Procopius of Gaza, Letter 42
created: This entry is taken from Letter 42 written by Procopius of Gaza in 500-525 C.E..
edition published: 2023-06-30-05:00
language: grc; grc
availability: Except for materials quoted from other sources, this entry is copyright 2023 by the contributors (Joseph L. Rife, et al.) and the Caesarea City and Port Exploration Project. It is licensed under the Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license. Some texts quoted in this entry may be in the public domain in the United States. No copyright is asserted for these quotations. Some texts quoted in this entry may have copyright restrictions and are reused under Section 107 of the Copyright Act of (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)

https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/442

τὴν Καίσαρος

, and

Caesarea

are directly attested at Procopius of Gaza, Letter 42. This passage was written ca. 500-525 C.E. possibly in Gaza. Procopius, later followed by his student Choricius, was a leading figure in the rhetorical flowering at Late Antique Gaza. During his career spanning the late 5th to early 6th centuries, he was a celebrated teacher and orator whose extant writings include rhetorical works, letters, and biblical exegesis. Procopius wrote the following letter to Thomas, a rhetorician who had worked in the provincial administration, spent time abroad, and was recalled to serve in Caesarea again, presumably by the governor (cf. Letter 88). Procopius here praises Thomas for his excellence in both fields of oratory and jurisprudence, expresses his own decorous humility, and recommends his former student, Megas, who has apparently taken a government post in Caesarea.

Θωμᾶι Νῦν ὄντως ἡμῖν ἀνθοῦσι Δίκη καὶ Μοῦσαι καὶ σύνοικοι γίνονται. τὴν σὴν εὑροῦσαι ψυχὴν μεριζομένην ψήφῳ δικαίᾳ καὶ λόγοις σύνεισι τὰ νῦν ἀλλήλαις ὥσπερ εἰκός, ἀδελφαί τε οὖσαι καὶ κοινὸν ἔχουσαι πατέρα τὸν Δία. ἐξ οὗ γὰρ ἀπέλιπες πάλαι διὰ χειρὸς οὐκ ἔχων ἔτι τὴν Καίσαρος, οἷα δήπου καὶ γέγονεν, ἀπέλιπον μὲν τὰς πόλεις ἡμῖν, ὑπερορᾶται δὲ τὰ ἡμέτερα, ἦσαν δὲ παρὰ τῷ πατρὶ κατηγοροῦσαι τῶν ἐπὶ γῆς. ἀλλ’ ἐπένευσε πάλιν, καὶ γέγονας παρ’ ἡμῖν, καὶ νεάζει πάλιν τοῖς ὑπηκόοις ἡ τύχη. κἂν γὰρ ψῆφον ἐνέγκῃς, οὐκ ἀρνεῖται ταύτην ἡ Δίκη, κἂν λόγον εἴπῃς, ἐπαινοῦσι πάντως αἱ Μοῦσαι. ὃ δὲ μάλιστα τεθαύμακα λέξω. τὸ γὰρ τοσοῦτον προὔχοντα μὴ τῶν ἐλαττόνων ὑπεριδεῖν ἀλλὰ καὶ λόγων ἄρχειν καὶ φιλίας μεμνῆσθαι καί τι καὶ λεγόντων ἐθέλειν ἀκούειν, σοὶ μὲν προσθήκη τοῦτο τοῦ θαύματος, τὰ Σωκράτους οἶμαι φιλοσοφοῦντι, ἐμοὶ δὲ τὸ χρῆμα βαρὺ κατ’ ἐμαυτὸν ὡς δύναμαι ζῶντι καὶ εὐχομένῳ λαθεῖν. καὶ εἰ μὴ κερδαίνειν ἐβουλόμην ὑμετέραν αὖθις ἐπιστολήν, ἐσίγων ἂν ἀπορῶν ὅ τι φθέγξωμαι μετὰ σέ. νυνὶ δὲ καὶ γράφειν ἐρυθριῶ καὶ σιωπᾶν οὐκ ἀνέχομαι, τὴν σὴν ἐγείρων γλῶτταν μουσικὸν αὖθις ἠχῆσαι καὶ μικροῖς τὰ μεγάλα θηρώμενος. πολλὰ δὲ κἀγαθὰ γένοιτο τῷ τὰς πόλεις ἡμῖν ἐπιτροπεύειν λαχόντι· δεῖξαι γὰρ πρὸ τῆς πείρας τὸ μέλλον βουλόμενος καὶ παλαιᾶς τύχης ἄγων εἰς μνήμην, ὑμᾶς ἐκάλει συνεργοὺς καὶ πᾶσι τὸ μέλλον εὐθὺς ἐμαντεύετο. τὸν δὲ καλὸν Μέγαν ἠγάπων μὲν καὶ πρῴην ὥσπερ εἰκός, καὶ ὅσον εἶχον ἐδίδουν. ὁ γὰρ τῆς τέχνης οὕτω βούλεται νόμος· ἀλλὰ καὶ πατὴρ ὑπάρχει καὶ κηδεστὴς ἱκανοὶ δι’ ἀρετὴν ἐμποιῆσαι καὶ τῷ ῥαθυμοῦντι σπουδήν. ὑμῶν δὲ νυνὶ προστεθέντων τῷ νέω εὔξομαι δικαίαν εὐχήν· Ζεῦ ἄλλοι τε θεοί, δυναίμην τι μεῖζον ἢ πρότερον, καὶ ὄναιτο Μέγας ἡμῶν ὁπόσον ὁ κηδόμενος βούλεται.

[Ed. Garzya and Loenertz 1963 with ref. to Amato and Ciccolella 2010]

To Thomas, Now indeed Justice and the Muses blossom and live with us. Having found your soul torn between law and rhetoric, now they get along, as is natural, because they are sisters and have the same father, Zeus. In fact, ever since long ago you left without holding Caesarea in your hand anymore, what troubles have happened! (Justice and the Muses) left our cities, our activities are neglected, and they stood by their father (Zeus) to accuse those on earth. But again (Zeus? the governor?) assented and you came back to us, and fortune has renewed vigor for (your) subjects. In fact, if you issue a verdict, Justice does not deny it, and, if you deliver a speech, the Muses thoroughly praise it. But I will tell you what has amazed me most: the fact that you, despite your superiority, do not overlook those who are inferior—indeed, you not only arrange lectures but you remember the bonds of friendship, and want to listen to those who have something to say. On the one hand, this adds to the admiration for you (a philosopher after Socrates, I think!); on the other hand, it is a serious matter for me, living on my own as much as I can and praying that I will escape notice. And if I did not want to get another letter from you, I would keep silent with no idea what I would say to follow up. Now I am embarrased to write and yet I cannot bear to be silent, stirring your musical tongue to resonate again and hunting for your impressive (words in response) with my small (words of greeting). Many and great success to the one who manages our cities! (The governor), wanting to reveal the future before it came about and remembering the ancient fortune(?), called upon you to be his collaborator and immediately prophesied the future for all. I loved my dear Megas also earlier, naturally, and I gave him everything I had; for that’s how the law of skill wants it. But he has both a father and a caretaker who are able through their virtue to instill discipline even in an idle child. Now that you have been put in charge of the youth, I will pray a just prayer: O Zeus and other gods, might I be more able than before, and might Megas benefit from me as much as his caretaker desires.

[J. L. Rife with ref. to Amato and Ciccolella 2010]

Works Cited

[...] 42 25-26
[...] 314-315

[Procopius of Gaza, Letter 68]

[none]

[Megas

Muses

Socrates, philosopher

Thomas (s.v. Thomas 8, PLRE II, p. 1114)

Zeus]

[Culture and Society

Law and Government

Paganism

Travel]