Letter 3009: Avitus, bishop, to the most holy brother Alexandrinus.

From: Avitus, Bishop of Vienne To: Alexandrinus, Bishop Date: ~505 AD Context: A pastoral letter between two Gallic bishops — Avitus was one of the most elegant Latin writers of his generation and a key figure in the conversion of the Burgundians. Avitus, bishop, to the most holy brother Alexandrinus. Your letter arrived at a moment when I needed it — which is either a coincidence or a sign of the communion that exists between people who have known each other long enough to think about each other at the right times. The question you raise about the Arian presence in the Burgundian court is one I live with daily. I am the bishop of a city in a kingdom whose king is Arian, whose court is divided between Arian Burgundians and Catholic Romans, and whose theological self-definition is a source of ongoing tension. I have navigated this for years by treating the theological question as one thing and the pastoral question as another. The theological question — whether Arianism is wrong — has a clear answer, and I will defend that answer when asked and sometimes when not asked. The pastoral question — how do you serve both Arian and Catholic Christians in the same city, under an Arian king, in a way that does not sacrifice truth for peace or peace for truth — has no clean answer. It requires daily discernment. What has worked for me: speaking the truth about the faith clearly and openly, without polemic; establishing genuine relationships with Arian clergy based on mutual respect rather than theological agreement; and trusting that the intellectual arguments for orthodoxy, over time, will do their own work. Pray for me, as I pray for you. Avitus

Avitus episcopus ad Alexandrinum episcopum.