Roman Letters: A Digital Corpus of Late Antique Correspondence

Vander Galien, Craig

doi:10.5281/zenodo.19142059

Letter 6: The Emperor Anastasius Augustus to Pope Hormisdas.

Hormisdas→Hormisdas, Rome|c. 514 AD|Hormisdas|AI-assisted

diplomaticeducation booksimperial politics

Anastasius Augustus to Pope Hormisdas, through Theopompus and Severianus, most distinguished men [vir clarissimus]. All things that benevolence has conceived are advanced with a sweet eagerness of spirit and with praiseworthy haste, nor do they suppose that any rest can be granted to them until they have carried the things desired through to a most wholesome effect; and then a certain rest from that very haste comes about, when the hope of one's prayers has been attained. This we in the present have endured for a sure reason, until the favor of heaven grants both an approach to our petition and a peaceful [literally: late-afternoon, serene] effect to your promise. Therefore, since either the very great length of the journey or the harshness of winter beyond the usual measure has rendered uncertain to us what we were wishing for, in the meantime we have kept the things desired pressed within our minds, seizing upon the divine favors, which by their interposition determine the outcomes of a good matter. Recognizing therefore that His mercy granted us the first grace, namely that the embassy that was sent should return happily to your Beatitude, we have proceeded to the second, that the promised embassy should be directed by us, through which there might both be made a commemoration of those things which we conferred upon with the most holy men in long deliberation, and likewise, with God as our guide, a serene light might shine forth completely both upon our petition and upon your gracious favor, and the awaited joys might be granted to the whole world. [And there might be made a commemoration...] And so, in the place, as it were, of rendering the honor of a greeting, we have directed to your Sanctity Theopompus, an illustrious man [vir illustris], count of the domestics, conducting the school of our sacred palace, faithful to us both for his own character and for that very affection of our native province; and also Severianus, a most distinguished man [vir clarissimus], count of our sacred consistory, who, attesting with their own voice the order of the letters, may summon to a swift course the things looked for, which we believe to have pleased the heavenly mercy as well. Given on the seventeenth day before the Kalends of August at Constantinople, Peter the most distinguished man [vir clarissimus] being consul.

ANASTASIUS AUGCSTUS HORMISDAE PAPAE. PER THEOPOMPUll ET 8EUER1ANITM uu. cc. Omnia, quae benignitas conceperit, animorum dulci ambitu et festinatione laudabili propagantur 10 nec sibi requiem putant posse praestari, donec ad efTectum saluberrimum desiderata perduxerint, et tunc quaedam ipsius festinationis fit requies, dum contigerit spes uotorum. quod 2 in praesenti nos certa ratione pertulimus, donec caelestis fauor et nosti*ae petitioni aditum et uestrae promissioni sercDum \b donet effectum. ergo quia uel maxima itineris longitudo uel 3 ultra solitum morem hiemalis asperitas, quod optabamus, nobis fecit incertum, interim intra animos nostros desiderata compressimus, beneficia diuina captantes, quae bonae exitus rei sua interpositione decidunt. agnoscentes igitur, quod eius 4 20 pietas primam nobis gratiam condonauit, ut missa legatio ad beatitudinem tuam feliciter remearet, ad secundam processimus, ut dirigeretur a nobis promissa legatio, per quam et comme- moratio fieret eorum, quae cum sanctissimis uiris longa deli- beratione contulimus, et item deo auspice tam nostrae peti- 25 tionis quam uestrae gratiae ad integrum lux serena desplendeat et toto orbi gaudia expectata donentur. commemorationis 5 111* Dat. Constantinopoli a, 516 die IC lul. per Theopompum et Setierianum. Edd. Car. I* 445; Bar. ad a. 516, 4; CoUect. Concil.; Thiel 764. 7 per Theopompum et Seuerinum u. c. (corr. Car.) mtnu- iiore charactere V 12 ait F, corr. o contingerit V, corr. p 14 au- ditum Bar, promissionis F, correxi 19 decidunt agnoscentes. Igitur maU Carafam secutua Thiel 22 dirigetur V, corr. o 24 item scripsi: idem F, eodem p*, inde Bar. 25 integrum a ante cor- rectionem: integram V et a corr, resplendeat Car. 26 toti Lahb. 504 Hormisda Anasfasio Augusto itaque loco uel salutationis honorem reddendo Theopompum uirum illustrem, comitem domesticorum, agentem sacri nostri palatii scolam, fidelem nobis uel pro suis moribus uel pro ipsa affectione genitalis nostrae prouinciae, sed et Seuerianum u. c. comitem sacri nostri consistorii ad uestram direjcimus sanctitatem, qui ordinem litterarum propria uoce testantes ad celeritatem spectata prouocent, quae etiam caelesti miseri- cordiae credimus placuisse. Data XVIL Kal. Aug. Constanti- nop. Petro u. c. cons.

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Anastasius Augustus to Pope Hormisdas, through Theopompus and Severianus, most distinguished men [vir clarissimus].

All things that benevolence has conceived are advanced with a sweet eagerness of spirit and with praiseworthy haste, nor do they suppose that any rest can be granted to them until they have carried the things desired through to a most wholesome effect; and then a certain rest from that very haste comes about, when the hope of one's prayers has been attained. This we in the present have endured for a sure reason, until the favor of heaven grants both an approach to our petition and a peaceful [literally: late-afternoon, serene] effect to your promise. Therefore, since either the very great length of the journey or the harshness of winter beyond the usual measure has rendered uncertain to us what we were wishing for, in the meantime we have kept the things desired pressed within our minds, seizing upon the divine favors, which by their interposition determine the outcomes of a good matter. Recognizing therefore that His mercy granted us the first grace, namely that the embassy that was sent should return happily to your Beatitude, we have proceeded to the second, that the promised embassy should be directed by us, through which there might both be made a commemoration of those things which we conferred upon with the most holy men in long deliberation, and likewise, with God as our guide, a serene light might shine forth completely both upon our petition and upon your gracious favor, and the awaited joys might be granted to the whole world. [And there might be made a commemoration...]

And so, in the place, as it were, of rendering the honor of a greeting, we have directed to your Sanctity Theopompus, an illustrious man [vir illustris], count of the domestics, conducting the school of our sacred palace, faithful to us both for his own character and for that very affection of our native province; and also Severianus, a most distinguished man [vir clarissimus], count of our sacred consistory, who, attesting with their own voice the order of the letters, may summon to a swift course the things looked for, which we believe to have pleased the heavenly mercy as well. Given on the seventeenth day before the Kalends of August at Constantinople, Peter the most distinguished man [vir clarissimus] being consul.

AI-assisted translation - This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.

Latin / Greek Original

ANASTASIUS AUGCSTUS HORMISDAE PAPAE. PER THEOPOMPUll
ET 8EUER1ANITM uu. cc. Omnia, quae benignitas conceperit, animorum dulci ambitu et festinatione laudabili propagantur
10 nec sibi requiem putant posse praestari, donec ad efTectum saluberrimum desiderata perduxerint, et tunc quaedam ipsius festinationis fit requies, dum contigerit spes uotorum. quod 2 in praesenti nos certa ratione pertulimus, donec caelestis fauor et nosti*ae petitioni aditum et uestrae promissioni sercDum
\b donet effectum. ergo quia uel maxima itineris longitudo uel 3 ultra solitum morem hiemalis asperitas, quod optabamus, nobis fecit incertum, interim intra animos nostros desiderata compressimus, beneficia diuina captantes, quae bonae exitus rei sua interpositione decidunt. agnoscentes igitur, quod eius 4
20 pietas primam nobis gratiam condonauit, ut missa legatio ad beatitudinem tuam feliciter remearet, ad secundam processimus, ut dirigeretur a nobis promissa legatio, per quam et comme- moratio fieret eorum, quae cum sanctissimis uiris longa deli- beratione contulimus, et item deo auspice tam nostrae peti-
25 tionis quam uestrae gratiae ad integrum lux serena desplendeat et toto orbi gaudia expectata donentur. commemorationis 5
111* Dat. Constantinopoli a, 516 die IC lul. per Theopompum et Setierianum. Edd. Car. I* 445; Bar. ad a. 516, 4; CoUect. Concil.; Thiel 764. 7 per Theopompum et Seuerinum u. c. (corr. Car.) mtnu- iiore charactere V 12 ait F, corr. o contingerit V, corr. p 14 au- ditum Bar, promissionis F, correxi 19 decidunt agnoscentes. Igitur maU Carafam secutua Thiel 22 dirigetur V, corr. o 24 item scripsi: idem F, eodem p*, inde Bar. 25 integrum a ante cor- rectionem: integram V et a corr, resplendeat Car. 26 toti
Lahb.
504
Hormisda Anasfasio Augusto
itaque loco uel salutationis honorem reddendo Theopompum uirum illustrem, comitem domesticorum, agentem sacri nostri palatii scolam, fidelem nobis uel pro suis moribus uel pro ipsa affectione genitalis nostrae prouinciae, sed et Seuerianum u. c. comitem sacri nostri consistorii ad uestram direjcimus sanctitatem, qui ordinem litterarum propria uoce testantes ad celeritatem spectata prouocent, quae etiam caelesti miseri- cordiae credimus placuisse. Data XVIL Kal. Aug. Constanti- nop. Petro u. c. cons.

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