Letter 15: Having learned from a letter Natalis had sent to Bishop Serenus of the abbot's praiseworthy zeal for the Catholic...

Although for the governance of the blessed apostle Peter divinely instituted, by which the vicars of his see are indebted to all the churches, we have given suitable letters to our brothers and fellow bishops established throughout Dardania, following the path of the ancient faith and communion, so that they may be able to guard against the contagion of the faithless and hold unblemished fellowship with us, nevertheless we have not ceased desiring to address your love as well, whose both solicitude for avoiding harmful things and laudable fervor in retaining what pertains to Christian benefit we have perceived from the letters which your charity directed to our brother and fellow bishop Serenus. Accordingly, your love perceives that one must collaborate with the gospel of God, and that with a view to eternal salvation even adversities must be steadfastly endured, so that you may incur no loss, God forbid, of the heavenly kingdom, to which indeed you cannot arrive unless you have contended lawfully. For with the Lord providing, we must be all the more insistent and watchful, the more vehemently the enemy of the human race does not cease to press in at the very end of the world. We signify that nothing has been omitted that might apply a remedy congruent with the rules of the fathers for the correction of things which the enemy has sown in the churches of the East. But what shall we do? Because with hardened ears they refuse to hear the voice of truth, and so great a force of raging disease has settled in that they prefer all the healthy to be lethally sick with them rather than themselves receive healing. Now denying everything which we prove by their own documents and their own subscriptions, now when they have been plainly convicted by manifest evidence, openly confessing the error, they nevertheless testify that they are unwilling to return to the path of pure confession and communion, but rather expect us to be entangled with their apostates.

Beati Ctelasii papae ad Natalem abbatem. (a.493.) • ^obatm, cujus laudabilem pro fide catholica fervorem ex epistola ad Sei'enum 'PWcopifln missa cognovity soUiciius pontifex hortatur, ut instructionem sedis apo- ^\ ui et ratio postiilant communicaverunt. Hic quippe notantur Acacius et f*^, sed maxiine Acacius, qui haereticae communionis contagione pollutua ^''^^ damnatos in eadem danmatione defunctus est. Mox G' cc Quod utique. ") Ita G* c'**; c' et communi, quod cum proximis verbis minus apte cohae- J^ Quorgum enim Gelaaius quam primum ad se referri vult, si qui apud Dar- *™°* deprehendantur Acaciani schismatis fautores, nisi ut ipse cum concilio l^ atque ipgis Dardanis prospiciat, quo pacto et subveniatur errantibus, et fides •^enrfa Bervetur. ) 6*a* m/ ad ecclesiarum praesules, alii editi ut eccfesiarttm praesules univer- ^ ^itatu, minus bene. Non euim in hac epistola fidei expositio tum ampla *ni<lttt integra adita est, ut universam veritatem in ea explanatam dicere liceat. «I8TOUE ROMAH. PONTIP. I. 22 1 r (a.493.) stoHcae ad poniifices regionis illius direciam in contiguis provinciis a^juvet^ et ipsum de ejusdem profectu cerliorem reddere saepius curei. Dilectisssimo filio Nutali abbati Gelasius epi- * scopus. 1. Quamvis pro beati Petri apostoli moderamine divinitus in- stituto, quo sedis ejus vicarii cuuctae sunt Ecclesiae debitores, ad fratres et coepiscopos meos per Dardaniam constitutos competentia scripta dederimus, antiquae fidei commmiionisque tramitem subse- quentes, ut cavere valeant contagpia perfidorum et nobiscum illiba- tum tenere consortium ; tamen dilectionem quoque tuam noii ' desti- timus *) desiderantes affari, cujus et sollicitudinem de noxiis qoibus- que vitandis, et in retinendis, quae ad utilitatem pertinent Christia- nam, laudabilem perspeximus esse fervorem, ex litteris scilicet; quas ad fratrem et coepiscopum meum Serenum tua caritas destinayil Proinde 'collaborandum si])i tua dilectio perpendit eyangelio Dei, et^) aeternae salutis intuitu ctiam adversantia quaeque toleranda constanter: ut nullum subeas, quod absit, coelestis regni dispendinm^. ad quod utique, nisi legitime certaveris, non potes pervenire. Tanto enim praestante Domino nobis est instandmn yigilandumque, quanto sub^) ipso fine jam mundi vehementior humani generis hostis in- sistere non quiescit. 2. Nihil significamus omissum, quod aut correctione *) rerum, quas in ecclesias Orientis seminavit inimicus, patrum regulis eon- gruentem possit adhibere medicinam. Sed quid facimus? quia ob- duratis auribus vocem refugiunt veritatis audire, timtaque vis morbi saevientis incubuit, ut secum malint salvos quosque lethaliter aegro- tare, quam ipsi recipere saniiSitem: nunc inficiantes universa, quae ipsorum chartis, ipsorum subscriptionibus approbamus, nunc quum manifesta rerum fuerint hice convicti, palam aperteque fatentes «^ roreni, noUe se tanien reverti ad viam purae confessionis comma- nionisque testantur, sed nos potius exspectant suis praeyaricatoribiis impHcari. Quapropter largiente Christi gratia maguis studiis est agendum, ut, quia de vita peri^etua vel amittenda res agitur vel tenenda, demus oi^eram quidem, si aliquos ex ilUs operante Domino gg^salvare possimus: ajioquin, sicut ait apostolus, te ipsum casium cu- ') It^ Jo8. Blanch. ex N^. Matf. ot c*" desislimus. Mox Matf. seq. ci{fti$ solH-' citudinem . . . ex litteris siquidem. EPISTOLAE 8. 9. 339 stodiy perire yolentium nitamur declinare perniciem, et, quod solum (a.493.) facere debeamus, divinam pro illis exorare clementiam, ut resipi- scant a diaboli laqueis^ a quo capti detinentur ab ^) ipsius voluntate : ut ab obstinatione mortifera respirantes, *pestem quam se humanitus incidisse etiam ipsi sentiunt^ inutili verecundiae languore deposito^" ad recuperanda remedia sempiterna libero corde resipiscant. 3. His ergo cognitis, quae, sicut diximus, ad regionum vestra- ruin sunt directa pontifices, et ipsi protegente vos Domino debetis esse convenienter instructi, et provinciLs eadem quibusque contiguis ^) fiducialiter praedicare. Nihil est enim, quod pavere debeamus, quum certam sit a coelesti praesule non derelinqui, quos suae veritatis praestitit arma tractare, nec quidquam videamus') ei ullatenus ^^^'"ilLMh ferendmn^ quum ipsas animas nostras pro earum nos voluerit salute io,39. contemnere. Qualiter autem vel proficiat ibidem religionis integritas ^^^'^ vel quid forsitan asseratur, saepius nobis vestra dileetio non omittat oetendere: ut necessaria Christo tribuente subsidia responsis con- gruentibus ministremus. Subscriptio papae. Deus te incolumem costodiat, fili dilectissime !