Послание 33. К Льву, папе римскому 58

To the most holy and supreme father of fathers, Leo, my lord, apostolic pope, Theodore, the lowest presbyter and abbot of Studium. Since Christ God gave the great Peter, along with the keys of the kingdom of heaven, the dignity of pastoral leadership, it is necessary for Peter or his successor to be informed about everything that is being introduced in the Catholic Church by those who deviate from the truth. So, having learned this from our ancient Holy Fathers, we, humble and humble, since now an innovation has been made in our Church, considered it our duty, first - through the most reverent Archimandrite, brother and co-celebrant of our Epiphanius, and now - with our humble letter to convey this to the Angel of your supreme blessedness. Thus, the most divine head of all chapters, there took place, in the words of the prophet Jeremiah, “a gathering of criminals” and a meeting of “adulterers” (Jer. 9:2). For what was said there through idolatrous adultery is here proven by the affirmation of an adulterous relationship. Both rejected the Lord Himself: those by transgressing the law, and those by transgressing the Gospel. And they did not stop there, at the first meeting, through the acceptance of those who combined adulterers and concelebrating with him, they formed an unlawful gathering, according to the expression of the divine Basil 59 . But, as if in order to acquire the name of complete heresy, at another open council they anathematized the one who did not agree with their lawless teaching, that is, the entire Catholic Church. Of those who met them, some were expelled far away, others were taken into custody, resuming persecution according to local custom. And in their justification they rely on an impious argument: they claim that an adulterous combination is “oikonomia”; decree that divine laws do not apply to Kings; they condemn those who, like the Forerunner and Chrysostom, defend truth and righteousness to the point of blood; assert that each of the bishops has authority over the divine rules, notwithstanding the decrees contained therein. Therefore, when one of the initiated persons has to be secretly or openly subjected to overthrowing rules, then by the power of the will he can remain not overthrown. And the witness of these words is the one who combined adulterers, who, along with others, is condemned by various rules and openly serves with them. They call those who commit lawlessness under the guise of oikonomia - both others and themselves - saints, and those who do not approve of this are anathematized as alienated from God. The proof of these words is the local persecution. What needs to be said, blessed one, about this? Are these not the apostolic words: “and now many antichrists have appeared” (1 John 2:18) - if we all, people, have power over divine laws and rules? Reporting this truthfully, we, the humble, offer to your Christ-like bliss the same prayer that the Supreme Apostle and the other apostles offered to Christ when a storm arose at sea: “save us,” archpastor of the heavenly Church, “we are perishing” (Matthew 8:25). Follow the example of your Teacher Christ, and extend your hand to our Church, as He did to Peter, He did to him who was beginning to drown in the sea, and you, who had already plunged into the abyss of heresy. Be jealous, we ask you, of your same-named pope, and just as he, at the emergence of the Eutychian heresy, rebelled in spirit like a lion, as everyone knows, through his dogmatic messages, so you yourself, I dare say, in accordance with your name, cry out divinely, or better yet, roar appropriately against this false teaching. For if they, having arrogated power to themselves, were not afraid to compose a heretical council, although they do not have the power to compose an Orthodox council without your knowledge, according to ancient custom, then it would be all the more just and necessary for your divine superiority - we remind you with fear - to compose a legitimate Council, so that the Orthodox teaching of the Church would reflect the heretical, so that your supreme dignity with all the Orthodox would not be compromised anathema from new vain talkers, and those who wish, taking advantage of this adulterous council as a reason for lawlessness, would not easily rush to sin. Having announced this as it should be to our insignificance, as the lowest members of the Church and obeying your divine shepherd, we finally ask your holy soul to consider us as your own sheep and from afar to illuminate and confirm us with sacred prayers, and even with instructions, then this would be a matter of your divine condescension. So Christ wrote to Abgar, and many of his subjects were honored to receive messages from the apostles and saints. This letter is from me alone, a sinner and in custody, because my father and servant is imprisoned, and the Archbishop of Thessalonica, our brother, is also in custody on other islands. However, through me and together with me they say the same thing and fall at the sacred feet of your bliss. This and the next letter to the same dad were written by St. Theodore in 809 from exile on the islands near Constantinople. To Amphilochius. Rule 1. Works in Russian translation. T.VII. S.6. M., 1892. You might be interested in: