Letter 29: Ewald 2 ammonit. C* C,, amonit.

[The transmitted text is a critical edition consisting mostly of the modern editor's Latin apparatus and notes surrounding the genuine letter of Pelagius I; the variant-reading sigla lists (e.g. "Ewald 2 ammonit. C... amonit.", "exortatione Cg C3 C4 omitat C...", "lucerne Cg C4...") are not prose and are noted here only as [apparatus: manuscript variant readings].] [Editorial heading-note:] A. Thiel, in his work, p. 484, attributed our letter, which he took from S. Baluze, in his work, p. 1, together with the manuscripts of the Collection of Saragossa, to Gelasius. In favor of a genuine Pelagian origin there argue both the inclusion of this same letter among other letters which are certainly our pontiff's, and the allusion to Novella 123, 3, which Justinian issued on the first of May in the year 546; see what is said below on section 2. The defensor Dulcius of this letter is perhaps that Dulcitius of letter 12, whom Pelagius there sharply rebukes. Nonetheless, since the city of Lucera is situated in Apulia, and since we know a certain Lucius, defensor of Apulia, in letter 64, 1, it seems rather to be approved that the name is Dulcius, inasmuch as it stands less far from Lucius than Dulcitius does. For I think a corruption of a single "Dulcii" into "Lucium" more likely than of "Dulcitii" into "Dulcium" and finally into "Lucium." For that reason I have kept the reading of the manuscripts. I have written to the same effect above in letter 12, p. 41. For nothing prevents, as I reckon, two or more defensors, of closely similar name, from having been present in one and the same province in the time of Pelagius. [Note on section 1:] "Your Experience": a title proper to defensors and notaries. Compare P. Koch, in his work, p. 114. "To Aemilianus, master of soldiers": from this single source is this Aemilianus known to us; the same is to be said of Constantinus the judge and of Ampelius, who for some reason or other was a most distinguished man [vir magnificus]. The office of master of soldiers was at the beginning the supreme authority over the soldiers in the empire; but from the Gothic War onward the commanders who had fought in that very war obtained that title. Probably they were merely vacant titles, for at that time no one actually held that office in Italy in fact. Compare E. Stein, History..., p. 430, n. 3; 613; 615. By reason of the magistracy of soldiers the epithet "illustrious" befitted him, but the distinction between the two titles, namely "most distinguished" [magnificus] and "illustrious" [illustris], had not yet been made entirely [… the note continues after the inserted letter-fragment]. [Letter text, section 2:] ...let him not omit to say to Ampelius, at our exhortation: Behold, just as the desire of Your Greatness has demanded, without any delay and without any expense -- in such a way that we did not even allow the customary fees themselves to be given to the ecclesiastical offices -- we have ordained Anastasius the deacon [the aforementioned] of the city of Lucera a priest. [Note on section 2:] "Your Greatness": P. Koch, in his work, p. 114, was deceived in supposing that these words still refer to Dulcius; for the title "Greatness" is foreign to a defensor. From the arrangement of the text it is plain how all those things which the pope says in section 2 are to be interpreted. To the most distinguished men, mentioned above, the titles "Your Greatness" and "Your Magnificence" (a little below) are suited. "that we did not even allow the customary fees to be given to the ecclesiastical offices": he alludes to those things which it had been customary to give, by a newly ordained bishop, to the prelates who took part in his ordination and to the clergy, for enthronement-fees, as Justinian later spoke of them (Novella 123, ch. 3) ... To which law Gelasius now seems to be a forerunner ... (A. Thiel, in his work, p. 484, n. 3). However, the matter seems to me much more consistent if it is not Gelasius who anticipates the imperial laws by 50 years in his letters, but rather Pelagius, who knew the legislation of his time excellently, who is in accord with the emperor's law, which had been issued only 13 years before. He could well have known this law at Constantinople in the years from the end of 548 (-547 at the beginning), and 551-555. To these add another indication. These payments of money, of which the present letter treats, in the cited text of Novella 123, 3 also go by the name of cathedraticum. This sense of that word is little removed from that meaning in which Pelagius uses it (letters 25; 32), whereas in Gelasius -- J-K. 710 (A. Thiel, in his work, fragment 20, p. 494-495), as Thiel himself confesses -- it seems to sound somewhat otherwise. And so I am persuaded that this agreement with Novella 123, of the first of May in the year 546, favors much more the Pelagian origin of this letter than the authorship of Gelasius. "Anastasius the deacon... of the city of Lucera": this Anastasius, consecrated bishop of the church of Lucera, is known from these letters alone. As to the see of Lucera, in Apulia, compare F. Lanzoni, in his work, p. 210-211, P. Testini, "Lucera," in the Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. VII, cols. 1616-1617. [Heading:] OF POPE PELAGIUS I [Letter text, section 3:] Therefore now let Your Magnificence willingly expend on all the needs of the same bishop or of the church of Lucera that are necessary, and by the competence of his vigilance let him grant comforts with Christian devotion. [Note on section 3:] "Your Magnificence": compare above, and P. Koch, in his work, p. 118-119; M. Bonnet, in his work, p. 46-47; 162-163; 166. [Editorial regest:] He instructs the patrician Decoratus to impose the rendering of an oath, for the purpose of discerning the truth of a certain case.

Ewald 2 ammonit. C* C,, amonit. C« 3 emiliano C Tit. A. ThiEl, 0 . c., p. 484, epistulam nostram, quam ex S. Bai^uze, O . c., p. 1 desumpsit, cum codd. Coli. Caesaraugustanae Gelasio tribuit. Pro genuina Pelagiana origine pugnant, tum inclusio eiusdem inter alias litte¬ ras, quae certo nostri pontificis sunt, tum adlusio ad Nov., 123,3, quam die 1 maii a. 546 tulit Justinianus; Videas quae infra ad § 2 dicuntur. — Defensor Dulcius huius epistulae forsitan sit ille Dulcitius ep. 12, quem ibi acriter reprehendit Pelagius. Nihilo minus, cum urbs Lucerina posita sit in Apulia, et quendam noverimus in ep. 64,1 Lucium defensorem Apulensem, potius videtur probandum Dulcii nomen, quippe quod a Lucio minus quam Dulcitius distet. Veri similiorem enim opinor corruptionem unius Dulcii. in Lucium, quam Dulcitii in Dulcium et tandem in Lucium. Propterea codd. lectionem servavi. In eundem sensum scripsi supra in ep. 12, p. 41. Nihil enim vetat, ut reor, ne duo aiit plures defensores, nomine consimiles, in una eademque provincia tempore Pelagii adfuissent. 1. Experientia tua: Titulus defensorum et notariorum proprius. Cf. P. Koch, 0 . c., p. 114. Aemiliano magistro militum: Hoc uno fonte est nobis Aemilianus iste cognitus; idem dicendum de Constantino indice et de Ampelio, qui nescio qua causa vir magnificus erat. Magistri militum munus fuit initio summa militum auctoritas in imperio; sed exiiide a Bello Gothico duces, qui in ipso pugnaverant, titulum illum adepti sunt. Probabiliter erant modo vacantes, nam tunc temporis nemo re ipsa id munus in Italia obibat. Cf. B. STEIn, Histoire ..., p. 430, n. 3; 613; 615. Ratione magistratus militum illi inlustris epithetum congruebat, sed nondum factum omnino erat discri- Ampelio ex nostra exhortatione dicere non omittat; Ecce, sicut 2 magnitudinis uestrae desiderium postulauit, sine mora aliqua et sine ullo dispendio, ita ut nec ipsas dare officiis ecclesiasticis con¬ suetudines sineremus, Anastasium diaconwm [memoratum] Lu¬ cerinae ciuitatis ordinauimus sacerdotem. Propterea nunc magni- 3 exortatione Cg C 3 C 4 omitat C, 6 officiis eccles.] B : eccles. officiis C 7 anas¬ tasium] om. B diaconem Cg, diachonem C, om. B memoratum] om. C: (pro anastasium quod om.) B 8 -cerne C 3 C 4 ciuitatis] B Cg: ciuitati C men inter utrumque titulum, magnifici et inlustris videlicet. Cf. supra notulas in ep. 23,4, p. 71. Quoad magisterium militum, cf. praeterea notulas in tit. epp. 31; 55;65, p. 87; 144; 174; R. Q:a.Gna.^, Magister ... militiae, in Daremherg-Saglio, t. III, 2, p. 1526; Th. MommSEN, Ostgotische Studien, l. c., p. 455; 457-458; 468; 472; 497-498; 505-508; 510-511; 537-542; Idem, Nach- trage..., l. c., p. 185; B. STEIn, Histoire..., p. 40; 46-49; 117, n. 2; 263; 749; 797, et passim (cf. indices, p. 882»-883^). — Constantinus magnifici titulo donabatur probabiliter ob munus iudicis, quod gerebat. Cf. adno- tationes in ep. 21,1, p. 62. 2. magnitudinis uestrae: P. Koch, 0 . c., p. 114, deceptus est opinans haec verba adhuc ad Dulcium spectare; magnitudinis enim titulus a de¬ fensore est alienus. Bx textus dispositione patet quo modo interpretanda sunt illa omnia quae in § 2 loquitur papa. Viris magnificis, de quibus supra, conveniunt magnitudinis uestrae et magnificentiae uestrae (paulo infra) tituli. nec ipsas dare ecclesiasticis officiis consuetudines: Adludit ad ea, quae ah episcopo ordinato praesulibus, qui ordinationi ipsius interfuerunt atque clericis, dari consueverat pro inthronisticis, ut postea locutus est lusti- nianus (Nov., 123, c. 3) ... Cui legi nunc Gelasius videtur praeludere ... (A. THiEiy, 0 . c., p. 484, n. 3). Attamen, res multo magis consentanea mihi videtur, si non Gelasius sit, qui suis litteris praecurrat annis 50 leges imperiales; sed potius Pelagius, qui optime temporis legislationem noverat, consonet imperatoris legi, quae modo 13 ante annos lata fuerat. Hanc ipse Constantinopoli aa. 548 ex.-547 in.; 551-555, bene nosse potuit His aliud indi¬ cium adde. Hae pecuniae solutiones, de quibus praesens epistula, in adlegato textu Nov., 123,3 etiam nomine cathedratici veniunt. Haec significatio vocis istius parum abest a sensu illo quo ea (epp. 25; 32) Pelagius utitur, dum apud Gelasium: J-K. 710 (A. Thiee, 0 . c., fragm. 20, p. 494-495), sicut ipse Thiel fatetur, aliud quid videtur sonare. Itaque mihi persuasum est, hanc con¬ gruentiam cum Nov., 123, diei 1 maii a. 546, multo magis Pelagianae origini harum litterarum favere, quam auctoritati Gelasii. Anastasium diaconum... Lucerinae ciuitatis: Hic Anastasius, sacratus episcopus ecclesiae Lucerinae, his solis litteris est notus. Quoad Lucerinam sedem, in Apulia, cf. F. Lanzoni, 0 . c., p. 21^-211', P. Testini, Lucera, in Enc. CattoL, t. VH, c. 1616-1617. PEI^AGII I PAPAE ficentia uestra eiusdem episcopi uel ecclesiae Lucerinae utilitatibus 10 [in] uniuersis, quae sunt necessaria, libenter impendat, et compe¬ tentia uigilantiae suae tribuat christiana deuotione solacia. lucerne Cg C 4 10 in] om. B conpe- C 4 , compo- Ci, cum ,po- C^. 3. magnificentiae uestrae; Cf. supra, et P. Koch, 0 . c., p. 118-119; M. BamcET, 0 . c„ p. 46-47; 162-163; 166. Patricio Decorato praecipit, ut iuramenti praestationem imponat ad cuiusdam veritatis causam dinoscendam.