Unknown→Emperor Theodosius I|c. 396 AD|ambrose milan
diplomaticimperial politics
From: Ambrose, Bishop of Milan
To: Emperor Theodosius
Date: ~394 AD
Context: A brief personal letter accompanying the dispatch of a deacon — Ambrose apologizes for not writing sooner, pleads for mercy on behalf of refugees who have sought sanctuary in the church, and appeals to Theodosius's record of divine favor.
Ambrose, Bishop, to the Emperor Theodosius.
Although I have recently written to your Clemency twice already, I still feel that I have not done enough — given how deeply indebted I am for your many kindnesses, most blessed and august Emperor. Every opportunity to express my duty must be seized, not least because I would not want my earlier silence to be attributed to laziness rather than necessity.
I have therefore sent my son Felix the deacon to present this letter, both to convey my respects in person and to plead on behalf of those who have taken refuge in the church — your Mother, the Church — seeking mercy. Their tears were more than I could bear, and I have taken it upon myself to intercede with your Clemency before your arrival.
What we ask is great — but we ask it from one to whom the Lord has granted great and unprecedented things. We ask it from one whose mercy we know well, and whose piety we hold as our guarantee. We confess that we expect more from you precisely because of how much God has given you: your victory, won in the pattern of ancient miracles — like those of Moses, Joshua, and Samuel and David — is reckoned not by human calculation but by the outpouring of divine grace. Here we ask for a corresponding piety — the same mercy whose merit won the victory in the first place.
Farewell, and may God keep you safe.
EPISTOLA LXII.
Quod pridem ad THEODOSIUM non scripserit, excusat; seque ad eum mittere diaconum significans, ut ipsius preces pro quibusdam in Ecclesiae asylum receptis admittat petit.
AMBROSIO THEODOSIO imperatori.
1. Quamvis proxime scripserim augustae clementiae tuae etiam secundo, mihi tamen non satis fuit velut pari vice sermonis officium reddidisse; cum beneficiis clementiae tuae tam frequentibus oppigneratus sim, ut nullis officiis possim compensare quae debeo, beatissime atque augustissime Imperator.
2. Itaque ut prima occasio non praetermittenda fuit, qua per cubicularium tuum clementiae tuae gratias agerem, et alloquii mei officium 1022 repraesentarem; maximoe ne desidiae putaretur fuisse potius quam necessitatis, quod tempore superiore non scripserim. Itaque requirenda mihi causa fuit, qua pietati tuae deferrem debitum salutationis obsequium.
3. Merito autem ad praeferendam epistolam meam filium meum Felicem diaconum misi, simul ut mei vicem officii repraesentaret, memoratum quoque pro his qui ad matrem pietatis tuae Ecclesiam, petentes misericordiam, confugerunt; quorum lacrymas sustinere non potui, quin adventum clementiae tuae meis obsecrationibus praevenirem.
4. Grande est quod petimus, sed ab eo cui Dominus inaudita et admiranda concessit, ab eo cujus clementiam novimus, et obsidem pietatem tenemus. Unde plus exspectare nos confitemur; quoniam ut te virtute vicisti, ita etiam tua te vincere debes pietate. Victoria enim tua antiquo more vetustisque miraculis, qualis sancto Moysi, et sancto Jesu Nave, et Samueli, atque David, non humana aestimatione, sed coelestis gratiae effusione tibi collata censetur: hic pietatem aequalem poscimus, cujus merito tanta victoria ipsa quaesita est.
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From:Ambrose, Bishop of Milan
To:Emperor Theodosius
Date:~394 AD
Context:A brief personal letter accompanying the dispatch of a deacon — Ambrose apologizes for not writing sooner, pleads for mercy on behalf of refugees who have sought sanctuary in the church, and appeals to Theodosius's record of divine favor.
Ambrose, Bishop, to the Emperor Theodosius.
Although I have recently written to your Clemency twice already, I still feel that I have not done enough — given how deeply indebted I am for your many kindnesses, most blessed and august Emperor. Every opportunity to express my duty must be seized, not least because I would not want my earlier silence to be attributed to laziness rather than necessity.
I have therefore sent my son Felix the deacon to present this letter, both to convey my respects in person and to plead on behalf of those who have taken refuge in the church — your Mother, the Church — seeking mercy. Their tears were more than I could bear, and I have taken it upon myself to intercede with your Clemency before your arrival.
What we ask is great — but we ask it from one to whom the Lord has granted great and unprecedented things. We ask it from one whose mercy we know well, and whose piety we hold as our guarantee. We confess that we expect more from you precisely because of how much God has given you: your victory, won in the pattern of ancient miracles — like those of Moses, Joshua, and Samuel and David — is reckoned not by human calculation but by the outpouring of divine grace. Here we ask for a corresponding piety — the same mercy whose merit won the victory in the first place.
Farewell, and may God keep you safe.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.