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of the sanctuary they killed between the temple and the altar; and afterwards, having cast the heir himself out of the vineyard, they killed him. And by them indeed he was rejected as a useless stone, but by you he was received as a cornerstone; wherefore he says concerning you: “A people, whom I did not know, served me, at the hearing of the ear they obeyed me.” It is necessary therefore for you, brothers, who have been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, to observe the days of Pascha accurately with all diligence after the equinoctial turn, so that you do not make a remembrance of the one passion twice in the year, but once a year of him who died once, no longer observing to celebrate with the Jews. For we have no fellowship with them now; for they have erred even in the calculation itself, which they think to perform, so that in every way they are in error and are cut off from the truth. But you observe accurately the equinoctial turn of the spring season, which happens on the twenty-second of the twelfth month, which is Dystros; watching until the twenty-first of the moon, so that the fourteenth of the moon does not fall in another week, and, an error having occurred through ignorance, we celebrate Pascha twice in the year, or celebrate the resurrection day of our Lord Jesus Christ on another day, but on the Lord's day only. In the days of Pascha, therefore, you are to fast, beginning from Monday until Friday and Saturday, for six days, partaking only of bread and salt and herbs and water to drink, but abstain from wine and meats during these days; for they are days of mourning, and not of feasting. On Friday and Saturday, however, fast completely, those who have such strength, tasting nothing until the cock-crowing at night; but if anyone is unable to join the two together, let him at least keep the Saturday. For the Lord Himself says somewhere, speaking about Himself: “When the bridegroom shall be taken from them, then they shall fast in those days.” In these days, therefore, He was taken from us by the falsely-named Jews and was nailed to the cross and was numbered with the transgressors. Therefore we also exhort you to fast during these days, as we also fasted when He was taken from us, until evening. But on the other days before Friday, let each one eat at the ninth hour or at evening, or as anyone is able, but keeping a strict fast from the evening of the fifth day until cock-crowing. At the dawning of the first of the week, which is the Lord's day,

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τοῦ ἱεροῦ ἀνεῖλον μεταξὺ τοῦ ναοῦ καὶ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου· ὕστερον δὲ καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν κληρονόμον ἔξω τοῦ ἀμπελῶνος ἐκβαλόντες ἀπέκτειναν. Καὶ παρ' αὐτοῖς μὲν ὡς λίθος ἀχρεῖος ἀπεβλήθη, παρ' ὑμῶν δὲ ὡς ἀκρογωνιαῖος ἐδέχθη· διὸ λέγει περὶ ὑμῶν· «Λαός, ὃν οὐκ ἔγνων, ἐδούλευσέν μοι, εἰς ἀκοὴν ὠτίου ὑπήκουσέν μου.» ∆εῖ οὖν ὑμᾶς, ἀδελφοί, τοὺς τῷ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐξηγορασμένους τιμίῳ αἵματι, τὰς ἡμέρας τοῦ πάσχα ἀκρι βῶς ποιεῖσθαι μετὰ πάσης ἐπιμελείας μετὰ τροπὴν ἰσημε ρινήν, ὅπως μὴ δὶς τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ ἑνὸς παθήματος μνείαν ποιῆσθε, ἀλλὰ ἅπαξ τοῦ ἔτους τοῦ ἅπαξ ἀποθανόντος, μηκέτι παρατηρούμενοι μετὰ Ἰουδαίων ἑορτάζειν. Oὐδεμία γὰρ κοινωνία ἡμῖν νῦν πρὸς αὐτούς· πεπλάνηνται γὰρ καὶ αὐτὴν τὴν ψῆφον, ἣν νομίζουσιν ἐπιτελεῖν, ὅπως πανταχόθεν ὦσιν πεπλανημένοι καὶ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀπεσχοινισμένοι. Ὑμεῖς δὲ φυλάσσεσθε ἀκριβῶς τὴν ἰσημέριον τροπὴν τῆς ἐαρινῆς ὥρας, ἥτις γίνεται δευτέρᾳ καὶ εἰκάδι τοῦ δωδεκάτου μηνός, ὅς ἐστι ∆ύστρος· ἐπιτηροῦντες ἕως πρώτης καὶ εἰκάδος σελήνης, ὅπως μὴ ἐν ἑτέρᾳ ἑβδομάδι ἐμπέσοι ἡ τεσσαρεσκαιδεκάτη τῆς σελήνης, καὶ πλάνης γενομένης ἀγνοίᾳ δὶς τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ ἐπιτελέσωμεν τὸ πάσχα, ἢ ἐν ἄλλῃ ἡμέρᾳ ἑορτάσωμεν τὴν τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἀναστάσιμον ἡμέραν, ἀλλ' ἐν κυριακῇ μόνῃ. Ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις οὖν τοῦ πάσχα νηστεύετε, ἀρχό μενοι ἀπὸ δευτέρας μέχρι τῆς παρασκευῆς καὶ σαββάτου, ἓξ ἡμέρας, μόνῳ χρώμενοι ἄρτῳ καὶ ἁλὶ καὶ λαχάνοις καὶ ποτῷ ὕδατι, οἴνου δὲ καὶ κρεῶν ἀπέχεσθε ἐν ταύταις· ἡμέραι γάρ εἰσι πένθους, ἀλλ' οὐχ ἑορτῆς. Τὴν μέντοι παρασκευὴν καὶ τὸ σάββατον ὁλόκληρον νηστεύσατε, οἷς δύναμις πρόσεστιν τοιαύτη, μηδενὸς γευόμενοι μέχρις ἀλεκτο ροφωνίας νυκτός· εἰ δέ τις ἀδυνατεῖ τὰς δύο συνάπτειν ὁμοῦ, φυλασσέσθω κἂν τὸ σάββατον. Λέγει γάρ που αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος περὶ ἑαυτοῦ φάσκων· «Ὅταν ἀπαρθῇ ἀπ' αὐτῶν ὁ νυμφίος, τότε νηστεύσουσιν ἐν ἐκείναις ταῖς ἡμέραις.» Ἐν ταύταις οὖν ἤρθη ἀφ' ἡμῶν ὑπὸ τῶν ψευδω νύμων Ἰουδαίων καὶ σταυρῷ προσεπάγη καὶ μετὰ ἀνόμων ἐλογίσθη. ∆ιὸ παραινοῦμεν καὶ ὑμῖν νηστεύειν ταύτας, ὡς καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐνηστεύσαμεν ἐν τῷ ληφθῆναι αὐτὸν ἀφ' ἡμῶν, ἄχρις ἑσπέρας. Ἐν δὲ ταῖς λοιπαῖς ταῖς πρὸ τῆς παρασκευῆς ἐνάτῃ ὥρᾳ ἢ ἑσπέρᾳ ἕκαστος ἐσθιέτω, ἢ ὅπως ἄν τις δύνηται, ἀπὸ δὲ ἑσπέρας πέμπτης μέχρις ἀλεκτορο φωνίας ἀπονηστιζόμενοι. Ἐπιφωσκούσης μιᾶς σαββάτων, ἥτις ἐστὶ κυριακή,