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of all good order and quietness, and let the women also sit separately by themselves, keeping silence. And let the reader, standing in the middle on some high place, read the books of Moses and of Joshua the son of Nun, those of the Judges and of the Kings, those of Chronicles and the Return; in addition to these, those of Job and of Solomon, and those of the sixteen prophets. And when two readings have been completed, let another sing the psalms of David, and let the people sing the refrains. After this, let our Acts be read, and the epistles of Paul our fellow-worker, which he sent to the Churches under the guidance of the Holy Spirit; and after these things let a presbyter or a deacon read the Gospels, which I, Matthew, and John have delivered to you, and which the fellow-workers of Paul, Luke and Mark, having received, left to you. And when the Gospel is being read, let all the presbyters and the deacons and all the people stand with great quietness; for it is written: “Be silent, and hear, O Israel,” and again: “But you, stand here and listen.” And next let the presbyters exhort the people, each one of them, but not all, and last of all the bishop, who is like the captain. Let the doorkeepers stand at the entrances of the men, guarding them, and the deaconesses at those of the women, like ship-masters; for the same type was also followed in the tent of testimony. But if anyone is found sitting out of place, let him be rebuked by the deacon as by a chief officer and be moved to his proper place. For the Church is likened not only to a ship, but also to a sheepfold. For as shepherds arrange each of the animals, I mean goats and sheep, according to family and age, and each of them runs together with its like, so also in the Church let the younger sit by themselves, if there is a place, but if not, let them stand upright; let those already advanced in age sit in order, and let the fathers and mothers take to them their children who are standing; let the younger women again by themselves, if there is a place, but if not, let them stand behind the women; let those who are already married and have children stand by themselves; and let the virgins and the widows and the older women stand or sit first of all. Let the deacon be in charge of the places, so that each of those who enter into the

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πάσης εὐταξιὰς καὶ ἡσυχίας, καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες κεχωρισμένως καὶ αὐταὶ καθεζέσθωσαν σιώπην ἄγουσαι. Μέσος δὲ ὁ ἀναγνώστης ἐφ' ὑψηλοῦ τινος ἑστὼς ἀνα γινωσκέτω τὰ Μωϋσέως καὶ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ Ναυή, τὰ τῶν Κριτῶν γαὶ τῶν Βασιλειῶν, τὰ τῶν Παραλειπομένων καὶ τὰ τῆς Ἐπανόδου, πρὸς τούτοις τὰ τοῦ Ἰὼβ καὶ τὰ Σολομῶντος καὶ τὰ τῶν Ἑξκαίδεκα προφητῶν. Ἀνὰ δύο δὲ γενομένων ἀναγνωσμάτων, ἕτερός τις τοῦ ∆αυὶδ ψαλλέτω τοὺς ὕμνους, καὶ ὁ λαὸς τὰ ἀκροστίχια ὑποψαλλέτω. Μετὰ τοῦτο αἱ Πράξεις αἱ ἡμέτεραι ἀναγινωσκέσθωσαν καὶ αἱ ἐπιστολαὶ Παύλου τοῦ συνεργοῦ ἡμῶν, ἃς ἀπέστειλε ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις καθ' ὑφήγησιν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος· καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα πρεσβύτερος ἢ διάκονος ἀναγινωσκέτω τὰ Eὐαγγέλια, ἃ ἐγὼ Ματθαῖος καὶ Ἰωάννης παρεδώκαμεν ὑμῖν καὶ οἱ συνεργοὶ Παύλου παρειληφότες κατέλειψαν ὑμῖν Λουκᾶς καὶ Μάρκος. Καὶ ὅταν ἀνα γινωσκόμενον ᾖ τὸ Eὐαγγέλιον, πάντες οἱ πρεσβύτεροι καὶ οἱ διάκονοι καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς στηκέτωσαν μετὰ πολλῆς ἡσυχίας· γέγραπται γάρ· «Σιώπα καὶ ἄκουε Ἰσραήλ», καὶ πάλιν· «Σὺ δὲ αὐτοῦ στῆθι καὶ ἀκούσῃ.» Καὶ ἑξῆς παρακαλείτωσαν οἱ πρεσβύτεροι τὸν λαόν, ὁ καθεῖς αὐτῶν, ἀλλὰ μὴ ἅπαντες, καὶ τελευταῖος πάντων ὁ ἐπίσκο πος, ὃς ἔοικε κυβερνήτῃ. Στηκέτωσαν δὲ οἱ μὲν πυλωροὶ εἰς τὰς εἰσόδους τῶν ἀνδρῶν φυλάσσοντες αὐτάς, αἱ δὲ διάκονοι εἰς τὰς τῶν γυναικῶν, δίκην ναυστολόγων· καὶ γὰρ ἐν τῇ σκηνῇ τοῦ μαρτυρίου ὁ αὐτὸς παρηκολούθει τύπος. Eἰ δέ τις εὑρεθῇ παρὰ τόπον καθεζόμενος, ἐπιπλησσέσθω ὑπὸ τοῦ διακόνου ὡς πρωρέως καὶ εἰς τὸν καθήκοντα αὐτῷ τόπον μεταγέσθω. Oὐ μόνον γὰρ νηΐ, ἀλλὰ καὶ μάνδρῃ ὡμοίωται ἡ Ἐκκλησία. Ὡς γὰρ οἱ ποιμένες ἕκαστον τῶν ἀλόγων, αἰγῶν φημι καὶ προβάτων, κατὰ συγγένειαν καὶ ἡλικίαν ἱστῶσιν, καὶ ἕκαστον αὐτῶν τὸ ὅμοιον τῷ ὁμοίῳ συντρέχει, οὕτω καὶ ἐν τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ οἱ μὲν νεώτεροι ἰδίᾳ καθεζέσθωσαν, ἐὰν ᾖ τόπος, εἰ δὲ μή, στηκέτωσαν ὀρθοί· οἱ δὲ τῇ ἡλικίᾳ ἤδη προβεβηκότες καθεζέσθωσαν ἐν τάξει, τὰ δὲ παιδία ἑστῶτα προσλαμβανέσθωσαν αὐτῶν οἱ πατέρες καὶ αἱ μητέρες· αἱ δὲ νεώτεραι πάλιν ἰδίᾳ, ἐὰν ᾖ τόπος, εἰ δὲ μήγε, ὄπισθεν τῶν γυναικῶν ἱστάσθωσαν· αἱ δὲ ἤδη γεγαμηκυῖαι καὶ τὰ τέκνα ἔχουσαι ἰδίᾳ ἱστάσθωσαν· αἱ παρθένοι δὲ καὶ αἱ χῆραι καὶ αἱ πρεσβύτιδες πρῶται πασῶν στηκέτωσαν ἢ καθεζέσθωσαν. Ἔστω δὲ τῶν τόπων προνοῶν ὁ διάκονος, ἵν' ἕκαστος τῶν εἰσερχομένων εἰς τὸν