Letter 47: Copy of the libellus of John, Bishop of Constantinople.

COPY OF THE LIBELLUS OF JOHN, BISHOP OF CONSTANTINOPLE. To my lord, in all things most holy and most blessed brother and fellow minister Hormisdas, John, greeting in the Lord. When the letters of your holiness were delivered to me, dearest brother in Christ, by Gratus the most distinguished count and now by Germanus and John the most reverend bishops, by Felix and Dioscorus the most holy deacons, and by Blandus the presbyter, I rejoiced at the spiritual love of your holiness, because you require the unity of the most holy churches of God according to the ancient tradition of the fathers, and you hasten in spirit to repel the manglers of the rational flock of Christ. Be assured therefore, most holy in all things, that, just as I wrote to you, thinking with you, together with you, in the truth, I too, loving peace, reject all the heretics repudiated by you. For I accept that the most holy churches of God, that is, of the elder Rome which is yours and of this newer one, are one; I define that the see of the apostle Peter and that of this august city are one; I assent to all things done by these holy four synods, that is, at Nicaea, Constantinople, Ephesus, and Chalcedon, concerning the confirmation of the faith and the standing of the church, and I suffer no wavering concerning the things well judged there; but I also know that those attempting or striving to disturb the decrees of these even to a single jot have lapsed from the holy general and apostolic church of God, and, openly making use of your rightly spoken words, I say these things through the present writing: that the first salvation is to keep the rule of right faith and in no way to deviate from the tradition of the fathers, because the saying of our Lord Jesus Christ cannot be passed over, who says: You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church. These things which have been said are proved by the outcomes of events, because in the apostolic see the catholic religion is always preserved inviolate. Therefore, desiring not to fall from this faith and following the fathers' decrees in all things, we anathematize all heresies, especially Nestorius the heretic, who was once bishop of the city of Constantinople, condemned in the council of Ephesus by the blessed Celestine, pope of the city of Rome, and by the venerable man Cyril, bishop of the city of Alexandria; and together with him we anathematize Eutyches and Dioscorus bishop of the city of Alexandria, condemned in the holy synod of Chalcedon, which we, venerating, follow and embrace, which, following the holy synod of Nicaea, preached the apostolic faith. Joining to these, we anathematize Timothy the parricide surnamed Aelurus, likewise condemning his disciple and follower in all things Peter of Alexandria; we likewise anathematize Acacius, once bishop of the city of Constantinople, made their accomplice and follower, and also those persevering in their communion and participation: for of whomever of them anyone embraces the communion, he obtains also a like adjudication of them in condemnation. In like manner, condemning also Peter of Antioch, we anathematize him with his followers and all those written above. Whence we approve and embrace all the letters of the blessed Leo, pope of the city of Rome, which he wrote concerning the right faith. Wherefore, as we have said before, following in all things the apostolic see, we also proclaim all things which have been decreed by it, and therefore I hope that I shall be in one communion with you, which the apostolic see proclaims, in which is the entire and perfect solidity of the Christian religion, promising in the time to come that those separated from the communion of the catholic church, that is, those not consenting in all things to the apostolic see, their names are not to be recited among the sacred mysteries. But if in anything I should attempt to deviate from my profession, I profess myself by my own condemnation to be a partner of those whom I have condemned. To this profession I have subscribed with my own hand and have directed it through rescripts to you, Hormisdas, the holy and most blessed brother and pope of great Rome, through the above-written Germanus and John the venerable bishops, and Felix and Dioscorus the deacons, and Blandus the presbyter. And in another hand: I, John, by the mercy of God bishop of the new Rome of Constantinople, consenting by this my profession to all the things said above, have subscribed, sound in the Lord. Pray for us, most holy and most blessed brother. Given in the month of March, on the twenty-eighth day, in the twelfth indiction, at Constantinople, in the consulship of the lord Justin perpetual Augustus and of Eutharic, most distinguished man.

EIEMPLUJI LIBELLl lOHANNIS EPISCOPI CONSTANTINOPOLITANI. DOIINO MEO PER OMNIA SANCTISSIMO ET BEATISSIMO FRATRI ET COIMINISTRATORI H0BMI8DAE lOHANNES IN DOMINO 8ALUTEM. Ecd- ditis mihi litteris uestrae sanctitatis, in Christo frater karis- 15 sime, per Gratum clarissimum comitem et nunc per Germanum et lohannem reuerentissimos episcopos, Pelicem et Dioscorum sanctissimos diaconos et Blandum presbyterum laetatus sum de spiritali caritate uestrae sanctitatis, quod unitatem sanctis- simarum dei ecclesiarum secundum ueterem patrum requiris 2 suseptum V 159« Libellus subscriptus a. 519 die 28 Mart., Eomam missus die 22 Apr. (simul cum epp. 160—165, 167, 223) per Pullionem; accepta 4ie 19 lunii. Edd. Car. P 491; Bar. ad a. 519, 48; Collect. Concil. iam indc a Merlino; Thiel 852. Praeter Auellanam extat in coUectione Hispana (ed. Gonzalez II n. 88 p. 144), unde transiit in Pseudoisidorianam (p. 688 ed. Hinschius, qui ta^neti, ut sokt in epistulis genuinis, non codicum Pseudoisidori textum obfert sed editionis GonzaleHi): Hisp. = consemus editionis Gonzalezii (= Gonz.) et codicum i (i^ = Uatic. 1341, i^ = Uatic. 630, i^ = Uatic. 3791)- U sqq. Exemplum . . Kedditis V: Epistola siue libellus iidei loannis Con- stantinopolitani episcopi de graeco in latinum translata directa ad sanctum Hormisdam papam urbis Roniae in qua anathematizat Nesto- rium atque Eutichetem reliquorumque haereticorum blasphemias. Redditis Hisp. 16 reuerendissimos Gonz. episcopos et Felicem Hisp. XXXY para 2. 39 608 Libellus lohaimis Constantinopolitam traditionem et laceratores rationabilis gregis Christi animo 2 repulsare festinas. certus igitur scito, per omnia sanctissime, quia secundum quod uobis scripsi tua tecum in ueritate sentiens omnes a te repudiatos baereticos renuo et ego pacem diligens. sanctissimas enim dei ecclesias, id est superioris & uestrae et nouellae istius Bomae, unam esse accipio; illam sedem apostoli Petri et istius augustae ciuitatis unam esse definio ; omnibus actis a sanctis istis quattuor synodis, id est Nicaeae Constantinopoli et Ephesi et Chalcedone, de confir- matione fidei et statu ecclesiae adsentio et nihil titubare de lo bene iudicatis patior sed et conantes aut enisos usque ad unum apicem placita <ea>rum perturbare lapsos esse a sancta dei generali et apostolica ecclesia scio et tuis uerbis recte 3 dictis euidenter utens per praesentia scripta haec dico, quia prima salus est rectae fidei regulam custodire et a patrum i& traditione nullatenus deuiare, quia non potest domini nostri lesu Christi praetermitti sententia dicentis: tu es Petrus et super hanc petram aedificabo ecclesiam meam, haec quae dicta sunt, rerum probantur eflFectibus, quia in sede apostolica inuiolabilis semper catholica custoditur religio. » 4 de hac igitur fide non cadere cupientes et patrum sequentes in omnibus constituta anathematizamus omnes haereses, prae- cipue Nestorium haereticum, qui quondam Constantinopolitanae urbis fuit episcopus, damnatum in concilio Epheseno a beato 3 lohannis Cpolitani ep. 146 § 3 (p. 592, 1) 17 Matth. 16, 18 1 dilaceratores Hi»p. rationabilis gregis Vi: a rationalibus gregibus Gom. animo repulsare V: amore pulsare Hisp, 3 tua (una Car.) tecum cum (in corr, Coust.) V, cf. p. 592, 1: tecum Hisp. 4 ren- nuo V 5 superiori V 7 ciuitatis ex siuitatis V 8 sanctis istis V: or sanctissimis Hisp. nu F 9 nichenf constantinopoll et ephesi et chalcedone V, nicena constantinopoli et ephesi et calcidone t, carreai: Nicaena Constantinopolitana Ephesina et Chalcedonensi G<mz, 10 fidei et statu Gom.: fidci statu F, fidei (fide i*} instituta i assentior Bar. 12 placita earum scripsi: placiturum V Gom., placitorum i 15 recte V 21 fidg V et VHisp,: sed Thiel 23 condam V 24 fuit om. V damnatum Vi: damnatus Gonz, Ephesino Hisp, Epist. CLIX 2—6. 609 Caelestino papa urbis Romae et a uenerabili uiro Cyrillo episcopo Alexandrinae ciuitatis, et una cum illo anathemati- zamus Eutychen et Dioscorum Alexandrinae ciuitatis episcopum damnatos in sancta synodo Chalcedonensi, quam uenerantes sequimur et amplectimur, quae sequens sanctam synodum Nicaenam apostolicam fidem praedicauit. his coniungentes ^ Timotheum parricidam Elurum cognominatum anathematizamus et huius discipulum et sequacem in omnibus Petrum Alexan- drinum similiter condemnantes, anathematizamus similiter Acacium quondam Constantinopolitanae urbis episcopum com- plicem eorum et sequacem factum nec non et perseuerantes eorum communioni et participationi : quorum enim quis eorum communionem amplectitur, eorum et similem adiudicationem in condemnatione consequitur. simili modo et Petiiim Anti- ochenum condemnantes anathematizamus cum sequacibus suis et omnibus supra scriptis. unde probamus et amplectimur epi- 6 stolas omnes beati Leonis papae urbis Bomae, quas con- scripsit de recta fide. quapropter, sicut praediximus, sequentes in omnibus sedem apostolicam et praedicamus omnia, quae ab ipsa decreta sunt, et propterea spero in una communione uobiscum, quam apostolica sedes praedicat, me futurum, in qna est integra Christianae religionis et perfecta soliditas, promittens in sequenti tempore sequestratos a communione ecclesiae catholicae, id est in omnibus non consentientes sedi apostolicae, eorum nomina inter sacra non recitanda esse mysteria. quod si in aliquo a professione mea deuiare tempta- 39* 610 lustinus Augustus Hormisdae uero, his quos condemnaui et per condemnationem propriam 7 consortem me esse profiteor. huic uero professioni subscripsi mea manu et direxi per rescripta tibi Hormisdae sancto et beatissimo fratri et papae magnae Komae per supra scriptos Germanum et lohannem uenerabiles episcopos et Pelicem et s 8 Dioscorum diaconos et Blandum presbyterum. et alia mant : lohannes misericordia dei episcopus Constantinopolitanae nouellae Bomae hac mea professione consentiens omnibus supra dictis subscripsi sanus in domino. ora pro nobis, sanctis- sime et beatissime frater. Data mense Martio die XXVIII. lo indict. XII. Constantinopoli domno lustino perpetuo Augusto et Eutharico u. c. conss.