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It was necessary to open the ears to everyone wishing to say something against someone, and certainly not to pronounce judgement without trial against the person accused; for "does your law," it says, "judge a man, unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing?" So when your Beatitude heard this grievous and pitiable thing concerning our lowliness (for what is a greater evil than separation from the church and for the chief shepherd to lose the sheep, or rather the fellow shepherd? For there is, even if unworthily, for us sinners too the anointing and name of shepherd from God, I dare to say), it was necessary to bring it forward, to investigate, to admonish, sometimes in private, sometimes in public according to the teaching prescribed by the Lord "between you and him alone" or "with two," and then thus upon his persistence, as He himself says, "let him be to you as the Gentile and the tax collector." But we, up to this point, have neither through a messenger nor in person heard any such thing from your holy soul, nor have we been admonished; and so let your Perfection consider if bringing forth a decision in this way has not become deservedly grievous to your children. But let us come to the defense itself, making our case both to God the all-seeing and to your high priesthood. We are not schismatics, O holy head, from the church of God; may we never suffer this. But even if in other ways we exist in many sins, yet we are orthodox and nurtured by the catholic church, rejecting every heresy and accepting every approved catholic and local synod, and indeed also the canonical statutes pronounced by them; for one is not perfectly orthodox, but by half, who thinks he has the right faith but is not guided by the divine canons. And your Beatitude, when you were appointed, we accepted, as we declared ourselves obedient to you. And from then until now we commemorate you in the liturgy as is proper and, as God is my witness, if on that very day you had sought to have communion with us, we would have had communion with you without any hesitation, since you have also been desired by us from the beginning. But on account of what is this that is being rumored? Because of the steward, whom the truth itself deposed, having fallen under many canons; since even before the manifest adultery, with the former emperor committing adultery with various persons, not only was he serving liturgy and giving communion and dining with him, but also casting his lot with him, from which he also became eager for open debauchery, despising God and the divine judgements. And so that what is said might be clearer, not for instruction, God forbid, but only for a reminder, let your Holiness, if you command, take up the sacred liturgy concerning the marital crowning and see how great the provocation of the Holy Spirit must be considered here in such contradictions; for certainly whatever the priest declares, God also promises to ratify, according to the great Dionysius. But for this reason we beseech your Perfection that the one deposed by the canons and who was excluded for nine whole years by the one who preceded your Holiness cease from the sacred ministry, into which he has entered unlawfully. For just now have we opened our humble mouth, when we were accused; for when that small assembly had occurred — and I do not know what to call it — I had just come out of prison. and when I saw these men gathered together, who had previously accepted the adultery and welcomed the man who contracted an adulterous marriage, I remembered that prophetic saying, that "the prudent man will keep silent in that time, for it is an evil time." But since the same one says: "I have kept silent; shall I also be silent forever?" for this reason, at an opportune time, having been slandered, I have reported the present matters; since as far as it was in my power, in every way I was careful in these two years not to bring the matter into the open, saying this to myself, that, since I do not have the rank of a bishop able to rebuke, my own self-preservation is sufficient for me and that I do not partake of his communion and of those with him in full knowledge

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ἔτυχεν δεῖ τὰ ὦτα ἀνοίγειν παντὶ τῷ βουλομένῳ κατά τινός τι λέγειν, οὐδ' οὐ μὴν ἀποφαίνειν ἀκρίτως εἰς τὸ διαβληθὲν πρόσωπον· μὴ γὰρ ὁ νόμος ὑμῶν, φησί, κρίνει τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἐὰν μὴ ἀκούσῃ παρ' αὐτοῦ πρότερον καὶ γνῷ τί ποιεῖ. ὥστε ἀκουσάσης τῆς μακαριότητός σου τοῦτο τὸ δύσφορον καὶ ἐλεεινὸν περὶ τῆς εὐτελείας ἡμῶν (τί γὰρ μεῖζον κακὸν τοῦ τῆς ἐκκλησίας χωρισμοῦ καὶ τοῦ τὸν ἀρχιποίμενα τὸ πρόβατον ἀπολέσαι εἴτουν τὸν συμποιμένα; ἔστι γάρ, εἰ καὶ ἀναξίως, καὶ ἡμῖν τοῖς ἁμαρτωλοῖς χρῖσμα καὶ ὄνομα παρὰ θεοῦ ποιμένος, τολμῶ λέγειν), ἐνεγκεῖν, ἀνακρῖναι, νουθετῆσαι, πῆ μὲν ἰδίᾳ, πῆ δὲ δημοσίᾳ κατὰ τὴν ὑπὸ τοῦ Κυρίου ὑπαγορευομένην μεταξὺ σοῦ καὶ αὐτοῦ μόνου ἢ μετὰ δύο διδασκαλίαν καὶ εἶθ' οὕτως τῇ ἐπιμονῇ, ὡς αὐτός φησιν, ἔστω σοι ὥσπερ ὁ ἐθνικὸς καὶ ὁ τελώνης. ἡμεῖς δὲ μέχρι τοῦ δεῦρο οὔτε δι' ἀποστόλου οὔτε αὐτοψεί τι τοιοῦτον πρὸς τῆς ἁγίας σου ψυχῆς ἀλλ' οὔτε ἀκηκόαμεν οὔτε νενουθετήμεθα· καὶ οὕτως τὸ ἐνεγκεῖν ἀπόφασιν σκοπησάτω ἡ τελειότης σου, εἰ οὐκ ἀξίως λυπηρὸν γεγένηται τοῖς τέκνοις σου. Ἴημεν δὲ ἐπ' αὐτῆς τῆς ἀπολογίας, θεῷ τε τῷ παντεφόρῳ καὶ τῇ ἀρχιερωσύνῃ σου ποιούμενοι τὸν λόγον. οὐκ ἐσμὲν ἀποσχίσται, ὦ ἁγία κεφαλή, τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκκλησίας, μήποτε τοῦτο πάθοιμεν. ἀλλ' εἰ καὶ ἄλλως ἐν πολλοῖς ἁμαρτήμασιν ὑπάρχομεν, πλὴν ὀρθόδοξοι καὶ τῆς καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας τρόφιμοι, πᾶσαν αἵρεσιν ἀποβαλλόμενοι καὶ πᾶσαν καθολικὴν καὶ τοπικὴν σύνοδον ἐγκεκριμένην ἀποδεχόμενοι, οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς παρ' αὐτῶν ἐκφωνηθείσας κανονικὰς διατυπώσεις· μηδὲ γὰρ τέλειον εἶναι ὀρθόδοξον, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἡμισείας, τὸν τὴν πίστιν ὀρθὴν οἰόμενον ἔχειν τοῖς δὲ θείοις κανόσι μὴ ἀπευθυνόμενον. καὶ τὴν μακαριότητά σου, ἡνίκα προεβλήθη, ἀπεδεξάμεθα, καθὰ εἰς ὑπήκοον αὐτῆς ἀπελογησάμεθα. καὶ ἔκτοτε καὶ μέχρι τοῦ δεῦρο ἐν τῇ μυσταγωγίᾳ ὡς καθήκει ἀναφέρομεν καί, ὡς μάρτυς θεός, εἰ κατ' αὐτὴν τὴν ἡμέραν ἐζήτησεν κοινωνῆσαι ἡμᾶς, συνεκοινωνοῦμεν ἂν αὐτῇ μηδὲν διακρινόμενοι, ἐπεὶ καὶ ποθητὴ ἡμῖν ἐξ ἀρχῆς. Οὗ χάριν δὲ τὸ θρυλλούμενον; διὰ τὸν οἰκονόμον, ὃν καθῆρεν αὐτὴ ἡ ἀλήθεια, πολλοῖς κανόσιν ὑποπεσόντα· ἐπειδὴ καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἐμφανοῦς μοιχείας, μοιχεύοντι τῷ προβεβασιλευκότι ἐν διαφόροις προσώποις, οὐ μόνον ἦν λειτουργῶν καὶ μεταδιδοὺς καὶ συνεστιώμενος, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν μερίδα μετ' αὐτοῦ τιθέμενος, ἐξ οὗ καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἀναφανδὸν ἀσέλγειαν πρόθυμος γέγονεν, καταφρονήσας θεοῦ καὶ τῶν θείων κριμάτων. καὶ ἵνα ἐκδηλότερον εἴη τὸ λεγόμενον, οὐ πρὸς διδαχήν, ἄπαγε, ἀλλ' ἢ μόνον πρὸς ὑπόμνησιν, αὐτήν, εἰ κελεύει, τὴν κατὰ τὴν στεφανικὴν συνάφειαν ἱερὰν μυσταγωγίαν ἀναλήψεται καὶ κατίδοι πόσον ἐστὶν ἐνταῦθα ὑπολαβεῖν τὸν παροξυσμὸν τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐν ταῖς τοιαύταις ἐναντιολογίαις· πάντως γὰρ ὅσα ὁ ἱερεὺς ὑποφαίνει, ταῦτα καὶ θεὸς κυροῦν ἐπαγγέλλεται κατὰ τὸν μέγαν ∆ιονύσιον. Ἀλλὰ διὰ τοῦτο δεόμεθά σου τῆς τελειότητος τὸν ὑπὸ τῶν κανόνων καθῃρημένον καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ προηγησαμένου τὴν ἁγιωσύνην σου εἰρχθέντα ἐν ὅλοις ἐννέα ἔτεσιν παῦσαι τῆς ἱερουργίας, παραλόγως εἰσελθόντα. ἄρτι γὰρ τὸ ταπεινὸν ἡμῶν στόμα ἠνοίξαμεν, ἡνίκα ἐνεκλήθημεν· ὁπηνίκα γὰρ ἐγεγόνει ἡ συνέλευσις ἐκείνη ἡ μικρὰ καὶ οὐκ οἶδ' ὁποία εἰπεῖν ἐκ τῆς φυλακῆς ἤμην καταυτὰ ἐξεληλυθώς. καὶ ἐπεὶ ἑώρων τούτους συνηθροισμένους, τοὺς καὶ πρότερον τὴν μοιχείαν καταδεξαμένους καὶ τὸν μοιχοζεύκτην ἀσπασαμένους, ἐμνήσθην τοῦ προφητικοῦ ἐκείνου, ὅτι ὁ συνιῶν ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ σιωπήσεται, ὅτι καιρὸς πονηρός ἐστιν. ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ ὁ αὐτὸς λέγει· ἐσιώπησα· μὴ καὶ ἀεὶ σιωπήσομαι; διὰ τοῦτο ἐν καιρῷ εὐθέτῳ συκοφαντηθεὶς ἀνένεγκα τὰ παριστάμενα· ἐπεὶ τὸ ὅσον ἐν ἐμοὶ παντὶ τρόπῳ ἐφυλαξάμην ἐν τοῖς δυσὶν ἔτεσι τούτοις μὴ εἰς προῦπτον ἐκβεῖν τὴν ὑπόθεσιν, ἐκεῖνο ἐν ἐμαυτῷ λέγων, ὅτι, ἐπεὶ οὐκ εἰμὶ ἐπισκόπου ἔχων ἀξίωμα δυνάμενος ἐλέγχειν, ἀρκετόν μοι ἡ οἰκεία φυλακὴ καὶ τοῦ μὴ μετασχεῖν με τῆς τε ἐκείνου κοινωνίας καὶ τῶν ἐκείνῳ ἐν γνώσει