Letter 9039: The man Gaudiosus is destitute and without resources to support himself.

To Romanus, Defender in Sicily. [Rubric:] That he provide six solidi each year to the destitute Gaudiosus. Gregory to Romanus, Defender of Sicily. The utterances of the divine precepts admonish us to furnish ecclesiastical assistance to those in need. Since, therefore, our most beloved son Cyprianus the deacon asserts that Gaudiosus, defender of our see, who is found to reside at Syracuse, is constrained by the want of poverty, we therefore command your experience by the present authority that, from the present second indiction, you not delay to give him six solidi each year, so that he may be sustained by the solace of this relief, and that you, without doubt, may know that what you have given is to be reckoned to your account. (Cf. John the Deacon, Book 1, chapter 55.) LETTER XL. To Romanus, Defender. [Rubric:] That, with all delay and excuse set aside, he carry out what had been commanded above in letter XV. Gregory to Romanus, Defender. In the month of November of the preceding second indiction [...] [the body of this letter is not preserved in legible form here]. [Editorial note on Letter XXXVIII (alias 37):] A solidus contained twenty-four siliquae. Felix had therefore promised one hundred solidi as profit on merchandise worth four hundred solidi, a double security having been issued or set down in writing, one for four hundred and fifty-one, the other for fifty solidi. In the Vatican manuscript, but wrongly, the names appear as Audoenus and Lyranus. [Editorial note:] That usury is forbidden by divine, canonical, and civil law no one denies, though they do not equally agree as to which usuries and against whom. At the Third Council of Orleans, in the year 538, canon [...]: That a cleric from the rank of deacon and above not lend money at interest; nor from benefices granted hope for anything more than was given; nor in the conducting of business deal in the pursuit of base gain, as do those public men who attend to the people's needs for profit, nor presume to carry on forbidden transactions under another's name. And if anyone should presume to act against these statutes, let him, having been admitted to communion, be degraded from his order. Nearly the same is read in Apostolic Canon 44, nor does the Nicene Council (canon 17) disagree, where the provisions are 'from the rank of deacon and above' and 'having been admitted to communion.' Sidonius Apollinaris, in Letter 24 of Book IV, [...] brings forward nothing about usuries that would trouble an attentive reader. Let the chapter 'Per tuas' be read, outside [the regular collection], 'On donations between husband and wife'; and Gregory of Tours, Book II, chapter [...], concerning the bishop [...]: 'If you are willing to lend your money, we will repay it with the lawful interest.' [Letter body resumes:] We will no longer delay [...], so that you ought at length to have restored to Calixenus, son of Stephania, the donation of the house of the Catiana estate, which Ammonia, grandmother of the same Calixenus, had with holy devotion conferred upon our Church. This, as is said, you have put off doing with the excuse that the record of that same donation had not been entered in the registers. Know that you spoke of this incongruously, since the page of our precept ought to be quite sufficient for your protection. Therefore, the present authority having been received, restore without delay to the aforesaid orphan Calixenus the aforesaid house and donation. For since you yourself perceive what is just, as we know, we nevertheless grant the aforesaid house out of kindness to the same aforesaid orphan.

AD ROMANUM IN SICILIA DEFENSOREM. Gaudioso inopi 8olidos 8ex singulis annis tribuat. B Gregorius Romano deſensori Sicilize. Divinorum nos admonent eloquia preceptorum necessitaten patientibus ecclesiasticung prebere sub- Sidium. Quia ergo dilectissimus filius Hoster Cypria- aus diaconus, Gaudiosum defensorem $edis noswe, qui Syracusis degere comprobatar , pauperia'is as- zerit inopia cnnstringi, idcirco experientize tuz pre- zenti auctoritate mandamus ut a presenti secunda indictione sex $Solidos annis $ivgnli3 ei dare non dif- ſeras, ut et ille hujus remedii s0latio poliatur, et tu quod dederis tuis $ine dubio noveris rationibus im- putandum. (Cf. Joan. Diac. l. 1, c. 55.) EPISTULA XL. AD ROMANUM DEtENSOREM. Ui, omni cunclatione et excusatione abjecta, id exse- quatur quod 8upra epist. 2V, ſucrat mandatum. Gregorius Komano deſensori. Mense Novembriv preventis secunde indictionis tur, Eersr. XXXVIII [AL. 37]. — * Siliquas viginti quatuor habebat solidus. Centum igitur solidos lucri causa pro quadringentorum $olidorum mercibus pro- wiserat Felix, emissa Seu scriplo data cautione du- plici, de quadringentis et quiuquaginla una, aliera de quinquaginla solidis. © [n Vatic. Det in Audoeno ac Lyrano emisze, sed perperam. « Probiberi jure divino, canonico et Civili usuras avllus est qui non ſateatur, quas el quibus non per- inde couveniunt. Io concil. tt Aurel. an. 538, can. 2: Ut clericus a diaconatu et supra pecuniam non commodet ad usuras; nec de prevtitis beneficiis qui4- quum amplius quam datuy, speret; neve in exercendis negotiis, ut publici qui ad populi responsum negolialu- res cbservantl, lurpts lucri cupiditate verselur, aut 8ub olieno nomine interdicla negotta audect exercere, (Juod 8s quis adversum 8latula vrnire presumpserit, commu- one concessa, ab ordine degradetur. ldew fere legi- lur Can. apostol. 44, nec abludit Nicenum, Cc. 17, uo sunt quz vbservo, a d:aconatu et Supra, necnun communione concessa. Sidonius Apollinaris, epi-t. 24 lib. iv, Turno 840, Wulla de usuris profert, quiz le- ctori atlento negutivin ſaces8ent. Lega'ur caput Per resiras, exira., de donationibus inter virum et mulie- rem ; et Gregorius Turon., lib, 11, c. £2, de episcopo irdunen-i : Pecuniam | (vam 8i commodare pl vet, cum usuris legitinis reddemus. Non diulius 10uworor, ut Calixeno filio Stephaniz domum Catiaze pogses- Sionis, quam Ammonia avia ejusdem Calixeni Eccle- 8/2 nostre gancla devotione contulerat, reddere ei donationem eamdem taudem debuisses. Quod bac, ut dicitur, excusatione ſacere distulisti, quia » notitia cjusdem donationis non esset de polyptycis * cha- raxata. 9S7 Quod incongrue le dixis8e cognoscas , dun ad munitionem tuam precepti nostri pagina posset valde suflicere. Proinde presenti auctorilate Suscepta, predictam dumum et donationem anteſato Calixeno orphano $ine mora restitue. Nam quod jus- tum et ipse senlias novimus, et nos tlamen pradicto eidem orphano supradicitaw domum ex benignitate largimur. | |