The Presbyters Project

Letter 268

Augustine paid the debts of a certain Fascius, himself borrowing money for this from Macedonius. Now he asks the people of Hippo to make a collection to gather money to pay back Macedonius. In case the result is insufficient:

3. Scripsi etiam presbyteris, ut, si quid minus fuerit post conlationem sanctitatis uestrae, compleant ex eo, quod habet ecclesia, dum tamen uos, secundum quod placet, hilariter offeratis. [...]

(ed. Goldbacher 1911: 654)

Letter 268

3. I have also written to the presbyters that, if there is anything lacking after the collection made by Your Holiness, they should make it up from what the Church has, provided, nonetheless, that you cheerfully offer what seems good to you. [...]

(trans. R. Teske, slightly altered)

Discussion:

Letter 268 of Augustine was written at an unknown time during his episcopate. The bishop, presumably absent from Hippo at the time, writes to some important laymen of his Church ("dominis sanctae plebis cui ministro"), asking them to make a collection to repay the debt of seventeen solids that he incurred to pay the debts of a certain Fascius, who sought asylum in the church from his creditors.

Augustine claims that he has already written to the presbyters to cover the rest of the debt if the sum made by collection turns out to be insufficient.

The passage shows us that the presbyters controlled the treasury of the church of Hippo, at least during Augustine's absence (if he had been present at Hippo at the time, he rather would not have written to them). On the other hand, Augustine did not ask them to provide the money needed, but ordered it.

Place of event:

Region

Latin North Africa

City

Hippo Regius

About the source:

Author: Augustine of Hippo
Title: Letters, Epistulae
Origin: Hippo Regius (Latin North Africa)
Denomination: Catholic/Nicene/Chalcedonian

The letters of Augustine of Hippo cover a wide range of topics: Holy Scripture, dogma and liturgy, philosophy, religious practice and everyday life. They range from full-scale theological treatises to small notes asking someone for a favour. The preserved corpus includes 308 letters, 252 written by Augustine, 49 that others sent to him and seven exchanged between third parties. 29 letters have been discovered only in the 20th century and edited in 1981 by Johannes Divjak; they are distinguished by the asterisk (*) after their number.

The preserved letters of Augustine extend over the period from his stay at Cassiciacum in 386 to his death in Hippo in 430.

Edition:

Edition:

A. Goldbacher ed., S. Augustini Hipponiensis Episcopi Epistulae, Pars 4, Ep. 185-270, Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum 57, Vienna-Leipzig 1911.

Translation:

Saint Augustine, Letters 211–270, 1*–29*, trans. R. Teske, New York 2005.

Categories:

Functions within the Church - Urban presbyter

Described by a title - Presbyter/πρεσβύτερος

Ecclesiastical administration - Administering Church property

Relation with - Bishop/Monastic superior

Relation with - Townsman

Pastoral activity - Helping the poor and needy

Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL: S. Adamiak, Presbyters in the Late Antique West, ER519, http://www.presbytersproject.ihuw.pl/index.php?id=6&SourceID=519