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Augustine, Saint: Epistulae

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Augustine’s letters span his whole Christian life, from the first notes written at Cassiciacum in 386 to the last years of his episcopate before his death in 430. The collection, edited by Alois Goldbacher for the CSEL, contains more than two hundred and seventy items, including a number of letters written to Augustine by his correspondents. Some are brief notes of friendship or business; others are full theological treatises on grace, the soul, the Trinity, biblical interpretation, and the Donatist and Pelagian controversies. Correspondents include Jerome, Paulinus of Nola, fellow bishops, imperial officials, and pagan intellectuals.

The letters are among the richest sources for the life of the late Roman Church. They show Augustine as pastor, administrator, controversialist, and friend, and they illuminate law, slavery, education, and relations between Christians and pagans in Roman Africa. His exchange with Jerome on the translation of Scripture and on Galatians is famous, and many letters were read through the Middle Ages as independent works of doctrine and spiritual counsel.

About this edition. The Latin text comes from the Open Greek and Latin digital edition of the Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum (edition: Alois Goldbacher, CSEL 34.1-2, 44, 57, 1895-1911), licensed CC BY-SA. Every word has been analyzed with LatinCy, a neural language model for Latin — click or tap any word for its dictionary form, part of speech, and complete morphology, together with the full entry from Lewis & Short’s A Latin Dictionary.

Latin · Early Christian Writings
Epistulae
Augustine, Saint · Letter 68 · every word parsed
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In ipso profectionis articulo sancti filii nostri Asterii hypodiaconi beatitudinis tuae ad me litterae peruenerunt, quibus satis facis te contra paruitatem meam librum Romam non misisse. hoc nec ego factum audieram, sed epistulae cuiusdam quasi ad me scriptae per fratrem nostrum Sisinnium diaconum huc exemplaria peruenerunt, in qua hortaris me, ut παλινϕδιαν super quodam apostoli capitulo canam et imiter Stesichorum inter uituperationem et laudes Helenae fluctuantem, ut, qui detrahendo oculos perdiderat, laudando receperit. ego simpliciter fateor dignationi tuae, licet stilus et επιχειρηματα tua mihi uiderentur, tamen non temere exemplaribus litterarum credendum putaui, ne forte me respondente laesus iuste expostulares, quod probare ante debuissem tuum esse sermonem et sic rescribere. accessit ad moram sanctae et uenerabilis Paulae longa infirmitas. dum enim languenti multo tempore adsidemus, paene epistulae tuae uel eius, qui sub tuo nomine scripserat, obliti sumus memores illius uersiculi: Musica in luctu importuna narratio. itaque si tua est epistula, aperte scribe uel mitte exemplaria ueriora, ut absque ullo rancore stomachi in scripturarum disputatione nersemur et uel nostrum emendemus errorem uel alium frustra reprehendisse doceamus.
Absit autem a me, ut quicquam de libris beatitudinis tuae adtingere audeam. sufficit enim mihi probare mea et aliena non carpere. ceterum optime nouit prudentia tua unumquem- . que in suo sensu abundare et puerilis esse iactantiae, quod olim adulescentuli facere consueuerant, accusando inlustres uiros suo nomini famam quaerere. nec tam stultus sum, ut diuersitate explanationum tuarum me laedi putem, quia nec tu laederis, si nos contraria senserimus. sed illa est uera inter amicos reprehensio, si nostram peram non uidentes aliorum iuxta Persium manticam consideremus. superest, ut diligas diligentem et in scripturarum campo iuuenis senem non prouoces. nos nostra habuimus tempora et cucurrimus, quantum potuimus. nunc te currente et longa spatia transmittente nobis debetur otium simulque, ut cum uenia et honore tuo dixerim, ne solus mihi de poetis aliquid proposuisse uidearis, memento Daretis et Entelli et uulgaris prouerbii, quod bos lassus fortius figat pedem. tristes haec dictauimus. utinam mereremur complexus tuos et conlatione mutua uel doceremus aliqua uel disceremus!
Misit mihi temeritate solita maledicta sua Calpurnius cognomento Lanarius, quae ad Africam quoque studio eius didici peruenisse. ad quae breuiter ex parte respondi et libelli eius uobis misi exemplaria latius opus, cum opportunum fuerit, primo missurus tempore. in quo illud caui, ne in quoquam existimationem laederem Christianam, sed tantum ut delirantis inperiti mendacium ac uecordiam confutarem. memento mei, sancte ac uenerabilis papa. uide, quantum te diligam, ut ne prouocatus quidem uoluerim respondere nec credam tuum esse, quod in altero forte reprehenderem. frater Communis suppliciter te salutat.
Click or tap any word for its parse and dictionary entry.
Text: Perseus Digital Library, licensed CC BY-SA. Dictionary: Lewis & Short (Perseus, CC BY-SA). Morphology: LatinCy — machine parsing, corrected against the AGDT & PROIEL treebanks and Morpheus.
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