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working. For long ago, even from the law of Moses, omens and divinations and auguries and bird-watching have been denounced as inventions of demons. For you shall not practice augury (it says) nor observe birds. For the nations (it says) which the Lord God will destroy from before his face, these will listen to omens and divinations; but the Lord your God has not given you so. For it is absurd for one who has counsel from the statutes of God to take irrational creatures as his counselors for deliberation about what is not to be done, or rather, not even as counselors, but to use them as teachers and lawgivers. And the bird did not see its own danger lying before it and in its sight; but to you it foretells the future. And flying from its nest to provide food for its young, it often returned unsuccessful; but to you the vain movement of the bird has become an unfailing oracle and a revelation of the future. But if they fly about deceitfully from the activity of demons, do not sit gaping at the deceits of demons, nor become given over to diabolical activities; for once he takes a soul that is easily led to destruction, he uses it in every way and does not let go. 2.78 But also cawing ravens and screaming eagles, due to a lack of prey, terrify the superstitious heart. And so great is the enemy's insolence toward man, that even a weasel appearing, and a dog peeping through, and a person appearing in the morning, even if he is one of the most well-disposed, but having hurt his right eye or leg, he leaped away and turned back and often covered his eyes. What is more pitiful than such a life, to be suspicious of everything, to be hindered by everything, when he ought to be leading his soul back to God from all sides? When you see birds flying through the air, do not be curious about the patterns of their flights, whether they describe circles above our heads, or are carried face to face, or fly up from behind, or move to the sides. Leaving these things aside, marvel at the Creator's wisdom and arrangement for them; how such a great weight is carried through the air, how the gentle nature of the air becomes a vehicle for the wing, how by the stretching of their wings they float upon the air, and with their tail as a rudder they direct their flight; how those that are unfit for walking fulfill the need of feet with their wing. As many as are swimmers, as many as are predators, have a bodily structure suitable for their life. For to some, the claws are instruments for seizing; and to others, the webs of their feet are like oars, so that by the width of their base the water is more easily pushed during movement. All things are full of the wisdom of God. For He made all things in wisdom. But the fainthearted and lowly-minded man, attempting to adapt the movements of irrational creatures to his own purpose, having forsaken God, has given himself over to plotting demons, who, by ruling the air and devising to turn the birds this way and that, maintain the incurable deceit of the foolish. Although these things have been said rather digressively, yet the discourse has not unprofitably used the occasion from the saying for the healing of the foolish. But it should be noted that Scripture hands down divination by omens as a peculiar practice of the Philistines, that is, of the Palestinians; for it is its custom to call these alone foreigners. For just as the Chaldeans appropriated astrology, and the Egyptians sorcery and incantations, and the Cretans augury, so also the foreigners appropriated divination by omens. Therefore the land returned to its own evils, becoming as it was from the beginning. 2.79 And many foreign children were born in it. When a city, having received wicked customs, chooses to live according to them, the sin of the fathers then becomes like a law to those who come after, and immediately from birth the children are foreign, alienated from the people of God by their evil upbringing. And since the fruits of the soul are also often called children, someone might say that the one who has gathered, contrary to the will of the divine Scripture, from things outside of godliness

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εργαζόμενος. Πάλαι γὰρ καὶ ἐκ τοῦ Μωϋσέως νόμου, κλη δόνες καὶ μαντεῖαι καὶ οἰωνισμοὶ καὶ ὀρνιθοσκοπίαι διαβέ βληνται ὡς δαιμόνων εὑρέματα. Οὐκ οἰονιεῖσθε γὰρ (φησὶ) οὐδὲ ὀρνιθοσκοπήσεσθε. Τὰ γὰρ ἔθνη (φησὶν) οὓς Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ἐξολοθρεύσει πρὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ, οὗτοι κληδόνων καὶ μαντειῶν ἀκούσονται· σοὶ δὲ οὐχ οὕτως ἔδωκε Κύ ριος, ὁ Θεός σου. Ἄτοπον γὰρ, τὸν ἔχοντα τὴν ἐκ τῶν δικαιωμάτων τοῦ Θεοῦ συμβουλίαν, πρὸς τὴν ὑπὲρ οὐ πρακτέων σκέψιν συμβούλους ἑαυτοῦ παραλαμβάνειν τὰ ἄλογα, μᾶλλον δὲ οὐδὲ συμβούλους, ἀλλὰ διδασκάλοις χρῆσθαι καὶ νομοθέταις. Καὶ τὸν μὲν ἑαυ τοῦ κίνδυνον παρακείμενον καὶ ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ὄντα οὐκ εἶδεν ὁ ὄρνις· σοὶ δὲ τὸ μέλλον προαγορεύει· καὶ τῆς μὲν κα λιᾶς ἀποπτὰς, τροφὴν πορίσαι τοῖς νεοσσοῖς, ἄπρακτος ἐπ ανῆλθε πολλάκις· σοὶ δὲ μαντεῖον γέγονεν ἀψευδὲς καὶ τοῦ μέλλοντος ἀποκάλυψις ἡ ματαία τοῦ ὄρνιθος κίνησις. Εἰ δὲ ἀπὸ δαιμόνων ἐνεργείας ἀπατηλὰ περιπέτονται, μή μοι καθέζου δαιμόνων ἀπάταις προσκεχηνὼς, μηδὲ γίνου δια βολικαῖς ἔκδοτος ἐνεργείαις· ὃς ἐπειδὰν ἅπαξ λάβῃ ψυχὴν εὐάγωγον εἰς ἀπώλειαν, πάντα τρόπον αὐτῇ παραχρώμενος, οὐκ ἀνίησιν. 2.78 Ἀλλὰ καὶ κρώζοντες κόρακες καὶ ἀλύοντες ἀετοὶ δι' ἀπορίαν θήρας, τὴν δεισιδαίμονα καρδίαν πτήσσουσι. Καὶ τοσαύτη τοῦ ἐχθροῦ ἡ εἰς τὸν ἄνθρωπον ὕβρις, ὥστε καὶ γαλῆ παραφανεῖσα, καὶ κύων διακύψας, καὶ ἄνθρωπος ἐπιφα νεὶς ἕωθεν, κἂν τῶν εὐνουστάτων ᾖ, ὀφθαλμὸν δὲ ἢ σκέλος δεξιὸν πεπληγὼς, ἀπεπήδησε καὶ ἀπετράπη καὶ ἐπεκαλύ ψατο πολλάκις τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς. Τί ἐλεεινότερον τοῦ τοιούτου βίου, πάντα ὑποπτεύειν, ὑπὸ πάντων ἐμποδίζεσθαι, δέον πανταχόθεν αὐτοῦ τὴν ψυχὴν πρὸς Θεὸν ἐπανάγειν; Ὅταν ἴδῃς ὄρνιθας διαπετομένους τὸν ἀέρα, μὴ τὰ σχήματα τῶν πτήσεων περιεργάζου, εἰ κύκλους ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς ἡμῶν περιγράφουσιν, ἢ ἀντιπρόσωποι φέρονται, ἢ ἐκ τῶν κατόπιν ἐφίπτανται, ἢ πρὸς τὰ πλάγια μεταβαίνουσι. Ταῦτα καταλι πῶν, τοῦ ∆ημιουργοῦ τὴν ἐπ' αὐτοῖς σοφίαν καὶ διακόσμησιν θαύμασον· πῶς βάρος τοσοῦτον δι' ἀέρος φέρεται, πῶς ἡ ἁπαλὴ τοῦ ἀέρος φύσις ὄχημα γίνεται τῷ πτερῷ, πῶς τῇ μὲν ἐκτάσει τῶν πτερῶν ἐπινήχονται τῷ ἀέρι, τῇ δὲ οὐρᾷ οἷον πηδαλίῳ τὴν πτῆσιν ἑαυτῶν ἀπευθύνουσι· πῶς ὅσα βα δίζειν ἐστὶν ἀνεπιτήδεια, τῷ πτερῷ τὴν χρείαν τῶν ποδῶν ἐκπληροῖ. Ὅσα νηκτικὰ, ὅσα ἁρπακτικὰ, πρέπουσαν τῷ βίῳ τὴν κατασκευὴν ἔχει τοῦ σώματος. Τοῖς μὲν γὰρ ὄρ γανα πρὸς τὴν ἁρπαγὴν, οἱ ὄνυχες· τοῖς δὲ οἱονεὶ κῶπαι οἱ ὑμένες εἰσὶ τῶν ποδῶν· ὥστε τῷ πλάτει τῆς βάσεως ῥᾷον διωθεῖσθαι τὸ ὕδωρ κατὰ τὴν κίνησιν. Πάντα γέμει τῆς σο φίας τοῦ Θεοῦ. Πάντα γὰρ ἐν σοφίᾳ ἐποίησεν. Ὁ δὲ μικρόψυχος καὶ ταπεινὰ φρονῶν, τὰς τῶν ἀλόγων κινήσεις τῷ ἰδίῳ σκο πῷ συναρμόζειν ἐπιχειρῶν, καταλιπὼν Θεὸν, δαίμοσιν ἐπι βούλοις ἔκδοτον ἔδωκεν ἑαυτὸν, οἳ τῷ κρατεῖν τοῦ ἀέρος ὧδε καὶ ὧδε στρέφειν ἐπινοοῦντες τοὺς ὄρνιθας, ἀθεράπευ τον τὴν ἀπάτην τῶν ἀνοήτων συνέχουσι. Ταῦτα εἰ καὶ παρεκβατικώτερον εἴρηται· ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀχρήστως ὁ λόγος τῇ ἐκ τοῦ ῥητοῦ ἀφορμῇ εἰς θεραπείαν τῶν ἀνοήτων ἐχρήσατο. Σημειωτέον δὲ ὅτι τὸν κληδονισμὸν ἴδιον ἐπιτήδευμα τῶν Φυλιστιαίων ἡ Γραφὴ παραδίδωσι, τουτέστι τῶν Πα λαιστινῶν· τούτους γὰρ καὶ μόνους ἀλλοφύλους ἔθος αὐτῇ ὀνομάζειν. Ὥσπερ γὰρ Χαλδαῖοι γενεθλιαλογίαν, καὶ Αἰ γύπτιοι φαρμακείας καὶ ἐπαοιδὰς, καὶ Κρῆτες οἰωνιστικήν, οὕτω καὶ οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι τὸν κληδονισμὸν ἰδιώσαντο. Πρὸς οὖν τὰ ἴδια ἑαυτῆς κακὰ ἐπανῆλθεν ἡ χώρα, γενομένη ὡς τὸ ἀπαρχῆς. 2.79 Καὶ τέκνα πολλὰ ἀλλόφυλα ἐγενήθη ἐν αὐτῇ. Ὅταν πόλις, ἔθη μοχθηρὰ παραδεξαμένη, κατ' αὐτὰ βιοῦν ἕληται, τοῖς ἐπιγινομένοις λοιπὸν ὥσπερ νόμος γίνεται τὸ τῶν πατέρων ἁμάρτημα, καὶ εὐθὺς ἐκ γενέσεως ἀλλόφυλά ἐστι τὰ τέκνα, ὑπὸ τῆς πονηρᾶς ἀγωγῆς ἀλλοτριούμενα τοῦ λαοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ οἱ καρποὶ τῆς ψυχῆς τέκνα πολλά κις λέγονται, εἴποι ἄν τις τὸν παρὰ τὸ βούλημα τῆς θείας Γραφῆς συλλεξάμενον ἀπὸ τῶν ἔξωθεν τῆς θεοσεβείας