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to establish the dignity of the man. And from many other places it is shown that he was so genuinely disposed towards all the apostles, as was fitting for him. But what I write to you, behold, before God, I do not lie. Do you see how the humility of this holy soul shines forth equally through all things? For just as one contending in a court of law, and about to be held accountable, so he was zealous to make his defense. Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia; after seeing Peter. Again he begins the discourse and the contest before him, not touching upon Judaea, both because he was sent to the Gentiles, and because he would not choose to build on another man's foundation. Wherefore he did not even see them by mere chance; and this is clear from what follows. For I was, he says, unknown by face to the churches of Judaea. But they only heard that, "He who once persecuted us, now preaches the faith, 61.633 which he once tried to destroy." What could be more moderate than this soul? For when he spoke of the things that brought accusation against him, such as that he persecuted the Church, and tried to destroy it, he set them down with great exaggeration, parading his former life; but the things that were to show him to be illustrious, these he passes over. And being able, if he had wished, to tell all his achievements, he mentions none of them, but having in one word passed over an unspeakable sea, and having said that, "I went into the regions of Syria and of Cilicia," and that, "They heard that, 'He who once persecuted us, 61.634 now preaches the faith which he once tried to destroy,'" he added nothing more. But what does he mean by saying, "I was unknown to the churches of Judaea"? That you may learn that he was so far from preaching circumcision to them, that he was not even known to them by sight. And they glorified God in me. Consider here also the rule of his humility, how he observes it with exactness. For he did not say that they marveled at me, they praised me, they were astonished, but showed that the whole was of grace. For, "they glorified God," he says, "in me."

61.633 HOMILY II. Then after fourteen years I went up to Jerusalem with Barnabas,

taking Titus along also; and I went up by revelation.

1. For the first journey up, he says the reason was Peter, and to visit him; for the second, the revelation of the Spirit. And I laid before them the Gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain. What are you saying, O Paul? you who did not choose to confer at the beginning, not even after three years, after fourteen years have passed, do you then confer, lest you should be running in vain? And how much better would it have been to do this immediately at the start, than after so many years? And why were you running, if you were not persuaded that you were not running in vain? who is so foolish as to preach for so many years, not knowing that he preaches well? And much more perplexing than this, again, is that he says he went up by revelation. For this is more perplexing, as I said before, than the former, but it is sufficient to provide us with the solution to that one as well. For if he went up of his own accord, this would not make sense at all; for it was not possible for that blessed soul to fall into such folly. For he is the one who says, "So I run, not as uncertainly; so I fight, not as one that beats the air." If, then, not uncertainly, how do you say, "Lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain"? From which it is clear that even if he had gone up without a revelation, he would have suffered the fate of the foolish. yet what was happening would not have been equally absurd; but when the grace of the Spirit also draws him, who will dare to suspect any such thing

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ἀξίωμα θεῖναι τοῦ ἀνδρός. Καὶ πολλαχόθεν ἄλλοθεν δείκνυται, ὅτι διέκειτο πρὸς τοὺς ἀποστόλους πάντας οὕτω γνησίως, ὡς αὐτῷ πρέπον ἦν. Ἃ δὲ γράφω ὑμῖν, ἰδοὺ ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅτι οὐ ψεύδομαι. Εἶδες διὰ πάντων ὁμοίως ἐκλάμπουσαν τῆς ἁγίας ταύτης ψυχῆς τὴν ταπεινοφροσύνην; Καθάπερ γὰρ ἐν δικαστηρίῳ ἀγωνιζόμενος, καὶ μέλλων εὐθύνας ὑπέχειν, οὕτως ἐσπούδακεν ἀπολογήσασθαι. Ἔπειτα ἦλθον εἰς τὰ κλίματα τῆς Συρίας καὶ Κιλικίας· μετὰ τὸ Πέτρον ἰδεῖν. Πάλιν ἄρχεται τοῦ λόγου καὶ τοῦ ἀγῶνος τοῦ προκειμένου, τῆς μὲν Ἰουδαίας οὐχ ἁπτόμενος, διά τε τὸ πρὸς τὰ ἔθνη ἀπεστάλθαι, καὶ διὰ τὸ μὴ ἂν ἑλέσθαι ἐπ' ἀλλότριον θεμέλιον οἰκοδομεῖν. ∆ιόπερ οὐδὲ κατὰ ψιλὴν αὐτοὺς συντυχίαν εἶδε· καὶ τοῦτο ἐκ τῶν ἑξῆς δῆλον. Ἤμην γὰρ, φησὶν, ἀγνοούμενος τῷ προσώπῳ ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις τῆς Ἰουδαίας. Μόνον δὲ ἀκούοντες ἦσαν, ὅτι Ὁ διώκων ἡμᾶς ποτε, νῦν εὐαγγελίζεται τὴν πίστιν, 61.633 ἤν ποτε ἐπόρθει. Τί ταύτης τῆς ψυχῆς μετριώτερον γένοιτ' ἄν; Ὅτε μὲν γὰρ τὰ φέροντα αὐτῷ κατηγορίαν διελέγετο, οἷον ὅτι ἐδίωκε τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ ἐπόρθει αὐτὴν, μετὰ πολλῆς αὐτὰ τέθεικε τῆς ὑπερβολῆς, ἐκπομπεύων αὑτοῦ τὸν βίον τὸν πρότερον· τὰ δὲ μέλλοντα αὐτὸν δεικνύναι λαμπρὸν, ταῦτα παρατρέχει. Καὶ δυνάμενος, εἴπερ ἐβούλετο, τὰ κατορθώματα αὑτοῦ πάντα εἰπεῖν, οὐδὲν αὐτῶν τίθησιν, ἀλλ' ἑνὶ ῥήματι πέλαγος παρελθὼν ἄφατον, καὶ εἰπὼν, ὅτι Ἦλθον εἰς τὰ κλίματα τῆς Συρίας καὶ τῆς Κιλικίας, καὶ ὅτι Ἀκούοντες ἦσαν, ὅτι Ὁ διώκων ἡμᾶς ποτε, 61.634 νῦν εὐαγγελίζεται τὴν πίστιν, ἥν ποτε ἐπόρθει, οὐδὲν πλέον προσέθηκε. Τί δὲ αὐτῷ βούλεται τὸ λέγειν, ὅτι Ἀγνοούμενος ἤμην ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις τῆς Ἰουδαίας; Ἵνα μάθῃς, ὅτι τοσοῦτον ἀπεῖχε τοῦ κηρύξαι αὐτοῖς περιτομὴν, ὅτι οὐδὲ ἀπὸ ὄψεως γνώριμος ἦν αὐτοῖς. Καὶ ἐδόξαζον ἐν ἐμοὶ τὸν Θεόν. Σκόπει καὶ ἐνταῦθα τὸν κανόνα αὐτοῦ τῆς ταπεινοφροσύνης, πῶς αὐτὸν διατηρεῖ μετὰ ἀκριβείας. Οὐ γὰρ εἶπεν, ὅτι ἐθαύμαζόν με, ἐπῄνουν με, ἐξεπλήττοντο, ἀλλὰ τὸ πᾶν τῆς χάριτος ἔδειξεν ὄν. Τὸν γὰρ Θεὸν ἐδόξαζον, φησὶν, ἐν ἐμοί.

61.633 ΟΜΙΛΙΑ Βʹ. Ἔπειτα δὲ διὰ δεκατεσσάρων ἐτῶν ἀνέβην εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα μετὰ Βαρνάβα,

συμπαραλαβὼν καὶ Τίτον· ἀνέβην δὲ κατὰ ἀποκάλυψιν.

αʹ. Τῆς μὲν πρώτης ἀναβάσεως τὴν αἰτίαν Πέτρον εἶναί φησι, καὶ τὸ ἱστορῆσαι ἐκεῖνον· τῆς δὲ δευτέρας, τὴν ἀποκάλυψιν τὴν τοῦ Πνεύματος. Καὶ ἀνεθέμην αὐτοῖς τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον, ὃ κηρύσσω ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσι, κατ' ἰδίαν δὲ τοῖς δοκοῦσι, μή πως εἰς κενὸν τρέχω, ἢ ἔδραμον. Τί φὴς, ὦ Παῦλε; ὁ παρὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν μὴ ἑλόμενος, ἀναθέσθαι μηδὲ μετὰ ἔτη τρία δεκατεσσάρων παρελθόντων ἐτῶν, τότε ἀνατίθῃ, μή πως εἰς κενὸν τρέχῃς; Καὶ πόσῳ βέλτιον ἦν εὐθέως ἀρξάμενον τοῦτο ποιῆσαι, ἢ μετὰ ἔτη τοσαῦτα; Τί δὲ καὶ ἔτρεχες, εἰ μὴ πεπεισμένος ἦς, ὅτι οὐκ εἰς κενὸν ἔτρεχες; τίς οὕτως ἀνόητος, ὡς ἔτη τοσαῦτα κηρύττειν, οὐκ εἰδὼς ὅτι κηρύττει καλῶς; Καὶ τὸ πολὺ τούτου πάλιν ἀπορώτερον, ὅτι κατὰ ἀποκάλυψίν φησιν ἀνεληλυθέναι. Τοῦτο γὰρ ἀπορώτερον μὲν, ὥσπερ ἔφθην εἰπὼν, τοῦ προτέρου, ἱκανὸν δὲ κἀκείνου τὴν λύσιν ἡμῖν παρασχεῖν. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἀφ' ἑαυτοῦ ἀνῆλθε, μάλιστα μὲν οὐδὲ τοῦτο ἂν ἔχοι λόγον· οὐ γὰρ ἦν τῆς μακαρίας ἐκείνης ψυχῆς εἰς τοσαύτην ἄνοιαν ἐμπεσεῖν· αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ὁ λέγων, Οὕτω τρέχω, ὡς οὐκ ἀδήλως, οὕτω πυκτεύω, ὡς οὐκ ἀέρα δέρων. Εἰ τοίνυν οὐκ ἀδήλως, πῶς λέγεις, Μή πως εἰς κενὸν τρέχω, ἢ ἔδραμον; Ὅθεν δῆλον, ὅτι εἰ καὶ χωρὶς ἀποκαλύψεως ἀνῆλθεν, ἔπαθεν ἂν τὰ τῶν ἀνοήτων· πλὴν ἀλλ' οὐχ ὁμοίως ἄτοπον ἦν τὸ γινόμενον· ὅταν δὲ καὶ ἡ τοῦ Πνεύματος αὐτὸν ἕλκῃ χάρις, τίς τολμήσει τι τοιοῦτον ὑποπτεῦσαι