From: Pope Felix III, bishop of Rome
To: The bishops of Egypt, the Thebaid, Libya and Pentapolis
Date: ~484 AD
Context: Felix III, letter 9 (fragment); Felix writes to the Eastern bishops addressing the situation following the condemnation of Acacius.
Felix, bishop of Rome, to our beloved brothers the bishops of Egypt, the Thebaid, Libya, and Pentapolis, greetings.
The apostolic see has acted. The actions we have taken regarding the patriarch of Constantinople were required by the faith and by the canonical obligations that fall on the bishop of Rome as the successor of blessed Peter.
We write to you, who are closest to the epicenter of these disputes and who have the most to gain or lose from their resolution, to make our position clear and to offer our support to those among you who have maintained fidelity to the Chalcedonian definition at whatever cost to your comfort and security.
The pressure that has been applied to compel acceptance of the Henotikon and communion with those who reject Chalcedon is known to us. We do not underestimate the difficulty of your situation. What we ask is what the faith asks: that you hold to what Chalcedon established, and that you trust that the apostolic see will continue to support you in that holding.
Write to us through whatever channels are available to you. We want to know the situation of the faithful in your provinces.
Felix, bishop of Rome
(Hi 484
^|.^^ xFelicis papao ad episcopos per Aegyptum, Thebaidem, laibyam
et Pentapolim constitutos fragmentwn,
FeUx papa episcopifl per Aegjrptum , Thebaidem , Libyam et PentapoHm eoiwtitmtif pb 1
post alia.
Petnmi^) vero, qui se ab Ecdesiae unitate sub beatae recor-
tlationis Proterio sepiinivit *^ ), et in niortera ipsius parricidae Timo-
tlieo ad persequendos se junxit orthodoxos, nulla tanti nominis aub
lionoris permittimus societate laetari^): quando in creatoribus propiiis
non dissimilibus ipso sui exordio caducmn, quod se aestimat, repe-
ritur. Est ergo prHcfutus cunctis anathema, nec ab Ecclesia catho-
lica credatur unquiun recipi, qui post cohortationem saepissimam et
per tot annorum spiitia*) in perversitate propria perseverans locum
satisfactionis amisit.
Petri ordinatores. Xec obstat, quod Fehx sup. epist. 8 n. 3 Petrum ab uno
dumtaxfit ordiuatum scribat. Is enim tropicus loquendi modus, quo de ploii*
bus asseriturf quod unius est proprium, uec inusit^atus Felici est nec ineleganter
hic adhibetur.
BPISTOLAE 8 — 10. 251
◆
From:Pope Felix III, bishop of Rome
To:The bishops of Egypt, the Thebaid, Libya and Pentapolis
Date:~484 AD
Context:Felix III, letter 9 (fragment); Felix writes to the Eastern bishops addressing the situation following the condemnation of Acacius.
Felix, bishop of Rome, to our beloved brothers the bishops of Egypt, the Thebaid, Libya, and Pentapolis, greetings.
The apostolic see has acted. The actions we have taken regarding the patriarch of Constantinople were required by the faith and by the canonical obligations that fall on the bishop of Rome as the successor of blessed Peter.
We write to you, who are closest to the epicenter of these disputes and who have the most to gain or lose from their resolution, to make our position clear and to offer our support to those among you who have maintained fidelity to the Chalcedonian definition at whatever cost to your comfort and security.
The pressure that has been applied to compel acceptance of the Henotikon and communion with those who reject Chalcedon is known to us. We do not underestimate the difficulty of your situation. What we ask is what the faith asks: that you hold to what Chalcedon established, and that you trust that the apostolic see will continue to support you in that holding.
Write to us through whatever channels are available to you. We want to know the situation of the faithful in your provinces.
Felix, bishop of Rome
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.