THE EPISTLE OF SAINT VELIUS TO THE KINGDOM OF LIMBERRY: CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 3

¹O King, most noble Yaravan, steward of thy people and bearer of the sceptre ordained by Providence, give ear now unto a remembrance most dear, and a charge wrapped in love.
²For I speak not of wrath, but of wonder; not of judgment, but of joy.
³For the Lord, who reigneth in glory, sent forth His beloved Son, Saint Ajora, that the world might be quickened anew.
⁴And He walked among the dust of Ivalice, yet the dust clave not unto Him; for His feet were shod with peace, and His steps marked the way of righteousness.
⁵He did heal the blind with the touch of His fingers, and open the ears of the deaf with but a breath.
⁶The lame leapt as the hart, and the dumb did sing when He passed by; for His word was balm, and His presence light.
⁷In the fields He did speak, and the lilies listened; by the sea He cried, and the waves hushed their tumult.
⁸He brake the bread and fed the multitudes, and the loaves multiplied as if they had known His compassion.
⁹He walked upon the water as upon marble, and the wind grew silent at His rebuke.
¹⁰And in all things did He show mercy, even unto sinners and the outcast, for the lost were precious in His sight.
¹¹He taught as no man taught, with authority not of scribes nor of princes, but of the Father who sent Him.
¹²He spake of the Kingdom that hath no end, of a Paradise not made by hands, whose gates are of light and whose stones are living.
¹³There, saith He, the just shall dwell, and the meek shall inherit joy; and the tears of the sorrowful shall be wiped away.
¹⁴This promise, O King, is sure and steadfast: that whosoever walketh in His footsteps shall not stumble in the night.
¹⁵His yoke is easy, and His burden light; and His rod is not for bruising, but for guiding.
¹⁶He laid down His life, not taken, but given; for no man robbed Him of breath, but He breathed it out as a gift.
¹⁷And though men mocked, and scourged, and slew Him, yet He rose again, for death had no hold upon the spotless.
¹⁸And now He reigneth at the right hand of the Father, and maketh intercession for the faithful.
¹⁹He is the Gate and the Way, the First and the Last, the Spring in the desert and the Rock that bringeth forth water.
²⁰Think, then, O King, upon these wonders, and let thy soul burn within thee as did the hearts of those on the road to Lurienne, when He walked with them unknowing.
²¹Let thy love not wax cold, nor thy faith grow dim; for what He hath promised, He is able also to perform.
²²Therefore I beseech thee, in the name of the Lord, that thou guard well the flocks within thy realm.
²³Be as a shepherd who sleepeth not when wolves gather; who counteth each sheep by name and seeketh the lost till he find it.
²⁴The churches of thy kingdom are as vineyards in a fair valley — hedge them about, yet leave them to bear fruit unhindered.
²⁵Let not the hand of the state weigh too heavily upon the altar, nor the voice of the prince drown out the prayers of the lowly.
²⁶Appoint not men for favour, but for faith; not for wealth, but for wisdom.
²⁷And if a teacher stray from the truth, rebuke him gently; and if he repent not, let him be removed, lest leaven rise in the whole lump.
²⁸Let thy scribes be diligent, and thy ministers pure; and let every house of prayer be a beacon in the storm.
²⁹Encourage the gathering of the faithful, and the singing of psalms, and the reading of the holy writings, which are sweeter than honey and sharper than a sword.
³⁰And suffer not the wolves to howl at the gates, nor the fox to dig in the vineyard.
³¹Be thou a shield to the widow, a defender to the orphan, and a friend to the stranger who calleth upon the name of the Lord.
³²For Saint Ajora came unto His own and was rejected, yet He turned not away from the broken and bruised.
³³Let thy courts be open to the cause of the oppressed, and thy voice be lifted when truth is trampled.
³⁴Turn not thy face from the lowly, for they are the treasure of Heaven, and their prayers rise as incense before the Throne.
³⁵O King, thy reign is not thine alone, but a trust from above; and to whom much is given, of him shall much be required.
³⁶So let thy sceptre be ruled by righteousness, and thy judgments tempered with mercy.
³⁷Let justice and piety kiss within thy walls, and peace and truth dwell in thy gates.
³⁸For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole Ivalice, seeking such as do His will.
³⁹And blessed art thou if He find thee so doing, and thy people walking in the fear of the Lord and the joy of His salvation.
⁴⁰Then shall thy land be fruitful, thy borders secure, and thy name a song upon the lips of the nations.
⁴¹And when thy time is accomplished, and thy bones rest with thy fathers, thy soul shall find its place among the just, and thy crown shall not fade.
⁴²Therefore be strong, and of good courage; take heed to thyself, and to all the flock over which Providence hath made thee keeper.
⁴³Let the memory of Saint Ajora guide thee in thy rising and in thy rest, in counsel and in war, in mercy and in might.
⁴⁴And peace shall be unto thy house, and unto all who call upon the name of the Lord in sincerity and truth.

▷THE SEVEN SCRIPTURES OF THE CHURCH OF GLABADOS
    ▷THE EPISTLES OF SAINT VELIUS TO THE NEW KINGDOMS
        ▷THE EPISTLE OF SAINT VELIUS TO THE KINGDOM OF LIMBERRY
            ▶1—2—3—4

English | Latin | Ελληνική