Constitutum Constantini: CONSTITUTUM CONSTANTINI

Imperator Caesar Flavius Constantinus in Christo Iesu, uno ex eadem sancta trinitate salvatore domino deo nostro, fidelis mansuetus, maximus, beneficus, Alamannicus, Gothicus, Sarmaticus, Germanicus, Britannicus, Hunnicus, pius, felix, victor ac triumphator, semper augustus, sanctissimo ac beatissimo patri patrum Silvestrio, urbis Romae episcopo et papae, atque omnibus eius successoribus, qui in sede beati Petri usque in finem saeculi sessuri sunt, pontificibus nec non et omnibus reverentissimis et deo amabilibus catholicis episcopis eidem sacrosanctae Romanae ecclesiae per hanc nostram imperialem constitutionem subiectis in universo orbe terrarum, nunc et in posteris cunctis retro temporibus constitutis, gratia, pax, caritas, gaudium, longanimitas, misericordia a deo patre omnipotente et Iesu Christo filio eius et spiritu sancto cum omnibus vobis.

Emperor Caesar Flavius Constantinus in Christ Jesus, one of the same Holy Trinity, our Savior, Lord, God, faithful, meek, greatest, beneficent, Alamannic, Gothic, Sarmatian, Germanic, Britannic, Hunnic, pious, fortunate, victorious and triumphant, always Augustus, to the most holy and most blessed father of fathers Silvester, bishop of the city of Rome and pope, and to all his successors who shall sit in the see of Blessed Peter unto the end of the age, to the pontiffs and likewise to all most reverend and God‑beloved Catholic bishops subject to the same most sacred Roman Church by this our imperial constitution throughout the entire orb of the earth, now and in all posterity and in former times established, grace, peace, charity, joy, long‑suffering, mercy from God the Father Almighty and from Jesus Christ his Son and the Holy Spirit be with you all.

2. Ea quae salvator et redemptor noster dominus deus Iesus Christus, altissimi patris filius, per suos sanctos apostolos Petrum et Paulum, interveniente patre nostro Silvestrio summo pontifice et universali papa, mirabiliter operari dignatus est, liquida enarratione per huius nostrae imperialis institutionis paginam ad agnitionem omnium populorum in universo orbe terrarum nostra studuit propagare mansuetissima serenitas. Primum quidem fidem nostram, quam a praelato beatissimo patre et oratore nostro Silvestrio universali pontifice edocti sumus, intima cordis confessione ad instruendas omnium vestrum mentes proferentes et ita demum misericordiam dei super nos diffusam annuntiantes.

2. Those things which our Savior and Redeemer, the Lord God Jesus Christ, the son of the Most High Father, by his holy apostles Peter and Paul, with our father Silvester, supreme pontiff and universal pope, intervening, deigned to work wondrously, our most gentle serenity has endeavored to propagate to the recognition of all peoples throughout the entire orb of the earth by a clear exposition through the page of this our imperial constitution. First indeed our faith, which we have been taught by the prelate, most blessed father and advocate our Silvester, universal pontiff, we set forth with an intimate confession of the heart to instruct the minds of all of you, and thus at last announcing the mercy of God poured out upon us.

3. Nosse enim vos volumus, sicut per anteriorem nostram sacram pragmaticam iussionem significavimus, nos a culturis idolorum, simulacris mutis et surdis manufactis, diabolicis compositionibus atque ab omnibus Satanae pompis recessisse et ad integram Christianorum fidem, quae est vera lux et vita perpetua, pervenisse credentes iuxta id, quod nos isdem almificus summus pater et doctor noster Silvester instruxit pontifex, in deum patrem omnipotentem, factorem caeli et terrae, visibilium omnium et invisibilium, et in Iesum Christum, filium eius unicum, dominum deum nostrum, per quem creata sunt omnia, et in spiritum sanctum, dominum et vivificatorem universae creaturae. Hos patrem et filium et spiritum sanctum confitemur, ita ut in trinitate perfecta et plenitudo sit divinitatis et unitas potestatis: pater deus, filius deus et spiritus sanctus deus, et tres unum sunt in Iesu Christo. Tres itaque formae, sed una potestas.

3. For we desire that you know, as we signified by our earlier sacred pragmatic command, that we, having withdrawn from the cults of idols, from statues fashioned mute and deaf, from diabolic compositions and from all the pomps of Satan, have come to and believe in the entire faith of Christians, which is true light and life perpetual; according to that by which the same bountiful supreme father and our teacher Silvester instructed us, the pontiff, in God the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible, and in Jesus Christ, his only son, our Lord God, through whom all things were created, and in the Holy Spirit, Lord and quickener of the whole creation. These—Father and Son and Holy Spirit—we confess, so that in the Trinity the divinity may be perfect and fulness, and the unity of power: Father God, Son God and Holy Spirit God, and three are one in Jesus Christ. Three therefore in form, but one power.

4. Nam sapiens retro semper deus edidit ex se, per quod semper erant gignenda saecula, verbum, et quando eodem solo suae sapientiae verbo universam ex nihilo formavit creaturam, cum eo erat, cuncta suo arcano componens mysterio. Igitur perfectis caelorum virtutibus et universis terrae materiis, pio sapientiae suae nutu ad imaginem et similitudinem suam primum de limo terrae fingens hominem, hunc in paradiso posuit voluptatis; quem antiquus serpens et hostis invidens, diabolus, per amarissimum ligni vetiti gustum exulem ab eisdem effecit gaudiis, eoque expulso non desinit sua venenosa multis modis protelare iacula, ut a via veritatis humanum abstrahens genus idolorum culturae, videlicet creaturae et non creatori, deservire suadeat, quatenus per hos eos, quos suis valuerit irretire insidiis, secum aeterno efficiat concremandos supplicio. Sed deus noster, misertus plasmae suae, dirigens sanctos suos prophetas, per quos lumen futurae vitae, adventum videlicet filii sui, domini dei salvatoris nostri Iesu Christi, annuntians, misit eundem unigenitum suum filium et sapientiae verbum.

4. For the wise God always brought forth from himself, by which the ages were always to be generated, the Word; and when by that same word of his wisdom he formed the whole creature out of nothing, he was with it, composing all things by his secret mystery. Therefore, when the powers of the heavens and all the materials of the earth were perfected, by the pious nod of his wisdom, first fashioning man from the clay of the earth to his own image and likeness, he placed him in the paradise of delight; whom the ancient serpent and envious enemy, the Devil, by the most bitter tasting of the forbidden tree made exiled from those very joys, and having expelled him ceases not to cast forth his venomous darts in many ways, so that drawing mankind away from the way of truth he may advise them to serve the cult of idols, the creature and not the Creator, in order that through these those whom his snares have ensnared he may make them to be bound with him for eternal punishment. But our God, pitying his formed creature, directing his holy prophets, by whom he announced the light of the life to come, namely the advent of his Son, our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ, sent that same only‑begotten Son and the Word of Wisdom.

Qui descendens de caelis propter nostram salutem natus de spiritu sancto et Maria virgine, verbum caro factum est et habitavit in nobis. Non amisit, quod fuerat, sed coepit esse, quod non erat, deum perfectum et hominem perfectum, ut deus mirabilia perficiens et ut homo humanas passiones sustinens. Ita verum hominem et verum deum praedicante patre nostro Silvestrio summo pontifice intellegimus, ut verum deum verum hominem fuisse nullo modo ambigamus; electisque duodecim apostolis, miraculis coram eis et innumerabilis populi multitudine coruscavit.

Who, descending from the heavens for our salvation, born of the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. He did not lose what he had been, but began to be what he had not been: a perfect God and a perfect man, so that as God he wrought miracles and as man he endured human passions. Thus, with our father Silvestrius the supreme pontiff preaching that he was a true man and a true God, we understand, that in no way we may doubt that the true God was a true man; and, having chosen the twelve apostles, he shone forth in miracles before them and before an innumerable multitude of the people.

Confitemur eundem dominum Iesum Christum adimplesse legem et prophetas, passum, crucifixum, secundum scripturas tertia die a mortuis resurrexisse, assumptum in caelis atque sedentem ad dexteram patris, inde venturum iudicare vivos et mortuos, cuius regni non erit finis.

We confess the same Lord Jesus Christ to have fulfilled the Law and the Prophets, to have suffered, to have been crucified, and, according to the Scriptures, to have risen from the dead on the third day, to have been taken up into heaven and to sit at the right hand of the Father, thence to come to judge the living and the dead, whose kingdom shall have no end.

5. Haec est enim fides nostra orthodoxa a beatissimo patre nostro Silvestrio summo pontifice nobis prolata; exhortantes idcirco omnem populum et diversas gentium nationes hanc fidem tenere, colere ac praedicare et in sanctae trinitatis nomine baptismi gratiam consequi et dominum Iesum Christum salvatorem nostrum, qui cum patre et spiritu sancto per infinita vivit et regnat saecula, quem Silvester beatissimus pater noster universalis praedicat pontifex, corde devoto adorare.

5. For this is our orthodox faith delivered to us by our most blessed father Sylvester, supreme pontiff; and therefore exhorting all the people and the diverse nations of the Gentiles to hold, to venerate and to proclaim this faith, and to obtain by baptism the grace in the name of the Holy Trinity and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns through infinite ages, whom Sylvester, our most blessed universal pontiff, proclaims to be adored with devout heart.

6. Ipse enim dominus deus noster, misertus mihi peccatori, misit sanctos suos apostolos ad visitandum nos et lumen sui splendoris infulsit nobis et abstracto a tenebris ad veram lucem et agnitionem veritatis me pervenisse gratulamini. Nam dum valida squaloris lepra totam mei corporis invasisset carnem, et multorum medicorum convenientium cura adhiberetur, nec unius quidem promerui saluti; ad haec advenerunt sacerdotes Capitolii, dicentes mihi debere fontem fieri in Capitolio et compleri hunc innocentium infantum sanguine et calente in eo loto me posse mundari. Et secundum eorum dicta aggregatis plurimis innocentibus infantibus, dum vellent sacrilegi paganorum sacerdotes eos mactari et ex eorum sanguine fontem repleri, cernens serenitas nostra lacrimas matrum eorum, ilico exhorrui facinus, misertusque eis proprios illis restitui praecepimus filios, datisque vehiculis et donis concessis gaudentes ad propria relaxavimus.

6. For the Lord our God himself, having pity on me a sinner, sent his holy apostles to visit us and poured the light of his splendour upon us; and, drawn away from darkness into true light and the knowledge of truth, rejoice that I have come to this. For while the strong filth of leprosy had invaded all the flesh of my body, and the care of many suitable physicians was applied, I did not obtain the health from even one; to these things there came the priests of the Capitol, saying that a fountain ought to be made on the Capitol and this should be filled with the blood of innocent infants and that by bathing hot in it I could be cleansed. And, according to their words, with very many innocent infants gathered together, while the sacrilegious priests of the pagans wished them to be slaughtered and the fountain replenished from their blood, our serenity, seeing the tears of their mothers, immediately shuddered at the crime, and, pitying them, we ordered their own sons to be restored to them, and, having given vehicles and bestowed gifts, we joyfully let them return to their homes.

7. Eadem igitur transacta die, nocturna nobis facta silentia, dum somni tempus advenisset, adsunt apostoli sanctus Petrus et Paulus dicentes mihi: "Quoniam flagitiis posuisti terminum et effusionem sanguinis innocentis horruisti, missi sumus a Christo domino deo nostro, dare tibi sanitatis recuperandae consilium. Audi ergo monita nostra et fac quodcumque indicamus tibi. Silvester episcopus civitatis Romae ad montem Seraptem persecutiones tuas fugiens in cavernis petrarum cum suis clericis latebram fovet.

7. And when the same day had been completed, and nocturnal silence had come upon us, when the time of sleep arrived, the apostles, Saints Peter and Paul, appeared to us saying to me: "Since you have put an end to crimes and recoiled from the shedding of innocent blood, we have been sent by Christ our Lord God to give you counsel for the recovery of your health. Therefore hear our admonitions and do whatever we indicate to you. Silvester, bishop of the city of Rome, fleeing your persecutions to Mount Seraptus, harbors in the caverns of the rocks a refuge with his clerics.

Hunc cum ad te adduxeris, ipse tibi piscinam pietatis ostendet, in qua dum te tertio merserit, omnis te valitudo ista deseret leprae. Quod dum factum fuerit, hanc vicissitudinem tuo salvatori compensa, ut omnes iussu tuo per totum orbem ecclesiae restaurentur, te autem ipsum in hac parte purifica, ut relicta omni superstitione idolorum deum vivum et verum, qui solus est et verus, adores et excolas, ut ad eius voluntatem adtingas."

When he is brought to you, he himself will show you the piscina of pietas, in which, when he has plunged you a third time, all that malady of lepra will abandon you. When this has been done, make this vicissitude an offering to your Savior, that by your command all the churches throughout the orb may be restored, and you yourself be purified in this matter, so that, having abandoned every superstition of idols, you may adore and cultivate the living and true God, who alone is true, and may attain to his will.

8. Exsurgens igitur a somno protinus iuxta id, quod a sanctis apostolis admonitus sum, peregi, advocatoque eodem praecipuo et almifico patre et illuminatore nostro Silvestrio universali papa, omnia a sanctis apostolis mihi praecepta edixi verba, percunctatique eum sumus, qui isti dii essent: Petrus et Paulus? Ille vero non eos deos debere dici, sed apostolos salvatoris nostri domini dei Iesu Christi. Et rursum interrogare coepimus eundem beatissimum papam, utrum istorum apostolorum imaginem expressam haberet, ut ex pictura disceremus hos esse, quos revelatio docuerat.

8. Rising therefore immediately from sleep, and straightway doing that which I had been admonished of by the holy apostles, I proceeded, and having summoned the same foremost and almific (nourishing) father and our illuminator Silvester, Universal Pope, I set forth all the words commanded to me by the holy apostles, and we questioned him who those gods were: Peter and Paul? He, however, said that they ought not to be called gods, but apostles of our Savior, Lord God Jesus Christ. And again we began to ask the same most blessed pope whether he had an image represented of those apostles, so that from the painting we might discern them to be those whom the revelation had taught.

Tunc isdem venerabilis pater imagines eorundem apostolorum per diaconem suum exhiberi praecepit. Quas dum aspicerem et eorum, quos in somno videram figuratos, in ipsis imaginibus cognovissem vultus, ingenti clamore coram omnibus satrapibus meis confessus sum eos esse, quos in somno videram.

Then the same venerable father ordered images of those same apostles to be exhibited by his deacon. While I was looking at them, and, the faces of those whom I had seen in sleep being portrayed in the very images, I, with a mighty shout before all my satraps, confessed that they were those whom I had seen in sleep.

9. Ad haec beatissimus isdem Silvester pater noster, urbis Romae episcopus, indixit nobis poenitentiae tempus intro palatium nostrum Lateranense in uno cubiculo in cilicio, ut omnia, quae a nobis impie [peracta atque] iniuste disposita fuerant, vigiliis, ieiuniis atque lacrimis et orationibus apud dominum deum nostrum Iesum Christum salvatorem impetraremus. Deinde per manus impositionem clericorum usque ad ipsum praesulem veni, ibique abrenuntians Satanae pompis et operibus eius vel universis idolis manufactis, credere me in deum patrem omnipotentem, factorem caeli et terrae, visibilium et invisibilium, et in Iesum Christum, filium eius unicum, dominum nostrum, qui natus est de spiritu sancto et Maria Virgine, spontanea voluntate coram omni populo professus sum; benedictoque fonte illic me trina mersione unda salutis purificavit. Ibi enim, me posito in fontis gremio, manu de caelo me contingente propriis vidi oculis; de qua mundus exsurgens, ab omni me leprae squalore mundatum agnoscite.

9. To these things the most blessed Silvester, our father, bishop of the city of Rome, appointed for us a time of penance within our palace of the Lateran in a single chamber in cilice, that all things which had been impiously perpetrated and unjustly disposed by us we might obtain before the Lord God our Savior Jesus Christ by vigils, fasts, and by tears and prayers. Then I came by the imposition of clerics up to the very prelate, and there renouncing the pomps of Satan and his works and all idols made by hands, I professed that I believed in God the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of the visible and the invisible, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary; of my own free will I professed this before all the people; and the blessed font there, by a threefold immersion in the wave of salvation, purified me. For there, laid in the bosom of the font, I saw with my own eyes a hand touching me from heaven; by which rising, behold me acknowledged cleansed from all the squalor of leprosy.

Levatoque me de venerabili fonte, indutus vestibus candidis, septemformis sancti spiritus in me consignatione adhibuit beati chrismatis unctionem et vexillum sanctae Crucis in mea fronte linivit dicens: "Signat te deus sigillo fidei suae in nomine patris et filii et spiritus sancti in consignatione fidei." Cunctus clerus respondit: "Amen." Adiecit praesul: "Pax tibi."

And when I was raised from the venerable font, clothed in white garments, by the seven‑formed sealing of the Holy Spirit he applied to me the anointing of the blessed chrism and smeared on my brow the vexillum of the holy Cross, saying: "May God mark you with the seal of his faith in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit in the consignation of faith." The whole clergy answered: "Amen." The prelate added: "Peace to you."

10. Prima itaque die post perceptum sacri baptismatis mysterium et post curationem corporis mei a leprae squalore agnovi, non esse alium deum nisi patrem et filium et spiritum sanctum, quem beatissimus Silvester papa praedicat, trinitatem in unitate, unitatem in trinitate. Nam omnes dii gentium, quos usque hactenus colui, daemonia, opera hominum manufacta comprobantur etenim, quantam potestatem isdem salvator noster suo apostolo beato Petro contulerit in caelo ac terra, lucidissime nobis isdem venerabilis pater edixit, dum fidelem eum in sua interrogatione inveniens ait: "Tu es Petrus, et super hanc petram aedificabo ecclesiam meam, et portae inferi non praevalebunt adversus eam." Advertite potentes et aurem cordis intendite, quid bonus magister et dominus suo discipulo adiunxit inquiens: "Et tibi dabo claves regni caelorum; quodcumque ligaveris super terram, erit ligatum et in caelis et quodcumque solveris super terram, erit solutum et in caelis." Mirum est hoc valde et gloriosum, in terra ligare et solvere et in caelo ligatum et solutum esse.

10. Therefore on the first day after I had received the mystery of sacred baptism and after the healing of my body from the squalor of leprosy I recognized that there is no other God than the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, whom the most blessed Pope Silvester proclaims, the Trinity in unity, the unity in Trinity. For all the gods of the nations which until now I worshipped are demons, works manufactured by the hands of men; moreover how much power our same Savior conferred upon his apostle, the blessed Peter, in heaven and on earth, that same venerable father most clearly declared to us, finding him faithful in his interrogation, when he said: "You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Attend, you mighty, and give ear of heart to what the good teacher and Lord added to his disciple, saying: "And I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth shall be bound also in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed also in heaven." This is indeed marvelous and glorious: on earth to bind and loose, and in heaven to be bound and loosed.

11. Et dum haec praedicante beato Silvestrio agnoscerem et beneficiis ipsius beati Petri integre me sanitati comperi restitutum, utile iudicavimus una cum omnibus nostris satrapibus et universo senatu, optimatibus etiam et cuncto populo Romano, gloriae imperii nostri subiacenti, ut, sicut in terris vicarius filii dei esse videtur constitutus, etiam et pontifices, qui ipsius principis apostolorum gerunt vices, principatus potestatem amplius, quam terrena imperialis nostrae serenitatis mansuetudo habere videtur concessam, a nobis nostroque imperio obtineant; eligentes nobis ipsum principem apostolorum vel eius vicarios firmos apud deum adesse patronos. Et sicut nostra est terrena imperialis potentia, eius sacrosanctam Romanam ecclesiam decrevimus veneranter honorare et amplius, quam nostrum imperium et terrenum thronum sedem sacratissimam beati Petri gloriose exaltari, tribuentes ei potestatem et gloriae dignitatem atque vigorem et honorificentiam imperialem.

11. And while I was acknowledging these things as Blessed Silvester preached, and, by his blessings and those of Blessed Peter, found myself wholly restored to health, we judged it useful, together with all our satraps and the entire senate, likewise the optimates and the whole Roman people, subject to the glory of our empire, that, just as on earth the vicar of the Son of God seems established, so too the pontiffs, who bear the vicars of that prince of the apostles, should obtain from us and our imperial power the principate’s authority—more than the earthly mildness of our imperial serenity appears to possess; choosing for us that prince of the apostles himself or his vicars as firm patrons before God. And just as ours is earthly imperial power, we decreed to honor reverently his most sacred Roman Church, and furthermore that the most sacred seat of Blessed Peter be gloriously exalted above our empire and earthly throne, granting to it imperial authority and dignity of glory and vigour and honorific preeminence.

12. Atque decernentes sancimus, ut principatum teneat tam super quattuor praecipuas sedes Antiochenam, Alexandrinam, Constantinopolitanam et Hierosolymitanam, quamque etiam super omnes in universo orbe terrarum dei ecclesias; et pontifex, qui pro tempore ipsius sacrosanctae Romanae ecclesiae extiterit, celsior et princeps cunctis sacerdotibus totius mundi existat et eius iudicio, quaeque ad cultum dei vel fidei Christianorum stabilitate procuranda fuerint, disponantur. iustum quippe est, ut ibi lex sancta caput teneat principatus, ubi sanctarum legum institutor, salvator noster, beatum Petrum apostolatus obtinere praecepit cathedram, ubi et crucis patibulum sustinens beatae mortis sumpsit poculum suique magistri et domini imitator apparuit, et ibi gentes pro Christi nominis confessione colla flectant, ubi eorum doctor beatus Paulus apostolus pro Christo extenso collo martyrio coronatus est; illic usque in finem quaerant doctorem, ubi sanctum doctoris quiescit corpus, et ibi proni ac humiliati caelestis regis, die salvatoris nostri Iesu Christi, famulentur officio, ubi superbi terreni regis serviebant imperio.

12. And decreeing we enact that he hold primacy both over the four principal sees Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople and Jerusalem, and also over all the churches of God throughout the whole orb of lands; and that the pontiff who for the time shall stand for that most sacred Roman Church be higher and prince over all priests of the entire world and by his judgment things that pertain to the cult of God or to the preservation of the stability of the Christian faith be disposed. For it is right that the sacred law there hold the head of principality where the institutor of the holy laws, our Savior, commanded that blessed Peter obtain the apostolic chair; where, bearing the gibbet of the cross, he took the cup of blessed death and appeared the imitator of his master and lord; and there the nations bend their necks for the confession of the name of Christ, where their teacher, the blessed apostle Paul, for Christ crowned by an extended neck with martyrdom; there to the end they seek a doctor where the holy body of the doctor rests, and there prostrate and humbled they serve the office of the heavenly King on the day of our Savior Jesus Christ, where they formerly served under the dominion of a proud earthly king.

13. Interea nosse volumus omnem populum universarum gentium ac nationum per totum orbem terrarum, construxisse nos intro palatium nostrum Lateranense eidem salvatori nostro domino deo Iesu Christo ecclesiam a fundamentis cum baptisterio, et duodecim nos sciatis de eius fundamentis secundum numerum duodecim apostolorum cophinos terra onustatos propriis asportasse humeris; quam sacrosanctam ecclesiam caput et verticem omnium ecclesiarum in universo orbe terrarum dici, coli, venerari ac praedicari sancimus, sicut per alia nostra imperialia decreta statuimus. Construximus itaque et ecclesias beatorum Petri et Pauli, principum apostolorum, quas auro et argento locupletavimus, ubi et sacratissima eorum corpora cum magno honore recondentes, thecas ipsorum ex electro, cui nulla fortitudo praevalet elementorum, construximus et crucem ex auro purissimo et gemmis pretiosis per singulas eorum thecas posuimus et clavis aureis confiximus, quibus pro concinnatione luminariorum possessionum praedia contulimus, et rebus diversis eas ditavimus, et per nostras imperialium iussionum sacras tam in oriente quam in occidente vel etiam septentrionali et meridiana plaga, videlicet in Iudaea, Graecia, Asia, Thracia, Africa et Italia vel diversis insulis nostram largitatem eis concessimus, ea prorsus ratione, ut per manus beatissimi patris nostri Silvestrii pontificis successorumque eius omnia disponantur.

13. Meanwhile we wish all the people of all nations and peoples throughout the whole orb of the earth to know that we have built within our palace at the Lateran for the same Savior our Lord God Jesus Christ a church from the foundations with a baptistery, and that twelve of us, you should know, have borne on our own shoulders twelve cophinos of earth taken from its foundations according to the number of the twelve apostles; which most sacred church we decree to be called, to be cultivated, to be venerated and to be proclaimed the head and summit of all churches in the whole orb of the earth, as we have established by our other imperial decrees. We therefore built also the churches of the blessed Peter and Paul, the princes of the apostles, which we enriched with gold and silver, and where, depositing their most sacred bodies with great honor, we built their reliquary-cases of electrum, for which no strength of the elements prevails, and set a cross of purest gold and precious gems upon each of their cases and fastened golden nails, to which, for the adornment of the lights, we assigned estates and bestowed properties, and enriched them with various goods; and by our sacred imperial commands we have granted our largess to them both in the East and in the West and even to the northern and southern regions, namely in Judea, Greece, Asia, Thrace, Africa and Italy and various islands, wholly on this condition, that all things be disposed by the hands of our most blessed father Sylvester the pope and his successors.

14. Gaudeat enim una nobiscum omnis populus et gentium nationes in universo orbe terrarum; exhortantes omnes, ut deo nostro et salvatori Iesu Christo immensas una nobiscum referatis grates, quoniam ipse deus in caelis desuper et in terra deorsum, qui nos per suos sanctos visitans apostolos sanctum baptismatis sacramentum percipere et corporis sanitatem dignos effecit. Pro quo concedimus ipsis sanctis apostolis, dominis meis, beatissimis Petro et Paulo et per eos etiam beato Silvestrio patri nostro, summo pontifici et universali urbis Romae papae, et omnibus eius successoribus pontificibus, qui usque in finem mundi in sede beati Petri erunt sessuri atque de praesenti contradimus palatium imperii nostri Lateranense, quod omnibus in toto orbe terrarum praefertur atque praecellet palatiis, deinde diademam videlicet coronam capitis nostri simulque frygium nec non et superhumerale, videlicet lorum, qui imperiale circumdare assolet collum, verum etiam et clamidem purpuream atque tunicam coccineam et omnia imperialia indumenta seu et dignitatem imperialium praesidentium equitum, conferentes etiam et imperialia sceptra simulque et conta atque signa, banda etiam et diversa ornamenta imperialia et omnem processionem imperialis culminis et gloriam potestatis nostrae.

14. Let therefore all the people and the nations of the Gentiles throughout the entire orb of lands rejoice with us; exhorting all that to our God and Saviour Jesus Christ you render with us immense thanks, since he himself, God above in heaven and below on earth, who visiting us through his holy apostles made us worthy to receive the holy sacrament of baptism and the health of the body. Wherefore we grant to those same holy apostles, my lords, the most blessed Peter and Paul, and through them also to our father Blessed Silvester our pope, the supreme pontiff and universal of the city of Rome, and to all his pontifical successors, who until the end of the world shall sit in the see of Blessed Peter, and from the present we confer the palace of our empire, the Lateran, which is preferred and excels all palaces throughout the whole orb of lands; and likewise the diadem, namely the crown of our head, together with the phrygium and also the superhumeral, namely the loros that is wont to encircle the imperial neck, moreover also the purple cloak and the scarlet tunic and all imperial garments or the dignity of the imperial presiding equites; granting also the imperial scepters and likewise the conta and standards and the banda and diverse imperial ornaments and every procession of the imperial summit and the glory of our power.

15. Viris enim reverentissimis, clericis diversis ordinibus eidem sacrosanctae Romanae ecclesiae servientibus illud culmen, singularitatem, potentiam et praecellentiam habere sancimus, cuius amplissimus noster senatus videtur gloria adornari, id est patricios atque consules effici, nec non et ceteris dignitatibus imperialibus eos promulgantes decorari; et sicut imperialis militia, ita et clerum sacrosanctae Romanae ecclesiae ornari decernimus; et quemadmodum imperialis potentia officiis diversis, cubiculariorum nempe et ostiariorum atque omnium excubiorum ornatu decoratur, ita et sanctam Romanam ecclesiam decorari volumus; et ut amplissime pontificalis decus praefulgeat, decernimus et hoc, ut clerici eiusdem sanctae Romanae ecclesiae mappulis ex linteaminibus, id est candidissimo colore, eorum decorari equos et ita equitari, et sicut noster senatus calciamenta uti cum udonibus, id est candido linteamine illustrari: ut sicut caelestia ita et terrena ad laudem dei decorentur; prae omnibus autem licentiam tribuentes ipso sanctissimo patri nostro Silvestrio, urbis Romae episcopo et papae, et omnibus, qui post eum in successum et perpetuis temporibus advenerint, beatissimis pontificibus, pro honore et gloria Christi dei nostri in eadem magna dei catholica et apostolica ecclesia ex nostra synclitu, quem placatus proprio consilio clericare voluerit et in numero religiosorum clericorum connumerare, nullum ex omnibus praesumentem superbe agere.

15. For to the most reverend men, clerics of diverse orders serving that most holy Roman Church, we decree that that summit, singularity, potency and pre-eminence belong, by which our most ample senate seems to be adorned with glory — that is, to make patricians and consuls, and likewise to proclaim and adorn them with other imperial dignities; and as the imperial militia is thus adorned, so also do we determine that the clergy of the most holy Roman Church be ornamented; and just as imperial power is embellished with various offices, namely of the chamberlains and doorkeepers and of all the guards, so likewise do we wish the holy Roman Church to be adorned; and that the pontifical dignity may shine forth most fully, we also decree that the clerics of that same holy Roman Church shall have their horses caparisoned and ridden with mappals of fine linen, that is of the whitest colour, and that, as our senate uses footwear with udones (that is, white linen), so be they distinguished: so that both heavenly and earthly things may be adorned to the praise of God; and above all granting licence to our most holy father Silvester himself, bishop of the city of Rome and pope, and to all who after him shall come in succession and in perpetual times, the most blessed pontiffs, that for the honour and glory of Christ our God in that great catholic and apostolic church they may, from our syncliticum, by their own placated counsel wish to clericize and to number among the company of religious clerics, none of whom presumptuously act arrogantly.

16. Decrevimus itaque et hoc, ut isdem venerabilis pater noster Silvester, summus pontifex, vel omnes eius successores pontifices diademam videlicet coronam, quam ex capite nostro illi concessimus, ex auro purissimo et gemmis pretiosis uti debeant et eorum capite ad laudem dei pro honore beati Petri gestare; ipse vero sanctissimus papa super coronam clericatus, quam gerit ad gloriam beati Petri, omnino ipsam ex auro non est passus uti coronam, frygium vero candido nitore splendidam resurrectionem dominicam designans eius sacratissimo vertici manibus nostris posuimus, et tenentes frenum equi ipsius pro reverentia beati Petri stratoris officium illi exhibuimus; statuentes, eundem frygium omnes eius successores pontifices singulariter uti in processionibus ad imitationem imperii nostri.

16. We have therefore also decreed this, that the same venerable father of ours Silvester, the supreme pontiff, or all his successors pontiffs, should make use of the diadem, namely the crown, which we have granted to him from our head, of the purest gold and precious gems, and should carry it upon their head to the praise of God and for the honor of blessed Peter; but the most holy pope himself did not permit that the very crown be used as a golden crown over the clerical headpiece which he wears to the glory of blessed Peter. Rather, a frygium, shining with a white brightness and designating the Lord’s glorious resurrection, we placed upon his most sacred vertex with our hands, and, holding the bridle of his horse, for the reverence of blessed Peter we conferred upon him the office of strator; decreeing that the same frygium all his successors pontiffs singularly use in processions in imitation of our empire.

17. Unde ut non pontificalis apex vilescat, sed magis amplius quam terreni imperii dignitas et gloriae potentia decoretur, ecce tam palatium nostrum, ut praelatum est, quamque Romae urbis et omnes Italias seu occidentalium regionum provincias, loca et civitates saepefato beatissimo pontifici, patri nostro Silvestrio, universali papae, contradentes atque relinquentes eius vel successorum ipsius pontificum potestati et ditioni firma imperiali censura per hanc nostram divalem sacram et pragmaticum constitutum decernimus disponenda atque iuri sanctae Romanae ecclesiae concedimus permanenda.

17. Wherefore, so that the pontifical apex may not be undervalued, but rather be adorned more than the dignity and the potent glory of the earthly empire, behold: both our palace, as has been said, and likewise the city of Rome and all the provinces, places and cities of Italy or of the western regions, often giving and yielding to the most blessed pontiff, our father Silvester, the universal pope, and surrendering to him or to his successors the authority and dominion of the pontiffs, we decree shall be disposed by firm imperial judgment and by this our divine, sacred and pragmatic constitution we grant and ordain to be preserved in the law of the holy Roman Church.

18. Unde congruum prospeximus, nostrum imperium et regni potestatem orientalibus transferri ac transmutari regionibus et in Byzantiae provincia in optimo loco nomini nostro civitatem aedificari et nostrum illic constitui imperium; quoniam, ubi principatus sacerdotum et christianae religionis caput ab imperatore caelesti constitutum est, iustum non est, ut illic imperator terrenus habeat potestatem.

18. Wherefore we deemed it fitting that our empire and the power of the kingdom be transferred and transmuted to the eastern regions, and that in the province of Byzantium, in the most excellent place, a city be built in our name and our empire be established there; for where the principate of the priests and the head of the Christian religion is constituted by the heavenly emperor, it is not just that an earthly emperor should have power there.

19. Haec vero omnia, quae per hanc nostram imperialem sacram et per alia divalia decreta statuimus atque confirmavimus, usque in finem mundi illibata et inconcussa permanenda decernimus; unde coram deo vivo, qui nos regnare praecepit, et coram terribili eius iudicio obtestamus per hoc nostrum imperialem constitutum omnes nostros successores imperatores vel cunctos optimates, satrapes etiam, amplissimum senatum et universum populum in toto orbe terrarum nunc et in posterum cunctis retro temporibus imperio nostro subiacenti, nulli eorum quoquo modo licere, haec, quae a nobis imperiali sanctione sacrosanctae Romanae ecclesiae vel eius omnibus pontificibus concessa sunt, refragare aut confringere vel in quoquam convelli. Si quis autem, quod non credimus, in hoc temerator aut contemptor extiterit, aeternis condemnationibus subiaceat innodatus, et sanctos dei principes apostolorum Petrum et Paulum sibi in praesenti et futura vita sentiat contrarios, atque in inferno inferiori concrematus, cum diabolo et omnibus deficiat impiis.

19. We decree that all these things which by this our imperial dival sacred and by other dival decrees we have established and confirmed shall remain intact and unshaken unto the end of the world; wherefore before the living God, who commanded us to reign, and before his terrible judgment we beseech by this our imperial constitutum all our successors the emperors and all the optimates, even the satraps, the most ample senate and the whole people throughout the entire orb of the earth now and in the future and in all past times subject to our empire, that none of them in any way may be permitted to oppose, break, or in any manner wrench away these things which have been granted by our imperial sanction to the most holy Roman Church or to any of its pontiffs. But if anyone, which we do not believe, shall prove rash or contemptuous in this matter, let him lie under eternal condemnations, bound and fastened, and may he feel the holy princes of God, the apostles Peter and Paul, to be adverse to him in this life and the life to come, and consumed in the lower inferno, may he perish with the devil and all the ungodly.

20. Huius vero imperialis decreti nostri paginam propriis manibus roborantes super venerandum corpus beati Petri, principis apostolorum, posuimus, ibique eidem dei apostolo spondentes, nos cuncta inviolabiliter conservare et nostris successoribus imperatoribus conservanda in mandatis relinqui, beatissimo patri nostro Silvestrio summo pontifici et universali papae eiusque per eum cunctis successoribus pontificibus, domino deo et salvatore nostro Iesu Christo annuente, tradidimus perenniter atque feliciter possidenda.

20. Strengthening with our own hands the page of this imperial decree, we have placed it upon the venerable body of Blessed Peter, prince of the apostles, and there, pledging to the same apostle of God that we will keep all things inviolate and consign them to be kept in the mandates of our successors the emperors, we have handed over to our most blessed father Sylvester, supreme pontiff and universal pope, and by him to all his successors the pontiffs, with our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ consenting, to be possessed perpetually and happily.

Et subscriptio imperialis:

And the imperial subscription:

Divinitas vos conservet per multos annos, sanctissimi ac beatissimi patres.
Datum Roma sub die tertio Kalendarum Aprilium,
domino nostro Flavio Constantino augusto quater et Gallicano viris clarissimis consulibus.

May Divinity preserve you for many years, most holy and most blessed fathers.
Given at Rome on the third day before the Kalends of April,
domino nostro Flavio Constantino Augustus, consul for the fourth time, and Gallicano, most illustrious men, consuls.