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he was eager to drive [them] from the cities, to speak the truth, contriving by their absence to break up the assemblies of the people, so that they might have neither those who assemble for worship, nor teachers, nor partake of the mysteries, and that in the course of much time they would fall into forgetfulness of their own religion, but on the pretext that the clergy were leading the multitudes 5.15.10 into division. Thus, therefore, when no sedition had occurred nor was expected to occur, he ordered Eleusius and those with him to depart from Cyzicus. 5.15.11 And by a public proclamation he urged the Bostrenes to expel from their city Titus, who was then the bishop of the church there. For when he threatened to hold him and the clergy to blame if the multitude revolted, Titus sent a book to the emperor and testified that while the Christian population was a match for the Hellenic population, it was remaining quiet and, being guided by his exhortations, 5.15.12 was contemplating nothing seditious. From such words, contriving to set Titus at enmity with the populace, writing to the Bostrenes he slandered him as having become an accuser of the multitude, as though it was not from its own inclination, but because of his exhortations, that it did not revolt; and he stirred up the populace to drive him from the city as an enemy. 5.15.13 It is likely that many such things also happened elsewhere, some by order of the emperor, others from the anger and recklessness of the populace; for which, even so, one would place the blame for what happened on the ruler; for he did not subject those who transgressed in this way to the laws, but out of hatred for the religion, while seeming to censure in words, in deeds he urged on those who did such things; whence, even though he was not persecuting, Christians fled from cities and villages. 5.15.14 Many of my ancestors and my grandfather took part in this flight. Inasmuch as he was the son of a Hellene, he himself with his whole household and those of the family of Alaphion were the first to become Christians in Bethelea, a village of Gaza, being populous and having temples venerable to the inhabitants for their antiquity and construction, and especially the pantheon, situated as if on an acropolis of some man-made hill and overlooking the whole village from every side. And I conjecture that the place derived its name from this and, when interpreted from the Syriac language into the Greek, is called the dwelling-place of gods, because of the temple of the 5.15.15 pantheon. But it is said that Hilarion the monk was the cause of Christianity for their houses; for when this Alaphion was possessed by a demon, <since> for a long time some Hellenes and Jews, having used incantations and certain curious arts, accomplished nothing, he, by only calling upon the name of Christ, drove out the demon, 5.15.16 and they converted to the Christian religion. My grandfather excelled in the exegesis and in the interpretation of the sacred scriptures, being both of a good nature and able to understand <what> was necessary, and moderately trained in reasoning, so as not to be without a share in arithmetic. Whence he was exceedingly favored by the Christians in Ascalon and Gaza and the surrounding regions as necessary to the 5.15.17 religion and easily resolving the doubtful points of the sacred scriptures. But of those from the other family, one could scarcely narrate their virtue; for they were the first here to establish churches and monasteries and adorned them with reverence and with friendliness to strangers and those in need. And from this family, good men survived even down to our time, whom I met as a youth when they were already old men. But of these things I must make mention later. 5.16.1 But the emperor, long having been eager for Hellenism to prevail throughout all his dominion, bore it ill seeing it surpassed by Christianity. For temples were opened, and sacrifices and the ancestral festivals of the Hellenes in the cities seemed to him to be proceeding according to his will; but he was vexed, reflecting that if these things were stripped of his support, they would undergo a swift change; and not least was he annoyed to hear that the wives 5.16.2 and children and servants of many priests were Christianizing.

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ἀπελαύνειν τῶν πόλεων ἔσπευδε, τὸ μὲν ἀληθὲς εἰπεῖν, τῇ τούτων ἀπουσίᾳ πραγματευόμενος διαλῦσαι τῶν λαῶν τὰς συνόδους, ὥστε μήτε τοὺς ἐκκλησιάζοντας μήτε τοὺς διδάσκοντας ἔχειν μήτε μυστηρίων μεταλαμβάνειν καὶ τῷ πολλῷ χρόνῳ εἰς λήθην ἐμπεσεῖν τῆς οἰκείας θρησκείας, σκηπτόμενος δὲ ὡς οἱ κληρικοὶ εἰς διάστασιν τὰ πλήθη 5.15.10 ἄγουσιν. οὕτως οὖν οὔτε στάσεως γενομένης οὔτε γίνεσθαι προσδοκωμένης ἐξιέναι Κυζίκου τὸν ᾿Ελεύσιον καὶ τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ προσέταξε. 5.15.11 Βοστρηνοὺς δὲ δημοσίῳ κηρύγματι προὐτρέψατο διῶξαι τῆς αὐτῶν πόλεως Τίτον τὸν τότε τῆς ἐνθάδε ἐκκλησίας ἐπίσκοπον. ὡς γὰρ ἠπείλησεν αὐτὸν καὶ τοὺς κληρικοὺς ἐν αἰτίᾳ ποιήσειν εἰ στασιάσοι τὸ πλῆθος, βιβλίον πρὸς βασιλέα διεπέμψατο Τίτος καὶ διεμαρτύρατο ἐφάμιλλον μὲν εἶναι τῷ ῾Ελληνικῷ πλήθει τὸ Χριστιανικόν, ἠρεμεῖν δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ταῖς αὐτοῦ παραι5.15.12 νέσεσιν ἀγόμενον μηδὲν στασιῶδες ἐννοεῖν. ἐκ τοιούτων δὲ ῥημάτων εἰς ἔχθραν καταστῆσαι τῷ δήμῳ τὸν Τίτον κατασκευάζων, γράφων Βοστρηνοῖς διέβαλλεν αὐτὸν ὡς κατήγορον τοῦ πλήθους γεγενημένον, οἷα δὴ μὴ ἀπὸ γνώμης οἰκείας, διὰ δὲ τὰς αὐτοῦ παραινέσεις μὴ στασιάζοντος· καὶ ὡς δυσμενῆ ἀπελαύνειν αὐτὸν τῆς πόλεως ἀνεκίνει τὸν δῆμον. 5.15.13 Τοιαῦτα δὲ πολλὰ καὶ ἀλλαχόσε συμβῆναι εἰκός, τὰ μὲν κατὰ πρόσταγμα τοῦ βασιλέως, τὰ δὲ ἐξ ὀργῆς καὶ προπετείας δήμων· ἐφ' οἷς καὶ οὕτως τῷ κρατοῦντι τὴν αἰτίαν τις ἀναθήσει τῶν γεγενημένων· οὐ γὰρ ὑπῆγε τοῖς νόμοις τοὺς ὧδε παρανομοῦντας, ἀλλὰ μίσει τῷ πρὸς τὴν θρησκείαν μέμφεσθαι λόγοις δοκῶν ἔργοις προὐτρέπετο τοὺς τὰ τοιαῦτα δρῶντας· ὅθεν καὶ μὴ διώκοντος αὐτοῦ κατὰ πόλεις καὶ κώμας ἔφευγον οἱ Χριστιανοί. 5.15.14 Ταύτης δὲ τῆς φυγῆς μετέσχον πολλοὶ τῶν ἐμῶν προγόνων καὶ ὁ ἐμὸς πάππος. καθότι πατρὸς ῞Ελληνος ὤν, αὐτός τε πανοικὶ καὶ οἱ ἀπὸ τοῦ γένους ᾿Αλαφίωνος Χριστιανοὶ πρῶτοι ἐγένοντο ἐν Βηθελέᾳ κώμῃ Γαζαίᾳ, πολυανθρώπῳ τε οὔσῃ καὶ ἱερὰ ἐχούσῃ ἀρχαιότητι καὶ κατασκευῇ σεμνὰ τοῖς κατοικοῦσι, καὶ μάλιστα τὸ πάνθεον ὡς ἐπὶ ἀκροπόλεως χειροποιήτου τινὸς λόφου κείμενον καὶ πανταχόθεν πάσης τῆς κώμης ὑπερέχον. συμβάλλων δὲ οἶμαι τὸ χωρίον ἔνθεν λαχεῖν τὴν προσηγορίαν καὶ ἐκ τῆς Σύρων φωνῆς εἰς τὴν ῾Ελλήνων ἑρμηνευόμενον θεῶν οἰκητήριον ὀνομάζεσθαι, διὰ τὸν τοῦ 5.15.15 πανθέου ναόν. λέγεται δὲ Χριστιανισμοῦ αἴτιος γενέσθαι τοῖς τούτων οἴκοις ῾Ιλαρίων ὁ μοναχός· δαιμονῶντος γὰρ ᾿Αλαφίωνος τούτου, <ἐπεὶ> ἐπὶ πολύ τινες ῞Ελληνες καὶ ᾿Ιουδαῖοι ἐπῳδαῖς καὶ περιεργίαις τισὶ χρησάμενοι οὐδὲν ἤνυον, ὁ δὲ μόνον τὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὄνομα ἐπιβοησάμενος τὸ δαιμόνιον ἀπή5.15.16 λασεν, εἰς τὴν Χριστιανῶν μετεβάλοντο θρησκείαν. διέπρεψε δὲ ὁ μὲν ἐμὸς πάππος ἐν ταῖς ἐξηγήσεσι καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἑρμηνείαις τῶν ἱερῶν γραφῶν, εὐφυής τε ὢν καὶ οἷος γνῶναι <ὧν> δεῖ, καὶ κατὰ λόγον μετρίως ἠγμένος, ὡς καὶ ἀριθμητικῆς μὴ εἶναι ἄμοιρος. ὅθεν κεχαρισμένος εἰσάγαν ἐτύγχανε τοῖς ἀνὰ τὴν ᾿Ασκάλωνα καὶ Γάζαν καὶ τοῖς πέριξ Χριστιανοῖς ὡς ἀναγκαῖος τῇ 5.15.17 θρησκείᾳ καὶ τὰ ἀμφίβολα τῶν ἱερῶν γραφῶν εὐμαρῶς διαλύων. τῶν δὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἑτέρου γένους σχολῇ γ' ἄν τις τὴν ἀρετὴν διηγήσαιτο· πρῶτοι γὰρ οὗτοι ἐνθάδε ἐκκλησίας καὶ μοναστήρια συνεστήσαντο καὶ σεμνότητι καὶ φιλοφροσύνῃ ξένων καὶ δεομένων συνεκόσμησαν. ἐκ ταύτης δὲ τῆς γενεᾶς μέχρι καὶ εἰς ἡμᾶς περιῆσαν ἄνδρες ἀγαθοί, οἷς ἤδη πρεσβύταις νέος ὢν συνεγενόμην. ἀλλὰ τῶν μὲν ὕστερον ἐπιμνησθῆναι δεῖ. 5.16.1 ῾Ο δὲ βασιλεὺς πάλαι σπουδάζων τὸν ῾Ελληνισμὸν κρατεῖν κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν ὑπήκοον, χαλεπῶς ἔφερε παρευδοκιμούμενον ὁρῶν ὑπὸ τοῦ Χριστιανισμοῦ. ναοὶ μὲν γὰρ ἠνεῴγεισαν, καὶ θυσίαι καὶ ῾Ελλήνων πάτριοι ἑορταὶ τῶν πόλεων κατὰ γνώμην αὐτῷ προχωρεῖν ἐδόκουν· ἠνιᾶτο δὲ λογιζόμενος ὡς, εἰ γυμνωθείη ταῦτα τῆς αὐτοῦ σπουδῆς, ταχεῖαν ἕξει τὴν μεταβολήν· οὐχ ἥκιστα δὲ ἤχθετο καὶ πολλῶν ἱερέων χριστιανίζειν ἀκούων τὰς γαμετὰς 5.16.2 καὶ τοὺς παῖδας καὶ τοὺς οἰκέτας.