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they fill the theater, while the old men behave disgracefully at the horse races; but others again, old men with gray hair, are adorned by listening, while the young, through the spectacle there, make their youth more irrational. For even if many are present with us, still I am not satisfied; for I wished not only many to be present, but all, and for no one to be left out of the church; so that, as long as even one appears to be straying, I am torn apart and cut through with pains.

For 63.518 that shepherd also, leaving the ninety-nine sheep, hurried to the one that had gone astray, and he did not depart before he led it back to the flock, and he took great pains for it; for the number of one hundred was lame until it received the one, and the one hundred then became one hundred when this one also was saved. Do not, then, tell me that it is one brother who is lost; but consider that it is a brother, the creature greatly prized by God, for whom so many things came into being, for whom the precious blood was shed and so great a price was paid, for whom heaven was stretched out, and the sun was kindled, and the moon runs its course, and the varied choir of stars shines down, and the air was spread out, and the sea was poured forth, and the earth was founded, and springs gush forth, and rivers flow, and mountains were made firm; for whom are meadows and paradises, for whom seeds and plants, for whom the various kinds of plants, for whom the creatures in the mountains, in the deserts, in the cities, in the plains, in the valleys, in the hills; for whom the countless peoples of the fish, for whom the various kinds of quadrupeds, for whom the diverse tribes of birds, for whom the law, for whom the prophets, for whom the apostles, for whom the countless miracles happened; why say many things? for whom the only-begotten Son of God became man, and having become man, was slain.

B. Consider how great is God's business for the salvation of men, and

do not despise any man, but when this spiritual theater is dismissed, seek out the one who was left behind, and do not depart before you bring him back, and join him to his mother, and lead him away from his wicked habit, and save the captive, and draw up the one who has been submerged, and deliver the one caught by wild beasts from the fierce beasts.

For what pardon could you have, what defense? We come to the tombs of the apostles; we see their wounds and their marks, the flowing blood more precious than gold, the chains, the scourges, the daily deaths which they suffered for the Church; the disciple of Paul running about everywhere with Paul, and equal to the teacher, and the calf yoked with the bull; the brother of the first of the apostles, the fisherman who cast his net and caught men instead of fish, the herald of the Gospel; and as in a meadow we delight in their achievements. But those who have left us sit becoming spectators of irrational horses, washing each other with revilings and insults, kindling anger and a battle that has no cause, rejoicing a joy more miserable than grief, over victorious charioteers, over horses being goaded; of which what could be more irrational? For why do you rejoice, tell me? Why do you leap and jump and come down from there cheerful? And you, for what reason do you grieve and cover your face and bow your head and pain your own soul, because so-and-so won, and the other was defeated? And what are these things to you? What reason could this grief, or this pleasure have? And of what punishment would not each of you be worthy, taking no account of your own soul being swept away by passions each day, but rejoicing or grieving over irrational animals and other irrational men? But lest we again, having consumed the entire discourse on these things, waste the time, entrusting their correction to your love, of today's

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πληροῦσι θέατρον, οἱ δὲ γεγηρακότες ἐν ἱππο δρομίαις ἀσχημονοῦσι· ἕτεροι δ' αὖ πάλιν γέροντες μετὰ τῆς πολιᾶς [καὶ] τῇ ἀκροάσει κοσμοῦνται, νέοι δὲ τὴν νεότητα διὰ τῆς θεωρίας τῆς ἐκεῖσε ἀλογωτέραν κατα σκευάζουσιν. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ πολλοὶ οἱ παρόντες ἡμῖν, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔχω κόρον· οὐ γὰρ πολλοὺς ἐβουλόμην παρεῖναι μό νον, ἀλλὰ πάντας, καὶ μηδένα τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἀπολιμπά νεσθαι· ὥστε, ἕως ἂν φάνηται κἂν εἷς ἀποβουκολούμε νος, διαῤῥήγνυμαι καὶ διακόπτομαι ταῖς ὀδύναις.

Ἐπεὶ 63.518 καὶ ὁ ποιμὴν ἐκεῖνος τὰ ἐνενηκονταεννέα πρόβατα κατα λιπὼν, ἐπὶ τὸ ἓν τὸ πεπλανημένον κατηπείγετο, καὶ οὐ πρότερον ἀπέστη, ἕως ἂν αὐτὸ πρὸς τὴν ἀγέλην ἐπ ανήγαγε, καὶ πολλὴν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ σπουδὴν ἐποιεῖτο· καὶ γὰρ ἐχώλευεν ὁ τῶν ἑκατὸν ἀριθμὸς, ἕως ἀπέλαβε τὸ ἓν, καὶ τὰ ἑκατὸν τότε ἑκατὸν ἐγένετο, ὅτε καὶ τοῦτο διεσώ θη. Μὴ δή μοι λέγε ὅτι εἷς ἐστιν ὁ ἀδελφὸς ὁ ἀπο λωλώς· ἀλλ' ἐννόησον ὅτι ἀδελφὸς, τὸ περισπούδαστον τῷ Θεῷ ζῶον, ὑπὲρ οὗ τοσαῦτα ἐγένετο, ὑπὲρ οὗ τὸ τί μιον αἷμα ἐχύθη καὶ τιμὴ κατεβλήθη τοσαύτη, δι' ὃν οὐ ρανὸς ἐτάθη, καὶ ἥλιος ἀνήφθη, καὶ σελήνη τρέχει, καὶ ποικίλος ἀστέρων καταλάμπει χορὸς, καὶ ἀὴρ ἡπλώθη, καὶ θάλασσα ἐξεχύθη, καὶ γῆ ἐθεμελιώθη, καὶ πηγαὶ βρύουσι, καὶ ποταμοὶ ῥέουσι, καὶ ὄρη πέπηγε· δι' ὃν λειμῶνες καὶ παράδεισοι, δι' ὃν σπέρματα καὶ φυτὰ, δι' ὃν τὰ ποικίλα τῶν φυτῶν γένη, δι' ὃν τὰ ἐν ὄρεσι, τὰ ἐν ἐρημίαις, τὰ ἐν πόλεσι, τὰ ἐν πεδίοις, τὰ ἐν νάπαις, τὰ ἐν βουνοῖς· δι' ὃν οἱ μυρίοι τῶν ἰχθύων δῆμοι, δι' ὃν τὰ ποικίλα τῶν τετραπόδων γένη, δι' ὃν τὰ παντοδαπὰ τῶν ὀρνίθων φῦλα, δι' ὃν νόμος, δι' ὃν προφῆται, δι' ὃν ἀπό στολοι, δι' ὃν τὰ μυρία θαύματα γέγονε· τί δεῖ τὰ πολλὰ λέγειν; δι' ὃν ὁ μονογενὴς Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἄνθρωπος γέ γονε, καὶ γενόμενος ἐσφάγη.

βʹ. Ἐννόησον ὅση τῷ Θεῷ πραγματεία ὑπὲρ τῆς τῶν ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίας, καὶ

μὴ καταφρονήσῃς μηδενὸς ἀν θρώπου, ἀλλὰ διαλυθέντος τοῦ θεάτρου τούτου τοῦ πνευ ματικοῦ, ἀναζήτησον τὸν ἀπολειφθέντα, καὶ μὴ πρότε ρον ἀποστῇς ἕως ἂν αὐτὸν ἐπαγάγῃς, καὶ τῇ μητρὶ συνάψῃς, καὶ τῆς πονηρᾶς ἀπαγάγῃς συνηθείας, καὶ τὸν αἰχμάλωτον διασώσῃς καὶ τὸν καταποντι σθέντα ἀνιμήσῃ, καὶ τὸν θηριάλωτον τῶν χαλεπῶν ἀπαλλάξῃς θηρίων.

Τίνα γὰρ ἂν σχοίης συγγνώμην, τίνα ἀπολογίαν; Εἰς ἀποστόλων παραγινόμεθα θή κας· ὁρῶμεν αὐτῶν τὰ τραύματα καὶ τὰ στίγματα, τὸ αἷμα τὸ ῥέον τὸ χρυσίου τιμιώτερον, τὰς ἁλύσεις, τὰς μάστιγας, τοὺς θανάτους τοὺς καθημερινοὺς, οὓς ὑπὲρ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας ἔπαθον· τὸν Παύλου μαθητὴν μετὰ Παύλου πανταχοῦ περιτρέχοντα, καὶ τῷ διδασκάλῳ παρ ισούμενον, καὶ τὸν μόσχον τῷ ταύρῳ συμβεβλημένον· τὸν τοῦ πρώτου τῶν ἀποστόλων ἀδελφὸν, τὸν ἁλιέα τὸν σαγήνην ἁπλώσαντα καὶ ἀνθρώπους ἀντὶ ἰχθύων ἁλιεύ σαντα, τὸν τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου κήρυκα· καὶ καθάπερ ἐν λειμῶνι τοῖς τούτων ἐντρυφῶμεν κατορθώμασιν. Οἱ δὲ ἀφέντες ἡμᾶς, ἵππων ἀλόγων κάθηνται γιγνόμενοι θεαταὶ, λοιδορίαις καὶ ὕβρεσιν ἀλλήλους πλύνοντες, θυμὸν καὶ μάχην οὐκ ἔχουσαν πρόφασιν ἀνάπτοντες, χαίροντες χα ρὰν λύπης ἀθλιωτέραν, ὑπὲρ ἡνιόχων νικώντων, ὑπὲρ ἵπ πων διακλωμένων· οὗ τί γένοιτ' ἂν ἀλογώτερον; Τί γὰρ χαίρεις, εἰπέ μοι; τί δὲ σκιρτᾷς καὶ πηδᾷς καὶ φαι δρὸς καταβαίνεις ἐκεῖθεν; Σὺ δὲ τίνος ἕνεκεν ἀλγεῖς καὶ ἐγκαλύπτῃ καὶ κάτω κύπτεις καὶ τὴν σαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ὀδυ νᾷς, ὅτι ὁ δεῖνα ἐκράτησε, καὶ ἐκρατήθη θάτερος; καὶ τί ταῦτα πρὸς σέ; ποῖον ἡ λύπη αὕτη, ἢ ἡ ἡδονὴ αὕτη λόγον ἂν ἔχοι; τίνος δὲ οὐκ ἂν εἴη κολάσεως ἑκάτερος ὑμῶν ἄξιος, τῆς μὲν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχῆς καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν ὑπὸ τῶν παθῶν παρασυρομένης οὐδένα ποιούμενος λό γον, ὑπὲρ δὲ ἀλόγων ζώων καὶ ἀνθρώπων ἑτέρων ἀλόγων χαίρων, ἢ ὀδυνώμενος; Ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ πάλιν τὴν ἅπασαν διάλεξιν εἰς ταῦτα καταναλώσαντες, δαπανήσωμεν τὸν καιρὸν, τὴν διόρθωσιν ἐκείνων ἐπιτρέψαντες ὑμῶν τῇ ἀγάπῃ, τῶν σήμερον