4

we have set forth in several discourses, showing how the knowledge of what is good and what is not such is self-taught for us, and how from within the conscience echoes all these things for us. For these two teachers have been for us from the beginning, creation, and the conscience; and neither of them sending forth a voice, in silence they were teaching men. For creation, by the sight striking the spectator, sends on the one seeing all things to the wonder of the one who made it; and the conscience, echoing within, suggests all things that must be done; and its power, and the judgment of its verdict, we apprehend through the things of sight. For when within it accuses of sin, it confounds the outward appearance, and fills it with much despondency. Again it makes us pale and fearful, when we are caught in any of the most shameful things, and we do not hear its voice, but through the outward appearance we observe the indignation that occurs within. And besides these two, the word showed a third teacher added for us by the providence of God, no longer voiceless, like the former ones, but with speech, and exhortation, and counsel shaping our mind. And who is this? The father allotted to each one. For this reason God ordained that we be loved by those who begot us, that we might have instructors of virtue. For it is not only sowing seed that makes a father, but educating well; nor does conceiving make a mother, but nurturing well. And that this is true, and that not nature, but virtue makes fathers, the parents themselves would agree with us. For often their own sons, when they see them become wicked, and having turned aside to evil, they cut off from their own kinship, disinheriting them, making others sons who are often in no way related to them. Could anything be more paradoxical than this, when they cast out those whom they begot, but bring in those whom they did not beget? These things have not been said by us without reason, but that you may learn that choice is more powerful than nature, and this more than that is accustomed to make both sons and fathers. And this also was a work of God's providence, to neither leave children to be destitute of natural affection, nor to entrust everything again to that. For if parents were not at all going to love their own sons moved by natural necessity, but only from their charac- 54.637 ters, and accomplishments, you would see many being outside their paternal house on account of their own negligence, and our race being torn apart. Again, if he had entrusted everything to the tyranny of nature, and did not permit them to hate them even when they were wicked, but even when insulted and suffering countless terrible things from them, the fathers, because of the necessity of nature, remained caring for the children who insulted and drunkenly abused them, our race would have sunk to the utmost evil. For if now children, not having everything to trust to nature, but knowing that many, having become wicked, have been cast out of their house and their paternal property, nevertheless in many places, trusting in their parents' love, they behave insolently toward those who bore them; if God had not permitted them both to be indignant and to take action, and to cast out the children when they become bad, where would they have stopped in their wickedness? For these reasons God entrusted the love of the parents both to the necessity of nature and to the character of the children, so that they might grant commensurate forgiveness to their children when they sin, nature urging them to this, and when they become wicked and incurably sick they might not train them toward evil by their wickedness, nature again rebuking and being able to compel them to care for their children even when they become wicked. Of how much providence are these things, tell me, both the command to love, and the setting of a measure to that love, and again the establishing of a reward for good child-rearing? For that a reward is appointed, and not for men only, but also for women, hear how in many places Scripture discourses to them also concerning these things, and no less to them than to the men. For Paul, having said, But the woman being deceived was in the transgression, added: She shall be saved through childbearing. Which

4

πλειόνων ἐξεθέμεθα λόγων, δεικνύντες πῶς αὐτοδίδακτος ἡμῖν ἐστιν ἡ τῶν καλῶν καὶ τῶν οὐ τοιούτων γνῶσις, καὶ πῶς ἔνδοθεν ἡμῖν τὸ συνειδὸς ἅπαντα ἐνηχεῖ ταῦτα. ∆ύο γὰρ οὗτοι διδάσκαλοι γεγόνασιν ἡμῖν ἐξαρχῆς, ἡ κτίσις, καὶ τὸ συνειδός· καὶ οὐδέτερος αὐτῶν φωνὴν ἀφιεὶς, σιγῇ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐπαίδευον. Ἥ τε γὰρ κτίσις διὰ τῆς ὄψεως ἐκπλήττουσα τὸν θεατὴν, εἰς τὸ τοῦ ποιήσαντος αὐτὴν θαῦμα παραπέμπει τὸν ὁρῶντα ἅπαντα· τό τε συνειδὸς ἔνδον ἐνηχοῦν, ἅπαντα ὑποβάλλε τὰ πρακτέα· καὶ τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ, καὶ τῆς ψήφου τὴν κρίσιν διὰ τῶν τῆς ὄψεως πραγμάτων καταλαμβάνομεν. Ὅταν γὰρ ἔνδον κατηγορῇ τῆς ἁμαρτίας, συγχεῖ τὴν ὄψιν ἔξωθεν, καὶ πολλῆς τῆς ἀθυμίας πληροῖ. Πάλιν ὠχροὺς ἐργάζεται καὶ περιδεεῖς, ὅταν ἐπί τινι τῶν αἰσχίστων ἁλῶμεν, καὶ τῆς φωνῆς μὲν οὐκ ἀκούομεν, διὰ δὲ τῆς ἔξωθεν ὄψεως τὴν ἔνδον γινομένην ἀγανάκτησιν θεωροῦμεν. Μετὰ δὲ τούτων τῶν δύο καὶ τρίτον ἡμῖν διδάσκαλον ἐδείκνυ προστεθέντα παρὰ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ κηδεμονίας ὁ λόγος, οὐκέτι ἄφωνον, καθάπερ τοὺς προτέρους, ἀλλὰ λόγῳ, καὶ παραινέσει, καὶ συμβουλῇ ῥυθμίζοντα ἡμῶν τὴν γνώμην. Τίς δὲ οὗτός ἐστιν; Ὁ συγκεκληρωμένος ἑκάστῳ πατήρ. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τοῦτο φιλεῖσθαι παρὰ τῶν γεννησάντων ἡμᾶς κατεσκεύασεν ὁ Θεὸς, ἵνα παιδευτὰς ἔχωμεν τῆς ἀρετῆς. Οὐ γὰρ τὸ σπεῖραι ποιεῖ πατέρα μόνον, ἀλλὰ τὸ παιδεῦσαι καλῶς· οὐδὲ τὸ κυῆσαι μητέρα ἐργάζεται, ἀλλὰ τὸ θρέψαι καλῶς. Καὶ ὅτι τοῦτό ἐστιν ἀληθὲς, καὶ οὐχ ἡ φύσις, ἀλλ' ἡ ἀρετὴ ποιεῖ πατέρας, αὐτοὶ συνομολογήσαιεν ἂν ἡμῖν οἱ γονεῖς. Τοὺς γοῦν υἱοὺς τοὺς ἑαυτῶν πολλάκις, ἐπειδὰν φαύλους ἴδωσι γενομένους, καὶ εἰς πονηρίαν ἀποσκιρτήσαντας, τῆς συγγενείας τῆς ἑαυτῶν ἐκκόπτουσιν, ἀποκηρύττοντες, ἑτέρους ποιοῦντες υἱοὺς οὐδαμόθεν αὐτοῖς πολλάκις προσήκοντας. Ἆρά τι τούτου γενοιτ' ἂν παραδοξότερον, ὅταν οὓς μὲν ἐγέννησαν ἐκβάλλωσιν, οὓς δὲ οὐκ ἐγέννησαν εἰσάγωσιν; Οὐχ ἁπλῶς ἡμῖν ταῦτα εἴρηται, ἀλλ' ἵνα μάθῃς, ὅτι προαίρεσις φύσεως δυνατωτέρα, καὶ αὕτη μᾶλλον ἐκείνης καὶ υἱοὺς καὶ πατέρας ποιεῖν εἴωθε. Καὶ τοῦτο δὲ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ κηδεμονίας ἔργον ἐγένετο, τὸ μήτε γυμνοὺς τῆς φυσικῆς διαθέσεως ἀφεῖναι γενέσθαι τοὺς παῖδας, μήτε τὸ πᾶν ἐπιτρέψαι πάλιν ἐκείνῃ. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ μηδ' ὅλως ἔμελλον φιλεῖν τοὺς ἑαυτῶν υἱοὺς οἱ γονεῖς ἀνάγκῃ κινούμενοι φυσικῇ, ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τῶν τρό 54.637 πων, καὶ τῶν κατορθωμάτων μόνον, πολλοὺς ἂν εἶδες ἔξω τῆς πατρῴας οἰκίας γινομένους διὰ τὴν οἰκείαν ὀλιγωρίαν, καὶ διασπώμενον ἡμῶν τὸ γένος. Πάλιν εἰ τὸ πᾶν ἐπέτρεψε τῇ τυραννίδι τῆς φύσεως, καὶ μηδὲ πονηροὺς ὄντας μισεῖν ἀφῆκεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑβριζόμενοι καὶ μυρία πάσχοντες παρ' αὐτῶν οἱ πατέρες δεινὰ, διὰ τὴν τῆς φύσεως ἀνάγκην ἔμενον θεραπεύοντες ὑβρίζοντας καὶ ἐμπαροινοῦντας αὐτοῖς τοὺς παῖδας, εἰς ἔσχατον ἂν κακίας τὸ γένος ἡμῖν ἐξώλισθεν. Εἰ γὰρ νῦν οὐ τὸ πᾶν ἔχοντες τῇ φύσει θαῤῥεῖν οἱ παῖδες, ἀλλ' εἰδότες ὅτι πολλοὶ γενόμενοι φαῦλοι, καὶ τῆς οἰκίας, καὶ τῆς οὐσίας ἐξέπεσον τῆς πατρικῆς, ὅμως πολλαχοῦ τῷ τῶν γονέων φίλτρῳ θαῤῥοῦντες ἐνυβρίζουσιν εἰς τοὺς τεκόντας· εἰ μὴ συνεχώρησεν αὐτοῖς ὁ Θεὸς καὶ ἀγανακτεῖν. καὶ ἐπεξιέναι, καὶ κακοὺς γινομένους ἐκβάλλειν τοὺς παῖδας, ποῦ πονηρίας ἂν ἔστησαν; ∆ιὰ ταῦτα καὶ τῇ τῆς φύσεως ἀνάγκῃ, καὶ τῷ τῶν παιδίων τρόπῳ τὸ φίλτρον ἐνεπίστευσε τῶν γονέων ὁ Θεὸς, ἵνα καὶ ἁμαρτάνουσι σύμμετρα συγγινώσκωσι τοῖς παισὶ, τῆς φύσεως αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τοῦτο παρακαλούσης, καὶ πονηροὺς γινομένους καὶ ἀνίατα νοσοῦντας μὴ παιδοτριβῶσιν ἐπὶ κακίαν τῇ πονηρίᾳ, τῆς φύσεως πάλιν ἐλεγχούσης καὶ δυναμένης ἀναγκάσαι καὶ φαύλους γενομένους θεραπεύειν τοὺς παῖδας. Πόσης ταῦτα προνοίας, εἰπέ μοι, καὶ τὸ κελεῦσαι δὲ φιλεῖν, καὶ τὸ μέτρον ἐπιθεῖναι τῷ φίλτρῳ, καὶ τὸ πάλιν ἀμοιβὴν ὁρίσαι τῇ καλῇ παιδοτροφίᾳ; Ὅτι γὰρ ἀμοιβὴ κεῖται, καὶ οὐκ ἀνδράσι μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ γυναιξὶν, ἄκουσον πῶς πολλαχοῦ καὶ ταύταις καὶ περὶ τούτων ἡ Γραφὴ διαλέγεται, καὶ οὐχ ἧττον ταύταις, ἢ τοῖς ἀνδράσιν. Εἰπὼν γὰρ ὁ Παῦλος, Ἡ δὲ γυνὴ ἐξαπατηθεῖσα ἐν παραβάσει γέγονεν, ἐπήγαγε· Σωθήσεται δὲ διὰ τῆς τεκνογονίας. Ὃ