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of the voice of the brothers (for we have not judged it good to be seen with him for many reasons), let the rest also have this, to be without a share in the holy things and in the other observances. You ask, until when? Until the clear sky of orthodoxy shines forth. If, he says, death should befall? Let them receive communion; we believe their sin to be forgiven them. But since you have written that you dispute this and that with one another, resolve your problems and be at peace among yourselves. these are not to be received as those who return from heresy (if indeed even there the observation of the difference of this one from that one is not a trivial matter), but as having denied the name of the Lord, that is, upon the denial of him, having communed with the Christ-fighters out of fear or some other misfortune; for upon the denial of him they communed with those who had manifestly denied his holy icon. For the denial of the icon ascends to the prototype, as he who cries out cries out, and it is not otherwise, even if some should wish to belittle the denial. If, therefore, not having been orthodox before nor initiated into the truth, having been enlightened to the truth by divine providence, they had come over to us, it would be otherwise; and even those are not to be received in a casual manner, except through the agreement of very many orthodox, as the divine Basil has declared to those confined in Mesopotamia from Egypt, reproaching them for having received them unguardedly. Or do you not know what the same father says in another letter? I do not know a bishop nor would I count among bishops one who was promoted to the presidency by profane hands for the destruction of the faith; such as they are now, leaping upon the thrones not through ignorance, but through love of rule, having willingly abandoned the truth and taking in exchange the presidency of impiety. If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts, says the apostle, at Ephesus, what advantageth it me? I also say: if according to you, after the denial, that is, communion with the Christ-fighters, such men are to be received immediately and without penance, why do I face danger in vain every day and not, having deserted to the adversaries, might I again through repentance be ranked with the orthodox without penance? Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. Awake in the Lord. And what communion hath light with darkness, so that our affairs are observed in parallel with those of the Christ-fighters? Because, he says, they themselves receive with joy and without penance those from orthodoxy who go over to them (woe), it is therefore fitting also for us to crown the deniers of Christ and to celebrate solemnly as they do some of theirs. Brethren, I beseech you, be not children in understanding, but be made perfect through true knowledge. Concerning those outside our brotherhood, who am I to give an account? But if someone should compel, since love, being the fulfillment of the law, also has persuasion, I say this, which also applies to our own; for they too are our own people. A presbyter, whether he has signed or communed out of fear, not bearing the mistreatment, let him be barred from communion; for having communed against Christ, how could he commune with Christ? For of the suspension from the sacred ministry the release is from a synodical examination. He who, after the defeat, has decided to wrestle again, let him withdraw from the place where he formerly sat; for how will the denial, which he underwent, be made known to both himself and to others? I do not proceed to permit it, especially when his wrestling again did not take place with any notable drama, as in the case of the one of Laodicea; for not even he would I advise to celebrate the sacred rites, but only to receive communion, on account of the notoriety. Thus in the case of any monk, thus in the case of a layman; exclusion from communion along with the other worthy fruits of repentance, and to await the time of orthodoxy. But since it is possible for both a remission and an addition to be made by the one imposing the penance, I speak of communion, as the times of the heresy are extended according to the inscrutable judgments of the just wrath of God, it is possible even before a synod to grant release in the Lord, according as the person has fallen more gravely or more lightly and according to the repentance he in turn displays; both for our own and

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φωνῆς τῶν ἀδελφῶν (οὐδὲ γὰρ κεκρίκαμεν εὖ ἔχειν συνοψισθῆναι αὐτῷ διὰ πολλὰ αἴτια), τοῦτο σχοῖεν καὶ οἱ λοιποί, ἀμετόχους εἶναι τῶν ἁγιασμάτων καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις παρατηρήμασιν. ἐρωτᾷς, ἕως πότε; ἕως ἂν ἀναλάμψῃ ἡ τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας αἰθρία. εἰ, φησί, τύχοι θάνατος; κοινωνείτωσαν· πιστεύομεν συγκεχωρῆσθαι αὐτοῖς τὸ ἁμάρτημα. ἐπειδὴ δὲ γέγραφας τοῦτο κἀκεῖνο ἀντιλεκτεῖν ὑμᾶς πρὸς ἀλλήλους, διαλύεσθε τῶν προβλημάτων ὑμῶν καὶ εἰρηνεύετε ἐν ἑαυτοῖς. οὐχ ὡς οἱ ἐξ αἱρέσεως ἐπιστρέφοντες οὗτοι δεκτέοι (εἴπερ κἀκεῖ παρατήρησις διαφορᾶς οὐ τῆς τυχούσης τῆσδε πρὸς τήνδε), ἀλλ' ὡς ἀρνησάμενοι τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου, ἤτοι ἐπὶ τῇ ἀρνήσει αὐτοῦ κεκοινωνηκότες τοῖς χριστομάχοις διὰ φόβον ἤ τινα ἄλλην περιπέτειαν· ἐπὶ γὰρ τῇ ἀρνήσει αὐτοῦ ἐκοινώνησαν προδήλως ἠρνημένοις τὴν ἁγίαν αὐτοῦ εἰκόνα. ἡ γὰρ τῆς εἰκόνος ἄρνησις ἐπὶ τὸ πρωτότυπον ἀναβαίνει, ὡς βοᾷ ὁ βοῶν, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀλλοίως, κἄν τινες σμικρύνειν τὴν ἄρνησιν βούλοιντο. εἰ οὖν μὴ ὀρθοδοξοῦντες τὸ πρότερον μηδὲ μυηθέντες τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐκ θείας προνοίας αὐγασθέντες τὸ ἀληθὲς μετεπήδησαν εἰς ἡμᾶς, ἄλλως εἶχεν· κἀκείνους οὐχ ὡς ἔτυχεν προσδεκτέον, εἰ μὴ διὰ πλείστων ὀρθοδόξων συμφωνήσεως, ὡς δεδήλωκεν ὁ θεῖος Βασίλειος πρὸς τοὺς ἐν Μεσοποταμίᾳ ἐξ Αἰγύπτου περιωρισμένους, καθαπτόμενος αὐτῶν ἐν τῷ ἀφυλάκτως προσήκασθαι. ἢ ἀγνοεῖτε ὅ φησιν ὁ αὐτὸς πατὴρ ἐν ἑτέρᾳ ἐπιστολῇ; οὐκ οἶδα ἐπίσκοπον μηδὲ ἀριθμήσαιμι ἐν ἐπισκόποις τὸν ἐπὶ καταστροφῇ τῆς πίστεως ὑπὸ τῶν βεβήλων χειρῶν προαχθέντα εἰς προεδρίαν· οἷοί εἰσιν τανῦν, οὐ δι' ἄγνοιαν, ἀλλὰ διὰ φιλαρχίαν ἐπιπηδῶντες τοῖς θρόνοις, προέμενοι ἑκουσίως τὴν ἀλήθειαν καὶ ἀντιλαμβάνοντες τὴν τῆς ἀσεβείας προεδρίαν. εἰ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον ἐθηριομάχησα, φησὶν ὁ ἀπόστολος, ἐν Ἐφέσῳ, τί μοι τὸ ὄφελος; λέγω κἀγώ· εἰ καθ' ὑμᾶς μετὰ τὴν ἄρνησιν, ἤτοι κοινωνίαν τῶν χριστομάχων, εὐθὺς δεκτέοι καὶ ἀνεπιτίμητοι οἱ τοιοῦτοι, τί μάτην κινδυνεύω καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν καὶ μὴ αὐτομολήσας πρὸς τοὺς ὑπεναντίους αὖθις διὰ μετανοίας ἀνεπιτιμήτως τοῖς ὀρθοδόξοις συνταχθείην; μὴ πλανᾶσθε, φθείρουσιν ἤθη χρηστὰ ὁμιλίαι κακαί. ἐκνήψατε ἐν Κυρίῳ. τίς δὲ κοινωνία φωτὶ πρὸς σκότος, ἵνα ἐκ παραλλήλου τῶν χριστομάχων τὰ ἡμέτερα τηρεῖται; ὡς ὅτι, φησίν, αὐτοὶ τοὺς ἐξ ὀρθοδοξίας πρὸς αὐτοὺς χωροῦντας χαρᾷ ἀνεπιτιμήτως προσίενται (οὐά), δέον οὖν καὶ στεφανοῦν ἡμᾶς τοὺς ἀρνητὰς τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ σολυμνιάζειν ὡς ἐκεῖνοί τινας ἐκείνων. ἀδελφοί, δέομαι ὑμῶν, μὴ παιδία γίνεσθε ταῖς φρεσίν, ἀλλὰ τελειοῦσθε διὰ τῆς ἀληθοῦς ἐπιγνώσεως. Περὶ τῶν ἔξω τῆς ἀδελφότητος ἡμῶν τίς εἰμι δοῦναι λόγον; εἰ δὲ καὶ ἀναγκάζοι τις, ἐπειδὴ ἡ ἀγάπη, πλήρωμα οὖσα νόμου, ἔχει καὶ τὴν πειθώ, τοῦτό φημι, ὃ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων· ἡμεδαποὶ γὰρ κἀκεῖνοι. πρεσβύτερος εἴτε ὑπογράψας εἴτε κοινωνήσας φόβῳ, μὴ φέρων τὴν κάκωσιν, εἰργέσθω τῆς κοινωνίας· κατὰ Χριστοῦ γὰρ κοινωνήσας, πῶς δύναιτο ἂν Χριστῷ κοινωνεῖν; τῆς γὰρ ἐγκρατήσεως τῆς ἱερουργίας παρὰ συνοδικῆς ἐπισκέψεως ἡ λύσις. ὁ δόξας μετὰ τὴν ἧτταν ἀναπαλαῖσαι ἀποχωρείτω τοῦ ἐν ᾧ ἐκαθέζετο πρὶν τόπου· ἐπεὶ πῶς γνωσθήσεται αὐτῷ τε ἐκείνῳ ἡ ἄρνησις, ἣν ὑπέστη, καὶ ἄλλοις; οὐ χωρῶ ἐπιτρέψαι, ἐπὰν ἡ ἀναπάλαισις αὐτοῦ μάλιστα οὐκ ἐγένετο ἐπισήμῳ τινὶ δράματι, οἷον ἐπὶ τοῦ Λαοδικείας· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκείνῳ συμβουλεύσαιμι ἂν ἔγωγε ἱερουργεῖν ἢ μόνον κοινωνεῖν διὰ τὸ ἐπίσημον. οὕτως ἐπὶ τοῦ τυχόντος μονάζοντος, οὕτως ἐπὶ λαϊκοῦ· εἶρξις τῆς κοινωνίας μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἀξίων καρπῶν τῆς μετανοίας, ἀναμένειν τε τὸν καιρὸν τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας. πλὴν ἐπειδὴ ἐνδέχεται καὶ ὕφεσιν καὶ πρόσθεσιν γίνεσθαι παρὰ τοῦ ἐπιτιμῶντος, ἐπὶ τῆς κοινωνίας λέγω, ἐκτεινομένων τῶν χρόνων τῆς αἱρέσεως κατὰ τὰ ἀθεώρητα κρίματα τῆς δικαίας ὀργῆς τοῦ θεοῦ, ἔστιν καὶ πρὸ συνόδου λῦσαι ἐν Κυρίῳ, καθὼς ὑποπέπτωκεν τὸ πρόσωπον βαρύτερον ἢ ἐλαφρότερον καὶ καθ' ἣν πάλιν ὑποδείκνυσι μετάνοιαν· εἴς τε τοὺς ἡμετέρους καὶ