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have we not been deceived by you? {ΙΩ.} And what gain, I said, could be greater than this, than to be seen doing those things which Christ Himself said were proofs of love for Christ? For when speaking with the chief of the apostles, He says, “Peter, do you love me?”; and when he confessed it, He adds, “If you love me, feed my sheep.” The Master asks the disciple if He is loved by him, not that He might learn—for how could He who enters into the hearts of all? —but that He might teach us how much He cares for the superintendence of these flocks. And since this is clear, that also will be likewise manifest, that a great and unspeakable reward will be laid up for the one who toils at these things which Christ values so highly. For if we, when we see some men taking care of our servants or our flocks, consider their diligence in those matters a sign of their love for us, although all these things can be bought with money, He who purchased this flock not with money or any other such thing, but by His own death, and gave His own blood as the price for the herd, with what a great gift will He recompense those who shepherd it? For this very reason, when the disciple said, “You know, Lord, that I love you,” and called upon the beloved One Himself as a witness of his love, the Savior did not stop at this, but also added the sign of love. For He did not wish to show then how much Peter loved Him—for this has already been made clear to us from many things—but how much He Himself loves His own Church, and He wanted both Peter and all of us to learn, so that we too might bring great diligence to these matters. For why did God not spare His Son, His Only-begotten, but gave up the only One He had? that He might reconcile to Himself those who were hostile toward Him and make them a people for His own possession; why did He also shed His blood? That He might acquire these sheep which He was entrusting to Peter and to those after him. With reason, therefore, and justly did Christ say: “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has set over his household?” Again, the words are of one in doubt, but He who spoke them did not speak in doubt; but just as when He asked Peter if He was loved, He did not ask needing to learn the disciple’s affection, but wishing to show the greatness of His own love, so also now in saying, “Who then is the faithful and wise servant?” He did not speak in ignorance of the faithful and wise one, but wishing to represent the rarity of the matter and the magnitude of this office. See, at least, how great the prize is: “He will set him over all his possessions.” Will you, then, still dispute with us that you have not been well deceived, when you are about to be set over all God’s possessions and to do those things by which He said Peter would be able to surpass the rest of the apostles? “For, Peter,” He says, “do you love me more than these?” And yet He could have said to him: 'If you love me, practice fasting, sleeping on the ground, intense vigils, stand up for the wronged, be a father to orphans and a husband to their mother.' But now, setting all these aside, what does He say? “Feed my sheep.”

2.2 2. That this ministry is greater than the others For those things which I mentioned before, many even of those who are ruled could easily perform, not only men, but also women; but when it is necessary to preside over the Church and be entrusted with the care of so many souls, the whole female nature must yield to the magnitude of the task, and the majority of men also. But let those be brought into the midst who surpass all others by a great measure, and are as much loftier than the others in virtue of soul as Saul was in physical stature than the whole nation of the Hebrews, or rather, even much more. For let not the measure of being a head taller be sought here, but as great as the difference between rational men and irrational creatures, so great is that between the shepherd and the

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οὐκ ἠπατήμεθα παρὰ σοῦ; {ΙΩ.} Καὶ τί τούτου τοῦ κέρδους, ἔφην, ἂν γένοιτο μεῖζον ἢ τὸ ταῦτα φαίνεσθαι πράττοντας ἅπερ δείγματα τῆς εἰς τὸν Χριστὸν ἀγάπης αὐτὸς ἔφησεν εἶναι ὁ Χριστός; Πρὸς γὰρ τὸν κορυφαῖον τῶν ἀποστόλων διαλεγόμενος, «Πέτρε, φιλεῖς με;» φησί· τούτου δὲ ὁμολογήσαντος, ἐπιλέγει· «Εἰ φιλεῖς με, ποίμαινε τὰ πρόβατά μου.» Ἐρωτᾷ τὸν μαθητὴν ὁ διδάσκαλος εἰ φιλοῖτο παρ' αὐτοῦ, οὐχ ἵνα αὐτὸς μάθῃ-πῶς γὰρ ὁ τὰς ἁπάντων ἐμβατεύων καρδίας; -ἀλλ' ἵνα ἡμᾶς διδάξῃ ὅσον αὐτῷ μέλει τῆς τῶν ποιμνίων ἐπιστασίας τούτων. Τούτου δὲ ὄντος δήλου, κἀκεῖνο ὁμοίως ἔσται φανερὸν ὅτι πολὺς καὶ ἄφατος ἀποκείσεται μισθὸς τῷ περὶ ταῦτα πονουμένῳ ἃ πολλοῦ τιμᾶται ὁ Χριστός. Εἰ γὰρ ἡμεῖς, ὅταν ἴδωμεν τῶν οἰκετῶν ἢ τῶν θρεμμάτων τῶν ἡμετέρων ἐπιμελουμένους τινάς, τῆς περὶ ἡμᾶς ἀγάπης τὴν εἰς ἐκεῖνα σπουδὴν τιθέμεθα σημεῖον, καίτοι γε ἅπαντα ταῦτα χρημάτων ἐστὶν ὠνητά, ὁ μὴ χρημάτων μηδὲ ἄλλου τινὸς τοιούτου, ἀλλ' ἰδίῳ θανάτῳ τὸ ποίμνιον πριάμενος τοῦτο καὶ τιμὴν τῆς ἀγέλης τὸ αἷμα δοὺς τὸ ἑαυτοῦ, πόσῃ τοὺς ποιμαίνοντας αὐτὴν ἀμείψεται δωρεᾷ; ∆ιά τοι τοῦτο εἰπόντος τοῦ μαθητοῦ· «Σὺ οἶδας, Κύριε, ὅτι φιλῶ σε», καὶ μάρτυρα τῆς ἀγάπης αὐτὸν τὸν ἀγαπώμενον καλέσαντος, οὐκ ἔστη μέχρι τούτων ὁ Σωτήρ, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ τῆς ἀγάπης προσέθηκε σημεῖον. Οὐ γὰρ ὅσον αὐτὸν ὁ Πέτρος ἐφίλει, τότε ἐπιδεῖξαι ἐβούλετο-καὶ γὰρ ἐκ πολλῶν τοῦτο ἤδη γέγονεν ἡμῖν δῆλον-, ἀλλ' ὅσον αὐτὸς τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν ἀγαπᾷ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ, καὶ Πέτρον καὶ πάντας ἡμᾶς μαθεῖν ἠθέλησεν ἵνα πολλὴν καὶ ἡμεῖς περὶ ταῦτα εἰσφέρωμεν τὴν σπουδήν. ∆ιὰ τί γὰρ Υἱοῦ καὶ Μονογενοῦς οὐκ ἐφείσατο ὁ Θεός, ἀλλ' ὃν μόνον εἶχεν ἐξέδωκεν; ἵνα τοὺς ἐχθρωδῶς πρὸς αὐτὸν διακειμένους ἑαυτῷ καταλλάξῃ καὶ ποιήσῃ λαὸν περιούσιον· διὰ τί καὶ τὸ αἷμα ἐξέχεεν; ἵνα τὰ πρόβατα κτήσηται ταῦτα ἃ τῷ Πέτρῳ καὶ τοῖς μετ' ἐκεῖνον ἐνεχείριζεν. Εἰκότως ἄρα καὶ δικαίως ἔλεγεν ὁ Χριστός· «Τίς ἄρα ὁ πιστὸς δοῦλος καὶ φρόνιμος ὃν κατέστησεν ὁ κύριος αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν οἰκίαν αὑτοῦ;» Πάλιν τὰ μὲν ῥήματα ἀποροῦντος, ὁ δὲ φθεγγόμενος αὐτὰ οὐκ ἀπορῶν ἐφθέγγετο· ἀλλ' ὥσπερ τὸν Πέτρον ἐρωτῶν εἰ φιλοῖτο, οὐ μαθεῖν δεόμενος τοῦ μαθητοῦ τὸν πόθον ἠρώτα, ἀλλὰ δεῖξαι βουλόμενος τῆς οἰκείας ἀγάπης τὴν ὑπερβολήν, οὕτω καὶ νῦν λέγων· «Τίς ἄρα ὁ πιστὸς δοῦλος καὶ φρόνιμος;» οὐ τὸν πιστὸν καὶ φρόνιμον ἀγνοῶν ἔλεγεν, ἀλλὰ παραστῆσαι θέλων τὸ τοῦ πράγματος σπάνιον καὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς ταύτης τὸ μέγεθος. Ὅρα γοῦν καὶ τὸ ἔπαθλον ὅσον· «Ἐπὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν αὑτοῦ καταστήσει αὐτόν.» Ἔτι οὖν ἀμφισβητήσεις ἡμῖν τοῦ μὴ καλῶς ἠπατῆσθαι, πᾶσι μέλλων ἐπιστήσεσθαι τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῖς ὑπάρχουσι καὶ ταῦτα πράττων ἃ καὶ τὸν Πέτρον ποιοῦντα ἔφησε δυνήσεσθαι καὶ τῶν ἀποστόλων ὑπερακοντίσαι τοὺς λοιπούς· «Πέτρε γάρ, φησί, φιλεῖς με πλεῖον τούτων;» Καίτοι γε ἐνῆν εἰπεῖν πρὸς αὐτόν· Εἰ φιλεῖς με, νηστείαν ἄσκει, χαμευνίαν, ἀγρυπνίας συντόνους, προΐστασο τῶν ἀδικουμένων, γίνου ὀρφανοῖς ὡς πατὴρ καὶ ἀντὶ ἀνδρὸς τῇ μητρὶ αὐτῶν. Νῦν δὲ πάντα ταῦτα ἀφεὶς τί φησι; «Ποίμαινε τὰ πρόβατά μου.»

2.2 βʹ. Ὅτι ἡ ταύτης ὑπηρεσία μείζων τῶν ἄλλων Ἐκεῖνα μὲν γὰρ ἃ προεῖπον καὶ τῶν ἀρχομένων πολλοὶ δύναιντ' ἂν ἐπιτελεῖν ῥᾳδίως, οὐκ ἄνδρες μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ γυναῖκες· ὅταν δὲ Ἐκκλησίας προστῆναι δέῃ καὶ ψυχῶν ἐπιμέλειαν πιστευθῆναι τοσούτων, πᾶσα μὲν ἡ γυναικεία φύσις παραχωρείτω τῷ μεγέθει τοῦ πράγματος, καὶ ἀνδρῶν δὲ τὸ πλέον. Ἀγέσθωσαν δὲ εἰς μέσον οἱ πολλῷ τῷ μέτρῳ πλεονεκτοῦντες ἁπάντων, καὶ τοσοῦτον ὑψηλότεροι τῶν ἄλλων κατὰ τὴν τῆς ψυχῆς ὄντες ἀρετὴν ὅσον τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους Ἑβραίων κατὰ τὸ τοῦ σώματος μέγεθος ὁ Σαούλ, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ πολλῷ πλέον. Μὴ γάρ μοι μόνον ὑπερωμίας ἐνταῦθα ζητείσθω μέτρον, ἀλλ' ὅση πρὸς τὰ ἄλογα τῶν λογικῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ διαφορά, τοσοῦτον τοῦ ποιμένος καὶ τῶν