Letter 110: When I read your letter I remembered the blessed Susannah, who saw the wicked elders threatening her and, knowing...

To Domnus, Bishop of Antioch, When I read your letter I remembered the blessed Susannah, who saw the wicked elders threatening her and, knowing that the God of all was present, uttered her famous cry: "I am hemmed in on every side" [Daniel 13:22, in the Septuagint]. Yet she chose to fall into the trap of slander rather than offend the just God. I too, my lord, face two alternatives, as I have often said: either offend God and wound my conscience, or fall by an unjust human verdict. I suspect the most pious emperor knows nothing about this. If he truly wished the ordination to proceed, what prevented him from writing an order? Why do they make threats in private and create alarm, yet refuse to send official letters commanding it openly? One of two things must be true: either the emperor has not been persuaded to write, or they are trying to trick us into breaking the law so they can prosecute us afterward for the illegality. I have before me the example of the blessed Principius -- when they gave written orders in his case, they later punished him for obeying them. Moreover, the letters I read on the very day the courier arrived tell a different story. A holy monk has written to someone that he received letters from both the distinguished court official and the former Master of Offices stating that the case of the godly lord bishop Irenaeus will be resolved favorably -- and in return for this good news they ask for prayers. I think, therefore, that a reply should be written to the clergy who have written from the capital, to the effect that in obedience to the decision of the bishops of Phoenicia, and knowing the zeal, generosity, and love for the poor of the candidate in question, we support the matter -- but that we require it to be done through proper channels.

Letter 110