Complete Works of Cassiodorus, Vol. I

there existed among them a reason for this new designation. Perhaps they judged that the forename Marcus should be attributed to Cassiodorus, no differently than to Cicero, because the letter M was prefixed to the name of the latter, just as it was to that of the former. Be that as it may, I would not hesitate to state that countless writers of superior standing have adorned Cassiodorus with the honorable title of "Magnus" Great, so that the magnitude of the name itself might correspond to his vast wealth, his noble lineage, his broad dignities, his piety, and his learning.

§. 2. Concerning the family of Cassiodorus.

There is no doubt that the family of Cassiodorus was decorated with those ornaments by which the most illustrious nobility of birth is commended; and this is certainly proven by the best titles of glory which King Theodoric bestowed upon him. For, whether you look at antiquity: Var. lib. 1. Ep. 4. "Ancient offspring," he says: or whether you consider the fame and reputation of the name he had cultivated for himself; "Praised ancestry": or whether you contemplate the lofty honors to which he was elevated; "Famous among the toga-clad": or whether you admire his strength of mind and virtue; "Exemplary among brave men": or, finally, whether you admire his exceptional bodily gifts; "For they flourished both in the health of their limbs and in the stature of their bodies." Add to this that this most esteemed family brought the splendor of its name into both parts of the world: Ibidem. "A lineage," these are the words of the same Theodoric, "renowned in both spheres." And those Senators whom Rome, both ancient and new, admitted into the Curia for its own adornment, they truly bound both to themselves through every type of service: Ibidem. "Which lineage," says Theodoric again, "fittingly adapted to the twin Senate, radiated with equal brilliance, as if it were gifted with sight through two eyes." Finally, no family achieved as much glory in the East and West simultaneously as this most noble race: Ibidem. "For what nobility extends itself further than this one, which has deserved to be clear in both spheres?" Finally, there were added to these, vast revenues, not only sufficient for promoting his own dignity, but also for raising and supporting armies.

§. 3. The grandfather and father of Cassiodorus. lib. 1. Ep. 4.

And to approach more closely to the parents of Cassiodorus himself, it is fitting to turn to Theodoric, from whom we shall borrow the whole matter. And first of all, his grandfather was surrounded by the honor of the illustris a high-ranking Roman senatorial title. He liberated Sicily and the Bruttii the region of Calabria from the incursion of the Vandals through the defense of arms: "And the Republic owed it to his vigor that Genseric did not invade those provinces so nearby, whom Rome later endured as a savage enemy"; and therefore, as a reward for such excellent virtue, he granted that "he should deservedly hold the primacy in those provinces which he had defended from so cruel and sudden an enemy."

Ibidem.

The father of Cassiodorus gained no less praise for himself through his noble deeds under the Emperor Valentinian; for thus says Theodoric: "The father of Candidatus" (that is, of Cassiodorus) "held the dignity of Tribune and Notary under Prince Valentinian in a praiseworthy manner, an honor which was then given to the distinguished." That bond joined him to Aetius, in the way that those are accustomed to be associated whom a singular love for the fatherland and a virtue above common souls elevate: "As equal minds are always wont to choose one another, he was joined with the Patrician Aetius with great affection for the purpose of aiding the Republic." Such was his fortitude in both forensic and military affairs, such his prudence, that the Emperor "would then follow him in every part of his counsel on account of his wisdom and his glorious labors for the Republic." Furthermore, he maintained such a high opinion of virtue and wisdom before Valentinian that he chose him as the chief among the legates sent to Attila, who was threatening Rome. But learn from Theodoric himself what the outcome of that most dangerous legation to such a ferocious victor, in such a state of affliction and nearly desperate affairs, was. To Attila, he says, powerful in arms, he was not ineffectively destined for the office of legation; he saw, fearless, him whom the Empire feared: he despised those terrible and threatening faces, trusting in the truth; nor did he hesitate to counter the altercations of him who, carried away by some madness, seemed to seek the dominion of the world. He found a proud King: but he left him pacified; and he destroyed his calumnious allegations with such truth that he wanted to seek favor, for whom it was expedient to deny peace to the Kingdom: he did not have it. He raised the fearing parties with his constancy, nor were they considered unwarlike, those who seemed to be armed with such legates. He brought back a peace that had been despaired of; the benefit of whose legation is understood by the fact that it was received as gratefully as it seemed to have been desired. Ibidem.

Nor should it be hidden here how great was the moderation of the father of Cassiodorus regarding his own praises, when he testifies in his Chronicon Chronicle that peace was obtained from Attila through the work of Pope Leo the Saint. Under the consulship of Herculanus and Asparanus. "With whom," he says, "Pope Leo was directed by the Emperor Valentinian and made peace." Nevertheless, it is sufficiently understood from the words of Theodoric that the father of Cassiodorus contributed much effort in undertaking the duty of this legation: a man I would say was worthy of no less praise, because he requested from the Emperor, in place of remuneration from the Court, a retreat to the Bruttii, from improper labor to honest leisure, to silence from the clamor. The unexpected petition brought incredible grief to Valentinian: yet he could not but be swayed by the prayers of a man who had served himself and the Republic so well. But he (these are the words of Theodoric) lib. 1. Ep. 4. "being rather rich in innate moderation, despising idle dignity, requested in place of remuneration the most pleasant Bruttii. He who had rendered him secure from an immense enemy could not deny him the desired quiet: he left, sad at his departure, him whom he knew had been necessary to him."

§. 4. Proba Galla & Symmachus, relatives of Cassiodorus; Heliodorus his kinsman. lib. 1. Ep. 4. cap. 23.

Cassiodorus boasts that the most noble Virgin Proba, once an ornament of Rome, was related to him by blood; for in his book De Institutione Divinarum Litterarum On the Instruction of Divine Letters he calls Proba his parent. She was the sister of Galla, and thus the daughter of Symmachus, whence you may easily understand that Cassiodorus was joined by affinity to that most celebrated Patrician.

It would be long to recount the whole lineage: it will therefore be enough if we add Heliodorus to Proba, who, just as not a few of his kinsmen illustrated the Senate of ancient Rome with their virtues, so he adorned the Republic of new Rome with the merits of his righteous deeds lib. 1. Ep. 4.. Heliodorus, to use the words of Theodoric, "who in that Republic, namely of the East, we have seen serve the Prefecture for twice nine years most excellently, is proven to be joined to their kin." This man of the highest standing, second to none in clarity of birth, after he had happily completed the most ample duties of the Republic, lived a private, religious life; and in his disparate condition, he turned the minds and love of all toward himself. Ibidem. "He lived in the province both with the honor of a Judge and the security of a private citizen, more powerful than all in nobility, he drew the minds of all to himself; so that those who could not be subdued by the right of liberty seemed rather to be sweetly obligated by continuous benefits." But so that no ornaments might be lacking to the happiness of such an excellent man, he was accumulated with most copious wealth, which Ibidem. he used for munificence, not abusing it for iniquitous domination: "He even boasted in such abundance of his patrimony that, among other goods, he surpassed Princes in herds of horses, and by giving frequently, he did not incur the envy of his name."