181

to the command (for how could he not?), but being seized by a pleuritic affliction and at the same time from the chill that came upon him, with the sickness of the kidneys flaring up as usual, he was inescapably forced, being held by the soldiers, for the sake of the care of his body and relief from his unbearable pains, to be moved to some quiet place; For this reason we all came to beseech your highness not to be vexed at the delay of his appearance. For neither has any public business suffered from our postponement, nor have any ecclesiastical affairs been harmed on this account. But if the charge is about money, as having been squandered, here the treasurers of the sacred funds are ready to give an account to anyone who wishes and to expose the slander of those who have presumed upon your accurate hearing; for it is easy for them from the very letters of the blessed bishop to make the truth clear to those who seek it. But if there is some other canonical matter requiring examination, your magnanimity deigns to receive the hearing and judgment of this too, it being the concern of us all, because, if anything canonical has been omitted, those who ordained him are at fault, not he who was forced by every necessity to accept the ministry. Therefore we beseech you to reserve the hearing for us in our own country and not to drag us into exile, nor to force a meeting with bishops with whom we have not yet settled the matters of ecclesiastical dispute. At the same time we also beg you to spare our old age and our weakness. For you will know by experience itself, God willing, that neither a small nor a greater canonical point has been omitted in the appointment of the bishop. We pray therefore that during your rule concord and peace with our brothers may be brought about; for as long as this has not come to pass, the matter of the meeting is burdensome to us, because many of the more simple folk are being harmed by our division from one another.

226.t TO THE ASCETICS UNDER HIM

226.1 The holy God is able indeed to grant us the joy of meeting, to us who desire both to see you always and to hear about you; because in nothing else do we have rest for our souls, than in your progress and perfection through the commandments of Christ. But so long as this is not granted to us, we deem it necessary to visit you through our most genuine and God-fearing brothers and to converse with your love by letters. For this very reason, therefore, we have sent our most reverent and genuine brother and fellow-worker of the Gospel, Meletius the fellow-presbyter, who will relate to you our longing which we have for you and our care for your souls, that night and day we pray to the Lord for your well-being, so that we too may have boldness on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ, through your salvation, and you may shine forth in the brightness of the saints, your work being approved by the righteous judgment of God. At the same time, the difficulty of this present time causes us great anxiety, in which all the Churches have been shaken, and all souls are being sifted. For some have opened their mouths unsparingly against their fellow servants. Falsehood is spoken fearlessly, the truth has been concealed. And the accused are condemned without trial, while the accusers are believed without investigation. Wherefore I too, having heard that for some time letters have been circulating against me, branding and denouncing us and accusing us on matters for which we have a defense ready at the tribunal of truth, I was inclined to be silent, which I also did. For this is now the third year in which, being struck by slanders

181

προστάγματι (πῶς γὰρ οὐκ ἔμελλεν;), ὑπὸ δὲ πλευριτικοῦ πάθους κατασχεθεὶς καὶ ἅμα ἐκ τῆς προσγενομένης αὐτῷ ψύξεως, τῆς τῶν νεφρῶν ἀρρωστίας συνήθως ἐπαναστάσης, ἠναγκάσθη ἀπαραιτήτως ὑπὸ τῶν στρατιωτῶν κατεχόμενος, ἐπιμελείας ἕνεκεν τοῦ σώματος καὶ παραμυθίας τῶν ἀφορήτων ὀδυνῶν, πρός τι χωρίον ἡσυ χίαν ἔχον μετατεθῆναι· τούτου χάριν πάντες ἤλθομεν ἐπὶ τὸ ἱκετεῦσαι τὸ μέγεθός σου μηδὲν ἀγανακτῆσαι τῇ ἀνα βολῇ τῆς ἀπαντήσεως. Καὶ γὰρ οὔτε τι τῶν δημοσίων χεῖρον ἔσχεν ἐκ τῆς ἡμετέρας ὑπερθέσεως, οὔτε τι τῶν ἐκκλησιαστικῶν τούτου ἕνεκεν παρεβλάβη. Ἀλλ' εἰ μὲν περὶ χρημάτων ἐστὶν ὁ λόγος ὡς διαφορηθέντων, αὐτοῦ εἰσιν οἱ ταμίαι τῶν ἱερῶν χρημάτων ἕτοιμοι δοῦναι τὸν λόγον τῷ βουλομένῳ καὶ δεῖξαι τὴν συκοφαντίαν τῶν κατα τολμησάντων τῆς ἀκριβοῦς ἀκοῆς σου· ῥᾴδιον γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἀπ' αὐτῶν τῶν γραμμάτων τοῦ μακαρίου ἐπισκόπου φανε ρὰν τὴν ἀλήθειαν τοῖς ἐπιζητοῦσι ποιῆσαι. Εἰ δέ τι ἕτερόν ἐστι κανονικὸν ἐξετάσεως δεόμενον, καὶ τούτου καταδέχε ται ὑποδέξασθαι τὴν ἀκρόασιν καὶ τὴν κρίσιν ἡ μεγαλόνοιά σου, πάντων ἡμῶν χρεία, ὅτι, εἴπερ τι ἐλλέλειπται τῶν κανονικῶν, οἱ χειροτονήσαντες αἴτιοι, οὐχ ὁ κατὰ πᾶσαν ἀνάγκην ὑποδέξασθαι τὴν λειτουργίαν ἐκβιασθείς. Ὥστε ἱκετεύομέν σε φυλάξαι ἡμῖν τὴν ἀκρόασιν ἐπὶ τῆς πατρίδος καὶ μὴ ἕλκειν εἰς τὴν ὑπερορίαν, μηδὲ εἰς ἀνάγκην ἄγειν συντυχίας ἐπισκόπων πρὸς οὓς οὔπω τὰ περὶ τῶν ἐκκλη σιαστικῶν ζητημάτων ἀπελυσάμεθα. Ὁμοῦ δὲ καὶ φείσασ θαι τοῦ γήρως ἡμῶν καὶ τῆς ἀσθενείας δεόμεθα. Γνώσῃ γὰρ αὐτῇ τῇ πείρᾳ, τοῦ Θεοῦ βουλομένου, ὡς οὔτε μικρὸν οὔτε μεῖζον παρεῖταί τι τῶν κανονικῶν ἐν τῇ καταστάσει τοῦ ἐπισκόπου. Εὐχόμεθα οὖν ἐπὶ τῆς σῆς ἀρχῆς καὶ τὴν πρὸς τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ἡμῶν ὁμόνοιαν καὶ εἰρήνην καταπραχ θῆναι· ἧς μήπω γενομένης, βαρὺ ἡμῖν ἐστι τὸ τῆς συντυ χίας, διὰ τὸ πολλοὺς τῶν ἁπλουστέρων βλάπτεσθαι ἐν τῇ διαστάσει ἡμῶν τῇ πρὸς ἀλλήλους.

226.τ ΤΟΙΣ ΥΦ' ΕΑΥΤΟΝ ΑΣΚΗΤΑΙΣ

226.1 ∆υνατὸς μὲν ὁ ἅγιος Θεὸς καὶ τὴν διὰ τῆς συντυχίας εὐφροσύνην ἡμῖν

χαρίσασθαι τοῖς ἐπιθυμοῦσι καὶ βλέπειν ὑμᾶς ἀεὶ καὶ ἀκούειν τὰ περὶ ὑμῶν· διότι ἐν οὐδενὶ ἑτέρῳ ἔχομεν τὴν ἀνάπαυσιν τῶν ψυχῶν, ἢ ἐν τῇ προκοπῇ τῇ ὑμετέρᾳ καὶ τῇ διὰ τῶν ἐντολῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ τελειώσει. Ἕως δὲ τοῦθ' ἡμῖν οὐχ ὑπάρχει, ἀναγκαῖον τιθέμεθα διὰ τῶν γνησιωτάτων καὶ φοβουμένων τὸν Κύριον ἀδελφῶν ἐπισκέπτεσθαι ὑμᾶς καὶ γράμμασι προσομιλεῖν τῇ ἀγάπῃ ὑμῶν. Αὐτοῦ οὖν τούτου ἕνεκεν ἀπεστείλαμεν τὸν εὐλαβέ στατον καὶ γνησιώτατον ἀδελφὸν ἡμῶν καὶ συνεργὸν τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου Μελίτιον τὸν συμπρεσβύτερον, ὃς διηγήσεται ὑμῖν τὸν ἡμέτερον πόθον ὃν ἔχομεν ἐφ' ὑμῖν καὶ τὴν μέριμ ναν τῶν ψυχῶν ὑμῶν, ὅτι νυκτὸς καὶ ἡμέρας δεόμεθα τοῦ Κυρίου περὶ τῆς ὑμῶν εὐδοκιμήσεως, ἵνα καὶ ἡμεῖς ἔχωμεν παρρησίαν ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, διὰ τῆς ὑμῶν σωτηρίας, καὶ ὑμεῖς ἐκλάμψητε ἐν τῇ λαμ πρότητι τῶν ἁγίων, δοκιμαζομένου ὑμῶν τοῦ ἔργου ὑπὸ τῆς δικαιοκρισίας τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἅμα δὲ ἡμῖν πολλὴν μέριμναν ἐμ ποιεῖ τοῦ κατασχόντος καιροῦ τούτου ἡ χαλεπότης, ἐν ᾧ πᾶσαι μὲν Ἐκκλησίαι ἐσαλεύθησαν, πᾶσαι δὲ ψυχαὶ σινιά ζονται. Ἤνοιξαν γὰρ στόματά τινες ἀφειδῶς κατὰ τῶν ὁμοδούλων. Λαλεῖται τὸ ψεῦδος ἀφόβως, ἡ ἀλήθεια συγκε κάλυπται. Καὶ οἱ μὲν κατηγορούμενοι καταδικάζονται ἀκρίτως, οἱ δὲ κατηγοροῦντες πιστεύονται ἀνεξετάστως. Ὅθεν κἀγὼ ἀκούσας ὅτι πάλαι κατ' ἐμοῦ περιφέρονται ἐπιστολαὶ στίζουσαι ἡμᾶς καὶ στηλιτεύουσαι καὶ κατηγο ροῦσαι ἐπὶ πράγμασιν ὧν τὴν ἀπολογίαν ἑτοίμην ἔχομεν ἐπὶ τοῦ δικαστηρίου τῆς ἀληθείας, ὥρμησα μὲν σιωπῆσαι, ὃ καὶ ἐποίησα. Τρίτον γὰρ ἤδη τοῦτο ἔτος ἐστὶν ἐν ᾧ τυ πτόμενος ὑπὸ τῶν διαβολῶν