A Source Book for Ancient Church History - Mirrors

647Ages and was the most important and influential theologian ofthe West after Augustine and before the greater scholastics. Hedid much to restore the prestige of his see, which had been lostin the earlier part of the sixth century. He died 604.Additional source material: Selections from the writings ofGregory, including many of his letters, may be found in PNF,ser. II, vols. XII and XIII; see also A Library of the Fathers [591]of the Holy Catholic Church (Oxford).The selections under this section are arranged under fourheads: (1) Relations with Gaul; (2) Relations with Constantinople;(3) Relations with the Schism in Northern Italy; (4) Relationswith the Lombards; for English mission, v. infra, § 100.1. Relations with Gaul.(a) Gregory the Great, Ep. ad Vigilium, Reg. V, 53. (MSL,77:782.)The following letter was written in 595 in reply to a letterfrom Vigilius, bishop of Arles, asking for the pallium (DCA,art. “Pallium,” also Cath. Encyc.) and the vicariate. Forthe relation of the Roman see to the bishop of Arles asprimate of Gaul, see E. Loening, Geschichte des deutschenKirchenrechts. The relation of the vicariate to the papacy andalso to the royal power is indicated by the fact that the palliumis given in response to the request of the king. The conditionof the church under Childebert is also shown; see § 98 forcanons bearing on simony and irregularities in connectionwith ordination.As to thy having asked therein [in a letter of Vigilius to Gregory]according to ancient custom for the use of the pallium and thevicariate of the Apostolic See, far be it from me to suspect that