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those who disobey to the end and often through bodily necessity bringing them under the consent of right judgment.

QUESTION 13. That the discipline of silence is also useful for beginners.

ANSWER. And the discipline of silence is good for beginners. For at the same time they will provide sufficient proof of their self-control by mastering their tongue, and in silence they will learn intently and without distraction from those who use speech with knowledge, how one ought to ask questions, and to answer each one. For there is a tone of voice, and a proportion of speech, and a timeliness of occasion, and a propriety of words, that is fitting and distinctive for the pious, which it is not possible to be taught, without unlearning the things from habit; with silence both producing a forgetting of former things through inactivity, and providing leisure for the learning of good things. Therefore, unless there is some personal need for the care of one's own soul, and for the unavoidable necessity of the work at hand, or some such question brought forward is urgent, one is to live in silence, except, of course, for psalmody.

QUESTION 14. Concerning those who have professed themselves to God, and then the

profession attempt to break.

ANSWER. However, each of these having been accepted into the brotherhood, and then having set aside his profession, ought to be regarded thus, as having sinned against God, before whom and to whom he deposited the profession of his covenants. "But if one sins against God," it says, "who will pray for him?" For one who has dedicated himself to God, and then has leaped away to another life, has become guilty of sacrilege, having stolen himself away, and having taken from 31.952 God His votive offering. For these it is reasonable that the door of the brethren should no longer be opened, not even if they should ever visit for the sake of shelter during a mere passing through. For the apostolic rule is clear, commanding us to keep away from everyone who is disorderly, and not to associate with him, that he may be put to shame.

QUESTION 15. From what age ought one to permit them to profess themselves to

God, and when to consider the profession of virginity to be binding.

ANSWER. Since the Lord says, "Let the children come to me," and the Apostle praises the one who from infancy had learned the sacred scriptures, and again commands to bring up children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord, we judge every age, even the earliest, to be suitable for the reception of those who come, receiving those deprived of parents on their own account, so as to become, according to the zeal of Job, fathers to orphans; and those who are under parents, being brought by those very parents, we receive in the presence of many witnesses, so as not to give an occasion to those who want an occasion; but that every unjust mouth speaking blasphemy against us may be stopped. One ought, therefore, according to this reasoning, to receive them, but it is not fitting that they be immediately numbered and enrolled in the body of the brethren, so that the reproaches from their failure may not be referred to the life of piety; but they are to be brought up in all piety as the common children of the brotherhood, and dwellings and a way of life are to be set apart for both the male children and the female, so that neither familiarity nor immoderate boldness toward the elders may arise in them, and by the rarity of their meeting, reverence toward their leaders may be preserved; nor from the penances imposed on the more perfect for their oversights in duties, should it ever happen that they are distracted, should a contempt for sins, or often pride, be secretly engendered in them, when in things in which they themselves succeed, they often see their elders stumbling. For it makes a difference

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τοὺς μέχρι παντὸς ἀπειθοῦντας καὶ δι' ἀνάγ κης πολλάκις σωματικῆς τῇ συγκαταθέσει τῆς ὀρθῆς κρίσεως ὑπάγοντος.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ ΙΓʹ. Ὅτι χρήσιμον τοῖς εἰσαγομένοις καὶ τὸ διὰ σιω πῆς γυμνάσιον.

ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ. Ἀγαθὸν δὲ τοῖς εἰσαγομένοις καὶ τὸ διὰ σιωπῆς γυμνάσιον. Ὁμοῦ τε γὰρ ἀπόδειξιν τῆς ἐγκρατείας ἱκανὴν παρέξονται, γλώσσης κρατοῦντες, καὶ ἐν ἡσυχίᾳ συντόνως καὶ ἀμετεωρίστως μαθήσονται παρὰ τῶν ἐπιστημόνως κεχρημένων τῷ λόγῳ, πῶς δεῖ καὶ ἐρωτᾷν, καὶ ἑνὶ ἑκάστῳ ἀποκρίνεσθαι. Ἔστι γὰρ καὶ τόνος φωνῆς, καὶ συμμετρία λόγου, καὶ καιροῦ ἐπιτηδειότης, καὶ ῥημάτων ἰδιότης, οἰκεία καὶ διαφέρουσα τοῖς εὐσεβέσιν, ἣν οὐχ οἷόν τε διδαχθῆναι, μὴ τὰ ἐκ τῆς συνηθείας ἀπομαθόν τα· τῆς σιωπῆς ὁμοῦ τε λήθην τῶν προτέρων διὰ τῆς ἀργίας ἐμποιούσης, καὶ σχολὴν πρὸς τὴν τῶν ἀγαθῶν μάθησιν παρεχομένης. Ὥστε, ἐὰν μή τις ἢ οἰκεία χρεία πρός τε τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ψυχῆς, καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἀπαραίτητον τοῦ ἐν χερσὶν ἔργου ἀνάγκην, ἢ ἐπερώτημά τι τοιοῦτον προσ αγόμενον κατεπείγῃ, ἐν σιωπῇ διάγειν, ἐκτὸς δηλον ότι ψαλμῳδίας.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ Ι∆ʹ. Περὶ τῶν ἑαυτοὺς τῷ Θεῷ καθομολογησαμένων, εἶτα τὴν

ὁμολογίαν ἀθετεῖν ἐπιχειρούντων. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ. Παραδεχθέντα μέντοι εἰς τὴν ἀδελφότητα τούτων ἕκαστον, εἶτα τὴν ὁμολογίαν ἀθετήσαντα, οὕτω χρὴ ὁρᾶσθαι, ὡς εἰς Θεὸν ἐξαμαρτόντα, ἐφ' οὗ καὶ εἰς ὂν τὴν ὁμολογίαν τῶν συνθηκῶν κατέθετο. Ἐὰν δὲ εἰς Θεόν τις, φησὶν, ἁμάρτῃ, καὶ τίς προσεύξε ται περὶ αὐτοῦ; Ὁ γὰρ ἀναθεὶς ἑαυτὸν τῷ Θεῷ, εἶτα πρὸς ἄλλον βίον ἀποπηδήσας, ἱερόσυλος γέγονεν, αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν διακλέψας, καὶ ἀφελόμενος 31.952 τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸ ἀνάθημα. Οἷς εὔλογόν ἐστι, μηκέτι θύραν τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἀνοίγεσθαι, μηδὲ εἰ κατὰ ψιλήν ποτε πάροδον σκέπης ἕνεκεν ἐπιδημήσειαν. Ὁ γὰρ ἀποστολικὸς κανὼν φανερὸς, κελεύων ἡμᾶς στέλ λεσθαι ἀπὸ παντὸς ἀτάκτου, καὶ μὴ συναναμίγνυ σθαι αὐτῷ, ἵνα ἐντραπῇ.

ΕΡΩΤΗΣΙΣ ΙΕʹ. Ἀπὸ ποίας ἡλικίας ἐπιτρέπειν χρὴ καθομολογεῖν ἑαυτοὺς τῷ

Θεῷ, καὶ τὴν τῆς παρθενίας ὁμολογίαν πότε βεβαίαν ἡγεῖσθαι. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ. Τοῦ Κυρίου λέγοντος· Ἄφετε τὰ παιδία ἔρχε σθαι πρὸς μὲ, καὶ τοῦ Ἀποστόλου ἐπαινοῦντος τὸν ἀπὸ βρέφους τὰ ἱερὰ γράμματα μεμαθηκότα, καὶ πάλιν παραγγέλλοντος ἐκτρέφειν τὰ τέκνα ἐν παι δείᾳ καὶ νουθεσίᾳ Κυρίου, πάντα καιρὸν, καὶ τὸν τῆς πρώτης ἡλικίας εὔθετον εἶναι πρὸς τὴν τῶν προσιόντων παραδοχὴν δοκιμάζομεν, τὰ μὲν ἔρημα γονέων ἀφ' ἑαυτῶν προσλαμβανόμενοι, ὥστε γε νέσθαι κατὰ τὸν ζῆλον τοῦ Ἰὼβ ὀρφανῶν πατέρας· τὰ δὲ ὑπὸ γονεῖς ὄντα, παρ' αὐτῶν ἐκείνων προσ αγόμενα, ἐπὶ πολλῶν μαρτύρων δεχόμενοι, ὥστε μὴ δοῦναι ἀφορμὴν τοῖς θέλουσιν ἀφορμήν· ἀλλὰ πᾶν ἄδικον στόμα τῶν λαλούντων καθ' ἡμῶν βλασ φημίαν ἐπισχεθῆναι. ∆έχεσθαι μὲν οὖν χρὴ, κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν λόγον, οὐ μὴν εὐθὺς αὐτὰ, καὶ συν αριθμεῖσθαι καὶ συγκαταλέγεσθαι τῷ σώματι προσ ήκει τῶν ἀδελφῶν, ὥστε μὴ τὰ ἐκ τῆς ἀποτυχίας αὐτῶν ὀνείδη ἐπὶ τὸν βίον τὸν κατ' εὐσέβειαν ἀναφέ ρεσθαι· ἀλλ' ἐκτρέφεσθαι μὲν αὐτὰ ἐν πάσῃ εὐσε βείᾳ ὡς κοινὰ τέκνα τῆς ἀδελφότητος, ἀφωρίσθαι δὲ καὶ οἴκους καὶ δίαιταν τοῖς τε ἄρσεσι τῶν παί δων, καὶ ταῖς θηλείαις, ὡς μήτε παῤῥησίαν, μήτε θάρσος ἄμετρον πρὸς τοὺς πρεσβυτέρους αὐτοῖς ἐγ γίνεσθαι, τῷ δὲ σπανίῳ τῆς συντυχίας τὸ πρὸς τοὺς προάγοντας αἰδέσιμον σώζεσθαι· μήτε ἐκ τῶν ἐπιτιμίων τῶν προσαγομένων τοῖς τελειοτέροις ἐν τοῖς παροράμασι τῶν καθηκόντων, εἴποτε ἄρα μετ εωρισθῆναι συμβαίη, εὐχέρειαν αὐτοῖς τῶν ἁμαρ τημάτων, ἢ ἔπαρσιν πολλάκις κατὰ τὸ λεληθὸς ἐντίκτεσθαι, ὅταν ἐν οἷς αὐτοὶ κατορθοῦσι, πολ λάκις τοὺς πρεσβυτέρους ἴδωσι διαπταίοντας. ∆ια φέρει γὰρ