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I be caught by the Master, or by adding harmful deeds and striking the conscience of my fellow servants, or by being with drunkards, I suffer in the righteous judgment of God the things threatened to the evil stewards. I beseech you, therefore, in every prayer to ask God that we be sober in all things, so that we may not become a shame and a reproach to the name of Christ in the revelation of the secrets of our heart on the great day of the appearance of our Savior Jesus Christ. 213.2 Know that I am in expectation of being recalled to the camp through the insolence of the heretics on the pretext, forsooth, of peace; and that having heard this, this bishop has also written to us to hasten to be in Mesopotamia, and having gathered those there of the same faith and who control the affairs of the Churches, to set out with them to the Emperor. But perhaps my body itself will not be sufficient for the journey in winter. For the present, the matter did not seem necessary, unless you yourself should advise something. For I will await the counsel from your piety, so that my opinion may be confirmed. Therefore, I ask that what has occurred to your perfection and divinely-inspired wisdom be revealed to us more quickly through one of the diligent brethren.

214.τ TO TERENTIUS THE COUNT

214.1 When we heard that your Eminence had again been compelled to the care of the

public affairs, we were immediately disturbed (for the truth will be told) considering how it is against your will, once you had been released from public cares and had leisure for the care of your own soul, to be forced to return to the same things again. Then coming to the thought that perhaps the Lord, wishing, of the countless pains which now grip the Churches in our region, to grant this one consolation, arranged for your Reverence to appear again in public affairs, and we were indeed more cheerful, as we were about to meet with your Honor at least once more before departing this life. 214.2 But again another report reached us, that you are staying in Antioch and managing the matters at hand with the high authorities. And in addition to this report, word reached us that the brethren of Paulinus’s party are conferring with your Uprightness about union with us, and by us I mean those of the party of the man of God, Bishop Meletius. And I hear that they are now carrying about letters from the Westerners entrusting to them the episcopate of the Church in Antioch, but reasoning falsely about the most admirable bishop of the true Church of God, Meletius. And I do not wonder at this. For some are completely ignorant of the situation here, while others, who seem to know, explain things to them more contentiously than truthfully. However, it is not at all unlikely that they are ignorant of the truth or that the reason for which the most blessed bishop Athanasius came to write to Paulinus is being concealed. But your Perfection, having there men who are able to relate accurately what happened between the bishops during the reign of Jovian, we beseech you to be instructed by them. However, since we accuse no one, and pray to have love for all, and especially for those of the household of the faith, we rejoice with those who have received the letters from Rome. And if it contains some solemn and great testimony for them, we pray that it proves true, being confirmed by their very works. Nevertheless, on this account we can never persuade ourselves either to be ignorant of Meletius or to forget the Church under him or the questions over which the division arose from the beginning, to consider them small and to think they make little difference

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∆εσπότου καταληφθῶ, ἢ καὶ διὰ τῶν βλαβερῶν ἔργων προστιθεὶς καὶ τύπτων τὴν συνείδησιν τῶν συνδούλων, ἢ καὶ μετὰ τῶν μεθυόντων γινόμενος, ἐν τῇ δικαιοκρισίᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ πάθω τὰ τοῖς πονηροῖς τῶν οἰκονόμων ἠπειλημένα. Παρακαλῶ οὖν σε ἐπὶ πάσῃ προ σευχῇ δέεσθαι τοῦ Θεοῦ νήφειν ἡμᾶς ἐν πᾶσιν, ἵνα μὴ αἰσχύνη γινώμεθα καὶ ὄνειδος τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν τῇ ἀποκαλύψει τῶν κρυπτῶν τῆς καρδίας ἡμῶν κατὰ τὴν μεγάλην ἡμέραν τῆς ἐπιφανείας τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ. 213.2 Γίνωσκε δέ με ἐν προσδοκίᾳ εἶναι τοῦ κατ' ἐπήρειαν τῶν αἱρετικῶν ἀνακληθήσεσθαι εἰς τὸ στρατόπεδον ἐπὶ προφάσει δὴ τῆς εἰρήνης· καὶ τοῦτο ἀκούσαντα καὶ τὸν ἐπίσκοπον τόνδε ἐπεσταλκέναι ἡμῖν σπουδάσαι περὶ τὴν Μεσοποταμίαν γενέσθαι, καὶ τῶν ἐκεῖ τοὺς ὁμοδόξους καὶ ἐπικρατύνοντας τὰ τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν συναγαγόντα μετ' αὐτῶν ὁρμῆσαι πρὸς τὸν Βασιλέα. Ἐμοὶ δὲ τάχα μὲν οὐδὲ τὸ σῶμα αὐτὸ πρὸς τὴν ἐν τῷ χειμῶνι ὁδοιπορίαν ἀρκέσει. Τέως δὲ οὐδὲ ἀναγκαῖον τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐφάνη, πλὴν εἰ μή τι αὐτὸς συμβουλεύσεις. Ἀναμενῶ γὰρ καὶ τὴν παρὰ τῆς θεοσεβείας σου συμβουλήν, ὥστε κρατυνθῆναι τὴν γνώμην. ∆ιὸ παρακαλῶ θᾶττον ἡμῖν διά τινος τῶν σπουδαίων ἀδελφῶν τὸ παραστὰν τῇ τελειότητί σου καὶ ἐνθέῳ συνέσει φανερωθῆναι.

214.τ ΠΡΟΣ ΤΕΡΕΝΤΙΟΝ ΚΟΜΗΤΑ

214.1 Ὅτε ἠκούσαμεν τὴν σεμνότητά σου πάλιν ἐκβεβιάσθαι πρὸς τὴν τῶν

κοινῶν ἐπιμέλειαν, εὐθὺς μὲν διεταράχθημεν (εἰρήσεται γὰρ τἀληθές) λογιζόμενοι ὅπως σοι παρὰ γνώμην ἐστὶν ἅπαξ ἀφεθέντι τῶν δημοσίων φροντίδων καὶ σχολάσαντι τῇ ἐπιμελείᾳ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ψυχῆς πάλιν ἀναγκάζεσθαι πρὸς τὰ αὐτὰ ἐπιστρέφειν. Ἔπειτα εἰς ἔννοιαν ἐλθόντες ὅτι τάχα ὁ Κύριος βουλόμενος τῶν μυρίων ὀδυνῶν, αἳ νῦν τὰς καθ' ἡμᾶς Ἐκκλησίας συνέ χουσι, μίαν ταύτην χαρίσασθαι παραμυθίαν, τὴν σὴν σεμνοπρέπειαν πάλιν ᾠκονόμησεν ἐπὶ τῶν πραγμάτων φα νῆναι, καὶ δὴ καὶ εὐθυμότεροι ἦμεν ὡς μέλλοντες ἔτι γοῦν ἅπαξ, πρὶν ἀπιέναι τῆς ζωῆς ταύτης, συντεύξεσθαι τῇ τιμιότητί σου. 214.2 Ἀλλὰ πάλιν ἡμᾶς ἑτέρα φήμη κατέσχεν, ὡς ἐπὶ τῆς Ἀντιοχείας διάγοντος καὶ τὰ ἐν χερσὶ πράγματα ταῖς μεγάλαις ἀρχαῖς συνδιέποντος. Πρὸς δὲ τῇ φήμῃ ταύτῃ κατέλαβεν ἡμᾶς ἀκοὴ ὅτι καὶ οἱ τῆς κατὰ Παυλῖνον συντάξεως ἀδελφοὶ διαλέγονται τῇ ὀρθότητί σου περὶ τῆς πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἑνώσεως, ἡμᾶς δὲ λέγω τοὺς τῆς μερίδος τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοῦ Θεοῦ, Μελετίου τοῦ ἐπισκόπου. Οὓς καὶ γράμματα ἀκούω νῦν τῶν ∆υτικῶν περιφέρειν αὐτοῖς τὴν ἐπισκοπὴν τῆς κατὰ Ἀντιόχειαν Ἐκκλησίας ἐπιτρέποντα, παραλογιζόμενα δὲ τὸν θαυμασιώτατον ἐπίσκοπον τῆς ἀληθινῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ Ἐκκλησίας Μελέτιον. Καὶ οὐ θαυμάζω τοῦτο. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἀγνοοῦσι παντελῶς τὰ ἐνταῦθα, οἱ δὲ καὶ δοκοῦντες εἰδέναι φιλονεικότερον μᾶλλον ἢ ἀληθέστε ρον αὐτοῖς ἐξηγοῦνται. Πλὴν ἀλλ' ἐκείνους μὲν οὐδὲν ἀπεικὸς ἀγνοεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἢ καὶ ἀποκρύπτεσθαι τὴν αἰτίαν δι' ἣν εἰς τὸ γράφειν Παυλίνῳ ἦλθεν ὁ μακαριώτα τος ἐπίσκοπος Ἀθανάσιος. Τὴν δὲ σὴν τελειότητα αὐτοῦ ἔχουσαν τοὺς δυναμένους τὰ μεταξὺ τῶν ἐπισκόπων γενό μενα ἐπὶ τῆς Ἰοβιανοῦ βασιλείας ἀκριβῶς διηγήσασθαι παρακαλοῦμεν ὑπ' αὐτῶν διδαχθῆναι. Πλὴν ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ οὐδενὸς κατηγοροῦμεν, πρὸς πάντας δὲ ἔχειν εὐχόμεθα τὴν ἀγάπην καὶ μάλιστα πρὸς τοὺς οἰκείους τῆς πίστεως, συγχαίρομεν τοῖς κομισαμένοις τὰ ἀπὸ Ῥώμης γράμματα. Κἄν τινα σεμνὴν καὶ μεγάλην ἔχῃ αὐτοῖς μαρτυρίαν, εὐχόμεθα ἀληθεύειν αὐτὴν δι' αὐτῶν τῶν ἔργων βεβαιουμέ νην. Οὐ μέντοι τούτου γε ἕνεκεν δυνάμεθα ἑαυτοὺς πεῖσαί ποτε ἢ Μελέτιον ἀγνοῆσαι ἢ τῆς ὑπ' αὐτὸν Ἐκκλησίας ἐπιλαθέσθαι ἢ τὰ ζητήματα ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἡ διάστα σις γέγονε, μικρὰ ἡγήσασθαι καὶ ὀλίγην ἔχειν νομίσαι διαφορὰν