St. Augustine
illic autem eiusdem linguae usus omnino sit,—itane censes nos saluti plebium domini oportere consulere, ut hanc facultatem illuc mittamus et hinc auferamus, ubi eam magno cordis aestu requirimus? Da itaque veniam quod non solum contra tuum desiderium, sed etiam contra sensum meum, facio quod me facere sarcinae nostrae cura constringit. Dabit tibi dominus in quo posuisti cor tuum, ut tales sint labores tui, ut pro isto beneficio remunereris; sic enim regionum nostrarum ardentissimae siti diaconum Lucillum tu potius concessisti; neque enim parum praestabis, cum de hac re nulla petitione me ulterius onerabis, ne nihil aliud quam durior appaream venerabili mihi et sanctae benivolentiae tuae.
Administrationis tuae castitas et fama virtutum, pietatis quoque Christianae laudanda diligentia et fida sinceritas, quae tibi divina munera eo donante gaudes tributa a quo speras promittente potiora,
Letters of St. Augustine
language is in general use, do you think it is our duty so to provide for the welfare of the Lord’s people that we send this ability to you and deprive ourselves of it here, where our need of it is so great and so heart-felt? Forgive me, then, for doing, not only in spite of your desire but also in spite of my own feelings, what my zeal for the office with which I am burdened compels me to do. The Lord, upon whom you have stayed your heart, will make your labours such that you will be rewarded for this kind service; for it is kind of you to surrender the deacon Lucillus to the thirsty eagerness of our territories rather than claim him for yourself. And it will be no small favour if you will refrain from laying upon me any request concerning this matter in the future, so that I may not appear to your revered and holy Benevolence to be only too hard-hearted.
The purity of your administration and your virtuous reputation, as well as the praiseworthy zeal and genuine sincerity of your Christian devotion—gifts of God that you rejoice to have bestowed upon you by Him whose promise makes you hope for still better things—have stimulated me to share with your