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the greater part of their accomplishments comes to them from my protection. Therefore, whenever you see a trembling woman, aged, needing a staff, entering the contest, and overthrowing the fury of a tyrant, prevailing over incorporeal powers, easily mastering the devil, crushing his disposition with great authority, marvel at the grace of the contest-giver, be amazed at the power of Christ. The athletes are not vigorous in the flesh, but they are vigorous in faith; their nature is weak, but the grace that has anointed them is powerful; their bodies are paralyzed by old age, but their spirits are forged by the desire for piety. The contest is not perceptible to the senses; therefore, do not observe the athletes from the outside, but enter with your reason into the good condition of their soul; observe the strength of their faith, so that you may learn that he who boxes with demons does not need a strong bodily frame, nor a flourishing age, but even if he is quite young, or if he has reached extreme old age, but has a noble and robust soul, he is in no way hindered in his contests by his age. 2. And why do I speak of old man and youth, when even women have stripped for these struggles, and have bound on splendid crowns? For the external contests, examining age, and nature, and rank, close the entrance to slaves, and women, and old men, and youths, but here the theater is opened with all freedom to every rank, every age, and to each nature, so that you may observe both the abundance and the ineffable power of the one who establishes the contest, and see that apostolic saying confirmed through deeds, 'That his power is made perfect in weakness.' For when children and old men are strong beyond their nature, through all things the grace of God working through them shines forth brilliantly. And so that you may learn that the weakness of the athletes, this external one, makes the crown-wearers become more splendid, come now, leaving aside the old man and the children, let us bring into our midst the weaker of them, the woman, the aged one, the mother of seven children; for indeed the pains of childbirth are no small hindrance to these struggles. What, then, is worthy to admire in her first? The weakness of her nature, or the maturity of her age, or the susceptibility of her sympathy? For these too are great hindrances for a course requiring so much endurance. But I have something else greater than these to say, through which we will perceive both the courage of the 50.620 woman and all the malice of the devil. What is this? Observe the wickedness of the foul demon; he did not drag her first into the wrestling-pit, but after her sons he brought her to the struggles. Why then? So that by the tortures of the seven children having first cast down her spirit, and having softened the firmness of her mind, her strength having been expended beforehand by the sight of what was happening in the punishments of her offspring, he might easily attack her when she had finally become weaker. For do not see this, that they were receiving the tortures, but observe this, that she endured more grievous pains for each one of them, and for each one of them she was being slaughtered. And women who have experienced the pangs of childbirth and become mothers know this well. Often, indeed, a mother seeing her child burning with a fever would choose to suffer everything, so as to transfer the fire of the illness from that body to herself; thus mothers consider the misfortunes of their children to be more unbearable than their own ills. If this is true, as indeed it is true, the mother was punished more grievously than the children in the tortures of the children, and the martyrdom was greater in the mother than in the children. For if the illness of one child, merely heard of, agitates the bowels of her who gave birth, not of one child, but of such a chorus of children being destroyed, not receiving the sufferings by hearing, but by sight

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κατορθουμένων τὸ πλέον αὐτοῖς ἐκ τῆς ἐμῆς γίνεται προστασίας. Ὅταν οὖν ἴδῃς γυναῖκα ὑπότρομον, γεγηρακυῖαν, βακτηρίας δεομένην, εἰς ἀγῶνα εἰσιοῦσαν, καὶ καταλύουσαν τυράννου μανίαν, περιγινομένην ἀσωμάτων δυνάμεων, κρατοῦσαν τοῦ διαβόλου ῥᾳδίως, συγκόπτουσαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἕξιν μετ' ἐξουσίας πολλῆς, θαύμασον τοῦ ἀγωνοθέτου τὴν χάριν, ἐκπλάγηθι τοῦ Χριστοῦ τὴν δύναμιν. Οὐ σφριγῶσι κατὰ τὴν σάρκα οἱ ἀθληταὶ, ἀλλὰ σφριγῶσι κατὰ τὴν πίστιν· ἀσθενὴς αὐτῶν ἡ φύσις, ἀλλὰ δυνατὴ ἡ ἀλείψασα αὐτοὺς χάρις· παραλέλυται τὰ σώματα τῷ γήρᾳ, ἀλλὰ συγκεκρότηται τὰ φρονήματα τῷ πόθῳ τῆς εὐσεβείας. Οὐκ ἔστιν αἰσθητὸς ὁ ἀγών· μὴ τοίνυν ἔξωθεν καταμάθῃς τοὺς ἀθλητὰς, ἀλλ' εἴσελθε τῷ λογισμῷ πρὸς τὴν τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτῶν εὐεξίαν· κατάμαθε τῆς πίστεως αὐτῶν τὴν ἰσχὺν, ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι ὁ δαίμοσι πυκτεύων οὐ σώματος ἰσχυρᾶς δεῖται περιβολῆς, οὐδὲ ἡλικίας ἀκμαζούσης, ἀλλὰ κἂν κομιδῇ νέος ᾖ, κἂν εἰς ἔσχατον γῆρας ἐληλακὼς, ψυχὴν δὲ ἔχῃ γενναίαν καὶ ἐῤῥωμένην, οὐδὲν ἀπὸ τῆς ἡλικίας εἰς τὰ ἀγωνίσματα παραβλάπτεται. βʹ. Καὶ τί λέγω γέροντα καὶ νέον, ὅπου γε καὶ γυναῖκες πρὸς ταῦτα ἀπεδύσαντο τὰ παλαίσματα, καὶ λαμπροὺς ἀνεδήσαντο τοὺς στεφάνους; Οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἔξωθεν ἀγῶνες καὶ ἡλικίαν, καὶ φύσιν, καὶ ἀξίαν ἐξετάζοντες, καὶ δούλοις, καὶ γυναιξὶ, καὶ πρεσβυτέροις, καὶ μειρακίοις τὴν πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἴσοδον ἀποκλείουσιν, ἐνταῦθα δὲ πάσῃ μὲν ἀξίᾳ, πάσῃ δὲ ἡλικίᾳ, ἑκατέρᾳ δὲ τῇ φύσει τὸ θέατρον μετὰ πάσης ἀδείας ἠνέῳκται, ἵνα καὶ τὴν ἀφθονίαν καὶ τὴν ἄφατον δύναμιν τοῦ τὸν ἀγῶνα τιθέντος καταμάθῃς, καὶ τὸ ἀποστολικὸν ἐκεῖνο διὰ τῶν ἔργων βεβαιούμενον ἴδῃς, Ὅτι ἡ δύναμις αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ τελειοῦται. Ὅταν γὰρ παιδία καὶ γέροντες τὰ ὑπὲρ τὴν φύσιν ἰσχύωσι, διὰ πάντων λαμπρῶς ἡ τοῦ δι' αὐτῶν ἐνεργοῦντος Θεοῦ διαφαίνεται χάρις. Καὶ ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι ἡ ἀσθένεια τῶν ἀθλητῶν, αὕτη ἡ ἔξωθεν, λαμπροτέρους ποιεῖ γενέσθαι τοὺς στεφανίτας, φέρε δὴ, τὸν γέροντα καὶ τὰ παιδία ἀφέντες τὴν ἀσθενεστέραν αὐτῶν παραγάγωμεν εἰς μέσον, τὴν γυναῖκα, τὴν γεγηρακυῖαν, τὴν ἑπτὰ παίδων μητέρα· καὶ γὰρ αἱ ὠδῖνες οὐ μικρὸν κώλυμα τῶν παλαισμάτων τούτων εἰσί. Τί οὖν αὐτῆς πρότερον θαυμάσαι ἄξιον; τὸ τῆς φύσεως ἀσθενὲς, ἢ τὸ τῆς ἡλικίας ὥριμον, ἢ τὸ τῆς συμπαθείας εὐεπηρέαστον; Μεγάλα μὲν γὰρ καὶ ταῦτα κωλύματα πρὸς τὸν τοσαύτης καρτερίας δεόμενον δρόμον. Ἐγὼ δὲ καὶ ἕτερον ἔχω τούτων μεῖζον εἰπεῖν, δι' οὗ καὶ τὴν ἀνδρείαν τῆς 50.620 γυναικὸς καὶ τὴν τοῦ διαβόλου κακουργίαν ἅπασαν κατοψόμεθα. Τί δὲ τοῦτό ἐστι; Σκόπει μιαροῦ δαίμονος πονηρίαν· οὐ πρώτην αὐτὴν εἵλκυσεν εἰς τὰ σκάμματα, ἀλλὰ μετὰ τοὺς παῖδας ἤγαγε πρὸς τὰ παλαίσματα. Τί δήποτε; Ἵνα ταῖς τῶν ἑπτὰ παίδων βασάνοις προκαταβαλὼν αὐτῆς τὸ φρόνημα, καὶ τὸ στεῤῥὸν τῆς διανοίας μαλάξας, διὰ τῆς τῶν γινομένων θέας προδαπανηθείσης αὐτῇ τῆς ἰσχύος ἐν ταῖς τῶν ἐγγόνων κολάσεσιν, ἀσθενεστέρᾳ λοιπὸν γενομένῃ ῥᾳδίως ἐπιθῆται. Μὴ γὰρ δὴ τοῦτο ἴδῃς, ὅτι ἐκεῖνοι τὰς βασάνους ἐδέχοντο, ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνο σκόπει, ὅτι αὐτὴ καθ' ἕκαστον αὐτῶν χαλεπωτέρας ὑπέμενε τὰς ὀδύνας, καὶ καθ' ἕκαστον αὐτῶν ἀπεσφάττετο. Καὶ τὸ λεγόμενον τοῦτο ἴσασι καλῶς, ὅσαι πεῖραν ὠδίνων ἔλαβον γυναῖκες, καὶ μητέρες ἐγένοντο. Πολλάκις γοῦν ὁρῶσα μήτηρ παιδίον πυρετῷ φλεγόμενον, πάντα ἂν ἕλοιτο παθεῖν, ὥστε ἀπὸ τοῦ σώματος ἐκείνου πρὸς ἑαυτὴν μεταγαγεῖν τὸ πῦρ τοῦ νοσήματος· οὕτω τῶν οἰκείων κακῶν τὰς τῶν παίδων συμφορὰς ἀφορητοτέρας αἱ μητέρες εἶναι νομίζουσιν. Εἰ δὲ τοῦτο ἀληθὲς, ὥσπερ οὖν ἀληθὲς, χαλεπώτερον τῶν παιδίων ἐν ταῖς τῶν παιδίων βασάνοις ἐκολάζετο ἡ μήτηρ, καὶ μεῖζον τὸ μαρτύριον ἐν τῇ μητρὶ ἢ ἐν τοῖς παιδίοις ἐγίνετο. Εἰ γὰρ ἑνὸς παιδίου νόσος ἀκουομένη μόνον διαταράττει τὰ σπλάγχνα τῆς τεκούσης, οὐχ ἑνὸς παιδίου, ἀλλὰ τοσούτου χοροῦ παίδων ἀναιρουμένου, οὐκ ἀκοῇ δεχομένη τὰ παθήματα, ἀλλ' ὄψει