To the Catholic Bishops of Egypt in Exile at Constantinople

Leo to the catholic Egyptian bishops staying in Constantinople.

Before now I have been so saddened by the news of the crimes committed in Alexandria, and my spirit has been so wounded by the horror of the deed itself, that I do not know what tears to shed or what lament to utter over it, and I am moved to use the prophet’s words: “Who will give waters to my head and a fountain of tears to my eyes?” Yet, anticipating your complaint, beloved, I have begged our most merciful and Christian emperor for a remedy for these great evils. Through our sons and helpers Gerontius and Olympius I have, at another time, demanded that he make haste to cleanse the church of that city, where so many catholic teachers have flourished, of a heresy already condemned. I demanded that he not let murderous spirits, whom no reverence for place or season could hold back from shedding their ruler’s blood, gain anything from his clemency, especially when they wish to reconsider the Council of Chalcedon to the overthrow of the faith. So, beloved, the same cause that drove you from your own sees ought to console you in your sufferings. For it is certain that souls afflicted, who suffer hardship for his name, are in no way deprived of the Lord’s protection. Bear it bravely, then, and, mindful of that country which is yours, rejoice in your present stay in a strange land. Do not grieve over your exile or give way to sorrow at your present weariness, you who know that the apostle glories even in his many dangers for the Lord’s faith. You have one who knows your struggles and has prepared the rewards that repay them. Let no one shrink from this labor, whose prize is to reign and live forever. Let the feet of all who fight stand fixed in the courts of Jerusalem, for in the hope of that repayment they will have no reason to fear the camp or the charges of the enemy. Victory is never hard, nor triumph difficult, over the remnants of a beaten foe who has been routed by the whole world alike, especially over those whose ringleaders you see already laid low. So, with unceasing prayers, as I too have not failed to do, seek the favor of the most Christian emperor, who in God’s mercy is ready to listen. Ask that, in keeping with the letter I have sent, he may strengthen the cause of our common faith with that devotion of mind we are sure he has; that in his piety he may remove all the harmful charges the madness of heretics has invented; and that he may arrange for your return, beloved, and so make every province and all the churches with their priests rejoice in the unshaken peace of Christ. Dated the 1st of December, in the consulship of Constantine and Rufus (in the year 457). [a]