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all. Such benefit did the pillar, mocked by mockers, pour forth, and so great a ray of the knowledge of God did it send down into the minds of the barbarians. 26.15 And I know of another such thing that was done by these men. One tribe was beseeching the divine man to send some prayer and blessing to their chieftain; but another tribe present argued against it, saying that the blessing ought not to be sent to him, but to their own leader; for the one was most unjust, while the other was a stranger to injustice. And when a long rivalry and barbaric dispute had arisen, they finally advanced against each other. But I, using many words, advised them to keep quiet, since the divine man was sufficient to impart the blessing to both this one and that one. But these said that the other ought not to receive it, and those tried to deprive the other of it. And threatening them from above and calling them dogs, he with difficulty extinguished the rivalry. I have said these things wishing to show the faith of their minds. For they would not have raged so against each other, unless they believed that the blessing of the divine man had the greatest power. 26.16 And at another time I saw a memorable wonder happen. For a certain man came in—and this man was also a phylarch of the Saracens—and besought the divine head to help a man whose limbs of his body had been paralyzed on the road. And he said that he had suffered this affliction near Callinicum—this is a very large fortress. Therefore, when he was brought into their midst, he commanded him to deny the impiety of his forefathers. And when he gladly obeyed and fulfilled what was commanded, he asked if he believed in the Father and in the only-begotten Son and in the Holy Spirit. And when he confessed that he believed, he said, "Believing in these names, arise." And when he arose, he ordered him to carry the phylarch on his shoulders as far as his tent—and he had a very large body—and he, having taken him up, immediately departed, and those present moved their tongues in praise of God. 26.17 And he commanded this, imitating the Master, who commanded the paralytic to carry his bed. But let no one call the imitation tyranny. For His is the voice: "He who believes in me will also do the works that I do; and he will do greater ones than these." And we have beheld the fulfillment of this promise. For whereas the shadow of the Lord nowhere worked a wonder, the shadow of the great Peter both loosed death and drove out diseases and put demons to flight. But the Master worked these wonders through his servants, and now likewise the divine Symeon, using his name, works countless wonders. 26.18 For another wonder also happened, in no way inferior to the former one. For one of the Ishmaelites who had believed in the saving name of the Lord Christ, a man not without note, made a vow and a promise to God with him as witness. And the promise was to abstain from all living food for the rest of his life until the end. Having transgressed this promise at some time, I know not how, he slaughtered a bird and dared to eat. But when God wished to bring him to repentance through reproof and to honor His own servant who had been a witness to the transgressed promise, the flesh of the bird was changed into the nature of a stone, so that he was no longer able to eat, even if he wanted to. For how was it possible to be able to eat the body he had taken for food, when it had been turned to stone? Astonished by this wondrous sight, the barbarian with great speed overtook the holy man, bringing the hidden sin to light and proclaiming the transgression to all, and asking forgiveness for his fault from God, and calling on the saint for aid, that by his all-powerful

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ἅπαντας. Τοιαύτην ὁ ὑπὸ τῶν φιλο σκωμμόνων σκωπτόμενος κίων ὠφέλειαν ἀνέβλυσε καὶ τοσαύτην ἀκτῖνα θεογνωσίας εἰς τὰς τῶν βαρβάρων διανοίας κατέπεμψεν. 26.15 Οἶδα δὲ καὶ ἄλλο ὑπὸ τούτων τοιόνδε γεγενημένον. Ἱκέτευε μία φυλὴ τὸν θεῖον ἄνθρωπον εὐχήν τινα καὶ εὐλογίαν ἐκπέμψαι τῷ σφετέρῳ φυλάρχῳ· ἄλλη δὲ παροῦσα φυλὴ ἀντέλεγε, μὴ δεῖν ἐκείνῳ τὴν εὐλογίαν ἐκπεμφθῆναι λέγουσα, ἀλλὰ τῷ ἑαυτῆς ἡγεμόνι· τὸν μὲν γὰρ ἀδικώτατον εἶναι, τὸν δὲ ἀδικίας ἀλλότριον. Μακρᾶς δὲ φιλονεικίας γενομένης καὶ διαμάχης βαρβαρικῆς, τὸ τελευταῖον κατ' ἀλλή λων ἐχώρησαν. Ἐγὼ δὲ πολλοῖς χρησάμενος λόγοις ἡσυχίαν ἔχειν παρῄνουν, ὡς ἀποχρῶντος τοῦ θείου ἀνδρὸς καὶ τούτῳ κἀκείνῳ μεταδοῦναι τῆς εὐλογίας. Ἀλλὰ καὶ οὗτοι ἔλεγον μὴ δεῖν ἐκεῖνον ταύτης τυχεῖν, κἀκεῖνοι ταύτης ἀποστερεῖν ἐπειρῶντο τὸν ἕτερον. Ἀπειλήσας δὲ αὐτοῖς ἄνωθεν καὶ κύνας καλέσας μόγις τὴν φιλονεικίαν κατέσβεσε. Ταῦτα δὲ ἔφην ἐπιδεῖξαι αὐτῶν τῆς διανοίας ἐθελήσας τὴν πίστιν. Οὐ γὰρ ἂν οὕτω κατ' ἀλλήλων ἐμάνησαν, εἰ μὴ μεγίστην ἔχειν δύναμιν τοῦ θεσπεσίου ἀνθρώπου τὴν εὐλογίαν ἐπίστευον. 26.16 Εἶδον δὲ καὶ ἄλλοτε θαῦμα γεγενημένον ἀοίδιμον. Εἰσελθὼν γάρ τις- Σαρακηνῶν δὲ καὶ οὗτος φύλαρχος ἦν-τὴν θείαν ἱκέτευσε κεφαλὴν ἐπαμῦναι ἀνδρὶ κατὰ τὴν ὁδὸν παρεθέντι τὰ μέλη τοῦ σώματος. Ἔλεγε δὲ τοῦτο κατὰ τὴν Καλλίνικον- φρούριον δὲ αὕτη μέγιστον- ὑπομεμενηκέναι τὸ πάθος. Κομισθέντα τοίνυν εἰς μέσον ἀρνηθῆναι ἐκέλευσε τὴν τῶν προγόνων ἀσέβειαν. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀσμένως ὑπήκουσέ τε καὶ τὸ κελευσθὲν ἐξεπλήρωσεν, ἤρετο εἰ πιστεύοι τῷ πατρὶ καὶ τῷ μονογενεῖ υἱῷ καὶ τῷ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι. Τοῦ δὲ πιστεύειν ὁμολογήσαντος· "Ταύταις, ἔφη, ταῖς προσηγορίαις πιστεύων ἀνάστηθι". Ὡς δὲ ἀνέστη, προσέταξεν ἐπ' ὤμων φέρειν τὸν φύλαρχον μέχρις αὐτῆς τῆς σκηνῆς-μέγιστον δὲ εἶχε τὸ σῶμα- καὶ ὁ μὲν λαβὼν παραυτίκα ᾤχετο, οἱ δὲ παρόντες εἰς ὑμνῳδίαν τοῦ θεοῦ τὰς γλώττας ἐκίνησαν. 26.17 Τοῦτο δὲ προσέταξε τὸν δεσπότην μιμούμενος, ὃς τῷ παραλύτῳ φέρειν τὴν κλίνην ἐκέλευσεν. Ἀλλὰ μηδεὶς τυραννίδα καλείτω τὴν μίμησιν. Αὐτοῦ γάρ ἐστι φωνή· "Ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ τὰ ἔργα, ἃ ἐγὼ ποιῶ, κἀκεῖνος ποιήσει, καὶ μείζονα τούτων ποιήσει." Καὶ ταύτης δὲ τῆς ἐπαγγελίας τὸ τέλος ἐθεασάμεθα. Τῆς γὰρ τοῦ κυρίου σκιᾶς οὐδαμοῦ θαῦμα ἐργασαμένης ἡ τοῦ μεγάλου Πέτρου σκιὰ καὶ θάνατον ἔλυσε καὶ νόσους ἐξήλασε καὶ δαίμονας ἐφυγάδευσεν. Ἀλλ' ὁ δεσπότης καὶ ταῦτα διὰ τῶν δούλων ἐνήργει τὰ θαύματα, καὶ νῦν δὲ ὡσαύτως τῇ τούτου κεχρη μένος προσηγορίᾳ τὰ μυρία ὁ θεῖος Συμεώνης ἐργάζεται θαύματα. 26.18 Συνέβη γὰρ καὶ ἕτερον θαῦμα γενέσθαι ὑπὸ τούτου τοῦ προτέρου μηδαμῶς ἐλαττούμενον. Τῶν γὰρ εἰς τὸ σωτήριον ὄνομα τοῦ δεσπότου Χριστοῦ πεπιστευκότων τις Ἰσμαηλίτης οὐκ ἄσημος εὐχὴν ἐποιήσατο πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ὑπ' αὐτῷ μάρτυρι καὶ ὑπόσχεσιν. Ἡ δὲ ὑπόσχεσις ἦν πάσης ἀφέξεσθαι τοῦ λοιποῦ μέχρι τέλους ἐμψύχου τροφῆς. Ταύτην οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως χρόνῳ τινὶ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν παραδραμών, ὄρνιν καταθύσας ἐσθίειν ἐτόλμησε. Τοῦ δὲ θεοῦ αὐτὸν δι' ἐλέγχου πρὸς ἐπιστροφὴν ἐνεγκεῖν ἐθελήσαντος καὶ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ τιμῆσαι θεράποντα μάρτυρα τῆς παραβαθείσης γενόμενον ὑποσχέσεως, εἰς λίθου φύσιν ἡ σὰρξ τῆς ὄρνιθος μετεβάλετο, ὥστε μηδὲ βουλόμενον δύνασθαι λοιπὸν ἐσθίειν αὐτόν. Πῶς γὰρ οἷόν τε ἦν ἀποπετρωθέντος οὗπερ εἰς βρῶσιν ἐπείληπτο σώματος ἐσθίειν δύνασθαι; Ταύτῃ καταπλαγεὶς ὁ βάρβαρος τῇ παραδόξῳ θέᾳ σὺν πολλῷ τάχει τὸν ὅσιον κατελάμβανε, τὸ κεκρυμμένον εἰς φῶς προφέρων ἁμάρτημα καὶ τὴν παράβασιν ἀνακηρύττων πᾶσι καὶ τοῦ πταίσματος ἐκ θεοῦ συγγνώμην αἰτούμενος καὶ τὸν ἅγιον εἰς ἐπικουρίαν καλῶν, ὡς ἂν ταῖς παντο δυνάμοις αὐτοῦ