Resultados25 letters/passages
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.02
How dangerous it is to face a judge who is reasonably angry, and to have the man whose wrath you have gravely provoked decide your fate! Strive, therefore, to be praised by our voice instead, for just as an unfavorable word from the judge can bring you down, so a favorable sentence can raise you up. Go forth, then, wit …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.02
Through him, the hospitality shown to foreign nations is arranged for the credit of our state, and ambassadors depart unwillingly whom he received in their sorrow [i.e., they are treated so well they do not wish to leave]. Through him the arrival of ambassadors, however hurried, is announced to us. Through him the disp …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.02
… he most powerful officials in the late Roman/Ostrogothic state: controlling the imperial postal service, the palace guard (scholae), court ceremonies, and the reception of foreign ambassadors.] Whoever receives the title of Master assumes a revered honor, for this name always derives from expertise, and from the title …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.02
The integrity of the judge is present in military appointments, because he gladly fulfills what he knows is justly owed. Therefore, let Pierius know that by my authority he has been made primicerius of the singulares [personal guard unit]. If there are any other matters, let them be brought forward with confidence — fo …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.02
Fairness demands that each person, after completing their term of service, should arrive at the fruit of their military career and receive a reward proportional to their merits. Since ancient custom requires that we designate those who deserve to serve as your tribune, we decree by this authority that the person whose …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.02
[1] It is fitting that the provinces subject to our rule, with God's help, be governed by law and good morals, because the only truly human life is one ordered by the rule of law. Living at the mercy of chance is the way of wild beasts: driven by the impulse to seize, they fall victim to their own reckless daring. A sk …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
What can a horse do when it collapses under excessive weight? Anyone found carrying more than the specified limit shall be fined two ounces of gold. This sum, once collected, shall -- as already established by earlier edicts -- be paid through the office of the Master of Offices for the benefit of the postal service. I …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
A man who carries out his orders effectively earns trust for greater things, because tasks are entrusted without hesitation to one who is proven to perform well, and a good record in a second assignment is an honorable endorsement based on the evidence of the first. Accordingly, by the arrangement of the distinguished …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
The Master's deputy is also presented to us, so that by a shared turn of favor we may choose the assistance of one who provides us faithful support. We therefore commit this office to you -- distinguished by so many titles, rich in so many marks of honor -- for the coming indiction, to be governed with appropriate grav …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
It is our policy to send men proven in strength and moderation to govern and protect you, so that the welfare of the provincials may be improved and the public interest advanced under good leadership. Therefore, we have decided to send Count Marabadus, known to us for his fairness, to the city of Marseille. With God's …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
We are confident this will please you: when we send judges for your military unit, you are able to perform your duties, because you cannot function as soldiers without a presiding judge. These are correlative concepts -- if you remove the commander, you do not leave behind a soldier, because a corps ceases to exist whe …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
The royal progress, just as it brings danger to the negligent, so it confers distinction on those who work energetically — for it is the reward of a lifetime to serve under the lord's own eye, from whom neither fault can be hidden nor merit concealed. How pleasant it is to travel the appointed road without any hindranc …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
[1] Throughout the provinces granted to us by God, we wish to send men who are both equipped with arms and distinguished by justice, so that violence may be kept far from you and the protection of law may stand close at hand. For a governor who is brave but unjust is merely a well-armed oppressor, and one who is just b …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
A judgment backed by precedent is solid, and there is no room for doubt where proven experience speaks in one's favor. We have tested your effectiveness through various stages of active service, and you have earned equal favor in each, consistently approved in diverse assignments. This is why our authority now sends yo …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
There are times when a ruler must speak not to individuals but to all his people at once, and this is such a time. The circumstances of the present day require clarity, firmness, and above all confidence in the order that has sustained us through generations. We address you on several matters of urgent public concern. …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
The devotion that anticipates a good command is welcome and pleasing to us, and it is rightly well-received when people request what we could order. A ruler is fortunate when his subjects love what is expedient, since it spares us the labor of devising what they have already arranged for their own benefit. Having revie …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
It is my duty to energetically raise up those whom royal compassion has resolved to relieve — for where the lords' clemency has deigned to reach down, it is fitting that their subordinates also contribute from their own authority. Recently you thanked me for having given you hope of better things, if not yet tangible r …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
[1] We have issued orders to the distinguished men Victor and Witigisclus, assessors of the province of Sicily, to carry out whatever our instructions require of them. The assessment of taxes is a civilian function, but it depends on the authority and security that only the military can provide. We therefore instruct y …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
It seems an entirely honorable and necessary undertaking to petition a pious Emperor for the security of the Roman state, since it is fitting to seek from you what can benefit our liberty. For among all the blessings God has uniquely granted you, nothing is more glorious than the knowledge that you have the power to gi …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
It has come to our attention that you have been conducting yourself in a manner unworthy of the trust we placed in you. Power was given to you not for your own enrichment but for the protection of those under your care. When an official uses his position to oppress the very people he was appointed to serve, he betrays …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
[1] Although divine power makes those fit to rule whom it has raised to the highest position — since neither age hinders where heavenly power intervenes, nor inexperience impedes where God instructs — nevertheless, even kings require wise counselors to carry out what Providence has ordained. A throne without capable mi …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
Although we wish no one under our protection to suffer any burden -- since a ruler's glory lies in the undisturbed peace of his subjects -- we are especially eager that churches be kept free from all injury. When they are treated fairly, we gain the mercy of God. Therefore, moved by the petition of the most blessed Bis …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
The welcome ceremony of promotions should be embraced, for it releases those who have earned their rest through long service — and in doing so, it grants new recruits the hope of future reward, since the cycle of advancement is renewed when veterans receive their due. Therefore, let Anthianus — who is reported to have …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
We have learned from the report of many that the named individual, trained in upright character, is capable of faithfully carrying out what is entrusted to him. Therefore, let your illustrious greatness know that we have chosen him both to command the soldiers in accordance with ancient custom and to direct the armorer …
cassiodorus · c. 522 · score 0.01
The strong must not be allowed to devour the weak, nor should power be confused with right. Reports have reached us that certain individuals, relying on their influence rather than on law, have been encroaching upon the properties of their neighbors. This is an abuse we cannot tolerate, because the foundations of our r …