A letter from Hrabanus Maurus (c.834)

Translated letter:

To the chosen lady of great piety worthily to be loved and venerated by all, empress Judith, Hrabanus Maurus humble/suppliant servant of the servants of God desires eternal salvation in Christ. When the height of your greatness and the generosity of your benignity which, instructed by the mouth of the Lord to bring forth, speaks not only to friends but also to enemies, it can make most people devoted to it, we however small a part of the [common] people committed to you by God, living under your piety, think how to show you devoted service. Who, though we may not be rich by the estimate of precious wealth, yet we are not entirely lacking in the study of sacred speech, which incessantly daily we offer to God for you and your lord as well as your offspring, praying that you be long healthy here and happy and rejoicing always in your future life. Moreover, since I have known that you excell with laudable wit the virtues and the imitable zeal of holy women whom sacred scriptures commemorate, I have thought not without reason to dedicate to your name and send you the history of some of them with the allegorical sense translated by us to the mystery of the holy church, namely Judith and Esther, of whom you equal one in name the other in rank. Who indeed are to be imitated for the striking merit of their virtue by men as well as women, because they conquered spiritual enemies with vigor of spirit, and corporal enemies with maturity of counsel. So your now laudable prudence, which has already conquered its enemies in not small part, if it exerted itself to persevere in the good begun and always to better itself, will happily conquer all its adversaries. Therefore that you continue in this struggle, it is necessary to implore divine aid, so that he who conquered death with his blood and captured the author of death, may produce for you true victory in the struggle of this world; and thus grant you truly triumphant to achieve the joys of eternal beatitude. Receive therefore your homonym Judith, exemplar of chastity, and declare her with triumphal praise in perpetual celebration, bless him over all things who gave her such power that she conquered the unconquered one among all men, and surpassed the insuperable. Esther also similarly queen in every action of piety and sanctity place always before the eyes of your heart as queen to be imitated, so that equaling the merit of her sanctity, you may be able to rise from the earthly kingdom to the peak of the celestial kingdom: through the grace namely of the one who made those holy women triumph and will make his universal church which they as a type/symbol manifest, the triumphant possessor with him of the heavenly fatherland in perpetual victory, that is Jesus, our god and lord, may he deign to protect you inside and out, here and everywhere, now and always. We wish you to be well, imperial lady, mindful of us. Amen.

Original letter:

Dominae electae et merito magnae pietatis ab omnibus venerandae atque amandae, Iudith Augustae, Hrabanus servorum servus dei aeternam in Christo supplex optat salutem. Cum celsitudo magnitudinis vestrae atque largitio benignitatis, quae non solum amicis, sed etiam inimicis ab ipsius Domini ore instructa prodesse dicit, plurimos sibi faciat devotos, nos etiam quantulacumque pars plebis a Deo vobis commissae sub pietate vestra degentes, devotum cogitamus vobis exhibere obsequium. Qui licet non simus censu pretiosarum opum locupletes, tamen studio sacrarum orationum non sumus omnino vacui, quas incessanter cotidie Deo pro vobis vestroque domino simul ac sobole offerimus, depraecantes, ut ipsius dono diu hic incolomes et in futura vita semper sitis felices atque gaudentes. De cetero, quia vos comperi laudabili excellere ingenio et sanctarum mulierum, quas scriptura sacra commemorat, virtutes ac studium in bono opere imitari, non frustra arbitratus sum quarundam illarum historiam allegorico sensu ad sanctae ecclesiae mysterium a nobis translatam vestro nomini dicare atque transmittere, Iudith videlicet atque Hester, quarum unam coeqatis nomine, alteram dignitate. Quae quidem ob insigne meritum virtutis tam viris quam etiam feminis sunt imitabiles, eo quod spiritales hostes animi vigore, et corporales consilii maturitate vicerunt. Sic et vestra nunc laudabilis prudentia, quae iam hostes suos non parva ex parte vicit, si in bono cepto perseverare atque semetipsam semper meliorare contenderit, cunctos adversarios suos feliciter superabit. Adhuc ergo in agone consistitis atque ideo necesse est divinum implorare auxilium, ut qui suo sanguine mortem vicerat mortisque auctorem captivaverat, in certamine istius mundi veram vobis victoriam pariat; sicque veraciter triumphantes ad aeternae beatitudinis gaudia vos pervenire concedat. Accipite ergo Iudith omonimam vestram, castitatis exemplar, et triumphali laude perpetuis eam preconiis declarate, ipsumque super omnia benedicite, qui ei talem virtutem tribuit, ut invictum omnibus hominibus vinceret, insuperabilem superaret. Hester quoque similiter reginam regina in omni pietatis et sanctitatis actione imitabilem vobis ante oculos cordis semper ponite, quatinus illius sanctitatis meritum adequantes, de terreno regno ad caelestis regni apicem conscendere valeatis: per ipsius scilicet gratiam, qui illas sanctas mulieres triumphare fecerat et universam aecclesiam suam, quam ipsae typo preferebant, perpetua victoria triumphantem caelestis patriae secum efficiat possessorem, Iesus videlicet, deus et dominus noster, qui vos intus et foris, hic et ubique, nunc et semper custodire dignetur. Optamus vos bene valere, domina augusta, memeorem nostri. Amen.

Historical context:

Hrabanus dedicates his commentaries on the books of Judith and Esther to the empress as appropriate models.

Printed source:

MGH Epistolae Karolini Aevi, v.3, ed. E Dummler, 1899, repr. 1978, 420-21, Hrabani Mauri Epistolae, ep.17a.

Date:

c.834