Letter 73: Severus seeks Dioscorus' judgment before receiving bishops who anathematize Chalcedon and Leo's Tome.

Severus writes to Dioscorus of Alexandria while Dioscorus is sending an embassy to the royal city. They may be separated in body, but Severus says they remain joined in spirit. He prays that God will incline the pious king's heart toward Dioscorus' words, rescue Alexandria from the anger threatening it, and allow Dioscorus time to shepherd his flock in peace. The immediate issue is church union. Soteric, who presides over the bishops of First Cappadocia, wants to unite with Severus' communion, and the bishops of Second Cappadocia share that intention. They are willing to confess the orthodox faith and anathematize Chalcedon, Leo's Tome, and language about two natures after the union. Severus remembers precedents from Timothy, but he does not want to decide without counsel. He asks Dioscorus to say plainly what should be done, and he promises to follow that judgment. Severus also rejoices that Dioscorus handled communion with Castor of Perga carefully, teaching him to guard the sound faith with all attention. Right belief is not enough if a person treats communion with opponents as nothing. Basil's warning to Urbicius proves the point: fellowship with heretics weakens boldness before Christ. Without love, Paul says he is like sounding brass; but Severus applies the image to doctrinal indifference as well. A person who believes rightly while making adverse communion seem harmless has lost the sound of true faith.

Even when the brotherly person of your love of God is sending an embassy to the royal among cities, we are not separated from you in spirit: but we lift up to God hands that are not holy, but are much paralysed by sins; yet still we lift them up and entreat Him, who holds in His hand the hearts of those that are held like rushing water, to incline our serene king's pious soul to compliance, and bestow grace upon your words, in order that you may obtain all that your mind desires, and rescue the Christ- loving city of the Alexandrines from the wrath that threatens it, while time is granted you to feed your p. 291. flock by " the water of stillness."^ When this has been brought to pass, we will again offer prayers of thanks- giving to Christ the Saviour of all and God, and will rejoice, and rejoice together with you at seeing by actual deeds themselves that our Lord is near and that He cares for us, so that even those who are out- side our communion will say when they have seen Is. xi. 9. - Ps. xxii. 2. these things, "Truly God is among you," This fact also we reckon to be a part of such graciousness towards us, that the God-loving bishop Soteric who is placed at the head of the God-loving bishops of First Cappadocia should wish to unite with us, and should put forward propositions ^ by means of which we ought to draw those who are in the royal city also to lawful conjunction, and the God-loving bishops of Second Cappadocia also are associated with him in such a purpose. Accordingly I have thought right to inform your sanctity, in order that by common consultation we may decide upon what ought to be done. They say that we ought to receive them upon their giving us satisfaction ^ up to this point, I mean up to the point of confessing the orthodox faith and anathema- tizing the things done at Chalcedon and the impious Tome of Leo, who was head of the church of the Romans (would he had never been so!), and those p 292. who speak of two natures after the union and the energies and properties of these. We are by no means unaware that Timothy of holy memory, who lived in toils and labours of piety, in so far as to dwell in exile, and reckon it a pleasure to suffer for Christ, on his return thence under the Encyclical letter which had this effect, received to communion those who were separated upon their anathematizing what was wrongfully done at Chalcedon, and the impious Tome of Leo; but, since we must do all 7rpoTao-€is. ^ TrXrjpoffiopLa. things with deliberation, and support ourselves by brotherly counsels, therefore we have referred the consideration of this matter to your sanctity, in order that you may immediately inform us of your opinion. For it is manifest that we will do those thingrs which you judge to be proper. When we also received the sacred letter of your holiness from Pamphylia, we rejoiced at learning at the same time how you had also in scrupulous fashion and with consideration and in the manner that became you joined the God-loving Castor bishop of the metropolis of Perga in the conduct of the mysterious service, and had com- municated with him in the divine mysteries, teaching him by what you did to keep the possession of the sound faith "with all observance,"^ and to hold the beginning of our stability firm unto the end, as Paul says in his epistle to the Hebrews.^ This will more especially be the case if they keep themselves free from association in communion with those of contrary p. 293. opinions. Of this I for my part bore testimony to the Cappadocians also, reminding them moreover of the patristic law. For Basil of saintly memory in an epistle to a certain Urbicius who was a monk at that time wrote in the same strain: " We beo- therefore o that these things receive ecclesiastical correction, and that you hold aloof from communion with the heretics, knowing as you do that indifference in these things takes away from the boldness before Christ."^ In ^ Pr. iv. 23. 2 He. iii. 14. ^ Ep. 262. 2. fact, to Speak the truth, if a man believe rightly, but reckon association with adversaries as nothing, it is time for him to say like Paul, " I am become sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal