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the stain of his soul at the very departure from life with the bath of regeneration. Since you were his sponsor and helper in these things, have the greatest consolation, and turn your soul from present things to care for the things to come, so that you may be counted worthy through good works to attain the same place of rest as he. Spare your aged mother, spare your young daughter, for whom you alone are left for consolation. Be an example of courage to other women and so measure your suffering as neither to cast it out of your heart nor to be swallowed up by grief. Above all, look to the great reward for endurance, which has been promised by our Lord Jesus Christ in the recompense for the lives we have lived.

270. UNTITLED, CONCERNING ABDUCTION 270.1 I am very grieved that I find you neither indignant at forbidden things nor able to reason that this abduction which is taking place and this outrage against the free is a transgression and a tyranny against human life and existence itself. For I know that if you all had such an opinion, nothing would have long ago prevented this evil custom from being driven out of our country. Therefore, take up now the zeal of a Christian and be moved in a manner worthy of the injustice. And the girl, wherever you may find her, take her with all strength and restore her to her parents; and as for that man himself, excommunicate him from prayers and make him an outcast; and those who went with him, according to the proclamation already made by us, excommunicate them from prayers with their entire households for a three-year period. And the village that received the abducted girl and kept her, or rather, defended her, put it also, with all its people, outside the prayers, so that all may learn, considering the abductor a common enemy, like a serpent or some other wild beast, thus to drive him away and to stand up for the wronged.

271. TO EUSEBIUS, A FRIEND, A LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION FOR CYRIACUS THE PRESBYTER

271.1 Immediately upon your departure, I arrived in the city, how discouraged I was to have missed you; what need is there to say this to a man who does not need words, but knows by experience, having suffered the same things? For how much it was worth to me to see the all-excellent Eusebius and to embrace him and to return in memory to our youth and be reminded of those days in which we had one room and one hearth and the same tutor, and relaxation and study and luxury and want and all things were shared equally between us. How highly do you think I would have valued retrieving all these things in memory through meeting you, and, having scraped off this heavy old age, to seem to have become young again from an old man? But the enjoyment of those things escaped me, yet I was not deprived of seeing your eloquence through a letter and of consoling myself in the present way, by meeting the most reverend Cyriacus, the fellow presbyter; whom I am ashamed to recommend to you and to make him your own through me, lest I seem to be doing something superfluous by introducing to you what is your own and exceptional. But, since it is necessary for me both to be a witness to the truth and to bestow on those spiritually united the greatest of what belongs to me, I consider the man's irreproachable character with respect to the priesthood to be evident to you also, and I too confirm it, knowing of no accusation against him from those who lay hands on everyone, those who do not fear the Lord. And yet, if anything had been done by them, the man would not thus have been unworthy. For the enemies of the Lord rather confirm the ranks of those whom they attack than take away any of the grace that belongs to them from the Spirit. But nevertheless, as I said, not even

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κηλῖδα τῆς ψυχῆς πρὸς αὐταῖς ταῖς ἐξόδοις τοῦ βίου τῷ λουτρῷ τῆς παλιγγενεσίας ἀποκαθήρασθαι. Ὧν αὐτὴ πρόξενος αὐτῷ καὶ συνεργὸς γενομένη μεγίστην ἔχε τὴν παραμυθίαν, καὶ μετάθες τὴν ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τῶν παρόντων ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν μελλόν των μέριμναν, ὥστε καταξιωθῆναι δι' ἔργων ἀγαθῶν τὸν ὅμοιον αὐτῷ τῆς ἀναπαύσεως τόπον καταλαβεῖν. Φείδου μητρὸς γηραιᾶς, φείδου θυγατρὸς νεαρᾶς, αἷς μόνη πρὸς παραμυθίαν λέλειψαι. Γενοῦ ὑπόδειγμα ἀνδρείας ταῖς λοι παῖς γυναιξὶ καὶ οὕτω τὸ πάθος μέτρησον ὡς μήτε ἐκβαλεῖν τῆς καρδίας μήτε καταποθῆναι ὑπὸ τῆς λύπης. Ἐπὶ πᾶσι πρὸς τὸν μέγαν τῆς ὑπομονῆς μισθὸν ἀπόβλεψον, τὸν παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐν τῇ ἀνταποδόσει τῶν βεβιωμένων ἡμῖν ἐπηγγελμένον.

270.τ ΑΝΕΠΙΓΡΑΦΟΣ ΥΠΕΡ ΑΡΠΑΓΗΣ 270.1 Πάνυ λυποῦμαι ὅτι οὐχ εὑρίσκω ὑμᾶς ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀπηγορευ μένοις οὔτε

ἀγανακτοῦντας οὔτε δυναμένους λογίζεσθαι ὅτι εἰς αὐτὸν τὸν βίον καὶ τὴν ζωὴν τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην παρα νομία ἐστὶ καὶ τυραννὶς ἡ γινομένη αὕτη ἁρπαγὴ καὶ ὕβρις κατὰ τῶν ἐλευθέρων. Οἶδα γὰρ ὅτι, εἰ τοιαύτην εἴχετε γνώμην πάντες, οὐδὲν ἐκώλυε πάλαι τοῦ κακοῦ τὴν συνήθειαν τοῦδε ἐξελαθῆναι τῆς πατρίδος ἡμῶν. Ἀνάλαβε τοίνυν ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος ζῆλον χριστιανοῦ καὶ κινήθητι ἀξίως τοῦ ἀδικήματος. Καὶ τὴν μὲν παῖδα, ὅπουπερ ἂν εὕρῃς, ἀφελό μενος πάσῃ εὐτονίᾳ ἀποκατάστησον τοῖς γονεῦσι· καὶ αὐτὸν δὲ ἐκεῖνον ἐξόρισον τῶν εὐχῶν καὶ ἐκκήρυκτον ποίησον· καὶ τοὺς συνεπελθόντας αὐτῷ κατὰ τὸ ἤδη προλαβὸν παρ' ἡμῶν κήρυγμα τριετίαν πανοικὶ τῶν εὐχῶν ἐξόρισον. Καὶ τὴν κώμην τὴν ὑποδεξαμένην τὴν ἁρπαγεῖσαν καὶ φυλάξασαν ἤτοι ὑπερμαχήσασαν, καὶ αὐτὴν ἔξω τῶν εὐχῶν πανδημεὶ ποίησον, ἵνα μάθωσι πάντες ὡς ὄφιν, ὡς ἄλλο τι θηρίον, κοινὸν ἐχθρὸν ἡγούμενοι τὸν ἁρπαγέα, οὕτως ἀποδιώκειν αὐτὸν καὶ προΐστασθαι τῶν ἀδικουμένων.

271.τ ΕΥΣΕΒΙΩ ΕΤΑΙΡΩ ΣΥΣΤΑΤΙΚΗ ΕΠΙ ΚΥΡΙΑΚΩ ΠΡΕΣΒΥΤΕΡΩ

271.1 Εὐθὺς κατὰ πόδας τῆς σῆς ἀναχωρήσεως ἐπιστὰς τῇ πόλει ὅσον

ἠθύμησα διαμαρτών σου· τί δεῖ καὶ λέγειν πρὸς ἄνδρα οὐ λόγου δεόμενον, ἀλλὰ πείρᾳ εἰδότα τῷ τὰ ὅμοια πεπονθέναι; Ὅσου γὰρ ἦν ἄξιον ἐμοὶ ἰδεῖν τὸν πάντα ἄρισ τον Εὐσέβιον καὶ περιπτύξασθαι καὶ πρὸς τὴν νεότητα πάλιν τῇ μνήμῃ ἐπανελθεῖν καὶ ὑπομνησθῆναι ἡμερῶν ἐκεί νων ἐν αἷς καὶ δωμάτιον ἡμῖν ἓν καὶ ἑστία μία καὶ παιδα γωγὸς ὁ αὐτὸς καὶ ἄνεσις καὶ σπουδὴ καὶ τρυφὴ καὶ ἔνδεια καὶ πάντα ἡμῖν ἐξ ἴσου πρὸς ἀλλήλους ὑπῆρχε. Πόσου οἴει τίθεσθαί με ἄξιον πάντα ταῦτα διὰ τῆς σῆς συντυχίας ἀναλαβεῖν τῇ μνήμῃ καὶ τὸ βαρὺ τοῦτο γῆρας ἀποξυσάμενον νέον δοκεῖν πάλιν ἐκ γέροντος γεγενῆσθαι; Ἀλλ' ἐκείνων μέν με διέφυγεν ἡ ἀπόλαυσις, τὸ δὲ διὰ γράμ ματος ἰδεῖν σου τὴν λογιότητα καὶ τὸν ἐνόντα τρόπον ἑαυτὸν παραμυθήσασθαι οὐκ ἀφῃρέθην, τῇ συντυχίᾳ τοῦ αἰδεσιμω τάτου Κυριακοῦ τοῦ συμπρεσβυτέρου· ὃν αἰσχύνομαι συνισ τῶν σοι καὶ οἰκεῖον ποιῶν δι' ἐμαυτοῦ, μή ποτε δόξω περί εργόν τι ποιεῖν σοι προσάγων τὰ ἴδιά σου καὶ ἐξαίρετα. Ἀλλ', ἐπειδή με δεῖ καὶ μάρτυρα εἶναι τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ τοῖς συνημμένοις πνευματικῶς τὰ μέγιστα τῶν ἐμοὶ προσόν των χαρίζεσθαι, τὸ μὲν περὶ τὴν ἱερωσύνην ἀνεπηρέαστον τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἡγοῦμαι καὶ σοὶ φανερὸν εἶναι, βεβαιῶ δὲ κἀγὼ οὐδεμίαν γνωρίζων κατ' αὐτοῦ παρὰ τῶν πᾶσιν ἐπιβαλλόν των τὰς χεῖρας τῶν μὴ φοβουμένων τὸν Κύριον ἐπήρειαν. Καίτοιγε, εἴ τι ἐγεγόνει παρ' αὐτῶν, οὔθ' οὕτως ἀνάξιος ἦν ὁ ἀνήρ. Οἱ δὲ ἐχθροὶ τοῦ Κυρίου βεβαιοῦσι τοὺς βαθμοὺς μᾶλλον οἷς ἂν προσπολεμῶσιν ἢ ἀφαιροῦνταί τι τῆς ὑπαρ χούσης αὐτοῖς παρὰ τοῦ Πνεύματος χάριτος. Πλὴν ἀλλ', ὅπερ ἔφην, οὐδὲ