[Various Canons of Paul the Apostle Concerning Those that Offer Themselves to Be Baptized—Whom We are to Receive, and Whom to Reject. ]

XXXII.  I also,  Paul,  162  One V. ms. has the following instead of the title: “Paul, the teacher of the Gentiles, having proclaimed the Gospel of Christ to the Gentiles from Jerusalem even to Illyricum, was cut off in Rome while teaching the truth, by Nero and King Agrippa, being beheaded, and has been buried in Rome itself.”  the least of the apostles, do make the following constitutions for you, the bishops, and presbyters, and deacons, concerning canons  . Those that first come to the mystery of godliness, let them be brought to the bishop or to the presbyters by the deacons, and let them be examined as to the causes wherefore they come to the word of the Lord; and let those that bring them exactly inquire about their character, and give them their testimony. Let their manners and their life be inquired into, and whether they be slaves or freemen. And if any one be a slave, let him be asked who is his master. If he be slave to one of the faithful, let his master be asked if he can give him a good character. If he cannot, let him be rejected, until he show himself to be worthy to his master. But if he does give him a good character, let him be admitted. But if he be household slave to an heathen, let him be taught to please his master, that the word be not blasphemed. If, then, he have a wife, or a woman hath an husband, let them be taught to be content with each other; but if they be unmarried, let them learn not to commit fornication, but to enter into lawful marriage. But if his master be one of the faithful, and knows that he is guilty of fornication, and yet does not give him a wife, or to the woman an husband, let him be separated; but if anyone hath a demon, let him indeed be taught piety, but not received into communion before he be cleansed; yet if death be near, let him be received. If any one be a maintainer of harlots, let him either leave off to prostitute women, or else let him be rejected. If a harlot come, let her leave off whoredom, or else let her be rejected. If a maker of idols come, let him either leave off his employment, or let him be rejected. If one belonging to the theatre  163  [Note this uniform testimony of antiquity against theatricals in all forms ] come, whether it be man or woman, or charioteer, or dueller, or racer, or player of prizes, or Olympic gamester, or one that plays on the pipe, on the lute, or on the harp at those games, or a dancing-master or an huckster,  164  [Purveyors to the play-house.] either let them leave off their employments, or let them be rejected. If a soldier come, let him be taught to “do no injustice, to accuse no man falsely, and to be content with his allotted wages:”  165  Luke iii. 14. if he submit to those rules, let him be received; but if he refuse them, let him be rejected. He that is guilty of sins not to be named, a sodomite, an effeminate person, a magician, an enchanter, an astrologer, a diviner, an user of magic verses, a juggler, a mountebank, one that makes amulets, a charmer, a soothsayer, a fortune-teller, an observer of palmistry; he that, when he meets you, observes defects in the eyes or feet of the birds or cats, or noises, or symbolical sounds: let these be proved for some time, for this sort of wickedness is hard to be washed away; and if they leave off those practices, let them be received; but if they will not agree to that, let them be rejected. Let a concubine, who is slave to an unbeliever, and confines herself to her master alone, be received;  166  [Compare vol. v. p. 130, note 1.] but if she be incontinent with others, let her be rejected. If one of the faithful hath a concubine, if she be a bond-servant, let him leave off that way, and marry in a legal manner: if she be a free woman, let him marry her in a lawful manner; if he does not, let him be rejected. Let him that follows the Gentile customs, or Jewish fables, either reform, or let him be rejected. If any one follows the sports of the theatre, their huntings, or horse-races, or combats, either let him leave them off, or let him be rejected. Let him who is to be a catechumen be a catechumen for three years; but if any one be diligent, and has a good-will to his business, let him be admitted: for it is not the length of time, but the course of life, that is judged. Let him that teaches, although he be one of the laity, yet, if he be skilful in the word and grave in his manners, teach; for “they shall be all taught of God.”  167  John vi. 45. Let all the faithful, whether men or women, when they rise from sleep, before they go to work, when they have washed themselves, pray; but if any catechetic instruction be held, let the faithful person prefer the word of piety before his work. Let the faithful person, whether man or woman, treat servants kindly, as we have ordained in the foregoing books, and have taught in our epistles.  168  Eph. vi.; Col. iv.; Philem.

[32] Κἀγὼ Παῦλος ὁ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐλάχιστος, τάδε διατάσσομαι ὑμῖν τοῖς ἐπισκόποις καὶ πρεσβυτέροις περὶ κανόνων. Οἱ πρώτως προσιόντες τῷ μυστηρίῳ τῆς εὐσεβείας διὰ τῶν διακόνων προσαγέσθωσαν τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ ἢ τοῖς πρεσβυτέροις, καὶ τὰς αἰτίας ἐξεταζέσθωσαν, οὗ χάριν προσῆλθον τῷ κυριακῷ λόγῳ, οἵ τε προσενεγκόντες μαρτυρείτωσαν αὐτοῖς, ἀκριβώσαντες τὰ κατ' αὐτούς. Ἐξεταζέσθωσαν δὲ αὐτῶν καὶ ὁ τρόπος καὶ ὁ βίος καὶ εἰ δοῦλοί εἰσιν ἢ ἐλεύθεροι. Καὶ ἐὰν ᾖ τις δοῦλος, ἐρωτάσθω, οὗ δεσπότου, καὶ ἐὰν πιστοῦ δοῦλος ᾖ, ἐρωτάσθω ὁ δεσπότης αὐτοῦ, εἰ μαρτυρεῖ αὐτῷ: ἐὰν δὲ μή, ἀποβαλλέσθω, ἕως ἂν ἑαυτὸν ἄξιον ἐπιδείξῃ τῷ δεσπότῃ: εἰ δὲ μαρτυρεῖ αὐτῷ, προσδεχέσθω. Εἰ δὲ ἐθνικοῦ ᾖ οἰκέτης, διδασκέσθω εὐαρεστεῖν τῷ δεσπότῃ, ἵνα μὴ βλασφημῆται ὁ λόγος. Εἰ μὲν οὖν ἔχει γυναῖκα ἢ ἡ γυνὴ ἄνδρα, διδασκέσθωσαν ἀρκεῖσθαι ἑαυτοῖς: εἰ δὲ ἄγαμοί εἰσιν, μανθανέτωσαν μὴ πορνεύειν, ἀλλὰ γαμεῖν νόμῳ. Εἰ δὲ ὁ δεσπότης αὐτοῦ, πιστὸς ὢν καὶ εἰδὼς ὅτι πορνεύει, οὐ δίδωσιν αὐτῷ γυναῖκα ἢ τῇ γυναικὶ ἄνδρα, ἀφοριζέσθω. Ἐὰν δέ τις δαίμονα ἔχῃ, διδασκέσθω μὲν τὴν εὐσέβειαν, μὴ προσδεχέσθω δὲ εἰς κοινωνίαν, πρὶν ἂν καθαρισθῇ: εἰ δὲ θάνατος κατεπείγοι, προσδεχέσθω. Εἴ τις πορνοβοσκός, ἢ παυσάσθω τοῦ μαστροπεύειν ἢ ἀποβαλλέσθω. Πόρνη προσιοῦσα ἢ παυσάσθω ἢ ἀποβαλλέσθω. Εἰδωλοποιὸς προσιὼν ἢ παυσάσθω ἢ ἀποβαλλέσθω. Τῶν ἐπὶ σκηνῆς ἐάν τις προσίῃ ἀνὴρ ἢ γυνὴ ἢ ἡνίοχος ἢ μονομάχος ἢ σταδιοδρόμος ἢ λουδεμπιστὴς ἢ ὀλυμπικὸς ἢ χοραύλης ἢ κιθαριστὴς ἢ λυριστὴς ἢ ὄρχησιν ἐπιδεικνύμενος ἢ κάπηλος, ἢ παυσάσθωσαν ἢ ἀποβαλλέσθωσαν. Στρατιώτης προσιὼν διδασκέσθω μὴ ἀδικεῖν, μὴ συκοφαντεῖν, ἀρκεῖσθαι δὲ τοῖς διδομένοις ὀψωνίοις: πειθόμενος προσδεχέσθω, ἀντιλέγων ἀποβαλλέσθω. Ἀρρητοποιός, κίναιδος, βλάξ, μάγος, ὀχλαγωγός, ἐπαοιδός, ἀστρολόγος, μάντις, θηρεπῳδός, λῶταξ, περιάμματα ποιῶν, περικαθαίρων, οἰωνιστής, συμβολοδείκτης, παλμῶν ἑρμηνεύς, φυλαττόμενος ἐν συναντήσει λώβας ὄψεως ἢ ποδῶν ἢ ὀρνίθων ἢ γαλῶν ἢ ἐπιφωνήσεων ἢ παρακροαμάτων συμβολικῶν, χρόνῳ δοκιμαζέσθωσαν, δυσέκνιπτος γὰρ ἡ κακία: παυσάμενοι οὖν προσδεχέσθωσαν, μὴ πειθόμενοι δὲ ἀποβαλλέσθωσαν. Παλλακή τινος ἀπίστου δούλη, ἐκείνῳ μόνῳ σχολάζουσα, προσδεχέσθω: εἰ δὲ καὶ πρὸς ἄλλους ἀσελγαίνει, ἀποβαλλέσθω. Πιστὸς ἐὰν ἔχῃ παλλακήν, εἰ μὲν δούλην, παυσάσθω καὶ νόμῳ γαμείτω, εἰ δὲ ἐλευθέραν, ἐκγαμείτω αὐτὴν νόμῳ: εἰ δὲ μή, ἀποβαλλέσθω. Ἑλληνικοῖς τις ἔθεσιν ἐξακολουθῶν ἢ ἰουδαϊκοῖς μύθοις ἢ μεταθέσθω ἢ ἀποβαλλέσθω. Θεατρομανίᾳ εἴ τις πρόσκειται ἢ κυνηγίοις ἢ ἱπποδρομίαις ἢ ἀγῶσιν, ἢ παυσάσθω ἢ ἀποβαλλέσθω. Ὁ μέλλων κατηχεῖσθαι τρία ἔτη κατηχείσθω: εἰ δὲ σπουδαῖός τις ᾖ καὶ εὔνοιαν ἔχῃ περὶ τὸ πρᾶγμα, προσδεχέσθω, ὅτι οὐχ ὁ χρόνος, ἀλλ' ὁ τρόπος κρίνεται. Ὁ διδάσκων εἰ καὶ λαϊκὸς ᾖ, ἔμπειρος δὲ τοῦ λόγου καὶ τὸν τρόπον σεμνός, διδασκέτω: »Ἔσονται γὰρ πάντες διδακτοὶ Θεοῦ.« Πᾶς πιστὸς ἢ πιστὴ ἕωθεν ἀναστάντες ἐξ ὕπνου πρὸ τοῦ ἔργον ἐπιτελέσαι νιψάμενοι προσευχέσθωσαν: εἰ δέ τις λόγου κατήχησις γένηται, προτιμησάτωσαν τοῦ ἔργου τὸν λόγον τῆς εὐσεβείας. Πιστὸς ἢ πιστὴ τοῖς οἰκέταις εὐμενῶς προσεχέτωσαν, καθὼς καὶ ἐν τοῖς προλαβοῦσιν διεταξάμεθα καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἐπιστολαῖς ἐδιδάξαμεν.