETTERS AND SERMONS

LEO THE GREAT

BISHOP OF ROME,
TRANSLATED, WITH INTRODUCTION, NOTES, AND INDICES,

BY THE

REV. CHARLES LETT FELTOE, M. A.,

LATE FELLOW OF CLARE COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE.

VOL. XII.

PREFATORY NOTE.

Except for such valuable help — chiefly however in the way of comment and explana-
tion— as Canon Bright's volume (S. Leo on the Incarnation) has supplied, both the selection
and the translation of the Letters and Sermons of Leo Magnus are practically original. It is
even more difficult to feel satisfied oneself, than to satisfy others either with a selection from
a great man's works or with a translation of them. The powers of Leo as a preacher both
of doctrine and of practice are very remarkable, and in my anxiety to keep within the limits
imposed by the publishers, I have erred in presenting too few rather than too many of the
Sermons to the English reader. Only those that are generally held genuine arc represented,
though several of the doubtful ones are fine sermons, and those translated are in most cases
no better than those omitted. Even when the same thought is repeated again and again
(as is often the case), it is almost always clothed in such different language, and surrounded
with so many other thoughts of value, that every sermon has an almost equal claim to be
selected.

With regard to the Letters, the series connected with the Eutychian controversy — the
chief occupation of Leo's episcopate — is given nearly complete, whereas only specimens of
his mode of dealing with other matters have been selected for presentation. With one or two
exceptions, however, I feel more confident about the Letters than about the Sermons that the
omitted are less important than the included. I wish I could make even a similar boast about
the merits of the translation.

The text rendered is for the most part that of the Ballerinii as given by Migne
(Patrologie, Vol. LIV.), though a more critical edition is much to be desired.

CHARLES LETT FELTOE.
Fornham All Saints',
Eastertide, 1894.

b 2

CONTENTS OF LEO THE GREAT.

SELECT LETTERS AND SERMONS.

TACK

Prefatory Note in

Introduction. § i. Life of Leo v

§ 2. Manuscripts xiii

§§ 3 and 4. Editions and Translations xiv

§5. Authorities and Materials il>.

Letters 1— 1 14

Sermons 115 -205

Index of Biblical Quotations and References 207

General Index 210

INTRODUCTION.

Life.

The details of Leo's early life are extremely scanty and uncertain. Is is probable that he
was born between 390 and 400 a.d. There is a tradition that his father was a Tuscan named
Quintian, and that Volaterrae r, a town in the north of Etruria, was his birthplace. Of his
youth we know nothing : his writings contain no allusions to that or to any other part of his
personal history. One may reasonably infer from the essentially Roman character of his literary
style, from the absence of quotations out of pagan literature, and from his self-confessed
gnorance of Greek, that his education was, though thorough after its kind, limited to Chris-
tian and Latin culture. A reference to the pages of any secular history of the Roman empire
will give the reader an idea of the scenes amidst which, and no doubt by the aid of which,
Leo the boy was formed and moulded into Leo Magnus, the first great Latin-speaking pope
and bishop of Rome, the first great Italian theologian, " the final defender of the truth of our
Lord's Person against both its assailants 2 " (i.e. Nestorius and Eutyches), whom it pleased
God in His providence to raise up in the Western (and not as oftenest hitherto in the Eastern)
portion of His Church. Politically, intellectually, and theologically the period in which this
great character grew up, lived and worked, was one of transition : the Roman Empire, learn-
ing and thought, paganism were each alike at the last gasp, and neither in Church nor State
was there any other at all of Leo's calibre. This consideration will account for the wonderful
influence, partly for good and partly for bad, which his master-mind and will was permitted
to exercise on the after-ages of Christendom.

During his early manhood the Pelagian controversy was raging, and it is thought that the
acolyte named Leo, whom Augustine mentions in his letters on this subject as employed by
pope Zosimus to carry communications between Rome and the African church, is the future
pope. Under Celestine, who was pope from 422 to 432, he was archdeacon of Rome, and
lie seems already to have made a name for himself: for Cassian, the Gallican writer whom he
had urged to write a work on the Incarnation, in yielding to his suggestion, calls him "the
ornament of the Roman church and of the Divine ministry," and S. Cyril (in 431, the date of
the Council of Ephesus) appeals to Leo (as Leo has himself recorded in Letter CXIX.,
chap. 4) to procure the pope's support in stopping the ambitious designs of Juvenal, bishop of
Jerusalem. Under the next pope, Sixtus (432—440), we hear of him in Prosper's Chronicon
(under the year 439) again in connexion with Pelagianism 3 : he seems to have stirred up the
vigilance of the pope against the crafty designs of one Julius of Eclanum, who, having been
deprived of his bishopric for holding thai heresy, was attempting to be restored without full
proof of orthodoxy.

1 The objection that Prosper and Leo himself both speak of more than Rome or any other Italian city can claim the honour

Rome as his f atria does not seem of sufficient weight to over-
throw a tradition, which it is somewhat hard to account for
the existence of. To a native of central Italy under the Em-
pire, who had spent all his public life in Rome, the Eternal
city was equally patria, whether it was his actual birthplace or
not. At the same time there is no evidence that Volaterrse any

with certainty.

2 Wilberforce on Doctrine of the Holy Eucharist., p. 246,
quoted by Bright.

3 The chief error of Pelagius (= Morgan), who is commonly
thought to have been of British origin, was, as is well-known, the
denial of original or bir;h-sin: see Article ix.

vi INTRODUCTION.

Next year (440) was a momentous one in the life of Leo, and in the history of the papacy.
Leo was away on one of those political missions, which bear out our estimate of him as
perhaps the most conspicuous and popular figure of his times ♦. The powerful general Aetius
Placidia, the queen-regent's chief adviser and aide-de-camp, was quarrelling (a not unusual
occurrence at this stage of the empire) with Albinus, a rival general in Gaul. Leo was sent
to bring about a reconciliation, and apparently with success. In his absence Sixtus died, and
it is not surprising that without any hesitation clergy and people should have elected Leo
into his place. A deputation was sent after him to hasten his return, and after an interval
of forty days he arrived. The whole church received him with acclamation, and on Sept. 29
he was ordained both priest and 47th bishop of Rome. His brief sermon on the occasion is
the earliest in the collection, and will be found translated on p. 115 of our selection. His
earliest extant letter belongs likewise to the first year of his episcopate, which we have also
included in our selection : it is addressed to the bishop of Aquileia in reproof of his and his
fellow- bishops' remissness in dealing with Pelagianism in that province. Thus early did he
give proof of his conception of his office, as investing him with an authority which extended
over the whole of Christendom as the successor of S. Peter. Still clearer proofs were soon
forthcoming. Not to speak of a letter in a similarly dictatorial strain to the bishops of the
home provinces of Campania, Picenum, and Etruria, which belongs to the year 443, we find
him in 444 interfering, though more guardedly, with the province of Illyricum, which was then
debatable ground between the East and West ; in 445 dictating church regulations to S. Cyril's
new successor at Alexandria, Dioscorus, his future adversary ; and in 446 and 447 asserting
his authority on various pretexts, now in Africa, now in Spain, now in Sicily ; while in 444 also
occurred his famous and not very creditable encounter with Hilary, bishop of Aries in Gaul.
The incidents in this quarrel are briefly these : Hilary in a provincial synod had deposed
a bishop, Celidonius, for technical irregularities in accordance with the Gallican canons.
Celidonius appealed to Rome. Thereupon Hilary set out in the depth of winter on foot to
Rome, but, after an ineffectual statement of his case and some rough treatment from Leo,
returned to Gaul. Leo gave orders that Celidonius was to be restored, and Hilary deprived
of all his metropolitical rights in the province of Vienne. How far the sentence was carried
out is not clear. In a later letter he desires that the bishop of Vienne should be regarded as
metropolitan, and yet he seems to recognize Hilary's successor, Ravennius, as still metropolitan
in Letter XL., while in 450 the bishops of the one district addressed a formal petition for the
restoration of Aries to its old rank, and the bishops of the other a counter-petition in favour
of Vienne ; whereupon Leo effected a temporary modus vivendi by dividing the jurisdiction
between the two sees.

Returning to the year 444, besides consulting S. Cyril and Paschasinus, bishop of Lily-
baeum, on the right day for keeping Easter that year (a moot point which recurred in
other years) we find Leo still taking active measures against heresy, this time that of the
Manichaeans s. The followers of this sect had since 439 greatly increased at Rome, owing to
the number of refugees who came over from Carthage after its capture by Genseric and his
Vandal hosts (see Sermon XVI. 5). They were an universally abhorred body, and deservedly
so, if all we iead about them be really true. In 444, therefore, it was determined, if possible,
to stamp them out. By Leo's order a strict search was instituted throughout the city, and the
large number of those who were discovered, were brought up for trial before a combined
bench of civil and ecclesiastical judges. The most heinous crimes were revealed. Those

4 This is seen still more clearly when we remember how its rise in the far East) was the existence of two independent and

completely he held the Western, if not always the Eastern,
Emperors in his power, and made them support and carry out his
wishes.

5 The essential p'.nnt in the Manicharan heresy (which took

conflicting principles: good, whose kingdom was light and the
spiritual world, and evil, whose kingdom was over the elements

of matter.

LIFE.

who refused to recant were banished for life and suffered various other penalties by the
emperor Valentinian's decree, while Leo used all his influence to obtain similar treatment for
them in other parts of Christendom. Three years later the spread of Priscillianism, a heresy
which in some points was akin to Manichaeism among other heresies, and a long account of
which will be found in Letter XV., was the occasion to which we have referred as giving
a pretext for his interference in the affairs of the Spanish church.

We now reach the famous Eutychian controversy, on which Leo's chief claim to our thanks
and praise rests : for to his action in it the Church owes the final and complete definition
of the cardinal doctrine of the Incarnation. The heresy of Eutyches, as was the case with so
many other heresies, sprang from the reaction against a counter heresy. Most of the contro-
versies which have again and again imperilled the cause of Christianity, have been due to
human frailty, which has been unable to keep the proportion of the Faith. Over-statement on
the one side leads to over-statement on the other, and thus the golden mean is lost sight of.
Eutyches, an archimandrite (or head of a monastery) at Constantinople, had distinguished
himself for zeal during the years 428 to 431 in combating the heresy of Nestorius, who had
denied the perfect union of the Godhead and the Manhood in the one Person, Christ Jesus.
He had objected to the Virgin being called Theotokos (God-bearing), and said that Christoiokos
(Christ-bearing) would be more correct. This position, as involving two persons as well as
two natures in our Lord, was condemned by the 3rd General Council, which met at Ephesus
in 431, S. Cyril being its chief opponent. But Eutyches in his eagerness to proclaim the
Unity of the Person of Christ fell into the opposite extreme, and asserted that though the two
natures of Christ were originally distinct, yet after the union they became but one nature, the
human being changed into the Divine. Eutyches appears to have been a highly virtuous
person, but possessed of a dull, narrow mind, unfit for the subtleties of theological discussion,
and therefore unable to grasp the conception of two Natures in one Person : and nothing
worse than stupidity and obstinacy is brought against him by his stern but clear-headed
opponent Leo.

The person, however, who first brought the poor recluse's heretical statements prominently
into notice was much more reckless and intemperate in his language. This was Eusebius,
bishop of Dorylseum, who took the opportunity of a local synod held in Constantinople under
the presidency of the gentle Flavian, in November, 448, for other business, to petition against
his former friend and ally as a blasphemer and a madman. The synod, after expostulating
with the accuser for his violence, at last reluctantly consented to summon Eutyches to an
account. The summons was at least twice repeated and disobeyed under the pretext first
that he might not leave the monastery, then that he was ill. At last Eutyches yielded, and
appeared accompanied by a crowd of monks and soldiers and by Florentius, a patrician for
whom the weak Emperor (Theodosius II.) had been influenced by the eunuch Chrysaphius,
Eutyches' godson, to demand a seat at the council. After a long conversation, in which
Eutyches tried to evade a definite statement, he was at last forced to confess that our Lord was
of two natures before the union, but that after the union there was but one nature (see Letter
XXVIII. (Tome), chap vi.). As he persisted in maintaining this position, he was condemned
and thrust out of the priesthood and Church-communiou. During the reading of the condem-
nation and the breaking up of the conclave, Eutyches is alleged to have told Florentius that he
appealed to the bishops of Rome, Alexandria, and Jerusalem. Flavian, as president of the
council, thought it his duty to acquaint the bishops of Rome and other Sees of the first rank
with what had taken place. For some unknown reason his letter to Leo was delayed, and the
appeal of Eutyches and a letter from the Emperor was the first information that he received.
As might be expected from Leo's conception of his office, he was much incensed at this
apparent neglect, and wrote to the Emperor explaining his ignorance 01 the facts, and to

viii INTRODUCTION.

Flavian, complaining of being kept in ignorance, and prima facie of Eutyches' treatment.
Meanwhile the delayed epistle arrived from Flavian, and the account given was enough to
satisfy Leo, who thereupon (May, 449) replied briefly expressing his approval and promising
a fuller treatment of the question. This promise was fulfilled next month in the shape of the
world-famous "Tome," which forms Letter XXVIII. in the Leonine collection. The proper
significance of this document is well expressed by Mr. Gore 6 : it is, he says, " still more
remarkable for its contents than for the circumstances which produced it," though " in itself
it is a sign of the times : for here we have a Latin bishop, ignorant of Greek, defining the
faith for Greek-speaking bishops, in view of certain false opinions of Oriental origin." With-
out reviewing in detail the further correspondence that Leo carried on with the various civil
and ecclesiastical authorities at Constantinople (among them being the influential and ortho-
dox Pulcheria the Emperor's sister), we pass on to the events connected with the second
council of Ephesus. Through the influence of Chrysaphius, as we have already seen, the
Emperor was all along on the side of Eutyches, and it was apparently at his instigation and
in spite of Leo's guarded dissuasion that the council was now convened and met in August,
449. The bishop of Rome excused himself from personal attendance on the score of pressing
business at home, and sent three legates with instructions to represent his views, viz. Julius, bishop
of Puteoli, Renatus, a presbyter, and Hilary, a deacon, together with Dulcitius, a notary 7.
They started about the middle of June, and the Synod opened on the 8th of August, in
the church of the B.V.M. By the Emperor's order Dioscorus, patriarch of Alexandria, was pre-
sident, Leo's chief representative sat next him, and Flavian was placed only 5th, the bishop of
Antioch and Jerusalem being set above him: 130 bishops in all were admitted, those who
had condemned Eutyches being excluded. Owing partly to the presence of the soldiery and
a number of turbulent monks under the Syrian archimandrite Barsubas, the proceedings
soon became riotous and disorderly. The " Tome " was not read at all, though that was
the purpose of its composition. Eutyches was admitted to make his defence, which was
received as completely satisfactory. The acts of the Synod of Constantinople on being read
excited great indignation. Amid tremendous uproar Eutyches was formally restored to
communion and his former position, and the president pronounced deposition upon Flavian
and Eusebius. Flavian appealed, and Hilary 8, after uttering a monosyllabic protest, " con-
tradicitur" managed to make good his escape and carry the lamentable tidings to his
anxiously-expectant chief at Rome. The other bishops all more or less reluctantly sub-
scribed the restoration of Eutyches and the deposition of Flavian and Eusebius. The
end of Flavian is variously recorded, but the most accurate version appears to be that
amid many blows and rough usage he was cast into prison, then driven into exile, and that
within a few days he died of the bodily and mental injuries he had received at Epypa,
a village in Lydia. These calamitous proceedings Leo afterwards stigmatized as Lairociiiium
(brigandage), and the council is generally known as the Robber council of Ephesus.

At the time when the disastrous news arrived at Rome, Leo was presiding over a council
which he had convened ; in violent indignation he immediately dispatched letters right and
left in his own and his colleagues' name. There is a letter to Flavian, of whose death of
course he was not yet aware ; there are others to the archimandrites and the whole church of
Constantinople, to Julian, bishop of Cos, and to Anastasius, bishop of Thessalonica. He
used all his influence to prevail on the Emperor to summon a fresh council, this time in Italy,

6 Leo the Great, p. 53 (S.P.C.K.): this writer should also | must be carefully distinguished from Julian of Cos, who was

be consulted (pp. 53 to 70), on the merits and importance 01' the
Eutychian controversy generally.

7 Of these Renatus is said to have died at Delos on the way,
and Hilary is the future pope of that name. Julius of Puteoli

also a confidant of Leo's.

8 What happened to Julius and Dulcitius is not known, though
Leo does not express any disapproval of their action.

LIFE. ix

writing to him himself, and getting Pulcheria on the spot, and Valentinian, his mother Placidia
and his wife Eudoxia, by letters from Rome, to assist his cause. As yet, however, the very
stars in their courses seemed to fight against him, and the outlook grew yet darker. In the
spring of 450 Dioscorus' predominance in the East had become so great that ten bishops
were found to join with him in actually excommunicating the bishop of Rome. At the
Court, though Pulcheria remained true to the Faith, Chrysaphius still seems to have swayed
the Emperor, and to have obtained from him the edict which was issued confirming the acts
of the Ephesine council. The fact, too, that Flavian's successor, Anatolius, had in the past
been associated with Dioscorus caused him not unnatural anxiety, and this feeling turned to
one of actual offence on receiving a letter from Anatolius, in which he simply announces his
consecration without asking his consent. Thereupon Leo demanded of the Emperor that
Anatolius should make some public proof and profession of his orthodoxy on the lines of the
Tome and other catholic statements, and in the month of July sent legates to support this
demand.

At this moment the horizon suddenly brightened. Before the arrival of the legates,
Theodosius was killed by a fall from his horse, and to the triumph of the orthodox cause, his
sister, Pulcheria (the first Roman Empress), succeeded him. The whole aspect of things was
soon changed. Chrysaphius was almost at once executed, and shortly afterwards Pulcheria
married and shared the Eastern empire with Marcian, who was for bravery, wisdom and
orthodoxy an altogether suitable partner of her throne.

Leo's petition for a new Synod was now granted, but the place of meeting was to be in the
East, not in the West, as more convenient for the Emperor. In the interval S. Flavian's body
was brought by reverent hands to Constantinople and buried in the church of the Apostles,
and a still more hopeful sign of the times — Anatolius and many other bishops signed the
Tome. Hitherto Leo had asked that both councils (that which had condemned and that
which had acquitted Euryches of heresy) should be treated as null and void, and that the
matter should be discussed de novo. Now, however, he shows a significant change of front :
the Faith, he maintains, is decided : nothing needs now to be done but to reject the heretics
and to use proper caution in re-admitting the penitents : there is no occasion for a general
council. And consequently he sends bishop Lucentius and Basil a presbyter as legates
to assist Anatolius in this matter of rejection and re-admission. But, as the Emperor adhered
to his determination, Leo was obliged to give way, and though still declining to attend in
person, sent bishop Paschasinus of Sicily and Boniface a presbyter with written instructions
to act with the former two as his representatives ; Julian of Cos, who from his knowledge
of Greek and Eastern affairs was a most useful addition, was also asked to be of the number.
Nicaea in Bithynia had been fixed upon as the rendezvous, and there on Sept. 1, 451, 520
bishops assembled 9. The Emperor, however, was too busy and too anxious over his
military operations against Attila and the Huns to meet them there, and therefore invites
them to Chalcedon, which being on the Bosporus was much nearer to Constantinople.
There accordingly on Oct. 8, in the church of S. Euphemia the Martyr, the council was
at last opened. The Emperor himself was still absent, but he was well represented by
a goodly number of state officials. In accordance with Leo's request, Paschasinus, with his
brother legates, presided : next sat Anatolius, Dioscorus, Maximus of Antioch and Juvenal
of Jerusalem, with a copy of the Gospels in the midst. Leo's representatives began by
trying to have Dioscorus ejected : they only succeeded in getting him deposed from his seat
of honour and placed in the middle of the room together with Eusebius of Dorylaeum, his
accuser, and Theodoret of Cyrus, the eminent theologian, who was suspected of Nestorian-

9 no others voted by proxy in absence through their metropolitans (Gore).

INTRODUCTION.

izing language. The remainder of the first day was spent in reading the acts of the Ephesine
council, which in the midst of much uproar were provisionally condemned.

At the second session (Oct. 10), the Tome was read by the Imperial secretary, Veronician,
and enthusiastically received: "Peter has spoken by Leo," they said. But objections being
raised by the bishops of Palestine and Illyria that the twofold Nature was over-stated, its
final acceptance was postponed for a few days, that a committee which was nominated might
reason with the dissentients.

At the third Session (Oct. 13), Dioscorus, who refused to appear, was accused by
Eusebius and by general consent condemned, being deprived of his rank and office as bishop,
and the Emperor having confirmed the sentence, he was banished to Gangra in Paphlagonia,
and there three years later (in 454) died. His successor at Alexandria was the orthodox
Proterius, who was however never recognized by a large portion of the Egyptian Church :
even in the Synod of Chalcedon many of the Egyptian bishops refused to sign the " Tome "
at the fourth session, on the plea that the custom of their church forbade them to act without
the consent of the archbishop, who was not yet appointed, and the still surviving " Jacobite "
schism originated with the deposition of Dioscorus.

The fourth session was held on the 17th, and the misgivings of the Palestinian and
Illyrian bishops having been quieted in the interval, the Tome was adopted.

In the fifth session (Oct. 24), a difficulty arose over a definition of the Faith which had
been composed, but did not satisfy the Roman legates with regard to Eutychianism. However
a committee, which was appointed, took it in hand again, and the result of their labours was
accepted as fully guarding against the errors both of Nestorius and Eutyches. The remain-
ing sessions were occupied with less important matters, and with drawing up the canons
of the Council, of which one— the 28th — was designed to settle the precedence of the
patriarch of Constantinople ("New Rome " as it was called), and to give him a place second
to the bishop of old Rome. Against this audacious innovation the Roman legates in vain
protested ; the bitter pill, enwrapped in much sugar, was conveyed to Leo in the synodal letter,
and produced the most lamentable results.

The last meeting of the Council on Nov. 1 was graced by the attendance in full state of
Marcian and Pulcheria. The Emperor delivered an address, and at its conclusion he and the
Empress were vociferously applauded, Marcian being styled the " second Constantine."

To return to Leo, we have letters from Marcian, Anatolius, and Julian, all trying to carry
off the difficulty of the 2 8rii Canon under the triumph of the Roman views in other respects.
But Leo refused to be conciliated. The canon, he maintains, is in direct violation of the
decrees of Nicsea (in which statement he makes an unpardonable x confusion between the
Nicene canons and those of Sardica, which were often appended to them). With Anatolius
he was especially displeased, considering that his doubtful precedents ought to have made
him extremely careful not to offend. He therefore ceased all communication with him,
eagerly seizing at pretexts of complaint against him, and appointing Julian his apocrisiarius
or resident representative and correspondent. All this time Marcian continued pleading and
Leo inflexible, until Anatolius at last yielded, and the matter for the time is satisfactorily
settled, though it must not be imagined that the disputed canon was ever annulled.

Eutychianism still lingered on and caused disturbances in various parts of the East,
especially among the monks. In Palestine, Juvenal, the bishop of Jerusalem, was deposed,
and the Empress Eudocia, Theodosius II. 's widow, who was living in retirement in that city,
was suspected of favouring the rioters. Leo therefore wrote letters to her and to others,

1 Unpardonable in any case from one in his position, but es-
pecially so, if he was really connected with the church of Rome,
as we have suggested, under Zosimus, in whose time the confusion,

already existing then, was completely cleared up: see Gore's
Life, pp. 113 and 114. The Canon itself p. ofessed only to confnm
one already passed in 381.

LIFE. xi

in which he re states the doctrine of the Incarnation, endeavouring to clear up any miscon-
ceptions which the inaccuracy of the Greek version of the Tome may possibly have caused.
Eventually he was able to congratulate the Emperor on the restoration of peace and order in
that quarter of their empire.

Similar riots were reported in Cappadocia, where the monks were led by one of their
number named George, in Constantinople itself, where the ringleaders were Carosus and
Dorotheus, and in Egypt.

But before we narrate the final victory of the orthodox cause throughout Christendom
against the Eutychians, there are two events in the political world, belonging one to the year
452 and the other to 455, to which reference must be made, as showing the remarkable
prestige which Leo's character had gained for him among all classes of society. When he
was made pope we found him absent in Gaul mediating between rival generals. We now find
him employed on still harder missions. Leo himself makes none but the slightest indirect
allusion to either of these later incidents, but this silence is only characteristic of the man, in
whom there is no trace of vain-boasting, and who consistently sank the personality of himself
as well as of others in the principles and causes which absorbed him. There seems no reason,
however, to doubt the substantial truth of what Prosper and others have related. In 452
Attila and the Huns, notwithstanding the defeat they had sustained from Aetius at Chalons,
continued their devastating inroad into Italy. The whole city of Rome was paralysed with
terror, and at last sent Leo with the Consular Avienus and the Prefect Tregetius to intercede with
them. The meeting took place on lake Benacus, and Leo's arguments, aided, it is thought,
by rumours of threatened invasion at home, persuaded Attila to retire beyond the Danube, on
condition of receiving Honoria with a rich dowry as his wife. This was the last time that
Attila troubled the Romans : for he died the next year.

Less than three years after this successful encounter with the barbarian, in 455 Leo's
powerful services were again brought into requisition by the State. That year the licentious
Valentinian was murdered at the instigation of an enraged husband, Maximus, who sub-
sequently compelled the widow, Eudoxia, to marry him. Eudoxia, however, discovering the
part Maximus had taken in Valentinian's death, invited the Vandals under Genseric to invade
Italy. Maximus himself was put to death before the invaders reached Rome : but, when they
did arrive the panic-stricken citizens again threw themselves into the hands of Leo, who at
the head of the clergy went forth to meet the foe outside the city. Once more his inter-
cessions in some measure prevailed, but not sufficiently to prevent the city being pillaged
fourteen days.

WTe now return to more purely religious matters. In 457 Marcian died (his wife having
pre-deceased him four years), and was succeeded by a Thracian, named Leo 2. Fresh outbreaks
immediately took place both at Constantinople and at Alexandria : at the former place they
were soon stopped, but at Alexandria they were more serious and prolonged. The dis-
affected monks set up one of their number, Timothy ^Elurus (or the Cat) in opposition to
Proterius, who was soon after foully murdered in the baptistery, to which he had fled. This
flagrant outrage at once aroused the bishop of Rome to fresh energy in every direction : by
his promptitude the new Emperor was stirred to action, among the other means employed
being a re-statement of the Faith in a long epistle with a catena of patristic authority, some-
times called " the Second Tome." yElurus was deposed and banished, and another Timothy,
surnamed Solophaciolus, of well-approved orthodoxy, elected into his place. This satisfactory
consummation was effected in 460, while a no less orthodox successor, named Gennadius,
had been found two years before, when Anatolius died, for the See of Constantinople. Thus

Styled " Magnus," like his great namesake, though with infinitely less good reason.

Xll

INTRODUCTION.

Leo's joy was full at last, as his latest letters testify. Late in the year 461 he died, after
a rule of twenty-one years, during which he had won at least one great victory for the
Faith, and had given the See of Rome a prestige, which may be said to have lasted even to

the present day.

His body was buried in the church of S. Peter's, since which time it has been thrice moved
to different positions, once towards the end of the 7th century by Pope Sergius, again in
1607, after the re-building of the church in its present form, and lastly in 1715. As "saint"
and "confessor" from the earliest times, as "doctor of the church" since 1754, he is com-
memorated in the East on Feb. 18, in the West on April 11.

" It will not be wholly out of place," says Mr. Gore 3, " to mention that tradition looks
" back to Leo as the benefactor of many of the Roman churches : he is said to have
" restored their silver ornaments after the ravages of the Vandals, and to have repaired the
"basilicas of S. Peter and S. Paul, placing a mosaic in the latter, which represented the
" adoration of the four and twenty elders : we are told also that he built a church of S. Cor-
" nelius, established some monks at S. Peter's, instituted guardians for the tombs of the
" Apostles, and erected a fountain before S. Paul's, where the people might wash before
" entering the church."

The only writings of Leo which are usually accepted as authentic are his numerous Sermons
and Letters. Certain anti-Pelagian treatises and a long tract upon Humility in the form
of a letter to Demetrias, a virgin, have been ascribed to him ; but the most important work
of all the doubtful ones is a " Sacramentary," which is one of the earliest extant of the
Roman church, and is sometimes held to be Leo's composition or compilation. Many of the
collects and prayers which it contains bear a remarkable resemblance to his teaching, and may
well have come from his pen : there is indeed good reason for the opinion that the Collect
proper, which is a distinct feature of the Western Church, owes its origin to Leo.

As a theologian Leo is thoroughly Western in type, being not speculative but dogmatic :
no one was better suited in God's Providence to give the final completeness to the Church's
Doctrine of the Incarnation than this clear-sighted, unimaginative, and persistent bishop of
Rome. His theological position on the cardinal doctrines of the Faith is identical with
that of the Athanasian symbol, to the language of which his own language often bears a close
resemblance. With his theory of the Pope as universal Ruler of the Church in virtue of his
being the successor of S. Peter, the vast majority of English-speaking people will have but
little sympathy.- and yet it can but be admired from an objective standpoint as a bold, grand,
and almost original 4 conception. And there are no doubt many smaller points of detail
in his writings connected more with discipline than with doctrine, which will now be
reckoned if not as actually objectionable, at least as arising from forgotten needs or
belonging to a byegone system: among these may be instanced his objection to slaves
as clergy and to the celebration of the Eucharist more than once in one day except on
festivals, where the church is too small to hold all the worshippers at once : his advocacy
of the innovation of private instead of public confession for ordinary penitents, and on the
other hand his insisting on the old rule that baptism should be administered only twice
a year (at Easter and at Whitsuntide) : and again the somewhat undue prominence that
he gives to fasting and almsgiving as being on a level with prayer for Lenten or Ember
exercises, and to the intercessions of the saints — particularly of the patron saints of Rome,
SS. Peter, Paul, and Lawrence. And yet at the same time there is very much more to

3 Life, p. 165.

4 Milman attributes the real initiation of the Papal theory to the imperious Innocent I., who held the See of Rome at the
beginning of the fifth century (402 — 417).

MANUSCRIPTS. xiii

he thankful for as instructive than to ohject to as obsolete or dangerous. For on the
negative side we have no trace after all of the later direct invocation of the Saints, nor of
the modern cultus of the B. V. M. and of relics, while among the many positive good points
' in his teaching must be reckoned his most proper theory of a bishop as not only the channel
of divine grace in virtue of ordination (sacerdos) but also the overseer of the flock (episcopus),
in virtue of the people's choice and approval, which is essential to his office ; his strong con-
demnation of the practice of usury in laity as well as clergy ; his high appreciation of
corporate even more than individual action among the faithful ; the thoroughly practical view
he always puts before us of the Christian life; and above all the "singularly Christian"
character of all his sermons, in which Christ is the Alpha and Omega of all his thoughts and of
all his exhortations. These are some of the benefits which Leo has conferred upon the Church,
and which have rightfully earned for him the title " Great."

Manuscripts.

I. At the Vatican, (a) Of the Sermons, (i) Codd. 3S35 and 6 are two volumes in
Roman Character of a Lectionary of about the 8th century ; the second volume contains the
"Tome" (which in the 8th and 9th centuries used to be read in the Church offices before
Christmas) : (2) 3828, a parchment (10th century), also a lectionary : (3) 1195, a parchment folio
(nth century), a lectionary containing inter alia some of Leo's homilies : (4) 1267, 8 and 9 of
the same character (nth century) : (5) 1270 contains the Sermon de Festo Petri cathedra (now
xiv. in Migne's Appendix), from which Cacciari restored Quesnel's imperfect edition of it to
its present state: (6) 1271 and 2 are also lectionaries : (7) 4222 in Lombardic characters
(9th century), a lectionary: (8) 5451 in Roman characters (12th century), a lectionary:
1^9) 6450 parchment (12th century) : a lectionary containing the sermon de Festo Petri cathedra
in the form found and printed by Quesnel ; (10) 6451 similar: it contains sermons de Quadra-
gesima and others : (11) 6454 similar.

(/3) Of the Letters .- these are mostly rather later (i.e. about 12th or 13th century): but
(1) 1322 is of an older date, and contains besides the epistles, all the acts of the Council of
Chalcedon : (2) 5759 is earlier than the 9th century; it used to belong to the monastery of
S. Columban at Bobbio, and contains 31 letters : (3) 5845 is very ancient, and according to
Cacciari, Lombardic : it contains 24 letters.

(y) Letters and Sermons together: of these there are nine collections in the Vatican, of
which 548 and 9 contain the sermon de Absalom which is condemned by Cacciari. The
Regio- Vatican us codex 139 is a fine collection of Leo's works (12th century).

II. At other places: (1) The codex Urbinas 65 is thought to be a copy of the Regio-
Vaticanus 139 made in the 14th century.

(2) Codex Grimanicus s is a MS. on which Quesnel lays great stress : Quesnel assigns it to
the ninth century; it contains 107 letters, of which 28 had never been printed before
Quesnel.

(3) The Thuanei ; (a) 129 contains 123 letters: (/3) 780 contains the Tome: (y) 729
contains the spurious de vocatione gentium and some epistles.

(4) The Corbeienses are old.

(5) The Taurinensis 29 D. iv. is a fine 13th-century MS. containing 52 letters.

(6) The Florentinus codex belongs to the 13th century also.

(7) Ratisbonensis 113 dd. aa., in the monastery of S. Emeramus, contains 72 letters:
it is said to date from about 750 a.d.

(8) The two Bergonenses are of 12th century, and contain 12 sermons.

S Grimanus, from whom this Codex is named, was Cardinal of S. Mark, &c, in the 16th century.

XIV

INTRODUCTION.

(9) Two Chigiani also of 12th century contain 4 sermons.

(10) The Padilironenses contain 9 sermons and the Tome.

(11) There are three Patavini, of which two contain the Tome.

(12) Vallicellani: these are a number of nth or 12th-century codices.
There are also the Veneti, the Vercellenses, the Veronenses, &'c.

N.B. The foregoing account is taken from Schonemann's Notitia Historico-Literaria (1794),
and the translator has no means of knowing whether it is still correct (1890).

Editions.
t. The earliest important edition is .P. Quesnel's (preire de Poratoire), Paris, 1675, Lyons,
1700, of which Migne's Diet, de Bibliogr. catholique says, 'on reproche aux editions du P. Quesnei
un grand nombre de falsifications, par lesquelles le P. Quesnei se proposait notamment d'affaiblir
Pautorite pontificate6. . . . V edition que Pon doit aujourd'hui preferer, est (naturally enough!)
celle qui a cte publi'ee par M. Vabb'e Migne sous le iitre d'

2. CEuvres ires completes de Saint Leon le Grand publi'ees d'ap/es Ped;tion des freres
Ballerinii et celle de Paschase Qt/esncl enrichees de prefaces, divertissements et de co/nmentaires,
suivies des exercices de Cacciari sur toutes les eeuvres du saint docteur. Paris 1846.

3. P. Cacciari (a carmelite) brought out editions at Rome, 1 75 1 and 1753-5, the latter
with dissertations.

4. The edition of the brothers P. and H. Ballerinii (Jesuists), Venice, 1753-7, was a re-
cension of Quesnel's second edition with copious dissertations and notes.

5. // Hurler, S. J., has published selections of Sermons and Letters in vols, xiv., xxv. and
xxvi. of his SS. PP. opuscula selecta, 187 1-4.

Translations,
t Brighfs Leo on the Incarnation, London, 1862 (2nd edn. enlarged, 1SS6, in which the
Tome is translated), consists of xviii. sermons translated and the Tome in Latin, with many
valuable notes.

2. Reithmayr's Bibliothek (1869) contains a German translation.

3. Dr. Nealc's History of the Alexandrian Patriarchate embodies a translation of the Tome.

4. Dr. Heurtley published a version of the Tome in 1886.

Authorities and Materials.

The chief ancient and mediaeval authorities for the life and times of Leo the Great are
such works as Prospers, and Ldatius' Chronicles, Lornandes de rebus Geticis, Anastasius Bibl'o-
thecarius Historia de vitis Romanorum Pontificum (9th cent.), the Historia Miscella (10th
cent), &c.

Among lives may be mentioned the following :— (1) La vie et religion de deux bons papes Leon
premier et Gregoire premier par Pierre du Moulin (the younger: a protestant theologian),
Sedan, 1650. 121110. (2) Quesnel's valuable Dissertatio de vita et rebus gestis S. Leonis
Magni, originally included in his edition of Leo and re-printed by Migne in Vol. ii. of his edition
with the Ballerinii's annotations and critical remarks, Paris, 1675, Lyons, 1700. (3) Histoire
du Pontificat de Saint Leon le Grand par Monsr. L. Maimbourg La Have, 1687. (4) The
Bollandists1 Life by Canisius {Acta Sanctorum), April, vol. ii. pp. 14-22. (5) Alphonsi
Ciaconii Vitai Pontificum {Tom 1, pp. 303-314),^//^, 1677, 4to. (6) Le Nain de Tillemont,
Memoires pour servir a V histoire Ecclesiastique (vol. xv. pp. 414 — 832,885- g-'d.) Paris 1711. (~)

6 That is to say, it upheld the Gallican opinions ; and so
it was condemned and put on the Index in i632. But being
too valuable a work to be altogether suppressed, Benedict XIV.

enjoined the issue of (4), which rebutted and rectified Quesnel's
false deductions in its notes and excursuses.

AUTHORITIES AND MATERIALS. xv

Breve Descrizione della vita di S. Leone Primo di Gabrielle Bertazzolo : Mantova, 1727.
(8) Memoire istoriche di Sa. Leone Papa da Teofilo Pacifico : Brescia, 1791, Svo. (9) Du Pin,
L. E., History of Ecc. writers (Eng Edn. vol. 1, pp. 464 — 480), Dublin, 1722. (10) C. Oudinus,
de Scriptoribus Ecclesice (vol. 1, pp. 127 1-5), Leipzig, 1722. (n) Wilhelm Amadeus Arendt
{Roman Catholic), Leo der Grosse und seine Zeit, Mainz, 1835, Svo. (12) Eduard Perthel,
Papst Leo's L. Leben und Lehren, Jena, 1843, 8vo. (a counterblast to No. 11, and no less
exaggerated and prejudiced in statement). (13) A. de Saint-Chron, Histoire du pontificat
de Saint LJon le Grand, Paris, 1846. (14) F. Bohringer, die Kirche Xti und ihre Zeugen
(vol. 1 part 4, pp. 170 — 309), Zurich, 1845. (15) Charles Gore's Life of Leo the Great
(S.P.C.K.) ; also bis article in Smith's Diet, of Christian Biogr. (16) Tbe article in
Herzog's Real-Encyklopadie of which a condensed English edition was edited by Dr. Philip
Schaff at New York in 1883. Other more general accounts of his times will be found in
(1) i'abbe Fleury, Histoire du Xtianisme (vol. ii. pp. 384 — 480), Paris, 1836. (2) Bright's
History of the Church from 313 — 451 (chaps, xiv., xv.), Oxford and London, i860.
(3) Milman's Latin Christianity (Book ii. chap. 4), London, 1864. (4) R. J. Rohrbacher's
Histoire Universette de VEglise catholique (15th edn., vol. 4, pp. 461 — 575), Paris, 1868.
A short account of Leo's writings is given in Alzog's Grundriss der Patrologie, § 78, pp. 368 —
375 : a most exhaustive one in Ceillier's Histoire generate des Auteurs sacres (new edition)
(vol. x., pp. 169 — 276), 1858 — 1869. Bahr's Geschichte der Rbmischer Literatur- Supplement
Band. LL. Abtheilung (pp. 354 — 362), im Abendland, vol. 1, p. 448, may also be consulted;
and Ebert's Allgemeine Geschichte der Literatur des Mittelalters.

LETTERS.

LETTER T.

To the Bishop of Aquileia.

I. Through the negligence of the authorities the
Pelagian heresy has been spreading in his
province.

From the account of our holy brother
and fellow-bishop Septimus which is contained
in the subjoined letter1, we have understood
that certain priests and deacons and clergy
of various orders2 in your province who have
been drawn in by the Pelagian or Caslestian
heresy, have attained to catholic communion
without any recantation of their peculiar error
being required of them ; and that, whilst the
shepherds set to watch were fast asleep, wolves
clothed in sheep-skins but without laying
aside their bestial minds have entered into
the Lord's sheep-fold : and that they make
a practice of what is not allowed even to
non-offenders by the injunctions of our canons
and decrees 3 : to wit that they should leave
the churches in which they received or re-
gained their office and carry their uncertainty
in all directions, loving to continue wandering
and never to remain on the foundations of
the Apostles. For without being sifted by any
test or bound by any previous confession of
faith, they make a great point of their right
to the privilege of going to one house after
another under cover of their being in com-
munion with the Church, and corrupting the
hearts of many through men's ignorance * of
their false name. And yet I am sure they
could not do this, if the rulers of the churches
had exercised their rightful diligence in the
matter of receiving such, and had not allowed
any of them to wander from place to place.

1 It is to be supposed that the letter of Septimus, bp. of Altinum,
was sent with this letter. See Lett. XVIII. n. 3.

2 Viz. members of the "minor orders " as they are now called,
subdeacons, exorcists, &c.

3 It had been the rule at least since the council of Nicaea (325)
that the clergy should stay in the church (or diocese as we should
call it) of their ordination, cf. Canons of Nicaea xxi. de his qui
■b-cclesias deserunt et ad alias transeunt, and xxii. de non sus-
upieudis alterius Ecclesia; clericis. And we often find Leo in-
sisting on the observance of the rule.

* Inscientiam : the general reading being tcientiam, the sense
of which is not clear.

II. He orders a provincial synod to be convened
to receive the recantation of the heretics in
express terms.

Accordingly, lest this should be attempted
any further, and lest this pernicious habit,
which owes its introduction to certain persons'
negligence, should result in the overthrow of
many souls, by this our authoritative injunction
we charge you, brother, to give diligence that
a synod of the clergy5 of your province be
convened, and all, whether priests or deacons
or clerics of any rank who have been re-ad-
mitted from their alliance with the Pelagians
and the Caelestians into catholic communion
with such precipitation that they were not first
constrained to recant their error, be now at
least forced to a true correction, which can
advantage themselves and hurt no one, since
their deceitfulness has in part been disclosed.
Let them by their public confession condemn
the authors of this presumptuous6 error and
renounce all that the universal Church has
repudiated in their doctrine : and let them
announce by full and open statements, signed
by their own hand, that they embrace and
entirely approve of all the synodal decrees
which the authority of the Apostolic See has
ratified to the rooting out of this heresy. Let
nothing obscure, nothing ambiguous be found
in their words. For we know that their cun-
ning is such that. they reckon that the meaning
of any particular clause of their execrable doc-
trine can be defended if they only keep it
distinct from the main body of their damnable
views?.

5 Sacerdotum : I am in doubt as to what this term here in-
cludes, but think it probable that all ranks 01 the clergy were
to be summoned. The words sacerdos and antistes in early eccle-
siasiical Latin very often mean the bishop (cpiscoptis) specifically
rather than the presbvter {sacerdos secundi ordinis), because it
was the bishop who offered the "'sacrifice of piaise and thanks-
giving" (i.e. the Euchaiist), and the presbyter only in hisdefault;
but the term saceruos does certainly often include the presbyters
and also the deacons {sacerdo/es tertii ordinis) when in connexion
with the priests and bishops, and it seems likely that the whole
body of the clergy of the province would be summoned tc the
synod: see Bright's note no: also Bingham, Antiq., Bk. II.,
chap, xix., §§ 14, 15.

6 Superbi (proud): the epithet is well chosen and not a
random one : lor pride and presumption are at the root of the
Pelagian views as birth-sin and baptismal giace: perfectionism
is little in accordance with Christian humility.

7 For the same sentiment cf. Prosper, de i/igratis. v. 188.

VOL. XII.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

III. The Pelagian view of God's grace is un-
scriptural.
And when they pretend to disapprove of
and give up all their definitions to facilitate
evasion through their complete art of decep-
tion, unless their meaning is detected, they
make exception of the dogma that the grace
of God is given according to the merits of
the recipient. And yet surely, unless it is
given freely, it is not a gift8, but a price and
compensation for merits : for the blessed
Apostle says, " by grace ye have been saved
through faith, and that not of yourselves but
it is the gift of God ; not of works lest any
should perchance be exalted. For we are
His workmanship created in Christ Jesus in
good works, which God prepared that we
should walk in them 9." Thus every bestowal
of good works is of God's preparing : because
a man is justified by grace rather than by his
own excellence : for grace is to every one the
source of righteousness, the source of good
and the fountain of merit. But these heretics
say it is anticipated by men's natural goodness
for this reason, that that nature which (in
their view) is before grace conspicuous for
good desires of its own, may not seem marred
by any stain of original sin, and that what
the Truth says may be falsified : " For the
Son of Man came to seek and to save that
which was lost1."

IV. Prompt measures are essential.

You must take heed, therefore, beloved,
and with great diligence make provision that
offences which have long been removed be
not set up again through such men and that
no seed of the same evil spring up in your
province from a doctrine which has once been
uprooted : for not only will it take root and
grow, but also will taint the future generations
of the Church with its poisonous exhalations.
Those who wish to appear corrected must
purge themselves of all suspicion : and by
obeying us, prove themselves ours. And if
any of them decline to satisfy our wholesome
injunctions, be he cleric or layman, he must
be driven from the society of the Church lest
he deal treacherously by others' safety as well
as forfeit his own soul.

V. The canons must be enforced against clerics
ivho wander from one church to another.

We admonish you also to restore to full

8 The reader need hardly be reminded that in the New Testa-
ment " grace " (Lat. gratia, Gk. xapis) signifies " a free gift."

9 Eph. ii. 8-io.

1 S. Luke ix. 10. Between this and the next chapter some of
the MSS. and the earlier editions insert a passage from Augustine's
Enchiridion, which thus formed chapter iv.

working that part of the discipline of the
Church whereby the holy Fathers and we
have often in former times decreed that nei-
ther in the grade of the priesthood nor in the
order of the diaconate nor in the lower ranks
of the clergy, is any one at liberty to migrate
from church to church : to the end that each
one may persevere where he was ordained
without being enticed by ambition, or led
astray by greed, or corrupted by men's evil
beliefs : and thus that if any one, seeking
his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ2,
neglect to return to his own peoples and
church, he may be reckoned out of the pale
both in respect of promotion and of the bond
of communion. But do not doubt, beloved,
that we must be somewhat sorely moved if,
as we think not, our decrees for the mainten-
ance of the canons and the integrity of the
faith be neglected : because the short-comings
of the lower orders * are to be laid at the door
of none so much as of those slothful and
remiss rulers who often foster much pestilence
by shrinking from the application of a stringent
remedy.

LETTER II.

To Septimus, Bishop of Altinum.

(Caution must be observed in receiving
Pelagians back, and clergy must stay in the
church of their ordination.)

LETTER III.

Fpom Paschasinus, Bishop of Lilyb.eum.

(About the keeping of Easter in 444 ; re-
commending the Alexandrine calculation.)

LETTER IV.
To the Bishops 'appointed in Campania,

PlCENUM, E'l'RURIA, AND ALL THE

Provinces.
Leo, bishop of the city of Rome, to all the
bishops appointed in Campania, Picenum,
Etruria, and all the provinces, greeting in the
Lord.

I. Introduction.

As the peaceful settlement of the churches
causes us satisfaction, so are we saddened
with no slight sorrow whenever we learn that1
anything has been taken for granted or done
contrary to the ordinances of the canons and:
the discipline of the Church : and if we do not
repress such things with the vigilance we
ought, we cannot excuse ourselves to Him

2 A reminiscence of Phil. ii. 21.

3 Vlebem : this being the regular term for the " laity " in earlj
Christian Latin. 4 Sc. of the clergy.

LETTER IV.

who intended us to be watchmen 5, for per-
mitting the pure body of the Church, which
we ought to keep clean from every stain, to be
defiled by contact with wicked schemers, since
the framework of the members loses its harmony
by such dissimulation.

II. Slaves and serfs (coloni) are not to be

ordained.

Men are admitted commonly to the Sacred
Order who are not qualified by any dignity of
birth or character : even some who have failed
to obtain their liberty from their masters are
raised to the rank of the priesthood6, as if
sorry slaves were fit for that honour; and it is
believed that a man can be approved of God
who has not yet been able to approve himself
to his master. And so the cause for complaint
is twofold in this matter, because both the
sacred ministry is polluted by such poor
partners in it, and the rights of masters are
infringed so far as unlawful possession is
rashly taken of them 7. From these men,
therefore, beloved brethren, let all the priests
of your province keep aloof; and not only
from them, but from others also, we wish you
to keep, who are under the bond of origin
or other condition of service8: unless per-
chance the request or consent be intimated of
those who claim some authority over them.
For he who is to be enrolled on the divine
service ought to be exempt from others, that
he be not drawn away from the Lord's camp
in which his name is entered, by any other
bonds of duty.

III. A man who has married twice or a widoiv

is not eligible as a priest.

Again, when each man's respectability of
birth and conduct has been established, what
sort of person should be associated with the min-

5 Cf Ezek. iii. 17.

6 Sacerdotii. <ee note 5 on Letter 1.

7 Though no doubt S. Leo's language is here harsh and offen-
sive to modern ears, it is not, I think, substantially out of agree-
ment with S. Paul's own teaching (cf. Philemon ; 1 Cor. vii. 21 ;
Ephes. vi. 5 ; Col. iii. 22 ; Tit. ii. 9), and certainly not with the
spirit of the age. The 73rd Apost. Canon forbids any slave to be
ordained without his master's consent, and without previously
obtaining his freedom. However, in the times of S. Jerome,
S. Basil and S. Greg. Nazianzen, we find cases of slaves being or-
dained. However much we in the latter half of the nineteenth cen-
tury regret to hear a great father of the Church speak in this way,
we must not forget that in the first half of this seL-saine century the
very same opiniun would have been held on the subject in many
parts of the civilized world.

8 Qui originaii (al. origint) aut alicuz condicioni obligati
sunt. The class of people here alluded to were the coloni (serfs) :
such of them as were so by birth were called originarii : and
there were other classes of them also (alicui condicioni obligati).
The essential difference between all coloni and the ordinary servi
was that the latter's service was personal, the former were servi
terra:, adscripli gla>li&. Thus there is a strong resemblance
between them and the villeins (villanf) of medieval and modern
Europe. For the order concerning them here given, cf. 2nd
Council of Orleans (538), which ordains " ut nullus seivilibus
colonariisque condicionibus obligatus iuxta statuta sedis Apos-
tolicce ad honores ecclesiasticos admiitatur nisi prius aut testa-
mento aut per tabulas legitime constiterit absolution.

istry of the Sacred Altar we have learnt both
from the teaching of the Apostle and the Divine
precepts and the regulations of the canons, from
which we find very many of the brethren have
turned aside and quite gone out of the way. For
it is well known that the husbands of widows
have attained to the priesthood : certain, too,
who have had several wives, and have led
a life given up to all licentiousness, have had
all facilities put in their way, and been ad-
mitted to the Sacred Order, contrary to that
utterance of the blessed Apostle, in which he
proclaims and says to such. " the husband ot
one wife 9," and contrary to that precept of the
ancient law which says by way of caution :
" Let the priest take a virgin to wife, not a
widow, not a divorced woman I." All such
persons, therefore, who have been admitted
we order to be put out of their offices in the
church and from the title of priest by the
authority of the Apostolic See : for they will
have no claim 2 to that for which they were
not eligible, on account of the obstacle in
question : and we specially claim for ourselves
the duty of settling this, that if any of these
irregularities have been committed, they may
be corrected and may not be allowed to occur
again, and that no excuse may arise from
ignorance : although it has never been allowed
a priest to be ignorant of what has been laid
down by the rules of the canons. These
writings, therefore, we have addressed to your
provinces by the hand of Innocent, Legitimus
and Segetius, our brothers and fellow-bishops :
that the evil shoots which are known to have
sprung up may be torn out by the roots, and
no tares may spoil the Lord's harvest. For
thus all that is genuine will bear much fruit, if
that which has been wont to kill the growing
crop be carefully cleared away.

IV. Usurious practices forbidden for clergy and
for laity 3.

This point, too, we have thought must not
be passed over, that certain possessed with the
love of base gain lay out their money at in-

9 i Tim. iii. 2, unius uxoris virum with the Vulgate, cf.
Letter xii. 3

1 Lev. xxi. 13, 14, cf. a letter of Innocent I. to Victricius,
bishop of Rothomagus (Rouen), chap, v., uc mulierem {viduam)
ciericus non ducat uxorem : quia scriptum est : sacerdos virginem
uxorem accipiat non viduam non eiectam," and for the former
quotation, cf. ibid. chap. vii. ne is qui secundum duxerit uxorem,
clericusfiat : quia scriptum est unius uxoris virion. The 18th
Apostolic Canon gives a similar order. All these rules would seem
to refer to marriage before., not after, ordination. The latter was
against the spirit of the early Church.

2 The older editions here add pro arbitrio (by dispensation),
which Quesnel considers a gloss added later when dispensation
was sometimes granted to digamous clerks.

3 The practice of usury and trading generally is otten forbidden
in the Canons, &c, for the clergy, but its prohibition for the laity
is much more unusual : cf., however, Canon V. of the Council of
Carthage (419), quod (sc.fenus accipere) in laicis, reprehenditur
id mill to magis debet et in clericis prwdamnari. Scripture

B 2

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

terest, and wish to enrich themselves as
usurers. For we are grieved that this is prac-
tised not only by those who belong to the
clergy, but also by laymen who desire to be
called Christians. And we decree that those
who have been convicted be punished sharply,
that all occasion of sinning be removed.

V. A cleric may not make money in another's

name any more than in his own.

The following warning, also, we have thought
fit to give, that no cleric should attempt to
make money in another's name any more than
in his own : for it is unbecoming to shield
one's crime under another man's gains *. Nay,
we ought to look at and aim at only that usury
whereby what we bestow in mercy here we
may recover from the Lord, who will restore
a thousand fold what will last for ever.

VI. Any bishop who refuses consent to these

rules must be deposed.

This admonition of ours, therefore, pro-
claims that if any of our brethren endeavour
to contravene these rules and dare to do what
is forbidden by them, he may know that lie is
liable to deposition from his office, and that
he will not be a sharer in our communion who
refuses to be a sharer of our discipline. But
lest there be anything which may possibly be
thought to be omitted by us, we bid you,
beloved, to keep all the decretal rules of
Innocent of blessed memory 5, and also of all
our predecessors, which have been promul-
gated about the orders of the Church and the
discipline of the canons, and to keep them in
such wise that if any have transgressed them
he may know at once that all indulgence is
denied him.

Dated ioth of October, in the consulship of
the illustrious Maximus (a second time) and
Paterius (a.d. 443).

LETTER V.

To the Metropolitan Bishops of

Illvricum.

(Appointing Anastasius of Thessalonica his
Vicar in the province, and expressing his
wishes about its government, for which see
Letter VI.)

certainly is against the clergy participating in lucrative employ-
ments, though it was not easy always to prevent them : it had
become, for instance a common practice in S. Cyprian's dav in
the North Afncan Church (cf. de laps. 6). But the secular laws
certainly countenanced it in the laity (as Aug. Ep. 154 acknow-
ledges). Leo the Emperor is said by Grotius to have been the
first who ex ,st, mans omnefenus Christiano interdictum. le^e id
tpsum commtaii sanxit' (Quesriel). "

4 Crimen suum commodis alienis impendere. I am not sure
that this can mean what I siy.

5 This was S. Innocent I., who was Pope from 402 to 417. On
of his decretal letters was quoted from in note 1 to chap iii ,
this Letter. ^

LETTER VI.
To Anastasius, Bishop of Thessalonica.
Leo to his beloved brother Anastasius.

I. He is pleased to have been consulted by the
bishops 6 of Illyricum on important questions.

The brotherly love of our colleagues makes
us read with grateful mind the letters of all
priests 7 j for in them we embrace one another
in the spirit as if we were face to face, and by
the intercourse of such epistles we are asso-
ciated in mutual converse8. But in this
present letter the affection displayed seems to
us greater than usual : for it informs us of the
state of the churches 9, and urges us to a
vigilant exercise of care by a consideration of
our office, so that being placed, as it were, on
a watch-tower, according to the will of the
Lord, we should both lend our approval to
things when they run in accordance with our
wishes, and correct, by applying the remedies
of compulsion, what we observe gone wrong
through any aggression : hoping that abundant
fruit will be the result of our sowing the seed,
if we do not allow those things to increase
which have begun to spring up to the spoiling
of the harvest.

II. Following the examples of his predecessors
he nominates Anastasius Metropolitan of
Illyricum.

Now therefore, dear brother, that your re-
quest has been made known to us through
our son Nicolaus the priest, that you, too, like
your predecessors, might receive from us in
our turn authority over Illvricum for the
observance of the rules, we give our consent
and earnestly exhort that no concealment and
no negligence may be allowed in the manage-
ment of the churches situated throughout Illy-
ricum, which we commit to you in our stead,
following the precedent of Sirieius of blessed
remembrance, who then, for the first time,
acting on a fixed method, entrusted them to
your last predecessor but one \ Anysius of holy
memory, who had at the time well deserved of
the Apostolic See, and was approved by after
events : that he might render assistance to
the churches situated in that province whom
he wished kept up to discipline. Noble pre-
cedents must be followed with eagerness that

6 The letter to the college of bishops was written the same
day, and forms No. s in the Leonine series (in Migne;.

7 Sacerdoium here obviously = episcoporum, see Letter I.
note 5.

8 quibus sermone epistolis mutuo commcant bus sociamur :
notice the interlaced order of the words in the sentence which is
not, I think, without design as quaintly expressing his meaning.

9 Sc. in your province.

x S ricius was Bishop of Rome 384-398. Damasus, 366-384, is
said by Innocent I. to have been the first to do this, but not like
Sirieius, " acting on a fixed method," certa quadam ratione.

LETTER VI.

we may show ourselves in all things like those
whose privileges we wish to enjoy. We wish
you to imitate your last predecessor2 but one as
well as of your immediate predecessor who is
known equally with the former to have both
deserved and employed this privilege : so that
we may rejoice in the progress of the churches
which we commit to you in our stead. For as
the conduct of matters progresses creditably
when committed to one who acts well and
carries out skilfully the duties of the priestly
position, so it is found to be only a burden to
him who, when power is entrusted to him,
uses not the moderation that is due.

III. Ordinees must be carefully selected with
especial reference to the Canons of the Church.

And so, dear brother, hold with vigilance
the helm entrusted to you, and direct your
mind's gaze around on all which you see put
in your charge, guarding what will conduce to
your reward and resisting those who strive to
upset the discipline of the canons. The sanc-
tion of God's law must be respected, and the
decrees of the canons should be more es-
pecially kept. Throughout the provinces com-
mitted to thee let such priests be consecrated
to the Lord as are commended only by their
deserving life and position among the clergy.
Permit no licence to personal favour, nor to can-
vassing, nor to purchased votes. Let the cases
of those who are to be ordained be investigated
carefully and let them be trained in the dis-
cipline of the Church through a considerable
period of their life. But if all the require-
ments of the holy Fathers are found in them,
and if they have observed all that we read the
blessed Apostle Paul to have enjoined on such,
viz., that he be the husband of one wife, and
that she was a virgin when he married her, as
the authority of God's law requires, [then
ordain them 3j. And this we are extremely
anxious should be observed, so as to do away
with all place for excuses, lest any one should
believe himself able to attain to the priesthood
who has taken a wife before he obtained the
grace of Christ, and on her decease joined
himself to another after baptism. Seeing that
the former wife cannot be ignored, nor the
previous marriage put out of the reckoning,
and that he is as much the father of the chil-
dren whom he begat by that wife before bap-
tism as he is of those whom he is known to
have begotten by the second after baptism.
For as sins and things which are known to be

* Pratdecessoris tut. Anysius is said to have lived on into the
time of Innocent. Anastasins' immediate predecessor, selected by
Innocent (decessoris tui in the next line), was named Rufus.

3 These words are not found in the MSS. apparently, but are
necessary to the sense. For the requirement cf. Letter IV.
chapter iii.

unlawful are washed away in the font of bap>
tism, so what are allowed or lawful are not done
away.

IV. The Metropolitans must not ordain hastily

nor without consulting their Primate.

Let none be ordained a priest * throughout
these churches inconsiderately; for by this
means ripe judgments will be formed about
those to be elected, if your scrutiny, brother,
is dreaded. But let any bishop who, contrary
to our command, is ordained by his metro-
politan without your knowledge, know that he
has no assured position with us, and that those
who have taken on themselves so to do must
render an account of their presumption's. But
as to each metropolitan is committed such
power that he has the right of ordaining in his
province, so we wish those metropolitans to be
ordained, but not without ripe and well-con-
sidered judgment. For although it is seemly
that all who are consecrated priests should be
approved and well-pleasing to God, yet we
wish those to have peculiar excellence whom
we know are going to preside over the fellow-
priests who are assigned to them. And we
admonish you, beloved, to see to this the more
diligently and carefully, that you may be proved
to keep that precept of the Apostles which
runs, " lay hands suddenly on no man 6."

V. Points which cannot be settled at the provincial

synod are to be referred to Pome.

Any of the brethren who has been sum-
moned to a synod should attend and not deny
himself to the holy congregation : for there
especially he should know that what will con-
duce to the good discipline of the Church must
be settled. For all faults will be better avoided
if more frequent conferences lake place be-
tween the priests of the Lord, and intimate
association is the greatest help alike to im-
provement and to brotherly love. There, if
any questions arise, under the Lord's guidance
they will be able to be determined, so that no
bad feeling remains, and only a firmer love
exists among the brethren. But if any more
important question spring up, such as cannot
be settled there under your presidency, brother,
send your report and consult us, so that we
may write back under the revelation of the
Lord, of whose mercy it is that we can do
ought, because He has breathed favourably upon
us i : that by our decision we may vindicate

4 Here the word is antis/es, and no doubt it signifies " bishop,"
as the next sentence clearly shows.

5 The organization of the province then included(i)the bishops
under (2) metropolitans of districts, under (3) one supi erne primate
of the province, who was in his turn responsible to the Bishop of
Rome. 6 1 Tim. v. 22.

7 The word is as/iraverii (the notion o; which is to favour),
not \x\spiraverit (to inspire), as we might have expected.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

our right of cognizance in accordance with old-
established tradition and the respect that is
due to the Apostolic See : for as we wish you
to exercise your authority in our stead, so we
reserve to ourselves points which cannot be
decided on the spot and persons who have
made appeal to us.

VI. Priests and deacons may not be ordained on
weekdays any more than bishops.

You shall take order that this letter reach
the knowledge of all the brethren, so that no
one hereafter find an opportunity to excuse
himself through ignorance in observing these
things which we command. We have directed
our letter of admonition 8 to the metropolitans
themselves also of the several provinces, that
they may know that they must obey the Apos-
tolic injunctions, and that they obey us in
beginning to obey you, brother, our delegate
according to what we have written. We hear,
indeed, and we cannot pass it over in silence,
that only bishops are ordained by certain
brethren on Sundays only ; but presbyters and
deacons, whose consecration should be equally
solemn 9, receive the dignity of the priestly
office indiscriminately on any day, which is
a reprehensible practice contrary to the canons
and tradition of the Fathers ', since the custom
ought by all means to be kept by those who
have received it with respect to all the sacred or-
ders : so that after a proper lapse of time he who
is to be ordained a priest or deacon 2 may be
advanced through all the ranks of the clerical
office, and thus a man may have time to learn
that of which he himself also is one day to be
a teacher. Dated the 12th of January, in the
consulship of Theodosius (18th time, and Al-
binus (444).

LETTER VII.

To the Bishops throughout Italy.

Leo to all the bishops set over the provinces
of Italy greeting.

I. Many Manichceans have been discovered in

Rome.

We call you to a share in our anxiety, that
with the diligence of shepherds you may take
more careful heed to your flocks entrusted to
you that no craft of the devil's be permitted :
lest that plague, which by the revealing mercy

8 Viz., Letter V.

9 Circa qtws par consecratio fieri debet. I take this as a valu-
able statement in the mouth of Leo, who so seldom refers speci-
fically to the lower orders ot the ministry.

1 There seems to be no canon on the point before Leo's time :
but he alludes to the tradition again in Letter IX. chap, i and
CXI. chap. 2 (q.v.).

2 Qui sacerdos (? secundi ordinis here) vel levita (= diaconus)
ordinandus est.

of the Lord is driven off from our flocks through
our care, should spread among your churches
before you are forewarned, and are still ig-
norant of what is happening, and should find
means of stealthily burrowing into your midst,
and thus what we are checking in the City
should take hidden root among you and grow
up. Our search has discovered in the City
a great many followers and teachers of the
Manichsean impiety, our watchfulness has pro-
claimed them, and our authority and censure
has checked them : those whom we could re-
form we have corrected and driven to condemn
Manichaeus with his preachings and teachings
by public confession in church, and by the
subscription of their own hand, and thus we
have lifted those who have acknowledged their
fault from the pit of their iniquity by granting
them room for repentance 3. A good many,
however, who had so deeply involved them-
selves that no remedy could assist them, have
been subjected to the laws in accordance with
the constitutions of our Christian princes, and
lest they should pollute the holy flock by their
contagion, have been banished into perpetual
exile by public judges. And all the profane
and disgraceful things which are found as well
in their writings as in their secret traditions,
we have disclosed and clearly proved to the
eyes of the Christian laity * that the people
might know what to shrink from or avoid : so
that he that was called their bishop was him-
self tried by us, and betrayed the criminal
views which he held in his mystic religion, as
the record of our proceedings can show you.
For this, too, we have sent you for instruction :
and after reading them you will be in a posi-
tion to understand all the discoveries we have
made.

II. The bishops of Italy must not allow those
Manichceans who have quitted the city to escape
or lie concealed.

And because we know that a good many
of those who are involved here in too close an
accusation for them to clear themselves have
escaped, we have sent this letter to you,
beloved, by our acolyth : that your holiness,
dear brothers, may be informed of this, and
see fit to act with diligence and caution, lest
the men of the Manichsean error be able to
find opportunity of hurting your people and of
teaching their impious doctrines. For we can-
not otherwise rule those entrusted to us unless

3 Panitentiam concedendo, i.e. we have not finally excommuni-
cated them, but, dealing leniently, we have given them opportunity
of reinstating themselves in the peace of the Church, by going
through a due course of penance \satiafactio) • It is important to
explain this clearly to those who, in the present day, are ignorant
of the strict discipline of the early Church, and are liable to forget
that penance was then a valuable means to repentance.

4 Plebei.

LETTER IX.

we pursue with the zeal of faith in the Lord
those who are destroyers and destroyed : and
with what seventy we can bring to bear, cut
them off from intercourse with sound minds,
lest this pestilence spread much wider. Where-
fore I exhort you, beloved, I beseech and warn
you to use such watchful diligence as you ought
and can employ in tracking them out, lest they
find opportunity of concealment anywhere.
For as he will have a due recompense of
reward from God, who carries out what con-
duces to the health of the people committed
to him ; so before the Lord's judgment-seat
no one will be able to excuse himself from
a charge of carelessness who has not been wil-
ling to guard his people against the propagators
of an impious misbelief. Dated 30 January,
in the consulship of the illustrious Theodosius
Augustus (18th time) and Albinus (444).

LETTER VIII.
The Ordinance of Valentinian III.

CONCERNING THE MaNICHjEANS.

(The Manichseans are to be turned out of the
army and the City, and to lose all their
rights as citizens.)

LETTER IX.

To Dioscorus, Bishop of Alexandria.

Leo, the bishop, to Dioscorus, bishop of
Alexandria, greeting.

I. The churches of Rome and Alexandria
should be at one in everything.

How much of the divine love we feel for
you, beloved, you will be able to estimate
from this, that we are anxious to establish
your beginnings on a surer basis, lest any-
thing should seem lacking to the perfection
of your love, since your meritorious acts of
spiritual grace, as we have proved, are already
in your favour. Fatherly and brotherly con-
ference, therefore, ought to be most grateful to
you, holy brother, and received by you in the
same spirit as you know it is offered by us.
For you and we ought to be at one in thought
and act, so that as we reads, in us also there
may be proved to be one heart and one mind.
For since the most blessed Peter received the
headship of the Apostles from the Lord, and
the church of Rome still abides by His insti-
tutions, it is wicked to believe that His holy
disciple Mark, who was the first to govern the
church of Alexandria6, formed his decrees on
a different line of tradition : seeing that with-

5 Sc. in Vets iv. 32.

6 S. Mark, the evangelist and disciple of S. Peter, is the radi-
ional founder of the church of Alexandria.

out doubt both disciple and master drew but
one Spirit from the same fount of grace, and
the ordained could not hand on aught else than
what he had received from his ordainer. We
do not therefore allow it that we should differ
in anything, since we confess ourselves to be of
one body and faith, nor that the institutions
of the teacher should seem different to those
of the taught.

II. Fixed days should be observed for ordaining
priests and deacons.

That therefore which we know to have been
very carefully observed by our fathers, we wish
kept by you also, viz. that the ordination of
priests or deacons should not be performed at
random on any day : but after Saturday, the
commencement of that night which precedes
the dawn of the first day of the week should
be chosen on which the sacred benediction
should be bestowed on those who are to be
consecrated, ordainer and ordained alike fast-
ing. This observance will not be violated, if
actually on the morning of the Lord's day it
be celebrated without breaking the Saturday
fast : for the beginning of the preceding night
forms part of that period, and undoubtedly
belongs to the day of resurrection as is clearly
laid down with regard to the feast of Easter?.
For besides the weight of custom which we
know rests upon the Apostles' teaching, Holy
Writ also makes this clear, because when
the Apostles sent Paul and Barnabas at
the bidding of the Holy Ghost to preach
the gospel to the nations, they laid hands
on them fasting and praying : that we may
know with what devoutness both giver and
receiver must be on their guard lest so
blessed a sacrament should seem to be care-
lessly performed. And therefore you will
piously and laudably follow Apostolic prece-
dents if you yourself also maintain this form
of ordaining priests throughout the churches
over which the Lord has called you to preside :
viz. that those who are to be consecrated
should never receive the blessing except on
the day of the Lord's resurrection, which is
commonly held to begin on the evening of
Saturday, and which has been so often hal-
lowed in the mysterious dispensations of God
that all the more notable institutions of the
Lord were accomplished on that high day.
On it the world took its beginning. On it
through the resurrection of Christ death re-
ceived its destruction, and life its commence-
ment. On it the apostles take from the
Lord's hands the trumpet of the gospel

7 That is to say, the weekly resurrection festival (Sunday)
begins with the vespers of the preceding evening : this is notably
the case in the yearly festival of Easter at least in Western use.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

which is to be preached to all nations, and
receive the sacrament of regeneration8 which
they are to bear to the whole world. On it,
as blessed John the Evangelist bears witness
when all the disciples were gathered together
in one place, and when, the doors being shut,
the Lord entered to them, He breathed on
them and said: "Receive the Holy Ghost:
whose sins ye have remitted they are remitted
to them : and whose ye have retained, they
shall be retained?." On it lastly the Holy
Spirit that had been promised to the Apostles
by the Lord came : and so we know it to
have been suggested and handed down by a
kind of heavenly rule, that on that day we
ought to celebrate the mysteries of the blessing
of priests on which all these gracious gifts
were conferred.

III. The repetition of the Holy Eucharist on
the great festivals is not undesirable.

Again, that our usage may coincide at all
points, we wish this thing also to be observed,
viz. that when any of the greater festivals has
brought together a larger congregation than
usual, and too great a crowd of the faithful
has assembled for one church1 to hold them
all at once, there should be no hesitation
about repeating the oblation of the sacrifice :
lest, if those only are admitted to this service
who come first, those who flock in afterwards,
should seem to be rejected: for it is fully in
accordance with piety and reason, that as
often as a fresh congregation has filled the
church where service is going on, the sacri-
fice should be offered as a matter of course.
Whereas a certain portion of the people must
be deprived of their worship, if the custom
of only one celebration2 be kept, and only
those who come early in the day can offer the
sacrifice3. We admonish you, therefore, be-
loved, earnestly and affectionately that your
carefulness also should not neglect what has
become a part of our own usage on the pattern
of our fathers' tradition, so that in all things
we may agree together in our beliefs and in
our performances. Consequently, we have

8 Sacr amentum regenerationis : the reference in the first part
of the sentence seems to be S. Mark xvi. 15, and here in the latter
part to S. Matt, xxviii. 19, and both these records seem to refer to
the same manifestation. S. Matihew says it was to " the eleven
disciples" in Galilee, in "the mountain where Jesus had appointed
them," that He gave the command, if indeed vv. 16-23 of the
xxviiith chapter form one cuntinjous narrative. The author of
S. Mark xvi. 9-20 says it was to the eleven "as they sat at meat."
Is it pos^ble that Leo took ai/aK-et/ucVois to mean as they were
partaking of the Holy Eucharist 1 if not, what countenance is
there tor nis assertion of its being on the rir=t day of the week ?

9 S. John xx. 22, 23.

* Basilica, q.v. in Smith's Diet. 0/ Christian Antiquities.

2 Missce.
_ 3 It can hardly escape notice that the people here are distinctly
said " to offer the sacrifice " in the person of their representative
and mouthpiece, the priest. And this is the language and intention
of all Liturgies (ancient and modern) of the Church.

given this letter to our son Possidonius, a
presbyter, on his return, that he may bear
it to you, brother ; he has so often taken part
in our ceremonials and ordinations, and has
been sent to us so many times that he knows
quite well what Apostolic authority we possess
in all things. Dated 21 June (? 445).

LETTER X.

To the Bishops of the Province of Vienne.

In the matter of Hilary, Bishop

of Arles4.

To the beloved brothers, the whole body

of bishops of the province of Vienne, Leo,

bishop of Rome.

I. The solidarity of the Church built upon the
rock of S. Peter must be everywhere main-
tained.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, Saviour of mankind,
instituted the observance of the Divine re-
ligion which He wished by the grace of God
to shed its brightness upon all nations and
all peoples in such a way that the Truth,
which before was confined to the announce-
ments of the Law and the Prophets, might
through the Apostles' trumpet blast go out for
the salvation of all mens, as it is written :
" Their sound has gone out into every land,
and their words into the ends of the world6."
But this mysterious function? die Lord wished
to be indeed the concern of all the apostles,
but in such a way that He has placed the
principal charge on the blessed Peter, chief
of all the Apostles8 : and from him as from the
Head wishes His gifts to flow to all the body :
so that any one who dares to secede from
Peter's solid rock may understand that he
has no part or lot in the divine mystery. For
He wished him who had been received into
partnership in His undivided unity to be
named what He Himself was, when He said :
"Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will
build My Church.9 :" that the building of the
eternal temple by the wondrous gift of God's
grace might rest on Peter's solid rock :
strengthening His Church so surely that
neither could human rashness assail it nor
the gates of hell prevail against it. But this
most holy firmness of the rock, reared, as we
have said, by the building hand of God, a
man must wish to destroy in over-weaning

4 Cf. Introduction, p. vi.

5 Per Apostolicam iubam in salu'em -universitatis (Ok. T-qs
oiKounefT);) exiret, cf. Letter IX. chap. ii. apostoli a Domino
prcedicandi omnibus gentibus evangelii tubatn sumunt.

6 Ps. xix. 4.

7 Huius muneris sacramentum, his mind is running forward
to his favourite sacramentum, that of Peter as the rock-man of
the Church.

8 Cf. Letter XXVIII. chap. v. a princifiali /etra(B. Petrus),
soliditatem et virtutis traxit et nominis, etc. : also Cyprian
de unit. eccl. chap. iv. 9 S. Matt. xvi. 18.

LETTER X.

wickedness when he tries to break down its
power, by favouring his own desires, and not
following what he received from men of old :
for he believes himself subject to no law, and
held in check by no rules of God's ordinances,
and breaks away, in his eagerness for novelty,
from your use and ours, by adopting illegal
practices, and letting what he ought to keep
fall into abeyance.

II. Hilary is disturbing the peace of the Church
by his insubordination.

But with the approval, as we believe, of
God, and retaining towards you the fulness of
our love which the Apostolic See always, as you
remember, expends upon you, holy brethren,
we are striving to correct these things by
mature counsel, and to share with you the task
of setting your churches in order, not by inno-
vations but by restoration of the old ; that we
may persevere in the accustomed state which
our fathers handed down to us, and please our
God through the ministry of a good work by
removing the scandals of disturbances. And
so we would have you recollect, brethren, as
we do, that the Apostolic See, such is the
reverence in which it is held, has times out of
number been referred to and consulted by the
priests of your province as well as others, and
in the various matters of appeal, as the old
usage demanded, it has reversed or confirmed
decisions : and in this way " the unity of the
spirit in the bond of peace 1 " has been kept,
and by the interchange of letters, our honourable
proceedings have promoted a lasting affection :
for "seeking not our own but the things of
Christ2," we have been careful not to do
despite to the dignity which God has given
both to the churches and their priests. But
this path which with our fathers has been
always so well kept to and wisely maintained,
Hilary has quitted, and is likely to disturb the
position and agreement of the priests by his
novel arrogance : desiring to subject you to
his power in such a way as not to suffer him-
self to be subject to the blessed Apostle Peter,
claiming for himself the ordinations of all the
churches throughout the provinces of Gaul, and
transferring to himself the dignity which is due
to metropolitan priests ; he diminishes even the
reverence that is paid to the blessed Peter him-
self with his proud words : for not only was the
power of loosing and binding given to Peter
before the others, but also to Peter more
especially was entrusted the care of feeding
the sheep 3. Yet any one who holds that the

headship must be denied to Peter, cannot
really diminish his dignity : but is puffed up
with the breath of his pride, and plunges him-
self into the lowest depth.

III. Celidonius has been restored to his bishopric,
the charges against him having been, found
false.

Accordingly the written record of our pro-
ceedings shows what action we have taken in
the matter of Celidonius 4, the bishop, and
what Hilary said in the presence and hearing
of the aforesaid bishop. For when Hilary had
no reasonable answer to give in the council of
the holy priests, " the secrets of his heart 5 "
gave vent to utterances such as no layman
could make and no priest listen to. We were
grieved, I acknowledge, brothers, and en-
deavoured to appease the tumult of his mind
by patient treatment. For we did not wish to
exasperate those wounds which he was inflict-
ing on his soul by his insolent retorts, and
strove rather to pacify him whom we had taken
up as a brother, although it was he who was
entangling himself by his replies, than to cause
him pain by our remarks. Celidonius, the
bishop, was therefore acquitted, for he had
proved himself wrongfully deposed from the
priesthood, by the clear replies of his witnesses
made in his own presence : so that Hilary, who
remained with us, had no opposition to offer.
The judgment, therefore, was rescinded, which
was brought forward and read to the effect
that, as the husband of a widow6, he could
not hold the priesthood. Now this rule we,
maintainingthe legalconstitutions?, have wished
scrupulously adhered to, not only in respect of
priests but also of clergy of the lower ranks :
that those who have contracted such a marriage,
or those who are proved not to be the hus-
bands of only one wife contrary to the apostle's
discipline, should not be suffered to enter the
sacred service 8. But though we decree that
those, whom their own acts condemn, must
either not be admitted at all, or, if they have,
must be removed, so those who are falsely so
accused we are bound to clear after examina-
tion held, and not allow to lose their office.
For the sentence pronounced would have
remained against him, if the truth of the
charge had been proved. And so Celidonius,
our fellow-bishop, was restored to his church
and to that dignity which he ought not to have

1 Eph. iv. 3. 2 Phil. ii. 21.

3 Cut cum pro- (Quesnel conj. pro) ceeteris solvendi et ligandi
tradita. sit poWstas, pascendarum tamen oviutn cura specialties
mandata est. Cf. S. John xxi. 15 — 17.

4 Celidonius was probably either bishop of Vienne or of
Vesonf.s(Besancon): see Perihel, p. 25.

5 Quesnel well refer* this phrase to 1 Cor. xiv. 25.

6 Cf. Letter IV. chap. iii.

7 Scrvantes legalia constitute^ these are taken to be not so
much the canons of the Church as the provisions of the Mosaic
Law, e.g. Lev. xxi. 14 ; Ezek. xliv. 22.

8 Militiam (lit. military service).

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

lost, as the course of our proceedings, and the
sentence which was pronounced by us after
holding the inquiry testifies.

IV. Hilary's treatment of Projeclus does not
redound to his credit.

When this business was so concluded, the
complaint of our brother and fellow-bishop, Pro-
jectus 9, next came before us: who addressed
us in a tearful and piteous letter, about the
ordaining of a bishop over his head. A letter
was also brought to us from his own fellow-
citizens, corroborated by a great many indi-
vidual signatures, and full of the most unplea-
sant complaints against Hilary : to the effect
that Projectus, their bishop, was not allowed to
be ill, but his priesthood had been transferred to
another without their knowledge, and the heir
brought into possession by Hilary, the intruder,
as if to fill up a vacancy, though the possessor
was still alive x. We should like to hear what
you, brothers, think on the point : although
we ought not to entertain any doubt about
your feelings, when you picture to yourselves
a brother lying on a sick-bed and tortured, not
so much by his bodily weakness as by pains of
another kind. What hope in life is left a man
who is visited with despair about his priesthood,
whilst another is set up in his place? Hilary
gives a clear proof of his gentle heart when he
believed that the tardiness of a brother's death
is but a hindrance to his own ambitious designs.
For, as far as in him lay, he quenched the light
for him ; he robbed him of life by setting up
another in his room, and thus causing him
such pain as to hinder his recovery. And
supposing that his brother's passage from this
world was brief, but after the common course
of men, what does Hilary seek for himself in
another's province, and why does he claim that
which none of his predecessors before Patroclus
possessed ? whereas that very position which
seemed to have been temporarily granted to
Patroclus by the Apostolic See was afterwards
withdrawn by a wiser decision2. At least the
wishes of the citizens should have been waited
for, and the testimony of the people 3 : the
opinion of those held in honour should have

9 Projectus was perhaps a bishop of the province of Gallia
Narbonensis I. : Perthel, p. 27.

1 Quod Projecto episcopo suo ergrotare liberum non fuisset.
eiusque sacerdotium in alium prwter suam notitiam esse trans-
latum, et tamquam in vacuam possessionem ab Hi/arioperrasore
hceredein viventis inductum. The construction is changed from
quod . . . . fuisset, to the ordinary accus. and infin.

_ 2 Patroclus had been Bishop of Aries circ. 416, and the then
Bishop ol Rome, Zosirnus. had granted him metropolitan ric;hN
over the provinces of S.E. Gaul, which did not gain the acceptance
of the other chiei bishops in the district, and Boniface 1. (Ep 12),
'." i2"~ seems to have withdrawn the rights granted by Zosirnus
(Schaff, 1, p. 297).

3 Ctvium : jsopulorum. The former are apparently called
lower down fidelium, and the latter guiforis sunt.

been asked, and the choice of the clergy —
things which those who know the rules of the
fathers are wont to observe in the ordination
of priests : that the rule of the Apostle's
authority might in all things be kept, which
enjoins that one who is to be the priest of
a church should be fortified, not only by the
attestation of the faithful but also by the
testimony of "those who are without4," and
that no occasion for offence be left, when, in
peace and in GoD-pleasing harmony with the
full approval of all, one who will be a teacher
of peace is ordained.

V. Hilary's action was very reprehensible through-
out, and we have restoi'ed Projectus.

But Hilary came upon them unawares and
departed no less suddenly, accomplishing many
journeys with great speed, as we have ascer-
tained, and traversing distant provinces with
such haste that he seems to have coveted
a reputation for the swiftness of a courier
rather than for the sobriety of a priest s. For
these are the words of the citizens in the letter
that has been addressed to us : — " He departed
before we knew he had come." This is not to
return but to flee, not to exercise a shepherd's
wholesome care, but to employ the violence of
a thief and a robber, as saith the Lord : " he
that entereth not by the door into the sheep-
fold 6, but climbeth up some otner way, is
a thief and a robber." Hilary, therefore,
was anxious not so much to consecrate a
bishop as to kill him who was sick, and to
mislead the man whom he set over his head
by wrongful ordination. We, however, have
done what, as God is our Judge, we believe
you will approve : after holding counsel with
all the brethren we have decreed that the
wrongfully ordained man should be deposed
and the Bishop Projectus abide in his priest-
hood : with the further provision that when
any of our brethren in whatsoever province
shall decease, he who has been agreed upon
to be metropolitan of that province shall claim
for himself the ordination of his successor.

These two matters, as we see, have been
settled, though there are many other points in
them which seem to have violated the prin-
ciples of the Church, and ought to be visited
with just censure and judgment. But we can-
not linger on them any further, for we are
called off to other matters on which we must
carefully confer with you, holy brethren.

4 1 Tim. iii. 17.

5 Gloriam de scurrili velocitate fiotius quam de sacerdotali
moderatione captasse.

6 In cortem avium : the low Latin word {cars) is in the Vulgatt
changed to ovile.

LETTER X.

VI. Hilary 's practice of using armed violence
must be suppressed.

A band of soldiers, as we have learnt,
follows the priest through the provinces and
helps him who relies upon their armed support
in turbulently invading churches, which have
lost their own priests. Before this court? are
dragged for ordination men who are quite un-
known to the cities over which they are to be
set. For as one who is well known and
approved is sought out in peace, so must
one who is unknown, when brought forward, be
established by violence. I beg and entreat
and beseech you in God's name prevent such
things, brethren, and remove all occasion for
discord from your provinces. At all events
we acquit ourselves before God in beseeching
you not to allow this to proceed further. In
peace and quietness should they be asked
for who are to be priests. The consent of the
clergy, the testimony of those held in honour,
the approval of the orders and the laity should
be required 8. He who is to govern all, should
be chosen by all 9. As we said before, each
metropolitan should keep in his own hands the
ordinations that occur in his own province,
acting in concert with those who precede the
rest in seniority of priesthood, a privilege re-
stored to him through us. No man should
claim for himself another's rights. Each
should keep within his own limits and bound-
aries, and should understand that he cannot
pass on to another a privilege that belongs to
himself. But if any one neglecting the Apostle's
prohibitions and paying too much heed to
personal favour, wishes to give up his pre-
cedence, thinking he can pass his rights on to
another, not he to whom he has yielded, but
he who ranks before the rest of the priests
within the province in episcopal seniority,
should claim to himself the power of ordaining.
The ordination should be performed not at
random but on the proper day : and it should
be known that any one who has not been
ordained on the evening of Saturday, which
precedes the dawn of the first day of the
week *, or actually on the Lord's day cannot
be sure of his status. For our forefathers judged
the day of the Lord's resurrection 2 as alone
worthy of the honour of being the occasion
on which those who are to be made priests are
given to God.

7 Ante hoc officium.

8 Cf. Cypr. Ep. lv. cap. vii., factus est Cornelius episcofus de
Deiet Christiei'is iudicio, de clericorum pa>ne omnium testimonio,
de f>lebis, qua tunc adfuit, suffragio et sacerdotum antiquorum
et bonorum virorum collegio.

9 Quesnel appositely quotes Pliny (Paneg. Traiani) impera-
turus omnibus cligi debet ex omnibus.

1 Quod hicescit in prima sabbati ; the phrase is repeated from
LetterlX.. chap, ii., to which refer for the whole passage.
a Viz., Sunday.

VII. Hilaiy is deposed not only from his
usurped jurisdiction, but also from what of
right belongs to him, and is restricted to his
own single bishopric.

Let each province be. content with its own
councils, ana let not Hilary dare to summon
synodal meetings besides, and by his inter-
ference disturb the judgments of the Lord's
priests. And let him know that he is not
only deposed from another's rights, but also
deprived of his power over the province of
Vienne which he had wrongfully assumed.
For it is but fair, brethren, that the ordi-
nances of antiquity should be restored, see-
ing that he who claimed for himself the ordi-
nations of a province for which he was not
responsible, has been shown in a similar way
in the present case also to have acted so that,
as he has on more than one occasion brought
on himself sentence of condemnation by his
rash and insolent words, he may now be kept
by our command in accordance with the cle-
mency of the Apostolic See 3 to the priest-
hood of his own city alone. He is not to
be present then at any ordination : he is not
to ordain because, conscious of his deserts,
when he was required to answer for his action,
he trusted to make good his escape by disgrace-
ful flight, and has put himself out of Apostolic
communion, of which he did not deserve to
be a partaker * : and we believe this was by
God's providence, who brought him to our
court, though we did not expect him, and
caused him to retire by stealth in the midst
of holding the inquiry, that he should not be
a partner in our communion s.

VIII. Excommunication should be inplicted only
on those who are guilty of some great crime,
and even then not hastily.

No Christian should lightly be denied com-
munion 6, nor should that be done at the will
of an angry priest which the judge's mind
ought to a certain extent unwillingly and
regretfully to carry out for the- punishment of
a great crime. For we have ascertained that
some have been cut off from the grace of com-
munion for trivial deeds and words, and that
the soul for which Christ's blood was shed
has been exposed to the devil's attacks and
wounded, disarmed, so to say, and stript of all

3 Pro apostolicee sedis pietate, or " as loyalty to the Apostolic
See demands."

4 This does not mean that Hilary is excommunicated, but that
he is to have no share in episcopal privileges, as a successor of the
apostles.

5 These words of course refer to Hilary's journey on foot to-
Rome, and his subsequent escape from something very much like
prison : see Introduction, p. vi. : for his degradation, cf. Letter
XII.. chap, ix., where a similar punishment is enacted.

6 Here, no doubt, excommunication pure and simple is meant
Cf. note 4, supr.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

defence by the infliction of so savage a punish-
ment as to fall an easy prey to him. Of
course if ever a case has arisen of such a kind
as in due proportion to the nature of the
crime committed to deprive a man of com-
munion, he only who is involved in the accusa-
tion must be subjected to punishment : and he
who is not shown to be a partner in its com-
mission ought not to share in the penalty.
But what wonder that one who is wont to exult
over the condemnation of priests, should show
himself in the same light towards laymen.

IX. Leontius is appointed in Hilary's room.

Wherefore, because our desire seems very
different to this (for we are anxious that the
settled state of all the Churches and the har-
mony of the priests should be maintained,)
exhorting you to unity in the bond of love,
we both entreat, and consistently with our
affection admonish you, in the interests of
your peace and dignity, to keep what has been
decreed by us at the inspiration of God and
the most blessed Apostle Peter, after sifting and
testing all the matters at issue, being assured
that what we are known to have decided in
this way is not so much to our own advantage
as to yours. For we are not keeping in our own
hands the ordinations of your provinces, as
perhaps Hilary, with his usual untruthfulness,
may suggest in order to mislead your minds,
holy brethren : but in our anxiety we are claim-
ing for you that no further innovations should
be allowed, and that for the future no oppor-
tunity should be given for the usurper to
infringe your privileges. For we acknowledge
that it can only redound to our credit, if the
diligence of the Apostolic See be kept un-
impaired among you, and -if in our mainten-
ance of Apostolic discipline we do not allow
what belongs to your position to fall to the
ground through unscrupulous aggressions.
And since seniority is always to be respec-
ted, we wish Leontius ?, our brother and
fellow-bishop, a priest well approved among
you, to be promoted to this dignity, if it please
you that without his consent no further council
be summoned by you, holy brethren, and that
he may be honoured by you all as his age and
good fame demands, the metropolitans being
secured in their own dignity and rights. For
it is but fair, and no injury seems to accrue to
any of the brethren, if those who come first
in seniority of the priesthood should, as their
age deserves, have deference paid to them by

• 7 Leontius seems to have had little but his age to recommend
him for this promotion : the name of his bishopric is unknown :
and the weakness of the appointment may, I think, be gathered
from Leo's insisting so strongly on the principle of seniority both
here and in chap. vi. above.

the rest of the priests in their own provinces.
God keep you safe, beloved brethren.

LETTER XI.

An Ordinance of Valentinianus III.
(Confirming Leo's sentence upon Hilary.)

LETTER XII.

Leo, bishop of the city of Rome, to all the
bishops of Mauritania Caesariensis in Africa
greeting in the Lord.

I. The disorderly appointments of bishops which
have been made in the province are repre-
hensible.

Inasmuch as the frequent accounts of
those who visited us made mention of certain
unlawful practices among you with regard to
the ordination of priests, the demands of re-
ligion required that we should strive to arrive
at the exact state of the case in accordance
with that solicitude which by the Divine
command we bestow on the whole Church :
and so we delegated the charge of this to our
brother and fellow-priest, Potentius. who was
setting out from us : and who, according to
what we wrote and addressed to you by him,
was to make inquiry as to the tacts about
the bishops whose election was said to be
faulty, and to report everything faithfully to
us. Wherefore, because the same Potentius
has most fully disclosed all to our knowledge,
and has by his truthful account made clear to
us, under what and what manner of governors
some of Christ's congregations are placed in
certain parts of the province of (Mauritania)
Csesariensis, we have found it necessary to
open out the grief wherewith our hearts are
vexed for the dangers of the Lord's flocks, by
sending this letter also to you beloved : for
we are surprised that either the over-bearing
conduct of intriguers or the rioting of the
people had so much weight with you in a
time of disorder, that the chief pastorate and
governance of the Church was handed over
to the unwoithiest persons, and such as were
farthest removed from the priestly standard.
This is not to consult but harm the peoples'
interests : and not to enforce discipline but
to increase differences. For the integrity of
the rulers is the safeguard of those who are
under them : and where there is complete obe-
dience, there the form of doctrine is sound.
But an appointment which has either been
made by sedition or seized by intrigue, even
though it offend not in morals or in practice,
is nevertheless pernicious from the mere ex-
ample of its beginning : and it is hard for

LETTER XII.

things to be carried to a good issue which
were started with a bad beginning.

II. In no case ought bishops to be ordained

hastily.

But if in every grade of the Church great
forethought and knowledge lias to be em-
ployed, lest there be any thing disorderly
or out of place8 in the house of the Lord:
how much more carefully must we strive to
prevent mistakes in the election of him who is
set over all the grades ? For the peace and
order of the Lord's whole household will
be shaken, if what is required in the body be
not found in the head. Where is that precept
of the blessed Apostle Paul uttered through
the Spirit of God, whereby in the person of
Timothy the whole number ofChrist'spriestsare
instructed, and to each one of us is said: "Lay
hands hastily on no one, and do not share in
other men's sins9?" What is to lay on hands
hastily but to confer the priestly dignity on
unproved men before the proper age1, before
there has been time to test them, before they
have deserved it by their obedience, before
they have been tried by discipline? And
what is to share in other men's sins but for the
ordainer to become such as is he who ought
not to have been ordained by him ? For just
as a man stores up for himself the fruit of his
good work, if he maintains a right judgment
in choosing a priest : so one who receives an
unworthy priest into the number of his col-
leagues, inflicts grievous loss upon himself.
We must not then pass over in the case of
any one that which is laid down in the general
ordinances : nor is that advancement to be
reckoned lawful which has been made contrary
to the precepts of God's law.

III. The At>ostolic precept about the marriage
of the clergy based upon the marriage of
Christ with the Church of ivhich it is a

figure.

For as the Apostle says that among other
rules for election he shall be ordained bishop
who is known to have been or to be "the
husband of one wife," this command was
always held so sacred that the same condition
was understood as necessary to be observed

8 Nihil sit inordinatum ni/tilgue preefiosterum : the two
words are well chosen (as usual), and bearing a distinct meaning :
the former expressing "disorder" in the sense of want of the divine
commission, the latter, "disorder" in the sense of choosing the
younger over the old, the inferior over the superior, He. ; the same
two epithets occur in Lett. XIX., chap. i.

9 1 Tim v. 22.

1 Ante atatem maturitatis. The Council of Carthage
(A.D.397), c. 4, fixed the downward limit for deacons at 25, and
for priests at 30 : and we may presume that that was the general
rule in Leo's time, for we find the same ages ordained afterwards
in the Novella of Justinian (535-565) and elsewhere.

even in the wife2 of the priest-elect: lest
she should happen to have been married to
another man before she entered into wedlock
with him, even though he himself had had no
other wife. Who then would dare to allow
this injury to be perpetiated upon so great
a sacrament 3, seeing that this great and vener-
able mystery is not without the support of the
statutes of God's law as well, whereby it is
clearly laid down that a priest is to marry
a virgin, and that she who is to be the wife
of a priest* is not to know another husband?
For even then in the priests was prefigured
the Spiritual marriage of Christ and His
Church : so that since " the man is the head
of the woman s," the spouse of the Word may
learn to know no other man but Christ,
who did rightly choose her only, loves her
only, and takes none but her into His alliance.
If then even in the Old Testament this kind
of marriage among priests is adhered to, how
much more ought we who are placed under
the grace of the Gospel to conform to the
Apostle's precepts : so that though a man be
found endowed with good character, and fur-
nished with holy works, he may nevertheless
in no wise ascend either to the grade of
deacon, or the dignity of the presbytery, or
to the highest rank of the bishopric, if it has
been spread abroad either that he himself
is not the husband of one wife, or that his
wife is not the wife of one husband.

IV. Premature promotions are to be avoided.
But when the Apostle warns and says :
"and let these also first be proved, and so
let them minister6," what else do we think
must be understood but that in these pro-
motions we should consider not only the
chastity of their marriages, but also the deserts
of their labours, lest the pastoral office be
entrusted to men who are either fresh from
baptism, or suddenly diverted from worldly
pursuits ? for through all the ranks of the
Christian army in the matter of promotions
it ought to be considered whether a man
can manage a greater charge. Rightly did
the venerable opinions of the blessed Fathers
in speaking of the election of priests reckon
those men fit for the administration of sacred
things who had been slowly advanced through
the various grades of office, and had given
such good proof of themselves therein that
in each one of them the character of their
practices bore witness to their lives?. For

8 Cf. Letter IV., chap, ii., and elsewhere.

3 No one will by this time be surprised to find Leo calling
Sacred Orders either a sacramentnm, as htre, or a mysteritun, as
in the next sentence : the two terms are indeed in his usage almost
equivalents. 4 Lev. xxi. 13.

5 Eph. v. 23. 6 1 Tim. iii. 10.

7 The shorter edition of this letter, which is extant, gives this

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

if it is improper to attain to the world's dig-
nities without the help of time and without the
merit of having toiled, and if the seeking of
office is branded unless it be supported by proofs
of uprightness, how diligently and how carefully
ought the dispensing of divine duties and
heavenly dignities to be carried out, lest
in aught the apostolic and canonical decrees
be violated, and the ruling of the Lord's
Church be committed to men who being ig-
norant of the lawful constitutions and devoid
of all humility wish not to rise from the lowest
grade, but to begin with the highest : for it is
extremely unfair and preposterous that the
inexpert should be preferred to the expert,
the young to the old, the raw recruits to
those who have seen much service. In a
great house, indeed, as the Apostle explains8,
there must needs be divers vessels, some of
gold and of silver, and some of wood and of
earth : but their purpose varies with the qua-
lity of their material, and the use of the
precious and of the cheap kinds is not the
same. For everything will be in disorder if
the earthen ware be preferred to the golden,
or the wooden to the silver. And as the
wooden or earthen vessels are a figure of
those men who are hitherto conspicuous for
no virtues ; so in the golden or siiver vessels
they no doubt are represented who, having
passed through the fire of long experience,
and through the furnace of protracted toil,
have deserved to be tried gold and pure
silver. And if such men get no reward for
their devotion, all the discipline of the Church
is loosened, all order is disturbed, while men
who have undergone no service obtain un-
deserved preferment by the wrongful choice
of the electing body.

V. He distinguishes behveen lay?nen who have
been raised to the bishoprics and digamous
clerks, forgiving the for7ner and not the latter.

Since then either the eager wishes of the
people or the intrigues of the ambitious have
had so much weight among you that we
understand not only laymen, but even hus-
bands of second wives or widows have been
promoted to the pastoral office, are there not
the clearest reasons for requiring that the
churches in which such things have been

sentence in a very different form: the qualifications are much
more exactly defined, e.g., bishops are to have spent their lives in
orders a puerilibus exordiis usque ad provectiores annos. I think
Quesnel is right in considering this a later version and alteration
the better to inculcate the usage of the Ch in ch . For although no
doubt persons were often mere boys [Readers (lectores) for
instance: see Bright's note 46 1 when they entered minor orders
yet the fact that one was an adult layman before taking orders
could not ipso facto have precluded a man from becoming bishop
however desirable the rule and general principle might be : in fact
Cyprmn at l»ast is evidence to the contrary.
8 Sc. 2 Tim. ii. 20.

done should be cleansed by a severer judg-
ment than usual, and that not only the rulers
themselves, but also those who ordained them
should receive condign punishment ? But
there stand on our one hand the gentleness
of mercy, on our other the strictness of justice.
And because " all the paths of the Lord are
loving-kindness and truth 9," we are forced ac-
cording to our loyalty to the Apostolic See so
to moderate our opinion as to weigh men's
misdeeds in the balance (for of course they
are not all of one measure), and to reckon
some as to a certain extent1 pardonable,
but others as altogether to be repressed. For
they who have either entered into second
marriages or joined themselves in wedlock
with widows are not allowed to hold the
priesthood, either by the apostolic or legal
authority : and much more is this the case
with him who, as it was reported to us, is the
husband of two wives at once, or him who
being divorced by his wife is said to have
married another, that is, supposing these
charges are in your judgment proved. But
the rest, whose preferment only so far incurs
blame that they have been chosen to the
episcopal function from among the laity, and
are not culpable in the matter of their wives,
we allow to retain the priesthood upon which
they have entered, without prejudice to the
statutes of the Apostolic See, and without
breaking the rules of the blessed Fathers,
whose wholesome ordinance it is that no
layman, whatever amount of support he may
receive, shall ascend to the first, second, or third
rank in the Church until he reach that position
by the legitimate steps2. For what we now
suffer to be to a certain extent3 venial, cannot
hereafter pass unpunished, if any one per-
petrates what we altogether forbid : because
the forgiveness of a sin does not grant a
licence to do wrong, nor will it be right to
repeat an offence with impunity which has
partly* been condoned.

VI. Doiiatus, a converted Novation, and
Maximus, an ex-Donatist, are retaitied in
their episcopal office.

Donatus of Salacia, who, as we learn, has
been converted from the Novatians s with his
people, we wish to preside over the Lord's
flock, on condition that he remembers he must
send a certificate of his faith to us, in which

9 Ps. xxv. 10. « Utcumque.

2 Per legitima augmenfa, cf. n. 7 above. This passage makes
it clear what is there required is not the puerilia exordia of the
shorter edition of this letter, but the multum tempus of this longer
edition. 3 Utcumque again.

4 Aliqua ratione.

5 In the case of these two noted African schisms it is hardly
necessary to do more than refer the reader to Smith's or any other
standard dictionary

LETTER XII.

lie not only condemns the error of the Nova-
tion dogma, but also unreservedly confesses
the catholic truth. Maximus, also, although
he was culpably ordained when a layman, yet
if he is now no longer a Uonatist, and
has abjured the spirit of schismatic de-
pravity, we do not depose from his episcopal
dignity, which he has obtained irregularly, on
condition that he declare himself a catholic
by drawing up a certificate for us.

VII. The case of Aggarus and Tyberianus (or-
dained with tumult) is referred to the bishops.

But concerning Aggarus and Tyberianus,
whose ca<=e is different from the others who
were ordained from among the laity, in this
that their ordination is reported to have been
accompanied by fierce riots and savage dis-
turbances, we have entrusted the whole matter
to your judgment, tUat relying upon your
investigation of the case, we may know what
to decide about them.

VIII. Maidens who have suffered violence are
not to compare themselves with others.

Those handmaids of God who have lost
their chastity by the violence of barbarians,
will be more praiseworthy in their humility
and shame-fastness, if they do not venture
to compare themselves to undefiled virgins.
For although every sin springs from the de-
sire, and the will may have remained uncon-
quered and unpolluted by the fall of the flesh,
still this will be less to their detriment, if they
grieve over losing even in the body what they
did not lose in spirit.

IX. These injunctions to be carried out without

conten tiousness.

And so now that you see yourselves, be-
loved, fully instructed through David, our
brother and fellow-bishop, who is approved to
us both by his personal character and his
priestly worth, on [nearly] 6 all the points
which our brother Potentius' account con-
tained, it remains, brothers, that you receive
our healthful exhortations harmoniously, and
that doing nothing in rivalry, but acting
unanimously with entire devotion and zeal,
you obey the constitution of God and His
Apostles, and in nothing suffer the well-con-
sidered decrees of the canons to be violated.
For what we from the consideration of certain
reasons have now relaxed must henceforward
be guarded by the ancient rules, lest, what we
have on this occasion with merciful lenity con-
ceded, we may hereafter have to visit with

6 Fere here added probably to account for the long tail of
extraneous or repeated matter tacked on to the letter.

condign punishment 7, acting with special and
direct vigour against those who in ordaining
bishops have neglected the statutes of the
holy fathers, and have consecrated men whom
they ought to have rejected. Wherefore if any
bishops have consecrated such, an one priest
as ought not to be, even though in some
measure they have escaped any loss of their
personal dignity, yet they shall have no further
right of ordination, nor shall ever be present
at that sacrament which, neglecting the judg-
ment of God, they have improperly conferred.

X. The appointment of bishops over too small
places is inexpedient and must be discontinued.

That of course which pertains to the priestly
dignity we wish to be observed in common
with all the statutes of the canons, viz., that
bishops be not consecrated in any place nor
in any hamlet 8, nor where they have not
been consecrated before ; for where the flocks
are small and the congregations small, the
care of the presbyters may suffice, whereas
the episcopal authority ought to preside only
over larger flocks and more crowded cities,
lest contrary to the divinely-inspired decrees
of the holy Fathers the priestly office be as-
signed over villages and rural estates 9 or
obscure and thinly-populated townships, and
the position of honour, to which only the more
important charges should be given, be held
cheap from the very number of those that hold
it. And this bishop Restitutus has reported to
have been done in his own diocese, and he
has with good reason requested that when the
bishops of those places where they ought not
to have been ordained die in the natural
course, the places themselves should revert to
the jurisdiction of the same prelate to whom
they formerly belonged and were attached.
It is indeed useless for the priestly dignity to
be diminished by the superfluous multiplica-
tions of the office through the inconsiderate
complaisance of the ordainer.

XL Virgins violated against their will are to
be treated as somewhat different to the others,
but not to be denied Communion.

Now concerning those who, having made a
holy vow of virginity [as we said above,
chap, viii.], have suffered the violence of bar-
barians, and have lost their spotless purity not
in spirit but in body, we consider such mode-

7 Here the shorter edition of the letter breaks off, and there
are certainly difficulties in considering that the long coda of repe-
titions and fresh matter here attached formed part of the original
draft of the letter. Is it possible that two letters (the one later
than the other) have been welded into one?

8 Castellis. Cf. Liv. xxi. chaps. 33, 34, where the word is used
of the Alpine villages. In the Vulgate it represents the Gk.
Kwfti} (eg. S. Mark vi. 6 : S. Luke v. 17.)

9 Possess ionibus.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

ration ought to be observed that they should
be neither degraded to the rank of widows1
nor yet reckoned in the number of holy and
undefiled virgins : yet, if they persevere in the
virgin life, and in heart and mind guard the
reality of chastity, participation in the sacra-
ments is not to be denied them, because it is
unfair that they should be accused or branded
for what their wishes did not surrender, but
was stolen by the violence of foes.

XII. The case of Lupic'mus is in part dealt
with and in part referred to them.

The case also of bishop Lupicinus2 we
order to be heard there, but at his urgent and
frequent entreaties we have restored him to
communion for this reason, that, as he had
appealed to our judgment, we saw that while
the matter was pending he had been unde-
servedly suspended from communion. More-
over there is this also in addition, that it was
clearly rash to ordain one over his head
who ought not to have been ordained until
Lupicinus, having been placed before you or
convicted, or having at least confessed, had
opportunity to submit to a just sentence, so
that, according to the requirements of eccle-
siastical discipline, he who was consecrated
might receive his vacant place.

XIII. All disputes to be dealt 7vith on the spot
first and then referred to the Apostolic See.

But whenever other cases arise which con-
cern the state of the Church and the harmony
of priests, we wish them to be first sifted by
yourselves in the fear of the Lord, and a full
account of all matters settled or needing settle-
ment sent to us, that those things which have
been properly and reasonably decided, ac-
cording to the usage of the Church, may
receive our corroborative sanction also.
Dated 10th August.

LETTER XIII.

To the Metropolitan Blshops in the
Provinces of Illyricum.

Leo congratulates them on accepting the
authority of Anastasius over them (given in
Lett IV.). V

1 Cyprian (de /tab. Vi?

irg.) speaks of women who have lost their
v.rg,n,ty by then- own fault as vidua: antequam nuptl, and
S Jerome, usmg the same expression (Lett, to Eustochius on the
p reservation of V.rg.mty), implies that they very often dressed
like widows {plerasque vidua* antequam nuptas in/ePicemcon-
"**Umm tnentita tantu,n veste pritegere) : fhis will account for

l?j£S£Z^%gr unhappy women are not *&

Projects taLett vUpJfLn_U! seem? somewhat similar to that of
experts.

LETTER XIV.

To Anastasius, Bishop of Thessalonica.

Leo, bishop of the City of Rome, to Anastasius^
bishop of Thessalonica.

I. Prefatory.

If with true reasoning you perceived all
that has been committed to you, brother,
by the blessed apostle Peter's authority, and
what has also been entrusted to you by our
favour, and would weigh it fairly, we should
be able greatly to rejoice at your zealous dis-
charge of the responsibility imposed on you 3.

II. Anastasius is taxed zvith exceeding the limits
of his vicariate, especially in his violent and
unworthy treatment of At ticus.

Seeing that, as my predecessors acted to-
wards yours, so too I, following their example,
have delegated my authority to you*, beloved :
so that you, imitating our gentleness, might
assist us in the care which we owe primarily
to all the churches by Divine institution, and
might to a certain extent make up for our
personal presence in visiting those provinces
which are far off from us : for it would be
easy for you by regular and well-timed inspec-
tion to tell what and in what cases you could
either, by your own influence, settle or reserve
for our judgment. For as it was free for you
to suspend the more important matters and
the harder issues while you awaited our opinion,
there was no reason nor necessity for you to
go out of your way to decide what was beyond
your powers. For you have numerous written
warnings of ours in which we have often in-
structed you to be temperate in all your
actions : that with loving exhortations you
might provoke the churches of Christ com-
mitted to you to healthy obedience. Because,
although as a rule there exist among careless
or slothful brethren things which demand
a strong hand in rectifying them ; yet the
correction ought to be so applied as ever to
keep love inviolate. Wherefore also it is that
the blessed Apostle Paul, in instructing Timothy
upon the ruling of the Church, says : " an elder
rebuke not, but intreat him as a father : the
young men as brethren : old women as
mothers : young women as sisters in all
purity s." And if this moderation is due
by the Apostle's precept to all and any of
the lower members, how much more is it to
be paid without offence to our brethren and

3 De iniuncta tibi sollicitudinis devotione (an obscure exDres-
>n). F

. s-imifaV,y referred to local I of toZ^SfiS&figZ, «^ "" aPP°intn,en'
I S i Tim. v. i, a.

LETTER XIV.

fellow-bishops ? in order that although things | motion to expose an innocent prelate : so

sometimes happen which have to be repri
manded in the persons of priests, yet kind-
ness may have more effect on those who are
to be corrected than severity : exhortation than
perturbation : love than power. But they who
" seek their own, not the things which are
Jesus Christ's 6," easily depart from this law,
and finding pleasure rather in domineering
over their subjects than in consulting their
interests, are swoln with the pride of their
position, and thus what was provided to secure
harmony ministers to mischief. That we are
obliged to speak thus causes us no small
grief. For I feel myself in a certain measure
drawn into blame, on discovering you to have
so immoderately departed from the rules
handed down to you. If you were careless
of your own reputation, you ought at least
to have spared my good name : lest what
only your own mind prompted should seem
done with our approval. Do but read, brother,
our pages with tare, and peruse all the letters
sent by holders of the Apostolic See to your
predecessors, and you will find injunctions
either from me or from my predecessors on
that in which we learn you have presumed.

For there has come to us our brother
Atticus, the metropolitan ? bishop of Old
Epirus, with the bishops of his province, and
with tearful pleading has complained of the
undeserved contumely he has suffered, in the
presence of your own deacons who, by giving
no contradiction to these woeful complaints,
showed that what was impressed upon us did
not want for truth. We read also in your
letter, which those same deacons of yours
brought, that brother Atticus had come to
Thessalonica, and that he had also sealed his
agreement in a written profession, so that we
could not but understand concerning him that
it was of his own will and free devotion that
he had come, and that he had composed the
statement of his promise of obedience, although
in the very mention of this statement a sign of
injury was betrayed. For it was not necessary
that he should be bound in writing, who was
already proving his obedience by the very duti-
fulness of his voluntary coming. Wherefore
these words in your letter bore witness to the
*>ewailings of the aforesaid, and through his
outsnoken account that which had been passed
over in silence is laid bare, namely that the
Prefecture of Illyricum had been approached,
and the most exalted functionary among the
potentates of the world8 had been set in

6 Phil. ii. 21.

' Some for metrofoli'anns here rend Nicofolitanus, Bishop of
NieopoUs, the metropolitan see of old Epirus. Quesnel.

8 The language is, I think, intentionally exaggerated and high-
flown : fiarturiunt montes nascetur ridiculus mus.

VOL. XII.

that a company was sent to carry out the
aweful deed who were to enlist all the public
servants in giving effect to their orders, and
from the church's holy sanctuary charged with
no crime, or at best a false one, was dragged
a priest, to whom no truce was granted in con-
sideration of his grievous ill-health or the cruel
winter weather: but he was forced to take
a journey full of hardships and dangers through
the patbless snows. And this was a task of
such toil and peril that some of those who
accompanied the bishop are said to have suc-
cumbed 9.

I am quite dumb-founded, beloved brother,
yea and I am also sore grieved that you
brought yourself to be so savagely and vio-
lently moved against one about whom you
had laid no further information than that when
summoned to appear he put off and excused
himself on the grounds of illness; especially
when, even if he deserved any such treatment,
you should have waited till I had replied to
your consulting letter. But, as I perceive, you
thought too well of my habits, and most truly
foresaw how fair-minded * an answer I was
likely to make to preserve harmony among
priests : and therefore you made haste to carry
out your movements without concealment, lest
when you had received the letter of our for-
bearance dictating another course, you should
have no licence to do that which is done. Or
perhaps some crime had reached your ears,
and metropolitan 2 bishop that you are, the
weight of some new charge pressed you hard ?
But that this is not consistent with the fact,
you yourself make certain by laying nothing
against him. Yet even if he had committed
some grave and intolerable misdemeanour,
you should have waited for our opinion : so
as to arrive at no decision by yourself until
you knew our pleasure. For we made you
our deputy, beloved, on the understanding
that you were engaged to share our respon-
sibility, not to take plenary powers on yourself.
Wherefore as what you bestow a pious care on
delights us much, so your wrongful acts grieve
us sorely. And after experience in many cases
we must show greater foresight, and use more
diligent precaution : to the end that through
the spirit of love and peace all matter of offence
may be removed from the Lord's churches,

9 Anastasius seems to have arraigned Atticus before the civil
court of the Prefect of Illyricum : he sent his apparitors, who
violently dragged him out of the church, and brought him in mid-
winter across country to be tried.

1 The word is civilia, in which Brissonius thinks he sees an
allusion either to the opposition between civil law and frcetor s
law (to which Anastasius had appealed), or else to the technical
meaning of the word in jurisprudence as equivalent to ' legitimate '
or ' fair.' The latter is more likely.

2 Quesnel here accepts Nicopolitanum instead of mttropoli*
tanum (see n. 7 above), but with little reason.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

which we have commended to you : the pre-
eminence of your bishopric being retained in
the provinces, but all your usurping excesses
being shorn off.

III. The rights of the metropolitans under the
vicariate of Anastasins are to be observed.

Therefore according to the canons of the
holy Fathers, which are framed by the spirit of
God and hallowed by the whole world's re-
verence, we decree that the metropolitan
bishops of each province over which your
care, brother, extends by our delegacy, shall
keep untouched the rights of their position
which have been handed down to them from
olden times : but on condition that they do
not depart from the existing regulations by
any carelessness or arrogance.

IV. The negative qualifications of a bishop

determined.
In cities whose governors 3 have died let
this form be observed in filling up their place :
he. who is to be ordained, even though his
good life be not attested, shall be not a lay-
man, not a neophyte, nor yet the husband of
a second wife, or one who, though he has or
has had but one, married a widow. For the
choosing of priests is of such surpassing im-
portance that things which in other members
of the Church are not blame-worthy, are yet
held unlawful in them.

V. Continence is required even in sub deacons.
For although they who are not within the
ranks of the clergy are free to take pleasure in
the companionship of wedlock and the pro-
creation of children, yet for the exhibiting of
the purity of complete continence, even sub-
deacons are not allowed carnal marriage : that
" both those that have, may be as though they
had not *," and those who have not, may
remain single. But if in this order, which is
the fourth from the Head 5, this is worthy to
be observed, how much more is it to be kept
in the first, or second, or third, lest any one
be reckoned fit for either the deacon's duties
or the presbyter's honourable position, or the
bishop's pre-eminence, who is discovered not
yet to have bridled his uxorious desires.

VI. The election of a bishop must proceed by
the wishes of the clergy and people.

When therefore the choice of the chief priest

3 Red ores.

*' Cor. vii. 20. A rererence to this passage will show that
S: Paul does not limit himself to the clergv in what he says: for
an interesting note on the text (written, of course, from the Roman
standpoint), the reader is referred to Hurter's edition in loc, who
adduces some valuable illustrations from Epiphanius, Jerome, &c.

5 Quartus a Capite, i.e. from Jesus Christ, the ilead of the
Church, or perhaps from the Bishop of Rome, His soi-disant
representative on earth (cf. chap, xii., below).

is taken in hand, let him be preferred before
all whom the unanimous consent of clergy and
people demands, but if the votes chance to be
divided between two persons, the judgment of
the metropolitan should prefer him who is sup-
ported by the preponderance of votes and
merits : only let no one be ordained against
the express wishes of the place : lest a city
should either despise or hate a bishop whom
they did not choose, and lamentably fall away
from religion because they have not been
allowed to have whom they wished.

VII. Metropolitans are to refer to their Vicar :
the mode of electing metropolitans is laid
down.

However the metropolitan bishop should
refer to you, brother, about the person to
be consecrated bishop, and about the consent
of the clergy and people : and he should
acquaint you with the wishes of the province :
that the due celebration of the ordination may
be strengthened by your authority also. But
to right selections it will be your duty to cause
no delay or hindrance, lest the Lokd's flocks
should remain too long with their shepherd's
care.

Moreover when a metropolitan is defunct
and another has to be elected in to his place,
the bishops of the province must meet together
in the metropolitical city : that after the wishes
of all the clerics and all the citizens have been
sifted, the best man may be chosen from the
presbyters of that same church or from the
deacons, and you are to be informed of his
name by the priests of the province, who will
carry out the wishes of his supporters on ascer-
taining that you agree with their choice6. For
whilst we desire proper elections to be ham-
pered by no delays, we yet allow nothing to
be done presumptuously without your know-
ledge.

VIII. Bishops are to hold provincial councils

twice a year.

Concerning councils of bishops we give no
other instructions than those laid down for
the Church's health by the holy Fathers 7 : to
wit that two meetings should be held a year,
in which judgment should be passed upon all
the complaints which are wont to arise be-
tween the various ranks of the Church. But
if perchance among the rulers themselves a

6 This method of electing the metropolitan will at once strike
the reader : the electors apparently are (i) the bishops ot the pro-
vince (who are not eligible for the office!; (2) the clergy 01 the
diocese (who alone are eligible) ; and (3) the laity of the diocese.

1 )nly if one remembers how limited each diocese was in extent,
can one realize the working of the method.

7 The Council of Niccea (325) lixed two councils a year, one
ante quadragesimam Paschce (i.e. before Eastertide), the othei
ci>ca tempus autnmni.

LETTER XIV.

cause arise (which God forbid) concerning
one of the greater sins, such as cannot be
decided by a provincial trial, the metropolitan
shall take care to inform you, brother, con-
cerning the nature of the whole matter, and
if, after both parties have come before you,
the thing be not set at rest even by your
judgment, whatever it be, let it be transferred
to our jurisdiction.

IX. Translation from one see to a?iother is to

be prohibited.

If any bishop, despising the insignificance
of his city, shall intrigue for the government
of a more populous place, and transfer himself
by whatever means to a larger flock, he shall
first be driven from the chair he has usurped,
and also shall be deprived of his own : so
shall he preside neither over those whom in
his greed he coveted, nor over those whom in
his arrogance he spurned. Therefore let each
be content with his own bounds, and not seek
to be raised above the limits of his present
post.

X. Bishops are not to entice or receive the

clergy of another diocese.

A cleric from another diocese let no (bishop)
accept or invite against the wishes of his own
bishop : but only when giver and receiver
agree together thereupon by friendly compact.
For a man is guilty of a serious injury who
ventures either to entice or withhold from a
brother's church that which is of great use or
high value. And so,. if such a thing happen
within the province, the metropolitan shall
force the deserting cleric to return to his
church : but if he has withdrawn himself still
further off, he shall be recalled by your au-
thoritative command : so that no occasion be
left for either desire oi gain or intrigue.

XI. When the Vicar shall require a meeting of
bishops, two from each province will be suffi-
cient.

In summoning bishops to your presence, we
wish you to show great forbearance : lest under
a show of much diligence you seem to exult
in your brethren's injuries. Wherefore if any
greater case arise for which it is reasonable
and necessary to convene a meeting of brethren,
it may suffice, brother, that two bishops should
attend from each province, whom the metro-
politans shall think proper to be sent, on the
understanding that those who answer the
summons be not detained longer than fifteen
days from the time fixed.

XII. In case of difference of opinion behveen
the Vicar and the bishops, the bishop of
Rome must be consulted. The subordination
of authorities i?i the Church expounded.
But if in that which you believed necessary
to be discussed and settled with the brethren,
their opinion differs from your own wishes, let
all be referred to us, with the minutes of your
proceedings attested, that all ambiguities may
be removed, and what is pleasing to God de-
cided. For to this end we direct all our
desires and pains, that what conduces to our
harmonious unity and to the protection of
discipline may be marred by no dissension
and neglected by no slothfulness. Therefore,
dearly beloved brother, you and those our
brethren who are offended at your extravagant
conduct (though the matter of complaint is
not the same with all), we exhort and warn
not to disturb by any wrangling what has been
rightfully ordained and wisely settled. Let
none " seek what is his own, but what is an-
other's," as the Apostle says : " Let each one of
you please his neighbour for his good unto edify-
ing 8." For the cementing of our unity cannot
be firm unless we be bound by the bond of love
into an inseparable solidity : because " as in
one body we have many members, but all the
members have not the same office ; so we
being many are one body in Christ, and all of
us members one of another 9." The con-
nexion of the whole body makes all alike
healthy, all alike beautiful : and this connexion
requires the unanimity indeed of the whole
body, but it especially demands harmony
among the priests. And though they have a
common dignity, yet they have not uniform
rank ; inasmuch as even among the blessed
Apostles, notwithstanding the similarity of their
honourable estate, there was a certain dis-
tinction of power, and while the election of
them all was equal, yet it was given to one1
to take the lead of the rest. From which
model has arisen a distinction between bishops
also, and by an important ordinance it has been
provided2 that every one should not claim
everything for himself: but that there should
be in each province one whose opinion should
have the priority among the brethren : and
again that certain whose appointment is in the
greater cities should undertake a fuller respon-
sibility, through whom the care of the universal
Church should converge towards Peter's one
seat, and nothing anywhere should be sepa-
rated from its Head. Let not him then who
knows he has been set over certain others

8 Phil. ii. 4, and Rom. xv. 2.

9 1 Cor. xii. 12, &c. : the quotation is loose, cf. Rom. xii. 5.
1 Viz., S. Peter.

* Magna ordinatione frovisum est.

C 2

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

take it ill that some one has been set over
him, but let him himself render the obedience
which he demands of them : and as he does
not Avish to bear a heavy load of baggage,
so let him not dare to place on another's
shoulders a weight that is insupportable. For
we are disciples of the humble and gentle
Master who says : " Learn of Me, for I am
gentle and humble of heart, and ye shall find
rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and
My burden lights." And how shall we ex-
perience this, unless this too comes to our
remembrance which the same Lord says : " He
that is greater among you, shall be your ser-
vant. But he that exalteth himself, shall be
humbled : and he that humbleth himself, shall
be exalted V

LETTER XV;

To Turribius, Bishop of Asturia ', upon

THE ERRORS OF THE PRISCILLIANISTS.

Leo, bishop, to Turribius, bishop, greeting.
I. lnt7'oduciory.

Your laudable zeal for the truth of the
catholic Faith, and the painstaking devotion
you expend in the exercise of your pastoral
office upon the Lord's flock is proved by
your letter, brother, which your deacon has
handed to us, in which you have taken care to
bring to our knowledge the nature of the
disease which has burst forth in your district
from the remnants of an ancient plague. For
the language of your letter, and your detailed
statement, and the text of your pamphlet6,
explains clearly that the filthy puddle of the
Priscillianists again teems with life amongst
you7. For there is no dirt which has not
flowed into this dogma from the notions of all
sorts of heretics : since they have scraped
together the motley dregs from the mire of
earthly opinions and made for themselves a
mixture8 which they alone may swallow whole,
though others have tasted little portions of it.

In fact, if all the heresies which have arisen
before the time of Priscillian were to be
studied carefully, hardly any mistake will be
discovered with which this impiety has not
been infected : for not satisfied with accepting

3 S. Matt. xi. 29, 30. 4 Ibid, xxiii., 11. 12.

5 This Turribius was a man of learning and zeal, Bishop of
Asturia (Astorga) in Spain (province of Gallicia): canonized by
the Roman Church and commemorated on April 16 (HurterJ.
The date of the letter is given as 21 Jul., 447.

6 Hurter extinguishes these three documents thus : (1) e/>istola,
the private letter of Turribius to Leo ; (2) commonitorium, the
detailed statement (under 16 lipids) of the Priscillianist errors ;
and (3) lihellus, Turrihius' refutation of each head. This heresy
was of Spanish 01 igin, having been broached by Priscillian about
380. Their views will be seen in the sequel.

7 Prisciltianistarum fcetidissimam apud vos recaluisse sen-
tinam. 8 Multiplicem sibifceculentiam miscuerunt .

the falsehoods of those who have departed
from the Gospel under the name of Christ, it
has plunged itself also in the shades of hea-
thendom, so as to rest their religious faith and
their moral conduct upon the power of
demons and the influences of the stars through
the blasphemous secrets of the magic arts and
the empty lies of astrologers. But if this may
be believed, and taught, no reward will be due
for virtues, no punishment for faults, and all
the injunctions not only of human laws but
also of the Divine constitutions will be broken
down : because there will be no criterion of
good or bad actions possible, if a fatal ne-
cessity drives the impulses of the mind to
either side, and all that men do is through
the agency not of men but of stars. To this
madness belongs that monstrous division of
the whole human body among the twelve
signs of the zodiac, so that each part is ruled
by a different power : and the creature, whom
God made in His own image, is as much
under the domination of the stars as his limbs
are connected one with the other. Rightly
then our fathers, in whose times this abomin-
able heresy sprung up, promptly pursued it
throughout the world, that the blasphemous
error might everywhere be driven from the
Church : for even the leaders of the world so
abhorred this profane folly that they laid low
its originator, with most of his disciples, by
the sword of the public laws. For they saw
that all desire for honourable conduct was
removed, all marriage-ties undone, and the
Divine and the human law simultaneously
undermined, if it were allowed for men of this
kind to live anywhere under such a creed.
And this rigourous treatment was for long a
help to the Church's law of gentleness which,
although it relies upon the priestly judgment,
and shuns blood-stained vengeance, yet is
assisted by the stern decrees of Christian
princes at times when men, who dread
bodily punishment, have recourse to merely
spiritual correction. But since many pro-
vinces have been taken up with the invasions
of the enemy 9, the carrying out of the laws
also has been suspended by these stormy
wars. And since intercourse came to be diffi-
cult among God's priests and meetings rare,
secret treachery was free to act through the
general disorder, and was roused to the up-
setting of many minds by those very ills which
ought to have counteracted it, But which of
the peoples and how many of them are free
from the contagion of this plague in a district
where, as you point out, dear brother, the

9 He alludes to the invasion of Spain by the German tribe*
(Perthel, p. 38).

LETTER XV.

minds even of certain priests have sickened
of this deadly disease : and they who were
believed the necessary quellers of falsehood
and champions of the Truth are the very ones
through whom the Gospel of God is enthralled
to the teaching of Priscillian : so that the
fidelity of the holy volumes being distorted to
profane meanings, under the names of pro-
phets and apostles, is proclaimed not that
which the Holy Spirit has taught, but what
the devil's servant has inserted. Therefore as
you, beloved, with all the faithful diligence in
your power, have dealt under 16 heads with
these already condemned opinions r, we also
subject them once more to a strict examina-
tion ; lest any of these blasphemies should be
thought either bearable or doubtful.

II. (1) The Priscillianists1 denial of the Trinity

refuted.

And so under the first head is shown what
unholy views they hold about the Divine
Trinity : they affirm that the person of the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost is one
and the same, as if the same God were named
now Father, now Son, and now Holy Ghost :
and as if He who begat were not one, He who
was begotten, another, and He who proceeded
from both, yet another ; but an undivided unity
must be understood, spoken of under three
names, indeed, but not consisting of three
persons. This species of blasphemy they bor-
rowed from Sabellius, whose followers were
rightly called Patripassians also : because if
the Son is identical with the Father, the Son's
cross is the Father's passion {patris-passio) :
and the Father took on Himself all that the
Son took in the form of a slave, and in obe-
dience to the Father. Which without doubt
is contrary to the catholic faith, which acknow-
ledges the Trinity of the Godhead to be of one
essence (Snoovaiov) in such a way that it be-
lieves the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost
indivisible without confusion, eternal without
time, equal without difference : because it is
not the same person but the same essence
which fills the Unity in Trinity

III. (2) Their fancy about virtue* proceeding

from God reputed.

Under the second head is displayed their
foolish and empty fancy about the issue of
certain virtues from God which he began to
possess, and which were posterior to God
Himself in His own essence. In this again

1 See above, n. 6. Quesnel draws attention to the fact that
Leo's refutation of the Pri-cillianist heresy, which here follows,
was adopted (almost) word for word by the first council of Bracara
(Br.iga, in Portugal), held in 563, as a sufficient exposition of
their own position.

they support the Arians' mistake, who say that
the Father is prior to the Son, because there
was a time when He was without the Son :
and became the Father then when He begat
the Son. But as the catholic Church abhors
them, so also does it abhor these who think
that what is of the same essence was ever
wanting to God. For it is as wicked to speak
of Him as progressing as it is to call Him
changeable. For increase implies change as
much as does decrease.

IV. (3) Their account of the epithet " Only be-

gotten " refuted.

Again the third head is concerned with these
same folk's impious assertion that the Son of
God is called "only-begotten" for this reason
that He alone was born of a virgin. To be
sure they would not have dared to say this,
had they not drunk the poison of Paul of
Samosata and Photinus : who said that our
Lord Jesus Christ did not exist till He was
born of the virgin Mary. But if they wish
something else to be understood by their tenet,
and do not date Christ's beginning from His
mother's womb, they must necessarily assert
that there is not one Son of God, but others
also were begotten of the most High Father,
of whom this one is born of a woman, and there-
fore called only-begotten, because no other of
God's sons underwent this condition of being
born. Therefore, whithersoever they betake
themselves, they fall into an abyss of great
impiety, if they either maintain that Christ the
Lord took His beginning from His mother,
or do not believe Him to be the only-begotten
of God the Father : since He who was God
was born of a mother, and no one was born of
the Father except the Word.

V. (4) Their fasting on the Nativity and Sunday

disapproved of.

The fourth head deals with the fact that the
Birth-day of Christ, which the catholic Church
thinks highly of as the occasion of His taking
on Him true man, because " the Word became
flesh and dwelt in us 2," is not truly honoured by
these men, though they make a show of honour-
ing it, for they fast on that day, as they do
also on the Lord's day, which is the day of
Christ's resurrection. No doubt they do this,
because they do not believe that Christ the
Lord was born in true man's nature, but
maintain that by a sort of illusion there was an
appearance of what was not a reality, follow-
ing the views of Cerdo and Marcion, and being
in complete agreement with their kinsfolk, the

S. John i. 14.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

Manichaeans, For as our examination has
disclosed and brought home to them, they 3
drag out in mournful fasting the Lord's day
wtncn tor us is hallowed by the resurrection of
our Saviour : devoting this abstinence, as the
explanation goes, to the worship of the sun :
so that they are throughout out of harmony
with the unity of our faith, and the day which
by us is spent in gladness is past in self-afflic-
tion by them. Whence it is fitting that these
enemies of Christ's cross and resurrection
should accept an opinion (like this) which
tallies with the doctrine they have selected.

VI. (5) Their view that the soul is part of the
Divine being refuted.

The fifth head refers to their assertion that
man's soul is part of the Divine being 4, and
that the nature of our human state does not
differ from its Creator's nature. This impious
view has its source in the opinions of certain
philosophers, and the Manichaeans and the
catholic Faith condemns it : knowing that
nothing that is made is so sublime and so
supreme as that its nature should be itself
God. For that which is part of Himself is
Himself, and none other than the Son and
Holy Spirit. And besides this one consub-
stantial, eternal, and unchangeable Godhead
of the most high Trinity there is nothing in all
creation which, in its origin, is not created out
of nothing. Besides anything that surpasses
its fellow- creatures is not ipso facto God, nor,
if a thing is great and wonderful, is it identical
with Him " who alone doeth great wonders s."
No man is truth, wisdom, justice ; but many
are partakers of truth, wisdom, and justice.
But God alone is exempt from any partici-
pating : and anything which is in any degree
worthily predicated of Him is not an attribute,
but His very essence. For in the Unchange-
able there is nothing added, there is nothing
lost : because " to be 6 " is ever His peculiar
property, and that is eternity. Whence abiding
in Himself He renews all things ?, and re-
ceives nothing which He did not Himself give.
Accordingly they are over-proud and stone-
blind who, when they say the soul is part of
the Divine Being, do not understand that they
merely assert that God is changeable, and

3 V'z. the Manichaeans.

4 This Pantheistic view was not, of course, a new one, nor
pseudo-Chri-tian in its origin, as Leo himself shows. Cf. Virg.
Georg. IV. 219 — 227, and Aen. vi. 724 — 727.

The philosophi q aidant to which he makes reference are the
Pythagoi e.inN and following them with modifications the Platoiiists
and the Stoics.

5 Ps. exxxvi. 4.

6 The reader need hardly be reminded of the recorded revela-
tion of the great " I am " (Jehovah) to Moses (Ex. iii.).

7 Cf. Rev. xxi. 5.

Himself suffers anything that may be inflicted
upon His nature.

VII. (6) Their vieiv that the devil was never
good, and is therefore not Gob's creation, re-
futed.

The sixth notice points out that they say the
devil never was good, and that his nature is
not God's handiwork, but he came forth out
of chaos and darkness : because I suppose he
has no instigator, but is himself the source and
substance of all evil : whereas the true Faith,
which is the catholic, acknowledges that the
substance of all creatures spiritual or corporeal
is good, and that evil has no positive exist-
ence 8 ; because God, who is the Maker of the
Universe, made nothing that was not good.
Whence the devil also would be good, if he
had remained as he was made. But because
he made a bad use of his natural excellence,
and "stood not in the truth 9," he did not pass
into the opposite substance, but revolted from
the highest good to which he owed adherence :
just as they themselves who make such asser-
tions run headlong from truth into false-
hood, and accuse nature of their own spon-
taneous delinquencies, and are condemned for
their voluntary perversity : though of course
this evil is in them, but is itself not a substance
but a penalty inflicted on substance.

VIII. (7) Their rejection of marriage con-

demned.

In the seventh place follows their condemna-
tion of marriages and their horror of begetting
children : in which, as in almost all points,
they agree with the Manichaeans' impiety. But
it is for this reason, as their own practices
prove, that they detest the marriage tie, be-
cause there is no liberty for lewdness where the
chastity of wedlock and of offspring is pre-
served.

IX. (8) Their disbelief in the resurrection of the
body has been already condemned by the
Church.

Their eighth point is that the formation x of
men's bodies is the device of the devil, and
that the seed of conception is shaped by
the aid of demons in the wombs of women :
and that for this reason the resurrection of the
flesh is not to be believed because the stuff of
which the body is made is not consistent with

8 i.e. that evil is not anything positive, but only the negation
or absence of good which is positive, just as black is not itself
a colour, but only the absence of colour, whereas white is the
presence (in due proportion) of all the colours of the spectrum.

9 S. John viii. 24.

1 Flasmationem, a. vile hybrid, being the Greek irXdcrfio. with
a Latin ending (-atio) ; for which apparently the Low Latin of the
Vulgate is responsible. Cf. Ps. cxix. 73, " et plasmaverunt inc "
(quoted below, chap. x.).

LETTER XV.

the dignity of the soul. This falsehood is
without doubt the devil's work, and such mon-
strous opinions are the devices of demons who
do not mould men in women's bellies, but
concoct such errors in heretics' hearts. This
unclean poison which flows especially from the
fount of the Manichcean wickedness has been
already 2 arraigned and condemned by the
catholic Faith.

X. (9) Their notion that " the children of
promise " are conceived by the Holy Ghost
is utterly unscriptural and uncatholic.

The ninth notice declares that they say the
sons of promise are born indeed of women,
but conceived by the Holy Spirit : lest that
offspring which is born of carnal seed should
seem to share in God's estate. This is re-
pugnant and contrary to the catholic Faith,
which acknowledges every man to be formed
by the Maker of the Universe in the substance
of his body and soul, and to receive the breath
of life within his mother's womb : though that
taint of sin and liability to die remains which
passed from the first parent into his descend-
ants ; until the sacrament of Regeneration
comes to succour him, whereby through the
Holy Spirit we are re-born the sons of promise,
not in the fleshly womb, but in the power
of baptism. Whence David also, who cer-
tainly was a son of promise, says to God :
" Thy hands have made me and fashioned
me 3." And to Jeremiah says the Lord,
" Before I formed thee in the womb I knew
thee, and in thy mother's belly I sanctified
thee ♦."

XI. (10) Their theory that souls have a previous

existence before entering man refuted.

Under the tenth head they are reported as
asserting that the souls which are placed in
men's bodies have previously been without
body and have sinned in their heavenly habi-
tation, and for this reason having fallen from
their high estate to a lower one alight upon
ruling spirits s of divers qualities, and after
passing through a succession of powers of the
air and stars, some fiercer, some milder, are
enclosed in bodies of different sorts and con-
ditions, so that whatever variety and inequality
is meted out to us in this life, seems the result
of previous causes. This blasphemous fable
they have woven for themselves out of many
persons' errors 6 : but all of them the catholic

3 Olim. Perhaps Leo refers to his own action mentioned in
Lett. vii. 1. 3 Ps. cxix. 73. 4 Jer. i. 5.

5 In diverse? qna!itatis prinefpes incidisse, cf. Rom. viii. 38 ;
Eph. iii. 10; Col. ii. 10, &c.

6 The Pythagorean doctrine of fieTe|Ui/mxa)<ris (transmigration
of souls) which was in a modified form accepted by Plato (JPhadr.

Faith cuts off from union with its body, per.
sistently and truthfully proclaiming that men's
souls did not exist until they were breathed
into their bodies, and that they were not there
implanted by any other than God, who is the
creator both of the souls and of the bodies.
And because through the transgression of
the first man the whole stock of the human
race was tainted, no one can be set free from
the state of the old Adam save through Christ's
sacrament of baptism, in which there are no
distinctions between the re-born, as says the
Apostle: "For as many of you as were bap-
tized in Christ did put on Christ : there is
neither Jew nor Greek : there is neither bond
nor free : there is neither male nor female :
for ye are all one in Christ Jesus 7." What then
have the course of the stars to do with it, or
the devices of destiny? what the changing
state of mundane things and their restless di-
versity ? Behold how the grace of God makes
all these unequals equal, who, whatever their
labours in this life, if they abide faithful, can-
not be wretched, for they can say with the
Apostle in every trial : " who shall separate us
from the love of Christ ? shall tribulation, or
distress, or persecution, or famine, or naked-
ness, or peril, or sword ? As it is written,
' For thy sake we are killed all the day long,
we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.'
(Ps. xliv. 22.) But in all these things we over-
come through Him that loved us8." And there-
fore the Church, which is the body of Christ,
has no fear about the inequalities of the world,
because she has no desire for temporal goods :
nor does she dread being overwhelmed by the
empty threats of destiny, for she knows she is
strengthened by patience in tribulations.

XII. (n) Their astrological notions condemned.

Their eleventh blasphemy is that in which
they suppose that both the souls and bodies
of men are under the influence of fatal
stars : this folly compels them to become
entangled in all the errors of the heathen,
and to strive to attract stars that are as
they think favourable to them, and to soften
those that are against them. But for those
who follow such pursuits there is no place
in the catholic Church ; a man who gives
himself up to such convictions separates
himself from the body of Christ altogether.

et alibi), would seem to have been the original source of this view
of the soul's origin. It would naturally be palatable doctrine to
the Gnostics and other philosophizing sects. In Lett. XXXV.,
chap, iii., it is attributed to Origen. For a modern exposition
the reader cannot do better than refer to Wordsworth's ode on the
intimations of Immortality in childhood. 7 Gal. iii. 27, 28.

8 Rom. viii. 35—37-

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

XITT. (12) Their belief that certain poivers rule
the soul and the stars the body, is unscriptural
and preposterous.

The twelfth of these points is this, that they
map out the parts of the soul under certain
powers, and the limbs of the body under
others : and they suggest the characters of
the inner powers that rule the soul by giving
them the names of the patriarchs, and on the
contrary they attribute the signs of the stars
to those under which they put the body. And
in all these things they entangle themselves
in an inextricable maze, not listening to the
Apostle when he says. " See that no one
deceive you through philosophy and vain
deceit after the tradition of men, after the
rudiments of the world, and not after Christ ;
for in Him dwells all the fulness of the Godhead
bodily, and in Him ye are made full, who is
the head of every principality and power 9."
And again : " let no man beguile you by
a voluntary humility and worshipping of
angels, treading on things which he hath
not seen, vainly puffed up by the senses of
his flesh, not holding fast the Head from
whom all the body, being supplied and knit
together through the joints and bands, in-
creased! with the increase of God i." What
then is the use of admitting into the heart
what the law has not taught, prophecy has
not sung, the truth of the Gospel has not pro-
claimed, the Apostles' teaching has not handed
down? But these things are suited to the
minds of those of whom the Apostle speaks,
" For the time will come when they will not
endure sound doctrine, but having itching
ears, will heap to themselves teachers after
their own lusts: and will turn away indeed
their hearing from the truth, and turn aside
unto fables 2." And so we can have no-
thing in common with men who dare to teach
or believe such things, and strive by any
means in their power to persuade men that
the substance of flesh is foreign to the hope
of resurrection, and so break down the whole
mystery of Christ's incarnation : because it
was wrong for Christ to take upon Him com-
plete manhood if it was wrong for Him to
emancipate complete manhood.

XIV. (13) Their fanciful division of the Scrip-
tures rejected.

In the thirteenth place comes their assertion
that the whole body of the canonical Scriptures
is to be accepted, under the names of the pa-
triarchs 3; because those twelve virtues which

9 Col. ii. 8-10. 1 Ibid. 18, 19. 2 2 Tim. iv. 3, 4.

3 Leo's commentary on this obscure fancy of the Priscilliani'sts
is disappointing, as it is merely a repetition or continuation ol his
remarks on the 12th head. They seem to have divided the scrip-
tures in some mystic fashion into portions corresponding to the

work the reformation of the inner man are
pointed out in their names, and without this
knowledge no soul can effect its reformation,
and return to that substance from which it
came forth. But this wicked delusion the
Christian wisdom holds in disdain, for it
knows that the nature of the true Godhead
is inviolable and immutable : but the soul,
whether living in the body or separated from
the body, is subject to many passions : whereas,
of course, if it were part of the divine essence,
no adversity could happen to it. And there-
fore there is no comparison between them :
One is the Creator, the other is the creature.
For He is always the same, and suffers no
change : but the soul is changeable, even if
not changed, because its power of not chang-
ing is a gift, and not a property.

XV. (14) Their idea that the Scriptures counten-
ance their subjecting of the body to the starry
influences denied.

Under the fourteenth heading their senti-
ments upon the state of the body are stated,
viz., that it is, on account of its earthly pro-
perties, held under the power of stars and con-
stellations, and that many things are found in
the holy books which have reference to the
outer man with this object, that in the Scrip-
tures themselves a certain opposition may be
seen at work between the divine and the
earthly nature : and that that which the powers
that rule the soul claim for themselves may
be distinguished from that which the fashioners
of the body claim. These stories are invented
that the soul may be maintained to be part
of the divine substance, and the flesh believed
to belong to the bad nature : since the world
itself, with its elements, they hold to be not
the work of the good God, but the outcome
of an evil author : and that they might dis-
guise these sacrilegious lies under a fair cloak,
they have polluted almost all the divine utter-
ances with the colouring of their unholy
notions.

XVI. (15) Their falsified copies of the Scrip-
tures, and their apocryphal books prohibited.

And on this subject your remarks under the
fifteenth head make a complaint, and express
a well-deserved abhorrence of their devilish
presumption, for we too have ascertained this
from the accounts of trustworthy witnesses,
and have found many of their copies most
corrupt, though they are entitled canonical.
For how could they deceive the simple-

qualitates interiorum prcesulum in patriarcharum nominibui
^statutes) of chap, xiii., and to have insisted on knowledge of the
Scriptures as necesbary to the proper action of those " ruling prin-
ciples " on the soul. Cf. S. Aug. Letter CCXXXVII., chap, iii
(Hurtc*.)

LETTER XV.

minded unless they sweetened their poisoned
cups with a little honey, lest what was meant
to be deadly should be detected by its over-
nastiness? Therefore care must' be taken,
and the priestly diligence exercised to the
uttermost, to prevent falsified copies that are
out of harmony with the pure Truth being
used in reading. And the apocryphal scrip-
tures, which, under the names of Apostles2*,
form a nursery-ground for many falsehoods, are
not only to be proscribed, but also taken away
altogether and burnt to ashes in the fire. For
although there are certain things in them
which seem to have a show of piety, yet they
are never free from poison, and through the
allurements of their stories they have the secret
effect of first beguiling men with miraculous
narratives, and then catching them in the noose
of some error. Wherefore if any bishop has
either not forbidden the possession of apocry-
phal writings in men's houses, or under the
name of being canonical has suffered those
copies to be read in church which are vitiated
with the spurious alterations of Priscillian, let
him know that he is to be accounted heretic,
since he who does not reclaim others from error
shows that he himself has gone astray.

XVII. (16) About the writings of Dictinius*.

Under the last head a just complaint was
made that the treatises of Dictinius which he
wrote in agreement with Priscillian's tenets
were read by many with veneration : for if
they think any respect is due to Dictinius'
memory, they ought to admire his restoration
rather than his fall. Accordingly it is not
Dictinius but Priscillian that they read : and
they approve of what he wrote in error, not
what he preferred after recantation. But let no
one venture to do this with impunity, nor let
any one be reckoned among catholics who
makes use of writings that have been con-
demned not by the catholic Church alone,
but by the author himself as well. Let not
those who have gone astray be allowed to
make a fictitious show, and under the veil of
the Christian name shirk the provisions of the
imperial decrees. For they attach themselves
to the catholic Church with all this difference
of opinion in their heart, with the object of both
making such converts as they can, and escaping
the rigour of the law by passing themselves off
as ours. This is done by Pnscillianists and

4 Viz., such writings as the Actus of Thomas, Andrew and
John, and the Mcmoria apostolorum, qui totam destruit legem
veteris 'lestamenti, according to Turribius' letter to Idacius and
Ceponius, chap, v., subjoined to this letter in the Leonine series.

5 Dictinius was a bishop who had turned Priscillianist, and
afterwards, at the synod of Toledo (400), had returned to the lold of
the Church (Perthel, p. 41)

Manichaeans alike ; for there is such a close bond
of union between the two that they are dis-
tinct only in name, but in their blasphemies
are found at one : because although the Mani-
chaeans reject the Old Testament which the
others pretend to accept, yet the purpose of
both tends to the same end, seeing that the
one side corrupts while receiving what the
other assails and rejects.

But in their abominable mysteries, which
the more unclean they are, are so much the
more carefully concealed, their crime is but
one, their filthy-mindedness one, and their
foul conduct similar. And although we blush
to speak so plainly, yet we have tracked it
out with the most painful searches, and
exposed it by the confession of Manichaeans
who have been arrested, and thus brought it
to the public knowledge : lest by any means
it might seem matter of doubt, although it has
been disclosed by the mouth of the men them-
selves, who had performed the crime, in our
court, which was attended not only by a large
gathering of priests, but also by men of repute
and diamitv, and a certain number of the
senate and the people, even as the missive
which we have addressed to you, beloved,
shows to have been done. And there has
been found out and widely published about
the immoral practices of the Priscillianists
just what was also found out about the foul
wickedness of the Manichaeans. For they who
are throughout on a level of depravity in their
ideas, cannot be unlike in their religious
matters.

So having run through all that the detailed
refutation contains, with which the contents
of the memorial of their views does not dis-
agree, we have, I think, satisfactorily shown
what our opinion on the matters which you,
brother, have referred to us, and how unbear-
able it is if such blasphemous errors find ac-
ceptance in the hearts even of some priests, or
to put it more mildly, are not actively opposed
by them. With what conscience can they
maintain the honourable position which has
been given them, who do not labour for the
souls entrusted to them ? Beasts rush in, and
they do not close the fold. Robbers lay wait,
and they set no watch. Diseases multiply,
and they seek out no remedies. But when in
addition they refuse assent to those who act
more warily, and shrink from anathematizing
by their written confession blasphemies which
the whole world has already condemned, what
do they wish men to understand except that
they are not of the number of the brethren,
but on the enemy's side ?

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

XVIII. The body of Christ really rested in the
tomb, and really rose again.

Furthermore in the matter which you placed
last in your confidential letter, I am surprised
that any intelligent Christian should be in
difficulty as to whether when Christ descended
to the realms below, his flesh rested in the
tomb : for as it truly died and was buried, so
it was truly raised the third day. For this the
Lord Himself also had announced, saying to
the Jews, "destroy this temple, and in three
days I will raise it up 6." Where the evan-
gelist adds this comment: "but this He spake
of the temple of His body." The truth of
which the prophet David also had predicted,
speaking in the person of the Lord and
Saviour, and saying : " Moreover my flesh
also shall rest in hope ; because Thou will not
leave my soul in Hades, nor give Thy Holy
One to see corruption ^ " From these words
surely it is clear that the Lord's flesh being
buried, both truly rested and did not undergo
corruption : because it was quickly revived
by the return of the soul, and rose again.
Not to believe this is blasphemous enough, and
is undoubtedly of a piece with the doctrine
of Manichaeus and Priscillian, who with their
blasphemous conceptions pretend to confess
Christ, but only in such a way as to destroy
the reality of His incarnation, and death, and
resurrection.

Therefore let a council of bishops be held
among you, and let the priests of neighbouring
provinces meet at a place suitable to all : that,
on the lines of our reply to your request for
advice, a full inquiry may be made as to
whether here are any of the bishops who
are tainted with the contagion of this heresy :
for they must without doubt be cut off from
communion, if they refuse to condemn this
most unrighteous sect with all its wrongful
conceptions. For it can nohow be permitted
that one who has undertaken the duty of
preaching the Faith should dare to maintain
opinions contrary to Christ's gospel and the
creed of the universal Church. What kind of
disciples will there be in a place where such
masters teach ? What will the people's religion,
or the salvation of the laity be, where against
the interests of human society the holiness of
chastity is uprooted, the marriage-bond over-
thrown, the propagation of children forbidden,
the nature of the flesh condemned, and, in
opposition to the true worship of the true
God, the Trinity of the Godhead is denied,
the individuality of the persons confounded,
man's soul declared to be the Divine essence,

6 S. John ii. 19.

7 Ps. xvi. 10.

and enclosed in flesh at the Devil's will, the
Son of God proclaimed only-begotten in right
of being born of a Virgin, not begotten of the
Father, and at the same time maintained to
be neither true offspring of God, nor true
child of the virgin : so that after a false passion
and an unreal death, even the resurrection of
the flesh re-assumed out of the tomb should
be considered fictitious? But it is vain
for them to adopt the name of catholic, as
they do not oppose these blasphemies : they
must believe them, if they can listen so
patiently to such words. And so we have
sent a letter to our brethren and fellow-
bishops of the provinces of Tarraco, Car-
thago, Lusitania and Gallicia, enjoining a
meeting of the general synod. It will be
yours, beloved, to take order that our author-
itative instiuctions be conveyed to the bishops
of the aforesaid provinces. But should any-
thing, which God forbid, hinder the coming
together of a general council of Gallicia8, at
least let the priests come together, the as-
sembling of whom our brothers Idacius and
Ceponius shall look to, assisted by your own
strenuous efforts to hasten the applying of
remedies to these serious wounds by a provin-
cial synod also. Dated July 21, in the con-
sulship of the illustrious Calipius and Arda-
buris (447).

LETTER XVI.

To the Bishops of Sicily.

Leo the bishop to all the bishops through-
out Sicily greeting in the Lord.

I. Introductory.

By God's precepts and the Apostle's ad-
monitions we are incited to keep a careful
watch over the state of all the churches :
and, if anywhere ought is found that needs
rebuke, to recall men with speedy care either
from the stupidity of ignorance or from for-
wardness and presumption. For inasmuch
as we are warned by the Lord's own com-
mand whereby the blessed Apostle Peter had
the thrice repeated mystical injunction pressed
upon him, that he who loves Christ should
feed Christ's sheep, we are compelled by
reverence for that see which, by the abundance
of the Divine Grace, we hold, to shun the
danger of sloth as much as possible : lest the
confession of the chief Apostle whereby he
testified that he loved God be not tound
in us : because if he (through us) carelessly

8 The whole district over which Turribius was Vicar is hera
called Gallicia, though, as j'.i^t above, we find it included tho
provinces of Tarraco, Carthago, and Lusitania a well as
Gallicia.

LETTER XVI.

feed the flock so often commended to him he
is proved not to love the chief Shepherd.

II. Baptism is to be administered at Easter-

tide and not on the Epiphany.

Accordingly when it reached my ears on
reliable testimony (and I already felt a brother's
affectionate anxiety about your acts, beloved)
that in what is one of the chief sacraments
of the Church you depart from the practice
of the Apostles' constitutions by administering
the sacrament of baptism to greater numbers
on the feast of the Epiphany than at Easter-
tide, I was surprised that you or your pre-
decessors could have introduced so unreason-
able an innovation as to confound the mysteries
of the two festivals and believe there was
no difference between the day on which Christ
was worshipped by the wise men and that on
which He rose again from the dead. You
could never have fallen into this fault, if you
had taken the whole of your observances from
the source whence you derive your consecration
to the episcopate; and if the see of the blessed
Apostle Peter, which is the mother of your
priestly dignity, were the recognized teacher
of church-method. We could indeed have en-
dured your departure from its rules with less
equanimity, if you had received any previous
rebuke by way of warning from us. But now
as we do not despair of correcting you, we
must show gentleness. And although an
excuse which affects ignorance is scarce
tolerable in priests, yet we prefer to moderate
our needful rebuke and to instruct you plainly
in the true method of the Church.

III. One must distinguish one festival from
another in respect 0/ dignity and occasion.

The restoration of mankind has indeed ever
remained immutably fore-ordained in God's
eternal counsel : but the series of events
which had to be accomplished in time through
Jesus Christ our Lord was begun at the
Incarnation of the Word. Hence there is
one time when at the angel's announcement
the blessed Virgin Mary believed she was
to be with child through the Holy Ghost and
conceived : another, when without loss of her
virgin purity the Boy was born and shown
to the shepherds by the exulting joy of the
heavenly attendants : another, when the Babe
was circumcised : another, when the victim

9 From this letter it might be gathered that it was a universal
practice of the early Church, based on the precepts of the apostles,
to restrict Baptism to the leasts of Easter and Whitsuntide, and
exclude Epiphany. Whereas as a matter of fact the restriction
was almost exclusively Roman ; all the Eastern Churches and
a good many of the Western recognizing the Epiphany as a suit-
able occasion for the rite. Leo is too fond of claiming Apostolic
authority for his dictates, and none such exists here, as far as we
know.

required by the Law is offered for him :
another, when the three wise men attracted
by the brightness of the new star1 arrive at
Bethlehem from the East and worship the
Infant with the mystic offering of Gifts.

And again the days are not the same on
which by the divinely appointed pasage into
Egypt He was withdrawn from wicked Herod,
and on which He was recalled from Egypt
into Galilee on His pursuer's death. Among
these varieties of circumstance must be included
His growth of body : the Lord increases,
as the evangelist bears witness, with the
progress of age and grace : at the time of the
Passover He comes to the temple at Jerusalem
with His parents, and when He was absent
from the returning company, He is found
sitting with the elders and disputing among
the wondering masters and rendering an ac-
count of His remaining behind : " why is it,"
He says, "that ye sought Me? did ye not
know that I must be in that which is My
Father's2," signifying that He was the Son
of Him whose temple He was in. Once
more when in later years He was to be
declared more openly and sought out the
baptism of His forerunner John, was there
any doubt of His being God remaining when
after the baptism of the Lord Jesus the Holy
Spirit in form of a dove descended and rested
upon Him, and the Father's voice was heard
from the skies, "Thou art My beloved Son:
in Thee I am well pleased 3?" All these
things we have alluded to with as much
brevity as possible for this reason, that you
may know, beloved, that though all the days
of Christ's life were hallowed by many m'ghty
works of His 4, and though in all His actions
mysterious sacraments 5 shone forth, yet at one
time intimations of events were given by signs,
and at one time fulfilment realized : and that
all the Saviour's works that are recorded are
not suitable to the time of baptism. For if
we were to commemorate with indiscriminate
honour these things also which we know to
have been done by the Lord after His
baptism by the blessed John, His whole life-

* It will be noticed that Leo s order of events, though probably
correct, is not that of the modern {Calendar, which places the
Epiphany (Jan. 6) soon after the Circumcision (Jan. i), and not
after the Purification (Feb. 2) : unless it was some little time after,
Herod's cruelty was unnecessarily great in including children of
two years old in his massacre ( S. Matt. ii. 16).

2 S. Luke ii. 49, in his qua; Patris mci sunt (Vulgate) : this
version leaves the expression ei> T015 tou rfarpos fJ-ov in its original
ambiguity, but Leo's commentary immediately following gives his
decision in favour of '' in My Father's house."

3 S. Matt. iii. 17.

4 Innumeris consecratos fuisse virtutibus, where virtutes,
as often, corresponds to the Gk. Swa^eis.

5 Sacramentorum mysteria coruscasse : it is instructive to find
I the two words here conjoined, Leo so often using them apparently

as equivalents. No one, moreover, after reading_ this sentence,
can doubt what in early times Western Christians meant by
sacramentum, see Letter XII. chap. 3, &c.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

time would have to be observed in a con-
tinuous succession of festivals, because all His
acts were full of miracles. But because the
Spirit of wisdom and knowledge so instructed
the Apostles and teachers of the whole Church
as to allow nothing disordered or confused
to exist in our Christian observances, we must
discern the relative importance of the various
solemnities and observe a reasonable distinc-
tion in all the institutions of our fathers and
rulers : for we cannot otherwise " be one flock
and one shepherd6," except as the Apostle
teaches us, " that we all speak the same thing :
and that we be perfected in the same mind
and in the same judgment 7."

IV. 7%.? reason explained why Easter and
Whitsuntide are the proper seasons Jor
Baptism.

Although, therefore, both these things which
are connected with Christ's humiliation and
those which are connected with His exaltation
meet in one and the same Person, and all that
is in Him of Divine power and human weak-
ness conduces to the accomplishment of our
restoration : yet it is appropriate that the
power of baptism should change the old into
the new creature on the death-day of the
Crucified and the Resurrection-day of the
Dead: that Christ's death and His resurrec-
tion may operate in the re-born 8, as the
blessed Apostle says : " Are ye ignorant that
all we who were baptized in Christ Jesus,
were baptized in His death ? We were buried
with Him through baptism into death ; that
as Christ rose from the dead through the
glory of the Father, so we also should walk
in newness of life. For if we have become
united with the likeness of His death, we
shall be also (with the likeness) of His resur-
rection^" and the rest which the Teacher
of the Gentiles discusses further in recom-
mending the sacrament of baptism : that it
might be seen from the spirit of this doctrine
that that is the day, and that the time chosen
for regenerating the sons of men and adopting
them among the sons of God, on which by
a mystical symbolism and form x, what is
done in the limbs coincides with what was
done in the Head Himself, for in the bap-
tismal office death ensues through the slaying
of sin, and threefold immersion imitates the
lying in the tomb three days, and the raising
out of the water is like Him that rose again

6 S. John x. 17. 7 1 Cor. i. 10.

8 Renascetitibus (pres. part.) here, not renatis (past).

9 Rom vi. 3-5. Notice the support here given to the marginal
alternative of the R.V., "united with," instead of "united in"
(Lat. complantati similitudini, <fcc.).

1 Per similitudinem et/ormam mysterii.

from the tomb2. The very nature, therefore
of the act teaches us that that is the recog-
nized day for the general reception of the
grace 3, on which the power of the gift and
the character of the action originated. And
this is strongly corroborated by the consider-
ation that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself,
after He rose from the dead, handed on both
the form and power of baptizing to His dis-
ciples, in whose persons all the chiefs of the
churches received their instructions with these
words, " Go ye and teach all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Ghost 1" On which
of course He might have instructed them
even before His passion, had He not especially
wished it to be understood that the grace
of regeneration began with His resurrection.
It must be added, indeed, that the solemn
season of Pentecost, hallowed by the coming
of the Holy Ghost is also allowed, being,
as it were, the sequel and completion of the
Paschal feast. And while other festivals are
held on other days of the week, this festival
(of Pentecost) always occurs on that day,
which is marked by the Lord's resurrection :
holding out, so to say, the hand of assisting
grace and inviting those, who have been
cut off from the Easter feast by disabling
sickness or length of journey or difficulties
of sailing, to gain the purpose that they long
for through the gift of the Holy Spirit. For
the Only-begotten of God Himself wished no
difference to be felt between Himself and the
Holy Spirit in the Faith of believers and in
the efficacy of His works: because there is
no diversity in their nature, as He says,
" I will ask the Father and He shall give you
another Comforter that He may be with you
for ever, even the Spirit of Truths;" and
again : " But the Comforter which is the Holy
Ghost, whom the Father will send in My name,
He shall teach you all things and bring to
your remembrance all that I said unto you 6 ; "
and again : " When He, the Spirit of Truth,
is come, He shall guide you into all the
Truth?." And thus, since Christ is the
Truth, and the Holy Spirit the Spirit of Truth,
and the name of "Comforter" appropriate
to both, the two festivals are not dissimilar,
where the sacrament is the same 8.

* This was a favourite interpretation of the symholism with th«
fathers. Cf. Serm. LXX., chap. 4, and Bright's n. 97 thereon.

3 Celebranda generaliter gratice, where generaliter has much
the same sense as the Eng. "generally" has in the definition of
a sacrament in the Eng. Ch. Catechism as '* generally necessary
to salvation."

4 S. Matt, xxviii. 19. S S. John xiv. 16.
6 Ibid. 26. 7 Ibid. xvi. 13.

8 It need hardly be pointed out that these words, " where the
sacrament is the same," refer to the sacramentum (in its Leonine
sense), that has just been explained, viz. .that Christus est veriUis
tt spiritus sanctus est spiritus veritatis.

LETTER XVI.

V. S. Peter s example as an authority for

Whitsuntide baptisms.
And that we do not contend for this on our
own conviction but retain it on Apostolic
authority, we prove by a sufficiently apt ex-
ample, following the blessed Apostle Peter,
who, on the very day on which the promised
coming of the Holy Ghost filled up the number
of those that believed, dedicated to God in
the baptismal font three thousand of the
people who had been converted by his preach-
ing. The Holy Scripture, which contains the
Acts of Apostles 9, teaches this in its faithful
narrative, saying, " Now when they heard this,
they were pricked in the heart, and said unto
Peter and to the rest of the Apostles, what
shall we do, brethren ? But Peter said unto
them, Repent ye and be baptized every one of
you in the name of Jesus Christ, unto the
remission of your sins, and ye shall receive
the gift of the Holy Ghost. For to you is the
promise, and to your children and to all that
are afar off, even as many as the Lord our
God shall call unto Him. With many other
words also he testified and exhorted them say-
ing, Save yourselves from this crooked genera-
tion. They then that received his word were
baptized, and there were added in that day
about three thousand I."

VI. In cases of urgency other times are allow-

able for baptism.

Wherefore, as it is quite clear that these two
seasons of which we have been speaking are
the rightful ones for baptizing the chosen in
Church, we admonish you, beloved, not to add
other days to this observance. Because,
although there are other festivals also to which
much reverence is due in God's honour, yet
we must rationally guard this principal and
greatest sacrament as a deep mystery and not
part of the ordinary routine2: not, however,
prohibiting the licence to succour those who
are in danger by administering baptism to
them at any time. For whilst we put off the
vows of those who are not pressed by ill health
and live in peaceful security to those two
closely connected and cognate festivals, we do
not at any time refuse this which is the only safe-
guard of true salvation to any one in peril of
death, in the crisis of a siege, in the distress
of persecution, in the terror ot shipwreck.

_ 9 Leo does not often quote from the Acts, and here he expressly
includes it in the Canon, and alludes to its authenticity \jideli
histhriadocef). * Acts ii. 37-41.

2 Principalis et maximi sacramenti custodienda nobis est
"tvstica et rationalis exceptio (another reading being exem-
platio (symbolism), which Quesnel prefers, thinking that the
words have reference to the appropriateness of this symbolical rite
of Baptism being performed at Easter-tide).

VII. Our Lord's baptism by John very different
to the baptis?n of believers.
But if any one thinks the feast of the Epi-
phany, which in proper degree is certainly to
be held in due honour, claims the privilege of
baptism because, according to some the Lord
came to St. John's baptism on the same day,
let him know that the grace of that baptism
and the reason of it were quite different, and
is not on an equal footing with the power by
which they are re-born of the Holy Ghost, of
whom it is said, " which were born not of
blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the
will of man, but of God 3." For the Lord
who needed no remission of sin and sought
not the remedy of being born again, desired
to be baptized just as He desired to be cir-
cumcised, and to have a victim offered for His
purification: that He, who had been "made
of a woman 3*," as the Apostle says, might be-
come also "under the law" which He had come,
" not to destroy but to fulfil 3i>," and by fulfilling
to end, as the blessed Apostle proclaims, say-
ing : " but Christ is the end of the law unto
righteousness to every one that believethV
But the sacrament of baptism He founded in
His own person s, because " in all things having
the pre-eminence6," He taught that He Him-
self was the Beginning. And He ratified the
power of re-birth on that occasion, when from
His side flowed out the blood of ransom and
the water of baptism 7. As, therefore, the Old
Testament was the witness to the new, and
" the law was given by Moses : but grace
and truth came through Jesus Christ8;" as
the divers sacrifices prefigured the one Victim,
and the slaughter of many lambs was ended by
the offering up of Him, of whom it is said,
" Behold the Lamb of God; behold Him that
taketh away the sin of the world';" so too
John, not Christ, but Christ's forerunner, not
the bridegroom, but the friend of the bride-
groom, was so faithful in seeking, " not His
own, but the things which are Jesus Christ's 9%"
as to profess himself unworthy to undo the
shoes of His feet : seeing that He Himself
indeed baptized "in water unto repentance,"
but He who with twofold power should both
restore life and destroy sins, was about to
"baptize in the Holy Ghost and fire9b." As

3 S. John i. 13. 3* Gal. iv. 4. 3>> S. Matt. v. 17.

4 Rom. x. 4.

5 Baptismi sui in se condidit sacramentum : the baptism of
Christ has very generally been associated with the Epiphany :
the record of it, for instance, in S. Luke iii. 15 — 23, is the 2nd
morning lesson for the Festival in the English Church. It is,
however, not clear who the "some" were whom Leo mentions
above as putting Christ's baptism on the same day as the Epiphany ;
perhaps he means the Eastern Church."

6 1 Col. i. 18.

7 Cf. Lett. XXVIII. (The Tome), chap, v!., where the same
explanation of the sacred incident in the Lord's passion is given.

8 S. John i. 17. Cf. Rev. xix. 20, " for the testimony of Jesus
is the spirit of prophecy." 9 S. John i. 29.

9* Phil. ii. ai. 9b S. Matt. iii. 11 ; S. Luke iii. 16.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

then, beloved brethren, all these distinct proofs
come before you, whereby to the removal ot
all doubt you recognize that in baptizing the
elect who, according to the Apostolic rule
have to be purged by exorcisms, sanctified by
fastings and instructed by frequent sermons,
two seasons only are to be observed, viz.
Easter and Whitsuntide : we charge you,
brother, to make no further departure from
the Apostolic institutions. Because hereafter
no one who thinks the Apostolic rules can be
set at defiance will go unpunished.

VIII. The Sicilian bishops are to send three of
their number to each of the half-yearly meet-
ings of bishops at Rome.

Wherefore we require this first and foremost
for the keeping of perfect harmony, that, ac-
cording to the wholesome rule of the holy
Fathers that there should be two meetings of
bishops every year1, three of you should
appear without fail each time, on the 29th of
September, to join in the council of the
brethren : for thus, by the aid of God's grace,
we shall the easier guard against the rise of
offences and errors in Christ's Church : and
this council must always meet and deliberate
in the presence of the blessed Apostle Peter,
that all his constitutions and canonical decrees
may remain inviolate with all the Lord's
priests.

These matters, upon which we thought it
necessary to instruct you by the inspiration of
the Lord, we wish brought to your knowledge
by our brothers and fellow-bishops, Bacillus
and Paschasinus. May we learn by their re-
port that the institutions of the Apostolic See
are reverently observed by you. Dated 21
Oct., in the consulship of the illustrious Alipius
and Ardaburis (447).

LETTER XVII ».

To all the bishops of Sicily {forbidding the
sale of church property except Jor the advantage
of the church).

Leo, the pope 2a, to all the bishops of Sicily.

The occasion of specific complaints claims
our attention as having " the care of all the
churches," that we should make a perpetual

1 Cf. Lett. XIV., chap. 8, where the same rule is laid down.

8 This letter is suspected by Quesnel as being, if not spurious,
at least the production of some later Leo than our own : but he
would seem to have hardly sufficient ground for his conjecture,
and the document is interesting as showing the existence of
Church endowments at the time, and alas ! of their mismanage-
ment. Two centuries before indeed we have Cyprian in Africa
uttering a. somewhat similar complaint : e.g. de laps, vi., de unit.
eccl. xxvi., Lett. XV. 3. It does not appear, however, there that
the clergy actually misappropriated Church funds, only that they
were greedy and intent on worldly gain.

2a Papa. This title, which in later times came throughout
the West to denote exclusively the Bishop of Rome, was origi-
nally in the West no less than i't is still in the East, the common
appellation of all priests and spiritual fathers of the Church.

decree precluding all bishops from adopting as
a practice what in two churches of your pro-
vince has been unscrupulously suggested and
wrongfully carried out. Upon the clergy of
the church in Tauromenium deploring the
destitution they were in from the bishop having
squandered all its estates by selling, giving
away, and otherwise disposing of them, the
clergy of Panormus, who have lately had
a new bishop, raised a similar complaint about
the misgovernment of the former bishop in the
holy synod, at which we were presiding.
Although, therefore, we have already given
instructions as to what is for the advantage of
both Churches, yet lest this vicious example of
abominable plundering should hereafter be
taken as a precedent, we wish to make this
our formal command binding on you, beloved,
for ever. We decree, therefore, that no bishop
without exception shall dare to give away, or
to exchange, or to sell any of the property of
his church : unless he foresees an advantage
likely to accrue from so doing, and after con-
sultation with the whole of the clergy, and
with their consent, he decides upon what will
undoubtedly profit that church. For pres-
byters, or deacons, or clerics of any rank who
have connived at the church's losses, must
know that they will be deprived of both rank
and communion : because it is absolutely fair,
beloved brethren, that not only the bishop,
but also the whole of the clergy should advance
the interests of their church and keep the gifts
unimpaired of those who have contributed
their own substance to the churches for the
salvation of their souls. Dated 20 Oct., in
the consulship of the illustrious Calepius (447)-

LETTER XVIII.

To Januarius, Bishop of Aquileia'.

Leo, bishop of the city of Rome, to
Januarius, bishop of Aquileia.

Those who renounce heresy and schism and
return to the Church must make their recanta-
tion very clear: those who are clerics may
retain their rank but not be promoted.

On reading your letter, brother, we recog-
nized the vigour of your faith, which we
already were aware of, and congratulate you
on the watchful care you bestow as pastor on
the keeping of Christ's flock : lest the wolves,
that enter in under guise of sheep, should tear
the simple ones to pieces in their bestial fierce-

3 The Ballerinii's conjecture is at lean very plausible, that this
Januarius was the successor of that Bishop of Aquileia to whom
Letter I. was written 5 years previously upon the same subject of
the Pe'agian error. The text of this letter is almost word (or
word identical with Letter II., written to Septimus, Bishop of
Altmum, on the same occasion as Lett. I.

LETTER XIX.

ness, and not only themselves run riot without
restraint, but also spoil those which are sound.
And lest the vipery deceit should effect this,
we have thought it meet to warn you, beloved,
reminding you that it is at the peril of his
soul, for any one of them who has fallen away
from us into a sect of heretics and schis-
matics4, and stained himself to whatever
extent with the pollution of heretical com-
munion, to be received into catholic com-
munion on coming to his senses without
making legitimate and express satisfaction.
For it is most wholesome and full of all the
benefits of spiritual healing that presbyters or
deacons, or sub-deacons or clerics of any rank,
who wish to appear reformed, and entreat to
return once more to the catholic Faith which
they had long ago lost, should first confess with-
out ambiguity that their errors and the authors
of the errors themselves are condemned by
them, that their base opinions may be utterly
destroyed, and no hope survive of their recur-
rence, and that no member may be harmed
by contact with them, every point having
been met with its proper recantation. With
regard to them we also order the observance
of this regulation of the canons s, that they
consider it a great indulgence, if they be
allowed to remain undisturbed in their present
rank without any hope of further advance-
ment : but only on consideration of their not
being defiled with second baptism6. No slight
penalty does he incur from the Lord, who
judges any such person fit to be advanced to
Holy Orders. If advancement is granted
to those who are without blame, only after
full examination, how much more ought it
to be refused to those who are under sus-
picion. Accordingly, beloved brother, in
whose devotion we rejoice, bestow your care
on our directions, and take order for the
circumspect and speedy carrying out of these
laudable suggestions and wholesome injunc-
tions, which affect the welfare of the whole
Church. But do not doubt, beloved, that,
if what we decree for the observance of the
canons, and the integrity of the Faith be
neglected (which we do not anticipate), we
shall be strongly moved : because the faults
of the lower orders are to be referred to none
more than to slothful and careless governors,

4 Schismaticorum, considering how easily heresy leads to
schism and schUm to heresy, there is no need with Quesnel to
consider that Novatians or Donatists are being here attacked.
The Ballerinii say with justice :—generalis regula hie indicaticr
omnibus turn liczreticis turn schisntaticis ad ecclesiam redeun-
tibus com»i7inis.

5 What canon is here alluded to is uncertain : the Ballerinii
think perhaps the 8th Nicene canon, extending its application
from the Cathari or Novatians to all heresies and schism.

6 Si tamen iterata tinctione non fuerinl maciilati- Cf. Can.
Afric, 27, neque perniittendum ut rebaptizati ad clericatus
Q-adum promoveantur.

who often foster much disease by refusing to
apply the needful remedy. Dated 30 Dec,
in the consulship of the illustrious Calepius
and Ardaburis (447).

LETTER XIX.
To Dorus, Bishop of Beneventum.

Leo, bishop, to Dorus his well-beloved
brother.

I. He rebukes Dorus for allowing a junior
presbyter to be promoted over the heads of
the seniors, and the first and second in se-
niority for acquiescing.

We grieve that the judgment, which we
hoped to entertain of you, has been frustrated
by our ascertaining that you have done things
which by their blame-worthy novelty infringe
the whole system of Church discipline : al-
though you know full well with what care we
wish the provisions of the canons to be kept
through all the churches of the Lord, and
the priests of all the peoples to consider it
their especial duty to prevent the violation
of the rules of the holy constitutions by any
extravagances. We are surprised, therefore,
that you who ought to have been a strict
observer of the injunctions of the Apostolic
See have acted so carelessly, or rather so con-
tumaciously, as to show yourself not a guar-
dian, but a breaker of the laws handed on
to you. For from the report of your pres-
byter, Paul, which is subjoined, we have
learnt that the order of the presbyterate has
been thrown into confusion with you by
strange intrigues and vile collusion ; in such
a way that one man has been hastily and
prematurely promoted, and others passed over
whose advancement was recommended by
their age, and who were charged with no
fault. But if the eagerness of an intriguer
or the ignorant zeal of his supporters de-
manded that which custom never allowed,
viz., that a beginner should be preferred to
veterans, and a mere boy to men of years, it
was your duty by diligence and teaching to
check the improper desires of the petitioners
with all reasonable authority : lest he whom
you advanced hastily to the priestly rank
should enter on his office to the detriment
of those with whom he associated and become
demoralized by the growth within him, not of
the virtue of humility, but of the vice of con-
ceit?. For you were not unaware that the
Lord had said that " he that humbleth him-
self shall be exalted : but he that exalteth

7 Nequevi sacerdotali propere provehebas honors, adiniuriam
eorum quibus sociibatur, inciperet iniuorque sejieret : the text
no doubt corrupt, though the grneral sense is clear : the emenoa-
tion minorque se for miror quis is made almost certain by the
quotations that follow, especially the second.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

himself shall be humbled8," and also had said,
" but ye seek from little to increase, and from
the greater to be lessV For both actions
are out of order and out of place1 : and all
the fruit of men's labours is lost, all the
measure of their deserts is rendered void,
if the gaining of dignity is proportioned to
the amount of flattery used : so that the eager-
ness to be eminent belittles not only the
aspirer himself, but also him that connives at
him. But if, as is asserted, the first and
second presbyter were so agreeable to Epi-
carpius being put over their heads as to de-
mand his being honoured to their own disgrace,
that which they wished ought not to have
been granted them when they were voluntarily
degrading themselves : because it would have
been worthier of you to oppose than to yield
to such a pitiable wish. But their base and
cowardly submission could not be to the pre-
judice of others whose consciences were good,
and who had not done despite to God's grace;
so that, whatever the transaction was whereby
they gave up their precedence to another,
they could not lower the dignity of those
that came next to them, nor because they
had placed the last above themselves, could
he take precedence of the rest.

II. The presbyters, who gave way, to be de-
graded with the usurper to the bottom : the
rest to keep their places.

The aforesaid presbyters, therefore, who
have declared themselves unworthy of their
proper rank, though they even deserved to be
deprived of their priesthood ; yet, that we
may show the gentleness of the Apostolic See
in sparing them, are to be put last of all the
presbyters of the Church : and that they may
bear their own sentence, they shall be below
him also whom they preferred to themselves
by their own judgment : all the other pres-
byters remaining in the order which the time
of his ordination assigns to each. And let
none except the two aforesaid suffer any loss
of dignity, but let this disgrace attach to those
only who chose to put themselves below a
junior who had only lately been ordained :
that they may feel that that sentence of the
gospels applies to themselves when it is said :
" with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be
judged : and with what measure ye mete, the
same shall be measured unto you2." But let
Paul the presbyter retain his place trom which

8 S. Luke xiv. n and xviii. 14.

9 Vos autem quaritis de fusillo crescere et de maiore minores
esse. This remarkable addiiion to S. Matt. xx. 28 is found in
Cod. D, in some Syriac and many Latin copies: read Westcott s
note in Appendix C 3 to Introduction to Study, &*c

1 lnordinatum,praposterum. Cf. Lett. XIL, chap. 2, n. 8.

2 S. Matt. vii. 2 ; S. Mark iv. 24 ; S. Luke vi. 36

with praiseworthy firmness he did not budge :
and let no further encroachments be made to
any one's harm : so that you, beloved, who not
undeservedly get the discredit of the whole
matter, may with all speed take measures to
cure it at least by putting these our injunc-
tions into effect ; lest, if a second time a just
complaint be lodged with us, we be forced
into stronger displeasure : for we would rather
restore discipline by correcting what is done
wrong, than increase the punishment. Know
that we have entrusted the carrying out of
our commands to our brother and fellow-
bishop Julius, that all things may straight-
way be established, as we have ordained.
Dated 8th March, in the consulship of the
illustrious Postumianus (448).

LETTER XX.

TO EUTYCHES, AN ABBOT OF CONSTANTINOPLE.

Leo, the bishop, to his dearly-beloved son,
Eutyches, presbyter.

He thanks him for his information about the
revival of Nestorianism and commends his zeal.

You have brought to our knowledge, beloved,
by your letter that through the activity of
some 3 the heresy of Nestorius has been again
reviving. We reply that your solicitude in
this matter has pleased us, since the remarks
we have received are an indication of your
mind. Wherefore do not doubt that the
Lord, the Founder of the catholic Faith, will
befriend you in all things. And when we
have been able to ascertain more fully by
whose wickedness this happens, we must make
provision with the help of God for the com-
plete uprooting of this poisonous growth which
has long ago been condemned. God keep
thee safe, my beloved son. Dated 1st June,
in the consulship of the illustrious Postumianus
and Zeno (448).

LETTER XXI.

From Eutyches to Leo*.

I. He states his account of the proceedings at the

Synod.

God the Word is before all else my witness,

3 Quesnel is of opinion that Eutyches' letter had accused
Domnus, Bishop of Antioch, and Thecdoret, Bishop of Cyrus
(cf. Lett. CXX., chapters iv. and v.), of Nestorianizing, and that
he thus had gained the approbation of Leo before his own
unsoundness had been made known.

4 Contrary to my general plan, I have thought it wiser, in the
matter of the Eutychian controversy, to include other than Leo s
own writings, that the reader may fulfil the precept audi alteram
partem in what was the most important doctrinal discussion of
Leo's term of office. This Letter (XXI.) bears the stamp of
genuineness upon it, though the Gk. original is not found. It is
from a collection of documents bearing on Nestorianism published
ex MS. Casinensi, first by Christianus Lupus (?), and after-
wards by Stephanus Baluzius (1630—1718).

LETTER XXI.

being confident of my hope and faith in
Christ the Lord and God of all, and discern-
ing the proof of my holding the truth in these
matters : but I call on your holiness, too, to
bear witness to my heart and to the reason-
ableness of my opinions and words. But the
wicked devil has exercised his evil influence
upon my zeal and determination, whereby his
power ought to have been destroyed. Where-
upon he has exerted all his proper power and
aroused Eusebius, bishop of the town of Dory-
Iseum, against me, who presented an allega-
tion 5 to the holy bishop of the church in
Constantinople, Flavian, and to certain others
whom he found in the same city assembled on
various matters of their own : in this he called
me heretic, not raising any true accusation but
contriving destruction for me and disturbance
for the churches of God.

Their holinesses summoned me to reply to
his accusation : but though I was delayed by
a serious illness besides my advanced age,
I came to clear myself, knowing well that
a faction had been formed against my safety.
And, indeed, together with a writ of appeal 6 to
which my signature was appended, I offered
them a statement showing my confession upon
the holy Faith. But when the holy Flavian
did not receive the document, nor order it to
be read, yet heard me in reply utter word for
word that Faith which was put forth at Nicaea
by the holy Synod, and confirmed at Ephesus,
I was required to acknowledge two natures,
and to anathematize those who denied this.
But I, fearing the decision of the synod, and
not wishing either to take away or to add one
word contrary to the Faith put forth by the
holy Synod of Nicaea, knowing, too, that our
holy and blessed fathers and bishops Julius,
Felix, Athanasius, and Gregorius 7 rejected the
phrase " two natures," and not daring to dis-
cuss the nature of God the Word, who came
into flesh in the last days entering the womb
of the holy virgin Mary unchangeably as he
willed and knew, becoming man in reality,
not in fancy, nor yet venturing to anathe-
matize our aforesaid Fathers, 1 asked them to

5 See Introduction, p. vii.

6 Libelli sc. (ap/ellationis ad Leonem) : this is referred to by
Flavian (Lett. XX VI., chap, iii.) and denied.

7 Of these four worthies, A thanasius is too well known to need
further notice: Gregorius is either Greg. Nazianzen, Bishop of
Constantinople (circ. 380), or Greg, of Nyssa, both great cham-
pions ot the Church against Arianism {not, as the Ball., Greg
lhaumaturgus, Bishop of Neo Caesarea, 244-70): Julius was
a Bishop of Rome (337-52) : an excerpt from one of his letters
is printed by the Bail, at the end of this letter as the passage on
which Rutyches based his error, though they suspect it°(not
unnaturally) as heing an Apollinarian imposition: Felix is pro-
bably no other than the Arian Bishop o! Rome, Felix II. (35V8)
whose appointment is characterized by Athanasius as effected

by antichristian wickedness," but who is yet a canonized saint
and martyr of the Roman Church (see Schaff's Hist., vol ii
p. 371 ; in. 635, 6).

VOL. XII. T

let your holiness know these things, that you
might judge what seemed right to you, under-
taking by all means to follow your ruling.

II. His explanations were allowed no hearing.

But without listening to any thing which
I said, they broke up the Synod and published
the sentence of my degradation, which they
were getting ready against me before the in-
quiry. So much slander were they factiously
making up against me that even my safety
would have been endangered had not the help
of God at the intercession of your holiness
quickly snatched me from the assault of mili-
tary force. Then they began to force the
heads of other monasteries 8 to subscribe to
my degradation (a thing which was never done
either towards those who have professed them-
selves heretics, nor even against Nestorius
himself), insomuch that when to reassure the
people I tried to set forth 9 statements of my
faith, not only did they, who were plotting the
aforesaid faction against me, prevent them
being heard, but also seized them that straight-
way I might be held a heretic before all.

III. He appeals to Leo for protection.

I take refuge, therefore, with you the de-
fender of religion and abhorrer ot such factions,
bringing in even still nothing strange against
the faith as it was originally handed down to
us, but anathematizing Apollinaris, Valentinus,
Manes, and Nestorius, and those who say that
the flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour,
descended from heaven and not from the Holv
Ghost and from the holy Virgin, along with all
heresies down to Simon Magus. Yet neverthe-
less I stand in jeopardy of my life as a heretic.
I beseech you not to be prejudiced against me
by their insidious designs about me, but to
pronounce the sentence which shall seem to
you right upon the Faith, and in future not to
allow any slander to be uttered against me by
this faction, nor let one be expelled and ban-
ished from the number of the orthodox who
has spent his seventy years of lite in con-
tinence and all chastity, so that at the very
end of life he should suffer shipwreck. I have
subjoined to this my letter both documents,
that which was presented by my accuser at the
Synod, and that which was brought by me but
not received, as well as the statement ot my
faith and those things which have been de
creed upon the two natures by our holy
Fathers '.

B Abbots' signatures are found attached to the condemnation
of Eutyches by the synod of Constantinople.

9 Cf. Letter XXVI., chap, ii., propositions iniuriarum publice
ponens et maledictionibus pictias Gk. 7rpo6e/xeTa u/3pems /cat Aoto-
opias ava.fj.eina.), which is Flavian's account of the matter.

1 Of these lour documents (i) Eusebius' libcllus is preserved \i

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

Eutyches' Confession of Faith.

I call upon you before Goo, who gives life
to all things, and Christ Jesus, who witnessed
that good confession under Pontius Pilate,
that you do nothing by favour. For I have
held the same as my forefathers and from my
boyhood have been illuminated by the same
Faith as that which was laid down by the holy
Synod of 318 most blessed bishops who were
gathered at Nicsea from the whole world, and
which was confirmed and ratified afresh for
sole acceptance by the holy Synod assembled
at Ephesus : and I have never thought other-
wise than as the right and only true orthodox
Faith has enjoined. And I agree to every-
thing that was laid down about the same Faith
by the same holy Synod : of which Synod the
leader and chief was Cyril of blessed memory
bishop of the Alexandrians, the partner and
sharer in the preaching and in the Faith of
those saints and elect of God, Gregory the
greater, and the other Gregory2, Basil, Athan-
asius, Atticus and Proclus. Him and all of
them I have held orthodox and faithful, and
have honoured as saints, and have esteemed my
masters. But I utter an anathema on Nes-
torius, Apollinaris, and all heretics down to
Simon, and those who say that the flesh of our
Lord Jesus Christ came down from heaven.
For He who is the Word of God came down
from heaven without flesh and was made flesh
in the holy Virgin's womb unchangeably and
unalterably as He Himself knew and willed.
And He who was always perfect God before
the ages, was also made perfect man in the
end of the days for us and for our salvation.
This my full profession may your holiness con-
sider.

I, Eutyches, presbyter and archimandrite,
have subscribed to this statement with my
own hand.

LETTER XXII 3.

The first from Flavian, Bp. of Constan-
tinople to Pope Leo.

To the most holy and God-loving father and
fellow-bishop, Leo, Flavian greeting in the
Lord.

I. The designs of the devil have led Eutyches
astray.

There is nothing which can stay the devil's

Act 1 Chalcedon ; (2) is not forthcoming ; (3) is appended below ;
and (4) a fragment of the testimony of Julius, which is given,
does not seem important enough to be added in this edition,
especially as its genuineness is denied.

2 Here we have the two Gregorys mentioned : cf. n. 7, above.

3 There are two Latin versions of the original Gk. of this letter,
an older and a later : the later, as being more accurate, is here
translated, though Canon Bright would seem to be right (n. 139)

wickedness, that " restless evil, full of deadly
poison +." Above and below it " goes about,"
seeking " whom it may " strike, dismay, and
" devour s." Whence to watch, to be sober unto
prayer, to draw near to God, to eschew foolish
questionings, to follow the fathers and not to
go beyond the eternal bounds, this we have
learnt from Holy Writ. And so I give up the
excess of grief and abundant tears over the
capture of one of the clergy who are under me,
and whom I could not save nor snatch from
the wolf, although I was ready to lay down
my life for him. How was he caught, how
did he leap away, hating the voice of the caller
and turning aside also from the memory of the
Fathers and thoroughly detesting their paths.
And thus I proceed with my account.

II. The seductions of heretics capture the un-
wary.

There are some " in sheep's clothing, but
inwardly they are ravening wolves6:" whom
we know by their fruit. These men seem
indeed at first to be of us, but they are not of
us : " for if they had been of us, they would
no doubt have continued with us ?." But when
they have spewed out their impiety, throwing
out the guile that is in them, and seizing the
weaker ones, and those who have their senses
unpractised in the divine utterances, they carry
them along with themselves to destruction,
wresting and doing despite to the Fathers'
doctrines, just as they do the Holy Scriptures
also to their own destruction : whom we must
be forewarned of and take heed lest some
should be misled by their wickedness and
shaken in their firmness. " For they have
sharpened their tongues like serpents : adder's
poison is under their lips8," as the prophet
has cried out about them.

III. Eutyches'' heresy stated.

Such a one, therefore, has now shown him-
self amongst us, Eutyches, for many years a
presbyter and archimandrite 9, pretending to
hold the same belief as ours, and to have the
right Faith in him : indeed he resists the blas-
phemy of Nestorius, and feigns a controversy
with him, but the exposition of the Faith com-
posed by the 318 holy fathers, and the letter
that Cyril of holy memory wrote to Nestorius,
and one by the same author on the same sub-
ject to the Easterns, these writings, to which

in saying that we must think of Leo as writing the Tome
(Lett. XXVIII.) with the older Latin version of Flavian's letter
before him.'

4 S. Jam. iii. 8. 5 i S. Pet. v. 8-

6 S. Matt. vii. 15. 7 1 John ii. 19. 8 Ps. cxl. 3.

9 Viz., head of a monastery (,Gk. ixdv&pa.) or abbot.

LETTER XXIII.

all have given their assent, he has tried to
upset, and revive the old evil dogmas of the
blasphemous Valentinus and Apollinaris. He
has not feared the warning of the True King :
" Whoso shall cause one of the least of these
little ones to stumble, it was better that a mill-
stone should be hanged about his neck, and
that he should be sunk in the depth of the
sea I." But casting away all shame, and
shaking off the cloak which covered his error 2,
he openly in our holy synod persisted in saying
that our Lord Jesus Christ ought not to be
understood by us as having two natures after
His incarnation in one substance and in one
person : nor yet that the Lord's flesh was of
the same substance with us, as if assumed
from us and united to God the Word hypo-
statically : but he said that the Virgin who
bare him was indeed of the same substance
with us according to the flesh, but the Lord
Himself did not assume from her flesh of the
same substance with us : but the Lord's body
was not a man's body, although that which
issued from the Virgin was a human body,
resisting all the expositions of the holy
Fathers.

IV. He has sent Leo the minutes of their pro-
ceedings that he may see all the details.

But not to make my letter too long by
detailing everything, we have sent your holi-
ness the proceedings which some time since
we took in the matter : therein we deprived
him as convicted on these charges, of his
priesthood, of the management of his mon-
astery and of our communion : in order that
your holiness also knowing the facts of his
case may make his wickedness manifest to all
the GoD-loving bishops who are under your
reverence; lest perchance if they do not know
the views which he holds, and of which he
has been openly convicted, they may be found
to be in correspondence with him as a fellow-
believer by letter or by other means. I and
those who are with me give much greeting to
you and to all the brotherhood in Christ.
The Lord keep you in safety and prayer for
us, O most GoD-loving father 3

1 S. Matt, xviii. 6, but it will be noticed that the quotation is
confused with xxv. 40, minimis being substituted lor qui in me
eredunt.

3 Pudorem (instead of the impudenter of the MSS.) omnem
abiciens et pel/em quiz eum circumdabat excutiens, the Gk.
version of this somewhat obscure passage running aiSit iraaav
a7rojSaAu)i' Kai y\v 7rept€KeiT0 ttJs TrA-ap-q? 5opav aTrorii'a^ajU.eyos.

3 This was the letter " which was somewhat unaccountably
delayed in its transit to Rome" (Bright), which reached Leo after
XXIII. was written, and to which Leo refers in the Tome, chap, i.,
iitteris, quas miramur Juisse tam seras. Blight's note 139
^should be read throughout as a clear exposition of the preliminary
steps in the controversy.

LETTER XXIII.

To Flavian, Bishop of Constantinople.

To his well-beloved brother Flavian the
bishop, Leo the bishop.

I. He complains that Flavian has not sent him
a full account of Eutyches1 case.

Seeing that our most Christian and merciful
Emperor, in his holy and praiseworthy faith
and anxiety for the peace of the Catholic
Church, has sent us a letter 4 upon the matters
which nave roused the din of disturbance
among you, we wonder, brother, that you
have been able to keep silence to us upon
the scandal that has been caused, and that
you did not rather take measures for our being
at once informed by your own report, that we
might not have any doubt about the truth of
the case. For we have received a document
from the presbyter Eutyches s, who complains
that on the accusation of bishop Eusebius he
has been wrongfully deprived of communion,
notwithstanding that he says he attended your
summons and did not refuse his presence :
and moreover asserts that he presented a deed
of appeal in the very court, which was how-
ever not accepted : whereupon he was forced
to put forth letters of defence6 in the city
of Constantinople. Pending which matter we
do not yet know with what justice he has been
separated from the communion of the Church.
But having regard to the importance of the
matter, we wish to know the reason of your
action and to have the whole thing brought to
our knowledge : for we, who desire the judg-
ments of the Lord's priests to be deliberate,
cannot without information decide one way
or another, until we have all the proceedings
accurately before us.

II. And 7ioiv demands it.

And therefore, brother, signify to us in a
full account by the hand of the most fit and
competent person, what innovation has arisen
against the ancient faith, which needed to be
corrected by so severe a sentence.. For both
the moderation of the Church and the devout
faith of our most godly prince insist upon our
showing much anxiety for the peace of Christ-
endom : that dissensions may be cleared away
and the Catholic Faith kept unimpaired, and
that those whose faith has been proved may
be fortified by our authority, when those who

4 This letter from Theodosius II. came soon after Eutyches,
letter (XXI), and "apparently gave Leo the impression, that
Eutyches had been badly treated." Brigiit.

5 See Letter XXL, ahove.

6 Contestatorios libellos. See Lett. XXL, chap. ii.

D 2

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

maintain what is wrong have been recalled
from their error. And no difficulty can arise
on this side, since the said presbyter has pro-
fessed himself, by his own statement, ready to
be corrected if anything be found in him
worthy of rebuke. For it beseems us in such
matters to take every precaution that charity
be kept and the Truth defended without the
din of strife. And therefore because you see,
beloved, that we are anxious about so great a
matter, hasten to inform us of everything in as
full and clear a manner as possible (for this
ought to have been done before), lest in the
cross-statements of both sides we be misled by
some uncertainty, and the dissension, which
ought to be stifled in its infancy, be fostered :
for our heart is impressed by God's inspiration
with the need of saving from violation by any-
one's misinterpretation those constitutions of
the venerable fathers which have received
Divine ratification and belong to the ground-
work of the Faith. God keep thee safe, dear
brother. Dated 18 February (449), in the con-
sulship of the illustrious Asturius and Proto-

genes.

LETTER XXIV.

To Theodosius Augustus II.
Leo the bishop, to Theodosius Augustus.

I. He praises the E/nfieror's piety and mentions
Eutyches1 appeal.

How much protection the Lord has vouch-
safed His Church through your clemency and
faith, is shown again by this letter which you
have sent me : so that we rejoice at there
being not only a kingly, but also a priestly
mind within you. Seeing that, besides your
imperial and public cares, you have a most
devout anxiety for the Christian religion, lest
schisms or heresies or other offences should
grow up among God's people. For your realm
is then in its best state when men serve the
eternal and unchangeable Trinity by the con-
fession of one Godhead ?. What the disturb-
ance was which occurred in the Church of
Constantinople, and which could have so
moved my brother and fellow-bishop Flavian,
that he deprived Eutyches, the presbyter, of
communion, I have not yet been able to un-
derstand clearly. For although the aforesaid
presbyter sent in writing a complaint con-
cerning his trouble to the Apostolic See,
yet he only briefly touched on some points,

7 Is it fanciful to trace an analogy between these words and
the language of the Collect for Trinity Sunday (out of the Sacra-
rnentary oi Gregory), " grace by the confession of a true faith to
acknowledge the glory of the Eternal Trinity, and in the power of
the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity ? "

asserting that he kept the constitutions of the
Nicene synod and had been vainly blamed for
difference of faith.

II. He finds fault with Flavia?ts silence.

But the statement of bishop Eusebius, his
accuser, copies of which the said presbyter
has sent us, contained nothing clear about his
objections, and though he charged a presbyter
with heresy, he did not say expressly what
opinion he disapproved of in him : although
the bishop himself also professed that he ad-
hered to the decrees of the Nicene synod :
for which reason we had no means of learning
anything more fully. And because the method
of our Faith and the laudable anxiety shown
by your piety requires the merits of the case
to be known, there must now be no place
allowed for deception, but we must be in-
formed of the points on which he considers
him unsound, that the right judgment may
be passed after full information. I have sent
a letter to the aforesaid bishop, from which he
may gather that I am displeased at his still
keeping silence upon what has been done in
so grave a matter, when he ought to have
been forward in disclosing all to us at the
outset : and we believe that even after the
reminder he will acquaint us with the whole,
in order that, when what now seems obscure,
has been brought into the light, judgment
may be passed agreeably to the teaching of
the Gospels and the Apostles. Dated the 18th
of February8, in the consulship of the illustri-
ous Asturius and Protogenes (449).

LETTER XXV.

From Peter Chrysologus, Bishop of Ra-
venna, to Eutyches, the Presbyter.

[In answer to a letter from Eutyches, he
urges him to accept the decisions of the
Church on the Faith in fear and withoat too
close inquiry, and to abide by the ruling of
the bishop of Rome.]

LETTER XXVI 9.

A SECOND ONE FROM FLAVIAN TO LEO.

To the most holy and blessed father and
fellow-minister Leo, Flavian greeting in the
Lord.

8 Quesnel reads the ist of March as the date.

9 In reading the Tome (Lett. XXVIII.)the reader is warned
to remember that he must take no account of this letter, which did
not reach Leo until later, and which is acknowledged in Lett.
XXXVI. dated a week after the Tome. Bright (n. 139)- There
are two versions of this letter also, the ancient one and a modern
one by Joannes Cotelerius, which latter, as being a more exact
reproduction of the Gk. original, we have taken as the basis of our
English translation.

LETTER XXVI.

I. Etityches1 heresy restated.
Nothing, as you know, most beloved of
God, is more precious to priests than piety
and the right dividing of the word of truth.
For all our hope and safety, and the recom-
pense of promised good depend thereon. For
this reason we must take all pains about the
true Faith, and those things which have been
set forth and decreed by the holy Fathers, that
always, and in all circumstances, they may be
kept and guarded whole and uninjured. And
so it was necessary on the present occasion
for us, who see the orthodox Faith suffering
harm, and the heresy of Apollinaris and
Valentinus being revived by the wicked monk
Eutyches, not to overlook it, but publicly to
disclose it for the people's safety. For this
man, this Eutyches, keeping his diseased and
sickly opinion hid within him, has dared to
attack our gentleness, and unblushingly and
shamelessly to instil his own blasphemy into
many minds : saying that before the Incarna-
tion, indeed, our Saviour Jesus Christ had
two natures, Godhead and manhood : but
that after the union they became one nature ;
not knowing1 what he says, or on what he
is speaking so decidedly. For even the
union of the two natures that came together
in Christ did not, as your piety knows, con-
fuse their properties in the process : but the
properties of the two natures remain entire
even in the union. And he added another
blasphemy also, saying that the Lord's body
which sprang from Mary was not of our sub-
stance, nor of human matter : but, though he
calls it human, he refuses to say it was con-
substantial with us or with her who bare him,
according to the flesh2.

II. The means Eutyches has taken to circum-
vent the Synod.

And this notwithstanding that the acts
of Ephesus3, in the letter written by the holy
and ecumenical synod to the wicked and de-
posed Nestorius, contain these express words :
" the natures which came together to form
true unity are indeed different : and yet from
them both there is but one Christ and Son.
Not as if the difference between the two
natures was done away with through the
union, but rather that these same natures,
His Godhead and His Manhood perfected for
us one Lord Jesus Christ, through an in-

1 Ignarus: it will be remembered tbat in the Tome (chnp. i.)
this is the chief fault which Leo also has to find with Eutyches,
calling him multum iiuprudens et nimis i/irperitus, &c.

2 So in Lett. XXII., chap. iii. , Domini corpus nou esse quidem
corpus hominis, humanum autcm corpus esse quod ex Virgine est.

3 The date of this Council is 431 B.c.

effable and incomprehensible meeting which
resulted in unity." And this does not escape
your holiness, who have no doubt read the
record of what was done at Ephesus. Yet
this same Eutyches attaching no weight to
these words, thinks he is not liable to the
penalties fixed by that holy and ecumenical
synod. For this reason, finding that many
of the simpler-minded folk were injured in
their faith by his contention, upon his being
accused by the devout Bishop Eusebius, and
upon his attending at the holy council, and
with his own mouth declaring what he thought
to the members of the synod, we have de-
posed him for his estrangement from the true
Faith, as your holiness will learn from the
resolutions passed about him : which we have
sent with this our letter. Moreover, it is fair
in my opinion that you should be told this
also that this same Eutyches, after suffering
just and canonical deposition, instead of
making amends for his earlier by his later
conduct*, and appeasing God by careful peni-
tence and many tears, and by a true repent-
ance, comforting our heart which was greatly
saddened at his fall : not only did not do so,
but even made every effort to throw the most holy
church of this place into confusion : setting
up in public placards full of insults and male-
dictions, and beyond this addressing his en-
treaties to our most religious and Christ-loving
Emperor, and these too over-flowing with
arrogance and sauciness, whereby he tried
to override the divine canons in everything.

III. He ack?ww ledges the receipt of Leo's letter.

But after all this had occurred, your holiness'
letter was conveyed to us by the most honour-
able count Pansophius : and from it we learnt
that the same Eutyches had sent you a letter
full of falsehood and cunning, saying that at
the time of trial he had presented letters of
appeal to us, and to the holy synod of bishops
who were then present, and had appealed to
your holiness : this he certainly never did,
but in this matter, too, he has been guilty of
deceit, like the father of lies, thinking to gain
your ear. Therefore, most holy father, being
stirred by all that he has ventured, and by
what has been done, and is being done against
us and the most holy Church, use your accus-
tomed promptitude as becomes the priesthood,
and in defending the commonweal and peace
of the holy churches, consent by your own
letters to endorse the resolution that has been

4 Saltern secundis curare priora (Gk. ko.v tois Sevrepoti
taa"a<T#at Ta 7rp6repa).

5 Cf. Lett. XXVIL, n. 7, where the difference between
Flavian's request here and in Lett. XXII. , chap iv., is pointed
out-

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

canonically passed against him, and to con-
firm the faith of our most religious and Christ-
loving Emperor. For the matter only requires
your weight and support, which through your
wisdom will at once bring about general peace
and quietness. For thus both the heresy
which has arisen, and the disorder it has
excited, will easily be appeased by God's
assistance through a letter from you : and
the rumoured synod will also be prevented,
and so the most holy churches throughout the
world need not be disturbed. I and all that
are with me salute all the brethren that are
with you. May you be granted to us safe in
the Lord, and still praying for us, O most
God loving and holy father.

LETTER XXVII.

To Flavian, Bishop of Constantinople.

Leo to Flavian, bishop of Constantinople.

An ackiiowledgment of Flavian^ s first letter and
a promise of a fuller reply.

On the first opportunity we could find,
which was the coming of our honourable son
Rodanus, we acknowledge, beloved, the arrival
of your packet6, which was to give us informa-
tion about the case which has been stirred up
to our grief among you by misguided error.
Since this man, who has long seemed to be
religiously disposed, has expressed himself in
the Faith otherwise than is right, though he
never ought to have departed from the catholic
tradition, but to have persevered in the same
belief as is held by all. But on this matter
we are replying more fully7 by him who
brought your letter to us, beloved : that we
may give you all necessary instructions, be-
loved, on the whole matter. For we do not
allow either him to persist in his perverse
conviction ; or you, beloved, who with such
faithful zeal are resisting his wrong ami foolish
error to be long disturbed by the adversary's
opposition. Our aforesaid son, by whom we
are sending this letter, we desire you to re-
ceive with the affection he deserves, and to
reply when he returns to us. Dated 21st
May in the consulship of Asturius and Proto-
genes (449).

6 Epistolas. This refers to Lett. XXIL, and includes the
gesta (or minutes of the synod's proceedings) which accom-
panied it.

7 This is the Tome (Letter XXVIIL): it will be noticed that
Flavian (in Lett. XXII.) had not asked for any instructions, but
only that Leo should inform the bishops under his jurisdiction
of Eutyches' deposition ichap. iv.). Flavian's second letter
(XXVI.), however, does mention vestras sacras litteras, which
he hopes will avoid the necessity of a council (chap. iii.). Leo
himself seems to be conscious of this: for in Letter XXXIII.
chap. 2, he twice pointedly puts in the word "seems," as if
Flavian had not expressed himself quite clearly: "the points
which he seems to have referred to us," and "this error which
seems to have arisen."

LETTER XXVIII.

To Flavian commonly called "the
Tome."

I. Etityches has been driven into his error by
presumption and ignorance 8.

Having read your letter, beloved, at the late
arrival of which we are surprised 9, and having
perused the detailed account of the bishops'
acts x, we have at last found out what the scandal
was which had arisen among you against the
purity of the Faith : and what before seemed
concealed has now been unlocked and laid
open to our view : from which it is shown that
Eutyches, who used to seem worthy of all
respect in virtue of his priestly office, is very
unwary and exceedingly ignorant, so that it is
even of him that the prophet has said : " he
refused to understand so as to do well : he
thought upon iniquity in his bed 2." But
what more iniquitous than to hold blas-
phemous opinions 3, and not to give way to
those who are wiser and more learned than
ourself. Now into this unwisdom fall they
who, finding themselves hindered from know-
ing the truth by some obscurity, have recourse
not to the prophets' utterances, not to the
Apostles' letters, nor to the injunctions of the
Gospel but to their own selves : and thus they
stand out as masters of error because they
were never disciples of truth. For what learn-
ing has he acquired about the pages of the
New and Old Testament, who has not even
grasped the rudiments of the Creed ? And
that which, throughout the world, is professed
by the mouth of every one who is to be born
again 4, is not yet taken in by the heart of this
old man.

II. Concerning the twofold nativity and nature
of Christ.

Not knowing, therefore, what he was bound
to think concerning the incarnation of the
Word of God, and not wishing to gain the light
of knowledge by researches through the length

8 The original word (imperitia) implies that a recluse like
Eutyches (an archimandrite of a convent) ought never to have
entered into a nice controversy like the present: he has not
enough savoir faire, and his knowledge is not quite up to date is
a little old-fashioned.

9 The exact reason of the delay is not altogether certain : we
know Flavian had written much earlier than the date of arrival
warranted : it is No. XXI I. in the series.

1 Viz., the proceedings of the avvohos kvhr\\j.o\>ijo. summoned by
Flavian at Constantinople. 2 Ps. xxxvi. 4.

3 Impia sapere, to think disloyal things against God : cf. the
recta sapere, "to have a right judgment" of the Collect for
Whitsunday.

4 Knowledge of and belief in the principles of the Faith as
contained in the Creed (symboiuni) have of course always been
required before Baptism from very early times. Leo here calls
catechumens reger.erandi, just as those who are being baptized
are spoken of as lenascentes (e.g. Lett. XVII. 8). those who have
been baptized as renati (passim), and the rite itself as sacramentuM
regenerationis (e.g. Lett. IX. 2)

LETTER XXVIII.

and breadth of the Holy Scriptures, he might
at least have listened attentively to that general
and uniform confession, whereby the whole
body ol the faithful confess that they believe
in God the Father Almighty, and in Jesus
Christ, His only Son 5, our Lord, who was
born of the Holy Spirit and 6 the Virgin Mary.
By which three statements the devices of al-
most all heretics are overthrown. For not
only is God believed to be both Almighty and
the Father, but the Son is shown to be co-
eternal with Him, differing in nothing from the
Father because He is God from God ?, Al-
mighty from Almighty, and being born from
the Eternal one is co-eternal with Him ; not
later in point of time, not lower in power, not
unlike in glory, not divided in essence : but
at the same time the only begotten of the
eternal Father was born eternal of the Holy
Spirit and the Virgin Mary. And this nativity
which took place in time took nothing from,
and added nothing to that divine and eternal
birth, but expended itself wholly on the re-
storation of man who had been deceived8:
in order that he might both vanquish death
and overthrow by his strength 9} the Devil who
possessed the power of death. For we should
not now be able to overcome the author of sin
and death unless He took our nature on Him
and made it His own, whom neither sin could
pollute nor death retain. Doubtless then, He
was conceived of the Holy Spirit within the
womb of His Virgin Mother, who brought Him
forth without the loss of her virginity, even as
she conceived Him without its loss.

But if He could not draw a rightful under-
standing (of the matter) from this pure source
of the Christian belief, because He had dark-
ened the brightness of the clear truth by a
veil of blindness peculiar to Himself, He might
have submitted Himself to the teaching of the
Gospels. And when Matthew speaks of " the
Book of the Generation of Jesus Christ, the
Son of David, the Son of Abraham 1," He
might have also sought out the instruction
afforded by the statements of the Apostles.
And reading in the Epistle to the Romans,
"Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called an
Apostle, separated unto the Gospel of God,
which He had promised before by His prophets
in the Holy Scripture concerning His son,
who was made unto Him 2 of the seed of

5 The Latin aniens is not so exact as the Greek original
fiopoyei'7J5: elsewhere, however, unigenitus is used.

6 N.B. et (and) not ex (out of).

7 The language of the Nicene Creed.

8 I.e. by the Devil : the allusion is to Adam's fall in Paradise.

9 Suavirtute: in patristic Latin virtus is, as is well known,
usually the translation of the Greek Svva/j.i.^ and has a much
wider meaning than moral excellence, our virtue.

1 S. Matt. i. i. 2 ei. Sc the Vulgate.

David after the flesh 3," he might have be-
stowed a loyal carefulness upon the pages of
the prophets. And finding the promise of God
who says to Abraham, " In thy seed shall all
nations be blest4," to avoid all doubt as to
the reference of this seed, he might have fol-
lowed the Apostle when He says, "To Abraham
were the promises made and to his seed. He
saith not and to seeds, as if in many, but as ir
in one, and to thy seed which is Christ5."
Isaiah's prophecy also he might have grasped
by a closer attention to what he says, " Be-
hold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son
and they shall call His name Immanuel," which
is interpreted " God with us 6." And the same
prophet's words he might have read faithfully.
" A child is born to us, a Son is given to us,
whose power is upon His shoulder, and they
shall call His name the Angel of the Great
Counsel, Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty
God, the Prince of Peace, the Father of the
age to come ?." And then he would not
speak so erroneously as to say that the Word
became flesh in such a way that Christ, born of
the Virgin's womb, had the form of man, but
had not the reality of His mother's body8.
Or is it possible that he thought our Lord
Jesus Christ 'was not of our nature for this
reason, that the angel, who was sent to the
blessed Mary ever Virgin, says, "The Holy
Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of
the Most High shall overshadow thee : and
therefore that Holy Thing also that shall be
born of thee shall be called the Son of God9,"
on the supposition that as the conception of
the Virgin was a Divine act, the flesh of the
conceived did not partake of the conceiver's
nature? But that birth so uniquely wondrous
and so wondrously unique, is net to be under-
stood in such wise that the properties of His
kind were removed through the novelty of His
creation. For though the Holy Spirit im-
parted fertility to the Virgin, yet a real body
was received from her body ; and, " Wisdom
building her a house I," " the Word became
flesh and dwelt in us2," that is, in that flesh
which he took from man and which he quick-
ened with the breath of a higher life 3.

3 Rom. i. 1-3. 4 Gen. xii. 3. S Gal. iii.16.

6 Is. vii. 14. and S. Matt. i. 23.

7 Is. ix. 6. "The angel of the great counsel" (magni eon-
silii angetus) is a translation of the LXX. (which in the rest of
the ver^e either represents a very diflerent original text, or
contents itself with a loose paraphrase), and is again repeated in
the " Counsellor" (Consinarius), two words farther on (which is
also the Vulgate reading).

8 This was the third dogma of Apollinaris (more fully stated
in Lett. CXXIV. 2 and CLXV. 2), that our Lord's acts and suffer-
ings as man belonged entirely to His Divine nature, and were not
really human at ail. 9 S. Luke i. 35.

1 Prov. ix. 1.

2 In nobis, which he seems from the immediately following
words to interpret as meaning " in our flesh,'' and not " amongst
us," as the R.V. and others.

3 Quant spiritu vita rationalis (KoyiKov) animavit.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

III. The Faith and counsel of God in regard to
the incarnation of the Word are set forth.
Without detriment therefore to the pro-
perties of either nature and substance which
then came together in one person 4, majesty
took on humility, strength weakness, eternity
mortality : and for the paying off of the debt
belonging to our condition inviolable nature
was united with passible nature , so that, as
suited the needs of our case 5, one and the
same Mediator between God and men, the
Man Christ Jesus, could both die with the
one and not die with the other. 6 Thus in the
whole and perfect nature of true man was
true God born, complete in what was His
own, complete in what was ours. And by
" ours " we mean what the Creator formed
in us from the beginning and what He under-
took to repair. For what the Deceiver brought
in and man deceived committed, had no trace
in the Saviour. Nor, because He partook
of man's weaknesses, did He therefore share
our faults. He took the form of a slave 7
without stain of sin, increasing the human and
not diminishing the divine : because that
emptying of Himself whereby the Invisible
made Himself visible and, Creator and Lord
of all things though He be, wished to be
a mortal, was the bending down 8 of pity,
not the failing of power. Accordingly He who
while remaining in the form of God made
man, was also made man in the form of
a slave. For both natures retain their own
proper character without loss : and as the
form of God did not do away with the form
of a slave, so the form of a slave did not
impair the form of God. For inasmuch
as the Devil used to boast that man had
been cheated by his guile into losing the
divine gifts, and bereft of the boon of im-
mortality had undergone sentence of death,
and that he had found some solace in his
troubles from having a partner in delin-
quency 9, and that God also at the demand of
the principle of justice had changed His own
purpose towards man whom He had created
in such honour : there was need for the issue

4 A famous passage quoted by Hooker, Eccl. Pol. v. 53, 2, and
Liddon Bampt. Lect., p. 267. Compare Serm. Ixii. i,quod . . . in
unam personam concurrat proprietas utriusque substantia
(Bright), also xxii. 2, xxiii. 2.

5 Quod nostris remediis congruebat, where remedia must mean
the disease which needs remedies (a sort of passive use).

6 This passage from " Thus in the whole " to " not the failing
of power" is repeated again in Sermon xxiii. 2, almost word fo'r
word.

7 The reference, of course, is to Phil. ii. 6 : no passage is
a greater favourite with the Fathers than this.

8 Compare S. Aug. ad Catech. § 6,humilitas Chris ti quid est ?
manum Deus homini iacentiporrexit : nos cecidimus, ille descen-
dit : tios iacebamus, ille se inclinavit. Prendamus et surgamus
ut non inpcenam cadamus.

9 De prcevaricatoris consortio : prevaricator originally is
a legal term, signifying "a shuffler" in a suit, an advocate who
plays into the hands of the other side.

of a secret counsel, that the unchangeable
God whose will cannot be robbed of its own
kindness, might carry out the first design
of His Fatherly care ' towards us by a more
hidden mystery 2 ; and that man who had
been driven into his fault by the treacherous
cunning of the devil might not perish contrary
to the purpose of God 3.

IV. The properties of the twofold nativity and
nature of Christ are zvcighcd one against an-
other.

There enters then these lower parts of
the world the Son of God, descending from
His heavenly home and yet not quitting His
Father's glory, begotten in a new order by
a new nativity. In a new order, because
being invisible in His own nature, He became
visible in ours, and He whom nothing could
contain was content to be contained 4 : abid-
ing before all time He began to be in
time : the Lord of all things, He obscured
His immeasurable majesty and took on Him
the form of a servant : being God that cannot
suffer, He did not disdain to be man that can,
:\nd, immortal as He is, to subject Himself to
the laws of death. The Lord assumed His
mother's nature without her faultiness: nor
in the Lord Jesus Christ, born of the Virgin's
womb, does the wonderfulness of His birth
make His nature unlike ours. For He who is
true God is also true man : and in this union
there is no lies, since the humility of man-
hood and the loftiness of the Godhead both
meet there. For as God is not changed by the
showing of pity, so man is not swallowed up
by the dignity. For each form does what is
proper to it with the co-operation of the
other 6 ; that is the Word performing what
appertains to the Word, and the flesh carry-
ing out what appertains to the flesh. One of

* Pietas, as in the collect for xvi. S. aft. Trin., where the
English "pity" represents the Latin "pietas" philologically as
well as in meaning. Cf. n. 2 in chap. vi.

2 Sacramento, Ouu<rTT)piu>) : what the " mystery " was is finely
set forth by Canon Bright's hymn, No. 172, H. A. and M. (new
edition).

3 The whole of the end of this chapter from " For inasmuch
as," and the beginning of the next down to "laws of death," is
repeated word for word in Sermon XXII., chaps, i. and ii.

4 Incomprehensibilis votuit comprehend;'. Canon Bright's
references are most apposite: "compare Serm. lxviii., idem
est qui impiorum ?nanibus comprehenditur et qui nullo fine
concluditur: and Serm. xxxvii. 1, genetricis gremio continetur
qui nullo fine conclnditor. This ' antithesis ' has been grandly
expressed in Milman's ' Martyr of Antioch.'

" 'And Thou wast laid within the tomb. . .
Whom heaven could not contain,
Nor the immeasurable plain
Of vast infinity enclose or circle round.'"

5 I.e., there is no fancy, no pretending : each nature is in equal
reality present, the human as well as the Divine, thus opposing
all Docetic and Monophysite heresies.

6 This passage (which is repeated in Serm. liv., chap. 2, down
to "injuries"), was objected to by the Illyrian and Palestinian
bishops as savouring of the heresy of Nestorius who "divided
the substance : " but it is obvious that the same words might have
an orthodox meaning in the mouth of one who was orthodox and
to the unorthodox would bear an unorthodox construction.

LETTER XXVIII.

them sparkles with miracles, the other suc-
cumbs to injuries. And as the Word does
not cease to be on an equality with His
Father's glory, so the flesh does not forego
the nature of our race. For it must again
and again be repeated that one and the same
is truly Son of God and truly son of man.
God in that "in the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God i ; " man in that " the Word became
flesh and dwelt in us8." God in that "all
things were made by Him 9, and without
Him was nothing made : " man in that " He
was made of a woman, made under law1."
The nativity of the flesh was the mani-
festation of human nature : the childbear-
ing of a virgin is the proof of Divine
power. The infancy of a babe is shown in
the humbleness of its cradle 2 : the greatness
of the Most High is proclaimed by the angels'
voices 3. He whom Herod treacherously
endeavours to destroy is like ourselves in
our earliest stage *: but He whom the Magi
delight to worship on their knees is the Lord
of all. So too when He came to the baptism
of John, His forerurner, lest He should not
be known through the veil of flesh which
covered His Divinity, the Father's voice,
thundering from the sky, said, " This is My
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased 5."
And thus Him whom the devil's craftiness
attacks as man, the ministries of angels serve
as God. To be hungry and thirsty, to be
weary, and to sleep, is clearly human : but to
satisfy 5,000 men with five loaves, and to be-
stow on the woman of Samaria living water,
draughts of which can secure the drinker from
thirsting any more, to walk upon the surface of
the sea with feet that do not sink, and to quell
the risings of the waves by rebuking the winds,
is, without any doubt, Divine. Just as there-
fore, to pass over many other instances, it is
not part of the same nature to be moved to
tears of pity for a dead friend, and when the
stone that closed the four-days' grave was re-
moved, to raise that same friend to life with
a voice of command : or, to hang on the cross,
and turning day to night, to make all the
elements tremble : or, to be pierced with nails,
and yet open the gates of paradise to the rob-
ber's faith : so it is not part of the same nature
to say, " I and the Father are one," and to say,

7 S. John i. 1. 8 ]bid. 14.

9 Ibid. 3, the Latin is per ipsum yV,V. Si' aiiroC) (through Him).

1 Gal. iv. 4.

2 Viz., that it was laid "in a manger:" the Gk. version has
o-Trapyai/wi/, " swaddling clothes," to represent cunarum, and this
meaning is adopted by bright [and Heurtley], S. Luke ii. 7.

3 Ibid. 13.

* Similis est rudimentis hominum.
5 S. Matt. iii. 17.

" the Father is greater than I 6." For although
in the Lord Jesus Christ God and man is
one person, yet the source of the degradation,
which is shared by both, is one, and the source
of the glory, which is shared by both, is an-
other. For His manhood, which is less than
the Father, comes from our side : His God-
head, which is equal to the Father, comes
from the Father.

V. Christ's flesh is proved real from Scripture.
Therefore in consequence of this unity of
person which is to be understood in both
natures?, we read of the Son of Man also
descending from heaven, when the Son of
God took flesh from the Virgin who bore
Him. And again the Son of God is said
to have been crucified and buried, although
it was not actually in His Divinity whereby
the Only-begotten is co-eternal and con-sub-
stantial with the Father, but in His weak
human nature that He suffered these things.
And so it is that in the Creed also we all con-
fess that the Only-begotten Son of God was
crucified and buried, according to that saying
of the Apostle: " for if they had known, they
would never have crucified the Lord of
glory8." But when our Lord and Saviour
Himself would instruct His disciples' faith
by His questionings, He said, " Whom do men
say that I, the Son of Man, am ?" And when
they had put on record the various opinions
of other people, He said, " But ye, whom do
ye say that I am ?" Me, that is, who am the
Son of Man, and whom ye see in the form of
a slave, and in true flesh, whom do ye say
that I am ? Whereupon blessed Peter, whose
divinely inspired confession was destined
to profit all nations, said, " Thou art Cnrist,
the Son of the living God 9." And not un-
deservedly was he pronounced blessed by the
Lord, drawing from the chief corner-stone J
the solidity of power which his name also
expresses, he, who, through the revelation of
the Father, confessed Him to be at once Christ

6 S. John xiv. 28; x. 30: the reconciliation of this class of
apparently contradictory statements is olten undertaken by Leo
[e.g. Sermon xxiii. 2 and lxxvii. 5 ; Kp. xxviii. 4 and lix. 3], and
by other fathers (e.g. by Augustine tie Fide et Symbolo, 18).

7 This is what theologians call communicatio idiomatum, or
in Gk. avriSoais, the interchange of the properties of the two
natures in Christ. The passage from the beginning of the chapter
to "the Lord of glory " is somewhat freely adapted from S.Aug.,
c. Serm. Arian., cap. 8. 8 1 Cor. ii. 8.

9 S. Matt. xvi. 13 — 16.

' A principaii petra. the Gk. version giving a7ro ttj« irpoiTO-
tvivov n-eipas: others translate it " from the original (or archetypal)
rock," but it seems better to link the passage more closely with
Eph. ii. 20; 1 Pet. ii. 0, &:c., although the Greek rendering is
against this : see Serm. iv. chap. 2, where Leo is expound-
ing the same favourite text. Brighl's note 64 is most useful in
explaining the Leonine exposition. " Three elements," he says,
combine in the idea ; (1) Christ Himself ; (2) the faith in Christ ;
and (3) Peter considered as the chief o the Apostles and under
Christ, the head of the Church." Hence petra is applied to
each of these at different times.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

and Son of God : because the receiving of the
one of these without the other was of no avail
to salvation, and it was equally perilous to
have believed the Lord Jesus Christ to be
either only God without man, or only man
without God. But after the Lord's resurrec-
tion (which, of course, was of His true body,
because He was raised the same as He had
died and been buried), what else was effected
by the forty days' delay than the cleansing of
our faith's purity from all darkness? For to
that end He talked with His disciples, and
dwelt and ate with them, He allowed Himself
to be handled with diligent and curious touch
by those who were affected by doubt, He
entered when the doors were shut upon the
Apostles, and by His breathing upon them
gave them the Holy Spirit2, and bestowing
on them the light of understanding, opened
the secrets of the Holy Scriptures 3. So
again He showed the wound in His side, the
marks of the nails, and all the signs of His
quite recent suffering, saying, " See My hands
and feet, that it is I. Handle Me and see
that a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye
see Me have * ; " in order that the properties
of His Divine and human nature might be
acknowledged to remain still inseparable :
and that we might know the Word not to be
different from the flesh, in such a sense as
also to confess that the one Son of God is
both the Word and flesh s. Of this mystery
of the faith 6 your opponent Eutyches must
be reckoned to have but little sense if he has
recognized our nature in the Only-begotten of
God neither through the humiliation of His
having to die, nor through the glory of His
rising again. Nor has he any fear of the
blessed apostle and evangelist John's declara-
tion when he says, "every spirit which con-
fesses Jesus Christ to have come in the flesh,
is of God : and every spirit which destroys
Jesus is not of God, and this is Antichrist?."
But what is " to destroy Jesus," except to take
away the human nature from Him, and to
render void the mystery, by which alone we
were saved, by the most barefaced fictions.
The truth is that being in darkness about the
nature of Christ's body, he must also be be-
fooled by the same blindness in the matter of

» S. John xx. 22. 3 S. Luke xxiv. 27. 4 Ibid qo

• »fc %n°,1, l° H1 i,,t° the .Chary Wis of Nestorianism in avoid-
ing the Scylla of Eutychiamsm.

6 Fidei sacramento.

7 1 John iv 2, 3 : the Lat. for "destroys" (or "dissolves "
Bright is » Ivn >tM also in Lett. CXLIV. 3), which appears to be
an exclusively Western reauing : for Socrates, "the only Greek
authority for W> (the Gk. equivalent;, according to Dr. West-
cott quotes no Gk. MSS. as = giving it, though he unhesitatingly
makes use of that reading. 1 he Gk. version here, however, gives
S«upei„, which simply begs the question (in Leo' s favour) Is to
the original meaning ol the phrase solvere Jesum, though on the
face of it that is not at all necessarily obvious

His sufferings. For if he does not think the
cross of the Lord fictitious, and does not
doubt that the punishment He underwent to
save the world is likewise true, let him acknow-
ledge the flesh of Him whose death he already
believes : and let him not disbelieve Him man
with a body like ours, since he acknowledges
Him to have been able to suffer : seeing that
the denial of His true flesh is also the denial
of His bodily suffering. If therefore he re-
ceives the Christian faith, and does not turn
away his ears from the preaching of the Gospel :
let him see what was the nature that hung
pierced with nails on the wooden cross, and,
when the side of the Crucified was opened by
the soldier's spear, let him understand whence
it was that blood and water flowed, that the
Church of God might be watered from the
font and from the cup 8. Let him hear also the
blessed Apostle Peter, proclaiming that the
sanctification of the Spirit takes place through
the sprinkling of Christ's blood 9. And let
him not read cursorily the same Apostle's
words when he says, " Knowing that not with
corruptible things, such as silver and gold,
have ye been redeemed from your vain man-
ner of life which is part of your fathers' tradi-
tion, but with the precious blood of Jesus
Christ as of a lamb without spot and blem-
ish '." Let him not resist too the witness of
the blessed Apostle John, who says : " and the
blood of Jesus the Son of God cleanseth us
from all sin 2." And again : " this is the
victory which overcometh the world, our
faith." And " who is He that overcometh
the world save He that believeth that Jesus
is the Son of God. This is He that came by
water and blood, Jesus Christ : not by water
only, but by water and blood. And it is the
Spirit that testifieth, because the Spirit is the
truth 35 because there are three that bear wit-
ness, the Spirit, the water and the blood, and
the three are one *." The Spirit, that is, of
sanctification, and the blood of redemption,
and the water of baptism : because the three
are one, and remain undivided, and none of
them is separated from this connection ; be-
cause the catholic Church lives and progresses
by this faith, so that in Christ Jesus neither
the manhood without the true Godhead nor

8 Et lavacro rigaretur et foculo : that is by the two great
"generally necessary" sacraments of which he takes the water
and the blood "from His riven side which flowed," to be
a symbol. 9 This refers to i Pet. i. 2 (q.v.).

1 1 Pet. i. 18. 2 1 S. John i 7.

3 Some of the MSS. here give CAristus for Spin tus (tht: reading
adopted also by the Vulgate): in this case you must translate that
CArist is the Truth instead of because tAe Spirit, &>c. : but see
Westcott's note in loc.

4 1 S. John v. 4-8. The absence of the verse on the " Heavenly
witnesses" (distinctly a western insertion) is to be noticed. On
Leo's interpretation of this mysterious passage Canon Blight's
note 168 should be consulted.

LETTER XXIX.

the Godhead without the true manhood is
believed in.

VI. The wrong and mischievous concession of
Eutyches. The terms on which he may be
restored to communion. The sending of depu-
ties to the East.

But when during your cross-examination
Eutyches replied and said, " 1 confess that
our Lord had two natures before the union :
but after the union I confess but one 5," I am
surprised that so absurd and mistaken a state-
ment of his should not have been criticised
and rebuked by his judges, and that an utter-
ance which reaches the height of stupidity
and blasphemy should be allowed to pass
as if nothing offensive had been heard : for
the impiety of saying that the Son of God was
of two natures before His incarnation is only
equalled by the iniquity of asserting that there
was but one nature in Him after "the Word
became flesh." And to the end that Eutyches
may not think this a right or defensible
opinion because it was not contradicted by
any expression' of yourselves, we warn you
beloved brother, to take anxious care that
if ever through the inspiration of God's mercy
the case is brought to a satisfactory conclusion,
his ignorant mind be purged from this per-
nicious idea as well as others. He was,
indeed, just beginning to beat a retreat from
his erroneous conviction, as the order of pro-
ceedings shows6, in so far as when hemmed
in by your remonstrances he agreed to say
what he had not said before and to acquiesce
in that belief to which before he had been
opposed. However, when he refused to give
his consent to the anathematizing of his blas-
phemous dogma, you understood, brother ?,
that he abode by his treachery and deserved
to receive a verdict of condemnation. And
yet, if he grieves over it faithfully and to good
purpose, and, late though it be, acknowledges
how rightly the bishops' authority has been set
in motion ; or if with his own mouth and hand
in your presence he recants his wrong opinions,
no mercy that is shown to him when penitent
can be found fault with 8 : because our Lord,
that true and " good shepherd " who laid down
His life for His sheep 9 and who came to save

5 This was the only compromise of his views which Eutyches
could be brought to make at the synod of Constantinople. Though
it was rejected, and did not hinder his condemnation, it was never
met with a direct, categorical refutation.

6 Gestorum ordo, as before, in chap. I. A report of the pro-
ceedings had accompanied Flavian's letter.

7 Fraternitas vestra: or, as the Gk. version apparently took
it, " you and the rest of the brethren " (^ v/xiiv dSeA</>OTT)s).

8 It will be remembered that he had been degraded from the
priesthood and deprived of his monastery, as well as excommuni-
cated : he might be reinstated in all these privileges, the merciful-
ness of Leo hints, if he recant his errors.

9 S. John x. ii and 15.

not lose men's souls ', wishes us to imitate
His kindness 2 ; in order that while justice
constrains us when we sin, mercy may prevent
our rejection when we have returned. For
then at last is the true Faith most profitably
defended when a false belief is condemned
even by the supporters of it.

Now for the loyal and faithful execution
of the whole matter, we have appointed to
represent us our brothers Julius 3 Bishop and
Renatust priest [of the Title of S. Clement],
as well as my son Hilarys, deacon. And
with them we have associated Dulcitius our
notary, whose faith is well approved : being
sure that the Divine help will be given us,
so that he who had erred may be saved
when the wrongness of his view has been
condemned. God keep you safe, beloved
brother.

The 13 June, 449, in the consulship of the
most illustrious Asturius and Protogenes.

LETTER XXIX.

To Theodosius Augustus.

To Csesar Theodosius, the most religious
and devout Augustus Leo pope of the Catholic
Church of the city of Rome 6.

He notifies the appointment of his representa-
tives at the Council of Ephesus.

How much God's providence vouchsafes to
consult for the interests of men is shown
by your merciful care which, incited by God's
Spirit, is unwilling that there should be any
disturbance or difference : since the Faith,
which is absolutely one, cannot be different
from itself in any thing. Hence although
Eutyches, as the minutes of the bishops'
proceeds reveals, has been detected in an ig-
norant and unwise error, and ought to have
withdrawn from his conviction which is rightly
condemned, yet since your piety which loves
the Catholic Truth with great jealousy for
God's honour, has determined on a synodal
judgment at Ephesus, that that Truth on

1 S. Luke ix. 50.

a Pietatis, a beautiful word, expressing now the Father's pity-
ing protection, now the children's loyal affection, and here the
Elder Brother's love for the younger and weaker. Cf. n. 1. on
chap, iii-

3 Bishop of Puteoli.

4 Died at Delos on the way. The words " of the title of
S. Clement" are of doubtful authenticity, and not found in the
Gk. version. The parish churches of Rome seem to have been
called tituli at their first founding about the beginning of the
4th cent. a.d. Cf. our Eng. term " title," and refer to Bingham,
Bk. viii. § 1.

5 Afterwards Leo's successor in the see of Rome, 461-8.

6 This is the title retained by Quesnel and the Ballerinii,
though many MSS. exhibit the simpler gloriosissimo et cle'men-
tissimo Theodosio Angusto Leo episcopus, which is favoured by
the Gk. version tu> evSogoraTip <cai (^lAavSpcorroTaTu) k.t.A. Quesnel
takes occasion to warn us to distinguish between this use of the
title papa and that adopted later when it was equivalent u-
acumenicus et universalis episcopus.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

which he is blind may be brought home to
the ignorant old man ; I have sent my brothers
Julius the Bishop, Renatus the presbyter, and
my son Hilary the deacon to act as my
representatives as the matter requires, and
they shall bring with them such a spirit of
justice and kindness that while the whole
misguided error is condemned (for there can
be no doubt as to what is the integrity of the
Christian Faith), yet if he who has gone
astray repents and entreats for pardon, he
may receive the succour of priestly indulgence :
seeing that in his appeal 7 which he sent us,
he reserved to himself the right of earning our
forgiveness by promising to correct whatever
our opinion disapproved of in his opinion.
But what the catholic Church universally
believes and teaches on the mystery of the
Lord's Incarnation is contained more fully
in the letter which I have sent to my brother
and fellow-bishop Flavian. Dated 13th June
in the consulship of the illustrious Asturius and
Protogenes (449).

LETTER XXX.

To Pulcheria Augusta.

Much shorter than, but to nearly the same ef-
fect as, xxxi., which was written on the same day
as this. As xxx. has a Greek translation accom-
panying it and is duly dated, whereas xxxi. has
neither, the Ballerinii would seem to be correct
in thinking that xxx. was despatched but did
not_ reach Pulcheria (cf. Lett. xlv. i.) and that
xxxi. was for some reason never used. Of the
two we have printed xxxi. by preference, as
being the fuller discussion of the subject.

LETTER XXXI.
To Pulcheria Augusta8.
Leo to Pulcheria x\ugusta.

I . He reminds Pulcheria of her former services
to the Church, and suggests her interference
in the Eutychian controversy.
How much protection the Lord has ex-
tended to His Church through your clemency,
we have often tested by many signs. And
whatever stand the strenuousness of the priest-
hood has made in our times against the as-
sailers of the catholic Truth, has redounded
chiefly to your glory : seeing that, as you have

7 Viz., Lett. XXL, chaps, i. and Hi.

8 This was the Emperor Theodosius the younger's sister
a woman of noted zeal in the cause of the Church : for many year-!
she had practically ruled the empire owing to her brother's youth-
f.ilness. When the intrigues of Chrysaphius had brought about
3 T!^?,- bet*een brother and sister, she retired for a time from
public life. But becoming the virgin wife of Marcian, she, through
him, helped to effect the victory of the Catholic cause at the
Council of Chalcedon 451).

learnt from the teaching of the Holy Spirit,
you submit your authority in all things to
Him, by whose favour and under whose- pro-
tection you reign. Wherefore, because I have
ascertained from my brother and fellow-bishop
Flavian's report, that a certain dispute has
been raised through the agency of Eutyches
in the church of Constantinople against the
integrity of the Christian faith (and the text
of the synod's minutes has shown me the
exact nature of the whole matter), it is worthy
of your great name that the error which in my
opinion proceeds rather from ignorance than
ingenuity, should be dispelled before, with the
pertinacity of wrong-headedness, it gains any
strength from the support of the unwise. Be-
cause even ignorance sometimes falls into
serious mistakes, and very frequently the
simple-minded rush through unwariness into
the devil's pit : and it is thus, I believe, that
the spirit of falsehood has crept over Eutyches:
so that, whilst he imagines himself to appre-
ciate the majesty of the Son of God more
devoutly, by denying in Him the real presence
of our nature, he came to the conclusion that
the whole of that Word which "became flesh"
was of one and the same essence. And
greatly as Ne.->torius fell away from the Truth,
in asserting that Christ was only born man of
His mother, this man also departs no less far
from the catholic path, who does not believe
that our substance was brought forth from the
same Virgin: wishing it of course to be under-
stood as belonging to His Godhead only ; so
that that which took the form of a slave, and
was like us and of the same form 9? was a
kind of image, not the reality of our nature.

II. Man's salvation required the union of the
two natures in Christ.

But it is of no avail to say that our Lord,
the Son of the blessed Virgia Mary, was true
and perfect man, if He is not believed to be
Man of that stock which is attributed to Him
in the Gospel. For Matthew says, " The
book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the
son of David, the son of Abraham x : " and
follows the order of His human origin, so as
to bring the lines of His ancestry down to
Joseph to whom the Lord's mother was
espoused. Whereas Luke going backwards
step by step traces His succession to the first
of the human race himself, to show that the
first Adam and the last Adam were of the
same nature. No doubt the Almighty Son of
God could have appeared for the purpose

9 Quod nostri similis fuit atque conformit.
1 S. Matt. i. 1.

LETTER XXXI.

of teaching, and justifying men in exactly
the same way that He appeared both to patri-
• archs and prophets in the semblance of flesh 2 ;
for instance, when He engaged in a struggle,
and entered into conversation (with Jacob),
or when He refused not hospitable entertain-
ment, and even partook of the food set before
Him. But these appearances were indica-
tions of that Man whose reality it was an-
nounced by mystic predictions would be
assumed from the stock of preceding patri-
archs. And the fulfilment of the mystery of
our atonement, which was ordained from all
eternity, was not assisted by any figures be-
cause the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon
the Virgin, and the power of the Most High
had not over-shadowed her: so that "Wisdom
building herself a house3" within her unde-
filed body, " the Word became flesh ; " and
the form of God and the form of a slave
coming together into one person, the Creator
of times was born in time ; and He Himself
through whom all things were made, was
brought forth in the midst of all things. For
if the New Man had not been made in the
likeness of sinful flesh, and taken on Him our
old nature, and being consubstantial with the
Father, had deigned to be consubstantial with
His mother also, and being alone free
from sin, had united our nature to Him,
the whole human race would be held in
bondage beneath the Devil's yoke*, and we
should not be able to make use of the Con-
queror's victory, if it had been won outside
our nature.

III. From the union of the two natures flows
the grace of baptism. He makes a direct ap-
peal to Pulcheria for her help.

But from Christ's marvellous sharing of
the two natures, the mystery of regeneration
shone upon us that through the self-same
j spirit, through whom Christ was conceived
and born, we too, who were born through the
desire of the flesh, might be born again from
a spiritual source : and consequently, the
Evangelist speaks of believers as those " who
were born not of bloods, nor of the will of
the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God 5."
And of this unutterable grace no one is a
partaker, nor can be reckoned among the
adopted sons of God, who excludes from his
faith that which is the chief means of our

* Gen. xxxii. 24 and xviii. 1. It will be noticed that Leo
unhesitatingly pronounces these and similar appearances to be
raaniiotanoius of the Second Person in the Trinity.

3 Prov. ix. 1. Cf. Letter XXVIII. (The Tome), chap, ii.,
towards the end.

* Sub iugo diaboli generaliter teneretur htimana captivitas :
•or the woru generaliter, cf. Letter XVI., chap, iv., no. 3.

S S. John i. 13.

salvation. Wherefore, I am much vexed and
saddened that this man, who seemed before
so laudably disposed towards humility, dares
to make these empty and stupid attacks on the
one Faith of ourselves and of our fathers.
When he saw that his ignorant notion offended
the ears of catholics, he ought to have with-
drawn from his opinion, and not to have so dis-
turbed the Church's rulers, as to deserve a sen-
tenceof condemnation: which, of course, no one
will be able to remit, if he is determined to
abide by his notion. For the moderation of the
Apostolic See uses its leniency in such a way
as to deal severely with the contumacious,
while desiring to offer pardon to those who
accept correction. Seeing then that I possess
great confidence in your lofty faith and piety,
I entreat your illustrious clemency, that, as
the preaching of the catholic Faith has always
been aided by your holy zeal, so now, also,
you will maintain its free action. Perchance
the Lord allowed it to be thus assailed for
this reason that we might discover what sort
of persons lurked within the Church. And
clearly, we must not neglect to look after
such, lest we be afflicted with their actual
loss.

IV. His personal presence at the council must
be excused. The question at issue is a very
grave one.

But the most august and Christian Emperor,
being anxious that the disturbances may be
set at rest with all speed, has appointed too
short and early a date for the council of
bishops, which he wishes held at Ephesus,
in fixing the first of August for the meeting :
for from the fifth of May, on which we re-
ceived His Majesty's letter, most of the time
remaining has to be spent in making complete
arrangements for .the journey of such priests
as are competent to represent me. For as to
the necessity of my attending the council also,
which his piety suggested, even if there were
any precedent for the request, it could by no
means be managed now : for the very uncertain
state of things at present would not permit
my absence from the people of this- great
city: and the minds of the riotously-disposed
might be driven to desperate deeds, if they
were to think that I took occasion of eccle-
siastical business to desert my country6 and
the Apostolic See. As then you recognize
that it concerns the public weal that with
your merciful indulgence I should not deny
myself to the affectionate prayers of my

6 Patriam. I can see very little ground for pressing this quite
general expression to mean that he was a native of Rome, or even
a native ot Italy. The most that can be said is that it does not
forbid the supposition.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

people, consider that in these my brethren,
whom I have sent in my stead, I also am
present with the rest who appear : to them
I have clearly and fully explained what is
to be maintained in view of the satisfactory
exposition of the case which has been given
me by the detailed report, and by the defend-
ant's own statement to me. For the question
is not about some small portion of our Faith,
on which no very distinct declaration has been
made : but the foolish opposition that is raised
ventures to impugn that which our Lord de-
sired no one of either sex in the Church to
be ignorant of. For the short but complete
confession of the catholic creed which con-
tains the twelve sentences of the twelve
apostles? is so well furnished with the heavenly
panoply, that all the opinions of heretics
can receive their death-blow from that one
weapon. And if Eutyches had been content
to receive that creed in its entirety with a pure
and simple heart, he would at no point go
astray from the decrees of the most sacred
council of Nicgea, and he would understand
that the holy Fathers laid this down, to the end
that no mental or rhetorical ingenuity should
lift itself up against the Apostolic Faith which
is absolutely one. Deign then, with your ac-
customed piety to do your best endeavour,
that this blasphemous and foolish attack upon
the one and only sacrament of man's salvation
may be driven from all men's minds. And if
the man himself, who has fallen into this
temptation, recover his senses, so as to con-
demn his own error by a written recantation,
let him not be denied communion with his
order8. Your clemency is to know that I have
written in the same strain to the holy bishop
Flavian also : that loving-kindness be not
lost sight of, if the error be dispelled. Dated
13 June in the consulship -of the illustrious
Astuiius and Protogenes (449).

LETTER XXXII.

To the Archimandrites of Constanti-
nople 9.

To his well-beloved sons Faustus, Martinus,
and the rest of the archimandrites, Leo the
bishop.

He acknowledges their zeal and refers them to
the Tome.
As on behalf of the faith which Eutyches

7 Let the reader beware of accepting the plausible account
here suggested of the formation of the Apostles' Creed, and still
more so of accepting the popular derivation of the word symbolum
(vvtfoKov) as the twelve Apostles' twelve "contributions" (one
each) to the Church s rule of faith.

8 Communio sui ordinis.

,\2 ViT!' buC rem?'1Jbered that 23 abbots signed the condemna-
t;on of Eutyches: cf. Lett. XXI. chap. 2.

has tried to disturb, I was sending legates de
latere 9* to assist the defence of the Truth, I
thought it fitting that I should address a letter
to you also, beloved : whom I know for certain
to be so zealous in the cause of religion that
you can by no means listen calmly to such
blasphemous and profane utterances : for the
Apostle's command lingers in your hearts, in
which it is said, " If any man hath preached
unto you any gospel other than that which he
received, let him be anathema V And we
also decide that the opinion of the said Euty-
ches is to be rejected, which, as we have
learnt from perusing the proceedings, has been
deservedly condemned : so that, if its foolish
maintainer will abide by his perverseness, he
may have fellowship with those whose error he
has followed. For one who says that Christ
had not a human, that is our, nature, is de-
servedly put out of Christ's Church. But, if he
be corrected through the pity of God's Spirit
and acknowledge his wicked error, so as to
condemn unreservedly what catholics reject,
we wish him not to be denied mercy, that the
Lord's Church may suffer no loss : for the re-
pentant can always be readmitted, it is only
error that must be shut out. Upon the mystery
of great godliness 2, whereby through the In-
carnation of the Word of God comes our
justification and redemption, what is our
opinion, drawn from the tradition of the
fathers, is now sufficiently explained accord-
ing to my judgment in the letter which I
have sent to our brother Flavian the bishop 3 :
so that through the declaration of your chief
you may know what, according to the gospel
of our Lord Jesus Christ, we desire to be fixed
in the hearts of all the faithful. Dated 13th
June, in the consulship of the illustrious As-
tuiius and Protogenes (449).

LETTER XXXIII.

To the Synod of Ephesus*.

Leo, bishop, to the holy Synod which is
assembled at Ephesus.

I. He commends the Emperor's appeal to the
chair of Peter.

The devout faith of our most clement prince, i

9» De latere meo. This is interesting as an early instance of the
use of this expression for the legates of the pope (now so familiar):
even though Quesnel is incorrect in saying for certain that Leo is
the first Bishop of Rome who employed them. He himself quotes
Concil. Sardic., canon 7, where the fathers ask the Roman bishop
to send some one e latere sua (a.d. 347). ' Gal. i. 9.

2 I cannot doubt he has 1 Tim. iii. 27, fie'ya euri to tijs
ev(re/3ei'as /j.v<TTr)piov (here sacrament inn, as usual) in his mind,
though the Gk. translator apparently did not see it, his version
being utterly inaccurate (n-epi de ttjs ayidniTos t^s /ueyaAqs

7T10"T6<»S).

3 Viz., Letter XXVIII. (The Tome).

4 This letter has a note prefixed to it in some Gk. and Latin
MSS., to the effect that it was produced but suppressed, and not
allowed to be read through Dioscorus, Bishop of Alexandria

LETTER XXXIV.

knowing that it especially concerns his glory
to prevent any seed of error from springing up
within the catholic Church, has paid such defer-
ence to the Divine institutions as to apply to the
authority of the Apostolic See for a proper
settlement : as if he wished it to be declared
by the most blessed Peter himself what was
praised in his confession, when the Lord said,
"whom do men say that I, the Son of man,
am 5 ? " and the disciples mentioned various
people's opinion : but, when He asked what
they themselves believed, the chief of the
apostles, embracing the fulness of the Faith
in one short sentence, said, " Thou art the
Christ, the son of the living God s :" that is,
Thou who truly art Son of man art also truly
Son of the living God : Thou, I say, true in
Godhead, true in flesh and one altogether6,
the properties of the two natures being kept
intact. And if Eutyches had believed this
intelligently and thoroughly, he would never
have retreated from the path of this Faith.
For Peter received this answer from the Lord
for his confession. " Blessed art thou, Simon
Barjona ; for flesh and blood hath not re-
vealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in
heaven. And I say unto thee, that thou art
Peter, and upon this rock I will build My
Church : and the gates of Hades shall not pre-
vail against it ?." But he who both rejects
the blessed Peter's confession, and gainsays
Christ's Gospel, is far removed from union
with this building; for he shows himself never
to have had any zeal for understanding the
Truth, and to have only the empty appearance
of high esteem, who did not adorn the hoary
hairs of old age with any ripe judgment of the
heart.

II. The heresy of Eutyches is to be condemned,
though his full repentance may lead to his
restitution.

But because the healing even of such men
must not be neglected, and the most Christian
Emperor has piously and devoutly desired a
council of bishops to be held, that all error
may be destroyed by a fuller judgment, I have
sent our brothers Julius the bishop, Renatus
the presbyter, and my son Hilary the deacon,
and with them Dulcitius the notary, whose
faith we have proved, to be present in my
stead at your holy assembly, brethren, and
settle in common with you what is in accord-
ance with the Lord's will. To wit, that the
pestilential error may be first condemned, and
then the restitution of him, who has so un-
wisely erred, discussed, but only if embracing

5 S. Matt. xvi. 13 and 16

6 Utrumque (Gk. ixaTepov) units.

7 S. Matt. xvi. 17, 18.

the true doctrine he fully and openly with his
own voice and signature condemns those here-
tical opinions in which his ignorance has been
ensnared : for this he has promised in the ap-
peal which he sent to us, pledging himself to
follow our judgment in all things8. On re-
ceiving our brother and fellow-bishop Flavian's
letter, we have replied to him at some length
on the points which he seems to have referred
to us 9 ; that when this error which seems to
have arisen, has been destroyed, there may be
one Faith and one and the same confession
throughout the whole world to the praise and
glory of God, and that " in the name of Jesus
every knee should bow, of things in heaven,
and things on earth, and things under the
earth, and that every tongue should confess
that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of
God the Father1." Dated 13th June in the
consulship of the illustrious Asturius and Pro-
togenes (449).

LETTER XXXIV.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

Leo, the bishop, to Julian, the bishop, his
well-beloved brother.

I. Eutyches is now dearly seen to have deviated
from the Eaith.

Your letter, beloved, which has just reached
me, shows with what spiritual love of the
Catholic Faith you are inspired : and it makes
me very glad that devout hearts all agree in
the same opinion, so that according to the
teaching of the Holy Ghost there may be ful-
filled in us what the Apostle says : " Now I
beseech you, brethren, through the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the
same things, and there be no divisions among
you : but that ye be perfect in the same mind
and in the same judgment2." But Eutyches
has put himself quite outside this unity, if he
perseveres in his perversity, and still does not
understand the bonds with which the devil has
bound him, and thinks any one is to be reck-
oned among the Lord's priests, who is a party
to his ignorance and madness. For some time
we were uncertain in what he was displeasing
to catholics : and when we received no letter
from our brother Flavian, and Eutyches him-
self complained in his letters that the Nesto-
rian heresy was being revived, we could not
fully learn the source or the motive of so
crafty an accusation. But as soon as the
minutes of the bishops' proceedings reached us,
all those things which were hidden beneath

Cf. Lett. XXL, chaps, i. and ii.
9 See Lett. XXVIL, n. 7. « Phil. ii. 10.

a 1 Cor. i. 10. 3 See Lett. XX., above.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the veil of his deceitful complaints were re-
vealed in their abomination.

II. He announces the appointment of legates
a latere.

And because our most clement Emperor in
the loving-kindness and godliness of his mind,
wished a more careful judgment to be passed
aboutthe position of onewhohithertohas seemed
to be in high esteem, and for this purpose has
thought fit to convene a council of bishops,
by the hands of our brothers Julius the bishop,
and Renatus the presbyter, and also my son
Hilary, the deacon whom I have sent ex latere '■
in my stead, I have addressed a letter suited
to the needs of the case to our brother Flavian,
from which you also, beloved, and the whole
Church may know about the ancient and
unique Faith, which this unlearned opponent
has assailed, what we hold as handed down
from God and what we preach without altera-
tion. Yet, because we must not forget the
duty of mercy, we have considered it con-
sonant with our moderation as priests, that,
if the condemned presbyter corrects himself
unreservedly, the sentence by which he is
bound should be remitted : if, however, he
chooses to lie in the mire of his foolishness,
let the decree remain, and let him have his
lot with those whose en or he has followed.
Dated 13th June in the consulship of the
illustrious Asturius and Protogenes (449)5.

LETTER XXXV.
To Julian, Bishop of Cos6.
Leo, bishop of the city of Rome to his well-
beloved brother, Julian the bishop.

I. Eutyches' heresy involves many other heresies.

Although by the hands of our brothers,
whom we have despatched from the city on
behalf of the Faith, we have sent a most full
refutation of Eutyches' excessive heresy to our

4 See Lett. XXX II., n. 9, above.

5 This letter (X XXIV.) is written on the same day and subject
and to the same person as the next letter(XXXV.) : the differences
between them being (1) the greater length and fuller treatment of
the second ; and (2) that the one is entrusted to Leo's legates the
other to Julius' own messenger, Basil the deacon ; and (3) 'that
the shorter has no Gk. version as the longer has. I think the
Ballerina are undoubtedly right in facing the difficulty boldly
the evidence of the MSS. being invariable, except that XXXIV
vvvfv d '? a f?W ^ctions: and I would suggest that
aaaiv. is a tormal, official communication, and XXXV a
private, confidential one. This will account for the difference of
messengers, and the identity of date, subject and person
addressed and _,s justifiable as a piece of necessary diplomatic
secrecy. In XXX. and XXXI. we have another instance of two
letters to the same person on the same day, one of these (XXXI )
being also without a Gk. version, this time the longer one: but
here we have adopted the Ballerina's suggestion that only the
first was sent. It should further be noticed that out of the very
large batch of letters that are dated the i,th of June, which
includes the Tome (8 in all, XXVIII. -XXXV.), it may well
have been convenient to delay one and send it by another

« See Lett. XXXIV., chap. ii. n. S.

brother Flavian, yet because we have received,
through our son Basil, your letter, beloved,
which has given us much pleasure from the
fervour of its catholic spirit, we have added
this page also which agrees with the other
document, that you may offer a united and
strenuous resistance to those who seek to
corrupt the gospel of Christ, since the wisdom
and the teaching of the Holy Spirit is one and
the same in you as in us : and whosoever
does not receive it, is not a member of Christ's
body and cannot glory in that Head in whicli
he denies the presence of his own nature.
What advantage is it to that most unwise old
man under the name of the Nestorian heresy to
mangle the belief of those, whose most devout
faith he cannot tear to pieces : when in de-
claring the only-begotten Son of God to have
been so born of the blessed Virgin's womb
that He wore the appearance of a human
body without the reality of human flesh being
united to the Word, he departs as far from the
right path as did Nestorius in separating the
Godhead of the Word from the substance of
His assumed Manhood ? ? From which pro-
digious falsehood who does not see what mon-
strous opinions spring? for he who denies the
true Manhood of Jesus Christ, must needs be
filled with many blasphemies, being claimed
by Apollinaris as his own, seized upon by
Valentinus, or held fast by Manichasus : none
of whom believed that there was true human
flesh in Christ. But, surely, if that is not
accepted, not only is it denied that He,
who was in the form of God, but yet abode in
the form of a slave, was born Man according
to the flesh and reasonable soul : but also that
He was crucified, dead, and buried, and that
on the third day He rose again, and that,
sitting at the right hand of the Father, he will
come to judge the quick and the dead 8 in
that body in which He Himself was judged :
because these pledges 9 of our redemption are
rendered void if Christ is not believed to have
the true and whole nature of true Manhood.

II. The two natures are to be found in Christ.
Or because the signs of His Godhead were
undoubted, shall the proof of his having a
human body be assumed false, and thus the
indications of both natures be accepted to
prove Him Creator, but not be accepted for
the salvation of the creature x ? No, for the

7 The Gk. version here adds and " from the very conception of
the Virgin," but this is probably only a repetition of the words "of
the Virgin's womb," just above.

8 It can escap.* no one that he is here, and frequently through-
out this letter, quoting from the Creed. & Sacramcnta.

1 i.e. shall the si;;ns of His being God. which are undoubted,
and the signs that He had a body of some sort be allowed to prove
Him one with the Creator of the world, but not go so far as to
show that that body which He had was a fully human one?

LETTER XXXV.

flesh did not lessen what belongs to His God-
head, nor the Godhead destroy what belongs
to His flesh. For He is at once both eternal
from His Father and temporal from His
mother, inviolable in His strength, passible
in our weakness : in the Triune Godhead, of
one and the same substance with the Father
and the Holy Spirit, but in taking Manhood
on Himself, not of one substance but of one
and the same person [so that He was at once
rich in poverty, almighty in submission, im-
passible in punishment, immortal in death2].
For the Word was not in any part of It
turned either into flesh or into soul, seeing
that the absolute and unchangeable nature of
the Godhead is ever entire in its Essence,
receiving no loss nor increase, and so beati-
fying the nature that It had assumed that that
nature remained forever glorified in the person
of the Glorifier. [But why should it seem
unsuitable or impossible that the Word and
flesh and soul should be one Jesus Christ, and
that the Son of God and the Son of Man
should be one, if flesh and soul which are of
different natures make one person even with-
out the Incarnation of the Word : since it is
much easier for the power of the Godhead to
produce this union of Himself and man than
for the weakness of manhood by itself to
effect it in its own substance.] Therefore
neither was the Word changed into flesh nor
flesh into the Word : but both remains in one
and one is in both, not divided by the diversity
and not confounded by intermixture : He is
not one by His Father and another by His
mother, but the same, in one way by His
Father before every beginning, and in another
by His mother at the end of the ages : so
that He was " mediator between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus3," in whom dwelt "the
fulness of the Godhead bodily *:" because
it was the assumed (nature) not the Assum-
ing (nature) which was raised, because God
" exalted Him and gave Him the Name which
is above every name : that in the name of
Jesus every knee should bow, of things in
heaven and things on earth and things under
the earth, and that every tongue should con-
fess that Jesus Christ the Lord is in the glory
of God the Fathers."

III. The soul of Christ and the body of Christ
were real in the full human sense, though the
circumstances of His birth were unique.

[But as to that which Eutyches dared to say

2 So that — in death, bracketed by the editors as not being
translated in the Gk. version, and perhaps here we have a gloss to
explain the somewhat obscure words that precede it : but through-
out this letter larse portions are so bracketed, in each case the
Gk. version omitting them.

3 i Tim. ii. 5. 4 Col. ii. 9. 5 Phil. ii. 0-11.

VOL. XII. I

in the court of bishops " that before the Incar-
nation there were two natures in Christ, but
after the Incarnation one6," he ought to have
been pressed by the frequent and anxious ques-
tions of the judges to render an account of his
acknowledgment, lest it should be passed
over as something trivial, though it was seen
to have issued from the same fount as his
other poisonous opinions. For 1 think that
in saying this he was convinced that the soul,
which the Saviour assumed, had had its abode
in the heavens before He was born of the
Virgin Mary, and that the Word joined it to
Himself in the womb. But this is intolerable
to catholic minds and ears : because the Lord
who came down from heaven brought with
Him nothing that belonged to our state : for
He did not receive either a soul which had
existed before nor a flesh which was not of his
mother's body. Undoubtedly our nature was
not assumed in such a way that it was created
first and then assumed, but it was created by
the very assumption. And hence that which
was deservedly condemned in Origen must be
punished in Eutyches also, unless he prefers
to give up his opinion, viz. the assertion that
souls have had not only a life but also different
actions before they were inserted in men's
bodies 7]. For although the Lord's nativity
according to the flesh has certain characteristics
wherein it transcends the ordinary beginnings
of man's being, both because He alone was
conceived and born without concupiscence of
a pure Virgin, and because He was so brought
forth of His mother's womb that her fecundity
bare Him without loss of virginity : yet His
flesh was not of another nature to ours : nor
was the soul breathed into Him from another
source to that of all other men, and it excelled
others not in difference of kind but in su-
periority of power For He had no opposition
in His flesh [nor did the strife of desires give
rise to a conflict of wishes 8]. His bodily
senses were active without the law of sin, and
the reality of His emotions being under the
control of His Godhead and His mind, was
neither assaulted by temptations nor yielded
to injurious influences. But true Man was
united to God and was not brought down
from heaven as regards a pre-existing soul,
nor created out of nothing as regards the
flesh : it wore the same person in the God-
head of the Word and possessed a nature in
common with us in its body and soul. For He
wouid not be " the mediator between God

6 Cf. the Tome, Lett. XXVI 1 1., chap, vi., n. 5.

7 Cf. Lett. XV., chap, xi., n. 6.

8 Here again the second clause (in brackets) seems a giosson
the first, see n. 2, above : what is meant will be seen by comparing
S. Paul's famous disquisition (Rom. vii.)

LETTERS OE LEO THE GREAT.

and man," unless God and man had co-existed
in both natures forming: one true Person.
The magnitude of the subject urges us to a
lengthy discussion : but with one of your learn-
ing there is no need for such copious disserta-
tions, especially as we have already sent a
sufficient letter to our brother Flavian by our
delegates for the confirmation of the minds, not
only of priests but also of the laitv. The
mercy of God will, we believe, provide that
without the loss of one soul the sound may be
defended against the devil's wiles, and the
wounded healed. Dated 13th June in the
consulship of the illustrious Asturius and Pro-
togenes (449).

LETTER XXXVI.
To Flavian, Bishop of Constantinople.

(He acknowledges the receipt of Flavian's
second letter (xxvi ) and protests against the
necessity for a general council, though at the
same time ho acquiesces in it. Dated 21 June,
a week after the Tome).

LETTER XXXVII1.

To Theodosius Augustus.
Leo to Theodosius Augustus.

Unity of Faith is essential but the poi?it at issue
hardly required a general council, it is so
clear.

On receiving your clemency's letter, I per
ceived that the universal Church has much
cause for joy, that you will have the Christian
Faith, whereby the Divine Trinity is honoured
and worshipped, to be different or out of
harmony with itself in nothing. For what
more effectual support can be given to human
affairs in calling upon God's mercy than when
one thanksgiving, and the sacrifice of one
confession is offered to His majesty by all.
Wherein the devotions of the priests and all
the faithful will reach at last their complete-
ness, if in what was done for our redemption
by God the Word, the only Son of God,
nothing else be believed than what He Him-
self ordered to be preached and believed.
Wherefore although every consideration pre-
vents my attendance on the day which your
piety has fixed for the councils of bishops2:
for there are no precedents for such a thing,

'u jtter ls on the same subJect as Lett. XXIX. above, but

as the wording of it contains some interesting matter, it is here
given in full. There is no Gk. version extant, and how there
some to be two letters within a week of one another on the same
topic is not clear.

■ Cf. Lett. XXIX. above, and especially XXXI., chap, iv.,
where the reasons are given rather more fully.

and the needs of the times do not allow me
to leave the city, especially as the point of
Faith at issue is so clear, that it would have
been more reasonable to abstain from pro-
claiming a synod : yet as far as the Lord
vouchsafes to help me, I have bestowed my
zeal upon obeying your clemency's com-
mands, by appointing my brethren who are
competent to act as the case requires in re-
moving offences, and who can represent me :
because no question has arisen on which there
can or ought to be any doubt. Dated 21st
of June, in the consulship of the illustrious
Asturius and Protogenes, (449).

LETTER XXXVIII 3.

To Flavian, Bishop of Constantinople.

Leo to Flavian, bishop of Constantinople.

He acknowledges the receipt of a letter and
advises mercy if Eutyches will recant.

When our brethren had already started
whom we despatched to you in the cause of
the Faith, we received your letter, beloved,
by our son Basil the deacon, in which you
rightly said very little on the subject of our
common anxiety, both because the accounts
which had already arrived had given us full
information on every thing, and because for
purposes of private inquiry it was easy to con-
verse with the aforesaid Basil, by whom now
through the grace of God, in whom we trust,
we exhort you, beloved, in reply, using the
Apostle's words, and saying : " Be ye in
nothing affrighted by the adversaries ; which
is for them a cause of perdition, but to you of
salvation ♦." For what is so calamitous as to
wish to destroy all hope of man's salvation by
denying the reality of Christ's Incarnation, and
to contradict the Apostle who says distinctly:
"great is the mystery of godliness which was
manifest in the flesh5?" What so glorious
as to fight for the Faith of the gospel against
the enemies of Christ's nativity and cross?
About whose most pure light and uncon-
quered power we have already disclosed what
was in our heart, in the letter which has been
sent to you beloved6: lest anything might
seem doubtful between us on those things
which we have learnt, and teach in accord-
ance with the catholic doctrine. But seeing
that the testimonies to the Truth are so clear

3 If we are right in thinking that Lett. XXXVI. is Leo's
acknowledgment of Flavian's second letter (XXVI.i, this (which
again has no Gk. version) must be an acknowledgment of yet
a third, not extant, sent by the hand of one Basil, the deacon, who
is probably the same as Julian's messenger (XXXV., chap. i.).

4 Phil. i. 28.

5 1 Tim. iii. 16 : the reading here is quod manifestum est in
cai-'te, in agreement with the general Western usage.

6 Sc. the Tome (XXVIII.).

LETTER XLII.

and strong that a man must be reckoned
thoroughly blind and stubborn, who does not
at once shake himself free from the mists of
falsehood in the bright light of reason ; we
desire you to use the remedy of long-suffering
in curing the madness of ignorance that
through your fatherly admonitions they who
though old in years are infants in mind, may
learn to obey their elders. And if they give
up the vain conceits of their ignorance and
come to their senses, and if they condemn
all their errors and receive the one true Faith,
do not deny them the mercifulness of a
bishop's kind heart : although your judgment
must remain, if their impiety which you have
deservedly condemned persists in its depravity.
Dated 23 July in the consulship of the illus-
trious Asturius and Protogenes (449).

LETTER XXXIX.
To Flavian, Bishop of Constantinople.
Leo, the bishop, to Flavian, the bishop.

He rebukes Flavian for not answering his re-
pealed letters.

Our anxiety is increased by your silence,
for it is long now since we received a letter
from you, beloved : while we who bear a chief
share in your cares ?, through our anxiety for
the defence of the Faith, have several times8,
as occasion served, sent letters to you : that
we might aid you with the comfort of our
exhortations not to yield to the assaults of
your adversaries in defence of the Faith, but
to feel that we were the sharers In your labour.
Some time since we believe our messengers
have reached you, brother, through whom you
find yourself fully instructed by our writings
and injunctions, and we have ourselves sent
back Basil to you as you desired 9. Now, lest
you should think we had omitted any oppor-
tunity of communicating with you, we have
sent this note by our son Eupsychius, a man
whom we hold in great honour and affection,
asking you to reply to our letter with all
speed, and inform us at once about your own
actions and those of our representatives, and
about the completion of the whole matter : so
that we may allay the anxiety which we now
feel in defence of the Faith, by happier tidings.
Dated nth August in the consulship of the
illustrious Asturius and Protogenes (449).

7 Curarum tuarum principes.

8 Frequenter, four times in all (Letters XXVIL, XXVIIL,
XXXVI. and XXXVIII.).

9 This must be in the third lost letter to which we have
assumed Lett. XXXVI 11. to be an answer.

LETTER XL.

To the Bishops of the Province of
Arles in Gaul.

To his well-beloved brethren Constantinus
Audentius, Rusticus, Auspicius, Nicetas, Nec-
tarius, Florus, Asclepius, Justus, Augustalis,
Ynantius, and Chrysaphius *, Leo the pope.

He approves of their having unanimously
elected Ravennius, Bishop of Aries.

We have just and reasonable reason for
rejoicing, when we learn that the Lord's
priests have done what is agreeable both to
the rules of the Father's canons and to the
Apostles' institutions. For the whole body
of the Church must needs increase with a
healthy growth, if the governing members
excel in the strength ot their authority, and
in peaceful management. Accordingly, we
ratify with our sanction your good deed,
brethren, in unanimously, on the death of
Hilary2 of holy memory, consecrating our
brother Ravennius, a man well approved by
us, in the city of Aries, in accordance with
the wishes of the clergy, the leading citizens,
and the laity. Because a peace-making and
harmonious election, where neither personal
merits nor the good will of the congregation
are wanting, is we believe the expression
not only of man's choice, but of God's in-
spiration. So dearly beloved brethren, let the
said priest use God's gift, and understand what
self-devotion is expected of him, that by dili-
gently and prudently carrying out the office
entrusted to him, he may prove himself equal
to your testimony, and fully worthy of our
favour. God keep you safe, beloved brethren.
Dated 22 August in the consulship of Asturius
and Protogenes (449).

LETTER XLI.

To Ravennius, Bishop of Arles.

(He congratulates him on his appointment,
exhorts him to firm but gentle government,
and advises him frequently to consult the
Apostolic See. Undated, but no doubt sent
about the same time as XL.)

LETTER XLII.

To Ravennius, Bishop of Arles.

Leo the Pope to his well-beloved brother
Ravennius.

1 These twelve bishops do not include the Bishop of Vienne,
according to Perthel (p. 29). following apparently Qiiesnel, whose
wish-fathered thought, though possibly right, has little evidence
to go upon. Cf. Letters LXV. and LXVI. l.elow.

2 It will be noticed that Leo speaks of Hilary not only with
respect, but as if he acquiesced in his sentence (passed against
Hilary in Lett. X. above) not having been carried out.

E 2

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

He asks him to deal with the imposture of a
certain Petronianus.
We wish you to be circumspect and careful
lest any blameworthy presumption should
put forth undue claims: for, when it once
rinds an entrance by crafty stealth, it spreads
itself into greater rashness in the name of the
dignity it has assumed. We have learnt, on
the trustworthy evidence of your clergy, that
a certain wandering and vagabond Petro-
nianus has boasted himself throughout the
provinces of Gaul as our deacon, and under
cover of this office is going about the various
churches of that country. We desire you,
beloved brother, so to check his abominable
effrontery, as to disclose his imposture, by
warning the bishops of the whole district, and
to expel him from communion with all the
Churches, lest he continue his claim. The
Lord keep you safe, dearly beloved brother.
Dated 26th August, in the consulship of the
illustrious Asturius and Protogenes (449)-

LETTER XLIII3.

To Theodosius Augustus.

To the most glorious and serene Emperor
Theodosius.

Leo the bishop.

I. He complains of the conduct of Dioscorus at
the Council of Ephesus.

Already and from the beginning, in the
synods which have been held, we have re-
ceived such freedom of speech from the most
holy Peter, chief of the Apostles, as to have
the power both to maintain the Truth in the
cause of peace, and to allow no one to disturb
it in its firm position, but at once to repel the
mischief Since then the council of bishops
which you ordered to be held in the city of
Ephesus on account of Flavian, does mischief
to the Faith itself and inflicts wounds on all

the churches * ; and this has been brought

to our knowledge not by some untrustworthy
messenger, but by the most reverend bishops s
themselves who were sent by us and by the
most trusty Hilarus our deacon, who have
narrated to us what took place. And the
occurrences are to be put down to the fault of

3 No satisfactory conclusion can be reached about this letter
as it has come down to us, the Ballerinii not thinking that the
Latin version extant is the original on which the Gk. version is
based. _ On the whole I have thought it safer to make my transla-
tion chiefly from the Gk., though I am not at all sure that there is
sufficient ground for the Ballerinii s suspicion 01 the Latin.

4 A lacuna is here visible in the sense though not in
the MSS.

5 The Gk. and the Lat.both read the plural here im<T koitihv
(episcopis) which the Ballerinii alter to the singular. As far as we
know, Julius was the only bishop in the party, but the greater
ncludes the less.

those who met, not having, as is customary,
with a pure conscience and right judgment
made a definite statement about the faith and
those who erred therefrom. For we have
learnt that all did not come together in the
conference who ought, some being ejected
and others received : who were ensnared into
an ungodly act of subscription by the designs
of the aforesaid priest 6. For the declaration
effected by him is of such a nature as to injure
all the churches. For when those who were
sent by us saw how exceedingly impious and
hostile to the Faith it was, they notified it
to us.

II. He asks him to restore the ancient catholic
docti ine.

Wherefore, most peace-loving prince, vouch-
safe for the Faith's sake to avert this danger
from your godly conscience, and let not man's
presumption use violence upon Christ's Gospel
In my sincere desire, which is shared by the
bishops that are with me, that you, most
Christian and revered prince, should before
all things please God, to whom the prayers
of the whole Church are poured with one
accord for your empire, I give you counsel,
for fear lest, if we keep silence on so great
a matter, we incur punishment before the
tribunal of Christ. I entreat you therefore
before the undivided Trinity of the one God-
head, which is injured by these evil doings,
and which is the guardian of your kingdom,
and before Christ's holy angels that all things
remain intact as they were before the judg-
ment, and that they await the weightier deci-
sion of the Synod at which the whole number
of the bishops in the whole world is gathered
together : and do not allow yourselves to bear
the weight of others' misdoing. We are
constrained to say this plainly by the fear of
a constraining necessity 7. But keep before
your eyes the blessed Peter's glory, and the
crowns which all the Apostles have in common
with him, and the joys of the martyrs who had
no other incentive to suffering but the confes-
sion of the true Godhead and the perfect con-
tinuance in Christ8.

III. And asks for another Synod to be sum-
moned.

And now that this confession is being god-

6 Viz., Dioscorus. who must have been mentioned in the
lacuna above, if anywhere.

7 The old Lat. version has here something very different quia
quod necesse est nos dicere, %'eremur ne cuius religio d/ss/falrrr,
indignatio Jirovocetur (for we are bound to say we fear lest He
whose religion is being undermined, sh?uld have His wrath
aroused).

8 ») iv Xpio-Tu reAei'a Siafinvri : here again the Latin version
diverges, reading verce ku?nanitatis (*c. coufessio) in Christo. So
too the next sentence begins with cui sacramento, instead of the
Gk. 1)5 Tifos 6/noAoyias, and elsewhere.

LETTER XLIV.

lessly impugned by some few men, all the
churches of our parts and all the priests im-
plore your clemency with tears in accord-
ance with the request which Flavian makes
in his appeal, to command the assembling
together of a special Synod in Italy, in order
that all opposition may be expelled or paci-
fied, and that there may be no deviation
from or ambiguity in the Faith : and to it
should also come the bishops of all the
Eastern provinces, that, if any have wandered
out of the way of Truth, they may be recalled
to their allegiance by wholesome remedies, and
they who are under a more grievous charge
may either be reduced to submission by
counsel or cut off from the one Church. So
that we are bound to preserve both what the
Nicene canon enjoins and what the definitions
of the bishops of the whole world enjoin
according to the custom of the catholic
Church, and also (to maintain) the freedom
of our fathers' Faith, on which your tran-
quillity rests. For we pray that when those
who harm the Church are driven out, and your
provinces enjoy the possession of justice, and
vengeance has been executed on these heretics,
your royal power also may be defended by
Christ's right hand.

LETTER XLIV.

To Theodosius Augustus.

Leo, the bishop, and the holy Synod which
is assembled at Rome to Theodosius Augustus.

I. He exposes the unscrupulous nature of the
proceedings at Ephcsus.

From your clemency's letter, which in your
love of the catholic Faith you sent sometime
ago to the see of the blessed Apostle Peter, we
drew such confidence in your defence of truth
and peace that we thought nothing harmful
could happen in so plain and well-ordered
a matter ; especially when those who were
sent to the episcopal council, which you
ordered to be held at Ephesus, were so fully
instructed that, if the bishop of Alexandria
had allowed the letters, which they brought
either to the holy synod or to Flavian the
bishop, to be read in the ears of the bishops,
by the declaration of the most pure Faith,
which being Divinely inspired we both have
received and hold, all noise of disputings
would have been so completely hushed that
neither ignorance could any longer disport
itself, nor jealousy find occasion to do mis-
chief. But because private interests are con-
sulted under cover of religion, the disloyalty
of a few has wrought that which must wound
the whole Church. For not from some un-

trustworthy messenger, but from a most faith-
ful narrator of the things which have been
done, Hilary, our deacon, who, lest he should
be compelled by force to subscribe to their
proceedings, with great difficulty made his
escape, we have learnt that a great many
priests came together at the synod, whose
numbers would doubtless have assisted the
debate and decision, if he who claimed for
himself the chief place had consented to
maintain priestly moderation, in order that,
according to custom, when all had freely
expressed their opinion, after quiet and fair
deliberation, that might be ordained which
was both agreeable to the Faith and helpful
to those in error. But we have been told that
all who had come were not present at the
actual decision : for we have learnt that some
were rejected while others were admitted, who
at the aforesaid priest's requisition surrendered
themselves to an unrighteous subscription,
knowing they would sutler harm unless they
obeyed his commands, and that such a re-
solution was brought forward by him that in
attacking one man he might wreak his fury
of the whole Church. Which our delegates
from the Apostolic See saw to be so blas-
phemous and opposed to the catholic Faith
that no pressure could force them to assent ;
for in the same synod they stoutly protested,
as they ought, that the Apostolic See would
never receive what was being passed : since
the whole mystery of the Christian Faith is
absolutely destroyed (which Heaven forfend
in your Grace's reign), unless this abominable
wickedness, which exceeds all former blas-
phemies, be abolished.

II. And entreats the Emperor to help in revers-
ing their decision.

But because the devil with wicked subtlety
deceives the unwary, and so mocks the im-
prudence of some by a show of piety as to
persuade them to things harmful instead of
profitable, we pray your Grace, renounce all
complicity in this endangering of religion and
Faith, and afford in the treatment of Divine
things that which is granted in worldly matters
by the equity of your laws, that human pre-
sumption may not do violence to Christ's
Gospel. Behold, I, O most Christian and
honoured Emperor, with my fellow-priests 9
fulfilling towards your revered clemency the
offices of sincere love, and desiring you in
all things to please God, to whom prayers
are offered for you by the Church, lest before

9 Cum consacerdotibus meis. The Ok. version here reads the
singular (neraTou avWeirovpyov nov). This, if intentional and not
a slip, is, I suppose, Flavian, of whose death Leo was not yet
apprized.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the Lord Christ's tribunal we be judged guilty
for our silence, — we beseech you in the pre-
sence of the Undivided Trinity of the One
Godhead, Whom such an act wongs (for He
is Himself the Guardian and the Author of
your empire), and in the presence of Christ's
holy angels, order everything to be in the
position in which they were before the decision
until a larger number of priests be assembled
from the whole world. Suffer not yourself to
be weighted with another's sin because (and
we must say it) we are afraid lest He, Whose
religion is being destroyed, be provoked to
wrath. Keep before your eyes, and with all
your mental vision gaze reverently upon the
blessed Peter's glory, and the crowns which
all the Apostles have in common with him and
the palms of all the martyrs, who had no other
reason for suffering than the confession of the
true Godhead and the true Manhood in Christ.

III. He asks for a Council in Italy.

And because this mystery is now being
impiously opposed by a few ignorant persons,
all the churches of our parts, and all the priests
entreat your clemency, with groans and tears,
seeing that our delegates faithfully protested,
and bishop Flavian gave them an appeal in
writing, to order a general synod to be held in
Italy, which shall either dismiss or appease all
disputes in such a way that there be nothing
any longer either doubttul in the Faith or
divided in love, and to it, of course, the
bishops of the Eastern provinces must come,
and if any of them were overcome by threats
and injury, and deviated from the path of
truth, they may be fully restored by health-
giving measures, and they themselves, whose
case is harder, if they acquiesce in wiser
counsels, may not fall from the unity of the
Church. And how necessary this request is
after the lodging of an appeal is witnessed by
the canonical decrees passed at Nicaea by the
bishops of the whole world, which are added
below £>a. Show favour to the catholics after
your own and your parents' custom. Give
us such liberty to defend the catholic Faith as
no violence, no fear of the world, while your

9a Both Quesnel and the Ball, agree that the Canon here
quoted by Leo really belongs not to the Nicene collection, but to
that of Sardica (about 344), in which it stands as no. 4. (Exactly
the same mistake is made in Letter LVI., where Galla Placid ia
Augusta quotes Canon 5 of Sardica to Theodosius as secundum
dejinitiones Nkceni concilii). Cf. Core's Leo, pp. 113, 174. The
wording of this fourth Canon is as follows: " Gaudentius, the
bishop, said, Ii it please you to add to this admirable declaration
which you have passed, I propose that whensoever one bishop
has been deposed by the judgment of other bishops, and appeals
for his case to be heard in Civitas Nervorum, the other bishop
cannot by any means be considered confirmed in the same See
after the appeal oi the one who appears to be deposed, until he
receive the decision oi the judges there." In applying this to
the present case, Leo no doubt proposed to substitute Urbs Roma
for Civitas Novorum, though this was hardly the same thing.

revered clemency is safe, shall be able to
take away. For it is the cause not only of
the Church but of your Kingdom and pro-
sperity that we plead, that you may enjoy the
peaceful sway of your provinces. Defend the
Church in unshaken peace against the heretics,
that your empire also may be defended by
Christ's right hand. Dated the 13th of
October, in the consulship of the illustrious
Asturius and Protogenes (449).

LETTER XLV.

(To Pulcheria Augusta.)

Leo, the bishop, and the holy Synod which
is assembled in the City of Rome to Pulcheria
Augusta.

I. He sends a copy of the former letter which

jailed to reach her.
If the letters respecting the Faith which
were despatched to your Grace by the hands of
our clergy had reached you, it is certain you
would have been able, the Lord helping you,
to provide a remedy for these things which
have been done against the Faith. For when
have you failed either the priests or the reli-
gion or the Faith of Christ ? But when those
who were sent were so completely hindered
from reaching your clemency that only one
of them, namely Hilary our deacon, with
difficulty fled and returned, we thought it
necessary to re-write our letter : and that our
prayers may deserve to receive more weight,
we have subjoined a copy of the very docu-
ment which did not reach your clemency,
entreating you even more earnestly than be-
fore to take under protection that religion in
which you excel which will win you the greater
glory in proportion to the heinousness of the
crimes against which your royal faith requires you
to proceed, lest the integrity of the Christian
Faith be violated by any plot of man's de-
vising. For the things which were believed
to require setting at rest and healing by the
meeting of a Synod at Ephesus, have not only
resulted in still greater disturbances of peace
but, which is the more to be regretted, even in
the overthrow of the very Faith whereby we are
Christians.

II. He also sends a copy of his letter to the

Emperor and explains its contents.

And they indeed, who were sent, and one
of whom, escaping the violence of the bishop
of Alexandria who claims everything for him-
self, faithfully reported to us what took place
in the Synod, opposed, as it became them,
what I will call the frenzy not the judgment
of one man, protesting that those things which

LETTER LII.

were being carried through by violence and
fear could not reverse the mysteries of the
Church and the Creed itself composed by the
Apostles, and that no injuries could sever them
from that Faith which they had brought fully
set forth and expounded from the See of the'
blessed Apostle Peter to the holy synod. And
since this statement was not allowed to be
read out at the bishop's request, in order
forsooth that by the rejection of that Faith
which has crowned patriarchs, prophets,
apostles and martyrs, the birth according to
the flesh of Jesus Christ our Lord and the
confession of His true Death and Resurrection
(we shudder to say it) might be overthrown,
we have written x on this matter according to
our ability, to our most glorious and (what is
far greater) our Christian Prince, and at the
same time have subjoined a copy of the letter
to you to the end that he may not allow the
Faith, in which he was re-born and reigns through
God's grace, to be corrupted by any inno-
vation, since Bishop Flavian continues in com-
munion with us all, and that which has been
done without regard to justice and contrary to
all the teaching of the canons can, under no
consideration, be held valid. And because the
Synod of Ephesus has not removed but in-
creased the scandal of disagreement (I have
asked him) to appoint a place and time for
holding a council within Italy, all quarrels and
prejudices on both sides being suspended,
that everything which has engendered offence
may be the more diligently reconsidered and
without wounding the Faith, without injuring
religion those priests may return into the peace
of Christ, who through irresolution were forced
to subscribe, and only their errors be re
moved.

III. He asks her to assist his petition with the
Empeivr.

And that we may be worthy to obtain this,
let your well-tried faith and protection, which
has always helped the Church in her labours,
deign to advance our petition with our most
clement Prince, under a special commission
so to act from the blessed Apostle Peter; so
that before this civil and destructive war gains
strength within the Church, he may grant
opportunity of restoring unity by Cod's aid,
knowing that the strength of his empire will
be increased by every extension of catholic
free iom that his kindly will affects.

Dated 13th of October in the consulship of
the illustiious Asturius and Protogenes (449).

• This is, of course, Letter XLIV.

LETTER XLVI.

From Hilary, then Deacon (afterwards
Bishop of Rome), to Pulcheria Augusta.
(Describing his ill-treatment, as Leo's dele-
gate, by Dioscorus.)

LETTER XLVIL

To Anastasius, Bishop of Thessalonica.

(Congratulating him on being present at the
synod of Ephesus )

LETTER XLVIII.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

(Consoling him after the riots at Ephesus
and exhorting him to stand firm.)

LETTER XLIX.

To Flavian, Bishop of Constantinople.

(Whose death he is unaware of, promising
him all the support in his power.)

LETTER L.
To the people of Constantinople, by the
hand of Epiphanius and Dionysius,
Notary of the Church of Rome.

(Exhorting them to stand firm and consoling
them for Flavian's deposition.)

LETTER LI.

to faustus and othkr presbyters and
Archimandrites in Constantinople.

(With the same purport as the last.)

LETTER LII.

From Theoooret, Bishop of Cyrus, to
Leo. (See vol. iii. of this Series, p. 293.)

To Leo, bishop of Rome.

I. If Paul appealed to Peter how much mo?e
must ordinary folk have recourse to his suc-
cessor.

If Paul, the herald of the Truth, the trumpet
of the Holy Ghost, had recourse to the great
Peter, in order to obtain a decision from him
for those at Antioch who were disputing about
living by the Law, much more do we small
and humble folk run to the Apostolic See to
get healing from you for the sores of the
churches. For it is fitting that you should in
all things have the pre-eminence, seeing that
your See possesses many peculiar privileges.
For other cities get a name for size or beauy
or population, and some that are devoid of
these advantages are compensated by certain
spiritual gifts : but your city has the fullest

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

abundance of good things from the Giver of
all good. For she is of all cities the greatest
and most famous, the mistress of the world
and teeming with population. And besides
this she has created an empire which is still
predominant and has imposed her own name
upon her subjects. But her chief decoration
is her Faith, to which the Divine Apostle is
a sure witness when he exclaims " your faith is
proclaimed in all the world Ia ; " and if imme-
diately after receiving the seeds of the saving
Gospel she bore such a weight of wondrous
fruit, what words are sufficient to express the
piety which is now found in her ? She has, too,
the tombs of our common fathers and teachers of
the Truth, Peter and Paul 2, to illumine the
souls of the faithful. And this blessed and
divine pair arose indeed in the East, and shed
its rays in all directions, but voluntarily under-
went the sunset of life in the West, from
whence now it illumines the whole world.
These have rendered your See so glorious :
this is the chief of all your goods. And their
See is still blest by the light of their God's
presence, seeing that therein He has placed
your Holiness to shed abroad the rays of the
one true Faith.

II. He commends Leo's zeal against the Mani-
chees, and latterly against Entychianism% as
evidenced especially in the Tome.

Of which thing indeed, though there are
many other proofs to be found, your zeal
against the ill-famed Manichaeans is proof
enough, that zeal which your holiness has of
late years displayed 3, thereby revealing the
intensity of your devotion to Goo in things
Divine. Proof enough, too, of your Apostolic
character is what you have now written. For
we have met with what your holiness has
written about the Incarnation of our God and
Saviour, and have admired the careful dili-
gence of the work \ For it has proved both
points equally well, viz., the Eternal Godhead
of the Only-begotten of the Eternal Father,
and at the same time His manhood of the
seed of Abraham and David, and His assump-
tion of a nature in all things like ours, except
in this one thing, that He remained free from
all sin : for sin is engendered not of nature,
but of free will s. This also was contained in

«a Rom. i. 8.

2 It is sufficient here to quote Eusebius {Hist. Eccl. ii. 25) as
oneof the earliest (before 340) maintained of this tradition. In this
passage he again quotes Gaius of Rome (3rd cent.) and Dionysius
of Corinth (2nd cent.] as corroborative authorities. Eusebius"
own words aie these : " Paul is recorded to have been beheaded
in Rome itself, and Peter likewise to have been impaled. And
this statement is supported by their names, which remain to this
day inscribed in the cemeteries there."

3 Viz , in 444: cf. Letter vn, supra, together with the
Emperors decree (Lett. VIII.).

4 This is, of course, the Tome (Lett. XXVIII. ).

5 Here ' nature' must mean ' man's original nature before the

your letter, that the only-begotten Son of God
is One and His Godhead impassible, irrever-
sible, unchangeable even as the Father who
begat Him and the All-holy Spirit. And since
the Divine nature could not suffer, He took
the nature that could suffer to this end, that
by the suffering of His own Flesh He might
give exemption from suffering to those that
believed on Him. These points, and all that
is akin thereto, the letter contained. And we,
admiring your spiritual wisdom, extolled the
grace of the Holy Ghost which spake through
you, and ask and pray, and beg and beseech
your holiness to come to the rescue of the
churches of God that are now tempest tossed.

III. He complains of Dioscorus' ill-treatment

of himself.

For when we expected a stilling of the waves
through those who were sent to Ephesus from
your holiness, we have fallen into yet worse
storm. For the most righteous sa prelate of
Alexandria was not satisfied with the illegal
and most unrighteous deposition of the Lord's
most holy and GoD-loving bishop of Constan-
tinople, Flavian, nor was his wrath appeased
by the slaughter of the other bishops likewise.
But me, too, he murdered with his pen in my
absence, without calling me to judgment, with-
out passing judgment on me in person, without
questioning me on what I hold about the In-
carnation of our God and Saviour. But even
murderers, tomb-breakers, and ravishers of
other men's beds, those who sit in judgment
do not condemn until they either themselves
corroborate the accusations by their confes-
sions, or are clearly con\icted by others. But
us, when five and thirty days' journey distant,
he, though brought up on Divine laws, has
condemned at his will. And not now onlv
has he done this, but also last year, after that
two persons infected with the Apollinarian
disorder had come hither and laid false infor-
mation against us, he rose up in church and
anathematized us, and that when I had written
to him and expressed what I hold in a letter.

IV. This ill-treatment has come after 20 years'

good work in his diocese of Cyrus.

I bemoan the distress of the Church and
yearn after its peace. For having ruled
through your prayers the church committed
to me by the God of the universe for 20 years,
neither in the time of the blessed Theodotus,
president of the East, nor in the tune of those

Fall,' when it was still in the image of Him who so created it, to
which nature Christ'.-, manhood w..s a triumphant return. Other-
wise it is hard to see how Theodoret escapes the pitfall of Pela
gian sm.

5» The epithet is shown by the context to be bitterly sarcastic.

LETTER LVI.

who have succeeded him in the See of Antioch,
have I received the slightest blame, but, the
Divine Grace working with me, have freed
more than 1,000 souls from the disease of
Marcion, and have won over many others from
the company of Arius and Eunomius to the
Master, Christ. And 800 churches have I
had to shepherd : for that is the number of
parishes in Cyrus, in which not a single tare
through your prayers has lingered. But our
flock has been freed from every heretical error.
He that sees all things knows how I have been
stoned by the ill-famed heretics that have been
sent against me, and what struggles I have had
in many cities of the East against Greeks, Jews,
and every heretical error. And after all these
toils and troubles, I have been condemned
without a hearing.

V. He appeals to the Apostolic See with con-
fidence.

I however await the verdict of your Apos-
tolic See, and beg and pray your Holiness
to succour me when I appeal to your upright
and just tribunal, and bid me come to you
and show that my teaching follows in the
track of the Apostles. For there are writings
of mine some 20 years ago, some 1 8, some 15,
and some 1 2, some again against the Arians and
Eunomians, some against the Jews and Greeks,
some against the Magi in Persia, some also
about the universal Providence, others about
the nature of God and about the Divine
Incarnation. I have interpreted, through the
Divine grace, both the Apostolic writings and
the prophetic utterances, and it is easy there-
from to gather whether I have kept unswerv-
ingly the standard of the Faith, or have turned
aside from its straight path. And I beg you
not to spurn my petition, nor to overlook
the insults heaped on my poor white hairs.

VI. Ought he to acquiesce in his deposition ?

First of all, I beg you to tell me, whether
I ought to acquiesce in this unrighteous de-
position or not. For I await your verdict :
and, if you bid me abide by my condemna-
tion, I will abide by it, and will trouble no
one hereafter, but await the unerring verdict
of our God and Saviour. I indeed, the Master
God is my witness, care nought for honour
and glory, but only lor the stumbling-block
that is put 111 men's way : because many of
the simpler folk, and especially tho^e who
have been rescued by us from divers heresies,
will give credence to those who have con-
demned us, and perchance reckon us heretics,
not being able to discern the exact truth of
the dogma, and because, after my long episco-

pate, I have acquired neither house, nor land,
nor obol, nor tomb, only a voluntary poverty,
having straightway distributed even what came
to me from my fathers after their death, as all
know who live in the East.

VII. Being prevented himself, he has sent dele-
gates to plead his cause.

And before all things I entreat you, holy
and GoD-loved brother, render assistance to
my prayers. These .things I have brought
to your Holiness' knowledge, by the most
religious and GoD-beloved presbyters, Hypatius
and Abramius the chorepiscopi6, andAlypius,
superintendent? of the monks in our district:
seeing that I was hindered from coming to
you myself by the Emperor's restraining letter,
and likewise the others. And I entreat your
holiness both to look on them with fatherly
■egard, and to lend them your ears in sincere
kindness, and also to deem my slandered and
falsely attacked position worthy of your pro-
tection, and above all to defend with all \our
might the Faith that is now plotted against,
and to keep the heritage of the fathers intact
for the churches, so shall your holiness receive
from the Bountiful Master a full reward.
(Date about the end of 449.)

LETTER LIII.
A fragment of a letter from Anatolius,
bishop of Constantinople, to Leo (about his
consecration).

LETTER LIV.

To Theodosius Augustus (asking for a
synod in Italy).

LETTERS LV. to LVIII.

A series of Letters.

(1) From Valentinian the Emperor to Theo-
dosius Augustus.

(2) From Galla Placidia Augusta to Theo-
dosius Augustus.

(3) From Licinia Eudoxia Augusta to
Theodosius Augustus.

(4) From Galla Placidia Augusta to Pul-
cheria Augusta, all graphically describing how
Leo had appealed to them in public to press
his suit with Theodosius. Of these, LVI.
is subjoined as pernaps the most interesting
specimen.

LETTER LVI.

(From Galla Placidia Augusta to
Theodosius).

To the Lord Theodosius, Conqueror and

6 Chorepi. copi (country bishops) were a kind of suffragan
bishop to assist the town bisnops in the remoter parts of their
diocese. They continued in use irom the end of the 3rd till ti.t
yth centuiy, when they were abolished. 7 Exarchns.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

Emperor, her ever august son, Galla Placidia,
most pious and prosperous, perpetual Augusta
and mother.

When on our very arrival in the ancient
city, we were engaged in paying our devotion
to the most blessed Apostle Peter, at the
martyr's very altar, the most reverend Bishop
Leo waiting behind awhile after the service,
uttered laments over the catholic Faith to
us, and taking to witness the chief of the
Apostles himself likewise, whom we had just
approached, and surrounded by a number of
bishops whom he had brought together from
numerous cities in Italy by the authority and
dignity of his position, adding also tears to his
words, called upon us to join our moans to his
own. For no slight harm has arisen from
those occurrences, whereby the standard of
the catholic Faith so long guarded since the
days of our most Divine father Constantine,
who was the first in the palace to stand out
as a Christian, has been recently disturbed by
the assumption of one man, who in the synod
held at Ephesus is alleged to have rather
stirred up hatred and contention, intimidating
by the presence of soldiers, Flavianus, the
bishop of Constantinople, because he had
sent an appeal to the Apostolic See, and to
all the bishops of these parts by the hands
of those who had been deputed to attend the
Synod by the most reverend Bishop of Rome,
who have been always wont so to attend,
most sacred Lord and Son and adored King,
in accordance with the provisions of the
Nicene Synod 8. For this cause we pray your
clemency to oppose such disturbances with
the Truth, and to order the Faith of the
catholic religion to be preserved without
spot, in order that according to the standard
and decision of the Apostolic See, which we
likewise revere as pre-eminent, Flavianus may
remain altogether uninjured in his priestly
office, and the matter be referred to the Synod
of the Apostolic See, wherein assuredly he
first adorned the primacy, who was deemed
worthy to receive the keys of heaven : for it
becomes us in all things to maintain the
respect due to this great city, which is the
mistress ot all the earth ; and this too we
must most carefully provide that what in
former times our house guarded seem not
in our day to be infringed, and that by the
present example schisms be not advanced
either between the bishops or the most holy
churches.

LETTER LIX.

To the Clergy and People of the City
of Constantinople.

Leo the bishop to the clergy, dignitaries,
and people, residing at Constantinople.

I. He congratulates them on their outspoken
resistance to error.

Though we are greatly grieved at the things
reported to have been done recently in the
council of priests at Ephesus, because, as is
consistently rumoured, and also demonstrated
by results, neither due moderation nor the
strictness of the Faith was there observed,
yet we rejoice in your devoted piety and in
the acclamations of the holy people 9, in-
stances of which have been brought to our
notice, we have approved of the right feeling
of you all ; because there lives and abides in
good sons due affection for their excellent
Father, and because you suffer the fulness
of catholic teaching to be in no part cor-
rupted. For undoubtedly, as the Holy Spirit
has unfolded to you, they are leagued with
the Manichseans' error, who deny that the
only-begotten Son of God took our nature's
true Manhood, and maintain that all His
bodily actions were the actions of a false
apparition. And lest you should in aught
give your assent to this blasphemy, we have
now sent you, beloved, by my son Epiphanius
and Dionysius, notary of the Roman Church,
letters of exhortation wherein we have of our
own accord rendered you the assistance which
you sought, that you may not doubt of our
bestowing all a father's care on you, and
labouring in every way, by the help of God's
mercy, to destroy all the stumbling-blocks
which ignorant and foolish men have raised.
And let no one venture to parade his priestly
dignity who can be convicted of holding
such detestably blasphemous opinions. For
if ignorance seems hardly tolerable in laymen,
how much less excusable or pardonable is it
in those who govern ; especially when they
dare even to defend their mendacious and
perverse views, and persuade the unsteadfast
to agree with them either by intimidation or
by cajoling.

II. They are to be rejected who deny the truth
oj Christ's flesh, a truth repeated by every
recipient at the Holy Eucharist.

Let such men be rejected by the holy
members of Christ's Body, and let not catholic

9 SanctcF plebis acclamationibus. It seems that the people
See no. oa to Lett. XLIV., 3, where it is shown that this is had openly expressed their disapproval of the maltreatment to
a mistake, willul or otherwise, on Leo's part. which rlavian had been subjected.

LETTER LIX.

liberty suffer the yoke of the unfaithful to be
laid upon it. For they are to be reckoned
outside the Divine grace, and outside the
mystery of man's salvation, who, denying the
nature of our flesh in Christ, gainsay the
Gospel and oppose the Creed. Nor do they
perceive that their blindness leads them into
such an abyss that they have no sure footing
in the reality either of the Lord's Passion
or His Resurrection : because both are dis-
credited in the Saviour, if our fleshly nature
is not believed in Him. In what density of
ignorance, in what utter sloth must they
hitherto have lain, not to have learnt from
hearing, nor understood from reading, that
which in God's Church is so constantly in
men's mouths, that even the tongues of in-
fants do not keep silence upon the truth of
Christ's Body and Blood at the rite of Holy
Communion ' ? For in that mystic distribution
of spiritual nourishment, that which is given
and taken is of such a kind that receiving
the virtue of the celestial food we pass into
the flesh of Him, Who became our flesh2.
Hence to confirm you, beloved, in your
laudably faithful resistance to the foes of
Truth, I shall fitly and opportunely use the
language and sentiments of the Apostle, and
say : " Therefore I also hearing of your faith,
which is in the Lord Jesus, and love towards
all saints, do not cease to give thanks for you,
making mention of you in my prayers that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom
and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the
eyes of your hearts being enlightened that you
may know what is the hope of His calling,
and what the riches of the glory of His in-
heritance among the saints, and what is the
exceeding greatness of His power in us, who
believed according to the working of His
mighty power which he has wrought in Christ,
raising Him from the dead, and setting Him
at His right hand in heavenly places above
every principality, and power, and strength,
and dominion, and every name which is
named not only in this age, but also in that
which is to come : and hath put all things
under His feet, and given Him to be the head
over all the Church which is His body, and
the fulness of Him Who filleth all in all 3."

1 Two things are here to be noticed : (i) that the allusion
appears to be to the formula of reception then in use at the
Eucharist, the priest saying Corpus Christi, and the recipient
answering An/en. Cf. Serm. xci. 3, sic sacree mensoz communicare
debet is ut nihil prorsits de veritate corporis Christi et sanguinis
ambigatis. Hoc enim ore sumitur quod fide creditur : et fntstra
ab litis Amen respondetur a quibus contra id quod accipitur
disputatur ; (2) that infant communion is implied as regular : this
we know to have been the case in much earlier days. Cf. Apost.
Const, viii. 13, Cyprian de Lapsis, ix. and xxv. &c, also Bingham's
Antiq. xv. chap. iv. \ 7.

3 Cf. Sermon LX1II. 7, where much the same language is
"sed. 3 Ephes. i. 15—23.

III. Perfect God and perfect Man ivere united
in Christ.
In this passage let the adversaries of the
Truth say when or according to what nature
did the Almighty Father exalt His Son above
all things, or to what substance did He sub-
ject all things. For the Godhead of the
Word is equal in all things, and consubstan-
tial with the Father, and the power of the
Begetter and the Begotten is one and the
same always and eternally. Certainly, the
Creator of all natures, since " through Him
all things were made, and without Him was
nothing made4," is above all things which He
created, nor were the things which He made
ever not subject to their Creator, Whose
eternal property it is, to be from none other
than the Father, and in no way different to
the Father. If greater power, grander dignity,
more exalted loftiness was granted Him, then
was He that was so increased less than He
that promoted Him, and possessed not the
full riches of His nature fiora Whose fulness
He received. But one who thinks thus is
hurried off into the society of Anus, whose
heresy is much assisted by this blasphemy
which denies the existence of human nature
in the Word of God, so that, in rejecting the
combination of humility with majesty in God,
it either asserts a false phantom-body in
Christ, or says that all His bodily actions
and passions belonged to the Godhead rather
than to the flesh. But everything he ventures
to uphold is absolutely foolish : because nei-
ther our religious belief nor the scope of the
mystery admits either of the Godhead suf-
fering anything or of the Truth belying Itself
in anything. The impassible Son of God,
therefore, whose perpetually it is with the
Father and with the Holy Spirit to be what
He is in the one essence of the Unchangeable
Trinity, when the fulness of time had come
which had been fore-ordained by an eternal
purpose, and promised by the prophetic signi-
ficance of words and deeds, became man not
by conversion of His substance but by as-
sumption of our nature, and " came to seek
and to save that which was lost5." But He
came not by local approach nor by bodily
motion, as if to be present where He had
been absent, or to depart where He had
come : but He came to be manifested to on-
lookers by that which was visible and com-
mon to others, receiving, that is to say, human
flesh and soul in the Virgin mother's womb,
so that, abiding in the form of God, He
united to Himself the lorm of a slave, and

4 S. John i. 3.

5 S. Luke xix. 10.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the likeness of sinful flesh, whereby He did
not lessen the Divine by the human, but in-
creased the human by the Divine.

IV. The Sacrament of Baptism typifies and
realizes this union to each individual believer.

For such was the state of all mortals re-
sulting from our first ancestors that, after the
transmission of original sin to their descend-
ants, no one would have escaped the punish-
ment of condemnation, had not the Word
become flesh and dwelt in us, that is to say,
in that nature which belonged to our blood
and race. And accordingly, the Apostle says :
"As by one man's sin (judgment passed) upon
all to condemnation, so also by one man's
righteousness (it) passed upon all to justifica-
tion of life. For as by one man's disobedience
many were made sinners, so also by one
man's obedience shall many be made right-
eous6;" and again, "For because by man
(came) death, by man also (came) the resur-
rection of the dead. And as in Adam all die,
so also in Christ shall all be made alive 7."
All they to wit who though they be born in
Adam, yet are found reborn in Christ, having
a sure testimony both to their justification by
grace, and to Christ's sharing in their nature8;
for he who does not believe that Cod's only-be-
gotten Son did assume our nature in the
womb of the Virgin-daughter of David, is
without share in the Mystery of the Christian
religion, and, as he neither recognizes the
Bridegroom nor knows the Bride, can have
no place at the wedding-banquet. For the
flesh of Christ is the veil of the Word, where-
with every one is clothed who confesses Flim
unreservedly. But he that is ashamed of it
and rejects it as unworthy, shall have no
adornment from Him, and though he present
himself at the Royal feast, and unseasonably
join in the sacred banquet, yet the intruder
will not be able to escape the' King's discern-
ment, but, as the Lord Himself asserted, will
be taken, and with hands and feet bound, be
cast into outer darkness ; where will be weep-
ing and gnashing of teeth 9. Hence whoso-
ever confesses not the human body in Christ,
must know that he is unworthy of the mystery
of the Incarnation, and has no share in that
sacred union of which the Apostle speaks
saying, " For we are His members, of His
flesh and of His bones. For this cause a man
shall leave father and mother and shall cleave
to his wife, and there shall be two in one

6 Rom. v. 18 19. 7 iCor. xv. 2i 22

° Habentes Jidei testimonium et de justijicatioke gratia et
ae communione natum. --.««« grnnts ei

9 The reference is to S. Matt. xxii. 11— 13.

flesh V And explaining what was meant by
this, he added, " This mystery is great, but
I speak in respect of Christ and the Church."
Therefore, from the very commencement of
the human race, Christ is announced to all
men as coming in the flesh. In which, as
was said, "there shall be two in one flesh,"
there are undoubtedly two, God and man,
Christ and the Church, which issued from
the Bridegroom's flesh, when it received the
mystery of redemption and regeneration, water
and blood flowing from the side of the Cruci-
fied. For the very condition of a new
creature which at baptism puts off not the
covering of true flesh but the taint of the old
condemnation, is this, that a manjs made the
body of Christ, because Christ also is the
body of a man 2,

V. The true doctrine of the Incarnation re-
stated and commended to their keeping.

Wherefore we call Christ not God only, as
the Manichaean heretics, nor Man only, as the
Photinian 3 heretics, nor man in such a way
that anything should be wanting in Him which
certainly belongs to human nature, whether
soul or reasonable mind or flesh which was
not derived from woman, but made from the
Word turned and changed into flesh; which
three false and empty propositions have been
variously advanced by the three sections of
the Apollinarian heretics 4. Nor do we say
that the blessed Virgin Mary conceived a Man
without Godhead, Who was created by the
Holy Ghost and afterwards assumed by the
Word, which we deservedly and properly con-
demned Nestorius for preaching: but we call
Christ the Son of God, true God, born of God
the Father without any beginning in time, and
likewise true Man, born of a human Mother,
at the ordained fulness of time, and we say-
that His Manhood, whereby the Father is the
greater, does not in anything lessen that nature
whereby He is equal with the Father. But
these two natures form one Christ, Who has
said most truly both according to His God-
head : "I and the Father are ones," and
according to His manhood " the Father is
greater than Is." This true and indestruct-

* Eph. v. 30, 31, 32.

2 Ipsa est enim novce conditio creaturce qua in baptismate non
tndumento vera; carnis sed contagio damnatte vetusiatis exuitur
lit efficiatur homo corpus Christi, quia et Cknstus corpus est
homims. 1 he most crabbed of the several crabbed passage, in
this letter. 1 he mystical transmutation of the believer's body
into the body of Christ is here referred to the sacrament of
Baptism while earher in the letter (chap, ii.) it is described as one
ot the effects of Holy Communion.

3 The followers of Photinus, Bishop of Sirmium (circ. 410 A.D.):
for an account of Ins heretical opinions see Schaffs History of the
Christian Church, tn loc. Cf. Letter XV. 4.

4 Apolthiaristarum tres partes; see Sermon xxviii. chap. 4
{end 1 with Bright s n. 32 on Apollinarianism generally.

5 b. John x. 30; xiv. 28.

LETTER LXVII.

ible Faith, dearly-beloved, which alone makes
us true Christians, and which, as we hear with
approval, you are defending with loyal zeal
and praiseworthy affection, hold fast and
maintain boldly. And since, besides God's
aid, you must win the favour of catholic
Princes also, humbly and wisely make request
that the most clement Emperor be pleased to
grant our petition, wherein we have asked for
a plenary synod to be convened ; that by the
aid of God's mercy the sound may be in-
creased in courage, and the sick, if they con-
sent to be treated, have the remedy applied.
(Dated October 15, in the consulship of the il-
lustrious Asturius and Protogenes, 449.)

*" LETTER LX.
To Pulcheria Augusta.
(He hopes for her intercession to procure
the condemnation of Eutyches.)

LETTER LXL

To Martinus and Faustus, Presbyters.

(Reminding them of a former letter he has
written to them, viz. Lett. LI.)

(Letters LXIL, LXIIL, LXIV., are the Em-
peror Theodosius' answers (a) to Valentinian,
(/;) to Galla Placidia, and (c) to Licinia Eu-
doxia (assuring them of his orthodoxy and
care for the Faith.)

LETTER LXV.

Fpom the Bishops of the Province of
Arles.

(Asking Leo to confirm the privileges of
that city, which they allege date from the
mission of Trophimus, by S. Peter, and more
recently ratified by the Emperor Constantine.)

LETTER LXVI.

Leo's Reply to Letter LXV.

Leo, the pope, to the dearly-beloved bre-
thren Constantinus, Armentarius, Audientius,
Severianus, Valerianus, Ursus, Stephanus,
Nectarius, Constantius, Maximus, Asclepius,
Theodorus, Justus Ingenuus, Augustalis, Super-
ventor, Ynantius, Fonteius, and Palladius.

I. The bishop of Vienne has anticipated their
appeal. He proposes to arbitrate with im-
partiality.

When we read your letter, beloved, which
was brought to us by our sons Petronius
the presbyter and Regulus the deacon, we
recognized how affectionate is the regard
in which you hold our brother and fellow-

bishop, Ravennius : for your request is that
what his predecessor6 deservedly lost for his
excessive presumption maybe restored to him.
But your petition, brothers, was forestalled by
the bishop of Vienne. who sent a letter and,
legates with the complaint that the bishop of
Aries had unlawfully claimed the ordination of
the bishop of Vasa. Accordingly, as we had
to show such respect both for the canons of
the fathers and for your good opinion of us,
that in the matter of the churches' privileges
we should allow no infringement or depri-
vation, it were incumbent on us to preserve
the peace within the province of Vienne by
employing such righteous moderation as should
disregard neither ancient usage nor your de-
sires.

II. The bishop of Vienne is to retain juris-
diction over four neighbouring cities : the rest
to belong to Aries.

For alter considering the arguments ad-
vanced by the clergy present on either side,
we find that the cities of Vienne and Aries
within your province have always been so
famous, that in certain matters of ecclesiastical
privilege, now one, now the other, has altern-
ately taken precedence, though the national
tradition is that formerly they had community
of rights. And hence we suffer not the city of
Vienne to be altogether without honour, so far
as concerns ecclesiastical jurisdiction, espe-
cially as it already possesses the authority of
our decree for the enjoyment of its privilege :
to wit the power which, when taken away from
Hilary, we thought proper to confer on the
bishop of Vienne. And that he seem not
suddenly and unduly lowered, he shall hold
rule over the four neighbouring towns, that is,
Valentia, Tarantasia, Genava and Gratian-
opolis, with Vienne herself for the fifth, to the
bishop of which shall belong the care of all
the said churches. But the other churches
of the same province shall be placed under
the authority and management of the bishop
of Aries, who from his temperate moderation
we believe will be so anxious for love and
peace as by no means to consider himself
deprived of that which he sees conceded to
his brother. Dated 5th of May, in the con-
sulship of Valentinianus Augustus (7th time),
and the most famous Avienus (450.)

LETTER LXVII 7.

To Ravennius, Bishop of Arles.

To his dearly-beloved brother Ravennius,
Leo the pope.

6 This, it will be remembered, was Hilary: see Letter X.
above.

7 This letter, together with Letters XL., LXV. and LXVI..

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

We hnve kept our sons Petronius the pres-
byter, and Regulus the deacon, long in the
City, both because they deserved this from
their favour in our eyes, and because the
needs of the Faith, which is now being as-
sailed by the error of some, demanded it.
For we wished them to be present when we
discussed the matter, and to ascertain every-
thing which we desire through you, beloved,
should reach the knowledge of all our bre-
thren and fellow-bishops, specially deputing
this to you, dear brother, that through your
watchful diligence our letter, which we have
issued to the East in defence of the Faith, or
else 8 that of Cyril of blessed memory, which
agrees throughout with our views, may become
known to all the brethren ; in order that being
furnished with arguments they may fortify
themselves with spiritual strength against those
who think fit to insult the Lord's Incarnation
with their misbeliefs. You have a favourable
opportunity, beloved brother, of recommend
ing the commencement of your episcopacy to
all the churches and to our God, if you will
carry out these things in the way we have
charged and enjoined you. But the matters
which were not to be committed to paper,
in reliance on God's aid, you shall cany out
effectually, as we have said, and laudably,
when you have learnt about them from the
mouths of our aforesaid sons. God keep
you safe, dearest brother. Dated 5th of
May, in the consulship of the most glorious
Valentinianus (for the 7th time) and of the
f imous Avienus (450).

LETTER LXVIII.

From Three Gallic Bishops to St, Leo.

Ceretius, Salonius and Veranus to the holy
Lord, most blessed father, and pope most
worthy of the Apostolic See, Leo.

I. They congratulate and thank Leo for the

Tome.

Having perused your Excellency's letter,
which you composed for instruction in the
Faith, and sent to the bishop of Constanti-
nople, we thought it our duty, being enriched
with so great a wealth of doctrine, to pay our
debt of thanks by at least inditing you a letter.
For we appreciate your fatherly solicitude on
our behalf, and confess that we are the more
indebted to your preventing care because we

are found only in the Collection of Aries (numbered XV. by the
Ballerina). *

8 yei can hardly equal ct as the Ball, would wish. So that
here Leo recommends either his own Tome or Cvril's second letter
LXx!St°rlUS' "" LX1X ' chaP- «• be'low J al*° Letter

now have the benefit of the remedy before ex-
periencing the evils. For knowing that those
remedies are well-nigh too late which are ap-
plied after the infliction of the wounds, you
admonish us with the voice of loving fore-
thought to arm ourselves with those Apostolic
means of defence. We acknowledge frankly,
most blessed pope8", with what singular loving-
kindness you have imparted to us the inner-
most thoughts of your breast, by the efficacy
of which you secure the safety of others : and
while you extract the old Serpent's infused
poison from the hearts of others, standing as
it were on the watch-tower of Love, with Apo-
stolic care and watchfulness you cry aloud,
lest the enemy come on us unawares and off
our guard, lest careless securitv expose us to
attack, O holy Lord, most blessed father and
pope, most worthy of the Apostolic See. More-
over we, who specially belong to you °, are filled
with a great and unspeakable delight, because
this special statement of your teaching is so
highly regarded wherever the Churches meet
together, that the unanimous opinion is ex-
pressed that the primacy of the Apostolic See
is rightfully there assigned, from whence the
oracles of the Apostolic Spirit still receive
their interpretations.

II. They ask him to correct or add to their
copy of the Tome.

Therefore, if you deem it worth while, we
entreat your holiness to run through and cor-
rect any mistake of the copyist in this work,
so valuable both now and in the future, which
we have had committed to parchment10, in our
desire to preserve it, or if you have devised
anything further in your zeal, which will profit
all who read, give orders in your loving care
that it be added to this copy, so that not only
many holy bishops our brethren throughout
the provinces of Gaul, but also many of your
sons among the laity, who greatly desire to see
this letter for the revelation of the Truth, may
be permitted, when it is sent back to us, cor-
rected by your holy hand, to transcribe, read
and keep it. If you think fit, we are anxious
that our messengers should return soon, in order
that we may the speedier have an account of
your good health over which to rejoice : for
your well-being is our joy and health.

May Christ the Lord long keep your emi-
nence mindful of our humility, O holy Lord,
most blessed father and pope most worthy of
the Apostolic See.

«» Cf. Lett. XVII. n. 2».

9 Peculiares till. So in each one's autograph subscription at
the end of the letter Ceretius calls himself susccptus vester,
Salonius veiierator vester, and Veranus cultor vestri a/ostotatus.
10 Folds.

LETTER LXIX.

I, Ceretius, your adopted (son ?), salute your
apostleship, commending me to your prayers.

I, Salonius, your adorer, salute your apostle-
ship, entreating the aid of your prayers.

I, Veranus, the worshipper of your apostle-
ship, salute your blessedness, and beseech you
to pray for me.

LETTER LXIX.
(To Theodosius Augustus.)

Leo, the bishop, to Theodosius ever
Augustus.

I. He suspends his opinion on the appointment
of Ana', otitis till he has made open con-
fession of the catholic Faith.

In all your piously expressed letters amid
the anxieties, which we suffer for the Faith,
you have afforded us hope of security by
supporting the Council of Nicasa so loyally as
not to allow the priests of the Lord to budge
from it, as you have often written us already.
But lest I should seem to have done anything
prejudicial to the catholic defence, I thought
nothing rash on either side ought meanwhile
to be written back on the ordination of him
who has begun to preside over the church
of Constantinople, and this not through want
of loving interest, but waiting for the catholic
Truth to be made clear. And I beg your
clemency to bear this with equanimity that
when he has proved himself such as we desire
towards the catholic Faith, we may the more
fully and safely rejoice over his sincerity. But
that no evil suspicion may assail him about
our disposition towards him, I remove all
occasion of difficulty, and demand nothing
which may seem either hard or controvertible
but make an invitation which no catholic
would decline. For they are well known and
renowned throughout the world, who before
our time have shone in preaching the catholic
Truth whether in the Greek or the Latin tongue,
to whose learning and teaching some even of
our own day have recourse, and from whose
writings a uniform and manifold statement of
doctrine is produced : which, as it has pulled
down the heresy of Nestorius, so has it cut off
this error too which is now sprouting out again.
Let him then read again what is the belief on
the Lord's Incarnation which the holy fathers
guarded and has always been similarly preached,
and when he has perceived that the letter of
Cyril of holy memory, bishop of Alexandria,
agrees with the view of those who preceded
him [wherein he wished to correct and cure
Nestorius, refuting his wrong statements and
setting out more clearly the Faith as defined

at Nicaea, and which was sent by him and
placed in the library of the Apostolic See '],
let him further reconsider the proceedings of
the Ephesian Synod 2 wherein the testimonies
of catholic priests on the Lord's Incarnation
are inserted and maintained by Cyril of holy
memory. Let him not scorn also to read my
letter3 over, which he will find to agree through-
out with the pious belief of the fathers. And
when he has realized that that is required and
desired from him which shall serve the same
good end, let him give his hearty assent to
the judgment of the catholics, so that in the
presence of all the clergy and the whole people
he may without any reservation declare his
sincere acknowledgment of the common Faith,
to be communicated to the Apostolic See and
all the Lord's priests and churches, and thus
the world being at peace through the one
Faith, we may all be able to say what the
angels sang at the Saviour's birth of the Virgin
Mary, "Glory in the highest to God and on
earth peace to men of good will V

II. He promises to accept Anatolius on mak-
ing this confession, and asks for a council in
Italy to finally define the Faith.

But because both we and our blessed
fathers, whose teaching we revere and follow,
are in concord on the one Faith, as the
bishops of all the provinces attest, let your
clemency's most devout faith see to it that
such a document as is due may reach us
as soon as may be from the bishop of Con-
stantinople, as from an approved and catholic
priest, that is, openly and distinctly affirming
that he will separate from his communion any
one who believes or maintains any other vie\v
about the Incarnation of the Word of God
than my statement and that of all catholics
lays down, that we may fairly be able to
bestow on him brotherly love in Christ. And
that swifter and fuller effect, God aiding us, may
be given through your clemency's faith to our
wholesome desires, I have sent to your piety
my brethren and fellow-bishops Abundius and
Asterius, together with Basilius and Senator
presbyters, whose devotion is well proved to
me, through whom, when they have displayed
the instructions which we have sent, you may
be able properly to apprehend what is the
standard of our faith, so that, if the bishop
of Constantinople gives his hearty assent to
the same confession, we may securely, as is due,
rejoice over the peace of the Church and no

1 Wherein — see, probably a gloss by way of identifying the
letter: it is the 2nd letter to Nestorius. See Letter LXVII
above.

2 Viz., the third Ecumenical Council held at Ephesus 431, in
which Nestorius was condemned.

3 Viz., XXVIII (The Tome). 4 S. Luke ii. 14.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

ambiguity may seem to lurk behind which may
trouble us with perhaps ungrounded suspicions.
But if any dissent from the purity of our Faith
and from the authority of the Fathers, the
Synod which has met at Rome for that pur-
pose joins with me in asking your clemency
to permit a universal council within the limits
of Italy ; so that, if all those come together in
one place who have fallen either through
ignorance or through fear, measures may be
taken to correct and cure them, and no one
any longer may be allowed to quote the Synod
of Nicaea in a way which shall prove him
opposed to its Faith ; since it will be of
advantage both to the whole Church and to
your rule, if one God, one Faith and one
mystery of man's Salvation, be held by the
one confession of the whole world.

Dated 17th July in the consulship of the
illustrious Valentinianus ^for the seventh time)
and Avienus (450).

LETTER LXX.

To Pulcheria Augusta.
(In which he again says he is waiting for
Anatolius' acceptance of Cyril's and his own
statement of the Faith, and looks forward to
a Synod in Italy.)

LETTER LXXI.

To the Archimandrites of
Constantinople.
(Complaining of Anatolius' silence.)

LETTER LXXII.

To Faustus, one of the Archimandrites
at Constantinople.

(Commending his faith and exhorting him
to steadfastness.)

LETTER LXXIII.

From Valentinian and Marcian.

(Announcing their election as Emperors 5

(a.d. 450), and asking his prayers that (per

celebrandam synodum, te auctore), peace may

be restored to the Church.)

LETTER LXXIV.

To Martinus, another of the
Archimandrites at Constantinople.

(Commending his steadfastness in the
Faith.)

. 5 Valentinian III. had been nominally Emperor of the West
S3?!/!5, .' h,s,mother's (Galla Placidia) death this year com-
pelled him to rule as well as have the name of ruler : almost
simultaneously in the East the death of TheodoMus II. brought
to the front his sister Pulcheria and her soldier husband Marcian

LETTER LXXV.

To Faustus and Martinus together.

(Condemning the Latrocinium and main-
taining that Eutyches equally with Nestorius
promotes the cause of Antichrist.)

LETTER LXXVI.

From Marcianus Augustus to Leo.
(Proposing that he should either attend
a Synod at Constantinople or help in arranging
some other more convenient place of meet-
ing-)

LETTER LXXVII.

From Pulcheria Augusta to Leo.

(In which she expresses her assurance that
Anatolius is orthodox, and begs him to assist
her husband in arranging for the Synod, and
announces that Flavian's body has been buried
in the Basilica of the Apostles at Constantinople
and the exiled bishops restored.)

LETTER LXXVI1I.

Leo's answer to Marcianus.
(Briefly thanking him.)

LETTER LXXIX.

To Pulcheria Augusta.

Leo, bishop of the city of Rome to Pulcheria
Augusta.

I. lie rejoices at PuL hsria's zeal both against
Nestorius and Eutyches.

That which we have always anticipated
concerning your Grace's holy purposes, we
have now proved fully true, viz. that, however
varied may be the attacks of wicked men
upon the Christian Faith, yet when you are
present and prepared by the Lord for its
defence, it cannot be disturbed. For God
will not forsake either the mystery of His
mercy or the deserts of your labours, whereby
you long ago repelled the crafty foe of our
holy religion from the very vitals of the
Church : when the impiety of Nestorius
failed to maintain his heresy because it did
not escape you the handmaid and pupil of the
Truth, how much poison was instilled into
simple folk by the coloured falsehoods of that
glib fellow. And the sequel to that mighty
struggle was that through your vigilance the
things which the devil contrived by means of
Eutyches, did not escape detection, and they
who had chosen to themselves one side in the
twofold heresy, were overthrown by the one
and undivided power of the catholic Faith.

LETTER LXXX.

This then is your second victory over the ravaging it. And this too we ask of you.
destruction of Eutyches' error : and, if he had 1 Grace, which we doubt not you will do of
had any soundness of mind, that error having your own free 'will, to extend the favour which
been once and long ago routed and put to is due as well to my brother and fellow-bishop

confusion in the person of his instigators, he
would easily have been able to avoid the
attempt to rekindle into life the smouldering
ashes, and thus only share the lot of those,
whose example he had followed, most glorious
Augusta. We desire, therefore, to feap for
joy and to pay due vows for your clemency's
prosperity to God, who has already bestowed
on you a double palm and crown through all
the parts of the world, in which the Lord's
Gospel is proclaimed.

II. He thanks her for her aid to the catholic
cause, and explains his wishes about the
restoration of the lapsed bishops.

Your clemency must know, therefore, that
the whole church of Rome is highly grateful
for all your faithful deeds, whether that you
have with pious zeal helped our representa-
tives throughout and brought back the catho-
lic priests, who had been expelled from their
churches by an unjust sentence, or that you
have procured the restoration with due honour
of the remains of that innocent and holy
priest, Flavian, of holy memory, to the church,
which he ruled so well. In all which things
assuredly your glory is increased manifold, so
long as you venerate the saints according to
their deserts, and are anxious that the thorns
and weeds should be removed from the Lord's
field. But we learn as well from the account
of our deputies as from that of my brother
and fellow-bishop, Anatolius, whom you gra-
ciously recommend to me, that certain bishops
crave reconciliation for those who seem to
have given their consent to matters of heresy,
and desire catholic communion for them : to
whose request we grant effect on condition
that the boon of peace should not be vouch-
safed them till, our deputies acting in concert
with the aforesaid bishop, they are corrected,
and with their own hand condemn their evil
doings ; because our Christian religion re-
quires both that true justice should constrain
the obstinate, and love not reject the penitent.

III. He commends certain bishops and churches
to her care.

And because we know how much pious care
your Grace deigns to bestow on catholic
priests, we have ordered that you should be
informed that my brother and fellow-bishop,
Eusebius, is living with us, and sharing our
communion, whose church we commend to
you ; for he that is improperly asserted to
have been elected in his place, is said to be

VOL. XII. f

Julian, as to the clergy of Constantinople,
who clung to the holy Flavian with faithful
loyalty. On all things we have instructed your
Grace by our deputies as to what ought to be
done or arranged. Dated April 13, in the
consulship of the illustrious Adelfius (451).

LETTER LXXX.

(To Anatolius, Bishop of Constan-
tinople.)

Leo, the bishop, to Anatolius, the bishop.

I. He rejoices at Anatolius having proved him-
self orthodox.

We rejoice in the Lord and glory in the
gift of His Grace, Who has shown you a fol-
lower of Gospel-teaching as we have found
from your letter, beloved, and our brothers'
account whom we sent to Constantinople : for
now through the approved faith of the priest,
we are justifying in presuming that the whole
church committed to him will have no wrinkle
nor spot of error, as says the Apostle, " for
I have espoused you to one husband to pre-
sent you a pure virgin to Christ6." For that
virgin is the Church, the spouse of one hus-
band Christ, who suffers herself to be cor-
rupted by no error, so that through the whole
world we have one entire and pure communion
in which we now welcome you as a fellow,
beloved, and give our approval to the order
of proceedings which we have received, rati
fied, as was proper, with the necessary si-na-
tures. In order, therefore, that your spirit in
turn, beloved, might be strengthened by words
of ours, we sent back after the Easter festival
with our letters, our sons, Casterius, the Pres-
byter, and Patricius and Asclepias, the Dea-
cons, who brought your writings to us, inform-
ing you, as we said above, that we rejoice at
the peace of the church of Constantinople,
on which we have ever spent such care that
we wish it to be polluted by no heretical de-
ceit.

II. The penitents among the backsliding bi-
shops are to be received back into full com-
munion upon some plan to be settled by Ana-
tolius and Leo's delegates.

But concerning the brethren whom we learn
from your letters, and from our delegates' ac
count, to be desirous of communion with us,
on the ground of their sorrow that they did

* 2 Cor. xi. a.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

not remain constant against violence and in-
timidation, but gave their assent to another's
crime when terror had so bewildered them,
that with hasty acquiescence they ministered
to the condemnation of the catholic and guilt-
less bishop (Flavian), and to the acceptance of
the detestable heresy (of Eutyches), we approve
of that which was determined upon in the pre-
sence and with the co operation of our delegates,
viz., that thev should be content meanwhile
with the communion of their own churches,
but we wish our delegates whom we have sent
to consult with you, and come to some ar-
rangement whereby those who condemn their
ill-doings with full assurances of penitence, and
choose rather to accuse than to defend them-
selves, may be gladdened by being at peace
and in communion with us ; on condition that
what has been received against the catholic
Faith is first condemned with complete ana-
thema. For otherwise in the Church of God,
which is Christ's Body, there are neither valid
priesthoods nor true sacrifices, unless in the
reality of our nature the true High Priest
makes atonement for us, and the true Blood
of the spotless Lamb makes us clean. For
although He be set on the Father's right hand,
yet in the same flesh which He took from the
Virgin, he carries on the mystery of propitia-
tion, as says the Apostle, " Christ Jesus Who
died, yea, Who also rose, Who is on the right
hand of God, Who also mak'eth intercession
for us 7." For our kindness cannot be blamed
in any case where we receive those who give
assurance of penitence, and at whose decep-
tion we were grieved. The boon of communion
with us, therefore, must neither harshly be
withheld nor rashly granted, because as it is
fully consistent with our religion to treat the
oppressed with a Christlike charity, so it is fair
to lay the full blame upon the authors of the
disturbance.

III. The names of Dioscorus, Juvenal, and
Eustathius are not to be read aloud at the
holy altar.

Concerning the reading out of the names of
Dioscorus, Juvenal, and Eustathius 8 at the
holy altar, it beseems you, beloved, to observe
that which our friends who were there present
said ought to be done, and which is consis-
tent with the honourable memory of S. Flavian,
and will not turn the minds of the laity away

7 Rom. viii. 34.

8 Juvenal (Bishop of Jerusalem), and Eustathius (Bishop of
Berytus), had been two of the principal abettors of Dioscorus in
the Latroamum. The " reading out of their names at the altar "
alludes to the practice in the early Church of keeping registers
(called ' diptychs ') of the members (alive and dead) of the
Church from which one or two of the more prominent names
(clerical and lay) were read out at the celebration of the Holy
mysteries : cf. the modern " Bidding " prayer, S>

from you. For it is very wrong and unbecoming
that those who have harassed innocent catho-
lics with their attacks, should be mingled in-
discriminately with the names of the saints,
seeing that by not forsaking their condemned
heresy, they condemn themselves by their per-
versity : such men should either be chastised
for their unfaithfulness, or strive hard after
forgiveness.

IV. One or t7(>o instructions about individuals.

But our brother and fellow-bishop, Julian,
and the clergy who adhered to Flavian of holy
memory, rendering him faithful service, we
wish to adhere to you also beloved, that they
may know him who we are sure lives by the
merits of his faith with our God to be pre-
sent with them in you. We wish you to know
this too, beloved, that our brother and fellow-
bishop Eusebius 9, who for the Faith's sake
endured many dangers and toils, is at present
staying with us and continuing in our com-
munion ; whose church we would that your
care should protect, that nothing may be de-
stroyed in his absence, and no one may ven-
ture to injure him in anything until he come
to you bearing a letter from us. And that our
or rather all Christian people's affection for
you may be stirred up in greater measure, we
wish this that we have written to you, beloved,
to come to all men's knowledge, that they who
serve our God may give thanks for the con-
summation of the peace of the Apostolic See
with you. But on other matters and persons
you will be more fully instructed, beloved, by
the letter you will have received through our
delegates. Dated 13 April, in the consulship
of the illustrious Adelfius (451).

LETTER LXXXI.

To Bishop Julian.

(Warning him to be circumspect in receiving
the lapsed.)

LETTER LXXXII.

To Marcian Augustus.

I. After congratulating the Emperor on his
noble conduct, he depiecates random inquiries
into the tenets of the Eaith.

Although I have replied * already to your
Grace by the hand of the Constantinopolitan
clergy, yet on receiving your clemency's
mercy through the illustrious prefect of the

9 This is the Bishop of Dorylaeum in Phrygia, Eutyches
former friend, but more recently his relentless accuser of heresy.
1 i.e. Lett. LXXVIII. of the series.

LETTER LXXXV.

city, my son Tatian, I found still greater
cause for congratulation, because I have
learnt your strong eagerness for the Church's
peace. And this holy desire as in fairness
it deserves, secures for your empire the same
happy condition as you seek for religion.
For when the Spirit of God establishes har-
mony among Christian princes, a twofold
confidence is produced throughout the world,
because the progress of love and faith makes
the power of their arms in both directions
unconquerable, so that God being propi-
tiated by one confession, the falseness of
heretics and the enmity of barbarians are
simultaneously overthrown, most glorious Em-
peror. The hope, therefore, of heavenly aid
being increased through the Emperor's friend-
ship, I venture with the greater confidence to
appeal to your Grace on behalf of the mystery
of man's salvation, not to allow any one in vain
and presumptuous craftiness to inquire what
must be held, as if it were uncertain. And
although we may not in a single word dissent
from the teaching of the Gospels and Apostles,
nor entertain any opinion on the Divine Scrip-
tures different to what the blessed Apostles
and our Fathers learnt and taught, now in
these latter days unlearned and blasphemous
inquiries are set on foot, which of old the
Holy Spirit crushed by the disciples of the
Truth, so soon as the devil aroused them in
hearts which were suited to his purpose.

II. The points to be settled are only which
of the lapsed shall be restored, and on what
terms.

But it is most inopportune that through the
foolishness of a few we should be brought
once more into hazardous opinions, and to
the warfare of carnal disputes, as if the
wrangle was to be revived, and we had to
settle whether Eutyches held blasphemous

LETTER LXXX1II.

To THE SAME MARCIAN.

(Congratulating him on his benefits to the
Church, and deprecating a Synod as inoppor-
tune.)

LETTER LXXXIV.

To Pulcheria Augusta.

(Announcing the despatch of his legates
to deal with the lapsed, and asking that
Eutyches should be superseded in his monas-
tery by a catholic, and dismissed from Con-
stantinople.)

LETTER LXXXV.

To Anatolius, Bishop of
Constantinople.

Leo, the bishop, to the bishop Anatolius.

Dioscorus gave

wrom*

views, and whether

judgment, who in condemning Flavian of holy
memory struck his own death-blow, and in-
volved the simpler folk in the same destruc-
tion. And now that many, as we have
ascertained, have betaken themselves to the
means of amendment, and entreat forgiveness
for their weak hastiness, we have to determine
not the character of the Faith, but whose
prayers we shall receive, and on what terms.
And hence that most religious anxiety which
you deign to feel for the proclamation of
a Synod, shall have fully and timely put
before it all that I judge pertinent to the
needs of the case, by means of the deputies
who will with all speed, if God permit, reach
your Grace. Dated the 23rd of April in the
consulship of the illustrious Adelfius (451).

I. Anatolius with Teo's delegates is to settle the
question of the receiving back of those who
had temporarily gone astray after Eutyches.

Although I hope, beloved, you are devoted
to every good work, yet that your activity may
be rendered the more effective, it was needful
and fitting to despatch my brothers Lucentius
the bishop and Basil the presbyter, as we2
promised, to ally themselves with you, beloved,
that nothing may be done either indecisively
or lazily in matters, which concern the welfare
of the universal Church ; for as long as you
are on the spot, to whom we have entrusted
the carrying out of our will, all things can be
conducted with such moderation that the
claims of neither kindness nor justice may
be neglected, but without the accepting of
persons, the Divine judgment may be con-
sidered in everything. But that this may be
properly observed and guarded, the integrity
of the catholic Faith must fir^t of all be pre-
served, and. because in all cases " narrow "
and steep "is the way that leadeth unto life 3,"
there must be no deviation from its track,
either to the right hand or to the left. And
because the evangelical and Apostolic Faith
has to combat all errors, on the one side
casting down Nestorius, on the other crushing
Eutyches and his accomplices, remember the
need of observing this rule, that all those who
in that synod \ which cannot, and does not
deserve to have the name of Synod, and in
which Dioscorus displayed his bad feeling,
and Juvenal s his ignorance, grieve as we learn
from your account, beloved, that they were

2 Viz., in Letter LXXX. , chap. iv. : see also chap. iii.

3 S. Matt. vii. 14.

4 Sc. the so-called Latrocinium.

5 See n. 8 to Letter LXXX., chap. iii.

F 2

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

conquered by fear, and being overcome with
tenor, were able to be forced to assent to
that iniquitous judgment, and who now desire
to obtain catholic communion, are to receive
the peace of the brethren after due assurance
of repentance, on condition that in no doubtful
terms they anathematize, execrate and con-
demn Eutyches and his dogma and his ad-
herents.

II. The case of the more serious offenders must
be reserved for the present.
But concerning those who have sinned
more gravely in this matter, and claimed
for themselves a higher place in the same
unhappy synod, in order to irritate the simple
minds of their lowlier brethren by their per-
nicious arrogance, if they return to their right
mind, and ceasing to defend their action, turn
themselves to the condemnation of their par-
ticular error, if these men give such assurance
of penitence as shall seem indisputable, let
their case be reserved for the maturer de-
liberations of the Apostolic See, that when all
things have been sifted and weighed, the right
conclusion may be arrived at about their real
actions. And in the Church over which the
Lord has willed you to rule, let none such
as we have already written 6 have their names
read at the altar until the course of events
shows what ought to be determined concern-
ing them.

III. Anaiolius is requested to co-operate loyally
with Leo's delegates.

But concerning the address ? presented to
us by your clergy, beloved, there is no need
to put my sentiments into a letter : it is suffi-
cient to entrust all to my delegates, whose
words shall carefully instruct you on every
point. And so, dearest brother, do your en-
deavour with these brethren whom we have
chosen as suitable agents in so great a matter
faithfully and effectually to carry out what
is agreeable to the Church of God : especially
as the very nature of the case, and the promise
of Divine aid incite you, and our most gracious
princes show such holy faith, such religious
devotion, that we find in them not only the
general sympathy of Cnristians, but even
that of the priesthood. Who assuredly in
accordance with that piety, whereby they boast
themselves to be servants of God, will receive
all your suggestions for the benefit of the
catholic Faith in a worthy spirit, so that by
their aid also the peace of Christendom can
be restored and wicked error destroyed. And

6 Viz.. in Letter LXXX.. chap, iii., where see note-

7 Cptnmonitorium. Nothing iiirther serins known of this.

if on any points more advice is needed,
let word be quickly sent to us, that after
investigating the nature of the case, we may
carefully prescribe the rightful measures.
Dated 9th of June in the consulship of the
illustrious Adelfius (45 1).

LETTER LXXXVI.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.
(Begging him for friendship's and the
Church's sake to assist his legates in quelling
the remnants of heresy.)

LETTER LXXXVII.

To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople.

. (Commending to him two presbyters, Basil

and John, who being accused of heresy had

come to Rome, and quite convinced Leo

of their orthodoxy.)

LETTER LXXXVIII.
To Paschasinus, Bishop of Lilyb^eum.
Leo, the bishop, to Paschasinus, bishop of
Lilybaeum.

I. He sends a copy of the Tome and still further
explains the heterodoxy of Eutyches.
Although I doubt not all the sources of
scandal are fully known to you, broiher,
which have arisen in the churches of the
East about the Incarnation of our Lord
Jesus Christ, yet, lest anything might have
chanced to escape your care, I have de-
spatched for your attentive perusal and study
our letter8, which deals with this matter in
the fullest way, which we sent to Flavian
of holy memory, and which the universal
Church has accepted ; in order that, under-
standing how completely this whole blasphe-
mous error has with God's aid been destroyed,
you yourself also in your love towards God
may show the same spirit, and know that they
are utterly to be abhorred, who, following the
blasphemy and madness of Eutyches, have
dared to say there are not two natures,
i.e. perfect Godhead and perfect manhood,
in our Lord, the only-begotten Son of God,
who took upon Himself to restore mankind ;
and think they can deceive our wariness by
saying they believe the one nature of the
Word to be Incarnate, whereas the Word of
God in the Godhead of the Father, and of
Himself, and of the Holy Spirit has indeed one
nature ; but when He took on Him the reality
of our flesh, our nature also was united to His
unchangeable substance: for even Incarnation
could not be spoken of, unless the Word took
on Him the flesh. And this taking on of

8 So. Letter XXVIII. (Tome).

LETTER XCII.

flesh forms so complete a union, that not
only in the blessed Virgin's child-bearing, but
also in her conception, no division must be
imagined between the Godhead and the life-
endowed flesh 9, since in the unity of person
the Godhead and the manhood came together
both in the conception and in the child-
bearing of the Virgin.

II. Eutyches might have been warned by the

fate of former heretics.

A like blasphemy, therefore, is to be ab-
horred in Eutyches, as was once condemned
and overthrown by the Fathers in former
heretics : and their example ought to have
benefited this foolish fellow, in putting him on
his guard against that which he could not
grasp by his own sense, lest he should render
void the peerless mystery of our salvation by
denying the reality of human flesh in our
Lord Jesus Christ. For, if there is not in
Him true and perfect human nature, there is
no taking of us upon Him, and the whole of
our belief and teaching according to his
heresy is emptiness and lying. But because
the Truth does not lie and the Godhead is not
passible, there abides in God the Word both
substances in one Person, and the Church
confesses her Saviour in such a way as to
acknowledge Him both impassible in God-
head and passible in flesh, as says the Apostle,
"although He was crucified through (our)
weakness, yet He lives by the power of
God1."

III. He sends quotations from the Fathers, and
announces that the churches of the East have
accepted the Tome.

And in order that you may be the fuller
instructed in all things, beloved, I have sent
you certain quotations from our holy Fathers,
that you may clearly gather what they felt and
what they preached to the churches about the
mystery of the Lord's Incarnation, which
quotations our deputies produced at Constan-
tinople also together with our epistle. And
you must understand that the whole church
of Constantinople, with all the monasteries and
many bishops, have given their assent to it,
and by their subscription have anathematized
Nestorius and Eutyches with their dogmas.
You must also understand that I have recently
received the bishop of Constantinople's letter,
which states that the bishop of Antioch has
sent instructions to all the bishops throughout
his provinces, and gained their assent to my
epistle, and their condemnation of Nestorius
and Eutvches in like manner.

IV. He asks him to settle the discrepancy be-
tween the Alexandrine and the Roman cal-
culation of Easter for 455, by consulting the
proper authority.

This also /we think necessary to enjoin upon
your care that you should diligently inquire in
those quarters where you are sure of informa-
tion concerning that point in the reckoning'
of Easter, which we have found in the table 2
of Theophilus, and which greatly exercises us,
and that you should discuss with those who
are learned in such calculations, as to the
date, when the day of the Lord's resurrection
should be held four years hence. For, where-
as the next Easter is to be held by God's
goodness on M^rch 23rd, the year after on
April 1 2th, the year after that on April 4th,
Theophilus of holy memory has fixed April
24th to be observed in 455, which we find
to be quite contrary to the rule of the Church ;
but in our Easter cycles3 as you know very
well, Easter that year is set down to be kept
on April 17th. And therefore, that all our
doubts may be removed, we beg you carefully
to discuss this point with the best authorities,
that for the future we may avoid this kind of
mistake. Dated June 24th in the consulship
of the illustrious Adelfius (451).

LETTER LXXXIX.

To Marcian Augustus.

(Appointing Paschasinus the bishop and
Boniface a presbyter, and Julian the bishop,
his representatives at the Synod, as the Em-
peror is determined it should be held at once.)

LETTER XC.

To Marcian Augustus.

(Assenting perforce to the meeting of the
Synod, but begging him to see that the Faith
be not discussed as doubtful.)

LETTER XCI.
To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople.
(Telling him that he has appointed Pascha-
sinus, Boniface, and Julian, bishop of Cos,
to represent him at the Synod.)

LETTER XCII.
To Julian, Bishop of Cos,
(Asking him to act as one of his repre-
sentatives at the Synod.)

9 Caro animata.

» a Cor. xiii. 4.

a His Laterculum Paschale is meant, in which he calculated
Easter for 100 years from 375. A similar dispute had occurred
in 444, in which we have S.Cyril's and Paschasinus' Letters (II.
and III. of the series) to Leo, but not Leo's answers.

3 The Latin Easter cycles were calculated for 84 years.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

LETTER XCIII.
To the Synod of Chalcedon.

Leo, the bishop of the city of Rome, to
the holy Synod, assembled at Nicaea4.

I. He excuses his absence from the Synod, and

introduces his representatives.

I had indeed prayed, dearly beloved, on
behalf of my dear colleagues that all the
Lord's priests would persist in united de-
votion to the catholic Faith, and that no one
would be misled by favour or fear of secular
powers into departure from the way of Truth \
but because many things often occur to pro-
duce penitence and God's mercy transcends
the faults of delinquents, and vengeance is
postponed in order that reformation may have
place, we must make much of our most merci-
ful prince's piously intentioned Council, in
which he has desired your holy brotherhood
to assemble for the purpose of destroying the
snares of the devil and restoring the peace of
the Church, so far respecting the rights and
dignity of the most blessed Apostle Peter
as to invite us too by letter to vouchsafe our
presence at your venerable Synod. That in-
deed is not permitted either by the needs of
the times or by any precedent. Yet in these
brethren, that is Paschasinus and Lucentius,
bishops, Boniface and Basil, presbyters, who
have been deputed by the Apostolic See,
let your brotherhood reckon that I am pre-
siding s at the Synod ; for my presence is not
withdrawn from you, who am now represented
Dy my vicars, and have this long time been
really with you in the proclaiming of the
catholic Faith : so that you who cannot help
knowing what we believe in accordance with
ancient tradition, cannot doubt what we desire.

II. He entreats them to re- state the Faith as

laid doivn in the Tome.

Wherefore, brethren most dear, let all at-
tempts at impugning the Divinely-inspired
Faith be entirely put down, and the vain un-
belief of heretics be laid to rest : and let not
that be defended which may not be believed :
since in accordance with the authoritative
statements of the Gospel, in accordance with
the utterances of the prophets, and the teach-
ing of the Apostles, with the greatest fulness
and clearness in the letter which we sent to

4 In accordance with instructions, the bishops, to the number
of 529 first met at Nicaea, in Bithynia, the scene of the famous
First General Council : but the Emperor Marcian was afraid to
go so far from Constantinople, and so they were summoned to
Chalcedon, which was much nearer, on the eastern shore of the
Bosporus. There the Council opened on Oct. 8, 451.

5 The right of presiding, which he here virtually claims for
his delegates, seems actually to have been accorded to them by
the Council.

bishop Flavian of happy memory, it has been
laid down what is the loyal and pure confes-
sion upon the mystery of our Lord Jesus
Christ's Incarnation.

III. The ejeied bishops must be restored, and
the Nestorian canons retain their force.

But because we know full well that through
evil jealousies the state of many churches has
been disturbed, and a large number of bishops
have been driven from their sees for not re-
ceiving the heresy and conveyed into exile,
while others have been put into their places
though yet alive, to these wounds first of all
must the healing of justice be applied, nor
must any one be deprived of his own posses-
sion that some one else may enjoy it : for if,
as we desire, all forsake their error, no one
need lose his present rank, and those who
have laboured for the Faith ought to have
their rights restored with every privilege.
Let the decrees specially directed against Nes-
torius of the former Synod of Ephesus, at which
bishop Cyril of holy memory presided, still
retain their force, lest the heresy then con-
demned flatter itself in aught because Euty-
ches is visited with condign execration. For
the purity of the Faith and doctrine which we
proclaim in the same spirit as our holy Fathers,
equally condemns and impugns the Nestorian
and the Eutychian misbelief with its sup-
porters. Farewell in the Lord, brethren most
dear. Dated 26th s* of June, in the consulship
of the illustrious Adelfius (,451).

LETTER XCIV.
To Marcian Augustus.

(Commending his legates to him and pray-
ing for the full success of the Synod, if it adhere
to the Faith once delivered to the saints.)

LETTER XCV.

To Pulcheria Augusta by the hand of
Theoctistus the Magistrian6.

Leo, the bishop to Pulcheria Augusta.

I. He informs the Empress that he has loyally
recognized the Council ordered by her, and
sent representatives with letters to it.

Your clemency's religious care which you
unceasingly bestow on the catholic Faith,
I recognize in everything, and give God thanks
at seeing you take such interest in the uni-
versal Church, that I can confidently suggest
what I think agreeable to justice and kindness,

S» The Ball, think the date should be the 27th.

6 The Magistriani were what would now be called King's
Messengers: another name for them was agentcs in rebus, and
they were under the direction of the Imperial Magister Offici'
orum.

LETTER XCVII.

and so what thus far your pious zeal through the
mercy of Christ has irreproachably accomplished,
may the more speedily be brought to an issue
which we shall be thankful for, O most noble
Augusta. Your clemency's command, there-
fore, that a Synod should be held at Nicaea?, and
your gently expressed refusal of my request
that it should be held in Italy, so that all the
bishops in our parts might be summoned and
assemble, if the state of affairs had permitted
them, I have received in a spirit so far re-
moved from scorn as to nominate two of my
fellow-bishops and fellow-presbyters respec-
tively to represent me, sending also to the
venerable synod an appropriate missive from
which the brotherhood therein assembled
might learn the standard necessary to be
maintained in their decision, lest any rashness
should do detriment either to the rules of the
Faith, or to the provisions of the canons, or
to the remedies required by the spirit of loving
kindness.

II. In the settlement of this matter that modera-
tion must be observed which ivas entirety
absent at Ephesus.

For, as I have very often stated in letters
from the beginning of this matter, I have de-
sired that such moderation should be observed
in the midst of discordant views and carnal
jealousies that, whilst nothing should be al-
lowed to be wrested from or added to the
purity of the Faith, yet the remedy of pardon
should be granted to those who return to
unity and peace. Because the works of the
devil are then more effectually destroyed when
men's hearts are recalled to the love of God
and their neighbours. But how contrary to
my warnings and entreaties were their actions
then, it is a long story to explain, nor is their
need to put down in the pages of a letter
all that was allowed to be perpetrated in that
meeting, not of judges but of robbers, at
Ephesus ; where the chief men of the synod
spared neither those brethren who opposed
them nor those who assented to them, seeing
that for the breaking down of the catholic
Faith and the strengthening of execrable
heresy, they stripped some of their rightful
rank and tainted others with complicity in
guilt ; and surely their cruelty was worse to
those whom by persuasion they divorced from
innocence, than to those whom by persecution
they made blessed confessors.

III. Those who recant their error must be

treated with forbearance.

And yet because such men have harmed

7 See n. 4 on Letter XCIII., i.

themselves most by their wrong-doing, and
because the greater the wounds, the more
careful must be the application of the remedy,
I have never in any letter maintained that
pardon must be withheld even from them if
they came to their right mind. And although
we unchangeably abhor their heresy, which is
the greatest enemy of Christian religion, yet
the men themselves, if they without any doubt
amend their ways and clear themselves by full
assurances of repentance, we do not judge to
be outcasts from the unspeakable mercy of
God : but rather we lament with those that
lament, " we weep with those that weep 7a," and
obey the requirements of justice in deposing
without neglecting the remedies of loving-
kindness : and this, as your piety knows, is
not a mere word-promise, but is also borne
out by our actions, inasmuch as nearly all who
had been either misled or forced into assent-
ing to the presiding bishops, by rescinding
what they had decreed and by condemning what
they had written, have obtained complete ac-
quittal from guilt and the boon of Apostolic
peace.

IV. Even the authors of the mischief may find
room for forgiveness by repentance.

If, therefore, your clemency deigns to re-
flect upon my motives, it will be satisfied that
I have acted throughout with the design of
bringing about the abolition of the heresy
without the loss of one soul ; and that in the
case of the authors of these cruel disturbances
I have modified my practice somewhat in
order that their slow minds might be aroused
by some feelings of compunction to ask for
lenient treatment. For although since their
decision, which is no less blasphemous than
unjust, they cannot be held in such honour
by the catholic brotherhood as they once
were, yet they still retain their sees and their
rank as bishops, with the prospect either of
receiving the peace of the whole Church, after
true and necessary signs of repentance or, if
(which God forbid) they persist in their heresy,
of reaping the reward of their misbelief. Dated
20th of July, in the consulship of the illustrious
Adelfius (451).

LETTER XCVI.

To Ravennius, Bishop of Arles.

(Requesting him to keep Easter on March

23 in 45 20

LETTER XCVII.

From Eusebius, Bishop of Milan, to Leo.

(Informing him that the Tome has been

7» Rom. xii. 15.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

approved by the Synod of Milan, and con-
taining the subscriptions of the bishops there
assembled.)

LETTER XCVIII.
From the Synod of Chalcedon to Leo.
The great and holy and universal Synod,
which by the grace of God and the sanction
of our most pious and Christ-loving Em-
perors has been gathered together in the
metropolis of Chalcedon in the province of
Bithynia, to the most holy and blessed arch-
bishop of Rome, Leo.

I. They congratulate Leo on taking the fore-
most part in maintaining the Faith.

" Our mouth was filled with joy and our
tongue with exultation 8." This prophecy
grace has fitly appropriated to us for whom
the security of religion is ensured. For what
is a greater incentive to cheerfulness than the
Faith ? what better inducement to exultation
than the Divine knowledge which the Saviour
Himself gave us from above for salvation,
saying, "go ye and make disciples of all the
nations, baptizing them into the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,
teaching them to observe all things that I have
enjoined you 9." And this golden chain lead-
ing down from the Author of the command to
us, you yourself have stedfastly preserved,
being set as the mouthpiece unto all of the
blessed Peter, and imparling the blessedness
of his Faith unto all Whence we too, wisely
taking you as our guide in all that is good,
have shown to the sons of the Church their
inheritance of Truth, not giving our instruction
each singly and in secret, but making known
our confession of the Faith in conceit, with
one consent and agreement And we were
all delighted, revelling, as at an imperial
banquet, in the spiritual food, which Christ
supplied to us through your letter : and we
seemed to see the Heavenly Bridegroom
actually present with us. For if " where two
or three are gathered together in His name,"
He has said that "there He is in the midst
of them y must He not have been much more
particularly present with 520 priests, who pre-
ferred the spread of knowledge concerning Him
to their country and their ease? Of whom you
were chief, as the head to the members, show-
ing your goodwill2 in the person of those who
represented you ; whilst our religious Emperors
presided to the furtherance of due order, in-
viting us to restore the doctrinal fabric of the

9 S. Matt, xxviii. 19, 20.

8 Ps. cxxvi. 2.

1 Ibid, xviii. 20.

B ei/rotav : others read evfiovKCav (good advice).

Church, even as Zerubbabel invited Joshua to
rebuild Jerusalem 2".

IF They detail Dioscorus' wicked acts.
And the adversary would have been like
a wild beast outside the fold, roaring to him-
self and unable to seize any one, had not the
late bishop of Alexandria thrown himself for
a prey to him, who, though he had done many
terrible things before, eclipsed the former by
the latter deeds ; for contrary to all the in-
junctions of the canons, he deposed that
blessed shepherd of the saints at Constantino-
ple, Flavian, who displayed such Apostolic
faith, and the most pious bishop Eusebius, and
acquitted by his terror-won votes Eutyches,
who had been condemned for heresy, ami
restored to him the dignity which your holi-
ness had taken away from him as unwoithy
of it, and like the strangest of wild beasts,
falling upon the vine which he found in the
finest condition, He uprooted it and brought
in that which had been cast away as unfruitful,
and those who acted like true shepherds he
cut off, and set over the flocks those who had
shown themselves wolves : and besides all this
he stretched forth his fury even against him
who had been charged with the custody of
the vine by the Saviour, we mean of course
your holiness, and purposed excommunication
against one who had at heart the unifying
of the Church. And instead of showing
penitence for this, instead of begging mercy
with tears, he exulted as if over virtuous
actions, rejecting your holiness' letter and
resisting all the dogmas of the Truth.

III. We have deposed Eutyches, treati?ig him
as mercifully as we could.
And we ought to have left him in the posi-
tion where he had placed himself: but. since
we profess the teaching of the Saviour " who
wishes all men to be saved and to come to
a knowledge of the Truth 3," as a fact we took
pains to carry out this merciful policy towards
him, and called him in brotherly fashion to
judgment, not as if trying to cut him off but
affording him room for defence and healing ;
and we prayed that he might be victorious
over the many charges they had brought against
him, in order that we might conclude our meet-
ing in peace and happiness and Satan might
gain no advantage over us. But he, being
absolutely convicted by his own conscience *,
by shirking the trial gave countenance to the
accusations and rejected the three lawful

sa The reference is to Ezra iii. 9.

3 i Tim. ii. 4.

4 kv eavriZ aKparov tov o-vvet&oros t\u>v rov (Keyxov. There
seems, however, some grounds, but no actual necessity for the
reading sfyypa<J>oi/ = written (instead of aKparov) adopted by the
Ball.

LETTER XCIX.

summonses he received. In consequence of
which, we ratified with such moderation as
we could the vote which he had passed
against himself by his blunders, stripping the
wolf of his shepherd's skin, which he had long
been convicted of wearing for a pretence,
Thereupon our troubles ceased and straight-
way a time of welcome happiness set in : and
having pulled up one tare, we filled the whole
world to our delight with pure grain : and
having received, as it were, full power to root
up and to plant, we limited the up-rooting
to one and carefully plant a crop of good fruit.
For it was God who worked, and the trium-
phant Euphemia who crowned the meeting as
for a bridal481, and who, taking our definition
of the Faith as her own confession, presented
it to her Bridegroom by our most religious
Emperor and Christ-loving Empress, ap-
peasing all the tumult of opponents and
establishing our confession of the Truth as
acceptable to Him, and with hand and tongue
setting her seal s to the votes of us ail in
proclamation thereof. These are the things
we have done, with you present in the spirit
and known to approve of us as brethren, and
all but visible to us through the wisdom of
your representatives.

IV. They announce their decision that Con-
stantinople should take precedence next to
J?ome, and ask Leo's consent to it.

And we further inform you that we have
decided on other things also for the good
management and stability of church matters,
being persuaded that your holiness will accept
and ratify them, when \ou are told. The
long prevailing custom, which the holy Church
of God at Constantinople had of ordaining
metropolitans for the provinces of Asia, Pontus
and Thrace, we have now ratified by the votes
of the Synod, not so much by way of con-
ferring a privilege on the See of Constantinople
as to provide for the good government of
those cities, because of the frequent disorders
that arise on the death of their bishops, both
clergy and laity being then without a leader
and disturbing church order. And this has
not escaped your holiness, particularly in the
case of Ephesus, which has often caused you
annoyance6. We have ratified also the canon
of the 150 holy Fathers who met at Constanti-
nople in the time of the great Theodosius of

<* t\ tov (TuAAoyoi/ toj i<t>/it<£u>i>i (lit. bride-chamber) txTc^avova-a
KaXAiViKO? Ei'^/xia ; this obscure passage is to a certain extent
elucidated by Letter CI., chap. iii. {q.v.). The martyr, Euphemia,
seems to have been a sort of pa'ron saint of Chalcedon.

5 eni(r<l>pa.yC<ra<ro.; others eiw{/r}<t>io-a<Ta., which seems meaning-
less here.

6 The reference (ace. to Ball.) is to the dispute about the
bishopric between Bassian and Stephen, in which Leo interfered,
though the letter is not extant.

holy memory, which ordains that after your
most holy and Apostolic See, the See of Con-
stantinople shall take precedence, being placed
second : for we are persuaded that with your
usual care for others you have often extended
that Apostolic prestige which belongs to you,
to the church in Constantinople also, by virtue
of your great disinterestedness in sharing all
your own good things with your spiritual kins-
folk. Accordingly vouchsafe most holy and
blessed father to accept as your own wish,
and as conducing to good government the
things which we have resolved on for the
removal of al confusion and the confirmation
of church order. For your holiness' delegates,
the most pious bishops Paschasinus and
Lucentius, and with them the right godly
presbyter Boniface, attempted vehemently to
resist these decisions, from a strong desire
that this good work also should start from
your foresight, in order that the establishment
of good order as well as of the Faith should
be put to your account. For we duly regard-
ing our most devout and Christ loving
Emperors, who delight therein, and the illus-
trious senate and, so to say, the whole im-
perial city, considered it opportune to use the
meeting of this ecumenical Synod for the rati-
fication of your honour, and confidently
corroborated this decision as if it were initiated
by you with your customary fostering zeal,
knowing that every success of the children
rebounds to the parent's glory. Accordingly,
we entreat you, honour our decision by your
assent, and as we have yielded to the head
our agreement on things honourable, so may
the head also fulfil for the children what is
fitting. For thus will our pious Emperors be
treated with due regard, who have ratified your
holiness' judgment as law, and the See of Con-
stantinople will receive its recompense for hav-
ing always displayed such loyalty on matters
of religion towards you, and for having so
zealously linked itself to you in full agree-
ment. But that you may know that we have
done nothing for favour or in hatred, but as
being guided by the Divine Will, we have
made known to you the whole scope of our
proceedings to strengthen our position and to
ratify and establish what we have done ?.

LETTER XCIX.

From Ravennius and other Gallic
Bishops.

(Announcing that the Tome has been ac-
cepted in Gaul also as a definitive statement
of the Faith, with the bishops' subscriptions.)

7 One of the Latin versions adds the names and titles of the
subscribing bishops here. For the subject matter of Chap, iv., sea
Introduction, p. viii.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

LETTER C.

From the Emperor Marctan.

(Dealing much more briefly with the same
subjects as Letter XCVIII. above.)

LETTER CI.

From Anatoi.ius, Bishop of Con-
stantinople, to Leo.

(Dealing with much the same subjects as
Letter XCVIII. from Anatolius' own stand-
point : Chap. iii. is translated in exteiiso as
illustrating XCVIII., chap, iii.)

III. He describes the circumstances under which
the doctrine of the Incarnation had been formu-
lated by the Synod.

But since after passing judgment upon him
we had to come to an agreement with prayers
and tears upon a definition of the right Faith ;
for that was the chief reason for the Emperor's
summoning the holy Synod, at which your
holiness was present in the spirit with us, and
wrought with us by the GoD-fearing men who
were sent from you ; we, having the protection
of the most holy and beautiful martyr Eu-
phemia, have all given ourselves to this impor-
tant matter with all deliberateness. And as
the occasion demanded that all the assembled
holy bishops should publish a unanimous de
cision for clearness and for an explicit state-
ment of the Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Lord God who is found and revealed even
to those who seek Him not, yes, even to those
who ask not for Him8, in spite of some at-
tempts to resist at first, nevertheless showed us
His Truth, and ordained that it should be
written down and proclaimed by all unani-
mously and without gainsaying, which thus
confirmed the souls of the strong, and invited
into the way of Truth all who were swerving
therefrom. And, indeed, after unanimously
setting our names to this document, we who
have assembled in this ecumenical Synod in
the name of the Faith of the same most holy
and triumphant martyr, Euphemin, and of our
most religious and Christ-loving Emperor Mar-
cian, and our most religious and in all things
most faithful daughter the Empress Pulcheria
Augusta, with prayer and joy and happiness,
having laid on the holy altar the definition
written in accordance with your holy epistle
for the confirmation of our Fathers' Faith, pre-
sented it to their pious care ; for thus they
had asked to receive it, and, having received
it, they glorified with us their Master Christ,
who had driven away all the mist of heresy

8 Cf. Is. lx\

and had graciously made clear the word of
Truth. And in this way was simultaneously
established the peace of the Church and the
agreement of the priests concerning the pure
Faith by the Saviour's mercy.

LETTER CII.
To the Gallic Bishops.

(Thanking them for their letter (viz. XCIX.)
to him, and announcing the result of the Synod
of Chalcedon.)

LETTER CIH.
To the Gallic Bishops.

(Written later : enclosing a copy of the sen-
tence against Eutyches and Dioscorus.)

LETTER CIV.

(To Marcian Augustus, about the pre-
sumption of Anatolius, by the hand of Lu-
cian the bishop and Basil the deacon.)

Leo, the bishop, to Marcian Augustus.

I. He congratulates the Emperor on his share in
the triumph of the catholic Faith.

By the great bounty of God's mercy the joys
of the whole catholic Church were multiplied
when through your clemency's holy and glo-
rious zeal the most pestilential error was
abolished among us ; so that our labours the
more speedily reached their desired end, be-
cause your GoD-serving Majesty had so faith-
fully and powerfully assisted them. For al-
though the liberty of the Gospel had to be
defended against certain dissentients in the
power of the Holy Ghost, and through the
instrumentality of the Apostolic See, yet God's
grace has shown itself more manifestly (than
we could have hoped) by vouchsafing to the
world that in the victory of the Truth only
the authors of the violation of the Faith should
perish 9 and the Church restored to her sound-
ness. Accordingly the war which the enemy of
our peace had stirred up, was so happily ended,
the Lord's right hand fighting for us, that
when Christ triumphed all His priests shared
in the one victory, and when the light of Truth
shone forth, only the shades of error, with its
champions, were dispelled. For as in believ-
ing the Lord's own resurrection, with a view
to strengthen the beginnings of Faith, con-
fidence was much increased by the fact that
certain Apostles doubted of the bodily reality
of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by examining
the prints of the nails and the wound of the

9 Perish spiritually he means, as the sequel shows, for at
least one great and good man on the catholic side, Flavian
perished corporeally.

LETTER CIV.

spear with sight and touch removed the doubts
of all by doubting; so now, too, while the
misbelief of some is refuted, the hearts of all
hesitaters are strengthened, and that which
caused blindness to some few avails for the
enlightenment of the whole body. In which
work your clemency duly and rightly rejoices,
having faithfully and properly provided that
the devil's snares should do no hurt to the
Eastern churches, but that to propitiate God
everywhere more acceptable holocausts should
be offered ; seeing that through the mediator
between God and man, the Man Christ Jesus,
one and the self-same creed is held by people,
priests, and princes, O most glorious son
and most clement Augustus.

II. Considering all the circumstances Anatolius
might have been expected to show more
modesty.

But now that these things, about which so
great a concourse of priests assembled, have
been brought to a good and desirable con-
clusion, I am surprised and grieved that the
peace of the universal Church which had been
divinely restored is again being disturbed by
a spirit of self-seeking. For although my
brother Anatolius seems necessarily to have
consulted his own interest in forsaking the error
of those who ordained him, and with salutar)
change of mind accepting the catholic Faith,
yet he ought to have taken care not to mar by
any depravity of desire that which he is known
to have obtained through your means r. For
we, having regard to your faith and inter-
vention, though his antecedents were suspicious
on account of those who consecrated him 2,
wished to be kind rather than just towards
him, that by the use of healing measures we
might assuage all disturbances which through
the operations of the devil had been excited ;
and this ought to have made him modest rather
than the opposite. For even if he had been
lawfully and regularly ordained for conspicuous
merit, and by the wisest selection yet without
respect to the" canons of the Fathers, the or-
dinances of the Holy Ghost, and the prece-
dents of antiquity, no votes could have availed
in his favour. 1 speak before a Christian and
a truly religious, truly orthodox prince (when
I say that) Anatolius the bishop detracts
greatly from his proper merits in desiring
undue aggrandizement.

III. The City of Constantinople, royal though
it be, can never be raised to Apostolic rank.

Let the city of Constantinople have, as we

1 Viz., the See of Constantinople.
* Dioscorus in particular.

desire, its high rank, and under the protection
of God's right hand, long enjoy your clemency's
rule. Yet things secular stand on a different
basis from things divine : and there can be no
sure building save on that rock which the Lord
has laid for a foundation. He that covets
what is not his due, loses what is his own.
Let it be enough for Anatolius that by the aid
of your piety and by my favour and approval he
has obtained the bishopric of so great a city.
Let him not disdain a city which is royal,
though he cannot make it an Apostolic See 3 •
and let him on no account hope that he can
rise by doing injury to others. For the privi-
leges of the churches determined by the canons
of the holy Fathers, and fixed by the decrees
of the Nicene Synod, cannot be overthrown by
any unscrupulous act, nor disturbed by any
innovation. And in the faithful execution of
this task by the aid of Christ I am bound to
display an unflinching devotion ; for it is a
charge entrusted to me, and it tends to my
condemnation if the rules sanctioned by the
Fathers and drawn up under the guidance of
God's Spirit at the Synod of Nicaea for the
government of the whole Church are violated
with my connivance (which God forbid), and if
the wishes of a single brother have more
weight with me than the common good of the
Lord's whole house.

IV. He asks the Emperor to express his dis-
approval of Anatolius'1 self-seeking spirit.

And therefore knowing that your glorious
clemency is anxious for the peace of the
Church and extends its protection and ap-
proval to those measures which conduce to
pacific unity, I pray and beseech you with
earnest entreaty to refuse all sanction and pro-
tection to these unscrupulous attempts against
Christian unity and peace, and put a salutary
check upon my brother Anatolius' desires,
which will only injure himself, if he persists :
that he may not desire things which are op-
posed to your glory and the needs of the times,
and wish to be greater than his predecessors,
and that it may be free for him to be
as pre-eminent as he can in virtues,
in which he will be partaker only if he
prefer to be adorned with love rather than
puffed up with ambition. The conception of
this unwarrantable wish he ought indeed never
to have received within the secret of his heart,
but when my brothers and fellow-bishops who
were there to represent me withstood him, he
might at least have desisted from his unlawfu,

3 The chief Apostolicce secies were Rome and Antioch, accord-
ing to tradition founded by S. Peter, and Alexandria founded by
his disciple S. Mark, and the See of Constantinople ould not
exercise jurisdiction over them.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

self-seeking at their wholesome opposition.
For both your gracious Majesty and his own
letter affirm that the legates of the Apostolic
See opposed him as they ought with the most
justifiable resistance, so that his presumption
was the less excusable in that not even when
rebuked did it restrain itself.

V. And to try to bring him to a right mind.

And hence, because it becomes your glorious
faith that, as heresy was overthrown, God act-
ing through you, so now all self-seeking should
be defeated, do that which beseems both
your Christian and your kingly goodness, so
that the said bishop may obey the Fathers,
farther the cause of peace, and not think he
had any right to ordain a bishop * for the
Church of Antioch, as he presumed to do with-
out any precedent and contrary to the pro-
visions of the canons : an act which from
a longing to re-establish the Faith and in the
interests of peace we have determined not to
cancel. Let him abstain therefore from doing
despite to the rules of the Church and shun
unlawful excesses, lest in attempting things un-
favourable to peace he cut himself off from
the universal Church. I had much liefer love
him for acting blamelessly than find him per-
sist in this presumptuous frame of mind which
may separate him from us all. My brother
and fellow-bishop, Lucian, who with my son,
Basil the deacon, brought your clemency's
letter to me, has fulfilled the duties he under-
took as legate with all devotion : for he must
not be reckoned to have failed in his mission,
the course of events having rather failed him.
Dated the 22nd of May in the consulship of
the illustrious Herculanus (452).

LETTER CV.

(To Pui.cheria Augusta about the

SELF-SKEKING OF ANATOLIUS.)

Leo the bishop to Pulcheria Augusta.

I. He congratutates the Empress on the triumfh
of the Faith, but regrets the introduction oj
a new controversy into the Church.

We rejoice ineffably with your Grace that
the catholic Faith has been defended against
heretics and peace restored to the whole
Church through your clemency's holy and
GoD-pleasing zeal : giving thanks to the
Merciful and Almighty God that He has
suffered none save those who loved darkness
rather than light to be defrauded of the gospel-
truth : so that by the removal of the mists of
error the purest light might arise in the hearts
of all, and that darkness-loving foe might not

triumph over certain weak souls, whom not only
those who stood unhurt but also those whom he
had made to totter have overcome, and that by
the abolition of error the true Faith might
reign throughout the world, and " every tongue
might confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is
in the glory of God the Fathers." But when
the whole world had been confirmed in the
unity of the Gospel, and the hearts of all
priests had been guided into the same belief,
it had been better that besides those matters
for which the holy Synod was assembled, and
which were brought to a satisfactory agree-
ment through your Grace's zeal, nothing should
be introduced to counteract so great an ad-
vantage, and that a council of bishops should
not be made an occasion for the inopportune
advancing of an illegitimate desire.

II. The Nicene canons are. unalterable and bind-
ing utiivcrsal/y.

For my brother and fellow-bishop Anatolius
not sufficiently considering your Grace's kind-
ness and the favour of my assent, whereby he
pained the priesthood of the church of Con-
stantinople, instead of rejoicing at what he
has gained, has been inflamed with undue
desires beyond the measure of his rank, be-
lieving that his intemperate self-seeking could
be advanced by the assertion that certain per-
sons had signified their assent thereto by an
extorted signature : notwithstanding that my
brethren and fellow-bishops, who represented
me, faithfully and laudably expressed their dis-
sent from these attempts which are doomed to
speedy failure. For no one may venture upon
anything in opposition to the enactments of
the Fathers' canons which many long years
a^o in the city of Nicoea were founded upon
the decrees of the Spirit, so that any one
who wishes to pass any different decree injures
himself rather than impairs them. And if all
pontiffs will but keep them inviolate as they
should, there will be perfect peace and com-
plete harmony through all the churches : there
will be no disagreements about rank, no dis-
putes about ordinations, no controversies about
privileges, no strifes about taking that which
is another's ; but by the fair law of love a
reasonable order will be kept both in conduct
and in office, and he will be truly great who
is found free from all self-seeking, as the Lord
says, " Whosoever will become greater among
you, let him be your minister, and whosoever
will be first among you shall be your slave ; ;
even as the Son of Man came not to be min-
istered unto but to minister6." And yet these
precepts were at the time given to men who

4 One Maximus by name.

5 Phil. i. 11.

« S. Matt. xx. 26— 28.

LETTER CVI.

wished to rise from a mean estate and to pass
from the lowest to the highest things ; but
what more does the ruler of the church of
Constantinople covet than he has gained ? or
what will satisfy him, if the magnificence and
renown of so great a city is not enough? It
is too arrogant and intemperate thus to step be-
yond all proper bounds and trampling on ancient
custom to wish to seize another's right : to
increase one man's dignity at the expense of so
manymetropolitans' primacy, and to carryanew
war of confusion into peaceful provinces which
were long ago set at rest by the enactments of the
holy Nicene Synod : to break through the
venerable Fathers' decrees by alleging the con-
sent of certain bishops, which even the course
of so many years has not rendered effective.
For it is boasted that this has been winked at
for almost 60 years now, and the said bishop
thinks that he is assisted thereby ; but it is vain
for him to look for assistance from that which,
even if a man dared to wish for it, yet he
could never obtain.

III. Only by imitating his predecessor will he
regain Leo's confidence : the assent of the
bishops is declared null and void.

Let him realize what a man he has suc-
ceeded, and expelling all the spirit of pride let
him imitate Flavian's faith, Flavian's modesty,
Flavian's humility, which has raised him right
to a confessor's glory. If he will shine with
his virtues, he will merit all praise, and in all
quarters he will win an abundance of love not
by seeking human advancement but by de-
serving Divine favour. And by this careful
course I promise he will' bind my heart also
to him, and the love of the Apostolic See,
which we have ever bestowed on the church
of Constantinople, shall never be violated by
any change. Because if sometimes rulers fall
into errors through want of moderation, yet
the churches of Christ do not lose their purity.
But the bishops' assents, which are opposed to
the regulations of the holy canons composed
at Nicsea in conjunction with your faithful
Grace, we do not recognize, and by the blessed
Apostle Peter's authority we absolutely dis-
annul in comprehensive terms, in all ecclesias-
tical cases obeying those laws which the Holy
Ghost set forth by the 318 bishops for the
\ pacific observance of all priests in such sort
that even if a much greater number were to pass
a different decree to theirs, whatever was op-
posed to their constitution would have to be
held in no respect.

IV. He requests the Empress to give his letter
her favourable consideration.

And so I request your Grace to receive in a

worthy spirit this lengthy letter, in which I had
to explain my views, at the hands of my brother
and fellow-bishop Lucianus, who, as far as in
him lies, has faithfully executed the anxious
duties of his undertaking as my delegate, and
of my son Basil, the deacon. And because
it is your habit to labour for the peace and
unity of the Church, for his soul's health keep
my brother Anatolius the bishop, to whom I
have extended my love by your advice, within
those limits which shall be profitable to him,
that as your clemency's glory is magnified
already for the restoration of the Faith, so it
may be published abroad for the restraint of
self-seeking. Dated the 22nd of May, in the
consulship of the illustrious Herculanus (452).

LETTER CVI.
To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople,

IN REBUKE OF HIS SELF-SEEKING.

Leo, the bishop, to Anatolius, the bishop.

I. He commends Anatolius for his orthodoxy,
but condemns him for his presumption.

Now that the light of Gospel Truth has
been manifested, as we wished, through God's
grace, and the night of most pestilential error
has been dispelled from the universal Church,
we are unspeakably glad in the Lord, because
the difficult charge entrusted to us has been
brought to the desired conclusion, even as the
text of your letter announces, so that, ac-
cording to the Apostle's teaching, " we all
I speak the same thing, and that there be no
schisms among us : but that we be perfect in
' the same mind and in the same knowledge 7."
In devotion to which work we commend' you,
beloved, for taking part : for thus you benefited
those who needed correction by your activity,
and purged yourself from all complicity with
I the transgressors. For when your predecessor
I Flavian, of happy memory, was deposed for
' his defence of catholic Truth, not unjustly it
was believed that your ordainers seemed to
have consecrated one like themselves, contrary
to the provision of the holy canons. But
God's mercy was present in this, directing and
confirming you, that you might make good use
of bad beginnings, and show that you were
promoted not by men's judgment, but by
God's loving-kindness : ami this may be ac-
cepted as true, on condition that you lose not
the grace of this Divine gift by another cause
of offence. For the catholic, and especially
the Lord's priest, must not only be entangled
I in no error, but also be corrupted by no
covetousness ; for, as says the Holy Scripture,

1 1 Cor. i. to.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

"Go not after thy lusts, and decline from thy
desire8." Many enticements of this world,
many vanities must be resisted, that the per-
fection of true self-discipline may be attained :
the first blemish of which is pride, the begin-
ning of transgression and the origin of sin.
For the mind greedy of power knows not
either how to abstain from things forbidden
nor to enjoy things permitted, so long as
transgressions go unpunished and run into
undisciplined and wicked excesses, and wrong
doings are multiplied, which were only en-
dured in our zeal for the restoration of the
Faith and love of harmony °.

II. Nothing can cancel or modify the Nicene
canons.

And so after the not irreproachable begin-
ning of your ordination, after the consecration
of the bishop of Antioch, which you claimed
for yourself contrary to the regulations of the
canons, I grieve, beloved, that you have fallen
into this too, that you should try to break
down the most sacred constitutions of the
Nicene canons r: as if this oDportunity had
expressly offered itself to you for the See of
Alexandria to lose its privilege of second
place, and the church of Antioch to forego
its right to being third in dignity, in order
that when these places had been subjected to
your jurisdiction, all metropolitan bishops
might be deprived of their proper honour.
By which unheard of and never before at-
tempted excesses you went so far beyond
yourself as to drag into an occasion of self-
seeking, and force connivance from that holy
Synod which the zeal of our most Christian
prince had convened, solely to extinguish heresy
and to confirm the catholic Faith : as if the
unlawful wishes of a multitude could not be
rejected, and that state of things which was
truly ordained by the Holy Spirit in the canon
of Nicaea could in any part be overruled by
any one. Let no synodal councils flatter them-
selves upon the size of their assemblies, and
let not any number of priests, however much
larger, dare either to compare or to prefer
themselves to those 318 bishops, seeing that
the Synod of Nicaea is hallowed by God with
such privilege, that whether by fewer or by
more ecclesiastical judgments are supported,

"u Pc|1es5asticiis xv!ii- 30. The application of the description
°^ TCripture" t0 an APocyphal book will not escape notice.
9 Cf. Letter CIV., chap. v.

'The wording of Canon 6 is as follows : mos antiquusperduret,
in Aegypto vel Libya et Pentapoli, ui Alexandrinns episcopus
Iwriim omnium habeat potest at em, quoniam quidem et episcopo
Romano parilts mos est. Similiter autem et apud Antiochiam
ceterasque provmcias (en-apxios) honor suus unicuique servetur
ecclesia : where, it will be noticed, no mention is made of Con-
stantinople at all, so that its position is not explicitly defined
either way.

whatever is opposed to their authority is utterly
destitute of all authority.

III. The Synod of Cha/cedon, which met for
one purpose, ought never to have been used for
another.

Accordingly these things which are found to
be contrary to those most holy canons are ex-
ceedingly unprincipled and misguided. This
haughty arrogance tends to the disturbance of
the whole Church, which has purposed so to
misuse a synodal council, as by wicked argu-
ments to over-persuade, or by intimidation to
compel, the brethren to agree with it, when
they had been summoned simply on a matter
of Faith, and had come to a decision on the
subject which was to engage their care. For
it was on this ground that our brothers sent
by the Apostolic see, who presided in our
stead at the synod with commendable firm-
ness, withstood their illegal attempts, openly
protesting against the introduction of any
reprehensible innovation contrary to the en-
actments of the Council of Nicasa. And there
can be no doubt about their opposition, seeing
that you yourself in your epistle complain of
their wish to contravene your attempts. And
therein indeed you greatly commend them to
me by thus writing, whereas you accuse your-
self in refusing to obey them concerning your
unlawful designs, vainly seeking what cannot
be granted, and craving what is bad for your
soul's health, and can never win our consent.
For may I never be guilty of assisting so wrong
a desire, which ought rather to be subverted
by my aid, and that of all who think not high
things, but agree with the lowly.

IV. The Nicene canons are for universal appli-
cation and not to be wrested to private inter-
pretations.

These holy and venerable fathers who in
the city of Nicaea, after condemning the blas-
phemous Arius with his impiety, laid down
a code of canons for the Church to last till
the end of the world, survive not only with us
but with the whole of mankind in their con-
stitutions ; and, if anywhere men venture upon
what is contrary to their decrees, it is ipso
facto null and void ; so that what is univer-
sally laid down for our perpetual advantage
can never be modified by any change, nor can
the things which were destined for the com-
mon good be perverted to private interests ;
and thus so long as the limits remain, which
the Fathers fixed, no one may invade another's
right but each must exercise himself within the
proper and lawful bounds, to the extent of his
power, in the breadth of love; of which the
bishop of Constantinople may reap the fruits

lb:tter cviii.

richly enough, if he rather relies on the virtue many priests may find both a defence of the
of humility than is puffed up with the spirit of Fathers' canons and an example of uprightness
self-seeking. | in observing you ?

V. The sanction alleged to have been accorded 60
years- ago to the supremacy of Constantinople
over Alexandria and Antioch is worthless.

2 "

"Be not highminded," brother, "but fear
and cease to disquiet with unwarrantable de-
mands the pious ears of Christian princes, who
I am sure will be better pleased by your mod-
esty than by your pride. For your purpose is
in no way whatever supported by the written
assent of certain bishops given, as you allege,
60 years ago 3, and never brought to the know-
ledge of the Apostolic See by your prede-
cessors; and this transaction, which from its
outset was doomed to fall through and has
now long done so, you now wish to bolster up by
means that are too late and useless, viz., by
extracting from the brethren an appearance of
consent which their modesty from very weari-
ness yielded to their own injury. Remember
what the Lord threatens him with, who shall
have caused one of the little ones to stumble,
and get wisdom to understand what a judg-
ment of God he will have to endure who has
not feared to give occasion of stumbling to so
many churches and so many priests. For I
confess I am so fast bound by love of the
whole brotherhood that I will, not agree with
any one in demands which are against his own
interests, and thus you may clearly perceive
that my opposition to you, beloved, proceeds
from the kindly intention to restrain you from
disturbing the universal Church by sounder
counsel. The rights of provincial primates
may not be overthrown nor metropolitan ■

bishops be defrauded of privileges based on ' LETTER CVIII.

antiquity. The See of Alexandria may not To Theodore, Bishop of Forum Julii.
lose any of that dignity which it merited

through S. Mark, the evangelist and disciple ot I Leo. the. bishop, to Theodore, bishop of
the blessed Peter, nor may the splendour of Forum Julii.
so great a church be obscured by another's 1
clouds, Dioscorus having fallen through his L Theodo us should not have approached him

VI. Christian love demands self-denial not self-
seeking.

In thus writing to you, brother, I exhort
and admonish you in the Lord, laying aside
all ambitious desires to cherish rather a spirit
of love and to adorn yourself to your profit
with the virtues of love, according to the
Apostle's teaching. For love " is patient and
kind, and envies not, acts not iniquitousiy, is
not puffed up, is not ambitious, seeks not its
owns." Hence if love seeks not its own, how
greatly does he sin who covets another's ? From
which I desire you to keep yourself altogether,
and to remember that sentence which savs,
" Hold what thou hast, that no other take thy
crown 6." For if you seek what is not per-
mitted, you will deprive yourself by your own ac-
tion and judgment of the peace of the uni-
versal Church. Our brother and fellow-bishop
Lucian and our son Basil the deacon, at-
tended to your injunctions with all the zeal
they possessed, but justice refused to give
effect to their pleadings. Dated the 22nd of
May in the consulship of the illustrious Her-
culanus (452).

LETTER CVII.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

(Expostulating with him for putting personal
considerations before the good of the Church
in the matter of the precedence of the See
of Constantinople.)

persistence in impiety. The church of An-
tioch too, in which first at the preaching of

except through his metropolitan.
Your first proceeding, when anxious, should

the blessed Apostle Peter the Christian name have been to have consulted your metro-
arose^ must continue in the position assigned politan on the point which seemed to need
it by the Fathers, and being set in the third inquiry, and if he too was unable to help you,
place must never be lowered therefrom. For the beloved, you should both have asked to be
See is on a different footing to the holders 01 ' instructed (by us) ; for in matters, which con-
it ; and each individual's chief honour is his cern all the Lord's priests as a whole, no in-
own integrity. And since that does not lose quiry ought to be made without the primates,
its proper worth in any place, how much more But in order that the consulter's doubts may

glorious must it be when placed in the mag
nificence of the city of Constantinople, where

in any case be set at rest, I will not keep back
the Church's rules about the state of penitents.

• R

om. xi. 20.

3 Cf. Letter CV., chap. ii. ;end).
* Acts xi. 26.

S 1 Cor. xiii. 4.

* Revel, iii. it.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

II. The grace of penitence is for those who fall
after baptism.
The manifold mercy of God so assists men
when they fall, that not only by the grace of
baptism but also by the remedy of penitence
is the hope of eternal life revived, in order that
they who have violated the gifts of the second
birth, condemning themselves by their own
judgment, may attain to remission of their
crimes, the provisions of the Divine Goodness
having so ordained that God's indulgence
cannot be obtained without the supplications
of priests. For the Mediator between God
and men, the Man Christ Jesus, has trans-
mitted this power to those that are set over
the Church that they should both grant a
course of penitence ? to those who confess,
and, when they are cleansed by wholesome
correction admit them through the door of
reconciliation to communion in the sacra-
ments. In which work assuredly the Saviour
Himself unceasingly takes part and is never
absent from those things, the carrying out of
which He has committed to His ministers,
saying : " Lo, I am with you all the days even
to the completion of the age 8 : " so that what-
ever is accomplished through our service in due
order and with satisfactory results we doubt not
to have been vouchsafed through the Holy
Spirit.

III. Penitence is sure only in this life.

But if any one of those for whom we entreat
God be hindered by some obstacle and lose
the benefit of immediate absolution, and
before he attain to the remedies appointed,
end his days in the course of nature, he will
not be able when stripped of the flesh to gain
that which when yet in the body he did not
receive. And there will be no need for us
to weigh the merits and acts of those who
have thus died, seeing that the Lord our Goo,
whose judgments cannot be found out, has
reserved for His own decision that which our
priestly ministry could not complete : for He
wishes His power to be so feared that this
fear may benefit all, and every one may dread
that which happens to the lukewarm or care-
less. For it is most expedient and essential
that the guilt of sins should be loosed by
priestly supplication before the last day of life.

IV. And yet penitence and reconciliation must
not be refused to men in extremis.

But to those who in time of need and in
urgent danger implore the aid first of penitence,
then of reconciliation, must neither means of

7 Actionem (others not so well sanctionevi) fxeuitentia.

8 S. Matt, xxviii. 20.

amendment nor reconciliation be forbidden :
because we cannot place limits to God's
mercy nor fix times for Him with whom true
conversion suffers no delay of forgiveness, as
says God's Spirit by the prophet, "when thou
hast turned and lamented, then shalt thou
be saved 9 ; " and elsewhere, " Declare thou thy
iniquities beforehand, that thou may'st be
justified1;" and again, "For with the Lord
there is mercy, and with Him is plenteous
redemption2." And so in dispensing God's
gifts we must not be hard, nor neglect the
tears and groans of self-accusers, seeing that
we believe the very feeling of penitence springs
from the inspiration of God, as says the
Apostle, "lest perchance God will give them
repentance that they may recover themselves
from the snares of the devil, by whom they
are held captive at his will 3."

V. Hazardous as deathbed repentance is, the
grace of absolution must not be refused even
when it can be asked for only by signs.

Hence it behoves each individual Christian
to listen to the judgment of his own conscience,
lest he put off the turning to God from day to
day and fix the time of his amendment at the
end of his life; for it is most perilous for
human frailty and ignorance to confine itself
to such conditions as to be reduced to the
uncertainty of a few hours, and instead of
winning indulgence by fuller amendment, to
choose the narrow limits of that time when
space is scarcely found even for the penitent's
confession or the priest's absolution. But,
as I have said, even such men's needs must
be so assisted that the free action of penitence
and the grace of communion be not denied
them, if they demand it even when their voice is
gone, by the signs of a still clear intellect. And
if they be so overcome by the stress of their
malady that they cannot signify in the priest's
presence what just before they were asking for,
the testimony of believers standing by must pre-
vail for them, that they may obtain the benefit
of penitence and reconciliation simultaneously,
so long as the regulations of the Fathers'
canons be observed in reference to those
persons who have sinned against God by
forsaking the Faith.

VI. He is to bring this letter to the notice of the
metropolitan.

These answers, brother, which I have given
to your questions in order that nothing
different be done under the excuse of ignor-
ance, you shall bring to the notice of your

9 Is. xxx. 15 (LXX.).
2 Ps. exxx. 7.

1 Is. xliii. 26 (I. XX).
3 2 Tim. ii. 25, 26.

LETTER CIX.

metropolitan ; that if there chance to be any
of the brethren who before now have thought
there was any doubt about these points, they
may be instructed by him concerning what
I have written to you. Dated June nth in
the consulship of the illustrious Herculanus
(45 2)-

LETTER CIX.
To Julian, Bishop of Cos.
Leo, the pope, to Julian, the bishop.

I. He laments 07'er the recent rioting in

Palestine.

The information which you give, brother,
about the riotous doings of the false monks 4
is serious and to no slight degree lamentable ;
for they are due to the war which the wicked
Eutyches by the madness of deceivers is
waging against the preaching of the Gospel
and the Apostles, though it will end in his
own destruction and that of his followers :
but this is delayed by the long-suffering of
God, in order that it may appear how greatly
the enemies of the cross of Christ are enslaved
to the devil ; because heretical depravity,
breaking through its ancient veil of pretence
can no longer restrain itself within the limits
of its hypocrisy, and has poured forth all its
long-concealed poison, raging against the
disciples of the Truth not only with pen but
also with deeds of violence 5, in order to wrest
consent from unlearned simplicity or from
i panic-stricken faith. But the sons of light
ought not to be so afraid of the sons of darkness,
as being sane to acquiesce in the ideas of
madmen or to think that any respect should
be shown to men of this kind ; for, if they
would rather perish than recover their senses,
provision must be made lest their escape from
punishment should do wider harm, and long
toleration of them should lead to the destruc-
tion of many.

II. The ringleaders must be removed to a

distance.

I am not unaware what love and favour
is due to our sons, those holy and true monks,
who forsake not the moderation of their pro-
fession, and carry into practice what they
'promised by their vows. But these insolent
;disturbers, who boast of their insults and

4 These were the monks of Palestine who immediately on
Iheodosius' return from the Synod stirred up great riots first in
lerusalem and then throughout Palestine.

5 Letters of the Emperor Marcian (quoted by the Ball.) speak
1) of a letter written by Theodosius quas solns foterat Jingere
labohts; and (2) of cruelties, tortures, and insults committed
'articulaily in mulieres hones las et nobiles, whereby the rioters
sd not hesitated to force many to acquiesce in their wicked
-aching.

injuries to priests6, are to be held not the
slaves of Christ, but the soldiers of Antichrist,
and must be chiefly humiliated in the person
of their leaders, who incite the ignorant mob
to uphold their insubordination. And hence,
seeing that our most merciful Prince loves the
catholic Faith with all the devotion of a reli-
gious heart, and is greatly offended at the
effrontery of these rebel heretics, as is every-
where reported, we must appeal to his cle-
mency that the instigators of these seditions
be removed from their mad congregations;
and not only Eutyches and Dioscorus but also
any who have been forward in aiding their
wrongheaded madness, be placed where they
can hold no intercourse with their partners in
blasphemy: for the simpleness of some may
chance to be healed by this method, and men
will be more easily recalled to soundness of
mind, if they be set free from the incitements
of pestilential teachers.

III. He sends a letter of S. Athanasius to
show that the present heresy is only a revival
of former exploded heresies.

But lest the instruction necessary for the
confirmation of faithful spirits or the refutation
of heretics should be wanting or not expressed,
I have sent the letter of bishop Athanasius of
holy memory addressed to bishop Epictetus ?,
whose testimony Cyril of holy memory made
use of at the Synod of Ephesus against Nes-
torius, because it has so clearly and carefully
set forth the Incarnation of the Word, as to
overthrow both Nestorius and Eutyches by
anticipation in the heresies of those times.
Let the followers of Eutyches and Dioscorus
dare to accuse such an authority as this of
ignorance or of heresy, who assert that our
preaching goes astray from the teaching and
the knowledge of the Fathers. But it ought to
avail for the confirmation of the minds of all
the Lord's priests, who, having been already
detected and condemned of heresy in respect
of the authorities they followed, now begin
more openly to set forth their blasphemous
dogma, lest, if their meaning were hid beneath
the cloke of silence it might st 11 be doubtful
whether the triple error of A ollinaris 8, and
the mad notion of the Manichees was really
revived in them. And as they no longer seek
to hide themselves but rise boldly against the
churches of Christ, must we not take care to
destroy all the strength of their attempts,

VOL. XII.

6 They had slain Severian, Bishop of Scythopolis, and
would also have slain Juvenal, Bishop of Jerusalem, if he had
not taken refuge in flight (Ball.).

7 A portion of this letter is among the quotations added at the
end of Letter CLXV. See also Vol. IV. p. 570.

8 What this triple error was will be lound in Lett. LIX.,
chap. y.(q.v.)\ cf. also Lett. CXX1V. and CLXVII.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

observing, as I have said, such discrimination
as to separate the incorrigible from the more
docile spirits : for "evil conversations corrupt
good manners 9," and "the wise man will be
sharper than the pestilent person who is
chastised1;" in order that in whatever way
the society of the wicked is broken up, some
vessels may be snatched from the devil's hand ?
For we ought not to be so offended at scurri-
lous and empty words as to have no care for
their correction.

IV. He expresses a hope that Juvenal's timely
acknowledgment of error will be imitated by
the rest.

But bishop Juvenal, whose injuries are to
be lamented, joined himself too rashly to
those blasphemous heretics, and by embracing
Eutyches and Dioscorus, drove many ignorant
folk headlong by his example, albeit he after-
wards corrected himself by wiser counsels.
These men, however, who drank in more
greedily the wicked poison, have become the
enemies of him, whose disciples they had been
before, so that the very food he had supplied
them was turned to his own ruin : and yet
it is to be hoped they will imitate him in
amending bis ways, if only the holy asso-
ciations of the neighbourhood in which they
dwell will help them to recover their senses.
But the character of him 2 who has usurped
the place of a bishop still living cannot be
doubted from the character of his actions, nor
is it to be disputed that he who is loved by
the assailants of the Faith must be a mis-
believer. Meanwhile, brother, do not hesitate
to continue with anxious care to keep me
acquainted with the course of events by more
frequent letters. Dated November 25th in
the consulship of Herculanus (452).

FETTER CX.
From Marcian Augustus.

(Expressing surprise that Leo has not by
now confirmed the acts of the Synod, and
asking for a speedy confirmation.)

LETTER CXF

To Marcian Augustus.

(About Anatolius' mistake in deposing Aetius
from the office of archdeacon and putting in
Andrew instead.)

LETTER CXII.
To Pulcheria Augusta.
(On the same subject more briefly.)

9 1 Cor. xv. 33. i Prov. xxi. n, LXX. * Sc. Theodosiu.,

LETTER CXIII.
To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

Leo, bishop of Rome, to Julian, bishop
of Cos.

I. After thanks for Julian's sympathy he com-
plains of the deposition of Aetius from the
archdeaconry.

I acknowledge in your letter, beloved, the
feelings of brotherly love, in that you sym-
pathize with us in true grief at the many
grievous evils we have borne. But we pray
that these things which the Lord has either
allowed or wished us to suffer, may avail to
the correction of those who live through them 3,
and that adversities may cease through the
cessation of offences. Both which results will
follow through the mercy of God, if only He
remove the scourge and turn the hearts of
His people to Himself. But as you, brother,
are saddened by the hostilities which have raged
around us, so I am made anxious because,
as vour letter indicates, the treacherous attacks
of heretics are not set at rest in the church
of Constantinople, and men seek occasion to
persecute those who have been the defenders
of the catholic Faith. For so long as Aetius is
removed from his office of archdeacon under
pretence of promotion 4 and Andrew is taken
into his place, who had been cast off for
associating with heretics ; so long as respect
is shown to the accusers of Flavian of holy
memory, and the partners or disciples of that
most pious confessor are put down, it is only
too clearly shown what pleases the bishop of
the church itself. Towards whom I put off
taking action till I hear the merits of the case
and await his own dealing with me in the
letter our son Aetius tells me he will send,
giving opportunity for voluntary correction,
whereby I desire my vexation to be appeased.
Nevertheless, I have written to our most cle-
ment Prince and the most pious Augusta about
these things which concern the peace of the
Church ; and I do not doubt they will in the
devoutness of their faith take heed lest a
heresy already condemned should succeed in
springing up again to the detriment of their
own glorious work.

II. He asks Julian to act for him as Anato-
lius is deficient in vigour.

See then, beloved brother, that you bestow

3 Servatoruvt. I am not sure whether this is the right sense ;
others read muttorum.

4 In Lett. CXI., chap, ii., he is said to have been ccemeteno
deputatus, and, according to Quesnel, when the cemeteries (or
catacombs) had no longer to be used as refuges for the persecuted
Christians, the custom had grown up of putting priests in charge
to perpetuate the memory of the martyrs therein buried ; in
process of time, when love grew cold, this was looked upon as
a sort of exile, and an onerous duty in consequence.

'«"

LETTER CXIII.

the necessary thought on the cares of the
Apostolic See, which by her rights as your
mother commends to you, who were nourished
at her breast, the defence of the catholic
Truth against Nestorians and Eutychians, in
order that, supported by the Divine help, you
may not cease to watch the interests of the city
of Constantinople, lest at any time the storms
of error arise within, her. And because the faith
of our glorious Princes is so great that you
may confidently suggest what is necessary to
them, use their piety for the benefit of the
universal Church. But if ever you consult
me, beloved, on things which you think doubt-
ful, my reply shall not fail to supply instruction,
so that, apart from cases which ought to be
decided by the inquiries of the bishops of each
particular church, you may act as my legate
and undertake the special charge of preventing
the Nestorian or Eutychian heresy reviving in
any quarter ; because the bishop of Constanti-
nople does not possess catholic vigour, and is
not very jealous either for the mystery of man's
salvation or for his own reputation : whereas,
if he had any spiritual activity, he ought to
have considered by whom he was ordained,
and whom he succeeded in such a way as to
follow the blessed Flavian rather than the
instruments of his promotion. And, therefore,
when our most religious Princes deign in
accordance with my entreaties to reprimand
our brother Anatolius on those matters, which
deservedly come under blame, join your dili-
gence to theirs, beloved, that all causes of
offences may be removed by the application
of the fullest correction and he cease from
injuring our son Aetius. For with a catholic-
minded bishop even though there was some-
thing which seemed calculated to annoy in his
archdeacon, it ought to have been passed over
from regard for the Faith, rather than that the
most worthless heretic should take the place
of a catholic. And so when I have learnt the
rest of the story, 1 shall then more clearly
gather what ought to be done. For, mean-
while, I have thought better to restrain my
vexation and to exercise patience that there
might be room for forgiveness.

III. He asks for further information about the
rioting in Palestitie and in Egypt.

But with regard to the monks of Palestine,
who are said this long time to be in a state
of mutiny, I know not by what spirit they are
at present moved. Nor has any one yet ex-
plained to me what reasons they seem to
bring forward for their discontent : whether
for instance, they wish to serve the Eutychian
heresy by such madness, or whether they are

irreconcilably vexed that their bishop could
have been misled into that blasphemy, where-
by, in spite of the very associations of the
holy spots, from which issued instruction for
the whole world, he has alienated himself from
the Truth of the Lord's Incarnation, and in
their opinion that cannot be venial in him which
in others had to be wiped out by absolution.
And therefore I desire to be more fully informed
about these things that proper means may he
taken for their correction ; because it is one
thing to arm oneself wickedly against the
Faith, and another thing to be immoderately
disturbed on behalf of it. You must know,
too, that the documents which Aetius the
presbyter told me before had been dispatched,
and the epitome of the Faith which you say
you have sent, have not yet arrived. Hence,
if an opportunity offers itself of a more expe
ditious messenger, I shall be glad for any
information that may seem expedient to be
sent me as soon as possible. I am anxious to
know about the monks of Egypt 5, whether
they have regained their peacefulness and their
faith, and about the church of Alexandria,
what trustworthy tidings reaches you : I wish
you to know what I wrote to its bishop or his
ordainers, or the clergy, and have therefore
sent you a copy of the letter. You will learn
also what I have said to our most clement
Prince and our most religious Empress from
the copies sent.

IV. He asks for a Latin translation of the acts
of Chalcedon.

I wish to know whether my letter6 has been
delivered to you, brother, which I sent you
by Basil the deacon, upon the Faith of the
Lord's Incarnation, while Flavian of holy
memory was still alive ; for I fancy you have
never made any comment on its contents.
We have no very clear information about the
acts of the Synod, which were drawn up at the
time of the council at Chalcedon, on account
of the difference of language 7. And therefore
I specially enjoin upon you, brother, that you
have the whole collected into one volume,
accurately translated of course into Latin, that
we may not be in doubt on any portion of the
proceedings, and that there may be ho manner
of uncertainty after you have taken pains to
bring it fully within my understanding. Dated
March nth, in the consulship of the illustrious
Opilio (453).

5 There had been riots ationg the monks of Egypt about the
appointment of Proterius as bishop, instead of Dioscorus, deposed.

6 This is Letter XXXV. {q.v.).

7 It is, of course, well known that Leo knew no Greek what
ever.

G 2

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

LETTER CXIV.

To the Bishops assembled in Synod at
Chalcedon.

(In answer to their Letter (XCVIIL), ap-
proving of their acts in the general so long as
nothing is contrary to the canons of Nicaea.)

LETTER CXV.

To Marcian Augustus.
(Congratulating him upon the restoration of
peace to the Church, and the suppression of
the riotous monks ; giving his consent also, as
a liege subject of the Emperor's, to the acts of
Chalcedon, and asking him to make this
known to the Synod.)

LETTER CXVI.

To Pulcheria Augusta.

(Commending her pious zeal and informing
her of his assent to the acts of Chalcedon.)

LETTER CXVI I.
To Julian, Bishop of Cos.
Leo to Julian the bishop.

I. He wishes his assent to the Acts of Chalcedon
to be widely known.

How watchfully and how devotedly you
guard the catholic Faith, brother, the tenor
of your letter shows, and my anxiety is greatly
relieved by the information it contains ; sup-
plemented as it is by the most religious piety
of our religious Emperor, which is clearly
shown to be prepared by the Lord for the
confirmation of tiie whole Church ; so that,
whilst Christian princes act for the Faith with
holy zeal, the priests of the Lord may con-
fidently pray for their realm.

What therefore our most clement Emperor
deemed needful I have willingly complied
with, by sending letters to all the brethren,
who were present at the Synod of Chalcedon,
in which to show that I approved of what was
resolved upon by our holy brethren about the
Rule of Faith ; on their account to wit, who,
in order to cloke their own treachery, pretend
to consider invalid or doubtful such conciliar
ordinances as are not ratified by my assent :
albeit, after the return of the brethren whom
I had sent in my stead, I dispatched a letter to
the bishop of Constantinople ; so that, if he
had been minded to publish it, abundant proof
might have been furnished thereby how gladly
I approved of what the synod had passed con-
cerning the Faith. But, because it contained
such an answer as would have run counter to
his self-seeking, he preferred my acceptance of

the brethren's resolutions to remain unknown,
lest at the same time my reply should become
known on the absolute authority of the Nicene
canons. Wherefore take heed, beloved, that
you warn our most gracious prince by frequent
reminders that he add his words to ours and
order the letter of the Apostolic See to be sent
round to the priests of each single province,
that hereafter no enemy of the Truth may
venture to excuse himself under cover of
my silence.

II. He expresses his thanks for the zeal shown by

the Emperor and the Empress.

And as to the edict of the most Christian
Emperor, in which he has shown what the
ignorant folly of certain monks deserved and
as to the reply of the most gracious Augusta,
in which she rebuked the heads of the monas-
teries, I wish my great rejoicing to be known,
being assured that this fervour of faith is
bestowed upon them by Divine inspiration, in
order that all men may acknowledge their
superiority to rest not only on their royal state
but also on their priestly holiness : whom both
now and formerly I have asked to treat you
with full confidence, being assured of their
good will, and that they will not refuse to give
ear to necessary suggestions.

III. He wishes to know the effect of his letter

to the Empress Eudocia.

And, because the most clement Emperor
has been pleased to charge me secretly by our
son Paulus with the task of admonishing our
daughter the most clement Augusta Eudocia8,
I have done what he wished, in order that
from my letter she may learn how profitable
it will be to her if she espouses the cause of
the catholic Faith, and. have managed that she
should further be admonished by a letter from
that most clement prince her son ; nothing
doubting that she herself, too, will set to work
with pious zeal to bring the leaders of sedition
to a knowledge of the consequences of their
action, and, if they understand not the utter-
ances of those who teach them, to make them
at least afraid of the powers of those who will
punish them. And so what effect this care of
ours produces, I wish to know at once by
a letter from you, beloved, and whether their
ignorant contumacy has at length subsided :
as to which if they think there is any doubt
about our teaching, let them at least not
reject the writings of such holy priests as

8 This is Eudocia, the widow of Theodosius II., and the
Prince, her son, mentioned below, is Valentinianns III., who had
married her daughter Eudoxia. The letter of Leo here mentioned
is probably not Letter CXXIII. below. For a graphic sketch ol
the elder lady see Gore's Life of Leo, pp. 131, 2.

LETTER CXIX.

Athanasius, Theophilus and Cyril of Alex-
andria, with whom our statement of the Faith
so completely harmonizes that any one who
professes consent to them disagrees in nothing
with us.

IV. Aelius must be content at present with the

Emperor's favour.

With our son Aetius 9 the presbyter we
sympathize in his sorrow ; and, as one has
been put into his place who had previously
been judged worthy of censure, there is no
doubt that this change tends to the injury of
catholics. But these things must be borne
patiently meanwhile, lest we should be thought
to exceed the measure of our usual moderation,
arid for the present Aetius must be content
with the encouragement of our most clement
prince's favour, to whom I have but lately so
commended him by letter that I doubt not
his good repute has been increased in their
most religious minds.

V. Anatolius sho7Vs no contrition in his subse-

quent acts.

This too we would have you know, that
bishop Anatolius after our prohibition so per-
sisted in his rash presumption as to call upon
the bishops of Illyricum to subscribe their
names : this news was brought us by the bishop
who was sent by the bishop of Thes?alonica *
to announce his consecration. We have de-
clined to write to Anatolius about this, although
you might have expected us to do so, because
we perceived he did not wish to be reformed.
I have made two versions of my letter to the
Synod, one with a copy of my letter to Ana-
tolius subjoined, one without it; leaving it to
your judgment to deliver the one which you
think ought to be given to our most clement
prince and to keep the other. Dated 21st
March, in the consulship of the illustrious
Opilio (453).

LETTER CXVIII.

TO THE SAME JULIAN, BlSHOP OF COS.

(In which, after speaking of his own efforts
for the Faith, he objects to monks being per-
mitted to preach, especially if heretically in-
clined, and asks Julian to stir up the Em-
peror's zeal for the Faith.)

LETTER CXIX.

To Maximus, Bishop of Antioch, by the

hand of Marian the Presbyter, and

Olvmpius the Deacon.

Leo to Maximus of Antioch.

9 Cf. Letter CXIII. above.

1 This is Eu.xitheus, the successor of Anastasius :
is addressed to him.

Letter CL.

I. The Faith is the mean between the two

extremes of Eutyches and Nestorius.
How much, beloved, you have at heart
the most sacred unity of our common Faith
and the tranquil harmony of the Church's
peace, the substance of your letter shows,
which was brought me by our sons, Marian
the presbyter and Olvmpius the deacon, and
which was the more welcome to us because
thereby we can join as it were in conversation,
and thus the grace of God becomes more and
more known and greater joy is felt through
the whole world over the revelation of catholic
Truth. And yet we are sore grieved at some
who still (so your messengers indicate) love
their darkness ; and though the brightness of
day has arisen everywhere, even still delieht in
the obscurity of their blindness, and abandoning
the Faith, remain Christians in only the empty
name, without knowledge to discern one error
from another, and to distinguish the blasphemy
of Nestorius from the impiety of Eutyches.
For no delusion of theirs can appear ex-
cusable, because they contradict themselves in
their perverseness. For, though Eutyches'
disciples abhor Nestorius, and the followers of
Nestorius anathematize Eutyches, yet in the
judgment of catholics both sides are con-
demned and both heresies alike are cut away
from the body of the Church : because neither
falsehood can be in unison with us. Nor does
it matter in which direction of blasphemy they
disagree with the truth of the Lord's Incar-
nation, since their erroneous opinions hold
neither with the authority of the Gospel nor
with the significance of the mystery 2.

II. Maximus is to keep the churches of the East

free from these two opposite heresies.

And therefore, beloved brother, you must
with all your heart consider over which church
the Lord has set you to preside, and remember
that system of doctrine of which the chief of
all the Apostles, the blessed Peter, laid the
foundation, not only by his uniform preaching
throughout the world, but especially by his
teaching in the cities of Antioch and Rome :
so that you may understand that he demands
of him who is set over the home of his own
renown those institutions which he handed
down, as he received them from the Truth
Itself, which he confessed. And in the
churches of the East, and especially in those
which the canons of the most holy Fathers at
Nicrea 3 assigned to the See of Antioch, you
must not by any means allow unscrupulous
heretics to make assaults on the Gospel, and

2 Ratio sacramenii.

3 These were apparently twenty in number, but include no veiy
important towns except Seleucia the seaport of Antioch.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the dogmas of either Nestorius or Eutyches to
be maintained by any one. Since, as I have
said, the rock (petra) of the catholic Faith,
from which the blessed Apostle Peter took his
name at the Lord's hands, rejects every trace
of either heresy; for it openly and clearly
anathematizes Nestorius for separating the
nature of the Word and of the flesh in the
blessed Virgin's conception, for dividing the
one Christ into two, and for wishing to dis-
tinguish between the person of the Godhead
and the person of the Manhood : because He
is altogether one and the same who in His
eternal Deity was born of the Father without
time, and in His true flesh was born of His
mother in time; and similarly it eschews
Eutyches for ignoring the reality of the human
flesh in the Lord Jesus Christ, and asserting
the transformation of the Word Himself into
flesh, so that His birth, nurture, growth, suf-
fering, death and burial, and resurrection on
the third day, all belonged to His Deity only,
which put on not the reality but the semblance
of the form of a slave.

III. Antioch as the third See in Christendom is
to retain her privileges.

And so it behoves you to use the utmost
vigilance, lest these depraved heretics dare
to assert themselves ; for you must resist
them with all the authority of priests, and
frequently inform us by your reports what
is being done for the progress of the churches.
For it is right that you should share this re-
sponsibility with the Apostolic See, and realize
that the privileges of the third See in Christen-
dom 4 give you every confidence in action,
privileges which no intrigues shall in any wav
impair : because my respect for the Nicene
canons is such that I never have allowed nor
ever will the institutions of the holy Fathers
to be violated by any innovation. For dif-
ferent sometimes as are the deserts of indi-
vidual prelates, yet the rights of their Sees
are permanent : and although rivalry may
perchance cause some disturbance about them,
yet it cannot impair their dignity. Wherefore,
brother, if ever you consider any action ought
to be taken to uphold the privileges of the
church of Antioch, be sure to explain it
in a letter of your own, that we may be able
to reply to your application completely and
appropriately.

4 Privilegia tertitz sedis. Leo here still assigns to Antioch
the third place in order of precedence, Rome and Alexandria
being fii^t and second respectively; but since 381, as we have
seen e.g. in Lett. XCVIII., chnp. iv.. it had been lowered to the
4th 1 1. ce by the insertion of Constan'inople between Rome and
Alexandria : see Schaffs Hist., Vol. II. § 56, pp. «77 and follow-
ing, and Oore s Leo, pp. 119 and full.

IV. Anatolius"1 attempts to subvert the decisions

of Nicoza are futile.
But at the present time let it be enough to
make a general proclamation on all points, that
if in any synod any one makes any attempt
upon or seems to take occasion of wresting
an advantage against the provisions of the
Nicene canons, he can inflict no discredit
upon their inviolable decrees : and it will be
easier for the compacts of any conspiracy to
be broken through than for the regulations of
the aforesaid canons to be in any particular
invalidated. For intrigue loses no opportunity
of stealing an advantage, and whenever the
course of things brings about a general as-
sembly of priests, it is difficult for the greedi-
ness of the unscrupulous not to try to gain
some unfair point '■ just as in the Synod of
Ephesus which overthrew the blasphemous
Nestorius with his dogma, bishop Juvenal
believed that he was capable of holding the
presidency of the province of Palestine, and
ventured to rally the insubordinate by a lying
letters. At which Cyril of blessed memory,
bishop of Alexandria, being properly dismayed,
pointed out in his letter to me6 to what au-
dacity the other's cupidity had led him : and
with anxious entreaty begged me hard that no
assent should be given his unlawful attempts.
For be it known to you that we found the
original document of Cyril's letter which was
sought for in our book-case, and of which you
sent us copies. On this, however, my judg-
ment lays especial stress that, although a
majority of priests through the wiliness of
some came to a decision which is found op-
posed to those constitutions of the 318 fathers,
it must be considered void on principles of
justice : since the peace of the whole Church
cannot otherwise be preserved, except due
respect be invariably shown to the canons.

V. If Leo's legates in any way exceeded their

instructions, they did so ineffectually.

Of course, if anything is alleged to have
been done by those brethren whom I sent in
my stead to the holy Synod, beyond that
which was germane to the Faith, it shall be of
no weight at all : because they were sent by
the Apostolic See only for the purpose of

5 It is a curious fact in the history of Church government that
the bishopric of Jerusalem for the first centuries never had the
first place in Palestine : this was assigned to the metropolitan of
Csesarea, although on great occasions the Bishop of Jerusalem sat
next to the patriarch of Antioch : cf. Schaff's Hist., Vol. II. § 56,
p. 283, and the viith. Nicene canon : mos antiquus obthieat ut
Aelice. id est Ierosolymce, episcopus honor etur salva metropolis
prop7-ia dignitate.

6 The Ballerinii point out that the 1st Council of Ephesus
was held in 431, at which Cyril presided for Celestinus I. of Rome,
and that Leo was not bishop till 441 ; this letter was probably
addressed to him when archdeacon of Rome, in which case tha
authority which he had already gained is remarkably illustrated.

LETTER CXX.

extirpating heresy and upholding the catholic
Faith. For whatever is laid before bishops
for inquiry beyond the particular subjects
which come before synodal councils may ad-
mit of a certain amount of free discussion,
if the holy Fathers have laid down nothing
thereon at Nicaea. For anything that is
not in agreement with their rules and consti-
tutions can never obtain the assent of the
Apostolic See. But how great must be the
diligence with which this rule is kept, you
will gather from the copies of the letter which
Ave sent to the bishop of Constantinople, re-
straining his cupidity ; and you shall take
order that it reach the knowledge of all our
brethren and fellow-priests.

VI. No one but priests arc allowed to preach.

This too it behoves you, beloved, to guard
against, that no one except those who are the
Lord's priests dare to claim the right of
teaching or preaching, be he monk or layman 7,
who boasts himself of some knowledge. Be-
cause although it is desirable that all the
Church's sons should understand the things
which are right and sound, yet it is permitted
to none outside the priestly rank to assume
the office of preacher, since in the Church of
God all things ought to be orderly, that in
Christ's one body the more excellent mem-
bers should fulfil their own duties, and the
lower not resist the higher. Dated the nth
of June, in the consulship of the illustrious
Opilio (453).

LETTER CXX.

To Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrus, on
Perseverance in the Faith.

Leo, the bishop, to his beloved brother
Theodoret, the bishop.

I. He congratulates Theodoret on their joint
victory, and expresses his approval of an
honest inquiry which leads to good results.

On the return of our brothers and fellow-
priests, whom the See of the blessed Peter
sent to the holy council, we ascertained, be-
loved, the victory you and we together had
won by assistance from on high over the
blasphemy of Nestorius, as well as over the
madness of Eutyches. Wherefore we make
our boast in the Lord, singing with the pro-
phet: " our help is in the name of the Lord,
who hath made heaven and earth 8 : " who has
suffered us to sustain no harm in the person
}f our brethren, but has corroborated by the
rrevocable assent of the whole brotherhood

what He had already laid down through our
ministry : to show that, what had been first
formulated by the foremost See of Christen-
dom, and then received by the judgment of
the whole Christian world, had truly proceeded
from Himself: that in this, too, the members
may be at one with the Head. And herein
our cause for rejoicing grows greater when we
see that the more fiercely the foe assailed
Christ's servants, the more did he afflict him-
self. For lest the assent of other Sees to
that which the Lord of all has appointed to
take precedence of the rest might seem mere
complaisance, or lest any other evil suspicion
might creep in, some were found to dispute
our decisions before they were finally ac-
cepted 9. And while some, instigated by the
author of the disagreement, rush forward into
a warfare of contradictions, a greater good
results through his fall under the guiding hand
of the Author of all goodness. For the gifts
of God's grace are sweeter to us when they
are gained with mighty efforts : and uninter-
rupted peace is wont to seem a lesser good
than one that is restored by labours. More-
over, the Truth itself shines more brightly,
and is more bravely maintained when what
the Faith had already taught is afterwards
confirmed by further inquiry. And still fur-
ther, the good name of the priestly office gains
much in lustre where the authority of the
highest is preserved without it being thought
that the liberty of the lower ranks has been
at all infringed. And the result of a discussion
contributes to the greater glory of God when
the debaters exert themselves with confidence
in overcoming the gainsayers : that what of
itself is shown wrong may not seem to be
passed over in prejudicial silence.

II. Christ's victory has won back many to the

Faith.

Exult therefore, beloved brother, yes, exult
triumphantly in the only-begotten Son of God.
Through us He has conquered for Himself
the reality of Whose flesh was denied.
Through us and for us He has conquered,
in whose cause we have conquered. This
happy day ranks next to the Lord's Advent
for the world. The robber is laid low, and
there is restored to our age the mystery of the
Divine Incarnation which the enemy of man-
kind was obscuring with his chicaneries, be-
cause the facts would not let him actually
destroy it. Nay, the immortal mystery had

7 See Lett. CXX., chap, vi., nole 7

8 Ps. exxiii. 8.

9 These were, of course, the bishops of Illyricum and Palestine,
who raised objections at various points in the reading of Leo's
Tome at Chalcedon. They were allowed five days to reconsider
the matter, and ultimately yielded their consent. See Introduc-
tion, p. x., and Blight's notes to the Tome, who gives their
objections and the answers in detail, esp. nn. 148, 156, 160, and 173.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

perished from the hearts of unbelievers, be-
cause so great salvation is of no avail to un-
believers, as the Very Truth said to His
disciples : " he that believeth and is baptized
shall be saved ; but he that believeth not
shall be condemned \" The rays of the
Sun of Righteousness which were obscured
throughout the East by the clouds of Nes-
torius and Eutyches, have shone out brightly
from the West, where it has reached its zenith
in the Apostles and teachers of the Church.
And yet not even in the East is it to be
believed that it was ever eclipsed where noble
confessors2 have been found among your
ranks : so that, when the old enemy was
trying afresh, through the impenitent heart
of a modern Pharaoh 3, to blot out the seed
of faithful Abraham and the sons of promise,
he grew weary, through God's mercy, and
could harm no one save himself. And in
regard to him the Almighty has worked this
wonder also, in that He has not overwhelmed
with the founder of the tyranny those who
were associated with him in the slaughter
of the people of Israel, but has gathered them
into His own people ; and as the Source of
all mercy knew to be worthy of Himself and
possible for Himself alone, He has made
them conquerors with us who were conquered
by us. For whilst the spirit of falsehood is
the only true enemy of the human race, it is
undoubted that all whom the Truth has won
over to His side share in His triumph over
that enemy. Assuredly it now is clear how
divinely authorized are these words of our
Redeemer, which are so applicable to the
enemies of the Faith that one may not doubt
they were said of them : " You," He says,
"are of your father the devil, and the lusts
of your father it is your will to fulfil. He
was a murderer from the beginning and stood
not in the truth, because the truth is not in
him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh
of his own : for he is a liar and the father
thereof!"

III. Dioscorus, who in his madness has attacked
even the bishop of Rome, has shown himselj
the instrument of Satan.

It is not to be wondered, then, that they who
have accepted a delusion as to our nature in the
true God agree with their father on these
points also, maintaining that what was seen,
heard, and in fact, by the witness of the gospel,
touched and handled in the only Son of God,
belonged not to that to which it was proved

* S. Mark xvi. 16.

' He is thinking especially of the martyred Flavian.

3 Dioscorus of Alexandria is meant.

4 S. John viii. 44.

to belong s, but to an essence co-eternal and
consubstantial with the Father : as if the
nature of the Godhead could have been
pierced on the Cross, as if the Unchangeable
could grow from infancy to manhood, or the
eternal Wisdom could progress in wisdom, or
God, who is a Spirit, could thereafter be filled
with the Spirit. In this, too, their sheer
madness betrayed its origin, because, as far as
it could, it attempted to injure everybody.
For he, who afflicted you with his persecu-
tions, led others wrong by driving them to
consent to his wickedness. Yea, even us too,
although he had wounded us in each one of
the brethren (for they are our members), even
us he did not exempt from special vexation
in attempting to inflict an injury upon his
Head with strange and unheard of and in-
credible effrontery6. But would that he had
recovered his senses even after all these
enormities, and had not saddened us by his
death and eternal damnation. There was no
measure of wickedness that he did not reach :
it was not enough for him that, sparing neither
living nor dead, and forswearing truth and
allying himself with falsehood, he imbrued his
hands, that had been already long polluted,
in the blood of a guiltless, catholic priest 7.
And since it is written : " he that hateth his
brother is a murderer8:" he has actually
carried out what he was said already to have
done in hate, as if he had never heard of this
nor of that which the Lord says, " learn of
Me ; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and
ye shall find rest unto your souls : for My
yoke is easy and My burden is lights."
A worthy preacher of the devil's errors has
been found in this Egyptian plunderer, who,
like the cruellest tyrant the Church has had,
forced his villainous blasphemies on the
reverend brethren through the violence of
riotous mobs and the blood-stained hands
of soldiers. And when our Redeemer's voice
assures us that the author of murder and of
lying is one and the same, He has carried out
both equally : as if these things were written
not to be avoided but to be perpetrated : and
thus does he apply to the completion of his
destruction the salutary warnings of the Son
of God, and turns a deaf ear to what the same
Lord has said, " I speak that which I have

5 Viz. to human nature.

6 A reference to Letter XCVIII. (from the Synod of Chalcedon
to Leo), chap. ii. shows that Dioscorus had threatened Leo with
excommunication ; excommujiicationem meditatus est centra it
qui corpus ecclesice tcnirefestinas.

7 This was of course Flavian. Quesnel quotes Liberatus the
deacon (chap. x. of the Breviary) as asserting that no sooner wns
Dioscorus made bishop of Alexandria than oppressit Cyrilh
heredes et per calumnias multas ab eis abstulit pecunias. His
accusers at Chalcedon charge him with being an Origenist, an
Arian, a murderer, an incendiary, and an evil liver generally

8 i S. John iii. 15. 9 S. Matt. xi. 29, 30.

LETTER CXX.

seen with My Father ; and ye do that which
ye have seen with your father I."

IV. Those who undertake to speak authorita-
tively on doctrine, must preserve the balance
between the extremes.

Accordingly while he strove to cut short
Flavian of blessed memory's life in the pre-
sent world, he has deprived himself of the
light of true life. While he tried to drive you
out of your churches, he has cut off himself
from fellowship with Christians. While he
drags and drives many into agreement with
error, he has stabbed his own soul with many
a wound, a solitary convicted offender beyond
all, and through all and for all, for he was the
cause of all men's being accused. But, al-
though, brother, you who are nurtured on
solid food, have little need of such reminders,
yet that we mny fulfil what belongs to our
position according to that utterance of the
Apostle who says, " Besides these things that
are without, that which presseth on me daily,
anxiety for all the churches. Who is weakened
and I am not weak ? Who is made to stumble
and I burn not2?" we believe this admoni-
tion ought to be given especially on the pre-
sent occasion, that whenever by the ministra-
tion of the Divine grace we either overwhelm
or cleanse those who are without, in the pool
of doctrine, we go not away in aught from
those rides of Faith which the Godhead of the
Holy Ghost brought forward at the Council
of Chalcedon, and weigh our words with
every caution so as to avoid the two extremes
of new false doctrine 3 : not any longer (God
forbid it) as if debating what is doubtful, but
with full authority laying down conclusions
already arrived at ; for in the letter which we
issued from the Apostolic See, and which has
been ratified by the assent of the entire holy
Synod, we know that so many divinely author-
ised witnesses are brought together, that no
one can entertain any further doubt, except one
jwho prefers to enwrap himself in the clouds
of error, and the proceedings of the Synod
whether those in which we read the formu-
lating of the definition of Faith, or those in
which the aforesaid letter of the Apostolic See
was zealously supported by you, brother, and
especially the address of the whole Council to
our most religious Princes, are corroborated
by the testimonies of so many fathers in the
past that they must persuade any one, however
anwise and stubborn his heart, so long as he
be not already joined with the devil in dam-
nation for his wickedness.

» S. John viii. 38. 2 2 Cor. xi. 28, 29.

3 Inter utrumqiie kostetn novella perfidite, sc. Nestorianism
rnd Eutychianism.

V. Theodorefs orthodoxy has been happily and
thoroughly vindicated.
Wherefore this, too, it is our duty to pro-
vide against the Church's enemies, that, as far
as in us lies, we leave them no occasion for
slandering us, nor yet, in acting against the
Nestorians or Eutychians, ever seem to have
retreated before the other side, but that we
shun and condemn both the enemies of Christ
in equal measure, so that whenever the interesis
of the hearers in any way require it, we may
with all promptitude and clearness strike down
them and their doctrines with the anathema
that they deserve, lest if we seem to do this
doubtfully or tardily, we be thought to act
against our will*. And although the facts
themselves are sufficient to remind your wis-
dom of this, yet now actual experience has
brought the lesson home. But blessed be our
God, whose invincible Truth has shown you
free from all taint of heresy in the judgment
of the Apostolic See 5. To whom you will
repay due thanks for all these labours, if you
keep yourself such a defender of the universal
Church as we have proved and do still prove
you. For that God has dispelled all calum-
nious fallacies, we attribute to the blessed
Peter's wondrous care of us all, for after sanc-
tioning the judgment of his See in defining
the Faith, he allowed no sinister imputation
to rest on any of you, who have laboured with
us for the catholic Faith : because the Holy
Spirit adjudged that no one could fail to come
out conqueror of those whose Faith had now
conquered.

VI. He asks Theodoret for his continued co-
operation, and refers him to a letter which
he has written to the bishop of Antioch.

It remains that we exhort you to con-
tinue your co-operation with the Apostolic
See, because we have learnt that some rem-
nants of the Eutychian and Nestorian error
still linger amongst you. For the victory
which Christ our Lord has vouchsafed to His
Church, although it increases our confidence,
does not yet entirely destroy our anxiety, nor
is it granted us to sleep but to work on more
calmly. Hence it is we wish to be assisted
in this too by your watchful care, that you

4 The Ballerinii remind us that all these allusions to keeping
the balance of Truth in this and the last chapter, and here to
acting promptissime et evidentissime were intended for Theo-
doret's especial benefit, who from his former defence of Nestorius
and attacks on Cyril had been suspected of the Nestorian taint,
but had expressly cleared himself at the Council of Chalcedon.
This explains the res ipsa and experimenta of the next sentence,
and the solemn adjuration of the sentence next but one.

5 See the Acts of Chalcedon 1, ingrediatur et reverendissimus
episcopus Theodoretus ut sit particeps synndi, quia et rejtituit
ei episcopatum sanctissimus archiepiscopus Leo, and 8, where the
judges ask for a verdict, "sicut et sanctissimus Leo archiepiscopus
iudicavit," to which the whole council replied Post JDeum Leo
iudicavit.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

hasten to inform the Apostolic See by your
periodic reports what progress the Lord's
teaching makes in those regions ; to the end
that we may assist the priests of that district
in whatever way experience suggests.

On those matters which were mooted in the
often-quoted council, in unlawful opposition to [
the venerable canons of Nicaea, we have written
to our brother and fellow-bishop, the occupant
of the See of Antioch 6, adding that too which
you had given us verbal information about
by your delegates with reference to the un-
scrupulousness of certain monks, and laying
down strict injunctions that no one, be he
monk 7 or layman, that boasts himself of some
knowledge, should presume to preach except
the Lord's priests. That letter, however, we
wish to reach all men's knowledge for 'the
benefit of the universal Church through our
aforesaid brother and fellow-bishop Maximus ;
and for that reason we have not thought fit
to add a copy of it to this ; because we have
no doubt of the due carrying out of our in-
junctions to our aforesaid brother and fellow-
bishop. (In another hand.) God keep thee
safe, beloved brother. Dated 1 1 June in the
consulship of the illustrious Opilio (453).

LETTERS CXXL and CXXII.

The former to Marcian Augustus, and
the other to julian the blshop.

Asking him for further inquiries and infor-
mation about the proper date for Easter in
455 ; cf. Letter LXXXVIII. chap. 4, above.

LETTER CXXIII.

To Eudocia Augusta8, about the Monks
of Palestine 9.

Leo, the bishop, to Eudocia Augusta.

I. A request that she should use her influence
with the monks of Palestine in reducing them
to order.

I do not doubt that your piety is aware how
great is my devotion to the catholic Faith,
and with what care I am bound, God helping
me, to guard against the Gospel of truth
being withstood at any time by ignorant
or disloyal men. And, therefore, after ex-
pressing to you my dutiful greetings which
your clemency is ever bound to receive at

6 This is Letter CXIX. to Maximus, bishop of Antioch

7 It must be remembered that monachns esse in those days
meant complete withdrawal from all active life in the world the
preaching orders being a much later institution. The Balle'rihii
suggest that it may have been a certain abbot Barsumas, who with
his followers is said (Act. Chalc. 4) totam Syriam commovisse.
See also Lett. CXIX., chap. vi.

8 See Letter CXVIL, chap, ill., n. 8.

9 See Letter CIX. above.

my hands, I entreat the Lord to gladden me
with the news of your safety, and to bring aid
evermore and more by your means to the
maintenance of that article of the Faith over
which the minds of certain monks within the
province of Palestine have been much dis-
turbed ; so that to the best of your pious zeal
all confidence in such heretical perversity may
be destroyed. For what but sheer destruction
was to be feared by men who were not moved
either by the principles of God's mysteries x,
or by the authority of the Scriptures, or by
the evidence of the sacred places themselves 2.
May it advantage then the Churches, as by
God's favour it does advantage them, and may
it advantage the human race itself which the
Word of God adopted at the Incarnation, that
you have conceived the wish to take up your
abode in that country 3 where the proofs of
His wondrous acts and the signs of His suffer-
ings speak to you of our Lord Jesus Christ
as not only true God but also true Man.

II. They are to be told that the catholic Faith
rejects both the Eu'ychian and the Nestorian
extremes. He wishes to be informed how far
she succeeds.

If then the aforesaid revere and love the
name of " catholic," and wish to be numbered
among the members of the Lord's body, let
them reject the crooked errors which in their
rashness they have committed, and let them
show penitence 4 for their wicked blasphemies
and deeds of bloodshed5. For the salvation
of their souls let them yield to the synodal
decrees which have been confirmed in the
city of Chalcedon. And because nothing but
true faith and quiet humility attains to the
understanding of the mystery of man's salva-
tion, let them believe what they read in the
Gospel, what they confess in the Creed, and
not mix themselves up with unsound doctrines.
For as the catholic Faith condemns Nestorius,
who dared to maintain two persons in our one
Lord Jesus Christ, so does it also condemn
Eutyches and Dioscorus 6 who deny that the

1 Ratio sacramentorutn, it cannot be too often lepeated that
to Leo am! other early Fathers, all nature, and all its phenomena, I
and all God's dealings with mankind are sacramenta. and capable
of a sacramental (i.e. higher, inner) interpretation : the particular
sacrameutum he is thinking of here is the Incarnation, which he 1
speaks of just below, as often elsewhere, as the sacrament inn
salutis humaiue (the sacrament or mystery whereby man is
saved).

2 Viz., the places in Palestine where these monks themselves
lived, which trustworthy history or tradition connects with the
various incidents in our Lord's life.

3 Eudocia had just made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

4 Agant poenitentiam : this is the regular and very expressive
translation in the Latin Versions and among the Fathers of the
Greek ^ravoelv.

5 They had seized Jerusalem, and deposed Juvenal, the
Bishop, setting up a partisan of their own in his stead.

6 Leo not infrequently joins these two together as equally
responsible (e.g. Lett. CIX. 3).

LETTER CXXIV.

true human flesh was assumed in the Virgin
Mother's womb by the only-begotten Word
of God.

If your exhortations have any success in
convincing these persons, which will win for
you eternal glory, I beseech your clemency
to inform me of it by letter ; that I may have
the joy of knowing that you have reaped the
fruit of your good work, and that they through
the Lord's mercy have not perished. Dated
the 15th of June, in the consulship of the
illustrious Opilio (453)-

LETTER CXXIV.

To the Monks of Palestine.

Leo, the bishop, to the whole body of
monks settled throughout Palestine.

I. They have possibly been misled by a ivrong
translation of his letter on the Incarnation to
Flavian.

The anxious care, which I owe to the
whole Church and to all its sons, has ascer-
tained from many sources that some offence
has been given to your minds, beloved, through
my interpreters ?, who being either ignorant, as
it appears, or malicious, have made you take
some of my statements in a different sense to
what I meant, not being capable of turning
the Latin into Greek with proper accuracy,
although in the explanation of subtle and
difficult matters, one who undertakes to dis-
cuss them can scarcely satisfy himself even in
his own tongue. And yet this has so far been
of advantage to me, that by your disapproving
of what the catholic Faith rejects, we know
you are greater friends to the true than to
the false : and that you quite properly refuse
to believe what I myself also abhor, in accord-
ance with ancient doctrine 8. For although my
letter addressed to bishop Flavian, of holy
memory, is of itself sufficiently explicit, and
stands in no need either of correction or ex-
planation, yet other of my writings harmonize
with that letter, and in them my position will
be found similarly set forth. For necessity
was laid upon me to argue against the. heretics
who have thrown many of Christ's peoples
into confusion, both before our most merciful
princes and the holy synodal Council, and the
church of Constantinople, and thus I have
laid down what we ought to think and feel on
the Incarnation of the Word according to the

7 It will be remembered that Leo himself knew not a word
of the language, which will account for his uncertainty, consequent
helplessness, and uneasiness in this and other cases where a
knowledge of the language would have served him in excellent
stead.

8 I.e. so much good at all events has come from your objection
that we know you are strongly opposed to Eutyches, at present
my own special abhorrence.

teaching of the Gospel and Apostles, and in
nothing have I departed from the creed of the
holy Fathers : because the Faith is one, true,
unique, catholic, and to it nothing can be
added, nothing taken away : though Nestorius
first, and now Eutyches, have endeavoured to
assail it from an opposite standpoint, but with
similar disloyalty, and have tried to impose on
the Church of God two contradictory heresies,
which has led to their both being deservedly
condemned by the disciples of the Truth ,
because the false view which they both held in
different ways was exceedingly mad and sacri-
legious.

II. Eutyches, who confounds the persons, is as
much to be rejected as JVestorius, who separates
them 9.

Nestorius, therefore, must be anathematized
for believing the Blessed Virgin Mary to be
mother of His manhood only, whereby he
made the person of His flesh one thing, and
that of His Godhead another, and did not
recognize the one Christ in the Word of God
and in the flesh, but spoke of the Son of
God as separate and distinct from the son
of man : although, without losing that un-
changeable essence which belongs to Him
together with the Father and the Holy Spirit
from all eternity and without respect of time,
the " Word became flesh " within the Virgin's
womb in such wise that by that one conception
and one parturition she was at the same time,
in virtue of the union of the two substances,
both handmaid and mother of the Lord.
This Elizabeth also knew, as Luke the evan-
gelist declares, when she said : " Whence is
this to me that the mother of my Lord should
come to me * ? " But Eutyches also must be
stricken with the same anathema, who,, be-
coming entangled in the treacherous errors of
the old heretics, has chosen the third dogma
of Apollinaris 2 : so that he denies the reality
of his human flesh and soul, and maintains
the whole of our Lord Jesus Christ to be of
one nature, as if the Godhead of the Word
had turned itself into flesh and soul : and as if
to be conceived and born, to be nursed and
grow, to be crucified and die, to be buried and
rise again, and to ascend into heaven and to
sit on the Father's right hand, from whence
He shall come to judge the living and the
dead — as if all those things belonged to that
essence only which admits of none of them

9 The whole of chap. ii. will be found repeated in Ep. clxv.
chap. ii. 1 Luke i. 43.

a Cf. Ep. xxii. chap. 3 " conahis—antiqua impii Valtnlini"
(the adherent of Apollinaris and head of one of the sections ol
Apollinsrians after his death) " et Apollinaris mala dogmata re-
novare." The third dogma of Apollinaris was that " Christ's man-
hood was formed out of a divine substance." Bright, 147.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

without the reality of the flesh : seeing that
the nature of the Only-begotten is the nature
of the Father, the nature of the Holy Spirit,
and that the undivided unity and consub-
stantial equality of the eternal Trinity is at
once impassible and unchangeable. But if3
this heretic withdraws from the perverse views
of Apollinaris, lest he be proved to hold that
the Godhead is passible4 and mortal : and yet
dares to pronounce the nature of the Incarnate
Word that is of the Word made Flesh one, he
undoubtedly crosses over into the mad view
of Manichaeus 5 and Marcion 6, and believes
that the man Jesus Christ, the mediator be-
tween God and men, did all things in an
unreal way, and had not a human body,
but that a phantom-like apparition presented
itself to the beholders' eyes.

III. The acknowledgment of 'our nature in Christ
is necessary to orthodoxy.

As these iniquitous lies were once rejected
by the catholic Faith, and such men's blas-
phemies condemned by the unanimous votes
of the blessed Fathers throughout the world,
whoever these are that are so blinded and
strange to the light of truth as to deny the
presence of human, that is our, nature in the
Word of God from the time of the Incarna-
tion, they must show on what ground they
claim the name of Christian, and in what wa\
they harmonize with the true Gospel, if the
child-bearing of the blessed Virgin produced
either the flesh without the Godhead or the
Godhead without the flesh. For as it cannot
be denied that "the Word became flesh and
dwelt in us 7," so it cannot be denied that
"God was in Christ, reconciling the world
to Himself8." But what reconciliation can
there be, whereby God might be propitiated
for the human race, unless the mediator be-
tween God and man took up the cause of all ?

3 Eutyches had expressly tried to guard himself against this
imputation: Ep. xxi. chap. 3, '■ anathemiitizans Apollinarinm
Valentinum, Manem et Nestorium, &c." See Bright's valuable
notes 32, 33, 34, and esp. 35, where he shows that " it was polemical
rhetoric to say that he was reviving Apollinarian or Valentinian
theories."

4 It must be clearly understood that this ugly word is here and
elsewhere employed to translate passibilis (naetiTot) for no reason
except the necessity of the case : pati and nd<rxei.v are both of fai
wider and broader signification than "suffer" or its synonyms:
they are simply the passive of/acere and n-oieii' (ffpao-o-etp) ami
there is no proper equivalent in ordinary English parlance. This
tendency of terms to become more and more narrow and ol
particular application is constantly meeting and baffling one in
translating the Latin and Greek languages.

5 Leo elsewhere also makes this hardly justifiable inference
that Eutychianism is a new form of Docetism as this view was
called ;_ chap. vi. below, and Serm. lxv. c. 4 " 'isli phantasmatici
Christian!, also xxvui. 4, and lxiv. 1, 2. That the Manichaeans
,naturally held Docetic views on the Incarnation is obv'ous when

we remember that their fundamental misconception was that matter
is identical with evil.

6 Marcion was the founder of one of the most formidable
Gnostic sects towards the close of the second century : Tertullian
wrote a famous treatise (still extant) against him. Like other
Gnostics, his views involved him in 1 >ocetism.

7 S. John i. 14. 8 2 Cor. v. 19.

And in what way could He properly fulfil His
mediation, unless He who in the form of God
was equal to the Father, were a sharer of our
nature also in the form of a slave : so that the
one new Man might effect a renewal of the
old : and the bond of death fastened on us by
one man's wrong-doing 9 might be loosened
by the death of the one Man who alone owed
nothing to death. For the pouring out of the
blood of the righteous on behalf of the un-
righteous was so powerful in its effect *, so
rich a ransom that, if the whole body of us
prisoners only believed in their Redeemer, not
one would be held in the tyrant's bonds : since
as the Apostle says, " where sin abounded,
grace also did much more abound2." And
since we, who were born under the imputa-
tion 3 of sin, have received the power of a
new birth unto righteousness, the gift of
liberty has become stronger than the debt of
slavery.

IV. They only benefit by the blood of Christ
who truly share in His death and resur-
rection.

What hope then do they, who deny the
reality of the human person in our Saviour's
body, leave for themselves in the efficacy of
this mystery? Let them say by what sacrifice
they have been reconciled, by what blood-
shedding brought back. Who is He " who
gave Himself for us an offering and a
victim to God for a sweet smell + :" or what
sacrifice was ever more hallowed than that
which the true High priest placed upon the
altar of the cross by the immolation of His
own flesh ? For although in the sight of the
Lord the death of many of His saints has
been precious s, yet no innocent's death was
the propitiation of the world. The righteous
have received, not given, crowns : and from
the endurance of the faithful have arisen ex-
amples of patience, not the gift of justification.
For their deaths affected themselves alone,
and no one has paid off another's debt by his
own death 6 : one alone among the sons of

9 Pr&varicatio : this is a legal term which is often used of sin
(esp. in connexion with Adam's transgression). Its original tech-
nical meaning is the action of an advocate who plays into the
enemy's hand. In theology the devil (6iaj3oAos) is man's adversary,
and man himself is befooled into collusion with him by breaking
God's law.

1 Potens ad privilegium : privileghim is another legal term
signifying technically a bill framed to meet an individual case
generally in a detrimental way, such bills being against the spirit
of the Roman law: here Leo uses it in a sense more nearly
approaching our English idea of " privilege."

8 Rom. v. 20.

3 Sub peccati preBhidicio: yet a third legal term: prcehidiciirm
in Roman law was a semi-formal and anticipatory verdict by the
judge before the case came on for final decision in court; in
chapter vi. we have the verb prceiudicare.

4 Eph. v. 2. S Cf. Ps. cxv. 5.

6 The idea of vicarious death was not unfamiliar to the Greeks
and Romans : e.g. Alkestis dying for her husband Admetos. and
the fairly numerous examples of "devotion" of Roman Generals
on the battlefield.

LETTER CXXIV.

men, our Lord Jesus Christ, stands out as One
in whom all are crucified, all dead, all buried,
all raised again. Of them He Himself said :
" when I am lifted from the earth, I will draw
all (things) unto Me?." True faith also, that
justifies the transgressors and makes them
just, is drawn to Him who shared their human
nature, and wins salvation in Him, in whom
alone man finds himself not guilty ; and thus is
free to glory in the power of Him who in the
humiliation of our flesh engaged in conflict
with the haughty foe, and shared His victory
with those in whose body He had triumphed.

V. The actions of Christ's two natures must be
kept distinct.

Although therefore in our one Lord Jesus
Christ, the true Son of God and man, the
person of the Word and of the flesh is one, and
both beings have their actions in common 8 :
yet we must understand the character of the
acts themselves, and by the contemplation of
sincere faith distinguish those to which the
humility of His weakness is brought from
those to which His sublime power is inclined :
what it is that the flesh without the Word or
the Word without the flesh does not do. For
instance, without the power of the Word the
Virgin would not have conceived nor brought
forth : and without the reality of the flesh His
infancy would not have laid wrapt in swaddling
clothes. Without the power of the Word the
Magi would not have adored the Child that a
new star had pointed out to them : and with-
out the reality of the flesh that Child would
not have been ordered to be carried away into
Egypt and withdrawn from Herod's perse-
cution. Without the power of the Word the
Father's voice uttered from the sky would not
have said, " This is My beloved Son, in whom
I am well pleased ° :" and without the reality of
the flesh John would not have been able to
point to Him and say : " Behold the Lamb of
God, behold Him that beareth away the sins
of the world '." Without the power of the
Word there would have been no restoring of
the sick to health, no raising of the dead to
life : and without the reality of the flesh He
would not have hungered and needed food,
nor grown weary and needed rest. Lastly,
without the power of the Word, the Lord
would not have professed Himself equal to
the Father, and without the reality of the
Mesh He would not also have said that the

1 S. John xii. 32, ovinia: with the Vulgate.

8 It is scarcely necessary to point out mat the old story of the
communicatio idiomatum' is here again discussed : cf. the Tome,

:hapters iv. and v.

9 S. Matt. iii. 17, and Bright's note 5.

1 S. John i. 29 : the repetition of the Ecee (behold) is in
ccordance with the old Latin version* : cf. Westcott in loc.

Father was greater than He : for the catholic
Faith upholds and defends both positions, be-
lieving the only Son of God to be both Man
and the Word according to the distinctive
properties of His divine and human substance.

VI. There is no confusion of the two natures in
Christ2.

Although therefore from that beginning
whereby in the Virgin's womb " the Word
became flesh," no sort of division ever arose
between the Divine and the human substance,
and through all the growth and changes of
His body, the actions were of one Person the
whole time, yet we do not by any mixing of
them up confound those very acts which were
done inseparably : and from the character of
the acts we perceive what belonged to either
form. For neither do His Divine acts affect 3
His human, nor His human acts His Divine,
since both concur in this way and to this very
end that in their operation His twofold quali-
ties be not absorbed the one by the other, nor
His individuality doubled. Therefore let those
Christian phantom-mongers •* tell us, what
nature of the Saviour's it was that was fast-
ened to the wood of the Cross, that lay in the
tomb, and that on the third day rose in the
flesh when the stone was rolled away from the
grave : or what kind of body Jesus presented
to His disciples' eyes entering when the doors
were shut upon them : seeing that to drive
away the beholders' disbelief, He required
them to inspect with their eyes and to handle
with their hands the still open prints of the
nails and the flesh wound of His pierced side.
But if in spite of the truth being so clear, their
persistence in heresy will not abandon their
position in the darkness, let them show whence
they promise themselves the hope of eternal
life, which no one can attain to, save through
the mediator between God and man, the man
Jesus Christ. For "there is not another name
given to men under heaven, in which they
must be saved s." Neither is there any ransom-
ing of men from captivity, save in His blood,
" who gave Himself a ransom for all 6 : " who,
as the blessed apostle proclaims, " when He
was in the form of God, thought it not robbery
that He was equal with God ; but emptied
Himself, receiving the form of a slave, Leing
made in the likeness of men, and being found
in fashion as a man He humbled Himself,
being made obedient even unto death, the
death of the cross. For which reason God

2 Considerable portions of this chapter are found repeated word
for word in Sermon LXIV. chap. i. and iv.

3 Lat. prce indicant , see note 3 to chap, iii., above.

4 Isti phantasmatici Ckristiani, cf. note 5, above.

5 Acts iv. 12. 6 1 Tim. ii. 6.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

also exalted Him, and gave Him a name
which is above every name : that in the name
of Jesus every knee may bow of things in
heaven, of things on the earth, and of things
under the earth, and that every tongue may
confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the
glory of God the Father 7."

VII. // was as being " in form of a slave" not
as Son of God that He was exalted.

8 Although therefore the Lord Jesus Christ is
one, and the true Godhead and true Manhood
in Him forms absolutely one and the same
person, and the entirety of this union cannot
be separated by any division, yet the exalta-
tion wherewith "God exalted Him," and
" gave Him a name which excels every name,"
we understand to belong to that form which
needed to be enriched by this increase of
glory 9. Of course " in the form of God" the
Son was equal to the Father, and between the
Father and the Only-begotten there was no
distinction in point of essence, no diversity in
point of majesty : nor through the mystery x of
the Incarnation had the Word been deprived
of anything which should be restored Him by
the Father's gift. But " the form of a slave "
by which the impassible Godhead fulfilled
a pledge of mighty loving-kindness 2, is human
weakness which was lifted up into the glory of
the divine power, the Godhead and the man-
hood being right from the Virgin's conception
so completely united that without the manhood
the divine acts, and without the Godhead the
human acts were not performed. For which
reason as the Lord of majesty is said to have
been crucified, so He who from eternity is
equal with God is said to have been exalted.
Nor does it matter by which substance Christ
is spoken of, since the unity of His person in-
separably remaining He is at once both wholly
Son of man according to the flesh and wholly
Son of God according to His Godhead, which
is one with the Father. Whatever therefore
Christ received in time, He received in virtue
of His manhood, on which are conferred what-
soever it had not. For according to the power
of the Word, "all things that the Father hath "
the Son also hath indiscriminately, and what
" in the form of a slave " He received from the
Father, He also Himself gave in the form of
the Father. He is in Himself at once both

7 Phil. ii. 6— II.

8 The whole of this chapter is repeated with slight variations
in his letter (CLXV.) to Leo the Emperor (chaps. 8 and 9).

9 Quce ditanda erat tantee glorificationis augmento ace. to
Leo's use of the gerundive, see Tome, chap. i. quod . . . omnium
regenertindorum voce depromitur.

1 Here the word is actually mysterium, not, as usual, sacra-
ment ton.

2 Sacramentum magna pietatis, 1 Tim. iii. 16: cf. Bright's
note 8.

rich and poor; rich, because "in the begin-
ning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and God was the Word. This was in
the beginning with God. All things were
made through Him, and without Him was
made nothing:" and poor because "the Word
became flesh and dwelt in us 3." But what is
that emptying of Himself, or that poverty
except the receiving of the form of a slave by
which the majesty of the Word was veiled,
and the scheme for man's redemption carried
out ? For as the original chains of our captivity
could not be loosed, unless a man of our race
and of our nature appeared who was not under
the prejudice of the old debt, and who with his
untainted blood might blot out the bond of
death «, as it had from the beginning been
divinely fore-ordained, so it came to pass in
the fulness of the appointed time that the
promise which had been proclaimed in many
ways might reach its long expected fulfilment,
and that thus, what had been frequently an-
nounced by one testimony after another, might
have all doubtfulness removed.

VIII. A protest against their faithlessness and
inconsistency in this matter.

And so, as all these heresies have been
destroyed, which through the holy devotion
of the presiding Fathers have been cut off
from the body of the catholic unity, and which
deserved to be exiles from Christ, because
they have made the Incarnation of the Word,
which is the one salvation of those who believe
aright, a stone of offence and a stumbling-
block to themselves, I am surprised that you,
beloved, have any difficulty in discerning the
li^ht of the Truth. And since it has been
made clear by numerous explanations that the
Christian Faith was right in condemning both
Nestorius and Eutyches with Dioscorus, andi
that a man cannot be called a Christian who;
gives his assent to the blasphemous opinion
of either the one or the other, I am grieved]
that you are, as I hear, doing despite to
the teaching of the Gospel and the Apostles
by stirring up the various bodies of citizens
with seditions, by disturbing the churches, and
by inflicting not only insults, but even death,!
upon priests and bishops, so that you lose
sight of your resolves and profession s through
your fury and cruelty. Where is your rule ol
meekness and quietness ? where is the long-
suffering of patience? where the tranquillity ol
peace ? where the firm foundation of love and
courage of endurance? what evil persuasion
has carried you off, what persecution has

3 S. John i. i — 3, 14. * The reference is to Col. ii. 14.

5 Viz. as monks as well as baptized members of the church.

LETTER CXXIX

separated you from the gospel of Christ ? or
what strange craftiness of the Deceiver has
shown itself that, forgetting the prophets and
apostles, forgetting the health-giving creed and
confession which you pronounced before manv
witnesses when you received the sacrament of
baptism you should give yourselves up to the
the Devil's deceits? what effect would "the
Claws6" and other cruel tortures have had
on you if the empty comments of heretics have
had so much weight in taking the purity of
your faith by storm ? you think you are acting
for the Faith and yet you go against the Faith.
You arm yourselves in the name of the
Church and yet fight against the Church. Is
this what you have learnt from prophets, evan-
gelists, and apostles? to deny the true flesh
of Christ, to subject the very essence of the
Word to suffering and death, to make our
nature different from His who repaired it, and
to reckon all that the cross uplifted, that the
spear pierced, that the stone on the tomb
\ received and gave back, to be only the work
! of Divine power, and not also of human hu-
mility? It is in reference to this humility that
the Apostle says, " For I do not blush for the
Gospel 7," inasmuch as he knew what a slur
was cast upon Christians by their enemies.
And, therefore, the Lord also made proclama-
tion, saying: "he that shall confess Me before
men him will I also confess before My
Father8." For these will not be worthy of
the Son and the Father's acknowledgment in
whom the flesh of Chiist awakens no respect :
and they will prove themselves to have gained
no virtue from the sign of the cross 9 who
blush to avow with their lips what they have
consented to bear upon their brows.

IX. An exhortation to accept the catholic view
of the Incarnation.

Give up, my sons, give up these suggestions
pf the devil. God's Truth nothing can impair,
!Dut the Truth does not save us except in our
lesh. For, as the prophet says, " truth is
;prung out of the earth I," and the Virgin
Vlary conceived the Word in such wise that
he ministered flesh of her substance to be
inited to Him without the addition of a second
>erson, and without the disappearance of her
iature : seeing that He who was in the form
>f God took the form of a slave in such wise
hat Christ is one and the same in both forms :
iOD bending Himself to the weak things of
lan, and man rising up to the high things of

' The Unguis (Claws) were among the numerous instruments
th which Christians were tortured : cf. Tert. Apol. xii. 57,
'gttiis deraditis latent cliristianorum ; Cypr. de la/sis chap.
li. (cum) ungula effodeiet, caro me in colluctatione deseruit.

1 Rom. i. 16. 8 S. Matt. x. 33. 9 Viz. in Baptism.

■ Ps. lxxxv. 12.

the Godhead, as the Apostle says, " whose are
the fathers, and from whom, according to the
flesh is Christ, who is above all things God
blessed for ever. Amen 2."

LETTER CXXV.

To Julian, the Bishop, by Count
Rodanus.

(Asking him to write quickly, and not keep
him in suspense.)

LETTER CXXVI.

To Marcian Augustus.

(Congratulating him on the restoration of
peace in Palestine.)

LETTER CXXVI I.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

(About (1) affairs in Palestine, (2) a letter
from Proterius, (3) the date of Easter, (4) his
reply to the Synod of Chalcedon, (5) the
deposition of Aetius.)

LETTER CXXVII.

To Marcian Augustus.
(Professing readiness to be reconciled to
Anatolius if he will abide by the canons and
not infringe the prerogatives of others.)

LETTER CXXIX.

To Proterius, Bishop of Alexandria.

Leo to Proterius, bishop of Alexandria.

I. He commends his persistent loyalty to the

Faith.

Your letter, beloved, which our brother
and fellow-bishop Nestorius duly brought us,
has caused me great joy. For it was seemly
that such an epistle should be sent by the
head of the church of Alexandria to the
Apostolic See, as showed that the Egyptians
had from the first learnt from the teaching
of the most blessed Apostle Peter through his
blessed disciple Mark 3, that which it is agreed
the Romans' have believed, that beside the
Lord Jesus Christ " there is no other name
given to men under heaven, in which they
must be saved ♦." But because "all men
have not faiths" and the crafty Tempter
never delights so much in wounding the hearts
of men as when he can poison their unwary
minds with errors that are opposed to Gospel
Truth, we must strive by the mighty teaching
of the Holy Ghost to prevent Christian know-

8 Rom. ix. 5.

3 S. Mark was the reputed founder of the church of Alexandria.
Cf. Letter IX. chap. i. 4 Acts iv. 12. 5 2 Thess. iii. 2.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

ledge from being perverted by the devil's
falsehoods. And against this danger it be-
hoves the rulers of the churches especially
to guard and to avert from the minds of
simple folk lies which are coloured by a cer-
tain show of truth 6. " For narrow and steep
is the way which leads to life 7." And they
seek to entrap men not so much b ■ watching
their actions as by nice distinctions of meaning,
corrupting the force of sentences by some very
slight addition or alteration, whereby some-
times a statement, which made for salvation,
by a subtle change is turned to destruction.
But since the Apostle says, "there must be
heresies, that they which are approved may
be made manifest among you 8," it tends to
the progress of the whole Church, that, when-
ever wickedness reveals itself in setting forth
wrong opinions, the things which are harmful
be not concealed, and that what will inevitably
end in ruin may not injure the innocence
of others. Wherefore they must put down
their blind wanderings and downfalls to them-
selves, who with rash obstinacy prefer to glory
in their shame than to accept the offered
remedy. You do right, brother, to be dis-
pleased at their stubbornness, and we commend
you for holding fast that teaching which has
come down to us from the blessed Apostles
and the holy Fathers.

II. Let him fortify the faithful by the public
reading aloud of (/notations from the Fathers
bearing on the question and of the Tome.
For there is no new preaching in the letter,
which I wrote in reply to Flavian of holy
memory, when he consulted me about the
Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ ; for in
nothing did I depart from that rule of Faith
which was outspokenly maintained by your
ancestors and ours. And if Dioscorus had
been willing to follow and imitate them, he
would have abided in the Body of Christ,
having in the works of Athanasius9 of blessed
memory the materials for instruction, and in
the discourses of Theophilus? and Cyril 9 of
holy remembrance the means rather of praise-
worthily opposing the already condemned
dogma than of choosing to consort with
Eutyches in his blasphemy. This therefore,
beloved brother, I advise in my anxiety for
our common Faith that, because the enemies
of Christ's cross lie in watch for all our words
and syllables, we give them not the slightest
occasion for falsely asserting that we agree

6 See chap. ii. and more particularly Lett. CXXX. chap. 3
from which it is evident that the Eutychians had sought to foist
upon certain passages in the Tome a Nestorian interpretation.

7 S. Matt. vii. 14. 8 , Cor. xi. 19.

9 Who as he himself says in the next letter, eidem ecclesia
firtrfnerunt (CXXX. ii.).

with the Nestorian doctrine. And you must
so diligently exhort the laity and clergy and
all the brotherhood to advance in the Faith as
to show that you teach nothing new but instil
into all men's breasts those things, which the
Fathers of revered memory have with harmony
of statement taught, and with which in all
things our epistle agrees. And this must be
shown not only by your words but also by the
actually reading aloud of previous statements,
that God's people may know that what the
Fathers received from their predecessors and
handed on to their descendants, is still in-
stilled into them in the present day. And to
this end, when the statements of the aforesaid
priests have first been read, then lastly let my
writings also be recited, that the ears of the
faithful may attest that we preach nothing else
than what we received from our forefathers.
And because their understandings are but little
practised in discerning these things, let them
at least learn from the letters of the Fathers,
how ancient this evil is, which is now con-
demned by us in Nestorius as well as in
Eutyches, who have both been ashamed to
preach the gospel of Christ according to the
Lord's own teaching.

III. The ancient precedents are to be main-
tained throughout.

Accordingly, both in the rule of Faith and
in the observance of discipline, let the standard i
of antiquity be maintained throughout, and do;
thou, beloved, display the firmness of a pru-
dent ruler, that the church of Alexandria may
get the benefit of my earnest resistance to the
unprincipled ambition of certain people in
maintaining its ancient privileges, and of my
determination that all metropolitans should
retain their dignity undiminished, as you will
ascertain from the tenor of my letters, which
I have addressed, whether to the holy Synod
or to the most Christian Emperor, or to the Bi
shop of Constantinople; for you will perceive
that I have made it my special care to allow nc
deviation from the rule of Faith in the Lord-
churches, nor any diminution of their pn
vileges through any individual's unscrupulous
ness. And as this is so, hold fast, brother, td
the custom of your predecessors, and keep du«'
authority over your comprovincial bishops:
who by ancient constitution are subject to th
See of Alexandria ; so that they resist no
ecclesiastical usage, and refuse not to mee
together under your presidency, either at fixe*
times or when any reasonable cause demand
it : and that if anything has to be discussed i
a general meeting which will be to the benef
of the Church, when the brethren have thu
met together, they may unanimously come t

LETTER CXXXIX.

some resolution thereupon. For there is no-
thing which ought to recall them from this
obedience, seeing that both for faith and con-
duct we have such good knowledge of you,
brother, that we will not allow you to lose any
of your predecessor's authority, nor to be
slighted with impunity. Dated March ioth,
in the consulship of the illustrious Aetius and
Studius (454).

LETTER CXXX.

To Marcian Augustus.

(Praising the orthodoxy of Proterius, advo-
cating the public recital by him of passages
bearing on the present controversy from the
writings of Athanasius and others, and also of
the Tome itself in a new Greek translation.)

LETTER CXXXI.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

(Telling him he has received Proterius'
letter, and asking for (1) a new Greek trans-
lation of the Tome ; (2) a report on the Easter
difficulty of the next year (455) ).

LETTER CXXXII.

From Anatolius, Bishop of Constanti-
nople, to Leo.

(In which he complains of the intermission
in their correspondence, maintains his alle-
giance to Rome, announces the restitution of
Aetius, deprecates the charge of personal am-
bition, and remits the proceedings of Chal-
cedon for his approval.)

LETTER CXXXIII.

From Proterius, Bishop of Alexandria,
to Leo.

(Upon the Easter difficulty of 455.)

LETTER CXXXIV.

To Marcian Augustus.

(Suggesting that Eutyches should be ban-
ished to a still remoter place, where he cannot
do so much harm by his false teaching.)

LETTER CXXXV.
To Anatolius.
(In answer to CXXXII.)

LETTER CXXXVII.

TO THE SAME, AND ON THE SAME DAY.

(On the subject of Easter, acknowledging
the trouble Proterius has taken, — to which is
joined a request that the accounts of the
aconomi1 should be audited by priests, not lay
persons.)

LETTER CXXXVIII.

To the Bishops of Gaul and Spain.

(On Easter.)

LETTER CXXXIX.

To Juvenal, Bishop of Jerusalem.

Leo, bishop of the city of Rome, to Ju-
venal, bishop of Jerusalem.

I. He rejoices over Juvenal's return to ortho-
doxy, though chiding him for having gone
astray.

When I received your letter, beloved, which
our sons Andrew the presbyter and Peter the
deacon brought me, I rejoiced indeed that
you had been allowed to return to the seat of
your bishopric ; but when all the reasons came
to my remembrance, which brought you into
such excessive troubles, I grieved to think
you had been yourself the source of your
adversities by failing in persistency of oppo-
sition to the heretics : for men can but think
you were not bold enough to refute those
with whom when in error you professed
yourself satisfied. For the condemnation of
Flavian of blessed memory, and the ac-
ceptance of the most unholy Eutyches, what
was it but the denial of our Lord Jesus
Christ according to the flesh ? which He
Himself of His great mercy caused to be
overthrown, when by the authority of the
holy Council of Chalcedon He brought to
nought that accursed judgment of the Synod
of Ephesus without debarring any of the
attainted from being healed by correction.
And therefore, because in the time of long-
suffering, you have chosen return to wisdom
rather than persistency in folly, I rejoice that
you have so sought the heavenly remedies as
at last to have become a defender of the
Faith which is assailed by heretics. For,
though no priest ought to be ignorant of that
which he preaches 2, yet any Christian living
at Jerusalem is more inexcusable than all the

LETTER CXXXVI.
To Marcian Augustus.

(Simultaneously with CXXXV., on the sub-
ect of his reconciliation with Anatolius.)
vol. xii. h

1 CEconomi (stewards) were officers appointed to manage the
revenues of each diocese under the bishops' direction, when the
bishops and their archdeacons had enough to do otherwise : cf.
Bingham, Antiq., Bk. III. chap. xii.

2 Quod pr&dicat, some MSS. quid prtzdicat (what to preach):
some also add quoniam qui ignorat, ignorabitur (from i Cor. xiv.
38).

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

ignorant, seeing that he is taught to under-
stand the power of the Gospel, not only by
the written word but by the witness of the
places themselves, and what elsewhere may
not be disbelieved, cannot there remain un-
seen. Why is the understanding in difficulty,
where the eyes are its instructors? And why
are things read or heard doubtful, where all
the mysteries of man's salvation obtrude them-
selves upon the sight and touch ? As if to
each individual doubter the Lord still used
His human voice and said, why are "ye dis-
turbed and why do thoughts arise into your
hearts ? see My hands and My feet that it is
I myself. Handle Me and see because (or
that) a spirit hath not bones and flesh, as ye
see Me have V

II. Let him be strengthened in his faith by
the holy associations of the place where he
lives.

Make use, therefore, beloved brother, of
these incontrovertible proofs of the catholic
Faith and support the preaching of the Evan-
gelists by the testimony of the holy places in
which you live. In your country is Bethlehem,
in which the Light of Salvation sprang from
the womb of the Virgin of the house of David 4,
whom wrapped in sv\ addling clothes the manger
of the crowded inn received. In your country
was the Saviour's infancy announced by angels,
adored by magi, sought by Herod through
the death of many infants. In your country
was it that His boyhood grew, His youth
ripened, and His true man's nature reached
to perfect manhood by the increase of the
body, not without food for hunger, not with-
out sleep for rest, not without tears of pity,
not without fear and dread : for He is one
and the same Person, who in the form of God
wrought great miracles of power, and in the
form of a slave underwent the cruelty of the
passion. This the very cross unceasingly says
to you : this the stone of the sepulchre cries
out, under which the Lord in human con-
dition lay, and from which by Divine power
He rose. And when you approach the mount
of Olivet, to venerate the place of the Ascen-
sion, does not the angel's voice ring in your
ears, which says to those who were dumb-
founded at the Lord's uplifting, "ye men
of Galilee, why stand ye gazing into heaven?
this Jesus, Who was taken up from you into
heaven, shall so come, as ye saw Him going
into heaven5."

3 S. Luke xxiv. 38, 39.

4 Salutifer Davidicce Virgiriis partus illuxit.

S Acts i. 11.

III. The facts of the Gospel attest the
Incarnation.
The true birth of Christ, therefore, is con-
firmed by the true cross ; since He is Himself
born in our flesh, Who is crucified in our
flesh, which, as no sin entered into it, could
not have been mortal, unless it had been that
of our race. But in order that He might
restore life to all, He undertook the cause of
all and rendered void the force of the old
bond, by paying it for all, because He alone
of us all did not owe it : that, as by one man's
guilt all had become sinners, so by one man's
innocence all might become innocent, right-
eousness being bestowed upon men by Him
Who had undertaken man's nature. For in
no way is He outside our true bodily nature,
of Whom the Evangelist in beginning his
story says, " the book of the generation of
Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of
Abraham6," with which the blessed Apostle
Paul's teaching agrees, when he says " whose
are the fathers and of whom is Christ accord-
ing to the flesh, Who is above all God blessed
for ever 7," and so to Timothy " remember," he
says, "that Jesus Christ has risen from the dead,
of the seed of David V

IV. Those who are still in error must be
thoroughly instructed in the historic Faith.

But how many are the authorities, both in
the New and Old Testaments, by which this
truth is declared, as befits the antiquity of
your See, you clearly understand, seeing that
the belief of the Fathers and my letter written
to Flavian, of holy memory, of which you
yourself made mention, confirmed, as they
have been, by the universal synod, are suffi-
cient for you. And therefore it behoves you,
beloved, to take heed that no one raise a
murmur against the unspeakable mystery of
our Redemption and Hope. But if there are
any who are still in the darkness of ignorance
or the discord of perversity, let them be in-
structed by the authority of those whose doc-
trine in God's Church was apostolical and
clear, that they may recognize that on the
Incarnation of God's Word we believe what
they did, and may not by their obstinacy place
themselves outside the Body of Christ, in
which we died and rose with Him : because
neither loyalty to the Faith nor the plan of
the mystery admits that either the Godhead
should be passible in its own essence, or the
reality be falsified in His taking on Him of our
flesh. Dated 4th September, in the consulship
of the illustrious Aetius and Studius (454).

« S. Matt.

7 Rom. ix. S.

8 1 Tim. ii. 8.

LETTER CLVI.

LETTER CXL.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

(Now that Dioscorus is dead, the peace of
the Church will be more easily restored.)

LETTER CXLI.

To the same.
(On several minor points of detail.)

LETTER CXLI I.

To Marcian Augustus.

{Inter alia thanking him for the trouble he
has taken about the Easter of 455.)

LETTER CXLIII.

To Anatoljus, Bishop of Constantinople.

(Briefly asking him to extirpate all remains
of heresy.)

LETTER CXLIV.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

(Speaking of rumours which have reached
him of disturbances at Alexandria, and begging
of him to be on the alert.)

LETTER CXLV.

To Leo Augustus'.

(Asking him to help the church of Alex-
andria in appointing a good bishop in place
of the murdered Proterius x.)

LETTER CXLVI.

To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople.

(Begging him to take precautions lest the
change of Emperor should be made the oc-
casion for fresh outbreaks of heresy.)

LETTER CXLVII.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos, and Aetius,
the Presbyter.

(Charging him to uphold the acts of Chal-
cedon, and to help in choosing a good suc-
cessor to Proterius.)

LETTER CXLVIII.

To Leo Augustus.

(Thanking him for assurances made that he
would guard the interests of the Church.)

LETTER CXLIX.

To Basil, Bishop of Antioch.

(Asking him to give no countenance to the
demand for a new Synod.)

9 Marcian died in 457, and was succeeded by Leo of Thrace.

1 On Marcian's death, there had been a rising, in which Pro-
erius had been brutally murdered, and a monk named Timothy
Elurus set up in his stead.

LETTER CL.

To Euxitheus, Bishop of Thessalonica
(and others).

(To the same effect.)

LETTER CLI.

To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople.

(He is to keep the church of Constantinople
free from all heresy.)

LETTER CLII.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

(Charging him to see that the preceding
letters reach their destination.)

LETTER CLIII.

To Aetius, Presbyter of Constantinople.

(Asking him to assist in the distribution of
these letters.)

LETTER CLIV.
To the Egyptian Bishops.
(See Letter CLVIII.)

LETTER CLV.

To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople.

(In which he incites him to watchfulness,
and complains that certain of the clergy in
Constantinople are in collusion with the ad-
versary.)

LETTER CLVI.
To Leo Augustus.
Leo, the bishop, to Leo Augustus.

I. There is no need to open the question of
doctrine again now.

Your clemency's letter, which was full of
vigorous faith and of the light of truth, I have
respectfully received, which I wish I could
obey, even in the matter of my personal
attendance, which your Majesty thinks neces-
sary ; for then I should gain the greater ad-
vantage from the sight of your splendour.
But I believe you will approve of my view
when reason has shown it preferable. For
since with holy and spiritual zeal you con-
sistently maintain the Church's peace, and
nothing is more conducive to the defence of
the Faith than to adhere to those things which
have been incontrovertibly defined under the
unceasing guidance of the Holy Spirit, we
shall seem2 to be doing our best to upset

a i.e. by carrying out your plan. The appeal to tiie Emperor's
orthodoxy must be regarded as diplomatic rather than accurate:
for Leo was the nominee of Arianism, if not himself an Arian.

H 2

IOO

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the decrees, and at the bidding of a heretic's
petition to overthrow the authorities which the
universal Church has adopted, and thus to
remove all limits from the conflicts of Churches,
and giving full rein to rebellion, to extend
rather than appease contentions. And hence
because after the disgraceful scenes at the
synod of Ephesus, whereat through the wick-
edness of Dioscorus the catholic Faith was
rejected, and Eutyches' heresy accepted, no-
thing more useful could be devised for the
preservation of the Christian Faith than that
the holy Synod of Chalcedon should rescind
his wicked acts, and that such care should be
bestowed thereat on heavenly doctrine, that
nothing should linger in any one's mind in
disagreement with the utterances of either the
Prophets or the Apostles, such moderation of
course being observed that only the persistent
rebels should be cast off from the unity of the
Church, and no one who was penitent should
be denied pardon, what more in accordance
with men's expectations or with religion will
your Majesty be able to decree, than that no
one henceforth be permitted to attack what
has been determined by decrees which are
Divine rather than human, lest they be truly
worthy but to lose God's gift, who have dared
to doubt concerning His Truth ?

II. The proposal to reconsider the question pro-
ceeds frotn antichrist or the devil himself.

Since, therefore, the universal Church has
become a rock (petra) through the building
up of that original Rock 3, and the first of the
Apostles, the most blessed Peter, heard the
voice of the Lord saying, " Thou art Peter,
and upon this rock {petra) I will build My
Church 4," who is there who dare assail such
impregnable strength, unless he be either
antichrist or the devil, who, abiding uncon-
verted in his wickedness, is anxious to sow
lies by the vessels of wrath which are suited
to his treachery, whilst under the false name
of diligence he pretends to be in search of the
Truth. And his unrestrained madness and
blind wickedness has deservedly brought con-
tempt and disrepute on himself, so that while
he rages against the holy church of Alexandria
with diabolical purpose, men may learn the
character of those who desire to reconsider
the Synod of Chalcedon. For it cannot pos-
sibly have been that an opinion was there
expressed contrary to the holy Synod of
Nicsea, as the heretics falsely maintain, who
pretend that they hold the faith of the Nicene
Council, in which our holy and venerable

fathers, being assembled against Arius, af-
firmed not that the Lord's Flesh, but that the
Son's Godhead was homoousioti with the Father,
whereas in the Council of Chalcedon against
the blasphemy of Eutyches, it was defined that
the Lord Jesus Christ took the reality of our
body from the substance of the Virgin-mother.

III. All the bishops of Christendom agree with
him in this.
Therefore in addressing our most Christian
Emperor, who is worthy to be classed among
the champions of Christ, I use the freedom of
the catholic Faith and fearlessly exhort you to
throw in your lot with Apostles and Prophets ;
firmly to despise and reject those who have
deprived themselves of their Christian name,
and not to let blasphemous parricides, who,
it is agreed, wish to annul the Faith, discuss
that Faith under treacherous pretexts. For
since the Lord has enriched your clemency
with such insight into His mystery, you ought
unhesitatingly to consider that the kingly
power has been conferred on you not for the
governance of the world alone but more
especially for the guardianship of the Church :
that by quelling wicked attempts you may
both defend that which has been rightly
decreed, and restore true peace where there
has been disturbance, that is to say by depos-
ing usurpers s of the rights of others and re-
instating the ancient Faith in the See of
Alexandria, that by your reforms God's wrath
may be appeased, and so He take not ven-
geance for their doings on a people hitherto
religious, but forgive them. Set before the
eyes of your heart, venerable Emperor, the
fact that all the Lord's priests which are in
all the world, are beseeching you on behalf of
that Faith, wherein is Redemption for the
whole world. In which those maintainers
of the Apostolic Faith more particularly appeal
to you who have presided over the Church of
Alexandria, entreating your Majesty not to
allow heretics who have rightfully been con-
demned for their perversity, to continue in
their usurpation 6 ; for, whether you look at
the wickedness of their error or consider the
deed which their madness has perpetrated,
not only are they unable to be admitted to the
dignity of the priesthood, but they even deserve
to be cut off from the name of Christian.
For — and I entreat your Majesty's forgiveness
for saying so — they to some extent dim your
own splendour, most glorious Emperor, when
such treacherous parricides dare to ask for

3 Per iilius principalis petra <edi_ficationem : here petra is
apparently Christ Himself, cf. Letter XXVIII. chap. 5, and
Bright's n. 64. 4 S. Matt. xvi. 18.

5 Sc. Timothy ^lurus.

6 Pervasione, others read persuasione (false opinion).

LETTER CLVI.

101

that which even the guiltless could not law-
fully obtain.

IV. The difference behveen the two petitions
which have been presented to the Emperor.

Petitions have been presented to your
Majesty?, copies of which you subjoined to
your letter. But in that which comes in de-
precation from the catholics, a list of signatures
is contained : and because their case had
good reason in it, the names of individuals,
and even their dignified rank is confidently
disclosed. But in that, which heretical intru-
sion has not feared to offer to our orthodox
Emperor under the vague sanction of a motley
body, all particular names are withheld for this
reason, lest not only the paucity of members
but also their worth might be discovered.
For they think it expedient to conceal their
number, though their quality is indicated, and
not improperly they are afraid to proclaim
their position, seeing that they deserve to be
condemned. In the one document therefore
is contained the petition of catholics, in the
other the fictions of heretics are set forth.
Here the overthrow of the Lord's priests, of
the whole Christian people, and of the
monasteries is bemoaned : there is displayed
the continuance of gigantic wrongs, so that
what ought never to have been heard of8
is allowed to be widely extended.

V. // is a great opportunity for the Emperor

to show his faith.

Is it not clear which side you ought to sup-
port and which to oppose, if the Church of
Alexandria, which has always been the "house
of prayer," is not now to be "a den of rob-
bers 8a ? " For surely it is manifest that through
the cruellest and maddest savagery all the
light of the heavenly mysteries is extinguished.
The offering of the sacrifice is cut off, the
hallowing of the chrism has failed 9, and from
the murderous hands of wicked men all the
mysteries have withdrawn themselves. Nor
can there be any manner of doubt what decree
ought to be passed on these men, who after
unutterable acts of sacrilege, after shedding
the blood of a most highly reputed priest, and

7 These had come, one from either side, as the sequel shows :
lhat oi the catholics was signed by fourteen bishops, four pres-
byters, and two deacons (Ball.).

8 Attdiri: others auderi (to have been ventured on).
8a S. Luke xi.x. 46.

9 Cf. Serm. LXVl. chap. 2, nobiscum est signaculum circum-
cisiouis, sanctificatio chi ismatum, consecratio saceraotum : see
Blight's n. go, trom which we learn that "this chrism was that
which, from the second century, had beenadministered in connection
with Confirmation." This rite, which had at first been part ot the
Baptism itself, was now apparently pcr.ormed at a shorter or longer
interval after Baptism according to the convenience of the Bishop :
ci. Serm. LXXV1I. 1.

scattering the ashes of his burnt body to be
the sport of the winds of heaven, dare to
demand for themselves the rights of a usurped
dignity and to arraign before councils the
inviolable Faith of the Apostolic teaching.
Great, therefore, is the opportunity for you
to add to your diadem from the Lord's hand
the crown of failh also, and to triumph over
the Church's foes : for, if it be matter of praise
to you to vanquish the armies of opposing
nations, how great will be the glory of freeing
from its mad tyrant the church of Alexandria,
the affliction of which is an injury to all
Christians?

VI. H? promises more detailed statements on
the Faith subsequently, and begs him to correct
certain things in which Anatolius is remiss.

But in order that my correspondence may
have the effect on your Majesty of a mouth to
mouth colloquy, I have seen that whatever
suggestions I would make about our common
Faith, must be conveyed in subsequent com-
munications1. And lest the pages of this
epistle reach too great a length, I have com-
prised in another letter what is agreeable to
the maintenance of the catholic Faith, in
order that, though the published statements of
the Apostolic See were sufficient, yet these
additional statements might also break down
the snares of the heretics. For your Majesty's
priestly and Apostolic mind ought to be still
further kindled to righteous vengeance by this
pestilential evil, which mars the purity of the
church of Constantinople, in which are found
certain clerics, who agree with the interpreta-
tions of the heretics and within the very heart
of the Church assist them by their support 2.
In removing whom if my brother Anatolius is
found remiss through too good-natured leniency,
vouchsafe to show your laith by administering
this remedy also to the Church, that such men
be driven not only from the ranks of the clergy,
but also from dwelling in the city. I commend
to you your Majesty's loyal subjects, bishop
Julian and presbyter Aetius, with a request
that you will deign to listen quietly to their
suggestions in defence of the catholic Faith,
because they are in good truth men who may
be found helpful to your faith in all things.
Dated the ist of Dec. in the consulship of the
illustrious Constantine and Rufus (457).

« Viz. Letters CLXIL, CLXIV., and esp. CLXV. (which last
is in a large measuie a rescription of Letter CXXIV. q.v.).

2 Two of these are mentioned by name subsequently, e.g. in
Lett. CLVII. (to Anatolius), chap 4, viz. Atticus a presbyter,
and Andrew, in which chapter he blames Anatolius severely fot
his double-dealing (cogor vehementius de tua dissimulatione
causari, etc.).

102

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

LETTER CLVII.

To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople.

(Urging him to active measures in certain
specified matters.)

LETTER CLVIII3.
To the Catholic Bishops of Egypt

SOJOURNING IN CONSTANTINOPLE.

Leo to the catholic Egyptian bishops so-
journing in Constantinople.

He encourages them in their sufferings for the
Faith, and in their entreaties for redress to
the Emperor.

I have before now been so saddened by
tidings of the crimes committed in Alexandria,
and my spirit has been so wounded by the
atrocity of the deed itself, that I know not
what tears to show and what lamentation to
utter over it, and am fain to use the prophet's
language, "who will give waters to my head
and a fountain of tears to my eyes-*?" Yet
anticipating your complaint, beloved, I have
entreated our most clement and Christian
Emperor for a remedy of these great evils,
and by our sons and assistants Gerontius and
Olympius have at a different time demanded
that he should make haste to purge of a
heresy already condemned the church of that
city, in which so many Catholic teachers have
flourished, and not allow murderous spirits
whom no reverence for place or time s could
deter from shedding their ruler's blood, to
gain anything from his clemency, more par-
ticularly when they desire to reconsider the
council of Chalcedon to the overthrow of the
Faith. Accordingly the same reason, beloved,
which drove you from your own Sees, ought
to console you for your sufferings ; for it
is certain that afflicted souls, that suffer ad-
versity for His name, are in no wise deprived
of the Lord's protection. Bear it therefore
bravely, and mindful of that country which
is yours, rejoice over your present sojourn
in a strange land. Abstain from grieving over
your exile and indulge not in sorrow for your
present weariness, ye who know that the
Apostle glories even in his many perils on
behalf of the Lord's Faith. You have One
who knows your conflicts and has prepared
the rewards of recompense. Let no one

3 One of three Letters, the other two being CLIV. and CLX.,
first printed by Quesnel on the authority apparently of a single
MS. (.Codex Grimanicus), and addressed to the bishops (and clergy)
who had fled out of Egypt to Constantinople in consequence ol
the recent disturbances. Letter CLX. mentions fifteen of them by
name but is not otherwise so interesting as CLVIIL, the one
selected lor translation.

4 Jer. ix. r (Vulg.)

5 Protcrius had been slain in the baptistery die Ccence Domini
(? Thursday in Holy Week)

shrink from this labour, whose guerdon is to
reign and 6 live for ever. Let the feet of all
who fight be fixed in the halls of Jerusalem ;
for in the hope of that retribution they will
have no cause to fear the camp nor the onsets
of the enemy. Victory is never hard nor
triumph difficult over the remnants of an
abject foe who has been routed by the whole
world alike, especially over those whose ring-
leaders you see already prostrate. With un-
ceasing prayers, therefore (even as I also have
not failed to do), entreat the favour of the most
Christian Emperor, who in God's mercy is
ready to hear : that in accordance with the
letter I have sent ?, he may strengthen the
cause of the common Faith with that devotion
of mind, which we are well assured he pos-
sesses, and in his piety may remove all the
harmful charges which the madness of heretics
has invented, and arrange for your return, be-
loved, and so may cause each several province
and all the churches with their priests to re-
joice in the unshaken p(a~e of Christ. Dated
the r st of Dec. in the consulship of Constan-
tine and Rufus (457).

LETTER CLIX.

To Nicvetas, Bishop of Aquileia.

(Leo, the bishop, to Nicaetas, bishop of
Aquileia, greeting.)

I. Prefatory.

My son Adeodatus, deacon of our See, on
returning to us has delivered your request,
beloved, to receive from us the authority of
the Apostolic See upon matters which seem
indeed to be hard to decide, but which we
must make provision for with a view to the
necessities of the times that the wounds which
have been inflicted by the attacks of the
enemy may be healed chiefly by the agency
of religion.

II. About the women who married again when
their husbands were taken prisoners.

As then you say that through the disasters
of war and through the grievous inroads of
the enemy families have in certain cases been
so broken up that the husbands have been
carried off into captivity and their wives re-
main forsaken, and these latter thinking their
own husbands either dead or never likely to
be freed from their masters, have contracted
another marriage under stress of loneliness,
and as, now that the state of things has im-

* The MS. reads vel here, but I think the Ball, are right in
maintaining that Leo does at times use vel for et.
7 Viz. Lett. CLVI. q.v.

LETTER CLIX.

10'

proved through the Lord's help, some of
those who were thought to have perished
have returned, you seem, dear brother, natur-
ally to be in doubt what ought to be settled
by us about women thus joined to other
husbands. But because we know it is written
that " a woman is joined to a man by God 8,"
and again, we are aware of the precept that
"what God hath joined, man may not put
asunder^" we are bound to hold that the
compact of the lawful marriage must be re-
newed, and after the removal of the evils
inflicted by the enemy, what each lawfully
had must be restored to him ; and we must
take every pains that each should recover
what is his own.

III. Whether he is blameable who has taken the
prisoners wife ?

But notwithstanding let him not be held
blameable and treated as the invader of

' another's right, who took the place of the
husband, who was thought no longer alive.
For thus many things which belonged to those

j led into captivity happened to pass into the

1 possession of others, and yet it is altogether
fair that on their return their property should
be restored. And if this is duly observed in
the case of slaves or of lands, or even of

! houses and personal goods, how much more
ought it to be done in the restoration of wives,
that what has been disturbed by the neces-
sitities of war may be restored by the remedy
of peace ?

IV. The 7vife must be restored to her first
husband.

And, therefore, if husbands who have re-
turned after a long captivity still feel such
affection for their wives as to desire them
to return to partnership1, that, which necessity
brought about, must be passed over and judged
blameless and the demands of fidelity satis-
ied.

V. Women must be excommunicated who refuse
to return.

And if any women are so possessed by love
>f their later husbands as to prefer to remain
nt\\ them than to return to their lawful part-
ers, they are deservedly to be branded : so
;hat they be even deprived of the Church's
pmmunion ; for in a pardonable matter they
ave chosen to taint themselves with crime,
howing that they have sought their own
leasure in their incontinence, when a right-

8 Prov. xix 14 (LXX.). 9 Matt. xix. 6.

1 There is little doubt, I think, that the return of the wife was
'he husband's option in Leo's opinion, and could not be forced
in him.

ful restitution could have obtained their for-
giveness. Let them return then to their former
state and make voluntary reparation, nor let
that which a condition of necessity extorted
from them be by any means turned into dis-
grace through evil desires; because, as those
women who refuse to return to their husbands
are to be held unholy, so they who return to
an affection entered on with God's sanction
are deservedly to be praised.

VI. About captives, who were compelled to eat of
sacrificial food.

Concerning those Christians who are as-
serted to have been polluted with sacrificial
food, while among those by whom they were
taken prisoners, Ave have thought it right to
make this reply to your enquiry, dear brother,
that they be purged by a satisfactory penitence
which is to be measured not so much by the
duration of the process as by the intensity of
the feeling. And whether their compliance
was wrung from them by terror or hunger,
there need be no hesitation at acquitting
them, since the food was taken from fear or
want, not from superstitious reverence.

VII. About those who in fear or by mistake
were re-baptized

But as to those about whom you thought,
beloved, we ought likewise to be consulted
who were either forced by fear or led by
mistake to repeat their baptism, and now
understand that they acted contrary to the
ordinances of the catholic Faith, such modera-
tion must be observed towards them that they
be received into full communion with us, but
not without the healing of penitence and the
imposition of the bishop's hands, the length
of the penance (with due regard to modera-
tion) being left to your judgment, as you
shall perceive the minds of the penitents to
be disposed : in which you must not forget to
consider old age, illness, and other risks.
For if a man be in so dangerous a case that
his life is despaired of, while he is still under
penance, he should receive the gracious aid of
communion by the priest's tender care.

VIII. About baptism by heretics.

For they who have received baptism from
heretics, not having been previously baptized,
are to be confirmed by imposition of hands
with only the invocation of the Holy Ghost,
because they have received the bare form
of baptism without the power of sanctifica-
tion2. And this regulation, as you know, we

3 Leo repeats this injunction in Letter CLXVI. chap. 2. and
Lett. CLXVlI., inquiry t8- Qucsnel identities this ceremony
with the right of Confirmation, but the Ballerinii are probably

104

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

require to be kept in all the churches, that
the font once entered may not be defiled by
repetition, as the Lord says, " One Lord, one
faith, one baptism." And that washing may
not be polluted by repetition, but, as we have
said, only the sanctification of the Holy Ghost
invoked, that what no one can receive from
heretics may be obtained from catholic
priests. This letter of ours, which we have sent
in reply to the inquiries of the brotherhood,
you shall bring to the knowledge of all your
brethren and fellow-bishops of the province,
that our authority, now that it is given, may
avail for the general observance. Dated 21st
March, in the consulship of Majorian Au-
gustus (458).

LETTER CLX.
(See Letter CLVIII.)

LETTER CLXI.

To the Presbyters, Deacons and Clergy
of the Church of Constantinople.

(Exhorting them to remain stedfast in the
Faith as fixed at Chalcedon, and to have no
dealings with Atticus and Andrew unless
they recant.)

LETTER CLX 1 1.

To Leo Augustus.

By the hand of Philoxenus agens in rebus 2\

Leo the Bishop to Leo Augustus.

I. The decrees of Chalcedon and Niccea arc
identical and final.

With much joy my mind exults in the Lord,
and great is my cause for thankfulness, now
that I perceive your clemency's most excellent
faith to be in all things enlarged by the gifts of
heavenly grace, and I experience by increased
diligence the devotion of a priestly mind in
you. For in your Majesty's communications
it is beyond doubt revealed what the Holy
Spirit is working through you for the good of
the whole Church, and how greatly it is to be
desired by the prayers of all the faithful that
your empire may be everywhere extended
with glory, seeing that besides your care for
things temporal you so perseveringly exercise
a religious foresight in the service of what is
divine and eternal : to wit that the catholic
Faith, which alone gives life to and alone
hallows mankind, may abide in the one con-
fession, and the dissensions which spring from

right in thinking this a mistake, and in identifying it with the
manuum impositio in poenitentiam mentioned by Cyprian and
other fathers. See Lett. CLXVI. chap. 2 n. 5b.
21 Cf. Lett. XCV. n. 6.

the variety of earthly opinions may be driven
away, most glorious Emperor, from that solid
Rock, on which the city of God is built.
And these gifts of God will at last be granted
us from Him, if we be not found ungrateful
for what has been vouchsafed, and as though
what we have gained were naught, we seek
not rather the very opposite. For to seek
what has been discovered, to reconsider what
has been completed, and to demolish what
has been defined, what else is it but to return
no thanks for things gained and to indulge
the unholy longings of deadly lust on the
food of the forbidden tree? And hence by
deigning to show a more careful regard for the
peace of the universal Church, you manifestly
recognize what is the design of the heretics'
mighty intrigues that a more careful discussion
should take place between the disciples of
Eutyches and Dioscorus and the emissary of
the Apostolic See. as if nothing had already
been defined, and that what with the glad
approval of the catholic priests of the whole
world was determined at the holy Synod of
Chalcedon should be rendered invalid to the
detriment also of the most sacred Council of
Nicaea. For what in our own days at Chalcedon
was determined concerning our Lord Jesus
Christ's Incarnation, was also so defined at
Nicaea by that mystic number of Fathers 3, lest
the confession of catholics should believe that
God's Only-begotten Son was in aught unequal
to the Father, or that when He was made Son
of man He had not the true nature of our
flesh and soul.

II. The wicked designs of heretics must be sted-
fastly resisted.

Therefore we must abhor and persistently
avoid what heretical deceit is striving to obtain,
nor must what has been well and fully defined
be brought again under discussion, lest we
ourselves should seem at the will of condemned
men to have doubts concerning things which
it is clear agree throughout with the authority
of Prophets, Evangelists, and Apostles. Ana
hence, if there are any who disagree with these1
heaven-inspired decisions, let them be left tc
their own opinions and depart from the unit)
of the Church with that perverse sect which
they have chosen. For it can in no wise bt
that men who dare to speak against diviru
mysteries are associated in any communior
with us. Let them pride themselves on th(
emptiness of their talk and boast of the clever
ness of their arguments against the Faith: w«

3 The number was 318 : cf. Lett. CVI. 2, where the exa<
number is quoted and the explanation perhaps given of Leo
epithet " mystic " here applied to it.

LETTER CLXIV.

105

are pleased to obey the Apostle's precepts,
where he says, " See that no one deceive you
with philosophy and vain seductions of
men*." For according to the same Apostle,
"if I build up those things which I destroyed,
I prove myself a transgressors," and subject
myself to those conditions of punishment
which not only the authority of Prince Mar-
cian of blessed memory, but I myself also
by my consent have accepted. Because as
you have justly and truthfully maintained
perfection admits of no increase nor fulness
of addition. And hence, since I know you,
venerable Prince, imbued as you are with the
purest light of truth, waver in no part of the
Faith, but with just and perfect judgment
distinguish right from wrong, and separate
what is to be embraced from what is to be
rejected, I beseech you not to think that my
humility is to be blamed for want of confidence,
since my cautiousness is not only in the
interests of the universal Church but also for
the furtherance of your own glory, that under
your reign the unscrupulousness of heretics
may not seem to be advanced and the
security of catholics disturbed.

III. He promises to send envoys not to discuss
with the Eutychians, but to explain the Faith
to the Emperor.

Although, therefore, I am very confident of
the piety of your heart in all things, and perceive
that through the Spirit of God dwelling in you,
you are sufficiently instructed, nor can any
error delude your faith, yet I will endeavour
to follow your bidding so far as to send
cemin of my brothers to represent my person
before you, and to set forth what the Apostolic
rule of Faith is, although, as I have said, it is
well known to you, in all things making it
clear and certain that they are not in any way
to be reckoned among catholics, who do not
accept the definitions of the venerable Synod
of Nicaea or the ordinances of the holy Council
of Chalcedon, inasmuch as it is evident the
holy decrees of both proceed from the Evan-
gelical and Apostolical source, and whatever is
not of Christ's watering is like a snake-poisoned
draught6. Your Majesty should understand
beforehand, most venerable Emperor, that
those whom I undertake to send will come
from the Apostolic See, not to fight with the
enemies of the Faith nor to strive against any,
because of matters already settled as it has
pleased God both at Nicaea and at Chalcedon
jWe dare not enter upon any discussion, as if
what so great an authority has fixed by the
Holy Spirit were doubtful or weak.

* Col. ii. 8.

5 Gal. ii. 18.

6 Poculi esse -vipcrei.

IV. The heretics must be forced to give up their
usurpations and left to the Judgment of God.
But we do not refuse the assistance of our
ministry for the instruction of our little ones,
who after being fed with milk desire to be
satisfied with more solid food : and as we do
not scorn the simple folk, so we will have no
dealings with rebel heretics, remembering the
Lord's command, who says, " Give not that
which is holy to the dogs, nor cast your pearls
before swine 7." Surely it is altogether un-
worthy and unjust to admit to freedom of
discussion men whom the Holy Spirit describes
in the words of the prophet, " the sons of the
stranger have lied unto me 8." For even
though they resist not the Gospel, yet they
have shown themselves to be of those of whom
it is written " they profess that they know God
but by their deeds they deny Him 9," while
the blood of just Abel x still cries against
wicked Cain r, who being rebuked by the
Lord did not set quietly about his repentance
but burst forth into murder. Whose punish-
ment we wish to be reserved for the Lord's
judgment in such a way that, unprincipled
plunderer and blood-thirsty murderer as he is,
he may be thrown back upon himself and
relinquish what is ours. We pray you also
not to suffer the lamentable captivity of the
holy church of Alexandria to be any further
prolonged, which by the help of your faith and
justice ought to be restored to its liberty, that
through all the cities of Egypt the dignity of
the Fathers and their priestly rights may be
restored. Dated 21st of March in the consul-
ship of Leo and Majorian August! (458).

LETTER CLXIII.

To Anatolius, Bishop of Constantinople.

By Patritius the deacon.

(Glorying over the harshness of his former
letter, to which Anatolius had objected, but
persisting that he is not satisfied with the
explanation Atticus had furnished of his
orthodoxy.)

LETTER CLXIV.

To Leo Augustus.

Leo, the bishop, to Leo Augustus.

I. He sends envoys but depi-ecates any fresh
discussion of the Faith.

Rejoicing that it has been proved to me by

7 S. Matt. vii. 6. 8 Ps. xviii. 44 (Vulg.). 9 Tit. i. 16.

1 Sc. in the persons of Proterius and Timothy jElurus.

2 Portions of this letter are found quoted by various ancient
Fathers, e.g. by Popes Vigiliusand Pelagius II. in the sixth cent. ;
by Facundus, bishop of Hermiae, in the same century, and augur
one half of the whole by Prudentius, bishop of Troyes (ninth cent.)
in his famous treatise on Piedctination against John Scotus

io6

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

many clear proofs with what earnestness you
consult the interests of the universal Church,
I have not delayed to obey your Majesty's
commands on the first opportunity, by de-
spatching Domitian and Geminian my brothers
and fellow-bishops, who in furtherance of
my earnest prayers, shall entreat you for the
peaceful acceptance of the gospel-teaching and
obtain the liberty of the Faith in which through
the instruction of the Holy Spirit you yourself
are so conspicuously eminent, now that the
enemies of Christ are driven far away, who
even if they had wished to conceal their mad-
ness, could not lie hid, because the holy
simplicity of the Lord's flock is very different
from the pretences of beasts who hide them-
selves in sheeps' clothing, nor can they creep
in by hypocrisy now that their exceeding mad-
ness has revealed them. Recognize, therefore,
august and venerable Emperor, how that you
are called by Divine providence to the guardian-
ship of the whole world, and understand what
aid you owe to your Mother, the Church, who
makes especial boast of you. Disputes that
are ended must not be allowed to rise with
renewed vigour against the triumphs of the
Almighty's right hand, especially when this
can in no wise be allowed to heretics, whose
attempts have long ago been condemned and
the labours of the faithful have a just claim to
this result, that all the fulness of the Church
shall remain secure in the completeness of her
unity, and that nothing whatever of what has
been well laid down shall be reconsidered,
because, after constitutions have been legi-
timately framed under Divine guidance, to
wish still to wrangle is the sign not of a peace-
making but of a rebellious spirit, as savs the
Apostle, " for to strive with words is profitable
for nothing, but for the subverting of them
that hear2."

II. In matters of Faith human rhetom s out
of place.

For if it be always free for human fancies to
assert themselves in dispute, there never will
be wanting men who will dare to oppose the
Truth, and to put their trust in the glib
utterances of this world's wisdom, whereas the
Christian Faith and wisdom knows from the
teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself
how strictly it ought to shun this most harmful
vanity. For when Christ was about to
summon all nations to the illumination of the
Faith, He chose those who were to devote
themselves to the preaching of the Gospel not

Erigena. Quesnel, however, appears to have been the first to i
print it as a whole ex cndice Grimanico; after which the JJall !
also discovered it in the Ratisbon MS.

2 Loosely quoted from 2 Tim. ii. 14. |

from among philosophers or orators, but tool;
humble fishermen as the instruments by which
He would reveal Himself, lest the heavenly
teaching, which was of itself full of mighty
power, should seem to need the aid of words.
And hence the Apostle protests and says,
" For Christ sent me not to baptize but to
preach the Gospel, not in wisdom of words
lest the cross of Christ should be made void ;
for the word of the cross is to them indeed
that perish foolishness, but to those which are
being saved it is the power of God. For it
is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the
wise and the prudence of the prudent will I
reject. Where is the wise ? where is the
scribe? where is the inquirer of this age ? has
not God made foolish the wisdom of this
worlds?" For rhetorical arguments and
clever debates of man's device make their
chief boast in this, that in doubtful matters
which are obscured by the variety of opinions
they can induce their hearers to accept that
view which each has chosen for his own
genius and eloquence to bring forward ; and
thus it happens that what is maintained with
the greatest eloquence is reckoned the truest.
But Christ's Gospel needs not this art ; for in
it the true teaching stands revealed by its own
light : nor is there any seeking for that which
shall please the ear, when to know Who is the
Teacher is sufficient for true faith.

III. Euty dies' dogma is condemned by the
testimony of Scripture and cannot further be
entertained.

But nothing severs those who are deceived
by their own inventions, from the light of the
Gospel so much as their not thinking that the
Lord's Incarnation appertains in a true sense
to man's, that is, our, nature: as if it were
unworthy of God's glory that the majesty of
the impassible Word should have taken the
reality of human flesh, whereas men's salvation
could not otherwise have been restored had
not He Who is in the form of God deigned
also to take the form of a slave. And hence
since the holy Synod of Chalcedon, which was
attended by all the provinces of the Roman !
world and obtained universal acceptance for its
decisions, and is in complete harmony therein
with the most sacred council of Nicaea, has cut
off all the wicked followers of the Eutychian
dogma from the body of the catholic commu-i
nion,howshallanyof the lapsed regain the peace
of the church, without purging himself by a full
course of penitence? For what licence can be
granted them for discussing, when they have
deserved to be condemned by a just and holy

3 1 Cor. i. 17-

LETTER CLXV.

107

judgment, so that they might most truly fall
under that sentence of the blessed Apostle,
wherewith at the very outset of the infant
Church he overthrew the enemies of Christ's
cross, saying : " every spirit which confesses
Jesus Christ to have come in the flesh is of
God, and every spirit which dissolves Jesus is
not of God, but this is antichrist V And this
pre-existent teaching of the Holy Ghost we
must faithfully and stedfastly make use of,
lest, by admitting the discussions of such men
the authority of the divinely inspired decrees
be diminished, when in all parts of your king-
dom and in all borders of the earth that Faith
which was confirmed at Chalcedon is being
established on the surest basis of peace, nor is
any one worthy of the name of Christian who
cuts himself off from communion with us. Of
whom the Apostle says, " a man that is heretical
after a first and a second admonition, avoid,
knowing that such a one is perverse and con-
demned by his own judgment **."

IV. If the Divine mercy is to be exercised, the
heretics must cease entirely from the error of
their ways.

What therefore the unholy parricide has
perpetrated by seizing on the holy Church and
cruelly murdering its very ruler, cannot be
expiated by man's forgiveness, unless He Who
alone can rightly punish such things, and alone
can of His unspeakable mercy remit them, be
propitiated. But though we are not anxious
for vengeance, we cannot in any way be allied
with the devil's servants. Yet if we learn they
are quitting the ranks of heresy, repenting
them of their error and turning from the wea-
pons of discord to the lamentations of sorrow,
we also can intercede for them, lest they perish
for ever, thus following the example of the
Lord's loving-kindness, who, when nailed to
the wood ot the cross prayed for His perse-
cutors, " Father, forgive them ; for they know
not what they do s." And that Christian love
may do this profitably for its enemies, wicked
heretics must cease to harass God's ever re-
ligious and ever devout Church ; they must
not dare to disturb the souls of the simple by
their falsehoods, to the end that, where in all
former times the purest faith has flourished,
the teaching of the Gospel and of the Apostles
may now also have free course ; because we
also imitating, so far as we can, the Divine
mercy desire no one to be punished by justice,
but all to be released by mercy.

4 t John iv. 2, 3. For the reading solvit (dissolves), cf. Lett.
XXVI 1 1. (Tome), chap. 5 and note.

*a Tit. iii. 10, 11. 5 S. Luke xxiii. 34.

V. Let him restore the refugee clergy and laity
and titter ly reject those who persist in heresy.
I entreat your clemency, listen to the sug-
gestions of my brethren already mentioned,
whom, as I some time ago have said in a former
letter sa? I have sent not to wrangle with the
condemned, but merely to intercede with you
for the stability of the catholic Faith. And in
accordance with your faith in and regard for
the Divine Majesty this especially you should
grant, that completely setting aside the con-
tentions of heretics you should deign to be-
stow a mercifal attention on those who have
fallen upon such evil days, and, after restoring
the liberty of the church of Alexandria to its
pristine state, should set up there a bishop
who, upholding the decrees of the Synod of
Chalcedon and agreeing with the ordinances
of the Gospel, shall be able to restore peace
among that greatly disturbed people. Those
bishops and clergy also whom the unholy
parricide has driven out ot their churches,
should be recalled at your Majesty's com-
mand, all others also, whom a like malicious-
ness has banished from their dwellings, being
restored to their former estate, to the end that
we may have due cause fully and perfecfly to
rejoice in the grace of God and your faith
without any further noise of strife. For if
any one is so forgetful of the Christian hope
and his own salvation as to venture by any dis-
pute to assail the Evangelical and Apostolical
decrees of the holy Synod of Chalcedon, thus
overthrowing the most sacred Council of Nicaea
also, him with all heretics who have held
blasphemous and abominable views on the
Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ we
condemn by a like anathema and equal
curse, so that, without refusing the remedy ot
repentance to those who make full and legiti-
mate atonement, the sentence of the Synod,
which is based on truth, may rest upon those
who still resist. Dated 17th of August, in the
consulship of Leo and Majorian Augusti (458).

LETTER CLXV.

To Leo Augustus.

[This letter, which is sometimes called the
Second Tome, contains the detailed state-
ment of the catholic doctrine of the Incarna-
tion, which Leo had promised the Emperor in
Letter CLVI. It consists of 9 chapters, but,
as chaps, iii. to viii. and parts of ii. and ix.
are almost identical in language with Letter
CXXIV., already given in full, I have not
thought it necessary to reproduce the letter
here. At the end a long series of quotations

5» Viz. Lett. CLXII. chap. iii.

io8

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

from Hilary, Ambrose and other Fathers bear-
ing upon the doctrine are also added, but
these also are dispensed with in accordance
with our general practice, as we are now pre-
senting Leo and no one else to the reader.]

LETTER CLXVI.
To Neo, Bishop of Ravenna.
Leo, the bishop, to Neo, bishop of Ravenna,
greeting.

I. Those, who being taken captives in infamy
cannot remember or bring witnesses of their
baptism, must not be denied this sacrament.
We have indeed frequently, God's Spirit
instructing us, steadied the brethren's hearts,
when they were tottering on the slippery
places of doubtful questions, by formulating
an answer either out of the teaching of the
Holy Scriptures or from the rules of the
Fathers : but lately in Synod a new and hitherto
unheard-of subject of debate has arisen. For
at the instance of certain brethren we have
discovered that some of the prisoners of war,
on their free return to their own homes, such
to wit as went into captivity at an age when
they could have no sure knowledge of any-
thing, crave the healing waters of baptism, but
in the ignorance of infancy cannot remember
whether they have received the mystery and
rites of baptism, and that therefore in this
uncertainty of defective recollection their souls
are brought into jeopardy, so long as under
a show of caution they are denied a grace,
which is withheld, because it is thought to
have been bestowed. And so, since certain
brethren in a not unjustifiable fear have
hesitated to perform the rites of the Lord's
mystery, at a synodal meeting, as we have
said, we have received a formal request for
advice on this matter, and in carefully discus-
sing it, we have desired to weigh each mem-
ber s opinion, and to handle it in so cautious
a manner as to arrive with certainty at the
truth by making use of the knowledge of
many. Consequently the same things, which
have come into our mind by the Divine in-
spiration, have received the assent and con-
firmation of a large number of the brethren.
And so we are bound betore all things to take
heed lest, while we hold fast to a certain show
of caution, we incur a loss of souls who are to
be regenerated. For who is so given over to
suspicions as to decide that to be true which
without any evidence he suspects by mere
guesswork ? And so wherever the man himself
who is anxious for the new birth does not recol-
lect his baptism, and no one can bear witness
about him being unaware ot his consecration

to God, there is no possibility for sin to creep
in, seeing that, so far as their knowledge goes,
neither the bestower or receiver of the conse-
cration is guilty. We know indeed that an
unpardonable offence is committed, whenever
in accordance with the institutions of heretics
which the holy Fathers have condemned, any
one is forced twice to enter the font, which is
but once available for those who are to be
re-born, in opposition to the Apostle's teach-
ing 5l), which speaks to us of One Godhead in
Trinity, one confession in Faith, one sacra-
ment in Baptism. But in this nothing similar
is to be apprehended, since, what is not known
to have been done at all, cannot come under
the charge of repetition. And so, whenever
such a case occurs, first sift it by careful in-
vestigation, and spend a considerable time,
unless his last end is near, in inquiring whether
there be absolutely no one who by his testi-
mony can assist the other's ignorance. And
when it is established that the man who re-
quires the sacrament of baptism is prevented
by a mere baseless suspicion, let him come
boldly to obtain the grace, of which he is
conscious of no trace in himself. Nor need
we fear thus to open the door of salvation
which has not been shown to have been en-
tered before.

II. Baptism by heretics must not be invalidated
by second baptism.

But if it is established that a man has been
baptized by heretics, on him the mystery of
regeneration must in no wise be repeated, but
only that conferred which was wanting before,
j so that he may obtain the power of the Holy
Ghost by the laying on of the Bishop's hands 6.
This decision, beloved brother, we wish to be
brought to the knowledge of you all generally,
to the end that God's mercy may not be re-
fused to those who desire to be saved through
undue timidity. Dated the 24th of Oct., in
the consulship of Majorian Augustus (458).

LETTER CLXVII 7.

To Rusticus, Bishop of Gallta

Narp.onensis, with the replies to his

Questions on various points.

Leo, the bishop, to Rusticus, bishop of Gallia
Narbonensis.

5b Viz. Eph. iv. 5. It will be remembered that the practice
of re-baptism was very definitely condemned in the times of
S. Cyprian (3rd cent.), who himself went wrong in advocating
it in the case of heretics.

*> See n. 2 to Lett. CLIX. chap. 8.

7 The date of this important letter has been variously con-
jectured, Quesnel assigning it to the years 442-4, Siimond and
Baluze to 452, and the Ball, preferring 458 or 9.

LETTER CLXVII.

109

I. He exhorts him to act with moderation
towards two bishops who have offended him.
Your letter, brother, which Hermes your arch-
deacon 8 brought, I have gladly received ; the
number of different matters it contains makes
it indeed lengthy, but not so tedious to me
on a patient perusal that any point should
be passed over, amid the cares that press
upon me from all sides. And hence having
grasped the gist of your allegation and re-
viewed what took place at the inquiry of the
bishops and leading men', we gather that
Sabinian and Leo, presbyters, lacked con-
fidence in your1 action, and that they have no
longer any just cause for complaint, seeing that
of their own accord they withdrew from the
discussion that had been begun. What form
or what measure of justice you ought to mete
out to them I leave to your own discretion,
advising you, however, with the exhortation
of love that to the healing of the sick you
ought to apply spiritual medicine, and that
remembering the Scripture which says "be not
over just2," you should act with mildness to-
wards these who in zeal for chastity seem to
have exceeded the limits of vengeance, lest
the devil, who deceived the adulterers, should
triumph over the avengers of the adultery.

II. He expostulates with him for wishing to
give up his office, which would imply distrust
of God's promises.

But I am surprised, beloved, that you are
so disturbed by opposition in consequence of
offences, from whatever cause arising, as to
say you would rather be relieved of the labours
of your bishopric, and live in quietness and
ease than continue in the office committed to
you. But since the Lord says, " blessed is he
who shall persevere unto the end 3," whence
shall come this blessed perseverance, except
from the strength of patience ? For as the
Apostle proclaims, " All who would live godly
in Christ shall suffer persecution 1" And it is
not only to be reckoned persecution, when
sword or fire or other active means are used
against the Christian religion ; for the direst
persecution is often inflicted by nonconformity
of practice and persistent disobedience and
the barbs of ill-natured tongues : and since
all the members of the Church are alwavs
. liable to these attacks, and no portion of the
faithful are free from temptation, so that a life

8 In an inscription quoted from Gruter and Baluze by Quesnel,
Hermes is mentioned as diaconus to Ritsticus episcopus. He was
afterwards made bp of Biterra, but being unfairly expelled by
that city, he succeeded Rusticus in Narbonensis.

9 H onorati. r Tuir, others suce (the bishops).

2 Eccl. vii. 17 (A. V. ovexiuicked).

3 S. Matt. xxiv. 13. 4 2 Tim. iii. 12.

neither of ease nor of labour is devoid of
danger, who shall guide the ship amidst the
waves of the sea, if the helmsman quit his
post ? Who shall guard the sheep from the
treachery of wolves, if the shepherd himself be
not on the watch ? Who, in fine, shall resist
the thieves and robbers, if love of quietude
draw away the watchman that is set to keep
the outlook from the strictness of his watch ?
One must abide, therefore, in the office com-
mitted to him and in the task undertaken.
Justice must be stedfastly upheld and mercy
lovingly extended. Not men, but their sins
must be hated 5. The proud must be re-
buked, the weak must be borne with ; and
those sins which require severer chastisement
must be dealt with in the spirit not of vin-
dictiveness but of desire to heal. And if
a fiercer storm of tribulation fall upon us, let
us not be terror-stricken as if we had to over-
come the disaster in our own strength, since
both our Counsel and our Strength is Christ,
and through Him we can do all things, with-
out Him nothing, Who, to confirm the
preachers of the Gospel and the ministers of
the mysteries, says, " Lo, I am with you all the
days even to the consummation of the age6."
And again He says, " these things I have
spoken unto you that in me ye may have
peace. In this world ye shall have tribulation,
but be of good cheer, because I have overcome
the world?." The promises, which are as
plain as they can be, we ought not to let any
causes of offence to weaken, lest we should
seem ungrateful to God for making us His
chosen vessels, since His assistance is power-
ful as His promises are true.

III. Many of the questions raised could be more
easily settled in a personal interview than
on paper.

On those points of inquiry, beloved, which
your archdeacon has brought me separately
written out, it would be easier to arrive at
conclusions on each point face to face, if you
could grant us the advantage of your presence.
For since some questions seem to exceed the
limits of ordinary diligence, I perceive that they
are better suited to conversation than to writ-
ing : for as there are certain things which can
in no wise be controverted, so there are many
things which require to be modified either by
considerations of age or by the necessities of
the case ; always provided that we remember
in things which are doubtful or obscure, that

5 The thought of this fine passage is more fully worked out in
Sermon XLV1U., chaps. 2 and 3. Cf. esp. the remark, tellum
vi til's pot nis quam hominibtis indicunt, " nulli malum pro mulo
reddentes " sed correctionem peccantium semper optantes.

6 S. Matt, xxviii. 20. 7 S. John xvi. 33.

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

must be followed which is found to be neither
contrary to the commands of the Gospel nor
opposed to the decrees of the holy Fathers.

Question I. Concerning a presbyter or deacon,
7vho falsely claims to be a bishop, and those
whom they have ordained.
Reply. No consideration permits men to
be reckoned among bishops who have not
been elected by the clergy, demanded by the
laity, and consecrated by the bishops of the
province with the assent of the metropolitan 8.
And hence, since the question often arises con-
cerning advancement unduly obtained, who
need doubt that that can in no wise be which
is not shown to have been conferred on them.
And if any clerics have been ordained by such
false bishops in those churches which have
bishops of their own, and their ordination took
place with the consent and approval of the
proper bishops, it may be held valid on con-
dition that they continue in the same churches.
Otherwise it must be held void, not being con-
nected with any place nor resting on any
authority.

Question II. Concerning a presbyter or
deacon, who on his crime being knoivn asks
for public penance, 7vhether it is to be granted
him by laying on of hands?
Reply. It is contrary to the custom of
the Church that they who have been dedi-
cated to the dignity of the presbyterate or
the rank of the diaconate, should receive the
remedy of penitence by laying on of hands
for ary crime ; which doubtless descends
from the Apostles' tradition, according to
what is written, " If a priest shall have sinned,
who shall pray for him 9?" And hence such
men when they have lapsed in order to obtain
God's mercy must seek private retirement,
where their atonement may be profitable as
well as adequate.

Question III. Concerning those ivho minister
at the altar and have wives, whether they
may lawfully cohabit with them 1

Reply. The law of continence is the same
for the ministers J of the altar as for bishops
and priests, who when they were laymen or
readers, could lawfully marry and have off-
spring. But when they reached to the said
ranks, what was before lawful ceased to be
so. And hence, in order that their wedlock
may become spiritual instead of carnal, it be-

8 The same requisites of ordination of bishops are laid down in
Lett. X. chap. 6.

9 i Sam. li. 25.

« The order ot sub-deacons (ace. to Quesnel) is here particularly
meant : cf. Lett. XIV. chap. 4. The readers (lectores) men-
tioned below were of course one of the Minor Orders of clergy:
cf. Bingham, Antiq. Bk.V. chap. iii.

hoves them not to put away their wives but

to " have them as though they had them

not2," whereby both the affection of their

wives may be retained and the marriage
functions cease.

Question IV. Concerning a presbyter or
deacon who has given his unmarried daughter
in marriage to a man- who already had
a woman joined to him, by whom he had
also had children.

Reply. Not every woman that is joined to
a man is his wife, even as every son is not his
'father's heir. But the marriage bond is legiti-
mate between the freeborn and between
equals : this was laid down by the Lord long
before the Roman law had its beginning. And
so a wife is different from a concubine, even
as a bondwoman from a freewoman. For
which reason also the Apostle in order to
show the difference of these persons quotes
from Genesis, where it is said to Abraham,
" Cast out the bondwoman and her son : for
the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir
with my son Isaac 3." And hence, since the
marriage tie was from the beginning so con-
stituted as apart from the joining of the
sexes to symbolize the mystic union of Christ
and His Church, it is undoubted that that
woman has no part in matrimony, in whose
case it is shown that the mystery of mar-
riage has not taken place. Accordingly a
clergyman of any rank who has given his
daughter in marriage to a man that has a con-
cubine, must not be considered to have given
her to a married man, unless perchance the
other woman should appear to have become
free, to have been legitimately dowered and
to have been honoured by public nuptials.

Question V. Concerning young women who
have married men that have concubines.
Reply. Those who are joined to husbands
by their fathers' will are free from blame, if
the women whom their husbands had were not
in wedlock.

Question VI. Concerning those who leave
the women by whom they have children and
take wives.

Reply. Seeing that the wife is different
from the concubine, to turn a bondwoman
from one's couch and take a wife whose free
birth is assured, is not bigamy but an honour-
able proceeding.

* i Cor. vii. 39. This was also provided by the Apostolic
Canons (.quoted by Quesnel), episcopus aut presbyter uxorem
ptopriam neqitaqutuit sub obteniu reiigionis abiciat.

3 Gal. iv. 30, from Gen. xxt. 10.

LETTER CLXVII.

Til

Question VI I. Concerning those who in

sickness accept terms of penitence, and when

they have recovered, refuse to keep them.

Reply. Such men's neglect is to be blamed

but not finally to be abandoned, in order that

they may be incited by frequent exhortations

to carry out faithfully what under stress of

need they asked for. For no one is to be

despaired of so long as he remain in this

body, because sometimes what the diffidence

of age puts off is accomplished by maturer

counsels.

Question VIII. Concerning those who on
their deathbed promise repentance and die
before receiving commitnion.

Reply. Their cause is reserved for the
judgment of God, in Whose hand it was that
their death was put off until the very time of
communion. But Ave cannot be in commu-
nion with those, when dead, with whom when
alive we were not in communion.

Question IX. Concerning thoss who under
pressure of great pain ask for penance to be
granted them, and when the presbyter has
come to give what they seek, if the pain has
abated somei^hat, make excuses and refuse to
accept what is offered.

Reply. This tergiversation cannot proceed
from contempt of the remedy but from fear of
falling into worse sin. Hence the penance
which is put off, when it is more earnestly
sought must not be denied in order that the
wounded soul may in whatever way attain to
the healing of absolution.

Question X. Concerning those who have
professed repe?ita?ice, if they begin to go to law
in the forum.

Reply. To demand just debts is indeed
one thing and to think nothing of one's own
property from the perfection of love is an-
other. But one who craves pardon for un-
lawful doings ought to abstain even from many
things that are lawful, as says the Apostle, " all
things are lawful for me, but all things are not
expedient 4." Hence, if the penitent has a
matter which perchance he ought not to
neglect, it is better for him to have recourse to
the judgment of the Church than of the
forum.

Question XI. Concerning those who during or
after penance transact business.

Reply. The nature of their gains either
excuses or condemns the trafficker, because

4 i Cor. vi. 1a.

there is an honourable and a base kind of
profit. Notwithstanding it is more expedient
for the penitent to suffer loss than to be in-
volved in the risks of trafficking, because it is
hard for sin not to come into transactions
between buyer and seller.

Question XII. Concerning those ivho return
to military service after doing penance.
Reply. It is altogether contrary to the rules
of the Church to return to military service in
the world after doing penance, as the Apostle
says, " No soldier in God's service entangles
himself in the affairs of the world 5." Hence he
is not free from the snares of the devil who
wishes to entangle himself in the military ser-
vice of the world.

Question XIII. Concerning those 7cho after
penance take wives or join themselves to con-
cubines.

Reply. If a vounsr man under fear of death
or the dangers of captivity has done penance,
and afterwards fearing to fall into youthful
incontinence has chosen to marry a wife lest
he should be guilty of fornication, he seems
to have comitted a pardonable act, so long as
he has known no woman whatever save his
wife. Yet herein we lay down no rule, but
express an opinion as to what is less objection-
able. For according to a true view of the
matter nothing better suits him who has done
penance than continued chastity both of mind
and body.

Question XIV. Concerning monks who take
to military service or to marriage.
Reply. The monk's vow being undertaken
of his own will or wish cannot be given up with-
out sin. For that which a man has vowed to
God, he ought also to pay. Hence he who
abandons his profession of a single life and
betakes himself to military service or to mar-
riage, must make atonement and clear himself
publicly, because although such service may
be innocent and the married state honourable,
it is transgression to have forsaken the higher
choice.

Question XV. Concerning young women who
have worn the religious habit for some time
but have not been dedicated, if they afterwards
marry.

Reply. Young women, who without being
forced by their parents' command but of their
own free-will have taken the vow and habit
of virginity, if afterwards they choose wedlock,
act wrongly, even though they have not re-

S 2 Tim. ii. 4.

112

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

ceived dedication : of which they would doubt-
less not have been defrauded, if they had
abided by their vow.

Question XVI. Concerning those who have
been left as infants by Christian parents, if
no proof of their baptism can be found whether
they ought to be baptized ?
Reply. If no proof exist among their kins-
folk and relations, nor among the clergy or
neighbours whereby those, about whom the
question is raised, may be proved to have
been baptized, steps must be taken for their
regeneration : lest they evidently perish ; for
in their case reason does not allow that what
is not shown to have been done should seem
to be repeated.

Question XVII. Concerning those who have
been captured by the enemy and are not aware
whether they have been baptized but know they
were several times taken to church by their
parents, whether they can or ought to be bap
tized when they come back to Roman terri-
tory 6 ?

Reply. Those who can remember that they
used to go to church with their parents can
remember whether they received what used to
be given to their parents ?. But if this also
has escaped their memory, it seems that that
must be bestowed on them which is not
known to have been bestowed because
there can be no presumptuous rashness where
the most loyal carefulness has been exercised.

Question XVIII. Concerning those who have

come from Africa or Mauretania and know

not in what sect they were baptized, what

ought to be done in their case 6 ?

Reply. These persons are not doubtful

of their baptism, but profess ignorance as to

the faith of those who baptized them : and

hence since they have received the form of

baptism in some way or other, they are not

to be baptized but are to be united to

the catholics by imposition of hands, after the

invocation of the Holy Spirit's power, which

they could not receive from heretics.

Question XIX. Concerning those who after
being baptized in infancy were captured by the
Gentiles, a?id lived with them after the man-
ner of the Gentiles, when they come rack to
Roman territory as still young men, if they
seek communion, what shall be done ?
Reply. If they have only lived with Gentiles

and eaten sacrificial food, they can be purged

6 On these points, cf. Letter CLXVL, to Neo.bp. of Ravenna.

7 Viz. the sacred elements of the Eucharist.

by fasting and laying on of hands, in order
that for the future abstaining from things
offered to idols, they may be partakers of
Christ's mysteries. But if they have either
worshipped idols or been polluted with man-
slaughter or fornication, they must not be
admitted to communion, except by public
penance.

LETTER CLXVIII.

To all the Bishops of Campania, Samnium

AND PlCENUM.

(Rebuking them first for performing baptisms
without due preparation or sufficient cause on
ordinary saints'-days (Easter and Whitsuntide
being the only recognized times), and secondly
for requiring from penitents that a list of their
offences should be read out publicly, a practice
which is in many ways objectionable.)

LETTER CLXIX.

To Leo Augustus.

Leo, the bishop, to Leo Augustus.

I. He heartily thanks the Emperor for what he
has done, and asks him to complete the work
in any way he can.

If we should seek to reward your Majesty's
glorious resolution in defence of the Faith
with all the praise that the greatness of the
issue demands, we should be found unequal
to the task of giving thanks and celebrating
the joy of the universal Church with our feeble
tongue. But His worthier recompense awaits
your acts and deserts, in whose cause you
have shown so excellent a zeal, and are now
triumphing gloriously over the attainment of
the wished-for end. Your clemency must
know therefore that all the churches of God
join in praising you and rejoicing that the
unholy parricide has been cast off from the
neck of the Alexandrine church, and that
God's people, on whom the abominable robber
has been so great a burden, restored to the
ancient liberty of the Faith, can now be
recalled into the way of salvation by the
preaching of faithful priests, when it sees the
whole hotbed of pestilence done away with in;
the person of the originator himself. Now
therefore, because you have accomplished
this by firm resolution and stedfast will, com-
plete your tale of work for the Faith by pass-,
ing such decrees as shall be well-pleasing

to God in favour of this city's catholic ruler'
who is tainted by no trace of the heres)

8 This is another Timothy surnamed Solophaciolus, supposec
to be the same as that Timotheus presbyter et occonomus Ecdesiir
mentioned among the Egyptian icfugees who petitioned the Em-
peror against vElurus

LETTER CLXXI.

T*3

now so often condemned : lest, perchance, the
wound apparently healed but still lurking
beneath the scar should grow, and the Chris-
tian laity, which by your public action has
been freed from the perversity of heretics,
should again fall a prey to deadly poison.

II. Good works as well as integrity of faith is

required in a priest.

But you see, venerable Emperor, and clearly
understand, that in the person, whose excom-
munication is contemplated, it is not only the
integrity of his faith that must be considered ;
for even, if that could be purged by any
punishments and confessions, and completely
restored by any conditions, yet the wicked and
bloody deeds that have been committed can
never be done away by the protestations of
plausible words : because in God's pontiff, and
particularly in the priest of so great a church,
the sound of the tongue and the utterance of
the lips is not enough, and nothing is of avail,
if God makes proclamation with His voice and
the mind is convicted of blasphemy. For of
such the Holy Ghost speaks by the Apostle,
" having an appearance of godliness, but deny-
ing the power thereof," and again elsewhere,
" they profess that they know God, but in
deeds they deny Him 9." And hence, since
in every member of the Church both the
integrity of the true Faith and abundance of
good works is looked for, how much more
ought both these things to predominate in the
chief pontiff, because the one without the
other cannot be in union with the Body of
Christ.

III. Timothys request for indulgence on the
score of orthodoxy must not be allowed.

Nor need we now state all that makes
Timothy accursed, since what has been done
through him and on his account, has abund-
antly and conspicuously come to the know-
ledge of the whole world, and whatever has
been perpetrated by an unruly mob against
justice, all rests qn his head, whose wishes
were served by its mad hands. And hence,
even if in his profession of faith he neglects
nothing, and deceives us in nothing, it best
consorts with your glory absolutely to exclude
him from this design of his 1, because in the
bishop of so great a city the universal Church
ought to rejoice with holy exultation, so that
the true peace of the Lord may be glorified
not only by the preaching of the Faith, but
ilso by the example of men's conduct. Dated

9 2 Tim. iii. 5, and Tit. i. 16.

1 Apparently to be allowed to reside in Constantinople (or
srhaps at this stage to remain in Alexandria).

VOL. XII.

17th of June, in the consulship of Magnus and
Apollonius (460). (By the hand of Philo-
xenus agens i?i rebus Ia.)

LETTER CLXX.

To Gennadius, Bishop of Constantinople2.

(Complaining of Timothy yElurus having
been allowed to come to Constantinople, and
saying that there is no hope of his restitution.)

LETTER CLXXI.
To Timothy, Bishop of Alexandria.

Leo, the bishop, to Timothy, catholic bishop
of the church of Alexandria.

I. He congratulates him on his election, and
bids him win back wanderers to the fold.

It is clearly apparent from the brightness of
the sentiment quoted by the Apostle, that
" all things work together for good to them
that love God 3," and by the dispensation of
God's pity, where adversities are received,
there also prosperity is given. This the
experience of the Alexandrine church shows,
in which the moderation and long suffering of
the humble has laid up for themselves great
store in return for their patience : because
" the Lord is nigh them that are of a contrite
heart, and shall save those that are humble in
spirit4," our noble Prince's faith being glorified
in all things, through whom "the right-hand
of the Lord hath done great acts4," in pre-
venting the abomination of antichrist any
longer occupying the throne of the blessed
Fathers ; whose blasphemy has hurt no one
more than himself, because although he has
induced some to be partners of his guilt, yet
he has inexpiably stained himself with blood.
And hence concerning that which under the
direction of Faith your election, brother, by
the clergy, and the laity, and all the faithful,
has brought about, I assure you that the whole
of the Lord's Church rejoices with me, and it
is my strong desire that the Divine pity will
in its loving-kindness confirm this joy with
manifold signs of grace, your own devotion
ministering thereto in all things, so that you
may sedulously win over, through the Church's
prayers, those also who have hitherto resisted
the Truth, to reconciliation with God, and,
as a zealous ruler, bring them into union with
the mystic body of the catholic Faith, whose
entirety admits of no division, imitating that
true and gentle Shepherd, who laid down His

» See Lett. CLXII. n. 2». .

2 He had succeeded to the see on the death of Anatolius in

458.

3 Rom. viii. 28.

4 Ps. xxxiv. 18, and cxviii. 16.

ii4

LETTERS OF LEO THE GREAT.

life for His sheep, and, when one sheep wan-
dered, drove il not back with the lash, but
carried it back to the fold on His own
shoulders.

II. Let him be watchful against heresy and
send frequent reports to Rome.

Take heed, then, dearly beloved brother,
lest any trace of either Nestorius' or Eutyches'
error be found in God's people : because " no
one can lay any foundation except that which
is laid, which is Christ Jesus s ;" who would not
have reconciled the whole world to God the
Father, had He not by the regeneration of
Faith adopted us all in the reality of our
flesh 6. Whenever, therefore, opportunities
arise which you can use for writing, brother,
even as you necessarily and in accordance
with custom have done in sending a report
of your ordination to us by our sons, Daniel
the presbyter and Timothy the deacon, so

5 i Cor. iii. n.

6 Per Jidei regenerationem omnes in nostra carnis veritate
susciperet. The doctrine of the Atonement in the light of the
Incarnation is here expressed in a rather unusual way, and I have
therefore translated the expression as literally as possible.

continue to act at all times and send us, who
will be anxious for them, as frequent accounts
as possible of the progress of peace, in order
that by regular intercourse we may feel that
" the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts
through the Holy Ghost, which is given unto
us 7." Dated the i8th of August, in the con-
sulship of Magnus and Apollonius (460).

LETTER CLXXII.

To the Presbyters and Deacons of the
Church of Alexandria.

(Inviting them to aid in confirming the
peace of the Church, and in winning those
who had given way to heresy.)

LETTER CLXXIII.

To certain Egyptian Bishops.
(Congratulating them on the election of
Timothy, and begging them to assist in main-
taining unity and bringing back wanderers to
the fold.)

1 Rom. r. 5.

r
V

SERMONS.

SERMON I.

Preached on his Birthday l, or day of
Ordination.

Having been elected i?i absence2 he returns
thanks for the kindness and earnestly demands
the prayers of his church.

"Let my mouth speak the praise of the
Lord 3," and my breath and spirit, my flesh and
tongue bless His holy Name. For it is a sign,
not of a modest, but an ungrateful mind, to keep
silence on the kindnesses of God : and it is
very meet to begin our duty as consecrated
pontiff with the sacrifices of the Lord's praise 4.
Because "in our humility " the Lord "has been
mindful of us s " and has blessed us : because
" He alone has done great wonders for me 5," so
that your holy affection for me reckoned me pre-
sent, though my long journey had forced me to
be absent. Therefore I give and always shall
give thanks to our God for all the things with
which He has recompensed me. Your favour-
able opinion also I acknowledge publicly, pay-
ing you the thanks I owe, and thus showing
that I understand how much respect, love and
fidelity your affectionate zeal could expend on
me who long with a shepherd's anxiety for the
safety of your souls, who have passed so con-
scientious a judgment on me, with absolutely
no deserts of mine to guide you. I entreat
you, therefore, by the mercies of the Lord,
aid with your prayers him whom you have
sought out by your solicitations that both the
i Spirit of grace may abide in me and that your
(judgment may not change. May He who
inspired you with such unanimity of purpose,
vouchsafe to us all in common the blessing of
peace : so that all the days of my life being
ready for the service of Almighty God, and
for my duties towards you, I may with con-
fidence entreat the Lord : " Holy Father, keep
in Thy name those whom Thou hast given me6:"

1 Natalis seems to have been applied to the day or anniversary
if a Bishop's consecration as well as to the festivals of Martyrs
n the Calendar. Cf. Serm. IV. chap. 4, illi ergo liunc servitutis
•wstro? natalitium diem ascribamus. One reason for the shortness
)f this sermon, which used to be joined with Sermon II. (a few
lecessary alterations in the text of the latter being made) is,

think, rightly given by the Ballerinii: " perh.ips," they say,
' the unusual length of the ceremonies that day did not allow
>f a longer sermon."

2 Viz. on his mission of reconciling /Etius and Albinus the
ioman generals in Gaul : see Introduction. 3 Ps. cxliv. 21.

4 Especially of course in the Holy Eucharist.

and while you ever go on unto salvation, may
" my soul magnify the Lord 7," and in the retri-
bution of the judgment to come may the ac-
count of my priesthood so be rendered to the
just Judge 8 that through your good deeds you
may be my joy and my crown, who by your
good will have given an earnest testimony to
me in this present life.

SERMON II.

On his Birthday, II. : delivered on the
Anniversary 9 of his Consecration.)

I. The Lord raises up the weak and gives him
grace a ceo?- ding to his need.
The Divine condescension has made this
an honourable day for me, for it has shown by
raising1 my humbleness to the highest rank,
that He despised not any of His own. And
hence, although one must be diffident of
merit, yet it is one's bounden duty to rejoice
over the gift, since He who is the Imposer of
the burden2 is Himself 3 the Aider in its
execution : and lest the weak recipient should
fall beneath the greatness of the grace, He
who conferred the dignity will also give the
power. As the day therefore returns in due
course on which the Lord purposed that
I should begin my episcopal office, there is
true cause for me to rejoice to the glory of
God, Who that I might love Him much, has
forgiven me much, and that I might make His
Grace wonderful, has conferred His gifts upon
me in whom He found no recommendations
of merit. And by this His work what does
the Lord suggest and commend to our hearts
but that no one should presume upon his own
righteousness nor distrust God's mercy which
shines out more pre-eminently then, when the
sinner is made holy and the downcast lifted

5 Ps. exxxv. 23, 24.

6 1 S. John xvii. n.

7 S. Luke i. 46.

8 The words of S. Paul to the Thessalonians (i Thess. ii. 19)
are clearly in his mind.

9 This sermon, which in the older editions used to be joined
in one with the first was separated by the Ballerinii and assigned
to the (1st?) anniversary of his pontifical consecration. Quesnel,
who did not go so far as to separate the two parts, saw that there
were certain expressions in the first portion which did not suit the
common title given to the whole in anniversario die assnmptionis
eins, proposed to alter it to in octavo, consecrationis eius (on the
octave, &c). I nave adhered to the Ball.'s division, though I am
not entirely convinced by their arguments,

1 Provexit unwillingly altered by the Ball, from praveliit,
against all the MSS. , to suit their view.

2 Oneris, others honoris (advancement).

3 Ipse est, others (including Quesnel) ipse mikijiet (future).

I 2

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

up. For the measure of heavenly gifts does
not rest upon the quality of our deeds, nor in
this world, in which " all life is temptation 4,"
is each one rewarded according to his deserving,
for if the Lord were to take count of a man's
iniquities, no one could stand before His
judgment.

II. The mighty assemblage of prelates testifies
to men's loyal aceeptauce of Peter in Peter's
unworthy sueeessor.

Therefore, dearly-beloved, "magnify the
Lord with me and let us exalt His name
together s," that the whole reason of to-day's
concourse may be referred to the praise of Him
Who brought it to pass. For so far as my
own feelings are concerned, I confess that
I rejoice most over the devotion of you all ;
and when I look upon this splendid assemblage
of my venerable brother-priests6, I feci that,
where so many saints are gathered, the very
angels are amongst us. Nor do I doubt that
we are to-day visited by a more abundant out-
pouring of the Divine Presence, when so many
fair tabernacles of God, so many excellent
members of the Body of Christ are in one
place and shine with one light. Nor yet
I feel sure, is the fostering condescension and
true love of the most blessed Apostle Peter
absent from this congregation : he has not
deserted your devotion, in whose honour you
are met together. And so he too rejoices
over your good feeling and welcomes your
respect for the Lord's own institution as
shown towards the partners of His honour,
commending the well ordered love of the
whole Church, which ever finds Peter in
Peter's See, and from affection for so great
a shepherd grows not lukewarm even over
so inferior a successor as myself. In order
therefore, dearly beloved, that this loyalty
which you unanimously display towards my
humbleness may obtain the fruit of its zeal,
on bended knee entreat the merciful goodness
of our God that in our days He will drive out
those who assail us, strengthen faith, increase
love, increase peace and deign to render me
His poor slave, whom to show the riches of
His grace He has willed to stand at the helm
of the Church, sufficient for so great a work
and useful in building you up, and to this end
to lengthen our time for service that the years
He may grant us may be used to His glory
through Christ our Lord. Amen.

4 Job. vii. i (LXX.). 5 Ps. xxxiv. 3.

6 The Ball, quote from several more or less contemporary
authorities to prove that this concourse is more likely to have
been on the anniversary than on the day of consecration itself,
and they say that such a celebration of the octave as Quesnel
suggests is unknown to all antiquity.

SERMON III.

On his Birthday, III : delivered on the

Anniversary of his Elevation to

the Pontificate.

I. The honour of being raised to the episcopate
must be referred solely to the Divine Head of
the Church.

As often as God's mercy deigns to bring
round the day of His gifts to us, there is,
dearly-beloved, just and reasonable cause for
rejoicing, if only our appointment to the
office be referred to the praise of Him who
gave it. For though this recognition of God
may well be found in all His priests, yet I
take it to be peculiarly binding on me, who,
regarding my own utter insignificance and the
greatness of the office undertaken, ought my-
self also to utter that exclamation of the
Prophet," Lord, I heard Thy speech and was
afraid : I considered Thy works and was dis-
mayed 7." For what is so unwonted and so
dismaying as labour to the frail, exaltation to
the humble, dignity to the undeserving? And
yet we do not despair nor lose heart, because
we put our trust not in ourselves but in Him
who works in us. And hence also we have
sung with harmonious voice the psalm of
David, dearly beloved, not in our own praise,
but to the glory of Christ the Lord. For it is
He of whom it is prophetically written, "Thou
art a priest for ever after the order of Melchi-
zedeck8," that is, not after the order of Aaron,
whose priesthood descending along his own
line of offspring was a temporal ministry, and
ceased with the law of the Old Testament, but
after the order of Melchizedeck, in whom was
prefigured the eternal High Priest. And no
reference is made to his parentage because in
him it is understood that He was portrayed,
whose generation cannot be declared. And
finally, now that the mystery of this Divine
priesthood has descended to human agency, it
runs not by the line of birth, nor is that which
flesh and blood created, chosen, but without
regard to the privilege of paternity and suc-
cession by inheritance, those men are received
by the Church as its rulers whom the Holy
Ghost prepares : so that in the people of God's1
adoption, the whole body of which is priestl
and royal, it is not the prerogative of earthl
origin which obtains the unction 9, but the
condescension of Divine grace which creates
the bishop.

7 Hab. iii. 2 (LXX.). _ 8 Ps. ex. 4.

9 Quesnel is no doubt correct in taking this literally as alluding
to the anointing of bishops at consecration : cf. Serm. IV. chap. 1
Sancti Spirit us unctio consecrat sacerdotes, anil lower down h<
speaks of the effusum benedictionis unguentum : so also ii
Serm. LIX. chap. 7, sacratior est unctio sacerdottim.

SERMON III.

117

II. From Christ and through S. Peter the
pi'iesthood is handed on in perpetuity.
Although, therefore, dearly beloved, we be
found both weak and slothful in fulfilling the
duties of our office, because, whatever devoted
and vigorous action we desire to do, we are
hindered by the frailty of our very condition ;
yet having the unceasing propitiation of the
Almighty and perpetual Priest, who being like
us and yet equal with the Father, brought
down His Godhead even to things human, and
raised His Manhood even to things Divine, we
worthily and piously rejoice over His dispen-
sation, whereby, though He has delegated the
care of His sheep to many shepherds, yet He
has not Himself abandoned the guardianship
of His beloved flock. And from His over-
ruling and eternal protection we have received
the support of the Apostles' aid also, which
assuredly does not cease from its operation :
and the strength of the foundation, on which
the whole superstructure of the Church is
reared, is not weakened x by the weight of the
temple that rests upon it. For the solidity of
that faith which was praised in the chief of
the Apostles is perpetual : and as that re-
mains which Peter believed in Christ, so that
remains which Christ instituted in Peter.
For when, as has been read in the Gospel
lesson2, the Lord had asked the discipies
whom they believed Him to be amid the
various opinions that were held, and the
blessed Peter had replied, saying, " Thou art
the Christ, the Son of the living God," the
Lord says, " Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-
Jona, because flesh and flood hath not re-
vealed it to thee, but My Father, which is in
heaven. And I say to thee, that thou art
Peter, and upon this rock will I build My
church, and the gates of Hades shall not
prevail against it. And I will give unto thee
the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And
whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth, shall
be bound in heaven ; and whatsoever thou
shalt loose on earth, shall be loosed also in
heaven 3."

III. S. Peter's work is still carried out by his
successors.

The dispensation of Truth therefore abides,
and the blessed Peter persevering in the
strength of the Rock, which he has received,
has not abandoned the helm of the Church,
which he undertook. For he was ordained

1 We read lassescit with Hurter, instead of the unintelligible
lacessit of the MSS.

2 By the evangelica lectio is meant the Gospel for the day,
just as, for instance, in Sermon XXXIII. chap. 1, &c

3 S. Matt. xvi. 16 — 19.

before the rest in such a way that from his
being called the Rock, from his being pro-
nounced the Foundation, from his being con-
stituted the Doorkeeper of the kingdom of
heaven, from his being set as the Umpire to
bind and to loose, whose judgments shall
retain their validity in heaven, from all these
mystical titles we might know the nature of
his association with Christ. And still to-day
he more fully and effectually performs what is
entrusted to him, and carries out every part
of his duty and charge in Him and with Him,
through Whom he has been glorified. And so
if anything is rightly done and rightly decreed
by us, if anything is won from the mercy of
God by our daily supplications, it is of his
work and merits whose power lives and whose
authority prevails in his See. For this, dearly-
beloved, was gained by that confession, which,
inspired in the Apostle's heart by God the
Father, transcended all the uncertainty of
human opinions, and was endued with the
firmness of a rock, which no assaults could
shake. For throughout the Church Peter
daily says, " Thou art the Christ, the Son of
the living God," and every tongue which con-
fesses the Lord, accepts the instruction his
voice conveys. This Faith conquers the devil,
and breaks the bonds of his prisoners. It
uproots us from this earth and plants us in
heaven, and the gates of Hades cannot prevail
against it. For with such solidity is it en-
dued by God that the depravity of heretics
cannot mar it nor the unbelief of the heathen
overcome it.

IV. This festival then is in S. Peter's honour,
and the progress of his flock redounds to his
glory.

And so, dearly beloved, with reasonable
obedience we celebrate to-day's festival by
such methods, that in my humble person he
may be recognized and honoured, in whom
abides the care of all the shepherds, together
with the charge of the sheep commended
to him, and whose dignity is not abated even
in so unworthy an heir. And hence the pre-
sence of my venerable brothers and fellow-
priests, so much desired and valued by me,
will be the more sacred and precious, if they
will transfer the chief honour of this service
in which they have deigned to take part to
him whom they know to be not only the
patron of this see, but also the primate of
all bishops. When therefore we utter our ex-
hortations in your ears, holy brethren, believe
that he is speaking whose representative we
are : because it is his warning that we give,
nothing else but his teaching that we preach,
beseeching you to " gird up the loins of your

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

mind V' and lead a chaste and sober life in the
fear of God, and not to let your mind forget
his supremacy and consent to the lusts of the
flesh. Short and fleeting are the joys of this
world's pleasures which endeavour to turn
aside from the path of life those who are
called to eternity. The faithful and religious
spirit, therefore, must desire the things which
are heavenly, and being eager for the Divine
promises, lift itself to the love of the in-
corruptible Good and the hope of the true
Light. But be sure, dearly-beloved, that your
labour, whereby you resist vices and fight
against carnal desires, is pleasing and precious
in God's sight, and in God's mercy will profit
not only yourselves but me also, because the
zealous pastor makes his boast of the progress
of the Lord's flock. " For ye are my crown
and joy 5," as the Apostle says ; if your faith,
which from the beginning of the Gospel has
been preached in all the world, has continued
in love and holiness. For though the whole
Church, which is in all the world, ought to
abound in all virtues, yet you especially, above
all people, it becomes to excel in deeds of
piety, because founded as you are on the very
citadel of the Apostolic Rock, not only has
our Lord Jesus Christ redeemed you in com-
mon with all men, but the blessed Apostle
Peter has instructed you far beyond all men.
Through the same Christ our Lord.

SERMON IX.

Upon the Collections6, IV.

I. The devil's wickedness in leading Jiien astray
is now counteracted by the work of Redemp-
tion in restoring them to the Truth.

God's mercy and justice, dearly-beloved,
has in loving-kindness disclosed to us through
our Lord Jesus Christ's teaching, the manner
of His retributions, as they have been ordained
from the foundation of the world, that accept-
ing the significance of facts we might take
what we believe will happen, to have, as it
were, already come to pass. For our Re-
deemer and Saviour knew what great errors
the devil's deceit had dispersed throughout
the world and by how many superstitions he
had subjected the chief part of mankind to

* i Pet. i. T3. ^ Si Thess. ii. 20.

6 The Ballerinii in an excellent note have shown that the
series of six Sermons de Collectis were delivered in connexion
with the annual Collections then in vogue at Rome for the sick
and poor of the seven city regions. These collections seem to
have been continued for several consecutive days (cf. Serm. VI.
primus collectarum dies, and Serm. X. chap. 4), and probably
began on the 6th of July (the octave of SS. Peter and Paul), the
day on which in pagan times the Ludi Apollinares had also
begun : this date being designedly chosen, as Leo himself s?ys
(Serm. VIIl.),ad destruendas antiqui hostis i?isuiias in die quo
impii sub idolorum suorum nomine diabolo sej-vneant : cf. what
he says also in the first and third chapters of this Sermon (IX.).

himself. But that the creature formed in
God's image might not any longer through
ignorance of the Truth be driven on to the
precipice of perpetual death, He inserted in
the Gospel-pages the nature of His judgment
that it might recover every man from the
snares of the crafty foe ; for now all would
know what rewards the good might hope for
and what punishments the evil must fear. For
the instigator and author of sin in order first
to fall through pride and then to injure us
through envy, because " he stood not in
the Truth 7 " put all his strength in lying and
produced every kind of deceit from this
poisoned source of his cunning, that he might
cut off man's devout hopes from that happiness
which he had lost by his own uplifting, and drag
them into partnership with his condemnation,
to whose reconciliation he himself could not
attain. Whoever therefore among men has
wronged God by his wickednesses, has been
led astray by his guile, and depraved by his
villainy. For he easily drives into all evil
doings those whom he has deceived in the
matter of religion. But knowing that God is
denied not only by words but also by deeds,
many whom he could not rob of their faith, he
has robbed of their love, and by choking the
ground of their heart with the weeds of
avarice, has spoiled them of the fruit of good
works, when he could not spoil them of the
confession of their lips.

II. Govs just judgment against sin is de-
nounced that zve may avoid it by deeds of
mercy and love.

On account therefore, dearly-beloved, of
these crafty designs of our ancient foe, the un-
speakable goodness of Christ has wished us to
know, what was to be decreed about all man-
kind in the day of retribution, that, while in
this life healing remedies are legitimately
offered, while restoration is not denied to the
contrite, and those who have been long barren
can at length be fruitful, the verdict on
wnich justice has determined may be fore-
stalled and the picture of God's coming to
judge t'ie world never depart from the mind's
eye. For the Lord will come in His glorious
Majesty, as He Himself has foretold, and there
will be with Him an innumerable host of
angel-legions radiant in their splendour. Be-
fore the throne of His power will all the
nations of the world be gathered ; and all the
men that in all ages and on all the face of the
earth have been born, shall stand in the
Judge's sight. Then shall be separated the
just from the unjust, the guiltless from the

7 S. John viii. 44.

SERMON IX.

119

guilty ; and when the sons of piety, their
works of mercy reviewed, have received the
Kingdom prepared for them, the unjust shall
be upbraided for their utter barrenness, and
those on the left having naught in common
with those on the right, shall by the con-
demnation of the Almighty Judge be cast into
the fire prepared for the torture of the devil
and his angels, with him to share the punish-
ment, whose will they choose to do. Who
then would not tremble at this doom of eternal
torment ? Who would not dread evils which are
never to be ended ? But since this severity is
only denounced in order that we may seek for
mercy, we too in this present life must show such
open-handed mercy that after perilous neglect
returning to works of piety it may be possible for
us to be set free from this doom. For this is the
purpose of the Judge's might and of the Saviour's
graciousness, that the unrighteous may forsake
his ways and the sinner give up his wicked
habits. Let those who wish Christ to spare
them, have mercy on the poor; let them give
freely to feed the wretched, who desire to
attain to the society of the blessed. Let no
man consider his fellow vile, nor despise in
any one that nature which the Creator of the
world made His own. For who that labours
can deny that Christ claims that labour as
done unto Himself? Your fellow-slave is
helped thereby, but it is the Lord who will
repay. The feeding of the needy is the pur-
chase money of the heavenly kingdom and
the free dispenser of things temporal is made
:he heir of things eternal. But how has such
small expenditure deserved to be valued so
lighly except because our works are weighed
n the balance of love, and when a man loves
vhat God loves, he is deservedly raised into
His kingdom, whose attribute of love has in
)art become his ?

III. We minister to Christ Himself in the
person of His poor.

To this pious duty of good works, therefore,
'.early beloved, the day of Apostolic institu-
ion 8 invites us, on which the first collection

8 Dies apostolical insiituiionis : this was, as note 6 explains, the
ctave of SS. Peter and Paul, but how far Leo actually attributes
;s institution to the Apostles themselves, is a little doubtful. In
le next clause here he speaks of the Collection as a patribus
\rdinata (so too in Serm. VII. dies saluberime a Sanctis patribus
istitutus, and Serm. XI. chap. 2: cf. Serm. X. chap. 1, aiic-
rritattm patrum); whereas in Sermon VIII. the day is said to
2 apostolicis traditionibus institutus, and in Serm. XI. chap. 1,
posto litis didicimus institutis, and strongest of all the openii.g
ords of Serm. X. chap. 1, apostolicis traditionis instituta ser-
\intes ut diem quem Mi ab impiorum consuetudine pur-
itum misericordiiF operibnts consecrarunt celebremus. Patres
awever often includes apostoli, e.g. Serm. LXXIII. chap. 1,
,'atias aganms .... sanctorum patrum necessaries tarditati,
jhere pa'trum = apostoli aliiqtte discipnli. The fact is, as Bright
pints out upon a similar matter (the origin of Lent), Leo " would
Y prone to make that claim for any institute of his own church
iee Bingham xxi. 1, 8.) " (n. 103.) On Serm. LXXIX. 1 the

of our holy offerings has been prudently and
profitably ordained by the Fathers ; in order
that because at this season formerly the
Gentiles used superstitiously to serve demons,
we might celebrate the most holy offering of
our alms in protest against the unholy victims
of the wicked. And because this has been
most profitable to the growth of the Church,
it has been resolved to make it perpetual. We
exhort you, therefore, holy brethren throughout
the churches of your several regions 9 on
Wednesday next l to contribute of your goods,
according to your means and willingness, to
purposes of charity, that ye may be able to
win that blessedness in which he shall rejoice
without end, who " considereth the needy and
poor2." And if we are to "consider" him,
dearly beloved, we must use loving care and
watchfulness, in order that we may find him
whom modesty conceals and shamefastness
keeps back. For there are those who blush
openly to ask for what they want and prefer
to suffer privation without speaking rather
than to be put to shame by a public appeal.
These are they whom we ought to " consider "
and relieve from their hidden straits in order
that they may the more rejoice from the very
fact that their modesty as well as poverty
has been consulted. And rightly in the
needy and poor do we recognize the person
of Jesus Christ our Lord Himself, " Who
though He was rich," as says the blessed
Apostle, " became poor, that He might enrich
us by His poverty 3." And that His presence
might never seem to be wanting to us, He so
effected the mystic union of His humility and
His glory that while we adore Him as King
and Lord in the Majesty of the Father, we
might also feed Him in His poor, for which
we shall be set free in an evil day from per-
petual damnation, and for our considerate
care of the poor shall be joined with the whole
company of heaven.

IV. To complete their acceptance by God, they
must not neglect to lay all information against
the Manichees ivho are in the city.
But in order that your devotion, dearly
beloved, may in all things be pleasing to God,
we exhort you also to show due zeal in in-
forming your presbyters of Manichees where-

Ball. appropriately quote a dictum of S. Augustine s that what
the universal Church has always held is correctly credited with
the authority of the Apostles. .

9 Regionum, viz. the seven regions into which Rome was then
divided : see n. 6, above.

i The Ball, wish to alter this to Thursday (against Mbb.)
to suit their calculations, by which as the detection of Mam.
chaeism at Rome, mentioned in chap. iv., occurred after the 6th
of July, 443, this sermon must have been delivered in 444.

a Ps. xli. 1. 3 2 Cor. Vlil. 9.

120

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT

ever they be hidden 4. For it is naught but
piety to disclose the hiding-places of the
wicked, and in them to overthrow the devil,
whom they serve. For against them, dearly
beloved, it becomes indeed the whole world
and the whole Church everywhere to put on
the armour of Faith : but your devotion ought
to be foremost in this work, who in your pro-
genitors learnt the Gospel of the Cross of
Christ from the very mouth of the most blessed
Apostles Peter and Paul. Men must not be al-
lowed to lie hid who do not believe that the law
given through Moses, in which God is shown
to be the Creator of the Universe, ought to
be received : who speak against the Prophets
and the Holy Ghost, dare in their damnable
profanity to reject the Psalms of David which
are sung through the universal Church with
all reverence, deny the birth of the Lord
Christ, according to the flesh, say that His
Passion and Resurrection was fictitious, not
true, and deprive the baptism of regeneration
of all its power as a means of grace. Nothing
with them is holy, nothing entire, nothing
true. They are to be shunned, lest they
harm any one : they are to be given up, lest
they should settle in any part of our city.
Yours, dearly beloved, will be the gain before
the Lord's judgment-seat of what we bid, of
what we ask. For it is but right that the
triumph of this deed also should be joined to
the oblation of our alms, the Lord Jesus
Christ in all things aiding us, Who lives and
reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

'SERMON X.

On the Collections, V.

I. Our goods are given us not as our own pos-
sessions but for use in God's service.

Observing the institutions of the Apostles'
tradition, dearly beloved, we exhort you, as
watchful shepherds, to celebrate with the de-
votion of religious practice that day which
they s purged from wicked superstitions and
consecrated to deeds of mercy, thus showing
that the authority of the Fathers still " lives
among us, and that we obediently abide by
their teaching. Inasmuch as the sacred use-
fulness of such a practice affects not only time
past but also our own age, so that what aided
them in the destruction of vanities, might
contribute with us to the increase of virtues.
And what so suitable to faith, what so much
in harmony with godliness as to assist the
poverty of the needy, to undertake the care
of the weak, to succour the needs of the

4 Cf. Lett. VII. and VIII.

5 See Serm. IX. n. 6, and chap. iii. n. 8.

brethren, and to remember one's own con-
dition in the toils of others6. In which work
He only who knows what He has given to
each, discerns aright how much a man can
and how much he cannot do. For not only
are spiritual riches and heavenly gifts received
from God, but earthly and material possessions
also proceed from His bounty, that He may
be justified in requiring an account of those
things which He has not so much put in our
possession as committed to our stewardship.
God's gifts, therefore, we must use properly
and wisely, lest the material for good work
should become an occasion of sin. For wealth,
after its kind and regarded as a means, is good
and is of the greatest advantage to human
society, when it is in the hands of the bene-
volent and open-handed, and when the luxu-
rious man does not squander nor the miser
hoard it ; for whether ill-stored or unwisely
spent it is equally lost.

II. The liberal use of riches is worse than vain,

if it be for selfish ends alone.

And, however praiseworthy it be to fie
from intemperance, and to avoid the waste
of base pleasures, and though many in their
magnificence disdain to conceal their wealth,
and in the abundance of their goods think
scorn of mean and sordid parsimony, yet
such men's liberality is not happy, nor
their thriftiness to be commended, if their
riches are of benefit to themselves alone ; i:
no poor folks are helped by their goods, n
sick persons nourished ; if out of the abund-
ance of their great possessions the captive
gets not ransom, nor the stranger comfort,
nor the exile relief. Rich men of this kind
are needier than all the needy. For they los
those returns which they might have for ever,
and while they gloat over the brief and not
always free enjoyment of what they possess,
they are not fed upon the bread of justice noi
the sweets of mercy : outwardly splendid, the)
have no light within : of things temporal the)
have abundance, but utter lack of thing:
eternal : for they inflict starvation on then
own souls, and bring them to shame anc
nakedness by spending upon heavenly trea
sures none of these things which they put
into their earthly storehouses.

III. The duty of mercy outweighs all othet

virtues.

But, perhaps there are some rich people
who, although they are not wont to help tht
Church's poor by bounteous gifts, yet kee
other commands of God, and among thei.

6 i.e. apparently to do as you would be done by.

SERMON XII.

121

many meritorious acts of faith and uprightness
think they will be pardoned for the lack of
this one virtue. But this is so important that,
though the rest exist without it, they can be
of no avail. For although a man be full of
faith, and chaste, and sober, and adorned
with other still greater decorations, yet if he
is not merciful, he cannot deserve mercy : for
the Lord says, " blessed are the merciful, for
God shall have mercy upon them 7." And
when the Son of Man comes in His Majesty
and is seated on His glorious throne, and all
nations being gathered together, division is
made between the good and the bad, for what
shall they be praised who stand upon the
right except for works of benevolence and
deeds of love which Jesus Christ shall reckon
as done to Himself? For He who has made
man's nature His own, has separated Himself
in nothing from man's humility. And what
objection shall be made to those on the left,
except for their neglect of love, their inhuman
harshness, their refusal of mercy to the poor?
as if those on the right had no other virtues,
: | those on the left no other faults. But at the
great and final day of judgment large-hearted
liberality and ungodly meanness will be
counted of such importance as to outweigh
: all other virtues and all other shortcomings,
■ so that for the one men shall gain entrance
Ijinto the Kingdom, for the other they shall be
sent into eternal fire.

IV. And its efficacy, as Scripture proves, is
incalculable.

Let no one therefore, dearly beloved, flatter
limself on any merits of a good life, if works

• pf charity be wanting in him, and let him not

• hrust in the purity of his body, if he be not
cleansed by the purification of almsgiving.
!?or '; almsgiving wipes out sin 8," kills death,
;ind extinguishes the punishment of perpetual
lire. But he who has not been fruitful therein,

: :;hall have no indulgence from the great Re-
:ompenser, as Solomon says, " He that closeth
us ears lest he should hear the weak, shall
limself call upon the Lord, and there shall be

7S. Matt: v. 7.
I 8 Ecclus. iii. 30. The purifying power of almsgiving is
favourite thought with Leo: cf. for instance Serm. XII.

hap. 4, and XVIII. chap. 3, where he says, castigatio corporis

' instantia oratiotiis tunc veram obtinent puritatem cum elee-
\tosynarum sancti/icatione nitimtur. In several places he com-

ires its cleansing effect to the waters of baptism : e.g. Serm. XX.

lap. 3, in eleemosynis virtus quccdam est instituta baptismatis,
\itia sicut aqua, extinguit iguem, si eleemosyna peccatum — ut

?mo dijjidat regenerationis sibi nit or em etiam post mtilta peccata
Kstitui, qui eleemosynarum studuerit purificatione mundari :
lid again in Serm. VII. he says, unusquisque — in usus atque
Vimoniam pauperum de vestris Jacultatibus conferatis sciences
\ra>ter lUud regenerationis lavacrum, in quo uuiversorum abluta?

tnt macula peccatoritm, hoc remedium infirmitati humana

Vtnitus esse donatum ut si qu d cu/parum in fiac terrena

ibitatione contrahitur, eleemosynis deleatur.

none to hear him 9." And hence Tobias also,
while instructing his son in the precepts of
godliness, says, " Give alms of thy substance,
and turn not thy face from any poor man :
so shall it come to pass that the face of God
shall not be turned from thee I." This virtue
makes all virtues profitable ; for by its pre-
sence it gives life to that very faith, by which
"the just lives2," and which is said to be
" dead without works 3 ; " because as the
reason for works consists in faith, so the
strength of faith consists in works. " While
we have time therefore," as the Apostle says,
" let us do that which is good to all men, and
especially to them that are of the household
of faith 4." " But let us not be weary in doing
good ; for in His own time we shall reap V
And so the present life is the time for sow-
ing, and the day of retribution is the time of
harvest, when every one shall reap the fruit of
his seed according to the amount of his sow-
ing. And no one shall be disappointed in the
produce of that harvesting, because it is the
heart's intentions rather than the sums ex-
pended that will be reckoned up. And little
sums from little means shall produce as much
as great sums from great means. And there-
fore, dearly beloved, let us carry out this
Apostolic institution. And as the first collec-
tion will be next Sunday, let all prepare them-
selves to give willingly, that every one accord-
ing to his ability may join in this most sacred
offering. Your very alms and those who shall
be aided by your gifts shall intercede for you,
that you may be always ready for every good
work in Christ Jesus our Lord, Who lives and
reigns for ages without end. Amen.

SERMON XII.

On the fast of the Tenth Month, I. s

I. Restoration to the Divine image in which
we were made is only possible by our imitation
of God's will.

If, dearly beloved, we comprehend faithfully
and wisely the beginning of our creation, we
shall find that man was made in God's image,
to the end that he might imitate his Creator,
and that our race attains its highest natural
dignity, by the form of the Divine goodness
being reflected in us, as in a mirror. And
assuredly to this form the Saviour's grace is
daily restoring us, so long as that which, in the

9 Prov. xxi. 13.

1 Tob. iv. 7 (one of the offertory sentences it will be remem-
bered in the English Prayer-book).

2 Habb. ii. 4. 3 James ii. 26. 4 Gal. ii. 10 and 9.

S That is the December or. as we should now call it, the Advent
Embertide. Cf. Serm. XIX. chap. 2, where the four seasons,
as arranged in Leo's day, are clearly set forth.

122

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

first Adam fell, is raised up again in the
second. And the cause of our restoration is
naught else but the mercy of God, Whom we
should not have loved, unless He had first loved
us, and dispelled the darkness of our igno-
rance by the light of His truth. And the
Lord foretelling this by the holy Isaiah says,
" I will bring the blind into a way that they
knew not, and will make them walk in paths
which they were ignorant of. I will turn dark-
ness into light for them, and the crooked into
the straight. These words will I do for them,
and not forsake them 6." And again he says, " I
was found by them that sought Me not, and
openly appeared to them that asked not
for Me 6. And the Apostle John teaches us
how this has been fulfilled, when he says.
" We know that the Son of God is come, and
has given us an understanding, that we may
know Him that is true, and may be in Him
that is true, even His Son 7," and again, "let
us therefore love God, because He first loved
us 7." Thus it is that God, by loving us,
restores us to His image, and, in order that
He may find in us the form of His goodness,
He gives us that whereby we ourselves too
may do the work that He does, kindling that
is the lamps of our minds, and inflaming us
with the fire of His love, that we may love not
only Himself, but also whatever He loves.
For if between men that is the lasting friend-
ship which is based upon similarity of character,
notwithstanding that such identity of wills is
often directed to wicked ends, how ought we
to yearn and strive to differ in nothing from
what is pleasing to God. Of which the pro-
phet speaks, " for wrath is in His indignation,
and life in His pleasure 8," because we shall
not otherwise attain the dignity of the Divine
Majesty, unless we imitate His will.

II. We must love both God and our neighbour,
and " our neighbour " must be inter j>> eted in
its widest sense.

And so, when the Lord says, "Thou shalt
love the Lord thy God, from all thy heart and
from all thy mind : and thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself 9," let the faithful soul put
on the unfading love of its Author and Ruler,
and subject itself also entirely to His will
in Whose works and judgments true justice and
tender-hearted compassion never fail. For
although a man be wearied out with labours
and many misfortunes, there is good reason for
him to endure all in the knowledge that adver-
sity will either prove him good or make him

better. But this godly love cannot be perfect
unless a man love his neighbour also. Under
which name must be included not only those
who are connected with us by friendship or
neighbourhood, but absolutely all men, with
whom we have a common nature, whether
they be foes or allies, slaves or free. For the
One Maker fashioned us, the One Creator
breathed life into us ; we all enjoy the same
sky and air, the same days and nights, and,
though some be good, others bad, some righ-
teous, others unrighteous, yet God is bountiful
to all, kind to all, as Paul and Barnabas said
to the Lycaonians concerning God's Provi-
dence, "«ho in generations gone by suffered
all the nations to walk in their own ways.
And yet He left Himself not without witness,
doing them good, giving rain from heaven and
fruitful seasons, and filling our hearts with
food and gladness I." But the wide extent of
Christian grace has given us yet greater reasons
for loving our neighbour, which, reaching to
all parts of the whole world, looks down on 2
no one, and teaches that no one is to be I
neglected. And full rightly does He com- |
mand us to love our enemies, and to pray to
Him for our persecutors, who, daily grafting
shoots of the wild olive from among all nations
upon the holy branches of His own olive,
makes men reconciled instead of enemies,
adopted sons instead of strangers, just instead
of ungodly, " that every knee may bow of
things in heaven, of things on earth, and of
things under the earth, and every tongue
confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the
glory of God the Father 3."

III. We must be thankful, and shoiv our thank-
fulness for what we have received, whether
much or little.

Accordingly, as God wishes us to be good,
because He is good, none of His judgments
ought to displease us. For not to give Him
thanks in all things, what else is it but to blame
Him in some degree. Man's folly too often
dares to murmur against his Creator, not only
in time of want, but also in time of plenty, so
that, when something is not supplied, he com-
plains, and when certain things are in abund-
ance he is ungrateful. The lord of rich
harvests thought scorn of his well-filled gar-
ners, and groaned over his abundant grape-
gathering : he did not give thanks for the size
of the crop, but complained of its poorness 3".
And if the ground has been less prolific than
its wont in the seed it has reared, and the vines

6 Is. xlii. 16, and lxv. i.

7 i John v 20, and iv. 19 (the latter loosely).

8 Ps. xxx. 5 (LXX.). 9 S. Matt. xxii. 37, 39.

1 Acts xiv. 16, 17. For gladness (Itztitia) others read right-
eousness (iustitia).

2 Desj>ectat: others desperat (despairs of). 3 Phil. ii. 10, II
3* Viz. in S. Lui^e xii. 16 — 20.

SERMON XVI.

123

and the olives have failed in their supply of
fruit, the year is accused, the elements blamed,
neither the air nor the sky is spared, whereas
nothing better befits and reassures the faithful
and godly disciples of Truth than the persistent
and unwearied lifting of praise to God, as says
the Apostle, " Rejoice alway, pray without ceas-
ing: in all things give thanks. For this is the
will of God in Christ Jesus in all things for youV
But how shall we be partakers of this devotion,
unless vicissitudes of fortune train our minds
in constancy, so that the love directed towards
God may not be puffed up in prosperity nor
faint in adversity. Let that which pleases
God, please us too. Let us rejoice in what-
ever measure of gifts He gives. Let him who
has used great possessions well, use small ones
also well. Plenty and scarcity may be equally
for our good, and even in spiritual progress we
shall not be cast down at the smallness of the
results, if our minds become not dry and
barren. Let that spring from the soil of our
heart, which the earth gave not. To him that
fails not in good will, means to give are ever
supplied. Therefore, dearly beloved, in all
works of godliness let us use what each year
gives us, and let not seasons of difficulty hinder
our Christian benevolence. The Lord knows
how to replenish the widow's vessels, which her
pious deed of hospitality has emptied : He
knows how to turn water into wine : He knows
how to satisfy 5,000 hungry persons with a few
loaves. And He who is fed in His poor, can
multiply when He takes what He increased
when He gave.

IV. Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are the
three comprehensive duties of a Christian.

But there are three things which most be-
long to religious actions, namely prayer, fast-
ing, and almsgiving, in the exercising of which
while every time is accepted, yet that ought to
be more zealously observed, which we have re-
ceived as hallowed by tradition from the
Apostles : even as this tenth month brings
round again to us the opportunity when accord-
ing to the ancient practice we may give more
diligent heed to those three things of which
I have spoken. For by prayer we seek to
propitiate God, by fasting we extinguish the
lusts of the flesh, by alms we redeem our sins :
and at the same time God's image is through-
out renewed in us, if we are always ready to
praise Him, unfailingly intent on our purifi-
cation and unceasingly active in cherishing
our neighbour. This threefold round of duty,
dearly beloved, brings all other virtues into
action : it attains to God's image and likeness

4 x Thess. v. x6.

and unites us inseparably with the Holy Spirit.
Because in prayer faith remains stedfast, in
fastings life remains innocent, in almsgiving
the mind remains kind. On Wednesday and
Friday therefore let us fast : and on Saturday
let us keep vigil with the most blessed Apostle
Peter, who will deign to aid our supplications
and fast and alms with his own prayers through
our Lord Jesus Christ, who with the Father
and the Holy Ghost lives and reigns for ever
and ever. Amen.

SERMON XVI.

On the fast of the Tenth Month.

I. The prosperous must show forth their thank-
fulness to God, by liberality to the poor and
needy.

The transcendant power of God's grace,
dearly beloved, is indeed daily effecting in
Christian hearts the transference of our every
desire from earthly to heavenly things. But
this present life also is passed through the
Creator's aid and sustained by His provi-
dence, because He who promises things
eternal is also the the Supplier of things
temporal. As therefore we ought to give
God thanks for the hope of future happiness
towards which we run by faith, because He
raises us up to a perception of the happiness
in store for us, so for those things also which
we receive in the course of every year, God
should be honoured and praised, who having
from the beginning given fertility to the earth
and laid down laws of bearing fruit for every
germ and seed, will never forsake his own de-
crees but will as Creator ever continue His
kind administration of the things that He has
made. Whatever therefore the cornfields, the
vineyards and the olive groves have borne
for man's purposes, all this God in His boun-
teous goodness has produced : for under the
varying condition of the elements He has
mercifully aided the uncertain toils of the
husbandmen so that wind, and rain, cold and
heat, day and night might serve our needs.
For men's methods would not have sufficed to
give effect to their works, had not God given
the increase to their wonted plantings and
waterings. And hence it is but godly and just
that we too should help others with that
which the Heavenly Father has mercifully
bestowed on us. For there are full many,
who have no fields, no vineyards, no olive-
groves, whose wants we must provide out of
the store which God has given, that they too
with us may bless God for the richness of the
earth and rejoice at its possessors having re-
ceived things which they have shared also
with the poor and the stranger. That garner

124

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

is blessed and most worthy that all fruits
should increase manifold in it, from which the
hunger of the needy and the weak is satisfied,
from which the wants of the stranger are re-
lieved, from which the desire of the sick is
gratified. For these men God has in His
justice peunitted to be afflicted with divers
troubles, that He might both crown the wretched
for their patience and the merciful for their
loving-kindness.

II. Almsgiving and fasting are the most
essential aids to prayer.

And while all seasons are opportune for this
duty, beloved, yet this present season is
specially suitable and appropriate, at which
our holy fathers, being Divinely inspired,
sanctioned the Fast of the tenth month, that
when all the ingathering of the crops was
complete, we might dedicate to God our
reasonable service of abstinence, and each
might remember so to use his abundance
as to be more abstinent in himself and more
open-handed towards the poor. For forgive-
ness of sins is most efficaciously prayed for
with almsgiving and fasting, and supplications
that are winged by such aids mount swiftly
to God's ears : since as it is written, " the
merciful man doeth good to his own soul 5,''
and nothing is so much a man's own as that
which he spends on his neighbour. For that
part of his material possessions with which he
ministers to the needy, is transformed into
eternal riches, and such wealth is begotten of
this bountifulness as can never be diminished
or in any way destroyed, for " blessed are the
merciful, for God shall have mercy on them 6,"
and He Himself shall be their chief Reward,
who is the Model of His own command.

III. Christians'1 pious activity has so enraged
Satan that he has multiplied heresies to wreak
them harm.

But at all these acts of godliness, dearly-
beloved, which commend us more and more
to God, there is no doubt that our enemy,
who is so eager and so skilled in harming us,
is aroused with keener stings of hatred, that
under a false profession of the Christian name
he may corrupt those whom he is not allowed
to attack with open and bloody persecutions,
and for this work he has heretics in his ser-
vice whom he has led astray from the catholic
Faith, subjected to himself, and forced under
divers errors to serve in his camp. And as
for the deception of primitive man he used the
services of a serpent, so to mislead the minds
of the upright he has armed these men's

5 Prov. xi. 17.

6 S. Matt. v. 7.

tongues with the poison of his falsehoods.
But these treacherous designs, dearly beloved,
with a shepherd's care, and so far as the Lord
vouchsafes His aid, we will defeat. And
taking heed lest any of the holy flock should
perish, we admonish you with fatherly warn-
ings to keep aloof from the " lying lips " and
the " deceitful tongue " from which the prophet
asks that his soul should be delivered ?; because
"their words," as says the blessed Apostle,
" do creep as doth a gangrene 8." They creep
in humbly, they arrest softly, they bind gently,

For they " come," as the
1 in sheeps' clothing, but
ravening wolves 9 • " be-

they slay secretly.
Saviour foretold,
inwardly they are
cause they could not deceive the true and
simple sheep, unless they covered their bestial
rage with the name of Christ. But in them
all he is at work who, though he is really the
enemy of enlightenment, " transforms himself
into an angel of light V His is the craft which
inspires Basilides ; his the ingenuity which
worked in Marcion ; he is the leader under
whom Sabellius acted ; he the author of
Photinus' headlong fall, his the authority and
his the spirit which Arius and Eunomius
served : in fine under his command and au-
thority the whole herd of such wild beasts has
separated from the unity of the Church and
severed connexion with the Truth.

IV. Of all heresies Manicheism is the worst

and joullcst. '

But while he retains this ever-varying su-
premacy over all the heresies, yet he has
built his citadel upon the madness of the
Manichees, and found in them the most
spacious court in which to strut and boast
himself: for there he possesses not one form
of misbelief only, but a general com- j
pound of all errors and ungodlinesses. For
all that is idolatrous in the heathen, all that
is blind in carnal Jew?, all that is unlawful
in the secrets of the magic art, all finally that
is profane and blasphemous in all the heresies
is gathered together with all manner of filth
in these men as if in a cesspool 2. And hence
it is too long a matter to describe all their
ungodlinesses : for the number of the charges
against them exceeds my supply of words. It
will be sufficient to indicate a few instances,
that you may, from what you hear, conjecture
what from modesty we omit. In the matter
of their rites, however, which are as indecent
morally as they are religiously, we cannot keep

8 2 Tim. ii. 17.

9 S. Matt. vii. 15.

7 Ps. cxx. 2.

1 2 Cor. xi. 14.

* Strong as this language undoubtedly is, it is perhaps almost
justifiable, if the story which he proceeds to indicate is not only
true but characteristic of the sect.

SERMON XVII.

125

silence about that which the Lord has been
pleased to reveal to our inquiries, lest any one
should think we have trusted in this thing to
vague rumours and uncertain opinions. And
so with bishops and presbyters sitting beside
me, and Christian nobles assembled in the
same place, we ordered their elect men and
women to be brought before us. And when
they had made many disclosures concerning
their perverse tenets and their mode of con-
ducting festivals, they revealed this story of
utter depravity also, which I blush to describe,
but which has been so carefully investigated
that no grounds for doubt are left for the
incredulous or for cavillers. For there were
present all the persons by which the unutter-
able crime had been perpetrated, to wit a girl
at most ten years old, and two women who
had nursed her and prepared her for this
outrage. There was also present the stripling
who had outraged her, and the bishop, who
had arranged their horrible crime. All these
made one and the same confession, and a tale
of such foul orgies 3 was disclosed as our ears
could scarcely bear. And lest by plainer
speaking we offend chaste ears, the account
of the procee .lings shall suffice, in which it
is most fully shown that in that sect no
modesty, no sense of honour, no chastity
whatever is found : for their law is falsehood,
j their religion the devil, their sacrifice im-
morality.

V. Every one should abjure such men, and
give all the information they possess about
them to the authorities.

And so, dearly beloved, renounce all friend-
ship with these men who are utterly abomin-
able and pestilential, and whom disturbances
in other districts have brought in great num-
bers to the city ^: and you women especially
refrain from acquaintance and intercourse with
such men, lest while your ears are charmed
unawares by their fabulous stories, you fall
into the devil's noose, who, knowing that he
seduced the first man by the woman's mouth,
ind drove all men from the bliss of paradise
:hrough feminine credulity, still lies in watch
for your sex with more confident craft that he
nay rob both of their faith and of their
nodesty those whom he has been able to
ensnare by the servants of his falseness. This,
:oo, dearly beloved, I entreat and admonish

3 Exsecramentum, cf. Serm. LXXV. chop. 7, ad ilia, non
acra sed exsecranwnta perveniunt , quce propter commune in vere-
undiam non sunt nostra sermone promenda.

4 The Ball, quote Aug. (Conf. v. chap. 10) to show that Rome
ad long ago been infested with Manichees. They identity the

sturbances Leo here speaks of with Genseric's invasion ot Africa
iiid occupation of Carthage in 438.

you loyally to inform us s, if any of you know-
where they dwell, where they teach, whose
houses they frequent, and in whose company
they take rest : because it is of little avail to
any one that through the Holy Ghost's pro-
tection he is not caught by them himself, if
he takes no action when he knows that others
are being caught. Against common enemies
for the common safety all alike should exercise
the same vigilance lest from one member's
wound other members also be injured, and
they that think such men should not be given
up, in Christ's judgment be found guilty for
their silence even though they are not con-
taminated by their approval.

VI. Zeal in rooting out heresy will make other
pious duties more acceptable.

Display then a holy zeal of religious vigi-
lance, and let all the faithful rise in one body
against these savage enemies of their souls.
For the merciful God has delivered a certain
portion of our noxious foes into our hands in
order that by revelation of the danger the
utmost caution might be aroused. Let not
what has been done suffice, but let us perse-
vere in searching them out : and by God's
aid the result will be not only the continuance
in safety of those who still stand, but also the
recovery from error of many who have been
deceived by the devil's seduction. And the
prayers, and alms, and fasts that you offer to
the merciful God shall be the holier for this
very devotion, when this deed of faith also is
added to all your other godly duties. On
Wednesday and Friday, therefore, let us fast,
and on Saturday let us keep vigil in the
presence of the most blessed Apostle Peter;
who, as we experience and know, watches
unceasingly like a shepherd over the sheep
entrusted to him by the Lord, and who will
prevail in his entreaties that the Church of
God, which was founded by his preaching,
may be free from all error, through Christ
our Lord. Amen.

SERMON XVII.

On the Fast of the Tenth Month, VI.

I. The duty of fasting is based on both the Old
and New Testaments, and is closely connected
with the duties of prayer and almsgiving.

The teaching of the Law, dearly beloved,
imparts great authority to the precepts of the
Gospel, seeing that certain things are trans-
ferred from the old ordinances to the new,
and by the very devotions of the Church it is
shown that the Lord Jesus Christ " came not

S For a like injunction, cf. Serm. X., chap 4, where the pres-
byters are to be told

126

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

to destroy but to fulfil the Law 6." For since
the cessation of the signs by which our
Saviour's coming was announced, and the
abolition of the types in the presence of the
Very Truth, those things which our religion
instituted, whether for the regulation of cus-
toms or for the simple worship of God, con-
tinue with us in the same form in which
they were at the beginning, and what was in
harmony with both Testaments has been
modified by no change. Among these is
also the solemn fast of the tenth month,
which is now to be kept by us according to
yearly custom, because it is altogether just
and godly to give thanks to the Divine
bounty for the crops which the earth has
produced for the use of men under the guid-
ing hand of supreme Providence. And to
show that we do this with ready mind, we
must exercise not only the self-restraint of
fasting, but also diligence in almsgiving, that
from the ground of our heart also may spring
the germ of righteousness and the fruit of love,
and that we may deserve God's mercy by
showing mercy to His poor. For the suppli-
cation, which is supported by works of piety,
is most efficacious in prevailing with God,
since he who turns not his heart away from
the poor soon turns himself to hear the Lord,
as the Lord says: "be ye merciful as your
Father also is merciful .... release and ye
shall be released 7." What is kinder than
this justice? what more merciful than this
retribution, where the judge's sentence rests
in the power of him that is to be judged ?
" Give," he says, " and it shall be given to
you 7." How soon do the misgivings of dis-
trust and the puttings off of avarice fall to the
ground, when humanity 8 may fearlessly spend
what the Truth pledges Himself to repay.

II. He that lends to the Lord makes a better
bargain than he that lends to man.

Be stedfast, Christian giver : give what you
may receive, sow what you may reap, scatter
what you may gather. Fear not to spend,
sigh not over the doubtfulness of the gain.
Your substance grows when it is wisely dis-
pensed. Set your heart on the profits due to
mercy, and traffic in eternal gains. Your
Recompenser wishes you to be munificent,
and He who gives that you may have, com-
mands you to spend, saying, " Give, and it
shall be given to you." You must thankfully
embrace the conditions of this promise. For
although you have nothing that you did not

receive, yet you cannot fail to have what you
give. He therefore that loves money, and
wishes to multiply his wealth by immoderate
profits, should rather practise this holy usury
and grow rich by such money-lending, in
order not to catch men hampered with diffi-
culties, and by treacherous assistance entangle
them in debts which they can never pay, but
to be His creditor and His money-lender, who
says, "Give, and it shall be given to you," i
and " with what measure ye measure, it shall
be measured again to you 9." But he is unfaith-
ful and unfair even to himself, who does not
wish to have for ever what he esteems desir-
able. Let him amass what he may, let him
hoard and store what he may, he will leave!
this world empty and needy, as David the
prophet says, " for when he dieth he shall
take nothing away, nor shall his glory descend
with him '." Whereas if he were considerate
of his own soul, he would trust his good to
Him, who is both the proper Surety2 for the,
poor and the generous Repayer of loans. But
unrighteous and shameless avarice, which pro-
mises to do some kind act but eludes it, trusts
not God, whose promises never fail, and trusts
man, who makes such hasty bargains ; and
while he reckons the present more certain
than the future, often deservedly finds that his
greed for unjust gain is the cause of by no
means unjust loss.

» S. Matt. v. 17. 7 S. Luke vi. 36, 37, 38.

8 Humanitas : one MS. reads humilitas (man's humility), but
humanitas occurs again in chap. hi. lucrum quod omni caret
humamtate.

Ill

III. Money-lending at high interest is in all
respects iniquitous.

And hence, whatever result follow, the
money-lender's trade is always bad, for it is
sin either to lessen or increase the sum, in
that if he lose what he lent he is wretched,
and if he takes more than he lent he is more
wretched still. The iniquity of money-lending
must absolutely be abjured, and the gain which
lacks all humanity must be shunned. A man's
possessions are indeed multiplied by these
unrighteous and sorry means, but the mind's
wealth decays because usury of money is the j
death of the soul 3. For what God thinks o <
such men the most holy Prophet David make;
clear, for when he asks, " Lord, who shal
dwell in thy tabernacle, or who shall rest upor
thy holy hilH?" he receives the Divine utter
ance in reply, from which he learns that that
man attains to eternal rest who among othe;
rules of holy living " hath not given his monej
upon usury * :" and thus he who gets deceitfu
gain from lending his money on usury is showr
to be both an alien from God's tabernacle anc

9 S. Luke vi. 38.

» Ps. xlix. t7. a Fide iussor one of Leo's legal terms

2 Fcenus pecunice funus est anima, the epigrammatic play 01
words will not escape notice. * Ps. xv. 1 and 5.

SERMON XIX.

127

an exile from His holy hill, and in seeking to
enrich himself by other's losses, he deserves to ;
be punished with eternal neediness.

IV. Let us avoid avarice, and share Govs j
benefits with others.

And so, dearly beloved, do ye who with the
whole heart have put your trust in the Lord's
promises, flee from this unclean leprosy of
avarice, and use God's gift piously and wisely.
And since you rejoice in His bounty, take
heed that you have those who may share
in your joys. For many lack what you
have in plenty, and some men's needs afford
you opportunity for imitating the Divine
goodness, so that through you the Divine
benefits may be transferred to others also,
and that by being wise stewards of your
temporal goods, you may acquire eternal
riches. On Wednesday and Friday next,
therefore, let us fast, and on Saturday keep
vigil with the most blessed Apostle Peter,
by whose prayers we may in all things ob-
tain the Divine protection through Christ our
Lord. Amen.

SERMON XIX.

On the Fast of the Tenth Month, VIII

I. Self-restraint leads to higher enjoyments.

When the Saviour would instruct His dis-
:iples about the Advent of God's Kingdom and
he end of the world's times, and teach His
vhole Church, in the person of the Apostles,
le said, "Take heed lest haply your hearts
>e overcharged with surfeiting and drunken-
ness, and care of this life 5." And assuredly,
learly beloved, we acknowledge that this pre-
ept applies more especially to us, to whom
jndoubtedly the day denounced is near, even
nough hidden. For the advent of which it
ehoves every man to prepare himself, lest it
nd him given over to gluttony, or entangled
1 cares of this life. For by daily experience,
eloved, it is proved that the mind's edge is
lunted by over-indulgence of the flesh, and
te heart's vigour is dulled by excess of food,
» that the delights of eating are even opposed
' the health of the body, unless reasonable
oderation withstand the temptation and the
uisideration of future discomfort keep us
pm the pleasure. For although the flesh
pires nothing without the soul, and receives
i sensations from the same source as it
ipeives its motions also, yet it is the function
I the same soul to deny certain things to the
1 dy which is subject to it, and by its inner
jlgment to restrain the outer parts from

5 S. Luke xxi. 34.

things unseasonable, in order that it may be
the oftener free from bodily lusts, and have
leisure for Divine wisdom in the palace of the
mind, where, away from all the noise of earthly
cares, it may in silence enjoy holy medita-
tions and eternal delights. And, although
this is difficult to maintain in this life, yet the
attempt can frequently be renewed, in order
that we may the oftener and longer be occupied
with spiritual rather than fleshly cares ; and by
our spending ever greater portions of our time
on higher cares, even our temporal actions may
end in gaining the incorruptible riches.

II. The teaching of the four yearly fasts is that
spiritual self-restraint is as necessary as
corporeal.

This profitable observance, dearly beloved,
is especially laid down for the fasts of the
Church, which, in accordance with the Holy
Spirit's teaching, are so distributed over the
whole year that the law of abstinence may be
kept before us at all times. Accordingly we
keep the spring fast in Lent, the summer fast
at Whitsuntide, the autumn fast in the seventh
month, and the winter fast in this which is the
tenth month, knowing that there is nothing
unconnected with the Divine commands, and
that all the elements serve the Word of God
to our instruction, so that from the very hinges
on which the world turns, as if by four gospels
we learn unceasingly what to preach and what
to do. For, when the prophet says, "The
heavens declare the glory of God, and the
firmament shovveth His handiwork : day unto
day uttereth speech, and night shovveth know-
ledge 6," what is there by which the Truth does
not speak to us ? By day and by night His
voices are heard, and the beauty of the things
nnde by the workmanship of the One God
ceases not to instil the teachings of Reason
into our hearts' ears, so that "the invisible
things of God may be perceived and seen
through the things which are made," and men
may serve the Creator of all, not His crea-
tures 7. Since therefore all vices are destroyed
by self-restraint, and whatever avarice thirsts for,
pride str.ves for, luxury lusts after, is overcome
by the solid force of this virtue, who can fail
to understand the aid which is given us by
fastings ? for therein we are bidden to restrain
ourselves, not only in food, but also in all
carnal desires. Otherwise it is lost labour to
endure hunger and yet not put away wrong
wishes ; to afflict oneself by curtailing food,
and yet not to flee from sinful thoughts. That
is a carnal, not a spiritual fast, where the body
only is stinted, and those things persisted in,

* Ps. xix. 1, 2.

Cf Rom. i. 20 and 25.

128

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

which are more harmful than all delights.
What profit is it to the soul to act outwardly
as mistress and inwardly to be a captive and
a slave, to issue orders to the limbs and to lose
the right to her own liberty ? That soul for the
most part (and deservedly) meets with rebel-
lion in her servant, which does not pay to God
the service that is due. When the body there-
fore fasts from food, let the mind fast from
vices, and pass judgment upon all earthly
cares and desires according to the law of its
King

III. Thus fasting in mind as 7vell as body, and
giving alms freely, we shall win God's highest
favour.

Let us remember that we owe love first to
God, secondly to our neighbour, and that all
our affections must be so regulated as not to
draw us away from the worship of God, or the
benefiting our fellow slave. But how shall we
worship God unless that which is pleasing to
Him is also pleasing to us ? For, if our will is
His will, our weakness will receive strength
from Him, from Whom the very will came ;
"for it is God," as the Apostle says, '"who
worketh in us both to will and to do for (His)
good pleasure8." And so a man will not be
puffed up with pride, nor crushed with despair,
if he uses the gifts which God gave to His glory,
and withholds his inclinations from those things,
which he knows will harm him. For in abstain-
ing from malicious envy, from luxurious and
dissolute living, from the perturbations of
anger, from the lust after vengeance, he will be
made pure and holy by true fasting, and will
be fed upon the pleasures of incorruptible
delights, and so he will know how, by the
spiritual use of his earthly riches, to transform
them into heavenly treasures, not bv hoarding
up for himself what he has received, but by
gaining a hundred-fold on what he gives. And
hence we warn you, beloved, in fatherly affec-
tion, to make this winter fast fruitful to your-
selves by bounteous alms, rejoicing that by you
the Lord feeds and clothes His poor, to whom
assuredly He could have given the possessions
which He has bestowed on you, had He not
in His unspeakable mercy wished to justify
them for their patient labour, and you for your
works of love. Let us therefore fast on Wed-
nesday and Friday, and on Saturday keep vigil
with the most blessed Apostle Peter, and he
will deign to assist with his own prayers our
supplications and fastings and alms which our
Lord Jesus Christ presents, Who with the
Father and the Holy Ghost lives and reigns
for ever and ever. Amen.

8 Phil. ii. 13.

SERMON XXI.
On the Feast of the Nativity, I.

I. All share in the joy of Christmas.
Our Saviour, dearly-beloved, was born to-
day : let us be glad. For there is no proper
place for sadness, when we keep the birthday
of the Life, which destroys the fear of mortality
and brings to us the joy of promised eternity.
No one is kept from sharing in this happiness.
There is for all one common measure of joy,
because as our Lord the destroyer of sin and
death finds none free from charge, so is He
come to free us all. Let the saint exult in
that he draws near to victory. Let the sinner
be glad in that he is invited to pardon. Let
the gentile take courage in that he is called to
life. For the Son of God in the fulness of
time which the inscrutable depth of the Divine
counsel has determined, has taken on him the
nature of man, thereby to reconcile it to its
Author: in order that the inventor of death,
the devil, might be conquered through that
(nature) which he had conquered. And in
this conflict undertaken for us, the fight was
fought on great and wondrous principles of
fairness; for the Almighty Lord enters the
lists with His savage foe not in His own
majesty but in our humility, opposing him
with the same form and the same nature,
which shares indeed our mortality, though it
is tree from all sin. Truly foreign to this
nativity is that which we read of all others, " no
one is clean from stain, not even the infant who
has lived but one day upon earth °." Nothing
therefore of the lust of the flesh has passed
into that peerless nativity, nothing of the law
of sin has entered. A royal Virgin of the
stem of David is chosen, to be impregnated
with the sacred seed and to conceive the
Divinely-human offspring in mind first and
then in body. And lest in ignorance of the
heavenly counsel she should tremble at so
strange a result10, she learns from converse
with the angel that what is to be wrought in
her is of the Holy Ghost. Nor does she
believe it loss of honour that she is soon to be
the Mother of God *. For why should she be
in despair over the novelty of such conception,
to whom the power of the most High ha;
promised to effect it. Her implicit faith i:
confirmed also by the attestation of a precursor}
miracle, and Elizabeth receives uncxpectec

9 Job xix 4.

10 t-Jpi'c.us: the older editions read affatus (sc. the utterance
of the angel).

1 Dei genetrix (Storo/tos) : in opposing Eutyches, I-eo is cart
ful not to lull imo Nestorianism. bri^lit's note 3 should be rea
on this passage, and esp. his quotation from Bp. Pearson (note :
on Art. 3) absit ut guisguam S. Mariant Divince gi'atia: priv
Ugiis et sfcciaU gloria fraudare coneiur.

SERMON XXII.

129

fertility : in order that there might be no
doubt that He who had given conception
to the barren, would give it even to a virgin.

II. The mystery of the Incarnation is a fitting

theme for joy both to angels and to men.

Therefore the Word of God, Himself God,
the Son of God who " in the beginning was '
with God," through whom " all things were
made" and "without" whom "was nothing
made2," with the purpose of delivering man
from eternal death, became man : so bending !
Himself to take on Him our humility without '
decrease in His own majesty, that remaining!
what He was and assuming what He was not, I
He might unite the true form of a slave to that
form in which He is equal to God the Father,
and join both natures together by such a com-
pact that the lower should not be swallowed up
in its exaltation nor the higher impaired by its
new associate. 3 Without detriment therefore to
the properties of either substance which then
came together in one person, majesty took
on humility, strength weakness, eternity mor-
tality : and for the paying off of the debt
belonging to our condition, inviolable nature
was united with passible nature, and true God
and true man were combined to form one
Lord, so that, as suited the needs of our case,
one and the same Mediator between God and
men, the Man Christ Jesus, could both die
with the one and rise again with the other 3.

Rightly therefore did the birth of our
Salvation impart no corruption to the Virgin's
purity, because the bearing of the Truth was
the keeping of honour. Such then beloved
was the nativity which became the Power of
God and the Wisdom of God even Christ,
whereby He might be one with us in manhood
and surpass us in Godhead. For unless He
were true God, He would not bring us a
remedy . unless He were true Man, He would
not give us an example. Therefore the
exulting angel's song when the Lord was born
is this, "Glory to God in the Highest," and
their message, "peace on earth to men of good
will 4." For they see that the heavenlyjerusalem
is being built up out of all the nations of the
world : and over that indescribable work of the
! Divine love how ought the humbleness of
men to rejoice, when the joy of the lofty
angels is so great?

III. Christians then must live worthily of

Christ their Head.

Let us then, dearly beloved, give thanks to

God the Father, through His Son, in the Holy

» S. John i. 1—3.

3 "Without — other" repeated in almost the same words in
getter XXVIII. chap. 3. 4 S. Luke ii. 14.

VOL. XII. \

Spirit s, Who " for His great mercy, wherewith
He has loved us," has had pity on us : and
" when we were dead in sins, has quickened
us together in Christ6," that we might be in
Him a new creation and a new production.
Let us put off then the old man with his
deeds : and having obtained a share in the
birth of Christ let us renounce the works of
the flesh. Christian, acknowledge thy dignity,
and becoming a partner in the Divine na-
ture, refuse to return to the old baseness by
degenerate conduct. Remember the Head
and the Body of which thou art a member.
Recollect that thou wert rescued from the
power of darkness and brought out into God's
light and kingdom. By the mystery of Baptism
thou wert made the temple of the Holy Ghost:
do not put such a denizen to flight from thee
by base acts, and subject thyself once more
to the devil's thraldom : because thy purchase
money is the blood of Christ, because He
shall judge thee in truth Who ransomed thee
in mercy, who with the Father and the Holy
Spirit reigns tor ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XXII. '

On the Ff.ast of the Nativity, II.

I. The mystery of the Incarnation demands
our joy.

Let us be glad in the Lord, dearly-beloved,
and rejoice with spiritual joy that there has
dawned for us the day of ever-new redemption,
of ancient preparation 7, of eternal bliss. For
as the year rolls round, there recurs for us the
commemoration8 of our salvation, which
promised from the beginning, accomplished
in the fulness of time will endure for ever ;
on which we are bound with hearts up-lifted '
to adore the divine mystery : so that what
is the effect of God's great gift may be
celebrated by the Church's great rejoicings.
For God the almighty and merciful, Whose
nature is goodness, Whose will is power,
Whose work is mercy : as soon as the devil's
malignity killed us by the poison of his hatred,
foretold at the very beginning of the world
the remedy His piety had prepared for the
restoration of us mortals : proclaiming to the
serpent that the seed of the woman should
come to crush the lifting of his baneful head
by its power, signifying no doubt that Christ

5 Ringham observes (b. xiv. c. 2, s. 1), that Leo here uses,
though in a catholic sense, that form of doxology which had become
associated with Arianism. He could well afford to do as S. Atha-
nasius had done, who ascribes glory to the Father "through the
Son " at the conclusion of four treatises. Bright.

6 Eph. ii. 4, 5.

7 F iieparationis (viz. the day to which prophecies and types
were leading up): another reading is refarationis (restoration),
which is less apposite. 8 Sacramentnm.

9 Erectis sursum cordibus, the phrase reminds us of the
Eucharistic V. sursum co?da R . habemus ad Dontinum.

130

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

would come in the flesh, God and man, Who
born of a Virgin should by His uncorrupt
birth condemn the despoiler of the human
stock. l Thus in the whole and perfect
nature of true man was true God born,
complete in what was His own, complete in
what was ours. And " ours " we call what
the Creator formed in us from the beginning
and what He undertook to repair. For what
the deceiver brought in and the deceived
admitted had no trace in the Saviour Nor
because He partook of man's weaknesses, did
He therefore share our faults. He took the
form of a slave without stain of sin, increasing
the human and not diminishing the Divine :
because that "emptying of Himself" whereby
the Invisible made Himself visible and
Creator and Lord of all things as He was,
wished to be mortal, was the condescension oi
Pity not the failing of Power '.

II. The ?iew character of the birth of Christ
explained.

Therefore, when the time came, dearly be-
loved, which had been foreordained for men's
redemption'2, there enters these lower parts of
the world, the Son of God, descending from
His heavenly throne and yet not quitting His
Father's glory, begotten in a new order, by
a new nativity. In a new order, because
being invisible in His own nature He became
visible in ours, and He whom nothing could
contain, was content to be contained: abiding
before all time He began to be in time : the
Lord of all things, He obscured His im-
measurable majesty and took on Him the
form of a servant : being God, that cannot
suffer, He did not disdain to be man that can,
and immortal as He is, to subject Himself to
the laws of death 2. And by a new nativity He
was begotten, conceived by a Virgin, born of
a Virgin, without paternal desire, without in-
jury to the mother's chastity : because such
a birth as knew no taint of human flesh,
became One who was to be the Saviour of
men, while it possessed in itself the nature of
human substance. For when God was born
in the flesh, God Himself was the Father, as
the archangel witnessed to the Blessed Virgin
Mary : " because the Holy Spirit shall come
upon thee, and the power of the most High
shall overshadow thee : and therefore, that
which shall be born of thee shall be called
holy, the Son of God 3." The origin is differ-
ent but the nature like: not byintercourse

v v\rFrom " Tllus " t0 tne end of the chapter is repeated in Lett.
XXVIII. (Tome), chap. 3.

v v2,^TTm^'tilere enteis" to "death" is repeated in Lett.
XXVIII. (Tome), chap 4.
3 S Luke i. 35.

with man but by the power of God was it
brought about : for a Virgin conceived, a Virgin
bare, and a Virgin she remained. Consider
here not the condition of her that bare but
the will of Him that was born ; for He was
born Man as He willed and was able. If you
inquire into the truth of His nature, you must
acknowledge the matter to be human : if you
search for the mode of His birth, you must
confess the power to be of God. For the
Lord Jesus Christ came to do away with not
to endure our pollutions : not to succumb
to our faults but to heal them ■*. He came
that He might cure every weakness of our
corruptness and all the sores of our defiled
souls : for which reason it behoved Him to be
born by a new order, who brought to men's
bodies the new gift of unsullied purity. For
the uncorrupt nature of Him that was born
had to guard the primal virginity of the
Mother, and the infused power of the Divine
Spirit had to preserve in spotlessness and
holiness that sanctuary which He had chosen
for Himself: that Spirit (I say) who had
determined to raise the fallen, to restore the
broken, and by overcoming the allurements
of the flesh to bestow on us in abundant
measure the power of chastity : in order that
the virginity which in others cannot be re-
tained in child-bearing, might be attained by
them at their second birth.

III. Justice required that Satan should be van-
quished by God made man.

And, dearly beloved, this very fact that
Christ chose to be born of a Virgin does it
not appear to be part of the deepest design ?
I mean, that the devil should not be aware
that Salvation had been born for the human
race, and through the obscurity of that spirit-
ual conception, when he saw Him no different
to others, should believe Him born in no dif-
ferent way to others. For when he observed
that His nature was like that of all others,
he thought that He had the same origin as
all had : and did not understand that He was
free from the bonds of transgression because
he did not find Him a stranger to the weak-
ness of mortality. For though the true5 mercy
of God had infinitely many schemes to hand
for the restoration of mankind, it chose that
particular design which put in force for de-
stroying the devil's woik, not the efficacy ot
might but the dictates of justice. For the
pride of the ancient foe not undeservedly

4 For the impeccability of Christ involved in this statement,
cf. Serm. LXIV. chap. 2, and Lett. XXVIII. (Tome) chap. 3,
and especially Bright s note 15 (to Sermon XX11I. chap. 2).

5 / erax, literally truih speaking, and so genuine, sincere, &c.

SERMON XXII.

131

made good its despotic rights over all men, and
with no unwarrantable supremacy tyrannized
over those who had been of their own accord
lured away from God's commands to be the
slaves of his will. And so there would be no
justice in his losing the immemorial slavery of
the human race, were he not conquered by
that which he had subjugated. And to this
end, without male seed Christ was conceived
of a Virgin, who was fecundated not by human
intercourse but by the Holy Spirit. And
whereas in all mothers conception does not
take place without stain of sin, this one re-
ceived purification from the Source of her
conception. For no taint of sin penetrated,
where no intercourse occurred. Her unsullied
virginity knew no lust when it ministered the
substance. The Lord took from His mother
our nature, not our fault 6. The slave's form is
created without the slave's estate, because the
New Man is so commingled with the old, as
both to assume the reality of our race and
to remove its ancient flaw.

IV. The Incarnation deceived the Devil and
caused him to break the bond under which he
held men.

When, therefore, the merciful and almighty
Saviour so arranged the commencement of
His human course as to hide the power of
His Godhead which was inseparable from His
manhood under the veil of our weakness, the
cralty foe was taken off his guard and he
thought that the nativity of the Child, Who
was born for the salvation of mankind, was as
much subject to himself as all others are at
their birth. For he saw Him crying and
weeping, he saw Him wrapped in swaddling
clothes, subjected to circumcision, offering
the sacrifice which the law required. And
then he perceived in Him the usual growth
of boyhood, and could have had no doubt of
His reaching man's estate by natural steps.
Meanwhile, he inflicted insults, multiplied in-
juries, made use of curses, affronts, blas-
phemies, abuse, in a word, poured upon Him
all the force of his fury and exhausted all the
varieties of trial : and knowing how he had
poisoned man's nature, had no conception that
He had no share in the first transgression
Whose mortality he had ascertained by so
jmany proofs. The unscrupulous thief and
greedy robber persisted in assaulting Him
Who had nothing of His own, and in carrying
out the general sentence on original sin, went

* This sentence is found also in Lett XXVIII (Tome), c'iap. 3 ;
'"t heie instead of tie matre Do)iiini, natura there is a variant
hiding, de utatrc, hominis natura.

beyond the bond on which he rested i, and
required the punishment of iniquity from Him
in Whom he found no fault. And thus the
malevolent terms of the deadly compact are
annulled, and through the injustice of an over-
charge the whole debt is cancelled. The
strong one is bound by his own chains, and every
device of the evil one recoils on his own head.
When the prince of the world is bound, all
that he held in captivity is released8. Our
nature cleansed from its old contagion regains
its honourable estate, death is destroyed by
death, nativity is restored by nativity : since at
one and the same time redemption does away
with slavery, regeneration changes our origin,
and faith justifies the sinner.

V. The Christian is exhorted to share in i/ie

blessings of the Incarnation.

Whoever then thou art that devoutly and
faithfully boastest of the Christian name, esti-
mate this atonement at its right worth. For
to thee who wast a castaway, banished from
the realms of paradise, dying of thy weary
exile, reduced to dust and ashes, without fur-
ther hope of living, by the Incarnation of the
Word was given the power to return from afar
to thy Maker, to recognize thy parentage, to
become free after slavery, to be promoted
from being an outcast to sonship : so that,
thou who wast born of corruptible flesh, may est
be reborn by the Spirit of God, and obtain
through grace what thou hadst not by nature,
and, if thou acknowledge thyself the son of
God by the spirit of adoption, dare to call
God Father. Freed from the accusings of a
bad conscience, ascire to the kingdom of
heaven, do God's will supported by the Divine
help, imitate the angels upon earth, feed on
the strength of immortal sustenance, fight
fearlessly on the side of piety against hostile
temptations, and if thou keep thy allegiance8"
in the heavenly warfare, doubt not t.iat thou
wilt be crowned for thy victory in the tri-
umphant camp of the Eternal King, when the
resurrection that is prepared for the faithful
has raised thee to participate in the heavenly
Kingdom.

VI. The festival has nothing to do with Sun-

worship, as some maintain.

Having therefore so confident a hope, dearly
beloved, abide firm in the Faith in which you
are built : lest that same tempter whose

7 Dum vitiata* originis firceiudicinm genera7e persequitur,
chirographum quo nitebatur excedit. Cf. Col. ii. 14, and Lett.
CXXIV. 7.

8 Captivitatis vasa rapiuntur : the passage in the writer's
mind is S. Luke xi. 21, 22, q.v.

8a Si ctelestis miVtice sacratnenta servaveris : here we have
a return to the earlier classical meaning of sacramentum.

K 2

132

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

tyranny over you Christ has already destroyed,
win you back again with any of his wiles, and
mar even the joys of the present festival by
his deceitful art, misleading simpler souls with
the pestilential notion of some to whom this
our solemn feast day seems to derive its
honour, not so much from the nativity of
Christ as, according to them, from the rising
of the new sun 9. Such men's hearts are
wrapped in total darkness, and have no grow-
ing perception of the true Light : for they are
still drawn away by the foolish errors of
heathendom, and because they cannot lift the
eyes of their mind above that which their
carnal sight beholds, they pay divine honour
to the luminaries that minister to the world.
Let not Christian souls entertain any such
wicked superstition and portentous lie. Be-
yond all measure are things temporal removed
from the Eternal, things corporeal from the In-
corporeal, things governed from the Governor.
For though they possess a wondrous beauty,
yet they have no Godhead to be worshipped.
That power then, that wisdom, that majesty is
to be adored which created the universe out
of nothing, and framed by His almighty
methods the substance of the earth and sky
into what forms and dimensions He willed.
Sun, moon, and stars may be most useful to
us, most fair to look upon; but only if we
render thanks to their Maker for them and
worship God who made them, not the creation
which does Him service. Then praise God,
dearly beloved, in all His works and judg-
ments. Cherish an undoubting belief in the
Virgin's pure conception. Honour the sacred
and Divine mystery of man's restoration with
holy and sincere service. Embrace Christ
born in our flesh, that you may deserve to see
Him also as the God of glory reigning in His
majesty, who with the Father and the Holy
Spirit remains in the unity of the Godhead for
ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XXIII.

On the Feast of the Nativity, III.

I. The truths of the Incarnation never suffer

from being repeated.

The things which are connected with the

mystery' of to-day's solemn feast are well

known to you, dearly-beloved, and have fre-

9 Such an Idea is no doubt to be referred to the Manichsans
KaJ* ■ ?rtm™iu™ (*? usual). I would venture to urge "hit

an^'\ere"nLJsUIShfiedi"-intereting this as " -credTbse, 'v-
m ,„ „c .K t , aVe m,sunrierstood his note 8. Surely Leo

mystery of the'ln?" ^'^ a"d <™*«l«ences arising from the
mystery cm the Incarnation are well known to you. This a rees

ot the word.thC CO,UeXl a"d " in "wrdance "iS. his common use

quently been heard : but as yonder visible
light affords pleasure to eyes that are unim-
paired, so to sound hearts does the Saviour's
nativity give eternal joy ; and we must not keep
silent about it, though we cannot treat of it as
we ought. For we believe that what Isaiah
says, " who shall declare his generation 2 ? "
applies not only to that mystery, whereby the
Son of God is co-eternal with the Father, but
also to this birth whereby " the Word became
flesh." And so God, the Son of God, equal
and of the same nature from the Father and
with the Father, Creator and Lord of the
Universe, Who is completely present every-
where, and completely exceeds all things, in
the due course of time, which runs by His own
disposal, chose for Himself this day on which
to be born of the blessed virgin Mary for the
salvation of the world, without loss of the
mother's honour. For her virginity was vio-
lated neither at the conception nor at the
birth : " that it might be fulfilled," as the
Evangelist says, "which was spoken by the
Lord through Isaiah the prophet, saying,
behold the virgin shall conceive in the womb,
and shall bear a son, and they shall call his
name Emmanuel, which is interpreted, God
with us 3." For this wondrous child-bearing of
the holy Virgin produced in her offspring one
person which was truly human and truly Di-
vine *, because neither substance so retained
their properties that there could be any di-
vision of persons in them ; nor was the
creature taken into partnership with its Creator
in such a way that the One was the in-dweller,
and the other the dwelling ; but so that the
one nature was blended s with the other. And
although the nature which is taken is one, and
that which takes is another, yet these two
diverse natures come together into such close
union that it is one and the same Son who
says both that, as true Man, " He is less than
the Father," and that, as true God, '; He is
equal with the Father."

II. The Arians could not comprehend the union
of (joi> a 'nt man.

This union, dearly beloved, whereby the
Creator is joined to the creature, Arian blind-
ness could not see with the eyes of intelli-
gence, but, not believing that the Only-begotten
of God was of the same glory and substance
with the Father, spoke of the Son's Godhead
as inferior, drawing its arguments from those

En;

• Isaiah liii. 8. 3 S. Matt. i. 22, 23.

4 I ere huinanam vereqne uiv.u.i/;/ iinam eduiit prole per-
sonam.

5 Muceretur: Quesnel truly remarks that the fathers " scciirins
locuti sunt uondnm litigantibus Eutychianis post ctcius lueresis
ortuw cautiin—locutus est Leo. That ui> " fusion " ol the n.iluies
is really iuiulied Bright (note 11) clearly shows.

SERMON XXIII.

133

words which are to be referred to the " form of
a slave," in respect of which, in order to show
that it belongs to no other or different person
in Himself, the same Son of God with the
same form, says, " The Father is greater than
I 6," just as He says with the same form, " I
and my Father are one 7." For in "the form
of a slave," which He took at the end of the
ages for our restoration, He is inferior to the
Father : but in the form of God, in which He
was before the ages, He is equal to the Father.
In His human humiliation He was " made of
a woman, made under the Law8:" in His
Divine majesty He abides the Word of God,
"through whom all things were made 9." 'Ac-
cordingly, He Who in the form of God made
man, in the form of a slave was made man.
For both natures retain their own proper cha-
racter without loss : and as the form of God
did not do away with the form of a slave, so
the form of a slave did not impair the form of
God '. And so the mystery of power united to
weakness, in respect of the same human
nature, allows the Son to be called inferior to
the Father: but tiie Godhead, which is One
in the Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost, excludes all notion of inequality. For
the eternity of the Trinity has nothing tem-
poral, nothing dissimilar in nature : Its will
is one, Its substance identical, Its power
equal, and yet there are not three Gods, but
one God2; because it is a true and inseparable
unity, where there can be no diversity 3. Thus
in the whole and perfect nature of true man
was true God born, complete in what was His
own, complete in what was ours. And by
" ours " we mean what the Creator formed in us
from the beginning, and what He undertook
to repair. For what the deceiver brought in,
and man deceived committed, had no trace in
the Saviour ; nor because He partook of man's
weaknesses, did He therefore share our faults.
He took the form of a slave without stain of
sin, increasing the human and not diminishing
the divine: for that "emptying of Himself,"
whereby the Invisible made Himself visible,
was the bending clown of pity, not the failing
of power.

III. The Incarnation was necessary to the
taking azvay of sin.

In order therefore that we might be called

« S. John xiv. 28. 7 lb. x. 30. 8 Gal. iv. 4.

9 S. John. i. 3.
I * From "accordingly" to "form of God " occurs again in
Lett. XXVIII. (Tome) chap. 3.

j 2 Several times in this chapter and elsewhere in Leo the
Janguage reminds us forcibly of the Quicunque " which," says
Bright (note 14), "whatever be its date, was clearly compiled
by some one accustomed to the theological terminology 01 the
'Latin church 01 the fifth century."

3 From here to end of chapter occurs again in Lett. XXVIII.
lomej chap. 3.

to eternal bliss from our original bond and
from earthly errors, He came down Himself
to us to Whom we could not ascend, because,
although there was in many the love of truth,
yet the variety of cur shifting opinions was de-
ceived by the craft of misleading demons, and
man's ignorance was dragged into diverse and
conflicting notions by a falsely-called science.
But to remove this mockery, whereby men's
minds were taken captive to serve the arrogant
devil, the teaching of the Law was not suffi-
cient, nor could our nature be restored merely
by the Prophets' exhortations ; but the reality
of redemption had to be added to moral
injunctions, and our fundamentally corrupt
origin had to be re-born afresh. A Victim
had to be offered for our atonement Who
should be both a partner of our race and
free from our contamination, so that this
design of Goo whereby it pleased Him to
take away the sin of the world in the Nativity
and Passion of Jesus Christ, might reach to
all generations * : and that we should not be
disturbed but rather strengthened by these
mysteries, which vary with the character of the
times, since the Faith, whereby we live, has at
no time suffered variation.

IV. The blessings of the Incarnation stretch
backzvards as well as reach forward.

Accordingly let those men cease their com-
plaints who with disloyal murmurs speak against
ihe dispensations of God, and babble about
the lateness of the Lord's Nativity as if that,
which was fulfilled in the last age of the world,
had no bearing upon the times that are past.
For the Incarnation of the Word did but con-
tribute to the doing of that which was done 5 :
and the mystery of n an s salvation was never
in the remotest age at a standstill. What the
apostles foretold, that the prophets announced :
nor was that fulfilled too late which has always
been believed. But the Wisdom and Good-
ness of God made us more receptive of His
call by thus delaying the work which brought
salvation : so that wnat through so many ages
had been foretold by many signs, many utter-
ances, and many mysteries, might not be
doubtful in these days of the Gospel : and that
the Saviour's nativity, which was to exceed all
wonders and all the measure of human know-
ledge, might engender in us a Faith so much
the firmer, as the foretelling of it had been

4 From what he goes on to say in the next chapter, it is clear
that Leo meant that both past anu future generations ot mankind
shared in the benefits of the Incarnation : ci. Bright's note 16.

5 Hoc contulit faciendum quod factum, i.e. the Incarnation
was but a part (though an essential part) in the Divine scheme
of redemption, and, as he goes on to show, could not have occurred
sooner than it did occur : tor it would have marred the sequence ot
the whole design : ci. Bright's note 17 : also S. John viii. 56.

134

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

ancient and oft-repeated. And so it was no
new counsel, no tardy pity whereby God took
thought for men : but from the constitution of
the world He ordained one and the same Cause
of Salvation for all. For the grace of God, by
which the whole body of the saints is ever
justified, was augmented, not begun, when
Christ was born : and this mystery of God's
great love, wherewith the whole world is now
filled, was so effectively presignified that those
who believed that promise obtained no less
than they, who were the actual recipients.

V. The coming of Christ in our flesh corre-
sponds with our becoming members of His
body.

Wherefore since the loving-kindness is mani-
fest, dearly beloved, wherewith all the riches
of Divine goodness are showered on us, whose
call to eternal life has been assisted not only
by the profitable examples of those who went
before, but also by the visible and bodily
appearing of the Truth Itself, we are bound to
keep the day of the Lord's Nativity with
no slothful nor carnal joy. And we shall each
keep it worthily and thoroughly, if we remember
of what Body we are members, and to what
a Head we are joined, lest any one as an ill-
fitting joint cohere not with the rest of the
sacred building. Consider, dearly beloved,
and by the illumination of the Holy Spirit
thoughtfully bear in mind Who it was that
received us into Himself, and that we have
received in us : since, as the Lord Jesus be-
came our flesh by being born, so we also
became His body by being re-born. There-
fore are we both members of Christ, and the
temple of the Holy Ghost : and for this reason
the blessed Apostle says, "Glorify and carry
God in your body6: " for while suggesting to
us the standard of His own gentleness and
humility, He fills us with that power whereby
He redeemed us, as the Lord Himself pro-
mises : " come unto Me all ye who labour and
are heavy-laden, and 1 will refresh you. Take
My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am
meek and lowly of heart, and ye shall find rest
to your souls ?." Let us then take the yoke,
that is not heavy nor irksome, of the Truth
that rules us, and let us imitate His humility,
to Whose glory we wish to be conformed : He
Himself helping us and leading us to His pro-
mises, Who, according to His great mercy, is
powerful to blot out our sins, and to perfect

Cor.

vi. 20. Glorificale et portate Deum in corpore
vestro, quoted again in this form in Sermon LI 1 1. 3. Observe
(t) that " et portate is doubtless a very old 'Western' gloss"
(Bright, note 18), and (2) that the words "and in your spirit
whicn are God's" (A.V.) find no place in the Latin Versions, and
are now omitted in R.V.
7 S. Matt. xi. 28.

His gifts in us, Jesus Christ our Lord, Who
lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XXIV.
On the Feast of the Nativity, IV.

I. The Incarnation fulfils all its types and
promises.

The Divine goodness, dearly beloved, has
indeed always taken thought for mankind in
divers manners, and in many portions, and of
His mercy has imparted many gifts of His pro-
vidence to the ages of old ; but in these last
times has exceeded all the abundance of His
usual kindness, when in Christ the very Mercy
has descended to sinners, the very Truth to
those that are astray, the very Life to those
that are dead : so that that Word, which is
co-eternal and co-equal with the Father, might
take our humble nature into union with His
Godhead, and, being born God of God, might
also be bcrn Man of man. This was indeed
promised from the foundation of the world,
and had always been prophesied by many
intimations of facts and words8: but how
small a portion of mankind would these types
and fore-shadowed mysteries have saved, had
not the coming of Christ fulfilled those long
and secret promises : and had not that which
then benefited but a few believers in the pro-
spect, now benefited myriads of the faithful in
its accomplishment. Now no longer then are
we led to believe by signs and types, but being
confirmed by the gospel story we worship that
which we believe to have been done ; the pro-
phetic lore 9 assisting our knowledge, so that
we have no manner of doubt about that which
we know to have been predicted by such sure
oracles. For hence it is that the Lord says to
Abraham : " In thy seed shall all nations be
blessed1:" hence David, in the spirit of pro-
phecy, sings, saying: "The Lord swore truth
to David, and He shall not frustrate it : of the
fruit of thy loins will I set upon thy seat2;"
hence the Lord again says through Isaiah :
" behold a virgin shall conceive in her womb,
and shall bear a Son, and His Name shall be
called Emmanuel, which is interpreted, God
with us y and again, " a rod shall come forth
from the root of Jesse, and a flower shall arise
from his root4." In which rod, no doubt the
blessed Virgin Mary is predicted, who sprung
from the stock of Jesse and David and fecun-
dated by the Holy Ghost, brought forth a new

8 Cf. Serm. XXIII., chap. 4.

9 Instntinentis (lit. materials, stock-in-trade).

» Gen. xxii. 18. 2 Ps. xxxi. 14. 3 Is. vii. 14.

* Is. xi. 1 ; in the interpretation that follows there is apparently
a play on the rod (virga) and the virgin (virgo).

SERMON XXIV.

135

flower of human flesh, becoming a virgin-
mother.

II. The Incarnation was the only effective
remedy to the Fall.

Let the righteous then rejoice in the Lord,
and let the hearts of believers turn to God's
praise, and the sons of men confess His won-
drous acts ; since in this work of God espe-
cially our humble estate realizes how highly its
Maker values it : in that, after His great gift
to mankind in making us after His image, He
contributed far more largely to our restoration
when the Lord Himself took on Him " the
form of a slave." For though all that the
Creator expends upon His creature is part of
one and the same Fatherly love, yet it is less
wonderful than man should advance to divine
things than that God should descend to human-
.ity. But unless the Almighty God did deign
\.o do this, no kind of righteousness, no form
of wisdom could rescue any one from the
'devil's bondage and from the depths of eternal
i death. For the condemnation that passes
with sin from one upon all would remain, and
jour nature, corroded by its deadly wound,
I would discover no remedy, because it could
not alter its state in its own strength. For the
first man received the substance of flesh from
the earth, and was quickened with a rational
spirit by the in-breathing of his Creator 5, so
that living after the image and likeness of his
Maker, he might preserve the form of God's
goodness and righteousness as in a bright
mirror. And, if he had perseveringly main-
lined this high dignity of his nature by observ-
ng the Law that was given him, his uncorrupt
pind would have raised the character even of
lis earthly body to heavenly glory. But be-
cause in unhappy rashness he trusted the
■nvious deceiver, and agreeing to his presump-
uous counsels, preferred to forestall rather than
o win the increase of honour that was in store
or him, not only did that one man, but in him
li that came after him also hear the verdict :
earth thou art, and unto earth shalt thou

" <<

as in the earthy," therefore, "such are
hey also that are earthy ?," and no one is im-
jiortal, because no one is heavenly.

II. We all become partakers in the Birth of
Christ, by the re-birth of baptism.

And so to undo this chain of sin and death,
lie Almighty Son of God, that fills all things
ad contains all things, altogether equal to the
ather and co-eternal in one essence from
[im and with Him, took on Him man's

5 Cl. 1 Cor. xv. 45, and Gen. ii. 7. 6 Gen. lii. 19.

7 1 Cor. xv. 48.

nature, and the Creator and Lord of all things
deigned to be a mortal : choosing for His
mother one whom He had made, one who,
without loss of her maiden honour, supplied so
much of bodily substance, that without the
pollution of human seed the New Man might
be possessed of purity and truth. In Christ,
therefore, born of the Virgin's womb, the
nature does not differ from ours, because
His nativity is wonderful. For He VVho is
true God, is also true man : and there is no
lie in either nature. " The Word became
flesh " by exaltation of the flesh, not by failure
of the Godhead : which so tempered its power
and goodness as to exalt our nature by taking-
it, and not to lose His own by imparting it. In
this nativity of Christ, according to the pro-
phecy of David, " truth sprang out of the earth,
and righteousness looked down from heaven 8."
In this nativity also, Isaiah's saying is fulfilled,
" let the earth produce and bring forth salva-
tion, and let righteousness spring up together 9."
For the earth of human flesh, which in the first
transgressor, was cursed, in this Offspring of
the Blessed Virgin only produced a seed that
was blessed and free from the fault of its stock.
And each one is a partaker of this spiritual
origin in regeneration ; and to every one when
he is re-born, the water of baptism is like the
Virgin's womb; for the same Holy Spirit fills
the font, Who filled the Virgin, that the sin,
which that sacred conception overthrew, may
be taken away by this mystical washing.

IV. The Manichceans, by rejecting the Incarna-
tion, have fallen into terrible iniquities.

In this mystery, dear beloved, the mad
error of the Manichaeans ha=i no part, nor have
they any partnership in the regeneration of
Christ, who say that He was corporeally born
of the Virgin Mary : so that, as they do not
believe in His real nativity, they do not accept
His real passion either; and, not acknowledg-
ing Him really buried, they reject His genuine
resurrection. For, having entered on the
perilous path of their abominable dogma,
where all is dark and slippery, they rush into
the abyss of death over the precipice of false-
hood, and find no sure ground on which to
rest ; because, besides all their other diabolical
enormities, on the very chief feast of Christ's
worship, as their latest confession has made
manifest r, they revel in bodily as well as
mental pollution, losing their own modesty as
well as the purity of their Faith ; so that they

8 Ps. lxxxiv. 12. 9 Is. xlv. 8.

1 See lntrod. p. vi., and for details of their iniquity, Serm.
XVI. ciiaps. 4 and 5 : the words proxima conjessione rix tiie dati
of this sermon proLably in 444 or 445.

T36

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

are found to be as filthy in their rites as they
are blasphemers in their doctrines.

V. Other heresies contain some portion of truth,
but the Manichozans contain none -whatever.
Other heresies, dearly beloved, although
they are all rightly to be condemned in their
variety, yet have each in some part of them
that which is true. Arius, in laying down that
the Son of God is less than the Father and
a creature, and in thinking that the Holy Spirit
was like all else made by the same (Father),
has lost himself in great blasphemy ; but he
has not denied the eternal and unchangeable
Godhead in the essence of the Father, though
he could not see it in the Unity of the Trinity.
Macedonius was devoid of the light of the
Truth when he did not receive the Godhead
of the Holy Spirit, but he did acknowledge one
power and the same nature in the Father and
the Son. Sabellius was plunged into inextric-
able error by holding the unity of substance
to be inseparable in the Father, Son and Holy
Spirit, but granted to a singleness of nature
what he should have attributed to an equality
of nature2, and because he could not under-
stand a true Trinity, he believed in one and
the same person under a threefold appellation.
Photinus, misled by his mental blindness,
acknowledged in Christ true man of our sub-
stance, but did not believe Him born God of
God before all ages, and so losing the entirety
of the Faith, believed the Son of God to have
taken on Him the true nature of human flesh
in such a way as to assert that there was no
soul in it, because the Godhead Itself took it-
place 3. Thus, if all the errors which the
catholic Faith has anathematized are recanted,
something is found in one after another which
can be separated from its damnable setting.
But in the detestable dogma of the Mani-
cheans there is absolutely nothing which can
be adjudged tolerable in any degree.

VI. Christians must cling to the one Faith and
not be led astray.

But you, dearly beloved, whom I address in
no less earnest terms than those of the blessed
Apostle Peter, " a chosen race, a royal priest-
hood, a holy nation, a people for God's own
possession *" built upon the impregnable rock,
Christ, and joined to the Lokd our Saviour by
His true assumption of our flesh, remain firm

2 Quod tzqualitati tribuere deberet, sivgularitati dedit, cf.
Lett. XV. chap. 2, where the Priscillianists' notion (ol a singularis
unit as in tribus vocabulis sed noil in t tubus accipienda personis),
is said to be taken from Sabellianism.

3 Cf. Ruff, de Symb. chap. 39, and Schaff, Ch. Hist., ?'* loco,
where the relation of Photinus to Marcellus is explained.

* 1 Pet. ii 9.

in that Faith, which you have professed before
many witnesses, and in which you were re-
born through water and the Holy Ghost, and
received the anointing of salvation, and the
seal of eternal life s. But "if any one preach
to you any thing beside that which you have
learnt, let him be anathema6 :" refuse to put
wicked fables before the clearest truth, and
what you may happen to read or hear contrary
to the rule of the catholic and Apostolic creed,
judge it altogether deadly and diabolical. Be
not carried away by their deceitful keepings of
sham and pretended fasts which tend not to the
cleansing, but to the destroying of men's souls.
They put on indeed a cloke of piety and
chastity, but under this deceit they conceal
the filthiness of their acts, and from the re-
cesses of their ungodly heart hurl shafts to
wound the simple ; that, as the prophet says,
"they may shoot in darkness at the upright in
heart 7." A mighty bulwark is a sound faith,
a true faith, to which nothing has to be added
or taken away : because unless it is one, it is
no faith, as the Apostle says, " one Lord, one
faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all,
who is above all, and through all, and in us
all8." Cling to this unity, dearly beloved, with
minds unshaken, and in it " follow after " all
" holiness 9," in it carry out the Lord's com
mands, because "without faith it is impossible
to please God '," and without it nothing is holy,
nothing is pure, nothing alive: "for the just
lives by faith V and he who by the devil's de-
ception loses it, is dead though living, be-
cause as righteousness is gained by faith, sc
too by a true faith is eternal life gained, as
says our Lord and Saviour. And this if
life eternal, that they may know Thee, the only
true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hasi
sent 3. May He make you to advance and per
severe to the end, Who lives and reigns witr
the Father and the Holy Spirit, for ever am
ever. Amen.

I -

SERMON XXVI.

On the Feast of the Nativity, VI.

I. Christmas morning is the most appropriate
time for thoughts on the Nativity.

On all days and at all times, dearly beloved
does the birth of our Lord and Saviour iron
the Virgin-mother occur to the thoughts of tin

5 Christna (charisma, gift. Quesnel) salutis et sigtiacului
vita ceternce, the anointing and the sign of the cross are, as is wel
known, two of the oldest baptismal ceremonies; see Binghan
Antiq. Bk. xi. chap. 9. 6 Gal. i. 9. 7 Ps. xi. 2.

8 Eph. iv. 5, 6. 9Heb.xii. 14- ' lb. xi. 6.

2 Habbakuk ii. 4. 3 S. John xvii. 3.

SERMON XXVI.

T37

faithful, who meditate on divine things, that

(the mind may be aroused to the acknowledg-
ment of its Maker, and whether it be occupied
in the groans of supplication, or in the shout-
,ing of praise, or in .the offering of sacrifice,
may employ its spiritual insight on nothing
more frequently and more trustingly than on
the fact that God the Son of God, begotten
of the co-eternal Father, was also born by
a human birth. But this Nativity which is to
be adored in heaven and on earth is suggested
to us by no day more than this when, with the
early light still shedding its rays on nature4,
there is borne in upon our senses the bright-
ness of this wondrous mystery. For the angel
Gabriel's converse with the astonished Mary
and her conception by the Holy Ghost as
wondrously promised as believed, seem to
recur not only to the memory but to the very
eyes. For to day the Maker of the world was
born of a Virgin's womb, and He, who made
all natures, became Son of her, whom He
created. To-day the Word of God appeared
clothed in flesh, and That which had never
been visible to human eyes began to be
tangible to our hands as well. To-day the
shepherds learnt from angels' voices that the
Saviour was born in the substance of our
flesh and soul ; and to-day the form of the
Gospel message was pre-arranged by the
leaders of the Lord's flocks s, so that we too
may say with the army of the heavenly host :
" Glory in the highest to God, and on earth
peace to men of good will."

)ib
[iut
u

15)

hti
U

,iti

■a

ini

,ii
i

II. Christians are essentially participators in
the tiativity of Christ.

Although, therefore, that infancy, which the
majesty of God's Son did not disdain, reached
mature manhood by the growth of years and,
when the triumph of His passion and resur-
rection was completed, all the actions of
humility which were undertaken for us ceased,
yet to-day's festival renews for us the holy
childhood of Jesus born of the Virgin Mary :
and in adoring the birth of our Saviour, we
find we are celebrating the commencement
[Of our own life. For the birth of Ghrist is
the source of life for Christian folk, and the
birthday of the Head is the birthday of the
body. Although every individual that is called

* Nova etiam in elementis luce radiante, the phrase seems
to point to an early service as the time of delivering this sermon
[possibly the missa in gallicantu).

5 Apud Dominicorum prcesules gregum hodie evangelizandi
forma prcpcondita >st. This clause has be:n taken to be an
illusion to the reciting of the angelic hymn Gloria in Excelsis,
it the Holy Eucharist, but as Brignt (note 20, all of which should
be read) says, " the words do not necessarily mean more than that
:he original Angelic Hymn (S. Luke ii. 14) was recited in the
•hristmas Day Service.

has his own order, and all the sons of the
Church are separated from one another by
intervals of time, yet as the entire body of the
faithful being born in the font of baptism is
crucified with Christ in His passion, raised
again in His resurrection, and placed at the
Father's right hand in His ascension, so with
Him are they born in this nativity. For any
believer in whatever part of the world that is
re-born in Christ, quits the old paths of his
original nature6 and passes into a new man by
being re-born ; and no longer is he reckoned
of his earthly father's stock but among the
seed of the Saviour, Who became the Son
of man in order that we might have the power
to be the sons of God. For unless He came
down to us in this humiliation, no one would
reach His presence by any merits of his own.
Let not earthly wisdom shroud in darkness
the hearts of the called on this point, and let
not the frailty of earthly thoughts raise itself
against the loftiness of God's grace, for it will
soon return to the lowest dust. At the end of
the ages is fulfilled that which was ordained
from all eternity : and in the presence of
realities, when signs and types have ceased,
the Law and prophecy have become Truth :
and so Abraham is found the father ot all
nations, and the promised blessing is given
to the world in his seed : nor are they only
Israelites whom blood and flesh 7 begot, but
the whole body of the adopted enter into
possession of the heritage prepared for the
sons of Faith. Be not disturbed by the cavils
of silly questionings, and let not the effects
of the Divine word be dissipated by human
calculation ; we with Abraham believe in God
and " waver not through unbelief8," but
" know most assuredly that what the Lord
promised, He is able to perform."

III. Peace with God is His best gift to man.

The Saviour then, dearly beloved, is born
not of fleshly seed but of the Holy Spirit, in
such wise that the condemnation of the first
transgression did not touch Him. And hence
the very greatness of the boon conferred de-
ma ids of us reverence worthy of its splendour.
For, as the blessed Apostle teaches, "we have
received not the spirit of this world but the
Spirit which is of God, that we may know the
things which are given us by God ? : " and
that Spirit can in no other way be rightly
worshipped, except by offering Him that
which we received from Him. But in the

6 lnterciso originalis tramite vetwstatis.

7 Sanguis et carol it is noticeable that the same order is
observed in Heb. ii. 14.

8 Rom. iv. 20, 21. 9 1 Cor. ii. 12.

138

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

treasures of the Lord's bounty what can we
find so suitable to the honour of the present
feast as the peace, which at the Lord's nativity
was first proclaimed by the angel-choir? For
that it is which brings forth the sons of God,
the nurse of love and the mother of unity :
the rest of the blessed and our eternal home ;
whose proper work and special office it is to
join to God those whom it removes from the
world. Whence the Apostle incites us to this
good end, in saying, " being justified therefore
by faith let us have peace towards God i."
In which brief sentence are summed up nearly
all the commandments ; for where true peace
is, there can be no lack of virtue. But what
is it, dearly beloved, to have peace towards
God, except to wish what He bids, and not to
wish what He forbids ? For if human friend-
ships seek out equality of soul and similarity
of desires, and difference of habits can never
attain to full harmony, how will he be par-
taker of divine peace, who is pleased with
what displeases God and desires to get de-
light from what he knows to be offensive to
God? That is not the spirit of the sons of
God ; such wisdom is not acceptable to the
noble family of the adopted. That chosen
and royal race must live up to the dignity of
its regeneration, must love what the Father
loves, and in nought disagree with its Maker,
lest the Lord should again say : " 1 have be-
gotten and raised up sons, but they have
scorned Me : the ox knovveth his ow tier and
the ass his master's crib : but Israel hath not
known Me and My people hath not acknow-
ledged Me2."

IV. We must be worthy of our calling as sons
and friends of God.

The mystery of this boon is great, denrly
beloved, and this gift exceeds all gifts that
God should call man son, and man should
name God Father : for by these terms we
perceive and learn the love which reached so
great a height. For if in natural progeny and
earthly families those who are born of noble
parents are lowered by the faults of evil inter-
course, and unworthy offspring are put to shame
by the very brilliance of their ancestry ; to
what end will they come who through love of
the world do not fear to be outcast from the
family of Christ ? But if it gains the praise of
men that the father's glory should shine again
in their descendants, how much more glorious
is it for those who are born of God to regain
the brightness of their Maker's likeness and
display in themselves Him Who begat them,
as saith the Lord : " Let your light so shine

1 Rom. v. i.

3 Is. i

i 2. 3-

before men that they may see your good works
and glorify your Father which is in heaven 3?"
We know indeed, as the Apostle John says
that "the whole world lieth in the evil one4,"
and that by the stratagems of the Devil and
his angels numberless attempts are made either
to frighten man in his struggle upwards by
adversity or to spoil him by prosperity, but
" greater is He that is in us, than he that is
against us5," and they who have peace with
God and are always saying to the Father with
their whole hearts "thy will be done6" can
be overcome in no battles, can be hurt by no
assaults. For accusing ourselves in our
confessions and refusing the spirit's consent
to our fleshly lusts, we stir up against us the
enmity of him who is the author of sin, but
secure a peace with God that nothing can
destroy, by accepting His gracious service, in
order that we may not only surrender ourselves
in obedience to our King but also be united
to Him by our free-will. For if we are like-
minded, if we wish what He wishes, and
disapprove what He disapproves, He will finish
all our wars for us, He Who gave the will,
will also give the power : so that we may be
fellow-workers in His works, and with the
exultation of Faith may utter that prophetic
song : " the Lord is my light and my salvation:
whom shall I fear ? the Lord is the defender
of my life : of whom shall I be afraid i ? "

V. The birth of Christ is the birth of peace to
the Church.

They then who " are born not of blood nor
of the will of the flesh nor of 'die will of man
but of God 8," must offer to the Father the
unanimity of peace-loving sons, and all the
members of adoption must meet in the First-
begotten of the new creation, Who came to do
not His own Will but His that sent Him ; inas-
much as the Father in His gracious favour has
adopted as His heirs notthosethat are discordant
nor those that are unlike Him, but those that are
in feeling and affection one. They that are
re-modelled after one pattern must have a
spirit like the model. The birthday of the
Lord is the birthday of peace : for thus says
the Apostle, " He is our peace, who made
both one 9 ; " since whether we be Jew or
Gentile, "through Him we have access in one
Spirit to the Father 9." And it was this in
particular that He taught His disciples before
the day of His passion which He had of His
own free-will fore-ordained, saying, " My peace
I give unto you, My peace I leave for you l ;"

3 S. Matt. v. 16. * x S. John v. 19.

5 Cf. I John iv. 4, and 2 King-i vi. 16. 6 S. Matt. vi. 10.

7 IV xxvii. 1. s S- John i. 13. 9 Eph. ii. 14, 18.

1 S. John xiv. 27.

SERMON XXVII.

T39

and lest under the general term the character
of His peace should escape notice, He added,
"not as the world give I unto you1." The
world, He says, has its friendships, and brings
many that are apart into loving harmony.
There are also minds which are equal in vices,
and similarity of desires produces equality of
affection. And if any are perchance to be
found who are not pleased with what is mean
and dishonourable, and who exclude from the
terms of their connexion unlawful compacts,
yet even such if they be either Jews, heretics
or heathens2, belong not to God's friendship
but to this world's peace. But the peace of
the spiritual and of catholics coming down
from above and leading upwards refuses to
hold communion with the lovers of the world,
:resists all obstacles and flies from pernicious
pleasures to true joys, as the Lord says :
j" Where thy treasure is, there will thy heart
;be also3:" that is, if what you love is below,
you will descend to the lowest depth : if what
you love is above, you will reach the topmost
leight : thither may the Spirit of peace lead
md bring us, whose wishes and feeling are at
)ne, and who are of one mind in faith and
lope and in charity: since "as many as are
ed by the Spirit of God these are sons of
jOd*" Who reigneth with the Son and Holy
Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XXVII.

On the Feast of the Nativity, VII.

. It is equally dangerous to deny the Godhead or
the Manhood in Christ.

He is a true and devout worshipper, dearly-
eloved, of to-day's festival who thinks nothing
lat is either false about the Lord's Incarna-
on or unworthy about His Godhead. For
is an equally dangerous evil to deny in Him
le reality of our nature and the equality with
le Father in glory. When, therefore, we
.tempt to understand the mystery of Ghrist's
ativity, wherein He was born of the Virgin-
tother, let all the clouds of earthly reasonings
t driven far away and the smoke of worldly
isdom be purged from the eyes of illuminated
ith : for the authority on which we trust is
vine, the teaching which we follow is divine,
lasmuch as whether it be the testimony of
te Law, or the oracles of the prophets, or the
limpet of the gospel to which we apply our

» lb.

j 8 Pagani (lit. villagers or rustics): the later meaning arose
m the fact that idolatry and superstition tends to linger longer
nit-of-the-way rural districts, than in the more civilized towns :
"heath" and "heathen." See Blight's note 24, and the
:rences quoted by him. Hooker, v. 80. 2 ; Trench, "on Study
•Vords," p. 69, &c 3 S. Matt. vi. ai.

* Rom. viii. 14.

inward ear, that is true which the blessed John
full of the Holy Spirit uttered with his voice
of thunder s : " in the beginning was the Word :
and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. The same was in the beginning
with God. All things were made through Him,
and without Him was nothing made6." And
similarly is it true what the same preacher
added : " the Word became flesh and dwelt in
us : and we beheld His glory, the glory as of
the only-begotten of the Father6." Therefore
in both natures it is the same Son of God
taking what is ours and not losing what is His
own ; renewing man in His manhood, but en-
during unchangeable in Himself. For the
Godhead which is His in common with the
Father un ierwent no loss of omnipotence, nor
did the "form of a slave" do despite to the
"form of God," because the supreme and
eternal Essence, which lowered Itself for the
salvation of mankind, transferred us into Its
glory, but did not cease to be what It was.
And hence when the Only-begotten of God
confesses Himself less than the Father 7, and
yet calls Himself equal with Him ?, He demon-
strates the reality of both forms in Himself:
so that the inequality proves the human nature,
and the equality the Divine.

II. The Incarnation has changed all the possi-
bilities of man's existence.

The bodily Nativity therefore of the Son of
God took nothing from and added nothing
to His Majesty because His unchangedde
substance could be neither d'minished nor
increased. For that " the Word became flesh"
does not signify that the nature of God was
changed into flesh, but that the Word took
the flesh into the unity of His Person :
and therein undoubtedly the whole man was
received, with which within the Virgin's womb
fecundated by the Holy Spirit, whose virginity
was destined never to be lost8, the Son of
God was so inseparably united that He who
was born without time of the Father's essence
was Himself in time born of the Virgin's
womb. For we could not otherwise be re-
leased from the chains of eternal death but by
Him becoming humble in our nature, Who
remained Almighty in His own. And so our
Lord Jesus Christ, being at birth true man
though He never ceased to be true God, made
in Himself the beginning of a new creation,

5 [ntonuit, no doubt a reference to the name of Boanerges
(sons of thunder) which he shared with his brother Janes (S Marl;
iii. 17). 6 S John i. 1—3, 14. 7 S. John xiv. 28, and x. 30.

8 Et nitnquam virgimtate caritura, cf. Letter XXVIil.
(Tome) chap. 2, beatam Mariam sei/i/er virginem: these two
passages seem to me much stronger than others quoted by Bright,
n. 9, to prove Leo's belief in the perpetual virginity of the blessed
Mary.

140

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

and in the "form" of His birth started the
spiritual life of mankind .afresh, that to abolish
the taint of our birth according to the flesh
there might be a possibility of regeneration
without our sinful seed for those of whom it is
said, " Who were born not of blood, nor of the
will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but
of God 9." What mind can grasp this mystery,
what tongue can express this gracious act ?
Sinfulness returns to guiltlessness and the old
nature becomes new ; strangers receive adop-
tion and outsiders enter upon an inheritance.
The ungodly begin to be righteous, the miserly
benevolent, the incontinent chaste, the earthly
heavenly. And whence comes this change,
save by the right hand of the Most High?
For the Son of God came to " destroy the
works of the devil I," and has so united Himself
with us and us with Him that the descent
of God to man's estate became the exaltation
of man to God's.

III. The Devil knows exactly what temptations
to offer to each severa/ person.

But in this mercifulness of Goo, dearly
beloved, the greatness of which towards us we
cannot explain, Ghristians must be extremely
careful lest they be caught again in the devil's
wiles and once more entangled in the errors
which they have renounced. For the old
enemy does not cease to " transform himself
into an angel of light 2," and spread everywhere
the snares of his deceptions, and make every
effort to corrupt the faith of believers. He
knows whom to ply with the zest of greed,
whom to assail with the allurements of the
belly, before whom to set the attractions oi
self-indulgence, in whom to instil the poison
of jealousy : he knows whom to overwhelm
with grief, whom to cheat with joy, whom to
surprise with fear, whom to bewilder with
wonderment : there is no one whose habits he
does not sift, whose cares he does not winnow,
whose affections he does not pry into : and
wherever he sees a man most absorbed in
occupation, there he seeks opportunity to
injure him. Moreover he has many whom he
has bound still more tightly because they are
suited for his designs, that he may use their
abilities and tongues to deceive others.
Through them are guaranteed the healing
of sicknesses, the prognosticating of future
events, the appeasing of demons and the driv-
ing away of apparitions 3. They also are to
be added 4 who falsely allege that the entire

9 S. John i. 13. 1 , s. John iii. 8.

\ %y°r' X1' \4\r u 3 Umbrarum.

4 U. Lett. XV. chaps. 12—14, where such opinions are put
down to the Spanish Fnsci Iianists, though doubtless Leo is
thinking here rather of the Alanicbjeans, from whom they derived
so many of their false views.

condition of human life depends on the in-
fluences of the stars, and that that which is
really either the divine will or ours rests with
the unchangeable fates. And yet, in order to
do still greater harm, they promise that they
can be changed if supplication is made to
those constellations which are adverse. And
thus their ungodly fabrications destroy them-
selves ; for if their predictions are not reliable,
the fates are not to be feared : if they are, the
stars are not to be venerated.

IV. The foolish practice of some who turn to the

sun and bow to it is reprehensio/e.

From such a system of teaching proceeds
also the ungodly practice of certain foolish
folk who worship the sun as it rises at the
beginning of daylight from elevated positions:
even some Christians think it is so proper to
do this that, before entering the blessed Apostle
Peter's basilica, which is dedicated to the One
Living and true God, when they have mounted
the steps which lead to the raised platform s,
they turn round and bow themselves to-
wards the rising sun and with bent neck do
homage to its brilliant orb. We are full ot
grief and vexation that this should happen,
which is partly due to the fault of ignorance
and partly to the spirit of heathenism : be-
cause although some of them do perhaps wor-
ship the Creator of that fair light rather than
the Light itself, which is His creature, yet we
must abstain even fiom the appearance of this
observance: for if one who has abandoned
the worship of gods, finds it in our own wor-
ship, will he not hark back again to this frag-
ment of his old superstition, as if it were
allowable, when he sees it to be common both
to Christians and to infidels?

V. The sun and moon were created for use, not

for worship.

This objectionable practice must be given
up therefore by the faithful, and the honour
due to God alone must not be mixed up with
those men's rites who serve their fellow-crea-
tures. For the divine Scripture says: "Thou
shalt worship the Lord thy Cod, and Him
only shalt thou serve0." Ami the blessed
Job, '■ a man without complaint," as the Lord

'■

5 Suggestum area suf>erioris : the oh'.cr reading was arte.
some ot the MSS. again read area which is no doubt midway
between the two. A learned di sertation on this passage by
Ciampini quoted by Quesnel (Migne's Patrol, i. pp 529—534):
established the true reading : lie says also that this was the stair-
case up which the laithful climbed on bended knee in approaching
the Vatican basilica. S- Leo has alluded to this curious practict
aheady in Serm. XXII. chap. 6, stij>ra. It is perhaps hardl)
necessary to add that this superstition has little, if any, connexior
with the Christian habit o> turning to the East, which is probably
rather to the Altar as the centre of worship; for at all event:
in Western Christendom churches do not by any means univer
sally orientate ' (i.e. lie due east and west).

° S. Matt. iv. 10.

SERMON XXVIII.

141

says, " and one that eschews every evil ?,"
said, " Have I seen the sun when it shone or
the moon walking brightly, and my heart hath
rejoiced in secret, and I have kissed my hand :
what is my great iniquity and denial against
the most High God8?" But what is the sun
or what is the moon but elements of visible
creation and material light : one of which is of
greater brightness and the other of lesser light?
For as it is now day time and now night time,
so the Creator has constituted divers kinds of
luminaries, although even before they were
! made there had been days without the sun
and nights without the moon 9. But these
1 were fashioned to serve in making man, that
he who is an animal endowed with reason
might be sure of the distinction of the months,
the recurrence of the year, and the variety of
1 the seasons, since through the unequal length
of the various periods, and the clear indica-
tions given by the changes in its risings, the
sun closes the year and the moon renews the
months. For on the fourth day, as we read,
i God said : " Let there be lights in the firma-
i ment of the heaven, and let them shine upon
I the earth, and let them divide between day
and night, and let them be for signs and for
seasons, and lor days and years, and let them
be in the firmament of heaven that they may
shine upon earth."

VI. Let us awake to the proper use of all our
parts and faculties.

Awake, O man, and recognize the dignity of
thy nature. Recollect thou wast made in the
image of God, which although it was corrupted
iin Adam, was yet re-fashioned in Christ. Use
|visible creatures as they should be used, as
thou usest earth, sea, sky, air, springs, and
rivers : and whatever in them is fair and won-
drous, ascribe to the praise and glory of the
Maker. Be not subject to that light wherein
birds and serpents, beasts and cattle, flies and
worms delight. Confine the material light to
your bodily senses, and with all your mental
powers embrace that " true light which lighteth
-very man that cometh into this world %" and
pf which the prophet says, " Come unto Him
ind be enlightened, and your faces shall not
>lush2." For if we "are a temple of God,
md the Spirit of God dwelleth in2a" us, what
-very one of the faithful has in his own heart
s more than what he wonders at in heaven.
And so, dearly beloved, we do not bid
»r advise you to despise God's works or to

7 Job i. 8. 8 lb. XXxi. 26—28.

9 He is ot course following the Mosaic order of creation, where

ie creation of the day and night is ascribed to the first day

id that of the Sun and Moon to the fourth day (Gen. i. 5, 1 —19).

1 S. John i. 9. -i JPs. xxxiv. 5. » 1 Cor. iii. ic.

think there is anything opposed to your Faith
in what the good God has made good, but to
use every kind of creature and the whole fur-
niture of this world reasonably and moderately:
for as the Apostle says, "the things which are
seen are temporal : but the things which are
not seen are eternal 3." Hence because we are
born for the present and reborn for the future,
let us not give ourselves up to temporal goods,
but to eternal : and in order that we may
behold our hope nearer, let us think on what
the Divine Grace has bestowed on our nature
on the very occasion when we celebrate the
mystery of the Lord's birthday. Let us hear
the Apostle, saying: "for ye are dead, and
your life is hid with Christ in God. But when
Christ, who is your life, shall appear, then
shall ye also appear with Him in glory* : " who
lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy
Ghost for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XXVIIL
On the Festival of the Nativity, VIII.
I. The Incarnation an unceasing source of joy.

Though all the divine utterances exhort
us, dearly beloved, to " rejoice in the Lord
always 5," yet to-day we are no doubt in-
cited to a full spiritual joy, when the
mystery of the Lord's nativity is shining
brightly upon us 6, so that we may have re-
course to that unutterable condescension of the
Divine Mercy, whereby the Creator of men
deigned to become man, and be found our-
selves in His nature whom we worship in
ours. For God the Son of God, the only-
begotten of the eternal and not-begotten
Father, remaining eternal "in the form of
God," and unchangeably and without time i
possessing the property of being no way
different to the Father He received " the form
of a slave " without loss of His own majesty,
that He miqht advance us to His state and
not lower Himself to ours. Hence both
natures abiding in possession of their own
properties such unity is the result of the
union that whatever of Godhead is there is
inseparable from the manhood : and whatever
of manhood, is indivisible from the Godhead.

II. The Virgin's conception explained.

In celebrating therefore the birthday of our
Lord and Saviour, dearly beloved, let us

3 2 Cor. iv. 1 8. 4 Col. iii. 3, 4. 5 Phil. iv. 4.

6 Niitivitatis Dominica Sacramento nobis clarius coruscunte I
cf. XXVI. chap. 1, note 1. I have no doubt that sacrnmentum
here is almost equivalent to " the festival with its sacred observ-
ances " (cf. Bright's n. 8), but I have preferred to translate it
as uniformly as possible by the same word '"mystery." Cf. Sermon
XXXI. chap. 1.

7 In contradiction of the Arian's position Jjv nore ore ovk ?,v'.
cf. Lett. XXVIII. (Tome), chap. 2, de aterno natus est cotzteruus :
non posterior tempore.

T42

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

entertain pure thoughts of the blessed Virgin's
child-bearing, so as to believe that at no
moment of time was the power of the Word
wanting to the flesh and soul which she con-
ceived, and that the temple of Christ's body
did not previously receive its form and soul
that its Inhabitant might come and take pos-
session but through Himself and in Himself
was the beginning given to the New Man,
so that in the one Son of God and Man there
might be Godhead without a mother, and
Manhood without a Father. For her vir-
ginity fecundated by the Holy Spirit at one
and the same time brought forth without trace
of corruption both the offspring and the
Maker of her race. Hence also the same
Lord, as the Evangelist relates, asked of the
[ews whose son thev had learnt Christ to be
on the authority of the Scriptures, and when
they replied that the tradition was He would
come of David's seed, " How," saith He,
" doth David in the Spirit call Him Lord,
saying, the Lord said to my Lord : sit thou
on My right hand till I place thy enemies as
the footstool of thy feet8?" And the Jews
could not solve the question put, because
they did not understand that in the one
Christ both the stock of David and the Divine
nature were there prophesied.

III. In redeem ing man, justice as ivell as mercy
had to be considered.

But the majesty of the Son of God in which
He is equal with the Father in its garb of
a slave's humility feared no diminution, re-
quired no augmentation : and the very effect
of His mercy which He expended on the
restitution of man, He was able to bring
about solely by the power of His Godhead ;
so as to rescue the creature that was made in
the image of God from the yoke of his cruel
oppressor. But because the devil had not
shown himself so violent in his attack on the
first man as to bring him over to his side
without the consent of His free will, man's
voluntary sin and hostile desires had to be
destroyed in such wise that the standard of
justice should not stand in the way of the
gift of Grace. And therefore in the general
ruin of the entire human race there was but
one remedy in the secret of the Divine plan
which could succour the fallen, and that was
that one of the sons of Adam should be born
free and innocent of original transgression, to
prevail for the rest both by His example and
His merits. Still further, because this was
not permitted by natural geneiation, and be-
cause there could be no offspring from our

8 S- Matt- xx>'- 43» 44, quoted from Psalm ex. i.

faulty stock without seed, of which the Scripture
saith, "Who can make a clean thing conceived
of an unclean seed ? is it not Thou who art
alone 9?" David's Lord was made David's
Son, and from the fruit of the promised
branch T sprang One without fault, the two-
fold nature coming together into one Person,
that by one and the same conception and
birth might spring our Lord Jesus Christ, in
Whom was present both true Godhead for the
performance of mighty works and true Man-
hood for the endurance of sufferings.

IV. All heresies proceed from faihire to believe
the twofold nature of Christ.

The catholic Faith then, dearly beloved,
may scorn the errors of the heretics that bark
against it, who, deceived by the vanity of
worldly wisdom, have forsaken the Gospel of
Truth, and being unable to understand the
Incarnation of the Word, have constructed
for themselves out of the source of enlighten-

ment occasion of blindness. For after in-
vestigating almost all false believers' opinions,
even those which presume to deny the Holy
Spirit, we come to the conclusion that hardly
any one has gone astray, unless he has refused to
believe the reality of the two natures in Christ
under the confession of one Person. For some
have ascribed to the Lord only manhood 2,
others only Deily3. Some have said that, though
there was in Him true Godhead, His flesh was
unreal *. Others have acknowledged that He
took true flesh but say that He had not the
nature of God the Father ; and by assigning
to His Godhead what belonged to His human
substance, have made for themselves a greater
and a lesser God, although there can be in
true Godhead no grades : seeing that what-
ever is less than God, is not Gods. Others
recognizing that there is no difference between
Father and Son, because they could not
understand unity of Godhead except in unity
of Person, have maintained that the Father
is the same as the Son 6 : so that to be born
and nursed, to suffer and die, to be buried
and rise again, belonged to the same Father
who sustained throughout the Person of both

9 Job xiv. 4.

1 Germinis preferred to the older reading generis by the Bal-
lerinii as agreeing better with Is. xl. 1 and Jer. xxiii. 5.

2 These were called ' Psilanthropists' (upholders of the mere
manhood) : of whom Cerinthus (the opponent of S. John) was the
earliest propounder.

3 These are heretics like Sabellius the founder of the Patri-
passian impiety.

4 These are ' Docetists,' to whom Leo in Sermon LXV.,
chap. 4, compares the Eutychians isti fihantasmatici Christian!.
Simon Magus was the earliest exponent of this view.

5 These are Arians who, as Bright (n. 29) points out, in wishing
to pacify the catholics by exalting the character of Christ without
acknowledging His equality with the Father, fell into the error
of setting up two Gods (an Uncreate and a Created).

6 This is the heresy alluded to in note 3 above.

SERMON XXVIII.

T4-

Man and the Word. Certain have thought
that our Lord Jesus Christ had a body not
of our substance but assumed from higher and
subtler elements ? ; whereas certain others
have considered that in the flesh of Christ
there was no human soul, but that the God-
head of the Word Itself fulfilled the part of
soul 8. But their unwise assertion passes into
this form that, though they acknowledge the
existence of a soul in the Lord, yet they say
it was devoid of mind, because the Godhead
of Itself was sufficient for all purposes of
reason to the Man as well as to the God in
Christ. Lastly the same people have dared to
assert that a certain portion of the Word was
turned into Flesh, so that in the manifold
varieties of this one dogma, not only the nature
of the flesh and of the soul but also the
essence of the Word Itself is dissolved.

V. Nestorianism and Entycliiamsm are par-
ticularly to be avoided at the present time.

There are many other astounding falsehoods
also which we must not weary your ears, be-
loved, with enumerating. But after all these
various impieties, which are closely connected
by the relationship that exists between one
form of blasphemy and another, we call your
devout attention to the avoiding of these two
errors in particular: one of which, with Nestorius
"or its author, some time ago attempted to gain
ground, but ineffectually ; the other, which is
equally damnable, has more recently sprung up
vith Eutyches as its propounder. The former
lared to maintain that the blessed Virgin
vlary was the mother of Christ's manhood
>nly, so that in her conception and child-
jearing no union might be believed to have
aken place of the Word and the Flesh : be-
ause the Son of God did not Himself become
'■on of Man, but of His mere condescension
nked Himself with created man. This can
i no wise be tolerated by catholic ears, which
re so imbued with the gospel of Truth that
ley know of a surety there is no hope of
alvation for mankind unless He were Him-
slf the Son of the Virgin who was His
lother's Creator. On the other hand this
lasphemous propounder of more recent pro
inity has confessed the union of the two
Tatures in Christ, but has maintained that the
lOFect of this very union is that of the two one
;:mained while the substance of the other no
>nger existed, which of course could not have

7 Ab elementis sufierioribus et subtilioribus sumptum, cf.
rm. XXX. chap. 2, de sublimioris generis pro Hisse materia.
lis is the modification of "Docetism" adopted by the Gnostic
ilentinus(see Bright's note 31).

8 This is the view of Apollinaris.

been brought to an end except by either de-
struction or separation^ But this is so op-
posed to sound faith that it cannot be enter-
tained without loss of one's Christian name.
For if the Incarnation of the Word is the
uniting of the Divine and human natures, but
by the very fact of their coming together that
which was twofold became single, it was only
the Godhead that was born of the Virgin's
womb, and went through the deceptive ap-
pearance of receiving nourishment and bodily
growth : and to pass over all the changes of
the human state, it was only the Godhead that
was crucified, dead, and buried : so that ac-
cording to those who thus think, there is no
reason to hope for the resurrection, and Christ
is not " the first-begotten from the dead T ; "
because He was not One who ought to have
been raised again, if He had not been One
who could be slain.

VI. The Deity and the Manhood were p7'esent
in Christ from the very first.

Keep far from your hearts, dearly beloved,
the poisonous lies of the devil's inspirations,
and knowing that the eternal Godhead of the
Son underwent no growth while with the
Father, be wise and consider that to the same
nature to which it was said in Adam, " Thou
art earth, and unto earth shalt thou go 2," it is
said in Christ, " sit Thou on My right hand 3."
According to that Nature, whereby Christ is
equal to the Father, the Only-begotten was
never inferior to the sublimity of the Father;
nor was the glory which He had with the Father
a temporal possession ; for He is on the very
right hand of the Father, of which it is said in
Exodus, "Thy right hand, O Lord, is glorified
in power *;" and in Isaiah, " Lord, who hath
believed our report ? and the arm of the Lord,
to whom is it revealed s?" The man, there-
fore, assumed into the Son of God, was in such
wise received into the unity of Christ's Person
from His very commencement in the body,
that without the Godhead He was not con-
ceived, without the Godhead He was not
brought forth, without the Godhead He was
not nursed. It was the same Person in the
wondrous acts, and in the endurance of insults ;
through His human weakness crucified, dead
and buried : through His Divine power, being

9 It is doubtful whether Eutyches did ever actually say this,
but it was the logical inference from his position : as Gore (p. 57),
says, " Eutyches never formulated a heresy : he was no philoso-
pher ; but 'he refused to say that the human nature remained
in Christ after the Incarnation. He shrank from calling Christ
' of one substance' with us men : in some sort of way he left us to
suonose that the human nature was absorbed into and lost in the
Divinity. x Col. i. 18

* Gen. iii. 19. 3 Ps. cix. 1.

4 Exod. xvi. 6. 5 Is. liii. 1.

144

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

raised the third day, He ascended to the
heavens, sat down at the right hand of the
Father, and in His nature as man received
from the Father that which in His nature as
God He Himself also gave 6.

VII. The fulness of the Godhead is imparted
to the Body {the Church) through the Head,
{Christ).

Meditate, dearly beloved. on these things with
devout hearts, and be always mindful of the
apostle's injunction, who admonishes all men,
saying, " See lest any one deceive you through
philosophy and vain deceit according to the
tradition of men, and not according to Christ ;
for in Him dwelleth all the fulness of the God-
head bodily, and ye have been filled in Him ?."
He said not " spiritually" but " bodily," that
we may understand the substance of Mesh to
be real, where there is the dwelling in the body
of the fulness of the Godhead : wherewith, of
course, the whole Church is also filled, which,
clinging to the Head, is the body of Christ ;
who liveth and reigneth with the Father and
the Holy Ghost, God for ever and ever.
Amen.

SERMON XXXI.

On the Frast of the Epiphany, I.

I. The Epiphany a necessary sequel to the
Nativity.

After celebrating but lately the day on which
immaculate virginity brought forth the Saviour
of mankind, the venerable feast of the Epi-
phany, dearly beloved, gives us continuance of
joy, that the force of our exultation and the
fervour of our faith may not grow cool, in the
midst of neighbouring and kindred mysteries 8.
For it concerns all men's salvation,' that the
infancy of the Mediator between God and men
was already manifested to the whole world,
while He was still detained in the tiny town.
For although He had chosen the Israelitish
nation, and one family out of that nation, from
whom to assume the nature of all mankind,
yet He was unwilling that the early days of
His birth should be concealed within the narrow
limits of His mother's home : but desired to
be soon recognized by all, seeing that He
deigned to be born for all. To three 9 wise

6 Cf .Lett. XXVIII (Tome), chap. 6. 7 Col. ii. 8-10.

° J"'e> ' cognatarwn solemnitatum vicina sacramenta, cf.
Serm. XXVIII. chap, i, note 2.

9 The number " three" has no further scriptural support than
the_ possible inference from their threefold offerines. It will be
noticed that b. Leo knows nothing of their being^kings, though
that tradition is apparently as old as Tertullian (adv. Marc. iii. 1?)
see Bright s n. 38. 3"

men, therefore, appeared a star of new splen-
dour in the region of the East, which, being
brighter and fairer than the other stars, might
easily attract the eyes and minds of those that
looked on it, so that at once that might be
observed not to be meaningless, which had
so unusual an appearance. He therefore who
gave the sign, gave to the beholders under-
standing of it, and caused inquiry to be made
about that, of which He had thus caused
understanding, and after inquiry made, offered
Himself to be found.

II. Herod's evil designs were fruitless. The
Wise men's gifts were consciously symbolical.
These three men follow the leading of the
light above, and with stedfast gaze obeying the
indications of the guiding splendour, are led
to the recognition of the Truth by the brilliance
of Grace, for they supposed that a king's birth
was notified in a human sense t, and that it
must be sought in a royal city. Yet He who
had taken a slave's form, and had come not to
judge, but to be judged, chose Bethlehem for
His nativity, Jerusalem for His passion. But
Herod, hearing that a prince of the Jews was
born, suspected a successor, and was in great
terror : and to compass the death of the Author
of Salvation, pledged himself to a false homage.
How happy had he been, if he had imitated
the wise men's faith, and turned to a pious use
what he designed for deceit. What blind
wickedness of foolish jealousy, to think thou
canst overthrow the Divine plan by thy frenzy.
The Lord of the world, who offers an eternal
Kingdom, seeks not a temporal. Why dost
thou attempt to change the unchangeable
order of things ordained, and to forestall others
in their crime ? The death of Christ belongs
not to thy time. The Gospel must be first set'
on foot, the Kingdom of God first preached,
healings first given to the sick, wondrous acts
first performed. Why dost thou wish thyself
to have the blame of what will belong to
another's work, and why without being able to
effect thy wicked design, dost thou bring on.
thyself alone the charge of wishing the evil?
Thou gainest nothing and earnest out nothing
by this intriguing. He that was born volun-
tarily shall die of His own free will. The
Wise men, therefore, fulfil their desire, and
come to the child, the Lord Jesus Christ, the
same star going before them. They adore the
Word in flesh, the Wisdom in infancy, the
Power in weakness, the Lord of majesty in
the reality of man : and by their gifts make

1 Humano sensu significaiitm sibi regis ortum, " by their
natural thoughts ' in Bright's translation : but 1 doubt whether
the words could bear that meaning, and whether they suit the
context : cf. Serm. XXXIV. chap. 2.

SERMON XXXIII.

145

open acknowledgment of what they believe in
their hearts, that they may show forth the
mystery of their faith and understanding 2. The
incense they offer to God, the myrrh to Man,
the gold to the King, consciously paying
honour to the Divine and human Nature in
union : because while each substance had its
own properties, there was no difference in the
power 3 of either.

III. The massacre of the Innocents is in harmony
with the Virgin's conception, which again
teaches us purity of life.

And when the wise men had returned to
their own land, and Jesus had been carried
into Egypt at the Divine suggestion, Herod's
madness blazes out into fruitless schemes.
He orders all the little ones in Bethlehem to
'•be slain, and since he knows not which infant
to fear, extends a general sentence against the
age he suspects. But that which the wicked
king removes from the world, Christ admits
to heaven : and on those for whom He had
not yet spent His redeeming blood, He al-
ready bestows the dignity of martyrdom.
Lift your faithful hearts then, dearly-beloved,
:o the gracious blaze of eternal light, and in
idoration of the mysteries dispensed for man's
;alvation4 give your diligent heed to the
hings which have been wrought on your
>ehalf. Love the purity of a chaste life,
>ecause Christ is the Son of a virgin. "Ab-
tain from fleshly lusts which war against the
oul s," as the blessed Apostle, present in his
/ords as we read, exhorts us, " In malice be
e children 6," because the Lord of glory
onformed Himself to the infancy of mortals,
ollow after humility which the Son of God
eigned to teach His disciples. Put on the
lower of patience, in which ye may be able to
pin 7 your souls ; seeing that He who is the
j.edemption of all, is also the Strength of
1. " Set your minds on the things which are
oove, not on the things which are on the
lirth 8." Walk firmly along the path of truth
|id life : let not earthly things hinder you
|r whom are prepared heavenly things through
ir Lord Jesus Christ, who with the Father
id the Holy Ghost liveth and reigneth for
er and ever. Amen.

2 Sacramentum Jidei sua intelligenticrquc : here sacramentum
i(ms to come nearer to the older and more general use of the
yd among the Fathers, viz. symbol or sign.

3 "He means, Christ had a king's power, both as God and
J:vlan," Bright, n. 42.

It lmfiensa humaniz saluti sacramenta.

p 1 Peter ii. 11. 61 Cor. xiv. 20.

1' Acquirerc, S. Lukexxi. 19. It is not clear from this whether
1 Leo's time the reading was future, " ye shall win " (R.V.), or
iterative, "possess ye" (A.V.). The Vulgate now reads possi-
a 'is.
Col.

HI. 2.

)L. XII.

SERMON XXXIII.
On the feast of the Epiphany, III.

I. When we were yet sinners, Christ ca7ne to
save.

Although I know, dearly-beloved, that you
are fully aware of the purpose of to-day's
festival, and that the words of the Gospel 9
have according to use unfolded it to you, yet
that nothing may be omitted on our part,
I shall venture to say on the subject what the
Lord has put in my mouth : so that in our
common joy the devotion of our hearts may
be so much the more sincere as the reason of
our keeping the feast is better understood.
The providential Mercy of God, having de-
termined to succour the perishing world in
these latter times, fore-ordained the salvation
of all nations in the Person of Christ ; in order
that, because all nations had long been turned
aside from the worship of the true God by
wicked error, and even God's peculiar people
Israel had well-nigh entirely fallen away from
the enactments of the Law, now that all were
shut up under sin J, He might have mercy
upon all.

For as justice was everywhere failing and
the whole world was given over to vanity and
wickedness, if the Divine Power had not de-
ferred its judgment, the whole of mankind
would have received the sentence of damna-
tion. But wrath was changed to forgiveness,
and, that the greatness of the Grace to be dis-
played might be the more conspicuous, it
pleased God, to apply the mystery of remission
to the abolishing of men's sins at a time when
no one could boast of his own merits.

II. The wise men from the East are typical 'ful-
filments of God's promise to Abraham.

Now the manifestation of this unspeakable
mercy, dearlv-beloved, came to pass when
Herod held the royal power in Judaea, where
the legitimate succession of Kings having
failed and the power of the High-priests having
been overthrown, an alien-born had gained the
sovereignty : that the rising of the true King
might be attested by the voice of prophecy,,
which had said : " a prince shall not fail from
Juda, nor a leader from his loins, until He
come for whom it is reserved 2, and He shall

9 Secundum consuetudincm evangelicus sermo reseraverit.
The Roman Gospel for the day was apparently then, as now
with us, S. Matt. ii. i— 12 : but the manifestation of Christ to the
wise men was not universally so prominent a feature of the Festival
as other manifestations of Him, e.g. His birth (Jan. 6 having
been in the East the original Christmas Day), His baptism, &c.

1 Gal. iii. 22, cf. Rom. xi. 32. _ ...

2 Gen xlix 10, donee veniat cui reposition est (w airoKenai),.
cf Ezek. xxi. 27 : the reading of A. and R. W. is " until Shtloh

146

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

be the expectation of the nations." Concern-
ing which an innumerable succession was once
promised to the most blessed patriarch Abra-
ham to be begotten not by fleshly seed but by
fertile faith; and therefore it was compared to
the stars in multitude that as father of all the
nations he might hope not for an earthly but
for a heavenly progeny. And therefore, for
the creating of the promised posterity, the
heirs designated under the figure of the stars
are awakened by the rising of a new star, that
the ministrations of the heaven might do
service in that wherein the witness of the
heaven had been adduced. A star more bril-
liant than the other stars arouses wise men
that dwell in the far East, and from the bright-
ness of the wondrous light these men, not un-
skilled in observing such things, appreciate the
importance of the sign : this doubtless being
brought about in their hearts by Divine in-
spiration, in order that the mystery of so great
a sight might not be hid from them, and, what
was an unusual appearance to their eyes,
might not be obscure to their minds. In
a word they scrupulously set about their duty
and provide themselves with such gifts that
in worshipping the One they may at the same
time show their belief in His threefold function :
with gold they honour the Person of a King,
with myrrh that of Man, with incense that of
God 3.

IT I. The chosen race is no longer the Jew's, but
believers of every nation.

And so they enter the chief city of the King-
dom of Judaea, and in the royal city ask that He
should be shown them Whom they had learnt
was begotten to be King. Herod is perturbed :
he fears for his safety, he trembles for his
power, he asks of the priests and teachers of
the Law what the Scripture has predicted
about the birth of Christ, he ascertains what
had been prophesied : truth enlightens the
wise men, unbelief blinds the experts: carnal
Israel understands not what it reads, sees not
what it points out ; refers to the pages, whose
utterances it does not believe. Where is thy
boasting, O Jew ? where thy noble birth drawn
from the stem of Abraham ? is not thy circum-
cision become uncircumcision * ? Behold thou,
the greater servest the less s, and by the

come; the LXX. read ews av eASr; to. airoieciixeva avr<Z, and the
Vulgate, donee veniat qui mittendus erat. Origen paraphrases
thus: " He should come for Whom the things were reserved, that
is. the Christ of God, the Prince of the Divine promises. He
alone could be called the expectation of the nations, for men of all
nations believed in God through Him, according to the words
of Isaiah. 'In His name shall the Gentiles trust.'" Horn, in
Genesin xvii. § 6.

3 Cf. Serm. XXXI. chap. 2, above.

t Rom. iu.25. 5 Gen. xxv. 33.

reading of that covenant6 which thou keepest
in the letter only, thou becomest the slave
of strangers born, who enter into the lot
of thy heritage. Let the fulness of the
nations enter into the family of the patri-
archs, yea let it enter, and let the sons of
promise receive in Abraham's seed the blessing
which his sons, according to the flesh, renounce
their claim to. In the three Magi 7 let all
people worship the Author of the universe :
and let God be known not in Judaea alone,
but in all the world, so that everywhere
" His name" may be "great in Israel8." For
while the dignity of the chosen race is proved
to be degenerate by unbelief in its descend
ants, it is made common to all alike by our
belief.

IV. The massacre of the Innocents through
the consequent flight of Christ, brings the truth
into Egypt.

Now when the wise men had worshipped
the Lord and finished all their devotions,
according to the warning of a dream, they
return not by the same route by which they
had come. For it behoved them now thai
they believed in Christ not to walk in the
paths of their old line of life, but having
entered on a new way to keep away frorr
the errors they had left : and it was also t(
baffle Herod's design, who, under the clokt
of homage, was planning a wicked plot agains
the Infant Jesus. Hence when his craft;
hopes were overthrown, the king's wrath rosi
to a greater fury. For reckoning up the thru
which the wise men had indicated, lie pourei
out his cruel rage on all the men-children c
Bethlehem, and in a general massacre of th
whole of that city 9 slew the infants, who thu
passed to their eternal glory, thinking tha
if every single babe was slain there, Chri.'
too would be slain. But He Who was pos
poning the shedding of His blood for th
world's redemption till another time, v/i
carried and brought into Egypt by h
parents' aid, and thus sought the ancier
cradle of the Hebrew race, and in the powi
of a greater providence dispensing the prince
office of the true Joseph, in that He, the Bret
of Life and the Food of reason that can
down from heaven, removed that worse thr
all famines under which the Egyptians' mini
were labouring, the lack of truth x, nor witho

6 Or " will " (testament?, itaflijKTjs).

7 Cf. Sermon XXXI. chaps, i. and ii. 8 ps. Ixxvi. i.
9 Ccede generali univeisa' civitatis Wilis; as the coiH

shows, this phrase is rhetorically exaggerated.

1 Cf. Sermon XXXII. chap, i, Tunc autem SEaypto Salva
Hiatus est, ut gens antiquis erroribus dediia, lain ad victtu
salutem per occultam gratiam vocaretur ; et qu& nondum <
cerat ab animo superstitionem, iam recuperet veritatem.

SERMON XXXIV.

147

that sojourn would the symbolism of that One
Victim have been complete ; for there first by
the slaying of the lamb was fore-shadowed the
health-bringing sign of the Cross and the
Lord's Passover.

V. We must keep this festival as thankful sons
of light.

Taught then, dearly-beloved, by these mys-
teries of Divine grace, let us with reasonable
joy celebrate the day of our first-fruits and the
commencement of the nations' calling: "giving
thanks to" the merciful God " who made us
worthy," as the Apostle says, "to be partakers
of the lot of the saints in light : who delivered
us from the power of darkness and translated
us into the kingdom of the Son of His love2 : "
since as Isaiah prophesied, " the people of the
nations that sat in darkness, have seen a great
light, and they that dwelt in the land of the
shadow of death, upon them hath the light
shined3." Of whom he also said to the Lord,
"nations which knew not thee, shall call on
thee : and peoples which were ignorant of
thee, shall run together unto thee*." This
day " Abraham saw and was glad s," when he
understood that the sons of his faith would be
blessed in his seed that is in Christ, and fore-
saw that by believing he should be the father
of all nations, "giving glory to God and being
fully assured that What He had promised, He
was able also to perform6." This day David
sang of in the psalms saying: "all nations
that thou hast made shall come and worship
before Thee, O Lord : and they shall glorify
Thy name 7;" and again: "The Lord hath
made known His salvation : His righteous-

! ness hath He openly showed in the sight of
the nations8." This in good truth we know
to have taken place ever since the three wise

i men aroused in their far-off land were led by

I a star to recognize and worship the King of
heaven and earth, [which to those who gaze

1 aright ceases not daily to appear. And if it
could make Christ known when concealed in
infancy, how much more able was it to reveal
Him when reigning in majesty] 9. And surely

! their worship of Him exhorts us to imitation ;
that, as far as we can, we should serve our
gracious God who invites us all to Christ.
For whosoever lives religiously and chastely
in the Church and "sets his mind on the
things which are above, not on the things that

I are upon the earth '," is in some measure like

* Col. i. 12, 13. 3 Is. ix. 2. 4 lb. lv. 5.

5 S. John viii. 56.

6 Rom. iv. 21. 7 Ps. Ixxxvi. 9. 8 pS- xcviii 2.

9 Both Quesnel and the Kallerinii condemn this passage in-
closed in brackets as spurious. The former thinks it has crept
into the text ex annotatione mai ginali alicuius astrologice plus
-pquo deciiti. It is wanting in all the MSS. tnelioris ?iotie.

1 Col. iii. 2.

the heavenly light : and whilst he himself
keeps the brightness of a holy life, he points
out to many the way to the Lord like a star.
In which regard, dearly-beloved, ye ought all
to help one another in turn, that in the king-
dom of God, which is reached by right faith
and good works, ye may shine as the sons of
light : through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who
with God the Father and the Holy Spirit lives
and reigns for ever ami ever. Amen.

SERMON XXXIV.

On the Feast of the Epiphany, IV.

I. The yearly observance of the Epiphany is
profitable to Christians.

It is the right and reasonable duty of true
piety, dearly-beloved, on the days which bear
witness to the works of Divine mercy, to
rejoice with the whole heart and to celebrate
with all honour the things which have been
wrought for our salvation : for the very law of
recurring seasons calls us to such devout
observance, and has now brought before us the
feast of the Epiphany, consecrated by the
Lord's appearance soon after the day on
which the Son of God co-eternal with the
Father was born of a Virgin. And herein the
providence of God has established a great
safeguard to our faith, so that, whilst the
worship of the Saviour's earliest infancy is
repeated year by year, the production of true
man's nature in Him might be proved by the
original verifications themselves. For this it
is that justifies the ungodly, this it is that
makes sinners saints, to wit the belief in the
true Godhead and the true Manhood of the
one Jesus Christ, our Lord : the Godhead,
whereby being before all ages " in the form
of God " He is equal with the Father : the
Manhood whereby in the last days He is
united to Man in the "form of a slave." For
the confirmation therefore of this Faith which
was to be fore-armed against all errors, it was
a wondrous loving provision of the Divine
plan that a nation which dwelt in the far-off
country of the East and was cunning in the art
of reading the stars, should receive the sign of
the infant's birth who was to reign over all Israel.
For the unwonted splendour of a bright new
star appeared to the wise men and filled their
mind with such wonder, as they gazed upon
its brilliance, that they could not think they
ought to neglect what was announced to them
with such distinctness. And, as the event
showed, the grace of God was the disposing
cause of this wondrous thing : who when the
whole of Bethlehem itself was still unaware of
Christ's birth, brought it to the knowledge of

l 2

148

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the nations who would believe, and declared
that which human words could not yet explain,
through the preaching of the heavens.

II. Both Herod and the wise men originally
had an earthly conception of the kingdom
signified; but the latter learnt the truth, the
former did not.

But although it was the office of the Divine
condescension to make the Saviour's Nativity
recognizable to the nations, yet for the under
standing of the wondrous sign the wise men
could have had intimation even from the an-
cient prophecies of Balaam, knowing that it was
predicted of old and by constant repetition
spread abroad : " A star shall rise out of Jacob,
and a man shall rise out of Israel, and shall
rule the nations2." And so the three men
aroused by God through the shining of a
strange star, follow the guidance of its twink-
ling light, thinking they will find the babe
designated at Jerusalem in the royal city.
But finding themselves mistaken in this
opinion, through the scribes and teachers of
the Jews they learnt what the Holy Scripture
had foretold of the birth of Christ ; so that
confirmed by a twofold witness, they sought
with still more eager faith Him whom both
the brightness of the star and the sure word
of prophecy revealed. And when the Divine
oracle was proclaimed through the chief
priests' answers and the Spirit's voice de-
clared, which says: "And thou, Bethlehem,
the land of Judah, art not least among the
princes of Judah ; for out of thee shall come a
leader to rule My people Israels," how easy
and how natural it was that the leading men
among the Hebrews should believe what they
taught ! But it appears that they held material
notions with Herod, and reckoned Christ's
kingdom as on the same level as the powers
of this world : so that they hoped for a tem-
poral leader while he dreaded an earthly rival.
The fear that racks thee, Herod, is wasted ; in
vain dost thou try to vent thy rage on the
infant thou suspectest. Thy realm cannot
hold Christ ; the Lord of the world is not
satisfied with the narrow limits of thy sway.
He, whom thou dost not wish to reign in
Judaea, reigns everywhere : and thou wouldst
rule more happily thyself, if thou wert to sub-
mit to His command. Why dost thou not do
with sincerity what in treacherous falseness
thou dost promise ? Come with the wise men,
and in suppliant adoration worship the true
King. But thou, from too great fondness for
Jewish blindness, wilt not imitate the nations'

a Numb. xxiv. 17 : cf. Serm. XXXI. chap 2, above.
3 Micah v. 2.

faith, and directest thy stubborn heart to cruel
wiles, though thou art doomed neither to stay
Him whom thou fearest nor to harm them
whom thou slayest.

III. The perseverance of the Magi has led to
the most important results.

Led then, dearly beloved, into Bethlehem
by obeying the guidance of the star, the wise
men "rejoiced with very great joy," as the
evangelist has told us: "and entering the
house, found the child with Mary, His mother;
and falling down they worshipped Him ; and
opening their treasures they presented to Him
gifts, gold, frankincense and myrrh V What
wondrous faith of perfect knowledge, which
was taught them not by earthly wisdom, but
by the instruction of the Holy Spirit ! Whence
came it that these men, who had quitted their
country without having seen Jesus, and had
not noticed anything in His looks to enforce
such systematic adoration, observed this
method in offering their gifts ? unless it were
that besides the appearance of the star, which
attracted their bodily eyes, the more refulgent
rays of truth taught their hearts that before
they started on their toilsome road, they must
understand that He was signified to Whom
was owed in gold royal honour, in incense
I )ivine adoration, in myrrh the acknowledg
ment of mortality. Such a belief and un-
derstanding no doubt, as far as the en-
lightenment of their faith went, might have
been sufficient in themselves and have pre-
vented their using their bodily eyes in in-
quiring into that which they had beheld with
their mind's fullest gaze. But their sagacious
diligence, persevering till they found the child,
did good service for future peoples and for the
men of our own time : so that, as it profited
us all that the apostle Thomas, after the
Lord's resurrection, handled the traces of the
wounds in His flesh, so it was of advantage to
us that His infancy should be attested by the
visit of the wise men. And so the wise men
saw and adored the Child of the tribe of Judah,
"of the seed of David according to the
flesh 5," " made from a woman, made under
the law 6," which He had come " not to destroy
but to fulfil 7." They saw and adored the
Child, small in size, powerless to help others8,
incapable of speech, and in nought different
to the generality of human children. Because,
as the testimonies were trustworthy which
asserted in Him the majesty of invisible God-
head, so it ought to be impossible to doubt
that "the Word became flesh," and the eter-

4 S. Matt. ii. 10, 11.
7 S. Matt. v. 17.

5 Rom.

6 Gal. iv.

8 Alienee opis indignant.

SERMON XXXIV.

149

nal essence of the Son of God took man's
true nature : lest either the inexpressible
marvels of his acts which were to follow or
the infliction of sufferings which He had
to bear should overthrow the mystery of our
Faith by their inconsistency : seeing that no
one at all can be justified save those who
believe the Lord Jesus to be both true God
and true Man.

IV. The Manichcean heresy corrupts the Scrip-
tures in order to disprove the truth.

This peerless Faith, dearly-beloved, this
Truth proclaimed throughout all ages, is op-
posed by the devilish blasphemies of the
Manichaeans : who to murder the souls of the
deceived have woven a deadly tissue of wicked
doctrine out of impious and forged lies, and
over the ruins of their mad opinions men have
fallen headlong to such depths as to imagine
a Christ with a fictitious body, who presented
nothing solid, nothing real to the eyes and
touch of men 9, but displayed an empty shape
of fancy-flesh. For they wish it to be thought
unworthy of belief that God the Son of God
placed Himself within a woman's body and
subjected His majesty to such a degradation
as to be joined to our fleshly nature and be
born in the true body of human substance :
although this is entirely the outcome of His
power, not of His ill-treatment, and it is His
glorious condescension, not His being polluted
that should be believed in. For if yonder
visible light is not marred by any of the un-
cleannesses with which it is encompassed, and
the brightness of the sun's rays, which is
doubtless a material creature, is not contamin-
ated by any of the dirty or muddy places to
which it penetrates, is there anything what-
ever its quality which could pollute the es-
sence of that eternal and immaterial Light ?
seeing that by allying Himself to that creature
which He had made after His own image He
furnished it with purification and received no
stain, and healed the wounds of its weakness
without suffering loss of power. And because
this great and unspeakable mystery of divine
godliness was announced by all the testi-
monies of the Holy Scriptures, those oppo-
nents of the Truth of which we speak have
rejected the law that was given through Moses
and the divinely inspired utterances * of the
prophets, and have tampered with the very
pages of the gospels and apostles, by removing
or inserting certain things : forging for them-

9 Whatever may be the correct reading here, actionibus with
lhe better MSS. or tactibus, the conjecture of Quesnel from the
reading of some MSS. actibus, the meaning must be such as
is given in the translation.

i Oracu/a representing the \6yia of the New Testament
(viz. Acts vii. 38, Rom. iii. 2, &c).

selves under the Apostles' names and under
the words of the Saviour Himself many
volumes of falsehood, whereby to fortify their
lying errors and instil deadly poison into
the minds of those to be deceived. For they
saw that everything contradicted and made
against them and that not only by the New
but also by the Old Testament their blas-
phemous and treacherous folly was confuted.
And yet persisting in their mad lies they cease
not to disturb the Church of God with their
deceits, persuading those miserable creatures
whom they can ensnare to deny that man's
nature was truly taken by the Lord Jesus
Christ ; to deny that He was truly crucified
for the world's salvation : to deny that from
His side wounded by the spear flowed the
blood of Redemption and the water of bap-
tism 2 : to deny that He was buried and
raised again the third day : to deny that in
sight of the disciples He was lifted above all
the heights of the skies to take His seat on
the right hand of the Father ; and in order
that when all the truth of the Apostles' Creed
was destroyed, there may be nothing to
frighten the wicked or inspire the saints with
hope, to deny that the living and the dead
must be judged by Christ ; so that those whom
they have robbed of the power of these great
mysteries may learn to worship Christ in the
sun and moon, and under the name of the
Holy Spirit to adore Manichaeus himself, the
inventor of all these blasphemies.

V. Avoid all dealings with the heretics, but
intercede with God for the in.
To confirm your hearts therefore, dearly-
beloved, in the Faith and Truth, let to-day's
festival help you all, and let the catholic con-
fession be fortified by the testimony of the
manifestation of the Saviour's infancy, while
we anathematize the blasphemy of those who
deny the flesh of our nature in Christ : about
which the blessed Apostle John has fore-
warned us in no doubtful utterance, saying,
" every spirit which confesses Christ J esus
to have come in the flesh is of God : and
every spirit which destroys Jesus is not of
God, and this is Antichrists." Consequently
let no Christian have aught in common with
men of this kind, let him have no alliance or
intercourse with such. Let it advantage the
whole Church that many of them in the mercy
of God have been discovered, and that their

2 Cf. Ep. xxviii. (Tome) 5, aperto per militis lanceam latere
crucijixi intelligat unde sanguis et aqua Jiuxerit ut ecctesia Dei
et lavacro rigaretur et poculo, and almost immediately afterwards,
where he interprets the spirit, water and blood of 1 S. John v. 8,
as spiritus sanctificationis et sanguis redemptionis et aqua
baptismatis.

3 1 John iv. 2, 3: see Letter XXVIII. (Tome) 5, n. 7, on tha
various reading.

ISO

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

own confession has disclosed how sacrilegious
their lives were. Let no one be deceived by
their discriminations between food and food,
by their soiled raiment, by their pale faces.
Fasts are not holy which proceed not on the
principle of abstinence but with deceitful de
sign. Let this be the end of their harming
the unwary, and deluding the ignorant ; hence-
forth no one's fall shall be excusable : no
longer must he be held simple but extremely
worthless and perverse who hereafter shall be
found entangled in detestable error. A prac-
tice countenanced by the Church and Di-
vinely instituted, not only do we not forbid,
we even incite you to, that you should suppli-
cate the Lord even for such : since we also
with tears and mourning feel pity for the ruins
of cheated souls, carrying out the Apostles'
example of loving-kindness *, so as to be weak
with those that are weak and to " weep with
those that weeps." For we hope that God's
mercy can be won by the many tears and due
amendment of the fallen : because so long as
life remains in the body no man's restoration
must be despaired of, but the reform of all
desired with the Lord's help, " who raiseth up
them that are crushed, looseth them that are
chained, giveth light to the blind 6 : " to whom
is honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XXXVI.

On the Feast of the Epiphany, VI.

I. The story of the magi not o?ily a byegone
fact in history, but of everyday application to
ourselves.

The day, dearly-beloved, on which Christ
the Saviour of the world first appeared to the
nations must be venerated by us with holy
worship : and to-day those joys must be enter-
tained in our hearts which existed in the
breasts of the three magi, when, aroused by
the sign and leading of a new star, which they
believed to have been promised, they fell
down in presence of the King of heaven and
earth. For that da) has not so passed away that
the mighty work, which was then revealed, has
passed away with it, and that nothing but the re-
port of the thing has come down to us for faith
to receive and memory to celebrate ; seeing
that, by the off-repeated gift of God, our times
daily enjoy the fruit of what the first age pos-
sessed. And therefore, although the narrative
which is read to us from the Gospel 7 properly
records those days on which the three men,

4 Exsequentes apostolica pietatis exemflum.

5 2 Cor. xi. 29 ; Rom. xii. 15. 6 Ps. cxlvi. 7, 8.

7 Narratio evangelical lectionis. This, according to Bright's
n. 46 (q v.) '" refers to the reading of passages of Scripture by the
Lector as a part of the church service."

who had neither been taught by the prophets'
predictions nor instructed by the testimony of
the law, came to acknowledge God from the
furthest parts of the East, yet we behold this
same thing more clearly and abundantly car-
ried on now in the enlightenment of all those
who are called, since the prophecy of Isaiah is
fulfilled when he says, " the Lord has laid bare
His holy arm in the sight of all the nations, and
all the nations upon earth have seen the salvation
which is from the Lord our God ;" and again,
"and those to whom it has not been an-
nounced about Him shall see, and they who
have not heard, shall understand8." Hence
when we see men devoted to worldly wisdom
and far from belief in Jesus Christ brought out
of the depth of their error and called to an
acknowledgment of the true Light, it is un-
doubtedly the brightness of the Divine grace
that is at work : and whatever of new light illu-
mines the darkness of their hearts, comes from
the rays of the same star : so that it should
both move with wonder, and going before lead
to the adoration of God the minds which it
visited with its splendour. But if with careful
thought we wish to see how their threefold
kind of gift is also offered by all who come
to Christ with the foot of faith, is not the
same offering repeated in the hearts of true
believers? For he that acknowledges Christ
the King of the universe brings gold from the
treasure of his heart : he that believes the
Only-begotten of God to have united man's
true nature to Himself, offers myrrh ; and he
that confesses Him in no wise inferior to the
Father's majesty, worships Him in a manner
with incense.

II. Satan still carries on the iviles of Herod,
and, as it were, personates him in his oppo-
sition to Christ.

These comparisons, dearly-beloved, being
thoughtfully considered, we find Herod's charac-
ter also not to be wanting, of which the devil
himself is now an unwearied imitator, just as he
was then a secret instigator. For he is tortured
at the calling of all the nations, and racked
at the daily destruction of his power, grieving
at his being everywhere deserted, and the true
King adored in all places. He prepares de-
vices, he hatches plots, he bursts out into
murders, and that he may make use of the
remnants of those whom he still deceives, is
consumed with envy in the persons of the
Jews, lies treacherously in wait in the persons
of heretics, blazes out into cruelty in the
persons of the heathen. For he sees that

8 Is. Hi. 10, 15.

SERMON XXXVI.

I5i

the power of the eternal King is invincible,
Whose death has extinguished the power of
death itself; and therefore he has armed him-
self with all his skill of injury against those
who serve the true King; hardening some
by the pride that knowledge of the law en-
genders, debasing others by the lies of false
belief, and inciting others to the madness
of persecution. Yet the madness of this
" Herod " is vanquished, and brought to
nought by Him who has crowned even in-
fants with the glory of martyrdom, and has
endued His faithful ones with so unconquer-
able a love that in the Apostle's words they
dare to say, " who shall separate us from the
love of Christ ? shall tribulation, or want, or
persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or peril, or
the sword? as it is written, For thy sake are
we killed all the day long, we are counted
as sheep for the slaughter. But in all these
things we overcome on account of Him who
loved us9."

III. The cessation of active persecution does not
do away with the need of continued vigilance :
Satan has only changed his tactics.

Such courage as this, dearly-beloved, we do
not believe to have been needful only at those
times in which the kings of the world and all
the powers of the age were raging against
God's people in an outburst of wickedness,
thinking it to redound to their greatest glory
if they removed the Christian name from the
arth, but not knowing that God's Church
rows through the frenzy of their cruelty, since
in the tortures and deaths of the martyrs,
those whose number was reckoned to be
diminished were augmented through the force
bf example1. In fine, so much strength has
bur Faith gained by the attacks of perse-
cutors that royal princedoms have no greater
Ornament than that the lords of the world are
nembers of Christ ; and their boast is not so
nuch that they were born in the purple as
hat they have been re-born in baptism. But
because the stress of former blasts has lulled,
ind with a cessation of fightings a measure of
;ranquillity has long seemed to smile upon
is, those divergences are carefully to be
.uarded against which arise from the very
eign of peace. For the adversary having
•een proved ineffective in open persecutions
ow exercises a hidden skill in doing cruel
urt, in order to overthrow by the stumbling-
lock of pleasure those whom he could not

' 9 Rom. viii. 35.

1 Cf. Tertullian's famous boast in his Apohgetic-us (chap. I.,
176). semen est C hristianorum sanguis, and Leo's own words
;ain, Serm. LXXXII. 6, non minuitur persecutionibus ecclesia
.1 augetur.

strike with the blow of affliction. And so
seeing the faith of princes opposed to him
and the indivisible Trinity of the one God-
head as devoutly worshipped in palaces as in
churches, he grieves at the shedding of Chris-
tian blood being forbidden, and attacks the
mode of life of those whose death he cannot
compass. The terror of confiscations he
changes into the fire of avarice, and corrupts
with covetousness those whose spirit he could
not break by losses. For the malicious naughti-
ness which long use has ingrained into his
very nature has not laid aside its hatred, but
changed its character in order to subjugate
the minds of the faithful by blandishments.
He inflames those with covetous desires whom
he cannot distress with tortures : he sows
strifes, kindles passions, sets tongues a-wag-
ging, and, lest more cautious hearts should
draw back from his lawless wiles, facilitates
opportunities for accomplishing crimes : be-
cause this is the only fruit of all his devices
that he who is not worshipped with the sacri-
fice of cattle and goats, and the burning of
incense, should be paid the homage of divers
wicked deeds2.

IV. Timely repentatice gains Govs merciful
consideration.

Our state of peace3, therefore, dearly-be-
loved, has its dangers, and it is vain for those
who do not withstand vicious desires to feel
secure of the liberty which is the privilege of
their Faith. Men's hearts are shown by the
character of their works, and the fashion of
their minds is betrayed by the nature of their
actions. For there are some, as the Apostle
says, " who profess that they know God, but
deny Him by their deeds*." For the charge
of denial is truly incurred when the good
which is heard in the sound of the voice
is not present in the conscience. Indeed, the
frailty of man's nature easily glides into faults :
and because no sin is without its attractiveness,
deceptive pleasure is quickly acquiesced in.
But we should run for spiritual succour from
the desires of the flesh : and the mind that
has knowledge of its God should turn away
from the evil suggestion of the enemy. Avail
thyself of the long-suffering of God, and
persist not in cherishing thy sin, because its
punishment is put off. The sinner must not
feel secure of his impunity, because if he loses

a The warning of this chapter is insisted on not only by Leo
himself often elsewhere (see references in Blight's note 51), but,
among others doubtless, by Cyprian in more than one passage,
esp. in De Lapsis, where he accuses even the clergy of world-
liness in the strongest terms.

3 Cf. Cypr. de lapsis v. traditam nobis divinitus disciplinam
pax longa corruperat.

4 Titus i. 16.

152

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the time for repentance he will find no place
for mercy, as the prophet says, "in death no
one remembers thee; and in the realms below
who will confess to thees? " But let him who
experiences the difficulty of self-amendment
and restoration betake himself to the mercy
of a befriending God, and ask that the chains
of evil habit may be broken off by Him " who
lifts up those that fall and raises all the
crushed6." The prayer of one that confesses
will not be in vain since the merciful God
" will grant the desire of those that fear Him 6,"
and will give what is asked, as He gave the
Source from Which to ask. Through our
Lord Jesus Christ, Who liveth and reigneth
with the Father and the Holy Ghost for ever
and ever. Amen.

SERMON XXXIX.
On Lent, I.

I. The benefits of abstinence shown by the
cxa?nple of the Hebrews.

In former days, when the people of the
Hebrews and all the tribes of Israel were
oppressed for their scandalous sins by the griev-
ous tyranny of the Philistines, in order that
they might be able to overcome their enemies,
as the sacred story declares, they restored their
powers of mind and body by the injunction
of a fast. For they understood that they had
deserved that hard and wretched subjection
for their neglect of God's commands, and evil
ways, and that it was in vain for them to strive
with arms unless they had first withstood their
sin. Therefore abstaining from food and
drink, they applied the discipline of strict
correction to themselves, and in order to con-
quer their foes, first conquered the allurements
of the palate in themselves. And thus it came
about that their fierce enemies and cruel task-
masters yielded to them when fasting, whom
they had held in subjection when full. And
so we too, dearly beloved, who are set in the
midst of many oppositions and conflicts, may
be cured by a little carefulness, if only we will
use the same means. For our case is almost
the same as theirs, seeing that, as they were
attacked by foes in the flesh so are we chiefly
by spiritual enemies. And if we can conquer
them by Goo's grace enabling us to correct
our ways, the strength of our bodily enemies
also will give way before us, and by our self-
amendment we shall weaken those who were
rendered formidable to us, not by their own
merits but by our shortcomings.

0 PS.

vi. 6.

6 lb. cxlv. 14, 19.

II. Use Lent to vanquish the enemy, and be
thus preparing for Eastertide.

Accordingly, dearly-beloved, that we may be
able to overcome all our enemies, let us seek
Divine aid by the observance of the heavenly
bidding, knowing that we cannot otherwise
prevail against our adversaries, unless we pre-
vail against our own selves. For we have
many encounters with our own selves : the flesh i
desires one thing against the spirit, and the j
spirit another thing against the flesh 6a. And in
this disagreement, if the desires of the body!
be stronger, the mind will disgracefully lose:
its proper dignity, and it will be most disas-J
trous for that to serve which ought to have
ruled. But if the mind, being subject to its J
Ruler, and delighting in gifts from above,;
shall have trampled under foot the allure-1
ments of earthly pleasure, and shall not have1
allowed sin to reign in its mortal body6", reason
will maintain a well-ordered supremacy, and
its strongholds no strategy of spiritual wicked-i
nesses will cast down : because man has then
only true peace and true freedom when the
flesh is ruled by the judgment of the mind,
and the mind is directed by the will of God.
And although this state of preparedness,
dearlyd)eloved, should always be maintained
that our ever-watchful foes may be overcome
by unceasing diligence, yet now it must be
the more anxiously sought for and the more
zealously cultivated when the designs of our
subtle foes themselves are conducted with
keener craft than ever. For knowing that
the most hallowed days of Lent are now
at hand, in the keeping of which all pasl
slothfulnesses are chastised, all negligence?
atoned for, they direct all the force of theii
spite on this one thing, that they who intern
to celebrate the Lord's holy Passover maj
be found unclean in some matter, and tha
cause of offence may arise where propitiatioi
ought to have been obtained.

III. Fights are necessary to prove our Faith.

As we approach then, dearly-beloved, th
beginning of Lent, which is a time for th
more careful serving of the Lord, because W'
are, as it were, entering on a kind of contes
in good works, let us prepare our souls foj
fighting with temptations, and understand
that the more zealous we are for our Salvador,
the more determined must be the assaults d
our opponents. But " stronger is He that i
in us than He that is against us 7," and throug
Him are we powerful in whose strength w
rely : because it was for this that the Lor

Cf. Gal. v. 17 : and below, Rom. vi. 12.
7 1 S. John iv. 4.

SERMON XXXIX.

153

allowed Himself to be tempted by the tempter,
that we might be taught by His example as
well as fortified by His aid. For He con-
quered the adversary, as ye have heard8, by
quotations from the law, not by actual strength,
that by this very thing He might do greater
honour to man, and inflict a greater punish-
ment on the adversary by conquering the
enemy of the human race not now as God
but as Man. He fought then, therefore, that
we too might fight thereafter: He conquered
that we too might likewise conquer. For
there are no works of power, dearly-beloved,
without the trials of temptations, there is no
faith without proof, no contest without a foe,
no victory without conflict. This life of ours
is in the midst of snares, in the midst of battles ;
if we do not wish to be deceived, we must
watch : if we want to overcome, we must fight.
And therefore the most wise Solomon says,
" My son in approaching the service of God
; prepare thy soul for temptation81." For He
being a man full of the wisdom of God, and
knowing that the pursuit of religion involves
laborious struggles, foreseeing too the danger
of the fight, forewarned the intending com-
batant ; lest haply, if the tempter came upon
him in his ignorance, he might find him un-
ready and wound him unawares.

IV. The Christian's armour is both for defence
and for attack.

So, dearly-beloved, let us who instructed in

Divine learning come wittingly to the present

:ontest and strife, hear the Apostle when he

says, " for our struggle is not against flesh and

Dlood, but against principalities and powers,

igainst the rulers of this dark world, against

spiritual wickedness in heavenly things?," and

et us not forget that these our enemies feel it

s against them all is done that we strive to do

or our salvation, and that by the very fact of

>ur seeking after some good thing we are

•.hallenging our ' foes. For this is an old-

tanding quarrel between us and them fostered

by the devil's ill-will, so that they are tortured

|>your being justified, because they have fallen

pom those good tilings to which we, God

lelping us, are advancing. If, therefore, we

re raised, they are prostrated : if we are

.trengthened, they are weakened. Our cures

ire their blows, because they are wounded by

ur wounds' cure. " Stand, therefore," dearly-

leloved, as the Apostle says, "having the

bins of your mind girt in truth, and your feet

liod in the preparation of the gospel of peace,

Ut andis/is, viz. in the Gospel for Quadragesima, or the
Sunday in Lent then apparently as now S. Matt. iv. 1 — 11 :
:rm. XL. 3. &a Ecclus. ii. 1. 9 Eph. vi. 12.

8
,-st _.
Serm. XL. 3.

in all things taking the shield of faith in which
ye may be able to extinguish all the fiery darts
of the evil one, and put on the helmet of
salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the Word of God1." See, dearly-beloved, with
what mighty weapons, with what impregnable
defences we are armed by our Leader, who
is famous for His many triumphs, the uncon-
quered Master of the Christian warfare. He
has girt our loins with the belt of chastity,
He has shod our feet with the bonds of peace :
because the unbelted soldier is quickly van-
quished by the suggester of immodesty, and he
that is unshod is easily bitten by the serpent.
He has given the shield of faith for the
protection of our whole body ; on our head
has He set the helmet of salvation ; our right
hand has He furnished with a sword, that
is with the word of Truth : that the spiritual
warrior may not only be safe from wounds, but
also may have strength to wound his assailant.

V. Abstinence not only from food but from other
evil desires, especially from wrath, is required
in Lent.

Relying, therefore, dearly-beloved, on these
arms, let us enter actively and fearlessly on
the contest set before us : so that in this
fasting struggle we may not rest satisfied with
only this end, that we should think abstinence
from food alone desirable. For it is not
enough that the substance of our flesh should
be reduced, if the strength of the soul be not
also developed. When the outer man is
somewhat subdued, let the inner man be
somewhat refreshed ; and when bodily excess
is denied to our flesh, let our mind be in-
vigorated by spiritual delights. Let every
Christian scrutinise himself, and : earch se-
verely into his inmost heart : let him see that
no discord cling there, no wrong desire be
harboured. Let chasteness drive incontinence
far away ; let the light of truth dispel the
shades of deception ; let the swellings of pride
subside ; let wrath yield to reason ; let the
darts of ill-treatment be shattered, and the
eludings of the tongue be bridled ; let
thoughts of revenge fall through, and injuries
be given over to oblivion. In fine, let " every
plant which the heavenly Father hath not
planted be removed by the roots 2." For then
only are the seeds of virtue well nourished in
us, when every foreign germ is uprooted from
the field of wheat. If any one, therefore, has
been fired by the desire for vengeance against
another, so that he has given him up to prison
or bound him with chains, let him make haste

1 Eph. vi. 14 — 17.

a S. Matt. xv. 13.

154

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

to forgive not only the innocent, but also one
who seems worthy of punishment, that he may
with confidence make use of the clause in the
Lord's prayer and say, " Forgive us our debts,
as we also forgive our debtors V Which peti-
tion the Lord marks with peculiar emphasis,
as if the efficacy of the whole rested on this
condition, by saying, " For if ye forgive men
their sins, your Father which is in heaven
also will forgive you : but if ye forgive not
men, neither will your Father forgive you your
sins 3."

VI. The right use of Lent tvill lead to a happy
participation in Easter.

Accordingly, dearly-beloved, being mindful
of our weakness, because we easily fall into all
kinds of faults, let us by no means neglect this
special remedy and most effectual healing of
our wounds. Let us remit, that we may have
remission : let us grant the pardon which we
crave : let us not be eager to be revenged
when we pray to be forgiven. Let us not pass
over the groans of the poor with deaf ear, but
with prompt kindness bestow our mercy on the
needy, that we may deserve to find mercy in
the judgment. And he that, aided by God's
grace, shall strain every nerve after this per-
fection, will keep this holy fast faithfully ; free
from the leaven of the old wickedness, in the
unleavened bread of sincerity and truth 4, he
will reach the blessed Passover, and by new-
ness of life will worthily rejoice in the mystery
of man's reformation through Christ our Lord,
Who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives
and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XL.
On Lent, II.

I. Progress and improvement always possible.

Although, dearly-beloved, as the Easter
festival approaches, the very recurrence of the
season points out to us the Lenten fast, yet
our words also must add their exhortations
which, the Lord helping us, may be not use-
less to the active nor irksome to the devout.
For since the idea of these days demands
the increase of all our religious performances,
there is no one, I am sure, that does not feel
glad at being incited to good works. For
though our nature which, so long as we are
mortal, will be changeable, is advancing to the
highest pursuits of virtue, yet always has the
possibility of falling back, so has it always the
possibility of advancing. And this is the true
justness of the perfect, that they should never

3 S. Matt. vi. i2, 14, 15.

4 Cf. 1 Cor. v. 8.

assume themselves to be perfect, lest flagging
in the purpose of their yet unfinished journey,
they should fall into the danger of failure,
through giving up the desire for progress.

And, therefore, because none of us, dearly-
beloved, is so perfect and holy as not to be
able to be more perfect and more holy, let us
all together, without difference of rank, without
distinction of desert, with pious eagerness
pursue our race from what we have attained
to what we yet aspire to, and make some
needful additions to our regular devotions.
For he that is not more attentive than usual
to religion in these days, is shown at other
times to be not attentive enough.

II. Satan seeks to supply his numerous losses by
fresh gai?is.

Hence the reading of the Apostle's procla-
mation has sounded opportunely in our ears,
saying, " Behold now is the accepted time,
behold now is the day of salvation s." For
what is more accepted than this time, what
more suitable to salvation than these days,
in which war is proclaimed against vices and
progress is made in all virtues ? Thou hadst
indeed always to keep watch, O Christian soul,
against the enemy of thy salvation, lest any,
spot should be exposed to the tempter's
snares : but now greater wariness and keener
prudence must be employed by thee when that
same foe of thine rages with fiercer hatred.
For now in all the world the power of his
ancient sway is taken from him, and the
countless vessels of captivity are rescued from
his grasp. The people of all nations and oi
all tongues are breaking away from their cruei
plunderer, and now no race of men is found
that does not struggle against the tyrant's laws
while through all the borders of the earth man)
thousands of thousands are being prepared tc
be reborn in Christ6 : and as the birth of 1
new creature draws near, spiritual wickedness i:
being driven out by those who were possessec
by it. The blasphemous fury of the despoilec
foe frets, therefore, and seeks new gains
because it has lost its ancient right. Un
wearied and ever-wakeful, he snatches at an;
sheep he finds straying carelessly from th
sacred folds, intent on leading them over th
steeps of pleasure and down the slopes c
luxury into the abodes of death. And so h
inflames their wrath, feeds their hatreds, whet
their desires, mocks at their continence, arouse
their gluttony.

5 2 Cor. vi. 2 from the Epistle for the First Sunday in Lenl
cf. Serm. XXXVI. i, n. 7.

6 Viz. by Baptism at the Easter festival.

SERMON XL.

155

III. The twofold nature of Christ shown at the
Temptation.

For whom would he not dare to try, who did
not keep from his treacherous attempts even
on our Lord Jesus Christ ? For, as the story
of the Gospel has disclosed 7, when our
Saviour, Who was true God, that He might
show Himself true Man also, and banish all
wicked and erroneous opinions, after the fast
of 40 days and nights, had experienced the
hunger of human weakness, the devil, rejoicing
at having found in Him a sign of passible and
mortal nature, in order to test the power which
he feared, said, " If Thou art the Son of God,
command that these stones become bread8."
Doubtless the Almighty could do this, and it
was easy that at the Creator's command a
creature of any kind should change into the
form that it was commanded : just as when
He willed it, in the marriage feast, He
changed the water into wine : but here it
better agreed with His purposes of salvation
that His haughty foe's cunning should be
vanquished by the Lord, not in the power of
His Godhead, but by the mystery of His
humiliation. At length, when the devil had
been put to flight and the tempter baffled in
all his arts, angels came to the Lord and
ministered to Him, that He being true Man
and true God, His Manhood might be unsullied
by those crafty questions, and His Godhead
displayed by those holy ministrations. And
so let the sons and disciples of the devil be
confounded, who, being filled with the poison
of vipers, deceive the simple, denying in
Christ the presence of both true natures, whilst
they rob either His Godhead of Manhood, or
His Manhood of Godhead, although both
falsehoods are destroyed by a twofold and
simultaneous proof : for by His bodily hunger
His perfect Manhood was shown, and by the
attendant angels His perfect Godhead.

the disease of avarice, but in bountiful bene-
volence : that in truth we may be of those oi
whom the very Truth speaks, "blessed are
they which hunger and thirst after righteous-
ness, for they shall be filled V Let works of
piety therefore, be our delight, and let us be
filled with those kinds of food which feed us
for eternity. Let us rejoice in the replenish-
ment of the poor, whom our bounty has
satisfied. Let us delight in the clothing of
those whose nakedness we have covered with
needful raiment. Let our humaneness be
felt by the sick in their illnesses, by the
weakly in their infirmities, by the exiles in
their hardships, by the orphans in their desti-
tution, and by solitary widows in their
sadness : in the helping of whom there is no
one that cannot carry out some amount of
benevolence. For no one's income is small
whose heart is big : and the measure of one's
mercy and goodness does not depend on the
size of one's means. Wealth of goodwill is
never rightly lacking, even in a slender purse
Doubtless the expenditure of the rich is
greater, and that of the poor smaller, but
there is no difference in the fruit of their
works, where the purpose of the workers is the
same.

IV. The fast should not end with abstinence
from food, but lead to good deeds.
Therefore, dearly-beloved, seeing that, as we
are taught by our Redeemer's precept, "man
lives not in bread alone, but in every word of
God 9," and it is right that Christian people,
whatever the amount of their abstinence, should
rather desire to satisfy themselves with the
"Word of God " than with bodily food, let us
with ready devotion and eager faith enter
upon the celebration of the solemn fast, not
with barren abstinence from food, which is
}ften imposed on us by weakliness of body, or

7 Uteyangelka fatefecit historia, cf. Serm. XXXIX. 3, n. 8.

0 fc. Matt. iv. 3.

* lb. iv. 4, quoted from Deut. viii. 3.

V. And still further it should lead to personal
amendment and domestic harmony.
_ But, beloved, in this opportunity for the
virtues' exercise there are also other notable
crowns, to be won by no dispersing abroad of
granaries, by no disbursement of money, if
wantonness is repelled, if drunkenness' is
abandoned, and the lusts of the flesh tamed
by the laws of chastity : if hatreds pass into
affection, if enmities be turned into peace, if
meekness extinguishes wrath, if gentleness
forgives wrongs, if in fine the conduct of
master and of slaves is so well ordered chat
the rule of the one is milder, and the discipline
of the other is more complete. It is by such
observances then, dearly-beloved, that God's
mercy will be gained, the charge of sin wiped
out, and the adorable Easter festival devoutly
kept. And this the pious Emperors of the
Roman world have long guarded with holy
observance ; for in honour of the Lord's
Passion and Resurrection they bend their lofty
power, and relaxing the severity of their
decrees set free many of their prisoners : so
that on the days when the world is saved by
the Divine mercy, their clemency, which is
modelled on the Heavenly goodness, may be
zealously followed by us. Let Christian
peoples then imitate their princes, and be

1 S. Matt. v. 6.

iS6

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

incited to forbearance in their homes by these
royal examples. For it is not right that
private laws should be severer than public
Let faults be forgiven, let bonds be loosed,
offences wiped out, designs of vengeance fall
through, that the holy festival through the
Divine and human grace may find all happy,
all innocent : through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who with the Father and the Holy Spirit
liveth and reigneth God for endless ages of
ages. Amen.

SERMON XLII.

On Lent, IV.

I. The Lenten fast an opportunity for restoring

our purity.

In proposing to preach this most holy and
important fast to you, dearly beloved, how
shall I begin more fitly than by quoting the
words of the Apostle, in whom Christ Himself
was speaking, and by reminding you of what
we have read2: " behold, now is the acceptable
time, behold now is the day of salvation." For
though there are no seasons which are not full
of Divine blessings, and though access is ever
open to us to God's mercy through His grace,
yet now all men's minds should be moved
with greater zeal to spiritual progress, and
animated by larger confidence, when the return
of the day, on which we were redeemed, invites
us to all the duties of godliness : that we may
keep the super-excellent mystery of the Lord's
passion with bodies and hearts purified. These
great mysteries do indeed require from us such
unflagging devotion and unwearied reverence
that we should remain in God's sight always the
same, as we ought to be found on the Easter
feast itself. But because few have this con-
stancy, and, because so long as the stricter ob-
servance is relaxed in consideration of the frailty
of the flesh, and so long as one's interests extend
over all the various actions of this life, even
pious hearts must get some soils from the dust
of the world, the Divine Providence has with
great beneficence taken care that the discipline
of the forty days should heal us and restore
the purity of our minds, during which the
faults of other times might be redeemed by
pious acts and removed by chaste fasting.

II. Lent must be used for removing all our
defilements, and of good works there must be
no stint.

As we are therefore, dearly-beloved, about
to enter on those mystic days which are
dedicated to the benefits of fasting, let us
take care to obey the Apostle's precepts,

8 Cf. Serm. XL. chap. ii. n. 5.

cleansing " ourselves from every defilement of
flesh and spirit 3 ; " that by controlling the
struggles that go on between our two natures,
the spirit which, if it is under the guidance
of God, should be the governor of the body,
may uphold the dignity of its rule : so that we
may give no offence to any, nor be subject to
the chidings of reprovers. For we shall be
rightly attacked with rebukes, and through our
fault ungodly tongues will arm themselves to
do harm to religion, if the conduct of those
that fast is at variance with the standard of
perfect purity. For our fast does not consist
chiefly of mere abstinence from food, nor are
dainties withdrawn from our bodily appetites
with profit, unless the mind is recalled from
wrong-doing and the tongue restrained from
slandering. This is a time of gentleness and
long-suffering, of peace and tranquillity : when
all the pollutions of vice are to be eradicated
and continuance of virtue is to be attained by
us. Now let godly minds boldly accustom
themselves to forgive faults, to pass over
insults, and to forget wrongs. Now let the
faithful spirit train himself with the armour of
righteousness on the right hand and on the
left, that through honour and dishonour,
through ill repute and good repute, the con-
science may be undisturbed in unwavering
uprightness, not puffed up by praise and not
wearied out by revilings. The self-restraint
of the religious should not be gloomy, but
sincere ; no murmurs of complaint should
be heard from those who are never without
the consolation of holy joys. The decrease of
worldly means should not be feared in the
practice of works of mercy. Christian poverty
is always rich, because what it has is more
than what it has not. Nor does the poor
man fear to labour in this world, to whom
it is given to possess all things in the Lord
of all things. Therefore those who do
the things which are good must have no
manner of fear lest the power of doing should
fail them ; since in the gospel the widow's de-
votion is extolled in the case of her two mites,
and voluntary bounty gets its reward for a
cup of cold water*. For the measure of
our charitableness is fixed by the sincerity
of our feelings, and he that shows mercy
on others will never want for mercy himself.
The holy widow of Sarepta discovered this,
who offered the blessed Elias in the time of
famine one day's food, which was all she had,
and putting the prophet's hunger before her
own needs, ungrudgingly gave up a handful of
corn and a little oil s. But she did not lose

3 2 Cor. vii. i.

4 The reffs. are obviously to S. Luke xxi. 2 — 4, and S. Matt.
x. 42 (q.v.). 5 Cf. 1 Kings xvii. 11 and foil.

SERMON XLII.

157

what she gave in all faith, and in the vessels
emptied by her godly bounty a source of nevv
plenty arose, that the fulness of her substance
might not be diminished by the holy purpose
to which she had put it, because she had never
dreaded being brought to want.

III. As with the Saviour, so with us, the devil
tries to make our very piety its own snare.
But, dearly-beloved, doubt not that the
devil, who is the opponent of all virtues, is
jealous of these good desires, to which we
are confident you are prompted of your own
selves, and that to this end he is arming the
force of his malice in order to make your very
piety its own snare, and endeavouring to over-
come by boastfulness those whom he could
not defeat by distrustfulness. For the vice
of pride is a near neighbour to good deeds,
and arrogance ever lies in wait hard by virtue:
because it is hard for him that lives praise-
worthily not to be caught by man's praise
.unless, as it is written, " he that glorieth,
glorieth in the Lord6." Whose intentions
would that most naughty enemy not dare to
attack ? whose fasting would he not seek to
break down ? seeing that, as has been shown in
the reading of the Gospel 6a, he did not restrain
his wiles even against the Saviour of the world
Himself. For being exceedingly afraid of
His fast, which lasted 40 days and nights, he
svished most cunningly to discover whether
:his power of abstinence was given Him or
His verv own : for he need not fear the defeat
)f all his treacherous designs, if Christ were
hroughout subject to the same conditions as He
s in body ?. And so he first craftily examined
vhether He were Himself the Creator of all
!hings, such that He could change the natures
l)f material things as He pleased : secondly,
vhether under the form of human flesh the
jodhead lay concealed, to Whom it was easy
!o make the air His chariot, and convey His
arthly limbs through space. But when the
J.1ORD preferred to resist him by the upright-
ess of His true Manhood, than to display
he power of His Godhead, to this he turns
he craftiness of his third design, that he
,iight tempt by the lust of empire Him in
Vhom the signs of Divine power had failed,
nd entice Him to the worship of himself by
romising the kingdoms of the world. But
\\e devil's cleverness was rendered foolish by
fOD's wisdom, so that the proud foe was
ound by that which he had formerly bound,
nd did not fear to assail Him Whom it be-
Dved to be slain for the world.

6 1 Cor. x. 17. <5» Cf. Serm. XXXVI. chap, i., note 7.

1 7 Si Christies eius esset conditio/lis cuius est corporis, an
purely expressed but intrinsically clear statement.

IV. The perverse turn even their fasting
into sin.
This adversary's wiles then let us beware of,
not only in the enticements of the palate, but
also in our purpose of abstinence. For he
who knew how to bring death upon mankind
by means of food, knows also how to harm us
through our very fasting, and using the Mani-
chseans as his tools, as he once drove men to
take what was forbidden, so in the opposite
direction he prompts them to avoid what is
allowed. It is indeed a helpful observance,
which accustoms one to scanty diet, and
checks the appetite for dainties : but woe to
the dogmatizing of those whose very fasting is
turned to sin. For they condemn the crea-
ture's nature to the Creator's injury, and main-
tain that they are defiled by eating those
things of which they contend the devil, not
God, is the author : although absolutely
nothing that exists is evil, nor is anything
in nature included in the actually bad. For
the good Creator made all things good and
the Maker of the universe is one, "Who made
the heaven and the earth, the sea and all that
is in them 8." Of which whatever is granted
to man for food and drink, is holy and clean
after its kind. But if it is taken with im-
moderate greed, it is the excess that disgraces
the eaters and drinkers, not the nature of the
food or drink that defiles them. "For all
things," as the Apostle says, "are clean to the
clean. But to the defiled and unbelieving
nothing is clean, but their mind and con-
science is defiled?."

V. Be reasonable and seasonable in your
fasting.

But ye, dearly-beloved, the holy offspring of
the catholic Mother, who have been taught in
the school of Truth by God's Spirit, moderate
your liberty with due reasonableness, knowing
that it is good to abstain even from things
lawful, and at seasons of greater strictness to
distinguish one food from another with a view
to giving up the use of some kinds, not to
condemning their nature. And so be not
infected with the error of those who are
corrupted merely by their own ordinances,
" serving the creature rather than the Cre-
ator1," and offering a foolish abstinence to
the service of the lights of heaven : seeing
that they have chosen to fast on the first and
second days of the week in honour of the
sun and moon, proving themselves in this one
instance of their perverseness twice disloyal
to God, twice blasphemous, by setting up their

8 Ps. cxlvi. 6.

9 Titus i. 15.

« Rom. ix. 26.

i53

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

fast not only in worship of the stars but also
in contempt of the Lord's Resurrection. For
they reject the mystery of man's salvation and
refuse to believe that Christ our Lord in the
true flesh of our nature was truly born, truly
suffered, was truly buried and was truly raised.
And in consequence, condemn the day of our
rejoicing by the gloom of their fasting. And
since to conceal their infidelity they dare to
be present at our meetings, at the Communion
of the Mysteries2 they bring themselves some-
times, in order to ensure their concealment,
to receive Christ's Body with unworthy lips,
though they altogether refuse to drink the
Blood of our Redemption. And this we make
known to you, holy brethren, that men of this
sort may be detected by you by these signs,
and that they whose impious pretences have
been discovered may be driven from the
society of the saints by priestly authority.
For of such the blessed Apostle Paul in his
foresight warns God's Church, saying: "but
we beseech you, brethren, that ye observe
those who make discussions and offences
contrary to the doctrine which ye learnt and
turn away from them. For such persons serve
not Christ the Lord but their own belly, and
by sweet words and fair speeches beguile the
hearts of the innocent 3."

VI. Make your fasting a reality by amend-
ment in your lives.

Being therefore, dearly-beloved, fully in-
structed by these admonitions of ours, which
we have often repeated in your ears in protest
against abominable error, enter upon the holy
days of Lent with godly devoutness, and pre-
pare yourselves to win God's mercy by your
own works of mercy. Quench your anger,
wipe out enmities, cherish unity, and vie with
one another in the offices of true humility.
Rule your slaves and those who are put under
you with fairness, let none of them be tortured
by imprisonment or chains. Forego vengeance,
forgive offences : exchange severity for gentle-
ness, indignation for meekness, discord for
peace. Let all men find us self-restrained, peace-
able, kind: that our fastings may be acceptable
to God. For in a word to Him we offer the
sacrifice of true abstinence and true godliness,
when we keep ourselvc3 from all evil: the
Almighty God helping us through all, to
Whom with the Son and Holy Spirit belongs
one Godhead and one Majesty, for ever and
ever. Amen:

■ In sacrament orum communione.

S Rom. xvi. 17, iS.

SERMON XLVI.
On Lent, VIII.

I. Lent must be kept ?wt only by avoiding bodily
impurity but also by avoiding errors of thought
and faith.

We know indeed, dearly-beloved, your de-
votion to be so warm that in the fasting, which
is the forerunner of the Lord's Easter, manyl I
of you will have forestalled our exhortations.)
But because the right practice of abstinence isi
needful not only to the mortification of thei
flesh but also to the purification of the mind,,
we desire your observance to be so complete!
that, as you cut down the pleasures that be-j
long to the lusts of the flesh, so you should1
banish the errors that proceed from the imagi-;
nations of the heart. For he whose heart isl
polluted with no misbelief prepares himself
with true and reasonable purification for the
Paschal Feast, in which all the mysteries of
our religion meet together. For, as the
Apostle says, that " all that is not of faith is
sin 4," the fasting of those will be unprofitable
and vain, whom the father of lying deceives
with his delusions, and who are not fed by,
Christ's true flesh. As then we must with the
whole heart obey the Divine commands and
sound doctrine, so we must use all foresight
in abstaining from wicked imaginations. Foi
the mind then only keeps holy and spiritual
fast when it rejects the food of error and the
poison of falsehood, which our crafty and wily
foe plies us with more treacherously now,
when by the very return of the venerable
Festival, the whole church generally is ad
monished to understand the mysteries of its
salvation. For he is the true confessor anc
worshipper of Christ's resurrection, who is not
confused about His passion, nor deceivec
about His bodily nativity. For some are si
ashamed of the Gospel of the Cross of Christ
as to impu lently nullify the punishment!
which He underwent for the world's redemp
tion, and have denied the very nature of trut
flesh in the Lord, not understanding how th<
impassible and unchangeable Deity of God':
Word could have so far condescended fo
man's salvation, as by His power not to los<
His own properties, and in His mercy to tab
on Him ours. And so in Christ, there i
a twofold form but one person, and the Soi
of God, who is at the same time Son of Man
is one Lokd, accepting the condition of ;
slave by the design of loving-kindness, not b;
the law of necessity, because by His power H
became humble, by His power passible, b

* Rom. xiv. 23.

SERMON XLVI.

159

His power mortal ; that for the destruction
of the tyranny of sin and death, the weak
nature in Him might be capable of punish-
ment, and the strong nature not lose aught of
its glory.

II. All the actions of Christ reveal the pi'esence
of the twofold nature.

And so, dearly-beloved, when in reading or
hearing the Gospel you find certain things in
our Lord Jesus Christ subjected to injuries
and certain things illumined by miracles, in
such a way that in the same Person now the
Humanity appears, and now the Divinity
shines out, do not put down any of these
things to a delusion, as if in Christ there is
either Manhood alone or Godhead alone, but
believe both faithfully, Avorship both right
humbly ; so that in the union of the Word and
the Flesh there may be no separation, and the
bodily proofs may not seem delusive, because
the divine signs were evident in Jesus. The
attestations to both natures in Him are true
and abundant, and by the depth of the Divine
;purpose all concur to this end, that the in-
violable Word not being separated from the
passible flesh, the Godhead may be understood
as in all things partaker with the flesh and the
flesh with the Godhead. And, therefore, must
:the Christian mind that would eschew lies and
ibe the disciple of truth, use the Gospel-story
confidently, and, as if still in company with the
Apostles themselves, distinguish what is visibly
done by the Lord, now by the spiritual under-
standing and now by the bodily organs of
sight. Assign to the man that He is born a boy
bf a woman : assign to God that His mother's
i/irginity is not harmed, either by conception
pr by bearing. Recognize "the form of a
;;lave " enwrapped in swaddling clothes, lying
n a manger, but acknowledge that it was the
,ord's form that was announced by ar.gels,
'proclaimed by the elements5," adored by the
vise men. Understand it of His humanity
hat he did not avoid the marriage feast :
jonfess it Divine that he turned water into wine.
^et your own feelings explain to you why He
hed tears over a dead friend : let His Divine
>ower be realized, when that same friend, after
louldering in the grave four days, is brought
3 life and raised only by the command of His
,oice. To make clay with spittle and earth
'as a work of the body : but to anoint there-
ith and enlighten the eyes of the blind is an
ndoubted mark of that power which had
perved for the revelation of its glory that
hich it had not allowed to the early part of

S Declaratam ab elementis, viz. by the star in the East.

His natural life. It is truly human to relieve
bodily fatigue with rest in sleep : but it is truly
Divine to quell the violence of raging storms
by a rebuking command. To set food before
the hungry denotes human kindness and a
1 philanthropic spirit : but with five loaves and
two fishes to satisfy 5,000 men, besides women
and children, who would dare deny that to be
the work of Deity ? a Deity which, by the
co-operation of the functions of true flesh,
showed not only itself in Manhood, but also
Manhood in itself; for the old, original wounds
in man's nature could not be healed, except by
the Word of God taking to Himself flesh from
the Virgin's womb, whereby in one and the
same Person flesh and the Word co-existed.

III. Hold fast to the statements of the Creed.

This belief in the Lord's Incarnation, dearly-
beloved, through which the whole Church is
Christ's body 6, hold firm with heart unshaken
and abstain from all the lies of heretics, and
remember that your works of mercy will only
then profit you, and your strict continence
only then bear fruit, when your minds are un-
soiled by any defilement from wrong opinions.
Cast away the arguments of this world's
wisdom, for God hates them, and none can
arrive by them at the knowledge of the Truth,
and keep fixed in your mind that which you
say in the Creed. Believe ? the Son of God to
be co-eternal with the Father by Whom all
things were made and without Whom nothing
was made, born also according to the flesh
at the end of the times. Believe Him to have
been in the body crucified, dead, raised up,
and lifted above the heights of heavenly
powers, set on the Father's right hand, about
to come in the same flesh in which He as-
cended, to judge the living and the dead.
For this is what the Apostle proclaims to all
the faithful, saying : " if ye be risen with
Christ seek the things which are above, where
Christ is sitting on the right hand of God.
Set your mind on the things that are above,
not on the things that are upon the earth. For
ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in
God. For when Christ, our life, shall appear,
then shall ye also appear with Him in glory 8."

IV. Use Lent for general improvement in the
whole round of Christian duties.

Relying, therefore, dearly-beloved, on so
great a promise, be heavenly not only in hope,

6 Per quam tota Ecclesta corpus est Christi. This is a great
saying, by which the centrality of the doctrine of the Incarnation
is fearlessly asserted.

7 Notice that both here and in the next sentence the con-
struction is credite Filium — credite Hunc not credite in Filium —
in Hunc, the exact language of the creed being the latter (I be
lieve in, &c). 8 Col. iii. i — 4.

i6o

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

but also in conduct. And though our minds
must at all times be set on holiness of mind
and body, yet now during these 40 days of
fasting bestir yourselves 9 to yet more active
works of piety, not only in the distribution of
alms, which are very effectual in attesting
reform, but also in forgiving offences, and in
being merciful to those accused of wrong-
doing, that the condition which God has laid
down between Himself and us may not be
against us when we pray. For when we say,
in accordance with the Lord's teaching,
" Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive
our debtors 1," we ought with the whole heart
to carry out what we say. For then only will
what we ask in the next clause come to pass,
that we be not led into temptation and freed
from all evils 2 : through our Lord Jesus
Christ, Who with the Father and the Holy
Spirit lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Amen.

SERMON XLIX.

On Lent, XL

I. The Lenten fast is incumbent on all alike.

On all days and seasons, indeed, dearly-
beloved, some marks of the Divine goodness
are set, and no part of the year is destitute of
sacred mysteries, in order that, so long as
proofs of our salvation meet us on all sides,
we may the more eagerly accept the never-
ceasing calls of God's mercy. But all that
is bestowed on the restoration of human souls
in the divers works and gifts of grace is put
before us more clearly and abundantly now,
when no isolated portions of the Faith are
to be celebrated, but the whole together. For
as the Easter festival approaches, the greatest
and most binding of fasts is kept, and its
observance is imposed on all the faithful
without exception ; because no one is so holy
that he ought not to be holier, nor so devout that
he might not be devouter. For who, that is
set in the uncertainty of this life, can be found
either exempt from temptation, or free from
fault ? Who is there who would not wish for
additions to his virtue, or removal of his vice ?
seeing that adversity does us harm, and pros-
perity spoils us, and it is equally dangerous not
to have what we want at all, and to have it in
the fullest measure. There is a trap in the
fulness of riches, a trap in the straits of
poverty. The one lifts us up in pride, the
other incites us to complaint. Health tries

9 Lit. " polish yourselves up ' (expolite vos).

1 S. Matt. vi. 12.

s A inalis omnibus Ziberemus. The free turn given to this
passage is interesting : airb tov Troi'rjpoO (Vulg. a malo) being now
'onsidtred personal " from the evil one " (R.V.).

us, sickness tries us, so long as the one fosters
carelessness and the other sadness. There is
a snare in security, a snare in fear ; and it
matters not whether the mind which is given
over to earthly thoughts, is taken up with
pleasures or with cares ; for it is equally un-
healthy to languish under empty delights, or to
labour under racking anxiety.

II. The broad road is crowded, the narrow way
of salvation nearly empty.

And thus is perfectly fulfilled that assurance
of the Truth, by which we learn that " narrow
and steep is the way that leads to life 3 ;" and
whilst the breadth of the way that leads to
death is crowded with a large company, the
steps are few of those that tread the path of
safety. And wherefore is the left road more
thronged than the right, save that the multitude
is prone to wordly joys and carnal goods ? And
although that which it desires is short-lived
and uncertain, yet men endure toil more
willingly for the lust of pleasure than for love
of virtue. Thus while those who crave things
visible are unnumbered, those who prefer the
eternal to the temporal are hardly to be found.
And, therefore, seeing that the blessed Apostle
Paul says, " the things which are seen are
temporal, but the things which are not seen
are eternal *," the path of virtue lies hid and
in concealment, to a certain extent, since " by
hope we were saved5," and true faith loves
that above all things, which it attains to
without any intervention of the flesh. A great
work and toil it is then to keep our wayward
heart from all sin, and, with the numberless
allurements of pleasure to ensnare it on all
sides, not to let the vigour of the mind give
way to any attack. Who " toucheth pitch, and
is not defiled thereby 6?" who is not weakened
by the flesh ? who is not begrimed by the
dust ? who, lastly, is of such purity as not to be
polluted by those things without which one can-
not live ? For the Divine teaching commands
by the Apostle's mouth that "they who have
wives " should " be as though they had none :
and those that weep as though they wept not;
and those that rejoice as though they rejoiced
not ; and those that buy as though they
possessed not ; and those that use this world
as though they used it not ; for the fashion
of this world passeth away ?." Blessed, there-
fore, is the mind that passes the time of its
pilgrimage in chaste sobriety, and loiters not

3 S. Matt. vii. 14. 4 2 Cor. iv. 18.

5 Rom. viii. 24. 6 Ecclus. xiii. 1.

7 1 Cor. vii. 29 — 31. In the last clause but one, the Lat.
runs, qui utuntur hoc mundo tanguam non utantur (as also the
Vulg. and the margin of R.V., "(as not) using to the full,
though the text reads, "as not abusing it").

SERMON XLIX.

161

in the things through which it has to walk, so
that, as a stranger rather than the possessor
of its earthly abode, it may not be wanting in
human affections, and yet rest on the Divine
promises.

III. Satan is incited to fresh efforts at this season
of the year.

And, dearly-beloved, no season requires and

bestows this fortitude more than the present,

when by the observance of a special strictness

a habit is acquired which must be persevered

in. For it is well known to you that this

is the time when throughout the world the

devil waxes furious, and the Christian army

has to combat him, and any that have grown

lukewarm and slothful, or that are absorbed

in worldly cares, must now be furnished with

spiritual armour and their ardour kindled for

the fray by the heavenly trumpet, inasmuch as

le, through whose envy death came into the

vorld 8, is now consumed with the strongest

ealousy and now tortured with the greatest

•exation. For he sees 9 whole tribes of the

luman race brought in afresh to the adoption

>f God's sons and the offspring of the New

Jirth multiplied through the virgin fertility of

he Church. He sees himself robbed of all

is tyrannic power, and driven from the hearts

f those he once possessed, while from either

ex thousands of the old, the young, the

liddle-aged are snatched away from him, and

o one is debarred by sin either of his own

r original, where justification is not paid for

!eserts, but simply given as a free gift. He

>es, too, those that have lapsed, and

ave been deceived by his treacherous snares,

ashed in the tears of penitence and, by the

postle's key unlocking the gates of mercy,

Imitted to the benefit of reconciliation x.

"e feels, moreover, that the day of the

ord's Passion is at hand, and that he is

|ushed by the power of that cross which in

prist, Who was free from all debt of sin, was

e world's ransom and not the penalty of sin.

' '. Self-examination by the standard of GOD'S
commands the right occupation in Lent.

And so, tha the malice of the fretting foe
uy effect nothing by its rage, a keener devo-
t n must be awaked to the performance of
tb Divine commands, in order that we may
eter on the season, when all the mysteries of
t: Divine mercy meet together, with pre-
t redness both of mind and body, invoking

Wisdom ii. 24.

The allusion is of course to the large numbers of persons
b ized every year at Easter.

Portas misericordi<e Apostolica clave reserante ad remedia

the guidance and help of God, that we may be
strong to fulfil all things through Him, without
Whom we can do nothing. For the injunction
is laid on us, in order that we may seek the
aid of Him Who lays it. Nor must any one
excuse himself by reason of his weakness,
since He Who has granted the will, also gives
the power, as the blessed Apostle James says,
" If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of
God, Who giveth to all liberally and up-
braideth not, and it shall be given him 2."
Which of the faithful does not know what
virtues he ought to cultivate, and what vices
to fight against ? Who is so partial or so
unskilled a judge of his own conscience as
not to know what ought to be removed, and
what ought to be developed ? Surely no one
is so devoid of reason as not to understand
the character of his mode of life, or not to
know the secrets of his heart. Let him not
then please himself in everything, nor judge
himself according to the delights of the flesh,
but place his every habit in the scale of the
Divine commands, where, some things being
ordered to be done and others forbidden,
he can examine himself in a true balance
by weighing the actions of his life according
to this standard. For the designing mercy of
God 3 has set up the brightest mirror in His
commandments, wherein a man may see his
mind's face and realize its conformity or dis-
similarity to God's image : with the specific
purpose that, at least, during the days of our
Redemption and Restoration, we may throw
off awhile our carnal cares and restless occu-
pations, and betake ourselves from earthly
matters to heavenly.

V. Forgiveness of our own sins requires that we
should forgive others.

But because, as it is written, " in many
things we all stumble 4," let the feeling of mercy
be first aroused and the faults of others against
us be forgotten ; that we may not violate by any
love of revenge that most holy compact, to
which we bind ourselves in the Lord's prayer,
and when we say " forgive us our debts as we
also forgive our debtors," let us not be hard in
forgiving, because we must be possessed either
with the desire for revenge, or with the
leniency of gentleness, and for man, who
is ever exposed to the dangers of temptations,
it is more to be desired that his own faints
should not need punishment5 than that he
should get the faults of others punished. And

3 A rti/ex misericordia Dei.

* S. James i. 5.

4 S. James iii. 2.

5 Ut suas culpas h/ibeat impunitas (some through a mis-
h uciliationis admitti: no doubt confession and priestly ab- understanding of the argument read pun'.tas here) quam ut
V- uon is meant with a reference to S. Matt. xvi. 19. plectat alienas.

'OL. XII. M

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

what is more suitable to the Christian faith than
that not only in the Church, but also in all men's
homes, there should be forgiveness of sins ?
Let threats be laid aside ; let bonds be loosed,
for he who will not loose them will bind him-
self with them much more disastrously. For
whatsoever one man resolves upon against
another, he decrees against himself by his own
terms. Whereas "blessed are the merciful,
for God shall have mercy on them 6 : " and
He is just and kind in His judgments, allow-
ing some to be in the power of others to this
end, that under fair government may be pre-
served both the profitableness of discipline
and the kindliness of clemency, and that no one
should dare to refuse that pardon to another's
shortcomings, which he wishes to receive for
his own.

VI. Reconciliation bchveen enemies and alms
giving are also Lenten duties.

Furthermore, as the Lord says, that "the
peacemakers are blessed, because they shall
be called sons of God V' let all discords and
enmities be laid aside, and let no one think to
have a share in the Paschal feast that has
neglected to restore brotherly peace. For with
the Father on high, he that is not in charity
with the brethren, will not be reckoned in the
number of His sons. Furthermore, in the
distribution of alms and care of the poor, let
our Christian fast-times be fat and abound ;
and let each bestow on the weak and destitute
those dainties which he denies himself. Let
pains be taken that all may bless God with one
mouth, and let him that gives some portion of
his substance understand that he is a minister
of the Divine mercy ; for God has placed the
cause of the poor in the hand of the liberal
man ; that the sins which are washed away
either by the waters of baptism, or the tears
of repentance, may be also blotted out by alms-
giving ; for the Scripture says, " As water
extinguisheth fire, so alms extinguisheth sin 8."
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, &c.

SERMON LI.

A HOMILY DELIVERED ON THE SATURDAY
BEFORE THE SECOND SUNDAY IN LENT ON

the Transfiguration, S. Mat:, xvii. i — 13.

I. S. Peter's confession shozvn to lead up to
the Transfiguration.

The Gospel lesson, dearly-beloved, which
has reached the inner hearing of our minds

6 S. Matt. v. 7, quoted in the same form in Serm. XCV.
chap. 7, q.v.

7 S. Matt. v. 9. 8 Ecclus. iii. 30.

through our bodily ears, calls us to the under-
standing of a great mystery, to which we shall
by the help of God's grace the better attain, ii
we turn our attention to what is narrated just
before.

The Saviour of mankind, Jesus Christ, ir
founding that faith, which recalls the wicket
to righteousness and the dead to life, used tc!
instruct His disciples by admonitory teaching
and by miraculous acts to the end that He
the Christ, might be believed to be at onc<
the Only-begotten of God and the Son of Man
For the one without the other was of no avai
to salvation, and it was equally dangerous t(
have believed the Lord Jesus Christ to b<
either only God without manhood, or onh
man without Godhead 9, since both ha<
equally to be confessed, because just as tru
manhood existed in His Godhead, so tru
Godhead existed in His Manhood. T
strengthen, therefore, their most wholesom
knowledge of this belief, the Lord had aske<
His disciples, among the various opinions c
others, what they themselves believed, o
thought about Him : whereat the Apostl
Peter, by the revelation of the most Hig1
Father passing beyond things corporeal anl
surmounting things human by the eyes of hi
mind, saw Him to be Son of the living Gor
and acknowledged the glory of the Godheac
because he looked not at the substance of Hi
flesh and blood alone ; and with this lofty fait
Christ was so well pleased that he receive
the fulness of blessing, and was endued wit
the holy firmness of the inviolable Rock o
which the Church should be built and coi
quer the gates of hell and the laws of death, sj
that, in loosing or binding the petitions of ar
whatsoever, only that should be ratified il
heaven which had been settled by the jud
ment of Peter.

II. 77/i? same continued.

But this exalted and highly-praised undf
standing, dearly-beloved, had also to i
instructed on the mystery of Christ's low
substance, lest the Apostle's faith, being raisi
to the glory of confessing the Deity in Chri:
should deem the reception of our weakne
unworthy of the impassible God, and incc
gruous, and should believe the human natu
to be so glorified in Him as to be incapat
of suffering punishment, or being dissolved
death. And, therefore, when the Lord sa
that He must go to Jerusalem, and sufi
many things from the elders and scribes ai
chief of the priests, and the third day ri

9 The same words are used in Lett. XXVIII. (Tome), chap.

SERMON LI.

163

again, the blessed Peter who, being illumined
with light from above, was burning with the
heat of his confession, rejected their mocking
insults and the disgrace of the most cruel
death, with, as he thought, a loyal and out-
spoken contempt, but was checked by a
kindly rebuke fiom Jesus and animated with
the desire to share His suffering. For the
Saviour's exhortation that followed, instilled
and taught this, that they who wished to follow
Him should deny themselves, and count the
loss of temporal things as light in the hope
'of things eternal ; because he alone could
save his soul that did not fear to lose it
! for Christ. In order, therefore, that the
Apostles might entertain this happy, constant
courage with their whole heart, and have no
tremblings about the harshness of taking up
the cross, and that they might not be ashamed
of the punishment of Christ, nor think what
He endured disgraceful for themselves (for the
bitterness of suffering was to be displayed
without despite to His glorious power), Jesus
took Peter and James and his brother John,
and ascending a very high * mountain with
them apart, showed them the brightness of
His glory ; because, although they had recog-
nised the majesty of God in Him, yet the
power of His body, wherein His Deity was
contained, they did not know. And, there-
fore, rightly and significantly, had He pro-
mised that certain of the disciples standing
by should not taste death till they saw " the
Son of Man coming in His Kingdom 2," that
is, in the kingly brilliance which, as specially
belonging to the nature of His assumed Man-
hood, He wished to be conspicuous to these
:hree men. For the unspeakable and un-
ipproachable vision of the Godhead Itself,
which is reserved till eternal life for the pure
n heart, they could in no wise look upon and
>ee while still surrounded with mortal flesh.
The Lord displays His glory, therefore, before
:hosen witnesses, and invests that bodily
shape which He shared with others with such
splendour, that His face was like the sun's
brightness and His garments equalled the
vhiteness of snow.

II. The object and the meaning of the Trans-
figuration.

And in this Transfiguration the foremost
>bject was to remove the offence of the cross
rom the disciple's heart, and to prevent their
rith being disturbed by the humiliation of His

1 PreeeeJso (Vulg. excelso): possibly the form of the adjective
lpports Codex Bezce (D) in adding Kiav after vijj-qKou.

2 S. Matt. xvi. 28. Leo's application of the prophecy is almost
xO fanciful to be the true one, though he stands by no means
one among commentators (ancient and modern) in so applying it.

voluntary Passion by revealing to them the
excellence of His hidden dignity. But with
no less foresight, the foundation was laid of
the Holy Church's hope, that the whole body
of Cnrist might realize the character of the
change which it would have to receive, and
that the members might promise themselves
a share in that honour which had already
shone forth in their Head. About which the
Lord had Himself said, when He spoke ot
the majesty of His coming, " Then shall the
righteous shine as the sun in their Father's
Kingdom 3," whilst the blessed Apostle Paul
bears witness to the self-same thing, and says :
" for I leckon that the sufferings of this time
are not worthy to be compared with the future
glory which shall be revealed in us 4 : " and
again, " for ye are dead, and your life is hid
with Christ in God. For when Christ our
life shall appear, then shall ye also appear
with Him in glory s." But to confirm the
Apostles and assist them to all knowledge,
still further instruction was conveyed by that
miracle.

IV. The significance of the appearance of Moses

and Elias.

For Moses and Elias, that is the Law and
the Prophets, appeared talking with the Lord ;
that in the presence of those five men might
most truly be fulfilled what was said : " In
two or three witnesses stands every word 6."
What more stable, what more steadfast than
this word, in the proclamation of which the
trumpet of the Old and of the New Testament
joins, and the documentary evidence of the
ancient witnesses ? combine with the teaching
of the Gospel ? For the pages of both cove-
nants 8 corroborate each other, and He Whom
under the veil of mysteries the types that went
before had promised, is displayed clearly and
conspicuously by the splendour of the present
glory. Because, as says the blessed John,
" the law was given through Moses : but
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ 9,"
in Whom is fulfilled both the promise of pro-
phetic figures and the purpose of the legal
ordinances : for He both teaches the truth of
prophecy by His presence, and renders the
commands possible through grace.

V. .S. Peter s suggestion contrary to the Divine

oraer.

The Apostle Peter, therefore, being excited
by the revelation of these mysteries, despising

4 Rom. viii. 18.

5 Col. iii. 3.

3 S. Matt. xiii. 43.

6 Deut. xix. 15.

7 Antiquarum protestationum instrumenta.

8 Utriusque loederis J>ng nee (instead of the more usual Tes-
tauietUi). 9 S. Jonn i. 17.

M 2

164

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

things mundane and scorning things earthly,
was seized with a sort of frenzied craving
for the things eternal, and being filled with
rapture at the whole vision, desired to make
his abode with Jesus in the place where he
had been blessed with the manifestation of
His glory. Whence also he says, " Lord, it is
good for us to be here : if thou wilt let us
make three tabernacles1, one for Thee, one
for Moses, and one for Elias." But to this
proposal the Lord made no answer, signify-
ing that what he wanted was not indeed
wicked, but contrary to the Divine order :
since the world could not be saved, except
by Christ's death, and by the Lord's example
the faithful were called upon to believe that,
although there ought not to be any doubt
about the promises of happiness, yet we
should understand that amidst the trials of
this life we must ask for the power of endur-
ance rather than the glory, because the joyous-
ness of reigning cannot precede the times of
suffering.

VI. The import of the Father's voice from the

cloud.

And so " while He was yet speaking, behold
a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold
a voice out of the cloud, saying, " This is My
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased ;
hear ye Him." The Father was indeed present
in the Son, and in the Lord's brightness, which
He had tempered to the disciples' sight, the
Father's Essence was not separated from the
Only-begotten : but, in order to emphasi/.e
the two-fold personality, as the effulgence of
the Son's body displayed the Son to their
sight, so the Father's voice from out the cloud
announced the Father to their hearing. And
when this voice was heard, " the disciples
fell upon their faces, and were sore afraid,"
trembling at the majesty, not only of the
Father, but also of the Son : for they now
had a deeper insight into the undivided Deity
of Both : and in their fear they did not
separate the One from the Other, because
they doubted not in their faith 2. That was
a wide and manifold testimony, therefore, and
contained a fuller meaning than struck the ear.
For when the Father said, " This is My beloved
Son, in Whom, &c," was it not clearly meant,
"This is My Son," Whose it is to be eternally
from Me and with Me ? because the Begetter
is not anterior to the Begotten, nor the
Begotten posterior to the Begetter. "This is
My Son," Who is separated from Me, neither
by Godhead, nor by power, nor by eternity.

1 Sc. booths or tents.

2 Quia hi fide nonfuit hcesitatio, nonjuit in timore discretio.

" This is My Son," not adopted, but true-born,
not created from another source, but begotten
of Me : nor yet made like Me from another
nature, but born equal to Me of My nature.
" This is My Son," " through Whom all things
were made, and without Whom was nothing
made2a," because all things that I do He doth
in like manner : and whatever I perform, He
performs with Me inseparably and without
difference : for the Son is in the Father and
the Father in the Son 2a, and Our Unity is never
divided : and though I am One Who begat, and
He the Other Whom I begat, yet is it wrong
for you to think anything of Him which is not
possible of Me. "This is My Son," Who
sought not by grasping, and seized not in
greediness211, that equality with Me which He
has, but remaining in the form of My glory,
that He might carry out Our common plan
for the restoration of mankind, He lowered
the unchangeable Godhead even to the form
of a slave.

VII. Who it is we have to hear.

" Here ye Him," therefore, unhesitatingly,
in Whom I am throughout well pleased, and
by Whose preaching I am manifested, by
Whose humiliation I am glorified ; because He
is "the Truth and the Life2b," He is My " Power
and Wisdom 2V "Hear ye Him," Whom
the mysteries of the Law have foretold, Whom
the mouths of prophets have sung. " Hear
ye Him," Who redeems the world by His
blood, Who binds the devil, and carries off
his chattels, Who destroys the bond of sin,
and the compact of the transgression. Flear
ye Him, Who opens the way to heaven, and
by the punishment of the cross prepares for
you the steps of ascent to the Kingdom ?
Why tremble ye at being redeemed ? why fear
ye to be healed of your wounds ? Let that
happen which Christ wills and I will. Cast
away all fleshly fear, and arm yourselves with
faithful constancy ; for it is unworthy that ye
should fear in the Saviour's Passion what by
His good gift ye shall not have to fear even
at your own end.

VIII. The Father's words have a universal
application to the whole Church.

These things, dearly-beloved, were said not
for their profit only, who heard them with
their own ears, but in these three Apostles the
whole Church has learnt all that their eyes
saw and their ears heard. Let all men's faith
then be established, according to the preach-
ing of the most holy Gospel, and let no one

S. John i. 3 : and below, cf. x. 38 : and again Phil. ii. 6.
3b S. John xiv. 6 ; 1 Cor. i. 24.

I ::

SERMON LIV.

165

be ashamed of Christ's cross, through which
the world was redeemed. And let not any
one fear to suffer for righteousness' sake, or
doubt of the fulfilment of the promises, for
this reason, that through toil we pass to rest
and through death to life ; since all the weak-
ness of our humility was assumed by Him,
in Whom, if we abide in the acknowledg-
ment and love of Him, we conquer as He
conquered, and receive what he promised,
because, whether to the performance of His
commands or to the endurance of adversities,
the Father's fore-announcing voice should al-
ways be sounding in our ears, saying, " This
is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well
pleased; hear ye Him:" Who liveth and
reigneth, with the Father and the Holy
Ghost, for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON LIV.

On the Passion, III. ; delivered on the
Slnday before Easter.

I. The two-fold Nature of Christ set forth.

Among all the works of God's mercy, dearly-
beloved, which from the beginning have been
bestowed upon men's salvation, none is more
wondrous, and none more sublime, than that
Christ was crucified for the world. For to
this mystery all the mysteries of the ages
preceding led up, and every variation which
the will of God ordained in sacrifices, in pro-
phetic signs, and in the observances of the
Law, foretold that this was fixed, and promised
its fulfilment : so that now types and figures
are at an end, and we find our profit in
believing that accomplished which before we
found our profit in looking forward to. In
all things, therefore, dearly-beloved, which
pertain to the Passion of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Catholic Faith maintains and de-
mands that we acknowledge the two Natures
to have met in our Redeemer, and while their
properties remained, such a union of both
Natures to have been effected that, from the
time when, as the cause of mankind required,
in the blessed Virgin's womb, "the Word
became flesh," we may not think of Him as
God without that which is man, nor as man
without that which is God. Each Nature
does indeed express its real existence by
actions that distinguish it, but neither separates
itself from connexion with the other. Nothing
is wanting there on either side ; in the majesty
the humility is complete, in the humility the
majesty is complete : and the unity does not
introduce confusion, nor does the distinctive-
ness destroy the unity. The one is passible,
the other inviolable ; and yet the degradation
belongs to the same Person, as does the glory.

He is present at once in weakness and in
power ; at once capable of death and the
vanquisher of it. Therefore, God took on
Him whole Manhood, and so blended the
two Natures together by means of His mere}
and power, that each Nature was present in
the other, and neither passed out of its own
properties into the other.

II. The two Natures acted conjointly, and the
human sufferings were not compulsory, but in
accordance with the Divine will.

But because the design of that mystery
which was ordained for our restoration before
the eternal ages, was not to be carried out
without human weakness and without Divine
power 3, both ''form" does that which is proper
to it in common with the other, the Word,
that is, performing that which is the Word's
and the flesh that which is of the flesh. One
of them gleams bright with miracles, the other
succumbs to injuries. The one departs not
from equality with the Father's glory, the
other leaves not the nature of our race. But
nevertheless even His very endurance of
sufferings does not so far expose Him to a
participation in our humility as to separate
Him from the power of the Godhead. All
the mockery and insults, all the persecution
and pain which the madness of the wicked
inflicted on the Lord, was not endured of
necessity, but undertaken of free-will : " for
the Son of Man came to seek and to save that
which had perished4:" and He used the
wickedness of His persecutors for the re-
demption of all men in such a way that in
the mystery of His Death and Resurrection
even His murderers could have been saved, if
they had believed.

III. Judas' infamy has never been exceeded.

And hence, Judas, thou art proved more
criminal and unhappier than all ; for when
repentance should have called thee back
to the Lord, despair dragged thee to the
halter. Thou shouldest have awaited tie
completion of thy crime, and have put cff
thy ghastly death by hanging, until Christ's
Blood was shed for all sinners. And among
the many miracles and gifts of the Lord s
which might have aroused thy conscience, thote
holy mysteries, at least, might have rescued
thee from thy headlong fall, which at the
Paschal supper thou hadst received, being
even then detected in thy treachery by the

n of Divine knowledge. Why dost thou

sig

3 This passage from " both form " down to " race" is repeated
almost word lor word in Lett. XXVIII. (The Tome), chap. 4-

4 S. Luke xix. 10.

1 66

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

distrust the goodness of Him, Who did not
repel thee from the communion of His body
and blood, Who did not deny thee the kiss of
peace when thou earnest with crowds and a
band of armed men to seize Him. But O man
that nothing could convert, O " spirit going
and not returning s," thou didst follow thy
heart's rage, and, the devil standing at thy
right hand, didst turn the wickedness, which
thou hadst prepared against the life of all the
saints, to thine own destruction, so that,
because thy crime had exceeded all measure
of punishment, thy wickedness might make
thee thine own judge, thy punishment allow
thee to be thine own hangman.

IV. Christ voluntarily bartered His glory for

our weakness.
When, therefore, " Gon was in Christ re-
conciling the world to Himself6," and the
Creator Himself was wearing the creature
which was to be restored to the image of its
Creator ; and after the Divinely-miraculous
works had been performed, the performance
of which the spirit of prophecy had once pre-
dicted, "then shall the eyes of the blind be
opened and the ears of the deaf shall hear ;
then shall the lame man leap as a hart, and
the tongue of the dumb shall be plain 7;"
Jesus knowing that the time was now come
for the fulfilment of His glorious Passion, said,
" My soul is sorrowful even unto death 8 ; " and
again, " Father, if it be possible, let this cup
pass from Me8." And these words, expressing
a certain fear, show His desire to heal the
affection of our weakness by sharing them, and
to check our fear of enduring pain by under-
going it. In our Nature, therefore, the Lord
trembled with our fear, that He might fully
clothe our weakness and our frailty with the
completeness of His own strength. For He-
had come into this world a rich and merciful
Merchant from the skies, and by a wondrous
exchange had entered into a bargain of salva-
tion with us, receiving ours and giving His,
honour for insults, salvation for pain, life for
death: and He Whom more than 12,000 of
the angel-hosts might have served ° for the
annihilation of His persecutors, preferred to
entertain our fears, rather than employ His
own power.

V. »S. Peter was the first to benefit by his

Maste?'ys humiliation.
And how much this humiliation conferred
upon all the faithful, the most blessed Apostle

5 Ps. lxxviii. 39. 6 2 Cor. v. 19.

7 Is. xxxv. 5, 6. 8 S. Matt. xxvi. 38, 39.

9 Cf. S. Matt. xxvi. 33. The whole of this is a wonderfully
powerful passage.

Peter was the first to prove, who, after the
fierce blast of threatening cruelty had dis-
mayed him, quickly changed, and was restored
to vigour, finding remedy from the great
Pattern, so that the suddenly-shaken mernbei
returned to the firmness of the Head. For the
bond-servant could not be " greater than the
lord, nor the disciple greater than the master 9a}"
and he could not have vanquished the trem-
bling of human frailty had not the Vanquisher
of Death first feared. The Lord, therefore,
" looked back upon Peter 9a," and amid the ca-
lumnies of priests, the falsehoods of witnesses,
the injuries of those that scourged and spat
upon Him, met His dismayed disciple with
those eyes wherewith He had foreseen his
dismay : and the gaze of the Truth entered
into him, on whose heart correction must be
wrought, as if the Lord's voice were making
itself heard there, and saying, Whither goest
thou, Peter? why retirest thou upon thyself?
turn thou to Me, put thy trust in Me, follow
Me : this is the time of My Passion, the hour
of thy suffering is not yet come. Why dost
thou fear what thou, too, shalt overcome ? Let
not the weakness, in which I share, confound
thee. I was fearful for thee ; do thou be
confident of Me.

VI. The mad counsel of the Jews was turned to
their own destruction.

" And when morning was come all the chief
priests and elders of the people took counsel
against Jesus to put him to death I." This
morning, () ye Jews, was for you not the
rising, but the setting of the sun, nor did
the wonted daylight visit your eyes, but a
night of blackest darkness brooded on your
naughty hearts. This morning overthrew for
you the temple and its altars, did away with
the Law and the Prophets, destroyed the
Kingdom and the priesthood, turned all your
feasts into eternal mourning. For ye resolved
on a mad and bloody counsel, ye "fat bulls,"
ye "many oxen," ye "roaring" wild beasts, ye
rabid " dogs ia," to give up to death the Author
of life and the Lord of glory ; and, as if the
enormity of your fury could be palliated by
employing the verdict of him, who ruled your
province, you lead Jesus bound to Pilate's
judgment, that the terror-stricken judge being
overcome by your persistent shouts, you
might choose a man that was a murderer for
pardon, and demand the crucifixion of the
Saviour of the world. After this condemna-
tion of Christ, brought about more by the
cowardice than the power of Pilate, who with

9» Cf. S. Matt. x. 24 and below, S. Luke xxii. 61.

1 S. Matt, xxvii. 1. «• Cf. Ps. xxii. 12, 13, 16.

SERMON LV.

167

washed hands but polluted mouth sent Jesus
to the cross with the very lips that had pro-
nounced Him innocent, the licence of the
people, obedient to the looks of the priests,
heaped many insults on the Lord, and the
frenzied mob wreaked its rage on Him, Who
meekly and voluntarily endured it all. But
because, dearly-beloved, the whole story is
too long to go through to-day, let us put off
the rest till Wednesday, when the reading of
the Lord's Passion will be repeated 2. For
the Lord will grant to your prayers, that of
His own free gift we may fulfil our promise:
through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who liveth
and reigneth for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON LV.

On the Lord's Passion IV., delivered on
Wednesday in Holy Week.

I. The difference between the penitence and
blasphemy of the two robbers is a type of
the human race.

That which we owe to your expectations,
dearly-beloved, must be paid through the Lord's
bountiful answer to your prayers that He
Who has made you eager in the demanding
would make us fit for the performing.

In speaking but lately of the Lord's Passion,
i we reached the point in the Gospel story,
where Pilate is said to have yielded to the
Jews' wicked shouts that Jesus should be
crucified. And so when all things had been
accomplished, which the Godhead veiled in
frail flesh 3 permitted, Jesus Christ the Son of
God was fixed to the cross which He had also
been carrying, two robbers being similarly
crucified, one on His right hand, and the
other on the left : so that even in the incidents
of the cross might be displayed that difference
which in His judgment must be made in the
case of all men ; for the believing robber's
faith was a type of those who are to be
saved, and the blasphemer's wickedness pre-
figured those who are to be damned. Christ's
Passion, therefore, contains the mystery of our
salvation, and of the instrument which the
iniquity of the Jews prepared for His punish-
ment, the Redeemer's power has made for us
the stepping-stone to glory 4 : and that Passion
the Lord Jesus so underwent for the salvation
bf all men that, while hanging there nailed to

J ■ Leo seems here to speak as if the story of the Passion from
he Gospels in his time was read only on the Sunday and Wed-
nesday in Holy Week : various uses prevailed, for which cf.
Bingham's Antiq. Bk. xiv. chap. iii. g 3.

3 Divinitas carnis velamine temperata. It is not easy to
ender the exact force of this phrase in English without a danger
'f being misunderstood.

1 4 Gradum nob's fecit ad 'gloriam, Quesnel's reading gaudium,
hough well supported by the MSS , is, I think with the Ball.,
^satisfactory, cf.Serm. LI. chap. 7 , per crucis supplicium gradus
jbis ascensionis parat ad regnum.

the wood, He entreated the Father's mercy
for His murderers, and said, " Father, forgive
them, for they know not what they do5."

II. The chief priests showed utter ignorance of

Scripture in their taunts.

But the chief priests, for whom the Saviour
sought forgiveness, rendered the torture of the
cross yet worse by the barbs of railery ; and at
Him, on Whom they could vent no more fury
with their hands, they hurled the weapons of
their tongues, saying, " He saved others ;
Himself he cannot save. If He is the King
of Israel, let Him now come down from the
cross, and we believe Him 6." From what
spring of error, from what pool of hatred, O
ye Jews, do ye drink such poisonous blas-
phemies? What master informed you, what
teaching convinced you that you ought to
believe Him to be King of Israel and Son
of God, who should either not allow Himself
to be crucified, or should shake Himself free
from the binding nails. The mysteries of the
Law, the sacred observances of the Passover,
the mouths of the Prophets never told you
this : whereas you did find truly and oft-times
written that which applies to your abominable
wicked-doing and to the Lord's voluntary
suffering. For He Himself says by Isaiah,
" I gave My back to the scourges, My cheeks
to the palms of the hand, I turned not My
face from the shame of spitting 7." He Him-
self says by David, " They gave Me gall for
My food, and in My thirst they supplied Me
with vinegar 8 ; " and again, " Many dogs
came about Me, the council of evil-doers
beset Me. They pierced My hands and My
feet, they counted all My bones. But they
themselves watched and gazed on Me, they
parted My raiment among them, and for My
robe they cast lots8." And lest the course of
your own evil doings should seem to have
been foretold, and no power in the Crucified
predicted, ye read not, indeed, that the Lord
descended from the cross, but ye did read,
"The Lord reigned on the tree'."

III. The triumph of the Cross is immediate and

effective.

The Cross of Christ, therefore, symbolizes x
the true altar of prophecy, on which the obla-
tion of man's nature should be celebrated by

5 S. Luke xxiii. 34.

6 S. Matt, xxvii. 42.

7 Is. 1. 6. 8 Ps. lxix. 21 ; xxii. 16, 17.

9 Ps. xcvi. 10. "An ancient gloss, but without authority from
existing MSS or ancient versions, viz., a7rb tou fvAov, was re-
ceived by S. Justin Martyr and others as a genuine portion of the
text." Speaker's Commentary in loco. Compare also the old
Latin hymn (" The Royal Banners," H.A.M. 96, verse 3).

1 S acr amentum habet.

1 68

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

means of a salvation-bringing Victim. There
the blood of the spotless Lamb blotted out
the consequences of the ancient trespass :
there the whole tyranny of the devil's hatred
was crushed, and humiliation triumphed glori-
ously over the lifting up of pride : for so swift
was the effect of Faith that of the robbers
crucified with Christ, the one who believed
in Christ as the Son of God entered paradise
justified. Who can unfold the mystery of so
great a boon ? who can state the power of so
wondrous a change? In a moment of time
the guilt of long evil-doing is done away ;
clinging to the cross, amid the cruel tortures
of his struggling soul, he passes over to
Christ • and to him, on whom his own wicked-
ness had brought punishment, Christ's grace
now gives a crown.

IV. When the last act in the tragedy was over

how must the Jews havejelt ?

And then, having now tasted the vinegar,
the produce of that vineyard which had
degenerated in spite of its Divine Planter,
and had turned to the sourness of a foreign
vine ia, the Lord says, " it is finished ;" that is,
the Scriptures are fulfilled : there is no more
for Me to abide from the fury of the raging
people : I have endured all that I foretold
I should suffer. The mysteries of weakness
are completed, let the proofs of power be
produced. And so He bowed the head and
yielded up His Spirit and gave that Body,
Which should be raised again on the third day,
the rest of peaceful slumber. And when the
Author of Life was undergoing this mysterious
phase, and at so great a condescension of
God's Majesty, the foundations of the whole
world were shaken, when all creation con-
demned their wicked crime by its upheaval,
and the very elements of the world delivered
a plain verdict against the criminals, what
thoughts, what heart-search ings had ye, O
Jews, when the judgment of the universe
went against you, and your wickedness could
not be recalled, the crime having been done ?
what confusion covered you ? what torment
seized your hearts ?

V. Chastity and charity are the two things
most needful in preparing for Easter Com-
munion.

Seeing therefore, dearly-beloved, that God's
Mercy is so great, that He has deigned to
justify by faith many even from among such
a nation, and had adopted into the company
of the patriarchs and into the number of the
chosen people us who were once perishing in

tm The reference is perhaps to Is. v. i — 5.

the deep darkness of our old ignorance, let us
mount to the summit of our hopes not sluggishly
nor in sloth ; but prudently and faithfully re-
flecting from what captivity and from how
miserable a bondage, with what ransom we
were purchased, by how strong an arm led
out, let us glorify God in our body : that
we may show Him dwelling in us, even by
the uprightness of our manner of life And
because no virtues are worthier or more
excellent than merciful loving-kindness and
unblemished chastity, let us more especially
equip ourselves with these weapons, so that,
raised from the earth, as it were, on the two
wings of active charity and shining purity, we
may win a place in heaven. And whosoever,
aided by God's grace, is filled with this desire
and glories not in himself, but in the Lord,
over his progress, pays due honour to the
Easter mystery. His threshold the angel of de-
struction does not cross, for it is marked with
the Lamb's blood and the sign of the cross lb.
He fears not the plagues of Lgypt, and leaves
his foes overwhelmed by the same waters by
which he himself was saved. And so, dearly-
beloved, with minds and bodies purified let
us embrace the wondrous mystery of our
salvation, and, cleansed from all " the leaven of
our old wickedness, let us keep lb " the Lord's
Passover with due observance : so that, the
Holy Spirit guiding us, we may be "separated"
by no temptations "from the love of Christ lb,"
Who bringing peace by His blood to all
things, has returned to the loftiness of the
Father's glory, and yet not forsaken the low-
liness of those who serve Him t6 Whom is
the honour and the glory for ever and ever.
Amen.

SERMON LVIII.

(On the Passion, VII.)

I. The reason of Christ suffering at the Paschat

Feast.

I know indeed, dearly-beloved, that the
Easter festival partakes of so sublime 2
mystery as to surpass not only the slendei
perceptions of my humility, but even the
powers of great intellects. But I must no
consider the greatness of the Divine wort
in such a way as to distrust or to feel ashamec
of the service which I owe ; for we may no
hold our peace upon the mystery of man':
salvation, even if it cannot be explained
But, your prayers aiding us, we believe God':
Grace will be granted, to sprinkle the barren
ness of our heart with the dew ol His inspira

lb Cf. Exod. xii. 23 ; and below, i Cor. v. 8, and Rom. vii 35-

SERMON LVIII.

x6g

tion : that by the pastor's mouth things may
be proclaimed which are useful to the ears of
his holy flock. For when the Lord, the
Giver of all good things, says : " open thy
mouth, and I will fill it 2," we dare likewise to
reply in the prophet's words : " Lord, Thou
shalt open my lips, and my mouth shall shew
forth Thy praises." Therefore beginning,
dearly-beloved, to handle once more the Gospel-
story of the Lord's Passion, we understand it
was part of the Divine plan that the profane
chiefs of the Jews and the unholy priests, who
had often sought occasion of venting their rage
on Christ, should receive the power of exer-
cising their fury at no other time than the
Paschal festival. For the things which had
long been promised under mysterious figures
had to be fulfilled in all clearness ; for
instance, the True Sheep had to supersede
the sheep which was its antitype, and the
One Sacrifice to bring to an end the multi-
tude of different sacrifices. For all those
things which had been divinely ordained
through Moses about the sacrifice of the lamb
had prophesied of Christ and truly announced
the slaying of Christ. In order, therefore, that
the shadows should yield to the substance and
types cease in the presence of the Reality, the
ancient observance is removed by a new Sacra-
ment, victim passes into Victim, blood is
wiped away by Blood, and the law-ordained
Feast is fulfilled by being changed.

II. The leading Jews broke their own Law, as
well as failed to apprehend the new dispensa-
tion in destroying Christ.

And hence, when the chief priests gathered

the scribes and elders of the people together

to their council, and the minds of all the

priests were occupied with the purpose of

doing wrong to Jesus, the teachers of the law

put themselves without the law, and by their

iDwn voluntary failure in duty abolished theii

incestral ceremonies. For when the Paschal

,'east began, those who ought to have adorned

the temple, cleansed the vessels, provided the

victims, and employed a holier zeal in the

mrifications that the law enjoined, seized with

he fury of traitorous hate, give themselves up

o one work, and with uniform cruelty conspire

or one crime, though they were doomed to

jain nothing by the punishment of innocence

md the condemnation of righteousness, except

he failure to apprehend the new mysteries

.nd the violation of the old. The chiefs,

herefore, in providing against a tumult arising

>n a holy day *, showed zeal not for the festival,

' Ps. lxxxi. 10.

3 Ps. li. 15.

4 Cf. S. Matt. xxvi. 5.

but for a heinous crime ; and their anxiety
served not the cause of religion, but their
own incrimination. For these careful pontiffs
and anxious priests feared the occurrence of
seditious riots on the principal feast-day, not
lest the people should do wrong, but lest Christ
should escape.

III. Jesus instituting the Blessed Sacrament
showed mercy to the Ti aitor Judas to the last.

But Jesus, sure of His purpose and un-
daunted in carrying out His Father's will,
fulfilled the New Testament and founded a
new Passover. For while the disciples were
lying down with Him at the mystic Supper,
and when discussion was proceeding in the
hall of Caiaphas how Christ might be put to
death, He, ordaining the Sacrament of His
Body and Blood, was teaching them what kind
of Victim must be offered up to God, and not
even from this mystery was the betrayer kept
away, in order to show that he was exasperated
by no personal wrong, but had determined
beforehand of his own free-will upon his
treachery. For he was his own source of
ruin and cause of perfidy, following the guid-
ance of the devil and refusing to have Christ
as director. And so when the Lord said,
" Verily I say to you that one of you is about
to betray Me," He showed that His betrayer's
conscience was well known to Him, not con-
founding the traitor by harsh or open rebukes,
but meeting him with mild and silent warnings
that he who had never been sent astray by
rejection, might the easier be set right by
repentance. Why, unhappy Judas, dost thou
not make use of so great long-suffering ?
Behold, the Lord spares thy wicked attempts ;
Christ betrays thee to none save thyself.
Neither thy name nor thy person is dis-
covered, but only the secrets of thy heart
are touched by the word of truth and mercy.
The honour of the apostolic rank is not
denied thee, nor yet a share in the Sacra-
ments. Return to thy right mind ; lay aside
thy madness and be wise. Mercy invites thee,
Salvation knocks at the door, Life recalls thee
to life. Lo, thy stainless and guiltless fellow-
disciples shudder at the hint of thy crime, and
all tremble for themselves till the author of the
treachery is declared. For they are saddened
not by the accusations of conscience, but by
the uncertainty of man's changeableness ; fear-
ing lest what each knew against himself be less
true than what the Truth Himself foresaw.
But thou abusest the Lord's patience in this
panic of the saints, and believest that thy
bold front hides thee. Thou addest impu-
dence to guilt, and art not frightened by so
clear a test And when the others refrain trom

lyo

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the food in which the Lord had set His judg-
ment, thou dost not withdraw thy hand from
the dish, because thy mind is not turned aside
from the crime.

IV. Various incidents of the Passion further
explained and the reality of Christ 's sufferings
asserted.

And thus it followed, dearly-beloved, that as
John the Evangelist has narrated, when the
Lord offered the bread which He had dipped
to His betrayer, more clearly to point him out,
die devil entirely seized Judas, and now, by his
veritable act of wickedness, took possession of
one whom he had already bound down by his
evil designs. For only in body was he lying
there with those at meat : in mind he was arm-
ing the hatred of the priests, the falseness of
the witnesses, and the fury of the ignorant mob.
At last the Lord, seeing on what a gross crime
Judas was bent, says, "What thou doest, do
quickly s." This is the voice not of command
but of permission, and not of fear but of readi-
ness : He, that has power over all times, shows
that He puts no hindrance in the way of the
traitor, and carries out the Father's will for the
redemption of the world in such a way as
neither to promote nor to fear the crime which
His persecutors were preparing. When Judas,
therefore, at the devil's persuasion, departed
from Christ, and cut himself off from the unity
of the Apostolic body, the Lord, without being
disturbed by any fear, but anxious only for the
salvation of those He came to redeem, spent
all the time that was free from His persecutors'
attack on mystic conversation and holy teach-
ing, as is declared in St. John's gospel : raising
His eyes to heaven and beseeching the Father
for the whole Church that all whom the Father
had and would give the Son might become one
and remain undivided to the Redeemer's glory,
and adding lastly that prayer in which He says,
" Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from
Me 6." Wherein it is not to be thought that the
Lord Jesus wished to escape the Passion and
the Death, the sacraments of which He had
already committed to His disciples' keeping,
seeing that He Himself forbids Peter, when
he was burning with devoted faith and love,
to use the sword, saying, "The cup which
the Father hath given 'Me, shall I not
drink it??" and seeing that that is certain
which the Lord also says, according to
John's Gospel, '• For God so loved the
world that He gave His only begotten Son,
that everyone who believes in Him may not
perish, but have eternal life8;" as also what

5 S. John xiii. 27.
7 S. John xviii. it.

6 S. Matt. xxvi. 39.
8 lb. iii. 16.

the Apostle Paul says, " Christ loved us and
gave Himself for us, a victim to God for a
sweet-smelling savour 9." For the saving of all
through the Cross of Christ was the common
will and the common plan of the Father and
the Son ; nor could that by any means be dis-
turbed which before eternal ages had been
mercifully determined and unchangeably fore-
ordained. Therefore in assuming true and
entire manhood He took the true sensations of
the body and the true feelings of the mind.
And it does not follow because everything in
Him was full of sacraments, full of miracles,
that therefore He either shed false tears or
took food from pretended hunger or feigned
slumber. It was in our humility that He was
despised, with our grief that He was saddened,
with our pain that He was racked on the
cross. For His compassion underwent the suf-
ferings of our mortality with the purpose of
healing them, and His power encountered
them with the purpose of conquering them.
And this Isaiah has most plainly prophesied,
saying, "He carries our sins and is pained for
us, and we thought Him to be in pain and in
stripes and in vexation. But He was wounded
for our sins, and was stricken for our offences,
and with His bruises we are healed1."

V. The resignation of Christ is an undying
lesson to the Church

And so, dearly-beloved, when the Son of
God says, " Father, if it be possible, let this
cup pass from Me 2," He uses the outcry of our
nature, and pleads the cause of human frailty
and trembling: that our patience may be
strengthened and our fears driven away in the
things which we have to bear. At length,
ceasing even to ask this now that He had in a
measure palliated our weak fears, though it is
not expedient for us to retain them, He passes
into another mood, and says, " Nevertheless,
not as I will but as Thou ; " and again, " If this
cup can not pass from Me, except I drink it,
Thy will be done2." These words of the Head
are the salvation of the whole Body : these
words have instructed all the faithful, kindled
the zeal of all the confessors, crowned all the
martyrs. For who could overcome the world's
hatred, the blasts of temptations, the terr cisf
persecutors, had not Christ, in the name of all
and for all, said to the Father, " Thy will be
done?" Then let the words be learnt by all the
Church's sons who have been purchased at so
great a price, so freely justified : and when the

9 Eph. v. a.

1 Is. liii. 45. Leo's version is a very literal translation of the
LXX. , which varies a good deal from the Vulgate and the A.V. ;
he omits, however, the clause, "the chastisement of our peace,"
&c, which is common to all three-
8 S. Matt. xxvi. 39 and 42.

SERMON LIX.

171

shock of some violent temptation has fallen on
them, let them use the aid of this potent prayer,
that they may conquer their fear and trembling,
and learn to suffer patiently. From this point,
dearly-beloved, our sermon must pass to the
consideration of the details of the Lord's Pas-
sion, and lest we should burden you with pro-
lixity, we will divide our common task, and
put off the rest 3 till the fourth day of the week.
God's grace will be vouchsafed to you if you
pray Him to give me the power of carrying out
my duty: through our Lord Jesus Christ, &c.

SERMON LIX.

(On the Passion, VIII. : on Wednesday
in Holy Week.)

I. Christ's arrest fulfils His own etertial
purpose.

Having discoursed, dearly beloved, in our
last sermon, on the events which preceded the
Lord's arrest, it now remains, by the help of
God's grace, to discuss, as we promised, the
details of the Passion itself. When the Lord
had made it clear by the words of His sacred
prayer that the Divine and the Human Nature
was most truly and fully present in Him, show-
ing that the unwillingness to suffer proceeded
from the one, and from the other the deter-
mination to suffer by the expulsion of all frail
fears and the strengthening of His lofty power,
then did He return to His eternal purpose, and
" in the form of a " sinless " slave " encounter
the devil who was savagely attacking Him by
the hands of the Jews : that He in Whom alone
was all men's nature without fault, might under-
take the cause of all. The sins of darkness,
therefore, assailed the true Light, and, for all
their torches and lanterns 4, could not escape
the night of their own unbelief, because they
did not recognize the Fount of Light. They
arrest Him, and He is ready to be seized ; they
lead Him away, and He is willing to be led ;
for though, if He had willed to resist, their
wicked hands could have done Him no harm,
yet thereby the world's redemption would have
been impeded, and He, who was to die for all
men's salvation, would have saved none at all.

II. How great was Pilate's crime in allowing
himself to be led astray by the Jews.

Accordingly, permitting the infliction on
Himself of all that the people's fury inflamed
by the priests dared do, He is brought to
Annas, father-in-law to Caiaphas, and thence
Annas passes Him on to Caiaphas : and after

3 This is Sermon LIX. which follows in exienso. See
Serm. LIV., chap. vi. n. 2.

4 The allusion doubtless is to the "lanterns and torches"
mentioned by S. John xviii. 3.

the calumniators' mad accusations, after the
lying falsehoods of suborned witnesses, He is
transferred to Pilate's hearing by the delegation
of the two high-priests, who in neglecting the
Divine law, and exclaiming that they had " no
king but Caesar," as if they were devoted to
the Roman laws, and had left the whole judg-
ment in the hands of the governor, really
sought for an accomplisher of their cruelty
rather than an umpire of the case. For they
gave up Jesus, bound in hard bonds, bruised
by many buffets and blows, spat upon, already
condemned by their shouts : so that amidst
so many signs of their own verdict Pilate
might not dare to acquit One Whom all de-
sired to perish. In fact, the very inquiry shows
both that he found in the Accused no fault,
and that in his judgment he did not adhere to
his purpose : for as judge he condemns One
Whom he pronounces guiltless, invoking on the
unrighteous people the blood of the Righteous
Man with Whom he felt by his own conviction,
and knew from his wife's dream 4a, he must have
nothing to do. That stained soul is not
cleansed by the washing of hands, there is no
expiation in water-besprinkled fingers for the
crime abetted by that wicked mind. Pilate's
fault is. indeed, less than the Jews' crime; for
it was they that terrified him with Caesar's
name, chode him with hateful words, and
drove him to perpetrate his wickedness. But
he also did not escape incrimination for play-
ing into the hands of those that made the
uproar, for abandoning his own judgment, and
for acquiescing in the charges of others.

III. Yet the Jews' guilt was infinitely greater.

In bowing, therefore, dearly-beloved, to the
madness of the imp'acable people, in permitting
Jesus to be dishonoured by much mocking, and
harassed with excessive insults, and in display-
ing Him to the eyes of His persecutors lace-
rated with scourges, crowned with thorns, and
clothed in a robe of scorn, Pilate doubtless
thought to appease the enemies' minds, so that,
when they had glutted their cruel hate, they
might cease further to persecute One Whom they
beheld subjected to such a variety of afflictions.
But their wrath was still in full blaze, and they
cried out to him to release Barabbas and let
Jesus bear the penalty of the cross, and thus,
when with consenting murmur the crowd said,
"His blood be on us and on our sons ♦%" those
wicked folk gained, to their own damnation,
what they had persistently demanded, "whose
teeth," as the prophet bore witness, " were
arms and arrows, and their tongue a sharp
swords." For in vain did they keep their

4» Cf. S. Matt, xxvii. 19 and 25.

S Ps vii. 4-

172

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

own hands from crucifying the Lord of glory
when they had hurled at Him the tongue's
deadly darts and the poisoned weapons of
words. On you, on you, false Jews and unholy
leaders of the people, falls the full weight of
that crime : and although the enormity of the
guilt involves the governor and the soldiers
also, yet you are the primary and chief
offenders. And in Christ's condemnation,
whatsoever wrong was done either by Pilate's
judgment or by the cohorts carrying out of his
commands, makes you only the more deserv-
ing of the hatred of mankind, because the
impulse of your fury would not let even those
be free from guilt who were displeased at your
unrighteous acts.

IV. Christ bearing His own cross is an eternal

lesson to the Church.
And so the Lord was handed over to their
savage wishes, and in mockery of His kingly
state, ordered to be the bearer of His own
instrument of death, that what Isaiah the pro-
phet foresaw might be fulfilled, saying, " Be-
hold a Child is born, and a Son is given to us
whose government is upon His shoulders6."
When, therefore, the Lord carried the wood
of the cross which should turn for Him into
the sceptre of power, it was indeed in the eyes
of the wicked a mighty mockery, but to the
faithful a mighty mystery was set forth, seeing
that He, the glorious vanquisher of the Devil,
and the strong defeater of the powers that were
against Him, was carrying in noble sort the
trophy of His triumph, and on the shoulders
of His unconquered patience bore into all
realms the adorable sign of salvation : as if
even then to confirm all His followers by this
mere symbol of His work, and say, " He that
taketh not his cross and followeth Me, is not
worthy of Me 6\"

V. The transference of the cross from the Lord
to Simon of Cyrene signifies the pai ticifation
of the Gentiles in His sufferings.

But as the multitudes went with Jesus to the
place of punishment, a certain Simon of Cyrene
was found on whom to lay the wood of the
cross instead of the Lord; that even by this
act might be pre-signified the Gentiles' faith,
to whom the cross of Christ was to be not
shame but glory. It was not accidental, there-
fore, but symbolical and mystical, that while
the Jews were raging against Christ, a foreigner
was found to share His sufferings, as the
Apostle says, " if we suffer with Him, we shall
also reign with Him i " ; so that no Hebrew nor

Israelite, but a stranger, was substituted for
the Saviour in His most holy degradation. For
by this transference the propitiation of the
spotless Lamb and the fulfilment of all mys-
teries passed from the circumcision to the un-
circumcision, from the sons according to the
flesh to the sons according to the spirit : since as
the Apostle says, " Christ our Passover is sacri-
ficed for us 8," Who offering Himself to the
Father a new and true sacrifice of reconcilia-
tion, was crucified not in the temple, whose
worship was now at an end, and not within the
confines of the city which for its sin was doomed
to be destroyed, but outside, " without the
camp 9," that, on the cessation of the old sym-
bolic victims, a new Victim might be placed
on a new altar, and the cross of Christ might
be the altar not of the temple but of the
world.

VI. We are to see not only the cross but the

meaning of it.
Accordingly, dearly-beloved, Christ being
lifted up upon the cross, let the eyes of your
mind not dwell only on that sight which those
wicked sinners saw, to whom it was said by
the mouth of Moses, "And thy life shall be
hanging before thine eyes, and thou shalt fear
day and night, and shalt not be assured of thy
life1." For in thi crucified Lord they could
think of nothing but their wicked deed, having
not the fear, by which true faith is justified,
but that by which an evil conscience is racked.
But let our understandings, illumined by the
Spirit of Truth, foster with pure and free heart
the glory of the cross which irradiates heaven
and earth, and see with the inner sight what
the Lord meant when He spoke of His
coming Passion : " The hour is come that the
Son of man may be glorified 2 : " and below
He says, " Now is My spirit troubled. And
what shall I say? Father, save Me from this
hour, but for this cause came I unto this
hour. Father, glorify Thy Son." And when
the Father's voice came from heaven, saying,
" I have both glorified it and will glorify
it again," Jesus in reply said to those that
stood by, "This voice came not for Me but
for you. Now is the world's judgment, now
shall the prince of this world be cast out.
And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will
draw all things unto Mc2."

VII. The fower of the cross is universally

attractive.

O wondrous power of the Cross ! O in-

6 Is. ix. 6. The interpretation is fanciful, but not without some 8 i Cor. v. 7. 9 Heb. xui. 12. * Deut. xxyul. 66.

support from the parallel phrase in Is. xxii. 22 * S John xii. 23 ; Ibid. 27, 28, 30— 32. The reading omni

o» S. Matt. x. 38. 7 2 Tim. ii. 1a. I (all things) will not escape notice in v. 32.

SERMON LXII.

173

e.ffable glory of the Passion, in which is con-
tained the Lord's tribunal, the world's judg-
ment, and the power of the Crucified ! For
thou didst draw all things unto Thee, Lord,
and when Thou hadst stretched out Thy
hands all the day long to an unbelieving
people that gainsaid Thee 2a, the whole world
at last was brought to confess Thy majesty.
Thou didst draw all things unto Thee, Lord,
when all the elements combined to pronounce
judgment in execration of the Jews' crime,
when the lights of heaven were darkened, and
the day turned into night, and the earth also
was shaken with unwonted shocks, and all
creation refused to serve those wicked men.
Thou didst draw all things unto Thee, Lord.
for the veil of the temple was rent, and the
Holy of Holies existed no more for those
unworthy high-priests : so that type was
turned into Truth, prophecy into Revelation,
law into Gospel. Thou didst draw all things
unto Thee, Lord, so that what before was
done in the one temple of the Jews in dark signs,
was now to be celebrated everywhere by the
piety of all the nations in full and open rite.
For now there is a nobler rank of Levites, there
are elders of greater dignity and priests of holier
anointing : because Thy cross is the fount of
all blessings, the source of all graces, and
through it the believers receive strength for
weakness, glory for shame, life for death. Now,
too, the variety of fleshly sacrifices has ceased,
and the one offering of Thy Body and Blood
fulfils all those different victims : for Thou art
the true " Lamb of God, that takest away the
sins of the world 3," and in Thyself so accom-
plishest all mysteries, that as there is but one
sacrifice instead of many victims, so there is
but one kingdom instead of many nations.

VIII. We must live not for ourselves but for
Christ, who died for us.

Let us, then, dearly-beloved, confess what
the blessed teacher of the nations, the
Apostle Paul, confessed, saying, "Faithful is
the saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that
Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners t." For God's mercy towards us is
the more wonderful that Christ died not for
the righteous nor for the holy, but for the un-
righteous and wicked ; and though the nature
of the Godhead could not sustain the sting of
death, yet at His birth He took from us that
which He might offer for us. For of old He
threatened our death with the power of His
death, saying, by the mouth of Hosea the
prophet, " O "death, I will be thy death, and I
will be thy destruction, O hell5." For by

dying He underwent the laws of hell, but by
rising again He broke them, and so destroyed
the continuity of death as to make it tem-
poral instead of eternal. "For as in Adam
all die, even so in Christ shall all be made
alive 6." And so, dearly-beloved, let that come
to pass of which S. Paul speaks, "that they
that live, should henceforth not live to them-
selves but to Him who died for all and rose
again 7." And because the old things have
passed away and all things are become new,
let none remain in his old carnal life, but let
us all be renewed by daily progress and
growth in piety. For however much a man be
justified, yet so long as he remains in this life,
he can always be more approved and better.
And he that is not advancing is going back,
and he that is gaining nothing is losing some-
thing. Let us run, then, with the steps of
faith, by the works of mercy, in the love of
righteousness, that keeping the day of our re-
demption spiritually, " not in the old leaven of
malice and wickedness, but in the unleavened
bread of sincerity and truth 8," we may deserve
to be partakers of Christ's resurrection, Who
with the Father and the Holy Ghost liveth
and reigneth for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON LXII.
(On the Passion, XL)

I. TJie mystery of the Passion passes ma??s
comprehension.

The Feast of the Lord's Passion 9 that we
have longed for and that the whole world may
well desire, has come, and suffers us not to
keep silence in the tumult of our spiritual
joys : because though it is difficult to speak
often on the same thing worthily and appro-
priately, yet the priest is not free to withhold
from the people's ears instruction by sermon
on this great mystery of God's mercy, inas-
much as the subject itself, being unspeakable,
gives him ease of utterance, and what is said
cannot altogether fail where what is said can
never be enough. Let human frailty, then,
succumb to God's glory, and ever acknovy-
ledge itself unequal to the unfolding of His
works of mercy. Let us toil in thought,
fail in insight, falter in utterance: it is good
that even our right thoughts about the Lord's
Majesty should be insufficient. For, remem-
bering what the prophet says, " S^ek ye the
Lord and be strengthened : seek His face
always1," no one must assume that he has
found all he seeks, lest he fail of coming near,

«» Cf. Is. lxv. a.

3 S. John i. 29.
5 Hos. xiii. 14.

4 1 Tim. i. 15.

6 1 Cor. xv. 22. 7 2 Cor. v. 15. . 8 1 Cor. v. 8.

9 Fest'vi'tas dominicce fassionis is at first sight a strange phrase,
hut in reality most suggestive. * Ps. cv. 4.

174

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

if he cease his endeavours. And amidst all
the works of God which weary out man's
wondering contemplation, what so delights
and so baffles our mind's gaze as the Saviour's
Passion ? Ponder as we may upon His om-
nipotence, which is of one and equal substance
with the Father, the humility in God is more
stupendous than the power, and it is harder to
grasp the complete emptying of the Divine
Majesty than the infinite uplifting of the " slave's
form " in Him. But we are much aided in our
understanding of it by the remembrance that
though the Creator and the creature, the In-
violable God and the passible flesh, are abso-
lutely different, yet the properties of both sub-
stances meet together in Christ's one Person in
such a way that alike in His acts of weakness
and of power the degradation belongs to the
same Person as the glory.

II. The Creed takes up S. Peter's confession
as tlie fitndamental doctrine of the Church.

In that rule of Faith, dearly-beloved, which
we have received in the very beginning of the
Creed, on the authority of apostolic teaching,
we acknowledge our Lord Jesus Christ, whom
we call the only Son of God the Father Al-
mighty, to be also born of the Virgin Mary by
the Holy Ghost. Nor do we reject His Ma-
jesty when we express our belief in His cruci-
fixion, death, and resurrection on the third
day. For all that is God's and all that is
Man's are simultaneously fulfilled by His Man-
hood and His Godhead, so that in virtue of
the union of the Passible with the Impassible,
His power cannot be affected by His weak-
ness, nor His weakness overcome by His
power. And rightly was the blessed Apostle
Peter praised for confessing this union, who
when the Lord was inquiring what the dis-
ciples knew of Him, quickly anticipated the
rest and said, "Thou art Christ, the Son of
the living God 2." And this assuredly he saw,
not by the revelation of flesh or blood, which
might have hindered his inner sight, but by the
very Spirit of the Father working in his be-
lieving heart, that in preparation lor ruling the
whole Church he might first learn what he
would have to teach, and for the solidification
of the Faith, which he was destined to preach,
might receive the assurance, "Thou art Peter,
and upon this rock I will build My Church,
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against
it »." The strength, therefore, of the Christian
Faith, which, built upon an impregnable rock,
fears not the gates of death, acknowledges the
one Lord Jesus Christ to be both true God
and true Man, believing Him likewise to be

* S. Matt. xvi. 16, 18.

the Virgin's Son, Who is His Mother's Creator:
born also at the end of the ages, though He is
the Creator of time : Lord of all power, and
yet one of mortal stock : ignorant of sin, and
yet sacrificed for sinners after the likeness of
sinful flesh.

III. The devil's devices were turned against

himself.

And in order that He might set the human
race free from the bonds of deadly transgres-
sion, He hid the power of His majesty from
the raging devil, and opposed him with our
frail and humble nature. For if the cruel and
proud foe could have known the counsel of
God's mercy, he would have aimed at sooth-
ing the Jews' minds into gentleness rather than
at firing them with unrighteous hatred, lest he
should lose the thraldom of all his captives in
assailing the liberty of One Who owed him
nought. Thus he was foiled by his malice:
he inflicted a punishment on the Son of God,
which was turned to the healing of all the sons
of men. Fie shed righteous Blood, which
became the ransom and the drink for the
world's atonement. The Lord undertook
that which He chose according to the pur-
pose of His own will. He permitted mad-
men to lay their wicked hands upon Him:
hands which, in ministering to their own doom,
were of service to the Redeemer's work. And
yet so great was His loving compassion for
even His murderers, that He prayed to the
Father on the cross, and begged not for His
own vengeance but for their forgiveness, saying,
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what
they do3." And such was the power of that
prayer, that the hearts of many of those who
had said, " His blood be on us and on our
sons 3a," were turned to penitence by the Apostle
Peter's preaching, and on one day there were
baptized about 3,000 Jews : and they all were
" of one heart and of one soul V being ready
now to die for Him, Whose crucifixion they
had demanded.

IV. Why Judas could not obtain forgiveness

through Christ.

To this forgiveness the traitor Judas could
not attain : for he, the son of perdition, at
whose right the devil stood 5, gave himself up
to despair before Christ accomplished the
mystery of universal redemption. For in that
the Lord died for sinners, perchance even he
might have found salvation if he had not
hastened to hang himself. But that evil heart,
which was now given up to thievish frauds,
and now busied with treacherous designs, had

3 S. Luke xxiii. 34.

4 Acts iv. 33.

3" S. Matt, xxvii. 23.
5 Cf. Ps. cix. 6.

SERMON LXIII.

T75

never entertained aught of the proofs of the
Saviour's mercy. Those wicked ears had
heard the Lord's words, when He said, " I
same not to call the righteous but sinners6,"
and " The Son of man came to seek and to
save that which was lost ?,'' but they conveyed
not to his understanding the clemency _ of
Christ, which not only healed bodily infirmities,
but also cured the wounds of sick souls, saying
to the paralytic man, " Son, be of good cheer,
thy sins are forgiven thee8;" saying also to
the adulteress that was brought to Him,
"neither will I condemn thee; go and sin
no more 9," to show in all His works that
He had come as the Saviour, not the Judge of
the world. But the wicked traitor refused to
understand this, and took measures against
himself, not in the self-condemnation of re-
pentance, but in the madness of perdition, and
thus he who had sold the Author of life to His
murderers, even in dying increased the amount
of sin which condemned him.

V. The cruelty of Christ's crucifixion is lost in
its wondrous power

Accordingly that which false witnesses, cruel
leaders ot the people, wicked priests did against
the Lord Jesus Christ, through the agency of
a coward governor and an ignorant band of
soldiers, has been at once the abhorrence and
the rejoicing of all ages. For though the
Lord's cross was part of the cruel purpose of
the Jews, yet is it of wondrous power through
Him they crucified. The people's fury was
directed against One, and the mercy of Christ
ds for all mankind. That which their cruelty
inflicts He voluntarily undergoes, in order
that the work of His eternal will may be
carried out through their unhindered crime.
And hence the whole order of events which
is most fully narrated in the Gospels must
be received by the faithful in such a way
that by implicit belief in the occurrences
which happened at the time of the Lord's
Passion, we should understand that not only
■was the remission of sins accomplished by
Christ, but also the standard of justice satis-
fied. But that this may be more thoroughly
discussed by the Lord's help, let us reserve this
portion of the subject till the fourth day of the
week9a. God's grace, we hope, will be vouch-
safed at your entreaties to help us to fulfil our
Dromise : through Jesus Christ our Lord, &c.
\men.

6 S. Matt. ix. 13. 7 S. Luke xix. 10. 8 S. Matt. ix. 3.

9 S. John viii. 11 ; this famous section therefore is recognized
>y S. Leo : see Bright's note 69.
9a See Serm. LIV. chap. vi. n. a.

SERMON LXIII.

(On the Passion, XII. : preached on
Wednesday.)

I. God chose to save man by strength made
perfect in weakness.

The glory, dearly-beloved, of the Lord's
Passion, on which we promised to speak again
to-day, is chiefly wonderful for its mystery of
humility, which has both ransomed and
instructed us all, that He, Who paid the
price, might also impart His righteousness to
us. For the Omnipotence of the Son of God,
whereby He is by the same Essence equal
to the Father, might have rescued mankind
from the dominion of the devil by the mere
exercise of Its will, had it not better suited
the Divine working to conquer the opposition
of the foe's wickedness by that which had
been conquered, and to restore our nature's
liberty by that very nature by which bondage
had come upon the whole race. But, when
the evangelist says, " The Word became flesh
and dwelt in us %" and the Apostle, " God was
in Christ reconciling the world to Himself2,"
it was shown that the Only-begotten of the
Most High Father entered on such a union
with human humility, that, when He took the
substance of our flesh and soul, He remained
one and the same Son of God by exalting our
properties, not His own : because it was the
weakness, not the power that had to be rein-
forced, so that upon the union of the creature
with the Creator there should be nothing
wanting of the Divine to the assumed, nor
of the human to the Assuming.

II. Govs plan was always partially understood,
and is nozv of universal application.

This plan of God's mercy and justice, though
in the ages past it was in a measure en-
shrouded in darkness, was yet not so completely
hidden that the saints, who have most merited
praise from the beginning till the coming of
the Lord, were precluded from understanding
it : seeing that the salvation, which was to
come through Christ, was promised both by
the words of prophecy and by the significance
of events, and this salvation not only they
attained who foretold it, but all they also
who believed their predictions. For the one
Faith justifies the saints of all ages, and to the
self-same hope of the faithful pertains all that
by Jesus Christ, the Mediator between God
and man, we acknowledge done, or our fathers
reverently accepted as to be done. And be-
tween Jew and Gentile there is no distinction,
since, as the Apostle says, "Circumcision is

• S. John i. 14

2 Cor. v. 19.

176

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but
the keeping of God's commands 3," and if
they be kept in entirety of faith, they make
Christians the true sons of Abraham, that is
perfect, for the same Apostle says, " For who-
soever of you were baptized in Christ Jesus,
have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor
Greek : there is neither slave nor free : there
is neither male nor female. For ye are all
one in Christ. But if ye are Christ's, then
are ye Abraham's seed, heirs according to
promise *."

III. The union of the Divine Head with Its

members inseparable.

There is no doubt therefore, dearly-beloved,
that man's nature has been received by the
Son of God into such a union that not only in
that Man Who is the first-begotten of all
creatures, but also in all His saints there is
one and the self-same Christ, and as the Head
cannot be separated from the members, so the
members cannot be separated from the Head.
For although it is not in this life, but in
eternity that God is to be " all in all ♦%" yet even
now He is the inseparable Inhabitant of His
temple, which is the Church, according as He
Himself promised, saying, " Lo ! I am with
you all the days till the en .. of the age s." And
agreeably therewith the Apostle says, " He
is the head of the body, the Church, which
is the beginning, the first-begotten from the
dead, that in all things He may have the
pre-eminence, because in Him it was pleasing
that all fulness (of the Godhead) should dwell,
and that through Him all things should be
reconciled in Himself6."

IV. Christ's passion provided a saving mystery

a fid an example for us to follow.

And what is suggested to our hearts by these
and many other references, save that we should
in all things be renewed in His image Who,
remaining " in the form of God 6''," deigned
to "take the form " of sinful flesh? For all our
weaknesses, which come from sin, He took on
Him without sharing in sin, so that He felt
the sensation of hunger and thirst and sleep and
fatigue, and grief and weeping, and suffered the
fiercest pangs up to the extremity of death,
because no one could be loosed from the
snares of death, unless He in Whom alone all
men's nature was guileless allowed Himself
to be slain by the hands of wicked men. And
hence our Saviour the Son of God provided

3 1 Cor. vii. 19. 4 Gal. iii. 27 — 29.

4» i Cor xv. 28. 5 S. Matt, xxviii. 20.

6 Col. i. 18-20: the word Divinitatis (of the Godhead) is
omitted by some of the MSS. here.
*» Cf. Phil. ii. 6, 7.

for all that believe in Him both a mystery
and an example ?, that they might apprehend
the one by being born again, and follow the
other by imitation. For the blessed Apostle
Peter teaches this, saying, " Christ suffered
for us, leaving you an example that ye should
follow His steps. Who did no sin, neither
was guile found in His mouth. Who when
He was reviled, reviled not : when He suffered,
threatened not,*but gave Himself up to His
unjust judge. Who Himself bare our sins in
His body on the tree, that being dead to sins,
we may live to righteousness 8."

V. Christ has not destroyed, but fulfilled and

elevated the Law.

As therefore there is no believer, dearly-
beloved, to whom the gifts of grace are denied,
so there is no one who is not a debtor in the
matter of Christian discipline ; because, al-
though the severity of the mystic Law is done
away, yet the benefits of its voluntary observ-
ance have increased, as the evangelist John
says, " Because the Law was given through
Moses, but grace and truth came through
Jesus Christ'." For all things that, accord-
ing to the Law, went before, whether in the
circumcision of the flesh, or in the multitude
of victims, or in the keeping of the Sabbath,
testified of Christ, and foretold the grace of
Christ. And He is " the end of the Law ',"
not by annulling, but by fulfilling its meanings.
For although He is at once the Author of the
old and of the new, yet He changed the symbolic
rites connected with the promises, because He
accomplished the promises and put an end to
the announcement by the coming of the
Announced. But in the matter of moral
precepts, no decrees of the earlier Testa-
ment are rejected, but many of them are
amplified by the Gospel teaching : so that
the things which give salvation are more
perfect and clearer than those which promise
a Saviour.

VI. The present effect of Christ's Passion is
daily realized by Christians, especially in
Holy Baptism.

All therefore that the Son of God did and
taught for the world's reconciliation, we not
only know as a matter of past history, but
appreciate in the power of its present effect.
It is He Who, born of the Virgin Mother
by the Holy Ghost, fertilizes His unpolluted
Church with the same blessed Spirit, that by

7 Sacramentum (with its saving efficacy) et exemplum (with
its spur to exertion), see Bright's n. 74.

8 1 Pet. ii. 21 — 24 : notice the reading of the Vulgate iudicanti
se miuste for tne correct tu Kpivovri Butaias (namely God).

9 S. John i. 17. ' Rom. x. 4.

SERMON LXVII.

177

the birth of Baptism an innumerable multitude
of sons may be born to God, of Whom it is
said, " who were born not of blood, nor
of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of
man, but of God2." It is He, in Whom
the seed of Abraham is blessed by the adop-
tion of the whole world 2a, and the patriarch
becomes the father of nations by the birth,
through faith not flesh, of the sons of
promise. It is He Who, without excluding
any nation, makes one flock of holy sheep
from every nation under heaven, and daily
fulfils what He promised, saying, " Other sheep
also I have which are not of this fold ; them
also I must bring, and they shall hear My
voice, and there shall be one flock and one
shepherd 3." For though to the blessed Peter
first and foremost He says, " Feed My sheep < ;"
yet the one Lord directs the charge of all the
shepherds, and feeds those that come to the
rock with such glad and well-watered pastures,
that countless sheep are nourished by the rich-
ness of His love, and hesitate not to perish
for the Shepherd's sake, even as the good
Shepherd Himself was content to lay down
His life for His sheep. It is He whose suffer-
ings are shared not only by the martyrs'
glorious courage, but also in the very act of
regeneration by the faith of all the new-born.
For the renunciation of the devil and belief in
God 5j the passing from the old state into
newness of life, the casting off of the earthly
image, and the putting on of the heavenly
form — all this is a sort of dying and rising
again, whereby he that is received by Christ
and receives Christ is not the same after as he
was before he came to the font, for the body
of the regenerate becomes the flesh of the
Crucified 6.

VII. The good tvorks of Christians are only
part of Christ's good works.

This change, dearly-beloved, is the handiwork
of the Most High ?, Who " worketh all things in
all," so that by the good manner of life observed
in each one of the faithful, we know Him to
be the Author of all just works, and give
thanks to God's mercy, Who so adorns the
whole body of the Church with countless
gracious gifts, that through the many rays of
the one Light the same brightness is every-
where diffused, and that which is well done by

* S. John i. 13. '* Cf. Gen. xxii. 18.

3 S. John x. 16. 4 lb. xxi. 17.

5 The renouncing of the Devil and all his works and the
professing of faith in God have always preceded the rite of
Baptism : see Brignt's notes 78 and 142.

6 Corpus tegeucrati fiat caro crudfixi an almost unduly
strong assertion of the union between Christ, the Head and the
members of His body, the Church effected by Holy Baptism :
hee Hooker, Eccl. Pot. v. 60. 2, quoted by Blight, n. 79.

7 Cf. Ps. lxxvii. io(LXX.) and 1 Cor. xvii. 6.

any Christian whatsoever cannot but be part
of the glory of Christ. This is that true
Light which justifies and enlightens every
man. This it is that rescues from the power
of darkness and transfers us into the Kingdom
of the Son of God. This it is that by newness
of life exalts the desires of the mind and
quenches the lusts of the flesh. This it is
whereby the Lord's Passover is duly kept "with
the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth" by
the casting away of " the old leaven of wicked-
ness 7a" and the inebriating and feeding of the
new creature with the very Lord. For naught
else is brought about by the partaking of the
Body and Blood of Christ than that we pass
into that which we then take8, and both in
spirit and in body carry everywhere Him, in
and with Whom we were dead, buried, and
rose again, as the Apostle says, " For ye are
dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
For when Christ, your life, shall appear, then
shall ye also appear with Him in glory 9."
Who with the Father, &c.

SERMON LXVII.

(On the Passion, XVI. : delivered on the
Sunday.)

I. The contemplation of the prophecies of Christ's
sufferings are a great source of pious delight.

The minds of the faithful, beloved, ought
indeed always to be occupied with wonder at
God's works and their reasoning faculties
devoted particularly to those reflexions by
which they may gain increase of faith. For
so long as the pious heart's attention is
directed either to the benefits which all
enjoy, or to special gifts of His grace, it
keeps aloof from many vanities and retires from
bodily cares into a spiritual seclusion. But
this must be the more eagerly and thoroughly
done at the season of the Lord's Passion,
that what is then read in the sacred lections
may surely be received with the ears of under-
standing, and that the themes which are great
in word may be seen to be yet greater from
the mysterious realities which underlie them.
For the first reason for our lifting up our
hearts J is that the voices of the prophets have
sung of the things which the truth of the
Gospel has also narrated, not as destined to
happen, but as having happened, and that
what man's ears had not yet learnt was to be

7a I Cor. v. 8.

8 ut in id. quod sumimus, transeamus. He uses the same
strong expression in Letter LIX. 2, ut accipientes virtutem
caiestis cibi, in carnem ipsius qui caro nostra /actus est, tran-
seamus. 9 Col. iii. 3, 4- .

1 Erigendi sursum nostri cordis the liturgical allusion is the
same as that noticed in Sermon LXXIV. 5, n. 6.

VOL. XII.

i78

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

accomplished, was already being proclaimed as
fulfilled by the (Holy 2j Spirit. For King David,
whose seed according to the flesh is Christ,
completed his life-time more than i,ioo2a
years before the day of the Lord's crucifixion,
and endured none of those punishments which he
relates as inflicted upon himself. But because
by his mouth One spoke Who was to take
suffering flesh of his stock, the story of the
cross is rightly anticipated in the person of
him who was the bodily ancestor of the
Saviour. For David truly suffered in Christ,
because Jesus was truly crucified in the flesh
which He had from David.

II. The Divine foreknowledge does not account
for the Jews' wickedness so as to excuse them.

Since then all things which Jewish ungodli-
ness committed against the Lord of Majesty
were foretold so long before 3, and the language
of the prophets is concerned not so much with
things to come as with things [ ast, what else
is thereby revealed to us but the unchangeable
order of God's eternal decrees, with Whom
the things which are to be decided are already
determined, and what will be is already accom-
plished ? For since both the character of our
actions and the fulfilment of all our wishes are
fore-known to God, how much better known to
Him are His own works? And He was rightly
pleased that things should be recorded as if
done which nothing could hinder from being
done. And hence when the Apostles also,
being full of the Holy Ghost, suffered the
threats and cruelty of Christ's enemies, they
said to God with one consent, " For truly in
this city against Thy holy Servant Jesus, Whom
Thou hast anointed, Herod and Pontius Pilate,
with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,
were gathered together to do what Thy hand
and Thy counsel ordained to come to pass V
Did then the wickedness of Christ's perse-
cutors spring from God's plan, and was that
unsurpas-able crime prepared and set in motion
by the hand of God? Clearly we must not
think this of the highest Justice : that
which was fore-known in respect of the Jews'
malice is far different, indeed quite contrary to
what was ordained in respect of Christ's
Passion. Their desire to slay Him did not
proceed from the same source as His to die :

2 The epithet sanctus is of doubtful genuineness here.

21 This calculation is based apparently on that of Prospers
Chronicon, which again follows that of Eusebius.

3 There is another reading here, ut (tor et) non tarn de/uturis
quam de pmsentibus (for pr&teritis), &c, which the Ballerinii
probably do right to reject. Trans, "foretold so long before that
the language ol the prophets is concerned not so much with the
future as with the present."

4 Acts iv. 27, 28 ; it is perhaps worth noticing that Leo does
not strictly follow the Biblical account in saving that the Apostles
were " full of the Holy Ghost " at the time of uttering this prayer :
v. 31 says they were so rilled afterwards.

nor were their atrocious crime and the Re-
deemer's endurance the offspring of One
Spirit. The Lord did not incite but permit
those madmen's naughty hands : nor in His
foreknowledge of what must be accomplished
did He compel its accomplishment, even
though it was in order to its accomplishment
that He had taken flesh.

III. Christ 7cas in no sense the Author of His
murderers* guilt.

In fact, the case of the Crucified is so
different from that of His crucifiers that what
Christ undertook could not be reversed, while
what they did could be wiped out. For He
Who came to save sinners did not refuse
mercy even to Flis murderers, but changed
the evil of the wicked into the goodness of
the believing, that God's grace might be the
more wonderful, being mercifully put in force,
not according to men's merits, but according
to the multitude of the riches of God's wisdom
and knowledge, seeing that they also who had
shed the Saviour's blood were received into
the oaptismal flood. For, as says the Scrip-
ture, which contains the Apostles' acts when
the preaching of the blessed Apostle Peter
pierced the hearts of the Jews, ami they
acknowledged the iniquity of their crime,
saying, "what shall we do, brethren?" the
same Apostle said, " Repent and be baptized,
each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ
for the remission of your sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For to
you is the promise, and to your sons, and to
all that are afar off, whomsoever our Lord
God has called," and soon after the Scripture
goes on to say : " they therefore that received
his word were baptized, and there were added
on that day about 3,000 souls s." And so,
in being willing to suffer their furious rage,
the Lord Jesus Christ was in no way the
Author of their crimes ; nor did He force
them to desire this, but permitted them to
be able, and used the madness of the blinded
people just as He did also the treachery of
His betrayer, whom by kindly acts and words
He vouchsafed to recall from the awful crime
he had conceived, by taking him for a disciple,
by promoting him to be an apostle, by warning
him with signs, by admitting him to the revela-
tion of holy mysteries 6, that one wlx> had
lacked no degree of kindness to correct him,
might have no pretext for his crime at all.

5 Acts ii. 37 — 41.

6 Consecrando mysteriis I think he has, as so often, the insti-
tution of the Holy Eucharist especially in his mind together,
of course, with other sacramental ordinances (such as Holy Bap-
tism and matrimony) which our Saviour blessed with His sanction
and made the means of holiness to His disciples.

SERMON LXVII.

179

IV. The enormity of Judas'" crime is set forth.
But O ungodliest of men, " thou seed of
Chanaan and not of Juda 7," and no longer "a
vessel of election," but "a son of perdition" and
death, thou didst think the devil's instigations
would profit thee better, so that, inflamed with
the torch of greed, thou wert ablaze to gain 30
pieces of silver and sawest not what riches
thou wouldst lose. For even if thou didst not
think the Lord's promises were to be be-
lieved, what reason was there for preferring
so small a sum of money to what thou hadst
already received ? Thou wast wont to com-
mand the evil spirits, to heal the sick, to
receive honour with the rest of the apostles,
and that thou mightest satisfy thy thirst for
gain, it was open to thee to steal from the box
that was in thy charge 8. But thy mind, which
lusted after forbidden things, was more strongly
stimulated by that which was less allowed :
and the amount of the price pleased thee not
so much as the enormity of the sin. Where-
fore thy wicked bargain is not so detestable
merely because thou countedst the Lord so
cheap, but because thou didst sell Him Who
was the Redeemer, yea, even thine, and
hadst no pity on thyself 9. And justly was
thy punishment put into thine own hands,
because none could be found more cruelly
bent on thy destruction than thyself.

V. Christ's Passion was for our Redemption by
mystery and example.

The fact, therefore, that at the time ap-
pointed, according to the purpose of His will,
Jesus Christ was crucified, dead, and buried
was not the doom necessary to His own con-
dition, but the method of redeeming us from
captivity. For " the Word became flesh " in
order that from the Virgin's womb He might
take our suffering nature, and that what could
not be inflicted on the Son of God might
be inflicted on the Son of Man. For although
at His very birth the signs of Godhead shone
forth in Him, and the whole course of His
bodily growth was full of wonders, yet had
He truly assumed our weaknesses, and without
share in sin had spared Himself no human
frailty, that He might impart what was His to
us and heal what was ours in Himself. For
He, the Almighty Physician, had prepared
a two-fold remedy for us in our misery, of
which the one part consists of mystery and the

7 Apocrypha, Hist, of Susanna, v. 56 : said by Daniel to one
of the two elders ; cf. also Acts ix. 15, and S. John xvii. 12.

H This last privilege which Leo, with curious sarcasm, co-
ordinates with the other three is spoken of twice by S. John,
viz. xii. 6, and xiii. 29.

9 Redemfitorem etiam tuum ne tibi parceres, vendidisti. It
seems to me that Leo's preaching power is nowhere better shown
than in the passages where he draws out the heinousne^s of Judas'
guilt: cf Sermon LVIII. chaps. 3 and 4, and Sermon LXII.
chap. 4.

other of example r, that by the one Divine
powers may be bestowed, by the other human
weaknesses driven out 2. Because as God is
the Author of our justification, so man is a
debtor to pay Him devotion.

VI. We can only attain to Christ's perfection

by following in His steps.

Therefore, dearly-beloved, by this unspeak-
able restoration of our health no place is
left us for pride or for idleness : because we
have nothing which we did not receive2'"1, and we
are expressly warned not to treat the gifts of
God's grace with negligence 2a. For He that
comes so timely to our aid justly urges us with
precept, and He that leads us to glory merci-
fully incites us to obedience. Wherefore the
Lord Himself is rightly made our way, be-
cause save through Christ there is no coming
to Christ. But through Him and to Him does
he take his way who treads the path of His
endurance and humiliation, and on that road
you may be sure there are not wanting the
heats of toil, the clouds of sadness, the
storms of fear. The snares of the wicked, the
persecutions of the unbelieving, the threats of
the powerful, the insults of the proud are
there ; and all these things the Lord of hosts
and King of glory passed through in the form
of our weakness and in the likeness of sin-
ful flesh, to the end that amid the danger
of this present life we might desire not so
much to avoid and escape them as to endure
and overcome them.

VII. Christ 's cry of "Forsaken" on the cross
7vas to teach us the insufficiency of the human
nature without the Divine.

Hence it is that the Lord Jesus Christ, our
Head, representing all the members of His
body in Himself, and speaking for those whom
He was redeeming in the punishment of the
cross, uttered that cry which He had once
uttered in the psalm, "O God, My God, look
upon Me: why hast Thou forsaken Me3?"
That cry, dearly-beloved, is a lesson, not a
complaint. For since in Christ there is one
person of God and man, and He could not
have been forsaken by Him, from Whom He
could not be separated, it is on behalf of us,
trembling and weak ones, that He asks why
the flesh that is afraid to suffer has not been
heard. For when the Passion was beginning,
to cure and correct our weak fear He had said,

» Aliud est in Sacramento, aliud in exem/>lo, cf. Serm. LXIIL
chap. 4, n. 7.

2 Exigantur: another reading perhaps more in keeping with
the context and Leo's usual language is erigantur (raised): cf.
Lett. XXVI II. (Tome), chap. 3, kumana augens, divina non
tninuens, e c.

2a Cf. 1 Cor. iv. 7, and 1 Tim. iv. 14. 3 Ps. xxii. 1.

N «

i8o

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

" Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass
from Me : nevertheless not as I will but as
Thou ; " and again, " Father, if this cup cannot
pass except I drink it, Thy will be done*."
As therefore He had conquered the tremblings
of the flesh, and had now accepted the Father's
will, and trampling all dread of death under
foot, was then carrying out the work of His
design, why at the very time of His triumph
over such a victory does He seek the cause
and reason of His being forsaken, that is, not
heard, save to show that the feeling which He
entertained in excuse of His human fears is
quite different from the deliberate choice which,
in accordance with the Father's eternal decree,
He had made for the reconciliation of the
world ? And thus the very cry of " Unheard "
is the exposition of a mighty Mystery, because
the Redeemer's power would have conferred
nothing on mankind if our weakness in Him
had obtained what it sought. Let these words,
dearly-beloved, suffice to-day, lest we burden
you by the length of our discourse : let us put
off the rest till Wednesday. The Lord shall
hear you if you pray that we may keep our
promise through the bounty of Him Who lives
and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON LXV1IL

(On the Passion, XVII. : delivered on
the Wednesday.)

I. Christ 's Godhead never forsook Him in His
Passion.

The last discourse, dearly-beloved, of which
we desire now to give the promised portion,
had reached that point in the argument where
we were speaking of that cry which the crucified
Lord uttered to the Father: we bade the
simple and unthinking hearer not take the
words " My God, &c," in a sense as if, when
Jesus was fixed upon the wood of the cross,
the Omnipotence of the Father's Deity had
gone away from Him ; seeing that God's and
Man's Nature were so completely joined in Him
that the union could not be destroyed by pun-
ishment nor by death. For while each sub-
stance retained its own properties, God neither
held aloof trom the suffering of His body nor
was made passible by the flesh, because the
Godhead which was in the Sufferer did not
actually suffer. And hence, in accordance
with the Nature of the Word made Man, He
Who was made in the midst of all is the
same as He through Whom all things were
made. He Who is arrested by the hands
of wicked men is the same as He Who is

4 S Matt. xxvi. 39, 42

bound by no limits. He Who is pierced with
nails is the same as He Whom no wound can
affect. Finally, He Who underwent death is
the same as He Who never ceased to be eter-
nal, so that both facts are established by in-
dubitable signs, namely, the truth of the
humiliation in Christ and the truth of the
majesty; because Divine power joined itself
to human frailty to this end, that God, while
making what was ours His, might at the same
time make what was His ours. The Son,
tnerefore, was not separated from the Father,
nor the Father from the Son ; and the un-
changeable Godhead and the inseparable
Trinity did not admit of any division. For
although the task of undergoing Incarnation
belonged peculiarly to the Only-begotten Son
of God, yet the Father was not separated from
the Son any more than the flesh was separ-
ated from the Word s.

II. Christ's death was voluntary o?i His part,
and yet in saving others He could not save
Himself.

Jesus, therefore, cried with a loud voice,
saying, " Why hast Thou forsaken Me?" in
order to notify to all how it behoved Him
not to be rescued, not to be defended, but to
be given up into the hands of cruel men, that is
to become the Saviour of the world and the
Redeemer of all men, not by misery but by
mercy; and not by the failure of succour but
by the determination to die. But what must we
feel to be the intercessory power of His life
Who died and rose again by His own inherent
power6 For the blessed Apostle says that
the Father " spared not His own Son, but
gave Him up for us all J ; " and again, he says,
" For Christ loved the Church, and gave Him-
self up for her, that He might sanctify it8."
And hence the giving up of the Lord to His
Passion was as much of the Father's as of
His own will, so that not only did the Father
" forsake " Him, but He also abandoned Him-
self in a certain sense, not in hasty flight, but in
voluntary withdrawal. For the might of the
Crucified restrained itself from those wicked
men, and in order to avail Himself of a secret
design, He refused to avail Himself of His
open power. For how would He who nad
come to destroy death and the author of death
by His Passion have saved sinners, if he had
resisted His persecutors? This, then, had
been the Jews' belief, that Jesus had been for-
saken by God, against Whom they had been

5 For the doctrine here stated, cf. Serm. LI., chap. vi.

6 Quie vero illic vitce intercessio sentieitiia est, ubi anuna
et totestate est emissa et pote -state revocata ? If we adopt Ques-
nel's conjecture intercisio for intercessio the meaning is I sup-
pose, " What cutting off of the thread oflife is conceivable in Hii
case Who &c?"

7 Rom. viii. %-z. 8 Eph. v 2, and 2^. s»

SERMON LXXI.

181

able to commit such unholy cruelty ; for not
understanding the mystery of His wondrous
endurance, they said in blasphemous mockery:
"He saved others, Himself He cannot save.
If He be the King of Israel, let Him now
come down from the cross, and we believe
Him 9." Not at your blind will, O foolish
scribes and wicked priests, was the Saviour's
power to be displayed, nor in obedience to
blasphemers' evil tongues was the Redemption
of mankind to be delayed ; for if you had
wished to recognize the Godhead of the Son
of God, you would have observed His num-
berless works, and they must have confirmed
you in that faith, which you so deceitfully pro-
mise. But if, as you yourselves acknowledge,
it is true that He saved others, why have those
many, great miracles, which have been done
under the public gaze, done nothing to soften
the hardness of your hearts, unless it be be-
cause you have always so resisted the Holy
Ghost as to turn all God's benefits towards you
into your destruction ? For even though Christ
should descend from the cross, you would yet
remain in your crime.

III. A transition was then being effected from
the Old to the New Dispensation.

Therefore the insults of empty exultation
were scorned, and the Lord's mercy in restor-
ing the lost and the fallen was not turned from
the path of its purpose by contumely or revil-
ing. For a peerless victim was being offered
to God for the world's salvation, and the slay-
ing of Christ the true Lamb, predicted through
so many ages, was transferring the sons of
promise into the liberty of the Faith. The
New Testament also was being ratified, and in
the blood of Christ the heirs of the eternal
Kingdom were being enrolled ; the High Pontiff
was entering the Holy of Holies, and to inter-
cede with God the spotless Priest was passing
in through the veil of His flesh 9a. In fine, so
evident a transition was being effected from
the Law to the Gospel, from the synagogue to
the Church, from many sacrifices to the One
Victim *, that, when the Lord gave up the
ghost, that mystic veil which hung before and
shut out the inner part of the Temple and its
holy recess was by sudden force torn from top
to bottom 9a, for the reason that Truth was dis-
placing figures, and forerunners were needless
■ in the presence of Him they announced. To
this was added a terrible confusion of all the
elements, and nature herself withdrew her sup-
port from Christ's crucifiers. And although

9 S. Matt, xxvii. 42.

9" Ct. Heb. x. 20 : and below, S. Matt, xxvii. 51 and 54.

1 The older editions here add qua Deus est (which is God),
which however both CJuesnel and the Ball, leject as a marginal
tjLss.

the centurion in charge of the crucifixion, in
fright at what he had seen, said " truly this man
was the Son of God 9a," yet the wicked hearts of
the Jews, which were harder than all tombs
and rocks, is not reported to have been pierced
by any compunction:, so that it seems the
Roman soldiers were then readier to recognize
the Son of God than the priests of Israel.

IV. Let ns profit by fasting and good works at
this sacred season of the year.

Because, then, the Jews, deprived of all the
sanctification imparted by these mysteries,
turned their light into darkness and their
"feasts into mourning13," let us, dearly-be-
loved, prostrate our bodies and our souls and
worship God's Grace, which has been poured
out upon all nations, beseeching the merciful
Father and the rich Redeemer from day to
day to give us His aid and enable us to
escape all the dangers of this life. For the
crafty tempter is present everywhere, and leaves
nothing free from his snares. Whom, God's
mercy helping us, which is stretched out to us
amid all dangers, we must ever with stedfast
faith resist ia, so that, though he never ceases
to asail, he may never succeed in carrying
the assault. Let all, dearly-beloved, religiously
keep and profit by the fast, and let no excesses
mar the benefits of such self-restraint as we have
proved convenient both for soul and body.
For the things which pertain to sobriety and
temperance must be the more diligently ob-
served at this season, that a lasting habit may
be contracted from a brief zeal ; and whether
in works of mercy or in strict self-denial, no
hours may be left idle by the faithful, seeing
that, as years increase and time glides by, we
are bound to increase our store of works, and
not squander our opportunities. And to devout
wills and religious souls God's Mercy will be
granted, that He may enable us to obtain that
which He enabled us to desire, Who liveth
and reigneth with our Lord Jesus Christ His
Son, and with the Holy Ghost, for ever and
ever. Amen.

SFRMON LXXI.

(On the Lord's Resurrection, I.; de-
livered on Holv Saturday in the Vigil
of Easter2.)

I. We must all be partakers in Christ's Resur-
rection life.

In my last sermon 3, dearly-beloved, not in-

Ia Cf. Amos viii. 10 : and below, i Pet. v. 9.

2 The time of delivery of this and tne next Sermons was first
identified by Que.->nel with Easter Eve : for a most instructive
note on the ceremonies of that day in early times, see Bright's
n. 102.

3 Viz. Serm. LXX. in which (chap 6) he had promised to

182

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

appropriately, as I think, we explained to you
our participation in the cross of Christ, whereby
the life of believers contains in itself the mys-
tery of Easter, and thus what is honoured at
the feast is celebrated by our practice. And
how useful this is you yourselves have proved,
and by your devotion have learnt, how greatly
benefited souls and bodies are by longer fasts,
more frequent prayers, and more liberal alms.
For there can be hardly any one who has not
profited by this exercise, and who has not
stored up in the recesses of his conscience
something over which he may rightly rejoice.
But these advantages must be retained with
persistent care, lest our efforts fall away into
idleness, and the devil's malice steal what
God's grace gave. Since, therefore, by our
forty days' observance 4 we have wished to bring
about this effect, that we should feel something
of the Cross at the time of the Lord's Passion,
we must strive to be found partakers also of
Christ's Resurrection, and " pass from death
unto life 4Y' while we are in this body. For
when a man is changed by some process from
one thing into another, not to be what he was
is to him an ending, and to be what he was not is
a beginning. But the question is, to what a man
either dies or lives : because there is a death,
which is the cause of living, and there is a life,
which is the cause of dying. And nowhere else
but in this transitory world are both sought after,
so that upon the character of our temporal
actions depend the differences of the eternal
retributions. We must die, therefore, to the
devil and live to God : we must perish to
iniquity that we may rise to righteousness.
Let the old sink, that the new may rise ; and
since, as says the Truth, " no one can serve two
masters5," let not him be lord who has caused
the overthrow of those that stood, but Him
Who has raised the fallen to victory.

II. God did not leave His soul in hell, nor suffer
His flesh to see corruption.

Accordingly, since the Apostle says, " the
first man is of the earth earthy, the second
man is from heaven heavenly. As is the
earthy, such also are they that are earthy ; and
as is the heavenly, such also are they that are
heavenly. As we have borne the image of the
earthy, so let us also bear the image of Him

continue the subject (superest ut de obtinendo resurrectionis
consortia di.sseramus : quod ne continuato sermone et mihi et
vobisjiat onoosum, in diem sabbati ptomissa differemus).

4 Ace. to Bright (n. 103), "As to the duration ot Lent, there
was anciently much diversity .... Although it was not until the
time of Gregory II. (715— 731) that it became strictly a forty days'
fast, there is no doubt that in the fourth century ii not earlier
a period was generally obsened which might be called 'forty
days. '

4» Cf. 1 S. John iii. 14. 5 S. Matt. vi. 24.

Who is from heaven6," we must greatly rejoice
over this change, whereby we are translated
from earthly degradation to heavenly dignit)
through His unspeakable mercy, Who de-
scended into our estate that He might promote
us to His, by assuming not only the substance
but also the conditions of sinful nature, and
by allowing the impassibility of Godhead to
be affected by all the miseries which are the
lot of mortal manhood. And hence that the
disturbed minds of the disciples might not be
racked by prolonged grief, He with such
wondrous speed shortened the three days'
delay which He had announced, that by join-
ing the last part of the first and the first part
of the third day to the whole of the second,
He cut off a considerable portion of the
period, and yet did not lessen the number of
days. The Saviour's Resurrection therefore
did not long keep His soul in Hades, nor His
flesh in the tomb ; and so speedy was the
quickening of His uncorrupted flesh that it
bore a closer resemblance to slumber than to
death, seeing that the Godhead, Which quitted
not either part of the Human Nature which
He had assumed, reunited by Its power that
which Its power had separated 7.

III. Chiisfs manifestations after the Resurrec-
tion slunved that His Person was essentially
the same as before.

And then there followed many proofs,
whereon the authority of the Faith to be
preached through the whole world might be
based. And although the rolling away of the
stone, the empty tomb, the arrangement of
the linen cloths, and the angels who narrated
the whole deed by themselves fully built up
the truth of the Lord's Resurrection, yet did
He often appear plainly to the eyes both of
the women and of the Apostles 8, not only
talking with them, but also remaining and
eating with them, and allowing Himself to be
handled by the eager and curious hands of
those whom doubt assailed. For to this end
He entered when the doors were closed upon
the disciples, and gave them the Holy Spirit
by breathing on them, and after giving them
the light of understanding opened the secrets

6 1 Cor. xv 47 — 49. Leo's text agrees with the Vulgate in in-
serting ' heavenly' alter 'from heaven,' and in translating <j>opc
erco/xei/ (let us bear) not c/iopeo-o/xei' (we shall bear), but is peculiar
in its paraphrase at the end ot the quotation (" the image of Him,
&c").

7 Cf. Serm. LXX. chap. 3, nisi enim Verbum caro Jieret,
et tatn solida consisteret unitas in utraque natura, -ut a sus-
cipiente susceptam nee ipsum breve mortis tempus abiungeret,
nnnquam valeret ad tztemitatem redire mortatitas. Bright
(n. 96) quotes authorities ancient and more recent to show that
this has always been the Christian's belief.

8 From this point to the end of the chapter the language
is almost identical with a passage in Letter XXVIII. (Tome),
chap. 5.

SERMON LXXI.

183

of the Holy Scriptures, and again Himself
showed them the wound in the side, the
prints of the nails, and all the marks of His
most recent Passion, whereby it might be
acknowledged that in Him the properties of
the Divine and Human Nature remained un-
divided, and we might in such sort know that
the Word was not what the flesh is, as to
confess God's only Son to be both Word and
Flesh.

IV. But though it is the same, it is also
glorified.

The Apostle of the Gentiles, Paul, dearly-
beloved, does not disagree with this belief,
when he says, " even though we have known
Christ after the flesh, yet now we know Him
so no more 9." For the Lord's Resurrection
was not the ending, but the changing of the
flesh, and His substance was not destroyed by
His increase of power. The quality altered,
but the nature did not cease to exist : the
body was made impassible, which it had been
possible to crucify : it was made incorruptible,
though it had been possible to wound it. And
properly is Christ's flesh said not to be known
in that state in which it had been known,
Decause nothing remained passible in it, no-
:hing weak, so that it was both the same in es-
sence and not the same in glory. But what
vonder if S. Paul maintains this about Christ's
)ody, when he says of all spiritual Christians,
' wherefore henceforth we know no one after
he flesh." Henceforth, he says, we begin

0 experience the resurrection in Christ, since
he time when in Him, Who died for all, all
>ur hopes were guaranteed to us. We do not
lesitate in diffidence, we are not under the
uspense of uncertainty, but having received
n earnest of the promise, we now with the
ye of faith see the things which will be, and
Voicing in the uplifting of our nature, we
lready possess what we believe.

'. Being saved by hope, we must not fulfil the
lusts of the flesh.

1 Let us not then be taken up with the
opearances of temporal matters, neither let
jr contemplations be diverted from heavenly
1 earthly things. Things which as yet have
r the most part not come to pass must be

.ckoned as accomplished : and the mind
tent on what is permanent must fix its
>sires there, where what is offered is eternal,
or although " by hope we were saved '," and

9 2 Cor. v. 16. It must be home in mind that the application
the phrase after the flesh (itari crapica) is mistaken : S. Paul

ians according to the ordinary view of man," as in Rom. viii. i,

i ! 2 Cor. x. 2. See Blight's note 107.
Rom. viii. 24.

still bear about with us a flesh that is cor-
ruptible and mortal, yet we are rightly said
not to be in the flesh, if the fleshly affections
do not dominate us, and are justified in ceas-
ing to be named after that, the will of which
we do not follow. And so, when the Apostle
says, " make not provision for the flesh in the
lusts thereof2," we understand that those
things are not forbidden us, which conduce
to health and which human weakness demands,
but because we may not satisfy all, our desires
nor indulge in all that the flesh lusts after, we
recognize that we are warned to exercise such
self-restraint as not to permit what is excessive
nor refuse what is necessary to the flesh, which
is placed under the mind's control 3. And
hence the same Apostle says in another place,
" For no one ever hated his own flesh, but
nourisheth and cherisheth it*;" in so far, of
course, as it must be nourished and cherished
not in vices and luxurv, but with a view to its
proper functions, so that nature may recover
herself and maintain due order, the lower
parts not prevailing wrongfully and debasingly
over the higher, nor the higher yielding to
the lower, lest if vices overpower the mind,
slavery ensues where there should be supre-
macy.

VI. Our godly resolutions must continue all the
year round, not be confined to Easter only.

Let God's people then recognize that they
are a new creation in Christ, and with all
vigilance understand by Whom they have
been adopted and Wnom they have adopted s.
Let not the things, which have been made
new, return to their ancient instability ; and
let not him who has " put his hand to
the plough 6 " forsake his work, but rather
attend to that which he sows than look back
to that which he has left behind. Let no one
fall back into that from which he has risen,
but, even though from bodily weakness he
still languishes under certain maladies, let him
urgently desire to be healed and raised up.
For this is the path of health through imitation
of the Resurrection begun in Christ, whereby,
notwithstanding the many accidents and falls
to which in this slippery life the traveller is
liable, his feet may be guided from the
quagmire on to solid ground, for, as it is
written, " the steps of a man are directed
by the Lord, and He will delight in his way.
When the just man falls he shall not be over-
thrown, because the Lord will stretch out His

2 Rom. xiii. 14.

3 Cf. Serm. XIX. chap. 1. 4 Eph. v. 20.

5 Quo suscepta sit (sc. nova creatura) quevive suscepertt,
i.e. Christ has taken on Him human natuie, and we by virtu*'
thereof are partakers of the Divine.

6 S. Luke ix. 62.

1 84

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

hand 7." These thoughts, dearly-beloved, must
be kept in mind not only for the Easter
festival, but also for the sanctification of the
whole life, and to this our present exercise
ought to be directed, that what has delighted
the souls of the faithful by the experience of a
short observance may pass into a habit and
remain unalterably, and if any fault creep in,
it may be destroyed by speedy repentance.
And because the cure of old-standing diseases
is slow and difficult, remedies should be
applied early, when the wounds are fresh, so
that rising ever anew from all downfalls, we
may deserve to attain to the incorruptible
Resurrection of our glorified flesh in Christ
Jesus our Lo-d, Who lives and reigns with
the Father and the Holy Ghost for ever and
ever. Amen.

SERMON LXXII.

(On the Lord's Resurrection, II.)

I. The Cross is ?iot only the mystery of salvation,
but an example to follow.

The whole of the Easter mystery, dearly-
beloved, has been brought before us in the
Gospel narrative, and the ears of the mind
have been so reached through the ear of flesh
that none of you can fail to have a picture
of the events : for the text of the Divinely-
inspired story has clearly shown the treachery
of the Lord Jesus Christ's betrayal, the judg-
ment by which He was condemned, the
barbarity of His crucifixion, and glory of His
resurrection. But a sermon is still required
of us, that the priests' exhortation may be
added to the solemn reading of Holy Writ,
as I am sure you are with pious expectation
demanding of us as your accustomed due.
Because therefore there is no place for ignor-
ance in faithful ears, the seed of the Word,
which consists of the preaching of the Gospel,
ought to grow in the soil of your heart, so that,
when choking thorns and thistles have been
removed, the plants of holy thoughts and the
buds of right desires may spring up freely into
fruit. For the cross of Christ, which was set
up for the salvation of mortals, is both a
mystery and an example 8 : a sacrament where
by the Divine power takes effect, an example
whereby man's devotion is excited : for to
those who are rescued from the prisoner's
yoke Redemption furt ler procures the power
of following the way of the cross by imitation.
For if the world's wisdom so prides itself in its
error that every one follows the opinions and

habits and whole manner of life of him whom
he has chosen as his leader, how shall we share
in the name of Christ, save by being insepar-
ably united to Him, Who is, as He Himself
asserted, " the Way, the Truth, and the Life 9 ?"
the Way that is of holy living, the Truth of
Divine doctrine, and the Life of eternal happi-
ness.

II. Christ took our nature upon Him for our
salvation.

For when the whole body of mankind had
fallen in our first parents, the merciful God
purposed so to succour, through His only-
begotten Jesus Christ, His creatures made
after His image, that the restoration of our
nature should not be effected apart from it,
and that our new estate should be an advance
upon our original position. Happy, if we had
not fallen from that which Goo made us ; but
happier, if we remain that which He has re-made
us. It was much to have received form from
Christ ; it is more to have a substance in
Christ *. For we were taken up into its own
proper self by that Nature (which conde-
scended to those limitations which loving
kindness dictated and which yet incurred no
sort of change. We were taken up by that
Nature 2), which destroyed not what was His in
what was ours, nor what was ours in what was
His ; which made the person of the Godhead
and of the Manhood so one in Itself that by
co-ordination of weakness and power, the flesh
could not be rendered inviolable through the
Godhead, nor the Godhead passible through
the flesh. We were taken up by that Nature,
which did not break off the Branch from the
common stock of our race, and yet excluded al
taint of the sin which has passed upon all men.
That is to say, weakness and mortality, which
were not sin, but the penalty of sin, were
undergone by the Redeemer of the World ir
the way of punishment, that they might b<
reckoned as the price of redemption. Whal
therefore in all of us is the heritage of cor
demnation, is in Christ "the mystery of godli
ness 3." For being free from debt, He gav
Himself up to that most cruel creditor, and
suffered the hands of Jews to be the devil'
agents in torturing His spotless flesh. Whicl
flesh He willed to be subject to death, evei
up to His (speedy)4 resurrection, to this end
that believers in Him might find neither perse

■B.1

7 Ps. xxxvii. 23, 24.

8 Cf. Serm. LXIII. 4, above : Salvator noster — et sacra-
mention condidit et exemplum : ut unum apprchenderent renas-
cendo, alteram sequerentur imitando.

9 S. John xiv. 6.

1 i.e. that both of the two natures in Christ should be our
as he goes on to show.

2 The words in brackets are of doubtful genuineness, and seei
in themselves a media:val imitation of Leo's style.

3 Sacramentum pietatis, the regular Latin version of 1 Tin
iii. 16.

4 Celerrimam. The epithet spoils the argument, and is pr<
bably an interpolation. Cf. however Serm. LXXI. chap. 2, abov'

SERMON LXXII.

185

cution intolerable, nor death terrible, by the
remembrance that there was no more doubt
about their sharing His glory than there was
about His sharing their nature.

III. The presence of the risen and ascended Lord
is still with us.
And so, dearly-beloved, if we unhesitatingly
believe with the heart what we profess with
:he mouth, in Christ we are crucified, we are
dead, we are buried ; on the very third day,
:oo, we are raised. Hence the Apostle says,
' If ye have risen with Christ, seek those things
jvhich are above, where Christ is, sitting on
jou's right hand : set your affections on things
ibove, not on things on the earth For ye are
lead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
?or when Christ, your life, shall have appeared,
hen shall ye also appear with Him in glory 5."
3ut that the hearts of the faithful may know
•hat they have that whereby to spurn the lusts
>f the world and be lifted to the wisdom that
is above, the Lord promises us His presence,
aying, " Lo ! I am with you all the days, even
!ill the end of the age 6." For not in vain
jiad the Holy Ghost said by Isaiah : " Behold !
;. virgin shall conceive and shall bear a Son,
nd they shall call His name Emmanuel, which
;, being interpreted, God witn us ?." Jesus,
iherefore, fulfils the proper meaning ot His
lame, and in ascending into the heavens does
ot forsake His adopted brethren, though " He
itteth at the right hand of the Father," yet
wells in the whole body, and Himself from
bove strengthens them for patient waiting
bile He summons them upwards to His
lory.

iV. We must have the same mind as was in
Christ Jesus.

We must not, therefore, indulge in folly

mid vain pursuits, nor give way to fear in the

lidst of adversities. On the one side, no

oubt, we are flattered by deceits, and on the

ther weighed down by troubles ; but becau.se

the earth is full of the mercy of the Lord 8,"

hrist's victory is assuredly ours, that what He

tys may be fulfilled, " Fear not, for I have

|/ercome the worlds" Whether, then, we

;ht against the ambition of the world, or

;ainst the lusts of the flesh, or against the

irts of heresy, let us arm ourselves always

ith the Lord's cross. For our Paschal feast

11 never end, if we abstain from the leaven

the old wickedness (in the sincerity of

ith '). For amid all the changes of this life,

lich is full of various afflictions, we ought to

remember the Apostle's exhortation, whereby

us, saying, " Let this mind be in
which was also in Christ Jesus : Who
the form of God counted it not rob-

he instructs
you
being

bery to be equal with God, but emptied Himself,
taking the form of a bondservant, being made
in the likeness of men and found in fashion as
a man. Wherefore God also exalted Him,
and gave Him a name which is above every
name, that in the name of Jesus every knee
should bow of things in heaven, of things on
earth, and of things below, and that every
tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus
Christ is in the glory of God the Father2." If,
he says, you understand " the mystery of great
godliness," and remember what the Only-be-
gotten Son of God did for the salvation of
mankind, "have that mind in you which was
also in Christ Jesus," Whose humility is not to
be scorned by any of the rich, not to be thought
shame of by any of the high-born. For no
human happiness whatever can reach so great
a height as to reckon it a source of shame to
himself that God, abiding in the form of God,
thought it not unworthy of Himself to take the
form of a slave.

V. Only he who holds the truth on the Incarna-
tion can keep Easter properly.

Imitate what He wrought: love what H^
loved, and finding in you the Grace of God,
love in Him your nature in return, since as He
was not dispossessed of riches in poverty,
lessened not glory in humility, lost not eternity

in death, so do ye.

too, treading in His foot-

5 Col. iii. 1 — ,
S Watt, i. 23.
' Cf. 1 Cor.

8 'ority.

6 S. Matt, xxviii. 20. 7 Is. vii. 14;

8 Ps. xxxiii. 5. 9 S. John xvi. 33.

8 : the words in brackets are of doubtful

steps, despise earthly things that ye may gain
heavenly : for the taking up of the cross means
the slaying of lusts, the killing of vices, the
turning away from vanity, and the renunciation
of all error. For, though the Lord's Passover
can be kept by no immodest, self-indulgent,
proud, or miserly person, yet none are held so
far aloof from this festival as heretics, and
especially those who have wrong views on the
Incarnation of the Word, either disparaging what
belongs to the Godhead or treating what is of
the flesh as unreal. For the Son of God is true
God, having from the Father all that the
Father is, with no beginning in time, subject
to no sort of change, undivided from the One
God, not different from the Almighty, the
eternal Only-begotten of the eternal Father ; so
that the faithful intellect believing in the
Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost in
the same essence of the one Godhead, neither
divides the Unity by suggesting degrees of dig-
nity, nor confounds the Trinity by
the Persons in one. But it is
know the Son of God in the Father's natur

merging
not enough to

a Phil. ii.

1 86

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

only, unless we acknowledge Him in what is
ours without withdrawal of what is His own.
For that self-emptying, which He underwent
for man's restoration, was the dispensation of
compassion, not the loss of powers. For,
though by the eternal purpose of God there
was " no other name under heaven given to
men whereby they must be saved*," the In-
visible made His substance visible, the Intem-
poral temporal, the Impassible passible : not
that power might sink into weakness, but
that weakness might pass into indestructible
power.

VI. A mystical application of the term "Pass-

over" is given.

For which reason the very feast which by
us is named Pasc/ia, among the Hebrews is
called Phase, that is Pass-over 5, as the evan-
gelist attests, saying, " Before the feast of
Pascha, Jesus knowing that His hour was
come that He should pass out of this world
unto the Father6." But what was the nature
in which He thus passed out unless it was
ours, since the Father was in the Son and the
Son in the Father inseparably? But because
the Word and the Flesh is one Person, the
Assumed is not separated from the Assuming
nature, and the honour of being promoted is
spoken of as accruing to Him that promotes,
as the Apostle savs in a passage we have
already quoted, " Wherefore also God exalted
Him and gave Him a name which is above
every name." Where the exaltation of His
assumed Manhood is no doubt spoken of,
so that He in Whose sufferings the Godhead
remains indivisible is likewise coeternal in the
glory of the Godhead. And to share in this un-
speakable gift the Lord Himself was preparing
a blessed " passing over " for His faithful ones,
when on the very threshhold of His Passion
he interceded not only for His Apostles and
disciples but also for the whole Church, saying,
" But not for these only I pray, but for those also
who shall believe on Me through their word, that
they.all may be one, as Thou also, Father, art
in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be
one in us ?.''

VII. Only true believers can keep the Paster

Festival

In this union they can have no share who

3 Much the s:ime language is used in Lett. XXVIII. (Tome)
3 and Serni. XXII I. 2. 4 Acts iv. 12.

5 Phase id est transitus dicitur, cf. the Vulgate, Exod. xii. 11,
est enim Phase (id est trans tus) Domini. The form of the word
is due to defective transliteration, the correct Hebrew form being
Pesach, which " is derived from a root which means to step over or
to overleap, and thus points back to the historical origin of the
festival (Exod. xii.)." — Eaerslieim's Temp e, p. 179.

6 S. John xiii. 1 ; the word for "pass" here in the Gk. is
fi.cTa.fij), in the Lat. transeat.

7 S. John xvii. 20, 21.

deny that in the Son of God, Himself true God,
man's nature abides, assailing the health-giving
mystery and shutting themselves out from the
Easter festival. For, as they dissent from the
Gospel and gainsay the creed, they cannot keep
it with us, because although they dare to take
to themselves the Christian name, yet they are
repelled by every creature who has Christ for
his Head : for you rightly exult and devoutly
rejoice in this sacred season as those who,
admitting no falsehood into the Truth, have no
doubt about Christ's Birth according to the
flesh, His Passion and Death, and the Resur-
rection of His body : inasmuch as without any
separation of the Godhead you acknowledge a
Christ, Who was truly born of a Virgin's womb,
truly hung on the wood of the cross, truly laid
in an earthly tomb, truly raised in glory, truly
set on the right hand of the Father's majesty;
" whence also," as the Apostle savs, "we look
for a Saviour our Lord Jesus Christ. Who
shall refashion the body of our humility to be-
come conformed to the body of His glory8."
Who livcth and reigneth, &c.

SERMON LXXIII.

(On the Lord's Ascension, I.)

I. The events recorded as happening after the
Resurrection were intended to convince us of
its truth. •

Since the blessed and glorious Resurrection
of our Lord Jesus Christ, whereby the Divine
power in three days raised the true Temple of
God, which the wickedness of the Jews had
overthrown, the sacred forty days, dearly-be-
loved, are to-day ended, which by most holy
appointment were devoted to our most profit-
able instruction, so that, during the period that
the Lord thus protracted the lingering of His
bodily presence, our faith in the Resurrection
might be fortified by needful proofs. For
Christ's Death had much disturbed the dis-
ciples' hearts, and a kind of torpor of distrust
had crept over their grief-laden minds at His
torture on the cross, at His giving up the ghost,
at His lifeless body's burial. For, when the
holy women, as the Gospel-story has revealed,
brought word of the stone rolled away from the
tomb, the sepulchre emptied of the body, and
the angels bearing witness to the living Lord,
their words seemed like ravings to the Apostles
and other disciples. Which doubtfulness, the
result of human weakness, the Spirit of Truth
would most assuredly not have permitted to
exist in His own preacher's breasts, had not
their trembling anxiety and careful hesitation
laid the foundations of our faith. It was our _

8 Phil. iii. 20, 21.

I htf.3

SERMON LXXIV.

187

perplexities and our dangers that were provided
ifor in the Apostles: it was ourselves who in
these men were taught how to meet the cavil-
lings of the ungouly and the arguments of
earthly wisdom. We are instructed by their
lookings, we are taught by their hearings, we
are convinced by their handlings. Let us give
thanks to the Divine management and the holy
Fathers' necessary slowness of belief. Others
doubted, that we might not doubt.

II. And therefore they are in the highest degree
instructive.
Those days, therefore, dearly-beloved, which
intervened between the Lord's Resurrection
and Ascension did not pass by in uneventful
leisure, but great mysteries 9 were ratified in
them, deep truths 9 revealed. In them the fear
of awful death was removed, and the immor-
tality not only of the soul but also of the flesh
established. In them, through the Lord's breath-
ing upon them, the Holy Ghost is poured upon
all the Apostles, and to the blessed Apostle
Peter beyond the rest the care of the Lord's
flock is entrusted, in addition to the keys of
the kingdom. Then it was that the Lord
joined the two disciples as a companion on
Jie way, and, to the sweeping away of all the
:louds of our uncertainty, upbraided them with
:he slowness of their timorous hearts. Their
enlightened hearts catch the flame of faith,
ind lukewarm as they have been, are made to
jurn while the Lord unfolds the Scriptures.
In the breaking of bread also their eyes are
jpened as they eat with Him : how far more
blessed is the opening of their eyes, to whom
he glorification of their nature is revealed than
hat of our first parents, on whom fell the dis-
istrous consequences of their transgression.

III. They prove the Resurrection of the flesh.

And in the course of these and other
jniracles, when the disciples were harassed
>y bewildering thoughts, and the Lord had
ppeared in their midst and said, " Peace be
nto you V that what was passing through
heir hearts might not be their fixed opinion
for they thought they saw a spirit not flesh),
ie refutes their thoughts so discordant with
he Truth, offers to the doubters' eyes the marks
f the cross that remained in His hands and
2et, and invites them to handle Him with
areful scrutiny, because the traces of the nails
nd spear had been retained to heal the
.'ounds of unbelieving hearts, so that not with
■avering faith, but with most stedfast know-
edge they might comprehend that the Nature

9 Sacramenta — mysteria.

1 S. Luke xxiv. 36 : S. John xx. 19.

which had been lain in the sepulchre was to si)
on God the Father's throne.

IV. Christ's Ascension has given us greater
privileges and joys than the devil had taken
from us.

Accordingly, dearly-beloved, throughout this
time which elapsed between the Lord's Resur-
rection and Ascension, God's Providence had
this in view, to teach and impress upon both
the eyes and hearts of His own people that the
Lord Jesus Christ might be acknowledged to
have as truly risen, as He was truly born,
suffered, and died. And hence the most
blessed Apostles and all the disciples, who
had been both bewildered at His death on
the cross and backward in believing His
Resurrection, were so strengthened by the
clearness of the truth that when the Lord
entered the heights of heaven, not only were
they affected with no sadness, but were even
filled with great joy. And truly great and
unspeakable was their cause for joy, when in
the sight of the holy multitude, above the
dignity of all heavenly creatures, the Nature
of mankind went up, to pass above the angels'
ranks and to rise beyond the archangels'
heights, and to have Its uplifting limited by
no elevation until, received to sit with the
Eternal Father, It should be associated on the
throne with His glory, to Whose Nature It was
united in the Son. Since then Christ's Ascen-
sion is our uplifting, and the hope of the
Body is raised, whither the glory of the Head
has gone before, let us exult, dearly-beloved,
with worthy joy and delight in the loyal
paying of thanks. For to-day not only are
we confirmed as possessors of paradise, but
have also in Christ penetrated the heights of
heaven, and have gained still greater things
through Christ's unspeakable grace than we
had lost through the devil's malice. For us,
whom our virulent enemy had driven out
from the bliss of our first abode, the Son of
God has made members of Himself and placed
at the right hand of the Father, with Whom
He lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy
Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON LXXIV.

(On the Lord's Ascension, II.)

I. The Ascension completes our faith in Him,
Who was God as well as man.

The mystery of our salvation, dearly-beloved,
which the Creator of the universe valued at
the price of His blood, has now been carried
out under conditions of humiliation from the
dav of His bodily birth to the end of His

i88

bERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

Passion. And although even in " the form of a
slave " many signs of Divinity have beamed out,
yet the events of all that period served particu-
larly to show the reality of His assumed Man-
hood. But after the Passion, when the chains
of death were broken, which had exposed its
own strength by attacking Him, Who was
ignorant of sin, weakness was turned into
power, mortality into eternity, contumely into
glory, which the Lord Jesus Christ showed by
many clear proofs in the sight of many, until
He carried even into heaven the triumphant
victory which He had won over the dead.
As therefore at the Easter commemoration,
the Lord's Resurrection was the cause of our
rejoicing ; so the subject of our present glad-
ness is His Ascension, as we commemorate
and duly venerate that day on which the
Nature of our humility in Christ was raised
above all the host of heaven, over all the
ranks of angels, beyond the height of all
powers, to sit with God the Father. On
which Providential order of events we are
founded and built up, that God's Grace might
become more wondrous, when, notwithstanding
the removal from men's sight of what was
rightly felt to command their awe, faith did
not fail, hope did not waver, love did not
grow cold. For it is the strength of great
minds and the light of firmly-faithful souls,
unhesitatingly to believe what is not seen with
the bodily sight, and there to fix one's affec-
tions whither you cannot direct your gaze.
And whence should this godliness spring up in
our hearts, or how should a man be justified
by faith, if our salvation rested on those
things only which lie beneath our eyes ?
Hence our Lord said to him who seemed
to doubt of Christ's Resurrection, until he
had tested by sight and touch the traces of
His Passion in His very Flesh, " because thou
hast seen Me, thou hast believed : blessed are
they who have not seen and yet have be-
lieved 2."

II. The Ascension renders our faith more
excellent and stronger.

In order, therefore, dearly-beloved, that we
may be capable of this blessedness, when all
things were fulfilled which concerned the Gospel
preaching and the mysteries of the New Testa-
ment, our Lord Jesus Christ, on the fortieth
day after the Resurrection in the presence of
the disciples, was raised into heaven, and
terminated His presence with us in the body,
to abide on the Father's right hand until the
times Divinely fore-ordained for multiplying
the sons of the Church are accomplished, and

* S. John xx. 29

He comes to judge the living and the dead in
the same flesh in which He ascended. And
so that which till then was visible of our
Redeemer was changed into a sacramental
presence 3, and that faith might be more
excellent and stronger, sight gave way to
doctrine, the authority of which was to be
accepted by believing hearts enlightened with
rays from above.

III. The marvellous efects of this Faith on all.

This Faith, increased by the Lord's Ascen-
sion and established by the gift of the Holy
Ghost, was not terrified by bonds, imprison-
ments, banishments, hunger, fire, attacks by
wild beasts, refined torments of cruel perse
cutors. For this Faith throughout the world
not only men, but even women, not only
beardless boys, but even tender maids, fought
to the shedding of their blood. This Faith
cast out .spirits, drove off sicknesses, raised thel
dead : and through it the blessed Apostles them-j
selves also, who after being confirmed by so
many miracles and instructed by so many (lis-;
courses, had yet been panic-stricken by the
horrors of the Lord's Passion and had not
accepted the truth of His resurrection with
out hesitation, made such progress after the
Lord's Ascension that everything which had
previously filled them with fear was turned
into joy. For they had lifted the whole con
templation of their mind to the Godhead of
Him that sat at the Father's right hand, and
were no longer hindered by the barrier of cor-
poreal sight from directing their minds' gaze to
That Which had never quitted the Father's
side in descending to earth, and had not tor
saken the disciples in ascending to heaven.

IV. His Ascension refines our Faith : tin
ministering of angels to Him shows the ex-
tent of Jlis authority.

The Son of Man and Son of God, therefore,
dearly-beloved, then attained a more exrellerr.
and holier fame, when He betook Himsel
back to the glory of the Father's Majesty, anc
in an ineffable manner began to be neaiertc
the Father in respect of His Godhead, afte
having become farther away in respect of Hi:
manhood. A better instructed faith then begai
to draw closer to a conception of the Son':
equality with the Father without the necessit]
of handling the corporeal substance in Christ
whereby He is less than the Father, since
while the Nature of the glorified Body stil
remained the faith of believers was calleu upoi

3 In sacratnenta transivit, i.e. Christ's presence is no*
vouchsafed us only alter a spiritual manner in His sacrament
and means of grace.

SERMON LXXV.

189

to touch not with the hand of flesh, but with
the spiritual understanding the Only-begotten,
Who was equal with the Father. Hence comes
that which the Lord said after His Resurrec-
tion, when Mary Magdalene, representing the
Church, hastened to approach and touch Him :
" Touch Me not, for I have not yet ascended
to My Father * : " that is, I would not have
you come to Me as to a human body, nor yet
recognize Me by fleshly perceptions : I put
thee off for higher things, I prepare greater
things for thee : when I have ascended to My
Father, then thou shalt handle Me more per-
fectly and truly, for thou shalt grasp what thou
canst not touch and believe what thou canst
not see. But when the disciples' eyes followed
the ascending Lord to heaven with upward
gaze of earnest wonder, two angels stood by
them in raiment shining with wondrous bright-
ness, who also said, " Ye men of Galilee, why
stand ye gazing into heaven ? This Jesus
Who was taken up from you into heaven shall
so come as ye saw Him going into heaven s."
By which words all the sons of the Church
were taught to believe that Jesus Christ will
come visibly in the same Flesh wherewith He
ascended, and not to doubt that all things
are subjected to Him on Whom the ministry
of angels had waited from the first beginning
of H is Birth. For, as an angel announced to the
blessed Virgin that Christ should be conceived
by the Holy Ghost, so the voice of heavenly
beings sang of His being born of the Virgin
ilso to the shepherds. As messengers from
ibove were the first to attest His having risen
from the dead, so the service of angels was
employed to foretell His coming in very Flesh

pht understand

to judge the world, that we mig.
vhat great powers will come with Him
judge, when such great ones ministered
iim even in being judged.

as
to

J. We must despise earthly things and rise to
things above, especially by active works of
, mercy and love.

And so, dearly-beloved, let us rejoice with
piritual joy, and let us with gladness pay God
Forthy thanks and raise our hearts' eyes un-
mpeded to those heights where Christ is.
linds that have heard the call to be uplifted
mst not be pressed down by earthly affec-
ons6, they that are fore-ordained to things
:ernalmust not be taken up with the things
lat perish ; they that have entered on the

1 * S. John xx. 17.
! 5 Act* i. 11.

6 Sursum vocatos animos. The allusion no doubt is to the
' Sursum corda. R. habeiuns nit Dominum, with which the
nurch Liturgy has always ushered us into the most solemn part

*he Euchanstic worship 1C0I. iii. 1,2). Ci. Blight's n. 122, and
' m. LXVII. chap. i.

way of Truth must not be entangled in
treacherous snares, and the faithful must so
take their course through these temporal things
as to remember that they are sojourning in the
vale of this world, in which, even though they
meet with some attractions, they must not sin-
fully embrace them, but bravely pass through
them. For to this devotion the blessed Apostle
Peter arouses us, and entreating us with that
loving eagerness which he conceived for feeding
Christ's sheep by the threefold profession of
love for the Lord, says, " dearly-beloved, I
beseech you, as strangers and pilgrims, abstain
from fleshly lusts which war against the soul V
But for whom do fleshly pleasures wage war, if
not for the devil, whose delight it is to fetter
souls that strive after things above, with the
enticements of corruptible good things, and to
draw them away from those abodes from which
he himself has been banished ? Against his
plots every believer must keep carerul watch
that he may crush his foe on the side whence
the attack is made. And there is no more
powerful weapon, dearly-beloved, against the
devil's wiles than kindly mercy and bounteous
charity, by which every sin is either escaped
or vanquished. But this lofty power is not
attained until that which is opposed to it be
overthrown. And what so hostile to mercy
and works of charity as avarice from the
root of which spring all evils ?a ? And unless it
be destroyed by lack of nourishment, there
must needs grow in the ground of that heart
in which this evil weed has taken root, the
thorns and briars of vices rather than any seed
of true goodness. Let us then, dearly-beloved,
resist this pestilential evil and '' follow after
charity ?"," without which no virtue can flourish,
that by this path of love whereby Christ came
down to us, we too may mount up to Him, to
Whom with God the Father and the Holy
Spirit is honour and glory for ever and ever.
Amen.

SERMON LXXV.

(On Whitsuntide, T.)

I. The giving of the Law by Moses prepared the
way for the outpouring of the Holy Ghost.

The hearts of all catholics, beloved, realize
that to-day's solemnity is to be honoured as one
of the chief feasts, nor is there any doubt that
great respect is due to this day, which the
Holy Spirit has hallowed by the miracle ot
His most excellent gift. For from the day
on which the Lord ascended up above all
heavenly heights to sit down at God the

7 i Pet. ii. ii.

7» Cf. i Tim. vi. 10 ; and below, i Cor. xiv. i.

190

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

Father's right hand, this is the tenth which
has shone, and the fiftieth from His Resur-
rection, being the very day on which it
began 8, and containing in itself great revela-
tions of mysteries both new and old, by which
it is most manifestly revealed that Grace was
fore-announced through the Law and the Law
fulfilled through Grace. For as of old, when
the Hebrew nation were released from the
Egyptians, on the fiftieth day after the sacri-
ficing of the lamb the Law was given on Mount
Sinai, so after the suffering of Christ, wherein
the true Lamb of God was slain on the fiftieth
day from His Resurrection, the Holy Ghost
came down upon the Apostles and the multi-
tude of believers, so that the earnest Christian
may easily perceive that the beginnings of
the Old Testament were preparatory to the
beginnings of the Gospel, and that the second
covenant was founded by the same Spirit that
had instituted the first.

1 1. How marvellous was the gift of " divers
tongues.'1''

For as the Apostles' story testifies : "while
the days of Pentecost were fulfilled and all the
disciples were together in the same place, there
occurred suddenly from heaven a sound as of a
violent wind coming, and filled the whole
house where they were sitting. And there
appeared to them divided tongues as of lire,
and it sat upon each of them. And they
were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began
to speak with other tongues, as the Holy Spirit
gave them utterance 9." Oh ! how swift are
the words of wisdom, and where God is the
Master, how quickly is what is taught, learnt.
No interpretation is required for understand-
ing, no practice for using, no time for study-
ing, but the Spirit of Truth blowing where
He wills9a, the languages peculiar to each nation
become common property in the mouth of the
Church. And therefore from that day the
trumpet of the Gospel-preaching has sounded
loud : from that day the showers of gracious
gifts, the rivers of blessings, have watered every
desert and all the dry land, since to renew the
face of the earth the Spirit of God " moved over
the waters 9a," and to drive away the old darkness
flashes of new light shone forth, when by the
blaze of those busy tongues was kindled the
Lord's bright Word and fervent eloquence, in
which to arouse the understanding, and to
consume sin there lay both a capacity of en-
lightenment and a power of burning.

8 In eo (Sc. die) a gun coefiit (Sc.fi-stum), apparently an obscure
way of saying th it the first Whitsunday was the same day of the
week (viz. the first) as the first Easter-day.

9 Acts ii. i — 4.

9» Ci. S. John iii. 8 ; and below, Gen. i. a.

III. The three Persons in the Trinity art
perfectly equal in all things.
But although, dearly-beloved, the actual
form of the thing done was exceeding wonder-
ful, and undoubtedly in that exultant chorus
of all human languages the Majesty of the
Holy Spirit was present, yet no one must
think that His Divine substance appeared in
what was seen with bodily eyes. For His
Nature, which is invisible and shared in com-
mon with the Father and the Son, showed the
character of His gift and work by the outward
sign that pleased Him, but kept His essential
property within His own Godhead : because
human sight can no more perceive the Holy
Ghost than it can the Father or the Son. For
in the Divine Trinity nothing is unlike or un-
equal, and all that can be thought concerning
Its substance admits of no diversity either in
power or glory or eternity. And while in the
property of each Person the Father is one,
the Son is another, and the Holy Ghost is
another, yet the Godhead is not distinct and
different ; for whilst the Son is the Only
begotten of the Father, the Holy Spirit is
the Spirit of the Father and the Son, not in
the way that every creature is the creature
of the Father and the Son, but as living and
having power with Both, and eternally sub-
sisting of That Which is the Father and the
Son l. And hence when the Lord before the
day of His Passion promised the coming of the
Holy Spirit to His disciples, He said, " I have
yet many things to say to you, but ye cannot
bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of
Truth shall have come, He shall guide you
into all the Truth. For He shall not speak
from Himself, but whatsoever He shall have
heard, He shall speak and shall announce things
to come unto you. All things that the Father
hath are Mine : therefore said I that He shall
take of Mine, and shall announce it to you2."
Accordingly, there are not some things that
are the Father's, and other the Son's, and
other the Holy Spirit's : but all things what-
soever the Father has, the Son also has, and
the Holy Spirit also has : nor was there ever
a time when this communion did not exist,
because with Them to have all things is tc
always exist. In them let no times, no grades,
no differences be imagined 3, and, if no one can
explain that which is true concerning God
let no one dare to assert what is not true
For it is more excusable not to make a ful

1 For this statement of the doctrine of the Trinity, esp. ii
regard to the Twofold Procession of the Holy Ghost, cf. Lett. XV
chap. 2. Bright quotes Swete's History of the Doctrine, p. 157.

2 S. John xvi. 12 — 15.

3 Cf. Serm. XXVIII. chap. 4, cum gradus in vera Divinitat
esse non possit, and Serm. LXXII.chap. 5, nee Unitatcm gradibv
dividtit, and Blight's notes 29 and 116 on the subject.

SERMON LXXVII.

191

statement concerning His ineffable Nature
than to frame an actually wrong definition.
And so whatever loyal hearts can conceive
of the Father's eternal and unchangeable
Glory, let them at the same time understand

1 it of the Son and of the Holy Ghost without
any separation or difference. For we confess
this blessed Trinity to be One God for this
reason, because in these three Persons there is

i no diversity either of substance, or of power,
or of will, or of operation.

IV. The Macedonian heresy is as blasphemous
as the Avian.

As therefore we abhor the Arians, who
maintain a difference between the Father and
the Son, so also we abhor the Macedonians +,
who, although they ascribe equality to the
Father and the Son, yet think the Holy Ghost
to be of a lower nature, not considering that
they thus fall into that blasphemy, which is not
to be forgiven either in the present age or in
the judgment to come, as the Lord says : " who-
soever shall have spoken a word against the
Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him, but he
"hat shall have spoken against the Holy Ghost,
t shall not be forgiven him either in this age
yc in the age to come 5." And so to persist
n this impiety is unpardonable, because it
:uts him off from Him, by Whom he could
:onfess : nor will he ever attain to healing
)ardon, who has no Advocate to plead for
urn. For from Him comes the invocation of
he Father, from Him come the tears of peni-
ents, from Him come the groans of suppliants,
nd " no one can call Jesus the Lord save in
he Holy Ghost6," Whose Omnipotence as
qual and Whose Godhead as one, with the
"ather and the Son, the Apostle most clearly
proclaims, saying, " there are divisions of graces
>ut the same Spirit ; and the divisions of
linistrations but the same Lord ; and there
;re divisions of operations but the same God,
yho worketh all things in all 6."

\ The Spirit's work is still continued in the
Church.
By these and other numberless proofs,
early-beloved, with which the authority of the
•ivine utterances is ablaze, let us with one
tind be incited to pay reverence to Whitsun-

4 "Arianism had spoken both of the Son and the Holy Spirit
creatures. The Macedonians, rising up out of Semi-arianism,
adually reached the Church's belief as to the uncreated Majesty

the Son, even if they retained their objection to the Homo-
sion. But having, in their previously Semi-arian position,
used to extend their own Homoi-ousion to the Holy Spirit,
:y afterwards persisted in regarding Him 'as external to the
le indivisible Godhead.' Newman's Arians, p. 226." Bright's
129. Macedonius, from whom the sect was named, was bp.
Constantinople alternately with his rival, the orthodoxPaul,
:ween 342 and 351, and from that date he held the See in full
'.session till 360, when he was finally deposed.

5 S. Matt. xii. 32. 6 1 Cor. xii. 3—6.

tide, exulting in honour of the Holy Ghost,
through Whom the whole catholic Church is
sanctified, and every rational soul quickened ;
Who is the Inspirer of the Faith, the Teacher
of Knowledge, the Fount of Love, the Seal of
Chastity, and the Cause of all Power. Let the
minds of the faithful rejoice, that throughout
the world One God, Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost, is praised by the confession of all
tongues, and that that sign of His Presence,
which appeared in the likeness of fire, is still
perpetuated in His work and gift. For the
Spirit of Truth Himself makes the house of
His glory shine with the brightness of His
light, and will have nothing dark nor lukewarm
in His temple. And it is through His aid and
teaching also that the purification of fasts and
alms has been established among us. For this
venerable day is followed by a most wholesome
practice, which all the saints have ever found
most profitable to them, and to the diligent ob-
servance of which we exhort you with a shep-
herd's care, to the end that if any blemish has
been contracted in the days just passed through
heedless negligence, it may be atoned for by
the discipline of fasting and corrected by pious
devotion. On Wednesday and Friday, there-
fore, let us fast, and on Saturday for this very
purpose keep vigil with accustomed devotion,,
through Jesus Christ our Lord, Who with the
Father and the Holy Ghost lives and reigns
for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON LXXVII.

(On Whitsuntide, III.)

I. The Holy Ghost's work did not begin at
Pentecost, but was continued because the Holy
Trinity is One in action and in will.

To-day's festival, dearly-beloved, which is
held in reverence by the whole world, has been
hallowed by that advent of the Holy Ghost,
which on the fiftieth day after the Lord s Resur-
rection, descended on the Apostles and the
multitude of believers ?, even as it was hoped.
And there was this hope, because the Lord
Jesus had promised that He should come, not
then first to be the Indweller of the saints, but
to kindle to a greater heat, and to fill with
larger abundance the hearts that were dedi-
cated to Him, increasing, not commencing His
gifts, not fresh in operation because richer in
bounty. For the Majesty of the Holy Ghost
is never separate from the Omnipotence of the
Father and the Son, and whatever the Divine
government accomplishes in the ordering of

7 Bright (n. 133) quotes Aug (in Joan. Evan. Tr. 92, c. 1

and Serm. 267, 1) for the opinion, which Leo here seem
to follow, that the "all" of Acts ii. 1 includes the 120 (cf. ..
i. 20) as well as the Twelve.

192

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

all things, proceeds from the Providence of
the whole Trinity. Therein exists unity of
mercy and loving-kindness, unity of judgment
and justice : nor is there any division in action
where there is no divergence of will. What,
therefore, the Father enlightens, the Son en-
lightens, and the Holy Ghost enlightens : and
while there is one Person of the Sent, another
of the Sender, and another of the Promiser,
both the Unity and the Trinity are at the same
time revealed to us, so that the Essence which
possesses equality and does not admit of soli-
tariness is understood to belong to the same
Substance but not the same Person.

II. Each Person in the Trinity took part in our

Redemption.
The fact, therefore, that, with the co-opera-
tion of the inseparable Godhead still perfect,
certain things are performed by the Father,
certain by the Son, and certain by the Holy
Spirit, in particular belongs to the ordering of
our Redemption and the method of our sal-
vation. For if man, made after the image and
likeness of God, had retained the dignity of
his own nature, and had not been deceived by
the devil's wiles into transgressing through lust
the law laid down for him, the Creator of the
world would not have become a Creature, the
Eternal would not have entered the sphere of
time, nor God the Son, Who is equal with God
the Father, have assumed the form of a slave
and the likeness of sinful flesh. But because "by
the devil's malice death entered into the world8,"
and captive humanity could not otherwise be
set free without His undertaking our cause,
Who without loss of His majesty should both
become true Man, and alone have no taint of
sin, the mercy of the Trinity divided for Itself
the work of our restoration in such a way that
the Father should be propitiated, the Son
should propitiate 9, and the Holy Ghost en-
kindle. For it was necessary that those who
are to be saved should also do something on
their part, and by the turning of their hearts to
the Redeemer should quit the dominion of the
enemy, even as the Apostle says, " God sent
the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying
Abba, Father1," "And where the Spirit of the
Lord is, there is liberty2," and "no one can
call Jesus Lord except in the Holy Spirit 3."

III. But this apportionment of functions does

not mar the Unity of the Trinity.

If, therefore, under guiding grace, dearly-

8 Wisd. ii. 24.

9 *' The Atonement is a reconciling not merely of man to God
but of Gor> to man," says Archbp. Trench, and that, as S. Thomas
Aquinas explains, in regard to our sins not in regard to our nature,
in which regard He always loves us (passages quoted by Bright,
"• 54).

1 Gal. iv. 6. 2 2 Cor. iii. 17. 3 1 Cor. xii. 3.

beloved, we faithfully and wisely understand
what is the particular work of the Father, of
the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, and what is
common to the Three in our restoration, we
shall without doubt so accept what has been
wrought for us by humiliation and in the body
as to think nothing unworthy about the One
and Selfsame Glory of the Trinity. For although
no mind is competent to think, no tongue to
speak about God, yet whatever that is which i
the human intellect apprehends about the
essence of the Father's Godhead, unless one
and the selfsame truth is held concerning His
Only-begotten or the Holy Spirit, our medita-
tions are disloyal, and beclouded by the in-
trusions of the flesh, and even that is lost,
which seemed a right conclusion concerning
the Father, because the whole Trinity is for-
saken, if the Unity therein is not maintained;
and That Which is different by any inequality
can in no true sense be One.

IV. In thinking upon Gor>, we must put aside
all material notions.

When, therefore, we fix our minds on con
fessing the Father and the Son and the Holy
Ghost, let us keep far from our thoughts the
forms of things visible, the ages of beings born
in time, and all material bodies and places.
Let that which is extended in space, that which
is enclosed by limit, and whatever is not always
everywhere and entire be banished from the
heart. The conception of the Triune God-
head must put aside the idea of interval or of
grade *, and if a man has attained any worthy
thought of God, let him not dare to withhold
it from any Person therein, as if to ascribe
with more honour to the Father that which he
does not ascribe to the Son and Spirit. It is
not true godliness to put the Father before the
Only-begotten : insult to the Son is insult to
the Father : what is detracted from the One is
detracted from Both. For since Their Eternity
and Godhead are alike common, the Father is
not accounted either Almighty and Unchange
able, if He begat One less than Himself 01
gained by having One Whom before He har
nots.

V. Christ as Man is less than the Father, a.
God co-equal.
The Lord Jesus does, indeed, say to Hi
disciples, as was read in the Gospel lection
"if ye loved Me, ye would assuredly rejoice
because I go to the Father, because thi
Father is greater than I6;" but those ears

4 See Serm. LXXV. chap. 3, n. 3.

5 See Serm. XXIII. chap. 2.

6 S. John xiv. 28 ; x. 30 ; xiv. 9. In the English Church
the Gospel for Whitsunday is still the same as it was in Leo
time at Rome.

SERMON LXXVIII.

T93

which have often heard the words, " I
and the Father are One6," anfi "He that
sees Me, sees the Father also6," accept the
saying without supposing a difference of God-
head or understanding it of that Essence which
they know to be co-eternal and of the same
nature with the Father. Man's uplifting, there-
fore, in the Incarnation of the Word, is com-
mended to the holy Apostles also, and they,
who were distressed at the announcement of
the Lord's departure from them, are incited to
eternal joy over the increase in their dignity ;
" If ye loved Me," He says, " ye would as-
suredly rejoice, because I go to the Father:"
that is, if, with complete knowledge ye saw what
glory is bestowed on you by the fact that,
being begotten of God the Father, I have been
born of a human mother also, that being

1 invisible I have made Myself visible, that being
eternal " in the form of God " I accepted the
" form of a slave," " ye would rejoice because I

| go to the Father." For to you is offered this
ascension, and your humility is in Me raised to
a place above all heavens at the Father's right
hand. But I, Who am with the Father that
which the Father is, abide undivided with My
Father, and in coming from Him to you I do
not leave Him, even as in returning to Him
from you I do not forsake you. Rejoice, there-
fore, "because I go to the Father, because the
Father is greater than I." For I have united
you with Myself, and am become Son of Man
that you might have power to be sons of
God. And hence, though I am One in both
forms, yet in that whereby I am conformed to
you I am less than the Father, whereas in that
whereby I am not divided from the Father I
,im greater even than Myself. And so let the
Nature, which is less than the Father, go? to
he Father, that the Flesh may be where the
!»Vord always is, and that the one Faith of the
hatholic Church may believe that He Whom
s Man it does not deny to be less, is equal as
God with the Father.

71. And this equality which the Son has with
the Father, the Holy Ghost also has.

Accordingly, dearly-beloved, let us despise
le vain and blind cunning of ungodly heretics,
hich flatters itself over its crooked interpre-
ition of this sentence, and when the Lord
ays, " All things that the Father hath are
line8," does not understand that it takes
way from the Father whatever it dares to deny
) the Son, and is so foolish in matters even

which are human as to think, that what is His
Father's has ceased to belong to His Only-
begotten, because He has taken on Him what
is ours. Mercy in the case of God does not
lessen power, nor is the reconciliation of the
creature whom He loves a falling off of Eternal
glory. What the Father has the Son also has,
and what the Father and the Son have, the
Holy Ghost also has, because the whole Trinity
together is One God. But this Faith is not
the discovery of earthly wisdom nor the con-
viction of man's opinion : the Only-begotten
Son has taught it Himself, and the Holy Ghost
has established it Himself, concerning Whom
no other conception must be formed than is
formed concerning the Father and the Son.
Because albeit He is not the Father nor the
Son, yet He is not separable from the Father
and the Son : and as He has His own person-
ality in the Trinity, so has He One substance
in Godhead with the Father and the Son, fill-
ing all things, containing all things, and with
the Father and the Son controlling all things,
to Whom is the honour and glory for ever and
ever. Amen.

SERMON LXXVIII.

(On the Whitsuntide Fast, I.)

I. Since the Apostles' day till now self-restraint
is the best defence against the devil's assaults.

To-day's festival, dearly-beloved, hallowed
by the descent of the Holy Ghost, is followed,
as you know by a solemn fast, which being
a salutary institution for the healing of soul
and body, we must keep with devout observ-
ance. For when the Apostles had been filled
with the promised power, and the Spirit of
Truth had entered their hearts, we doubt not
that among the other mysteries of heavenly
doctrine this discipline of spiritual self-restraint
was first thought of at the prompting of the
Paraclete in order that minds sanctified by
fasting might be fitter for the chrism to be
bestowed on them 9. The disciples of Christ
had the protection of the Almighty aid, and
the chiefs of the infant Church were guarded
by the whole Godhead of the Father and the
Son through the presence of the Holy Ghost.
But against the threatened attacks of perse-
cutors, against the terrifying shouts of the
ungodly, they could not fight with bodily
strength or pampered flesh, since that which
delights the outer does most harm to the
inner man, and the more one's fleshly sub-
stance is kept in subjection, the more purified
is the reasoning soul.

6 Ibid.

7 Vadat (subj.); others read vadii (indie. 1 = goes, in which
be Christ is still imagined to be speaking. If we read yadat,
;s utterance ends with the last sentence. 8 S. John xvi. 15.

VOL. XII. I

9 Cf. note 9 on Lett. CLVI. chap. 5.

194

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

II. The tempter is foiled in attacks upon those

who have learnt these tactics.
And so those teachers, who have instructed
all the Church's sons by their examples and
their traditions, began the rudiments of the
Christian warfare with holy fasts, that, having
to fight against spiritual wickednesses, they
might take the armour of abstinence, where-
with to slay the incentives to vice. For in-
visible foes and incorporeal enemies will have
no strength against us, if we be not entangled
in any lusts of the flesh. The desire to hurt
us is indeed ever active in the tempter, but
he will be disarmed and powerless, if he find
no vantare nround within us from which to
attack us. But who, encompassed with this
frail flesh, and placed in this body of death,
even one who has made much decided pro-
gress, can be so sure of his safety now, as to
believe himself free from the peril of all allure-
ments? Although Divine Grace gives daily
victory to His saints1, yet He does not remove
the occasion for fighting, because this very
fact is part of our Protector's Mercy, Who
has always designed that something should
remain for our ever-changing nature to win,
lest it should boast itself on the ending of the
battle.

III. And so this fast comes very opportunely

after the feast of Whitsuntide.

Therefore, after the days of holy gladness,
which we have devoted to the honour of the
Lord rising from the dead and then ascending
into heaven, and after receiving the gift of the
Holy Ghost, a fast is ordained as a wholesome
and needful practice, so that, if perchance
through neglect or disorder even amid the joys
of the festival any undue licence has broken
out, it may be corrected by the remedy of
strict abstinence, which must be the more
scrupulously carried out in order that what
was on this day Divinely bestowed on the
Church may abide in us. For being made
the Temple of the Holy Ghost, and watered
with a greater supply than ever of the Divine
Stream, we ought not to be conquered by any
lusts nor held in possession by any vices in
order that the habitation of Divine power may
be stained with no pollution.

IV. And by proper use of it we shall win Govs

favour.

And this assuredly it is possible for all to
obtain, God helping and guiding us, if by the
purification of fasting and by merciful liber-

* Cf. Serm. LXXXVIII chap. 3, licet quotidlano Dei munere
a divtsis contaminationibus emundemur, inherent tamen in-
caritis animis maculce crassiores quas oborteat diligeutiori cura
ablui.

ality, we take pains to be set free from the
filth of sins, and to be rich in the fruits of
love. For whatever is spent in feeling the
poor, in healing the sick, in ransoming pri-
soners, or in any other deeds of piety, is not
lessened but increased, nor will that ever be
lost in the sight of God which the loving-kind-
ness of the faithful has expended, seeing that
whatever a man gives in relief, he lays up for
his own reward. For " blessed are the merci-
ful, since God shall have mercy on them2;"
nor will shortcomings be remembered, where
the presence of true religion has been attested.
On Wednesday and Friday, therefore, let us
fast, and on Saturday let us keep vigil in the
presence of the most blessed Apostle, Peter,
by whose prayers we surely trust to be set free
both from spiritual foes and bodily enemies;
through our Lord Jesus Christ, who with the
Father and the Holy Ghost, lives and reijns
for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON LXXXII.

On the Feast 3 of the Apostles Peter
and Paul (June 29).

I. Rome owes its high position to these Apostles.

The whole world, dearly-beloved, does in-
deed take part in all holy anniversaries, and
loyalty to the one Faith demands that whatever
is recorded as done for all men's salvation
should be everywhere celebrated with common
rejoicings. But, besides that reverence which
to-day's festival has gained from all the world,
it is to be honoured with special and peculiar
exultation in our city, that there may be a pre-
dominance of gladness on the day of their
martyrdom in the place where the chief of
the Apostles met their glorious end-*. For
these are the men, through whom the light
of Christ's gospel shone on thee, O Rome,
and through whom thou, who wast the teacher
of error, wast made the disciple of Truth.
These are thy holy Fathers and true shepherds,
who gave thee claims to be numbered among

a S. Matt. v. 7.

3 Natali, lit. birthday : but the early Church gave this beau-
tiful name to, and kept the memory of Saints on, the dj.y of their
death (cf. below, in die martyrii eorum) in all cases except that
of S. John the Baptist (from the importance of his natural birth-
day in connexion with the Lord's Nativity). The Conversion
of S. Paul is a later exception.

4 It is of course well known that this is very debateable ground
and as such, it is wiser to leave it untouched in a work which
is only intended as a means of rendering English-speaking peoplt
acquainted with Leo's views and statements. It will be noticed
however, that the historically verified connexion of S. Paul wit!
Rome is as nothing in his eyes in comparison with the ven
apocryphal connexion of S. Peter : cf. below, per sacrum beat
Petri sedem, on which the Ballerinii very appropriately quoti
Prosper de Ingratis : —

Sedes Roma Petri, quce pastoralis honore
facta caput rnundo, quidquid non possidet annis
religione tenet.

The Roman Calendar still retains the double commemoration 0)

June 29.

SERMON LXXXII.

195

the heavenly kingdoms, and built thee under
much better and happier auspices than they,
by whose zeal the first foundations of thy walls
were laid : and of whom the one that gave
thee thy name defiled thee with his brother's
blood 5. These are they who promoted thee
to such glory, that being made a holy nation,
a chosen people, a priestly and royal state sa,
and the head of the world through the blessed
Peter's holy See thou didst attain a wider sway
by the worship of God than by earthly govern-
ment. For although thou wert increased
by many victories, and didst extend thy rule
on land and sea, yet what thy toils in war
subdued is less than what the peace of Christ
has conquered.

II. The extension of the Roman empire was

part of the Divine scheme.

For the good, just, and Almighty God, Who
has never withheld His mercv from mankind,
and has ever instructed all men alike in the
knowledge of Himself by the most abundant
benefits, has by a more secret counsel and
a deeper love shown pity upon the wanderers'
voluntary blindness and proclivities to evil, by
sending His co-equal and co-eternal Word.
Which becoming flesh so united the Divine
Nature with the human that He by lowering
His Nature to the uttermost has raised our
nature to the highest. But that the result of
this unspeakable Grace might be spread abroad
throughout the world, God's Providence made
ready the Roman empire, whose growth has
reached such limits that the whole multitude
of nations are brought into close connexion.
For the Divinely-planned work particularly re-
quired that many kingdoms should be leagued
together under one empire, so that the preach-
ing of the world might quickly reach to all
people, when they were held beneath the rule
of one state. And yet that state, in ignorance
of the Author of its aggrandisement though it
rule almost all nations, was enthralled by the
errors of them all, and seemed to itself to have
fostered religion greatly, because it rejected
no falsehood. And hence its emancipation
through Christ was the more wondrous that
it had been so fast bound by Satan.

III. On the dispersing of the Twelve, St. Peter

was sent to Rome.

For when the twelve Apostles, after re-
ceiving through the Holy Ghost the power
of speaking with all tongues, had distributed
the world into parts among themselves, and
undertaken to instruct it in the Gospel, the

5 i.e. Romulus (the traditional founder ot Rome) murdered his
brother, Remus. S» Cf. 1 S. Pet. ii. 9.

most blessed Peter, chief of the Apostolic
band, was appointed to the citadel of the
Roman empire, that the light of Truth which
was being displayed for the salvation of all
the nations, might spread itself more effec-
tively throughout the body of the world from
the head itself. What nation had not repre-
sentatives then living in this city ; or what
peoples did not know what Rome had learnt?
Here it was that the tenets of philosophy must
be crushed, here that the follies of earthly
wisdom must be dispelled, here that the cult
of demons must be refuted, here that the
blasphemy of all idolatries must be rooted
out, here where the most persistent super-
stition had gathered together all the various
errors which had anywhere been devised.

IV. St. Peters love conquered his fears in
coming to Rome.

To this city then, most blessed Apostle
Peter, thou dost not fear to come, and when
the Apostle Paul, the partner of thy glory,
was still busied with regulating other churches,
didst enter this forest of roaring beasts, this
deep, stormy ocean with greater boldness
than when thou didst walk upon the sea.
And thou who hadst been frightened by the
high priest's maid in the house of Caiaphas,
hadst no fear of Rome the mistress of the
world. Was there any less power in Claudius,
any less cruelty in Nero than in the judgment
of Pilate or the Jews' savage rage? So then
it was the force of love that conquered the
reasons for fear : and thou didst not think
those to be feared whom thou hadst undertaken
to love. But this feeling of fearless affection
thou hadst even then surely conceived when
the profession of thy love for the Lord was
confirmed by the mystery of the thrice-repeated
question. And nothing else was demanded
of this thy earnest purpose than that thou
shouldst bestow the food wherewith thou hadst
thyself been enriched, on feeding His sheep
whom thou didst love.

V". S. Peter was providentially prepared for his
great mission.

Thy confidence also was increased by many
miraculous signs, by many gifts of grace, by
many proofs of power. Thou hadst already
taught the people, who from the number of
the circumcised had believed : thou hadst
already founded the Church at Antioch, where
first the dignity of the Christian name arose:
thou hadst already instructed Pontus, Galatia,
Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, in the laws of
the Gospel-message : and, without doubt as
to the success of the work, with full know-
ledge of the short span of thy life didst carry

o 2

196

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

the trophy of Christ's cross into the citadel of
Rome, whither by the Divine fore-ordaining
there accompanied thee the honour of great
power and the glory of much suffering.

VI. Many noble martyrs have sprung from the

blood of SS. Peter and Paul.

Thither came also thy blessed brother-
Apostle Paul, " the vessel of election s>>}" and
the special teacher of the Gentiles, and was
associated with thee at a time when all in-
nocence, all modesty, all freedom was in
jeopardy under Nero's rule. Whose fury,
inflamed by excess of all vices, hurled him
headlong into such a fiery furnace of mad-
ness that he was the first to assail the Chris-
tian name with a general persecution, as if
God's Grace could be quenched by the death
of saints, whose greatest gain it was to win
eternal happiness by contempt of this fleeting
life. "Precious," therefore, "in the e>cs
of the Lord is the death of His saints6:"
nor can any degree of cruelty destroy the reli-
gion which is founded on the mystery of
Christ's cross. Persecution does not diminish
but increase the church, and the Lord's field
is clothed with an ever richer crop, while the
grains, which fall singly, spring up and are
multiplied a hundred fold ?. Hence how
large a progeny have sprung from these
two Heaven-sown seeds is shown by the
thousands of blessed martyrs, who, rivalling
the Apostles' triumphs, have traversed the
city far and wide in purple-clad and ruddy-
gleaming throngs, and crowned it, as it were,
with a single diadem of countless gems.

VII. No distinction must be drawn between the

merits of the two.

And over this band, dearly-beloved, whom
God has set forth for our example in patience
and for our confirmation in the Faith, there
must be rejoicing everywhere in the com-
memoration of all the saints, but of these
two Fathers' excellence we must rightly
make our boast in louder joy, for God's
Grace has raised them to so high a place
among the members of the Church, that He
has set them like the twin light of the
eyes in the body, whose Head is Christ.
About their merits and virtues, which pass all
power of speech, we must not make distinc-
tions, because they were equal in their elec-
tion 8, alike in their toils, undivided in their

S* Acts ix. 15. 6 Ps. cxvi. 15.

7 This is a commonplace with the Fathers : S. Augustine is
esp. fond of it ; Hurter quotes Irom him de catech.rud. chap. xxiv.
and four times on the Psalms. Cf. Serm. XXXVI. chap. iii. n. 1.

8 Electio pares (fecit) omitted by the oldest Vatican MS.
but undoubtedly genuine, the allusion being obviously to S. Paul's
claim to equal apostleship with the Twelve more than once ad-
vanced (e.g. 2 Cor. xi. 5, Ate). This then is an interesting passage

death. But as we have proved for ourselves,
and our forefathers maintained, we believe,
and are sure that, amid all the toils of this life,
we must always.be assisted in obtaining God's
Mercy by the prayers of special interceders,
that we may be raised by the Apostles' merits
in proportion as we are weighed down by
our own sins. Through our Lord Jesus
Christ, &c.

SERMON LXXXIV9.

Concerning the Neglect of the Com-
memoration.

I. The Churchmen of Rome are in danger of
forgetting past judgments and mercies, and
becoming ungrateful to God.

The fewness of those who were present has
of itself shown, dearly-beloved, that the reli-
gious devotion wherewith, in commemoration
of the day of our chastisement and release,
the whole body of the faithful used to flock
together in order to give God thanks, has on
this last occasion been almost entirely neg-
lected : and this has caused me much sad-
ness of heart and great fear. For there is
much danger of men becoming ungrateful to
God, and through forgetfulness of His benefits
not feeling sorrow for the chastisement, nor
joy for the liberation. Accordingly I fear, ,
dearly-beloved, lest that utterance of the Pro-
phet be addressed in rebuke to such men,
which says, "thou hast scourged them and
they have not grieved : thou hast chastised
them, and they have refused to receive correc-
tion '." For what amendment is shown by
them in whom such aversion to God's service
is found ? One is ashamed to say it, but one
must not keep silence : more is spent upon
demons than upon the Apostles, and mad
spectacles draw greater crowds than blessed
martyrdoms 2. Who was it that restored this
city to safety? that rescued it from captivity?
the games of the circus-goers or the care of the
saints? surely it was by the saints' prayers
that the sentence of Divine displeasure was

when read side by side with Leo's Petrine claims, but does not
really contradict them, though the language here used, esp. the
figure of the two eyes, is strong.

9 There is some doubt as to the exact occasion of this sermon.
It seems to have been connected with the yearly commemoration
(not the first or second from the language Leo uses), of that 14
days' pillage of Rome by Genseric (in 455) and of the city's subse-
quent liberation, in which Leo took so important a part. But the
date ascribed to the sermon's delivery (the octave of SS. Peter and
Paul, i.e. July 6) does not tally well with its allusions to the
ludi' Circenses as counter-attractions to the recent Church func-
tions. A reference to Serm. IX. n. 6, will remind the reader that
it was the ludi Apollinares that, at .least in the past, were
associated with that date : perhaps Leo's phrase Indus Circensium
is only a general description and would include the Apolhnanan
games as being still held in Circo as well as others. Ihe
ludi Circenses themselves were held Sept. 4—12.

1 Jer. v. 3.

2 Martyria, which the Ball, here consider means the churcne?
built in honour \i on the scene) of the martyrdoms.

SERMON LXXXV.

197

diverted, so that we who deserved wrath, were
reserved for pardon.

II. Let them avail themselves betimes of God's
long-suffering and return to Him.

I entreat you, beloved, let those words of
the Saviour touch your hearts, Who, when
by the power of His mercy He had cleansed
ten lepers, said that only one of them all had
returned to give thanks 2a : meaning without
doubt that, though the ungrateful ones had
gained soundness of body, yet their failure in
this godly duty arose from ungodliness of
heart. And therefore, dearly-beloved, that
this brand of ingratitude may not be applied
to you, return to the Lord, remembering the
marvels which He has deigned to perform
among us ; and ascribing our release not, as
the ungodly suppose, to the influences of the
stars, but to the unspeakable mercy of Al-
mighty God, Who has deigned to soften the
hearts of raging barbarians, betake yourselves
to the commemoration of so great a benefit
with all the vigour of faith. Grave neglect
must be atoned for by yet greater tokens of
repentance. Let us use the Mercy of Him,
Who has spared us, to our own amendment,
that the blessed Peter and all the saints, who
have always been near us in many afflictions,
may deign to aid our entreaties for you to the
merciful God, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

SERMON LXXXV.

On the Feast of S. Laurence the

Martyr 3 (Aug. 10).

I. The example of the martyrs is most valuable.
Whilst the height of all virtues, dearly-
beloved, and the fulness of all righteousness
is born of that love, wherewith God and one's
neighbour is loved, surely in none is this love
found more conspicuous and brighter than in
the blessed martyrs ; who are as near to our
Lord Jesus, Who died for all men, in the
imitation of His love, as in the likeness of
their suffering. For, although that Love,
wherewith the Lord has redeemed us, cannot
be equalled by any man's kindness, because it
is one thing that a man who is doomed to die
one day should die for a righteous man, and
another that One Who is free from the debt
of sin should lay down His life for the wicked 3a :
yet the martyrs also have clone great service

2» Cf. S. Luke xvii. 18.

3 S. Laurence was the chief Deacon of the Church of Rome
in the time of Sextus II., and was martyred in the persecution
of Valerian, 258, in the way detailed by Leo in this Sermon. His
was a very favourite festival in the Middle Ages both in the East
and West.

3» Cf. Rom. v. 7, 8.

to all men, in that the Lord Who gave them
boldness, has used it to show that the penalty
of death and the pain of the cross need not
be terrible to any of His followers, but might
be imitated by many of them. If therefore
no good man is good for himself alone, and
no wise man's wisdom befriends himself only,
and the nature of true virtue is such that it leads
many away from the dark error on which its
light is shed, no model is more useful in teach-
ing God's people than that of the martyrs.
Eloquence may make intercession easy, reason-
ing may effectually persuade ; but yet examples
are stronger than words, and there is more
teaching in practice than in precept.

II. The Sainfs martyrdom described.

And how gloriously strong in this most
excellent manner of doctrine the blessed
martyr Laurentius is, by whose sufferings
to-day is marked, even his persecutors were
able to feel, when they found that his won-
drous courage, born principally of love for
Christ, not only did not yield itself, but also
strengthened others by the example of his
endurance. For when the fury of the gentile
potentates was raging against Christ's most
chosen members, and attacked those especially
who were of priestly rank, the wicked per-
secutor's wrath was vented on Laurentius the
deacon, who was pre-eminent not only in the
performance of the sacred rites, but also in
the management of the church's property 4,
promising himself double spoil from one man's
capture : for if he forced him to surrender the
sacred treasures, he would also drive him out
of the pale of true religion. And so this man,
so greedy of money and such a foe to the
truth, arms himself with double weapon : with
avarice to plunder the gold ; with impiety to
carry off Christ. He demands of the guileless
guardian of the sanctuary that the church
wealth on which his greedy mind was set
should be brought to him. But the holy
deacon showed him where he had them stored,
by pointing to the many troops of poor saints,
in the feeding and clothing of whom he had
a store of riches which he could not lose, and
which were the more entirely safe that the
money had been spent on so holy a cause.

III. The description of his sufferings continued.

The baffled plunderer, therefore, frets, and
blazing out into hatred of a religion, which
had put riches to such a use, determines to

4 It will he remembered that " the serving of tables" was from
the first institution of the office one of the principal duties ol the
deacon (Jevita), see Acts vi. 1 — 6. This side of the office has
latterly fallen into abeyance and is but slightly recognized in the
English Ordinal.

ig8

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

pillage a still greater treasure by carrying off
that sacred deposit s, wherewith he was en-
riched, as he could find no solid hoard of
money in his possession. He orders Lauren-
tius to renounce Christ, and prepares to ply
the deacon's stout courage with frightful tor-
tures : and, when the first elicit nothing,
fiercer follow. His limbs, torn and mangled
by many cutting blows, are commanded to be
broiled upon the fire in an iron framework 6,
which was of itself already hot enough to
burn him, and on which his limbs were turned
from time to time, to make the torment fiercer,
and the death more lingering.

IV. Laurentius has conquered his persecutor.

Thou gainest nothing, thou prevailest no-
thing, O savage cruelty. His mortal frame is
released from thy devices, and, when Lauren-
tius departs to heaven, thou art vanquished.
The flame of Christ's love could not be over-
come by thy flames, and the fire which burnt
outside was less keen than that which blazed
within. Thou didst but serve the martyr in
thy rage, O persecutor: thou didst but swell
the reward in adding to the pain. For what
did thy cunning devise, which did not redound
to the conqueror's glory, when even the in-
struments of torture were counted as part of
the triumph? Let us rejoice, then, dearly-
beloved, with spiritual joy, and make our
boast over the happy end of this illustrious
man in the Lord, Who is "wonderful in His
saints 6a," in whom He has given us a support
and an example, and has so spread abroad
his glory throughout the world, that, from the
rising of the sun to its going down, the bright-
ness of his deacon's light doth shine, and
Rome is become as famous in Laurentius as
Jerusalem was ennobled by Stephen. By his
prayer and intercession i we trust at all times
to be assisted ; that, because all, as the
Apostle says, " who wish to live holily in
Christ, suffer persecution 8," we may be
strengthened with the spirit of love, and be
fortified to overcome all temptations by the
perseverance of stedfast faith. Through our
Lord Jesus Christ, &c.

SERMON LXXXVIII.

On the Fast of the Seventh Month, III 9.

I. The Fasts, which the ancient prophets pro-
claimed, are still necessary.

Of what avail, dearly-beloved, are religious

5 Depositum, viz. his faith, the irapaflrjicrj of i Tim. vi. 20.
Perr cyratem ferream usually represented in pictures or
statues of the saint as a gridiron.

("■ Ps. lxviii. 35(LXX.).

7 Cf. Sermon LXXXII. c. 7. 8 2 Tim iii. 12.

9 That is the September, or as we should now say, the Michael-
mas kmbertide.

fasts in winning the mercy of God, and in
renewing the fortunes of human frailty, we
know from the statements of the holy Pro-
phets, who proclaim that justice of God,
Whose vengeance the people of Israel had
again and again incurred through their in-
iquities, cannot be appeased save by fasting.
Thus it is that the Prophet Joel warns them,
saying, " thus saith the Lord your God, turn
ye to Me with all your heart, with fasting and
weeping and mourning, and rend your hearts
and not your garments, and turn ye to the
Lord your God, for He is merciful and
patient, and of great kindness, and very mer-
ciful '," and again, " sanctify a fast, proclaim
a healing, assemble the people, sanctify the
church1." And this exhortation must in our
days also be obeyed, because these healing
remedies must of necessity be proclaimed by
us too, in order that in the observance of the
ancient sanctification Christian devotion may
gain what Jewish transgression lost.

II. Public services are of a higher character

than private.

But the respect that is paid to the Divine
decrees always brings a special blessing, what-
ever may be the extent of our voluntary ser-
vices, so that publicly proclaimed celebrations
are of a higher character than those which rest
on private institution 2. For the exercise of
self-restraint, which each individual imposes
on himself at his own discretion, concerns the
benefit of a certain portion only of the Church,
but the fast which the whole Church under-
goes leaves out no one from the general puri-
fication, and God's people then become
strongest, when the hearts of all the faithful
meet together in one common act of holy
obedience, when in the camp of the Christian
army there is on all sides the same making
ready for the fight and for defence. Though
the cruel enemy rage in restless fury, and
spread all round his hidden snares, yet he will
be able to catch no one and wound no one, if
he find no one off his guard, no one given up
to sloth, no one inactive in works of piety.

III. The September fast calls us in this public

way to self-amendment.

To this unconquerable strength of unity,
therefore, dearly-beloved, we are even now
invited by the solemn Fast of the Seventh
Month, that we may lift our souls to the Lord
free from worldly cares and earthly concerns.

1 Joel ii. 12, 13, and 15, 16.

2 He pursues the same thought in chap. 2 of Sermon LXXXIX
e.g. tunc est efficacior sacratiorque devotio, quando in operibus
pietatis to tius Ecclesicp units animus et unu* est census ; publico,
enim pmferenda sunt propriis et ibi intelligenda est prweipua
ratio utilitatis, ubi vigilat cura communis.

SERMON XC.

199

And because, always needful as this endeavour
is, we cannot all adhere to it perpetually, and
often through human frailty we fall back from
higher things to the things of earth, let us
at least on these days, which are most health-
fully ordained for our correction, withdraw
ourselves from worldly occupations, and steal
a little time for promoting our eternal welfare.
" For in many things," as it is written, " we
all stumble 3." And though by the daily gift
of God 4 we be cleansed from divers pollutions,
yet there cling to unwary souls for the most
part darker stains, which need a greater care
to wash them out, a stronger effort to destroy
them. And the fullest abolition of sins is
obtained when the whole Church offers up
one prayer and one confession. For if the
Lord has promised fulfilment of all they shall
ask, to the holy and devout agreement of two
or three, what shall be denied to many
thousands of the people who unite in one act
of worship, and with one breath make their
common supplications s?

:IV. Community of goods and of actions is most
precious in Gods sight.

It is a great and very precious thing, beloved,
in the Lord's sight, when Christ's whole people
engage together in the same duties, and all
ranks and degrees of either sex co-operate
with the same intent : when one purpose ani-
mates all alike of declining from evil and doing
'ood ; when God is glorified in the works of
His slaves, and the Author of all godliness6 is
)lessed in unstinted giving of thanks. The
nmgry are nourished, the naked are clothed, the
ick are visited, and men seek not their own but
' that which is another's 7," so long as in relieving
he misery of others each one makes the most of
jiis own means; and it is easy to find " a cheer-
ul giver?," where a man's performances are only
imited by the extent of his power. By this grace
f God, "which worketh all in all 7," the benefits
nd the deserts of the faithful are both enjoyed
1 common. For they, whose income is not
ke, can yet think alike, and when one rejoices
ver another's bounty his feelings put him on
ie same level with him whose powers of
sending are on a different level. In such
community there is no disorder nor diversity,
ir all the members of the whole body agree
one strong purpose of godliness, and he
ho glories in the wealth of others is not put
shame at his own poverty. For the ex-
llence of each portion is the glory of the

3 S. James iii. 2.

4 Cf. Serm. LXXVIII. 2. donet licet Sanctis suis quotidianam
■ itia Divina victoriam. non atifert tamen dimicandi materiam.
|S Cf. S. Matt, xviii. ig, 20.

6 Totius pietatis auctori: cf. Collect for 23rd Sunday after
nity, which is based on that in the Gregorian Sacramentary.
< Cf. i Cor. x. 24 ; xii. 6 : 2 Cor. ix. 7.

whole body, and when we are all led by God's
Spirit, not only are the things we do ourselves
our own but those of others also over the
doing of which we rejoice.

V. Let us then i?iake the best use possible of
the opportunity.

Let us then, dearly-beloved, lay hold upon
this most sacred unity in all its blessed
integrity and engage in the solemn fast with
the concordant purpose of a good will.
Nothing hard, nothing harsh is asked of any-
one, nor is anything imposed beyond our
strength, whether in the discipline of ab-
stinence or in the amount of alms. Each
knows what he can and what he cannot do:
let every one pay his quota, assessing himself
at a just and reasonable rate, that the sacrifice
of mercy be not offered sadly nor reckoned
among losses. Let so much be expended on
pious work, as will justify the heart, wash the
conscience, and in a word profit both giver
and receiver. Happy indeed is that soul and
truly to be admired which in its love of doing
good fears not the failing of the means, and
has no distrust that He will give him money
still to spend, from Whom he had what he
spent in the past. But because few possess
this greatness of heart, and yet it is truly a pious
thing for each one not to forsake the care of
his own, we, without prejudice to the more
perfect sort, lay down for you this general rule
and exhort you to perform God's bidding
according to the measure of your ability. For
cheerfulness becomes the benevolent man,
who should so manage his liberality that
while the poor rejoice over the help supplied,
home needs may not suffer. ''And He that
ministers seed to the sower, shall both provide
bread to be eaten and multiply your seed and
increase the fruits of your righteousness 8."
On Wednesday and Friday therefore let us
fast; and on Saturday keep vigil all together 9
in the presence of the most blessed Apostle
Peter, by whose merits and prayers we are
sure God's mercy will be vouchsafed to us in
all things through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who
lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON XC.

(On the Fast of Seventh Month, V.)

I. We must always be seeking pardofi, because
we are always liable to sin.

We proclaim the holy Fast of the Seventh
Month, dearly-beloved, for the exercise ot

8 2 Cor. ix. io.

9 Pariter. He thus keeps up the leading thought of this
sermon to the end.

200

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

common devotions, confidently inciting you
with fatherly exhortations to make Christian
by your observance that which was formerly
Jewish r. For it is at all times suitable and
in agreement with both the New and Old
Testament, that the Divine Mercy should be
sought with chastisement both of mind and
body, because nothing is more effectual in
prevailing with God than that a man should
judge himself and never cease from asking
pardon, knowing that he is never without
fault. For human nature has this flaw in
itself, not planted there by the Creator but
contracted by the transgressor2, and trans-
mitted to his posterity by the law of genera-
tions, so that from the corruptible body springs
that which may corrupt the soul also. Hence
although the inner man be now reborn in Christ
and rescued from the bonds of captivity, it
has unceasing conflicts with the flesh, and has
to endure resistance in seeking to restrain vain
desires. And in this strife such perfect
victory is not easily obtained that even those
habits which must be broken off do not still
encumber us, and those vices which must be
slain do not wound. However wisely and
prudently the mind presides as judge over
the outer senses, yet even amid the pains
it takes to rule and the limits it imposes on
the appetites of the flesh, the temptation is
always too close at hand. For who so ab-
stracts himself from pleasure or pain of body
that his mind is not affected by that which
delights or racks it from without? Joy and
sorrow are inseparable from a man : no part of
him is free from the kindlings of wrath,
the over-powerings of delight, the castings
down of affliction. And what turning away
from sin can there be, where ruler and ruled
alike are liable to the same passions ? Rightly
does the Lord exclaim that " the spirit indeed
is willing but the flesh is weak V

II. Christ is Himself the Way, which He bids
us tread.
And lest we should be led by despair into
sheer inaction, He promises that the Divine
power shall make those things possible which
are to man impossible from his own lack of
power : " for narrow and strait is the way
which leadeth unto life V' and no one could
set foot on it, no one could advance one step,
unless Christ by making Himself the Way
unbarred the difficulties of approach : and thus

1 The observances of the seventh month, especially of the Day
of Atonement, will be found in Lev. xxiii. 26—44, and Numbers
xxix. 2 Sc by Adam.

3 Generandi lege : others read generali lege, by he universal
law.

4 S. Matt. xxvi. 41 ; for this passage, cf. Serm. XIX. chaps. 1
and 2, and LXXVIII. chap. 2.

5 Matt, vii 14.

the Ordainer of the journey becomes the Means
whereby we are able to accomplish it, because
not only does He impose the labour, but also
brings us to the haven of rest. In Him there-
fore we find our Model of patience, in Whom
we have our Hope of life eternal ; for " if we
sutler with Him, we shall also reign with Him 6,"
since, as the Apostle says, "he that saith he
abideth in Christ ought himself also to walk as
He walked 7." Otherwise we make a vain
pretence and show, if we follow not His steps,
Whose name we glory in, and assuredly they
would not be irksome to us, but would free us
from all dangers, if we loved nothing but what
He commanded us to love.

III. The love of God contrasted with the love of
the world.

For there are two loves from which proceed
all wishes, as different in quality as they are
different in their sources. For the reasonable
soul, which cannot exist without love, is the
lover either of God or the world. In the love
of God there is no excess, but in the love
of the world all is hurtful. And therefore we
must cling inseparably to eternal treasures,
but things temporal we must use like passers-
by, that as we are sojourners hastening to
return to our own land, all the good things
of this world which meet us may be as aids on
the way, not snares to detain us. Therefore
the blessed Apostle makes this proclamation,
"the time is short : it remains that those who
have wives be as though they had none; audi
those who weep, as though they wept not; and1
those who rejoice, as though they rejoiced
not ; and those who buy, as though they
possessed not; and those that use this world,
as though they used it not. For the fashion ■
of this wrorld passes away8." But as the world: j
attracts us with its appearance, and abundance
and variety, it is not easy to turn away from it1
unless in the beauty of things visible the CreatoJ
rather than the creature is loved ; for, when
He says, "thou shalt love the Lord thy Goi
from all thy heart, and from all thy mind, anc
from all thy strength 9," He wishes us ii
nothing to loosen ourselves from the bond
of His love. And when He links the love o
our neighbour also to this command, H<!
enjoins on us the imitation of His own good
ness, that we should love what He loves an<
do what He does. For although we b
" God's husbandry and God's building," am
"neither is he that planteth anything, no
he that watereth, but God that giveth tli
increase1," yet in all things He requires ou

6 2 Tim. ii. 12.

8 1 Cor. vii. 29 — 31.

1 1 Cor. iii. 9 and 7.

7 1 S. John ii. 6.
9 S. Matt. xxii. 37.

SERMON XCI.

201

ministry and service, and wishes us to be the

| stewards of His gifts, that he who bears God's

image may do God's will. For this reason, in

the Lord's prayer we say most devoutly, " Thy

Kingdom come, Thy will be done as in heaven,

so also on earth." For what else do we ask for

j in these words but that God may subdue those

' whom He has not yet subdued, and as in

heaven He makes the angels ministers of His

will, so also on earth He may make men?

: And in seeking this we love God, we love also

jour neighbour: and the love within us has

i but one Object, since we desire the bond-

;l servant to serve and the Lord to have rule.

I IV. The love of God is fostered by good works.

This state of mind, therefore, beloved, from
which earthly love is excluded, is strengthened
:by the habit of well-doing, because the con-
science must needs be delighted at good
deeds, and do willingly what it rejoices to
have done. Thus it is that fasts are kept,
i alms freely given, justice maintained, frequent
iprayer resorted to, and the desires of indi-
viduals become the common wish of all.
iLabour fosters patience, gentleness extin-
guishes anger, loving-kindness treads down
hatred, unclean desires are slain by holy
aspirations, avarice is cast out by liberality,
and burdensome wealth becomes the means
of virtuous acts 2. But because the snares of
the devil are not at rest even in such a state of
things, most rightly at certain seasons of the
year the renewal of our vigour is provided for :
and now in particular, when one who is
greedy of present good might boast himself
over the clemency of the weather and the
Fertility of the land, and having stored his
:rops in great barns, might say to his soul,
, 'thou hast much goods, eat and drink," let
pirn take heed to the rebuke of the Divine
/oice, and hear it saying, " Thou fool, this night
■hey require thy soul of thee, and the things
jvhich thou hast prepared, whose shall they
pes?" This should be the wise man's most
mxious consideration, in order that, as the
lays of this life are short and its span un-
certain, death may never come upon him
mawares, and that knowing himself mortal
ie may meet his end fully prepared. And so,
hat this may avail both for the sanctification
>f our bodies and the renewal of our souls,
n Wednesday and Friday let us fast, and on
aturday let us keep vigil with the most blessed
kpostle Peter, whose prayers will help us to

8 From this point the oldest Vatican lectionary (3836) gives
very different ending to the Sermon, which the Ball, consider as
pnuine as the one given by the other MSS., and translated
>ove : in which case they are probably right in inferring that
co used the Sermon more than once, and wrote these two endings
f two different occasions. 3 S. Luke xii. 19, 20.

obtain fulfilment of our holy desires through
Christ our Lord, Who with the Father and
the Holy Ghost lives and reigns for ever and
ever. Amen.

SERMON XCI.
On the Fast of the Seventh Month, VI.

I. Abstinence must include discipline of the soul
as well as of the body.

There is nothing, dearly-beloved, in which
the Divine Providence does not assist the
devotions of the faithful. For the very
elements of the world 4 also minister to the
exercise of mind and body in holiness, seeing
that the distinctly varied revolution of days
and months opens for us the different pages
of the commands, and thus the seasons also
in some sense speak to us of that which the
sacred institutions enjoin. And hence, since
the year's course has brought back the seventh
month to us, I feel certain that your minds
are spiritually aroused to keep the solemn
fast ; since you have learnt by experience
how well this preparation purifies both the
outer and the inner parts of men, so that by
abstaining from the lawful, resistance becomes
easier to the unlawful. But do not limit your
plan of abstinence, dearly-beloved, to the
mortifying of the body, or to the lessening
of food alone. For the greater advantages
of this virtue belong to that chastity of the
soul, which not only crushes the lusts of the
flesh, but also despises the vanities of worldly
wisdom, as the Apostle says, " take heed that
no one deceive you through philosophy and
empty deceit, according to the tradition of
men V

II. And in particular we must abstain from
heresy, and that of Eutyches as well as that of
Neslorius.

We must restrain ourselves, therefore, from
food, but much more must we fast from errors
that the mind, given up to no carnal pleasure,
may be taken captive by no falsehood : be-
cause as in past days, so also in our own, there
are not wanting enemies of the Truth, who
dare to stir up civil wars within the catholic
Church 6, in order that by leading the ignorant
into agreement with their ungodly doctrines
they may boast of increase in numbers
through those whom they have been able

4 Cf. Serm. XIX. 2, per ipsiits mundi cardines, quasi per
quattuor e'uangelia, incessabiliter disci in us quod et prcedicemus
et agamus.

5 Col. ii. 8.

6 The occasion of this Sermon seems to have been either the
same or a similar one to that of Serm. XCVI., in which we read
that certain traders had come to Rome from Egypt after the
murder of Proterius, supporting the heresy of Eutyches.

202

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

to sever from the Body of Christ. For what
is so opposed to the Prophets, so repugnant to
the Gospels, so at variance with the Apostles'
teaching as to preach one single Nature in
the Lord Jesus Christ born of Mary, and
without respect to time co-eternal with the
Eternal Father ? If it is only man's nature
which is to be acknowledged, where is the
Godhead Which saves ? if only God's, where
is the humanity which is saved ? But the
catholic Faith, which withstands all errors,
refutes these blasphemies also at the same
time, condemning Nestorius, who divides the
Divine from the human, and denouncing
Eutyches, who nullifies the human in the
Divine ; seeing that the Son of True God,
Himself True God, possessing unity and
equality with the Father and with the Holy
Ghost, has vouchsafed likewise to be true
Man, and after the Virgin Mother's concep-
tion was not separated from her flesh and
child-bearing, so uniting humanity to Himself
as to remain immutably God ; so imparting
Godhead to man as not to destroy but
enhance him by glorification. For He, Who
became " the form of a slave," ceased not to
be " the form of God," and He is not one joined
with the other, but One in Both, so that ever
since " the Word became Flesh " our faith
is disturbed by no vicissitudes of circumstance,
but whether in the miracles of power, or in
the degradation of suffering, we believe Him
to be both Cod, Who is Man, and Man, Who
is God 7.

III. The Truth of the Incarnation is proved
both by the Eucharistic Feast and by the
Divine institution of almsgiving.

Dearly-beloved, utter this confession with
all your heart and reject the wicked lies of
heretics, that your fasting and almsgiving may
not be polluted by any contagion with error :
for then is our offering of the sacrifice clean
and oar gifts of mercy holy, when those who
perform them understand that which they do.
For when the Lord says, "unless ye have
eaten the flesh of the Son of Man, and drunk
His blood, ye will not have life in you8," you
ought so to be partakers at the Holy Table,
as to have no doubt whatever concerning the
reality of Christ's Body and Blood. For" that
is taken in the mouth which is lelieved in
Faith, and it is vain for them to respond
Amen 9 who dispute that which is taken. But

7 For the whole of this chap, compare Lett. XXXI. chaps,
i and 2. _ 8 s. John vi. 53.

9 This (ace. to the Ball.) is the Amen which the communicant
said at the Reception of the Elements when the Priest baid to
Him, Corpus Christi and sanguis Christi: on the Euch.iristic
evidence against Eutyches, see Lett. LIX. chap. 2, and Serm.
LXI1I. chap. 7.

when the Prophet says, " Blessed is he, who
considered! the poor and needy1," he is the
praiseworthy distributor of clothes and food
among the poor, who knows he is clothing and
feeding Christ in the poor : for He Himself
says, "as long as ye have done it to one of My
brethren, ye have done it to Me2." And so
Christ is One, True God and True Man, rich in
what is His own, poor in what is ours, re-
ceiving gifts and distributing gifts, Partner with
mortals, and the Quickener of the dead, so
that in the " name of Jesus every knee should
bow, of things in heaven, of things on earth,
and of things under the earth, and that every
tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus
Christ is in the glory of God the Father,"
living and reigning with the Holy Spirit for
ever and ever. Amen.

.'it

SERMON XCV.

A Homily on the Beatitudes,
St. Matt. v. i — 9.

I. Introduction of the subject.

When our Lord Jesus Christ, beloved, was
preaching the gospel of the Kingdom, and
was healing divers sicknesses through the
whole of Galilee, the fame of His mighty
works had spread into all Syria : large
crowds too from all parts of Judaea were
flocking to the heavenly Physician •*. For as
human ignorance is slow in believing what
it does not see, and in hoping for what it does
not know, those who were to be instructed in
the divine lore5, needed to be aroused by
bodily benefits and visible miracles : so that
they might have no doubt as to the whole-
someness of His teaching when they actually
experienced His benignant power. And there-
fore that the Lord might use outward healings
as an introduction to inward remedies, and
after healing bodies might work cures in the
soul, He separated Himself from the surround-
ing crowd, ascended into the retirement of
a neighbouring mountain, and called His
apostles to Him there, that from the height
of that mystic seat He might instruct them
in the loltier doctrines, signifying from the
very nature of the place and act that He it
was who had once honoured Moses by speak-
ing to him: then indeed with a more terrifying
justice, but now with a holier mercifulness, that
what had been promised might be fulfilled
when the Prophet Jeremiah says : " behold
the days come when I will complete a new

1 Ps. xli. 1. 2 S. Matt. xxv. 40.

3 Phil. ii. 10, ii. 4 Cf. S. Matt. iv. 23, 24.

5 Divina eruditione firmandos = tovs fiioaxOTjero/uepoDS, •'
common form of expression in Leo. Cf. Lett. XXVIII. the Tonic
chap. 1, quod voce omnium regeuerandorum (= rrnv avaytvvT]
<h)7oit.ivuiv), deJ»o?>iitur.

SERMON XCV.

203

covenant6 for the house of Israel and for the
house of Judah. After those days, saith the
Lord, I will put My laws in their minds7,
and in their heart will I write them8." He
therefore who had spoken to Moses, spoke
also to the apostles, and the swift hand of
the Word wrote and deposited the secrets of
the new covenant6 in the disciples' hearts :
there were no thick clouds surrounding Him
as of old, nor were the people frightened off
from approaching the mountain by frightful
sounds and lightning 9, but quietly and freely
His discourse reached the ears of those who
stood by : that the harshness of the law might
give way before the gentleness of grace, and
" the spirit of adoption " might dispel the
terrors of bondage1.

II. The blessedness of humility discussed

The nature then of Christ's teaching is
attested by His own holy statements : that
they who wish to arrive at eternal blessedness
may understand the steps of ascent to that
high happiness. " Blessed," He saith, " are
the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven2." It would perhaps be doubtful what
poor He was speaking of, if in saying "blessed
are the poor" He had added nothing which
would explain the sort of poor: and then that
poverty by itself would appear sufficient to win
the kingdom of heaven which many suffer from
hard and heavy necessity. But when He says
"blessed are the poor in spirit" He shows
that the kingdom of heaven must be assigned
to those who are recommended by the humility
of their spirits rather than by the smallness of
their means. Yet it cannot be doubted that
this possession of humility is more easily
acquired by the poor than the rich : for sub-
imissiveness is the companion of those that
iwant, while loftiness of mind dwells with
riches3. Notwithstanding, even in many of
the rich is found that spirit which uses its
abundance not for the increasing of its pride
but on works of kindness, and counts that for
the greatest gain which it expends in the relief
f others' hardships. It is given to every kind
nd rank of men to share in this virtue, be-
cause- men may be equal in will, though un-
qual in fortune : and it does not matter Low
ifferent they are in earthly means, who are
found equal in spiritual possessions. Blessed,
therefore, is poverty which is not possessed
.vith a love of temporal things, and does

6 Or testament (Lat. testamentutn). 7 In sensu ipsorum.

8 Jer. xxxi. 31 and part of 33 : the passage is quoted in full,
3eb. viii. 8 — 12.

9 Cf. Heb. xii. 18 and foil.

1 S. Paul's language (Rom. viii. 15) is in his mind.
8 Matt. v. 3.
3 Et illis in tenuitate arnica est mansuetudo et is/is divitiis

imiliaris elatio.

not seek to be increased with the riches o*'
the world, but is eager to amass heavenly
possessions.

III. Scriptural examples of humility.

Of this high-souled humility the Apostles
first *, after the Lord, have given us example,
who, leaving all that they had without differ-
ence at the voice of the heavenly Master, were
turned by a ready change from the catching of
fish to be fishers of men, and made many like
themselves through the imitation of their faith,
when with those first-begotten sons of the
Church, " the heart of all was one, and the
spirit one, of those that believed 5 : " for they,
putting away the whole of their things and
possessions, enriched themselves with eternal
goods, through the most devoted poverty, and
in accordance with the Apostles' preaching
rejoiced to have nothing of the world and
possess all things with Christ. Hence the
blessed Apostle Peter, when he was going up
into the temple, and was asked for alms by the
lame man, said, " Silver and gold is not mine,
but what I have that I give thee : in the Name
of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, arise and walk6."
What more sublime than this humility ? what
richer than this poverty ? He hath not stores
of money ?, but he hath gifts of nature. He
whom his mother had brought forth lame from
the womb, is made whole by Peter with
a word ; and he who gave not Caesar's image
in a coin, restored Christ's image on the man.
And by the riches of this treasure not he only
was aided whose \ ower of walking was re-
stored, but 5,000 men also, who then believed
at the Apostle's exhortation on account of the
wonder of this cure. And that poor man who
had not what to give to the asker, bestowed
so great a bounty of Divine Grace, that, as he
had set one man straight on his feet, so he
healed these many thousands of believers in
their hearts, and made them "leap as an hart"
in Christ whom he had found limping in Jew-
ish unbelief.

IV. The blessedness of mourning discussed.

After the assertion of this most happy
humility, the Lord hath added, saying,
"Blessed are they which mourn, for they
shall be comforted 8." This mourning, be-
loved, to which eternal comforting is pro-
mised, is not the same as the affliction of
this world : nor do those laments which are

4 The MSS. vary between primum and prhni. The rendering
above given practically represents either. If primi, however, is
read, it may be questioned whether the true rendering is not " the
first apostles after the Lord," which would be interesting as
suggesting that S. Leo did not necessarily confine the title
"apostle" to the Twelve.

5 Acts iv. 32.

6 Acts iii. 6.

7 Prasidia pecunice.

8 S. Matt. v. 4.

104

SERMONS OF LEO THE GREAT.

poured out in the sorrowings of the whole
human race make any one blessed. The
reason for holy groanings, the cause of blessed
tears, is very different. Religious grief mourns
sin either that of others' or one's own : nor
does it mourn for that which is wrought b)
God's justice, but it laments over that which
is committed by man's iniquity, where he that
does wrong is more to be deplored than he
who suffers it, because the unjust man's wrong-
doing plunges him into punishment, but the
just man's endurance leads him on to glory.

V. The blessedness of the meek.
Next the Lord says : " blessed are the
meek, for they shall possess the earth by
inheritance 9." To the meek and gentle, to
the humble and modest, and to those who are
prepared to endure all injuries, the earth is
promised for their possession. And this is
not to be reckoned a small or cheap inherit-
ance, as if it were distinct from our heavenly
dwelling, since it is no other than these who
are understood to enter the kingdom of heaven.
The earth, then, which is promised to the
meek, and is to be given to the gentle in pos-
session, is the flesh of the saints, which in
reward for their humility will be changed in
a happy resurrection, and clothed with the
glory of immortality, in nothing now to act
contrary to the spirit, and to be in complete
unity and agreement with the will of the soul *.
For then the outer man will be the peaceful
and unblemished possession of the inner man :
then the mind, engrossed in beholding God,
will be hampered by no obstacles of human
weakness nor will it any more have to be said,
"The body which is corrupted, weigheth upon
the soul, and its earthly house presseth down
the sense which thinketh many things2:" for
the earth will not struggle against its tenant,
and will not venture on any insubordination
against the rule of its governor. For the meek
shall possess it in perpetual peace, and nothing
shall be taken from their rights, " when this
corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and
this mortal shall have put on immortality 3 ; "
that their danger may turn into reward, and
what was a burden become an honour *.

9 S. Matt. v. 5. It will be observed that Leo's order for the
2nd and 3rd beatitudes is that of the English version, not that
ot the Vulgate.

* In nullo iain spiritui futura contraria et cum voluntate
animi perfects unitatis habitura consensum : compare S. Aug.
de Fide et Symbolo, cap. 23, "est autem animce natura perfecta
cum spiritui sua subditur et cum sequitur sequentem Deum —
non est desperandum etiam corpus restitui naturo? propria —
tempore opportuno in novissima tuba, cum mortui resurgent in-
corrupti et nos immutabimur." The interpretation of this beati-
tude in this way is fantastic, and very strange to modern notions.

* Wisdom ix. 15. 3 1 Cor. xv. 53.

_ 4 Quod fuit oneri, sit honori, the play on the words (which
is quite classical) may perhaps be represented by the difference
between onerous and honorary.

VI. The blessedness of desiring righteousness.
After this the Lord goes on to say: "blessed
are they who hunger and thirst after righteous-
ness, for they shall be satisfied s." It is nothing
bodily, nothing earthly, that this hunger, this
thirst seeks for: but it desires to be satiated with
the good food of righteousness, and wants to
be admitted to all the deepest mysteries, and
be filled with the Lord Himself. Happy the
mind that craves this food and is eager for such
drink : which it certainly would not seek for if
it had never tasted of its sweetness. But hear-
ing the Prophet's spirit saying to him : " taste
and see that the Lord is sweet 6 ; " it his re-
ceived some portion of sweetness from on
high, and blazed out into love of the purest
pleasure, so that spurning all things temporal,
it is seized with the utmost eagerness for eating
and drinking righteousness, and grasps the truth
of that first commandment which says : "Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God out of all thy heart,
and out of all thy mind, and out of all thy
strength?:" since to love God is nothing else
but to love righteousness 8. In fine, as in that
passage the care for one's neighbour is joined
to the love of God, so, too, here the virtue of
mercy is linked to the desire for righteousness,
and it is said :

VII. The blessedness of the merciful:

" Blessed are the merciful, for God shall
have mercy on them9." Recognize, Ghristian,
the worth of thy wisdom, and understand to
what rewards thou art called, and by what
methods of discipline thou must attain thereto.
Mercy wishes thee to be merciful, righteous-
ness to be righteous, that the Creator may be
seen in His creature, and the image of God
may be reflected in the mirror of the human
heart expressed by the lines of imitation. The
faith of those who do good1 is free from anxiety:
thou shalt have all thy desires, and shalt obtain
without end what thou lovest. And since
through thine alms-giving all things are pure to
thee, to that blessedness also thou shalt attain
which is promised in consequence where the
Lord says :

VIII. The blessedness of a pure heart.
" Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall

5 S. Matt. v. 6.

6 Ps. xxxiv. 8: suavis, A.V. and R.V. good, P.B.V. gracious,
LXX. xpictos.

7 Dent. vi. 5, quoted, it will be remembered, by our Lord
as " the first and great commandment" in the law, S. Matt. xxii.
37 : S. Mark xii. 30 : S. Luke x. 27.

8 The two words for "love" here are different, and speak
for themselves, diligere (ayanav) Deum and amare (ipav) ius-
titiam.

9 S. Matt. v. 7.

1 Operantium : operatio is the regular patristic term for the
doing of charitable actions ; for this application of the beatitude
and its promised reward, compare Ps. xli. 1 — 3.

SERMON XCV.

205

see God2." Great is the happiness, beloved,
of him for whom so great a reward is prepared.
What, then, is it to have the heart pure, but to
strive after those virtues which are mentioned
above? And how great the blessedness of see-
ing God, what mind can conceive, what tongue
declare? And yet this shall ensue when man's
nature is transformed, so that no longer "in a
mirror," nor " in a riddle," but " face to faces "
it sees the very Godhead "as He is*," which
no man could see 5; and through the unspeak-
able joy of eternal contemplation obtains that
" which eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
neither has entered into the heart of man s\"
Rightly is this blessedness promised to purity
of heart. For the brightness of the true light
will not be able to be seen by the unclean
sight : and that which will be happiness to
minds that are bright and clean, will be a pun-
ishment to those that are stained. Therefore,
let the mists of earth's vanities be shunned,
and your inward eyes purged from all the filth
of wickedness, that the sight may be free to
feed on this great manifestation of God. For
to the attainment of this we understand what
follows to lead.

IX. The blessedness of peace-making.
" Blessed are the peace-makers, for they
shall be called the sons of God6." This bless-
edness, beloved, belongs not to any and every

2 S. Matt. v. 8. 3 1 Cor. xiii. 12. 4 1 S. John iii. 2.

5 Exod. xxxiii. 20 ; S. John. i. 18 ; 1 Tim. vi. 16.
S" Is. lxiv. 4 ; 1 Cor. ii. 9. 6 S. Matt. v. 9.

kind of agreement and harmony, but to that of
which the Apostle speaks : " have peace to-
wards God?;" and of which the Prophet David
speaks : " Much peace have they that love Thy
law, and they have no cause of offence8."
This peace even the closest ties of friendship
and the exactest likeness of mind do not really
gain, if they do not agree with God's will.
Similarity of bad desires, leagues in crimes,
associations of vice, cannot merit this peace.
The love of the world does not consort with
the love of God, nor doth he enter the alliance
of the sons of God who will not separate him-
self from the children of this generation 9.
Whereas they who are in mind always with
God, "giving diligence to keep the unity of the
Spirit in the bond of peace I," never dissent
from the eternal law, uttering that prayer of
faith, "Thy will be done as in heaven so on
earth 2." These are " the peacemakers," these
are thoroughly of one mind, and fully har-
monious, and are to be called sons "of God
and joint-heirs with Christ 3," because this shall
be the record of the love of God and the love
of our neighbour, that we shall suffer no calam-
ities, be in fear of no offence, but all the strife
of trial ended, rest in God's most perfect peace,
through our Lord, Who, with the Father and
the Holy Spirit, liveth and reigneth for ever
and ever. Amen.

7 Rom. v. i, where "we have" 01 "let us have" is the exact

phrase. ,.

8 ps. cxix. 165. 9 A carnah generatione.

1 Eph. iv. 3. a S. Matt. vi. 10 3 Rom. viii. 17-

LEO THE GREAT.

INDEX OF BIBLICAL QUOTATIONS AND REFERENCES.

The references are to the pages.

Gen. i. 2 . .
i. 5 . .
i. 14-19.
ii. 7 . .
iii. 19 .
iii. 19 .
xii. 3 .
xviii. I .
xxi. 10 .
xxii 18 .
xxii. 18 .
xxv. 23 .
xxxii. 24
xlix. IO .

Ex. iii. 14. .
xii. . .
xii. 11 (Vulg
xii. 23. .
xvi. 6 . .
xxxiii. 20

^ev. xxi. 13 .
xxi. 13, 14
xxi. 14 .
xxiii. 26-44

tfumb. xxiv. 17
xxix. .

)eut. vi. 5 .
viii, 3 .
xix. 15.
xxviii. 66

Sam. ii. 25 .

Kings xvii. 1 1

Kings vi. 16

zra iii. 2 . .

>b i. 8 . .
vii. 1 (LXX.)
xiv. 4 . .
xix. 4 .
xxxi. 26-28

vi. 6 .
vii. 4 .
xi. 2 .
xv. 1 .
xv. 5 .
xvi. 10
xviii. 44 ( Vu

XIX. I, 2

xix. 4 .

PAGE
I9O
141
141
135
135
143

45
no

134
177
146

45
145

22
186
186
168

143
205

200

148
200

204

155
163
172

156

138

141
116
142
128
141

152
171
136
126
126
26
105
127
S

Ps.

PAGE

xxii. 1. . .

. 179

xxii 12, 13, 16

166

xxii. 16, 17 .

. I67

xxv. 10 .

xxvii. 1

• 138

xxx. 5 (l;

XX.)

122

xxxi. 14

• 134

xxxiii. 5

1^5

xxxiv. 3

Il6

xxxiv. 5

141

xxxiv. 8

204

xxxiv. 18

• I'3

xxxvi. 4

xxxvii. 2j

> 24

184

xii. I .

119

xii. 1 .

. 202

xii 1-3

204

xlix. 17

. 126

li. i5 .

169

lxviii. 35

(LXX

•) iqS

lxix. 21

. 167

lxxvi. I

146

lxxvii. 10 (LX>

-) 177

lxxviii. 39 .

166

lxxxi. 10 . .

. 168

lxxxiv. 12

• 135

lxxxv. 12

lxxxvi. 9 .

. 147

xcvi. 10

. 167

xcviii. 2

• 147

cv. 4 .

• 173

cix. 1 .

• 143

cix. 6 .

• 174

ex. 1 .

142

ex. 4 .

. 116

cxv. 2 .

. 92

cxvi 15

. 196

cxviii. 16

. "3

c.xix. 73

cxix. 73

cxix. 165

• 205

CXX. 2.

. 124

exxiii. 8

. 87

ex xvi. 2

. 72

exxx. 7

, 80

exxxv 23

■ ii5

exxxvi. 4

cxl. 3 .

• 34

cxliv. 21

■ 115

cxlv. 14, 19 .

• 152

cxlvi. 6 .

• 157

cxlvi. 7, 8 .

• 150

r. ix. I . .

• 39

ix. I . .

■ 45

xi. 17 . .

. 124

xix. 14

(LXX

•) 103

PAGE

Prov. xxi. 11 (LXX ) 82
xxi 13. . . 121

Eccles. vii.

Is.

XX.)

1. 2, 3.

v. 1-5.

vii. 14

ix. 2 .

ix. 6 .

xi. 1 .

xxii. 22

xxx. 15 (I

xxxv. 5, 6

xl. 1 .

xlii. 16

xliii. 26 (LXX.

xlv. 8.

1.6 .

Hi. 10-15

liii. t .

liii. 8.

liii. 45

lv-5 •
lxiv. 4

lxv. I .
lxv. I .
lxv. 2 .

Jer. i. 5

v-3

ix. I {Vu,

xxiii. 5

xxxi.

II,

Ezek. iii. 17
xxi. 27
xliv. 22

Hos. xiii. 14

Joel ii. 12, 13
ii. 15, 16

Amos viii. 10

Micah v. 2

Habb. ii. 4
ii 4

iii. 2 (LXX.)

Tob. iv. 7 .

Wisdom ii. 24
ii. 24
ix. 15

109

138
168

39
134
185

147
172

39
134
172

80
166
142
122

135
167

150

143
132
170

147

205

74
122

173

23
196
102
142
203

145

173

198
198

1S1

148

121

136
116

121

161
192
204

Ecclus. ii. 1
iii. 30.
iii. 30.
xiii. 1 .
xviii. 30

PAGE

153
121
162

160
78

Hist, of Susanna 56 179

S. Matt. i. 1 . . .

i- I . . . .

i- 1 • . . .

i. 22, 23 . .

132

i- 23 . . .

i. 23 . . .

185

ii. I-I2 . . .

145

ii. 10, n . .

148

ii. 16 . . .

iii. 11 . . .

iii. 17 . . .

iii. 17 . .

iii. 17 . . .

iv. 1- 1 1 . . .

153

iv. 3. . . .

155

iv. 4. . .

155

iv. 10 . . .

140

iv. 23, 24 . .

202

v. 3 . . .

203

v. 4 . . . .

203

v. 5 . . .

. 204

v. 6 . . . .

155

v. 6 . . . .

2o4

v. 7 . . . ,

121

v. 7 . . .

I24

v. 7 . . . .

l62

v. 7 . . . .

I94

v. 7 . . .

, 204

v. 8 . . . .

205

v. 9. . . .

162

v. 9 . . . .

205

v. 16 . . ,

138

v. 17 . .

126

v. 17 . . ,

I48

vi. 10 . . ,

138

vi. 10 . .

• 205

vi. 12 . .

l6o

vi. 12, 14, 15

154

vi. 21 . .

139

vi. 24 . .

182

vii. 2

vii. 6

I05

vii. 14 .

. 60

vii 14 .

• 97

vii 14 .

. 166

vii. 14 .

. 200

vii. 15 . .

• 34

208

BIBLICAL INDEX.

PAGE

PAGE J

PAGE

S. Matt. vii. 15 .

. 124

S. Luke ii. 14 ,

, 129 S. Jo1

an x. II, 15 .

Rom. i. 20 . .

. 127

ix. 3 . . .

- 175

ii. 14 . . .

137 :

<• 16. . . .

177

i. 25 . . ,

127

ix. 13 . .

> 175

ii. 49 . . .

27 :

<• 17. . . .

ii. 25 . . .

I46

x. 24 . .

. 166

iii. 15-23 .

29 :

X. 3°- • • -

iii. 2. . .

1 149, j

x. 32 . . .

iii. 16 . . ,

29 :

K- 30. . .

. 60

iv. 20, 21 .

x37i

x. 38 . • •

172

v. 17 . .

K. 30 . . .

133

iv 21 . . .

147 ,

x. 42 . .

156

vi. 36 . .

X. 30. . .

139

v. 1 . . .

1381 j

xi. 28 . . .

134

vi- 36, 37, 38

126

x. 30. . .19

2, 193

v. 1 . . .

• 205: j

xi. 29, 30 . ,

vi. 38 . .

. 126

K.38. . .

164

v. 5 • • •

114 j

xi. 29, 30 . .

ix. 10 . . ,

xii. 6. . .

• 179

v. 7, 8 . .

J97: j

xii. 32 . . .

191

ix. 50 . . .

43 »

iii. 23 . . .

172

v. 18, 19 .

> 60 1

xiii. 43 . .

■ 163

ix. 62 . .

. 183

xii. 27, 28 .

. 172

v. 20 . .

92 1

xv. 13 . . .

153

x. 27 . .

204 :

xii 30-32 . ,

172

vi. 12 . .

. 152

xvi. 13-16 . .

xi. 21, 22 .

131 :

xii. 32 . . ,

- 93

vii. . . .

• 49

xvi. 13 . .

• 47

xii. 16-20 .

. 122 :

xiii. 1 . .

186

vii- 35 • •

168

xvi. 16 . .

xii. 19, 20.

201

xiii. 27 . .

170

viii 1 . .

. 183

xvi. 17 . .

• 47

xiv. II. .

• 32 :

xiii. 29 . .

179

viii. 14. .

• 139

xvi. 18 . .

xvii. 18

197

xiv. 6 . .

, 164

viii. 15. .

. 203

xvi. 16, 18. ■

174

xviii. 14 • <

32 :

xiv. 6 .

184

viii. 17 . .

. 205

xvi. 16-19 •

117

xix. 10. .

- 59 :

<iv. 9 . 19

2, 193

viii. 18. .

. 165

;

xvi. 18 . . .

xix. 10.

. 165

xiv. 16 . .

viii. 24 . .

. 16c

xvi. 18 . .

. 100

xix. 10. . .

175

xiv. 26 . .

viii. 24. .

. 18;.

xvi. 19 . . .

161

xix. 46. .

. 101

xiv. 27 . .13

8, 139

viii. 28 . .

, ii-

xvi. 28 . .

. 163

xxi. 2-4 .

156 :

xiv. 28 .

viii. 32 . .

. 1 8c

xviii. 6 .

xxi. 34. .

127

xiv. 28 . . .

viii. 34 . .

. 6(

xviii. 19, 20

• 199

xxii. 61 • ,

166

xiv. 28 . .

• 133

viii. 35 . .

• 15

xviii. 20 . .

xxiii. 34 . .

107

xiv. 28 . .

139

viii- 35-37-

■ 2;

xix. 6 . .

103

xxiii. 34 . .

167

xiv. 28 . .19

2, 193

viii. 38. . ,

xx. 26-28 .

xxiii. 34 . ,

174

xvi. 12-15 •

190

ix. 5 . .

• 9.

xxii. 11-13 .

xxiv. 27 .

xvi. 13 . .

ix. 5 . .

- 9;

xxii. 37 . . .

200

xxiv. 36 . .

187

xvi. 15 . .

'93

ix. 26 . .

• 15

xxii. 37 . . .

204

xxiv. 38, 39

xvi. 33 . .

109

x. 4- • •

. 2'

xxii- 37, 39 ■

122

xxiv. 39 .

xvi. 33 . . .

185

x. 4. . .

. 17

xxii. 43, 44 .

142

xvii. 3 . .

136

xi. 20 . .

• 7

xxiii. II, 12

S. John i. I

- 4i

xvii. 11 . . ,

xi. 32 . .

• 14

xxiv. 13. .

. 109

i. 1*3.

• 94 :

xvii. 12 .

179

xii. 5 . .

xxv. 40. . .

202

i. 1-3. .

. 129

xvii. 20, 21 . .

186

xii. 15 . . ,

■ 7

xx vi. 5 . .

169

i. 1-3.

• 139

xviii. 3 .

171

xii. 15 . .

• 15

xxvi. 38, 39

. 166

i. 3 . .

. 4i

xviii. 11. . .

170

xiii. 14 . .

. 18

xxvi. 39 . ,

170

i. 3 . .

• 59

xx. 17 . . .

189

xiv. 23 . .

■ 15

xxvi. 42 . .

170

i. 3 . .

133

xx. 19 . . .

187

XV. 2 . . .

xxvi. 39, 42

180

i. 3 . .

164

XX. 22 . . .

xvi. 17, 18

xxvi. 41

200

i. 9 . .

141

XX. 22, 23 . .

xxvi. 53 . .

166

i. 13 .

xx. 29 . . .

188

I Cor. i. 10 . . ,

xxvii. 1 . . ,

166

i. 13 .

xxi. 15-17 . .

i. 10 . . ,

xxvii. 19 . ,

171

i. 13 .

J 38

xxi. 17 . .

• 177

i. 10 . .

> /

xxvii. 25 . ,

171

i. 13 .

. 140

i. 17-20 .

xxvii. 25 .

174

i. 13 ■•

177 Acts

. II . . .

. 98

i. 24 . .

. H

xxvii. 42 .

107

i. 14 • .

. II . . .

. 189

ii. 8. . .

. i

xxvii. 42 .

181

i. 14 .

- 20 . . .

. 191

ii. 9 • . .

xxvii. 51, 54. .

181

i. 14 .

i. 1-4 . .

. 190

ii. 12 . .

, I

xxviii. 19 . .

i. 14 .

. 94

i. 37-41 . .

• 29

iii. 7 . .

. 2(

xxviii. 19 . .

i. 14 .

139

ii. 37-41 . .

. 178

iii. 9 . .

xxviii. 19, 20

• 72

i. 14 . .

- *75

iii. 6 . . .

. 203

iii. 11 . .

. I

xxviii. 20 . .

i. 17 .

v. 12 . . .

• 93

iii. 16 . .

!•

xxviii. 20 .

. 109

i. 17 .

»63

V. 12 . . .

• 95

iv. 7 . .

• '

xxviii. 20 . ,

176

i. 17 . .

. 176

V. 12 . . .

. 186

v. 7 . . .

- I

xxviii. 20 .

185

i. 18 . .

205

v. 27, 28 .

. 178

v. 8 . . .

■ I

i. 29 . ,

iv. 32 . . .

v. 8 . . .

. I

S. Mark iii. 17 . ,

139

i. 29 . ,

iv. 32 . ...

. 174

v. 8 . . .

. I

iv. 24 . .

i. 29 .

J73

iv. 32 . . .

• 203

v. 8 . . .

. I

vi. 6 . .

■ 15

ii. 19. .

v. 31 . . .

. 178

v. 8 . . . ,

, I

xii. 30 . .

. 204

iii. 8 . .

190

vi. 1-6 . .

. 197

vi. 12 . .

. I

xvi. 15. .

iii 15 .

vii. 38 . .

. 149

vii. 19 . •

xvi. 16. .

. 88

iii. 16

. 170

ix. 15 . .

. 179

vii. 21 . .

vi. 53

202

ix. 15 . .

. 196

vii. 29 . .

S. Luke i. 35 . .

viii. II .

175

xi. 26 . .

• 79

vii. 29 . .

. I

i- 35 • •

130

viii. 24 .

xiv. 16, 17 .

. 122

vii. 29-31 .

. 1

i. 43 • • ■

viii. 38 .

, 89

vii. 29-31 .

r
» 4

i. 46 . .

• "5

viii. 44 ,

88 Rom.

i. 1-3 . .

• 39

x. 17 . .

. l

ii. 7- • •

viii. 44 .

118

i. 3 • • •

. 148

x. 24 . .

, I

ii. 13 . .

• 4i

viii. 56 ,

133

i. 8 . . .

• 56

xi. 19 . .

ii. 14 . .

• 63

viii. 56 .

• 147

L 16 . .

■ 95

xii. 3 . .

•

BIBLICAL INDEX.

209

1 Cor. xii. 3-6

xii. 6
xii- 12
xiii. 4
xiii. 12
xiv. 1
xiv. 20
xiv. 25
xiv. 38

XV. 21, 2
XV. 22

XV. 28

xv. 33
xv. 45

xv. 47-49
xv. 48
xv. 53

xvii. 6

2 Cor. iii. 17

iv. 18
iv. 18

v. 15
v. 16
v. 19

v. 19
v. 19
vi. 2
vii. 1
viii. 9
ix. 7
ix. 10
x. 2.
xi. 2
xi. 5
xi. 14
xi. 14
xi. 28, 29
xi. 29
xiii. 4

Jal. i. 9
i. 9 .
ii. 9 .
ii. 10 .
ii. 18 .
iii. 16 .
iii. 22 .
iii. 27, 28
iii. 27-29
iv. 4 .
iv. 4 .
iv. 4 .

PAGE

191

199

205

189

145

173

176
82

135
182

135
204

177
192
141
160

173

183

166

175
154
ISO
119
199
199
1^3

65
196
124
140

150
69

136
121
121

io5

145

23
176

133

Gal. iv. 4 .
iv. 6 .
iv. 30 .
iv. 17 .

Eph.i. 15-23

ii-4, 5
ii. 8-10
ii. 14, 18
ii. 20.
iii. 10
iv. 3 .
iv. 3 .
iv. s .
iv. 5, 6
v. 2 .

V. 2 .
V. 2 .

v. 23.
v. 25, 26
v. 29 .

v. 3°. 31. 32
vi. 5 .
vi. 12.
vi. 14-17

Phil. i. 11 .
i.28 .
ii. 4 .
ii. 5-11
ii. 6 .
ii. 6 .
ii. 6, 7
ii. 6- 1 1
ii. 9- 1 1
ii. 10.
ii. 10, II
ii. 10, II
ii. 13. .
ii. 21 . .
ii. 21 . .
ii. 21 . .
ii. 21 . .
iii. 20, 21
iv. 4 . .

Col.i. 12, 13 .

i. 18 . .

i. 18-20 .

ii. 8 . .

PAGE
I48
192

152

129

138

205

108

136
92

170
180

180

183
60

3
153
153

185

164

176

122

202

128

186

141

147
29

143
176

io5
201

Col.

8 10 .

8-10 .

11.

9 • •

10 . .

11.

14 . .

11.

18, 19.

Ill

1, 2 .

111

1-4 •

111

i-4 •

111

2 . .

111

2 . .

111

3 • •

111

• 3, 4 •

111

•3. 4 •

111

. 22 . .

1 Thess. ii. 19

ii. 20
v. 16

2 Thess. iii. 2

1 Tim. i. 15 .

ii. 4 .
ii. 5 .
ii. 6 .
iii. 2 .
iii. 10 .
iii. 16.
iii. 16 .
iii. 16 .
iii. 17 .
iii. 27 .
iv. 14 .
v. 1, 2
v. 22 .
v. 22 .
vi. 10 .
vi. 16 .
vi. 20 .

2 Tim. ii. 4 .

ii. 8 .
ii. 12 .
ii. 12 .
ii. 14 .
ii. [7 .
ii. 20 .
ii, 25, 26
iii. 5 .
iii. 12.
iii. 12 .
iv. 3. 4

PAGE

144

I31

189

159

185

147

163

141

177

118
123

173
72
49
93
3
13
5o

94
184

46
179

16
5

13
189
205
198
in

98
172
200
106
124

109

198

Titus i. 15 . .

i. 16. .

ii. 9 . .

iii. 10, n

Heb. ii. 14

viii. 8-12
x. 20
xi. 6 .
xii. 14
xii. 18
xiii. 12

James i. 5 .
ii. 26
iii. 2
iii. 2
iii. 8

I Pet. i. 2 .
i. 13.
i. 18
ii. 6.
ii. 9.
ii. 9.
ii. II
ii. II
ii. 21-24
v. 8.
v. 9.

I John 1.7.
ii. 6
ii. 19
iii 2
iii. 8
iii. 14
iv. 2, 3
iv. 2, 3
iv. 2, 3
iv. 4
iv. 4
iv. 19
v. 48
v. 8
v. 19
xv. 20

Rev. iii. 1 1
xix. 20
xxi. 5

157
105

113

IS'

107

137
203
181
136
136
203
172

161
121
161
199
34

42
118

4i
136
195
H5
189
176

34
181

42
200

34
20.5
140
182

42
107
149
138
152
122

42
149

138
122

79
29
22

VOL. XII.

GENERAL INDEX.

ABRAMIUS (a presbyter and
chorepiscopus of Cyrus), 57.

Absence from council, Leo excuses
his, 45.

Absolution referred to, 1 61 ?i.

Abstinence leads to higher enjoy-
ments, 127.

Abundius, a bishop of Italy, 63.

Accounts of diocese to be audited
by priests, 97.

Adeodatus (deacon of Rome), 102.

Aetius (a presbyter) removed from
archdeaconry, 82 ; must be con-
tent with Emperor's favour, 85 ;
restitution of, 97 ; letters to,
99 ; commtnded to Leo the
Emperor, 101.

Aetius (the Roman general), 115 ft. ;
his quarrel with Albinus, vi. ;
defeats the Huns, xi.

Africa invaded by Genseric, 125.

Agens in rebus, see Magistriani.

Aggarus, ordained a priest during
riot, 15.

Albinus (the Roman general), 115;/.;
his quarrel with Aetius, vi.

Alexandria, riots in, xi. ; violence
of bishop of, 54 ; See of,
founded by S. Mark, 75 «., 79,
95 n. ; See of, second in rank
to Rome, 78 ; church of, 100,
101 ; in distress, 105 ; its
liberty restored, 107 ; freed
from oppression, 112; clergy
of, letter to, 1 14.

Almsgiving : a purifying power,
121 ti. ; a proof of thankful-
ness, 123 ; an aid to prayer,
124 ; the only safe money-
lending, 126 ; one of three
religious duties, 123, 126 ;
importance of, 121, 128 ; a duty
in Lent, 162, 168 ; helps to
show the truth of the Incar-
nation, 202.

Altinum, bishop of, letter to, 2.

Alypius (exa?r/ius monachorum),

57-

Ambrose, quotation from, 108.

Amen at the Reception of the
Elements, 202 u.

Anastasius (bishop of Thessalonica),
letters to, viii., 4, 16, 55 ;
appointed metropolitan in
Ulyrieum, 4 ; taxed with ex-
ceeding limits of his vicariate,
16.

Anatolius (bishop of Constanti-
nople), Flavian's successor,
ix., x.; letter of (fragment),

57 ; appointment of, 63 ; must
make open confession of Faith,
63 ; letters to, 65, 67, 68, 69,
77, 97, 99, 102, 105 ; letters
from, 74, 97 ; recommended by
Pulcheria, 65 ; to co-operate
with Leo's delegates, 68 ; the
self-seeking of, 75, 76, 77 ; had
no right to ordain a bishop of
Antioch, 76, 78 ; must imitate
Flavian, 77 ; his orthodoxy
commended, 77 ; persists in
his presumption. 85 ; reconciled
to Rome, 97 ; too lenient
towards heretics, 101 ; death of,
113;;.
Ancient precedents to be maintained,

96.
Andrew substituted for Aetius in

archdeaconry. 82.
Andrew (a presbyter) a messenger

of Leo's, 97.
Andrew (of Constantinople), to be

shunned, 104.
Angelic hymn, u>e of, 137 «.

ich, See of, founded by S.
Peter, 75 n. , 79 ; See of, third
in rank to Rome, 78, 86 ;
bishop of (Maximus), ix. ;
bishop of, wrongly ordained,
76, 78 ; bishop of, letter to,
85 ; bishop of (Basil), 99 ; pro-
vince of, approves of the Tome,
69 ; churches assigned to at
Nicsea, 85.
Anysius, a former metropolitan of

lllvricum, 4.
Apocnsiarius, x.
Apocryphal scriptures, 25 n.
Apollinaris, the heretic, 33, 35, 37,
48, 143 «. ; the three dogmas of,
39«., 60, 81, 91.
Apollinarian informers in Cyrus, 56.
Apostolic See, synodal decrees rati-
fied by, 1 ; respect due to the,
6, 9 ; clemency of, 1 1 ; disputes
first dealt with on the spot, and
then referred to the, 16; to be
consulted in the last resort, 19 ;
moderation of, 45 ; Leo com-
mends Emperor's appeal to,
47 ; rejects the wrongful pro-
ceedings at Ephesus, 53 ;
humble folk have recourse to,
55 ; peculiar privileges of, 55 ;
library of, 63 ; to be consulted
about moie serious offenders at
the Latrocinium, 68 ; represen-
tatives to preside at Chalcedon,
70 ; instrumental in gaining

victory for the Faith, 74 ; to be
consulted through metropoli-
tans, 79 ; legates of, to be dis-l
regarded if they exceeded their!
instructions, 86 ; the judgment
of, accepted, 89 '.; sends envoys
to explain the Faith to the!
Emperor, 105 ; Peter present!
in Peter's See, 116 ; S. Peter's
authority still prevails, 117.

Apostolic Sees, 75 n.

Apostolic institutions, 119 «.

Aquileia, bishop of, (Januarius), 30 ;|
letter to, vi., 1 ; (Nicaeta^),
102.

Archimandrite = abbot, 34 n.

Archimandrites of Constantinople,
letters to, 46, 55, 64.

Arians, 21, 141 ; their doxology usec'j
by catholics, 129;/. ; unable tc
understand the Incarnation, 132
set up two Gods, 142 n.

Arius, 57, 59, 124, 136.

Aries, province of, 61 ; letters tc
bishops of, 51; from bishops of
61.

Armentarius, bishop of province 0
Aries, 61.

Ascension of Christ, what it gave us,
187 ; completes the Faith, 188.I

Asclepius, a bishop of province 0;
Aries, 51, 61.

Asclepius (a deacon), a messenge
of Leo, 65.

Asia, metropolitans appointed fror
Constantinople, 73.

Asterius, a bishop ol Italy, 63.

" Athanasian " Creed, xii., 133 «.

Athanasius the Great, 33, 34, 85
his letter to Epictctus used b|
Leo, 81 ; the writings of, instni('
tive, 96 ; uses the Arian doxi
logy, 129 n.

Atonement, the doctrine of thi
114 n.

Atticus, metropolitan of Old Epiru
17, 34; unjustly treated by B]
Anastasius, 16.

Atticus (of Constantinople), to 1
shunned, 104 ; his orthodo
not established, 105.

Attila, ix. , xi.

Audentius, a bishop of province
Aries, 51, 61.

Augustalis, a bishop of province
Aries, 51, 61.

Auspicius, a bishop of province

Aries, 51.
Avarice compared to leprosy, 127.
Avienus (a consular), xi.

GENERAL INDEX.

211

Bacillus, bishop, 30.
Baptism, not to be administered on
Epiphany, 27 ; why properly
administered at Easter and
Whitsuntide, 28 ; allowed at
any time in urgent cases, 29 ;
our Lord's different to that of
believers, 29 ; S. Peter's ex-
ample an authority, 29 ; a type
of the Incarnation, 60 ; by here-
tics valid, 103, 108 ; to be hy-
pothetically performed in certain
cases, 108, 112 ; only to be per-
formed as a rule at Easter and
Whitsuntide, 112; makes us
temples of the Holy Ghost,
129 ; makes us partakers of the
Incarnation, 135 ; the use of the
cross and chrism at, 136 n.\ at
Easter, 154, 161 ; makes us
partakers of Christ's Passion, 177.

arsubas (a Syrian archimandrite),
leader of the riots at Constanti-
nople, viii.

asil the Great, 34.

asil (bishop of Antioch), letter to,

99-

asil (a presbyter of Constantinople),
ix., 63, 68.

asil (a deacon), Julian's messenger
to Leo, 48, 50, 74, 76, 79, 83.

asilica of Apostles at Constanti-
nople, 64 ; of S. Peter, 140 ; of
S. Peter and S. Paul, xii.

asilides, 124.
[Beatitudes, Leo's order of, 204 «.
Birth of Christ, unique, 49.
Bishoprics, Laymen elected to, 14.
Sishops refusing consent to the rules
to be deposed, 4 ; the requisites
of ordination, 11, no; ap-
pointed over too small places
inconvenient, 15 ; qualifications
of, 18 ; method of election of,
18 ; 2 from each province to
attend Vicar's meetings, 19 ;
translation of not allowed, 19 ;
not to receive clergy from other
dioceses, 19.
Soniface (a presbyter), ix. ; Leo's
representative at Chalcedon, 69,
70. 73-

-aelestian heresy, see Pelagian.
Campania, bishops of, letter to, vi.,

2, 112.

Canons to be enforced against clerics
who wander from one church to
another, 2.

"appadocia, riots in, xi.

'arosus (a riotous monk of Constan-
tinople), xi.

'arthage captured by Genseric, vi. ,
125.

-arthago (nova), bishops of province,
26.

'assian's witness to Leo, v.

'asterius (a presbyter), a messenger
of Leo, 65.

atacombs at Rome, 82 n.

Hestine L, S. (bishop of Rome,
422—432), v.

•elidonius restored to Bishopric,
vi., 9.

Ceponius, bishop, 26.

Cerdo, 21.

Ceretius (a bishop of Gaul), letter
from, 62.

Cerinthus (the earliest psilanthropist),
142 n.

Chalcedon, council transferred there
(451), ix. ; canons of, the 28th,
x. ; council of, letter of instruc-
tions to, 70 ; council of, Leo
excuses his absence, 70 ; council
of, letter from, 72 ; proceedings
of council, 74 > council of, met
for only one purpose, 78 ; acts
of, to be translated into Latin,

83 ; council of, Leo's answer to,

84 ; acts of, approved by Leo,
84 ; council of, under guidance
of Holy Ghost, 89 ; decrees of,
90 ; council of, 97, 100 ; de-
cisions not to be reconsidered,
102 ; council of, final, 104, 105,
106, 107.

Chalons, defeat of the Huns, xi.

Chastity needful in preparing for
Communion, 168.

Chief Priests, their ignorance of
Scripture, 167, 169.

Chorepiscopi, 57.

Chrism used at Confirmation, 101 n.

Christ, exalted as man not as God,
94; His sinlessness, 130 n. ;
bearing His Cross an eternal
lesson, 172 ; union with His
members, 176 ; fulfilled the
Law, 176 ; merciful even to
His murderers, 178.

Christmas, a common joy, 128.

Christotokos (Christ-bearing), vii.

Chrysaphius (the eunuch), vii., viii.,
ix.

Chrysaphius, a bishop of province of
Aries, 51.

Chrysologus, Peter (bishop of Ra-
venna), letter to Eutyches, 36.

Church property, sale of restricted,

So-
Church, the, The Bride of Christ,
60, 65 ; the Body of Christ, 66.

Collect attributed to Leo, xii.

Collections (collects), 1 18 n.

Commitnicatio idiomalurn (drr/SotTis),
41 «., 93.

Community of goods precious in
God's sight, 199.

Concubinage different to marriage,
no.

Confession referred to, 161 n.

Constantine, a bishop of province
of Aries, 51, 61.

Constantine, privileges of church of
Aries confirmed by, 61.

Constantinople, church of, letters to,
viii. ; archimandrites of, letters
to, viii. ; precedence of, x. ;
riots in, xi. ; letter to presbyters
of, 55 ; letter to people of, 55 ;
letter to clergy and people of,
58 ; to take precedence next to
Rome, 73 ; council of, 73 ;
church of, accustomed to ap-
point metropolitans for Asia,
Pontus, and Thrace, 73 ; can-
not rank as an Apostolic See,

75 ; See of, alleged to have
been held second in rank 60
years earlier than 452, 77, 79 ;
church of, 101 ; Egyptian
bishops in, 102 ; clergy of,
letter to, 104.

Continence, required even in sub-
deacons, 18.

Cornelius, S., church of, xii.

Creed, quotations from the Nicene,
39 ; the Apostles', 46 ; must
be held fast, 159 ; of Apos-
tolic authority, 174.

Cross, power of the, 168, 173, 175 ;
Christ bearing His, the lesson
of, 172; meaning of, 172.

Cyril S., bishop of Alexandria, 62,
63, 81, 85 ; appeals to Leo, v. ;
chief opponent of Nestorius at
Ephesus, vii. ; letter from,
mentioned, 86 ; the writings of,
instructive, 96.

Cyrus, bishop of (Theodoret), ix.,
55, ^7-

Damasus (bishop of Rome, 366-384),
4 n.

David prophesied Christ's sufferings,
178.

David, a bishop, 15.

Death of Christ, real, 26 ; voluntary,
180.

Demetrias (a virgin), Leo's reputed
letter to, xii.

Dictinius, in agreement with Pris-
cillian, 25.

Dionysius (a notary of Rome), 58.

Dioscorus (bishop of Alexandria),
viii., ix., x., 79, 94, 96, 104;
his conduct complained of, 52 ;
his ill-treatment of Theodoret,
56 ; his name not to be read
aloud at the altar, 66 ; wicked
acts of, 72, 79 ; the instrument
of Satan, 88 ; of equal responsi-
bility with Eutyches, 90.

Diptj chs, 66 n.

Docetists, 142 n.

Domitian (a bishop), an envoy of
Leo, 106.

Donatus, a converted Novatian, 14.

Dorus, bishop of Beneventum, 31.

Dorotheus (a riotous monk of Con-
stantinople), xi.

Dorylseum, bishop of (Eusebius),
vii., ix.

Dulcitius (a notary), sent with Leo's
legates, viii. 47.

Easter, keeping of— A. D. 444, vi. 2:
discrepancy between Alexan-
drine and Roman calculations
for 455, 69 ; the keeping of in
452, 71 ; the date of for 455,
90, 97 ; baptism, 154, 161 ;
Communion, preparation for,
168 ; resolutions to be kept up
all through the year, 183, 185;
a right faith necessary to the
keeping of, 185, 186.

Easter Eve, ceremonies of 181 n.

Eclanum, bishop of (Julius), v.

Egypt, riots in, xi., 83 ; bishops of,
letters to, 99, 102, 114.

212

GENERAL INDEX.

Elias and the widow of Sarepta, 156.

Eloquence not required in matters
of faith, 106.

Ember seasons, 121 «., 127.

Ephesus, ecumenical council of (431),
v., vii., 63, 68, 90 ; Nicene creed
confirmed at, 33, 37 ; Leo's re-
representatives at, 44 ; synod
of (449) (called Latrocinium),
letter to, 46 ; wrongful acts
°f» S2> 53> 97 > disturbance
caused by, 54, 55.

Epicarpius, a junior presbyter pro-
moted over seniors, 32.

Epictetus (bishop), letter of Athana-
sius to, 81.

Epiphanius (a messenger of Leo), 58.

Epiphany wrong time for baptism,
27 ; a necessary sequel to Christ-
mas, 144 ; the Gospel for, 145 «.;
duty of keeping the festival,

. HI-
Epistle for Quadragesima, 1 54 n.

Epypa (in Lydia) : Flavian dies
there, viii.

Etruria, bishops in, letter to, vi. 2.

Eucharist (Holy), repetition of the
oblation of the sacrifice on great
Festivals, not undesirable, 8 ;
reality of Christ's flesh pro-
claimed by partakers of, 59 ;
early on Christmas Day, 137 n. ;
proves the Incarnation, 202.

Eudocia (widow of Theodosius II.),
letter to mentioned, 84 ; letter
to, x. 90.

Eudoxia, wife of Valentinian, ix., xi.

Eunomius, 57, 124.

Euphemia, the martyr of Chalcedon,
73, 74 ; church of, at Chalcedon,
ix.

Eupsychius, a messenger of Leo's,

5i-

Eusebius (bishop of Dorylaeum), vii.,
ix., 35, 36, 37, 72 ; opponent ol
Eutyches, 33, 35 ; sojourning at
Rome, 65, 66.

Eusebius (bishop of Milan), letter
from, 71.

Eusebius (the historian), 178)?.

Eustathius (bishop of Berytus), his
name not to be read aloud at
the altar, 66.

Eutyches (an archimandrite of Con-
stantinople), letter to, 32 ; letter
from to Leo, 32 ; not allowed a
hearing, 33; hisheresystated,34 ;
confession of faith, 34 ; misled
by the devil, 34 ; appeal of to
Rome, 36 ; deprived of commu-
nion, 36 ; his heresy restated,
37 ; his means of circumventing
the synod, 37 ; is ignorant and
presumptuous, 38 ; the terms ol
his restoration, 43 ; concession
wrong and mischievous, 43 ;
appeal of, 44 ; his heresy now
clearly understood, 47 ; his he-
resy involves many others, 48 ; to
receive mercy, if he recants, 51 ;
to be superseded in his monas-
tery, 67 ; should have taken
warning from former heretics,
69 ; deposed but treated with

mercy, 72 ; 'confounds the Per-
sons ' of Christ, 91 ; hardly true
to say he revived Apollinarian,
Valentinian, or Docetic theories,
92, notes ; to be banished, 97 ;
condemned by Scripture, 106 ;
his heresy to be denounced, 202.

Euxitheus (bishop of Thessalonica),
85 n. ; letter to, 99.

Exarchus 7nonachomm, 57.

Excommunication inflicted only on
those guilty of some great crime,
II ; of women who will not
return to their husbands, 103.

Exorcism practised at Baptism, 30.

Faith, the, the mean between Euty-
chianism and Nestorianism, 85,
89; tested by temptation, 152.

Fasting, one of three religious duties,
123, 126 ; an aid to prayer,
124 ; enjoined by Old and New
Testaments, 125 ; in mind ne-
cessary as well as in body, 128 ;
the benefits of, 152, 156; the
wide, practical meanings of, 153,
155, 158, 159; the abuse of,
157 ; and good works profitable,
181, 199 ; foils Satan's attacks,
IO-3> '94 ; means abstinence
from heresy among other things,
201 ; includes discipline of soul
as well as of body, 201.

Fathers, quotations from, 69.

Faustus Ian archimandrite of Con-
stantinople), letters to, 46, 64.

Faustus (a presbyter of Constanti-
nople), letters to, 55, 61.

Felix II. bishop of Rome (355-358),

33(-')-

Festivals to be distinguished, 27.

Flavian (bishop of Constantinople),
vii., viii., ix., 33, 77,97 ; letters
of, to Leo, 34, 36 ; Leo de-
mands a report of Eutyches'
case from him, 35 ; letters to, 35,
38, 48, 50, 51, 55 ; his silence
complained of, 35, 36 ; ac-
knowledges Leo's letter (xxiii. ),
37 ; no letter received from, 47 ;
rebuked for not answering Leo's
letters, 51 ; appeal to Rome,
53, 54 ; intimidated by soldiers,
58 ; his remains honourably
buried, 65 ; deposed by Dios-
corus, 72 ; a model for Anato-
lius to follow, 77.

Flesh of Christ, reality of, 41.

Flo.entius (a patrician), vii.

Florus, a bishop of province of Aries,

51
Fonteius, bishop of province of

Aries, 61.
Forgiveness, the duty of, 161.
' Forsaken,' the meaning of the cry,

179.
Forum Julii, bishop of (Theodore),

79-

Galla Placidia, letter from to Theo-
dosius II., 57 ; to Pulcheria, 57 ;
appealed to by Leo in S. Peter's
at Rome, 58.

Gallic bishops praise the Tome, 62 ;
ask Leo to correct or supple-
ment their copy of the Tome, !
62 ; letter from, 73 ; letters to,

.74, 97-

Gallicia, bishops of province of, 26.

Gangra in Paphlagonia, Dioscorus
banished to, x.

Geminian (a bishop) an envoy of
Leo's, 106.

Genava in province of Vienne, 61.

General council, Leo cannot attend,
50 ; the need of, denied, 50.

Gennadius (bishop of Constantino-
ple), successor of Anatolius, xi. ;
letter to, 113.

Genseric captures Carthage, vi. ;
invades Italy, xi. ; invades
Africa, 1 25 ; pillages Rome,
196 «.

George (a riotous monk of Cappa-
docia), xi.

Gerontius, a messenger of Leo's,
102.

Gift of tongues, 190.

Godhead of Christ not absent in the
Passion, 180.

Good works of Christians, part of
Christ's work, 177.

Gospel for the day, 117; for Epi-
phany, 145 n. ; for Quadra-
gesima, 153 71., 155, 157.

Gratianopolis in province of Vienne,
61.

Gregorian Sacramentary, 199 «.

Gregory, either of Nazianzum or of
Nyssa, 33 ; ' the other ' sc. of
Nyssa, 34(?); 'the greater'
sc. of Nazianzum, 34 (?).

Grimanicus codex, 102, 106 n.

Heresies multiplied by Satan in rage
at Christians' activity, 124;
generally contain some truth,
136 ; zeal against, makes other
. duties more acceptable to God,
125.

Heretics, return of, safeguarded, 31.

Hermes (archdeacon to Rusticus, I
afterwards his successor), 109.

Herod, stubbornness of, 148.

Hilary, bishop of Aries, letter con-
cerning, vi., 8; is disturbing
the peace of the Church by his
insubordination, 9 ; his treat-
ment of Projectus, 10 ; his
armed violence to be suppressed,
1 1 ; deposed from his usurped
jurisdiction, II ; spoken of with
respect, 51, 61 ; quotation from,
108.

Hilary (a deacon, afterwards bishop
of Rome, 461-8), viii., 43, 44,
47, 48, 52 ; letter to Pulcheria,

55-
Holy Ghost, twofold procession of,

190^. ; doctrine of, 190, 193.
Homoonston (dfioovatou), 100.
Humiliation of Christ, voluntary,

166 ; S. Peter the first tc

benefit by, 166.
Humility, blessedness of, 203 j

Scriptural examples of, 203.
Huns, ix., xi.

GENERAL INDEX.

213

Hypatius (a presbyter and chore-
piscopus of Cyrus), 57.

Idaclus (a bishop), 26.

lllyricum, the metropolitan bishops
of, letters to, vi. 4, 16; their
objections considered, x.

lllyricum, Prefecture of, 17.

lllyricum, bishops of, their objec-
tions, 40 11 ; invited to subscribe
the acts of Chalcedon, 85 ;
objections to Tome, 87 n.

Image of God ; man's restoration to
it, 122.

Imposition of hands after heretical
baptism, 103, 108.

Incarnation, God's purpose in the,
40 ; the true view necessary to
salvation, 92 ; a fitting theme
for men and angels, 129 ; a new
order of things. 130 ; took Satan
unawares, 131 ; the two Natures
blended in, 132 ; unintelligible
to Arians, 132 ; necessary to the
taking away of sin, 133 ; neces-
sary to redemption, 133 ; its
blessings, retrospective as well
as prospective, 133 ; the fulfil-
ment of prophecy, 134; the
only remedy for the Fall, 135 ;
its relation to baptism, 135 ; the
source of Christian life, 137 ;
the birth of peace, 138 ; equally
dangerous to deny the God-
head or the Manhood in Christ,
139 ; has changed everything,
139 ; proved by the Eucharist
and by Almsgiving, 202.

Ingenuus, a bishop of province of
Aries, 61.

Innocent, S. (bishop of Rome, 402-
417), xii«.

Innocents, Massacre of the, teaches
purity of life, 145 ; sends the
Faith into Egypt, 146.
I Intercession for the bishop requested,

"5-
Italy, Leo asks the emperor for

a synod in, 53, 54.

Jacobite schism, x.
! Januarius (bishop of Aquileia), letter
to, 30.
Jerusalem, bishop of (Juvenal), ix.,

97-
Jerusalem, inhabitants of, peculiarly

fortunate, 98 ; the value of the

holy sites, 98.

Jews, the greatness of their crime,
168, 171 ; their wickedness
without excuse, 178 ; partakers
of the means of grace, 178.

John (a presbyter of Constanti-
nople;, 68.

John Scotus Erigena, quotes letter
clxiv., 105.

Judas Iscariot, the greatness of his
infamy, 165 ; Christ's mercy to,
l09» 175 ; the enormity of his
crime, 179.

Judgment day foretold by God, 1 18.

Julian (bishop of Cos), ix., 65, 81,
82, 84, 85, 90, 95, 97. 99 5

Letters to, viii., 47, 48, 55,
66, 68, 69, 79 ; Leo's repre-
sentative at Chalcedon, x., 69 ;
commended to Leo the Em-
peror, 10 1.

Julius, bishop of Rome (337-352), 33

Julius (bishop of Puteoli, and Leo's
legate to Constantinople), viii.,
32, 43, 44, 47.

Julius of Eclanum, a Pelagian, v.

Justus, a bishop of province of Aries,
51, 61.

Juvenal (bishop of Jerusalem), v., ix. ;
deposed, x. ; his name not to be
read aloud at the altar, 66 ; his
timely repentance, 82 ; attemp-
ted to claim supremacy in Pales-
tine, 86 ; letter to, 97 ; his re-
turn to orthodoxy, 97.

Latrocinium, the robber-council of
Ephesus, viii., 64, 67, 71.

Lawrence, S., of Rome, 197 n. ; his
martyrdom described, 197 ;
compared to S. Stephen, 198.

Lections from the Scripture, 150 «.,

153 «» '54- 155- 157-

Lectores (readers), marriage of, HO.

Legates de latere, 46 n. ; appoint-
ment of, 48.

Lent prepares for Easter. 152, 154,
1 55, 158, 160 ; to be used in
avoiding errors, 158 ; binding
on all, 160 ; time for self-exam-
ination, 161 ; arouses Satan to
fresh efforts, 161 ; a time for
being reconciled with enemies,
162 ; a time for almsgiving,
162, 168; duration of, 182 n.

Leo the Great succeeds Sixtus as
bishop of Rome (440), vi. ; an
acolyte identified with the Pope,
v. ; archdeacon of Rome, v.

Leo of Thrace succeeds Marcian
as Emperor; an Arian nominee,
xi., 99 n. ; letters to, 99, 104,
105, 107, 112.

Leo (a" presbyter of Gallia Narbon-
ensis), 109.

Leontius appointed in room of
Hilary, bishop of Aries, 12.

Licinia Eudoxia, letter of, to Theo-
dosius II., 57.

Life, progress a necessary sign of,
173.

Love of God, love of our neighbour
necessary to, 122 ; compared
with love of the world, 200 ;
fostered by go )d works, 20 r.

Lucentius (a bishop), Leo's mes-
senger, ix.

Lucian (oishop), 74> 76, 79-

Ludi Apollinares, 196 n.

Ludi Circcnsium, 196 n.

Lupicinus, a bishop, 16.

Lusilania, bishops of province of,
26.

Macedonius, 136, 191.

Magi in Persia, Theodoret's writings

against, 57.
Magistriani = ageiiies m rebus, 70 n.,

104, 113.

Manes (or Manichasus), 26, 33, 48,
92; worshipped under the name
of the Holy Spirit, 149.
Manichaeans, 22, 25, 58, 60, 81,
124, 1407s.; discovered in Rome,
vi., 6 ; bishops not to allow
them to remain concealed, ibid. ;
Ordinance of Valentinian III.
concerning, 7 ; Leo's zeal
against, 56 ; in Rome to be
informed against, 1 19; Rome
infested with, 125;?.; sun-wor-
shippers, 132 n, ; reject the
Incarnation, 135 ; contain no
truth, 136 ; tampered with the
Scriptures, 149 ; intercessions
for them necessary, 150 ; per-
vert the use of fasting, 157 ;
fast on Sunday and Monday,
157 ; intrude into the Christian
communions, 1 58.
Marcellus, his connexion with Pho-

tinus, 136 n.
Marcian, emperor, ix. 105 ; styled
the second Constantine, x. ;
letters to, 66, 67, 69, 70, 74,
82, 84, 90, 95, 97, 99 ; letters
from, 64, 74, 82 ; death of, xi.,
99 n.
Marcion, the Gnostic, 21, 92, 124;
1,000 souls in Cyrus won over
from his heresy, 57.
Marian (a presbyter), a messenger of

Leo's, 85.
Marriage, a man who has married
twice not eligible for a priest,
3 ; a man who has married a
widow, ditto, 3 ; of the clergy
based on the idea of marriage
of Christ with the Church, 13 ;
digamous clerks, 14 ; of clergy
regulated, no.
Martin, an archimandrite of Constan-
tinople, letters to, 46, 61, 64.
Marly ria, 196 «.
Martyrs numerous in Rome, 196.
Mauritania Csesariensis (in Africa),

letter to the bishops of, 12.
Maximus (bishop of Antioch), ix. ;
wrongly ordained by Anatolius,
76 n; letter to, 85,90-
Maximus, bishop of province of

Aries, 61
Maximus, an ex-Donatist, 14.
Maximus, the Emperor, Eudoxia's

second husband, xi.
Meekness, blessedness of, 204.
Mercifulness, blessedness of, 204.
Metropolitans, method of election of,
18 ; rights of, to be observed,
18 ; to be consulted, 79, 80.
Milan, synod of, 72.
Ministry of Angels on Christ, 188.
Money-making, in another's name
forbidden to clergy, 4 ; lending
at high interest wicked, 126.
Monks of Palestine, riotous letter to,
qo, 91 ; perhaps misled by a
mistranslation of the Tome,

91.
Monks, not allowed to preach, 87,

90; marriage of, III ; military

service of, in.
Mourning, blessedness of, 203.

214

GENERAL INDEX.

Nate /is ( = bhthday), 194 «.; anniver-
sary of bishop's consecration,
115 n.

Nectarius, a bishop of province of
Aries, 51, 61.

Neo (bp. of Ravenna), letter to, 108.

Nestorius (a bishop of Egypt ?), 95.

Nestorius (the heretic), vii., x., 33,
37, 44, 60, 63, 64, 85, 86, 88,
94, 96, 202 ; revival of his
heresy, 32, 47, 128 »., 143;
anathematized. 69 ; condemned
at Ephesus, 81 ; "divides the
substance" of Christ, 91.

Nicea in Bithynia, council of,
100, 104, 105, 106, 107; faith
of, 33 ; decrees of council, 36,
46 ; canons appealed to, 53,
54; council supported by Em-
peror, 63 ; canons of, unalter-
able, 75, 76, 77, 78, 85, 86,
87; 318 bishops present at,
77, 78, 86 ; of universal ap-
plication, 78; canons confused
with Sardican, x., 54«., 58,
318 ; another council to be
held there (451) ix., 70 n.

Nicetas (J)ishop of Aquiieia), letter
to, 102.

Nicetas, a bishop of province of
Aries, 51.

Nicolaus, a presbyter, 4.

(Economi (stewards), 97 ti.

Olympius (a deacon), a messenger of
Leo's, 85, 102.

0/>eratio — charitable action, 204;?.

Opposition to be expected by faith-
ful ministers, 109.

Ordination : ordinees to be carefully
selected with reference to the
Canons of the Church, 5 ; metro-
politans not to ordain hastily
without consulting their primate,
5 ; priests and deacons not to
be ordained on week-days, any
more than bishops, 6 ; fixed days
to be observed for ordaining
priests and deacons, 7 ; in no
case bishops to be ordained
hastily, 13.

Orientation of churches, 140 n.

Origen, 49.

Pagani, 139 n.

Palestine, bishops of, their objections
considered, x., 40 n. ; riots of
monks in, 81, 83, 90; bishops
of, objected to Tome, 87 n. ;
monks of, letter to, 91.

Palladius, bishop of province of
Aries, 61.

Panormus, clergy of, 30.

Pansophius (count of the empire), 37.

Parishes (irapoiiiat), 800 in Cyrus, 57.

Paschasinus (bishop of Lilybaeum),
ix., 30 ; letter from, vi., 2 ; letter
to, 68 ; Leo's representative at
Chalcedon, 69, 70, 73.

Passion of Christ not compulsory,
165 ; passes man's comprehen-
sion, 173 ; daily realised by the
baptized, 176; both a saving
mystery and an example, 176,
179- 184.

Passover, why Christ suffered at
the, 169; mystically interpreted,
186.

Patricius (a deacon), a messenger of
Leo's, 65, 105.

Patripassians, 21.

Paul of Samosata, 21.

Paul and Peter, SS., commemorated
together, 194, 196.

Peace, God's best gift to us, 138 ;
the dangers of, 151.

Peacemaking, blessedness of, 205.

Pelagian heresy, v. ; followers of
not to be restored without public-
recantation, 1 ; views of God's
grace unscriptural, 2 ; caution
in receiving back Pelagians, 2.

Pelagius II. (bishop of Rome, 578 —
590), quotes letter clxiv. , 105.

Penance of clergy to be private, no.

Penitence, the grace of, is for those
who fall after baptism, 80 ;
belongs only to this life, 80 ;
not to be refused to men in
extremis, 80 ; on a deathbed
hazardous, 80 ; in sickness or
on deathbed, in.

Penitents, terms for the reception of,
66, 67 ; more serious cases to
be reserved, 68 ; those who re-
cant to be treated with mercy,
71 ; litigation of, in ; traffick-
ing of, in ; military service of,
III ; niar.iage or concubinage
of, in; not to read out a list of
their offences, 1 1 2.

Perfection impossible in this life, 154.

Persecution, the good effects of, 151.

Person of Christ same after His
Resurrection, 182; but glorified,
183.

Peter, S., the Rock, 41 n. ; main-
tained to be first bishop of
Rome, 58; in Rome, 194 n., 195.

Teter (a deacon), a messenger of
Leo's, 97.

Peter and Paul, SS., tombs of at
Rome, 56.

Petitions presented to Emperor Leo,
101.

Petra (rock), interpretations of, 100.

Petronian, an impostor and vaga-
bond, 52.

Petronius (a presbyter of Aries), 61,
62.

Philoxenus (agens in rebus), 104, 113.

Photinians, 60.

Photinus, 21, 124, 136.

Picenum, bishops of, letters to, vi., 2,

112.

Pilate, the greatness of his crime,

I7I-
Placidia Augusta, vi., ix.

Pontus, metropolitans appointed from

Constantinople, 73.
Poor : we minister to Christ in their

person, 119.
Pope, a title of bishops and priests,

30, 51, 61.
Possidonius (a presbyter), the bearer

of a letter, 8.
Potentius (a priest), delegated to the

bishops of Mauritania Caesarien-

sis, 12, 15.

Prayer, one of three religious duties,
123, 126 ; aided by almsgiving
and fasting, 124.

Presence of Christ with His Church,
185.

Priests, persons not eligible to be-
come, 3.

Priscillian, 26.

Priscillianists, their errors a mixture
of many other heretics, 20-26 ;
deny the Trinity, 21 ; fast on
Christmas Day and Sundays,
21 ; their explanation of " Only-
begotten," 21 ; support the
Arians' heresy, 21 ; think the
devil is not God's creation, 22 ;
think the soul is part of the
Divine, 22 ; hold that souls have
a previous existence, 23 ; their
astrological notions, 23, 24 ;
fancifully divide the Scriptures,
24 ; falsify and forge Scriptures,
24 ; their connexion with Sabel-
lius, 136;/., 140;/.

Prisoners who were forced to eat of
sacrifices forgiven, 103.

Proclus, 34.

Projectus (bishop in the province of
Gallia Narbonensis), his ill-con-
duct, 10.

Property belongs to God, not us, 120.

Prosper's Chronicon, v., xi., xiv.,
178 «.

Proterius (bishop of Alexandria),
Dioscorus' successor, x., 201 ft. ;
letter to, 95 ; letter from, 97 ;
murder of, xi., 99, I02»., 107;
compared to Abel, 105.

Prudentius (bishop of Troyes),
quotes letter clxiv., 105.

Psilanthropists, 142 n.

Public services more important than
private, 198.

Pulcheria, wife of Emperor Marcian,
viii., ix., x. ; letter from, 64;
letters to, 44, 54, 55, 61, 64, 67,
70, 76, 82, 84 ; services to the
Church, 44 ; Leo invokes the
aid of, 45 ; requested to assist
petition to Emperor, 55; thanked
for her services to the Church,
65 ; her refusal of a synod in
Italy and her arrangements for
one in the East accepted, 71.

Purity of heart, blessedness of, 205.

Quadragesima, gospel for, 153 «.,
155, 157. '- epistle for, 154 n.

Quicunque vult, xii. ; Leo's language
similar, 133 n.

Quintian, Leo's lather (?) v.

Ravenna, bishop of (Neo), 108.

Ravennius approved as bishop of
city of Ailes, 51 ; letters to, 51,
61, 71 ; letter from, 73.

Readers, see lectores.

Re-baptism forbidden, 31, 108, 112 ;
if inadvertent or through fear,
condonable, 103 ; reconcilia-
tion between enemies a duty
in Lent, 162.

GENERAL INDEX.

215

Redemption, Incarnation necessary
to, 133 ; both justice and mercy
had to be considered, 142.

Regeneration in Baptism, 23, 45.

Regions of Rome, 1 19 n.

Regulus (a deacon of Aries), 61, 62.

Re-Marriage, a particular case of,
103.

Remus, brother of Romulus, 195 n.

Renatus (presbyter, Leo's legate to
Constantinople), viii. , 43, 44,

47, 4§-

Resignation of Christ, an eternal
lesson, 170.

Restitutus, a bishop, 15.

Resurrection of Christ, real, 26; the
importance of the events after,
186, 187 ; of the Flesh, 187.

Righteousness, blessedness of de-
siring, 204.

Riots, in Egvpt, 83 ; in Palestine, 81,

S3-
Rodanus (a Count of the Empire),

38,95- .
'Roman empire, its share in God's

plan of Redemption, 195.
iRome, letter from Leo and the synod

of, 53, 54.
[Romulus (traditional founder of

Rome), 195 n.
iRusticus, a bishop of province of

Aries, 51.
Rusticus (bishop of Gallia Narbo-

nensis), letter to, 108.

Sabellius, 21, 124, 136, 142 n.
Sabinian (a presbyter), 109.
Sacerdos (bishop), xiii. ; various

meanings of the term, 1 n. , 4«.
JSacramentary attributed to Leo, xii.
bacr amentum, meanings of, 90?*.,

131 «., 132 ;/., 141 n.
ialonius (a bishop of Gaul), letter

from, 62.
lialvation, the narrow way of, 160 ;

God's plan of. 175.
liamnium, bishops of, letter to,

112.
jlardica, canons of, confused with

those of Nicea, x., 54 w., 58.
arepta, the widow of, 156.
atan, his wickedness counteracted

by Redemption, 118; foiled by

his own devices, 174.
ichismaties return of, safeguarded,

1 elf-examination a duty in Lent,
161.

enator, a presbyter, 63.

enior presbyters to have prece-
dence, 31.

eptimus (bishop of Altinum), letter
to, 1, 2.

ergius I. (bishop of Rome, 687-
701), xii.

i^venth Month, Fast of, 200.

|;verian (bishop of Scythopolis),
murdered by monks, 81 n.

bverian, bishop of province of
Aries, 61.

Iiiloh, various renderings of, 146 ;/.

Icily, bishops of, letter to, 26, 30.

pnon Magus, the heresy of, 33.

Simon of Cyrene. the significance of
his carrying Christ's cross, 172.

Sin not sinners hated by God, 109.

Siricius (bishop of Rome, 3S4-398), 4.

Sixtus II. (bishop of Rome, 257-9),
197 «.

Sixtus III. (bishop of Rome, 432-
440), v.

Slaves and Serfs {coloni) not to be
admitted to the priesthood, 3.

Soul, the, and Body of Christ real,
49.

Spain, bishops of, letter to, 97 ; in-
vasion of, by Germans, 20 n.

Spiritual pride, 157.

Stephanus, a bishop of province of
Aries, 61.

Sun worship, not Christian, 132,
140.

Superventor, a bishop of province
of Aries, 61.

Snrsum corda, 12911., 177 «., 189 n.

Synods (provincial) to receive recan-
tations of heretics, I ; points
not settled in provincial synods
to be referred to Rome, 5 ; pro-
vincial to be held twice a year,
18.

Synod of Constantinople (448), vii. ;
proceedings of, 33 ; minutes
sent to Leo, 35 ; acts of, 38.

Tarantasia in province of Vienne, 61.

Tarraco, bishops of province of, 26.

Tatian, a messenger of Leo's, 67.

Tauromenium, church in, 30.

Thankfulness shown by almsgiving,
123 ; the importance of, 123.

Theoctistus (a magistrian), 70.

Theodore (bishop of Forum Julii),
61 ; letter to, 79.

Theodoret (bishop of Cyrus), ix. ;
letter from to Leo, 55 ; praises
the Tome, 56 ; appeals to Leo
against his deposition, 57 ;
letter to, 87 ; his orthodoxy
vindicated, 89.

Theodosius I., emperor, 73.

Theodosius II., emperor, vii., viii.,

ix., 37. 38, 43, 45 5 letter from>
35, 61 ; letters to, 36, 50, 52,
53, 57, 63 ; Leo commends his
appeal to Rome, 47 ; requested
to restore the Faith, 52, 53.

Theodosius, leader of riots in Pales-
tine, 81 ;/.

Theophilus, his laterculum Paschale,
69; his writings instructive, 85,
96.

Theotokos (God-bearing), vii., 128 n.

Thessalonica, bishop of (Euxitheus),

85,99-

Thrace, metropolitans appointed
from Constantinople, 73

Three religious duties, 123, 126.

Timothy /Elurus, the supplanter of
Proterius, xi. , 99«., 100 ; com-
pared to Cain, 105 ; not to be
allowed in Constantinople, 1 13.

Timothy Solophaciolus (bishop of
Alexandria), orthodox suc-
cessor of Proterius, xi., 112 n. ;
letter to, 1 13.

Title of S. Clement, 43 n.

'Tome," the, viii., ix., x. ; accep-
ted in the East, 69 ; accepted
in Gaul, 73 : a copy sent to
Paschasinus, 68 ; Greek version
of, xi. ; letter xxviii. to Flavian,
38 ; new Greek translation, 97 ;
quotations from, to be publicly
read out, 96 ; read before
Christmas, xiii.

Tome, the Second, xi., 107.

Transfiguration, S. Peter's confes-
sion leads to, 162 ; the object
and meaning of, 163 ; the signi-
ficance of the appearance of
Moses and Elias, 163 ; S. Peter's
suggestion contrary to the
Divine order, 164 ; the import
of the Father's voice from
heaven, 164.

Tregetius (prefect), xi.

Trinity, doctrine of the, 190, 193 ;
each person's share in Redemp-
tion, 192; unity of the, 192;
Material views of, wrong, 192.

Trophimus, founder of church of
Aries, 61.

Turribius (bishop of Asturia), letter
to, iv., 20.

Twofold nature, the, in Christ, 38,
48, 59 ; the properties of,
weighed, 40 ; requisite to man's
salvation, 45 ; its bearing on
the grace of baptism, 45 ; dis-
tinct and not confused, 93 ; all
heresies spring from disbelief
in, 142 ; present in Christ
from the first, 143 ; shown at
the Temptation, 155 ; revealed
by His actions, 159 ; acted con-
jointly, 165 ; our share in,
184.

Two robbers crucified with Christ,
their difference, 167.

Tyberian, ordained a priest during
riot, 15.

Unction at consecration of bishops,

116 ;/.
Ungtdce (claws), an instrument of

torture, 95.
Unity of Faith, a cause of joy, 50.
Ursus, a bishop of province of Aries,

61.
Usury forbidden, 3.

Valentia, in province of Vienne,
61.

Valentinian III., emperor, ix., xi. ,
84 ; letter from, 64 ; letter from
to Theodosius II., 57 ; ordi-
nance of, concerning Mani-
chasans, 7 ; the Emperor's con-
firmation of Pope Leo's sen-
tence upon Hilary, 12.

Valentinus, 33, 35, 37, 48, 143 11.

Valerian, a bishop of province of
Aries, 61.

Vandals, under Genseric, vi., xi. ;
ravages of, xii.

Vasa, bishop of, 6 1.

Veranus (a bishop of Gaul), letter
from, 62,

2l6

GENERAL INDEX.

Veronician (the Imperial secretary),

x.
Vienne, province of, 61 ; bishop of,

appeals to Rome, 61 ; bishops

of the province of, 8.
Vigilius (bishop of Rome, 537-555),

quotes letter clxiv., 105.
Virgins, who have suffered violence,

not to be ranked with true

virgins, 15 ; yet not to be

denied Holy Communion,

15 ; under a vow, marriage
of, wrong, in.

Virgin Mary, her perpetual virgin-
ity, 139 n.

Volaterrae, Leo's birth-place (?), v.

Wise men, three in number, 144 «.,
146, 147, 148, 150; their gifts
symbolical, 144, 146, 148, 150 ;
typical fulfilments of God's
promise to Abraham, 145 ;

more teachable than Herod,
148 ; their story of every-day
application to ourselves, 150.

Ynantius, a bishop of province of
Aries, 51, 61.

Zosimus, (bishop of Rome, 41 7-
418), v., x n.

THE

BOOK OF PASTORAL RULE,

AND

SELECTED EPISTLES,

GREGORY THE GREAT,

BISHOP OF ROME,
TRANSLATED, WITH INTRODUCTION, NOTES, AND INDICES,

BY THE

REV. JAMES BARMBY, D. D.,

VICAR OF NORTHALLERTON, YORKSHIRE.

VOL. XII.

PREFATORY NOTE.

The Text followed in these Translations is the Benedictine one, as given by Migne
in Patrologia, Vol. LXXVIL, Sancti Gregurii Magni, Vol. III. The same Text of
the Regula Pastoralis has been published with an English Translation by the Rev.
H. R. Bramley (James Parker and Co., 1874). The Translation now given is an original
one, though the translator desires to express his obligations to his predecessor in the same
task. The selection of Epistles translated has been made with the view of exhibiting
Gregory's various activities, his various styles of correspondence, his views and character,
as well as of illustrating the history of his time. Those which relate to certain important
subjects — such as the Lombard invasion, the English Mission, the dispute about the title
of ' (Ecumenical Bishop,' correspondence with the Emperors and with the Potentates of
Gaul — have been given in their entirety. Of such as relate to subjects of less moment
specimens only have been selected, but sufficient, it is hoped, for presenting a picture of the
writer under his various aspects, and in his various spheres of work. It is hoped also that
the appended notes may serve to shew the connexion of the several Epistles with each other,
and with the circumstances they refer to, as well as to explain obscure words or passages.
For a better understanding of the correspondence relating to the Church in Gaul, a pedigite
of the contemporary Merovingian Kings is appended.

b 2

CONTENTS OF THE PROLEGOMENA.

PAGE

Political state of the Western Empire in the time of Pope Gregory vi

Spain and Northern Europe vii

The Patrimony of St. Peter ib.

Supply of corn to Rome viii

Ecclesiastical state of things ix

The Three Chapters x

The Donatist Schism ib.

Jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome ib.

Sees of Antioch and Alexandria xii

The See of Constantinople xiii

Life of St. Gregory before Election ib.

His Election and Consecration xvi

The Registrum Epistolarum . xvii

Events and Proceedings during St. Gregory's Pontificate as illustrated

by his Epistles.

Book I. Various activities, and subjects of correspondence xvii

Book II. Summary of proceedings with regard to the Lombards xviii

Papal jurisdiction over West and East Illyricum xx

Exemption of Monasterius from episcopal control ib.

Book III. Relations of the See of Rome to the Churches of Illyricum, Ravenna, Constantinople xxi

Treatment of Jews and of idolators ib.

Book IV. The position of the Bishops of Istria and Venetia, and of Queen Theodelinda, with regard

to "the Three Chapters" ib.

Relation of the See of Rome to the African Churches ib.

Unction in Baptism and Confirmation ib.

Book V. St. Gregory's protest against the title of " CEcumenical Bishop," and summary of his pro-
ceedings with regard to it ib.

Papal jurisdiction in Gaul xxiv

Book VI. Mission of St. Augustine to England, with Summary of its progress, as shewn by letters...... xxv

Books VII., VIII. Exemptions of Monasteries — Sale of Church goods for charitable purposes — Letters

of spiritual counsel xxvii

Book IX. The Istrian Schism — The Roman Liturgy — King Reccared of Spain — Church in Gaul —

Letter from Columbanus ib.

Book XL Pictures in Churches — Miracles — Married persons entering Monasteries — Efficacy of
Baptism — Reconciliation of heretics — Refutation of Nestorianism — Ecclesiastical abuses

in Gaul ib.

Book XIII. Synod to be held in Gaul — Accession of Emperor Phocas, and St. Gregory's letters to him

and Leontia ib.

Book XIV. St. Gregory's unabated activity — Last letter to Theodelinda xxix

St. Gregory's character and work ib

PROLEGOMENA.

For an understanding of Gregory's position, and of the purport of a great part of those
State of the OI" n^s epistles which are translated in this Series, a brief survey of the
Empire. state of things, politically and ecclesiastically, at the time of his accession

may in the first place be of service. There was now no separate Emperor of the West ; what
remained of the once great Western Empire being governed in the name of the Eastern
Emperor, who had his court at Constantinople, by the Exarch of Italy, resident at Ravenna.
The Kingdom of the Goths in Italy had ceased to be, the country having been recovered
from them under Justinian about half a century before Gregory's accession, as well as
the province of Africa from the Vandals.

But the Emperor's hold on Italy was limited and precarious, a large portion of it
„, - , being already occupied by the Lombards, whose first invasion, under

Alboin, had been in 568 : and accordingly Gregory, writing in the thir-
teenth Indiction (a.d. 594-5), speaks of their having been in Italy for twenty-seven years,
and in the sixth Indiction (a.d. 602-3) 0I" their having been there for thirty-five years
[Epp., Lib. V., Ep. 21, and Lib. XIII., Ep. 38]. Subsequently the Lombard King Autharis
had advanced on Alboin's conquests, and is said to have proceeded to Rhegium, at the
very toe of Italy, and there, riding up to a column on the shore through the tidal waves,
to have touched it with the point of his spear and said, "So far shall extend the boundary
of the Lombards" [Paul. Warnefr., de gestis Longob., III. ^i\. Autharis died in the first
year of Gregory's popedom [Epp., Lib. I., Ep. 17], and was succeeded by Agilulph,
previously duke of Turin, whom Theodelinda, the widow of the deceased king, had
selected as her consort. Under him, his royal seat being at Ticinum (Pavia), the Lombard
dominion included the greater part of Northern Italy, reaching northward to the Alpine
passes, the two great dukedoms of Spoletum and Beneventum in Southern Italy, with partial
hold on Tuscia and elsewhere. The only parts that now distinctly acknowledged the sway
of the Exarch were the Exarchate of Ravenna, on the eastern side of Italy, with Istria and
Venetia further north, the duchies of Rome and Naples on the western side, portions of
territory at the heel and toe of Italy, and the islands of Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica.
But beyond the limits of their actual occupation the Lombards kept the country in
a continual state of disturbance and alarm ; a great part of it appears to have been debatable
ground, and no one could say definitely to whom it belonged.

No previous invaders seem to have been viewed by contemporaries with more horror, or
painted in blacker colours, than the Lombards. Their Arian Christianity does not appear to
have rendered them less odious than heathens would have been, or to have softened their
alleged savagery. Gregory repeatedly in his letters speaks in the strongest possible terms of
the misery of Italy "among the swords of the Lombards :" and it was doubtless the state of
general distress thence arising, together with disorganization of the country from other causes,
and the prevalence of calamity on whatever side he looked, that caused him continually to
express his conviction that the signs of the times betokened the speedy approach of the
Second Advent. It is in connexion with such a state of things that he stands out promi-
nently as a political administrator of no common order. His position was one of peculiar

PROLEGOMENA. vii

difficulty. Though virtually, as bishop, the ruler of Rome, he was not a temporal potentate

with power to act independently. He was but a subject of the Emperor, as he continually

acknowledged, under the dominion of the Exarch of Ravenna, and possessed theoretically of

spiritual jurisdiction only. And in his efforts to do good he was continually thwarted. He

complains repeatedly in his letters of the insufficient aid afforded him by the distant Emperor,

the counteraction of his own designs by the Exarch, and the corruption and iniquitous

conduct of the imperial officers in Italy, which in more than one place he describes as even

more trying than the oppressions of the Lombards. Still, in virtue of his high and influential

position as bishop of old Rome, his commanding character, his indefatigable zeal, and his

diplomatic talents, he did exert great political influence ; and whatever success was attained

in the defence of Italy against further aggression, or in effecting truces with the enemy, to

him alone such success appears to have been due. Many of the letters translated in this

volume shew his activity in this regard. A short summary of what may be gathered from

them will be given below. All Europe, to the north of Italy, was now severed from the

Northern Eu- Western Empire. Britain had long been relinquished : the old provinces

roPe- of Gaul were ruled and contended for by the descendants of Clovis of the

Merovingian dynasty : Spain, with Narbonensian Gaul, was an independent Visigothic

kingdom. The relations of these kingdoms to the Empire were at this time amicable;

and it was in ecclesiastical, and not temporal, matters that Gregory had dealings with them,

as will appear below.

His talents and activity in secular affairs were shewn also in his management of the

_ _ . possessions in various quarters with which the See of Rome had been

The Patrimony.

endowed, known as ' St. Peter s patrimony' In Sicily especially, and

also in Campania, Calabria, Dalmatia and elsewhere, and to a small extent in Gaul, the
Roman Church held lands so called, over all of which Gregory exercised personal super-
intendence by letters to his various agents, shewing a remarkable knowledge of the state
of things in the several localities, and giving minute directions. While, on the one hand,
Ihe took care that the Church should not be defrauded of her just dues, on the other
hand we find him repeatedly and strongly forbidding any unjust claims, or any oppression of
the natives who cultivated the Church lands. The patrimony was commonly managed, under
him, by agents on the spot, called rectores fatrimonii, and often by deacons, or subdeacons,
sent from Rome, to control the ordinary rectores, or act in the same capacity. We find
bishops also in some- cases acting as rectores. There was also a class of officials called
defensores ecclesice, or Guardians of the Church, who were required to be authorized by letters
from Rome under the Pope's hand (see V. 29 ; IX. 62 ; XI. 38). These letters of appoint-
ment, of which we have specimens in V. 29 and XI. 38, specified the protection of the pooi
s their primary duty. But their office had a much wider scope. We find them commis-
sioned, not only to carry out various works of charity, but also to maintain the rights and
property of churches, to rectify abuses in monasteries and hospitals (see e.g. I. 52 ; XIV. 2),
to see to the canonical election of bishops (e.g. X. 77), and to the supply of episcopal
ministrations during the suspension or incapacity of the holders of Sees (XIV. 2), to assist
bishops in the exercise of discipline (X. 1), and even to rebuke and coerce bishops themselves
|when negligent of duty (III. 36; X. 10; XIII. 26, 27 ; XIV. 4). In some cases they were also
themselves rectores patrimonii (IX. 18). Further, they constituted a scho/a, as did also the
notaries and subdeacons ; and in the first Indiction (a.d. 598) Gregory appointed that
seven of their number should thenceforth be dignified with the name of regionarii (as was
already the case with the notaries and subdeacons), which gave them rank, and entitled
i:hem to sit in assemblies of the clergy (VIII. 14). Though entrusted with such large powers
jn matters ecclesiastical, they do not seem to have been of necessity in sacred orders, and

viii PROLEGOMENA.

might marry and have families (cf. III. 21 ; XII. 25). Some were sub deacons, as Anthemius,
subdeacon and defensor of Campania (VII. 23). They might be apt, it seems, to take
too much upon them : for we find Romanus, the defensor of Sicily, sharply rebuked for
trenching on the prerogatives of a bishop (XI. 37). Though entitled, by special com-
mission from the Roman See, to call even bishops to account, they were not to usurp their
junctions. In some cases we find sworn notarii (otherwise called Jiartularii) attached
to the patrimonies in addition to the rectores. Thus Adrian receives instructions as being
notarius Sicilies; and, on his being made rector, Pantaleo is appointed notarius (XIII. 18
and 34).

Notable among the subdeacons invested with authority for the number and particularity
of the letters addressed to him is Peter, whom Gregory sent at once in the first year of his
pontificate to Sicily, not only to look after the patrimony there and after the supply of corn
sent annually thence to Rome, but also, for a time at least, to exercise delegated authority,
in matters ecclesiastical, over the bishops of the island (see Lib. I., Ep. 1). From the letters
to this Peter we learn a good deal about the way in which the lands of the patrimony, in
Sicily at least, were cultivated, and how the revenues were derived from them. (See especially
Lib. I., Ep. 44.) They were cultivated by native peasants, called by Gregory rustici, or coloni,
who enjoyed the fruit of their labour, subject only to customary dues to the lords of the land ;
in this case to the Roman See. The principal dues we find referred to were, in the first place,
a kind of land-tax, called burdatio, and further, the tithe of all the produce, which might be
paid in kind, but seems to have been often commuted for a money payment. Among the pre-
valent abuses which Gregory peremptorily required to be corrected were excessive valuation of
the tithe, irrespective of the current price of corn, when a money equivalent was paid, and
in other cases the use of measures of too large capacity, and exactions in various ways of more
than was fairly due. He orders schedules to be made and authorised, copies of which were
to be given to the rustici in all the farms of the church, shewing what their legal payments
were, so as to guard against their being wronged in future. There were other customary
payments of smaller amounts, such as fees on the marriage of peasants, which, under limita-
tions, he allows to be continued. It appears also from Lib. XII., Ep. 25, that these rustici,
or coloni, were ascripti glebce, so as not to be allowed to migrate from the estate (massa)
to which they were attached, or to contract marriages beyond its limits. The several estates
constituting the patrimony were called masstz, each of which might comprise several fu?idi;
and it was customary to let these massa to farmers (couduciores), who were left to deal with
the rustici, or coloni, being themselves responsible for a certain amount, whether in money or
produce, to the officials of the Church. Gregory directed, among other things, that these
conductores, should not be arbitrarily disturbed in their holdings, and that, on their death,
members of their family should succeed them, guardians being appointed in case of their
children being under age. Sicily was of great importance to Rome, as being a corn-growing
country from which especially the Romans were supplied. Among Gregory's temporal
responsibilities was that of seeing to a regular and adequate supply, a failure in which might
be followed by famine in Rome : and we find him attentive to this duty, giving particular
directions as to the procuring, storing, and shipping of the corn. (See e.g. Lib. I., Ep. 2,1
44, 72.) In fact, provision generally for the welfare of the Roman citizens, and the general
charge of the city, seems to have devolved upon the Pope. And it was doubtless his
responsibilities in this regard, together with his more general political ones, in addition to his
"care of all the churches," that caused him so continually to bemoan in his letters the billows
of worldly business, incident to his office, which overwhelmed him, and hindered his advance-
ment in the spiritual life. Remarkable, indeed, must have been his mental activity and his
varied abilities, in that he was able, as appears from his epistles, to make himself accurately

PROLEGOMENA.

acquainted with, and personally attend to, so many matters, finding time also for theological
composition and letters of spiritual counsel, and retaining his religious asp.irat;ons in the
midst of all. And all this is the more striking when one considers the distressing state
of health, especially from gout, of which he continually complains, and the fact also that,
with his strong monastic predilections, matters of worldly business would be likely to be
peculiarly distasteful to him. We get a further view of his multifarious engagements from
what his biographer, John the Deacon, tells us of his having himself seen to the fourfold
distribution— to the bishop, the clergy, the fabrics and services of the churches, and the poor
— of the revenues of the See ; his having himself caused to be sought out, and kept a list of,
the recipients of charity ; and himself taught the choristers in the Orphanotrophiwn, which he
had himself founded in Rome. It appears to have been his principle and practice to rely on
others for nothing which he could possibly do himself.

With regard to the state of things in the ecclesiastical sphere during Gregory's popedom,

Ecclesiastical Af- it may be observed first, that there was now a comparative cessation

fairs- for a time of controversial warfare. The battle no longer raged over

Arian, Nestorian, Monophysite, or Pelagian heresies ; the Monothelitic controversy had

not yet begun. Catholic orthodoxy, as defined by the first four Councils, was accepted

generally, and enforced by the imperial power, with Gregory's full approval of coercive

measures (see e.g. Lib. IX., Ep. 49 ; Lib. XL, Ep. 46) l ; while outside the limits of

the Empire it was professed and upheld by the Prankish rulers of Gaul, and at length

at the commencement of Gregory's reign accepted in Spain by the Visigothic Reccared.

The Lombards, indeed, with their king Agilulph, were still Arians ; but his queen

Theodelinda, with whom Gregory corresponded, was herself a devout Catholic. Hence

he was not called on to come forward prominently in the field of controversy, for

tvhich indeed he does not appear to have been peculiarly fitted. For, though able to state

learly, and give the received reasons for, accepted dogmas, he nowhere evinces any great

riginality of conception, or depth of insight of his own. He is content to rest on authority ;

hat especially of the four Councils, which he regards as the unassailable bulwarks of

he true faith (see I. 25 ; III. 10 ; IV. 37), or of ancient fathers of the Church. Nor does

le seem to have been well versed in the past history of controversy. An instance of his

mperfect knowledge in this regard is found in the letters which he wrote after receiving from

Hyriacus, the newly-appointed bishop of Constantinople, his confession of faith, in which

udoxius, who had been prominent in the course of the Arian controversy, was condemned.
Gregory had never heard of this noted heretic, though he had come across the name of a sect
:alled Eudoxiani, and, not finding his name in the Latin books he was able to consult at
lome, he takes objection to his condemnation by Cyriacus (Lib. VII., Ep. 4) ; and it was
lot till he had consulted Eulogius of Alexandria, who was more learned than himself, that he
/as satisfied ; and this simply on being informed that ancient fathers of repute had con-
demned this Eudoxius. " We know him (he writes) to be manifestly slam, against whom our
eroes have cast so many darts" (VII. 34; VIII. 30). Again, in writing to the same
Eulogius against the sect of Agnoitce, who taught a certain limitation of our Lord's human
nowledge, he appears to draw all his arguments from what he found in Augustine and other
!.atin Fathers, and he rejoices to hear that Eulogius had found the Greek Fathers (whom

e himself, being wholly ignorant of Greek, was unable to consult; consentient (Lib. X.,

\-PP- 35. 39)-

" Prayer should ever be made for the life of our most pious
Id Christian lord the Emperor, and his most tranquil consort,
:., in whose times the mouths of heretics are silent, since,

though their hearts seethe with the madness of perverse opinion,
they presume not in the time of the catholic Emperor to utter
the wrong things they think " {Lib. IX., Ep. 49).

PROLEGOMENA.

But one subject of controversy there was, which especially troubled him ; viz., that of
The Three Chap- "the three Chapters" {tria copituld), consequent upon the condemnation
ters< of the documents so-called, and of their deceased authors, at the

instance of the Emperor Justinian, by the fifth General Council (a.d. 553). This con-
demnation had been in fact forced upon the Church by the Emperor in the said
Council under his presidency at Constantinople, in spite of the protest of the great
majority of the Western bishops, and of the then bishop of Rome, Vigilius. The grounds
of objection to the condemnation were, that it was held to contravene the Council of
Chalcedon, at which two of the writers whom it was proposed to condemn — Theodoret
and Ibas — had been expressly acquitted of heresy ; that to anathematize the dead, whatever
their opinions might have been, was wrong ; and further, that the condemnation was
intended to conciliate the Monophysites, to whom the writers in question had been peculiarly
obnoxious, and was in fact a concession to their heresy. Nor can it be doubted that a design
to conciliate the Monophysite party, still strong and resolute in spite of its condemnation at
Chalcedon, had been a main motive with Justinian in forcing a decree against the Three
Chapters on the Church. Vigilius, however, had afterwards yielded to pressure, and assented,
however inconsistently, to the condemnation of the Chapters ; as did his successors in the
See of Rome, including Gregory. Consequently several Churches of the West had renounced
communion with Rome ; and the schism thus arising — as in Liguria, which was under the
metropolitan of Milan, and still more decidedly in Istria and Venetia under the metropolis
of Aquileia — continued throughout the reign of Gregory. He in vain endeavoured, either by
remonstrance or by trying to enlist the emperor's aid, to bring back the Istrian bishops to
conformity ; and it must have been distressing to him, that even the Lombard queen,
Theodelinda, *'ho was so orthodox a Catholic, and whom he esteemed so highly, and corre-
sponded with so cordially, herself could not be induced to accept the fifth Council, so far as
the condemnation of the Three Chapters was concerned. In his last extant letter to her,
written in the year of his death, he regrets that severe illness prevented him from replying to
certain arguments on the subject by an abbot, Secundus, which she had sent for his considera-
tion, but transmits to her a copy of the Acts of the fifth council, and again repeats his constant
protest that his acceptance of that Council by no means implied any disparagement of the
previous councils, or of the Tome of pope Leo {Lib. XIV., Ep. 12). Further, the schism

__ ^ of the Donatists still lingered in the African provinces, though no

The Donatists. v ' °

longer powerful, and though a series of imperial edicts had been issued

for their suppression. We find Gregory, in many letters, urging measures against them, and

more rigid enforcement of the penal laws.

With regard to the spiritual authority over the Church at large, claimed in the time of
Gregory, and by him asserted, and the extent to which such claims were then acknowledged,
the following remarks may be made.

Beyond the episcopal jurisdiction of the bishops of Rome over their own propei
The spiritual au- diocese, which comprised only the city of Rome, and their metro-
thonty of Rome. politan jurisdiction over the seven suffragan bishops of the Romar

territory— viz., those of Ostia, Portus, Silva Candida, Sabina, Praeneste, Tusculum, anc
Albanum, — they had long exercised a more extended patriarchal jurisdiction, whicl
(according to Rufinus towards the end of the fourth century) seems originally to havt
extended over the suburban provinces which were under the civil jurisdiction of the vicariu.
urbis, including the islands of Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica. But, being the only patriarch
of the West, they had long exercised authority, more or less defined, over a much wider area
including Northern Italy, with its metropolis at Milan, Illyricum East and West, am
Northern Africa. It is not necessary to attempt any review here of the growth, as year

PROLEGOMENA. xi

had gone on, of such extended jurisdiction, or of the degree and kind of authority over
Churches that had been consequently claimed. Nor need we consider now the well-known
instances of resistance to such authority, as notably in Africa by St. Cyprian in the third
century, and at a later date in the same province when Zosimus was pope, in the case of
Apiarius. For our present purpose it may be enough to say that the bishop of Rome was
now generally acknowledged to be not only the sole Patriarch in the West, but also the
highest in rank of all the bishops of Christendom. Still, even in some provinces where his
authority was not openly disputed, there appears to have been, at any rate, jealousy of its
exercise. For proofs of this in Africa, see II. 47, n. 1 ; IV. 34, n. 1 ; IX. 58, n. 1. For
a notable instance in Western Illyricum, in the case of Maximus, bishop of Salona, see
III. 47, and note there. At Ravenna also, the seat of the Exarch, there seems to have been
jealousy of the claims of Rome, seeing that John, bishop of that See, in a letter to Gregory,
though expressing himself as personally devoted to the Roman See, says that he had
provoked no little ill-will of many enemies against himself for his defence of its authority

(HI- 57).

In Gaul, under the Merovingian princes, there are no signs of any dispute of the pope's
spiritual jurisdiction, which was constantly asserted, over the Churches there : but the
ancient Celtic Churches of the British islands still retained their independence. This
last fact is apparent, not only from what Bede relates of the attitude of the British and
Scottish Christians towards Augustine and the Roman mission, but also from the tone of
the letter of the Irish Columbanus to Gregory, which will be found among the epistles
(see Lib. IX., Ep. 127). With the Church in Spain, after its renunciation of Arianism under
King Reccared at the beginning of Gregory's episcopate, he seems to have had little com-
munication. He corresponded indeed with his friend Leander, of Seville, about the King's
conversion, and wrote a letter to the latter (IX. 122), who had sent an offering to Rome.
Further, he sent into Spain the abbot Cyriacus, who had been employed to bring about the
assembling of a Council in Gaul, commending him in a somewhat adulatory episde to one
Claudius, who appears to have been a person of influence in the court of Reccared (IX. 120).
But for what special purpose he was sent does not appear. There is, moreover, a long
document, comprised under XIII. 45 in the Benedictine edition of the epistles, relating
to two bishops who were said to have been uncanonically deposed, for the adjudication of
whose case one John, a defensor eaiesice, is said to have been sent, and to have pronounced
sentence. But this epistle is not found in all codices ; nor does it appear from it, even if it
were considered genuine, whether John's decision was accepted in Spain. On the whole, there
is no sufficient evidence, but rather the contrary, of papal jurisdiction being recognized at
that time in Spain as it certainly was in Gaul. It remains only to note the historical fact,
that the whole Eastern branch of the Church Catholic never at any time submitted it-
self to the Roman See, notwithstanding occasional appeals to it by bishops or others when
suffering under grievances.

With regard to Gregory's own view of the prerogatives of the Roman See beyond the
limits of its proper metropolitan or patriarchal jurisdiction, he undoubtedly claimed for it
a primacy not of rank only, but also of authority in the Church Universal ; and this of divine
right, as representing the See of the Prince of the apostles. Such claim had come, in his
day, to be the tradition of the Roman Church, which he accepted as a matter of course, and
handed on. In assertion of this claim he says in more than one place, " Petro totius
ecclesiae cura et principatus commissa est;" and again, " quis nesciat sanctam Ecclesiam in
apostolorum principis soliditate firmatam. . . . Itaque, cum multi sint apostoli, pro ipso tamen
principatu sola apostolorum principis sedes in auctoritate convaluit" (LX>. VII., Ep. 40) ; and
he certainly regarded the like authority as residing still in what was called ^. Peter's See.

xii PROLEGOMENA.

But we nowhere find him asserting it in such a way as to merge the general episcopal com-
mission in the Papacy, or to interfere with the canonical exercise of their independent
jurisdiction by other patriarchs of ancient Apostolic Sees. He sent according to custom,
after his accession, his confession of faith to the four Eastern patriarchs of Alexandria,
Antioch, Jerusalem, and Constantinople, as to brethren : he never, even where his jurisdiction
was acknowledged, interfered with the free election of bishops by their several Churches,
except where he saw some canonical impediment, reserving only to himself the right of
confirming the election (see e.g. Lib. II., Ep. 6; Lib. V., Ep. 17, &c.) : and, lastly, his
memorable emphatic protest against the assumption of the title of Universal Bishop by the
patriarchs of Constantinople, with his total renunciation of any right of his own to assume
such a title, has often been quoted as a standing protest against such papal supremacy as has
subsequently been claimed and exercised. He seems to have regarded the See of St. Peter
as everywhere supreme only in the sense of its being its prerogative to conserve inviolate the
catholic faith and observance of the canons, wherever heresy or uncanonical proceedings called
for protest and correction. He writes thus to John, bishop of Syracuse, " Si qua culpa in
episcopis invenitur, nescio quis ei \_Sedi apostolicce] subjectus non sit : cum vero culpa non
exigit, omnes secundum rationem humilitatis sequales sunt" {Lib. IX., Ep. 59). Again, to
the defensor Romanus, "Si qua unicuique episcopo jurisdictio non servatur, quid aliud
agitur, nisi ut per nos, per quos ecclesiasticus custodiri debuit ordo, confundatur ? "
{Lib. XL, Ep. 37). Again to Eulogius of Alexandria, protesting against being addressed
as Universal Pope, and against the expression, sicut /ussisiis, " Quod verbum jussionis
peto a meo auditu removere, quia scio qui sum, qui estis. Loco quim mihi fratres
estis, moribus patres. Non ergo jussi, sed quae utilia visa sunt indicare curavi. . . . Nee
honorem esse deputo in quo fratres meos honorem suum pcrdere cognosco. Si enim univer-
salem me Papam vestra sanctitas dicit, negat se hoc esse, quod me fatetur universum. Sed
absit hoc." {Lib. VIIL, Ep. 30). Further, there is the notable fact, that he distinctly
accords to the patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch equal shares with himself in the
primacy of St. Peter's See ; — to the former on the ground of his See having been founded
by St. Mark, who had been sent by St. Peter ; to the latter because (according to the
Clementine tradition, which he takes for granted) St. Peter had been for seven years bishop
of Antioch before he went to Rome. To Eulogius of Alexandria he writes, "Cum ergo
unius atque una sit sedes, cui ex auctoritate divina tres nunc episcopi praesident, quicquid
ergo de vobis boni audio, hoc mihi imputo. Si quid de me boni creditis, hoc vestris mentis
imputate, quia in illo unum sumus qui ait, Ut omnes unum sint, sicut et tu Pater in me, et
ego in ie, tt ipsi in nobis unum sint" {Lib. VII., Ep. 40. Cf. V. 39 ; X. 35 ; XIII. 41). He
wrote thus in his anxiety to induce those two patriarchs to support him in his resistance to
the assumptions of Constantinople ; but his view of the principality of St. Peter's See not
being vested exclusively in the See of Rome remains no less distinctly on record. The view
to which he gives expression of the unity of the three Sees may perhaps have arisen thus.
The tradition of the peculiarly Petrine origin of the Roman See, and hence its claim as of
divine right to supremacy, having come by this time to be accepted in the West, the
undoubted ancient jurisdiction, independently of Rome, of the great patriarchal sees of the
East in their own regions, had to be accounted for in accordance with this theory : and hence
they too were regarded as deriving their authority from St. Peter. Accordingly we do
not find Gregory in any of his letters to the patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch addressing
them in a tone of command. It is true that in one letter to Eulogius of Alexandria he
remonstrates with him urgently for allowing (as was alleged) simony in his diocese ; but it is
brotherly remonstrance only {Lib. XIII., Ep. 41).

[There is indeed a passage in one of Gregory's Epistles (II. 52) which has been taken

PROLEGOMENA. xiii

to imply a claim to jurisdiction over them. (See note on passage in Migne's Patrologia.)
Natalis, bishop of Salona, had disregarded the admonitions of two successive bishops of
Rome; and Gregory writes to him, "Quod si quilibet ex quatuor patriarchis fecisset, sine
gravissimo scandalo tanta contumacia transire nullo modo potuisset." But the intended
meaning may be, not that such contumacy towards Rome would have been scandalous even
in one of the great Eastern patriarchs, but that it could not have been passed over by them
if shewn towards themselves in their own patriarchates. The words, it is true, suggest the
former meaning, but the latter seems more likely to have been intended.]

On the other hand, towards the patriarch ot Constantinople, when he considered him
The See of Con- guilty of uncanonical procedure, he assumed a distinctly authoritative
stantmople. attitude. On his own authority he declared null and void (as his

predecessor Pelagius II. had done) the synod at which the title of oecumenical bishop
had been conferred on the Constantinopoiitan patriarch {Lib. V., Epp 18, 21); he
entertained the appeal to himself of the two presbyters John and Athanasius, reversed
their condemnation by the patriarch of Constantinople, and ordered their restitution
{Lib. VI., Epp. 14, 15, 16, 17, &c.) ; and in a letter to John of Syracuse he says, "Nam
de Constantinopolitana ecclesia quod dicunt, quis earn dubitet sedi apostolicae esse sub-
jectam?" {Lib. IX., Ep 12.) For the See of Constantinople, though now patriarchal, was
not even an ancient sedes apostolica : its bishop had indeed been assigned honorary rank
(to irp«r$e'ia t^s Tirfs) next after the bishop of Rome by the general Council of Constantinople
(a.d. 381), but this only on the political ground of Constantinople being new Rome:
patriarchal jurisdiction had indeed been confirmed to it over the Metropolitans of the Pontic,
Arian, and Thracian dioceses by the 28th Canon of the Council of Chalcedon (a.d. 451);
but this Canon had been repudiated at the time by Pope Leo of Rome. Hence the popes
were ever peculiarly jealous of any new assumption, or uncanonical proceedings, on the part
of the Constantinopoiitan See, the ascendancy of which signified to them imperial domina-
tion rather than primitive ecclesiastical order or prerogative : and hence it is not to be wondered
at that on the assumption of a title that seemed to imply universal supremacy Gregory was
at once in arms, and asserted strongly all the authority that he believed to be inherent in his
own Apostolic See. Such assertion, however, had no immediate effect in the absence of power
to enforce it : it was disregarded at Constantinople : the Emperor Mauricius, who alone
could have given practical effect to it, was appealed to by Gregory in vain ; and, though
Phocas, who succeeded him, is said to have issued a decree that " the Apostolic See of St. Peter,
that is the Roman Church, should be the head of all Churches" {Anastasius Bibliothec.),. yet
it is an historical fact that neither Constantinople nor the Churches of the East generally,
ever submitted to the claims of the Roman See.

There is no record of the year of Pope Gregory's birth. It was probably about a.d. 540,
Early life of Gre- some ten >'ears after Benedict of Nursia had founded the Benedictine
gory- order. He was well born, his father Gordianus being a wealthy Roman

of senatorial rank, bearing the title of " Regionarius," which denoted some office of
dignity. He received the education usual with young Romans of his rank in life, and
is said to have been an apt scholar. The historian Gregory of Tours, who was his
contemporary, states that in grammar, rhetoric, and logic he was considered second
to none in Rome; and he also studied law. Such education, however, fell some-
what short of what we should now call a liberal one, leaving him, as it did, entirely
unacquainted with any language but his own, and so a stranger to all Greek literature ;
with no apparent taste, that he anywhere displays in his writings, for art, poetry, or
philosophy; and with scanty historical knowledge. He was, with regard to intellectual

xiv PROLEGOMENA.

equipment, an educated Roman gentleman of his day, and no more ; regarding the Roman
nation as paramount in the world, and not aspiring beyond the studies thought sufficient for
Roman citizens of rank, at a time when study of Greek literature and scientific culture
had died out at Rome. In later life also, when he had time to devote himself to study
and contemplation, he confined himself, with a purely devotional purpose, to Holy Scripture,
in which (though of course only in the Latin version) he was thoroughly versed, or to the
orthodox Latin Fathers, St. Augustine being his favourite. His condemnation of the study
of classical heathen literature by Christians, appears strikingly in his letter to Desiderius
{Lib. XL, Ep. 54). Still his early education, though thus limited, fitted him well
for dealing with practical matters, for grasping the bearings of subjects that came before
him, and for expressing himself clearly and often forcibly thereon ; though his style is not free
from the artificiality that was probably encouraged by the rhetorical training of his day. He
was intended for, and at first pursued, secular occupations suitable to his rank in life ; and at
an unusually early age (certainly before 573, when he would be little more than 30 years of age)
he was appointed by the Emperor Justin II. to the dignified office of Prcetor Urbanus. In
this early period he does not appear to have been distinguished by any peculiar saintliness
of practice or demeanour. He dressed, at any rate, conformably to his rank: for Gregory
of Tours speaks of the striking contrast of the monastic garb which he afterwards assumed
with the silk attire, the sparkling gems, and the purple-striped trabea, with which he had
formerly paced the streets of Rome. But, on the other hand, there is not the least reason
to suppose that he had ever been loose or irreligious.

He had been religiously brought up. His father Gordianus is said to have been himself
a religious man : his mother Silvia (who lived in ascetic seclusion after her husband's death),
and the sisters of Gordianus, Tarsillaand /Emiliana (who lived in their own house as dedicated
virgins), have obtained a place in the calendar of saints : and his biographer, John the
Deacon, speaks of his early training having been that of a saint among saints. He never,
in his own writings, alludes to any crisis in his early life at which he had become convinced
of sin, saying rather (as in one of his letters) that, while living in the world, he had tried
to live to God also, but had found it hard. But on the death of his father (the date of which
is not known) his religious aspirations took a decided form ; he kept but a small part of the
patrimony that came to him, employing the rest in charitable uses, and especially in founding
monasteries, of which he endowed six in Sicily, and one, dedicated to St. Andrew, on the site
of his own house near the Church of St. John and St. Paul on the Cselian, "ad clivum Scauri"
which he himself entered as a monk, and of which he was eventually elected abbot. The
religious views of his age, in which he fully shared, would of necessity suggest to him the
monastic life as the highest form of saintliness; and he may have been especially moved by
the recent example of St. Benedict of Nursia, whom he greatly admired, and of whom he has
left us in his Dialogues many interesting records. In the ardour of his devotion, his life
in the monastery appears to have been ascetic to an extreme degree. He is said by his
biographer to have been fed on raw vegetables {crudo legumine), supplied to him by his mother,
who had become a recluse in a neighbouring cell ; and his fasts made him continually
ill, and endangered his life. He tells us himself in his Dialogues of one Holy Week towards
the end of which he fainted from exhaustion, and was hardly kept alive: but before losing
consciousness, being shocked at the idea of breaking his fast before Easter Day, he had
requested the prayers of a very holy monk called Eleutherius ; and the result was that,
returning to consciousness, he remembered nothing of his previous pangs, felt no longer
any craving for food, and could have continued his fast a day longer than was required.
{Dialog., Lib. iii. c. 33.) Such was the idea then entertained, and by him shared, of the
way of attaining to the highest holiness. However he survived all, though the very weak

PROLEGOMENA. Xv

health of which in his subsequent life he continually complains may have been due in part to
such extreme self-discipline. Nor did he, it is said, relax his habits of study and prayer
in consequence of the debility induced by his asceticism. It seems not to have precluded
even energetic action of a practical kind. For it was at this period of his life that, according
to John the Deacon his biographer, the well-known incident occurred of his seeing the English
youths in the Roman slave-market, and obtaining the leave of pope Benedict I. to undertake
a missionary enterprise for the conversion of the Angli, on an expedition for which purpose
he had already set forth when the pope, moved by the remonstrances of the Roman people,
recalled him to Rome.

Having thus become a devout monk, he remained one in heart throughout his life. His
habits of life were, as far as they could be, still monastic while he sat upon the papal chair ;
and he never lost, and often gave expression to, his ardent longing for a return to monastic
seclusion, as alone allowing closeness to God, as well as peace and happiness. See, for
instance, what he says on this subject soon after his accession to the Emperor's sister
' Theoctista (Epp., Lib. I., Ep. 5), or, after longer experience, to his old friend Leander
of Seville {Lib. IX., Ep. 121).

But he was not allowed to enjoy for long the seclusion he so much desired ; being sum-
moned from his monastery by the pope to be ordained one of the seven deacons of Rome,
and afterwards sent to Constantinople to be the pope's apocrisiarius (or responsalis) at the
imperial court. There is some doubt as to which pope it was that thus ordained and com-
missioned him. From a combination of what is said by his biographers, Paul the Deacon and
John the Deacon respectively, it seems most probable that it was Pope Benedict I. who
summoned him from his monastery and ordained him, perhaps with the view of sending him
jto Constantinople, and that it was Pelagius II. (who succeeded Benedict a.d. 578) under
whom he was actually sent. The office of apocrisiarius was usually filled by a deacon ; and
hence it is not unlikely that his employment in that office had been in view from the
first, when he was called from his monastery and ordained. The popes at this time were
in special need of an able representative at Constantinople for procuring, if possible, some
effective aid against the Lombards, the Exarch at Ravenna having been appealed to in vain.
Gregory remained at Constantinople for several years, probably from a.d. 578 to a.d. 585,
Srst under the Emperor Tiberius, and then under Mauricius, who succeeded to the Empire
\.d. 582. There is no extant record of instructions sent to him from Rome till a.d. 584,
when Pope Pelagius wrote to him, representing the miserable state of Italy under the
Lombards, the imminent danger of Rome, and the inaction of the Exarch, and directing him
:o press the Emperor for succour. He also desired him to send back to Rome the monk
vlaximianus, who, together with other monks of his monastery, had accompanied Gregory to
Constantinople. This, his official residence in the imperial city, could not fail to be of
idvantage to him in the way of preparation for his subsequent position, as giving him a
practical knowledge of the state of parties there, the ways of the court, and the conduct
>f political affairs. He also made friends of position and influence there, with whom he
.fterwards corresponded ; among whom may be named Theoctista, the Emperor's sister, who
lad charge of the imperial children, Narses a patrician, Theodorus, physician to the Emperor,
jregoria, lady of the bedchamber to the Empress, and two patrician ladies, Clementina and
lusticiana. All these were religious persons, over whom he had gained influence, which he
lid not allow to die. He also formed at this time the intimate acquaintance of Leander,
Jishop of Seville, who happened to be sojourning in Constantinople, and to whom he wrote
fterwards very affectionate letters. It was at his instigation that he began, while at
Constantinople, the Magna Moratia, or Exposition of the Book of Job, which he also
'edicated to him in its completed form (Moral. Libri., Epist. Missoria, c. 1 ; Epp., Lib. V.

xvi PROLEGOMENA.

Ep. 49). For he found time from secular business for devotion and study with the monks
who had followed him from Rome, including his particular friend Maximianus, as has been
already mentioned.

" By their example (he writes in his Introduction to the Magna Moralia, above referred
to) I was bound, as it were by the cable of an anchor, when tossing in the incessant buffeting
of secular affairs, to the placid shore of prayer. For to their society, as to the bosom of a
most safe harbour, I fled for escape from the rollings and the billows of earthly action ; and,
though that ministry had torn me from the monastery, and cut me off by the sword of its
occupation from my former life of quiet, yet among them, through the converse of studious
reading, the aspiration of daily compunction gave me life." He was engaged also at one time
in a long dispute with Eutychius, the Constantinopolitan patriarch, who had written a treatise
on the nature of the body after the resurrection, maintaining that it would be impalpable, and
more subtle than air. Gregory maintained its palpability, alleging in proof that of the risen
body of Christ. The Emperor Tiberius at length took cognizance of the dispute, and decided
it in favour of Gregory, ordering the book of Eutychius to be burnt. The disputants are said
to have been so exhausted by the long controversy that both had to take to their beds at its
close {Joan. Diac, Lib. I., c. 28, 29).

Gregory was at length (probably a.d. 585) allowed by Pelagius to return to Rome and re-
enter his beloved monastery ; and it was now probably that he was elected to be its abbot.
But Pelagius appears still to have made use of him, a letter from that pope to Elias bishop of
Aquileia on the subject of " The Three Chapters " being attributed by Paul the Deacon to the
pen of Gregory (De gestis Longobard., Lib. III.).

That period of peace, lasting some five years, Gregory constantly refers to, and doubtless
with complete sincerity, as the happiest part of his life. It was interrupted by the death of
Pelagius II., who fell a victim to an epidemic disease then raging on the 8th of February,
a.d. 590, when we are informed that the whole clergy and people of Rome concurred in
electing Gregory to the popedom, as the only man for the place at that time of peculiar trial.
In addition to the general distress and alarm caused by the advancing Lombards, the Tiber
had overflowed its banks, destroying property and stores of corn, famine was feared, and fatal
disease prevailed. Men's hearts were failing them for fear, and for looking after those things
that were coming on the earth. Gregory himself often speaks of the signs of the time as
betokening the coming end of all things ; and in one of his letters he compares Rome to an
old and shattered ship, letting in the waves on all sides, tossed by a daily storm, its planks
rotten and sounding of wreck. If any one could pilot the ship through the storm, there seems
to have been a general feeling that the man was Gregory. He was most unwilling to undertake
the task. When an embassy was sent to Constantinople for obtaining the Emperor's confirma-
tion of the election, he sent at the same time a letter imploring him to withhold it. But the
letter was intercepted by the prefect of the city, and another sent in its place, entreating
confirmation. Meanwhile Gregory employed himself in preaching to the people, and calling
them to repentance, in view of so many symptoms of the wrath of God. He instituted at
this time the " Septiform Litany," to be chanted through the streets of the city by seven com-
panies— of clergy, of laymen, of monks, of nuns, of married women, of widows, and of children
and paupers— who, setting out from different churches, were to meet for common supplication.
It was at the close of one such procession that the vision (not mentioned by any contem-
poraries, or by Bede) was afterwards said to have been seen, to which the name of the Castle
of St. Angelo is attributed ; the story being that, on approaching the basilica of St. Peter on
the Vatican, Gregory saw above the monument of Hadrian an angel sheathing his sword
in token that the plague was stayed. At length, the Emperor's confirmation of his election
having arrived at Rome, he is said to have fled in disguise from the city, and hid himself in a

PROLEGOMENA. xvji

forest cave, to have been pursued and discovered by means of a pillar of light that disclosed
his hiding-place, to have been brought back to the city in triumph, conducted to the church
of St. Peter, and there at once ordained, on the 3rd of September, a.d. 590 {Paul. Diac, c. 13 ;
Joan. Diac, I. 44).

The four Eastern patriarchs at this time, to whom, according to custom, he sent letters
immediately after his accession containing his confession of faith, were John (known as
Jejunator, or the Faster) of Constantinople, Eulogius of Alexandria, Gregory of Antioch, and
John of Jerusalem ; to whom is added in the address at the head of the circular letter,
"Anastasius, ex-patriarch of Antioch," who was indeed the true patriarch, having been
(deposed by the mere secular authority of the Emperor, Justin II. (Evagr. H. E., V. 5). Conse-
quently Gregory, though not venturing to ignore the patriarch in possession, addressed the
deposed one also in his circular, and wrote him also separate letters, in which he recognized
him as the rightful patriarch, and undertook to intercede with the Emperor Maurice in his
behalf (I. 8, 25, 26). On the restoration of Anastasius to his See (a d. 593) by the Emperor
on the death of the interloper, Gregory wrote him a warm congratulatory letter (V. 39).

Of the other patriarchs John of Constantinople was succeeded during Gregory's pontificate
(a.d. 596) by Cyriacus, and John of Jerusalem by Amos, and he (a.d. 600 or 601) by Isacius
(see XI. 46). But the patriarchs of Jerusalem, though their position was recognized, were
hot at that time of any great influence or importance.

A brief summary may now suitably be given of some leading events of Gregory's

jpontificate in the order suggested by the successive Books of his Epistles, which correspond

.0 the years of his reign. His biographer John the Deacon says of him that, having been

Dope for a little more than thirteen and a half years, he left in the archives (in scrinid) as many

jooks of Epistles as he had reigned years, the last, or 14th, book being left incomplete

because of his not having completed the 14th year of his reign (Joan. Diac. Vit. S. Greg.,

LV. 71). Accordingly the Benedictine Editors of his works have arranged his extant epistles,

iccording to what, to the best of their judgment, they conceived to have been the original

>rder, in 14 books, answering to the successive years of his pontificate. Previous editions

had given them in 12 books only, and many of them evidently placed wrongly in order of time.

See patrologice Tomus LXXV. Saudi Gregorii magni ; Prcefatio i?i Epistolas.) Hence,

|upposing the Benedictine arrangement to be on the whole correct, we have in the successive

looks as now arranged reference to the historical events of the successive years to which

he books are assigned. The dates given to the books are according to the Roman method

>f Indictions, one Indiction being a period of 15 years, and the successive years of each

if such periods being called the 1st, 2nd, 3rd year of the Indiction, or the 1st, 2nd, 3rd

ndiction, and so on to the 15th. Each Indiction year began with September; and Gregory,

aving been ordained on the 3rd of September, a.d. 590, which was the commencement of

le 9th year of the then Indiction, the date of the first book of the epistles, corresponding to

lie first year of his reign, is given as Indiction IX.

Book I. Indiction IX. (a.d. 590-1.)
This first book introduces us at once to a view of the new pope's immediate vigilance
Pontificate of Gre- ar>d activity in affairs secular and sacred that demanded his attention.
Dry- (r.) We find him providing without delay for the efficient and just

lanagement of the patrimony of St. Peter, which has been spoken of above ; and this
specially in Sicily, whither (as has been also said above) he sent Peter the subdeacon
5 his agent with large powers. To him also he gave charge to keep him fully informed'
f all that was going on, and further committed to him ecclesiastical jurisdiction over
ie bishops of the island, directing him among other things to convene synods annually,

VOL. XII. C

xviii PROLEGOMENA.

and requiring the bishops to submit to his control {Ep. i). This, however, seems to
have been only a temporary arrangement, since in the following year he appointed
Maximian, bishop of Syracuse, who had been a monk with himself and his peculiar friend in the
Monastery of St. Andrew, to act as his vicar in the island. Such vicarial jurisdiction, how-
ever, was only conferred on Maximian personally, as was specified at the time {Lib. II.,
Ep. 7), and was not continued to his successor, though he also received the pallium. [It may
be here observed that this decoration, in the time of Gregory, though usually conferred on
Metropolitans, did not of necessity imply metropolitan jurisdiction. Cf. Epp., Lid. IX., Note to
Ep. 11.] At a later date we find Romanus the Defensor, who had been made Rector patrimonii
in Sicily, charged apparently with an oversight of the churches similar to what had been
entrusted to Peter {Lib IX., Ep. 18 ; Lib. XL, Ep. 37). (2.) We find him also, through
his commissioned subdeacons, at once careful to correct the irregularities of monks in
Campania, Sicily, Corsica, and other smaller islands ; such as their migrating from mon-
astery to monastery, wandering about exempt from rule, and even taking to themselves
wives, or having women resident in the same buildings with themselves {Epp. 41, 42,
50, 51, 52). (3.) Frequent directions are given for charitable donations to such as needed
them (e.g. Epp. 18, 24, 39) ; and his apocrisiarius at Constantinople is charged to move the
Emperors in behalf of the natives of Sardinia, who were said to be oppressed illegally by the
duke of the island {Ep. 49). (4.) For the due election of bishops to vacant Sees, and the
visitation of Sees during vacancy, in the case of Churches under his acknowledged jurisdiction,
he gives careful orders, as e.g. in the case of Ariminum {Epp. 57, 58), of Menavia in Umbria
{Ep. 81), and Saona in Corsica {Ep. 78). The canonical rule, which he was careful to
observe, was to leave the people of the place (clergy, nobles, and commonalty) free to elect
their own bishop ; but still reserving to himself power to reject any unfit person. Thus,
in one case, he rejects one Ocleatinus as a candidate for the See of Ariminum {Epp. 57, 58),
and in another, in consequence of delay on the part of the electors, he departs from his usual
practice by himself appointing a bishop of Saona {Ep 80). Over remiss or criminal bishops,
as soon as he hears of their defaults — whereof, as of other things, he seems to have been
speedily informed by his agents — he loses no time in bringing his authority to bear. It was
in this, his first year, that he began a long continued correspondence with and with respect to
Januarius, Bishop of Cagliari in Sardinia, who appears to have been a frivolous old man
of very doubtful character (see Ep. 62, and reff.). Also with and with respect to Natalis, the
convivial bishop of Salona in Western Illyricum, with reference both to his own habits and
to his quarrel with the archdeacon Honoratus (see Ep. 19, and note with reff.). (5.) There will
be found also in this first book letters of sympathy and friendship, such as he never ceased to
write, some of which are to pious ladies of rank, including one to Theoctista, the Emperor's
sister {Ep. 5), which is further interesting as containing a specimen of his usual way of
interpreting Holy Scripture allegorically. Peculiarly charming as illustrative of his warm and
abiding friendship is his long continued correspondence, begun in this year, with or with
regard to Venantius, who had relinquished monastic for married life (see Ep. 34, and note with
reff-\ (6-) To be noted also in this Book, are his ineffectual attempts, though apparently sup-
ported by the Emperor, to bring the Istrian bishops to submission in the matter of the " Three
Chapters " (see Ep. 16, and notes), and his invoking of the secular arm for suppression of what
remained of the Donatist schism in Africa (see Ep. 74, and notes). (7.) Lastly, we find, ir,
Ep. 43 to Leander of Seville, the first intimation of the important event of the conversion tc
Catholicity of Reccared, the Visigothic King of Spain.

Most, if not all, of the subjects above noted, or the like, recur frequently in subsequeni
years. It may suffice to have drawn attention to them here, noting only in connexion with th(
following books any new subjects that appear of special interest.

PROLEGOMENA. xix

Book II. Indiction X. (a.d. 591-2.)

(1.) We meet in this book with the first allusion to the operations of the Lombards in
TI L ... Italy (Ep. 3); and hence this may be a suitable place for giving

a brief sketch of Gregory's dealings with regard to them in the light
thrown on the subject by his epistles. The Lombard King, Agilulf (as has been said
above, p. vii.), had his headquarters at Ticinum (Pavia), the extensive dukedoms
of Beneventum and Spoletum in Southern Italy being in the possession of his dukes.
Early in the year before us (the 10th Indiction), it appears that Ariulf, duke of
Spoletum, was believed to be marching either towards Ravenna or Rome. (See Ep. 3,
which is dated in the Collection of Paul the Deacon and in Cod. Colbert, "die V. Kalend.
Octob. Indict. 10," i.e. 27 Sept., a.d. 591.) Later in the same Indiction Gregory becomes
aware of his approach, and addresses letters (Epp. 29, 30) to officers in command of
the imperial forces with the purpose of urging them to meet the impending danger. Sub-
sequently in the same year it appears from a letter to the Bishop of Ravenna (Ep. 46) that
Ariulf was already besieging Rome. Gregory in this letter gives a sad account of the
savagery of the besieger outside the walls, his own illness and depression, and the difficulties
he had to contend with. He complains, in this as in other letters, of the conduct of
Romanus Patricius, the Exarch at Ravenna, who would neither send, aid nor sanction terms
of peace. Further, troops had, he says, been withdrawn from Rome before the siege, so as
to leave it insufficiently defended ; and the soldiers of a legion that remained there, not
receiving their pay, had refused to man the walls. In these straits Gregory appears at length
to have come to terms with Ariulf on his own responsibility ; for doing which he was
afterwards blamed and reproached as having been duped by Ariulf. (See Lib. V, Ep. 40.)
The peace, however, was not of long duration. The Exarch (probably soon afterwards,
though the date is not clear) marched himself to Rome, and on his return seized certain
cities — Satrium, Polimartium, Horta, Tudertua, Ameria, Perusia, Luceoli, and others — which
had been ceded to the Lombards under treaty —perhaps that which Gregory himself had
made. (Paul. Diac. Be gestis Longobard, IV. 8. Cf. Epp., Lib. V, Ep. 40.) Agilulf, the
Lombard King, incensed by this breach of faith, now came with an army from Ticinum,
recaptured Perusia, and again besieged Rome. In a letter addressed some time afterwards
1 to the Emperor*(Z/£. V., Ep. 40), Gregory gives a lamentable account of the misery that had
: ensued. Since the departure of Ariulf, he says, " troops had still further been withdrawn from
1 the city for the fruitless defence of Perusia, the supply of corn had failed, while from the
walls they saw Romans led away with ropes round their necks like dogs to be sold in France."
He, with the prefect of the city, also called Gregory, and the military commander Castorius,
! had done all they could under extreme difficulty to guard the walls, for which he complains
I they afterwards got no thanks, but rather blame for neglect of duty in letting the corn run
i short. He himself, when the besiegers arrived, had been delivering his well-known course
of homilies on Ezekiel, which he had been obliged to break off abruptly. The last ends
thus :— " Let no one blame me if henceforth I cease my speaking, since, as you all see, our
tribulations have increased ; we are surrounded on all sides by swords ; on all sides we are
afraid for imminent danger of death. Some return to us with their hands cut off; others are
reported to us as taken captive or slain. I am now forced to withhold my tongue from
exposition, for my soul is weary of life." How long this siege lasted, or on what terms of
agreement Agilulf at length departed, we are not told. Whatever arrangement was made, it
was evidently due to Gregory alone. Paul the Deacon says only (De gest. Longob., IV. 8), " that
King Agilulf, matters being arranged, returned to Ticinum ;" and adds, "and not long after-
wards, at the suggestion especially of his wife Queen Theodelinda, as the blessed Gregory

c 2

xx PROLEGOMENA.

often admonished her in his letters, he concluded a most firm peace with the same most holy
Pope Gregory, and with the Romans." But it is plain from epistles written subsequently
that it was not till some years later that anything like a settled truce was concluded : for it
was not till the second indiction, i.e. a.d. 598-9 (if the letters are rightly arranged, as they
appear to be, by the Benedictine editors), that we find letters of thanks from Gregory to King
Agilulf for peace at length concluded, and to Thecdelinda for her good offices {Lib. IX.,
Epp. 42, 43). In the meantime, as appears from various letters, Gregory continued to urge
the Emperor or the Exarch to arrange terms of peace, for which he asserts, though he was not
believed, that Agilulf was prepared. He declares also that he could have himself made
a separate peace with him so as to secure himself and Rome ; but that he had been unwilling
to do so, having the welfare of the whole republic at heart. He implies that the Exarch and
his adherents were but serving their own ends in opposing terms of peace, their own
exactions and oppressions during the continuance of hostilities being even more intolerable
than the ravages of the Lombards (see Lib. V., Epp. 40, 42). In an urgent letter to the
Empress Constantina he complains also of the cruel oppression of the natives of Sicily and
Corsica under colour of raising funds for the war, and begs her to plead with the Emperor,
for his own soul's sake as well as for real advantage to the republic, against the use of such
iniquitous means {Lib. V., Ep. 41). These letters (if rightly placed) were written in the
13th Indiction (a.d. 394-5), and in the next we find a letter to one Secundus at Ravenna,
in which negotiations with Agilulf with a view to peace are spoken of as still going on, which
this Secundus is urged to further {Lib. VI., Ep. 30). But it was not, as has been already
said, till the 2nd Indiction (a.d. 598 — 9) that any definite terms appear to have been agreed
to (see Lib. IX., Epp. 4, 6, 42, 43, 98) : and then, it seems, only for a limited time
(see Lib X., Ep. 37 ; — " indicantes cum Langobardorum rege usque ad mensem Martiam
futures quartce i?idictionis de pace, propitiante Domino, convenisse ") ; and even so, Gregory
does not appear to have felt secure : for in a letter written at this time to Januarius, bishop
of Cagliari in Sardinia, alluding to the peace that had been made, he warns him to guard the
island well in view still of possible danger from the Lombards {Lib. IX., Ep. 6. Cf. also
Lib. X., Ep. 37). After the expiration of this truce (which, as has been seen, was from some
time in the 2nd Indiction (588-9) to March in the 4th Indiction (a.d. 601), probably
for two years), hostilities having again broken out, a second truce was concluded in September,
a.d. 603, as appears from Paul the Deacon {De gest. Longob., IV. 29), until April, a.d. 605 :
and that Gregory had been instrumental in procuring it through the influence of Queen
Theodelinda on her husband, may be concluded from what he says in the last letter he
addressed to her, not long before his death {Lib. XIV., Ep. 12).

We thus see how indefatigably active Gregory was in the political sphere of things.
Lasting peace or security for Italy at that trying time it was beyond the power of man to
bring about : but whatever was done towards mitigation of distress, and temporary cessation
of hostilities, or approaches to better understanding with the Lombard King, appears plainly
to have been due to Gregory. Nor should we leave out of sight his provision for the
redemption of captives taken in war, whether out of ecclesiastical funds or others entrusted
to him for the purpose, or by the sale, which he cordially sanctioned, of the sacred vessels
of churches (IV. 17, 31 ; VII. 13, 26, 28, 38 ; IX. 17, &c).

(2.) Attention may be directed to epistles 22, 23 in this book in connexion with the
spiritual jurisdiction exercised by Rome over East as well as West Illyricum.

(3.) We may observe also the important import of epistle 41, with regard to the

exemption of monasteries from episcopal control by Gregory. The constitutions, De

privelegiis monasteriorum, therein contained were afterwards promulged by a council under

him (called Concilia Romanum LLL, sive Lateranense) in April, a.d. 60 i, being signed by

20 bishops, 14 presbyters, and 3 or 4 deacons.

PROLEGOMENA. xxi

Book III. Indiction XL (a.d. 592-3).

The following notable incidents are referred to in this Book : — ■

(1.) Two instances of the authority exercised (as above said) over the Illyrian Churches
being, for a time at least, resisted or disregarded, and of the support of the Emperor being-
sought, and more or less obtained, in such resistance or disregard The first instance was
in the case of Adrian, bishop of Thebas Phthioticse in Eastern Illyricum, as to which see
note to Ep. 6. The second and more serious one (which has been already alluded to)
was in the case of Maximus, elected and consecrated bishop of Salona in Western Illyricum,
in defiance of Gregory's prohibition and excommunication. In this case the resistance was
pertinacious and long continued, and it was not till after seven years that the matter was
compromised and communion restored. A summary of the proceedings, with reference
to all the epistles bearing on the case, will be found in a note to Ep. 47.

(2.) As illustrative of the relations between Rome and Constantinople, the case of
John of Chalcedon and Athanasius of Isauria, whose appeal to the Roman See was enter-
tained by Gregory. See note to Lib. III., Ep, 53.

(3.) The beginning of remonstrances, continued through two years, with the metro-
politan bishops of Ravenna with regard to their assumption of dignity above that of other
metropolitans, expressed especially by their use of the pallium on other occasions than
during Mass. From the letters on this subject we may detect, as has been said above, some
jealousy at the seat of the Exarch of the authoritative claims of the Roman See. See Lib. III.,
Ep. 56, with note and reff.

(4.) The conduct of Gregory, at once outspoken and submissive to imperial edicts, with
respect to the recent prohibition by the Emperor of soldiers becoming monks. See Ep. 65,
note and reff. ' The incident illustrates well Gregory's habitual deference to the authority
of the state, except in matters purely spiritual.

(5.) His requirement of Jews not being allowed to obtain or keep possession of Christian
slaves. There are other letters on this subject, viz. IV. 9, 21 ; VI. 32; VII. 24; IX. 36,
no. Even slaves already in the lawful possession of Jews, on declaring their desire to
become Christians, were to be thenceforth free without any compensation to their owners ;
only that pagans bought by Jews simply with a view to sale might, on their declaring such
desire, be sold by such Jews within three months after their purchase of them ; but only
to Christian masters. It may be here observed that, though such provisions seem hard
upon Jewish owners, and though Jews were legally prohibited from proselytising or building
new synagogues, yet we find Gregory in other respects very tender towards them, repeatedly
forbidding their being at all molested in the synagogues they had, or being in any way
persecuted into accepting baptism (I. 10, 35, 47 ; VIII. 25 ; IX. 6, 55 ; XIII. 12). Those
on the estates of the Church might indeed be drawn towards Christianity by the prospect
of reduced rents (II. 32, V. 8), but all compulsory conversion of them is denounced as wrong
and unavailing (e.g. I. 47). On the other hand, with some apparent inconsistency, pagan
peasants on the estates might be compelled to conform by intolerable exactions being laid
upon them in case of their refusal (IV. 26), and idolaters or diviners were to be reclaimed,
if freemen, by imprisonment, or, if slaves, by stripes and torments (IX. 65).

Book IV. Indiction XII. (a.d. 593-4).

In this book we may note :

(1 ) The continued refusal of many at least of the bishops in Liguria, as well as in
Istria and Venetia, to assent to the condemnation of the "Three Chapters" by the
fifth Council, and with them of Theodelinda, the Catholic Lombard queen. See Ep. 2
nd notes, with Epp. 3, 4, 38, 39.

xxii PROLEGOMENA.

(2.) The case of Paul, a bishop in Numidia, as indicating the continuance of dis-
inclination to submit fully to the Roman See in the African provinces. See Ep. 34,
with note. Cf. also Ep. 7, and IX. 58, 59.

(3.) The directions given by Gregory, and, as thereby shewn, the custom of the
Church, with regard to the anointing of the baptized {Ep. 9, and Ep. 26, with note);
and also his belief in the miraculous efficacy of the relics of saints, shewn in many other
Epistles, but especially in Ep. 30 of this book.

Book V. Indiction XIII. (a.d. 594-5).

(r.) This year is memorable for the commencement of Gregory's earnest protest, continued
Title of Universal through his subsequent life, against the title of Oecumenical, or Universal,
BishoP- Bishop (or Patriarch) assumed by the Patriarch of Constantinople. The

title itself was not a new one. It appears to have been occasionally given during the fifth
century as a title of honour to patriarchs generally, the first known instance being when
Olympius Episc. Evazensis gave it to Dioscorus at Concil. Ephes. ii. (Giesler's Eccles. Hist.
2nd Period, 1st Division, Ch. hi., § 93, note 20 ; with ref. to Mansi, vi. 855). Justinian
also had styled the patriarch of Constantinople " Oecumenical Patriarch " (Cod. i. 1, 7 ; Novell.
iii., v., vi., vii., xvi., xiii.). The first known protest against it from Rome was on its
assumption, a.d. 587 *, by John Jejunator at a synod at Constantinople, when Gregory's
predecessor, Pelagius II., had disallowed the acts of the synod in consequence, and had
withdrawn his apocrisiarius from communion with the patriarch (Epp. V. 18,43; IX. 68).
Gregory himself also had, as appears from the epistles above referred to, remonstrated
through his representatives at Constantinople with the patriarch on the subject, and
had received a letter from the emperor desiring him to let the matter rest (V. 19). But
he was now provoked to resolute action by having received a communication from the
patriarch in reference to the case of John the Presbyter, wherein the title of "CEcumenical
Patriarch" was repeatedly assumed (/#.). The peculiar warmth of feeling and strength
of language that mark his lengthened correspondence on the subject, are accounted for
not only by the old jealousy felt at Rome (which has been noticed above) of any claim
of Constantinople, in mere virtue of being the imperial city, to the prerogatives of an
ancient Apostolic See, but also by the title being viewed as not being one of honour
only, but as meaning really assumption of spiritual authority over the Church at large.
Such assumption could only rest on the fact of Constantinople having come to be the
imperial city : it had neither a shew of divine right, nor Apostolic tradition, nor canonical
authority to go on. Rome, though for himself also Gregory earnestly disclaimed the
title of Universal Bishop, was at any rate an ancient apostolic See, and viewed at
that time generally as representing the authority of the Prince of the Apostles, to whom
Christ himself had given the keys. But no such ancient prestige or apostolical commission
could possibly be claimed for Constantinople : its ascendency over the whole Church would
simply mean imperialism, and imperial domination over the whole Church would in
fact have been likely to be its practical result : and thus, in his determined protest,
Gregory might well feel himself to be contending for heavenly as against earthly jurisdiction,
for Christ as against the world, for God as against Caesar.

The following is a summary of the correspondence that ensued in this and following
years : —

In this year Gregory despatched five letters to Sabinianus, his apocrisiarius at Con-

1 That this was the date maybe inferred from Gregory, in Epistle XLIII. of this fifth book, speaking of the synod having
been held eight years ago.

PROLEGOMENA. xxiii

stantinople : — i. A long one to be delivered to John Jejunator, the Patriarch (Ep. 18), dated
Kal. Jan. Indict. 13 (i.e. Jany., a.d. 595), containing earnest remonstrances against pride in
general, and against this display of it in particular, and expressing the hope that stronger
measures may not be needed. 2. A private one to Sabinianus (Ep. 19), in a bitter tone
against the patriarch, attributing the mildness of the letter now addressed to the latter to the
Emperor's orders, but promising another by and by, such as would not be relished. 3. A
long one to the Emperor Maurice (Ep. 20), earnestly desiring him to disallow the title, and, if
necessary, coerce the patriarch to compliance. While acknowledging the Emperor's pious
desire to promote peace among the Bishops, he contends that the only means to this end was
to quell the assumption of the patriarch, the inconsistency of which with his ascetic habits,
and his affectation of humility, are pointed out ironically. 4. Another to the Empress Con-
stantina (Ep. 21), whose good disposition towards the Roman See he had heard of from
Sabinianus. His object is to enlist her influence with the Emperor and his sons in the
matter; and it is observable how, in addressing her, he speaks in a way he does not venture
on to the Emperor, of the peril to her own soul if St. Peter should be dishonoured, to whom
the power of binding and loosing had been given. 5. A long one to be transmitted through
Sabinianus to the patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch (Ep. 43), with the purpose of in-
ducing them to join him in his protest. He represents the offensive title as an infringement
on the rights and dignity of all patriarchs, not claiming in this letter any peculiar authority
for the Roman patriarchate above the rest. He bids them not be afraid of the Emperor in
the event, which he hopes will not ensue, of his continuing to support the Constantinopolitan
patriarch, but to be ready to face all consequences.

In the following year (Lib. VI., Indict. XIV., i.e. ad. 595-6) we find an epistle, dated
August (i.e. August, a.d. 596), to Eulogius, the patriarch of Alexandria only (Ep. 60),
expressing surprise that the latter, in a letter received from him had not even alluded to the
subject of the former epistle which had been addressed to the two patriarchs. It seems as if
Eulogius had either been afraid to provoke the emperor's displeasure, or had attached less
importance to the title than did Gregory himself, and so had maintained a discreet silence.
In this epistle Gregory expresses the view, which has been alluded to above, of the sees of
Rome and Alexandria being both in a sense St. Peter's, in virtue of the latter having been
founded by St. Mark, whom St. Peter had sent. He had previously, in a letter to°Anastasius
of Antioch (V. 39), intimated a similar view of the See of Antioch being also in a certain
sense St. Peter's; and in a subsequent letter to Eulogius (VII. 40) he sets forth more
distinctly and at length his noteworthy position of all the three patriarchal Sees of Rome,
Antioch, and Alexandria, having together the prerogatives of St. Peter's See.

In the following year (Indict. XV., a.d. 596-7) John Jejunator died, and was succeeded

by Cyriacus, to whom Gregory wrote on receiving his synodical letter, addressing him in

a friendly tone (Ep. 4), but urging in the course of his letter the rejection of the offensive

title. He wrote again {Ep. 31) especially on the subject, still courteously, but pressing the

matter strongly. To the emperor we find two letters ; the first (Ep. 6) approving of the

appointment of Cyriacus, but without any allusion to the burning question ; the second

\Ep- 2>Z)> after receiving one from the emperor, in which the desire had been expressed that

.he emissaries of the new patriarch should be honourably received at Rome.* To this request

Gregory replies that he has so received them, and admitted them to communion with him,

loping for the best ; but that his own representatives at Constantinople would by no means

)e allowed to communicate with Cyriacus, unless the title were renounced The emperor

lad said that the matter was a frivolous one. " Yes (says Gregory) the title is indeed frivolous,

nit its meaning and its consequences are serious ;" and he repeats his continual assertion that

vhosoever assumes it is the precursor of Antichrist. In this year also he continued his

xxiv PROLEGOMENA.

efforts to induce the patriarchs Anastasius and Eulogius to join him in his protest.
Anastasius, it seems, had not, like Eulogius, ignored the subject in his reply to the letter that
had been addressed to both, but had said that in his opinion the matter was of little moment
and not worth making a disturbance about ; at the same time addressing Gregory in flattering
terms. Gregory, in his reply (Ep. 27), which is somewhat ironical, insists again. To Eulogius
also he writes again (Ep. 40), deprecating the too deferential manner in which he had been
addressed by this patriarch, and setting forth his view of the oneness of the three sees. The
offensive title itself is not in this letter specifically referred to. There is also a second letter
to the two patriarchs jointly, explaining what had been done so far since the accession of
Cyriacus, and reiterating his protest against allowance of the title. In the succeeding year
(Lib. VIII. , Indict. I., a.d. 597-8) there is again a letter (lip. 30) to Eulogius, who appears
to have written a third time to Gregory, at length alluding to the title so far as to say that he
did not now use proud titles in addressing certain persons, but still apparently not prepared
to take any action. As if to make up for for such inaction, he had seemingly been profuse in
his compliments to Gregory, using the expression, "as thou hast commanded," and calling
him " Universal Pope." Such language Gregory, in reply, earnestly protests against,
disclaiming for himself, as much as for any other bishop, the name of Universal. In the
following year (Lib. IX., Indict. II., a.d. 598-9) we find two letters ; one of which is
an encyclical one (Ep. 68), to Eusebius of Thessalonica and other Eastern bishops, in view of
a synod about to be held at Constantinople, warning them against being cajoled there into
assenting to the title, and threatening them with excommunication in case of their complying.
From the second letter assigned to this year, which is again to Eulogius (Ep. 78), it would
seem that the synod at Constantinople had been held, and that Eulogius himself had been
there, though what had been done does not appear. The letter is in reply to one which had
been received with reference to a different subject from Eulogius; and Gregory complains
that the latter had still said nothing about the most important subject of all, namely the title.
He supposes Eulogius to be waiting till he himself shall take decided action ; and he
accounts for his own apparent delay by saying that he had been unwilling to be himself
the immediate author of schism. It seems as if he had felt at a loss what to do. His
remonstrances with Cyriacus and the emperor had been entirely unavailing ; he had failed
to move the two great Eastern patriarchs, or the bishops of the East generally, to take up the
question; and he shrank from so serious a step as breaking off communion with the whole
Eastern Church. And so matters appear to have rested. We find no further epistle on the
subject till four years later (Lib. XIII., Lndict. VI., a.d. 602-3), when in a short letter
(Ep. 40) to Cyriacus, with whom he appears to be still in communion, he urges him once
more to give up the title. There are in the same year two letters, and one in the previous
one (XII. 50), as well as two (X., 35, 39) in the third indiction, to Eulogius, in which the
subject is not alluded to.

(2) We observe in this year the sending of the pallium to Virgilius, bishop of Arte?

The Church in Gaul. in Gau1' and with k his deleSation (EPP- 53, 54, 55) as the PopeV

Vicar in the Kingdom of Childebert. As has been said abive (set

p. xii.), the spiritual authority of Rome over the Gallican Churches was not disputed

and Gregory exercised it vigilantly by means of letters to bishops, and to roya

personages, labouring among other things to move them to put down simony, clerica

immorality, and other prevalent abuses, and to assemble synods under authority fron

Rome for the correction of crying evils. But, though we find no resistance to hi

spiritual authority, neither do we find any evidence of his appeals to the consciences 0

the potentates of Gaul having had much practical effect in the directions indicated

Doubtless in a difficult field of action he did what he could ; nor need we doubt that th

PROLEGOMENA. xxv

authoritative voice from Rome was at any rate some check on violence and disorder, though
the results may not be very apparent in history.

The main divisions of Gaul at this time were Austrasia on the Eastern side, including
part of what is now Germany, Burgundy to the West and South, and the smaller Neustria on
the North-west. The limits as well as the possession of these territories were continually
changing during the contests between the descendants of Clovis, some or other of whom
ruled the whole of Gaul ; all now professing Catholic Christianity. In the Indiction now
before us {Indict. XIII., a.d. 594-5), as is pointed out in a note to Ep. 53, Childebert II.,
then aged about 25, ruled by far the greatest part of Gaul ; and hence the jurisdiction intended
to be conferred on Virgilius, when the pallium was sent him, may be taken as equally extensive.
We find no instance of spiritual authority so claimed being disputed in Gaul.

Book VI. Indiction XIV. (a.d. 595-6).
(1) This year is memorable for the mission of Augustine to England, the progress of
The English Mis- which, as indicated by the epistles, may be summarized as follows.
sion« The missionaries having left Rome, probably in the early spring of

the year 596, and proceeded as far as the South coast of France, and having there turned
faint-hearted, Augustine himself returned to Rome for leave to relinquish the enter-
prize. Gregory sent him back to his companions with the letter, addressed to them,
numbered Ep. 51 in this sixth book. It is dated X. Kal. Aug. Indict. 14, i.e. 23 July,
jA.D. 596. For a view of the circumstances see note to vi. 51. He was now charged
I (as he does not appear to have been when first sent forth) with various letters of
commendation, intended to speed him on his journey: viz. to the bishops of Marseilles,
of Tumi (al. Turon: — Tours 1), of Aries, Vienne and Autun, to Arigius, designated as
Patrician of Gaul, to Theodebertand Theoderic,thetwo boy-kings of Austrasia and of Burgundy,
;and to their powerful grandmother Brunehild, who at this time ruled Austrasia as the guardian
jof Theodebert. The course of the missionaries, after leaving Marseilles, would naturally be up
the valley of the Rhone, and so northward as far as Autun, most at least of the letters above
;named being such as might be delivered on the way. Thence to their place of embarcation
for the Isle of Thanet we find no intimation of their route, except that, in passing through
Neustria, they were well received and aided by Clotaire II. (nephew of Charibert, the deceased
|father of Bertha), who at that time ruled the country, having his capital at Soissons. This
(appears, though there is no extant letter of commendation on this occasion to Clotaire,
From a subsequent letter to him (XL 61).

The landing of the missionaries on the Isle of Thanet was, according to Bede, in the
following year, a.d. 597 (H. E., I. 25, V. 24). It must have been early in the year, so as
o allow time for the events, to be next noticed, which took place before its close. The
lext allusion to the mission found in the Epistles is Gregory's exulting announcement to
pulogius, bishop of Alexandria, of its remarkable success, and of the baptism of more
han ten thousand Angli as early as the Christmas of the same year, 597 (VIII. 30). The
late is definitely given in the letter to Eulogius ; — "in the solemnity of the Lord's Nativity
diich was kept in this first indiction;" — The first indiction being from September, 597, to
'ieptember, 598. In the meantime, as appears from the same letter, Augustine had already
>een consecrated bishop. The letter says vaguely "a Germanis Episcopis " : but, according
D John the Deacon (Fit. S. Greg. II. 36), and Bede {IT. E., I. 27), it was to Virgilius, bishop
if Aries, that Augustine had gone, as directed by Gregory, for consecration.

The next batch of Epistles throwing light on the progress of the mission (after two others,
X. n and 108, wherein Queen Brunehild and Syagrius Bishop of Autun are thanked
>r their attention to the missionaries on their progress) is in Book XI, and thus assigned

xxv; PROLEGOMENA.

to Indiction 4, i.e. a.d. 600-1, some three years after the aforesaid letter to Eulogius.
It comprises fourteen Epistles, some of which bear their own dates, and others are shewn by
their contents to have been written at the same time. It is true that the dates of the dated
epistles vary in different MSS. with regard to the time of year ; but all the MSS agree in giving
the same Indiction, viz. the fourth. The occasion of writing was when Augustine, according
to Bede and John the Deacon, had sent the presbyter Laurentius and the monk Peter
to Rome, to seek instructions on certain points, and to ask for more missionaries : whereupon,
we are told, Gregory sent back the messengers accompanied by Mellitus, Justus, Pauiinus,
Rufinianus, and others, with replies to Augustine's questions, instructions for the constitution
of the Church in Britain, the pallium for himself, and books, utensils and relics for the
Churches (Joann. Diac. in Vit. S. Greg., II. 36, 37 ; Bede, H. E., I. 27, 29). We might have
supposed from the narratives of John the Deacon and Bede that Augustine had sent
Lawrence and Peter to Rome on his return to Britain after his own consecration by the
bishop of Aries, and that the new band of missionaries had been sent out without delay.
But the dates of the epistles shew, as has been seen above, that several years had intervened,
at any rate, between Augustine's return and the sending out of the new missionaries. And
indeed Bede himself intimates this in his recapitulation of events (H. E., V. 24), though
not in his narrative. For, having given a.d. 597 as the date of Augustine's first arrival
in Britain, he gives a.d. 601 as that of the sending of the pallium with "more ministers,
among whom was Pauiinus."

The letters which these new missionaries carried with them were to the bishops Virgilius
of Aries (Ep. 55), Desiderius of Vienne {Ep. 54), Aetherius of Lyons (Ep. 56), Arigius
of Vapincum (Ep. 57), with a circular to various bishops of Gaul {Ep. 58); also lo Queen
Brunehild (Ep. 62), to kings Theodebert, Theoderic, and Clotaire (Epp. 59, 60, 61): to
Augustine himself (Ep. 65), together with a long reply (Ep. 64) to his questions1, to Ethelbert
king of Kent (Ep. 66), and probably at the same time to Bertha his queen (Ep. 29)*.

One more letter relating to the mission in Book XI. remains to be noticed ; viz., Ep. 76,
to Mellitus, which was sent after the rest, being intended to overtake the new band of mis-
sionaries on their journey through Gaul. Its main purpose seems to have been to modify
what had been said in the letter to Ethelbert as to the destruction of heathen temples. See
Note to Ep 76. This is the last extant epistle referring to the English mission.

(2) To be noted also in this book is the first of the ten epistles addressed to the
notorious queen Brunehild in Gaul (VI. 5). On her alleged character, and Gregory's mode
of addressing her, see note to the epistle.

' Another letter to Augustine (Ef>. 28), though placed in Book I But there is nothing to shew that the letter to Bertha might not
XI. by the Benedictine editors, may have been written in some 1 have been sent previously. It may be that the news of the king'.-
previous year. It is one of congratulation on reported success, \ conversion did not reach Rome till after the arrival there ot
and of warning against elation. It seems to refer to the same
news, received from Britain, that Gregory announced to Eulugius
of Alexandria in his letter to him, a.d. 598, and resembles that
letter in its exultant tone. Containing in itself no intimation
of its own date, it seems more likely that it was written about the
same time with the letter to Eulogius than that Gregory should

have let several years elapse before finding an opportunity of

congratulating Augustine on his success.

2 The only reason for doubting whether the letter to Bertha

was sent at the same time with that to Ethelbert, is that in the

former the queen is exhorted to move her husband to follow her

faith, whereas in the latter the king is addressed as already

a Christian. The letter to Bertha is shewn by what is said in it

to have been written after the arrival in Rome of Laurence and

Peter, and that to Ethelbert, from its date, to have been sent by

Mellitus and his companions when they left Rome for Eiiuin.

Lawrence and Peter, and that Gregory had found an opportunity
before sending to Britain the new band of missionaries, of de-
spatching a letter to the queen, urging her to bring it about
There would be time enough for his doing so, since the sending 0
Mellitus seems to have been delayed for a considerable time
owing, it may be, to Gregory's state of health at the time. Sei
Preface to XI. 64. On the other hand, the language used in th<
letter to Bertha may possibly only mean that she ought to mov
her husband to greater zeal in propagating the faith, already em
braced by himself, among his subjects. The exact date of Ethel
bert's baptism is not known. Bede only says that he allowed th
missionaries to preach freely before being himself converted, an
that, after his conversion, he compelled no one to accept Chri-
tianity. It may, then, be only his reported lukewarmness in thi
regard that Gregory's exhortation to Bertha refers to.

PROLEGOMENA. xxvii

Cook VII. Indiction XV. (a.d. 596-7), and Book VIII. Indiction I. (a.d. 597-8).
Though no historical events of importance come for the first time before our notice in
these books, attention may be drawn (1) to Gregory's policy of protecting monasteries from
episcopal domination (VII. 12, 43; VIII. 15) ; (2) his sanction of the sale of church plate
for charitable purposes (VII. 13, 3S) ; (3) Specimens of his letters of spiritual counsel,
especially to pious ladies of rank (VII. 25, 26, 30 ; VIII. 22).

Book IX. Indiction II. (a.d. 598-9).

Noticeable in this book are, (r) Gregory's renewed efforts, on Romanus Patricius being
succeeded by Callinicus in the exarchate, to reclaim the Istrian bishops to communion with
Rome (E/>.g,io, 93, &c.) ; (2) his interesting letter with reference to the ancient liturgical usages
of the Roman Church (Ep. 12) ; (3) the correspondence between him and the Visigothic
king Reccared in Spain, assigned. to this year (Epp. 6 r, 121, 122) ; (4) his contiuued efforts
to bring about the assembling of synods and correction of prevalent abuses in the Church
of Gaul (Ep. 106, &c.) ; (5) the remarkable letter to him of the Irish saint Columbanus,
illustrating the differences with regard to the computation of Easter between the Roman and
Celtic Churches, and the attitude of the latter towards the Roman See {Ep. 127).

Book XI. Indiction IV. (a.d. 600-1).
Noticeable in this book are —

(1) The letter to Serenus, bishop of Marseilles, with regard to the use and abuse of
pictures in Churches (Ep. 13).

(2) Two long letters to ladies of rank at Constantinople (Epp. 44, 45), the first of which
is interesting, as in other ways, so for the account contained in it of supposed miracles at the
monastery of St. Andrew in Rome, shewing, as many other epistles do, Gregory's firm belief
in miraculous interventions ; while the second is remarkable, not only for its spiritual counsels,
but also for its expression of Gregory's views on the unlawfulness of married persons entering
monasteries without mutual consent ; on the efficacy of baptism ; and on various points of
doctrine.

(3) The letter to the bishops of Iberia, setting forth the various ways of reconciling
various kinds of heretics to the Church, and containing a specimen of Gregory's controversial
skill in his refutation of Nestorianism (Ep. 67).

(4) Evidence of Gregory's unremitted efforts to correct the immorality prevalent among
the clergy in Gaul, shewn in his letter to queen Brunehild on the subject (Ep. 69).

(5) The letters relating to the English mission, notice of which has been forestalled
under Book VI.

Book XIII. Indiction V. (a.d. 602-3).
In this Book we may note —

(1) Continued correspondence about the Church in Gaul, with references to a church,
monastery, and hospital, founded by queen Brunehild at Autun, and to the synod for

'correction of abuses, long desired by Gregory, for the holding of which she had now requested
a fit person to be sent from Rome (Epp. 6, 7, 8, 9, 10).

(2) The important event of the accession of Phocas to the empire (November, a.d. 602),

with the letters of Gregory on the occasion to him and to his wife
Accession of Phocas. _ , „ , J 0 .

Leontia (Epp. 31, 38, 39).

The tone of high compliment— nay, of adulation— which marks these letters has been
justly regarded as a blot, much to be regretted, on the lustre of Gregory's character. There

xxviii PROLEGOMENA.

is indeed no reason to conclude that he knew so fcr of the peculiar blackness of the usurper's
character, as depicted by contemporary historians, and evinced by his disastrous and san-
guinary reign. And, seeing that it appears from Epistle 38 that he had had no apocrisiarius
resident at Constantinople towards the end of the reign of Mauricius, it may be that he had
not been fully informed of the cruelties that accompanied the accession of Phocas to the
imperial throne ; — how, for instance, five sons of the former emperor had been murdered
in succession before their father's eyes, and then the emperor himself, their bodies being
thrown into the Tiber, and their heads exposed in Constantinople till putrefaction began.
But, however this might be, Gregory's high-flown compliments addressed to the new potentates,
and his excessive exultation on their accession, cannot but strike one as unseemly as well as
premature. Nor is it pleasant to observe his exultant way of speaking of the fall of the late
emperor, whose sad fate called for so much sympathy, and to whom he had himself once
written in such terms as these: — "Since a sincere rectitude of faith shines in you, most
Christian of princes, like a light sent from heaven, and since it is known to all that your
Serenity embraces with all your heart the pure profession which wins the favour of God ''
(VI. 16). Again, "Amidst the cares of warfare, and innumerable anxieties which you sustain
in your unwearied zeal for the government of the Christian republic, it is a great cause of joy
to me, along with the whole world, that your Piety ever keeps guard over the faith whereby
the empire of our lords is resplendent" (VI. 65). Again, about him, only some two years
before his death, in a letter to the patriarch of Jerusalem, " Thanks should be given without
cease to Almighty God, and prayer ever made for the life of our most pious and Christian
lord the Emperor, and for his most tranquil spouse, and his most gentle offspring, in whose
times the mouths of heretics are silent, &c." (XI. 46). Doubtless Maurice's inefficiency with
regard to the Lombards had been exceedingly provoking, and perhaps still more so to
Gregory himself, his support of the Patriarch of Constantinople in his assumption of the
offensive title. And perhaps the gout from which Gregory appears to have been suffering
intensely at the time may partly account for his having given vent as he did to feelings
of irritation long suppressed. Then, with regard to his adulation of the new potentates, some
excuse may be found in prevalent usage, or his own habitual deference to the powers that be,
or his policy (apparent also in his letters to Brunehild) of enlisting their support by flattering
addresses to the cause of religion and the Church. But still a painful impression remains ;
though, on the other hand, it may be observed with truth that few great historical characters
of whom so much is known are stained by so few disfiguring blots as that of Gregory. It may
be presumed that a prominent motive of his paying court to the rising suns was his hope of
getting their support against the patriarch. He does not indeed refer distinctly to the title ;
but in his letter to Leontia (whom, rather than the emperor, with characteristic address, he
warns about her spiritual prospects being dependent on the favour of St. Peter) we can hardly
mistake the covert allusion. If so, his policy was not fruitless. For, though there is no
sufficient foundation for the statement of Baronius, that Phocas formally conferred on pope
Boniface III. the title of " Universal Bishop " which had been assumed by the patriarch, there
seems to be no good reason for doubting that the new emperor took the pope's part against
Cyriacus, who had offended him by his protection of Constantina and her daughters, and that,
when Boniface, who had been Gregory's apocrisiarius at Constantinople, himself became pope,
an imperial edict of some kind was issued in favour of the claims of Rome. The words of
Anastasius, the biographer of the popes towards the end of the ninth century, with reference
to it are these : " He (i.e. Boniface) obtained from the emperor Phocas that the Apostolic See
of St. Peter, that is, the Roman Church, should be the head of all Churches, because the
Church of Constantinople wrote itself the first of all Churches." The authority, however, of
Anastasius, who lived in a time of hierarchical forgeries, cannot be relied on without reserve.

PROLEGOMENA. xxix

Book XIV. Indiction VII. (a.d. 603-4.)

In the course of this indiction (on the 12th of March, a.d. 604) Gregory died. The
Last year of Pon- seventeen Epistles assigned to this last half-year of his life (one
tlficate- of which is dated December) shew no abatement of his care for all

the Churches, or his activity in correspondence, notwithstanding his excessive affliction
from gout, leaving him sometimes hardly able to speak, which he alludes to in his letter
to Theodelinda, the Lombard queen (Ep. 12). This letter was probably written
shortly before his death, since he speaks in it of the queen's messengers having left
him between life and death, though he still contemplates the possibility of recovery.
It is a peculiarly interesting one, not only for this reason, but also as being his last to
her. He congratulates her in it on the recent baptism of her infant son Adulouvald in
the catholic faith, sends for him a cross containing, as he alleges, wood from the true one, and
\lso jewelled rings for his sister; he bids her thank her husband for peace concluded, and
influence him, as she had ever done, to continue it ; and he promises her an answer, in case of
his recovery, to certain arguments against the condemnation of the Three Chapters by the
fifth council, which she had sent for his consideration. It thus appears that to the end of his
life he had failed to convince the Lombard queen on this subject, notwithstanding his in-
fluence over her, and the cordial relations ever subsisting between them.

The view opened to us through this long series of letters into the mind and

character of the great Gregory is of peculiar interest. The man
Gregory's character. .... , , . . . ie ,. , , . . . ,

himself stands out before us therein self-disclosed ; his very faults

and frailties, which a panegyrist would have veiled, giving life and reality to the
picture. We may observe in the first place how conspicuous throughout is his un-
hesitating faith. No cloud of doubt seems to have cast its shadow on his certainty of the
truth of Holy Writ and Christianity, and of the divine authority of the Catholic Church,
speaking through Fathers and Councils as its exponents. Nor were either his temperament
or his training such as to expose him to philosophic questionings. No less clear is the
sincerity of his life as inspired and guided by his religious faith. Whatever inferior human
motives may appear sometimes, there can be no doubt that his paramount aim was to devote
himself to God's service. As was to be expected from the religious ideas of his age, his theory
of the Christian life was ascetic in the extreme. Continual compunction, fear of judgment,
fastings, tears, almsgiving, and heavenly contemplation, formed his ideal of holiness. Even
lawful marriage he seems to tolerate, as a Zoar of escape from temptation, rather than to
approve: and for a man to enjoy life as most people aim at doing — to sit, as it were, under
his vine and under his fig-tree— appeared to him at any rate fraught with danger. Hence the
more of both sexes that were able, and could be induced, to leave the active duties of life for
monastic seclusion, the better he regarded it for them and for the world in whose behalf they
might thus have leisure to pray. Still, on the other hand, such ascetic views were not found
(incompatible in his case with tender regard for others in their earthly joys and sorrows, and
'interest in their family life, as expressed in many kind and sympathetic letters to friends;
and he was ever ready to meet their temporal as well as spiritual needs. His charitable
donations in all directions were bounded only by his means ; all oppression of the poor had
in him a resolute opponent ; nor can we but be struck by his keen sense of justice and regard
for it in all his dealings. His gentle breeding, aided by Christian culture, induced a tone of
courtesy, with delicate consideration for the feelings of others, in his letters generally; and he
usually softens even rebuke with gentleness. Partly, it may be, to this habit may be traced
the tone of flattery, which has been remarked on elsewhere, in his letters to potentates, or to
others whom it was his purpose to conciliate ; which was such indeed in some cases as to lay
him open to a charge of insincerity. On the other hand, however, it is to be remembered

XXX

PROLEGOMENA.

that, when strongly moved, he could write with very outspoken boldness, not without a vein
of cutting irony, even to the Emperor. Witness his two letters (V. 40; VII. 33) to Mauri-
cius on the two subjects that appear above all others to have distressed and irritated him. In
such letters — and especially in some to various correspondents about the title of "Universal
Bishop" — there are symptoms, no doubt, of much personal irritation, intensified perhaps by
gout, under provoking circumstances. But, if his politic flattery in some cases, and his
irritability in others, are to some minds disappointing in a saint, they are interesting
to a student of human nature : and it is greatly to his credit that they nowhere indicate any
merely selfish aims, but rather zeal — however alloyed by policy or by bitterness — for what he
honestly believed to be the cause of God.

As a divine he merits his title of a Doctor of the Church. He was, indeed, neither
original nor deeply learned ; as a mystical interpreter of Scripture he was fanciful, and often,
from our point of view, absurd ; owing to his visionary turn and his uncritical credulity he
may have fostered, and perhaps originated, some fond fables and superstitions, such as in-
fected the general belief of Christians in the middle ages : but he grasped and set forth clearly
the orthodox doctrines of the Church ; in treating difficult theological questions he displays
from time to time no small power of thought and argument ; as a preacher of essential
Christian morality he was ever sound and true ; nor has any one more insisted on spiritual
communion of the individual soul with God, or more strongly maintained the principle of
justice, mercy and truth being of the essence of religion.

His diplomatic and practical talents, and his unwearied industry, have been already
spoken of, and need no further notice in this brief final survey, the intention of which is to
view him rather in his character as a saint and a divine.

PEDIGREE OF KINGS OF GAUL.

Clovis = Clotilda.
I

I. Theodoric {illegitimate). 2. Clodomir. 3. Childebert I.
(d. 533). (d. 524). (d. 55S).

I
4. Clotaire I. = Ingundis.

Theodebert I.
(d. S4S.)

I
Guntram,

K. of Bur-
gundy (d.
593).

Charibert,
Capital Paris,
Father of
Bertha, who
m. Ethelbert,
K. of Kent
(d. 567).

Sigebert I.
King of
Austrasia
(assassina-
ted 575).

= Brunehild*.

Childebert II.
5 years old when his father
died. Proclaimed K. of
Austrasia. Succeeded his
uncle Guntram as K. of
Burgundy, 593 (d. 596).

Failenba.

4. Chilperic = Fredegund.
(assassina-
ted 584).

Clotaire II.
An infant when his father
died. Guntram of Burgundy
his Guardian. Capital Sois-
sons. Became sole King of
the Franks 613 (d. 62b).

Theodebert II. {illegitimate).
10 years old when his father died.
K. of Austrasia. Capital Metz
(d. 612).

Theodoric II.
9 years old when his father died. K. of Burgundy. Capital
Orleans (or Chalons-sur-Saone). K. also of Austrasia on
death of his brother Theodebert II. (d. 613).

1 Brunehild (or Rrunehaut) was daughter of Athanagild, K. of the Visigoths in Spain. Septimania, and Narbonensian Gaul.
She renounced Arianism for Catholicity on her marriage to Sigebert I. Made Guardian of Theodebert II. on the death of his father
Childebert II. Expelled from Austrasia, 399, and received by Theodoric II. in Burgundy. Put to death under Clotaire II. 613.

THE BOOK OF PASTORAL RULE.

PREFACE.

The title, Liber Reprice Pastoralis, is the one adopted by the Benedictine Editors
from several ancient MSS., being Gregory's own designation of his work when he sent it
to his friend, Leander of Seville;— "Ut librum Regulas Pastoralis, quem in episcopatus mei
exordio scripsi . . . sanctitati tuae transmitterem " {Epp. Lib. v., Ep. 49). The previously-
more usual one, Liber Pastoralis Cures, may have been taken from the opening words of
the book itself, " Pastoralis curae me pondera fugere, etc." The book was issued (as appears
from the passage above quoted in the Epistle to Leander) at the commencement of Gregory's
episcopacy, and (as appears from its opening words) addressed to John, bishop of Ravenna,
in reply to a letter received from him. But, though put into form for a special purpose on
this occasion, it must have been the issue of long previous thought, as is further evident
from the fact that in his Magna Moralia, or Commentary on the Book of Job, begun and
in a great measure written during his residence in Constantinople, he had already sketched
the plan of such a treatise, and expressed the hope of some day putting it into form. For
we there find the prologue to the third book of the Regula already written, together with
most of the headings contained in the first chapter of that book, followed by the words,
'And indeed we ought to have denoted particularly what should be the order of admonition
vith respect to each of these points ; but fear of prolixity deters us. Yet, with God's help,
we hope to complete this task in another work, should some little time of this laborious
life still remain to us" {Moral. Lib. xxx. c. 12 and 13).

The book appears to have been estimated as it deserved during the writer's life. It
ivas sent by him, as we have seen, to Leander of Seville, apparently at the request of the
atter, for the benefit of the Church in Spain ; and there will be found among the Epistles one
ddressed to Gregory from Licinianus, a learned bishop of Carthagena in that country, in
diich it is highly praised, though a fear is expressed lest the standard required in it of fitness
or the episcopal office might prove too high for ordinary attainment {Epp. Lib. II., Ep. 54).
'he Emperor Maurice, having requested and obtained a copy of it from Anatolius, Gregory's
eacon at Constantinople, had it translated into Greek by Anastasius the patriarch of Antioch,
•ho himself highly approved of it {Epp. Lib. XII., Ep. 24). It appears to have been taken
) England by the Monk Augustine. This is asserted by Alfred the Great, who, nearly three
undred years afterwards, with the assistance of his divines, made a translation, or rather
araphrase, of it in the West Saxon tongue, intending, as he says, to send a copy to every
ishop in his Kingdom '.

Previously to this, there is evidence of the high repute in which the book was held in
aul. In a series of councils held by command of Charlemagne, a.d. 813, — viz. at Mayence,

: « Edited, with an English version, by Henry Sweet of I'.alliol College, and published for the Early English Text Society,
k P^rt I., p. 7.

XXX11

PREFACE.

Rheims, Tours, and Chalon-sur-Seine — the study of it was specially enjoined on all bishops,
together with the New Testament Scriptures and the Canons of the Fathers2. Similarly
at a Council held at Aix-la-Chapelle, a.d. 836 3. Further, it appears from a letter of Hincmar *,
Archbishop of Rheims (a.d. 845 — 882), that a copy of it together with the Book of Canons
was given into the hands of bishops before the altar at their consecration, and that they were
admonished to frame their lives accordingly.

The work is well worthy of its old repute, being the best of its kind, and profitable
for all ages. Two similar works had preceded it. First, that of Gregory Nazianzen
(c a.d. 362), known as his second oration, and called tov avrov drroXuyrjTiKos, which was written,
like that of the later Gregory, to excuse the writer's reluctance to accept the episcopate,
and to set forth the responsibilities of the office. It is obvious, from comparing the two
treatises, that the earlier had suggested the later one ; and indeed Pope Gregory acknowledges
his indebtedness in his prologue to the second book of the Regula. The second somewhat
similar treatise had been that of Chrysostom, ' De Sacerdotio,' in six books, c. a.d. 3S2.
It also sets forth the awful responsibilities of the episcopal office; but there are no signs
of pope Gregory having drawn from it.

It is to be observed that the subject of all these treatises is the office of episcopacy ; not
the pastoral or priestly office in its wider sense, as now commonly understood : and it is
noteworthy how prominent in Gregory's view of it are the duties of preaching and spiritual
guidance of souls. It is regarded, indeed, in the first place as an office of government —
locus regiminis, oilmen regiminis, denote it frequently — and hence the exercise of discipline
comes prominently in; and the chief pastor is viewed also as an intercessor between his flock
and God — See e.g. I. 10 ; — but it is especially as a teacher, and a physician of souls, that
he is spoken of throughout the treatise ; as one whose peculiar duty it is to be conversant
with all forms of spiritual disease, and so be able to suit his treatment to all cases, to "preach
the word, reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all long suffering and doctrine," and both by precept
and example guide souls in the way of salvation. Gregory had not studied in vain th<
Pastoral Epistles of St. Paul. Remarkable indeed is his own discriminating insight, displayec
throughout, into human characters and motives, and his perception of the temptations t<
which circumstances or temperament render various people — pastors as well as member
of their flocks — peculiarly liable. No less striking, in this as in other works of his, is hi
intimate acquaintance with the whole of Holy Scripture. He knew it indeed through th<
Latin version only; his critical knowledge is frequently at fault; and far-fetched mystica
interpretations, such as he delighted in, abound. But as a true expounder of its genera
moral and religious teaching he well deserves his name as one of the great Doctors 0
the Church. And, further, notwithstanding all his reverence for Councils and Father;
as paramount authorities in matters of faith, it is to Scripture that he ever appeals as the fim
authority for conduct and belief.

s Cone 7. Mogunt. Prczfat. ; — Concil. Rhemens. II. . Canon x. ;
— Concil. Turon. III., Canon iii. ; — Concil. Cabilon. II. ,
Zanoo. i

3 Concil. Aquisgran., cap. i., De Vita Episcoporum, can. 7,
10 ; cap. 2, De doctrina episcoporum.

4 Hincmar. Opp. torn. ii. p. 389, Ed. Paris, 1645.

THE BOOK OF PASTORAL RULE

SAINT GREGORY THE GREAT,

ROMAN PONTIFF,
TO JOHN, BISHOP OF THE CITY OF RAVENNA.

PART I.

Gregory to his most reverend and most holy
brother and fellow-bishop, John.

With kind and humble intent thou reprovest

me, dearest brother, for having wished by

liding myself to fly from the burdens of

oastoral care ; as to which, lest to some they

should appear light, I express with my pen in

he book before you all my own estimate of

heir heaviness, in order both that he who

s free from them may not unwarily seek them,

ind that he who has so sought them may

remble for having got them. This book is

livided into four separate heads of argument,

hat it may approach the reader's mind by

.negations arranged in order — by certain

teps, as it were. For, as the necessity of things

equires, we must especially consider after

vhat manner every one should come to su-

ireme rule ; and, duly arriving at it, after what

lanner he should live ; and, living well, after

diat manner he should teach ; and, teaching

right, with how great consideration every day

e should become aware of his own infirmity ;

pst either humility fly from the approach, or

fe be at variance with the arrival, or teaching

e wanting to the life, or presumption unduly

xalt the teaching. Wherefore, let fear temper

ie desire ; but afterwards, authority being

ssumed by one who sought it not, let his

fe commend it. But then it is necessary that

ne good which is displayed in the life of the

astor should also be propagated by his

)eech. And at last it remains that, whatever

orks are brought to perfection, consideration

f our own infirmity should depress us with

:gard to them, lest the swelling of elation

VOL. XII. ]

extinguish even them before the eyes of
hidden judgment. But inasmuch as there are
many, like me in unskilfulness, who, while
they know not how to measure themselves, are
covetous of teaching what they have not
learned ; who estimate lightly the burden of
authority in proportion as they are ignorant
of the pressure of its greatness ; let them be
reproved from the very beginning of this book ;
so that, while, unlearned and precipitate, they
desire to hold the citadel of teaching, they may
be repelled at the very door of our discourse
from the ventures of their precipitancy.

CHAPTER I.

That the unskilful venture not to approach an
office of authority.

No one presumes to teach an art till he has
first, with intent meditation, learnt it. What
rashness is it, then, for the unskilful to assume
pastoral authority, since the government of
souls is the art of arts ! For who can be
ignorant that the sores of the thoughts of men
are more occult than the sores of the bowels?
And yet how often do men who have no know-
ledge whatever of spiritual precepts fearlessly
profess themselves physicians of the heart,
though those who are ignorant of the effect
of drugs blush to appear as physicians of the
flesh ! But because, through the ordering of
God, all the highest in rank of this present
age are inclined to reverence religion, there
are some who, through the outward show of
rule within the holy Church, affect the glory
of distinction. They desire to appear as
teachers, they covet superiority to others, and,

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

as the Truth attests, they seek the first saluta-
tions in the market-place, the first rooms at
feasts, the first seats in assemblies (Matth.
xxiii. 6, 7), being all the less able to administer
worthily the office they have undertaken of
pastoral care, as they have reached the magis-
terial position of humility out of elation only.
For, indeed, in a magisterial position language
itself is confounded when one thing is learnt
and another taught '. Against such the Lord
complains by the prophet, saying, They have
reigned, and not by Me ; they have been set up as
princes, and I knew it not (Hos. viii. 4). For
those reign of themselves, and not by the Will
of the Supreme Ruler, who, supported by no
virtues, and in no way divinely called, but
inflamed by their own desire, seize rather
than attain supreme rule. But them the
Judge within both advances, and yet knows
not ; for whom by permission he tolerates,
them surely by the judgment of reprobation he
ignores. Whence to some who come to Him
even after miracles He says, Depart from Me, ye
ivorkers of iniquity, I know you not who ye arc
(Lukexiii. 27). The unskilfulness of shepherds
is rebuked by the voice of the Truth, when it is
said through the prophet, The shepherds them-
selves have not known understanding (Isai. lvi.
11); whom again the Lord denounces, saying,
And they that handle the law knew Me not (Jer.
ii. 8). And therefore the Truth complains of
not being known of them, and protests that He
knows not the principality of those who know
not Him ; because in truth these who know
not the things of the Lord are unknown of
the Lord; as Paul attests, who says, But ij
any man knowelh not, he shall not be known
( 1 Cor. xiv. 38). Yet this unskilfulness of the
shepherds doubtless suits often the deserts of
those who are subject to them, because, though
it is their own fault that they have not the
light of knowledge, yet it is in the dealing of
strict judgment that through their ignorance
those also who follow them should stumble.
Hence it is that, in the Gospel, the Truth in
person says, If the blind lead the blind, both
fall into the ditch (Matth. xv. 14). Hence the
Psalmist (not expressing his own desire, but in
his ministry as a prophet) denounces such,
when he says, Let their eyes be blinded that they
see not, and ever boiv thou do?vn their back (Ps.
lxviii. 24 2). For, indeed, those persons are

1 In this passage the phrase magisterium humilitatis has
reference to Matt, xx 25, &c, or Luke xxii. 25, &c., and itsa
lingua confunaitur to Gen. xi. 7. The meaning appears to be that
when men seek and attain in a spirit of pride the office which
according to our Lord's teaching is one of humility, they are
incapable of fulfilling its duties by speaking to others so to be
understood and edify. They are as the arrogant builders of
Babel whose language the Lord confounded, that they might
not understand one another's speech.

2 In Hebr. and Engl. lxix. 24.

eyes who, placed in the very face of the
highest dignity, have undertaken the office
of spying out the road ; while those who are
attached to them and follow them are de-
nominated backs. And so, when the eyes
are blinded, the back is bent, because, when
those who go before lose the light of know-l
ledge, those who follow are bowed down to I
carry the burden of their sins.

CHAPTER II.

That none should enter on a place of government
who practise not in life zvhat they have learnt
by study.

There are some also who investigate spiritual;
precepts with cunning care, but what they pene-
trate with their understanding they trample on
in their lives : all at once they teach the things
which not by practice but by study they have
learnt ; and what in words they preach by
their manners they impugn. Whence it comes
to pass that when the shepherd walks through
steep places, the flock follows to the precipice.
Hence it is that the Lord through the prophet
complains of the contemptible knowledge oi
shepherds, saying, When ye yourselves ha a
drunk most pure water, ye fouled the residue
with your feet ; and My sheep fed on that which
had been trodden by your feet, and drank tha,
which your feet had fouled (Ezck. xxxiv. 18
19). For indeed the shepherds drink mos
pure water, when with a right understanding
they imbibe the streams of truth. But tc
foul the same water with their feet is t<
corrupt the studies of holy meditation by evi
living. And verily the sheep drink the wate
fouled by their feet, when any of those subjec
to them follow not the words which they hear
but only imitate the bad examples which the;
see. Thirsting for the things said, but pei
verted by the works observed, they take ii
mud with their draughts, as from pollute
fountains. Hence also it is written throug
the prophet, A snare for the downfall of m
people are evil pii:sts (Hos. v. i ; ix. 8
Hence again the Lord through the prophe
says of the priests, They are made to be for
stumbling-block of iniquity to the house of Israe
For certainly no one does more harm in tb
Church than one who has the name and ran
of sanctity, while he acts perversely. F(
him, when he transgresses, no one presume,
to take to task ; and the offence spreac
forcibly for example, when out of reverenc
to his rank the sinner is honoured. But a
who are unworthy would fly from the burde
of so great guilt, if with the attentive e;
of the heart they weighed the sentence oft!
Truth, Whoso shall offend one of these little on

CHAPTER IV.

which believe in me, it were better for him that a
millstone were hanged about his neck, and he
were drowned in the depth of the sea (Matth.
xviii. 6). By the millstone is expressed the
round and labour of worldly life, and by the
depth of the sea is denoted final damnation.
Whosoever, then, having come to bear the
outward show of sanctity, either by word or
example destroys others, it had indeed been
better for him that earthly deeds in open guise
should press him down to death than that
sacred offices should point him out to others
as imitable in his wrong-doing ; because, surely,
if he fell alone, the' pains of hell would torment
him in more tolerable degree.

CHAPTER III.

Of the weight of government ; and that all man-
ner of adversity is to be despised, and pros-
perity feared.

So much, then, have we briefly said, to shew

how great is the weight of government, lest

whosoever is unequal to sacred offices of go-

: vernment should dare to profane them, and

■ through lust of pre-eminence undertake a
leadership of perdition. For hence it is that
James affectionately deters us, saying, Be not
made many masters, my brethren (James iii. i).
Hence the Mediator between God and man
Himself — He who, transcending the knowledge
and understanding even of supernal spirits,
reigns in heaven from eternity — on earth fled
from receiving a kingdom. For it is written,

■ When Jesus therefore perceived that they ivould
\ come and take Him by force, to make Him a king,

He departed again into the mountain Himself
|tf/<?/^ (Joh. vi. 15). For who could so blame-
lessly have had principality over men as He
who would in fact have reigned over those
whom He had Himself created? But, because
He had come in the flesh to this end, that He
i might not only redeem us by His passion but
ialso teach us by His conversation, offering
Himself as an example to His followers, He
I would not be made a king; but He went of His
own accord to the gibbet of the cross. He
fled from the offered glory of pre-eminence,
'but desired the pain of an ignominious death ;
i that so His members might learn to fly from
the favours of the world, to be afraid of no

■ terrors, to love adversity for the truth's sake,
'and to shrink in fear from prosperity; because

this often defiles the heart through vain glory,
while that purges it through sorrow; in this
the mind exalts itself, but in that, even though
jit had once exalted itself, it brings itself low ;
in this man forgets himself, but in that, even
perforce and against his will, he is recalled to
memory of what he is ; in this even good

things done aforetime often come to nothinsr,
but in that faults even of long standing are
wiped away. For commonly in the school of
adversity the heart is subdued under discipline,
while, on sudden attainment of supreme rule,
it is forthwith changed and becomes elated
through familiarity with glory. Thus Saul,
who had before fled in consideration of his
unworthiness, no sooner had assumed the
government of the kingdom than he was
puffed up (1 Kings x. 22; xv. 17, 30): for,
desirous of being honoured before the peo-
ple while unwilling to be publicly blamed,
he cut off from himself even him who had
anointed him to the kingdom. Thus David,
who in the judgment of Him who chose him
was well pleasing to Him in almost all his
deeds, as soon as the weight of pressure was
removed, broke out into a swelling sore (2 Kings
xi. 3, sea.), and, having been as a laxly running
one in his appetite for the woman, became as
a cruelly hard one in the slaughter of the man ;
and he who had before known pitifully how to
spare the bad learnt afterwards, without im-
pediment of hesitation, to pant even for the
death of the good (Ibid. 15). For, indeed, pre-
viously he had been unwilling to smite his
captured persecutor ; and afterwards, with
loss to his wearied army, he destroyed even
his devoted soldier. And in truth his crime
would have snatched him farther away from
the number of the elect, had not scourges
called him back to pardon.

CHAPTER IV.

That for the most part the occupation of govern-
ment dissipates the solidity of the mind.

Often the care of government, when under-
taken, distracts the heart in divers directions ;
and one is found unequal to dealing with par-
ticular things, while with confused mind di-
vided among many. Whence a certain wise
man providently dissuades, saying, My son,
meddle not with many matters (Ecclus. xi. 10) ;
because, that is, the mind is by no means
collected on the plan of any single work while
parted among divers. And, when it is drawn
abroad by unwonted care, it is emptied of the
solidity of inward fear : it becomes anxious in
the ordering of things that are without, and,
ignorant of itself alone, knows how to think of
many things, while itself it knows not. For,
when it implicates itself more than is needful
in things that are without, it is as though it
were so occupied during a journey as to forget
where it was going ; so that, being estranged
from the business of self-examination, it does
not even consider the losses it is suffering, or
know how great they are. For neither did

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

Hezekiah believe himself to be sinning (2 Kings
xx. 13), when he shewed to the strangers who
came to him his storehouses of spices ; but he
fell under the anger of the judge, to the con-
demnation of his future offspring, from what
he supposed himself to be doing lawfully
(Isai. xxxix. 4). Often, when means are
abundant, and many things can be done for
subordinates to admire, the mind exalts itself
in thought, and fully provokes to itself the
anger of the judge, though not breaking out
in overt acts of iniquity. For he who judges
is within; that which is judged is within.
When, then, in heart we transgress, what we
are doing within ourselves is hidden from men,
but yet in the eyes of the judge we sin. For
neither did the King of Babylon then first
stand guilty of elation (Dan. iv. 16, seq.) when
he came to utter words of elation, inasmuch as
even before, when he had given no utterance
to his elation, he heard the sentence of repro-
bation from the prophet's mouth For he had
already wiped off the fault of the pride he had
been guilty of, when he proclaimed to all the
nations under him the omnipotent God whom
he found himself to have offended.

But after this, elevated by the success of
his dominion, and rejoicing in having done
great things, he first preferred himself to all in
thought, and afterwards, still vain-glorious,
said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built
for the house of the kingdom, and in the might of
my power, and for the honour of my majesty ?
(Dan. iv. 30.) Which utterance of his, as we
see, fell openly under the vengeance of the
wrath which his hidden elation kindled. For
the strict judge first sees invisibly what he
afterwards reproves by publicly smiting it.
Hence him He turned even into an irrational
animal, separated him from human society,
changed his mind and joined him to the
beasts of the field, that in obviously strict and
just judgment he who had esteemed himself
great beyond men should lose even his being
as a man. Now in adducing these things we
are not finding fault with dominion, but guard-
ing the infirmity of the heart from coveting it,
lest any that are imperfect should venture to
snatch at supreme rule, or those who stumble
on plain ground set foot on a precipice.

CHAPTER V.

Of those who are able to profit others by virtuous
example in supreme rule, but fly from it in
pursuit of their own ease.

For there are some who are eminently en-
dowed with virtues, and for the training of
others are exalted by great gifts, who are pure
in zeal for chastity, strong in the might of

abstinence, filled with the feasts of doctrine,
humble in the long-suffering of patience, erect
in the fortitude of authority, tender in the
grace of loving-kindness, strict in the severity
of justice. Truly such as these, if when called
they refuse to undertake offices of supreme
rule, for the most part deprive themselves of
the very gifts which they received not for them-
selves alone, but for others also ; and, while
they meditate their own and not another's gain,
they forfeit the very benefits which they desire
to keep to themselves. For hence it was that
the Truth said to His disciples, A city that is
set on an hill cannot be hid : neither do they
light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on
a candlestick, that it may give light to all that
are in the house (Matth v. 15). Hence He
says to Peter, Simon, Son of Jonas, lovest thou
Mel (Joh. xv. 16, 17) ; and he, when he had
at once answered that he loved, was told, If
thou lovest Me, feed My sheep. If, then, the
care of feeding is the proof of loving, whoso-
ever abounds in virtues, and yet refuses to
feed the flock of God, is convicted of not
loving the chief Shepherd. Hence Paul says,
If Christ died for all, then all .died. And if He
died for all, it remain :th that they tvhich live
should now no longer live unto themselves, but
unto Him which died for them and rose again
(2 Cor. v. 15). Hence Moses says (Deut
xxv. 5) that a surviving brother shall take to
him the wife of a brother who has died with-
out children, and beget children to the name of
his brother ; and that, if he haply refuse to
take her, the woman shall spit in his face, and
her kinsman shall loose the shoe irom off one
of his feet, and call his habitation the house of
him that hath his shoe loosed. Now the
deceased brother is He who, after the glory ol
the resurrection, saitl, Go tell My brethren
(Matth. xxviii. 10). For He died as it wert
without children, in that He had not yet filled
up the number of His elect. Then, it is or
dered that the surviving brother shall have the
wife assigned to him, because it is surely fil
that the care of holy Church be imposed or
him who is best able to rule it well. But
should he be unwilling, the woman spits in hi:
face, because whosoever cares not to benefi
others out of the gifts which he has received
the holy Church exprobrates even what h(
has of good, and, as it were, casts spittle 01
his face : and from one foot the shoe is taker
away, inasmuch as it is written, Your feet shoe
in preparation of the Gospel of Peace (Ephes
vi. 15). If, then, we have the care of ou
neighbour as well as of ourselves upon us, wi
have each foot protected by a shoe. But hi
who, meditating his own advantage, neglect
that of his neighbours, loses with disgrace on'

CHAPTER VIII.

alls

e>.
'■•
v,

gai

i\
hi

foot's shoe. And so there are some, as we
have said, enriched with great gifts, who, while
they are ardent for the studies of contempla-
tion only, shrink from serving to their neigh-
bour's benefit by preaching ; they love a secret
place of quiet, they long for a retreat for
speculation. With respect to which conduct,
they are, if strictly judged, undoubtedly guilty
in proportion to the greatness of the gifts
whereby they might have been publicly useful.
For with what disposition of mind does one
who might be conspicuous in profiting his
neighbours prefer his own privacy to the ad-
vantage of others, when the Only-begotten of
the supreme Father Himself came forth from
the bosom of the Father into the midst of us
all, that He might profit many ?

CHAPTER VI.

T/iaf those who fly from the burden of rule
through humility are then truly humble when
they resist not the Divine decrees.
There are some also who fly by reason only of
itheir humility, lest they should be preferred to
others to whom they esteem themselves un-
lequal. And theirs, indeed, if it be surrounded
by other virtues, is then true humility before the
eyes of God, when it is not pertinacious in re-
jecting what it is enjoined to undertake with
nrofit. For neither is he truly humble, who
.inderstands how the good pleasure of the
Supernal Will ought to bear sway, and yet con-
:emns its sway. But, submitting himself to
:he divine disposals, and averse from the vice
pf obstinacy, if he be already prevented with
>ifts whereby he may profit others also, he
pught, when enjoined to undertake supreme
rule, in his heart to flee from it, but against his
vill to obey.

CHAPTER VII.

That sometimes some laudably desire the office
of preaching, while others, as laudably, are
drawn to it by compulsion.

Although sometimes some laudably desire
he office of preaching, yet others are as laud-
bly drawn to it by compulsion ; as we plainly
perceive, if we consider the conduct of two
•rophets, one of whom offered himself of his
|<wn accord to be sent to preach, yet the other
n fear refused to go. For Isaiah, when the Lord
sked whom He should send, offered himself of
is own accord, saying, Here I am; send me
Isai. vi. 8). But Jeremiah is sent, yet humbly
leads that he should not be sent, saying, Ah,
,ord God! behold I cannot speak : for I am a
hild (Jer. i. 6). Lo, from these two men dif-
erent voices proceeded outwardly, but they
owed from the same fountain of love. For
■ere are two precepts of charity ; the love of

God and of our neighbour. Wherefore Isaiah,
eager to profit his neighbours through an active
life, desires the office of preaching ; but Jere-
miah, longing to cleave sedulously to the love
of his Creator through a contemplative life, re-
monstrates against being sent to preach. Thus
what the one laudablydesired the other laudably
shrunk from ; the latter, lest by speaking he
should lose the gains of silent contemplation ;
the former, lest by keeping silence he should
suffer loss for lack of diligent work. But this
in both cases is to be nicely observed, that he
who refused did not persist in his refusal, and
he who wished to be sent saw himself pre-
viously cleansed by a coal of the altar ; lest any
one who has not been purged should dare to
approach sacred ministries, or any whom
supernal grace has chosen should proudly
gainsay it under a show of humility. Where-
fore, since it is very difficult for any one to be
sure that he has been cleansed, it is safer to
decline the office of preaching, though (as we
have said) it should not be declined perti-
naciously when the Supernal Will that it
should be undertaken is recognized. Both
requirements Moses marvellously fulfilled, who
was unwilling to be set over so great a mul-
titude, and yet obeyed. For peradventure he
were proud, were he to undertake without tre-
pidation the leadership of that innumerable
people; and, again, proud he would plainly be
were he to refuse to obey his Lord's command.
Thus in both ways humble, in both ways sub-
missive, he was unwilling, as measuring him-
self, to be set over the people ; and yet, as
presuming on the might of Him who com-
manded him, he consented. Hence, then,
hence let all rash ones infer how great guilt
is theirs, if they fear not to be preferred to
others by their own seeking, when holy men,
even when God commanded, feared to under-
take the leadership of peoples. Moses trembles
though God persuades him ; and yet every
weak one pants to assume the burden of dig-
nity ; and one who can hardly bear his own
load without falling, gladly puts his shoulders
under the pressure of others not his own : his
own deeds are too heavy for him to carry, and
he augments his burden.

CHAPTER VIII.

Of those who covet pre-eminence, and seize on the
language of the Apostle to serve the purpose
of their own cupidity.

But for the most part those who covet pre-
eminence seize on the language of the Apostle
to serve the purpose of their own cupidity,
where he says, If a man desire the office of a
bishop, he desireih a good work (i Tim. iii. i).

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

But, while praising the desire, he forthwith
turns what he has praised to fear when at once
he adds, but a bishop must be blameless (i Tim.
iii. 2). And, when he subsequently enumerates
the necessary virtues, he makes manifest what
this blamelessness consists in. And so, with
regard to their desire, he approves them, but
by his precept he alarms them ; as if saying
plainly, I praise what ye seek ; but first learn
what it is ye seek ; lest, while ye neglect to
measure yourselves, your blamefulness appear
all the fouler for its haste to be seen by all in
the highest place of honour. For the great
master in the art of ruling impels by ap-
proval and checks by alarms ; so that, by de-
scribing the height of blamelessness, he may
restrain his hearers from pride, and, by praising
the office which is sought, dispose them to the
life required. Nevertheless it is to be noted
that this was said at a time when whosoever
was set over people was usually the first to be
led to the torments of martyrdom. At that
time, therefore, it was laudable to seek the
office of a bishop, since through it there was
no doubt that a man would come in the end
to heavier pains. Hence even the office of a
bishop itself is defined as a good work, when
it is said, If a man desire the office of a bishop,
he desire tli a good work (1 Tim. iii 1). Where-
fore he that seeks, not this ministry of a good
work, but the glory of distinction, is himself a
witness against himself that he does not desire
the office of a bishop ; inasmuch as that man
not only does not love at all the sacred office,
but even knows not what it is, who, panting
after supreme rule, is fed by the subjection of
others in the hidden meditation of his
thought, rejoices in his own praises, lifts up
his heart to honour, exults in abundant
affluence. Thus worldly gain is sought under
colour of that honour by which worldly gains
should have been destroyed : and, when the
mind thinks to seize on the highest post of
humility for its own elation, it inwardly
changes what it outwardly desires.

CHAPTER IX.

That the mind of those who wish for pre-
eminence for the most part falters itself with
a feigned promise oj good works.

But for the most part those who covet
pastoral authority mentally propose to them-
selves some good works besides, and, though
desiring it with a motive of pride, still muse
how they will effect great things : and so it
comes to pass that the motive suppressed in
the depths of the heart is one thing, another
what the surface of thought presents to the
muser's mind. For the mind itself lies to

itself about itself, and feigns with respect to
good work to love what it does not love,
and with respect to the world's glory not to
love what it does love. Eager for domination,
it becomes timid with regard to it while in
pursuit, audacious after attainment. For,
while advancing towards it, it is in trepidation
lest it should not attain it ; but all at once, on
having attained, thinks what it has attained to
be its just due. And, when it has once begun
to enjoy the office of its acquired dominion in
a worldly way, it willingly forgets what it has
cogitated in a religious way. Hence it is neces-
sary that, when such cogitation is extended
beyond wont, the mind's eye should be recalled
to works already accomplished, and that every
one should consider what he has done as a
subordinate; and so may he at once discover
whether as a prelate he will be able to do the
good things he has proposed to do. For one
can by no means learn humility in a high
place who has not ceased to be proud while
occupying a low one : one knows not how to
fly from praise when it abounds, who has learnt
to pant for it when it was wanting : one can by
no means overcome avarice, when advanced
to the sustentation of many, whom his own
means could not suffice for himself alone.
Wherefore from his past life let every one dis-
cover what he is, lest in his craving for emi-
nence the phantom of his cogitation illude
him. Nevertheless it is generally the case that
the very practice of good deeds which was
maintained in tranquillity is lost in the occupa-
tion of government; since even an unskilful
person guides a ship along a straight course in
a calm sea ; but in one disturbed by the waves
of tempest even the skilled sailor is con-
founded. For what is eminent dominion but a
tempest of the mind, in which the ship of the
heart is ever shaken by hurricanes of thought,
is incessantly driven hither and thither, so as
to be shattered by sudden excesses of word and
deed, as if by opposing rocks? In the midst
of all these dangers, then, what course is to be
followed, what is to be held to, except that one
who abounds in virtues should accede to govern-
ment under compulsion, and that one who is
void of virtues should not, even under compul-
sion, approach it? As to the former, let him
beware lest, if he refuses altogether, he be as
one who binds up in a napkin the money which
he has received, and be judged for hiding it
(Matth. xxv. 18). For, indeed, to bind up in a
napkin is to hide gifts received under the list
lessness of sluggish torpor. But, on the othei
hand, let the latter, when he craves govern-
ment, take care lest, by his example of evil
deeds, he become an obstacle to such as are
journeying to the entrance of the kingdom.

CHAPTER XT.

after the manner of the Pharisees, who, ac-
cording to the Master's voice (Matth. xxiii. 13),
neither go in themselves nor suffer others to go
in. And he should also consider how, when
an elected prelate undertakes the cause of the
people, he goes, as it were, as a physician to
one that is sick. If, then, ailments still live in
his body, what presumption is his, to make
haste to heal the smitten, while in his own
face carrying a sore !

CHAPTER X.

What manner of man ought to come to rule.

That man, therefore, ought by all means
to be drawn with cords to be an example of
good living who already lives spiritually, dying
j to all passions of the flesh ; who disregards
: worldly prosperity; who is afraid of no adver-
1 sity ; who desires only inward wealth ; whose
; intention the body, in good accord with it,
; thwarts not at all by its frailness, nor the spirit
i greatly by its disdain : one who is not led to
covet the things of others, but gives freely of
I his own ; who through the bowels of compas-
ision is quickly moved to pardon, yet is never
;bent down from the fortress of rectitude by
1 pardoning more than is meet ; who perpetrates
no unlawful deeds, yet deplores those perpe-
trated by others as though they were his own ;
iwho out of affection of heart sympathizes with
another's infirmity, and so rejoices in the good
of his neighbour as though it were his own ad-
vantage; who so insinuates himself as an ex-
ample to others in all he does that among them
jhe has nothing, at any rate of his own past
Ideeds, to blush for; who studies so to live that
! he may be able to water even dry hearts with
the streams of doctrine ; who has already learnt
by the use and trial of prayer that he can ob-
tain what he has requested from the Lord,
paving had already said to him, as it were,
through the voice of experience, While thou art
yet speaking, I will say, Here am /(isai. lviii. 9).
For if perchance any one should come to us
iasking us to intercede for him with some great
man, who was incensed against him, but to us
unknown, we should at once reply, We cannot
jgo to intercede for you, since we have no
familiar acquaintance with that man. If, then,
a. man blushes to become an intercessor with
jmother man on whom he has no claim, with
.vhat idea can any one grasp the post of inter-
pession with God for the people, who does not
enow himself to be in favour with Him through
:he merit of his own life ? And how can he
ask of Him pardon for others while ignorant
'vhether towards himself He is appeased?
!\nd in this matter there is yet another thing to
e more anxiously feared; namely, lest one who

is supposed to be competent to appease wrath
should himself provoke it on account of guiit
of his own. For we all know well that, when one
who is in disfavour is sent to intercede with an
incensed person, the mind of the latter is pro-
voked to greater severity. Wherefore let one
who is still tied and bound with earthly desires
beware lest by more grievously incensing the
strict judge, while he delights himself in his
place of honour, he become the cause of ruin
to his subordinates.

CHAPTER XL

What ??ianner of man ought not to come to rule.

Wherefore let every one measure himself
wisely, lest he venture to assume a place of
rule, while in himself vice still reigns unto
condemnation ; lest one whom his own guilt
depraves desire to become an intercessor for
the faults of others. For on this account it is
said to Moses by the supernal voice, Speak
unto Aaron ; Whosoever he be of thy seed through-
out their generations that hath a blemish, he
shall not offer loaves of bread to the Lord his
God(\,QV. xxi. 17). And it is also immediately
subjoined ; If he be blind, if he be lame, if he
have either a small or a large and crooked nose,
if he be brokenfooted or brokenhanded, if he be
hunchbacked, if he be bleareyed (lippus), if he
have a white speck {albuginem) in his eye, if
chronic scabies, if impetigo in his body, or if he be
ruptured (ponderosus) (Ibid. 182). For that man
is indeed blind who is unacquainted with the
light of supernal contemplation, who, whelmed
in the darkness of the present life, while
he beholds not at all by loving it the light to
come, knows not whither he is advancing the
steps of his conduct. Hence by Hannah pro-
phesying it is said, He will keep the feet of his
saints, and the wicked shall be silent in dark-
ness (1 Kings ii. 9). But that man is lame

2 The designations here given of the bodily imperfections,
enumerated in Levit. xxi. as disqualifying for priestly lunctions,
are the same as those in the Tridentine edition of the Vulgate,
except that instead of herniosus Gregory has ponderosus, which
was a word used in the same sense, denoting one suffering from
rupture (Cf. Augustine, De Civitate Dei, Lib. ult., cap. via).
The idea expressed by the latter word, and carried out in
Gregory's application, was that of the weight (pondus), or down-
ward pressure, of the intestines in a ruptured person. I he
Hebrew Bible (see A.V. ), and also the rendering of the LXX.
duoi/opxis), conveys a different idea of the ailment intended. The
cutaneous diseases specified are denoted, here as in the Vulgate,
by jug-is scabies f>wpa aypia, LXX. ; scurvy, A.V.) and impe-
tigo (Aeixije, LXX. ; scabbed, A.V.). Whatever may be the
exact meaning of the original Hebrew words, Gregory's con-
ception of these diseases evidently was that the former was a
chronic and painful eruption, proceeding from internal heat, and
the latter a painless, but disfiguring, affection of the skin. The
diseases of the eye, with regard to which the Hebrew (and con-
sequently our A.V.) differs from the LXX. and Vulgate, are de-
noted by lippus (ttti'AAo,? tous o£0aA/iovs, LXX.), and albuginem
habens (e<f»)Aos, LXX.) ; of which Gregory's conception was that
the former was an affection, not properly of the eye, but of tne
eyelid, the flux from which impaired the power of vision ; while
the latter was an obscuration of the pupil itself, exhibiting a
white colour.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

who does indeed see in what direction he
ought to go, but, through infirmity of purpose,
is unable to keep perfectly the way of life
which he sees, because, while unstable habit
rises not to a settled state of virtue, the steps
of conduct do not follow with effect the aim
of desire. Hence it is that Paul says, Lift up
the hands which hang down, and the feeble
knees, and make straight paths for your feet, lest
that -which is lame be turned out of the way ;
but let it rather be healed (Heb. xii. 12, 13).
But one with a small nose is he who is not
adapted for keeping the measure of discern-
ment. For with the nose we discern sweet
odours and stenches : and so by the nose is
properly expressed discernment, through which
we choose virtues and eschew sins. Whence
also it is said in praise of the bride, Thy nose
is as the tower which is in Lebanon (Cant. vii. 4) ;
because, to wit, Holy Church, by discernment,
espies assaults issuing from this or that quarter,
and detects from an eminence the coming wars
of vices. But there are some who, not liking
to be thought dull, busy themselves often
more than needs in various investigations, and
by reason of too great subtilty are deceived.
Wherefore this also is added, Or have a largi
and crooked nose. For a large and crooked nose
is excessive subtility of discernment, which,
having become unduly excrescent, itself con-
fuses the correctness of its own operation.
But one with broken foot or hand is he who
cannot walk in the way of God at all, and is
utterly without part or lot in good deeds, to
such degree that he does not, like the lame
man, maintain them however weakly, but
remains altogether apart from them. But
the hunchbacked is he whom the weight of
earthly care bows down, so that he never
looks up to the things that are above, but is
intent only on what is trodden on among the
lowest. And he, should he ever hear anything
of the good things of the heavenly country, is
so pressed down by the weight of perverse
custom, that he lifts not the face of his heart
to it, being unable to erect the posture of his
thought, which the habit of earthly care keeps
downward bent. Of this kind of men the
Psalmist says, L am bent doivn and am brought
loiv continually (Ps. xxxviii 8). The fault of
such as these the Truth in person reprobates,
saying, But the seed which fell among thorns are
they which, when they have heard the word, go
forth, and are choked with cares and riches and
pleasures of life, and bear no fruit (Luke viii.
14). But the blear eyed is he whose native
wit flashes out for cognition of the truth, and
yet carnal works obscure it. For in the blear-
eyed the pupils are sound ; but the eyelids,
weakened by defluxion ot humours, become

gross ; and even the brightness of the pupils
is impaired, because they are worn continually
by the flux upon them. The blear-eyed, then,
is one whose sense nature has made keen, but
whom a depraved habit of life confuses. To him
it is well said through the angel, Anoint thine
eyes with eyesalve that thou mayest see (Apoc.
iii. 18). For we may be said to anoint our
eyes with eyesalve that we may see, when we
aid the eye of our understanding for perceiving
the clearness of the true light with the medi-
cament of good conduct. But that man has
a white speck in his eye who is not permitted
to see the light of truth, in that he is blinded
by the arrogant assumption of wisdom or of
righteousness. For the pupil of the eye, when
black, sees ; but, when it bears a white speck,
sees nothing; by which we may understand
that the perceiving sense of human thought, if
a man understands himself to be a fool and a
sinner, becomes cognizant of the clearness of
inmost light ; but, if it attributes to itself the
whiteness of righteousness or wisdom, it ex-
cludes itself from the light of knowledge from
above, and by so much the more fails entirely
to penetrate the clearness of the true light, as it
exalts itself within itself through arrogance ;
as of some it is said, Professing themselves to be
wise, they become fools (Rom. i. 22). But that
man has chronic scabies whom the wantonness
of the flesh without cease overmasters. For in
scabies the violent heat of the bowels is drawn
to the skin ; whereby lechery is rightly desig-
nated, since, if the heart's temptation shoots
forth into action, it may be truly said that
violent internal heat breaks out into scabies of
the skin : and it now wounds the body out-
wardly, because, while sensuality is not re-
pressed in thought, it gains the mastery also in
action. For Paul had a care to cleanse away
this itch of the skin, when he said, Let no
temptation take you but such as is human
(1 Cor. x. 13); as if to say plainly, It is hu-
man to suffer temptation in the heart ; but it
is devilish, in the struggle of temptation, to be
also overcome in action. He also has impe-
tigo in his body whosoever is ravaged in the
mind by avarice; which, if not restrained in j
small things, does indeed dilate itself without
measure.

For, as impetigo invades the body with-
out pain, and, spreading with no annoyance
to him whom it invades, disfigures the come-
liness of the members, so avarice, too, ex-
ulcerates, while it pleases, the mind of one
who is captive to it. As it offers to the
thought one thing after another to be gained,
it kindles the fire of enmities, and gives no
pain with the wounds it causes, because it
promises to the fevered mind abundance out

CHAPTER II.

of sin. But the comeliness of the members is
destroyed, because the beauty of other virtues
is also hereby marred : and it exulcerates as it
were the whole body, in that it corrupts the
mind with vices of all kinds ; as Paul attests,
saying, The love of money is the root of all evils
(t Tim. vi. 10). But the ruptured one is he
who does not carry turpitude into action, but
yet is immoderately weighed down by it in mind
through continual cogitation ; one who is in-
deed by no means carried away to the extent
of nefarious conduct ; but his mind still de-
lights itself without prick of repugnance in the
pleasure of lechery. For the disease of rupture
is when humor viscerum ad virilia labitur, quae
profecto cum molestia dedecoris intumescunt. He,
then, may be said to be ruptured who, letting
all his thoughts flow down to lasciviousness,
bears in his heart a weight of turpitude; and,

though not actually doing deeds of shame,
nevertheless in mind is not withdrawn from
them. Nor has he power to rise to the prac-
tice of good living before the eyes of men,
because, hidden within him, the shameful
weight presses him down. Whosoever, there-
fore, is subjected to any one of these diseases
is forbidden to offer loaves of bread to the
Lord, lest in sooth he should be of no avail
for expiating the sins of others, being one who
is still ravaged by his own.

And now, having briefly shewn after what
manner one who is worthy should come to
pastoral authority, and after what manner one
who is unworthy should be greatly afraid, let
us now demonstrate after what manner one
who has attained to it worthily should live
in it.

PART II.

Of the Life of the Pastor.

CHAPTER I.

How one who has in due order arrived at a
place of rule ought to demean himself in it.

The conduct of a prelate ought so far to
transcend the conduct of the people as the
life of a shepherd is wont to exalt him above
the flock. For one whose estimation is such
that the people are called his flock is bound
anxiously to consider what great necessity is
aid upon him to maintain rectitude. It is
necessary, then, that in thought he should be
oure, in action chief; discreet in keeping
silence, profitable in speech ; a near neighbour
:o every one in sympathy, exalted above all
n contemplation ; a familiar friend of good
livers through humility, unbending against the
'ices of evil-doers through zeal for righteous-
ness ; not relaxing in his care for what is
nward from being occupied in outward things,
lor neglecting to provide for outward things
jn his solicitude for what is inward. But the
hings which we have thus briefly touched on
t us now unfold and discuss more at length.

CHAPTER II.

That the ruler should be pure in thought.

The ruler should always be pure in thought,
lasmuch as no impurity ought to pollute him
[ho has undertaken the office of wiping away
lie stains of pollution in the hearts of others

so; for the hand that would cleanse from dirt

ust needs be clean, lest, being itself sordid
I'th clinging mire, it soil whatever it touches

. the more. For on this account it is said

through the prophet. Be ye clean that bear the
vessels of the Lord (Isai. lii. n). For they bear
the vessels of the Lord who undertake, on
the surety of their own conversation, to con-
duct the souls of their neighbours to the eter-
nal sanctuary. Let them therefore perceive
within themselves how purified they ought to
be who carry in the bosom of their own per-
sonal responsibility living vessels to the temple
of eternity. Hence by the divine voice it is
enjoined (Exod. xxviii. 15), that on the breast
of Aaron the breastplate1 of judgment should
be closely pressed by binding fillets ; seeing
that lax cogitations should by no means
possess the priestly heart, but reason alone
constrain it ; nor should he cogitate anything
indiscreet or unprofitable, who, constituted as
he is for example to others, ought to shew
in the gravity of his life what store of reason
he carries in his breast. And on this breast-
plate it is further carefully prescribed that the
names of the twelve patriarchs should be en-
graved. For to carry always the fathers regis-
tered on the breast is to think without inter-
mission on the lives of the ancients. For the
priest then walks blamelessly when he pores
continually on the examples of the fathers that
went before him, when he considers without
cease the footsteps of the Saints, and keeps
down unlawful thoughts, lest he advance the

1 For breastplate (A.V.) the LXX. has Ao-yewi/, and the Vul-
gate, from which St. Gregory quotes, rationale. On the sig-
nificance of this word the application depends. Anciently an
ornament called the rationale was attached to the vestments
of bishops. "Rationale . . . Ornamenti genus quo ornantur
casuh-E aliaque vestes ecclesiastical " (Ducange). The vestment
itself seems also to have been sometimes called the rationale.
" Vestis episcopalis novae legis, le pallium" (lb.).

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

foot of his conduct beyond the limit of order.
And it is also well called the breastplate of
judgment, because the ruler ought ever with
subtle scrutiny to discern between good and
evil, and studiously consider what things are
suitable for what, and when and how ; nor
should he seek anything for himself, but
esteem his neighbours' good as his own ad-
vantage. Hence in the same place it is
written, But thou shalt put in the breastplate of
Aaron doctrine and truth 2, which shall be upo?i
Aaron's breast, when he goeth in before the
Lord, and he shalt bear the judgment of the
children of Israel upon his breast in the sight
of the Lord continually (Ibid. 30). For the
priest's bearing the judgment of the children
of Israel on his breast before the face of the
Lord means his examining the causes of his
subjects with regard only to the mind of the
judge within, so that no admixture of humanity
cleave to him in what he dispenses as standing
in God's stead, lest private vexation should
exasperate the keenness of his censure. And,
while he shews himself zealous against the
vices of others, let him get rid of his own,
lest either latent grudge vitiate the calmness of
his judgment, or headlong anger disturb it.
But when the terror of Him who presides
over all things is considered (that is to say of
the judge within), not without great fear may
subjects be governed. And such fear ind
purges, while it humiliates, the mind of the
ruler, guarding it against being either lifted up
by presumption of spirit, or defiled by del
of the flesh, or obscured by importunity of
dusty thought through lust for earthly things.
These things, however, cannot but knock at
the ruler's mind : but it is necessary to make
haste to overcome them by resistance, lest the
vice which tempts by suggestion should subdue
by the softness of delight, and, this being
tardily expelled from the mind, should slay
with the sword of consent.

CHAPTER III.

That the ruler should be always chief in action.

The ruler should always be chief in action,
that by his living he may point out the way of
life to those that are put under him, and that
the flock, which follows the voice and manners
of the shepherd, may learn how to walk better
through example than through words For he
who is required by the necessity of his posi-
tion to speak the highest things is compelled
by the same necessity to exhibit the highest
things. For that voice more readily penetrates

, A \°T u Tv v } hummim (as in A. V. , retaining the Hebrew
words;, the LXX. has ttji> SrjAoxrii/ «ai tiji/ a\i,tteiav, and the
Vulgate, quoted by St. Gregory, Doctrinam et Veritatem.

the hearer's heart, which the speaker's life com-
mends, since what he commands by speaking he
helps the doing of by shewing. Hence it is said
through the prophet, Get thee tip into the high
mountain, thou that bringest good tidings to
Sion (Isai. xl. 9) : which means that he who is
engaged in heavenly preaching should already
have forsaken the low level of earthly works,
and appear as standing on the summit of
things, and by so much the more easily should
draw those who are under him to better things
as by the merit of his life he cries aloud from
heights above. Hence under the divine law!
the priest receives the shoulder for sacrifice,!
and this the right one and separate (Exod.l
xxix. 22) ; to signify that his action should be
not only profitable, but even singular; and
that he should not merely do what is right
among bad men, but transcend even the well-
doers among those that are under him in the
virtue of his conduct, as he surpasses them in
the dignity of his order. The breast alsc
together with the shoulder is assigned to hirr.
for eating, that he may learn to immolate tc
the Giver of all that of himself which he i:
enjoined to take of the Sacrifice; that he ma)
not only in his breast entertain right thoughts
but with the shoulder of work invite thos<
who behold him to things on high; that hi
may covet no prosperity of the present lift
and fear no adversity ; that, having regard V
the fear within him, he may despise the charn
of the world, but considering the charm c
inward sweetness, may despise its terror.'
Wherefore by command of the supernal voic
(Exod. xxix. 5) the priest is braced on eac
shoulder with the robe of the ephod, that h|
may be always guarded against prosperity an
adversity by the ornament of virtues ; so th;
walking, as S. Paul says (2 Cor. vi 7), in tr
armour of righteousness on the right hand ah
on the left, while he strives only after tho
things which are before, he may decline (
neither side to low delight. Him let neith
prosperity elate nor adversity perturb; 1
neither smooth things coax him to the si
render of his will, nor rough things press hi
down to despair ; so that, while he humbl
the bent of his mind to no passions, he m:
shew with how great beauty of the ephod he
covered on each shoulder. Which ephod
also rightly ordered to be made of gold, bit
purple, twice dyed scarlet, and fine twin
linen (Exod. xxviii. 8), that it may be she1
by how great diversity of virtues the pri
ought to be distinguished. Thus in the pric;
robe before all things gold glitters, to sh
that he should shine forth principally in I
understanding of wisdom. And with it bl .
which is resplendent with aerial colour, i

CHAPTER IV.

conjoined, to shew that through all that he
penetrates with his understanding he should
rise above earthly favours to the love of
celestial things ; lest, while caught unawares
by his own praises, he be emptied of his very
understanding of the truth. With gold and
blue, purple also is mingled : which means,
that the priest's heart, while hoping for the
high things which he preaches, should repress
in itself even the suggestions of vice, and as it
were in virtue of a royal power, rebut them,
in that he has regard ever to the nobility of
inward regeneration, and by his manners
guards his right to the robe of the heavenly
kingdom. For it is of this nobility of the
spirit that it is said through Peter, Ye are a chosen
generation, a royal priesthood (i Pet. ii. 91
With respect also to this power, whereby we
subdue vices, we are fortified by the voice of
John, who says, As many as received Him, to
them gave He power to become the sons of God
(John i. 12). This dignity of fortitude the
Psalmist has in view when he says, But with
me greatly honoured have been Thy friends, O
God ; greatly strengthened has been their prin-
cipality (Ps. exxxviii. 17). For truly the mind
of saints is exalted to princely eminence while
outwardly they are seen to suffer abasement.
But with gold, blue, and purple, twice died
scarlet is conjoined, to shew that all excel-
lences of virtue should be adorned with
charity in the eyes of the judge within ; and
that whatever glitters before men may be

lighted up in sight of the hidden arbiter with
the flame of inward love. And, further, this
charity, since it consists in love at once of God
and of our neighbour, has, as it were, the lustre
of a double dye. He then who so pants after the
beauty of his Maker as to neglect the care of
his neighbours, or so attends to the care of his
neighbours as to grow languid in divine love,
whichever of these two things it may be that
he neglects, knows not what it is to have twice
dyed scarlet in the adornment of his ephod.
But, while the mind is intent on the precepts
of charity, it undoubtedly remains that the
flesh be macerated through abstinence. Hence
with twice dyed scarlet fine twined linen is
conjoined, p"or fine linen (byssus) springs
from the earth with glittering show : and what
is designated by fine linen but bodily chastity
shining white in the comeliness of purity ?
And it is also twisted for being interwoven
into the beauty of the ephod, since the habit
of chastity then attains to the perfect whiteness
of purity when the flesh is worn by abstinence.
And, since the merit of affliction of the flesh
profits among the other virtues, fine twined
linen shews white, as it were, in the diverse
oeauty of the ephod.

CHAPTER IV.

That the ruler should be discreef in keeping
silence, profitable i?i speech.

The ruler should be discreet in keeping
silence, profitable in speech ; lest he either
utter what ought to be suppressed or suppress
what he ought to utter. For, as incautious
speaking leads into error, so indiscreet silence
leaves in error those who might have been
instructed. For often improvident rulers, fear-
ing to lose human favour, shrink timidly from
speaking freely the things that are right;
and, according to the voice of the Truth
(Joh. x. 12), serve unto the custody of the
flock by no means with the zeal of shepherds,
but in the way of hirelings ; since they fly
when the wolf cometh if they hide themselves
under silence. For hence it is that the Lord
through the prophet upbraids them, saying,
Du?nb dogs, that cannot bark (Isai. lvi. 10).
Hence again He complains, saying, Ye have
not gone up against the enemy, neither opposed
a wall for the house of Israel, to stand in the
battle in the day of the Lord (Ezek. xiii. 5).
Now to go up against the enemy is to go with
free voice against the powers of this world for
defence of the flock ; and to stand in the
battle in the day of the Lord is out of love
of justice to resist bad men when they contend
against us. For, for a shepherd to have feared
to say what is right, what else is it but to
have turned his back in keeping silence? But
surely, if he puts himself in front for the flock,
he opposes a wall against the enemy for the
house of Israel. Hence again to the sinful
people it is said, Thy prophets have seen false
and foolish things for thee: neither did they dis-
cover thine iniatiily, to provoke thee to repent-
ance (Lam. ii. 14). For in sacred language
teachers are sometimes called prophets, in
that, by pointing out how fleeting are present
things, they make manifest the things that are
to come. And such the divine discourse
convinces of seeing false things, because,
while fearing to reprove faults, they vainly
flatter evil doers by promising security: neither
do they at all discover the iniquity of sinners,
since they refrain their voice from chiding.
For the language of reproof is the key of
discovery, because by chiding it discloses the
fault of which even he who has committed it
is often himself unaware. Hence Paul says,
That he may be able by sound doctrine even to
convince the gainsayers (Tit. i. 9). Hence
through Malachi it is said. The priest's lips-
keep knowledge, and they shall seek the law at
his mouth (Malac. ii. 7). Hence through
Isaiah the Lord admonishes, saying, Cry

ST. GREGORYS PASTORAL RULE.

aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet
(Isai. lviii. i). For it is true that whosoever
enters on the priesthood undertakes the office
of a herald, so as to walk, himself crying aloud,
before the coming of the judge who follows
terribly. Wherefore, if the priest knows not
how to preach, what voice of a loud cry shall
the mute herald utter ? For hence it is that
the Holy Spirit sat upon the first pastors
under the appearance of tongues (Acts ii. 3) ;
because whomsoever He has filled, He him-
self at once makes eloquent. Hence it is
enjoined on Moses that when the priest goes
into the tabernacle he shall be encompassed
with bells (Exod. xxviii. 33); that is, that he
shall have about him the sounds of preaching,
lest he provoke by his silence the judgment
of Him Who beholds him from above. For
it is written, That his sound may be heard when
he gocth in unto the holy place before the Lord,
and when he cometh out, that he die not (Exod.
xxviii. 35). For the priest, when he goeth in
or cometh out, dies if a sound is not heard
from him, because he provokes the wrath of
the hidden judge, if he goes without the
sound of preaching. Aptly also are the bells
described as inserted in his vestments. For
what else ought we to take the vestments of
the priest to be but righteous works ; as the
prophet attests when he says, Let Thy priests
be clothed with righteousness (l's. exxxi. 9)?
The bells, therefore, are inherent in his vest-
ments to signify that the very works of the
priest should also proclaim the way of life
together with the sound of his tongue. But,
when the ruler prepares himself for speaking,
let him bear in mind with what studious
caution he ought to speak, lest, if he be
hurried inordinately into speaking, the hearts
of hearers be smitten with the wound of error,
and, while he perchance desires to seem wise,
he unwisely sever the bond of unity. For on
this account the Truth says, Have salt in
yourselves, and have peace one with another
(Mark ix. 49). Now by salt is denoted the
word of wisdom. Let him, therefore, who
strives to speak wisely fear greatly, lest by
his eloquence the unity of his hearers be
disturbed. Hence Paul says, Not to be more
wise than bchoveth to be wise, but to be tvise
unto sobriety (Rom. xii. 3). Hence in the
priest's vestment, according to Divine pre-
cept, to bells are added pomegranates (Exod.
xxviii. 34). For what is signified by pome-
granates but the unity of the faith ? For, as
within a pomegranate many seeds are pro-
tected by one outer rind, so the unity of the
faith comprehends the innumerable peoples of
holy Church, whom a diversity of merits re-
tains within her. Lest then a ruler should

be unadvisedly hurried into speaking, the
Truth in person proclaims to His disciples
this which we have already cited, Have sail
in yourselves, and have peace one with another
(Mark ix. 49). It is as though He should
say in a figure through the dress of the priest :
Join ye pomegranates to bells, that in all ye
say ye may with cautious watchfulness keep
the unity of the faith. Rulers ought also to
guard with anxious thought not only against
saying in any way what is wrong, but against
uttering even what is right overmuch and
inordinately ; since the good effect of things
spoken is often lost, when enfeebled to the
hearts of hearers by the incautious impor-
tunity of loquacity : and this same loquacity,
which knows not how to serve for the profit
of the hearers, also defiles the speaker.
Hence it is well said through Moses, The
man that hath a flux of seed shall be unclean
(Levit. xv. 2). For the quality of the speech
that is heard is the seed of the thought
which follows, since, while speech is con-
ceived through the ear, thought is engendered
in the mind. Whence also by the wise of
this world the excellent preacher was called
a sower of words [seminiverbius) (Acts xvii. 18).
Wherefore, he that suffers from a flux of seed
is pronounced unclean, because, being ad-
dicted to much speaking, he defiles himself
by that which, had it been orderly issued,
might have produced the offspring of right
thought in the hearts of heaiers; and, while
he incautiously spends himself in loquacity,
he sheds his seed not so as to serve for
generation, but unto uncleanness. Flence Paul
also, in admonishing his disciple to be instant
in preaching, when he says, / charge thee before
God and Christ Jesus, 11 ho shall judge the quid
and the dead by His appeal ing and His kingdom
preach the word, be instant opportunely, impor
timely^ (2 Tim. iv. 1), being about to S3)
importunely, premises opportunely, because ir
truth importunity mars itself to the mind 0
the hearer by its own very cheapness, if i
knows not how to observe opportunity.

CHAPTER V.

That the ruler should be a near neighbour t
every one in compassion, and exalted above en
in contemplation.

The ruler should be a near neighbour t
every one in sympathy, and exalted above a
in contemplation, so that through the bowel
of loving-kindness he may transfer the infi:
mities of others to himself, and by loftines

3 Opportune, importune, the second word being apparent
understood in the sense of importunately.

CHAPTER V.

of speculation transcend even himself in his
aspiration after the invisible; iest either in
seeking high things he despise the weak things
of his neighbours, or in suiting himself to
the weak things of his neighbours he re-
linquish his aspiration after high things. For
hence it is that Paul is caught up into Paradise
(2 Cor. xii. 3) and explores the secrets of the
third heaven, and yet, though borne aloft in
that contemplation of things invisible, recalls
the vision of his mind to the bed of the carnal,
and directs how they should have intercourse
with each other in their hidden privacy, say-
ing, But on account of fornication let every man
have his ow?i wife, and let every wo?nan have
her own husband. Let the husband render unto
the wife her due, and likewise the wife u?ito the
husband (1 Cor. vii. 2). And a little after
(Ibid. v. 5), Defraud ye not one the other,
except it be with consent for a time, that ye
may give yourselves to prayer, and come together
again, that Satan tempt you not. Lo, he is
already initiated into heavenly secrets, and
yet through the bowels of condescension he
searches into the bed of the carnal ; and the
same eye of the heart which in his elevation
he lifts to the invisible, he bends in his com-
passion upon the secrets of those who are
subject to infirmity. In contemplation he
transcends heaven, and yet in his anxious
care deserts not the couch of the carnal ;
because, being joined at once to the highest
and to the lowest by the bond of charity,
though in himself mightily caught up in the
power of the spirit into the heights above,
yet among others, in his loving-kindness, he
is content to become weak. Hence, therefore,
he says, Who is weak, and I am not weak ?
Who is offended, and 1 burn not] (2 Cor. xi.
29). Hence again he says, Unto the Jews
I becatne as a Jew (1 Cor. ix. 20). Now he
exhibited this behaviour not by losing hold
of his faith, but by extending his loving-kind-
ness; so as, by transferring in a figure the person
of unbelievers to himself, to learn from him-
self how they ought to have compassion shewn
them ; to the end that he might bestow on
them what he would have rightly wished to
have had bestowed upon himself, had he
been as they. Hence again he says, Whether
we be beside ourselves, it is to God : or whether
we be sober, it is for you (2 Cor. v. 13). For
he had known how both to transcend himself
in contemplation, and to accommodate himself
to his hearers in condescension. Hence Jacob,
the Lord looking down from above, and oil
being poured down on the stone, saw angels
ascending and descending (Gen. xxviii. 12);
to signily that true preachers not only aspire
■n contemplation to the holy head of the

Church, that is to the Lord, above, but
also descend in commiseration downward to
His members. Hence Moses goes frequently
in and out of the tabernacle, and he who is
wrapped into contemplation within is busied
outside with the affairs of those who are sub-
ject to infirmity. Within he considers the
secret things of God ; without he carries the
burdens of the carnal. And also concerning
doubtful matters he always recurs to the taber-
nacle, to consult the Lord before the ark of
the covenant ; affording without doubt an
example to rulers ; that, when in the outside
world they are uncertain how to order things,
they should return to their own soul as though
to the tabernacle, and, as before the ark of the
covenant, consult the Lord, if so, they may
search within themselves the pages of sacred
utterance concerning that whereof they doubt.
Hence the Truth itself, manifested to us
through susception of our humanity, continues
in prayer on the mountain, but works miracles
in the cities (Luke vi. 12), thus laying down
the way to be followed by good rulers ; that,
though already in contemplation aspiring to
the highest things, they should mingle in sym-
pathy with the necessities of the infirm ; since
charity then rises wonderfully to high things ■
when it is compassionately drawn to the low
things of neighbours ; and the more kindly
it descends to the weak things of this world,
j the more vigorously it recurs to the things on
i high. But those who are over others should
shew themselves to be such that their subjects
may not blush to disclose even their secrets
to them ; that the little ones, vexed with the
' waves of temptation, may have recourse to
j their pastor's heart as to a mother's breast,
and wash away the defilement they foresee to
themselves from the filth of the sin that
buffets them in the solace of his exhortation
and in the tears of prayer. Hence also it
is that before the doors of the temple the
brazen sea for washing the hands of those
who enter, that is the laver, is supported by
twelve oxen (1 Kings vii. 23, sea.), whose
faces indeed stand out to view, but whose
hinder parts are hidden. For what is signified
by the twelve oxen but the whole order of
pastors, of whom the law says, as explained by
Paul, Thou shall not muzzle the mouth of the
ox that treadeth out the corn ( 1 Cor. ix. 9 ; ex
Deut. xxv. 4) ? Their open works indeed we
see ; but what remains to them behind in the
hidden retribution of the strict judge we know
not. Yet, when they prepare the patience of
their condescension for cleansing the sins of
their neighbours in contession, they support,
as it were, the laver before the doors of the
temple ; that whosoever is striving to enter

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

the gate of eternity may shew his temptations
to his pastor's heart, and, as it were, wash the
hands of his thought and of his deed in the
laver of the oxen. And for the most part it
comes to pass that, while the ruler's mind
becomes aware, through condescension, of the
trials of others, it is itself also attacked by the
temptations whereof it hears ; since the same
water of the laver in which a multitude of
people is cleansed is undoubtedly itself de-
filed. For, in receiving the pollutions of those
who wash, it loses, as it were, the calmness
of its own purity. But of this the pastor ought
by no means to be afraid, since, under God,
who nicely balances all things, he is the more
easily rescued from his own temptations as he
is more compassionately distressed by those
of others.

CHAPTER VI.

That the ruler should be, through humility, a
companion of good livers, but. through th-' zeal
of righteousness, rigid against the vices of evil-
doers.

The ruler should be, through humility, a
companion of good livers, and, through the
zeal of righteousness, rigid against the vices
of evil-doers; so that in nothing he prefer
himself to the good, and yet, when the fault
of the bad requires it, he be at once conscious
of the power of his priority; to the end that,
while among his subordinates who live well
he waives his rank and accounts them as
his equals, he may not fear to execute the
laws of rectitude towards the perverse. For.
as I remember to have said in my book on
morals {Lib. xxi., Moral, cap. 10, nunc. n. 22),
it is clear that nature produced all men
equal ; but, through variation in the order
of their merits, guilt puts some below others.
But the very diversity which lias accrued from
vice is ordered by divine judgment, so that,
since all men cannot stand on an equal
footing, one should be ruled by another.
Hence all who are over others ought to con-
sider in themselves not the authority of their
rank, but the equality of their condition ;
and rejoice not to be over men, but to do
them good. For indeed our ancient fathers
are said to have been not kings of men, but
shepherds of flocks. And, when the Lord
said to Noe and his children, Increase and
multiply, and replenish the earth (Gen. ix. 1),
He at once added, And let the fear of you and
the dread of you be upon all the beasts of the
earth. Thus it appears that, whereas it is
ordered that the fear and the dread should be
upon the beasts of the earth, it is forbidden
that it should be upon men. For man is by

nature preferred to the brute beasts, but not
to other men : and therefore it is said to him
that he should be feared by the beasts, but
not by men ; since to wish to be feared by
one's equal is to be proud against nature.
And yet it is necessary that rulers should be
feared by their subjects, when they find that
God is not feared by them ; so that those who
have no dread of divine judgments may at any
rate, through human dread, be afraid to sin.
For superiors by no means shew themselves
proud in seeking to inspire this fear, in which
they seek not their own glory, but the right-
eousness of their subordinates. For in exact-
ing fear of themselves from such as live
perversely, they lord it, as it were, not over
men, but over beasts, inasmuch as, so far as
their subordinates are bestial, they ought also
to lie subdued to dread.

But commonly a ruler, from the very fact of
his being pre eminent over others, is puffed up j
with elation of thought; and, while all things
serve his need, while his commands are quickly
executed after his desire, while all his subjects j
extol with praises what he has done well, but
have no authority to speak against what he
has done amiss, and while they commonly |
praise even what they ought to have reproved,
his mind, seduced by what is offered in abun-
dance from below, is lifted up above itself;
and, while outwardly surrounded by unbounded
favour, he loses his inward sense of truth ;
and, forgetful of himself, he scatters himself
on the voices of other men, and believes
himself to be such as outwardly he hears
himself called rather than such as he ought
inwardly to have judged himself to be. He
looks down on those who are under him, nor
does he acknowledge them as in the order of
nature his equals ; and those whom he has
surpassed in the accident of power he believes
himself to have transcended also in the merits
of his life ; he esteems himself wiser than all
whom he sees himself to excel in power.
For indeed he establishes himself in his own
mind on a certain lofty eminence, and, though
bound together in the same condition of nature
with others, he disdains to regard others from
the same level ; and so. he comes to be even
like him of whom it is written, He beholdeth all
high things : he is a king over all the children of
pride (Job xli. 25). Nay, aspiring to a singular
eminence, and despising the social life of the
angels, he says, / will place my seat in the
north, and I will be like unto the Most High
(Isai. xiv. 13). Wherefore through a marvel-
lous judgment he finds a pit of downfall within
himself, while outwardly he exalts himself on
the summit of power. For he is indeed made
like unto the apostate angel, when, being a

CHAPTER VI.

man, he disdains to be like unto men. Thus
Saul, after merit of humility, became swollen
with pride, when in the height of power : for
his humility he was preferred, for his pride
rejected ; as the Lord attests, Who says, When
thou wast little in thine ozvn sight, did I not
make thee the head of the tribes of Israel {\ Sam.
xv. 17) ? He had before seen himself little in
his own eyes, but, when propped up by
temporal power, he no longer saw himself
little. For, preferring himself in comparison
with others because he had more power than
all, he esteemed himself great above all. Yet
in a wonderful way, when he was little with
himself, he was great with God ; but, when
he appeared great with himself, he was little
with God. Thus commonly, while the mind
is inflated from an affluence of subordinates, it
becomes corrupted to a flux of pride, the very
summit of power being pander to desire.
And in truth he orders this power well who
knows how both to maintain it and to combat
it. He orders it well who knows how through
it to tower above delinquencies, and knows
how with it to match himself with others in
equality. For the human mind commonly is
exalted even when supported by no authority :
how much more does it lift itself on high when
authority lends itself to its support ! Never-
theless he dispenses this authority aright, who
I knows how, with anxious care, both to take of
it what is helpful, and also to reject what
jtempts, and with it to perceive himself to
to be on a par with others, and yet to put
himself above those that sin in his avenging
zeal.

But we shall more fully understand this
(distinction, if we look at the examples given
by the first pastor. For Peter, who had re-
ceived from God the principality of Holy
Church, from Cornelius, acting well and pros-
trating himself humbly before him, refused
to accept immoderate veneration, saying,
)Stand up ; do it not ; I myself also am a
man (Acts x. 26). But, when he discovers
i;he guilt of Ananias and Sapphira, he soon
jihews with how great power he had been
made eminent above all others. For by his
ivord he smote their life, which he detected
by the penetration of his spirit; and he
|ecollected himself as chief within the Church
.gainst sins, though he did not acknowledge
his, when honour was eagerly paid him,
>efore his brethren who acted well. In one
ase holiness of conduct merited the com-
munion of equality ; in the other avenging
jeal brought out to view the just claims of
uthority. Paul, too, knew not himself as
ireferred above his brethren who acted well,
hen he said, Not for that we have dominion

over your faith, but are helpers of your joy
(2 Cor. i. 23). And he straightway added,
For by faith ye stand: as if to explain his
declaration by saying, For this cause we have
not dominion over your faith, because by faith
ye stand ; for we are your equals in that
wherein we know you to stand. He knew
not himself as preferred above his brethren,
when he said, We became babes in the midst
of you (1 Thess. ii. 7); and again, But our-
selves your servants through Christ (2 Cor.
iv. 5). But, when he found a fault that re-
quired to be corrected, straightway he recol-
lected himself as a master, saying, What will
ye ? Shall I come unto you with a rod (1 Cor.
iv. 21) ?

Supreme rule, then, is ordered well, when
he who presides lords it over vices, rather than
over his brethren. But, when superiors correct
their delinquent subordinates, it remains for
them anxiously to take heed how far, while in
right of their authority they smite faults with
due discipline, they still, through custody of
humility, acknowledge themselves to be on
a par with the very brethren who are cor-
rected ; although for the most part it is
becoming that in our silent thought we even
prefer the brethren whom we correct to our-
selves. For their vices are through us smitten
with the vigour of discipline ; but in those
which we ourselves commit we are lacerated
by not even a word of upbraiding. Wherefore
we are by so much the more bounden before
the Lord as among men we sin unpunished :
but our discipline renders our subordinates
by so much the freer from divine judgment,
as it leaves not their faults without retribution
here. Therefore, in the heart humility should
be maintained, and in action discipline. And
all the time there is need of sagacious in-
sight, lest, through excessive custody of the
virtue of humility, the just claims of govern-
ment be relaxed, and lest, while any superior
lowers himself more than is fit, he be unable
to restrain the lives of his subordinates under
the bond of discipline. Let rulers, then,
maintain outwardly what they undertake for
the benefit of others : let them retain in-
wardly what makes them fearful in their
estimate of themselves. But still let even
their subjects perceive, by certain signs coming
out becomingly, that in themselves they are
humble j so as both to see something to be
afraid of in their authority, and to acknow-
ledge something to imitate with respect to
humility. Therefore let those who preside
study without intermission that in proportion
as their power is seen to be great externally
it be kept down within themselves internally ;
that it vanquish not their thought ; that the

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE

heart be not carried away to delight in it ;
lest the mind become unable to control that
which in lust of domination it submits itself
to. For, lest the heart of a ruler should be
betrayed into elation by delight in personal
power, it is rightly said by a certain wise man,
They have made thee a leader ; lift ?iot up
thyself, but be among them as one of them
(Ecclus. xxxii. i). Hence also Peter says,
Not as being lords over God's heritage, but being
made ensamples to the flock (i Pet. v. 3). Hence
the Truth in person, provoking us to higher vir-
tuous desert, says, Ye know that the princes
of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and
they that are greater exercise authority upon
them. It shall not be so among you, but whoso-
ever will be greater among you, let him be your
minister ; and whosoever will be chief among
you, let him be your servant ; even as the Son of
Man came not to be ministered to, but to minister
(Matth. xx. 25). Hence also He indicates
what punishments are in store for the servant
who has been elated by his assumption of
government, saying, But and if that evil
servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth
his coming, and shall begin to smite his fellow -
servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken,
the lord of that servant shall come in a day when
he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is
not aware of, and shall cut him asunder, and
appoint him his portion with the hypocrites
(Matth. xxiv. 48, sea.). For he is rightly
numbered among the hypocrites, who under
pretence of discipline turns the ministry of
government to the purpose of domination.
And yet sometimes there is more grievous
delinquency, if among perverse persons equality
is kept up more than discipline. For Eli,
because, overcome by false affection, he would
not punish his delinquent sons, smote himself
along with his sons before the strict judge with
a cruel doom (1 Sam. iv. 17, 18). For on
this account it is said to him by the divine
voice, Thou hast honoured thy sons more than
Me (Ibid. ii. 29). Hence, too, He upbraids
the shepherds through the prophet, saying,
That which was broken ye have not bound up,
and that which was cast away ye have not
brought back (Ezek. xxxiv. 4). For one who
had been cast away is brought back, when
any one who has fallen into sin is recalled
to a state of righteousness by the vigour of
pastoral solicitude. For ligature binds a
fracture when discipline subdues a sin, lest
the wound should bleed mortally for want of
being compressed by the severity of constraint.
But often a fracture is made worse, when it is
bound together unwarily, so that the cut is
more severely felt from being immoderately
constrained by ligaments. Hence it is need-

ful that when a wound of sin in subordinates
is repressed by correction, even constraint
should moderate itself with great carefulness,
to the end that it may so exercise the rights
of discipline against delinquents as to retain
the bowels of loving-kindness. For care
should be taken that a ruler shew himself
to his subjects as a mother in loving-kindness,
and as a father in discipline. And all the time
it should be seen to with anxious circum-
spection, that neither discipline be rigid nor
loving-kindness lax. For, as we have before
now said in our book on Morals {Lib. xx.,
Moral n. 14, c. 8, et ep. 25, lib. 1), there
is much wanting both to discipline and to
compassion, if one be had without the other.
But there ought to be in rulers towards
their subjects both compassion justly con-
siderate, and discipline affectionately severe.
For hence it is that, as the Truth teaches
(Luke x. 34), the man is brought by the care
of the Samaritan half dead into the inn, and
both wine and oil are applied to his wounds ;
the wine to make them smart, the oil to soothe
them. For whosoever superintends the heal-
ing of wounds must needs administer in wine
the smart of pain, and in oil the softness of
loving-kindness, to the end that through wine
what is festering may be purged, and through
oil what is curable may be soothed. Gentle-
ness, then, is to be mingled with severity;
a sort of compound is to be made of both ;
so that subjects be neither exulcerated by
too much asperity, nor relaxed by too great
kindness. Which thing, according to the
words of Paul (Heb. ix. 4), is well signified
by that ark of the tabernacle, in which, to-
gether with the tables, there is a rod and
manna ; because, if with knowledge of sacred
Scripture in the good rulers breast there is the
rod of constraint, there should be also the
manna of sweetness. Hence David says, Thy
rod and thy staff, they have comforted me (Ps.
xxiii. 4). For with a rod we are smitten, with
a staff" we are supported. If, then, there i;
the constraint of the rod for striking, then
should be also the comfort of the staff fo;
supporting. W'herefore let there be love, bu
not enervating ; let there be vigour, but no
exasperating ; let there be zeal, but not im
moderately burning ; let there be pity, bu
not sparing more than is expedient ; that
while justice and mercy blend themselve
together in supreme rule, he who is at th»
head may both soothe the hearts of hi
subjects in making them afraid, and yet ii
soothing them constrain them to reverentia
awe.

CHAPTER VII.

That the ruler relax not his care for the things
that are within in his occupation among the
things that are ivithout, nor neglect to provide
for the things that are without in his soli-
citude for the things that are within.

The ruler should not relax his care for the
things that are within in his occupation
among the things that are without, nor neg-
lect to provide for the things that are without
in his solicitude for the things that are within ;
lest either, given up to the things that are with-
out, he fall away from his inmost concerns, or,
occupied only with the things that are within,
Destow not on his neighbours outside himself
what he owes them. For it is often the case
that some, as if forgetting that they have been
put over their brethren for their souls' sake,
devote themselves with the whole effort of
their heart to secular concerns : these, when
they are at hand, they exult in transacting,
and, even when there is a lack of them, pant
after them night and day with seethings of
turbid thought ; and when, haply for lack of
opportunity, they have quiet from them, by
their very quiet they are wearied all the more.
For they count it pleasure to be tired by
action : they esteem it labour not to labour in
earthly businesses. And so it comes to pass
that, while they delight in being hustled by
worldly tumults, they are ignorant of the
things that are within, which they ought to
have taught to others. And from this cause,
undoubtedly, the life also of their subjects
is benumbed ; because, while desirous of
advancing spiritually, it meets a stumbling-
block on the way in the example of him who
is set over it. For when the head languishes,
the members fail to thrive ; and it is in vain
ifor an army to follow swiftly in pursuit of
'enemies if the very leader of the march goes
jwrong. No exhortation sustains the minds of
Ithe subjects, and no reproof chastises their
faults, because, while the office of an earthly
Budge is executed by the guardian of souls,
ithe attention of the shepherd is diverted from
custody of the flock ; and the subjects are
jjnable to apprehend the light of truth, be-
cause, while earthly pursuits occupy the
pastor's mind, dust, driven by the wind of
temptation, blinds the Church's eyes. To
;uard against this, the Redeemer of the human
ace, when He would restrain us from glut-
;ony, saying, Take heed to yourselves that your
'carts be not overcha/ged with surfeiiing and
drunkenness (Luke xxi. 34), forthwith added,
Or with cares of this life : and in the same
>lace also, with design to add tearfulness
) the warning, He straightway said, Lest

VOL. XII.

perchance that day come upon you unawares,
(Ibid.) : and He even declares the man-
ner of that coming, saying, For as a snare
shall it come on all them that divell on the J ace
of the whole earth (Ibid. 35). Hence He savs
again, No man can serve two masters (Luke
xvi. 13). Hence Paul withdraws the minds
of the religious from consort with the world
by summoning, nay rather enlisting them,
when he says, No man that warreth for God
entangleth himself with the affairs of this
life, that he may please him to whom he
has approved himself (2 Tim. ii. 4). Hence
to the rulers of the Church he both commenc s
the studies of leisure and points out the reme-
dies of counsel, saying, If then ye should have
secular judgments, set them to judge who are
contemptible in the church (1 Cor. vi. 4) ; that
is, that those very persons whom no spiritual
gifts adorn should devote themselves to earthly
charges. It is as if he had said more plainly,
Since they are incapable of penetrating the
inmost things, let them at any rate employ
themselves externally in necessary things.
Hence Moses, who speaks with God (Exod.
xviii. 17, 18), is judged by the reproof of
Jethro, who was of alien race, because with
ill-advised labour he devotes himself to the
people's earthly affairs : and counsel too is
presently given him, that he should appoint
others in his stead for settling earthly strifes,
and he himself should be more free to learn
spiritual secrets for the instruction of the
people.

By the subjects, then, inferior matters are
to be transacted, by the rulers the highest
thought of; so that no annoyance of dust
may darken the eye which is placed aloft
for looking forward to the onward steps.
For all who preside are the head of their
subjects; and, that the feet may be able to
take a straight course, the head ought un-
doubtedly to look forward to it from above,
lest the feet linger on their onward journey,
the body being bent from its uprightness
and the head bowed down to the earth. But
with what conscience can the overseer of souls
avail himself among other men of his pastoral
dignity, while engaged himself in the earthly
cares which it was his duty to reprehend in
others ? And this indeed is what the Lord, in
the wrath of just retribution, menaced through
the prophet, saying. And there shall be like
people, like priest (Hos. iv. 9). For the priest
is as the people, when one who bears a spiri-
tual office acts as do others who are still under
judgment with regard to their carnal pur-
suits. And this indeed the prophet Jeremiah,
in the great sorrow of his charity, deplores
under the image of the destruction of the

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

temple, saying, How is the gold become dim !
The most excellent colour is changed ; the stones
of the sanctuary are poured out in the top of all
the streets (Lam. iv. i). For what is expressed
by gold, which surpasses all other metals, but
the excellency of holiness? What by the most
excellent colour but the reverence that is
about religion, to all men lovely ? What are
signified by the stones of the sanctuary but
persons in sacred orders ? What is figured
under the name of streets but the latitude of
this present life? For, because in Greek
speech the word for latitude is ifKaros, streets
{platece) have been so called from their breadth,
or latitude. But the Truth in person says,
Broad and spacious is the way that leadeth to
destruction (Matth. vii. 13). Gold, therefore,
becomes dim when a life of holiness is pollu-
ted by earthly doings; the most excellent
colour is changed, when the previous reputa-
tion of persons who were believed to be living
religiously is diminished. For, when any one
after a habit of holiness mixes himself up with
earthly doings, it is as though his colour were
changed, and the reverence that surrouni
him grew pale and disregarded before the
eyes of men. The stones of the sanctum
also are poured out into the streets, when
those who, for the ornament of the Chun h,
should have been free to penetrate internal
mysteries as it were in the secret places of
the tabernacle seek out the broadways of
secular causes outside. For indeed to this
end they were made stones of the sanctuary,
that they might appear in the vestment of the
high-priest within the holy of holies. But,
when ministers of religion exact not the
Redeemer's honour from those that are under
them by the merit of their life, they are not
stones of the sanctuary in the ornament of the
pontiff. And truly these stones of the sanc-
tuary lie scattered through the streets, when
persons in sacred orders, given up to the lati-
tude of their own pleasures, cleave to earthly
businesses. And it is to be observed that they
are said to be scattered, not in the streets, but
in the top of the streets ; because, even when
they are engaged in earthly matters, they
desire to appear topmost ; so as to occupy the
broad ways in their enjoyment of delight, and
yet to be at the top of the streets in the
dignity of holiness.

Further, there is nothing to hinder us from
taking the stones of the sanctuary to be those
of which the sanctuary was itself constructed ;
which lie scattered in the top of the streets
when men in sacred orders, in whose office
the glory of holiness had previously seemed
to stand, devote themselves out of preference
to earthly doings. Secular employments, there-

fore, though they may sometimes be endured
out of compassion, should never be sought after
out of affection for the things themselves ;
lest, while they weigh down the mind of him
who loves them, they sink it, overcome by its
own burden, from heavenly places to the
lowest. But, on the other hand, there are
some who undertake the care of the flock, but
desire to be so at leisure for their own spiritual
concerns as to be in no wise occupied with
external things. Such persons, in neglecting
all care for what pertains to the body, by no
means meet the needs of those who are put
under them. And certainly their preaching is
for the most part despised ; because, while they
find fault with the deeds of sinners, but never-
theless afford them not the necessaries of the
present life, they are not at all willingly lis-
tened to. For the word of doctrine penetrates
not the mind of one that is in need, if the
hand of compassion commends it not to his
heart. But the seed of the word readily ger-
minates, when the loving- kindness of the
preacher waters it in the hearer's breast.;
Whence, for a ruler to be able to infuse what
may profit inwardly, it is necessary for him,
with blameless consideration, to provide also
for outward things. Let pastors, then, so
glow with ardour in regard to the inward affec-
tions of those they have the charge of as not
to relinquish provision also for their outward
life. I or, as we have said, the heart of the flock
is, even as it were of right, set against preach-
ing, if the care of external succour be neg-
le< ted by the pastor. Whence also the first
pastor anxiously admonishes, saying, The
ciders which are among you I beseech, who am
also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings oj
Christ, and also a partaker of the glory thai
shall be revealed, feed the flock of God which is1
among you (1 Pet. v. 1) : in which place he
shewed whether it was the feeding of the heart
or of the body that he was commending, when
he forthwith added, Providing for it, not by
constraint, but willingly, according to God, not
for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind. In these
words, indeed, pastors are kindly forewarned,
lest, while they satisfy the want of those who
are under them, they slay themselves with the
sword of ambition ; lest, while through them
their neighbours are refreshed with succours of
the flesh, they themselves remain fasting from
the bread of righteousness. This solicitude ot
pastors Paul stirs up when he says, If any pro-
vide not for his own, and especially for those oj
his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is
worse than an i?ifidel (1 Tim. v. 8). In the
midst of all this, then, they should fear, am
watchfully take heed, lest, while occupied with
outward care, they be whelmed away fron

CHAPTER VIII.

inward intentness. For usually, as we have
already said, the hearts of rulers, while un-
warily devoting themselves to temporal soli-
citude, cool in inmost love ; and, being carried
hither and thither abroad, fear not to forget
that they have undertaken the government of
souls. It is necessary, then, that the solicitude
expended on those who are put under us
should be kept within a certain measure.
Hence it is well said to Ezekiel, The priests
shall not shave their heads, nor suffer their locks
to grow long, but polling let them poll their
heads (Ezek. xliv. 20). For they are rightly
called priests who are set over the faithful for
affording them sacred guidance. But the
hairs outside the head are thoughts in the
mind; which, as they spring up insensibly
above the brain, denote the cares of the
present life, which, owing to negligent per-
ception, since they sometimes come forth
unseasonably, advance, as it were, without our
; feeling them. Since, then, all who are over
[others ought indeed to have external anxieties,
1 and yet should not be vehemently bent upon
'them, the priests are rightly forbidden either
to shave their heads or to let their hair grow
long ; that so they may neither cut off from
themselves entirely thoughts of the flesh for
[the life of those who are under them, nor
again allow them to grow too much. Thus in
this passage it is well said, Polling let them
poll their heads; to wit, that the cares of
itemporal anxiety should both extend them-
selves as far as need requires, and yet be cut
Ishort soon, lest they grow to an immoderate
extent. When, therefore, through provident
jcare for bodies applied externally life is pro-
tected [or, through provident care applied
externally the life of bodies is protected], and
again, through moderate intentness of heart,
is not impeded ', the hairs on the priest's
head are both preserved to cover the skin,
land cut short so as not to veil the eyes.

1 The wording of this passage is obscure, and may be corrupt

n a corresponding one in Gregory's Epistles {Lib. VI 1. Ep. 4),

n other respects the same as this, we find, instead of " et nirsus

>er moderatam cordis intentionem non impeditur," "et rursus per

mmoderatam cordis intcntio non impeditur." Here, thuugh twit

iiefore impeditur is absent from many MSS., and consequently

ejected by the Benedictine editors, it seems necessary lor the

ense. The whole passage is thus capable of being intelligibly

jendered thus : " When, therefore, through provident care (provi-

,'entiam) externally applied the life of bodies is protected, and

Igain intentness of heart is not impeded through immoderate

providentiam)." In both passages the general drift is clear

jnough, as follows: When, through adequate taking thought

|n the part of the priest for people's bodily needs, their life

js protected from harm, and yet his attention to such external

latters is not so excessive as to hinder the devotion of his heart

3 spiritual things, then the meaning of Ezekiel's words is fulfilled.

'or the hairs of the head, denoting thoughts of the brain for

smporal concerns, are allowed to advance so far as to afford

eedful protection, but not to such an immoderate extent as to

bscure the sight oi the eyes, i.e. spiritual vision.

CHAPTER VIII.

That the ruler should not set his heart on
pleasing men, and yet should give heed to
what ought to please them.

Meanwhile it is also necessary for the ruler
to keep wary watch, lest the lust of pleasing
men assail him ; lest, when he studiously
penetrates the things that are within, and
providently supplies the things that are with-
out, he seek to be beloved of those that are
under him more than truth ; lest, while, sup-
ported by his good deeds, he seems not to
belong to the world, self-love estrange him from
his Maker. For he is the Redeemer's enemy
who through the good works which he does
covets being loved by the Church instead of
Him ; since a servant whom the bridegroom
has sent with gifts to the bride is gunty of
treacherous thought if he desires to please
the eyes of the bride. And in truth this
self-love, when it has got possession of a ruler's
mind, sometimes carries it away inordinately
to softness, but sometimes to roughness. For
from love of himself the ruler's mind is
inclined to softness, because, when he observes
those that are under him sinning, he does
not presume to reprove them, lest their at-
fection for himself should grow dull ; nay
sometimes he smooths down with flatteries
the offence of his subordinates which he ought
to have rebuked. Hence it is well said
through the prophet, Woe unto them that sew
cushions under every elbow, and make pillows
under the head of every stature to catch souis
(Ezek. xiii. 18) ; inasmuch as to put cushions
under every elbow is to cherish with bland
fhtteries souls that are falling from their
uprightness and reclining themselves in this
world's enjoyment. For it is as though the
elbow of a recumbent person rested on
a cushion and his head on pillows, when the
hardness of reproof is withdrawn from one who
sins, and when the softness of favour is offered
to him, that he may lie softly in error, while
no roughness of contradiction troubles him.
But so rulers who love themselves undoubtedly
shew themselves to those by whom they fear
they may be injured in their pursuit of
temporal glory. Such indeed as they see to
have no power against them they ever keep
down with roughness of rigid censure, never
admonish them gently, but, forgetful of pas-
toral kindness, terrify them with the rights
of domination. Such the divine voice rightly
upbraids through the prophet, saying, But with
austerity and power did ye rule them (Ezek.
xxiv. 4). For, loving themselves more than
their Maker, they lift up themselves haughtily
towards those that are under them, considering

c 2

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

not what they ought to do, but what they can
do ; they have no fear of future judgment ;
they glory insolently in temporal power ; it
pleases them to be free to do even unlawful
things, and that no one among their subordin-
ates should contradict them. He, then, who
sets his mind on doing wrong things, and yet
wishes all other men to hold their peace about
them, is himself a witness to himself that he
desires to be loved himself more than the
truth, which he is unwilling should be de-
fended against him. There is indeed no one
who so lives as not to some extent to fail in
duty. He, then, desires the truth to be loved
more fully than himself, who wishes to be
spared by no one against the truth. For
hence Peter willingly accepted Paul's rebuke
(Galat. ii. n); hence David humbly listened
to the reproof of his subject (2 Sam. xii. 7);
because good rulers, being themselves un-
conscious of loving with partial affection,
believe the word of free sincerity from subjects
to be the homage of humility. But mean-
while it is necessary that the care of govern-
ment be tempered with so great skill of
management that the mind of subjects, when it
has become able to feel rightly on some
subjects, should so advance to liberty of
speech that liberty still break not out into
pride; lest, while liberty of the tongue is per-
chance conceded to them overmuch, the hu-
mility of their life be lost. It is to be borne in
mind also, that it is right for good rulers to
desire to please men ; but this in order to draw
their neighbours by the sweetness of their own
character to affection for the truth ; not that
they should long to be themselves loved, but
should make affection for themselves as a sort
of road by which to lead the hearts of their
hearers to the love of the Creator. For it is
indeed difficult for a preacher who is not loved,
however well he may preach, to be willingly
listened to. He, then, who is over others
ought to study to be loved to the end that he
may be listened to, and still not seek love tor
its own sake, lest he be found in the hidden
usurpation of his thought to rebel against
Him whom in his office he appears to serve.
Which thing Paul insinuates well, when,
manifesting the secret of his affection for us,
he says, Even as I please all men in all things
(1 Cor. x. 33). And yet he says again, If
I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant
of Christ (Gal. i. 10). Thus Paul pleases, and
pleases not; because in that he desires to
please he seeks that not he himself should
please men, but truth through him.

CHAPTER IX.

That the ruler ought to be careful to understand
how commonly vices pass themselves off as
virtues.

The ruler also ought to understand how
commonly vices pass themselves off as virtues.
For often niggardliness palliates itself under
the name of frugality, and on the other hand
prodigality hides itself under the appellation
of liberality. Often inordinate laxity is be-
lieved to be loving-kindness, and unbridled
wrath is accounted the virtue of spiritual zeal.
Often precipitate action is taken for the
efficacy of promptness, and tardiness for the
deliberation of seriousness. Whence it is neces-
sary for the ruler of souls to distinguish with
vigilant care between virtues and vices, lest
either niggardliness get possession of his heart
while he exults in seeming frugal in expendi-
ture ; or, while anything is prodigally wasted,
he glory in being as it were compassionately
liberal ; or in remitting what he ought to have
smitten he draw on those that are under him
to eternal punishment; or in mercilessly
smiting an offence he himself offend more
grievously ; or by immaturely anticipating mar J
what might have been done properly and
gravely ; or by putting off the merit of a good
action change it to something worse.

CHAPTER X.

What the ruler's discrimination should be between
correction and con /lira nee, between fervour and
gentleness.

It should be known too that the vices of
subjects ought sometimes to be prudently con-
nived at. but indicated in that they are connived
at; that things, even though openly known,
ought sometimes to be seasonably tolerated,
but sometimes, though hidden, be closely in-
vestigated ; that they ought sometimes to be
gently reproved, but sometimes vehemently
censured. For, indeed, some things, as we
have said, ought to be prudently connived at,
but indicated in that they are connived at, so
that, when the delinquent is aware that he is
discovered and borne with, he may blush to
augment those faults which he considers in
himself are tolerated in silence, and may pun-
ish himself in his own judgment as being one
whom the patience of his ruler in his own
mind mercifully excuses. By such connivance
the Lord well reproves Judah, when He says
through the prophet, Thou hast lied, and hast
not remembered Me, nor laid it to thy heart,
because I have held My peace and been as one
that saw not (Isai. lvii. 11). Thus He both
connived at faults and made them known,

CHAPTER X.

F'nce He both held His peace against the
sinner, and nevertheless declared this very
thing, that He had held His peace. But some
things, even though openlv known, ought to
be seasonably tolerated ; that is, when circum-
stances afford no suitable opportunity for
openly correcting them. For sores by being
unseasonably cut are the worse enflamed ;
and, if medicaments suit not the time, it
is undoubtedly evident that they lose their
medicinal function. But, while a fitting time
for the correction of subordinates is being
;sought, the patience of the prelate is exercised
under the very weight of their offences.
•Whence it is well said by the Psalmist, Shiners
\have built upon my back (Ps. cxxviii. 3). For
pn the back we support burdens ; and there-
fore he complains that sinners had built upon
his back, as if to say plainly, Those whom
il am unable to correct 1 carry as a burden
laid upon me.

Some hidden things, however, ought to be

closely investigated, that, by the breaking out

pf certain symptoms, the ruler may discover

all that lies closely hidden in the minds of his

Subordinates, and, by reproof intervening at

'he nick of time, from very small things become

iiware of greater ones. Whence it is rightly said

l"0 Ezekiel, Son of man, dig in the '.vail (Ezek.

mi. 8) ; where the said prophet presently

idds, And when I had digged in the wall, there

xppeared one door. And he said unto me, Go

n, and see the wicked abominations that they

fo here. So I ivent in and sazv ; and behold

wery similitude of creeping things, and abomina-

ion of beasts, and all the idols of the house of

rsrael, were pourtrayed upon the wall (Ibid. 9,

|0). Now by Ezekiel are personified men in

uthority ; by the wall is signified the hardness

f their subordinates. And what is digging in

wall but opening the hardness of the heart

y sharp inquisitions ? Which wall when he

ad dug into, there appeared a door, because

hen hardness of heart is pierced either by

ireful questionings or by seasonable reproofs,

lere is shewn as it were a kind of door,

irough which may appear the interior of the

loughts in him who is reproved. Whence

so it follows well in that place, Go in and see

ie wicked abominations that they do here (Ibid.).

ie goes in, as it were, to see the abomina-

ons, who, by examination of certain symp-

>ms outwardly appearing, so penetrates the

j^arts of his subordinates as to become cog-

zant of all their illicit thoughts. Whence

so he added, And I zcent in and saw ; and

bold every similitude of creeping things, and

domination of beasts (Ibid.). By creeping

ings thoughts altogether earthly are signified ;

:t by beasts such as are indeed a little lifted

above the earth, but still crave the rewards of
earthly recompense. For creeping things cleave
to the earth with the whole body; but beasts
are in a large part of the body lifted above the
earth, yet are ever inclined to the earth by
gulosity. Therefore there are creeping things
within the wall, when thoughts are revolved in
the mind which never rise above earthly crav-
ings. There are also beasts within the wall,
when, though some just and some honourable
thoughts are entertained, they are still sub-
servient to appetite for temporal gains and
honour, and, though in themselves indeed
lifted, as one may say, above the earth, still
through desire to curry favour, as through the
throat's craving, demean themselves to what is
lowest. Whence also it is well added, And all
the idols of the house of Israel were pourtrayed
upon the wall (Ezek. viii. 10), inasmuch as it
is written, And covetousness, which is idolatry
(Colos. iii. 5). Rightly therefore after beasts
idols are spoken of, because some, though
lifting themselves as it were above the earth by
honourable action, still lower themselves to the
earth by dishonourable ambition. And it is well
said. Were pourtrayed ; since, when the shows
of external things are drawn into one's inner
self, whatever is meditated on under imagined
images is, as it were, pourtrayed on the heart.
It is to be observed, therefore, that first a hole
in the wall, and afterwards a door, is perceived,
and that then at length the hidden abomina-
tion is made apparent ; because, in fact, of
every single sin signs are first seen outwardly,
and afterwards a door is pointed out for open-
ing the iniquity to view ; and then at length
every evil that lies hidden within is disclosed.
Some things, however, ought to be gently
reproved : for, when fault is committed, not
of malice, but only from ignorance or infirmity,
it is certainly necessary that the very censure
of it be tempered with great moderation. For
it is true that all of us, so long as we subsist in
this mortal flesh, are subject to the infirmities
of our corruption. Every one, therefore, ought
to gather from himself how it behoves him to
pity another's weakness, lest, if he be too
fervently hurried to words of reprehension
against a neighbour's infirmity, he should seem
to be forgetful of his own. Whence Paul
admonishes well, when he says. If a man be
overtaken in any fault, ye which are spiritual
restore such an one in the spirit of meekness,
considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted
(Galat. vi. 1); as if to say plainly, When
what thou seest of the infirmity of another
displeases thee, consider what thou art ; that
so the spirit may moderate itself in the zeal of
reprehension, while for itself also it fears what
it reprehends.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

Some things, however, ought to be vehe-
mently reproved, that, when a fault is not re-
cognized by him who has committed it, he may
be made sensible of its gravity from the mouth
of the reprover; and that, when any one ,
smooths over to himself the evil that he has
perpetrated, he may be led by the asperity of
his censurer to entertain grave fears of its ef-
fects against himself. For indeed it is the duty
of a ruler to shew by the voice of preaching
the glory of the supernal country, to disclose
what great temptations of the old enemy are
lurking in this life's journey, and to correct
with great asperity of zeal such evils among
those who are under his sway as ought not to
be gently borne with ; lest, in being too little
incensed against faults, of all faults he be him-
self held guilty. Whence it is well said to
Ezekiel, Take unto thee a tile, and thou shalt
lay it before thee, and pourtray up^n it the city
Jerusalem (F.zek. iv. i). And immediately it
is subjoined, Andthou shalt lay ainst it,

and build forts, and cast a mount, and set camps
against it, and set battering rams against it
roundabout. And to him, for his own defence,
it is forthwith subjoined, And do thou take unto
thee an iron frying-pan, and thou shalt set it for
a wall of iron between thee and (he city. For
of what does the prophet Ezekiel bear the
s rnblance but of teachers, in that it is said to
him, 7\ike unto thee a tile, and thou shalt lay
it I/fore thee, and pourtray upon it the cay
Jerusalem ?

For indeed holy teachers take unto them-
selves a tile, when they lay hold of the earthly
heart of hearers in order to teach them : whi< h
tile in truth they lay before themselves, be-
cause they keep watch over it with the entire
bent of their mind : on which tile also they
are commanded to pourtray the city Jerusalem,
because they are at the utmost pains to repre-
sent to earthy hearts by preaching a vision
of supernal peace. But, because the glory of
the heavenly country is perceived in vain, un-
less it be known also what great temptations
of the crafty enemy assail us here, it is fitly
subjoined, And thou shalt lay siege against it,
and build forts. For indeed holy preachers
lay siege about the tile on which the city
Jerusalem is delineated, when to a mind that
is earthy but already seeking after the supernal
country they shew how great an opposition of
vices in the time of this life is arrayed against
it. For, when it is shewn how each several
sin besets us in our onward course, it is as
though a seige were laid round the city Jeru-
salem by the voice of the preacher. But,
because preachers ought not only to make
known how vices assail us, but also how well- j
guarded virtues strengthen us, it is rightly

subjoined, And thou shalt build forts. Foi
indeed the holy preacher builds forts, when he
shews what virtues resist what vices. And
because, as virtue increases, the wars of temp-
tation are for the most part augmented, it is
rightly further added, And thou shalt cast a
mount, and set camps against it, and set battering
rams round about. For, when any preacher
sets forth the mass of increasing temptation,
he casts a mount. And he sets camps against
Jerusalem when to the right intention of his
hearers he foretells the unsurveyed, and as it
were incomprehensible, ambuscades of the
cunning enemy. And he sets battering-rams
round about, when he makes known the darts
of temptation encompassing us on every side
in this life, and piercing through our wall of
virtues.

But although the ruler may nicely insinuate
all these things, he procures not for himself
lasting absolution, unless he glow with a spirit
of jealousy against the delinquencies of all and
each. Whence in that place it is further
rightly subjoined. And do thou take to thee an
iron frying-pan, and thou shalt set it for a wall
riii between thee and the city. For by the
frying-pan is denoted a frying of the mind, and
by iron the hardness of reproof.

but what more fiercely fries and exrrunates
the tea< her's mind than zeal for God ? Hence
Paul was being burnt with the frying of this
frying-pan when he said, Who is made weak,
and / am not made weak ! Who is off 'ended, and
I burn not] (2 Cor. xi. 29). And, because
whosoever is inflamed with zeal for God is
protected by a guard continually, lest he
should deserve to be condemned for negli-
gence, it is rightly said, Thou shalt set it for
a wall of iron between thee and the city. For
an iron frying-pan is set for a wall of iron
between the prophet and the city, because,
when rulers already exhibit strong zeal, they
keep the same zeal as a strong defence after-
wards between themselves and their hearers,
lest they should be destitute then of the powei
to punish from having been previously remiss:
in reproving.

But meanwhile it is to be borne in mine
that, while the mind of the teacher exasperate;
itself for rebuke, it is very difficult for bin
to avoid breaking out into saying somethini
that he ought not to say. And for the mos
part it happens that, when the faults of subor
dinates are reprehended with severe invective
the tongue of the master is betrayed into ex
cess of language. And, when rebuke is im
moderately hot, the hearts of the delinquent
are depressed to despair. Wherefore it i
necessary for the exasperated ruler, when h>
considers that he has wounded more than h

CHAPTER XI.

should have done the feelings of his subor-
dinates, to have recourse in his own mind to
penitence, so as by lamentations to obtain par-
don in the sight of the Truth ; and even for this
cause, that it is through the ardour of his zeal
for it that he sins. This is what the Lord in
a figure enjoins through Moses, saying, If a
man go in simplicity of heart with his friend
into the wood to hew wood, and the wood of the
axe fly from his hand, and the iron slip from the
helve and smite his friend and slay him, he shall
flee unto one of the aforesaid cities and live ; lest
haply the next of kin to him whose blood has been
shed, while his heart is hot, pursue him, and
overtake him, and smite him mortally (Deut.
jxix. 4, 5). For indeed we go with a friend
into the wood as often as we betake ourselves
to look into the delinquencies of subordinates.
And we hew wood in simplicity of heart, when
with pious intention we cut off the vices of
delinquents. But the axe flies from the hand,
when rebuke is drawn on to asperity more
than need requires. And the iron leaps from
the helve, when out of reproof issues speech
:oo hard. And he smites and slays his friend,
because overstrained contumely cuts him off
rom the spirit of love. For the mind of one
vho is reproved suddenly breaks out into
ratred, if immoderate reproof charges it be-
rond its due. But he who smites wood in-
cautiously and destroys his neighbour must
leeds fly to three cities, that in one of them he
nay live protected ; since if, betaking himself

0 the laments of penitence, he is hidden under
lope and charity in sacramental unity, he is
iot held guilty of the perpetrated homicide.
\nd him the next of kin to the slain man
jloes not kill, even when he finds him ; be-
ause, when the strict judge comes, who has
pined himself to us by sharing in our nature,
without doubt He requires not the penalty of
is fault from him whom faith hope and
jharity hide under the shelter of his pardon.

CHAPTER XI.

fozv intent the ruler ought to be on meditations
in the Sacred Law.

1 But all this is duly executed by a ruler, if,
ispired by the spirit of heavenly fear and
>ve, he meditate daily on the precepts of
acred Writ, that the words of Divine admoni-
on may restore in him the power of solicitude
id of provident circumspection with regard

) the celestial life, which familiar intercourse
ith men continually destroys ; and that one
ho is drawn to oldness of life by secular
>ciety may by the aspiration of compunction
; ever renewed to love of the spiritual country,
or the heart runs greatly to waste in the

midst of human talk ; and, since it is undoubt-
edly evident that, when driven by the tumults
of external occupations, it loses its balance and
falls, one ought incessantly to take care that
through keen pursuit of instruction it may rise
again. For hence it is that Paul admonishes
his disciple who had been put over the flock,
saying, Till I come, give attendance to reading
(1 Tim. iv. 13). Hence David says, How have
I loved Thy Law, O Lord ! Lt is my meditation
all the day (Ps. cix. 97). Hence the Lord
commanded Moses concerning the carrying of
the ark, saying, Thou shall make four rings of
gold, which thou shall put in the four corners of
the ark, and thou shall make staves of shit I im-
7cood, and overlay them with gold, and shall put
them through the rings which are by the sides of
the ark, that it may be borne with them, and
they shall always be in the rings, nor shall they
ever be drawn out from them (Exod. xxv. 12,
sea.). What but the holy Church is figured by
the ark ? To which four rings of gold in the
four corners are ordered to be adjoined, be-
cause, in that it is thus extended towards the
four quarters of the globe, it is declared un-
doubtedly to be equipped for journeying with
the four books of the holy Gospel. And staves
of shittim-wood are made, and are put through
the same rings for carrying, because strong and
persevering teachers, as incorruptible pieces of
timber, are to be sought for, who by cleaving
ever to instruction out of the sacred volumes
may declare the unity of the holy Church, and,
as it were, carry the ark by being let into its
rings. For indeed to carry the ark by means
of staves is through preaching to bring the holy
Church before the rude minds of unbelievers
by means of good teachers. And these are
also ordered to be overlaid with gold, that,
while they are resonant to others in discourse,
they may also themselves glitler in the splen-
dour of their lives. Of whom it is further fitly
added, They shall always be in the rings, nor
shall they ever be drawn out from them ; because
it is surely necessary that those who attend
upon the office of preaching should not recede
from the study of sacred lore. For to this end
it is that the staves are ordered to be always in
the rings, that, when occasion requires the ark
to be carried, no tardiness in carrying may arise
from the staves having to be put in ; because,
that is to say, when a pastor is enquired of by
his subordinates on any spiritual matter, it is
exceedingly ignominious, should he then go
about to learn, when he ought to solve the
question. But let the staves remain ever in
the rings, that teachers, ever meditating in
their own hearts the words of Sacred Writ, may
lift without delay the ark of the covenant ; as
will be the case if they teach at once whatever

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

is required. Hence the first Pastor of the \ you (i Pet. iii. 15): as though he should say
Church well admonishes all other pastors saying, plainly, That no delay may hinder the carrying
Be ready always to give an answer to every man \ oi the ark, let the staves never be withdrawr
that asketh you a reason of the hope thai is in ' from the rings.

PART III.

How the Ruler, while living well, ought to teach and admonish those

THAT ARE PUT UNDER HIM.

PROLOGUE.
Since, then, we ha . e shewn what manner of
man the pastor ought to be, let us now set
forth after what manner he should teach. For,
as long before us Gregory Nazianzen of reve-
rend memory has taught, one and the same
exhortation does not suit all, inasmuch as
neither are all bound together by similarity of
character. For the things that profit some
often hurt others ; seeing that also for the most
part herbs which nourish some animals are fatal
to others ; and the gentle hissing that quiets
horses incites whelps ; and the medicine which
abates one disease aggravates another;
the bread which invigorates the life of the
strong kills little children. Therefore accord-
ing to the quality of the hearers ought the dis-
course of teachers to be fashioned, so as to suit
all and each for their several needs, and yet
never deviate from the art of common edifica
tion. For what are the intent minds of hearers
but, so to speak, a kind of tight tensions of
strings in a harp, which the skilful player, that
he may produce a tune not at variance with
itself, strikes variously? And for this reason
the strings render back a consonant modula-
tion, that they are struck indeed with
quill, but not with one kind of stroke. When* e
every teacher also, that he may edify all in the
one virtue of charity, ought to touch the hearts
of his hearers out of one doctrine, but not with
one and the same exhortation.

CHAPTER I.

What diversity there ought to be in the art of

preaching.

Differently to be admonished are these that
follow ; —

Men and women.
The poor and the rich.
The joyful and the sad.
Prelates and subordinates.
Servants and masters.
The wise of this world and the dull.
The impudent and the bashful.
The forward and the fainthearted.
The impatient and the patient.
The kindly disposed and the envious.

The simple and the insincere.

The whole and the sick.

Those who fear scourges, and therefore live

innocently; and those who have grown so hare

in iniquity as not to be corrected even b;

scourges.

The too silent, and those who spend time it
much speaking.

The slothful and the hasty.
The meek and the passionate.
The humble and the haughty.
The obstinate and the fickle.
The gluttonous and the abstinent.
Those who mercifully give of their own, aru
those who would fain seize what belongs t(
others.

Those who neither seize the things of other,
nor are bountiful with their own ; and thos>
who both give away the things they have, an<
yet cease not to seize the things of others.

Those that are at variance, and those tha
are at peace.

I overs of strifes and peacemakers.
Those that understand not aright the word
of sacred law; and those who understam
them indeed aright, but spcaK them withou
humility.

1 1 1 »se who, though able to preach worthily
are afraid through excessive humility; an
those whom imperfection or age debars froi
preaching, and yet rashness impels to it.

Those who prosper in what they desire i
temporal matters ; and those who covet indee
the things that are of the world, and yet ar
wearied with the toils of adversity.

Those who are bound by wedlock, an
those who are free from the ties of wedlock.

Those who have had experience of earn;
intercourse, and those who are ignorant of it.
Those who deplore sins of deed, and tho^
who deplore sins of thought.

Those who bewail misdeeds, yet forsake the:
not ; and those who forsake them, yet bewa
them not.

Those who even praise the unlawful thint
they do ; and those who censure what
wrong, yet avoid it not.

Those who are overcome by sudden passio
and those who are bound in guilt of set purpos

CHAPTER II.

Those who, though their unlawful deeds are
trivial, yet do them frequently ; and those who
eep themselves from small sins, but are occa-
ionally whelmed in graver ones.

Those who do not even begin what is good,
[nd those who fail entirely to complete the
;ood begun.

Those who do evil secretly and good pub-
licly ; and those who conceal the good they
o, and yet in some things done publicly allow
vil to be thought of them.

But of what profit is it for us to run through
11 these things collected together in a list, un-
:ss we also set forth, with all possible brevity,
le modes of admonition for each ?

{Admonition 1.) Differently, then, to be ad-
lonished are men and women ; because on
ie former heavier injunctions, on the latter
^hter are to be laid, that those may be exer-
jsed by great things, but these winningly con-
,;rted by light ones.

1 (Admonition 2.) Differently to be admon-
aed are young men and old; because for the

ost part severity of admonition directs the

rmer to improvement, while kind remon-

•ance disposes the latter to better deeds. For

is written, Rebuke not an elder, but entreat

m as a father (1 Tim. v. 1).

CHAPTER II.

Hoiv the poor and the rich should be
admonished.

[Admonition 3.) Differently to be admon-
ed are the poor and the rich : for to the
finer we ought to offer the solace of comfort
aiinst tribulation, but in the latter to induce
fir as against elation. For to the poor one it is
bid by the Lord through the prophet, Fear
n , for thou shall not be confounded ( I sai. liv. 4).
jSd not long after, soothing her, He says, O
t/vi poor little one, tossed with tempest (Ibid.
i|. And again He comforts her, saying,
/ \ave chosen thee in the furnace of poverty
(1"

S£
th

id. xlviii. 10). But, on the other hand, Paul
i to his disciple concerning the rich, Charge
rich of this world, that they be ?wt high-
m\ded nor trust in the uncertainty of their riches
(tifim. vi. 17) j where it is to be particularly
nepd that the teacher of humility in making
m ition of the rich, says not Entreat, but
C.'-rge ; because, though pity is to be bestowed
or infirmity, yet to elation no honour is due.
T(3uch, therefore, the right thing that is said
ie more rightly commanded, according as
are puffed up with loftiness of thought in
sitory things. Of them the Lord says in
Gospel, Woe unto you that are rich, which

trs

your consolation (Luke vi. 24).

For, since

they know not what eternal joys are, they are
consoled out of the abundance of the present-
life. Therefore consolation is to be offered to
those who are tried in the furnace of poverty ;
and fear is to be induced in those whom the
consolation of temporal glory lifts up ; that
both those may learn that they possess riches
which they see not, and these become aware
that they can by no means keep the riches
that they see. Yet for the most part the
character of persons changes the order in which
they stand ; so that the rich man may be
humble and the poor man proud. Hence the
tongue of the preacher ought soon to be adapted
to the life of the hearer, so as to smite elation
in a poor man all the more sharply as not even
the poverty that has come upon him brings it
down, and to cheer all the more gently the
humility of the rich as even the abundance
which elevates them does not elate them.

Sometimes, however, even a proud rich man is
to be propitiated by I landishment in exhortation,
since hard sores also are usually softened by
soothing fomentations, and the rage of the in-
sane is often restored to health by the bland
words of the physician, and, when they are
pleasantly humoured, the disease of their in-
sanity is mitigated. For neither is this to be
lightly regarded, that, when an adverse spirit
entered into Saul, David took his harp and
assuaged his madness (1 Sam. xviii. 10). For
what is intimated by Saul but the elation of
men in power, and what by David but the
humble life of the holy? When, then, Saul is
seized by the unclean spirit, his madness is ap-
peased by David's singing; since, when the
senses of men in power are turned to frenzy by
elation, it is meet that they should be recalled
to a healthy state by the calmess of our speech,
as by the sweetness of a harp. But sometimes,
when the powerful of this world are taken to
task, they are first to be searched by certain
similitudes, as on a matter not concerning them;,
and, when they have pronounced a right sen-
tence as against another man, then in fitting
ways they are to be smitten with regard to their
own guilt; so that the mind puffed up with
temporal power may in no wise lift itself up
against the reprover, having by its own judg-
ment trodden on the neck of pride, and may
not try to defend itself, being bound by
the sentence of its own mouth. For hence
it was that Nathan the prophet, having
come to take the king to task, asked his judg-
ment as if concerning the cause of a poor man
against a rich one (2 Sam. xii. 4, 5, sea.), that
the king might first pronounce sentence, and
afterwards hear of his own guilt, to the end
that he might by no means contradict the
righteous doom that he had uttered against

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

himself. Thus the holy man, considering both
the sinner and the king, studied in a wonderful
order first to bind the daring culprit by con-
fession, and afterwards to cut him to the heart
by rebuke. He concealed for a while whom
he aimed at, but smote him suddenly when he
had him. For the blow would perchance have
fallen with less force had he purposed to smite
the sin openly from the beginning of his dis-
course ; but by first introducing the similitude
he sharpened the rebuke which he concealed.
He had come as a physician to a sick man ; he
saw that the sore must be cut ; but he doubted
of the sick man's patience. Therefore he hid
the medicinal steel under his robe, which he
suddenly drew out and plunged into the sore,
that the patient might feel the cutting blade
before he saw it, lest, seeing it first, he should
refuse to feel it.

CHAPTER III.

How the joyful and the sad are to be
admonished.

Admonition 4. Differently to be admon-
ished are the joyful and the sad. That is,
before the joyful are to be set the sad things
that follow upon punishment ; but before the
sad the promised glad things of the kingdom.
Let the joyful learn by the asperity of tin
enings what to be afraid of: let the sad hear
what joys of reward they may look forward to.
For to the Former it is said, Woe unto you that
laugh notv ! For ye shod weep (Luke vi. 25);
but the latter hear from the teaching of the
same Master, / will see you again, and your
heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man shall
take from you (Joh. xvi. 22). But some are
not made joyful or sad by circumstances, but
are so by temperament. And to such it
should be intimated that certain defects are
connected with certain temperaments; that
the joyful have lechery close at hand, and the
sad wrath. Hence it is necessary for every
one to consider not only what he suffers from
his peculiar temperament, but also what worse
thing presses on him in connection with it :
lest, while he fights not at all against that
which he has, he succumb also to that from
which he supposes himself free.

CHAPTER IV.

How subjects and prelates are to be admonished.
(Admonition 5.) Differently to be admon-
ished are subjects and prelates : the former
that subjection crush them not, the latter
that superior place elate them not : the former
that they fail not to fulfil what is commanded
them, the latter that they command not more

to be fulfilled than is just : the former that
they submit humbly, the latter that they preside
temperately. For this, which may be under-
stood also figuratively, is said to the former,
Children, obey your parents in the Lord : but
to the latter it is enjoined, And ye, fathers,
provoke not your children to wrath (Coloss.
iii. 20. 21). Let the former learn how to
order their inward thoughts before the eyes of
the hidden judge ; the latter how also to those:
that are committed to them to afford out-
wardly examples of good living. For prelates
ought to know that, if they ever perpetrate
what is wrong, they are woithy of as manj
deaths as they transmit examples of perditior
to their subjects. Wheretore it is necessan
that they guard themselves so much the more
cautiously from sin as by the bad things the)
do they die not alone, but are guilty of tru
souls of others, which by their bad examph
they have destroyed. Wherefore the forme
are to be admonished, lest they should b<
strictly punished, if merely on their own accoun
they should be unable to stand acquitte 1
the latter, lest they should be judged for th
errors of their subjects, even though on thei
own account they find themselves secure
Those are to be admonished that they liv
with all the more anxiety about themselve
as they are not entangled by care for others
but these that they accomplish their charge (i
others in such wise as not to desist froi
charge of themselves, and so to be ardent i
anxiety about themselves as not to grow sliij
gish in the custody of those committed t
them. To the one, who is at leisure for h
own concern's, it is said, Go to the ant, tin
sluggard, and consider her ways, and lea)
wisdom (Prov. vi. 6) : but the other is terrib
admonished, when it is said, My son, if thou
surety for thy friend, thou hast stricken t
hand with a stranger, and art snared with t
words of thy mouth, and art taken zvith thi
ozvn speeches (Ibid. 1). For to be surety f
a friend is to take charge of the soul
another on the surety of one's own behavior
Whence also the hand is stricken with
stranger, because the mind is bound wi
the care of a responsibility which before flj
not. But he is snared with the words of
mouth, and taken with his own speech
because, while he is compelled to speak go
things to those who are committed to hi
he must needs himself in the first place <
serve the things that he speaks. He is the
fore snared with the words of his mouth, be,
constrained by the requirement of rea."
not to let his life be relaxed to what agr ;
not with his teaching. Hence before
strict judge he is compelled to accompi1

CHAPTER V.

as much in deed as it is plain he has enjoined
on others with his voice. Thus in the passage
above cited this exhortation is also presently
added, Do therefore what I say, my son, and
deliver thyself, seeing thou hast fallen into the
hands of thy neighbour : run tip and down,
hasten, arouse thy friend ; give not sleep to thine
eyes, nor let thine eyelids slumber (Prov. vi. 3).
For whosoever is put over others for an
example of life is admonished not only to
keep watch himself, but also to arouse his
friend. For it is not enough for him to keep
watch in living well, if he do not also sever
him when he is set over from the torpor of
sin. For it is well said, Give not sleep to thine
eyes, nor let thine eyelids slumber (Ibid. 4). For
indeed to give sleep to the eyes is to cease
from earnestness, so as to neglect altogether
the care of our subordinates. But the eyelids
slumber when our thoughts, weighed down by
sloth, connive at what they know ought to be
reproved in subordinates. For to be fast
asleep is neither to know nor to correct the
jdeeds of those committed to us. But to know
what things are to be blamed, and still through
Haziness of mind not to amend them by meet
rebukes, is not to sleep, but to slumber. Yet
:he eye through slumbering passes into the
deepest sleep ; since for the most part, when
me who is over others cuts not off the evil
hat he knows, he comes sooner or later, as
lis negligence deserves, not even to know
vhat is done wrong by his subjects.

Wherefore those who are over others are to

>e admonished, that through earnestness of

:ircumspection they have eyes watchful within

j.nd round about, and strive to become living

reatures of heaven (Ezek. i. 18). For the

iving creatures of heaven are described as full

f eyes round about and within (Revel, iv. 6).

^.nd so it is meet that those who are over

thers should have eyes within and round

bout, so as both in themselves to study to

lease the inward judge, and also, affording

utwardly examples of life, to detect the things

lat should be corrected in others.

Subjects are to be admonished that they

idge not rashly the lives of their superiors, if

erchance they see them act blamably in any-

ling, lest whence they rightly find fault with

/il they thence be sunk by the impulse of

ation to lower depths. They are to be

Imonished that, when they consider the

ults ot their superiors, they grow not too

pld against them, but, if any of their deeds

e exceedingly bad, so judge of them within

emselves that, constrained by the fear of

od, they still refuse not to bear the yoke of

verence under them, Which thing we shall

ew the better if we bring forward what

David did (1 Sam. xxiv. 4 sea.). For when
Saul the persecutor had entered into a cave to
ease himself, David, who had so long suffered
under his persecution, was within it with his
men. And, when his men incited him to
smite Saul, he cut them short with the reply,
that he ought not to put forth his hand against
the Lord's anointed. And yet he rose un-
perceived, and cut off the border of his robe.
For what is signified by Saul but bad rulers,
and what by David but good subjects? Saul's
easing himself, then, means rulers extending
the wickedness conceived in their hearts to
works of woful stench, and their shewing the
noisome thoughts within them by carrying
them out into deeds. Yet him David was
afraid to strike, because the pious minds of
subjects, witholding themselves from the
whole plague of backbiting, smite the life of
their superiors with no sword of the tongue,
even when they blame them for imperfection.
And when through infirmity they can scarce
refrain from speaking, however humbly, of
some extreme and obvious evils in their su-
periors, they cut as it were silently the border
of their robe; because, to wit, when, even
though harmlessly and secretly, they derogate
from the dignity of superiors, they disfigure
as it were the garment of the king who is set
over them ; yet still they return to themselves,
and blame themselves most vehemently for
even the slightest defamation in speech.
Hence it is also well written in that place,
Afterivard David's heart smote him, because he
had cut off the border of Saul's robe (Ibid. 6).
For indeed the deeds of superiors are not to be
smitten with the sword of the mouth, even
when they are rightly judged to be worthy of
blame. But if ever, even in the least, the
tongue slips into censure of them, the heart
must needs be depressed by the affliction ot
penitence, to the end that it may return to
itself, and, when it has offended against the
power set over it, may dread the judgment
against itself of Him by whom it was set over
it. For, when we offend against those who
are set over us, we go against the ordinance of
Him who set them over us. Whence also
Moses, when he had become aware that the
people complained against himself and Aaron,
said, For ivhat are we? Not against us are
your murmurings, but against the Lord (Exod.
xvi. 8).

CHAPTER V.

How servants and masters are to be
admonished.

(Admonition 6). Differently to be ad-
monished are servants and masters. Servants,

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

to wit, that they ever keep in view the hu-
mility of their condition ; but masters, that
they lose not recollection of their nature, in
which they are constituted on an equality with
servants. Servants are to be admonished that
they despise not their masters, lest they offend
God, if by behaving themselves proudly they
gainsay His ordinance : masters, too, are to
be admonished, that they are proud against
God with respect to His gift, if they acknow-
ledge not those whom they hold in subjection
by reason of their condition to be their equals
by reason of their community of nature. The
former are to be admonished to know them-
selves to be servants of masters ; the latter
are to be admonished to acknowledge them-
selves to be fellow-servants of servants. For
to those it is said, Servants, obey your masters
according to the flesh (Coloss. iii. 22) ; and
again, Let as many servants as are tinder the
yoke count their masters worthy of all honour
(1 Tim. vi. 1) ; but to these it is said, And ye,
masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing
threatening, knowing that both their and your
Master is in heaven (Ephes. vi. 9).

CHAPTER VI.

How the 7vise and the dull are to be
admonished.

{Admonition 7). Differently to be admon-
ished are the wise of this world and the dull.
For the wise are to be admonished that they
leave off knowing what they know : the dull
also are to be admonished that they seek to
know what they know not. In the former
this thing first, that they think themselves
wise, is to be thrown down ; in the latter,
whatsoever is already known of heavenly
wisdom is to be built up ; since, being in
no wise proud, they have, as it were, prepared
their hearts for supporting a building. With
those we should labour that they become more
wisely foolish, leave loolish wisdom, and learn
the wise foolishness of Go 1 : to these we
should preach that from what is accounted
foolishness they should pass, as from a nearer
neighbourhood, to true wisdom. For to the
former it is said. If any man among you
seemeth to be wise in /his world, let him become
a fool, that he may be wise (1 Cor. iii. 18) : but
to the latter it is said, Not many wise men
after the flesh (Ibid. 26) ; and again, God hath
chosen the foolish things of the world to ccnf:unJ
the wise (Ibid. 27). The former are for the
most part converted by arguments of reason-
ing ; the latter sometimes better by examples.
Those it doubtless profits to lie vanquished in
their own allegations ; but for these it is some-
times enough to get knowledge of the praise-

worthy deeds of others. Whence also the
excellent teacher, who was debtor to the wise
and foolish (Rom. i. 14), when he was ad-
monishing some of the Hebrews that were
wise, but some also that were somewhat slow,
speaking to them of the fulfilment of the
Old Testament, overcame the wisdom of the
former by argument, saying. That which de-
cayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away
(Heb. viii. 13). But, when he perceived that
some were to be drawn by examples only, he
added in the same epistle, Saints had trial of
mockings and scoui gings, yea moreover of bonds
and imprisonment ; they were stoned, they zvere
sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with
the stvord (Ibid. xi. 36, 37): and again, Re-
member those 7cho were set over you, who spoke
to you the Word of God, whose faith follow,
looking to the end of their conversation (Ibid,
xiii. 7); that so victorious reason might sub-
due the one sort, but the gentle force of
example persuade the other to mount to
greater things.

CHAPTER VII.

Hoiv the impudent and bashful are to be
admonished.

(Admonition 8). Differently to be admon-
ished are the impudent and the bashful. For
those nothing but hard rebuke restrains from
the vice of impudence ; while these for the
most part a modest exhortation disposes to
amendment. Those do not know that they
are in fault, unless they be rebuked even by
many ; to these it usually suffices for their
conversion that the teacher at least gently
reminds them of their evil deeds. For those
one best corrects who reprehends them by
direct invective; but to these greater profit
ensues, if what is rebuked in them be touched,
as it were, by a side stroke. Thus the Lord,
openly upbraiding the impudent people of the
Jews, saying, There is come unto thee a whore's
forehead ; thou wouldest not blush (Jerem. iii.
3). But again He revives them when ashamed
saying, Thou shall forget the confusion of thy
youth, and shalt not remember the reproach 0}
thy widowhood ; for thy Maker will reign over
thee (Isii. liv. 4). Paul also openly upbraids
the Galatians impudently sinning, when he
says, O foolish Galatians. who hath bewitched
you (Galat. iii. 1)? And again, Are ye so
foolish, that, having begun in the Spirit, ye
are now made perfect in the flesh (Ibid. 3)?
But the faults of those who are ashamed he re-
prehends as though sympathizing with them,
saying, / rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that
now at the last ye have flourished again to ca/e
for me, as indeed ye did care, for ye lacked oppor-

CHAPTER IX.

tunity (Philipp. iv. 10) ; so that hard upbraid-
ing might discover the faults of the former,
and a softer address veil the negligence of the
latter.

CHAPTER VIII.

Hew the forward and the faint- hearted are to
be admonished.

{Admonition 9.) Differently to be admon-
ished are the forward and the faint-hearted.
For the former, presuming on themselves too
much, disdain all others when reproved by
them ; but the latter, while too conscious of
their own infirmity, for the most part fall into
despondency. Those count all they do to
be singularly eminent; these think what they
do to be exceedingly despised, and so are
broken down to despondency. Therefore
the works of the forward are to be finely
sifted by the reprover, that wherein they
please themselves they may be shewn to dis-
please God.

For we then best correct the forward, when
what they believe themselves to have done
well we shew to have been ill done ; that
whence glory is believed to have been gained,
thence wholesome confusion may ensue. But
sometimes, when they are not at all aware of
being guilty of the vice of forwardness, they
more speedily come to correction if they are
confounded by the infamy of some other
person's more manifest guilt, sought out from
a side quarter ; that from that which they can-
not defend, they may be made conscious of
wrongly holding to what they do defend.
Whence, when Paul saw the Corinthians to
be forwardly puffed up one against another,
so that one said he was of Paul, another of
Apollos, another of Cephas, and another of
Christ (1 Cor. i. 12 ; iii. 4), he brought for-
ward the crime of incest, which had not only
been perpetrated among them, but also re-
mained uncorrected, saying, // is reported
commonly that there is fornication among you,
and such fornication as is not even among the
Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.
And ye are puffed up, and have not rather
mourned, that he that hath done this deed might
be taken away from among you (1 Cor. v. 1, 2).
As if to say plainly, Why say ye in your for-
wardness that ye are of this one or of the
rather, while shewing in the dissoluteness of
lyour negligence, that ye are of none of them ?

But on the other hand we more fitly bring
back the faint h arted to the way of well-
doing, if we search collaterally for some good
points about them, so that, while some things
in them we attack with our reproof, others we
■nay embrace with our praise ; to the end that

the hearing of praise may nourish their tender-
ness, which the rebuking of their fault chastises.
And for the most part we make more way
with them for their profit, if we also make men-
tion of their good deeds ; and, in case of some
wrong things having been done by them, if we
find not fault with them as though they were
already perpetrated, but, as it were, prohibit
them as what ought not to be perpetrated ;
that so both the favour shewn may increase '
the things which we approve, and our modest
exhortation avail more with the faint-hearted
against the things which we blame. Whence
the same Paul, when he came to know that
the Thessalonians, who stood fast in the
preaching which they had received, were
troubled with a certain faint-heartedness as
though the end of the world were nigh at
hand, first praises that wherein he sees them
to be strong, and afterwards, with cautious
admonition, strengthens what was weak. For
he says, We are bound to thank God always for
you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your
faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of
every one of you all toivard each other aboundeth ;
so that we ourselves too glory in you in the
churches of God for your patience and faith
(2 Thess. i. 3, 4). But, having premised these
flattering encomiums of their life, a little while
after he subjoined, Now ive beseech you,
brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and our gathering together unto Him,
that ye be not soon shake?i in mind, or be
troubled, neither by spirit, nor ly word, nor
by letter as sent by us, as that the day of the
Lord is at hand (Ibid. ii. 1). For the true
teacher so proceeded that they should first
hear, in being praised, what they might thank-
fully acknowledge, and afterwards, in being
exhorted, what they should follow ; to the end
that the precedent praise should settle their
mind, lest the subjoined admonition should
shake it ; and, though he knew that they had
been disquieted by suspicion of the end being
near, he did not yet reprove them as having
been so, but, as if ignorant of the past, forbade
them to be disquieted in future; so that,
while they believed themselves to be unknown
to their preacher with respect even to the
levity of their disquietude, they might be as
much afraid of being open to blame as they
were of being known by him to be so.

CHAPTER IX.

How the impatient and the patient are to be
admonished.
(Admonition 10.) Differently to be ad-
monished are the impatient and the patient.
For the impatient are to be told that, while

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

they neglect to bridle their spirit, they are as many sacrifices as it has done good deeds?

hurried through many steep places of iniquity And what is the trench of the altar hut the

which they seek not after, inasmucli as fury patience of good men, which, while it humbles

drives the mind whither desire draws it not, the mind to endure adversities, shews it to be

and, when perturbed, it does, not knowing, placed low down after the manner of a ditch?

what it afterwards grieves for when it knows Wherefore let a trench be made in the altar,

The impatient are also to be told that, when lest the breeze should scatter the sacrifice laid

carried headlong by the impulse of emotion, upon it : that is, let the mind of the elect

they act in some ways as though beside them- keep patience, lest, stirred with the wind of

selves, and are hardly aware afterwards of the impatience, it lose even that which it has

evil they have done; and, while they offer no wrought well. Well, too, this same trench is:

resistance to their perturbation, they bring directed to be of one cubit, because, if patienc

into confusion even things that may have been fails not, the measure of unity is preserved

well done when the mind was calm, and Whence also Paul says, Bear ye otie another*.

overthrow under sudden impulse whatever burdens, and so ye shall fulfil the law oj

they have haply long built up with provident Christ (Galat. vi. 2). For the law of Christ

toil. For the very virtue of charity, which is is the charity of unity, which they alone ful

the mother and guardian of all virtues, is lost fil who are guilty of no excess even when they

through the vice of impat'ence. For it is are burdened. Let the impatient hear whal

written, Charily is patient (1 Cor. xiii. 4). is written, Better is the patient than the mighty

Wherefore where patience is not, charity is and he that ruleth his spirit than he that iaketh

not. Through this vice of impatience, too, in- cities (Prov. xvi. 32). For victory over citie:

struction, the nurse of virtues, is dissipated, is a less thing, because that which is subdue*

For it is written, 1'hc instruction of a man is is without; but a far greater thing is tha

known by his patience (Prov. xix. 11). Every which is conquered by patience, since th<

man, then, is shewn to be by so much less mind itself is by itself overcome, and subject:

instructed as he is convicted of being less itself to itself, when patience compels it t(

patient. For neither can he truly impart what bridle itself within. Let the impatient hea

is good through instruction, if in his life he what the Truth says to His elect, In you.

knows not how to bear what is evil in others patience ye shall possess your souls (Luke xxi

with equanimity. 19). For we are so wonderfully made tha

Further, through this vice of impatience reason possesses the soul, and the soul th

for the most part the sin of arrogance pierces
the mind; since, when any one is impatient

body. But the soul is ousted from its rigli
of possession of the body, if it is not firs

of being looked down upon in this world, possessed by reason. Therefore the Lor<
he endeavours to shew off any hidden good pointed out patience as the guardian of ou

that he may have, and so through impatience
is drawn on to arrogance ; and, while he
cannot bear contempt, he glories ostentatiously
in self-display. Whence it is written, Better
is the patient than the arrogant (Eccles. vii. 9) ;
because, in truth, one that is patient chooses
to suffer any evils whatever rather than that
his hidden good should come to be known
through the vice of ostentation. But the
arrogant, on the contrary, chooses that even
pretended good should be vaunted of him,
lest he should possibly suffer even the least
evil. Since, then, when patience is relin-
quished, all other good things also that have
been done are overthrown, it is rightly en-
joined on Fzekiel that in the altar of God
a trench be made ; to wit, that in it the whole
burnt-offerings laid on the altar might be
preserved (Ezek. xliii. 13). For, if there
were not a trench in the altar, the passing
breeze would scatter every sacrifice that it
might find there. But what do we take the
altar of God to be but the soul of the righteous
man, which lays upon itself before His eyes

state, in that He taught us to possess ourselve
in it. Thus we learn how great is the sin c
impatience, through which we lose the ver
possession of what we are. Let the impatien
hear what is said again through Solomon
A fool uttereth all his mind, but a wise ma
pu'.teth it off, and reserves it until afterward
(Prov. xxix. 11). For one is so driven by th
impulse of impatience as to utter forth th
whole mind, which the perturbation withi
throws out the more quickly for this reasoi
that no discipline of wisdom fences it rouni
But the wise man puts it off, and reserves
till afterwards. For, when injured, he desire
not to avenge himself at the present tirw
because in his tolerance he even wishes th.
men should be spared ; but yet he is n<
ignorant that all things are righteously avenge
at the last judgment.

On the other hand the patient are to t
admonished that they grieve not inwardly ft
what they bear outwardly, lest they spoil wii
the infection of malice within a sacrifice oH
great value which without they offer wholt

CHAPTER IX.

and lest the sin of their grieving, not per-
ceived by men, but yet seen as sin under the
divine scrutiny, be made so much the worse as
it claims to itself the fair shew of virtue before
men.

The patient therefore should be told to
study to love those whom they must needs
bear with ; lest, if love follow not patience,
the virtue exhibited be turned to a worse fault
of hatred. Whence Paul, when he said,
Charity is patient, forthwith added, Is kind
(1 Cor. xiii. 4) ; shewing certainly that those
whom in patience she bears with in kindness
also she ceases not to love. Whence the same
excellent teacher, when he was persuading
his disciples to patience, saying, Let all bitter-
ness, and wrath, and indignation, and clamour,
and evil speaking be put away from you (Ephes.
iv. 31), having as it were now set all outward
tilings in good order, turns himself to those
that are within, when he subjoins, With all
malice (Ibid.) ; because, truly, in vain are
indignation, clamour, and evil speaking put
away from the things that are without, if in the
things that are within malice, the mother of
vices, bears sway; and to no purpose is
wickedness cut off from the branches outside,
if it is kept at the root within to spring up in
more manifold ways. Whence also the Truth
in person says, Love yotir enemies, do good to
them which hate you, and pray for them which
persecute you and say evil of you falsely (Luke
vi. 27). It is virtue therefore before men to
bear with adversaries; but it is virtue before
God to love them ; because the only sacri-
fice which God accepts is that which, before
His eyes, on the altar of good work, the
flame of charity kindles. Hence it is that
to some who were patient, and yet did not
love, He says, And why scest thou the mote
in thy brothers eye, and seest not the beam in
thine own eye? (Matth. vii. 3; Luke vi. 41).
For indeed the perturbation of impatience is
a mote; but malice in the heart is a beam in
the eye. For that the breeze of temptation
drives to and fro; but this confirmed iniquity
parries almost immoveably. Rightly, however,
t is there subjoined, Thou hypocrite, first cast
mt the beam out of thine own eye, and then
halt thou see to cast out the mote out of thy
brother's eye (Ibid.); as if it were said to the
vicked mind, inwardly grieving while shewing
tself by patience outwardly as holy. First shake
>ff from thee the weight of malice, and then
)lame others for the levity of impatience;
~st, while thou takest no pains to conquer
retence, it be worse for thee to bear with the
lultiness of others.
For it usually comes to pass with the patient
iat at the time, indeed, when they suffer

hardships, or hear insults, they are smitten
with no vexation, and so exhibit patience as
to fail not to keep also innocence of heart ;
but, when after a while they recall to memory
these very same things that they have endured,
they inflame themselves with the fire of vexa-
tion, they seek reasons for vengeance, and, in
retracting, turn into malice the meekness which
they had in bearing. Such are the sooner
succoured by the preacher, if the cause of
this change be disclosed. For the cunning
adversary wages war against two ; that is, by
inflaming one to be the first to offer insults,
and provoking the other to return insults
under a sense of injury. But for the most
part, while he is already conqueror of him
who has been persuaded to inflict the injury,
he is conquered by him who bears the inflic-
tion with an equal mind. Wherefore, being
victorious over the one whom he has sub-
jugated by incensing him, he lifts himself with
all his might against the other, and is grieved
at his firmly resisting and conquering ; and so,
because he has been unable to move him in
the very flinging of insults, he rests meanwhile
from open contest, and provoking his thought
by secret suggestion, seeks a fit time for
deceiving him. For, having lost in public
warfare, he burns to lay hidden snares. In
a time of quiet he returns to the mind of the
conqueror, brings back to his memory either
temporal harms or darts of insults, and by
exceedingly exaggerating all that has been
inflicted on him represents it as intolerable ;
and with so great vexation does he perturb
the mind that for the most part the patient
one, led captive after victory, blushes for
having borne such things calmly, and is
sorry that he did not return insults, and
seeks to pay back something worse, should
opportunity be afforded. To whom, then, are
these like but to those who by bravery are
victorious in the field, but by negligence are
afterwards taken within the gates of the city ?
To whom are they like but to those whom
a violent attack of sickness removes not from
life, but who die from a relapse of fever
coming gently on ? Therefore the patient
are to be admonished, that they guard their
heart after victory ; that they be on the look-
out for the enemy, overcome in open warfare,
laying snares against the walls of their mind;
that they be the more afraid of a sickness
creeping on again ; lest the cunning enemy,
should he afterwards deceive them, rejoice
with the greater exultation in that he treads
on the necks of conquerors which had long
been inflexible against him.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

CHAPTER X.

How the kindly-disposed and the envious are to
be admonished.

(Admonition n.) Differently to be admon-
ished are the kindly-disposed and the envious.
For the kindly-disposed are to be admonished
so to rejoice in what is good in others as to
desire to have the like as their own ; so to
praise with affection the deeds of their neigh-
bours as also to multiply them by imitation,
lest in this stadium of the present life they
assist at the contest of others as eager backers,
but inert spectators, and remain without a
prize after the contest, in that they toiled
not in the contest, and should then regard
with sorrow the palms of those in the midst
of whose toils they stood idle. For indeed
we sin greatly if we love not the good deeds
of others : but we win no reward if we imitate
not so far as we can the things which we
love. Wherefore the kindly-disposed should
be told that if they make no haste to imitate
the good which they applaud, the holiness
of virtue pleases them in like manner as the
vanity of scenic exhibitions of skill pleases
foolish spectators : for these extol with ap-
plauses the performances of charioteers and
players, and yet do not long to be such as
they see those whom they praise to be. They
admire them for having done pleasing things,
and yet they shun pleasing in like manner.
The kindly-disposed are to be told that when
they behold the deeds of their neighbours they
should return to their own heart, and presume
not on actions which are not their own, nor
praise what is good while they refuse to do
it. More heavily, indeed, must those be
smitten by final vengeance who have been
pleased by that which they would not imitate.

The envious are to be admonished how
great is their blindness who fail by other men's
advancement, and pine away at other men's
rejoicing; how great is their unhappiness who
are made worse by the bettering of their neigh-
bour, and in beholding the increase of another's
prosperity are uneasily vexed within them-
selves, and die of the plague of their own heart.
What can be more unhappy than these, who,
when touched by the sight of happiness, are
made more wicked by the pain of seeing it ?
But, moreover, the good things of others which
they cannot have they might, if they loved
them, make their own. For indeed all are
constituted together in faith as are many
members in one body ; which are indeed
diverse as to their office, but in mutually agree-
ing with each other are made one. Whence
it comes to pass that the foot sees by the eye,
and the eyes walk by the feet ; that the hearing

of the ears serves the mouth, and the tongue of
the mouth concurs with the ears for their
benefit ; that the belly supports the hands,
and the hands work for the belly. In the
very arrangement of the body, therefore, we
learn what we should observe in our conduct.
It is, then, too shameful not to act up to what
we are. Those things, in fact, are ours which
we love in others, even though we cannot
follow them ; and what things are loved in
us become theirs that love them. Hence,
then, let the envious consider of how great
power is charity, which makes ours without
labour works of labour not our own. The
envious are therefore to be told that, when
they fail to keep themselves from spite, they
are being sunk into the old wickedness of the
wily foe. For of him it is written, But by
envy of the devil death entered into the world
(Wisd. ii. 24). For, because he had himself
lost heaven, he envied it to created man, and,
being himself ruined, by ruining others he
heaped up his own damnation. The envious
are to be admonished, that they may learn
to how great slips of ruin growing under them
they are liable ; since, while they cast not
forth spite out of their heart, they are slipping
down to open wickedness of deeds, for,
unless Cain had envied the accepted sacrifice
of his brother, he would never have come to
taking away his life. Whence it is written,
And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his
offering, but unto Cain and to his offering He
had not respect. And Cain was very loivth,
and his countenance fell (Gen. iv. 4). Tims
spite on account of the sacrifice was the seed-
plot of fratricide. For him whose being better
than himself vexed him he cut off from being
at all. The envious are to be told that, while
they consume themselves with this inward
plague, they destroy whatever good they seem
to have within them. Whence it is written,
Soundness of heart is the 'ife of the flesh, but
envy the rottenness of the bones (Prov. xiv. 30).
For what is signified by the flesh but certain
weak and tender actions, and what by the
bones but brave ones ? And for the most
part it comes to pass that some, with inno-
cence of heart, in some of their actions seem
weak ; but others, though performing some
stout deeds before human eyes, still pine
away inwardly with the pestilence of envy
towards what is good in others. Wherefore
it is well said, Soundness of heart is the life
of the flesh; because, if innocence of mind is
kept, even such things as are weak outwardly
are in time strengthened. And rightly it is
there added, Envy is the rottenness of the bones;
because through the vice of spite what seems
strong to human eyes perishes in the eyes of

CHAPTER XI.

God. For the rotting of the bones through
envy means that certain even strong things
utterly perish.

CHAPTER XT.

How the simple and the crafty are to be
admonished.

while they refuse to live in simplicity, by labours
require that they should die. For commonly,
when taken in a fault, while they shrink from
being known to be such as they are, they hide
themselves under a veil of deceit, and endea-
vour to excuse their sin, which is already
plainly perceived ; so that often one who has
a care to reprove their faults, led astray by the
{Admonition 12.) _ Differently to be ad- mists of the falsehood that surrounds them,

monished are the simple and the insincere
The simple are to be praised for studying
never to say what is false, but to be ad-
monished to know how sometimes to be silent
about what is true. For, as falsehood has
always harmed him that speaks it, so some-
times the hearing of truth has done harm to
some. Wherefore the Lord before His disciples,
tempering His speech with silence, says, I have
many things to say nnto you, but ye cannot bear
them no7v (Joh. xvi. 12). The simple are there-
fore to be admonished that, as thev alwavs
avoid deceit advantageously, so they should
always utter truth advantageously. They are
to be admonished to add prudence to the
goodness of simplicity, to the end that they
may so possess the security of simplicity as
not to lose the circumspection of prudence.
For hence it is said by the teacher of the
Gentiles, / would have you wise in that which
is good, but simple concerning evil (Rom xvi. 19)
Hence the Truth in person admonishes His
elect, saying, Be ye wise as serpents, but simple
as doves (Matth. x. 16) ; because, to wit, in the
hearts of the elect the wisdom of the serpent
ought to sharpen the simplicity of the dove,
and the simplicity of the dove temper the
wisdom of the serpent, to the end that neither
through prudence they be seduced into cun-
ning, nor from simplicity grow torpid in the
exercise of the understanding.

But, on the other hand, the insincere are
to be admonished to learn how heavy is the
labour of duplicity, which with guilt they en-
dure. For, while they are afraid of being
found out, they are ever seeking dishonest
defences, they are agitated by fearful suspi-
cions. But there is nothing safer for defence
than sincerity, nothing easier to say than truth.
For, when obliged to defend its deceit, the
heart is wearied with hard labour. For hence
it is written, The labour of their own lips shall
•over them (Ps. cxxxix. 10). For what now fills
hem then covers them, since it then presses
down with sharp retribution him whose soul it
now elevates with a mild disquietude. Hence
it is said through Jeremiah, They have taught
their tongue to speak lies, and weary themselves
to commit iniquity (Jerem. ix. 5) : as if it were
said plainly, They who might have been friends
')( truth without labour, labour to sin ; and,

VOL. XII. d

finds himself to have almost lost what he just
now held as certain concerning them. Hence
it is rightly said through the prophet, under
the similitude of Judah, to the soul that sins
and excuses itself, There the urchin had her
nest (Isai. xxxiv. 15). For by the name of urchin
is denoted the duplicity of a mind that is in-
sincere, and cunningly defends itself; because,
to wit, when an urchin is caught, its head is
perceived, and its feet appear, and its whole
body is exposed to view ; but no sooner has it
been caught than it gathers itself into a ball,
draws in its feet, hides its head, and all is lost
together within the hands of him that holds it
which before was all visible together. So as-
suredly, so insincere minds are, when they are
seized hold of in their transgressions. For the
head of the urchin is perceived, because it
appears from what beginning the sinner has
advanced to his crime ; the feet of the urchin
are seen, because it is discovered by what steps
the iniquity has been perpetrated ; and yet by
suddenly adducing excuses the insincere mind
gathers in its feet, in that it hides all traces of
its iniquity ; it draws in the head, because by
strange defences it makes out that it has not
even begun any evil ; and it remains as it were
a ball in the hand of one that holds it, because
one that takes it to task, suddenly losing all
that he had just now come to the knowledge
of, holds the sinner rolled up within his own
consciousness, and, though he had seen the
whole of him when he was caught, yet, illuded
by the tergiversation of dishonest defence, he
is in like measure ignorant of the whole of
him. Thus the urchin has her nest in the
reprobate, because the duplicity of a crafty
mind, gathering itself up within itself, hides
itself in the darkness of its self-defence.

Let the insincere hear what is written, He
that walketh in simplicity walketh surely (Prov.
x. 9). For indeed simplicity of conduct is an
assurance of great security. Let them hear
what is said by the mouth of the wise man,
7 he holy spirit of discipline will fee deceit
Wisd. i. 5). Let them hear what is again
affirmed by the witness of Scripture, His com-
muning is with the simple (Prov. iii. 32). For
God's communing is His revealing of secrets
to human minds by the illumination of His
presence. He is therefore said to commune

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

with the simple, because He illuminates with
the ray of His visitation concerning, supernal
mysteries the minds of those whom no shade
of duplicity obscures. But it is a special evil
of the double-minded, that, while they deceive
others by their crooked and double conduct,
they glory as though they were surpassingly
prudent beyond others; and, since they con-
sider not the strictness of retribution, they
exult, miserable men that they are, in their
own losses. But let them hear how the pro-
phet Zephaniah holds out over them the
power of divine rebuke, saying, Behold the day
of the Lord cometh, great and horrible, the day
of wrath, that day ; a day of darkness a/id
gloominess, a day of cloud and whirlwind, a day
of trumpet and clangour, upon ail fenced cities,
and upon all lofty corners (Zephan. i. 15, 16).
For what is expressed by fenced cities but
minds suspected, and surrounded ever with a
fallacious defence ; minds which, as often as
their fault is attacked, suffer not the darts of
truth to reach them ? And what is signified
by lofty corners (a wall being always double
in corners) but insincere hearts ; which, while
they shun the simplicity of truth, are in a
manner doubled back upon themselves in the
crookedness of duplicity, and, what is worse,
from their very fault of insincerity lift them-
selves in their thoughts with the pride of
prudence ? Therefore the day of the Lord
conies full of vengeance and rebuke upon
fenced cities and upon lofty corners, because
the wrath of the last judgment both destroys
human hearts that have been closed by de-
fences against the truth, and unfolds such as
have been folded up in duplicities. For then
the fenced cities fall, because souls which God
has not penetrated will be damned. Then
the lofty corners tumble, because hearts which
erect themselves in the prudence of insincerity
are prostrated by the sentence of righteous-
ness.

CHAPTER XII.

How the whole and the sick are to be
admonished.

{Admonition 13.) Differently to be admon-
ished are the whole and the sick. For the
whole are to be admonished that they employ
the health of the body to the health of the
soul ; lest, if they turn the grace of granted
soundness to the use of iniquity, they be made
worse by the gift, and afterwards merit the
severer punishments, in that they fear not now
to use amiss the more bountiful gifts of God.
The whole are to be admonished that they
despise not the opportunity of winning health
for ever. For it is written, Behold now is the

acceptable time, behold now is the day of salva-
tion (2 Cor. vi. 2). They are to be admonished
lest, if they will not please God when they
may, they may be not able when, too late, they
would. For hence it is that Wisdom afterward
deserts those whom, too long refusing, she
before called, saying, I have called, and ye re-
fused; I have stretched out my hand, and no
man regarded ; ye have set at naught all my
counsel, and would none of my reproof : I will
also laugh at your destruction, and will mock
when what you feared cometh (Pro v. i. 24, sea.).
And again. Then shall they call upon me, and I
will not hearke?i ; they shall rise early, and shall
not find me (Ibid. 28). And so, when health
of body, received for the purpose of doing
good, is despised, it is felt, alter it is lost, how
precious was the gift : and at the last it is fruit-
lessly sought, having been enjoyed unprofitably
when granted at the fit time. Whence it is
well said through Solomon, Give not thine
honour unto aliens and thy rears unto the cruel,
lest haply strangers be filled with thy wealth, ana
thy labours be in the liouse of a stranger, and thou
moan at the last, when thy flesh and thy body art
consumed (Ibid. v. 9, sea.). 'For who are aliens
from us but malignant spirits, who are separated
from the lot of the heavenly country ? And what
is our honour but that, though made in bodies
of clay, we are yet created after the image and
likeness of our Maker? Or who else is crue
but that apostate angel, who has both smitten
himself with the pain of death through pride
and has not spared, though lost, to bring deatl
upon the human race ? He therefore gives hi:
honour unto aliens who, being made after tht
image and likeness of God, devotes the season:
of his life to the pleasures of malignant spirits
He also surrenders his years to the cruel on<
who spends the space of life accorded hin
after the will of the ill-domineering adversary
And in the same place it iswell added, Lest hapl
strangers be filled with thy wealth, and th
labours be in the house of a stranger. For whe
soever, through the healthy estate of body re
ceived by him, or the wisdom of mind grante*
to him, labours not in the practice of virtue
but in the perpetration of vices, he by n
means fills his own house, but the habitation
of strangers, with his wealth : that is, he mu
tiplies the deeds of unclean spirits, and indee
so acts, in his luxuriousness or his pride, <
even to increase the number of the lost by th
addition of himself. Further, it is well adde<
And thou moan at the last, when thy flesh an
thy body are consumed. For, for the most par
the health of the flesh which has been n
ceived is spent through vices : but, when
is suddenly withdrawn, when the flesh is wor
with afflictions, when the soul is already urge

CHAPTER XII.

to go forth, then lost health, long enjoyed for
ill, is sought again as though for living well.
And then men moan for that they would not
serve God, when altogether unable to repair
the losses of their negligence by serving Him.
Whence it is said in another place, When He
slew them, then they sought Him (Ps. lxxvii. 34).
But, on the other hand, the sick are to be
admonished that they feel themselves to be
sons of God in that the scourge of discipline
chastises them. For, unless He purposed to
give them an inheritance after correction, Pie
would not have a care to educate them by
afflictions. For hence the Lord says to John
by the angel, Whom j J love I relmke and chasten
(Rev. iii. 19 ; Prov. hi. 11). Hence again it is
written, My son despise not thou the discipline of
the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of
Him. For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth,
and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth (Heb.
xii. 5, 6). Hence the Psalmist says, Many are
the tribulations of the righteous, and out of all
these hath the Lord delivered them (Ps. xxxiii.
2o\ Hence also the blessed Job, crying out
in his sorrow, says, Lf L be righteous, 1 will not
lift up my head, being saturated with affliction
and misery (Job x. 15). The sick are to be
told that, if they believe the heavenly country
to be their own, they must needs endure labours
I in this as in a strange land. For hence it was
that the stones were hammered outside, that
they might be laid without sound of hammer in
; the building of the temple of the Lord ; be-
! cause, that is, we are now hammered with
scourges without, that we may be afterwards
; set in our places within, without stroke of dis-
cipline, in the temple of God ; to the end that
[Strokes may now cut away whatever is super-
ifluous in us, and then the concord of charity
; alone bind us together in the building. The
;sick are to be admonished to consider what
Isevere scourges of discipline chastise our sons
[alter the flesh for attaining earthly inheritances.
'What pain, then, of divine correction is hard
iupon us, by which both a never-to-be-lost inherit-
ance is attained, and punishments which shall
endure for ever are avoided ? For hence Paul
says, We have had fathers of our flesh as our
educators, and we gave them reverence : shall we
not much more be in subjection unto the Lather
hj spirits and live ? And they indeed for afezv
sdays educated us after their own will ; but He
sfor our profit in the receiving of His sanctifica-
iion (Heb. xii. 9, 10).

The sick are to be admonished to consider
low great health of the heart is in bodily afflic-
tion, which recalls the mind to knowledge of
tself, and renews the memory of infirmity
\hich health for the most parr, casts away, so
hat the spirit, which is carried out of itself into

elation, may be reminded by the smitten flesh
from which it suffers to what condition it is sub-
ject. Which thing is rightly signified to Balaam
(had he but been willing to follow obediently
the voice of God) in the very retardation of his
journey (Num. xxii. 23, sea.). For Balaam is
on his way to attain his purpose; but the
animal which is under him thwarts his desire.
The ass, stopped by the prohibition, sees an
angel which the human mind sees not ; because
for the most part the flesh, slow through afflic-
tions, indicates to the mind from the scourge
which it endures the God whom the mind
itself which has the flesh under it did not see, '
in such sort as to impede the eagerness of the
spirit which desires to advance in this world
as though proceeding on a journey, until it
makes known to it the invisible one who
stands in its way. Whence also it is well said
through Peter, He had the dumb beast of burden

for a rebuke of his madness, which speaking with
a man's voice forbade the foolishness of the pro-
phet (2 Pet. ii. r6). For indeed a man is re-
buked as mad by a dumb beast of burden,
when an elated mind is reminded by the
afflicted flesh of the good of humility which it
ought to retain. But Balaam did not obtain
the benefit of this rebuke for this reason, that,
going to curse, he changed his voice, but not
his mind. The sick are to be admonished to

'consider how great a boon is bodily affliction,
which both washes away committed sins and
restrains those which might have been com-
mitted, which inflicts on the troubled mind
wounds of penitence derived from outward
stripes. Whence it is written, The blueness of
a wound cleanseth away evil, and stripes in the
secret parts of the belly (Prov. xx. 30). For the
blueness of a wound cleanseth away evil, be-
cause the pain of scourges cleanses iniquities,
whether meditated or perpetrated. But by the
appellation of belly the mind is wont to be un-
derstood. For that the mind is called the
belly is taught by that sentence in which it is
written, The spirit of man is the lamp of the
Lord, which searcheth all the secret parts of the
belly (Ibid. 27). As if to say, The illumina-
tion of Divine inspiration, when it comes into
a man's mind, shews it to itself by illuminating
it, whereas before the coming of the Holy
Spirit it both could entertain bad thoughts and
knew not how to estimate them. Then, the
blueness of a wound cleanses away evil, and
stripes in the secret parts of the belly, because
when we are smitten outwardly, we are recalled,
silent and afflicted, to memory of our sins, and
bring back before our eyes all our past evil
deeds, and through what we suffer outwardly
we grieve inwardly the more for what we have
done. Whence it comes to pass that in the

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

midst of open wounds of the body the secret
stripe in the belly cleanses us more fully, be-
cause a hidden wound of sorrow heals the
iniquities of evil-doing.

The sick are to be admonished, to the end
that they may keep the virtue of patience, to
consider incessantly how great evils our Re-
deemer endured from those whom He had
created ; that He bore so many vile insults of
reproach ; that, while daily snatching the souls
of captives from the hand of the old enemy,
He took blows on the face from insulting men ;
that, while washing us with the water of salva-
vation, He hid not His face from the spittings
of the faithless ; that, while delivering us by
His advocacy from eternal punishments, He
bore scourges in silence ; that, while giving to
us everlasting honours among the choirs ol
angels, He endured buffets ; that, while saving
us from the prickings of our sins, He refused
not to submit His head to thorns ; that, while
inebriating us with eternal sweetness. He ac-
cepted in His thirst the bitterness of gall ; that
He Who for us adored the Father though
equal to Him in Godhead, when adored in
mockery held His peace ; that, while prepar-
ing life for the dead, He Who was Himself the
life came even unto death. Why, then, is it
thought hard that man should endure scourges
from God for evil doing, if God underwent so
great evils for well-doing? Or who with
sound understanding can be ungrateful for
being himself smitten, when even He Who
lived here without sin went not hence without

a scourge?

CHAPTER XIII.

How those who fear scourges and those who
contemn /hen/ are to be admonished.

{Admonition 14.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who fear scourges, and on that
account live innocently, and those who have
grown so hard in wickedness as not to be cor-
rected even by scourges. For those who fear
scourges are to be told by no means to desire
temporal goods as being of great account,
seeing that bad men also have them, and by no
means to shun present evils as intolerable, see-
ing they are not ignorant how for the most part
good men also are touched by them. Theyare to
be admonished that, if they desire to be truly
free from evils, they should dread eternal punish-
ments ; nor yet continue in this fear of punish-
ments, but grow up by the nursing of charity
to the grace of love. For it is written, Perfect
charity casteth out fear (1 Joh. iv. 18). And
again it is written, Ye have not received the
spirit of bondage again in fear, but the spirit of
adoption of sons, wherein we cry, Abba, Father

(Rom. viii. 15). Whence the same teacher
says again, Where the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is liberty (2 Cor. iii. 17). If, then, the
fear of punishment still restrains from evil-
doing, truly no liberty of spirit possesses the
soul of him that so fears. For, were he not
afraid of the punishment, he would doubtless
commit the sin. The mind, therefore, that is
bound by the bondage of fear knows not the
grace of liberty. For good should be loved
for itself, not pursued because of the compul-
sion of penalties. For he that does what is
good for this reason, that he is afraid of the
evil of torments, wishes that what he fears
were not, that so he might commit what is
unlawful boldly. Whence it appears clearer
than the light that innocence is thus lost
before God, in whose eyes evil desire is sin.

l!ut, on the other hand, those whom not
even scourges restrain from iniquities are to be
smitten with sharper rebuke in proportion
as they have grown hard with greater insensi-
bility. For generally they are to be disdained
without disdain, and despaired of without
despair, so, to wit, that the despair exhibited
may strike them with dread, and admonition
following may bring them back to hope.
Sternly, therefore, against them should the
Divine judgments be set forth, that they may
be recalled by consideration of eternal retribu-
tion to knowledge of themselvi >. for let them
hear that in them is fulfilled that which is
written, If thou shou dest bray a fool in a mortar,
as if with a pestle pounding barley, his foolish
ness will not be taken away from him (Prov.
xxvii. 22). Against these the prophet com-
plains to the Lord, saying, Thou hast bruised
them, and they have refused to receive discipline
(Jer. v. 3). Hence it is that the Lord says, /
have slain and destroyed this people, and yet they
have not returned from their ways (Isai. ix. 13).
Hence He says again, The people, hath not re-
turned to Him that smiteih them (Jer. xv. 6).
Hence the prophet complains by the voice of
the scourgers, saving, We have taken care for
Babylon, and she is not healed (Jer. li. 9). For
Babylon is taken care for, yet still not restored
to health, when the mind, confused in evil-
doing, hears the words of rebuke, feels the
scourges of rebuke, and yet scorns to return to
the straight paths of salvation. Hence the
Lord reproaches the children of Israel, captive,
but yet not converted from their iniquity, say-
ing, The house of Israel is to Ale become dross:
all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead,
in the midst of the furnace (Ezek. xxii. 18) ; as
if to say plainly, I would have purified them by
the fire of tribulation, and I sought that they
should become silver or gold ; but they have
been turned before me in the furnace into

CHAPTER XIV.

brass, tin, iron, and lead, because even in tri-
bulation they have broken forth, not to virtue,
but to vices. For indeed brass, when it is
struck, returns a sound more than all other
metals. He, therefore, who, when subjected
to strokes, breaks out into a sound of murmur-
ing is turned into brass in the midst of the
furnace. But tin, when it is dressed with art,
has a false show of silver. He, then, who is
not free from the vice of pretence in the midst
of tribulation becomes tin in the furnace
Moreover, he who plots against the life of his
neighbour uses iron. Wherefore iron in the
furnace is he who in tribulation loses not the
malice that would do hurt. Lead, also, is the
heaviest of metals. He, then, is found as lead
in the furnace who, even when placed in the
midst of tribulation, is not raised above earthly
desires. Hence, again, it is written, She, hath
wearied herself with much labour, and her ex-
ceeding rust went not out from her, not even by
fire (Ezek. xxiv. 12). For He brings upon us
the fire of tribulation, that He may purge us
from the rust of vices ; but we lose not our rust
even by fire, when even amid scourges we lack
not vice. Hence the Prophet says again, The
founder hath melted in vain; their wickednesses
\are not consumed (Jer. vi. 29).

It is, however, to be known that sometimes,
I when theyremain uncorrected amid the hardness
:of scourges, they are to be soothed by sweet
admonition. For those who are not corrected
by torments are sometimes restrained from un-
righteous deeds bv gentle blandishments. For
commonly the sick too, whom a strong potion
iof medicine lias not availed to cure, have been
restored to their former health by tepid water;
and some sores which cannot be cured by in-
cision are healed by fomentations of oil ; and
[hard adamant admits not at all of incision by
steel, but is softened by the mild blood of
goats.

CHAPTER XIV.

JTozv the silent arid the talkative are to be
admonished.

Admonition 15.) Differently to be admon-
shed are the over-silent, and those who spend
ime in much speaking. For it ought to be
nsinuated to the over-silent that while they
hun some vices unadvisedly, they are,
without its being perceived, implicated in
■ orse. For often from bridling the tongue
vermuch they suffer from more grievous lo-
uacity in the heart ; so that thoughts seethe
|he more in the mind from being straitened
y the violent guard of indiscreet silence.
aid for the most part they overflow all the

more widely as they count themselves the
more secure because of not being seen by
fault-finders without. Whence sometimes a
man's mind is exalted into pride, and he
despises as weak those whom he hears speak-
ing. And, when he shuts the mouth of his
body, he is not aware to what extent through
his pride he lays himself open to vices. For
his tongue he represses, his mind he exalts ;
and, little considering his own wickedness,
accuses all in his own mind by so much the more
freely as he does it also the more secretly.
The over-silent are therefore to be admonished
that they study anxiously to know, not only
what manner of men they ought to exhibit
themselves outwardly, but also what manner of
men they ought to shew themselves inwardly ;
that they fear more a hidden judgment in
respect of their thoughts' than the reproof of
their neighbours in respect of their speeches.
For it is written, My son, attend unto my wis-
dom, and bow thine ear to my prudence, that
thou mayest guard thy thoughts (Prov. v. 1).
For, indeed, nothing is more fugitive than the
heart, which deserts us as often as it slips away
through bad thoughts. For hence the Psalmist
says, My heart hath failed me (Ps. xxxix. 13 l).
Hence, when he returns to himself, he says,
Thy servant hath found his heart to pray to
Thee (2 Sam. vii. 27). When, therefore,
thought is kept under guard, the heart which
was wont to fly away is found. Moreover, the
over-silent for the most part, when they suffer
some injustices, come to have a keener sense
of pain from not speaking of what they endure.
For, were the tongue to tell calmly the annoy-
ances that have been caused, the pain would
flow away from the consciousness. For closed
sores torment the more ; since, when the cor-
ruption that is hot within is cast out, the
pain is opened out for healing. They, there-
fore, who are silent more than is expedient,
ought to know this, lest, amid the annoyances
which they endure while they hold their
tongue, they aggravate the violence of their
pain. For they are to be admonished that, if
they love their neighbours as themselves, they
should by no means keep from them the
grounds on which they justly blame them.
For from the medicine of the voce there is
a concurrent effect for the health of both
parties, while on the side of him who inflicts
the injury his bad conduct is checked, and on
the side of him who sustains it the violent heat
of pain is allayed by opening out the sore.
For those who take notice of what is evil in
their neighbours, and yet refrain their tongue
in silence, withdraw, as it were, the aid of

* In English Bible, xl. ia.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

medicine from observed sores, and become the
causers of death, in that they would not cure
the venom which they could have cured. The
tongue, therefore, should be discreetly curbed,
not tied up fast. For it is written, A wise man
ivill hold his tongue until the time (Eccles.
xx. 7); in order, assuredly, that, when he
considers it opportune, he may relinquish the
censorship of silence, and apply himself to the
service of utility by speaking such things as are
fit. And again it is written, A time to keep
silence, and a time to speak (Eccles. iii. 7). For,
indeed, the times for changes should be dis-
creetly weighed, lest either, when the tongue
ought to be restrained, it run loose to no profit
in words, or, when it might speak with profit,
it slothfully restrain itself. Considering which
thing well, the Psalmist says, Set a watch, O
Lord, on my mouth, and a door round about my
lips (Ps. cxl. 3 2). For he seeks not that a wall
should be set on his lips, but a door: that is,
what is opened and shut. Whence we, too,
ought to learn warily, to the end that the voice
discreetly and at the fitting time may open
the mouth, and at the fitting time silence
close it.

But, on the other hand, those who spend
time in much speaking are to be admonished
that they vigilantly note from what a state
of rectitude they fall away when they flow
abroad in a multitude of words. For the
human mind, after the manner of water, when
closed in, is collected unto higher levels, in
that it seeks again the height from which it
descended ; and, when let loose, it falls away
in that it disperses itself unprofitably through
the lowest places. For by as many superfluous
words as it is dissipated from the censorship
of its silence, by so many streams, as it were,
is it drawn away out of itself. Whence also it
is unable to return inwardly to knowledge of
itself, because, being scattered by much speak-
ing, it excludes itself from the secret place
of inmost consideration. But it uncovers its
whole self to the wounds of the enemy who
lies in want, because it surrounds itself with
no defence of watchfulness. Hence it is
written, As a city that lieth open and without
environment of walls, so is a man that cannot
keep in his spirit in speaking (Prov. xxv. 28).
For, because it has not the wall of silence, the
city of the mind lies open to the darts of the
foe ; and, when by words it casts itself out of
itself, it shews itself exposed to the adversary.
And he overcomes it with so much the less
labour as with the more labour the mind itself,
which is conquered, fights against itself by
much speaking.

2 In English Bible, cxli. 3.

Moreover, since the indo'ent mind for the
most part lapses by degrees into downfall,
while we neglect to guard against idle words
we go on to hurtful ones ; so that at first it
pleases us to talk of other men's affairs ; after-
wards the tongue gnaws with detraction the
lives of those of whom we talk ; but at last
breaks out even into open slanders. Hence
are sown pricking thorns, quarrels arise, the
torches of enmities are kindled, the peace of
hearts is extinguished. Whence it is well said
through Solomon, He that Ictteth out water is
a well-spring of strifes (Prov. xvii. 14). For to
let out water is to let loose the tongue to
a flux of speech. Wherefore, on the other
hand, in a good sense it is said again, The
words of a man's mouth are as deep water
(Ibid, xviii. 4). He therefore who letteth out
water is the wellspring of strifes, because he
who curbs not his tongue dissipates concord.
Hence on the other hand it is written, He that
imposes silence on a fool allays enmities (Ibid,
xxvi. 10). Moreover, that any one who gives
himself to much speaking cannot keep the
straight way of righteousness is testified by the
Prophet, who says, A man full of words shall
not be guided aright upon the earth (Ps. exxxix.
12 3). Hence also Solomon says again, In the
multitude of tvords there shall not want sin
(Prov. x. 19). Hence Isaiah says, The culture
of righteousness is silence (Isai. xxxii. 17), in-
dicating, to wit, that the righteousness of the
mind is desolated when there is no stint of
immoderate speaking. Hence James says,
If any man ihinketh himself to be religious, and
bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own
heart, this man's religion is vain (James i. 26).
Hence again he says, Let every man be swift to
hear, but slow to speak (Ibid. 19). Hence
again, defining the power of the tongue, he
adds, An unruly evil, full of deadly poison
(Ibid. iii. 8). Hence the Truth in person
admonishes us, saying, Every idle word that
men shall spe.ok, they shall give account thereof
in the day of judgment (Matth. xii. 36). For
indeed every word is idle that lacks either
a reason of just necessity or an intention of
pious usefulness. If then an account is
required of idle discourse, let us weigh well
what punishment awaits much speaking, in
which there is also the sin of hurtful words.

CHAPTER XV

How the slothful and the hasty are to be
admonished.

{Admonition 16.) Differently to be admon-
ished are the slothful and the hasty. For the

3 In English Bible, cxli. IX.

CHAPTER XVI.

former are to be persuaded not to lose, by
putting it off, the good they have to do ; but
the latter are to be admonished lest, while
they forestall the time of good deeds by incon-
siderate haste, they change their meritorious
character. To the slothful therefore it is to
be intimated, that often, when we will not do
at the right time what we can, before long,
when we will, we cannot. For the very in-
dolence of the mind, when it is not kindled
with befitting fervour, gets cut off by a torpor
that stealthily grows upon it from all desire
of good things. Whence it is plainly said
through Solomon, Slothfulness casteth into a
deep sleep (Prov. xix. 15). For the slothful
one is as it were awake in that he feels aright,
though he grows torpid by doing nothing : but
slothfulness is said to cast into a deep sleep,
because by degrees even the wakefulness of
right feeling is lost, when zeal for well-doing is
discontinued. And in the same place it is
rightly added, And a dissolute soul shall suffer
hunger (Ibid.) For, because it braces not
itself towards higher things, it lets itself run
loose uncared for in lower desires ; and, while
not braced with the vigour of lofty aims, suffers
the pangs of the hunger of low concupiscence,
and, in that it neglects to bind itself up by
discipline, it scatters itself the more abroad,
hungry in its craving after pleasures. Hence
it is written again by the same Solomon,
The idle man is wholly in desires (Prov. xxi.
26). Hence in the preaching of the Truth
Himself (Matth. xii. 44, 45) the house is said
indeed to be clean when one spirit has
gone out ; but, when empty, it is taken posses-
sion of by his returning with many more. For
:he most part the slothful, while he neglects
:o do things that are necessary, sets before
lim some that are difficult, but is incon-
siderately afraid of others ; and so, as though
inding something that he may reasonably
Tear, he satisfies himself that he has good
•eason for remaining torpid. To him it is
ightly said through Solomon, The sluggard
would not plough by reason of the cold : there-
ore shall he beg in summer, and it shall not be
\iven unto him (Prov. xx. 4). For indeed the
luggard ploughs not by reason of the cold,
/hen he finds an excuse for not doing the
ood things which he ought to do. The
luggard ploughs not by reason of the cold,
'hen he is afraid of small evils that are against
im, and leaves undone things of the greatest
nportance. Further it is well said, He shall
leg in summer, and it shall not be given unto
im. For whoso toils not now in good works
•ill beg in summer and receive nothing, be-
ause, when the burning sun of judgment shall
;)pear, he will then sue in vain for entrance

into the kingdom. To him it is well said
again through the same Solomon, He that
observeth the wind doth not sow : and he that
regardelh the clouds never reapeth (Eccles. xi. 4).
For what is expressed by the wind but the
temptation of malignant spirits ? And what
are denoted by the clouds which are moved
of the wind but the oppositions of bad men ?
The clouds, that is to say, are driven by the
winds, because bad men are excited by the
blasts of unclean spirits. He, then, that
observeth rhe wind soweth not, and he that
regardeth the clouds reapeth not, because
whosoever fears the temptation of malignant
spirits, whosoever the persecution of bad men,
and does not sow the seed of good work now,
neither doth he then reap handfuls of holy
recompense.

But on the other hand the hasty, while they
forestall the time of good deeds, [ ervert their
merit, and often fall into what is evil, while
failing altogether to discern what is good.
Such persons look not at all to see what
things they are doing when they do them, but
for the most part, when they are done, become
aware that they ought not to have done them.
To such, under the guise of a learner, it is
well said in Solomon, My son, do nothing
without counsel, and after it is done thou shall
not repent (Ecclus. xxxii. 24). And again,
Let thine eyelids go before thy steps (Prov. iv. 25).
For indeed our eyelids go before our steps,
when right counsels prevent our doings. For
he who neglects to look forward by considera-
tion to what he is about to do advances his
steps with his eyes closed ; proceeds on and
accomplishes his journey, but goes not in
advance of himself by looking forward ; and
therefore the sooner falls, because he gives no
heed through the eyelid of counsel to where
he should set the foot of action.

CHAPTER XVI.

How the meek and the passionate are to be
admonished.

{Admonition 17.) Differently to be ad-
monished are the meek and the passionate.
For sometimes the meek, when they are in
authority, suffer from the torpor of sloth,
which is a kindred disposition, and as
it were placed hard by. And for the most
part from the laxity of too great gentleness
they soften the force of strictness beyond
need. But on the other hand the passionate,
in that they are swept on into frenzy of mind
by the impulse of anger, break up the calm
of quietness, and so throw into confusion the
life of those that are put under them. For, when
rage drives them headlong, they know not what

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

they do in their anger, they know not what
in their anger they suffer from themselves.
But sometimes, what is more serious, they
think the goad of their anger to be the
zeal of righteousness. And, when vice is
believed to be virtue, guilt is piled up without
fear. Often, then, the meek grow torpid in
the laziness of inactivity ; often the passionate
are deceived by the zeal of uprightness.
Thus to the virtue of the former a vice is
unawares adjoined, but to the latter their vice
appears as though it were fervent virtue.
Those, therefore, are to be admonished to
fly what is close beside themselves, these to
take heed to what is in themselves; those to
discern what they have not, these what they
have. Let the meek embrace solicitude ;
let the passionate ban perturbation. The
meek are to be admonished that they study
to have also the zeal of righteousness : the
passionate are to be admonished that to the
zeal which they think they have they add
meekness. For on this account the Holy
Spirit has been manifested to us in a dove
and in fire ; because, to wit, all whom He fills
He causes to shew themselves as meek with
the simplicity of the dove, and burning with
the fire of zeal.

He then is in no wise full of the Holy
Spirit, who either in the calm of meekness
forsakes the fervour of zeal, or again in the
ardour of zeal loses the virtue of meekness.
Which thing we shall perhaps better shew, if
we bring forward the authority of Paul, who
to two who were his disciples, and endowed
with a like charity, supplies nevertheless dif-
ferent aids for preaching. For in admonishing
Timothy he says, Reprove, entreat, rebuke, with
all long-suffering and doctrine (2 Tim. iv. 2).
Titus also he admonishes, saving, These things
speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority
tTit. ii. 15). What is the reason that he dis-
penses his teaching with so great art as, in
exhibiting it, to recommend authority to the
one, and long-suffering to the other, except
that he saw Titus to be of a meeker spirit,
and Timothy of one a little more fervid ? The
former he inflames with the earnestness of
zeal ; the latter he moderates by the gentle-
ness of long-suffering. To the one he adds
what is wanting, from the other he subtracts
what is overabundant. The one he endeavours
to push on with a spur, the other to keep back
with a bridle. For the great husbandman who
has the Church in charge waters some shoots
that they may grow, but prunes others when
he sees that they grow too much ; lest either
by not growing they should bear no fruit, or
by growing over much they should lose the
fruits they may put forth. But far different

is the anger that creeps in under the guise of
zeal from that which confounds the perturbed
heart without pretext of righteousness. For
the former is extended inordinately in that
wherein it ought to be, but the latter is ever
kindled in that wherein it ought not to be.
It should indeed be known that in this the
passionate differ from the impatient, that the
latter bear not with things brought upon them
by others, but the former themselves bring on
things to be borne with. For the passionate
often follow after those who shun them, stir
up occasion of strife, rejoice in the toil of con-
tention ; and yet such we better correct, if
in the midst of the commotion of their anger
we do shun them. For, while they are per-
turbed, they do not know what we say to
them ; but. when brought back to themselves,
they receive words of exhortation the more
freely in proportion as they blush at having
been the more calmly borne with. But to
a mind that is drunk with fury every right
thing that is said appears wrong. Whence to j
Nabal when he was drunk Abigail laudably
kept silence about his fault, but, when he had
digested his wine, as laudably told him of it
(1 Sam. xxv. 37). For he could for this
reason perceive the evil he had done, that
he did not hear of it when drunk.

But when the passionate so attack others
that they cannot be altogether shunned, they
should be smitten, not with open rebuke, but
sparingly with a certain respectful cautious-
ness. And this we shall shew better if we bring
forward what was done by Abner. For, when
Asahel attacked him with the violence of in-
considerate haste, it is written, Abner spake
unto Asahel, saying, Turn thee aside from fol-
lowing me, lest I be driven to smite thee to the
ground. Howbeit he scorned to listen, and re-
fused to turn aside. Whereupon Abner smote
him zvith the hinder end of the spear in the
groin, and thrust him through, and he diea
(2 Sam. ii. 22, 23). For of whom did Asahel
present a type but of those whom fury vio-
lently seizes and carries headlong ? And such
in this same attack of fury, are to be shunned
cautiously in proportion as they are madlj
hurried on. Whence also Abner, who in ou:
speech is called the lantern of the father, fled
because when the tongue of teachers, whicl
indicates the supernal light of God, sees th<
mind of any one borne along over the steep
of rage, and refrains from casting back dart
of words against the angry person, it is a
though it were unwilling to smite one that i
pursuing. But, when the passionate will no
pacify themselves by any consideration, and
like Asahel, cease not to pursue and to b
mad, it is necessary that those who endeavou

CHAPTER XVII.

to repress these furious ones should by no
means lift themselves up in fury, but exhibit
all possible calmness ; and yet adroitly bring
something to bear whereby they may by a
side thrust prick the heart of the furious one.
Whence also Abner, when he made a stand
against his pursuer, pierced him, not with a
direct stroke, but with the hinder end of his
spear. For to strike with the point is to
oppose with an onset of open rebuke : but to
smite the pursuer with the hinder end of the
spear is calmly to touch the furious one
with certain hits, and, as it were, by sparing
him overcome him. Asahel moreover straight-
way fell, because agitated minds, when they
feel themselves to be spared, and yet are
touched inwardly by the answers given in
calmness, fall at once from the elevation to
which they had raised themselves. Those,
then, who rebound from the onset of their
heat under the stroke of gentleness die, as
it were, without steel.

CHAPTER XVII.

How the humble and the haughty are to be

admonished.
{Admonition 18.) Differently to be admon-
: ished are the humble and the haughty. To the
. former it is to be insinuated how true is that
excellence which they hold in hoping for it ; to
the latter it is to be intimated how that temporal
J glory is as nothing which even when embracing
it they hold not. Let the humble hear how
eternal are the things that they long for, how
transitory the things which they despise ; let
the haughty hear how transitory are the things
they court, how eternal the things they lose.
Let the humble hear from the authoritative
I voice of the Truth, Every one that humbleth
\ himself shall be exalted (Luke xviii. 14). Let
I the haughty hear, Every one that exalteth him-
self shall be humbled (Ibid.) Let the humble
hear, Humility goeth before glory; let the
haughty hear, The spirit is exalted before a
fall (Prov. xv. 33; xvi. 18). Let the humble
jhear, Unto whom shall I have respect, but to
'him that is humble and quiet, and that tremblcth
at my words (Isai. lxvi. 2)? Let the haughty
hear, Why is earth and ashes proud (Ecclus.
x. 9) ? Let the humble hear, God hath respect
■ unto the things that are humble. Let the
haughty hear, And lofty things He knoweth
afar off (Psal. exxxvii. 6 4). Let the humble
hear, That the Son of Man came not to be
ministered unto, but to minister (Matth. xx. 28) ;
let the haughty hear, that The beginning of
ill sin is pride (Ecclus. x. 13). Let the humble

4 In English Bible, exxxviii. 6.

[ hear, that Our Redeemer humbled himself, being
made obedient even unto death (Philip ii. 8) ; let
the haughty hear Avhat is written concerning
their head, He is king over all the sons of pride
(Job xh. 25). The pride, therefore, of the
devil became the occasion of our perdition,
and the humility of God has been found the
argument for our redemption. For our enemy,
having been created among all things, desired
to appear exalted above all things ; but our
Redeemer, remaining great above all things,
deigned to become little among all things.

Let the humble, then, be told that, when
they abase themselves, they ascend to the
likeness of God ; let the haughty be told that,
when they exalt themselves, thev fall into
imitation of the apostate angel. What, then,
is more debased than haughtiness, which, while
it stretches itself above itself, is lengthened
out beyond the stature of true loftiness ? And
what is more sublime than humility, which,
while it depresses itself to the lowest, conjoins
itself to its Maker who remains above the
highest ? There is, however, another thing
in these cases that ought to be carefully con-
sidered ; that some are often deceived by a
false show of humility, while some are beguiled
by ignorance of their own haughtiness. For
commonly some who think themselves humble
have an admixture of fear, such as is not due
to men ; while an assertion of free speech
commonly goes with the haughty. And when
any vices require to be rebuked, the former
hold their peace out of fear, and yet esteem
themselves as being silent out of humility ;
the latter speak in the impatience of haughti-
ness, and yet believe themselves to be speaking
in the freedom of uprightness. Those the fault
of timidity under a show of humility keeps back
from rebuking what is wrong ; these the un-
bridled impetuosity of pride, under the image of
freedom, impels to rebuke things they ought
not, or to rebuke them more than they ought.
Whence both the haughty are to be ad-
monished not to be free more than is becom-
ing, and the humble are to be admonished not
to be more submissive than is right ; lest either
the former turn the defence of righteousness
into a display of pride, or the latter, while they
study more than needs to submit themselves
to men, be driven even to pay respect to their
vices.

It is, however, to be considered that for tne
most part we more profitably reprove the
haughty, if with our reproofs of them we mingle
some balms of praise. For some other good
things that are in them should be introduced
into our reproofs, or at all events some that
might have been, though they are not ; and
then at last the bad things that displease us

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

should be cut away, when previous allowance
of the good things that please us has made
their minds favourably disposed to listen. For
unbroken horses, too, we first touch with a
gentle hand, that we may afterwards subdue
them to us even with whips. And the sweet-
ness of honey is added to the bitter cup of
medicine, lest the bitterness which is to be of
profit for health be felt harsh in the act of
tasting ; but, while the taste is deceived by
sweetness, the deadly humour is expelled by
bitterness. In the case, then, of the haughty
the first beginnings of our rebuke should be
tempered with an admixture of praise, that,
while they admit the commendations which
they love, they may accept also the reproofs
which they hate.

Moreover, we shall in most cases better
persuade the haughty to their profit, if we
speak of their improvement as likely to profit
us rather than them ; if we request their
amendment to be bestowed upon us more
than on themselves. For haughtiness is easily
bent to good, if its bending be believed to
be of profit to others also. Whence Moses,
who journeyed through the desert under the
direction of God and the leading of the cloudy
pillar, when he would draw Hobab his kins-
man from converse with the Gentile world,
and subdue him to the dominion of Almighty
God, said, We are journeying unto the place of
which the Lord said, I will give it to you ;
Come with us, and we will do thee good ; for the
Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel. And
when the other had replied to him, 1 will not go
with thee, but will return to my own land in
which 1 7vas born; he straightway added,
Leave us not, I pray thee; for thou knowest
in what places we should encamp in the wilder
ness, and thou shall be our guide (Num. x. 29,
sea.). And yet Moses was not straitened
in his own mind by ignorance of the way,
seeing that acquaintance with Deity had
opened out within him the knowledge of
prophecy; and the pillar went before him
outwardly, while inwardly familiar speech in
his sedulous converse with God instructed
him concerning all things. But, in truth, as a
man of foresight, talking to a haughty hearer,
he sought succour that he might give it ; he
requested a guide on the way, that he might
be able to be his guide unto life. Thus he
so acted that the proud hearer should become
all the more attentive to the voice that per-
suaded him to better things from being sup-
posed to be necessary, and, in that he believed
himself to be his exhorter's guide, he should
bow himself to the words of exhortation.

CHAPTER XVIII.

How the obstinate and the fickle are to be
admonished.

{Admonition 19.) Differently to be ad-
monished are the obstinate and the fickle.
The fo'm^r are to be told that they think
more of themselves than they are, and there-
fore do not acquiesce in the counsels of
others : but the latter are to be given to
understand that they undervalue and dis-
regard themselves too much, and so are
turned aside from their own judgment in
successive moments of time. Those are to
be told that, unless they esteemed themselves
better than the rest of men, they would by
no means set less value on the counsels of all
than on their own deliberation : these are to
be told that, if they at all gave heed to what
they are, the breeze of mutability would by no
means turn them about through so many sides
of variableness. To the former it is said
through Paul, Be not wise in your own conceits
(Rom. xii. 16): but the latter on the other
hand should hear this ; Let us vol be carried
it -with every wind of doct/ine (Ephes.
iv. 14). Concerning the former it is said
through Solomon, They shall eat of the fruits
of their own way, and be filled with their own
devices (Prov. i. 3 f ) ; but concerning the latter
it is writ I en by him again, The heart op the
foolish will be unlike (Ibid. xv. 7). For the
it of the wise is always like itself, because,
while it rests in good persuasions, it directs
itself constantly in good performance. But
the heart of the foolish is unlike, because,
while it shews itself various through mutability,
it never remains what it was. And since
some vices, as out of themselves they generate
others, so themselves spring from others, it
ought by all means to be understood that we
then better wipe these away by our reproofs,
when we dry them up from the very fountain
of their bitterness. For obstinacy is en-
gendered of pride, and fickleness of levity.

The obstinate are therefore to be ad-
monished, that they acknowledge the haughti-
ness of their thoughts, and study to vanquish
themselves ; lest, while they scorn to be over-
come by the right advice of others outside
themselves, they be held captive within them-
selves to pride. They are to be admonished
to observe wisely how the Son of Man, Whose
will is always one with the Father's, that He
may afford us an example of subduing our
own will, says, L seek not mine own will, but the
will of the Father which hath sent me (Joh.
v. 30). And, still more to commend the grace
of this virtue, He declared beforehand that He
would retain the same in the last judgment,

CHAPTER XIX.

saying, I can of myself do nothing, but as I hear
I judge (Ibid.). With what conscience, then,
can a man disdain to acquiesce in the will
of another, seeing that the Son of God and of
Man, when He comes to shew forth the glory
of his power, testifies that of his own self
he does not judge ?

But, on the other hand, the fickle are to be
admonished to strengthen their mind with
gravity. For they then dry up the germs of
mutability in themselves when they first cut
off from their heart the root of levity ; since
also a strong fabric is built up when a solid
place is first provided whereon to lay the
foundation. Unless, then, levity of mind be
previously guarded against, inconstancy of the
thoughts is by no means conquered. From
this Paul declared himself to be free, when he
said, Did I use levity ? or the things that 1
purpose do I purpose according to the flesh, that
with me there should be yea and nay (2 Cor.
i. 17)? As if to say plainly, For this reason I
am moved by no breeze of mutability, that I
yield not to the vice of levity.

CHAPTER XIX.

How those who use food intemperately and those
who use it sparingly are to be admonished.

{Admonition 20.) Differently to be admon-
ished are the gluttonous and the abstinent.
For superfluity of speech, levity of conduct,
and lechery accompany the former ; but the
latter often the sin of impatience, and often
that of pride. For were it not the case that
immoderate loquacity carries away the glut-
tonous, that rich man who is said to have
fared sumptuously every day would not burn
more sorely than elsewhere in his tongue,
saying, Father Abraham, have mercy on me,
and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of
his finger in water, and cool my tongue ; for
I am tormented in this flame (Luke xvi. 24).
By these words it is surely shewn that in his
daily feasting he had frequently sinned by his
tongue, seeing that, while burning all over,
he demanded to be cooled especially in his
tongue. Again, that levity of conduct follows
closely upon gluttony sacred authority testifies,
when it says, The people sat doivn to eat and
drink, and rose up to play (Exod. xxxii. 6).
For the most part also edacity leads us even
to lechery, because, when the belly is dis-
tended by repletion, the stings of lust are
excited. Whence also to the cunning foe,
who opened the sense of the first man by
lust for the apple, but bound it in a noose
of sin, it is said by the divine voice, On breast
and belly shall thou creep (Gen. iii. 14) \ as
if it were plainly said to him, In thought

and in maw thou shalt have dominion over
human hearts. That lechery follows upon
gluttony the prophet testifies, denouncing
hidden things while he speaks of open ones,
when he says, The chief of the cooks broke down
the walls of Jerusalem (Jer. xxxix. 9 ; 2 Kings
xxv. 10) s. For the chief of the cooks is the
belly, to which the cooks pay observance with
great care, that it may itself be delectably
filled with viands. But the walls of Jerusalem
are the virtues of the soul, elevated to a long-
ing for supernal peace. The chief of the
cooks, therefore, throws down the walls of
Jerusalem, because, when the belly is dis-
tended with gluttony, the virtues of the soul
are destroyed through lechery.

On the other hand, were it not that im-
patience commonly shakes the abstinent out
of the bosom of tranquillity, Peter would by no
means, when saying, Supply in your faith
virtue, and in your virtue knowledge, and in
your knowledge abstinence (2 Pet. i. 5), have
straightway vigilantly added, And in your
abstinence patience. For he foresaw that the
patience which he admonished them to have
would be wanting to the abstinent. Again,
were it not that the sin of pride sometimes
pierces through the cogitations of the absti-
nent, Paul would by no means have said,
Let not him that eateth not judge him that
eateth (Rom. xiv. 3). And again, speaking
to others, while glancing at the maxims of
such as gloried in the virtue of abstinence,
he added, Which things have indeed a show
of wisdom in superstition and humility, and
for not sparing of the body, not in any honour
for the satisfying of the flesh (Coloss. ii. 25).
Here it is to be noted that the excellent
preacher, in his argument, joins a s o.v of
humility to superstition, because, when the
flesh is worn more than needs by abstinence,
humility is displayed outwardly, but on ac-
count of this very humility there is grievous
pride within. And unless the mind were
sometimes puffed up by the virtue of absti-
nence, the arrogant Pharisee would by no
means have studiously numbered this among
his great merits, saying, L fast twice in the
week (Luke xviii. 12).

Thus the gluttonous are to be admonished,
that in giving themselves to the enjoyment
of dainties they pierce not themselves through
with the sword of lechery ; and that they per-
ceive how great loquacity, how great levity of
mind, lie in wait for them through eating;
lest, while they softly serve the belly, they
become cruelly bound in the nooses of vice.

S The designation (Rab-tabbachim) of Nabuzaradan, who
acted for Nebucbadnezzai a'ter the capture of Jerusalem, is
rendered in the LXX. dp^i/uayeipos, i.e. Chief Cook.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

For by so much the further do we go back
from our second parent as by immoderate
indulgence, when the hand is stretched out
for food, we renew the fall of our first parent.
But, on the other hand, the abstinent are to
be admonished ever anxiously to look out,
lest, while they fly the vice of gluttony, still
worse vices be engendered as it were of virtue;
lest, while they macerate the flesh, their spirit
break out into impatience ; and so there be
no virtue in the vanquishing of the flesh, the
spirit being overcome by anger. Sometimes,
moreover, while the mind of the abstinent
keeps anger down, it is corrupted, as it were,
by a foreign joy coming in, and loses all the
good of abstinence in that it fails to guard
itself from spiritual vices. Hence it is rightly
said through the prophet, In the days of your
fasts are found your wills (Isai. lviii. 3. Ixx.).
And shortly after, Ye fist for debates and
strifes, and ye smite with the fists (Ibid.). For
the will pertains to delight, the fist to anger.
In vain, then, is the body worn by abstinence,
if the mind, abandoned to disorderly emotions,
is dissipated by vices. And a :ain, they arc
to be admonished that, while they keep up
their abstinence without abatemeni, they sup-
pose not this to be of eminent virtue before
the hidden judge; lest, if it be perchance
supposed to be of great merit, the heart be
lifted up to haughtiness, for hence it is said
through the prophet, Is it such a fast that
I have chosen? But break thy bread to the
hungry, and brine the needy and the wanderers
into thine house (Ibid. 5).

In this matter it is to be considered how
small the virtue of abstinence is accounted,
seeing that it is not commended but for other

...

virtues. Hence Joel says, Sanctify a fast.
For indeed to sanctify a fast is to shew absti-
nence of the flesh to be worthy of God by
other good things being added to it. The
abstinent are to be admonished that they then
offer to God an abstinence that pleases Him,
when they bestow on the indigent the nourish-
ment which they withhold from themselves.
For we should wisely attend to what is
blamed by the Lord through the prophet,
saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the
fifth and seventh month for these seventy years,
did ye at all fist a last unto Mel And when
ye did eat and drink, did ye not eat for your-
selves, and drink for yourselves (Zach. vii. 5
sea.) ? For a man fasts not to God but to
himself, if what he withholds from his belly
for a time he gives not to the needy, but
keeps to be offered afterwards to his belly.

Wherefore, lest either gluttonous appetite
throw the one sort off their tfuard, or the
afflicted flesh trip up the other by elation,

let the former hear this from the mouth of
the Truth, And take heed to yourselves, lest at
anytime 1 our hearts be overcharged in surfeiting
and di unk.nness and cares of this zvorld (Luke
xxi. 34). And in the same place there is
added a profitable fear ; And so that day come
upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it
come on all them that dwell on the face of the
whole earth (Ibid. 35). Let the latter hear,
Not that which goeth into the mouth defile tk
a man; but that which comet h out of the mouth,
this defileth a man (Matth. xv. 11). Let the
former hear, Meat for the belly, and the belly
for meats ; but God shall destroy both it and
them (1 Cor. vi. 13). And again, Not in riot-
ing and drunkenness (Rom. xiii. 13) And
again. Meat commendeth us not to God (1 Cor.
vii 1. 8). Let the latter hear, To the pure
all things are pure: but unto them that are
defiled and unbelieving is nothing pine (Tit.
i. 15). Let the former hear, Whose God is
their belly, and whose glory is in their oivn
confusion (Philip, mi. 19). Let the latter hear,
Some shall depart from the faith ; and a little
after, Forbidding to marry, a/id commanding
to abstain from meats, which God hath created
to be received with thanksgiving of them which
believe and know the truth (1 Tim. iv. 1, 3).
let those hear, It is good neither to eat fie sh
nor to drink wine, nor anything -whereby thy
brother stumbleth (Rom. xiv. 21). Let these
hear, Use a little wine for thy stomach's sake
and thine often infirmities (1 Tim. v. 23).
Thus both the former may learn not to
desire inordinately the food of the flesh, and
the latter not dare to condemn the creature
of God, which they lust not after.

CHAPTER XX.

How to be admonished are those who give away
what is their own, and those who seize what
belongs to others.

(Admonition 21.) Differently to be ad-
monished are those who already give com-
passionately of their own, and those who still
would fain seize even what belongs to others.
For those who already give compassionately
of their own are to be admonished not to lift
themselves up in swelling thought above those
to whom they impart earthly things ; not to
esteem themselves better than others because
they see others to be supported by them.
For the lord of an earthly household, in dis-
tributing the ranks and ministries of his ser-
vants, appoints some to rule, but some to be
ruled by others. Those he orders to supply
to the rest what is necessary, these to take
what they receive from others. And yet it is
for the most part those that rule who offend,

CHAPTER XX.

while those that are ruled remain in favour
with the good man of the house. Those who
are dispensers incur wrath ; those who subsist
by the dispensation of others continue with-
out offence. Those, then, who already give
compassionately of the things which they
possess are to be admonished to acknowledge
themselves to be placed by the heavenly Lord
'as dispensers of temporal supplies, and to
impart the same all the more humbly from
their understanding that the things which they
dispense are not their own. And, when they
; consider that they are appointed for the ser-
1 vice of those to whom they impart what they
! have received, by no means let vain glory
; elate their minds, but let fear depress them.
Whence also it is needful for them to take
anxious thought lest they distribute what has
been committed to them unworthily ; lest
i they bestow something on those on whom
they ought to have spent nothing, or no-
thing on those on whom they ought to have
; spent something, or much on those on whom
: they ought to have spent little, or little on
those on whom they ought to have spent
much ; lest by precipitancy they scatter un-
profitibly what they give ; lest by tardiness
they mischievously torment petitioners ; lest
the thought of receiving a favour in return
creep in ; lest craving for transitory praise
extinguish the light of giving ; lest accom-
panying moroseness beset an offered gift ;
lest in case of a gift that has been well offered
the mind be exhilarated more than is fit ; lest,
when they have fulfilled all aright, they give
something to themselves, and so at once lose
all after they have accomplished all. For,
that they may not attribute to themselves the
virtue of their liberality, let them hear what is
written, If any man administer, let him do it as
of the ability which God administereth ( i Pet.
iv. n). That they may not rejoice im-
moderately in benefits bestowed, let them
hear what is written, When ye shall have done
all those things which ate commanded yon, say,
We are unprofitable servants, we have done that
which was oz/r duty to do (Luke xvii. 10).
That moroseness may not spoil liberality, let
them hear what is written, God loveth a cheer-
fid giver (2 Cor. ix. 7). That they may not
seek transitory praise for a gift bestowed, let
them hear what is written, let not thy left hand
knoiv what thy right hand doeth (Matth. vi. 3).
That is, let not the glory of the present life
mix ;tself with the largesses of piety, nor let
desiu of favour know anything of the work of
rectitude. That they may not require a return
for benefits bestowed, let them hear what is
written, When thou makest a dinner or a supper,
call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy

kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours, lest they also
bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee :
but, when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the
maimed, the lame, the blind: and thou shall
be blessed ; for they have not whereof to re-
compense thee (Luke xiv. 12 sea.). That they
may not supply too late what should be sup-
plied at once, let them hear what is written.
Say not unto thy friend, go and come again, and
to-morrow I will give, when thou mightest give
immediately (Prov. iii. 28). Lest, under pre-
tence of liberality, they should scatter what
they possess unprofitably, let them hear what
is written, let thine alms sweat in thine hand.
Lest, when much is necessary, little be given,
let them hear what is written, He that soweth
sparingly shall reap also sparingly (2 Cor. ix. 6).
Lest, when they ought to give little, they give
too much, and afterwards, badly enduring
want themselves, break out into impatience,
let them hear what is written, Not that other
men be eased, and ye burdened, but by an equal-
ity, that your abundance may supply their want,
and that their abundance may be a supply to
your zvant (Ibid. viii. 13, 14). For, when the
soul of the giver knowrs not how to endure
want, then, in withdrawing much from himself,
he seeks out against himself occasion of
impatience. For the mind should first be
prepared for patience, and then either much
or all be bestowed in bounty, lest, the inroad
of want being borne with but little equanimity,
both the reward of previous bounty be lost,
and subsequent mi rmuring bring worse ruin
on the soul. Lest they should give nothing
at all to those on whom they ought to bestow
something, let them hear what is written,
Give to every man that asketh of thee (Luke
vi. 30). Lest they should give something,
however little, to those on whom they ought
to bestow nothing at all, let them hear what is
written, Give to the good man, and receive not
a sinner : do well to him that is lowly, and give
not to the ungodly (Ecclus. xii. 4). And again,
Set out thy bread and wine on the burial of the
just, but eat and drink not thereof with sinners
(Tobit iv. 17).

For he gives his bread and wine to sin-
ners who gives assistance to the wicked
for that they are wicked. For which cause
also some of the rich of this world nourish
players with profuse bounties, while the poor
of Christ are tormented with hunger. He,
however, who gives his bread to one that
is indigent, though he be a sinner, not be-
cause he is a sinner, but beca-ase he is a man,
does not in truth nourish a sinner, but a poor
righteous man, because what he loves in him
is not his sin, but his nature.

Those who already distribute compassion-

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

ately what they possess are to be admonished
also that they study to keep careful guard, lest,
when they redeem by alms the sins they have
committed, they commit others which will
still require redemption ; lest they suppose
the righteousness of God to be saleable,
thinking that if they take care to give money
for their sins, they can sin with impunity.
For, The soul is more than meat, and the body
than raiment (Matth. vi. 25 ; Luke xii. 23).

increasing money, let them hear what is written,
The covetous man is not filled with money ; and
he that loveth riches shall not reap fruit thereof
(Eccles. v. 9). For indeed he would reap fruit
of them, were he minded, not loving them,
to disperse them well. But whoso in his
affection for them retains them, shall surely
leave them behind him here without fruit. |
When they burn to be filled at once with all
manner of wealth, let them hear what is
He, therefore, who bestows meat or raiment j written, He that maketh haste, to be rich shall
on the poor, and yet is polluted by iniquity of not be innocent (Prov. xxviii. 20) : for certainly
soul or body, has offered the lesser thing to he who goes about to increase wealth is negli-

righteousness, and the greater thing to sin ;
for he has given his possessions to God, and
himself to the devil.

But, on the other hand, those who still

gent in avoiding sin ; and, being caught after
the manner of birds, while looking greedily
at the bait of earthly things, he is not aware
in what a noose of sin he is being strangled.

would fain seize what belongs to others are When they desire any gains of the present

to be admonished to give anxious heed to world, and are ignorant of the losses they will

what the Lord says when He comes to judg- suffer in the world to come, let them hear

ment. For He says, I was an hungered, and what is written, An inheritance to which haste

ye gave Me no meat : I was thirsty, and ye gave
Me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took Me

is made in the beginning in the last end shall
lack blessing (Prov. xx. 21). For indeed we
not in: naked, and ye clothed Me not ; sick, and derive our beginning from tin's life, that we
in prison, and ye visited Me not (Matth. xxv. may come in the end to the lot of blessing.
42, 43). And these he previously addresses, They, therefore, that make haste to an in-
saying, Depart from Me, ye cursed, into eternal heritance in the beginning cut off from them-
fire, which is prepared for the devil and his selves the lot of blessing in the end; since,
angels (Ibid. 41). Lo, they are in no wise while they crave to be increased in goods here
told that they have committed robberies or through the iniquity of avarice, they become

any other acts of violence, and yet they are
given over to the eternal fires of Gehenna.
Hence, then, it is to be gathered with how
great damnation those will be visited who
seize what is not their own, if those who have
indiscreetly kept their own are smitten with
so great punishment. Let them consider in
what guilt the seizing of goods must bind
them, if not parting with them subjects to
such a penalty. Let them consider what in-
justice inflicted must deserve, if kindness not
bestowed is worthy of so great a chastisement.
When they are intent on seizing what is not
their own, let them hear what is written, Woe
to him that increaseth that which is not his !
J low long doth he heap up against himself thick
clay (Hab. ii. 6)? For, indeed, for a covetous
man to heap up against him thick clay is to
pile up earthly gains into a load of sin. When
they desire to enlarge greatly the spaces of
their habitation, let them hear what is written,

Woe unto you that join house to house and lay
field to field, even till there be no place lejt.

What, will ye dwell alone in the midst of the
earth (Isai. v. 8) ? As if to say plainly, How far
do ye stretch yourselves, ye that cannot bear
to have comrades in a common world ? Those

that are joined to you ye keep down, and ever
find some against whom ye may have power to
sTetoh yourselves. When they are intent on

disinherited there of their eternal patrimony.
When they either solicit very much, or succeed
in obtaining all that they have solicited, let
them hear what is written, What is a man pro-
fited, if he should gain the whole world, but lose
his own soul (Matth. xvi. 26)? As if the
Truth said plainly. What is a man profited,
though he gather together all that is outside
himself, if this very thing only which is him-
self he damns? But for the most part the
covetousness of spoilers is the sooner cor-
rected, if it be shewn by the words of such as
admonish them how fleeting is the present
life ; if mention be made of those who have
long endeavoured to grow rich in this world,
and yet have been unable to remain long
among their acquired riches; from whom hasty
death has taken away suddenly and all at once
whatever, neither all at once nor suddenly,
they have gathered together; who have not
only left here what they had seized, but have
carried with them to the judgment arraign-
ments for seizure. Let them, therefore, be
told of examples of such as these, whom they
would, doubtless, even themselves, in words
condemn ; so that, when after their words
they come back to their own heart, they may
blush at any rate to imitate those whom they
judge.

CHAPTER XXI.

How //tose are to be admonished who desire not
the things of others, but keep their own ; and
those who give of their own, yet seize on those
of others

(Admonition 22.) Differently to be ad-
monished are those who neither desire what
belongs to others nor bestow what is their
own, and those who give of what they have,
and yet desist not from seizing on what be-
longs to others. Those who neither desire
what belongs to others nor bestow what is
their own are to be admonished to consider
carefully that the earth out of which they are
taken is common to all men, and therefore
brings forth nourishment for all in common.
Vainly, then, do those suppose themselves in-
nocent, who claim to their own private use the
common gift of God ; those who, in not im-
parting what they have received, walk in the
midst of the slaughter of their neighbours ;
since they almost daily slay so many persons
as there are dying poor whose subsidies they
keep close in their own possession. For, when
we administer necessaries of any kind to the
indigent, we do not bestow our own, but
render them what is theirs ; we rather pay a
debt of justice than accomplish works of
mercy. Whence also the Truth himself, when
speaking of the caution required in shewing
mercy, says, Take heed that ye do not your
justice before men (Matth. vi. 1). The Psalmist
also, in agreement with this sentence, says,
He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor,
his justice endureth for ever (Ps. cxii. 9).

For, having first mentioned bounty be-
stowed upon the poor, he would not call this
mercy, but rather justice : for it is surely just
that whosoever receive what is given by a
common lord should use it in common.
Hence also Solomon says, Whoso is just will
give and will not spare (Prov. xxi. 26). They
are to be admonished also anxiously to take
note how of the fig-tree that had no fruit the
rigorous husbandman complains that it even
cumbers the ground.

For a fig-tree without fruit cumbers the
ground, when the soul of the niggardly keeps
unprofitable what might have benefited many.
A fig-tree without fruit cumbers the ground,
when the fool keeps barren under the shade
of sloth a place which another might have
cultivated under the sun of good works.

But these are wont sometimes to say, We

i use what has been granted us ; we do not seek

I what belongs to others ; and, if we do nothing

worthy of the reward of mercy, we still commit

no wrong. So they think, because in truth

, they close the ear of their heart to the words

which are from heaven. For the rich man
in the Gospel who was clothed in purple and
fine linen, and feasted sumptuously every day,
is not said to have seized what belonged to
oihers, but to have used what was his own
unfruitfully ; and avenging hell received him
after this life, not because he did anything
unlawful but because by immoderate indul-
gence he gave up his whole self to what was
lawful.

The niggardly are to be admonished to take
notice that they do God, in the first place, this
wrong ; that to Him Who gives them all they
render in return no sacrifice of mercy. For
hence the Psalmist says, He will not give his
propitiation to God, nor the price of the redemp-
tion of his soul (Psal. xlviii. 9 6). For to give
the price of redemption is to return good
deeds for preventing grace. Hence John cries
aloud saying, Now the axe is laid unto the root
of the tree. Every tree which bringeth not forth
good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the
fire (Luke iii. 9). Let those, therefore, who
esteem themselves guiltless because they do
not seize on what belongs to others look
forward to the stroke of the axe that is nigh at
hand, and lay aside the torpor of improvident
security, lest, while they neglect to bear the
fruit of good deeds, they be cut off from the
present life utterly, as it were from the green-
ness of the root.

But, on the other hand, those who both
give what they have and desist not from
seizing on what belongs to others are to be
admonished not to desire to appear exceeding
munificent, and so be made worse from the
outward show of good. For these, giving
what is their own without discretion, not only,
as we have said above, fall into the murmuring
of impatience, but, when want urges them, are
swept along even to avarice. What, then, is
more wretched than the mind of those in
whom avarice is born of bountifulness, and
a crop of sins is sown as it were from virtue?
First, then, they are to be admonished to
learn how to keep what is theirs reasonably,
and then in the end not to go about getting
what is another's. For, if the root of the
fault is not burnt out in the profusion itself,
the thorn of avarice, exuberant through the
branches, is never dried up. So then, cause
for seizing is withdrawn, if the right of posses-
sion be first adjusted well. But then, further,
let those who are admonished be told how
to give mercifully what they have, when they
have learnt not to confound the good of
mercy by throwing into it the wickedness
of robbery. For they violently exact what

* In English Bible, xlix. 9.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

they mercifully bestow. For it is one thing
to shew mercy on account of our sins ; another
thing to sin on account of shewing mercy ;
which can no longer indeed be called mercy,
since it cannot grow into sweet fruit, being
embittered by the poison of its pestiferous
root. For hence it is that the Lord through
the prophet rejects even sacrifices themselves,
saying, / the Lord love judgment, and I hate
robbery in a whole burnt offering (Isai. lxi. 8).
Hence again He has said, The sacrifices of the
ungodly are abominable, which are offered of
wickedness (Prov. xxi. 28). Such persons also
often withdraw from the indigent what they
give to God.

But the Lord shews with what strong censure
he disowns them, saying through a certain wise
man, Whoso offer eth a sacrifice of the subs/a nee
of the poor doeth as one that killeth the son before
the father's eyes (Ecclus. xxxiv. 20). For what
can be more intolerable than the death of a
son before his father's eyes ? Wherefore it is
shewn with what great wrath this kind of
sacrifice is beheld, in that it is compared to
the grief of a bereaved father. And yet for
the most part people weigh well how much
they give ; but how much they seize they
neglect to consider. They count, as it were,
their wage, but refuse to consider their de-
faults. Let them hear therefore what is
written, He that hath gathered wages hath put
them into a bag with holes (Hagg i. 6). For
indeed money put into a bag with holes is
seen when it is put in, but when it is lost
it is not seen. Those, then, who have an eye
to how much they bestow, but consider not
how much they seize, put their wages into
a bag with holes, because in truth they look
to them when they gather them together in
hope of being secure, but lose them without
looking.

CHAPTER XXII.

Hoiv those 1 hat are at variance and those that
are at peace are to be admonished.

{Admonition 23.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those that are at variance and those
that are at peace. For those that are at
variance are to be admonished to know most
certainly that, in whatever virtues they may
abound, they can by no means become spiritual
if they neglect becoming united to their neigh-
bours by concord. For it is written, But the
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace (Gal. v. 22).
He then that has no care to keep peace re-
fuses to bear the fruit of the Spirit. Hence
Paul says, Whereas there is among you envy-
ing and strife, are ye not carnal (x Cor. iii. 3)?

Hence again he says also, Follow peace with
all men and holiness, without which no man
shall see the Lord (Heb. xii. 14). Hence again
he admonishes, saying, Endeavouring to keep
the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace :\
there is one body and one Spirit, even as ye are
called in one hope of your calling (Eph. iv. 3, 4).
The one hope of our calling, therefore, is
never reached, if we run not to it with a mind
at one with our neighbours. But it is often
the case that some, by being proud of some
gifts that they especially partake of, lose the
greater gift of concord ; as it may be if one

I who subdues the flesh more than others by

I bridling of his appetite should scorn to be in
concord with those whom he surpasses in

! abstinence. But whoso separates abstinence

j from concord, let him consider the admonition
of the Psalmist, Praise him with timbrel and
chorus (Ps. cl. 4). For in the timbrel a dry
and beaten skin resounds, but in the chorus

I voices are associated in concord. Whosoever
then afflicts his body, but forsakes concord,
praises God indeed with timbrel, but praises
Him not with chorus. Often, however, when
superior knowledge lifts up some, it disjoins
them from the society of other men ; and it
is as though the more wise they are, the less
wise are they as to the virtue of concord. Let
these therefore hear what the Truth in person
says, Have salt in yourselves, and have peace
one with another (Mark ix. 50). For indeed
salt without peace is not a gift of virtue, but
an argument for condemnation. For the
better any man is in wisdom, the worse is his
delinquency, and he will deserve punishment
inexcusably for this very reason, that, if he
had been so minded, he might in his prudence

; have avoided sin. To such it is rightly said
through James, But if ye have bitter envying
and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not
against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not

from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
But the wisdom that is from above is first pure,
then peaceable (James iii. 14, 15, 17). Pure,
that is to say, because its ideas are chaste;
and also peaceable, because it in no wise
through elation disjoins itself from the society
of neighbours. Those who are at variance
are to be admonished to take note that they
offer to God no sacrifice of good work so long
as they are not in charity with their neigh-
bours. For it is written, If thou bring thy gift
to the altar, and there rememberest that thy
brother hath ought against thee, leave there thy gift
before the altar, and go thy way first to be recon
cited to thy brother, and then thou shall come and
offer thy gift (Matth. v. 23, 24). Now by this
precept we are led to consider how intolerable
the guilt of men is shewn to be when their

CHAPTER XXII.

icrifice is rejected. For, whereas all evils are
ashed away when followed by what is good,
\t us consider now great must be the evils
f discoid, seeing that, unless they are utterly
xtinguished, they allow no good to follow,
hose who are at variance are to be admon-
hed that, if they incline not their ears to
eavenly commands, they should open the eyes
f the mind to consider the ways of creatures of
,ie lowest order ; how that often birds of one
nd the same kind desert not one another in
leir social flight, and that brute beasts feed
ji herds together. Thus, if we observe wisely,
[rational nature shews by agreeing together
jow great evil rational nature commits by dis-
agreement ; when the latter has lost by the
xercise of reason what the former by natural
istinct keeps. But, on the other hand, those
lat are at peace are to be admonished to
ike heed lest, while they love more than they
eed do the peace which they enjoy, they
lave no longing to reach that which is per-
letual. For commonly tranquil circumstances
liore sorely try the bent of minds, so that,
k proportion as the things which occupy them
jre not troublesome, the things which invite
lem come to appear less lovely, and the
lore present things delight, eternal things are
le less sought after. Whence also the Truth
peaking in person, when He would distin-
uish earthly from supernal peace, and pro-
oke His disciples from that which now is to
iat which is to come, said, Peace I leave with
\ou, My peace I give unto you (Joh. xiv. 27).
'hat is, I leave a transitory, I give a lasting
eace. If then the heart is fixed on that
diich is left, that which is to be given is
lever reached. Present peace, therefore, is
l> be held as something to be both loved and
jiought little of, lest, if it is loved immoderately,
he mind of him that loves be taken in a fault.
iVhence also those who are at peace should
e admonished lest, while too desirous of
uman peace, they fail entirely to reprove
ien's evil ways, and, in consenting to the
reward, disjoin themselves from the peace of
heir Maker; lest, while they dread human
uarrels without, they be smitten by breach
if their inward covenant. For what is tran-
irory peace but a certain footprint of peace
ternal? What, then, can be more mad than
p love footprints impressed on dust, but not
3 love him by whom they have been im-
ressed ? Hence David, when he would bind
imself entirely to the covenants of inward
[eace, testifies that he held no agreement with
he wicked, saying, Did not I hate them, O
\?od, that hate thee, and waste away on account
f thine enemies ? I hated them with perfect
itred, they became enemies to me (Ps. c.vxxviii.

VOL. XII.

21, 2 2?). For to hate God's enemies with
perfect hatred is both to love what they were
made, and to chide what they do, to be severe
on the manners of the wicked, and to profit >
their life. It is therefore to be well weighed,
when there is rest from chiding, how culpably
peace is kept with the worst of men, if so
great a prophet offered this as a sacrifice to
God, that he excited the enmities of the
wicked against himself for the Lord. Hence
it is that the tribe of Levi, when they took
their swords and passed through the midst
of the camp because they would not spare the
sinners who were to be smitten, are said to
have consecrated their hands to God (Exod.
xxxii. 2 "j sea.). Hence Phinehas, spurning the
favour of his fellow-countrymen when they
sinned, smote those who came together with
the Midianites, and in his wrath appeased the
wrath of God (Num. xxv. 9). Hence in
person the Truth says, Think not that I am
come to send peace on earth: I came not to send
peace, but a sword (Matth. x. 34). For, when
we are unwarily joined in friendship with the
wicked, we are bound in their sins. Whence
Jehoshaphat, who is extolled by so many
praises of his previous life, is rebuked for his
friendship with King Ahab as though nigh
unto destruction, when it is said to him
through the prophet, Thou givest help to the
ungodly, and art joined in friendship zvith them
that hate the Lord ; and therefore thou didst
deserve indeed the wrath of the Lord : neverthe-
less there are good works found in thee, in that
thou hast taken away the groves out of the laud
ofjud-ih (2 Chron. xix. 2, 3). For our life is
already at variance with Him who is supremely
righteous by the very fact of agreement in the
friendships of the froward. Those who are
at peace are to be admonished not to be
afraid of disturbing their temporal peace, if
they break forth into words of rebuke. And
again they are to be admonished to keep
inwardly with undiminished love the same
peace which in their external relations they
disturb by their reproving voice. Both which
tilings David declares that he had prudently
observed, saying, With them that hate peace
L was peaceable ; when L spake unto them, they
fought against me without a cause (Ps. cxix. 7 8).
Lo, when he spoke, he was fought against ;
and yet, when fought against, he was peace-
able, because he neither ceased to reprove
those that were mad against him, nor forgot
to love those who were reproved. Hence also
Paul says, If it be possible, as much as lieth in
you, have peace with all men (Rom. xii. 18).

7 In English Bible, Ps. exxxiv.

8 Ibid., Ps. cxx.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

For, being about to exhort his disciples to
have peace with all, he said first, If it be pos-
sible, and added, As much as lieth in you. For
indeed it was difficult for them, if they re-
buked evil deeds, to be able to have peace
with all. But, when temporal peace is dis
turbed in the hearts of bad men through our
rebuke, it is necessary that it should be kept
inviolate in our own heart. Rightly, therefore,
says he, As much as lieth in you. It is indeed
as though he said, Since peace stands in the
consent of two parties, if it is driven out by
those who are reproved, let it nevertheless be
retained undiminished in the mind of you who
reprove. Whence the same apostle again ad-
monishes his disciples, saying, If any man
obey not our word, note that man by this epistle ;
and have no company zvith him, that he may be
confounded (2 Thess. iii. 14). And straightway
he added, Yet count him not as an enemy, but
reprove him as a brother (Ibid. 15). As if to
say, Break ye outward peace with him, but
guard in your heart's core internal peace con-
cerning him ; that your discord with him may
so smite the mind of the sinner that peace
depart not from your hearts even though
denied to him.

CHAPTER XXIII.

Hozv sozvers of strifes and peacemakers are to
be admonished.

{Admonition 24.) Differently to be ad-
monished are sowers of strifes and pea* e
makers. For sowers of strifes are to be
admonished to perceive win se followers the)
are. For of the apostate angel it is written,
when tares had been sown among the good
crop, An enemy hath done this (Matth. xiii. 28).
Of a member of him also it is said through
Solomon, An apostate person, an unprofitable
man, zvalketh with a perverse mouth, he winketh
zvith his eyes, he beateih zvith his foot, he
speakeih with his finger, zvith frozvard heart
he deziseth mischief continually, he soweth
strifes (Prov. vi. 12 — 14). Lo, him whom he
would speak of as a sower of strifes he first
named an apostate ; since, unless after the
manner of the proud angel he first fell away
inwardly by the alienation of his mind from
the face of his Maker, he would not after-
wards come to sow strifes outwardly. He is
rightly described too as winking with his eyes,
speaking with his finger, beating with his foot.
For it is inward watch that keeps the mem-
bers outwardly in orderly control. He, then,
who has lost stability of mind falls off out-
wardly into inconstancy of movement, and by

his exterior mobility shews that he is stayed
on no root within. Let sowers of strifes hear
what is written, Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called the children of Goa
(Matth. v. 9). And on the other hand let
them gather that, if they who make peace are
called the children of God, without doubt
those who confound it are the children ol
Satan. Moreover, all who are separated by
discord from the greenness of loving-kindness
are dried up : and, though they bring forth in
their actions fruits of well-doing, yet there are
in truth no fruits, because they spring not
from the unity of charity. Hence, therefore
let sowers of strifes consider how manifoldly
they sin ; in that, while they perpetrate one
iniquity, they eradicate at the same time all1
virtues from human hearts. For in one evil
they work innumerable evils, since, in sowing
discord, they extinguish charity, which is in1
truth the mother of all virtues. But, since
nothing is more precious with God than the
virtue of loving-kindness, nothing is more!
acceptable to the devil than the extinction ol
charity. Whosoever, then, by sowing of strifes
destroy the loving-kindness of neighbours,
serve God's enemy as his familiar friend ; be-!
cause by taking away from them this, by the
loss of which he fell, they have cut off from
them the road whereby to rise.

but, on the other hand, the peacemakers
are to be admonished that they detract not
from the efficacy of so great an undertaking
through not knowing between whom they
ought to establish peace. For, as there is
much harm if unity be wanting to the good,
so there is exceeding harm if it be not want-
ing to the bad. It, then, the iniquity of the
perverse is united in peace, assuredly there is
an accession of strength to their evil doings,
since the more they agree among themselves
in wickedness, by so much the more stoutly
do they dash themselves against the good to
afflict them. For hence it is that against the
preachers of that vessel of damnation, to wit,
Antichrist, is it said by the divine voice to the
blessed Job, The members of his flesh stick close
to each other (Job xli. 149). Hence, under
the figure of scales, it is said of his satellites,
One is Joined to another, and not even a breath-
ing hole cometh between them (xli. 7 9). For,
indeed, his followers, from being divided by
no opposition of discord among themselves,
are by so much the more strongly banded
together in the slaughter of the good. He
then who associates the iniquitous together in
peace supplies strength to iniquity, since they

devil.

So Vulgate. Gregory alv ays takes Leviathan to signify the

CHAPTER XXIV.

worse press down the good, whom they per-
secute unanimously. Whence the excellent
preacher, being overtaken by violent persecu-
tion from Pharisees and Sadducees, en-
deavoured to divide among themselves those
whom he saw to be violently united against
himself, when he cried out, saying, Men,
brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees ;
of the hope and resurrection of the dead I atn
called in question (Acts xxiii. 6). And, whereas
the Sadducees denied the hope and resurrec-
tion of the dead, which the Pharisees in
[accordance with the precepts of Holv Writ
'believed, a dissension was caused in the
[unanimity of the persecutors; and Paul
;escaped unhurt from the divided crowd, which
before, when united, had savagely assailed
him. Those, therefore, who are occupied
with the desire of making peace, are to be
admonished that they ought first to infuse
,a love of internal peace into the minds of the
froward, to the end that external peace may
afterwards avail to do them good ; so that,
while their heart is hanging on cognition of
the former, they be by no means hurried into
wickedness from perception of the latter;
and, while they see before them that which is
supernal, they in no way turn that which is
earthly to serve to their own detriment. But, if
any perverse persons are such that they could
not harm the good, even though they lusted
to do so, between them, indeed, earthly peace
ought to be established, even before they have
risen to the knowledge of supernal peace ;
even so that they, whom the wickedness of
their impiety exasperates against the loving-
kindness of God, may at any rate be softened
out of love of their neighbour, and, as it were
from a neighbouring position, may pass to
a better one, and so rise to what is as yet far
from them, the peace of their Maker.

CHAPTER XXIV.

How the rude in sacred learning, and those who

are tca?ned but not humble, are to be

admonished.

(Admonition 25.) Differently to be ad-
monished are those who do not understand
aright the words of the sacred Law, and those
who understand them indeed aright, but speak
them not humbly. For those who understand
not aright the words of sacred Law are to be
admonished to consider that they turn for
themselves a most wholesome draught of wine
into a cup of poison, and with a medicinal
knife inflict on themselves a mortal wound,
when they destroy in themselves what was
sound by that whereby they ought, to their

health, to have cut away what was diseased.
They are to be admonished to consider that
Holy Scripture is set as a kind of lantern for
us in the night of the present life, the words
whereof when they understand not aright,
from light they get darkness. But in truth
a perverse bent of mind would not hurry them
to understand it wrong, did not pride first puff
them up. For, while they think themselves
wise beyond all others, they scorn to follow
others to things better understood : and, in
order to extort for themselves from the un-
skilful multitude a name for knowledge, they
strive mightily both to upset the right views
of others and to confirm their own perverse
views. Hence it is well said by the prophet,
They have ripped up the women with child of
Gilead, that they might enlarge their border
(Amos i. 13). For Gilead is by interpretation
a heap of witness (Gen. xxxi. 47, 48). And,
since the whole congregation of the Church
together serves by its confession for a witness
to the truth, not unfitly by Gilead is expressed
the Church, which witnesses by the mouth of
all the faithful whatever is true concerning
God. Moreover, souls are called with child,
when of divine love they conceive an under-
standing of the Word, so that, if they come to
their full time, they may bring forth their
conceived intelligence in the shewing forth of
work. Further, to enlarge their border is to
extend abroad the fame of their reputation.
They have therefore ripped up the women
with child of Gdead that they might enlarge
their border, because heretics assuredly slay
by their perverse preaching the souls of the
faithful who had already conceived something
of the understanding of the truth, and extend
for themselves a name for knowledge. The
hearts of little ones, already big with concep-
tion of the word, they cleave with the sword
of error, and, as it were, make for themselves
a reputation as teachers. When, therefore,
we endeavour to instruct these not to think
perversely, it is necessary that we first ad-
monish them to shun vain glory. For, if the
root of elation is cut off, the branches of
wrong assertion are consequently dried up.
They are also to be admonished to take heed,
lest, by gendering errors and discords, they
turn into a sacrifice to Satan the very same
law of God which has been given for hinder-
ing sacrifices to Satan. Whence the Lord
complains through the prophet, saying, I gave
them corn, wine, and oil, and I multiplied to
them silver and gold, which they sacrificed to
Baal (Hos. ii. 8). For indeed we receive
corn from the Lord, when, in the more
obscure sayings, the husk of the letter being
drawn off, we perceive in the marrow of the

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

Spirit the inward meaning of the Law. The
Lord proffers us His wine, when He inebriates
us with the lofty preaching of His Scripture.
His oil also He gives us, when, by plainer
precepts, He orders our life gently and
smoothly. He multiplies silver, when He
supplies to us eloquent utterances, full of the
light of truth. With gold also He enriches
us, when He irradiates our heart with an
understanding of the supreme splendour. All
which things heretics offer to Baal, because
they pervert them in the hearts of their
hearers by a corrupt understanding of them
all. And of the corn of God, of His wine and
oil, and likewise of His silver and gold, they
offer a sacrifice to Satan, because they turn
aside the words of peace to promote the error
of discord. Wherefore they are to be ad-
monished to consider that, when of their per-
verse mind they make discord out of the
precepts of peace, they themselves, in the just
judgment of God, die from the words of life.

But, on the other hand, those who under-
stand indeed aright the words of the Law, but
speak them not humbly, are to be admonished,
that, in divine discourses, before they put
them forth to others, they should examine
themselves; lest, in following up the deeds of
others, they leave themselves behind ; and
lest, while thinking rightly of all the rest of
Holy Scripture, this only thing they attend
not to, what is said in it against the proud.
For he is indeed a poor and unskilful physi-
cian, who would fain heal another's dis<
while ignorant of that from which he himself
is suffering. Those, then, who speak not the
words of God humhly should certainly be
admonished, that, when they apply medicines
to the sick, they see to the poison of their
own infection, lest in healing others they die
themselves. They ought to be admonished
to take heed, lest their manner of saying
things be at variance with the excellence of
what is said, and lest they preach one thing
in their speaking and another in their outward
bearing. Let them hear, therefore, what is
written, If any man speak let him speak as the
oracles of God (i Pet. iv. n). If then the
words they utter are not of the tilings that are
their own, why are they puffed up on account
of them as though they were their own ? Let
them hear what is written, As of God, in the
sight of God, speak we in Christ ' (2 Cor. ii. 17).
For he speaks of God in the sight of God,
who both understands that he has received
the word of preaching from God, and also
seeks through it to please God, not men. Let
them hear what is written, Every one that is
proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord
(Prov. xvi. 5). For, surely, when in the Word

of God he seeks his own glory, he invade?
the right of the giver ; and he fears not at all
to postpone to his own praise Him from whom
he has received the very thing that is praised
Let them hear what is said to the preacher
through Solomon, Drink water out of thine
oiun cistern, and running waters of thine orou
well. Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad,
and divide thy waters in the streets. Have
them to thyself alone, and let not strangers be
partakers with thee (Prov. v. 15—17). For
indeed the preacher drinks out of his own
cistern, when, returning to his own heart, he
first listens himself to what he has to say.
He drinks the running waters of his own well,
if he is watered by his own word. And in the
same place it is well added. Let thy fountains
be dispersed abroad, and divide thy waters in
the streets. For indeed it is right that he
should himself drink first, and then flow upon
others in preaching. For to disperse fountains
abroad is to pour outwardly on others the
power of preaching. Moreover, to divide
waters in the stre ts is to dispense divine
utterances among a great multitude of hearers
according to the quality of each. And, be-
cause for the most part the desire of vain
glory creeps in when the Word of God has free
course unto the knowledge of many, after it
has been said. Divide thy waters in the streets,
it is rightly added. Have them to thyself alone,
and let not strangers be partakers with thee.
He here calls malignant spirits strangers, con-
cerning whom it is said through the prophet
in the words of one that is tempted. Strangers
are risen up against me, and strong ones have
sought after my soul (Ps. liii. 5'). He says
therefore, Both divide thy waters in the streets,
and yet have them to thyself alone ; as if he
had said more plainly, It is necessary for thee
so to serve outwardly in preaching as not to
join thyself through elation to unclean spirits,
lest in the ministry of the divine word thou
admit thine enemies to be partakers with thee.
Thus we divide our waters in the streets, and
yet alone possess them, when we both pour
out preaching outwardly far and wide, and
yet in no wise court human praises through
it.

■

CHAPTER XXV.

How those are to be admonished who decline the
office of preaching out of too great humility,
and those who seize on it with precipitate
haste.

{Admonition 26.) Differently to be ad-
monished are those who, though able to

• In English Bible, liv. 3.

CHAPTER XXV.

preach worthily, are afraid by reason of ex-
cessive humility, and those whom imperfection
or age forbids to preach, and yet precipitancy
impells. For those who, though able to
preach with profit, still shrink back through
lexcessive humility are to be admonished to
gather from consideration of a lesser matter
how faulty they are in a greater one. For, if
they were to hide from their indigent neigh-
bours money which they possessed themselves,
they would undoubtedly shew themselves to
be promoters of their calamity. Let them
perceive, then, in what guilt those are impli-
cated who, in with-holding the word of
[preaching from their sinning brethren, hide
away the remedies of life from dying souls.
Whence also a certain wise man says well,
• Wisdom that is hid, and treasure that is
■unseen, what profit is in them both (Ecclus.
xx. 32)? Were a famine wasting the people,
and they themselves kept hidden corn, un-
i doubtedly they would be the authors of death.
'Let them consider therefore with what punish-
jment they must be visited who, when souls
are perishing from famine of the word, supply
I not the bread of grace which they have
themselves received. Whence also it is well
said through Solomon, He that hideth corn
shall be cursed among the people (Prov. xi. 26).
For to hide corn is to retain with one's self
the words of sacred preaching. And every
one that does so is cursed among the people,
because through his fault of silence only he is
condemned in the punishment of the many
whom he might have corrected. If persons
by no means ignorant of the medicinal art
were to see a sore that required lancing,
and yet refused to lance it, certainly by their
mere inactivity they would be guilty of
, a brother's death. Let them see, then, in
j how great guilt they are involved who, knowing
1 the sores of souls, neglect to cure them by the
i lancing of words. Whence also it is well
! said through the prophet, Cursed is he who
! keepeth back his sword from blood (Jer. xlviii.
10). For to keep back the sword from blood
is to hold back the word of preaching from the
slaying of the carnal life. Of which sword
I it is said again, And mv sword shall devour
\ flesh (Deut. xxxii. 42).

Let these, therefore, when they keep to

. themselves the word of preaching, hear with

■ terror the divine sentences against them, to

the end that fear may expel fear from their

i hearts. Let them hear how he that would not

; lay out his talent lost it, with a sentence of

condemnation added (Matth. xxv. 24, &c).

Let them hear how Paul believed himself to

I be pure from the blood of his neighbours in

this, that he spared not their vices which

required to be smitten, saying, / take you to
record this day, that I am pure from the blood
of all men : for I have not shunned to declare
unto you all the counsel of God (Acts xx. 26,
27). Let them hear how John is admonished
by the angelic voice, when it is said, Let him
that heareth say, Come (Rev. xxii. 17); in
order doubtless that he into whose heart
the internal voice has found its way may by
crying aloud draw others whither he himself is
carried ; lest, even though called, he should
find the doors shut, if he approaches Him
that calls him empty. Let them hear how
Esaias, because he had held his peace in the
ministry of the word when illuminated by
supernal light, blamed himself with a loud cry
of penitence, saying Woe unto me that I have
held my peace (Isai. vi. 5). Let them hear how
through Solomon the knowledge of preaching
is promised to be multiplied to him who is not
held back by the vice of torpor in that where-
to he has already attained. For he says, The
soul which blesseth shall be made fat ; and he
that inebriates shall be inebriated also himself
(Prov. xi. 25). For he that blesses outwardly
by preaching receives the fatness of inward
enlargement ; and, while he ceases not to
inebriate the minds of his hearers with the
wine of eloquence, he becomes increasingly
inebriated with the draught of a multiplied
gift. Let them hear how David offered this
in the way of gift to God, that he did not hide
the grace of preaching which he had received,
saying, Lo I will not refrain my lips, O Lord,
thou knowest : I have not hid thy righteousness
within my heart : L have declared thy truth and
thy salvation (Ps. xxxix. 10, n2). Let them
hear what is said by the bridegroom in his
colloquy with the bride ; Thou that dwellest
in the gardens, thy friends hearken: make me to
hear thy voice (Cant. viii. 13). For the
Church dwelleth in the gardens, in that she
keeps in a state of inward greenness the
cultivated nurseries of virtues. And that her
friends hearken to her voice is, that all the
elect desire the word of her preaching ; which
voice also the bridegroom desires to hear,
because he pants for her preaching through
the souls of his elect. Let them hear how
Moses, when he saw that God was angry with
His people, and commanded swords to be
taken for executing vengeance, declared those
to be on God's side who should smite the
crimes of the offenders without delay, saying,
Lf any man is the Lord's, let him join himself to
me : put every man his sword upon his thigh ;
go in and out from gate to gate through the
midst of the camp, and slay every man his

In E?iglish Bible Ps. xl.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULH

brother and friend and neighbour (Exod. xxxii.
27). For to put sword upon thigh is to set ear-
nestness in preaching before the pleasures of
the flesh ; so that, when any one is earnest to
speak holy words, he must needs have a care
to subdue illicit suggestions. But to go from
gate to gate is to run to and fro with rebuke
from vice to vice, even to every one by which
death enters in unto the soul. And to pass
through the midst of the camp is to live with
such impartiality within the Church that one
who reproves the sins of offenders turns aside
to shew favour to none. Whence also it is
rightly added, slay every man his brother and
friend and neighbour. He in truth slays brother
and friend and neighbour who, when he finds
what is worthy of punishment, spares not even
those whom he loves on the score of relation-
ship from the sword of his rebuke. If, then,
he is said to be God's who is stirred up by
the zeal of divine love to smite vices, he
surely denies himself to be God's who refuses
to rebuke the life of the carnal to the utmost
of his power.

But, on the other hand, those whom imper-
fection or age debars from the office of
preaching, and yet precipitancy impells to it,
are to be admonished lest, while rashly arro-

gating

to themselves the burden of so great

an office, they cut off from themselves the
way of subsequent improvement; and, while
seizing out of season what they are not equal
to, they lose even what they might at some
time in due season have fulfilled; and be
shewn to have justly forfeited their knowl<
because of their attempt to display it im-
properly. They are to be admonished to
consider that young birds, if they try to fly
before their wings are fully formed, are-
plunged low down from the place whence
they lain would have risen on high. They
are to be admonished to consider that, if on
new buildings not yet compacted a weight of
timbers be laid, there is built not a habitation,
but a ruin. They are to be admonished to
consider that, if women bring forth their
conceived oilspring before it is fully formed,
they by no means fill houses, but tombs.
For hence it is that the Truth Himself, \\ h<>
could all at once have strengthed whom He
would, in order to give an example to His
followers that they should not presume to
preach while imperfect, after He had fully-
instructed His disciples concerning the power
of preaching, forthwith added, But tarry ye
in the dty until ye be endued -with p07ver from on
high (Luke xxiv. 49). For indeed we tarry
together in the city, if we restrain ourselves
within the enclosures of our

we are perfectly endued with divine power, we
may then go out as it were from ourselves
abroad, instructing others also. Hence through
a certain wise man it is said, Young man, speak
scarcely in thy cause; and if thou hast been
twice ashed, let thy answer have a beginning
(Ecclus. xxxii. 10). Hence it is that the same
our Redeemer, though in heaven the Creator,
and even a teacher of angels in the manifesta-
tion of His power, would not become a master
of men upon earth before His thirtieth year,
in order, to wit, that He might infuse into the
precipitate the force of a most wholesome fear,
in that even He Himself, Who could not slip,
di 1 not preach the grace of a perfect life until
He was of perfect age. For it is written,
When he was t7celve years old, the child Jesus
tarried behind in Jerusalem (Luke ii. 42, 43).
And a little afterwards it is further said of
Him, when He was sought by His parents,
They found him in the temple, sitting in the
midst of the doctors, hearing them, and asking
them questions (Ibid. v. 46). It is therefore to be
weighed with vigilant consideration that, when
fesus at twelve years of age is spoken of as
sitting in the midst of the doctors, He is found,
not teaching, but asking questions. By which
example it is plainly shewn that none who is
weak should venture to teach, if that child
w.i. willing to be taught by asking questions,
who by the power of His divinity supplied
the word of knowledge to His tea. hers
themselves. But, when it is said by Paul
to his disciple, These things command and
teach: let no man despise thy adolescence (1 Tim.
iv. 1 r, 12), we must understand that in the
language of Holy Writ youth is sometimes
< ailed adolescence3. Which thing is the sooner
evident, if we adduce the words of Solomon,
who says, Rejoice O young man in thy ado-
lescence (Eccles. xi. 9). For unless he meant
the same by both words, he would not call
him a young man whom he was admonishing
in his adolescence.

CHAPTER XXVI.

How those are to be admonished with whom
everything succeeds according to their wish,
and those with 7vhom nothing does.

(Admonition 27.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who prosper in what they
desire in temporal matters, and those who
covet indeed the things that are of this world,

3 The word adolescentia, used in the Vulgate, implies properly

. the age of immaturity, while growth is still going on. " Adoles-

II Ourselves I CESTIA) prima hominis aetas post pueritiam, et ante juventutem.'

SOUls from I Facciolati. St. Gregory's intention is to preclude the idea of

Timothy having been called to •'command and teach" at so

immature an age as the word might seem to imply.

wandering abroad in speech; so that, when i Timotby having been ca"ed -°

CHAPTER XXVI.

ut yet are wearied with the labour of ad ver-
ity. For those who prosper in what they
esire in temporal matters are to be ad-
loni'shed, when all things answer to their
'ishes, lest, through fixing their heart on
>hat is given, they neglect to seek the giver ;
3St they love their pilgrimage instead of their
tauntry; lest they turn the supplies for their
purney into hindrances to their arrival at its
nd ; lest, delighted with the light of the
loon by night, they shrink from beholding
ie clearness of the sun. They are, therefore,
p be admonished to regard whatever things
hey attain in this world as consolations in
alamity, but not as the rewards of retribu-
j.on ; but, on the other hand, to lift their
nind against the favours of the world, lest
iiey succumb in the midst of them with entire
elight of the heart. For whosoever in the
judgment of his heart keeps not down the
hrosperity he enjoys by love of a better life,
urns the favours of this transitory life into
n occasion of everlasting death. For hence
]: is that under the figure of the Idumreans,
/ho allowed themselves to be vanquished by
heir own prosperity, those who rejoice in the
uccesses of this world are rebuked, when it
5 said, They have given my land to themselves
hr an inheritance with joy, and with their
\vhole heart and mind (Ezek. xxxvi. 5). In
/hich words it is to be observed, that they
„re smitten with severe rebuke, not merely
necause they rejoice, but because they rejoice
/ith their whole heart and mind. Hence
iiolomon says, The turning aivay of the simple
hall slay them, and the prosperity 0/ fools shall
lestroy them (Prov. i. 32). Hence Paul ad-
monishes, saying, They that buy, as though they
assessed not ; and they that use this world, as
hough they used it not (1 Cor. vii. 30). So
lay the tilings that are supplied to us be of
eryice to us outwardly to such extent only as
jot to turn our minds away from desire of
upernal delight ; and thus the things that
fiord us succour in our state of exile may not
bate the mourning of our soul's pilgrimage ;
nd we, who see ourselves to be wretched in
ur severance from the things that are eternal,
lay not rejuice as though we were happy
i the things that are transitory. For hence
: is that the Church says by the voice of the
lect, His left hand is under my head, and his
ight hand shall embrace me (Cant. ii. 6). The
.-ft hand of God, to wit prosperity in the
resent life, she has put under her head, in
iiat she presses it down in the intentness of
er highest love. But the right hand of God
unbraces her, because in her entire devotion
lie is encompassed with His eternal blessed-
Uss. Hence again, it is said through Solomon,

Length of days is in her right hand, but in h?r
left hand riches and glory (Prov. iii. 16). In
speaking, then, of riches and glory being
placed in her left hand, he shewed after what
manner they are to be esteemed. Hence the
Psalmist says, Save me with thy right hand
(Ps. cvii. 7 4). For he says not, with thy
hand, but with thy right handf in orJer,
that is, to indicate, in saying right hand,
that it was eternal salvation that he sought.
Hence again it is written, Thy right hand,
O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the enemies
(Exod. xv. 6). For the enemies of God,
though they prosper in His left hand, are
dashed to pieces with His right; since for
the most part the present life elevates the
bad, but the coming of eternal blessedness
condemns them.

Those who prosper in this world are to be
admonished to consider wisely how that pros-
perity in the present life is sometimes given
to provoke people to a better life, but some-
times to condemn them more iully for ever.
For hence it is that to the people of Israel the
land of Canaan is promised, that they may be
provoked at some time or other to hope for
eternal things. For that rude nation would
not have believed the promises of God afar off,
had they not received also something nigh at
hand from Him that promised. In order,
therefore, that they may be the more surely
strengthened unto faith in eternal things, they
are drawn on, not only by hope to realities,
but also by realities to hope. Which thing
the Psalmist clearly testifies, saving, He gave
them the lands of the heathen, and they took the
labours of the peoples in possession, that they
might keep his statutes and seek after his law
(Ps. civ. 445). But, when the human mind
follows not God in His bountiful gifts with
an answer of good deeds, it is the more justly
condemned from being accounttd to have
been kindly nurtured. For hence it is said
again by the Psalmist, Thou casledst them dozvn
when they were lifted up (Ps. Ixxii. 18 6). For
in truth when the reprobate render not right-
eous deeds in return for divine gifts, when
they here abandon themselves entirely and
sink themselves in their abundant prosperity,
then in that whereby they profit outwardly
they fall from what is inmost. Hence it is
that to the rich man tormented in hell it
is said, Thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good
things (Luke xvi. 25). For on this account,
though an evil man, he here received good
things, that there he might receive evil things

4 In English Bible, cviii. 6.

6 Ibid, lxxiii. 18.

5 Ibid. cv. 44.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

more fully, because here even by good things
he had not been converted.

But. on the other hand, those who covet
indeed the things that are of the world, but
yet are wearied by the labour of adversity, are
to be admonished to consider anxiously with
how great favour the Creator and Disposer
of all things watches over those whom He
gives not up to their own desires. For a sick
man whom the physician despairs of he allows
to take whatever he longs for : but one of
whom it is thought that he can be cured is
prohibited from many things that he desires ;
and we withdraw money from boys, for whom
at the same time, as our heirs, we reserve our
whole patrimony. Let, then, those whom
temporal adversity humiliates take joy from
hope of an eternal inheritance, since Divine
Providence would not curb them in order to
educate them under the rule of discipline,
unless it designed them to be saved for ever.
Those, therefore, who in respect of the tem-
poral things which they covet, are wearied
with the labour of adversity are to be ad-
monished to consider carefully how for the
most part even the righteous, when temporal
power exalts them, are caught by sin as in
a snare. For, as in the former part of this
volume we have ahead)- said, David, beloved
of God, was more upright when in servitude
than when he came to the kingdom (i Si m.
xxiv. 18). For, when he was a servant, in his
love of righteousness he feared to smite his
adversary when taken ; but, when he was
a king, through the persuasion of lascivious-
ness, he put to death by a deceitful plan even
a devoted soldier (2 Sam. xi. 17). Who then
can without harm seek wealth, or power, or
glory, if they proved harmful even to him
who had them unsought? Who in the midst
of these things shall be saved without the
labour of a great contest, if he who had been
prepared for them by the choice of God was
disturbed among them by the intervention of
sin ? They are to be admonished to consider
that Solomon, who a ter so great wisdom is
described as having fallen even into idolatry,
is not said to have had any adversity in this
world before his fall ; but the wisdom that
had been granted him entirely left his heart,
because not even the least discipline of tribu-
lation had guarded it

CHAPTER XXVII.

How the married and the single are to be
admonished.

(Admonition 28.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who are bound in wedlock
and those who are free from the ties of wed-

lock. For those who are bound in wedlock j
are to be admonished that, while they take
thought for each other's good, they study,. 1
both of them, so to please their consorts as I
not to displease their Maker ; that they so
conduct the things that are of this world asj
still not to omit desiring the things that are
of God ; that they so rejoice in present good
as still, with earnest solicitude, to iear eternal
evil ; that they so sorrow for temporal evils
as still to fix their hope with entire comfort
on everlasting good ; to the end that, while
they know what they are engaged in to be|
transitory, but what they desire to be per- 1
manent, neither the evils of the world may
break their heart while it is strengthened by;
the hope of heavenly good, nor the goocb
things of the present life deceive them, while
they are saddened by the apprehended evils ,
of the judgment to come. Wheref re the
mind of married Christians is both weak and
stedfast, in that it cannot fully despise all
temporal things, and jet can join itself in I
desire to eternal things. Although it lies low
meanwhile in the delights of the flesh, let it
grow strong in the refreshment of supernal
hope: and, if it has the things that are of
the world for the sen ice of its journey, let
11 hope t"i' the thn gs that are of God for the
fruit ot its journe) s end: nor let it devote j
itself entirely to what it is engaged in now,]
lest it fall utterly from what it ought stedfastly
to hope for. \\ hich thing Paul vsell exj resses .
briefly, saving, 1'hey that have wives as though
ihey had none, and they that weep as though
they wept not, and they that rejoice as though
they rejoiced not (1 Cor. vii. 29, 30). For he
has a wife as though he had none who so
enjovs carnal consolation through her as
still never to be turned by love of her to evil
deeds from the rectitude of a better aim. He
has a wife as though he had none who, seeing
all things to be transitory, endures of necessity
the care of the flesh, but looks forward with
longing to the eternal joys of the spirit.
Moreover, to weep as though we wept not
is so to lament outward adversities as still to
know how to rejoice in the consolation of
eternal hope. And again, to rejoice as though
we rejoiced not is so to take heart from things
below as still never to cease from fear con-
cerning the things above. In the same place
also a little afterwaids he aptly adds, For the
fas! 1 ion of this worid passeth away (v. 31);
as if he had said plainly, Love not the world
abidingly, since the world which ye love ca>
not itself abide. In vain ye fix your affections
on it as though it were continuing, while that
which ye love itself is fleeting. Husbands
and wives are to be admonished, that those

CHAPTER XXVII.

things wherein they sometimes displease one
another they bear with mutual patience, and
by mutual exhortations remedy. For it is
written, Bear ye one another's burdens, and so
ye shall fid fil the law of Christ (Galat. vi. 2).
For the law of Christ is Charity ; since it has
from Him bountifully bestowed on us its good
things, and has patiently borne our evil things.
We, therefore, then fulfil by imitation the law
of Christ, when we both kindly bestow our
good things, and piously endure the evil
things of our friends. They are also to be
admonished to give heed, each of them, not
so much to what they have to bear from the
other as to what the other -has to bear from
them. For, if one considers what is borne
from one's self, one bears more lightly what
one endures from another.

Husbands and wives are to be admonished
to remember that they are joined together for
the sake of producing offspring ; and, when,
giving themselves to immoderate intercourse,
they transfer the occasion of procreation to the
service of pleasure, to consider that, though
they go not outside wedlock yet in wedlock
itself they exceed the just dues of wedlock.
Whence it is needful that by frequent supplica-
tions they do away their having fouled with the
admixture of pleasure the fair form of conjugal
union. For hence it is that the Apostle, skilled
in heavenly medicine, did not so much lay
down a course of life for the whole as point
out remedies to the weak when he said, // is
good for a man not to touch a woman: but on
account of fornication let every man have his
own wife, and let every woman have her own
husband (1 Cor. vii. 1, 2). For in that he
premised the fear of fornication, he surely did
not give a precept to such as were standing,
but pointed out the bed to such as were
falling, lest haply they should tumble to the
ground. Whence to such as were still weak
he added, Let the husband render unto the wife
her due ; and likezvise also the wife unto the
husband (v. 3). And, while in the most
honourable estate of matrimony allowing to
them something of pleasure, he added, But
this I say by way of indulgence, not by way
of command (v. 6). Now where indulgence is
spoken of, a fault is implied ; but one that is
the more readily remitted in that it consists,
not in doing what is unlawful, but in not
keeping what is lawful under control. Which
thing Lot expresses well in his own person,
when he flies from burning Sodom, and yet,
finding Zoar, does not still ascend the moun
tain heights. For to fly from burning Sodom
is to avoid the unlawful fires of the flesh. But
the height of the mountains is the purity of
the continent. Or, at any rate, they are as it

were upon the mountain, who, though cleaving
to carnal intercourse, still, beyond the due
association for the production of offspring, are
not loosely lost in pleasure of the flesh. For
to stand on the mountain is to seek nothing in
the flesh except the fruit of procreation. To
stand on the mountain is not to cleave to the
flesh in a fleshly way. But, since there are
many who relinquish indeed the sins of the
flesh, and yet, when placed in the state of
wedlock, do not observe solely the claims of
due intercourse, Lot went indeed out of Sodom,
but yet did not at once reach the mountain
heights ; because a damnable life is already
relinquished, but still the loftiness of conjugal
continence is not thoroughly attained. But
there is midway the city of Zoar, to save the
weak fugitive ; because, to wit, when the
married have intercourse with each other even
incontinently, they still avoid lapse into sin,
and are still saved through mercy. For they
find as it were a little city, wherein to be pro-
tected from the fire ; since this married life is
not indeed marvellous for virtue, but yet is
secure from punishment. Whence the same
Lot says to the angel, This city is near to flee
unto, and it is small, and I shall be saved
therein. Is it not a little one, and my soul
shall live in it (Gen. xix. 20)? So then it
is said to be near, and yet is spoken of as
a refuge of safety, since married life is neither
far separated from the world, nor yet alien
from the joy of safety. But the manied, in
this course of coi duct, then preserve their
lives as it were in a small city, when they
intercede for each other by continual supplica-
tions. Whence it is also rightly said by the
Angel to the same Lot, See 1 have accepted thy
prayers concerning this thing also, that I will
not overthrow the city for the which thou hast
spoken (v. 21). For in truth, when supplica-
tion is poured out to God, such married life is,
by no means condemned. Concerning which,
supplication Paul also admonishes, saying,.
Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with
consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves ta>
prayer (1 Cor. vii. 5).

But, on the other hand, those who are not
bound by wedlock are to be admonished that
they observe heavenly precepts all the more
closely in that no yoke of carnal union bows
them down to worldly cares ; that, as they are
free from the lawful burden of wedlock, the
unlawful weight of earthly anxiety by no
means press them down ; that the last day
find them all the more prepared, as it finds
them less encumbered ; lest from being free
and able, and yet neglecting, to do better
things, they therefore be found deserving of
worse punishment. Let them hear how the

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

Apostle, when he would train certain persons
for the grace of celibacy, did not contemn
wedlock, but guarded against the worldly cares
that are born of wedlock, saying, This I say
for your profit, not that I may cast a snare
upon you, but for that which is comely, and that
ye max attend upon the Lord without hindrance
(i Cor. vii. 3, 5). For from wedlock proceed
earthly anxieties ; and therefore the teacher of
the Gentiles persuaded his hearers to better
things, lest they should be bound by earthly
anxiety. The man, then, whom, being single,
the hindrance of secular cares impedes, though
he has not subjected himself to wedlock, has
still not escaped the burdens of wedlock.
The single are to be admonished not to think
that they can have intercourse with disengaged
women without incurring the judgment of con-
demnation. For, when Paul inserted the vice
of fornication among so many execrable crimes,
he indicated the guilt of it, saying, Neither
fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with man-
kind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards,
nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall possess the
kingdom of God (1 Cor. vi. 9, to). And again,
But fornicators and adulterers God will judge
(Heb. xiii. 4). They are therefore t 1 be ad
monished that, if they suffer from the storms
of temptation with risk to their safety, they
should seek the port of wedlock. For it is
written, 7/ is better to marry than to burn
(1 Cor. vii. 9). They come, in fact, to
marriage without blame, if only they have not
vowed better things. For whosoever has pro-
posed to himself the attainment of a greatergood
has made unlawful the less good which before
was lawful. For it is written. No man, having
put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is
fit for the kingdom of God (Luke ix. 62). He
therefore who has been intent on a more
resolute purpose is convicted of looking back,
if, leaving the larger good, he reverts to the
least.

CHAPTER XXVIII.

How those are to be admonished who have had
experience of the sins of the flesh, and those
who have not.

{Admonition 29.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who are conscious of sins of
the flesh, and those who know them not. For
those who have had experience of the sins of
the flesh are to be admonished that, at any
rate after shipwreck, they should fear the sea,
and feel horror at their risk of perdition at
least when it has become known to them ;
lest, having been mercifully preserved after
evil deeds committed, by wickedly repeating

the same they die. Whence to the soul that
sins and never ceases from sin it is said, There is
come unto thee a whore's forehead ; thou refuseth
to be ashamed (Jer. iii. 3). They are therefore
to be admonished to take heed, to the end
that, if they have refused to keep whole the
good things of nature which they have re-
ceived, they at least mend them after they
have been rent asunder. And they are surely
bound to consider, how many in so great a
number of the faithful both keep themselves
undefiled and also convert others from the
error of their way. What, then, will they be
able to say, if, while others are standing in
integrity, they themselves, even after loss,
come not to a better mind? What will they
be able to say, if, when many bring others also
with themselves to the kingdom, they bring
not back even themselves to the Lord who is
waiting for them? They are to be admon-
ished to consider past transgressions, and to
shun such as are impending. Whence, under
the figure of Judaea, the Lord through the
diet recalls past sins to the memory of
souls corrupted in this world, to the end that
they may be ashamed to be polluted in sins to
come, saying, They committed whoredoms in
Egypt ; they committed whoredoms in their
youth: then were their breasts pressed, and the
teats of their virginity were bruised (Ezek.
xxiii. 3). For indeed breasts are pressed in
Egypt, when the will of the human soul is
prostituted to the base desire of this world.
Feats of virginity are bruised in Egypt, when
the natural senses, still whole in themselves,
are vitiated by the corruption of assailing
concupi-

Those who have had experience of the sins
of the flesh are to be admonished to observe
vigilantly with how great benevolence God
opens the bosom of His pity to us, if after
transgressions we return to Him, when He
says through the prophet, If a man put away
his wife, and she go from him and become
another man's, shall he return to her again I
Shall not that woman be polluted and con- ■
taminated ? But thou hast played the harlot
with many lovers ; yet return again to me, saith
the Lord (Jer. iii. 1). So, concerning the wife
wdio has played the harlot and is deserted,
the argument of justice is put forward: and
yet to us returning after fall not justice, but
pity is displayed. Whence we are surely
meant to gather how great is our wickedness,
if we return not, even after transgression,
seeing that, when transgressing, we are spared
with so great pity : or what pardon for the
wicked there will be from Him who, after our
sin, ceases not to call us. And indeed this
mercifulness, in calling after transgression, is

CHAPTER XXVIII.

well expressed through the Prophet, when to
man turned away from God it is said, Thine
eyes shall see thy teacher, and thine ears shall
hear the 7cwd of one behind thy back admon-
ishing thee (Isai. xxx. 20, 21). For indeed the
Lord admonished the human race to their
face, when to man, created in Paradise, and
standing in free will, He declared what He
ought to do or not to do. But man turned
his back on the face of God, when in his
pride he despised His commands. Yet still
God deserted him not in his pride, in that He
gave the Law for the purpose of recalling man,
and sent exhorting angels, and Himself ap-
peared in the flesh of our mortality. There-
fore, standing behind our back, He admonished
us, in that, even though despised, He called us
to the recovery of grace. What, therefore,
could be said generally of all alike must needs
be felt specially with regard to each. For
every man hears the words of God's admoni-
tion set as it were before him, when, before
he commits sin, he knows the precepts of His
will. For still to stand before His face is not
yet to despise Him by sinning. But, when a
man forsakes the good of innocence, and of
choice desires iniquity, he then turns his back
on the face of God. But lo, even behind his
back God follows and admonishes him, in
that even after sin He persuades him to return
to Himself. He recalls him that is turned
away, He regards not past transgressions, He
opens the bosom of pity to the returning one.
We hearken, then, to the voice of one behind
our back admonishing us, if at least after sins
we return to the Lord inviting us. We ought
I therefore to feel ashamed for the pity of Him
j Who calls us, if we will not fear His justice :
j since there is the more grievous wickedness in
! despising Him in that, though despised, He
\ disdains not to call us still.

But, on the other hand, those that are un-
i acquainted with the sins of the flesh are to be
' admonished to fear headlong ruin the more
! anxiously, as they stand upon a higher
eminence. They are to be admonished to
be aware that the more prominent be the
place they stand on, so much the more
[ frequent are the arrows of the lier-in-wait by
which they are assailed. For he is wont to
I rouse himself the more ardently, the more
; stoutly he sees himself to be vanquished : and
; so much the more he scorns and feels it in-
tolerable to be vanquished, as he perceives
the unbroken camp of weak flesh to be set
in array against him. They are to be ad-
monished to look up incessantly to the
rewards, and then undoubtedly they will
gladly tread under foot the labours of temp-
tation which they endure. For, if attention

be fixed on the attained felicity apart from the
passage to it, the toil of the passage becomes
light. Let them hear what is said through
the Prophet ; Thus saith the Lord unto the
eunuchs, Whoso shall have kept my sabbaths,
and chosen the things that I would, and kept my
covenant, I will give unto them in mine house a?id
within my walls a place and a name belter than
of sons and of daughters (Isai. lvi. 4, 5). For
they indeed are eunuchs, who, suppressing the
motions of the flesh, cut oft; within themselves
affection for wrong-doing. Moreover, in what
place they are held with the Father is shewn,
forasmuch as in the Father's house, that is
in His eternal mansion, they are preferred
even before sons. Let them hear what is said
through John ; These are they which have not
been defiled with zvomen ; for they are virgins,
and follow the Lamb whithersoever He $oeth(Rev.
xiv. 4) ; and how they sing a song which
no one can utter but those hundred and forty
four thousand. For indeed to sing a song to
the Lamb singularly is to rejoice with Him
for ever beyond all the faithful, even for in-
corruption of the flesh. Yet the rest of the
elect can hear this song, although they cannot
utter it, because, through charity, they are
joyful in the exaltation of those others, though
they rise not to their rewards. Let those who
are unacquainted with the sins of the flesh
hear what the Truth in person says concerning
this purity ; Not all receive this word (Matth.
xix. n). Which thing He denoted as the
highest, in that He spoke of it as not belong-
ing to all : and, in foretelling that it would be
difficult to receive it, He signifies to his hearers
with what caution it should be kept when re-
ceived.

Those who are unacquainted with the sins
of the flesh are therefore to be admonished
both to know that virginity surpasses wedlock,
and yet not to exalt themselves above the
wedded : to the end that, while they put
virginity first, and themselves last, they may
both keep to that which they esteem as best,
and also keep guard over themselves in not
vainly exalting themselves.

They are to be admonished to consider that
commonly the life of the continent is put to
shame by the action of secular persons, when
the latter take on themselves works beyond
their condition, and the former do not stir up
their hearts to the mark of their own order.
Whence it is well said through the Prophet,
Be thou ashamed, O Sidon, saith the sea (Isai.
xxiii. 4). For Sidon is as it were brought to
shame by the voice of the sea, when the life
of him who is fortified, and as it were stedfast,
is reproved by comparison with the life of
those who are secular and fluctuating in this

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

world. For often there are some who, return-
ing to the Lord after sins of the flesh, shew
themselves the more ardent in pood works as
they see themselves the more liable to con-
demnation for bad ones : and often certain
of those who persevere in purity of the flesh,
seeing that they have less in the past to de-
plore, think that the innocency of their life is
fully sufficient for them, and inflame them-
selves with no incitements of ardour to fervour
of spirit. And for .the most part a life burning
with love after sin becomes more pleasing to
God than innocence growing torpid in security.
Whence also it is said by the voice of the
Judge, Her sins which are many are for-
given, for she loved much (Luke vii. 47) ;
a.x\<\, Joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that
repenteth more than over ninety and nine just
persons which need no repentance (xv. 7). Which
thing we the sooner ga'her from experience
itself, if we weigh the judgments of our own
mind. For we love the land which produces
abundant fruit after thorns have been ploughed
out of it more than that which has had no
thorns, but which, when cultivated, yields
a barren harvest. Those who know not the
sins of the flesh are to be admonished not to
prefer themselves to others for the loftii
of their superior order, while they know not
how great things are done by their infei
better than by themselves. For in the in-
quisition of the righteous judge the quality of
actions changes the merits of orders. For
who, considering the very outward appearance
of things, can be ignorant that in the nature
of gems the carbuncle is prut' rred to the
jacinth? But still a jacinth of cerulean colour
is preferred to a pale carbuncle ; because to
the former its show of beauty supplies what
the order of nature denied it, and the latter,
which natural order had preferred, is deba
by the quality of its colour. Thus, then, in
the human race both some in the better order
are the worse, and some in the worse order
are the better; since these by good living
transcend the lot ot their lower state, and
those lessen the merit of their higher place by
not coming up to it in their behaviour.

CHAPTER XXIX.

How they are to be admonished who lament sins
of deed, and those who lament only sins of
thought.

(Admonition 30.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who deplore sins of deed, and
those who deplore sins of thought. For those
who deplore sins of deed are to be ad-
monished that perfected lamentations should
wash out consummated evils, lest they be

bound by a greater debt of perpetrated deed
than they pay in tears of satisfaction for it
For it is written, He hath given us drink in tears
by measure (Ps. lxxix. 6) : which means that
each person's soul should in its penitence
drink the tears of compunction to such extent
as it remembers itself to have been dried up
from God through sins. They are to be
admonished to bring back their past offences
incessantly before their eyes, and so to live
that these may not have to be viewed by the
strict judge.

Hence David, when he prayed, saying, Turn
away thine eyes from my sins (Ps. 1. 1 1 ?), had
said also a little before, My fault is ever before
me (v. 5) ; as -if to say, I beseech thee not to
regard my sin, since 1 myself cease not to
regard it. Whence also the Lord says through
the pwphet,And/wil/notbe mindful of thy sins,
but be thou mindful of than Lai. xliii. 25, 26).
I hey are to be admonished to consider singly
all their past offences, and, in bewailing the
defilements of their former wandering one by
one, to cleanse at the same time even their
whole selves with tears. Whence it is well
said through Jeremiah, when the several trans-
gressions of Judaea were being considered,
Mine eve hath shed divisions of wafers Lam. iii.
4S). For indeed we shed divided waters from
our eyes, when to our several sins we give
separate tears. For the mind does not sorrow
at one and the same time alike for all things;
but, while it is more sharply touched by
memory now of this fault and now of that,
being moved concerning all in each, it is
purged at once from all.

They are to be admonished to build upon
the mercy which they crave, lest they perish
through the force of immoderate affliction.
For the Lord would not set sins to be deplored !
before the eyes of offenders, were it His will
to smite them with strict severity Himself.
For it is evident that it has been His will to
hide from His own judgment those whom in
anticipation He has made judges of them- J
selves. For hence it is written, Let us come
beforehand before the face of the Lord in confession
(Ps. xciv. 28). Hence through Paul it is said,
Lf we would fudge ourselves, we should not be
judged (1 Cor. xi. 31). And again, they are
to be admonished so to be confident in hope
as not to grow torpid in careless security.
For commonly the crafty foe, when he
sees the soul which he trips up by sin to
be afflicted for its fall, seduces it by the
blandishments of baneful secuiity. Which
thing is figuratively expressed in the history
of Dinah. For it is written, Dinah went

1 In English Bible, li. 3.

8 Ibid. xcv. a.

CHAPTER XXX.

out to see the zvomen of that land ; and when
Sichem, the son of Hemor the Hivite. prince of the
country, saw her, he loved her, and seized her, and
lay with her, and defiled her by force ; and his
soul clave unto her, and he soothed her zuiih kind
blandishments when she was sad (Gen. xxxiv.
1-3). P'or indeed Dinah goes out to see the
women of a foreign land, when any soul,
neglecting its own concerns, and giving heed
to the actions of others, wanders forth out of
its own proper condition and order. And
Sichem, prince of the country, overpowers it ;
inasmuch as the devil corrupts it, when found
occupied in external cares. And his soul clave
unto her, because he regards it as united to
himself through iniquity. And because, when
the soul comes to a sense of its sin, it stands
condemned, and would fain deplore its trans-
gression, but the corrupter recalls before its
eyes empty hopes and grounds of security to
the end that he may withdraw from it the
benefit of sorrow, therefore it is rightly added
in the text, And soothed her with blandishments
when she was sad. For he tells now of the
heavier offences of others, now of what has
been perpetrated being nothing, now of God
being merciful ; or again he promises time
hereafter for repentance ; so that the soul,
seduced by these deceptions, may be sus-
pended from its purpose of penitence, to the
end that it may receive no good hereafter,
being saddened by no evil now, and that it
may then be more fully overwhelmed with
punishment, in that now it even rejoices in its

transgressions.

But, on the other hand, those who bewail
sins of thought are to be admonished to con-
sider anxiously within the recesses of their
soul whether they have sinned in delight only,
or also in consent. For commonly the heart
is tempted, and in the sinfulness of the flesh
experiences delight, and yet in its judgment
resists this same sinfulness ; so that in the
secrets of thought it is both saddened by what
pleases it and pleased by what saddens it.
But sometimes the soul is so whelmed in
a gulph of temptation as not to resist at all,
but follows of set purpose that whereby it is
assailed through delight ; and, if outward op-
portunity be at hand, it soon consummates in
effect its inward wishes. And certainly, if
this is regarded according to the just animad-
version of a strict judge, the sin is one, not
of thought, but of deed ; since, though the
tardiness of circumstances has deferred the
sin outwardly, the will has accomplished it
inwardly by the act of consent.

Moreover, we have learnt in the case of our
first parent that we perpetrate the iniquity
of every sin in three ways ; that is to say,

in suggestion, delight, and consent. Thus the
first is perpetrated through the enemy, the
second through the flesh, the third through
the spirit. For the lier-in-wait suggests wrong
things; the flesh submits itself to delight; and
at last the spirit, vanquished by delight, con-
sents. Whence also that serpent suggested
wrong things ; then Eve, as though she had
been the flesh, submitted herself to delight ;
but Adam, as the spirit, overcome by the
suggestion and the delight, assented. Thus
by suggestion we have knowledge of sin, by
delight we are vanquished, by consent we are
also bound. Those, therefore, who bewail ini-
quities of thought are to be admonished to
consider anxiously in what measure they have
fallen into sin, to the end that they may be
lifted up by a measure of lamentation corres-
ponding to the degree of the downfall of
which they are inwardly conscious ; lest, if
meditated evils torment them too little, they
lead them on even to the perpetration of
deeds. But in all this they should be alarmed
in such wise that they still be by no means
broken down. For often merciful God ab-
solves sins of the heart the more speedily in
that He allows them not to issue in deeds ;
and meditated iniquity is the more speedily
loosed from not being too tightly bound by
effected deed. Whence it is rightly said by
the Psalmist, I said I will declare against my-
self my iniquities to the Lord, and thou forgavest
the impiety of my heart (Ps. xxxi. 5). For in
that he added impiety of heart, he indicated
that it was iniquities of thought that he would
declare : and in saying, I said I will declare,
and straightway subjoining, And thou forgavest,
he shewed how easy in such a case pardon
was. For, while but promising that he would
ask, he obtained what he promised to ask for ;
so that, since his sin had not advanced to
deed, neither should his penitence go so far
as to be torment ; and that meditated afflic-
tion should cleanse the soul which in truth no
more than meditated iniquity had defiled.

CHAPTER XXX.

How those are to be admonislud who abstain
not from the sins which they bewail, and those
who, abstaining from them, bewail them not.

(Admonition 31.) Differently to be ad-
monished are those who lament their trans-
gressions, and yet torsake them not, and those
who forsake them, and yet lament them not.
For those who lament their transgressions and
yet forsake them not are to be admonished to
learn to consider anxiously that they cleanse
themselves in vain by their weeping, if they
wickedly defile themselves in their living.

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

seeing that the end for which they wash
themselves in tears is that, when clean, they
may return to filth. For hence it is written,
The dog is returned to his own vomit again, and
the sow that was washed to her wallowing in
the mire (2 Pet. ii. 22). For the dog, when
he vomits, certainly casts forth the food which
weighed upon his stomach ; but, when he
returns to his vomit, he is again loaded with
what he had been relieved from. And they
who mourn their transgressions certainly cast
forth by confession the wickedness with which
they have been evilly satiated, and which
oppressed the inmost parts of their soul ; and
yet, in recurring to it after confession, they
take it in again. But the sow, by wallowing
in the mire when washed, is made more filthy.
And one who mourns past transgressions, yet
forsakes them not, subjects himself to the
penalty of more grievous sin, since he both
despises the very pardon which he might have
won by his weeping, and as it were rolls him-
self in miry water ; because in withholding
purity of life from his weeping he makes ev< n
his very tears filthy before the eyes of God.
Hence again it is written, Repeat not a word
in thy prayer (Ecclus. vii. 14). For to repeat
a word in prayer is, after bewailing, to commit
what again requires bewailing. Hence it is
said through Isaiah, Wash you, be ye clean
(Isai. i. 16). For he neglects being clean after
washing, whosoever alter tears keeps not in-
nocency of life. And they therefore are
washed, but are in no wise clean, who cease
not to bewail the things they have committed,
but commit again things to be bewailed.
Hence through a certain wise man it is said.
He that is baptized J rom the touch oj a dead
body and toucheth it again, what availeth his
washing (Ecclus. xxxiv. 309)? for indeed he
is baptized from the touch of a dead bod\ who
is cleansed from sin by weeping : but he
touches a dead body after his baptism, who
after tears repeats his sin.

Those who bewail transgressions, yet for-
sake them not, are to be admonished to ac-
knowledge themselves to be before the eyes of
the strict judge like those who, when they
come before the face of certain men, fawn
upon them with great submission, but, when
they depart, atrociously bring upon them all
the enmity and hurt they can. For what is
weeping for sin but exhibiting the humility of
one's devotion to God ? And what is doing
wickedly after weeping but putting in practice
arrogant enmity against Him to whom en-
treaty has been made ? This James attests,
who says, Whosoever will be a friend of this

9 In Engl. Bib. xxxiv. 25.

world becomes the enemy of God (James iv. 4).
Those who lament their transgressions, yet
forsake them not, are to be admonished to
consider anxiously that, for the most part, bad
men are unprofitably drawn by compunction
to righteousness, even as, for the most part,
good men are without harm tempted to sin.
Here indeed is found a wonderful measure of
inward disposition in accordance with the
requirements of desert, in that the bad, while
doing something good, but still without per- 1
fecting it, are proudly confident in the midst
of the very evil which even to the full they
perpetrate ; while the good, when tempted of
evil to which they in no wise consent, plant
the steps of their heart towards righteousness !
through humility all the more surely from their
tottering through infirmity. Thus Balaam,
looking on the tents of the righteous, said,
May my soul die the death of the righteous, and
may my last end be like theirs (Num. xxiii. 10). -
But, when the time of compunction had
d, he gave counsel against the life of
those whom he had requested for himself to
be like even in dying: and, when he found an
on asion for the gratification of his avarice, he
straightway forgot all that he had wished for 1
himself of innocence. Hence it is that Paul, i
the teacher and preacher of the Gentiles, says, !
/ see a not tier law in my members, warring
against the law of my mind, and bringing me '
into captivity to the law oj sin, which is in my

menders Rom. vii. 23). He is of a truth
tempted for this very purpose, that he may be
the more stedfastly confirmed in good from
the knowledge of his own infirmity. Why is
it, then, that the one is touched w ith com-
punction, and yet draws not near unto right- i
eousness, while the other is tempted, and yet
sin defiles him not, but for this evident reason, 1
that neither do good things not perfected help
the bad, nor bad things not consummated
condemn the good ?

But, on the other hand, those who forsake
their transgressions, and yet mourn them not,
are to be admonished not to suppose the sins
to be already remitted which, though they
multiply them not by action, they still cleanse
away by no bewailings. For neither has a
writer, when he has ceased from writing, ob- i
literated what he had written by reason of his
having added no more: neither has one who
offers insults made satisfaction by merely
holding his peace, it being certainly necessary
for him to impugn his former words of pride
by words of subsequent humility : nor is a
debtor absolved by not increasing his debt,
unless he also pays what he has incurred.
Thus also, when we offend against God, we
by no means make satisfaction by ceasing

CHAPTER XXXI.

■'■:::

bhuk

from iniquity, unless we also follow up the
pleasures which we have loved by lamentations
set against them. For, if no sin of deed had
polluted us in this life, our very innocence
would by no means suffice for our security as
long as we live here, since many unlawful
things would still assail our heart. With what
conscience, then, can he feel safe, who, having
perpetrated iniquities, is himself witness to
himself that he is not innocent?

For it is not as if God were fed by our
torments : but He heals the diseases of our
transgressions by medicines opposed to them ;
that we, who have departed from Him de-
lighted by pleasures, may return to Him em-
bittered by tears ; and that, having fallen by
running loose in unlawful things, we may rise
by restraining ourselves even in lawful ones;
and that the heart which mad joy had flooded
may be burnt clean by wholesome sadness :
and that what the elation of pride had wounded
may be cured by the dejection of a humble
life. For hence it is written, I said unto the
wicked, Deal not wickedly ; and to the trans-
gressors, lift not up the horn (Ps. lxxiv. 5 J).
For transgressors lift up the horn, if they in
no wise humble themselves to penitence after
knowledge of their iniquity. Hence again it
is said, A bruised and humbled heart God doth
not despise (Ps. 1. 192). For whosoever mourns
his sins yet forsakes them not bruises indeed
his heart, but scorns to humble it. But he
who forsakes his sins yet mourns them not
does indeed already humble his heart, but
refuses to bruise it. Hence Paul says, And
such indeed were re ; but ye are washed, but ye
are sanctified (1 Cor. vi. 11); because, in
truth, amended life sanctifies those whom the
ablution of the affliction of tears cleanses
through penitence. Hence Peter, when he
saw some affrighted by consideration of their
evil deeds, admonished them, saying, Repent,
and be baptized every one of you (Acts ii. 38).
For, being about to speak of baptism, he
spoke first of the lamentations of penitence;
that they should first bathe themselves in the
water of their own affliction, and afterwards
wash themselves in the sacrament of baptism.
ith what conscience, then, can those who
neglect to weep for their past misdeeds live
secure of pardon, when the chief pastor of
the Church himself believed that penitence
must be added even to this Sacrament which
chiefly extinguishes sins?

1 In English Bible, lxxv.

2 Ibid. Ii. 17.

CHAPTER XXXI.

How those are to be admonished who praise the
unlawful things of which they are conscious,
and those who, while condemning them, in no
wise guard against them.

{Admonition 32.) Differently to be ad-
monished are they who even praise the un-
lawful things which they do, and those who
censure what is wrong, and yet avoid it not.
For they who even praise the unlawful things
which they do are to be admonished to con-
sider how for the most part they offend more
by the mouth than by deeds. For by deeds
they perpetrate wrong things in their own
persons only ; but with the mouth they bring
out wickedness in the persons of as many as
there are souls of hearers, to whom they teach
wicked things by praising them. They are
therefore to be admonished that, if they evade
the eradication of evil, they at least be afraid
to sow it. They are to be admonished to let
their own individual perdition suffice them.
And again they are to be admonished that, if
they fear not to be bad, they at least blush to
be seen to be what thev are. For usually a
sin, when it is concealed, is shunned ; be-
cause, when a soul blushes to be seen to be
what nevertheless it does not fear to be, it
comes in time to blush to be what it shuns
being seen to be. But, when any bad man
shamelessly courts notice, then the more
freely he perpetrates every wickedness, the
more does he come even to think it lawful ;
and in what he imagines to be lawful he is
without doubt sunk ever more and more.
Hence it is written, They have declared their
sin as Sodom, neither have they hidden it (Isai.
iii. 9). For, had Sodom hidden her sin, she
would still have sinned, but in fear. But she
had utterly lost the curb of fear, in that she did
not even seek darkness for her sin. Whence
also again it is written, The cry of Sodom and
Gomorrah is multiplied (Gen. xviii. 20). For
sin with a voice is guilt in act ; but sin with
even a cry is guilt at liberty.

But, on the other hand, those who censure
wrong things and yet avoid them not are to
be admonished to weigh circumspectly what
they can say in their own excuse before the
strict judgment of God, seeing they are not
excused from the guilt of their crimes, even
themselves being judges. What, then, are
these men but their own summoners? They
give their voices against misdeeds, and deliver
themselves up as guilty in their doings. They
are to be admonished to perceive how it even
now comes of the hidden retribution 01 judg-
ment that their mind is enlightened to see the
evil which it perpetrates, but strives not to

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

overcome it; so that the better it sees the
worse it may perish ; because it both per-
ceives the light of understanding, and also re-
linquishes not the darkness of wrong-doing.
For, when they neglect the knowledge that has
been given to help them, they turn it into a
testimony against themselves ; and from the
light of understanding, which they had in truth
received that they might be able to do away
their sins, they augment their punishments.
And, indeed, this their wickedness, doing the
evil which it condemns, has already a taste here
of the judgment to come; so that, while kept
liable to eternal punishment, it shall not mean-
while be ahsolved here in its own test of
itself; and that it may experience there the
more grievous torments, in that here it forsakes
not the evil which even itself condemns. For
hence the Truth says, That servant which knew
his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither
did according to his will, shall be beaten with
many stripes (Luke xii. 47). Hence the
Psalmist says, Let them go down quick into
hell (Ps. liv. 16 3). For the quick know and
feel what is being done about them ; but the
dead can feel nothing. For they would go
down dead into hell if they committed what
is evil without knowledge. But when they
know what is evil, and yet do it, they go down
quick, miserable, and feeling, into the hell of
iniquity.

CHAPTER XXXII.

Hoiv those are to be admonished who sin from
sudden impulse and those who sin de-
liberately.

{Admonition 33.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who are overcome by sudden
passion and those who are bound in guilt of
set purpose. For those whom sudden passion
overcomes are to be admonished to regard
themselves as daily set in the warfare of the
present life, and to protect the heart, which
cannot foresee wounds, with the shield of
anxious fear ; to dread the hidden darts of the
ambushed foe, and, in so dark a contest, to
guard with continual attention the inward
camp of the soul. For, if the heart is left
destitute of the solicitude of circumspection, it
is laid open to wounds ; since the crafty enemy
strikes the breast the more freely as he catches
it bare of the breastplate of forethought. Those
who are overcome by sudden passion are to be
admonished to cease caring too much for
earthly things ; since, while they entangle their
attention immoderately in transitory things,
they are not aware of the darts of sins whi< h

3 In English Bible, Iv. 15.

pierce them. Whence, also, the utterance of
one that is stricken and yet sleeps is expressed
by Solomon, who says, They have beaten me,
and I was not pained ; they have dragged me,
and I felt it not. When shall I awake and
again find wine (Prov. xxiii. 35) ? For the soul
that sleeps from the care of its solicitude is
beaten and feels not pain, because, as it fore-
sees not impending evils, so neither is it aware
of those which it has perpetrated. It is
dragged, and in no wise feels it, because it is
led by the allurements of vices, and yet is not
roused to keep guard over itself. But again
it wishes to awake, that it may again find
wine, because, although weighed down by the
sleep of its torpor from keeping guard over
itself, it still strives to be awake to the cares
of the world, that it may be ever drunk
with pleasures ; and, while sleeping to that
wherein it ought to have been wisely awake,
it desires to be awake to something else, to
which it might have laudably slept. Hence
it is written previously, And thou slialt be as
one that sleepeth in the midst of the sea, and
as a steersman that is lulled to rest, having let
go the rudder (Prov. xxiii. 35). For he sleeps
in the mi 1st of the sea who, placed among
the temptations of this world, n gleets to look
out for the motions of vices that rush in upon
him like impending heaps of waves. And the
steersman, as it were, lets go the rudder when
the mind loses the earnestness of solicitude
for guiding the ship ot the body. For, indeed,
to let go the rudder in the sea is to leave
off intentness of forethought among the
storms of this life. For, if the steersman
holds fast the rudder with anxious care, he
now directs the ship among the billows right
against them, now cleaves the assaults of the
winds aslant. So, when the mind vigilantly
guides the soul, it now surmounts some
things and treads them down, now warily
turns aside from others, so that it may both
by hard exertion overcome present dangers,1
and by foresight gather strength against future
struggles. Hence, again, of the strong war-
riors of the heavenly country it is said, Evety
man hath his sword upon his thigh because oj
fears in the night (Cant. iii. 8). For the sword
is put upon the thigh when the evil suggestion
of the flesh is subdued by the sharp edge of
holy preaching. But by the night is expressed
the blindness of our infirmity; since any op-
position that is impending in the night is not
seen. Every man's sword, therefore, is put
upon his thigh because of fears in the night ;
that is, because holy men, while they fear
things which they do not see, stand always
prepared for the strain of a struggle. Hence,
again, it is said to the bride, Thy nose is as

CHAPTER XXXIII.

>.e

tower that is in Lebanon (Cant. vii. 4). For He sits, as it were, in the chair of perverse

e thing which we perceive not with our eyes counsel who is lifted up with so great elation

e usually anticipate by the smell. By the

ose also, we discern between odours and

■enches. What, then, is signified by the nose

if the Church but the foreseeing discernment

f Saints? It is also said to be like to the tower

lat is in Lebanon, because their discerning

>resight is so set on a height as to see the

rubles of temptations even before they

ame, and to stand fortified against them when

ley do come. For things that are foreseen

hen future are of less force when they are

resent ; because, when every one has become

.ore prepared against the blow, the enemy,

ho supposed himself to be unexpected, is

eakened by the very fact of having been

iticipated.

But, on the other hand, those who of set
wrpose are bound in guilt, are to be admon-
;hed to perpend with wary consideration
ow that, when they do what is evil of their
wn judgment, they kindle stricter judgment
bainst themselves ; and that by so much the
tarder sentence will smite them as the chains
f deliberation have bound them more tightly
ji guilt. Perhaps they might sooner wash
Lay their transgressions by penitence, had
hey fallen into them through precipitancy
(one. For the sin is less speedily loosened
jhich of set purpose is firmly bound. For.
nless the soul altogether despised eternal
lings, it would not perish in guilt advisedly.
1 this, then, those who perish of set purpose
liffer from those who fall through precipitancy;
hat the former, when they fall by sin from the
ate of righteousness, for the most part fall
so into the snare of desperation. Hence it
I that the Lord through the Prophet reproves
ot so much the wrong doings of precipitance
i purposes of sin, saying, Lest perchance my
\dignation come out as fire, and be inflamed,
\id there be none to quench it because 0/ the
\ickedness of your purposes (Jer. iv. 4). Hence,
£ain, in wrath He says, L will visit upon you
hording to the fruit of your purposes (Ibid,
dii. 2). Since, then, sins which are perpe-
ated of set purpose differ from other sins, the
ord censures purposes of wickedness rather
lan wicked deeds. For in deeds the sin is
"ten of infirmity or of negligence, but in pur-
ees it is always of malicious intent. Con-
ariwise, it is well said through the Prophet in
scribing a blessed man, And lie sitteth not in
<e chair of pestilence (Ps. i. 1). For a chair is
jnt to be the seat of a judge or a president,
nd to sit in the chair of pestilence is to corn-
it what is wrong judicially; to sit in the chair
pestilence is to discern with the reason what
evil, and yet deliberately to perpetrate it.

I VOL. XII.

of iniquity as to endeavour even by counsel to
accomplish evil. And, as those who are sup-
ported by the dignity of the chair are set over
the crowds that stand by, so sins that are pur-
posely sought out transcend the transgressions
of those who fall through precipitancy. Those,
then, who even by counsel bind themselves in
guilt are to be admonished hence to gather
with what vengeance they must at some time
be smitten, being now made, not companions,
but princes, of evil-doers.

CHAPTER XXXIII.

LLozv those are to be admonished who commit
very small but frequent faults, and those who,
while avoiding such as are very small, are some-
times plunged in such as are grievous.

{Admonition 34.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who, though the unlawful
things they do are very small, yet do them
frequently, and those who keep themselves
from small sins, but are sometimes plunged in
such as are grievous. Those who frequently
transgress, though in very small things, are to
be admonished by no means to consider the
quality of the sins they commit, but the quan-
tity. For, if they scorn being afraid when
they weigh their deeds, they ought to be
alarmed when they number them ; seeing that
deep gulphs of rivers are filled by small but
innumerable drops of rain ; and bilge-water,
increasing secretly, has the same effect as a
storm raging openly; and the sores that break
out on the members in scab are minute ; but,
when a multitude of them gets possession in
countless numbers, it destroys the life of the
body as much as one grievous wound in-
flicted on the breast. Hence for certain it is
written, He that contemneth small things falleth
by little and little (Ecclus. xix. 1). For he that
neglects to bewail and avoid the smallest sins
falls from the state of righteousness, not indeed
suddenly, but bit by bit entirely. Those who
transgress frequently in very little things are to
be admonished to consider anxiously how that
sometimes there is worse sin in a small fault
than in a greater one. For a greater fault, in
that it is the sooner acknowledged to be one,
is by so much the more speedily amended ;
but a smaller one, being reckoned as though it
were none at all, is retained in use with worse
effect as it is so with less concern. Whence
for the most part it comes to pass that the
mind, accustomed to light evils, has no horror
even of heavy ones, and, being fed up by sins,
comes at last to a sort ot sanction of iniquity,
and by so much the more scorns to be afraid

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

in greater matters as it has learnt to sin in little
ones without fear.

But, on the other hand, those who keep
themselves from small sins, but are sometimes
plunged in grievous ones, are to be admonished
anxiously to apprehend the state they are in ;
how that, while their heart is lifted up for very
small things guarded against, they are so swal-
lowed up in the very gulph of their own elation
as to perpetrate others that are more grievous,
and, while they outwardly master little ills, but
are puffed up inwardly with vain glory, they
prostrate their soul, overcome within itself by
the sickness of pride, amid greater ills even
outwardly. Those, then, who keep themselves
from little faults, but are sometimes plunged in
such as are grievous, are to be admonished to
take care lest they fall inwardly where they
suppose themselves to be standing outwardly,
and lest, according to the retribution of the
strict judge, elation on account of lesser right-
eousness become a way to the pitfall of more
grievous sin. For such as, vainly elated, attri-
bute their keeping of the least good to their
own strength, being justly left to themselves,
are overwhelmed in greater sins ; and by fall-
ing they learn that their standing was not of
themselves, so that immeasurable ills may
humble the heart that is exalted by the
smallest good. They are to be admonished
to consider that, while in their more grievous
faults they bind themselves in deep guilt,
they nevertheless for the most part sin worse
in the little faults which they guard against ;
because, while in the former they do what is
wicked, in the latter they hide from men that
they are wieked. Whence it conies to pass
that, when they perpetrate greater evils before
God, it is a case of open iniquity; and when
they are careful to observe small good things be-
fore men, it is a case of pretended holiness. For
hence it is that it is said of the Pharisees,
Straining out a gnat, hit swallowing a camel
(Matth. xxiii. 24). As if it were said plainly.
The least evils ye discern ; the greater ye
devour. Hence it is that they are again re-
proved by the mouth of the Truth, when they
are told, Ye tithe mint and anise and cummin,
and omit the weightier matters of the Law,
judgment and mercy and truth (Ibid. 23).
Por neither is it to be carelessly heard that,
when He said that the least things were tithed,
He chose indeed to mention the lowest of herbs,
but yet such as are sweet-smelling ; in order,
surely, to shew that, when pretenders observe
small things, they seek to extend for them-
selves the odour of a holy reputation ; and,
though they omit to fulfil the greatest things,
they still observe such of the smallest as smell
sweetly far and wide in human judgment.

CHAPTER XXXIV.

How those are to be admonished who do not even
begin good things, and those who do not finish
them when begun.

{Admonition 35.) Differently to be ad-
monished are they who do not even begin
good things, and those who in no wise com-
plete such as they have begun. For as to
those who do not even begin good things, for
them the first need is, not to build up what
they may wholesomely love, but to demolish
that wherein they are wrongly occupied. For
they will not follow the untried things they
hear of, unless they first come to feel how
pernicious are the things that they have tried;
since neither does one desire to be lifted up
who knows not the very fact that he has
fallen ; nor does one who feels not the pain
of a wound seek any healing remedy. First,
then, it is to be shewn to them how vain are
the things that they love, and then at length
to be carefully made known to them how pro-
fitable are the things that they let slip. Let
them first see that what they love is to be
shunned, and afterwards perceive without
difficulty that what they shun is to be loved.
For they sooner accept the things which they
have not tried, if they recognize as true what-
ever discourse they may hear concerning the
things that they have tried. So then they
learn to seek true good with fulness of desire,
when they have learnt with certainty ot judg-
ment how vainly they have held to what was
false. Let them be told, therefore, both that
present gbod tilings will soon pass away from
enjoyment, and also that the account to be
Linen of them will nevertheless endure, with-
out passing away, for vengeance; since both
what pleases them is withdrawn from them
now against their will, and what pains them is
reserved them, also against their will, for
punishment. Thus may they be wholesomely
filled with alarm by the same tilings in which
they harmfully take delight ; so that when the
stricken soul, in sight of the deep ruin of its
fall, perceives that it has reached a precipice,
it may retrace its steps backward, and, fearing
what it had loved, may learn to esteem highly
what it once despised.

For hence it is that it is said to Jeremiah
when sent to preach, See, I have this day set
thee over the natit us and over the kingdoms, to
pluck out, and to pull dozen, and to destroy, and
to scatter, and to build, and to plant (Jer. i. 10).
Because, unless he first destroyed wrong
things, he could not profitably build right
things ; unless he plucked out of the hearts
of his hearers the thorns of vain love, he
would certainly plant to no purpose the words

CHAPTER XXXIV.

of holy preaching. Hence it is that Peter
first overthrows, that he may afterwards build
uo, when he in no wise admonished the Jews
as to what they were now to do, but reproved
them for what they had done, saying, Jesus
of Nazareth^ a man approved of God among
vou by powers and wonders and signs, which
God did by Him in the midst of you, as ye your-
selves know ; Him, being delivered by the deter-
minate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye
have by the hands of rcicked men crucified and
slain ; whom God hath raised up, having
loosed the pains of hell (Acts ii. 22 — 24); in
order, to wit, that having been thrown down
by a recognition of their cruelty, they might
hear the building up of holy preaching by
so much the more profitably as they anxiously
sought it. Whence also they forthwith replied,
J 17/ at then shall we -do, men and brethren 1
And it is presently said to them, Repent and
be baptized, every one of you (Ibid. 37, 38).
Winch words of building up they would
surely have despised, had they not first
wholesomely become aware of the ruin of
their throwing down. Hence it is that Saul,
when the light from heaven shone upon him,
did not hear immediately what he was to do
aright, but what he had done wrong. For,
when, fallen to the earth, he enquired, saying,
Who aft Thou, Lord ? it was straightway
replied, / am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou
pcrsecutest. And when he forthwith replied,
Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do ? it is
added at once, Arise, and go into the city, and
it shall be told thee there what thou must do
(Acts ix. 4. &c. ; xxii. S, &c). Lo, the Lord,
speaking from heaven, reproved the deeds of
His persecutor, and yet did not at once shew
him what he had to do. Lo, the whole fabric
of his elation had already been thrown down,
and then, humble after his downfall, he sought
to be built up : and when pride was thrown
down, the words of building up were still
kept back ; to wit, that the cruel persecutor
might long lie overthrown, and rise afterwards
the more firmly built in good as he had fallen
utterly upset lrom his former error. Those,
then, who have not as yet begun to do any
good are first to be overthrown by the hand
of correction from the stiffness of their in-
iquity, that they may afterwards be lifted up
to the state of well-doing. For this cause
also we cut down the lofty timber of the forest,
that we may raise it up in the roof of a build-
ing : but \et it is not placed in the fabric
suddenly ; in Older, that is, that its vicious
greenness may first be dried out: for the
more the moisture thereof is exuded in the
lowest, by so much the more solidly is it
elevated to the topmost places.

But, on the other hand, those who in no
wise complete the good things they have
begun are to be admonished to consider with
cautious circumspection how that, when they
accomplish not their purposes, they tear up
with them even the things that had been
begun. For, if that which is seen to be
a thing to be done advances not through
assiduous application, even that which had
been well clone falls back. For the human
soul in this world is, as it were, in the con-
dition of a ship ascending against the stream
of a river: it is never suffered to stay in one
place, since it will fl at back to the nether-
most parts unless it strive for the uppermost.
If then the strong hand of the worker carry
not on to perfection the good things begun,
the very slackness in working fights against
what has been wrought. For hence it is that
it is said through Solomon, He thai is feeble
and slack in work is brother to him that
wasieth his works (Prov. xviii. 9). For in
truth he who does not strenuously execute
the good things he has begun imitates in the
slackness of his negligence the hand of the
destroyer. Hence it is said by the Angel
to the Church of Sardis, Be watchful, and
strengthen the things which remain, that are
ready to die ; for I find not thy works complete
before my G'~>d (Rev. iii. 2). Thus, because
the works had not been found complete
before his God, he foretold that those which
remained, even such as had been done, were
about to die. For, if that which is dead in
us be not kindled into life, that which is re-
tained as though still alive is extinguished
too. They are to be admonished that it
might have been more tolerable for them not
to have laid hold of the right way than, having
laid hold of it, to turn their backs upon it.
For unless they looked back, they would not
grow weak with any torpor with regard to
their undertaken purpose. Let them hear,
then, what is written, // had been better for
them not to have known the way of righteous-
ness than, af.cr they have knotvn ii, to be turned
backward (2 Pet. ii. 21). Let them hear what
is written ; / would thou wert cold or hot : but,
became thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor
hot, 1 will begin to spue thee out of my mouth
(Rev., iii. 15, 16). For he is hot who both
takes up and completes good purposes ; but
he is cold who does not even begin any to be
completed. And as transition is made through
lukewarmness from cold to heat, so through
iukewarmness there is a return from heat to
cold. Whosoever, then, has lost the cold
of unbelief so as to live, but in no wise passes
beyond lukewarmness so as to go on to burn,
he doubtless, despairing of heat, while he

F 2

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

lingers in pernicious lukewarmness, is in the
way to become cold. But, as before luke-
warmness there is hope in cold, so after cold
there is despair in lukewarmness. For he
who is yet in his sins loses not his trust in
conversion : but he who after conversion has
become lukewarm has withdrawn the hope
that there might have been of the sinner. It
is required, then, that every one be either
hot or cold, lest, being lukewarm, he be
spued out : that is, that cither, being not yet
converted, he still afford hope of his conver-
sion, or, being already converted, he be
fervent in virtues ; lest he be spued out as
lukewarm, in that he goes back in torpor
from purposed heat to pernicious cold.

CHAPTER XXXV.

How those are to be admonished who do bad
things secretly and good tilings openly, and
those who do contrariwise.

{Admonition 36.) Differently to be admon-
ished are those who do bad things in secret
and good things publicly, and those who hide
the good things they do, and yet in some
things done publicly allow ill to be thought
of them. For those who do bad thii ^ ill
secret and good things publicly are to be ad-
monished to consider with what swiftness
human judgments flee away, but with what
immobility divine judgments endure. They
are to be admonished to fix the eyes of their
mind on the end of things; since, while the
attestation of human pi passes away, the

heavenly sentence, which penetrates even
hidden things, grows strong unto lasting re-
tribution. When, therefore, they set their
hidden wrong things before the divine judg-
ment, and their right things before human
eyes, both without a witness is the good
which they do publicly, and not without an
eternal witness is their latent transgression.
So by concealing their faults from men, and
displaying their virtues, they both discover
while they hide what they deserve to be
punished for, and hide while they discover
what they might have been rewarded for.
Such persons the Truth calls whited sepul-
chres, beautiful outward, but full of dead
men's bones (Matth. xxiii. 27) ; because, they
cover up the evil of vices within, but by the
exhibition of certain works flatter human eyes
with the mere outward colour of righteousness.
They are therefore to be admonished not to
despise the right things they do, but to believe
them to be of better desert. For those greatly
misjudge their own good things who think
human favour sufficient for their reward. For,
when transitory praise is sought in return for

right doing, a thing worthy of eternal rewarr
is sold for a mean juice. As to which prict
being received, indeed, the Truth says, Verily
I say unto you, they have received their rewara
(Matth. vi. 2, 5, 6). They are to be admon
ished to consider that, when they prove them
selves bad in hidden things, but yet offei
themselves as examples publicly in good
works, they shew that what they shun is tc
be followed ; they cry aloud that what they
hate is to be loved : in fine, they live to
others, and die to themselves.

But, on the other hand, those who do goon
things in secret, and yet in some things done
publicly allow evil to be thought of them, are
to be admonished that, while what is good in!
them quickens themselves in the virtue of well-
doing, they themselves slay not others through
the example of a bad repute; that they love
not their neighbours less than themselves,
nor, while themselves imbibing a wholesome
draught of wine, pour out a pestiferous cup
of poison to minds intent on observing them.
These assuredly in one way little help the life
of their neighbour, and in the other greatly
burden it, while they both study to do what
is right unseen, and also, in some things in
which they set an example, sow from them-
selves the seeds of evil. For whosoever is
already competent to tread under foot the lust
of praise commits a fraud on edification, if he
conceals the good things he does; and he-
steals away, as it were, the roots of germina-
tion after having cast the seed, who shews not
forth the work that is to be imitated. For
hence in the Gospel the Truth says, That they
may see your good icoiks, and glorify your
Father which is in heaven (Matth. v. 16).
but then there comes also this sentence,
which has the appearance of enjoining something
very different, namely, lake heed that ye do
not rour righteousness be/ore men, to be seen 0]
them (Matth. vi. 1).

What means then its being enjoined both
that our work is so to be done as not to be
seen, and yet that it should be seen, but that
the things we do are to be hidden, lest we
ourselves should be praised, and yet to be
shewn, that we may increase the praise of our
heavenly Father? For, when the Lord forbade
us to do our righteousness before men, He
straightway added, To be seen of them. Ana
again, when He enjoined that our good
works were to be seen of men, He forthwith
subjoined, That they may glorify your Fa'.ha
which is in heaven (Matth. v. 16). In what
manner, then, they are to be seen, and in
what manner they are not to be seen, He
shewed in the end of His injunctions, to the
effect that the mind of the worker should not

CHAPTER XXXVII.

seek for his work to be seen on his own
account, and yet that on account of the glory
of the heavenly Father he should not conceal
it. Whence it coir.nionly comes to pass that
a good work is both in secret when it is done
publicly, and again in public when it is done
secretly. For he that in a public good work
seeks not his own, but the heavenly Father's
glory, hides what he has done, in that lie has
had Him only for a witness whom he has
desired to please And he who in his secret
good work covets being observed and praised
has done this before men, even though no
one has seen what he has done ; because he
has adduced so many witnesses to his good
work as he has sought human praises in his
heart. But when bad repute, so far as it
prevails without sin committed, is not ob-
literated from the minds of lookers on, the
cup of guilt is offered, in the way of example,
to all who think evil. Whence also it gene-
rally comes to pass, that those who carelessly
allow evil to be thought of them do not
indeed commit wickedness in their own
persons, but still, through those who may
have taken example from them, offend in
a more manifold way. Hence it is that Paul
says to those who ate certain unclean things
without pollution, but in this their eating put
a stumbling-block of temptation in the way of
the imperfect, Take heed, lest by any means
this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to
them that are weak (i Cor. viii. 9) ; and again,
And by thy conscience shall the weak brother
perish, for whom Christ died. But when ye so
sin against the brethren, and wound their weak
conscience, ye sin against Christ (Ibid. ii. 12).
Hence it is that Moses, when he said, Thou
shalt not curse the deaf, at once added, Nor put
a stumblingblock before the blind (Lev. xix. 14).
For to curse the deaf is to disparage one who
is absent and does not hear; but. to put a
stumbling-block before the blind is to act
indeed with discernment, but yet to give
! cause of offence to him who has not the
Light of discernment.

CHAPTER XXXVI.

! Concerning the exhortation to be addressed to
many at once, that it may so aid the virtues of
each among them that vices contrary to such
virtues may not grow up through it.

These are the things that a Bishop of souls
should observe in the diversity of his preach-
ing, that lie may solicitously oppose suitable
medicines to the diseases of his several
hearers. But, whereas it is a matter of great
anxiety, in exhorting individuals, to be of
service to them according to their individual

needs, since it is a very difficult thing to in-
struct each person in what concerns himself,
dealing out due consideration to each case, it
is yet far more difficult to admonish innumer-
able hearers labouring under various passions
at one and the same time with one common
exhortation. For in this case the speech is
to be tempered with such art that, the vices
of the hearers being diverse, it may be found
suitable to them severally, and yet be not
diverse from itself; that it pass indeed with one
stroke through the midst of passions, but, after
the manner of a two-edged sword, cut the
swellings of carnal thoughts on either side ; so
that humility be so preached to the proud
that yet fear be not increased in the timid- ;
that confidence be so infused into the timid
that yet the unbridled licence of the proud
grow not; that solicitude in welldoing be so
preached to the listless and torpid that yet
licence of immoderate action be not increased
in the unquiet ; that bounds be so set on the
unquiet that yet careless torpor be not pro-
duced in the listless ; that wrath be so extin-
guished in the impatient that yet negligence
grow not in the easy and soft-hearted ; that
the soft-hearted be so inflamed to zeal that
yet fire be not added to the wrathful; that
liberality in giving be so infused into the nig-
gardly that yet the reins of profusion be in no
wise loosened to the prodigal ; that frugality
be so preached to the prodigal that yet care to
keep perishable things be not increased in the
niggardly; that marriage be so praised to the
incontinent that yet those who are already con-
tinent be not called back to voluptuousness;
that virginity of body be so praised to the con-
tinent that yet fecundity of the flesh come not
to be despised by the married. Good things
are so to be preached that ill things be not
assisted sideways. The highest good is so to
be praised that the lowest be not despaired of.
The lowest is so to be cherished that there be no
cessation of striving for the highest from the
lowest being thought sufficient.

CHAPTER XXXVII.

Of the exhortation to be applied to one person,
who labours under contrary passions.

It is indeed a serious labour for the preacher
to keep an eye in his public preaching to the
hidden affections and motives of individuals,
and, after the manner of the palaestra, to turn
himself with skill to either side : yet he is worn
with much severer labour, when he is com-
pelled to preach to one person who is subject
to contrary vices. For it is commonly the case
that some one is of too joyous a constitution,
and yet sadness suddenly arising immoderately

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

depresses him. The preacher, therefore, must
give heed that the temporary sadness be so
removed that the constitutional joyousness be
not increased; and that the constitutional joy-
ousness be so curbed that the temporary sad-
ness be not aggravated. This man is burdened
by a habit of immoderate precipitancy, and yet
sometimes the power of a suddenly-born fear
impedes his doing what ought to be done in
haste. That man is burdened by a habit of
immoderate fear, and yet sometimes is im-
pelled in what he desires by the rashness of im-
moderate precipitancy. In the one, therefore,
let the fear that suddenly arises be so repressed
that his long-nourished precipitancy do not
further grow. In the other let the precipitancy
that suddenly arises be so repressed that yet
the fear stamped on him by constitution do
not gather strength. And, indeed, what is
there strange in the physicians of souls being
on their guard in these things, when those who
heal not hearts but bodie- govern themselves
with so great skill of dis> :nt? For it is

often the case that extreme faintness weighs
down a weak body, which faintness ought to
be met by strong remedies ; but yet the weak
body cannot bear a strong remedy. He,
therefore, who treats the i ves heed so to

draw off the supervening mal idy that the pre-
existing weakness of the b< dy be in no wise
increased, lest perchance the faintness should
pass away with the life. He compounds.
then, his remedy with sin h di cernment as at
one and the same time to meel both the faint-
ness and the weakness. If, then, medicine for
the body administered without division can be
of service in a divided way, why should not
medicine for the soul, applied in one and the
same preaching, be of power to meet moral
diseases in diverse directions: which medicine
is the more subtle in its operation in that in-
visible things are dealt with?

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

That sometimes lighter vices are to be left alone,
that more grievous ones may be removed.

But since, when the sickness of two vices
attacks a man, one presses upon him more
lightly, and the other perchance more heavily,
it is undoubtedly right to haste to the succour
of that through which there is the more rapid
tendency to death. And, if the one cannot be
restrained from causing the death which is im-
minent unless the other which is contrary to
it increase, the preacher must be content by
skilful management in his exhortation to suffer
one to increase, to the end that he may keep
the other back from causing the death which
is imminent. When he does this, he does not

aggravate the disease, but preserves the life of
his sufferer to whom he administers the medi-
cine, that he may find a fitting time for search-
ing out means of recovery. For there is often
one who, while he puts no restraint on his
eluttnny in food, is presently pressed hard by
the stings of lechery, which is on the point of
overcoming him, and who, when, terrified by
the fear of this struggle, he strives to restrain
himself through abstinence, is harassed by the
temptation of vain-glory: in which case cer-
tainly one vice is by no means extinguished
unless the other be fostered. Which plague
then should be the more ardently attacked
but that which presses on the man the more
dangerously? For it is to be tolerated that
through the virtue of abstinence arrogance
should meanwhile grow against one that is
alive, lest through giuttony lechery should cut
him off from lite entirely. Hence it is that
Paul, when he considered that his weak hearer
would either continue to do evil or rejoice in
the reward of human praise for well-doing, said,
Wilt thou not be afraid of the po'ver 1 Do that
which is qood, and th, u shaft have praise of the
same ( Rom. \iii. 3). For it is not that good
things should 1- e in order that no human

r may be feared, or that the glory of
transitory praise may be thereby won ; but,
ling that tile weak soul could not rise
to s strength as to slum at the same

time both wickedness and praise, the excellent
• her in his admonition offered something
and took away something. For by conceding
mild ailments he drew off keener ones; that,
since the mind could not rise all at once to
the relinquishing of all its vices, it might,
while left in familiarity with some one of
them, be taken off without difficulty from
another.

CHAPTER XXXIX.

That deep things o'ight not to be preached at all
to zveak souls.

But the preacher should know how to avoid
drawing the mind of his hearer beyond its
strength, lest, so to speak, the string of the soul,
when stretched more than it can Wear, should
be broken. For all deep tilings should be
covered up before a multitude of hearers, and
scarcely opened to a few. For hence the
Truth in person says, Who, thinkest thou, is
the faithful and wise steward, whom his
lord has appointed over his household, to give
them their measure of wheal in due season 1
{Luke xii. 42). Now by a measure of wheat is
expressed a portion of the Word, lest, when
anything is given to a narrow heart be)ond its
capacity, it be spilt. Hence Paul says, I could

CHAPTER XL.

not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto
carnal. As it were to babes in Christ, I have
*iven you milk to drink, and not meat (1 Cor.
iii. 1, 2). Hence Moses, when he comes out
from the sanctuary of God, veils his shining
face before the people ; because in truth He
shews not to multitudes the secrets of inmost
brightness (Exod. xxxiv. 33, 35). Hence it
|is enjoined on him by the Divine voice that,
lif any one should dig a cistern, and not cover
jit, and an ox or ass should fall into it, he
should pay the price (Exod. xxi. 33, 34), be-
cause when one who has arrived at the deep
streams of knowledge covers them not up
before the brutish hearts of his hearers, he is
ladjudged as liable to penalty, if through his
'words a soul, whether clean or unclean, be
!caught on a stumbling-stone. Hence it is said
■to the blessed Job, Who hath given understand-
ing unto the cock? (Job xxxviii. 36). For a
holy preacher, crying aloud in time of darkness,
|is as the cock crowing in the night, when he
jsays, It is even now the hour for us to arise from
\sleep (Rom. xiii. n). And again, Awake ye
righteous, and sin not (1 Cor. xv. 34). But
the cock is wont to utter loud chants in
[the deeper hours of the night ; but, when the
time of morning is already at hand, he frames
small and slender tones ; because, in fact, he
who preaches aright cries aloud plainly to
hearts that are still in the dark, and shews them
nothing of hidden mysteries, that they may
then hear the more subtle teachings concerning
heavenly things, when they draw nigh to the
light of truth.

CHAPTER XL.

Of the work and the voice of preaching.

But in the midst of these things we are
brought back by the earnest desire "of charity
to what we have already said above ; that
every preacher should give forth a sound more
by his deeds than by his words, and rather by
good living imprint footsteps for men to follow
than by speaking shew them the way to walk
in. For that cock, too, whom the Lord in his
manner of speech takes to represent a good
preacher, when he is now preparing to crow,
first shakes his wings, and by smiting himself
makes himself more awake ; since it is surely
necessary that those who give utterance to
words of holy preaching should first be well
awake in earnestness of good living, lest they
rouse others with their voice while themselves
torpid in performance ; that they should first
shake themselves up by lofty deeds, and then
make others solicitous for good living; that
they should first smite themselves with the
wings of their thoughts ; that whatsoever in
themselves is unprofitably torpid they should
discover by anxious investigation, and correct
by strict animadversion, and then at length
set in order the life of others by speaking ;
that they should take heed to punish their
own faults by bewailings, and then denounce
what calls for punishment in others ; and
that, before they give voice to words of ex-
hortation, they should proclaim in their deeds
all that they are about to speak.

PART IV.

How the Preacher, when he has accomplished all aright, should return to

HIMSELF, LEST EITHER HIS LIKE OR HIS PREACHING LIFT HIM UP.

But since often, when preaching is abund-
antly poured forth in fitting ways, the mind of
the speaker is elevated in itself by a hidden
delight in self-display, great care is needed
that he may gnaw himself with the laceration
of fear, lest he who recalls the diseases of
others to health by remedies should himself
swell through neglect of his own health ; lest
in helping others he desert himself, lest in
lifting up others he fall. For to some the
greatness of their virtue has often been the
occasion of their perdition ; causing them,
while inordinately secure in confidence of
strength, to die unexpectedly through negli-
gence. For virtue strives with vices ; the
mind flatters itself with a certain delight in it ;
and it comes to pass that the soul of a well-
doer casts aside the fear of its circumspection,

and rests secure in self-confidence; and to it,
now torpid, the cunning seducer enumerates
all things that it has done well, and exalts it
in swelling thoughts as though superexcellent
beyond all beside. Whence it is brought
about, that before the eyes of the just judge
the memory of virtue is a pitfall of the soul ;
because, in calling to mind what it has done
well, while it lifts itself up in its own eyes,
it falls before the author of humility. For
hence it is said to the soul that is proud, For
that thou art more beautiful, go down, and sleep
with the uncircumcised (Ezek. xxxii. 19) : as
if it were plainly said, Because thou liftest
thyself up for the comeliness of thy virtues,
thou art driven by thy very beauty to fall.
Hence under the figure of Jerusalem the soul
that is proud in virtue is reproved, when it is

ST. GREGORY'S PASTORAL RULE.

said, Thou wert perfect in my comeliness which
I had put upon thee, saith the Lord, and
having confidence in thy beauty thou hast com-
mitted fornication in thy renown (Ibid. xvi. 14,
15). For the mind is lifted up by confidence
in its beauty, when, glad for the merits of its
virtues, it glories within itself in security. But
through this same confidence it is led to for-
nication ; because, when the soul is deceived
by its own thoughts, malignant spirits, which
take possession of it, defile it through the
seduction of innumerable vices But it is to
be noted that it is said, Thou hast committed
fornication in thy renown : for when the soul
leaves off regard for the supernal ruler, it
forthwith seeks its own praise, and begins to
arrogate to itself all the good which it has
received for shewing forth the praise of the
giver ; it desires to spread abroad the glory of
its own reputation, and busies itself to become
known as one to be admired of all. In its
renown, therefore, it commits fornication, in
that, forsaking the wedlock of a lawful bed, it
prostitutes itself to the defiling spirit in its
lust of praise. Hence David says, He de-
livered their virtue into captivity, and their
beauty into the enemy's hands (Ps. lxvii. 61*).
For virtue is delivered into captivity and
beauty into the enemy's hands, when the old
enemy gets dominion over the deceived soul
because of elation in well doing. And yet
this elation in virtue tempts somewhat, though
it does not fully overcome, the mind even of
the elect.

But it, when lifted up, is forsaken, and,
being forsaken, it is recalled to fear. For
hence David says again, I said in mine abund-
ance, I shall not be moved for ever (Ps. xxix. 75).
But he added a little later what he under-
went for having been puffed up with con-
fidence in his virtue, Thou didst turn thy face
from me, and I was troubled (Ibid. v. 8). As if
he would say plainly, I believed myself strong
in the midst of virtues, but, being forsaken,
I become aware how great was my infirmity.
Hence he says again, / have szvorn and am
stedfastly purposed to keep the judgments of thy
righteousness (Ps. cxviii. 1066). But, because

* In English Bible, lxviii. 61.

6 Ibid. cxix. 106.

5 Ibid. xxx. 6.

it was beyond his powers to continue the
keeping which he sware, straightway, being
troubled, he found his weakness. Whence
also he all at once betook himself to the aid
of prayer, saying, I am humbled all together;
quicken me, O Lord, according to Thy word
(Ibid. v. 107). But sometimes Divine govern-
ment, before advancing a soul by gifts, recalls
to it the memory of its infirmity, lest it be
puffed up for the virtues it has received.
Whence the Prophet Ezekiel, before being led
to the contemplation of heavenly things, is
first called a son of man ; as though the Lord
plainly admonished him, saying, Lest thou
shouldest lift up thy heart in elation for these
things which thou seest, perpend cautiously
what thou art ; that, when thou penetratest
the highest things, thou mayest remember that
thou art a man, to the end that, when rapt
beyond thyself, thou mayest be recalled in
anxiety to thyself by the curb of thine in-
firmity. Whence it is needful that, when
abundance of virtues flatters us, the eye of the
soul should return to its own weaknesses, and
salubriously depress itself; that it should look,
not at the right things that it has done, but
those that it has left undone ; so that, while
the heart is bruised by recollection of in-
firmity, it may be the more strongly confirmed
m virtue before the author of humility. For
it is generally for this purpose that Almighty
God, though perfecting in great part the minds
of rulers, still in some small part leaves them
imperfect ; in order that, when they shine with
wonderful virtues, they may pine with disgust
at their own imperfection, and by no means
lift themselves up for great things, while still
labouring in their struggle against the least;
but that, since they are not strong enough to
overcome in what is last and lowest, they may
not dare to glory in their chief performances.

See now, good man, how, compelled by the
necessity laid upon me by thy reproof, being
intent on shewing what a Pastor ought to be,
I have been as an ill-favoured painter pour-
traying a handsome man ; and how I direct
others to the shore of perfection, while myself
still tossed among the waves of transgressions.
But in the shipwreck of this present life sus-
tain me, I beseech thee, by the plank of thy
prayer, that, since my own weight sinks me
down, the hand of thy merit may raise me up.

See Pedigree of Kings of Gaui, Prolegomena, p. xxx.

BOOK I.

THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER, INDICTION IX., BEING THE
FIRST YEAR OF HIS ORDINATION.

EPISTLE I.

To all the Bishops of Sicily.

Gregory, servant of the servants of God x, to
.11 the bishops constituted throughout Sicily.

We have plainly perceived it to be very
lecessary that, even as our predecessors
hought fit to do, we should commit all
hings to one and the same person ; and that,
vhere we cannot be present ourselves, our
Luthority should be represented through him

0 whom we send our instructions. Where-
ore, with the help of God, we have appointed
3eter, subdeacon of our See, our delegate
n the province of Sicily. Nor can we doubt
is to the conduct of him to whom, with the
lelp of God, we are known to have committed
he charge of the whole patrimony of our
:hurch.

This also we have plainly perceived to be

1 thing that ought to be done ; that once in
he year your whole fraternity should assemble,
it Syracuse or Catana, receiving, as we have
:harged him, the honour due to you ; to the
:nd that, together with the aforesaid Peter,
ubdeacon of our See, you may settle with
lue discretion whatever things pertain to the
dvantage of the churches of the province,
>r to the relief of the necessities of the poor
.nd oppressed, or to the admonition of all,
nd the correction of those whose transgres-

1 "Sanctus Gregorius primus omnium sc in principio epis-
>larum suarum servum servorum Dei satis humiliter defimvit."
Joan Dine, in Vit. S. Greg. 1. ii. c. i). The designation, how-
/er, had been used by others before him, as by Pope Damasus
S>. IV. ad Ste/>hanum et Africa Episcof>os\ and Augustine
"/. ad Vitaleni). Gregory may have heen the first to use it
ibitually. It is true that in the Registrum Epistolarum we
id it four times only, viz. in the headings of Epistles I. i, I. 36,
I. 51, XIII. 1. But it may have been omitted in the copies
' his letters preserved at Rome. This is probable from the tact
at it occurs in the letters relating to the English Mission as
•■en by Bede, though absent from the same letters in the
•gistrum.

sions may peradventure be proved. From
which council far be animosities, which are
the nutriment of crimes, and may inward
grudges die away, and that discord of souls
which is beyond measure execrable. Let con-
cord well-pleasing to God, and charity, ap-
prove you as His priests. Conduct all things,
therefore, with such deliberation and calmness
that yours may most worthily be called an
Episcopal Council.

EPISTLE II.
To Justinus, Praetor of Sicily.

Gregory to Justinus, Praetor of Sicily.

What my tongue speaks my conscience
approves ; since even before you had become
engaged in the employments of any office
of dignity, I have greatly loved and greatly
respected you. For the very modesty of your
deportment made certain incipient claims on
affection even from one who had been loth.
And, when I heard that you had come to
administer the praetorship of Sicily, I greatly
rejoiced. But, since I have discovered that
a certain ill-feeling is creeping in between you
and the ecclesiastics, I have been exceedingly
distressed. But now that you are occupied
with the charge of civil administration, and
I with the care of this ecclesiastical govern-
ment, we can properly love one another in
particular so far as we do no harm to the
general community. Wherefore I beseech
you by Almighty God, before Whose tremen-
dous judgment we must give account of our
deeds, that your Glory have always the fear
of Him before your eyes, and never allow
anything to come in whereby even slight dis-
sension may arise between us. Let no gains
draw you aside to injustice; let not either
the threats or the favours of any one cause you

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

to deviate from the path of rectitude. See
now short life is : think, ye that exercise
judicial authority, b fore what judge ye must
at some time go. It is therefore to be dili-
gently considered that we shall leave all gains
behind us here, and that of harmful gains we
shall carry with us to the judgment the pleas
only that are against us for them. Those ad-
vantages, then, are to be sought by us which
death may in no wise take away, but which the
end of the present life may shew to be such
as will endure for ever.

As to what you write concerning the corn,
the magnificent Citonatus asserts very differ-
ently that no more has been transmitted than
what was supplied for replenishing the public
granary in satisfaction of what was due for the
past in diction. Give attention to this matter,
since, if what is transmitted be at all defective,
it will be the death not of any one single
person only, but of the whole people together2.

Now for the management of the patrimony
of Sicily I have sent, as I think under the
guidance of God, such a man as you will be
in entire accord with, if you are a lover of
what is right, as I have found you to be.
Moreover, as to your desire that I should
remember you kindly, I confess the truth
when I say that, unless any injustice should
creep in from the snares of the am ient foe.
I have learnt thy Glory's modesty to be such
that I shall not blush to be thy friend.

EPISTLE III.
To Paul, Si h< >i asticus.

Gregory to Paul, &c.

However strangers smile upon me on ac-
count of the dignity <~>f my priestly office, this
I take not much account of; but I do grieve
not a little at your smiling upon me on this
account, seeing that you know what I long for,
and yet suppose me to have received advance-
ment. For to me it woul 1 have been the
highest advancement, if what I wished could
have been fulfilled ; if I could have accom-
plished my desire, which you have been long
acquainted with, in the enjoyment of Ion
for rest. Yet, since I am now detained in the
city of Rome, tied by the chains of this
dignity, I have something wherein I may
even rejoice in addressing your Glory, seeing

2 The population of Rome had lonjr been greatly dependent
on Sicily for the supply of corn, which it was the duty of the
praetor to purchase and transmit to Ro.ne. Famine might result
Irom failure of this supply. Hence what is said further on the
subject in this Epistle. Cf. " Neminem vesirum praeterit, judices,
t>mnem utilitatem opportunitatemque provincial Sicilian quae ad
commoda populi Romani adjuncta sit consistere in re frumentaria
maxime. Nam caeteris renus adjuvamur ex ilia provincia, hac
vero alimur et sustinemur." (Cicero in Verrem, Act II. lib. 3,
c 5)

that, when the most eminent lord the ex-
consul Leo comes, I suspect that you will
not remain in Sicily; and when thou thyself
also, tied by thine own dignity, shalt come to
be detained in Rome, thou wilt come to know
what sorrow an 1 what bitterness I suffer. But
when the magnificent lord Maurentius, the
Chdrtu'iarius, comes to you, I pray thee con-
cur with him in regard to the present straits of
the Roman city, since outside we are stabbed
without cease by hostile swords. But we are
still more heavily pressed by danger within
through a sedition of the soldiers. Further,
we commend to your Glory in all respects
Peter our sub-deacon, whom we have sent to
rule the patrimony of the Church.

EPISTLE IV.

To Johx. I!i-hop of Constantinople 3.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Constantinople.

If the virtue of charity consists in the love>
of one's neighbour, and we are commanded
to love our neighbours as ourselves, how is it*

that vour blessedness does not love me even;
is yourself? For I know with what ardour.!
with what anxiety, you wished to fly from the
burden of the episcopate; and yet you made
no opposition to this same burden of the
episcopate being imposed on me. It is evi
dent, then, that you do not love me a;

irself, seeing that you have wished me tc
take on myself that load which you wen
unwilling should be imposed on you. Bu
since I, unworthy and weak, have taken charge
of an old and grievously shattered ship (for 01
all sides the waves enter, and the planks
battered by a daily and violent storm, sount
of shipwreck), I beseech thee by Almight;
God to stretch out the hand of thy praye
to me in this my danger, since thou cans
pray the more strenuously as thou standes
further removed from the confusion of th
tribulations which we suffer in this land.

My svnodical epistle I will transmit with a;
possible speed, having despatched Bacaudc
our brother and fellow-bishop, immediatel
after my ordination, as the bearer of th;
letter, while pressed by many and seriou
engagements.

EPISTLE V.
To Theoctista, Sister of the Empf.ror

Gregory to Theoctista, &c

With how great devotion my mind prostratt
itself before your Venerableness 1 cann<
fully express in words ; nor yet do I labour t
give utterance to it, since, even though I we
silent, you read in your heart your own sen1

3 For notice of him, see III. 53, note.

EPISTLE V.

Df my devotion. I wonder, however, that you
withdrew your countenance, till of late bestowed
Dn me, from this my recent engagement in the
pastoral office; wherein, under colour of epis-
copacy, I have been brought back to the
world ; in which I am involved in such great
sarthly cares as I do not at all remember
having been subjected to even in a lay state of
life. For I have lost the deep joys of my
quiet, and seem to have risen outwardly while
inwardly falling down. Whence I grieve to
find myself banished far from the face of my
Maker. For I used to strive daily towin my
way outside the world, outside the flesh ; to
drive all phantasms of the body from the eyes
of my soul, and to see incorporeally supernal
oys ; and not only with my voice but in the
core of my heart I used to say, My heart hath
said unto Thee, I have sought 2 hy face, Thy
face, Lord, will I seek (Ps. xxvi. 8). Moreover
desiring nothing, fearing nothing, in this
world, I seemed to myself to stand on a cer-
tain summit of things, so that I almost be-
lieved to be fulfilled in me what I had learnt
of the Lord's promise through the prophet, /
will lift thee up upon the high places of the
earth (Isai. lviii. 14). For he is lifted up upon
the high places of the earth who treads under
foot through looking down upon them in his
mind even the very things of the present world
which seem lofty and glorious. But, having
been suddenly dashed from this summit of
things by the whirlwind of this trial, I have
fallen into fears and tremors, since, even
though I have no fears for myself, I am greatly
afraid for those who have been committed to
me. On every side I am tossed by the
waves of business, and sunk by storms, so
that I may truly say, / am come into the
depth of the sea, and the storm hath over-
whelmed me (Ps. Lxviii. 3 4). After business 1
jlong to return to my heart ; but, driven there-
from by vain tumults of thoughts, I am unable

'to return. From this cause, then, that which

... . '

:is within me is made to be far from me, so

that I cannot obey the prophetic voice which

says, Return to your heart, transgressors (Isai.

xlvi. 8). But, pressed by foolish thoughts, I

am impelled only to exclaim, My heart hath

failed me (Ps. xxxix. 13 5). I have loved the

beauty of the contemplative life as a Rachel,

I barren, but keen of sight and fair (Gen. xxix.),

who, though in her quietude she is less fertile,

yet sees the light more keenly. But, by what

judgment I know not, Leah has been coupled

with me in the night, to wit, the active life ;

fruitful, but tender-eyed ; seeing less, but

bringing forth more. I have longed to sit at

4 In English Bible, lxix. 2.

5 Ibid. xl. ia.

the feet of the Lord with Mary, to take in the
words of His mouth ; and lo, I am compelled
to serve with Martha in external affairs, to be
careful and troubled about many things (Luke
x. 39, sea.). A legion ot demons having been,
as I believed, cast out of me, I wished to forget
those whom I had known, and to rest at the
feet of the Saviour ; and lo it is said to me, so
as to compel me against my will, Return to
thine house, and declare how great things the
Lord hath done for thee (Mark v. 19). But
who in the midst of so many earthly cares may
be able to preach the wondrous works of God,
it being already difficult for me even to call
them to mind ? For, pressed as I am in this
office of dignity by a crowd of secular occupa-
tions, I see myself to be of those of whom it is
written, While they were being raised up thou
didst cast them down (Ps. lxxii. 186). For he said
not, Thou didst cast them down after they had
been raised up, but while they were being
raised up ; because all bad men fall inwardly,
while through the support of temporal dignity
they seem outwardly to rise. Wherefore their
very raising up is their fall, because, while they
rely on false glory, they are emptied of true
glory. Hence, again, he says, Consigning azvay
as smoke shall they consume away (Ps.xxxvi. 207).
For smoke in rising consumes away, and in ex-
tending itself vanishes. And so indeed it
comes to pass when present felicity accom-
panies the life of a sinner, since whereby he is
shewn to be exalted, thereby it is brought
about that he should cease to be. Hence,
again, it is written, My God, make them like a
wheel (Ps. Ixxxii. 148). For a wheel is lifted
up in its hinder parts, and in its fore parts falls.
But to us the things that are behind are the
goods of the present world, which we leave
behind us ; but the things that are before are
those which are eternal and permanent, to
which we are called, as Paul bears witness, say-
ing, Forgetting those things which are behind,
and reaching forth to those things which are
before (Phil. iii. 13). The sinner, therefore,
when he is advanced in the present life, is
made to be as a wheel, since, while falling in
the things which are before, he is lifted up in
the things which are behind. For, when he en-
joys in this life the glory which he must leave
behind, he falls from that which comes after
this life. There are indeed many who know
how so to control their outward advancement
as by no means to fall inwardly thereby.
Whence it is written, God casteth not azvay the
mighty, seeing that He also Himself is mighty
(Job xxxvi. 5). And it is said through Solomon,

6 In English Bible, Ixxiii. 18. 7 Ibid, xxxvii. 20.

8 Ibid, lxxxiii. 13.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

A man of understanding shall possess govern-
ments (Prov. i. 5). But to me these things are
difficult, since they are also exceedingly bur-
densome ; and what the mind has not received
willingly it does not control fitly. Lo, our
most serene Lord the Emperor has ordered an
ape to be made a lion. And, indeed, in virtue
of his order it can be called a lion, but a lion
it cannot be made. Wherefore his Piety must
needs himself take the blame of all my faults
and short-comings, having committed a ministry
of power to a weak agent.

EPISTLE VI.
To Narses, Patrician*.

Gregory to Narses, &c

In describing loftily the sweetness of con-
templation, you have renewed the groans of
my fallen state, since I hear what I have lost
inwardly while mounting outwardly, though
undeserving, to the topmost height of rule.
Know then that I am stricken with so great
sorrow that I can scarcely speak ; for the dark
shades of grief block up the eyes of my soul.
Whatever is beheld is sad, whatever is thought
delightful appears to my heart lamentable
For I reflect to what a dejected height of
external advancement I have mounted in
falling from the lofty height of my rest. And,
being sent for my faults into the exile of
employment from the face of my Lord, I say
with the prophet, in the words, as it were of
destroyed Jerusalem, He who should comfort
me hath departed far from me (Lam. i. 16). But
when, in seeking a similitude to express my
condition and title, you frame periods and
declamations in your letter, certainly, dearest
brother, you call an ape a lion. Herein we
see that you do as we often do, when we call
mangy whelps pards or tigers. For I, my
good man, have, as it were, lost my children,
since through earthly cares I have lost works
of righteousness. Therefore call me not Noemi,
that is fair ; but call me Mara, for I am full of
bitterness (Ruth i. 20). But as to your saying
that I ought not to have written, "That you
should plough with bubali 1 in the Lord's field,"
seeing that when in the sheet shewn to the
blessed Peter both bubali and all wild beasts
were presented to view; thou knowest thyself

9 There are other letters from Gregory to this Narses, viz. iv.
32, vi. 14, and perhaps vii. 30. He may have been the same as
the Narses who was a famous general of the Emperor Maurice,
and who was eventually burnt alive by Phocas. (Theoph., Sim!

1 The animal called /3ov'j3aAo? is described by Pliny (1. 8, c. 15)
as "animal ferum in Africa, vitulo ac cervo simile." Therefeience
in the text is to Amos vi. 12, where the Vulgate has, " Numquid
currere queunt in petris equi, aut arari potest in bubalis?" The
clause in the epistle, "ut in agro Dominico cum bubalis arares,"
appears to be a quotation from a previous letter oi Gregory's,
in which he may have announced his election to Narses.

that it is subjoined, Slay and eat (Acts x. 13).
Thou, then, who hadst not yet slain these
beasts, why didst thou already wish to eat
them through obedience ? Or knowest thou
not that the beast about which thou wrotest
refused to be slain by the sword of thy mouth ?
Thou must needs, then, satisfy the hunger of
thy desire with those whom thou hast been
able to prick and slay (Lit., to slay through
compunction) a.

Further, as to the case of our brethren, I
think that, if God gives aid, it will be as thou
hast written. It was not, however, by any
means right for me to write about it at present
to our most serene lords, since at the very
outset one should not begin with complaints.
But I have written to my well-beloved son, the
deacon Honoratus 3, that he should mention
the matter to them in a suitable manner at
a seasonable time, and speedily inform me
of their reply. I beg greetings to be given
in my behalf to the lord Alexander, the lord
Theodorus ■*, my son Marinus, the lady Esicia,
the lady Eudochia, and the lady Dominica.

EPISTLE VII.
To Anastasius, Patriarch of Antioch s.

Gregory to Anastasius, &c.

I have found what your Blessedness has
written to be as rest to the weary, as health to
the sick, as a fountain to the thirsty, as shade
to the oppressed with heat. For those words
of yours did not seem even to be expressed
by the tongue of the flesh, inasmuch as you so
disclosed the spiritual love which you bear
me as if your soul itself were speaking. But
very hard was that which followed, in that
your love enjoined me to bear earthly burdens,
and that, having first loved me spiritually, you

3 The whole passage is rather obscure to us, not having before
us the letter from Narses, which is replied to, or the previous one
from Gregory, to which Narses had referred. The drift siems
to be as follows. Gregory, in his former letter ,had compared
his being elected pope to a bubalus being set to plough in the
Lord's field. Narses had replied to the effect that, even if he
were a bubalus, he was not therefore unfit, since bubali, with
other wild beasts, had been in St. Peter's sheet, and pronounced
clean. To this Gregory now rejoins, " Yes ; but those beasts
were to be slain before they might be eaten ; and so you must
first slay mz per compuuetionetn — i.e. by so pricking me with ' the
sword of your mouth ' as to induce me to comply — before you
may eat me per obedientiam — i.e. make use of me in the way
you wish through my obedience to your desire. Not being thus
so far slain, I have a right to protest against being made pope
against my will "

3 Honoratus was at this time Gregory's apocrisiarius at Con-
stantinople. We find several letters addressed to him in this
capacity, but none throwing light on the case here referred to.

4 Theodorus was the court physician at Constantinople, to
whom Epistles III. 66, IV. 31, VII. 28, are addressed.

5 Anastasius had been threatened with deposition and exile
(a.d. 563) by the Emperor Justinian, and the sentence had been
carried into effect (a.d. 570) by Justinian's successor, Justin II.
Notwithstanding this, Gregory after his own accession acknow-
ledged him as the true patriarch of Antioch ; and, probably owing
to his intercession with the Emperor Maurice, Anastasius was
restored to his patriarchal See on the death of Gregory, who had
been intruded into it, a.d. 593. Other Epistles to, or concerning
this Anastasius are I. 25, 26, 28; V. 39; VII. 27, 33; VIII. 2.

EPISTLE X.

afterwards, loving me as I think in temporal
wise, pressed me down to the ground with the
burden you laid upon me ; so that, losing
utterly all uprightness of soul, and forfeiting
the keen vision of contemplation, I may say,
not in the spirit of prophecy, but from
experience, I am bowed down and brought low
altogether (Ps. cxviii. 107 6). For indeed such
great burdens of business press me down that
my mind can in no wise lift itself up to
heavenly things. I am tossed by the billows
of a multitude of affairs, and, after the ease of
my former quiet, am afflicted by the storms of
a tumultuous life, so that I may truly say, /
am come into the depth of the sea, and the storm
hath overwhelmed me (Ps. lxviii. 3 ?). Stretch
out, therefore, the hand of your prayer to me
in my danger, you that stand on the shore of
virtue. But as to your calling me the mouth
and the lantern of the Lord, and alleging that
I profit many, this also adds to the load of my
iniquities, that, when my iniquity ought to
have been chastised, I receive praises instead
of chastisement. But with what a bustle of
earthly business I am distracted in this place,
I cannot express in words ; yet you can gather
it from the shortness of this letter, in which I
say so little to him who I love above all others.
Further, I apprize you that I have requested
our most serene lords with all possible urgency
to allow you to come to the threshold of Peter,
the prince of the apostles, with your dignity
restored to you, and to live here with me so
long as it may please God; to the end that,
as long as I am accounted worthy of seeing
you, we may relieve the weariness of our
pilgrimage by speaking to each other of the
heavenly country

EPISTLE IX.
To Peter the Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

Gregory, a servant of God, presbyter and
abbot of the monastery of Saint Theodore in
the province of Sicily constituted in the ter-
ritory of Panormus, has given us to understand
that men of the farm of Fulloniacus, which
belongs to the holy Roman Church, are en-
deavouring to encroach on the boundaries of
the farm of Gerdinia, bordering on the said
farm of the holy Roman Church, which they
[7. e. monks of St. Theodore] have possessed
without dispute for innumerable years. And
for this cause we desire you to go to the city
of Panormus, and investigate the question in
such sort (with the view of the right of posses-
sion remaining with those who have had it

heretofore) that, if you shall find that the
aforesaid monastery of Saint Theodore has
possessed the boundaries concerning which
the dispute has arisen without disturbance for
forty years, you shall not allow it to suffer any
damage, even though it were to the advantage
of the holy Roman Church, but provide in all
ways for its undisturbed security. But, if the
agents of the holy Roman Church should
shew that the monastery has not been in pos-
session without dispute of its right for forty
years, but that any question has been raised
within that time concerning the said bound-
aries, let it be set at rest peaceably and legally
by arbitrators chosen for the purpose. For
not only do we wish that questions of wrong-
doing that have never yet been mooted should
be raised, but also that such as have been
raised by others than ourselves should be
speedily set at rest. Let thy Experience,
therefore, cause all to be so effectively ad-
justed, that no question relating to this matter
may be hereafter referred to us again. Further,
we desire that the testament of Bacauda, late
Xenodochus, continue valid as when first made.
The month of November : ninth Indiction.

EPISTLE X.

To Bacauda and Agnellus, Bishops.

Gregory to Bacauda, &c

The Hebrews dwelling in Terracina have
petitioned us for licence to hold, under our
authority, the site of their synagogue which
thev have held hitherto. But, inasmuch as
we have been informed that the same site is
so near to the church that even the sound of
their psalmody reaches it, we have written to
our brother and fellow-bishop Peter that, if it
is the case that the voices from the said place
are heard in the church, the Jews must cease
to worship there. Therefore let your Fra-
ternity, with our above-named brother and
fellow -bishop, diligently inspect this place,
and if you find that there has been any an-
noyance to the church, provide another place
within the fortress, where the aforesaid He-
brews may assemble, so that they may be able
to celebrate their ceremonies without impedi-
ment 8. But let your Fraternity provide such
a place, in case of their being deprived of this
one, that there be no cause of complaint in
future. But we forbid the aforesaid Hebrews
to be oppressed or vexed unreasonably ; but,

6 In English Bible, cxix. 107.

7 Ibid. Ixix. 2.

8 For the result of this order, see below, Ep. 35. For other
instances of Gregory's tolerant attitude towards Jews, and his Ue-
precation of force being used for their conversion, see that Epistle,
and also I. 47 I I*- 6. But he is strict in prohibiting thelr
possession of slaves who were already, or might become, Chris-
tians, and will allow them no compensation lor the loss oi such
(ct. iii. 38 ; IV. 9, 21 ; IX. 109, no).

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

as they are permitted, in accordance with
justice, to live under the protection of the
Roman laws, let them keep their observances
as they have learnt them, no one hindering
them : yet let it not be allowed them to have
Christian slaves.

EPISTLE XI.

To Clemen una, Patrician'.

Gregory to Clementina, &c.

Having received your Glory's letter, speak-
ing of the passing away of the late Eutherius
of magnificent memory, we give you to under-
stand that our mind no less than yours is
disturbed by such a sorrow, in that we see
how men of approved repute are by degrees
removed from this world, whose ruin is already
evidenced in the actual effects of the causes
thereof. But it becomes us to withdraw our-
selves from it by the wise precaution of con-
version1, lest it involve us too in its own ruin.
And indeed our sorrow for the loss of friends
ought to be the more tolerable as our con-
dition of mortality requires from us that we
should lose them. Nevertheless, for the loss
of aid to our carnal life He Who -ranted per-
mission for its removal is powerful to console,
and to come Himself as a comforter into the
vacant place.

That we are unable to : to your re-

quest that the deacon Anatholius should be
sent to you is due to the circumstam es of the
case, and not to any rigorous austerity. For
we have appointed him our steward -', having
committed our episcopal residence to his
management.

EPISTLE XII.

To John, Bishop of Urbs Vetus
( Orvieio).

Gregory to John, &c.

Agapitus, abbot of the monastery of St.
George, informs us that he endures many
grievances from your Holiness; and not only
in things that might be of service to the
monastery in time of need, but that you even
prohibit the celebration of masses in the said
monastery, and also interdict burial of the
dead there. Now, if this is so, we exhort you
to desist from such inhumanity, and allow the
dead to be buried, and masses to be cele-
brated there without any further opposition,
lest the aforesaid venerable Agapitus should
be compelled to complain anew concerning
the matters referred to.

9 Another Epistle, X. 15, is addressed to the same lady.

1 The word conversio commonly denotes entering a monastery.

- Vicedominum.

EPISTLE XVI.
To Severus, Bishop of Aquileia3.

Gregory to Severus, &c.

As, when one who walks through devious
ways takes anew the r'ght path, the Lord em-
brices him with all eagerness, so afterwards,
when one deserts the way of truth, He is more
saddened with grief for him than He rejoiced
over him with joy when he turned from error;
since it is a less degree of sin not to know the
truth than not to abide in it when known :
and what is committed in error is one thing, j
but what is perpetrated knowingly is another. |
And we, from having formerly rejoiced in thy
being incorporated in the unity of the Church,
are now the more abundantly distressed for
thy dissociation from the catholic society.
Accordingly we desire thee, at the instance of
the bearer of these presents, according to the
command of the most Christian and most
serene Emperor, to come with thy adherents
to the threshold of the blessed Apostle Peter,
that, a synod 1 assembled by the will of

God, judgment may be passed concerning the
doubt that is entertained among you.

EPISTLE XVII.

To all the Bishops of Italy.

( Iregorj to all, X:c.

Inasmuch as the abominable Autharit*
during this Easter solemnity which has been
latch completed, forbade children of Lom-
bards being baptized in the catholic faith,
for which sin the I >ivine Majesty cut him off,
so that he should not see the solemnity of
another Easter, it becomes your Fraternity
to warn all the Lombards in your districts,
seeing that grievous mortality is everywhere

3 The bishops of Istria, of whom the bishop of Aquileia was

politan, still refused to accept the decree of the fifth (Ecu-
menical Council, which had, under the dictation of the- Emperot
Justinian, condemned certain writings of three deceased prelates,
Theodore of Mopsuesta, Theodoret, and Ibas, called "' the three
chapters " (tria cnpiUila). Severus, the Metropolitan, summoned
in this letter with his suffragans to Rome, disregarded the sum-
mons, going instead, at the instance of the Exarch Smaragdus, to
Ravenna, where he remained a year. On his return to his See
he still held out, though many of his bishops conformed. A schism
hence ensued in Istria, which continued during the life of Gn
(Joan. Diac. Vit. S. Greg. iv. 37, 38). Other Epistles referring
to the Istrian schism are II. 46, 51 ; y. 51 ; IX. 9, 10 ; XIII. 33.

4 Autharit (a/. Autharith, called by Paul. I >iac. Authari),
who died at Pavia in this year (a.i>. 591) had been king of the
Lombards for six years, having effected extensive conquests in
Italy. " Rex Authari apud Ticinutn Nonas Septembris veneno,
ut tradunt, accepto moritur, postquam sex regnaverat annos."
{P'lul. Diac. de gestis Longob. iii. 36). It is he who is said to
have advanced to Rhegium at the toe of Italy, and there, riding
up to a pillar in the sea, to have touched it with the point of his
spear, and said, '' As tar as this shall the boundaries of the Lorn*
bards extend." {Paul. Diac. iii. 33.) He had been a determined
Arian. He was succeeded by Agilulph, whom his widow Theo-
delinda, a Catholic Bavarian princess, selected as her onsort.
With her Gregory carried on a very friendly correspondence, and,
probably through her influence, Agilulph himself, originally an
Arian, is said to have been converted to Catholicity. Gregory's

etters to Theodelinda are IV. 4, 38 ; IX. 43 ; XIV. 12.

EPISTLE XX.

imminent, that they should reconcile these
their children who have been baptized in
Arian heresy to the catholic faith, and so
appease the wrath of the Almighty Lord which
hangs over them. Warn, then, those whom
you can ; with all the power of persuasion
'}OU possess seize on them, and bring them
to a right faith ; preach to them eternal life
without end ; that, when you shall come into
the sight of the strict judge, you may be able,
in consequence of your solicitude, to shew
in your own persons a shepherd's gains.

EPISTLE XVIII.

To Peter the Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

We have been informed that Marcellus
of the Barutanian Church, who has had pen-
ance assigned him in the monastery of Saint
Adrian in the same city of Panormus, not only
is in want of food, but also suffers incon-
venience from scarcity of clothing. Therefore
we hold it necessary to enjoin your Activity
by this present order to appoint for him as
much as you may see to be needful in the
way of food clothing and bedding for his own
maintenance, and provision for his servant ;
so that his want and nakedness may be pro-
vided for with such timely care that what you
assign to this same man may be reckoned
afterwards to your own account. So act,
therefore, that you may both fulfil our com-
mand, and also by ordering this very thing
well you may be able yourself to partake of
the profit of the same. Further, there is this
other matter that we enjoin you to look to
without regard to the old custom that has
now grown up ; namely, that if any cities in
the province of Sicily, for their sins, are known
to be without pastoral government through
the lapses of their priests, you should see
whether there be any worthy of the office ot
priesthood among the clergy of the churches
themselves, or out of the monasteries, and,
after first enquiring into the gravity of their
behaviour, send them to us, that the flock
of each place may not be found destitute for
any length of time through the lapse of its
pastor. But if you should discover any vacant
place in which no one of the same church
is found fitted for such a dignity, send us word
after the like careful enquiry, that some one
may be provided whom God may have judged
worthy of such ordination. For it is not right
I that from the deviation of one the Lord's flock
should be in danger of wandering abroad
among precipices without a shepherd. For
ithus both the administration of places will
sto on, and there will remain no suspicion

of the lapsed being restored to their former
rank ; and so may they repent the better.

EPISTLE XIX.

To Natalis, Bishop of Salona'.

Gregory to Natalis, &c.

The acts of your synod which you have
transmitted to us, in which the Archdeacon
Honoratus is condemned, we perceive to be
full of the seed of strifes, seeing that the same
person is at one and the same time advanced
to the dignity of the priesthood against his
will, and removed from the office of the dia-
conate as though unworthy of it. And, as
it is just that no one who is unwilling should
be advanced by compulsion, so I think we
must be of opinion that no one who is innocent
should be deposed from the ministry of his
order unjustly. Nevertheless, since discord
hateful to God excuses thy part in the trans-
action, we admonish thee to restore his place
and administration to the Archdeacon Hon-
oratus, and agree to supply him with atten-
dance sufficient for his divine ministry. If
cause of offence is still fomented between you,
let the aforesaid Archdeacon submit himself
to our audience and enquiry, when admon-
ished to do so, and let thy iove send to us
a person instructed in the case, that in the
presence of both, the Lord assisting us, we
may be able to decide what justice approves
without respect of persons.

EPISTLE XX.

To Honoratus, Deacon of Salona.

Gregory to Honoratus, &c.

Having read the contradictory letters which
thou and thy bishop have addressed to us
against each other, we grieve that there is so
little charity between you. Nevertheless we
enjoin thee to continue in the administration
of thy office, and, if the cause of offence be-
tween you can, under the power of grace,
be settled on the spot, we believe it will be

5 Salona was the metropolis of the province of Dalmatia in
Western Illyricum. The misdoings of its bishop, Natalis, gave
rise to a lemjthy correspondence. See, in addition to this letter,
I 20 • II. 18, 19, 20, 52 ; III. 8, 32. He had, as appears from
this letter and others, desired to get rid of his archdeacon Hon-
oratus, having apparently some grudge against him, and with
this view would have ordained him priest against his will, none
but deacons being then capable of holding the office of archdeacon.
He was accused also of addiction to unbecoming conviviality, and
of neglecting his episcopal duties. Eventually, after continued
contumacy, he appears to have satisfied Gregory in the matter ot
Honoratus, and also to have reformed his own habits of life, after
writing what appears from Gregory's reply to it to have been
a racy letter in defence of conviviality, which was taken in good,
part and replied to in a good-humoured vein (II. 52)- Gregory
subsequently said of him," I was at one time much distressed con-
cerning our brother and fellow bishop Natalis, having experienced
proud behaviour from him. But since he has himself corrected his
manners, he has overcome me, and comforted my sadness (.11- 4*).

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

greatly to the advantage of your souls. But
in case the discord between you has so set
you in arms against each other that you have
no will to allay the swelling of your offence,
do thou without delay come to be heard before
us, and let thy bishop send to us on his own
behalf such person as he may choose, fur-
nished with instructions ; that, after minutely
considering the whole case, we may settle
what may appear fit between the parties. But
we would have thee know that we shall make
strict enquiry of thee on all points, as to
whether the ornaments6, either those of
thine own church, or such as have been
collected from various churches, are being
now kept with all care and fidelity. For,
if any of them shall be found to have been
lost through negligence or through any person's
dishonesty, thou wilt be involved in the guilt
of this, being, in virtue of thy office of Arch-
deacon, peculiarly responsible for the custody
of the said church.

EPISTLE XXI.
To Natalts, Bishop of Salona?.

Gregory to Natalis, &c

We have received at the hands of the
deacon Stephen, whom you sent to us, the
letters of thy Reverence, wherein you con-
gratulate us on our promotion. And truly
what has been offered in the kindness and
earnestness of charity demands full credence,
reason having prompted your pontifical order
to rejoice with us. We therefore, being
cheered by your greeting, declare in con-
science that I undertook the burden of this
dignity with a sick heart. But, seeing that
I could not resist the divine decrees, I have
recovered a more cheerful frame of mind.
Wherefore we write to entreat your Reverence
that both we and the Christian flock com-
mitted to our care may enjoy the succour of
your prayers, to the end that in the security
of that protection we may have power to
overcome the hurricanes of these times.

The month of February, ninth indiction

EPISTLE XXV.
To John, Bishop of Constantinople,

AND THE OTHER PATRIARCHS.

Gregory, to John of Constantinople, Eulo-
gius of Alexandria, Gregory of Antioch, John

6 Cunelia, from Gr. <cct/uijAia.

7 This appears to have been the formal answer to the official
letter sent by the bishop of Salona to Gregory, congratulating him
on his accession to the popedom, having no connexion with, and
perhaps written before, the preceding Epistle XIX

of Jerusalem, and Anastasias, Ex-Patriarch of
Antioch. A paribus 8.

When I consider how, unworthy as I am,
and resisting with my whole soul, I have been
compelled to bear the burden of pastoral care,
a darkness of sorrow comes over me, and my
sad heart sees nothing else but the shadows
which allow nothing to be seen. For to what
end is a bishop chosen of the Lord but to be
an intercessor for the offences of the people ?
With what confidence, then, can I come as
an intercessor for the sins of others to Him
before Whom I am not secure about my own ?
If perchance any one should ask me to be-
come his intercessor with a great man who
was incensed against him, and to myself un-
known, I should at once reply, I canr.ot go
to intercede for you, having no knowledge
of that man from familiar acquaintance with
him. If then, as man with man, I should
properly blush to become an intercessor with
one on whom I had no claim, how great is
the audacity of my obtaining the place of
intercessor for the people with God, whose
friendship I am not assured of through the
merit of my life! And in this matter I find
a still more serious cause of alarm, since we
all know well that, when one who is in dis-
favour is sent to intercede with an incensed
person, the mind of the latter is provoked to
still greater severity. And I am greatly afraid
lest the community of believers, whose offences
the Lord has so far indulgently borne with,
should perish through the addition of my
guilt to theirs. But, when in one way or an-
other I suppress this fear, and with mind con-
soled give myself to the care of my pontifical
office, I am deterred by consideration of the
immensity of this very task.

" For indeed I consider with myself what
watchful care is needed that a ruler may be
pure in thought, chief in action, discreet in
keeping silence, profitable in speech, a near
neighbour to every one in sympathy, exalted
above all in contemplation, a companion of
good livers through humility, unbending
against the vices of evil-doers through zeal
for righteousness 9." All which things when
I try to search out with subtle investigation,
the very wideness of the consideration cramps
me in the particulars. For, as I have already
said, there is need of the greatest care that
"the ruler be pure in thought, &c." [A long
passage, thus beginning, and ending with

8 A paribus denotes that the Epistle is a copy of an identical
one that has been sent to more than one person, exemtlis being
perhaps understood. Cf. I. 80; VI. 52, 54, s8 ; IX. 60, 106.

9 What is here printed between inverted commas, with much
of what has come before, occurs also in Regula Pastoralis, II. 1.
So also long passages afterwards, as will be seen.

EPISTLE XXV.

"beyond the limit of order," is found also in
Regida Pastoralis, Pt. II. ch. 2, which see.]

Again, when I betake myself to consider
the works required of the pastor, I weigh
within myself what intent care is to be taken
that he be " chief in action, to the end that
by his living, he may point out the way of
life to them that are put under him, &c."
[See Reg. Past., Pt. II. ch. 3, to the end.]

Again, when I betake myself to consider

the duty of the pastor as to speech and

: silence, I weigh within myself with trembling

'care how very necessary it is that he should

be discreet in keeping silence and profitable

;in speech, "lest he either utter what ought to

be suppressed or suppress what ought to be

uttered, &c." [See Reg. Past., III., 4, down

to " keep the unity of the faith.""

Again, when I betake myself to consider
what manner of man the ruler ought to be
in sympathy, and what in contemplation, I
iweigh within myself that he "should be a
near neighbour to every one in sympathy,
land exalted above all in contemplation, to
;the end that through the bowels of loving-
kindness, &c." [See Rig. Past., Pt. II. ch. 5,
to the end.]

Again, when I betake myself to consider
what manner of man the ruler outrht to be

in humility, and what in strictness, I weigh
within myself how necessary it is that he
("should be, through humility, a companion
!to good livers, and, through the zeal of right-
eousness rigid against the vices of evil-doers,
&c." [See Regula Pastoralis, Pt. II. ch. 6,
down to "towards the perverse;" there being
;only a slight variation, not affecting the sense,
in the wording of the concluding clause.]
For hence it is that "Peter who had received
ifrom God, &c." [See Reg. Past., Pt. II. ch. 6,
idown to " dominates over vices rather than
:Over his brethren."] He orders well the
:authority he has received who has learnt both
to maintain it and to keep it in check. He
jorders it well who knows how both through
it to tower above sins, and with it to set
(himself on an equality with other men.

Moreover, the virtue of humility ought to
be so maintained that the rights of govern-
Iment be not relaxed; lest, when any prelate
has lowered himself more than is becoming,
.he be unable to restrain the life of his sub-
ordinates under the bond of discipline ; and
the severity of discipline is to be so main-
tained that gentleness be not wholly lost
through the over-kindling of zeal. For often
vices shew themselves off as virtues, so that
(niggardliness would fain appear as frugality,
extravagance as liberality, cruelty as righteous
zeal, laxity as loving-kindness. Wherefore

VOL. XII. 1

both discipline and mercy are far from what
they should be, if one be maintained without
the other. But there ought to be kept up
with great skill of discernment both mercy
justly considerate, and discipline smiting
kindly. " For hence it is that, as the Truth
teaches (Luke x. 34), the man is brought by
the care of the Samaritan, &c." [See Rrg.
Past., Pt. II. ch. 6, down to "manna of sweet-
ness.'"']

Thus, having undertaken the burden of
pastoral care, when I consider all these things
and many others of like kind, I seem to be
what I cannot be, especially as in this place
whosoever is called a Pastor is onerously occu-
pied by external cares ; so that it often be-
comes uncertain whether he exercises the
function of a pastor or of an earthly noble.
And indeed whosoever is set over his brethren
to rule them cannot be entirely free from
external cares; and yet there is need of ex-
ceeding care lest he be pressed down by them
too much. " Whence it is rightly said to
Ezekiel, The priests shall not shave their
heads, &c." [See Reg. Past., Pt. II., ch. 7,
to the end.]

But in this place I see that no such discreet
management is possible, since cases of such
importance hang over me daily as to o\er-
whelrn the mind, while they kill the bodily
life. Wherefore, most holy brother, I beseech
thee by the Judge who is to come, by the
assembly of many thousand angels, by the
Church of the fmtborn who are written in
heaven, help me, wlio am growing weary
under this burden of pastoral care, with the
intercession of thy prayer, lest its weight op-
press me beyond my strength. But, being
mindful of what is written, Pray for one an-
other, that ye may be healed (James v. 16),
I give also what I ask for. But I shall
receive what I give. For, while we are joined
to you through the aid of prayer, we hold
as it were each other by the hand while walk-
ing through slippery places, and it comes to
pass, through a great provision of charity, that
the foot of each is the more firmly planted in
that one leans upon the other.

Besides, since with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness, and with the mouth con-
fession is made unto salvation, I confess that
I receive and revere, as the four books of the
Gospel so also the four Councils : to wit, the
Nicene, in which the perverse doctrine of
Arius is overthrown; the Constantinopolitan
also, in which the error of Eunomius and
Macedonius is refuted; further, the first
Ephesine, in which the impiety of Nestorius
is condemned ; and the Chalcedonian, in
which the pravity of Eutyches and Dioscorus

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

is reprobated. These with full devotion I
embrace, and adhere to with most entire ap-
proval ; since on them, as on a four-square
j tone, rises the structure of the holy faith ;
and whosoever, of whatever life and be-
haviour he may be, holds not fast to their
solidity, even though he is seen to be a stone,
yet he lies outside the building. The fifth
council also I equally venerate, in which the
epistle which is called that of Ibas, full of
error, is reprobated ; Theodorus, who divides
the Mediator between God and men into two
subsistences, is convicted of having fallen into
the perfidy of impiety ; and the writings of
Theodoritus, in which the faith of the blessed
Cyril is impugned, are refuted as having been
published with the daring of madness. But
all persons whom the aforesaid venerable
Councils repudiate I repudiate ; those whom
they venerate I embrace ; since, they having
been constituted by universal consent, he
overthrows not them but himself, whosoever
presumes either to loose those whom they
bind, or to bind those whom they loose.
Whosoever, therefore, thinks otherwise, let
him be anathema. But whosoever holds the
faith of the aforesaid s)iiods, peace be to him
from God the Father, through Jesus Christ
His Son, Who lives and reigns consub-
stantially God with Him in the Unity of the
Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

EPISTLE XXVI.

To Anastasius, Patriarch of Antioch.

[The beginning of this epistle is the same as
that of Epistle VII. to the same Anastasius
as far as the words " stand on the shore of
virtue" ; after which it is continued as follows. |

But, as to your calling me the mouth and
lantern of the Lord, and alleging that I profit
many by speaking, and am able to give light to
many, I confess that you have brought me into
a state of the greatest doubt in my estimate of
myself. For I consider what I am, and detect
in myself no sign of all this good. But 1
consider also what you are, and I do not think
that you can lie. When, then, I would believe
what you say, my infirmity contradicts me.
When I would dispute what is said in my
praise, your sanctity contradicts me. But I
pray you, holy man, let us come to some agree-
ment in this our contest, that, though it is not
as you say, it may be so because you say it.
Moreover, I have addressed my synodical
epistle to you, as to the other patriarchs, your
brethren ' ; inasmuch as with me you are

1 The Benedictine Editors adopt the reading /-atribus instead
cfifiatribits. But the sense seems to require the latter.

always what it has been granted you to be by i
the gift of Almighty God, without regard to j
what you are accounted not to be by the will
of men2. I have given some instructions to
Boniface the guardian (defensor?), who is the
bearer of these presents, for him to communi-
cate to your holiness in private. Moreover,
I have sent you keys of the blessed apostle
Peter, who loves you, which are wont to shine
forth with many miracles when placed on the
bodies of sick persons 3.

EPISTLE XXVII.

To Anastasius, Archbishop of Corinth.

Gregory to Anastasius, <S:c.
In proportion as the judgments of God are
unsearchable ought they to be an object of
fear to human apprehension ; so that mortal

hi. being unable to comprehend them, may
of necessity bow under them the neck of a
humble heart, to the end that it may follow
with the mind's obedient steps where the will
of the Ruler may lead. I, then, considering
that my infirmity cannot reach to the height of
theapostoli* Sec. had rather have declined this

en, lest, having pastoral rule, I should suc-
cumb in action through inadequate administra-
tion. But, since it is not for us to go against
the will of the Lord who disposes ail, 1 obe-
diently followed the way in which it pleased
the merciful hand of the Ruler to deal with me.

it was necessary that your fraternity should
be informed, even though the present oppor-
tunity had not occurred, how the Lord had
vouchsafed that I, however unworthy, should pre-
side over the apostolic See. Since, then, reason
required this to be done, and an opportunity
having occurred through our sending to you
the bearer of these presents, that is, Boniface
the guardian (tiefe/isoj-em), we are careful not only
to offer to your Fraternity by letter the good
wishes of charity, but also to inform you of our
ordination, as we believe you would wish us to
do. Wherefore let your Charity, by a letter in
reply, cause us to rejoice for the unity of the
Church and the acceptable news of your own
welfare; to the end that our bodily absence
from each other, which distance of place causes
us to endure, may become as presence through
interchange of letters. We exhort you, also,
since we have despatched the above-mentioned

a See Ep. 7, note i.

3 Keys of St. Peter's sepulchre, in which had been inserted
filings irom his alleged chains preserved at Rome, were often
sent by Gregory to distinguished friends (cf. III. 48; VI. 6;
VII. 26 ; VIII. 35 ; IX. 122 ; XI. 66), to be hung round the neck
(VI. 6), or deposited (XI. 66), or used for healing. For an
account of how the filings were obtained, see IV. 30. In one
instance the key is described as being of gold (VII. 26). To
Eulogius of Alexandria is sent a small cross containing filings from
the chains, to be applied to his sore eyes.

EPISTLE XXXIII.

bearer of these presents on certain necessary
business to the feet of the most clement prince,
and since the mutability of the time is wont to
generate many hindrances on the way, that
your priestly affection would bestow upon
him whatever may be necessary either in pro-
vision for his journey by land or in procuring
for him the means of navigation, that through
God's mercy, he may be able the more quickly
to accomplish his intended journey.

EPISTLE XXVIII.

To Sebastian, Bishop of Rhisinum [in
DalmatiaA.

Gregory to Sebastian, &c.

Although I deserved to receive no letters
from your Blessedness, yet I also do not forget
my own forgetfulness ; I blame my negligence,
I stir up my sluggishness with goads of love,
that one who will not pay what he owes of his
own accord, may learn even under blows to ren-
der it. Furthermore, I inform you that I have
prepared a full representation, with urgent
prayers to our most pious lords, to the effect
that they ought to have sent the most blessed
lord patriarch Anastasius, with the use of the
pallium granted him, to the threshold of the
blessed Peter, prince of the apostles, to cele-
brate with me the solemnities of Mass ; to the
end that, though he were not allowed to return
to his See, he might at least live with me, re-
taining his dignity. But of the reason that has
arisen for keeping back what I had thus
written the bearer of these presents will inform
you. Nevertheless, ascertain the mind of the
said lord Anastasius, and inform me in your
letters of whatever he may wish to be done in
this business *.

EPISTLE XXIX.

To Aristobulus, Ex-prefect and
Antjgraphuss.

Gregory to Aristobulus, &c.

For fully expressing my affection I confess that
my tongue suffices not : but your own affection
will better tell you all that I feel towards you.
I have heard that you are suffering from certain
oppositions. But I am not greatly grieved for
this, since it is often the case that a ship which
might have reached the depths of the ocean
had the breeze been favourable is driven back
by an opposing wind at the very beginning of
its voyage, but by being driven back is recalled

* See Ep. 7, note i.

5 I.e. Secretary. " Scriptor idem est et cancellarius .
rescribit Uteris missis ad dominum suum.' Du Cange.

into port. Furthermore, if you should by any
chance receive for interpretation a lengthy
letter of mine, translate it, I pray you, not
word for word, but so as to give the sense;
since usually, when close rendering of the
words is attended to, the force of the ideas is
lost.

EPISTLE XXXIII.

To Romanus, Patrician.
Italy.

and Exarch of

. quod
G

Gregory to Romanus, &c.

Even though there were no immediate cause
for writing to your Excellency, yet we ought to
shew solicitude for your health and safety, so
as to learn through frequent intercommunica-
•tion what we desire to hear about you. Be-
sides, it has come to our knowledge that
Blandus, bishop of the city of Plortanum 6, has
been detained now for a long time by your
Excellency in the city of Ravenna. And the
result is that the Church decays, being without
a ruler, and the people as being without a
shepherd; and infants there, for their sins,
die without baptism 7. And again, since we do
not believe that your Excellency has detained
him except on the ground of some probable
transgression, it is proper that a synod should
be held to bring to light any crime that is
charged against him. And, if such fault is
found in him as to lead to his degradation
from the priesthood, it is necessary that we
should look out fcr another to be ordained,
lest the Church of God should remain un-
tended, and destitute in what the Christian
religion does not allow it to be without. But,
if your Excellency should perceive that the
case is otherwise with him than it is said to be,
allow him, I pray you, to return to his church,
that he may fulfil his duty to the souls com-
mitted to his charge.

The month of March ; the ninth Indiction.

6 A1. Orta, in Tuscia.

7 This alleged consequence of the bishop's absence from his See
does not imply that he alone could administer baptism, but only
that his authorization was required lor its administration. See
Bingham, Bk. II. ch. iii. Sect. 3, 4, and references there given:
e.g. Ignat. Ep. ad Smym. n. viii., "It is not lawful either to
baptize or celebrate the Eucharist without the bishop ; but that
which he allows is well-pleasing to God:" Hieron. Dialog.
c. Lucifer, p. 139, " Thence it comes, that, without the order
of the bishop neither presbyter nor deaccn has the right of bap-
tizing ; " Can. A post. c. xxxviii., " Let the presbyters and deacons
execute no office without the knowledge of the bishop ; for it is to
him that the Lord's people are committed, and he must give
an account of their souls." It was usual in episcopal cities to have
only one baptistery, connected with the bishop's church ; and
there all would be baptized, if not by the bishop himself (who was
accounted the chief minister of baptism), yet under his direction
and superintendence. Cf. Bingham, Bk. VIII., ch. vii., Sect. 6
Bk. XI., ch. vii.. Sect. 12, 13.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE XXXIV.

To Venantius, ex-monk, Patrician of
Syracuse 8.

Gregory to Venantius, &c.

Many foolish men have supposed that, if
I were advanced to the rank of the episcopate,
I should decline to address thee, or to keep
up communication with thee by letter. But
this is not so ; since I am compelled by the
very necessity of my position not to hold my
peace. For it is written, Cry aloud, spare not,
lift up thy voice like a trumpet (Isai. lviii. i).
And again it is written, / have given thee for
a watchman unto the house of Israel, thou shall

8 The relations of Gregory to this Venantius are interesting ;
other letters throwing light on them being III. 60; VI. 43, 4 ( ;
IX. 123 ; XI. 30, 35, 36, 78. Venantius was a patrician, resident
in Sicily, who, having become a monk, had discovered that he had
mistaken his vocation and returned to secular life. In the letter
before us he is kindly, but very earnestly, written to, in the hope
of inducing him to retrace a step which, from Gregory's point
of view, was so dangerous to his friend's soul. But the remon-
strance was in vain. Venantius appears, from an allusion in the
letter, to have been associated with a literary set of friends who
took a view of the purpose of life not in accordance with the
monastic theory: and other motives may have disposed him to
listen to their advice, since we find him afterwards married to
a lady called Italica, She appears to have been, like Venantius,
of patrician rank, and resident in Sicily, and to have possessed
property there ; for see III. 60, an epistle addressed to " Italica
Patricia," remonstrating with her for her alleged harsh treatment
of certain poor people, who were under the protection 01 the
Church. It appears from this letter that Gregory had known her
previously, and it is observable that he makes allusion to her
personal charms (pulchritndo in supcrjicie corpora,}. There
being no allusion in this letter to any husband, it cannot be con-
cluded that she was, at the time when it was written, married
to Venantius : but we may reasonably suppose her to have been
the same Italica who was subsequently addressed as his wife,
for see IX. 123, " Domno Venantio patncio et Italics jugalibus."
The marriage may possibly have taken place soon afiei I
first letter to Venantius. which, if the d«te assigned be correct,
was written in the 9th Indiction (a.d. 590-1). It cannot well have
been much later, since in the 41I1 Indiction, i.e. a.i>. 600-1 (still
supposingthe assigned dates correct) there were two girls, the issue
of the marriage, who were also written to by Gregory alter their
father's death, and seem then to have been already old enough to
be betrothed. See XI. 35, 36, 78. At some time subsequent
to his marriage we find a letter of serious admonition addn
to Venantius (VI. 43), who had quarrelled with his bishop on
some matters of business, and acted violently.

But, notwithstanding all such causes for displeasure, Gregory
continued on terms of cordial friendship with the married couple,
and took a warm interest in their children. Having heard of
Venantius being dangerously ill, he wrote a letter of sympathy,
addressed to him and his wife jointly, and at the end sent greetings
to his " most sweet daughters, the lady Barbara and the lady
Antonina " (IX. 123). Subsequently, when Venantius was suffer-
ing from gout, he addressed him earnestly, but kindly ; and, when
he was on his death-bed, and the inheritance of the daughters was
in jeopardy owing to certain claims made by certain persons on
their father's estate, he wrote a short kind letter to the little ladies,
bidding them keep up their spirits so as to comfort their father,
assuring them that he himself would protect them after their
father's death, and speaking of the debt of gratitude he owed
for the goodness to himself of both their parents. The mother
not being written to, or alluded to as alive, may be supposed
to have died previously. At the same time he wrote to John,
bishop of Syracuse (the same bishop with whom Venantius had
been once for a time at variance), urging him to do what he could
to induce Venantius, even in his last moments, to resume the
monastic habit for the safety of his soul, and no less urgently
charging him to take up the cause of the orphan girls. Lastly
(XI. 87), the girls are once more addressed by Gregory in a kind
letter, from which it seems that, young as they must have been,
marriage was already in contemplation for them, and in which he
expresses his hope of seeing them at Rome. The correspondence
thus summarised is peculiarly interesting, as shewing both Gre-
gory's strong sense of the sin and danger to the soul of returning
to the world from the monastic life, and also the continuance
of his friendship and affection to one who had thus sinned, and
the interest he could still take in his domestic happiness and
the welfare of his family.

hear the word at my mouth, and declare it to
them from me (Ezek. iii. 17). And what
follows to the watchman or to the hearer
from such declaration being kept back or
uttered is forthwith intimated; If, when I say
to the wicked, Thou shall surely die, thou de-
clare it not to him, nor speak to him, that he
may turn from his wicked way and live, the
wicked man himself shall die in his iniquity •
but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet
if thou declare it to the wicked, and he turn not
fiom his iniquity and from his wicked way, he
himself indeed shall die in his iniquity, but
thou hast delivered thy soul. Hence also Paul
says to the Ephesians, My hands are pi/re this
day from the blood of all of you. For I have
not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel
of God (Acts xx. 26, 27). He would not,
then, have been pure from the blood of all,
had he refused to declare unto them the
counsel of God. For when the pastor refuses
to rebuke those that sin, there is no doubt
that in holding his peace he slays them. Com-
pelled, therefore, by this consideration, I will
speak whether you will or no ; for with all
my powers I desire either thee to be saved or
myself to be rescued from thy death. For
thou remernberest in what state of life thou
wast, and knowest to what thou hast fallen
without regard to the animadversion of super-
nal strictness. Consider, then, thy fault while
there is time ; dread, while thou canst, the
severity of the future judge; lest thou then
find it bitter, having shed no tears to avoid
it now. Consider what is written ; Pray that
your flight be not in the winter, neither on the
Sabbath day (Matth. xxiv. 20). For the
numbness of cold impedes walking in the
winter, and, according to the ordinance of
the law, it is not lawful to walk on the
Sabbath day. He, then, attempts to fly in
the winter or on the Sabbath day, who then
wishes to fly from the wrath of the strict
Judge when it is no longer allowed him to
walk. Wherefore, while there is time, while
it is allowed, fly thou from the animadversion
which is of so great dreadfulness : consider
what is written ; Whatsoever thine hand findeth
to do, do it with thy might ; for there is neither
work, nor device, nor wisdom, in the grave
whither thou hastenest (Eccles. ix. 10). By
the witness of the Gospel thou knowest that
divine severity accuses us for idle talk, and
demands a strict account of an unprofitable
word (Matth. xii. 36). Consider, then, what
it will do for perverse doing, if in its judgmei t
it reprobates some for talking. Ananias had
vowed money to God (Acts v. 2 seq.), which,
aftei wards, overcome by diabolical persuasion,
he withheld. But by what death he was

EPISTLE XXXVI.

mulcted thou knowest. If then he was de-
serving of the penalty of death who withdrew
the money which he had given to God, con-
sider of how great penalty thou wilt be de-
serving in the divine judgment, who hast
withdrawn, not- money, but thyself, from Al-
mighty God, to whom thou hadst devoted
thyself in the monastic state of life. Where-
fore, if thou wilt hear the words of my rebuke
so as to follow them, thou wilt come to know
in the end how kind and sweet they are. Lo,
I confess it, I speak mourning, and constrained
by sorrow for what thou hast done. I scarce
can utter words ; and yet thy mind, conscious
of guilt, is hardly able to bear what it hears,
blushes, is confounded, remonstrates. If, then,
it cannot bear the words of dust, what will it
do at the judgment of the Creator? And
yet I acknowledge the exceeding mercy of
heavenly grace, in that it beholds thee flying
from life, and nevertheless still reserves thee
for life ; that it sees thee acting proudly, and
still bears with thee ; that through its un-
worthy servants it administers to thee words
of rebuke and admonition. So great a thing
is this that thou oughtest anxiously to ponder
on what Paul says ; We exhort you, brethren,
that ye receive not the grace of God in vain :
for he saith, I have heard thee in a time ac-
cepted, and in the day of salvation have I
succoured thee. Behold no7c> is the acceptable
time, behold now is the day of salvation (2 Cor.
vi. 1 sea.).

But I know that, when my letter is received,
forthwith friends come about thee, thy literary
clients are called in, and advice about the
purpose of life is sought from the promoters
of death ; who, loving not thee, but what
belongs to thee, tell thee nothing but what
may please thee at the time. For such, as
thou thyself rememberest, were those thy
former counsellors, who drew thee on to the
perpetration of so great a sin. To quote to
thee something from a secular author 9, "All
things should be considered with friends, but
the friends themselves should be considered
first." But, if in thy case thou seekest an
adviser, take me, I pray thee, as thy adviser.
For no one can be more to be relied on for
advice than one who loves not what is thine,
but thee. May Almighty God make known
to thy heart with what love and with what
charity my heart embraces thee, though so far
only as not to offend against divine grace.
For I so attack thy fault as to love thy
person ; I so love thy person as not to em-

9 Seneca, Epist. 3: "Tu omnia cum amico delibera, sed de
ipso prius. Post amicitiam credendum est ; ante amicitiam judi-
candum."

brace the viciousness of thy fault. If, there-
fore, thou believest that I love thee, approach
the threshold of the apostles, and use me as
an adviser. But if perchance I am supposed
to be too keen in the cause of God, and am
suspected for the ardour of my zeal, I will call
the whole Church together into counsel on
this question, and whatever all are of opinion
should be done for good, this I will in no wise
contradict, but gladly fulfil and subscribe to
what is decided in common. May Divine
grace keep thee while accomplishing what I
have warned thee to do.

EPISTLE XXXV.
To Peter, Bishop of Terracina.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

Joseph, a Jew, the bearer of these presents,
has informed us that, the Jews dwelling in the
camp of Terracina having been accustomed to
assemble in a certain place for celebrating
their festivities, thy Fraternity had expelled
them thence, and that they had migrated,
and this with thy knowledge and consent,
to another place for in like manner observing
their festivities ; and now they complain that
they have been expelled anew from this same
place. But, if it is so, we desire thy Fraternity
to abstain from giving cause of complaint of
this kind, and that they be allowed, as has
been the custom, to assemble in the place
which, as we have already said, they had
obtained with thy knowledge for their place
of meeting. For those who dissent from ihe
Christian religion must needs be gathered
together to unity of faith by gentleness, kind-
ness, admonition, persuasion, lest those whom
the sweetness of preaching and the anticipated
terror of future judgment might have invited
tov believe should be repelled by threats and
terrors. It is right, then, that they should
come together kindly to hear the word of God
from you rather than that they should become
afraid of overstrained austerity.

EPISTLE XXXVI.

To Peter the Subdeacon.

Gregory, bishop, servant of the servants
of God, to Peter the Subdeacon.

The code of instructions which I gave thee
on thy going to Sicily must be diligently
perused, so that the greatest care may be
taken concerning bishops, lest they mix them-
selves up in secular causes, except so far as
the necessity of defending the poor compels
them. But what is inserted in the same code
concerning monks or clerics ought, I think, in
no respect to be varied from. But let thy

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Experience observe these things with such
great attention as may fulfil my desire in this
regard. Further, it has come to my ears that
from the times of Antoninus, the defensor,
till now, during these last ten years, many
persons have endured certain acts of violence
from the Roman Church, so that some
publicly complain of their boundaries having
been violently invaded, their slaves abstracted,
and their moveables carried off by force, and
not by any judicial process. In all such
cases I desire thy Experience to keep intent
watch, and whatsoever during these last ten
years may be found to have been taken
away by violence, or retained unjustly in the
name of the Church, to restore it by authority
of this my order to him to whom it is
found to belong ; lest he who has suffered
violence should be obliged to come to me,
and undertake the labour of so long a journey,
in which case it could not be ascertained here
before me whether or not he spoke the truth.
Having regard, then, to the majesty of the
Judge who is to come, restore all things that
have been sinfully taken away, knowing that
thou bringest great gain to me, if thou gatherest
[heavenly] reward rather than riches. But we
have ascertained that what the greater part
complain of is the loss of their slaves, saying
that, if any man's bondman, peradventure
running away from his master, has declared
himself to belong to the Church, the rectors *
of the Church have at once kept him as a
bondman belonging to the Church, without
any trial of the case, but supporting with a
high hand the word of the bondman. This
displeases me as much as it is abhorrent from
the judgment of truth. Wherefore I desire
thy Experience to correct without delay what-
ever may be found to have been so done :
and it is also fit that any such slaves as are
now kept in ecclesiastical possession, as they
were taken away without trial, should be
restored before trial ; so that, if holy Church
has any legitimate claim to them, their pos-
sessors may then be dispossessed by regular
process of law. Correct all these things irre-
tractably, since thou wilt be truly a soldier
of the blessed apostle Peter if in his causes
thou keep guard over the truth, even without
his receiving anything. But, if thou seest
anything that may justly be claimed as belong-
ing to the Church, beware lest thou ever try
to assert such claim by force ; especially as I
have established a decree under pain of
anathema, that titu'i may not ever be put
by our Church on any urban or rural farm 2 ;

1 As to the rectores patrimonii, see Proleg. p. vii.

2 Titulum imponere seems to have meant originally setting up
a scroll or tablet on a property to assert a title to it ; it might be
in some cases with a view to sale, letting, or to confiscation.

but whatever may in reason be claimed for
the poor ought also to be defended by reason ;
lest, a good thing being done in a manner
that is not good, we be convicted of injustice
before Almighty God even in what we justly
seek. Moreover, I pray thee, let noble
laymen, and the glorious [Praetor] 3 love thee
for thy humility, not dread thee for thy pride.
And yet, if by any chance thou knowest them
to be doing any injustice to the indigent, turn
thy humility at once into exaltation, so as to
be always submissive to them when they do
well, and opposed to them when they do ill.
But so behave that neither thy humility be
remiss nor thy authority stiff, to the end that
uprightness season humility, and humilit
render thy very uprightness gentle. Further,
since it has been customary for bishops to
assemble here for the anniversary* of the
pontiff, forbid their coming for the day of my
ordination, since foolish and vain superfluity
delights me not. But if they must needs
assemble, let them come for the anniversary ♦
of Peter, the prince of the apostles, to render
thanks to him by whose bounty they are
pastors. Farewell. Given this XVII day of
the Kalends of April, in the ninth year of the
Emperor Mauricius.

EPISTLE XXXIX.

To Anthemius, Subdeacon'.

Gregory to Anthemius, &c.
We charged thee on thy departure, and
remember to have afterwards enjoined on thee
by letter, to take care of the poor, and, if thou
shouldest find any in those parts to be in want,
to inform me by letter : and thou hast been at
pains to do this with regard to very few. Now,
I desire that, as soon as thou hast received
this present order, thou offer to Pateria, my
father's sister, forty solidi for shoe-money tor
her boys, and four hundred modii of wheat \
to the lady Palatina, the widow of Urbicus,
solidi and three hundred modii of
to the lady Viviana, widow
solidi and three hundred
And let all these eighty

twenty
wheat :
twenty
wheat.

of Felix,
modii of
solidi be
together in thy accounts. But bring
hither with speed the sum of thy receipts, and
be here, with the Lord's help, by Easter Day.

charged

3 I.e. the Praetor of Sicily.

4 Natalem, i.e. birthday ; denoting usually, in the case of
a dignitary, the day of his inauguration ; and, in the case ot
a deceased saint, the day of his death.

5 He was the subdeacon who had charge of the patrimony
in Campania, as appears from other letters to him (see Index
of Epistles).

EPISTLE XLIII.

EPISTLE XLI.

To Peter, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

The venerable Paulinas, bishop of the city
)f Taurum (Taurianum in B rutin'), has told us
hat his monks have been scattered by reason
>f barbaric invasions, and that they are now
vandering through the whole of Sicily, and
hat, being without a ruler, they neither have
:. care of their souls, nor pay attention to the
liscipline of their profession. On this account
»re enjoin thee to search out with all care and
liligence, and collect together, these same
nonks, and to place them with the said
>ishop, their ruler, in the monastery of Saint
^heodorus situate in the city of Messana, that
'>oth such as are there now, whom we find to
•>e in need of a ruler, and those of his congre-
gation whom you may have found and brought
iack, may be able, under his leadership, to
erve the Almighty Lord together. Know also
hat we have signified this matter to the
enerable Felix, bishop of the same city, lest
nything ordained in the diocese committed
jo him should be disturbed without his know-
'edge.

EPISTLE XLII.

To Anthemius, Subdeacon6.

Gregory to Anthemius, &c.

John, our brother and fellow-bishop, in a
chedule sent to us by his cleric Justus, has
mong many other things intimated to us as
ollows : that some monks of the diocese of
iurrentum ^ transmigrate from monastery to
nonastery as they please, and depart from
he rule of their own abbot out of desire for a
worldly life ; nay even (what is known to be
unlawful) that they aim severally at having
property of their own. Wherefore we com-
jnand thy Experience by this present order,
hat no monk be henceforth allowed to migrate
rom monastery to monastery, and that thou
>ermit not any one of them to have anything
)f his own. But, if any one whatever should
o presume, let him be sent back with adequate
:onstraint to the monastery in which he lived
.t first, to be under the rule of his own abbot
rom which he had escaped ; lest, if we allow
jo great an iniquity to take its course un-
corrected, the souls of those that are lost be
jequired from the souls of their superiors,
further, if any of the clergy should chance
|o become monks, let it not be lawful for

J 6 Rector patrimonii and defensor in Campania. See abov

;'•?• 39-

7 In Compania, hod<e Sorrento.

them to return anew to the same church in
which they had formerly served, or to any
other; unless one should be a monk of such
a life that the bishop under whom he had
formerly served should think him worthy of
the priesthood, so that he may be chosen
by him, and by him ordained to such place as
he may think fit. And since we have learnt
that some among the monks have plunged
into such great wickedness as publicly to take
to themselves wives, do thou seek them out
with all vigilance, and, when found, send them
back with due constraint to the monasteries
of which they had been monks. But neglect
not to deal also with the clergy who profess
monasticism, as we have said above. For
so thou wilt be pleasing in the eyes of God,
and be found partaker of a full reward.

EPISTLE XLIII.

To Leander Bishop of Hispalis
(Seville)*

Gregory to Leander, &c.

I should have wished to reply to your
letters with full application of mind, were I
not so worn by the labour of my pastoral
charge as to be more inclined to weep than to
say anything. And this your Reverence will
take care to understand and aliow for in the
very text of my letters, when I speak negli-
gently to one whom I exceedingly love. For,
indeed, I am in this place tossed by such
billows of this world that I am in no wise able
to steer into port the old and lotten ship of
which, in the hidden dispensation of God, I
have assumed the guidance. Now in front
the billows rush in, now at the side heaps of
foamy sea swell up, now from behind the
storm follows on. And, disquieted in _ the
midst of all this, I am compelled sometimes
to steer in the very face of the opposing
waters ; sometimes, turning the ship aside, to
avoid the threats of the billows slantwise. I
groan, because I feel that through my negli-
gence the bilgewater of vices increases, and,
as the storm meets the vessel violently, the
rotten planks already sound of shipwreck.

8 Gregory had made the acquaintance of Leander, bishop of
the Metropolitan See of Hispalis (Seville) in Spain, during his
residence at Constantinople. It was at the instigation of Leander,
together with the request of the monks who had followed him
from his Roman Monastery to Constantinople, that he had begun,
when there, to expound the book of Job. The earlier part of his
" Moralium libri, sive Exp .siao in hbrum B. Job, bad been
delivered in oral discourses at Constantinople, but afterwards
revised, airanged, and completed in thirty-five books. The whole,
when finished, was addressed to Leander. All this appears irom
the " Epistola Missoria" prefixed to the completed treatise.
Gregory evidently had a peculiar affection for Leander. Other
epistles addressed to him are V. 49, and IX. .21. He is spoken ot
also in the Dialogues of Gregory, Lib. III. cap. 31, being there
referred to as "dudum mihi in amicitns familianter iunctus.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

With tears I remember how I have lost the
placid shore of my rest, and with sighs I be-
hold the land which still, with the winds of
affairs blowing against me, I cannot reach.
If, then, thou lovest me, dearest brother,
stretch out to me in the midst of these billows
the hand of thy prayer ; that from helping me
in my labours thou mayest, in very return for
the benefit, be the stronger in thine own.

I cannot, however, at all fully express in
words my joy on having learnt that our com-
mon son, the most glorious King Rechared,
has been converted with most entire devotion
to the Catholic faiths. In describing his
character to me in thy letters thou hast made
me love him, though I know him not. But,
since you know the wiles of the ancient foe,
how against conquerors he prepares all the
fiercer war, let your Holiness keep watch the
more warily over him, that he may accomplish
what he has well begun, nor lift himself up for
good works accomplished ; that he may keep
the faith which he has come to know by the
merits also of his life, and shew by his works
that he is a citizen of the eternal kingdom, to
the end that after a course of many years he
may pass from kingdom to kingdom.

but with respect to trine immersion in bap-
tism, no truer answer can be given than what
you have yourself felt to be right ; namely
that, where there is one faith, a diversity of
usage does no harm to holy Church. Now
we, in immersing thrice, signify the sacraments
of the three days' sepulture; so that, when the
infant is a third time lifted out of the water,
the resurrection after a space of three days
may be expressed. Or, if any one should
perhaps think that this is done out of venera-
tion for the supreme Trinity, neither so is
there any objection to immersing the person
to be baptized in the water once, since, there
being one substance in three subsistences, it
cannot be in any way reprehensible to im-
merse the infant in baptism either thrice or
once, seeing that by three immersions the
Trinity of persons, and in one the singleness
of the Divinity may be denoted. But, in-
asmuch as up to this time it has been the
custom of heretics to immerse infants in bap-
tism thrice, I am of opinion that this ought
not to be done among you ; lest, while they
number the immersions, they should divide
the Divinity, and while they continue to do as
they have been used to do, they should boast
of having got the better of our custom.

Moreover, I send to your to me most sweet

» Reccared, the Visigoth King in Spain, had declared himself
a Catholic a.d. 587 and formally renounced Arianism and adopted
the Catholic Creed at the Conned of Toledo, a.d. 589. The date
of the letter before us, if rightly placed, is a.d. 591.

Fraternity the volumes of which I have ap
pended a notice below. What I had spoker
in exposition of the blessed Job, which yoi
express in your letter your wish to have sen
to you, being weak both in sense and Ian
guage as I had delivered it in homilies, I havtj
tried as I could to change into the form of ;
treatise, which is in course of being writtei
out by scribes. And, were I not crippled b}
the haste of the bearer of these presents, .
should have wished to transmit to you th<
whole without diminution ; especially as
have written this same work for your Rever
ence, that I may be seen to have sweated ii
my labours for him whom I love above al
others. Besides, if you find time allowed yoi
from ecclesiastical engagements, you ahead
know how it is with me : even though absen
in the body, I behold thee always present wit!
me ; for I carry the image of thy countenanc
stamped within the bowels of my hear)
Given in the month of May.

EPISTLE XLIV.

To Peter, Subdeacon of Sicily.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

With regard to our having so long delaye
sending off thy messenger, we have been s
01 cupied with the engagements of the Paschr
festival that we have been unable to let hirj
go sooner. But, with regard to the questioni
on which thou hast desired instruction, tho!
wilt learn below how, after fully considerin
them all, we have determined them.

We have ascertained that the peasants1 d
the Church are exceedingly aggrieved in r<
spect of the prices of corn, in that the sur
appointed them to pay is not kept in du
proportion in times of plenty. And it is 01
will that in all times, whether the crops <
corn be more or less abundant, the measui
of proportion be according to the markt
price 2. It is our will also that corn which

« Rusticos ecclesia ; i.e. the native cultivaters of the Ian
called eUewhere coloni, and by Cicero (/» Verrem), aratori
See Proleg.

2 It appears from Cicero, that, when the Romans annex
Sicily, they found the greater part of the land subject by ancie
custom to a tithe of the corn and other produce, and that su
tithe continued to be exacted by the Roman government, whi
derived thence its main revenue from the island : further, that t
custom had grown up of allowing a pecuniary composition for t
tithe, and that this custom, intended originally for the accomn
dation of the tithe piyers, had been abused to their detriment
over valuation in years when corn was cheap. One of the charj
a^.tinst Verres was, that this had been done under him as Praet<
When wheat was selling in Sicily for two or at the most thi
sesterces per modius, the peasants had been made to compou
for their tithes at the rate of three denarii, i.e. twelve sesterc
(Cic. in Verr. Divin. 10; Act 11. Lib.\\\. 6, 18). The Rom
Church having succeeded the Roman Government in the lords!
of the " Patrimony of St. Peter," it appears that the Chui
officials ha 1 not been guiltless of similar unfair exactions. Hei
the direction here in this Epistle that the valuations of the tithe
successive years should follow the market price.

EPISTLE XLIV.

ost by shipwreck be fully accounted for; but
>n condition that there be no neglect on thy
tart in transmitting it ; lest, the proper time
or transmitting it being allowed to pass by,
oss should ensue from your faults More-
)ver, we have seen it to be exceedingly wrong
.nd unjust that anything should be received
rom the peasants of the Church in the way of
extariaiics*, or that they should be compelled
:o give a larger modius than is used in the
granaries of the Church. Wherefore we en-
oin by this present warning that corn may
iever be received from the peasants of the
^hurch in modii of more than eighteen sex-
\arii ; unless perchance there be anything that
'he sailors are accustomed to receive over and
'hove, the consumption of which on board
!hip they themselves attest.

We have also ascertained that on some
Estates 5 of the Church a most unjust exaction
s practised, in that three and a half [modii] in
eventy are demanded by the farmers6; — a
hing shameful to be spoken of. And yet
:ven this is not enough ; but something be-
ides is said to be exacted according to a
ustom of many years. This practice we al-
ogether detest, and desire it to be utterly
xtirpated from the patrimony. But, whether
in this or in other minute imposts, let thy
Experience consider what is paid too much
»er pound, and what is in any way unfairly
leceived from the peasants ; and reduce all to

fixe I payment, and, so far as the powers of
he peasants go, let them make a payment in
toss amounting to seventy-two7: and let

3 This refers to the corn which was sent annually in large
uantities to Rome, and on which the Romans were in a great
easure dependent for their supply. Those in Sicily who fur-
ished it were, it seems, responsible for its delivery, taking the
sk of loss by sea. But it rested with the Church officials to
ovide fur its being shipped ; and, if any loss on the voyage
hsued from their delay, the parties otherwise responsible were to
e indemnified.

* Ex sextariaticis. This appears to have been a technical
. rm, denoting unjust exaction of the following kind. The pea-
liiits {rttstici) on an estate had to supply, let us say, so many
y.odii of corn to be shipped for Rome. But the modius varied
1 capacity. It is said originally to have contained sixteen sex-
\trii, a sextarius being between a pint and a quart. But it
>pears below that one 01 eighteen sextarii was in use in the time
I" Gregory, and by him allowed. This limit, however, seems to
live been sometimes exceeded, and herein consisted the abuse
implained of. In a subsequent epistle (XIII. 34) a. modius of
'en twenty five sextarii is spoken of as having been in one case
ked : — " We understand that the modius by which the husband-
en (coloni) were compelled to give their corn was one of twenty-
ye sextarii."

5 Mussis. These inassce might include several farms {fundi,
■ priedia), and were let or leased to farmers (conductores), who
,ade their profit out of them. Cf. xiv. 14, " Massam quae Aquas

ilvias nuncupatur cum omnibus fundis suis ; " also v. 31, " Con-
lictoribus massarum per Galliam."

6 Condrtctores. See last note.

7 Pensantem ad septuagena bina. It would seem that, in
lldition to the abuse of using modii of too large capacity, there

as the additional one of exacting more modii than were legally
,ie, three and a half being added to every seventy; i.e. one to
/ery twenty. Cf. Cicero in Venem, '• Ab Siculis aratoribus,
aeter decumam. ternae quinquagesimae (i.e. three for every fifty)
<igebantur." If the reading ^septuagena bina be correct, it
jould seem that Gregory allowed two to be added to every
|venty perhaps on the ground of long-established custom. The
ladings, however, vary ; and what was meant is uncertain.

neither grains 8 beyond the pound, nor an ex-
cessive pound, nor any further imposts beyond
the pound, be exacted ; but, through thy valu-
ation, according as there is ability to pay, let
the payment be made up to a certain sum, that
so there may be in no wise any shameful
exaction. But, lest after my death these very
imposts, which we have disallowed as extras
but allowed in augmentation of the regular
payments, should again in any way be put on
additionally, and so the sum of the payment
should be found to be increased and the
peasants be compelled to pay additional
charges over and above what is due, we de-
sire thee to draw up charters of security, to be
signed by thee, declaring that each person is
to pay such an amount, to the exclusion of
grains (siliqi/ce), imposts, or granary dues.
Moreover, whatever out of these several items
used to accrue to the rector [sc. patrimonii],
we will that by virtue of this present order it
shall accrue to thee out of the total sum paid.

Before all things we desire thee carefully to
attend to this ; that no unjust weights be used
in exacting payments. If thou shouldest find
any, break them and cause true ones to be
made. For my son the servant of God, Dia-
conus, has already found such as displeased
him ; but he had not liberty to change them.
We will, then, that, saving excepted cibaria of
small value 9, nothing else beyond the just
weights be exacted from the husbandmen 1
of the Church.

Further, we have ascertained that the first
charge of burdatio* exceedingly cripples our
peasants, in that before they can sell the pro-
duce of their labour they are compelled to pay
taxes ; and, not having of their own to pay
with, they borrow from public pawnbrokers 3,
and pay a heavy consideration for the accom-
modation ; whence it results that they are
crippled by heavy expenses. Wherefore we
enjoin by this present admonition that thy

8 Siliqua>. In Roman weights the uncia contained \\\siligucr,
and the as or libra 12 uncice. The reference seems to be to cases
in which the grain or other produce was rendered by weight.
The just pound was not to be exceeded.

9 Proeter excepta et vilia cibaria. Cibaria bears the general
sense of victuals or provender; and specifically," Cibarium, teste,
Plin. I. 18, c. 9, ubi de siligine agit, dicitur farina quae post
pollinem seu florem excussum restat, postquain nihil aliuu remanet
nisi furfures : the second sort of flour. Kidem dicitur secunda-
rium. Ex ea qui conficitur vocatur panis cibarius, quia solet
esse communis vulgi cibus." Facciof ti. The adjective cibarius
is applied to provisions generally, wine, oil, bread, &C, of a com-
mon and inferior kind, and consumed by the common people.
The reference in the text may be to refuse and inferior grain or
other breadstuff, of which an excessive weight might be exacted
to make up for its interior quality.

1 Colonis, meaning the same as rustici. See note 1.

2 Burdationis. Ttiis appears to have been a kind of land tax,
payable in the first instance, before the peasants had beenable to
convert their produce into money. " Burdatio est pensio quae
a rusticis praestatur praedii nomine, quod Burdam vocant, nostri
Borde." Alteserra.

3 Aurtionariis. " Mercator qui res suas auget ; et proprie
dicitur ille qui hie vel illic res parvas et veteres et tntas eruit.
ut postea carius vendat." Du Cange.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Experience advance to them from the public
fund all that they might have borrowed from
strangers, and that it be repaid by the peasants
of the Church by degrees as they may have
wherewith to pay, lest, while for a time in nar-
row circumstances, they should sell at too
cheap a rate what might afterwards have suf-
ficed for the payment of the due, and even so
not have enough.

It has come to our knowledge also that im-
moderate fees4 are received on the marriages
of peasants : concerning which we order that
no marriage fees shall exceed the sum of one
solidus. If any are poor, they should give even
less; but if any are rich, let them by no means
exceed the aforesaid sum of a solidus. And
we desire no part of these marriage fees to be
credited to our account, but that they should
go to the benefit of the farmer {conditctorem).

We have also ascertained that when some
farmers die their relatives are not allowed to
succeed them, but that their goods are with-
drawn to the uses of the Church : with regard
to which thing we decree that the relatives of
the deceased who live on the property of the
Church shall succeed them as their heirs, and
that nothing shall be withdrawn from the sub-
stance of the deceased. But, if any one should
leave young children, let discreet persons be
chosen to take charge of their parents' goods.
till they come to such an age as to be able to
manage their own property.

We have ascertained also that, if any one of
a family has committed a fault, he is required
to make amends, not in his own person, but in
his substance : concerning which practice we
order that, whosoever has committed a fault,
he shall be punished in his own person as he
deserves s. Moreover, let no present {com-
moduni) be received from him, unless per-
chance it be some trifle which may go to the
profit of the officer who may have been sent to
him. We have ascertained also that, as often
as a farmer has taken away anything unjustly
from his husbandman, it is indeed required
from the farmer, but not restored to him from
whom it was 'taken : concerning which thing
we order that whatever may have been taken
away by violence from any one of a family be
restored to him from whom it was taken away,
and not accrue to our profit, lest we ourseives

4 Commoda. The word commodum denotes properly a bounty
(as to soldiers over and above their pay), a gratuity, a voluntary
offering, thouarh used also for a stipend, or payment generally.
The peasants (rustici) might not marry without permission. Cf.
xii. 25, " ut eum districte debeas coniraun;re ne filios suos quolibet
ingenio vel excusatione foris alicubi in conjugio, sociarepraesumat,
sed in ea ma>sa cui lege et conditione ligati sunt socientur." For
such permission they were, it seems, accustomed to pay a fee,
in theory perhaps voluntary, but virtually exacted as a due.

5 Because a fine would have to be paid out of the common
substance of the family, and so all would be punished for the
offence of one.

should seem to be abettors of violence. Fur-
thermore, we will that, if thy Experience should
at any time despatch those who are under thy
command in causes that arise beyond the
limits of the patrimony, they may indeed re-
ceive small gratuities from those to whom they
are sent ; yet so that they themselves may have
the advantage of them : for we would not have
the treasury of the Church defiled by base gains.
We also command thy Experience to see to
this : that farmers never be appointed on the
estates of the Church for a consideration (com-
mod'ini) ; lest, a consideration being looked for,
the farmers should be frequently changed ; of
which changing what else is the result but that
the Church farms are never cultivated ? But
lest also the leases [i.e. by the Church to the
farmers] be adjusted according to the sum of
the payments due. We desire thee to receive
no more from the estates of the Church on ac-
count of the store-houses and stores beyond
what is customary; but let thine own stores
which we have ordered to be procured be pro-
cured frjm strangers.

It has come to our ears that three pounds of
gold have been unjustly taken away from Peter
the farmer of Subpatriana ; concerning which
matter examine closely Fantinus the guardian
< defensorem6) \ and, if they have manifestly
been unjustly and improperly taken, restore
them without any delay. We have also ascer-
tained that the peasants have paid a second
time the bin dationi which Theodosius had
exacted from them but had failed to pay over,
so that they have been taxed twice. This was
done because his substance was not sufficient
for meeting his debt to the Church. But,
since we are informed through our son, the
servant of God Diaconus, that this deficiency
can be made good out of his effects, we will
that fifty-seven solidi be repaid to the peasants
without any abatement, lest they should be
found to have been taxed twice over. More-
over, if it is the case that forty solidi of his
effects remain over and above what will in-
demnify the peasants (which sum thou art said
also to have in thy hands), we will that they be
given to his daughter, to enable her to recover
her effects which she had pawned. We desire
also her father's goblet (batiolam) to bt
restored to her.

The glorious magister militum Campanianus
had left twelve solidi a year out of the Var
ronian estate to his notary John ; and this wt
order thee to pay every year without any hesi
tation to the granddaughter of Euplus tht
farmer, although she may have received all tin

6 On the office of defensores, see Proleg.

7 See note 2.

EPISTLE XLIV.

chattels of the said Euplus, except perhaps his
cash ; and we desire thee also to give her out
of his cash five-and-twenty solidi. A silver
saucer8 is said to have been pawned for one
solidus, and a cup for six solidi. After interro-
gating Dominicus the secretary, or others who
may know, redeem the pledge, and restore the
aforesaid little vessels.

We thank thy Solicitude for that, after I had

enjoined thee, in the business of my brother,

to send him back his money, thou hast so con-

| signed the matter to oblivion as if something

had been said to thee by the last of thy slaves

\ But now let even thy Negligence — I cannot say

; thy Experience — study to get this done ; and

i whatever of his thou mayest find to be in the

hands of Antoninus send back to him with all

■ speed.

In the matter of Salpingus the Jew a letter

has been found which we have caused to be

forwarded to thee, in order that, after reading

i it and becoming fully acquainted with his case,

and that of a certain widow who is said to be

I implicated in the same business, thou mayest

1 make answer as may appear to thee just con-

| cerning the fifty-one solidi which are known to

; be returnable, so that the creditors may in no

way be defrauded unjustly of the debts due to

them.

A moiety of his legacy has been given to
Antoninus ; a moiety will be redeemed : which
moiety we desire to be made up to him out of
the common substance ; and not to him only,
but also to the guardians (defensoribus) and
strangers (pergrims) to whom he [the testator]
has left anything under the title of a legacy.
To the family {familice) also we desire the
legacy to be paid ; which, however, is our con-
cern. Having, then, made up the account for
our part, that is for three-quarters, make the
payment?.

We desire thee to give something out of the
money of the Church of Canusium to the clergy
of the same Church, to the end that they who
now suffer from want may have some sus-
tenance ; and that, if it should please God that
a bishop should be ordained, he may have a
maintenance.

As to lapsed * priests, or any others of the
clergy, we desire thee in dealing with their
property to keep free from any contamination.
But seek out the poorest regular monasteries
which know how to live according to God, and

8 Suppositorium. The word itself might denote anything put
under another, or supporting another. Here its being asso-
ciated with a cup (caitx), and both being called small vessels
(yascula), suggests the translation in the text.

9 The meaning of these directions is obscure owing to our
ignorance of the circumstances.

1 The word laf>si was the regular one for denoting clergy,
or others, who had fallen into sin rendering them liable to ex-
communication.

consign the lapsed to penance in these monas-
teries ; and let the property of the lapsed go to
the benefit of the place in which they are con-
signed to penance, to the end that those who
have the care of their correction may have aid
themselves from their means. But, if they have
relations, let their property be given to their
legitimate relations ; yet so that an allowance
for those to whom they have been consigned
for penance be sufficiently provided. But, if
any of an ecclesiastical community, whether
priests, levites, or monks, or clerics, or any
others, shall have lapsed, we will that they be
consigned to penance, but that the Church
shall retain its claim to their property. Yet
let them receive for their own use enough to
maintain them during their penance, lest, if
left destitute, they should be burdensome to
the places whereto they have been consigned.
If any have relations on the ecclesiastical
domain, let their property be delivered to them,
that it may be preserved in their hands subject
to the Church's claim.

Three years ago the subdeacons of all the
churches in Sicily, in accordance with the
custom of the Roman Church, were forbidden
all conjugal intercourse with their wives. But
it appears to me hard and improper that one
who has not been accustomed to such contin-
ency, and has not previously promised chas-
tity, should be compelled to separate himself
from his wife, and thereby (which God forbid)
fall into what is worse. Hence it seems good
to me that from the present day all bishops
should be told not to presume to make any-
one a subdeacon who does not promise to
live chastely ; that so what was not of set
purpose desired in the past may not be for-
cibly required, but that cautious provision
may be made for the future. But those who
since the prohibition of three years ag ) have
lived continently with their wives are to be
praised and rewarded, and exhorted to con-
tinue in their good way. But, as for those
who since the prohibition have been unwill-
ing to abstain from intercourse with their
wives, we desire them not to be advanced
to a sacred order; since no one ought co
approach the ministry of the altar but one
who has been of approved chastity before
undertaking the ministry.

For Liberatus the tradesman, who has com-
mended himself to the Church, dwelling on
the Cincian estate, we desire thee to make
an annual provision ; which provision do thou
estimate thyself as to what it ought to be,
that it may be reported to me and charged
in thy accounts. With regard to the present
indiction I have already got information Irom
our son the servant of God Diaconus.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

One John, a monk, has died and left Fan-
tinus the guardian (defmsorem) his heir to the
extent of one half. Hand over to the latter
what has been left him, but charge him not
to presume to do the like again. But appoint
what he should receive for his work, so that
it be not fruitless to him ; and let him remem-
ber that one who lives on the pay of the
Church should not pant after private gains.
But, if anything should accrue to the
Church, without sin and without the lust of
concupiscence, through those who transact
the business of the Church, it is right that
these should not be without fruit of their
labour. Still let it be reserved for our judg-
ment how they should be remunerated2.

As to the money of Rusticianus, look
thoroughly into the case, and carry out what
appears to thee to be just. Admonish the
magnificent Alexander 3 to conclude the cause
between himself and holy Church ; which
if he peradventure shall neglect to do, do
thou, in the fear of God and with honour
preserved, bring this same cause to an issue
as thou art able We desire thee also to
expend something in this business ; and, if
it can be done, let him be spared the cost
of what has to be given to others, provided
he terminates the cause which he has with
us.

Restore without any delay the donation
of the handmaiden of God * who has lapsed
and been sent into a monastery, to the end
that (as 1 have said above) the same place
that bears the toil of attending to her may
have provision lor her from what she has.
But recover also whatever of hers is in the
hands of others, and hand it over to the afore-
said monastery

Send to us the payments of Xenodochius
of Via Nova to the amount thou hast told us

a It was against monastic rule for monks or nuns to retain
property of their own a ter profession, or the power of disposing
of it by will. It became the common property of the monastery.
Ci. Justin an, Novell. V. c. 38. See also what w,s said ahove
about the goods of lapsed members of religious communities.
In a subsequent Epistle (IX. 7), Gregory ammlls a will that had
been made by an abbess Sirica. The case of one Probus, an
abbot (Appendix, Ep. IX.), who was allowed to make a will,
is no real exception to the rule. For Gregory gave him special
permission to do so on his own petition, on the equitable ground
that at the time of his hasty ordination as abbot, not having been
a monk previously, he had neglected to make provision for his
son by will, as he had intended to do, and as he had iIilu a i ighl
to do. In the case before us Gregory acts with lenient considera-
tion. Though condemning the bequest oi tht m >nk John to the
guardian Fantinus, he allows the latter to take it on the ground
that he deserved, but had not so far received, a proper remunera-
tion for his services.

3 Magnificum virutn. Who this Alexander was is not known.
His designation implies a position of rank. An Alexander anpea' s
afterwards as Praetor of Sicily (VI. 8): but the Pranor of this year
was Justinus (see above, Ep. II.), who was apparently succeeded
by Libertinus(III. 38).

4 Ancillie Dei. So were called, not professed nuns only, but
also others who devoted themselves to virginity and religious lives
Gregory's own aunts, Tarsilla and ^Emiliana, who lived as dedi-
cated virgins in their own home, were instances. See J'toleg.
p. xiv.

of, since thou hast them by thee. But give
something, according to thy discretion, to the
agent whom thou hast deputed in the same
patrimony.

Concerning the handmaiden of God who
was with Theodosius, by name Extranea, it
seems to me that thou shouldest give her
an allowance, if thou thinkest it advantageous,
or at any rate return to her the donation which
she made. The house of the monastery which
Antoninus had taken from the monastery,
giving thirty solidi for it, restore thou without
the least delay, the money being repaid.
After thoroughly investigating the truth re-
store the onyx phials s, which I send back
to thee by the bearer of these presents.

If Saturninus is at liberty and not employed
with thee, send him to us. Felix, a farmer
under the lady Campana, whom she had left
free and ordered to be exempt from examin-
ation, said that seventy-two solidi had been
taken from him by Maxim us the sub-deacon,
for paying which he asserted that he sold
or pledged all the property that he had in
Si( ily. But the lawyers said that he could
not be exempt from examination concerning
acts of fraud. However, when he was return-
ing to us from Campania, he perished in a
storm. ^Ye desire thee to seek out his wife
and children, to redeem whatever he had
pledged, repay the price of what he had sold,
and moreover provide them with some main-
tenance; seeing that Maximus had sent the
man into Sicily and there taken from him
what he alleged. Ascertain, therefore, what
has been taken from him, and restore it with-
out any delay to his wile and children. Read
all these things over < arefully, and put aside
all that familiar negligence of thine. My
writings which I have sent to the peasants
cause thou to be read over throughout all the
estates, that they may know in what points
to defend themselves, under our authority,
against acts of wrong; and let either the
originals or copies be given them. See that
thou observe everything without abatement :
for, with regard to what I have written to
thee for the observance of justice, I am
absolved j and, if thou art negligent, thou art
guilty. Consider the terrible Judge who is
coming : and let thy conscience now anticipate
His advent with fear and trembling, lest it
should then fear [not?] without cause, when
heaven and earth shall tremble before Him.
Thou hast heard what I wish to be done : see
that thou do it.

5 Amitlas. " Amula, minor ama. vas vinarium, in quo sac.ia
oblatio continetiir." Du Cange.

EPISTLE XLVIII.

vodij

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EPISTLE XLVI.
To Peter the Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

The divine precepts admonish us to love
our neighbours as ourselves ; and, seeing that
we are enjoined to love them with this charity,
how much more ought we to succour them by
supplies to their carnal needs, that we may
relieve their distress, if not in all respects, yet
at least with some support. Inasmuch, then,
as we have found that the son of the most
worthy Godiscalchus is in distress, not only
from loss of sight, but also from want of food,
we hold it necessary to provide for him as
far as possible. VVherefore we enjoin thy
Experience by this present order to supply to
him for sustaining life twenty-four modii of
wheat every year, and also twelve modii of
beans and twenty decimates 6 of wine ; which
may afterwards be debited in thy accounts.
So act, therefore, that the bearer of these
presents may have to complain of no delay
in receiving the gifts of the Lord, and that
thou mayest be found partaker in the well
administered benefit.

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EPISTLE XLVII.
To Virgilius, Bishop of A relate (Arks)

AND THEODORUS, BlSHOP OF MaSSILIA

(Marseilles).

Gregory to Virgilius, Bishop of Arelate, and
Theodorus, Bishop of Massilia, in Gaul.

Though the opportunity of a suitable time
and suitable persons has failed me so far
for writing to your Fraternity and duly return-
ing your salutation, the result has been that
I can now at one and the same time acquit
myself of what is due to love and fraternal
relationship, and also touch on the complaint
of certain persons which has reached us, with
respect to the way in which the souls of the
erring should be saved. Very many, though
indeed of the Jewish religion, resident in this
province, and from time to time travelling
for various matters of business to the regions
of Massilia, have apprized us, that many of
the Jews settled in those parts have been
brought to the font of baptism more by force
than by preaching. Now, I consider the
intention in such cases to be worthy of praise,
and allow that it proceeds from the love of our
Lord. But I fear lest this same intention,
unless adequate enforcement from Holy Scrip-
ture accompany it, should either have no

' " Decimatas vini duas pensnntes per unamquamque deci-
matam libras 60 (Ap. Anastasium in Hadriano) . . . mensurie
vinaria: species videtur." Du Cange.

profitable result, or even (which God forbid)
the loss of the souls which we wish to save
should further ensue. For, when any one is
brought to the font of baptism, not by the
sweetness of preaching, but by compulsion, he
returns to his former superstition, and dies the
worse from having been born again. Let,
therefore, your Fraternity stir up such men by
frequent preaching, to the end that through
the sweetness of their teacher they may desire
the more to change their old life. For so our
purpose is rightly accomplished, and the mind
of the convert returns not again to his former
vomit. Wherefore discourse must be addressed
to them, such as may burn up the thorns of
error in them, and illuminate what is dark in
them by preaching, so that your Fraternity
may through your frequent admonition receive
a reward for them, and lead them, so far as
God may grant it, to the regeneration of a
new life.

EPISTLE XLVIII.
To Theodorus, Duke of Sardinia.

Gregory to Theodorus, &c.

The justice which you bear in your mind
you ought to shew in the light of your deeds.
Now Juliana, abbess of the monastery of Saint
Vitus which Vitula of venerable memory had
once built, has intimated to us that possession
of the aforesaid monastery is claimed by
Donatus, your official; who, seeing himself
to be fortified by your patronage, scorns to
have resort to a judicial examination of the
case. But now let your Glory enjoin this
same official, with the aforesaid hand-maiden
of God, to submit the matter to arbitration
to the end that whatever may be decided as to
the question in dispute by the judgment of the
arbitrators may be carried into effeet ; so that,
whatever he may find he has to lose or keep,
what he does may not be done as a deed of
virtue, but set down to the justice of the law.

Further, Pompeiana, a religious lady, who is
known to have established a monastery in her
own house, has complained that the mother
of her deceased son-in-law wishes to annul his
will, to the end that her son's last disposition
of his property may be made of none effect.
On this account we hold it necessary with
paternal charity to exhort your Glory to lend
yourself willingly, with due regard to justice,
to pious causes, and kindly order that what-
ever these persons have a rightful claim to be
secured to them. Now, we beseech the Lord
to direct the way of your life propitiously, and
grant you a prosperous administration of your
dignified office.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE XLIX.

TO HONORATLS, DEACON?.

Gregory to Honoratus, &c.

Since we have undertaken, however un
deserving, a place of government, it is our
duty to succour our brethren in need, so far
as our power extends. Januarius, then, our
brother and fellow-bishop of the metropolitan
city of Caralis (Cagliari), has been here in the
city of Rome, and informed us that the glorious
magister militum, Theodorus, who is known to
have received the dukedom of the island of
Sardinia, is doing many things there contrary
to the commands of our most pious lords,
whereby with fitting clemency and gentleness
they removed many hardships of proprietors,
or of citizens of their empire. Wherefore we
desire you at a suitable time to represent the
case to our most pious lords in accordance
with what the provincials of the aforesaid
island justly and reasonably demand ; seeing
that on a previous occasion also their sacred
imperial letters were sent to the glorious

Magister militum Edancius, who was in the profitably used for the buildings of the same
seventh indiction duke of Sardinia, in which island. Moreover, since congregations of
they ordeied all these present gi ievances to be [ monks in the islands are exposed to hard-
redressed, to the end that their commands, ship, we forbid boys under eighteen years of
proceeding from the bountifulness of their age to be received into these monasteries,
piety, might be observed unshaken by dukes Gr, if there are any now there, let thy Experi-
who might come in course of time to be ii. ence remove them, and send them to the city
power, and that the benefit thereof might not j ot Rome. We desire thee in all respects to
be squandered away by administrators ; that so observe this in Palmaria also and the other

other places of refuge near at hand, why
should women have their abode there with
monks? Wherefore we enjoin thy Experience
by this present order from this time forward
to allow no woman, whether she be under
ecclesiastical jurisdiction or any other, to take
up her abode or tarry there ; but let them
provide for themselves a place of refuge (there
being, as has been said above, so many in
the neighbourhood) wherever they may choose;
so that all intercourse with women may hence-
forth be put an end to ; lest, if we should
desist from taking all the care we can, and
guarding against the snares of the enemy, we
henceforth (which God forbid) should be culp-
able in case of anything wrong taking place.
Delay not, therefore, to give to the abbot
Felix, the bearer of these presents, one thou-
sand five hundred pounds of lead, which he
is known to be in want of in the same island,
which may be charged afterwards in thy
accounts, when the whole quantity shall be
known. So proceed, then, that thou mayest
1 rovide thyself with some, if any can be

a quiet life might be led under the clement
empire of our lords, and for the ordinance
which with tranquil mind they grant to their
subjects they might receive multiplied com-
pensation at the coming of the eternal judge.

EPISTLE L.

To Anthemius the Surdeacon 8.

islands.

EPISTLE LI I.

TO SVMMACHUS THE DEFENSOR3.

Gregory to Symmachus, &c.

My son Domface the deacon has told me
that thy Experience had written to say that
a monastery built by Labina, a religious lady,
is now ready for monks to be settled in it.

Gregory to Anthemius, &c.

Even as, through the ordering of God as Ancl indeed I praised thy solicitude ; but we

it hath pleased Him, we have received the
place of government, so ought we to be
solicitous for the souls committed to us. Now
we find that in the Eumorphian island 9, in
which, as is well known, there is an oratory
of the blessed Peter, Prince of the Apostles,
a large number of men with their wives from
various patrimonies have fled to it for refuge,
through stress of barbarian ferocity1. This
we consider inexpedient : for, there bein ■

8 ?n0tnh0raUlS WaS Greg0ry's a^risiaHns at Constantinople.

8 Anthemu.s was Defensor ecclesiee in Campania. P

9 An .sland, as well as Palmaria mentioned afterwards near
the Campan.an coast, and hence under the care of Anthemius
Italy g t0 thC LorabarJs' »h° *' «* time were avaging

wish that some other place than that which
has been assigned for the purpose should be
provided; but with the condition, in view of
the insecurity of the time, that one above the
sea be looked out for, which is either fortified
by its position, or at all events can be fortified
without much labour. So may we send
monks thither, to the end that the island
itself, hitherto without a monastery, may be
improved by having this way of life upon it.

Lor carrying out and providing for this
business we have given directions to Horo-
sius, the bearer ot this present order, with
whom thy Experience must go round the

» I.e. of the Church in Corsica, as appears from the letter.

EPISTLE LVIII.

shores of Corsica, and if any more suitable place
in the possession of any private person should
be found, we are prepared to give a suitable
price, that we may be able to make some
secure arrangement. We have enjoined the
aforesaid Horosius to proceed to the island
Gorgonia ; and let thy Experience accompany
him, and do you so avenge the evils that we
have ascertained to have found entrance there
that through the punishment you shall inflict
the aforesaid island may remain corrected for
the future also. Let the same abbot Horo-
sius set in order the monasteries of this island,
land so hasten to return to us. Let, then, thy Ex-
perience so act that in both these matters, that
is, both in providing for monasteries in Corsica,
and in correcting the monks of Gorgonia, thou
mayest make haste to obey, not our will, but
I that of Almighty God.

Moreover we desire that the priests who
abide in Corsica shall be forbidden to have
i any intercourse with women, except it may
'be a mother, or a sister, or a wife, towards
[whom chastity should be observed 3. But
to the three persons about whom thy Ex-
perience has written to my son the aforesaid
deacon Boniface, give whatsoever thou
deemest sufficient for them, since they are
in grievous need ; and this we will allow thee
afterwards in thy accounts. Given in the
month of July.

EPISTLE LVI.
To Peter, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

Being exceedingly desirous of observing the
festivals of saints, we have thought it needful
to address this our letter of direction to thy

3 The clergy who had been married before ordination were not
required to put away their wives. Can. Apostol. V. expressly for-
bids their doing so under pain of excommunication. The 3rd
! Nicene Canon, which forbids any bishop presbyter, or any of the
.clergy, to have a woman dwelling with him except a mother, or
'sister, or aunt, or such persons only as are above suspicion, does
; not touch the case of wives, being directed against the custom of
i the clergy having females who were neither wives nor of their
own kindred, to live with them, who were called synesacta, or
I agapeta. Accordingly a law of Honoritis and the younger Theo-
' dosius, made in pursuance of the Nicene Canon, adds to the above
1 injunction, "That those who were married before their husbands
I were ordained should not be relinquished upon pretence of chas-
tity, it being reasonable that those should be joined to the clergy
who by their conversation had made their husbands worthy of the
priesthood " (Cod. Theodor. lib. xvi. tit. ii. de Episc. 1. xliv. Also
. Cod. Just. lib. i. tit. iii. leg. xix. See Bingham, Bk. vi. ch. ii.
, sect. 13). But in the West it was now the established rule that
neither bishops, priests, nor deacons should have conjugal inter-
course with their wives after ordination : and it has been seen
under Ep. XLIV. how this rule had been extended to subdeacons.
Gregory tells us in his Dialogues (Lib. iv. cap. 11) of a holy pres-
byter in the province of Nursia, who at the time ol his ordination
had a w\{e(presbyteram suam), whom he thenceforth loved as a
sister, but avoided as an enemy, never suffering her to come near
him for fear of temptation : and he adds, " For this is the way of
holy men, that in order to keep far away from what is unlawlul
they cut themselves off even from what is lawful." Cf. IX. 60.
" Hoc tantummodo adjecto ut hi, sicut canonica decrevit auctori-
tas, uxores quas caste debent regeie non relinquant."

Experience, informing thee that we have ar-
ranged for the dedication with all solemnity,
with the help of the Lord, in the month of
August, of the Oratory of the Blessed Mary
lately built in the cell of brethren where the
abbot Marinianus is known to preside, to the
end that what we have begun may through
the Lord's operation be completed. But,
inasmuch as the poverty of that cell requires
that we should assist in that day of festival,
we therefore desire thee to give for celebrating
the dedication, to be distributed to the poor,
ten solidi in gold, thirty amphorce of wine,
two hundred lambs, two orcce of oil, twelve
wethers, and a hundred hens, which may be
afterwards charged in thy accounts. Provide
therefore for this being done at once without
any delay, that our desires, God granting it,
may take speedy effect.

EPISTLE LVII.

To Severus, Bishop.

Gregory to Severus, &c.

We learn from thy Fraternity's epistle that,
with regard to the choice of a bishop, some
are agreed in favour of Ocleatinus, with whom,
since we disallow him, they need not further
concern themselves +. But give notice to the
inhabitants of that city that, if they should
find any one in their own Church fit for that
work, they all transfer their choice to him.
Otherwise the bearer of these presents will
point out a person, of whom I have told him,
in favour of whom the notification of the
election should be made. Do you, moreover,
be prudent and careful with regard to your
visitation of the same Church, that its pro-
perty may be preserved inviolate, and its
interests attended to after the accustomed'
manner under your management.

EPISTLE LVIII.

To Arsicinus Duke, the Clergy, No-
bility, and Common People (ordini et
plebi) of the City of Akiminum.

Gregory to Arsicinus, &c.

How ready is the devotion of your love in
expectation of a pontiff the text of the report
which you have addressed to us shews. But,
since the ordainer ought in such cases to be
exceedingly careful, we are watching over this
case with due deliberation. And so we warn
your Charity by this present writing that no

4 The vacant See referred to was tha of Ariminum. See fol-
lowing epistle. Severus, who had been commissioned to act as
visitor during the vacancy, was bishoD of Ficulum, or Ficocle
in the same province. See V. 25.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

one need trouble himself to apply to us in
favour of Ocleatinus : but, if any one is found
in your own city to undertake this work with
profit, so that he cannot be objected to by us,
let your choice concur in his favour. But, if
no one should be found fit for it, we have
mentioned to the bearers of these presents
one to whom you may no less accord your
consent. But do you with one accord pray
faithfully, that, whosoever may be ordained,
he may be able both to be profitable to you
and to display priestly service worthy of our
God.

EPISTLE LXI.

To Gennadius, Patrician and Exarch
of Africa.

Gregory to Gennadius, <x:c.

That you have unceasingly the fear of God
before your eyes, and pursue justice, the sub
dued necks of enemies testify ; but, that the
grace of Christ may keep your Glory in the
same prosperity, restrain, as you have been
wont, with speedy prohibition whatever things
you discover to be committed wrongfully, so
that, fortified with the arms of justice, you
may overcome hostile attacks with the power
of faith, which is the top of all virtue. Now
Maiinianus, our brother and fellow-bishop of
the city of Tunis5 has tearfully represei
to us that the poor of his city are being vexed
everywhere, and afflicted by expenses in the
way of gifts or payments 6; and further that
the religious? of his church endure serious
molestation from the men of Theodorus the
magister militum, and suffer bodily injuries ;
and that this thing is breaking out to such
a pitch that (shocking to say) they are thrust
into prison, and that he himself also is
seriously hindered by the aforesaid glorious
person in causes pertaining to his Church.
How opposed such things are, if indeed they
are true, to the discipline of the republic you
yourselves know. And, since it befits your
Excellency to amend all these things, greeting
your Eminence I demand of you that you
suffer them to be done no more ; but straitly
order him to abstain from harming the Church,
and that none be aggrieved by burdens laid

5 Turritana civitas, a city in Sardinia, called by Pliny (lib.
iii. c. 7) Tunis Lybissonis, and by Ptolemy (lib. iii. c. 5) Turris
Byssonis.

0 Commodalibus dispettdiis. The word com?>iodum is used not
only for a stipend, or a present or gratuity, but also for exacted
payments, " Pro quavis pensitatione vel eciam exactione usurpat
Grcgor. M." Du Cange.

7 Religiosos ecclesine. By the terms religiosi and religioste
were denoted not only monks, nuns, dedicated virgins, and clergy,
but also other persons devoted to piety and good works in con-
nection with the Church. Cf. xi. 54, " laico religioso." See rejf.
in Index under Religiosus.

upon them, or payments8, beyond what reason
allows, and that, if there should be any suits,
they be determined not by the terror of power,
but by order of law. I pray you, then, so
correct all these things, the Lord inspiring
you, by the menace of your injunction that
the glorious Theodorus and his men may
abstain from such things, if not out of regard
to rectitude, yet at any rate out of fear in-
spired by your command ; that so, to the
advancement of your credit and reward, jus-
tice with liberty may flourish in the parts
committed to your charge.

EPISTLE LXIL

To Januarius, Archbishop of Caralis
(Cagliari) in Sardinia.

Gregory to Januarius, &c.

If our Lord Himself by the testimony of
Holy Scripture declares Himself to be the
husband of widows and father of orphans,
we also, the members of His body, ought
with the soul's supreme affection to set our-
selves to imitate the head, and saving justice,
to stand by orphans and widows if need be.
And, having been given to understand that
Catella, a religious woman who has a son
serving here in the holy Roman Church over
which under God we preside, is being troubled
by the exactions and molestations of certain
persons, we think it needful to exhort your
Fraternity by this letter not to refuse (saving
justi< e) to afford your protection to this same
woman, knowing that by things of this kind
you both make the Lord your debtor and bind
us to you the more in the bonds of charity.
For we wish the causes of the aforesaid
woman, whether now or in future, to be ter-
minated by your judgment, that she may be
relieved from the annoyance of legal pro-
ceedings, and yet be by no means excused
from submitting to a just judgment. Now
I pray the Lord to direct your life in a pros-
perous course towards Himself, and Himself
to bring you in His mercy to the kingdom
of glory which is to come.

EPISTLE LXIII.

To Januarius, Bishop of Caralis
{Cagliari) in Sardinia 9.

Gregory to Januarius, &c.

Though your Fraternity in the zeal of right-

8 Angariis seu comnwdis. Angarium, or angaria, denotes
any forced service impo-ed on people, either rendered in person
or in money payment. See also V. 8, note 4.

9 Other letters addrejsed to or relating to this bishop, who was
an old man of very unsatisfactory character, are I. 63 ; II. 49;
III. 36; IV. 8, 9, 15, 26,27, 29; V.2; IX. i, 2, 3, 6.7, 8, 23, 65;
XIV. 2.

EPISTLE LXXII.

eousness gives fitting attention to the pro-
tection of divers persons, yet we believe that
you will be the more prone to succour those
whom a letter from us may commend to
you. Know then that Pompeiana, a religious
woman, has represented to us through one of
her people that she endures many grievances
continually and unreasonably from certain
men, and on this account has petitioned us
to commend her in our letters to you.
Wherefore, greeting your Fraternity with
the affection of charity that is due to
you, we have felt that we must needs com-
mend the aforesaid woman to you, that, with
due regard to justice, thy Fraternity may not
allow her to be aggrieved in any way contrary
' to equity, or to be subjected to any expense
unadvisedly. But if it should happen that
she has any suits, let the matter of dispute
be debated before chosen arbitrators, and
.whatsoever shall be decided, let it be so
carried into effect quietly through your assist-
ance that both reward may accrue to you for
such a work, and she who has been com-
mended by our letters may rejoice in having
found justice.

EPISTLE LXVI.
To Felix, Bishop of Messana {Messetie).

Gregory to Felix, &c

Customs which are found to bring a burden
upon churches it becomes us in our considera-
tion to discontinue, lest any should be forced
to contribute to quarters from which they
ought rather to look for contributions. Ac-
cordingly, it is thy duty to preserve intact
the custom of the clergy and others, and to
transmit to them every year what has been
accustomed : but for the future we forbid thee
to transmit anything to us. And, since we
take no delight in presents (xem'is) l, we have
received with thanks the Palmatiana'2- which
thy Fraternity has sent us, but have caused
them to be sold for an adequate price,
which we have transmitted separately to thy
Fraternity, for fear lest thou shouldest have
felt the expense. • Further, since we have
learnt that thy Charity is desirous of coming
to us, we admonish thee by the present letter
not to take the trouble of coming : but pray
for us, that the more we are separated by
length of way, the more we may be joined
one to another in mind, with the help of
Christ, by charity; to the end that, aiding
each other by mutual supplication, we may

resign our office unimpaired to the Judge
that is to come.

EPISTLE LXVII.

To Peter, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

If with kind disposition we meet the needs
of our neighbours by shewing compassion, we
shall undoubtedly find the Lord mercifully
inclined to our petitions. Now we have
learnt that Pastor, who labours under exceed-
ing weakness of sight, having a wife and two
slaves, who also had formerly been with the
glorious lady Jonatha, is suffering from great
need. Wherefore, we admonish thy Experience,
by the writing of this present order, not to
delay giving him for his sustenance three
hundred nwdii of wheat, and also as many
modii of beans, which may afterwards be
charged in thy accounts. So act, then, as
both thyself to obtain the benefit of reward
for thy good service, and to carry our orders
into effect. In the month of August.

EPISTLE LXXII.
To Peter, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

Thou hast learnt from a former letters that
we have desired our brethren and fellow-
bishops dwelling in the island of Sicily to
assemble here for the anniversary of the
blessed Peter the aposde. But, seeing that
their suit with the magnificent Justin the ex-
praetor 4 has meanwhile hindered them, and
that there is not now sufficient time for coming
and returning, we do not wish them to be
troubled before winter. But Gregory of Agri-
gentum, Leo of Catana, and Victor of Panor-
mus, we bv all means desire to come to us before
winters. Further, get together from strangers0
corn of this year's growth to the value of fifty
pounds of gold, and lay it up in Sicily in
places where it will not rot, that we may send
thither in the month of February as many
ships as we can to convey this corn to us.
But, in case of our delaying to send ships, do
thou thyself provide some, and, with the help
of the Lord, transmit this same corn to us in
February, with the exception, however, of the

i See II. 23, note 8.

2 Probably vestes palmate, i.e. robes interwoven or em-
broidered with palm leaves.

VOL. XII.

4 See Ep II If this Epistle is rightly assigned to the ninth
Indiction, the title ex-firmtor may -possibly be an eiror in .the
text, since Justin is still addressed as firator in the tallowing
Indiction (II. 33). Libertinus appears to have succeeded him as
Praetor of Sicily in the eleventh Indiction. See 111. 38.

5 Two of these bishops, Gregory and Leo, are referred to
afterwards as having been at Rome to answer to certain charges.
See II. 33. and III. 12. , .. .,

6 Extraneis, i.e. growers or vendors of corn outside the patri-
mony of the Church.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

corn which we expect to have sent to us now,
according to custom, in the months of Sep-
tember or October. Let thy Experience, then,
so proceed that, without annoyance to any
husbandman (colcnus) of the Church 7, the corn
may be collected, since there has been lure
such a scanty crop that, unless by God's help
corn be collected from Sicily, there is a serious
prospect of famine. But keep guard in all
ways over the ships that have always been
assigned to the use of Holy Church, as
the letters also addressed to thee by the
glorious ex-consul Leo concur in directing
thee to do. Moreover, many come hither de-
siring sundry lands or islands belonging to
our Church to be leased to them ; and some,
indeed, we refuse, but to others we have
already granted their request. But let thy Ex-
perience see to the advantage of Holy Church,
remembering that thou hast before the most
sacred body of the blessed apostle Peter
received power over his patrimony. And,
though letters should reach you from hence,
allow nothing to be done in any way to the
disadvantage of the patrimony, since we neither
remember to have given, nor arc disposed to
give away, any thing without good reason.

EPISTLE LXXIV.

To Gennadius, Patrician and Exarch of

Akkra.

Gregory to Gennadius, &c.

As the Lord hath made your Excellency
to shine with the light of victories in the
military wars oi this life, so ought you to op-
pose the enemies of the Church with all
activity of mind and body, to the end that
from botli kinds of triumph your reputation may
shine forth more and more, when in forensic
wars, too, you firmly resist the adversaries of
the Catholic Church in behalf of the Christian
people, and bravely fight ecclesiastical battles
as warriors of the Lord. For it is known that
men heretical in religion, if they have liberty
allowed them to do harm (which God forbid),
rise strenuously against the catholic faith, to
the end that they may transfuse, if they can,
the poison of their heresy to the corrupting of
the members of the Christian body. For we
have learnt that they are lifting up their necks
against the Catholic Church, the Lord being
opposed to them, and desire to pervert the
faith of the Christian profession. But let your
Eminence suppress their attempts, and subdue
their proud necks to the yoke of rectitude8.

Moreover, order the council of catholic bishops
to be admonished not to appoint their primate
on the ground of his standing, without regard
to the merits of his life, since before God it is
not the more distinguished rank, but the action
of a better life, that is approved 9. But let the
primate himself live, not, as is customary, here
and there in the country, but in one city ac-
cording to their selection, to the end that he
may be better able to bring to bear the in-
fluence of the dignity that has fallen to him in
resisting the Donatists. Moreover, if any from
the Council of Numidia should desire to come
to the Apostolic See, permit them to do so ;
and stop any who may be disposed to bring
charges against their character. Great increase
of glory will accrue to your Excellency with the
< K i tor, if through you the union of the divided
churches could be restored. For when He
beholds the gifts granted by Him given back
to His glory, He bestows gifts so much the
more abundantly as He sees the dignity of His
n li^ion to be thereby enlarged. Furthermore,
bestowing on you, as is due, the affection of
our paternal charity, we beseech the Lord to
make your aim strong for subduing your
enemies, and to sharpen your soul with zeal
for the faith like the edge of a quivering
sword.

EPISTLE LXXV.
To Gennadius, Patrician, and Exarch

THROUGHOUT AFRK A.

Gregory to Gennadius, Patrician, &c.

Had not such great success of the military
exploits of your Excellency arisen from the
merit of your faith and from the grace of the
Christian religion, it would not have been so
greatly to be wondered at, since we know that
the like has been granted to military leaders of
old time. But when, God granting it, you fore-
stall future victories, not by carnal provision, but
rather by prayers, it becomes a matter of aston-
ishment how ) our glory comes down upon you,

7 See I. 44, note i.

8 The heretics (so called, though they were really rather
schismatics than heretics) were the Donatists, who still lingered
in Aftica in spite of imperial edicts for their suppression. W hat

Gregory here urges the Exarch to do is to put in force the existing
laws against them. A series of imperial laws against the Dona-
tists will be found in Cod. Theod. Kk.xvi. tit. 5, that of Honorius,
a.d. 414, being especially severe.

9 It was the immemorial custom in the provinces of Africa
generally for the senior bishop of the province according to the
date of his consecration to be appointed primate, instead of the
bishop of the civil metropolis being such in virtue of his See,
as was the rule elsewhere. (The province of Africa proper, or
Atrica Proconsularis, was however an exception ; for in it the
bishoo of Carthage was always the primate). Hence in Africa
the designation Metropolitan was not used, but that of Primate or
Senior (Senex). Gregory here, though allowing the old custom of
movable primacies, forbids the necessary election of the senior
bishop: and this in order to guard against the appointment of
unfit persons. His main motive, as appears fn.ni Epistle I. XX VI.,
addressed to the bishops of the province of Numidia, was to pre-
clude the elevation to the primacy of any bishop who had once
been a Donatist. For in it he allows the retention of the old
A rican custom in all respects, save only that no bishoD who had
been a Donatist was ever to be appointed primate.

EPISTLE LXXVIII.

not from counsels of this world, but from God,
who bestows it from above. For where is not
the renown of your deserts in people's mouths?
And report goes that it is not from a desire of
shedding blood that you constantly court these
wars, but for the sake of extending the republic
in which we see that God is worshipped, to the
end that the name of Christ may be spread
abroad through subject nations by preaching
of the faith. For, as your outward deeds of
valour make you eminent in this life, so also the
inward adornment of your character, proceed-
ing from a clean heart, glorifies you in making
you partaker of celestial joys to come. For
we have learnt that your Excellency has done
very many things of advantage for feeding the
sheep of the blessed Peter, Prince of the
apostles, so as to have restored to him no
small portions of his patrimony, which had
been denuded of their proper cultivators, by
supplying them with Datitian settlers. What-
ever, then, with Christian disposition you confer
on him, you receive retribution for through
hope in the judgment to come. Wherefore we
have thought fit to commend to your Eminence
Hilarus1, who is also the bearer of these pre-
sents, that you may bestow on him (though
ever with regard to justice) your accustomed
affection in matters wherein he may intimate
his need of your help. Now, addressing to
you the greeting of our paternal charity, we
beseech our God and Saviour mercifully to
protect your Eminence for the consolation of
the holy republic, and to fortify you with the
strength of His arm for spreading His name
more and more through the neighbouring
nations.

EPISTLE LXXVII.
To all the Bishops of Numidia.

Gregory to all the Bishops of Numidia.

If ever, most dear brethren in Christ, a
troublesome mixture of tares intrudes itself
among green corn, it is necessary for the hand
of the husbandman to root it up entirely, lest
the future fruit of the fertile corn should be
obstructed. Wherefore let us too, who, how-
ever unworthy, have undertaken the cultivation
of the field of the Lord, hasten to render the
corn pure from all offence of tares, that the
field of the Lord may fructify with more
abundant increase. Now you requested through
Hilarus our chartulary 2 from our predecessor
of blessed memory that you might retain all

» See I. 77, note 2.

2 '• Chartulaiius. Qui chartas tractant, qui chartis deser-
viunt. . . . Dignitas ecclesia^tiea etiam fait." Du Cange. Thi>
Hilary is commended to Gennadius the Exarch of Africa, I. 75,
and again mentioned as Gregory's Chartulary in Africa, II. 48;
X. 37; XII. 28, 29.

the customs of past time, which, from the be-
ginnings of the ordinances of the blessed Peter,
Prince of the aposdes, long antiquity has so
far retained. And we, indeed, according to the
tenour of your representation, allow your cus-
tom (so long as it clearly makes no claim to
the prejudice of the catholic faith) to remain
undisturbed, whether as to constituting pri-
mates or as to other points ; save that with re-
spect to those who attain to the episcopate from
among the Donatists, we by all means forbid
them to be advanced to the dignity of primacy,
even though their standing should denote them
for that position 3. But let it suffice them to
take care of the people committed to them,
without aiming at the topmost place of the pri-
macy in preference to those prelates whom the
Catholic faith hath both taught and engendered
in the bosom of the Church. Do you, there-
fore, most dear brethren, anticipate our ad-
monitions in the zeal of the charity of the
Lord, knowing that the strict Judge will bring
into examination all we do, and will approve
every one of us with regard not to the pre-
rogative of a higher rank, but to the merits of
our works. I beseech you, therefore, love ye
one another mutually, having peace among
yourselves in Christ, and with one purpose of
heart oppose ye heretics and enemies of the
Church. Be ye solicitous for the souls of
your neighbours : persuade all ye can to faith
by the preaching of charity, holding before
them also the terror of the future judgment ;
inasmuch as ye are appointed to be shepherds,
and the Lord of the docks expects from tiie
shepherds to whom He has committed them
the fruit of a multiplied flock. And if He
should foresee an augmentation of His own
flock through your bestowal of more diligent
care upon it, He will assuredly adorn you
with manifold gifts of the heavenly kingdom.
Furthermore, addressing to you the greeting
of fraternal love, I pray the Lord that He
would make you, whom He has chosen to be
shepherds of souls, worthy in His sight, and
Himself so order our deeds here that He may
accept them as they deserve in the future
life.

EPISTLE LXXVIII.

To Leo, Bishop in Corsica.

Gregory to Leo, &c.

Our pastoral charge constrains us to come
with anxious consideration to the succour of
a church that is destitute of the control of
a priest 4. And, inasmuch as we have learnt

3 See I. 74, note 9.

4 SacerJotis. The term includes bishops as well as presbyters,
and is used in this and the two following Epistles, as usually

H 2

IOO

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

that the church of Saona for many years, since
the death of its pontiff, has been thus entirely
destitute, we have thought it needful to enjoin
on thy Fraternity the work of visiting it, to
the end that through thy ordering its welfare
may be promoted. In this church also and
in its parishes we grant thee licence to ordain
deacons and presbyters; concerning whom,
however, let it be thy care to make diligent
enquiry, that they be not personally in any
respect such as are rejected by the sacred
canons. But whomsoever thy Fraternity has
perceived to be worthy of so great a ministry,
having ascertained that their manners and
actions fit them for ordination, them, by per-
mission of our authority, thou mayest freely
promote to the aforesaid office. We desire
thee, therefore, to make use of all the pro-
perty of the above named (lunch as though
thou wert its proper pontiff, until we write
to thee again. Be, then, so diligent and careful
in all these matters that through thy ordering
all things may, with the help of God, be
salubriously arranged to the Church's profit.

EPISTLE LXXIX.
To Martinus, Bishop in Corsica.

Gregory to Martinus, &c.

To those who ask for what is just it
behoves us to lend a kindly ear, to the end
both that the petitioners may find the remedies
they hope for, and that the anxious care of
a shepherd be not wanting to the Church.
And inasmuch as the church of Tanates, in
which thy Fraternity was formerly adorned
with sacerdotal dignity, has for its sins been
so taken possession of and ruined by hostile
savagery that no further hope remains of thy
returning thither, we appoint thee, by autho-

elsewhere by Gregory, to denote the former in distinction from
the latter. The occasion of this and the two following Epistles
will be seen to be as follows. The See of Saona in Corsica
had been for some time vacant. It rested with the clergy and
.tobies of the island see above, Ep. LXXX.), to elect a new
bishop ; but they had failed to do so ; and consequently Gregory
remedied their neglect by himself filling up the vacancy. His
right to do so would not be questioned there, Corsica as well
as Sicily being among the Suburbicarian provinces which vere
under the acknowledged patriarchal jurisdiction of the See of
Rome. Meanwhile he also commissionel Leo, the bishop of
a neighbouring See (to whom this letter is addressed), to make
a visitation of the Church of Saona, and exercise episcopal
authority there, till the new bishop should take possession.
There are several other Epistles, not included in this translation,
appointing visitors of various churches.

r'ty of these presen's, undisputed cardinal
priest 5 in the Chuich of Saona, which has
now been long deprived of the aid of a
pontiff. Do thou therefore so arrange and
order all things according to the injunctions
of the canons with vigilant care in the love
of God, that both thy" Fraternity may rejoice
in having attained thy desires, and the Church
of God may be filled with answering joy for
having received thee as Cardinal pontiff.

EPISTLE LXXX.

of Corsica.
A paribus 6.

To the Clergy and Nobles

Gregory to the Clergy, &c. . .

Although for a long time it has caused you
no sorrow that the Church of God should be
without a pontiff, yet as for us, we are both
compelled by the charge of the office we bear
and bound especially by the charity of our
love for you, to take thought for its govern-
ment, knowing that in its supervision lies
at the same time advantage to your souls.
For, if the care of a shepherd be wanting
to a flock, it easily falls into the snares of
the lier in wait. Accordingly, inasmuch as
the church of Saona has long been deprived
of the aid of a priest, we have held it neces-
sarv to constitute Martinus, our brother and
fellow-bishop, cardinal priest of the same ',
but to enjoin on Leo our brother and fellow-
bishop the work of its visitation. To the
latter we have also granted licence to ordain
presbyters and deacons in it and in its
parishes, and have permitted him to make
use of its property so long as he shall be
there, as though he were its proper pontiff.
And so we admonish you by these present
writings that your Charity receive the aforesaid
visitor with all devotion, and shew him obe-
dience in whatever is reasonable, as becomes
sons of the Church, to the end that, supported
by your devotion, he may be able to accom-
plish all that is found to conduce to the ad-
vantage of the above-named church.

5 Cardinal bishops, presbyters, or deacons, meant formerly
such as were regularly instituted and attached to suine particular
see, parish, or church, which con>titut^d their title (titu/as).
They were then said to be incardinati, the act of so instituting
them being called incardinatio. Cf. II. 37 ; XIV. 7.

6 See 1, 2s. note 8.

7 See note under Ep. LXXIX.

BOOK II.

el
el

notffl

EPISTLE III.
To Velox, Magister militum.

Gregory to Velox, &c

We informed your Glory some time ago that
soldiers had been prepared to come to your
parts; but, inasmuch as your letter had sig-
nified to us that the enemy were collected and
were marching hitherward, we for this reason
have detained them here. But now it appears
to be advantageous that a certain number of
soldiers should be sent to you, whom let thy
Glory be careful to admonish and exhort to
be prepared for toil. And, when you find an
opportunity, confer with our glorious sons
Maurilius and Vitalianus, and do whatever,
with the help of God, they may appoint you to
do for the advantage of the republic. And,
should you ascertain that the unspeakable
Ariulph J is making an incursion hitherward or
to the parts about Ravenna, do you labour in
his rear, as becomes brave men, to the end
that your renown may by God's help advance
still more in the republic from the quality of
your labour. This, however, before all, we ad-
monish you to do : to release without any delay
or excuse the family of Maloin and Adobin,
Vigild and Grussing2, who are known to be
with the glorious Magister militum Maurilius,
to the end that the men of the aforesaid
Maurilius, when they come to your parts, may
without any impediment march along with
them.

[In Colbert, and Paul, diac, Die. V. Kal.

Oct. Indict. 10.]

EPISTLE VI.
To the Neapolitans.
Gregory to the clergy, nobles, gentry, and
commonalty 3 dwelling at Naples.

t Ariulph was the Lombard Duke of Spoletum, one of the
principal cities in Italy occupied by the Lombards. For further
reference to him cf. II. 20, 30, 46 \ IX. 98. He was at this time
preparing, and suspected by Gregory 01 such mention for an
attack on Rome. Cf. Prologom. . Velox to whom this letter
is addressed), and Maurilius and Vitahan (alluded to in it, and
addressed in Efip. 29, 30), were Roman Generals {magistn mtlt-
tum) in command of imperial forces : but where they were is not
apparent. From an allusion to Suana (or Soaua) as within reach
of the last two they may be supposed to have been somewhere in

"^Apparently a familia of slaves belonging to Velox, but at
this time with Maurilius. ,

3 CUro, nobilibus, ordini et f-lebi. Orao seems to denote
persons of official or other rank, above the commonalty, but below

Although the sincere devotion of spiritual
sons in behalf of their mother Church needs
no exhortation, nevertheless, it ought to be
stirred up by letter, lest it should suppose
itself slighted. On this account I approach
your love with an admonition of paternal
charity, that with many tears and with one
accord we may render thanks to our Re-
deemer, who has not suffered you to walk
along pathless ways under so perverse a
teacher, but has made publicly known the
crimes of your unworthy pastor. For De-
metrius, to wit, who even before had not
deserved to be called a bishop, has been
found to be involved in transactions to such
an extent and of such a kind that, if he had
received judgment without mercy according
to the character of his deeds, he would un-
doubtedly have been condemned to a most
hard death by both divine and human laws.
But since, being reserved for penance, he has
been deprived of the dignity of the priesthood,
we cannot suffer the Church of God to remain
long without a teacher, since it is laid down
by canonical rules that, on the death or re-
moval of a pastor, the church should not be
long deprived of the priesthood4. Wherefore,
I have thought it necessary to admonish your
Charity by this present writing that neither
delay nor the discord which has been wont
to generate scandals ensue to hinder your
election of a pontiff. But seek you out with
all care such a person as all by common con-
sent may rejoice in, and as is in no respect
rejected by the sacred canons; to the end
that the office which the most wicked of men
had polluted by his evil administration may
be worthily filled and administered by him,
whoever he may be, who, by the grace of
Christ, and with His approval, shall be or-
dained.

the nobility- In some cases the corresponding address is to clero,
ordini et plebi (as in I. 8. ; V. 26) j in others to clero et nobzhbus
only. All such expressions shew that the election of bishops
rested with the members, laity as well as clergy of each church,
though the bishop of Rome, wherever his jurisdiction extended
reserved to himself the power of appioving or disallowing the
election. In the election at Naples, referred to in this Epistle,
there appears to have been a difficulty in arriving at an unanimous
choice Other Epistles referring to the case are II. 9> i°> '5, 2° ;
III. 35. From the last of these it appears how it was eventually
sett'led. See especially note 6 under II. 9.

4 Sacerdotii; meaning here episcopacy, bee 1. 78, note -

102

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE VII.

To Maximianus, Bishop of Syracuse s.

Gregory to Maximianus, &c.

We execute more efficiently our heavenly
commission, if we share our burdens with our
brethren. For this cause we appoint thee, our
most reverend brother and fellow-bishop, to
have administration over all the churches of
Sicily in the name of the Apostolical See, so
that whosoever there is reckoned as being in
a condition of religion may by our authority
he subject to thy Fraternity, to the end that it
may not hereafter be necessary for them to
make such long sea-voyages in resorting to us
for slight causes. But if by any chance there
are matters of difficulty which can by no means
be settled by the judgment of thy Fraternity,
in these only let our judgment be solicited,
that so we may occupy ourselves more effica-
ciously in greater causes, being relieved from
the least. And be it understood that we give
this delegation of authority, not to thy place,
but to thy person, because we have learnt
from thy past life what we may presume of thee
in thy future conduct.

The month of December, the tenth In-
diction.

EPISTLE IX.

To the Neapolitans.

Gregory to the gentry and commonalty
{prdini et pteoi) residing ai Napl< s.

The communication you have addressed to
us has made manifest what your opinion is of
our brother and fellow-bishop Paulus6: and

5 Maximianus had been a monk, and for a time abhot, in
Gregory's monastery of St. Andrew at Rome, had accompanied
him to Constantinople, and been recommended by him, soon after
his own accession, and elected Bishop of Syracuse (Joan. Diac.
I'it. S. Greg. ii. n, 12). He was highly esteemed by Gregory,
and mentioned in his Dialogues as having been miraculously
delivered from shipwreck on his return from Constantinople to
Rome {Dialog, iii. 36. Cf. Hon. 34 in Evang.). His appoint-
ment now as delegate of the Roman See in Sicily would relieve
I'eter the subdeacon of his temporary jurisdiction over the
ecclesiastics there. Maximianus died in November, A.D. 594.
See V. 17, 22. It is to be observed that the general authority
now given to Maximianus was granted to him personally, and
not permanently to the See of Syracuse.

6 He was bishop of Nepe, which, as well as Naples, was in the
urbicarian province of Rome. The filling up of the See of Naples
appears to have been a cause of great anxiety to Gregory, pro-
bably because of the party feeling prevailing in the city. In bis
first letter to the Neapolitans {supra. Ep. 6), he had contemplated
the speedy election of a new bishop in the usual way ; but it
appears from this Epistle that he had seen reason to defer such
election, sending meanwhile Paulus ot Nepe to administer the See.
Some at least in Naples appear to have wished this Paulus to be
elected soon after his arrival among them ; but this Gregory
would not allow till he could see better how things were going.
Such provisional arrangement continued, it seems, for more than
a year, another bishop having been commissioned to supply Paul's
place in his own Church of Nepe against the Easter festival
(II. 26). That Gregory's fear of opposition to Paul were justified
appears from the subsequent mention of a violent attack made on
him by a party opposed to him at Naples (III. 1). He meanwhile,
not liking his position, had already been anxious to return to
his own See (II. 15), but had not been allowed. When he went at
last, it seems that an election had taken place, but had proved

we congratulate you in that your experience of
him for a few days has been such that you
desire to have him as your cardinal bishop ?.
But, since in matters of supreme importance
there ought to be no hasty decision, so we,
Christ helping us, will arrange after mature
deliberation what is to be done hereafter, his
character meanwhile, in course of time, having
become better known to you.

Wherefore, most beloved sons, obey ye the
aforesaid man, if you truly love him, and with
devoted minds meet his wishes in peaceful
concurrence, to the end that the affection of
your mutual charity may so bind you to each
other, that the enemy who flies about you
raging may find no way through any of you
for creeping in to break up your unanimity.
Further, when we shall have perceived the
aforesaid bishop offering to God the fruit of
souls which we long for, God Himself also
approving, we will do afterwards whatever
divine inspiration may suggest to our heart,
with regard to his person and to your desire.

EPISTLE X.

To Paulus, Bishop of Naples8.

Gregory to Paulus, &c.

If we administer safely the priestly office
which we have received, without doubt both
Livine assistance and the affection of our
spiritual sons will not be wanting to us.
W herefore let thy Fraternity take care to shew
thyself in all things such that the testimony
which the clergy, the nobility, and all the
people together, of the city of Naples bears to
thee may be strengthened by the increase of
thy goodness. Thou oughtest, then, so to
bind thyself to continual employment in ex-*
horting the aforesaid people that the Divine
husbandman may store in his garners the fruit
of thy word, which thou shalt have gathered
from them by thy labours. But till such time
as we shall be able, God revealing to us His
will, to deliberate concerning the things which
our aforesaid sons request us should be done,
we grant leave for clerics to be ordained from
the ranks of the laity, and also for manu-
missions to be solemnly celebrated before thee
in the same church. Moreover we desire
thee to observe without hesitation the cus-
toms of the clerical order and of the pres-

futile from the person chosen having refused to be ordained
(III. 15). Eventually the election had taken place, by Gregory's
direction, not at Naples, but at Rome (III. 35), one Fortunatus
being chosen (III. 61). The whole history of the case illustrates
the troubles incident to popular election of bishops at that time,
especially in great cities.

7 See I. 79, note 5.

8 Though called here Episcopus Neapolitanus, it is apparent
from this and other Epistles that he was as yet only the episcopa
visitor, not the regular, or cardinal, bishop of Naples.

EPISTLE XVIII

103

>yters of the above-named church : and do
hou also keep such diligent watch in the in-
;truction of the same, that, abstaining from all
hat is unsuitable or unlawful, they may stand
ast, under thy exhortations, ministering with
iue obedience, in the service of our God.
The month of January, the tenth Indiction.

EPISTLE XII.

To Castorius, Bishop of Ariminum.

Gregory to Castorius, &c.

The illustrious lady Timothea has intimated
o us by a petitionary notification, as is set
"orth below, that she has founded an oratory
vithin the city of Ariminum in a place belong-
ng to her, which she desires to have conse-
nted in honour of the holy cross. And,
iccordingly, dearest brother, if the said con-
struction is in the jurisdiction of thy city, and if
t is known that nobody has been buried there,
;hen, after reception in the first place of a
egitimate endowment, that is, of two-thirds of
ler whole property (excepting slaves), of her
Movables and fixtures and live stock, the
lsufract being reserved to her for her life, and
;uch endowment having been secured by muni-
cipal deeds, thou wilt solemnly consecrate the
iforesaid oratory without any public mass, on
he condition that no baptistery shall be con-
itructed in the same place in future times, and
hat thou appoint not a cardinal presbyter 9.
\nd if perchance she should prefer having
nasses said there, let her know that she must
isk thy Love for a presbyter, to the end that
lothing else may be presumed by any other
iriest whatever. Further, thou wilt reverently
leposit the holy things J she has provided.

EPISTLE XV.
To Paul, Bishop.

Gregory to Paul, &c.

I appointed thy Fraternity to preside for the
)resent over the church of Naples, to the end
hat thou mightest convert all thou canst to
Jod by persuasive preaching. And, while thou
>ughtest to be giving thy whole mind to this
■»ork, thou art in haste to return before bringing
orth this fruit to the Lord, and requestest me
o settle the affairs of this same church speedily,
ny mind being meanwhile by no means unoc-
:upied in this matter. But, being desirous of
ortifying securely the well-being of this Church,

hold it needful to consider the matter with
ong continued deliberation, so as to be able to
rrange its affairs by the ordination of a worthy

person, whom Christ may reveal to us. Where-
fore let thy Fraternity meanwhile study to
watch for the good of souls, so that the opinion
I have of thee may be strengthened by the
effect of thy working. All thou hast written
concerning the deacon Peter has now been
made known to us by the ex-consul Theodorus.
And so, now that I know that he is constant to
thee, and, according to thy testimony, studies
the advantage of the Church, he ought to be
afraid of no one's opposition or enmity, but
persevere in benefiting the Church and serving
God all the more watchfully as he feels that
others have a grudge against him ; that so they
may have no power at all to injure him. More-
over, thy Fraternity ought not hereafter to be
suspected with regard to him, since no surrep-
titious proceedings will have effect on me2.

EPISTLE XVIII.
To Natalis, Bishop ok Salon a 3.

Gregory to Natalis, &c

I have learnt, dearest brother, from many
who have come from thy city that, neglecting
thy pastoral charge, thou occupiest thyself
wholly in feastings : which report I should not
have believed had not my o^vn experience of thy
conduct confirmed it. For that thou in no wise
art intent on reading, in no wise givest atten-
tion to exhortation, but art even ignorant of
the very use and purpose of ecclesiastical order,
there is this in evidence, that thou knowest not
how to observe reverence to those who are put
over thee. For, when thou hadst been for-
bidden in writing by our predecessor of holy
memory to retain in thy heart the soreness of
thy long displeasure against Honoratus thy
archdeacon, and when this had been positively
interdicted thee by myself also, thou, disregard-
ing the commands of God, and setting at
naught our letters, didst attempt by a cunning
device to degrade the aforesaid Honoratus thy
archdeacon under colour of promoting him to
a higher dignity. Thus it was contrived that, he
being removed from the post of archdeacon,
thou mightest call in another who would have
fallen in with thy manner of life, the aforesaid
man having, as I think, displeased thee for no
other cause but that he prevented thee from
giving sacred vessels and vestments to thy re-
lations. Which case both I now, and my pre-
decessor of holy memory formerly, have wished
to subject to an accurate investigation ; but
thou, being conscious of what thou hadst done,

9 See I. 79, note 5. , , . . ,

iSanctuaria, meaning apparently relics the deposition of
i'hich usually accompanied the consecration of holy places.

2 For the occasion of this letter, see II. 9, note 6.

3 Silona was the metropjlis oi the province of Dalmatia in the
diocese of Illyricum Occidental, and Natalis, in virtue ot his
occupancy o. the See, the Ecclesiastical Metropolitan ot the
province. For Gregory's subsequent dealings with this bishop,
see II. 19, 20, 52 ; III. 8, 32. For the occasion of this Epistle,
see I. 19, note 5.

104

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

hast put off sending hither a representative in-
structed for trial of the case. Wherefore let
thy Fraternity, even after admonition so often
repeated, repent of the error of thy wrong-
doing, and restore the aforesaid Honoratus to
his post immediately on the receipt of my
letter. Which if thou shouldest defer doing,
know that the use of the pallium, granted thee
by this See, is taken from thee. But if, even
when thou hast lost the pallium, thou still per-
sistest in thy contumacy, know that thou art
deprived of participation of the body and blood
of the Lord. And after this it will be needful
for us to enquire more fully into the charges
against thee, and to consider with the utmost
care and investigation whether thou shouldest
retain even thy episcopate. Him also who,
against the rule of justice, has consented to be
promoted to the place of another we depose
from the dignity of the said archdeaconry.
And, should he presume any longer to minister
in this same office, let him know that he is
deprived of participation in holy communion.
Do thou, therefore, dearest brother, in no wise
provoke us further, lest, having set us at naught
when in an attitude of charity towards tl
thou shouldest find us very hard in our severity.
Having, therefore, restored the archdeacon
Honoratus to his place, send to us with speed
a person instructed in the case, who may be
able to shew to me bv his allegations how the
matter should be equitably proceeded with
For we have commanded the sail archdeacon
to come to us, that, having heard the assertions
of the parties, we may come to whatever de
cision may be just ami well-pleasing to Aim.
God. For we defend no one on the ground of
personal love, but, God helping us, keep the
rule of justice, putting aside respect to any
man's person.

EPISTLE XIX.
To all the Bishops of Dalmatia.

Gregory to all the bishops constituted
throughout Dalmatia.

Though desiring to visit your Fraternity
frequently through the intercourse of letters,
yet, when some special case demands our at-
tention, we wish to take the opportunity of ful-
filling two duties at once, so as both to refresh
our brotherly souls in the way of visitation and
to explain accurately matters that come up for
notice, lest ignorance of them should leave the
mind confused. Now when our brother Natalis,
bishop of the city of Salona, wished to advance
the archdeacon Honoratus to the order of the
priesthood, who thereupon declined being ad-
vanced to a higher order, the latter demanded
my predecessor of holy memory, in a petition

that he sent, that he should not be so advanced
against his will. For he alleged that the thing
was attempted, not for the sake of promoting
him, but in consequence of displeasure against
him. Thereupon our predecessor of holy
memory addressed letters to Natalis, our bro-
ther and fellow-bishop, interdicting him from
promoting the archdeacon Honoratus against
his will, or retaining in his heart the soreness
of the displeasure which he had conceived
against him. And vhen we too had laid the
same interdiction on the said Natalis, he, not
only disregarding the commands of God, but
also setting at naught our letters, attempted, it
is said, craftily to degrade the aforesaid arch-
deacon, in a way contrary to custom, under
colour of promoting him to a higher dignity.
Thus it was contrived that, having removed
him from the archdeaconry, he might call in
another person to minister in the place of the
dep >se 1 archdeacon. Now we think that this
Honoratus may have fallen under the dis-
sure of his bishop on account of having
prevented him from giving sacred vessels to
his relations: and both my predecessor of holy
memory formerly and I now have wished to
investigate the case accurately; but he, con-'
if what he had done, has put off sending
a represent itive with a view to its trial, lest the
truth with respect to his doings might appear
VV ■ therefore, now that he lias been already sc
often admonished by letter, and has so fat
been pertinaciously obstinate, have taken ordei
for his being admonished once more in letters
sent to him through the bearer of these pre-
sents, to the end that he may, imme liately or
the arrival of the bearer of these presents,
receive the archdeacon Honoratus into hi.'
former place. And if, with heart still hardened
he should contumaciously defer restoring hiu
to the said position, we order that for his con I
tumacy so many times exhibited he be deprivec
of the use of the pallium granted to him b;
this See. But if, even after loss of the pallium
he should persevere in the same pertinacity
we order him to be debarred from participatioi
in the body and blood of the Lord. For it i
right that he should find those severe in justic
whom he set at naught when they approachei
him in charity. Wherefore neither do we r.o\
deviate from the path of justice, which th
aforesaid bishop has despised ; but, when h
whose guilt has by no means been made ap
parent to us has been restored to his place, w
enjoin the bishop Natalis to send to us a persoi
with instructions, who may be able by his alk '
gations to prove to us the right intentions c
the said bishop. For we have caused also th
said archdeacon to come to us, that, havin
heard the assertions of both parties, we ma

EPISTLE XXII.

to;

decide whatever maybe just, whatever may be
veil pleasing to Almighty God. For we de-
end no one on the ground of personal love,
jut, God helping us, keep the rule of justice
vithout respect to any man's person.

EPISTLE XX.
To Antoninus, Subdeacon*.
Gregory to Antoninus, &c.
Honoiatus, archdeacon of the Church of
Salona, had demanded from my predecessor of
;ioly memory, in a petition that he sent, that he
should by no means be forced by his bishop
|;o be advanced against his will, in a way con-
rrary to custom, to a higher order.

\Here folloics an account of the subsequent pro-
ceedings, almost word for word the same as
that given in Epistle XIX.\

Wherefore we have thought it right to
support thy Experience by the authority of
his present order, that thou mayest resort
o Salona, and at least try by exhortation
o induce Natalis, our brother and fellow-
)ishop, who has been admonished by so
nany letters, to restore the above-mentioned
donoratus to his place immediately. But if,
s has been his wont, he should contuma-
•.iously delay doing this, forbid him by autho-
ity of the Apostolic See the use of the pallium
idiich has been granted him by this See. But
f, even after loss of the pallium, thou shoulde.st
md him persevering in the same pertinacity,
hou shalt deprive the said bishop of par-
icipation in holy communion. Moreover, him
j/ho, against the rule of justice, has consented
>o be promoted to another man's place we
i>rder to be deposed from the dignity of the
lame archdeaconry. And, if he should pre-
|ume to minister further in the same place, we
leprive him of participation in holy com-
nunion. For it is right that he should find
hose severe in justice whom he sets at naught
hen approaching him in charity. Wherefore,
hen the archdeacon Honoratus has been
estored to his place, let the aforesaid bishop,
t thy instigation, send to us a person with
istructions, who may be able by his allega-
ons to prove to us that the bishop's intention
> or has been just.

What follows corresponds exactly with the
conclusion of Epistle A/A.]

As to our brother and fellow-bishop Malchuss,

4 This Antoninus was rector patrimonii in Dalniatia (see
I. 22), and, though but a subdeacon, aopears to have had
d the same kind of jurisdiction over the :_ clergy given him in the
>pe's name even in ecclesiastical matters as had ueen committed

Peter the sub jeacon in Sicily. (See I. 1.)

5 This Malchus was a bisliop in Dalmatia (cf. Lib. I. Ep. 38,
\d Malchum episcopum Dalmatian,") and appears to have been in
! irge of some part of the patrimony there, for his administration

thou wilt take care to make him find a sureb,
that he may come to us as soon as possib'e, to
the end that, without any delay or loitering, he
may render us an account of his proceedings,
and so be able to return to his own with
security.

EPISTLE XXII.
To all the Bishops of Illvricum6. .

Gregory to all the bishops, &c.

It both affords us joy for your carefulness
and makes your Fraternity safe in your own or-
dination, if the order of ancient custom is main-
tained. Since, then, we have learnt from the
letters which you have sent to us through the
presbyter Maximianus and the deacon Andreas
that the consent of all of you and the will of
the most serene Prince have concurred in the
person of our brother and fellow-bishop John,
we feel great exultation that, under God's di-
rection, such a one has been advanced to the
office of priesthood 7 as the judgment of all
has approved as worthy. Wherefore, in ac-
cordance with your request, we confirm our
aforesaid brother and fellov-bishop by the
authority of our assent in the order of priest-
hood wherein he has been constituted, and
declare our ratification of his consecration by
sending him the pallium. And since, accord-
ing to custom, we have committed to him
vicariate jurisdiction in our stead, we must of
necessity take the precaution of exhorting your
Fraternity that you in no wise hesitate to obey
him in matters pertaining to ecclesiastical order
and the right course of discipline, or in other
things not precluded by canonical decrees;
that the soundness of your judgment in elect-
ing him may be declared by the obedience
wnich you shew.

of which he had been called to account, and was therefore sum-
moned to Rome to clear himself. He died there suddenly after
his case had been heard, and judgment had been given against
him, Gregory being calumniously accused of having caused his
death. His case is referred to II. 20. 46 : III. 22, 47 ; IV. 47.

6 This Epistle, as appears from the following one, was on the
occasion of the election of John to the See of Jusiiniana Prima in
Eastern Illyricum, which, though annexed by the Emperor Gra-
tian (379) to the Eastern Empire, had remained under the
spiritual control ot the Roman See. Accordingly Pope Damaaiis
had assigned to the bishop of Thessalonica vicariate jurisdiction
under Rome over the new praefecture: and this arrangement had
continued to the time of Pope Vigilius, when the Emperor Jus-
tinian assigned to Achrida, called by him Justiniana Prima,
Metropolitan jurisdiction over the five provinces of the Dacian
civil diocese with the two Pannonias in the diocese of Illyricum
Occidentale {Justin. Novell, exxxi. c. iii.). Hence Justiniana
Prima became the seat thenceforth of the ecclesiastical Vicariate
also. The election to the See, being a metropolitan one, appears
to have been made in this instance by the suffragan bishops with
the concurrence of the Emperor ; alter which the Uishop of Rome
was applied to lor confirmation. In the case before us it was
readily given, the pallium sent, and the vicariate jurisdiction
renewed. A case will appear below in which such confirmation
was refused, but dispensed with by the Emperor, who supported
the elected bishop against the Pope. See III. 47. note 1.

7 Sacerdotii, meaning here episcopacy. See I. 78, note 1.

io6

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE XXIII.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Prima Justiniana
in Illyricum.

It is clearly a manifest evidence of goodness
that the consent of all should concur in the
election of one person. Since, then, the ac-
count which we have received from our
brethren and fellow-bishops declared that you
are summoned to the position of priesthood by
the unanimous consent of the whole council
and the will of the most serene Prince, we
have rendered thanks with great exultation to
Almighty God our Creator, who has made your
life and actions so commendable in the past as
to bring about (what is exceedingly to your
credit) your approving yourself to the judgment
of all. With them we also fully agree with
regard to the person of your Fraternity. And
we implore Almighty God that, as His Grace
has chosen your Charity, so He would keep
you in all respects under His protection. tVe
have sent you the pallium according to custom,
and, renewing our commission, we appoint you
to act as vicar of the Apostolic See, admonish-
ing you that you so shew yourself gentle to
your subjects that they may be provoked to
love you rather than to fear you. And, if per-
chance any fault of theirs should require
notice, you will be careful so to correct iheir
transgressions as by no means to discard pa-
ternal affection from your mind Be watchful
and assiduous in the care ol the ilock committed
to you, and strict in the zeal of discipline, so
that the wolf lying in wait may not prevail to
disturb the Lord's sheepfold, or have oppor-
tunity for deceit, so as to hurt the sheep. Make
haste with full purpose of heart to win souls to
our God ; and know that we have received the
name of shepherd not for repose, but for
labour. Let us, then, shew forth in our work
what our name denotes. If we weigh with
right consideration the prerogative of the
priesthood, it will be to those who are diligent
and do their duty well for honour, but to those
who are negligent assuredly for a burden. For,
as this name, in the sight of God, conducts
those who labour and are assiduous for the sal-
vation of souls to eternal glory, so in the case
of the idle and sluggish it tends to punishment.
Through our tongue let the people committed
to us learn that there is another iife. Let the
teaching of your Fraternity be to them an ac-
ceptable spur to urge them on, and your life an
example for imitation. For your Fraternity's
preaching should disclose to them what to love
and what to fear, and your efficiency in this
way should reap the fruit of eternal retribution.
But let your deliberate care especially constrain

you never to attempt to make any unlawful ordi-
nations ; but, whenever any are promoted to the
clerical order, or, it may be, to some higher rank,
let them be ordained, not for bribes orentreaties,
but for merit. In no ordination let any con-
sideration, in any way whatever, surreptitiously
reach your Fraternity, lest you should be en-
tangled (which God forbid) in the snares of
simoniacal heresy. Tor what shall it profit a
man, as the Truth says, if he shall gain the
whole world, and lose his own soul (Mark viii.
36)? Hence it is necessary for us to look to
God in all we do, to despise temporal and
perishable things, and to direct the desire of
our heart to the good things of eternity. Yourl
Holiness's present8 I was altogether unwilling;
to accept, since it were very unseemly for us to
seem to have received gifts from our plundered:
and afflicted brethren. But your messengers!
got the better of me by another argument, prof-
fering it to one from whom your Fraternity's,
offerings may not be withheld9. For this youi
ought before all things to study: how you may!
provide imperishable gifts to be offered to the
coming judge of souls, to the end that He may
have respect both to you for your profitable
labour, and to us likewise for our exhortation.

EPISTLE XXVI.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, &c.

Inasmuch as we have enjoined on our brothei
and fellow-bishop Paulus the work of the visita
tion of the Neapolitan church, therefore let no
thy Fraternity shrink from assuming the visita
tion of the Nepcsine Church, to the end that
according to the requirements of the Pasch;
festivity, whatever the solemnity of divine se
vice demands may, through thy operation, 1>
in all respects fulfilled. Until, then, we ma-
be able to consider what should be done wit'
regard to our aforesaid brother and fellow
bishop, let thy Fraternity strive to shew thyse
so skilful and vigilant in all things that th
absence of the bishop aforesaid may not at a
be felt1.

'Ihe month of April, the tenth Indiction.

8 Xenia. The term denotes, among other kinds of present
such as were voluntarily offered to superiors, as l.y the people
a province to proconsuls. Tho<e here relet red to were such
it was the custom for bishops to send to the Pope after their ort,
nation or .rom time to time. We find other instances of Grego
deprecating such presents. '' Toe temporal Xenia which H
have sent us, though we are in no need of such, we have nevi
theless accepted with due cha'ity." (VI. 64, Ad Dominkn
episcopum Cartktiginensem.) O. also I. 66. The word is us
also for presents of all kinds. Cf. e.g. the letter to Ethelbt
(XI. 66).

9 Meaning St. Peter. * See II. 9. note 6.

EPISTLE XXX.

107

i
e vis

ot
y 00

XII

ir thy

that
otai

• ■;[*'
««"
(Til*

1*0

EPISTLE XXVII.

To Rusticiana, Patrician*.

Gregory to Rusticiana, &c.

On receiving the epistle of your Excellency
I was relieved by the welcome news of your
welfare, hoping that the Lord in His mercy
may protect and direct your life and doings.
But 1 wondered much why you have turned
from your intention and vow to accomplish a
good work in respect of your meditated journey
to the holy places 3, seeing that, when any-
thing good is by the gift of the Creator con-
ceived in the heart, it is needful that it be
carried out with quick devotion, lest, while the
cunning plotter strives to ensnare the soul, he
should afterwards suggest impediments, whereby
the mind, weakened by occupations, may fail
to carry its desires into effect. Whence it is
necessary that your Excellency should antici-
pate all impediments that come in the way
of pious designs, and gasp after the fruit of
good work with all the efforts of your heart,
that so you may succeed in living tranquilly in
the present world and gaining possession of a
heavenly kingdom in the future. But as to
what you have written to us of Passivus having
attempted to spread some calumnies against
you, consider, on the other hand, that the most
pious emperors have not only been unwilling
to listen to them, but have also received the
author of them roughly : and turn the whole
hope of your soul to Hun Who powerfully pre-
vents men in this world from doing as much
harm as they long to do, that so He may beat
back the wicked intentions of men by the op-
position of His arm, and Himself mercifully
shatter their attempts, as He has been wont to
do. I entreat that the glorious lord Appio
and the lady Eusebia, the Lord Eudoxius and
the lady Gregoria, be greeted in my name
through you.

EPISTLE XXIX.
To Maurilius and Vitalianus*.
Gregory to Maurilius and Vitalianus, magis-
tris mil Hum.

On receiving your Glory's letters we gave

2 Other letters addressed to this patrician lady are IV. 46 :
VIII. 22: XI. 44: XIII. 22. She appears to have been a widow,
no husband being alluded to, who had migrated with her family
from Rome to Constantinople (cf. VIII. 22, and XIII. 22). bne
is spoken of in subsequent letters as a person of slender frame and
weak health, and subject to gout. Her family, to whom greetings
are always sent, beinsr her children either by birth or marriage
were Appio and Eusebia, Eudoxius and Gregoria, the former, and
perhaps the latter also, being a married couple. Strategius also,
a son of A,.rio and Eusebia, apparently a child, has auerwards
greetings sent to him. They had daughters also, whose names
are not given. .... . \

3 Two years later (see IV. 46, Indict. XII. i.e. A.D. 593-4)
she appears to have made a pilgrimage to Mount Sinai.

4 Cf. II. 2.

thanks to God that we were assured of youi
safety ; and we greatly rejoiced at your careful
provision ; and what you wrote about was at
once prepared. But the magnificent Aldio
wrote to us after the arrival of your men that
Ariulph was already near at hand, and we
feared that the soldiers sent to you might fall
into his hands. Yet here also, so far as God
may give aid, our son the glorious magister
minium has prepared himself against him.
But, if the enemy himself should advance
hither, let your Glory also, as you have been
accustomed to do, accomplish what you can
in his rear. For we hope in the power of
Almighty God, and that of the blessed Peter
himself, the Prince of the apostles, on whose
anniversary he desires to shed blood, that
he may find him also without delay opposed
to him.

EPISTLE XXX.

To Maurilius and Vitalianus.

Gregory to Maurilius and Vitalianus, magis-
tris militum 5.

We have entreated your Glory through our
son Vitalianus both by word and letter, charg-
ing you to communicate with him. But on
the eleventh day of the month of January 6
Ariulph sent us this letter which we for-
ward to you. Wherefore, when you have
read it, see if the people of Suana i have stood
fast in the fidelity they promised to the re-
public, and take adequate hostages from
them, such as you can rely on ; and moreover
bind them anew by oaths, restoring to them
what you took from them in the way of a
pledge, and bringing them to a right mind
by your discourses. But, should you quite
distinctly ascertain that they have treated with
Ariulph about their surrender to him, or at
any rate have given him hostages, as the
letter of Ariulph which we have forwarded to
you leads us to suspect, then (after wholesome
deliberation, lest your souls or mine be bur-
dened with respect to our oaths), do ye what-
ever ye may judge to be of advantage to the
republic. But let your Glory so act that
neither anything be done for which we could
be blamed by our adversaries, nor (which may
the Lord avert) anything neglected which the
advantage of the republic requires. Further-
more, my glorious sons, take anxious heed,
.since the enemy, so far as I have ascertained,
has an army collected, and is said to be
stationed at Narina8; and if, God being

5 " Ahest haec Epist. a plerisque MSS." (Benedict Ea.)

6 In Collect. Pauli Diac, /««:"/'. (J bid.)

7 Or Soana, a tewn in Tuscia.

8 Perhaps Narnia, in Umbria.

io8

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

angry with him, be should resolve to bend
his course hitherward, do you plunder his
positions so far as the Lord may aid you, or
certainly let those whom you send carefully
require night-watches 9, lest news of any sad
event should reach us '.

EPISTLE XXXII.

To Peter, Subdeacon of Sicily.

Gregory to Peter, &c.

By information received from Romanus the
guardian (defensore) I have learnt that the
monastery of handmaidens of God which is
on the farm of Monotheus has suffered wrong
from our church of Villa Nova with respect to
a farm belonging to the latter, which is said to
have been leased to the said monastery. If
this is SO; let thy Experience restore to them
the farm, and also the payments from the same
farm for the two indictions during which thou
hast exacted them. Moreover, since many of
the Jews dwell on the estates of the Church,
I desire that, if any of them should be willing
to become Christians, some little of their
dues be remitted to them, to the end that
others also, incited by this benefit, may be
moved to a like desire.

Cows which are now barren from age, or
bulls which appear to be quite useless, ought
to be sold, so that at least some profit may
accrue from their price. But as to the herds
of mares which we keep very unprofitably,
1 wish them all to be dispersed, and four
hundred only of the younger kept for breed-
ing ; which four hundred ought to be pre-
sented to the farmers2 — so many to each, to
the end that they may make some return to
us from them in successive years : for it is
very hard for us to spend sixty solidi on the
herdsmen, and not get sixty pence from these
same herds. Let then thy Experience so pro-
ceed that some may be divided among all the
farmers, and others dispersed and converted
into money. But so arrange with the herds-
men themselves throughout our possessions
that they may be able to make some profit by
cultivation of the ground. All the implements
which, either at Syracuse or at Panormus,
can be claimed by the Church must be sold
before they perish entirely from age.

On the arrival of the servant of God, brother
Cyriacus, at Rome I questioned him closely
as to whether he had communicated with thee
about the receiving of a bribe in the cause of

9 Sculcas. Sculce, excubiae : pro exculcae, vocabulo trun-
cato, ut cubice pro exeubice. Da Cange.

1 In Colbert. Vet. the date is added, " Die 14 Kal. Jan.
Indict. 10." The dates are evidently uncertain.

« C oniiuc tores. See I. 44, note 6.

a certain woman. And the same brother says
that he had learnt the state of the case from
thy telling him, for that he had been com-
missioned bv thee to ascertain who was the
person commissioned to pay the bribe. This
I believed, and immediately received him
familiarly into favour, introduced him to the
people and clergy, increased his stipend 3,
placed him in a superior rank among the
guardians, praising his fidelity before all, in
that he had acquitted himself so faithfully
in thy service ; and I have consequently sent
him back to thee. But, inasmuch as thou
art in great haste, and I, though sick, am
desirous of seeing thee, do thou leave some
one whom thou hast fully proved to take thy
place in the Syracusan district, and thyself
make haste to come to me, that, if it should
please Almighty God, we may consult together
as to whether thou thyself oughtest to return
thither or another person should be appointed
in thy place- At the same time I have sent
lienenatus the notary to occupy thy place in
the patrimony in the district of Panormus till
such time as Almighty God may ordain what
pleases Him.

I have strongly rebuked Romanus for his
levity, because in the Guest-house (xenodo-
ckium) which he kept, as I have now dis-
covered, he has been taken up more with his
own profits than with [heavenly] rewards.
Him, therefore, if it should haply seem good
to thee, leave in thy place. See how thou
mayest best fortify him, by alarming and ad-
monishing him, that he may act kindly and
carefully towards the peasants {ntsticos*) ; and
shew himself towards strangers and towns-
people changed and active. In saying this,
however, I am not selecting any person, but
leave this to thy judgment. It is enough for
me to have selected an occupier of thy place
in the district of Panormus; and I wish
thee to see thyself to providing one for the
Syracusan district. When thou comest, bring
with thee the moneys and ornaments {orna-
menfa) on the part, or of the substance of
Antoninus. Bring also the payments of the
ninth and tenth indictions which thou hast
exacted, and with them all thy accounts. Take
care, if it should please God, to cross the sea
for this city before the anniversary of Saint
Cypiian, lest any danger should ensue (which

3 Presbyterium. The term, as here usci, means apparently
a pecuniary allowance to presbyters. Cf. V. 33, Ad Gaunen-
iiaut Episcopum; '* Fraternitatem main praesentibus hortaniur
affatibus ut cleiicis Capuai.se Kcclesise quartam in tresbyteriiun
eorum de hoc quod ante dicire ecclesiae singulis annis accesserit
juxtaamiquam consuetudinem dis rilmere secundum personarum
studeat qualitatem, quatenus aliquod stipendionim habentes
solatium, mitiisterium officiumque siuim circa eamdem ecclesiani
devuli re mente provocentur impendere."

4 See I. 44, note 1.

EPISTLE XXXII.

109

od forbid) from the constellation which al-
,vays threatens the sea at that season.
Furthermore, I would have thee know that
have no slight compunctions of mind for
laving been grievously set against the servant

f God Pretiosus for no grievous fault of his,
and driven him from me, sad and embittered.
And I wrote to the lord bishop5 requesting
him to send the man to me, if willing to do
so ; but he was altogether unwilling. Now

im I ought not to distress, nor can 1 do so ;
since, occupied as he is in the causes of God,

e ought to be supported by comfort, not
depressed by bitterness. But the said Pre-
tiosus, as I hear, is altogether distressed
because he cannot return to me. I, however,
as I have said, cannot distress the lord bishop,
who is not willing to send him, and I am
doubtful between the two. Do thou then,
if in thy little diminutive body thou hast the
greater wisdom, manage the matter so that
I may have my will, and the lord bishop be
not distressed. Yet, if thou see him to be at
all distressed, say no more about it. I have,
however, taken it amiss that he has excom-
municated the lord Eusebius 6, a man of so
great age and in such bad health. Wherefore
it is needful for thee to speak privately to the
said lord bishop, that he be not hasty in pro-
nouncing sentences, since cases which are to
be decided by sentences must needs be
weighed beforehand with careful and very
frequent consideration.

When the recruiting officers? come, who, as
I hear, are already raising recruits in Sicily,
charge thy substitute to offer them some little
present8, so as to render them well-disposed
towards him. But, before thou comest away,
give also something, according to ancient cus-
tom, to the praetor's officials ; but do it by the
hands of him thou leavest in thy place, so as
to conciliate their favour towards him. Also,
lest we should seem to them to be at all un-
civil, direct thy substitutes to carry out in all
respects the orders we have given to thy Ex-
perience as to what is to be given to any
individuals or monasteries. But when thou
comest, we will, with the help of God con-
sider together how these things should be
arranged. The three hundred solidi which
I sent to be given through thee to the poor
I do not think ought to be committed to their

5 Maximianus (as appears from Epistle 34), whom Gregory
had himself appointed bishop of Syracuse. Cf. II. 7, and -lote.

6 This Eusebius was an abbot in Sicily. Letters follow about
him to Maximianus (-£/. 34), and to him {Efi. 36).

7 Scribonibus. 'ihe term denoted officers sent from the im-
perial court into the provinces for executing certain duties ; in
this case for raising recruits for the imperial army. Cf. V. 30,
note 8.

8 Pat-urn altquid xenii. On xenia, see II. 23, note 8.

discretion. Let them carry out, then, those
directions I have spoken of with reference
to particular places and persons.

Now I remember having written before now
to say that the legacies, which, according to
the representation of Antoninus the guardian
(defcnscris), are due from us to monasteries or
others, were to be paid as had been appointed.
And I know not why thy Experience has
delayed to accomplish this. Wherefore we
desire thee to pay in full our portion of these
legacies from the moneys of the church, that
when thou comest to me, thou may est not
leave there the groans of the poor against
thee. Bring also with thee at the same time
the securities which have been found relating
to the substance of the same Antoninus.

I have learnt on the information of Romanus
that the wife of Redemptus, when dying,
directed by word of mouth one silver shell
to be sold, and the proceeds given to herfreed-
men, and also left a silver platter to a certain
monastery ; in respect of both of which
bequests we desire her wishes to be fully
carried out, lest from the least things we be
betrayed into greater sins.

Further, I have learnt on the information of
the Abbot Marinianus that the building in the
Praetorian Monastery is not yet even half
completed : which being the case, what can
we praise for it but thy Experience's fervour 9 ?
But even now let this admonition rouse thee ;
and, as far as thou canst, assert thvself in the
construction of this same monastery. I said
that nothing was to be given them for the
cost; but I did not prohibit their building the
monastery. But so proceed as to enjoin in all
ways on him whom thou mayest depute in thy
place at Panormus that he construct this same
monastery at the charge of the ecclesiastical
revenue, and that I may have no more private
complaints from the abbot.

Moreover, I have learnt that thou knowest
certain things on the farms, even in consider-
able numbers, to belong to others ; but, owing
to the entreaty of certain persons or to timidity,
thou art afraid to restore them to their owners.
But, if thou wert truly a Christian, thou wouldest
be afraid of the judgment of God more than of
the voices of men. Take notice that I un-
ceasingly admonish thee on this matter ; which
if thou neglect to set right, thou wilt have also
my voice for witness against thee. If thou
shouldest find any of the laity fearing God
who might receive the tonsure and become
agents under the rector J, I give my full con-

9 We note here the sarcastic vein in which Gregory from time
to time pleasantly stimulates Peter to acti\ ity.

« I.e. the rector patrimonii. The purport of this direction

I IO

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

sent. It will be necessary that letters also be
sent to them.

Concerning the case of the son of Com-
missus the scholasticus 2, thou hast taken
advice ; and it appears that what he claims
is not just in law. We are unwilling to burden
the poor to their disadvantage ; but, inasmuch
as he has given himself trouble in this matter,
we desire thee to give him fifty solidi, which
must certainly be charged in thy accounts.
As to the expense thou hast incurred on the
business of the Church in the case of Pro-
chisus, either reimburse thyself there out of
his revenues, or, should his revenues be clearly
insufficient for the repayment, thou must needs
receive what is due to thee here from the
deacon. But presume not to say any tiling
about Gelasius the subdeacon, since his crime
calls for the severest penance even to the end
of his life.

Furthermore, thou has sent me one sorry
nag and five good asses. That nag I cannot
ride, he is such a sorry one ; and those good
asses I cannot ride, because they are asses.
But we beg that, if you are disposed to content
us, you will let us have something suitable.
We desire thee to give to the abbot Euscbius
a hundred solidi of gold, which must certainly
be charged in thy accounts. We have learnt
that Sisinnius, who was a judge at Samnium,
is suffering from grievous want in Sicily, to
whom we desire thee to supply twenty
decimates* of wine and four solidi yearly.
Anastasius, a religious person {religiosus +), is
said to be living near the city of Panormus in
the oratory of Saint Agna, to whom we desire
six solidi of gold to be given. We desire also
six solidi, to be charged in thy accounts, to be
given to the mother of Urbicus the Prior s.
As to the case of the handmaiden of God,
rionorata, what seems good to me is this :

ieems to be that agents from the laity might lie appointed with
advantage to assist the rector patrimonii ; and these must 1 rst be
made clerici by receiving the tonsure, so as to be qualified to
act for the Church. The rectors themselves were usually at least
subdeacons.

2 Scholaslici. The designation appears to have been applied
generally to scholarly and learned persons. Cf. Hieron. in Catal
Scriptor. Eccles., "Serapion ob elegantiani ingenii cognomen
scholastici meruit." In Gregory's Epistles it seems to denote
usually men learned in the law, who mi«;ht advise on legal points
or sit as assessors. In I. 44 (to Peter the subdeacon) scholastici
are spoken of as having given a legal opinion ; Epistle 36 in
Bk. IX. is addressed 'Severo scholastico exarchi," and he is
spoken of as one of those " qui assistant judicious." Cf. also
IX. 58, 59, for the employment of " Martinus Scholasticus,
vir eloquentissimus," in a case of disputed jurisdiction over
the primate of the African province of Bizacia. Such scliolastici
were evidently persons of importance- Gregorv addresses them
by the title of "Gloria vestra"(lV. 40), and of "Magnitude tua "
(IX. 58). In IX. 12 he speaks of the form of prayer which
followed the words of Institution in the Canon of the Mass as
having been composed by a scholasticus ( precent qna-m scholas-
ticus < omposuerat), perhaps using the term in the general sense ot
a scholar.

3 See I. 46, note. 4 See I. 6r, note 7.

S Prcepositi. The word, though used also in a more general
sense, usually denotes the Prior of a monastery, appointed as
the Abbot's vi;e-gerent.

that thou shouldest bring with thee when
thou comest all her substance which evidently
existed before the time of the episcopate of
John, bishop of Laurinum 6. But let the same
handmaiden of God come with her son, that
we may speak with her, and do whatever may
please God. The volume of the Heptateuch?
out of the goods of Antoninus we desire to be
given to the Praetorian monastery, and the rest
of his books to be brought hither by thee.

EPISTLE XXXIII.

To Justinus, Praetor8.

Gregory to Justinus, &c.

The spite of the ancient foe has this way of
its own, that in the case of those whom,
through God resisting him, he cannot delude
into the perpetration of evil deeds, he maims
their reputation for a time by false reports.
Seeing, then, that a sinister rumour about our
brother and fellow-bishop Leo 9 had diss
seminated certain things inconsistent with his
priestly profession, we caused strict and length-
ened enquiry to be made as to whether they
were true, and we have found no fault in
him touching the things that had been said.
But, that nothing might seem to be omitted,
and that no possible doubt might remain in our
heart, we caused hi in over and above to take
a strict oath before the most sacred body
of the blessed Peter. And, when he had done
this, we rejoiced with great exultation that from
a proof of this kind his innocence evidently
shone forth. Wherefore let your Glory receive
the aforesaid man with all charity, and shew
him reverence such as is becoming towards
a priest; nor let any doubtfulness remain in
your heart touching the charges from which
he has now been purged. But it lies upon
you so to cleave in all respects to the
above-named bishop, that you may be seen
fittingly and becomingly in his person to
honour God, whose minister he is.

EPISTLE XXX IV.

To Maximianus, Bishop of Syracuse.

Gregory to Maximianus, &c.

I remember to have often admonished you
to be by no means hasty in passing sentence.
And lo, I have now learnt that your Fraternity
in a fit of anger has excommunicated the most
reverend abbot Eusebius. Now I am much

6 Episcopi Lati7-inensis. If the reading is correct, the See
intended is unknown Holstcin {Annot. in Ceograph. Sacra,
p. 21) suggests Carinensevi , denoting the Sicilian See of Carine,
or Camariiia.

7 I.e. the first seven books of the Bible.

8 Now Praetor of Sicily. Cf. I. 2.

9 Bishop of Catana in Sicily. Cf. I. ja.

EPISTLE XLI.

"J£G

pate
e sai
M
Erin
N
e to
he n

raj

ieliK

e;>on

astonished that neither his former conversa-
tion, nor his advanced age, nor his long-con-
tinued sickness, could turn your mind from
wrath. For, whatever his transgression may
have been, the very affliction of sickness ought
to have sufficed as a scourge for him. For
to one crushed by divine discipline it was
superfluous to add human scourges. But
perhaps thou hast been allowed to exceed in
the case of such a person, in order that thou
mightest become more cautious in the case of
others of less account, and ponder long when
thou art disposed to smite any one through a
sentence. Yet still comfort this same man with
a sweetness proportionate to the fury with
which thou hast exasperated him, since it is
very unjust that the very persons who have
loved thee most should find thee without cause
most bitter against themselves.

EPISTLE XXXVII.

engd
i tin

jit •

o tak

; don
;.:
tot

sfaa

naif
tin •

HI J

apo

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tend

eroi:

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.Si

EPISTLE XXXVI.
To the Abbot Eusebius.

Gregory to Eusebius, &c.

Let thy Charity believe me that I have been
greatly saddened for thy sadness, as though I
had myself suffered wrong in thee. But, when
I afterwards learnt that, even after the most
reverend Maximianus, our brother and fellow-
bishop, had restored thee to his favour and
communion, thy Love would not accept com-
munion from him, I then knew that what had
been done before was just. The humility of
God's servants ought to appear in a time of
affliction : but those who lift themselves up
against their superiors shew that they scorn to
be God's servants. And, indeed, what he
once did ought not to have been done ; but
still it ought to have been taken by thee with
all humility : and again, when he restored to
thee his favour, he ought to have been met
with thanks. And because it was not so
done by thee, I feel that to us in every way
there is cause for tears. For it is no great
thing for us to be humble to those by whom
we are honoured ; for even any worldly man
would do this : but we ought especially to be
humble to those at whose hands we suffer.
For the Psalmist savs, See my humility before
/nine enemies (Psal. ix. 14). What life are we
leading;, if we will not be humble even to our
fathers? Wherefore, most beloved son, I
beseech thee that all bitterness pass away
from thy heart, lest perchance the end should
be near, and the ancient foe should, through
the iniquity of discord, bar against us the way
to the eternal kingdom. Further, we have
caused a hundred solidi to be given to thy
Love through Peter the subdeacon, which I
beg thee to accept without offence.

To John, Bishop of Sqihlt.acium {Squillace,
in Calabria).

Gregory to John, &c.

The care of our pastoral office warns us to
appoint for bereaved churches bishops of their
own, who may govern the Lord's flock with
pastoral solicitude. Accordingly we have held
it necessary to appoint thee, John, bishop
of the civitas Lissitana (Lissus, hodie Alessio ?),
which has been captured by the enemy, to be
cardinal x in the Church of Squillacium, that
thou mayest carry on the cure of souls once
undertaken by thee, having regard to future
retribution. And although, being driven from
thine own Church by the invading enemy,
thou must govern another Church which is
now without a shepherd, yet it must be on
condition that, in case of the former city being
set free from the enemy, and under the pro-
tection of God restored to its former state, thou
return to the Church in which thou wast first
ordained. If, however, the aforesaid city con-
tinues to suffer under the calamity of captivity,
thou must remain in this Church wherein thou
art by us incardinated 2. Moreover, we en-
join thee never to make unlawful ordinations,
or allow any bigamist, or one who has taken
a wife who was not a virgin, or one ignorant
of letters, or one maimed in any part of his
body, or a penitent, or one liable to any con-
dition of service, to attain to sacred orders.
And, shouldest thou find any of this kind, thou
must not dare to advance them. Africans
generally, and unknown strangers, applying for
ecclesiastical orders, on no account accept,
seeing that some Africans are Manichaeans,
and some have been rebaptized ; while many
strangers, though being in minor orders, are
proved to have pretended to a higher dignity.
We al^o admonish thy Fraternity to watch
wisely over the souls committed to thee, and
to be more intent on winning souls than on the
profits of the present life. Be diligent in
keeping and disposing of the goods of the
Church, that the coming Judge, when He
comes to judge, may approve thee as having
in all respects worthily exec uted the office of
shepherd which thou hast taken upon thee.

EPISTLE XLI.
To Castorius, Bishop.

Gregory to Castorius, Bishop of Ariminum
{Rimini).

What lamentable supplications have been
poured out to us by Luminosus, abbot of the

1 See I. 70, note 5.

» See as above.

112

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

monastery of St. Andrew and St. Thomas, in
the city of Ariminum, appears from the text of
the subjoined petition. With regard to this
matter we exhort thy Fraternity that, on the
death of the abbot of this same monastery, thy
church shall under no pretext interfere in
scheduling or taking charge of the property of
the said monastery, acquired or to be acquired.
And we dedre thee to ordain as abbot of the
same monastery none other but him whom the
whole congregation may by common consent
demand as being worthy in character and apt
for monastic discipline. Moreover, we en-
tirely forbid public masses to be celebrated
there by the bishop, lest occasion be given for
popular assemblies in the retreats of God's
servants, and also lest too frequent an en-
trance of women be a cause of scandal (which
God forbid), especially to the simpler souls.
Further, we ordain that this paper by us
written shall be carefully held to, and kept in
force and unadulterated in all future time by
thee and the bishops that shall be ordained
after thee ; that so, with the help of God, both
thy church may be content with its own rights
and no more, and also the said monastery,
being subject henceforth to none but general
or canonical jurisdiction, and free from all
annoyances and vexations, maj at i om ilish its
divine work with the utmost devotion of
heart.

[In place of the epistle as above given the follow-
ing, with the appended paper on the privileges

of monasteries, is found in some Codices.]

Gregory to Castorius, Bishop of
Ariminum.

What lamentable supplications Luminosus,
abbot of the monastery of Saints Andrew and

Thomas, in the city of Ariminum, has poured
out to us, appears from the text of the sub-
joined petition. For from his account we
learn that in very many monasteries the monks
have suffered many prejudices and annoyances
from prelates. It is therefore the duty of thy
Fraternity to make provision for their future
quiet by a wholesome arrangement, to the end
that those who have their conversation therein
in God's service may, His grace assisting them,
persevere with minds free from disturbance.
But, lest from a custom which ought to be
rather amended than continued, any one
should presume to cause any kind of annoy-
ance to monks, it is necessary that the things
which we have caused to be enumerated below
should bz so carefully observed by the fra-
ternity of bishops that no possible occasion
of introducing disquiet may be found here-
after.

Of the privileges of Monasteries.
We therefore interdict in the name of our
Ford Jesus Christ, and forbid by the authority
of the blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles, in
whose stead we preside over this Roman
Church, that any bishop or secular person
hereafter presume in any way to devise occa-
sions of interfering with regard to the re-
venues, property, or writings of monasteries,
or of the cells or vills thereto appertaining, or
have recourse to any tricks or exactions: but,
if any case should by chance arise as to land
disputed between their churches and any
monasteries, and it cannot be arranged ami-
cably, let it be terminated without intentional
delay before selected abbots and other fathers
who fear God, sworn upon the most holy
Gospels. Also on the death of the abbot of
any congregation, let no stranger be ordained,
or any but one of the same congregation
whom the society of the brethren shall of its
own accord have elected unanimously, and
who shall have been elected without fraud or
venality. But, if they cannot find a suitable
person among themselves, let them in like
manner elect some one from some other
monastery to be ordained. Nor, when an
abbot has been constituted, let any person
whatever on any pretext be put over him,
unless perchance (which God forbid) crimed
be apparent which are shewn to be punishable
by the sacred canons. Likewise the rule is to
observed, that monks must not, without
the consent of the abbot, be removed from
monasteries for constituting other monasteries,
or for sacred orders, or for any clerical office.
We also disallow ecclesiastical schedules of
the property of a monastery to be made by
bishops. But if. circumstances requiring it,
the abbot of a place should have questions
with other abbots concerning property that lias
come into possession, let the matter be ter-
minated also by their counsel or judgment.
On the death also of an abbot let not the
bishop on any pretext intermeddle in the
scheduling or taking charge of the property of
the monastery, acquired, or given, or to be
acquired. We also entirely forbid public
masses to be celebrated by him in a convent,
lest in the retreats of the servants of God and
their places of refuge any opportunity for a
popular concourse be afforded, or an unwonted
entrance of women should ensue, which would
be by no means of advantage to their ;oils.
Nor let him dare to place his episcopal chair
there, or have any power whatever of com-
mand, or of holding any ordination, even t ie
most ordinary, unless he should be requested
to do so by the abbot of the place ; that so
the monks may always remain under the

EPISTLE XLVI.

lower of their abbots : and let no bishop de-
ain a monk in any church without a test*
nonial and permission from his abbot, or
promote one without such permission to any
iignity. We ordain, then, that this paper by us
written be kept to for all future time, in force
and unadulterated, by all bishops ; that both
,.hey may be content with the rights of their
pwn churches and no more, and that the
nonasteries be subject to no ecclesiastical
;onditions, or compelled services, or obe-
lience of any kind to secular authorities
fsaving only canonical jurisdictions), but,
"reed from all vexations and annoyances, may
accomplish their divine work with the utmost
ievotion of heart.

EPISTLE XLIL

To Luminosus, Abbot.

Gregory to Luminosus, abbot of the mon-
astery of Saint Thomas of Ariminum.

We were glad to receive thine own andthy con-
gregation's petition, and accede to thy requests
in accordance with the statutes of the Fathers
and with form of law. For to our brother
and fellow-bishop Castorius a letter has been
sent by our order, whereby we have taken
away entirely from him and his successors all
lower to harm thy monastery ; so that neither
may he any longer come among you to be a
jurden to you, nor schedules be made of the
property of the monastery, nor any public
procession 4 take place there; this only juris-
diction being still left to him, that he must
ordain in the place of a deceased abbot an-
other whom the common consent of the con-
gregation may have chosen as worthy. But
now, these things being thus accomplished, be
you diligent in the work of God, and assidu-
ously devote yourselves to prayer, lest you
should seem not so much to have sought
jsecurity of mind for prayer, as to have wished
to escape strict episcopal control over you
while living amiss.

EPISTLE XLVI.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Ravenna '.

That I have not replied to the many letters
'of your Blessedness attribute not to sluggish-
ness on my part, but to weakness, seeing that,
!on account of my sins, when Ariulph, coming

3 The text here("nullis canonicis juris deserviant") appears
to be corrupt, being unintelligible. The sense of the correspond-
ing clause in the shorter Epistle has been given in the translation.

4 Processio usually denotes the celebration oi Mass.

5 For elucidation of the circumstances of this Epistle see
above, Epistles 3, 29, 30.

VOL. XII. 1

to the Roman city, killed some and mutilated
others, I was affected with such great sadness
as to fall into a colic sickness. But I won-
dered much why it was that that well-known
care of your Holiness for me was of no ad-
vantage to this city and to my needs. When,
however, your letters reached me, I became
aware that you are indeed taking pains to act,
but yet have no one on whom you can bring
your action to bear. I therefore attribute it
to my sins that this man 6 with whom we are
now concerned both evades fighting against
our enemies and also forbids our making
peace; though indeed at present, even if he
wished us to make it, we are utterly unable,
since Ariulph, having the army of Authar and
Nordulf, desires their subsidies ? to be given
him ere he will deign to speak to us at all
about peace.

But, as to the case of the bishops of Istria s,
I have learnt the truth of all you had told me
in your letters from the commands which have
come to me from the most pious princes, bid-
ding me abstain for the present from com-
pelling them. I indeed feel with you, and
rejoice greatly in your zeal and ardour, with
regard to what you have written, and acknow-
ledge myself to have become in many ways
your debtor. Know nevertheless that I shall
not cease to write with the greatest zeal and
freedom on this same matter to the most
serene lords. Moreover the animosity of the
aforesaid most excellent Romanus Patricius
ought not to move you, since, as we are above
him in place and rank, we ought so much the
more to tolerate with forbearance and dignity
any light conduct on his part.

If, however, there is any opportunity of
prevailing with him, let your Fraternity work
upon him, so that we may make peace with
Ariulph, if to some small extent we may, since
the soldiery have been removed from the city
of Rome, as he himself knows. But the Theo-
dosiacs 9, who have remained here, not having
received their pay, are with difficulty induced
to guard the walls ; and how shall the city
subsist, left destitute as it is by all, if it has
not peace ?

6 Viz. Romanus Patricius, mentioned below, the Exarch of
Ravenna, and as such representing the Emperor in Jtaly. See
I. 33, "Ad Romanum Patricium ec Exarchum Italia;."

7 Precaria ; apparently subsidies demanded fur the support
of the invading army. P?eca.rium (or Precarivi), which has
various applications, appears to be capable of this sense. See
Du Cange. , . ,

8 The Istrian bishops still held out in refusing to accept the
condemnation of " The Three Chapters" passed in the filth
(Ecumenical Council at the instance of the Emperor Justinian.
Gregory, soon after his accession, had summ< ne.l Severus, Bishop
of Aquileia and Metropolitan, with his suffragans, to Rome ;
and this, as he alleges, by command of the Emperor, though the
latter had now, it appears, forbidden further proceedings. See
I. 16, and note.

9 I.e. the soldiers of the Theodosian Legion

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Furthermore, as to the girl redeemed from
captivity, about whom you have written to us
asking us to enquire into her origin, we would
have your Holiness know that an unknown
person cannot easily be traced. But as to
what you say about one who has been or-
dained being ordained again, it is exceedingly
ridiculous, and outside the consideration of
one disposed as you are, unless perchance
some precedent is adduced which ought to be
taken into account in judging him who is
alleged to have done any such thing. But far
be it from your Fraternity to entertain such
a view. For, as one who has been once bap-
tized ought not to be baptized again, so one
who has been once consecrated cannot be
consecrated again to the same order. But in
case of any one's attainment of the priesthood
having been accompanied by slight misde-
meanour, he ought to be adjudged to penance
for the misdemeanour, and yet retain his
orders.

With regard to the city of Naples ', in view
of the urgent insistance of the most excellent
Exarch, we give you to understand that
Arigis2, as we have ascertained, has associated
himself with Ariulph, and is breaking his faith
to the republic, and plotting much against this
same city; to which unless a duke be speedily
sent, it may already be reckoned among the
lost.

As to what you say to the effect that alms
should be sent to the city of the schismatic
Severus which has been burnt 3, your Fra-
ternity is of this opinion as being ignorant
of the bribes that he sends to the Court in
opposition to us. And, even though these
were not sent, we should have to consider that
compassion is to be shewn first to the faithful,
and aftei wards to the enemies of the Church.
For indeed there is near at hand the city
Fanum, in which manyhave been taken captive,
and to which I have already in the past year
desired to send alms, but did not venture to do
so through the midst of the enemy. It there-
fore seems to me that you should send the
Abbot Claudius thither with a certain amount
of money, in order to redeem the freemen
whom he may find there detained in slavery

1 With respect to Rome Gregory has already complained that the
Exarch woulu neither send forces lor its defence nor allow peace
to be made with Ariulph. So also with regard to Naples, which
Gregory understands to be now threatened by the Lombards.
The Exarch, it appears, had been urgent in insisting that it
should hold out against the enemy (" excellentissimo exarcho
instanter imminente"), but without giving any help for the pur-
pose. What Gregory here says is that witnout aid from the
Exarch its deience was hopeless.

2 Arigis was the Lombard duke of Deneventum.

3 Viz. Aquileia, of which Severus was bishop and Metropolitan,
called here schismaticus necause of his holding out against Rome
in the matter of the Three Chapters. The bribes he is said
below to have sent to Constantinople would be for inducing the

mperor to take his part against Gregory.

for ransom, or any who are still in captivity.
But, as to the sum of money to be thus sent,
be assured that whatever you determine will
please me. If, moreover, you are treating
with the most excellent Romanus Patricius
for allowing us to make peace with Ariulph,
I am prepared to send another person to you,
with whom questions of ransom may be better
arranged.

Concerning our brother and fellow-bishop
Natalis* I was at one time greatly distressed,
in that I had found him acting haughtily in 1
certain matters ; but, since he has himself
amended his manners, he has overcome me
and consoled my distress. In connexion with
this matter admonish our brother and fellow-
bishop Malchus s that before he comes to us he'
render his accounts, and then depart else-
where if it is necessary. And if we find his
conduct good, it will perhaps be necessary for
us to restore to him the patrimony which he
had charge of.

EPISTLE XLVII.

To Dominicus, Bishop.

Gregory to Dominicus, Bishop of Carthage6.

\\\- have received with the utmost gratifica-
tion the letters of your Fraternity, which have
reached us some what 1 Ate by the hands of Donatus
and Quodvultdeus, our most reverend brethren
and fellow-bishops, and also Victor the deacon
with Agilegius the notary. And though we
thought that we had suffered loss from the
tardiness of their coming, yet we find gain from
their more abundant charity; seeing that from
this delay in point of time there appears no
interruption, but rather increase of the love
which, by the mercy of God, through your con-
templation of the priestly office, your practice
of reading, and your maturity of age, we know
to be already firmly planted in you. For it
would not flow so largely from you, had it not
very many most abundant veins in your heart.
Let us, therefore, most holy brother, hold fast
with unshaken firmness this mother and guard
of virtues. Let not the tongues of the deceitful

4 See above, Ep. 20, in this Rook, and I. 19, note 5, where
references to other Epistles arc given.

5 See 1 1. 20, note 5.

6 The bishop of Carthage was primate of the province ol
Africa Proconsularis in virtue of his See. For the custom with
regard to primacy in other African provinces, see I. 74, note 2.
The fact, apparent from this letter, that Dominicus had delayed
sending to Gregory on his accession the congratulatory lettei
that had been expected, and Gregory's carefulness to assure him,
in the course of the studiously courteous letter, of his desire tc
respect the ancient privileges of Chuiches. may be among the
symptoms, otherwise apparent, of the authoritative claims ol the
Roman See being still viewed with some jealousy in the Alrican
Church. Cf. in Book VIII. Epistle 33, to the same Domi-
nicus, in which Gregory, in praising his reverence for the Apos-
tolic See- attributes such reverence to his knowledge of the origin
of the African episcopacy, refraining from asset ting in this case
any prerogative of divine right belonging to the See of S. Peter
Other letters to Dominicus are. V. 5 ; VII. 35 ; XII. 1.

EPISTLE XLVIII.

diminish it in us, or any snares of the ancient
enemy corrupt it. For this joins what is divided,
and keeps together what is joined. This lifts
up what is lowly without tumour; this brings
down what is lifted up without dejection.
Through this the unity of the universal Church,
which is the knitting together of the Body of
Christ, rejoices in its several parts through the
mind's equalization of them, though having in
it dissimilarity from the diversity of its mem-
bers. Through this these members both exult

-.::;j|

in the joy of others, though in themselves
afflicted, and also droop for the sorrows of
;others, though in themselves joyful. For seeing
Ithat, as the teacher of the Gentiles testifies, if
jone member suffers anything, the other mem-
bers suffer with it, and if one member glories,
;all the members rejoice with it, I doubt not
that you groan for our perturbation, as it is
quite certain that we rejoice for your peace.

Now as to your Fraternity rejoicing with us
on our ordination, it displays to me the affec-
tion of most sincere charity. But I confess
that a force of sorrow strikes through my soul
from contemplation of this order of ministry.
For heavy is the weight of priesthood; seeing
that it is necessary for a priest, first to live so
as to be an example to others, and then to
be on his guard not to lift up his heart be-

i cause of the example which he shews. He

i should ever be thinking of the ministry of
preaching, considering with most intense fear
how that the Lord, when about to depart to
receive for Himself a kingdom, and giving

I talents to His servants, says, Trade ye till I come
(Luke xix. 13). Which trading surely we carry

1 on only if by our living and our speaking we
win the souls of our neighbours; if by preach-

| ing the joys of the heavenly kingdom we
strengthen all that are weak in divine love ;
if by terribly sounding forth the punishments
of hell we bend the fro ward and the timid ;
if we spare no one against the truth ; if, given
to heavenly friendships, we fear not human
enmities. And indeed it was in thus shewing
himself that the Psalmist knew that he had
offered a kind of Sacrifice to God, when he said,
Did I ?iot hate them, O God, that hated thee, and
was 1 not grieved with thine enemies ! Yea I
hated them with a perfect hatred, and they became
enemies unto me (Ps. exxxviii. 21 7). But in
view of this burden I tremble for my infirmity,
and look to the returning of the Master of
the house, after receiving His kingdom, to take
account of us. But with what heart shall I
bear His coming, if from the trading I under-
took I render Him no gain, or almost none?
Do thou, therefore, most clear brother, help

7 In English Bible, exxxix. 21.

me with thy prayers ; and what thou seest
me to fear for myself, consider daily on
thine own account with anxious dread. For
through the bond of charity both what I say
of myself is thy concern, and what I desire
thee to do is mine.

Further, as to what your Fraternity writes
about ecclesiastical piivileges, keep to this
without any hesitation, since, as we defend
our own rights, so we observe those of all
several churches. Nor do I through partiality
grant to any Church whatever more than it de-
serves, nor do I under the instigation of am-
bition derogate from any what belongs to it by
right ; but I desire to honour my brethren in
all ways, and study accordingly that each may
be advanced in honour, so long as there can be
no opposition to it of right on the part of one
against the other. Further, I greatly rejoice
with you in the manners of your messengers,
in whom it has been shewn me how much you
love me, in that you have sent to me elect
brethren and sons.

Given the tenth of the Kalends of August,
tenth indiction.

EPISTLE XLVIII.
To Columbus, Bishop8.

Gregory to Columbus, &c.

It is known, most dear brother in Christ, that
the ancient enemy, who by cunning persuasion
deposed the first man from the delights of
Paradise to this life of care, and in him even
then inflicted the penalty of mortality on the
human race, does now with the same cunning,
so as more easily to seize the flock, endeavour
to infect the shepherds of the Lord's sheep
with infused poisons, and already to claim them
as his own by right. But we, who, though un-
worthy, have undertaken the government of the
Apostolic See in the stead of Peter the prince of
the apostles, are compelled by the very office of
our pontificate to resist the general enemy by
all the efforts in our power. Now the bearers
of these presents, Constantius and Mustellus,
have in a petition presented to us given us to
understand, and the deacons of the Church of
Pudentiana constituted in the province of Nu-
midia assert, that Maximianus, prelate of the
same Church, corrupted by a bribe from the
Donatists, has by a new licence allowed a
bishop to be made in the place where he lives;
which thing, though previous usage allowed it,

8 This Columbus was one of the bishops in Numidia, who
seems to have enjoyed the peculiar confidence of Gregory, l.eing
written to on various questions concerning the Church there,
and charged with seeing to the exercise ot discipline over othei
bishops, though not himself the primate. Heisaddressed (III. 68 ;
VIII. 13) as being himself especially devoted to the Roman See.
Other letters addressed to him are III. 48 ; IV. 35 ; VI. 37 ; VI I. -± :
VIII. 28; XII. 8; XII. 28.

I 2

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

is prohibited from remaining and continuing by
the catholic faith 9. On this account, then, we
have deemed it necessary to exhort thy Frater-
nity by these present writings that, when Hi-
larus our chartularius comes to thee, this same
case be subjected to a thorough and wise in-
vestigation in an united general council of
bishops, having the terror of the coming judge
before their eyes. And if this charge should be
proved with sufficient evidences by the bearers
of these presents against the aforesaid bishop,
let him by all means be degraded from the dig-
nity and office which he enjoys, that both he
may return to the gains of penitence through
acknowledgment of his fault, and others may
not presume to attempt such things.

For it is right that one who has sold our Lord
Jesus Christ to a heretic for money received,
as is said to have been done, should be re-
moved from handling the m\ steries of His most
holy body and blood. Further, if, apart from
this accusation, there is any contest afoot
among them, as is contained in the petition of
the deacons themselves, with respect to certain
wrongs or private transactions, this let thy I
ternity with our aforesaid chartularius fully
enquire into with evidence adduced, and de-
cide it according to justice between all the
parties.

But, further, we have learnt through the in-
formation given us by the bearers of these pre-
sents that the heresy of the Donatists is for our
sins spreading daily, and that very many, leave
being given them through venality, are being
baptized a second time by the I lonatists. How
serious a matter this is, brother, it behoves us
with the whole bent of our minds to consider.
Lo, the wolf tears the Lord's flock, no longer
stealthily in the night, but in the open light ;
and we see him advance in the slaughter of the
sheep, and with no solicitude, with no darts of
words, do we oppose him. What fruits, then,
of a multiplied flock shall we shew to the Lord,
if even that of which we have undertaken the
feeding we see with easy mind mangled by
the wild beast? Let us therefore study to in-
flame our hearts by imitation of earthly shep-
herds, who often keep watch through winter
nights, pinched with showers and irost, lest
even one sheep, and perchance not a profit-
able one, should perish. And, if the prowler
should have bitten it with greedy mouth, how-
do they busy themselves, with what palpitations
of heart do they pant, with what cries do they
leap forward to rescue the captured sheep,
stimulated by the pressing need, lest anything

9 The Donatists had formerly heen allowed their own bishops,
tolerated along with the Catholic ones. This liberty was now
disallowed, probably in accordance with imperial edicts. See
I 74, note 8.

lost through their carelessness should be re-
quired of them by the lord of the flock ! Let
us then watch, lest anything should perish;
and, if anything should by chance have been
seized, let us bring it back to the Lord's flock
by the cries of divine discourses, that He who
is the Shepherd of shepherds may mercifully
vouchsafe to approve us in His judgment as
having kept watch over His sheepfold. This
also it is needful for you to attend to wisely;;
that, if there should be any proper petition
on the part of the same bishop against the
bearers of these presents, it should be tho-
roughly enquired into ; and, if haply they
themselves also should rightly deserve to be
smitten for their own fault, we pronounce that
they should by no means be spared on the
ground of their having had the toil of re-
sorting to us.

In the month of August, tenth indiction.

EPISTLE XLIX.
To Januarius, Archbishop.

Gregory to Januarius, archbishop of Caralis
{Cagliari).

It with integrity of heart we consider the
priestly office which we administer, the con- j
cord of personal charity ought so to unite us
with our sons that, as we are fathers in name,
so we should be proved by our affection to
be so in deed. While, then, we ought to be
such as has been said above, we wonder why
such a mass of complaints has arisen against
thy Fraternity. We still indeed hesitate to
believe it : but, that we may be able to ascertain
the truth, we have sent to your parts John
the notary of our See, supported by our in-
junction, who may compel all parties to abide
the judgment of chosen arbitrators, and by his
own execution carry their judgments into effect.
Wherefore we exhort thy Fraternity by this
present writing to consider well with thyself
beforehand the merits of the cases : and, if
you find that you have taken or hold anything
unjustly, in consideration of your priesthood
to restore it before trial.

Now, among numerous complaints, the most
distinguished Isidore has complained of having
been excommunicated and anathematised by
thy Fraternity for invalid reasons. And, when
we had wished to learn from one of thy clergy
who was here for what cause this had been
done, he gave us to understand that it had
been done for no other cause than that the
man had done thee an injury. This distresses
us exceedingly ; since, if it is so, thou shewest
that thou dost not think of heavenly things,
but givest signs of having thy conversation
among things of earth, having brought to bear

EPISTLE LI.

117

*!■

vrong which is a thing forbidden by the
;acred rules. Wherefore for the future be
;horoughly circumspect and careful, and pre-
sume not to inflict any such penalty again for
/indication of thine own wrongs. For, shouldest
hou do anything of the kind, know that it will
ifterwards be avenged on thyself.

-it

i Ti

petiti
w

Three Chapters z.

OD
Of

he malediction of anathema to avenge a private been since that time the more loved by God,

and in all ways approved, having been counted
worthy of enduring the scourge of the Lord.
But. since it is not as ye try to make out by
way of insulting over her, attend ve to reason.
Alter the Pope Vigilius of illustrious memory,
having been appointed in the royal city 3, pro-
mulgated a sentence of condemnation against
Theodora, then empress, or against the Ace-
phali^ the city of Rome was then attacked
and captured by enemies. Does it follow
from this that the Acephali had a good case,
Gregory to all bishops in the matter of the or that they were unjustly condemned, because

EPISTLE LI.
To all Bishops.

such things happened after their condemna-
I have received your letters with the utmost tion ? Away with the thought ! For it is not
gratification : but I shall have far abundant | fit that either any one of you, or any others
joy, if it should be my lot to rejoice in your j who have been instituted in the mysteries of
return from error. Now the forefront of your the Catholic Faith, should say or in any way

■

mite i
-;:■:
ion :
: to b

rij
..:■
ate I
stj
Jot
mil

Epistle notifies that you suffer severe persecu-
tion. But persecution, if endured irrationally,
is of no profit at all unto salvation. For it is
impious in any one to expect a recompense

acknowledge this. This then being recognized,
retire ye even now at length from the deter-
mination you have come to. Wherefore, that
full satisfaction may be infused into your

nil

Ed!

'■

bee
tin
•:■

Its*

of reward for sin. For you ought to know, as j minds, and all doubt removed, with respect to
the blessed Cyprian says, that it is not the the three chapters, I have judged it of advan-
suffering that makes the martyr, but the cause tage to send you the book which my pre-
for which he suffers. This being so, it is ex- j decessor of holy memory, Pope Pelagius,
ceedingly incongruous for you to glory in the
persecution whereof you speak, seeing that
you are not thereby at all advanced towards
eternal rewards. Let, then, purity of faith
bring your Charity back to your mother church
who bare you ; let no bent of your mind dis-
sociate you from the unity of concord ; let no
persuasion deter you from seeking again the
right way. For in the synod which dealt with
the three chapters it is distinctly evident that
nothing pertaining to faith was subverted, or
in the least degree changed ; but, as you
know, the proceedings had reference only to
certain individuals ; one of whom, whose writ-
ings evidently deviated from the rectitude of
the Catholic Faith, was not unjustly con-
demned 2.

Moreover, as to what you write about Italy
among other provinces having been especially
scourged since that time, you ought not to
twist this into a reproach, since it is written,
Whom the Lord lovtth he chasteneth, and
scourge/ h every son whom he rccetieth (Hebr.
xii. 6). If, then, it is as you say, Italy has

1 This letter, being in reply to one from the bishops addressed
who are spoken of as being at the time schismatics, cannot have
been meant for the universal episcopate. They were probably
those of Istria or elsewhere, who were out of commun.on with
Rome because of their refusal to accept the condemnation of the
" Three Chapters " by the fifth Council. See I. 16, note 3 : IV. 1,

2. 3. 4, 38- 39- . „ . , . , .

2 I.e. Theodorus of Mopsuestia, whose .person, and not his
writings only, was anathematized in the fifth Council.^ The
sentence was; " Praedicta tria capitula anathematizamus, id est,
Theodorum Mopsuestenum cum nefandis ejus scriptis, et qua;
impie Theodoritus conscripsit, et impiam epistolam qua; dicitur
Ibae, et defensores eorum."

had written on this subject s. Which book if
you should be willing to read again and again,
putting aside the spirit of wilful self-defence,
I have confidence that you will follow it in all
respects, and, notwithstanding all, return to
union with us. But if henceforth, after perusal
of this book, you should decide to persist in
your present determination, you will doubtless
shew that you gave yourselves up not to reason
but to obstinacy. Wherefore once more, in
a spirit of compassion, I admonish your
Charity, that, inasmuch as under God the

3 Vigilius, having gone to Constantinople with pope Agapetus,
who died there, was selected by the Empress Theodora as his
successor, and sent b?ck to Italy with an order from her to
Belisarius to bring about his election (Liberatus, Breviar. c. 22).
Gregory seems to have been unaware of the fact stated by
Liberatus, namely that Vigilius had come to a secret under-
standing with the Empress that he would support the Mono-
physite party and disallow the Council of Chalcedon, as there
is good evidence that he did after his accession. It is true that
he afterwards declared for orthodoxy, and condemned all abettors
of the Etttychian heresy. But this appears to have been not till
A.D. 540, in reply to a letter received from the Emperor Justinian,
and therefore subsequent to the occupation 01 Rome by the Gothic
King Theodatus, which was in 536, and to its siege by Vitiges,
who retired in 538. Thus what Giegory goes on to say about
Ko.ne having been attacked and captured by enemies after the
condemnation of heresy by Vigiliu.-. must be due to serious
ignorance of the facts ot the case. Nor does he appear to
have known — at any rate he does not intimate — that the con-
demnation of the Three Chapters, pressed upon the fi.th Council
bv the Emperor Justinian, had been in spite of the opposition
of Vigilius, though it is true that this sorry pope did afterwards
assent to it.

4 The Monophysites — or some of them — had come to be so
called, as being without a head, after their leader. Peter Mongus,
had accepted the See of Alexandria on the doctiinal basis of Zeno's
Henoticon.

5 Pelagius I., who succeeded Vigilius. though he had formerly
with him" opposed the condemnation of the Three Chapters,
upheld it after his accession to the popedom. The " book " sent
by Gregory to the bishops may have been the Epistle given
as Ep. VII., among those attributed to Pelagius, addressed to
Htlias and the bishops of Istria.

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

purity of our faith has remained inviolate in
the matter of the Three Chapters, ye put away
from you all swelling of mind, and return to
your mother the Church, who expects and
invites her sons ; and this all the more speedily
as you know that she expects you daily.

EPISTLE LII.

To Natai.is, Bishop6.

Gregory to Natalis, Bishop of Salona.

As though forgetting the tenour of former
letters, I had determined to say nothing
to your Blessedness but what should savour
of sweetness : but, now that in your epistle
you have recurred in the way of argumentation
to preceding letters, I am once more com-
pelled to say perhaps some things that I had
rather not have said.

For in defence of feasts your Fraternity
mentions the feast of Abraham, in which by
the testimony of Holy Scripture he is said
to have entertained three angels (Gen. xviii.).
In view of this example, neither will we blame
your Blessedness for feasting, if we come to
know that you entertain angels. Again you
say that Isaac gave a blessing to his son when
satiated (Gen. xxvii. 27). Now as to both
these things in the Old Testament — since they
were so done in the way of history as still to
have a meaning in the way of allegory — would
that we could so read through the accounts
of the things done as to perceive and take
thought for the things to be done. For indeed
the one, in saluting one only of the three
angels, declared the Persons of the Trinity to
be of one Substance ; the other blessed his
son when satiated, because one who is filled
with divine banquets has his senses extended
into the power of prophecy. But the words
of Holy Writ are divine banquets. If, then,
you read diligently — if, drawing example from
what is outward, you penetrate what is in-
ward— you will be satiated, as it were, from
hunting in the field, and fill the stomach of
the soul, so as to be able to announce things
to come to your son placed before you, to wit
to the people you have taken in charge. But
one who prophesies anything of God is already
in the dark as to this world ; for it is assuredly
right and fit that he whose senses are bright
inwardly through intelligence should see less
through concupiscence here below.

Take, therefore, these things to yourselves ;
and, if you know yourselves to be such as I have
said, you need not at all doubt of our esteem.
I also find your Blessedness rejoicing if you
bear the name of " a gluttonous man " along

6 See I. 19. note 5, with reff.

with the world's Creator. As to this I briefly
comment thus ; that, if you are called so
falsely, you cio truly bear this name along with
the world's Creator; but, if it is true of you,
who can doubt that it was false of Him? A
like name does not avail to acquit you, if the
cause for it is unlike. For even the thief who
was condemned to die endured the cross with
Him ; but a like crucifixion did not acquit him
whom his own guilt bound. But now I be-
seech God with all the prayers I can ofTer that
not the name only, but the cause for it, may
join your most holy Fraternity to our Creator.

Further, your Holiness in your letters rightly
praises feasts which are made with the inten-
tion of bestowing charity. But yet you should
know that they then truly proceed from charity,
when at them the lives of the absent are not
backbitten, no one is censured in derision,
and no idle tales about secular affairs, but the
words of sacred reading, are heard ; when
the body is not pam] ered more than is need-
ful, but only its weakness refreshed, that it
may be kept in health for the practice of
virtue. If, then, you thus conduct yourselves
in your feasts, I own that you are masters of
abstinence.

As to your alleging to me the testimony
of the apostle Paul, where he says, Let not
him that catet/i not judge liim that eateth (Rom.
xiv. 3), I think that this was altogether out
of place, seeing both that I am not one that
eateth not, and also that Paul did not here
mean to say that the members of Christ, who
are mutually bound to each other in His body,
that is to say in his Church, with the bond
of charity, should have no care whatever for
each other. If, indeed, I had nothing to do
with thee, nor thou with me, I should rightly
be compelled to hold my peace, lest I should
blame one whom I could not mend. This
precept, then, was given only with reference
to persons who go about to judge those who
have not been committed to their care. But
now that we, by the ordering of God, are
one, we should be much in fault were we to
pass over in silence what calls for our correc-
tion. Lo, thy Fraternity has taken it amiss
to have been blamed by me about feasts,
while I, who surpass thee in my position,
though not in my life, am ready to be found
fault with by all, and by all to be amended.
And him only do I esteem to be a friend to
me, through whose tongue I wipe off the stains
of my soul before the appearance of the strict
judge.

But as to what you say, most sweet brother,
about your being unable to read because of
the pressure of tribulations upon you, I think
this avails little for your excuse, since Paul

EPISTLE LIV.

T19

iys, Whatsoever things are written are written
\r our instruction, that we through patience and
mifort of the Scriptures might have hope (Rom.
v. 4). If, then, holy Scripture has been pre-
ared for our comfort, we ought by so much
ne more to read it as we find ourselves the
lore wearied under the burden of tribulations.
|ut if we are to rely only on that sentence
ihich you quote in your letter, wherein the Lord
ays, When they deliver you up, take no thought
01V or what ye shall speak, for it shall be given
mi in that hour what ye shall speak ; for it is
lot ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father
'iat speaketh in you (Matth. x. 19), I say that
toly Scriptures have been given us in vain, if,
'eing filled with the Spirit, we have no need
;f external words. But, dearest brother, trust-
!ig in God without doubt, when we are
:raightened in a time of persecution, is one
ring ; what we ought to do when the Church
\ at peace is another. For it is our duty,
1 rough this same Spirit, to learn by reading
jow what we may be able to shew forth also in
{jffering, should cause arise.

Now, I rejoice exceedingly that you declare
1 your letter that you are giving attention to
xhortation. For thus I know that you are
isely fulfilling the duties of your position, if
011 take pains to draw others also to your
llaker. But your saying in the same sentence
iat you are not like me saddens me at once,
fter I had begun to rejoice, since I think that
. is in derision that you give me praises which
1 truth I do not recognize as due. However,

give thanks to Almighty God that through
ou heretics are being recalled to holy Church,
tut it is needful for you to have a care that
pose also who are contained in the bosom
f holy Church live so that they be not her
jdversaries through their evil lives. For, if
hey give themselves not to heavenly desires,
ut to earthly lusts and pleasures, sons of
I rangers are being nourished in her bosom.
1 Now as to your declaring that you cannot
ossibly be ignorant of the degrees of eccle-
;astical rank, I too fully know them with
egard to you ; and I am therefore much
istressed that, if you knew the order of
pings, you have failed, to your greater blame,
1 knowing it with regard to me. For, after
;;tters had been addressed to your Blessed-
ess by my predecessor and myself in the
ause of the archdeacon Honoratus, then, the
entence of both of us being set at nought, the
Kid Honoratus was deprived of the rank
elonging to him. Which thing if any one of
ne four patriarchs had done, such great ton-
miacy could by no means have been allowed
> pass without the most grievous offence,
'evertbeless, now that your Fraternity has

returned to your proper position, I do not
bear in mind the wrong done either to myself
or to my predecessor.

But as to your saying that what has been
handed down and guarded by my predecessors
ought to be observed in our times also, far be
it from me to infringe in any church the
statutes of our ancestors with regard to my
fellow priests, since I do myself an injury if I
disturb the rights of my brethren. But when
your accredited messengers arrive, I shall know
the rights of the case between you and the
aforesaid archdeacon Honoratus ; and my own
personal examination of it will shew you that,
if you have the support of justice on your side,
you will sustain no injury from me ; as indeed
you never have done. But in case justice
supports the plea of the often-before-named
Honoratus, I will shew by my acquittal of him
that in judgment I have no knowledge even of
persons whom I knew.

Concerning the article of excommunication
which, if I may say so, was of necessity added
to our letters (though even the second and
the third time with a condition interposed),
your Blessedness complains unreasonably,
since the apostle Paul says, Having in a
readiness to revenge all disobedience (2 Cor.
x. 6). But let these things pass : let us
return to what concerns us now. For, if the
lord Natalis acts as he should do, I cannot
but be friends with him, knowing how much I
am a debtor to his affection.

EPISTLE LIV.

Here follows the Epistle of Saint Licinianus,
bishop, concerning the Book of Rules, ad-
dressed to Saint Gregory, pope of the city of
Rome 7.

To the most blessed lord pope Gregory,
Licinianus, bishop.

The Book of Rules issued by Thy Holiness,
and by the aid of divine grace conveyed to us,
we have read with all the more pleasure for
the spiritual rules which we find contained
in it. Who can fail to read that with pleasure
wherein by constant meditation he may find
medicine for his soul ; wherein, despising the
fleeting things of this world which vary in
their mutability, he may open the eyes of his
soul to the settled estate of eternal life ? This

7 Licinianus was bishop of Carthagena in Spain, a Latin
ecclesiastical writer. Isidore {Lib. de ittustribiis Ecclesicz scr:f>-
toribus, c. 29) says of him, " In scripturis doctus, cujus quidem
nonnullas epistolas legimus. De sacramento denique baptismatis
unani, et ad Eutropium abbatem postea Valentia? episcopum
piurimas ; reliqua vero industrial et laboris ejus ad nostram noti-
liam minime pervenerunt. Claruit tempuribus Mauricii Augusli ;
occubuit Coristantinopoli veneno ut ferunt, extinctus ab amulis
Sed, ut scriptum est, Justus quacunque morte frceoccupaito
fiterit, atcima ejus in refrigerio est." The "Book of Rules'
which he had received, was Gregory's Regula Pastoralis.

120

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREA

book of thine is a palace of all virtues. In it
prudence fixes the boundary line between good
and evil ; justice gives each one his own, while
it subjects the soul to God, and the body to
the soul. In it fortitude also is found ever
the same in adversity and in prosperity, being
neither broken by opposition nor lifted up by
success. In it temperance subdues the rage
of lust, and discriminately imposes a limit upon
pleasures. In it thou comprehendest all things
that pertain to the partaking of eternal life ;
and not only for pastors layest down a rule
of life, but also to those who have no office
of government thou suppliest a rule of life.
For pastors may learn in thy fourfold division
what they should be in coming to this office ;
what life they should lead after coming
to it; how and what they should teach, and
what they should do to avoid being lifted up
in so high a position as that of priesthood.
This excellent teaching of thine is attested
by the holy ancient fathers, doctors, and de-
fenders of the Church ; Hilary, Ambrose,
Augustin, Gregory Nazianzen : these all bear
testimony to thee as did the prophets to
the apostles. Saint Hilary says, in exp land-
ing the words of the Ap istle who was the
teacher of the Gentiles, '" For so he signi-
fies that the things belonging to discipline
and morals serve to the good desert of the
priesthood, if those things also whii h are
necessary for the science of teaching and
guarding the faith shall not be wanting among
the rest ; since it doL\s not all at once consti-
tute a good and useful priest only to act n io-
cently, or only to preach knowingly, seeing
that, though a man be innocent, he profits
himself only unless he be learned, and that
he that is learned is without the authority of
a teacher unless he be innocent8." Saint
Ambrose gives attestation to this book of
thine in the books which he wro.e about
Duties {de ojjiciis). Saint Augustin gives at-
testation, saying, " In action dignity should
not be loved in this life, neither power ; since
all tilings under the sun are vain. But the
work itself which is done by means of this
dignity or power, if it is rightly and profitably
done, this is what avails for that weal of sub-
jects which is according to God. Wherefore
the Apostle says, ' He that desireth the office
of a bishop desireth a good work.' He wished
to explain what episapus means ; that it is
a title denoting work, not dignity. For it is
a Greek word derived hence ; — that he who
is put over others overlojks those whom he is

8 This and the succeeding quotat'ors from the works of
Fathers are inatcuiately given, and in | lates hardly intelligible.
Where this is so, the original passives ha\e been followed in
t e translations.

put over, to wit, as taking care of them ; for epis-
copacy is overlooking. Therefore, if we choose,
we may say in Latin that to exercise the office
of a bishop is to overlook ; so that one who
delights to be over others and not to profit I
them may understand that he is no bishop.
For so it is that no one is prohibited from
longing to become acquainted with truth, for
which purpose leisure is to be commended;
but as to a portion of superiority, without
which the people cannot be governed, though
it may be held and administered becomingly,
it is unbecoming to covet it. Wherefore
charity seeks holy leisure, so as to have time
for perceiving and defending the truth. But
if [the burden of government] be imposed,
it is to be undertaken on account of the obli-
gation of charity. But not even so should
delight in the truth be altogether forsaken,
lest the former sweetness should be withdrawn,
and the present obligation be oppressive1
(Lib. viii. de Trinity num. i).

Saint Gregory attests, whose style thou fol-
lowest, and after whose example thou didst de-
sire to hide thyself in order to avoid the weight
of priesthood ; which weight, of what sort id
is, is clearly declared in the whole of thy book:,
and yet thou bearest what thou wast, afraid of.
For thy burden is borne upwards, not down-]
wards ; not so as to sink thee to the depths,
but to lift thee to the stars; whilst by the'
grace of God, nnd the merit of obedience.!
and the efficiency of good work, that is made
sweet which seemed to have heaviness through
human weakness. For thou sayest the thing.'
that are in agreement with the apostles anc
with apostolic men. For, being fair, thou has'
said things fair, and in them hast shewn thysel
fair. I would not have thee liken thyself tc
an ill-favoured painter painting fair things
seeing that spiritual teaching issues from i
spiritual soul. The human painter is by mos
men esteemed more highly than the inanimat
picture. But put not this down to flatter
or adulation, but to truth: for it neither be
comes me to lie, nor thee to commend wha
is false. I then, though plainly sincere, hav
seen thee and all that is thine to be fair, am
have seen myself as ill-favoured enough i
comparison with thee. Wherefore I pray the
by the grace of God which abounds in the
that thou reject not my prayer, but willing!
teach me what I confess myself ignorant o
For we are compelled of necessity to do vvIk
thou teachest.

For, when there is no skilled person foun
for the sacerdotal office, what is to be done hi
that an unskilled one such as I am, should I
ordained ? Thou orderest that no unskille '
one should be ordained. But let thy prudent

EPISTLE L1V.

J2I

:'ioil

until

onsirler whether it may not suffice him for
kill to know Jesus Christ and Him crucified :
or, if this does not suffice, there will, accord-
rig to this book, be no one who can be called
killed : and so no one will be a priest, if
one, unless he be skiiled, should be one.
or with open front we resist bigamists, lest
ie sacrament should be thus corrupted. What
[ the husband of one wife should have touched
woman before his wife ? What if he should
|ot have had a wife, and yet should not have
een without touch of a woman ? Comfort
b with thy pen, that we may not be punished
ther for our own sin or that of others. For
e are exceedingly afraid lest we should be
Irced to do what we ought not to do. Lo,
oedience must be paid to thy precepts, that
ich a one may be made a priest as apostolical
ithority approves ; and such a one as is
'•ught is not found. Thus faith will cease,
lich cometh of hearing ; baptism will cease,

there should be no one to baptize ; those
ost holy mysteries will cease which are ef-

ted through priests and ministers. In either
se danger remains : either such a one must

ordained as ought not to be, or there must

no one to celebrate or administer sacred
ysteries.

A few years ago Leander, Bishop of His-
lis, on his return from the royal city, saw

in passing, and told us that he had some

milies issued
ok of Job.

by your Blessedness on the
And, as he passed by in

ie da

ihook
into

haste, he did not shew them to us as we
requested. But thou wrotest afterwards to
him about trine immersion, and saidest in
thy letter, as I am told, that thou wast dis-
satisfied with that work, and hadst determined
on maturer consideration to change those
homilies into the form of a treatise 9.

We have indeed six books of Saint Hilary,
Bishop of Pictrv i, which he turned into Latin
from the Greek of Oiigen: but he has not
expounded the whole of the book of holy Job
in order. And I am not a little surprised that
a man so very learned and so holy should trans-
late the silly tales of Origen about the stars.
I, most holy father, can in no wise be per-
suaded to believe that the heavenly luminaries
are rational spirits, Holy Scripture not de-
claring them to have been made either along
with angels or along with men. Let then your
Blessedness deign to transmit to my littleness
not only this work, but also the other books
on morals which in this Book of Rules thou
speakest of having composed. For we are
thine, and are delighted to read what is thine.
For to me it is a desirable and glorious thing,
as thy Gregory says, to learn even to extreme
old age. May God the Holy Trinity vouchsafe
to preserve your crown unharmed for instruct-
ing His Church, as we hope, most blessed
father.

» See I. 43.

» by a

cere.il
efcir,

BOOK III.

EPISTLE I.
To Peter, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, Subdeacon of Campania.

What a crime has been committed in the
Lucullan fort against our brother and fellow-
bishop Paul ' the account which has been sent
to us has made manifest. And, inasmuch as
the magnificent Scholasticus, judge of Cam-
pania, happens at the present time to be with
us here, we have especially enjoined on him
the duty of visiting the madness of so great
perversity with strict correction. But, since
the bearer of the aforesaid account has re-
quested us to send some one to represent our-
selves, we therefore send the subdeacon Epi-
phanius, who, together with the aforesaid
judge, may be able to investigate and ascer-
tain by whom the sedition was raised or in-
stigated, and to visit it with suitable punish-
ment. Let thy Experience then make haste
to give aid in this case with all thy power, to
the end both that the truth may he ascertained,
and that vengeance may proceed against the
guilty parties. Wherefore, since the slaves of
the glorious Clementina are said to have had
to do with this same crime, and to have used
language calculated to stir up the sedition, do
thou subject them s'.rictly to immediate pun-
ishment, nor let your severity be relaxed in
consideration of her person, since they ought
to be smitten all the more as they have trans-
gressed out of mere pride as being the servants
of a noble lady. But you ought also to make
thorough enquiry whether the said lady was
privy to so atrocious a crime, and whether it
was perpetrated with her knowledge, that from
our visitation of it all may learn how dangerous
it is not only to lay hands on a priest, but
even to transgress in words against one. for,
if anything should be done remissly or omitted
in this case, know that thou especially wilt
have to bear the blame and the risk ; nor wilt
thou find any plea for excuse with us. For
in proportion as this business will commend

• The Castellum, or Cash-urn, Lucullanum was a small
island adjoining Naples. Respecting Paul, bishop of Nepe, who
had been sent as visitor to the See of Naples du.ing a vacancy,
and his difficulties there, cf. II. 9, 10, 15 ; III. 35.

thee to us if it be most strictly investigatet
and corrected, know that our indignation will
become sharp against thee, if it be smootheq
over.

Moreover, for the rest, if any slaves fron
the city should have taken refuge in th
monastery of Saint Severinus, or in any othe
church of this same fort, as soon as thi
has come to thy knowledge, by no mean
allow them to remain there, but let them b |
brought to the church within the city ; an<
if they should have just cause of complaii

linst their masters, they must needs lea\
the church with suitable arrangements mac'
for them. But, if they should have committe
any venial fault, let them be restored withoi
delay to their masters, the latter having take
oath to pardon them.

EPISTLE II.
To Paulus, Bishop*.

Gregory to Paulus, &c.

Although it has distressed us in no slig
degree to hear of the injury that thou h
suffered, yet we have matter of consolation
learning that the affair is to thy credit, in th;
so far as the account sent to us has disclosj
the facts, thou hast suffered in the cause of v|
rightness and equity. Wherefore, that it m
redound to the greater glory of thy Fraternj
this occurrence ought neither to shake tj
constancy nor turn thee aside from the way
truth. For it is to the greater reward of prie
if they continue in the path of truth even af'
injuries. But, lest the madness of such gr
impiety should remain unpunished, and p
nicious insubordination break out to a wo
degree, we have enjoined the magnific
Scholasticus, judge of Campania, who is
present here, that he should avenge what
been done with the repression it desen
But, inasmuch as thy men have requeste
to commission some one to represent oursel
know that we have for this reason sent
Naples the subdeacon Lpiphanius, who r

9 See preceding Epistle.

EPISTLE VI.

T2"

e able, with the judge above named, to in-
estigate and ascertain the truth, to the end
hat "by his instancy he may cause worthy
engeance to be executed on those who may
le shewn to have instigated or perpetrated so
treat a crime.

EPISTLE III.
To John, Abbots.

Gregory to John, &c.

Thy Love has requested me that brother
_>oniface might be ordained Prior {praposi-
us) * in thy monastery ; as to which request

wonder much why it has not been done
efore. For since the time when I caused
im to be given to thee thou oughtest already
o have ordained him.

With regard to the tunic of Saint Johns,

have been altogether gratified by thy anxiety
ro tell me of it. But let thy Love endeavour
o send me this tunic, or (better still) this
;ame bishop who has it, with his clergy and
vith the tunic itself, to the end that we may
mjoy the blessing thereof, and be able to
ierive benefit from this bishop and his clergy.

have been desirous of putting an end to the

rause that is pending with Florianus, and have

fd ready advanced to him as much as eighty

\olidi, which I believe he proposes should be

given him in compensation for the monastery's

:lebt ; and I am altogether desirous that this

J;ause should be settled, inasmuch as Stephen

the chartularius is said to be urgent that the

kforesaid Florianus should transfer it to public

■ognizance, and it is distasteful to us to be

■ngaged in a public lawsuit. Wherefore we

nust needs make some concession, so as to be

ible to bring this same cause to a composition.

When this shall have been done, we will

nform your Love of it.

But do thou give thy whole attention to the
;ouls of the brethren. Let it be now enough
rhat the reputation of the monastery has been
stained through your negligence. Do not often
^o abroad. Appoint an agent for these causes,
: md do thou leave thyself time for reading and
prayer.

Be attentive to hospitality ; as far as thou
irt able, give to the poor ; yet so as to keep
I what ought to be restored to Florianus.

Moreover, among the brethren of thy monas-

tery whom I see I do not find addiction to
reading. Wherefore you must needs consider
how great a sin it is, that God should have
sent you alimony from the offerings of others,
and you shduld neglect learning the command-
ments of God.

Further, with regard to the six twelfdis,
unless we see the original deed, or a copy of
it, we can do nothing. But I have sent an
order to the servant of God, Florentinus, that,
if the truth should be made apparent to him,
he restore to you the six twelfths ; after the
restoration of which we will either grant the
remaining six twelfths on lease or commute
the revenue.

EPISTLE V.
To Peter, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, Subdeacon of Campania.

As we have no wish to disturb the privileges
of laymen in their judgments, so, when they
judge wrongfully, we desire thee to resist them
with moderate authority. For to restrain
violent laymen is not to act against the laws,
but to support law. Since then Deusdedit,
the son-in-law of Felix of Orticellum, is said
to have done violent wrong to the bearer of
these presents, and still unlawfully to detain
her property, in such sort that the dejection
of her widowhood is found not to move his
compassion, but to confirm his malice, we
charge thy Experience that against the afore-
said man, as well as in other cases wherein
the aforesaid woman asserts that she suffers
prejudice, thou afford her the succour of thy
protection, and not allow her to be oppressed
by any one whatever, lest either thou be found
to neglect what without prejudice to equity is
commanded thee, or widows and other poor
persons, finding no help where they are, be
put to expense by the length of the journey
hither.

EPISTLE VI.
To John, Bishop.
Gregory to John, bishop of Prima Justi-

niana

3 Probably Jobn, abbot of the monastery of St. Lucia in
Syracuse, referred to as engaged iu a dispute about property
in VII. 39.

■» See II. 32, note 5.

5 This tunic is referred to by Jobn the Deacon (Vit. S. Greg.
>''• 57. 59). a«d supposed by him to have been that of St. John
he Evangelist, and identical with one of the vestments after-
wards preserved under the altar of St. John in the Basilica Con-
tan tiniana at Rome, iragments of which he says were given
• way as relics, and possessed of miraculous virtue.

6 As to the See of Prima Justiniana, the Metropolitan juris-
diction assigned to it by the Emperor Justinian, and the vicariate
jurisdiction that had been transferred to it from Thessalonica
bv the popes, see note on Lib. II., Ep. 22. The circumstances
referred to in this and the following letter are interesting as
shewing among other things, the relations of the See ot Rome to
the Church in lllyricum, and the action of the Emperors with
regard to it. They may be epitomized as follows. Thebae Phthio-
ticte was a Seei 11 the province of Thessalia, of which Lanssa was
the Metiopolis. But, as appears from what Gregory says in
Knistle VII., Thebae had been lor some reason exempted trom
the metropolitan jurisdiction of the bishop of Lanssa by pope
Pel i" ins II. John a.d Cosmas, two deposed deacons o. th=
1 Church of Thebae, had sent a representation to the Emperor,

124

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

After the long afflictions which Adrian,
bishop of the city of Thebae, has endured
from his fellow-priests, as though they had
been his enemies, he has fled for refuge to the
Roman city. And though his first representa-
tion had been against John, bishop of Larissa,
to wit that in pecuniary causes he had given
judgment without regard to the laws, yet after
tiiis he complained most grievously rather
against the person of thy Fraternity, ac-
cusing thee of having deposed him unjustly
from the degiee of priesthood. But we, giving
no credence to petitions that have not been
enquired into, perused the acts of the pro-
ceedings, whether before our brother and
fellow-bishop John, or before thy Fraternity.
And indeed concerning the judgment of the
above-named John, bishop of Larissa, which
was suspended on appeal, both the most pious
emperors, in their orders sent to the bishop
of Coriuth, have sufficiently decreed, and we
have decreed also, Christ helping us, in our
letters directed through the bearers of these
presents to the aforesaid John of Larissa.
But having ventilated the conflicting judg-
ments, the examination of which the imperial
commands had committed to thee, and in-
spected the series of proceedings held before
the bishop John concerning the incriminated
persons, we find that thou hast investigated

accusing their bishop, Adrian, of defalcitions in money matters,
and also of certain misdemeanours^ the latter being that he had
retained in office one of his deacons, Stephen, whose shameful
life was notorious, and that he had ordered baptism to be refused
to certain infants, who had consequently died unbaptized. The
Emperor (Mauricius) referred the matter to John, bishop of
Larissa, as Metropolitan of Thessalia, who, notwithstanding the
exemption of Thebae from his jurisdiction by pope Pelagius II..
took it up, and decided against Adrian, at any rate with respect
to his alleged pecuniary defalcations. Adrian appealed against
this decision to the Emperor, who thereupon deputed certain
persons (not bishops) to enquire and report, and, on receiving
their report, exempted Adrian from further proceedings, sending
an order to that effect to the Bishop of Corinth, who was Metro-
politan of the adjoining province of Achaia. Meanwhile John of
Larissa had imprisoned Adrian, and elicited from him (under
compulsion, it wa; .'aid) an ambiguous confession of his guilt,
and also obtained from the Emperor a second order committing
the reinvestigation and final adjudication of the case to John,
bishop of Prima Justiniana, who confirmed the sentence of
John of Larissa. and deposed Adrian from his See. Adrian
now at last appealed to the pope, and went himself to Rome
to seek aid ho n Gregory, who took up the case at once and
strenuously declared the past proceedings unfair, uncanonical,
and void, ordered the immediate restoration of Adrian to his See,
exc unmunicated John of Prima Justiniana, and forbade John
of Larissa, under pain of excommunication, to assume hereafter
any metropolitan jurisdiction over the church of Thebae. Now it
is plain that, till Adrian's final appeal, no recourse was had by
any of the parties concerned to the See of Rome, and that the
Emperor, who alone was at first appealed to, took the matter up
on his own authority without reference to Rome : nor was it til!
he had failed of redress from Constantinople that Adrian himself
appealed to Gregory. But it is equally evident that Gregory,
when appealed to, asserted his own plenary jurisdiction as a
matter of course and without hesitation : nor is there any evidence
to shew that his assertion of authority was resisted either by the
Illyrican prelates or the Emperor. It was probably a case in
which the Emperor himself took little interest ; and he might be
glad that the pope should take it out of his hands and settle it.
It was otherwise, however, in a subsequent case (though occurring
not in Eastern, but in We tern Illyricum), in which Gregory was
at issue with the Empeior with respect to the appointment of
a bishop to the See of Salona, as will be seen hereafter. See
III. 47, note 2.

almost nothing pertaining to the questions
named and assigned to thee for decision, but
by certain machinations hast produced wit-
nesses against the deacon Demetrius, who
were to allege with a view to the condemna-
tion of this same bishop, that they had heard
this Demetrius bearing testimony concerning
the said bishop;— a thing not even lawful to
be heard of. And when Demetrius in person
denied having done so, it appears that, con-
trary to the custom of the priesthood and
canonical discipline, thou gavest him into the
hands of the praetor of the province as a
deacon deposed from his dignity ?. And when,
mangled by many stripes, he might perchance
have said some things falsely against his
bishop under the pressure of torment, we find
that to the very end of the business he con-
fessed absolutely nothing of the things about
which he was interrogated. Neither do we
find anything else in the proceedings them-
selves, whether in the depositions of witnesses
or in the declaration of Adrian, to his disad-
vantage. But it is only that thy Fraternity, I
know not with what motive, in contempt of
law, human and divine, has pronounced an
abrupt sentence against him ; which, even
though it had not been suspended on appeal,
being pronounced in contravention of the laws
and canons, could not rightly in itself have
stood. Further, after, as is abundantly evident,
the appeal had been handed to thee, we wonder
why thou hast not sent thy people to us to
rentier an account of thy judgment according
to the undertaking delivered to our deacon
Honoratus by the representatives of thy
church. This omission convicts thee either
of contumacy or of trepidation of conscience.
If, then, these things which have been brought
before us have the rampart of truth, inasmuch
as we consider that, taking advantage of your
vicariate jurisdiction under us, you are pre-
suming unjustly, we will, with the help of
Christ, decree further concerning these things,
according to the result of our deliberations.

But as regards the present, by the authority
of the ble sed Peter, Prince of the apostles, we
decree that, the decrees of thy judgment being
first annulled and made of none effect, thou be
deprived of holy communion for the space of
thirty days, so as to implore pardon of our
God for so _ great transgression with the
utmost penitence and tears. But, if we
should come to know that thou hast been
remiss in carrying out this our sentence, know
thou that not the injustice only, but also the

7 Otherwise he could not have been examined by scourging, as
it appears he was. For clerics were by law exempt from the

question.

EPISTLE VII.

12^

contumacy, of thy Fraternity will have to be
more severely punished. But, as to our afore-
said brother and fellow-bishop Adrian, con-
demned by thy sentence, which, as we have
, said, was consistent with neither canons nor
laws, we order that he be restored, Christ
being with him, to his place and rank ; so that
neither may he be injured by the sentence of
thy Fraternity pronounced in deviation from
the path of justice, nor may thy Charity remain
uncorrected ; that so we may appease the
indignation of the future judge.

EPISTLE VII.

To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, bishop of Larissa.

Our brother Adrian, bishop of the city of
Thebse, has come to Rome, bitterly complain-
ing of having been condemned, neither law-
fully nor canonically, on certain charges by
thy Fraternity, and also by John, bishop of
Prima Justiniana. And, when for a long time
we saw no representative of the opposite party
arrive here who might have replied to his
objections, we delivered for perusal 8, with
a view to the necessary ascertainment of the
truth, the proceedings which had taken place
before you. From these we ascertained that
John and Cosmas, deacons who had been
deposed from their office, one for frailty of the
body and the other for fraudulent dealing with
ecclesiastical property, had sent a representa-
tion to our most pious emperors against him,
with respect to pecuniary matters and also
criminal charges.

They, in their commands sent to thee, de-
sired thee (that is with strict observance of law
and canons) to take cognizance of the matter,
so as to pass a sentence firm in law as to the
pecuniary questions, but, as to the criminal
charges, to report to their Clemency after
a searching examination. Now if thy Frater-
nity had received in a right frame of mind
these such right commands, you would never
have accepted for a general accusation of their
bishop men removed from their own office for
their transgressions, and already hostilely dis-
posed ; especially as by their representation
addressed to our most pious lords their un-
truthfulness is detected, in that they declared
that they made it with the consent of all the
clergy.

Yet after this, to touch briefly and sum-
marily on some of the proceedings before
thee, the first head of accusation was con-

8 "Relegenda tradidimus," not "relegimus;" presumably
because, the Acts being drawn up in Greek, Gregory was unable
to read them himself.

cerning the Theban deacon Stephen, whom
the bishop Adrian had failed to deprive of
the dignity of his order, though supposed to
have been aware of his most shameful life
As to this head, no witnesses were produced
to shew that bishop Adrian had any know
ledge of the matter, except that Stephen
alone, a man of shameful life and on his
own confession to he condemned, is allege 1
to have said so. The second charge irrde
against him appears to have been concerning
infants having been debarred by his order from
receiving holy baptism, and so having died
with the filth of sin unwashed away. But none
of the witnesses brought forward against him
declared their knowledge of anything of the
kind having come under the notice of bishop
Adrian, but said that they had learnt it from
the mothers of the infants, whose husbands, it
is said, had been removed from the church for
their crimes. But even so they did not declare
that the hour of death had overtaken those
infants while unbaptized, as was contained in
the invidious representation of the accusers, it
being evident that they had been baptized in
the city of Demetrias. So much then for the
criminal charges.

But, as to the pecuniary matters, after what
manner they were adjudged by thee is attested
by the enquiry of the men deputed by the
prince in pursuance of the most pious order of
the most serene princes 9. For, when the oft-
named Adrian had appealed against thy sen-
tence, then, so far as we have asceriained from
the depositions of four witnesses which were
laid before John, bishop of Prima Justiniana,
he was thrust into most close confinement,
and forced by thy Fraternity to produce a
document in which he confessed the charges
brought against him. And it is true that in
the document so produced by him he is found
to have assented to thy sentence as to pecu-
niary matters. But the criminal charges he
touched on in an indefinite and dubious sort
of way, so that both thy purpose might be
frustrated by the raising of certain clouds, and
he might afterwards the better escape from his
confession in the obscurity of a perplexed
mode of speech. And when the appeal handed
in by his people, and the rest of the proceed-
ings under thy cognizance, had been reported
to the most pious princes, and Honoratus,
deacon of our See, with the glorious anti-
graphus 1 Sebastian having been deputed, as
we have said, he was exempted by the most
serene lords irom all further orders. But, by

9 The Emperor Mauricius had associated his son Theodosius,
being four years of age, with himself in the empire. Hence
'• principibus."

1 See I. 39, note.

126

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

what sought out contrivances I know not,
another imperial order was again elicited, re-
quiring John, bishop of Prima Justiniana, to
enquire closely and pass judgment concerning
all the aforesaid charges. In which trial all
bishop Adrian's clergy, and Demetrius the
deacon, the latter in the midst of torments,
declared that all this calumny against bishop
Adrian had been got up by the contrivance of
thy Fraternity. Nor were any of the criminal
charges that had been made in thy audience
against the bishop Adrian proved. But there
came up, contrary to canons and laws, another
cruel and crafty enquiry directed against his
deacon Demetrius and other persons, in the
course of which nothing was discovered for
which the oft-mentioned Adrian could have
been lawfully condemned, but rather ground
for his acquittal. Put with respect to John,
prelate of the city of Prima Justiniana, and his
most iniquitous and abominable judgment, we
shall take further measures. As to bishop
Adrian, we find both that he has laboured
under thy enmity in a way ill-befitting thy
priestly character, and that he has been con-
demned in pecuniary matters for no just cause
by the sentence of thy Fraternity.

Since then, having been deposed also by the
above-said John bishop of Prima Justiniana
in contravention of law and canons, he could
not be left deprived of his rank and honour,
we have decreed that he be reinstated in his
church, and recalled to the order of his proper
dignity. And, though thou oughtest to have
been deprived of the communion of the Lord's
body, for that, setting at naught the admoni-
tion of my predecessor of holy memory, where-
by he exempted him and his church from the
jurisdiction of thy authority, thou hast again
presumed to retain some jurisdiction over
them, yet we, decreeing more humanely, and
still allowing thee the sacrament of communion,
decree that thy Fraternity shall abstain from
all exercise of the jurisdiction formerly held
by thee over him and his church ; but that,
according to the written instructions of our
predecessor, if any case should possibly arise,
whether touching the faith, or criminal, or
pecuniary, against the aforesaid Adrian our
fellow-priest, it be either taken cognizance of,
if the question be a slight one, by those who
are or may be our representatives in the royal
city, or, it it be an arduous one, it be brought
hither to the Apostolic See, to the end that it
may be heard and decided before ourselves.
But, if thou shouldest attempt at any time, on
any pretext or by any surreptitious device, to
contravene these our ordinances, know that
we dectee thee to be deprived of holy com-
munion, and not to partake of it except at the

close of thy life, unless upon leave granted by
the Roman pontiff. For this we lay down as
a rule, agreeably to the teaching of the holy
fathers, that whosoever knows not how to obey
the holy canons, neither is he worthy to
minister or receive the communion at the holy
altars. Moreover let thy Fraternity restore to
him without any delay the sacred property, or
any other, movable or immovable, which thou
art said to retain so far ; a specification where-
of, that has been handed to us, we append to
this letter. Concerning which if any question
arises between you, we desire it to be con-
sidered by our representative in the royal city.

EPISTLE VIII.

To N ata lis, Archbishop.

Gregory to Natalis, archbishop of Salona9.

Whilst every kind of business demands'
anxious investigation of the truth, what per-
tains to deposition from sacerdotal rank
should be considered with especial strictness,
since here the matter in hand is not concern-
ing persons constituted in a humble position,
but, as it were, concerning reversal of divine
benediction. This consideration has also
moved us to exhort your Fraternity with re-
spect to the person of Florentius, bishop of
the city of Epidaurus. For indeed we have
been told that he had been accused on certain
criminal charges, and that, without any ca-
nonical proof being sought, and without pre-
vious sentence of any sacerdotal council, he
has been deposed from his office of dignity,
not by law, but by authority. Inasmuch, then,
as no man can be removed from the rank of
episcopacy except for just causes by the con-
ant sentence of priests, we exhort your
Fraternity to cause the aforesaid man to be
recalled from the banishment into which he
has been driven, and his case enquired into in
a consultation of bishops. And, should he be
convicted by canonical proof of the charges
brought against him, without doubt he must
be visited with canonical punishment. But,
should the facts be found by the synodical
inquisition to be otherwise than had been sup-
posed, it is necessary both that his accusers
should dread the rigour of justice, and that the
incriminated person should have the approba-
tion of his innocence preserved inviolate. But
we have committed by our order the execution
of the above-mentioned business to Antoninus,
our subdeacon, to the end that decisions may
be come to in accordance with the laws and

a Natalis was Metropolitan of the province of Dalmatia. See
II. 18, note 3.

3 I.e. episcopal rank. Here, as below in this Epistle and
elsewhere, by sacerdotes are meant bishops.

EPISTLE XV.

127

canons, and, with the help of the Lord, be
carried into effect.

EPISTLE IX.
To Antoninus, Subdeacon ♦.

Gregory to Antoninus, &c.

It has come to our ears that Florentius,
bishop of the city of Epidaurus, his property
having first been seized, has been condemned,
for certain crimes not proved, without a sacer-
dotal council. And, inasmuch as he ought not
to suffer canonical punishment, no canonical
sentence having been pronounced for his con-
demnation, we enjoin thy Experience to urge
upon our brother and fellow-bishop Natalis
that he should cause the aforesaid man to be
recalled from the banishment into which he is
said to have been driven. And a council of
bishops having been assembled, if the charges
brought against him should be canonically
proved, we will that the sentence of our afore-
said brother and fellow-bishop Natalis shall
take effect against him. But, should he be
absolved by a general judgment, thou must
not permit him to be subject to prejudice on
the part of any one, and must carefully and
rigorously insist on his aforesaid property
being restored to him. It is therefore needful
that the heavier thou feelest the burden of
such negotiations to be, with the maturer and
more vigilant execution thou take pains to
fulfil them.

EPISTLE X.
To Savinus, Subdeacon*.

Gregory to Savinus, &c.

Bad men have gone forth and disturbed
your minds, understanding neither what they
say nor whereof they affirm, pretending that in
the times of Justinian of pious memory some-
thing was detracted from the faith of the holy
synod of Chalcedon, which with all faith and
all devotion we venerate. And in like manner
all the four synods of the holy universal
Church we receive as we do the four books

4 I.e. of Dalmatia. The case referred to in this and the
preceding letter is interesting as illustrating canonical procedure
against incriminated bishops. Natalis, as Metropolitan, had en-
tertained a charge against one of his suffragans and pronounced
judgment against hirn on his own authoiity. Gregory insists
that he had no right to do so except in a synod of bishops. It
appears that Natalis (as to whose character and relations to
Gregory, see II. 18, and reff. in note), paid no regard in this
instance to the pope's remonstrances, and the latter found no
means of enforcing his orders. For, in a letter written five years
later (a. D. 597), long after the death of Natalis, we find Gregory
writing, 'The inhabitants of the city of Epidaurus have most
urgently demanded that Florentius, who they say is their bishop,
should be restored to them by us, asserting that he had been
driven into exile invalidly by the mere will oi the bishop Natalis.
{Lib. viii. Indict, i. f./>. 11). . .

5 It does not appear who this Savinus was. Ihe epistle
refers to the condemnation of the Three Chapters by the fifth
General Council. See P> oleg. p. xi.

of the holy Gospel. But concerning the per
sons with respect to whom something had been
done after the close of the synod, there was
something ventilated in the times of Justinian
of pious memory : yet so that neither was the
faith in any respect violated, nor anything else
done with regard to these same persons but
what had been determined at the same holy
synod of Chalcedon. Moreover, we anathema-
tize any one who presumes to detract anything
from the definition of the faith which was pro-
mulged in the said synod, or, as though by
amending it, to change its meaning : but, as it
was there promulged, so in all respects we
guard it. Thee, therefore, most dear son, it
becomes to return to the unity of Holy Church,
that thou mayest end thy days in peace ; lest
the malignant spirit, who cannot prevail against
thee through thy other works, may from this
cause find a way at the day of thy departure
of barring thy entrance into the heavenly King-
dom.

EPISTLE XII.

To Maximianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Maximianus, bishop of Syracuse
I wrote some time ago to your Fraternity
desiring you to send to the Roman city those
who had alleged anything against Gregory,
bishop of the city of Agrigentum6. And we
exhort you by this present epistle that this
should be immediately done. Wherefore
hasten to send with speed the persons them-
selves, and the rest of the documents, that is
the reports of proceedings and the petitions
that have been given in. Nor do we allow
any delay or excuse to be sought; to the end
that, when thay have been sent, as we have
said, with speed to the Roman city, we may
know how, with the help of God, we may most
advantageously deal with him

EPISTLE XV.

TO SCHOLASTICUS, JUDGE.

Gregory to Scholasticus, judge of Campania.

While we were greatly distressed in our care
for the city of Naples, bereaved of the solace
of a priest?, the arrival of the bearers of these
presents with the decree for the election of our
subdeacon Florentius, had afforded us some
relief under so great a burden of thought.
But, when it appeared that our said subdeacon,
flying from the very city, had deprecated his
ordination with tears, know ye that our sadness

6 Cf. I. 72.

7 For an account of the circumstances of the vacancy at
Naples after the deposition of Demetrius, cf. II. 6, note 3;
II. 9, note 6

128

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

increased, as if from some heavier dispensation.
Wherefore, greeting you well, we exhort your
Greatness to assemble the chief men or the
people of the city, so as to take thought for
the election of another, who may be worthy to
be promoted to the priesthood with the con-
solation of Christ. Then, the decree having
been solemnly passed, and transmitted to this
city, let the ordination proceed, with the help
of Christ, among yourselves. But, should you
not find a suitable person on whom you can
agree, at any rate choose ye three upright and
wise men, to be sent to this city as represent-
ing the community, and to whose judgment
the whole population may assent. Perhaps,
when they come hither, they will find such
a one as may be ordained as your bishop
without reproach, to the end that your be-
reaved city may neither within itself want an
inspector 'of its deeds, nor, when the care
of a priest is supplied to it, afford entrance
to hostile snares from without.

EPISTLE XXII.

To Antoninus, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Antoninus, Subdeacon, Rector
of the patrimony in Dalmatia.

It is commonly reported in these parts that
our brother and fellow-bishop, Natalis of the
Church of Salona, is dead. If this is true, let
thy Experience with all speed and all care
hasten to admonish the clergy and people of
that city that with one consent they elect
a priest for ordination ; and, when the nomin-
ation of the person who may be elected has
been made, thou wilt take care to transmit it
to us, that he may be ordained with our con-
sent, as has been the case from ancient times.
And this above all things thou must look to,
that in this election neither any bribery in any
way whatever come in, nor the patronage of
any persons whatever prevail. For if one is
elected through the patronage of certain per-
sons, he is obliged out of deference to them
to comply with their wishes after his ordina-
tion, and so it comes to pass that the posses-
sions of that church are lessened, and ecclesi-
astical order is not maintained. They must,
therefore, under thy superintendence, elect
such a person as will not be unsuitably sub-
servient to the will of any one, but one who in
the adornment of his life and conversation
may be found worthy of such a high degree.
But of the possessions or ornaments of the
same church cause an inventory to be faithfully
written out in thy presence. And, lest any
of the possessions themselves should be lost,
admonish Respectus the deacon and Stephanus
the chief notary (primiceriuin notariarum) to

take sole charge of these possessions, warning
them that they will have to make good out
of their own substance any diminution of
them that may have arisen from their negli-
gence.

Moreover, strictly charge Malchus 8, our
brother and fellow-bishop, that he refrain
entirely from intermeddling in this matter.
For, should we learn that anything has been
done or attempted by him against our will, let
him know that he will incur no slight guilt
and danger. But of this also take care to
warn him, that he must be careful to set down
and complete the accounts of our patrimony
which he has had in charge ; for doing which
let him make haste, laying aside all excuses,
to come to us from the Sicilian parts. Let
him, then, in no wise presume to meddle with
the affairs of the Church of Salona, lest he
should be under further liability to it, ami
possibly found culpable. For he is said to
have many things belonging to the aforesaid
church ; and report goes that he was well-nigh
the prime mover in the sale of its possessions,
and in other unlawful doings. And. should
this be found in manifest truth to be as it is
said to be, he may be certain that it will by
no means remain unavenged.

Let any necessary expenses be defrayed by
the steward who was in office at the time of
the aforesaid bishop's death, that so he may
explain his accounts to the future bishop as
he knows them to be. All the things that we
have enjoined on thee to be done it is cer-
tainly necessary that thou shouldest do with
the advice of our son, the magnificent and
most eloquent Marcellus '->, to the end that
thou mayest be able to carry out carefully and
effectively all that is contained in this paper
of directions, and that no blame for negligence
may belong to thee.

EPISTLE XXIX.

To the Presbyters and Clergy of
M kdiolanum {Milan) l.
Gregory to the presbyters, deacons, and
clergy of the church of Mediolanum.

8 For an account of this Malchus and his doings, see II. 20,
note 5.

9 Proconsul of Dalmatia: see IX. 5. For subsequent pro-
ceedings in connexion with the election of a successor to Natalis
at Salona, see III. 47. It appears that the co-operation of the
proconsul Marcellus, anticipated in this Epistle, was not in fact
obtained, but that he acted independently, and in opposition
to Gregory. Cf. IX. 5.

1 As to the great Metropolitan See of Milan having been
anciently independent of the See of Rome, cf. BingJ am, Ilk.
IX., Ch. I., Sect. 10, n. As to Pope Gregory's attitude with
regard to it, as shewn in this and the two following Epistles,
we may remark as follows. (i)The electors addressed (A"/. 29)
are the clergy only, not (as is usual in other cases) including the
laity of the Church. This may be due to the ancient custom
ol that Church. (2) The electors, having already made their
choice, seem to have sent messengers to announce it to the pope

EPISTLE XXX.

129

We have received your Love's epistle,
which, though it bore no subscription, was
accredited by the persons of the bearers, the
presbyter Magnus and the cleric Hippolytus.
Having read it, we find that you are all agreed
in favour of our son Constantius, deacon of
your church, who has been well known to me
for long. And, when I represented the Apos-
tolical See in the royal city, he stuck close to
me for a long time ; but I never found any-
thing in him that could at all be found fault
with. Nevertheless, since it has been for long
my deliberate determination to interfere in no
man's favour with a view to his undertaking
the burden of pastoral care, I can but follow
up your election with my prayers that Al-
mighty God, who is ever prescient of our future
doings, may supply you with a pastor such
that in his tongue and manners you may be
able to find pastures of divine exhortation ;
one in whose disposition humility may shine
forth together with rectitude, and severity with
loving-kindness ; one who may be able to shew
you the way of life not in his speaking only
but also in his living ; that so from his ex-
ample your love may learn to sigh with longing
for the eternal country. Wherefore, most dear
sons, we, warned by our sense of the censor-
ship of our office, urge you in this matter of
getting yourselves a bishop that none of you
look to your own gain without regard to the
common advantage, lest, if any one is eager
after his own individual interest, he should
be deceived by a frivolous estimate : for the
mind that is bound by cupidity does not ex-
amine with a free judgment a person's claims
to preference. Considering, therefore, what
things are profitable for all, pay ye ever in all
things most complete obedience to him whom
Divine grace may put over you. For, when
once put over you, he must not be further
judged by you; though now he ought to be
the moie thoroughly judged as he may not be
judged hereafter. But, when with God's leave
a pastor has been consecrated for you, commit
ye yourselves to him with all your heart, and
in him serve the Lord the Almighty, who has
put him over you.

But, inasmuch as supernal judgment is wont
to provide pastors for peoples according to
their deservings, do you seek spiritual things,
love heavenly things, despise things temporal
and fugitive ; and hold it for most certain that

(EJ> 20) (3) Gregory disclaims all desire of interfering either
in the election or in the consecration of the new Metropolitan,
according to ancient custom, by his own suffragans, or in any way
infringing the prescriptive rights of the Church of Milan, but he
sends his own subdeacon, both to assure himself of the unanimity
of the election and to see to the consecration being effected
according to precedent. He also intimates {Epp. 30, 31) the
ecessity of his own assent to the consecration.

VCL. XII.

you will have a pastor who shall please God,
if you in your own doings please God. Lo, all
the things of this world, which we used to hear
from the sacred page were doomed to perish,
we see already ruined. Cities are overthrown,
camps uprooted, churches destroyed ; and no
tiller of the ground inhabits our land. Among
ourselves who are left, very few in number,
the sword of man incessantly rages along with
calamities wherewith we are smitten from
above. Thus we see before our eyes the evils
which we long ago heard should come upon
the world, and the very regions of the earth
have become as pages of books to us. In the
passing away, then, of all things, we ought to
take thought how that all that we have loved
was nothing. View, therefore, with anxious
heart the approaching day of the eternal judge,
and by repenting anticipate its terrors. Wash
away with tears the stains of all your transgres-
sions. Allay by temporal lamentation the wrath
that hangs over you eternally. For our loving
Creator, when He shall come for judgment,
will comfort us with all the greater favour as
He sees now that we are punishing ourselves
for our own transgressions.

We are now sending to you, by the favour
of God, John our subdeacon, the bearer of
these presents, to this end ; — that, with the
help of Almighty God, he may see to your
bishop-elect being consecrated after the man-
ner of his predecessor. For, as we demand
our rights from others, so we conserve their
several rights to all.

EPISTLE XXX.

To John, Subdeacon.

Gregory to John, &c

Inasmuch as it is manifest that the Apostolic
See is, by the ordering of God, set over all
Churches, there is, among our manifold cares,
especial demand for our attention, when our
decision is awaited with a view to the conse-
cration of a bishop. Now on the death of
Laurentius, bishop of the church of Medio-
lanum, the clergy reported to us that they had
unanimously agreed in the election of our son
Constantius, their deacon. But, their report
not having been subscribed, it becomes neces-
sary, that we may omit nothing in the way ot
caution, for thee to proceed to Genua {Genoa),
supported by the authority of this order2.
And, inasmuch as there are many Milanese at

2 The reason of John the subdeacon being directed to go
to Genoa rather than to Milan may have been danger trom the
Lombards in aoproaching the latter place, as well as the tact
of many ot the Milanese having, for the same reason, taken retuge
in Genoa

i3o

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

present there under stress of barbarian ferocity,
thou must call them together, and enquire into
their wishes in common. And, if no diversity
of opinion separates them from the unanimity of
the election — that is to say, if thou ascertainest
that the desire and consent of all continues in
favour of our aforesaid son, Constantius, — then
thou art to cause him to be consecrated by
his own bishops, as ancient usage requires,
with the assent of our authority, and the help
of the Lord ; to the end that through the
observance of such custom both the Apostolic
See may retain the power belonging to it,
and at the same time may not diminish the
rights which it has conceded to others.

EPISTLE XXXI.
To Romanus, Patrician.

Gregory to Romanus, Patrician, and Exarch
of Italy.

We believe that your Excellency is already
aware of the death of Laurentius, bishop of
the church of Mediolanum. And since, so
far as we have learnt from the report of the
clergy, all have agreed in the election of our
son Constantius, deacon of the same church,
it was necessary for us, for keeping up old
usage, to send a soldier of our church, to
cause him in whose favour he finds the will
and consent of all to concur unanimously to
be consecrated by his own bishops, as ancient
usage requires, though still with our assent.
Wherefore, greeting you with fatherly affection
as in duty bound, we request your Excellency
to vouchsafe your support, justice approving,
to the aforesaid Constantius, whether elected
or not, whenever need may arise ; to the end
that this service may both exalt you here
before your enemies, and commend you before-
hand in the future life before God. For he is
one of mine, and was once associated with me
on very intimate terms. And you ought to
hold as yours, and to love peculiarly, those
whom you know to be ours.

EPISTLE XXXII.
To Honor atus, Archdeacon.

Gregory to Honoratus, Archdeacon of
Salona 3.

The mandates of ourselves and of our pre-
decessor had reached thy Love not long ago,
in which thou wert acquitted of the charges
calumniously brought against thee; and we
ordered thee to be reinstated without any dis-
pute in the order of thy rank. But, inasmuch
as again after no great lapse of time, thou

3 See I. io, note 5.

earnest to the city of Rome complaining of
some improper proceedings among you con-
cerning the alienation of sacred vessels, and
as, while we had persons with us here who
might have replied to thy objections, Natalis,
thy bishop, departed this life, we have judged
it necessary to confirm further by this present
letter those same mandates, both our predeces-
sor's and our own, which (as has been said) we
sent not long ago for thy acquittal. Where-
fore, acquitting thee fully of all the charges
brought against thee, we will that thou con-
tinue without any dispute in the rank of thy
order, so that the question raised by the afore-
said man may not on any pretext prejudice
thee in the least degree. Moreover, as to the
heads of thy complaint, we have straitly charged
Antoninus, subdeacon and rector in your parts
of the patrimony of holy Church over which,
by God's providence, we preside, that, if he
should find ecclesiastical persons implicated
in them, he decide these cases with the utmost
strictness and authority. But, in case of the
business being with such persons as the vigour
of ecclesiastical jurisdiction cannot reach, he
is to deposit the proofs under each particular
head among the public acts, and transmit them
to us without any delay, that, being accurately
informed, we may know how, with the help of
Christ, to dispose of the matter.

EPISTLE XXXIII.
To DvnaiMius, Patrician.

Gregory to Dynamius, Patrician of Gaul.

He who administers faithfully what is an-
other's shews how well he dispenses what is
his own. And this your Glory makes manifest
to us in that, intent on your annual offering,
you have rendered the blessed Peter, Prince of
the apostles, the fruits of his revenues. In
paying him what is his faithfully, you have
made these gifts to him your own. Eor indeed
it becomes the glorious people of this earth who
think of eternal glory so to act that in virtue
of their excelling in temporal power, they may
procure for themselves a reward that is not
temporal. Accordingly, addressing to you the
greeting which we owe, we implore Almighty
God both to replenish your life with present
good, and to extend it to the lofty joys of
eternity. For we have received through our
son Hilarus («/ Hilarius) of the aforesaid re-
venues of our Church four hundred Gallican
so'idi*. We now send you as the benediction
of the blessed apostle Peter a small cross,
wherein are inserted benefits from his chains5,
which for a time bound his neck : but may

4 As to Gallic money, cf. VI. 7, and note.

5 Cf. I. 26, note 3.

EPISTLE XXXVIII.

131

they loose yours from sins for ever. More-
over in its four parts round about are con-
tained benefits from the gridiron of the blessed
Laurence, whereon he was burnt, that it,
whereon his body was consumed by fire for
the truth's sake, may inflame your soul to the
love of the Lord.

EPISTLE XXXV.
To Peter, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Peter, subdeacon of Campania 6.

Our brother and fellow-bishop Paul has
often requested us to allow him to return to
his own church. And, having perceived this
to be reasonable, we have thought it needful
to accede to his petition. Consequently let
thy Experience convene the clergy of the
Neapolitan church, to the end that they may
choose two or three of their number, and not
omit to send them hither for the election of
a bishop. But let them also intimate, in their
communication to us, that those whom they
send represent them all in this election, so
that their church may have its own bishop
validly ordained. For we cannot allow it to
be any longer without a ruler of its own.
Should they perchance try in any way to set
aside thy admonition, bring to bear on them
the vigour of ecclesiastical discipline. For
he will be giving proof of his own perverse-
ness, whosoever does not of his own accord
assent to this proceeding. Moreover, cause
to be given to the aforesaid Paul, our brother
and fellow-bishop, one hundred solidi, and one
little orphan boy, to be selected by himself,
for his labour in behalf of the same church.
Further, admonish those who are to come
hither as representing all for the election of
a bishop, to remember that they must bring
with them all the episcopal vestments, and
also as much money as they may foresee to be
necessary for him who may be elected bishop
to have to his own use. But lose no time in
despatching those of the clergy who are selec-
ted as we have said, that, seeing that there
are present here divers nobles of the city of
Naples, we may treat with them concerning
the election of a bishop, and take counsel
together with the help of the Lord.

EPISTLE XXXVI.

To Sabinus, Guardian (Defensorem).

Gregory to Sabinus, Guardian of Sardinia.

Certain serious matters having come to our
ears which require canonical- correction, we
therefore charge thy Experience not to neglect

6 See II. 6, note 3.

to cause Januarius, our brother and fellow-
bishop, together with John the notary, to
appear before us with all speed, all excuses
being laid aside, that in his presence what has
been reported to us may be subjected to
a thorough investigation. Further, if the
religious women Pompeiana and Theodosia,
according to their request, should wish to
come hither, afford them vour succour in all
ways, that they may be able, through your
assistance, to accomplish their desires : but
especially be careful by all means to bring
with you the most eloquent Isidore, as he has
requested, that, the merits of his case which
he is known to have against the Church of
Caralis having been fully gone into, he may
be able to have it legally terminated.

Furthermore, some personal misdemeanours
having been reported to us of the presbyter
Epiphanius, it is necessary for you to investi-
gate everything diligently, and to make haste
to bring at the same time with you the women
with whom he is said to have sinned, or others
whom you suppose to know anything about the
matter ; that so the truth may be clearly laid
open to the rigour of ecclesiastical discipline.

Now you will take care to accomplish all
these things so efficiently as to lay yourself
open to no blame for negligence, knowing that
it will be entirely at your peril if this our order
should in any way be slackly executed.

EPISTLE XXXVIII.
To Libertinus, Prefect 7.

Gregory to Libertinus, Praefect of Sicily.

From the very beginning of your admin-
istration God has willed you to go forth to
vindicate His cause, and of His mercy has
reserved for you this reward, with praise at-
tending it. For it is reported that one Nasas,
a most wicked Jew, has with a temerity that
calls for punishment erected an altar under
the name of the blessed Elias, and by sacri-
legious seduction has enticed many Christians
to worship there ; nay, has also, it is said,
acquired Christian slaves, and devoted them
to his own service and profit. Whilst, then,
he ought to have been most severely punished
for such great crimes, the glorious Justinus8,
soothed (as has been written to us) by the
charm of avarice, put off avenging the injury
done to God. But let your Glory institute a
strict examination into all these things, and,
if it should be found manifest that such
things have been done, make haste to visit

7 In some MSS. j>mtoru in others expmtori. It seems
probable irom the contents of this letter that Libertinus had
succeeded Justinus (see 1. 2) as praetor ot Sicily.

8 See I. 2.

K 2

132

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

them most strictly and corporally on this
wicked Jew, in such sort that you may thereby
both conciliate the favour of God to yourself,
and shew yourself by this example, to your
own reward, a model to posterity. Moreover,
set at liberty, without any equivocation, ac-
cording to the injunctions of the laws 9,
whatever Christian slaves it shall appear that
he has acquired ; lest (which God forbid) the
Christian religion should be polluted by being
subjected to Jews. Do you therefore with all
speed correct these things most strictly, that
not only may we give thanks to you for this
discipline, but also bear testimony to your
goodness in case of need.

EPISTLE XLV.
To Andrew, Bishop.

Gregory to Andrew, Bishop of Tarentum
[ Taranto, in Calabria].

A man may look without alarm to the tri-
bunal of the eternal Judge, if only, conscious
of his own guilt, he strives to pacify Him by
befitting penitence. Now that thou hadst a
concubine we find to be manifestly true, with
regard to whom also an adverse suspicion has
arisen in the minds of some. But, since in
doubtful cases judgment ought not to be
absolute, we have chosen to leave the matter
to thine own conscience. If, then, after being
constituted in sacred orders thou rememberest
having been defiled by carnal intercourse,
thou must resign the dignity of priesthood,
nor presume by any means to approach its
ministration, knowing that thou wilt admin-
ister it to the peril of thy soul, and without
doubt have to render an account to our God,
if, being conscious of this crime, thou shouldest
desire to continue in the order wherein thou
art, concealing the truth. Wherefore we again
exhort thee that, if thou knowest thyself to
have been deceived by the craft of the ancient
foe, thou hasten to overcome him, while thou
mayest, by adequate penitence, lest, as we
hope may not be, thou be reckoned as partner
with him in the day of judgment. If, how-
ever, thou art not conscious of this guilt, thou
must needs continue in the order wherein
thou art.

Furthermore, since, against due order, thou
didst doom a woman on the Church-roll ' to be
cruelly beaten with cudgels, although we do

9 In Cod. lib. i, tit. 10; " Judaeus servum Christianum nee
comparare dehebit, nee Iargitatis aut alioquocunque titulo con-
sequetur. Quod si aliquis Judaeorum . . ., non solum mancipii
dainno multetur, verum etiam capitali sententia puniatur." Eu-
sebius also (/?<? Vita Constantini, lib. iv. c. 27) speaks of a law
passed by Constamine foibidiiing Jews to have Christian slaves,
and ordering any that might be found to be set at liberty, and the
Jew to be fined. Cf. II. 21.

1 Mulierein de matriculis. Matricvla was probably a list
or roll of names of widows and others who were supported by the
Church.

not think that she died eight months after
wards, yet. because thou hast had no regard to
thy order, we therefore sentence thee to abstain
for two months from the administration of
mass. Meanwhile, being suspended from thy
office, it will become thee to weep for what
thou hast done. For it is very right that, now
that the examples of praiseworthy priests do
not provoke thee to the tranquil rectitude
befitting thy position, at any rate the medicine
of correction should compel thee.

EPISTLE XLVI.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Calliopolis
[Ga/iifio/i, in CalabridY.

From the reports sent to us by thy Frater-
nity it appears that Andrew, our brother and
fellow-bishop, undoubtedly had a concubine.
But, since it is uncertain whether he has
touched her while constituted in sacred or-
ders, it is necessary that thou shouldest warn
him with earnest exhortation that, if he knows
himself to have had intercourse with her while
in sacred orders, he should retire from the
office which he holds, and minister no longer.
And if, though conscious of having done this
thing, he should conceal his sin and presume
to minister, let him know that peril hangs
over his soul in the divine judgment.

As to the woman on the Church-roll, whom
he caused to be chastised with cudgels, though
we do not believe that she died eight months
afterwards, yet, since he caused her to be thus
punished inconsistently with his sacred calling,
do thou suspend him for two months from the
solemnization of mas?., that at any rate this dis-
grace may teach him how to behave himself
in future.

Moreover, the clergy of the aforesaid
bishop, in a petition presented to us, which is
subjoined below, allege that they endure much
ill-treatment from him. Wherefore let thy
Fraternity take care to ascertain all these things
accurately, and so to correct and arrange them
in a reasonable way that they may be under
no necessity hereafter of resorting hither on
account of this matter. In the month of July,
indiction n.

EPISTLE XLVII.

To the Clergy of the Church of
Salona 2.

Gregory to the clergy, &c.

Having read your letter, beloved, we learn

2 For notice of the Metropolitan See of Salona, and Gregory**
dealings with its former bishop Naialis, see II. 18, note 3. The
appointment of a successor to Natalis engaged Gregory in a long

EPISTLE XLVII.

133

that you have made choice of Honoratus your
archdeacon ; and know ye that it is altogether

struggle for maintenance of his authority over the Illyrican
churches, which on this occasion seems to have been, for some
lime at least, slightly regarded. What took place, as gathered
from his extant letters, may be thus summarised. Immediately
on hearing of the death of Natalis he wrote to Antoninus, the
rector patrimonii in Dalmatia, charging him to see to the
canonical election of a successor, and to its notification, when
made, to himself, that it might be approved, as was customary,
by the See of Rome (III. 22). This was in the nth IndLtion,
Le. between Sept. A.D. 592 and Sept. a.d. 593. Subsequently,
having been informed that the clergy of Salona had elected their
archdeacon Honoratus, he wrote to them in the letter before us,
approving their choice, and exhorting them to stick to it, being
evidently aware of a party opposed to it. This Honoratus was
the man whom he had previously supported against Bishop
Natalis, who had attempted to deprive him of his archdeaconry.
See II. 18, 19, 20; III. 32. Hence it was not improbable that
the election of Honoratus would be opposed by the partizans 01
the late bishop, who, as appears from his correspondence with
Gregory, had been a convivial man, with a pleasant vein of wit,
and thus likely to be popular with many. But, whatever the
cause, Gregory before long received the startling intelligence
that not only had the election of Honoratus, confirmed by him-
self, been set aside, but that another candidate, one Maximus,
had been actually ordained under the alleged authority of an
order from the Emperor. This defiance of his authority was the
more offensive as he had already, having apparently got wind
of the candidature of Maximus, prohibited his ordination under
pain of excommunication of both him and his ordainers (IV. 10).
He accordingly wrote a strongly-worded letter (IV. 20), dated
May, a.d. 594, prohibiting Maximus from undertaking any epis-
copal functions, and from officiating at the altar, till it should be
ascertained whether the emperor had really ordered his con-
secration. But Maximus treated this prohibition with contempt,
and appealed against the Pope to the Emperor, who thereupon
wrote to Gregory, requesting him to condone the fact of the
ordination having taken place without his assent, and bidding
him receive Maximus with honour if he should resort to Rome,
as he was apparently desired to do. This was at the time when
John Jejunator, the patriarch of Constantinople, had recently
incensed Gregory by his assumption of the title of Universal
Bishop, and when the latter was urging the Emperor to disallow
the title. Writing on this subject to the Empress Constantina,
he alludes also to the case cf Maximus, hoping through her,
whose religious reverence for St. Peter he appeals to, to move the
Emperor. In his letter to her (V. 72), written in the 13th In-
diction (594-5), he consents, in deference to the Emperor's wish,
to look over the fact of Maximus having been ordained without
his leave ; but he insists on his appearing at Rome to answer
to other charges, including especially that of simony, and his
having disregarded the excommunication pronounced against him.
He also protests strongly against his bishops being allowed to
appeal to the secular power in ecclesiastical causes. But he did
not thus move the Emperor, who appears from one of Gregory's
letters to Maximus (VI. 25) to have directed any charges against
the latter to be entertained in his own locality rather than at
Rome. Meanwhile Maximus continued to disregard Gregory's
repeated letters summoning him to Rome, being apparently sup-
ported by a majority of his own people and 01 his suffragan
bishops. For in a letter to the Salonitnns (VI. 26). written in the
14th Indiction (395-6), Gregory expresses his surprise that Hono-
ratus alone among the clergy of Salona, and one only of the
suffragan bishops, had refused to communicate with Maximus,
notwithstanding his excommunication. However, as time went
on, Gregory's persistence seems to have had some effect. In the
15th Indiction (596-7) one of the suffragan bishops, Sabinianus of
Jadera, who had previously communicated with Maximus. deserts
him, and is invited by Gregory to come to Rome to be absolved,
and to bring with him any others whom he could persuade to
come (VII. 15). Sabinianus did not go, but retired for a time
to a monastery by way of expressing penitence, after which
Gregory in the following year granted him full absolution I VIII.
10, 24). Perhaps about a year later, in the 2nd Indiction (IX. 5),
we find Gregory writing to Marcellus, the proconsul of Dalmatia,
in reply to a letter from him in which he had expressed his regret
for being appaiently 0'it of favour with the pope, and his wish to
be reconciled. This Marcellus had been, according to what
Gregory says in his reply, the prime and oiig nal abettor 01
Maximus; and it would seem that he had now become desiious
of coming to terms with the pope. In the same year we find
a letter to one Jul'anus, described as Saibo, at Salona, who had
addressed Gregory with a view to peace, asserting that Maximus
enjoyed both the affection of his people and the favour of the
court (IX. 41).

In replying to both these correspondents Gregory shews no
signs of giving way: but in the same Indiction (588-9) he did
give way to an extent that seems at first sight surprising, con-
sidering the resolute tone of his previous correspondence. He
mav have been partly moved to make >ome concession by such
letters as those from Marcellus and Julianus, testifying to the
character of Maximus and to the support he continued to receive ;

pleasing to us that you have chosen for the
order of episcopacy a man tried of old and of
grave manner of life. We too join with you
in approbation of his personal character, in-
asmuch as it is already known to us; and it
has been our own wish also that he should be
ordained as your priest according to your
desire. For which cause we exhort you to
persist in his election without any ambiguity.
Nor ought any circumstances to disincline you
from his person, since, as this laudable choice
is now approved, so it will impose both a
burden on your souls and a stain of unfaith-
fulness on your reputation, if any one should
seduce you (which God forbid) to turn aside
your love from him. But as to those who are
not at one with you in this desired election,
we have caused them to be admonished by
Antoninus our subdeacon, that they may be
able to agree with you. To him also we have
already given our injunctions as to what ought
to be done with respect to the person of our
brother and fellow-bishop Malchus3. But,
inasmuch as we have ourselves also written to
him, we believe that he will without delay
keep himself quiet from disquieting you. If
by any chance he should in any way whatever
neglect to obey, his contumacy will in every
way be mulcted with the utmost rigour of
canonical punishment.

but the intercessor who really prevailed with him at last appears
evidently to have been Callinicus, Exarch of Italy, resident at
Ravenna, to whom Maximus had applied after failing to induce
the Emperor himsell to interfere. In one of his letters (IX. 67),
Gregory says that Maximus, having tailed to influence "the
greater power? of the world " in his behalf, had betaken himself
to the lesser ones, and implies that it was to their intercession
that the concession he was prepared to make was due. It may be
supposed that by '■ the greater powers" are meant the imperial
family, and that among " the lesser" Callinicus was at any rate
the most influential : for in writing to the latter (IX. 9) he says,
" In the cause ol Maximus we can no longer resist the importunity
of thy Sweetness ;" and again to Marinianus, bishop of Ravenna,
"I have received repeated and pressing letters irom my most
excellent son the lord exarch Callinicus in behalf of Maximus.
Overcome by his importunity, &c." (IX. 10). Nor is the reason
far to seek why the intercession of Callinicus should at that
particular time prevail. For Gregory was in correspondence with
him, and most anxious to secure his co-operation, in the recon-
ciliation to the Roman Church of the Istrian bishops, who had so
far been out of communion with Rome in the matter of " the
Three Chapters," and was therefore likely to wish to oblige him.
However induced, he now consented that Maximus should appear,
not before himself at Rome, as he had before so resolutely in-
sisted, but before Marinianus, bishop of Ravenna, and promised
to accede to whatever the latter might determine (IX. 10). Nay,
he even accepted the proposal of Marinianus that the charges
against Maximus should not be investigated at all, but that
a declaration on oath by the accused of his own innocence should
be accepted as a sufficient purgation; requiring only that he
should do such penance as the bishop of Ravenna might impose
for having disregarded the excommunication pronounced at Rome
(IX. 79, 80). He wrote also to Conslantius, bishop of Miian.
requesting him 10 proceed to Ravenra in order to act in conceit
with Marinianus in case of Maximus not having confidence in the
latter (IX. 67). But the bishop of Ravenna appears to have
acted alone: and the result was that Maximus was acquitted
of simony and all other charges, and, after doing the penance
assigned by Marinianus at Ravenna, was, seven years alter his
ordination, cordially received by Gregory into communion, and
had the pallium sent him (IX. 81, 82, 125). The epistles to be
consulted for a view of the whole proceedings are III. 22, 47 ;
IV. 10, 20, 47 ; V. 21 ; VI. 3, 25, 26, 27 ; VII. 17 ; VIII. 10. 24 ;
IX. 5, ro 41. 67, 79, 80, 81, 82, 125.
3 See III. 82.

134

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE XLVIII.
To Columbus, Bishop-*.

Gregory to Columbus, &c.

Even before receiving thy Fraternity's letter,
I knew thee from the report of thy deserved
reputation to be a good servant of God. And
now that I have received it, I understand
more fully that what fame had already spread
abroad was well founded ; and I greatly rejoice
in thy deserts, in that thou exhibitest manners
and deeds that testify to a praiseworthy life.
Since, then, I feel that these things are con-
ferred on thee by the Supernal Majesty. I con-
gratulate thee ; and I bless God cur Creator,
who denies not the gifts of His mercy to His
humble servants. On this account I declare
it to be true that thy Fraternity so kindles me
with the flame of charity to love thee, and my
spirit is so united to thee, that I both desire
to see thee and am also with thee in heart,
though absent. Thou perceivest in thine own
thoughts that this is so. For in truth unity
of minds in charity has power to unite more
than bodily presence can. Furthermore, that
with thy whole mind, thy whole heart, thy
whole soul, thou cleavest and art devoted to
the Apostolic See I am now assured, as, indeed,
before thy letter had borne testimony to the
fact, I plainly knew. 'Wherefore, first address-
ing thee with the greeting of charity which is
due, I exhort thee not to cease to be mindful
of what thou hast promised to the blessed
Peter, Prince of the apostles.

Wherefore be thou urgent with the primate
of thy synod s, that boys be in no wise ad-
mitted to sacred orders, lest they fall by so
much the more dangerously as they hasten
more speedily to mount to higher pla< es. Let
there be no venality in ordination : let not the
influence or entreaty of any persons obtain
anything in contravention of these our pro-
hibitions. For without doubt God is offended
if any one is promoted to sacred orders, not
for merit, but by favour (which God forbid)
or venality.

If, then, thou art aware of these things being
done, keep not silence, but oppose them ur-
gently ; since, if perchance thou shouldest
neglect them, or conceal them when known
of, the chain of sin will bind not those alone
who do such things, but no lighr. guilt before
God will touch thee also in the matter. Jf,
then, anything of the kind is committed, it
ought to be restrained by canonical punish-

See II. 48, note 8.
5 With regard to Primates in Afiica, see I. 74, no'e 9. The
prmate of Numidia at this time was Adeouatus,'. b.c bcluw,

ment, lest so great a wickedness, with sin in
others, acquire strength from connivance.

I have, therefore, the sooner given leave of
departure to the bearer of these presents, Vic-
torinus, thy Fraternity's deacon, whom I think
to be thy imitator, and whom I have received
with charity ; and by him I have transmitted
to thee for a blessing keys of the blessed
Peter, in which something from his chains is
included.

Lastly, with regard to the unity and peace
of the council which, under God, you are
taking measures to assemble, let thy Charity
rejoice my mind by informing me of every-
thing particularly.

EPISTLE XLIX.
To Adeodatus, Bishop.

Gregory to Adeodatus, Primate bishop of
the province of Numidia.

After what manner the charity of affection
has bound your Fraternity to usward the tenour
of your letters has evidently shewn ; and they
have affi rded us great matter of rejoicing, in
that we have found them to be composed in
a spirit of loving-kindness, and to glow with
affection well-pleasing to God. As, then, we
have briefly said, the epistle which you have
addressed to us has so laid open your mind
that its author might be supposed not to be
absent from us at all. For, indeed, persons
are not to be accounted absent whose feelings
are not at variance with mutual charity. And
though, as you say in your letter, neither your
strength nor your age allow you to come to us,
that we might be gratified by the bodily
presence of your Fraternity, yet, seeing that
we are one with you and you with us in feeling,
we are entirely present one to the other, while
we see each other in a mind made one through
love. Furthermore, greeting your Fraternity
with the suitable affection of charity, we exhort
you that you study with all your heart so to
acquit yourself wisely in the office of primacy
which under God you hold, that it may both
profit your soul to have attained to this rank,
and that you may stand out as a good example
for imitation to others in the future.

Be, then, especially careful with regard to
ordination ; and by no means admit any to
aspire to sacred orders but such as are some-
what advanced in age and pure in deeds, lest
perchance they cease for ever to be what they
immaturely haste to be. For you must first
examine the life and manners of those who
are to be placed in any sacred order ; and,
that you may be able to admit such as are
worthy to this office, let not the influence or
the entreaty of any persons whatever inveigle

EPISTLE LIU.

you. But before all things it behoves you to
i be cautious that no venality may have place
in ordination, lest (which God forbid) the
greater danger hang over both the ordained
and the ordainers. If ever, then, there is need
for such things to be taken in hand, call grave
and experienced men into your counsels, and
consider the matter in common deliberation
with them. And before all others it is fit that
you should in all cases call in Columbus our
brother and fellow-bishop. For we believe
that, if you shall have done what is to be
done with his advice, no one will find any-
thing in any way to find fault with in you ;
and know ye that it will be as acceptable to
us as if it had been done with our advice ;
inasmuch as his life and manners have in all
respects so approved themselves to us that it is
clearly apparent to all that what is done with
his consent will be darkened by no blot of
faultiness. But the bearer of these presents,
Victorinus, deacon of our fellow-bishop above-
named, has been such a herald of your merits
as exceedingly to refresh our spirits with re-
gard to your behaviour. And we pray the
Almighty Lord to cause the good that has
been reported of you to shine forth more fully
in operation as well-pleasing to Him.

When, therefore, the council which you are
taking measures to assemble has, with the
succour of God, been brought to a conclusion,
rejoice us by telling of its unity and concord,
and give us information on all points.

EPISTLE LI.
To Maximianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Maximinianus, Bishop of Syra-
cuse 6.

My brethren who live with me familiarly urge
me by all means to write something briefly
about the miracles of the Fathers done in
Italy, which we have heard of. With this view
I am in great need of the assistance of your
Charity, to mention to me shortly what comes
back to your memory, and what you happen
to have known. For I remember vour telling
me something, which I have now forgotten,
about the lord 7 Abbot Nonnosus, who was
with the lord ? Anastasius of Pentomi 8. And
therefore this, or anything else, 1 beg thee to
communicate to me by letter without delay,
if indeed thou art not intending to come to
me thyself shortly.

6 See II. 7, note 5.

7 Dotiino.. " Abl as autem, quia vices Christi agere creditur,
Domnus et Abbas vocetur." Regula S. Benedict:, c. 63.

8 The miracles attributed to Nunnostis, which are here referred
to, are told in Dialog. I. 7, as having- been communicated to
Gregory by Maximianus and an old monk called Lautio. Non-
nosus, at the time- when they were wrought, had be n Prior under
Anastasius of a monastery on the summit of Mount Soracle.

EPISTLE LIU.

To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Constanti-
nople0.

Though consideration of the case moves
me, yet charity also impels me to write, since
I have written once and again to my most
ho'y brother the lord John, but have received
no letter from him. For some one else,
a secular person, addressed me under his
name ; seeing that, if those were really his
letters, I have not been vigilant, having be-
lieved of him something far different from
what I have found. For I had written about
the case of the most reverend presbyter John,
and about the questions of the monks of
Isauria, one of whom, being in priest's orders,

9 John Jejunator (or the Faster), so called from his ascetic
habits. Gregory had known and esteemed him during his resi-
dence at Constantinople. See above, III. 4. The occasion of the
letter belore us was as follows. Two presbyters, John of Chal-
cedon and Athanasius of Isauria (the latter being also a monk
in the monastery of St. Mile in Isauria), had been accused of
heresy at Constantinople, found guilty, and one ol them beaten
with cudgels in the church. They had gone to Rome to lay their
grievances before the pope, who had written to John Jejunator
the Patriarch more than once to protest against so uncanonical
a punishment. The Patriarch seems to have replied that he knew
nothing about the matter : whereupon Gregory sent him this
stinging letter. In the following year (503-4), it appears from
a letter to Narses, a patrician at Constantino] le, that the case
was still pending. Narses had reported the Patriarch as wishing
to act canonically ; and Gregory, doubtfully hoping so. threatens
strong measures if it should be otherwise (IV. 32). Afterwards
(a.d. 594-5) it seems as if the Patriarch had written on the subject
pleasantly : for at the end of a long letter to him protesting
against his assumption of the title of " CEcumenical Ilishop,
Gregory alludes to his "scripta dulcissima atque suavissima"
in the matter of John and Athanasius, promising a reply (V. 18).
In the following year (a.d. 595-6) we find that the charges of
heresy against the two presbyters had been entertained before
Gregory in a Roman synod ; and this apparently with the assent
of the Patriarch, who had transmitted a statement of the case.
John of Chalcedon had been fully acquitted of heresy ; hut sore
doubt still remained as to the orthodoxy of Athanasius. Ac-
cordingly John was at once sent back to Constantinople with
a letter from Gregory to the Patriarch, reversing the sentence
against him which had been passed at Constantinople and de-
manding that he should be received with favour and reinstated.
As though doubtful of the Patriarch's compliance, Gregory ad-
dressed also the Emperor, and Theoctistus, a relation or' the
Emperor's, requesting them to protect the acquitted appellant
(VI. 14, 15, 16, 17). In the same year Athanasius, who had
explained or retracted what had been objected to in his writings,
was also declared orthodox, and sent back to Constantinople
as acquitted. But this was after the death of John Jejunator;
and accordingly the letter demanding the reinstatement of Atha-
nasius was addressed to his successor Cyriacus (VI. 66 ; VI I. 5).
Hnw John Jejunator would have acted at this stage of the
proceedings, had he lived, we have no means or knowing; nor
is there record of the action of Cyriacus. _ The only turther
reference to the subject in the epistles is in one to the two
Patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch (VII. 34). in writing to
wl-.om Gregory sets forth at some length the doctrinal questions
that had been treated in the trial of Athanasius, as though
desirous of having the assent ot those apostolical and patri-
archal sees, which (as we have seen) he elsewhere acknowledges
as sharing with his own the authority of St. Peter, to the decision
come to at Rome. The whole history of the case, which, as has
been seen, was protracted through several years, is 01 some im-
portance as illustrating Gregory's claim to entertain appeals irom
Constantinople, and to reverse at Rome what had been decided
there ; though it is not equally clear, from what is before us
in this particular case, ho>v such claims were viewed at Constan-
tinople. On the one hand we find no sign ot the appeal of the two
presbyters to Rome having been objected to ; while, on the other,
Gregory evidently had his don! ts as to whether the Roman
decision would be acted on at Constantinople; and whether it
was so or not we do not know. The Ltters about it, above
referred to, are III. 53! IV. 32; V. 18; VI. 14, 15, 16. 17, 66;
VII. 5.34-

136

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

has been beaten with clubs in your church ;
and thy most holy Fraternity (as appears from
the signature of the letter) has written back to
me professing ignorance of what I wrote
about. At this reply I was exceedingly as-
tonished, revolving within myself in silence,
if he speaks the truth, what can be worse than
that such things should be done against the
servants of God, and even he who was close
at hand should not know ? For what excuse
can a shepherd have if the wolf devours the
sheep and the shepherd knows it not ? But, if
your Holiness knew both what I referred to in
my letter and what had been done, whether
against John the presbyter or against Atha-
nasius, monk of Isauria and presbyter, and
wrote to me, I know not ; what can I reply to
this, since the Truth says through His Scrip-
ture, The mouth that lieth slayeth the soul
(Wisd. i. 11)? I demand of thee, most holy
brother ; has that so great abstinence of thine
come to this, that by denial thou wouldest
hide from thy brother what thou knewest to
have been done ? Had it not been better that
flesh should go into that mouth for food, than
that falsehood should come out of it for de-
ceiving a neighbour; especially when the
Truth says, Not that which goeth into the mouth
defileth a man ; but that which comet h out of
the mouth, this defileth a man (Matth. xv. 11)?
But far be it from me to believe anything of
the kind of your most holy heart. Those
letters were headed with your name, but I
do not think they were yours. I had written
to the most blessed lord John ; but I believe
that that familiar of yours has replied, — that
youngster, who as yet has learnt nothing
about God ; who knows not the bowels of
charity ; who in his wicked doings is ac-
cused by all ; who daily lays snares against
the deaths of divers people by means of con-
cealed wills; who neither fears God nor
regards men. Believe me, most holy
brother, you must first correct this man, that
from the example of those who are near to
you those who are not near may be better
amended. Do not give ear to his tongue :
he ought to be directed after the counsel of
your holiness ; not your holiness swayed by
his words. For, if you listen to him, I know
that you cannot have peace with your breth-
ren. For 1, as my conscience bears me wit-
ness, wish to quarrel with no man ; and with
all my power I avoid it. And, though I desire
exceedingly to be at peace with all mankind,
it is especially so with you, whom I exceedingly
love, if only you are yourself the person
whom I knew. For, if you do not observe the
canons, and wish to tear to pieces the statutes
of the Fathers, I know not who you are. So

act, then, most holy and most dear brother,
that we may mutually recognize each other,
lest, if the ancient foe should move us two to
take offence, he slay many through his most
atrocious victory. As for me, to shew that
I seek to do nothing in a haughty spirit, if
that youngster of whom I have before spoken
did not hold the topmost place of evil doing
with thy Fraternity, I could meanwhile have
passed over in silence what is ready to my
hand from the canons, and have sent back to
thee with confidence the persons who came to
me at the first, knowing that your Holiness
would receive them with chaiity. But even
now I say ; Either receive these same per-
sons, restoring them to their orders, and
leaving them in quiet ; or, if perchance thou
art unwilling to do this, observe in their case
the statutes of the Fathers and the definitions
of the canons, putting aside all altercation
with me. But, if thou shouldest do neither,
we indeed are unwilling to bring on a quarrel,
but still do not shun one if it comes from your
side. Moreover your Fraternity knows well
what the canons say about bishops who de-
sire to inspire fear by blows. For we have
been made shepherds, not persecutors. And
the excellent preacher says, Argue, beseech, re-
buke, with all longsuffering and doctrine (2
Tim. iv. 2). But new and unheard of is this
preaching, which exacts faith by blows. But
I need not speak at length by letter about
these things, since I have sent my most be-
loved son, the deacon Sabinianus, as my
representative in ecclesiastical matters, to the
threshold of our lords ; and he will speak with
you about everything more particularly. Un-
less you are disposed to wrangle with us, you
will find him prepared for all that is just.
Him I commend to your Blessedness, that he
at least may find that lord John whom I knew
in the royal city.

EPISTLE LVI.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Ravenna'.

It is not long since certain things had been

» This John, and apparently previous bishops of Ravenna,
appear to have assumed a dignity not conceded to other metro-
politans ; perhaps on the ground of Ravenna being the seat of the
Exarch, and having been once the imperial residence. The
pallium usually granted to Metropolitans was allowed to be used
by them only during the celebration of the Eucharist ; and we
find Gregory, in several epistles, restricting them to such use of it,
when he sent it to them. John was reported to have worn it
while receiving the laity in the sacristy before celebration ; and
he owned to having worn it in solemn processions through the
city, alleging custom and peculiar privilege. Further, his clergy,
when accompanying him in processions, had been accustomed to
carry napkins (mappulce), which appear to have been signs of
digi'ity. It is for these assumptions that Gregory now remon-
strates with him; but apparently in vain with regard to the use
of the pallium in processions through the city : for Marinianus,
the successor of John, continued the custom, though whether he
finally persisted in it does not appear. Other letters referring
to the subject are V. 15 ; VI. 34, 61.

EPISTLE LVI.

137

told us about thy Fraternity concerning which
we remember having declared ourselves in
full, when Castorius, notary of the holy
church over which we preside, went into your
parts. For it had come to our ears that some
things were being done in your church con-
trary to custom and to the way of humility,
which alone, as you well know, exalts the
priestly office. Now, if your Wisdom had re-
ceived our admonitions kindly or with epis-
copal seriousness, you ought not to have been
incensed by them, but have corrected these
same things with thanks to us. For it is con-
trary to ecclesiastical use, if even unjust cor-
rection (the which be far from us) is not most
patiently borne.

But your Fraternity has been too much
moved ; and when, in the swelling of thy
heart, as if to justify thyself, thou wrotest
that thou didst not use the pallium except
after the sons of the Church had been dis-
missed from the sacristy 2, and at the time of
mass, and in solemn litanies, thou madest
acknowledgment in words with most manifest
truth of having usurped something contrary to
the usage of the Church in general. For how
can it be that at a time of ashes and sackcloth,
through the streets among the noises of the
people thou couldest do lawfully what thou
hast disclaimed the doing of as being unlaw-
ful in the assembly of the poor and nobles, and
in the sacristy of the Church ? Yet this, dear-
est brother, is not, we think, unknown to
thee ; that it has hardly ever been heard of
any metropolitan in any parts of the world
that he has claimed to himself the use of the
pallium except at the time of mass. And
that you knew well this custom of the Church
in general you have shewn most plainly by
your epistles, in which you have sent to us
appended the precept of our predecessor John
of blessed memory, to the effect that all the
customs conceded in the way of privilege to
you and your church by our predecessors
should be retained. You acknowledge, then,
that the custom of the Church in general is
different, seeing that you claim the right of
doing what you do on the score of privilege.
Thus, as we think, we can have no remaining
doubtfulness in this matter. For either the
usage of all metropolitans should be observed
also by thy Fraternity, or, if thou sayest that
something has been specially conceded to thy
church, it is for your side to shew the pre-

* Secretarium, viz. the chamber adjoining the church in
which the vestments and sacred utensils were kept, and the
clergy vested lor service ; and in which also, as appears from
this and the following epistle, the bishop was accustomed to
receive the laity before mass. From the custom of holding
synods in the apartments so called, the sessions of synods were
also themselves sometimes called ucretaria.

cept of former pontiffs of the Roman City
wherein these things have been conceded to
the Church of Ravenna. But, if this is not
shewn, it remains, seeing that you establish
your claim to do such things on the score
neither of general custom nor of privilege,
that you prove yourself to have usurped in
what you have clone. And what shall we say
to the future judge, most beloved brother, if
we defend the use of that heavy yoke and
chain on our neck with a view, I do not say
to ecclesiastical, but to a certain secular dignity ;
judging ourselves to be lowered if we are
without so great a weight even for a short
space of time ? We desire to be adorned with
the pallium, being, it may be, unadorned in
character ; whereas nothing shines more splen-
didly on a bishop's neck than humility.

It is therefore the duty of thy Fraternity, if
thou art firmly determined to defend thy
honours with any kind of arguments, either to
follow the use of the generality without written
authority, or to defend thyself under privi
leges shewn in writing. Or, if lastly thou
doest neither, we will not have thee set an
example of presumption of this sort to other
metropolitans. But, lest thou shouldest per-
chance think that we, in thus writing to you,
have neglected what belongs to fraternal
charity, know ye that careful search has
been made in our archives for the privileges
of thy Church. And indeed some things have
been found, sufficient to obviate entirely the
aims of thy Fraternity, but nothing to support
the contentions of your Church on the points
in question. For even concerning the very
custom of thy Church which thou allegest
against us, which custom we wrote before
should be proved on your side, we would have
you know that we have already taken thought
sufficiently, having questioned our sons, Peter
the deacon and Gaudiosus the primicerius\
and also Michael the guardian (defensorem) of
our see, or others who on various commissions
have been sent by our predecessors to Ra-
venna ; and they have most positively denied
that thou iiast done these things in their pre-
sence. It is therefore apparent that what was
done in secret must have been an unlawful
usurpation. Hence what has been latently
introduced can have no firm ground to justify
its continuance. What things, then, thou or
thy predecessors have presumed to do super-
fluously do thou, having regard to charity, and
with brotherly kindness, study to correct. To
no degree attempt — I do not say of thine own

3 The term primicerius is variously applied, denoting the
chiels of departments, in Ep. ?2, supra, we rind primiccrium
notariorum. In VII. 32, we rind also the designation Secuttti'
ceriui.

138

EPISTLES OF ST, GREGORY THE GREAT.

accord, but affer the fashion set by others,
even thy predecessors, — to deviate from the
rule of humility. For, to sum up shortly what
I have said above, I admonish thee to this
effect; that unless thou canst shew that this
has been allowed thee by my predecessors in
the way of privilege, thou presume not any
more to use the pallium in the streets, lest
t; ou come not to have even for mass what
thou audaciously usurpest even in the streets.
But as to thy sitting in the sacristy, and re-
ceiving the sons of the Church with the paUium
on (which thing thy Fraternity has both done
and disclaimed), we now for the present make
no complaint ; since, following the decision of
synods, we refuse to punish minor faults,
which are denied. Yet we know this to have
been done once and again, and we prohibit
its being done any more. But let thy Fra-
ternity take careful heed, lest presumption
which in its commencement is pardoned be
more severely visited if it proceeds further.

Furthermore, you have complained that
certain of the sacerdotal order in the city of
Ravenna are involved in serious criminal
charges. Their case we desire thee either to
examine on the spot, or to send them hither
(unless, indeed, difficulty of proof owing to the
distance of the places stands in the way of
this), that the case may be examined here
But if, relying on the patronage of great
people, which we do not believe, they should
scorn to submit to thy judgment or to come
to us, and should refuse contumaciously to
answer to the charges made against them, we
desire that after thy second and third admoni-
tion, thou interdict them from the ministry of
the sacred office, and report to us in writing
of their contumacy, that we may deliberate
how thou oughtest to make a thorough enquiry
into their doings, and correct them according
to canonical definitions. Let, therefore, thy
Fraternity know that we are most fully ab-
solved from responsibility in this case, seeing
that we have committed to you a thorough
investigation of the matter; and that, if all
their sins should pass unpunished, the whole
weight of this enquiry redounds to the peril
of thy soul. And know, beloved, that thou
wilt have no excuse at the future judgment,
if thou dost not correct the excesses of thy
ciergy with the utmost severity of canonical
strictness, and if thou allowest any against
whom such excesses shall have been proved to
profane sacred orders any longer.

Further, what you have written in defence
of the use of napkins by your clergy is stren-
uously opposed by our own clergy, who say
that this has never been granted to any other
Church whatever, and that neither have the

clergy of Ravenna, either there or in the
Roman city, presumed, to their knowledge,
in any such way, nor, if it has been attempted
in the way of furtive usurpation, does it form a
precedent But, even though there had been
such presumption in any church whatever,
they assert that it ought to be corrected, not
being by grant of the Roman pontiff, but
merely a surreptitious presumption. But we,
to save the honour of thy Fraternity, though
against the wish of our aforesaid clergy, still
allow the use of napkins to your first deacons
(whose former use of them has been testified
to us by some), but only when in attendance
upon thee. The use of them, at any other
time, or by any other persons, we most strictly
prohibit.

EPISTLE LVII.

From John, Bishop of Ravenna to Pope
G regory 4.

My most reverend fellow-servant Castorius,
notary of your Apostolical See, has delivered
to me my lord's epistle, compounded of honey
and of venom ; which has vet so infixed its
stings as still to leave place for healing ap-
pliances. For my lord, while he reproves
pride and speaks of divine judgment following
it, in a certain way professes himself with
reason to be mild and placid.

You have alleged, then, that I, ambitious of
novelty, have usurped the use of the pallium
beyond what had been indulged to my prede-
cessors. This let not the conscience of my
own lord, which is governed by the divine
right hand, in any way allow itself to believe ;
nor let him open his most sacred ears to the
uncertainty of common report. First, because
I, though a sinner, still know how grave a
thing it is to transgress the limits assigned to
us by the Fathers, and that all elation leads to
nothing but a fall. 1'or, if our ancestors did
not tolerate pride in kings, how much more
is it not to be endured in priests ! Then,
I remember bow 1 was nourished in the lap
and in the bosom of your mo.-a holy Roman
Church, and therein by the aid of God advanced.
And how should I be so daring as to presume
to oppose that most holy see, which transmits
its laws to the universal Church, for main-
taining whose authority, as God knows, I have
seriously excited the ill-will of many enemies

4 See E/>. 56. John of Ravenna, notwithstanding his ob-
sequious language in this letter, appears to have been by no
means disposed to give way. For see Gregory's subsequent
letter to him ( V. 15), in which he is sharply accused of duplicity.
And not only he, but his successor in the see also, appear to have
continued the practice of wearing the pallium in public pro-
cessions. What he says in the letter before us of his having
incurred odium by his defence of the authority of the Roman See
may be noted as significant of some jealousy of such authority
at Ravenna.

EPISTLE LX.

139

against myself? But let not my most blessed
lord suppose that I have attempted anything
contrary to ancient custom, as is attested by
many and nearly all the citizens of this city,
and as the above-written most reverend notary,
even though he had taken no part in the
proceedings, might have testified, inasmuch
as it was not till the sons of the Church were
descending from the sacristy s, and the deacons
were coming in for proceeding immediately [to
the altar] that the first deacon has been accus-
tomed to invest the bishop of the Church of
Ravenna with the pallium, which he has also
been accustomed in like manner to use in
solemn litanies.

Wherefore let no one endeavour to insinuate
anything against me to my lord, since, if any
one wishes to do so, he cannot prove that any
novelty has been introduced by me. For in
what manner I have obeyed your commands
and served your interests when cause required,
may Almighty God make manifest to your
most sincere heart : and I attribute it to my
sins that after so many labours and difficulties
which I endure within and without I should
deserve to experience such a change. But
again this among other things consoles me,
that most holy fathers sometimes chastise their
sons for the purpose only of advancing them
the more, and that, after this devotion and
satisfaction, you will not only conserve to the
holy Church of Ravenna her ancient privileges,
but even confer greater ones in your own times.

For with respect to the napkins, the use
of which by my presbyters and deacons your
Apostleship alleges to be a presumption, I
confess in truth That it irks me to say anything
on the subject, since the truth by itself, which
alone prevails with my lord, is sufficient. For,
this being allowed to the smaller churches
constituted around the city, the apostleship
of my lord will also be able in all ways to find,
if he deigns to enquire of the venerable clergy
of his own first Apostolical See, that as often
as priests or levites of the Church of Ravenna
have come to Rome for the ctfdination of
bishops or for business, they all have proceeded*1
with napkins before the eyes of your most holy
predecessors without any blame. Wherefore
also at the time when I, sinner as I am, was
ordained there by your predecessor, all my
presbyters and deacons used them while pro-
ceeding6 in attendance on the lord pope. And
since our God in His providence has placed
all things in your hand and most pure con-
science, I adjure you by the very Apostolical

See, which you formerly adorned by your
character, and now govern with due dignity,
that you in no respect diminish on account
of my deservings the privileges of the Church
of Ravenna, which is intimately yours ; but,
even according to the voice of prophecy, let
it be laid upon me and upon my father's house,
according to its deserving. I have, therefore,
for your greater satisfaction, subjoined all the
privileges which have been indulged by your
predecessors to the holy Church of Ravenna,
though none the less finding assurance in your
venerable archives in reference to the times
of the consecration of my predecessors. But
now whatever, after ascertaining the truth, you
may command to be done, is in God's power
and yours ; since I, desiring to obey the com-
mands of my lord's Apostleship, have taken
care, notwithstanding ancient custom, to ab-
stain till I receive further orders.

EPISTLE LIX.
To Secundinus, Bishop.

Gregory to Secundinus, Bishop of Tauro-
menium. \In Sicily.']

Some time ago we ordered that the bap-
tistery 7 should be removed from the monastery
of Saint Andrew, which is above Mascalae,
because of inconvenience to the monks, and
that an altar should be erected in the place
where the fonts now are. But the carrying
out of this order has been put off so far. We
therefore admonish thy Fraternity that thou
interpose no further delay after receiving this
our letter, but that the fonts themselves be
filled up 8, and an altar at once erected there
for celebration of the sacred mysteries ; to the
end that the aforesaid monks may be at liberty
to celebrate more securely the work of God,
and that our mind be not provoked against
thy Fraternity for negligence.

EPISTLE LX.

To Italica, Patrician?.

Gregory to Italica, &c.

We have received your letter, which is full

5 Ut mox procedatur. The word frocedere is used here, and
elsewhere, lor approaching the altar for celebration. U. be.ow,
and VII. 34.

6 Procedebant. See last note.

7 Baptisteries (baptisteria) were anciently separate buildings
adjoining churches icf. VI. 22), ihe Jontes being the pools ot
water (called also piscina and KoAv/i/3ij0pa) therein contained.
(See Bingham, B. VIII. C. VII. Sect. 1, 4 ) '-The inconvenience
to the monks of having a baptistery at their monastery would
be from the concourse of people resorting to it, which would
interfere with monastic seclusion. For a similar reason Gregory
more than once forbids public masses in monasteries. Cf. e.g. II.

41 '8 Fonts were anciently sunken pools. " In medio habet fontein
in terra excavatam ad quinque ulnas . . . tnbus gradi.jus in id
descensus est." Omiphrius, de baftistoio Lateran.

9 Possibly the same lady whom the ex-monk Venantius mar-
ried See I. 34, note 8, and IX. 123. The correspondence that
took place at this time between her and Gregory seems to have
arisen from some quesiion of legal right, in which she appeared to

140

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

of sweetness, and rejoice to hear that your
Excellency is well. Such is the sincerity of
our own mind with regard to it that paternal
affection does not allow us to suspect any
latent ill-feeling concealed under its calmness.
But may Almighty God bring it to pass, that,
as we think what is good of you, so your mind
may respond with good towards us, and that
you may exhibit in your deeds the sweetness
which you express in words. For the most
glorious health and beauty on the surface of
the body profit nothing if there is a hidden
sore within. And that discord is the more to
be guarded against to which exterior peace
affords a body-guard. But as to what your
Excellency in your aforesaid epistle takes
pains to recall to our recollection, remember
that you have been told in writing that we
would not settle anything with you concern-
ing the causes of the poor so as to cause
offence, or with public clamour. We remem-
ber writing to you to this effect, and also
know, God helping us. how to restrain our-
selves with ecclesiastical moderation from the
wrangling of suits at law, and, according to
that apostolical sentence, to endure joyfully
the spoiling of our goods. But this we sup-
pose you to know; that our silence and
patience will not be to the prejudice of future
pontiffs after me in the affairs of the poor.
Wherefore we, in fulfilment of our aforesaid
promise, have already determined to keep
silence on these questions ; nor do we desire
to mix ourselves personally in these trans-
actions, wherein we feel that too little kindness
is being shewn. But, lest you should hence
imagine, glorious daughter, that we still alto-
gether renounce what pertains to concord, we
have given directions to our son, Cyprianus
the deacon, who is going to Sicily, that, if you
arrange about these matters in a salutary way,
and without sin to your soul, he should setde
them with you by our authority, and that we
should be no further vexed by the business,

which may thus be brought to a conclusion
amicably. Now may Almighty God, who well
knows how to turn to possibility things alto-
gether impossible, may He inspire you both
to arrange your affairs with a view to peace,
and, for the good of your soul, to consult the
benefit of the poor of this Church in matters
which concern them.

the latter to be dealing harshly with some poor persons, perhaps
peasants (rustici) on an estaie of the Church (hiijus EccUsite
fauperibus). The passing tribute paid in this letter to the lady's
personal charms is characteristic of Gregory's complimentary
style, and (supposing her to have been the same Italica who
became the bride of Venantius) suggests one attraction which
may have drawn the latter away from his intended monastic life,
turther, on the same >uppo>ition, we may perhaps read with
interest between the lines of this letter something of the feeling
subsisting at the time of writing between the correspondents.
She, being a well-bred patrician lady, had evidently written
to him with gentle courtesy. But he detected, or thought he
detected, something wanting in the tone of her letter. Nor
was she likely to feel warmly towards him who now called her
to account, it it were he whom she knew to have done all he
could to alienate Venantius from her. He, on the other hand,
while addressing her in return with all the courtesy due to her
rank and character, and evidently anxious to avoid unpleasant-
ness, shews signs of not being entirely satisfied as to her feelings
towards himself, or her readiness to follow his admonitions. It is
interesting to observe that, judging from the tone of subsequent
Epistles, we may conclude very friendly relations to have been
afterwards maintained between Gregory and the wedded pair.

EPISTLE LXV.

To Mauricius Augustus *.

Gregory to Mauricius, &c.
He "is guilty before Almighty God who is
not pure of offence towards our most serene
lords in all he does and says. I, however,
unworthy servant of your Piety, speak in this
my representation neither as a bishop, nor as
your servant in right of the republic, but as
of private right, since, most serene lord, you
have been mine since the time when you were
not yet lord of all.

On the arrival here of the most illustrious
Longinus, the equerry (stratore), I received
the law of my lords, to which, being at the
time worn out by bodily sickness, I was un-
able to make any reply. In it the piety of my
lords has ordained that it shall not be lawful
for any one who is engaged in any public ad-
ministration to enter on an ecclesiastical office.
And this I greatly commended, knowing by
most evident proof that one who is in haste to
desert a secular condition and enter on an
ecclesiastical office is not wishing to relinquish
secular affairs, but to change them. But, at
its being said in the same law that it should
not be lawful for him to become a monk, I
was altogether surprised, seeing that his ac-
counts can be rendered through a monastery,
and it can be arranged for his debts also to
be recovered from the place into which he is
received. For with whatever devout intention
a person may have wished to become a monk,
he should first restore what he has wrongly
gotten, and take thought for his soul all the
more truly as he is the more disencum-
bered. It is added in the same law that no
one who has been marked on the hand2 may
become a monk. This ordinance, I confess
to my lords, has alarmed me greatly, since by

» This letter is supposed to have been written in the third
Indiction ( a.d. 592-3) ; the law complained of having been issued
in the previous year. The epistle, which follows, to the Em-
peror's physician on the same subject, shews how much Gregory
had it at heart. Some five years later it appears from a letter
to divers metropolitans, dated December, a.d. 597 (VIII. 5),
that an amicable agreement had meanwhile been come to, both
the Emperor and the Pope having made some concessions. Cf.
also the end of Ep. 24 in Book X.

2 Cf. below, " in terrena militia signatus." It appears that
not slaves only, but soldiers also, were sometimes marked on the
hand. Cf. Cyprian, Ad Donatum, " Te quern jam spiritualibus
castris militia signavit. "

EPISTLE LXVI.

141

it the way to heaven is closed against many,
and what has been lawful until now is made
unlawful. For there are many who are able
to live a religious life even in a secular con-
dition : but there are very many who cannot
in any wise be saved with God unless they
give up all things. But what am I, in speak-
ing thus to my lords, but dust and a worm ?
Yet still, feeling that this ordinance makes
against God, who is the Author of all, I cannot
keep silence to my lords. For power over all
men has been given from heaven to the piety
of my lords to this end, that they who aspire
to what is good may be helped, and that the
way to heaven may be more widely open, so
that an earthly kingdom may wait upon the
heavenly kingdom. And lo, it is said in plain
words that one who has once been marked to
serve as an earthly soldier may not, unless
he has either completed his service or been
rejected for weakness of body, serve as the
soldier of our Lord Jesus Christ.

To this, behold, Christ through me the last
of His servants and of yours will answer,
saying ; From a notary I made thee a Count
of the body-guard ; from Count of the body-
guard I made thee a Caesar; from a Caesar
I made thee Emperor ; and not only so, but
also a father of emperors. I have committed
my priests into thy hand ; and dost thou with-
draw thy soldiers from my service? Answer
thy servant, most pious lord, I beseech thee ;
what wilt thou answer to thy Lord when He
comes arid thus speaks?

But peradventure it is believed that no one
among them turns monk with a pure motive.
I, your unworthy servant, know how many
soldiers who have become monks in my own
days have done miracles, have wrought signs
and mighty deeds. But by this law it is for-
| bidden that even one of such as these should
become a monk.

Let my lord enquire, I beg, what former
emperor ever enacted such a law, and con-
sider more thoroughly whether it ought to
have been enacted. And indeed it is a very
serious consideration, that now at this time
any are forbidden to leave the world ; a time
when the end of the world is drawing nigh.
For lo ! there will be no delay : the heavens
on fire, the earth on fire, the elements blazing,
with angels and archangels, thrones and do-
minions, principalities and powers, the tre-
mendous Judge will appear. Should He remit
all sins, and say only that this law has been
promulged against Himself, what excuse, pray,
will there be? Wherefore by the same tre-
mendous Judge I beseech you, that all those
tears, all those prayers, all those fasts, all
those alms of my lord, may not on any ground

lose their lustre before the eyes of Almighty
God : but let your Piety, either by interpreta-
tion or alteration, modify the force of this law,
since the army of my lords against their ene-
mies increases the more when the army of
God has been increased for prayer.

I indeed, being subject to your command,
have caused this law to be transmitted through
various parts of the world; and, inasmuch as
the law itself is by no means agreeable to
Almighty God, lo, I have by this my repre-
sentation declared this to my most serene
lords. On both sides, then, I have discharged
my duty, having both yielded obedience to
the Emperor, and not kept silence as to what
I feel in behalf of God.

EPISTLE LXVI.
To Theodorus, Physician.

Gregory to Theodorus, &c.

What benefits I enjoy from Almighty God
and my most serene lord the Emperor my
tongue cannot fully express. For these benefits
what return is it in me to make, but to love
their footsteps sincerely? But, on account of
my sins, by whose suggestion or counsel I
know not, in the past year he has promulged
such a law in his republic that whoso loves him
sincerely must lament exceedingly. I could
not reply to this law at the time, being sick.
But I have just now offered some suggestions
to my lord. For he enjoins that it shall be
lawful for no one to become a monk who has
been engaged in any public employment, for
no one who is a paymaster 3, or who has been
marked in the hand, or enrolled among the
soldiers, unless perchance his military service
has been completed. This law, as those say
who are acquainted with old laws, Julian was
the first to promulge, of whom we all know
how opposed he was to God. Now if our
most serene lord has done this thing because
perhaps many soldiers were becoming monks,
and the army was decreasing, was it by the
valour of soldiers that Almighty God subju-
gated to him the empire of the Persians?
Was it not only that his tears were heard,
and that God, by an order which he knew
not of, subdued to his empire the empire of
the Persians ?

Now it seems to me exceedingly hard that
he should debar his soldiers from the service
of Him who both gave him all and granted to
him to rule not only over soldiers but even
over priests. If his purpose is to save pro-

3 NuUus qui optio.—" Oftt'oucs : Militaris anrons eragatores :
distribiteurs Ues vivresaux soldats" (Cod. Th.) D'Arnis' Lexicon

Manuale.

142

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

perty from being lost, why might not those
same monasteries into which soldiers have
been received pay their debts, retaining the
men only for monastic profession ? Since
these things grieve me much, I have repre-
sented the matter to my lord. But let your
Glory take a favourable opportunity of offer-
ing him my representation privately. For I
am unwilling that it should be given publicly
by my representative (responsalis), seeing that
you who serve him familiarly can speak more
freely and openly of what is for the good of
his soul, since he is occupied with many
things, and it is not easy to find his mind free
from greater cares. Do thou, then, glorious
son, speak for Christ. If thou art heard, it
will be to the profit of the soul of thy afore-
said lord and of thine own. But if thou art
not heard, thou hast profited thine own soul
only.

EPISTLE LXVII.
To Djmitian, Metropolitan*.

Gregory to Domiiian. &c.

On receiving the letters of your most sweet
Blessedness I greatly rejoiced, since they
spoke much to me of sacred Scripture. And,
finding in them the dainties that I love,
I greedily devoured them. Therein also were
many things intermingled about external
and necessary affairs. And you have acted
as though preparing a banquet for the mind,
so that the offered dainties might please die
more from their diversity. And if indeed
external affairs, like interior and ordinary
kinds of food, are less savoury, yet they have
been treated by you so skilfully as to be taken

* This Domitian, Bishop of Mclitene and Metropolitan of
Roman Armenia,' was a kinsman of the Emperor Maurice, and
had lately been successfully employed by him in coming to terms
with the Persian king, Cliosroes II., as is related in the histories
of Evagrius and Tneophylact. The latter describes him as " holy
in life, sweet in speech, ready in action, most prudent in council "
(Hist. iv. 14). He also gives at length an eloquent sermon of his,
delivered after the cession, through his mediation, of the city
Martyropolis in Mesopotamia to the Roman Emperor (IV. 16).
Chosroes II., who is said to have had a strong regard for Domitian,
appears to have hid so.ne leanings towards Christianity. We are
told that, when flying from his enemies in Persia, and in doubt
whether to seek refuge with the Romans or the Turks, he had let
his hope take its own course, calling on the God of the Christians
for guidance, and thus found his way to Circesium, where he was
received by Probus the Governor (Tkeophyl. IV. 10; Evngr.
II. E. VI. 16). Further, it is related that, on one occasion, when
Probus, bishop of ChalceJon, had been sent to him as ambassador
by the Emperor, he requested to be shewn a portrait of the
Blessed Virgin, which he adored when he saw it, saving that he
had seen the original in a vision (Theophyl. V. 15); and also
that he attributed his own success in arms, and the pregnancy
of his favourite wife Syra (Shirin), who was herself a Christian,
to the intercession of S. Sergius. whom he had invoked, and that
lie sent a cross of pure gold, adorned with jewels, which he had
vowed, with other presents, to the shrine of the saint, together
with a letter of acknowledgment addressed to him (Thcopkyl. V.
13, 14 ; Evagr. II E. VI. 20). But he certainly never became
a Christian, though it appears lrom the letter before us that
Domitian had done his best to convert him. The earlier part
of this epistle refers evidently to some allegorical interpretation
of Script. ire by Gregory after his usual manner, to which Domi-
tian had taken oLjec.ioii.

gladly, since even contemptible kinds of food
are usually made sweet by the sauce of one
who cooks well. Now, while the truth of the
History is kept to, what I had said some time
ago about its divine meaning ought not to be
rejected. For, although, since you will have
it so, its meaning may not suit my case, yet,
from its very context, what was said as being
drawn from it may be held without hesitation.
For her violator (i.e. Dinah's) is called the
prince of the country (Genes, xxxiv. 2), by
whom the devil is plainly denoted, seeing that
our Redeemer says, Nozv shall the prince of
this world be cast out (Johivxii. 31), And he
also seeks her for his wife, because the evil
spirit hastens to possess lawfully the soul
which he has first corrupted by hidden se-
duction. Wherefore the sons of Jacob, be-
ing very wroth, take their swords against the
w,iole house of Sichem and his country
(Genes, xxxiv. 25), because by all who have
zeal those also are to be attacked who become
abettors of the evil spirit. And they first
enjoin on them circumcision, and afterwards,
while they are sore, slay them. For severe
teachers, if they know not how to moderate
their zeal, though cutting off the bias of cor-
ruption by preaching, nevertheless, when de-
linquents already mourn for the evil they had
done, are frequently still savage in roughness
of discipline, and harder than they should be.
For those who had already cut off their foreskins
ought not to have died, since such as lament the
sin of lechery, and turn the pleasure of the flesh
into sorrow, ought not to experience from
their teachers roughness of discipline, lest the
Redeemer of the human race be Himself
loved less, if in His behalf the soul is afflicted
more than it should be. Hence also to these
his sons Jacob says, Ye have troubled me, and
made me odious to the Canaan it es (Ibid. v. 30).
For, when teachers still cruelly attack what
the delinquents already mourn for, the weak
mind's very love for its Redeemer grows cold,
because it feels itself to be afflicted in that
wherein of itself it does not spare itself.

So much therefore I would say in order to
shew that the sense which I set forth is not
improbable in connexion with the context.
But what has been inferred from the same
passage by your Holiness for my comfort I
gladly accept, since in the understanding of
sacred Scripture whatever is not opposed to
a sound faith ought not to be rejected. For,
even as from the same gold some make neck-
laces, some rings, and some bracelets, for
ornament, so from the same knowledge of
sacred Scripture different expositors, through
innumerable ways of understanding it, com-
pose as it were various ornaments, which

EPISTLE LXVII.

nevertheless all serve for the adornment of
the heavenly bride. Further, I rejoice ex-
ceedingly that your most sweet Blessedness,
even though occupied with secular affairs, still
brings back its genius vigilantly to the under-
standing of Holy Writ. For so indeed it is
needful that, if the former cannot be alto-
gether avoided, the latter should not be alto-
gether put aside. But I beseech you by
Almighty God, stretch out the hand of prayer
to me who am labouring in so great billows of
tribulation, that by your intercession I may
be lifted up to the heights, who am pressed
down to the depths by the weight of my sins.
Moreover, though I grieve that the Emperor of

the Persians has not been converted, yet I
altogether rejoice for that you have preached
to him the Christian faith ; since, though he
has not been counted worthy to come to the
light, yet your Holiness will have the reward
of your preaching. For the Ethiopian, too,
goes black into the bath, and comes out
black ; but still the keeper of the bath re-
ceives his pay.

Further, of Mauricius you say well, that
from the shadow I may know the statue ; that
is, that in small things I may perpend greater
things. In this matter, however, we trust him,

since
us.

oaths and

hostages

bind his soul to

BOOK IV.

EPISTLE I.

TO CONSTANTIUS, BlSHOP.

Gregory to Constantius, Bishop of Medio-
lanum {Milan).

On receiving the letters of your Fraternity
I returned great thanks to Almighty God, that
I was counted worthy to be refreshed by the
celebration of your ordination. Truly that all,
by the gift of God, with one accord concurred
in your election, is a fact which thy Fraternity
ought with the utmost consideration to es-
timate, since, after God, you are greatly in-
debted to those who with so submissive a
disposition desired you to be preferred before
themselves.

It becomes you, therefore, with priestly be-
nignity to respond to their behaviour, and with
kind sympathy to attend to their needs. If
perchance there are any faults in any of them,
rebuke these with well-considered reproofs, so
that your very priestly indignation be mingled
with a savour of sweetness, and that so you
may be loved by your subjects even when you
are greatly feared. Such conduct will also
induce great reverence for your person in their
judgment ; since, as hasty and habitual rage is
despised, so discriminate indignation against
faults for the most part becomes the more
formidable in proportion as it has been slow.

Further, John our subdeacon, who has re-
turned, has reported many good things of you ;
as to which we beseech Almighty God Him-
self to fulfil what He has begun ; to the end
that He may shew thee to have advanced in
good inwardly and outwardly both now among
men and hereafter among the angels.

Moreover, we have sent thee, according to
custom, a pallium to be used in the sacred
solemnities of mass. But I beg you, when
you receive it, to vindicate its dignity and its
meaning by humility.

EPISTLE II.

To Constantius, Bishop.

Gregory to Constantius, Bishop of Medio-
lanum.

My most beloved son, the deacon Boniface,
has conveyed to me certain private information

through thy Fraternity's letter ; namely that
three bishops, having sought out rather than
found an occasion, have separated themselves
from the pious communion of your Fraternity,
saying that you have assented to the condem-
nation of the Three Chapters *, and have given
a security 2. And, indeed, whether there has
been any mention made of the Three Chapters
in any word or writing whatever thy Fraternity
remembers well ; although thy Fraternity's
predecessor, Laurentius, did send forth a most
strict security to the Apostolic See, to which
most noble men in legitimate number sub-
scribed ; among whom I also, at that time
holding the praetorship of the city, likewise
subscribed ; since after such a schism had
taken place about nothing, it was right that
the Apostolic See should take heed, with the
view of guarding in all respects the unity of
the Universal Church in the minds of priests.
But as to its being said that our daughter,
Queen Theodelinda, after hearing this news,
has withdrawn herself from thy communion,
it is for all reasons evident that, though she
has been seduced to some little extent by the
words of bad men, yet, on the arrival of Hip-
polytus the notary, and John the abbot, she
will seek in all ways the communion of your
Fraternity 3. To her also I have addressed
a letter*, which I beg your Fraternity to trans-

1 As to the schism from Rome in the province of Istria con-
sequent on the condemnation of "The Three Chapters" by the
fifth General Council, see I. 16. note 3. It appears that in the
adjacent province of Liguria, of which Mediolanuin (A/i/an) was
the metropolis, there was a like rejection of the fifth council on the
part at least of some bishops, who had consequently declined
communion with their newly-appointed Metropolitan Constantius,
who was believed to have agreed formally to the condemnation
of The Three Chapters.

a Cautionein fecisse : i.e. had pledged himself to the pope
by a formal document to uphold the fifth council in its condemna-
tion of the said Chapters.

3 Theodelinda, the Lombard queen, was a catholic Christian,
though her husband Agilulph was still an Arian. Ticinum (or
Pavia), which was the re-idence of the Lombard Kings, was
under the Metropolitan jurisdiction of Milan ; and it appears that,
under the influence of the dissentient bishops of the province, she
too had refused to communicate with the new Metropolitan.
Gregory's anticipation, expressed in what follows, that she would
easily be brought round, was premature: for ten years later
(a.d. 603-4) we find Gregory still taking pains to overcome her
scruples with regard to the fifth council. See XIV. 12.

4 Viz. Epistle 4 below. This letter, however, was not de-
livered to the queen by the bishop Constantius, to whom it had
been sent, because of the allusion contained in it to the fifth
council, which she appears to have been resolute in rejecting.
The new bishop thought she would be more likely to accept hira
as orthodox, if it were only said that he adhered in all respects to
the faith of the lour previous councils, including that of Chalcedon.
See below, Ep. 39. Accordingly another letter (Ep. 38), in which

EPISTLE IV.

mit to her without delay. Further, with re-
gard to the bishops who appear to have separ-
ated themselves, I have written another letter,
which when you have caused to be shewn to
them, I doubt not that they will repent of the
superstition of their pride before thy Fra-
ternity.

Furthermore, you have accurately and briefly
informed me of what has been done, whether
by King Ago s or by the Kings of the Franks.
I beg your Fraternity to make known to me
in al! ways what you have so far ascertained.
But, if you should see that Ago, King of the
Lombards, is doing nothing with the Patri-
cian 6, promise him on our part that I am
prepared to give attention to his case, if he
should be willing to arrange anything with the
republic advantageously.

EPISTLE III.

To CONSTANTIUS, BlSHOP.

Gregory to Constantius, Bishop of Medio-
lanum.

It has come to my knowledge that certain
bishops of your diocese, seeking out rather
than finding an occasion, have attempted
to sever themselves from the unity of your
Fraternity, saying that thou hadst given a
security ? at the Roman city for thy condemna-
tion of the three Chapters. And the fact is
that they say this because they do not know
how I am accustomed to trust thy Fraternity
even without security. For if there had been
need for anything of the kind, your mere word
of mouth could have been trusted. I, how-
ever, do not recollect any mention between
us of the three Chapters either in word or in
writing. But as for them, if they soon return
from their error, they should be spared, be-
cause, according to the saying of the Apostle
Paul, They understand neither ivhat they say
nor 'whereof they affirm (i Tim. i. 7). For we,
truth guiding us and our conscience bearing
witness, declare that we keep the faith of the
holy synod of Chalcedon in all respects in-
violate, and venture not to add anything to,
or to subtract anything from, its definition 8.

allusion to the fifth council was omitted, was prepared and sent in
accordance with the advice of Constantius. See further, note 8,
under Epistle 3.

5 I.e. Agilulph the Lombard King. The time (Indict. XII.,
i.e. a.d. 593-4) was after he had invested Rome and returned
to Pavia, and when Gregory had in vain urged Romanus Patri-
cius, the Exarch at Ravenna, to ccme to terms with him. Gregory
appears prepared to approach hiin now with a view to a separate
peace with himself, which he says afterwards (see V. 36, 40)
he could have made if he had been so minded. Letters bearing
on the subject are V. 36, 40, 41, 42 ; VI. 30; IX. 4, 6, 42, 43, 98.
See also Proleg , p. xxi.

6 I.e. Romanus Patricius, the Exarch.

7 Cauiionem tecisse. See Ep. 2, note 2.

8 The contention of those who disapproved of the condemna-
tion of "The Three Chapters" by the fifth council was not only
that the condemnation of deceased persons was wrong as well

VOL. XII. I

But, if any one would fain take upon himself
to think anything, either more or less, con-
trary to it, and to the faith of this same synod,
we anathematize him without any hesitation'
and decree him to be alien from the bosom
of Mother Church. Any one, therefore, whom
this my confession does not bring to a right
mind, no longer loves the synod of Chalcedon,
but hates the bosom of Mother Church. If
then those who appear to have been thus
daring have presumed thus to speak in zeal
of soul, it remains for them, having received
this satisfaction, to return to the unity of thy
Fraternity, and not divide themselves from
the body of Christ, which is the holy universal
Church.

EPISTLE IV.

To Queen Theodelinda.

Gregory to Theodelinda, Queen of the
Lombards 9.

It has come to our knowledge by the report
of certain persons that your Glory has been
led on by some bishops even to such an
offence against holy Church as to withdraw
yourself from the communion of Catholic
unanimity. Now the more we sincerely love
you, the more seriously are we distressed
about you, that you believe unskilled and
foolish men, who not only do not know what
they talk about, but can hardly understand
what they have heard.

For they say that in the times of Justinian
of pious memory, some things were ordained
contrary to the council of Chalcedon ; and,
while they neither read themselves nor believe
those who do, they remain in the same error
which they themselves feigned to themselves
concerning us. For we, our conscience bear-
ing witness, declare that nothing was altered,
nothing violated, with respect to the faith of
this same holy council of Chalcedon; but
that whatever was done in the times of the
aforesaid Justinian was so done that the faith
of the council of Chalcedon should in no
respect be disturbed. Further, if any one
presumes to speak or think anything contrary
to the faith of the said synod, we detest his

as useless, but also that it impugned the faith of the Council of
Chalcedon. For that Council had not condemned the writers
who were now condemned ; and two of them, Theodoret of Cyrus
and Ibas of Edessa, had even appeared before it, and been
accepted as orthodox. Further, the condemnation was regarded
as a concession to the Monophysites who had been condemned at
Chalcedon, the wi iters in question having been peculiarly ob-
noxious to the Monophysite party. And it does appear to be the
case that a main motive of the Emperor Justinian in forcing the
condemnation of The Three Chapters on the Church had been
to conciliate the Monophysites, and to induce them to conform.
Hence Gregory's anxiety to shew that what had been done at the
filth did not touch the faith as previously defined.

9 This letter was not deliveied to Theodelinda, Epistle
XXXVIII. having been afierwaids substituted for it. See
note 4 under Ep. a.

146

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

opinion, witli interposition of anathema. Since
then you know the integrity of our faith under
the attestation of our cons< ience, it remains
that you should never separate yourself from
the communion of the Catholic Church, lest
all those tears of yours, and all those good
works should come to nothing, if they are
found alien from the true faith. It therefore
becomes your Glory to send a communication
with all speed to my most reverend brother
and fellow-bishop Constantius, of whose faith,
as well as his life, I have long been well
assured, and to signify by your letters ad-
dressed to him how kindly you have accepted
his ordination, and that you are in no way
separated from the communion of his Church ;
although I think that what I say on this
subject is superfluous : for, though there has ;
been some degree of doubtfulness in your
mind, I think that it has been removed from
your hea.t on the arrival of my son John the ,
abbot, and Hippolytus the notary.

EPISTLE V.
To Boniface; Bishop.

Gregory to Boniface, Bishop of Regium
{Ren).

It is a shame for priests to be admonished
about matters of divine worship. For they
are then to their disgrace required to do what
they ought themselves to require to be done.
Yet lest, as I do not suppose, thy Fraternitj
should neglect in any respect the things that
pertain to the work of God, we have thought
fit to exhort thee specially on this very head.
We therefore admonish thee that the clergj
of the city of Regium be to no extent re-
leased by the indulgence of thy Fraternity
in duties demanded by their office. But in
the things that pertain to God let them be
most instantly and most earnestly compelled. ,
We desire thee also to study the reputation
of the aforesaid clergy, that nothing bad,
nothing that at all contravenes ecclesiastical
discipline, be heard of them ; seeing that it
is to its adornment, not to foulness of deeds,
that their office appertains. Further, we decree
that what we determined in the case of the
Sicilians be observed by thy subdeacons » ;
nor mayest thou suffer this our decision to
be infringed by the contumacy or temerity of
any one whatever; that so, as we believe will
be the case, all that has been said above
being most strictly kept in force by thee, thou
mayest neither prove a transgressor of our
admonition, nor be accused as guilty of re-
missness in the order of pastoral rule which
has been committed to thee.

x See 1. 44, p. gi ; also below, EJ>. 36.

EPISTLE VI.

To Cyprian, Dka<~on.

Gregory to Cyprian, Deacon and Rector of
Sicily.

It has been reported to us that a native
of the province of Lucania, Petronilla by
name, was converted 2 through the exhortation
of the bishop Agnellus, and that all her pro-
perty, though she had it in her own power,
she nevertheless bestowed on the monastery
which she entered even by a special deed of
gift : also that the aforesaid bishop died
leaving half of his substance to one Agnellus,
his son, who is said to be a notary of our
Church, and half to the said monastery. But,
when they had fled for refuge to Sicily because
of the calamity impending on Italy, the above-
named Agnellus is said to have corrupted her
morals and defiled her, and, finding her with
child, to have seduced her from the monastery,
and to have taken away with her all her be-
longings, both those that had been her own
and such as she might have had given her
by his own father, and that, after perpetrating
such and so great a crime, he claims these
things as his own. We therefore exhort thy
Love to cause the aforesaid man, and the
above-named woman, to be summarily brought
before thee, and to institute a most thorough
enquiry into the case. And, if thou shouldcst
find it to be as reported to us, determine an
affair defiled by so many iniquities with the
utmost severity of expurgation ; to the *t\u\
that both strict retribution may overtake the
above named man, who has regarded neither
his own nor her condiiion, and that, she
having been first punished and consigned to
a monastery under penance, all the property
that had been taken away from the oft above-
name'd place, with all its fruits and acce^bions,
may be restored.

EPISTLE VII.

To Cinnadius, Patrician.

Gregoi) to Gennadi us, Patrician and Exarch
of Africa.

We are well assured that the mind of your
religious Excellency is inflamed with zeal of
divine love against those things especially
which are done in unseemly wise in the
churches. We therefore the more gladly im-
pose on you the co;re ton of faults in eccle-
siastical cases as we have confidence in the
bent of your pious disposition. Be it known,
then, to your Excellence that it has been
reported to us by some who have come to us

a Conversam, with the usual sense of monastic profession.

EPISTLE IX.

147

from the African parts that many things are
being committed in the council of Numidia
contrary to the way of the Fathers and the
ordinances of the canons. And, being unable
to bear any longer the frequent complaints
that have reached us about such things, we
committed them to be enquired into to our ' regarded "».
brother and fellow-bishop Columbus 3, of
whose gravity his very reputation, which is
spread abroad, now allows us not to doubt.
Wherefore, greeting you with fatherly affec-
tion, we exhort your Excellence that in all
things pertaining to ecclesiastical discipline
you should lend him the support of your
assistance, lest, if what is done amiss should
not be enquired into and visited, it should
grow with greater license into future excesses
through precedent of long continuance. Know
moreover, most excellent son, that if you seek
victories, and are dealing for the security of
the province committed to you, nothing will
avail you more for this end than being zealous
in restraining as far as possible the lives of
priests and the intestine wars of Churches.

priated by thee to this venerable place. For
so thou wilt both escape condemnation for
remissness before the awful Judge, and, in
accordance with our most religious laws, wilt
be accomplishing with episcopal zeal the pious
wishes of the departed, which had been dis-

EPISTLE VIII.

To Januarius, Bishop.

Gregory to Januarius, Bishop of Caralis
( Cagliari).

We think indeed that thy position may in itself
be enough to compel thee to be instant in the
fulfilment of pious duties. But, lest remissness
of any kind should intervene to abate thy zeal,
we have thought it right to exhort thee espe-
cially with regard to them. Now it has come
to our knowledge that your Stephen, when
departing this life, by his last will and testa-
ment directed a monastery to be founded.
But it is said that his desire is so far un-
accomplished owing to the delay of the hon-
ourable lady Theodosia, his heiress. Where-
fore we exhort thy Fraternity to pay the
utmost attention to this matter, and admonish
the above-named ladv, to the end that within
a year's space she may establish a monastery
as has been directed, and construct everything
without dispute according to the will of the
departed. But if she should put off the com-
pletion of the design out of negligence or
artfulness (as, for instance, if she is unable to
found it in the place that had been appointed,
and it is thought fit that it be placed else-
where, and the matter is neglected through
the intervening delay), then we desire that it
be built by the diligence of thy Fraternity, and
that, all things being set in order, the effects
and revenues that have been left be appro-

EPISTLE IX.
To Januarius, Bishop.

Gregory to Januarius, Bishop of Caralis
{Cagliari').

Pastoral zeal ought indeed in itself to have
sufficiently instigated thee, even without our
aid, to protect profitably and providently the
flock of which thou hast taken charge, and to
preserve it with diligent circumspection from
the cunning devices of enemies. But, since
we have found that thy Chanty needs also the
written word of our authority for the aug-
mentation of thy firmness, it is necessary for
us, by the exhortation of brotherly love, to
strengthen thy faltering disposition towards
the earnestness of religious activity.

Now it has come to our knowledge that thou
art remiss in thy guardianship of the monas-
teries of the handmaidens of God situated in
Sardinia ; and, though it had been prudently
arranged by thy predecessors that certain ap-
proved men of the clergy should have the
charge of attending to their needs, this has
now been so entirely neglected that women
specially dedicated to God are compelled to
go in person among public functionaries about
tributes and other liabilities, and are under
the necessity of running to and fro through
villages and farms for making up their taxes,
and of mixing themselves unsuitably in busi-
ness which belongs to men. This evil let thy
Fraternity remove by an easy correction; that
is, by carefully deput ng one man of approved
life and manners, ; nd o such age and position
as to give rise to no e\il suspicion of him, who
may, with the fear of God, so assist the in-
mates of these mona.'te ies that they may no
longer be allowed to wander, against rule, for
any cause whatever, private or public, beyond
their venerable precincts; but that whatever
has to be done in their behalf may be trans-
acted reasonably by him whom you shall de-
pute. But let the nuns themselves, rendering
praises to God and confining themselves to
their monasteries, no longer suggest any evil
suspicion to the minds of the faithful. But if
any one of them, either through former license,
or through an evil custom of impunity, has

3 See II. 48, note i.

4 For subsequent proceedings with regard to this
monastery, see IV. 15 ; V. 2.

ended

I. 2

Izl8

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

been seduced, or should in future be led, into
the gulph of adulterous lapse, we will that,
after enduring the severity of adequate pun-
ishment, she be consigned for penance to
some other stricter monastery of virgins, that
she may there give herself to prayers and
fastings, and profit herself by penitence, and
afford an example of the more rigorous kind
of discipline, such as may inspire fear in
others. Further, let any one who may be
detected in any iniquity with women of this
class be deprived of communion, if he be a
layman ; but, if he be a cleric, let him also be
removed from his office, and thrust into a
monastery for his ever to be deplored excesses.

We also desire thee to hold councils of
bishops twice in the year, as is said to have
been the custom of thy province, as well as
being ordered by the authority of the sacred
canons ; that, if any among them be of moral
character inconsistent with his profession, he
may be convicted by the friendly rebuke of
his brethren, and also that measures may be
taken with paternal circumspection for the se-
curity of the flock committed to him, and for the
well-being of souls. It has come to our know-
ledge also that male and female slaves of Jews,
who have fled for refuge to the Church on ac-
count of their faith, are either restored to their
unbelieving masters, or paid for according to
their value in lieu of being restored. We ex-
hort therefore that thou by no means allow so
bad a custom to continue ; but that whosoever,
being a slave to Jews, shall have fled for
refuge to venerable places, thou suffer him not
in any degree to sustain prejudice. But, whe-
ther he had been a Christian before, or been
baptized now, let him be supported in his
claim for freedom, without any loss to the
poor, by the patronage of ecclesiastical com-
passion.

Let not bishops presume to sign baptized
infants a second time on the forehead with
chrism ; but let the presbyters anoint those
who are to be baptized on the breast, that the
bishops may afterwards anoint them on the
forehead s.

With regard also to founding monasteries,
which divers persons have ordered to be built,
if thou perceivest that any persons to whom
the charge has been assigned put it off on
unjust pretexts, we desire thee to insist saga-
ciously according to what the laws enjoin, lest
(as God forbid should be the case) the pious
intentions of the departed should be frustrated
through thy neglect. Further, as to the mon
astery which Peter is said to have formerly

5 For the meaning of this order, and its subsequent "Modi-
fication, see nole to IV. 26.

ordered to be constructed in his house, we
have seen fit that thy Fraternity should make
accurate enquiry into the amount of the re-
venues there. And in case of there being a
suitable provision, when all diminutions of the
property and what is said to have been dis-
persed have been recovered, let the monastery
with all diligence and without any delay Le
founded. But, if the means are insufficient or
detrimental6, we desire thee, after closely in-
vestigating everything as has been commanded,
to send a report to us, that we may know how
to deliberate with the Lord's help with regard
to its construction. Let, then, thy Fraternity
give wise attention to all the points above
referred to, so as neither to be found to have
transgressed the tenour of our admonitions
nor to stand liable to divine judgment for too
little zeal in thy pastoral office.

EPISTLE X.
To all the Bishops of Dalmatia.

Gregory to all the bishops through Dal-
matia 7.

It behoved your Fraternity, having the eyes
of the flesh closed out of regard to Divine judg-
ment, to have omitted nothing that appertains
to God and to a right inclination of mind,
nor to have preferred the countenance of any
man whatever to the uprightness of justice.
But now that your manners have been so
perverted by secular concerns, that, forgetting
the whole path of the sacerdotal dignity that
is yours, and all sense of heavenly fear, you
study to accomplish what may please your-
selves and not God, we have held it necessary
to send you these specially strict written
orders, whereby, with the authority of the
blessed Peter, 1 rince of the apostles, we en-
join that you presume not to lay hands on
any one whatever in the city of Salona, so
far as regards ordination to episcopacy, with-
out our consent and permission ; nor to ordain
any one in the same city otherwise than as
we have said.

But if, either of your own accord, or under
compulsion from any one whatever, you should
presume or attempt to do anything contrary
to this injunction, we shall decree you to be
deprived of participation of the Lord's body
and blood, that so your very handling of the
business, or your very inclination to transgress
our order, may cut you off from the sacred
mysteries, and no one may be accounted a
bishop whom you may ordain. For we wish

6 The word is eiamnosa, meaning perhaps injuriously ta«
cessive.

7 On the occasion of this Epistle, see III. 47. note 2.

EPISTLE XV.

149

no one to be rashly ordained whose life can
be found fault with. And so, if the deacon
Honoratus is shewn to be unworthy, we desire
that a report may be sent us of the life and
manners of him who may be elected, that
whatever is to be done in this matter we may
allow to be carried out salubriously with our
consent.

For we trust in Almighty God that, as far
as in us lies, we may never suffer to be done
what may damage our soul ; never what may
damage your Church. But, if the voluntary
consent of all should so fix on one person
that by the favour of God he may be proved
worthy, and there should be no one to dissent
from his being ordained, we wish him to be
consecrated by you in this same church of
Salona under the license granted in this pre-
sent epistle ; excepting notwithstanding the
person of Maximus, about whom many evil
reports have reached us : and, unless he
desists from coveting the higher order, it
remains, as I think, that after full enquiry,
he should be deprived also of the very office
which he now holds.

EPISTLE XL
To Maximianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Maximianus, Bishop of Syracuse.

It had indeed been committed to thy Fra-
ternity long ago by our authority to correct
in our stead any excesses or unseemly pro-
ceedings that there might be in the Church
and other venerable places of Sicily 8. But,
seeing that a complaint has reached us of
some things having been so far neglected, we
have thought it fit that thy Fraternity should
again be specially stirred up to correct them.

For we learn that in the case of revenues
of Churches that have been newly acquired
the canonical disposition of their fourth parts
does not prevail 9, but that the bishops of" the
several places distribute a fourth part of the
ancient revenues only, retaining for their own
use those that have been recently acquired.
Wherefore let thy Fraternity make haste
actively to correct this evil custom that has
crept in, so that, whether in the case of former
revenues or of such as have accrued now or
may accrue, the fourth parts may be dispensed
according to the canonical distribution of
them. For it is unseemly that one and the
same substance of the Church should be rated,
as it were, under two different laws, namely,
that of usurpation and that of the canons.

8 See "• 7- . . r^ .

9 For the canonical rule as to the fourfold division of Church
funds, cf. Gregory's letter to Augustine, XI. 64, Responsio
1 rima.

Permit not presbyters, deacons, and other
clerks of whatever order, who serve churches,
to be abbots of monasteries; but let them
either, giving up clerical duties, be advanced
to the monastic order, or, if they should
decide to remain in the position of abbot, let
them by no means be allowed to have clerical
employment. For it is very unsuitable that,
if one cannot fulfil the duties of either of these
positions with diligence proportional to its
importance, any one should be judged fit for
both, and that so the ecclesiastical order
should impede the monastic life, and in turn
the rule of monasticism impede ecclesiastical
utility. Of this thing also we have taken
thought to warn thy Charity; that, if any
one of the bishops should depart this life, or
(which God forbid) should be removed for his
transgressions, the hierarchs and all the chief
of the clergy being assembled, and in thy
presence making an inventory of the property
of the Church, all that is found should be
accurately described, and nothing should be
taken away in kind, or in any other way what-
ever, from the property of the Church, as is
said to have been done formerly, as though
in return for the trouble of making the in-
ventories. For we desire all that pertains to
the protection of what belongs to the poor
to be so executed that in their affairs no
opportunity may be left for the venality of
self-interested men.

Let visitors of churches, and their clerks
who with them are at trouble in parishes that
are not of their own city, receive according
to thy appointment some subsidy for their
labour. For it is just that they should get
payment in the places where they are found
to lend their services.

We most strongly forbid young women to
be made abbesses. Let thy Fraternity, there-
fore, permit no bishop to veil any but a sexa-
genarian virgin, whose age and character may
demand this being done ; that so, this as well
as the above-named points being set right with
the Lord's help by the urgency of thy strict
requirement, thou mayest hasten to bind up
again with canonical ties the long loosened
state of venerable things, and also that divine
affairs may be arranged, not by the incon-
gruous wills of men, but with adequate strict-
ness. The month of October, Indiclion 12.

EPISTLE XV.
To Januarius, Bishop.
Gregory to Januarius, Bishop of Caralis
(Cag/iari).

Theodosia, a religious lady, being desirous
of carrying out the intention of her late hus-

150

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

band Stephen by the building of a monastery1,
has begged us to transmit our letters to your
Fraternity, whereby, through our commenda-
tion, she may the more rea lily be counted
worthy of your aid. She asserts that her
husband had given directions for the monas-
tery to be constructed on the farm called
Piscenas, which has come into the possession
of the guestdiouse (Xe/wdochii) of the late
bishop Thomas. Now, though the possessor
of the property would allow her to found it
on land that is not her own, yet seeing that
the lord with reason objects2, we have thought
it right to agree to her petition ; which is
that she should, with the Lord's help, con-
struct a monastery for handmaidens of God
in a house belonging to herself, which she
asserts that she has at Caralis. But, since
she says that the aforesaid house is burdened
by guests and visitors, we exhort thy Fra-
ternity to take pains to assist her in all ways,
and lend the aid of thy protection to her
devotion, so that thy assistance and assiduity
may make thee partaker of the reward of her
departed husband's earnestness and her own.
As to the relics which she requests may be
placed there, we desire that they be deposited
with due reverence by thy Fraternity.

EPISTLE XVIII.
To Maurus, Ahdot.

Gregory to Maurus, &c.

The care of churches which is evidently in-
herent in the priestly office compels us to be
so solicitous that no fault of neglect may
appear with regard to them. Since, however,
we have learnt that the church of Saint Pan-
cratius, which had been committed to presby-
ters, has been frequently neglected, so that
people coming there on the Lord's day to
celebrate the solemnities of mass have re-
turned murmuring on finding no presbyter, we
therefore, after mature deliberation, have de-
termined to remove those presbyters, and with
the favour of God constitute for the same

« See also IV. 8, and V. 2.

2 The farm Piscenas appears to nave been held by the tenure
calkd Emphyteusis, according to which the possessor of the land
(called aLo Emphyteuta) was not its real owner, though on
condition of his cultivating it properly and paying certain fixed
dues to the owner {dominus), he had a perpetual right of pos-
session {jus in re), A'hich passed to his heirs, and could be sold
by him to others. In the latter case, however, the ilomiiius had
the option of himself buying up the possessor's ri>;ht at the price
offered by the proposed purchaser, and he could object to the
transference of possess. to to persons unable to maintain the pro-
perty in good condition. In all cases of transference, other than
devolution 10 heirs, a fiftieth part of the purchase money, or
of the value of the property, w;is also pay.ible to the dominus.
(Article 011 Emphyteusis in Smith's Dictionary of Greek and
Roman Antiquities.) In the case before us the lord of the pro-
perty seems to have refused his consent to any part of it being
alienated in Mortmain to a monastery. It may be supposed that
the possession of the farm Piscenas had bten in Stephen the
testator himself when he directed a monastery to be founued
on it, and that it had passed after his death into other hands-

church a congregation of monks in a monas-
tery, to the end that the abbot who shall pre-
side there may give care and attention in all
respects to the aforesaid church. And we have
also thought fit to put thee, Maurus, over this
monastery as abbot, ordaining that the lands
of the aforesaid church, and whatever may
have come into its possession, or accrued from
its revenues, be applied to this thy monastery,
and belong to it without any diminution ; but
on condition whatever needs to be effected or
repaired in the church above written may be
so effected and repaired by thee without fail.

But lest, after the removal of the presbyters
to whom this church had previously been com-
mitted, it should seem to be without provision
for divine service, we therefore enjoin thee by
the tenour of this authority to supply it with
a peregrine 3 presbyter to celebrate the sacred
solemnities of mass, who, nevertheless, must
needs both live in thy monastery, and have
from it provision for his maintenance.

But let this also above all be thy care, that
there over the most sacred body of the blessed
Pancratius the work of God be executed daily
without fail. These things, then, which by
the tenour of this precept we depute thee to do,
we will that not only thou perform, but that
they be also so observed and fulfilled for ever
by those who shall succeed thee in thy office
and place, that there may be no possibility
henceforth of neglect being found in the afore-
said church.

EPISTLE XX.
To Maximus, Pretender {Prcesumptorcm) ♦.

Gregory to Maximus, Pretender in Salona.

Though the merits of any one's life were in
other respects such as to offer no impediment
to his ordination to priestly offices, yet the
crime of canvassing in itself is condemned by
the severest strictness of the canons. Now
we have been informed that thou, having
either obtained surreptitiously, or pretended,
an order from the most pious princes, hast
forced thy way to the order of priesthood s,
which is of all men to be venerated, while
being in thy life unworthy. And this without
any hesitation we believed, inasmuch as thy
life and age are not unknown to us, and
further, because we are not ignorant of the
mind of our most serene lord the Emperor, in
that he is not accustomed to mix himself up

3 Peregrinum prcsbyterum ; meaning apparently one not be-
longing to the house as a member of it, though living and main-
tailed there.

4 See III. 47, note 2.

5 Sacerdotii ordiuem, meaning here, as elsewhere, the order of
episcopacy.

EPISTLE XXIII.

I5i

in the causes of priests, lest he should in any
way be burdened by our sins. An unheard-of
wickedness is also spoken of; that, even after
our interdiction, which was pronounced under
pain of excommunication of thee and those
who should ordain thee, it is said that thou
wast brought forward by a military force, and
that presbyters, deacons, and other clergy were
beaten. Which proceeding we can in no wise
call a consecration, since it was celebrated by
excommunicated men. Since, therefore, with-
out any precedent, thou hast violated such and
so great a dignity, namely that of the priest-
hood, we enjoin that, until I shall have ascer-
tained from the letters of our lords or of our
responsalis, that thou wast ordained under
a true and not a surreptitious order, thou and
thy ordainers by no means presume to handle
anything connected with the priestly office,
and that you approach not the service of the
holy altar till you have heard from us again.
But, if you should presume to act in con-
travention of this order, be ye anathema from
God and from the blessed Peter, Prince of the
apostles, that your punishment mayafford an ex-
ample to other catholic churches also, through
their contemplation of the judgment upon you.
The month of May, Indiction 12.

EPISTLE XXI.
To Venantius, Bishop.

Gregory to Venantius, Bishop of Puna (in
Etruria).

It has reached us by the report of many
that Christian slaves are detained in servitude
by Jews living in the city of Luna 6 ; which
thing has seemed to us by so much the more
offensive as the sufferance of it by thy Fra-
ternity annoys us. For it was thy duty, in
respect of thy place, and in thy regard for the
Christian religion, to leave no occasion for
simple souls to serve Jewish superstition not
througrTpersuasTon , I mt, in a manner, by right
of authority. Wherefore we exhort thy Frater-
nity TKaTpaccording to the course laid down
by the most pious laws, no Jew be allowed to
retain a Christian slave in his possession.
But. if any are found in their power, let liberty
be secured to them by protection under the
sanction of law. But as to any that are on
the property of Jews, though they be them-
selves free from legal obligation, yet, since
they have long been attached to the cultiva-
tion of their lands as bound by the condition
of their tenure, let them continue to cultivate
the farms they have been accustomed to do,

« On tlie holding of Christian slaves by Jews, and the treat-
ment of Jews generally, cf. Proleg. p. xxi.

rendering their payments to the aforesaid
persons, and performing all things that the
laws require of husbandmen or natives, except
that no further burden be imposed on them.
But, whether any one of these should wish to
remain in his servitude, or any to migrate to
another place, let the latter consider with him-
self that he will have lost his rights as a
husbandman by his own rashness, though he
has got rid of his servitude by force of law. In
all these things, then, we desire thee to exert
thyself so wisely that neither mayest thou be
a guilty pastor of a dismembered flock, nor
may thy too little zeal render thee reprehen-
sible before us.

EPISTLE XXTTI.
To Hospito, Duke of the Barbaricini?.

Gregory to Hospito, &c.

Since no one of thy race is a Christian, I
hereby know that thou art better than all thy
race, in that thou in it art found to be a Chris-
tian. For, while all the Barbaricini live as
senseless animals, know not the true God, but
adore stocks and stones, in the very fact that
thou worshippest the true God thou shewest
how much thou excellest them all. But carry
thou out the faith which thou hast received in
good deeds and words, and offer what is in thy
power to Christ in whom thou believest, so as
to bring to Him as many as thou canst, and
cause them to be baptized, and admonish
them to set their affection on eternal life.
And if perchance thou canst not do this thy-
self, being otherwise occupied, I beg thee,
with my greeting, to succour in all ways our
men whom we have sent to your parts, to wit
my fellow-bishop Felix, and my son, the ser-
vant of God, Cyriacus8, so that in aiding their
labours thou mayest shew thy devotion to
Almighty God, and that He whose servants
thou succourest in their good work may be
a helper to thee in all good deeds. We have
sent you through them a blessing 9 of St. Peter
the apostle, which I beg you to receive, as you
ought to do, kindly. The month of June,
Indiction 12.

7 The Barbaricini appear to have been a native tribe in Sar-
dinia, having its own duke, Zabardas (see Ep. 24) being the duke
of the island. . . .

8 These two ecclesiastics had been sent into Sardinia to pro-
mote the conversion of the natives, which seems to have been
remissly attended to, not only by the Christian lay proprietors,
but also by the bishops of the island. See below, Epp. 25, 26.
The bishop Felix was not commissioned to supersede the ordinary
epi-copal jurisdiction, but to act as a missionary bishop in aid.

Cf. V. 41. .

9 Benedictio, here as elsewhere, means a present ; — m this
case, being said to be from St. Peter, containing doubtless some-
thing that had acquired sanctity from him ; probably, as in other
cases, filings from his chains. Cf. I- 26, note 3.

152

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE XXIV.

To Zabardas, Duke of Sardinia.

Gregory to Zabardas, &c.

From the letters of my brother and fellow-
bishop Felix, and of the servant of God,
Cyriacus, we have learnt your Glory's good
qualities. And we give great thanks to Al-
mighty God, that Sardinia has got such a
duke ; one who so knows how to do his duty
to the republic in earthly matters as to know
also how to exhibit to Almighty God dutiful
regard for the heavenly country. For they
have written to me that you are arranging
terms of peace with the Barbaricini on such
conditions as to bring these same Barbaricini
to the service of Christ. On this account I
rejoice exceedingly, and, should it please
Almighty God, will speedily notify your gifts
to our most serene princes. Do you, there-
fore, accomplish what you have begun, shew
the devotion of your heart to Almighty God,
and help to the utmost of your power those
whom we have sent to your parts tor the con-
version of the Barbaricini1: knowing that
such works may avail much to aid you both
before our earthly princes and in the eyes of
the heavenly king.

EPISTLE XXV.

To the Nobles and Proprietors in

Sardinia.

Gregory to the Nobles, &c.

I have learnt from the report of my brother
and fellow-bishop Felix, and my son the ser-
vant of God, Cyriacus2, that nearly all of you
have peasants (rusticos'3) on your estates given
to idolatry. And this has made me very sorry,
since I know that the guilt of subjects weighs
down the life of their superiors, and that, when
sin in a subject is not corrected, sentence is
flung back on those who are over them.
Wherefore, magnificent sons, I exhort that
with all care and all solicitude ye be zealous
for your souls, and see what account you will
render to Almighty God for your subjects.
For indeed they have been committed to you
for this end, that both they may serve for your
advantage in earthly things, and you, through
your care for them, may provide for their souls
in the things that are eternal. If, then, they
pay what they owe you, why pay you not them
what you owe them ? That is to say, your
Greatness should assiduously admonisn them,
and restrain them from the error of idolatry,
to the end that by their being drawn to the

* See preceding Epistle.

= See above, Ep. 23.

■■» As to rustici, or colcni, see 1. 44, note t.

faith you may make Almighty God propitious
to yourselves. For, lo, you observe how the
end of this world is close at hand ; you see
that now a human, now a divine, sword rages
against us : and yet you, the worshippers of the
true God, behold stones adored by those who
are committed to you, and are silent 4. What,
I pray you, will you say in the tremendous
judgment, when you have received God's
enemies into your power, and yet disdain to
subdue them to God and recall them to Him?
Wherefore, addressing you with due greeting,
I beg that your Greatness would be earnestly
on the watch to give yourselves to zeal for
God, and hasten to inform me in your letters
which of you has brought how many to Christ.
If, then, haply from any cause you are unable
to do this, enjoin it on our aforesaid brother
and fellow-bishop Felix, or my son Cyriacus,
and afford them succour for the work of God,
that so in the retribution to come you may be
in a state to partake of life by so much the
more as you now afford succour to a good
work.

EPISTLE XXVI.

To Januarius, Bishop.

Gregory to Januarius, Bishop of Caralis
(Cagliari).

We have ascertained from the report of our
fellow-bishop Felix and the abbot Cyriacus
that in the island of Sardinia priests are op-
pressed by lay judges, and that thy ministers
despise thy Fraternity ; and that, so far as
appears, while you aim only at simplicity,
discipline is neglected. Wherefore I exhort
thee that, putting aside all excuses, thou take
pains to rule the Church of which thou hast
received the charge, to keep up discipline
among the clergy, and fear no one's words.
But, as I hear, thou hast forbidden thy Arch-
deacon to live with women, and up to this
time art set at naught with regard to this thy
prohibition. Unless he obey thy command,
our will is that lie be deprived of his sacred
order.

There is another tiling also which is much
to be deplored ; namely, that the negligence
of your Fraternity has allowed the peasants
(riisticos) belonging to thy Church to remain
up to the present time in infidelity. And
what is the use of my admonishing you to
bring such as do not belong to you to God, if
you neglect to recover your own from infidelity?
Hence you must needs be in all ways vigilant
for their conversion. For, should I succeed
in finding a pagan peasant belonging to any

4 Cf. IV. 23, note 8.

EPISTLE XXVII.

bishop whatever in the island of Sardinia, I
will visit it severely on that bishop.

But now, if any peasant should be found so
perfidious and obstinate as to refuse to come
to the Lord God, he must be weighted with so
great a burden of payment as to be compelled
by the very pain of the exaction to hasten to
the right way 5.

It has also come to our knowledge that
some in sacred orders who have lapsed, either
after doing penance or before, are recalled to
the office of their ministry; which is a thing
that we have altogether forbidden ; and the
most sacred canons also declare against it.
Whoso, then, after having received any sacred
order, shall have lapsed into sin of the flesh,
let him so forfeit his sacred order as not to
approach any more the ministry of the altar.
But, lest those who have been ordained should
ever perish, previous care should be taken as
to what kind of people are ordained, so that it
be first seen to whether they have been con-
tinent in life for many, years, and whether they
have had a care for reading and a love of
almsgiving. It should be enquired also whe-
ther a man has perchance been twice married.
It should also be seen to that he be not il-
literate, or under liability to the state, so as to
be compelled after assuming a sacred order to
return to public employment. All these things
therefore let your Fraternity diligently enquire
into, that, every one having been ordained
after diligent examination, none may be easily
liable to be deposed after ordination. These
things which we have written to your Frater-
nity do you make known to all the bishops
under you, since I myself have been unwilling
to write to them, lest I might seem to lessen
your dignity.

It has also come to our ears that some have
been offended by our having forbidden pres-
byters to touch with chrism those who are to
be baptized. And we indeed acted according
to the ancient use of our Church : but, if any
are in fact hereby distressed, we allow that,
where there is a lack of bishops, presbyters
may touch with chrism, even on tiieir fore-
heads, those who are to be baptized 6.

5 The rustici, or colonic who cultivated the land, made their
living out of it, having to pay dues in njoney or in kind (see I. 44).
Gregory's suggestion is that such dues should be made so heavy
in tae case of natives who refused to be converted as to starve

hem into compliance. Elsewhere we find him deprecating com-
pulsion, or any kind of persecution, for the conversion of Jews
and heretics, on the ground that forced conversions were unreal.
But he appears to have had no such conpunctions in the case
of these illiterate pagans. This is not the only instance of reli-
gious zeal betraying him into a certain human inconsistency.
Cf. IX. 65.

6 See above, IV. 9. There is some doubt as to what the prac-
tice was which Gregory iiad forbidden in his former epistle,
but now allows. In Ep IX. he had said, " Episcopi baptizatos
infantes signare bis in Ironte chrismate non praesumant ; sed pres-
byteri haptizandos un,ant in pectore, ut episcopi postmodum
ungere debeant in fronte." There is obvious reference here to
•he two unctions, before and after baptism. The first, in pre-

EPISTLE XXVII.

To Januarius, Bishop.

Gregory to Januarius, Bishop of Caralis
( Cagliari).

Thy Fraternity ought indeed to have been
so attentive to pious duties as to be in no
need at all of our admonitions to induce thee
to fulfil them : yet, as certain particulars that
require correction have come to our know-
ledge, there is nothing incongruous in your
having besides a letter addressed to you bear-
ing our authority.

Wherefore we apprize you that we have
been given to understand that it has been the
custom for the Guest-houses {Xenodochia) con-
stituted in the parts about Caralis to submit
their accounts in detail from time to time to
the bishop of the city ; that is, so as to be
governed under his guardianship and care.

paration for baptism, was with simple oil, on the breast and other
parts 01 the bouy, and was administered by presbyters both in the
East and West: the second, for confirmation a.ter baptism, was
with chrism (a mixture of oil and balsam), on the forehead, and in
the Eastern Churches might be, as it still is, administered imme-
diately after baptism by the baptizing presbyter, but in the West
was usually reserved tor the bishop in person. It would seern
that in Sardinia the Eastern usage had been followed with regard
to the piesbyter signing the baptized child on the forehead with
chrism immediately after baptism, but that it had been also
customary for the bishot) afterwards to repeat the rite (''signare
bis in fronte chrismate"). Such repetition Gregory, in Ep. IX.,
appears to forbid in cases where the presbyter"had already ad-
ministered the rite ; but, in the second clause of the sentence,
he directs that the Western usage should thenceforth be observed :
the presbyter who baptized was to anoint on the breast before the
baptism ; but the bishop, and he alone, on the forehead with
chrism afterwards. Such being the most obvious meaning of
what is said in Ep. IX. the equally obvious meaning of the
concession in Ep. XXVI. would be allowance lor presbyters, in the
absence of bishops, to confirm with chrism after baptism, accord-
ing to the Eastern usage, but for the fact that the expression
now used is not baptizatos, but baptizandos. Hence one opinion
is that all that is here allowed to presbyters is the anointing
of the forehead with chrism, as well as the breast with 01S, pre-
viously to baptism ; in which case of course it would not be
confirmation. But it seems more likely that the intention was
to allow presbyters to administer confirmation in the absence
of bishops, the term baptizandos being used loosely to denote
candidates for baptism. The fact that it is only where bisnops
could not be had (ubi desunt episcopi) that the practice is allowed
adds probability to this view ; and also his saying that in his
previous prohibition he had been following the ancient custom
of the Roman Church, which was to reserve the signing the
forehead with chrism aftet baptism, i.e. confirmation, to the
bishop. Innocent I. (Ep. i. ad Decent, c. hi) lays down the
rule thus; " Presbyteris, qui, seu extra episcopum seu prasente
episcopo, baptizant, chrismate baptizatos ungere licet, sed quod
ah ep;scopo fuerit consecratum ; non tamen frontem ex eodem
oleo signare, quod solis debetur episcopis, quum trauunt Spiritum
Sanctum Paracletum." Here, we observe, the usage of the
Roman Church allows the baptizing presbyter to anoint with
chrism after baptism, only not therewith to sign the forehead
for actual confirmation ; and this is still the Roman usage. It
should be observed further that in all cases, in the East as well in
the West, confirmation was regarded as belonging peculiarly
to the Bishop's office, the chrism used having always been conse-
crated by him, though it might be applied by presbyters: and
thus Gregory, in allowing presbyters to administer the rite in
Sardinia would not regard any essential principle of Church order
as being infringed. He only shews the same wise liberality as we
find evidence of in other cases, allowing varieties of usage in
various churches, where no important principle seemed to be
involved. Thus he approves of single instead of triune immersion
in baptism being practised in Spain (I. 43). ar,d bids Augustine in
Enghmd adopt according to his discretion the customs of other
Churches (XI. 64). With regard to the essential fcrtn of con-
firmation recognized in the time of Giegory, it appears evidently
from these epistles to have been unction, and not mere imposition
of hands. It is also evident that it was administered, as in the
East now, to imams ; cf. XIII. iS, where the phrase is ,-ad
consignandos inianies."

154

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Now, as thy Charity is said to have so far
neglected this, we exhort, as has been said,
that the inmates who are or have been estab-
lished in these Guest-houses submit their
accounts in detail from time to time. And let
such persons be ordained to preside over them
as may be found most worthy in life, manners
and industry, and at nny rate religiosiT,
whom judges may have no power of annoying,
lest, if they should be such as could be sum-
moned to the courts, occasion might be given for
wasting the feeble resources which they have :
concerning which resources we wish thee to
take the greatest care, so that they be given
away to no one without thy knowledge, lest
the carelessness of thy Fraternity should go
so far as to let them be plundered.

Moreover, thou knowest that the bearer of
these presents, Epiphanius the presbyter, was
criminally accused in the letters of certain
Sardinians. We, then, having investigated his
case as it was our will to do, and finding no
proof of what was charged against him, have
absolved him, so that he might be restored to
his place. We therefore desire thee to search
out the authors of the charge against him :
and, unless he who sent those same letters be
prepared to support his charges by canoi,
and most strict proofs, let him on no account
approach the mystery of holy communion.

Further, as to Paul the cleric, who is said to
have been often detected in malpractices, and
who had fled into Africa, having returned to a
lay state of life in despite of his cioth, if it is
so, we have seen to his being given up to
penance after previous corporal punishment,
to the end that, according to the apostolic
sentence, by means of affliction of the flesh
the spirit may be saved, and also that he may
be able to wash away with continual tears the
earthly filth of sin, which he is said to have
contracted by wicked works.

Moreover, in accordance with the injunc-
tions of the canons, let no religious person
(religiosus) associate with those who have been
suspended from ecclesiastical communion.

Further, for ordinations or marriages of
clerics, or from virgins who are veiled, let no
one presume to receive any fee, unless they
should prefer to offer something of their own
accord.

As to what should be done in the case of
women who have left monasteries for a lay
life, and have taken husbands, we have con-
versed at length with thy Fraternity's aforesaid

note

T For what was meant by religiosi and religiose, see I. 61,
e 7. It appears from what is said here that persons recognized

as such were ordinarily exempt from certain claims upon°then
by the slate to which otheis might be liable.

presbyter, from whose report your Holiness
may be more fully informed.

Further, let religious clerics (religtosi cferici) t*
avoid resort to or the patronage of laymen;
but let them be in all respects subject to thy
jurisdiction according to the canons, lest
through the remissness of thy Fraternity the
discipline of the Chinch over which thou pre-
sidest should be dissolved.

Lastly, as to the men who have sinned with
the aforesaid women who had left their mon- !
astevies, and are said to be now suspended
from communion, if thy Fraternity should ob- 1
serve them to have repented worthily for
such a wickedness, we will that thou restore
them to holy communion.

EPISTLE XXIX.
To Januarius, Bishop.

Gregory to Januarius, Bishop of Caralis
( ( 'agliarl).

It has come to our knowledge that in the
place within the province of Sardinia called
Phausiana it is said to have been once the
< ustom lo ordain a bishop ; but that, through
stress of circumstances, the custom has for
long fallen into disuse. But, as we are aware
that now, owing to scarcity of priests, certain
pagans remain there, living like wild beasts,
and entirely ignorant of the worship of God,
we exhort thy Fraternity to make haste to
ordain a bishop there according to the ancient
way ; such a one, that is, as may be suitable
for this work, and may take pains to bring
wanderers into the Lord's flock with pastoral
zeal ; that so, while he devotes himself there
to the saving of souls, neither may you be
found to have required what was superfluous,
nor may we repent of having re-established in
vain what had been once discontinued.

EPISTLE XXX.

To CONSTANTINA AUGUST A.

Gregory to Constantina, &c.

The Serenity of your Piety, conspicuous for
religious zeal and love of holiness, has charged
me with your commands to send to you the
head of Saint Paul, or some other part of his
body, for the church which is being built in
honour of the same Saint Paul in the palace.
And, being desirous of receiving commands
from you, by exhibiting the most ready obe-
dience to which I might the more provoke
your favour towards me, I am all the more
distressed that I neither can nor dare do what
you enjoin. For the bodies of the apostles

7* For the meaning of religtosi, see I. 61, n. 7. They were r.ot
of necessity cUrici. In X. 54, we find religioso laico.

EPISTLE XXX.

*55

Saint Peter and Saint Paul glitter with so
ereat miracles and terrors in their churches
that one cannot even go to pray there without
great fear. In short, when my predecessor, of
blessed memory, was desirous of changing the
silver which was over the most sacred body of
the blessed apostle Peter, though at a distance
of almost fifteen feet from the same body, a
sign of no small dreadfulness appeared to him.
Nay, I too wished in like manner to amend
something not far from the most sacred body
of Saint Paul the apostle; and, it being
necessary to dig to some depth near his
sepulchre, the superintendent of that place
found some bones, which were not indeed
connected with the same sepulchre ; but, in-
asmuch as he presumed to lift them and
transfer them to another place, certain awful
signs appeared, and he died suddenly.

Besides all this, when my predecessor, of
holy memory, was desiring in like manner to
make some improvements not far from the
body of Saint Laurence the martyr, it not
being known where the venerable body was
laid, diggings were made in the course of
search, and suddenly his sepulchre was un-
awares disclosed ; and those who were pre-
sent and working, monks and mansionarii*,
who saw the body of the same martyr, which
they did not indeed presume to touch, all
died within ten days, so that none might
survive who had seen the holy body of that
righteous man.

Moreover, let my most tranquil lady know
that it is not the custom of the Romans, when
they give relics of saints, to presume to touch
any part of the body ; but only a cloth
(bnvideum) is put into a box (prxide), and
placed near the most sacred bodies of the
saints : and when it is taken up it is deposited
with due reverence in the Church that is to
be dedicated, and such powerful effects are
thereby produced there as might have been
if their bodies had been brought to that spe-
cial place. Whence it came to pass in the
times of Pope Leo, of blessed memory, as
has been handed down from our forefathers,
that, certain Greeks being in doubt about
such relics, the aforesaid pontiff took scissors
and cut this same cloth (braJideum), and from
the very incision blood flowed. For in the
Roman and all the Western parts it is unen-
durable and sacrilegious for any one by any
chance to desire to touch the bodies of saints :
and, if one should presume to do this, it is
certain that this temerity will by no means
remain unpunished. For this reason we

8 " Mansionarius. Sacristain d'une (Sjjlise, charge" de la garder,
, de sonner Its cloches pour 1' office divin, de preparer ies rehquaires,
eic." D'Arnis.

greatly wonder at the custom of the Greeks,
who say that they take up the bones of saints ;
and we scarcely believe it. For certain Greek
monks who came here more than two years
ago dug up in the silence of night near the
church of Saint Paul, bodies of dead men
lying in the open field, and laid up their
bones to be kept in their own possession
till their departure. And, when they were
taken and diligently examined as to why they
did this, they confessed that they were going
to carry those bones to Greece to pass for
relics of saints. From this instance, as has
been already said, the greater doubt has been
engendered in us whether it be true that they
really take up the bones of saints, as they are
said to do.

But what shall I say of the bodies of the
blessed apostles, when it is well known that,
at the time when they suffered, believers came
from the East to recover their bodies as being
those of their own countrymen ? And, having
been taken as far as the second milestone from
the city, they were deposited in the place
which is called Catacumbas. But, when the
whole multitude came together and endea-
voured to remove them thence, such violence
of thunder and lightning terrified and dispersed
them that they on no account presumed to
attempt such a thing again. And then the
Romans, who of the Lord's loving-kindness
were counted worthy to do this, went out and
took up their bodies, and laid them in the
places where they are now deposited.

Who then, most serene lady, can there be
so venturesome as, knowing these things, to
presume, I do not say to touch their bodies,
but even at all to look at them? Such orders
therefore having been given me by you, which
I could by no means have obeyed, it has not,
so far as I find, been of your own motion ; but
certain men have wished to stir up your Piety
against me, so as to withdraw from me (which
God forbid) the favour of your good will, and
have therefore sought out a point in which
I might be found as if disobedient to you.
But I trust in Almighty God that your most
kind good will is in no way being stolen away
from me, and that you will always have with
you the power of the holy apostles, whom with
all your heart and mind you love, not from
their bodily presence, but from their pro-
tection.

Moreover, the napkin, which you have like-
wise ordered to be sent you, is with his body,
and so cannot be touched, as his body cannot
be approached. But since so religious a desire
of my most serene lady ought not to be wholly
unsatisfied, I will make haste to transmit to
you some portion of the chains which Saini

Itf

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Peter the apostle himself bore on his neck and
his hands, from which many miracles are dis-
played among the people ; if at least I should
succeed in removing it by filing. For, while
many come frequently to seek a blessing from
these same chains, in the hope of receiving
a little part of the filings, a priest attends with
a file, and in the case of some seekers a portion
comes off so quickly from these chains that
there is no delay: but in the case of other
seekers the file is drawn for long over the
chains, and yet nothing can be got from them.
In the month of June, Indiclion 12.

EPISTLE XXXI.
To Thkodorus, Physician.

Gregory to Theodorus, Physician to the
Emperor.

I myself give thanks to Almighty God. that
distance does not separate the hearts of tiiose
who truly love each other mutually. For lo,
most sweet and glorious son, we are far apart
in body, and yet are present with each other
in charity. This your works, this your letters
testify, this I experienced in you when present,
this I recognize in your Glory when absent.
May this make you both beloved of men and
worthy for ever before Almighty God. For,
charity being the mother of virtues, you briny
forth the fruits of good works fur this reason,
that you keep in your soul the very root of
those fruits. Now what you have sent me,
God inspiring you, for the redemption of cap-
tives, I confess that I have received both with
joy and with soirow. With joy, that is, for
you, whom I thus perceive to be preparing
a mansion in the heavenly country ; but with
exceeding sorrow for myself, who, over and
above my care of the property of the holy
apostle Peter, must now also give an account
of the property of my most sweet son, the lord
Theodorus, and be held responsible for hav-
ing spent it carefully or negligently. But may
Almighty God, who has poured into your mind
the bowels of His own mercy, who has granted
to you to take anxious thought for what is said
of our Saviour by the excellent preacher —
That, though he was rich, yet for us he became
poor (2 Cor. viii. 9) — may He, at the coming
of the same Saviour, shew you to be rich in
virtues, cause you to stand free from all fault,
and giant to you heavenly for earthly joys,
abiding joys for transitory.

As to what you say you desire to be done
for you near the most sacred body of the
holy apostle Peter, be assured that, though
your tongue were silent, your charity bids the
doing of it. Would indeed that we were
worthy to pray for you : but that I am not

worthy I have no doubt. Still, however, there
are here many worthy folk, who are being
redeemed from the enemy by your offering,
and serve our Creator faithfully, with regard
to whom you have done what is written ; Lay
up alms in the bosom of the poor, and it shall
pray for thee (Ecclus. xxix. 15).

But, since he loves the more who presumes
the more, I have some complaint against the
most sweet disposition of my most glorious
son the lord Theodorus ; namely that he has
received from the holy Trinity the gift of
genius, the gift of wealth, the gift of mercy
and charity, and yet is unceasingly bound up
in secular causes, is occupied in continual pro-
cessions, and neglects to read daily the words
of his Redeemer. For what is sacred Scripture
but a kind of epistle of Almighty God to His
creature ? And surely, if your Glory were resi-
dent in any other place, and were to receive
letters from an earthly emperor, you would
not loiter, you would not rest, you would not
give sleep to your eyes, till you had learnt
what the earthly emperor had written.

The Emperor of Heaven, the Lord of men
and angels, has sent thee his epistles for thy
life's behoof; and yet, glorious son, thou
ectest to read these epistles ardently.
Study then, I beseech thee, and daily meditate
on the words of thy Creator. Learn the heart
of God in the words of God, that thou mayest
sigh more ardently for the things that are
I eternal, that your soul may be kindled with
greater longings for heavenly joys. For a man
will have the greater rest here in proportion
as he has now no rest in the love of his Maker.
But, that you may act thus, may Almighty
God pour into you the Spirit the Comforter :
may He fill your soul with His presence, and
in filling it, compose it.

As to me, know ye that I suffer here man)
and innumerable bitternesses. But I give
thanks to Almighty God that I suffer far less
than I deserve.

I commend to your Glory my son, your
patient, the lord Narses. I know indeed that
you hold him as in all respects commended
to you ; but I beg you to do what you arc-
doing, that, in asking for what I see is being
done, I may by my asking have a share in
your reward. Furthermore, I have received
the blessing 9 of your Excellency with the
charity wherewith it was sent to me. And
I have presumed to send you, in acknowledg-
ment of \our love, a duck with two small
ducklings,' that, as often as your eye is led
to look at it, the memory also of me may be

9 Bcnedictiontm in the sense of a present, as elsewhere in
the epistles. Cf. Gen. xxxiii. u ; 2 Kings v. 15.

EPISTLE XXXIV.

157

recalled to you among the occupations and
tumults of business.

EPISTLE XXXII.
To Narses the Patrician.

Gregory to Narses, &rc.

Your most sweet Charity has said much
to me in your letters in praise of my good
deeds, to all which I briefly reply, Call me not
JVoemi, that is beautiful ; but call me Mara,
that is bitter ; for I am full of bitterness (Ruth
i. 20).

But as to the cause of the presbyters x, which
is pending with my brother and fellow-bishop,
the most reverend Patriarch John, we have,
as I think, for our adversary the very man
whom you assert to be desirous of observing
the canons. Further, I declare to thy Charity
that I am prepared, with the help of Almighty
God, to prosecute this same cause with all mv
power and influence. And, should I see that
in it the canons of the Apostolic See are not
observed, Almighty God will give unto me
what I may do against the contemners of the
same.

As to what your Charity has written to me,
asking me to give thanks for you to my son
the chief physician and ex-praefect Theodorus,
I have done so, and have by no means ceased
to commend you as much as I could. Further,
I beg you to pardon me for replying to your
letters with brevity ; for I am pressed by such
great tribulations that it is not allowed me
either to read or to speak much by letter.
This only 1 say to thee, For the voice of my
groaning I have forgotten to eat my bread
(Ps. ci. 5 2). All that are with you I beg you
to salute in my name. Give my salutations
to the lady Dominica, whose letter I have not
answered, because, though she is Latin, she
wrote to me in Greek.

EPISTLE XXXIII.
To Anthemius, Subdeacon.

Gregory to Anthemius, &c.

Those whom our Redeemer vouchsafes to
convert to himself from Judaical perdition we
ought, with reasonable moderation, to assist ;
lest (as God forbid should be the case) they
should suffer from lack of food. Accordingly
we charge thee, under the authority of this
order, not to neglect to give money every
year to the children of Justa, who is of the
Hebrews ; that is to Julianus, Redemptus, and
Fortuna, beginning from the coming thirteenth

• Probably Athanasius and John.
2 In English Bible, cii. 4-

See III. 53-

Induction ; and know that the payment is by
all means to be charged in thy accounts.

EPISTLE XXXIV.

To Pantaleo, Prefect

Gregory to Pantaleo, Praefect of Africa.

How the law urgently prosecutes the most
abominable pravity of heretics is not unknown
to your Excellency 3. It is therefore no light
sin if these, whom both the integrity of our
faith and the strictness of the laws condemn,
should find licence to creep up again in your
times. Now in those parts, so far as we have
learnt, the audacity of the Donatists lias so
increased that not only do they with pes-
tiferous assumption of authority cast out of
their churches priests of the catholic faith, but
fear not even to rebaptize those whom the
water of regeneration had cleansed on a true
confession. And we are much surprised, if
indeed it is so, that, while you are placed in
those parts, bad men should be allowed thus
to exceed. Consider only in the first place
what kind of judgment you will leave to be
passed upon you by men, if these, who in the
times of others were with just reason put
down, find under your administration a way
for their excesses. In the next place know
that our God will require at your hand the
souls of the lost, if you neglect to amend, so
far as possibility requires it of you, so great
an abomination. Let not your Excellency
take amiss my thus speaking. For it is be-
cause we love you as our own children that
we point out to you what we doubt not will
be to your advantage. But send to us with
all speed our brother and fellow-bishop Paul •»,

3 As to imperial edicts against the African Donatists, see I. 74,
note 8. It would seem from this and the following letter that
enforcement of the laws for their repression had been relaxed
of late. Jt will be observed from this and other instances that
Gregory, though often in general terms deprecating the use of
force in matters of faith, did not scruple, when occasion arose,
to call in the aid of the secular arm ; and in this case with some
heat and acrimony. Cf. IV. 35, below.

4 This Paul was one of the bishops of Numidia, against whom
some charges of misconduct, not specified, had been brought.
His case has some significance as shewing that, though the
spiritual authority of the bishop of Rome over the Church in
Africa had now come to be acknowledged in a way that it had
not been in the age of Cyprian, yet there seems to have been
still some resistance to its exercise. This appears also Irom the
fact that it was not the primate of Numidia, but Columbus,
a bishop notable for his devotion to the Roman See, that Gregory
mainly and most confidentially corresponded with in relation
to ecclesiastical affairs (see II. 48, note 1), and that this Coiumbus
complained of being in disfavour with many on the ground of the
frequent communications he received from Rome (VII. 2). In
the case before us Gregory's desire (urgently expressed in this
letter to Pantaleo, and in that which follows to the primate and
Columbus jointly), that Paul should at once be sent to Rome for
trial was not complied with. For two years later (VI. 63), Gregory
complains 01 this, and also expresses surprize that the accused
bishop should have been excommunicated by the African authori-
ties, and no news sent thereof to himself by the primate. Uhen,
in the following year (VII. 2), writing to Columbus, he finds
himself unable to refuse his assent to Paul's resorting to Con-
stantinople to lay his case before the Emperor. However in
the year after this it appears that he did go at length to Rome,
but not so as to have his case decided there : for Gregory sends

i58

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

lest opportunity should be given to any one
under any excuse for hindering his coming ;
in order that, on ascertaining the truth more
fully, we may be able, with God's help, to
settle by a reasonable treatment of the case
how the punishment of so great a crime ought
to be proceeded with.

EPISTLE XXXV.

To Victor and Columbus, Bishops5.

Gregory to Victor and Columbus, Bishops
of Africa.

After what manner a disease, if neglected
in its beginning, acquires strength we have
proved from our own necessities, whosoever
of us have had our lot in this life. If, then,
it were met by the foresight of skilful phy-
sicians at its birth, we know that it would
cease before doing very much harm from
being attended to too late. On this consider-
ation, then, reason ought to impel us, when
diseases of souls are beginning, to make haste
to resist them by all the means in our power,
lest, while we neglect applying wholesome
medicines, they steal away from us the lives of
many whom we are striving to win for our God.
Wherefore it behoves us so with watchful care-
fulness to guard the folds of sheep which we
see cur selves to be put over as keepers that
the p. ogling wolf may find everywhere shep-
herds to resist him, and may have no way of
entrance thereinto.

For indeed we find that the stings of the
Donatists have in your parts so disturbed the
Lord's flock, as though it were guided by no
shepherd's control. And there has been re-
ported to us what we cannot speak of without
heavy sorrow, seeing that very many have
already been torn by their poisoned teeth.
Lastly, in order with most wicked audacity to
drive catholic priests from their churches, they
are said, in their most atrocious wickedness,
even to have slain many besides, on whom the
water of regeneration had conferred salvation,
by rebaptizing them. All this saddens our
mind exceedingly, for that, while you are placed
there, it has been allowed to damned pre-
sumption to perpetrate such wickedness.

In this matter we exhort your Fraternity by
this present writing, that, after discussion held
and a council assembled, you should eagerly and

him back to Africa to have his case enquired into, only enjoining
Columbus, to whom he writes, to do his utmost to see justice
done, he himself believing the accu-ed to be innocent, and attri-
buting the charges against him to odium incurred by his measures
against the Dunatists. The final issue does not appear. See
also XII. 8.

5 Victor was now primate of Numidia, having succeeded
Adeodatus (see III. 49). As to the African custom with respect
to primates, see I. 74) note 9. For notice oi Columbus, see II. 48,
uote 7.

with all your power so oppose this still nascent
disease that neither may it acquire strength
from neglect nor scatter the woes of pestilence
in the flock committed to your charge. For,
if in any way whatever (as we do not believe
will be the case) you neglect to resist iniquity
in its beginning, they will wound very many
with the sword of their error. And it is in
truth a most serious thing to allow to be
ensnared in the noose of diabolical fraud those
whom we are able to rescue beforehand from
being entangled. Moreover it is better to
I prevent any one from being wounded than to
search out how one that is wounded may be
healed. Considering this, therefore, hasten ye
by sedulous prayer and all the means in your
] ower, to quell sacrilegious wickedness, so that
subsequent news, through the aid of the grace
of Christ, may cause us more joy for the
punishment of those men than sadness for
their excesses.

Furthermore, take all possible pains to send
to us with all speed our brother and fellow-
bishop Paul 6, to the end that, on learning
more particularly from him the causes of so
great a crime, we may be able by the succour
of our Creator to apply the medicine of fitting
rebuke to this most atrocious wickedness.

EriSTLE XXXVI.
To Leo, Bishop.

Gregory to Leo, Bishop of Catana'.

We have found from the report of many
that a custom has of old obtained among you,
for subdeacons to be allowed to have inter-
course with their wives. That any one should
any more presume to do this was prohibited by
the servant of God, the deacon of our see.
under the authority of our predecessor 8, in this
way ; that those who at that time had been
coupled to wives should choose one .of two
things, that is, either to abstain from their
wives, or on no account whatever presume to
exercise their ministry. And, according to
report, Speciosus, then a subdeacon, did for
this reason suspend himself from the office of
administration, and up to the time of his
death bore indeed the office of a notary, but
ceased from the ministry which a subdeacon
should have exercised. After his death we
have learnt that his widow, Honorala, has
been relegated to a monastery by thy Frater-
nity for having associated herself with a hus-
band. And so if, as is said, her husband

* See last Epistle, note 4.

7 Catana was one oi the sees in Sicily.

8 This order had been given by pope Pelagius II. A.D. 588.
In I. 44 Cregory had seen fit to relax the stringency of this order
in the case of existing subdeacons who had uot on their ordination
pledged themselves to chastity.

EPISTLE XXXIX.

159

suspended himself from ministration, it ought ;
not to be to the prejudice of the aforesaid
woman that she has contracted a second mar-
riage, especially if she had not been joined to
the subdeacon with the intention of abstain-
ing from the pleasures of the flesh.

If, then, you find the truth to be as we have|
been informed, it is right for you to release
altogether the aforesaid woman from the monas-
tery, that she may be at liberty to return with-
out any fear to her husband.

But for the future let thy Fraternity be
exceedingly careful, in the case of any who
may be promoted to this office, to look to
this with the utmost diligence, that, if they
have wives, they shall enjoy no licence to have
intercourse with them : but you must still
strictly order them to observe all things after
the pattern of the Apostolic See.

EPISTLE XXXVIII.
To Queen Theodelinda.

Gregory to Theodelina, Queen of the Lom-
bards 9.

It has come to our knowledge from the
report of certain persons that your Glory has
been led on by some bishops even to the
offence against holy Church of suspending
yourself from the communion of Catholic unan-
imity. Now the more we sincerely love you,
the more seriously are we distressed about
you, that you believe unskilled and foolish
men, who not only do not know what they talk
about, but can hardly understand what they
have heard ; who, while they neither read
themselves, nor b-dieve those who do, re-
main in the same error which they have them-
selves feigred to themselves concerning us
For we venerate the four holy synods ; the
Nicene, in which Arius, the Constantinopolitnn,
in which Macedonius, the first Ephesine, in
which Nestorius, and the Chalcedonians, in
which Eutyches and Dioscorus, were con-
demned ; declaring that whosoever thinks
otherwise than the.se four synods did is alien
from the true faith. We also condemn whom-
soever they condemn, and absolve whomso-
ever they absolve, smiling, with interposition
of anathema, any one who presumes to add to
or take away from the faith of the same four
synods, and especially that of Chalcedon, with
respect to which doubt and occasion of super-
stition has arisen in the minds of certain
unskilled men.

Seeing, then, that you know the integrity
of our faith from my plain utterance and pro-

fession, it is right that you should have no
further scruple of doubt with respect to the
Church of the blessed Peter, Prince of the
apostles : but persist ye in the true faith, and
make your life firm on the rock of the Church ;
that is on the confession of the blessed Peter,
Prince of the apostles, lest all those tears of
yours and all those good works should come
to nothing, if they are found alien from the
true faith. For as branches dry up without
the virtue of the root, so works, to whatsoever
degree they may seem good, are nothing, if
they are disjoined from the solidity of the
faith.

It therefore becomes your Glory to send a
communication with all speed to our most
reverend brother and fellow-bishop Constantius,
of whose faith and life I have long been wed
assured, and to signify by your letters ad-
dressed to him how kindly you accept his
ordination, and that )Ou are in no wise sepa-
rated from the communion of his Church, so
that we may truly rejoice with a common
exultation, as for a good and faithful daughter.
Know also that you and your works will p'ease
God, if, before his assize comes, they be ap-
proved by the judgment of his priests.

EPISTLE XXXIX.
To Constantius, Bishop.

Gregory to Constantius, Bishop of Medio-
lanum {Milan).

Having read the letter of your Holiness,
we find that you are in a state of serious dis-
tress, principally on account of the bishops
and citizens of Briscia {Brescia), who bid you
send them a letter in which you are asked to
swear that you have not condemned the Three
Chapters1. Now, if your Fraternity's prede-
cessor Laurentius did not do this, it ought not
to be required of you. But, if he did it, he
was not with the universal Church, and con-
tradicted what he had sworn to in his security2.
But, inasmuch as we believe him to have kept
his oath, and to have continued in the unity
of the Catholic Church, there is no doubt that
he did not swear to any of his bishops that
he had not condemned the Three Chapters.
Hence your Holiness may conclude that you
ou< ht not to be forced to do what was in no

9 This letter was substituted for Ep. IV., which had been
previously written, but not delivered. See note 4 under Epistle II.
above.

* See above, Epist'e II., note 1.

2 Caution's suce, as to the meaning of which expression, see
above, Epistle II.. note 2. It appears certain from what Grego y
savs, here and in Epistle II., that Lauuentius. the predecessor ot
Constantius, had pledged himself by oath to the Bishop of Rome
to uphold the condemnation of "The Three Chapters.' But
it seems that some of his suffragans now asserted that he had
sworn to them that he had not assented to such condemnation,
and that on this understanding they had remained in his com-
munion. Gregory does not seem certain how the matter stood :
but he goes on the supposition that he could not have perjured
himself as the bishops alleged.

i6o

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

wise done by your predecessor. But, lest
those who have thus written to you should be
offended, send them a letter declaring under
interposition of anathema that you neither
take away anything from the faith of the synod
of Chalcedon nor received those who do, and
that you condemn whomsoever it condemned,
and absolve whomsoever it absolved. And thus
I believe that they may be very soon satisfied -5

Further, as to what you write about many of
them being offended because you name our
brother and fellow-bishop John of the Church
of Ravenna during the solemnities of mass,
you should enquire into the ancient custom ;
and, if it has been the custom, it ought not
now to be found fault with by foolish men.
But, if it has not been the custom, a thing
ought not to be done at which some may
possibly take offence. Yet I have been at
pains to make careful enquiry whether the
same John our brother and fellow-bishop
names you at the altar ; and they say that
this is not done. And, if he does not make
mention of your name, I know not what ne-
cessity obliges you to make mention of his.
If indeed it can be done without any one
taking offence, your doing anything of this
kind is very laudable, since you shew the
charity you have towards your brethren.

Further, as to what you write of your having
been unwilling to transmit my letter to Queen
Theodelinda on the ground that the fifth
synod was named in it, if you believed that
she might thereby be offended, you did right
in not transmitting it. We are therefore doing
now as you recommend, namely, that we
should only express approval of the four
svnods. Yet, as to the svnod which was
afterwards held in Constantinople, called by
many the fifth, I would have you know that
it neither ordained nor held anything in op-
position to the four most holy synods, seeing
that nothing was done in it with respect to
the faith, but only with respect to persons ;
and persons, too, about whom nothing is con-
tained in the acts of the Council of Cha.cedoni;

3 See above, Kp. II., note 4.

4 Here Gregory is in error, for in the eighth, ninth, and tenth
sessions of the council 01 Chalcedon Theocioret and Ibas, whose
writings were anathematized in that fifth council, were heard
in their own defence, and definitely acquitted of heresy. It is
true that there is no mention of them in the Definition of faith,
agreed upon in the fifth session of Chalcedon, or in the Canons,
which were perhaps all that Gregory had before him. It is tri e
also that there was no reference at Chalcedon to Theodoie of
Mopsnestia, who was especially and personally anathematized at
the fifth council, he having died many years before the council of
Chalcedon was held. But the cases of Theodoret and Ibas had
been prominently before the synod ; and this not, as Gregory
here goes on to intimate, in a supplementary sort of way at the
end of the rr.wi proceedings: for the eighth, ninth, and tenth
Bessions had been occupied with them, after which there had
been other sessions. For similar inaccur.-.cy on Gregory's part
in referring to past events, see II. 51, note 2 ; and for an instance
of his imperfect acquaintance with the history of past controver-
sies, see VII. 4.

but, after the canons had been promulged,
discussion arose, and final action was venti-
lated concerning persons. Yet still we have
done as you desired, making no mention of
this synod. But we have also written to our
daughter the queen what you wrote to us
about the bishops. Ursicinus, who wrote
something to you against our brother and
fellow-bishop John, you ought by your letters
addressed to him, with sweetness and reason,
to restrain from his intention. Further, con-
cerning Foitunatuss, we desire your Fraternity
to be careful, lest you be in any way surrep-
titiously influenced by bad men. For I hear
that he ate at the table of the Church with your
predecessor Laurentius for many years until
now, that he sat among the nobles, and sub-
scribed, and that with our brother's knowledge
he served in the army. And now, after so
many years, your Fraternity thinks that he
should be driven from the position which he
now occupies. This seems to me altogether
incongruous. And so I have given you this
order through him, but privately. Still, if
there is anything reasonable that can be
alleged against him, it ought to be submitted
to our judgment. But, if it please Almighty
God, we will send letters through your man to
our son the lord Dynamius.

EPISTLE XLVI.

To Rusticiana, Patrician.

Gregory to Rusticiana, &lc.

On receiving your Excellency's letters I was
glad to hear that you had reached Mount
Sinai. But believe me, I too should have
liked to go with you, but by no means to
return with you And yet I find it very diffi-
cult to believe that you have been at the holy
places and seen many Fathers. For I believe
that, if you had seen them, you would by no
means have been able to return so speedily to
the city of Constantinople. But now that the
love of such a city has in no wise departed
from your heart, I suspect that your Excel-
lency did not from the heart devote yourself
to the holy things which you saw with the
bodily eye. lint may Almighty God illu-
minate your mind by the grace of His loving-
kindness and give unto you to be wise, and
to consider how fugitive are all temporal
things, since, while we are thus speaking, both
time runs on and the Judge approaches, and
lo the moment is even now near when against
our will we must give up the world which of
our own accord we will not. I beg that the

5 Concerning this Fortunatus, see also V. 4.

EPISTLE XLV11.

t6i

lord Apio and the lady Eusebia, and their
daughters, be greeted in my behalf. As to
that lady my nurse, whom you commend to
me by letter, I have the greatest regard for
her, and desire that she should be in no way
incommoded. But we are pressed by such great
straits that we cannot excuse even ourselves
from exactions (angariis)6 and burdens at this
present time.

EPISTLE XLVII.

To Sabinianus, Deacon 7.

Gregory to Sabinianus, &c.
Thou knowest what has been done in the
case of the prevaricator Maximus8. For
after the most serene lord the Emperor had
sent orders that he should not be ordained 9,
then he broke out into a higher pitch of pride.
For the men of the glorious patrician Ro-
manus ' received bribes from him, and caused
him to be ordained in such a manner that
they would have killed Antoninus, the sub-
deacon and rector of the patrimony, if he had
not fled. But I despatched letters to him,
after I had learnt that he had been ordained
against reason and custom, telling him not
to presume to celebrate the solemnities of
mass unless I should first ascertain from our
most serene lords what they had ordered with
regard to him. And these my letters, having
been publicly promulged or posted in the
city, he caused to be publicly torn, and thus
bounced forth more openly into contempt

6 The word angaria, which is of frequent occurrence, denotes
exactions*and forced services of various kinds.

7 He was the pope's apocrisiarius at Constantinople.

8 See III. 47> note 2- „ „ . , ,

9 In his letter to Maximus (IV. 20), Gregory had only ex-
pressed a suspicion that the alleged order of the Emperor for his
consecration had been fictitious. He now seems to have satisfied
himself that it was so. For a review of the whole case, see ill- 47.

1 Romanus Patricius was the Exarch of Italy. See I. 33 ;

11.46; m. 31 j v-24-

of the Apostolic See. How I was likely to
endure this thou knowest, seeing that I was
before prepared rather to die than that the
Church of the blessed apostle Peter should ^
degenerate in my days. Moreover thou art
well acquainted with my ways, that I bear
long ; but if once I have determined not
to bear, I go gladly in the face of all dangers.
Whence it is necessary with the help of God
to meet danger, lest he be driven to sin to
excess. Look to what I say, and consider
what great grief inspires it.

But it has come to my ears that he has
sent [to Constantinople] a cleric, I know not
whom, to say that the bishop Malchus2 was
put to death in prison for money. Now as
to this there is one thing that thou mayest
shortly suggest to our most serene lords ; —
that, if I their servant had been willing to
have anything to do with the death of Lom-
bards, the nation of the Lombards at this
day would have had neither king nor dukes
nor counts, and would have been divided
in the utmost confusion. But, since 1 fear
God, I shrink from having anything to do
with the death of any one. Now the bishop
Malchus was neither in prison nor in any
distress: but on the day when he pleaded
his cause and was sentenced he was taken
without my knowledge by Boniface the notary
to his house, where a dinner was prepared
for him, and there he dined, and was treated
with honour by the said Boniface, and in
the night suddenly died, as I think you have
already been informed. Moreover I had
intended to send our Exhilaratus to you in
connection with that business ; but, as I con-
sidered that the case was now done with,
I consequently abstained from doing so.

» See II. 20, note 5.

VOL. XII.

BOOK V.

EPISTLE II.

To Felix, Bishop, and Cyriacus, Abbot1.

Gregory to Felix, &c.

The tenor of the report submitted to you
sufficiently explains the complaint of the
religious lady Theodosia, in which we have
found on reading it many heads of accusa-
tion, not befitting priestly gentleness, against
our brother and fellow-bishop Januarius; so
much so that, after the foundation by her
of a monastery for servants of God, all that
pertains to avarice, turbulence, and wrong
is said to have been exhibited at the time
of the very dedication of the oratory. Where-
fore, if the case is as we find in her aforesaid
representation, and if you are aware that
anything at all unbecoming has been com-
mitted besides, we exhort you that, all wrongs
having first been redressed, you press upon
Musicus, the abbot of the monastery of Agili-
tanus2, that he lose no time in giving the
greatest attention to his monks whom he had
begun to settle there, to the end that, this
venerable place being with the Lord's help
set in order by you in a decent and regular
in inner, neither may we be disturbed by the
frequent complaints of the aforesaid religious
lady that her good desires are not fulfilled,
nor may it be to the detriment of your soul
that so pious a design should languish, as we
do not believe it will, through any neglect
of yours.

EPISTLE IV.

To CONSTANTIUS, BlSHOP.

Gregory to Constantius, Bishop of Medio-
UHim (Milan).

If licence to be restored to their rank be
ranted to the lapsed, the force of ecclesias-

sneri^ ™, f"" Se"- ^Gregory into Sardinia with the

1..H hLl ' f f'rom1ot",g th? conversion of the natives, winch

V Vi an !"ri'CLted ^ c',e bish°P* and clergy of the island. See
» • 41, ana 1 v. 23, note 8.

- Apparent^ the designation of the monastery which had

ue\u°hVrlen^h £Undtd b>' Theoiosi. in execudon of her
late husband s wi.L See above. IV. 8, 15. In IV. 15, Gre-orv

.4 outeher h° ^i^ re' ^^ °f cert «" difficult^* in 4^
0 Lro* ^ r intention, to found a nunnery in a house

tical discipline is undoubtedly broken, while
in the hope of restoration each person fears
not to give way to his evil inclinations. Your
Fraternity, for instance, has consulted us as
to whether Amandinus, ex-presbyter and ex-
abbot, who was deposed by your predecessor
for fault requiring it, should be called back
to his rank ; which thing is not allowable ;
and we decree that it cannot on any account
be done. Yet, if it should be the case that
his manner of life deserves it, seeing that he
has been deprived altogether of his sacred
office, assign him a place in a monastery,
as you may see fit, before other monks.
Above all things, then, take care that no one's
supplication persuade you in any way to
restore the lapsed to their sacred orders,
lest such punishment should be supposed not
to be definitely ordained for them, but only
a temporary expedient.

As to Vitalianus the ex-presbyter, about
whom you write that he should be strictly
guar> led. we will cause him to be sent into
Sicily, that, being deprived of all hope of
departure thence, he may then at least con-
strain himself to penitential bewailing. Jobi-
nus also, of Portus Veneris, once deacon and
abbot, we have decreed to be deprived of his
office, and written that another should be
ordained in his place In like manner also
we decree that the three subdeacons, whom
your Fraternity has notified to us as having
lapsed, shall ever cease from and stand de-
prived of their office, and that nothing beyond
lay communion be allowed them. Further,
we have adjudged the ex-presbyter Saturninus
to give security that he will not ever presume
to approach the ministry of his sacred order.
And we desire him to remain, with deprivation
of his sacred order, in the same island in
which he was, permitting him to have and
exercise care and solicitude with respect to
monasteries; for we believe that, his lapse
having made him more wary, he will now the
more carefully keep guard over those who are
committed to him.

Further, concerning John, notary of your
church, the charity wherewith we love you
and have long loved you warns us to write,
lest you should order anything with regard

EPISTLE VIII.

163

to him while you are still provoked by his
fault. Guarding, then, against this, enquire
fully by all means in your power into the
possessions of your church ; by which means
neither may you offend God, nor may he
be able to find a ground for accusing you
before men. For we write, not as defending
John or commending him personally without
reason, but lest your soul should be in any
way burdened with sin under the incitement
of anger. Whence it is needful, as we have
before said, that you should by no means
neglect to enquire, in the fear of God, with
a full investigation into the possessions of
your church.

Furthermore, the epistle of your most dear
Fraternity has caused us to wonder much with
respect to the person of Fortunatus3. But
either that letter was not dictated by you, or
certainly, if it is yours, we by no means recog
nize in it our brother the lord Constantius.
For you ought to have paid, and still ought
to pay, attention to the fact that it is in behalf
of your reputation that we write. For, when
he asserts that he suffers wrong among you,
and has been unable to procure the guardian's
(defensoris) aid, what else does he intimate
but ill-will on your part? Wherefore, that
neither this affair may dim your reputation
in some quarters nor damage possibly ensue
in any way with good cause to your church,
you ought to send hither a person instructed
by you, that the nature of the case may be
examined, and the matter terminated, without
ill-will on your part. And for this reason
especially, that if, after his complaint, sen-
tence should be pronounced among your-
selves in your favour, he will be believed
to have been defeated, not reasonably, but
by power alone. But we, out of the charity
wherewith we are bound to you, desist not
from admonishing you to do what will be for
your good repute, knowing that, though this
exhortation saddens you for the time, it will
afterwards cause you joy, when the animosity
of contention has passed away. In the month
of September, Indiction 13. (In Vatic. The
month oj December, Indict. 13.)

EPISTLE V.
To Dominicus, Bishop.

Gregory to Dominicus, Bishop of Carthage.

Prosper your delegate {responsalis), the
bearer of these presents, has been with us,
and after other expressions of your charity
handed us your second letters with an allega-
tion of the imperial commands, and a paper

3 See IV. 39.

giving an account of the synod that has been
held among you*. Having read all, we re-
joiced for your pastoral zeal, and that our
most pious lords had given no ear to the
calumnies of venal persons brought against
you on the plea of religion; but especially
that your Fraternity has so taken pains to
preserve the African province as in no wise to
neglect to restrain with priestly fervour the
devious sects of heretics; concerning the
quieting of whom we remember having laid
down the law so fully, even before consulting
the letters of your Charity, that we do not
believe that anything needs to be said again
in reply to you about them. Although, how-
ever, this is so, and though we desire all
heretics to be repressed always with vigour
and reason by catholic priests, yet, on looking
thoroughly into what has been done among
you, we are in fact apprehensive lest offence
should thereby be caused (which thing may
the Lord avert) to the primates of other
councils. For at the conclusion of your acts
you have promulged a sentence, in which,
while ordering the searching out of those
heretics, you have brought in that those who
neglect the duty are to be punished by for-
feiture of their possessions and dignities. It
is therefore best, most dear brother, that, in
dealing with matters outside ourselves that
require correction, charity among ourselves
should first be preserved, and that we should
be subject in mind (as I judge to be peculiarly
proper to your Gravity) even to persons below
us in dignity. For you will then more advan-
tageously meet the errors of heretics with your
whole united powers when, as befits your
priesthood, you study to keep ecclesiastical
concord among yourselves.

EPISTLE VIII.
To Cyprian, Deacon.

Gregory to Cyprian, deacon and rector of
the patrimony of Sicily.

Concerning the Manicheans who are on our
possessions I have frequently admonished thy
Love to press them with the utmost diligence,
and recall them to the Catholic faith. If, then,
the time requires it, make enquiries in person,
or, if other business does not allow this,
through others. Further, it has come to my
ears tnat there are Hebrews on our possessions

4 This had been a synod held at Carthage for the.suppression
of the Donatrsts. Cf. I. 74, note 8. Gregory, while fully ap-
proving, as he shews elsewhere, of sttict enforcement of the
imperial laws against them, expresses lear in this episile lest the
council lately held might have gone too tar, so as to endanger the
unity of the African Church, in exceeding the decrees^of synods
that had been held elsewhere, and especially in ordering severe
measures against bishops or others who might be remiss in the
work of suppressing heresy.

M 2

1 64

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

who will not by any means be converted to
God. But it seems to me that thou should est
send letters through all our possessions on
which these Hebrews are known to be, pro-
mising them particularly from me that whoso-
ever of them shall have been converted to our
true Lord God Jesus Christ shall have the
burdens of his holding lightened. And this I
wish to have done in such sort that, if one has
a payment to make of one solidus, a third
should be remitted him ; if of three or four,
that one solirfus should be remitted ; if of any
more, the remission should still be made in the
same proportion, or at any rate according as
thy Love sees fit, so that one who is converted
may have some relief of his burden, and the
Church may not be put to heavy expense.
Nor shall we do this unprofitably, if by light-
ening the burdens of their payments we bring
them to the grace of Christ, since, though they
themselves came with little faith, yet those who
may be born of them will now be baptized
with more faith : thus we gain either them or
their children. And whatever amount of pay-
ment we let them off for the sake of Christ is
nothing serious. Furthermore, some time ago,
when John the deacon came, thy Love wrote
something to me, the whole of which I read at
the time, but let many days intervene before
replying; and then, after such delay, replied
to all particulars as I recollected them. But
now I think that one point escaped my memory,
and suspect that I gave no reply about it. For
thou hadst written that loans were being ad-
vanced to peasants (rusticis) through certain
undertakers for their debt5, lest in borrowing
from others they should be burdened either
by exactions or by the prices of things6. This
particular was to me most acceptable ; and,
if indeed I have already written about it, ob-
serve what I wrote. But if, as I suspect, I
gave in my reply no definite direction on the
subject, thou must not hesitate to advance
money for the advantage of the peasants, since
the ecclesiastical property will not thus be
wasted, and out of it the peasants will derive
advantage. And, if there are other things
which thou considerest to be advantageous,
thou must carry them out without any hesita-
tion.

5 Per nanus quorundam debiti conductorum. If the word
debiti (absent from some MSS.) is read here, the meaning may
be that certain persons, called debiti conductores, undertook the
recovery of the arrears of the rustici, and that through them
easy loans were advanced to such as were unable to pay at the
proper time. Cf. I. 44, p. 89. For the ordinary meaning of
conductores (without debiti), in connexion with the Church
estates, see I. 44, p, 89, note 5.

6 Aut i?i angariis aut in re rum pretio. The word angaria
inapplicable to any kind of vexatious exaction, either in the way
of forced labour or in other ways. "Per angarias intelliguntur
vexationes et injuria; quael.bet." Du Cange. It may be used
here for exorbitant interest on loans obtained from usurers. As
to rerumpretw, cf. I. 44, p. 89, about burdatio, and note a.

EPISTLE XI.

To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Ravenna.

I find that your Fraternity is greatly dis-
tressed on account of being forbidden by the
censure of reason to wear the pallium in lita-
nies. But through the most excellent Patri-
cian, and through the most eminent Prefect,
and through other noble men of your city, you
have urgently requested to have this allowed
you. Now we, having made careful enquiry of
Adeodatus, some time thy Fraternity's deacon,
have ascertained that it was never the custom
of thy predecessors to use the pallium during
litanies, except at the solemnities of the blessed
John the Baptist, the blessed Apostle Peter,
and the blessed martyr Apollinaris. But we
were by no means bound to believe him, since
many of our delegates have often been at your
Fraternity's city, who declare that they never
saw anything of the kind. And in this matter
credence is rather to be given to many than to
one, who is attesting something in behalf of
his own Church. But, since we do not wish
your Fraternity to be distressed, or the petition
of our sons to be of no avail with us, we
concede the use of the pallium, until we shall
gain some more accurate knowledge, on the
days of the Nativity of the Blessed John the
Baptist, of the blessed Apostle Peter, and the
blessed martyr Apollinaris, and on the day of
the celebration of your ordination. But in the
sacristy, according to former custom, after the
sons of the Church have been received and
dismissed, your Fraternity may put on the
pallium, and so proceed to the solemnization
of mass, arrogating to yourself nothing more in
the daring of rash presumption ; lest, while
something is snatched at out of order in ex-
terior habiliment, what might have been done
in due order be neglected. Given in the month
of October; Indiction 13.

EPISTLE XV.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Ravenna.

In the first place this makes me sad ; that
thy Fraternity writes to me with a double heart,
exhibiting one sort of blandishment in letters,
but another sort with the tongue in secular
intercourse. In the next place, it grieves me
that my brother John even to this day retains
on his tongue those gibes which notaries while
still boys are wont to indulge in. He speaks
bitingly,and seems to delight in such pleasantry.
He flatters his friends in their presence, and
maligns them in their absence. Thirdly, it is
to me grievous and altogether execrable, that

EPISTLE XVII.

165

he imputes shameful crimes to his servants ?,
whatever the hour may be, calling them " effe-
minate; " and, what is still more grievous, this
is done openly. Then there is this in addition,
that there is no discipline for keeping guard
over the life of the clergy, but that he exhibits
himself only as their lord. The last thing, but
first in importance as evidence of elation, is
about his use of the pallium outside the church,
which is a thing he never presumed to do in
the times of my predecessors, and what none
of his predecessors ever presumed to do, as
our delegates testify (except it might be when
relics were deposited, though with regard to
relics one person only could be found to say
that it was so) ; yet this in my days, in con-
tempt of me, with extreme audacity, he not
only did, but even made a habit of doing.

From all these things I find that the dignity
of the Episcopacy is with him all in outside
show, not in his mind. And indeed I return
thanks to Almighty God that at the time when
this came to my knowledge, which had never
reached the ears of my predecessors, the Lom-
bards were posted between me and the city of
Ravenna. For perchance I had it in my mind
to shew to men how severe I can be8.

Lest, however, thou shouldest suppose that
I wish thy church to be depressed or lessened
in dignity, remember where the deacon of
Ravenna used to stand in solemnization of
mass at Rome, and enquire where he stands
now ; and thou wilt recognize the fact that
I desire to honour the church of Ravenna.
But that any one whatever should snatch at
anything out of pride, this I cannot tolerate.

Nevertheless I have already written on this
matter to our deacon at Constantinople, that
he should enquire of all who have under them
even thirty or forty bishops. And if there is
anywhere this custom of their walking in
litanies wearing the pallium, God forbid that
through me the dignity of the church of
Ravenna should seem to be in any way
lessened.

Reflect, therefore, dearest brother, on all that
I have said above : think of the day of thy
call : consider what account thou wilt render
of the burden of epi copacy. Amend those
manners of a notary. See what becomes a
bishop in tongue and in deed. Be entirely
sincere to thy brethren. Do not speak one
thing, and have another in thy heart. Do not

7 " Servis tuis turpia crimina imponis," — apparently meaning
that at all hours lie was accustomed to call them by opprobrious

8 The meaning may be, " I am thankful now that the fact
of communication between Rome and Ravenna being blocked
by the Lombard* when the matter first reached my ears prevented
my acting so peremptory as I might then have beeu di.-posed
to do."

desire to seem more than thou art, that so thou
mayest be able to be more than thou seemest.
Believe me, when I came to my present posi-
tion, I had such consideration and charity
towards thee that, if thou hadst wished to keep
hold of this my charity, thou still wouldest not
have ever found such a brother as myself, or
one so sincerely loving thee, or so concurring
with thee in all devotion : but when I came to
know of thy words and thy manners, I confess
I started back. I beseech thee, then, by
Almighty God, amend all that I have spoken
of, and especially the vice of duplicity. Allow
me to love thee ; and for the present and the
future life it may be of advantage to thee to be
loved of thy brethren. Reply, however, to all
this, not by words, but by behaviour.

EPISTLE XVII.
To Cyprian, Deacon r.

Gregory to Cyprian, &c.

I received your letters of most bitter import
about the death of the lord Maximianus2 in
the month of November. And he indeed has
reached the rewards he longed for, but the
unhappy people of the city of Syracuse is to be
commiserated as not having been counted
worthy to have such a pastor long. Accord-
ingly let thy Love take anxious heed that such
a one may be chosen for ordination in the
same church as may not seem to obtain
undeservedly the same place of rule after the
lord Maximianus. And indeed I believe that
the majority would choose the presbyter Trajan,
who, as is said, is of a good disposition, but,
as I suspect, not fit for ruling in that place.
Yet, if a better cannot be found, and if there
are no charges against him, he may be con-
descended to under stress of very great neces-
sity. But, if my wishes are asked with regard
to this election, I inform thee privately of what
I do wish : for no one in this same church ap-
pears to me so worthy after the lord Maximianus
as John the archdeacon of the church of
Catana. And, if his election can be brought
about, I believe that he will be found an
exceedingly fit person. But he too must first
be enquired about by thee privately as to any
charges against him that may stand in the way.
If he should be found free from any, he may
be rightly chosen. Should this be done, our
brother and fellow-bishop Leo 3 will also have
to give him leave to go, that he may be found

1 The deacon Cyprian had succeeded the sub-deacon Peter
as rector patrimonii in Sicily, and Gregory's general agent there,
through whom he acted in ecclesiastical as well as temporal
matters, at any rate now, after the death of Maximianus of
Syracuse.

2 See II. 7. note 5.

3 Bishop of Catana where this John was archdeacon.

i66

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

free to be ordained. These things, then, I
have taken care to intimate to thy Love ; and
it will now be thy concern to look round thee
on all sides carefully, and arrange what is
pleasing to God.

EPISTLE XVIII.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Constantinople*.

At the time when your Fraternity was
advanced to Sacerdotal dignity, you remember
what peace and concord of the churches you
found. But, with what daring or with what
swelling of pride I know not, you have at-
tempted to seize upon a new name, whereby
the hearts of all your brethren might have come
to take offence. I wonder exceedingly at this,
since I remember how thou wouldcst fain have
fled from the episcopal office rather than attain
it. And yet, now that thou hast got it, thou
desire.st so to exercise it as if thou hadst run
to it with ambitious intent. For, having
confessed thyself unworthy to he called a
bishop, thou hast at length been brought to
such a pass as, despising thy brethren, to covet
to be named the only bishop. And ind
with regard to this matter, weighty letti rs were
addressed to your Holiness by my predecessor
Pelagius of holy memory ; in which lie annulled
the acts of the synod, which had been assembled
among you in the case of our once brother and
fellow-bishop Gregory, because of that execrable
title of pride, and forbade the archdeacon,
whom he had sent according to custom to the
threshold of our lord, to celebrate the solem-
nities of mass with you. But after his death,
when I, unworthy, succeeded to the government
of the Church, both through my other repre-
sentatives and also through our common son
the deacon Sabinianus, I have taken care to
address your Fraternity, not indeed in writing,
but by word of mouth, desiring you to restrain
yourself from such presumption. And, in i
of your refusing to amend, I forbade his cele-
brating the solemnities of mass with you; that
so I might first appeal to your Holiness through
a certain sense of shame, to the end that, if
the execrable and profane assumption could not
be corrected through shame, strict canonical
measures might be then resorted to. And,
since sores that are to be cut away should first
be stroked with a gentle hand, I beg you, I
beseech you, and with all the sweetness in my
power demand of you, that your Fraternity
gainsay all who flatter you and offer you this
name of error, nor foolishly consent to be

4 On the occa-ion of this letter and subsequent correspondence
■>n the same subject, see Prolegomena, pp. xiv., xxii.

called by the proud title. For truly I say it
weeping, and out of inmost sorrow of heart
attribute it to my sins, that this my brother,
who has been constituted in the grade of
episcopacy for the very end of bringing back
the souls of others to humility, has up to the
present time been incapable of being brought
b ick to humility ; that he who teaches truth to
others has not consented to teach himself, even
when I implore him.

Consider, I pray thee, that in this rash
presumption the peace of the whole Church is
disturbed, and that it is in contradiction to the
grace that is poured out on all in common ;
in which grace doubtless thou thyself wilt have
power to grow so far as thou determinest with
thyself to do so. And thou wilt become by so
much the greater as thou restrainest thyself
from the usurpation of a proud and foolish title:
and thou wilt make advance in proportion as
thou art not bent on arrogation by derogation
of thy brethren. Wherefore, dearest brother,
with all thy heart love humility, through which
the concord of all the brethren and the unity
of the holy universal Church may be preserved.
Certainly the apostle Paul, when he heard some
say, I am of Paul, I of A polios, but I of Christ
(i Cor. i. 13), regarded with the utmost horror
such dilaceration of the Lord's body, whereby
they were joining themselves, as it were, to
other btads, and exclaimed, saying, Was Paul
crucified for you ? or were ye baptized in the
name of Paul (ib.)? If then he shunned the
subjecting of the members of Christ partially
to certain heads, as if beside Christ, though
this were to the apostles themselves, what wilt
thou say to Christ, who is the Head of the
universal Church, in the scrutiny of the last
ment, having attempted to put all his
members under thyself by the appellation of
Universal ? Who, I ask, is proposed for
imitation in this wrongful title but he who,
despising the legions of angels constituted
socially with himself, attempted to start up to
an eminence of singularity, that he might seem
to be under none and to be alone above all ?
Who even said, I will ascend into heaven, Iivill
exalt my throne above the stars of heaven : I will
sit upon the mount of the testament, in the sides
of the North: I will ascend above /he heights of
the clouds ; I will be like the most Hi&h (Isai.
xiv. 13).

For what are all thy brethren, the bishops
of the universal Church, but stars of heaven,
whose life and discourse shine together amid
the sins and errors of men, as if ami I the
shades of night ? And when thou desirest to
put thyself above them by this proud title,
and to tread down their name in comparison
with thine, what else dost thou say but / will

EPISTLE XVIII.

t67

ascend into heaven ; I will exalt my throne
above the stars of heaven ? Are not all the
bishops together clouds, who both rain in the
words of preaching, and glitter in the light
of good works? And when your Fraternity
despises them, and you would fain press them
down under yourself, what else say you but
what is said by the ancient foe, / will ascend
above the heights of the clouds ? All these
things when I behold with tears, and tremble
at the hidden judgments of God, my fears are
increased, and my heart cannot contain its
groans, for that this most holy man the lord
John, of so great abstinence and humility, has,
through the seduction of familiar tongues,
broken out into such a pitch of pride as to
attempt, in his coveting of that wrongful
name, to be like him who, while proudly wish-
ing to be like God, lost even the grace of the
likeness granted him, and because he sought
false glory, thereby forfeited true blessedness.
Certainly Peter, the first of the apostles, himself
a member of the holy and universal Church,
Paul, Andrew, John, — what were they but
heads of particular communities? And yet all
were members under one Head. And (to bind
all together in a short girth of speech) the
saints before the law, the saints under the law,
the saints under grace, all these making up the
Lord's Body, were constituted as members of
the Church, and not one of them has wished
himself to be called universal. Now let your
Holiness acknowledge to what extent you
swell within yourself in desiring to be called
by that name by which no one presumed to
be called who was truly holy.

Was it not the case, as your Fraternity
knows, that the prelates of this Apostolic See,
which by the providence of God I serve,
had the honour offered them of being called
universal by the venerable Council of Chal-
cedon 5. But yet not one of them has ever
wished to be called by such a title, or seized
upon this ill-advised name, lest if, in virtue of
the rank of the pontificate, he took to himself
the glory of singularity, he might seem to have
denied it to all his brethren.

5 As to this assertion (repeated in V. 20, 43, and in VIII. 30),
Giesler says, "Gregory was mistaken in believing that atthe
Council of Chalcedon the name Universalis Episcopus was given
to the bishop of Rome. He is styled oi/covnei-t/cos <jpxie;n.'a-<co;ros
(Mansi VI. 1006, 1012), as other patriarchs also. But in another
place the title was surreptitiously introduced into the Latin acts
by the Romish legates. In the sentence passed on Dioscurus,
actio iii (Mansi VI. 1048), the Council say, 6 iyiwra-ros Ka;n«(ca-
piooTaTOS apxieirCa-KOTroi Trjs /ue-yaArj! Kai TrpetrPvTepa.s 'l'te>p.»)S
AeW : on the contrary, in the Latin acts which Leo sent to
the Gallic bishops (Leonis, Ep. 103, al. 82), we read ; ' Sanctus
ac beatissimus Papa, caput universalis Ecclesia;, Leo. In the
older editions the beginning of Leo's Epist. 97 ' ap. Quesn. 134,
lialler. 165), runs thus : ' Leo Romae et univer.-alis catholicajque
Ecclesia: Episcopus Leoni semper Augusto salutem.' Quesnel
and the Kallerini, however, found in all the Codices only, ' Leo
Episcopus Leoni Augusto.'" (Giesler's Eccl. Hist., 2nd Period,
i>,t Division, ch. iii. § 94, note 72).

But I know that all arises from those who
serve your Holiness on terms of deceitful
familiarity ; against whom I beseech your
Fraternity to be prudently on your guard,
and not to lay yourself open to be deceived
by their words. For they are to be ac-
counted the greater enemies the more they
flatter you with' praises. Forsake such; and,
if they must needs deceive, let them at any
rate deceive the hearts of worldly men, and
not of priests. Let the dead bury their dead
(Luke ix. 60). But say ye with the prophet,
Let them be turned back and put to shame that
say unto me, Aha, Aha (Ps. lxix. 4). And
again, But let not the oil of the sinner lard my
head (Ps. cxl. 5).

Whence also the wise man admonishes well,
Be in peace with manv .- but have but one coun-
sellor of a thousand {Ecclus. vi. 6). For Evil
communications corrupt good manners (1 Cor.
xv. 2>-£). For the ancient foe, when unable to
break into strong hearts, looks out for weak
persons who are associated with them, and, as
it were, scales lofty walls by ladders set against
them. So he deceived Adam through the
woman who was associated with him. So, when
he slew the sons of the blessed Job, he left the
weak woman, that, being unable of himself to
penetrate his heart, he might at any rate be
able to do so through the woman's words.
Whatever weak and secular persons, then, are
near you, let them be shattered in their own
persuasive words and flattery, since they pro-
cure to themselves the eternal enmity of God
from their very frowardness in being seeming
lovers.

Of a truth it was proclaimed of old through
the Apostle John, Little children, it is the last
hour (1 John ii. 18), according as the Truth
foretold. And now pestilence and sword rage
through the world, nations rise against nations,
the globe of the earth is shaken, the gaping
earth with its inhabitants is dissolved. For
all that was foretold is come to pass. The king
of pride is near, and (awful to be said !) there
is an army of priests in course of preparation
for him, inasmuch as they who had been ap-
pointed to be leaders in humility enlist them-
selves under the neck of pride. But in this
matter, even though our tongue protested not
at all, the power of Him who in His own person
peculiarly opposes the vice of pride is lifted
up for vengeance against elation. For hence
it is written, God resist eth the proud, but giveth
grace unto the humble (Jam. iv. 6\ Hence,
again, it is said, Whoso exalteth his heart is
unclean before God (Prov. xvi. 5). Hence,
against the man that is proud it is written,
Why is earth and ashes proud (Ecclus. x. 9)?
Hence the Truth in person says, Whosceiei

i6«

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

exalteth himself shall be abased (Luke xiv. n).
And, that he might bring us back to the way
of life through humility, He deigned to exhibit
in Himself what He teaches us, saying, Learn
of me ; for 1 am meek and lowly in heart
(Matth. xi. 29). For to this end the only be-
gotten Son of God took upon Himself the
form of our weakness ; to this end the In-
visible appeared not only as visible but even
as despised; to this end He endured the
mocks of contumely, the reproaches of de-
rision, the torments of suffering ; that God in
His humility might teach man not to be proud.
How great, then, is the virtue of humility for
the sake of teaching which alone He who is
great beyond compare became little even unto
the suffering of death ! For, since the pride
of the devil was the origin of our perdition,
the humility of God has been found the means
of our redemption. That is to say, our enemy,
having been created among all things, desired
to appear exalted above all things ; but our
Redeemer remaining great above all things,
deigned to become little among all things.

What, then, can we bishops say for our-
selves, who have received a place of honour
from the humility of our Redeemer, and yet
imitate the pride of the enemy himself? Lo,
we know our Creator to have descended from
the summit of His loftiness that He might \
glory to the human race, and we, created of
the lowest, glory in the lessening of our
brethren. God humbled Himself even to our
dust ; and human dust sets his face as high
as heaven, and with his tongue passes above
the earth, and blushes not, neither is afraid
to be lifted up ; even man who is rottenness,
and the son of man that is a worm.

Let us recall to mind, most dear brother,
this which is said by the most wise Solomon,
Before thunder shall go lightning, and before
ruin shall the heart be exalted { Ecclus. xxxii. 10) ;
where, on the other hand it is subjoined,
Before glory it shall be humbled. Let us then
be humbled in mind, if we are striving to
attain to real loftiness. By no means let
the eyes of our heart be darkened by the
smoke of elation, which the more it rises the
more rapidly vanishes away. Let us consider
how we are admonished by the precepts of our
Redeemer, who says, Blessed are the poor in
spirit ; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
I Matth. v. 3). Hence, also, he says by the
prophet, On whom shall my Spirit rest, but on
him that is humble, and quiet, and that tremblet/i
at my words (Isai. lxvi. 2)? Of a truth, when
the Lord would bring back the hearts of His
disciples, still beset with infirmity, to the way
of humility, He said, Whosoever will be chief
among you shall be least of all (Matth. xx. 27;

Whereby it is plainly seen how he is truly
exalted on high who in his thoughts is
humbled. Let us, therefore, fear to be num-
bered among those who seek the first seats
in the synagogues, and greetings in the market,
and to be called of men Rabbi. For, con-
trariwise, the Lord says to His disciples, But
be not ye called Rabbi ; for one is your master;
and all ye are brethren. And call no man your
Father upon the earth, for one is your Father
(Matth. xxiii. 7, 8).

What then, dearest brother, wilt thou say
in that terrible scrutiny of the coming judg-
ment, if thou covetest to be called in the world
not only father, but even general father? Let,
then, the bad suggestion of evil men be guarded
against ; let all instigation to offence be fled
from. // must needs be {indeed) that offences
come ; nevertheless, woe to that man by whom
the offence cometh (Matth. xviii. 7). Lo, by
reason of this execrable title of pride the
Church is rent asunder, the hearts of all the
brethren are provoked to offence. What !
Has it escaped your memory how the Truth
says, Whoso shall offend one of these little ones
which believe in me, it 'were better for htm that
a mill stone were hanged about his neck, and
thai lie were drowned in the depth of the sea
(lb. v. 6)? lint it is written, Charily seeketh
not her own (1 Cor. xiii. 4). Lo, your Frater-
nity arrogates to itself even what is not its
own. Again it is written, In honour preferring
one another (Rom. xii. 10). And thou at-
temptest to take the honour away from all
which thou desirest unlawfully to usurp to
thyself singularly. Where, dearest brother,
is that which is written, Have pence with all
men, and holiness, without which no man shall
I rd (Mel), xii. 14)? Where is that
which is written, Blessed are the peacemakers ;
for they shall be called the children of God
1 M itth. v. 9)?

It becomes you to consider, lest any root
of bitterness springing up trouble you, and
thereby many be defiled. But still, though
we neglect to consider, supernal judgment
will be on the watch against the swelling of
so great elation. And we indeed, against
whom such and so great a fault is committed
by this nefarious attempt, — we, I say, are
observing what the Truth enjoins when it
says, If thy brother shall sin against thee, go
and tetl him his fault between thee and him
alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast gained
thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, take
with thee one or two more, that in the mouth
of one or two witnesses every word may be
established. But if he will not hear them, tell
it unto the Chur 'h. But if he will not hear
the Church, let him be to thee as an heathen

EPISTLE XX.

169

man and a publican (Matth. xviii. 15). I there-
fore have once and again through my repre-
sentatives taken care to reprove in humble
words this sin against the whole Church ; and
now I write myself. Whatever it was my
duty to do in the way of humility I have not
omitted. But, if I am despised in my reproof,
it remains that I must have recourse to the
Church.

Wherefore may Almighty God show your
Fraternity how great love for you constrains
me when I thus speak, and how much I grieve
in this case, not against you, but for you.
But the case is such that in it I must prefer
the precepts of the Gospel, the ordinances of
the Canons, and the welfare of the brethren,
to the person even of him whom I greatly
love.

I have received the most sweet and pleasant
letter of your Holiness with respect to the
case of the presbyters John and Athanasius 6,
about which, the Lord helping me, I will
reply to you in another letter; for, being
surrounded by the swords of barbarians, I am
now oppressed by such great tribulations that
it is not allowed me, I will not say to treat of
many things, but hardly even to breathe. Given
in the Kalends of January; Indiction 1$.

EPISTLE XIX.
To Sabinianus, Deacon ?.

Gregory to Sabinianus, &c.

In the cause of our brother the most
reverend John, bishop of Constantinople, I
have been unwilling to write two letters. But
one I have drawn up briefly, which may seem
to combine both requisites; that is to say,
both honesty and kindness.

Let therefore thy Love take care to give
him this letter which I have now addressed
to him in compliance with the wish of the
Emperor. For in the sequel another will
be sent him such as his pride will not rejoice
in. For he has come even to this ; that,
taking occasion of the case of John the
presbyter, he transmitted hither the acts,
wherein almost in every line he called himself
olKovfteviKov {oecumenical) patriarch. But I hope
in Almighty God that the Supernal Majesty
will confound his hypocrisy. But I wonder
how he could so deceive thy Love as that
thou shouldest allow the Lord Emperor to
be persuaded to write to me himself concern-
ing this matter, admonishing me to have
peace with him. For, if the Lord Emperor

6 Cf. III. 53, and reff.

7 Sa in. anus was at this time the pope's apocrisiarius, or
respons<ilis, at Constantinople.

wishes to observe justice, he ought to have
admonished him to refrain from the proud
title, and then at once there would be peace
between us. I suspect, however, that thou
hast not all considered with what cunningness
this has been done by our aforesaid brother
John. For it is for this purpose that he has
done it ; that the Lord Emperor might be
obeyed, and so he himself might seem to be
confirmed in his vanity, or that I might not
obey him, and so his mind might be irritated
against me. But we will keep to the right
way, fearing nothing in this cause except the
Almighty Lord. Wherefore let thy Love be
in nothing afraid. All things that you see
to be lofty in this world against the truth in
behalf of the truth despise; trust in the grace
of Almighty God, and the help of the blessed
Apostle Peter. Remember the voice of the
Truth, which says, Greater is he that is in you
than he that is in the world (1 John iv. 4);
and in this cause whatever has to be done,
do it with the utmost authority. For now
that we can in no wise be protected from the
swords of our enemies, now that for love of
the republic we have lost silver, gold, slaves
and clothing, it is too ignominious that through
those men we should lose even the faith.
For to assent to that atrocious title is nothinsr
else than to lose the faith. Wherefore, as
I have written to thee already in former
letters, never do thou presume to proceed
with him 8.

EPISTLE XX.
To Mauricius Augustus.

Gregory to Mauricius, &c.

Our most pious and God-appointed lord,
among his other august cares and burdens,
watches also in the uprightness of spiritual
zeal over the preservation of peace among
the priesthood, inasmuch as he piously and
truly considers that no one can govern earthly
things aright unless he knows how to deal
with divine things, and that the peace of the
republic hangs on the peace of the universal
Church. For, most serene lord, what human
power, and what strength of fleshly arm would
presume to lift irreligious hands against the
lofty height of your most Christian Empire,
if the concordant hearts of priests were studious
to implore their Redeemer for you with the
tongue, and also, as they ought to do, by their
deservings ? Or what sword of a most savage
race would advance with so great cruelty to,
the slaughter of the faithful, unless the life

8 Cum eo proccdere, i.e. in effect, to communicate with him,
Procedere means to approach the altar for celebration. Cf. Ill
57, " ingiedientibus diaconibus ut mox procedatur."

\yo

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

of us, who are called priests but are not, were
weighed down by works most wicked. But,
while we neglect the things that concern us,
mid think of those that concern us not,
we associate our sins with the barbaric forces,
and our fault, which weighs down the forces
of the republic, sharpens the swords of the
enemy. But what shall we say for ourselves,
who press down the people of God which we
are unworthily set over with the loads of our
sins ; who destroy by example what we preach
with the tongue ; who by our works teach
unrighteous things, and with our voice only
set forth the things that are righteous? Our
bones are worn clown by fasts, and in our
mind we swell. Our body is covered with
vile raiment, and in elation of heart we sur-
pass the purple. We lie in ashes, and look
down upon loftiness. Teachers of humility,
we are chiefs of pride ; behind the faces of
sheep we hide the teeth of wolves 9. But
what is the end of these things except that
we persuade men, but are manifest to God?
Wherefore most providently for restraining
warlike movements does the most pious Lord
seek the peace of the Church, and, for com-
pacting it, deigns to bring back the he
of its priests to concord. Ami this indeed
is what I wish ; and, as far as I am concerned,
I render obedience to his most serene com-
mands. But since it is not my cause, but
God's, since the pious laws, since the venerable
synods, since the very commands of our Lord
Jesus Christ are disturbed by the invention
of a certain proud and pompous phrase, let
the most pious Lord cut the place of the sore,
and bind the resisting patient in the chains
of august authoiity. For in binding up these
things tightly you relieve the republic; and,
while you cut off such things, you provide
for the lengthening of your re

For to all who know the Gospel it is apparent
that by the Lord's voice the care of the whole
Church was committed to the holy Apostle and
Prince of all the Apostles, Peter. For to him
it is said, Peter, lovest thou Me ? Feed My s
(John xxi. 17). To him it is said, Behold
Satan hath desired to sift you as wheat ; and I
have prayed for thee, Peter, that thy faith fail
not. And thou, when thou art converted,
strengthen thy brethren (Luke xxii. 31). To
him it is said, Thou art Peter, and upon this
rock I will build My Church, and the gates of
hell shall not prevail against it. And I will
give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven ;
and whatsoever thou shall bind on earth shall be
bound also in heaven ; and whatsoever thou shall

The ironical allusion here to John the Faster is evident.

loose on earth shall be loosed also in heaven
(Matth. xvi. 18).

Lo, he received the keys of the heavenly
kingdom, and power to bind and loose is
given him, the care and principality of the
whole Church is committed to him, and yet he
is not called the universal apostle ; while the
most holy man, my fellow-priest John, attempts
to be called universal bishop. I am compelled
to cry out and say, O tempora, O mores I

Lo, all things in the regions of Europe are
given up into the power of barbarians, cities
are destroyed, camps overthrown, provinces
depopulated, no cultivator inhabits the land,
worshippers of idols rage and dominate daily
for the slaughter of the faithful, and yet priests,
who ought to lie weeping on the ground and
in ashes, seek for themselves names of vanity,
and glory in new and profane titles.

Do I in this matter, most pious Lord, defend
my own cause? Do I resent my own special
wrong? Nay. the cause of Almighty God, the
cause of the Universal Church.

Who is this that, against the evangelical
ordinances, against the decrees of canons,
presumes to usurp to himself a new name?
Would indeed that one by himself he were,
if he could be without any lessening of others,
— he that < ovets to be universal.

And certainly we know that many priests
of the Constanlinopolitan Church have fallen
into the whirlpool of heresy, and have become
not only heretics, but even heresiarchs. For
thence came Ne->torius, who, thinking Jesus
Christ, the Mediator of God and men, to be
two persons, because he did not believe that
God could be made man, broke out even into
Jewish perfidy. Thence came Macedonius,
who denied that God the Ploly Spirit was
consubstantial with the Father and the Son.
If then anyone in that Church takes to himself
that name, whereby he makes himself the head
of all the good, it follows that the Universal
Church falls from its standing (which God
forbid), when he who is called Universal falls,
but fir from Christian hearts be that name of
blasphemy, in which the honour of all priests
is taken away, while it is madly arrogated to
himself by one.

Certainly, in honour of Peter, Prince of the
apostles, it was offered by the venerable synod
of Chalcedon to the Roman pontiff1. But
none of them has ever consented to use this
name of singularity, lest, by something being
given peculiarly to one, priests in general
should be deprived of the honour due to them.
How is it then that we do not seek the glory
of this title even when offered, and another

1 Cf. V. 18, and note 5.

EPISTLE XXI.

171

presumes to seize it for himself though not
offered ?

He, then, is rather to be bent by the man-
date of our most pious Lords, who scorns to
render obedience to canonical injunctions. He
is to be coerced, who does wrong to the holy
Universal Church, who swells in heart, who
covets rejoicing in a name of singularity, who
also puts himself above the dignity of your
Empire through a title peculiar to himself.

Behold, we all suffer offence for this thing.
Let then the author of the offence be brought
back to a right way of life ; and all quarrels of
priests will cease. For I for my part am the
servant of all priests, so long as they live as
becomes priests. For whosoever, through the
swelling of vain glory, lifts up his neck against
Almighty God and against the statutes of the
Fathers, I trust in Almighty God that he will
not bend my neck to himself, not even with
swords.

Moreover what has been done in this city
on our hearing of this title, I have indicated in
full to my deacon and responsalis Sabin-
ianus. Let then the piety of my Lords think
of me as their own, whom they have always
cherished and countenanced beyond others,
and who desire to render obedience to you,
and yet fear to be found guilty in the heavenly
and tremendous judgment, and, according to
the petition of the aforesaid deacon Sabinianus,
let my most pious Lord either deign to judge
this business, or to move the often before
mentioned man to desist at length from this
attempt. If then through the most just judg-
ment of your Piety he should comply with your
orders, even though they be mild ones, we
shall return thanks to Almighty God, and
rejoice for the peace granted through you to
all the Church. But should he persist any
longer in his present contention, we hold this
sentence of the Truth to be already made good;
Every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled
(Luke xiv. n; xviii. 14)- And again it is
written, Before a fall the heart is lifted up (Prov.
xvi. 18). I however, rendering obedience to
the commands of my Lords, have both written
sweetly to my aforesaid fellow-priest, and
humbly admonished him to amend himself of
this coveting of empty glory. If therefore he
be willing to hear me, he has a devoted brother.
But, if he persists in pride, I already see what
will follow : — that he will find Him as his
adversary of whom it is written, God resisteth
the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble (Jam.
iv. 6).

EPISTLE XXI.

To CONSTANTINA AUGUSTA2.

Gregory to Constantina, &c.

Almighty God, who holds in His right hand
the heart of your Piety, both protects us through
you and prepares for you rewards of eternal
remuneration for temporal deeds. For I have
learnt from the letters of the, deacon Sabinianus
my res pon salt's with what justice your Serenity
is interested in the cause of the blessed Prince
of the apostles Peter against certain persons
who are proudly humble and feignedly kind.
And I trust in the bounty of our Redeemer
that for these your good offices with the most
serene Lord and his most pious sons you will
receive retribution also in the heavenly country.
Nor is there any doubt that you will receive
eternal benefits, being loosed from the chains
of your sins, if in the cause of his Church you
have made him your debtor to whom the power
of binding and of loosing has been given . Where-
fore I still beg you to allow no man's hypocrisy
to prevail against the truth, since there are
some who, according to the saying of the
excellent preacher, by sweet words and fair
speeches seduce the hearts of the innocent, —
men who are vile in raiment, but puffed up in
heart. And they affect to despise all things in
this world, and yet seek to acquire for them-
selves all the things that are of this world.
They confess themselves unworthy before all
men, but cannot be content with private titles,
since they covet that whereby they may seem
to be more worthy than all. Let therefore
your Piety, whom Almighty God has appointed
with our most serene Lord to be over the
whole world, through your favouring of justice
render service to Him from whom you have
received your right to so great a dominion,
that you may rule over the world that is
committed to you so much the more securely
as you more truly serve the Author of all things
in the execution of truth.

Furthermore, I inform you that I have
received a letter from the most pious Lord
desiring me to be pacific towards my brother
and fellow-priest John. And indeed so it
became the religious Lord to give injunctions
to priests. But, when this my brother with
new presumption and pride calls himself
universal bishop, having caused himself in the
time of our predecessor of holy memory to be
designated in synod by this so proud a title,
though all the acts of that synod were abrogated,

2 The main purport of this letter to the Empress is to induce
her to move the Emperor to disallow the title of Universal B shop
assumed hy the patriarch of Constantinople ; but at the end of the
letter he takes occasion to solicit her good offices also in the case
of Maximus, bishop of Salona, for an account of which, with
references to other letters on the subject, cf. III. 47, note 2.

172

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

being disallowed by the Apostolic See, — the
most serene Lord gives me a somewhat dis-
tressing intimation, in that he has not rebuked
him who is acting proudly, but endeavours to
bend me from my purpose, who in this cause
of defending the truth of the Gospels and
Canons, of humility and rectitude ; whereas my
aforesaid brother and fellow-priest is acting
against evangelical principles and also against
the blessed Apostle Peter, and against all the
churches, and against the ordinances of the
Canons. But the Lord, in whose hands are
all things, is almighty ; of Him it is written,
There is no wisdom nor prudence nor counsel
against the Lord (Prov. xxi. 30). And indeed
my often before mentioned most holy brother
endeavours to persuade my most serene Lord
of many things : but well I know that all those
prayers of his and all those tears will not allow
my Lord to be in any thing cajoled by any one
against reason or his own soul.

Still it is very distressing, and hard to be
borne with patience, that my aforesaid brother
and fellow- bishop, despising all others, should
attempt to be called sole bishop. But in this
pride of his what else is denoted than that the
times of Antichrist are already near at hand ?
For in truth he is imitating him who, scorning
social joy with the legions of angels, attempted
to start up to a summit of singular eminence,
saying, I will exalt my throne above the stars of
heaven, 1 wiil sit upon the mount of the testament,
in the sides of the North, and will ascend above
the heights 0/ the clouds, and I will be like t In-
most High (Isai. xiv. 13). Wherefore I bese< 1 h
you by Almighty God not to allow the times of
your Piety to be polluted by the elation of one
man, nor in any way to give any assent to so
perverse a title, and that in this < ase your Piety
may by no means despise me; since, though
the sins of Gregory are so great that he ought
to suffer such things, yet there are no sins of
the Apostle Peter that he should deserve in
your times to suffer thus. Wherefore again
and again I beseech you by Almighty God
that, as the princes your ancestors have sought
the favour of the holy Apostle Peter, so you
also take heed both to seek it for yourselves
and to keep it, and that his honour among you
be in no degree lessened on account of our
sins who unworthily serve him, seeing that he
is able both to be your helper now in all things
and hereafter to remit your sins.

Moreover, it is now even seven years that
we have been living in this city among the J
swords of the Lombards. How much is ex-
pended on them daily by this Church, that we
may be able to live among them, is not to be
told. But I briefly indicate that, as in the
regions of Ravenna' the Piety of my Lords has

for the first army of Italy a treasurer (sacella-
riuni) to defray the daily expenses for recurring
needs, so I also in this city am their treasurer
for such purposes And yet this Church,
which at one and the same time unceasingly
expends so much on clergy, monasteries, the
poor, the people, and in addition on the Lom-
bards, lo it is still pressed down by the afflic-
tion of all the Churches, which groan much
for this pride of one man, though they do not
presume to say anything.

Further, a bishop of the city of Salona has
been ordained without the knowledge of me
and my responsalis, and a thing has been done
which never happened under any former
princes. When I heard of this, I at once sent
word to that prevaricator, who had been
irregularly ordained, that he must not presume
by any means to celebrate the solemnities of
mass, unless we should have first ascertained
from our most serene Lords that they had
ordered this to be done ; and this I com-
manded him under pain of excommunication.
And yet, scorning and despising me, supported
by the audacity of certain secular persons, to
whom he is said to give many bribes so as to
impoverish his Church, he presumes up to this
time to celebrate mass, and has refused to
come to me according to the order of my
Lords. Now I, obeying the injunction of
their Piety, have from my heart forgiven this
same Maxnnus, who had been ordained without
my knowledge, his presumption in passing over
me and my responsalis in his ordination, even
as though he had been ordained with my
authority. But his other wrong doings — to wit
his bodily transgressions, which I have heard
of, and his having been elected through bribery,
and his having presumed to celebrate mass
while excommunicated — these things, for the
sake of God, I cannot pass over without en-
quiry. But I hope, and implore the Lord,
that no fault may be found in him with respect
to these things that are reported, and that his
case may be term nated without peril to my
soul. Nevertheless, before this has been as-
certained, my most serene Lord, in the order
that has been despatched, has enjoined me to
receive him with honour when he comes. And
it is a very serious thing that a man of whom
so many things of such a nature are reported
should be honoured before such things have
been enquired into and sifted, as they ought
in the first place to be. And, if the causes of
the bishops who are committed to me are
settled before my most pious Lords under the
patronage of others, what shall I do, unhapj y
that I am, in this Church ? But that my
bishops despise . me, and have recourse to
secular judges against me, I give thanks to

EPTSTLE XXIX.

173

Almighty God that I attribute it to my sins.
This however I briefly intimate, because I am
waiting for a little while: and, if he should
long delay coming to me, I shall in no wise
hesitate to exercise strict canonical discipline
in his case. But I trust in Almighty God, that
He will give long life to our most pious Lords,
and order things for us under your hand, not
according to our sins, but according to the
gifts of His grace. These things, then, I sug-
gest to my most tranquil lady, since I am not
ignorant with how great zeal for rectitude the
most pure conscience of her Serenity is moved.

EPISTLE XXIII.
To Castor 1 us, Notary.

Gregory to Castorius, &c.

Our hearing of the death of our brother and
fellow-bishop John 3 has greatly saddened us,
especially as that city at this time has lost the
solace of pastoral care. Wherefore, since very
many advantages to the Church itself demand
that, under the guidance of Christ, a priest
should be ordained without delay, we accord-
ingly charge thy Experience to exhort the
clergy and people with all urgency that they
delay not to elect for themselves a priest to be
consecrated. This however, and before all
things, we desire thee to press upon them, that
in the general cause they regard not their own
private interests. Let there be no venality,
then, in this election, lest, while they covet
rewards, they lose their discrimination of choice,
and think that man worthy for this office who
may have pleased them, not by his merits, but
by his gifts. For let them especially and
absolutely know this, that he is not only un-
worthy of the priesthood, but will also certainly
become further culpable, whosoever may pre-
sume to make merchandise of the gift of God
by thinking to purchase it for a price. Where-
fore let not him that is liberal in bribes, but
him that is worthv for his merits, be chosen.
For the penalty will affect both the elected and
the electors, if they attempt with sacrilegious
mind to violate the purity of the priesthood.
Moreover, whether one or two may have been
elected, by all means warn five of the senior
presbyters and five of the leading people 4 to
come to us together. But with respect to the
clergy, if, besides those who determine to come,
you are of opinion that the presence of any
others is necessary, send them to us without
delay, that there may be no plea of excuse, nor
any delay ensue, in setting the Church in order.

3 Viz. John, bishop of Ravenna, as to whom see III. 56, 57;
V. 11, 15. Marinianus was elected in his place. See VI. 34, 61.

4 De prcecedentibus. Al. de pracedentious diaconibus.

EPISTLE XXV.

To Severus, Bishop.

Gregory to Severus, Bishop of Ficulum.

The report that has been sent to us has
informed us of the death of the bishop John 5.
Wherefore we solemnly delegate to thy Fra-
ternity the work of the visitation of the be-
reaved Church : which work it becomes thee
so to execute that no one may presume to
interfere with respect to the promotions of the
clergy, the revenues, ornaments, ministrations,
or whatever else belongs to the patrimony of
the same Church. According to custom.

EPISTLE XXVI.

To THE PEOPLE OF RAVENNA.

Gregory to the clergy, gentry, and common
people of Ravenna6.

Having been informed of the death of your
bishop, we have taken care to delegate to our
brother and fellow-bishop Severus of Ficulum
the visitation of the bereaved Church, to whom
we have given in charge to allow nothing with
respect to the promotions of the clergy, the
revenues, ornaments, and ministrations, to be
usurped by any one. It is for you to render
obedience to his assiduous exhortations. Ac-
cording to custom.

EPISTLE XXIX.
To Vincomalus, Guardian {De/ensorem) t.

Gregory to Vincomalus, Szc.

With a view to the advantage of the Church
it is our will and pleasure, that, if thou art
held bound by no condition of, or liability
to, bodily service, and hast not been a cleric
of any other city, and if there is no canonical
objection to thee, thou take the office of
guardian of the Church, that thou mayest
execute incorruptly and with alacrity whatever
may be enjoined thee by us for the benefit
of the poor, using this privilege which after
deliberation we have conferred upon thee, so
as to do thy diligence faithfully in accomplish-
ing all that may be enjoined on thee by us,
as having to render an account of thy doings
under the judgment of our God. This epistle
we have dictated, to be committed to writing,
to Paterius, notary of our Church; In the
month of March, Indiction 13.

5 Viz. John, bishop of Ravenna. See Ep. 23.

6 Cf. II. 6, note 3.

7 We have in this epistle the form of appointment to the office
of Defensor Ecclesicz. Cf. XI. 38. From IX. 62 it appears that
the functions of the office had in some cases been usurped by
persons not duly authorized, as it is there ordered that none
should be recognized but such as possessed letters of appointment.
The only duties of the office specified in this form of appointment
have reference to the poor — "pro pai'perum commodis ; " but it
is evident from the many epistles addies:-ed to defenscres, that
they had a much wider scope. See Prolego7>iena, p. vii.

174

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE XXX.

To Mauricius Augustus.

Gregory to Mauricius, &c.

The Piety of my Lords, which has been
wont mercifully to sustain your servants, has
shone forth here in so kind a supply that the
need of all the feeble has been relieved by the
succour of your bounty. On this account we
all with prayers and tears beseech Almighty
God, who has moved the heart of your Cle
mency to do this thing, that He would pre-
serve the empire of our Lords safe in His
unfailing love, and by the aid of His own
majesty extend their victories in all nations.
The thirty pounds of gold which my fellow-
servant Busa brought, Scribo 8 has distributed
faithfully to priests, persons in need, and
others. And, since certain females devoted
to a religious life {sanctimoniahs farnina) have
come to this city from divers provinces, ha
fled hither after captivity, of whom some, so
far as there was room for them, have been
placed in monasteries, but others, who could
not be taken in, lead a life of singular desti
tution, it has been thought that what

could be spared from the relief of the blind,
maimed and feeble should be distributed to
them, so that not only needy natives, but
strangers who arrive here, might receive of the
compassion of our Lords. Hence it has been
brought about that all alike with one a< i
pray for the life of our lords, that mi Almighty
God may give you a long and quiet life, and
grant to the most happy offspring of your
Piety to flourish long in the Roman republic.
The pay also of the soldiers has been
tributed by my aforesaid fellow-servant Scribo8,
in the presence also of the »tus,

■snagister militum, that all received with thanks
the gifts of our lords under due discipline, and
abstained from all murmuring such as was
formerly wont to prevail among them.

EPISTLE XXXVI.

To Severus. Scholasticus.

Gregory to Severus, Scholasticus to the
Exarch 9.

Those who assist judges and are bound to
them by sincere attachment ought to advise
them and suggest to them what may both save
their souls and not derogate from their reputa-
tion. This being so, since we know with

8 Pr Scribo may be the official designation of the ofi'icer
commissioned to distribute the imperial "bounty. Cf. II. t.2,
note 7. J i

9 " Scholasticus— Quivis eloquens, disertus, oratorio facili-
tates etpolitiaris literature studiiseruditus. — Advocatus, patronus,
qui causam in foro agit ; sed proprie peritus, eloquens, disertus
patronus (Corf. Theod)." [D'Arnis' Lexicon Manuale.] Severus
may be concluded to have been the Exarch's legal adviser.

what sincere loyalty you love the most excel-
lent Exarch, we have been careful to inform
your Greatness of the things that have been
done, that, being aware of them, you may
move him to assent' to them reasonably.

Know then that Agilulph, King of the
Lombards, is not unwilling to conclude a
general peace, if only the lord Patricius will
consent to an arbitration. For he complains
that many acts of violence were committed
in his regions during the time of peace. And
since, if reasonable grounds for arbitration
should be found, he desires to have satis-
faction made to himself, he also himself
promises to make satisfaction in all ways,
if it should appear that any wrong was com-
mitted on his side during the peace. Since
then it is no doubt reasonable to agree to
what he asks, there ought to be an arbitration,
that, if any wrongs have been done on either
si le, they may be adjusted; so that it may
be possible, with the protection of God, to
ilish a general peace ; for how necessary
for us all this is you well know. Act there-
fore wisely as you have been wont to do, that
the most excellent Exarch may consent to this
without delay, lest peace should appear to
be refused by him, as should not be. For,
should he be unwilling to consent, he indeed
lulph] again promises to conclude a special
peace with us ; but we know that divers islands
and other places would undoubtedly in that
be ruined. 1 lowever, let him [the F.xarch]
consider these things, and hasten to make
peace, to the end that at any rate during this
sation of hostilities we may have some
degree of quiet, and the forces of the republic
with the help of God be the better re-
paired for resistance.

EPISTLE XXXIX.

To Anastasius, Pishop1.

Gregory to Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch.
Glory to God in the highest and on earth
peace to men of good will (Luke ii. 14), because
that great river which once had left the rocks
of Antioch dry has returned at length to its
proper channel, and waters the subject valleys
that are near, so as also to bring forth fruit,
some thirty-fold, some sixty-fold, and some
an hundred-fold. For now there is no doubt
that many flowers of souls are growing up
in its valleys, and that they will come even
to ripe fruit through the streams of your
tongue. Wherefore with voice of heart and
mouth from our inmost soul we render due

» See I. 7, note 5. Anastasius had now been recently restored
to his patriarchal see.

EPISTLE XL.

175

praise to Almighty God, and rejoice in your
Blessedness, not with you only, but with all
who are subject to you. I have received the
letters of your Holiness, to me most sweet
and pleasant, while we ourselves, if I may so
speak, are sweating under the same toil with
you. And indeed I know how heavy must
be to thee the burden of external cares after
those heights of rest, wherein with the hand
of the heart thou wert touching heavenly
secrets. But remember that thou rulest an
Apostolic See, and assuagest sorrow the more
readily from being made all things to all men.
In the Books of Kings, as your accomplished
Holiness knows, a certa'n man is described
who used either hand for the right hand
(i Chron. xii. 2). And, with regard to this,
I am not doubtful about the lord Anastasius,
of old my most sweet and most holy patron,
that, while he draws earthly works to heavenly
profit, he turns the left hand to the right hand's
use ; so that his heavenly intentness may
accomplish its work, so to speak, with the
right hand, and also, when he is led in his
care of temporal things towards the interests
of justice, the left hand may acquire the
strength of the right.

And indeed these things cannot be without
heavy labour and trouble. But let us remem-
ber the labours of those who went before us ;
and what we endure will not be hard. For
We i/iust through many tribulations enter into
the kingdom of God (Acts xiv. 22). And, We
were pressed out of measure, yea and above
strength, insomuch that ive were weary even
of life. But we ourselves, too, had the answer
of death in ourselves, that ive should not trust
in ourselves (2 Cor. i. 8, 9). And yet The
sufferings of this present time are not worthy
to be compared 7vith the supervening glory which
shall be revealed in us (Rom. viii. 18). How
then can we that are weak sheep pass without
labour through the heat of this world wherein
we know that even rams have suffered under
heavy toil ?

Further, what tribulations I suffer in this
land from the swords of the Lombards, from
the iniquities of judges, from the press of
business, from the care of subjects, and also
from bodily affliction, I am unable to express
either by pen or tongue. Concerning which
things even though I might say something
briefly, I hesitate, lest to your most holy
Charity, while afflicted by your own tribu-
lations, I should add mine also. But may
Almighty God both in the abundance of His
loving-kindness fill the mind of your most
holy Blessedness with all comfort, and grant
at some time, on account of your intercession,
to unworthy me to rest irom these evils which

I suffer. Amen. Grace. These words, as
you see, taken from what you had written
I insert in my epistles, that your Blessedness
may perceive with regard to Saint Ignatius
that he is not only yours, but also ours2.
For, as we have his master, the Prince of the
apostles in common, so also no one of us
ought to have to himself alone the disciple of
this same Princes. Moreover, we have re-
ceived your blessing 4, which is of sweet smell
and of a good savour, with the feelings that
were due to it. And we give thanks to
Almighty God that what you do, what you
say, and what you give, is fragrant and savoury.
For your life therefore let us say together, let
us say all, Glory to God in the highest, and
on earth peace to men of good will.

EPISTLE XL.
To Mauricius Augustus.

Gregory to Mauricius, &c.

The Piety of my Lords in their most serene
commands, while set on refuting me on certain
matters, in sparing me has by no means spared
me. For by the use therein of the term sim-
plicity they politely call me silly. It is true
indeed that in Holy Scripture, when simplicity
is spoken of in a good sense, it is often care-
fully associated with prudence and uprightness.
Hence it is written of the blessed Job, The
man was simple and upright (Job i. 1). And
the blessed Apostle Paul admonishes saying,
Be ye simple in evil and prudent in good
Rom. xvi. 19). And the Truth in person)
admonishes saying, Be ye prudent as serpents,
and simple as doves (Matth. x. 16) ; thus shew-
ing it to be very unprofitable if either prudence
should be wanting to simplicity, or simplicity
to prudence. In order, then, to make His
servants instructed for all things He desired
them to be both simple as cloves, and prudent
as serpents, that so both the cunning of the
serpent might sharpen in them the simplicity
of the dove, and the simplicity of the dove
temper the cunning of the serpent.

I therefore, who am denounced in the most
serene commands of my Lords as simple with-
out the addition of prudence, as having been
deceived by the cunning of Ariulpn, am
plainly and undoubtedly called silly ; which
I also myself acknowledge to be the case.
For, though your Piety were silent, the facts

2 The expression is found in the spurious, but not in what are
held to be the genuine, epistles of St. Ignatius.

3 For Gregory's view of Antioch having been St. Peter's see
previously to his presiding over that of Rome, and of the se«
of Rome, Alexandria, and Antioch jointly representing th- ee of
the Prince of the Apostles, see especially VII. 40. Cf- also VI. 60 ;
VIII. 2; X. 35.

4 Benedictio, meaning a present. See IV. 31, note 9.

176

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

cry out. For, if I had not been silly, I should
by no means have come to endure what 1
suffer in this place among the swords of the
Lombards. Moreover, in what I stated about
Ariulph, that he was prepared with all his
heart to come to terms with the republic,
seeing that I am not believed, I am reproved
also as having lied. But, although I am not
a priest 5, I know it to be a grave injury to a
priest that, being a seivant of the truth, he
should be believed to be deceitful. And I
have been for some time aware that Nordulph
is believed before me, and Leo before me, and
that now easy credence is given to those who
seem to be in your confidence more than to
my assertions.

And indeed if the captivity of my land were
not increasing day by day, I would gladly pass
over in silence contemnt and ridicule of my-
self. But this does afflict me exceedingly,
that from my bearing the charge of falsehood
it ensues also that Italy is daily led captive
under the yoke of the Lombards. And, while
my representations are in no wise believed, the
strength of the enemy is increasing hugely.
This however I suggest to my most pious
Lord, that he would think anything that is
bad of me, but, with regard to the advantage
of the republic and the cause of the rescue "of
Italy, not easily lend his pious ears to any one,
but believe facts rather than words. More-
over, let not our Lord, in virtue of his earthly
power, too hastily disdain priests, but with
excellent consideration, on account of Him
whose servants they are, so rule over them as
also to pay the reverence that is due to them.
For in Holy Writ priests are sometimes called
gods, and sometimes angels. For even through
Moses it is said of him who is to be put upon
his oath, Bring him unto the gods (Kxod. xxii.
8) j that is unto the priests. And again it
is written, Thou shalt not reviie the gods
(lb. 28), to wit, the priests. And the prophet
says, The priest 's lips shall keep knowledge, and
they shall seek the law at his mouth -for he
is the angel of the Lord of hosts (Malach. ii. 7),
Why, then, should it be strange if your Piety
were to condescend to honour those to whom
even God Himself in His word gives honour,
calling them angels or gods ?

Ecclesiastical history also testifies that, when
accusations in writing against bishops had been
offered to the Prince Constantine of pious
memory, he received indeed the bills of ac- j
cusation, but, calling together the bishops who
had been accused, he burnt before their eyes
the bills which he had received, saying, Ye 'are

5 This may be an ironical allusion to something the Empero
had said in his letter to Gregory.

gods, constituted by the true God. Go, and
settle your causes among you, for it is not fit that
we should judge gods. Yet in this sentence,
my pious Lord, he conferred more on himself
by his humility than on them by the reverence
paid to them. For before him there were
pagan princes in the republic, who knew not
the true God, but worshipped gods of wood
and stone ; and yet they paid the greatest
honour to their priests. What wonder then if
a Christian emperor should condescend to
honour the priests of the true God, when
pagan princes, as we have already said, knew
how to bestow honour on priests who served
gods of wood and stone?

These things, then, I suggest to the piety of
my Lords, not in my own behalf, but in behalf
of all priests. For I am a man that is a sin-
ner. And, since I offend against Almighty God
incessantly every day, I surmise that it will be
some amends for this at the tremendous judg-
ment, that I am smitten incessantly every day
by blows. And 1 believe that you appease the
same Almighty God all the more as you more
severely afflict me who serve Him badly.
For I had already received many blows, and
when the commands of my Lords came in
addition, I found consolations that I was not
hoping for. For, if I can, I will briefly enu-
merate these blows.

First, that the peace which without any cost
to the republic I had made with the Lombards
who were in Tuscany was withdrawn from me.
Then, the peace having been broken, the sol-
diers were removed from the Roman city.
And some indeed were slain by the enemy,
hut others were placed at Narnii and Perusium
(Perugia) ; and Rome was left, that Perusium
might be held. After this a stdl heavier blow
was the arrival of Agilulph, so that I saw with
my own eyes Romans tied by the neck with
ropes like dogs, to be taken to France for sale.
And, Lecause we who were within the city
under the protection of God escaped his hands,
a ground was thence sought for making us
appear culpable ; to wit, because corn ran
short, which cannot by any means be kept
in large quantities for long in this city ; as
I have shewn more fully in another representa-
tion. On my own account indeed I was in no
wise disturbed, since I declare, my conscience
1 e ring me witness, that I was prepared to
sutler any adversity whatever, so long as I
came out of all these things with the safety
of my soul. But for the glorious men, Gregory
the praefect, and Castorius the military com-
mander {magistro militum), I have been dis-
tressed in no small degree, seeing that they
in no way neglected to do all that could be
done, and endured most severe toil in watching

EPISTLE XLI.

177

and guarding the citv during the siege, and,
after all this, were smitten by the heavy indig-
: nation of my Lords. As to them, I clearly
understand that it is not their conduct, but my
person, that goes against them. For, having
with me alike laboured in trouble, they are
alike troubled after labour.

Now as to the Piety of my Lords holding
out over me the formidable and terrible judg-
ment of Almighty God, I beseech you by the
same Almighty God to do this no more. For
as yet we know not how any of us will stand
there. And Paul, the excellent preacher, says,
Judge nothing before the time, until the Lord
come, who both will bring to light the hidden
things of darkness, and will make manifest the
counsels of the hearts (1 Cor. iv. 5). Yet this
I briefly say, that, unworthy sinner as I am,
I rely more on the mercy of Jesus when He
comes than on the justice of your Piety. And
there are many things that men are ignorant of
with regard to this judgment ; for perhaps He
will blame what you praise, and praise what
you blame. Wherefore among all these un-
certainties I return to tears only, praying that
the same Almighty God may both direct our
most pious Lord with His hand and in that
terrible judgment find him free from all de-
faults. And may He make me so to please
men, if need be, as not to offend against His
eternal grace 6.

EPISTLE XLI.

TO CONSTANTINA AUGUSTA.

Gregory to Constantina, &c.

Knowing how my most serene Lady thinks
about the heavenly country and the life of her
soul, I consider that I should be greatly in fault
were I to keep silence on matters that ought
to be represented to her for the fear of God.

Having ascertained that there are many of
the natives in the island of Sardinia who still,
after the evil custom of their race, practise
sacrifices to idols, and that the priests of the
same island are sluggish in preaching our
Redeemer, I sent thither one of the bishops of
Italy, who with the co-operation of the Lord
has brought many of the natives to the faith.
But he has reported to me a sacrilegious
proceeding, namely, that those in the island
who sacrifice to idols pay a bribe to the judge
for license to do this. And, when some of
them had been baptized and had ceased
sacrificing to idols, the same payment had
been exacted by this same judge of the island,

6 For the circumstances referred to in this epistle, see Proleg.,
p. xix. It shews how outspoken Gregory could be, when greatly
moved, in addressing the Emperor, notwithstanding his accus-
tomed deference.

even after their baptism, which they had been
previously accustomed to make for leave to
sacrifice to idols. And, when the aforesaid
bishop found fault with him, he replied that
he had promised so large a suffragium 7 that he
could not make it up except by aid from cases
of this kind. But the island of Corsica is
oppressed by such an excessive number of
exactors and such a burden of exactions, that
those who are in it are hardly able to make up
what is exacted except by selling their children.
Hence it ensues that the proprietors of this
island, deserting the pious republic, are forced
to take refuge with that most wicked nation of
the Lombards. For what can they suffer from
barbarians harder or more cruel than being so
straitened and squeezed as to be compelled to
sell their children? Mcr^over, in the island
of Sicily one Stephen, chariularius of the
maritime parts, is said to practise such ille-
galities and such oppressions, invading places
that belong to various persons, and without
any legal process putting up titles8 on properties
and houses, that, if I wished to tell every one
of his doings that have come to my ears, I could
not accomplish the task in a large volume.

Let my most serene Lady look to all these
things wisely, and assuage the groans of the
oppressed. For I suspect that these things
have not come to your most pious ears. For
if they could have reached them, they would
by no means have continued until now. But
they should be represented now at a suitable
time to our most pious Lord, that he may
remove such and so great a burden of sin from
his own soul, from the empire, and from his
sons. I know he will say that whatever is
collected from the aforesaid islands is trans-
mitted to us for the expenses of Italy. But in
reply to this I suggest that, even though less
expenditure were bestowed on Italy, he should
still rid his empire of the tears of the oppressed.
For perhaps, too, such great expenditure in this
land profits less than it might do because the
money for it is collected with some admixture
of sin. Let therefore our most serene Lords
give orders that nothing be collected with sin.
And I know that, though less is given for the
advantage of the republic, the republic is
thereby much aided. And though perhaps it
may be less aided by a less expenditure, yet it is
better that we should not live temporally, than
that you should find any hindrance in the way
of eternal life. For consider what must be the

7 i.e. the payment to the imperial government required from
judges or other functionaries in consideration of their appoint-
ment. "Suffragium. Pecuniae qua suflragii titulo ab Impe-
ratoribus accipiebantur cum honores deferebant, quse SetnroriKa.
vocantur in formula jurisjurandi.— Novella: Justiniani 8, cujus
titulus est, ut judices sine siijPi agio fiant." Du Cange.

8 Titulos, i.e. notices put upon properties, asserting claim,
or announcing sale, &c.

VOL. XII.

i;8

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

feelings, what the state of heart of parents,
when they part with their children lest they
should be tormented. But how one ought to
feel for the children of others is well known to
those who have children of their own. Let it
then suffice for me to have briefly represented
these things, lest, if your Piety were not to
know what is being done in these parts, I should
suffer for the guilt of my silence before the
strict judge.

EPISTLE XLII.
To Sebastian, Bishop.

Gregory to Sebastian, Bishop of Sirmium.

I have received the most sweet and pleasant
letter of thy Fraternity, which, though you are
never absent from my heart, has nevertheless
made your Holiness as it were present with
me bodily. But I beseech Almighty God to
protect you with His right hand, and to grant
you a tranquil life here, and, when it shall
please Him, eternal rewards. But I beg you,
if you love me with that love wherewith you
always loved me when we were together, to
pray for me more earnestly, that so Almighty
God may loose me from the bands of my sins,
and make me to stand free in His sight, released
from the burden of this corruption. For, how-
ever inestimable be the sweetness of the
heavenly country for drawing one towards it,
yet there are many sorrows in 1 1 1 i - life to in
us daily to the love of heavenly And

these only please me exceedingly from the very
fact that they do not allow an) thing to please
me in this world.

For we can by no means describe, most holy
brother, what we suffer in this land at the
hands of your friend, the lord Romanus?.

to commit to you the government of the Church
in one of his cities, and that you have refused
your assent. This your feeling and your
wisdom I most gladly approve of, and strongly
commend ; and I account you happy, and
myself unhappy in having consented at such
a time as this to undertake the government of
the Church. If, however, by any chance, in
condescension to your brethren, and as being
intent on works of mercy, you should ever
decide to consent to such a proposal, I beg
you by no means to prefer any one else's love
to mine. For there are in the island of Sicily
Churches without bishops, and, if by the
guidance of God you are pleased to take the
government of a Church, you will be able to
do this better near the threshold of the blessed
apostle Peter, with his aid. But if you are not
so pleased, remain happily as you are, that
this resolution may continue in you ; and pray
for us unhappy ones. Now may Almighty God
keep you under His protection, in whatever
place it be His will that you should be, and
bring you to heavenly rewards.

EPISTLE XLITI.
To Eui.ogius and Anastasius, Bishops.

Gregory to Eulogius, Bishop of Alexandria,
and Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch.

When the excellent preacher says, As long
as lam the op vtleoftht Gentiles I will honour
my ministry m. xi. 13) ; saying again in

another place, We became as babes among you
(1 Thess. ii. 7), he undoubtedly shews an
example to us who come after him, that we
should retain humility in our minds, and yet
keep in honour the dignity of our order, so
that neither should our humility be timid nor

Yet I may briefly say that his malice towards our elevation proud. Now eight years ago, in
us has surpassed the swords of the Lombards; the time of my predecessor of holy memory

so that the enemies who kill us seem kinder

Pi lagius, our brother and fellow-bishop John

than the judges of the republic, who by their in the city of Constantinople, seeking occasion

malice, rapines, and deceits wear us out with
anxiety. And to bear at the same time the
charge of bishops and clergy, and also of
monasteries and people, and to watch anxiously
against the plots of the enemy, and to be ever

from another cause, held a synod in which he
attempted to call himself Universal Bishop.
Which as soon as my said predecessor knew,
he despatched letters annulling by the authority
of the holy apo.stle Peter the acts of the said

suspicious of the deceitfulness and malice of synod ; of which letters I have taken care

the dukes ; what labours and what sorrows all
this involves, your Fraternity may the more
truly estimate as you more purely love me
who suffer these things

Furthermore, while addressing you with the
greeting that I owe you, 1 inform you that it
has come to my knowledge from the report of
Boniface the defensor, that our brother the most
holy lord Anastasius the patriarch x has wished

9 Romanus Patricius, the Exarch.
1 Viz. of Antioch.

to send copies to your Holiness. Moreover
he forbade the deacon who attended us the
most pious Lords for the business of the
Church to celebrate the solemnities of mass
with our aforesaid fellow-priest. I also, being
of the same mind with him, have sent similar
letters to our aforesaid fellow-priest, copies
of which I have thought it right to send to
your Blessedness, with this especial purpose,
that we may first assail with moderate force
the mind of our before-named brother con-

EPISTLE XLIII.

1/9

cerning this matter, wherein by a new act
of pride, all the bowels of the Universal
Church are disturbed. But, if he should alto-
gether refuse to be bent from the stiffness
of his elation, then, with the succour of Al-
mighty God, we may consider more particularly
what ought to be done.

For, as your venerable Holiness knows,
this name of Universality was offered by the
holy synod of Chalcedon to the pontiff of the
Apostolic See which by the providence of God
I serve 2. But no one of my predecessors has
ever consented to use this so profane a title ;
since, forsooth, if one Patriarch is called
Universal, the name of Patriarch in the case
of the rest is derogated. But far be this, far
be it from the mind of a Christian, that any
one should wish to seize for himself that
whereby he might seem in the least degree to
lessen the honour of his brethren. V\ hile,
then, we are unwilling to receive this honour
when offered to us, think how disgraceful it is
for any one to have wished to usurp it to him-
self perforce.

Wherefore let not your Holiness in your
epistles ever call any one Universal, lest you
detract from the honour due to yourself in
offering to another what is not due. Nor let
any sinister suspicion make your mind uneasy
with regard to our most serene lords, inasmuch
as he fears Almighty God, and will in no way
consent to do anything against the evangelical
ordinances, against the most sacred canons.
As for me, though separated from you by long
spaces of land and sea, I am nevertheless
entirely conjoined with you in heait. And
I trust that it is so in all respects with your
Blessedness towards me ; since, when you
love me in return, you are not far from me.
Hence we give thanks the more to that grain
of mustard seed (Matth. xiii. 31, 32), for that
from what appeared a small and despicable
seed it has been so spread abroad everywhere
by branches rising and extending themselves
from the same root that all the birds of heaven
may make their nests in them. And thanks
be to that leaven which, in three measures of
meal, has leavened in unity the mass of the
whole human race (Matth. xiii. 33); and to
the little stone, which, cut out of the mountain
without hands, has occupied the whole face of
the earth (Dan. ii. 35), and which to this end
everywhere distends itself, that from the human
race reduced to unity the body of the whole
Church might be perlected, and so this distinc-
tion between the several members might serve
for the benefit of the compacted whole.

Hence also we are not far from you, since

a Cf. V. 18, and note.

in Him who is everywhere we are one. Let
us .then give thanks to Him who, having
abolished enmities, lias caused that in His
flesh there should be in the whole world one
flock, and one sheepfold under Himself the
one shepherd; and let us be ever mindful how
the preacher of truth admonishes us, saying,
Be careful to keep the unity of the spirit in the
bond of peace (Ephes. iv. 3), and, Follow peace
zvith all men, and holiness, without which no
man shall see God (Hebr. xii. 14). And he
says also to other disciples, If it be possible,
as much as lieth in you, having peace with all
men (Rom. xii. 18) For he sees that the good
cannot have peace with the bad ; and therefore,
as ye know, he premised, If it be possible.

But, because' peace cannot be established
except on two sides, when the bad fly from it,
the good ought to keep it in their inmost
hearts. Whence also it is admirably said,
As much as lieth in you ; meaning that it
should remain in us even when it is repelled
from the hearts of evil men. And such peace
we truly keep, when we treat the faults of the
proud at once with charity and with persistent
justice, when we love them and hate their
vices. For man is the work of God ; but vice
is the work of man. Let us then distinguish
between what God and what man has made,
and neither hate the man on account of his
error nor love the error on account of the
man.

Let us then -with united mind attack the
evil of pride in the man, that from his enemy,
that is to say his error, the man himself may
first be freed. Our Almighty Redeemer will
supply strength to charity and justice; He
will supply to us, though placed far from each
other, the unity of His Spirit ; even He by
whose workmanship the Church, having been
constructed as it were after the manner of the
ark with the four sides of the world, and bound
together with the compacture of incorruptible
planks and the pitch of charity, is disturbed
by no opposing winds, by the swelling ot no
billow coming from without.

But inasmuch as, with His grace steering us,
we ought to seek that no wave coming upon
us from without may throw us into confusion,
so ought we to pray with all our hearts, dearest
brethren, that the right hand of His providence
may draw out the accumulation of internal
bilgewater within us. For indeed our adver-
sary the devil, who, in his rage against the
humble, as a roaring lion walketh about seek-
ing whom he may devour (1 Pet. v. 8), no
longer, as we perceive, walks about the folds
but so resolutely fixes his teeth in certain
necessary members of the Church that, unless
with the favour of the Lord, the heedful crowd

N 2

I So

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

of shepherds unanimously run to the rescue,
no one can doubt that he will soon tear all
the sheepfold ; which God forbid. Consider,
dearest brethren, who it is that follows close at
hand, of whose approach such perverse be-
ginnings are breaking out even in priests. For
it is because he is near of whom it is written,
He is king over all the sons of pride (Job xli.
25) — not without sore grief I am compelled to
say it — that our brother and fellow-bishop
John, despising the Lord's commands, apos-
tolical precepts, and rules of Fathers, attempts
through elation to be his forerunner in name.

But may Almighty God make known to your
Blessedness with what sore groaning 1 am
tormented by this consideration ; that he, the
once to me most modest man, he who was
beloved of all, he who seemed to be occupied
in alms, deeds, prayers, and fastings, out of
the ashes he sat in, out of the humility he
preached, has grown so boastful as to attempt
to claim all to himself, and through the elation
of a pompous expression to aim at subjugating
to himself all the members of Christ, whii h
cohere to one Head only, that is to Christ.
Nor is it surprising that the same tempter
who knows pride to be the beginning of all sin,
who used it formerly before all else in the case
of the first man, should now also put it before
some men at the end of virtues, so as to lay it
as a snare for those who to some extent
seemed to be escaping his most cruel hands
by the good aims of their life, at the verj goal
of good work, and as it were in the very con-
clusion of perfection.

Wherefore we ought to pray earnestly, and
implore Almighty God with continual supplica-
tions, that He would avert this error from that
man's soul, ami remove this mischief of pride
and confusion from the unity and humility
of the Church. And with the favour of the
Lord we ought to concur, and make provision
with all our powers, lest in the poison of one
expression the living members in the body
of Christ should die. For, if this expression
is suffered to be allowably used, the honour
of all patriarchs is denied : and while he that
is called Universal perishes pei chance in his
error, no bishop will be found to have remained
in a state of truth.

It is for you then, firmly and without pre-
judice, to keep the Churches as you have
received them, and not to let this attempt at a
diabolical usurpation have any countenance
from you. Stand firm ; stand secure ; presume
not ever to issue or to receive writings with the
falsity of the name Universal in them. Bid
all the bishops subject to your care abstain
from the defilement of this elation, that the
Universal Church may acknowledge you as

Patriarchs not only in good works but also in
the authority of truth. But, if perchance ad-
versity is the consequence, we ought to persist
unanimously, and shew even by dying that in
case of harm to the generality we do not love
anything of our own especially. Let us say
with Paul, To vie to live is Christ, and to die is
gain (Philip, i. 21). Let us hear what the
first of all pastors says; If ye suffer anything
for righteousness' sake, happy are ye (1 Pet.
iii. 14). For believe me that the dignity
which we have received for the preaching of
the truth we shall more safely relinquish than
retain in behalf of the same truth, should case
of necessity require it. Finally, pray for me,
as becomes your most dear Blessedness, that
I may shew forth in works what I am thus
bold to say to you.

EPISTLE XLVIIT.
To Andrew, Scholasticus3.

Gregory to Andrew, i\;c.

We have been desirous of carrying out the
wish of the most excellent the lord Patrician
as to the person of Donatus, the archdeacon;
but, seeing that it is very dangerous to the
soul to lay hands on any one rashly, we took
to examine by a thorough investigation
into his life and deeds. And, since many
things have been discovered, as we have written
to the said lord Patrician, which remove him
far from the episcopate, we, fearing the judg-
ment of God, have not thought fit to consent to
1 rdination. But neither have we presumed
to ordain John, the presbyter, who is ignorant
of the psalms, since this circumstance certainly
shewed him to be too little in earnest about
himself. These, then, being excluded, when
we had urged the parties to choose some one
from among their own people ■•, and they
declared that they had no one fit for this
office, and when we together with them were
the more distressed, they at length, with one
common voice and consent, repeatedly solicited
our venerable brother the presbyter Marinianus,
who they learnt had been associated with me
for a long time in a monastery. He, shrinking
from the office, was at last, by various means,
with difficult}' persuaded to give assent to their
petition. And, since we were well acquainted
with his life, and knew him to be solicitous in
winning souls, we did not delay his ordination.
Let, therefore, your Glory receive him as is

3 On the term " Scholasticus," see V. 36, note 9. It appears
from this and other epistles that persons thus designated were
addressed as "Gloria vestra." The "Patrician" mentioned in
this letter as having recommended the Archdeacon Donatus to
succeed John as Archbishop of Ravenna, was Romanus Patri-
cius, Exarch of Italy, who died A.r>. 598. He is often addressed
or referred to in the Kpistles. See Index.

4 See above, V. 23.

EPISTLE LII.

181

becoming, and extend to his newness the aid
of your succour. For to all, as you know,
newness in any office whatever is very trying.
But I have great confidence that Almighty God,
who has vouchsafed to put him over His flock,
will both stimulate him to give heed to what
is inward, and comfort him with the loving-
kindness of His grace for administering what is
outward. But, inasmuch as, after his long
enjoyment of quiet, his newness, as we have
before said, will without doubt expose him to
perturbation, I beg that, when he shall come
to you flying from the whirlwinds of secular
storms, he may always find in your heart a
haven of rest, and be cheered by the boon of
your charity. But you will soon learn how
much you will find yourselves able to agree ;
for he comes unwillingly to the episcopate 5.

EPISTLE XLIX.
To Leander, Bishop.

Gregory to Leander, Bishop of Hispalis
(Seville).

With what ardour I am athirst to see thee
thou readest in the tables of thine own heart,
since thou lovest me exceedingly. But since
I cannot see thee, separated as thou art from
me by long tracts of country, I have done what
charity towards thee dictated, namely to trans-
mit to thy Holiness, on the arrival here of our
common son Probinus the presbyter, the book
of Pastoral Rule, which I wrote at the com-
mencement of my episcopate, and the books
which thou knewest I had already composed
on the exposition of the blessed Job. Some
sheets indeed of the third and fourth parts of
that work I have not sent to thy Charity,
having already given those sheets only of the
said parts to monasteries. These, then, which
I send let thy Holiness earnestly peruse, and
more earnestly deplore my sins, lest it be to
my more serious blame that I am seen as
it were to know what I omit to do. But with
how great tumults of business I am oppressed
in this Church the very brevity of my epistle
will signify to thy Charity, teeing that I say so
little to him whom more than all I love.

EPISTLE LII.
To John, Archbishop.

Gregory to John, Archbishop of the Corin-
thians.

The equity and solicitude of Secundinus our
brother and fellow-bishop, which had been
well known to us of old, is shewn also by the
tenor of your letters. In this matter he has

S For subsequent notices of Marinianus, see Index.

greatly pleased us, and made us glad, in that
in the cause of Anastasius6, once bishop, which
we charged him to enquire into, he has both
exercised his vigilance diligently and judged the
crimes that were discovered as justice required,
and as was right. But in all these things we
return thanks to Almighty God for that, when
certain accusers held back, He brought the
truth to his knowledge, lest the originator
of such great crimes should escape detection.
But seeing that, in the sentence wherein it is
evident that the above-named Anastasius has
been justly condemned and deposed, our above-
named brother and fellow-bishop has visited
the offence of certain persons in such a manner
as to reserve them for our judgment, we there-
fore have seen fit to signify by this present
epistle what is to be held to and observed con-
cerning them.

As to Paul the deacon then, the bearer of
these presents, although his fault is exceed-
ingly to his shame and discredit — namely,
that deluded by promises, he held back from
accusation of his late bishop who has been
lately deposed, and that, in the eagerness of
cupidity, he consented, against his own soul, to
keep silence rather than declare the truth —
yet, since it befits us to be more kind than
strict, we pardon him this fault, and decide
that he is to be received again into his rank
and position. For we believe that the affliction
which he has endured since the time of the
sentence being pronounced may suffice for the
punishment of this fault. But as to Euphemius
and Thomas, who received sacred orders for
relinquishing their accusation, it is our will
that they be deprived of these sacred orders,
and, having been deposed from them, so con-
tinue ; and we decree that they shall never,
under any pretext or excuse, be restored to
sacred orders. For it is in the highest degree
improper, and contrary to the rule of ecclesi-
astical discipline, that they should enjoy the
dignity which they have received, not for their
merits, but as the reward of wickedness. Yet,
inasmuch as it is fit for us to incline to mercy
more than to strict justice, it is our will that
the same Euphemius and Thomas be restored
to the rank and position, but to that only,
from which they had been promoted to sacred
orders, and receive during all the days of their
life the stipends of these positions, as they had
been before accustomed. Further, as to
Clematius the reader, I appoint, from a like
motive of benignity, that he is to be restored

6 Anastasius, bishop of the Metropolitan See of Corinth, had
been deposed for some serious crime, the nature of which is not
mentioned, Secundinus, bishop of some other see, hav ing apparently-
been commissioned by Gregory to investigate the charges against
him. John, to whom this letter is addressed had now succeeded
him. See also Epp. LVII., LVIII.

182

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

to his rank and position. To all these also,
that is, to Paul the deacon, to Euphemius,
Thomas, and Clematius, let your Fraternity
take care to supply their emoluments, accord-
ing to the rank and position in which each of
them is, as each has been accustomed to
receive them, from this present thirteenth
indiction without any diminution. Inasmuch,
therefore, as the above-named Paul the deacon
asserts that he expended much for the ad-
vantage of your Church, and desires to be
aided by the succour of your Fraternity for
recovery of the same, we exhort that, if
this is so, you should concur with him in all
possible ways, and support him with your aid,
for recovering what he has given, since no
reason allows that he should unjustly suffer
loss in what he has expended for the advantage
of the generality. Furthermore, let your
Fraternity restore without delay the three
pounds of gold which, at the instance of our
above-named brother and fellow-bishop
Secundinus, it appears that the said Paul the
deacon gave for the benefit of your Church,
lest (which God forbid) you should seem to
burden him, not reasonably, but out of mere
caprice.

EPISTLE LIII.

To Virgilius, Bishop.

Gregory to Virgilius, Bishop of Arelate
{Aries).

O how good is charity, which through an
image in the mind exhibits what is absent
as present to ourselves, through love unites
what is divided, settles what is confused, asso-
ciates things that are unequal, completes things
that are imperfect ! Rightly does the excellent
preacher call it the bond of perfectness; since,
though the other virtues indeed produce per-
fectness, yet still charity binds them together
so that they can no longer be loosened from
the heart of one who loves. Of this virtue,
then, most dear brother, I find thee to be
full, as both those who came from the Gallican
parts and the words also of thy letter addressed
to me testify to me of thee.

Now as to thy having asked therein, accord-
ing to ancient custom, for the use of the
pallium and the vicariate of the Apostolic See,
far be it from me to suspect that thou hast
sought eminence of transitory power, or the
adornment of external worship, in our vicariate
and in the pallium. Bat, since it is well known
to all whence the holy faith proceeded in the
ejons of Gaul, when your Fraternity asks
tor a repetition of the old custom of the Apos-
tolic See, what is it but that a good offspring

reverts to the bosom of its mother ? ' With
willing mind therefore we grant what has been
asked for, lest we should seem either to with-
draw from you anything of the honour due to
you, or to have despised the petition of our
most excellent son king Childebert. But the
present state of things requires the greater
earnestness, that with increase of dignity solici-
tude also may advance, and watchfulness in
the custody of others may grow, and the
merits of your life may serve as an example to
your subjects, and that your Fraternity may
never seek your own through the dignity ac-
corded you, but the gains of the heavenly
country. For you know what the blessed
apostle says, groaning, For all seek their own,
not the things which arc Jesus Christ's (Philip.
ii. 21).

For I have learnt from information given me
by certain persons that in the parts of Gaul
and Germany no one attains to holy orders
except for a consideration given. If this is
so, I say it with tears, I declare it with groans,
that, when the priestly order lias fallen in-
wardly, neither will it be able to stand out-
wardly for long. For we know from the Gospel
what our I ler in person did ; how He

went into the temple, and overthrew the seats
of them that sold doves (Matth. xxi. 12). For
to sell doves is to receive a temporal considera-
tion for the Holy Spirit, whom, being consub-
stantial with Himself, God Almighty gives to
men through the imp isition of hands. From
which evil what follows is already intimated.
For of those who presumed to sell doves in
the tern: le of God the seats fell by God's
judgment.

And m truth this transgression is propagated
with iiM among subordinates. For he

who is promoted to any sacred order for a
price, being already corrupted in the very root
of his advani 1 ment, is the more ready to sell
to others what he has bought. And where is
that which is written. Freely ye have received,
freely give | Matth. x. 8) ?

And, seeing that the simoniacal heresy was

7 Gregory here asserts the view of his day, which after his
manner he takes for granted, that Gaul had derived its Chris-
tianity from Rome. Similarly, long before him, pope Zosimus
(417— 418), writing to the bishops ol Gaul in support 01 the juris-
diction over them of Patroclus of Aries, speaks 01 such jurisdiction
being of ancient right, derived from Trophimus having been sent
from Rome as first bishop of Aries, and all G.iul having received
the stream of faith from that fountain. Gregory of Tours {Hist.
Franc, i. 28), referring to Passio S. Satin nini Efisc. Solos.,
speaks of seven missionary bishops having been sent irom Rome
to Gaul " Decio tt Grato consulibus," i.e. A D. 250, including
Trophimus, who is said to have founded the see of ArloK. But the
see of Aries must have existed before the date assigned, since
it appears from Cyprian (Ep. VI. 7), that in 254 Marcian had
long been its bisl op. And generally, the well-known differences
of the Gallican liturgy and usages from the Roman, to which
pope Gregory himself alludes in his letter to Augustine (XI. 64),
as well as Irenaeus of Lyons, in the second century, being said
to have been a disciple of Polycarp, points to an Asiatic rather
than Roman ori 'in of the Church in Gaul.

EPISTLE LIV.

183

the first to arise against the holy Church, why
is it not considered, why is it not seen, that
whoso ordains any one for money, causes him,
in advancing him, to become a heretic ?

Another very detestable thing has also been
reported to us ; that some persons, being lay-
men, through desire of temporal glory, are
tonsured on the death of bishops, and all at
once are made priests. In such cases it is
already known what manner of man he is who
attains to priesthood, passing suddenly from a
lay estate to sacred leadership. And one who
has never served as a soldier fears not to be-
come a leader of the religious 8. How is
that man to preach who has perhaps never
heard any one else preach ? Or how shall he
correct the ills of others who has never yet
bewailed his own ? And, where Paul the apos-
tle prohibits a neophyte from coming to sacred
orders, we are to understand that, as one was
then called a neophyte who had been newly
planted in the faith, so we now reckon among
neophytes one who is still new in holy con-
versation.

Moreover, we know that walls after being
built, are not made to carry a weight of timber
till they are dried of the moisture of their new-
ness, lest, if a weight be put on them before
they are settled, it bear down the whole fabric
together to the ground. And, when we cut
trees for a building, we wait for the moisture
of their greenness to be first dried out, lest,
if the weight of the fabric is imposed on them
while still fresh, they be bent from their very
newness, and be the sooner broken and fall
down from having been elevated prematurely.
Why, then, is not this scrupulously seen to
among men, which is so carefully considered
I even in the case of timber and stones?

On this account your Fraternity must needs
take care to admonish our most excellent son
king Childebert that he remove entirely the
stain of this sin from his kingdom, to the end
that Almighty God may give him the greater
recompense with Himself as He sees him both
love what He loves and shun what He hates.

And so we commit to your Fraternity, ac-
cording to ancient custom, under God, our
vicariate in the Churches which are under the
dominion of our most excellent son Childe-
bert 9, with the understanding that their proper

8 Relisriosorum. The appellation is applied to persons gene-
rally who gave themselves to a religious life, including monks,
nuns, dedicated virgins, and the like. It must be here taken
to include the clergy.

9 Childebert Ii., the son of Sigebert I. and Brunehild, was
at this time the ruler of nearly all the dominions oi the 1' ranks in
Gaul Having been proclaimed by the Australian nobles king ol
Austrasia on the death of his father, A.u. 575. he acquired also
Burgundy on the death of his uncle Guntramn in 593. ihese
kingdoms at this time comprised by far the greatest part of Gaul,
the kingdom of what was called Neustna under Clotaire 11.
including only a small territory on the north-west coast.

dignity, according to primitive usage, be pre-
served to the several metropolitans. We have
also sent a pallium for thy Fraternity to use
within the Church for the solemnization of
mass only. Further, if any one of the bishops
should by any chance wish to travel to any
considerable distance, let it not be lawful for
him to remove to other places without the
authority of thy Holiness. If any question of
faith, or it may be relating to other matters,
should have arisen among the bishops, which
cannot easily be settled, let it be ventilated
and decided in an assembly of twelve bishops.
But, if it cannot be decided after the truth has
been investigated, let it be referred to our
judgment.

Now may Almighty God keep you under
His protection, and grant unto you to preserve
by your behaviour the dignity that you have
received. Given the 12th day of August,
Indiction 13.

EPISTLE LIV.

To all the Bishops of the Kingdom of

Childebert.

Gregory to all the Bishops of Gaul who are
under the kingdom of Childebert '.

To this end has the provision of the divine
dispensation appointed that there should be
diverse degrees and distinct orders, that, while
the inferiors shew reverence to the more power-
ful and the more powerful bestow love on the
inferiors, one contexture of concord may ensue
of diversity, and the administration of all
several offices may be properly borne. Nor
indeed could the whole otherwise subsist;
unless, that is, a great order of differences
of this kind kept it together. Further, that
creation cannot be governed, or live, in a state
of absolute equality we are taught by the
example of the heavenly hosts, since, there
being angels and also archangels, it is manifest
that they are not equal ; but in power and
rank, as you know, one differs from another.
If then among these who are without sin there
is evidently this distinction, who of men can
refuse to submit himself willingly to this order
of things which he knows that even angels
obey ? For hence peace and charity embrace
each other mutually, and the sincerity of
concord remains firm in the reciprocal love
which is well pleasing to God.

Since, then, each single duty is then salu-
briously fulfilled when there is one president
who may be referred to, we have therefore
perceived it to be opportune, in the Churches
that are under the dominion of our most excel-

< See preceding Epistle, note 9.

1 3*

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

lent son king Childebert, to give our vicariate
jurisdiction, according to ancient custom, to
our brother Virgil ius, bishop of the city of
Arelate, to the end that the integrity of the
catholic faith, that is of the four holy synods,
may be preserved under the protection of God
with attentive devotion, and that, if any con-
tention should by chance arise among our
brethren and fellow-priests, he may allay it by
the vigour of his authority with discreet
moderation, as representing the Apostolic See.
We have also charged him that, if suah a
dispute should arise in any cases as to require
the presence of others, he should assemble our
brethren and fellow-bishops in competent
number, and discuss the matter salubriously
with due regard to equity, and decide it with
canonical integrity. But if a contention (which
may the Divine power avert) should happen
to arise on matters of faith, or any business
come up about which there may peichance be
serious doubt, and he should be in need of
the judgment of the Apostolic See in place of
his own greatness, we have directed him that,
having diligently enquired into the truth, he
should take care to bring the question under
our cognizance by a report from himself, to
the end that it may be terminated by a suit-
able sentence so as to remove all doubt.

And, since it is necessary that the bishops
should assemble at suitable times for conference
before him to whom we have granted our
vicariate jurisdiction as often as he may think
it, we exhort that non^ of you presume to be
disobedient to his orders, or defer attending
the general conclave, unless perchance bodily
infirmity should prevent any one, or a just
excuse in any case should allow his absence.
Yet let such as are unavoidably prevented from
attending the synod send a presbyter or a
deacon in their stead, to the end that the
things that, with the help of God, may be
decided by our vicar, may come to the know-
ledge of him who is absent by a faithful report
through the person whom he had sent, and be
observed with unshaken steadfastness, and that
there be no occasion of excuse for daring to
violate them.

About this also we take the precaution of
warning you, that none of you may attempt in j
any way to depart to places at any great I
distance without the authority of our aforesaid j
brother and fellow-bishop Virgilius, knowing!
that the orders of our predecessors, who
granted vicariate jurisdiction to his predeces-
sors, undoubtedly lay this down.

Furthermore, we exhort that each one of
you give careful attention to his own office,
so that he who desires to receive the reward
promised for feeding the sheep may guard the

flock committed to him with carefulness and
prayer, lest the prowling wolf should invade
and tear the sheep entrusted to him, and there
should be in the retribution punishment in-
stead of reward. We hope, therefore, most
dear brethren, and we entreat Almighty God
with all our prayers, that He would make you
to be fervent more and more in the constancy
of His love, and grant you especially to be
retained in the peace of the Church, and in
agreement together.

It has been reported to us that some are
promoted to sacred orders through simoniacal
heresy ; and we have ordered our above-written
brother and fellow-bishop Virgilius that this
must be altogether prohibited ; and, that your
Fraternity may know and studiously observe
this, our letter to him is to be read in your
presence. Given the 12th day of August,
Indiction x$.

EPISTLE LV.
To King Childebert.

Gregory to Childebert, king of the Franks 2.

The letter of your Excellency has made us
exceedingly glad, testifying as it does that you
are careful, with pious affection, of the honour
and reverence due to priests. For you thus
shew to all that you are faithful worshippers of
God, while you love His priests with the accept-
able veneration that is due to them, and hasten
with Christian devotion to do whatever may
advance their position. Whence also we have
received with pleasure what you have written,
and grant what you desire with willing mind;
and accordingly we have committed, with the
favour of God, our vicariate jurisdiction to our
brother Virgilius, bishop of the city of Arelate,
according to ancient custom and your Excel-
lency's desire; and have also granted him the
use of the pallium, as has been the custom
of old.

But, inasmuch as some things have been
reported to us which greatly offend Almighty
God, and confound the honour and reverence
due to the priesthood, we beg that they may
be in every way amended with the support of
the censure of your power, lest, while head-
strong and perverse doings run counter to
your devotion, your kingdom, or your soul
(which God forbid) be burdened by the guilt
of others.

Further, it has come to our knowledge that
on the death of bishops some persons from
being laymen are tonsured, and mount to the
episcopate by a sudden leap. And thus one

* See Ep. LI II., note 9.

EPISTLE LVII.

185

who has not been a disciple is in his incon-
I siclerate ambition made a master. And, since
he has not learned what to teach, he bears the
office of priesthood only in name ; for he con-
tinues to be a layman in speech and action as
before. How, then, is he to intercede for the
sins of others, not having in the first place
bewailed his own ? For such a shepherd does
not defend, but deceives, the flock ; since,
while he cannot for very shame try to persuade
others to do what he does not do himself,
what else is it but that the Lord's people
remains a prey to robbers, and catches destruc-
tion from the source whence it ought to have
had a great support of wholesome protection ?
How bad and how perverse a proceeding this
is let your Excellency's Highness consider even
from your own administration of things. For
it is certain that you do not put a leader over
an army unless his work and his fidelity have
first been apparent; unless the virtue and
industry of his previous life have shewn him
to be a fit person. But, if the command of an
army is not committed to any but men of this
kind, it is easily gathered from this comparison
of what sort a leader of souls ought to be. But it
is a reproach to us, and we are ashamed to say
it, that priests snatch at leadership who have
not seen the very beginning of religious warfare.

But this also, a thing most execrable, has
been reported to us as well : that sacred orders
are conferred through simoniacal heresy, that
is for bribes received. And, seeing that it is
exceedingly pestiferous, and contrary to the
Universal Church, that one be promoted to
any sacred order not for merit but for a price,
we exhort your Excellency to order so detest-
able a wickedness to be banished from your
kingdom For that man shews himself to be
thoroughly unworthy of this office, who fears
not to buy the gift of God with money, and
presumes to try to get by payment what he
deserves not to have through grace.

These things, then, most excellent son, I ad-
monish you about for this reason, that I desire
your soul to be saved. And I should have
written about them before now, had not in-
numerable occupations stood in the way of my
will. But now that a suitable time for answer-
ing your letter has offered itself, I have not
omitted what it was my duty to do. Where-
fore, greeting your Excellency with the affection
of paternal charity, we beg that all things which
we have enjoined on our above-named brother
and fellow-bishop to be done and observed,
may be carried out under the protection of
your favour, and that you allow them not to
he in any way upset by the elation or pride of
any one. But, as they were observed by his
predecessor under the reign of your glorious

father, so let them be observed now also, by
your aid, with zealous devotion. It is right,
then, that we should thus have a return made
to us ; and that, as we have not deferred fulfil-
ling your will, so you too, for the sake of God
and the blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles,
should cause our ordinances to be observed in
all respects ; that so your Excellency's reputa-
tion, praiseworthy and well-pleasing to God,
may extend itself all around. Given the 12th
day of August, Indiction 13.

EPISTLE LVI.
To Marinianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna.

Moved by the benevolence of the Apostolical
See and the order of ancient custom, we have
thought fit to grant the use of the pallium to
thy Fraternity, who art known to have under-
taken the office of government in the Church
of Ravenna 3. And remember thou to use it
in no other way but in the proper Church of
thy city, when the sons (i.e. laity) have been
already dismissed, as thou art proceeding from
the audience chamber 4 to celebrate the sacred
solemnities of mass ; but, when mass is finished,
thou wilt take care to lay it by again in the
audience chamber. But outside the Church
we do not allow thee to use it any more, except
four times in the year, in the litanies which we
named to thy predecessor John ; giving thee
at the same time this admonition ; that, as
through the Lord's bounty thou hast obtained
from us the use of an adornment of this kind
to the honour of the priestly office, so thou
strive to adorn also the office undertaken by
thee to the glory of Christ with probity of
manners and of deeds. For thus wilt thou be
conspicuous for two adornments answering to
each other, if with such a vesture of the body
as this the good qualities also of thy soul
agree. For all privileges also which appear
evidently to have been formerly granted to thy
Church we confirm by our authority, and
decree that they continue inviolate.

EPISTLE LVII.

To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of the Corinthians
Now that our God, from whom nothing is
hidden, having cast out an atrocious plague of
pollution from the government of His Church 5,

3 With regard to the use of the pallium claimed by, and allowed
to, John, the preceding bishop of Kavenna, see III. 56, 57 ; V. 11,
15. For further contentions with Marinianus on the subject, see
VI. 34, 61.

4 Salutatario : called in previous letters to Archbishop John,
iecretarium. See III. 56, note 2.

5 See above, V. 52 and Ep. LV-IH., below.

1 86

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

lias been pleased to advance you to the rule
thereof, there is need of anxious precaution on
your part that the Lord's flock, after the
wounds and various evils inflicted by its
former shepherd, may find consolation and
wholesome medicine in your Fraternity. Thus,
then, let the hand of your action wipe away
the stain of the previous contagion, so as to
suffer no traces even to remain of that execrable
wickedness.

Let, therefore, your solicitude towards your
subjects be worthy of praise. Let discipline
be exhibited with gentleness. Let rebuke be
with discernment. Let kindness mitigate
wrath; let zeal sharpen kindness: and let one
be so seasoned with the other that neither
immoderate punishment afflict more than it
ought, nor again laxity impair the rectitude of
discipline. Let the conduct of your Fraternity
be a lesson to the people committed to you.
Let them see in you what to love, and perceive
what to make haste to imitate. Let them be
taught how to live by your example. Let them
not deviate from the straight course through
your leading; let them find their way to God
by following you; that so thou niayest receive-
as many rewards from the Saviour of the
human race as thou shalt have won souls for
Him. Labour therefore, most dear brother,
and so direct the whole activity of thy heart
and soul, that thou mayest hereafter be counted
worthy to hear, // 'ell done, thou good and faith-
ful servant: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord
(Matlh. xxv. 21).

As you requested in your letter which we
received through our brother and fellow-bishop
Andrew, we have sent you the pallium, which
it is necessary that you should so use as your
predecessors, by the allowance of our prede-
cessors, are proved to have used it.

Furthermore, it has come to our ears that in
those parts no one attains to any sacred order
without the giving of a consideration. If this
is so, I say with tears, I declare with groans,
that, when the priestly order has fallen inwardly,
neither will it stand long outwardly. For we
know from the Gospel what our Redeemer in
person did; how He went into the temple,
and overthrew the seats of them that sold
doves (Matth. xxi. 12). For to sell doves is
to receive a temporal consideration for the
Holy Spirit, whom, being consubstantial with
Himself, Almighty God gives to men through
imposition of hands. And what follows from
this evil, as I have said before, is intimated ;
for the seats of those who presumed to sell
doves in the temple of God fell by the judg-
ment of God. And in truth this transgression
is propagated with increase among subordinates.
I or one who attains to a sacred dignity taint e J

in the very root of his promotion is himself
the more prepared to sell to others what he
has bought And where then is that which
is written, Freely ye have received ; freely
give (Matth. x. 8)? And, since the simoniacal
heresy was the first to arise against holy
Church, why is it not considered, why is it not
seen, that whosoever ordains any one for a
price in promoting him causes him to become
a heretic ? Seeing, then, that the holy uni-
versal Church utterly condemns this most
atrocious wickedness, we exhort your Fraternity
in all ways to repress, with all the urgency of
your solicitude, this so detestable and so huge
a sin in all places that are under you. For, if
we shall perceive anything of the kind to be
done henceforth, we will correct it, not with
words, but with canonical punishment ; and we
shall begin to have a different opinion of you ;
which ought not so to be.

Further, your Fraternity knows that formerly
the pallium was not given except for a con-
sideration received. JHit, since this was in-
congruous, we held a council before the body
of the blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles,
and forbade under a strut interdiction the
receiving of anything, as well for this as for
ordinations.

It is your duty then, that neither for a con-
sideration, nor for lav our or the solicitation of
certain persons, you consent to any persons
being advanced to sacred orders. For it is a
grave sin, as we have said, and we cannot suffer
it to continue without reproof.

I delayed receiving theabove named Andrew,
our brother and fellow-bishop, because by the
report of our brother and fellow-bishop Secun-
dinus we learnt that he had forged letters, as
to himself from us, in the proceedings against
John of Larissa6. And, unless your goodness
had induced us, we would on no account have
ived him. Given the 15th day of the
month of August, Indiction 13.

EPISTLE LVIII.

To all the Bishops throughout
Helladia?.

Gregory to all bishops constituted in the
province of Helladia.

I return thanks with you, dearest brethren,
to Almighty God, who has caused the hidden
sore which the ancient enemy had introduced
to come to the knowledge of all, and has cut
it away by a wholesome incision from the body
of His Church. Herein we have cause both to
rejoice and to mourn ; to rejoice, that is, for

6 See III. 6, 7.

7 Meaning, we may suppose, the province of Achaia, if which
Corinth was the metropolis.

EPISTLE LVIII.

t87

the correction of a crime, but to mourn for the
fall of a brother. But, since for the most part
the fall of one is wont to be thr safeguard of
another, whosoever fears to fall, let him give
heed to this, that he afford no way of approach
to the enemy, nor think that deeds done lie
hidden. For the Truth proclaims, There is
nothing hidden that shall not be revealed (Matth.
x. 26). For this voice is already the herald of
our doings, and He himself, being witness,
brings in all ways to public view what is done
in secret. And who may strive to hide his
deeds before Him Who is both their witness
and their judge? But, since sometimes, when
one thing is attended to, another is not guarded
against, it behoves every one to be watchful
against all the snares of the enemy, lest, while
he conquers in one point he be vanquished in
another. For an earthly enemy too, when he
desires to invade fortified places, thus employs
the art of warfare. For indeed he lays ambushts
latently; but shews himself as though entirely
bent on the storming of one place, so that,
while there is a running together for defence
of that place where the danger is imminent,
other places about which there is no suspicion
may be taken. And the result is, that he who,
when perceived, was repulsed by the valour of
his opponent, obtains by stealth what he could
not obtain by fighting. But, since in all these
things there is need of the aid of divine pro-
tection, let every one of us cry to the Lord
with the voice of the heart, saying, Lord,
remove not Thy help far from me ; look Than to
my defence {Vs. xxi. 20) 8. For it is manifest
that, unless He Himself should help, and
defend those who cry to Him, our enemy
cannot be vanquished.

Furthermore, know ye that, having received
the letter of your Charity through Andrew our
brother and fellow-bishop, we have transmitted
the pallium to John our brother, the bishop of

* In English Bible, xxii.

the Corinthians ; whom it is by all means
fitting that you should obey, especially as the
order of ancient custom claims this, and his
good qualities, to which you yourselves bear
testimony, invite it. For from the account
given me by certain persons I have learnt that
in those parts no one attains to any sacred
order without the giving of a consideration. If
this is so, I say with tears, I declare with groans,
that, when the priestly order has fallen inwardly,
neither will it be able to stand long outwardly.
For we know from the Gospel what our
Redeemer did in person ; how He went into
the temple, and overthrew the seats of them
that sold doves. For in truth to sell doves is
to receive a temporal consideration for the
Holy Spirit, whom, being consubslantial with
Himself, Almighty God gives to men through
imposition of hands. And, as I have said
before, what follows from this evil is intimated ;
for the seats of them that presumed to sell
doves in the temple of God fell by God's judg-
ment. And in truth this transgression is
propagated with increase among subordinates.
For he who is advanced to a sacred order
already tainted in the very root of his promo-
tion is himself more prepared to sell to others
what he has bought. And where is that which
is written, T/ee,y ye have received ; freely give
(Matth. x. 8)? And, since the simoniacal
heresy was the first to arise against the holy
Church, why is it not considered, why is it not
seen, that whosoever ordains any one for a
price in promoting him causes him to become
a heretic? And so we exhort that none of
you suffer this to be done any more ; or dare
to promote any to sacred orders for the favour
or supplication of any person, except such a
one as the character of his life and actions
has shewn to be worthy. For, if we should
perceive the contraiy in future, know ye that
it will be repressed with strict and canonical
punishment. Given on the 15th day of the
\ month of August, Indiction 13.

BOOK VI.

EPISTLE I.

To Marinianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna.

As unjust demands should not be conceded,
so the petition of such as desire what is lawful
ought not to be set aside. Now your Frater-
nity's presbyters, deacons and clergy have
presented to us a petition complaining that
the late John, your predecessor, made a will
burdening his Church with various bequests.
And they have petitioned that these, which are
to the detriment of his Church, should under
no excuse be paid, as being prohibited by law.
And although, heredity and succession having
been by him renounced, no reason binds thee
to satisfy any such claims, nevertheless we
hereby exhort thee over and above that with
regard to such bequests as he has made-,
contrary to the ordinances of the laws, ol
property belonging to his Church, or acquired
by him in his episcopate, your Fraternity
neither lend your authority nor on any account
consent to them. But, if he has wished or
directed anything to be done with regard to
his private property which he had before his
episcopate, and which he had not previously
bestowed upon his Church, it is necessary that
this disposition should be held valid in all
respects, and that no one of the ecclesiastics
should attempt against reason on any pretext
to set it aside.

But, inasmuch as during his life he often
begged of us that we should confirm by our
authority what he had conferred on the
monastery which he had himself constructed
near the church of Saint Apollinaris, and we
promised to do this, we hold it needful to
exhort your Fraternity to suffer nothing of
what he has there conferred and constituted
to be diminished, but to see to all being
preserved and firmly established. Since, then,
ne is known to have made mention of this
monastery, and of the property conferred on
it, in the will which he made, you must know
that we have not confirmed this part of it by
reason of our following his last wishes, but
because, as we have said, we promised it to

him when he was alive. Let your Fraternity,
the refore, make haste so carefully to accomplish
all these things that both what was by him
constituted and by us confirmed in the above-
named monastery may be maintained, and
what he has by will directed to be given or
done to the detriment of his Church may have-
no validity, seeing that the law forbids it.

EPISTLE II.
To the Clergv and People of Ravenna.

Gregory to the clergy and people of the
Church of Ravenna.

We have been informed that certain men,
instigated by the malignant spirit, have wished
to corrupt your minds by false speech with
regard to the reputation of our brother and
fellow-bishop Marinianus ■ ; saying that this our
brother venerates the holy synod of Chalcedon
less than becomes him3. On this head both
he himself in person will satisfy you all of the
integrity of his faith, and we fully testify that,
having been nursed from his cradle in the
bosom of the holy Universal Church, he has
held the right preaching of the faith with the
attestation of his life. For he venerates the
holy Nicene synod in which Arius, the Con-
stantinopolitan, in which Macedonius, the first
Kphesine, in which Nestorius, and the holy
( balcedonian, in which Dioscorus and Eutyches
were condemned. And if any one presumes
ever to speak anything against the laith of
these four synods an 1 against the tome and
definition of pope Leo of holy memory, let |
him be anathema. Accordingly, receiving the;
fullest satisfaction, love ye your pastor in
entire charity with a pure heart, that the inter-
cession of the same your pastor, poured out
purely betore God, may avail to your profit.

» See above, V. 48, note 3.

2 The ground of this charge againt Marinianus was doubtless
his acceptance of the condemnation of the "Three Chapters'
by the fifth council, which condem ation, n >twithstanding Rome's-
approval of it, was still objected to in many quarters as contra-
vening the council of Chalcedon. See 1. 16, note 3; IV. a, note 1 '
IV. 38, 39; XIV. 12.

H,r/IbiLH, V.

189

EPISTLE III.

To Maximus of Salona.

Gregory to Maximus, pretender to the
Church of Salona 3.

As often as anything is said to have been
done contrary to ecclesiastical discipline, we
dare not leave it unexamined, lest we should
be guilty before God for connivance. Now it
has come to our ears that thou wast ordained
by means of simoniacal heresy. Nay and many
other things have been said of thee here,
whereof there was one especially on account
of which we held it needful to prohibit thee
urgently by letter from celebrating the solem-
nities of mass until we might ascertain the
state of the case more certainly. Wherefore,
lest the children of the Church should be too
long without a shepherd, and lest, in case of
these things which are said remaining un-
examined, vice of this nature should extend
itself to many, we exhort thee to make haste
to come to us, laying aside all excuses, to the
end that with due regard to justice we may be
able to gain knowledge of these things, and
terminate them according to the canonical
institutes, Christ shewing us the way. But do
thou so act that there be no more of these
successive delays of thy coming, lest thy very
absence point thee out as the more obnoxious
to these charges against thee, and lest we
should be thus compelled to pass in council
a harder sentence on thee, not only for thy
alleged crimes from which thou evadest purging
thyself, but also for the fault of disobedience,
10 wit as one that is contumacious.

EPISTLE V.
To Queen Brunichild.

Gregory to Brunichild, Queen of the Franks ♦.

The laudable and God-pleasing goodness of

your Excellence is manifested both by your

3 Cf. III. 47, note 2. As is there stated, Maximus does not
seem to have paid the slightest attention to this letter.

4 This is the first o< the ten letters of Gregory to the notorious
Brunechild. A daughter of Athanagild, king of the Visigoths in
Spain, she had married Sigebert I., one of the grandsons of
Clovis, who reigned over that part of the dominion of the Franks
which 'was called Austrasia, having on her marriage renounced
Arianism for Catholicity. Sigebert having been assassinated
A.D. S75, his son Childebert II., then only five years old, was
proclaimed King of Austrasia ; whereupon Brunechild herself
became the virtual ruler of the kingdom. So she was again after
the death of Childebert, A.D. 596. as guardian of Theodebeit II.,
his illegitimate son, who succeeded him at the age of ten years.
See Pedigree 0/ Kings of Gaul, p. xxx.

The praises lavished on her by Gregory in this and his other
epistles to her appear strangely inconsistent with the character
given her by the historians of the time. It has been suggested
in explanation ; 1. That the historians may have maligned her,
attributing to her crimes that were not her own ; 2. That wh-.
ever her misdemeanours, Gregory might not have heard of th

hat-
em,

knowing of her only as a faithful Catholic, and a supporter of the
Church ■ -k That no such misdemeanours had become notorious
when Gregory wrote to her in such flattering terms, the worst
doings imputed to her having in fact been after his death. She

government of your kingdom and by your edu-
cation of your son s. To him you have not
only with provident solicitude conserved intact
the glory of temporal things, but have also
seen to the rewards of eternal life, having
planted his mind in the root of the true faith
with maternal, as became you, and laudable
care of his education. Whence not unde-
servedly it ensues that he should surpass all
the kingdoms of the nations6, in that he both
worships purely and confesses truly the Creator
of these nations. But that faith may shine
forth in him the more laudably in his works,
let the words of your exhortation kindle him,
to the end that, as royal power shews him lofty
among men, so goodness of conduct may make
him great before God.

Now inasmuch as past experience in many
instances gives us confidence in the Christianity
of your Excellence, we beg of you, for the love
of Peter, Prince of the apostles, whom we know
that you love with your whole heart, that you
would cherish with the aid of your patronage
our most beloved son the presbyter Candidus?,
who is the bearer of these presents, together
with the little patrimony for the government of
which we have sent him, to the end that,
strengthened by the favour of your support, he
may be able both to manage profitably this
little patrimony, which is evidently beneficial
towards the expenses of the poor, and also to
recover into the possession of this little patri-
mony anything that may have been taken
away from it. For it is not without increase of
your praise that after so long a time a man
belonging to Church has been sent for the
management of this patrimony. Let your
Excellency, then, deign so willingly to give
your attention to what we request of you that
the blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles, to
whom the power of binding and loosing has
been given by the Lord Jesus Christ, may both
grant to your Excellence to rejoice here in
your offspring, and after courses of many years

survived him some nine years. Still, when we consider Gregory s
diplomatic turn, together with his habitual deference to potentates
apparent elsewhere, we cannot think it unlikely that he might
ignore purposely in his addresses to them even their known moral
delinquencies, so long as he could enlist their support of religion
and orthodoxy, or their loyalty to the see of Rome. And, alter
all Brunechild may not have been much worse than some other
Frank royalties, all of whom he would be naturally and properly
desirous of conciliating, and making the best 01" them he couid.
A less defensible instance or apparently politic flattery is found
in his letters to the Emperor Phocas and his Empress Leontia
after the deposition and murder of Mauricius. See XIII. 31, 38,
39, and Pro'leg., p. xxvii. .

5 Childebert II. (see last note), who had been a minor when
he came to the throne. He would now, it" the epistle was written,
as supposed, in the 14th Indiction (595-6), be about 25 years old.

6 Since the death of his uncle Guntramn, a.d. 593, he had
become King of Burgundy as well as 0/ Austrasia.

7 It was the sending Candidus, a presbyter f:om Rome, to
take charge of the patrimony in Gaul in place of Dynamius,
a patrician, who had previously managed it (see Ep . 6), that
offered occasion for this and the following letter.

190

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

cause vou to be found, absolved from all ills,
before the face of the eternal Judge.

LPISTLE VI.
To King Childebert.

Gregory to Childebert, King of the Franks 8.

As much as royal dignity is above that of other
men, so much in truth does the high position ot
your kingdom excel that of the kingdoms of
other nations. And yet to be a king is not extra-
ordinary, there being others also ; but to be a
Catholic, which others are not counted worthy
to be, this is enough. For as the splendour
of a great lamp shines by the clearness of its
light in the darkness of earth's night, so the clear
light of your faith glitters and flashes amid the
dark perfidy of other nations. Whatever the
other kings glory in having you have. But
they are in this regard exceedingly .surpassed,
because they have not the chief good thing
which you have. In order, then, that they
may be overcome in action as well as in faith,
let your Excellence always shew yourself kind
to your subjects. And, if there are any thi
such as to offend your mind, punish them not
without enquiry. For then you will the more
please the King of kings, that is the Almight)
Lord, if, restraining your power, you feel that
you may not do all that you ran.

Now that you keep purity of faith both in
mind and deed, the love that is in you of the
blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles, evidently
shews, whose property has been so far well
governed and preserved under the sway of
your supremacy. Put since Dynamius the
Patrician, who on our recommendation looked
after this property, is not able, as we have
learnt, to govern it now, lest the little patri-
mony which is in your parts should be ruined
from neglect, we have therefore sent the bearer
of these presents, our most beloved son the
presbyter Candidus 9 to govern it, whom we
commend in all respects to your Excellency,
greeting you in the first place with paternal
charity, with the request that, if by any chance
any wrong has been done there, or if the
property of the same little patrimony is
detained by any one, the matter may be set
right, and what has been alienated may be
restored to its original ownersh p ; that so your
equity, as well as your faith, may shine forth
to all nations, which will be something ver\
glorious and laudable.

Moreover we have sent to your Excellency
Saint Peter's keys, containing a portion of his

8 Cf. last Epistle, notes 5, 6, 7

9 See last Epistle note 8.

chains, to protect you from
hung on your neck '.

all evils, when

EPISTLE VII.
To Candidus, Presbyter.

Gregory to Candidus, Presbyter, going to
the patrimony of Gaul.

Now that thou art proceeding, with the help
of our Lord God Jesus Christ, to the govern-
ment of the patrimony that is in Caul, we
desire thy Love to procure with the money
thou mayest receive clothing for the poor, or
English boys of about seventeen or eighteen
years of age, who may profit by being given to
God in monasteries, that so the money of Gaul,
which cannot be spent in our country2, may
be expended profitably in its own locality.
Further, if you should succeed in getting any-
thing from the moneys accruing to revenue
which are called ablatae\ from this too we
desire thee to procure clothing for the poor,
or, as we have before said, boys who may
profit in the service of Almighty God. Put,
since such as tan be found there are pagans,
I desire that a presbyter be sent hither with
them to provide against the case of any sick-
ness occurring on the way, that he may baptize
th ise whom he sees to be about to die.
Wherefore let your Love so proceed as to
no time in accomplishing these things
diligently.

EPISTLE VIII.

To thi Bishops ok Epirus.

Gregory to Theodorus, Demetrius, Philip,
Zeno, .uid Alcissonus, Bishops of Epirus.

The notification of your letters, most dear
brethren, has made known to us that our
brother Andrew has, by the favour of God,
n solemnly ordained bishop of the city of
Nicopolis. And, since you signify that his
consecration has taken place with the assent
of the clergy and pro\in< ials, we rejoice; and
we pray that the good which you testify of him
may remain in him, and by the co-operation
of Cod's grace receive increase, since the
goodness of prelates is the safety of their
subordinates. It is your duty then to make
naste studiously to imitate what you shew by
your praises to be pleasing to you in his
person. For it is fauby before men and penal

1 See IV. 30.

2 Probably because of the inferior value in Italy of Gallic gol d.
" Nullus solifhim integri ponderis calumniosac approbations ob-
tentu recjset exactor, excepto eo Galiico cujus aurum minore
aestimatione taxatur " Nm'clla Majoriani.

3 Some kind of due, so-called. Sec Du Cange under Ari.ata :
— "At-latio, Exactio, Tolta. . . ' Liberos deinceps esse consti-
tuimus ab omni taliia, ablatione et exactione, et questu.' (a. 1173).'

EPISTLE XII.

r9I

before God for any one to be unwilling to
imitate the good that pleases him. Wherefore
let your obedience supply credit to your
testimony. Let no one gainsay him in what,
with preservation of integrity, he may enjoin
for the common profit of the Church. Let
each one of you willingly exhibit his devotion ;
that, while there is among you priestly concord
pleasing to God and constant, no ill feeling
may avail to loose you from the bond of
mutual charity, or difference disturb you.
For neither will there be access to your hearts
for the crafty foe, since he knows that he can
in no degree be admitted or received, where
sincere charity finds place.

Moreover be ye attentive, most dear brethren,
and bestow on the flock committed to you the
vigilance which ye have taken upon yourselves,
and which ye owe; meet the frauds of the
enemy by attention and prayer. Surrender
with uncontaminated faith to our God the
people over which ye are, that your priestly
office may avail you not for a penalty but for
a crown before the sight of the eternal Judge.
Know ye then that we have sent a pallium
to the above written Andrew our brother and
fellow-bishop, and have granted him all the
privileges which our predecessors conferred on
his predecessors.

Furthermore, it has come to our ears that
sacred orders in your parts are conferred for a
consideration given. And, if this is so, I say it
with tears, I declare it with groans, &c. [See
Lib. V. Ep. 53, to " become a heretic"]4. On
this account I admonish and conjure you to
be altogether attentive to this, that no giving
of a consideration, no favour, no supplication
of any persons whatsoever, put in any claim in
regard to sacred orders, but that one be
promoted to this olfice whom gravity of
manners and behaviour commends. For if,
as we do not believe will be the case, we
should perceive anything of the kind to be
done, we will correct it, as is fit, with canonical
severity. Now may Almighty God, who orders
all things wonderfully by the power of His
wisdom, and guards what He has ordered,
grant unto you both to will and to do what He
commands.

EPISTLE IX.
To Donus, Bishop.

Gregory to Donus, Bishop of Messana
(Messene).

Moved by the benevolence of the Apostolic
See, and by the order of ancient custom, we

4 This form of protest against simony is ound, in the same
words, in several other letters.

have thought fit to grant to thee, who art

known to have undertaken the office of

government in the Church of Messana, the

use of the pallium; to wit, at such times and

in such manner as we dispute not that thy

predecessor used it; at the same time warning

thee that, as thou rejoicest in having received

from us a decoration of this kind to the honour

of thy priestly office, so also thou strive, by

probity of manners and deeds, to adorn, to the

glory of Christ, the office which thou hast

undertaken under our authority. For so wilt

thou be conspicuous for decorations mutually

answering to each other, if with such an

habiliment of the body as this all good

qualities of thy soul also agree. For all the

privileges which are known to have been

granted of old to thy Church we confirm by

our authority, and decree that they shall

continue inviolate.

EPISTLE XII.
To Montana and Thomas.

Gregory to Montana, &c.

Since our Redeemer, the Maker of every
creature, vouchsafed to assume human flesh
for this end, that, the chain of slavery where-
with we were held being broken by the grace
of His Divinity, He might restore us to
pristine liberty, it is a salutary deed if men
whom nature originally produced free, and
whom the law of nations has subjected to
the yoke of slavery, be restored by the benefit
of manumission to the liberty in which they
were born. And so, moved by loving-kindness
and by consideration of this case, we make
you, Montana and Thomas, servants of the
holy Roman Church which with the help of
God we serve, free from this day, and Roman
citizens, and we release to you all your private
property.

And, inasmuch as thou, Montana, declarest
that thou hast applied thy mind to monastic
profession, we therefore this day give and
grant to thee two unci<z, which the presbyter
Gaudiosus by the disposition of his last will is
known to have left to thee in the way of
institution s, provided that all go in all respects
to the advantage of the monastery of Saint
Laurence, over which the abbess Constantina
presides, and in which by the mercy of God
thou art about to make profession. But, if it
should appear that thou hast in any way con-
cealed any part of the property left by the
above-written Gaudiosus, the whole ot this
must undoubtedly be transferred to the
possession of our Church.

S Institutionis ; a legal term, denoting apparently the con-
stituting of a person as an inheritor.

192

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Moreover to thee, Thomas above-written,
whom for enhancement of thy freedom we
desire also to serve among the notaries, we in
like manner this day give and grant by this writ
of manumission the five uncia which the afore-
said presbyter Gaudiosus by his last will left to
thee under the title of inheritance, together
with the dowry which he had bestowed upon
thy mother; to wit with this annexed law and
condition, that, in case of thy dying without
legitimate children, that is children bom in
lawful wedlock, all that we have granted thee
shall revert without any diminution to the
possession of the holy Roman Church. But, if
thou shouldest have children born in wedlock,
as we have said, and recognized by the law,
and shouldest leave them surviving thee, then
we appoint thee to remain master of this same
property without any condition, and give thee
full powjr to make a will with respect to it.
These tilings, then, which we have appointed
and granted by this charter of manumission,
know ye that we and our successors will ob-
serve without any demur. For the rule of
justice and reason suggests that one who
desires his own orders to be observed by his
successors should undoubtedly keep to the will
and ordinances of his predecessor. This writ
of manumission we have dictated to the notary
Paterius to be put in writing, and for the
fullest security have subscribed it with our
own hand, together with three chief presbyters
and three deacons, and have delivered it to you.

Done in the city of Rome.

EPISTLE XIV.

To THE COI'M N ARSES6.

Gregory to Xarses, &c.

Your Charity, being anxious to learn our
opinion, has been at the pains of writing to us
to ask what we think of the book against the
presbyter Athanasius which was sent to us.
Having thoroughly perused some parts of it,
we find that he has fallen into the dogma of
Manichaeus. But he who has noted some
places as heretical by a mark set against them
slips also himself into Pelagian heresy; for he
has marked certain places as heretical which
arc catholicly expressed and entirely orthodox.
For when this is written ; that when Adam
sinned his soul died, the writer shews after-
wards how it is said to have died, namely that
it lost the blessedness of its condition. Who-
soever denies this is not a Catholic. For God
had said, In the hour ye eat thereof \ in death ye

* On the case of John of Chalcedon and Athanasius of Isauria
r«.erred to in thisaud the three following letters, see III. n'
note 9. aj'

shall die (Gen. ii. 17). When, therefore, Adam
ate of the forbidden tree, we know that hedidnot
die in the body, seeing that after this he begat
children and lived many years. If, then, he
did not die in the soul, the impious conclusion
follows that He himself lied who foretold that
in the day that he sinned he should die. But
it is to be understood that death takes place
in two ways ; either from ceasing to live, or
with respect to the mode of living. When,
then, man's soul is said to have died in the
eating of the forbidden thing, it is meant, not
in the sense of ceasing to live, but with regard
to the mode of living ;— that he should live
afterwards in pain who had been created to
live happily in joy 7. He, then, who has
marked this passage in the book sent to me by
my brother the bishop John as heretical is a
Pelagian; for his view is evidently that of
Pelagius, which the apostle Paul plainly con-
futes in his epistles. The particular passages
in his epistle I need not quote, as 1 write to
one who knows. Rut Pelagius, who was con-
demned in the Ephesine synod, maintained
this view with the intention of shewing that we
were redeemed by Christ unreally. For, if we
did not through Adam die in the soul, we
were redeemed unreally, which it were impious
to say. Further, having examined the acts of
the synod of Ephesus, we find nothing at all
about Adelphius and Sava, and the others who
are said to have been condemned there, and
we think that, as the synod of Chalcedon was
in one place falsified by the Constantinopolitan
Church8, so something of the kind has been
done with regard to the synod of Ephesus.
Wherefore let your Charity make a thorough
search for old copies of the acts of this synod,
and thus see whether anything of the kind
is found there, and send such copy as you
may find to me, which I will return as soon as
I have read it. For recent copies are not
entirely to be trusted ; and it is for this reason
that I have been in doubt, and have not wished
as yet to reply in this case to my aforesaid
brother the bishop John. Further, the Roman
copies are much more correct than the Greek

1 Cf. VII. 34 and IX. 49, where the same argument, in nearly
the same words, is set foith.

8 The reference may be to Canon xxviii. of the Council of
Chalcedon, assigning rank and jurisdiction to the p.-uriaichs of
Constantinople, which was protested against by the Roman
legates at the Council and afterwards disallowed by Pope Leo.
It is omitted in the Latin version of the canons published by
Dionysius Exiguus about the beginning of the sixth century,
though it had been in the Prisca I'ersio which he amended.
It appears as if Gregoiy, not finding it in the Latin version before
him. supposed it to have been interpolated at Constantinople;
the fact being that it had been purposely omitted at Rome, as
not having the Pope's sanction. If such is the allusion, it may
seem strange that Gregory did not know the circumstances better.
But this is not the only instance of his imperfect knowledge
of past events, even in ecclesiastical matters. Cf. II. 51, note 2.

EPISTLE XVI.

193

ones, since, as we have not your cleverness, so
neither have we any impostures.

Now concerning the presbyter John, know
that his case has been decided in synod,
whereby 1 have clearly ascertained that his
adversaries have wished and long endeavoured
to make him out a heretic, but have entirely
failed.

Salute in my name your friends, who are
ours : ours also, who are yours, salute you
heartily through me. May Almighty God
protect thee with His hand in the midst of so
many thorns, that thou mayest, unhurt, gather
those flowers which the Lord hath chosen.

EPISTLE XV.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Constantinople.

As the pravity of heretics is to be repressed
by the zeal of a right faith, so the integrity of
a true confession is to be embraced. For, if
one who declares himself sound in the faith
is scorned, the faith of all is brought into
doubt, and fatal errors are generated from
inconsiderate strictness. And hence not only
are wandering sheep not recalled to their lord's
folds, but even those that are within them
are exposed to be cruelly torn by the teeth of
wild beasts. Let us then fully consider this,
most dear brother, and not suffer any one who
truly professes the catholic faith to be distressed
undci- pretext of heresy, nor (which God forbid)
allow heresy to grow the more under shew of
correcting it.

But we have wondered much why those who
were deputed by you as judges in a matter of
faith against John, presbyter of the church of
Chalcedon, believed report, disregarding truth,
and would not believe him when he distinetly
professed his faith; especially as his accusers,
when asked what was the heresy of the
Marcionists which they spoke of, and on the
ground of which they endeavoured to make
him out guilty, replied by a plain confession
that they did not know. From which circum-
stance it evidently comes out that, without j
regard to God, not justly, but against their j
own souls, they were desirous only of injuring j
him personally of their own mere will. Wei
therefore, after Council held (as the tenor of
the proceedings before us shews), having
thoroughly examined and considered all that
was necessary, inasmuch as we have been
unable to find the aforesaid presbyter in any
respect guilty, and especially as the plea which
he delivered to the judges delegated by you is
in entire accordance with the integrity of a
right faith, we I say on this account, disapprov-
ing the sentence of the said judges, through

the revealing grace of Christ our God and Re-
deemer, pronounce him by our definite sentence
catholic and free from all charge of heresy.
Seeing, then, that we have sent "him back to
your Holiness, it is for you to receive him
with the kindness which you shew to all, and
bestow on him your priestly charity, and
defend him from all molestation, nor allow-
any one to busy himself in causing him
trouble : but, as you defend others from
oppression, so from him ought you not to
withold your succour.

EPISTLE XVI.
To Mauricius, Augustus.

Gregory to Mauricius, &c.

Seeing that in you, most Christian of princes,
uncorrupt soundness of faith shines as a beam
sent down from heaven, and that it is known
to all that your Serenity embraces fervently
and loves with entire devotion of heart the
pure profession in which by God's favour you
are powerful, we have perceived it to be very
necessary to make request for those whom one
and the same faith enlightens, to the end that
the Piety of our lords may protect them with
its favour, and defend them from all molesta-
tion. When certain men scorn the confession
of faith of such persons they are shewn to
contradict the true faith. For, since the
Apostle declares that confession of the mouth
is made unto salvation, he who will not consent
to believe a right profession accuses himself in
rejecting others (Rom. x. 10).

Now all the proceedings against John,
presbyter of the church of Chalcedon, having
been read in council and considered in order,
we have found that he has suffered the greater
injustice in that, when he declared and shewed
himself to be a Catholic, it was not his guilt,
but an uncertain accusation of long standing,
that crushed him ; and this to such an extent
that his accusers declared in their open reply
that they did not know the heresy of the
Marcionists which they referred to. And,
whereas they ought therefore to have been
rejected from the very beginning of the trial,
they were allowed, vague as they were, to
remain in court for his accusation. But, lest
at any rate alleged report might injure him, he
produced a written confession of his faith with
the purpose of shewing evidently that he was
a professor and follower of the right iaith. But
this the judges deputed by the most holy John,
our brother and fellow-bishop, unjustly and
unreasonably disregarded ; and so, in doing
all they could to put him down, shewed them-
selves more to blame than he. For no one
doubts that it is unfaithfulness not to have

vol. xn.

194

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

faith in the faithful. Seeing then that, every-
thing having been thoroughly enquired into
andaconsidered, the decision of the holy
Council with me, by the revealing grace of
Divine power, has declared the above-written
John the presbyter to be a Catholic, and that
no spot of heretical pravity has been found in
him, I entreat that the pious protection of
your Serenity may order him to be kept un-
harmed from all annoyance, nor allow a
professor of the catholic faith to suffer any
molestation. For not to believe one who
professes truly is not to purge heresy, but to
make it. If this should be allowed, occasion
of infidelity will arise, and people will them-
selves incur the guilt which they would con
unwarily.

These things therefore let the most Serene
Lord with pious precaution consider, and, as
I have already requested, with promse entreaties
I again implore, that he allow not an inno-
cent man to be afflicted anew as though he
were guilty; to the end that Almight; I
who sees your Clemency love and defend the
purity of catholic rectitude, may cause you
both' to rule over a pacified republic with
your foes subdued, and to reign with His
saints in life eternal.

Kl'ISI LE XVII.

TO ThEOTISTUS.

Gregory to Theotistus, kinsman of the
Emperor.

We know that the Christianity of your
Excellency is always intent on works;

and therefore we provide for you occasions
for reaping reward, which you arc certain to
be glad of, so that we by so providing may
have a share in your merits.

We therefore inform you that John the
presbyter, the bearer of these p: has

come out free from those by whom he had
been accused. For having, according to his
request held a council, and subjected his faith
to a subtle scrutiny, we found him guiltless of
any wrong confession. And, inasmuch as he
appeared to be, by the mercy of God, a
professor and follower of the right faith, we
absolved him by our definite sentence ;
especially as his accusers professed that they
did not know what the heresy of the Marcion-
ists, which they spoke of, was. On this account,
saluting you with paternal affection, we request
you to protect him with the grace of your
favour. And, lest any one hereafter should be
disposed to afflict him to no purpose, or in
any way to cause him annoyance in this
matter, let the advocacy of your Excellency

instantly in consideration of your own reward — ■
that no unjust affliction may any more consume
him, and that the Creator and Redeemer of
the human race, whom you worship with a
sincere confession, may recompense your
action in this behalf among your many good
works. The month of October. Indiction 14.

EPISTLE XVIII.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Syracuse.

Moved by the benevolence of the Apostolic

See and by the order of ancient custom, we

have thought fit to grant to thy Fraternity,

who art known to have received the office of

government in the Church of Syracuse, the

use of the pallium; that is, at such times and

in such manner as thou knowest without

doubt that it was used by thy predecessor ;

nevertheless admonishing thee that, as thou

icest in having received from us the use

o( this decoration for the honour of thy

priestly office, so also by probity of manners

and deeds thou strive to adorn the office thou

hast 1 d unto our glory in Christ. For

thus wilt thou be conspicuous for decorations

mutually answering to each other, if with this

habit for the boil) the excellence also of thy

mind agri es.

For all privileges which are known to have
been granted formerly to thy Church we con-
firm by our authority, and decree that they
shall remain inviolate.

EPISTLE XXII.
To Peter, Bishop.

Gregory to Peter, bishop of Aleriain Corsica.

Inasmuch as in the isle of Corsica, at the
place Nigeunum, in the possession which is
called Cellas Cupias belonging to the holy
Roman Church, which by the providence of
God we serve, we have ordered to be founded
a basilica, with a baptistery 9, to the honour of
the blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles, and
of Laurentius the martyr, we therefore hereby
exhort thy Fraternity to proceed at once to
the aforesaid place, and with observance of
the venerable solemnities of dedication to
consecrate solemnly the aforesaid church and
baptistery. Deposit also reverently the holy
relics {sauctuaria) which you have received.

EPISTLE XXIV.

To Marinianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna.
We have received by the deacon Virgilius

9 Bapt.steries were anciently buildings contiguous 10 but apart

so protest and defend him— and this the more fl0m the churches. Cf. III. 59, note 7.

EPISTLE XXV.

195

the letter of your Fraternity, in which you
inform us that certain of the clergy and people
have cried out that it is contrary to the laws
and canons that the cause between your
Church and the abbot Claudius should be
examined and decided here. But, had they
paid attention to ecclesiastical order and to
the persons between whom the case is pending,
they would by all means have abstained from
needless complaint ; especially as the cause
could not be pleaded there, where the aforesaid
abbot has complained of having endured in-
justice from your predecessor and of still
suffering from it. For the objection might
perhaps have been made if he had not appealed
to a superior authority, and sought to have the
rights of his case determined before it. Nay,
but dost thou not thyself know that the case
which arose on the part o^ the presbyter John
against John of Constantinople, our brother
and fellow-bishop, came before the Apostolic
See, and was dec ided by our sentence ? ' If,
then, a cause was brought under our cognizance
from that city where the prince is, how much
more should an affair between you have the
truth about it ascertained and be terminated
here ? But as for you, let not the words of
foolish men there move you, and believe not
that through us any detriment to your Church
is caused. For, if you will enquire of the
servant of God Secundinus your deacon and
of Castorius our notary, you will learn from
them how your predecessor had already de-
sired to arrange this case. But your Fraternity
has done wisely in sending persons hither for
this business, and in not listening to vain words.
Now we trust in Almighty God that this cause
may be terminated in a way well-pleasing to
God, so that no room may be left for renewed
complaint, and that neither party may be
aggrieved unjustly. The sword 2 which our
most beloved son Peter, then deacon and
guardian [defensor) in your parts, had left for
us with your predecessor, please to send to us
by the servant of God Secundinus, and Cas-
torius the notary, the bearers of these presents.

EPISTLE XXV.

To Maximus of Salona.

Gregory to Maximus, intruder in the Church
of Salona 3.

While, seeking this or that excuse, thou

» See III. S3, note 9, and reff. there. It seems from what
Gregory here says, that it was not in the East only, but al*o
in Italy, at Ravenna, that the authority 01 the Koman See met
with opposition ; perhaps mainly on the around of Ravenna having
been an Imperial city, and being still the seat of the Exaid.
Ofltalv. Cf. III. 57, note 4-

a S/atiim. Cf. VI. 61, note S.

3 See III. 47, note a-

deferrest obedience to our letters, while thou
puttest off coming to us for ascertainment of
the truth after being so often admonished,
thou lendest credibility all the more to what is
alleged against thee ; and, even though there
had been nothing else to go against thee and
do thee harm, thy delay alone would render
thee culpable and accuse thee. Humble thy-
self at length, and submit thyself to obedience,
and make haste to come to us without any
excuses, that, the truth being investigated and
ascertained, in the fear of God, whatever may
be fair and canonical may be decided. For
be assured that we will observe towards thee
justice and the ordinances of the canons, and,
by the revelation of God, who is the Author of
truth, will terminate thy cause agreeably to
justice. For, as to thy demand that we should
send some one to your city, in whose presence
there might be proof of the things alleged, this
would be in some degree excusable, if reason
ever imposed on the accused the necessity of
proof. But, inasmuch as this burden lies not
on thee but on thine accusers, do not thou
hesitate to come to us, as we have before said,
putting it off no longer ; and either thine
accuser will be present without delay to support
with suitable proof what has been alleged as to
simoniacal heresy or other things ; or certainly,
as far as regards a sound settlement of this
business, a just dealing with it will, through
the intervention of Peter, Prince of the apostles,
ensue; that so no guiltiness may confound us
before God for any connivance, now that these
things have come to our knowledge. But, as
to thy allegation that our most serene lords
have ordered cognizance of the matter to be
taken in your city, we indeed have received no
other commands of theirs on the subject except
that thou wert to come to us. But, even if by
chance, occupied as they are by many thoughts
and anxieties for the good of their republic
which by the divine bounty has been granted
to them, this has been suggested to them, and
a command has been surreptitiously elicited
from them, yet, inasmuch as it is known to
us and to all how our most pious lords love
discipline, observe degrees, venerate the canons,
and refrain from mixing themselves up in the
causes of priests, we will still execute with
instancy what is for the good both of their
souls and of the republic, and what we are
driven to by regard to the terrible and tre-
mendous judgment.

Cease then from all excuses, and delay not
to appear here, that, fortified by investigation
of the truth, we may at length bring thy cause
to a termination. But, whereas we have been
informed that thou art greatly afraid and alto-
gether in trepidation lest we should avenge on

iq6

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

thee the known fact of thy having forced thy
way irregularly into the order of priesthood
without our consent, this was indeed an in-
tolerable misdemeanour: but, in accordance
with the commands of our most serene lord
the Emperor, we forgive thee this, provided
that thou in no wise persist any longer in the
error of thy contumacy ; and we are by no
means moved- against thee on this account.
But other things that have been reported to
us we cannot suffer to pass without enquiry.

Now inasmuch as we long ago sent thee
a letter warning thee by no means to dare
to celebrate the solemnities of mass till we
should ascertain the will of the said our most
serene lord, and as thou hast cunningly con-
trived that this letter should not come into thy
hands, though thou nevertheless k newest in
one way or another what its purport was, but
hast refused to comply with it ; — we therefore
confirm what was before sent thee in writing,
that thou must not dare to celebrate the
solemnities of mass until all that has been
alleged against thee has been thorougly en-
quired into and sifted. And, if, with perverse
daring, thou shouldest presume to celebrate,
know that thou art not free from the former
threat of interdiction from communion. For,
even though there were no other transgressions,
we deprive thee of the communion of the body
and blood of the Lord for this sin of pride
alone. Wherefore, shewing the obedience
that becomes thee, make haste, as we have
said, with all diligence to come to us ; but so
as to have a space of thirty days for preparing
for thy journey; and so, laying aside all ex-
cuses, defer not thy appearance here.

Moreover, if any occasion of hindering thy
journey has arisen from the judges, or the
military force, or the people, we acknowledge
the skilfulness with which things are done.
Do thou thyself, then, see what account of
this obligation thou canst render either to men
here or to Almighty God in the future judg-
ment, having by thy contempt provoked a
strict sentence against thee.

Furthermore, it has come to my knowledge
that my brother and fellow-bishop Paulmus,
and Honoratus, archdeacon of the Church of
Salona *, for having refused to give assent to
thy presumption are suffering grievous molesta-
tion at thy hands, so as to have been constrained
to give sureties to the end that may not be at
liberty to leave the city or their own houses.
If this is so, do thou on receipt of this present

4 In the letter to the Salonitans, which follows, it appears that
Honoratus only among the clergy of Salona (having been the
rival candidate for the bUhopric and supported by the Pope),
and Paulinus only among the suffragan bishops, had refused
to communicate with Maximus.

writing, returning at last, though late, to a
sound mind, desist from molesting either of
them, that they may have free license either to
come to me if they wish, or to go anywhere
else for their advantage.

EPISTLE XXVI.
To the Salonitans.

Gregory to his most beloved sons, the clergy
and nobles dwelling at Salona s.

It has come to my ears, that certain men of
perverse disposition, in order to poison your
minds, beloved, have tried to insinuate to you
that I am moved by some grudge against
Maximus, and that I am desiring to carry out
not so much what is canonical as what anger
dictates. But far, far be it from the priestly
mind to be moved in any cause by private
feeling. It is on the contrary as taking thought
for you, beloved, and as fearing the judgment
of Almighty God on my own soul, that I desire
the case of this same Maximus to be thoroughly
investigated, as to whether he is burdened by
no such crimes as are a bar to ordination, and
makes no attempt to attain to the priestly
office through simoniacal heresy ; that is by
giving bribes to some of his electors. He
will then be a free intercessor for you before
the Lord, if he shall come to the place of inter-
cession bound by no sins of his own.

And yet his sin of pride is already manifestly
shewn, in that, having been summoned to
ie to us, he resists under various excuses,
shuns coming, is afraid to come. What then
is he afraid of, if his conscience does not
ao use him with respect to the things he is
charged with? Lo, beloved, ye have now been
long without a pastor, and may Almighty God
make known to you how earnestly and from
the bottom of my heart 1 sympathize with you
in your destitution. Tor 1 hear what ravages
are being made in the Lord's flock. But,
when there is no shepherd, who may watch
against the wolves ? Wherefore urge ye the
aforesaid Maximus to come hither to us, to
the end that we may confirm him if we are
able to find him innocent; but, if the things
that are said of him should turn out to be
true, that you, beloved, may be no longer left
destitute through the interposition of his
person.

For as to me, be assured that I am not
moved against him by any grudge or any
animosity of private teeling ; but whatever
may be canonical and just with the help of
God I will determine.

i See III. 47, note 2.

EPISTLE XXVII.

T97

But I have been greatly astonished that
among so many clergy and people of the
Church of Salona hardly two in sacred orders
have been found— to wit our brother and
fellow-bishop Paulinus and my most beloved
son Honoratus, archdeacon of the same
Church — who refused to communicate with
Maxim us when he seized the priesthood, and
vdio remembered that they were Christians.

For you ought, most dear sons, to have
considered your own orders, and recognized
as rejected him whom the Apostolical See
rejected, that he might first be purged, if he
could be, from the charges brought against
him, and that then your Love might communi-
cate with him without being partakers in his
liability. We however are bound to your
Charity in the bowels of loving-kindness ; and,
since we have learnt that some of you were
pressed by force to accept him and communi-
cate with him, we implore Almighty God to
absolve you from all guilt of your own sins and
from all implication in the liability of others,
and to give you the grace of His protection in
the present life, and grant to us to rejoice for
you in the eternal country.

EPISTLE XXVII.
To the Clergy and People of Jadera6.

Gregory to the presbyters, deacons, and
clergy, nobles and people, dwelling at Jadera,
and who have communicated with the pre-
varicator Maximus.

It has come to my knowledge that some
of you, deceived by ignorance or under com-
pulsion, have communicated with those who,
their fault as you know requiring it, have been
deprived of communion by the Apostolic See,
but that others, with wholesome discretion,
have under the Lord's protection abstained ;
and as much as I rejoice in those that have
been constant so much do I groan for those
who have gone astray, since they have par-
taken of the mysteries of holy communion,
which have been granted to us by Divine
loving-kindness for absolution, rather to the
detriment of their souls. And because (as I
pray Almighty God to make known to you)
i earnestly and from the bottom of my heart
sympathize with your Charity, I adjure and
entreat you with fatherly affection, that every
one of you abstain from unlawful communion,

6 See III. 47, note 2. Jadera was one of the sees in the
province of Dalinatia of whicn Salona was the Metropolis. The
bishop of ladera, Sabinianus, had communicated with Maximus,
and probably assisted in ordaining him, but afterwards repented,
bee below, VII. 17; VIII. 10, 24. It may have been because
Gregory had heard that there was already a party in Jadera
prepared to renounce Maximus that he wrote this letter to
strengthen it.

and altogether shun those whom the Apostolic
See does not receive into the fellowship of its
communion, lest any one should stand guilty
in the sight of the eternal Judge from that
whereby he might have been saved.

Moreover I have discovered that certain
men of perverse mind in your parts have tried
to insinuate that I am moved against Maximus
by some grudge, and that I desire to carry out
not what is canonical, but what anger dictates.
But far, far be this from the priestly mind,
that it should be moved in any cause by
private animosity. But as for me, it is as
taking thought for the people dwelling in
those parts and for my own soul, and as fearing
the judgment of Almighty God, that I wish to
have the cause of this Maximus enquired into,
and, God shewing me the way, to decide
canonically. Now, inasmuch as 1 have written
to him frequently that he was not to celebrate
the sacred solemnities of mass until I had
been able to obtain knowledge of his case, he
would in any case be deprived of communion ;
and now his sin of pride is openly shewn from
this, — that, having (as I have said) been often
admonished to come to us, under various
excuses he refuses, he shuns, he fears coming.
What then is he afraid of, if his conscience
does not accuse him with regard to the things
that have been said ? Since then you know
these things, now that you can make no excuse
on the plea of ignorance, I beseech, I exhort,
I warn you, that you altogether refrain from
fellowship with forbidden communion, and
that not one of you presume, against his own
soul, to communicate with any priest who
communicates with the above written Maxi-
mus.

Since however I hear, as I have said before,
that some of you fell in ignorance, and that
some were even driven by force to communi-
cate, I implore the Almighty Lord, that He
would keep with His perpetual protection,
and answer with His wished for bounty, those
who have given no assent to this iniquity;
and as to those whom either party spirit, or
ignorance, or any other cause soever, has
drawn into a fault, that He would absolve
them from all guilt of their sins, and from all
implication in the liability of others, and both
give them all the grace of His protection
in the present life, and grant to me to rejoice
for them in the eternal country. Wherefore,
that this intercession may avail for you with
God our Saviour, do ye shew obedience to
our exhortations for the weal of your souls,
and receive the holy communion from those
whom ye know to have abstained, and to ab-
stain still, from communion with the aforesaid
Maximus.

rcj*

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

EPISTLE XXIX.

To Marinianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna?.

We wonder why the discernment of thy
Fraternity should have been so changed in
a short time that it does not consider what
it asks for. On this account we grieve, since
thou affordest manifest proof that the words of
evil counsellors have availed with thee more
than the study of divine lore has profited thee.
And, when thou oughtest to be protecting
monasteries, and with all thy power con_
gating the religious therein so as to make gain
from the gathering together of souls, thou art
on the contrary desiring to exercise thyself in
oppressing them, as thy letters testily ; and,
what is worse, art trying to make us partakers
in thy fault; to wit, in, wishing, with our con-
sent, to oppress the monastery which tin-
predecessor founded under the name of looking
after its property and business affairs.

For thou oughtest to call to mind that,
in thy presence, and in the presence also of
sundry of thy presbyters, deacons, and clerics,
we granted, as they requested, a precept con-
trary to the testament of thy predecessor.
Yet, though the disposition he had made with
regard to the monastery itself was still therein
confirmed, thou now dissemblest this, and
demandest of us that we should order the
contrary. And indeed we know that tin's de-
vice is not thine own ; but, when thou refus
not to listen to those who say incongruous
things, thou injurest not only thine own reputa-
tion, but also souls. Since, then, I love thee
much, I urgently admonish thee— consider
this attentively — that thou care not more for
money than for souls. The former should he-
regarded collaterally; but the latter should lie-
regarded with the whole bent of the mind, and
venemently striven after. On this spend vigi-
lantly thy labour and solicitude, since our
Redeemer seeks from the priest's office not
gold, but souls.

Further, it has reached our ears that monas-
teries which are constituted under thy Fra-
ternity are oppressed by importunities and
various annoyances from the clergy. That
this may no longer be so, restrain it by strict
prohibition, to the end that the monks who
live therein may be able to exult freely in the
praises of our God.

With regard to the clerics Romanus and
Dominicus, who presumed with rash daring to
depart from this city without our blessing,
though they were to have been stricken with
heavier punishment, nevertheless such relaxa-

tion ought to be made in a spirit of kindness
that they be urged to come back to their
duty. The month of April, Indict. 14.

EPISTLE XXX.
To Secundus.

Gregory to Secundus, servant of God at
Ravenna8.

Now that Castorius 9 has returned and made
known to us all that has been done between
you and King Agilulph, we have taken care to
send him back to you with all speed, lest any
one should find an excuse against us on the
ground of delay. Having learnt then from
him all that is to be done, give the matter
your earnest attention, and press in all ways
for this peace to be arranged, since, as report
goes, there are some who are trying to hinder
it. On this account make haste to act strenu-
ously, that your labour may not remain with-
out effect. For both these parts and various
islands are already placed in great danger.

Stir up with such words as thou canst use

our brother the bishop Marinianus1: for I

suspect that he has fallen asleep. For certain

have come to me, among whom were

some aged mendicants, who were questioned

by me as to what they had received and from

•in they had received it ; and they told me

particularly how much had been given them

on their journey, and by whom it had been

n. But, when I enquired of them what

my aforesaid brother had given them, they

replied that they had asked him, but had

d nothing at all from him; so that

id not get even bread on the way,

though it has always been the familiar usage

that Church to give to all. lor they said,

He answered saying, 1 have nothing that I

can give you. And I am surprised, if he who

has clotnes, money, and storehouses, has

nothing to give to the poor.

Tell him, then, that with his place he should
change his disposition too. Let him not be-
lieve reading and prayer alone to be enough
for him, so that he should think to sit apart,
and nowise fructify with his hand ; but let
him have a liberal hand ; let him succour
those who suffer need ; let him believe the
wants of others to be his own ; since, if he has
not these things, be bears but a bishop's empty
name. I did indeed give him some ad-
monitions about his soul in my letter ; but he

1 Cf. above, VI. i.

8 Gregory appears to have communicated with this Securdus,
rather than with the bishop of Kavenna, for reasons which appear
below, and to have employed him in negotiations with the Exarch
for peace with the Lombards.

9 A Castorius is mentioned in Gregory's letter to the Emperor
as having been the magister tiiilnnm in command at Kuinc
during its siege by Agilulph. This may be the same person.

1 For his appointment to the see of Kavenna, cf. \ . 48.

EPISTLE XXXIV.

199

has sent me no reply whatever; whence I

isuppose that he has not even deigned to read

them. For this reason it is needless now for

me to admonish him at all in my letter to

him ; and so I have written only what 1 was

able to dictate as his adviser in wordly matters.

For it is not incumbent on me to tire myself

I by dictation for a man who does not read

Iwhat is said to him. Let, then, thy love

1 speak to him about all these things privately,

and admonish him how he ought to demean

himself, lest through present negligence he

lose the advantage of his former life, which

God forbid.

EPISTLE XXXII.

To FORTUNATUS, BlSHOP.

Gregory to Fortunatus, Bishop of Neapolis
(Naples).

We have written before now to your Frater-
nity that, if any [slaves] by the inspiration of
God, desire to come from Jewish superstition
to the Christian faith, their masters have no
liberty to sell them, but that from the time of
their declaring their wish they have a full
claim to freedom. But since, so far as we
have learnt, they [i.e. Jewish masters], weigh-
ing with nice discrimination neither our wish
nor the ordinances of the law, think that they
are not bound by this condition in the case of
pagan slaves, your Fraternity ought to attend
to such cases, and, if any one of their slaves,
whether he be a Jew or a pagan, should wish
to become a Christian, after his wish has been
openly declared, let not any one of the Jews,
under cover of any device or argument what-
ever, have power to sell him ; but let him who.
desires to be converted to the Christian faith
be in all ways supported by you in his claim
to freedom. Lest, however, those who have
to lose slaves of this kind should consider that
their interests are unreasonably prejudiced, it
is fitting that with careful consideration you
should observe this rule ; — that if pagans when
they have been brought out of foreign parts
for the sake of traffic should chance to flee to
the Church, and say that they wish to become
Christians, or even outside the Church should
announce this wish, then, till the end of three
months during which a buyer to sell them to
may be sought for, they [the Jewish owners]
may receive their price ; that is to say, from
a Christian buyer. But if after the aforesaid
three months any one of such slaves should
declare his wish and desire to become a
Christian, let not either any one afterwards
dare to buy him, or his master, under colour
ot any occasion whatever, dare to sell him ;
but let him unreservedly attain to the benefit

of freedom ; since he (i.e. the master) is in
such case understood to have acquired him
not for sale but for his own service. Let,
then, your Fraternity so vigilantly observe all
these things that neither the supplication of
any nor respect of persons may avail to in-
veigle you 2.

EPISTLE XXXIV.
To Castorius, Notary.

Gregory to Castorius, our notary at Ravenna.

When Florentinus, deacon of the Church of
Ravenna, treated with us in behalf of our
most reverend brother and fellow-bishop
Marinianus concerning the use of the pallium,
on our asking him what was the ancient
custom, he replied that the bishop of the
Church of Ravenna used the pallium in all
litanies 3. But that this was not so we both
learnt from others, and it appeared evidently
from the letters of the former bishop John,
which we shewed to him. But he said what
lie had been ordered to say. For, at the time
when this same John was inhibited by thee from
presuming to use the pallium out of order and
unadvisedly, he wrote to us that the ancient
custom had been this ; that the bishop of that
city should use the pallium in solemn litanies.
We send thee, for thy information, copies of
his letters. But when Adeodatus, deacon of
the aforesaid Church, at the time when he was
here, in like manner pressed us strongly con-
cerning this use of the pallium, we, desiring
to ascertain the truth, in like manner had him
questioned as to what the custom was : and he,
that he might persuade us to believe him, and
succeed in obtaining from us what he sought,
testified under oatti that it had been the
ancient custom for the bishop of his city to
use the pallium in four or five solemn litanies.
Let therefore thy Experience look to the
matter diligently, and enquire with all careful-
ness how many solemn litanies there have
been from ancient times. Take care also to
make enquiry by calling them, not the solemn,
but the greater litanies ; diat when, through what
the aforesaid deacon Adeodatus testified to us
and what the letter of the aforesaid bishop
John acknowledges, it shall appear how many
of these solemn litanies there were, we,
knowing how often the pallium used to be
worn in litanies, may most willingly grant the
privilege. But do not make this enquiry of
those who are put forward by the ecclesiastics,

2 As to ownership by Jews of converted slaves, see Prolegom.,
p. xxi., and other Epistles there referred to.

3 Mariniunus had succeeded John as bishop of Ravenna
For Gregory's dispute with John concerning the use of the pal
lium, see above, III. 56, 57 '» v- "» JS» and below, VI. 61.

200

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

but of others whom you know to be impartial ;
and whatever after careful investigation you
discover communicate to us with accuracy,
that having ascertained the truth, as we have
said, we may relieve the mind of our brother
and 'fellow-bishop, the most reverend Marini-
anus.

EPISTLE XXXV.
To Anthemius, Subdeacon.

sweetness, we have received at the hands of
Rogatianus the deacon, the bearer of these
presents. And their kind expressions rejoiced
us much, especially as we were informed
through them of what we long to hear of, your
welfare. But the devotion of your Holiness
we have both known of old ; and as you now
write, so we hold it to be. For of what kind the
sincerity of your Fraternity towards us is we
need nothing to satisfy us, since we know it
from the love of our own heart which encircles

Gregory to Anthemius, our Neapolitan Sub- you> We have given to the above-named

deacon *.

Mow great is our grief, and how great the
affliction of our heart, from what has taken
place in the regions of Campania we cannot
express ; but thou mayest thyself gather it from
the greatness of the calamity. With regard to
this state of things, we send thy Experience
by the magnificent Stephen, bearer of these
presents, money for the succour of the
captives who have been taken, admonishing
thee that thou give thy whole atl intion to the
business, and carry it out strenuously; and, in
the case of freemen whom thou knowest to
have no sufficient means for their own rede
tion, that thou make haste to a them.

But, should there be any si ves, and thou
findest that their m i t ts are so poor that they
cannot come forward to redeem them, hesitate

not to recover them also. In like man

thou wilt take care to redeem the slaves of the

Church who have been lost by thy I

Further, whomsoever thou shalt have reel emed,

thou wilt by all means 1) : at pains to make

out a list, containing their names, ami a state

ment of where each is staring, and what he is

doing, and where he came from; which list | been acceptable to us, and we have granted

thou mayest bring with thee when thou

comest. Moreover, hasten to shew thyself SO

diligent in this business that those who are to

be redeemed may incur no risk through thy

negligence, or thou come afterwards to be

highly culpable before us. But work especially

for this also; that, if possible, thou mayest be

able to recover those captives at a moderate

price. But set down in writing, with all clear-
ness and nicety, the whole sum expended, and

transmit to us this thy written account with

speed. The month of May, Indiction 14.

bearer, whom you commended to us by letter,
writings addressed to the Rector of the patri-
mony of Sicily, bidding him urge the opposite
party to do what is just, to the end that, idle
excuses being put aside, the whole case in
dispute may be speedily brought to an end.

We now inform your Holiness that a certain
man has come to us, Peter by name, who
asserted that he was a bishop, and requested
from us a remedy of his complaint. And at
indeed he related things that might have
been deserving of pity; but on enquiry we
found tilings to be very different from what he
told us, and his behaviour has exceedingly
distressed us. But, inasmuch as, separated as
we are by so great a distance, we could oy
no means learn thoroughly the gist of his ca e,
we have been un ible to determine it, being in
doubt But now, seeing that the aforesaid
deacon, who is returning to you, has asked
that tins person should be allowed to go with
iiim, and he himself has requested to be sent
to you, both of them knowing that your
;i. ness has, as becomes you, zeal for the
faith and a love of justice, the pioposal has

EPISTLE XXXVII.

To Columbus, Bishop.
Gregory to Columbus, Bishop of Numidias
The letters of your Fraternity, full of priestly

4 The occasion of this letter seems to have been some recent
agere>sion of the Lombards in the Neapolitan district, resulting
in the capture of many prisoners of war.

5 -Sec il. 48, note 7.

what they asked. Since, then, you being on
the spot can as< ertain the merits of the case 1
more thoroughly, we exhort you so to observe i
wlu.t i.s just and canonical towards the same
Peter uat both the requirements of rectitude
may be fulfilled by you in all respects, and his
. ase may be seen to have been j tdged alter the
fear of God ami the rubs of the Church. But,
if any one is said to have been privy to, or
a partaker in, the things which the aforesaid
Peter is accused of, accurate enquiry must be
made, and, when the truth is known, judgment'
in like manner pronounced canonically.

Fiuthermore, a thing altogether hard to be
borne, and hostile to tne right faith, has come
to our ears ; namely that catholics (which is
awful to be told) and religious persons6 (which
is worse) consent to their children ami their:
slaves, or others whom they have in their

* Rtligieti. See 1. 61, note 7.

EPISTLE XLVI.

201

power, being baptized in the heresy of the
Donatists. And so, if this is true, let your
Fraternity study with all your power to correct
it, to the end that the purity of the faith may
through your solicitude stand inviolate, and
innocent souls who might be saved by catholic
baptism perish not from the infection of here-
tics. Whosoever, then, of the persons above
mentioned has suffered any one belonging to
him to be baptized among the Donatists, study
with all your power, and with all urgency,
to recall such to the catholic faith. But, if
any one of such persons should under any
pretext endure the doing of this thing in the
case of such as are his in future, let him be cut
off entirely from the communion of the clergy.

EPISTLE XLIII.
To Venantius, Patrician.

Gregory to Venantius, Patrician, and Ex-
monk i.

Your communication to us has found us
much distressed from having become aware
that offence has arisen between you and John
our brother and fellow-bishop, in whose agree-
ment with you we were desirous of rejoicing.
For, whatever the cause may have been, rage
ought not to have broken out to such a pitch
that your armed men, as we have heard, should
have burst into the episcopal palace, and com-
mitted divers evil deeds in a hostile manner,
and that this affair should meanwhile separate
you from his paternal charity. Could not the
dispute, whatever it may have been, have been
quietly arranged, so that neither party might
suffer disadvantage, nor good feeling be dis-
turbed ? Now it is not unknown to us of what
gravity, of what holiness, of what gentleness,
our above-named brother is. Whence we
gather that, unless excessive force of vexation
had compelled him, his Fraternity would by
no means have resorted to the measure by
which you say that you are aggrieved. We
however, on hearing of it by letter from him,
at once wrote to him, admonishing him to
receive your offerings as before, and not only
to allow masses to be celebrated in your house,
but, if you wish it, even to officiate himself,
and that he ought to have prosecuted his
cause without breach of charity. And, inas-
much as we wish none to come or continue to
be at variance, we have taken care to renew
this same admonition. Hence it is necessary,
dearest son, that you, as becomes sons, should
shew him the reverence due lo a priest, and
not provoke his spiiit to anger. For with
whom will you have assured goodwill, it (which

7 Ci. 1. 34, note 8.

God forbid) you are at variance with your
priest ? Wherefore, putting away swelling of
spirit, try ye so to transact the causes that
ye have, one with another that both charity
may remain inviolate, and what is to your
mutual advantage may be peaceably attained.

EPISTLE XLIV.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Syracuse3.

Although there may have been cause to
provoke the spirit of your Fraternity not un-
reasonably to anger, so that you would neither
receive the offerings of the lord Venantius nor
allow the sacred solemnities of mass to be
celebrated in his house, yet, inasmuch as our
earthly interests should be prosecuted in such
a manner that no quarrel may avail to sever us
from the bond of charity, we therefore exhort
your Holiness, as we have already written,
that you should both receive the offerings of
the aforesaid man with all sweetness and God-
pleasing sincerity, and allow the mysteries of
the mass to be performed in his house ; and
that, as we have written, you should, if per-
chance he should wish it, go there in person,
and by celebrating mass with him renew your
former friendly feeling. For it is your duty to
bestow priestly affection on sons, though still,
in causes that may arise, by no means to pre-
termit, as reason approves,, the jurisdiction of
your Church. Wherefore, considering this, it
is necessary that your Fraternity should try so
to demean yourself with discreet moderation
with respect to these matters as both to trans-
act advantageously what the nature of the
business requires, and not to recede from the
grace of paternal charity.

EPISTLE XLVI.
To Felix, Bishop of Pisaurum (Pesaro)..

Gregory to Felix, Bishop, &c.

We wonder at your Fraternity, that, dis-
regarding the tenor of the precept given you,
by our predecessor of holy memory, you should
consecrate the monastery constructed by John,,
the bearer of these presents, otherwise than
as ancient use demands. For, while it is
ordered among other things in the said precept
that you should dedicate the place itself with-
out a public mass, still, as we have heard, your
chair nas been placed there, and the sacred
solemnities of mass are there publicly cele-
brated. If this is 'true, we hereby exhort you
that, putting aside all excuse, you cause your

8 Cf. preceding Epistle. John, previously archdeacon of
Catana, had been elected in the previous year(.S94) with G;egoiy'a
approval as the successor of Maxtiniaiilts of Sy.acuse(V. ij), and
had recently had the pallium sent him (VI. 18.)

202

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

chair to be altogether removed thence, and
that henceforth you perform no public masses
there. But, as both custom and the tenor of
the precept direct, if they should wish mass
to be celebrated for them there, let a presbyter
be appointed by thee for the purpose 9.

Further, we desire that with the favour of
God there shall always remain a congregation
of servants of God in the same monastery,
as the aforesaid John has requested, and as
is now the case. As to the cup also which he
informs me has been taken away by your
Fraternity, if it be so, make haste to restore it.
These things, then, let your Holiness so study
to fulfil that the aforesaid bearer may have no
need to resort to us agrin on the same account.

EPISTLE XLVIII.

To Urbicus, Abbot.

Gregory to Urbicus, Abbot of Saint Hermes,
which is situated in Panormus.

Whosoever, incited by divine inspiration,
hastens to leave the employments of this world
and to be converted to God should so be
received with charity, and refreshed in all
ways with kind consolations, that, by the help
of God, he may delight in all ways to persevere
in the state of life which he has chosen.
Since, then, Agatho, the bearer of these
presents, desires to be converted ■ in thy
Love's monastery, we exhort thee to receive
him with all sweetness and love, and by
assiauous exhortation kindle his longing for
eternal life, and s:udy to be diligently solicitous
for his soid's salvation; to the end that, while
by thy admonition he shall persist with devoted
mind in the service of our God, it may both
profit him to have left the world, and his con-
version may be to the increase of thine own
reward. Know, however, that he is to be so
received only if his wife also should wish to be
similarly converted. For, when the bodies of
both have been made one by the tie of wed-
lock, it is unseemly that part should be con-
verted and part remain in the worid2.

EPISTLE XLIX.

To Pai.ladius, Bishop.

'Gregory to Pallaclius, Bishop of Santones in
Gaul {Saintes).

Leuparic your presbyter, the bearer of these
presents, when he came to us informed us that
your Fraternity has built a church in honour
of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul, and
also of the martyrs Laurentius and Pancratius,
and placed there thirteen altars, of which we
learn that four have remained not yet dedicated

9 Cf. II. 41.

■' Conversion has its usn>! sense of embracing monastic life.

2 See also on t.us Mibject, XI. 45, XI. 50.

because of your desiring to deposit there relics
of the above-named saints. And, seeing that
we have reverently supplied you with relics of
the Saints Peter and Paul, and also of the
j martyrs Laurentius and Pancratius, we exhort
iyou to receive them with reverence, and
deposit them with the help of the Lord,
providing before all things that supplies for
the maintenance of those who serve there be
not wanting.

EPISTLE L.
To Queen Brunichild.

Gregory to Brunichild, Queen of the Franks.

The tenor 01 your letters, which evinces
a religious spirit and the earnestness of a
pious mind, causes us not only to commend
the purpose of your request, but also to grant
willingly what you demand. For indeed it
would ill become us to refuse what Christian
devotion and the desire of an upright heart
solicits, especially as we know that you demand,
and embrace witii your whole heart, what may
both protect the faith of believers, and work,
no less the salvation of souls. Accordingly,
greeting your Excellency with befitting honour,
we inform you that to Leuparic, the bearer of
these presents, through whom we received
your communication, and whom you described
as a presbyter, we have handed over, accord-
ing to your Excellency's request, with the
reverence due to them, certain relics of the
blessed apostles Peter and Paul. But, that
laudable and religious devotion may be more
antl more conspicuous among you, you must
see that these benefits of the saints be deposited
with reverence and due honour, and that those
who serve in attendance on them be vexed
with no burdens or molestations, lest per-
chance, under the pressure of outward neces-
sity, they be rendered unprofitable and slow in
the sen ice of God, and (which God forbid) the
benefits of the saints that have been bestowed
sustain injury and neglect. Let, then, your
Excellency see to their quiet, to the end that,
while they are guarded by your bounty from
all disquietude, they may render praises to our
God with minds unui.->turbed, and that reward
may also accrue to you in the life eternal.

EPISTLE LI.

To THE BRETHREM GOING TO ENGLAND

{Angliam) 3.

Gregory, servant of the servants of God, to
the servants of our Lord Jesus Christ.

_ 3 This, with the eight following letters (51-59), were com-
mitted to Augustine, who is spoken of in several of them as th»
bearer, when he was sent back Irom Rome to rejoin his com

EPISTLE LI 1 1.

20'

Since it had been better not to have begun
what is good than to return back from it
.when begun, you must, most beloved sons,
fulfil the good work which with the help
r.oLthe Lord you have begun. Let, then,
neither the toil of the journey nor the tongues
of evil-speaking men deter you ; but with all
instancy and all fervour go on with what under
God's guidance you have commenced, know-
ing that great toil is followed by the glory of
an eternal reward. Obey in all things humbly
Augustine your provost (pmposito), who is
returning to you, whom we also appoint your
abbot, knowing that whatever may be fulfilled
in you through his admonition will in all ways
profit your souls. May Almighty God protect
you with His grace, and grant to me to see the
fruit of your labour in the eternal country ; that
so, even though I cannot labour with you,
I may be found together with you in the joy
of the reward; for in truth I desire to labour.
God keep you safe, most beloved sons. Given
the tenth day of the Kalends of August, the
fourteenth year of the Emperor our lord
Mauricius Tiberius, the most pious Augustus,
the thirteenth year of the consulship of our
said lord, Indiction 14.

EPISTLE. LII.
To Pelagius and Serenus, Bishops.
Gregory to Pelagius of Tumi 4 and Serenus
of Masilia {Marseilles) Bishops of Gaul. A
paribus 5.

Although with priests who have the charity
that is well pleasing to God religious men need

panions. Bede (//.is. I. 23), and John the deacon (Vit. S. Greg-.
II. 33), say that the missionaries — ''cum aliquantulum itineris
confecissent " (Bede) — "post dies aliquot" (John Diac.) — were
deterred by what they had heard of the difficulties of their under-
taking, and sent Augustine to Rome to request leave to give it up,
and that Gregory sent him back to them with letters of admonition
and of commendation. No commendatory letters seem to have
been given them when they first set out. Those now sent are
addressed to the bishops of Tumi (at. Turon.), Marseilles, Aries,
Vienne, Autun, and Aix in Provenee, to the abbot of Lerins,
to Arigius, Patrician of Gaul, to Theodoric and Theodebert,
the two boy-kings of Burgundy and Austrasia, and to queen
Brunechild their grandmother, who at this time ruled Austrasia
as Theodebert's guardian. See Pedigree of Kings of Gaul,
p. xxx. The letters which come first in order, 51 and 52,
being dated 22 July A.n. 596, we may conclude that the mis-
sionaries had been originally despatched in the spring of the
same year. They appear to have got as far as the Southern
coast of Provence, since the letters to the bishop of Aix and the
Abbot of Lerins shew that Augustine had already visited them,
though not, apparently, any others to whom letters are now
addressed. The mission was accompanied by Candidus, sent out
as Rector of the patrimony in Gaul (cf. Ep. VII.), who is also
commended in the letters. The patrimony appears to have been
attended to previously in a way not satisfactory to Gregory by
the bishops of Aries (see below, Epp. LIII., LV.). This letter is
not found in the Registrum Epistolorum ; but given by Bede
(I. 23), and by John the Deacon (Vit. S. Greg. lib. ii. c. 34).

4 De Turnis; in Colbert. Turonis. The latter name in
itself would seem to denote Tours. But it is not easy to see
why a common letter shoidd have been addressed to the Bishops
of Tours and Marseilles. And, further, would Tours on the Loire
be likely to lie on the route which the missionaries would take to
Britain ?

5 See I. 25, note 8.

no commendation, yet, since an apt time for
writing has offered itself, we have thought well
to send a letter to your Fraternity, mentioning
that we have sent into your parts, with the help
of the Lord, for the benefit of souls, the servant
of God Augustine, of whose earnestness we are
assured, with other servants of God. Him
your Holiness must needs assist with priestly
earnestness, and hasten to afford him your
succour. We have also enjoined him, that so
you may be the more ready to support him, to
make you fully acquainted with the matter he
has in hand, knowing that, when it is known
to you, you will lend yourselves with entire
devotion for God's sake to succour him as the
case requires.

Moreover, we commend in all ways to your
charity our common son the presbyter Candidus,
whom we have sent for the government of the
patrimony of our Church. Given on the tenth
day of the Kalends of August, Indiction 14.

EPISTLE LIII.
To Virgilius, Bishop.

Gregory to Virgilius, Bishop of Arelate
(Aries), Metropolitan.

Although we are confident that your Fra-
ternity is intent on good works, and that you
come forward of your own accord in causes
well-pleasing to God, we nevertheless deem it
advantageous to address you with fraternal
charity, that, being provoked also by our
letters, you may increase the solace which it
becomes you voluntarily to bestow. And
accordingly we inform your Holiness that we
have sent Augustine, the servant of God, the
bearer of these presents, with other servants
of God, for the winning of souls in the parts
whither he is going, as he will be able himself
to inform you face to face. In these circum-
stances you must needs aid him with prayer
and assistance, and, where need may require,
afford him the support of your succour, and
refresh him, as is fit, with fatherly and priestly
consolation, to the end that, when he shall
have obtained the succour of your Holiness, if
he should succeed in winning any gain for
God, as we hope he may, you too may be able
to gain a reward along with him, having
devoutly administered to his good works the
abundance of your support. Moreover, as to
Candidus the presbyter, our common son, and
the little patrimony of our Church, let your
Fraternity, as being of one mind with us,
study to hold both as commended to you ;
that so, with the help of your Holiness, some-
thing may thence accrue for the sustenance of
the poor. Inasmuch, then, as your prede-
cessor held this patrimony for many years, and

ro4

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

kept in his own hands the collected payments,
let your Fraternity consider whose the moneys
are, and to whom they should be paid, and
restore them to us, handing them to the above-
written presbyter Candidus, our son. For it
is very execrable that what has been preserved
by the kings of the nations should be said to
be taken away by bishops.

EPISTLE LIV.
To Desiderius and Syagrius, Bishops.

Gregory to Desiderius of Vienna ( Vie/itie),
and Syagrius of Augustodunum (Autun), Bi-
shops of Gaul. A paribus6.

Having regard to your sincere charity we
are well assured that out of love for Peter, the
Prince of the apostles, you will devotedly afford
your succour to our men ; especially since the
nature of the case requires you to give assist-
ance even of your own accord, and the more
when you see them labour. Wherefore we
inform your Holiness that, the Lord so ordering
it, we have despatched Augustine, the servant
of God, the bearer of these presents, whose
zeal and earnestness are well known to us,
with other servants of God, in behalf of souls
in those parts; from whose account of things
when you have fully learnt what is enjoined
on him, let your Fraternity bestow your sua our
on him in all ways which the i ase ma)
that you may be able, as is becoming and lit,
to be helpers of a good work. Let, then, your
Fraternity study to shew yourself so devo
in this matter that your action may prove to
us the truth of the good report that we have
heard of you. We commend to you in all
respects our most beloved common son, Can-
didus the presbyter, to whom we have com-
mitted the patrimony of our Church situated
in those parts.

EPISTLE LV.
To Pi:otasius, Bishop.

Gregory to Protasius, Bishop of Aquae in
Gaul (Aix).

How great love of the blessed Peter, Prince
of the apostles, distinguishes you is evident,
not only from the prerogative of your office,
but also from the devotion you bestow on
what is to the advantage of his Church. And
having learnt that this is the case from the
relation of Augustine, servant of God, the
bearer of these presents, we rejoice exceedingly
tor the affection and zeal for truth that is in
you; and we give thanks that, though absent
in the body, you still shew that you are with
us in heart and mind, seeing that you exhibit

* See I. 25, note 8.

brotherly charity towards us, as is fit. In
order then that actual fact may confirm the
good report of you, tell our brother and fellow-
bishop Virgilius to hand over to us the pay-
ments which his predecessor received for many
years and retained in his own hands : for it is
the property of the poor. And if perchance,
as we do not believe will be the case, he
should desire in any way to excuse himself,
do you, who know the real truth more exactly,
inasmuch as you acted as steward (vicedominus)
at that time, explain to him how the matter
stands, and urge him not to retain in his hands
the property of Saint Peter and of his poor.
But, though perhaps our men may not need
this, do not refuse your testimony in the case;
that so, with regard to the truth as well as to
the devotion of your good will, the blessed
apostle Peter, for whose love you do this, may
respond to you by his intercession both here
ami in the life to come. We heartily commend
to your Holiness the presbyter Candidus, our
c minon son, to whom we have committed the
charge of this patrimony.

EPISTLE LVL
To Stephen, Aubot'.

Gregory to Stephen, &<

The account given us by Augustine, servant
Oi < rod, the bearer of these presents, has made
us joyful, in that he has told us that your Love
is vigilant as you ought to be; and he further
affirms that the presbyters and deacons and
the whole congregation live in unanimity and
concord. And, since the goodness of presi-
dents is the salutary rule of their subjects, we
implore Almighty God to enkindle thee always
in good works by the grace of His loving-
kindness, and to keep those who are committed
to thee from all temptation of diabolical deceit,
and grant to them to live with thee in charity
and in the manner of life that pleases Him.

But, since the enemy of the human race
never rests from plotting against our doings,
so as to deceive in some part souls that are
serving Cod, therefore, most beloved son, we
exhort thee to exercise vigilantly thy anxious
. and so to keep those who are committed
to thee by prayer and needfulness that the
prowling wolf may find no opportunity for
tearing the flock : to the end that, when thou
shalt have rendered to our Cod unharmed
those of whom thou hast undei taken the charge,
He may both of His grace repay thee with
rewards for thy labour and multiply in thee
longings for eternal life.

7 In Cod. Colbert. Stephen is described as "abbati de mo- 1
nasteno quod est Lirino ; ' i e. the fuui.;u> monastery on the
island of that name (l.enns) now known as L'iU de St. Uonorat.
This was probably Stephen's monastery.

EPISTLE LIX.

205

We have received the spoons and plates
which thou hast sent us, and we thank thy
Charity, because thou hast shewn how thou
lovest the poor in having sent for their use
such things as they need.

EPISTLE LVII.
To Arigius, Patrician8.

Gregory to Arigius, Patrician of Gaul.

We have learnt from the servant of God,
Augustine, the bearer of these presents, how
great goodness, how great gentleness, with
the charity that is well-pleasing to Christ, is
in you resplendent; and we give thanks
to Almighty God, who has granted you
these gifts of His loving-kindness, through
which you may have it in your power to be
highly esteemed among men, and — what is
truly profitable— glorious in His sight. We
therefore pray Almighty God, that He would
multiply in you these gifts which He has
granted, and keep you with all yours under
His protection, anil so dispose the doings of
your Glory in this world that they may be to
your benefit both here, and— what is more to
be wished— in the life to come. Saluting,
then, your Glory with paternal sweetness, we
beg of you that the bearer of these presents,
and the servants of God who are with him,
may obtain your succour in what is needful, to
the end that, while they experience your favour,
they may the better fulfil what has been en-
joined on them to do.

Furthermore, we commend to you in all
respects our son the presbyter Candidus, whom
we have sent for the government of the patri-
mony of our Church which is in your parts ;
trusting that your Glory will receive a reward
in return from our God, if with devout mind
you lend your succour to the concerns of the
poor.

EPISTLE LVIII.
To Theodoric and Theodebert*.

Gregory to Theodoric and Theodebert,
brethren, Kings of the Franks. A paribus 2.

8 The term Patricius was used to designate governors of
provinces under the Frank kings. Cf. III. 33. ," Dynamio patri-
cio Galliarum," and Greg. Turon. (IV. 24), "Guntramnus rex,
a.noto Agricola patriae, Celsum pntr.aatus honore donav.t
There were at this time two Burgundian Patricn, one, called
the Patricius absolutely, residing at Aries, the other at Mar-

Se,'!eCh kufben 'iT'son of Sigebert I. and Brunechild, who had
reigned over nearly all the dominions ot the t ranks in Gaul
(see VI. s note 5), died in this year. ad. 596. and was succeeded
by his illegitimate son Theodebert II as king of Austrasia and
by hi, second son Theoderic II. as king of burgundy These
two kines were only ten and seven years of age respectively when
their father died, and their grandmother Brunechilu was appointed
Euardian of the former. Hence Gregory, writing now alter the
death of Childebert, addresses formal letters in identical terms
to the two minors, but another (Ep. LIX.) to Brunechild. See
Pedigree oj Kings oj Gaul, p. xxx.
a See I. as, note 8.

Since Almighty God has adorned your king-
dom with rectitude of faith, and has made it con-
spicuous among other nations by the purity of
its Christian religion, we have conceived great
expectations of you, that you will by all means
desire that your subjects should be converted
to that faith in virtue of which you are their
kings and lords. This being so, it has come
to our knowledge that the nation of the Angli
is desirous, through the mercy of God, of being
converted to the Christian faith, but that the
priests in their neighbourhood neglect them,
and are remiss in kindling their desires by
their own exhortations. On this account there-
fore we have taken thought to send to them
the servant of God Augustine, the bearer of
these presents, whose zeal and earnestness are
well known to us, with other servants of God.
And we have also charged them to take with
them some priests from the neighbouring
parts, with whom they may be able to ascertain
the disposition of the Angli, and, as far as God
may grant it to them, to aid their wishes by
their admonition. Now, that they may
have it in their power to shew themselves
efficient and capable in this business, we be-
seech your Excellency, greeting you with
paternal charity, that these whom we have sent
may be counted worthy to find the grace of
your favour. And, since it is a matter of
souls, let your power protect and aid them;
that Almighty God, who knows that with
devout mind and with all your heart you take
an interest in His cause, may propitiously
direct your causes, and after earthly dominion
bring you to heavenly kingdoms.

Futhermore, we request your Excellency to
hold as commended to you our most beloved
son, Candidus, a presbyter, and the rector
of the patrimony of our Church, to the end
that the blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles,
may answer you by his intercession, while,
looking to the reward, you afford your protec-
tion in the concerns of his poor.

EPISTLE LIX.
To Brunichild, Queen of the Franks.

Gregory to Brunichild, &c.

The Christianity of your Excellence has
been so truly known to us of old that we do
not in the least doubt of your goodness, but
rather hold it to be in all ways certain that you
will devoutly and zealously concur with us in
the cause of faith, and supply most abundantly
the succour of your religious sincerity. Being
for this reason well assured, and greeting you
with paternal charity, we inform you that it
has come to our knowledge how that the
nation of the Angli, by God's permission, is

206

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

•desirous of becoming Christian, but that the
•priests who are in their neighbourhood have
no pastoral solicitude with regard to them.
And lest their souls should haply perish in
eternal damnation, it has been our care to
send to them the bearer of these presents,
Augustine the servant of God, whose zeal and
earnestness are well known to us, with other
servants of God ; that through them we might
be able to learn their wishes, and, as far as is
possible, you also striving with us, to take
thought for their conversion, ^'e have also
charged them that for carrying out this design
they should take with them presbyters fiom
the neighbouring regions. Let, then, )our
Excellency, habitually ] rone to good works,
on account as well of our request as of regard
to the fear of God, deign to hold him as in all
ways commended to you, and earnestly bestow
on him the favour of your protection, and
lend the aid of your patronage to his labour ;
.and, that he may have the fullest fruit thereof,
provide for his going secure under your pro-
tection to the above-written nation of the
Angli, to the end that our God, who has
adorned you in this world with good qualities
well-pleasing to Him, may cause )ou to give
thanks here and in eternal rest with His
saints.

Furthermore, commending to your Chris-
tianity our beloved son Candidus, presbyter
and rector of the patrimony of our Church
which is situated in your paits, we beg that he
may in all things obtain the l&VOUX oi your
protection.

EPISTLE LX.
To Eulogius, Bishop.

Gregory to Eulogius, Bishop of Alexandria.

Charity, the mother and guardian oi all
that is good, which binds together in union
the hearts of many, regards not as absent him
whom it has present in the mind's e)e. Since
then, dearest brother, we are held together by
the root of charity, neither will bodily absence
nor distance of places have power to assert any
claim over us, inasmuch as we who are one are
surely not far from each other. Now we wish
to have always this common charity with the
rest of our brethren. Yet there is something
that binds us in a certain peculiar waj to the
Church of Alexandria, and compels us, as it
were by a special law, to be the more prone to
love it. For, as it is known to all that the
blessed evangelist Mark was sent by Saint
Peter the apostle, his master, to Alexandria, so
we are bound together in the unity of this
master and his disciple, so that I seem to pie-
■s;de over the see of the disciple because of'

the master, and you over the see of the master
because of the disciple.

Moreover to tins unity of hearts we arc
bound also by the merits of your Holiness,
since wc know that you follow profitably the
ordinances of your founder, and feel how you
betake yourself with entire devotion to the
bosom of your master, whence sprung the
preaching of salvation in your parts. And so,
when we received the letters of your Holiness,
as much as our heart rejoiced in your brotherly
visitation, so much is it oppressed with sadness
for the untold burdens which you refer to, and
we groan with you in brotherly sympathy for
your grief. But, since a shaking of various
kinds is extending itself everywhere, in the
midst of a common need one should grieve
less for one's own, but study rather, by patiently
enduring, to overcome what we cannot alto-
getlier avoid.

Cut what we ourselves are suffeiing from
the swords of the Lombards in the daily plun-
dering and mangling and slaying of our citizens,
wc refuse to tell, lest, while speaking of our
own sorrows, we should increase yours from
the sympathy which you bestow upon us.

Furthermore, a little time ago we sent to
Sabinianus, who represents our Church in the
royal city, a letter from ourselves, which he
should have sent on to your Fraternity 3. If
you have received it, we wonder why you
have sent us no reply to it. And accordingly,
since caution must be taken lest the pride
of any one whatever introduce offence in the
Chun hes, it is needful that you should care-
fully peruse it, and with all diligence and full
bent of mind maintain what pertains to your
dignity and to the peace of the Church.

Now may Almighty God, who by the grace
of His loving-kindness has conferred on you
the disposition and charity that becomes a
priest, protect you in His service, and keep
you witiiin and without from all adversity, and
mercifully grant that the souls of wanderers
may be converted to Himself by vour preaching.

We have received with the charity that was
due to the bearer of these presents, our com-
i mon son the deacon Isidore, who brought to
us the benctiiction 4 of Saint Mark the evange-
list. And you indeed, being resplendent in
the merit of a good life, have sent to us the
sweetly smelling word, which is nigh unto
Paradise. But we, to wit because we are
sinners, send you wood from the West, which,

3 See V. 43, which is probably the letter here referred to, being
one sent to the two patuarchs of Alexandria and Anticch, urging
ihcm to join in resisting the assumption of the title of universal
Bishop by the patriarch of Constantinople.

4 Bcnrdictioiiew, with reference to the present of sweet wood
that had been sent. Cf. a Kings v. 15, ''Take a bUssiit* of thv
servant."

EPISTLE LXIII.

207

being suitable for the building of ships, signifies
the tumult of our mind, as being ever tossed
in the sea-waves ; and we wished indeed to
send larger pieces, but the ship was not large
enough to hold them s. in tne month of
August, Indiction 14.

EPISTLE LXI.
To Castorius, Notary6.

Gregory to Castorius, &c.

The magnificent lord Andreas presses me
continually about restoring the use of the
pallium in the Church of Ravenna according
to ancient custom. And thou knowest that
the bishop John wrote to me that it had
been the custom for the bishops of the said
Church to use the pallium in solemn litanies 7.
Adeodatus, deacon of that church, when he
besought me earnestly on the same subject,
satisfied me by oath that the bishops of the
said place were accustomed to use the pallium
in litanies four times in the year. But the
aforesaid lord Andreas says in his letters that
the bishop of Ravenna was in the habit of
using the pallium in litanies at all times except
in Lent. And these litanies, which he does
not blush to say were daily, he asserts to be
solemn ones. Whence I have been altogether
astonished. But let thy Experience regard no
man's person, no man's words; keep the fear
of God and rectitude only before thine eyes,
and enquire of senior persons, and of the
Archdebon of that same Church, who would
not, I think, perjure himself for the honour of
another, and of others of older standing who
had been in sacred orders before the times of
bishop John, or if there are any others of riper
age not in holy orders ; and let them come
before the body of Saint Apollinaris, and
touching his sepulchre swear what had been
the custom before the times of bishop John ;
since, as thou knowest, he was a man who
presumed greatly and endeavoured in his pride
to arrogate many things to himself. And
whatever may be sworn to by faithful and
grave men, according to the subjoined form,
we desire to be retained in the same Church.
But see that thou act not negligently, and that
no one corrupt thy faithfulness and devotion
in this matter; for thy zeal I know. Act
assiduously, yet so that the aforesaid Church be
not lowered in a way contrary to justice, but
that it retain the usage that existed before the
times of bishop John. Moreover, for satisfying
thyself, do not enquire of two or three persons,

s Cf. vii. 40; ix. 78.

6 On the subject of this Epistle, cf. above, Ep. XXXIV.,
with references in note.

7 Cf. V. 11 ; VI. 34.

but of as many as thou canst find of old stand-
ing and grave character, that so we may
neither deny to that Church what has been
of ancient custom, nor concede to it what has
been coveted and attempted newly. But do
all kindly and sweetly, so that both thy action
may be strict and thy tongue gentle. The
sword 8 which has been left at Ravenna, as we
have already written, bring hither with thee;
and carefully attend to what our son Boniface
the deacon and the magnificent Maurentius
the chartularius have written to thee about.

I swear by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
the inseparable Trinity of Divine Power, and
by this body of the blessed martyr Apollinaris,
that out of favour to no person, and without
any advantage to myself intervening, I give my
testimony. But this I know, and am personally
cognizant of, that, before the times of the late
bishop John, the Bishop of Ravenna, in the
presence of this or that apocrisiarius of the
Apostolic See, on such and such days, had
the custom of using the pallium, and I am not
aware that he had herein usurped latently, or
in the absence of the apocrisiarius.

EPISTLE LXIII.
To Gennadius, Patrician'.

Gregory to Gennadius, Patrician of Africa.

We doubt not that your Excellency re-
members how two years ago we wrote in
behalf of Paul our brother and fellow-bishop,
asking you to afford him the support of your
Dignity in his desire to come to us on account
of the trouble he was said to be undergoing
from persecution on the part of the Donatists,
to the end that, since it had been reported to
us that he could get no aid against them there,
we might, after ascertaining the truth, give him
advice with fiaternal sympathy, and treat with
him as to what should be done in the way of
a wholesome arrangement against the madness
of pestiferous presumption. And, so far as our
aforesaid brother gave us to understand, he not
only failed to get succour from any one, but
was prevented by various hindrances from
being able to come with safety to the Roman
city. Yet, when we had caused your epistle to
be read to him, he replied that he is not suffer-
ing from the ill-will of certain persons because
he repressed the Donatists, but rather says
that he is in disfavour with many for his
defence of the Catholic faith ; and he told me
many things besides, which, since this is not
a fit time for mentioning them, we have
thought best to keep to ourselves.

8 Spcitam, a word usually signifying a kind of sword. Cf.
VI. 24, where this same spata is referred to.

9 On the subject of this letter, see IV. 34, 35-

208

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Since, then, the question before us is not
one of earthly affairs, but of the health of
souls, and your assertion and his are different,
we have been unable to say anything particu-
larly in reply, not having investigated the
truth, seeing that, when we received the
letters of your Excellency, we were confined
by bodily sickness. But when Almighty God,
if it should please Him, shall have restored us
to our former health, we will sift the truth as
we can by diligent enquiry. And according to
what we may be able to learn we will so settle
the case through the mercy of God that not
only the health of souls in the cure whereof
you deign to take an interest, lost now by
them that err, may be restored, but also that
which the maintainers of the true faith still
possess may, through the protecting grace of
our Redeemer, be pre erved.

But with regard to the above-named bishop,
whom you assert to be deprived of communion,
we greatly wonder how it is that a letter from
your Excellency, and not from his primate, has
announced this to us.

EPISTLE LXV.
To Maukicius, Emperor.

Gregory to Mauritius Augustus.

Amidst the cares of warfare and innumerable
anxieties which you sustain in your unwearied
aeal for the government of the Christian re-
public, it is a great cause of joy to me along with
the whole world that your Piety ever watches
over custody of the faith whereby the empire of
our lords is resplendent. Whence I fully trust
that, as you guard the causes of CJod with the
love of a religious mind, so God guards and
aids yours with the grace of His Majesty.
Now after what manner the serenity of your
Piety, out of regard to righteousness and
zeal for the purest religion, has been moved
against the most flagitious pravity of the Dona-
tists, the tenor of the commands which you
have sent most clearly shews. But the most
reverend bishops who have come from the
African province assert that these have been
so disregarded through ill-advised connivance
that neither is the judgment of God held in
fear there, nor are the imperial commands so
far carried into effect; adding also this: that
in the aforesaid province, through the bribes
of the Donatists prevailing, the Catholic faith
is publicly let to sale. But on the other hand
the glorius Gennadius1 has likewise complained
of one of those who made such complaints :
and two others also have borne like testimony
with him on the subject. But, inasmuch as in

1 Gennadius was the Exarch of Africa.

this case a secular judge was concerned, I have
thought it right to send these bishops to the
footsteps of your Piety, that they may represent
in person to your most serene ears what they
declare themselves to have endured for the
catholic faith.

For these reasons I beseech the Christianity
of my lords, for the weal of their souls and the
life of their most pious offspring, to give orders
by a strict mandate for the punishment of such
as you find to be such as have been described,
and to arrest with the hand of rescue the ruin
of those who are perishing, and to apply the
medicine of correction to insane minds, and
cure them of the poisonous bite of error ; that
so, the darkness of pestiferous pravity having
been driven away by the remedy of your pro-
vision, and the true faith having shed abroad
in those parts the rays of its serenity, heavenly
triumph may await \ou before the eyes of our
Redeemer, because whomsoever you defend
outwardly from the enemy, them you also set
free inwardly from the poison of diabolical
fraud ; which is a still more glorious thing.

EPISTLE LXVI.
To Aihanasius, Presbyter.

Gregory to Athanasius, Presbyter of Isauria.

As we are afflicted and mourn for those
whom the error of heretical pravity has cut off
from the unity of the Church, so we rejoice
with those whom their profession of the catho-
lic faith retains within her bosom. And, as it
is our duty to oppose the impiety of the former
with pastoral solicitude, so it is fitting for us to
bestow favour on the pious professions of the
latter, and to declare their views to be sound.
And accordingly, a suspii ion of unsoundness
in the faith having arisen against thee, Athana-
sius, presbyter of the monastery of Saint Mile,
called Tamnacus, which is established in the
province of Lycaonia, thou, in order that the
integrity of the profession of faith might appear,
didst elect to have recourse to the Apostolical
See over which we preside, asserting also that,
having been corporally chastised, thou hadst
done some things unjustly and impetuously.
And, although things done under compulsion
by no means fall under the censure of the
canons, and they are rightly accounted to be
of no weight (since he himself invalidates them
who compels what is unjust to be confessed
and done), and though that confession is rather
to be received and embraced which is shewn to
proceed from the spontaneous will, as is known
to be the case in that which thou madest
before us ; — yet still, to avoid the possibility of
uncertainty, we took the precaution of writing
about thee to our brother and fellow-bishoo.

EPISTLE LXVi.

209

the prelate of the city of Constantinople, that
he might inform us by letter of what had been
done. Pie, after being often admonished by
us, wrote in reply to the effect that a volume
had been found in thy possession, which con-
tained many heretical statements, and that on
this account he had been incensed against
thee. He having lent this to us in his desire
to satisfy us, we read the earlier portions of it
attentively : and inasmuch as we found in it
manifest poison of heretical pravity, we forbade
its being read any more. But, since thou
hast assured us that thou hadst read it in
simplicity, and, in order to cut off all ground
for uncertain suspicion, hast handed to us
a paper in thine own handwriting in which,
expounding thy faith, thou hast most plainly
condemned all heresies in general, or whatever
is opposed to the integrity of the Catholic
faith or profession, and hast declared that
thou hadst always received and didst still
receive all that the four holy Ecumenical synods
receive, and hadst condemned and didst still
condemn what they condemn, and hast prom-
ised also to accept and hold to that synod
which was held in the times of the emperor
Justinian concerning the Three Chapters, and,
being forbidden by us to read that same
volume in which the poison of pestiferous

error is interwoven, rejecting also and con-
demning all that in it is said or latently im-
plied against the integrity of the Catholic faith,
thou hast promised that thou wilt not read it
again ; — we, moved by these reasons (thy faith
also having clearly appeared to us from the
paper under thine own hand, God guarding
thee, to be catholic), decree thee to be, accord-
ing to thy profession, free from all stain of
heretical perversity, and catholic ; and we pro-
nounce that thou hast proved thyself, by the
grace of Christ Jesus our Saviour to be in
all things a professor and follower of the un-
adulterated faith : and we give thee free licence,
notwithstanding all, to return to thy monastery,
resuming thy place and rank.

We wish to write also on this matter to our
most beloved brother, the prelate of the city of
Constantinople, who has been ordained in the
place of the aforesaid holy John 2. But, since
it is the custom that we should not write before
his synodical epistle has reached us, we have
therefore delayed. But, after it has reached
us, we will inform him of these things when we
find a convenient opportunity.

a Cyriacus (a. d. 595) succeeded John the Faster as patriarch
of Constantinople. For the letter afterwards written to him with
reference to Athanasius, cf. VII. >

VOL. XII.

BOOK VII.

EPISTLE IT.

To Columbus, Bishop.

Gregory to Columbus, Bishop of Numidia ».

We received at the hands of the bearer,
your deacon, the epistle of your Fraternity, in
which you informed us of what had been done
among you with regard to the person of the
bishop Paul. This has been done so late that he
could not now have appeared here in person.
For his Excellency also, our son Gennadius
the Patrician, sent his chancellor to us with
reference to the same case. But when we
had caused -enquiry to be made whether he
was willing to plead against him [i.e. against
the bishop Paul] before us, he replied that
he had been by no means sent with this intent,
but had only brought hither certain three
persons from his Church who would allege
many things against him. While, then, we
neither found him prepared to commence an
action, nor were moved by the quality of those
persons to regard them as fit accusers of a
bishop, we could not gainsay or offer hindrance
to the often before-mentioned bishop Paul,
who petitioned us in the hope of having leave
given him to resort to the royal city; but we
presently allowed him according to his petition,
with two others whom he should take with
him, to set forth. If, then, there have been
any things that could be reasonably said
against him, the proper course would have
been for him to come here at once, and for
your Fraternity to inform us of all particulars,
as you have now done. For, as to your having
signified to us that you suffer from the en-
mities of many on account of our frequently
visiting you by our letters, there is no doubt,
most reverend brother, that the good suffer
from the grudges of the bad, and that those
who are intent on divine works are harassed
by the oppositions of the perverse. But, in
proportion as these bad things are around you,
ought you to be more instantly occupied with
the care of the government committed to you,
and to watch for the custody of the flock of
Christ ; and in proportion as the contrariety

« On the subject of this letter, see IV. 34, 35 : also VI. 63.

of unrighteous men presses upon you, ought
the care of pastoral solicitude to inflame you
to be more active, and very certain of the
promised reward, to the end that you may be
able to offer to the chief Shepherd gain from
the work given you to do.

EPISTLE IV.
To Cyriacus, Bishop.

Gregory to Cyriacus, Bishop of Constanti-
nople.

We have received with becoming charity
our common sons, George the presbyter and
Theodore your deacon ; and we rejoice that
you have passed from the care of ecclesiastical
business to the government of souls, since,
according' to the voice of the Truth, He that it
faithful in a little will be faithful also in much
(Luke xvi. 10). And to the servant who ad-
ministers well it is said, Because thou hast been
faithful over a fetv things, I 7cill make thee
ruler over many things (Matth. xxv. 23); to
whom also it is presently said further with
respect to eternal retribution, Enter thou into
the joy of thy Lord. Now you say in your
letter that you had exceedingly wished for
rest. But in this you shew that you have
fitly assumed pastoral responsibility, since, as
a place of rule should be denied to those who
covet it, so it should be offered to those who
fly from it. And no man taketh this honour
unto himself, but he that is called of God, as
7cas Aaron (Hebr. v. 4). And again the same
excellent preacher says, If one died for all,
then all died ; and Christ died for all. It re-
maineth that they 7vhich live should not hence-
forth live unto themselves, but unto him which
died for them, and rose a°ain (2 Cor. v. 14, 15").
And to the shepherd of holy Church it is said,
Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me ? Feed My
sheep (John xxi. 17). From which words it
appears that, if one who is able refuses to feed the
sheep of Almighty God, he shews that he does
not love the chief Shepherd. For if the Only-
begotten of the Father, for accomplishing the
good of all, came forth from the secrecy of the
Father into the midst of us, what shall we say,
if we prefer our secrecy to the good of our

EPISTLE IV.

211

neighbours ? Thus rest is to be desired by us
with all our heart ; and yet for the advantage
of many it should sometimes be laid aside.
For, as we ought with full desire to fly from
occupation, so, ,if there should be a want of
some one to preach, we must needs put a
willing shoulder under the burden of occupa-
tion. And this we are taught by the conduct
of two prophets 2,, one of whom attempted
to shun the office of preaching, while the
Other desired it. For to the Lord who sent
him Jeremias replied saying, Ah, Lord God,
1 cannot speak ; for / am a child (Jer. i. 6).
And when Almighty God sought for some one
to pfeac.h, saying, Whom shall I send, and who
will go for us? Isaias offered himself of his
own accord, saying, Here am I, send me
(Isai. vi. 8). Lo, different voices proceeded
outwardly from the two, but they flo.ved from
the same'fountain of love."

For indeed there are two precepts of charity ;
to wit, the' love of God and of one's neigh-
bour. Wherefore Isaias, wishing to profit his
neighbours by an active life, desires the office
of preaching ; but Jeremias, longing to cling
assiduously to the love of his Maker by a
contemplative life^ protests agafnst being sent
to preach. What, then, one laudably desired
the other laudably shrunk from v.the latter,
lest by speaking he should lose the, gains of
silent contemplation ; the former lest by keep-
ing silence he should feel the Iqss of^diligent
work. But this is nicely to be, observed in
both, that he who refused did not resist finally,
and he who wished to be sent 'saw himself
previously purged by a coal from, the altar;
that so no one who has not been purged
should dare to approach sacred Jfriinistries,
nor any one whom heavenly grace chooses
refuse proudly under a show of humility,'

Moreover 1 find you in your. epistles seeking
with great longing after serenity, of mind, and
panting for tranquillity of thought apart from
perturbation. But I know not in what manner
your Fraternity can attain to this. Forgone
who has undertaken the pilotage of a ship
must needs watcli all the more as he further
recedes from shore, so as sometimes to foresee
from signs the coming storms ; sometimes,
when they come, either, if they are small, to
ride over them in a straight course, or, if they
swell violently, to avoid them as they rushJ oh,
by steering sideways ; and often to watch
alone when all who are without charge of the
ship are at rest. How, moreover, having
undertaken the burden of pastoral charge, can

» What follows about Isaiah and Jeremiah occurs also in the
Pastoralis Cura, I. 7.

you have serenity of thought, seeing that it is
written, Behold giants groan under the waters
(Job xxvi. 5) ? For, according to the words
of John, The waters are peoples (Rev. xvii. 15).
And the groaning of giants under the waters
means that whoso in this world has increased
in degree of power, as though in a sort of
massive size of body, feels the load of greater
tribulation by so much the more as he has
taken on himself the cire of ruling peoples.
But, if the power of the Holy Spirit breathes
upon the afflicted mind, forthwith what was
done bodily for the people of Israel takes
place with us spiritually. For it is written,
But the children of Israel walked upon dry land,
in the midst of the sea (Exod. xiv. 29), And
through the prophet the Lord promises saying,
When thou passest through the waters, I will be
with thee* and the rivers shall not overflow thee
(Fsai. xliii. 2). For the rivers overflow those
whom the active business of this world con-
founds with perturbation of mind. But he
who is sustained in mind by the grace of the
Holy Spirit passes through the waters, and yet
is not overflowed by the rivers, because in the
midst of crowds of peoples he so proceeds
along his way as not to sink the head of his
mind beneath the active business of the
world.

I also, who, unworthy as I am, have come
to a place of rule, had sometimes determined
to seek some place of retirement : but, seeing
the Divine counsels to be opposed to me,
I submitted the neck of my heart to my
Maker's yoke ; especially reflecting on this,
that no hidden places whatever can save the
soul without the grace of God ; and this we
observe sometimes, when even saints go astray.
For Lot was righteous in the depraved city
itself, and sinned on the mountain (Gen. xix.).
But why speak of these instances, when we
know of greater ones ? For what is pleasanter
than Paradise ? What safer than Heaven ?
And yet man out of Paradise, and the angel
from heaven, by sinning fell. His power, then,
should be sought, His grace implored, without
whom we are nowhere without fault, with
whom we are nowhere without righteousness.
We should, then, take care that perturbation
of thought get not the better of our minds;
for it can by no means be entirely got rid of.
For whosoever is in a place of rule must needs
have to^think sometimes even of earthly things,
and to have a care also of external things,
that the flock committed to him may be able
to'subsist for accomplishing what it has to do.
But it should be most carefully seen to, that
this same care pass not due measure, and
that, when lawfully admitted into the heart, it
be not-allowed to become excessive. Whence

212

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

it is rightly said through Ezekiel 3, Let not the
priests shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to
«roto long ; but polling let them poll their heads
(Ezek. xliv. 20). For what are hairs in the
head by signification but thoughts in the
mind? For, rising above the brain insensibly,
they denote cares of the present life, which
from negligent perception, since they come on
sometimes importunely, advance as it were
without our feeling them. Since, then, all
who are over others ought indeed to have
outward anxieties, and yet not to devote them-
selves to them exceedingly, the priests are
rightly forbidden either to shave the head
or to let their locks grow long, so that they
nay neither entirely cut off from themselves
carnal thoughts for the life of their subjects,
nor again allow them to grow too much. And
it is also there well said, rolling let them poll
their heads ; meaning that the anxieties of a
temporal charge should both proceed as far as
is needful, and yet should be soon cut short,
lest they grow to an immoderate length.
While therefore both, through external pro-
vision administered, the life of bodies is pro-
tected, and again intentness of heart is not
hindered through the same being immoderate,
the hairs on the head of the priest are kept to
cover the skin, and cut short so as not to veil
the eyes.

Furthermore, we have received in full faith
your letters addressed to us, and give t .inks
to Almighty God, who, by the mutual con-
fession of the faithful, guards the coat that is
without seam woven Irwin the top throughout,
that is to say His Church, in the unity "!
grace, from all rent of error \ and against the
deluge (so to speak) of so many sm^ of the
perishing world constructs an ark of many
planks in which the elect of Almighty God
may be preserved unto life. For, when we in
our turn send the confession of our faith to
you, and you shew your charity towards us,
what are we doing in holy Church but smear-
ing the ark with pitch ; lest any wave of error
enter, and kill all the spiritual as being men,
and the carnal as being beasts.

But, when you have wisely professed a right
faith, it remains doubtless that you should
keep the more warily the peace of hearts,
because of what the Truth says, Have salt in
yourselves, and have peace one with another
(Mark ix. 50). And Paul the apostle admon-
ishes, saying, Endeavouring to keep the unity oj
the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephes. iv. 3).
And again he say s, Foltoiv peace with all men,
and holiness, without which no man shall see

God (Hebr. xii. 14). Which peace indeed
you will then truly have with us, if you turn
away from the pri le of a profane name, ac-
cording to what the same teacher of the
Gentiles says, O Timothy, keep that which is
committed to thy trust, avoiding profane novel-
ties of words (1 Tim. vi. 20). For indeed it is
too bad, if these who have been made preachers
of humility should glory in the elation of a vain
name, when the true preacher says, But God
forbid that 1 should glory, save in the cross
of our Lord Jesus Christ (Gal. vi. 14). He
then is truly glorious who glories not in tem-
p >ral power, but, for the name of Christ, glories
in His passion. Herein therefore we embrace
you from the bottom of our heart, herein we re-
iize you as priests, if, rejecting the vanity
of words, you occupy the place of holiness
with holy humiliry. For behold, we have
1 scandalized by this impious appellation,
and retain in our mind and express in words by
no means slight complaints. But your Fra-
ternity knows how the Truth says, // thou
1 'St thy gift before the aftar, and there re-
memberest that thy brother hath ought against
. hare there thy gift, and go thy way to be
first reconciled to thy toother, and then thou
sha It come and offer th\ Matth. v. 23, 24).

II rein is to be considered, that, while every
fault is done aw. iv b) the offering of sacrifice,
so great is the evd of < Hence engendered
in another's heart that from one who has so
sinned the Lord accepts not the sacrifice
itself which is wont to do away sin. Take
heed then with speed to wipe off cause of
offence from your heart, that Almighty God
may be able to regard as ac< eptable the sacrifice
iur offering.
Furthermore, while you have truly and ac-
curately professed the right faith, we find that
among those whom you have held to be con-
fined by the most holy general synods you
have condemned a certain Eudoxius ; whose
none we have not found mentioned in the
Latin language either in synods or in the
I books of the bishops of blessed memory,
Lpiphanius, Augustin, or Philaster, whom we
know to have been the chief disputants against
heretics*. Now if any one of the catholic

3 The following fanciful interpretation of Ezekiel's direction
to priests is found also, almost word for word, in the Pastoralis
Cnra, II. 7. See note there.

* It is a sign of Gregory's scanty knowledge of the history of
controversies that so far he seems in ver to ha\ e 1 eird of so noted
nn Arian leader : I Kilts, whose followers, under the name of

Eudoxians, had been specifically condemned in the ist Canon of
the first general C uncil of Constanlii ople. But it appears from
a subsequent letter (VII. 34), that thcie was no copy at Rome
of the canons of that Council, which had not in fact been accepted
(here, probably because of the 3rd C-non, which assigned a
primacy of honour after Rome to the See of Constantinople,
as being new Rome. When he wrote this subsequent letter,
he had become aware that the Eudoxians had been so con-
demned, but still had no idea who Eudoxius had been. 'I be
fact was that he was not well versed in pa~t eccb siastical history,
and, being totally ignorant of Greek, could only consult such
Latin writings as were within his reach ; and in these he had

EPISTLE VI.

213

Fathers really condemns him, we undoubt-
edly follow their opinion. If, however, in
your synodical epistle you have wished to con-
demn by name those also who, apart from the
holy synods, are condemned in the writings
of the Fathers, your Fraternity has mentioned
too few by many ; but if those whom the
general synods reject, then too many by this
one. But in the midst of all these things it is
to be remembered, that in order that we may
be free to profess the true faith and to order
whatever has to be done in peace and concord,
we ought to pray incessantly for the life of our
most serene lords and of their offspring, that
Almighty God would subdue barbarous nations
under their feet, and grant them long and
happy lives, to the end that through a Christian
empire the faith which is in Christ may reign.

EPISTLE V.
To Cyriacus, Bishop.

Gregory to Cyriacus, Bishop of Constanti-
nople.

When in time past I represented the Apo-
I stolic See in the royal city, I became ac-
quainted with the good qualities of your
Holiness. And I greatly rejoice that the care
of souls has been committed to you. And
though unworthy, I beseech Almighty God
with all the prayers in my power that He
would even increase His grace in you, and
cause you to gather gain of souls for the
eternal country. But, whereas you say that
you are weak for this work that has been put
upon you, we know that the first virtue is
acknowledgment of infirmity ; and from this
we gather that you can fulfil well the ministry
you have undei taken, that we see how, out of
humility, you acknowledge your own infirmity
For we are all infirm ; but he is more infirm
who has not strength to consider his infirmity.
But you, most blessed brethren, are for this
reason strong, that, distrusting your own strength,
you trust in the power of Almighty God.

I cannot, however, express by the words of
a letter how much my heart is bound to your
Charity. But I pray that Almighty God may
by the gift of His grace multiply the same
charity that is between us, and may take away
all occasion of offence, lest the holy Church,
united by the profession of the true faith, and
compacted by conjunction of the hearts of
the faithful, should' suffer any damage from

failed to find Eudoxius mentioned. He applied, however, to
the patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch for further information
on the suhject (see VII. 34, and VIII. 30). and was at length
sati-fied that Eudoxius had been a veritable heretic, having been
condemned by many Greok Fathers of repute, and concluded
that he was " manifestly slain, against whom our heroes have
cast so many darts " (VIII. 30).

priests disputing with each other, which God
forbid. I at any rate, in all that I speak, in
all that I say, against the proud conduct of
certain persons, still, through the bounty of
Almighty God, never relinquish custody of
inward charity; but so execute outwardly
what belongs to justice as by no means to
disregard inwardly what belongs to love and
kindness. And do you also ever return my
love, and guard what belongs to peace and kind-
ness ; that, remaining of one mind, so as to
allow no dissension to come in between us,
we may be better able from the very unity
of our hearts to obtain what we seek from
the Lord.

Furthermore, I commend to your Holiness
John, presbyter of Chalcedon, and Athanasius
of Isauria, that no one may set you against
them by underhand misrepresentations ; for
I have thoroughly examined their faith, and
have found them sound in their confessions,
which have also been given in writing:.

Now may the Holy Trinity protect you with
His hand, and render you always vigilant and
careful in the custody of souls, to the end
that in the eternal retribution you may be
counted worthy to be crowned, not only for
your own work, but also for the amelioration
of your subjects.

EPISTLE VI.
To Mauricius Augustus.

Gregory to Mauricius Augustus.

Almighty God, who has made your Piety to
be the guardian of ecclesiastical peace, preserves
you by the same faith which, through unity
among priests, you preserve ; and wnen you
submit your heart humbly to the yoke of
heavenly loving-kindness, it is brought to pass
by heavenly grace that you tread your enemies
under the foot of valour. For it cannot be of
small advantage that, when John of holy
memory had departed this life, )Our Piety long
hesitated, and somewhat deferred the time,
while seeking counsel in the fear of Almighty
God, in order, to wit, that the cause of God
might be ordered, as it should be, with great
fear s. Whence also I think that my brother
and fellow-priest Cyriacus is proved to be
exceedingly fit for pastoral rule, in that the
long deliberation of your Piety has raised him
to this degree. And we all know how diligent
and how practised he has long been in the
administration of ecclesiastical ailairs. Whence
also I doubt not that it has been brought about
by Divine ordering that one who had admin-

5 What is said here shews that the appointment of the Patri-
archs of Constantinople rented in fact entirely witn the Emperor.

214

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

istered the least things well should fitly under- j
take the greater, and should pass from the
charge of affairs to the government of souls.
Wherefore in all our prayers we beseech
Almighty God to repay this good work to the
Serenity of our lords and to their pious off-
spring both in the present world and also with
a perpetual recompense, and to grant to my
aforesaid brother and fellow-priest, who has
been put over the Lord's flock, to shew him-
self fully solicitous in the care of souls ; that
he may be able irrepiovably both to correct
what is wrong in his subjects and to foster
what is right unto further increase ; to the end
that the judgment of your Piety concerning
him may be approved, not only before men,
but also before the eyes of the Supernal
Majesty.

The venerable men, George the presbyter
and Theodore the deacon, in consideration of
the command of my lords and the imminence
of the winter season, I have not allowed to be
delayed in this city

EPISTLE VII.
To Peter, Domitian, and Ft tutu us.

Gregory to Peter, Domitian, and Elpidius,
Bishops6.

I rejoice exceedingly that you welcomed
with great joy the ordination of the most holy
Cyriaeus, my brother and fellow-priest. And
since we have learnt from the preaching of
Paul the apostle that If one member rejoice, all
the members rejoice with it (i Cor. xii. 26), you
must needs consider witli how great exultation
I rejoice with you in this thing, wherein not
one member, but many members of Christ
have rejoiced. Nevertheless, so far as I have
been able to consider your Fraternity's letters
on a cursory perusal, great joy has carried you
away into immoderate praise of this my
brother. For you say that he has appeared
in the Church like the sun, so that )ou all
cried out, 2"Ais is the day which the Lord hath
made; let us rejoice and be glad in it (Ps. cxvii.
24)7. Yet surely this is a promise of the life
to come, seeing that it is said, The righteous
shall shine forth as the sun (Matth. xiii. 43;
Wisd. iii. 7). For, in whatsoever virtue any
one may excel, how can he shine forth as the

6 Who these bishops were, who had assisted at the ordination
of Cyriaeus and sent a report of it to Gcegory, does not appear.
In the objection taken by the latter to the language of lauoation
with which the n:w patriarch had been hailed at Constantinople
we may perhaps detect something of his habitual jealousy of the
assumptions of the Constantinopolitan See. Of Cyriaeus himself
he appears to have had a high opinion, and to have welcomed
his accession, hoping at first that he would renounce the offensive
title of oecumenical bishop which had been assumed by John
Jejunator. _ In this, however, he was disappointed, and after-
wards inveighed against the new patriarch for proud presump-
tion noless i'"n againstthe old ouc

7 cxviii. 24.

sun while still in the present life, wherein The
corruptible body presseth down the soul, and the
earthly tabernacle weigheth down the mind that
museth upon many things (Wisd. ix. 15); wherein
We see another law in our members warring
against the law of our mind, and bringing us
into captivity by the lazv of sin which is in our
members (Rom. vii. 23) ; wherein Even in our-
selves we have the answer of death, that we
should not trust in ourselves (2 Cor. i. 9) ;
wherein also the Prophet cries aloud, Fear and
trembling are come upon me, and darkness hath
covered me (Ps. liv. 6)8? For it is written also,
A wise man abideth as the sun; a fool
changeth as the moon (Ecclus. xxvii. 12) ; where
the comparison of the sun is not applied to
the splendour of his brightness, but to perse-
verance in well-doing. Put the good beginning
of his ordination could not as yet be praised
by you with regard to perseverance. And as
to your saying that you cried out, This is the
day which the Lord hath made, you ought to
have considered of whom this is said. For
what comes before is this ; The stone "which the
builders refused, the same is made the head-stone
of the corner. This is the Lord's doing, and it
is marvellous in our eyes (Ps. cxvii. 22)°. And
with regard to this same stone it is forthwith
added, This is the day which the L.ord hath
made. For He who for strength of building

lid to be a stone, for the grace of illu-
mination is called the Day, being also made,

use He became incarnate In Him we
arc enjoined to rejoice and be glad, because
lit- has overcome in us the darkness of our
error by the light of His excellence. In
praise of a creature, then, that expression
ought not to have been used which is suitable
to the Creator alone.

Put why should I find fault with these
things, knowing as I do how joy carries away
the mind ? For your charity engendered in
you great gladness, which gladness of heart
the tongue applauding followed. This being
so, the praise which charity found to hand can-
not now be called a fault. Put to me concerning
my most holy brother there should have been
brie)]\ said what I might accept with satisfaction,
seeing that I knew him to be one who has long
given to me especially this proof of his great-
ness ; that, having been occupied in so many
affairs of ecclesiastical administration, he has
kept a tranquil heart in the midst of turbulent
throngs, and always restrained himself with
a gentle beaiing. And this indeed is no small
commendation of a great and unshaken mind,
not to have been perturbed amon0 the perturba-
tions of business.

« lv. 5.

9 cxviii. 28.

EPISTLE XII.

Furthermore, your Fraternity should be
instant in continual prayers, that Almighty
God may guard in our aforesaid brother and
fellow-priest what has been well begun, and
ever lead him on to what is better still. This
should ever be the prayer of you, most holy
ones, and of the people subject to him. For
the deserts of rulers and peoples are so con-
nected with each other that often the lives of
subjects are made worse from the fault of
those who are over them, and often the lives
of pastors fall off from the ill desert of peoples.
For that the evil doings of one who is over
others does very great harm to those who are
under him the Pharisees are evidence, of whom
it is written, Ye shut up the kingdom of heaven
against men. For ye neither go in yourselves,
neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in
(Matth. xxiii. 13). And that the fault of
peoples does much harm to the life of pastors
we perceive in what David did (2 Kings ii. 24).
For he, praised by the testimony of God, he,
conscious of heavenly mysteries, being inflated
by the tumour of hidden elation, sinned in
numbering the people; and yet the punish-
ment fell upon the people for David's sin.
Why was this ? Because in truth according to
the desert of subject peoples are the hearts of
rulers disposed. Now the righteous Judge
rebuked the fault of the sinner by visitation
on those on account of whom he sinned. But,
because he himself, waxing proud of his own
will, was not free from fault, he himself also
received punishment of his fault. For the fierce
wrath, which smote the people bodily, prostrated
also the ruler of the people with inmost sorrow
of heart. Consider therefore these things
mutually; and, even as he who is put over you
and over the people should intercede for all,
so should all of you pray for his conversation
and manners, that before Almighty God both
you may profit by imitation of him, and he
may be aided by your deserts. Further, let us
all with one accord pray continually with great
weeping to the utmost of our powers for our
most serene lords and their pious offspring,
that protecting heavenly grace may guard their
lives, and subdue the necks of the nations to
the Christian empire.

EPISTLE XL
To Rufinus, Bishop of Ephesus.

Gregory to Rufinus, &c.

The charity of your acts of friendship in
the past has moved us to visit your Fraternity
with the present letter. For we have been
refreshed with great joy by learning from re-
ports given us of your health that all is well
with you. But, while this is so, we implore

Almighty God, that as in the present life,
which is as it were a shadow of the future one,
He has granted you to rejoice in the transitory
welfare of your body, so in that heavenly
country wherein is true life He may cause
us to give thanks and rejoice with a common
exultation for the perfected salvation of your
soul. Now the bearer of this, desiring to be
commended to you by a letter from us, having
been asked by us whether he had learnt letters
as becomes a clerk, replied that he was ignorant
of them. What further commendation, then,
with regard to him I should give to your
Fraternity I know not ; except that you should
be solicitous about his soul, and watch over
him with pastoral zeal, so that, as he cannot
read, your tongue may be a book to him, and
that in the goodness of your preaching and
work he may see what to follow. For the
living voice usually draws the heart more
closely thai, perfunctory reading. But, while,
as his master, you supply him inwardly with
this spiritual teaching, let not outward care
for him also be wanting, that by its aid he
come to long for spiritual things, and lest,
if such aid is slighted, you should no longer
have one to preach to.

EPISTLE XII.
To Respecta, Abbess.

Gregory to Respecta, Abbess of Massilia
(Marseilles) in Gaul.

The demand of a pious wish ought to be
accomplished by a consequent result, that so
the benefit demanded may be validly attained,
and sincerity of devotion may laudably shine
forth. Accordingly to the monastery conse-
crated to the honour of Saint Cassian wherein
you are selected to preside — in accordance
with the petition of our children Dynamius
and Aureliana, who are shewn, in their re-
ligious devotion, to have united it to the house
in their possession by connecting the build-
ings—we have seen fit to allow these privi-
leges : — We appoint that on the death of the
abbess of the aforesaid monastery, not a
stranger, but one whom the congregation may
choose for itself from among its own members,
shall be ordained ; whom (provided however
that she be judged worthy of this ministry)
the bishops of the same place shall ordain.
Further, with regard to the property and man-
agement of the' same monastery, we decree
that neither bishop nor any ecclesiastic shall
have any power ; but appoint that these things
shall in all respects pertain to the charge of
thy Solicitude, or of her who may be abbess in
the same place after thee. If on the day of
the Saint's anniversary, or of the dedication,

:I6

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

of the aforesaid monastery the bishop should
resort thither for celebrating the sacred solem-
nities of mass, still his office must be so
executed that his chair be not placed there,
except on the aforesaid days while he is
celebrating there the solemnities of mass.
And when he departs, let his chair be at the
same time removed from the same oratory.
But on all other days let the offices of mass
be performed by the presbyter whom the same
bishop may appoint.

Furthermore, with regard to the life and
deeds of the handmaidens of God, or of the
abbess who may be constituted in the above-
written monastery, we enjoin on the bishop,
in the fear of God, to devote careful attention
to them ; so that, if any of those who dwell
there, her fault demanding it, ought to be
subjected to punishment, he may himself visit
the offence according to the vigour of the
sacred canons. These things, then, being by
us ordained and gram thou, in the 01

ing of thy congregation, study to shew thyself
so earnestly attentive in all respects that the
malice of the indignant foe may find
there that can be contaminated. All t.
things, therefore, embraced in thi r of

injunctions, we ordain to be observed, under
Christ's protei tion, in all respects am

-ons for ever in thy monasti the end

that the benefits of the privil maj

always continue firm and inviolate. '1 he month
of November, Indict. 15.

EPISTLE XIII.

TO FORTUNATUS, BlSHOP.

Gregory to Fortunatus, Bishop of Fanum '.

As it is reprehensible and deserving of
punishment for any one to sell consecrated
vessels except in cases s ed by law and

the sacred canons, so it is not a matter for
reproach or penalty if they should be disposed
ot with a compassionate purpose for the re-
demption of captives. Since, then, we find
from the information given us by your i
ternity that you have borrowed money for the
redemption of captives, and have not the
means of repaying it, and on this account
desire, with our authority, tj dispose of some
consecrated vessels, — in this case, seeing that
the decrees of both the laws and the canons
approve, we have thought fit to lend our
approval, and grant you'leave to dispose of
the consecrated vessels. But, lest their sale
should possibly lead to any ill-feeling against
yourself, they ought to be disposed of, up
to the amount of the debt, in the presence

* Fanum Fortunae in Picenum (Faiu).

of John our defensor, and their price should be
paid to the creditors, to the end that, the
business being completed with observance of
this kind, neither may the creditors feel loss
from having lent the money, nor your Frater-
nity sustain ill-will now or at any future time.

EPISTLE XV.

To George, Presbyter.

Gregory to George, Presbyter, and to Theo-
dore, deacon, of the Church of Constantinople.
Mindful of your goodness and charity, I
greatly blame myself, that I gave you leave to
return so soon : but, since I saw you pressing
me importunately once and again for leave to
go, I considered that it might be a serious
matter for your Love to tarry with us longer.
1 had learnt that you had lingered
so long on your journey owing to the winter
season, ! :ss that I was sorry that you had

1 sent away so soon. For, if your Love
e to accomplish your intended
journey, it had been better that you had
lingered with me than away from me.

Moreover, alter your departure I learnt
from information given me by my m >st be-
ons the deacons that your Love had
, that our Almightj Lord and Saviour
is < !1 ri it, when 1 Ie de$ ' nto hell,
d all who then [ged I lim as

I, and delivered them from the pains 1
to th m. With regard to this subject 1 desire
that your Charity should think very differently.
I Ie d< si ende I into hell, He de-
livered through II is grace those only who

me and ob-
: pis in their lives. For it is
lent that alter the incarnation of the Lord
no one can be saved, even of those who hold
I [is faith, who have not the life of faith ; si
it is written, They nek 11 ;. that they k w

\ but in deeds they deny Him (Tit. i. [6).
And John says, He tint saith that he kn
I Ian, an J keepeth not His commandments, is a
it (1 John ii. 4). James also, the brother
of th 1 ,1 1 .], writes saying, Jviith tvithout works
is aead (Jam. ii. 20). If, then, believers
now are not saved without good works, while I
the unbelieving and reprobate without good
action were saved by our Lord des< em ling j
into hell, then the lot of those who never saw
the incarnation of the Lord was better than I
that of these who have been born after the )
mystery of His incarnation. But what fatuity
it argues to say or think this the Lord Himself
testifies to His disciples, when He says, Many
kings and prophets have desired to see th- things
which ye see, ana have not seen them 'Mattii.
xiii. 17; Luke x. 24). But, that I may not

EPISTLE XIX.

detain your Love with argument of my own,
learn what Philaster, in the book which he
wrote about heresies, says about this heresy.
His words are these ; " They are heretics who
say that the Lord descended into hell, and
announced himself after death to all who were
already there, so that in acknowledging Him
there they might be saved ; seeing that this is
contrary to the prophet David where he says,
But in hell who shall acknowledge thee (Ps. vi.
6)? And to the Apostle; As many as have
sinned without law shall perish without law
(Rom. ii. 12)." And with his words the blessed
Augustine also agrees in the book which he
wrote about heresies.

Considering, therefore, all these things, hold
ye nothing but what the true faith teaches
through the Catholic Church : namely, that
the Lord in descending into hell rescued from
infernal durance those only whom while living
in the flesh He preserved through His grace
in faith and good conduct. For in that which
He says in the Gospel, When I shall be
lilted up from the earth, I will draw all to
myself (John xii. 32), He means all that
are elect. For one could not be drawn to
God after death who had separated himself
from God by evil living. May Almighty God
keep you under His protection, that, wherever
ye are, ye may feel in soul and body the aid of
His grace.

EPISTLE XVII.
To Sabinianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Sabinianus, Bishop of Jadera*.

If tnou hadst been at pains to weigh with
careful consideration the rule of ecclesiastical
administration and the order of ancient custom,
neither would any fault of unlawful presumption
have crept in upon thee, nor would others have
incurred danger by occasion of thy sin. Now
there is no doubt that thou wast aware how
that, certain things having come to our ears
about Maximus which were no slight bar to
his advancement to the priesthood, we had
not given our assent to it, and that it was our
will that he should nut attain to what he strove
after till there had been adequate satisfaction
concerning the things that were said. But,
when thou oughtest by all means to have
observed this, it came rather to pass that he,
snatching at the episcopate with tne greediness
of a blind mind, inclined thee unwarily to favour
him in spite of our prohibition. But, lest even
then the things that had been reported to us
should remain unexamined, he was summoned
to come hither by letters from us. And, when

he was so perversely inclined as to defer doing
so, we took care to admonish him in repeated
letters, under pain of interdiction from com-
munion, to make haste to come to us for his
purification, putting aside all excuses : but he
chose rather to submit to excommunication
than to evince obedience. Whence the result
is (awful to be said), that the pravity of his
perverse disposition involves others in his own
perdition. Now however, inasmuch as we have
learnt that thou dissentest from his wickedness,
we exhort thee by the present writing (that so
it may profit thy soul to have severed thyself,
even though late, from him) that thou hence-
forth neither communicate with him nor make
mention of his name in the sacred solemnities
of mass ; and also that thou defer not coming
to us without delay, yea and bring others with
thee too, such as thou canst, whether bishops
or other religious persons, so that (the cause
being thoroughly examined), both your absolu-
tion, should the case require it, may fittingly
and decently ensue, and that those who have
fallen into the sin of the like temerity may be
recalled to the way of salvation, with the help
of the blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles, by
an arrangement well-pleasing to Christ. More-
over, let any bishop or religious person that
may come to us know that he will sustain no
prejudice or injustice, but that all will be
arranged so as to please our Redeemer after
full ascertainment of the truth ; to the end that
even from our way of ordering the matter, with
the Lord's approval, it may appear to all that
we are not moved by private grudge against
any man, but by zeal for God and for the
adjustment of ecclesiastical order.

EPISTLE XIX
To Marinianus, Archbishop.

Gregory to Marinianus, Archbishop of
Ravenna 3.

Your Fraternity has been long aware after
what manner the Church of Ariminum has
been hitherto deprived of pastoral government
by reason of the known bodily affliction of the
priest who was ordained by us*. Now we,
moved by the prayers of the inhabitants of
that place, having frequently exhorted him to
return with the help of the Lord to his Church,
if he should feel himself relieved from this
affliction of the head whereby he was kept
away, he has been expected now for four years
since the leave of absence given him. And,
when at the instance of clergy and citizens
who have. come from thence and urged us with

» See VI. 27, note 6.

3 Concerning the election of Marinianus, see V. 48.

4 Viz. (Justorius. See 11. 41.

21*

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

entreaties, we urgently exhorted him to return
with them, the Lord helping him, if able to do
so, he begged of us by a supplication in
writing5, that, inasmuch as by reason of this
affliction wherewith he is held he can in no
wise rise to the government of the same
Church, or to the office undertaken by him, we
should ordain a bishop to this same Church.
Hence, seeing that the charge laid upon us of
caring for all the Churches constrains us to see
that pastoral guardianship be no longer want-
ing to the flock of the faithful, and being
compelled by their entreaties, and by his
renunciation on the ground of his own in-
ability, we have resolved that a bishop should
be ordained to this same Church of Ariminum :
and, having issued our precept according to
custom, we have not failed to admonish
clergy and people of the same Church, to the
end that they may concur with concordant
provision to choose for themselves a prelate6.
We therefore exhort your Fraternity that him
whom all with one consent shall choose (as
they themselves also have requested leave to
do) you cause to be summoned before you ;
and test him by cautious enquiry on all si
And if, by favour of the Lord, none of the
things that are punished with death in the text
of the Heptateuch are found in him, and if,
on the report of trustworthy persons, his life
should approve itself to you, >'-nA him to us
with the certification of his election, adding your
own letter of testification, to the end that a
prelate of this same Church may, under the
ordering of the Lord, be by us consecrated.

EPISTLE XX

To the Clergy and People or

Ariminum '.

Gregory to the Clergy. &c.

Our pastoral charge constrains us to succour
with anxious consideration any Churches that
are deprived of the government of a priest.
Accordingly, inasmuch as your Church has
long been deprived of pastoral rule from the
malady, as you know, of its own priest, we,
moved by your entreaties, have not failed to
admonish the said bishop, that, if he should
feel himself recovered from that malady, he
should resume the ministry of the priesthood
undertaken by him. And he, having been
again and again warned by us, has now
under the pressure of the same malady inti-
mated by a supplication addressed to us in
writing that by reason of this malady he can

, ?.>**■ ^*- 47 as to the supersession of a bishop incapacitated
by illness, except at his own written request, beintj uncanouicaL
ft See Ep. XX., which follows.
See preceding Epistle.

by no means rise to the government of the
said Church or to the office undertaken by
him. We therefore, compelled by the hopeless
condition of this same person, have held it
necessary to take thought for the setting in
order of your Church. We exhort, then, that
all of you, with one consent, without noise or
disturbance, choose with the help of the Lord
such a priest to preside over you as may not
be disapproved by the venerable canons, and
also be found worthy of so great a ministry.
And let him, when required, come to us to be
ordained, with the solemnity of a decree
attested by the subscriptions of all and followed
up by the written approval of the visitor8, to
the end that your Church, by the Lord's order-
ing, may have its own priest.

We desire also that him whom your unanimity
may have chosen you take without delay to
our brother and fellow-bishop Marinianus at
Ravenna', that, having been thoroughly ex-
amined and tested by him, he may be supported
by his testimony also when he comes to us.

EPISTLE XXIII.

To FORTUNATUS AND ANTHEMIUS 9".

Gregory to Fortunatus, bishop, and Anthe-
mius, guardian (defensori).

< latellus, the bearer of these presents, has
informed us that his sister, who had been be-
trothed to one Stephen, has, through divine
mercy moving her, been converted* in a
monastery at Naples, and that the same
Stephen improperly detains a house and some
other tilings belonging to her. And, inasmuch
as legal decrees (Caus. 17, q. 2, c. 28) have
appointed that a betrothed woman, should she
wish to be convened, shall suffer no loss what-
ever, let th) Fraternity, together withAnthemius
the subdeacon, endeavour by diligent enquiry
to investigate the truth. And it, as we have
been informed, you find that the Stephen above-
named is keeping a house or anything else
unjustly, let him be urgently warned by your
exhortation to restore without any delay or
altercation what he unduly detains, and not
to defer under any kind of excuse the restitu-
tion of what is not his own. And if perchance
you find him neglect your exhortation, notify
this to us, giving also an accurate account of the

8 Viz. a bishop Sebastian, who had been commissioned, as
was usual in such cases, to visit the church of Ariminum during
the incapacity of its proper bishop. The Epistle which follows
this (Ep. XXI., which, as not throwing further light on the
proceedings, lias not been translated) is addressed to him, direct-
ing him to see to the due election, die, of a successor to Cas-
tonus.

9 As Metropolitan. See preceding Epistle.

9a Fortunatus was bishop of Naples, and Anthemius a sub-
deacon, and Defensor of Campania.

1 Conversant Juisse ; the usual phrase for taking to monastic
life.

EPISTLE XXVI.

?I9

facts of the case, to the end that, when the of the holy Church : And in that day the house
merits of the case are known, he may be forced of David shall be an open fountain for ablution
by other means, in accordance with equity, to of the sinner and of her that is unclean (Zach.
make the restitution which he scorns to make I xiii. i). For the house of David is an open
of his own accord out of regard to honesty, fountain for ablution to us sinners, because we

Commending the bearer of these presents to
thy Fraternity, we exhort thee to allow him no
longer to suffer from delay on this account.

EPISTLE XXV.
To Gregoria.
to Gregoria, Lady

the Bed-

Gregory to Gregoria, Lady of
chamber (cubicularice) to Augusta.

I have received the longed for letters of
your Sweetness, in which you have been at
pains all through to accuse yourself of a multi-
tude of sins : but I know that you fervently
love the Almighty Lord, and I trust in His
mercy that the sentence which was pronounced
with regard to a certain holy woman proceeds
from the mouth of the Truth with regard to
you : Her sins, which are many, are forgiven
her, for she loved much (Luke vii. 47). And
how they were forgiven is shewn also by what
follows afterwards ; that she sat at the Lord's
feet, and heard the word from His mouth (Luke
x. 39) 2. For, being rapt in the contemplative,
she had transcended the active life, which
Martha her sister still pursued (lb. 40). She
also sought earnestly her buried Lord, and,
stooping over the sepulchre, found not His
body. But, even when the disciples went
away, she remained standing before the door
of the sepulchre, and whom she sought as
dead, Him she was counted worthy to see
alive, and announced to the disciples that He
had risen again. And this was by the wonderful
dispensation of the loving-kindness of God,
that life should be announced by a woman's
mouth, because by a woman's mouth had been
the first taste of death in Paradise. And at
another time also, with another Mary, she saw
the Lord after His resurrection, and held His
feet. Bring before your eyes, I pray you,
what hands held whose feet. That woman
who had been a sinner in the city, those hands
which had been polluted with iniquity, touched
the feet of Him who sits at the right hand of
the Father above all the angels. Let us esti-
mate, if we can, what those bowels of heavenly
loving-kindness are, that a woman who had
*-n been plunged through sin into the whirlpool's
deptli should be thus lifted high on the wing

of love through

grace.

It is fulfilled, sweet

are washed from the filth of our iniquities by
mercy now disclosed through the son of David
our Saviour.

But as to what thy Sweetness has added in
thy letters, namely that thou wilt continue to
be urgent with me till I write that it has been
revealed to me that thy sins are forgiven, thou
hast demanded a difficult, nay even an unprofit-
able thing ; difficult indeed, because I am un-
worthy of having a revelation made to me ; but
unprofitable, because thou oughtest not to
become secure about thy sins, except when in
the last day of thy life thou shalt be able no
longer to bewail them. But, until that day
comes, thou oughtest, ever suspicious and
ever fearful, to be afraid of faults, and wash
them with daily tears. Assuredly the apostle
Paul had already ascended into the third
heaven, had also been caught up into Paradise,
and heard secret words which it was not lawful
for a man to speak (2 Cor. xii. 2, &c), and yet,
still fearful, he said, I keep tinder my body, and
bring it into subjection, lest that by any means,
while preaching to others, I myself shouid become
a castaway (1 Cor. ix. 27). One who is caught
up into heaven still fears ; and shall one whose
conversation is still on earth desire already
not to fear? Consider, most sweet daughter,
that security is wont to be the mother of care-
lessness. Thou oughtest not, then, in this
life to have security, whereby thou mayest be
rendered careless. For it is written, Happy is
the man that is always afraid (Prov. xxviii. 14).
And again it is written, Serve the Lord in fear,
and rejoice unto him with trembling {Vs. ii. n).
In short, then, it must needs be that in the
time of this life trembling possess your soul,
to the end that it may hereafter rejoice without
end through the joy of security. May Almighty
God fill your soul with the grace of His Holy
Spirit, and, after the tears which you daily
shed in prayer, bring you to eternal joys.

EPISTLE XXVI.
Theoctista, Patrician 3.

Gregory to Theoctista, &c.

Thar your Excellency, though placed in so

daughter, it is fulfilled, what was promised to
us by the prophetic voice concerning this time

a It will be observed that Gregory identifies .the woman who
had been a sinner in the city with the sister oi Martha, and also
with the Magdalene.

patrician lady was sister of the Emperor Mauritius
and appears from what is said in tins letter to n

3 This
(see I. 5). and app

Leen governess ot trie imperial children
on the Empress Constantina.
interesting and characteristic. >-'>'

way of retaining influence
and through them hopin
method of allegonzin

and in close attendance

The letter is in many respects

In it may be noted Gregory s

over devout ladies in high circles.

to influence others ; his favourite

the Old Testament Scriptures ; his t«u-

220

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

great a tumult of affairs, is full of the fruitful-
uess of the sacred word, and incessantly pants
a.ter eternal joys, for this I give great thanks
to Almighty God, in that in you I see fulfilled
what is written of the elect fathers, But the
children of Israel -walked on dry land through
the midst of the sea (Exod. xv. 19). But on the
other hand, I am come ifito the depth of the sea,
and the storm hath overwhelmed me ( i's. lxviii.
3)4. But you, as I see, walk with dry feet
through the waves of secular affairs to the
country of promise. Let us give thanks, then,
to that Spirit who lifts up the hearts which He
fills ; who amid the tumults of men makes a
solitude in the soul ; and in whose presence
there is no place, wherein a soul moved by
compunction can be, which is not a secret one.
For you inhale the odour of eternal sweetness,
and so ardently love the bridegroom of your
soul as to be able to say with the heavenly
bride, Draw me aj ■ run in thee

of thine ointments (Cant. i. 3). J!ut in the
letters of your Excellency I find this deficiency ;
that you have been unwilling to tell me about
your most serene mistress, how studiously she
reads, or how she is moved by compunction
in her reading. For your presence ought to
be of great advantage to her, that amid the
billows of affairs under which she continually
suffers, and by which, whether she will or no,
she is drawn abroad, she may I
inwardly to the love of the heavenly country.
And this also you ought to inv< \ as

often as tears are given her for her soul,
whether her compunction arises stdl from
fear, or whether now from \a\

For there are two kinds of compunction,
as you know: one that is afraid of eternal
pains, the other that sighs for heavenly
rewards; since the soul that is athirst for (•
is first moved to compunction by fear, and
afterwards by love. For in the first place it is
affected to tears because, while recollecting its
evil doings, it fears to suffer for them eternal
punishments. But, when fear has died away
in the anxiety of a long sorrow, a certain
security has birth from a sense of pardon ; and
the mind is enflamed with love of heavenly
joys. And one who previously wept for fear
of punishment begins afterwards to weep
most bitterly for being kept back from the
kingdom. For the soul contemplates what
are those choirs of angels, what is the very
society of blessed spirits, what the vision of

dency to regard remarkable incidents as miraculous : and his

allusion to the very large number of females at that time lea

a monastic life in Home. Cf. XI. 45, addressed to the same lady.

* Ps. lxix. 2.

5 The whole passage which follows about two kinds of com-
punction, with the allegorical interpretation of the story of
Achsah, is found, word for word, in the Dialogues, Lib. III.
'!'• 34-

the inward brightness of God; and laments
more for the lack of unending good than it
wept before when it feared eternal evil ; and
thus it comes to pass that the compunction of
fear, when perfected, draws the min 1 to the
compunction of love. All this is well described
in the sacred and true history, understood
figuratively, which says, Axa the daughter of
Caleph sighed sitting on an ass. And her father
said to her, What wouldest thou? Who
answered, Give me a blessing, Thou hast green
me a South and dry land ; give me also a
watered land. And her father gave her the
upper springs, and the nether springs (Josh. xv.
iS)6. For indeed Axa sits on an ass. when
the soul presides over the irrational motions of
the flesh. And sighing she seeks a watered
land from her father, because the grate of
tears is to be sought with great longing from
our Creator. For there are some who have-
already freely received the gift of speaking in
behalf of justice, of protecting the oppressed,
I of giving of their own to the needy, of having
ardour of faith, but have not yet the grace of
tears. These, that is to say, have a South and
dry land, but still need springs of water; be-
cause, while they are occupied in good works,
wherein they are great and fervent, they have
still sore need (either from fear of punishment,
or fiom love of the heavenly kingdom) to
lament the sins which they cannot be without
while they live. But since, as I have said,
there are two kinds of compunction, her lather
e her the upper springs and the nether
sprii For the soul receives the upper

springs, when she afflicts herself in tens for
desire of the heavenly kingdom ; but she
ives the nether springs, when she shudders
with weeping at the punishments of hell. And
indeed the nether springs are given first, and
the upper springs afterwards. But, because
the compunction of love is far above the other
indignity, there was need for the upper springs
to be mentioned first, and the nether springs
afterwards. You then, who through the opera-
tion of the Almighty Lord know by experience
both kinds ol compunction, ought anxiously
to try to discover da)' by day how much you
are profiting your most serene mistress by your
won ;

Further, I beg you to take especial care

to instruct in good morals the little lords
whom you are bringing up, and to admonish
the glorious eunuchs who are appointed to
attend them that they should speak to them
such things as may move their minds to mutual

6 In Joshua xv. 18, instead of "and she lighted off her ass,"
as in toe English Version, the Vulgate has " suspiiavinjue ut
sedebat in asino."

EPISTLE XXVII.

221

charity between themselves and to gentleness
towards subjects ; lest, if they should conceive
now any grudge against each other, it should
break out openly hereafter. For in truth the
words of those who bring up children will
be either milk, if they are good, or poison
if they are evil. Let them therefore so speak
now to the little ones that the latter may shew
hereafter what good words they had sucked
from the mouths of those who nursed them.

Furthermore, my beloved son, Sabinianus
the deacon, has brought thirty pounds of gold,
sent by your Excellency to be given for the
redemption of captives and for distribution to
the poor ; with regard to which I rejoice, but
tremble for myself, seeing that I shall have
to render an account before the tremendous
Judge, not only of the substance of Saint
Peter, Prince of the apostles, but also of your
possessions. But to you may Almighty God
return heavenly things for earthly, and eternal
for temporal. I have now to inform you that
from the city of Crotona, which, lying on the
Adriatic Sea in the land of Italy, was taken
last year by the Lombards, many noble men
and many noble women were led away captive,
and children were parted from their parents,
parents from their children, husbands from
their wives, and wives from their husbands ;
of whom some have already been redeemed.
But, because of the heavy prices put upon
them, many have remained so far in the
hands of those most abominable Lombards.
But I sent at once for their redemption a moiety
of the money sent by you. Out of the other
moiety I have arranged for the purchase of
bed-clothes for the handmaidens of God whom
you in Greek language call monastriae ; see-
ing that they suffer from grievous bareness
in their beds during the very severe cold of
this winter ; there being many of them in this
city. For, according to the official list of
them, they are found to be three thousand in
number. They do indeed receive fourscore
pounds a year from the possessions of Saint
Peter, Prince of the apostles. But what is
this for so great a multitude, especially in this
city, where everything is so dear? Their life,
moreover, is such, and strict to such a degree
in tears and abstinence, that we believe that,
but for them, not one of us could have sub-
sisted for so many years in this place among
the swords of the Lombards.

Furthermore, I send you, as a blessing from
Saint Peter the apostle, a key from his most
sacred body: with respect to which key the
miracle has been wrought which I now relate.
A certain Lombard, having found it on his
entrance into a city in the parts beyond the
Po, and, paying no regard to it as Saint Peter's

key, but wishing to make something of it for
himself in that he saw it to be of gold, took
out a knife to cut it. But present! v. seized by
a spirit, he plunged the knife v herewith he
had thought to cut it into his own throat, and
in the same hour fell down dead. And when
Autharith, king of the Lombards 7, and many
others belonging to him came to the place,
and he who had stabbed himself was lying
apart in one place dead, and this key on the
ground in another, exceeding fear came upon
all, so that no one ventured to lift this same
key from the ground. Then a certain Lom-
bard who was a Catholic, and known to be
given to prayer and almsgiving, Minulf by
name, was called, and himself lifted it from
the ground. But Autharith, in consideration
of this miracle, made another golden key, and
sent it along with this to my predecessor of
holy memory, declaring what kind of miracle
had through it occurred. I have taken thought,
then, to send your Excellence this key, through
which Almighty God cut off a proud'and faith-
less man, that through it you who fear and
love Him may be enabled to have both
present and eternal welfare.

EPISTLE XXVII.
To Anastasius, Bishop.

Gregory to Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch.

I have received through the hands of our
common son the deacon Sabinianus the longed
for letter of your most sweet Holiness, in which
the words have flowed not from your tongue
but from your soul. And it is not surprising
that one speaks well who lives perfectly.
And, since you have learnt, through the Spirit
teaching you in the school of the heart, the
precepts of life — to despise all earthly things
and to speed to the heavenly country, — in
propoition as you have advanced in good you
think what is good of others. But, when I
heard many things said in the letters of your
Blessedness in praise of me, I understood
your intention ; how that you -wished to de-
scribe not what I am, but what I ought to be.
But as to your saying that I ought to remember
my manner of life, and on no account give
place to the malignant spirit who seeks to sift
souls, I indeed recollect myself to have been
always of bad manner of life, and hasten to
overcome and put an end to this my manner
of life, if I can. If however, as you believe,
I have had anything good in me, 1 trust in the
help of Almighty God that I have not for-
gotten it. But your Holiness, as I see, by
the words of sweetness at the beginning and

7 See I. 17, note 4.

222

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

the words that follow, has wished your letter
to be like a bee, which carries both honey and
a sting, satiating me with the honey and
piercing me with the sting. But meanwhile
I return to meditation on the words of Solomon,
That better are the wounds of one that loves
than the kisses of a flattering foe (Prov. xxvii. 6).
Thus, as to your saying that we ought not
to give occasion of offence for no cause at all,
this is what your son, our most pious lord (for
whose life we ought continually to pray) has
already written repeatedly ; and what he says
out of power I know that you say out of love.
Nor do I wonder that you have made use of
imperial language in your letters, since there
is a very close relationship between love and
power. For both presume in a princely way ;
both ever speak with authority.

And indeed on the receipt of the synodical
epistle of our brother and fellow - bishop
Cyriacus it was not worth my while to make
a difficulty on account of the profane till
the risk of disturbing the unity of holy ( "nun h :
but nevertheless I took care to admonish him
with respect to this same superstitious and
proud title, saying that he could not have-
peace with us unless he corrected the ela
tion of the aforesaid expression, which the
first apostate invented. You, however, ought
not to say that this is a matter of no con
sequence, since, if we bear it with equanimity,
we are corrupting the faith of the Universal
Church; for you know how many not i
heretics but heresiarchs have issued from the
Constantinopolitan ( 'lunch. And, not to speak
of the injury done to your dignity, if one
bishop is called Universal, the Univ<
Church comes to ruin, if the one who is
universal falls. But far, far be this levity
from my ears. Vet I trust in Almighty (iod
that what He has promised He will soon
fulfil; Whosoever e.xaiteth himself shall be
humbled (Luke xiv. n).

So mueh, in the midst of many occupations.
I have briefly replied to what you have said in
your letters : for what I ought not just now to
express in writing remains imprinted on my
mind. I beg your Blessedness always to
recall me to your memory in your holy prayers,
that so your intercessions may rescue me from
temporal and eternal ills. Pray moreover
zealousy and fervently for the most serene
lord the Emperor ; for his life is very neces-
sary for the world. I refrain from saying
more, for I doubt not that you know.

EPISTLE XXVIII.
To Theodore, Physician.
Gregory to Theodore, Physician at Con-
stantinople.

My most beloved son the deacon Sabini-
anus 8, on his return to me, brought me no
letter from your Glory ; but he conveyed
hither what had been sent for the poor and
captives ; whence I understood the reason.
It was that you would not speak by letters to
a man, having by a good deed made your ad-
dress to Almighty God. For this same deed
of yours has a voice of its own, which calls to
the secret ears of God, as it is written, Hide
thy alms in the bosom of the poor, and it shall
entreat for thee (Eccles. xxix. 15). And
indeed to me, I confess, it is sad to expend
what is not my own, and to add to the
accounts which I keep of the substance of the
Church those also of the property of my most
sweet son the lord Theodore. And yet I
rejoice with your benignity that you carefully
attend to ami observe what the Truth says ;
Give alms, and behold, all things are dean
unto you (Luke xi 41); and this which is
written. Even as water quencheth fire, so alms
quench sin | IV. his. hi. $$). Paul the apostle
also saj s, Let your abundance supply their want,
that their abundance also may be a supply
to your wont (2 Cor. viii. 14). Tobias ad-
monishes his son, saying, // thou hast mueh,
abundantly : but if thou hast little, of that
little impart willingly (Tob. iv. 9). Vou there-
observe all these precepts: but we beg
you to pray for us, lest we should dispense
the fruits of your labours indisi reetly, and not
as need requires; lest from that whereby you
diminish sins we should heap up sins. Now
may Almighty God keep you under His pro-
tection, and s > grant you human favour in an
earthly court as to bring you alter a long life
to the eternal joys of a heavenly court.

We send you as the hen diction of Saint
Peter, Prince of the apostles, whom you greatly
. a key from his most sacred body, in
which is enclosed iron from his chains, that
what hound his neck for martyrdom, may loose
yours from all sins.

EPISTLE XXX.

I • • Narses, the religious (Narsae religioso)9.

Gregory to Narses, &<

W hen 1 was S( nding Romanus the guardian
{defensorem to the royal city, he sought long for

your letters, but they could not be found :

8 Gregory's apocrisiarius at Constantinople, and eventually
his successor in the Sec of Rome. See III. 53.

9 On the designation /ielixiosus, cf. I. 61. note 7. The
Narses here addressed as "Religiosus" was probably the same
as the " Narses Comes" of I. 6, and VI. 14, and the " .\
Patricius" of IV. 32 (see note to I. 6). For it is evident from the
letters that he was of high rank at Constantinople, and greeting*
are sent through him to the same persons as in the other lettc-is.
He had now, we may suppose, devoted biinaelf to the service
of the Church in some caj acity.

EPISTLE XXX.

223

but afterwards they were found among many
letters from other persons, your Sweetness
therein telling me of your afflictions and
tribulations of spirit, and making known the
oppositions to you of bad men. But, I pray
you, in all this recall to your mind what I
believe too that you never forget, That all who
will live godly in Christ suffer persecution.
(2 Tim. iii. 12). And with regard to this I
confidently say that you would live less godly
if you suffered persecution less. For let us
hear what else the same teacher of the Gen-
tiles says to his disciples; Yourselves know,
brethren, our entrance in unto you, that it was
not in vain ; for we had before suffered and
been shamefully entreated (1 Thess. ii. 1). Lo,
most sweet son, the holy preacher declared
that his entrance would have been of no effect,
if he had not been shamefully entreated ; and
thy Charity wishes to say good things, but
refuses to endure evil things. Wherefore thou
must needs gird thyself up more tightly in the
midst of adverse circumstances, that adversity
itself may the more increase thy desire for the
love of God and thy earnestness in good
works. So the seeds of harvests germinate
the more fruitfully for being covered over with
frost ; so fire is kept down by a blast, that
it may grow greater. I know indeed that
from the perverse speeches of so many evil
tongues thou endurest a violent storm, and
bearest in thy soul billows of contradictions.
But remember what the Lord says by the
Psalmist, / heard thee in the secret place of
storm ; I proved thee at the waters of contra-
diction (Psal. lxxx. 8)9a. For, if in the midst
of them that contradict thou doest the things
that are of God, then thou art proved a true
worker.

Further, your most sweet Charity has written
to me that I should write something in the
way of admonition to the monasteries which,
through your prayers and influence, have been
instituted by our son the lord Paul. But, if
they are vessels of God, I know that they
have through the grace of compunction a foun-
tain of wisdom within, and ought not to take
in the little drops of my dryness. Further,
your perfect wisdom recollects that in Paradise
there was no rain, but a fountain ascended
from the midst of Paradise to water the face of
the ground. Those souls, then, that through
the grace of compunction have a fountain
in themselves have no need of rain from
another's tongue.

Further, you inform me in your letter of
the passing away of the lady Esychia x ; and

9* Ps. Ixxxi. 7«

• Cf. I. 6, where greetings were sent to this lady, there also

designated as Domna.

I rejoiced with great exultation that that good
soul, which laboured in a foreign country, has
arrived happily at its own. Further, greet in
my behalf my glorious daughters, the lady
Dominica and the lady Eudochia. But, inas-
much as I hear that it is now a long time since
the aforesaid lady Dominica was made a
prioress, let your Charity watch over her in
this regard ; that, as she is no longer com-
pelled to serve in the toil of an earthy court,
she may fly perfectly from all noises of this
world, devote herself entirely to God, and
leave no part of herself outside herself; but
that she also gather together as many souls
as she can to the service of her Creator, that
their minds through her word may receive the
grace of compunction, and that she herself
may so much the more speedily be absolved
from all her sins as, through her life and
her tongue, the souls of others also shall have
broken loose from the bands of sins. More-
over, since no one among men in this world is
without sin (and what else is sinning but flying
from God?), I say confidently that this my
daughter also has some sins. Wherefore, that
she may perfectly satisfy her mistress, that
is eternal Wisdom, let her, who fled alone,
return with many. For the guilt of turning
away will be imputed to no one who in return-
ing brings back gain.

Further, I beg you to greet in my behalf the
lord Alexander and the lord Theodorus. But
with respect to your saying in your letter that
I ought to write to my most excellent daugh-
ter the lady Gurdia, and her most holy
daughter the lady Theoctista 2, and their
magnificent husbands, the lord Marinus and
the lord Christidorus, and to give them some
admonition about their souls, your most sweet
Greatness well knows that there are none at
present in the city of Constantinople who can
translate well into Greek what has been dic-
tated in Latin. For keeping to the words,
but attending little to the sense, they both fail
to make the words understood and also mangle
the sense. On this account I have written
shortly to my aforesaid daughter the lady
Gurdia ; but have not addressed the others.
Further, I have sent you two camisiae and
four oraria, which I beg may be humbly

2 The Emperor Maurice is said to have had a sister called
Gordia, who may have been the lady here referred to;< Her
daughter Theoctista may be concluded from the epithet sanc-
tissima" to have been piously disposed; and it may have been
a fear lest her piety should suffer through the temptations of
fashionable life that had led Narses, who was himself religious,
to suggest to Gregory that he should write letters of admonition
to the husbands of these ladies, as well as to themselves. Gre-
gory's reluctance to do so may have arisen from a fear of giving
offence to such distinguished people from the purport of wna:
he could only write in Latin being misunderstood. fc-lsewnere
apparent are his caution and delicacy in deahng with grea:
people.

224

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

offered, with the blessing of St. Peter, to the
aforesaid men. Besides, a certain person on
his death has left me by will a little boy ;
taking thought for whose soul, I have sent
him to your Sweetness, that he may live in
this world in the service of one through whom
he may be able to attain to the liberty of
heaven. Further, I beg your most sweet
Charity to visit frequently my most beloved
son, the deacon Anatolius, whom I have sent
to represent the Church in the royal city, that
after the toils which he endures in secular
causes he may find rest with you in the word
of God, and wipe away the sweat of this his
earthly toil as it were with a kind of white
napkin. Commend him to all who are known
to you, though I am sure that, if he is per-
fectly known, he needs no commendation.
Yet do you shew with I to him how

much you love the holy apostle Peter, and
me. Now may Almighty God guard y.>ur
Charity, to me most sweet, from enen
within and without, and, when it shall pic
Him, bring you to heavenly kinj

EPISTLE XXXI

To Cvriacus, PlSIIOP.

Gregory to Cyriacus, I of Constanti-

nople.

We have received the letters of your '

ness, which speak to us in words not of the
tongue but of the soul. For thi n to me

your mind, which, however. .
me, since of myself I retain experience of the
same sweetness. Wherefore 1 return th.
continually to Almighty God, sin< e, if charity

the mother of virtues abides in your h
towards us, you will never lose the branches
of good works, seeing that you retain t
root of goodness. You ought, then, to shew
beauty of this charity to me and to all your
brethren by this good work in the first [ lace, —
your hastening to discard that word of pride
whereby grave offence is engendered in the
Churches, thus fulfilling in all ways what is
written, Endeavouring to keep the unity of the
Spirit in the bond oj /face (Ephes. iv. 3 | : and
again, Give none occasion to t/ic a. v to

speak reproachfully (1 Tim. v. 14). For then
will true chanty be displayed, if there is no
schism among us through an example of pride.
For, as for me, I call Jesus to witness in my
soul, that to no one among men from the
highest to the lowest do 1 wish to give occasit m
of offence. I desire that all should be great
and honourable, yet so that their honour de-
tract not from the honour of Almighty God.
For whoso covets to be honoured against God
to me is not honourable. But, that you may

learn what good will I have towards youi
Blessedness, I have sent my son the deacon
Anatolius to the feet of our most pious lords,
for satisfying their Piety and your Fraternity
that I desire to injure no man in this matter,
but to keep the humility that is pleasing to
God, and the concord of holy Church. And
because Antichrist, the enemy of God, is near
at hand, I studiously desire that he may not
find anything belonging to himself, not only in
the manners, but even in the titles of priests.
Let then what has been introduced after a
new fashion be removed in like manner as
it was brought in, and peace in the Lord will
remain with us inviolate. For what pleasant-
ness, what charity, will there be amongst us,
if we cheer ourselves up with words, while we
are galled by facts? Let then your Holiness
so act that we may feel in our inmost hearts
the good things you speak of, to the end that,
the hearts of priests being in unanimity, when
we supplicate for the life of our most pious
lords, we may be counted worthy to be heard
all the more as peace illuminates your prayers
re thee] - of God, and no stain of discoid
darkens them.

epis n E XXX1T.

To An vsi vsn s, Presbyter ^

Igory to Ana-;
Thai the good treasure of

his I I d things (Matth.

xii. 35 : I. uke \i. 45 >, this thy Charity I
shew 1 in thy habitual life and lately also

in thy epistle; wherein I find two persons
at issue with re_r.nl to virtue I LS to say,

nother for
and humility. And, though occupied
with many things, tho Ot Ol the < beck

. I have nev( it as judge of

:i. Put. in very truth, thou hast,
in my judgment, thyself conquered thy oppo-
nent i>v t lical sentence, which I
ffered to you during your contention, 'J'hat
there is no fear in charity, but perfect charity
casteth cut fear; because fear hath torment.
He that fareth is nut made perfect in charity.
1 know then how much thy fraternity is made
• in charity. And, since thou lovest
Almighty God much, thou oughtest to presume
on thy neighbour much. For it is not pi.
or ranks that make us neighbours to our
tor ; but either our good desert.-, join us
to Him, or our bad deserts separate us from

3 This epistle appears to have been in reply to one from
a presbyter. Auastasius (al- Athanasius), of Jerusalem announc-
ing his promotion to the abbacy of a monastery there. There
had been, it seems, a standi: g leud between the abbots of iliis
monastery and the bishops of Jerusalem, the continuance of
which Gregory gracefully deprecates in the curse ut bis letter.

EPISTLE XXXIII.

22S

Him. Since, then, it is still uncertain what dearest brother, because I love you both ex

any one is inwardly, how was it that thou wast
afraid to write, ignorant as thou art as to which
of us two is the superior? And indeed that
thou livest well I know, but I am conscious
myself of being burdened by many sins. And,
though thou art thyself a sinner, still thou art
much better than I, since thou bearest thine
own sins only, but I those also of the persons
committed to me. In this, then, I look upon
thee as lofty, in tins I look upon thee as great,
that in a great place and lofty before human
eyes thou hast not felt thyself advanced at all.
For therein, while honour is paid thee by men
outwardly, thy mind is sunk into depths, be-
cause burdened by distracting cares. But to
thee Almighty God has done as it is written ;
He hath laid down ascents in the heart, in
the valley of tears (Ps. Ixxxiii. 6). To me,
however, thou mightest have appeared far
loftier, far more sublime, hadst thou never
undertaken the leadership of the monastery
which is called Neas, seeing that in that
monastery, as I hear, there is indeed an appear-
ance of monks kept up, but many secular
things are done under the garb of sanctity.
But even to this I shall think that heavenly
grace has brought thee, if what in that place
displeases Almighty God should be collected
under thy guidance.

But, since there have been wont to be
quarrels between the father of this same monas-
tery and the pastor of the Church of Jerusalem,
I believe that Almighty God has willed that
thy Love and my most holy brother and
fellow-priest Amos should be at the same time
at Jerusalem for this end, that the quarrels
which I have spoken of should be pat an end
to. Shew, then, now how much you loved
before. For I know that both of you are
abstinent, both learned, both humble ; whence
the glorj of our Saviour must needs be praised,
according to the language of the Psalm, in
timbrel and chorus (Ps. cl. 4). For in a
timbrel the sound from the skin is dry, but in
a chorus there is a concord of voices. What
therefore is denoted by a timbrel but absti-
nence, and what by a chorus but unanimity ?
Since then by abstinence ye praise the Lord
in timbrel, I beg that by unanimity ye praise
Him in chorus. The Truth also in person
says, Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one
with another (Mark ix. 50). What is denoted
by salt but wisdom, as Paul attests, who says,
Let your speech be alway in grace, seasoned
with salt (Col. iv. 6) ? Since, then, we know
that you have salt through the teaching of the
heavenly word, it remains that through the
grace of charity you keep with all your hearts
peace between yourselves. All this I say,

ceedingly, and am much afraid lest the sacri-
fices of your prayers should be stained by any
dissension between you.

The blessing which you sent, first by Ex-
hilaratus the Secundicerius *, and afterwards by
Sabinianus the deacon, I received with thanks-
giving, since from a holy place it became you
to send holy things, and to shew by your very
gift whom you serve continually. May Almighty
God protect you with His right hand, and
preserve you scatheless from all evils.

EPISTLE XXXIII.
To Mauricius Augustus.

Gregory to Mauricius Augustus.

The provident piety of my lords, lest per-
chance any scandal might be engendered
in the unity of Holy Church by the dissension
of priests, has once and again deigned to
admonish me to receive kindly the repre-
sentatives of my brother and fellow -priest
Cyriacus, and to give them liberty to return
soon. And although, most pious lord, all
your injunctions are suitable and provident,
yet I find that by such an admonition I am
reproved as being in your judgment indiscreet.
But, even though my mind has been wounded
in no slight degree by a proud and profane
title, could I possibly be guilty of so great
indiscretion as not to know what I owed to
the unity of the faith and to ecclesiastical
concord, and to refuse to receive the repre-
sentatives and the synodical letter of my
brother on account of bitterness from whatever
cause intervening? Far be this from me. Such
wisdom had been unwisdom. For what is
due from us for conserving unity of faith is
one thing ; what is due for restraining elation
is another. Times therefore were to be dis-
tinguished, lest the newness of my aforesaid
brother might in any point be disturbed s.
Whence also I received his representatives
with great affection. Whatever charity I
owed to them I displayed, and honoured them
more than it had been the ancient custom to
do, and caused them to celebrate the sacred

solemnities of mass with me ; since, even as

my deacon ought not

to serve, for exhibition
of the sacred mysteries, him who has either
committed the sin of elation or corrects it
not himself when committed by others, so
it was right that his ministers should attend,

in the celebration of mass, on me,

who, under

4 See III. 56, note 3.

5 So literally ; — " Ne prsedicti fratri mei ex quolibet articulo
novitas turbaretur." The meaning seems to be, Lest Cyriacus
should be troubled immediately on his accession. He was to
be remonstrated with in due time; but rejection at once of his
synodical letter and of his emissaries would have been premature.

VOL. XII.

226

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

the keeping of God, have not fallen into the
error of pride.

I have however taken care to admonish
earnestly the same my brother and fellow-
bishop that, if he desires to have peace and
concord with all, he must refrain from the
appellation of a foolish title. As to this, the '
piety of my lords has charged me in their
orders, saying that offence ought not to be
engendered among us for the appellation of
a frivolous name. But I beseech your im-
perial Piety to consider that some frivolous
things are very harmless, and others exceed-
ingly harmful. Is it not the case that, when
Antichrist comes and calls himself God, it
will be very frivolous, and yet exceedingly
pernicious? If we regard the quantity of the
language used, there are but a few syllables;
but if the weight of the wrong, there is uni- '
versal disaster. Now I confidently say that
whosoever calls himself, or desires to be called,
Universal Priest, is in his elation the pre-
cursor of Antichrist, because he proudly puts
himself above all others. Nor is it by dis-
similar pride that he is led into error ;
as that perverse one wishes to appear as God
above all men, so whosoever this one is who
covets being called sole priest, he extols him-
self above all other priests. Put. the
Truth says. Everyone tint exalteth himself
shall be humbled (Luke xiv. n ; xviii. i | .
I know that every kind of elation is the sooner
burst as it is the more inflated. Let then
your Piety charge those who have fallen into
an example of pride not to generate any
offence by the appellation of a frivolous nam.'.
For I, a sinner, who by the help God retain
humility, need not to be admonished to
humility. Now may Almighty Cod Ion-
guard the life of our mosi serene lord for
the peace of holy Church and the advanl
of the Roman republic. For w<- are sure, that,
if you live who fear the Lord of heaven, you
will allow no proud doings to prevail against
the truth.

EPISTLE XXXIV.
To Eulogius, Bishop.

Gregory to Eulogius, Bishop of Alexandria,
and Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch6.

The charity wherewith I am greatly bound j
to you allows me by no means to keep silence,
that your Holiness may know all that is going
on among us, and, deceived by no false
rumours, may keep more perfectly the way of'
your justice and rectitude, as you have per-

on ^1^^:^:^^^^^-- "°<h-

fectly begun to do. Now the representatives
{responsales) of our brother and fellow-bishop
Cyriacus came to me, bringing me his synod-
ical epistle. And indeed between us and him
there is, as your Blessedness knows, serious
difference on account of the appellation of
a profane name ; but I thought that his
representatives sent in the cause of the faith
ought to be received, lest the sin of elation
which has arisen in the Constantinopolitan
Church almost against all priests, might cause
a shaking of the faith and a breach in eccle-
siastical unity. I also caused the same repre-
sentatives, inasmuch as they very humbly
requested it, to celebrate with me the so-
lemnities of mass, because, as I have taken
care to intimate to the most serene lord the
Fanperor, it was right that the representatives
of our brother and fellow priest Cyriacus
should communicate with me, since by God's
help I have not fallen into the error of elation.
Put my deacon ought not to celebrate the
solemnities of mass with our aforesaid brother
Cyriacus, since, through a profane title, he
has either committed or accedes to the sin of
pride ; lest if he (my deacon) proceeds 1 with
one who is in such a position of elation, we
might seem (which God forbid) to confirm the
vanity of that foolish name, but I have
taken care to admonish our said brother to
correct himself of such elation, since, if he
not correct it, he will in no way have
peace « ith us.

Furthermore, our said brother in his synod-
has by the u'race of Cod expressed
himsell in all resp, , t~, as a Catholic, but le
condemned a certain Eudoxius, whom
we find neither condemned in synods, nor
: iiated by his pre >rs in their synod-

letters8. It is true that the canons of
the council of Constantinople condemn the
Eudoxians ; but they say nothing as to who
their author Eudoxius was. Hut the Roman
Church does not possess so far these same
canons, or the acts of that council, nor has it
accepted them, though it has accepted this
same synod with regard to what was defined
by it against Mai edonius. It does certainly
repudiate the other heresies therein spoken of,
which had already been condemned by other
Fathers: but so far it knows nothing about
the Eudoxians. Some things are indeed told
in Sozomen's history about a certain Eudoxius,
wdio is said to have usurped the episcopate
of the Church of Constantinople. But this
history itself the Apostolic See relu.es to
accept, since it contains many false state-

7 Proctdit, the usual term for proceeding to the Holy Table
for celebration. See 111. s7, note s.

8 Cf. VII. 4.

EPISTLE XXXV.

227

merits, and praises Theodore of Mopsuestia
too much, and says that he was a great
doctor of the Church even to the day of his
death. It remains then that, if any one
receives that history, he contradicts the synod
held in the times of Justinian of pious memory
concerning the three chapters. But one who
cannot contradict this synod must needs reject
that history. Moreover in the Latin language
we have so far found nothing about this Eu-
doxius, either in Philaster or in the blessed
Augustine, who wrote much about heresies.
Let therefore your Charity inform me in your
letters if any one of the approved Fathers
among the Greeks has made mention of him.

Furthermore three years ago, with reference
to the case of the monks of Isauria, who were
accused as being heretics 9, my brother and
fellow-bishop the lord John once sent me letters
for my satisfaction, in which he attempted to
shew that they had contradicted the defini
tions of the synod of Ephesus ; and he for-
warded to me certain chapters, purporting
to be those of the same synod, which they
were said to oppose r. Now among other
things it was in these chapters asserted con-
cerning the soul of Adam, that by sin it
did not die, in that the devil does not enter
into the heart of man ; and that whoso said
it was so was anathema. When this was read
to me I was much grieved. For if the soul
of Adam, who was the first to sin, did not die
by sin, how was it said to him concerning the
forbidden tree, I?i the day that ye eat thereof ye
shall surely die (Gen. ii. 17)? And certainly
Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden tree, and
yet in their flesh they lived afterwards more
than nine hundred years. It is therefore
evident that in his flesh he did not die. If
then he did not die in his soul, the impious
conclusion follows that God pronounced a
false sentence concerning him, when He said
that in the day that he ate he should die.
But far be this error, far be it from the true
faith. For what we say is, that the first man
died in soul in the day that he sinned, and
that through him the whole human race is
condemned in this penalty of death and cor-
ruption. But through the second man we
trust that we can be freed, both now from the
death of the soul, and hereafter from all cor-
ruption of the flesh in the eternal resurrec-
tion : — as moreover we said to the aforesaid
representatives ; ' We say that the soul of
Adam died by sin, not from the substance of
living, but from the quality of living. For,
inasmuch as substance is one thing, and

9 See III. 53, note 9. .....

« Ct". VI. 14, where the same doctrinal questions are similarly
discussed in the same connexion.

quality another, his soul did not so die as
not to be, but so died as not to be blessed.
Yet this same Adam returned afterwards to
life through penitence.'

But that the devil enters into the heart of
man cannot be denied, if the Gospel is be-
lieved. For it is there written, And after the
sop Satan entered into him (John xiii. 27).
And again it is therein also said, When the
devil had now put himself into the heart of
Judas, that Judas should betray Him (Ibid. 2).
He that denies this falls into Pelagian heresy.
Seeing then that, having examined the Ephe-
sine synod, we found nothing of the kind to
be contained therein, we caused to be brought
to us also a very old Codex of the same
synod from the Church of Ravenna, and we
found it to agree with the report of the synod
which we have so as to differ in no respect, and
to contain nothing else in its decree of ana-
thema and rejection, except that they reject
the twelve chapters of Cyril of blessed memory.
But this whole argument we set forth much
more fully and particularly to his represen-
tatives when they were with us, and most
fully satisfied them. Wherefore lest either
these or any like things should creep in
yonder, so as to cause offence to holy Church,
it is necessary for us to indicate these things
to your Holiness. And, although we know
our brother and fellow-bishop Cyriacus to be
orthodox, yet on account of others we ought
to be cautious, that the seeds of error may be
trampled down before they spring up to public
view.

I received the letters of your Holiness on
the arrival here of our common son the deacon
Sabinianus ; but, as their bearer is already
prepared for departure and cannot be detained,
I will reply when the deacon, my responsalis,
comes.

EPISTLE XXXV.
To Dominicus, Bishop.

Gregory to Dominicus, Bishop of Carthage.

Though we believe that thy Fraternity gives
attention with pastoral vigilance to the care
of monasteries, yet we think it necessary to
inform you of what we have learnt about
a monastery in the African province. Now
the abbot Cumquodeus, the bearer of these
presents, complains that, if at any time he
wishes to restrain under regular discipline the
monks over whom he presides, they at once
leave the monastery, and are allowed to
wander wherever they will. Seeing, then, that
this is both altogether pernicious to them-
selves and also sets an example of perdition
to others, we exhort your Fraternity that, if it

Q 2

2?*

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

is so, you should bring ecclesiastical censure
to bear upon them, and withhold them by
suitable punishment from such undoubted
presumption ; and that you should so bring
them to obedience by salubrious provision,
subduing their proud minds to the yoke of
discipline, that correction may recall from
guilt others whom their example might have
provoked to similar transgression, and teach
them to obey their superiors, as is fit. But,
since he tells us that stray monks are defended
by some bishops, let your Fraternity give
careful attention to this, and restrain them by,
your menaces in all ways from such defence. '
The month of July, Indiction 15.

EPISTLE XXXVIII.
To Donus, Bishop.

Gregory to Donus, Bishop of Messana
(Messene).

The ordinances both of the sacred canons
and of the laws allow the utensils of the
Church to be sold for the redemption of
captives. And so, seeing that Faustinus, the
bearer of these presents, is proved to have
contracted a debt of three hundred and thirty
solidi for the purpose of redeeming his
from the yoke of captivity, and that, thirty
thereof having been repaid, it is certain that he
has not sufficient means for the repayment of
the remaining sum, we exhort thy Fraternity
by this communication that thou by all means
give him fifteen pounds, taking his rec<
the same, out of the silver in thy hands be-
longing to the Meriensian Church, of which
he is known to be a soldier; so that, it being
sold, and the debt paid, he may be freed from
the bond of his obligation. But of this i
your Fraternity should be careful, that in
case of the aforesaid Church having so m
current coin, he should receive from it the
amount above-written ; but otherwise you
must needs supply him for the purpose in
view with the sum we have stated from the
consecrated vessels. For, as it is a ver\
serious thing to sell idly ecclesiastical utensils,
so on the other hand it is wrong, under press-
ing necessity of this kind, for an exceedingly
desolated Church to prefer its property to its
captives, or to loiter in redeeming them.

EPISTLE XXXIX.
To John, Bishop.

Gregory to John, Bishop of Syracuse.

Lest attention to secular affairs should dis-
join the hearts of religious men (which God
fo.bid) from mutual charity, very earnest en-
cieavour should be made to bring any matter

that has come into dispute to the easiest
possible termination. Since, then, from the
information of Caesarius, abbot of St. Peter's
monastery, constituted in a place called Baias,
we find that between him and John, abbot of
St. Lucia's monastery, constituted in the city
of Syracuse, there has arisen a serious question
about certain boundaries, we, lest this con-
tention should be prolonged between them,
have taken thought for their dispute being
terminated by the determination of a land-
measurer. And accordingly we have written
to the defensor Fantinus, bid, ling him direct
John the land-measurer, who has gone from
ilome to Panoimus, to resort to your Fra-
ternity.

We exhort, therefore, that you go with him
to the places about which there is contention,
and, both parties having been brought toge-

. cause the places in dispute to hive their
boundaries defined in your presence, though
still with a claim of pi ion for forty

rs preserved to either party. But, what-
ever may be determined, let it be your fra-
ternity's anxious and studious care to have it
so observed that no strife may henceforth be
Stirred up anew, nor any further complaint
reai

We believe that it is not unknown to your

unity that the venerable abbot Caesarius
was formerly our friend ; and therefore, saving

ty, we commend him to you in all respects.
And, seeing that he is entirely inexperienced
in secular causes, it is needful for him to be

d by your solicitude; yet so that, in this
as in all cases, you observe, as is tit, reason
and justice.

EPISTLE XL.
To Eulogius, Bishop.

Gregory to Euloj lu . Bishop 0 indria.

Your most sweet Holiness has spoken much
in your letter to me about the chair of Saint
Peter, Prince of the apostles, saying that he
himself now sits on it in the persons of his
successors. And indeed I acknowledge myself
to be unworthy, not only in the dignity of
such as preside, but even in the number of
such as stand. But I gladly accepted all that
has been said, in that he has spoken to me
about Peter's chair who occupies Peter's chair.
And, though special honour to myself in no
wise delights me, yet I greatly rejoiced because
you, most holy ones, have given to yourselves
what you have bestowed upon me. For who
can be ignorant that holy Church has been
made firm in the solidity of the Prince of the
apostles, who derived his name from the firm-
ness of his mind, so as to be called Petrus

EPISTLE XLIII.

2:9

from fetra. And to him it is said by the voice
of the Truth, To thee I will give the keys of the
kingdom of heaven (Matth. xvi. 19). And again
it is said to him, And when then art converted,
strengthen thy brethren (xxii. 32). And once
more, Simon, son of Jonas, loves t thou Me ?
Feed My sheep (Joh. xxi. 17). Wherefore,
though there are man}- apostles, yet with regard
to the principality itself the See of the Prince
of the apostles alone has grown strong in

six of the smaller sort of Aquitanian cloaks
{pallia), and two napkins (oraria) ; for, my
affection being great, I presume on the
acceptableness of even little things. For af-
fection itself has its own worth, and it is quite
certain that there will be no offence in what
out of love one has presumed to do.

Moreover I have received the blessing of
the holy Evangelist Mark, according to the
note appended to your letter.

But, since I
authority, which in three places is the See of do not drink colaium* and viritheum * with
For he himself exalted the See in which pleasure, I venture to ask for cognidiiim*,

which last year, after a long interval, your
Holiness caused to be known in this city.
For we here get from the traders the name
of cognidium, but not the thing itself. Now
I beg that the prayers of your Holiness may
support me against all the bitternesses which
I suffer in this life, and defend me from them
by your intercessions with Almighty God.

he deigned even to rest and end the present
life. He himself adorned the See to which
he sent his disciple as evangelist. He himself
stablished the See in which, though he was
to leave it, he sat for seven years. Since then
it is the See of one, and one See, over which
by Divine authority three bishops now preside,
whatever good I hear of you, this I impute
to myself. If you believe anything good of
me, impute this to your merits, since we are
one in Him Who says, That they all may be
one, as Thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee,
that they also may be one in us (Joh. xvii. 21).
Moreover, in paying you the debt of salutation
which is due to you, I declare to you that
I exult with great joy from knowing that you
labour assiduously against the barkings of
heretics ; and I implore Almighty God that
Fie would aid your Blessedness with His
protection, so as through your tongue to
uproot every root of bitterness from the
bosom of holy Church, lest it should ger-
minate again to the hindrance of many, and
it many should be defiled. For
received your talent you think on
the injunction, 2^rade till I come \ I Aike xix. 13).
I therefore, though unable to trade at all,
nevertheless rejoice with you in the gains
of your trade, inasmuch as I know this, that
if operation does not make me partaker, yet
charity does make me a partaker in your
labour. For I reckon that the good of a
neighbour is common to one that stands idle,
if he knows how to rejoice in common in the
doings of the other.

Furthermore, I have wished to send you
some timber: but your Blessedness has not
indicated whether you are in need of it : and

through
having

we can send some of much

larger

size, but

no ship is sent hither capable of containing
it : and I think shame to send the smaller
sort. Nevertheless let your Blessedness in-
form me by letter what I should do.

I have however sent you, as a small blessing
from the Church of Saint Peter who loves you,

a As to the view here expressed of the unity of the three Sees
of Rome, Antioch, and Alexandria, see Proiegom., p. xii.

EPISTLE XLII.
To Marinianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna.

We find from the information given in your
Fraternity's letter that the sons of the Church
of Cornelium are continually supplicating you
to consecrate a bishop for them in place of
their former bishop who has lapsed, and that
you are in doubt as to what should be done in
the matter, and await our plain command.
Inasmuch, then, as no sort of reason allows
any one who has departed criminally to be
recalled to the place from which he has lapsed,
and as the ordinances of the sacred canons
allow not a Church to be without a bishop
beyond three months, lest (which God forbid)
the ancient foe should lie in wait to tear the
Lord's flock, your Fraternity ought to comply
with their entreaty, and ordain a bishop in the
place of the lapsed one. For, seeing that you
ought to have admonished them to this thing by
your exhortations before they asked you, you
can have no excuse for refusing them when they
demand it of you, since a Church of God
ought not to remain long widowed of a bishop
of its own.

EPISTLE XLIII.

To Marinianus, Bishop.

Gregory to Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna.
It has for some time reached us from the

3 " CoLATicus. Lnpides quoque medicinalium, mortarianim,
et pigmentariarum usibus apti (Isid. Lib. 16. Orig. cap. 4)."
Du Cange. But colatum here appears to have been some drink.

4 Genus potiouis, Papia;, /fc,g\ptios vel Alexandrinus — Illud
forte de quo S. Hierunymus de Vita Clericomm cum patmarum

fructus e.xp'imuntur in liqi.orem, cottisque frugibus aqua
pinguior coioratur." Du Cange.

5 " Potionis species apud iEgyptianos, vel saltern Alexan-
drinos." Du Cange.

230

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

report of many that the monasteries constituted
in the district of Ravenna are everywhere
aggrieved by the domination of your clergy ;
so that — grievous to be said —under the pretext
of government they take possession of them as
if they were their own. Condoling in no small
degree with these monasteries, we sent letters
to your predecessor bidding him correct this
evil. But, seeing that he was soon overtaken
by the close of life, we remember having written
in like manner to your Fraternity, lest this
burden on the monasteries should continue.
And because, as we have discovered, there has
been loitering so far in the correction of this
thing, we have thought fit to address you a
second time by this letter. We exhort you.
then, that, putting aside all delay and all
excuses, you so study to relieve these monas-
teries from this kind of grievance that clerics,
or such as are in sacred orders, may henceforth
have no leave of access to them on any other
ground except only for the purpose of praying,
or if perchance they should be invited for
solemnizing the sacred mysteries of m
But, lest haply the monasteries should sustain

a burden through the promotion of any monk
or abbot, you must take care that, if any of
the abbots or monks of any monastery should
accede to any clerical office or sacred order,
he shall have, as we have said, no power there
any longer, lest under cover of this occasion
the monasteries should be compelled to sustain
the burdens which we prohibit. Let not your
Holiness, then, after this second admonition,
delay correcting all this with vigilant care, lest,
if we should after this perceive you to be negli-
gent (as we do not believe will be the case),
we be compelled to provide otherwise for the
quiet of the monasteries. For be it known to
you that we will no longer suffer the congre-
gations of the servants of God to be subjected
to such requirements. Lest, however, any
excuse should be put forward with regard to
the monks, let your Fraternity without fail
send hither such person as you may see to be
serviceable, and we will depute monks to go
with him to you, to provide for whom you
mu^t place them in monasteries, if indeed there
are among you places such as may afford them
a maintenance.

BOOK VIII.

EPISTLE I.

To Peter, Bishop.

Gregory to Peter, Bishop of Corsica*.

On receiving the letters of your Fraternity
we returned great thanks to Almighty God,
that you had been so good as to refresh us
with the news of the gathering in of many
souls. And accordingly let your Fraternity
strive anxiously to bring to perfection, with the
help of the Lord, the work which you have
begun. And with regard to those who have
once been faithful, but from negligence or
under constraint have returned to the worship
of idols, make haste to bring them back to the
faith, imposing on them a penance of a few
days, that they may bewail their guilt, and
keep to that to which they return, God helping
them, the more firmly as they shall have
perfectly deplored that from which they now
depart ; and with regard to those who have
not yet been baptized, let thy Fraternity make
haste, by admonishing, by beseeching, by
alarming them about the coming judgment,
and also by giving reasons why they should
not worship stocks and stones, to gather them
in to Almighty God ; that so, at His advent,
when the strict day of judgment comes, thy
Holiness may be found in the number of the
Saints. For what more profitable work or more
lofty canst thou be engaged in than taking
thought for the quickening and gathering
together of souls and bringing in immortal
gain to thy Lord, Who has given to thee the
post of preaching?

Further, we send thy Fraternity fifty solidi
for procuring vestments for those who are to
be baptized ; and we have also caused to be
given to the presbyter of the Church situated
in Mount Negeugnus 2 the possession which
thy Fraternity has asked for, so that its value
may be deducted from the money that he had
been accustomed to receive.

Further, your Fraternity has asked to be
allowed to make for yourself an episcopal
residence in the church that is not far from

« Bishop of Ahria in Corsica. Cf. VI. 22.

* A basiica, with a baptistery attached, had been built on
this Mount Negeugnus (or Nigewms), on land belonging to the
Roman See, for the purpose of " winning souls." Cf. VI. 22.

the same mountain ; which proposal I most
gladly accede to, since the nearer you are, the
more will you be able to do good to the souls
that are there.

In consideration of your Holiness's inter-
cessions for him we have made the bearer of
these presents an acolyte, and have sent him
back to attend upon you, in order that, if he
should be of still more service in winning
souls, he may be in a position to be still
further advanced.

EPISTLE IT.
To Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch.

Gregory to Anastasius, Patriarch of Antioch.

I have received the letters of your most
sweet Blessedness, which flowed with tears for
words. For I saw in them a cloud flying aloft
as clouds do ; but, though it carried with it a
darkness of sorrow, I could not easily discover
at its commencement whence it came or whither
it was going, since by reason of the darkness
I speak of I did not fully understand its origin.
Yet it becomes you, most holy ones, ever to re-
call to mind what the preacher to the Gentiles
says ; In the last times perilous times shall be
at hand, and there shall be men loving themselves,
covetous, lifted up (i Tim. iv. i); and what
follows, which it would be a trouble for me to
speak, and which is not necessary for you to
hear. Lo, in your holy old age, your Blessed-
ness labours under many tribulations; but
consider in whose seat you sit 3. Is it not in
his to whom it was said by the voice of the
truth, When thou shall be old, another shall
gird thee and carry thee whither thou wouldest not
(Joh. xxi. 18)? But in saying this I recollect
that your Holiness even from your youth has
toiled under many adversities. Say then with
the good king, I will think again over all my
years in the bitterness of my soul (Isai. xxxviii.
15). For there are many who, as you say in
your letter, make to themselves pastime over
our wounds : but we know who said, Ye shall
lament and weep, but the world shall rejoice;
and ye shall be sorrowful (Joh. xvi. 20) : where
also he forthwith adds, But your sorrow shall

3 Cf . V. 39, note 3.

232

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

be turned into joy, But, since we already
suffer what was foretold, it remains that we
should also hope for what was promised. For
as to these of whom you say that they them-
selves lay on the burdens which they ought to
have lightened, I know that they are those
who come in sheep's clothing, and inwardly
are ravening wolves (Matth. vii.). But they
are so much the more to be endured as they
persecute us not only with a malicious mind,
but also in religious guise. And in that they
desire to have to themselves above others what
it were not fit that they should have even with
their brethren, we are in no wise disturbed at
this, since we trust in Almighty God that those
who desire what belongs to others will be the
sooner deprived even of what is their own.
For we know who said, That every one that
exalteth himself shall be abased (Luke xiv. n).
And again it is written, Before a fall the heart
is exalted (Prov. xvi. 18).

But in these days, as I find, new wars of
heretics are arising, about whom I have before
now written to your Blessedness, in such sort
that they attempt to invalidate the prop:
the Gospels, and all the sayings of the Fathers,
But, while the life of your Holiness endures,
we trust in the favour of our Proto tor that
their mouths which have been opened against
the solidity of the truth may be the sooner
stopped, inasmuch as, however sharp may be
the swords that are employed, they recoil
broken when they strike the rock. Moreover
there is this by the great favour of Almighty
God ; that among those who are divided from
the doctrine of Holy Church there is no unity,
since every kingdom divided against itself shall
not stand (Luke xi.). And holy Church is always
more thoroughly equipped in her teaching when
assaulted by the questionings of heretics ; so
that what was said by the Psalmist concerning
God against heretics is fulfilled, They art-
divided from the wrath of his countenance,
and his heart hath drawn nigh (Ps. liv. 22 «).
For while they are divided in their wicked
error, God brings His heart near to us, be-
cause, being taught by contradictions, we more
thoroughly learn to understand Him.

Further, what ills we suffer from the swords
of barbarians, and what from the perversity
of judges, I shrink from relating to your
Blessedness, lest I should increase your
groaning, which I ought to diminish by con-
solation. But in all these things the precepts
of our Master comfort me, who says, These
things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye
might have peace. In the world ye shall have

Hebrew).*''**** B'bU' 'V' " (differer"ly rendered from the

tribulation (John xvi. 33). For I consider
to whom it was said, This is your hour, and
the power of darkness (Luke xxii. 53). If,
then, the hour of light will be afterwards,
since it is said to the elect, Ye are the light of
the world (Matth. v. 14), and as it is written,
The righteous shall have dominion over them
in the morning (Ps. xlviii. 15) 5, whatever we
suffer in the hour of the power of darkness
is not to be deplored.

Moreover your most sweet Holiness tells
me that you would have wished, if it could
have been so, to converse with me without
paper and pen, and grieves that a distance
almost as far as the East is from the West
lies between us. But this which I feel I de-
clare is true ; that on paper your soul speaks
to me without paper, since in the words of
your Holiness charity alone sounds, and we
are not divided by distance of place who, of
the gift of Almighty God, are joined together
in the bond of love. Why then seek you
to have given you the wings of a dove covered
with silver, when you already have them? For
indeed these wings are love of God and of
our neighbour. For by these holy Church
flies aloft, and by these transcends all that
irthly ; which if your Holiness had not,
you would not have come to me by letter with
so great charity.

Further, 1 beg you to pray earnestly in
behalf of the weakness of my heart, to the end
that Almighty God may through your inter-
cession defend my soul from all evils, and the
sooner snatch me away from the hurricanes of
this time, which are so many, and bring me to
the shores of eternal rest.

I have received all the very rich blessings6,
dire' ted to me, which thou, as a man of God
poor in spirit, hast sent me, saying of them,
For what can a poor man give but what is
poor ? But had you not been poor through a
spirit of humility, your blessings would not
have been rich. May Almighty God guard
you by His protection from all evils ; and,
since your life is very necessary for all good
men, bring you after many years yet to come
to the joys of the heavenly country.

EPISTLE III.

To Donus, Bishop of Messana (in Sicily).

Gregory to Donus, &c.

The most eloquent man, our son Faustinus,
has come to us and complained that his late
father Peltrasius left some things which were
not his own to your Church for his burial.
And indeed he knows himself, and we have

5 In English Biblt, xlix. 14.

6 See IV. 31, note 9

EPISTLE VI.

233

heard, what the secular law is in such a case ;
namely, that the heir is bound to pay if his
father has bequeathed what was not his own.
But, as we know that your Fraternity lives by
the law of God and not of the world, it seems
to me very unjust that an amber cup, and a
boy who is said to be of a certain church
situate on his property in the diocese of Con-
sentia, should be detained by thy Fraternity.
For, when the most reverend Palumbus, now
bishop, but then archdeacon, had testified that
things were as I have said, you certainly ought
to have taken his word, and restored what was
not your own. Further, you ought in my
opinion to have considered the golden brooch,
which would be his whole substance were
there anything for the sustenance of those he
had left behind him, and accepted it at that
time for his burial. Nevertheless, you know
our ordinance, how that we have entirely
forbidden the old custom in our Church, nor
give our assent to any one being allowed to
acquire burial-places for a human body for a
price. For, if the men of Sichem, who were
as we suppose Gentiles, offered without charge
to Abraham sepulture for the dead Sara to be
buried in a place of her own, and were hardly
prevailed upon by his great importunity to
receive a price for her place of burial, ought
we, who are called bishops, to make any charge
for burying the bodies of the faithful? This,
then, we commit to the judgment of your
Fraternity ?.

The aforesaid most eloquent man complains
also of this ; that Sisinnius, the guardian
{defensor) of thy Church, unreasonably detains
slaves in his possession : concerning whom
also he asserts that it had been decided by the
judgment of bishop Maximianus of holy memory
that the detainer of them should give them up,
but that he has so far wilfully put off their
restitution. We therefore exhort thy Fraternity
that, if the case has manifestly been adjudged,
what was ordained be carried out. Otherwise,
some one being deputed to act in the case,
cause him to resort to the parts of our brother
and fellow-bishop Secundinus for judgment,
that, when it shall have been declared by his
sentence to whom the slaves in question belong,
neither the one party may appear to suffer
prejudice nor the other bear a grudge.

EPISTLE V.
To various Metropolitans and Bishops 8.
Gregory to Eusebius of Thessalonica, Urbi-
tius of Dyracchium, Constantius of Mediolanum

1 For similar disapproval of burial fees, cf. IX. 3.
* Ou the subject of this Epistle, see III. 65, 66.

{Milan), Andrew of Nicopolis, John of Corinth,
John of Prima Justiniana, John Cretensi Scori-
tano, John of Larissa, Marinianus of Ravenna,
Januarius of Caralis {Cagliari) in Sardinia, and
all the bishops of Sicily.

I have taken care to transmit to your Fra-
ternity the law which the most pious Emperor
has issued, to the effect that such as are bound
by engagements of military service or public
liabilities, may not in any case, in order to escape
risk of being called to account, assume the
condition of ecclesiastics, or become monks :
and this I especially press upon you, that such
as are involved in secular engagements are not
to be received hastily among the clergy of the
Church, since, while they live in an ecclesias-
tical condition no otherwise than they had lived
before, they are by no means trying to escape
secular affairs, but to change them. But, if
any such should even seek a monastery, they
are by no means to be received unless they
have first been absolved from their public
liabilities. Further, if any from the military
order are in haste to become monks, they are
not to be received rashly, or until their life has
been fully enquired into. And, according to
the regular rule, they ought to undergo a pro-
bation of three years, and then, God granting
it, assume the monastic habit. And if they
have thus been proved and accepted, and are
anxious, for the good of their souls, to do
penance for the sins they have committed,
then, with a view to their heavenly life and
gain, monastic profession should not be denied
them. With respect to this matter also, believe
me, the most serene and most Christian Em-
peror is in every way pacified, and willingly
allows the monastic profession of those whom
he knows not to be implicated in public liabili-
ties. The Month of December, first Indiction.

EPISTLE VI.
To Amos, Patriarch of Jerusalem.

Gregory to Amos, Bishop of Jerusalem.

Being confident that your Fraternity pays
regard to the ordinances of the canons and
the vigour of discipline, lest the falseness of
one of your clerics should succeed in imposing
on you so as to escape the strictness of eccle-
siastical order, we have thought it right to
inform you of his fault, that through your
solicitude he may be subjected to the discipline
from which he has fled. We understand, then,
that Peter, an acolyte, whom we had caused
to serve under our son the deacon Sabinianus,
our ecclesiastical representative in the royal
city, has fled, and resorted to your Church.
If this is true, let your Fialernity be at pains
to secure him, and send him back hither when

2?4

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

cn opportunity occurs. Eut if by chance,
fearing this, he shall have departed from your
Church, and be lurking in various places to
escape detection, order him to be diligently
sought for in all your parishes, and, when
found, send him back to us, as we have before
said. And we desire also to notify through
you that he is deprived of communion : nor let
him dare to receive the mysteries of the Lord's
body and blood until he shall return to us,
unless by chance he should be in imminent
peril of death.

EPISTLE X.

To Sabinianus, Bishop of Jadera*.

Gregory to Sabinianus, &c.
As to one who perseveres in a fruit punish-
ment is rightly due, so pardon should be
granted to those who return to a letter mind.
For, as in the former case anger against the
culprit is deservedly provoked, so in the latter
good-will displayed is wont to promote com
And so, inasmuch as a recollection of the
gravity of the priestly office has now withdrawn
thy Fraternity from fellowship and communion
with Maximus, into which thoughtlessness had
before betrayed thee ; and this to such an
extent that thou coulclest by no means allow
thyself to be content with mere separation
from him without also bewailing thy
transgression by betaking thyself to the retire-
ment of a monastery, therefore doubt not that
thou art received again into our favour and
communion : for, as much as thy fault had
before offended us, so much has thy penitence
appeased us. We exhort thee, t re, roost

beloved brother, that thou be instant in
bestowing pastoral solicitude on the Lord's
flock, and be diligently on the wat< h to make
profit of the sheep committed to thy chai
that so the retribution of a copious rev
may abound to thee in proportion as thou
shalt offer multiplied fruits of thy labour at the
coming of the eternal Judge. Strive then to
rescue those who have fallen into sin; strive
to shew the way of retracing their steps to
those that go astray ; strive to recall salubriously
to the grace of communion those who have-
been deprived of communion. Let the coming
back of your Charity lay on you the duty of
rescuing others, and be an example of salva-
tion ; to the end that, while your anxious care
shall direct the wandering steps of sheep to
the folds of the chief shepherd, both they
themselves may not be left exposed to the
teeth of wolves, and (what is above all things
to be desired) that the compensation of condign
retribution may await thee in the life eternal.

As to the cause about which you wrote to
us, requesting us to guard against any clan-
destine proceedings against you in the royal
city, let not this matter disturb your mind.
For we have with all possible care given orders '
to our responsalis to shew himself solicitous
and on his guard. And we trust in the power
of our God that things are being so conducted
that the opposition of no one shall avail against
reason, so as in any way to trouble you or to
bear hard upon you.

Furthermore, the inhabitants of the city of
Epidaurus have most urgently requested us to
restore to them Florentius, whom they allege to
be their bishop, asserting that he was driven into
exile invalidly by the mere will of the bishop
Natalis1. And so, if your Fraternity has any
knowledge of his case, please to inform us
accurately by letter. But, if so far you have
no knowledge of it, make enquiry, and report
is, that we may be able, with the Lord s
hel|s to deliberate with full knowledge before
us as to what should be determined concerning
him. In the month of February, first Indiction.

EPISTLE XIII.

To COLl MBUS.

Girjorv to I ol imbus, Bisl op of Numidia*.

1 hiw we may presume on your < Iharity we
gather bom the disposition ol our own mind
with regard to you. Nor do we think that jou
love the Apostolic See otherwise than as it
»u. Whence it must needs be that we
should more peculiarly commend those whom
know to be, as they should be, devoted in
the Church of the blessed Peter, Prince of the
apostle-, to you whose life the action as well
as the dignity of a priest adorns, and of who e
. rity we alread) hold prool from past ex-
perience.

As to our brother, therefore, and fellow-
bishop Paul 3, the bearer Of these presents,
with what billows and adversities he is tossed
in your parts he tells us is not unknown to
your Holiness. And seeing that he asserts
that the complaints against him which you
have told us have come to your ears are not
true, but raised against him at the instigation
of his adversaries, and that he trusts to be able
by the help of the Lord to surmount them all,
with the truth to support him and with you to
take cognizance, we exhort \ou, most beloved
brother, that, in whatever points considerations
of justice are clearly on his side, you afford him
becomingly the hand of succour, and aid him
with priestly sympathy. Let, then, no circuni-

9 See VII. 17, and note on VI. 37.

» See III. 8. and III. 9, note a.
« Sec II48, note 8.
3 See IV. 34, note 4.

EPISTLE XV.

235

stance, no influence of any persons, deflect
you from studious regard to equity. But,
leaning on the Lord's precepts, set at naught
whatever is opposed to rectitude. In defending
one party or the other insist constantly on
justice. Shrink not from incurring ill-will, if
such there be, in behalf of truth ; that thou
mayest find in the advent of our Redeemer by
so much the greater fruit of reward as, not
neglecting His commands, thou shalt have
devoted thyself to the countenance and defence
of justice. In the month of March, first
Indiction.

EPISTLE XIV.
To Boniface, First Guardian {Defensor em).

Gregory to Boniface concerning the privi-
leges of Guardians 4.

Those who labour faithfully in the interests
of the Church should receive the benefit of
suitable remuneration, so that both we may be
seen to have made a worthy return for their
services, and they may shew themselves the
more useful for the favour of the solace granted
them. Seeing, then, that those who hold the
office of Guardians are known to labour in the
causes of the Church and in the service of the
pontiffs, we have thought fit that they should
enjoy the following prerogatives, granted to
them for recompense ; — appointing that, as in
the school (sr/10/a) of notaries and subdeacons,
through the indulgence of pontiffs long ago,
there have been constituted regionarii, so also
among the Guardians seven who may have
commended themselves by proved utility shall
be distinguished by the dignity of regio?iarii.
And we appoint that these, in the absence
of the pontiff, shall have leave to sit any-
where in any assembly of clergy, and enjoy in
all respects the privileges of their dignity.
Furthermore, if any one, attaining to this
position of priority, should by any chance live
in another province for his own advantage, he
must needs still occupy in all respects his
place of priority, so that he may be the chief
of all the guardians, as being one who, even
before he obtained his position of priority, had
not ceased by assiduous personal attention to
devote himself to the interests of the Church
and the service of the pontiff. These deciees,
then, by us constituted, which have been or-
dained for the privileges and constitution of
Guardians, we appoint to be kept in perpetual
force and irrefragably ;— whether such things
as we have decreed in writing, or such as are
seen to have been ordained in our presence :
and we decree also that they shall not be

4 SeeProlegom., p. vji.

upset or changed in whole or in part on any
occasion whatever by any of the pontiffs. For
it is a very harsh proceeding, and especially
contrary to good conduct in priests, that any
one should endeavour, under any manner of
excuse, to rescind what has been well ordained,
and also by his example to teach others to
dissolve his own constitutions after his own
time. The month of April, first Indiction.

EPISTLE XV.
To Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna.

Gregory to Marinianus, &c.

How necessary it is to provide for the quiet
of monasteries s, and to take measures for their
perpetual security, you are aware from the
office you formerly filled in government of a
monastery. And so, seeing that we have learnt
how the monastery of the blessed John and
Stephen in the city of Classis, over which our
common son, the abbot Claudius, is known to
preside, has suffered many prejudices and
grievances from your predecessors, it is right
that the provision of your Fraternity should
make salutary arrangements for the quiet of
its inmates in future ; to the end that living
there in the service of God, His grace also
assisting them, they may persevere with free
mind. But lest, owing to the custom which
ought rather to be amended, any one at any
time should presume to cause any annoyance
there, it is necessary that the points which we
have taken care to enumerate below be so
guarded by the careful attention of your Fra-
ternity that no occasion of causing them disquiet
may possibly be found in future. Let no one,
then, any more dare, by any kind of inquisition
whatever, to diminish anything from the
revenues or charters of the aforesaid monas-
tery, or of any place that in any manner
whatever pertains to it, or to attempt any kind
of usurpations or stratagems. But if perchance
any matter of dispute should arise between the
Church of Ravenna and the aforesaid monas-
tery, and it cannot be settled amicably, let it
be concluded without voluntary delay before
men who fear God chosen by the parties, oath
being made upon the most holy Gospels.
Further, on the death of an abbot, let not a
stranger be ordained, but one whom the con-
gregation may choose of its own free will for
itself from the same congregation, and who
shall have been chosen without any fraud or
venality. But, if they should be unable to find
a suitable person among themselves, let them

5 For other Epistles in which bishops are forbidden to inter-
fere, except in case of need, with monasteries, see index under
.i. Masteries. Also Prolegom., p. xx.

236

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

in like manner wisely choose for themselves
for ordination one from some other monastery.
And, when an abbot comes, let no person
whatever on any occasion whatever be put
over him in his own monastery, unless per-
chance in the case (which God forbid) of
crimes which are shewn to be punishable by
the sacred canons. This rule also must be no
less caiefully observed; that against the will
of the abbot of such monastery monks be not
removed thence for furnishing other monas-
teries, or for sacred orders, or for any clerical
office. But in cases of there being monks in
abundance, sufficient for celebrating praises to
God and for satisfying the requirements of
monasteries, let the abbot offer with devotion,
of those who are to spare, such as Tie may be
able to find worthy in the sight of God. But
if, while having a sufficient number he should
refuse to give an)', then let the bishop of
Ravenna take of such as are to spare for
furnishing other monasteries. Nevertheless,
let no one be taken out thence for an eccle-
siastical office, except such as the abbot of the
place, on having notice given him, may i
of his own accord. Whosoever also from the
aforesaid monastery shall have attained to any
ecclesiastical order, let him thenceforth have
neither any power there nor leave to dwell
there 6.

It is to be observed also that no schedule
of the property and charters of this monastery
must be made by i ;ti< s, if ever circum-

stances require one : but let the abbot of the
place with other abbots make an inventor]
the property.

Further, as often as the abbot may perchai
wish to go or send to the Roman pontiff in the
interest of his monastery, let him have entire
liberty to do so.

Furthermore, though the visits of bishops
should be looked for with desire by monas-
teries, yet, seeing that it has been report o
us that the aforesaid monastery in the times of
your predecessor was burdened by occasion of
entertainment, it is right that your Holiness
should regulate this in a becoming manner, so
that the prelate of the city may have access to
the monastery as often as he pleases for the
sake of visiting and exhorting. But let the
bishop so fulfil _ the office of charity there that
the monastery incur not any burden. Now the
aforesaid abbot not only does not fear your
Fraternity's frequent access to the monastery,
but even longingly desires it, knowing that it
is quite impossible that the substance of the

This is among the many evidences found in Gregory's
epistles that monks in his day were essentially laymen. the
active duties incumbent on the clergy were held to be inconsistent
with monastic hie.

monastery should be burdened through you.
Given in the month of April, first Indiction.

EPISThE XVII.
To Maurentius.

Gregory to Maurentius, magister militumi.

My most beloved son, Cyprian the deacon,
had pleased me much by his return to me, if
his whole self had returned to me. But now
that your Glory has stayed in Sicily, I know
most certainly that he has returned indeed in
body, but in mind has remained in Sicily.
Yet, in saying this, I rejoice with you for your
quiet as much as I groan for my own occupa-
tions. And to this I earnestly exhort you, that,
if the pleasant savour of inward sweetness has
touched the palate of your heart, your mind be
so rapt within itself that all which sounds
without, ad that delights without, may be dis-
tasteful. Moreover I commend you for avoiding
concourses of men, seeing that a mind which
desiro to be renewed in God through the
grace of compunction often relapses into its
old state through evil conversation and words.
I have sou-lit lor some to join you in a society
for sacred reading, but have found no one, ami
lament the scarcity of what is
good. And though I, a sinner, am wry much
occupied, yet, if you should wish to come to
the threshold of the blessed apostle Peter, you

will be able to have me as a close associate
in the study of Holy Writ. May Almighty
. keep you under His heavenly protection,
and grant you to remain defended against the
snares of the ancient foe.

EPIS1 ! E XVIII.
To Agnellus, Bishop of Terracina.

Gregory t<> Agnellus, &c.

It has come to our ears — a thing shocking
to be told — that some in your parts worship
trees, and perpetrate many other unlawful
things contrary to the Christian faith. And
we wonder why your Fraternity has delayed
correcting this by stii< t punishment. On this
account we exhort you by this present writing
to cause these persons to be sought out b>
diligent enquiry, and such vengeance to be
executed on them that both God may be
pacified and their punishment may be an ex-
ample of rebuke to others.

We have written also to Maurus the Viscount
that he should afford aid to your Fraternity in
this matter, that so you may be unable to find

7 This letter is interesting as one of those which shew Gre»
gory's carefulness to retain influence over pious lay frieni l
position, and his uniform tone of courtesy in addressing them.
Maurentius appears to have been a military officer of studious
habits in Sicily.

EPISTLE XXII.

237

any excuse for nor apprehending them. Further,
as we find that many excuse themselves from
keeping watch over the walls, let your Fra-
ternity be careful to suffer no man, either under
the name of our or your Church, or under any
other pretext, to be exempted from keeping
watch : but let all generally be compelled, to
the end that, while all keep watch, the custody
of the city may, by the help of the Lord, be
the better provided for.

EPISTLE XX.
To Martnianus, Bishop of Ravenna.

Gregory to Marinianus, &c.

John, the bearer of these presents, complains
that his wife, flying from the molestations of
one George, has long been residing within
venerable precincts 8, and has so far met with
no assistance. Since she asserts that there is
a dispute about her condition 9, and has asked
that it should be commended to your Fraternity,
we hereby exhort you that you afford your pro-
tection to this woman, and permit her not to
be in any way aggrieved by any one unreason-
ably. But if the question about her station
still continues, let it be your care that, without
any oppression, and in a legal manner, it may
be submitted for judgment ; so that when, after
ascertainment of the truth, what is agreeable to
the order of law has been determined, neither
party may complain of having suffered wrong.
The month of May, first Indiction.

EPISTLE XXI.
To John, Bishop of Syracuse.

Gregory to John, &c.

Felix, the bearer of these presents, has com-
plained to us that, being born of Christian
parents, he was given (i.e. as a slave) by a
certain Christian to a Samanean r, which is an
atrocious thing to be said. And, though neither
order of law nor reverence for religion allow
men of such like superstition in any way what-
ever to possess Christian slaves, yet he asserts

8 The woman had fled to the precincts of some church for pro-
tection from one George, who apparently claimed her as his slave.
The right of temporary asylum in sacred precincts, from which
refugees could not be taken without the bishop's assent, rested
on imperial edicts. "Vide lib. I. Cod., tit. 12, cap. 3, ubi
imperatores Theodosius et Valentianus plurima de seplis eccle-
siasticis statuunt. . . . Vocantur etiam claustra domiitica, et
continent atria et portions ecclesiae, domum episcopi, xxx vel xl
passus in circuitu, et domus quae in eis fuerint. Tandem cessavit
ista immunitas ob abusus." (Note to I. 37 in Migne^s Patrilo&a).
Cf. X. 37, where directions are given to Januarius, bishop of
Cagliari, for his course of action in such cases.

9 I.e. as to whether she was a free-woman or a slave.

1 Sawatiro, meaning apparently a Samaritan, and as such
incapable, as Jews were, of holding Christian slaves. See
Prolcgovi., p. xxi., and references there. In the case before us
here the Samaritan claimant had himself become a Christian;
and an attempt had been made on this plea to recover for him
the Christian slave who had been emancipated from his father.
But this Gregory will by no means allow.

that he remained for eighteen years in that
man's service. But he says that, when your
predecessor Maximianus of holy memory be-
came aware of the fact, he was freed by him,
moved, as was becoming, by priestly zeal,
from the service of that Samanean. But,
inasmuch as the son of the said Samarsean is
said after five years to have become a Christian,
and certain persons are trying to reclaim the
aforesaid Felix, according to his own account,
to his service, let your Holiness enquire dili-
gently into the facts that we have been informed
of, and, if they should be found true, study to
protect him, and allow him on no pretext
whatever to be aggrieved by any one, seeing
that, while the laws plainly forbid slaves of
that superstitious sect who are before their
masters in coming to the faith being reclaimed
to their service, how much more ought not
this man — born of Christian parents, and a
Christian from his childhood — to be subjected
in any wise to this contention ; especially as
neither could be the slave of that other man's
father, who it is clear was rather liable to
punishment by law for his wicked presumption?
And so, as we have said, let the defence of
your Ploliness so protect him reasonably that
no one may be at liberty, under any pretence
whatever, in any degree to afflict him.

EPISTLE XXII.
To Rusticiana, Patrician*.

Gregory to Rusticiana, &c.

I remember having before now written to
your Excellency, and repeatedly urged you to
lose no time in revisiting the thresholds of the
blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles. And
what means your so great delight in the city of
Constantinople, and your oblivion of the city
of Rome, I know not. I have not so far been
thought worthy of getting any information from
you on this head. For how far it might be of
advantage to your soul for reaping the rewards
of eternal life, and how far it would suit also
in all respects your glorious daughter, the lady
Eusebia, this we fully give our attention to,
and you may no less fully consider. But, if you
enquire of my son Peter, your servant, whom
I have found to be wise beyond his age and to
be studying to attain ripeness, you will find
how great is the love towards your Excellency
of all who dwell here, and how great their
desire to be thought worthy of seeing you
again. And if, the Lord teaching us, we are
admonished in Holy Writ that we should love
even our enemies, we ought to consider how
wrong it is to shew no love even to those who

* See II. 27, note 2.

238

EPISTLES OF ST GREGORY THE GREAT.

love us. But, if haply we are said to be loved, Almighty God on a Lord's day, or on any very
we know most certainly that no oiu can have noted festival that may chance to occur; since
affection for those whom he docs not wish to the character of the present time too, on
see. If, however, you are afraid of the swords account of impending calamity, impels us not
and wars of Italy, you should attentively to defer the fulfilment of their desires by any
observe how great is the protection of the j procrastination. Further, whomsoever of them
blessed Peter, Prince of the apostles, in this i thou ascertainest to be poor and without suffi-

city, wherein, without a large force of people,
and without military aid, we are preserved
under God for so many years among swords.
This we say, because we love. But may
Almighty God grant whatever He sees to be
of advantage to your soul for ever, and to the
renown of your house at the present time.

The ten pounds of gold which your Excel-
lency has sent for the redemption of captives
I have received at the hands of my aforesaid
son. But I pray that the heavenly grace which
granted to you that )Ou should give them for
your soul's reward may also grant to me to
dispense them without any contagion of sin ;
lest we should be stained by that w] yi u

wipe away sins. May Almighty God, who
looks upon the weakness of your body and
your pilgrimage, comfort you evei bj His .rue,
and by the life and health of my most v.
son the lord Strategius3; that so He rj
nurture him both for you through man) j
and for Himself through eternity, and n
both replenish you and all your house with of June, first Indiction.
present good and grant you to ba e from

above. We further beg that the is lord

cient means for buying vestments for them-
selves, we desire thee to supply with vestments
for their baptism ; and know that the price
that thou mayest give for them is to be charged
in thy accounts. But, if they should choose to
wait for the holy season of Easter, speak again
with the bishop, that they may for the present
become catechumens, and that he may go to
'diem frequently, and pay careful attention to
them, and kindle their minds by the admoni-
tion of his exhortations, so that the more
nt the ex] festival is, the more may

th< v prepare themselves and with fervent desire
look In! ward to it.

I urthermore, let it be thy care to enquire
with all zeal and diligence whether the above
nan. over which the aforesaid

presides has sufficient means, or whether
it suffers any need. And whatever thou mayest
truly ascertain, as well as what is done with
respect to those who desire to be baptized,
in Ice h inform us in full. The Month

Eudoxius may be greeted in our bei

EPISTLE XXIII.

To Fantinus, Gi \ I'M \n (/' em).

Gregory to Fantinus, &c.

EPIS1 LE XXIV.

To Sabinianus, Bishop of Jadera«.

Sabinianus, «.Xc.
I am well delighted in thy sincerity, dearest
r, knowing how, with the discrimination
reful judgment, it both obeys where obedi-

1'iom the information of the lady due and resists where r e is due

the monastery of Saint Stephen in the territory with priestly zeaL For with what alacrity of
of Agrigentum we find that many of the Jews, n thou hast submitted to what we en-

divine grace inspiring them, wish to be con- joined for the fault of thy past tr: sion is

verted to the Christian faith ; but that it is dis< losed to us by the contents of the letters
necessary for someone logo thither by our com- which thou hast sent to us by the hearer of
mand. Accordingly we enjoin thee, in virtue these presents. For indeed my be her

of the authority hereby given thee, that, putting could not take it otherwise- than as it was
aside every excuse, thou make haste to go to i incd by one who loves him. Hence I
the aforesaid place, and with the favour of God trust in the compassion of Almighty God that
aid their desire by thy exhortations. If, how- His grace so protects thee that, having been
ever, it seems long and dreary lor them to look thus absolved also from other sins, thou mayest
forward to the Paschal solemnity, and thou rejoice in having wholesomely obeyed. But
hndest them anxious for baptism now, then, as to what thy Charity has signified about being
lest long delay should possibly change their distressed by the jealousy of the excommuni-
minds (which God forbid), speak thou with cated prevaricator Maximus, thou oughtest not
our brother the bishop of that place, that, to be disturbed; but it becomes thee by
penitence and abstinence having been pre- patiently enduring to bear up against the
scribed them for forty days, he may baptize billows that swell vainly to some small i
them under the protection of the mercy of and by the virtue of perseverence to subdue

3 A grandchild of Rusiiciana. See as above.

4 See VI. 27, VII. 17, VIII. io, and III. 47) note a.

EPISTLE XXIX.

239

the foaming of the waves. For patience knows
how to smooth what is rough, and constancy
to overcome fierceness. Let not, then, adver-
sity deject your spirits, but inflame them.
Let priestly vigour shew thee in all things the
more bold. For this is a true evidence of
truth, for one to exhibit himself as all the
readier in hard circumstances, and all the
braver in such as are adverse. Wherefore,
that no blow may avail to upset the firmness
of thy rectitude from its good determination,
plant, as thou hast begun to do, the steps of
thy soul on the solidity of that rock on which
thou knowest that our Redeemer has founded
the Church throughout the world, that so the
right footsteps of a sincere heart may not
stumble on a devious way.

As to the things about which thou hast
written, or which the bearer of these presents
has explained in our presence, do not suppose
that we are neglecting them : we are very
carefully considering them.

Further, we have already, both before and
now, given accurate information about every-
thing to our most beloved son the deacon
Anatolius s ; exhorting him to lose no time,
with the aid of our Creator, in acting strictly
and zealously in whatever pertains to the ad-
vantage and quiet of your Charity and of your
sons. And so let not sorrow affect your Fra-
ternity, nor the enmity of any one whatever
afflict you. For, with the assistance of Divine
Crace, we trust that it will not be long before
the presumption of the aforesaid excommuni-
cated prevaricator will be more strictly re-
pressed, and your quiet, as you desire, arrive.
We have also by no means omitted to write
about his perverseness to our most excellent
son the Exarch 6, who is anxious to commend
him to us.

As to the presbyter about whom thy Fra-
ternity has consulted us through the repre-
sentation of the bearer of these presents, know
that after his lapse he cannot by any means
remain in. or be restored to, his sacred order.
Still he ought to be somewhat mildly dealt
with, inasmuch as he is said to have readily
confessed his fault.

Furthermore, this same bearer spoke at the
same time of certain privileges of your Church
granted by our predecessors.

About the writings thus referred to by your
Charity we wish to be more accurately informed.
Or, if any of them are lying in the registry of
your Church, it is necessary that copies of
them be transmitted hither; that we may be

5 At this time Gregory's af>ocrisiarius at Constantinople.
Cf. VII. 31, IX. 82.

6 Callinicns, who was nt this time Exarch of Italy at Ravenna.
See IX. 9, with note, and 111. 47, note 2.

able with willing mind to renew whatever
concerns reverence for your dignity or the
genius of the aforesaid Church.

If our common son, the glorious lord Mar-
cellus7, should be minded to come hither,
urgently persuade him to do so; for on all
accounts I desire to see him. But, if he should
choose to remain where he is, do you so exhibit
yourselves to him in beseeming charity that
you may be able to respond, as becomes you,
to the affection which he has towards you.
May Almighty God keep and protect you with
the gift of His grace, and enflame your heart
to do the things that are well pleasing to Him.

EPISTLE XXIX.

To Eulogius, Bishop of Alexandria.

Gregory to Eulogius, &c.

An address from a learned man is always
profitable, because the hearer either learns
what he had known himself to be ignorant of,
or, what is more, comes to know what he did
not know he had been ignorant of. A hearer
of the latter kind I have now become, your
most holy Blessedness having been minded to
write to me, asking me to send you the acts
of all the martyrs, which were collected in the
times of Constantine, of pious memory, by
Eusebius of Csesarea. But before receiving
the letter of your Blessedness I did not know
of these acts, whether they had been collected,
or whether not. I therefore give thanks that,
instructed by your most holy teaching, I have
begun to know what I was ignorant of. For
beside what is contained about the acts of the
holy martyrs in the books of the same Eusebius,
I am not aware of any collections in the
archives of this our Church, or in the libraries
of the city of Rome, unless it be some few
things collected in one single volume. We
have indeed the names of almost all the
martyrs, with their passions assigned to par-
ticular days, collected in one volume ; and we
celebrate the solemnities of mass on such days
in commemoration of them. Yet it is not
indicated in this volume who each was, and
how he suffered; but only his name, the place,
and day, of his passion are put down. Hence
it results that many of divers countries and
provinces are known to have been crowned
with martyrdom, as I have said, through their
several days. But these we believe you have.
That, however, which you wish to have sent
to you we have sought for, but have not
found ; but, though we have not found it, we
will still search, and, if it can be found, will
send it.

7 Proconsul of Dalmatia. Cf. IX. 5, and III. 47, note 2.

240

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

With regard to what you write about the
timber being short in length, the cause was in
the kind of ship by which it was sent ; for, if
a larger ship had come, we could have sent
larger pieces of timber. But as to your saying
that, if we send larger pieces, you will pay for
them, we thank you indeed for your liberality,
but we are precluded from accepting a price,
since the Gospel forbids it. For we do not
buy the timber which we send : and how can
we accept a price, when it is written, Freely ye
have received, freely give (Matth. x. 8)? We
have therefore sent now through the ship-
master timber of short length in accordance
with the size of the ship, whereof a notice is
subjoined. Next year, however, should it
please Almighty God, we will prepare larger
pieces.

We have received with the kindliness where-
with it was sent the blessing of Saint Mark
the Evangelist, nay, it may be said more truly,
of Saint Peter the Apostle8; and, greeting you
well, we beg your Blessedness to deign to
pray for us, that so we may be counted worthy
to be soon delivered from present evils, and
not to be excluded from future joys.

EPISTLE XXX.
To Eulogius, Bishop of Alexandria.

Gregory to Eulogius, &c.

Our common son, the bearer of these |
sents, when he brought the letters of your
Holiness found me sick, and has left me
sick; whence it has ensued that the scanty
water of my brief epistle has been hardly able
to exude to the large fountain of your 1
ness. But it was a heavenly boon that, while
in a state of bodily pain, I received the letter
of your Holiness to lift me up with joy for
the instruction of the heretics of the city of
Alexandria, and the concord of the faithful,
to such an extent that the very joy of my mind
moderated the severity of my suffering. And
indeed we rejoice with new exultation to hear
of your good doings, though at the same time
we by no means suppose that it is a new thing
for you to act thus perfectly. For that the
people of holy Church increases, that spiritual
crops of corn for the heavenly garner are
multiplied, we never doubted that this was
from the grace of Almighty God which flowed
largely to you, most blessed ones. We
therefore render thanks to Almighty God,
that we see fulfilled in you what is written,
Where there is much increase, there the strength
cf the oxen is manifest (Prow xiv. 4). For,
if a strong ox had not drawn the plough of

iA,8Cf- VI1- 4°. for Gregory's view of the sees of Rome,
Alexandria, and Antioch, jointly representing the see of St. Peter.

the tongue over the ground of the hearts of
hearers, so great an increase of the faithful
would by no means have sprung up.

But, since in the good things you do I know
that you also rejoice with others, I make you
a return for your favour, and announce things
not unlike yours ; for while the nation of the
Angli, placed in a corner of the world, re-
mained up to this time misbelieving in the
worship of stocks and stones, I determined,
through the aid of your prayers for me, to send
to it, God granting it, a monk of my monas-
tery for the purpose of preaching. And he,
having with my leave been made bishop by
the bishops of Germany, proceeded, with their
aid also, to the end of the world to the afore-
said nation ; and already letters have reached
us telling us of his safety and his work ; to
the effect that he and those that have been
sent with him are resplendent with such great
miracles in the said nation that they seem
to imitate the powers of the apostles in the
signs which they display. Moreover, at the
solemnity of the Lord's Nativity which oc-
curred in this first indiction, more than ten
thousand Angli are reported to have been
i by the same our brother and fellow-
bishop. This have I told you, that you may
know what you ari ing among the people

of Alexandria by speaking, and what in the

is of the world by praying. For your
ers are in the place where you are not,
while your holy operations are shewn in the
place where you are.

In the next place, as to the person of
Eudoxius the heretic 9, about whose error I
have discovered nothing in the Latin langu
I rejoice that I have been most abundantly
satisfied by your Blessedness. For you have
adduced the testimonies of the strong men,
gory, and Epiphanius; and we ac-
knowledge him to be manifestly slain, at whom
our heroes have cast so many darts. But
with regard to these errors which are proved
to have arisen in the Church of Constanti-
nople, you have replied on all heads most
learnedly, and as it became you to utter the
judgment of so great a see. Whence we give
thanks to Almighty God, that the tables of
the covenant are still in the ark of God. Lor
what is the priestly heart but the ark of the
covenant? And since spiritual doctrine re-
tains its vigour therein, without doubt the
tables of the law are lying in it.

Your Blessedness has also been careful to
declare that you do not now make use of
proud titles, which have sprung from a root
of vanity, in writing to certain persons, and

9 Cf. VII. 4, and 34.

EPISTLE XXXIV.

241

you address me saying, As you have com-
manded. This word, command, I beg you to
remove from my hearing, since I know who
I am, and who you are. For in position you
are my brethren, in character my fathers.
I did not, then, command, but was desirous
of indicating what seemed to be profitable.
Yet I do not find that your Blessedness has
been willing to remember perfectly this very
thing that I brought to your recollection.
For I said that neither to me nor to any one
else ought you to write anything of the kind ;
and lo, in the preface of the epistle which
you have addressed to myself who forbade it,
you have thought fit to make use of a proud
appellation, calling me Universal Pope. But
I beg your most sweet Holiness to do this
no more, since what is given to another beyond
what reason demands is subtracted from your-
self. For as for me, I do not seek to be
prospered by words but by my conduct. Nor
do 1 regard that as an honour whereby I know
that my brethren lose their honour. For my
honour is the honour of the universal Church :
my honour is the solid vigour of my brethren.
Then am I truly honoured when the honour
due to all and each is not denied them. For
if your Holiness calls me Universal Pope,
you deny that you are yourself what you call
me universally. But far be this from us.
Away with words that inflate vanity and wound
chanty.

And, indeed, in the synod of Chalcedon,
and afterwards by subsequent Fathers, your
Holiness knows that this was offered to my
predecessors x. And yet not one of them
would ever use this title, that, while regarding
the honour of all priests in this world, they
might keep their own before Almighty God.
Lastly, while addressing to you the greeting
which is due, I beg you to deign to remember
me in your holy prayers, to the end that the
Lord for your intercessions may absolve me
from the bands of my sins, since my own
merits may not avail me.

EPISTLE XXXIII.
To Dominicus.

Gregory to Dominicus, Bishop of Carthage.

The letter of your Holiness, which we
received at the hands of the bearer of these
presents, so expressed priestly moderation as
to soothe us, in a manner, with the bodily
presence of its author. Nor indeed does
infrequency of communication cause any harm
where the affection of love remains uninter-
rupted in one's mind. Great, moreover, is

» Cf. V. 18, note 5.

the power of charity, beloved brother, which
binds hearts one to another in mutual affection
with the chain of its sincerity, and suffers
them not to be loosened from the cohesion of
grace, which conjoins things disjoined, keeps
together things united, and causes persons
who are unknown by sight to be known
through love. Whosoever therefore fixes his
heart on the hinge of charity, him no impulse
of any adversity whatever tears from the habi-
tation of the heavenly country, since, in what-
ever direction he may turn himself, he parts
not from the threshold of the commandments.
Hence also it is said by the excellent preacher
in praise of this same charity, Which is thj
bond of perfect n ess (Coloss. iii. 14). We see,
then, what great praise is due to that which
not only engenders perfectness in the soul,
but also binds it.

Wherefore, since the language of thy letters
shews thee to be inflamed with the fire of this
virtue, I rejoice in the Lord with abundant
exultation, and hope that it may shine forth
in thee more and more, seeing that the flame
of the shepherd is the light of the flock. For
it becomes the Lord's priest2 to shine in
manners and life, to the end that the people
committed to him may be able, as it were in
the mirror of his life, both to choose what to
follow, and to see what to correct.

Knowing, furthermore, whence priestly ordi-
nation took its beginning in the African parts,
you act laudably in recurring with wise recol-
lection, in your love of the Apostolic See, to
the origin of your office, and in continuing
with commendable constancy in your affection
towards its. For indeed it is certain that
whatever reverence and devotion in priestly
wise you shew to it, this you add to your own
honour ; seeing that you hereby invite it to be
bound with answering love to you.

It remains, most dear brother, that we be-
seech Almighty God with continual prayer
that He would direct the steps of our hearts
into the pathway of His truth, and bring us to
the heavenly kingdoms, granting us by the
grace of His protection to exhibit in our
works the office which we bear in name. The
Month of August, first Indiction \

EPISTLE XXXIV.

To John, Bishop of Scyllacium '.

Gregory to John, &c.

It is evidently a very serious thing, and
contrary to what a priest should aim at, to

a" Dominican* sacerdotam," perhaps with allusion to th'
name of Dominicus.

3 See II, 47, note 6.

4 The date varies in some few MSS.

5 The address in the text is " Episcopo Scillitano. Tha

VOL. XII.

2-1-2

EPISTLES OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

wish to disturb privileges formerly granted to
any monastery, and to endeavour to bring
to naught what has been arranged for quiet.
Now the monks of the Castilliensian monastery
in your Fraternity's city have complained to
us that you are taking steps to impose upon
the said monastery certain things contrary to
what had been allowed by your predecessors
and sanctioned by long custom, and to disturb
ancient arrangements by a certain injurious
novelty. YVherefore we hereby exhort your
Fraternity that, if this is so, you refrain from
troubling this monastery under any excuse,
and that you try not, through any opportunity
of usurpation, to upset what has been long
secured to it, but that you study, without any
gainsaying, to preserve all its privileges in-
violate, and know that no more is lawful to
you with regard to the said monastery than
was lawful to your piedecessors.

Further, inasmuch as they have likewise
complained that thy Fraternity has tal
certain things from the monastery under the
guise of their being, as it were, an offeiin
it is necessary that, if thou recollectest h iving
received anything unbecomingly, thou restore
it without delay, le^t the sin of avai ice seriously
convict thee, whom priestly munificence ou
to have shewn liberal towards monastei
Therefore, while thou preserves! all thii
which, as we have said, have been allowed
and preserved by thy predecessors, let it be
thy care to keep careful watch over the
and lives of the monks residing there, and, if
thou shouldest find any one living amiss, or
(which God forbid) guilty of any sin of un-
cleanness, to correct such by strict and
emendation. For, as we desire your I rati rnity
to abstain from incongruous usurpations, so
we admonish you to be in all ways solicitous
in what pertains to reciitude of discipline and
the guardianship of souls.

The monks of the aforesaid monastery have
also informed us that the camp which is called
Scillacium is built on ground belonging to
their monastery, and that on this account
those who live there pledged themselves in
writing? to pay a solatium"" every year; but
that they afterwards thought scorn of it, and

the see was that of Scyllacium in Brutia appears from the con-
tents of the epistle. Scyllacium itself appears to have been
a Castritm, which had been erected on land belonging to a
monastery. The episile is illustrative of Gregory's anxiety t
protect the property and privileges of monasteries against bishops.
See Prjlegom.s p. xx., and references in Index under Moiuts-
teries.

6 Su5 xenii quasi specie. For the meaning of the word
xenium, see II. 23, note 8.

7 Libel! is factis; meaning apparently that there had been
written memoranda of agreement.

8 The word solatium is variously used; sometimes for any
kind of aid or succour; sometimes for remuneration lor services
done, or grants in aid ; here apparently for payment in the way
of rent ioi the land occupied.

idly withheld their stipulated payment. Let
then your Fraternity take care to learn the
truth accurately ; and, if you should find it so,
urgently see to their not delaying to give what
they promised, and what also reason requires ;
that so both they may possess quietly what
they hold, and the rights of the monastery
may incur no damage.

Furthermore, the monks of the aforesaid
monastery have complained to us that their
abbot has granted to thy Fraternity by title of
gift land within the camp of Scillacium, to the
extent of six hundred feet, under pretext of
building a church : and accordingly it is our
will that as much land as the walls of the
church, when built, can surround shall be
claimed as belonging to the church. But let
tever n outside the walls of the said

church revert without dispute to the possession
of the monastery. For the ordinances neither
of worldly laws nor of the sacred canons permit
•perty of a monastery to be ited

by any title from its ownership. On this
account restore thou this gift of land which
has been granted against reason.

EPISTLE XXXV.

To Leontius, Ex Consul.

Gi to I .tins, &c.

there are not only

els of gold and of silver, bul ■ f wood

and of earth, and some indeed to honour but

some to dishonour (2 Tim. ii. 20 , who can be

►rant that in the bosom of the Universal

Church some as vessels of dishonour are de-

(1 to the lowest uses, but others, as vessels

e fitted foi 1 - in uses. And yet
ommonly comes to that the citizens

Babylon serve in task-work for Jerusalem,
while the citizens of Jerusalem, that is of the
heavenly country, are deputed to the task-work
of Babylon. lor when the elect of God,
endowed with moral excellence, distinguished
for moderation, seeking not their own gain,
are deputed to earthly business, what else is it
but that the citizens of holy Jerusalem serve
in the work of Babylon? And when some,
unbridled in immorality, hold places of holy
nity, and in the very things which they
seem to do well seek praise to themselves,
what else is it but that the citizens of Babylon
execute the task-work of the heavenly Jeru-
salem ? For so Judas, mixed with the apostles,
long preached the Redeemer of the human
race, and did signs with the rest; but, because
he had been a citizen of Babylon, he executed
his work as task-work for the heavenly Jeru-
salem. But on the other hand Joseph, being
carried into Eg)pt, served an earthly court,

EPISTLE XXXV.

243

bore the charge of administration in temporal
things, exhibited whatever was justly due to a
transitory kingdom ; but, because he was still
a citizen of holy Jerusalem, he administered
the service of Babylon, as has been seen
above, in the way of task-work only. A
follower of him, good man, I believe thee to
be, knowing thee, though involved in earthly
action, to act with a gentle spirit, to keep in
all respects the citadel of humility, and to
give to every one what is just. For such good
things are reported by many of your Glory that
I would fain not hear of such things, but see
them : yet still I am fed by the good renown
of him whom I am not allowed to see. But
the woman who poured from the alabaster
box, exhibiting a type of the Holy Church,
that is of all the elect, filled the house with
the ointment (Luke vii. ). And we, as often
as we hear anything of good people, draw in
as it were through our nostrils a breath of
sweetness. And when Paul the Apostle said,
We are a good odour of Christ unto God ' (2 Cor.
ii. 15), it is plainly given to be understood
that he exhibited himself as a savour indeed
to the present, but as an odour to the absent.
We therefore, while we cannot be nourished
by the savour of your presence, are so by the
odour of your absence.

For this, also we greatly rejoice, that the
gifts which you sent us were not unlike your
character. For indeed we received oil of the
holy cross 9, and wood of aloes ; one to bless

9 " Oil of the cross" is spoken of not infrequently from the 6th
century downward as efficient for healing. In the Itineranum
attributed to Antoninus of Placentia in that century mention
is made of ampulla of onyx stone containing oil being brought
into contact with the wood of the true cross which was supposed
to be preserved in Constantino's Church on Golgotha, and the
oil thereupon at once boiling over. It may have been oil which
was believed to have thus acquired healing virtue that was
originally meant by "oil of the cross." But in the following

by the touch, the other to give a sweet smell
when kindled. For it was becoming that a
good man should send us things that might
appease the wrath of God against us.

Many other things also you have sent for
our store-houses, since, as we subsist both in
soul and in flesh, it was needful that we should
be sustained in both. And yet in transmitting
these things your most sweet soul declares
that it blushes much for shame, and holds out
the shield of charity before this same shame-
faced n ess. But I altogether rejoice in these
words, since from this attestation of the soul
I know that he can never take away what is
another's who blushes even in bestowing what
is his own. Your gifts, however, which you
call small, are great: but I think that your
Glory's very humility enhances them yet the
more. And you beg me to receive them
kindly. But meanwhile recall to your memory
the two mites of a certain widow (Luke
xxvii.). For, if she pleased God who offered
a little with a good will, why should not he
please men who with a humble mind has given
much? Furthermore we send you, as a
blessing from Saint Peter, Prince of the
apostles, a key of his most sacred sepulchre,
in which is inserted a blessing from his
chains ', that what bound his neck for martyr-
dom may loose yours from all sins.

century we find notice of a belief that oil flowed miraculously
from the wood of the cross itself. For Adamnan, in his book
De locis Sanctis (which is mentioned by Bede, H.E. V. 15, as
presented by him to King Aldirid of Northumbria, and published
by Mabillon, de S. Adamn. Act. Benedict. so>c. iii. part ii. p. 456),
speaks of his informant, Arcuult, a Gallic bishop, having seen
at Constantinople, a piece of the true cross which had been sent
thither by Helena, irom the knots of which an odorous liquid
with healing virtues flowed. .,.-,,„ .

1 Filings from the supposed chains of St. Peter, preserved
at Rome were inserted in keys for his sepulchre (cf. IV. 30),
and these keys were sent by Gregory to various persons as
valuable charms. Cf. I. 26, note 3.

ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

INDEX OF TEXTS.

PACE

PAGE

Gen. ii. 17 . . .19:

>, 227

2 Sam. ii. 22, 23 .

Ps. liv. 6 (V.) . .214

Ps. cxxxix. 10 (V.) . it,

iii. 14 . . .

vii. 27 . . .

liv. 16 (V.) .

. 64

cxxxix. 12 (V.

)

• 3^

iv. 4

xi. 17 .

liv. 22 (V.)

• 232

cxxxix. 21

■ "5

ix. 1

xii. 4, 5 sq.

Iv. 5 . . .

. 214

cxxxix. 21, 22

• 49

xviii. 20

xii. 7 . . .

Iv. 15 . . .

. 64

cxl. 3 (V.)

• 38

xix. 20 .

1 Kings ii. 9

Iv. 21 . . .

■ 232

cxl. 5 (V.)

. 167

xix. 21 .

vii. 23 . . .

lxvii. 61 (V.) .

• 72

cxli. 3 .

• 38

xxviii. 12 .

x. 22 .

lxviii. 3 (V.) 75, 7

7,220

cl. 4 (V.)

• 4*

I, 225

xxxi. 47, 48

xv. 17, 30 . .

Ixviii. 24 (V.) .

Prov. i. 5 .

• 76

xxxiv. I— 3 .

2 Kings ii. 24 .

215

lxviii. 61 .

■ 72

i. 24 sq.

• 34

xxxiv. 2

140

xi. 3 sq. . .

lxix. 2 . . 75, 7

7,220

i. 28 .

xxxiv. 25 .

140

xi. 15 .

lxix. 4 (V.)

. 167

i. 31 .

. 42

xxxiv. 30 . . .

140

xxv. 10

lxix. 24

1. 32 .

■ 55

Ex. xiv. 29 .

211

2 Chron. xix. 2, 3 .

lxxii. 18 (V.) . 55, 75

iii. 8 .

• 38

xv. 6 .

Job i. 1 .

175

lxxiii. 18 . . 55, 75

iii. 11 .

• 35

xv. 19 . . .

220

x. r5 . .

lxxiv. 5 (V.) . . 63

iii. 16 .

• 55

xvi. 8 . . .

xxvi. 5 . .

211

lxxv. 4 .

■ 63

iii. 28 .

xviii. 17, 18

xxxvi. q . . .

lxxvii. 34 (V.)

■ 35

iii. 32 .

xxi. 33, 34 ■ •

xxxviii. 36

Ixxix. 6 (V.) .

. 60

iv. 25 .

xxii. 8 . . .

176

xli. 7 (V.) . .

lxxx. 8 (V.) .

223

v. 1

xxii. 28

176

xli. 14 (V.) .

5°

lxxxi. 7

223

v. 9 sq.

xxv. 12 sq.

xli. 25 . 14, 41

, 180

lxxxii. 14 (V.)

v. 15-17

xxviii. 8

Ps. i. 1 (V.) . .

lxxxiii. 6 .

225

vi. 1

xxviii. 15 .

ii. 11 (V.) . .

219

lxxxiii. 13

vi. 3 .

xxviii. 30 .

vi. 6 (V.) . .

216

xciv. 2 (V.)

vi. 4

xxviii. 34 .

xxi. 20 (V.)

187

xcv. 2 . . .

vi. 5 .

167

xxviii. 35 .

xxii. 20

187

ci. 5 . . .

157

vi. 6

xxix. 5

xxiii. 4 (V.) .

cii. 4 . . .

157

vi. 12, 14

5°

xxix. 22

xxvi. 8 (V.) .

civ. 44 (V.) .

x. 9 .

xxxii. 6

xxix. 7 (V-)

cv. 44 . . .

x. 19 .

xxxii. 27 .

xxix. 8 (V.) .

cvii. 7 (V.) .

xiv. 4 .

240

xxxii. 27 sq. .

XXX. 6 . . .

cviii. 6

xiv. 30

xxxiv. ^2' 35 •

xxxi. 5 (V.) .

cix. 97 (V.) .

xv. 7

Lev. xv. 2 . . .

xxxiii. 20 (V)

cxii. 9 (V.)

xv- 33 •

xix. 14 .

. 69

xxxvi. 20 (V.)

cxvii. 22 (V.) .

214

xvi. 5 .

xxi. 17

xxxvii. 20 .

cxvii. 24 (V.) .

214

xvi. 18 .

4i.

171

, 232

xxi. 18

xxxviii. 8 (V.)

cxviii. 22 .

214

xvi. 32 .

Num. x. 29 sq.

• 42

xxxix. 10, 11 (V.)

cxviii. 24 .

214

xvii. 14

xxiii. 10 .

xxxix. 13 (V.) 1

!7. 75

cxviii. 97 (V.)

xviii. 4

xxv. 9 . . .

■ 49

xl. 10, II .

• 53

cxviii. 106 (V.)

xviii. 9

Deut. xix. 4, 5 .

57,75

cxviii. 107 (V.) 7

2, 11

xix. 4 .

xxv. 4 . . .

■ 13

xlviii. 9 (V.) .

■ 47

cxix. 7 (V.) .

xix. 11.

3°

xxv. 5 . . .

xlviii. 15 (V.)

• 232

cxix. 106 .

xix. 15 .

xxxii. 42 .

xlix. 9 .

■ 47

cxix. 107 . . 7

2, 77

XX. 21 .

Josh. xv. 18

220

xlix. 14

■ 232

cxx. 7 . . . .

xx. 27 .

Ruth i. 20 . . . yC

>. 157

1. 19 (V.) . .

• 63

cxxviii. 3 (V.)

xx. 30 .

1 Sam. ii. 29

. 16

1. 11 (V.) . .

cxxxi. 9 (V.) .

xxi. 26

19-47

iv. 17, 1 S .

. 16

Ii- 9 • • ■

. 60

cxxxviii. 6

xxi. 28

xv. 17 . . .

• J5

li. 17 . . .

• 63

cxxxviii. 17 (V.) .

xxi. 30

172

xxiv. 4 sq.

liii. 5 (V.) . .

• 52

cxxxviii. 21 (V.) .

ii5

xxiii. 35

xxiv. 6 .

• 27

liv. 3 . . .

• 52

cxxxviii. 21, 22 (\

•)49

xxv. 28

245

246

ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Prov. xxvi. 10
xxvii. 6
xxvii. 22
xxviii. 14
xxviii. 20
xxix. 1 1

Eccles. iii. 7
v. 9
ix. 10
xi. 4
xi. 9

Cant. i. 3
ii. 6
iii. 8
vii. 4
viii. 13

Isa. i. 16
iii. 9
v.8
vi. 5
vi. S
ix. 13
xiv. 13-14
xxiii. 4
xxx. 20, 21
xxx iv. 1 5
xxxviii. 1 5
xl. 9 .
xliii. 2 .
xliii. 25, 2(
Iii. 1 1 .
liv. 4 .
liv. 5 .
liv. 1 [ .
lvi. 4, 5
Ivi. 10 .
lvi. 11 .
lvii. i 1 .
lviii. 1 .
lviii. 5 ( l.\
lviii. s (l.\
lviii. 9 .
lviii. 1 1
lxi. S .
lxvi. 2 .

Jur. i. 6
i. 10
ii. S .
iii. 1
iii. 3 .
iv. 4

v- 3 •
vi. 29 .
ix. 5 .
xv. 6 .
xxxix. <i
xK iii. 10

H- 9

Lam. i. 16

ii. 1 1
iii. 48
iv. 1
Ezek. i. 18
iii. 17
iv. 1
viii. S
viii. 9,
viii. 10
xiii. 5
xiii. 15
xvi. 14
xxii. 18
xxiii. 3
xxiv. 4

1 I

3«

3°

219
46
30

84
39
54

220

8,65

,.■
53

21 I
36

. '7-
59
59
33

•1 1

25
59

1 1

• 84

7*>

21 1

37
33
36

53-
36

27
84

22
21
21
21
1 1

Ezek. xxiv. 12
xxxii. 19
xxxiv. 4

xxxiv. 18

xxxvi. 5

xliii. 13

xliv. 20
Dan. ii. 35

iv. 30
IIos. ii. 8

iv. 9

v. 1

viii. 4

ix. 8
i. 1 5
Hab. ii. 6
Zeph. i. 1 5,
Ilagg. i. 6
Zech. vii. 5

xiii. 1
Mai. ii. 7
Tobit iv. 9

iv. 17
Wisd. i. 5

ii.

ix. 1 5
Eo lus. iii. }2

\ i . 6

vii. 14

x 9

x. 1 j

.xii. 1

.xix. 1

xx. 7

xx. 32
KX Vii. 12

xxix. 1 5

xxxii 1

ii. 10
.xxxii. 2 (
.xxxiv. 20
xxxiv. 25

xxxiv.

S. Matt. v.

v. 10

v. 1 1
v. p.

vi. 1

vi.

v i. 3
vi. 25

vii

vii. [3
viii. S

x. S

x. I(')

x. 19
x. 26

x. 27

X- 34

xii

xii. 44.
xiii. 17
xiii. 28
xiii. 31,

xi"- 33
xiii. 43

xv. 1 1

XV. I }

xvi. iS
xvi. 19
xvi. 26

37
71
16

55
3°

- \ 1

«79

2
2
2

21')

3 >

-1 1

P
45

1
.

17-'

240
33. '

216

5°
179 S.

t79
214

170

229

Matt, xviii. 6

xviii. 7 .

xviii. 13

xix. 1 1 .

xx. 25 .

xx. 28 .

xxi. 1 2 .

xxiii. 3 .

xxiii. 7, 8

xxiii. 13

xxiii. 24

xxiii. 27

xxiv. 20

xxiv. 1

xxv. 18.

xxv. 21 .

xxv. 23 ■

xxv. 41 .

xxv. 4;. [2

xxviii. 10
Mark v. 19

viii. 36

ix. 50 .
Luke ii [2

iii. 'i

vi. 12

vi. 2 1

vi. 25

vi. 27

vi. |i

vii

viii. 1 1

ix. 60

x. 2 1

x. 40

xi.

xi. 1 1
xii 2-,
xii. \2
xii
xii
xiv. 1 1

XIV.

-'1

7 •

XVI.

\\ 1.

-1

XVI.

XVII

-Will. 12

XV111. 1 (

XIX.

13 •

XXI.

[9.

XXI.

XXI 1

53-

xxiv. 49

xxvii. .

John

i. 1.

vi. 15

X. 12

xii. 31
xii. 32
xiii. 2
xiii. 27

PAGE

5l 168

169

59
16

1S6

168

2I5
66

84
16

210

106
1 2

;l
47
54

I I

3«
IS

(>o, 219
8

.(,
219

75
219

'V'
70

T1-

45
60

210
17

li
55
45

229
3°

17.44

232

243

I I

3
11

142

217
227

227

171

S. John xiv. 27
xv. 16, 17
xvi. 1 2 .
xvi. 13 .
xvi. 20 .
xvi. 22 .
xvii. 21
xxi. 17. ]
xxi. iS.

Arts ii. 3 .
ii. 22-24

ii- 37
ii. 38
v. 2 sq.
ix. 4 .
x. 13 .
x. 26 .
xiv. 22.
xvii. iS
xx. 2.'. 27
x.xii. 8 sq.
xxiii. 6
Rom. i. 14
i. 22
ii. 12
vii. 23
viii. 1 ;
viii. 18
x. 10
xi. 13

' 3
xii. 10
xii. M'

xii. is
xiii. 3
xiii. 1 1
xiii. 13
xi<.

xiv. 21
xv. 4
xvi. "1
i. 12

i '3

ii. 12

iii. 1, 2
iii. 3
iii. 1
iii. 18
iii.
iii. 27

jv- 5
iv. 21

v. 1, 2
vi. 4

vi. 9, 10
vi. 1 1
vi. 1 J
vii. 1. 2
vii. 2
vii. 3
vii. 3, 5
vii. 5
vii. '.
vii. 9
vii. 29, 30
vii. 30
vii. 31
viii. 8
viii. 9
ix. 9
ix. 20
ix. 27
x. 13

x- 33

53
-3-
231

26
229
229

23'

67
67
"3
84

67
76

'75

53.84

51
28

-'7
214

'75
193

178

[68

49. '79
70
71

1 1
119

175

'■9
i66

1
48

2S
177

'7
58
63
II
57
'3
57
58
i. 57
57
5f
56
55
56
44
69

'3
1 I

219

1 |,

33^

INDEX OF SUBJECTS.

'47

i Cor. xi. 31
xii. 26 .

xiii. 4 . . 30, 3
xiv. 38 .

PAGE

. 60

Gal. iii. 1 .

PAGE
. 28

PAGE

1 Tim. iii. 1 . . . c;, 6

Heb. xii. 14

84, 168,
xiii. 7 .

PAGE

. 214
t, 168

iii. 3 . . .
v. 22

. 28
. 48

iv. 1
iv. 1-3

. .

■ 23i

• M

179. 2I2

. 167

vi. 1

. 21

iv. u, ]

• 5t

S. James ii. 20.

• 2l6

xv. 33 . . .

vi. 2

30, 57

iv. 13

■ 23

iii. 1

• 3
. 48

xv. 34 . . .
2 Cor. i. 8, 9 .

• 7i

• l7$

vi. 14 . . .
Eph. iv. 3 . 179, 21

• 2I3

z, 224

v. 1
v. 8

■ 25
18

iii. 14, 15, 17

iv. 4
iv. 6

i. 9 ...

. 214

iv. 3, 4. . .

v. 14

224

167. 17 1

1. 17 . .

• 43

iv. 14 . . .

. 42

v. 23

v. 16

. 81

i. 23 . . .

• r5

iv. 31 . . .

vi. 1

1 Pet. ii. 9 .
iii. 3

1 r

ii. 15 . . .

• 243

vi. 9

. 28

vi. 10

ii. 17

■ 52

vi. 15 . . .

• 4

vi. 17

21 2

iii. 14 .
iii. 15 . .
iv. 11 .

180

iii. 17 . . .

Phil. i. 21 . . .

. 1S0

vi. 20 .

•> 1

iv. 5 . . .

• lS

ii. 8 . .

• 4i

2 Tim. ii. 4

4?. K2

v. 13 . . .

ii. 21

182

iii. 12

223

v. 1 .

v. 14, 15 . .

210

iii. 13 . . .

iv. 1

v. 8 . .

179

43
35
67
62

v. 15 . . .

iii. 19 . . .

iv. 2

2 Pet- i. 5 .

vi. 1 sq.

iv. 10 .

v. 23 .

ii. 16 .

vi. 2 . . .

< '<>1. ii. 25 .

Tit. i. 9 . .

ii. 21

vi. 7 . . .

iii. 5 • . • •

i. 15

ii. 22 . ,

viii. 13, 14.

iii- 14 . . .

241

i. 16 .

216

1 John ii. 4

216

viii. 14.

ix. 6

222

iii. 20, 21 .

ii. 15 .

ii. 18 . .

167

169

iii. 22 . . .

Heb. v. 4

210

iv. 4

ix. 7 . . . .

iv. 6 ...

225

viii. 13 .

iv. 18 . .

x. 6 ...

119

1 Thess. ii. 1

223

ix. 4

Rev. iii. 2 .

xi. 29 . . . i

3' —

ii. 7. . . . 1

5.178

xi. 36, 37

iii. 15, 16 .

xii. 2 sq. .

219

2 Thess. i. 3, 4 '.

xii. 5, 6

iii. 18 .

xii. 3 . . . .
Gal. i. 10

ii. 1

iii. 14 ...

5°

xii. 6 .
xii. 9, 10 .

117

iii. 19 .
xiv. 4 .

35
59

ii. u .

iii. 15 .

5°

xii. 12, 13 .

xxii. 17.

INDEX OF SUBJECTS.

Ablatae, some form of payment,
190 n.

Adeodatus, Bishop in Numidia, 134,
15S n. ; highly spoken of by
Cregory, 135.

Adeodatus, deacon, 164, 199, 207.

Admonitions, for different classes,
24 sq.

Adolescentia. term explained, 54 n.

Adrian, Bp. of Thebx, 123 n.

Adversity, to lie despised by the
Christian, 3.

.F.therius, Bishop <>f Lyons, had let-
ter from Gregory, xxvi.

Agapitus, Abbot (if St. (ieorge, com-
plains to Gregory, 78.

Agilulf, Lombard king, xix, xx, 145,
145 n., 17-4. [98; called Ago, 145;
disposed to be favourable, 174.

Agnellus, Bishop of Terracina, letter
to, 23H.

Agnoita-, heretics, ix.

Alcissonus, Bishop of Epirus, '.otter
to, up.

Alfred, King, translated Gregory's
Regula, xxxi.

Amandin us, ex-presbyter and ex-
abbot, 162.

Ambitious, the, promise themselves

to be beneficent, 6.
Ambrose, quoted as authoritative,

120.
Amos, patriarch of Jerusalem, letter

to, 233.
Anastasius, ex-patriarch of Antioch,

recognized by Gregory, xvii, 76;

letters to, xxiii sq. : 76, 80, 82,

174, 178, 220, 231 ; notes on his

life, 76 n. ; restored to office,

'"I-

Anastasius, Bishop of Corinth, let-
ter to, 82 ; notes on his life, 181,
181 n.

Anastasius, presbyter, letter to, 224.

Anatolius, deac jn and aprocrisiarius,
239, 239 n.

Ancilla Dei, term explained, 92 n.

Andrew, Bishop of Nicopolis, letter
to, 237.

Andrew, Bishop of Tarentum, let-
ter to, 132; had a concubine,

Andrew, scholasticus, letter to, 180.
Angaria, forced services, 161 n.
Anthemius, sub-deacon, letter to, 86,
87,94. 157, 200,218.

Antoninus, sub-deacon, letter to, 105,
127, 128; his ecclesiastical posi-
tion, 105, 10511., 127 n., 138.

Apocrisiarius, term explained, xv,
207, 239 n.

Arigius, Bishop of Vapincum, xxv.

Arigius, patrician of Gaul, letter to,

. 2.°5-
Ariminum, letter to the clergy and

laity of, 218.

Aristobulus, ex-prefect and anti-
graphus, letter to, St,.

Ariulph, Lombard, duke of Spole-
tum, 101, 113, 175.

Arsicinus, duke, letter to, 95.

Asylum, its law for refugees, 237.

Athanasius, presbyter, letter to, 208 ;
appeal heard and sentence re-
versed, xiii.

Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, quoted
as authoritative, 120.

Augustine, of Canterbury, heads the
Anglian mission, xxv. sq., 202
sq. ; has letters commendatory,
xxv, 202 sq. ; where consecrated,
xxv, 240; received a copy of
Gregory's Regula, xxxi ; was
bearer of letters, 202 sq.

248

ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Bacauda, Bishop, letter to, 77.

Bacauda, late Xenodochus, his will
valid, 77.

Baptism, anointing in, xxii, 1 53 n. ;
1 ,ombards invited for their chil-
dren's sake, 7S ; under Episcopal
authority, 83 n. ; by three im-
mersions, 88 ; how administered,
153 n. ; when administered, 238.

Baptisteries and fonts, 139, 15311.,

23'- .. .

Benedict, Saint, of Nursia, xin, xiv.
Benpdictio, a present, 151 n., 15611.,

'75 n-
Bertha, Anglian queen, xxvi, xxvi n.
bishops, their election, 101 n., 102,

106, 131, 213 n. ; had authority in

baptism, 83 n., 153 n.
Bishops, letter addressed to all, 117.
Blandus, Bishop of Eiortanum, 83.
Boniface, bishop of Regium, letter

to, 146.
Boniface, first Guardian, letter to,

235-
Bounty, royal, distribution "f, 17).

Breastplate, its purpose and mean-
ing, 9 a.

British Church, independent of
Rome, xi ; in communion with
tie, xiv, xxv. '

Brunebild, quei a, xx\ i. [89 n. ; let-
ters to, xxvi, xxvii; 189, 202,
205; lu-r history, xxx, 189 n

Candidus, presbyter, I i gent

in < iaul. [89, 189

1 aptives, ' hristian, 200,

i by the
hun li pi 1

Cardinal, bishops, pr< and

di a. 1 hi-, 100 n.

Carthage, synod at, against the
I '■ ts, 163 n.

Castorius, Bishop of Ariminum,
ters i". 103, in, 11 lined

I", < -

Castorius, n ; to, 173, 1

207 ; atti mpted identify ation,
[98 n.

Chains and keys with filings from S.
Peter's chains, 82, [30, 2 1 5.

Childebert, king of the Franks, 1 52,
[83, [89 11.; letter to all tlie-
Bishops of the kingdom
notes on his history, 183, 189 n.;
letters to, iS \, njo.

Church funds how divided, 1
mentina, patrii ian, lettei ti .

Clerical celibacy, 95. 95 n., 132 ; dis-
cipline, 131, 132, 149, [54, 161,
[82; attention to
duties, 149.

Clotaire, written to, xxvi.

Columbanus, Irish missionary, xi,
xxvii ; was written to, xxvii.

Columbus, Bishop in Numidia, let-
ters to, II5, 134, I 58, ;oO, 2lo.

234; friend of Gregory and

trusted, 147, 210.
• 'ommissus, scholasticus, no.
Confirmation by Bishops and by

priests, 1 53 n.
mstantina, Abbess, 191.
Constantina, Empress, x'x, xxiii,

171 11. ; letters to, 154, 171.

Constantinople, the church at, xv,
xxi ; claims of its Bishops re-
sisted by Gregory, xxii; its rela-
tion to the pope of Rome,
135 n., 166 sq., 192, 192 n. : its
Bishops appointed by the Em-
peror, 213 n.

Constantius, Bishop of Milan, let-
ters to, 144, 144, 145, 159,

233-

Contentious and peaceable dif-
ferently admonished. [8.

Conversion, a turning to the mo-
nastic life. 202.

Corn sent from Sicily to Rome, 88
sq.

Correction and connivance, how to
be related, 20.

Corsica, letters to the clergy and

noble- of, ] CO.

incil, annual, to be held in Sicily.
Ion, 145. 145 li-,
. ii2 n.
in< ils, the four 1 Ei umenii al up-
held b\ I. 159, 160,

< 1 iss, the true, and oil from it.
[n.
dan, Bisho] op

posed the p >pe, xi.
< lyprian, dea< on, letti rs to, 1 1". 1

'"5-

[shop 01 ' onstanti-

nople, i\. 11

210. _'i |ohn,

20<> II

out by
. 1 ; 1 . 1 letter to,

Dalmati the Bishop

104. ip; was troubled bj

1I1-. Bishop of 104.

1 li : lian, vii, 173 n. ; his

dui
1 >i mi trius, Bisl tier

to. I

I >emi trius deprived of thi

h 1. 101.

I >■ enl nto hell by < brist, dis-

Desiderius, Bishop of Vienne, xxvi;

letter to, 204.

1 '■ iminii is, Bisl

. - 1 1 ; 1
on his history, 1 14 n.
Domitian, metropolitan man

Armenia, i . 142, 142 n.

I lomitian, I 21 |.

21 \ n.

Donatist heresy and si hi-111. x. 98 11..
no, 11 n., 201 ; imperial

edicts against, 1 57 n.

Donatus, Bishop in Africa, 114.

1 >i mus, Bishop of Messana, letu 1

191, 228, 232 ; 1 the pal-

lium, 191.

Dynamius, patrician, letter to, 130.

''•rn Empire, vi, vii.
Eleutherius, monk, xiv.
Elpidius, Bishop, letter to, 214.
Emphyteusis, a land tenure, 150 n.
England, letters to the brethren
going to, 202 sq.

English mission sent from Rome,!
xiv, xxv, 202 sq. ; reports sent
back regarding the baptisms of
the Angli, 240.

Epirus, letter to the Bishops of, 190.

Ethelbert of Rent receives S. Au-
gustine, xxv, xxvi, xxvi n.

Eudoxius, heretic, 212 n., 226, 240.

Eulogius, Bishop of Alexandria, xii,
xvii, xxiii. xxiv, xxv ; applied to
Gregory for a copy of Eusebius'
./..'■ of the Martyrs, 239; in-
structed Gregory about the Eu-
doxian heresy and Eudoxius,
2.<o; letters to, So, 178, 206, 226,
228, 239, 240.

Eusebia, daughter of Rusticiana, 237.

Eusebius, Bishop of Thessalonica,
letter to, 253.

Eusebius, abbot, 100 ; letter to, in.

I sample is the past >r's power. 2.

Fantinus, guardian, letter to, 23S.
I ai ni questii ms and affaii •
88 sq., io8sq . 123, 153, 164.

1 lix, Bishop of Messana, letter to,

97-

\. Bishop in Sardinia, 151, 162,

1 to, H>2.

.. Bishi ■]> "i Pesaui urn, 201.

and gentleness, how acmon-

Lshed, 20.

rentinus, deacon al K.u enna, 199.

: unatus, Bishop of Faunum, li t-

to, 216.

tunatus, Bishop of Ni apolis, let-

I ortunatus appeal* -1 to Gn gory,
160. 16 ;.

ward and faint hearted dif-
ntly admonished,

Gaudiosus, presbyter, conditio)
hi- will, ■

I, the < bun h in, xi, xxiv. 1S2 sq.,
■ n. : had a ( laini on the pal-
lium, xxiv, [84 ; pedigree-table
of its king-, xxx j relation ol its
< hun li to Rome, 1S2 sq., 182 n. j
chun ii perhaps of Asiatii origin

n.
nadius, patrii ian and exan h
Afiiea. letters to. 96
mingled with

Geoi r, letter to, 210.

d in beginning, and slow it
finishii 1 nt admonil

dianus, father of S. C

xiii, xiv.
Goths in Italy, vi.
< ,,, - and dangers, W

p o| Antioch, xvii Jl
1 to, 80.

rentum, 97, 127.
of Nazianzen, quoted as a

thority, 1 20.
rory the < Ireat, Bisho]) of kwm

an administrator, vii sq., 77
a- a pope, Lx sq., xvii sq., xxvii
his views upon the papacy, X
xii ; Ins birth and edui atiol
xiii ; his father a patrician, xii
xiv ; his mother Silvia, xiv ; h

INDEX OF SUBJECTS.

249

three sisters, religious, xiv ; his
severe self-training, xiv, xv ;
founded monasteries, xiv ; was
made one of the seven deacons,
xv ; his promotion at Rome,
xv ; was sent to Constantinople,
xv ; his influence at the court,
xv, xxvii, 236; his special studies,
xv ; had a dispute with Euty-
chius, the Bishop of Constan-
tinople, xvi ; returned to Rome
and was made abbot, xvi ; made
pope against his will and effort,
xvi ; summary of events in his
pontificate, xvii ; arrangement
of his writings, xvii sq. ; his pon-
tificate, xvii sq., xxvii, 135 ; his
efforts for the oppressed, xviii,
79 ; his care for the subject sees,
xviii, xxvii, 79, 135 ; his severity
with criminous Bishops, xviii,
177 ; his contests with the Lom-
bards, xix ; protests against the
assumption of " Universal
Bishop," xxii sq. ; summary of
his correspondence, xxii sq. ;
sends the pallium to Yigilius,
xxiv ; sends Augustine and
other teachers to England, xxv
sq. ; his connection with l'hocas,
xxvii sq. ; his adulation of the
royal family excused, xxviii, 177
n., 189, 1S9 n. ; he dies, xxix ; his
character, xxix, xxx, 77, 79, 86,
154, 177 ; his book Liber
Regulce Pastoralis, xxxi, sq. ;
stands by the Four Councils, 81 ;
his liberality in giving, 86 ; his
care to prevent exactions, 88 sq. ;
complains to the Emperor, 140,
176 sq. ; redeems captives, 200;
has scarcity of knowledge, 213
n., 226, 240.

Hilary, Bishop of Poitiers, quoted
as authoritative, 120 ; his work
on Origen's, 121.

Honoratus, deacon and aprocrisia-
rius, 76 n. ; letter to, 94.

Honoratus, arch-deacon at Salona,
79, 103, 104, 105, 130, 133 ; let-
ter to, 79, 130.

Horse-breeding on the pope's farms,
10S.

Hospito, duke of the Barbaricini,
letter to, 151.

Humble and haughty differently
admonished, 41.

Humility in the pastoral office, 1 sq.

Hypocrites and their opposites dif-
ferently admonished, 08.

Ignorant in the law, and the proud
professor, differently admon-
ished, 51.

Illyrian churches and their troubles,
xxi.

Illyricum, letter to the Bishops of,
105 ; notes upon their condi-
tion, 105 n.

Impatient and patient, differently
admonished, 29.

Imperfections that debar from office,

7- 7 n-
Impudent and bashful, differently

admonished, 28.

Indiction as a means of dating,

xvii.
Infant baptism, 78, 83, 88, 153,

*53n-

Intemperate and temperate, dif-
ferently admonished, 43.

Istria, Bishops of, 117 n.

Italica, patrician, letter to, 139 ; pos-
sibly identified, 139 n.

Italy, letter to all the Bishops of, 78.

Jadara, letter to the clergy and
people of, 197 ; its identification,
197 n.

Januarius, Bishop of Cagliari, xviii.
94, 162, 237 ; carried news to
Gregory, 94 ; was summoned
before Gregory, 131 ; letters to,
96, 96, 116, 147, 147, 149, 152,
r54, 233.

Jews are not to possess Christian
slaves, xxi, 77 n., 151, 199, 237 ;
seduce Christians to worship
with them, 131 ; are likely to be
converted, 199, 238 ; as requir-
ing baptism, 238 ; apply for a
licence to build their synagogue,

77-

Jobinus, ex-deacon and ex-abbot,
162.

John, Bishop of Calliopolis, letter
to, 132.

John Jejunator, archbishop of Con-
stantinople, xvii, xxii, xxiii, 135
n. ; letters to, 74,80, 135, 166,
193 ; his death, xxiii, 209 n. ; ac-
count of 135 n., 178; written to
by Gregory on questions of prec-
edence and jurisdiction, 166.

John, Bishop of Jerusalem, xvii ;
letter to, 80.

John, "archbishop of the Corin-
thians," letter to, 181, 185,233;
received the pallium, 187.

John, Bishop of Larissa, was pro-
ceeded against, 1S6 ; letters to,

fohn, bishop of Laurinum, no.

John, Bishop of Prima Justiniana, let-
ters to, 106, 106, 123, 233; men-
tion of, 125.

John, Bishop of Ravenna, xxxi,
138 n. ; receives Gregory's Re-
gula, xxxi, 1 ; as claiming to be
a metropolitan, 136 n., 138 sq. ;
not quite friendly with Gregory,
164, 188; letters to, 131, 136,
164, 164; letter from, 138 ; dies,
173; his will, 1S8; as himself
appealed from, 18S.

John, Bishop of Squillaceum, letter
to, in, 241.

John, Bishop of Syracuse, letters to,
194, 201, 228, 237 ; succeeded by
John, 165, 201 n. ; 237.

John, Bishop of Urbs Vetus, letter
to, 78.

John Cretensi Scoritano, metropoli-
tan, letter to, 233.

John, abbot in Syracuse, letter to,
123; was elected Bishop, 201 n.

John, deacon, Gregory's biographer,
xiv, xv.

John, monk, left Faustinus, his ex-
ecutor, 92.

John, presbyter of Chalcedon, ap-
pealed, xiii, 193, 193 n.

John, sub-deacon of Milan, letter to,
129.

Joyful and sad are differently ad-
monished, 26.

Juliana, abbess of the monastery of
S. Vitus, 93.

Justin II., Emperor, xiv.

Justinian, the Emperor, x, 145.

Justinus, praetor of Sicily, letters to,
73, no.

Keys of S. Peter's tomb and filings
from them, 82, 130, 243; per-
form miracles, 221.

Kindly disposed and envious are
differently admonished, 32.

Lamenting and not abstaining, or

abstaining and not lamenting,

61.

Lapsing from the faith, 131, 152, 153.

Laurentius, Bishop of Milan, 129,

130, 159.
Laurentius, missionary sent to

Anglia, xxvi, xxvi n.
Leander, Bishop of Seville (His-
palis), xi, xv, xxxi, 121 ; received
Gregory's Regula, xxxi, 181 ;
letters to, 87, 181 ; suggested the
Moralia, xxxi, 87 n.
Leo, Bishop of Catanea, 97, no;

letter to, 158.
Leo, Bishop in Corsica, 99.
Leontia, Empress and wife of Pho-
cas, xxvii, xxviii ; letters to, are
mentioned, xxvii, xxviii.
Leontius, ex consul, letter to, 242.
Leuparic, presbyter, church-builder,

202.
Liber Regulce Pastoralis, account of,

xxxi sq., 119, 119 n.
Liberal and covetous, differently

admonished, 44.
Libertinus, prefect, letter to, 131.
Licinianus, Bishop of Carthagena,
xxxi, 119 n. ; letter from, 119;
note on his history, 119 n.
Lombards in Italy, vi sq., xix, xx,
175 sq. ; their odious savagery,
vi, xix, 94 n., 172, 221 ; feared at
Rome, vi, xv, 175 sq. ; were
invited to the Catholic faith for
the baptism of their infants, 78 ;
were calmed by Gregory, 176 sq.
Luminosus, abbot in Ariminum, in,
112 ; letter to, 113.

Magnus, presbyter of Milan, 129.

Malchus, Bishop of Dalmatia, 105,
105 n, 128, 133, 161.

Manichaaans, 163.

Manumission of slaves, 192.
••Marcellus, pro-consul of Dalmatia,
128 n.

Marinianus, Bishop of Ravenna,
succeeded John, 173 n., 181 n.,
198, 199, 237 ; was appealed to by
his clergy, iSS, 194; letters to,
iSq, 188, 194, 19S, 217,229, 233,

235' 237-
Marinianus, Bishop of Turris, 96.
Marinianus, abbot in Sicily, 109.
Marriage contracted by monks, 91 ;

if entered before ordination, 95.

250

ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Married and single differently ad-
monished, 56.

Martinus, Bishop in Corsica, 100.

Matricula, the roll of widows, 132 n.

Maurentius, magister militum, letter
to and identification, 236.

Mauritius, Emperor, xiii, xxiii, 125
n., 174, 175 ; received a copy of
the Re^ula, xxxi ; was com-
plained to by Gregory, 140, 169,
193 sq., 208; letters to, 140, 169,

174, 175' '93- 2o8> 2I3> 225-

Maurilius, Roman general, 101 ; evi-
dently a trusted Christian, 107;
letter to, 107.

Maurus, Abbot, letter to, 150.

Maximianus, Bishop of Syracuse,
xviii, 109, in, 115, 135 ; notes on
his life, 102 n. ; letters to, 102,
no, 127, 135, 149; his death,
165; was succeeded by John, 165.
201 n., 237.

Maxim us, Bishop of Salona, xi ; let-
ter to him as pretender or in-
truder in Salona, [50, [89, 195;
was prevaricator*, [61 ; was or-
dained irregularly, 172; was in
vain written to, by G
195, 196; letters to, [89, 195.

Measures made variable by the
farmers, 89 n.

Meek and passionate differently ad-
monished, 39.

Mediolanum, letter to the presbyters
and clergy of, 128; account of
the see of Milan, 128 n. ; 1 !
ory's attitude towards, 129 sq.

Mellitus of the Anglian Mission,
letter sent to, xxvi.

Miracles, later, 82, 82 n , 135, 135 n.,
154 sq., 2 j 1, 240, 243.

Miserly men and violent differently
admonished, 47.

Monasteries and their privileges, 1 12,
14S, 235, 241 n, 242.

Monasticism, xiv sq., xviii, xxvii,
84 n., 112, 1 |S, 150, 235.

Monks, their irregularities, xviii, 91 ;
not allowed to wander. 87 :
sometimes married, 91 ; some-
times retained control of their
property, 92, 92 n.

Monophysites, the, x, 165 n.

Montana, letter to, 191.

Musii us, abbot of the monastery of
Agilitanus, 162, 162 n.

Narses, patrician, letter to, 76, 157,
192 ; perhaps identified, 76 n.

Narses, religiosus, letter to, 222;
succeeded Gregory as pope,
222 n.

Natalis, Bishop of Salona, xiii, xviii,
103, 104, 105, 114, 127, 130,
132 n., 149; letters to, 79, So,
103, 118, 126; note on his
career, 79 n. ; Metropolitan of
Dalmatia, 126 n., 12711.; his
death reported by Gregory, 128;
his successor irregularly ap-
pointed, 172.

Neapolitans, letter to the, ior.

Nonnosus, abbot, reputed miracle-
worker, 135, 13511.

Numidia, letter to the Bishop of,

99 ; its sees and their relation to
Rome, 157 n.
Nuns, when out of rule, 147, 148.

Obstinate and fickle differently ad-
monished, 42.

CEcumenical Bishop, a title claimed
by Constantinople, xxii.

Oil of the Cross, 243, 243 n.

Ordinations to be open and honest,
106, 183, 230; not to be sudden
or per saltam, 183, 184, 185,
230.

Ordo, force of the word, 101 n.

Palladius, Bishop of Santones, letter

to, 202.
Pallium, equivalent to the breast-
plate and to the rationale, 9 11. ;
as an ecclesiastical ornam
83. 1X5, 191; claimed for Caul
and Ravenna, [85, 1 S 5 n., 191 ;
it to Aries, xxiv, [84; sent to
ninth, 186, 187 ; sent to Mes-

s.lll.l. I'll-

Pantaleo, prefect, letter to, 157.

Papal, the patrimony and its man-

ment, vii, xvii sq., 77, 85,

SS sq ; jurisdi< tion in Ital j

jurisdiction widening, x sq., xxiii,

xxiv, 100, 115; the power in

• 1 n.

Pastor, his rule and type, 9 sq. ;
alw most in ai tivity, 10 ;

discreet in silence and profitable
in 1 r ; compassionate

and contemplative, 12; friend of

the i 1 and apait from evil,

[4 sq. ; must 1 onsider outward
things and inw ard, 17 j should
please and yet m it aim at pi
i'i; .1- a casuist, 20 : as
I sq. : a~ a
student of the Sai red 1 aw, 23,

Past iral ofli e 1 ai 1 Led out in humil-
ity, I sq.

Patriarchates, the, xi sq., xvii.

Patrician, force of the word. 204 n.

Paul, Bishop of Nepe, commended
to the Neapolitans, 102 ;
saulted at the I .mull 1

122; letter to, I02, 122; note

upon, 102 n., iof>, 1 22.
Paul, Bishop, of .Numidia, xxii,

1 >7 n.
Paul, si holasticus, letter to, 74.
Pelagians, 102.
Pelagius I., upheld "The Three

( lhapters," 117 n.
Pelagius 1 1., predecessor of Gregory,

xvi,
Pelagius, bishop of Constantinople,

178.
Pelagius, Bishop of Turin or Tours,

letter to, 203.
Peter, Bishop of Aleria. letters to,

104. 231.
Peter, bishop of Terracina, 77.

r, Bishop, letter to, 214.
Peter, sub-deacon, much trusted by

Gregory, viii, xv; letters to, 77,

79, 85, 86, 93, 95. 97, 10S, 122,

123, 1 ;i.
Petrine claims, xi sq., 228; claims

over Constantinople, xiii; not

accepted by the Eastern church,
xiii sq.

Petronilla, made her monastic pro-
fession, 146.

Philip, Bishop of Epirus, letter to,
190.

Phocas, Emperor, letter sent to,
xxvii; his cruelties, xxviii.

Pompeiana, had a monastery in her
house, 93; appealed to Gregory
for protection, 97.

Poor and rich differently admon-
ished, 25.

Praise of unlawful things consid-
ered, 63.

Prayers made on behalf of the Em-
peror, i\. \.

Preaching, differently regarded, 5,
52 sq. ; as declined in great
humility or as hastily run after,
S2 ; adapted to different classes
and cases, 52 sq., 69 ; requires
tact and caution, 70; to be
done in charity. 71 ; to be
based upon self-preaching, 71.

Precaria, supplies, 1 13 n.

Presbytei peregriuns, 1 50.

Presbyterium, a salary, 108.

Priest, if lapsed, how to be dealt
with, 91.

Priesthood, its responsibilities, 115.

Prima J us tii iana, ai 1 1 iunt oi the see,
123, 123 n.

Primates, in Vfrii a, 134 n., 158 n.

I'rimii erius, ' hief, 137 11.

Pro< essio, as .1 > elebration of the
mass, 1 13 n.

be f( .ned, 3.

Protasius, Bishop oi Ai.\. lettei to,
204.

dvultdeus, Bishop in Africa, 1 14.

I'.n 1 im. 1. Exari hate of, [36 sq. ;
j< dous of Rome and her
bishop, xi.xxi, 136 sq. ; lettei to
the clergj and of, t88 ;

letter to the people of, 173.

Rechared, king of the Visigoths in

Spain. 88,88 n.

Relit s, 82, 82 n., 103 n., 123, 130, 150,
1 ; I sq., 243; how to be treated
with re\ 1 55.

eccli sia , n hat they are,
ii., 183 n.. 222 n.
rs of deeds and those of
thoughts differently admon-
ished, 60, 220.

lei t.i, Abbess of Marseilles,
to, 215.

Roman Church, her patrimony, vii
88 sq., 88 n.; not submitted to
by the I asti rn, xiii, 195 ; her
precedency fixed at the Council
of Chalcedon, 178 sq., 192 n. j
her jurisdiction in Caul, 180 sq.

Romanus, patrician and Exarch of
Italy, 83, 1 13. 161, 180; as an op-
pressor, 17S; letters to, 82, 130.

Romanus, k< epi 1 of the guest-
chamber, 109.

Koine, her relation to the empire, vi,
vii; her relation to Constanti-
nople, xiii, xxi, 135 11., 166 sq.,
192, 192 n. ; is besieged by the,

INDEX OF SUBJECTS.

251

Lombards, xix ; depends on

Sicily for corn, 74 n.
Rufinus, Bishop of Ephesus, letter

to, 215.
Rulers, models for, 7.
Rules, Gregory's book of, xxxi sq.,

119, 119 n.
Rustici and coloni, 153 n., 164.
Rusticiana, patrician, letters to, 107,

160, 237 ; note on her life, 107 n.

Sabinianus, Bishop of Jadara, letters

to, 217, 224, 238; urged to
fidelity in his office, 234 ; had
consulted Gregory, 238, 239.
Sabinianus, deacon, letters to, 161,

168 ; the pope's aprocrisiarius at

Constantinople, 169 n., 171, 206,

233 ; took charge of a letter,
xxiii, 169.
Sabinus, guardian of Sardinia, letter

to, 131.
Sacerdotium, the Episcopate, 101.
Saints and their relics, xxii, 82.
Saints-days, 86.
Salona in Dalmatia, account of the

see and its troubles, 103 n.,

132 n., 149.
Salonitans, letter to the, 196.
Salpingus, a Jew, 91.
Salutatio, what it is, 185.
Sanctuaria, holy things like relics,

103 n.
Sardinia, letters to the nobles and

proprietors in, 152.
Saturninus, ex-presbyter, 162.
Savinus, subdeacon, letter to, 127.
Scholasticus, one learned in the law,

no n., 174, 176 n., 180 n.
Scholasticus, judge in Campania,

122; letter to, 127.
Scribo, recruiting officer, 109 n. ;

royal almoner, 174.
Sebastian, Bishop of Ariminum,

letter to, 218.
Sebastian, Bishop

letter to, 83.
Sebastian, Bishop

letter to, 178.
Secretarium, chamber for the vest-
ments, 137 n., 186 n.
Secundums, Bishop of Tauromen-

ium, letter to, 139; gave a report

to Gregory, 186.
Secundus, cleric at Ravenna, letter

to, 19S.
Serenus, Bishop of Marseilles, xxvii,

203 ; letter to, 203.
" Servus Servorum Dei," story of

the phrase, 78 n.
Servants and masters differently

admonished, 36.
Severus, Bishop of Aquileia, letters

of Rhisinum,
of Sirmium,

to, 78, 95 ; caused a schism,
78 n., 113 n., 114 n.
Severus, Bishop of Ficulum, letter,
173 ; delegated to visit Ravenna,

I73-

Severus Scholasticus, letter to, 174.

Sicily, letter to the Bishop of, 78 ;
its value to Rome for corn, 74,
88 sq. ; how it fell to the Roman
church, 88 n.

Silent and talkative, differently ad-
monished, 36.

Siivia, Gregory's mother, xiv.

Simony, in the churches of Gaul and
Germany, 182.

Simple and crafty differently admon-
ished, 33.

Sin, from sudden impulse or delib-
erately, 64 ; small and frequent,
or seldom and grievous, 65;
experienced in and innocent,
differently admonished, 58.

Slaves, conditions of their manumis-
sion, 192 ; if found as refugees in
asylums, 237.

Slothful and hasty differently ad-
monished, 38.

Spain, the church in, xi.

Stephen, abbot of Lerins, letter to,
204.

Strife-makers and peace-makers,
differently admonished, 50.

Subjects and prelates, differently ad-
monished, 26.

Successful and unsuccessful differ-
ently admonished, 54.

Suffragium, a payment to the imper-
ial government, 177 n.

Syacrius, Bishop of Antun, letter to,
204.

Symmachus, the defensor, letter to,
94.

Temporalities of a vacant see are

cared for, 128, 173.
Thebae Phthioticae, account of its

see, 123 n.
Theoctista, sister of the Emperor

Maurice, xv, xviii, 219, 223 ;

letters to, 74, 219.
Theodebert II., king of Austrasia,

205 n. ; letter to, 205.
Theodelinda, Lombard queen, vi, ix,

xx, xxi, 144; letter to, 145, 159;

notes on her life, 149 n.
Theoderic II., king of Burgundy,

xxvi; letter to, 205.
Theodorus, Bishop of Epirus, letter

to, 190.
Theodorus, Bishop of Mopsuestia,

1 17 n.
Theodorus, court physician, 76 n.,

141, 222; letters to, 141, 156,

222 ; was reproved by Gregory,
i56.

Theodosia, an heiress, 147, 149, 162.

" The Three Chapters," controversy
upon, x, xviii, xxi, 11311., 114 n.,
117 n., 127, 127 n., 144, 145, 159,
188 n.

Theotistus, kinsman of the emperor,
letter to, 194.

Thomas, letter to, 191.

Timid and hardened, differently ad-
monished, 36.

Timothea in Ariminum, petitions
for consecration of her ora-
tory, 103.

Tithes, as paid in Sicily, 88 n.

Traditions and customs, 99, 160, 164,
182.

Trinity, doctrine taught in Abra-
ham, 118.

Tunic of St. John, 123, 123 n.

Unction, 153 n.

" Universal Bishop," controversy
upon the term, xiv, xxii, 166 sq.,
171 n., 171 sq., 178 sq., 226, 241.

Urbicus, abbot, letter to, 202.

Urbicus, Bishop of Dyracchium,
letter to, 233.

Urim and Thummim, 10 n.

Velox, magister militum, letter to,

101.
Venantius, Bishop of Luna, letter

to, 151.
Vices, differently handled, 70.
Victor of Panormus, 97.
Victor, African Bishop, -letter to,

158.
Vigilius, pope, x, 1 17 ; notes on his

life, 117 n.
Vincolmalus, Defensor, letter to,

173-
Virgilius, Bishop of Aries, receives

the pallium, xxiv, xxvi ; letters

to, 93, 182, 203.
Virtuous, the, often refuse office, 4.
Vitalianus, ex-presbyter, 162.
Vitalianus, Roman general and

trusted Christian, 101, 107 ;

letter to, 107.

Western Empire, vi, vii.

Whole and sick, differently admon-
ished, 34.

Wise and dull, differently admon-
ished, 28.

Xenia, presents, 106 n.

Zabardas, duke of Sardinia, letter

to, 152.
Zeno, Bishop of Epirus, letter to,

190.

..»«wi.wi. ouN^omic.

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UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY

60
S4.6
1890
v.12

A Select library of Nicene and
post-Nicene fathers of the
Christian church Second series

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