Peacefull Settlement

Quote from Letter 6,42 to Venantius, patrichan ex-monk. July 596

(For) whatever the case may have been, fury ought not to have broken out to the extent that armed men of yours, as we have heard, rushed into the bishop's home, and committed various wiched acts just like a foreign foe, and meanwhile this business has divided you from our Father's love. Whatever the argument was, could it not be settled peacefully at all, so that the goodness of the parties should suffer no loss and their friendship no injury?

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 432

Priesthood

Quote from Letter 6,40 to Rufinus, bishop of Bivona. June 596

(W)e strongly suggest with this letter herewith that you ought to look for a cleric for the same church [of Nicotera], whose way of life and morality could be suitable for this office, and you should hasen to concecrate him, with the help of the Lord.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 431

Protection of Widows

Quote from Letter 6,37 to Anthelm, sub-deacon. June 596

The more widows living modestly are destitute of the comfort of their husbands, the more earnestly should ecclesiastic protection be provided for the ladies. And for that reason, wit the page of this command to you, we consider that you should hasten to provide protection for Alexandria, a magnificent woman, widow of the one-time Vincomalus, doing so with all urgency and all concern, where necessary, while preserving justice, of course.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 430

To Live Honestly

Quote from Letter 6,40 to Donus, bishop of Messina. June 596

(As) he promised to restrain himself from wicked deeds. For that reason your Holiness should take care to be concerned about his soul, for God's sake, and to recall him with your exhortations to the path pleasing to God. And if, with the Lord's help, he is willing to remove himself from all wickedness and to live honestly, as he promised, let your Fraternity provide an allowance, at your cost, to look after him, so that he may not perhaps seem to find an excuse for acting badly from a shortage of supplies.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 431

Hostile to Faith

Quote from Letter 6,36 to Columbus, bishop of Numidia, June 596

Catholic people, terrible to say, and religious ones too, which is even worse, are consenting that their children and slaves, and any others under their control, should be baptized into the heresy of the Donatists. And so, if this is true, your Fraternity should be extremely keen to remedy it, so that through your concern, the sincerity of true faith may stand inviolate, and innocent souls, which could have been saved by Catholic baptism, might not perish from the infection of heretics.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 429

Inheritance

Quote from Letter 6,35 to Secundinus, bishop of Taormina. May 596

Sinceris, the bearer of this letter, has noted that his father-in-law, Hilary, died totally destitute, and that his wife, the daughter of Hilary, did not involve herself at all in any part of his estate, and complains that she is being pressed by his creditors to pay her father's debt.
For that reason, your Fraternity should inquire carefully, and if what she says is based on the truth, you should be keen to bestow them your priestly advice, and not allow them to be annoyed unreasonably, or suffer any loss. For it is extremely hard that she should suffer an expense unjustly because of something from which she expected to derive no profit.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 428

Truthfullness

Quote from Letter 6,34 to the priests, deacons, dukes, nobles, clerics, monks and soldiers on service and people living in the city of Ravenna or depending on it while outside it. April 596

A certain person full of the promptings of an evil spirit, in the silence of the night, gave testimony in a place in your city against our notary and emissary, Castor, stating in his charge, and to me also, the need for peace, while cunningly speaking against it. And because whoever speaks the truth ought not to  fear making himself known, he should come out publicly and reveal what he has presumed to say in his testimony. And if he does not come out, and does not publicly confess the identity of the person who presumed to do this, or gave his consent to a plan of such wickedness, we determine in the spirit of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he should be deprived of participation in His holy body and blood.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 428

Empty Title

Quote from Letter 6,33 to Secundus, a monk, unequalled at Ravenna. April 596

And when I asked [some elderly beggars] with concern what my aforesaid brother [bishop Marinianus had given them, they replied that they had asked him but had received absolutely nothing from him, not even any bread for the trip. Yet it has always been the normal custom for that church to give bread to all men. For they said that he answered them, saying: 'I do not have anything to give you'. 
I am amazed if he who has clothes and silver and plenty of food, has not got anything that he might give to the poor.
Tell him therefore to change his mind with his place. He should not believe that reading and praying are sufficient for him on their own, so as to be keen to sit apart from others, and not bear fruit with his hand at all. But let him have a generous hand, supporting those suffering need and believe that the shortage of another is his own, because if he does not do this, the title of bishop which he holds is empty.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 427

Ransom

Quote from Letter 6,32 to Anthelm, our sub-deacon in Naples. April 596

We cannot express how much grief and how much affliction there is in our heart, over what has happened in parts of Campagnia, but from the magnitude of that calamity you can imagine it yourself. Concerning that affair, for the relief of those who have been taken captive, we are sending over gold coins to your Experience, through the bearer of this letter, Stephen, a magnificent man. We warn you that you should be extremely concerned, and carry things out strenuously, and make haste yourself to ransom those free men who cannot afford their own ransom, as you know. But as for those who were slaves, if you find that their masters are too poor to come forward to ransom them, do not hesitate to purchase these also.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 426

On the (Ab)use of the Pallium

Quote from Letter 6,31 to Castor, our notary. April 596
 

Just keep before your eyes the fear and righteousness of God, and ask the semior persons and the archdeacon of the same church [of Ravenna] , whom I do not suspect of perjuring himself for another's honor, and other older men, who had been in holy orders before the time of Bishop John, or if there are any more mature onse outside holy orders. And let them come  before the body of Saint Apollinaris, and touching his sepulcher, swear as to what costum there was before the time of Bishop John. For, as you know, the same man was guilty of great presumption, and tried to claim many things for himself in an arrogant manner.

We want whatever has been sworn by the more trustworthy and serious men, following the short list attached hereto, to be preserved in the same church. But see that you do not act negligently, so no one corrupts your faith or devotion in this case. For I know your enthusiasm.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 425

Slaves

Quote from Letter 6,30 to Leo, bishop of Catana. April 596

For we have found that Samaritans living in Catana purchased pagan slaves, and rashly and audaciously presumed to circumcise them. For that reason it is necessary that in this case you exercise priestly zeal in every way, and are keen to examine it with all vigor and concern. And if you find it to be so, claim the slaves themselves for freedom in every way, without any delay, and provide them with the protection of the Church, not allowing their masters to receive anything towards their cost in any way.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 424

On Slavery

Quote from Letter 6,29 to Fortunatus, bishop of Naples. April 596

If it should happen perhaps that pagans have been bought from foreign lands as merchandise, and within three mounthsm while an appropriate buyer is being found for them, they should flee to a church and say that they want to become Christians, or even announce a wish of this sort outside a church, then the owner should receive the price for them from the purchaser, a Christian of course. But if, after the prescribed three months, any slave of this kind should declare his wish and should want to become a Christian, no master should dare either to buy him thereafter of sell him, with any sort of excuse at all. But he should certainly be lead to the reward of freedom, because the master is known to have kept him not for sale, but for service to himself.

Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 424