{"slug":"tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1","id":"latin:ogl-pl:tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1","title":"Epistola Ad Leonem Papam","title_source":"Epistola Ad Leonem Papam","author":"Proterius Alexandrinus Episcopus","genre":"letter","date":"","tradition":"latin","coverage":"not-located","coverage_claim":{"status":"not-located","text":"No English translation could be identified: a language model asked twice could not name one, though it could not rule one out either. That is not proof that none exists — translations in dissertations, recent books and other modern languages are easily missed."},"publication":{"status":"machine-draft","reviewed_by":null,"model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor","provider":"Relace","generated":"2026-11-15T06:23:48Z","cost_usd":0.005599},"source":{"registry_id":"latin:ogl-pl:tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1","work_id":"tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1","edition":"ogl-pl","language":"","license":"Available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License","url":"https://github.com/OpenGreekAndLatin/patrologia_latina-dev/blob/master/data/tmp1120/tmp1120/tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1.xml"},"stats":{"passages":11,"english_words":2721,"coptic_letters":0,"source_letters":9939,"commentary_units":62,"commentary_kinds":9,"derived_notes":0,"ambiguities":18,"work_notes":4,"external_links":0,"timeline":5},"summary":{"work":"tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1","abstract":"The Epistola Ad Leonem Papam, attributed to Proterius of Alexandria (patriarch 451–457), is a letter to Pope Leo I concerning the dating of Easter. It survives only in a Latin translation, the original Greek being lost. The text is preserved in a single manuscript tradition linked to the Pseudo-Isidorian decretals (9th century) and later appears in Gratian's Decretum, where it was used to support papal primacy. The letter is plausibly dated to 454, but the surviving Latin version may be a Carolingian-era composition. This edition reproduces the text from the ogl-pl source without critical apparatus.","historical_context":"The letter is set in the mid-5th century, shortly after the Council of Chalcedon (451), in which Proterius participated. Proterius, a Chalcedonian patriarch, wrote to Pope Leo I amid ongoing disputes over the date of Easter, a recurring issue between the Alexandrian and Roman churches. The letter invokes the paschal cycle of Theophilus of Alexandria (d. 412) to validate its reckoning. The original Greek is lost; the Latin translation survives in a single manuscript tradition associated with the Pseudo-Isidorian decretals, a 9th-century Frankish collection that forged documents to bolster papal authority. The text was later incorporated into Gratian's Decretum (c. 1140), further cementing its influence in medieval canon law. The Carolingian-era composition of the Latin version raises questions about its authenticity.","significance":"The letter is significant for its role in the Pseudo-Isidorian decretals and Gratian's Decretum, where it was used to argue for papal primacy. It also reflects 5th-century debates on paschal computation, particularly the authority of the Theophilus cycle. Its survival only in Latin translation and its inclusion in later canonical collections illustrate how early Christian texts were adapted for medieval ecclesiastical politics.","timeline":[{"date":"c. 451–457","event":"Proterius serves as patriarch of Alexandria."},{"date":"c. 454","event":"Plausible date of the original Greek letter to Pope Leo I."},{"date":"9th century","event":"Latin translation appears in the Pseudo-Isidorian decretals."},{"date":"c. 1140","event":"Letter included in Gratian's Decretum."},{"date":"5th–9th centuries","event":"Original Greek lost; only Latin version survives."}],"relations":[{"work":"Pseudo-Isidorian Decretals","relation":"The letter is preserved in this collection, which forged documents to support papal authority.","key":"","label":null,"url":null},{"work":"Gratian's Decretum","relation":"The letter was later included in this foundational canon law collection.","key":"","label":null,"url":null},{"work":"Council of Chalcedon (451)","relation":"Proterius participated in this council, which shaped his ecclesiastical context.","key":"","label":null,"url":null},{"work":"Theophilus of Alexandria's paschal cycle","relation":"Proterius invokes this cycle to defend his Easter dating.","key":"","label":null,"url":null},{"work":"Pope Leo I's Tome","relation":"The letter responds to Leo's prior memorandum on Easter dating.","key":"","label":null,"url":null}],"external_links":[],"cautions":["The original Greek is lost; the Latin translation may be a Carolingian-era composition rather than a direct translation of a 5th-century original.","The letter's attribution to Proterius is not independently verified outside the Pseudo-Isidorian tradition.","The date of 454 is plausible but not certain; the surviving text cannot be securely dated.","This edition lacks a critical apparatus and does not collate the text against other manuscripts."],"model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor","provider":"Relace","cost_usd":0.000488,"generated":"2026-11-15T06:23:47Z"},"links":[{"kind":"source","label":"Open Greek and Latin Patrologia Latina","url":"https://github.com/OpenGreekAndLatin/patrologia_latina-dev/blob/master/data/tmp1120/tmp1120/tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1.xml"}],"checks":{"work":"tmp1120.tmp1120.opp-lat1","status":"pass","blocking":[],"warnings":[],"stats":{"passages":11,"translated":11,"commentary_passages":11,"commentary_units":62,"english_words":2721,"source_letters":9888,"commentary_kinds":9},"model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor"},"work_notes":[{"unit":"transmission","kind":"transmission","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"The letter survives only in Latin translation; the original Greek is lost. The Latin text is preserved in a single manuscript tradition associated with the Pseudo-Isidorian decretals.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"dating","kind":"chronology","basis":"background","lemma":"","severity":"caution","text":"Proterius was patriarch of Alexandria 451–457. The letter to Pope Leo I is plausibly dated to 454, but the surviving Latin version may be a later Carolingian-era composition.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"background","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"The letter was included in the Pseudo-Isidorian collection (9th cent.) and later in Gratian’s Decretum, where it served to support papal primacy claims.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"caution","text":"This edition does not provide a critical apparatus for the Latin text; it reproduces the text of the ogl-pl source without collation against other manuscripts.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"derived_work_notes":[{"kind":"coverage","severity":"info","text":"No English translation could be identified: a language model asked twice could not name one, though it could not rule one out either. That is not proof that none exists — translations in dissertations, recent books and other modern languages are easily missed."},{"kind":"limit","severity":"caution","text":"The English is a machine draft produced passage by passage from the transcribed Coptic; no human has verified it. The commentary is model-written and cites only keys the pipeline could resolve."},{"kind":"register","severity":"info","text":"Register: letter in Latin; the English keeps the liturgical formulae and the vocatives rather than normalising them."},{"kind":"structure","severity":"info","text":"Passages: 11 narrative."},{"kind":"source","severity":"info","text":"Source edition: ogl-pl — Available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License"}],"derived_structure":{"narrative":11},"term_index":[],"citations":{},"segments":[{"i":1,"ref":"p1","source":"PROTERII, EPISCOPI ALEXANDRINI, EPISTOLA AD LEONEM PAPAM a.\n\nDomino meo dilectissimo fratri et consacerdoti Leoni Proterius in Domino salutem.\n\nPiissimus et fidelissimus imperator noster Marcianus litteris nuper ad nos venerabilibus usus est, quibus asseruit æstimare quosdam non diligenter ascriptam diem festi.paschalis, quæ per octavam indictionem futuram, Domino præstante, celebranda est. Verumtamen non velut a se commotus hoc indicavit, sed quia scripta tua sanctitatis acceperit. Et præcipiebat oportere nos causam diligenter inquirere, adhibita nimis tenuissima scrutatione, quæ multum sollicitudinis ac studii contineret. Quapropter negligendum non fuit, quominus statim uegotium ventilarem; quando ex illo jain tempore quo commonitorium tuae venerationis accepi, plurimam curam rei hujus habuerim; nunc legales libros inspiciens, nunc antiquorum doctorum instituta contingens b; ex quibus possibile est hujusmodi computum investigare solertius. Sumens etiam et centenalem cursum Paschæ, descriptum a beatissimo Patre et coepiscopo nostro Theophilo, omnemque decurrens, ita reperi diligenter integreque compositum, ut, quicunque ille sit, auctoritatem scripturæ hujus quolibet modo reprehendere ac vituperare non possit.","english":"To my most beloved lord, brother, and fellow priest Leo, Proterius sends greetings in the Lord.\n\nOur most pious and faithful emperor, Marcian, recently made use of a venerable letter addressed to us, in which he asserted that some persons were reckoning that the day of the paschal feast, which, with the Lord’s help, is to be celebrated in the coming eighth indiction, had not been carefully recorded. However, he indicated this not as if moved by his own impulse, but because he had received writings of your holiness. And he commanded that we ought diligently to investigate the matter, employing a most thorough scrutiny, which would require much care and effort. For this reason, it was not to be neglected that I should at once examine the business; especially since from that time when I received the memorandum of your reverence, I have had very great concern for this matter, now consulting the legal books, now examining the institutes of the ancient doctors, from which it is possible to investigate such a computation more skillfully. Also, taking up the centennial cycle of Easter, written by our most blessed father and fellow bishop Theophilus, and running through it entirely, I found it so carefully and completely composed that whoever he may be, he cannot in any way reproach or censure the authority of this writing.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"Marcianus","severity":"info","text":"Emperor Marcian (r. 450–457) was a key figure in the Council of Chalcedon (451) and corresponded with Pope Leo I on ecclesiastical and calendrical matters, including the dating of Easter.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"glossary","lemma":"octavam indictionem","severity":"info","text":"The 'eighth indiction' refers to a 15-year tax cycle used in Roman dating; the eighth indiction here likely corresponds to 454/455 CE, a point of contention in paschal computation.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"Theophilo","severity":"info","text":"Theophilus of Alexandria (d. 412) was a bishop and computist whose paschal cycle (the 'centennial cycle') was authoritative in the Eastern Church; Proterius invokes it to validate his own reckoning.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Proterii, Episcopi Alexandrini, Epistola ad Leonem Papam","severity":"info","text":"The letter opens with a formal salutation and a narrative of imperial intervention, establishing the occasion: Marcian's letter and Leo's prior memorandum prompted Proterius to investigate the Easter date.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"text","lemma":"centenalem cursum Paschæ","severity":"info","text":"The 'centennial cycle' attributed to Theophilus was later superseded by the Alexandrian cycle of Cyril and the Dionysiac cycle; Proterius's defense of it reflects ongoing 5th-century debates on paschal tables.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'non velut a se commotus' could be read as 'not as if moved by himself' or 'not as if stirred up on his own'; the translation opts for the former.","The term 'legalibus libris' may refer to civil law codes or to canonical collections; the context of paschal computation suggests the latter, but ambiguity remains."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":2,"ref":"p2","source":"Erat enim inconsequens virum ita vigilartem Deoque charissimum, divinarum etiam ditatum scientia Sedplurarum, in negotio tam magno ac necessario, praetermisso diligentiæ labore, potuisse deliuquere. Sed forte, sicut tua sanctitas scribit c, mendosi codicis, aut librarii error est; et propterea nos oporteret e diem sanctæ illius festivitatis transferre, quod absit f. Celebretur autem ita potius, ut centenarius anuorum cursus ejusdem beatissimi Patris nostri et coepiscopi Theophili continet; qui antiquorum paginis omnino concordat, id est, die mensis Pharmothi, juxta Ægypties, qui est VIII cat. Mai. Et nos enim, et tota Ægyptia regio, atque Oriens universus, sic ipsum diem celebraturi sumus h, Deo praestante.\n\nUt autem non arbitremur absolute, quae nobis videntur, scribere seu velle firmare, inseruimus etiam causas huic epistolæ, quibus tua sanctitas forte æstimeL, non se debere reprehendere Ægyptiorum Ecclesiæ veritatem, quæ mater hujusmodi laboris exstitit, diligenterque conscripsit. Olim quidem Dominus per Moysen tempus paschale significavit, dicens: Custodi mensem novorum, primum hunc esse pronuntians; sicut iterum dicit: Mensis iste vobis initium mensium, primus erit in mensibus anni; et facies pascha Domino Deo tuo XIV die mensis primi.","english":"For it was inconsistent that a man so vigilant and most dear to God, also enriched with knowledge of the divine Scriptures, could have erred in so great and necessary a matter, having omitted the labor of diligence. But perhaps, as your holiness writes, it is the fault of a faulty codex or a scribal error; and for that reason we ought to transfer the day of that holy festival, which may it not be. Let it rather be celebrated as the centenary cycle of years of that same most blessed father and fellow bishop Theophilus contains; which entirely agrees with the pages of the ancients, that is, on the day of the month Pharmouthi, according to the Egyptians, which is the eighth of the Kalends of May. And we, and the whole Egyptian region, and the entire East, will celebrate that same day, God willing.\n\nBut so that we may not be thought to write or wish to affirm absolutely what seems to us, we have also inserted the reasons for this letter, by which your holiness may perhaps judge that it should not reproach the truth of the Egyptian Church, which has been the mother of this kind of labor and has diligently recorded it. Long ago, indeed, the Lord through Moses signified the paschal time, saying: \"Keep the month of new [grain],\" declaring this to be the first; as he also says: \"This month shall be for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first of the months of the year; and you shall keep the Passover to the Lord your God on the fourteenth day of the first month.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"inconsequens","severity":"info","text":"The Latin 'inconsequens' (inconsistent) introduces a logical argument: it would be out of character for the vigilant emperor to err, so the error must lie elsewhere.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"centenarius anuorum cursus","severity":"info","text":"'Centenarius anuorum cursus' refers to a 100-year paschal cycle attributed to Theophilus of Alexandria, used to fix Easter dates.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"die mensis Pharmothi, juxta Ægypties, qui est VIII cat. Mai.","severity":"info","text":"Pharmouthi is the eighth month of the Egyptian calendar; VIII Kal. Mai. is 24 April. This equivalence shows the paschal date in both Egyptian and Roman reckoning.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"Custodi mensem novorum, primum hunc esse pronuntians","severity":"info","text":"This paraphrases Exodus 12:2 ('This month shall be for you the beginning of months') and 12:6 ('you shall keep the Passover... on the fourteenth day of the first month'), grounding the paschal calculation in Mosaic law.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Ut autem non arbitremur absolute... inseruimus etiam causas","severity":"info","text":"This transitional sentence signals a shift from asserting the correct date to providing scriptural and traditional justifications, structuring the letter as a reasoned defense.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"text","lemma":"quæ mater hujusmodi laboris exstitit","severity":"info","text":"Proterius claims the Egyptian Church as the 'mother' of paschal computation, asserting its authority against potential reproach from Rome.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'centenarius anuorum cursus' could refer to a specific cycle by Theophilus or a generic 100-year cycle; the text does not specify which.","The scriptural quotation 'Custodi mensem novorum' is a loose paraphrase; the exact source (Exodus 12) is inferred from context."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":3,"ref":"p3","source":"Sed qui hæc per Moysen locutus est Dominus, plenitudo legis existens, quando dignatus est homo fieri, quinta sabbatorum i, decima quarta luna mensis primi, in coenaculo cum discipulis pascha manducans, paulo post a Juda traditur: et sequenti die, xv luna crucifigitur, id est sexta feria; et ad inferos descendens, ad dispensationes salutis nostræ perficiens, vespere sabbati, locescente dominico, resurrexit a mortuis; in quo die lunam primi mensis juxta Hebræos, exstitisse manifestum est. Nos ergo Christiani, non solum Xiv lunam in Pascha requirimus (hoc enim Judæi facientes, sine festivitate sunt); sed etiam resurrectionis diem Redemptoris nostri, qui est XVII luna præfati primi mensis novorum, sollicilius observamus. Quod it si eodem modo plenilunium semper occurreret b, quinta sabbatorum, quando Salvator pascha cum discipulis mandueavit, omne tolleretur ambiguum. Quia vero lunæ circulus ad solis cursum inæqualis est, et xiv luna paschalis in die dominico sæpe contingit, non est autem possibile tunc festum celebrare; sed nec pridie, sabbato, luna xm jcjunium solvere; in septimanam sequentem differendum est; maxime cum habeamus intra eam xv lunam, quando, sicut scripsit Apostolus, pascha nostrum immolatus est Christus.","english":"But the Lord who spoke these things through Moses, being the fullness of the law, when He deigned to become man, on the fifth day of the week, the fourteenth day of the moon of the first month, in the upper room ate the Passover with His disciples, and shortly after was betrayed by Judas; and on the following day, the fifteenth day of the moon, He was crucified, that is, on the sixth day of the week; and descending into hell, completing the dispensations of our salvation, on the evening of the Sabbath, as the Lord’s Day was dawning, He rose from the dead; on which day the moon of the first month according to the Hebrews is manifestly shown to have existed. We Christians, therefore, seek not only the fourteenth day of the moon at Passover (for the Jews, doing this, are without festivity); but we also more carefully observe the day of the Resurrection of our Redeemer, which is the seventeenth day of the moon of the aforementioned first month of the new [moon]. If the full moon always occurred in the same way on the fifth day of the week, when the Savior ate the Passover with His disciples, all ambiguity would be removed. But because the cycle of the moon is unequal to the course of the sun, and the fourteenth day of the paschal moon often falls on the Lord’s Day, it is not possible then to celebrate the feast; but neither on the day before, the Sabbath, with the thirteenth day of the moon, to break the fast; it must be deferred to the following week; especially since within it we have the fifteenth day of the moon, when, as the Apostle wrote, our Passover, Christ, was sacrificed.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"quinta sabbatorum","severity":"info","text":"The Latin phrase 'quinta sabbatorum' means 'fifth day of the week' (Thursday), following the Jewish reckoning of days from the Sabbath.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"locescente dominico","severity":"caution","text":"The phrase 'locescente dominico' is obscure; likely a corruption of 'lucescente dominico' ('the Lord's Day dawning'), referring to Sunday morning.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"pascha nostrum immolatus est Christus","severity":"info","text":"The phrase echoes 1 Corinthians 5:7 (Vulgate: 'pascha nostrum immolatus est Christus'), identifying Christ as the Passover sacrifice.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"xvii luna","severity":"info","text":"Proterius asserts the Resurrection occurred on the 17th day of the moon, a detail not in the Gospels; this reflects Alexandrian paschal computation, which placed the Resurrection on the third day after the Crucifixion (15th moon) but counted inclusively.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"This passage moves from a narrative of Christ's passion (Thursday to Sunday) to a liturgical argument: because the 14th moon can fall on Sunday, Passover must be deferred to the following week to ensure the Resurrection is celebrated after the full moon.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"Proterius's argument for deferring Easter when the 14th moon falls on a Sunday reflects the Quartodeciman controversy and the later Nicene settlement, though his lunar dates (14th, 15th, 17th) are idiosyncratic.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'locescente dominico' is textually uncertain; the translation assumes a corruption of 'lucescente dominico'.","The phrase 'primi mensis novorum' is ambiguous; 'novorum' may mean 'of the new [moon]' or be a corruption of 'novilunii'."],"confidence":"medium","notes":[]},{"i":4,"ref":"p4","source":"Decima quarta namque luna primi mensis juxta Hebræos, ut superius dictum est, Jesus pascha typicum manducavit; sequenti vero sexta feria, xv luna, ut ovis occision cruci pro nobis aflixus est; et vespere sabbati, luceMente dominico, XVII lana, resurrexit a mortuis.\n\nQuia ergo in solemnitate futura paschali, per VIII indictionem, XXII die Pharmothi mensis novorum, qui est xv cal. Maii, occurrit XIV luna die dominico, in septiManam differre convenit subsequentem. Habentes enim intra eam triduanum mysterium, hoc est xv lunam, quando crucifixus est Christus, quartædecimæ cohærentem; nec non et xvi et sequentem decimam septimam; vigesimo quidem octavo die mensis Pharmothi, qui est ix cat. Maii, jejunia solvemus vespere sabbatorum. Sequenti vero lucescente dominico, XXIX die mensis ipsius Pharmothi, qui est VIII cat. Maii, festivitatem sincerissime celebrabimus.","english":"The fourteenth moon of the first month according to the Hebrews, as was said above, Jesus ate the typical Passover; on the following sixth day of the week, the fifteenth moon, He was affixed to the cross for us like a sheep for slaughter; and on the evening of the Sabbath, at the dawning of the Lord's day, the seventeenth moon, He rose from the dead.\n\nTherefore, since in the coming Paschal solemnity, in the eighth indiction, on the twenty-second day of the month Pharmouthi of the new fruits, which is the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May, the fourteenth moon falls on the Lord's day, it is fitting to defer to the following week. For having within it the three-day mystery, that is the fifteenth moon, when Christ was crucified, adhering to the fourteenth; and also the sixteenth and the following seventeenth; on the twenty-eighth day of the month Pharmouthi, which is the ninth day before the Kalends of May, we will break the fasts on the evening of the Sabbath. On the following dawning Lord's day, the twenty-ninth day of that same month Pharmouthi, which is the eighth day before the Kalends of May, we will celebrate the feast most sincerely.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"pascha typicum","severity":"info","text":"The phrase 'pascha typicum' distinguishes the Passover meal Jesus ate from the Christian Paschal feast, emphasizing its typological or prefigurative character.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"ut ovis occision cruci pro nobis aflixus est","severity":"info","text":"This echoes the Isaianic suffering servant imagery (Isaiah 53:7) and the Johannine depiction of Christ as the Lamb of God (John 1:29).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"XXII die Pharmothi mensis novorum","severity":"info","text":"Pharmouthi is the eighth month of the Egyptian calendar, corresponding to April–May. 'Mensis novorum' refers to the month of new fruits, a seasonal designation.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"dating","kind":"chronology","basis":"text","lemma":"per VIII indictionem","severity":"info","text":"The eighth indiction places this letter in a 15-year tax cycle, likely the early 5th century, consistent with Proterius's episcopate (c. 451–457).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"triduanum mysterium","severity":"info","text":"The 'three-day mystery' refers to the Paschal Triduum (Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday), here linked to lunar dates 15–17.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"XVII lana","severity":"caution","text":"The Latin reads 'XVII lana' for 'XVII luna'; this is likely a scribal error or variant spelling, not a different lunar day.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'luceMente dominico' may be a scribal conflation of 'lucescente dominico' (dawning Lord's day) or a variant spelling; the translation follows the standard reading.","The exact year of the eighth indiction is not specified, but the context suggests a date in the mid-5th century."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":5,"ref":"p5","source":"Nam et priscis temporibus, si quando die dominico, decima quarta luna reperta est, iu sequentem septimanam est dilata festivitas. Sicut in octogesimo nono et nonagesimo tertio anno a Diocletiani probatur imperio. Sic enim et tunc beatissimi Patres nostri fecisse declarantur (Anno Christi 373). In octogesimo nono e quidem anno ab imperia Diocletiani, superstite beatæ memoriæ Patre nostro et episcopo Athanasio f, cum XIV luna paschalis XXVIII die mensis Phamenoth, id est, nono calend. Aprilium die, provenisset, diedominico; in subsequentem translatum est hebdomadem; ita ut quinta die mensis Pharmothi, hoc est, pridie calendarum Aprilium, celebraretur Pascha dominicum. In nonagesimo autem tertio K anno ab imperio ejusdem Diocletiani, cum xiv luna paschalis xiv die mensis Pharmothi, qui cst v idus Aprilis, die dominico contigisset, in sequentem item septimanam dilatio facta est: ita ut dominicum pascha xxi die mensis Pharmothi, qui est xvi calend. Maii, solemniter ageretur. In centesimo quoque tcrtio anno ab imperio praefati Diocletiani (Anno Christi 387), cum luna paschalis decima quarta Pharmothi XXIII die, qui est XIV calend. Maii, esset die dominico superventura; iterum septimana quæsita est, et dominicum pascha die mensis ipsius Pharmothi, qui est VII calend. Maii, constat esse celebratum, propter angustiam temporis imminentem.","english":"For also in former times, if ever the fourteenth moon was found on the Lord's day, the feast was deferred to the following week. As is proven in the eighty-ninth and ninety-third years from the reign of Diocletian. For thus also our most blessed Fathers are declared to have done (in the year of Christ 373). In the eighty-ninth year indeed from the reign of Diocletian, with our Father and bishop Athanasius of blessed memory still living, when the paschal fourteenth moon fell on the twenty-eighth day of the month Phamenoth, that is, the ninth day before the Kalends of April, on the Lord's day, it was transferred to the following week; so that the paschal Lord's day was celebrated on the fifth day of the month Pharmuthi, that is, the day before the Kalends of April. In the ninety-third year from the reign of the same Diocletian, when the paschal fourteenth moon fell on the fourteenth day of the month Pharmuthi, which is the fifth day before the Ides of April, on the Lord's day, a deferral was likewise made to the following week: so that the paschal Lord's day was solemnly observed on the twenty-first day of the month Pharmuthi, which is the sixteenth day before the Kalends of May. Also in the hundred and third year from the reign of the aforementioned Diocletian (in the year of Christ 387), when the paschal fourteenth moon was about to fall on the twenty-third day of Pharmuthi, which is the fourteenth day before the Kalends of May, on the Lord's day; again a week was sought, and the paschal Lord's day is known to have been celebrated on the day of that same month Pharmuthi which is the seventh day before the Kalends of May, on account of the imminent shortness of time.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"The Diocletianic era (Anno Diocletiani) was a calendar system used in Egypt and by early Christians, counting years from Diocletian's accession in 284/285 AD. The years 89, 93, and 103 correspond to 372/373, 376/377, and 386/387 AD.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"Phamenoth","severity":"info","text":"Phamenoth is the seventh month of the Egyptian calendar, roughly corresponding to March. The 28th of Phamenoth is equivalent to 24 March (9th day before the Kalends of April).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"Pharmuthi","severity":"info","text":"Pharmuthi is the eighth month of the Egyptian calendar, roughly corresponding to April. Dates given include the 5th (28 March), 14th (9 April), 21st (16 April), and 23rd (18 April).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"dating","kind":"chronology","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"The passage cites three historical deferrals of Easter: in 373 (year 89), 377 (year 93), and 387 (year 103). The first is linked to Athanasius of Alexandria, who died in 373, confirming the dating.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"info","text":"This passage provides historical precedents for the rule stated in the previous passage: when the 14th moon of Nisan falls on a Sunday, Easter is deferred to the following Sunday. The three examples illustrate consistent practice.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"","severity":"caution","text":"The Latin text contains minor inconsistencies: 'iu' for 'in', 'e quidem' for 'equidem', and 'tcrtio' for 'tertio'. These are likely scribal errors in the manuscript tradition and do not affect the sense.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The phrase 'propter angustiam temporis imminentem' (on account of the imminent shortness of time) in the 387 example is ambiguous: it may refer to the proximity of Easter to the equinox or to the need to avoid celebrating too late in the year."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":6,"ref":"p6","source":"Item cum in centesimo sexagesimo anno (Anno Christi 444) a Diocletiani imperio, luna paschalis Pharmothi XXIII dic, qui est XIV calend. Maii, occurrerit i, tertia feria septimanæ, et dominicum Pascha XXVIII die mensis ipsius Pharmothi, qui est nono calendas Maii, nos celebrasse meminimus.\n\nNecesse est igitur, in CCLV i anno a Diocletiani imperio, in futuro paschali festo indictionis octava, vigesimo secundo die Pharmothi, qui est xv calend. Maii luna decima quarta, occurrente die dominico, in proximam septimanam, juxta præcedentem formam, convenienter extendi, ut XXIX die mensis Pharmothi, qui est VIII calend. Maii, dominicum celebremus Pascha, propter apprehendentem rursus angustiam; sicut Patres nostri fecerunt, decimas quartas lunas occurrentes die dominico, differentes. Nam si XXII dio mensis Pharmothi, qui est xv calendas Maii, luna XIV, sicut dixi, sæpius occurrente dominico die, Pascha celebremus, inveniemus pridie, id est sabbato, XXI die mensis ejusdem, qui est xvi calendas Maii, XIII luna tunc existente, non rite jejunia solvere. Nec enim in decima tertia luna comeditur pascha.","english":"Likewise, in the one hundred and sixtieth year (Anno Domini 444) from the reign of Diocletian, when the paschal moon fell on the twenty-third day of Pharmouthi, which is the fourteenth day before the Kalends of May, on the third day of the week (Tuesday), and we remember that we celebrated the Lord's Pascha on the twenty-eighth day of the same month of Pharmouthi, which is the ninth day before the Kalends of May.\n\nIt is therefore necessary, in the two hundred and fifty-fifth year from the reign of Diocletian, at the future paschal feast of the eighth indiction, on the twenty-second day of Pharmouthi, which is the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May, the fourteenth moon falling on the Lord's day (Sunday), that it be fittingly extended to the following week, according to the preceding form, so that we celebrate the Lord's Pascha on the twenty-ninth day of the month of Pharmouthi, which is the eighth day before the Kalends of May, on account of the strait again impending; just as our Fathers did, deferring the fourteenth moons when they fell on the Lord's day. For if we celebrate Pascha on the twenty-second day of the month of Pharmouthi, which is the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May, when the fourteenth moon, as I have said, often falls on the Lord's day, we will find that on the previous day, that is the Sabbath (Saturday), the twenty-first day of the same month, which is the sixteenth day before the Kalends of May, the thirteenth moon then existing, we do not properly break the fast. For the paschal feast is not eaten on the thirteenth moon.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"dating","kind":"chronology","basis":"text","lemma":"centesimo sexagesimo anno","severity":"info","text":"The 160th year from Diocletian corresponds to AD 444, as the era began in AD 284. This dating system was standard in Egyptian Christian documents.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"Pharmothi","severity":"info","text":"Pharmouthi is the eighth month of the Egyptian calendar, roughly equivalent to April. The dates given (23 Pharmouthi = 18 April; 28 Pharmouthi = 23 April) follow the fixed Alexandrian year.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"decimas quartas lunas occurrentes die dominico, differentes","severity":"info","text":"The practice of deferring Easter when the 14th moon fell on a Sunday was a known Alexandrian rule, later codified in the computus. This passage cites earlier precedent (Fathers) to justify the deferral.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Item cum ... Necesse est igitur","severity":"info","text":"The passage moves from a past example (AD 444) to a future case (the 255th year from Diocletian, i.e., AD 539), using the same rule to argue for deferral. The logical connector 'igitur' signals the application of the precedent.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"CCLV i anno","severity":"caution","text":"The numeral 'CCLV i' is ambiguous: it may be a scribal error for 'CCLV' (255) or an attempt to write 'CCLVI' (256). The English draft reads it as 255, but the text's internal logic (future paschal feast) supports 255 (AD 539).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"indictionis octava","severity":"info","text":"The 'eighth indiction' is a 15-year tax cycle dating from AD 312. The eighth indiction corresponds to AD 539–540, consistent with the 255th year from Diocletian (AD 539).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The numeral 'CCLV i' may be corrupt; the reading '255' is adopted based on the context of the future paschal feast and the indiction year."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":7,"ref":"p7","source":"Unde quia XXII die mensis Pharmothi, qui est decimo quinto calendas Maii, dominico die, decima quarta luna contingit; non autem convenit die dominico jejunare, quia hoc Manichæorum est proprium: consequens est in proximam tendere septimanam, intra quam, ut diximus, hahemus et XV lunam, quando crucifixus est Dominus, et XVI lunam, simul et XVII lunam, quando resurrexit a mortuis. Ita ut XXVIII die mensis Pharmothi, qui est ix calend. Maii, vespere sabbati jejunia pro more solvamus, et sequenti dominico, XXIX die mensis ipsius, qui est VIII calend. Maii, festum paschale celebremus.\n\nIllud etiam necessario vobis innotescimus, quod in futuro a anno CCLXV ab imperio Diocletiani, xiv luna rursus occurrente, XVIII die mensis Pharmothi, qui est xiv calend. Maii, dominicum Pascha XXVIII die mensis ipsius, qui est VII cai. Maii, Deo præstante celebrabilur.","english":"Therefore, because the twenty-second day of the month of Pharmouthi, which is the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May, falls on a Sunday, and the fourteenth moon occurs on that day; and it is not fitting to fast on a Sunday, for this is proper to the Manichaeans: it follows that we should proceed to the following week, within which, as we have said, we have both the fifteenth moon, when the Lord was crucified, and the sixteenth moon, together with the seventeenth moon, when He rose from the dead. Thus, on the twenty-eighth day of the month of Pharmouthi, which is the ninth day before the Kalends of May, in the evening of the Sabbath we shall break the fasts according to custom, and on the following Sunday, the twenty-ninth day of that same month, which is the eighth day before the Kalends of May, we shall celebrate the paschal feast.\n\nWe also make known to you of necessity, that in the coming year 265 from the reign of Diocletian, the fourteenth moon again occurring on the eighteenth day of the month of Pharmouthi, which is the fourteenth day before the Kalends of May, the Sunday of Easter, on the twenty-eighth day of that same month, which is the seventh day before the Kalends of May, will, with God’s favor, be celebrated.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"Manichaeorum","severity":"info","text":"The Manichaeans were known for extreme ascetic practices, including fasting on Sundays, which orthodox Christians reserved for celebration of the Resurrection.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"decimo quinto calendas Maii","severity":"info","text":"The Roman dating system counts inclusively from the Kalends (1st) of May; thus 'decimo quinto calendas Maii' corresponds to 17 April in the Julian calendar.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"dating","kind":"chronology","basis":"text","lemma":"anno CCLXV ab imperio Diocletiani","severity":"info","text":"The Diocletianic era (Anno Diocletiani) began in 284/285 AD; year 265 corresponds to 549/550 AD, placing this letter in the mid-6th century.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Unde ... consequens est","severity":"info","text":"The passage follows a logical argument: because the 14th moon falls on Sunday (unsuitable for fasting), Easter must be deferred to the next week, when the 15th–17th moons align with the crucifixion and resurrection.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"background","lemma":"Manichaeorum","severity":"info","text":"The anti-Manichaean polemic reflects a common trope in patristic and medieval Easter computus, used to justify the quartodeciman controversy and the Nicene decision to separate Easter from Passover.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The Latin 'hahemus' is a scribal error for 'habemus' (we have).","The phrase 'in futuro a anno' is grammatically irregular; likely a corruption of 'in futuro anno' (in the coming year)."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":8,"ref":"p8","source":"Sed nonnulli subtilitatem paschalis computi forsitan ignorantes, Judaicib seducti fabulis, æstimabunt nos in secundum mensem recedere, si festivitatem eatenus exigamus, nescio prorsus unde hoc asserentes. Nam XIV luna ipsius in usis occurrente XXII die mensis Pharmothi, qui est xv cat. Maii, quomodo querclam sustinebimus, quod in secundo mense Pascha celebremus? Judæi namque ignorantes Dominum, tempus quoque Paschae ignorant. Unde saepius a primo mense recedunt, et in XII mense Pascha celebrare se aliquatenus arbitrantur. Sed beatissimi patres nosLri cyclum decemnovennalem certius affigentes, quem violari impossibile est, velut crepidinem ac fundamentum, et regulam, hunc decemnovennalem computum statuerunt: non juxta Judæorum nunc indoctas atque ineptas actiones d; neque tecundum eiterorum putativam fictamque prude liam, sed secundum gratiam Spiritus sancti instituti, in revolutione sæpe memorati decemnovennalis circuli decimas quartas paschales lunas diligentius adnotarunt.","english":"But some, perhaps ignorant of the subtlety of the paschal computation, deceived by Jewish fables, will think that we are retreating into the second month if we postpone the feast until then—I do not know at all whence they assert this. For when the fourteenth moon of that month occurs on the twenty-second day of the month of Pharmouthi, which is the fifteenth day before the Kalends of May, how shall we endure the complaint that we are celebrating Easter in the second month? For the Jews, ignorant of the Lord, are also ignorant of the time of Easter. Hence they often depart from the first month and think that they are celebrating Easter in the twelfth month to some extent. But our most blessed fathers, more certainly establishing the nineteen-year cycle, which it is impossible to violate, set this nineteen-year computation as a foundation, a base, and a rule: not according to the unlearned and inept actions of the Jews, nor according to the putative and feigned prudence of others, but according to the grace of the Holy Spirit instituted, they more carefully noted the paschal fourteenth moons in the revolution of the oft-mentioned nineteen-year cycle.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"Judaicis seducti fabulis","severity":"info","text":"The phrase 'Judaicis seducti fabulis' (deceived by Jewish fables) reflects a common patristic polemic against Jewish calendrical practices, often accused of error and superstition.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"text","lemma":"cyclum decemnovennalem","severity":"info","text":"The 'decemnovennalis cyclus' (nineteen-year cycle) is the Metonic cycle used to reconcile lunar and solar years for paschal computation, foundational in Alexandrian and later Western computus.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"non juxta Judæorum ... sed secundum gratiam Spiritus sancti","severity":"info","text":"This passage contrasts Jewish and heretical practices with the divinely guided patristic computation, reinforcing the letter's rhetorical strategy of asserting orthodox authority.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"text","lemma":"beatissimi patres nostri","severity":"info","text":"The reference to 'beatissimi patres' (most blessed fathers) likely alludes to the Council of Nicaea (325) and subsequent Alexandrian computists, whose cycle was later adopted by Rome.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"nescio prorsus unde hoc asserentes","severity":"caution","text":"The phrase 'I do not know at all whence they assert this' may indicate a lacuna or rhetorical dismissal; the Latin is clear but the argument assumes prior knowledge of the opponents' claims.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The identity of 'others' (ceterorum) with 'putative and feigned prudence' is unspecified; possibly Quartodecimans or other Christian groups with differing paschal practices."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":9,"ref":"p9","source":"His itaque confectis, illud etiam oportet attendere, quod errent nimium qui primi mensis initium lunaris cursus a xxv die mensis Phamenoth, qui est XII calend. Aprilis, omnino esse constituunt: eo quod tunc initium verni temporis, ab his qui hoc invenire valuerunt cum omni diligentia præfixum esse videatur, et manifeste quidem secundum cursum solis, xxv die mensis Phamenoth, qui est XII cal. Aprilis, æquinoclium esse cognoscitur. Sed non oportet ab hoc æquinoctio primi mensis exordium, juxta cursum lunæ, prorsus affigere. Alioquin per omnia solis circulo lunae discursus concordare debnerat. Verum quia cunctis habentibus intellectum certum est quod velocissimum lunæ motum cursus solis minime consequatur, age jam nunc breviter, Deo praestante, duHos instruamus, quod in secundum mensem nullo modo possimus excedere. Si euim in aequinoctio, id est xxv die mensis Phamenoth, qui est XII cal. Aprilis, juxta cursum lunae, mensis constitueretur initium, rationis esset opinari nonnullos, in secundum mensem nos posse recedere. Nunc autem, quia xiv luna primi mensis per octavam indictionem, quae ventura est XXII die mensis Pharmothi, qui est xv cat. Maii, invenitur, certum est quod initium ejusdem mensis primi juxta lunæ cursum nono die Pharmothi, qui est pridie nonas Aprilis occurrat.","english":"Having thus completed these matters, it is also necessary to observe that those who set the beginning of the first lunar month entirely on the 25th day of the month Phamenoth, which is the 12th day before the Kalends of April, are greatly in error, because the beginning of springtime seems to have been fixed with all diligence by those who were able to discover this, and indeed according to the course of the sun, the equinox is clearly known to be on the 25th day of the month Phamenoth, which is the 12th day before the Kalends of April. But it is not necessary to fix the beginning of the first month, according to the course of the moon, precisely from this equinox. Otherwise, the course of the moon would have to agree in all respects with the circle of the sun. But because it is certain to all who have understanding that the very swift motion of the moon is by no means followed by the course of the sun, come now, briefly, with God's help, let us instruct the doubtful that we cannot in any way exceed into the second month. For if the beginning of the month were established at the equinox, that is, on the 25th day of the month Phamenoth, which is the 12th day before the Kalends of April, according to the course of the moon, it would be reasonable for some to think that we could recede into the second month. But now, because the 14th moon of the first month is found, through the eighth indiction, which will come on the 22nd day of the month Pharmothi, which is the 15th day before the Kalends of May, it is certain that the beginning of that same first month, according to the course of the moon, occurs on the 9th day of Pharmothi, which is the day before the Nones of April.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"xxv die mensis Phamenoth, qui est XII calend. Aprilis","severity":"info","text":"The Egyptian month Phamenoth corresponds roughly to March–April. The 25th of Phamenoth is 22 March in the Julian calendar, the traditional date of the vernal equinox in late antique computus.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"glossary","lemma":"indictionem","severity":"info","text":"Indictio (indiction) is a 15-year tax cycle used for dating in late Roman and Byzantine documents. The 'eighth indiction' here anchors the paschal calculation to a specific year.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"His itaque confectis","severity":"info","text":"This phrase marks a transition from the preceding argument to a new objection: that some wrongly fix the first lunar month to the equinox.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"velocissimum lunæ motum cursus solis minime consequatur","severity":"info","text":"Proterius argues that the moon's motion is faster than the sun's, so the lunar month cannot be tied to the solar equinox. This is a standard point in paschal computus.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"dating","kind":"chronology","basis":"text","lemma":"xiv luna primi mensis per octavam indictionem","severity":"info","text":"The 14th moon of the first month in the eighth indiction falls on 22 Pharmouthi (17 April). This date is used to show that the first lunar month begins on 9 Pharmouthi (4 April).","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"caution","kind":"caution","basis":"text","lemma":"duHos instruamus","severity":"caution","text":"The Latin 'duHos' is likely a scribal error for 'dubios' (the doubtful). The sense is clear from context: 'let us instruct the doubtful'.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The precise year of the 'eighth indiction' is not specified; it may refer to a cycle beginning in 312 CE, but the letter's date is uncertain.","The reading 'duHos' is a conjecture; the manuscript may have had 'dubios' or another word."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":10,"ref":"p10","source":"Cum ergo decima quarta luna, xxii die mensis Pharmothi inveniatur, qui est iv calendas Maii, dominicum pascha XXIX die mensis ipsius Pharmothi, qui est VIII cal. Maii, celebrantes, in secundum mensem minime recedimus, eum lunam tunc xxi indubitate habeamus. Quomodo igitur excurremus in mensem secundum, quandoquidem initium primi mensis juxta lunae cursum, sicut paule ante dictum est, ix die mensis Pharmothi, qui est pridie non. Aprilis, existat, et xiv luna, XXII die mensis ipsius, id est xv cai. Maji proveniat? Hoc autem ita declarato, certum est quod in secundum mensem nullatenus excurramus, xxix die mensis Pharmothi, qui est VIII cal. Mai., dominicum pascha celebrantes.\n\nCognoscant itaque per tuam sanctitatem, qui in illis partibus ambigunt, quod legitime per octavam indictionem Pascha peragimus f. Propterea enim scripsi g, Patrum et in hoc ecclesiasticas formulas subsequens, et exinde occasiones rei hujus assumens. Sic namque et præcessores nostri, si quando dubietas orta est, praedicere festinabant, ut ubique consonauter ageretur sancta festivitas. Quod etiam nunc juxta priscam consuetudinem credimus in Domino predicari in ecclesiis unam fidem, unum baptisma, et unam solemnitatem sacratissimam paschalem ab omnibus Christianis ubique celebrari in Christo Jesu Domino nostro; quia in ipso vivimus, et movemur, et sumus.","english":"Since therefore the fourteenth moon is found on the 22nd day of the month Pharmothi, which is the 4th day before the Kalends of May, celebrating the Lord's Passover on the 29th day of the same month Pharmothi, which is the 8th day before the Kalends of May, we by no means recede into the second month, since we then undoubtedly have the 21st moon. How then shall we run into the second month, when the beginning of the first month according to the course of the moon, as was said a little before, falls on the 9th day of the month Pharmothi, which is the day before the Nones of April, and the 14th moon occurs on the 22nd day of that same month, that is, the 15th day before the Kalends of May? This having been thus declared, it is certain that we by no means run into the second month, celebrating the Lord's Passover on the 29th day of the month Pharmothi, which is the 8th day before the Kalends of May.\n\nLet it therefore be known through your Holiness to those who are in doubt in those parts, that we legitimately celebrate the Passover in the eighth indiction. For this reason indeed I have written, following the Fathers and the ecclesiastical formulas in this matter, and taking from them the occasions for this subject. For thus also our predecessors, whenever doubt arose, hastened to announce beforehand, so that the holy festival might be celebrated uniformly everywhere. Which also now, according to ancient custom, we believe is proclaimed in the churches in the Lord: one faith, one baptism, and one most sacred Paschal solemnity, to be celebrated by all Christians everywhere in Christ Jesus our Lord; because in Him we live, and move, and are.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"decima quarta luna","severity":"info","text":"The phrase 'decima quarta luna' (fourteenth moon) refers to the lunar day on which the Passover full moon falls, a key date for calculating Easter. Proterius argues that this date (22 Pharmothi) keeps Easter in the first lunar month.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"glossary","lemma":"Pharmothi","severity":"info","text":"Pharmothi is the eighth month of the Egyptian calendar, corresponding roughly to March–April. The dates given (e.g., 22 Pharmothi = 4 Kalends of May) anchor the lunar calculations in the Alexandrian system.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"background","kind":"background","basis":"background","lemma":"octavam indictionem","severity":"info","text":"The 'eighth indiction' is a 15-year tax cycle used for dating in late Roman and Byzantine documents. Proterius uses it to specify the year of the disputed Paschal celebration, likely 434 or 449 CE.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Cognoscant itaque ... unam solemnitatem","severity":"info","text":"This passage shifts from technical lunar argument to a hortatory conclusion, urging unity of faith, baptism, and Paschal celebration. The tricolon 'unam fidem, unum baptisma, et unam solemnitatem' echoes liturgical and creedal formulas.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"background","lemma":"per tuam sanctitatem","severity":"info","text":"Proterius addresses Pope Leo I ('your Holiness'), indicating that this letter was part of the Alexandrian see's effort to secure Roman endorsement for its Paschal calculation, a recurring issue in 5th-century ecclesiastical politics.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"scripture","kind":"scripture","basis":"text","lemma":"in ipso vivimus, et movemur, et sumus","severity":"info","text":"This phrase echoes a well-known patristic adaptation of a biblical sentiment (cf. 1 Cor 8:6, but not a direct quotation). It affirms Christ as the source of life and unity, closing the letter on a theological note.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The exact year of the 'eighth indiction' is not specified; it could be 434 or 449 CE depending on the indiction cycle start.","The Coptic original of this passage is lost; the Latin translation may introduce minor chronological or terminological shifts."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]},{"i":11,"ref":"p11","source":"Transferre vero hanc epistolam in Latinæ vocis eloquium, non salis certum esse putavimus; ne forte græcissantes potius apud nos i, nec i jam valentes haec diligenter exprimere, læderent veritatem, proptei informem sermonem atque incongruum, et qui forte non ita possit ardenter scienterque transferri, sicut causa poscebat. Saluta eam, quae tecum est, fraternitatem. Te, quæ nobiscum est, salutat in Domino. Et alia manu: Valere te et nostri meminisse. domine, precor, dilectissime et desideratissime frater a.","english":"We thought it not sufficiently certain to translate this letter into the eloquence of the Latin tongue, lest, perhaps, by Grecizing among us, and no longer being able to express these things diligently, we should harm the truth, on account of an unformed and incongruous style, and one which might not be able to be rendered so ardently and knowledgeably as the cause demanded. Greet that brotherhood which is with you. The brotherhood which is with us greets you in the Lord. And in another hand: I pray, most beloved and most desired lord brother, that you be well and remember us.","structure":"narrative","commentary":[{"unit":"sense","kind":"sense","basis":"text","lemma":"Transferre vero hanc epistolam in Latinæ vocis eloquium","severity":"info","text":"The author expresses hesitation about translating the letter into Latin, fearing that a poor translation might distort the truth.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"term","kind":"term","basis":"text","lemma":"græcissantes","severity":"info","text":"The term 'græcissantes' (Grecizing) suggests that the translator might use Greek-influenced Latin, which could obscure the original meaning.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"structure","kind":"structure","basis":"text","lemma":"Saluta eam, quae tecum est, fraternitatem","severity":"info","text":"This passage shifts from a discussion of translation to a direct greeting, indicating the letter's closing formula.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"transmission","kind":"transmission","basis":"text","lemma":"Et alia manu","severity":"info","text":"The phrase 'Et alia manu' (And in another hand) indicates that the final greeting was added by a different scribe, a common feature in manuscript transmission.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]},{"unit":"reception","kind":"reception","basis":"text","lemma":"Valere te et nostri meminisse","severity":"info","text":"The closing wish for the recipient's well-being and remembrance reflects standard epistolary conventions in late antique Christian correspondence.","cites":[],"named_sources":[],"dropped_cites":[]}],"ambiguities":["The identity of the 'fraternitatem' (brotherhood) is not specified; it likely refers to the monastic or clerical community associated with the recipient."],"confidence":"high","notes":[]}]}