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to snatch from his wrath, not one or two or three or a hundred, but all the sinners throughout the world, you sit outside, and do not all run together, so that God, respecting your harmony, might remit their punishment, and forgive you your sins? For if you happened to be in the marketplace at that time, if in your house, if occupied in unavoidable affairs, would you not, more fiercely than any lion, having broken all your bonds, flee to the common supplication? and what hope of salvation will you have? For what could be more powerful than the Church of God? Do not speak to me of walls and weapons; walls grow old with time, but the Church never ages; barbarians tear down walls, but not even demons overcome the Church. And that these words are no boast, the facts bear witness. How many have warred against the Church, and those who warred have perished, but she has ascended above the heavens? Such is the greatness the Church possesses: when warred against, she conquers; when plotted against, she prevails; when insulted, she becomes more radiant. Do you remember that day, how many weapons were moved against us, and the soldiers' anger fiercer than fire, and we were led away to the imperial courts, and became a spectacle to the world? but through the grace of God, none of those things dismayed us. Why? Because nothing present is terrible. For what is terrible? Death? but it is not terrible; for we are quickly departing to the harbor. But confiscation? Naked I came forth, and naked I shall depart. But exile? The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. But slander? Rejoice, when they speak all manner of evil against you, for your reward is great in heaven. For even if I was led away, what happened was not an insult to me; for insult is one thing only, sin; even if the world insults you, but you do not insult yourself, you have not been insulted. Betrayal is only that of the conscience; let not your conscience betray you, and no one betrays you. I was led away, and I saw the facts, or rather my words becoming facts, and my discourse through words being proclaimed in the marketplace through deeds. I wished therefore to know where they spend their time who have despised the assembly and have been left out of this sacred table. Rather, I know clearly; for they either converse about absurd and ridiculous things, or they are nailed to the cares of this life; but the pursuit of both is deprived of pardon and has the ultimate punishment. And concerning the former, there is no need for words or proof; but that also those who 63.628 bring forward to us the affairs of their household, and speak of the unbearable necessity from there, that not even these can obtain pardon, not preferring spiritual matters to earthly ones, is surely clear to everyone. For what servant, tell me, before he fulfills his master's service, will ever take care of the affairs of his own house? How then is it not absurd, in the case of men where lordship is a mere name, to give so much respect and obedience to masters, but to deem the true Master, not only of us but also of the powers above, not even worthy of the same service as our fellow servants? If only it were possible for me to show their soul to your eyes, and you would see it filthy, squalid, ashamed, humbled, and lacking confidence. For just as bodies that do not enjoy the baths are full of much squalor and filth, so too a soul not enjoying spiritual teaching has the great stain of its sins upon it. If only it were possible to unfold the hearts of those who abandon the divine assembly; if only it were possible for you to enter into their conscience; and then you would see well how many wounds they are full of, how many thorns they have. For just as land not enjoying the hands of farmers becomes waste and runs wild with woods; so too a soul not enjoying spiritual teaching sends forth thorns and thistles. For if we who each day partake of the hearing of the prophets and apostles, and

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ἐξαρπάσειν τῆς ὀργῆς αὐτοῦ, οὐχ ἕνα οὐδὲ δύο καὶ τρεῖς καὶ ἑκατὸν, ἀλλὰ πάντας τοὺς κατὰ τὴν οἰκουμένην ἁμαρτωλοὺς, ἔξω καθέζεσθε, καὶ οὐ συντρέχετε κοινῇ πάντες, ἵνα ὁ Θεὸς τὴν συμφωνίαν ὑμῶν αἰδεσθεὶς, κἀκείνοις ἀφῇ τὴν κόλασιν, καὶ ὑμῖν συγχωρήσῃ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα; Εἰ γὰρ ἐπ' ἀγορᾶς τύχῃς ὢν κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν ἐκεῖνον, εἰ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῆς οἰκίας, εἰ γὰρ ἐν ἀπαραιτήτοις πράγμασιν, οὐχὶ παντὸς λέοντος σφοδρότερον ἅπαντα διαῤῥήξας τὰ δεσμὰ πρὸς τὴν κοινὴν ἱκετηρίαν αὐτομολήσεις; καὶ ποίαν ἕξεις σωτηρίας ἐλπίδα; Τί γὰρ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ Ἐκκλησίας δυνατώτερον γένοιτ' ἄν; Μή μοι λέγε τείχη καὶ ὅπλα· τείχη τῷ χρόνῳ παλαιοῦνται, Ἐκκλησία δὲ οὐδέποτε γηρᾷ· τείχη βάρβαροι καταλύουσιν, ἐκκλησίας δὲ οὐδὲ δαίμονες περιγίνονται. Καὶ ὅτι οὐ κόμπος τὰ ῥήματα, μαρτυρεῖ τὰ πράγματα. Πόσοι ἐπολέμησαν τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ οἱ πολεμήσαντες ἀπώλοντο, αὕτη δὲ ὑπὲρ τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀναβέβηκε; Τοιοῦτον ἔχει μέγεθος ἡ Ἐκκλησία· πολεμουμένη νικᾷ, ἐπιβουλευομένη περιγίνεται, ὑβριζομένη λαμπροτέρα καθίσταται. Συνήκατε τὴν ἡμέραν ἐκείνην, ὅσα ἐκινεῖτο καθ' ἡμῶν ὅπλα, καὶ θυμὸς στρατιωτικὸς πυρὸς σφοδρότερος, καὶ ἡμεῖς πρὸς τὰς βασιλικὰς αὐλὰς ἀπηγόμεθα, καὶ θέατρον ἐγινόμεθα τῇ οἰκουμένῃ; ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριν οὐδὲν ἡμᾶς ἐκείνων κατέπληξε. ∆ιὰ τί; Ὅτι οὐδὲν τῶν παρόντων δεινόν. Τί γάρ ἐστι δεινόν; θάνατος; ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔστι δεινόν· ταχέως γὰρ ἐπὶ τὸν λιμένα ἀπερχόμεθα. Ἀλλὰ δήμευσις; Γυμνὸς ἐξῆλθον, γυμνὸς καὶ ἀπελεύσομαι. Ἀλλ' ἐξορία; Τοῦ Κυρίου ἡ γῆ καὶ τὸ πλήρωμα αὐτῆς. Ἀλλὰ συκοφαντία; Χαίρετε, ὅταν εἴπωσι πᾶν πονηρὸν καθ' ὑμῶν ῥῆμα, ὅτι μισθὸς ὑμῶν πολὺς ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ ἀπηγόμην, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἦν ὕβρις μοι τὸ γινόμενον· ὕβρις γὰρ ἓν μόνον, ἁμαρτία· κἂν ἡ οἰκουμένη σε ὑβρίσῃ, σὺ δὲ σαυτὸν μὴ ὑβρίσῃς, οὐχ ὑβρίσθης. Προδοσία μόνη ἡ τοῦ συνειδότος· μὴ προδῷ σε τὸ συνειδὸς, καὶ οὐδείς σε προδίδωσιν. Ἀπηγόμην, καὶ ἑώρων τὰ πράγματα, μᾶλλον δὲ τὰ ῥήματά μου πράγματα γινόμενα, καὶ τὴν προσομιλίαν μου τὴν διὰ τῶν ῥημάτων ἐπὶ τῆς ἀγορᾶς διὰ πραγμάτων κηρυττομένην. Ἐβουλόμην τοίνυν εἰδέναι, ποῦ διατρίβουσιν οἱ τῆς συνάξεως καταφρονήσαντες, καὶ τῆς ἱερᾶς ταύτης ἀπολειφθέντες τραπέζης. Μᾶλλον δὲ οἶδα σαφῶς· ἢ γὰρ περὶ ἀτόπων καὶ καταγελάστων πραγμάτων διαλέγονται, ἢ βιωτικαῖς εἰσι προσηλωμένοι φροντίσιν· ἀμφοτέρων δὲ ἡ διατριβὴ συγγνώμης ἀπεστέρηται, καὶ κόλασιν ἔχει τὴν ἐσχάτην. Καὶ περὶ μὲν τῆς προτέρας οὐδὲ λόγων δεῖ, οὐδὲ ἀποδείξεως· ὅτι δὲ καὶ οἱ 63.628 τὰ τῆς οἰκίας ἡμῖν προβαλλόμενοι πράγματα, καὶ τὴν ἀφόρητον ἐκεῖθεν ἀνάγκην λέγοντες, οὐδὲ οὗτοι δύνανται συγγνώμης τυχεῖν, μὴ τὰ πνευματικὰ τῶν γηΐνων προτιμῶντες πραγμάτων, παντί που δῆλον. Τίς γὰρ οἰκέτης, εἰπέ μοι, πρὶν ἢ δεσποτικὴν πληρώσει διακονίαν, τῶν κατὰ τὴν ἰδίαν οἰκίαν ἐπιμελήσεταί ποτε; Πῶς οὖν οὐκ ἄτοπον, ἐπ' ἀνθρώπων μὲν ἔνθα ψιλὸν ὄνομα ἡ δεσποτεία, τοσαύτην τοῖς κυρίοις παρέχειν τὴν αἰδὼ καὶ τὴν ὑπακοήν· τὸν δὲ ἀληθῶς ∆εσπότην οὐχ ἡμῶν μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἄνω δυνάμεων, μηδὲ τῆς αὐτῆς τοῖς ἡμετέροις συνδούλοις ἀξιοῦν θεραπείας; Εἴθε ἦν μοι δυνατὸν δεῖξαι τοῖς ὑμετέροις ὀφθαλμοῖς τὴν ἐκείνων ψυχὴν, καὶ εἴδετε ἂν ῥυπῶσαν, αὐχμῶσαν, κατῃσχυμμένην, τεταπεινωμένην καὶ ἀπαῤῥησίαστον. Ὥσπερ γὰρ τὰ βαλανείων οὐκ ἀπολαύοντα σώματα, αὐχμοῦ, καὶ ῥύπου γέμει πολλοῦ· οὕτω καὶ ψυχὴ μὴ διδασκαλίας ἀπολαύουσα πνευματικῆς, πολλὴν τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ἔχει περικειμένην αὐτῇ τὴν κηλῖδα. Εἴθε ἦν δυνατὸν ἀναπτύξαι τὰς καρδίας τῶν ἀπολιμπανομένων τῆς θείας συνάξεως· εἴθε ἦν δυνατὸν ὑμῖν εἰς τὸ συνειδὸς αὐτῶν εἰσεληλυθέναι· καὶ τότε εἴδετε ἂν καλῶς, πόσων τραυμάτων γέμουσιν, ὅσας ἀκάνθας ἔχουσι. Καθάπερ γὰρ γῆ γεωργικῶν οὐκ ἀπολαύουσα χειρῶν χερσοῦται καὶ ὑλομανεῖ· οὕτω καὶ ψυχὴ πνευματικῆς οὐκ ἀπολαύουσα διδασκαλίας, ἀκάνθας καὶ τριβόλους ἐκπέμπει. Εἰ γὰρ ἡμεῖς οἱ καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν τῆς τῶν προφητῶν καὶ ἀποστόλων μετέχοντες ἀκροάσεως, καὶ