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to converse with (And Asia was for him the school of impiety, with all its display concerning astronomy and nativities, and the phantasm of divination that is marvelled at, and the magic that follows these things); one thing was still lacking, for power to be added to his impiety. It was not long before this was given to him against us by the multiplied lawlessness of the many, and the extreme, as one might say, well-being of the Christians, which sought the contrary change, and the power and the honor, and the surfeit through which we grew insolent.

32. For in reality, it is more difficult to keep good things than to acquire them when they are not present; and it is easier to recall departed prosperity through 35.560 diligence, than to preserve it when it is present; and pride goes before destruction, as the Proverbs well say, and humility before glory; or, to speak more clearly, destruction follows pride, and good repute follows humility; for the Lord resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble, and He who justly measures all things brings in opposites for opposites. Knowing this, the divine David also considers being humbled one of the good things; and he gives thanks to the one who humbled him, as from this comes the learning of the ordinances; and, "Before I was humbled," he says, "I went astray; therefore I have kept your word;" placing humility in the middle of transgression and correction, as being born from the one, and giving birth to the other; for sin is the mother of humility, and humility of conversion. We, at any rate, were exalted when we were forbearing and moderate, and having grown little by little, so as to advance to this state and multitude with God's guidance, when we grew fat, we kicked; and when we were enlarged, we were straitened; and the glory and power which we had gathered in persecutions and afflictions, this we destroyed when we were prospering; as the rest of the oration will show.

33. The reign and life of the Caesar came to an end; for I will be silent about the events in between out of consideration for both the one who acted and the one who suffered; respecting the piety of them both, I do not praise the rashness. For since it was necessary for them, being human, to sin in some way, this is what perhaps one would not praise in either of them; unless here too, by the things of which we will accuse the one, we shall acquit the other of blame. But he immediately became heir to his brother's kingdom, but not to his piety; and a little later, he became heir also of the one who had made him emperor, partly by his consent, and partly by his being forced by the common end, and having been defeated in a defeat that was evil and destructive for the whole world.

34. What is this, O most divine and Christ-loving of emperors (for I am led to reproach you as if you were present and hearing, even if I know you are far superior to our reproach, ranked with God, 35.561 and having inherited the glory there, and having departed as much as it takes to transfer an empire); what counsel is this that you have taken, you who by far surpassed all in intelligence and shrewdness, not only the emperors of your time, but also those before? You who cleared away the barbarian circle, and subdued the tyrants at home, some by words, others by arms, and did each of these as if in no way hindered by the other; whose trophies with arms and battle were great, but greater and more conspicuous were the bloodless ones; to whom came embassies and supplications from all quarters; to whom some were subject, and others were about to be; and everything hoped for was equal to what had been subdued; you who were guided by the hand of God in every counsel and deed; whose intelligence was admired more than your hand, or rather your hand was admired more than your intelligence; but more than your success in both, your piety.

35. How then did you appear ignorant and thoughtless in this alone? What is this speed of inhumane humanity? What demon entered into your deliberation? How the great inheritance and the paternal ornament, I mean those named after Christ, the all

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προσομιλεῖν (Ἀσία δὲ ἦν αὐτῷ τὸ τῆς ἀσεβείας διδασκαλεῖον, ὅση τε περὶ ἀστρονομίαν καὶ τὰς γενέσεις, καὶ φαν τασίαν προγνώσεως τερατεύεται, καὶ τὴν ἑπομένην τούτοις γοητικήν)· ἓν ἔτι τὸ λεῖπον ἦν, προστε θῆναι τῇ ἀσεβείᾳ καὶ δύναμιν. Οὐ πολὺ τὸ ἐν μέσῳ, καὶ ταύτην δίδωσιν αὐτῷ καθ' ἡμῶν ἡ πληθυνθεῖσα τῶν πολλῶν ἀνομία, καὶ ἡ ἐπ' ἄκρον, ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις, Χριστιανῶν εὐεξία, τὴν ἐναντίαν ζη τοῦσα μεταβολὴν, καὶ ἡ ἐξουσία καὶ ἡ τιμὴ, καὶ ὁ κόρος δι' ὃν ὑβρίσαμεν.

ΛΒʹ. Τῷ ὄντι γὰρ κινδυνεύει χαλεπώτερον εἶναι τὸ κατασχεῖν τὰ ἀγαθὰ τοῦ μὴ παρόντα κτήσασθαι· καὶ ῥᾷον ἀπελθοῦσαν εὐημερίαν ἀνακαλέσασθαι δι' 35.560 ἐπιμελείας, ἢ τὴν ὑπάρχουσαν διασώσασθαι· καὶ πρὸ μὲν συντριβῆς ἡγεῖται ὕβρις, αἱ Παροιμία καλῶς φασι, πρὸ δὲ δόξης ταπείνωσις· ἢ, ἵνα σα φέστερον εἴπω, ὕβρει μὲν ἕπεται συντριβὴ, ταπεινώ σει δὲ εὐδοξία· Κύριος γὰρ ὑπερηφάνοις ἀντιτάσ σεται, ταπεινοῖς δὲ δίδωσι χάριν, καὶ ἀντεισάγει τὰ ἐναντία τοῖς ἐναντίοις ὁ πάντα δικαίως ἐπιμε τρῶν. Ταῦτα εἰδὼς καὶ ὁ θεῖος ∆αβὶδ, ἕν τι τῶν ἀγαθῶν καὶ τὸ συνεστάλθαι τίθεται· καὶ χάριν ὁμο λογεῖ τῷ συστείλαντι, ὡς τοῦ τὰ δικαιώματα μαθεῖν ἐντεῦθεν προσγινομένου· καὶ, Πρὸ τοῦ με ταπεινω θῆναι, φησὶν, ἐγὼ ἐπλημμέλησα· διὰ τοῦτο τὸ λόγιόν σου ἐφύλαξα· μέσην πλημμελείας τε καὶ διορθώσεως τιθεὶς τὴν ταπείνωσιν, ὡς ἐκ μὲν ταύτης γεννωμένην, τὴν δὲ γεννήσασαν· ἁμαρ τία μὲν γὰρ ταπεινώσεως μήτηρ, ἐπιστροφῆς δὲ τα πείνωσις. Ἡμεῖς γοῦν, ὑψωθέντες, ὅτε ἦμεν ἐπιει κεῖς τε καὶ μέτριοι, καὶ κατὰ μικρὸν αὐξηθέντες, ὡς εἰς τόδε τὸ σχῆμα καὶ πλῆθος σὺν χειραγω γίᾳ Θεοῦ προελθεῖν, ἡνίκα ἐλιπάνθημεν, ἐσκιρτήσα μεν· καὶ ἡνίκα ἐπλατύνθημεν, ἐστενοχωρήθημεν· καὶ ἣν ἐν τοῖς διωγμοῖς καὶ ταῖς θλίψεσι συνελεξάμεθα δόξαν καὶ δύναμιν, ταύτην εὖ πράττοντες κατελύσα μεν· δηλώσει δὲ τὰ ἑξῆς τοῦ λόγου.

ΛΓʹ. Ὅρον μὲν ἡ βασιλεία τῷ Καίσαρι καὶ ὁ βίος λαμβάνει· τὰ γὰρ ἐν μέσῳ σιωπήσομαι φειδοῖ καὶ τοῦ πεποιηκότος καὶ τοῦ πεπονθότος· ὧν ἀμφο τέρων αἰδούμενος τὴν εὐσέβειαν, οὐκ ἐπαινῶ τὴν θρασύτητα. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἔδει τι καὶ ἁμαρτεῖν, ὄν τας ἀνθρώπους, τοῦτό ἐστιν ὃ τάχα ἄν τις ἀμφοτέ ρων οὐκ ἐπαινέσειεν· εἰ μὴ κἀνταῦθα δι' ὧν τοῦ ἑτέρου κατηγορήσομεν, τὸν ἕτερον αἰτίας ἀφήσο μεν. Ὁ δὲ εὐθὺς μὲν κληρονόμος τῆς τοῦ ἀδελ φοῦ βασιλείας, ἀλλ' οὐκ εὐσεβείας· μικρὸν δὲ ὕστερον καὶ τοῦ βασιλεύσαντος αὐτὸν γίνεται, τὸ μὲν ἑκόν τος, τὸ δὲ βιασθέντος τῷ κοινῷ τέλει, καὶ ἡτ τηθέντος ἧτταν παντὶ τῷ κόσμῳ κακὴν καὶ ὀλέ θριον.

Λ∆ʹ. Τί τοῦτο, ὦ θειότατε βασιλέων καὶ φιλο χριστότατε (προάγομαι γὰρ ὡς παρόντι καὶ ἀκούοντι μέμψασθαι, καὶ εἰ πολὺ κρείττονα γινώσκω τῆς ἡμετέρας μέμψεως, μετὰ Θεοῦ τεταγμένον, 35.561 καὶ τῆς ἐκεῖ δόξης κληρονομήσαντα, καὶ τοσοῦτον μεταχωρήσαντα, ὅσον μεταθέσθαι τὴν βασιλείαν)· τίνα ταύτην ἐβουλεύσω βουλὴν, πάντων συνέσει καὶ ἀγχινοίᾳ κατὰ πολὺ διαφέρων, οὐ τῶν ἐπὶ σοῦ βασιλέων μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν; ὁ τὸ βαρ βαρικὸν ἀνακαθαίρων κύκλῳ, καὶ τοὺς οἴκοι τυράν νους χειρούμενος, τοὺς μὲν τοῖς λόγοις, τοὺς δὲ τοῖς ὅπλοις, καὶ τούτων ἑκάτερον ὡς μηδὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ ἑτέ ρου διοχλούμενος· οὗ μεγάλα μὲν τρόπαια τὰ μεθ' ὅπλων καὶ μάχης, μείζω δὲ καὶ περιφανέστερα τὰ ἀναίμακτα· πρὸς ὃν καὶ αἱ πανταχόθεν πρεσβεῖαι καὶ ἱκεσίαι· ᾧ τὰ μὲν ὑπήκουε, τὰ δὲ ἔμελλε· πᾶν δὲ ἦν τὸ ἐλπισθὲν ἴσον τῷ χειρωθέντι· ὁ χειρὶ Θεοῦ πρὸς πᾶσαν καὶ βουλὴν καὶ πρᾶξιν ὁδηγούμε νος· οὗ μᾶλλον μὲν τῆς χειρὸς ἡ σύνεσις, μᾶλλον δὲ τῆς συνέσεως ἡ χεὶρ ἐθαυμάζετο· πλέον δὲ τῆς ἐν ἀμφοτέροις εὐδοκιμήσεως ἡ εὐσέβεια.

ΛΕʹ. Πῶς οὖν ἐνταῦθα μόνον ἀμαθὴς ἐφάνης καὶ ἀπερίσκεπτος; Τί τὸ τάχος τῆς ἀπανθρώπου φιλανθρωπίας; Τίς συνεισῆλθε δαιμόνων τῷ σκέμματι; Πῶς τὸν μέγαν κλῆρον καὶ τὸ πατρῷον καλλώπισμα, τοὺς ἐπωνύμους λέγω Χριστοῦ, τὸ παν