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266.1 You have rightly reproached me and fittingly for a spiritual brother taught true love by the Lord, because we do not make all things here, both small and great, known to you. For it is indeed fitting for you to be concerned about our affairs and for us to report our matters to your love. But know, our most honored and longed-for brother, that the continuity of afflictions and this great turmoil now shaking the Churches cause us to be surprised at none of the things that happen. For just as those in the smithies, having their ears battered, are practiced in the noises, so we, by the frequency of strange reports, have become accustomed now to have a heart untroubled and undaunted towards the unexpected. The things, therefore, long plotted by the Arians against the Church, though many and great and proclaimed throughout the whole world, are nonetheless bearable to us because they come from open enemies and foes of the word of truth; whom we wonder at when they do not do their usual things, not when they dare something great and audacious against piety. But the things that happen from those of one soul and one opinion grieve and disturb us. But nevertheless, these things too, because they are many and continually fall upon our ears, do not appear surprising either. Therefore, we were neither moved by the disorderly things that happened before, nor did we trouble your ears, on the one hand knowing that rumor would automatically report what had been done, and on the other hand waiting for others to be messengers of the sad news, and then not judging it reasonable for us to be vexed at such things as if we were annoyed because we were overlooked. However, to those who did these things we wrote what was proper, exhorting them, since the brethren there had suffered some dissension, not to stand aloof from love, but to await correction from those able to heal the offenses ecclesiastically. Since you have done this well and have been moved appropriately, we praised you and gave thanks to the Lord that there is some remnant of the ancient good order preserved in you and that the Church has not lost her own strength in our persecution. For the canons were not persecuted along with us. Therefore, though often troubled by the Galatians, I was never able to answer them, awaiting your judgments. And now, if the Lord grants and they are willing to bear with us, we hope to bring the people to the Church, so that we ourselves may not be reproached for having gone over to the Marcellians, but that they may become members of the body of the Church of Christ, so that the evil censure spread abroad from the heresy may be effaced by our reception of them, and that we may not be put to shame as having sided with them. 266.2 And our brother Dorotheus grieved us, as you yourself wrote, by not speaking to your decorum with all affability or gentleness. And this I attribute to the difficulty of the times. For we seem to prosper in nothing on account of our sins, if indeed the most zealous of the brethren are not found to be affable or well-suited for their ministries because they do not accomplish everything according to our mind. Who, on his return, related to us the discussions he had in the presence of the most venerable bishop Damasus with your honor, and he grieved us by saying that our most God-beloved brothers and fellow ministers, Meletius and Eusebius, were counted among the Ariomaniacs. Even if nothing else established their orthodoxy, at least the war against them from the Arians has no small proof of their rightness for those who reason soundly. And the fellowship of sufferings for Christ's sake ought to join your piety to them in love. But be persuaded of this, most truly honored one, that there is not a word of orthodoxy that has not been preached with all boldness by these men, with God as witness and us as hearers. We would not have accepted fellowship with them even for an hour, if they were stumbling concerning the

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266.1 Καλῶς μου καθήψω καὶ πρεπόντως πνευματικῷ ἀδελ φῷ ἀληθινὴν

ἀγάπην παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου δεδιδαγμένῳ, ὅτι σοι μὴ πάντα καὶ μικρὰ καὶ μείζω φανερὰ ποιοῦμεν τῶν τῇδε. Καὶ γὰρ ἐπιβάλλει καὶ σοὶ φροντίζειν τῶν καθ' ἡμᾶς καὶ ἡμῖν τῇ σῇ ἀγάπῃ ἀναφέρειν τὰ ἡμέτερα. Ἀλλὰ γίνωσκε, τιμιώτατε ἡμῖν καὶ ποθεινότατε ἀδελφέ, ὅτι τὸ συνεχὲς τῶν θλίψεων καὶ ὁ πολὺς οὗτος κλόνος ὁ νῦν σαλεύων τὰς Ἐκκλησίας πρὸς οὐδὲν ἡμᾶς ξενίζεσθαι τῶν γινομένων ποιεῖ. Ὡς γὰρ οἱ ἐν τοῖς χαλκείοις τὰς ἀκοὰς κατακτυ πούμενοι ἐν μελέτῃ εἰσὶ τῶν ψόφων, οὕτως ἡμεῖς τῇ πυκ νότητι τῶν ἀτόπων ἀγγελιῶν εἰθίσθημεν λοιπὸν ἀτάραχον ἔχειν καὶ ἀπτόητον τὴν καρδίαν πρὸς τὰ παράλογα. Τὰ μὲν οὖν παρὰ τῶν Ἀρειανῶν ἔκπαλαι κατὰ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας σκευωρούμενα, εἰ καὶ πολλὰ καὶ μεγάλα καὶ κατὰ πᾶσαν διαβεβοημένα τὴν οἰκουμένην, ἀλλ' οὖν φορητὰ ἡμῖν ἐστι διὰ τὸ παρὰ φανερῶν ἐχθρῶν καὶ πολεμίων τοῦ λόγου τῆς ἀληθείας γίνεσθαι· οὓς ὅταν μὴ ποιήσωσι τὰ συνήθη, θαυ μάζομεν, οὐχ ὅταν μέγα τι καὶ νεανικὸν κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας τολμήσωσι. Λυπεῖ δὲ ἡμᾶς καὶ ταράσσει τὰ παρὰ τῶν ὁμοψύχων καὶ ὁμοδόξων γινόμενα. Ἀλλ' ὅμως καὶ ταῦτα, διὰ τὸ πολλὰ εἶναι καὶ συνεχῶς ἐμπίπτειν ἡμῶν ταῖς ἀκοαῖς, οὐδὲ ταῦτα παράδοξα καταφαίνεται. Ὅθεν οὔτε ἐκινήθημεν ἐπὶ τοῖς πρῴην γινομένοις ἀτάκτως οὔτε τὰς σὰς διωχλή σαμεν ἀκοάς, τοῦτο μὲν εἰδότες ὅτι αὐτομάτως φήμη δια κομίσει τὰ πεπραγμένα, τοῦτο δὲ ἀναμένοντες ἑτέρους ἀγγέλους τῶν λυπηρῶν γενέσθαι, ἔπειτα οὔτε κρίναντες εὔλογον εἶναι ἡμᾶς ἀγανακτεῖν ἐπὶ τοῖς τοιούτοις ὥσπερ δυσχεραίνοντας διὰ τί παρώφθημεν. Αὐτοῖς μέντοι τοῖς ταῦτα ποιήσασιν ἐπεστείλαμεν τὰ πρέποντα παρακαλοῦντες αὐτούς, ἐπειδή τινα διχόνοιαν ἔπαθον οἱ ἐκεῖ ἀδελφοί, τῆς μὲν ἀγάπης μὴ ἀποστῆναι, τὴν δὲ διόρθωσιν ἀναμένειν παρὰ τῶν δυναμένων ἐκκλησιαστικῶς ἰατρεύειν τὰ πταίσματα. Ὅπερ ἐπειδὴ ἐποίησας καλῶς καὶ προσηκόντως κινηθείς, ἐπῃνέσαμέν σε καὶ εὐχαριστήσαμεν τῷ Κυρίῳ ὅτι ἔστι τι λείψανον τῆς παλαιᾶς εὐταξίας σωζόμενον παρὰ σοὶ καὶ ἡ Ἐκκλησία τὴν ἑαυτῆς ἰσχὺν οὐκ ἀπώλεσεν ἐν τῷ ἡμετέρῳ διωγμῷ. Οὐ γὰρ μεθ' ἡμῶν ἐδιώχθησαν καὶ οἱ κανόνες. Πολλάκις οὖν ὀχληθεὶς παρὰ τῶν Γαλατῶν οὐδέποτε ἠδυνή θην αὐτοῖς ἀποκρίνασθαι ἀναμένων τὰς ὑμετέρας ἐπικρίσεις. Καὶ νῦν, ἐὰν ὁ Κύριος δῷ καὶ θελήσωσιν ἀνασχέσθαι ἡμῶν, ἐλπίζομεν τὸν λαὸν προσάξειν τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ, ὡς μὴ αὐτοὺς ἡμᾶς ὀνειδίζεσθαι Μαρκελλιανοῖς προσκεχωρηκέναι, ἀλλ' ἐκείνους μέλη γενέσθαι τοῦ σώματος τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὥστε τὸν πονηρὸν ψόγον τὸν κατασκεδασθέντα ἐκ τῆς αἱρέσεως ἐναφανισθῆναι τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ προσλήψει καὶ μὴ ἡμᾶς καταισχυνθῆναι ὡς προσθεμένους αὐτοῖς. 266.2 Ἐλύπησε δὲ ἡμᾶς ὁ ἀδελφὸς ∆ωρόθεος, ὡς αὐτὸς ἐπέστειλας, μὴ πάντα προσηνῶς μηδὲ πράως διαλεχθεὶς τῇ κοσμιότητί σου. Καὶ τοῦτο τῇ τῶν καιρῶν λογίζομαι δυσκο λίᾳ. Ἐοίκαμεν γὰρ εἰς μηδὲν εὐοδοῦσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν, εἴπερ οἱ σπουδαιότατοι τῶν ἀδελφῶν οὐχ εὑρίσκονται προσηνεῖς οὐδὲ εὔθετοι ταῖς διακονίαις τῷ μὴ πάντα κατὰ γνώμην ἡμετέραν ἐπιτελεῖν. Ὃς ἐπανελθὼν διηγήσατο ἡμῖν τὰς ἐπὶ τοῦ σεμνοτάτου ἐπισκόπου ∆αμάσου πρὸς τὴν σὴν τιμιότητα γενομένας αὐτῷ διαλέξεις καὶ ἐλύπει ἡμᾶς λέγων τοῖς Ἀρειομανίταις συγκαταριθμεῖσθαι τοὺς θεοφιλεστάτους ἀδελφοὺς ἡμῶν τοὺς συλλειτουργοὺς Μελέτιον καὶ Εὐσέ βιον. Ὧν εἰ καὶ μηδὲν ἄλλο συνίστη τὴν ὀρθοδοξίαν, ὁ γοῦν παρὰ τῶν Ἀρειανῶν πόλεμος ἀπόδειξιν ἔχει ὀρθότητος οὐκ ὀλίγην τοῖς εὐγνωμόνως λογιζομένοις. Τὴν δὲ σὴν εὐλάβειαν συνάπτειν αὐτοῖς εἰς ἀγάπην ὀφείλει καὶ ἡ κοινωνία τῶν ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ παθημάτων. Ἐκεῖνο δὲ πέπεισο, ὡς ἀληθῶς τιμιώτατε, ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι τι ῥῆμα ὀρθοδοξίας ὃ μὴ μετὰ πάσης παρρησίας παρὰ τῶν ἀνδρῶν τούτων ἐκηρύχθη ὑπὸ Θεῷ μάρτυρι καὶ ἀκροαταῖς ἡμῖν. Οἳ οὐδ' ἂν πρὸς ὥραν αὐτῶν ἐπεδεξάμεθα τὴν συνάφειαν, εἰ σκάζοντας αὐτοὺς περὶ τὴν