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he sent away with as many gifts as possible. Therefore, he deemed those who had asked worthy of this providence. And he took thought of his own accord for the disciples of piety in Persia. For having learned that they were being driven out by the impious, and that their king, enslaved to error, was contriving all sorts of plots against them, he sent a letter, both exhorting him to be pious and asking that the pious enjoy honor. But the letter will better show the earnestness of the one who wrote it. "Letter of the Emperor Constantine to Sapor, King of the "Persians, concerning his providence for the people of God. "By preserving the divine faith, I partake of the light of truth; "being guided by the light of truth, I 77 "acknowledge the divine faith. For this reason, as the facts confirm, I recognize the most "holy religion as the teacher of the knowledge of the most "holy God; this is the worship I profess to hold. Having the power of this God "as an ally, beginning from the ends of the ocean, "I have roused the whole world in succession with firm hopes of salvation, "so that all things whatsoever that had been enslaved by so many tyrants and had faded away, yielding to daily "misfortunes, having received "the vindication of the common good, might be rekindled "as if by some healing. This is the God I worship; "whose sign my army, dedicated to God, "bears upon its shoulders, and it is directed towards wherever the cause "of justice may call; and from these very things, by means of "conspicuous trophies, I immediately receive his favor in return. This God "I confess to honor with immortal memory, this one I am brightly illumined to believe exists in the highest "places with a pure and clean "mind. "On bended knee I invoke this God, shunning all abominable "blood and disgusting and repellent odors, and turning away from all earthly splendor, "by all of which the unlawful and unspeakable error, being polluted, has "cast down many of the nations and whole races, "delivering them to the lowest regions. For what the God of all, by his providence for men through "his own love for mankind, brought forth into the open for the sake of their needs, these things "he in no way tolerates to be drawn to each person's desire, "but he requires from men only a clean mind and an unstained soul, "weighing in these the deeds of virtue and piety. 78 "For he is pleased with works of fairness and gentleness, loving the meek, "hating the turbulent, cherishing faith, punishing unbelief, "shattering every power accompanied by arrogance, he avenges the insolence of the proud, "he destroys from their foundations those lifted up by pride, and to the humble-minded "and long-suffering he allots things according to their worth. Thus also he greatly esteems a just "kingdom and strengthens it with aid from himself, "and he preserves royal understanding in the tranquility of peace. "I do not think I am mistaken, my brother, in confessing this God to be the "originator and father of all, whom many of the emperors here, "led astray by frenzied errors, attempted to deny. "But such a retributive end consumed all of them, that "the whole race of men after them set down their misfortunes as "a cursed example for those who emulate similar things. "Of these I consider that man to have been one, whom the "divine wrath, like some thunderbolt, drove out from here and delivered to your parts, "making the trophy among you a much-talked-of one because of his "disgrace. But it seems indeed to have turned out for the good that even in our "own age the punishment of such men has been shown to be conspicuous. For I myself "have also looked upon the ends of those who recently with unlawful edicts "thoroughly disturbed the people dedicated to God. And for this very reason there is much "thanks to God, that through his perfect providence the whole of mankind that "serves the divine law, peace having been restored to it, exults "and rejoices. From this I am also convinced for ourselves that all things are 79 "in the best and safest condition, whenever through their pure "and approved religion, by their concord concerning the divine, he deigns to gather all men to "himself. "Of this company of men, I mean

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ἐξέπεμψε μετὰ δώρων ὅτι μάλιστα πλείστων. ταύτης μὲν οὖν τῆς προμηθείας τοὺς ᾐτηκότας ἠξίωσε. Τῶν ἐν Περσίδι δὲ τῆς εὐσεβείας τροφίμων αὐτόματος προὐνοήθη. μαθὼν γὰρ αὐτοὺς ὑπὸ τῶν δυσσεβῶν ἐξελαύνεσθαι καὶ τὸν ἐκείνων βασιλέα τῇ πλάνῃ δεδουλωμένον παντοδαπὰς αὐτοῖς καττύειν ἐπι βουλὰς ἐπέστειλε, καὶ παραινῶν εὐσεβεῖν καὶ τοὺς εὐσεβοῦντας τιμῆς ἀπολαύειν αἰτῶν. ἄμεινον δὲ τὴν τοῦ γεγραφότος σπουδὴν ἐπιδείξει τὰ γράμματα. "Βασιλέως Κωνσταντίνου ἐπιστολὴ πρὸς Σαβώρην τὸν "Περσῶν βασιλέα περὶ τῆς τοῦ λαοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ προνοίας. "Τὴν θείαν πίστιν φυλάσσων τοῦ τῆς ἀληθείας φωτὸς μετα "λαγχάνω· τῷ τῆς ἀληθείας φωτὶ ὁδηγούμενος τὴν θείαν πίστιν 77 "ἐπιγινώσκω. τοιγάρτοι τούτοις, ὡς τὰ πράγματα βεβαιοῖ, τὴν ἁγιω "τάτην θρησκείαν γνωρίζω διδάσκαλον τῆς ἐπιγνώσεως τοῦ ἁγιω "τάτου θεοῦ· ταύτην τὴν λατρείαν ἔχειν ὁμολογῶ. τούτου τοῦ θεοῦ "τὴν δύναμιν ἔχων σύμμαχον, ἐκ τῶν περάτων τοῦ ὠκεανοῦ ἀρξά "μενος πᾶσαν ἐφεξῆς τὴν οἰκουμένην βεβαίαις σωτηρίας ἐλπίσι διή "γειρα, ὡς ἅπαντα ὅσα ὑπὸ τοσούτοις τυράννοις δεδουλωμένα ταῖς "καθημεριναῖς συμφοραῖς ἐνδόντα ἐξίτηλα ἐγεγόνει, ταῦτα προσλαβόντα "τὴν τῶν κοινῶν ἐκδικίαν, ὥσπερ ἔκ τινος θεραπείας, ἀναζωπυρη "θῆναι. τοῦτον τὸν θεὸν πρεσβεύω· οὗ τὸ σημεῖον ὁ τῷ θεῷ ἀνα "κείμενός μου στρατὸς ὑπὲρ τῶν ὤμων φέρει, καὶ ἐφ' ἅπερ ἂν ὁ τοῦ "δικαίου λόγος παρακαλῇ κατευθύνεται· ἐξ αὐτῶν δὲ ἐκείνων περι "φανέσι τροπαίοις αὐτίκα τὴν χάριν ἀντιλαμβάνω. τοῦτον τὸν θεὸν "ἀθανάτῳ μνήμῃ τιμᾶν ὁμολογῶ, τοῦτον ἀκραιφνεῖ καὶ καθαρᾷ δια "νοίᾳ ἐν τοῖς ἀνωτάτω τυγχάνειν ὑπεραυγάζομαι. "Τοῦτον ἐπικαλοῦμαι γόνυ κλίνας, φεύγων μὲν πᾶν αἷμα βδελυ "κτὸν καὶ ὀσμὰς ἀηδεῖς καὶ ἀποτροπαίους, πᾶσαν δὲ γεώδη λαμπηδόνα "ἐκκλίνων, οἷς πᾶσιν ἡ ἀθέμιτος καὶ ἄρρητος πλάνη χραινομένη πολ "λοὺς τῶν ἐθνῶν καὶ ὅλα γένη κατέρριψε τοῖς κατωτάτω μέρεσι "παραδοῦσα. ἃ γὰρ ὁ τῶν ὅλων θεὸς προνοίᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων διὰ "φιλανθρωπίαν οἰκείαν χρείας ἕνεκα εἰς τοὐμφανὲς παρήγαγε, ταῦτα "πρὸς τὴν ἑκάστου ἐπιθυμίαν ἕλκεσθαι οὐδαμῶς ἀνέχεται, καθαρὰν "δὲ μόνην διάνοιαν καὶ ψυχὴν ἀκηλίδωτον παρὰ ἀνθρώπων ἀπαιτεῖ, "τὰς τῆς ἀρετῆς καὶ εὐσεβείας πράξεις ἐν τούτοις σταθμώμενος. 78 "ἐπιεικείας γὰρ καὶ ἡμερότητος ἔργοις ἀρέσκεται, πράους φιλῶν, "μισῶν τοὺς ταραχώδεις, ἀγαπῶν τὴν πίστιν, ἀπιστίαν κολάζων, "πᾶσαν μετ' ἀλαζονείας δυναστείαν καταρρηγνύς, ὕβριν ὑπερηφάνων "τιμωρεῖται, τοὺς ὑπὸ τύφου ἐπαιρομένους ἐκ βάθρων ἀναιρεῖ, ταπει "νόφροσι καὶ ἀνεξικάκοις τὰ πρὸς ἀξίαν νέμων. οὕτω καὶ βασιλείαν "δικαίαν περὶ πολλοῦ ποιούμενος ταῖς παρ' ἑαυτοῦ ἐπικουρίαις κρα "τύνει, σύνεσίν τε βασιλικὴν τῷ γαληναίῳ τῆς εἰρήνης διαφυλάττει. "Οὔ μοι δοκῶ πλανᾶσθαι, ἀδελφέ μου, τοῦτον εἶναι θεὸν ὁμο "λογῶν πάντων ἀρχηγὸν καὶ πατέρα, ὃν πολλοὶ τῶν τῇδε βασιλευ "σάντων μανιώδεσι πλάναις ὑπαχθέντες ἐπεχείρησαν ἀρνήσασθαι. "ἀλλ' ἐκείνους ἅπαντας τοιοῦτον τιμωρὸν τέλος κατανάλωσεν, ὡς "πᾶν τὸ μετ' ἐκείνους ἀνθρώπων γένος τὰς ἐκείνων συμφορὰς ἀντ' "ἄλλου παραδείγματος ἐπαράτους τοῖς τὰ ὅμοια ζηλοῦσι τίθεσθαι. "τούτων ἐκεῖνον ἕνα ἡγοῦμαι γεγονέναι, ὃν καθάπερ τις σκηπτὸς ἡ "θεία μῆνις τῶν τῇδε ἀπελάσασα τοῖς ὑμετέροις μέρεσι παραδέδωκε, "τῆς ἐπ' αὐτῷ αἰσχύνης πολυθρύλητον τὸ παρ' ὑμῖν τρόπαιον ἀπο "φήναντα. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἔοικεν εἰς καλὸν προκεχωρηκέναι τὸ καὶ ἐν τῷ καθ' "ἡμᾶς αἰῶνι τὴν τῶν τοιούτων τιμωρίαν περιφανῆ δειχθῆναι. ἐπεῖδον "γὰρ καὶ αὐτὸς ἐκείνων τὰ τέλη τῶν ἔναγχος ἀθεμίτοις προστάγμασι "τὸν τῷ θεῷ ἀνακείμενον λαὸν ἐκταραξάντων. διὸ δὴ καὶ πολλὴ "χάρις τῷ θεῷ, ὅτι τελείᾳ προνοίᾳ πᾶν τὸ ἀνθρώπινον τὸ θερα "πεῦον τὸν θεῖον νόμον, ἀποδοθείσης αὐτῷ τῆς εἰρήνης, ἀγάλλεται "καὶ γαυριᾷ. ἐντεῦθεν καὶ ἡμῖν αὐτοῖς πέπεισμαι ὡς ὅτι κάλλιστα 79 "καὶ ἀσφαλέστατα ἔχει ἅπαντα, ὁπότε διὰ τῆς ἐκείνων καθαρᾶς τε "καὶ δοκίμου θρησκείας ἐκ τῆς περὶ τὸ θεῖον συμφωνίας πάντας εἰς "αὐτὸν ἀγείρειν ἀξιοῖ. "Τούτου τοῦ καταλόγου τῶν ἀνθρώπων, λέγω δὴ