Letter 4074: I am directing you to demand a full accounting from the hospices under your jurisdiction — when were they last...

Gregory to Januarius, bishop of Cagliari. Your fraternity ought indeed to be so solicitous about pious affairs as to need nothing at all from our admonitions; nevertheless, since certain matters requiring correction have reached us, there is nothing unfitting if the page of our authority also comes to you. We therefore report that it has come to us that the custom existed for the hospices established in the region of Cagliari to render their accounts in detail to the bishop of the city at regular intervals, to be governed under his protection and care. Since your charity is reported to have neglected this hitherto, we exhort you that, as has been said, the wardens of the hospices, those who are or have been placed in them, should render their accounts to you in detail at regular intervals. And let such persons be appointed to preside in them as are found most worthy in life, conduct, and industry — religious persons, that is, over whom secular judges have no power, lest if such persons are appointed as judges can summon to their own court, occasion be given for the plundering of the resources of the sick who lie there. We wish you to take the utmost care of these matters, so that they are given to no one without your knowledge, lest through the negligence of your fraternity things come to the point of their being plundered. Furthermore, you know that the bearer of this letter, the presbyter Epiphanius, was accused by the written letters of certain Sardinians. We, examining his case as we wished and finding nothing of what was charged against him, absolved him to return to his place. We wish you therefore to investigate the authors of the accusation against him. And unless the one who sent those letters is prepared to prove what he charged by canonical and most rigorous proofs, let him by no means approach the mystery of holy communion. As for the cleric Paul, who is said to have been frequently caught in sorcery, and who, having cast off his habit and returned to a lay life, fled to Africa — if this is so, he must be given over to penance.

AD JANUARIUM EPISCOPUM. A renodochis rationes exigat; ii sint nol@ probitatis atque industrie clerici, ui Epiphanium presbyterum scriptis epist6lis accusarit, 8i in probatione deficiat, communione privelur. Paulus clericus in maleſiciis deprehensus delur in penitentiam. Gratis ordinen- tur, vel connubio jungantur clerici ; gratis velentur virgines. Ad laicorum patrocinia clerici non conſu- giant. Gregorius Januario episcopo Caralitano. Oportebat quidem ſraternitatem tuam ita de rebus piis esse $0llicitam, ut nibil ad explendas eas. nostris admonitionibus penitus indigeret; tamen quia quz- dam ad nos pervenerunt quz JOG sunt corrigenda capitula, nihil est incongruum $i nostre quoque Yo- bis pagina auctoritalis accedat. Quamobrem significamus pervenisse ad nos con- Suetudinem fſuisse ut * xenodochia quz $unt in Cara- litanis parlibus conslitula, apud episcopum civilatis veterem EcclesioO Romance, imo Ecclesiarum ſere om- nium Occidentaliom, non a presbyteris adhibitam unquam, Sed a <o0lis episcopis : nec alia lege Sardis presbyteris illam administrandi jus collatum, nisi ubi deessent episcopi. At quzenam alia potest excogitari pr:eler 8+-cramentalem chrismationem? Unciio enim vel in pectore vel in verlice b»ptizandorum ex chri- smate ad pre>byteros pertlinebat in qualibet Ecclesia, adeoque in Romana, modo baptizandi licentiam ab episcop0 con<ecuti essent. At, inquies, agit sanctus Gregorius de infantibus baptizandis, qui cum bapti- s$mi experies adhuc essent, ad confirmationem reci- piendam nondum erant idonei. Agit sanctus Doctor de infantibus qui baptizabantur, eodemque fere tem- pore consignabantur, pro illorum lemporum more. A $ingulis' quibusque temporibus suas subliliter rationes exponerent, ejus videlicet tuitione alque $oſlicitudine gubernanda. Quod quia tua hactenus fertur charitas neglexisse, hortamur ut, sicut dictum est , tibi #1n- gulis quibusque temporibus rationes suas xenodochi, qui in eis $unt conslituti vel ſuerunt, subliliter po- nant. Atque Þ tales in eis qui prasint ordinentur, qui vita, moribus, alque industria inveniantur egse dignissimi, religiosi duntaxat, quos yexandi judices non habeant poteslalem, ne si tales personz ſuerint, quas in Suum possint evocare judicium, vastandarum rerum debilium qui illic rejacent prebeatur occasio ; de quibus rebus summam te curam gerere volumvus, ut nulli sine tua dentur notitia, ne usque ad dire- plionem earum ex ſralernitatis tuz perveniatur iu- B Curia. Przterea nosti latorem prasentium Epipbanium presbylerum quorumdam * Sardorum liltteris crimi- moveretl, 8i isfam pontificalis auctorilas licentiam non dediszet. Unde conslat a pontificilus quodammodo fieri quod in tania rerum necessilale ut a presbyteris eſfici possit superior ordo conslituitl. Eeist. XX VII | AL. 24]. — * Rerum piarum admini- $trationem episcoperum cure committi, non recens es instiiutum. Codice de episc. et clericis, leg. Omnes, et leg. Omnia privilegia, leg. 46, Sancimus. Nec nog de 8acros. eceles., ley. Illud. Vide exira, de religiosis domibus, c. 5 et 4, et in Clement. Quia contigit, eod. tit.; cone. Trid., sess. 22, c. 9. In Chalced., c. 8, leges Gal'izz conspirant, usus coalirmat. Sanctus Au- guslinus tract. 97, in Evang. Joan. Xenodockia, in- quit, et monasleria sunt appellata novis nominibus, res tamen ips@ et ante 8ug nomina erant , & religionis ve- Certe ubi legitur epist. 9 : Sed presbyteri baptizandos C ritate firmantur, etc. Imperator apostata $Ccribens ungant in pectore, ut episcopi postmodum ungere de- beant in ſronte, $cilicet infantes, quos Supra dixit baptizandos, eadem ratione quis arguet : Ergo epi- Scopi nondum baplizatos, sed tantum baplizandos consignabant et confirmabant. Itaque de catechume- nis ante immersionem chrismate in ſronte langendis Gregorium inlelligat nemo, quippe baptizandos, an- lequam immergerentur, simplici quidem oJeo. inun- etos legimus, al nunquam chrismate, de quo Beda in Cantic. cant. cap. 1, 15. Deinde, ut jam observavi- mus, Gregoriumde illa ſrontis chrismatione loqui quz episcopis reservabatur, nec nisi super bapiizatos fiebat, evincit concessionis ejus hc restriciio : ubi episcopi desunt. Etenim , ut declarat Innocentius [, epist. 1, ad Decentium kugubinum, cap. 3 : Presby- leris seu extra episcopum, s8eu prasente episcopo, cum baptizant, chrismate baptizatos ungere licet, sed quod ab episcopo ſuerit consecratum ; non tamen ſrontem ex eodem oleo signare, quod 80lis debetur episcopis cum tradunt Spiritum Paracletum. Porro vocibus illis, se- candum usum veterem Ecclesie& nostre, Satis innuitur viguisse diversum in aliis Ecclesiis morem. Nota est Orientalium praxis. De Hispanis, . imo de Gallicanis ipsis tacemus; neque enim Eliberitanos Toletanosve cauones, neque Arausicanum, ex acri Sirmondum inter et Aurelium controversia celebrem, disculere nostri est instituti. Ugum de Africa, cujus exarcha- lui - ontributa erat Sardinia, hic observamus : Afris presbyteris ne chrisma conſicerent plurimis canoni- bus prohibitum ſuerat; illos tamen circa nonun $2- culum chrisma conſecisse $4p; onit Joannes Diac., in epist. a4 Senariuin, quam Musxi lali tomo I Ma- billonius edidit. Sed nec itluc tangat animum, inquit num. $, qriod $161 aliquando quedam vis necessilalis ass1umit, reluti (quod nunc per Aſricam fieri dicitur) ut presbyleri sanclum chrigma conſiciant; quod merito Arsacio Summo Sacerdoti Galatiz, apud Sozome- num, lib. v, c.. 16. Frequentia, inquit, zenodockia per singulas civitales conslitue ut humanitate nostre peregrini ſruantur.... Unde arcipias ad isla ſacultates, provisum esl, etc. Id laciebat impius odio Christia- norum quidem, sed eorum tamen: exemplo, quibus - verbis docet tunc tlemporis xenodochia 8ub nosiro- rum episcoporum ſuisse potestate. Hine vocata ſuere zenodochia Ecclesiarum. In Histor. tripart., lib. 1x, cap. 51, ubi de uxore Theodosii per Ecclesiarum xe- nodochia discurrente. Vide epist. 8 hujus libri. Gus- SANV. | tvisset hanc sancli Gregorii epistolam. In magna collectione sanclionum et edictoruim regiorum, vulgo La grande conference des ordonnances, eic., lit. de nosocomiis, hospilalibus, et aliis locis piis, cum in textu lum in annotationibus;, infinita |ropemodum exslant ea de re monumenta, quz legisse sludiosum non pienitebit; nec tamen sine indignatione leget hzc Ludovici Bochelli verba : Con:me nos rois ont reconnu une trop grande ararice 88 glisser enire les ec- clesiastiques, et qu'ils appliquent le bien des pauvres plitost @leur profit particulier qu'a la nourriture, eic., ils leur en ont os1E le gouvernement, elc. Ejus pace dixerim, n*e ubique, nec omnium. Gyss4axv. © Corruple antea legebatur sacerdotum. Sic autem resliluiuus ex quampluriuuis mss, Codd. et Edit. 699 SANCTI CREGORI MACNI 700 naliter accusatum (Grat. 5, q. 6, c. 4). Cujus nos, ut A voluimus, discutientes causam, nihilque in eo obje- clorum reperientes; ut 2d locum $suum reverleretur, absolvimus. Criminis ergo ejus anclores te volumus perscrulari. Et nisi qui easdem transmisit JQ7 epi- 8tolas paratus ſuerit hoc quod objecit canonicis atque « disIrictissimis probationibus edocere, nullatenus ad 8ancle mysterium communionis accedat. Paulum vero clericum, qui szpe dicitur in male- ficiis deprehensus, qui, dezpecto habitu $uo ad Jai- cam reversus vitam, in Africam fugerat, si ita est, EPISTOLA X XVII. AD CANDIDUM DEFENSOREM. Ut Albino luminibus privato 8ingulis aftnis duos tremis8es prebeat, Gregorius Candido defensori. Necessilatem patientibus pontilicale convenit ades- 8 8ubsidium. I'ro qua re experientie tus pregenti auctoritate praecipimus quatenus Albino privato lu- minibus filio quondam Martini coloni singulis aftinis «* duos Lremisses $ine aliqua dilatione prazslare non de- Sinat, non dubitatura $Suis hoc sige dubio rationibus imputari.