Orationes forenses et acta

 Each one of you has received benefits from him, that having set this forth here with goodwill toward him you might sway the votes, and by showing favo

 Having beset it and stirred herself up to be divinely inspired and worked herself into a bacchic frenzy. now, that the many are deceived by this, i do

 Of her, nor anything else of the things forbidden to me, but which are proclaimed and honored by them. for someone might perhaps excuse him for the fi

 To be enumerated? for divination is for the time being sufficient. but i think, if this had happened before, he would have nobly recorded these things

 Of the difference of theurgies, at the end he adds: one must remove in advance all obstacles to the visitation of the gods and impose a total tranqui

 In these matters i would gladly ask of you, whether it is permitted for a priest to be initiated into such mysteries and to be deemed worthy of such r

 Immediately, therefore, all blushed, or rather, indeed, they shouted with their voices and condemned the leaders of the impiety and named their writin

 Has he discerned? but if indeed the part of the synod has not joined with the senate council nor with the chosen of the nazirites—for this part was no

 Aristotle's theology and the psychogony of plato and the new numbers and the remodeling of doctrines and the expense of the divisible, who of all ever

 What argument is left to you concerning this, or how is it that you dispute with one another over matters of such importance and postpone the decision

 And i gladly admire in you the encomium of the good man in your memorandum. for where he holds on to the whole and bears the burden of common cares, y

 All those, with whom we disagree, have advocated for confusions or divisions. for what do matter and ideas have in common with our doctrines? but sinc

 And of the one who is lifted up and of the one seated on it. know the cherubic and seraphic wings, the perfection of their number, the symbolic coveri

 They have shaken. for if they happened to be uninitiated in our doctrines and completely uninstructed in the mysteries of the spirit, perhaps, having

 For he who receives a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, from the contrary and greater, he who receives an impious man will receive the punishme

 He has despised all things equally, although the law, standing as it were at his ears, cried out: let no one teach or learn profane things. and agai

 He both strung together and vomited up, this twenty-third writing he thinks, or rather he places it between those who were then in every way our own p

 Depicting the madness of nestorian rage. i have left it to you to compare it with the dogmas of the massalians. i brought forth to them from the inner

 The patriarch has acted impiously, clearly and openly. and it is not permitted for any of you who wish, nor for those zealous on his behalf, to defend

 And having brought over certain forces from the west, he stirred them up for war, and they come face to face with each other from both sides. and a fi

 Delaying he is persuaded and is moderate and descends with them. and he dares against two emperors, of whom the one the imperial court held, adorned w

 Being torn apart. but pilate sat judging my divinely-moved emperor, the lord's anointed, who was being considered, not hesitating, not washing his han

 To kill the emperor, unless he came down quickly and bowed his head to him, but he, fearing the tyrannical cruelty and cowering lest he suffer anythin

 An innovative rank and would come to be below. there, then, the morning star raged against the first goodness, but here the evening star has attacked

 Demonic in his life. but again i have turned to you, the judges, and again i ask: has anything been dared by this man or not? you will surely say the

 Then failing to achieve their purpose, they chose to strike and kill. is it not clear to all that, while digging through and breaking into the houses

 Ruin, if he should object saying that he neither urged these things nor wished them, but even punished many of those who dared with all punishments, w

 In the parts on the right, somewhere near the entrance, but you have immediately ascended into heaven on earth itself, as if considering it a terrible

 Disregarding the divine temples, he was destroying them? and he did not cease, piling one on top of another and making them abandoned ruins. for not o

 Leaning together walls collapsed together with their icons and statues. and everything was as if in a great earthquake, the air being darkened, the e

 And the remains of the apostle luke are burned by fire and reduced to dust. i fear that the bodies of martyrs also lay here. i am afraid that some of

 I shall grant you this also. he had no need, it is true, of the burial robes. i admit it, since they had all already decayed. but he did have need of

 Let us not even examine the scene after that, but let these things be considered by him as theaters and hunts. but where the mercy-seat is, and around

 Seeing what was happening was exulting and rejoicing, like of old the whelp of the beast, i mean the one from isauria. but you consider for me what a

 Fire was burning us and the zeal of the lord was consuming us, long ago the man would have perished, or rather, he would not even have had access to t

 To me the macedonian, to the right the spear, at a walk the half-file leader, captain, wheel around. and nothing new nor incredible for one who has

 I pray with the high priest, but the mixture and the sheath which has grown with us turns the mind, being raised aloft, back toward itself. therefore

 He would trace his genealogy from cronus and rhea and from those even further back, i mean hericapaeus and phanes and that orphic night and he traced

 And the same color over all, none of which moved or influenced him? but never to converse even with the more divine words nor to unroll any tablet, th

 The emperor's treasury is not supplied only from mines nor from the recesses of the earth, nor do tributes alone fill it, nor contributions from land

 And to speak of the audacity, or rather—but how could i speak, intertwining things?—and the diligently pursued plot, through which almost everything w

 Granting that you may meet with more benevolent judges above. and then the drink of deposition here will truly appear to you as a purification. and ma

 Suspicious to many. but if he has nothing in common with the one he has chosen to accuse, nor has anything come between them, it is somehow still unac

 They anticipate my tongue, scattering against me the things they did wrong on account of their own greed, and i confidently awaited the court, as one

 To vote against a priest on the spot the penance exceeds all punishment the examination and the penance must proceed canonically. and, as it seems,

 Of the whole age, an unbeliever, so that i may speak truly, to believe against a believer? for this would be far from reason and thought. for where we

 But i, but what might i say about this? he living the life of a private citizen, but i clothed in the high-priestly vestment. and such a man is agains

 With misfortunes and your example, for the sake of argument, let someone come forward as a condemned man to have his neck cut. and let the sword be ha

 Do you receive? for the pardon testifies that the deposition did not seem so even to himself. for if, according to you, it is like a cutting off, what

 Is the cause the comparison of the matter to a beheading? for from this, one absurdity having been granted, these many nonsensical things were consequ

 An evil tale about me for years, leave me to my former wounds, do not card new ones upon me. so may the lord heal you, if indeed there is anything in

 This is the law of accusation and defense, and from this the precise examination of matters is found. but he introduced a new kind of writing into the

 Of voice, for not even this is unworthy of the art, and with a rhythmic turn of the tongue, you perhaps might only approach him, you who indeed gaped

 Has been debarred from studies? but for you in deep old age, what share is there of education? who of all people has known you, as far as i know, afte

 Which they say came into being of their own accord. but these things are not acceptable to you, and for this reason we shall laugh at you again, havin

 Ever, not in courts, not in counsels, not in public, not in private. for this was not even without accusation, but the speech had some defense. from w

 And the nature of fire did not burn, and the steep rock sent forth springs, and the wood here sweetened the bitterness, and there lightened the heavy

 Did he transcend this time? and it is likely, o best one, for christ possessed a nature more free even according to human standards. whether, then, th

 From himself, having allotted a great portion of reason to his soul this man, therefore, having long ago established for himself a little adopted dau

 A contest, but more brilliant was the victory of elpidius, and he went away having overcome the vestarches by all votes and crowning himself with the

 Receiving. when the most compassionate soul heard this supplication, since she also knew the circumstances concerning the bestarches, and that for man

 I will let my tongue go from forbidden deeds. and first i shame myself relating unspeakable and improper things, since i will also become a stumbling

 The amounts owed will be reckoned against each other, and the fine will be reckoned to elpidios in place of the protospatharios's fee, and the protosp

 Having received a seaside property from him, i give back to him in exchange a mainland one as a permanent dwelling by gift. but the kalai property was

 Most complete, not measured by time, not defined by partial successions nor by these alienations or those, but eternal, sufficient for all successions

 Indicating by the documents, which it is also necessary to go through in order. and so that we may make the summaries concise, and not, by going throu

 At that time for the ruler to ratify to her through a gift of a golden bull the property which he had previously granted to the man, not having been i

 But the rest testified that they themselves were not present at such a sale, but had heard from the subscribing witnesses in the confirmatory document

 He marveled at our western setting sun as a morning sunrise, and with the unspeakable pangs of his soul he discerned the ineffable will of god concern

 On both sides the gift is valid for those who received it from there. for the estate was perhaps of the daughters of nicholas’s wife through paternal

 Harmony, who of all could dissolve such a great bond, or rather these wonderful and in reality altogether indissoluble connections? for the first and

 He has made known by an agreement to whom indeed you also entrusted everything under oath and, whatever they themselves should do, you have promised

 Emperor of the romans, doukas. konstantinos, in christ the god faithful emperor of the romans, doukas. ioannes, most humble archbishop of constantinop

an evil tale about me for years, leave me to my former wounds, do not card new ones upon me. So may the Lord heal you, if indeed there is anything in you that needs God's healing. To you, then, I bring these pitiful words, and from all sides I am led on by reasonings and prayers and justifications and entreaties. But to you, the luminary of the world and my king—for I make you my own by your good works—who after the first God shine like the sun, may God grant in return for your grace to me the good things of Jerusalem, the kingdom of the Sion above, the land of the meek, the undefiled mansions. And may the queens enjoy with you the power, and may you enjoy it with them, and with them again may you reign in the divine and indestructible kingdom. 3 On behalf of the Nomophylax against Ophrydas. It was laid up for me among other things to also have the misfortune of this speech, which I undertook with great gravity as no other terrible thing. For to make a defense for a man diametrically opposed to that man in virtues and adorned with as many graces as that man was deprived of, against a base and worthless man, what great distress would it not cause the writer, for whom to win is equal to being defeated, and from both comes disgrace? For in the case of Aristides, when he was contending against Plato on behalf of the Four, the philosopher inspired the orator with power in his speech and confidence, and he himself, feigning inability, as a clever orator would, says he is unable to use all his skills when competing against such a person; but from <the> <speech> on behalf of Plato himself, while fighting not against Pericles or Cimon, but against some fool, such as the historical account describes Coroebus, the opposing person himself is surely the precise reason, contrary to Aristides' case against Plato, for the speech not being strong and for not being eager towards this. These, then, are the reasons why I undertook the present speech with much displeasure, and have passed the time until now; but since to the many the babbling of the speech seemed like intelligence and the artlessness of the writer a true and unaffected simplicity, and from this the slander found an opening and with its advocates rose up together against the nomophylax, it seemed to me terrible indeed not to also help Plato, who is in peril on account of the new Aristides, as it were, who strengthened our city with many other speeches and especially with his political ones. If, then, every listener were fair-minded, there would be no need for difficulty or proof in the speech, but it would have been enough to point out the slanderer and be done with the matter. For of those whose reputation is already established as foolish, the very declaration of their name is a clear accusation and refutation. But since the many do not yield to reputations, but attend to the words of slander, so that we may both render their slander uncertain and work on our own speech more eagerly, let us grant that Ophrydas was not the writer, that foolish old man, but some other person, one who has a share of eloquence and is engaged in political affairs and knows well how to champion the laws. Why then, like the more cowardly soldiers, did he strike while protecting his back, but shun joining battle and coming to close quarters, as something else to be feared? For this is the act of one who is not confident, and is envious of those who are praised. For thus we find the contests of speeches, both rhetorical and philosophical. Someone indicted a certain person for wrongdoings; first the people listened to the speaker, then the defendant made his defense on this very point. Protagoras was being refuted, but on behalf of many philosophers and on the same points, Theaetetus, who agreed with him, made a defense.

ἔτεσι πονηρὸν περὶ ἐμοῦ διήγημα, ἐάσατέ με μέχρι τῶν προτέρων πληγῶν, μὴ δευτέρας μοι ἐπιξάνοιτε. οὕτως ὑμᾶς ἰάσαιτο κύριος, εἴ τι δήποτε καὶ ὑμῖν ἰατρείας θεοῦ δεόμενον πρόσεστιν. Ὑμῖν μὲν οὖν ταύτας τὰς ἐλεεινὰς προσάγω φωνάς, καὶ πάντοθε συλλογισμοῖς ὑπάγομαι καὶ δεήσεσι καὶ δικαιολογίαις καὶ δυσωπήσεσι. σοὶ δέ, τῷ τοῦ κόσμου φωστῆρι καὶ ἐμῷ βασιλεῖ-οἰκειοῦμαι γάρ σε τοῖς ἀγαθοεργήμασι-τῷ μετὰ θεὸν τὸν πρῶτον ὡς ἥλιον λάμποντι, ἀντιδοίη θεὸς τῆς εἰς ἐμὲ χάριτος τὰ ἀγαθὰ Ἱερουσαλήμ, τῆς ἄνω Σιὼν τὴν βασιλείαν, τὴν γῆν τῶν πραέων, τὰς ἀκηράτους μονάς. συναπολαύσαιέν τέ σοι αἱ βασιλίδες τοῦ κράτους καὶ συναπολαύσαις αὐταῖς τούτου καὶ μετ' αὐτῶν αὖθις βασιλεύσαις τὴν θείαν βασιλείαν καὶ ἀκατάλυτον. 3 Ὑπὲρ τοῦ νομοφύλακος κατὰ τοῦ Ὀφρυδᾶ. Ἀπέκειτό μοι μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων καὶ τουτονὶ δυστυχῆσαι τὸν λόγον, ὃν ὡς οὐδὲν ἄλλο δεινὸν μετὰ πολλῆς ἀνεδεξάμην βαρύτητος. τὸ γὰρ πρὸς ἄνδρα φαῦλον καὶ τοῦ μηδενὸς ἄξιον ὑπὲρ ἀνδρὸς ἀπολογεῖσθαι ἐκ διαμέτρου πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἀντικειμένου ταῖς ἀρεταῖς καὶ τοσαύταις κεκοσμημένου ταῖς χάρισιν, ὅσων ἐκεῖνος ἐστέρητο, πόσης οὑκ ἂν εἴη δεινοπαθείας τῷ γράφοντι αἴτιον, ᾧ τὸ κρατῆσαι ἶσον τῷ ἡττηθῆναι ἐστί, καὶ ἀμφοτέρων ἡ ἀδοξία περίεστι; Ἀριστείδῃ μὲν γὰρ ὑπὲρ τῶν τεσσάρων ἀγωνιζομένῳ πρὸς Πλάτωνα δύναμιν ὁμοῦ τῷ λόγῳ καὶ εὐθυμίαν τῷ ῥήτορι ὁ φιλόσοφος ἐνεποίει, καὶ αὐτὸς ἀκκιζόμενος, οἷα δὴ δεινὸς ῥήτωρ, οὐκ ἔχειν φησὶ πᾶσι χρήσασθαι πρὸς τοιοῦτο διαγωνιζόμενος πρόσωπον· ἐκ δὲ <τοῦ> ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ Πλάτωνος <λόγου>, μηδὲ πρὸς Περικλέα ἢ Κίμωνα, ἀλλὰ πρός τινα λῆρον διαμαχομένῳ, οἷον ὁ τῆς ἱστορίας λόγος ὑπογράφει τὸν Κόροιβον, αὐτὸ δήπου τὸ ἀντιμαχόμενον πρόσωπον, τοῦ τε μὴ ἐρρῶσθαι τὸν λόγον, καὶ τοῦ μὴ προθυμεῖσθαι πρὸς τοῦτον, ὑπόθεσις ἀκριβὴς καὶ ἐξ ἐναντίου πρὸς Ἀριστείδην τῷ Πλάτωνι. ∆ι' ἃ μὲν οὖν μέχρι πολλοῦ δυσανασχετῶν τὸν παρόντα λόγον ἀνεδεξάμην, καὶ τὸν μέχρι τοῦ νῦν διατέτριφα χρόνον, ταῦτά ἐστιν· ἐπεὶ δὲ τοῖς πολλοῖς ἡ φλυαρία τοῦ λόγου σύνεσις ἔδοξε καὶ ἀτεχνία τοῦ γράψαντος ἁπλότης ἀληθινή τε καὶ ἀνεπιτήδευτος, κἀντεῦθεν ἡ βασκανία χώραν λαβοῦσα μετὰ συνηγόρων ἐπισυνέστη τῷ νομοφύλακι, δεινόν μοι ἄλλως ἔδοξε μὴ καὶ τῷ Πλάτωνι διὰ τὸν νέον ὡς ἀληθῶς Ἀριστείδνη βοηθῆσαι διακινδυνεύοντι, ὃς πολλοῖς τε ἄλλοις λόγοις καὶ μάλιστα τοῖς πολιτικοῖς τὴν ἡμετέραν πόλιν ἐκράτυνεν. εἰ μὲν οὖν εὐγνώμων ἅπας ἀκροατὴς ἦν, οὐδεμιᾶς ἔδει τῷ λόγῳ δυσχερείας καὶ ἀποδείξεως, ἀλλ' ἤρκει τὸν διαβαλόντα δηλώσαντι ἀπηλλάχθαι πραγμάτων. ὧν γὰρ ἡ δόξα ἀνοήτως ἐχόντων προείληπται, τούτων αὐτὸ δὴ τοὔνομα δηλωθὲν σαφὴς κατηγορία καὶ ἔλεγχος. ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐ ταῖς ὑπολήψεσι διδόασιν οἱ πολλοί, ἀλλὰ τοῖς τῆς διαβολῆς προσέχουσι ῥήμασιν, ἵνα καὶ μᾶλλον αὐτῶν τε τὴν βασκανίαν ἀβέβαιον καὶ τὸν ἡμέτερον λόγον προθυμότερον ἐργασώμεθα, μὴ τὸν Ὀφρυδᾶν δώσομεν εἶναι τὸν γράψαντα, τὸ ἀνόητον ἐκεῖνο γερόντιον, ἄλλον δέ τινα καὶ λόγου μετέχοντα καὶ τῶν πολιτικῶν ἀντεχόμενον καὶ τὸν προστησόμενον ἱκανῶς εἰδότα τῶν νόμων. ∆ιατί οὖν, ὥσπερ τῶν στρατιωτῶν οἱ δειλότεροι, τὰ νῶτα τηρῶν ἔβαλε, τὸ δὲ συμμίξαι καὶ εἰς χεῖρας ἐλθεῖν, ὡς ἄλλο τι τῶν φοβερῶν, ἀπεδίδρασκε; τοῦτο γὰρ οὔτε θαρροῦντος, καὶ βασκαίνοντος τοῖς ἐπαινουμένοις. οὕτω γὰρ τοὺς τῶν λόγων ἀγῶνας εὑρίσκομεν, ὅσοι τε ῥητορικοὶ καὶ ὅσοι φιλόσοφοι. ἐγράψατό τις ἀδικημάτων τὸν δεῖνα· ἐπηκροάσατο πρῶτον ὁ δῆμος τοῦ λέγοντος, εἶτα ὁ φεύγων ἐπ' αὐτῷ τούτῳ ἀπελογήσατο. ἠλέγχετο Πρωταγόρας, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ πολλοῖς φιλοσόφοις καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς αὐτοῖς ὁ συνδοξάζων ἐκείνῳ ἀπελογεῖτο Θεαίτητος.