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of peace and of concord. For this reason also, when the father enters, he does not first ascend this throne until he has wished peace for you all, and rising he does not first begin his teaching to you until he has given peace to all. And the priests, when they are about to bless, having first prayed this for you, so they begin the blessing. And the deacon, ordering you to pray with the others, also commands this during the prayer, to ask for the angel of peace, and that all the things set before you be peaceful, and dismissing you from this assembly, he prays this for you, saying, Go in peace; and there is absolutely nothing either to say or to do without it. For this is our nurse and mother, who cherishes us with much exactness. And I speak of peace, not that which comes from a mere greeting, nor that from fellowship at tables, but the peace according to God, which comes from spiritual harmony, which many now tear apart, for the sake of untimely contention destroying our own things, and increasing those of the Jews, considering those teachers more trustworthy than their own fathers, and believing the Christ-killers about the Passion; than which what could be more irrational? Do you not know that that was a type, but this is the truth? For see how great is the difference. That prevented bodily death, this loosed the wrath that was being brought against the whole world; that then delivered from Egypt, this freed from idolatry; that drowned Pharaoh, this drowned the devil; after that, Palestine, after this, heaven. Why then do you sit by the lamp when the sun has appeared? And why do you wish to be fed with milk when solid food is given to you? For this reason you were fed with milk, that you might not remain on milk; for this reason the lamp appeared to you, that you might be led by the hand to the sun. Therefore, since more perfect things have arrived, let us not run back to the former things, nor let us observe days and seasons and years, but everywhere let us follow the Church with exactness, preferring love and peace above all things. For even if the Church were in error, the good deed from the exactness of the times was not so great as the crime from the division and this 48.871 schism; but now I have no argument about time, since neither has God, as we have shown, since I have also expended many words on this; but I seek one thing only, that we may do all things in peace and harmony, so that, while we and all the people are fasting, and the priests are making the common supplications for the world, you do not remain drunk at home. Consider how this is of diabolical energy, and that the sins are not one only, nor two, nor three, but much more. It cuts you off from the flock, and prepares you to condemn so many fathers, it casts you into contention, it pushes you towards the Jews, it again sets you forth as a stumbling block both to your own and to strangers. For how shall we be able to accuse those who remain at home, when you run to them? And not only are these the sins, but that also a great harm would occur, when you enjoy neither the Scriptures, nor the assemblies, nor the blessing, nor the common prayers during those fasts, but you spend all this time with a bad conscience, fearing and trembling lest you be discovered, like some foreigner and stranger, when you ought to perform all things in common with the Church with boldness, with pleasure, with gladness, with all freedom. For the Church does not know an exactness of times; but since from the beginning it seemed good to all the fathers, who were divided 48.872, to come together and to determine this day, honoring harmony everywhere and loving concord, she accepted what was commanded. For that it is impossible for us, or for you, or for anyone else to get hold of the Lord's day itself, has been sufficiently demonstrated in what has gone before. Let us not then fight with shadows, nor by contending for trivial things, let us harm ourselves in great things. For to fast at this or that time is not a crime, but to

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εἰρήνης ἴσον καὶ συμφωνίας. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ εἰσιὼν ὁ πατὴρ, οὐ πρότερον ἐπὶ τὸν θρόνον ἀναβαίνει τοῦτον, ἕως ἂν ἅπασιν ὑμῖν εἰρήνην ἐπεύξηται, καὶ ἀναστὰς οὐ πρότερον ἄρχεται τῆς πρὸς ὑμᾶς διδασκαλίας, ἕως ἂν ἅπασι δῷ τὴν εἰρήνην. Καὶ μέλλοντες εὐλογεῖν οἱ ἱερεῖς, πρότερον τοῦτο ὑμῖν ἐπευξάμενοι, οὕτω τῆς εὐλογίας ἄρχονται. Καὶ ὁ διάκονος δὲ κελεύων εὔχεσθαι μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων, καὶ τοῦτο ἐπιτάττει κατὰ τὴν εὐχὴν, αἰτεῖν τὸν ἄγγελον τῆς εἰρήνης, καὶ τὰ προκείμενα πάντα εἰρηνικὰ, καὶ τῆς συνόδου ταύτης ἀπολύων ὑμᾶς, τοῦτο ὑμῖν ἐπεύχεται λέγων, Πορεύεσθε ἐν εἰρήνῃ· καὶ οὐδὲν ὅλως ἔνι οὔτε εἰπεῖν, οὔτε πρᾶξαι ταύτης χωρίς. Αὕτη γάρ ἐστιν ἡ τροφὸς ἡμῶν καὶ μήτηρ, θάλπουσα μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς ἀκριβείας ἡμᾶς. Εἰρήνην δὲ λέγω, οὐ τὴν ἀπὸ προσρήσεως ψιλῆς, οὐδὲ τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς κοινωνίας τῶν τραπεζῶν, ἀλλὰ τὴν κατὰ Θεὸν εἰρήνην, τὴν ἐκ τῆς συμφωνίας τῆς πνευματικῆς, ἣν πολλοὶ διασπῶσι νῦν, ὑπὲρ ἀκαίρου φιλονεικίας τὰ ἡμέτερα καθαιροῦντες, καὶ τὰ Ἰουδαίων αὔξοντες, ἐκείνους ἀξιοπιστοτέρους διδασκάλους τῶν οἰκείων πατέρων ἡγούμενοι, καὶ τοῖς χριστοκτόνοις περὶ τοῦ πάθους πιστεύοντες· οὗ τί γένοιτ' ἂν ἀλογώτερον; Οὐκ οἶδας ὅτι ἐκεῖνο τύπος, τοῦτο δὲ ἀλήθεια; Ὅρα γὰρ πόσον τὸ διάφορον. Ἐκεῖνο Θάνατον ἐκώλυε σωματικὸν, τοῦτο ὀργὴν ἔλυσε τὴν κατὰ τῆς οἰκουμένης φερομένην ἁπάσης· ἐκεῖνο Αἰγύπτου τότε ἀπήλλαξε, τοῦτο εἰδωλολατρείας ἠλευθέρωσεν· ἐκεῖνο τὸν Φαραὼ, τοῦτο τὸν διάβολον ἀπέπνιξε· μετ' ἐκεῖνο Παλαιστίνη, μετὰ τοῦτο οὐρανός. Τί τοίνυν τῷ λύχνῳ προσεδρεύεις, τοῦ ἡλίου φανέντος; τί δὲ τῷ γάλακτι τρέφεσθαι βούλει, στερεᾶς σοι διδομένης τροφῆς; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἐτράφης γάλακτι, ἵνα μὴ μένῃς ἐν τῷ γάλακτι· διὰ τοῦτό σοι ὁ λύχνος ἐφάνη, ἵνα πρὸς τὸν ἥλιον χειραγωγηθῇς. Μὴ τοίνυν, τῶν τελειοτέρων παραγενομένων πραγμάτων, πρὸς τὰ πρότερα ἐπανατρέχωμεν, μηδὲ ἡμέρας καὶ καιροὺς καὶ ἐνιαυτοὺς παρατηρῶμεν, ἀλλὰ πανταχοῦ τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ μετ' ἀκριβείας ἑπώμεθα, τὴν ἀγάπην καὶ τὴν εἰρήνην προτιμῶντες ἁπάντων. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ ἐσφάλλετο ἡ Ἐκκλησία, οὐ τοσοῦτον κατόρθωμα ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν χρόνων ἀκριβείας ἦν, ὅσον ἔγκλημα ἀπὸ τῆς διαιρέσεως καὶ τοῦ σχίσματος τού48.871 του· νυνὶ δὲ οὐδείς μοι περὶ καιροῦ λόγος, ἐπειδὴ οὐδὲ τῷ Θεῷ, καθάπερ ἀπεδείξαμεν, ἐπεὶ καὶ ὑπὲρ τούτου πολλοὺς ἀνήλωσα λόγους· ἀλλὰ ἓν μόνον ζητῶ, ὅπως ἐν εἰρήνῃ καὶ ὁμονοίᾳ ἅπαντα ποιῶμεν, ὅπως μὴ, νηστευόντων ἡμῶν καὶ τοῦ δήμου παντὸς, καὶ τῶν ἱερέων τὰς κοινὰς ποιουμένων ὑπὲρ τῆς οἰκουμένης ἱκετηρίας, σὺ μένῃς μεθύων ἐπὶ τῆς οἰκίας. Ἐννόησον πῶς διαβολικῆς τοῦτό ἐστιν ἐνεργείας, καὶ ὡς οὐχ ἓν μόνον, οὐδὲ δύο, οὐδὲ τρία ἐστὶ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ πλείω. Ἀποσχίζει σε τῆς ἀγέλης, καὶ καταγινώσκειν σε παρασκευάζει πατέρων τοσούτων, εἰς φιλονεικίαν ἐμβάλλει, πρὸς Ἰουδαίους ὠθεῖ, σκάνδαλόν σε αὖ πάλιν προτίθησι καὶ τοῖς οἰκείοις καὶ τοῖς ἀλλοτρίοις. Πῶς γὰρ δυνησόμεθα ἐγκαλεῖν ἐκείνοις μένουσιν ἐπὶ τῆς οἰκίας, ὅταν σὺ πρὸς ἐκείνους τρέχῃς; Οὐ ταῦτα δὲ μόνον ἐστὶ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ μεγάλη βλάβη γένοιτ' ἂν, ὅταν μήτε Γραφῶν, μήτε συνόδων, μήτε εὐλογίας, μήτε κοινῶν εὐχῶν ἀπολαύῃς ἐν ταῖς νηστείαις ἐκείναις, ἀλλὰ μετὰ πονηροῦ συνειδότος ἅπαντα τοῦτον διάγῃς τὸν χρόνον, δεδοικὼς καὶ τρέμων μὴ γένῃ κατάφωρος, καθάπερ τις ἀλλόφυλος καὶ ἀλλογενὴς, δέον μετὰ παῤῥησίας, μεθ' ἡδονῆς, μετὰ εὐφροσύνης, μετ' ἐλευθερίας ἁπάσης κοινῇ μετὰ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας πάντα ἐπιτελεῖν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἡ Ἐκκλησία χρόνων ἀκρίβειαν οἶδεν· ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ παρὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν πᾶσιν ἔδοξε τοῖς πατράσι διῃρημέ48.872 νοις ὁμοῦ συνελθεῖν, καὶ ταύτην ὁρίσαι τὴν ἡμέραν, τὴν συμφωνίαν πανταχοῦ τιμῶσα καὶ τὴν ὁμόνοια ἀγαπῶσα, κατεδέξατο τὸ ἐπιταχθέν. Ὅτι γὰρ ἀδύνατον ἢ ἡμᾶς, ἢ ὑμᾶς, ἢ ἕτερον ὁντιναοῦν αὐτῆς ἐπιλαβέσθαι τῆς κυριακῆς ἡμέρας, ἱκανῶς ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ἀποδέδεικται. Μὴ τοίνυν σκιομαχῶμεν, μηδὲ ὑπὲρ τῶν τυχόντων φιλονεικοῦντες, ἐν τοῖς μεγάλοις ἑαυτοὺς καταβλάπτωμεν. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ τῷδε ἢ τῷδε χρόνῳ νηστεῦσαι οὐκ ἔγκλημα, τὸ δὲ