The Letters of St. Jerome 139
139 To Apronius PL 22, 1165
Of Apronius nothing is known; but from the mention of Innocent (for whom see Letter CXLIII.) it seems a fair inference that he lived in the West. Jerome here congratulates him on his steadfastness in the faith and exhorts him to come to Bethlehem. He then touches on the mischief done by Pelagius and complains that his own monastery has been destroyed by him or by his partisans. The date of the letter is a.d. 417.
I know not by what wiles of the devil it has come to pass that all your toil and the efforts of the reverend presbyter Innocent and my own prayers and wishes seem for the moment to produce no effect. God be thanked that you are well and that the fire of faith glows in you even when you are in the midst of the devil’s wiles. My greatest joy is to hear that my spiritual sons are fighting in the cause of Christ; and assuredly He in whom we believe will so quicken this zeal of ours that we shall be glad freely to shed our blood in defence of His faith.
I grieve to hear that a noble family has been subverted, for what reason I cannot learn; for the bearer of the letter could give me no information. We may well grieve over the loss of our common friends and ask Christ the only potentate and Lord to have mercy upon them. At the same time we have deserved to receive punishment at God’s hand for we have harboured the enemies of the Lord.
The best course you can take is to leave everything and to come to the East, before all to the holy places; for everything is now quiet here. The heretics have not, it is true, purged the venom from their breasts, but they do not venture to open their impious mouths. They are “like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear.” Salute your reverend brothers on my behalf.
As for our house, so far as fleshly wealth is concerned, it has been completely destroyed by the onslaughts of the heretics; but by the mercy of Christ it is still filled with spiritual riches. To live on bread is better than to lose the faith.
APRONIUM, quod in fide contra Pelagianos manserit, laudat, et, ut sancta Jerosolymae loca petat, hortatur.
Nescio qua tentatione diaboli factum sit, ut et tuus labor, et sancti Innocentii Presbyteri industria, et nostrum desiderium ad praesens nequaquam videatur habere effectum. Deo gratia, quod te sospitem, et fidei calore ferventem, inter ipsa tentamenta 1048 diaboli cognovi. Hoc meum gaudium est, quando in Christo audio filios meos dimicare; et istum zelum in nos ipse confirmet, cui credimus: ut pro fide ejus sanguinem voluntarie fundamus. Eversam nobilem domum funditus doleo, et tamen quid in causa sit, scire non potui. Neque enim portitor litterarum nosse se dixit. Unde dolere possumus pro amicis communibus, et Christi, qui solus potens et Dominus est, clementiam deprecari: licet ex parte Dei mereamur offensam, qui inimicos Domini foverimus. Optimum autem facies, si cunctis rebus omissis, Orientem et praecipue sancta loca petas: hic enim quieta sunt omnia. Et licet venena pectoris non amiserint, tamen os impietatis non audent aperire: sed sunt sicut aspides surdae, et obturantes aures suas . Sanctos fratres saluta. Nostra autem domus secundum carnales opes, haereticorum persecutionibus penitus eversa, Christo propitio spiritualibus divitiis plena est. Melius est enim panem manducare, quam fidem perdere.