Gregory the Great (Wisigothic)→Unknown|gregory great
From: Gregory the Great, Pope, in Rome
To: The people of Terracina [a coastal town in Latium]
Date: ~593 AD
Context: Gregory writes to the inhabitants of Terracina about a matter of church governance.
Gregory to the people of Terracina.
The matter I am writing about concerns the proper governance of your church and the obligations of the faithful to support and cooperate with their clergy.
The church at Terracina, like all churches, depends on the cooperation of its people to function well. This means more than simply attending services — it means supporting the clergy financially through the proper tithes and offerings, obeying the bishop's direction in matters of church order, and conducting your lives in a way that does not bring scandal to the community.
I urge you to reflect on how well you are fulfilling these obligations, and to improve in whatever areas fall short. The state of a church reflects the state of its people as well as the quality of its clergy.
Gregory
AD TERRACINENSES,
Hortatur ut Agnello episcopo suo in omnibus oveatant.
Gregorius clero, ordini et plebi consisteuti in Ter-
racina. |
Dilectionis vestre desideria insinuata nobis quam
oblulistis petitio reseravit, electionemque vesiram
valde laudavimus, quia Agnellum fratrem et coepisc0-
pum nostrum. probatum jam meritis cardinalem vo-
bis conslituli deprecamini sacerdotem. GZH Et quo-
niam gralz laudandzque petitioni nec elfectum ne-
gari, nec moram oportebat innecti, Secundum deside-
ria postulationemque vestram $Supradictum Aguellum,
directa preceptione, Ecclesiz vesir cardinalem esse
Slatuimus sacerduiem. Pro qua re dilectionem ve-
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dientiam priebere in omnibus debeatis, quatenus ,
charitalis vestrz $0latio roboratus, curam guberna- f
tionemque Eeclesizz quam. vobis probatur petentibus
SUSCCPiSSEC, adjuvante Domino salubr.ter valeat adim-
plere. * Mense Decembri, indictione 11.
◆
From:Gregory the Great, Pope, in Rome
To:The people of Terracina [a coastal town in Latium]
Date:~593 AD
Context:Gregory writes to the inhabitants of Terracina about a matter of church governance.
Gregory to the people of Terracina.
The matter I am writing about concerns the proper governance of your church and the obligations of the faithful to support and cooperate with their clergy.
The church at Terracina, like all churches, depends on the cooperation of its people to function well. This means more than simply attending services — it means supporting the clergy financially through the proper tithes and offerings, obeying the bishop's direction in matters of church order, and conducting your lives in a way that does not bring scandal to the community.
I urge you to reflect on how well you are fulfilling these obligations, and to improve in whatever areas fall short. The state of a church reflects the state of its people as well as the quality of its clergy.
Gregory
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.