PL 54 · cols. 1068–1072

Leo the Great, Letters

Letters CXXV–CXXVII

obliti symboli salutaris et confessionis quam pronuntiantes coram multis testibus, sacramentum baptismi suscepistis, diabolicis vos illusionibus subderetis? Quid apud vos acturae fuerant ungulae, quid saeva tormenta, si ad expugnandam fidei vestrae integritatem tantum vana haereticorum commenta valuerunt? Pro fide vos agere creditis, et fidei contraitis. Ecclesiae nomine armamini, et contra Ecclesiam dimicatis. Hoccine a prophetis, hoc ab evangelistis, hoc ab apostolis didicistis? ut negantes veram Christi carnem, et ipsam Verbi essentiam passioni mortique subdentes, alienam faciatis nostram a suo reparatore naturam, totumque quod crux intulit, quod lancea vulneravit, quod sepulcri lapis suscepit et reddidit, solum fuisse opus divinae potentiae, non etiam humilitatis humanae? Propter quam Apostolus dicit: Non enim erubesco Evangelium (Rom. I, 16): quoniam noverat quale Christianis ab inimicis objiceretur opprobrium. Et ideo etiam Dominus protestabatur dicens: Qui me confessus fuerit coram hominibus, et ego confitebor illum coram Patre meo (Matth. X, 32). Hi enim non erunt digni confessione Filii et Patris, quibus nunc caro Christi verecundiam facit; probabuntque se nullam de signo crucis sumpsisse virtutem, quid quod praeferendum frontibus acceperunt, promere labiis erubescunt.

[…] forgetting the saving creed and the confession by pronouncing which before many witnesses you received the sacrament of baptism, you should subject yourselves to diabolical illusions? What would the hooks have done among you, what savage torments, if the empty fabrications of heretics alone had such power to storm the integrity of your faith? You think you are acting for the faith, and you go against the faith. You arm yourselves in the name of the Church, and you fight against the Church. Is this what you have learned from the prophets, this from the evangelists, this from the apostles? that, denying the true flesh of Christ and subjecting the very essence of the Word to suffering and death, you should make our nature alien to its Restorer, and [hold] that all that the cross bore, that the lance wounded, that the stone of the tomb received and gave back, was the work of divine power alone and not also of human lowliness? On account of which the Apostle says: For I am not ashamed of the Gospel (Rom. 1:16): since he knew what reproach was cast at Christians by their enemies. And therefore the Lord too solemnly declared, saying: Whoever confesses Me before men, I too will confess him before My Father (Matt. 10:32). For they will not be worthy of the confession of the Son and of the Father to whom the flesh of Christ is now a cause of shame; and they will prove that they have received no power from the sign of the cross: what of the fact that what they received to bear on their foreheads they blush to utter with their lips?

CAP. IX. — Declinate, filii, ab his diabolicis persuasionibus declinate. Veritatem Dei nulla res violat, sed Veritas nos nisi in nostra carne non salvat. Veritas quippe, sicut propheta ait, de terra orta est (Ps. LXXXIV, 12); et sic Verbum Maria Virgo concepit, ut uniendam ipsi carnem de sua substantia ministraret, nec cum adjectione personae, nec cum evacuatione naturae: quoniam qui erat in forma Dei, ita accepit formam servi, ut unus atque idem in forma utraque sit Christus: inclinante se Deo usque ad infirma hominis, et proficiente homine usque ad summa Deitatis, dicente Apostolo: Quorum Patres, et ex quibus Christus secundum carnem, qui est super omnia Deus benedictus in saecula. Amen (Rom. IX, 5).

CHAP. IX. — Turn aside, sons, from these diabolical persuasions, turn aside. Nothing violates the Truth of God, but the Truth does not save us except in our flesh. For Truth, as the prophet says, has sprung from the earth (Ps. 84:12); and the Virgin Mary so conceived the Word that she furnished from her own substance the flesh to be united to Him, with neither the addition of a person nor the voiding of a nature: since He Who was in the form of God so took the form of a servant that Christ is one and the same in both forms, God bending Himself down to the weaknesses of man, and man advancing to the heights of the Godhead, as the Apostle says: Whose are the Fathers, and of whom is Christ according to the flesh, Who is over all things God blessed for ever. Amen (Rom. 9:5).

EPISTOLA CXXV.

LETTER CXXV.

AD JULIANUM COENSEM EPISCOPUM.

TO JULIAN, BISHOP OF COS.

Per comitem Rodanum.

By the hand of Count Rodanus.

Leo episcopus Juliano episcopo.

Leo, bishop, to Julian, bishop.

Saepissime dilectionem tuam ad hanc curam et

Very often […] your Charity to this concern and […]

Editors' notes and page, col. 1068

Footnotes

(f) runs on under this column; its call is in col 1067, set in n1067.

(g) ‹quod sepulcri lapis› · printed under col 1068

Duo Vat. collect. 21, suscepit, creditis solum fuisse opus.

Two Vatican manuscripts of collection 21, suscepit, creditis solum fuisse opus.

(h) ‹EPISTOLA› · printed under col 1068

Alias 98. Quae autem antea 125 erat, nunc 156. Scripta 25 Junii an. 453.

Formerly 98. The one that was formerly 125 is now 156. Written 25 June in the year 453.

(i) ‹AD JULIANUM COENSEM EPISCOPUM› · printed under col 1068

Exstat in mss. collect. 12, 18, 24, ac in exemplo Sichardi.

It is extant in the manuscripts of collections 12, 18 and 24, and in Sichard's copy.

(j) ‹Saepissime› · printed under col 1068

Vulgati ante Quesn., Frequentissime, et in margine, Saepissime.

The common editions before Quesnel, Frequentissime, and in the margin, Saepissime.

Editors' prose

De silentio Juliani amice expostulat; de omnibus vult instrui.

He remonstrates in a friendly way about Julian's silence; he wishes to be informed about everything.

Page

running head: 1067 S. LEONIS MAGNI EPISTOLÆ. 1068 (across the page; this column carries "EPISTOLÆ. 1068")
marginal letters: A ‹obliti symboli salutaris›; B ‹etiam humilitatis humanae›; C ‹ut uniendam ipsi carnem›; D ‹(j) Saepissime dilectionem›
old-edition numerals: 1243 after ‹pronuntiantes›; 1244 before ‹EPISTOLA (h) CXXV›
signature: none
other: the italic summary line of Letter CXXV (printed after "Per comitem Rodanum.", without a "Synopsis" label) is set here as editors' prose

PL 54:1069

diligentiam meis sum litteris cohortatus, ut de his quae circa fidem aguntur sollicitudinem meam indesinenter instrueres. Et cum omnibus occasionibus scribere non quiescam, quibusdam tamen scriptis meis, id est per filium nostrum subadjuvam Rodanum, domesticum filii nostri, viri illustrissimi Asparacii datis, nullum responsum tuae fraternitatis accepi; tamquam ratio temporis non habuerit, ut quid post mea scripta sit gestum, potueris indicare. et ideo per filium meum comitem Rodanum his litteris te saluto; et ut nullam opportunitatem scribendi negligas, quo aestus sollicitudinis meae relevetur, admoneo. Cum enim in te quamdam mei Constantinopolitani habeant portionem, dignum est et pro communi amicitia, et pro totius Ecclesiae dilectione, incessabili te vigore prospicere ne quid possit de statu fidei me latere.

[…] diligence by my letters, that you should unceasingly keep my solicitude informed about the things that are being done concerning the faith. And although I do not cease to write at every opportunity, yet to certain writings of mine, namely those given through our son the subadjuva Rodanus, a member of the household of our son the most illustrious man Asparacius, I have received no reply from your fraternity; as though the circumstances of the time had not allowed you to be able to report what was done after my writings. And therefore I greet you by this letter through my son Count Rodanus; and I admonish you to neglect no opportunity of writing, so that the anxiety of my solicitude may be relieved. For since in you the people of Constantinople have a certain portion of me, it is fitting, both for our common friendship and for love of the whole Church, that you should watch with unceasing vigour that nothing concerning the state of the faith can be hidden from me.

Quae ergo per praedictos, vel ad gloriosissimum principem, vel ad tuam dilectionem scripsi, ut celerrime tradantur effectui, opportunis suggestionibus elabora. Et quidquid fuerit, Deo auxiliante, dispositum, scire me facito: ut perductis in effectum his quae rationabiliter ordinata sunt, pax fidei canonumque custodia et securior ubique habeatur et fortior.

Therefore, what I have written through the aforesaid, whether to the most glorious prince or to your love, strive by timely suggestions that it be carried into effect as quickly as possible. And whatever shall have been settled, with God's help, let me know: so that, when the things reasonably ordained have been brought into effect, the peace of the faith and the keeping of the canons may everywhere be held both more securely and more strongly.

Data septimo kalendas Julii, Opilione viro clarissimo consule.

Given on the seventh day before the Kalends of July, in the consulship of Opilio, a most distinguished man.

EPISTOLA CXXVI.

LETTER CXXVI.

AD MARCIANUM AUGUSTUM.

To Marcian Augustus.

Leo Marciano Augusto.

Leo to Marcian Augustus.

Geminis clementiae vestrae laetificatus alloquiis, cum debita gratiarum actione rescribo, gaudens de

Gladdened by your clemency's twofold address, I write back with due thanksgiving, rejoicing in […]

Editors' notes and page, col. 1069

Footnotes

(a) ‹quibusdam tamen› · printed under col 1069

Epist. 117 vel 118.

Letter 117 or 118.

(b) ‹scriptis meis,› · printed under col 1069

Sichardi exemplum delet id est Dein vox subadjuvam ex ms. Grimanico a Quesnello addita est; quae, ut idem in postilla notavit, significat « satellitem ex eorum ordine qui adjutores adjuvant. Synesius epist. 144. Vide et Panciroli Commentarium ad Notitiam imperii c, 16. »

Sichardus's copy deletes id est. Then the word subadjuvam was added by Quesnel from the Grimani ms.; which, as the same [editor] noted in a marginal note, signifies « an attendant from the order of those who assist the adjutores. Synesius, Letter 144. See also Panciroli's Commentary on the Notitia imperii, ch. 16. »

Vulgati cum mss. collect. 12 et 24 atque Sichardo desiderant comitem. Quesnellus ex codice Grimanico adjecit. Vide Pancirolum de comitis Officio.

The printed editions, with the mss. of collections 12 and 24 and Sichardus, lack comitem. Quesnel added it from the Grimani codex. See Panciroli on the office of the count.

(d) ‹his litteris te saluto;› · printed under col 1069

Editi cum iisdem mss., et ut opportunitatem scribendi non negligas, in quo quaestus sollicitudinis meae relevatur, admoneo. Quesnellus ex eodem ms. Grim. emendavit.

The editions, with the same mss., [read] et ut opportunitatem scribendi non negligas, in quo quaestus sollicitudinis meae relevatur, admoneo. Quesnel corrected it from the same Grim. ms.

(e) ‹Quae ergo› · printed under col 1069

Si epistolae antea scriptae hic indicantur, ut videtur, per praedictum, id est per subadjuvam Rodanum legendum est. Nondum enim comes Rodanus cum litteris abierat, et quae nunc per eumdem ad Julianum scribuntur, nihil peculiare continent quod effectui tradendum esset. Probabilius itaque innuuntur epistolae 115 ad Marcianum, et 117 ad Julianum, in quibus gravia proposita fuerant quae ad pacem fidei canonumque custodiam pertinebant; neque enim intelligi possunt epistolae 121 ad Marcianum, et 122 ad Julianum, cum nihil exhibeant quod ad fidem canonesque referatur. Alias litterae quae interciderint significarentur.

If letters written earlier are indicated here, as it seems, one must read per praedictum, that is, through the subadjuva Rodanus. For Count Rodanus had not yet departed with the letter, and what is now written through him to Julian contains nothing particular that was to be carried into effect. More probably, therefore, Letters 115 to Marcian and 117 to Julian are meant, in which weighty matters had been proposed that pertained to the peace of the faith and the keeping of the canons; for Letters 121 to Marcian and 122 to Julian cannot be meant, since they contain nothing that relates to the faith and the canons. Otherwise letters that have been lost would be signified.

(f) ‹EPISTOLA› (heading of Letter CXXVI) · printed under col 1069

Alias 99. Quae autem antea 126 erat, nunc 157. Scripta 9 Januarii an. 454.

Formerly 99. The one that was formerly 126 is now 157. Written 9 January in the year 454.

(g) ‹AD MARCIANUM AUGUSTUM› · printed under col 1069

Hanc Quesnellus edidit ex ms. Grimanico collect. 18. Contulimus cum Ratisponensi collect. 19.

Quesnel published this from the Grimani ms. of collection 18. We have collated it with the Regensburg ms. of collection 19.

(h) ‹cum debita gratiarum actione› · printed under col 1070

Sic Ratisp. Quesnellus ex Grim., scribo. Geminae Marciani litterae, quibus nunc Leo respondet, desiderantur.

So the Regensburg ms. Quesnel, from the Grim., [reads] scribo. Marcian's two letters, to which Leo now replies, are lost.

Editors' prose

Synopsis. — Gratias agit pro sedatis Palaestinae tumultibus, et restituto in suam sedem Juvenali Jerosolymitano; Dioscorum etiam ejusque sequaces Aegyptios perstringens.

Synopsis. — He gives thanks for the calming of the disturbances in Palestine, and for the restoration of Juvenal of Jerusalem to his see; he also censures Dioscorus and his Egyptian followers.

Page

running head: 1069 EPISTOLA CXXVII. 1070 (printed across the page with col 1070)
marginal letters: A ‹diligentiam meis sum litteris› (first line); B ‹ctione, incessabili te vigore›; C ‹Leo Marciano Augusto›; D beside the footnotes, at note (e) ‹detur, per praedictum›
old-edition numerals: 1245 before ‹EPISTOLA (f) CXXVI.›
signature: none
other: the text ends a little above the middle of the page (address and first lines of Letter CXXVI); the rest of the column is footnotes (a)-(g); note (h), whose call is in this column, is printed under col 1070.

PL 54:1070

misericordia Dei, qui in virtutibus providentiae vestrae, et ad utilitatem Romanae reipublicae, et ad catholicae Ecclesiae pacem, gloriosissimum praesidium collocavit. Unde confido utramque hanc pietatis vestrae saluberrimam curam ita divinitus adjuvandam, ut plena tranquillitas et Christianae religioni et vestro tribuatur imperio. Quod ergo in provinciis Palaestinis plebes Dei ad unitatem sunt fidei revocatae, et compressis errantium motibus ad evangelicam apostolicamque doctrinam omnium, ut indicare dignamini, corda directa sunt, quodque fratri et coepiscopo meo Juvenali ad sacerdotii sui sedem tandem licuit, non jam resultante populo, sed desiderante, remeare, vestrae fidei opus, vestrae pietatis est fructus.

[…] the mercy of God, Who in the virtues of your providence has set a most glorious safeguard both for the benefit of the Roman commonwealth and for the peace of the catholic Church. Hence I trust that this twofold, most salutary care of your piety is to be so aided by God that full tranquillity may be granted both to the Christian religion and to your empire. That, therefore, in the provinces of Palestine the peoples of God have been recalled to the unity of the faith, and that, the commotions of those in error having been suppressed, the hearts of all have been directed to the evangelical and apostolic doctrine, as you deign to report; and that my brother and fellow bishop Juvenal has at last been permitted to return to the see of his priesthood, the people no longer resisting but longing for him: this is the work of your faith, the fruit of your piety.

Pro cujus augmento per omnes Christi Ecclesias concors multiplicatur oratio ut si qua adhuc apud Aegyptum caligo residet, quae nondum recepit radios veritatis, totius mundi precibus remedia illuminationis accipiat, et exsecrabilis Dioscori ultra contagiis non gravetur; nec in illo Dominicae oves imprudenti affectu personam diligant pastoralem, quem experti sunt saevissimum fuisse morum et fidei vastatorem. Et ideo in sancto et mirabili studio suo perseveret vestra clementia, ut si quid usquam aut aegrum invenitur aut turbidum, et sanitati reddatur et paci, quia dignum est ita vos praesidere rebus humanis, ut gaudeatis sacramentis servire divinis.

For its increase harmonious prayer is multiplied through all the Churches of Christ, that if any darkness still lingers in Egypt which has not yet received the rays of truth, it may receive the remedies of illumination through the prayers of the whole world, and may no longer be burdened by the contagions of the execrable Dioscorus; and that the Lord's sheep may not, with imprudent affection, love the person of a shepherd in him whom they have found to have been a most savage ravager of morals and of faith. And therefore let your clemency persevere in its holy and wonderful zeal, so that if anything anywhere is found either sick or troubled, it may be restored both to health and to peace; for it is fitting that you should so preside over human affairs as to rejoice to serve the divine mysteries.

Data quinto idus Januarii, Aetio et Studio viris clarissimis consulibus.

Given on the fifth day before the Ides of January, in the consulship of Aetius and Studius, most distinguished men.

EPISTOLA CXXVII.

LETTER CXXVII.

AD JULIANUM EPISCOPUM COENSEM.

To Julian, Bishop of Cos.

Editors' notes and page, col. 1070

Footnotes

(h) printed under this column; its call is in col 1069, set in n1069.

(i) ‹Romanae reipublicae,› · printed under col 1070

Conjunctionem et ex eodem Ratisp. supplevimus.

We have supplied the conjunction et from the same Regensburg ms.

(j) ‹Unde confido utramque› · printed under col 1070

Ita melius ex nostro codice, quam apud Quesnellum ex Grimanico, nunc pietatis.

So, better, from our codex, rather than as in Quesnel from the Grimani, nunc pietatis.

(k) ‹et vestro› · printed under col 1070

Verbum tribuatur, quod in Grimanico deerat, suppeditavit noster cod. Ratisp. Defectum Quesnellus persensit, unde in margine notavit: « Supple danda sit, vel quid simile. »

The word tribuatur, which was missing in the Grimani, was supplied by our Regensburg codex. Quesnel perceived the gap, whence he noted in the margin: « Supply danda sit, or something similar. »

(l) ‹ad sacerdotii› · printed under col 1070

Ex eodem Ratisp. addidimus sui. Hierosolymitanam scilicet sedem, quam paulo post synodum Chalcedonensem Juvenalis ob Palaestinorum monachorum turbas deserere coactus fuerat, iisdem turbis ab imperatore sopitis, ac Theodosio monachorum duce, qui in eam sedem fuerat intrusus, per fugam subducto, repetere eidem episcopo licuit.

From the same Regensburg ms. we have added sui. That is, the see of Jerusalem, which Juvenal had been forced to abandon shortly after the synod of Chalcedon because of the disturbances of the Palestinian monks; when these disturbances had been quelled by the emperor, and Theodosius, the leader of the monks, who had been intruded into that see, had been removed by flight, the same bishop was permitted to return to it.

(m) ‹Aegyptum caligo› · printed under col 1070

Ita noster codex. Quesnellus, resedit.

So our codex. Quesnel, resedit.

(n) ‹Dominicae oves› · printed under col 1070

Quesnellus ex Grimanico, imprudentiae defectu. Melius noster Ratisp. Innuitur affectus quo Aegyptii Dioscorum, quantumvis in Chalcedonensi depositum, atque in exsilium pulsum, prosequebantur, adeo ut ad novi episcopi electionem difficile adducti fuerint, et contra Proterium tandem electum non pauci ejusdem Dioscori amore dissensiones excitaverint. Vide Liberatum c. 14, et Evagrium lib. II, c. 5 et seqq.

Quesnel, from the Grimani, imprudentiae defectu. Our Regensburg ms. is better. The affection is meant with which the Egyptians followed Dioscorus, however much he had been deposed at Chalcedon and driven into exile, so much so that they were brought only with difficulty to the election of a new bishop, and not a few, out of love for the same Dioscorus, stirred up dissensions against Proterius when he was at last elected. See Liberatus, ch. 14, and Evagrius, book II, ch. 5 and following.

(o) ‹EPISTOLA› (heading of Letter CXXVII) · printed under col 1070

Alias 100. Quae autem antea 127 erat, nunc 158. Scripta 9 Januarii an. 454.

Formerly 100. The one that was formerly 127 is now 158. Written 9 January in the year 454.

(p) ‹AD JULIANUM EPISCOPUM COENSEM› · printed under col 1070

Exstat in mss. collect. 12, 18, 19, 24, atque in exemplo Sicbardi.

It is extant in the mss. of collections 12, 18, 19, 24, and in Sichardus's copy.

Editors' prose

Synopsis. — I. De restituto Jerosolymitano episcopo, conversis Palaestinis monachis, et receptis Proterii litteris. — II. De Paschate anni 455 diligentius inquiri

Synopsis. — I. On the restoration of the bishop of Jerusalem, the conversion of the Palestinian monks, and the receipt of Proterius's letter. — II. He desires that inquiry be made more diligently into the Easter of the year 455 […]

Page

running head: 1069 EPISTOLA CXXVII. 1070 (printed across the page with col 1069)
marginal letters: A ‹misericordia Dei, qui in› (first line); B ‹concors multiplicatur oratio›; C ‹(p) AD JULIANUM EPISCOPUM›; D beside the footnotes, at note (l) ‹nachorum turbas deserere›
old-edition numerals: 1246 after ‹saevissimum›
signature: none
other: Letter CXXVI ends a little below mid-column; the heading of Letter CXXVII and the start of its synopsis follow (synopsis ends at the head of col 1071, its hyphenated word "inquiri" set whole here); the rest of the column is footnotes (h)-(p).

PL 54:1071

Leo urbis Romae episcopus Juliano episcopo.

Leo, bishop of the city of Rome, to Bishop Julian.

CAP. I. — Christianissimi principis fidem saepe evidentissimis probavimus documentis, ac Deo nostro gratias ago, qui talem dignatus est rebus humanis concedere pro sua pietate rectorem, qni et fidei causas et reipublicae summa vigilantia tueretur, haereticorum ausibus semper obsistens, et nihil eorum insaniae adversum catholicam fidem licere permittens; cujus post Deum beneficiis hoc debetur, quod et Jerosolymitanus episcopus est receptus, et monachos, quos perfidia haereticae falsitatis invaserat, ad sanitatem augusta auctoritate revocavit Mox itaque ut accepi epistolas tuas, talia continentes, non solum eadem die, sed prope eadem hora responsum reddere maturavi; ut certior de omnibus quae scripseras reddereris.

CHAP. I. — We have often proved the faith of the most Christian prince by the most evident proofs, and I give thanks to our God, Who in His goodness has deigned to grant to human affairs such a ruler, one who guards the causes both of the faith and of the commonwealth with the utmost vigilance, always resisting the audacities of the heretics and allowing their madness no licence against the catholic faith; to whose benefits, after God, it is owed both that the bishop of Jerusalem has been received back, and that by his august authority he has recalled to soundness the monks whom the perfidy of heretical falsehood had seized. And so, as soon as I received your letters containing such news, I hastened to send a reply not only on the same day but almost in the same hour, so that you might be made more certain about all that you had written.

Fratrem Proterium Alexandrinae urbis episcopum gratulator plenas satisfactionis de fide sua ad nos litteras direxisse, et manifestius quid teneat indicasse; cui me dignam gratiam necesse est

I rejoice that brother Proterius, bishop of the city of Alexandria, has sent us a letter full of satisfaction concerning his faith, and has shown more plainly what he holds; to whom it is necessary that I […]

Editors' notes and page, col. 1071

Footnotes

(a) ‹et reipublicae› · printed under col 1071

Editi ante Quesn. cum plerisque posterioris aevi codd., summae vigilantiae studio tueretur. Lectioni Quesnellianae Ratisponensis codex suffragatur.

The editions before Quesnel, with most codices of the later age, [read] summae vigilantiae studio tueretur. The Regensburg codex supports Quesnel's reading.

(b) ‹ad sanitatem› · printed under col 1071

Editi ante Quesn. minus recte, augusta auctoritas.

The editions before Quesnel, less correctly, augusta auctoritas.

Ita ex Griman. Quesnellus, et similiter noster Ratisponensis. Alias, manifeste. Manifestius autem inquit, quia Proterius ad Alexandrinam sedem evectus litteras quidem de fide sua ad Leonem dederat, quibus is respondit, sicut etiam ad ordinatores ejus et clerum, uti colligitur ex epist. 113, c. 3. At cum pleniorem fidei expositionem desiderarit S. pontifex, litteras plenam ejusmodi expositionem continentes se jam accepisse hoc loco significat, quibus sane responsum dedit epist. 129.

So Quesnel from the Grimani, and likewise our Regensburg ms. Elsewhere, manifeste. He says manifestius because Proterius, when raised to the see of Alexandria, had indeed sent Leo a letter about his faith, to which Leo replied, as he did also to those who ordained him and to his clergy, as is gathered from Letter 113, ch. 3. But since the holy pontiff wanted a fuller exposition of the faith, he indicates in this place that he has now received a letter containing such a full exposition, to which he indeed replied with Letter 129.

(d) printed under this column; its call is in col 1072, set in n1072. (e) printed under this column; its call is in col 1072, set in n1072. (f) printed under this column; its call is in col 1072, set in n1072. (g) printed under this column; its call is in col 1072, set in n1072. (h) printed under this column (continuing under col 1072); its call is in col 1072, set in n1072.

Editors' prose

cupit. — III. De epistola sua ad Chalcedonenses episcopos lecta CP. Aetii discussione, et variis epistolis ultro citroque scriptis.

[…] — III. On his letter to the bishops at Chalcedon, read at Constantinople; on the examination of Aetius; and on various letters written back and forth.

Page

running head: 1071 S. LEONIS MAGNI EPISTOLAE. 1072 (printed across the page with col 1072)
marginal letters: A ‹quiri cupit. — III.› (first line); B ‹ut accepi epistolas tuas›; C beside the footnotes, at note (c) ‹pleniorem fidei expositionem›; D beside the footnotes, at note (f) ‹Romanorum notabatur pridie›
old-edition numerals: 1247 after ‹sed› (before ‹prope eadem hora›)
signature: none
other: the column opens with the end of the synopsis of Letter CXXVII (its first word "inquiri", hyphenated from col 1070, set whole in n1070); the text ends about two-fifths down the column; the rest is footnotes (a)-(c) with calls here and (d)-(h) with calls in col 1072.

PL 54:1072

pro fidei ipsius sinceritate praestare, ut honorem in nullo suae perdat Ecclesiae, sed sedis suae privilegia, paternae antiquitatis exemplo, juxta canonum illibata jura possideat.

[…] show fitting favour for the sincerity of his faith, so that he may in no respect lose the honour of his Church, but may possess the privileges of his see, after the example of the fathers' antiquity, according to the unimpaired rights of the canons.

CAP. II. — De praesentis anni Pascha nulla dubitatio esse nobis potuit, sed de futuro quaesivimus quod Theophilus Alexandrinae urbis episcopus, octavo kalendarum Maiarum diei, quod numquam ita a tempore Dominicae resurrectionis celebratum est, credidit ascribendum. Unde sollicitius congruit hoc requiri, ut omnis occasio tollatur erroris.

CHAP. II. — Concerning the Easter of the present year there could be no doubt for us, but concerning the next one we have made inquiry, because Theophilus, bishop of the city of Alexandria, believed that it should be assigned to the eighth day before the Kalends of May, which has never been so celebrated since the time of the Lord's resurrection. Hence it is fitting that this be inquired into the more carefully, so that every occasion of error may be removed.

Nam in nostris annalibus quintus decimus kalendarum Maiarum dies apertissime a Patribus nostris et constitutus legitur et celebratus. Ac ne vel apud nos vel apud Orientales nascatur ex hac parte diversitas, hoc instantius nostro nomine cum Christianisssimo principe agere tua dignetur dilectio: quamvis et ipse clementissimus princeps se inquisitione sollicitissima curam hanc Aegyptiis delegasse, suis epistolis dignatus sit indicare.

For in our annals the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May is read, most plainly, both to have been fixed and to have been celebrated by our Fathers. And lest a divergence arise on this point either among us or among the Easterners, let your love deign to take this up the more urgently in our name with the most Christian prince, although the most clement prince himself has also deigned to indicate in his letters that he has delegated this care to the Egyptians, with a most careful inquiry.

CAP. III. — Epistolam sane meam ad Chalcedonensem

CHAP. III. — That my letter indeed, given to the Chalcedonian […]

Editors' notes and page, col. 1072

Footnotes

(d) ‹perdat Ecclesiae,› · printed under col 1071

Cod. Vat. collect. 12, et sedis. In Vat. 541, qui additiones exhibet ex collect. 24, tum sed, tum et omittuntur.

Cod. Vat. of collection 12, et sedis. In Vat. 541, which presents the additions from collection 24, both sed and et are omitted.

(e) ‹canonum illibata› · printed under col 1071

In cod. Ratisp. deest jura. Aliquid autem hic desiderari sensus ostendit; quod cum posteriorum codicum exscriptores deprehendissent, post vocem illibata inseruerunt jura, cum tamen vox illibata proprius referenda videatur, non ad jura, sed ad privilegia, quae juxta canonum forte sanctiones vel regulas in Nicaeno constitutas, Alexandrinae Ecclesiae illibata servanda Leo contendit adversus eam praerogativam, quae cum Alexandrinae sedis praejudicio in synodo Chalcedonensi Constantinopolitano episcopo tributa fuerat.

In the Regensburg cod. jura is missing. But the sense shows that something is wanting here; and when the copyists of the later codices noticed this, they inserted jura after the word illibata, although the word illibata seems more properly to be referred not to jura but to privilegia, which Leo contends must be kept inviolate for the Church of Alexandria according to the sanctions, perhaps, or rules of the canons established at Nicaea, against that prerogative which had been granted to the bishop of Constantinople at the synod of Chalcedon to the prejudice of the see of Alexandria.

(f) ‹anni Pascha› · printed under col 1071

Loquitur de Paschate anni 454 quod tum in Laterculo Theophili apud Alexandrinos, tum in Cyclo Romanorum notabatur pridie nonas Aprilis. Vide annot. 14 (Col. 1056 n. (g) in epist. 121.

He speaks of the Easter of the year 454, which was marked both in the Laterculus of Theophilus among the Alexandrians and in the Cycle of the Romans on the day before the Nones of April. See annot. 14 (Col. 1056, n. (g)) on Letter 121.

(g) ‹urbis episcopus,› · printed under col 1071

Sermo est de Paschate anni 455, de quo erat inter Romanos et Alexandrinos quaestio. Vulgati Leonini ante Quesn. perperam habebant nono. Vide ejus not. 1, et confer. annot. 15 (Col. 1057, n. (a) in epist. 121, sicut et alias in eam annotationes, quibus sequentia intelligentur Ex ms. Ratisp. diei pro die emendavimus.

The discussion concerns the Easter of the year 455, about which there was a question between the Romans and the Alexandrians. The printed Leonine editions before Quesnel wrongly had nono. See his note 1, and compare annot. 15 (Col. 1057, n. (a)) on Letter 121, as also the other annotations on that letter, by which what follows will be understood. From the Regensburg ms. we have corrected die to diei.

(h) ‹in nostris annalibus› · printed under col 1071, running over under col 1072

Erat in editis ante Quesn. ac in inferioris notae codicibus, kalendarum Maiarum die aptissime a Patribus, etc. Raynaudus pro die emendavit dies; Labbeus vero in margine et Quesnellus in textu suppleverunt quinto decimo, retento die. Veram lectionem suppeditavit Ratisp. Quod porro ad nomen annalium pertinet, in quibus paschales dies signabantur animadvertendum est etiam apud Constantinopolitanam Ecclesiam hujusmodi annales exstitisse. Nam cum Hormisda ob dubium diem Paschatis anni 520 interrogasset Joannem episcopum Constantinopolitanum num Orientales in eo cum Occidentalibus concordarent, is respondit tom V Concil. pag. 654: Instantis autem Dominicae passionis numerum, qui vestris continetur litteris, ex repositis apud nos diei paschalis annalibus recte habere significamus. Idem S. Leo epist. 137. c. 1, loquens de Paschate anni 455, plures ejusmodi annales apud Romanos commemorat scribens: Cum a passione Domini in omnibus nostris annalibus decimus quintus kalendarum Maiarum dies legatur ascriptus. Cum de Paschate anni 455 quaestio inter Alexandrinos et Romanos in eo sita esset, quod illi die VIII kal. isti vero die XV kal. Maii Pascha celebrandum contenderent, Leo in omnibus Latinorum annalibus reperiri quidem tradit Pascha ascriptum diei XV, non vero VIII kal. Maii. Annalium autem nomine intelligit tum Cyclos Paschales annorum 84, in quibus Pascha XV kal. Maii assignatum fuerat annis ejusdem Cycli primo, undecimo, vigesimo secundo, etc., et ita quidem celebratum fuerat annis 382, 393, 404, etc., qui memoratis Cycli annis respondent, tum alia ecclesiastica Latina monumenta, in quibus paschales item dies quovis anno celebrati notari solebant: nullibi autem descriptus reperiebatur dies VIII kal. Maii. Annalium scilicet nomen latius pro quibusvis publicis actis sumptum liquet ex synodo Romana Bonifacii II anni 531, in qua post lectum supplicem libellum Stephani Larissae episcopi pontifex dixit: Quae lecta sunt ecclesiasticis indantur annalibus; et ex L. 65, de Appellat. Cod. Theod. lib. II, tit. 30: Appellatio litigantium... nectatur annalibus. Porro vox constitutus convenire videtur Cyclis annorum 84, in quibus jamdiu ante ascribi solebat paschalis dies quovis Cycli anno celebranda, ut videre est in veteri Cyclo 84 annorum apud Muratorium tom. III Anecdot. Latinorum; et hos quidem Cyclos S. Leo commemorans epist. 88, ad Paschasinum, c. 4, ait: In nostris autem paschalibus cyclis XV kal. Maias ejus anni (455) Pascha CELEBRANDUM esse sit scriptum. Vox autem celebratus ecclesiastica gesta videtur respicere, quibus Pascha ita sane celebratum notabatur, ut in laudatis Cyclis praestitutum fuerat.

In the editions before Quesnel and in codices of lesser note there was kalendarum Maiarum die aptissime a Patribus, etc. Raynaud corrected die to dies; Labbe in the margin and Quesnel in the text supplied quinto decimo, keeping die. The Regensburg ms. furnished the true reading. As for the word annales, in which the Easter days were recorded, it should be noted that such annals existed in the Church of Constantinople too. For when Hormisdas, because of the doubtful day of Easter in the year 520, had asked John, bishop of Constantinople, whether the Easterners agreed with the Westerners on it, he replied (vol. V Concil., p. 654): "We inform you that the reckoning of the coming Lord's passion contained in your letter is correct according to the annals of the paschal day kept with us." Likewise St Leo, Letter 137, ch. 1, speaking of the Easter of the year 455, mentions several such annals among the Romans, writing: "Since from the Lord's passion in all our annals the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May is read as ascribed [to it]." Since the question about the Easter of 455 between the Alexandrians and the Romans lay in this, that the former contended that Easter should be celebrated on the 8th day before the Kalends, the latter on the 15th before the Kalends of May, Leo reports that in all the annals of the Latins Easter is indeed found ascribed to the 15th, but not to the 8th before the Kalends of May. By the name annals he understands both the Paschal Cycles of 84 years, in which Easter had been assigned to the 15th before the Kalends of May in the first, eleventh, twenty-second, etc., years of that Cycle, and had indeed been so celebrated in the years 382, 393, 404, etc., which correspond to those years of the Cycle, and other Latin ecclesiastical records in which the Easter days celebrated in any year were likewise customarily noted; but nowhere was the 8th before the Kalends of May found recorded. That the name annals was taken more broadly for any public acts is clear from the Roman synod of Boniface II of the year 531, in which, after the petition of Stephen, bishop of Larissa, had been read, the pontiff said: "Let what has been read be entered in the ecclesiastical annals"; and from L. 65, de Appellat., Cod. Theod. book II, tit. 30: "The appeal of litigants ... let it be joined to the annals." Further, the word constitutus seems to fit the Cycles of 84 years, in which the Easter day to be celebrated in each year of the Cycle used to be recorded long in advance, as may be seen in the old Cycle of 84 years in Muratori, vol. III of the Anecdota Latina; and St Leo, mentioning these Cycles in Letter 88, to Paschasinus, ch. 4, says: "But in our paschal cycles it is written that Easter of that year (455) is to be CELEBRATED on the 15th before the Kalends of May." The word celebratus, on the other hand, seems to refer to the ecclesiastical records, in which Easter was noted as having been celebrated exactly as it had been prescribed in the said Cycles.

(i) ‹Epistolam sane› · printed under col 1072, running over under col 1073

Est epistola 114, et ex ea solum lectum fuit capitulum primum, quo decretis synodis in negotio fidei pontificius assensus accedebat; non vero capitulum alterum, quod adversus Constantinopolitani episcopi praerogativam in Chalcedonensi constitutam S. Leo, Nicaenorum observantiam inculcans, restitit. Integra tamen Graece reddita fuit, et aliquando vulgata; unde illius interpretationem ex Vat. codice Graeco edidimus.

It is Letter 114, and from it only the first chapter was read, in which the pontiff's assent was given to the decrees of the synod in the matter of the faith; not, however, the second chapter, in which St Leo, insisting on the observance of the Nicene [canons], opposed the prerogative of the bishop of Constantinople established at Chalcedon. The whole letter, however, was rendered into Greek and at one time published; hence we have edited its translation from a Vatican Greek codex.