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necessary things, to abstain from things sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication; from which if you keep yourselves, you will do well. Farewell.” Therefore we sent out the letter, but we ourselves remained in Jerusalem for a sufficient number of days, at the same time discussing together for the common good unto correction. And after a considerable time, having visited the brethren and strengthened them with the word of godliness, and having exhorted them to flee those who in the name of Christ and Moses war against Christ and Moses, and hide the wolf in sheep's skin. For these are false Christs and false prophets and false apostles, deceivers and corrupters, portions of foxes and destroyers of low-growing vines, because of whom the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end unperverted, he will be saved. Concerning whom the Lord, securing us, commanded, saying: “Men will come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves; by their fruits you will know them. Beware of them. For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will lead many astray.” On account of whom we now, having come together, Peter and Andrew, James and John the sons of Zebedee, Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Lebbaeus who was surnamed Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite and Matthias who was chosen with us in place of Judas, and James the brother of the Lord and bishop of Jerusalem, and Paul the teacher of the Gentiles, the chosen vessel; all being together at the same place, have written to you this catholic doctrine for the confirmation of you who have been entrusted with the universal episcopate, in which we declare to you: That there is only one God almighty, beside whom there is no other, and to revere and worship Him alone through Jesus Christ our Lord in the all-holy Spirit, and to use the holy scriptures, the Law and the Prophets, to honor parents, to flee every unlawful action, to believe in the resurrection and the judgment and to expect the retribution; And to approach all His creatures with thanksgiving as God's works and having nothing evil in them, and to marry lawfully, for such a marriage is blameless, because a wife is fitted to a man by the Lord, and the Lord says: “He who made them from the beginning made them male and female and said: ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and

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τῶν ἐπάναγκες, ἀπέχεσθαι εἰδωλοθύτου καὶ αἵματος καὶ πνικτοῦ καὶ πορνείας· ἐξ ὧν διατηροῦντες ἑαυτοὺς εὖ πράξετε. Ἔρρωσθε.» Τὴν μὲν οὖν ἐπιστολὴν ἐξαπεστείλαμεν, αὐτοὶ δὲ ἐν ἱκαναῖς ἡμέραις ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις ἐπεμείναμεν ἅμα συζη τοῦντες πρὸς τὸ κοινωφελὲς εἰς διόρθωσιν. Μετὰ δὲ χρόνον ἱκανὸν ἐπισκεψάμενοι τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς καὶ στηρί ξαντες αὐτοὺς τῷ λόγῳ τῆς εὐσεβείας, καὶ παρεγγυησάμενοι φεύγειν αὐτοὺς τοὺς ἐπ' ὀνόματι Χριστοῦ καὶ Μωϋσέως πολεμοῦντας Χριστῷ καὶ Μωϋσεῖ, καὶ ἐν δορᾷ προβάτου τὸν λύκον κατακρύπτοντας. Oὗτοι γάρ εἰσι ψευδόχριστοι καὶ ψευδοπροφῆται καὶ ψευδαπόστολοι, πλάνοι καὶ φθορεῖς, ἀλωπέκων μερίδες καὶ χαμαιζήλων ἀμπέλων ἀφανισταί, δι' οὓς ψυγήσεται ἡ τῶν πολλῶν ἀγάπη· ὁ δὲ ὑπομείνας εἰς τέλος ἀδιαστρόφως, οὗτος σωθήσεται· περὶ ὧν ἀσφα λιζόμενος ἡμᾶς ὁ Κύριος παρήγγειλεν λέγων· «Ἐλεύσονται πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἄνθρωποι ἐν ἐνδύμασι προβάτων, ἔσωθεν δέ εἰσιν λύκοι ἅρπαγες· ἀπὸ τῶν καρπῶν αὐτῶν ἐπιγνώσεσθε αὐτούς, προσέχετε ἀπ' αὐτῶν· ἀναστήσονται γὰρ ψευδόχρι στοι καὶ ψευδοπροφῆται καὶ πλανήσουσι πολλούς.» ∆ι' οὓς καὶ ἡμεῖς νῦν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ γενόμενοι Πέτρος καὶ Ἀνδρέας, Ἰάκωβος καὶ Ἰωάννης υἱοὶ Ζεβεδαίου, Φίλιππος καὶ Βαρθολομαῖος, Θωμᾶς καὶ Ματθαῖος, Ἰάκωβος Ἀλφαίου καὶ Λεββαῖος ὁ ἐπικληθεὶς Θαδδαῖος, Σίμων ὁ Κανανίτης καὶ Ματθίας ὁ ἀντὶ Ἰούδα καταψηφισθεὶς σὺν ἡμῖν, Ἰάκωβός τε ὁ τοῦ Κυρίου ἀδελφὸς καὶ Ἱεροσολύμων ἐπίσκοπος, καὶ Παῦλος ὁ τῶν ἐθνῶν διδάσκαλος, τὸ σκεῦος τῆς ἐκλογῆς· ἅμα πάντες ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ γενόμενοι, ἐγράψαμεν ὑμῖν τὴν καθολικὴν ταύτην διδασκαλίαν εἰς ἐπιστηρισμὸν ὑμῶν τῶν τὴν καθόλου ἐπισκοπὴν πεπιστευμένων, ἐν ᾗ δηλοῦμεν ὑμῖν· Θεὸν παντοκράτορα ἕνα μόνον ὑπάρχειν, παρ' ὃν ἄλλος οὐκ ἔστιν, καὶ αὐτὸν σέβειν μόνον καὶ προσκυνεῖν διὰ Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν ἐν τῷ παναγίῳ Πνεύματι, καὶ ταῖς ἱεραῖς γραφαῖς χρῆσθαι, Νόμῳ καὶ Προφήταις, γονεῖς τιμᾶν, ἅπασαν ἔκθεσμον πρᾶξιν φεύγειν, ἀνάστασιν πιστεύειν καὶ κρίσιν καὶ ἀνταπόδοσιν προσδοκᾶν· Καὶ τοῖς κτίσμα σιν αὐτοῦ πᾶσιν εὐχαρίστως προσέρχεσθαι ὡς Θεοῦ ἔργοις καὶ μηδὲν ἐν αὐτοῖς ἔχουσι φαῦλον, καὶ γαμεῖν νομίμως, ἄμεμπτος γὰρ ὁ τοιοῦτος γάμος, ὅτι καὶ παρὰ Κυρίου ἁρμόζεται γυνὴ ἀνδρί, καὶ ὁ Κύριος λέγει· «Ὁ ποιήσας ἀπ' ἀρχῆς ἄρσεν καὶ θῆλυ ἐποίησεν αὐτοὺς καὶ εἶπεν· ἕνεκεν τούτου καταλείψει ἄνθρωπος τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ