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and has dug it, and he will fall into the pit which he made.” And again: “He who digs a pit for his neighbor will fall into it.” Therefore, let him who flees a curse not curse another. “For what you hate to happen to you, do not do to another.” Therefore, admonish the disobedient, rebuke the shameless, encourage the fainthearted, strengthen the weak, praise those who walk in holiness; let them rather bless and not revile, let them make peace and not cause war. Let neither bishop, therefore, nor presbyter, nor deacon, nor anyone else from the priestly order defile his tongue with reviling, so that he may not inherit a curse instead of a blessing. And let it be a matter of zeal and care for the bishop, that not even a layman utter a curse; for he ought to care for all: for clergy, for virgins, for widows, for the laity. For this reason, O bishop, appoint as deacons your fellow-workers of life and workers of righteousness, pleasing to God, whom you have tested from all the people to be worthy and nimble for the needs of the ministry. Appoint also a faithful and holy deaconess for the services of women. For there are times when you cannot send a male deacon to women in certain houses because of the unbelievers; you will therefore send a woman deacon because of the evil thoughts of the wicked. For indeed we need a woman deacon for many needs. And first, in the baptizing of women, the deacon shall anoint only their foreheads with the holy oil, and after him the deaconess shall anoint them; for it is not necessary for women to be seen by men. But only in the laying on of hands shall the bishop anoint her head, in the manner that kings and priests were formerly anointed; not that those who are now baptized are ordained priests, but as Christians from Christ, a royal priesthood and a holy nation, the Church of God, the pillar and foundation of the bridechamber, who were once not a people, but now are beloved and elect. You therefore, O bishop, according to that type, shall anoint the head of those being baptized, whether of men or of women, with the holy oil as a type of the spiritual baptism; then either you, the bishop, or the presbyter under you, having said and named over them the holy invocation of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, you shall baptize them in the water; and let the deacon receive the man, and the deaconess the woman, so that the giving of the unbreakable seal may be done with propriety; and after this let the bishop anoint the bapti

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καὶ ἀνέσκαψεν αὐτόν, καὶ ἐμπεσεῖται εἰς βόθρον, ὃν εἰργά σατο.» Καὶ πάλιν· «Ὁ ὀρύσσων βόθρον τῷ πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἐμπεσεῖται εἰς αὐτόν.» Oὐκοῦν ὁ φεύγων κατάραν ἕτερον μὴ καταράσθω. «Ὃ γὰρ μισεῖς σοὶ γενέσθαι, οὐδὲ ἄλλῳ ποιήσεις.» ∆ιὸ νουθετεῖτε τὰς ἀπειθεῖς, ἐπιπλήσσετε ταῖς ἀναισχύντοις, παρακαλεῖτε τὰς ὀλιγοψυχούσας, ἰσχυρο ποιεῖτε τὰς ἀσθενούσας, ἐπαινεῖτε τὰς ἐν ὁσιότητι ὁδευούσας· εὐλογείτωσαν μᾶλλον καὶ μὴ λοιδορείτωσαν, εἰρηνοποιείτω σαν καὶ μὴ πόλεμον ἐμποιείτωσαν. Μήτε οὖν ἐπίσκοπος μήτε πρεσβύτερος μήτε διάκονος μήτε ἄλλος τις ἐκ τοῦ καταλόγου τοῦ ἱερατικοῦ λοιδορίᾳ τὴν γλῶσσαν μολυνέτω, ἵνα μὴ ἀντὶ εὐλογίας κατάραν κληρονομήσῃ. Ἔστω δὲ σπουδὴ καὶ ἐπιμέλεια τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ, ὅπως μηδὲ λαϊκὸς κατάραν ἐκφέρῃ· περὶ πάντων γὰρ μέλειν αὐτῷ ὀφείλει, περὶ κληρικῶν, περὶ παρθένων, περὶ χηρῶν, περὶ λαϊκῶν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, ὦ ἐπίσκοπε, τοὺς συνεργούς σου τῆς ζωῆς καὶ τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἐργάτας διακόνους εὐαρέστους Θεῷ προχειρίζου, οὓς ἐκ παντὸς τοῦ λαοῦ δοκιμάζεις εἶναι ἀξίους καὶ εἰς τὰς τῆς διακονίας χρείας εὐσκύλτους. Προχεί ρισαι δὲ καὶ διάκονον πιστὴν καὶ ἁγίαν εἰς τὰς τῶν γυναικῶν ὑπηρεσίας. Ἔστι γάρ, ὁπόταν ἔν τισιν οἰκίαις ἄνδρα διάκονον γυναιξὶν οὐ δύνασαι πέμπειν διὰ τοὺς ἀπίστους· ἀποστελεῖς οὖν γυναῖκα διάκονον διὰ τὰς τῶν φαύλων διανοίας. Καὶ γὰρ εἰς πολλὰς χρείας γυναικὸς χρῄζομεν διακόνου. Καὶ πρῶτον μὲν ἐν τῷ φωτίζεσθαι γυναῖκας ὁ διάκονος χρίσει μὲν μόνον τὸ μέτωπον αὐτῶν τῷ ἁγίῳ ἐλαίῳ, καὶ μετὰ τοῦτον δὲ ἡ διάκονος ἀλείψει αὐτάς· οὐ γὰρ ἀνάγκη τὰς γυναῖκας ὑπὸ ἀνδρῶν κατοπτεύεσθαι. Ἀλλὰ μόνον ἐν τῇ χειροθεσίᾳ τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτῆς χρίσει ὁ ἐπίσκοπος, ὃν τρόπον οἱ βασιλεῖς καὶ οἱ ἱερεῖς τὸ πρότερον ἐχρίοντο· οὐχ ὅτι καὶ οἱ νῦν βαπτιζόμενοι ἱερεῖς χειροτονοῦν ται, ἀλλ' ὡς ἀπὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ χριστιανοί, βασίλειον ἱεράτευμα καὶ ἔθνος ἅγιον, Ἐκκλησία Θεοῦ, στῦλος καὶ ἑδραίωμα τοῦ νυμφῶνος, οἵ ποτε οὐ λαός, νῦν δὲ ἠγαπημένοι καὶ ἐκλεκτοί. Σὺ οὖν, ὦ ἐπίσκοπε, ἐκείνῳ τῷ τύπῳ χρίσεις τὴν κεφαλὴν τῶν βαπτιζομένων, εἴτε ἀνδρῶν εἴτε γυναικῶν, τῷ ἁγίῳ ἐλαίῳ εἰς τύπον τοῦ πνευματικοῦ βαπτίσματος· ἔπειτα ἢ σὺ ὁ ἐπίσκοπος ἢ ὁ ὑπὸ σὲ πρεσβύτερος τὴν ἱερὰν ἐπ' αὐτοῖς εἰπὼν καὶ ἐπονομάσας ἐπίκλησιν Πατρὸς καὶ Υἱοῦ καὶ ἁγίου Πνεύματος βαπτίσεις αὐτοὺς ἐν τῷ ὕδατι· καὶ τὸν μὲν ἄνδρα ὑποδεχέσθω ὁ διάκονος, τὴν δὲ γυναῖκα ἡ διάκονος, ὅπως σεμνοπρεπῶς ἡ μετάδοσις τῆς ἀθραύστου σφραγῖδος γένηται· καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο ὁ ἐπίσκοπος χριέτω τοὺς βαπτι