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sent it down with a good and noble nod, and he was in all things a God-fearing man, as has been said. But it was, in fact, too great for the ministry of a letter, so that the strife of the disputants increased to a greater degree, and the contagion of the evil spread to all the eastern provinces. These things, then, a certain envy and an evil demon, begrudging the good things of the church, brought about. BOOK 3 3.1.1 So then, beauty-hating envy, thus in some way begrudging the good things of the church, wrought storms and civil disturbances for it in a time of peace and gladness. However, the emperor, the friend of God, did not neglect the things that were fitting for him, but by doing all things contrary to what had been dared a little before by the tyrannical cruel3.1.2 ty, he was superior to every foe and enemy. For example, while they, having fallen away from the one who is, forced men by all kinds of compulsions to worship the gods who are not, he, by refuting in deeds and words that those who are not do not exist, exhorted them to know the only one who is. Then, while they mocked the Christ of God with blasphemous voices, he inscribed this very thing, at which the godless especially directed their blasphemies, as a victorious charm, glorying in the trophy of the passion. While they drove out the servants of God, making them homeless and hearthless, he recalled them all and restored them to their own 3.1.3 hearths. While they surrounded them with dishonors, he made them honored and objects of envy to all. While they confiscated property, unjustly seizing the livelihoods of the God-fearing, he restored them, lavishing most abundant gifts. While they published by written edicts slanders against the leaders, he, on the contrary, by raising and exalting the men with the honor in his power, made them more illustrious by decrees 3.1.4 and laws. While they demolished the houses of prayer from their foundations, razing them from the top to the ground, he legislated that the existing ones be raised higher and that new ones be erected magnificently from the imperial treasuries themselves. While they ordered the divinely-inspired oracles to be destroyed, burned by fire, he commanded that these be multiplied, being reproduced with magnificent preparation from the imperial trea3.1.5 suries. While they commanded that synods of bishops should by no means be dared to be held anywhere, he convened those from all the nations to his own presence, and deemed them worthy to be present within the palace and to proceed to the innermost parts and to become partakers of the imperial hearth and table. While they honored the demons with votive offerings, he stripped the error bare, continually distributing the useless material of the votive offerings to those who were able to use it. While they commanded that the temples be lavishly adorned, he demolished from their foundations those very ones that were considered of great worth by the superstitious. 3.1.6 While they subjected the martyrs of God to the most shameful punishments, he pursued those very ones who had done these things, chastising them with the fitting punishment of God, and did not cease from honoring the tombs of the holy martyrs of God. While they drove the God-fearing men from the imperial household, he continually placed his trust especially in these very men, knowing that these were loyal and faithful to him 3.1.7 above all others. While they were slaves to money, their soul enslaved by a Tantalus-like passion, he with imperial magnificence threw open all the treasuries and made his distributions with a rich and magnanimous right hand. While they committed countless murders for the sake of plunder and confiscation of the property of those who were slain, under Constantine in his whole empire every sword hung idle for the judges, as the peoples of every nation and the civil magistrates were governed paternally rather than ruled by neces3.1.8 sity. Looking at these things, one might reasonably have said that a certain new and 3.1.8 freshly-formed life seemed then to have just appeared, as a strange light suddenly shone forth from the darkness upon the mortal race, and to confess that the whole work was of God, who had set forth 3.2.1 the God-beloved emperor as a champion against the multitude of the godless. For since they were such as none others had ever been seen, and such things as not even by hearsay from of old

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καταπέμψαντος νεύματι καλῶς κἀγαθῶς, καὶ ἦν τὰ πάντα θεοσεβὴς ἀνήρ, ὡς εἴρηται. τὸ δ' ἦν ἄρα κρεῖττον ἢ κατὰ τὴν τοῦ γράμματος διακονίαν, ὡς αὐξηθῆναι μὲν ἐπὶ μεῖζον τὴν τῶν διαμαχομένων ἔριν, χωρῆσαι δ' εἰς ἁπάσας τὰς ἀνατολικὰς ἐπαρχίας τοῦ κακοῦ τὴν νομήν. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν φθόνος τις καὶ πονηρὸς δαίμων τοῖς τῆς ἐκκλησίας βασκαίνων ἀγαθοῖς κατειργάζετο. ΛΟΓΟΣ Γ 3.1.1 Ὁ μὲν δὴ μισόκαλος φθόνος ὧδέ πῃ τοῖς τῆς ἐκκλησίας βασκαίνων καλοῖς χειμῶνας αὐτῇ καὶ ταράχους ἐμφυλίους εἰρήνης ἐν καιρῷ καὶ θυμηδίας εἰργάζετο. οὐ μὴν βασιλεὺς ὁ τῷ θεῷ φίλος τῶν αὐτῷ πρεπόντων κατωλιγώρει, πάντα δὲ πράττων τἀναντία τοῖς μικρὸν ἔμπροσθεν ὑπὸ τῆς τυραννικῆς ὠμό3.1.2 τητος τετολμημένοις παντὸς ἦν ἐχθροῦ καὶ πολεμίου κρείττων. αὐτίκα δ' οὖν οἱ μὲν θεοὺς τοὺς μὴ ὄντας παντοίαις ἀνάγκαις ἐβιάζοντο σέβειν τοῦ ὄντος ἀφεστῶτες, ὁ δὲ τοὺς μὴ ὄντας ὅτι μὴ εἰσὶν ἔργοις καὶ λόγοις ἀπελέγχων τὸν μόνον ὄντα παρεκάλει γνωρίζειν. εἶθ' οἱ μὲν βλασφήμοις τὸν Χριστὸν τοῦ θεοῦ διεχλεύαζον φωναῖς, ὁ δὲ ἐφ' ᾧ μάλιστα οἱ ἄθεοι τὰς βλασφημίας ἐκίνουν τοῦτ' αὐτὸ νικητικὸν ἐπεγράφετο φυλακτήριον, τῷ τοῦ πάθους σεμνυνόμενος τροπαίῳ. οἱ μὲν ἤλαυνον ἀοίκους καὶ ἀνεστίους καθιστῶντες τοὺς θεράποντας τοῦ θεοῦ, ὁ δὲ ἀνεκαλεῖτο τοὺς πάντας καὶ ταῖς οἰκείαις ἀπεδίδου 3.1.3 ἑστίαις. οἱ μὲν ἀτιμίαις περιέβαλλον, ὁ δὲ ἐντίμους καὶ ζηλωτοὺς καθίστη τοῖς ἅπασιν. οἱ μὲν ἐδήμευον ἀδίκως τῶν θεοσεβῶν ἀφαρπάζοντες τοὺς βίους, ὁ δὲ ἀπεδίδου πλείστοις ἐπιδαψιλευόμενος χαρίσμασιν. οἱ μὲν διατάγμασιν ἐγγράφοις τὰς κατὰ τῶν προέδρων ἐδημοσίευον συκοφαντίας, ὁ δὲ ἔμπαλιν ἐπαίρων καὶ ἀνυψῶν τῇ παρ' αὐτῷ τιμῇ τοὺς ἄνδρας προγράμ3.1.4 μασι καὶ νόμοις διαφανεστέρους ἐποίει. οἱ μὲν ἐκ βάθρων τοὺς εὐκτηρίους οἴκους καθῄρουν, ἄνωθεν ἐξ ὕψους καταστρωννύντες εἰς ἔδαφος, ὁ δὲ τὰς οὔσας ὑψοῦσθαι καινοτέρας τ' ἀνίστασθαι μεγαλοπρεπῶς ἐξ αὐτῶν τῶν βασιλικῶν θησαυρῶν ἐνομοθέτει. οἱ μὲν τὰ θεόπνευστα λόγια ἀφανῆ ποιεῖσθαι πυρὶ φλεχθέντα προσέταττον, ὁ δὲ καὶ ταῦτα πληθύνειν ἐκ βασιλικῶν θη3.1.5 σαυρῶν μεγαλοπρεπεῖ κατασκευῇ πολυπλασιαζόμενα διεκελεύετο. οἱ μὲν συνόδους ἐπισκόπων μηδαμῆ μηδαμῶς τολμᾶν προσέταττον ποιεῖσθαι, ὁ δὲ τοὺς ἐξ ἁπάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν παρ' ἑαυτῷ συνεκρότει, βασιλείων τ' εἴσω παρεῖναι καὶ μέχρι τῶν ἐνδοτάτω χωρεῖν ἑστίας τε καὶ τραπέζης βασιλικῆς κοινωνοὺς γενέσθαι ἠξίου. οἱ μὲν ἐτίμων ἀναθήμασι τοὺς δαίμονας, ὁ δὲ ἀπεγύμνου τὴν πλάνην, τὴν ἄχρηστον τῶν ἀναθημάτων ὕλην τοῖς χρῆσθαι δυνατοῖς διηνεκῶς νέμων. οἱ μὲν τοὺς νεὼς φιλοτίμως κοσμεῖν ἐκέλευον, ὁ δὲ ἐκ βάθρων καθῄρει τούτων αὐτῶν τὰ μάλιστα παρὰ τοῖς δεισιδαίμοσι 3.1.6 πολλοῦ ἄξια. οἱ μὲν τοὺς τοῦ θεοῦ μάρτυρας αἰσχίσταις ὑπέβαλλον τιμωρίαις, ὁ δὲ αὐτοὺς μὲν τοὺς ταῦτα δεδρακότας μετῄει σωφρονίζων τῇ πρεπούσῃ τοῦ θεοῦ κολάσει, τῶν δ' ἁγίων μαρτύρων τοῦ θεοῦ τὰς μνήμας τιμῶν οὐ διελίμπανεν. οἱ μὲν τῶν βασιλικῶν ἤλαυνον οἴκων τοὺς θεοσεβεῖς ἄνδρας, ὁ δ' αὐτοῖς μάλιστα τούτοις διετέλει θαρρῶν, τοὺς εὔνους αὐτῷ 3.1.7 καὶ πιστοὺς ἁπάντων μᾶλλον τούτους εἶναι γινώσκων. οἱ μὲν χρημάτων ἥττους ὑπῆρχον Τανταλείῳ πάθει τὴν ψυχὴν δεδουλωμένοι, ὁ δὲ βασιλικῇ μεγαλοπρεπείᾳ πάντας ἀναπετάσας θησαυροὺς πλουσίᾳ καὶ μεγαλοψύχῳ δεξιᾷ τὰς μεταδόσεις ἐποιεῖτο. οἱ μὲν μυρίους κατειργάζοντο φόνους ἐφ' ἁρπαγῇ καὶ δημεύσει τῆς τῶν ἀναιρουμένων οὐσίας, Κωνσταντίνου δ' ἐπὶ πάσῃ τῇ βασιλείᾳ πᾶν ξίφος ὡς ἄχρηστον τοῖς δικασταῖς ἀπῃώρητο, τῶν κατ' ἔθνος δήμων τε καὶ πολιτευτῶν ἀνδρῶν πατρονομουμένων μᾶλλον ἢ ἐπ' ἀνάγ3.1.8 καις ἀρχομένων. εἰς ἃ δὴ ἀποβλέψας εἶπεν ἄν τις εἰκότως νεαρόν τινα καὶ 3.1.8 νεοπαγῆ βίον ἄρτι τότε φανῆναι δοκεῖν, ξένου φωτὸς ἀθρόου ἐκ σκότους τῷ θνητῷ καταλάμψαντος γένει, θεοῦ τε τὸ πᾶν ἔργον εἶναι ὁμολογεῖν, τῆς 3.2.1 τῶν ἀθέων πληθύος ἀντίπαλον τὸν θεοφιλῆ βασιλέα προβεβλημένου. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οἱ μὲν οἷοι μηδένες ἄλλοι πώποτ' ὤφθησαν καὶ οἷα μηδ' ἐξ αἰῶνος ἀκοῇ