教牧守則·對話錄與書信 第 648 章

Gregory to Secundinus, bishop of Tauromenium. The bearer of these presents, Leo Charilarius, coming to us, informed us concerning his wife—who, having left him on account of a charge of fornication, by which she claimed she had been vehemently provoked, and having on this account put on the religious habit—that he had in no way shown himself culpable; so much so that, as he says, when your fraternity inquired (to whom about three years ago we had committed the cognizance of this matter), it was in no way made clear that he had fallen into the fault of fornication after the marriage was entered upon; adding also that he had given his wife most solemn oaths that he had remained innocent in that matter concerning which the suspicion also gnawed at her, and that on this account she of her own accord returned to him.

But because he asserts that she was deprived of communion, along with her household, by your fraternity for this alone, that she returned to him secretly, disregarding you, we wish that her household indeed receive the holy communion, and that this fault of the mistress not for long hold the household in the penalty of this affliction. But concerning her herself—that is, the wife of the aforesaid bearer—it is necessary that you observe this: that if it be manifestly established that she could say nothing against her husband, but moreover the suspicion against him was cut off, as we have been taught, by the oath he provided, and if indeed after this she returned to him of her own accord, in her case also the severity of the judgment is to be tempered, so that she be by no means deprived of communion for a long time now.

But if perhaps the truth should prove to be otherwise than has been intimated to us, let your fraternity's writings instruct us in detail, so that you may learn what ought to be done by our letters running back again to you.