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and his brother too; for they were temple-wardens, sprinkling the king's food. And they were accustomed to hold a festival for seven days in Daphne. So on the first day, this man, standing by the king's couch and sprinkling the victuals according to custom and filling them with the defilement, set off at a run and reached the city of Antioch, and coming to that wonderful person: "I have come to you," he said, "not having been false to my promise; but you take care of both salvations and fulfill the promise." Immediately then she arose and led the young man to the man of God, Meletius; and he ordered him for the time being to stay upstairs in the lodging. But his father, seeking the boy, wandered about Daphne and coming to the city went around the streets and the narrow lanes, casting his eyes everywhere and longing to track him down. And when he was in that place where the divine Meletius had his lodging, looking up he saw him peeking out from the lattice-work, and running he dragged him down, and taking him away to the house, first he inflicted very many lashes on him, then heating spits red-hot he applied them to his hands and his feet and his back, then having locked him in the chamber and placed bolts on the outside, he went up to Daphne. These things I heard the man relating when he had already become an old man. And he added these things too, that becoming inspired and filled with divine grace he smashed all of his father's 192 idols, and mocked their weakness; but later, realizing what he had done, he feared his father's arrival and beseeched the Lord Christ to give a sign and break the bolts and throw open the doors; "for it is for your sake," he said, "that I have both suffered and done these things. As I was saying these things," he said, "the bolts fell out, and the doors were opened; and I ran again to my teacher. And she, having put on me the dress of a woman and seated me with her in the covered wagon, brought me again to the divine Meletius. And he handed me over to the bishop of Jerusalem (for it was Cyril at that time), and so by night we set out for Palestine." And after the death of Julian, this man guided his father to the truth; for he taught us this as well, among other things. In this way, then, these men, being guided to the knowledge of God, partook of salvation. But Julian, more openly, or rather, more shamelessly, armed himself against piety, wearing the mask of clemency, but devising snares and traps to catch the deceived for the ruin of impiety. For first he polluted the springs in the city and in Daphne with abominable sacrifices so that everyone enjoying the stream might partake of the defilement, and then he filled the things for sale in the marketplace with the pollution; for breads and meats and fruits and vegetables and the other 193 edible things were all sprinkled. Seeing these things, those who had obtained the name of the Savior groaned and lamented, abominating what was being done, but they partook nonetheless, obeying the apostolic law: "for," it says, "eat whatever is sold in the meat market, asking no questions on account of conscience." But two men, distinguished in military service (for they were shield-bearers and foot-companions of the king), at a certain symposium more fervently lamented the pollution that was taking place and used the marvelous words of the young men who were distinguished in Babylon: "for you have delivered us," they said, "to a lawless, apostate king, beyond all the nations that are on the earth." One of their table-companions reported these things to him. And he, immediately bringing those excellent men, inquired what had been said. But they, supposing the king's question to be an opportunity for outspokenness, sharpening their praiseworthy zeal, said the following: "Having been raised in piety, O emperor, and having served under praiseworthy laws (for the laws were of Constantine and his sons), we now lament

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καὶ ὁ τούτου γε ἀδελφός· νεωκόρω γὰρ ἤστην, τὰ βασι λέως ἐδέσματα περιρραίνοντες. ἑπτὰ δὲ ἡμέρας ἐν τῇ ∆άφνῃ πανη γυρίζειν εἰώθεσαν. Τῇ οὖν ἡμέρᾳ τῇ πρώτῃ παραστὰς οὗτος τῇ βασιλέως στιβάδι καὶ τὰ ὄψα κατὰ τὸ ἔθος διαρράνας καὶ τοῦ μύσους ἐμπλήσας, δρόμῳ χρησάμενος τὴν Ἀντιόχου πόλιν κατέλαβε, καὶ πρὸς τὴν θαυμασίαν ἐκείνην ἀφικόμενος ἄνθρωπον· "ἐγὼ μὲν ἥκω σοι", ἔφη, "μὴ ψευσά μενος τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν· σὺ δὲ σωτηρίας ἑκατέρας ἐπιμελήθητι καὶ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν ἐκπλήρωσον". παραυτίκα δὴ οὖν ἐκείνη διαναστᾶσα πρὸς τὸν τοῦ θεοῦ ἄνθρωπον Μελέτιον τὸν νέον ἀπήγαγεν· ὁ δὲ τέως αὐτὸν ἄνω διάγειν ἐν τῷ καταγωγίῳ προσέταξεν. ὁ δὲ πατὴρ τὸν παῖδα ἐπιζητῶν τήν τε ∆άφνην περιενόστει καὶ εἰς τὸ ἄστυ ἀφικόμενος περιῄει τὰς ἀγυιὰς καὶ τοὺς στενωπούς, πάντοσε περιάγων τὼ ὀφθαλμὼ καὶ τοῦτον ἀνιχνεῦσαι ποθῶν. ἐπειδὴ δὲ κατ' ἐκεῖνο τὸ χωρίον ἐγένετο ἔνθα τὸ καταγώγιον ὁ θεῖος εἶχε Μελέτιος, ἀνα βλέψας εἶδεν ἐκεῖνον ἀπὸ τοῦ δρυφάκτου διακύπτοντα καὶ δραμὼν εἵλκυσέ τε καὶ κατήγαγε, καὶ εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν ἀπαγαγὼν πρῶτον μὲν αὐτῷ μάστιγας παμπόλλας ἐπήγαγεν, εἶτα ὀβελοὺς πυρακτώσας καὶ ταῖς χερσὶ καὶ τοῖς ποσὶ καὶ τοῖς νώτοις ἐπέθηκεν, ἔπειτα καθείρξας ἐν τῷ θαλάμῳ καὶ κλεῖθρα ἔξωθεν ἐπιθεὶς εἰς τὴν ∆άφνην ἀνῆλθε. ταῦτα ἐγὼ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς πρεσβύτου ἤδη γεγονότος διηγου μένου ἀκήκοα. προστέθεικε δὲ καὶ ταῦτα, ὡς ἔνθους γενόμενος καὶ θείας χάριτος ἐμπλησθεὶς συνέτριψε μὲν ἅπαντα τοῦ πατρὸς τὰ 192 εἴδωλα, ἐκωμῴδει δὲ αὐτῶν τὴν ἀσθένειαν· ὕστερον δὲ εἰς νοῦν λαβὼν ὅπερ ἔδρασεν, ἔδεισέ τε τοῦ πατρὸς τὴν παρουσίαν καὶ τὸν δεσπότην Χριστὸν ἠντιβόλησε νεῦσαι καὶ συντρῖψαι τὰ κλεῖθρα καὶ τὰς θύρας ἀναπετάσαι· "σοῦ γὰρ δὴ ἕνεκα", ἔφη, "ταῦτα πέπονθά τε καὶ δέδρακα. ταῦτά μου", ἔφη, "λέγοντος, ἐξέπεσε μὲν τὰ κλεῖθρα, ἀνεῴχθησαν δὲ αἱ θύραι· ἐγὼ δὲ πάλιν πρὸς τὴν διδάσκαλον ἔδρα μον. ἡ δὲ σχῆμά μοι γυναικὸς περιθεῖσα καὶ σὺν αὐτῇ γε εἰς τὴν καμάραν καθίσασα τῷ θείῳ με πάλιν Μελετίῳ προσήγαγεν. ὁ δὲ τῷ τῶν Ἱεροσολύμων με παρέδωκεν ἐπισκόπῳ (Κύριλλος δὲ τηνικαῦτα ἦν), καὶ οὕτω νύκτωρ εἰς τὴν Παλαιστίνην ὡρμήσαμεν". μετὰ δὲ τὴν Ἰουλιανοῦ τελευτὴν καὶ τὸν πατέρα οὗτος πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐποδή γησε· καὶ τοῦτο γὰρ ἡμᾶς μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἐδίδαξε. τοῦτον μὲν δὴ τὸν τρόπον οὗτοι πρὸς θεογνωσίαν ποδηγηθέντες τῆς σωτηρίας μετέλαχον. Ἰουλιανὸς δὲ παρρησιέστερον, μᾶλλον δὲ ἀναιδέστερον, κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας ὡπλίζετο, τὸ μὲν τῆς ἐπιεικείας περικείμενος προσωπεῖον, πάγας δὲ κατασκευάζων καὶ θήρατρα πρὸς τὸν τῆς ἀσεβείας ὄλεθρον τοὺς ἐξαπατωμένους ἀγρεύοντα. πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ τὰς ἐν τῷ ἄστει καὶ τὰς ἐν ∆άφνῃ πηγὰς ταῖς μυσαραῖς θυσίαις ἐμόλυνεν ἵν' ἕκαστος ἀπολαύων τοῦ νάματος μεταλαγχάνῃ τοῦ μύσους, ἔπειτα δὲ καὶ τὰ κατὰ τὴν ἀγορὰν προκείμενα τοῦ μιάσματος ἐνεπίμπλα· περιερραί νοντο γὰρ καὶ ἄρτοι καὶ κρέα καὶ ὀπῶραι καὶ λάχανα καὶ τἄλλα 193 ὅσα ἐδώδιμα. ταῦτα ὁρῶντες οἱ τῆς τοῦ σεσωκότος προσηγορίας τετυχηκότες ἔστενον μὲν καὶ ὠλοφύροντο βδελυττόμενοι τὰ γινόμενα, μετελάμβανον δὲ ὅμως ἀποστολικῷ πειθόμενοι νόμῳ· " πᾶν γάρ ", φησί, " τὸ ἐν μακέλλῳ πωλούμενον ἐσθίετε, μηδὲν ἀνακρί νοντες διὰ τὴν συνείδησιν ". ∆ύο δέ τινες ἐν στρατείᾳ διαπρέποντες (ἀσπιδηφόροι γὰρ ἦσαν καὶ βασιλέως πεζέταιροι) ἔν τινι συμποσίῳ θερμότερον τῶν γιγνο μένων τὸ μύσος ἐθρήνησαν καὶ τοῖς θαυμασίοις τῶν ἐν Βαβυλῶνι διαπρεψάντων μειρακίων ἐχρήσαντο ῥήμασι· " παρέδωκας γὰρ ἡμᾶς ", ἔλεγον, " βασιλεῖ παρανόμῳ ἀποστάτῃ παρὰ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τὰ ὄντα ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ". ταῦτά τις τῶν ὁμοτραπέζων ἐκείνῳ μεμήνυκεν. ὁ δὲ παραυτίκα γε ἀγαγὼν τοὺς ἀρίστους ἄνδρας ἐκείνους ἐπυνθάνετο τίνα εἴη τὰ εἰρημένα. οἱ δὲ παρρησίας ἀφορμὴν ὑπειλη φότες τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως ἐρώτησιν, τὸν ἀξιέπαινον παραθήξαντες ζῆλον, εἶπον τοιάδε· "ἐν εὐσεβείᾳ τραφέντες, ὦ βασιλεῦ, καὶ νόμοις ἀξιεπαίνοις δεδουλευκότες (Κωνσταντίνου γὰρ καὶ τῶν ἐκείνου παίδων ἦσαν οἱ νόμοι), ὀλοφυρόμεθα νῦν