Letter CCVIII.

(a.d. 423.)

To the Lady Felicia, His Daughter in the Faith, and Worthy of Honour Among the Members of Christ, Augustin Sends Greeting in the Lord.

1. I do not doubt, when I consider both your faith and the weakness or wickedness of others, that your mind has been disturbed, for even a holy apostle, full of compassionate love, confesses a similiar experience, saying, “Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not?”1458    2 Cor. xi. 29. Wherefore, as I myself share your pain, and am solicitous for your welfare in Christ, I have thought it my duty to address this letter, partly consolatory, partly hortatory, to your Holiness, because in the body of our Lord Jesus Christ, in which all His members are one, you are very closely related to us, being loved as an honourable member in that body, and partaking with us of life in His Holy Spirit.

2. I exhort you, therefore, not to be too much troubled by those offences which for this very reason were foretold as destined to come, that when they came we might remember that they had been foretold, and not be greatly disconcerted by them. For the Lord Himself in His gospel foretold them, saying, “Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe unto that man by whom the offence cometh!”1459    Matt. xviii. 7. These are the men of whom the apostle said, “They seek their own, not the things that are Jesus Christ’s.”1460    Phil. ii. 21. There are, therefore, some who hold the honourable office of shepherds in order that they may provide for the flock of Christ; others occupy that position that they may enjoy the temporal honours and secular advantages connected with the office. It must needs happen that these two kinds of pastors, some dying, others succeeding them, should continue in the Catholic Church even to the end of time, and the judgment of the Lord. If, then, in the times of the apostles there were men such that Paul, grieved by their conduct, enumerates among his trials, “perils among false brethren,”1461    1 Cor. xi. 26. and yet he did not haughtily cast them out, but patiently bore with them, how much more must such arise in our times, since the Lord most plainly says concerning this age which is drawing to a close, “that because iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold.”1462    Matt. xxiv. 12, 13. The word which follows, however, ought to console and exhort us, for He adds, “He that shall endure to the end, the same shall be saved.”

3. Moreover, as there are good shepherds and bad shepherds, so also in flocks there are good and bad. The good are represented by the name of sheep, but the bad are called goats: they feed, nevertheless, side by side in the same pastures, until the Chief Shepherd, who is called the One Shepherd, shall come and separate them one from another according to His promise, “as a shepherd divideth the sheep from the goats.” On us He has laid the duty of gathering the flock; to Himself He has reserved the work of final separation, because it pertains properly to Him who cannot err. For those presumptuous servants, who have lightly ventured to separate before the time which the Lord has reserved in His own hand, have, instead of separating others, only been separated themselves from Catholic unity; for how could those have a clean flock who have by schism become unclean?

4. In order, therefore, that we may remain in the unity of the faith, and not, stumbling at the offences occasioned by the chaff, desert the threshing-floor of the Lord, but rather remain as wheat till the final winnowing,1463    Matt. iii. 12. and by the love which imparts stability to us bear with the beaten straw, our great Shepherd in the gospel admonishes us concerning the good shepherds, that we should not, on account of their good works, place our hope in them, but glorify our heavenly Father for making them such; and concerning the bad shepherds (whom He designed to point out under the name of Scribes and Pharisees), He reminds us that they teach that which is good though they do that which is evil.1464    Matt. iii. 12.

5. Concerning the good shepherds He thus speaks: “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”1465    Matt. v. 14, 15, 16. Concerning the bad shepherds He admonishes the sheep in these words: “The Scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: all, therefore, whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.”1466    Matt. xxiii. 2, 3. When these are listened to, the sheep of Christ, even through evil teachers, hear His voice, and do not forsake the unity of His flock, because the good which they hear them teach belongs not to the shepherds but to Him, and therefore the sheep are safely fed, since even under bad shepherds they are nourished in the Lord’s pastures. They do not, however, imitate the actions of the bad shepherds, because such actions belong not to the world but to the shepherds themselves. In regard, however, to those whom they see to be good shepherds, they not only hear the good things which they teach, but also imitate the good actions which they perform. Of this number was the apostle, who said: “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”1467    1 Cor. xi. 1. He was a light kindled by the Eternal Light, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and was placed on a candlestick because He gloried in His cross, concerning which he said: “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.”1468    Gal. vi. 14. Moreover, since he sought not his own things, but the things which are Jesus Christ’s, whilst he exhorts to the imitation of his own life those whom he had “begotten through the gospel,”1469    1 Cor. iv. 15. he yet severely reproved those who, by the names of apostles, introduced schisms, and he chides those who said, “I am of Paul; was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?”1470    1 Cor. i. 12, 13.

6. Hence we understand both that the good shepherds are those who seek not their own, but the things of Jesus Christ, and that the good sheep, though imitating the works of the good shepherds by whose ministry they have been gathered together, do not place their hope in them, but rather in the Lord, by Whose blood they are redeemed; so that when they may happen to be placed under bad shepherds, preaching Christ’s doctrine and doing their own evil works, they will do what they teach, but will not do what they do, and will not, on account of these sons of wickedness, forsake the pastures of the one true Church. For there are both good and bad in the Catholic Church, which, unlike the Donatist sect, is extended and spread abroad, not in Africa only, but through all nations; as the apostle expresses it, “bringing forth fruit, and increasing in the whole world.”1471    Col. i. 6. The words “καὶ αὐξανόμενον,” here translated by Augustin, are found in some Mss. but omitted in the Textus Receptus. But those who are separated from the Church, as long as they are opposed to it cannot be good; although an apparently praiseworthy conversation seems to prove some of them to be good, their separation from the Church itself renders them bad, according to the saying of the Lord: “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.”1472    Matt. xii. 30.

7. Therefore, my daughter, worthy of all welcome and honour among the members of Christ, I exhort you to hold faithfully that which the Lord has committed to you, and love with all your heart Him and His Church who suffered you not, by joining yourself with the lost, to lose the recompense of your virginity, or perish with them. For if you should depart out of this world separated from the unity of the body of Christ, it will avail you nothing to have preserved inviolate your virginity. But God, who is rich in mercy, has done in regard to you that which is written in the gospel: when the invited guests excused themselves to the master of the feast, he said to the servants, “Go ye, therefore, into the highways and hedges, and as many as ye shall find compel them to come in.”1473    Matt. xxii. 9; Luke xiv. 23. Although, however, you owe sincerest affection to those good servants of His through whose instrumentality you were compelled to come in, yet it is your duty, nevertheless, to place your hope on Him who prepared the banquet, by whom also you have been persuaded to come to eternal and blessed life. Committing to Him your heart, your vow, and your sacred virginity, and your faith, hope, and charity, you will not be moved by offences, which shall abound even to the end; but, by the unshaken strength of piety, shall be safe and shall triumph in the Lord, continuing in the unity of His body even to the end. Let me know, by your answer, with what sentiments you regard my anxiety for you, to which I have to the best of my ability given expression in this letter. May the grace and mercy of God ever protect you!

EPISTOLA CCVIII . Augustinus Feliciae virgini, quae malam quorumdam Ecclesiae pastorum vitam iniquiori animo ferebat (an Antonii Fussalensis de quo in subsequente epistola?), monens ne, scandalis offensa, ab Ecclesia catholica recedat.

Dominae merito suscipiendae, et in Christi membris honorandae filiae FELICIAE, AUGUSTINUS, in Domino salutem.

1. Non dubito animum tuum et pro tua fide et pro aliorum infirmitate vel iniquitate turbatum; cum sanctus Apostolus plenus visceribus charitatis confiteatur et dicat: Quis infirmatur, et non ego infirmor? quis scandalizatur, et non ego uror (II Cor. XI, 29)? Unde etiam ego ipse compunctus, et pro tua quae in Christo est, salute sollicitus, has vel consolatorias, vel exhortatorias litteras ad tuam Sanctitatem dandas putavi: quoniam in Domini nostri Jesu Christi corpore, quod est Ecclesia ejus et unitas membrorum ejus, germanissima nobis facta es, quae tanquam honorabile membrum in ejus compage diligeris, et nobiscum illius sancto Spiritu vivis.

2. Unde te admoneo ne gravius perturberis his scandalis, quae ideo ventura praedicta sunt, ut quando venirent reminisceremur esse praedicta, et non eis valde commoveremur. Nam haec ipse Dominus in Evangelio ita praedixit: Vae mundo ab scandalis! oportet 0951 venire scandala: vae autem homini illi per quem scandalum venit (Matth. XVIII, 7)! Qui sunt ipsi homines, nisi de quibus dicit Apostolus: Sua quaerentes, non quae Jesu Christi (Philipp. II, 21). Alii sunt ergo qui propterea tenent pastorales cathedras, ut Christi gregibus consulant; alii vero qui propterea in eis sedent, ut suis honoribus temporalibus et commodis saecularibus gaudeant. Ista duo genera pastorum, aliis morientibus, aliis nascentibus, in ipsa Catholica necesse est usque ad finem saeculi et usque ad Domini judicium perseverent. Si enim temporibus Apostolorum fuerunt tales, inter quos falsos fratres Apostolus gemeret, et diceret. Periculis in falsis fratribus (II Cor. XI, 26); nec eos per superbiam separaret, sed per tolerantiam sustineret; quanto magis temporibus nostris necesse est ut sint, cum de tempore hujus saeculi, quod propinquat ad finem, apertissime Dominus dicat: Quoniam abundabit iniquitas, refrigescet charitas multorum? Sed quod sequitur, nos debet consolari et exhortari: Qui perseveraverit, inquit, usque in finem, hic salvus erit (Matth. XXIV, 12, 13).

3. Sicut autem sunt pastores boni et mali, sic etiam in ipsis gregibus sunt et boni et mali. Boni, ovium nomine significantur; mali vero, hoedi appellantur: sed commixti pariter pascunt, donec veniat princeps pastorum, qui dictus est unus Pastor (Joan. X, 16); et quemadmodum ipse promisit, separet sicut pastor oves ab hoedis (Matth. XXV, 32). Nobis enim imperavit congregationem, sibi autem servavit separationem: quia ille debet separare, qui nescit errare. Nam qui separare ante tempus, quod sibi Dominus servavit, superbi servi facile ausi sunt; ipsi potius ab unitate catholica separati sunt: nam schismate immundi, mundum gregem unde habere potuerunt?

4. Ut ergo in unitate maneamus, nec offensi scandalis palearum aream dominicam deseramus, sed potius usque in finem ventilationis frumenta perseveremus (Id. III, 12), et comminutam stipulam firmo charitatis pondere toleremus; ipse Pastor noster in Evangelio de pastoribus bonis nos admonet, ut propter bona opera eorum nec in eis ipsis nostram spem ponamus; sed eum qui tales illos fecit, Patrem qui in coelis est, glorificemus et de pastoribus malis, quos nomine Scribarum et Pharisaeorum significare voluit, docentes bona, et facientes mala.

5. Nam de bonis pastoribus ita loquitur: Vos estis lumen mundi. Non potest civitas abscondi super montem constituta; neque accendunt lucernam, et ponunt eam sub modio, sed super candelabrum, ut luceat omnibus qui in domo sunt. Sic luceat lumen vestrum coram hominibus, ut videant opera vestra bona, et glorificent Patrem vestrum qui in coelis est (Id. V, 14-16). De malis autem pastoribus oves admonet dicens: Super cathedram Moysi sedent. Quae dicunt, facite; quae autem faciunt, facere nolite: dicunt enim, et non faciunt (Id. XXIII, 2, 3). His auditis, oves Christi etiam per malos doctores vocem ipsius audiunt, et unitatem illius non relinquunt; quia bonum quod eos audiunt dicere, non est ipsorum, sed illius: et ideo securae 0952 oves pascuntur, quia et sub malis pastoribus pascuis dominicis nutriuntur. Non autem faciunt malorum facta pastorum; quia talia opera non sunt illius, sed ipsorum. Quos autem bonos vident, non solum audiunt bona quae dicunt; sed etiam imitantur bona quae faciunt. De talibus erat Apostolus, qui dicebat: Imitatores mei estote, sicut et ego Christi (Id. XI, 1). Iste lumen erat illuminatum a Lumine sempiterno, ipso Domino Jesu Christo, et in candelabro positum erat, quia in ejus cruce gloriabatur: unde ait: Mihi autem absit gloriari, nisi in cruce Domini nostri Jesu Christi (Galat. VI, 14). Et quia non sua quaerebat, sed quae Jesu Christi: quamvis ad imitationem suam quos per Evangelium genuerat (I Cor. IV, 15), hortatur; tamen corripit graviter eos qui per Apostolorum nomina schismata fecerunt; et objurgat illos qui dicebant, Ego sum Pauli: Numquid Paulus pro vobis, inquit, crucifixus est? aut in nomine Pauli baptizati estis (Id. I, 12, 13)?

6. Hinc intelligimus et bonos pastores, non sua quaerentes, sed quae Jesu Christi; et bonas oves, quamvis imitentur facta pastorum bonorum, tamen in eis non ponere spem suam, quorum ministerio sunt congregatae; sed in Domino potius, cujus sanguine sunt redemptae: ut quando forte incurrerint in pastores malos, doctrinam illius praedicantes et sua mala opera facientes, quae dicunt, faciant; quae autem faciunt, non faciant; nec propter filios iniquitatis, pascua deserant unitatis. In catholica enim Ecclesia, quae non in sola Africa, sicut pars Donati, sed per omnes gentes, sicut promissa est, dilatatur atque diffunditur, in universo mundo, sicut dicit Apostolus, fructificans et crescens (Coloss. I, 6), et boni sunt et mali. Ab ea vero separati, quamdiu contra illam sentiunt, boni esse non possunt; quia etsi aliquos eorum bonos videtur ostendere quasi laudabilis conversatio, malos eos facit ipsa divisio, dicente Domino: Qui mecum non est, adversum me est; et qui mecum non colligit, spargit (Matth. XII, 30).

7. Unde et exhortor, domina merito suscipienda, et in Christi membris honoranda filia, ut quod tibi Dominus praestitit, fideliter teneas; eumque corde toto diligas et ejus Ecclesiam, qui te non permisit virginitatis tuae fructum cum perditis perdere vel perire. Si enim de isto saeculo exires separata ab unitate corporis Christi, nihil tibi prodesset, servata integritas corporis tui. Sed Deus qui dives est in misericordia, fecit juxta te quod in Evangelio scriptum est; cum se excusarent invitati ad coenam patrisfamilias, inter caetera dixit servis suis: Exite in vias et sepes, et quoscumque inveneritis, cogite intrare (Id. XXII, 9). Tu ergo quamvis dilectionem sincerissimam debeas etiam bonis servis ejus, per quorum ministerium intrare coacta es; in illo tamen debes spem ponere, qui convivium praeparavit, cui et tu ad vitam aeternam beatamque sollicita es. Ei quippe commendans cor tuum, et propositum tuum, et sanctam virginitatem tuam, et fidem, et spem, et charitatem tuam, non moveberis scandalis, quae abundabunt usque in finem; sed stabili robore pietatis salva eris, atque in Domino gloriosa, in 0953 ejus unitate perseverando usque in finem. Quomodo autem hanc acceperis pro te sollicitudinem meam, quam quibus potui litteris tibi insinuare curavi, fac ut noverim rescriptis tuis. Dei misericordia et gratia te semper protegat.