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Procopius of Gaza, Letter 110

   https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/443

Context

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. In florid language Procopius addresses the following letter to an associate Diodorus, who has failed to stay in contact with Procopius upon moving from Gaza to Caesarea (cf. Letter 29).

Text

ΔιοδώρωιΣὺ μὲν ἡμῶν σκώπτεις τὴν σιωπήν, ἐγὼ δέ σου τὴν ἀλαζονείαν φέρειν οὐκ ἔχω, δι’ ἣν ἴσως οἴει τις εἶναι σεμνός, ἢν ἡμῖν διὰ πλείστου φανῇς, καί που λόγον πολλάκις ἐμβάλῃς ἡμῖν “πότε πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὁ καλός, ὁ τὴν θέαν ἡδύς, ὁ τὰς Σειρῆνας ἀποκρύπτων ταῖς ἡδοναῖς, ὁ τὴν πατρίδα παρορῶν ἵνα σώσῃ τὴν Καίσαρος;” τοιαῦτα λογοποιεῖν ἡμᾶς ἡγῇ τῇ μελλήσει κατατείνων ἀεί, καὶ παρὰ σαυτῷ πάντως γνωμολογεῖς, ὡς τὸ σπάνιον ἀεὶ τοῖς ζητοῦσιν ἐπιτείνει τὸν πόθον. ὅθεν ἡμᾶς παρορᾷς. καὶ οὐ τοῦτο δεινόν, καίπερ ὂν τοιοῦτον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς πατρίους πανηγύρεις ἐν οὐδενὶ λόγῳ ποιῇ. ἀλλὰ πολλάκις ἐμβαλὼν ἐλπίδας ὡς ἥξεις, εἶτα πάλιν ἀνέδυς καὶ διεψεύσμεθα. ὥστε δέδοκται καὶ πρεσβείαν πέμπειν ἡμᾶς καὶ καλεῖν τὸν εὐεργέτην. οὕτω γὰρ χαίρεις λεγόμενος. ἀλλὰ φάνηθι μόλις, ὦ λῷστε, τὴν μεθ’ ἡμῶν ἐπιτελέσων πανήγυριν. εἰ δὲ τὴν πρεσβείαν περιμένεις, ὥρα σοι καταμένειν ἐκεῖ. τῶν γὰρ καλούντων οὐδείς.1

Textual Note

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

Translation

2

Note

To Diodoros,You ridicule my silence but I cannot bear your imposture, by which you perhaps think that you are an honorable man if you appear to us to be very far away, and if you often impute to us the words, “When will our good (Diodorus) come to us, a pleasure to see, a man who eclipses the Sirens with the pleasures he brings, a man who neglects his own home city so that he might save Caesarea?” You think that we contrive such stories in a state of constant torture from waiting, while surely you opine to yourself that an infrequency (of contact) always intensifies the desire for those seeking (it). And so you neglect us. This is not terrible, even if it is significant; but you also dismiss the festivals of your home city. You often inspired hope that you would come, but then you disappeared again and we were tricked. So it was decreed that we send an embassy and summon our benefactor. In fact, you enjoy it when people talk about you like that. So at least do show up, dear friend, to celebrate the festival with us. But if you are awaiting an embassy, it is time for you to remain there: no one is summoning (you).

Translation Note

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

Discussion Note

The πανηγύρις is an unknown festival at Gaza, which would have been attended by the civic elite, namely, benefactors.

Works Cited

  • 1 Procopius of Gaza, Procopii Gazaei epistolae et declamationes, ed. Antonio Garzya and Raymond-Joseph Loenertz, Studia patristica et Byzantina (Ettal: Buch-Kunstverlag, 1963), bk: 110, p: 57-58.Link to Zotero Bibliographic RecordLink to Archive.org Bibliographic record
  • 2 Procopius of Gaza, Rose di Gaza: gli scritti retorico-sofistici e le Epistole di Procopio di Gaza, ed. Eugenio Amato, Frederica Ciccolella, and Gianluca Ventrella (Alessandria: Edizioni dell’Orso, 2010), p: 382-385.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record
About This Text

 

How to Cite This Entry

Joseph L. Rife, “Procopius of Gaza, Letter 110,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published June 30, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/443.

Bibliography:

Joseph L. Rife, “Procopius of Gaza, Letter 110.” In Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, edited by Joseph L. Rife., edited by Joseph L. Rife. Caesarea City and Port Exploration Project, 2023. Entry published June 30, 2023. https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/443.

About this Entry

Entry Title: Procopius of Gaza, Letter 110

Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:

  • Joseph L. Rife, general editor, Vanderbilt University
  • Joseph L. Rife, editor, Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia
  • David A. Michelson, Daniel L. Schwartz, and William L. Potter, technical editor, “Procopius of Gaza, Letter 110”
  • Joseph L. Rife, entry contributor, “Procopius of Gaza, Letter 110”

Additional Credit:

  • TEI encoding by Joseph L. Rife
  • URNs and other metadata added by Joseph L. Rife
  • Electronic text added by Joseph L. Rife
  • Testimonia identified by Joseph L. Rife
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