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reason has legislated; but if any of these things should follow automatically upon the preceding things, we do not reject it, just as we do not reject a shadow that happens to follow; but if not, we will love the more honorable things no less, even if it should happen to be without 17.11 these things. The prophet Amos was a goatherd, Peter a fisherman, and of the same craft both his brother Andrew and the sublime John, Paul a tentmaker, and Matthew a tax collector, and all the others were likewise in the same way, not some consuls and generals and prefects or renowned in rhetoric and philosophy, but poor men and commoners and coming from the humbler occupations; and yet Their sound went out into all the earth, and their words 17.12 to the ends of the world. See your calling, brothers, he says, that not many are wise according to the flesh, not many are powerful, not many are of noble birth; but God 17.13 chose the foolish things of the world. Perhaps something is now also considered foolish in what appears to human eyes, when it is weak because of poverty or inglorious because of physical lowliness; but who knows if the horn of judgment is not inclined toward this one by grace, even if he be less 17.14 than the lofty and more conspicuous? What was more profitable for the city of the Romans, to take at first as its leader one of the patricians and the magnificent from the supreme council, or Peter the fisherman, who had no worldly appendage for glory? What house, what servants, what property supplying luxury through revenues? But the stranger, homeless, and without a table was richer than those who had all things, because through having nothing he had God 17.15 entirely. So also the Mesopotamians, though having very wealthy satraps among them, approved Thomas as more honorable for their supervision, and the Cretans Titus, and the people of Jerusalem James, and we Cappadocians the centurion who confessed the divinity of the Lord at the passion, although there were many at that time who were illustrious in birth and breeders of horses and prided themselves on the first places in the senate; and in every church one would find that those who are great according to God were preferred 17.16 over worldly prominence. I think that you too ought to look to these things at present, if indeed you intend to recall the ancient dignity of your 17.17 church. For you know your own histories better than anyone, that from ancient times, before your neighboring city flourished, the royal palace was among you, and there was no preeminent city above yours; and now, even if the adornment of the buildings has vanished, yet the city in its people, in both the number and the worthiness of its inhabitants, equals its ancient 17.18 beauty. Therefore it would be fitting not to have a mindset lower than the goods that belong to you, but to elevate your zeal for the matters at hand in keeping with the prominence of the city, so that you may find from God such a leader of the people, as to be shown not unworthy 17.19 of you. For it is shameful, brothers, and altogether absurd for a man not to become a ship's pilot unless he is knowledgeable in the art of piloting, but for the one sitting at the helm of the church to be ignorant of how he might bring the souls of those sailing 17.20 with him to anchor in the harbor of God. How many shipwrecks of churches, with all hands, have already happened through the inexperience of the leaders? Who could count the evils before our eyes that would not have happened if there had been some 17.21 nautical experience among the leaders? But we also entrust iron not to the unskilled, but to those knowledgeable in the blacksmith's art for the crafting of implements; therefore souls too must be handed over to the one who knows well how to soften them by the fervor of the Holy Spirit, who through the shaping of rational instruments might make each one of you a vessel of election and usefulness. 17.22 The divine apostle commands that such foresight be exercised, legislating for all who hear through the epistle to Timothy, in which he says that a bishop must be 17.23 above reproach. Is then this one

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ἐνομοθέτησε λόγος· ἀλλ' εἰ μέν τι τούτων κατὰ τὸ αὐτόματον ἕποιτο τοῖς προηγουμένοις, ὡς σκιὰν κατὰ τὸ συμβὰν ἀκολουθοῦσαν οὐκ ἀποβάλλομεν· εἰ δὲ μή, οὐδὲν ἧττον ἀγαπήσομεν τὰ προτιμότερα, κἂν χωρὶς 17.11 τούτων τύχῃ. αἰπόλος ἦν ὁ προφήτης Ἀμώς, ἁλιεὺς ὁ Πέτρος, καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς τέχνης ὅ τε τούτου ἀδελφὸς Ἀνδρέας καὶ ὁ ὑψηλὸς Ἰωάννης, σκηνορράφος ὁ Παῦλος, καὶ ὁ Ματθαῖος τελώνης, καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον ὁμοίως ἅπαντες, οὐχ ὕπατοί τινες καὶ στρατηλάται καὶ ὕπαρχοι ἢ κατὰ ῥητορικὴν καὶ φιλοσοφίαν περίβλεπτοι, ἀλλὰ πένητες καὶ ἰδιῶται καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ταπεινοτέρων ἐπιτηδευμάτων ὁρμώμενοι· καὶ ὅμως Εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος αὐτῶν καὶ εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς οἰκουμένης 17.12 τὰ ῥήματα αὐτῶν. Βλέπετε, φησί, τὴν κλῆσιν ὑμῶν, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι οὐ πολλοὶ σοφοὶ κατὰ σάρκα, οὐ πολλοὶ δυνατοί, οὐ πολλοὶ εὐγενεῖς· ἀλλὰ τὰ μωρὰ τοῦ κόσμου ἐξελέξατο 17.13 ὁ θεός. ἴσως τι μωρὸν καὶ νῦν ἐν τοῖς φαινομένοις τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων νομίζεται, ὅταν ἀσθενὲς ὑπὸ πενίας ἢ ἄδοξον ᾖ διὰ τὴν σωματικὴν δυσγένειαν· ἀλλὰ τίς οἶδεν εἰ μὴ τούτῳ τὸ κέρας τῆς κρίσεως παρὰ τῆς χάριτος ἐπικλίνεται, κἂν τῶν ὑψηλῶν τε καὶ ἐμφανεστέρων μικρό17.14 τερος ᾖ; τί λυσιτελέστερον ἦν τῇ Ῥωμαίων πόλει, τὸ κατ' ἀρχὰς τῶν εὐπατριδῶν τινα καὶ ὑπερόγκων ἐκ τῆς ὑπάτου βουλῆς εἰς προστασίαν λαβεῖν, ἢ τὸν ἁλιέα Πέτρον, ᾧ μηδὲν ἦν ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου τούτου πρὸς εὐδοξίαν ἐφόλκιον; τίς οἰκία, τίνες οἰκέται, ποία κτῆσις διὰ προσόδων τρυφὴν χορηγοῦσα; ἀλλ' ὁ ξένος καὶ ἄστεγος καὶ ἀτράπεζος τῶν τὰ πάντα ἐχόντων πλουσιώτερος ἦν, ὅτι διὰ τοῦ μηδὲν ἔχειν τὸν θεὸν εἶχεν ὅλον. 17.15 οὕτω καὶ οἱ Μεσοποταμῖται βαρυπλούτους ἔχοντες ἐν ἑαυτοῖς σατράπας, πάντων ἐδοκίμασαν τὸν Θωμᾶν εἰς ἐπιστασίαν ἑαυτῶν προτιμότερον, καὶ Τίτον Κρῆτες καὶ Ἱεροσολυμῖται Ἰάκωβον, καὶ ἡμεῖς οἱ Καππαδόκαι τὸν ἑκατόνταρχον τὸν ἐπὶ τοῦ πάθους τὴν θεότητα τοῦ κυρίου ὁμολογήσαντα, πολλῶν ὄντων κατὰ τὸν χρόνον ἐκεῖνον λαμπρῶν ἐν γένει καὶ ἱπποτρόφων καὶ τοῖς ἐν τῇ συγκλήτῳ πρωτείοις σεμνυνομένων· καὶ κατὰ πᾶσαν δὲ ἐκκλησίαν εὕροι τις ἂν τοὺς κατὰ θεὸν μεγάλους τῆς κοσμικῆς περιφανείας προτι17.16 μηθέντας. πρὸς ταῦτα βλέπειν ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος οἶμαι δεῖν καὶ ὑμᾶς, εἴ γε μέλλοιτε πάλιν τὸ ἀρχαῖον τῆς ἐκκλησίας ὑμῶν ἀνακαλεῖσθαι ἀξίωμα. 17.17 Οἴδατε γὰρ παντὸς μᾶλλον τὰ ὑμέτερα διηγήματα, ὅτι ἐξ ἀρχαίου, πρὶν τὴν γείτονα ὑμῶν ἐξανθῆσαι πόλιν, παρ' ὑμῖν ἦν τὰ βασίλεια, καὶ τὸ προέχον ἐν πόλεσιν ὑπὲρ τὴν ὑμετέραν οὐκ ἦν· καὶ νῦν, εἰ καὶ ὁ τῶν οἰκοδομημάτων καλλωπισμὸς ἠφανίσθη, ἀλλ' ἡ ἐν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις πόλις ἐν πλήθει τε καὶ δοκιμότητι τῶν οἰκητόρων πρὸς 17.18 τὸ ἀρχαῖον ἐξισοῦται κάλλος. οὐκοῦν πρέπον ἂν εἴη μὴ ταπεινότερον τῶν προσόντων ὑμῖν ἀγαθῶν ἔχειν τὸ φρόνημα, ἀλλὰ συνεπαίρειν τῇ περιφανείᾳ τῆς πόλεως τὴν περὶ τῶν προκειμένων σπουδήν, ὡς ἂν τοιοῦτον εὕρητε παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τὸν τοῦ λαοῦ καθηγούμενον, ὡς μὴ ἀνάξιον 17.19 ὑμῖν ἐπιδειχθῆναι. αἰσχρὸν γάρ, ἀδελφοί, καὶ παντάπασιν ἄτοπον νεὼς μὲν κυβερνήτην μὴ γίνεσθαι εἰ μὴ τῆς κυβερνητικῆς ἐπιστήμων εἴη, τὸν δὲ ἐπὶ τῶν οἰάκων τῆς ἐκκλησίας καθήμενον ἀγνοεῖν ὅπως ἂν τὰς τῶν συμπλε 17.20 όντων ψυχὰς εἰς τὸν λιμένα τοῦ θεοῦ καθορμίσειε. πόσα γέγονε δι' ἀπειρίαν τῶν καθηγουμένων αὔτανδρα τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν ἤδη ναυάγια; τίς ἂν ἐξαριθμήσαιτο τὰ ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς κακὰ μὴ ἂν συμβάντα εἴ τις ἦν που ἐν τοῖς καθηγουμένοις 17.21 κυβερνητικὴ ἐμπειρία; ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν σίδηρον οὐ τοῖς ἀτέχνοις, τοῖς δὲ ἐπιστήμοσι τῆς χαλκευτικῆς εἰς τὴν τῶν σκευῶν ἀπεργασίαν καταπιστεύομεν· οὐκοῦν καὶ τὰς ψυχὰς τῷ καλῶς ἐπισταμένῳ τῇ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος ζέσει καταμαλάσσειν ἐγχειριστέον, ὃς διὰ τῆς τῶν λογικῶν ὀργάνων τυπώσεως σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς τε καὶ εὐχρηστίας ἕκαστον ὑμῶν 17.22 ἐπιτελέσειε. τοιαύτην ποιεῖσθαι τὴν πρόνοιαν ὁ θεῖος ἀπόστολος ἐγκελεύεται, διὰ τῆς πρὸς Τιμόθεον ἐπιστολῆς πᾶσι νομοθετῶν τοῖς ἀκούουσιν, ἐν οἷς φησι δεῖν τὸν ἐπίσκοπον 17.23 ἀνεπίληπτον εἶναι. ἆρ' οὖν τούτου