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to the flock; See that no sheep goes missing from the flock. For you know this, that if one sheep goes missing, having been devoured by wild beasts through your neglect, it has ruined your whole life; for the Judge will require its blood from your hands. 7. Be sober then at last, preach the word, cast off all worldly care, see how you walk carefully; Beware of the dogs. Again I say beware, and I do not cease saying it. Beware of the thieves, see that many deceivers have gone out into the world. Keep watch and be sober, you who have been entrusted with the master's gift, and be vigilant, and keep the hour of the awesome coming of the Master, when he comes to settle accounts with you, to whom he entrusted the talents. Therefore, keeping these things in mind, O beloved, Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, as the Apostle says, not by constraint, but willingly, not for shameful gain, but eagerly, not as domineering over the flock, but by becoming examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. Therefore, again I will say the same things; listen, priests of the Lord, Kings of the earth, and all peoples, rulers and all judges of the earth; young men and maidens, old men with the young. Give ear, all who inhabit the world, the small and the great, whether male or female, Likewise rich and poor; pay attention to what is being said, I beseech you; for I wish to demonstrate and fully convince you from the holy Scriptures, that not all who are called Christians are Christians, but only being called by the name Christian, they are self-deceived by the mere title. In word many are Christians, but in manner few and rare; in appearance as Christians and as disciples of Christ, but in manner traitors; in word pious and compassionate, but in manner impious and merciless; by title Christians, but in deeds pagans, as the prophet David foretold, that They were mingled among the nations, and learned their works. And truly this prophecy has been fulfilled in us. What kind of Christians are those who pay attention to Jewish and Greek myths, and genealogies, and divinations, and astrologies, and sorceries, and amulets; and observances of days and years, omens and dreams, and the calls of birds; and lighting lamps and washing themselves in springs, and observing chance encounters, and eating food sacrificed to idols, and the blood of strangled things and of things killed by beasts, and things struck by birds, and many other similar things? How can those who do such things be found to be Christians? With what boldness do they dare to name themselves Christians? How do they, being worse than the Greeks, dare to approach the divine mysteries? Again, listen, what kind of Christians are those who practice the customs of the nations, disfigurement of faces, or exclamations, or dances, or clapping of hands, or the dressing of women as men? For those who do such things, there is no benefit in being called Christians. For just as a maiden or a virgin, as long as 59.562 she guards her virginity, is reasonably and worthily called a virgin, and is one; but when she is deceived by someone, and is corrupted, and loses her virginity, she is no longer a virgin; so also one who is called a Christian, if he transgresses the covenants, and tramples on the promises, and rejects the word of the Gospel, and does the things of the nations, there is no benefit in his being called a Christian, as has been said before. Understand therefore, all of you, beloved, that with a few words we renounced all those things, saying: I renounce Satan, and all his works. Consider what you said, All his works; see with whom you made a covenant, not with an angel, not with an earthly king, not with a ruler of this age, but with the King of kings

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ποιμνίῳ· Βλέπετε μὴ ἀπολείψῃ πρόβατον ἐκ τῆς ποίμνης. Τοῦτο γάρ ἐστε γινώσκοντες, ὅτι ἐὰν ἓν πρόβατον ἀπολείψῃ γενόμενον θηριάλωτον ἐξ ὑμετέρας ἀμελείας, πάντα τὸν βίον ὑμῶν κατέλυσεν· τὸ γὰρ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ὑμῶν ἀπαιτήσει ὁ Κριτής. ζʹ. Ἀνανήψατε οὖν λοιπὸν, κηρύξατε τὸν λόγον, ἀποῤῥίψατε πᾶσαν βιωτικὴν μέριμναν, βλέπετε ἀκριβῶς πῶς περιπατεῖτε· Βλέπετε τοὺς κύνας. Πάλιν τὸ βλέπετε λέγω, καὶ λέγων οὐ παύομαι. Βλέπετε τοὺς κλέπτας, βλέπετε ὅτι πολλοὶ πλάνοι ἐξῆλθον εἰς τὸν κόσμον. Ἀγρυπνεῖτε καὶ νήφετε, οἱ τὸ δεσποτικὸν χάρισμα καταπιστευθέντες, καὶ γρηγορεῖτε, καὶ τὴν ὥραν τῆς φοβερᾶς παρουσίας τοῦ ∆εσπότου τηρεῖτε, ὅταν ἔρχηται συνᾶραι λόγον μεθ' ὑμῶν, οἷς ἐπίστευσε τὰ τάλαντα. Ταῦτα τοίνυν κατὰ νοῦν ἔχοντες, ὦ ἀγαπητοὶ, Ποιμάνατε τὸ ἐν ὑμῖν ποίμνιον τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὡς λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος, μὴ ἀναγκαστικῶς, ἀλλ' ἑκουσίως, μηδὲ αἰσχροκερδῶς, ἀλλὰ προθύμως, μηδὲ ὡς κατακυριεύοντες τοῦ κλήρου, ἀλλὰ τύποι γενόμενοι τοῦ ποιμνίου. Καὶ φανερωθέντος τοῦ ἀρχιποιμένος κομίσεσθε τὸν ἀμαράντινον τῆς δόξης στέφανον. Πάλιν οὖν ταὐτὰ ἐρῶ· ἀκούσατε, ἱερεῖς Κυρίου, Βασιλεῖς τῆς γῆς, καὶ πάντες λαοὶ, ἄρχοντες καὶ πάντες κριταὶ γῆς· νεανίσκοι καὶ παρθένοι, πρεσβύτεροι μετὰ νεωτέρων. Ἐνωτίσασθε, πάντες οἱ κατοικοῦντες τὴν οἰκουμένην, οἱ μικροὶ καὶ μεγάλοι, εἴτε ἄρσεν εἴτε θῆλυ, Ἐπὶ τῷ αὐτῷ πλούσιος καὶ πένης· προσέχετε τοῖς λεγομένοις, παρακαλῶ· βούλομαι γὰρ ἀποδεῖξαι καὶ πληροφορῆσαι ὑμᾶς ἐκ τῶν ἁγίων Γραφῶν, ὅτι οὐ πάντες οἱ λεγόμενοι Χριστιανοὶ, Χριστιανοί εἰσιν, ἀλλὰ μόνον τὸ ὄνομα καλούμενοι Χριστιανοὶ φρεναπατῶνται ἐπὶ τῇ ψιλῇ προσηγορίᾳ. Τῷ μὲν λόγῳ Χριστιανοὶ πολλοὶ, τῷ δὲ τρόπῳ ὀλίγοι καὶ σπάνιοι· τῷ σχήματι ὡς Χριστιανοὶ καὶ ὡς Χριστοῦ μαθηταὶ, τῷ δὲ τρόπῳ προδόται· τῷ λόγῳ εὐσεβεῖς καὶ εὔσπλαγχνοι, τῷ δὲ τρόπῳ ἀσεβεῖς καὶ ἀνελεήμονες· τῇ προσηγορίᾳ Χριστιανοὶ, τοῖς δὲ ἔργοις ἐθνικοὶ, καθὼς προεῖπεν ὁ προφήτης ∆αυῒδ, ὅτι Ἐμίγησαν ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι, καὶ ἔμαθον τὰ ἔργα αὐτῶν. Καὶ ἀληθῶς ἐν ἡμῖν ἐπληρώθη ἡ προφητεία αὕτη. Ποταποὶ Χριστιανοὶ Ἰουδαϊκοῖς καὶ Ἐλληνικοῖς προσέχοντεςμύθοις, καὶ γενεαλογίαις, καὶ μαντείαις, καὶ ἀστρολογίαις, καὶ φαρμακείαις, καὶ φυλακτηρίοις· καὶ παρατηρήσεις ἡμερῶν καὶ ἐνιαυτῶν, κληδονισμοὺς καὶ ὄνειρα, καὶ ὀρνέων φωνάς· καὶ ἐν πηγαῖς λύχνους ἅπτοντες καὶ ἀπολουόμενοι, καὶ συναντήματα παρατηρούμενοι, καὶ εἰδωλόθυτον ἐσθίοντες, καὶ αἷμα πνικτῶν καὶ θηριαλώτων, καὶ ὀρνεοπάτακτα, καὶ πολλὰ ἕτερα τούτων ὅμοια; Πῶς Χριστιανοὶ εὑρεθῶσιν οἱ τοιαῦτα πράσσοντες; ποίᾳ δὲ παῤῥησίᾳ τολμῶσιν ἑαυτοὺς ὀνομάζειν Χριστιανούς; πῶς δὲ τολμῶσι προσελθεῖν τοῖς θείοις μυστηρίοις οἱ χείρονες τῶν Ἑλλήνων ὑπάρχοντες; Πάλιν ἀκούσατε, ποταποὶ Χριστιανοὶ οἱ τὰ τῶν ἐθνῶν σχήματα ποιοῦντες, ἀφανισμὸν προσώπων, ἢ ἐπιφωνήσεις, ἢ ὀρχήσεις, ἢ κρότους χειρῶν, ἢ στολισμὸν γυναικῶν ἐν ἀνδράσι; Τοῖς τὰ τοιαῦτα πράττουσι οὐδὲν ὄφελος τὸ λέγεσθαι αὐτοὺς Χριστιανούς. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἡ κόρη ἢ παρθένος, ἕως ὅτε 59.562 φυλάσσει τὴν παρθενίαν αὐτῆς, εὐλόγως καὶ ἀξίως παρθένος καλεῖται, καὶ ἔστιν· ἐπὰν δὲ ἀπατηθῇ ὑπό τινος, καὶ φθαρῇ, καὶ τὴν παρθενίαν ἀπολέσῃ, οὐκ ἔτι παρθένος ἐστίν· οὕτω καὶ ὁ καλούμενος Χριστιανὸς ἐὰν τὰς συνθήκας παραβῇ, καὶ τὰς ἐπαγγελίας καταπατήσῃ, καὶ τὸν λόγον τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου ἀθετήσῃ, καὶ τὰ τῶν ἐθνῶν πράττῃ, οὐδὲν ὄφελος τὸ καλεῖσθαι αὐτὸν Χριστιανὸν, καθὼς προείρηται. Σύνετε οὖν ἅπαντες, ἀγαπητοὶ, ὅτι δι' ὀλίγων ῥημάτων ἅπασιν ἐκείνοις ἀπεταξάμεθα λέγοντες· ἀποτάσσομαι τῷ Σατανᾷ, καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἔργοις αὐτοῦ. Ἐννόησον τί εἶπες, Πᾶσι τοῖς ἔργοις αὐτοῦ· βλέπε τίνι συνέθου, οὐκ ἀγγέλῳ, οὐ βασιλεῖ ἐπιγείῳ, οὐκ ἄρχοντι τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, ἀλλὰ τῷ Βασιλεῖ τῶν βασιλευόντων