Letter CCXIII.1068    Placed in 375.

Without address.

1.  May the Lord, Who has brought me prompt help in my afflictions, grant you the help of the refreshment wherewith you have refreshed me by writing to me, rewarding you for your consolation of my humble self with the real and great gladness of the Spirit.  For I was indeed downcast in soul when I saw in a great multitude the almost brutish and unreasonable insensibility of the people, and the inveterate and ineradicable unsatisfactoriness of their leaders.  But I saw your letter; I saw the treasure of love which it contained; then I knew that He Who ordains all our lives had made some sweet consolation shine on me in the bitterness of my life.  I therefore salute your holiness in return, and exhort you, as is my wont, not to cease to pray for my unhappy life, that I may never, drowned in the unrealities of this world, forget God, “who raiseth up the poor out of the dust;”1069    Ps. cxiii. 7. that I may never be lifted up with pride and fall into the condemnation of the devil;1070    cf. 1 Tim. iii. 6. that I may never be found by the Lord neglectful of my stewardship and asleep; never discharging it amiss, and wounding the conscience of my fellow-servants;1071    cf. 1 Cor. viii. 12. and, never companying with the drunken, suffer the pains threatened in God’s just judgment against wicked stewards.  I beseech you, therefore, in all your prayers to pray God that I may be watchful in all things; that I may be no shame or disgrace to the name of Christ, in the revelation of the secrets of my heart, in the great day of the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ.

2.  Know then that I am expecting to be summoned by the wickedness of the heretics to the court, in the name of peace.  Learn too that on being so informed, this bishop1072    Maran (Vit. Bas. vi) conjectures this bishop to be Meletius, and refers to the beginning of Letter ccxvi. with an expression of astonishment that Tillemont should refer this letter to the year 373. wrote to me to hasten to Mesopotamia, and, after assembling together those who in that country are of like sentiments with us, and are strengthening the state of the Church, to travel in their company to the emperor.  But perhaps my health will not be good enough to allow me to undertake a journey in the winter.  Indeed, hitherto I have not thought the matter pressing, unless you advise it.  I shall therefore await your counsel that my mind may be made up.  Lose no time then, I beg you, in making known to me, by means of one of our trusty brethren, what course seems best to the divinely guided intelligence of your excellency.

ΑΝΕΠΙΓΡΑΦΟΣ ΕΠΙ ΑΝΔΡΙ ΕΥΣΕΒΕΙ

[1] Κύριος ὁ παρασχόμενός μοι ταχεῖαν ἐπὶ ταῖς θλίψεσι τὴν ἀντίληψιν αὐτός σοι τῆς ἀναπαύσεως ἣν ἀνέπαυσας ἡμᾶς ἐν τῇ παρούσῃ διὰ τοῦ γράμματος ἐπισκέψει παράσχοιτο τὴν ἀντίληψιν, τῇ ἀληθινῇ καὶ μεγάλῃ εὐφροσύνῃ τοῦ πνεύματος τὸν ἐπὶ τῇ παρακλήσει μισθὸν τῆς ταπεινώσεως ἡμῶν ἀποπληρῶν. Ἔτυχον γάρ πως τὴν ψυχὴν κεκακωμένος, ἐν πολυανθρώπῳ συλλήψει κτηνώδη τινὰ καὶ παντελῶς ἄλογον τοῦ λαοῦ καταμαθὼν ῥᾳθυμίαν καὶ τῶν ἀγόντων αὐτοὺς παλαιὰν καὶ δυσδιόρθωτον συνήθειαν τοῦ κακοῦ. Ἐπεὶ δὲ εἶδον τὰ γράμματα καὶ τὸν ἐν αὐτοῖς τῆς ἀγάπης θησαυρόν, ἐπέγνων ὅτι ἐπέλαμψεν ἡμῖν τοῖς ἐν πικρίᾳ ζῶσι γλυκεῖαν παραμυθίαν ὁ οἰκονομῶν τὰ ἡμέτερα. Διὸ καὶ ἀντιφθέγγομαί σου τὴν ὁσιότητα παρακαλῶν τὴν συνήθη παράκλησιν, μὴ διαλιπεῖν σε εὐχόμενον ὑπὲρ τῆς ἐλεεινῆς μου ζωῆς, μήποτε τῇ φαντασίᾳ τοῦ βίου τούτου καταβαπτισθεὶς ἐπιλάθωμαι μὲν τοῦ Θεοῦ, τοῦ ἐγείροντος ἀπὸ γῆς πτωχόν, ἔπαρσιν δέ τινα παθὼν εἰς κρίμα ἐμπέσω τοῦ διαβόλου, ῥᾳθυμήσας δὲ τῆς οἰκονομίας καθεύδων ὑπὸ τοῦ Δεσπότου καταληφθῶ, ἢ καὶ διὰ τῶν βλαβερῶν ἔργων προστιθεὶς καὶ τύπτων τὴν συνείδησιν τῶν συνδούλων, ἢ καὶ μετὰ τῶν μεθυόντων γινόμενος, ἐν τῇ δικαιοκρισίᾳ τοῦ Θεοῦ πάθω τὰ τοῖς πονηροῖς τῶν οἰκονόμων ἠπειλημένα. Παρακαλῶ οὖν σε ἐπὶ πάσῃ προσευχῇ δέεσθαι τοῦ Θεοῦ νήφειν ἡμᾶς ἐν πᾶσιν, ἵνα μὴ αἰσχύνη γινώμεθα καὶ ὄνειδος τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν τῇ ἀποκαλύψει τῶν κρυπτῶν τῆς καρδίας ἡμῶν κατὰ τὴν μεγάλην ἡμέραν τῆς ἐπιφανείας τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.

[2] Γίνωσκε δέ με ἐν προσδοκίᾳ εἶναι τοῦ κατ' ἐπήρειαν τῶν αἱρετικῶν ἀνακληθήσεσθαι εἰς τὸ στρατόπεδον ἐπὶ προφάσει δὴ τῆς εἰρήνης: καὶ τοῦτο ἀκούσαντα καὶ τὸν ἐπίσκοπον τόνδε ἐπεσταλκέναι ἡμῖν σπουδάσαι περὶ τὴν Μεσοποταμίαν γενέσθαι, καὶ τῶν ἐκεῖ τοὺς ὁμοδόξους καὶ ἐπικρατύνοντας τὰ τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν συναγαγόντα μετ' αὐτῶν ὁρμῆσαι πρὸς τὸν Βασιλέα. Ἐμοὶ δὲ τάχα μὲν οὐδὲ τὸ σῶμα αὐτὸ πρὸς τὴν ἐν τῷ χειμῶνι ὁδοιπορίαν ἀρκέσει. Τέως δὲ οὐδὲ ἀναγκαῖον τὸ πρᾶγμα ἐφάνη, πλὴν εἰ μή τι αὐτὸς συμβουλεύσεις. Ἀναμενῶ γὰρ καὶ τὴν παρὰ τῆς θεοσεβείας σου συμβουλήν, ὥστε κρατυνθῆναι τὴν γνώμην. Διὸ παρακαλῶ θᾶττον ἡμῖν διά τινος τῶν σπουδαίων ἀδελφῶν τὸ παραστὰν τῇ τελειότητί σου καὶ ἐνθέῳ συνέσει φανερωθῆναι.