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could regulate a master, much more could a master regulate his servants. Share with me, I beseech you, this ministry. I speak to all in common; you speak to each one individually, and let each one be entrusted with the salvation of his neighbors. For that one must have precedence in these matters in his own house, listen to where Paul refers women: If they want to learn anything, he says, let them ask their own husbands at home; and he does not bring them to the teacher. For just as in schools of letters there are also teachers among the students, so also in the Church; for he wishes the teacher not to be troubled by all. Why? Because great good will come of it, not only because the labor will be light for the teacher, but also because each of the students, by taking thought, can quickly become a teacher, having this care. For see what a great ministry the wife introduces: she keeps the house, and takes care of all things in the house, she presides over the maidservants, she clothes you with her own hands, she makes you be called the father of children, she frees you from brothels, she helps toward self-control, she puts a stop to the sting of nature. But you also must be a benefactor to her. How? In spiritual things, stretch out a hand; whatever useful things you hear, these, like swallows, carry away in your mouth and put them into the mouth both of the mother and of the nestlings. For how is it not absurd to claim for yourself the first place in other things, and to hold the position of the head, but in teaching to abandon your rank? The ruler must excel the ruled not in honors, but in virtues; for this belongs to a ruler. For the one belongs to the ruled, but the other is the right action of the ruler himself. If you enjoy much honor, this is nothing to you; for you have received it from others. If you shine with much virtue, this is all your own. You are the head of the woman; therefore, let the head regulate the rest of the body. Do you not see that it does not excel 62.500 the rest of the body so much by its position as by its forethought, like some pilot, directing the whole of it? For in the head are both the eyes of the body and of the soul; from there flows to these the power of seeing, from there the governing principle. And the rest is ordered for service, but it is set to command. All the senses have their beginning and source from there; the organs of speech are sent forth from there, the sense of sight, the sense of smell, all touch; for the root of the nerves and of the bones is established from there. You see that it excels more by its forethought than by its honor. Thus let us also rule our wives; let us conquer them not by seeking more honor from them, but by their being more greatly benefited by us. I have shown that they benefit us with no small benefits, but if we are willing to give the return in spiritual things, we conquer; since in bodily things it is not possible to introduce anything of equal weight. For what? Do you bring in much money? But she keeps it; and this providence of hers is a counterpoise to that, and so it is in need of her. Why? Because many who have acquired much, since they did not have one who keeps it, have lost everything. But for the sake of the children you both share, and the benefit from each is equal; or rather, she has the more laborious ministry in these things, constantly carrying the child in the womb, and being rent by birth-pangs. So that in spiritual things alone will you be able to conquer. Let us not then be anxious about how we shall have money, but how we may present to God with confidence the souls which have been entrusted to us; for in regulating them we shall also profit ourselves the most. For he who teaches another, if nothing else, is pricked in his conscience by what he says, and especially when he sees himself to be accountable for those things for which he rebukes others. Since, therefore, we benefit both ourselves and them, and through them the household, and this seems especially pleasing to God, let us not grow weary of caring for our own souls and for the souls of those who minister to us, so that for all things

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δεσπότην ῥυθμίσαι δύναιτ' ἂν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον δεσπότης οἰκέτας. ∆ιανείμασθε πρὸς ἐμὲ, παρακαλῶ, ταύτην τὴν διακονίαν. Ἐγὼ πᾶσι κοινῇ διαλέγομαι· ὑμεῖς ἰδίᾳ ἑκάστῳ, καὶ ἕκαστος ἐγχειριζέσθω τὴν σωτηρίαν τῶν πλησίον. Ὅτι γὰρ δεῖ τῶν τῆς οἰκίας προεστάναι ἐν τούτοις, ἄκουσον ποῦ παραπέμπει τὰς γυναῖκας ὁ Παῦλος· Εἰ δέ τι μαθεῖν θέλουσι, φησὶν, ἐν οἴκῳ τοὺς ἰδίους ἄνδρας ἐπερωτάτωσαν· καὶ οὐ προσάγει αὐτὰς τῷ διδασκάλῳ. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἐν ταῖς διατριβαῖς τῶν γραμμάτων εἰσὶ καὶ ἐν τοῖς μαθηταῖς διδάσκαλοι, οὕτω καὶ ἐν τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ· βούλεται γὰρ μὴ ὑπὸ πάντων ἐνοχλεῖσθαι τὸν διδάσκαλον. ∆ιὰ τί; Ὅτι μεγάλα ἀγαθὰ οὕτως ἔσται, οὐ μόνον ὅτι κοῦφος ἔσται ὁ πόνος τῷ διδασκάλῳ, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ τῶν μαθητῶν ἕκαστος μεριμνήσας, ταχέως γενέσθαι δύναται διδάσκαλος, ταύτην ἔχων τὴν φροντίδα. Ὅρα γὰρ πόσην διακονίαν εἰσάγει ἡ γυνή· οἰκουρεῖ, καὶ τῶν κατὰ τὴν οἰκίαν πάντων φροντίζει, ταῖς θεραπαινίσιν ἐφέστηκεν, ἀμφιέννυσι ταῖς αὐτῆς χερσὶ, πατέρα σε ποιεῖ παίδων καλεῖσθαι, χαμαιτυπείων ἀπαλλάττει, πρὸς σωφροσύνην βοηθεῖ, τὸν οἶστρον τῆς φύσεως παύει. Ἀλλ' εὐεργέτει αὐτὴν καὶ σύ. Πῶς; Ἐν τοῖς πνευματικοῖς ὄρεξον χεῖρα· ἅπερ ἂν ἀκούσῃς χρήσιμα, ταῦτα, καθάπερ αἱ χελιδόνες, τῷ στόματι διαβαστάζων ἀπάγαγε, καὶ ἔνθες εἰς τὸ στόμα καὶ τῆς μητρὸς καὶ τῶν νεοττῶν. Πῶς γὰρ οὐκ ἄτοπον ἐν μὲν τοῖς ἄλλοις τῶν πρωτείων ἀξιοῦν σαυτὸν, καὶ τὴν τῆς κεφαλῆς χώραν ἐπέχειν, ἐν δὲ τῇ διδασκαλίᾳ λείπειν τὴν τάξιν; Τὸν ἄρχοντα τῶν ἀρχομένων οὐκ ἐν ταῖς τιμαῖς ὑπερέχειν δεῖ, ἀλλ' ἐν ταῖς ἀρεταῖς· τοῦτο γὰρ ἄρχοντος· ἐκεῖνο μὲν γὰρ τῶν ἀρχομένων ἐστὶ, τοῦτο δὲ αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἄρχοντος κατόρθωμα. Ἂν πολλῆς ἀπολαύσῃς τιμῆς, οὐδὲν τοῦτο πρὸς σέ· ἔλαβες γὰρ παρ' ἑτέρων· ἂν πολλῇ λάμπῃς τῇ ἀρετῇ, τοῦτο ὅλον σόν. Κεφαλὴ τῆς γυναικὸς εἶ· οὐκοῦν ῥυθμιζέτω τὸ σῶμα τὸ λοιπὸν ἡ κεφαλή. Οὐχ ὁρᾷς ὅτι οὐ τῷ τόπῳ τοσοῦτον ὑπερέχει 62.500 τοῦ λοιποῦ σώματος, ὅσον τῇ προνοίᾳ, καθάπερ τις κυβερνήτης, ἅπαν αὐτὸ εὐθύνουσα; Ἐν γὰρ τῇ κεφαλῇ καὶ οἱ τοῦ σώματος, καὶ οἱ τῆς ψυχῆς ὀφθαλμοί· ἐκεῖθεν ἐπιῤῥεῖ τούτοις τὸ διορατικὸν, ἐκεῖθεν τὸ ἡγεμονικόν. Καὶ τὸ μὲν λοιπὸν τάττεται εἰς διακονίαν, αὐτὴ δὲ εἰς τὸ ἐπιτάττειν κεῖται. Πᾶσαι αἱ αἰσθήσεις ἐκεῖθεν ἔχουσι τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ τὴν πηγήν· τὰ φωνητικὰ ὄργανα ἐκεῖθεν ἀναπέμπεται, τὸ διορατικὸν, τὸ ὀσφρητικὸν, ἡ ἁφὴ πᾶσα· ἡ γὰρ τῶν νεύρων ῥίζα καὶ τῶν ὀστῶν ἐκεῖθεν συνέστηκεν. Ὁρᾷς ὅτι τῇ προνοίᾳ μᾶλλον ὑπερέχει, ἢ τῇ τιμῇ· Οὕτω καὶ τῶν γυναικῶν ἡμεῖς ἄρχωμεν· νικῶμεν αὐτὰς μὴ τῷ πλείονα τιμὴν ζητεῖν παρ' αὐτῶν, ἀλλὰ τῷ μειζόνως αὐτὰς εὐεργετεῖσθαι παρ' ἡμῶν. Ἔδειξα ὅτι οὐ μικρὰς ἡμᾶς εὐεργεσίας εὐεργετοῦσιν, ἀλλ' ἐὰν θέλωμεν ἐν τοῖς πνευματικοῖς δοῦναι τὴν ἀντίδοσιν, ἡμεῖς νικῶμεν· ἐπεὶ ἐν τοῖς σωματικοῖς ἀντίῤῥοπόν τι εἰσαγαγεῖν οὐ δυνατόν. Τί γάρ; εἰσάγετε πολλὰ χρήματα; Ἀλλ' ἐκείνη φυλάττει· ἀντίῤῥοπος δὲ αὕτη ἐκείνης ἡ πρόνοια, καὶ οὕτως αὐτῆς δεῖται. ∆ιὰ τί; Ὅτι πολλοὶ πολλὰ κεκτημένοι, ἐπειδὴ φυλάττουσαν οὐκ ἔσχον, πάντα ἀπώλεσαν. Ἀλλὰ τῶν παίδων ἕνεκεν κοινωνεῖτε ἀμφότεροι, καὶ ἴση παρ' ἑκατέρου ἡ εὐεργεσία· μᾶλλον δὲ ἐκείνη πολυπονωτέραν ἐν τούτοις ἔχει τὴν διακονίαν, διαπαντὸς φέρουσα τὸ κυόμενον, καὶ ταῖς ὠδῖσι διακοπτομένη. Ὥστε ἐν τοῖς πνευματικοῖς μόνοις δυνήσῃ νικᾷν. Μὴ δὴ φροντίζωμεν ὅπως ἡμῖν χρήματα ἔσται, ἀλλ' ὅπως ἃς ἐνεπιστεύθημεν ψυχὰς, μετὰ παῤῥησίας τῷ Θεῷ παραστήσωμεν· ἐν τῷ γὰρ ῥυθμίζειν ἐκείνας καὶ ἑαυτοὺς τὰ μέγιστα ὀνήσομεν. Ὁ γὰρ ἕτερον διδάσκων, εἰ καὶ μηδὲν ἕτερον, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ λέγειν κατανύσσεται, καὶ μάλιστα ὅταν ἴδῃ ἑαυτὸν ὑπεύθυνον ὄντα τούτοις, ὑπὲρ ὧν ἑτέροις ἐπιτιμᾷ. Ἐπεὶ οὖν καὶ ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς, κἀκείνας ὠφελοῦμεν, καὶ δι' ἐκείνων τὸν οἶκον, καὶ τῷ Θεῷ τοῦτο δοκεῖ προηγουμένως, μὴ ἀποκάμωμεν καὶ τῆς ἑαυτῶν, καὶ τῆς τῶν διακονουμένων ἡμῖν ψυχῆς κηδόμενοι, ἵν' ὑπὲρ ἁπάντων