Letter 2053: Many people, trusting that I have great influence with your inseparable excellency — not through any merit of my...

Bishop Ruricius to his son Praesidius, greeting. Very many people, since they are confident that I have great influence with your eminence, which is inseparable from me-not by the merit of my life, but by the privilege of our friendship-seek letters of commendation from us, by which they may be excused to you. These we cannot deny them, on account of the necessity of our office-not out of the boldness of presumption, but by the discipline of our ministry-since we desire to provide both for them the consolation of the present life and for you that of the eternal life, so that both they, through your forbearance, may be preserved for repentance, and you, through your mercy, may attain pardon. As the Scripture says: that the judgment shall be without mercy to him who has not shown mercy; for he who said, Forgive, and it shall be forgiven you, will without doubt, to the man whom he sees doing here what he has commanded, in time to come restore what he has promised. For his truth is at hand for us, if our faith toward him is not lacking. Hence you can most clearly perceive that the absolution of your wretched ones is the pardon of your own sins, and that what you grant to others is to be conferred upon your own prayers, according to his own pronouncement in the Gospel: With what judgment you have judged, it shall be judged concerning you. And therefore on behalf of Ursus and Lupus, who have come to me-bound to me by the law of charity, as if more particularly belonging to you, as I said above-for the intercession of their crimes, I approach as an advocate, that you may deign to grant, first to God and then to us, this offense which they have committed, and that you may not confound us by their condemnation, since they believed they were already absolved at the very moment when they were brought to my humility.

LIII. RURICIUS EPISCOPUS PRAESIDIO FILIO SALUTEM. Plerique, dum me apud indiuiduam mihi sublimitatem uestram non uitae merito, sed amicitiarum priuilegio multum posse confidunt, commendaticias a nobis, quibus uobis excusentur, inquirunt. quas eis pro officii nostri necessitate negare non possumus, non praesumptionis audacia, sed ministerii disciplina, dum et illis praesentis uitae solatium et uobis prouidere desideramus aeternae, ut et illi per patientiam uestram 16] Psalm. 121, 3. 1 hii S, hi v 3 tamque om. S 4 non om. S, add. Kr. ex ep. II10 obuiaret Kr . cordis v, discordis S diligentis S 6 quo-inpendere] cf. ep. II 9 7 augeretur S, corr. v 8 uisitudinem S et add. Kr. ex ep. II 9 otn. S 11 plurimu S 13 cui—merita] cf. ep. 117 14 etsi cf. I17, ut si S turbidinis S 20 cf. supra ep. II 12 pr?sidio S 21 plerumque S 22 amititiaru S 24 offitii S 25 praesuptionis S audatia S 26 praestis S 27 pacientia S reseruentur ad paenitentiam et uos per misericordiam perueniatis ad ueniam, sicut dicit scriptura: quia iudicium sine misericordia erit illi, qui non fecerit misericordiam, quia, qui dixit: dimittite et dimittetur uobis, procul dubio, quem uiderit hic facere, quod praecepit, in futuro ei restituet, quod promisit. nobis enim illius ueritas praesto est, si illi fides nostra non desit. unde manifestissime potestis aduertere absolutionem miserorum uestrorum esse indulgentiam peccatorum et hoc uestris conferendum precibus, quod uos praestatis alienis, iuxta ipsius in euangelio sententiam: quo iudicio iudicaueritis, iudicabitur de uobis. ideoque pro Urso et Lupo, qui ad me quasi uobis peculiarius, sicut sperius dixi, caritatis iure deuinctum pro criminum suorum intercessione uenerunt, precator accedo, ut primum deo, deinde nobis hoc, quod commiserunt, donare digneris nec nos de eorum damnatione confundas, qui se iam tum absolutos esse, quando ad humilitatem meam deducti sunt, crediderunt.