E07805: Gregory of Tours, in the prologue to Book 1 of his Miracles of Martin, describes how he was commanded by his mother in a dream to record the miracles of *Martin (ascetic and bishop of Tours, ob. 397, S00050) in spite of his lack of skill as a writer. Written in Latin in Tours (north-west Gaul), 573/576.

Gregory of Tours, Miracles of Martin (Libri de virtutibus sancti Martini episcopi), Book 1, prologue

Ego vero fidem ingerens libri illius, qui de eius vita ab anterioribus est scriptus, praesentes virtutes, de quanto ad memoriam recolo, memoriae in posterum, Domino iubente, mandabo. Quod non praesumerem, nisi bis et tertio admonitus fuissem per visum. Tamen omnipotentem Deum testem invoco, quia vidi quadam vice per somnium media die in basilica domni Martini debiles multos ac diversis morbis obpraessos sanari, et vidi haec, spectante a matri meae, quae ait mihi: 'Quare segnes es ad haec scribenda quae prospicis?' Et aio: 'Non tibi latet, quod sim inops litteris et tam admirandas virtutes stultus et idiota non audeam promulgare? Utinam Severus aut Paulinus viverent, aut certe Fortunatus adesset, qui ista discriberent! Nam ego ad haec iners notam incurro, si haec adnotare temptavero'. Et ait mihi: 'Et nescis, quia nobiscum propter intellegentiam populorum magis, sicut tu loqui potens es, habetur praeclarum? Itaque ne dubites et haec agere non desistas, quia crimen tibi erit, si ea tacueris'. Ego autem haec agere cupiens, duplicis taedii adfligor cruciatu, maeroris pariter et terroris. Maeroris, cur tantae virtutes, quae sub antecessoribus nostris factae sunt, non sunt scriptae; terroris, ut adgrediar opus egregium rusticanus. Sed spe divinae pietatis inlectus, adgrediar quod monetur.

'In order to increase confidence in that book that earlier authors wrote about [Martin’s] life, at God’s command I will entrust his present miracles, so far as I [can] recall them, to the memory of posterity. I would not presume to do this if I had not been warned a second and then a third time in a dream. For I call omnipotent God as my witness, because once at noon I happened to see in a dream many disabled people and others suffering from various diseases being cured in the church of lord Martin. As I watched these cures, my mother who was also a spectator said to me: “Why do you delay to write down these cures that you see?” I replied: “Is it not obvious to you that I am untrained in literary culture and that I do not dare to publicize such marvelous miracles because I am ignorant and uneducated? If only Severus or Paulinus were still alive, or indeed if only Fortunatus were here to describe these events! If I attempt to record these events, I will be criticized as ignorant about these matters.” My mother said to me: “Do you not know that because of people’s ignorance the manner in which you can speak is considered [to be] more comprehensible to us? Therefore do not hesitate and do not stop recording these events, because you would commit a crime if you were silent about them.” Although I want to record these events, I am tormented by anxiety over two concerns, namely sorrow and fear. I grieve because the great miracles that happened during the tenures of my predecessors have not been recorded in writing; and I am afraid because I approach this important task without any training. But because I am inspired by the hope of the Lord's goodwill, I will follow this advice.'


Text: Krusch 1969, 135-6. Translation: Van Dam 1993, 200-201.