A letter from Fortunatus (after 567)

Translated letter:

What could the mother and sister give me so sweet as now the agreeable wealth of milk they offer, as Paul ordered by apostolic dogma, he himself ordered milk given to sick spirits? You bear a mind solicitous for my name: may god always have pious care for you.

Original letter:

Quid tam dulce darent mihimet materque sororque, quam modo quod tribuunt congrue lactis opem, sicut apostolico praecepit dogmate Paulus, cum infirmis animis lac iubet ipse dari? sollicitam mentem geritis de nomine nostro: de vobis semper sit pia cura deo.

Historical context:

Bishop Venantius Fortunatus met Radegund and Agnes, whom Radegund had had installed as her abbess, when he visited Poitiers. They became good friends and exchanged epistolary poems and small gifts until the women died. After her death, Fortunatus wrote a life of Radegund emphasizing her ascetic qualities.

Printed source:

Venanti Fortunati Opera Poetica, ed. Fridericus Leo (Berlin: Weidmann, 1881), 264, Librum XI, xv.

Date:

after 567