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is dependent on skill, and in this the woman is as much better than the man as skilled workers are than unskilled workers in the things in which they are skilled, why do we fear this fear needlessly? For to earn from outside and to gather belongs to men alone, but it is not lawful for women to gain; but to preserve and guard what has been gathered belongs to her alone. So that, even if it seems a greater thing to acquire than to guard, nevertheless without the latter the former becomes useless and superfluous; and often, even with this being present, that not only has not profited at all, but has even destroyed everything. For since it is a difficult thing for a man gaining from outside to provide just gains—for for the most part they trade in the misfortunes of others—, the things brought unjustly and with violence into her hands have often ruined both the skill of the woman and her household management. So that, even if acquiring is greater than guarding, this is shown in another way to be less, when not only does it contribute nothing to the increase of what one has, but also corrupts what is laid up. Why then does the widow fear that in the absence of her husband she will manage the affairs of the household worse, of which she herself had the care even when he was alive? But, it is said, she will manage more easily, because of the fear of him, with no one opposing or causing difficulty. For indeed servants and stewards and guardians all cowered, and they obey with much compliance, and there is no one who speaks against her; but when the one who inspires fear departs, all set upon the widow, do evil, act insolently, throw everything into confusion and tear it apart; and if she should come and defend herself, by torturing, by flogging, by casting into prison, there are condemnations, reproaches, accusations from the many. But if she should trample on her covenants with the departed and forget his friendship, and the evening on which he was first joined to her, and the applause, and the wedding hymn, and the marriage torches, and the first embraces, and the banquets, and the salt which he shared with her for all the time, and the words which it is likely a woman enjoys from a husband; if she should cast all these things away suddenly as if they had never happened, having thrown open the doors of the house to another, and draw him to that man's bed which was conscious of all that went before, if she does these things, is there no one to blame or accuse her? is there no one who will hate her and call her unloving and unfaithful and treacherous and all such things? For do not, just because the blessed Paul permitted the matter, at once think it to be worthy of praise, and to have been freed from the condemnation of the many. For it is outside of punishment and penalty, but it could not share in praises and encomiums. For also for one to be wanton and lecherous, and to not abstain from his wife either in the time of fasting or at any other, is itself also far and distant from punishment, but certainly not near to praises; for the mere act of condescending so far is nothing other than a sign of weakness and great inattention. So that if you fear lest you get a reputation for audacity on account of rebuking the servants, before this you should fear lest you attach to yourself so great a reputation for lechery and profligacy and unfaithfulness. But apart from these things, it will be possible for the widow to pursue the matter better, so that both her many affairs are in safety, and she is not only not blamed but even praised by all, and before this, to obtain the good things from God. For if she is willing to deposit her money with heaven and to bury it in that inviolable place, not only will it not be diminished, but it will even become much more. For such is this seed. But if she is too weak to contain herself up to that law and is not willing to transfer everything at once, let her consider that again, that even if she takes a husband she will not in every case get such a one as to even add to what she has; if

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ἐπιστήμης ἐξήρτηται, καὶ τοσοῦτον ἐν τούτῳ κρείττων ἀνδρὸς ἡ γυνὴ ὅσον τῶν ἀτέχνων οἱ τεχνῖται ἐν οἷς εἰσι τεχνῖται, τί περιττῶς τὸ δέος τοῦτο δεδοίκαμεν; Τὸ μὲν γὰρ προσοδεύειν ἔξωθεν καὶ συνάγειν ἀνδρῶν μόνον ἐστί, γυναῖκας δὲ κερδαίνειν οὐ θέμις· τὸ δὲ τὰ συναχθέντα διατηρεῖν καὶ φυλάττειν ταύτης μόνης ἐστίν. Ὥστε, εἰ καὶ δοκεῖ πλέον εἶναι τὸ κτήσασθαι τοῦ φυλάξαι, ἀλλ' ὅμως ἄνευ τούτου κἀκεῖνο ἄχρηστον γίνεται καὶ περιττόν· πολλάκις δὲ καὶ τούτου προσόντος ἐκεῖνο οὐ μόνον οὐδὲν ὤνησεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ πάντα διέφθειρεν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ πρᾶγμά ἐστι δυσχερὲς κερδαίνοντα ἔξωθεν ἄνδρα δίκαια κέρδη πορίζεσθαι-ὡς γὰρ ἐπὶ πολὺ τὰς τῶν ἀλλοτρίων οὗτοι πραγματεύονται συμφοράς-, καὶ τῇ τῆς γυναικὸς τέχνῃ καὶ τῇ οἰκονομίᾳ πολλάκις ἐλυμήναντο τὰ ἀδίκως καὶ μετὰ βίας εἰς τὰς χεῖρας ἀχθέντα τὰς ἐκείνης. Ὥστε, εἰ καὶ μεῖζον τὸ κτήσασθαι τοῦ φυλάξαι, ἑτέρῳ δείκνυται τρόπῳ ἔλαττον τοῦτο, ὅταν μὴ μόνον μηδὲν συντελῇ εἰς τὴν τῶν ὄντων προσθήκην, ἀλλὰ καὶ διαφθείρῃ τὰ ἀποκείμενα. Τί οὖν δέδοικεν ἡ χήρα μὴ παρὰ τὴν ἀπουσίαν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς χεῖρον διαθῇ τὰ κατὰ τὴν οἰκίαν ἧς καὶ ζῶντος ἐκείνου τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν εἶχεν αὐτή; Ἀλλ' εὐκολώτερον, φησί, μεταχειριεῖται, διὰ τὸν ἐκείνου φόβον οὐδενὸς ἀντιπίπτοντος, οὐδὲ δυσκολίαν παρέχοντος. Καὶ γὰρ οἰκέται καὶ οἰκονόμοι καὶ ἐπίτροποι πάντες κατεπτήχασι, καὶ μετὰ πολλῆς ὑπακούουσι τῆς πειθοῦς, καὶ ὁ ἀντιλέγων οὐδείς· ὅταν δὲ ὁ φοβῶν ἀπέλθῃ, ἅπαντες ἐπεμβαίνουσι τῇ χήρᾳ, κακουργοῦσι, καταθρασύνονται, πάντα συγχέουσι καὶ διασπῶσι· κἂν ἐπέλθῃ καὶ ἀμύνηται, στρεβλοῦσα, μαστίζουσα, εἰς δεσμωτήριον ἐμβάλλουσα, καταγνώσεις, λοιδορίαι, κατηγορίαι παρὰ τῶν πολλῶν. Ἂν δὲ τὰς πρὸς τὸν ἀπελθόντα συνθήκας πατήσῃ καὶ τῆς φιλίας ἐπιλάθηται τῆς ἐκείνου, καὶ τὴν ἑσπέραν καθ' ἣν πρῶτον αὐτῇ συνήπτετο, καὶ τὸν κρότον, καὶ τὸν ὑμέναιον, καὶ τὰς γαμηλίους δᾷδας, καὶ τὰς πρώτας περιπλοκάς, καὶ τὰς τραπέζας, καὶ τῶν ἁλῶν ὧν αὐτῇ παρὰ πάντα τὸν χρόνον ἐκοινώνησε, καὶ ῥημάτων ὧν εἰκὸς γυναῖκα ἀπολαύειν παρὰ ἀνδρός· ἂν ταῦτα ῥίψῃ πάντα ἐξαίφνης ὡς οὐδὲ γεγενημένα, ἑτέρῳ τὰς θύρας ἀναπετάσασα τῆς οἰκίας, καὶ πρὸς τὴν εὐνὴν αὐτὸν ἕλκῃ τὴν ἐκείνου τὴν πάντα τὰ πρότερα συνειδυῖαν, ἂν ταῦτα ποιῇ, οὐδεὶς ὁ μεμφόμενος οὐδὲ ἐγκαλῶν; οὐδεὶς ὁ μισήσων καὶ ἄστοργον καὶ ἄπιστον καὶ ἄσπονδον καὶ πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα προσερῶν; Μὴ γάρ, ἐπειδὴ συνεχώρησεν ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος τὸ πρᾶγμα, ἤδη αὐτὸ καὶ ἐπαίνων ἄξιον εἶναι νόμιζε, καὶ καταγνώσεως ἀπηλλάχθαι τῆς παρὰ τῶν πολλῶν. Κολάσεως μὲν γὰρ καὶ τιμωρίας ἐστὶν ἐκτός, ἐπαίνων δὲ καὶ ἐγκωμίων οὐκ ἂν δύναιτο κοινωνεῖν. Καὶ γὰρ τὸ κατωφερῆ τινα καὶ λάγνον εἶναι, καὶ μήτε ἐν καιρῷ τῆς νηστείας, μήτε ἐν ἄλλῳ τινὶ τῆς γυναικὸς ἀπέχεσθαι, κολάσεως μὲν καὶ αὐτὸ πόρρω καὶ μακράν, οὐ μὴν ἐπαίνων ἐγγύς· αὐτὸ γὰρ τὸ συγκαταβῆναι τοσοῦτον, οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστιν ἢ σημεῖον ἀσθενείας καὶ ἀπροσεξίας πολλῆς. Ὥστε εἰ δέδοικας μὴ θρασύτητος δόξαν λάβῃς διὰ τὴν τῶν οἰκετῶν ἐπιτίμησιν, πρὸ τούτου δεδοικέναι χρὴ μὴ λαγνείας καὶ ἀσωτίας καὶ ἀπιστίας δόξαν προστρίψῃ τοσαύτην. Χωρὶς δὲ τούτων τῇ χήρᾳ τὸ πρᾶγμα ἄμεινον ἐξέσται μετελθεῖν, ὥστε καὶ ἐν ἀσφαλείᾳ αὐτῇ τὰ πολλὰ πράγματα εἶναι, καὶ μὴ μόνον μὴ ψέγεσθαι ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπαινεῖσθαι παρὰ πάντων, καὶ πρὸ τούτου τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἐπιτυχεῖν τῶν παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἂν γὰρ θελήσῃ παρακαταθέσθαι τὰ χρήματα τῷ οὐρανῷ καὶ εἰς τὸν ἄσυλον αὐτὰ κατορύξῃ τόπον ἐκεῖνον, οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐλαττωθήσεται, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλῷ πλείω γενήσεται. Τοιοῦτος γὰρ οὗτος ὁ σπόρος. Εἰ δὲ ἐλάττων ἐστὶ τοῦ χωρῆσαι μέχρι τῆς νομοθεσίας ἐκείνης καὶ πάντα ἀθρόως οὐ βούλεται μεταθεῖναι, λογιζέσθω πάλιν ἐκεῖνο, ὅτι καὶ ἄνδρα λαβοῦσα οὐ πάντως λήψεται τοιοῦτον, οἷον καὶ προσθεῖναι τοῖς οὖσιν· ἂν