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opened in the Lord, I had no rest in my spirit, because I did not find Titus my brother, but taking my leave of them I went out to Macedonia.” What is this, O Paul? Though bound in the stocks and living in a prison and having scourges laid upon you and your back streaming with blood, you both initiated and baptized and offered sacrifice and despised not one person who was about to be saved; but when you came to Troas and saw the field cleared and ready to receive the seeds, and the fishing-net filled and offering you much ease, did you cast away from your hands so great a gain for which you had even come? “For when I came,” he says, “to Troas for the gospel,” that is, on account of the gospel, and with no one opposing; “for a door,” he says, “was opened for me,” did you leap away immediately? “Yes,” he says, “for I was held fast by a great tyranny of despondency, and the absence of Titus exceedingly disturbed my mind, and so it mastered me and prevailed as to compel me to do this.” For that he suffered this because of despondency, we need not guess, but learn this from him himself. For he has given the cause of his departure, saying, “I had no rest in my spirit, because I did not find Titus, but taking my leave of them I went out.” 8.12 Do you see what a great contest it is to be able to bear gently the separation from a loved one? and how painful a thing and bitter? how it requires a lofty and vigorous soul? This is the contest you yourself are now enduring. And the greater the contest, the greater also is the crown and the brighter the prizes. Let this be a comfort to you for the delay, and also that we will certainly see you again, abounding with the reward from this, and crowned, and proclaimed victor. For it is not enough for those who love to be bound only in spirit, nor do they find this sufficient for comfort, but they also require bodily presence; and if this is not added, no small part of their gladness is cut away. And this again, by turning to the nursling of love, we will find to be so. For writing to the Macedonians he spoke thus: “But we, brethren, being bereaved of you for a short time, in presence, not in heart, were all the more eager to see your face; I, Paul, both once and again, and Satan hindered us. Wherefore, no longer forbearing, we thought it good to be left in Athens alone, and sent Timothy.” O the power of each word! For it shows with much clarity the flame of love laid up in his soul. For he did not say, “separated from you,” nor “torn from you,” nor “parted,” nor “left behind,” but “bereaved of you.” He sought a word sufficient to express the pain of his soul. And yet he himself was in the position of a father to them all, but he utters the words of orphaned children who in their tender age have lost their parent, wishing to show the excess of his despondency. For nothing is more painful than untimely orphanhood, when their age is sufficient for nothing, and there are no genuine protectors, and many who would attack and plot against them suddenly appear, like lambs, they are thus cast into the midst of wolves who tear and rend them from every side. No one is able to represent in word the greatness of this misfortune. For this reason Paul also, having gone around and sought a word indicative of desolation and grievous misfortune, in order to represent what he suffered when separated from his loved ones, used this word; then he again intensifies it through what follows: “For being bereaved,” he says, “not for a long time but for a short time, and separated not in thought but in presence only, not even so do we bear the resulting pain, although we have sufficient comfort, being bound in spirit, having you in our heart, that yesterday and the day before you

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ἀνεῳγμένης ἐν Κυρίῳ, οὐκ ἔσχηκα ἄνεσιν τῷ πνεύματί μου, τῷ μὴ εὑρεῖν με Τίτον τὸν ἀδελφόν μου, ἀλλὰ ἀποταξάμενος αὐτοῖς ἐξῆλθον εἰς Μακεδονίαν.» Τί τοῦτο, ὦ Παῦλε; Ξύλῳ μὲν δεδεμένος καὶ δεσμωτήριον οἰκῶν καὶ μάστιγας ἔχων ἐπικειμένας καὶ τὰ νῶτα αἵμασι περιρρεόμενος καὶ ἐμυσταγώγεις καὶ ἐβάπτιζες καὶ θυσίαν προσῆγες καὶ ἑνὸς οὐ κατεφρόνησας μέλλοντος σώζεσθαι· εἰς δὲ τὴν Τρωάδα ἐλθὼν καὶ τὴν ἄρουραν ὁρῶν ἐκκεκαθαρμένην καὶ ἑτοίμην οὖσαν τὰ σπέρματα ὑποδέξασθαι καὶ τὴν ἁλιείαν πεπληρωμένην καὶ πολλὴν παρέχουσάν σοι τὴν εὐκολίαν, τοσοῦτον ἔρριψας ἀπὸ τῶν χειρῶν κέρδος ὡς καὶ διὰ τοῦτο παραγενόμενος. «Ἐλθὼν γάρ, φησίν, εἰς τὴν Τρωάδα εἰς τὸ εὐαγγέλιον», τοῦτ' ἔστι διὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον, καὶ οὐδενὸς ἀντιπίπτοντος· «Θύρας γάρ μοι, φησίν, ἀνεῳγμένης», ἀπεπήδησας εὐθέως; «Ναί, φησί· πολλῇ γὰρ κατεσχέθην ἀθυμίας τυραννίδι καὶ σφόδρα μου συνέχεε τὴν διάνοιαν ἡ Τίτου ἀπουσία καὶ οὕτω μου ἐκράτησε καὶ περιεγένετο ὡς ἀναγκάσαι τοῦτο ποιῆσαι.» Ὅτι γὰρ διὰ ἀθυμίαν τοῦτο ἔπαθεν οὐδὲν ἡμᾶς δεῖ στοχάζεσθαι, ἀλλὰ παρ' αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦτο μανθάνειν. Καὶ γὰρ τὴν αἰτίαν τῆς ἀναχωρήσεως τέθεικεν εἰπών· «Οὐκ ἔσχηκα ἄνεσιν τῷ πνεύματί μου, τῷ μὴ εὑρεῖν με Τίτον, ἀλλὰ ἀποταξάμενος αὐτοῖς ἐξῆλθον.» 8.12 Εἶδες πῶς μέγιστος ἆθλος τὸ δυνηθῆναι ἐνεγκεῖν πρᾴως ἀγαπωμένου χωρισμόν; καὶ πῶς ὀδυνηρὸν πρᾶγμα καὶ πικρόν; πῶς ὑψηλῆς δεόμενον καὶ νεανικῆς ψυχῆς; Τοῦτον τὸν ἆθλον καὶ αὐτὴ διανύεις νῦν. Ὅσῳ δὲ μέγιστος ὁ ἆθλος, τοσούτῳ καὶ ὁ στέφανος μείζων καὶ τὰ βραβεῖα λαμπρότερα. Τοῦτό σοι τῆς μελλήσεως ἔστω παραμυθία καὶ τὸ πάντως ἡμᾶς ὄψεσθαί σε πάλιν βρύουσαν τῷ ἐντεῦθεν μισθῷ καὶ στεφανουμένην καὶ ἀνακηρυττομένην. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἀρκεῖ τοῖς ἀγαπῶσι μόνον τὸ τῇ ψυχῇ συνδεδέσθαι οὐδὲ ἀποχρῶνται τούτῳ εἰς παραμυθίαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ σωματικῆς δέονται παρουσίας· κἂν μὴ τοῦτο προσῇ, οὐ μικρὸν τῆς εὐφροσύνης ὑποτέτμηται μέρος. Καὶ τοῦτο πάλιν πρὸς τὸν τῆς ἀγάπης τρόφιμον ἐλθόντες εὑρήσομεν οὕτως ἔχον. Μακεδόσι γὰρ ἐπιστέλλων οὕτως ἔλεγεν· «Ἡμεῖς δέ, ἀδελφοί, ἀπορφανισθέντες ἀφ' ὑμῶν πρὸς καιρὸν ὥρας προσώπῳ οὐ καρδίᾳ, περισσοτέρως ἐσπουδάσαμεν τὸ πρόσωπον ὑμῶν ἰδεῖν· ἐγὼ μὲν Παῦλος καὶ ἅπαξ καὶ δὶς καὶ ἀνέκοψεν ἡμᾶς ὁ Σατανᾶς. ∆ιὸ μηκέτι στέγοντες ηὐδοκήσαμεν καταλειφθῆναι ἐν Ἀθήναις μόνοι καὶ ἐπέμψαμεν Τιμόθεον.» Ὢ λέξεως ἑκάστης δύναμις· τὴν γὰρ ἐναποκειμένην αὐτοῦ τῇ ψυχῇ φλόγα τῆς ἀγάπης μετὰ πολλῆς ἐνδείκνυται τῆς σαφηνείας. Οὐδὲ γὰρ εἶπε· «χωρισθέντες ὑμῶν», οὐδὲ «διασπασθέντες ὑμῶν», οὐδὲ «διαστάντες», οὐδὲ «ἀπολειφθέντες», ἀλλ' «ἀπορφανισθέντες ὑμῶν.» Λέξιν ἐζήτησεν ἱκανὴν ἐμφῆναι τὴν ὀδύνην αὐτοῦ τῆς ψυχῆς. Καίτοι γε ἐν τάξει πατέρος ἦν ἅπασιν αὐτός, ἀλλὰ παιδίων ὀρφανῶν ἐν τῇ ἀώρῳ ἡλικίᾳ τὸν γεγεννηκότα ἀποβαλόντων φθέγγεται ῥήματα τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς ἀθυμίας ἐνδείξασθαι βουλόμενος. Οὐδὲν γὰρ ὀδυνηρότερον ὀρφανίας ἀώρου, ὅταν τῆς τε ἡλικίας πρὸς οὐδὲν αὐτοῖς ἀρκούσης, τῶν τε προστησομένων γνησίως οὐκ ὄντων καὶ τῶν ἐπιθησομένων καὶ ἐπιβουλευόντων πολλῶν ἀθρόον ἀναφαινομένων, ὥσπερ ἀρνειοί, οὕτως εἰς μέσον προκέωνται λύκοις οἳ πανταχόθεν σπαράττουσιν αὐτοὺς καὶ ξαίνουσιν. Οὐδεὶς δύναται παραστῆσαι τῆς συμφορᾶς ταύτης τῷ λόγῳ τὸ μέγεθος. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ Παῦλος περιελθὼν καὶ ζητήσας καὶ ἐρημίας καὶ συμφορᾶς χαλεπῆς ῥῆσιν ἐνδεικτικήν, ἵνα παραστήσῃ ὅπερ ἔπασχε τῶν ἀγαπωμένων χωριζόμενος, ταύτῃ ἐχρήσατο τῇ λέξει· εἶτα καὶ ἐπιτείνει πάλιν αὐτὴν διὰ τῶν ἑξῆς· «Ἀπορφανισθέντες γάρ, φησίν, οὐ χρόνον ἀλλὰ πρὸς καιρὸν ὥρας, καὶ χωρισθέντες οὐ διανοίᾳ ἀλλὰ προσώπῳ μόνῳ, οὐδὲ οὕτω φέρομεν τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ὀδύνην, καίτοι γε ἱκανὴν ἔχοντες παραμυθίαν, τὸ τῇ ψυχῇ συνδεδέσθαι, τὸ ἐν καρδίᾳ ὑμᾶς εἶναι τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ, τὸ χθὲς καὶ πρώην ὑμᾶς