To Neo of Ravenna, on Baptizing Returned Captives

Leo the bishop to Neo, bishop of Ravenna, greeting.

Often indeed, with God’s Spirit teaching us, we have steadied the hearts of the brothers when they were tottering on the slippery ground of doubtful questions, by framing an answer either from the teaching of the Holy Scriptures or from the rules of the fathers. But lately, in a synod, a new and until now unheard-of subject of debate has come up. At the prompting of certain brothers we have found that some of the prisoners of war, on returning freely to their own homes, ask for the healing waters of baptism. These are the ones who went into captivity at an age when they could know nothing for certain, and in the ignorance of infancy they cannot remember whether they have received the mystery and rites of baptism. So in this uncertainty of a faulty memory their souls are put in danger, as long as, under a show of caution, they are denied a grace that is withheld because it is thought to have been given already. Certain brothers, with a fear that is not unjustified, have hesitated to perform the rites of the Lord’s mystery. And so, at a meeting of the synod, as we have said, we received a formal request for advice on this matter. In discussing it carefully, we wanted to weigh each member’s opinion, and to handle it so cautiously that we would arrive at the truth with certainty by drawing on the knowledge of many. As a result, the very things that came into our mind by divine inspiration have received the assent and confirmation of a large number of the brothers. Above all, then, we must take care that, while we hold fast to a certain show of caution, we do not suffer the loss of souls who are to be born again. For who is so given over to suspicion as to decide that something is true which he suspects by mere guesswork, without any evidence? So wherever the man who longs for the new birth does not remember his baptism, and no one can bear witness about him, since no one knows of his having been consecrated to God, there is no way for sin to creep in. For as far as their knowledge goes, neither the one who gives the consecration nor the one who receives it is guilty. We know indeed that an unpardonable offense is committed whenever, following the practices of heretics which the holy fathers have condemned, anyone is forced to enter the font a second time, though it is open only once to those who are to be reborn. This goes against the teaching of the apostle, who speaks to us of one Godhead in the Trinity, one confession in the faith, one sacrament in baptism. But nothing of that kind is to be feared here, since what is not known to have been done at all cannot be charged as a repetition. So whenever such a case arises, first sift it by careful investigation. Unless the man’s end is near, spend a good deal of time inquiring whether there is absolutely no one whose testimony can make up for his ignorance. And when it is established that the man who asks for the sacrament of baptism is held back only by a baseless suspicion, let him come boldly to receive the grace of which he knows no trace in himself. Nor need we be afraid to open in this way the door of salvation, when it has not been shown that he has entered it before. [a]

But if it is established that a man has been baptized by heretics, the mystery of rebirth must by no means be repeated on him. Only what was lacking before is to be given, so that he may receive the power of the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the bishop’s hands. We want this decision, beloved brother, to be made known to all of you in general, so that God’s mercy may not be refused, through excessive timidity, to those who desire to be saved. Dated the 24th of October, in the consulship of Majorian Augustus (in the year 458). [b]