Letter 101: Severus says Pelagius must be disciplined for disturbing the monks and that Nonnus should have handled the case.

Severus writes to Nonnus about Pelagius, whose conduct has become a public wound. Pelagius ignored gentle summonses, refused to answer accusations, and then exposed himself by his own crooked defense before the count of the East and the bishop's house. Severus says the case no longer depends on private suspicion. Pelagius' own words and actions have supplied the evidence of contempt, disturbance, and spiritual danger. The punishment is carefully measured. Pelagius is judged unworthy to live in the monastery by the chapel of the apostle Thomas in Seleucia, because he keeps disturbing the brethren. For the moment he is to be placed elsewhere as discipline for his sins. Severus is especially angered that Pelagius brought in a brother who would not enter the church, used him as a prop for his own disorder, and turned the memory of Epiphanius into a tool for confusing simple monks. What was granted as indulgence was never meant to rebuild impiety. Severus then explains the principle behind the ruling. Concessions are given because people are weak; they are not licenses to make weakness permanent. Israel was once allowed sacrifices because of imperfection, but that did not mean the people should return to demon-worship. Early Jewish believers might be circumcised for a time, but that did not make the shadow stronger than the truth. In the same way, Pelagius must not use mercy as material for disorder. The last rebuke falls on Nonnus himself. The superintendence of the monastery has now been settled in writing, with the count present, so that future seeds of division can be removed. But Severus tells Nonnus plainly that he should have arranged these things first. A bishop should not leave this kind of monastic disorder to be cleaned up by an overburdened exile. The letter is a stern example of Severus' pastoral discipline: mercy remains possible, but only when it stops feeding confusion and begins to restore order. Severus also makes clear that Pelagius' case cannot be solved by sentiment. A monk who will not answer correction, who gathers allies against the church, and who uses previous acts of mercy as leverage against discipline has stopped behaving like a penitent. Nonnus therefore has to act as bishop, not as a spectator. The ordered transfer of Pelagius is meant to protect the community, expose the false defense, and leave room for future repentance without allowing the monastery itself to become a stage for rebellion.

Be it known to your love of God that Pelagius, having been afflicted with disdain of the divine laws of the Spirit, and having disobeyed our summons which very gently summoned him, because he was not conscious in himself of any soundness, and could not make a defence to the accusations against him, derived so much benefit from his ggreat presumption that he obtained many further witnesses to his own audacity and impiety. He was in fact required to give account or be tried for what he had done before the glorious count of the East, who was present in the honourable bishop's house,^ and he did not need the expressions of his accusers, or any witnesses: but by his own words he was convicted of trying to make a defence in a crooked and crafty manner. For truly speaks the 1 Sic. eTTlCTKOTrClOV, sacred text which says, " He that is incautious with his Hps being perverse shall be tripped up ": ^ and again, "A fool's lips lead him to evil things, and his presumptuous mouth calleth down death upon him.""^ Our Lord and God and Saviour Jesus Christ Himself also, who uttered these words and words like them in those that said them, says in the Gospels, " Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh," and, " The evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth and putteth out evil things."^ Not to make many words, he was shown to be liable to many punish- ments: but by reason of the clemency to which the aforesaid glorious count of the East also as well as my meanness was by inclination disposed, he was adjudged indeed to be wholly unworthy to reside in the holy monastery situated by the chapel-house of the glorious apostle Thomas in the city of the Seleucenes, because he sows disturbances amongf the brethren: but for the present as a discipline for his sins to live for a short time in any monastery that we please. For he has not ceased sinning against the brethren as the Apostle says * and wounding their consciences, and so injuring Christ, to whom every sin that is sinned reaches, since in graciousness He makes our afflictions His own. How was it anything but shameful that he should bring his brother into the monastery, who is a Nestorian and will not consent^ to set foot even in the 1 Pr. X. 8. 2 /^ xviii. 9. ^ Mt. xii. 34, 35. * I Co. viii. 12. ^ We rather require "is not fit". VII. 4- outer court of the holy church or on the path to it, and admit him to be recgived by him; and further in the case of a man who was formerly a solitary, who is stained with the hateful belief of Nestorius, and calls our one Lord and God Jesus Christ two natures after the divine and ineffable union, and was reproved and after the reproof said, " It is the same thing- for us to speak of two natures and of one incarnate nature of God the Word," not only admitted him to entrance into the monastery, but even to give the divine com- munion to the brethren? And how could it be tolerable to those who know how to give right judgments that, while the commemoration of Epiphanius is allowed as - an indulgence by me, he should take this man as a support for his own wickedness, and should in psalms and hymns of praise call one who has been admitted to indulgence a theologian, insomuch as to put down a certain small jug or flask and say, " It is a relic of the holy Epiphanius," and use this turbid filth, as the prophetic text says,^ to give drink to the rational sheep? Not to prolong the letter by citing every one of the facts established by examination, by committing these and like sins he was shown to be drawing into his own impiety those of the brethren also who are specially simple and have specially rustic minds. The archimandrite also of the monastery that has been often mentioned fell under ggreat blame for keeping- silent on these matters, and closing his eyes, as the 1 Eze. xxxix. 19. 25 saying is: and, had it not been that I and the glorious count of the East yielded to his white hairs and advanced old age, and he recgived forgiveness, he would perhaps have been taught to be watchful in the case of sins directed against God. For it is written, " If a man sin against a man, they shall pray for him: but, if he sin against God, who shall pray for him? " ^ For this reason we also, being concerned for the con- science of the brethren, and desiring to give no entrance to impiety, have disallowed what was previously per- mitted as an indulgence, I mean the commemoration or - mention of Epiphanius. It was also resolved that the progravi7na or superscription of the faith should be put up before the gate, after the model of the other monasteries of the orthodox, on account of Him who said " What I tell you in the darkness speak in the light; and what ye hear in the ear preach upon the housetops." " For that which He when He had become man for reasons of expediency delivered in quiet, and to few in number, speaking to His disciples, this He ordered to be clearly preached throughout the world. The reason that a man obtains an indulofence and a concession is not that he may by means of it rebuild the impiety, but that he may by gradual ascent in- crease the strictness of his practice. In this way, after God had allowed the sons of Israel, who had been brought from heathen denseness, the sacrifices through "the blood of bulls and goats," as the Apostle 1 I R. ii. 25. 2 Mt. X. 27. VII. 4- says/ men like David the prophet, advancing towards knowledge, said, "In burnt-offerings thou delightedst not; a sacrifice unto God is a broken spirit."^ The apostles also, after having allowed circumcision to those who believed from among the Jews, after these things, when the preaching of religion had advanced further, said and taught and wrote in their epistles, " Ye who are justified by law have fallen from grace": and, *' If I yet preach circumcision, why am I again - persecuted?"^: and, "Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples which neither we nor our fathers were able to bear? " * These things were carried into effect; and those who recgived the concession that was allowed on account of imperfection forgot this, and pressed on to per- fection: and neither did the true Israelites lapse into demon-worship because of the indulgence of sacrifices, nor did those who believed among the Jews in the beginning and were circumcised recur to the shadowy worship. Therefore, these things being so, the matter of the superintendence of the monastery too was ordered and settled in writing, the magnificent count of the East also being present, in order that the seeds of all disunion may be removed from before the feet: against which we urge your holiness also to keep a watchful mind, and not suffer anything of the kind to 1 He. X. 4. - Ps. 1. 18, 19. 3 Ga. V. 4, II. ^ Ac. XV. happen henceforth,.in the same holy monastery. All the devout brethren were charged with thgreats both by me and by the glorious count of the East not to bring forward any matter tending to disturbance or confusion unsuited to solitaries, but to be subject to their religious archimandrite, and in all things to think, say, and do what is in harmony with the orthodox faith and with the solitary life. But, if they do anything contrary to these things, they must no longer expect the castigation suited to monks, but that which is suited to men living the unregulated and undisciplined life in the world. But these things your love of God ought to have first arranged and settled yourself, and not have thrown such labours upon me, who am harassed by the ggreat turmoil of affairs.