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to have reveled so much in luxury, as to make a golden plane tree, and a heaven above, and to sit thus, and this while marching against men accustomed to war. Is not this the desire of centaurs? Is it not of Scylla? Another again threw men into a wooden bull. Is this not Scylla? For the time being, it made the king, the soldier, a woman out of a man; from a woman, what should I say? an irrational beast, and even worse than this. For the beasts, if they are under trees, are content with their nature, and seek nothing more; but this one has outdone even the nature of beasts. What could be more foolish than the rich? And this comes from the greediness of desires. Do not many admire him? Therefore they share in the ridicule with him. This did not show wealth, but folly. How much better is the earth's plane tree than that golden one? for things according to nature are more pleasant than those against nature. And what did the golden heaven mean to you, you fool? Do you see how great wealth makes men mad? how it inflames them? I think he is even ignorant of the sea, and perhaps wishes to walk upon it. Are these things not a chimera? Are they not a centaur? But there are even now some who do not fall short of him, but happen to be much more foolish. For in what, tell me, do those who make golden jars and pots and alabaster boxes differ in folly from the golden plane tree? And what of the women (I am indeed ashamed, but it is necessary to say it) who make silver chamber pots? You who do these things ought to be ashamed. While Christ is starving, do you live so luxuriously? or rather, do you act so foolishly? What punishment will they not pay? Do you still ask, then, why there are robbers, why murderers, why evils, when the devil has so led you astray? For to have silver plates, this indeed is not according to a philosophical soul, but is entirely of luxury; but to make even unclean vessels of silver, is it of luxury? But I would not say of luxury, but of folly; no, not even this, but of madness, or rather, even worse than madness. 5. I know that many ridicule me for this, but I am not deterred, only let some good come of it. Truly, being rich makes men foolish and mad. If their abundance were so great, they would have wished for the earth to be golden, and the walls golden, and perhaps even the heaven and the air to be of gold. What madness, what lawlessness? What is this fever? Another, who is in the image of God, is perishing with cold, and you are manufacturing such things? O the arrogance! What more would a madman have done? Do you so honor excrement as to receive it in silver? I know that you are numb hearing this, but those who do it ought to be numb, and the men who minister to such sicknesses! For this is licentiousness and cruelty and inhumanity and brutishness and wantonness. What Scylla, what chimera, what dragon, or rather what demon, what devil would have done these things? What is the benefit of Christ? and what of the faith, when one tolerates the ways of Greeks, or rath 62.350 er not of Greeks, but of demons? If one must not adorn the head with gold and pearls, he who has used silver for such an unclean service, what pardon will he obtain? Are the other things not enough, although not even those are tolerable, chairs and footstools all of silver? although these too are of folly. But everywhere is excessive arrogance, everywhere vainglory; nowhere of need, but everywhere of superfluities. I fear that, proceeding from this madness, the female race may take on the form of monsters; for it is likely they would desire to have golden hair too. Or confess that you were not affected by what was said and were stirred and fell into desire, and if shame had not restrained you, you would not have refused. For if you dare things even more absurd than these, much more I think would you desire to have this golden hair, and the lips, and the eyebrows, and everything golden

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τοσοῦτον ἐνυβρίσαι τῇ τρυφῇ, ὥστε πλάτανον ποιῆσαι χρυσῆν, καὶ οὐρανὸν ἄνωθεν, καὶ οὕτω καθίσαι, καὶ ταῦτα ἐπιστρατεύων ἀνθρώποις πολεμεῖν μεμαθηκόσιν. Ἆρα οὐχ ἱπποκενταύρων αὕτη ἡ ἐπιθυμία; ἆρα οὐ Σκύλλης; Ἕτερος πάλιν εἰς βοῦν ξύλινον ἐνέβαλε τοὺς ἀνθρώπους. Ἆρα οὐ Σκύλλα τοῦτο; Τέως δὲ τῶν πρότερον ἐξ ἀνδρὸς γυναῖκα ἐποίησε τὸν βασιλέα, τὸν στρατιώτην· ἀπὸ γυναικὸς, τί εἴπω; θηρίον ἄλογον, καὶ ἔτι τούτου χεῖρον. Τὰ γὰρ θηρία ὑπὸ δένδρων ἂν ᾖ, ἀνέχονται τῆς φύσεως, καὶ πλέον οὐδὲν ἐπιζητοῦσιν· οὗτος δὲ καὶ τῶν θηρίων τὴν φύσιν ὑπερηκόντισεν. Ἆρα τί γένοιτ' ἂν τῶν πλουτούντων ἀνοητότερον; Τοῦτο δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς πλεονεξίας τῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν γίνεται. Ἆρα οὐχὶ πολλοὶ θαυμάζουσιν αὐτόν; Τοιγάρτοι τοῦ γέλωτος κοινωνοῦσιν αὐτῷ. Τοῦτο οὐ τὸν πλοῦτον ἐδείκνυ, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἄνοιαν. Πόσῳ τῆς χρυσῆς ἐκείνης πλατάνου ἡ τῆς γῆς βελτίων; τὰ γὰρ κατὰ φύσιν τῶν παρὰ φύσιν ἡδίω. Τί δέ σοι ὁ χρυσοῦς οὐρανὸς ἐβούλετο, ἀνόητε; Ὁρᾷς πῶς μαινομένους ὁ πλοῦτος ποιεῖ ὁ πολύς; πῶς φλεγμαίνει; Οἶμαι αὐτὸν καὶ τὴν θάλατταν ἀγνοεῖν, καὶ τάχα βαδίζειν βούλεσθαι ἐπ' αὐτῆς. Ἆρα οὐ χίμαιρα ταῦτα; ἆρα οὐχ ἱπποκένταυρος; Ἀλλ' εἰσὶ καὶ νῦν τινες οἳ οὐδὲ ἐκείνου ἀποδέουσιν, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ ἀνοητότεροι τυγχάνουσιν ὄντες. Τί γὰρ, εἰπέ μοι, τῆς χρυσῆς πλατάνου διαφέρουσι κατὰ ἄνοιαν οἱ κεράμια ποιοῦντες χρυσᾶ καὶ χύτρας καὶ ἀλάβαστρα; Τί δὲ αἱ γυναῖκες (αἰσχύνομαι μὲν οὖν, πλὴν ἀναγκαῖον εἰπεῖν), ἀμίδας ἀργυρᾶς ποιοῦσαι; Ὑμᾶς αἰσχύνεσθαι τὰς ταῦτα ποιούσας ἔδει. Τοῦ Χριστοῦ λιμώττοντος, σὺ οὕτω τρυφᾷς; μᾶλλον δὲ ἀνοηταίνεις; ποίαν αὗται κόλασιν οὐ τίσουσιν; Ἔτι οὖν ἐρωτᾷς, διὰ τί λῃσταὶ, διὰ τί ἀνδροφόνοι, διὰ τί τὰ κακὰ, οὕτως ὑμᾶς τοῦ διαβόλου παρασύραντος; Τὸ μὲν γὰρ πινάκια ἔχειν ἀργυρᾶ, οὐδὲ τοῦτο μὲν κατὰ φιλόσοφον ψυχὴν, ἀλλὰ τρυφῆς τὸ πᾶν· τὸ δὲ καὶ σκεύη ἀκάθαρτα ποιεῖν ἐξ ἀργύρου, ἆρα τρυφῆς; ἀλλ' οὐκ ἂν εἴποιμι τρυφῆς, ἀλλ' ἀνοίας· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τοῦτο, ἀλλὰ μανίας, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ μανίας χεῖρον. εʹ. Οἶδα ὅτι πολλοί με κωμῳδοῦσιν ἐπὶ τούτῳ, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐπιστρέφομαι, μόνον γενέσθω τι πλέον. Ὄντως ἀνοήτους ποιεῖ τὸ πλουτεῖν καὶ μαινομένους. Εἰ τοσαύτη ἦν ἡ περιουσία, ἐβουλήθησαν ἂν καὶ τὴν γῆν εἶναι χρυσῆν, καὶ τοίχους χρυσοῦς, τάχα καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὸν ἀέρα ἀπὸ χρυσοῦ. Τίς ἡ μανία, τίς ἡ παρανομία; τίς ὁ πυρετός; Ἕτερος τῷ κρυμῷ διαφθείρεται ὁ κατ' εἰκόνα Θεοῦ, σὺ δὲ τοιαῦτα κατασκευάζεις; Ὢ τοῦ τύφου· τί ἂν πλέον μαινόμενος ἐποίησε; τὰ ἀποπατήματα οὕτω τιμᾷς, ὥστε ἀργύρῳ ὑποδέχεσθαι; Οἶδα ὅτι ναρκᾶτε ἀκούοντες, ἀλλ' αἱ ποιοῦσαι ναρκᾷν ὀφείλουσι, καὶ οἱ τοῖς τοιούτοις νοσήμασιν ἄνδρες ὑπηρετούμενοι! ἀκολασία γάρ ἐστι καὶ ὠμότης καὶ ἀπανθρωπία καὶ θηριωδία καὶ ἀσέλγεια τοῦτο. Ποία Σκύλλα, ποία χίμαιρα, ποῖος δράκων, μᾶλλον δὲ ποῖος δαίμων, ποῖος διάβολος ταῦτα ἂν ἐποίησε· Τί τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὄφελος; τί δὲ τῆς πίστεως, ὅταν ἀνθρώπων ἀνέχηταί τις Ἑλλήνων, μᾶλ 62.350 λον δὲ οὐχ Ἑλλήνων, ἀλλὰ δαιμόνων; Εἰ χρυσῷ καὶ μαργαρίταις τὴν κεφαλὴν κοσμεῖν οὐ δεῖ, ὁ τῷ ἀργύρῳ εἰς ἀκάθαρτον οὕτως ὑπηρεσίαν κεχρημένος, ποίας συγγνώμης τεύξεται; οὐκ ἀρκεῖ τὰ λοιπὰ, καίτοι γε οὐδὲ ἐκεῖνα ἀνεκτὰ, καθέδραι καὶ ὑποπόδια ἐξ ἀργύρου πάντα; καίτοι καὶ ταῦτα ἀνοίας. Ἀλλὰ πανταχοῦ ὁ τῦφος ὁ περισσὸς, πανταχοῦ ἡ κενοδοξία· οὐδαμοῦ τῆς χρείας, ἀλλὰ πανταχοῦ τῶν περιττῶν. Ἐγὼ δέδοικα μὴ ὑπὸ τῆς μανίας ταύτης προβαῖνον τὸ γυναικεῖον γένος τεράτων ἀναλάβῃ μορφήν· εἰκὸς γὰρ αὐτὰς ἐπιθυμῆσαι καὶ τρίχας ἔχειν χρυσᾶς. Ἢ ὁμολογήσατε ὅτι οὐκ ἐπάθετέ τι πρὸς τὸ λεχθὲν καὶ διανέστητε καὶ εἰς ἐπιθυμίαν ἐνεπέσετε, καὶ εἰ μή γε ἡ αἰσχύνη κατεῖχεν, οὐκ ἂν παρῃτήσασθε. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ τὰ τούτων ἀτοπώτερα τολμᾶτε, πολλῷ μᾶλλον καὶ τρίχας ἔχειν οἶμαι ταύτας ἐπιθυμῆσαι χρυσᾶς, καὶ τὰ χείλη, καὶ τὰς ὀφρῦς, καὶ πάντα χρυσὸν