Letter 4

From: Salvian of Marseille, priest and writer To: Agrycius, Bishop Date: ~450 AD Context: Salvian writes to a fellow bishop on ecclesiastical matters and the moral state of the Gallic church. To the most holy Lord Agrycius, from Salvian, greetings. The state of the Gallic church in this time of upheaval is something I want to discuss with you plainly, because I think we are both aware of things that are not being said enough in the public discourse of the church. The nominalism is the problem. We have a large population that calls itself Christian, that is baptized, that attends the liturgy on major feast days, that expects the church's ministry at birth and death — and that does not live in any way that is distinguishable from the pagan population of a century ago. The Christian moral vision has not penetrated the habits of life of most of the people who claim to hold it. I am aware that this is partly the church's failure — we have not preached clearly enough, formed people deeply enough, held the line consistently enough. But it is also a failure of cultural transmission: the Christian identity has become primarily ethnic and social rather than moral and spiritual. What I do not know is how to fix it without the kind of social collapse that appears to be happening anyway. The external pressure of the barbarian invasions and the economic disruption is producing a kind of enforced poverty that may, if the church is alert to the opportunity, lead people to the genuine conversion that prosperity never encouraged. Salvian, your servant and brother