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hearing that women went forth who had been raised in freedom, never having had experience of these terrible things, but consider in your mind how great was the evil, how much difficulty the matter has. For if men, setting out on a moderate journey, well-supplied with beasts of burden, having servants, travelling in safety, being masters of their return, perceive many hardships and endure much suffering; where there is a woman, and virgins, and a lack of servants, and betrayal by friends, and uproar, and confusion, and unbearable fear, and manifold danger among them, and the flight is for life itself, and enemies on every side, what account will be able to set forth the struggles of the women, their courage, their magnanimity, their faith? For if the mother had gone out alone, the contest would not have been so unbearable; but as it was she also brought her daughters, and these were virgins; so the anxiety was doubled, and the increase of care was great. For the greater the treasure, the more difficult the guarding of it. She went out, therefore, having virgins with her, and not being able to hide them in 50.636 chambers; and yet you know that there are chambers and women's quarters, and doors, and bolts, and guards, and sentinels, and maids, and nurses, and a mother's constant presence, and a father's foresight, and great care is taken by the parents, so that the flower of virginity might be preserved, and even so it is scarcely saved; but she was destitute of all this protection. How then could she keep them safe? By the keeping of the divine laws. She did not have a roof enclosing them, but she had the mighty hand covering them from above; she did not have a door or a bolt, but she had the true door walling off the plot. And just as in the midst of Sodom the house of Lot was besieged, but suffered nothing terrible; for it had angels within; so indeed these martyrs, being between Sodomites and all their enemies, and being besieged from every side, suffered nothing terrible; for they had the Master of angels dwelling in their souls; and having come to the desert road they suffered nothing; for they had the true way leading them to heaven. For this reason, though encompassed by so great a war, and tumult, and waves, they walked in safety; and the wondrous thing, that the sheep were led through the midst of wolves, the lambs passed through the midst of lions, and no one saw them with licentious eyes, but just as God did not permit the Sodomites standing near the door to see the entrance, so also then He blinded the eyes of all, so that the virginal bodies might not be betrayed.

5. They journeyed, therefore, to a city called Edessa, a city more rustic

than many, but more pious; for what did they consider equal to that city for finding a refuge in so great a tempest, and in such a storm having a harbor? And the city receives the strangers, strangers indeed of the earth, but citizens of the heavens; and having received the deposit, it guarded it. But let no one condemn the women for weakness, because they fled; for they were fulfilling a command of the Lord which says: For when they persecute you, it says, in this city, flee to another; which they also, having heard it, fled, and for the time being one crown was woven for them; what crown was this? That for contempt of all present things. For whoever has left brothers and sisters, or homeland, or house, or friends, or relatives, will receive a hundredfold, it says, and will inherit eternal life. And they were there, having Christ dwelling with them. For if wherever two or three are gathered, He is in their midst, where they were not only gathered together, but also fleeing for His name's sake, how would they not all the more draw His aid to themselves? While the women were staying there, therefore, suddenly wicked edicts were sent down everywhere, full of great tyranny and barbaric cruelty; for let household members betray their own, it says, men their wives, fathers their children, children their fathers, brothers their brothers, friends their 50.637 friends.

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ἀκούων, ὅτι ἐξῆλθον γυναῖκες ἐλευθερίως ἀνατραφεῖσαι, μηδέποτε πεῖραν λαβοῦσαι τῶν δεινῶν τούτων, ἀλλὰ ἀναλόγισαι τῇ διανοίᾳ ὅσον ἦν τὸ κακὸν, ὅσην ἔχει τὸ πρᾶγμα δυσκολίαν. Εἰ γὰρ ἄνθρωποι σύμμετρον ἀποδημίαν στελλόμενοι, ὑποζυγίων εὐποροῦντες, διακόνους ἔχοντες, μετὰ ἀδείας ὁδεύοντες, κύριοι τῆς ἐπανόδου ὄντες, πολλῶν αἰσθάνονται τῶν μοχθηρῶν, πολλὴν ὑπομένουσι ταλαιπωρίαν· ὅπου γυνὴ, καὶ παρθένοι, καὶ διακόνων ἐρημία, καὶ φίλων προδοσία, καὶ θόρυβος, καὶ ταραχὴ, καὶ φόβος ἀφόρητος, καὶ κίνδυνος ἐν αὐταῖς ποικίλος, καὶ περὶ ψυχῆς ὁ δρόμος, καὶ παντάχοθεν οἱ πολέμιοι, ποῖος λόγος τὰ ἀγωνίσματα τῶν γυναικῶν παραστῆσαι δυνήσεται, τὴν ἀνδρείαν, τὴν μεγαλοψυχίαν, τὴν πίστιν; Εἰ γὰρ μόνη ἐξῆλθεν ἡ μήτηρ, οὐκ ἦν καὶ οὕτως ἀφόρητος ὁ ἀγών· νυνὶ δὲ καὶ τὰς θυγατέρας ἐπήγετο, καὶ ταύτας παρθένους· ὥστε διπλῆ ἡ ἀγωνία, καὶ πολλὴ τῆς φροντίδος ἡ προσθήκη· ὅσῳ γὰρ μέγα τὸ κτῆμα, τοσούτῳ δυσκολωτέρα ἡ φυλακή. Ἐξῄει τοίνυν παρθένους ἔχουσα, καὶ οὐκ ἔχουσα κατακρύψαι αὐτὰς ἐν 50.636 θαλάμοις· καίτοι ἴστε, ὅτι καὶ θάλαμοι καὶ γυναικωνίτιδες, καὶ θύραι, καὶ μοχλοὶ, καὶ φύλακες, καὶ προφύλακες, καὶ θεραπαινίδες, καὶ τιθηνοὶ, καὶ μητρὸς προσεδρία, καὶ πατρὸς πρόνοια, καὶ πολλὴ παρὰ τῶν γονέων ἐπιμέλεια γίνεται, ὥστε διατηρηθῆναι τὸ τῆς παρθενίας ἄνθος, καὶ μόλις οὕτω διασώζεται· ἐκείνη δὲ πάσης ταύτης τῆς φυλακῆς ἔρημος ἦν· πῶς οὖν αὐτὰς διασῶσαι εἶχεν; Ἐκ τῆς τῶν θείων νόμων φυλακῆς. Οὐκ εἶχε στέγην περιβάλλουσαν, ἀλλ' εἶχε τὴν κραταιὰν χεῖρα ἄνωθεν σκέπουσαν· οὐκ εἶχε θύραν οὐδὲ μοχλὸν, ἀλλ' εἶχε τὴν ἀληθινὴν θύραν ἀποτειχίζουσαν τὴν ἐπιβουλήν. Καὶ καθάπερ ἐν μέσοις τοῖς Σοδόμοις ἐπολιορκεῖτο μὲν ἡ τοῦ Λὼτ οἰκία, οὐδὲν δὲ ἔπασχε δεινόν· ἀγγέλους γὰρ εἶχεν ἔνδον· οὕτω δὴ καὶ αἱ μάρτυρες αὗται μεταξὺ Σοδόμων καὶ πάντων τῶν πολεμίων οὖσαι, καὶ πολιορκούμεναι πανταχόθεν, οὐδὲν ἔπασχον δεινόν· τὸν γὰρ τῶν ἀγγέλων ∆εσπότην εἶχον ἐν ταῖς αὐτῶν οἰκοῦντα ψυχαῖς· καὶ εἰς τὴν ὁδὸν ἐλθοῦσαι τὴν ἔρημον οὐδὲν ἔπαθον· εἶχον γὰρ τὴν ἀληθινὴν ὁδὸν τὴν πρὸς οὐρανὸν αὐτὰς ἄγουσαν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἐν τοσούτῳ πολέμῳ, καὶ θορύβῳ, καὶ κύμασιν ἀπειλημμέναι μετὰ ἀσφαλείας ἐβάδιζον· καὶ τὸ θαυμαστὸν, ὅτι διὰ τῶν λύκων τὰ πρόβατα ἤγετο, διὰ τῶν λεόντων αἱ ἀμνάδες ἐχώρουν, καὶ οὐδεὶς αὐτὰς εἶδεν ἀκολάστοις ὀφθαλμοῖς, ἀλλ' ὥσπερ τοὺς Σοδομίτας ἐγγὺς τῆς θύρας ἐστηκότας οὐκ ἠφίει τὴν εἴσοδον ὁρᾷν ὁ Θεὸς, οὕτω καὶ τότε τὰς πάντων ἐτύφλωσεν ὄψεις, ὥστε μὴ προδοθῆναι τὰ παρθενικὰ σώματα.

εʹ. Πορεύονται τοίνυν εἰς πόλιν Ἔδεσσαν λεγομένην, πόλιν ἀγροικοτέραν

μὲν τῶν πολλῶν, εὐσεβεστέραν δέ· τί γὰρ ἐκείνης τῆς πόλεως ἴσον εἶναι ἐνόμισαν ἐν τοσούτῳ κλυδωνίῳ καταφυγὴν εὑρεῖν, καὶ ἐν τοιούτῳ χειμῶνι λιμένα ἔχειν; Καὶ δέχεται ἡ πόλις τὰς ξένας, ξένας μὲν τῆς γῆς, πολίτιδας δὲ τῶν οὐρανῶν· καὶ δεξαμένη τὴν παρακαταθήκην ἐφύλαττεν. Ἀλλὰ μηδεὶς τῶν γυναικῶν ἀσθένειαν καταγιγνωσκέτω, ὅτι ἔφυγον· πρόσταγμα γὰρ ἐπλήρουν δεσποτικὸν τὸ λέγον· Ὅταν γὰρ διώκωσιν ὑμᾶς, φησὶν, ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ταύτης, φεύγετε εἰς τὴν ἑτέραν· ὅπερ καὶ αὗται ἀκούσασαι ἔφυγον, καὶ τέως εἷς αὐταῖς ἐπλέκετο στέφανος· ποῖος δὴ οὗτος; Ὁ τῆς τῶν παρόντων ἁπάντων ὑπεροψίας. Ὅστις γὰρ ἀφῆκεν ἀδελφοὺς καὶ ἀδελφὰς, ἢ πατρίδα, ἢ οἰκίαν, ἢ φίλους, ἢ συγγενεῖς, ἑκατονταπλασίονα λήψεται, φησὶ, καὶ ζωὴν αἰώνιον κληρονομήσει. Καὶ ἦσαν ἐκεῖ τὸν Χριστὸν ἔχουσαι σύνοικον. Εἰ γὰρ ὅπου δύο ἢ τρεῖς εἰσι συνηγμένοι, ἐν μέσῳ αὐτῶν ἐστιν, ὅπου οὐχὶ συνηγμέναι ἦσαν μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ φεύγουσαι, πῶς οὐ μᾶλλον αὐτοῦ τὴν βοήθειαν ἐπεσπῶντο; Ἐκεῖ τοίνυν διατριβουσῶν τῶν γυναικῶν ἐξαίφνης ἐπιτάγματα πονηρὰ πανταχοῦ κατεπέμπετο πολλῆς γέμοντα τυραννίδος καὶ ὠμότητος βαρβαρικῆς· οἱ γὰρ οἰκεῖοι τοὺς οἰκείους παραδιδότωσαν, φησὶν, ἄνδρες τὰς γυναῖκας, πατέρες τὰ τέκνα, τέκνα τοὺς πατέρας, ἀδελφοὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς, φίλοι τοὺς φί 50.637 λους.