Letter 11

From: Braulio of Zaragoza, bishop To: Tajón of Zaragoza, deacon (later bishop) Date: ~638 AD Context: Braulio writes to his protégé Tajón on ecclesiastical administration and the responsibilities of church leadership, providing guidance on managing the diocese. To Tajón, my beloved son in Christ, You asked me for guidance, and I will give you what I can, though I am aware that no letter is a substitute for the conversations we have had in person, which I miss more than I can say. The first thing I want to tell you about ecclesiastical administration is that most of it is not, at its core, about administration. It is about people. The clergymen under your care are human beings with all the weakness and dignity that entails; the laypeople who depend on the church for baptism and burial and the sacraments are human beings with lives more difficult than most of us appreciate. The records, the accounts, the correspondence with other bishops, the management of the church properties — all of that matters and all of it must be done, but it must be done in service of something, and that something is the people. The second thing: do not neglect the library. The books we have inherited from the great teachers of the Church are not decorative; they are the foundation of everything we say and do. A bishop who does not read is a bishop flying blind. I know you know this — you are not lazy in your studies — but the years have a way of filling up with urgent things and crowding out the important ones. On the specific question of the episcopal property dispute you mentioned: I think you must hold firm. The rights of the church were established by proper legal instrument and cannot simply be overridden by a magnate's convenience, however powerful he may be. Document everything. Make copies of all relevant instruments and keep them in separate locations. Your father in God, Braulio