Letter 59: 1. Your summons to the Council reached me on the fifth day before the Ides of November, in the evening, and found me very much indisposed, so that I could not possibly attend. However, I submit to your pious and wise judgment whether certain perplexities which the summons occasioned were due to my own ignorance or to sufficient grounds.

Letter 59 — To Victorinus: A Badly-Organized Council Summons (A.D. 401) To my most blessed lord and venerable father Victorinus, my brother in the priesthood — Augustine sends greetings in the Lord. Your summons to the Council reached me late on the evening of the fifth day before the Ides of November, and I was unwell — quite unable to attend. But I submit to your pious and wise judgment whether the perplexities the summons caused me arose from my own ignorance or from genuine grounds for concern. The summons stated that it had also been sent into the districts of Mauritania, which — as we all know — have their own primates. Now, if those provinces were to be represented in a Council held in Numidia, it was altogether proper that the names of some senior bishops from Mauritania should appear on the circular. I found no such names, and I was greatly surprised. Furthermore, the summons to the bishops of Numidia was drawn up in so confused and careless a manner that my own name appears in third place — though I know very well that my proper rank comes much further down the list. This wrongs others and distresses me. Moreover, our venerable father and colleague Xantippus of Tagosa insists that the primacy belongs to him, and he is widely regarded as the primate — and yet he issues summons of the very same kind as those you have sent. Even if this were simply a mistake — which your Holiness can easily identify and correct — his name should not have been omitted from a summons you sent out. If his name had been placed somewhere in the middle rather than at the head, I would have been puzzled; how much greater, then, is my astonishment that the very man who above all others ought to be present at the Council is not mentioned at all — since it is before the assembled bishops of all the Numidian churches that the question of the order of the primacy should first be debated. For these reasons I find myself hesitating even to come, lest a summons containing so many glaring errors should turn out to be a forgery — quite apart from the shortness of the notice and the many pressing engagements standing in my way. I beg you, most blessed bishop, to excuse my absence, and I ask you first of all to bring about a cordial understanding between your Holiness and the aged Xantippus on the question of which of you should be convening the Council. Or better still — as I would prefer — let both of you jointly call together your colleagues, especially those who have been in the episcopate nearly as long as yourselves. They can easily discover which of you has right on his side; let the question be settled first among a small group. Then, once the mistake has been corrected, let the younger bishops be gathered — they, having no one but yourselves whom they can accept as witnesses in this matter, are presently at a loss to know which of you to follow. I have sent this letter sealed with a ring bearing a man's profile.

Letter 59 (A.D. 401) To My Most Blessed Lord and Venerable Father Victorinus, My Brother in the Priesthood, Augustine Sends Greeting in the Lord. 1. Your summons to the Council reached me on the fifth day before the Ides of November, in the evening, and found me very much indisposed, so that I could not possibly attend. However, I submit to your pious and wise judgment whether certain perplexities which the summons occasioned were due to my own ignorance or to sufficient grounds. I read in that summons that it was written also to the districts of Mauritania, which, as we know, have their own primates. Now, if these provinces were to be represented in a Council held in Numidia, it was by all means proper that the names of some of the more eminent bishops who are in Mauritania should be attached to the circular letter; and not finding this, I have been greatly surprised. Moreover, to the bishops of Numidia it has been addressed in such a confused and careless manner, that my own name I find in the third place, although I know my proper order to be much further down in the roll of bishops. This wrongs others, and grieves me. Moreover, our venerable father and colleague, Xantippus of Tagosa, says that the primacy belongs to him, and by very many he is regarded as the primate, and he issues such letters as you have sent. Even supposing that this be a mistake, which your Holiness can easily discover and correct, certainly his name should not have been omitted in the summons which you have issued. If his name had been placed in the middle of the list, and not in the first line, I would have wondered much; how much greater, then, is my surprise, when I find in it no mention whatever made of him who, above all others, behooved to be present in the Council, that by the bishops of all the Numidian churches this question of the order of the primacy might be debated before any other! 2. For these reasons, I might even hesitate to come to the Council, lest the summons in which so many flagrant mistakes are found should be a forgery; even were I not hindered both by the shortness of the notice, and manifold other important engagements standing in the way. I therefore beg you, most blessed prelate, to excuse me, and to be pleased to give attention, in the first instance, to bring about between your Holiness and the aged Xantippus a cordial mutual understanding as to the question which of you ought to summon the Council; or at least, as I think would be still better, let both of you, without prejudging the claim of either, conjointly call together our colleagues, especially those who have been nearly as long in the episcopate as yourselves, who may easily discover and decide which of you has truth on his side, that this question may be settled first among a few of you; and then, when the mistake has been rectified, let the younger bishops be gathered together, who, having no others whom it would be either possible or right for them to accept as witnesses in this matter but yourselves, are meanwhile at a loss to know to which of you the preference is to be given. I have sent this letter sealed with a ring which represents a man's profile. About this page Source. Translated by J.G. Cunningham. From Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 1. Edited by Philip Schaff. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1887.) Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. <https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1102059.htm>. Contact information. The editor of New Advent is Kevin Knight. My email address is feedback732 at newadvent.org. (To help fight spam, this address might change occasionally.) Regrettably, I can't reply to every letter, but I greatly appreciate your feedback — especially notifications about typographical errors and inappropriate ads.