Letter 17: Forbidding the sale of church property except for the advantage of the church Leo, the pope , to all the bishops of Sicily. The occasion of specific complaints claims our attention as having the care of all the churches, that we should make a perpetual decree precluding all bishops from adopting as a practice what in two churches of your provinc...

Forbidding the sale of church property except for the advantage of the church. Leo, the pope, to all the bishops of Sicily. The occasion of specific complaints calls for our attention as those who bear care for all the churches, so that we should issue a permanent decree preventing all bishops from adopting as standard practice what has been recklessly proposed and wrongfully carried out in two churches of your province. The clergy of the church in Tauromenium [modern Taormina, Sicily] complained about the destitution they were suffering because their bishop had squandered all the church's estates by selling, giving away, and otherwise disposing of them. Similarly, the clergy of Panormus [modern Palermo], who recently received a new bishop, raised a comparable complaint about the mismanagement of their former bishop at the holy synod over which we presided. Therefore, although we have already given instructions about what is best for both churches, we wish to prevent this disgraceful pattern of ruinous plundering from ever being used as a precedent. We make this our formal command, binding on you, beloved, forever: No bishop, without exception, shall dare to give away, exchange, or sell any property of his church — unless he foresees a clear benefit from doing so and, after consulting with his entire clergy and obtaining their consent, determines that the transaction will undoubtedly profit the church. Presbyters, deacons, or clergy of any rank who have enabled their church's losses must know that they will be stripped of both their rank and their communion. For it is absolutely right, beloved brethren, that not only the bishop but also the entire clergy should advance the interests of their church and preserve intact the gifts of those who contributed their own resources to the churches for the salvation of their souls. Dated October 20, in the consulship of the illustrious Calepius (447).

Forbidding the sale of church property except for the advantage of the church Leo, the pope , to all the bishops of Sicily. The occasion of specific complaints claims our attention as having the care of all the churches, that we should make a perpetual decree precluding all bishops from adopting as a practice what in two churches of your province has been unscrupulously suggested and wrongfully carried out. Upon the clergy of the church in Tauromenium deploring the destitution they were in from the bishop having squandered all its estates by selling, giving away, and otherwise disposing of them, the clergy of Panormus, who have lately had a new bishop, raised a similar complaint about the misgovernment of the former bishop in the holy synod, at which we were presiding. Although, therefore, we have already given instructions as to what is for the advantage of both Churches, yet lest this vicious example of abominable plundering should hereafter be taken as a precedent, we wish to make this our formal command binding on you, beloved, forever. We decree, therefore, that no bishop without exception shall dare to give away, or to exchange, or to sell any of the property of his church: unless he foresees an advantage likely to accrue from so doing, and after consultation with the whole of the clergy, and with their consent he decides upon what will undoubtedly profit that church. For presbyters, or deacons, or clerics of any rank who have connived at the churches losses, must know that they will be deprived of both rank and communion: because it is absolutely fair, beloved brethren, that not only the bishop, but also the whole of the clergy should advance the interests of their church and keep the gifts unimpaired of those who have contributed their own substance to the churches for the salvation of their souls. Dated 20 Oct., in the consulship of the illustrious Calepius (447). About this page Source. Translated by Charles Lett Feltoe. From Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 12. Edited by Philip Schaff and Henry Wace. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1895.) Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. <https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3604017.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.