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you accept, and no one is distinguishing the falsehood from the truth. Who has ever lacked for wicked accusations when contending alone? Who has been convicted of lying when the one slandered is not present? What word is not persuasive to those who hear, if the reviler insists that it is so, but the one reviled is neither present nor hears the slanders? Does not even the custom of life itself teach you in these matters that he who is going to be an equal and impartial hearer must not be wholly carried away by the one who speaks first, but must also await the defense of the one accused, so that in this way from the comparison of both arguments the truth may be shown? “Judge a righteous judgment” is a command, one of the most necessary for salvation. 204.3 And I say these things not having forgotten the apostolic words, that he, shunning human tribunals, reserved his whole life for the accounts of the undeceived judgment seat, in which he says: “But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court.” But nevertheless, since false slanders, having come beforehand, have taken possession of your ears, and our life has been slandered, and our faith in God has been slandered, knowing that the slanderer inflicts the injury on three persons at once: for he wrongs the one slandered, and those to whom his speech is directed, and himself. Know well, I would have been silent about my own injury, not despising your opinion of me (for how could I, when, in order not to suffer loss in this, I am writing these things and contending now?), but seeing that among the three who are injured, I am the one who suffers the lesser loss. For I am deprived of you, but you are robbed of the truth, and the cause of these things separates me from you, and alienates himself from the Lord, because it is not possible to be reconciled to God by means of things forbidden. Therefore, it is for your sake more than my own that I make this speech, and to rescue you from an intolerable injury. For what greater evil could one suffer than to be deprived of the most precious of things, the truth? 204.4 What then do I say, brothers? Not that I am sinless, nor that my life is not full of countless shortcomings. For I know myself and I do not cease shedding a tear for my sins, if somehow I might be able to propitiate my God and escape the threatened punishment. But that he who judges our affairs, if he is confident that he has a clear eye, let him pick the speck from our eye. For we confess we need much care from those who are sound. But if he would not say this, and so much the more will not say it the purer he is (because it is characteristic of the perfect not to exalt themselves, since they will surely be liable to the arrogance of the Pharisee, who, justifying himself, condemned the tax collector), let him seek the physician with me and not judge before the time, until the Lord comes who will reveal the hidden things of darkness and make manifest the counsels of the hearts. And let him remember also him who said: “Judge not, that you be not judged” and “Condemn not, that you be not condemned.” In general, brothers, if our offenses are curable, why does he not obey the teacher of the Churches who says: “Reprove, rebuke, exhort”? But if our lawlessness is incurable, why does he not oppose us to our face and, having made public our iniquities, free the Churches from the harm we cause? Do not, therefore, tolerate the reviling spoken against us under the breath. For this even one maidservant from the mills might do, or some idler in the marketplace might display with exaggeration, whose tongue is sharpened for every kind of reviling. But there are bishops; let them be called to a hearing. There is clergy in every diocese of God; let the most approved be gathered. Let him who wishes speak with boldness, so that what takes place may be a conviction and not a reviling. Let him bring to light the hidden things of my wickedness; but let him not hate even then, but admonish as a brother.

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παρα δέχεσθε, καὶ οὐδεὶς ὁ τοῦ ἀληθοῦς τὸ ψεῦδος φυλοκρινῶν. Τίς ἠπόρησέ ποτε πονηρῶν ἐγκλημάτων μόνος ἀγωνιζό μενος; Τίς ἠλέγχθη ψευδόμενος μὴ παρόντος τοῦ συκο φαντουμένου; Ποῖον ῥῆμα οὐκ ἔστι πιθανὸν τοῖς ἀκούουσιν, ἐὰν ὁ μὲν λοίδορος διατείνηται ἦ μὴν οὕτως ἔχειν, ὁ δὲ λοιδορούμενος μήτε παρῇ μήτε ἐπακούῃ τῶν βλασφημιῶν; Οὐδὲ αὐτὴ ἡ τοῦ βίου συνήθεια παιδεύει ὑμᾶς πρὸς ταῦτα ὅτι δεῖ τὸν μέλλοντα ἴσον καὶ κοινὸν ἀκροατὴν γενήσεσθαι μὴ ὅλον ἀπάγεσθαι παρὰ τοῦ προλαβόντος, ἀλλ' ἀναμένειν καὶ τὴν ἀπολογίαν τοῦ ἐναγομένου, ἵν' οὕτως ἐκ τῆς παρα θέσεως ἑκατέρων τῶν λόγων διαδειχθῇ ἡ ἀλήθεια; «Κρίμα δίκαιον κρίνατε» πρόσταγμά ἐστιν ἓν τῶν ἀναγκαιοτάτων εἰς σωτηρίαν. 204.3 Καὶ ταῦτα λέγω οὐκ ἐπιλελησμένος τῶν ἀποστολικῶν ῥημάτων, ὅτι φεύγων ἐκεῖνος τὰ ἀνθρώπινα κριτήρια ὅλον ἑαυτοῦ τὸν βίον ταῖς εὐθύναις τοῦ ἀνεξαπατήτου δικασ τηρίου ἐταμιεύετο, ἐν οἷς φησίν· «Ἐμοὶ δὲ εἰς ἐλάχιστόν ἐστιν ἵνα ὑφ' ὑμῶν ἀνακριθῶ ἢ ὑπὸ ἀνθρωπίνης ἡμέρας». Ἀλλ' ὅμως, ἐπειδὴ προλαβοῦσαι διαβολαὶ ψευδεῖς κατέσχον ὑμῶν τὰς ἀκοὰς καὶ διαβέβληται μὲν ἡμῶν ὁ βίος, διαβέ βληται δὲ ἡ περὶ τὸν Θεὸν ἡμῶν πίστις, εἰδὼς ὅτι τρισὶν ὁμοῦ προσώποις τὴν βλάβην προστρίβεται ὁ διαβάλλων· τόν τε γὰρ συκοφαντούμενον ἀδικεῖ καὶ πρὸς οὓς ὁ λόγος ἐστὶν αὐτῷ καὶ αὐτὸς ἑαυτόν· τῆς μὲν ἐμαυτοῦ βλάβης κἂν ἀπεσιώπησα, εὖ ἴστε, οὐ καταφρονῶν τῆς παρ' ὑμῖν ὑπολήψεως (πῶς γὰρ ὅς γε, ἵνα μὴ ταύτην ζημιωθῶ, ταῦτα ἐπιστέλλω καὶ ἀγωνίζομαι νῦν;), ἀλλ' ὁρῶν ὅτι ἐν τρισὶ τοῖς βλαπτομένοις ὁ τὰ ἐλάττονα ζημιούμενος εἰμὶ ἐγώ. Ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ ὑμᾶς ἀποστεροῦμαι, ὑμεῖς δὲ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἀφαιρεῖσθε, καὶ ὁ τούτων αἴτιος ἐμὲ μὲν ὑμῶν διίστησιν, ἑαυτὸν δὲ ἀλλοτριοῖ τοῦ Κυρίου, διότι οὐκ ἔστι Θεῷ ἐκ τῶν ἀπηγορευμένων οἰκειωθῆναι. Ὑμῶν οὖν μᾶλλον ἕνεκεν ἢ ἐμαυτοῦ ποιοῦμαι τοὺς λόγους καὶ τοῦ ὑμᾶς ἐξελέσθαι βλάβης οὐκ ἀνεκτῆς. Τί γὰρ ἂν καὶ μεῖζον πάθοι κακόν τις τὸ τιμιώτατον τῶν ὄντων ζημιωθεὶς τὴν ἀλήθειαν; 204.4 Τί οὖν φημί, ἀδελφοί; Οὐχ ὅτι ἀναμάρτητός τις ἐγὼ οὔθ' ὅτι ὁ βίος ὁ ἐμὸς οὐχὶ πλήρης ἐστὶ μυρίων ἐλαττω μάτων. Οἶδα γὰρ ἐμαυτὸν καὶ οὐ διαλείπω γε στάζων τὸ δάκρυον ὑπὲρ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων, εἴ πως δυνηθείην ἐξιλά σασθαί μου τὸν Θεὸν καὶ διαφυγεῖν τὴν ἀπειληθεῖσαν κόλασιν. Ἀλλ' ὅτι ὁ τὰ ἡμέτερα κρίνων, εἰ μὲν καθαρὸν ἔχειν διαβεβαιοῦται τὸν ὀφθαλμόν, καρφολογείτω ἡμῶν τὸ ὄμμα. Ὁμολογοῦμεν γὰρ δεῖσθαι πολλῆς τῆς ἐκ τῶν ὑγιαινόντων ἐπιμελείας. Εἰ δὲ τοῦτο μὲν οὐκ ἂν εἴποι, καὶ τοσούτῳ γε πλέον οὐκ ἐρεῖ ὅσῳ περ ἂν μᾶλλον ᾖ καθαρός (διότι ἴδιον τῶν τελείων τὸ μὴ ἑαυτοὺς ὑπεραίρειν, ἐπεὶ πάντως ὑπόδικοι τῇ ἀλαζονείᾳ τοῦ Φαρισαίου γενήσονται, ὃς ἑαυτὸν δικαιῶν κατέκρινε τὸν τελώνην), μετ' ἐμοῦ ζητείτω τὸν ἰατρὸν καὶ μὴ πρὸ καιροῦ κρινέτω, ἕως ἂν ἔλθῃ ὁ Κύριος ὃς ἀποκαλύψει τὰ κρυπτὰ τοῦ σκότους καὶ φανερώσει τὰς βουλὰς τῶν καρδιῶν. Μεμνήσθω δὲ καὶ τοῦ εἰπόντος· «Μὴ κρίνετε, ἵνα μὴ κριθῆτε» καὶ «Μὴ κατα δικάζετε, ἵνα μὴ καταδικασθῆτε». Ὅλως δέ, ἀδελφοί, εἰ μὲν ἰάσιμα ἡμῶν ἐστὶ τὰ πλημμελήματα, τί οὐχὶ πείθεται τῷ διδασκάλῳ τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν λέγοντι· «Ἔλεγξον, ἐπιτίμησον, παρακάλεσον»; Εἰ δὲ ἀνίατος ἡμῶν ἡ ἀνομία, τί οὐχὶ εἰς πρόσωπον ἡμῖν ἀντικαθίσταται καὶ δημοσιεύσας ἡμῶν τὰ ἀνομήματα ἐλευθεροῖ τῆς παρ' ἡμῶν βλάβης τὰς Ἐκκλησίας; Μὴ τοίνυν ἀνάσχησθε τῆς ὑπ' ὀδόντα λαλου μένης καθ' ἡμῶν λοιδορίας. Τοῦτο γὰρ κἂν παιδίσκη μία τῶν ἐκ μύλωνος ποιήσειε κἂν τῶν ἀγοραίων τις μεθ' ὑπερβολῆς ἐπιδείξαιτο, οἷς ἡ γλῶσσα πρὸς πᾶσαν ἠκό νηται λοιδορίαν. Ἀλλ' εἰσὶν ἐπίσκοποι· κληθῶσιν εἰς ἀκρόασιν. Ἔστι κλῆρος κατὰ πᾶσαν τοῦ Θεοῦ παροικίαν· συναχθήτωσαν οἱ δοκιμώτατοι. Λεγέτω μετὰ παρρησίας ὁ βουλόμενος, ἵνα ἔλεγχος ᾖ τὸ γινόμενον καὶ μὴ λοιδορία. Ὑπ' ὄψιν ἀγέτω τὰ λανθάνοντά μου τῆς πονηρίας· μισείτω δὲ μηδὲ τότε, ἀλλὰ νουθετείτω ὡς ἀδελφόν.