Letter 51: To the bishop of the universal Church — from Anastasia.

To the bishop of the universal Church, Anastasia. We rightly profess that the grace of the divine gift has shone upon us, knowing by the assurance of your letter that we hold the reverence of your apostolic office in remembrance within our holy heart; for with truthful hope it is trusted that the propitiation of the heavenly mercy abides through your pontifical intercession, most blessed lord and father to be received with apostolic honor. The ever-watchful vigils of your prayers and the wondrous faith of our most victorious prince, ever shining with a catholic splendor, have restored to the most sacred churches the long-sought concord of peace, which, with all his triumphs most firmly established, he rejoices by right to have set forth as an unconquered standard; and therefore let the undefiled holiness of your fatherhood persist in offering, with unceasing continuation, vows and prayers to almighty God for the safety and prosperity of our aforesaid lord Augustus, so that He may deign to preserve the ineffable grace of so many good things, which He Himself inspired in his [the emperor's] pious mind, for the advancement also of future blessedness. Let a prayer be graciously bestowed from your pontificate upon our lord, your son and yokefellow [the empress's husband], and upon me, your special worshipper, together with the offspring whom the Lord has deigned to grant to us, so that by its intercession the protection of divine favor may mercifully breathe upon us. --- A copy of the letter of Theodoritus, bishop of Lychnidus. To the holy, blessed, praiseworthy, and venerable lord, the apostolic father Hormisdas, pope of the city of Rome: your humble servant Theodoritus. It would not befit my littleness to presume things so great and to address these present small pages, with feeble speech, to your pious and holy apostolic office. But because, by the kindness implanted in you, with a pious heart of propitiation, you who are appointed to protect all things by the will of the Godhead, have given back to the whole world a bright day and one filled with all festivity, and by your praiseworthy prayers have called all things back to the former state of unity, and by your praiseworthy and venerable merits have granted that they be brought into harmony and made subject as one: therefore, although overwhelmed by my own iniquities and oppressed by them on every side, yet restored out of those very depths of hell, when my fellow-servant, the religious man Pullio, was returning to your glorious footsteps, I have ventured to present myself, both through him and also by these small and slight pages, before your praiseworthy and venerable footsteps, imploring with all my powers the divine favor and singing with a clear voice together with absolutely all: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, and among men of good will" [Luke 2:14], who in His incomprehensible piety, through your wondrous prayers, has illuminated and freed all things, and by your prayers worthy of God has granted to the whole world a bright day filled with all festivity, and has rescued it from all iniquity, and has loosed every knot of binding, and has opened every path. Offering, therefore, this prayer filled with rejoicing to your pious apostolic office, I beseech that, for the littleness of my lamentable state, you may deign to be mindful of me in your pious prayers, holy, blessed, apostolic lord fathers. Received on the thirteenth day before the Kalends of July, through Pullio, in the consulship of Eutharic.

EPiscoPO UNiuERSALi ECCLE8IAE ANASTASiA. Diuini muneris illuxisse nobis gratiam merito profitemur, apostolatus uestri reuerentiam in sancto corde nostri tenere memoriam paginali adsertione noscentes; ueraci namque spe confiditur supernae misericordiae propitiationem de pontificali intercessione sub- sistere, doraine beatissime et apostolico honore suscipiende 2 pater. peruigiles uestrarum orationum excubiae et miranda uictoriosissimi principis fides splendore catholico semper irradians diu expetitam sacrosanctis ecclesiis concordiam pacis restituit, quam omnibus triumphis suis solidissime finnatis inuictum iure exultat praetulisse uexillum, ideoque illibata uestrae paternitatis sanctimonia pro incolomitate atque pro- speritate praedicti domni nostri Augusti uota precesque omnipotenti deo offerre indesinenti continuatione persistat, ut ineffabilem tantorum bonorum gratiam, quam ipse piis eius sensibus inspirauit, ad futurae quoque beatitudinis profectum 3 conseruare dignetur. domno etiam iugali filio uestro et mihi peculiari cultrici uestrae cum subole, quam nobis dominus donare dignatus est, a uestro pontificatu oratio benigniter impendatur, cuius suffrag<at>ione diuini fauoris protectio nobis clementer adspiret. 165. Dat ut ep. 160. Edd. Car. P 498; Bar. ad a. 519, 69; ColUct. Concil; Thiel 865. 4 uniuersalis o, sed cf. ad p. 614, 19 6 reuerencia F, corr. 7 confidimus Bar. 11 splenderae corr. 13 solidissimf V 14 praetulisse scripsi: praecolisse F, praecoluisse (7ar., quo recepto inuicto . . ueiillo Thiel 18 tatorum F» corr. a - 23 suflfragatione scripsi: sufragione F, suffragio p fa- boris V EpiBt. CLXV 1 — CLXVI 3. 617 (166.) EXEMPLUM <EPISTOLAE> THEODORITI EPI3C0PI LIGNIDEX8I8. DOIINO SANCTO BEATO PRAEDICABILI ET ADORANDO APOSTOLICO PATRI H0RMI8DAE PAPAE URBIS ROMAE HUMILIS FAMULUS TUUS 5 TflEODORiTus. Meao quidem exiguitatis non esset tam magna praesumere et ad uestrnm pium et sanctum apostolatum pusiUi sermone praesentes paruulas destinare paginas. sed quia pro insita uobis humanitate, pio propitiationis animo omnia nutu diuinitatis protegere constituti, lucidum diem et 10 totius festiuitatis repletum omni reddidistis mundo et omnia uestris praedicandis precibus ad pristinum unitatis reuocastis statum et in unum concordare uel subiugare uestris praedica- bilibus et adorandis meritis annuistis: ideoque, etsi meis 2 obrutus iniquitatibus et ab eis undique oppressus, ex ipsis 15 recreatus infernis recurrente ad gloriosa uestigia uestra confamulo meo uiro religioso PuUione usurpaui me tam per eum quam etiam his paruulis et exiguis uestris praedicandis et adorandis repraesentare uestigiis, diuinum omnibus uiribus exorans fauorem et clara uoce cum omnibus omnino cantans: jogloriaineicelsisdeoetinterrapaxet in hominibus bonae uoluntatis, qui pro sua incomprehensibili pietate 3 uestris mirificis precibus omnia illuminauit et liberauit et lucidum et totius festiuitatis repletum diem in toto orbe uestris deo dignis precibus praestitit et ab omni iniquitate exiguit et 25 omnem nodum coUigationis absoluit et omnem semitam aperuit. 20 Luc. 2, 14 canans F, corr. man. rec. a: canens o 21 incomprehensibile F 22 libatt a: libtl F 24 eiiguit F: eripuit 25 collegacionis F 618 Suggestio Dioscori ad Hormisdam 4 hanc itaque gratulationis repletam pio uestro precem offerens apostolatui deprecor, uti pro meae flebilitatis exiguitate uestris piis precibus memores esse dignemini, domini sancti beati apostolici patres. Accepta Xlll. Kal. lul. per <Pullionem> Eutliarico cons.