44

others received through us, but we need this for ourselves, which should all the more persuade your eloquence. 149.T TO GEORGE 149.1 That which is sick is healed, but not crushed. How then our fellow deacon Euthalius, respecting neither his rank, nor honoring our intimacy, crushed the wretched Philadelphius with bonds and blows, as the marks of the blows also show, this I have marveled at. 149.2 Do not then receive what has happened lightly, but come yourself and set before us what has occurred. Let the deacon also be present, both to give an account for the accusation and to receive a rule concerning the life of the one who was crushed. For we do not tolerate such an unseemly act to be dared almost before our own eyes. 150.T TO ASTERIUS 150.1 I rejoice both when I write and when I am accused for not writing, 150.1 if ever this happens; for even your accusations are kind. And yet I know that I have written often and concerning many things, and indeed I have also obtained what I requested of you. And if nothing else, at least the multitude of those who have been well-treated bears witness to my letters. 150.2 But if you are more ungrudging in friendship than one might pray for, while I am more timid in my requests, you have the first place in virtue, but pardon is for me who avoids being burdensome, since 20every measure is best20 the word of the wise man knows. 150.3 But thanks be to God, that he has entrusted to you the doing of good, thus setting over us a common benefactor and co-ruler. Since now also I entrust to you through this letter of mine our brother and fellow deacon George, a man exceptional to us and most useful to the Church, asking that he receive courage in the things wherein he is at variance with certain people and not be swept away by tyranny.

151.T TO NECTARIUS 151.1 The many rightly conjecture your mind;

or rather they do not guess, but they do not disbelieve us who are zealous, that you deem us worthy of no small respect and honor. One of these is also our most honorable son George, 151.2 who, having fallen into many losses and laboring sufficiently in his affairs, finds one harbor of safety, to be brought to you through us and to receive some philanthropy from the most honorable of the household, the Comes. 151.3 Grant the favor, therefore, if you wish, to him and to his need; but if you wish, to us, to whom I know it is your acknowledged custom to grant everything, and you prove this by your very deeds. 152.T TO THEODORE 152.1 It is time for me to say the words of Scripture: 20To whom shall I cry out when I am wronged? Who will stretch out a hand to me when I am oppressed?20 To whom will the burden of the Church fall, being in such a bad state and undone? 152.2 20I testify before God and the elect angels20 that the flock of God is not suffering just things, being unshepherded and unvisited on account of our deadness. 152.3 For sickness holds me and has already taken me away from the Church and now makes me completely useless, always breathing my last and being more crushed by affairs. 152.4 If then the province had some other head, it would be necessary to cry out and testify to that one; but since your piety is preeminent, it is necessary to look to you. Take care of your Church in whatever way you wish and do not overlook it acting unworthily of itself. 152.5 For, to leave other things aside, what the Apollinarians, having now come, have done and what they threaten, you will learn from my lords the fellow-presbyters, Eulalius the chorepiscopus and Celeusius, whom we have sent for this task to your piety. 152.6 And to check these things is not for one of our age and weakness, but of your sagacity and power, since to you, among other things, God has also given strength for the common protection of the Church. 152.7 But if, saying and writing these things, I am not heard, what alone is left, this will happen, to publicly proclaim to all and make it known that the Church needs a bishop, so that not because of our sickness

44

ἄλλοι δι' ἡμῶν ἐλάμβανον, ταύτης δὲ ἡμεῖς χρῄζομεν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν αὐτῶν, ὃ καὶ μᾶλλον δυσωπησάτω τὴν σὴν λογιότητα. 149.Τ ΓΕΩΡΓΙΩΙ 149.1 Τὸ ἀρρωστοῦν θεραπεύεται, ἀλλ' οὐ συντρίβεται. Πῶς οὖν ὁ συνδιάκονος ἡμῶν Εὐθάλιος, οὔτε τὸν βαθμὸν αἰδεσθείς, οὔτε τὴν οἰκειότητα τιμήσας, δεσμοῖς καὶ πληγαῖς συνέτριψε τὸν ἄθλιον Φιλαδέλφιον, ὡς δείκνυσι καὶ τῶν πληγῶν τὰ σημεῖα, τοῦτο τεθαύμακα. 149.2 Μὴ τοίνυν παρέργως δέξῃ τὸ γεγονός, ἀλλὰ τὸ συμβάν, ἐλθὼν διὰ σεαυτοῦ, παράστησον ἡμῖν. Παρέστω δὲ καὶ ὁ διάκονος, καὶ λόγον ὑφέξων τῆς κατηγορίας καὶ τύπον ληψόμενος περὶ τῆς τοῦ συντριβέντος ζωῆς. Οὐ γὰρ ἀνεχόμεθα τοιαύτην ἀσχημοσύνην τολμᾶσθαι σχεδὸν ἐν ταῖς ἡμετέραις ὄψεσιν. 150.Τ ΑΣΤΕΡΙΩΙ 150.1 Χαίρω καὶ γράφων καὶ ἐγκαλούμενος ὅτι μὴ γράφω, 150.1 εἴ ποτε τοῦτο συμβαίνει· χρηστὰ γάρ σου καὶ τὰ ἐγκλή ματα. Καίτοι γε πολλάκις καὶ περὶ πολλῶν ἐπιστείλας οἶδα, καὶ μέντοι καὶ τυχὼν περὶ ὧν ἐδεήθην σου. Καὶ εἰ μή τι ἄλλο, τό γε πλῆθος τῶν εὖ πεπονθότων μαρτυρεῖ μοι τὰ γράμματα. 150.2 Εἰ δὲ σὺ μὲν ἀφθονώτερος εἶ τὴν φιλίαν ἤ τις ἂν εὔξαιτο, ἐγὼ δὲ περὶ τὰς αἰτήσεις δειλό τερος, σὺ μὲν ἔχε τὰ πρῶτα τῆς ἀρετῆς, ἐμοὶ δὲ συγγνώμη τὸ φορτικὸν φεύγοντι, ἐπειδὴ 20πᾶν μέτρον ἄριστον20 οἶδεν ὁ τοῦ σοφοῦ λόγος. 150.3 Πλὴν τῷ Θεῷ χάρις, ὅτι σοι τὸ εὖ ποιεῖν ἐνεχείρισεν, οὕτω κοινὸν ἐπιστήσας ἡμῖν εὐεργέτην τε καὶ συνάρχοντα. Ἐπεὶ καὶ νῦν ἐγχειρίζω σοι διὰ ταύτης μου τῆς ἐπιστολῆς τὸν ἀδελφὸν καὶ συνδιάκονον ἡμῶν Γεώργιον, ἄνδρα τῶν ἐξαιρέτων ἡμῖν καὶ τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ χρησιμώτατον, ἀξιῶν θάρσους αὐτὸν τυχεῖν ἐν οἷς πρός τινας διαφέρεται καὶ μὴ συναρπασθῆναι τῇ τυραννίδι.

151.Τ ΝΕΚΤΑΡΙΩΙ 151.1 Καλῶς οἱ πολλοὶ στοχάζονται τῆς σῆς διανοίας·

μᾶλλον δὲ οὐκ εἰκάζουσιν, ἀλλ' ἡμῖν φιλοτιμουμένοις οὐκ ἀπιστοῦσιν, ὅτι μὴ μικρᾶς ἡμᾶς ἀδιοῖς αἰδοῦς καὶ τιμῆς. Τούτων εἷς ἐστι καὶ ὁ τιμιώτατος υἱὸς ἡμῶν Γεώργιος, 151.2 ὅς, πολλαῖς ζημίαις περιπεσὼν καὶ κάμνων ἱκανῶς ἐν τοῖς πράγμασιν, ἕνα λιμένα σωτηρίας εὑρίσκει, τὸ προσαχ θῆναί σοι δι' ἡμῶν καὶ τυχεῖν τινος φιλανθρωπίας παρὰ τοῦ τιμιωτάτου τῶν οἰκείων Κόμητος. 151.3 ∆ὸς οὖν τὴν χάριν, εἰ βούλει μέν, αὐτῷ καὶ τῇ χρείᾳ· εἰ βούλει δέ, ἡμῖν, οἷς τὸ πάντα χαρίζεσθαι οἶδ' ὅτι ἐγνωσμένον ἐστί σοι καὶ αὐτοῖς πείθεις τοῖς πράγμασι. 152.Τ ΘΕΟ∆ΩΡΩΙ 152.1 Καιρός μοι τὸ τῆς Γραφῆς εἰπεῖν· 20Πρὸς τίνα βοήσομαι ἀδικούμενος; Τίς ὀρέξει μοι χεῖρα πιεζομένῳ;20 Εἰς τίνα τὸ βάρος τῆς Ἐκκλησίας χωρή σει, κακῶς οὕτω διακειμένης καὶ λελυμένης; 152.2 20∆ια μαρτύρομαι ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τῶν ἐκλεκτῶν ἀγγέλων20 ὅτι μὴ δίκαια πάσχει τὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ ποίμνιον, ἀποίμαντον ὂν καὶ ἀνεπίσκεπτον διὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν νέκρωσιν. 152.3 Ἐμὲ γὰρ ἡ νόσος κατέχει καὶ τάχιον ἀπήγαγε τῆς Ἐκκλησίας καὶ νῦν παντάπασιν ἀχρειοῖ, ἀεὶ τὰ τελευταῖα πνέοντα καὶ πλέον τοῖς πράγμασι συντριβόμενον. 152.4 Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἄλλην τινὰ κεφαλὴν εἶχεν ἡ ἐπαρχία, πρὸς ἐκείνην ἔδει βοᾶν καὶ διαμαρτύρεσθαι· τῆς δὲ σῆς εὐλαβείας ὑπερκειμένης, πρὸς σὲ βλέπειν ἀναγκαῖον. Φρόντισον τῆς σῆς Ἐκκλησίας ὃν βούλει τρόπον καὶ μὴ παρίδῃς ἀναξίως ἑαυτῆς πράττουσαν. 152.5 Ἵνα γὰρ τἄλλα ἐάσω, οἷα νῦν ἐπιστάντες οἱ Ἀπολλι-ναριανοί, τὰ μὲν πεποιήκασι, τὰ δὲ ἀπειλοῦσι, παρὰ τῶν κυρίων μου τῶν συμπρεσβυτέρων μαθήσῃ, Εὐλαλίου τοῦ χωρεπισκόπου καὶ Κελευσίου, οὓς ἐξ ἔργου πρὸς τὴν σὴν εὐλάβειαν ἀπεστάλκαμεν. 152.6 Καὶ τὸ ταῦτα ἐπισχεῖν, οὗ τῆς ἡμετέρας ἐστὶν ἡλικίας καὶ ἀσθενείας, ἀλλὰ τῆς σῆς ἀγχινοίας καὶ δυνάμεως, ἐπειδή σοι, μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων, καὶ τὸ ἰσχύειν ἔδωκεν ὁ Θεὸς ἐπὶ τῇ κοινῇ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας προστασίᾳ. 152.7 Εἰ δὲ ταῦτα λέγων καὶ γράφων μὴ ἀκουοίμην, ὃ λείπεται μόνον, τοῦτο γενήσεται, δημοσίᾳ κηρύξαι πᾶσι καὶ καταστῆσαι γνώριμον ὅτι ἐπισκόπου χρῄζει ἡ Ἐκκλησία, ἵνα μὴ παρὰ τῆς ἡμετέρας ἀρρωστίας