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since almost all were gaping for gain and making a business of the matter.” And he, taking up the conversation, asked, “What sort of man do I seem to you?” And when they agreed that he was a trustworthy and very noble and good man, and such a one as his reputation maintained, “Therefore,” he said, “I will voluntarily appoint myself to this task for your sakes.” And taking money from them, he kept about three hundred beds in the public porticoes, and he took care of those who were sick from the famine, and welcomed strangers and those who had come from the country because of a lack of necessities. And when the famine ceased, he returned to the dwelling where he had lived before. And after surviving for a few days, he died, having advanced in service as far as the rank of cleric, but having become renowned for virtue no less than those who are admired for a good life and learning in the priesthood and civil life. These are the proofs of Ephraim's virtue. But to speak worthily and to go through all the things which he and each of the philosophers of that time lived and did, and with whom, would require a writer such as he was; but I see that this is impossible for me, both because of the weakness of my speech and my ignorance of the men themselves and of what they accomplished. For some of them were hidden in the deserts, while others, even while living in the crowds of cities, made themselves appear lowly and in no way different from the multitude, practicing virtue, but concealing the true opinion about themselves, so as not to be praised by others; for stretching their minds towards the rewards of the good things to come, they made God the only witness of their labors, and had no regard for external glory. For the most part, also, those who then presided over the churches were exact in their lives. And reasonably, the multitudes, being led by such men, were zealously arranged around the worship of Christ, and religion advanced daily, and by the zeal and virtue and marvelous deeds of priests and ecclesiastical philosophers, it hunted and drew to itself the Hellenists from Hellenic trifles. The emperors also contributed to the advancement of these things, being no less zealous for the churches than their father, and honoring clergy and their children and households with special honors and exemptions, and confirming the paternal laws and enacting their own against those who attempted to sacrifice or worship idols or otherwise practice religion in the Hellenic way. And they commanded that the temples situated everywhere in cities and in the country be closed, and they assigned them to the churches which were in need of either space or materials; for they took the greatest care to restore those prayer-houses that were worn out by time, and to erect others magnificently from their foundations. Among these is the noteworthy and famed for its beauty church of Emesa. And they enacted a law that no Jew should buy a slave from another sect; and if he should act contrary to this, the slave should be public property; and if he should also circumcise him, as is lawful for Jews, the penalty should be capital and confiscation of his property. For since they wished to increase religion in every way, they also took forethought for this, so that those who were not such by birth should not be drawn with impunity into Judaism, but that even those who had hope of Christianity should be preserved for the church; for religion advanced most of all from the Hellenic multitude. But not only this, but concerning the dogma itself, they at first kept their father's opinion; for both were approvers of the faith of Nicaea. And Constans, having remained so, died; but Constantius for a time was of the same mind, but after this, when the word "homoousios" was slandered, he was moved from his former opinion; yet he did not entirely refrain from confessing that the Son is like the Father in substance. For those around Eusebius and certain others of the bishops then in the East who were admired for their speech and life introduced a distinction, as we have learned, between saying homoousios and homoios kat' ousian, which they called homoiousios. For homoousios on the one hand

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σχεδὸν πάντων πρὸς κέρδος κεχηνότων καὶ καπηλείαν τὸ πρᾶγμα ποιουμένων.» ὑπολαβὼν δέ «οἷος ὑμῖν δοκῶ;» ἤρετο· τῶν δὲ ἀξιόχρεών τε καὶ μάλα καλὸν καὶ ἀγαθὸν εἶναι καὶ τοιοῦτον, οἷον ἡ περὶ αὐτοῦ δόξα ἐκράτει, συνομολογούντων «οὐκοῦν ἑκοντής», ἔφη, «δι' ὑμᾶς 3.16.15 ἐμαυτὸν ἐπὶ τούτῳ χειροτονήσω.» καὶ λαβὼν ἀργύριον παρ' αὐτῶν ἀμφὶ τὰς τριακοσίας κλίνας ἐν τοῖς δημοσίοις ἐμβόλοις εἶχε, καὶ τῶν ἀπὸ τοῦ λιμοῦ νοσούντων ἐπεμελεῖτο καὶ ξένους καὶ τοὺς κατὰ σπάνιν ἀναγκαίων ἐκ τῶν ἀγρῶν παραγενομένους ἐδεξιοῦτο. ἐπεὶ δὲ ὁ λιμὸς ἐπαύσατο, ἐπανῆλθεν εἰς τὸ οἴκημα ἔνθα καὶ πρὸ τοῦ διέτριβε. καὶ ὀλίγων ἡμερῶν ἐπιβιώσας ἐτελεύτησε, διακονίας μὲν ἄχρι κληρικοῦ τάγματος ἐπιβάς, περιβόητος δὲ ἐπὶ ἀρετῇ γεγονὼς οὐχ ἧττον τῶν ἐν ἱερωσύνῃ καὶ πολιτείᾳ ἀγαθοῦ βίου καὶ παιδεύσει θαυμαζομένων. ταῦτα τῆς ᾿Εφραὶμ ἀρετῆς τὰ μηνύ3.16.16 ματα. ἐπαξίως δὲ εἰπεῖν καὶ περὶ πάντων διεξελθεῖν ὧν ἐκεῖνος καὶ ἕκαστος τῶν τότε φιλοσοφησάντων ἐβίω καὶ ἐπολιτεύσατο καὶ παρὰ τίσι, δεήσει συγγραφέως οἷος αὐτός· ἐμοὶ δὲ ἄπορον εἶναι τοῦτο καθορῶ ὑπό τε ἀσθενείας λόγου καὶ ἀγνοίας αὐτῶν τε τῶν ἀνδρῶν καὶ ὧν κατώρθωσαν. 3.16.17 οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἀνὰ τὰς ἐρήμους ἐλάνθανον, οἱ δὲ καὶ ἐν ὁμίλῳ πόλεων διατρίβοντες εὐτελεῖς σφᾶς παρεῖχον φαίνεσθαι καὶ τῶν πολλῶν μηδὲν διαφέροντας, ἀρετὴν μὲν ἐργαζόμενοι, κλέπτοντες δὲ τὴν ἀληθῆ περὶ αὐτῶν δόκησιν, ὥστε μὴ ἐπαινεῖσθαι παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων· πρὸς γὰρ τὰς ἀμοιβὰς τῶν ἐσομένων ἀγαθῶν τὸν νοῦν τείνοντες, μάρτυρα ὧν ἐπόνουν μόνον τὸν θεὸν ἐποιοῦντο, τῆς δὲ ἔξωθεν δόξης οὐδεὶς αὐτοῖς λόγος ἦν. 3.17.1 ῾Ως ἐπίπαν δὲ καὶ οἱ προεστῶτες τότε τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν τὸν βίον ἠκρίβωντο. εἰκότως τε ὑπὸ τοιούτοις ἐναγόμενα τὰ πλήθη σπουδαίως συντέτατο περὶ τὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ σέβας, καὶ ἡ θρησκεία ὁσημέραι ἐπεδίδου, ζήλῳ τε καὶ ἀρετῇ καὶ παραδόξοις πράξεσιν ἱερέων καὶ ἐκκλησιαστικῶν φιλοσόφων ἐθήρα καὶ πρὸς ἑαυτὴν μετῆγε τῆς ῾Ελληνικῆς τερθρείας τοὺς ῾Ελληνιστάς. 3.17.2 συνελαμβάνοντο δὲ εἰς ἐπίδοσιν τούτων καὶ οἱ βασιλεῖς, οὐχ ἧττον ἢ ὁ πατὴρ περὶ τὰς ἐκκλησίας σπουδάζοντες καὶ κληρικοὺς καὶ παῖδας αὐτῶν καὶ οἰκείους ἐξαιρέτοις τιμαῖς καὶ ἀτελείαις γεραίροντες καὶ τοῖς πατρῴοις νόμοις ἐπιψηφιζόμενοι καὶ οἰκείους τιθέντες κατὰ τῶν θύειν ἢ ξόανα θεραπεύειν ἢ ἄλλως 3.17.3 ῾Ελληνικῶς θρησκεύειν ἐπιχειρούντων. ναοὺς δὲ τοὺς πανταχῇ κειμένους ἐν πόλεσι καὶ ἀγροῖς κεκλεῖσθαι προσέταξαν, τοὺς δὲ ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις προσένειμαν ἢ τόπων ἢ ὑλῶν προσδεομέναις· μάλιστα γὰρ πολλὴν ἐπιμέλειαν ἐποιοῦντο τοὺς μὲν ὑπὸ χρόνου κάμνοντας τῶν εὐκτηρίων οἴκων ἀνανεοῦν, τοὺς δὲ μεγαλοπρεπῶς ἐκ θεμελίων ἐγείρειν. ὧν ἐστι καὶ ἡ ἀξιοθέατος καὶ 3.17.4 κάλλει ἀοίδιμος ᾿Εμέσης ἐκκλησία. ᾿Ιουδαίων δὲ ἐνομοθέτησαν μηδένα δοῦλον ὠνεῖσθαι τῶν ἐξ ἑτέρας αἱρέσεως· εἰ δὲ παρὰ τοῦτο ποιήσει, δημόσιον τὸν οἰκέτην εἶναι· εἰ δὲ καὶ περιτεμεῖ, καθὰ ᾿Ιουδαίοις θέμις, εἰς κε3.17.5 φαλὴν εἶναι τὸν κίνδυνον καὶ ἀφαίρεσιν τῶν ὄντων. ἐπεὶ γὰρ τὴν θρησκείαν πάντοθεν αὔξειν ἐβεβούλευντο, καὶ τούτου πρόνοιαν ἐποιήσαντο, ὥστε μὴ ἀδεῶς εἰς ᾿Ιουδαϊσμὸν ὑποσύρεσθαι τοὺς μὴ τοιούτους ἐκ γένους ὄντας, φυλάττεσθαι δὲ τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ καὶ τοὺς ἐλπίδα Χριστιανισμοῦ ἔχοντας· μάλιστα γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ ῾Ελληνικοῦ πλήθους ἐπεδίδου ἡ θρησκεία. 3.18.1 Οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ αὐτὸ τὸ δόγμα τὰ πρῶτα τὴν πατρῴαν ἐφύλαττον δόξαν· ἄμφω γὰρ ἐπαινέται τῆς ἐν Νικαίᾳ πίστεως ἤστην. καὶ Κώνστας μὲν οὕτω διαμείνας ἐτελεύτησε· Κωνστάντιος δὲ μέχρι μέν τινος ὁμοίως εἶχε, 3.18.2 μετὰ ταῦτα δὲ διαβληθείσης τῆς τοῦ ὁμοουσίου λέξεως τῆς προτέρας παρεκινήθη γνώμης· οὐ μὴν παντελῶς ἀπέσχετο τοῦ κατ' οὐσίαν ὅμοιον εἶναι τῷ πατρὶ τὸν υἱὸν συνομολογεῖν. οἱ γὰρ ἀμφὶ τὸν Εὐσέβιον καὶ ἄλλοι τινὲς τῶν τότε ἀνὰ τὴν ἕω ἐπὶ λόγῳ καὶ βίῳ θαυμαζομένων ἐπισκόπων διαφοράν, ὡς ἔγνωμεν, εἰσηγοῦντο τοῦ ὁμοούσιον λέγειν καὶ κατ' οὐσίαν ὅμοιον, ὅπερ 3.18.3 ὁμοιούσιον ὠνόμαζον. τὸ μὲν γὰρ ὁμοούσιον ἐπὶ