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3. Considering all these things, he laughed at the wickedness of the devil, he despised his villainy, and he yielded to none of the things he saw. So when that polluted one saw that nothing more was happening for him, he brings him again to the court, and torturing him, subjected him to continuous questioning; but to each question he answered only, "I am a Christian." And when the executioner said, "Of what country are you?" "I am a Christian," he says; "What is your profession?" "I am a Christian." "Who are your ancestors?" But to all things he said, "I am a Christian"; with this one bare word striking the head of the devil, and inflicting continuous and repeated wounds upon him. And yet he had partaken of an outside education, but he knew clearly that in such contests there is no need of rhetoric, but of faith; not of cleverness of speech, but of a soul that loves God. One word is enough, he says, to turn the whole phalanx of the devil. And to those who do not examine closely the answer seems to be inconsistent; but if anyone 50.525 should apply his mind, he will see from this the wisdom of the martyr. For the one who said, "I am a Christian," revealed his country, and his race, and his profession, and everything; how, I say: The Christian does not have a city on earth, but the Jerusalem above. For "Jerusalem above," he says, "is free, which is our mother." The Christian does not have an earthly profession, but belongs to the citizenship above. For, he says, "Our citizenship is in heaven"; the Christian has as relatives all the saints and fellow citizens; for "we are fellow citizens of the saints," he says, "and members of the household of God."

So with one word, he taught with precision who he was, and whence, and of whom, and what he was doing. And with this utterance he ended his life, and departed, bringing the deposit safe to Christ, and through what he suffered exhorting those after him to stand firm, and to fear nothing, except sin and denial alone. Therefore, we too, knowing these things, in time of peace let us practice the arts of war, so that when war comes we too may set up a splendid trophy. He despised hunger, let us also despise luxury, and let us put down the tyranny of the belly, so that if the time comes demanding such 50.526 courage from us, having trained beforehand in lesser things, we may appear brilliant in the arena. He spoke boldly before rulers and kings; let us do this now, even if we are meeting in assemblies of wealthy and illustrious Greeks, let us confess the faith with boldness; let us laugh at their error. And if they should attempt to dignify their own things, but to tear down ours, let us not be silent, nor bear it meekly, but exposing their shamefulness, let us extol all things of the Christians with much wisdom and boldness; and just as a king bears the diadem upon his head, so let us carry the confession of the faith everywhere.

For the crown does not adorn him so much as faith and its confession are accustomed to adorn us; and let us do this not through words only, but also through deeds themselves, showing through all things a life worthy of the confession, so that we may not disgrace the doctrines by the worthlessness of our works, but by glorifying our Master in all things may we enjoy the honor both here and there; may it be that we all attain this, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom and with whom to the Father be glory, power and honor, together with the holy and life-giving Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

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γʹ. Ταῦτα δὴ πάντα λογιζόμενος κατεγέλα τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου πονηρίας, κατεφρόνει τῆς κακουρ γίας, καὶ πρὸς οὐδὲν ἐνεδίδου τῶν ὁρωμένων. Ὡς δ' οὖν εἶδεν οὐδὲν αὐτῷ τι πλέον γενόμενον ὁ μιαρὸς ἐκεῖνος, ἄγει πάλιν αὐτὸν εἰς τὸ δικαστήριον, καὶ βασανίζων συνεχεῖς ἐπῆγε πεύσεις· ὁ δὲ πρὸς ἑκά στην πεῦσιν ἀπεκρίνατο, ὅτι Χριστιανός εἰμι, μόνον. καὶ λέγοντος τοῦ δημίου· Ποίας εἶ πατρίδος; Χρι στιανός εἰμι, φησί· Τί ἔχεις ἐπιτήδευμα; Χριστιανός εἰμι· Τίνας προγόνους; ὁ δὲ πρὸς ἅπαντα ἔλεγεν, ὅτι Χριστιανός εἰμι· ἑνὶ τούτῳ καὶ ψιλῷ τῷ ῥήματι τοῦ διαβόλου πλήττων τὴν κεφαλὴν, καὶ συνεχῆ καὶ ἐπάλληλα τὰ τραύματα αὐτῷ παρέχων. Καίτοι γε καὶ τῆς ἔξωθεν παιδεύσεως μετέσχεν, ἀλλ' ᾔδει σαφῶς ὅτι ἐν τοῖς τοιούτοις ἀγῶσιν οὐ ῥητορείας χρεία, ἀλλὰ πίστεως· οὐ δεινότητος λόγου, ἀλλὰ φιλοθέου ψυχῆς· ἀρκεῖ ῥῆμα ἓν, φησὶν, ἅπασαν τοῦ διαβόλου τρέψαι τὴν φάλαγγα. Καὶ δοκεῖ μὲν τοῖς οὐκ ἀκριβῶς ἐξετάζουσιν ἀνακόλουθος εἶναι ἡ ἀπόκρισις· εἰ δέ τις 50.525 τὸν νοῦν ἐπιστήσειε, καὶ ἐκ ταύτης ὄψεται τοῦ μάρτυρος τὴν σοφίαν. Ὁ γὰρ εἰπὼν, ὅτι Χριστιανός εἰμι, καὶ πατρίδα, καὶ γένος, καὶ ἐπιτήδευμα, καὶ πάντα ἐδήλωσε· πῶς, ἐγὼ λέγω· Ὁ Χριστιανὸς οὐκ ἔχει πόλιν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἄνω Ἱερουσαλήμ· Ἡ γὰρ ἄνω Ἱερουσαλὴμ, φησὶν, ἐλευθέρα ἐστὶν, ἥτις ἐστὶ μήτηρ ἡμῶν. Ὁ Χριστιανὸς οὐκ ἔχει γήϊνον ἐπιτήδευμα, ἀλλ' εἰς τὴν ἄνω πολιτείαν τελεῖ· Ἡμῶν γὰρ, φησὶ, τὸ πολίτευμα ἐν οὐρανοῖς ὑπάρχει· ὁ Χριστιανὸς συγγενεῖς ἔχει τοὺς ἁγίους ἅπαντας καὶ συμπολίτας· Συμπολῖται γάρ ἐσμεν τῶν ἁγίων, φησὶ, καὶ οἰκεῖοι τοῦ Θεοῦ.

Ὥστε ἑνὶ ῥήματι, καὶ τίς εἴη, καὶ πόθεν, καὶ τίνων, καὶ τί πράττων διατελοίη, μετὰ ἀκριβείας ἐδίδαξε. Καὶ μετὰ ταύτης τῆς φωνῆς τὸν βίον κατέλυσε, καὶ ἀπῆλθε σώαν τῷ Χριστῷ τὴν παρακαταθήκην κομίζων, καὶ τοῖς μετὰ ταῦτα δι' ὧν ἔπαθε παραινῶν ἐνίστασθαι, καὶ μηδὲν δεδοικέναι, ἀλλ' ἢ ἁμαρτίαν καὶ ἄρνησιν μόνον. Ταῦτ' οὖν καὶ ἡμεῖς εἰδότες ἐν καιρῷ τῆς εἰρήνης τὰ τοῦ πολέμου μελετῶμεν, ἵν' ἐπιστάντος τοῦ πολέμου λαμπρὸν καὶ ἡμεῖς στήσωμεν τρόπαιον. Κατεφρόνησεν ἐκεῖνος λιμοῦ, καταφρονήσωμεν καὶ ἡμεῖς τρυφῆς, καὶ τῆς γαστρὸς τὴν τυραννίδα καθέλωμεν, ἵνα ἂν καιρὸς ἐπιστῇ τοσαύτην παρ' ἡμῶν τὴν ἀν 50.526 δρείαν ἐπιζητῶν, προγυμνασθέντες ἐν τοῖς ἐλάττοσι, λαμπροὶ φανῶμεν ἐπὶ τῶν σκαμμάτων. Ἐπὶ ἀρχόντων καὶ βασιλέων ἐπαῤῥησιάσατο ἐκεῖνος· τοῦτο καὶ ἡμεῖς ποιῶμεν νῦν, κἂν ἐν συλλόγοις Ἑλλήνων πλουτούντων καὶ περιφανῶν συνεδρεύωμεν, μετὰ παῤῥησίας τὴν πίστιν ὁμολογῶμεν· καταγελῶμεν τῆς ἐκείνων πλάνης. Κἂν ἐπιχειρῶσι τὰ μὲν αὑτῶν σεμνύνειν, τὰ δὲ ἡμέτερα καθαιρεῖν, μὴ σιγῶμεν, μηδὲ πράως φέρωμεν, ἀλλ' ἐκκαλύπτοντες αὐτῶν τὴν ἀσχημοσύνην, ἅπαντα μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς σοφίας καὶ τῆς παῤῥησίας τὰ τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἀνυμνῶμεν· καὶ καθάπερ ὁ βασιλεὺς τὸ διάδημα ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς, οὕτω καὶ ἡμεῖς τὴν ὁμολογίαν πανταχοῦ τῆς πίστεως περιφέρωμεν.

Οὐ γὰρ οὕτως ἐκεῖνον ὁ στέφανος, ὡς ἡμᾶς ἡ πίστις καὶ ἡ ταύτης ὁμολογία καλλωπίζειν εἴωθε· μὴ διὰ ῥημάτων δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων αὐτῶν τοῦτο ποιῶμεν, καὶ βίον ἄξιον τῆς ὁμολογίας διὰ πάντων ἐπιδεικνύμενοι, ἵνα μὴ καταισχύνωμεν τὰ δόγματα ἐν τῇ τῶν ἔργων φαυλότητι, ἀλλὰ διὰ πάντων τὸν ∆εσπότην ἡμῶν δοξάζοντες ἀπολαύσωμεν καὶ τῆς ἐνταῦθα καὶ τῆς ἐκεῖ τιμῆς· ἧς γένοιτο πάντας ἡμᾶς ἐπιτυχεῖν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, δι' οὗ καὶ μεθ' οὗ τῷ Πατρὶ δόξα, κράτος καὶ τιμὴ, ἅμα τῷ ἁγίῳ καὶ ζωοποιῷ Πνεύματι, νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ, καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.