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of greater possession. Then from this come sleepless nights, anxieties, cares. As wealth increases, so does it bring the anxious part of life.

A judge is expected, and the covetous man looks around lest he be dragged into court; lest an orphan make his tear public in court. He deliberates at night, which of the bitter advocates he will prepare, in order to hire false witnesses; how he will besiege the one in the wilderness, and oppress him, and having stolen the truth in court; and he will ruin both, deceiving the judge and defrauding the child. These are the cares that consume the soul of the covetous man. A dog barks, and the rich man thinks it is a thief. The sound of a mouse, and the rich man's heart leaps; he suspects his servant, he holds everything in suspicion; he sees his growing sons as conspirators, because their age hastens the succession. For the covetous there is also another disease. He puts his life on his fingers; he makes part of it public, but he has the other part buried, putting it away for uncertain hopes; hopes that are not hopes. For if the deposit were for hopes, the preparation would have been for the eternal hope. But now he hides his unseen wealth under his bed, thinking to avert impending loss. But whether the need will ever come is uncertain; yet a time will come in which you will regret not having managed the wealth. This is evident, and I am the one who guarantees it.

For it is necessary to speak about all the passions, reminding you; and for you, paying attention, to receive the benefit from these words, so that each one, having stripped off sin like the old skin of a snake, might thus return naked, and having righteousness blossoming in him, having become one person from another. For this is a synod. For this reason our fathers established these assemblies, so that what we cannot learn each day, due to the lack of teachers and instructors, these things we might receive coming together annually in a common festival; then we might keep provisions for the time to come, and having the lessons ringing in our memory, we might flee from sin, and pursue the work of righteousness. 31.1449 "Do not move the ancient boundaries. And do not enter into the possession of orphans." Do not make your children an excuse, you covetous man. Are they children? Treasure up for them an eternal treasure. And piety is a treasure of money. Leave to your children a good memory rather than great wealth. Make all men fathers to your child through good deeds. It is necessary for you to depart from this life at some point; then you will leave your child in his youth, in need of guardians. For if you are good and noble, everyone will raise your offspring as their own; for they will remember that you too were a father to orphans; but if, having lived in wickedness, and having grieved many, and having become more savage than any beast to those who met you, you then depart from this life, you have left your offspring a common enemy of the living. For just as one who sees the child of a scorpion is afraid, lest at some time having come of age it imitate its father; so too your offspring, being heirs of a father's wickedness, before coming of age, will be plotted against by all. Why then do you gather many plotters and enemies against your own children? And yet, even if you lived for all time, you ought rather to have the goodwill of the many as your helper. But since your fate is uncertain, leave behind through good deeds many guardians; lest at some time, when you have departed, and then the wealth which you gather is not able to be passed on for benefit, each one should shake his head and say: How is it that ill-gotten gains were not passed on to offspring and children? These things I say to you from human reasoning; but what is from the Lord, such as the Gospel will tell you, you know.

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πλείο νος κτήσεως. Εἶτα ἀγρυπνίαι ἐντεῦθεν, αἱ μέρι μναι, αἱ φροντίδες. Ὅσον αὔξει ὁ πλοῦτος, τοσοῦ τον φέρει τοῦ βίου τὸ μεριμνητικόν.

∆ικαστὴς προσδοκᾶται, καὶ ὁ πλεονέκτης περισκοπεῖ μὴ εἰς δικαστήρια παρασυρῇ· μὴ ὀρφανὸς τὸ δάκρυον ἑαυ τοῦ ἐπὶ δικαστηρίου δημοσιεύσῃ. Βουλεύεται ἐν νυκτὶ, τίνας τῶν πικρῶν συνηγόρων παρασκευάσει, ἵνα ψευδεῖς μαρτυρίας ἐκμισθώσηται· πῶς ἐκπο λιορκήσει τὸν ἐν τῇ ἐρημίᾳ, καταδυναστεύσει δὲ τούτου, καὶ ἐν δικαστηρίῳ τὴν ἀλήθειαν κλέψας· ἀμφοτέρους δὲ ἀναλώσει, καὶ τὸν δικαστὴν παρα κρουσάμενος, καὶ τὸν νήπιον πλεονεκτήσας. Αὗται αἱ μέριμναι δαπανῶσι τοῦ πλεονέκτου τὴν ψυ χήν. Κύων ὑλακτεῖ, καὶ ὁ πλούσιος νομίζει κλέπτην εἶναι. Μυὸς ψόφος, καὶ τοῦ πλουσίου ἡ καρδία πηδᾷ· τὸν παῖδα ὑποπτεύει, πάντα δι' ὑποψίας ἔχει· υἱοὺς αὐξανομένους ὥσπερ ἐπιβούλους ὁρᾷ, ὅτι ἡ ἡλικία αὐτῶν τὴν διαδοχὴν κατεπείγει. Τοῖς πλεονέκταις καὶ ἑτέρα ἐστὶ νόσος. Τὸν βίον αὐ τοῦ ἐπὶ δακτύλων τίθησι· τὸν μὲν δημοσιεύει, τὸν δὲ κατορωρυγμένον ἔχει πρὸς ἐλπίδας τὰς ἀδήλους ἀποτιθέμενος· ἐλπίδας τὰς οὐκ ἐλπίδας. Εἰ γὰρ πρὸς ἐλπίδας ἦν ἡ ἀπόθεσις, πρὸς τὴν αἰωνίαν ἐλ πίδα ἐγένετο ἂν ἡ παρασκευή. Νῦν δὲ ὑποκρύπτει τῇ κλίνῃ τὸν πλοῦτον τὸν ἄδηλον, τὴν ἐπερχομέ νην ζημίαν ἀποστρέφειν οἰόμενος. Ἀλλ' εἰ μὲν ἥξει ποτὲ ἡ χρεία, ἄδηλον· ἥξει μέντοι καιρὸς, ἐν ᾧ μεταμεληθήσῃ, μὴ οἰκονομήσας τὸν πλοῦτον. Τοῦτο πρόδηλον, κἀγώ εἰμι ὁ ἐγγυώμενος

. Ἀνάγκη μὲν γὰρ περὶ πάντων τῶν παθῶν διαλέγεσθαι, ὑπομιμνήσκοντα ὑμᾶς· ὑμᾶς δὲ προσέχοντας λαμ βάνειν τὴν ἐκ τῶν λόγων ὠφέλειαν, ἵνα, ἀποδυσά μενος ἕκαστος, ὥσπερ γῆρας ὄφεως, τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, οὕτως ἐπανέλθοι γεγυμνωμένος, καὶ ἔχων τὴν δικαιοσύνην αὐτῷ ἐπανθοῦσαν, ἕτερος ἐξ ἑτέρου γενόμενος. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι σύνοδος. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν τοὺς συλλόγους τούτους ἐπέγνωσαν, ἵνα ἃ καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν μαθεῖν οὐ δυνάμεθα, τῇ τῶν διδασκόντων καὶ ὑπομιμνησκόντων ἐνδείᾳ, ταῦτα δι' ἔτους συνιόντες, ἐν κοινῇ πανηγύρει ὑπο δεξώμεθα· εἶτα φυλάξωμεν ἐφόδια πρὸς τὸν ἐφ εξῆς χρόνον, καὶ ἔναυλα ἔχοντες τῇ μνήμῃ τὰ καθ' ἕκαστον, φύγωμεν τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, διώξωμεν δὲ τὸ ἔργον τῆς δικαιοσύνης. 31.1449 «Μὴ μέταιρε ὅρια αἰώνια. Εἰς δὲ κτῆμα ὀρφα νῶν μὴ εἰσέλθῃς.» Μὴ προφασίζου τοὺς παῖδας, ὁ πλεονέκτης. Παῖδές εἰσι; θησαύριζε αὐτοῖς θη σαυρὸν αἰώνιον. Θησαυρὸς δέ ἐστιν ἡ εὐσέβεια χρημάτων. Κατάλειπε παισὶν ἀγαθὴν μνήμην ἢ πλοῦτον πολύν. Πάντας ποίησαι τοῦ παιδὸς τοῦ σοῦ πατέρας διὰ τῆς εὐποιίας. Ἀνάγκη σέ ποτε ἀπελθεῖν τοῦ βίου· εἶτα τὸν σὸν παῖδα ἐν τῇ ἀφηλικίᾳ καταλείψεις, τῶν προεστώτων δεόμενον. Ἐὰν μὲν γὰρ καλὸς καὶ ἀγαθὸς ᾖς, ἕκαστος τὸν σὸν ἔκγονον ὥσπερ ἴδιον ἐκθρέψει· μεμνήσεται γὰρ, ὅτι καὶ σὺ ὀρφανῶν πατὴρ ἐγένου· ἐὰν δὲ ἐν πονηρίᾳ ζήσας, καὶ πολλοὺς λυπήσας, καὶ παντὸς θηρίου χαλεπώτε ρος γενόμενος τοῖς συντυγχάνουσιν, εἶτα ὑπεξέλθῃς τοῦ βίου, κατέλιπες τὸν σὸν ἔκγονον κοινὸν ἐχθρὸν τῶν ζώντων. Ὥσπερ γὰρ τέκνον σκορπίου ὁ θεασά μενος φοβεῖται, μή ποτε εἰς ἡλικίαν ἐλθὸν μιμήσηται τὸν πατέρα· οὕτω καὶ τὰ σὰ ἔκγονα πονηρίας πα τρικῆς ὄντα κληρονόμα, πρὶν εἰς ἡλικίαν ἐλθεῖν, παρὰ πάντων ἐπιβουλευθήσεται. Τί οὖν πολλοὺς ἐπιβούλους καὶ ἐχθροὺς συνάγεις τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ τέκνοις; Καίτοι, εἰ καὶ πάντα τὸν χρόνον ἔζης, ἔδει σε μᾶλλον τῶν πολλῶν τὴν εὔνοιαν ἔχειν συνεργόν. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἄδηλον τὸ κατὰ σὲ, κατάλιπε διὰ τῆς εὐποιίας πολ λοὺς τοὺς προϊσταμένους· μή ποτέ σου ὑπεξελθόν τος, εἶτα τοῦ πλούτου, ὃν συνάγεις, εἰς ὄνησιν μὴ δυνηθέντος διαδεχθῆναι, ἕκαστος κινήσῃ τὴν κε φαλὴν, καὶ εἴπῃ· Πῶς τὰ κακῶς κτηθέντα εἰς ἐκγό νους καὶ παῖδας οὐ παρεπέμφθη; Ταῦτά σοι λέγω ἐκ τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων λόγων· τὰ μέντοι παρὰ τοῦ Κυ ρίου, οἷά σοι ἐρεῖ τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον, οἶδας.