Letter 7018: If a judge of humble persons takes the trouble to hear their case, how much more should a man of your stature attend...
Ennodius of Pavia→Avienus|c. 508 AD|Ennodius of Pavia
barbarian invasion
From: Ennodius, deacon in Pavia
To: Avienus
Date: ~507 AD
Context: A letter reflecting on the duty of judges toward humble persons — Ennodius argues that even small people deserve the attention of the powerful.
Ennodius to Avienus.
If a judge of humble persons takes the trouble to hear their case, how much more should a man of your stature attend to the concerns of those who look to you for guidance? The powerful have obligations that come with their position, and one of the chief among them is attention to those beneath them.
I bring a case to your notice — not because the person involved is great, but because the cause is just. Farewell.
XVIII. ENNODIVS AVIENO.
Si iudex uilium personarum laboret iniuriis, nescio utrum
possit ab hoc onere alios subleuare, cui ipse subcumbit. grauibus
medica manus est adhibenda uulneribus, ne inpunitate
morbus adolescat. sublimis uir Vicarius haec a me, quamuis
pro iustitiae consideratione deberentur, tamen extorsit alloquia:
quid pertulerit, ipse manifestet. unum scio, quia, nisi
succurritis, generale futurum est malum, cui ipse est disciplinae
tutor expositus. hoc non est alienum a christianitate,
cum defero, quia impium est rerum ordinem sub hac permixtione
confundi. domine mi, salutationis honore praelato
XVII. 4 maximae B, et mwime b dominae Bb, dne T, ///dn ̃ e
L 7 non] etiam non T 8 cathenis T 9 fauore fudit B b
11 dedicistis B meroris BLTV 12 post deum] potestatem fort .
m T, mihi BLVb 18 domino B\'Тb 14 digna B 8. I .
XVIII. 18 honore B subcumbet B, succnmbet b, anboombit T*,
o
sucnmbit L 20 uigarius Bb 21 pr B iusti.tiae (a ertu.)
L deberent (nt u: m) L 23 subcurretis B, succurretis B (a. L
x
m. rec.) b 25 hac] ac B piomistione B 26 m T, mihi
BLVb
nos uocem supplicis gratanter accipite, ut qui tanti fascem
laboris adripuit conualescat effectu.
◆
From:Ennodius, deacon in Pavia
To:Avienus
Date:~507 AD
Context:A letter reflecting on the duty of judges toward humble persons — Ennodius argues that even small people deserve the attention of the powerful.
Ennodius to Avienus.
If a judge of humble persons takes the trouble to hear their case, how much more should a man of your stature attend to the concerns of those who look to you for guidance? The powerful have obligations that come with their position, and one of the chief among them is attention to those beneath them.
I bring a case to your notice — not because the person involved is great, but because the cause is just. Farewell.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.