Letter 16

From: Pope John IV To: Rothari, King of the Lombards Date: ~641 AD Context: The pope replies to Rothari's letter, accepting his terms while insisting on the church's spiritual independence. John, bishop, to the most excellent King Rothari. Your letter arrived and I read it carefully. I want to respond in kind — in the spirit of good faith that you offered, and with the same directness. The arrangement you propose is reasonable, and I accept it. When correspondence between the bishops of your territory and Rome touches on matters with civil implications, we will inform your court. The church is not attempting to conduct its affairs as though the Lombard kingdom does not exist, or as though the king of that kingdom's interest in what happens within its borders is illegitimate. In return, I want to be equally clear about what the arrangement does not include. The spiritual jurisdiction of the Catholic bishops over their congregations — their authority to preach, to administer the sacraments, to discipline their own clergy, to govern the internal life of their communities — this is not subject to royal supervision. Not because the church claims to stand above the law, but because spiritual authority operates in a dimension that civil authority cannot reach without doing damage to both. I believe you understand this. The correspondence of your predecessors with Gregory and Honorius suggests a sophisticated understanding of the distinction between what is Caesar's and what is God's. With respect and in peace, John, bishop of Rome