2

For even without martyrdom it makes disciples of Christ, but martyrdom without love would not be able to accomplish this. From where is this evident? From the very words of Christ; for to the disciples he said: By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. Behold, love without martyrdom makes disciples. 50.608 But that martyrdom without love not only does not make disciples, but does not even profit the one who endures it, hear Paul saying: If I give over my body that I may be burned, but have not love, I am profited nothing.

2. For this reason especially I love this saint who has gathered us today, the blessed Romanus, because with his martyrdom he displayed great love, for which reason also his holy tongue was cut out. For this too is worth examining, why indeed the devil did not lead him to tortures and punishments and penalties, but cut out his tongue; for he did not do this without reason, but with great wickedness; for indeed the beast is malicious, and he contrives and sets in motion everything against our salvation. Come then, let us examine, why indeed he proceeded to the cutting out of the tongue, taking our discourse back a little at least; for thus we shall know both the love for humanity of God, and the endurance of the martyr, and the malice of the devil; and having learned of God's love for humanity, we will give thanks to the Master, and having come to know the endurance of the martyr, we will imitate our fellow servant, and having understood the malice of the devil, we will turn away from the enemy. For for this reason God has given us to know his schemes, so that by hating him more we might more easily overcome him. For that it is possible to know his thoughts, hear what Paul says concerning the one who had committed fornication; for writing to the Corinthians he says something like this: Reaffirm your love for him, so that we may not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs. What then is the reason, for which he cut out his tongue? bear with me as I narrate from a little earlier. A war was once fanned into flame, a harsh one against the Churches, not of barbarians raiding the cities, nor of any foreigners, but of those themselves who seemed to rule our world, treating their subjects more harshly and cruelly than all barbarians, and enemies, and tyrants. For the danger then was not for freedom, and fatherland, and money, and the present life, but for the kingdom of heaven, and the good things laid up, for immortal life, for the confession of Christ.

And a certain new kind of captivity was devised; for they were not casting them out of the city here, but they were attempting to deprive them of the Jerusalem above which is free, and they compelled each person to sacrifice his soul upon the altars, and to renounce their own Master, and to submit to the tyranny of demons, and to serve the demons, the destroyers and enemies of our salvation; which was more harsh and unbearable than ten thousand deaths and all of Gehenna to Christ-loving souls. Then indeed, with many going under, and the storm rising, and many being shipwrecked, this blessed Romanus coming into their midst did not immediately consider how he might give himself over to the dangers, but first he gathered those who were afraid, those who had fallen away, those who had betrayed their own salvation, he encouraged them, he prepared them to fight again, raising up those who had fallen, and securing those who were standing with prayers, and exhortations, and counsels, about future things, 50.609 about present affairs philosophizing much, showing the temporary nature of these things, the eternal nature of those things, contrasting the prizes with the labors, the crowns with the tortures, the rewards with the pains, teaching what the present life is, and what the future one is, and how great is the difference between each, and that it is altogether necessary to die; for even if

2

γὰρ καὶ χωρὶς μαρτυρίου ποιεῖ μαθητὰς τοῦ Χριστοῦ, μαρτύριον δὲ χωρὶς ἀγάπης οὐκ ἂν ἰσχύσειε τοῦτο ἐργάσασθαι. Πόθεν τοῦτο δῆλον; Ἀπ' αὐτῶν τῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ῥημάτων· πρὸς γὰρ τοὺς μαθητὰς ἔλεγεν· Ἐν τούτῳ γνώσονται πάντες, ὅτι μαθηταί μού ἐστε, ἐὰν ἀγαπᾶτε ἀλλήλους. Ἰδοὺ ἀγάπη χωρὶς μαρτυρίου μαθητὰς ποιεῖ. 50.608 Ὅτι δὲ μαρτύριον χωρὶς ἀγάπης οὐ μόνον μαθητὰς οὐ ποιεῖ, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ὠφελεῖ τι τὸν ὑπομένοντα, ἄκουσον Παύλου λέγοντος· Ἐὰν παραδῶ τὸ σῶμά μου, ἵνα καυθήσωμαι, ἀγάπην δὲ μὴ ἔχω, οὐδὲν ὠφελοῦμαι.

βʹ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο μάλιστα τὸν ἅγιον τοῦτον φιλῶ τὸν σήμερον ἡμᾶς συναγαγόντα, τὸν μακάριον Ῥωμανὸν, ὅτι μετὰ τοῦ μαρτυρίου πολλὴν τὴν ἀγάπην ἐπεδείξατο, διὸ καὶ τὴν γλῶτταν ἐξεκόπτετο τὴν ἁγίαν. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο ἄξιον ἐξετάσαι, τί δή ποτε οὐκ ἐπὶ βασάνους καὶ κολάσεις καὶ τιμωρίας ἤγαγεν αὐτὸν ὁ διάβολος, ἀλλὰ τὴν γλῶτταν ἀπέτεμεν· οὐ γὰρ εἰκῆ τοῦτο ἐποίησεν, ἀλλὰ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς πονηρίας· καὶ γὰρ κακουργόν ἐστι τὸ θηρίον, καὶ πάντα κατὰ τῆς ἡμετέρας σωτηρίας πραγματεύεται καὶ κινεῖ. Φέρε οὖν ἐξετάσωμεν, τί δήποτε ἐπὶ τὴν ἐκκοπὴν τῆς γλώττης ἐχώρησε, μικρὸν γοῦν ἀνωτέρω τὸν λόγον ἀγαγόντες· οὕτω γὰρ εἰσόμεθα καὶ τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν, καὶ τὴν τοῦ μάρτυρος ὑπομονὴν, καὶ τὴν τοῦ διαβόλου κακουργίαν· καὶ τὴν μὲν τοῦ Θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν μαθόντες εὐχαριστήσομεν τῷ ∆εσπότῃ, τὴν δὲ τοῦ μάρτυρος ὑπομονὴν γνόντες μιμησόμεθα τὸν σύνδουλον, τὴν δὲ τοῦ διαβόλου κακουργίαν καταμαθόντες, ἀποστραφησόμεθα τὸν ἐχθρόν. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τοῦτο ἡμῖν ἔδωκεν ὁ Θεὸς εἰδέναι αὐτοῦ τὰς μηχανὰς, ἵνα μειζόνως αὐτὸν μισήσαντες εὐκολώτερον αὐτοῦ περιγενώμεθα. Ὅτι γὰρ δυνατὸν εἰδέναι αὐτοῦ τὰ νοήματα, ἄκουσον τί φησιν ὁ Παῦλος περὶ τοῦ πεπορνευκότος· Κορινθίοις γὰρ ἐπιστέλλων οὕτω πώς φησι· Κυρώσατε εἰς αὐτὸν ἀγάπην, ἵνα μὴ πλεονεκτηθῶμεν ὑπὸ τοῦ Σατανᾶ· οὐ γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὰ νοήματα ἀγνοοῦμεν. Τίς οὖν ἡ αἰτία, δι' ἣν τὴν γλῶτταν ἐξέκοψε; Μικρὸν ἄνωθεν ἀνάσχεσθέ μου διηγουμένου. Πόλεμος ἀνεῤῥιπίσθη ποτὲ κατὰ τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν χαλεπὸς, οὐχὶ βαρβάρων ἐπιδραμόντων τὰς πόλεις, οὐδὲ ἀλλογενῶν τινων, ἀλλ' αὐτῶν τῶν δοκούντων προεστάναι τῆς καθ' ἡμᾶς οἰκουμένης, καὶ βαρβάρων, καὶ πολεμίων, καὶ τυράννων ἁπάντων ἀπηνέστερον καὶ ὠμότερον κεχρημένων τοῖς ὑπηκόοις. Οὐ γὰρ ὑπὲρ ἐλευθερίας, καὶ πατρίδος, καὶ χρημάτων, καὶ τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς ὁ κίνδυνος ἦν τότε, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ βασιλείας οὐρανῶν, καὶ τῶν ἀποκειμένων ἀγαθῶν, ὑπὲρ ἀθανάτου ζωῆς, ὑπὲρ ὁμολογίας τῆς εἰς τὸν Χριστόν.

Καὶ καινός τις αἰχμαλωσίας ἐπενοεῖτο τρόπος· οὐ γὰρ τῆς ἐνταῦθα πόλεως ἐξέβαλλον, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἄνω Ἱερουσαλὴμ τῆς ἐλευθέρας ἐπεχείρουν ἀποστερεῖν, καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἕκαστον καταθύειν ἠνάγκαζον ἐπὶ τῶν βωμῶν, καὶ τὸν οἰκεῖον ∆εσπότην ἐξόμνυσθαι, καὶ τῇ τῶν δαιμόνων ὑποκύπτειν τυραννίδι, καὶ τοὺς λυμεῶνας καὶ ἐχθροὺς τῆς σωτηρίας τῆς ἡμετέρας θεραπεύειν δαίμονας· ὃ μυρίων θανάτων καὶ πάσης γεέννης χαλεπώτερον ἦν καὶ ἀφορητότερον ταῖς φιλοχρίστοις ψυχαῖς. Τότε δὴ πολλῶν ὑποβρυχίων γινομένων, καὶ τοῦ χειμῶνος αἰρομένου, καὶ πολλῶν ναυαγούντων, ὁ μακάριος οὗτος Ῥωμανὸς παρελθὼν εἰς μέσους οὐκ ἐσκόπησεν εὐθέως, ὅπως ἑαυτὸν ἐπιδῷ τοῖς κινδύνοις, ἀλλὰ πρότερον τοὺς πεφοβημένους, τοὺς ἀναπεπτωκότας, τοὺς τὴν οἰκείαν προδόντας σωτηρίαν συνῆγε, παρεθάῤῥυνεν, ἀναμαχέσασθαι παρεσκεύαζε, τοὺς μὲν καταπεσόντας ἀνορθῶν, τοὺς δὲ ἑστῶτας ἀσφαλιζόμενος εὐχαῖς, καὶ παραινέσεσι, καὶ συμβουλαῖς, περὶ τῶν μελλόντων, 50.609 περὶ τῶν παρόντων πραγμάτων πολλὰ φιλοσοφῶν, δεικνὺς τὸ πρόσκαιρον τούτων, τὸ διηνεκὲς ἐκείνων, ἀντιτιθεὶς τοῖς πόνοις τὰ ἔπαθλα, ταῖς βασάνοις τοὺς στεφάνους, ταῖς ἀλγηδόσι τὰ βραβεῖα, διδάσκων τίς μὲν ἡ παροῦσα ζωὴ, τίς δὲ ἡ μέλλουσα, καὶ πόσον ἑκατέρας τὸ μέσον, καὶ ὅτι πάντως ἀποθανεῖν ἀνάγκη· κἂν γὰρ