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is called an imitator? Not of angels, not of archangels, but of the Master of all. And yet those too are most meek and full of all virtue; but nevertheless Paul called the gentle imitators of God, so that by the greatness of the honor he might teach the hearers to be most meek, so that everyone who is insulted or suffers some other terrible thing, might bear the reproaches meekly, and restrain his anger, as one who is about to follow God in restraining anger. For what indeed are the things of God? From above He both sees and hears all things, but on the earth, in the things both said and done, there are many injustices. And there are some who have come to such a point of impiety, as even to blaspheme God, whenever they are grieved by some circumstance, and looking up to heaven, they abstain from no word; but God endures 63.553, and though having so much power to exact punishment from the impious, does he not exact it? But if God punished all who sin, very little would be what is saved, and the living would not be sufficient for the burials. For this reason David says: If you, Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? For with you there is forgiveness. But now even in this very thing God shows His love for mankind, by not even punishing justly. Whoever therefore wishes to be like God, according to human ability, let him be meek and gentle, and let him bear nobly, whenever he suffers some terrible thing from others. Love, he says, your enemies, do good to those who hate you, pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, that you may be like your Father who is in heaven, for He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. There are, then, many virtues befitting Christian men, but the greatest of all is meekness; for Christ names only those who shine in this as imitators of God. It is fitting for us, therefore, whenever someone insults or strikes or does some other terrible thing, to endure all things nobly with a quiet soul, bearing in mind that meekness makes us imitators of God. For even our Master and Savior Himself, being insulted, receiving blows, being nailed, being crucified, meekly bore the madness of the Jews, and though having so much power to take vengeance on the impious, He did not take it, but showed His power in shaking the earth and raising the dead and hiding the sun and making the day night, but His meekness and love for mankind in not punishing any of the impious; so that all who laid their impious hands on the Master might learn that He who so easily shook the earth and commanded the sun to suddenly disappear could have easily punished the madmen; but now, since He is gentle, and meekly bears the madness of the impious, not only did He Himself gently endure those who crucified and blasphemed Him, but He also besought the Father not to use the heavenly arrows against the impious. Whenever, therefore, as you are suffering something terrible and unbearable, anger and wrath come upon you, remember the meekness of Christ, and you will quickly be gentle and meek, not only gaining the greatest things for yourself from gentleness, but also benefiting your enemy and teaching him to be good. For when he sees you suffering the worst things meekly, enduring the anger, he himself will quickly become reasonable and good, and casting off his wrath, will desire to become an imitator of your gentleness. Whoever therefore would wish to conquer angry men, let him nobly bear insults and blows, and he will see a great change in the one who is raging and striking; but if he himself, overcome by anger, strives to retaliate against the enemy with the same things, there will never be an end to the anger and the fight, but always raging and desiring to conquer one another with reproaches and blows, they are carried into an endless war and battle,

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ὀνομάζεται μιμητής; οὐκ ἀγγέλων, οὐκ ἀρχαγγέλων, ἀλλὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου τῶν ὅλων. Καίτοι κἀκεῖνοι πραότατοι καὶ πάσης ἀρετῆς γέμοντες· ἀλλ' ὅμως ὁ Παῦλος ζηλωτὰς Θεοῦ τοὺς ἡμέρους ὠνόμασεν, ἵνα διὰ τοῦ μεγέθους τῆς τιμῆς πραοτάτους εἶναι παιδεύσῃ τοὺς ἀκούοντας, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ ὑβριζόμενος ἢ ἄλλο τι πάσχων δεινὸν, πράως ἐνέγκῃ τὰς λοιδορίας, καὶ κρατήσῃ τῆς ὀργῆς, ὡς τῷ Θεῷ μέλλων ἀκολουθεῖν ἐν τῷ κρατεῖν τῆς ὀργῆς. Τίνα γὰρ δὴ τὰ Θεοῦ; Ἄνωθεν μὲν ἅπαντα καὶ ὁρᾷ καὶ ἀκούει, ἐν δὲ τοῖς ἐπὶ γῆς καὶ λεγομένοις καὶ πραττομένοις ἀδικήματα πολλά. Εἰσὶ δέ τινες εἰς τοσοῦτον ἥκοντες ἀσεβείας, ὡς καὶ βλασφημεῖν τὸν Θεὸν, ὅταν τι παρὰ τῶν πραγμάτων λυπῶνται, καὶ βλέποντες εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν, οὐδενὸς ἀπέχονται ῥήματος· ὁ δὲ Θεὸς ἀνέχε 63.553 ται, καὶ τοσαύτην ἔχων δύναμιν τοῦ λαμβάνειν δίκην παρὰ τῶν ἀσεβούντων, οὐ λαμβάνει; Εἰ δὲ πάντας τοὺς ἁμαρτάνοντας ἐκόλαζεν ὁ Θεὸς, σφόδρα ἂν ὀλίγον ἦν τὸ σωζόμενον, καὶ οὐδ' ἂν ἐξήρκουν οἱ ζῶντες πρὸς τὰς ταφάς. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησιν ὁ ∆αυΐδ· Ἐὰν ἀνομίας παρατηρήσῃς, Κύριε, Κύριε, τίς ὑποστήσεται; ὅτι παρὰ σοὶ ὁ ἱλασμός ἐστι. Νῦν δὲ καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ τούτῳ δεικνύει τὴν ἑαυτοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν ὁ Θεὸς, τῷ μηδὲ δικαίως κολάζειν. Ὅστις οὖν ἐοικέναι βούλεται τῷ Θεῷ, κατὰ δύναμιν ἀνθρωπίνην πρᾶος ἔστω καὶ ἥμερος, καὶ φερέτω γενναίως, ὅταν τι πάσχῃ παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων δεινόν. Ἀγαπᾶτε, φησὶ, τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ὑμῶν, καλῶς ποιεῖτε τοῖς μισοῦσιν ὑμᾶς, προσεύχεσθε ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐπηρεαζόντων ὑμᾶς καὶ διωκόντων ὑμᾶς, ὅπως γένησθε ὅμοιοι τοῦ Πατρὸς ὑμῶν τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, ὅτι τὸν ἥλιον αὐτοῦ ἀνατέλλει ἐπὶ πονηροὺς καὶ ἀγαθοὺς, καὶ βρέχει ἐπὶ δικαίους καὶ ἀδίκους. Πολλαὶ μὲν οὖν εἰσιν ἀρεταὶ Χριστιανοῖς ἀνδράσι πρέπουσαι, μείζων δὲ ἁπασῶν ἡ πραότης· τοὺς γὰρ ἐν ταύτῃ διαλάμποντας μόνους τοῦ Θεοῦ ζηλωτὰς ὁ Χριστὸς ὀνομάζει. Προσήκει τοίνυν ἡμᾶς, ὅταν ὑβρίζῃ τις ἢ τύπτῃ ἢ ἄλλο τι πράττῃ δεινὸν, ἡσυχαζούσῃ ψυχῇ πάντα γενναίως ὑπομένειν, ἐνθυμουμένους ὅτι τοῦ Θεοῦ μιμητὰς ἡ πραότης ποιεῖ. Καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸς ὁ ∆εσπότης καὶ Σωτὴρ ἡμῶν ὑβριζόμενος, πληγὰς λαμβάνων, προσηλούμενος, σταυρούμενος, πράως ἤνεγκε τὴν Ἰουδαίων μανίαν, καὶ τοσαύτην ἔχων δύναμιν τοῦ λαβεῖν δίκην παρὰ τῶν ἀσεβούντων, οὐκ ἔλαβεν, ἀλλὰ τὴν μὲν δύναμιν ἔδειξεν ἐν τῷ σεῖσαι τὴν γῆν καὶ νεκροὺς ἀναστῆσαι καὶ κρύψαι τὸν ἥλιον καὶ νύκτα τὴν ἡμέραν ποιῆσαι, τὴν δὲ πραότητα καὶ φιλανθρωπίαν ἐν τῷ μηδένα τῶν ἠσεβηκότων κολάσαι· ἵνα μάθωσιν ἅπαντες οἱ τὰς ἀσεβεῖς χεῖρας προσάγοντες τῷ ∆εσπότῃ, ὅτι ῥᾳδίως ἂν τοὺς μανέντας ἐκόλαζεν ὁ ῥᾳδίως οὕτω σείσας τὴν γῆν καὶ τὸν ἥλιον ἐξαίφνης ἀφανῆ γενέσθαι προστάξας· νῦν δὲ ἐπειδήπερ ἐστὶν ἥμερος, καὶ πράως φέρει τὴν μανίαν τῶν ἀσεβῶν, οὐκ αὐτὸς μόνος ἡμέρως ἠνέσχετο τῶν σταυρούντων, τῶν βλασφημούντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν Πατέρα παρεκάλει, μὴ χρήσασθαι κατὰ τῶν ἀσεβῶν τοῖς οὐρανίοις βέλεσιν. Ὅταν οὖν σοι πάσχοντι δεινὸν καὶ ἀφόρητόν τι ὀργὴ παραστῇ καὶ θυμὸς, ἀναμνήσθητι τῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ πραότητος, καὶ ταχέως ἥμερος ἔσῃ καὶ πρᾶος, οὐκ αὐτὸς μόνος ἐκ τῆς ἡμερότητος τὰ μέγιστα κερδαίνων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ἐχθρὸν ὠφελῶν καὶ χρηστὸν εἶναι παιδεύων. Ὅταν γὰρ ἴδῃ σὲ τὸν τὰ ἔσχατα πάσχοντα πράως, τῆς ὀργῆς ἀνεχόμενον, ταχέως καὶ αὐτὸς ἐπιεικὴς ἔσται καὶ χρηστὸς, καὶ τὸν θυμὸν ἀποῤῥίψας, ζηλωτὴς ἐπιθυμήσει γενέσθαι τῆς σῆς ἡμερότητος. Ὅστις οὖν ἐθέλοι τοὺς θυμουμένους νικᾷν, γενναίως φερέτω τὰς ὕβρεις καὶ τὰς πληγὰς, καὶ πολλὴν ὄψεται μεταβολὴν τοῦ μεμηνότος καὶ τύπτοντος· ἂν δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς ὑπὸ τῆς ὀργῆς ἡττηθεὶς, τοῖς ἴσοις ἀμύνασθαι σπουδάζῃ τὸν ἐχθρὸν, οὐδέποτε πέρας ἔσται τῆς ὀργῆς καὶ τῆς μάχης, ἀλλ' ἀεὶ μεμηνότες καὶ νικᾷν ἀλλήλους ἐπιθυμοῦντες ταῖς λοιδορίαις καὶ ταῖς πληγαῖς, εἰς ἀπέραντον πόλεμον καὶ μάχην ἐκφέρονται,