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he commanded her to reap that blessing from each one. 9.5 He became known to her from such a cause as this. An affliction that befell one of her eyes proved stronger than the medical art; for there was nothing written by the ancients or discovered by those who came later that was not applied to the disease. But when she had tested them all and they had proved to have no benefit, one of her acquaintances came, telling of the divine man and teaching of the miracle performed by him. For she said that the wife of the one then holding the helm of the East—and this was Pergamius—had fallen into this same affliction, and he had cured her by using prayer and the sign of the cross. 9.6 The mother heard and immediately ran to the divine man. She was wearing earrings and necklaces and other gold ornaments and varied clothing woven from silken threads; for she had not yet tasted the more perfect virtue. She was in the bloom of her years and indulged in the adornment of youth. So the divinely inspired man, seeing these things, first cured the sickness of her love of worldly adornment, using such words as these: "Tell me," he said, "O little child (for I will use his own voice and will not alter the address of that holy tongue), if some painter, very well practiced in his art, should paint an image, as the rule of the art dictates, and should display it for those who wish to see, and another should come, not knowing that art precisely, but sketching according to his fancy whatever he might wish to paint, and then, finding fault with that skillful painting, should add longer lines to the eyebrows and eyelids, make the face whiter and apply red color to the cheeks, does it not seem to you that the first painter would rightly be indignant that his art had been grievously insulted and had received additions which it did not need from an ignorant hand? So then," he said, "you believe it right that the creator of all things and the fashioner and painter of our nature should also be indignant, because you accuse that ineffable wisdom of ignorance. For you would not have applied red and white and black color unless you thought you were in need of this addition; and by supposing the body to be in need of these things, you condemn the Creator for weakness. But it is fitting to know that He has power commensurate with His will. "3For all that the Lord willed, he has done,"3 as David says; and providing for what is beneficial to all, He does not give whatever is harmful. Therefore, do not corrupt the image of God, nor try to add what He in his wisdom has not given, nor contrive this counterfeit beauty which brings ruin even to modest women by plotting against those who see it". 9.7 The most excellent woman heard these things and was immediately caught within the net of Peter—for like his namesake he too was a fisher of men—and grasping his feet and beseeching him, she begged for the cure to be given to her eye. But he said he was a man and had the same nature as her, and that he bore a great load of sins and for this very reason was deprived of confidence before God. But as the mother wept and implored and said she would not leave unless she obtained the cure, he said that God was the healer of these things, and that He always grants the requests of those who believe. "Therefore He will grant it now," he said, "bestowing the favor not on me, but beholding your faith. If, then, you have this faith, pure and sincere and free from all doubt, bid farewell to both doctors and medicines, and receive this God-given remedy." Having said these things, he placed his hand on the eye, and having made the sign of the saving cross, he drove away the disease. 9.8 From there, having returned to her house and having washed off the medicine and the

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ἑκάστης τρυγᾶν ἐκείνην τὴν εὐλογίαν ἐκέλευε. 9.5 Γέγονε δὲ αὐτῇ γνώριμος ἐξ αἰτίας τοιᾶσδε. Πάθος αὐτῇ θατέρῳ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ἐπισκῆψαν κρεῖττον ἐφάνη τῆς ἰατρικῆς ἐπιστήμης· οὐδὲν γὰρ ἦν ἢ τοῖς παλαιοῖς συγγεγραμμένον ἢ τοῖς ὕστερον γενομένοις ἐξηυρημένον ὃ μὴ προσηνέχθη τῇ νόσῳ. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἤλεγξεν ἅπαντα καὶ ἔδειξεν οὐδεμίαν ὄνησιν ἔχοντα, ἧκέ τις τῶν συνήθων τὸν θεῖον ἄνδρα μηνύουσα καὶ τὸ γεγενημένον ὑπ' αὐτοῦ διδάσκουσα θαῦμα· τὴν γὰρ ὁμόζυγα ἔλεγε τοῦ τηνικάδε τῆς ἕω κατέχοντος τὰ πηδάλια-Περγάμιος δὲ ἦν οὗτος -τῷ παθήματι τῷδε περιπεσοῦσαν ἰάσασθαι αὐτὸν εὐχῇ καὶ σφραγῖδι χρησάμενον. 9.6 Ἤκουσεν ἡ μήτηρ καὶ παραυτίκα πρὸς τὸν θεῖον ἔδραμεν ἄνθρωπον. Περικείμενα δὲ εἶχεν ἕρματα καὶ περιδέραια καὶ τὰ ἄλλα χρυσία καὶ τὴν ποικίλην ἐσθῆτα τὴν ἐκ σηρικῶν ὑφασμένην νημάτων· οὐδέπω γὰρ τῆς ἀρετῆς τῆς τελειοτέρας ἐγέγευτο. Ἤνθει δὲ καὶ τῷ χρόνῳ καὶ τοῦ τῆς νεότητος ἠνείχετο κόσμου. Ἡ θεσπεσία τοίνυν κεφαλὴ ταῦτα θεασαμένη, τῆς φιλοκοσμίας πρότερον τὴν ἀρρωστίαν ἰάσατο τοιοῖσδε λόγοις χρησάμενος· "Εἰπέ μοι, ἔφη, ὦ τεκνίον (τῇ γὰρ αὐτοῦ χρήσομαι φωνῇ καὶ οὐκ ἀμείψω τῆς ἁγίας ἐκείνης γλώττης τὸ πρόσρημα), εἴ τις ζωγράφος, εὖ μάλα τὴν τέχνην ἠσκημένος, εἰκόνα τινὰ γράψειεν, ὡς ὁ νόμος ὑπαγορεύει τῆς τέχνης, καὶ ταύτην προθείη τοῖς βουλομένοις ὁρᾶν, ἀφικόμενος δέ τις ἕτερος ἐκείνην μὲν τὴν τέχνην οὐκ ἀκριβῶς ἐπιστάμενος, σχεδιάζων δὲ πρὸς τὸ δοκοῦν ἃ ἂν γράψαι θελήσειεν, εἶτα μεμψάμενος τῇ τεχνικῇ ἐκείνῃ ζωγραφίᾳ προσθείη μὲν ταῖς ὀφρύσι καὶ ταῖς βλεφαρίσι μακροτέρας γραμμάς, λευκότερον δὲ τὸ πρόσωπον ἀποφήνειε καὶ ταῖς παρειαῖς τοῦ ἐρυθροῦ χρώματος ἐπεμβάλοι, οὔ σοι δοκεῖ τὸν πρότερον εἰκότως ἀγανακτῆσαι ζωγράφον ὡς τῆς τέχνης αὐτῷ λίαν ὑβρισμένης καὶ προσ θήκας ὧν οὐκ ἔδειτο ὑπ' ἀμαθοῦς χειρὸς δεξαμένης; Οὐκοῦν, ἔφη, καὶ τὸν τῶν ἁπάντων δημιουργὸν καὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας φύσεως πλάστην τε καὶ ζωγράφον ἀγανακτεῖν εἰκότως πιστεύετε ὅτι τῆς ἀρρήτου σοφίας ἐκείνης ἀμαθίαν κατηγορεῖτε. Οὐ γὰρ ἂν τὸ ἐρυθρὸν καὶ λευκὸν καὶ μέλαν ἐπεχέατε χρῶμα εἰ μὴ ἐνδεῖν ὑμῖν ταύτης ἐνομίζετε τῆς προσθήκης· δεῖσθαι δὲ τούτων ὑπολαμβάνουσαι τὸ σῶμα, ἀσθένειαν καταψηφίζεσθε τοῦ ποιητοῦ. Προσήκει δὲ εἰδέναι ὅτι σύμμετρον ἔχει τῇ βουλήσει τὴν δύναμιν. "3Πάντα γάρ, ᾗ φησιν ὁ ∆αβίδ, ὅσα ἠθέλησεν ὁ κύριος ἐποίησεν"3· τὸ δὲ συνοῖσον ἅπασι προμηθούμενος, ὅσα λωβᾶται οὐ δίδωσι. Μὴ τοίνυν διαφθείρετε τοῦ θεοῦ τὴν εἰκόνα μηδὲ πειρᾶσθε προστιθέναι ἅπερ σοφῶς οὐ δέδωκε, μηδὲ τὸ νόθον τοῦτο ἐπινοεῖτε κάλλος ὃ καὶ ταῖς σωφρονούσαις λυμαίνεται τοῖς ὁρῶσιν ἐπιβουλεῦον". 9.7 Ἤκουσε τούτων ἡ πάντα ἀρίστη γυνὴ καὶ παραυτίκα εἴσω τῆς τοῦ Πέτρου σαγήνης ἐγένετο-τῷ γὰρ ὁμωνύμῳ παραπλησίως καὶ οὗτος ἡλίευε-καὶ τῶν ποδῶν ἁπτομένη καὶ ποτνιωμένη τῷ ὀφθαλμῷ δοθῆναι τὴν θεραπείαν ἱκέτευεν. Ὁ δὲ ἄνθρωπος μὲν ἔλεγεν εἶναι καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχειν φύσιν αὐτῇ, πολὺν δὲ ἁμαρτημάτων φορυτὸν ἐπιφέρεσθαι καὶ τούτου γε εἵνεκα τῆς πρὸς τὸν θεὸν παρρησίας ἀπεστερῆσθαι. Ὡς δὲ ἔκλαιεν ἡ μήτηρ καὶ ἠντιβόλει καὶ ἔφασκε μὴ κατα λείψειν εἰ μὴ τύχοι τῆς ἰατρείας, τὸν θεὸν ἔφη τούτων εἶναι θεραπευτήν, χορηγεῖν δὲ ἀεὶ τοῖς πιστεύουσι τὰς αἰτήσεις· "∆ώσει τοίνυν, εἶπε, καὶ νῦν, οὐκ ἐμοὶ τὴν χάριν δωρούμενος, ἀλλὰ τὴν σὴν πίστιν θεώμενος. Εἰ τοίνυν ταύτην ἔχεις ἀκραιφνῆ καὶ εἰλικρινῆ καὶ πάσης ἀμφιβολίας ἀπηλλαγμένην, ἐρρῶσθαι καὶ ἰατροῖς φράσασα καὶ φαρμάκοις, τοῦτο δέξαι τὸ θεόσδοτον φάρμακον". Ταῦτα εἰπὼν ἐπέθηκε τὴν χεῖρα τῷ ὀφθαλμῷ καὶ τοῦ σωτηρίου σταυροῦ τὸ σημεῖον τυπώσας τὴν νόσον ἀπήλασεν. 9.8 Ἐκεῖθεν εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν ἐπανελθοῦσα καὶ τὸ φάρμακον ἀπονιψαμένη καὶ τὸν