From: Ruricius, bishop of Limoges
To: Unknown recipient (same as previous letter)
Date: ~495 AD
Context: A sharp little letter rebuking someone who had broken a promise to give up pagan worship — specifically, the cult of Janus.
Another letter from the same.
You had promised me something quite different, God is my witness — that you would worship him, not Janus. And now you want to make me an accomplice in this offense, expecting me to supply delicacies for the celebration of this error and pour oil on the fire. Know that this benefits neither of us. You may say: "But you promised." With what face will you demand I keep my promises when you have violated your oath? I will forgive your broken promise to me only when I know you have stopped serving this passion — lest we appear to confirm a deed whose very agreement we condemn, and become a stumbling block to those for whom we ought to be an example.
XXV. EIUSDEM ALIA.
Aliud mihi deo teste promiseras, quod ipsum deberes colere,
non Ianum, cuius criminis etiam me uis esse consortem, ut
ego ad hunc errorem colendum delicias subministrem et oleum
incendio superfundam. quod neutro nostrum noueris expedire.
sed dicis fortasse: pollicitus es. quo ore a me promissa perquires,
cum tu sacramenta uiolaueris? unde dabis ueniam
meae promissioni, quamdiu te huic seruire cognouero passioni,
ne confirmare uideamur factum, cuius reprehendimus pactum,
et simus scandalo, cui esse debemus exemplo.
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From:Ruricius, bishop of Limoges
To:Unknown recipient (same as previous letter)
Date:~495 AD
Context:A sharp little letter rebuking someone who had broken a promise to give up pagan worship — specifically, the cult of Janus.
Another letter from the same.
You had promised me something quite different, God is my witness — that you would worship him, not Janus. And now you want to make me an accomplice in this offense, expecting me to supply delicacies for the celebration of this error and pour oil on the fire. Know that this benefits neither of us. You may say: "But you promised." With what face will you demand I keep my promises when you have violated your oath? I will forgive your broken promise to me only when I know you have stopped serving this passion — lest we appear to confirm a deed whose very agreement we condemn, and become a stumbling block to those for whom we ought to be an example.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.