181

punishment. A deacon does not bless; he does not give a blessing, but receives it from a bishop and a presbyter; he does not baptize, he does not offer the sacrifice; but when the bishop or the presbyter has offered, he gives it to the people, not as a priest, but as one ministering to priests. It is not lawful for any of the other clergy to do the work of a deacon. A deaconess does not bless, nor does she perform anything that the presbyters or deacons do, but only guards the doors and assists the presbyters in the baptizing of women for the sake of propriety. A deacon may separate a subdeacon, a reader, a singer, and a deaconess, if there be any such, when a presbyter is not present. It is not lawful for a subdeacon to separate, nor indeed for a reader, nor for a singer, nor for a deaconess, either a cleric or a layman; for they are ministers of the deacons. And concerning water and oil, I, Matthew, make this constitution. Let the bishop bless the water or the oil; but if he is not present, let the presbyter bless it, with the deacon standing by; but when the bishop is present, let the presbyter and the deacon stand by. And let him say thus: O Lord of Sabaoth, the God of hosts, the creator of the waters and the supplier of the oil, merciful and a lover of mankind, who gave water for drink and for cleansing, and oil to gladden the face with the exultation of joy; You Yourself now also through Christ sanctify this water and this oil in the name of him or her who has brought it, and grant a power that produces health, drives away diseases, puts demons to flight, protects the house, and wards off every plot, through Christ our hope, through whom to You be glory, honor, and worship in the Holy Spirit for ever; amen. The same concerning first-fruits and tithes. I further command that every first-fruit be brought to the bishop and to the presbyters and to the deacons for their sustenance, and that every tithe be offered for the sustenance of the rest of the clergy and of the virgins and of the widows and of those who are in poverty; for the first-fruits belong to the priests and to the deacons ministering to them. The same concerning remainders. Let the deacons distribute the remaining blessings from the mysteries to the clergy according to the judgment of the bishop or of the presbyters: to the bishop four parts, to a presbyter three parts, to a deacon two parts, and to the others, to subdeacons or readers or singers or deaconesses, one part. For this is good and acceptable before God, that each

181

τιμωρίᾳ. ∆ιάκονος οὐκ εὐλογεῖ· οὐ δίδωσιν εὐλογίαν, λαμβάνει δὲ παρὰ ἐπισκόπου καὶ πρεσβυτέρου· οὐ βαπτίζει, οὐ προσφέρει· τοῦ δὲ ἐπισκόπου προσενεγκόντος ἢ τοῦ πρεσβυτέρου, αὐτὸς ἐπιδίδωσιν τῷ λαῷ, οὐχ ὡς ἱερεύς, ἀλλ' ὡς διακονούμενος ἱερεῦσιν. Τῶν τε ἄλλων κληρικῶν τὸ τοῦ διακόνου ἔργον ποιῆσαι οὐδενὶ ἐξόν. ∆ιακόνισσα οὐκ εὐλογεῖ, ἀλλ' οὐδέ τι ὧν ποιοῦσιν οἱ πρεσβύτεροι ἢ οἱ διάκονοι ἐπιτελεῖ, ἀλλ' ἢ τοῦ φυλάττειν τὰς θύρας καὶ ἐξυπηρετεῖσθαι τοῖς πρεσβυτέροις ἐν τῷ βαπτίζεσθαι τὰς γυναῖκας διὰ τὸ εὐπρεπές. ∆ιάκονος ἀφορίζει ὑποδιά κονον, ἀναγνώστην, ψάλτην, διακόνισσαν, ἐὰν ᾖ τι τοιοῦτον μὴ παρόντος πρεσβυτέρου Ὑποδιακόνῳ οὐκ ἔξεστιν ἀφορίσαι, οὔτε μὴν ἀναγνώστῃ οὔτε ψάλτῃ οὔτε διακονίσσῃ, οὐ κληρικόν, οὐ λαϊκόν· ὑπηρέται γάρ εἰσιν διακόνων. Περὶ δὲ ὕδατος καὶ ἐλαίου ἐγὼ Ματθαῖος διατάσ σομαι. Eὐλογείτω ὁ ἐπίσκοπος τὸ ὕδωρ ἤτοι τὸ ἔλαιον· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ παρῇ, εὐλογείτω ὁ πρεσβύτερος, παρεστῶτος τοῦ διακόνου· ἐπὰν δὲ ὁ ἐπίσκοπος παρῇ, παριστάσθω πρεσβύτερος καὶ διάκονος. Λεγέτω δὲ οὕτως· Κύριε Σαβαώθ, ὁ Θεὸς τῶν δυνάμεων, κτίστα τῶν ὑδάτων καὶ χορηγὲ τοῦ ἐλαίου, οἰκτίρμον καὶ φιλάνθρωπε, ὁ δοὺς τὸ ὕδωρ πρὸς πόσιν καὶ κάθαρσιν, καὶ ἔλαιον τοῦ ἱλαρῦναι πρόσωπον εἰς ἀγαλλίαμα εὐφροσύνης· αὐτὸς καὶ νῦν διὰ Χριστοῦ ἁγίασον τὸ ὕδωρ τοῦτο καὶ τὸ ἔλαιον ἐπ' ὀνόματι τοῦ προσκομίσαντος ἢ τῆς προσκομισάσης, καὶ δὸς δύναμιν ὑγείας ἐμποιητικήν, νόσων ἀπελαστικήν, δαιμόνων φυγα δευτικήν, οἴκου φυλακτικὴν, πάσης ἐπιβουλῆς διωκτικὴν διὰ Χριστοῦ τῆς ἐλπίδος ἡμῶν, δι' οὗ σοὶ δόξα, τιμὴ καὶ σέβας ἐν ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας· ἀμήν. Ὁ αὐτὸς περὶ ἀπαρχῶν καὶ δεκατῶν. Ἔτι προστάσσω, πᾶσαν ἀπαρχὴν προσκομίζεσθαι τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ καὶ τοῖς πρεσβυτέροις καὶ τοῖς διακόνοις εἰς διατροφὴν αὐτῶν, πᾶσαν δὲ δεκάτην προσφέρεσθαι εἰς διατροφὴν τῶν λοιπῶν κληρικῶν καὶ τῶν παρθένων καὶ τῶν χηρῶν καὶ τῶν ἐν πενίᾳ ἐξεταζομένων· αἱ γὰρ ἀπαρχαὶ τῶν ἱερέων εἰσὶν καὶ τῶν αὐτοῖς ἐξυπηρετουμένων διακόνων. Ὁ αὐτὸς περὶ περισσευμάτων. Τὰς περισ σευούσας ἐν τοῖς μυστικοῖς εὐλογίας κατὰ γνώμην τοῦ ἐπισκόπου ἢ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων οἱ διάκονοι διανεμέτωσαν τῷ κλήρῳ, τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ μέρη τέσσαρα, πρεσβυτέρῳ μέρη τρία, διακόνῳ μέρη δύο, τοῖς δὲ ἄλλοις, ὑποδιακόνοις ἢ ἀναγνώσταις ἢ ψάλταις ἢ διακονίσσαις, μέρος ἕν. Τοῦτο γὰρ καλὸν καὶ ἀπόδεκτον ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἕκαστον