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each one's prayer and thanksgiving; if therefore you have something against your brother or he has something against you, neither your prayers will be heard nor your thanksgivings will be accepted because of the underlying anger. But you must pray continually, brothers; but since God does not listen to those who in anger unjustly hate their brothers, even if they should pray three times an hour, it is necessary to dissolve all enmity and small-mindedness, so that we may be able to pray with a pure and undefiled heart. And yet the Lord commanded to love even enemies, and not to hate friends, and the lawgiver says: "You shall not hate any man, you shall not hate your brother in your thought, with reproof you shall reprove your brother and you shall not take on sin because of him; you shall not hate an Egyptian, because you were a sojourner with him; you shall not hate an Edomite, because he is your brother." And David says: "If I have rendered to those who rendered evil to me." Therefore if you wish to be a Christian, follow the Law of the Lord: "Loose every bond of injustice." For upon you the Savior placed the authority to forgive the sins of your brother that were committed against you up to seventy times seven, that is, four hundred and ninety. How many times, then, have you already forgiven your brother, that you should be unwilling to forgive him even now? And yet you have heard Jeremiah saying: "Let each of you not consider the wickedness of his neighbor in your hearts." But you bear a grudge and maintain enmity and come to judgment and harbor wrath, and your prayer is hindered. But even if you have forgiven the four hundred and ninety times, having released your brother, increase your freedom from anger still more unto goodness for your own sake; and if he does not do so, you at least for God's sake be eager to forgive your neighbor, so that you may become a son of your Father in heaven and when you pray, he may listen as to a friend of God. For this reason, O bishops, when you are about to gather for prayer after the reading and the psalmody and the teaching on the scriptures, let the deacon standing near you say with a loud voice: "Let no one have anything against anyone, let no one be in hypocrisy," so that, if any contention is found among some, being struck in their conscience, they may pray to God and be reconciled to their brothers. For if those entering someone's house must before all things say: "Peace to this house," as sons of peace granting peace to the worthy, as it is written: "To those near and to those far, whom the Lord knew to be his," much more those in

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ἑκάστου προσευχὴ καὶ εὐχαριστία· ἐὰν οὖν ἔχῃς τι κατὰ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ σου ἢ αὐτὸς ἔχῃ τι κατὰ σοῦ, οὔτε αἱ προσευ χαί σου εἰσακουσθήσονται οὔτε αἱ εὐχαριστίαι σου προσ δεχθήσονται διὰ τὴν ὑποκειμένην ὀργήν. Χρὴ δὲ συνεχῶς προσεύχεσθαι ὑμᾶς, ἀδελφοί· ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ τῶν ἐν ὀργαῖς ἀδίκως ἐχθραινόντων ἀδελφοῖς ὁ Θεὸς οὐκ ἐπακούει, καὶ ἐὰν τρὶς τῆς ὥρας προσεύξωνται, χρὴ διαλύειν πᾶσαν ἔχθραν καὶ μικροψυχίαν, ἵνα δυνώμεθα προσεύχεσθαι καθαρᾷ τῇ καρδίᾳ καὶ ἀρύπῳ. Καίτοιγε καὶ ἐχθροὺς ὁ Κύριος ἀγαπᾶν προσέταξεν, οὐχὶ δὲ καὶ τοὺς φίλους μισεῖν, καὶ ὁ νομοθέτης φησίν· «Oὐ μισήσεις πάντα ἄνθρωπον, οὐ μισήσεις τὸν ἀδελφόν σου τῇ διανοίᾳ σου, ἐλεγμῷ ἐλέγξεις τὸν ἀδελφόν σου καὶ οὐ λήψῃ δι' αὐτὸν ἁμαρτίαν· οὐ μισήσεις Aἰγύπτιον, ὅτι πάροικος ἦσθα παρ' αὐτῷ· οὐ μισήσεις Ἰδουμαῖον, ὅτι ἀδελφός σου ἐστίν.» Καὶ ὁ ∆αυὶδ λέγει· «Eἰ ἀνταπέδωκα τοῖς ἀνταποδιδοῦσί μοι κακά.» Ὅθεν εἰ Χριστιανὸς εἶναι θέλεις, ἐξακο λούθει τῷ τοῦ Κυρίου Νόμῳ· «Λύε πάντα σύνδεσμον ἀδικίας.» Ἐπὶ σοὶ γὰρ ὁ σωτὴρ ἐξουσίαν ἔθετο ἀφιέναι ἁμαρτίας τῷ ἀδελφῷ τὰς εἰς σὲ γενομένας ἕως ἑβδομηκοντά κις ἑπτά, τοῦτ' ἔστιν τετρακοσίας ἐνενήκοντα. Ποσάκις οὖν ἤδη ἀφῆκας τῷ ἀδελφῷ σου, ἵνα μὴ θελήσῃς αὐτῷ ἀφιέναι καὶ νῦν; Καίτοι ἀκούσας τοῦ Ἱερεμίου λέγοντος, ὅτι· «Ἕκαστος τὴν κακίαν τοῦ πλησίον αὐτοῦ μὴ λογίζεσθε ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν.» Σὺ δὲ μνησικακεῖς καὶ συντηρεῖς ἔχθραν καὶ ἐπὶ κρίσιν ἔρχῃ καὶ μῆνιν ὑφορᾷς καὶ ἡ προσευχή σου ἐμποδίζεται. Ἀλλ' εἰ καὶ τὰ τετρακόσια ἐνενήκοντα συνεχώρησας ἀφεὶς τῷ ἀδελφῷ σου, πλεόνασον τὴν ἀοργησίαν ἐπὶ πλεῖον εἰς ἀγαθωσύνην δι' ἑαυτόν· κἂν ἐκεῖνος μὴ ποιῇ, ἀλλάγε σὺ διὰ τὸν Θεὸν σπούδαζε ἀφιέναι τῷ πλησίον, ὅπως γένῃ υἱὸς τοῦ Πατρός σου τοῦ ἐν οὐρανοῖς καὶ προσευχόμενος ὑπακούῃ ὡς φίλος Θεοῦ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, ὦ ἐπίσκοποι, μελλόντων ὑμῶν εἰς προσευχὴν ἀπαντᾶν μετὰ τὴν ἀνάγνωσιν καὶ τὴν ψαλμῳδίαν καὶ τὴν ἐπὶ ταῖς γραφαῖς διδασκαλίαν, ὁ διάκονος πλησίον ὑμῶν ἑστὼς μετὰ ὑψηλῆς φωνῆς λεγέτω· «Μή τις κατά τινος, μή τις ἐν ὑποκρίσει», ἵνα, ἐὰν εὑρεθῇ ἐν τισὶν ἀντι λογία, συνειδήσει κρουσθέντες δεηθῶσιν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ διαλλαγῶσιν τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς. Eἰ γὰρ τοὺς ἐν οἰκίᾳ τινὸς εἰσερχομένους πρὸ πάντων δεῖ λέγειν· «Eἰρήνη τῷ οἴκῳ τούτῳ», ὡς υἱοὺς εἰρήνης εἰρήνην χαριζομένους τοῖς ἀξίοις, καθὼς γέγραπται· «Τοῖς ἐγγὺς καὶ τοῖς μακράν, οὓς ἔγνω ὁ Κύριος ὄντας αὐτοῦ», πολλῷ μᾶλλον τοὺς ἐν