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we have found faith. But, if it seems good, let us leave the past behind, and give a peaceful beginning to what follows. For we all need one another according to the fellowship of the members, and especially now when the Churches of the East are looking to you, and they will take your concord as a starting-point for support and stability; but if they perceive you to be in any suspicion toward one another, they will be weakened and will drop their hands so as not to resist the enemies of the faith.

267. TO BARSES, BISHOP OF EDESSA, WHILE IN EXILE

267.1 I, on account of the disposition which I have toward your piety

would have desired to come myself and in person to embrace your true love and to glorify the Lord who has been magnified in you and who has made your precious old age renowned to all those in the world who fear Him. But since a severe weakness of the body also afflicts me and the care of the Churches, which is unspeakable, lies upon me, and I am not master of myself to travel where I wish and to meet with whom I desire, through this letter I satisfy the longing which I have for the enjoyment of the good things in you, and I beseech your unsurpassed reverence to pray for me and for the Church, that the Lord may grant us to pass without stumbling through the remaining days or hours of our sojourning; and may He grant us to see the peace of His Churches and to hear concerning your other fellow-ministers and fellow-athletes the things we pray for, and concerning yourself the things that the peoples under you seek night and day from the Lord of righteousness. Know that although we have not written many times, nor as often as was our duty, we have nevertheless written to your piety. And perhaps the brothers entrusted with the service of the letters were not able to deliver our greetings. But now, since we have chanced upon some of our own people travelling to your Honour, we have eagerly entrusted the letter to them, and we have sent some things which deign to receive without pride from our lowliness and to bless us in imitation of the patriarch Isaac. And if in anything, being busy and having our mind overwhelmed by a multitude of cares, we have overlooked what is fitting, do not hold it against us nor be grieved, but imitate your own perfection in all things, so that we too may enjoy your virtue, as do all the rest. May you be strong, cheerful in the Lord, praying for me, and be granted to me and to the Church of God.

268. TO EUSEBIUS, WHILE IN EXILE

268.1 The Lord has shown also in our case that He will not abandon His holy ones

by having shielded the life of your holiness with His great and mighty hand. For we consider this to be almost like the holy man remaining unharmed in the belly of the whale and those who fear the Lord living without harm in the blazing fire, seeing that He kept your piety safe, when, as I hear, war was poured out upon you from all sides. And may the mighty God preserve for the future for us, if we are still alive, that much-prayed-for sight, or at least for the others who await your return as they would their own salvation. For I am persuaded that the benevolent One, paying heed to the tears of the Churches and the groans with which all groan for you, will preserve you in this life, until He gives His grace to those who ask it of Him night and day. Now, as to the things that happened among you up to the arrival of our beloved brother Libanius the fellow-deacon, we were sufficiently informed by him during his visit; but as for the things from

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πίστιν εὕρομεν. Ἀλλά, εἰ δοκεῖ, τὰ παρελθόντα ἐάσωμεν, τοῖς δὲ ἐφεξῆς ἀρχήν τινα δῶμεν εἰρηνικήν. Χρῄζομεν γὰρ ἀλλήλων πάντες κατὰ τὴν τῶν μελῶν κοινω νίαν, καὶ μάλιστα νῦν ὅτε αἱ τῆς Ἀνατολῆς Ἐκκλησίαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἀποβλέπουσι, καὶ τὴν μὲν ὑμετέραν ὁμόνοιαν ἀφορμὴν εἰς στηριγμὸν καὶ βεβαιότητα λήψονται· ἐὰν δὲ αἴσθωνται ὑμᾶς ἐν ὑποψίᾳ τινὶ πρὸς ἀλλήλους εἶναι, ἐκλυ θήσονται καὶ παρήσουσιν ἑαυτῶν τὰς χεῖρας πρὸς τὸ μὴ ἀντερεῖν τοῖς πολεμίοις τῆς πίστεως.

267.τ ΒΑΡΣΗ ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΩ Ε∆ΕΣΣΗΣ ΕΝ ΕΞΟΡΙΑ ΟΝΤΙ

267.1 Ἐγὼ τῆς διαθέσεως μὲν ἕνεκεν ἧς ἔχω περὶ τὴν σὴν θεοσέ βειαν

ἐπεθύμουν αὐτὸς παραγενέσθαι καὶ δι' ἐμαυτοῦ περι πτύξασθαί σου τὴν ἀληθινὴν ἀγάπην καὶ δοξάσαι τὸν Κύριον τὸν ἐν σοὶ μεγαλυνθέντα καὶ τὸ τίμιόν σου γῆρας περιφανὲς καταστήσαντα πᾶσι τοῖς ἐν τῇ οἰκουμένῃ φοβουμένοις αὐτόν. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ ἀσθένεια τοῦ σώματος βαρεῖα κατα πονεῖ με καὶ φροντὶς Ἐκκλησιῶν ἐπίκειταί μοι ἀμύθητος καὶ οὔκ εἰμι ἐμαυτοῦ κύριος πρὸς τὸ ἀποδημεῖν ὅπου βούλομαι καὶ συντυγχάνειν οἷς ἐπιθυμῶ, διὰ τοῦ γράμματος ἀναπαύω τὸν πόθον ὃν ἔχω ἐπὶ τῇ ἀπολαύσει τῶν ἐν σοὶ καλῶν καὶ παρακαλῶ τὴν ἀνυπέρβλητόν σου εὐλάβειαν εὔχεσθαι ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ καὶ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας, ἵνα ὁ Κύριος δῷ ἡμῖν ἀπροσκόπως παρελθεῖν τὰς λειπομένας ἡμέρας ἢ ὥρας τῆς παρεπιδη μίας ἡμῶν· παράσχοι δὲ ἡμῖν καὶ ἰδεῖν τὴν εἰρήνην τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀκοῦσαι περί τε τῶν λοιπῶν συλλει τουργῶν σου καὶ τῶν συναθλητῶν ἃ εὐχόμεθα καὶ περὶ σοῦ αὐτοῦ ἃ νυκτὸς καὶ ἡμέρας οἱ ὑπὸ σὲ λαοὶ ζητοῦσι παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου τῆς δικαιοσύνης. Γίνωσκε δὲ ὅτι πολλάκις μὲν οὐκ ἐπεστείλαμεν οὐδὲ ὁσάκις ὀφειλόμενον ἦν, ἐπεστείλαμεν δὲ ὅμως τῇ θεοσεβείᾳ σου. Καὶ τάχα οὐκ ἠδυνήθησαν δια σῶσαι τὰς προσηγορίας ἡμῶν οἱ πιστευθέντες τὴν διακονίαν τῶν γραμμάτων ἀδελφοί. Ἀλλὰ νῦν, ἐπειδὴ ἐπετύχομεν ἡμετέρων τῶν ὁδοιπορούντων πρὸς τὴν σὴν τιμιότητα, καὶ τὰ γράμματα αὐτοῖς ἐνεχειρίσαμεν προθύμως καὶ ἐστείλα μέν τινα ἃ καταξίωσον ὑποδέξασθαι παρὰ τῆς ἡμετέρας ταπεινώσεως ἀνυπερηφάνως καὶ εὐλογῆσαι ἡμᾶς κατὰ μίμησιν τοῦ πατριάρχου Ἰσαάκ. Εἰ δέ τι, καὶ ὡς ἀσχολού μενοι καὶ ὑπὸ πλήθους φροντίδων τὸν νοῦν βεβαπτισμένον ἔχοντες, παρείδομεν τῶν πρεπόντων, μὴ λογίσῃ ἡμῖν μηδὲ λυπηθῇς, ἀλλὰ μίμησαι τὴν σεαυτοῦ ἐν πᾶσι τελειότητα, ἵνα καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀπολαύσωμέν σου τῆς ἀρετῆς ὡς καὶ οἱ λοι ποὶ πάντες. Ἐρρωμένος, εὔθυμος ἐν Κυρίῳ, ὑπερευχόμενός μου, χαρισθείης μοι καὶ τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ Ἐκκλησίᾳ.

268.τ ΕΥΣΕΒΙΩ ΕΝ ΕΞΟΡΙΑ ΟΝΤΙ

268.1 Ἔδειξε καὶ ἐφ' ἡμῶν ὁ Κύριος ὅτι οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψει τοὺς ὁσίους αὐτοῦ

τῇ μεγάλῃ καὶ κραταιᾷ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ περισκε πάσας τὴν ζωὴν τῆς ὁσιότητός σου. Σχεδὸν γὰρ παραπλή σιον τοῦτο τιθέμεθα τὸ ἐν κοιλίᾳ κήτους ἀπαθῆ διαμεῖναι τὸν ἅγιον καὶ ἐν πυρὶ λάβρῳ ἀβλαβῶς διαιτᾶσθαι τοὺς φοβουμένους τὸν Κύριον, ὅπου γε καὶ τὴν σὴν θεοσέβειαν πανταχόθεν ὑμῖν, ὡς ἀκούω, τοῦ πολέμου περιχυθέντος σῶον διεφύλαξε. Καὶ φυλάξειέ γε πρὸς τὸ ἑξῆς ὁ δυνατὸς Θεὸς ἡμῖν, ἐὰν ἔτι ζῶμεν, τὸ πολύευκτον θέαμα, ἢ τοῖς γοῦν ἄλλοις οἳ τὴν σὴν ἐπάνοδον οὕτως ἀναμένουσιν ὡς οἰκείαν ἑαυτῶν σωτηρίαν. Πέπεισμαι γὰρ ὅτι τοῖς δάκρυσι τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν καὶ τοῖς στεναγμοῖς οἷς ἐπὶ σοὶ πάντες στενάζουσι προσσχὼν ὁ φιλάνθρωπος διαφυλάξει σε τῷ βίῳ, ἕως ἂν δῷ τὴν χάριν τοῖς νυκτὸς καὶ ἡμέρας δεομένοις αὐτοῦ. Τὰ μὲν οὖν μέχρι τῆς ἐπιδημίας τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἡμῶν Λιβανίου τοῦ συνδιακόνου πεπραγμένα καθ' ὑμᾶς δι' αὐτοῦ κατὰ τὴν πάροδον ἱκανῶς ἐδιδάχθημεν, τὰ δὲ ἀπ'