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are you bringing an old man back from the beginning into public duties through his grandson? But now we implore you to take pity on both ages and to release them both because of the pitiable circumstances present in each case. For the one never saw or knew his parents, but came into this life through the hands of others, having been orphaned of both from his swaddling clothes. And the other has been so visited by life that no kind of misfortune has passed him by. For he has seen the untimely death of a son, he has seen a house empty of successors, and he will see now, unless you yourself devise something worthy of your own benevolence, this consolation for his childlessness becoming for him the start of a thousand evils. For surely the child will not contribute to the councillors or collect the taxes or supply the grain-ration to the soldiers, but it will be necessary for the grey hair of the wretched old man to be shamed again. Grant a favor, therefore, both consistent with the laws and in keeping with nature, by ordering that the one be excused until he reaches the age of manhood, and that the other await his death on his bed; but let others put forward the urgency of business and the inexorability of necessity. For it is not your character either to overlook those who are faring ill, or to disregard laws, or not to yield to friends who implore you, even if the affairs of men surrounded you.

85.t CONCERNING NOT ADMINISTERING OATHS

85.1 We do not cease at every synod to protest and in private meetings to discuss the same matters, so that oaths on public taxes may not be administered by the collectors to the country people. It remained also by letter to protest about the same things before God and men, that it is fitting for us to cease bringing death upon the souls of men, and to devise some other methods of collection, and to allow men to keep their souls unwounded. We write these things to you, not as if you need exhortation from words (for you have from home the motives for fearing the Lord), but so that through you all who are under your authority may be taught not to provoke the Holy One nor by wicked custom to reduce a forbidden practice to a matter of indifference. For neither is there any benefit for them in their collections from the oaths, and they add an acknowledged evil to their soul. For whenever men have grown accustomed to perjury, they no longer hasten themselves to payment, but think that the oath has been found by them as a weapon of deceit and an occasion for delay. Whether, then, the Lord brings swift retribution upon those who have perjured themselves, they will not have those who obey, since the liable parties have been consumed by the punishment; or whether the Master bears with them through long-suffering, what I said before, that those who have experienced the Lord's forbearance despise his goodness, let them not transgress in vain nor provoke God against themselves. We have said what is incumbent on us; those who disobey will see.

86.t TO THE GOVERNOR

86.1 I know that your honor's greatest and first concern is in every way to favor what is just, and second to do good to friends and to support those who flee to the protection of your magnanimity. All these things, therefore, have come together in the present case. For the matter on behalf of which we make our petition is both just, and a favor to us, whom you have deemed worthy to count among your friends, and is owed to those who invoke your steadfastness for help for what they have suffered. For the grain, which was all he had for

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πρεσβύτην διὰ τοῦ ἐκγόνου πάλιν ἐξ ἀρχῆς παράγεις εἰς τὰ δημόσια; Ἀλλὰ νῦν ἱκετεύομεν ἀμφοτέρων σε λαβεῖν τῶν ἡλικιῶν οἶκτον καὶ ἀμφοτέρους ἀνεῖναι διὰ τὰ προσόντα ἑκατέρῳ ἐλεεινά. Ὃ μὲν γὰρ οὐκ εἶδε γονέας οὐδ' ἐγνώρισεν, ἀλλὰ δι' ἀλλοτρίων χειρῶν εἰς τὸν βίον τοῦτον εἰσῆλθεν, εὐθὺς ἐκ σπαργάνων ἀμφοτέρων ὀρφανισθείς. Ὃ δὲ τοσοῦτον ἐταμιεύθη τῷ βίῳ ὡς μηδὲν αὐτὸν εἶδος συμφορᾶς παρελ θεῖν. Ἐπεῖδε μὲν γὰρ υἱοῦ τελευτὴν ἄωρον, εἶδε δὲ οἶκον ἔρημον διαδόχων, ὄψεται δὲ νῦν, ἐὰν μή τι αὐτὸς ἄξιον τῆς σεαυτοῦ φιλανθρωπίας διανοηθῇς, τὴν παραμυθίαν τῆς ἀπαιδίας ταύτην ἀφορμὴν αὐτῷ μυρίων γενησομένην κακῶν. Οὐ γὰρ δή που τὸ παιδίον εἰς βουλευτὰς συντελέσει ἢ ἐκλέξει τὰς εἰσφορὰς ἢ στρατιώταις χορηγήσει τὸ σιτηρέσιον, ἀλλ' ἀνάγκη πάλιν τοῦ ἀθλίου γέροντος τὴν πολιὰν καταισχύνεσθαι. ∆ὸς οὖν χάριν καὶ τοῖς νόμοις ἀκόλουθον καὶ τῇ φύσει συμβαίνουσαν, τῷ μὲν προστάξας μέχρι τῆς τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἡλικίας συγχωρηθῆναι, τὸν δὲ ἐπὶ τῆς κλίνης ἀναμένειν τὸν θάνατον· πραγμάτων δὲ συν έχειαν καὶ τὸ τῆς ἀνάγκης ἀπαραίτητον ἄλλοι προβαλλέσ θωσαν. Οὐ γὰρ δὴ τοῦ σοῦ τρόπου ἢ κακῶς πράττοντας περιιδεῖν ἢ νόμων ὀλιγωρῆσαι ἢ φίλοις μὴ εἶξαι καθικε τεύουσι, κἂν τὰ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων σε περιεστήκει πράγματα.

85.τ ΠΕΡΙ ΤΟΥ ΜΗ ∆ΕΙΝ ΟΡΚΟΥΝ

85.1 Οὐ παυόμεθα κατὰ πᾶσαν σύνοδον διαμαρτυρόμενοι καὶ ἰδίᾳ ἐν ταῖς συντυχίαις περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν διαλεγόμενοι ὥστε τοὺς ὅρκους ἐπὶ τοῖς δημοσίοις τελέσμασι μὴ ἐπάγεσ θαι παρὰ τῶν ἀπαιτητῶν τοῖς ἀγροίκοις. Λειπόμενον ἦν καὶ διὰ τοῦ γράμματος περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ἐνώπιον Θεοῦ καὶ ἀνθρώπων διαμαρτύρασθαι ὅτι προσήκει παύσασθαι ἡμᾶς τὸν θάνατον ταῖς ψυχαῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπάγοντας, καὶ ἄλλους ἐπινοῆσαί τινας τρόπους τῶν ἀπαιτήσεων, τὰς δὲ ψυχὰς συγχωρῆσαι τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἀτρώτους ἔχειν. Ταῦτα πρὸς σὲ γράφομεν, οὐχ ὡς σοῦ δεομένου τῆς ἐκ τῶν λόγων παρακλήσεως (οἴκοθεν γὰρ ἔχεις τὰς περὶ τὸ φοβεῖσθαι τὸν Κύριον ἀφορμάς), ἀλλ' ἵνα διὰ σοῦ πάντες οἱ ἀνεχόμενοί σου διδαχθῶσι μὴ παροργίζειν τὸν Ἅγιον μηδὲ ἀπηγορευμένον πρᾶγμα τῇ πονηρᾷ συνηθείᾳ εἰς ἀδιαφορίαν κατάγειν. Καὶ γὰρ οὔτε ὄφελός τι αὐτοῖς πρὸς τὰς ἀπαιτήσεις ἐκ τῶν ὅρκων ἐστὶ καὶ ὁμολογούμενον κακὸν τῇ ψυχῇ προσλαμβάνουσιν. Ἐπειδὰν γὰρ καταμε λετήσωσι τὰς ἐπιορκίας οἱ ἄνθρωποι, οὐκέτι ἑαυτοὺς ἐπείγουσι πρὸς τὴν ἔκτισιν, ἀλλὰ ἀπάτης ὅπλον καὶ ἀναβολῆς ἀφορμὴν ἐξευρῆσθαι αὐτοῖς τὸν ὅρκον οἴονται. Εἴτε οὖν ὀξεῖαν ἐπάγει τὴν ἀνταπόδοσιν τοῖς ἐπιωρκη κόσιν ὁ Κύριος, οὐχ ἕξουσι τοὺς ὑπακούοντας, τῶν ὑπευ θύνων ὑπὸ τῆς τιμωρίας ἀναλωθέντων· εἴτε διὰ μακρο θυμίας ἀνέχεται ὁ ∆εσπότης, ὃ προλαβὼν εἶπον, ὅτι οἱ πεπειραμένοι τῆς ἀνοχῆς τοῦ Κυρίου καταφρονοῦσιν αὐτοῦ τῆς χρηστότητος, μὴ ἀνομείτωσαν διακενῆς μηδὲ παροξυνέτωσαν ἐφ' ἑαυτοὺς τὸν Θεόν. Εἴρηται ἡμῖν τὰ ἡμῖν ἐπιβάλλοντα, ὄψονται οἱ ἀπειθοῦντες.

86.τ ΤΩ ΗΓΕΜΟΝΙ

86.1 Οἶδα μεγίστην καὶ πρώτην σπουδὴν οὖσαν τῇ τιμιότητί σου πάντα

τρόπον χαρίζεσθαι τῷ δικαίῳ, δευτέραν δὲ τὸ καὶ τοὺς φίλους εὐποιεῖν καὶ τῶν προσφευγόντων τῇ προ στασίᾳ τῆς σῆς μεγαλονοίας ἀντιποιεῖσθαι. Πάντα τοίνυν εἰς ταὐτὸν συνέδραμεν ἐπὶ τῆς παρούσης ὑποθέσεως. Καὶ γὰρ δίκαιόν ἐστι τὸ πρᾶγμα ὑπὲρ οὗ τὴν πρεσβείαν ποιού μεθα καὶ ἡμῖν κεχαρισμένον, οὓς ἐν τοῖς φίλοις ἀριθμεῖν τοῖς σεαυτοῦ κατηξίωσας, καὶ ὀφειλόμενον τοῖς τὴν στερ ρότητά σου εἰς τὴν ὑπὲρ ὧν πεπόνθασι βοήθειαν ἐπικα λουμένοις. Σῖτον γάρ, ὃν μόνον εἶχε πρὸς