Quote from Letter 7,35 to Donus, bishop of Messina. July 597
The statutes of both sacred canons and of the law permit utensils of the Church to be sold, for the ransoming of captives. And so, there is proof that Faustinus, the bearer of this letter, contracted a debt of a hundred and thirty gold coins, so that he could free his daughters from the yoke of captivity, and it is certain that, after paying off thirty gold coins, he cannot manage the repayment of the remaining amount.
We exhort your Fraternity, therefore, with these words, that you should anyway give him fifteen pounds, in return for his receipt, from the silver of the church of Myrie, which is in your possession. He is known to be a soldier of that church.
Cited from: The Letters of Gregory the Great, trans. John R.C. Martyn (Toronto: PIMS, 2004), II, 491
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