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did they have? Obviously. So then let us also live, and no one will speak ill of us, even if he is an enemy, even if he is an unbeliever. For he who has a shining life is venerable even to them; for the truth silences even enemies. But how does he fall into a snare? By often falling into the same sins as they do. For if he were such a person, the devil quickly lays another snare for him, quickly they destroy him. But if one must have 62.551 testimony from enemies, much more so also from friends. For that it is not possible for one who has lived a blameless life to be spoken ill of, listen to Christ saying: Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. What then, he says, if he is slandered, and endures calumny out of circumstance? This is also possible; but he must not be brought into the middle; for the fear is great. He must therefore, he says, also have a good testimony; For let your works shine. Just as then no one would call the sun dark, not even the blind man himself; for he is ashamed to fight against the opinions of all; so no one would find fault with the exceedingly good man; but Greeks might often slander them on account of their doctrines, but they would not attack an upright life, but rather with the others they admire and are astonished. 3. So then let us live, so that the name of God may not be blasphemed. Let us therefore neither look to human glory, nor so as to receive a bad reputation, but in either case let us honor due proportion. Among whom you shine, he says, as lights in the world. For for this reason he left us, that we might be as lights, that we might become teachers of others, that we might become as leaven, that we might go about as angels among men, that we might be as men among little children, as spiritual among the carnal, that they might be gained, that we might be seeds, that we might bear much fruit. There would be no need of words, if our life shone so brightly; there would be no need of teachers, if we showed forth works. No one would be a Greek, if we were Christians, as we ought to be; if we kept the things of Christ, if we suffered wrong, if we were defrauded, if being reviled we blessed, if suffering evil we did good, no one would be so much a beast as not to run to piety, if these things were done by all. And that you may learn, Paul was one, and he drew so many to himself. If we were all such, how many worlds would we not have drawn to ourselves? Behold, Christians are more numerous than the gentiles. And while in other arts one can teach a hundred children at once; here, though the teachers are more numerous, and the disciples far more numerous, no one comes over. For those being taught look to the virtue of their teachers; and when they see us also desiring the same things, aspiring to the same things, to rule, to be honored, how will they be able to admire Christianity? They see blameworthy lives, earthly souls; we admire wealth just as they do, and much more so; we dread death just as they do, we fear poverty just as they do, we are vexed at diseases just as they do, we love glory and power just as they do, cutting ourselves down for the love of money, we are timeservers. From where then are they to believe? from signs? but these do not happen; but from our conduct? but it is ruined; but from love? but nowhere is even a trace of it seen. For this reason we shall give an account not only for our own sins, but also for the harm of others. Let us at some point become sober, let us be watchful, let us show a heavenly citizenship on earth, let us say, that Our citizenship is in heaven 62.552, and let us display the contest on earth. But there have been, he says, great men among us. From where am I to believe, says the Greek? for I do not see you doing the same things as them. Since if it is necessary to recount these things, we also have, he says, great philosophers, and wonderful lives

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εἶχον; Εὔδηλον ὅτι. Οὕτω τοίνυν καὶ ἡμεῖς ζῶμεν, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἡμᾶς ἐρεῖ κακῶς, κἂν ἔχθρος ᾖ, κἂν ἄπιστος. Ὁ γὰρ βίον λάμποντα ἔχων, κἀκείνοις ἐστὶν αἰδέσιμος· ἡ γὰρ ἀλήθεια καὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἐπιστομίζει. Εἰς παγίδα δὲ πῶς ἐμπίπτει; Τοῖς αὐτοῖς ἁμαρτήμασι πολλάκις περιπίπτων, οἷς κἀκεῖνοι. Εἰ γὰρ εἴη τοιοῦτος, ταχέως αὐτῷ καὶ ἄλλην παγίδα τίθησιν ὁ διάβολος, ταχέως αὐτὸν ἀναιροῦσιν ἐκεῖνοι. Εἰ δὲ τὴν παρ' ἐχθρῶν δεῖ 62.551 μαρτυρίαν ἔχειν, πολλῷ μᾶλλον καὶ τὴν παρὰ τῶν φίλων. Ὅτι γὰρ οὐκ ἔνι κακῶς ἀκοῦσαι τὸν ἀνεπιλήπτῳ βίῳ κεχρημένον, ἄκουε τοῦ Χριστοῦ λέγοντος· Λαμψάτω τὸ φῶς ὑμῶν ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἵνα ἴδωσι τὰ καλὰ ἔργα ὑμῶν, καὶ δοξάζωσι τὸν Πατέρα ὑμῶν τὸν ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς. Τί οὖν, ἂν συκοφαντῆται, φησὶ, καὶ ἐκ περιστάσεως τὴν διαβολὴν ὑπομένῃ; Ἐγχωρεῖ μὲν καὶ τοῦτο· δεῖ δὲ μηδὲ τοῦτον εἰς τὸ μέσον ἄγεσθαι· καὶ γὰρ πολὺ τὸ δέος. ∆εῖ τοίνυν, φησὶ, καὶ καλὴν μαρτυρίαν ἔχειν αὐτόν· Λαμψάτω γὰρ τὰ ἔργα ὑμῶν. Ὥσπερ οὖν οὐκ ἄν τις εἴποι τὸν ἥλιον σκοτεινὸν, οὐδὲ αὐτὸς ὁ τυφλός· αἰσχύνεται γὰρ ταῖς πάντων μάχεσθαι δόξαις· οὕτω τὸν σφόδρα καλὸν οὐκ ἄν τις μέμψαιτο· ἀλλὰ τῶν μὲν δογμάτων ἕνεκεν πολλάκις ἂν αὐτοὺς διαβάλλοιεν Ἕλληνες, βίου δὲ ὀρθοῦ οὐκ ἂν ἐπιλάβοιντο, ἀλλὰ καὶ μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων θαυμάζουσι καὶ ἐκπλήττονται. γʹ. Οὕτω τοίνυν ζῶμεν, ὥστε μὴ βλασφημεῖσθαι τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Θεοῦ. Μήτε οὖν πρὸς δόξαν ἀνθρωπίνην βλέπωμεν, μήτε ὥστε πονηρὰν λαμβάνειν δόξαν, ἀλλ' ἐν ἑκατέρῳ τὴν συμμετρίαν τιμῶμεν. Ἐν οἷς φαίνεσθε, φησὶ, ὡς φωστῆρες ἐν κόσμῳ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο γὰρ ἡμᾶς εἴασεν, ἵν' ὡς φωστῆρες ὦμεν, ἵνα διδάσκαλοι τῶν ἄλλων καταστῶμεν, ἵν' ὡς ζύμη γενώμεθα, ἵν' ὡς ἄγγελοι μετὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων περιπολῶμεν, ἵν' ὡς ἄνδρες μετὰ τῶν παίδων τῶν μικρῶν, ὡς πνευματικοὶ μετὰ τῶν ψυχικῶν, ἵνα κερδαίνωσιν ἐκεῖνοι, ἵνα σπέρματα ὦμεν, ἵνα καρπὸν πολὺν φέρωμεν. Οὐκ ἔδει λόγων, εἰ τοσοῦτον ἡμῶν ὁ βίος ἔλαμπεν· οὐκ ἔδει διδασκάλων, εἰ ἔργα ἐπεδεικνύμεθα. Οὐδεὶς ἂν ἦν Ἕλλην, εἰ ἡμεῖς ἦμεν Χριστιανοὶ, ὡς δεῖ· εἰ τὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐφυλάττομεν, εἰ ἠδικούμεθα, εἰ ἐπλεονεκτούμεθα, εἰ λοιδορούμενοι εὐλογοῦμεν, εἰ κακῶς πάσχοντες εὐηργετοῦμεν, οὐδεὶς οὕτω θηρίον ἦν, ὡς μὴ ἐπιδραμεῖν τῇ εὐσεβείᾳ, εἰ παρὰ πάντων ταῦτα ἐγίνετο. Καὶ ἵνα μάθητε, εἷς ἦν ὁ Παῦλος, καὶ τοσούτους ἐπεσπάσατο. Εἰ πάντες ἦμεν τοιοῦτοι, πόσας οἰκουμένας οὐκ ἂν ἐπεσπασάμεθα; Ἰδοὺ πλείους εἰσὶν οἱ Χριστιανοὶ τῶν ἐθνικῶν. Καὶ ἐν μὲν ταῖς ἄλλαις τέχναις εἷς ἑκατὸν ὁμοῦ παῖδας διδάξαι δύναται· ἐνταῦθα δὲ τῶν διδασκάλων πλειόνων ὄντων, καὶ τῶν μαθητῶν πολλῷ πλειόνων, οὐδεὶς πρόσεισιν. Οἱ γὰρ διδασκόμενοι πρὸς τὴν τῶν διδασκάλων ἀρετὴν ὁρῶσι· καὶ ὅταν ἴδωσι καὶ ἡμᾶς τῶν αὐτῶν ἐπιθυμοῦντας, τῶν αὐτῶν ἐφιεμένους, τοῦ ἄρχειν, τοῦ τιμᾶσθαι, πῶς δυνήσονται θαυμάσαι τὸν Χριστιανισμόν; Ὁρῶσι βίους ἐπιληψίμους, ψυχὰς γηΐνας· τὰ χρήματα ὁμοίως αὐτοῖς θαυμάζομεν, πολλῷ δὲ καὶ πλέον· τὸν θάνατον ὁμοίως αὐτοῖς πεφρίκαμεν, πενίαν ὁμοίως φοβούμεθα, πρὸς νόσους ὁμοίως δυσχεραίνομεν, ὁμοίως δόξης ἐρῶμεν καὶ δυναστείας, ὑπὲρ φιλαργυρίας κατακόπτοντες ἑαυτοὺς, τοὺς καιροὺς θεραπεύομεν. Πόθεν οὖν ἔχουσι πιστεῦσαι; ἀπὸ σημείων; ἀλλ' οὐ γίνεται ταῦτα· ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τῆς ἀναστροφῆς; ἀλλ' ἀπόλωλεν· ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τῆς ἀγάπης; ἀλλ' οὐδαμοῦ οὐδὲ ἴχνος αὐτῆς ὁρᾶται. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐ τῶν ἡμετέρων μόνον ἁμαρτημάτων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἑτέρων βλάβης ἡμεῖς λόγον ὑφέξομεν. Ἀνανήψωμέν ποτε, γρηγορήσωμεν, δείξωμεν πολιτείαν ἐπὶ γῆς οὐράνιον, λέγωμεν, ὅτι Ἡμῶν τὸ πολίτευμα ἐν οὐρανῷ ὑπάρ 62.552 χει, καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς τὴν ἄθλησιν ἐπιδειξώμεθα. Ἀλλ' ἐγένοντο, φησὶ, παρ' ἡμῖν ἄνδρες μεγάλοι. Πόθεν πιστεύσω, φησὶν ὁ Ἕλλην; οὐ γὰρ ὁρῶ ὑμᾶς τὰ αὐτὰ πράσσοντας ἐκείνοις. Ἐπεὶ εἰ δεῖ ταῦτα διηγεῖσθαι, ἔχομεν καὶ ἡμεῖς, φησὶ, μεγάλους φιλοσόφους, καὶ θαυμαστοὺς βίου