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who also in a weak nature manifested his own power; for truly you are blessed among nuns, but indeed also among all women, because in these days, in which not only women of the same habit and canonesses were captured, but also almost all monks and abbots in Byzantium, you yourself, with four others or more, chose to suffer for Christ rather than to partake of the heretical communion that separates from Christ. For he who partakes of it is disinherited from Christ like Judas and a companion of those who took the Lord to be crucified; for persecutors and crucifiers of Christ are those who diminish and reject his icon, just as also that of the Theotokos and of each of the saints. See, handmaid of Christ, do not shame the one who called you to his confession. You are a holy seed (I omit that which is according to the flesh, for this too is of such a kind), but I speak of Thekla the protomartyr, of Febronia, Eugenia, Matrona and those like them; and I mentioned Matrona, because in her days too, when there was a heresy and some nuns resisted abstaining from communion as you do now, the wicked heretics, not enduring their rage, by force of hand opened their mouths and poured in their communion. But the hand did not consent, so that you too must consider being tried in many ways for Christ's sake. But let us in no way turn aside; for Christ is our helper, even if they test us to the point of blood. Pray for us for the Lord's sake, that we sinners may not fail to attain Christ. 245 {1To John of Chalcedon}1 The longing for which I have been in labor for a long time, having now given birth to it, I, the humble one, rightly give thanks to my God; and what is the longing? To be joined by letter to your paternal holiness and to give a greeting and to make known my longing, how great and of what kind it is, not that it did not exist before, but that it has now been greatly kindled by our common suffering for the truth; for where there is harmony of faith, there clearly is also a bond of love, and where there is a bond of love, there God is the chief thing, for whom and because of whom we suffer. But our own situation is of no account, because it is insignificant on both sides, while the present circumstances bring the greatest glory to your holiness and those like you, who have chosen to be in danger for the sake of piety and to endure hardship; for how great a tribulation it is for your godliness to be confined somewhere far from those in the city and to endure day after day the pains and sorrows of exile and the cares for what concerns both spirit and body, and this in a weak body unaccustomed to such things, even if it has been sufficiently trained beforehand by the voluntary labors of asceticism. But well done, O best of fathers, for the church received you from the senate as an ornament for herself at first, and now also as a guardian of her pious doctrines, having bound on the crown of confession (for how could it be otherwise?) suffering for Christ and not yielding to those who persecute Christ, even if it does not seem so to the persecutors; for the icon of Christ is Christ, just as the type of the cross is the cross; and I do not yet speak of the Theotokos and of any of the saints, to you who know and who rather instruct and make skillful us who are uninitiated and unwise. Terrible, therefore, O divine and sacred head, is the impiety and prelude to the coming of the Antichrist and as it were an icon, if indeed it fights against the icon of Christ, which has no division from its prototype; for such is the nature of the things spoken of. Therefore, as great as is the magnitude of their impiety, so great is for us the boast of our confession, which yields in no way second place to the martyrs of Christ of old. May you receive their crown, thrice-blessed one, while praying for peace for the church and indeed that I, the least, may not utterly fail to touch your footsteps, because I bear a very great burden of sins. 246 {1To Euthymius, my child}1 Be well, my beloved child Euthymius; I do not cease, therefore, to remember you in my humble prayers, calling to mind the unfeigned faith and love in you, how from the first day you conducted yourself well in your obedience, and how on the very day of our separation you showed your love and

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τὸν καὶ ἐν ἀσθενεῖ φύσει τὴν ἑαυτοῦ δύναμιν ἐμφανίσαντα· τῷ ὄντι γὰρ μακαρία σὺ ἐν μοναζούσαις, ἀλλὰ γὰρ καὶ ἐν γυναιξὶ πάσαις, ὅτι ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ταύταις, ἐν αἷς ἑάλωσαν οὐ μόνον γυναῖκες ὁμόσχημοι καὶ κανονικαί, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντες μικροῦ δεῖν ἐν τῇ Βυζαντίδι μονασταί τε καὶ ἡγούμενοι, αὐτὴ σὺν ἄλλαις τέσσαρσιν ἢ καὶ πρὸς εἵλου ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ πάσχειν ἢ μετασχεῖν τῆς χωριζούσης Χριστοῦ αἱρετικῆς κοινωνίας. ὁ γὰρ μετέχων αὐτῆς ἀπόκληρος Χριστοῦ ὡς ὁ Ἰούδας καὶ κοινωνὸς τῶν παραλαβόντων τὸν Κύριον εἰς τὸ σταυρωθῆναι· καὶ γὰρ τοῦ Χριστοῦ διῶκται καὶ σταυρῶται οἱ τὴν εἰκόνα αὐτοῦ ἐκμειοῦντες καὶ ἀποσκορακίζοντες, ὥσπερ καὶ αὐτῆς τῆς Θεοτόκου καὶ ἑκάστου τῶν ἁγίων. Βλέπε, δούλη Χριστοῦ, μὴ καταισχύνῃς τὸν καλέσαντά σε εἰς τὴν ὁμολογίαν αὐτοῦ. σπέρμα ἅγιον σὺ (ἐῶ τὸ κατὰ σάρκα, ὅτι καὶ τοῦτο τοιοῦτον), ἀλλὰ Θέκλης λέγω τῆς πρωτομάρτυρος, Φεβρωνίας, Εὐγενίας, Ματρώνης καὶ τῶν ὁμοίων· εἶπον δὲ Ματρώνης, ὅτι καὶ ἐν ταῖς κατ' αὐτὴν ἡμέραις αἱρέσεως οὔσης καί τινων μοναζουσῶν ἐνισταμένων ἀπέχεσθαι τῆς κοινωνίας ὡς ὑμεῖς νῦν οἱ ἀλάστορες αἱρετικοί, μὴ φέροντες τὴν μανίαν, βίᾳ χειρὶ ἤνοιγον τὰ στόματα καὶ ἐνέχεον τὴν κοινωνίαν αὐτῶν. ἀλλὰ τὸ χειρὶ οὐ συνηγορεῖτο, ὥστε καὶ αὐτὴ σκόπει πολλὰ διὰ Χριστὸν πειρασθῆναι. Ἀλλὰ μηδαμῶς ἐκκλίνωμεν· Χριστὸς γὰρ ἡμῖν βοηθός, κἂν μέχρις αἵματος πειράσωσιν. προσεύχου περὶ ἡμῶν διὰ τὸν Κύριον καὶ ἡμᾶς τοὺς ἁμαρτωλοὺς μὴ ἀποτυχεῖν Χριστοῦ. 245 {1Ἰωάννῃ Καλχηδόνοσ}1 Ὃν ἐκ μακροῦ χρόνου ὤδινον πόθον, νῦν ἀποτεκὼν εἰκότως εὐχαριστῶ τῷ θεῷ μου ὁ ταπεινός· τίς δὲ ὁ πόθος; τὸ γράμματι συναφθῆναί με τῇ πατρικῇ ἁγιωσύνῃ σου καὶ δοῦναι ἀσπασμὸν καὶ γνωρίσαι τὸν πόθον ὅσος καὶ ἡλίκος, οὐχ ὅτι τὸ πρὶν οὐκ ἦν, ἀλλ' ὅτι ἄρτι μάλα ἐξῆπται τῇ ὑπὲρ ἀληθείας ταὐτοπαθείᾳ· οὗ γὰρ ὁμόνοια πίστεως, ἐκεῖ δηλαδὴ καὶ ἀγάπης σύνδεσμος, οὗ δὲ ἀγάπης σύνδεσμος, ἐκεῖ θεὸς τὸ κεφάλαιον, ὑπὲρ οὗ καὶ δι' ὃν τὸ πάσχειν. ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν ἡμέτερον οὐδενὸς λόγου διὰ τὸ ἀμφοτέρωθεν μηδαμινόν, τὸ δὲ τῆς σῆς ὁσιότητος καὶ τῶν οἷος σὺ μεγίστης εὐδοξίας τὰ παρόντα, ὑπὲρ εὐσεβείας ἑλομένων κινδυνεύειν καὶ κακοπαθείας ἀνατλᾶν· ὁπόσης γὰρ θλίψεως τὸ περιορισθῆναί σου τὴν θεοσέβειαν πόρρω που τῶν ἐν ἄστει καὶ ἕλκειν ἡμέραν ἐξ ἡμέρας πόνους καὶ ὀδύνας ἐξοριστικὰς καὶ μεριμνητικὰς τῶν διαφερόντων καὶ πνεύματι καὶ σώματι, καὶ ταῦτα ἐν ἀσθενεῖ σώματι καὶ ἀήθει τῶν τοιούτων, εἰ καὶ τοῖς ἑκουσίοις τῆς ἀσκήσεως πόνοις ἱκανῶς προγεγυμνασμένῳ. Ἀλλ' εὖγε, ὦ πατέρων κράτιστε, ὅτι σὲ ἔλαβεν ἡ ἐκκλησία ἐκ τῆς συγκλήτου κόσμον ἑαυτῇ τὰ πρῶτα, νῦν δὲ καὶ φύλακα τῶν εὐσεβῶν αὐτῆ δογμάτων, ὁμολογίας στέφανον ἀναδησάμενον (πῶς γὰρ οὔ;) ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ πάσχοντα καὶ μὴ ὑπείκοντα τοῖς Χριστὸν διώκουσι, κἂν οὐ δοκῇ τοῖς ἐλαύνουσι· Χριστὸς γὰρ ἡ Χριστοῦ εἰκὼν ὡς σταυρὸς ὁ σταυροῦ τύπος· καὶ οὔπω λέγω τῆς Θεοτόκου καὶ οὑτινοσοῦν τῶν ἁγίων, εἰδότι σοι καὶ ἡμᾶς μᾶλλον μυοῦντι καὶ τεχνοῦντι τοὺς ἀμυήτους καὶ ἀσόφους. δεινὸν οὖν, ὦ θεία καὶ ἱερὰ κεφαλή, τὸ ἀσέβημα καὶ προεισόδιον τῆς τοῦ Ἀντιχρίστου ἐλεύσεως καὶ οἱονεὶ εἰκών, εἴπερ τῇ Χριστοῦ εἰκόνι μάχεται, μηδένα διαμερισμὸν πρὸς τὸ πρωτότυπον ἐχούσῃ· τοιαύτη γὰρ ἡ φύσις τῶν λεγομένων. διὸ ὅσον τὸ μέγεθος τῆς ἀσεβείας ἐκείνοις, τοσοῦτον ἡμῖν τὸ αὔχημα τῆς ὁμολογίας, μὴ τὰ δευτέρια παραχωρούσης τῶν πάλαι Χριστοῦ μαρτύρων. Ὧν τὸν στέφανον κομίσειας, τρισόλβιε, προσευχόμενος εἰρήνην τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ καί γε κἀμοὶ τῷ ἐλαχίστῳ μὴ πάντῃ διαμαρτεῖν τῆς τῶν ἰχνῶν σου προσψαύσεως διὰ τὸ μέγιστόν με φορτίον οἴσειν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν. 246 {1Εὐθυμίῳ τέκνῳ}1 Ὑγίαινε, τέκνον μου ἠγαπημένον Εὐθύμιε· οὐ παύομαι οὖν μεμνῆσθαί σου ἐν ταῖς ταπειναῖς μου προσευχαῖς, ὑπόμνησιν λαμβάνων τῆς ἐν σοὶ ἀνυποκρίτου πίστεώς τε καὶ ἀγάπης, πῶς ἀπὸ πρώτης ἡμέρας ἀνεστράφης ἐν τῇ ὑποταγῇ σου χρηστῶς, πῶς τε ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ χωρισμοῦ ἔδειξας τὸ τῆς ἀγάπης σου καὶ