Letter 293: Theodore Studite, Letter 293; Greek heading: Λέοντι πατρικίῳ.

I am bound to send you not paper and ink, but, were it possible, my very skin and blood, to your holy soul, which has so long ago given itself over to my lowliness and yearns not only for the things of the body but indeed also for the things of the spirit. And do not disbelieve what I am about to say, my lord: for it is true that the things which neither hierarchs [bishops] nor priests nor indeed monks and laymen, nor scarcely any other kinsman or friend, has done as a benefit or shown concern for toward me, these things your piety has displayed toward me beyond all measure. And, if it were possible for your greatness to look upon my heart, it would marvel at itself greatly. But let these things rest where they are, and I shall by no means cease to write to you, perhaps even after death, invisibly to one unseen. But now this is what I, wretched as I am, pray: that you be kept unharmed in soul and body, and that you escape, if not the smoke, then at least the heretical fire [the iconoclast heresy]. May my lord also pray concerning my lowliness, that what Christ has begun freely in us, the unworthy, He may also bring to completion, delivering us from enemies seen and unseen.