Letter 49

49. To Arcadius, bishop.

I gave thanks to the holy God upon meeting with the letters of your devotion, and I pray both that I myself may be worthy of the hope you have concerning us, and that you may receive a perfect reward for the honour you pay us, with which, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, you honour us. And we rejoiced exceedingly that, having taken up also a care befitting a Christian, you raised a house to the glory of the name of Christ, and loved indeed, according to what is written, "the beauty of the house of the Lord," preparing for yourselves the heavenly abode that is made ready, in rest, for those who love the name of Christ. And if we are able to look out for relics of martyrs, we pray that we ourselves also may contribute to your zeal. For if "the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance," we shall, plainly, be partakers of the good remembrance that shall be given to you by the holy one.