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the cupbearer Raoul, seeing the Metropolitan of Ephesus and being, as it were, deeply moved that he himself lived in ease, while they were suffering hardship in prison, for whom he rather than they should have fought, secretly gathers up the chain which he was wearing, moving as close as he could, and, having made the coil into a bundle, hurls it at him as if to strike, and would have missed, as he pulled the chain toward himself from his neck.

17. How John was elevated to the patriarchate for the second time. But the emperor, having from that point committed himself to the ambassadors to act truthfully in matters of faith, considered it more important than anything else to elevate the patriarch once again. 583 For the matter of the resignation was not acceptable to the bishops, even if the emperor accepted it; but in any case it did not at all allege unworthiness in sacred matters, but only a disturbance from some people and an irrational confusion, and that, since the consciences of some were wounded by these things, he did not judge it right to remain, lest, he says, for some it be against their conscience to approach him. But what of resignation would this contain, if not rather a rebuke for those who are able to prevent the evil and do not prevent it? Therefore by common deliberation they demanded from the beginning that the man accept the leadership. But he did not obey, seeking vengeance upon the slanderers. But this was one of the impossible things for the emperor, who alleged an irrational custom of the rulers, according to which it is ordained to remedy the slander and to rescue the slandered person from danger, but in no way to punish the slanderer, even if he should utter the worst calumnies; for it would not even be possible for the emperor to learn the truth, in a situation where danger would befall one who failed to prove his case. Therefore, not accomplishing these things, and being rather exhorted to forgive the offense, as an imitation of Christ, he accepts the summons and on the sixth of Poseideon, with a splendid escort of both senators and ecclesiastics, he is elevated in the same indiction. Then, having fabricated letters of apology to the pope—Urban was pope then—they secured them with many signatures of bishops who did not exist and of sees that did not exist, in one and the same hand of the scribe, as if, forsooth, from many holy and great men; whether it was with the patriarch's approval, I do not know, but at any rate very much with the emperor's, who was taking care to bring proofs for the agreement of the churches, with many of their bishops also being counterfeit; for indeed among them the number of bishops was so dense that their synod was numbered in very many hundreds. Therefore, wishing also 585 to make our numbers equal to theirs, he did these things. And with many other writings of our fathers, with those expressions declaring the Spirit to be poured forth from the Son, to be supplied, to be given, to shine forth, to be manifested and the like, they tried to resolve the word 'procession', declaring this also, that "we subject those not persuaded to keep the peace to fitting penalties." But this, it turned out, was a dream. And having been accused of falsehoods while making their defense, they were judged by those who knew not to be refuting, but confirming the accusation; and this was also going to be a stumbling block later for the wretched members of the church, being accused that the orthodox had been excommunicated; and the letters to the pope, they say, are very wise witnesses. But as far as I at least know, it was otherwise, even if it was written so to the pope out of a certain flattery; but that the acts of flattery were in vain for them as well, Meletios and Ignatios showed.

18. How Meletios and Ignatios were sent to the pope. Being openly in schism from the church, and having suffered the penalty from the emperor of being led away to the pope, as if they were to suffer such and such things, they were handed over to ambassadors and led away. But he was so far from being concerned with punishing them that he even pitied them, if they stood as an obstacle to the peace of great churches. And they were sent back to the emperor with all cheerfulness, with the pope requesting that the emperor also behave cheerfully himself towards men who seemed to be holding fast to what is safe out of piety. Therefore, the contents of those letters were likewise flattering, although the excommunication had proceeded otherwise, as many know. For since

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πιγκέρνης Ῥαούλ, ἰδὼν τὸν Ἐφέσου καὶ οἷον ὑπερπαθήσας, εἰ αὐτὸς μὲν ἐν ἀνέσει ζῇ, ἐκεῖνοι δὲ προσ ταλαιπωροῦνται τῇ φυλακῇ, ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐκεῖνον μᾶλλον ἢ αὐτοὺς ἔδει μάχεσθαι, συνάγει τε λεληθότως τὴν ἅλυσιν ἣν ἐφόρει, προάγων ὅσον ἦν ἐγγυτέρω, καί, φάκελλον ποιήσας τὸ πτύγμα, κατ' ἐκείνου ῥιπτεῖ ὡς πλήξων, κἂν ἀπετύγχανεν, εἰς ἑαυτὸν τοῦ τραχήλου τὴν ἅλυσιν ἕλκοντος.

ιζʹ. Ὅπως ἀνήχθη ὁ Ἰωάννης εἰς τὸ πατριαρχεῖον τὸ δεύτερον. Ἀλλ' ὁ βασιλεύς, τὰ ἐς πίστιν ἐντεῦθεν τοῦ ἀληθῆ πράττειν τοῖς πρέσβεσιν ἀφοσιωσάμενος, προὔργου παντὸς τίθεται τὸ καὶ αὖθις τὸν πατριάρχην ἀνα 583 γαγεῖν. Οὔτε γὰρ ἐν παραδοχῇ ἦν τὰ τῆς παραιτήσεως τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν, κἂν ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐδέχετο ταύτην· ἀλλ' οὖν οὐ προΐσχετο ὅλως αὕτη τὸ ἐπὶ τῶν ἱερῶν πραγμάτων ἀνάξιον, μόνον δὲ θόρυβον παρά των καὶ ταραχὴν ἄλογον, καὶ ὅτι, πληχθέντων ἐπὶ τούτοις τὰς συνειδήσεις τινῶν, οὐκ ἔκρινε δεῖν προσμένειν, μήπως, φησί, τισὶ παρὰ συνείδησιν ᾖ τὸ προσέρχεσθαι. Τοῦτο δὲ τί ἂν παραιτήσεως ἔχοι, εἰ μὴ καὶ μᾶλλον ἐλέγχου τοῖς τὴν κακίαν οἵοις τ' οὖσι κωλύειν καὶ μὴ κωλύουσιν; Ὅθεν καὶ κοινῇ σκέψει ἀξιοῦσιν ἀρχῆθεν τὸν ἄνδρα τὴν προστασίαν δέχεσθαι. Ὁ δ' οὐχ ὑπήκουε, ζητῶν τὴν ἐπὶ τοῖς συκοφάνταις ἐκδίκησιν. Τὸ δ' ἦν καὶ ἓν τῶν ἀδυνάτων τῷ βασιλεῖ, προϊσχο μένῳ συνήθειαν ἄλογον τῶν κρατούντων, καθ' ἣν τὴν μὲν συκοφαντίαν ἰᾶσθαι καὶ τὸν συκοφαντούμενον ῥύεσθαι τοῦ κινδύνου, συκοφάντην δὲ μηδ' ὁπωσοῦν τιμωρεῖσθαι, κἂν συκοφαντοίη τὰ ἔσχατα, τέτακται· μηδὲ γὰρ εἶναι τὸ ἀληθὲς τῷ βασιλεῖ μανθάνειν, ὅπου τῷ μὴ ἀποδείξοντι κίνδυνον ἐφῆφθαι ξυμβαίνοι. Ταῦτ' ἄρα καὶ μὴ ἀνύων, καὶ μᾶλλον ἀφιέναι τὸ πταῖσμα παρακαλούμενος, μίμησιν φέροντα τοῦ Χριστοῦ, τὴν πρόκλησιν δέχεται καὶ ἕκτῃ ποσειδεῶνος, ὑπὸ λαμπρᾷ τῇ δορυφορίᾳ συγκλητικῶν τε ἅμα καὶ ἐκκλησιαστικῶν, τῆς αὐτῆς ἰνδικτιῶνος ἀνάγεται. Τότε συμπλασάμενοι γράμματα τῆς πρὸς τὸν πάπαν ἀπολογίαςΟὐρβα νὸς δὲ τότ' ἦν, πολλαῖς μὲν ὑπογραφαῖς μήτ' ὄντων ἐπισκόπων μήτ' ἐπισκοπῶν οὐσῶν, μιᾷ καὶ τῇ αὐτῇ χειρὶ τοῦ γραφέως, ὡς δῆθεν πολλῶν ἱερῶν ἀνδρῶν καὶ μεγάλων, κατησφαλίζοντο· εἰ μὲν καὶ πατριάρχῃ δοκοῦν, οὐκ οἶδα, τέως δέ γε καὶ λίαν τῷ βασιλεῖ, φέρειν πίστεις προνοουμένῳ ἐπὶ τῇ τῶν ἐκκλησιῶν συμβάσει, παραδοκούντων πολλῶν καὶ κατ' ἐκείνους ἐπισκόπων· καὶ γὰρ σφίσιν οὕτω τὰ τῶν ἐπισκόπων πεπύκνωτο ὡς καὶ εἰς ἑκατοστύας ἀριθμεῖσθαι πλείστας τὴν παρ' ἐκείνοις σύνοδον. Ταῦτ' ἄρα καὶ 585 τὰ ἡμέτερα ἐξισάζειν θέλων ἐκείνοις, ταῦτ' ἔπραττε. Πολλαῖς δ' ἑτέραις γραφαῖς τῶν ἡμετέρων πατέρων, ταῖς ἐκ τοῦ Υἱοῦ δηλαδὴ προχεῖσθαι, χορηγεῖσθαι, δίδοσθαι, ἐκλάμπειν, ἐκφαίνεσθαι καὶ ταῖς ὁμοίαις, τὴν τοῦ ἐκπορεύεσθαι λέξιν ἐπείλυον, δηλοῦντες καὶ τοῦτο, ὡς καὶ τοὺς μὴ πειθομέ νους εἰρηνεύειν ταῖς ἀξίαις δίκαις καθυποβάλλομεν. Τὸ δ' ἄρ' ἦν ὄνειρος. Καὶ ἐπὶ ψεύδεσιν ἐγκληθέντες ἀπολογούμενοι, οὐ διαλύειν, ἀλλὰ συνιστᾶν τὸ ἔγκλημα τοῖς εἰδόσι διεγινώσκοντο· ἔμελλε δὲ καὶ τοῦτο τοῖς ταλαιπώροις τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐσύστερον πρόσκομμ' εἶναι, ἐγκαλουμένοις ὡς ἐξεκηρύχθησαν οἱ ὀρθόδοξοι· καὶ αἱ πρὸς τὸν πάπαν γραφαί, φασί, μάρτυροι σοφώτατοι. Τὸ δ' ὡς ἐμὲ γοῦν εἰδέναι ἄλλως εἶχεν, εἰ καὶ πρὸς τὸν πάπαν κατά τινα θωπείαν οὕτως ἐγράφετο· ὅτι δὲ κἀκείνοις μάταια ἦσαν τὰ τῆς θωπείας, Μελέτιός τε καὶ Ἰγνάτιος ἔδειξαν.

ιηʹ. Ὅπως Μελέτιος καὶ Ἰγνάτιος εἰς τὸν πάπαν ἀπεστάλησαν. Σχιζόμενοι μὲν τῆς ἐκκλησίας περιφανῶς, δίκην δὲ πρὸς βασιλέως ὑποσχόντες ἀπαχθῆναι πρὸς πάπαν, ὡς τὰ καὶ τὰ πεισόμενοι, καὶ παρεδίδοντο πρέσβεσι καὶ ἀπήγοντο. Τῷ δὲ τοσοῦτον κολάζειν ἐμέλησεν ὥστε καὶ ἐποικτίζεσθαι, εἰ ἐκκλησιῶν μεγάλων εἰρήνῃ ἐμποδὼν ἵστανται. Καὶ μεθ' ἱλαρότητος πάσης τῷ βασιλεῖ ἀντεπέμποντο, ἀξιοῦντος τοῦ πάπα καὶ βασιλέα ἀνθρώποις δοκοῦσι τοῦ ἀσφαλοῦς ἀντέχεσθαι κατ' εὐλάβειαν ἱλαρῶς καὶ αὐτὸν προσφέρεσθαι. Ἦν οὖν ὁμοίως καὶ τὰ τῶν γραμμάτων ἐκείνων θωπευτικά, ἄλλως προ βάσης, ὡς πολλοὺς εἰδέναι, τῆς ἐκκηρύξεως. Ἐπειδὴ γάρ