From: Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrrhus
To: Hermesigenes, Assessor [a legal advisor to a provincial governor]
Date: ~440 AD
Context: A festal letter that begins with a striking comparison between the fragmented pagan festival calendar and the universal Christian feast observed everywhere in the known world.
To Hermesigenes the Assessor,
In the days when humanity was buried in the darkness of ignorance, different cities celebrated different festivals. In Elis there were the Olympic games, at Delphi the Pythian, at Sparta the Hyacinthian, at Athens the Panathenaic, the Thesmophoria, and the Dionysian. These were the most famous -- and beyond them, various peoples held revels for one deity or another.
But now that those mists have been scattered by intellectual light, on every land and sea, mainlanders and islanders together keep the feast of our God and Savior. Wherever one might wish to travel -- toward the rising sun or the setting -- everywhere one finds the same celebration observed at the same time. There is no longer any necessity, as under the Mosaic law (which was adapted to the weakness of the Jews), to gather in a single city to commemorate our blessings. Every town, every village, the countryside and the farthest frontiers are filled with the grace of God, and in every place shrines and sanctuaries have been consecrated to the God of all.
So through every city we keep our festivals and greet one another in the joy of the feast. It is the same God and Lord who is praised in our hymns and to whom our sacred offerings are made. For this reason, as is well known, we neighbors send letters to one another to share the gladness the feast brings.
And so I write to you now and offer the festal greeting to your excellency. You will no doubt reply and honor the custom of the feast.
Letter 72
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To Hermesigenes the Assessor.
At the time when men were whelmed in the darkness of ignorance, all did not keep the same feasts, but celebrated distinct ceremonies in different cities. In Ælis were the Olympian games, at Delphi the Pythian, at Sparta the Hyacinthian, at Athens the Panathenaic, the Thesmophoria, and the Dionysian. These were the most remarkable, and further some men celebrated the revel feast of some dæmons and some of others. But now that those mists have been scattered by intellectual light, in every land and sea mainlanders and islanders together keep the feast of our God and Saviour, and wherever any one may wish to travel abroad, journey he either towards rising or towards setting sun, everywhere he will find the same celebration observed at the same time. There is no longer necessity, in obedience to the law of Moses which was adapted to the infirmity of the Jews, to come together into one city and keep the feast in memory of our blessings, but every town, every village, the country and the farthest frontiers, are filled with the grace of God, and in every spot divine shrines and precincts are consecrated to the God of all. So through every town we observe our several festivals and communicate with one another in the feast. It is the same God and Lord who is honoured in our hymns and to whom our mystic sacrifices are offered. On this account, as is well known, we neighbours address one another by letter and signify the joy that comes to us in the feast. So now do I to you and offer the festal salutation to your excellency. You will without doubt reply and honour the custom of the feast.
◆
From:Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrrhus
To:Hermesigenes, Assessor [a legal advisor to a provincial governor]
Date:~440 AD
Context:A festal letter that begins with a striking comparison between the fragmented pagan festival calendar and the universal Christian feast observed everywhere in the known world.
To Hermesigenes the Assessor,
In the days when humanity was buried in the darkness of ignorance, different cities celebrated different festivals. In Elis there were the Olympic games, at Delphi the Pythian, at Sparta the Hyacinthian, at Athens the Panathenaic, the Thesmophoria, and the Dionysian. These were the most famous -- and beyond them, various peoples held revels for one deity or another.
But now that those mists have been scattered by intellectual light, on every land and sea, mainlanders and islanders together keep the feast of our God and Savior. Wherever one might wish to travel -- toward the rising sun or the setting -- everywhere one finds the same celebration observed at the same time. There is no longer any necessity, as under the Mosaic law (which was adapted to the weakness of the Jews), to gather in a single city to commemorate our blessings. Every town, every village, the countryside and the farthest frontiers are filled with the grace of God, and in every place shrines and sanctuaries have been consecrated to the God of all.
So through every city we keep our festivals and greet one another in the joy of the feast. It is the same God and Lord who is praised in our hymns and to whom our sacred offerings are made. For this reason, as is well known, we neighbors send letters to one another to share the gladness the feast brings.
And so I write to you now and offer the festal greeting to your excellency. You will no doubt reply and honor the custom of the feast.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.