The first and second decretal waves, c. 400 and c. 1200, both responded to unresolved complexities arising from the evolution of separate social systems. In the standard gloss on Gratian, ‘Gloss II’, decretals from the two ages are brought into conjunction. Innocent I’s ruling about pagan marriages was generating thoughtful discussion eight centuries after his death. The standard gloss discusses it together with a decretal of Innocent III. Between Innocent I and Innocent III, the ‘Pauline Privilege’ system emerges clearly into view, taken for granted by Innocent III after an evolution at which for want of evidence we can only guess. How to integrate the earlier Innocent’s ruling with the ‘Pauline Privilege’ system? This is an example of how the horizon of reflection about a text can be enlarged over time, without losing contact with the original meaning, as it is applied in new context and to complex scenarios not originally envisaged.