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Procopius of Gaza, Letter 158

   https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/444

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 this letter Procopius writes to his associate John, who lives and works in Caesarea (cf. Letters 5, 22, 56, 126, 149), with the formal request that he help an aggrieved party by arranging influential supporters and defraying legal expenses.

Text

ἸωάννηιὉ τὴν παροῦσαν ἐπιστολὴν ἐπαγόμενος, ἀνὴρ ὢν ἀγαθός, ἐξ ἀδικίας ἀδελφοῦ τὴν ἀπορίαν ὀδύρεται. ὅθεν καταλαμβάνει τὴν Καίσαρος, ἄνπερ οἷός τε ᾖ, τὰ προσήκοντα κομιούμενος. ἀλλὰ συλλαβεῖν καταξίωσον, τοὺς παρ’ ὑμῖν δυνατοὺς εἰς συμμαχίαν αὐτῷ παρασκευάζων ἀρκοῦσαν. μίαν γὰρ ἔχει παραμυθίας ἐλπίδα, τῆς ἐκ τῶν νόμων ἐπικουρίας τυχεῖν, ἧς πλεῖστον ἄγαν ἐστέρηται χρόνον, πονηρότατον ἔχων τὸν ἀδελφὸν καὶ καινοτέρας διαδύσεις ἀεὶ μηχανώμενον. ὅθεν αὐτῷ τὴν ἀπορίαν παραμυθήσασθε, τὰς τῶν δικαστηρίων δαπάνας ὡς δυνατὸν περικόπτοντες.1

Textual Note

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

Translation

2

Note

To John,The man delivering this letter, being a good man, laments his poverty, which is caused by a fraternal injustice. Therefore he arrives at Caesarea to collect what is his due, if possible. Do consider it worthwhile to offer help by preparing your powerful associates for an adequate alliance on his behalf. For he has one hope for consolation, namely, that he obtain from the laws the aid of which he has been deprived for an excessively long time, because he has a wretched brother who is always plotting new ways to escape recrimination. Therefore, console his poverty by cutting the cost of court proceedings as much as possible.

Translation Note

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

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: 158, p: 76.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: 418-419.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record
About This Text

 

How to Cite This Entry

Joseph L. Rife, “Procopius of Gaza, Letter 158,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published June 30, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/444.

Bibliography:

Joseph L. Rife, “Procopius of Gaza, Letter 158.” 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/444.

About this Entry

Entry Title: Procopius of Gaza, Letter 158

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 158”
  • Joseph L. Rife, entry contributor, “Procopius of Gaza, Letter 158”

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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