Letter 46: Severus urges the clergy of Antaradus to nominate three suitable episcopal candidates without factional pressure.

The clergy of Antaradus have petitioned Severus about two matters: the need for a shepherd to be nominated for them, and church property or rights unjustly detained by others. Severus says he has considered both according to the canons and the laws of the Spirit. Their first duty is to move promptly toward a lawful episcopal nomination, not to let disorder linger under the cover of grievance. He tells them to insert three suitable men in a formal psephisma [a written vote or nomination]. The candidates must be known for sound faith, good conduct, freedom from greed, and ability to rule the church without being ruled by factions. The clergy must not choose from resentment, favoritism, or pressure. Nor should they confuse the need to recover the church's rights with the separate duty of finding a shepherd. Both causes may be just, but each must be handled in its proper order. Severus' tone is firm because he sees episcopal vacancy as dangerous. A church without a shepherd becomes exposed to opportunists, quarrels, and people who use property disputes to distract from spiritual care. Still, he frames the clergy's action as a ministry entrusted by God. If they act lawfully and without passion, they will not merely win a local dispute; they will take part in the Spirit's work of giving the church a bishop able to guard its people and its goods. Severus also separates urgency from haste. The clergy must act at once, but they must not act as a crowd driven by injury or impatience. A true nomination requires names that can bear scrutiny, because the next bishop will inherit not only a title but a wounded local church.

When I had read your devoutnesses' petitions con- cerning the necessity of a shepherd being nominated for you,^ in accordance with the precepts of the holy canons and the laws of the Spirit, and concerning the articles that belong of right to your holy church, but are unreasonably and unjustly detained by others, after giving due consideration to the whole matter I thought it right to refer the whole case - to our serene Christ- loving king and his pious ears. For it is from him after God that we receive useful and satisfactory assist- ance in difficult affairs. Wherefore it is your duty at once to insert in a psephisma three men well-known for virtue and capable of being entrusted with a rational leadership of this kind, in order that we may choose the man who stands highest in these respects, and confer ^ Cf. Mansi viii. 1075. " ^'''"o'^eo't?. ordination upon him; or rather present him for the inspiration of the Spirit: for the choice and judgment and bestowal in such matters are from above: since in fact "every good bestowal and every perfect gift is from above, cominsf down from the Father of liofhts,"^ as the sacred scripture somewhere says. Let this be both considered and performed in this way, and may it be brought to a good end by God! Whereas the devout deacon Stephen has just presented petitions to me and informed me that Leontius, who has lived an unhallowed life, but was improperly admitted to ordina- tion as deacon, as if setting himself to act in accordance with his former life, contracted a second marriage after ordination, and after this was by the bishop's judgment struck out of the sacred tablets, and as an indulgence was allowed to minister again, but now wishes to retain deacon's rank and claims to be made head over the others, though he oucrht not to be ranked even amono- those that are under a head, how can we neolect the intimation that has been given us, and close our ears to such audacious deeds on his part? Even if it is the case that, while your holy church was without anyone to act as shepherd, the man who then held the post of arch- deacon by a presumptuous action enrolled him in the order of deacons, this action is already in every way in- valid. This man ought therefore to stand entirely out- side the ministry, and to feel the sins that he has com- mitted, and to concrratulate himself that he does not Q^ain 1 Ja. i. 1 7. experience of some canonical punishment; not go on further to desire the headship that it is no way proper for him to hold. But the first position in the order of religious deacons shall be held by those who are summoned from amonof the members of the order. For the present this is the conclusion at which we have arrived: but, if Leontius thinks that he has any right - founded upon the canons that may help him, let him inform the apostolic see of this; and the fact of the accusation will not do him any harm whatever, if he have truth on his side. If he was conscious of guilt even on one count ^ only of those that were related to us, he oucrht, he ouoht indeed to have restricted him- self to a modest and humble demeanour, and thought of Him who said by Jeremiah the prophet, " ' Hear these things, foolish people and without understanding, which have eyes and see not, and have ears and hear not! or will ye not fear me,' saith the Lord, 'and will ye not tremble at my face, which have placed the sand as a bound for the sea, an everlasting decree, and it shall not pass it.-^ ' " "■ However for our part we feared for his sake owing to the terrible nature of the reports, and were unable to remain silent in such circumstances. And, since the church ministry "requires blameless- ness,"^ we decided that he should cease to exercise this, in order that we might not seem even to ourselves by acquiescing in the sins that he committed and the deeds that he thought good to do, to be by our silence actually 1 K€<j>d\aiov. 2 Jer. V. 21, 22. 2 Mansi ii. 672. approving' the evil thing, and apply to ourselves the words spoken by God to the same prophet, " A wonder and a horror has happened upon the earth; the prophets prophesy falsehood, and the priests clapped their hands." ^ But, since we are always desirous of arriving- at the truth, and we know that the maofnificent Christ-lovino count John is very desirous of this, we have written to his magnificence to examine into the true state of the case, and notify our meanness of it. For in everything let truth and justice be respected; while at the same time the honour of the holy church is preserved, and the ministry has the reverence assigned to it which is its by right, especially by those to whom this ministry - has been committed, through the benignance and in- effable erace of God.