From: Ennodius, bishop of Pavia
To: Adeodatus, priest
Date: ~521 AD
Context: A letter reflecting on heavenly dispensation.
Ennodius to Adeodatus the priest.
The dispensation of heaven arranges our affairs with a wisdom we rarely appreciate at the time. Looking back, I see the hand of providence in events that seemed, when they occurred, to be merely random.
I write to share this observation, and to encourage you to look for the same pattern in your own life. Farewell.
XXXVI. ENNODIVS ADEODATO PRESBVTERO.
Caelestis dispensatio religiosis desideriis numquam negat
effectum: nam quod pie cupimus maturo praestat studio.
desideranti enim mihi per litteras orationum uestrarum postulare
suffragia perlatorem domesticum uota pepererunt, ut stimulo
scriptionis admoniti pro suscepti anima supplicetis, quia
doctor gentium clamat: orate pro inuicem. nihil enim est
quod deum diligens etiam pro delinquentibus optinere non
possit. laborate ergo promissis dudum patrociniis et gaudia
mihi per lacrimas conparate: ueniat ad me fructus innocentiae
meritis ignoratus. haec sunt, de quibus sanctum dei admonere
praesumpsi. timeo enim facere prolixa conloquia, quia res
necessaria strictis est postulanda sermonibus. nunc in Christo
ualete, mi domini, et sentire me deprecationis uestrae munera
prosperis indicate.
◆
From:Ennodius, bishop of Pavia
To:Adeodatus, priest
Date:~521 AD
Context:A letter reflecting on heavenly dispensation.
Ennodius to Adeodatus the priest.
The dispensation of heaven arranges our affairs with a wisdom we rarely appreciate at the time. Looking back, I see the hand of providence in events that seemed, when they occurred, to be merely random.
I write to share this observation, and to encourage you to look for the same pattern in your own life. Farewell.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.