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of time, but they have not yet obtained the resurrection, not yet for your sake and for your benefit, so that you also, thinking of that athlete, might be stirred up for the same race. For no harm comes to them from the delay; but to you the greatest benefit is born from the occasion. For they will receive hereafter, even if they do not receive now; but if he had snatched them from our midst now, he would have taken away much of our encouragement and consolation; for truly the greatest encouragement and consolation comes to all people from the tombs of these saints. And you are witnesses of what is being said. For often, when we were threatening, flattering, frightening, exhorting, you did not show such eagerness for prayer, nor were you roused; but when you went to a martyr's shrine, with no one advising, seeing only the tomb of the saints, you poured forth many fountains of tears, and became fervent in your prayers. And yet the voiceless martyr lies in great silence. What then is it that pricks the conscience, and makes the streams of tears gush forth as from a spring? The very image of the martyr, and the memory of all their achievements. For just as the poor, whenever they see others who are rich and hold high offices, attended by bodyguards, enjoying great honor from the king, learning more accurately of their own poverty from the good fortunes of others, lament; so also we, whenever we remember the boldness of the martyrs, which they have before God, the King of all, and their splendor and glory, and remember our own sins, perceiving more accurately our own poverty from their 50.649 abundance, we feel pain and are distressed, understanding how far we fall short of them; and this is what produces the tears. For this reason God has left their bodies here for us, so that when the crowd of affairs and the multitude of worldly cares scatters much darkness over our mind, whether from private or from public matters—and there are many such things—leaving our house, going out of the city, bidding a long farewell to these disturbances, we may withdraw to a martyr's shrine, enjoy that spiritual breeze, forget much of our business, delight in the tranquility, associate with the saints, beseech their Judge for our salvation, pour out many supplications, and through all these things, having laid aside the burden of our conscience, we may return home again with much spiritual refreshment. The tombs of martyrs are nothing other than safe harbors, and springs of spiritual streams, and inexhaustible treasures of abundance, never failing. And just as harbors, receiving ships drenched by many waves, establish them in safety, so also the tombs of the martyrs, receiving our souls drenched by worldly affairs, establish them in great calm and safety; and just as springs of cool streams restore weary and inflamed bodies, so also these cool souls that are burnt by unseemly passions, and extinguish by the sight alone unseemly desire, and wasting envy, and boiling anger, and if any other such thing should trouble them, and they are better than treasures of great abundance. For treasures of money provide many dangers to those who find them, and being divided into many parts, they become less by the distribution; but here there is nothing of the sort, but the discovery is without danger, and the division is without diminution, contrary to material treasures. For those, as I said before, being broken into small pieces become less; but these, when they are divided among many, then rather show their own

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χρόνου, τῆς δὲ ἀναστάσεως οὐδέπω ἐπέτυχον, οὐδέπω διὰ σὲ καὶ τὴν ὠφέλειαν τὴν σὴν, ἵνα καὶ σὺ ἐκεῖνον τὸν ἀθλητὴν ἐννοῶν πρὸς τὸν αὐτὸν δρόμον διεγερθῇς. Τούτοις μὲν γὰρ οὐδὲν βλάβος ἀπὸ τῆς ἀναβολῆς γίνεται· σοὶ δὲ μέγιστον ὄφελος ἐκ τῆς ὑποθέσεως τίκτεται. Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν γὰρ μετὰ ταῦτα ἀπολήψονται, κἂν μὴ νῦν ἀπολαμβάνωσιν· εἰ δὲ ἐξήρπασεν αὐτοὺς ἐκ τοῦ μέσου νῦν, πολλὴν ἂν ἡμῶν παράκλησιν καὶ παραμυθίαν ἀφείλετο· μεγίστη γὰρ ὄντως παράκλησις καὶ παραμυθία ἀπὸ τῶν τάφων τῶν ἁγίων τούτων πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις προσγίνεται. Καὶ τῶν λεγομένων ὑμεῖς μάρτυρες. Πολλάκις γοῦν ἡμῶν ἀπειλούντων, κολακευόντων, φοβούντων, προτρεπόντων, οὐ τοσαύτην ἐδέξασθε προθυμίαν εἰς εὐχὴν, οὐδὲ διηγέρθητε· εἰς δὲ μαρτύριον ἀπελθόντες, οὐδενὸς συμβουλεύοντος, τὸν τάφον μόνον ἰδόντες, τῶν ἁγίων πολλὰς ἐξεχέατε δακρύων πηγὰς, καὶ διεθερμάνθητε ἐν ταῖς εὐχαῖς. Καίτοι γε ἄφωνος ὁ μάρτυς κεῖται ἐν πολλῇ τῇ σιγῇ. Τί ποτ' οὖν ἐστι τὸ κεντοῦν τὸ συνειδὸς, καὶ ποιοῦν ὥσπερ ἐκ πηγῆς ἀναβλύζειν τοὺς τῶν δακρύων κρουνούς; Αὐτὴ τοῦ μάρτυρος ἡ φαντασία, καὶ τῶν κατορθωθέντων πάντων ἡ μνήμη. Καθάπερ γὰρ οἱ πένητες, ἐπειδὰν ἴδωσι πλουτοῦντας ἑτέρους ἐν ἀξιώμασιν ὄντας, δορυφορουμένους, πολλῆς παρὰ βασιλέως τιμῆς ἀπολαύοντας, ἀκριβέστερον τὴν ἑαυτῶν πενίαν ἐν ταῖς ἑτέρων εὐπραγίαις μανθάνοντες ἀποδύρονται· οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἡμεῖς, ἐπειδὰν ἀναμνησθῶμεν τῆς τῶν μαρτύρων παῤῥησίας, ἣν ἔχουσι πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα τῶν ὅλων Θεὸν, καὶ τῆς λαμπρότητος καὶ τῆς δόξης, καὶ τῶν οἰκείων ἀναμνησθῶμεν ἁμαρτημάτων ἀκριβέστερον τὴν ἑαυτῶν πενίαν ἐκ τῆς 50.649 ἐκείνων εὐπορίας κατιδόντες ἀλγοῦμεν καὶ ὀδυνώμεθα, καταμανθάνοντες ὅσον αὐτῶν ἀπολιμπανόμεθα· καὶ τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ ποιοῦν τὰ δάκρυα. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἡμῖν τὰ σώματα ἀφῆκεν ἐνταῦθα ὁ Θεὸς, ἵν' ὅταν ὁ τῶν πραγμάτων ὄχλος καὶ φροντίδων πλῆθος βιωτικῶν σκότος πολὺ τῆς διανοίας κατασκεδάσῃ τῆς ἡμετέρας, ἢ ἐξ ἰδιωτικῶν ἢ ἐκ δημοσίων πραγμάτων πολλὰ δὲ τοιαῦτα, τὴν οἰκίαν ἀφέντες, τῆς πόλεως ἐξελθόντες, πολλὰ χαίρειν τοῖς θορύβοις τούτοις εἰπόντες, ἀναχωρήσωμεν εἰς μαρτύριον, ἀπολαύσωμεν τῆς αὔρας ἐκείνης τῆς πνευματικῆς, ἐπιλαθώμεθα τῆς πολλῆς σχολῆς, ἐντρυφήσωμεν τῇ ἡσυχίᾳ, συγγενώμεθα τοῖς ἁγίοις, παρακαλέσωμεν αὐτῶν τὸν ἀγωνοθέτην ὑπὲρ τῆς ἡμετέρας σωτηρίας, πολλὰς ἱκετηρίας ἐκχέωμεν, διὰ τούτων πάντων ἀποθέμενοι τὸ βάρος τοῦ συνειδότος, μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς ψυχαγωγίας οἴκαδε πάλιν ἐπανέλθωμεν. Μαρτύρων θῆκαι οὐδὲν ἄλλο εἰσὶν, ἀλλ' ἢ λιμένες ἀσφαλεῖς, καὶ πηγαὶ ναμάτων πνευματικῶν, καὶ θησαυροὶ περιουσίας ἀνάλωτοι, μηδέποτε ἐλεγχόμενοι. Καὶ καθάπερ οἱ λιμένες ὑποδεχόμενοι τὰ πλοῖα πολλοῖς κύμασι περιαντληθέντα ἐν ἀσφαλείᾳ καθιστῶσιν, οὕτω δὴ καὶ τῶν μαρτύρων αἱ θῆκαι ὑποδεξάμεναι τὰς ἡμετέρας ψυχὰς βιωτικοῖς πράγμασι περιαντλουμένας ἐν πολλῇ καθιστῶσι γαλήνῃ καὶ ἀσφαλείᾳ· καὶ ὥσπερ αἱ πηγαὶ τῶν ψυχρῶν ναμάτων τὰ πεπονηκότα καὶ καταφλεχθέντα ἀνακτῶνται σώματα, οὕτω δὴ καὶ αὗται τὰς ἀπὸ τῶν ἀτόπων παθῶν κατακαυθείσας ψυχὰς καταψύχουσι, καὶ ἐπιθυμίαν ἄτοπον, καὶ φθόνον τήκοντα, καὶ θυμὸν ζέοντα, καὶ εἴ τι τοιοῦτον ἕτερον διενοχλήσειεν, ἀπὸ τῆς ὄψεως μόνης κατασβέννυσι, καὶ θησαυρῶν δὲ ἐκ πολλῆς τῆς περιουσίας βελτίους εἰσίν. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ τῶν χρημάτων θησαυροὶ πολλοὺς παρέχουσι κινδύνους τοῖς εὑρίσκουσιν αὐτοὺς, καὶ εἰς πολλὰ μέρη διαιρεθέντες, ἐλάττους γίνονται τῇ διανομῇ· ἐνταῦθα δὲ οὐδὲν τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν, ἀλλ' ἀκίνδυνος μὲν ἡ εὕρεσις, ἀμείωτος δὲ ἡ διαίρεσις, ἀπεναντίας τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς θησαυροῖς. Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν γὰρ, ὡς ἔφθην εἰπὼν, κατακερματισθέντες ἐλάττους γίνονται· οὗτοι δὲ ὅταν εἰς πολλοὺς διαιρεθῶσι, τότε μᾶλλον τὴν οἰκείαν ἐνδείκνυνται