Letter 2

From: Pope Hilary, bishop of Rome To: The bishops of Gaul Date: ~462 AD Context: Hilary writes to the Gallic bishops generally on questions of episcopal elections and ordinations, seeking to regularize procedures and prevent abuses. Hilary, bishop of Rome, to our beloved brothers the bishops of Gaul, greetings in Christ. Reports reaching us from Gaul indicate that the procedures for episcopal elections and ordinations in certain dioceses have not been following the established canonical requirements, and we write to address this with the clarity that the situation demands. The canonical requirements are not complicated: an episcopal election is to involve the participation of the clergy and people of the diocese; the election is to be free of undue external pressure; the candidate elected is to be examined for his fitness before ordination; and the ordination itself is to be performed by the metropolitan with the participation of the bishops of the province. Each of these requirements exists for good reasons and their consistent application is essential to the health of the church. We have heard of cases in Gaul where elections have been imposed rather than conducted, where candidates have been ordained without adequate examination, and where the proper participation of clergy and people has been bypassed. Each of these failures damages the legitimacy of the resulting episcopate and stores up problems for the diocese in question. We ask all of you to review your own practice against these requirements and to ensure that future elections and ordinations follow them without exception. Hilary, bishop of Rome