Mapinius (also spelled Mappinius, Mappinus or Mapinus) was the

bishop of Reims The Archdiocese of Reims (traditionally spelt "Rheims" in English) ( la, Archidiœcesis Remensis; French: ''Archidiocèse de Reims'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastic territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese ...

from 535 until 550. His name is of

Gaulish Gaulish was an ancient Celtic languages, Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium ...

origin. Mapinius did not attend the

Fifth Council of Orléans The Fifth Council of Orléans (28 October 549) assembled nine archbishops and forty-one bishops. Sacerdos of Lyon presided over this council. The presence of these bishops indicates both the wide spread of Christianity in Gaul by the sixth century, ...

in 549 in person, but he sent the archdeacon Protadius as his representative. Two letters he wrote are preserved in the collection known as the ''

Epistulae Austrasicae The ''Austrasian Letters'' ( la, Epistulae Austrasicae) is a collection of 48 Latin letters sent from or to Austrasia between the 470s and 590s. The collection is transmitted in a single 9th-century manuscript from the Abbey of Lorsch. The collect ...

''. In the first, dated to between about 540 and 550 by the editors, Mapinius congratulates Bishop Vilicus of Metz on his seventieth birthday. He also praised him for not only pastoring sheep, but fattening bishops with his charm. This praise was, however, only prefatory to his true purpose, which was to inquire about the price of pigs around Reims. This may have been related to business or to the payment of taxes in kind (pigs) to the crown.: "the purpose of the letter is business"; : "likely to do with taxes in kind owed to the king". In the second letter, responding to a letter from Bishop

Nicetius of Trier Saint Nicetius (french: Saint Nizier) (c. 525 - c. 566) was a bishop of Trier, born in the latter part of the fifth century, exact date unknown; died in 563 or more probably 566. Nicetius was the most important bishop of the ancient see of Trier ...

, Mapinius apologizes for being unable to attend the

Council of Toul The Council of Toul was a Frankish synod convoked by Theudebald, King of Austrasia, that convened in Toul on 1 June 550. It is not known how many bishops attended. It extended to the ecclesiastical provinces of Reims and Trier and perhaps beyond. T ...

in 550. This latter is a valuable historical source for this council. Mapinius indicates that he was invited to the council through a letter from King

Theudebald Theudebald or Theodebald (in modern English, ''Theobald''; in French language, French, ''Thibaut'' or ''Théodebald''; in German language, German, ''Theudowald'') (c. 535–555), son of Theudebert I and Deuteria, was the king of Metz, Rheims, ...

. When he wrote back demanding to know the purpose of the council, he learned that the king wished to overturn Nicetius' excommunication of certain Franks for incest. In his letter to Nicetius, he claimed not have received this information until too late, but some scholars reject this explanation. It may be that he simply did not wish to become involved or to make the journey. There may, however, have been a genuine breakdown in communication between the bishops, if Mapinius and Nicetius were indeed on the same side. Mapinius scolds Nicetius for not informing him directly of the council's purpose, and he asks about the guilt of the excommunicated parties and whether as a bishop he should receive them.

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Bibliography

* * * * * * * * {{refend 6th-century Frankish bishops Bishops of Reims Latin letter writers