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he disturbed those inhabiting this land of Africa, who were already preoccupied with good preconceptions about her, had not the aforementioned all-praised prefect, using a method befitting his intelligence, spread word everywhere that the letter was false and spurious; and he pretended to be indignant against the chancellor, and he dealt fittingly with those of the heretics from both Alexandria and Syria who were stirring up trouble on the pretext of such a letter; having disciplined some with imprisonment, and others even with beatings, saying not to insult the preconceptions about our lady the Patricia. For they shamelessly insisted, relying, as I said, on the letter, that she rejoiced in their dogmas; 0461 and lying, they did not refrain from telling everyone, among whom Thomas, their so-called bishop, happens to be one of those who came to her with permission, and were greatly honored by her; which most of all both disturbed and scandalized everyone. So that I too, having been summoned then out of necessity, went to both rebuke to their face those who dared to say this, and to persuade those who heard, that in no way, by the grace of Christ the Savior, either she, or her spouse who is now among the saints, have been partial in any way whatever to heretics. And likewise also many other of the most pious monks sojourning here, and especially the blessed servants of God and our Fathers, who are called Eucratadae, saying the same things, were causing the many to be free of such a false suspicion. And to put it simply, the said all-praised man has come by every means, setting out to show her to be pure of all blame, 15Β_158 and faithful to God, and to reveal to all that she is honorable.

But I have not yet become free of this doubt, I who especially make your affairs my own, I, the small and unworthy one, of the great ones who have been deemed worthy of divine grace; still being vexed about this, and not having what to decide and vote upon. For knowing our common lady, the all-praised Patricia, to be standing from her ancestors on the unshakeable rock of faith, and having been taught to breathe almost nothing else than the right faith in God, which is proclaimed according to the Catholic Church of God, I cannot believe the letter to be hers. And again, seeing the chancellor confirming it with dreadful oaths, and affirming he was sent here by her for this purpose and this alone, I consider it a fearful thing not to believe; and I am in the middle of two thoughts, standing on the border, not able to find the prevailing one, and the one able to draw to itself the soul's consent. But, my blessed lord, that I may speak the truth, and declare all that I have been able to judge; and receive me, speaking boldly out of much pain of soul because of my love for you; if indeed by the will and counsel of your God-guarded self, the letter on behalf of the said heretical women has come from her; which I wonder at, I do not accept; inferring that you are not without blame. For I hear the divine Scripture teaching that Jehoshaphat, that pious and faithful king of Judaea, having allied himself with Ahab, king of Israel, who was defiled by many pollutions of idolatry, when he once waged war against Syria, was met with indignation and was accused by God, who spoke thus to him through the prophet: "Do you help a man hated by me, and hostile to the Lord God?" But if, perhaps persuaded by others who suggested this, 15Β_160 she has done it, not even so do I agree with what has been done, 0464 remembering that Rehoboam, the son of the great Solomon, who by preferring the council of the younger men to that of the elders, had the greater part of his own kingdom cut away; and at the same time also knowing it is forbidden to meddle in canonical matters which are not lawful, and especially for women, for whom the divine word has declared that to be silent is more suitable than breathing.

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ταύτην οἰκοῦντας τήν Ἄφρων χώραν, προλήψεσι χρησταῖς περί αὐτῆς ἤδη προκατειλημμένους διέσεισεν, εἰ μή πρεπούσῃ τῇ αὐτοῦ συνέσει μεθόδῳ χρησάμενος ὁ λεχθείς πανεύφημος ἔπαρχος, ψευδές εἶναι τό γράμμα καί νόθον πανταχοῦ διεφήμισε· καί ἀγανακτεῖν κατά τοῦ καγκελλαρίου προσεποιήσατο, καί τοῖς ἀνασυρεῖσι τῶν αἱρετικῶν προφάσει τοῦ τοιούτου γράμματος, τῶν τε ἀπό Ἀλεξανδρείας καί Συρίας δεόντως ἐχρήσατο· τούς μέν φυλακαῖς, τούς δέ καί πληγαῖς παιδεύσας, μή ὑβρίζειν λέγων τάς προλήψεις τῆς δεσποίνης ἡμῶν Πατρικίας. Ἰσχυρίζοντο γάρ ἀναιδῶς, ἐρειδόμενοι, ὡς εἴπον, τῷ γράμματι χαίρειν αὐτήν τοῖς αὐτῶν δόγμασι· 0461 καί πᾶσι λέγειν οὐ παρῃτοῦντο ψευδόμενοι, ὧν Θωμᾶς ὁ λεγόμενος αὐτῶν ἐπίσκοπος, τῶν ἐπ᾿ ἀδείας πρός αὐτήν παραγινομένων, καί μεγάλως παρ᾿ αὐτῆς τιμωμένων εἷς ὤν τυγχάνει· ὅπερ πάντων μάλιστα τούς πάντας ἐτάραξέ τε καί ἐσκανδάλισεν. Ὥστε κἀμέ ἐξ ἀνάγκης τότε κληθέντα ἀπελθεῖν, ἐλέγξαι τε τούς τοῦτο εἰπεῖν τολμήσαντας κατά πρόσωπον, καί τούς ἀκούσαντας πεῖσαι, ὡς οὐδαμῶς χάριτι τοῦ Σωτῆρος Χριστοῦ ἤ αὐτήν, ἤ ὁ ἐν ἁγίοις γενόμενος σύμβιος καθοτιοῦν αἱρετικοῖς προσπεπόνθασιν. Ὁμοίως δέ καί ἄλλοι πολλοί τῶν ἐνταῦθα ἐπιξενουμένων εὐλαβεστάτων μοναχῶν, καί μάλιστα οἱ εὐλογημένοι δοῦλοι τοῦ Θεοῦ καί Πατέρες ἡμῶν, οἱ ἐπίκλην Εὐκρατάδης τά αὐτά λέγοντες, τούς πολλούς ἐποίουν τῆς τοιαύτης ψευδοῦς ὑπονοίας ἐκτός. Καί ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν, διά παντός τρόπου ἐλήλυθεν ὁ εἰρημένος πανεύφημος ἀνήρ, παντός μώμου καθαράν 15Β_158 αὐτήν ἀποδεῖξαι, καί πιστήν τῷ Θεῷ, καί τιμίαν οὖσαν φανερῶσαι τοῖς πᾶσι προθέμενος.

Ἐγώ δέ οὔπω τῆς ἐπί τοῦτο ἀμφιβολίας ἐλεύθερος γέγονα, ὁ μάλιστα τά ὑμέτερα οἰκειούμενος, ὁ μικρός καί οὐδενός ἄξιος, τῶν μεγάλων καί τῆς θείας ἠξιωμένων χάριτος· ἀσχάλλων ἔτι περί τούτου, και οὐκ ἔχων τί κρίνας ψηφίζομαι. Τήν τε γάρ κοινήν ἡμῶν δέσποιναν τήν πανεύφημον Πατρικίαν ἐπί τῆς ἀῤῥαγοῦς τῆς πίστεως πέτρας βεβηκυΐαν ἐκ προγόνων εἰδώς καί μηδέν ἄλλο σχεδόν ἀναπνεῖν δεδιδαγμένην, ἤ τήν ὀρθήν εἰς Θεόν πίστιν, τήν κατά τήν τοῦ Θεοῦ καθολικήν Ἐκκλησίαν κηρυττομένην, πιστεύειν οὐκ ἔχω αὐτῆς ὑπάρχειν τό γράμμα. Καί πάλιν ὁρῶν ὅρκοις φρικτοῖς πιστούμενον καγκελλάριον, καί ἐπί τούτῳ καί μόνον παρ᾿ αὐτῆς πεπέμφθαι ἐνταῦθα διαβεβαιούμενον, φοβερόν ἡγοῦμαι τό μή πιστεύειν· καί μέσος εἰμί δύο λογισμῶν ἑστώς μεθόριος, οὐκ ἔχων τόν νικῶντα εὑρεῖν, καί πρός ἑαυτόν τῆς ψυχῆς ἐπισπᾶσθαι δυνάμενον τήν συγκατάθεσιν. Πλήν, δέσποτά μου εὐλογημένε, ἵνα τἀληθές εἴπω, καί πᾶν ὅ κρίνειν δεδύνημαι ἐξαγορεύσω· καί δέξασθέ με ἐκ πολλοῦ πόνου ψυχῆς διά τήν πρός ὑμᾶς ἀγάπην τολμηρῶς παῤῥησιαζόμενον· εἰ τῷ ὄντι βουλήσει καί γνώμῃ τῶν θεοφυλάκτων ὑμῶν, τό ὑπέρ τῶν εἰρημένων αἱρετικῶν γυναικῶν γράμμα παρ᾿ αὐτῆς γεγένηται· ὅπερ θαυμάζω, οὐκ ἀποδέχομαι· οὐκ ἔξω βάρους εἶναι ὑμᾶς τεκμαιρόμενος. Ἀκούω γάρ τῆς θείας διδασκούσης Γραφῆς, ὡς Ἰωσάφατ ὁ εὐσεβής ἐκεῖνος καί πιστός τῆς Ἰουδαίας γενόμενος βασιλεύς, τῷ Ἀχαάβ βασιλεῖ τοῦ Ἰσραήλ, πολλοῖς ῥεπυπωμένῳ εἰδωλολατρείας μολυσμοῖς, κατά τῆς Συρίας ποτέ κινήσαντι πόλεμον συμμαχήσας, ἠγανακτήθη τε καί ἐνεγκλήθη ὑπό τοῦ Θεοῦ, πρός αὐτόν οὕτω διά τοῦ προφήτου φήσαντος· Εἰ ἀνθρώπω μισουμένῳ μοι, καί ἐχθραίνοντι Κυρίῳ τῷ Θεῷ σύ βοηθεῖς; Εἰ δέ ἄλλοις ἴσως ὑποθεμένοις τοῦτο πεισθεῖσα 15Β_160 πεποίηκεν, οὐδ᾿ οὕτως τῷ γενομένῳ προστίθεμαι, 0464 τόνῬοβοάμ ἐκεῖνον τόν τοῦ μεγάλου Σολομῶντος υἱόν ἐνθυμούμενος, τόν διά τοῦ προκρῖναι τῆς τῶν πρεσβευτέρων βουλῆς τήν τῶν νεωτέρων, τό πλεῖστον τῆς ἑαυτοῦ βασιλείας ὑποτεμόμενον· ἅμα δέ καί κανονικοῖς πράγμασι ἐγχειρεῖν οἷς μή θέμις ἀπώμοτον γινώσκων, καί μάλιστα γυναιξίν, αἷς τό σιωπᾷν ἀναπνοῆς προσφορώτερον ὁ θεῖος ἀπεφήνατο λόγος.