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to find some consolation for the long separation from communication by letter. Praying for this first and greatest thing, we beseech you, ask from the Lord that we may be delivered from absurd and wicked men, who have gained such power over the peoples that nothing else now but the events of the Jewish captivity is represented among us. For the more the Churches sink into weakness, the more the love of power flourishes among men. And the name of the episcopate has now devolved upon wretched men, slaves of slaves, with no one choosing to introduce himself from the servants of God or the desperate, such as are those now sent by Anysius, the creature of Euippius and Ekdicius the Parnassian, whom the one who appointed him has left to the Churches as a bad provision for his own future life. These men have now driven my brother out of Nyssa and brought in a man, or rather a slave, worth a few obols, whose corruption of the faith is a match for those who appointed him. And to the village of Doara they sent a corrupt man, a servant of orphans, who had run away from his own masters, and through the flattery of a godless woman, who formerly used George for her own will, but now has this man as his successor, insulting the pitiful name of the episcopate. And who could properly lament the affairs of the Nicopolitans, with the wretched Fronto at first pretending to plead for the truth, but in the end shamefully betraying both the faith and himself and receiving a name of dishonor as the wage of his betrayal? For he received from them the dignity of the episcopate, as he thinks, but has become, by the grace of God, a common abomination to all of Armenia. Except that nothing is too daring for them, nor are they at a loss for collaborators worthy of them. But the rest of the affairs of Syria, our brother Antiochus knows and will relate better than we. 239.2 You yourself have already met with those from the West, since our brother Dorotheus related everything, to whom what sort of letters should we give again as he departs? For perhaps he will share the journey with the good Sanctissimus, who is very eager and is traveling about the East and collecting signatures and letters from each of the distinguished men. Therefore, what one must write through them, or how to agree with those who are writing, I myself am at a loss; but if you quickly find those who are coming to us, deign to let us know. For it occurs to me to say the words of Diomedes: 'You should not have beseeched him, because, he says, the man is arrogant.' For in reality, arrogant characters, when flattered, are by nature apt to become more overbearing. For if the Lord is merciful to us, what other addition do we need? But if the wrath of God persists, what help is there for us from Western arrogance? They neither know the truth nor can they bear to learn it, but being preoccupied with false suspicions, they are now doing those things that they formerly did in the case of Marcellus: contending against those who report the truth to them, but confirming the heresy by themselves. For I myself, without the official form, wished to write to their leader; nothing concerning ecclesiastical affairs, except to hint that they neither know the truth of our situation nor do they accept the way by which they might learn it, and in general about not attacking those who have been humbled by temptations, nor judging arrogance to be a mark of dignity, a sin that alone is sufficient to create enmity towards God.

240. TO THE PRESBYTERS OF NICOPOLIS

240.1 You did well both in writing to us and through such a man

in writing, who even without letters would have been sufficient to provide us with adequate consolation for our cares and to give an accurate account of the situation.

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εὑρεῖν τινα τῆς μακρᾶς ἀπολείψεως παραμυθίαν ἐκ τῆς διὰ τοῦ γράμματος ὁμιλίας. Προσευχόμενος δὲ τοῦτο πρῶτον καὶ μέγιστον, παρακαλοῦμεν, αἴτει παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου, ῥυσθῆναι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τῶν ἀτόπων καὶ πονηρῶν ἀνθρώπων, οἳ τοσοῦτον κατεκράτησαν τῶν λαῶν ὥστε οὐδὲν ἕτερον νῦν ἢ τὰ τῆς Ἰουδαϊκῆς ἁλώσεως ἡμᾶς ἐνεικονίζεσθαι πράγματα. Ὅσῳ γὰρ ἐπὶ τὸ ἀσθενέστερον ὑπορρέουσιν αἱ Ἐκκλησίαι, τοσούτῳ ἐπακμάζουσι τῶν ἀνθρώπων αἱ φιλαρχίαι. Καὶ εἰς δυστήνους ἀνθρώπους οἰκοτρίβων οἰκότριβας περιέστη νῦν τὸ τῆς ἐπισκοπῆς ὄνομα, οὐδενὸς αἱρουμένου ἀντεισά γειν ἑαυτὸν τῶν δούλων τοῦ Θεοῦ ἢ τῶν ἀπεγνωσμένων, ὁποῖοί εἰσιν οἱ νῦν ἐπιπεμφθέντες παρ' Ἀνυσίου τοῦ θρέμ ματος Εὐιππίου καὶ Ἐκδικίου τοῦ Παρνασσηνοῦ, ὃν κακὸν ἑαυτῷ τῆς μελλούσης ζωῆς ἐφόδιον ἐναφῆκε ταῖς Ἐκκλη σίαις ὁ καταστήσας. Οὗτοι νῦν ἐξήλασαν μὲν τῆς Νύσσης τὸν ἀδελφὸν τὸν ἐμὸν καὶ ἀντεισήγαγον ἄνδρα, μᾶλλον δὲ ἀνδράποδον, ὀλίγων ὀβολῶν ἄξιον, τὴν δὲ τῆς πίστεως διαφθορὰν ἐφάμιλλον τοῖς καταστήσασι. ∆οάροις δὲ τῇ κώμῃ φθορὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὀρφανῶν οἰκέτην, ἀποδράντα μὲν τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ δεσπότας, διὰ δὲ κολακείας ἀθέου γυναίου, ἣ πρότερον μὲν Γεωργίῳ ἐκέχρητο πρὸς τὸ ἴδιον θέλημα, νῦν δὲ τοῦτον ἔσχε διάδοχον ἐκείνου, ἔπεμψαν τὸ ἐλεεινὸν τῆς ἐπισκοπῆς καθυβρίζοντες ὄνομα. Τὰ δὲ Νικοπολιτῶν τίς ἂν πρὸς ἀξίαν ὀδύραιτο, τοῦ ἀθλίου Φρόντωνος πρότερον μὲν δῆθεν τὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀληθείας συνηγορίαν σχηματιζο μένου, τελευταῖον δὲ αἰσχρῶς προδόντος καὶ τὴν πίστιν καὶ ἑαυτὸν καὶ μισθὸν τῆς προδοσίας λαβόντος ὄνομα ἀτι μίας; Ἐδέξατο μὲν γὰρ παρ' αὐτῶν ἐπισκοπῆς ἀξίωμα, ὡς οἴεται, γέγονε δὲ τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριτι κοινὸν βδέλυγμα πάσης τῆς Ἀρμενίας. Πλὴν ὅτι οὔτε αὐτοῖς ἀτόλμητόν τι οὔτε ἀποροῦσι τῶν ἀξίων αὐτοῖς συνεργῶν. Τὰ δὲ λοιπὰ τῆς Συρίας ἄμεινον ἡμῶν καὶ οἶδε καὶ διηγήσεται ὁ ἀδελφὸς Ἀντίοχος. 239.2 Τοῖς δὲ ἐκ τῆς ∆ύσεως αὐτὸς προενέτυχες διηγησα μένου πάντα τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ∆ωροθέου, ᾧ ποταπὰς χρὴ δοῦναι πάλιν ἐπιστολὰς ἀπιόντι; Ἴσως γὰρ κοινωνήσει τῆς ὁδοῦ τῷ καλῷ Σαγκτησίμῳ, πολλὴν ἔχοντι σπουδὴν καὶ περιιόντι τὴν Ἀνατολὴν καὶ παρ' ἑκάστου τῶν ἐπισήμων ὑπογραφὰς καὶ ἐπιστολὰς κομιζομένῳ. Τίνα οὖν δεῖ ἐπιστεῖλαι δι' αὐ τῶν ἢ τοῖς ἐπιστέλλουσι πῶς συνθέσθαι αὐτὸς μὲν ἀπορῶ· ἐὰν δὲ εὕρῃς ἐν τάχει τοὺς πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἀφικνουμένους, καταξίωσον ἡμῖν γνωρίσαι. Ἐμοὶ μὲν γὰρ τὸ τοῦ ∆ιομή δους ἐπέρχεται λέγειν· «Μὴ ὄφελες λίσσεσθαι, διότι, φησίν, ἀγήνωρ ἐστὶν ὁ ἀνήρ.» Τῷ ὄντι γὰρ θεραπευόμενα τὰ ὑπερ ήφανα ἤθη ἑαυτῶν ὑπεροπτικώτερα γίνεσθαι πέφυκε. Καὶ γὰρ ἐὰν μὲν ἱλασθῇ ὁ Κύριος ἡμῖν, ποίας ἑτέρας προσθή κης δεόμεθα; Ἐὰν δὲ ἐπιμείνῃ ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ποία βοή θεια ἡμῖν τῆς ∆υτικῆς ὀφρύος; Οἳ τὸ ἀληθὲς οὔτε ἴσασιν οὔτε μαθεῖν ἀνέχονται, ψευδέσι δὲ ὑπονοίαις προειλημμένοι ἐκεῖνα ποιοῦσι νῦν ἃ πρότερον ἐπὶ Μαρκέλλῳ· πρὸς μὲν τοὺς τὴν ἀλήθειαν αὐτοῖς ἀπαγγέλλοντας φιλονεικήσαντες, τὴν δὲ αἵρεσιν δι' ἑαυτῶν βεβαιώσαντες. Ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ αὐτός, ἄνευ τοῦ κοινοῦ σχήματος, ἐβουλόμην αὐτῶν ἐπι στεῖλαι τῷ κορυφαίῳ· περὶ μὲν τῶν ἐκκλησιαστικῶν οὐδέν, εἰ μὴ ὅσον παραινίξασθαι ὅτι οὔτε ἴσασι τῶν παρ' ἡμῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν οὔτε τὴν ὁδὸν δι' ἧς ἂν μανθάνοιεν καταδέχονται, καθόλου δὲ περὶ τοῦ μὴ δεῖν τοῖς ὑπὸ τῶν πειρασμῶν ταπει νωθεῖσιν ἐπιτίθεσθαι μηδὲ ἀξίωμα κρίνειν ὑπερηφανίαν, ἁμάρτημα καὶ μόνον ἀρκοῦν ἔχθραν ποιῆσαι εἰς Θεόν.

240.τ ΝΙΚΟΠΟΛΙΤΑΙΣ ΠΡΕΣΒΥΤΕΡΟΙΣ

240.1 Καὶ ἐπιστείλαντες ἡμῖν καλῶς ἐποιήσατε καὶ διὰ τοιούτου ἀνδρὸς

ἐπιστείλαντες, ὃς καὶ ἄνευ γραμμάτων ἐξήρκεσεν ἂν ἡμῖν τήν τε ἐπὶ ταῖς φροντίσι παραμυθίαν ἱκανὴν παρασχεῖν καὶ διδασκαλίαν ἀκριβῆ τῶν πραγμάτων ποιήσασθαι.