190

"7they remain in the prime of their endurance and yield to no toil of hardship. And conscience is truly a sure thing in all 8.26.4 "7that unjustly befalls one. Which things, if one enduring them does not conquer, he produces a proof "7of a poor judgment. For he ought to endure all things who trusts "7first in God, and then also in his own conscience; especially since the good and noble man can be trained "7for endurance, but not be conquered, since 8.26.5 "7the divine scriptures guard his mind. The divine readings which we hand down to the peoples abound "7in examples, which "7have confirmed that almost all the saints have been variously and continuously exhausted "7and have been tested as if in a certain trial, and so have come to the 8.26.6 "7crown of endurance. Let your own conscience comfort your love, "7most honored brother, which in afflictions has the "7comfort of virtue. For while the Lord Christ watches over it, the conscience, brought to anchor in the "7harbor of peace, will stand firm.» 8.26.7 «"7Innocent the bishop to the presbyters and deacons and to all the "7clergy and the people of the church of Constantinople which is under "7Bishop John, to the beloved brethren, greetings. 8.26.8 "7From the letters of your love, which you sent through Germanus the "7presbyter and Cassian the deacon, I have learned with anxious care the scene of the "7evils which you have set before my eyes; "7and by the often 8.26. "7repeated reading I have perceived with how many hardships and labors the faith is weary. A matter which only the consolation of "7endurance heals. For our God will quickly give an end to so great "7afflictions, and it will be profitable to have endured these things. But indeed, praising your understanding, we have recognized this necessary "7consolation itself, lying at the beginning of the letter of your love, "7containing many 8.26.10 "7testimonies to endurance. For you have anticipated in your letters our consolation, which we ought "7to have sent you. For our Lord is accustomed to grant this endurance to the "7weary, so that even when they are in "7afflictions, the servants of Christ may comfort themselves, "7considering within themselves that the very things they themselves 8.26.11 "7are suffering have also happened previously to the saints. And we too from your letters themselves are able "7to bring consolation to ourselves. For we are not "7strangers to suffering with you, since we too are punished in you. For who would be able "7to bear the sins committed by those, whom it behooved most of all to be zealous promoters "7of the calm of peace and of concord itself? But now, in a contrary "7manner, innocent priests are cast out from the presidency of their own churches. 8.26.12 "7which our brother and fellow minister John, your "7bishop, has first suffered unjustly, having obtained no hearing. No "7accusation is brought, no one is heard. And what is the forbidden contrivance? So that "7no pretext of a trial may arise or be sought, others are substituted "7in the places of living priests, as if those who proceed from such a transgression could have 8.26.13 "7any right standing or be judged to have done anything rightly. For never have we known "7such things to have been dared by our fathers, "7but rather it was forbidden, in that authority has been given to no one to ordain another into the place of a living person; "7for an invalid ordination cannot take away the honor "7of the priest, since indeed that man who is unjustly "7substituted cannot even be a bishop. 8.26.14 "7And concerning the observance of the canons, we write that it is necessary to follow those "7which were defined at Nicaea, which alone the catholic church ought to follow 8.26.15 "7and recognize. But if any others "7are brought forward by some, which disagree with the canons of Nicaea "7and are proved to have been composed by heretics,

190

"7ἐν τῇ ἀκμῇ τῆς ὑπομονῆς παραμένουσι καὶ οὐδενὶ πόνῳ κακοπαθείας ὑπο"7πίπτουσι. καὶ ἔστιν ὡς ἀληθῶς βέβαιον πρᾶγμα τὸ συνειδὸς εἰς πάντα 8.26.4 "7τὰ ἀδίκως συμπίπτοντα. ἅπερ εἰ μὴ νικήσειέν τις ὑπομένων, τεκμή"7ριον φαύλης ὑπολήψεως ἐκφέρει. πάντα γὰρ ὑπομένειν ὀφείλει ὁ τῷ θεῷ "7πρῶτον, εἶτα καὶ τῷ ἑαυτοῦ συνειδότι πεποιθώς· ὁπότε μάλιστα γυμνά"7ζεσθαι εἰς ὑπομονὴν ὁ καλὸς καὶ ἀγαθὸς δύναται, νικᾶσθαι δὲ οὔ, ἐπει8.26.5 "7δήπερ αὐτοῦ τὴν διάνοιαν αἱ θεῖαι γραφαὶ φυλάττουσι. περιττεύουσιν "7ὑποδείγμασιν αἱ θεῖαι ἀναγνώσεις ἃς τοῖς λαοῖς παραδιδόαμεν, αἵτινες "7πάντας σχεδὸν τοὺς ἁγίους καταπεπονῆσθαι διαφόρως καὶ συνεχῶς ἐπι"7στώσαντο καὶ δοκιμάζεσθαι καθάπερ ἔν τινι διαγνώσει, οὕτω τε εἰς τὸν 8.26.6 "7στέφανον τῆς ὑπομονῆς ἐληλυθέναι. παραμυθείτω τὴν ἀγάπην σου "7αὐτὸ τὸ συνειδός σου, ἀδελφὲ τιμιώτατε, ὅπερ ἐν ταῖς θλίψεσιν ἔχει τὴν "7παραμυθίαν τῆς ἀρετῆς. ἐποπτεύοντος γὰρ τοῦ δεσπότου Χριστοῦ ἐν τῷ "7λιμένι τῆς εἰρήνης καθορμισθεῖσα ἡ συνείδησις στήσεται.» 8.26.7 «᾿Ιννοκέντιος ἐπίσκοπος πρεσβυτέροις καὶ διακόνοις καὶ παντὶ τῷ "7κλήρῳ καὶ τῷ λαῷ τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως ἐκκλησίας τῆς ὑπὸ τὸν "7ἐπίσκοπον ᾿Ιωάννην, ἀγαπητοῖς ἀδελφοῖς χαίρειν. 8.26.8 "7᾿Εκ τῶν γραμμάτων τῆς ὑμετέρας ἀγάπης, ἅτινα διὰ Γερμανοῦ τοῦ "7πρεσβυτέρου καὶ Κασσιανοῦ τοῦ διακόνου ἀπεστάλκατε, τὴν σκηνὴν τῶν "7κακῶν, ἣν πρὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ἐθήκατε, ἐμμερίμνῳ φροντίδι κατέμαθον· "7ὅσαις τε ἡ πίστις κάμνει ταλαιπωρίαις τε καὶ πόνοις, ἐπαναληφθείσῃ πολ8.26. "7λάκις τῇ ἀναγνώσει κατεῖδον. ὅπερ πρᾶγμα μόνη ἡ παράκλησις τῆς "7ὑπομονῆς ἰᾶται. δώσει γὰρ ἐν τάχει ὁ ἡμέτερος θεὸς ταῖς τοσαύταις θλί"7ψεσι τέλος, καὶ ταῦτα συνοίσει ὑπενηνοχέναι. ἀλλὰ γὰρ αὐτὴν τὴν ἀναγ"7καίαν παράκλησιν ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς ἐπιστολῆς τῆς ὑμετέρας ἀγάπης κειμένην "7ἐγκωμιάζοντες ὑμῶν τὴν σύνεσιν ἐπεγνώκαμεν, πολλὰς πρὸς τὸ ὑπομένειν 8.26.10 "7μαρτυρίας περιέχουσαν. τὴν γὰρ ἡμετέραν παράκλησιν, ἣν ὠφείλομεν "7ὑμῖν ἐπιστεῖλαι, τοῖς ὑμετέροις γράμμασι προεφθάσατε. ταύτην γὰρ τοῖς "7κάμνουσιν ὁ ἡμέτερος δεσπότης ὑπομονὴν παρέχειν εἴωθεν, ἵνα καὶ ἐν "7ταῖς θλίψεσι τυγχάνοντες ἑαυτοὺς οἱ τοῦ Χριστοῦ δοῦλοι παραμυθῶνται, "7ἀναλογιζόμενοι ἐν αὑτοῖς καὶ πρότερον γεγενῆσθαι τοῖς ἁγίοις ἅπερ αὐτοὶ 8.26.11 "7πάσχουσι. καὶ ἡμεῖς δὲ ἐξ αὐτῶν τῶν ὑμετέρων γραμμάτων δυνά"7μεθα ἡμῖν προσενέγκαι παράκλησιν. οὐ γὰρ τοῦ συναλγεῖν ὑμῖν ἐσμεν "7ἀλλότριοι, ἐπειδήπερ καὶ ἡμεῖς κολαζόμεθα ἐν ὑμῖν. τίς γὰρ ἐνέγκαι δυνή"7σηται τὰ ἐξαμαρτανόμενα ὑπ' ἐκείνων, οὕστινας ἐχρῆν μάλιστα τοῦ γαλη"7νοῦ τῆς εἰρήνης καὶ αὐτῆς σπουδαστὰς εἶναι τῆς ὁμονοίας; νῦν δὲ ἐνηλλαγ"7μένῳ τρόπῳ ἀπὸ τῆς προεδρίας τῶν ἰδίων ἐκκλησιῶν ἐξωθοῦνται ἀθῷοι 8.26.12 "7ἱερεῖς. ὃ δὴ καὶ πρῶτος ὁ ἀδελφὸς ἡμῶν καὶ συλλειτουργὸς ᾿Ιωάννης ὁ "7ὑμέτερος ἐπίσκοπος ἀδίκως πέπονθε μηδεμιᾶς τυχὼν ἀκροάσεως. οὐδὲν "7ἔγκλημα ἐπιφέρεται, οὐδεὶς ἀκούεται. καὶ τίς ἡ ἀπηγορευμένη ἐπίνοια; ἵνα "7μὴ πρόφασις κρίσεως γένηται ἢ ζητηθῇ, εἰς τόπους ζώντων ἱερέων ἄλλοι "7ὑποκαθίστανται, ὡς δυναμένων τῶν ἐκ τοῦ τοιούτου πλημμελήματος ὁρμω8.26.13 "7μένων ὀρθῶς τι ἔχειν ἢ πεπρᾶχθαι ὑπό τινος κριθῆναι. οὐδὲ γὰρ πώ"7ποτε παρὰ τῶν πατέρων τῶν ἡμετέρων τοιαῦτα τετολμῆσθαι ἐγνώκαμεν, "7ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον κεκωλῦσθαι τῷ μηδενὶ εἰς τόπον ζῶντος χειροτονεῖν ἄλλον "7δεδόσθαι ἐξουσίαν· οὐ γὰρ χειροτονία ἀδόκιμος τὴν τιμὴν δύναται ἀφελέσθαι "7τοῦ ἱερέως, ἐπειδήπερ οὐδὲ ἐπίσκοπος δύναται εἶναι ἐκεῖνος, ὃς ἀδίκως "7ὑποκαθίσταται. 8.26.14 "7῞Οτι καὶ περὶ τῆς τῶν κανόνων παραφυλακῆς τούτοις δεῖν ἕπεσθαι "7γράφομεν, οἵτινες ἐν Νικαίᾳ εἰσὶν ὡρισμένοι, οἷς μόνοις ὀφείλει ἐξακολου8.26.15 "7θεῖν ἡ καθολικὴ ἐκκλησία καὶ τούτους γνωρίζειν. εἰ δὲ ἕτεροί τινες "7ὑπό τινων προφέρονται, οἵτινες ἀπὸ τῶν κανόνων τῶν ἐν Νικαίᾳ διαφω"7νοῦσιν καὶ ὑπὸ αἱρετικῶν ἐλέγχονται συντετάχθαι,