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we were added so that at every hour we might have your words on our tongue. But when we became familiar with that blessed soul, we were truly persuaded that the saying of Proverbs was confirmed in your case, that a wife is joined to a man by God. So suited were you to each other's character; just as in a mirror each showed the other's disposition in himself. And one who said many things would not attain even a small part of her worth. But what must one suffer in the face of God's law which has long prevailed, that he who came into being at the appointed time should depart again, and that each soul, having performed the necessities for life, should then be released from the bonds of the body? We are neither the first to have suffered, O admirable one, nor the only ones, but we have experienced what our parents and grandparents and all our ancestors have experienced. And the present life is full of such examples. But it was fitting for you, who so differ from the rest in virtue, even in the midst of sufferings, to preserve the high-mindedness of your soul unhumbled, not being vexed at the present loss, but giving thanks for the gift from the beginning to the Giver. For to die is common to those who have shared the same nature, but to live with a good woman has been granted to few who are blessed by God, and indeed, to bear the separation grievously is itself one of the gifts from God for those who reason prudently. For we have known many who accept the dissolution of an unsuitable marriage as a laying aside of a burden. Look at this heaven and the sun and consider all creation in its cycle, that these things, though so many and so great, a little later will not appear; from all these things, gather this, that being part of a dying creation, we have received what falls to us from our common nature, since marriage itself is a consolation for dying. For because it was not possible to remain forever, the Creator devised continuance for life through the succession of the race. And if we are grieved that she departed from us sooner, let us not begrudge her for not being filled for long with the troubles of life, but for leaving us, like the grace of flowers, while we were still longing for her. Above all, let the doctrine of the resurrection guide your soul, being a Christian and living your life in the hope of future good things. Therefore, it is fitting to think of her as having passed along a certain road which we also will have to travel. And if she went before us, this is not worthy of lamentations. For a little later perhaps our lot would be more pitiable, if having been prolonged for longer we should become liable to more punishments. But let our reason, having shaken off the weight of grief, take up the care of how it is fitting for us hereafter to be well-pleasing to the Lord.

302. TO THE WIFE OF BRISO, A LETTER OF CONSOLATION

302.1 How much we groaned at the news of the suffering concerning the

best of men, Briso, what need is there even to say? For surely no one has a heart so stony that, having come to know that man, and then hearing he was suddenly snatched away from men, would not have considered the loss of the man a common affliction of life. But our grief was immediately succeeded by concern for you, considering that if the event is so heavy and hard to bear for those far from intimacy, how likely it is that your soul has been affected by the suffering, being so good by nature and inclined to sympathies because of the gentleness of your character, and so subject to the suffering as to feel a kind of dichotomy in the separation from your spouse. For if, in fact, according to the Lord’s word, they are no longer two, but one flesh, it is clear that such a separation is no less painful than if half of us

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προσετέθημεν ὥστε ἐπὶ πάσης ὥρας διὰ γλώττης ἔχειν τὰ σά. Ὅτε δὲ καὶ τῆς μακαρίας ψυχῆς ἐκείνης ἐγενόμεθα ἐν συνηθείᾳ, ὄντως ἐπείσθημεν τὸν τῆς Παροιμίας λόγον ἐφ' ὑμῖν βεβαιούμενον, ὅτι παρὰ Θεοῦ ἁρμόζεται γυνὴ ἀνδρί. Οὕτω πρὸς τρόπου ἀλλήλοις ἦτε· ὥσπερ ἐν κατόπτρῳ ἕκαστος τὸ τοῦ ἑτέρου ἦθος ἐν ἑαυτῷ προεδείκνυ. Καὶ πολλὰ ἂν εἰπών τις οὐδὲ πολλοστοῦ μέρους τῆς ἀξίας ἐφίκοιτο. Ἀλλὰ τί δεῖ παθεῖν πρὸς νόμον Θεοῦ πάλαι κεκρατηκότα, τὸν ἐλθόντα εἰς γένεσιν τοῖς καθήκουσι χρόνοις πάλιν ὑπεξελθεῖν καὶ ψυχὴν ἑκάστην λειτουργήσα σαν τῷ βίῳ τὰ ἀναγκαῖα εἶτα τῶν δεσμῶν τοῦ σώματος ἀπολύεσθαι; Οὔτε πρῶτοι πεπόνθαμεν, ὦ θαυμάσιε, οὔτε μόνοι, ἀλλ' ὧν γονεῖς πεπείρανται καὶ πάπποι καὶ οἱ ἄνω τοῦ γένους ἅπαντες, τούτων καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐν πείρᾳ γεγόναμεν. Καὶ πλήρης ὁ παρὼν βίος τῶν τοιούτων παραδειγμάτων. Σὲ δὲ τοσοῦτον τῇ ἀρετῇ τῶν λοιπῶν διαφέροντα καὶ ἐν μέσοις τοῖς πάθεσι προσῆκε τὸ τῆς σῆς ψυχῆς μεγαλοφυὲς ἀταπείνωτον διασῶσαι μὴ τὴν νῦν ζημίαν δυσχεραίνοντα, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐξ ἀρχῆς δωρεᾶς χάριν εἰδότα τῷ δεδωκότι. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἀποθανεῖν κοινὸν τῶν τῆς αὐτῆς μετεσχηκότων φύσεως, τὸ δὲ ἀγαθῇ συνοικῆσαι ὀλίγοις τοῖς κατὰ Θεὸν μακαρισθεῖσιν ὑπῆρξεν, ἤπου καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ λυπηρῶς ἐνεγκεῖν τὴν διάζευξιν ἕν ἐστι τῶν ἐκ Θεοῦ δωρεῶν τοῖς εὐγνωμό νως λογιζομένοις. Πολλοὺς γὰρ ἔγνωμεν ὥσπερ βάρους ἀπόθεσιν τὴν διάλυσιν τῆς ἀκαταλλήλου συνοικήσεως δεχο μένους. Ἀπόβλεψον εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν τοῦτον καὶ τὸν ἥλιον καὶ πᾶσαν περίσκεψαι τὴν κτίσιν ἐν κύκλῳ, ὅτι ταῦτα μὲν τοσαῦτα καὶ τηλικαῦτα ὄντα μικρὸν ὕστερον οὐ φανήσεται· ἐκ πάντων τούτων συνάγαγε ἐκεῖνο ὅτι μέρος ὄντες τῆς ἀποθνησκούσης κτίσεως τὸ ἐκ τῆς κοινῆς φύσεως ἐπιβάλλον ἡμῖν ὑπεδεξάμεθα, ἐπεὶ καὶ ὁ γάμος αὐτὸς τοῦ ἀποθνήσκειν ἐστὶ παραμυθία. ∆ιότι γὰρ εἰς τὸ παντελὲς παραμένειν οὐκ ἐνῆν, τῇ διαδοχῇ τοῦ γένους τὸ πρὸς τὸν βίον διαρκὲς ὁ ∆ημιουργὸς ἐμηχανήσατο. Εἰ δὲ ὅτι θᾶττον προαπῆρεν ἡμῶν ἀνιώμεθα, μὴ βασκαίνωμεν τῇ μὴ ἐπὶ πολὺ τῶν ὀχλη ρῶν τοῦ βίου ἀναπλησθείσῃ, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὴν χάριν τὴν τῶν ἀνθῶν ἔτι ποθοῦντας ἡμᾶς ἀπολειπούσῃ. Πρὸ πάντων δέ σε τὸ τῆς ἀναστάσεως δόγμα ψυχαγωγησάτω χριστιανὸν ὄντα καὶ ἐπ' ἐλπίδι τῶν μελλόντων ἀγαθῶν τὴν ζωὴν διεξάγοντα. Οὕτως οὖν διανοεῖσθαι προσῆκεν ὡς ὁδόν τινα παρελθούσης ἣν καὶ ἡμᾶς δεήσει πορεύεσθαι. Εἰ δὲ ὅτι πρὸ ἡμῶν, οὐκ ὀδυρμῶν τοῦτο ἄξιον. Μικρὸν γὰρ ὕστερον τυχὸν τὸ ἡμέτε ρον ἐλεεινότερον, εἰ ἐπὶ πλεῖον παραταθέντες πλείοσι γενοίμεθα τιμωρίαις ὑπόχρεοι. Ἀλλὰ τῆς λύπης τὸ βάρος ὁ λογισμὸς ἡμῶν ἀποσεισάμενος τὴν περὶ τοῦ πῶς ἡμᾶς προσῆκε πρὸς τὸ ἐφεξῆς εὐαρεστεῖν τῷ Κυρίῳ φροντίδα μεταλαβέτω.

302.τ ΠΡΟΣ ΤΗΝ ΟΜΟΖΥΓΟΝ ΒΡΙΣΩΝΟΣ ΠΑΡΑΜΥΘΗΤΙΚΗ

302.1 Ὅσον μὲν ἐστενάξαμεν ἐπὶ τῇ ἀγγελίᾳ τοῦ πάθους τοῦ κατὰ τὸν

ἄριστον τῶν ἀνδρῶν Βρίσωνα τί χρὴ καὶ λέγειν; Πάντως γὰρ οὐδεὶς οὕτως ἔχων τὴν καρδίαν λιθίνην ὃς εἰς πεῖραν ἀφικόμενος τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἐκείνου εἶτ' ἀκούσας αὐτὸν ἀθρόως ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἀνηρπασμένον οὐχὶ ὡς κοινὴν ζημίαν τοῦ βίου τὴν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς στέρησιν ἐλογίσατο. Ἡμῶν δὲ εὐθὺς τὴν λύπην ἡ ἐπὶ σοὶ φροντὶς διεδέξατο λογιζομένων ὅτι, εἰ τοῖς πόρρω τῆς οἰκειότητος οὕτω βαρὺ καὶ δύσφορον τὸ συμβάν, πῶς εἰκὸς ὑπὸ τοῦ πάθους τὴν σὴν διατεθῆναι ψυχὴν οὕτω μὲν φύσει χρηστὴν οὖσαν καὶ πρὸς τὰς συμπα θείας εὔκολον διὰ τὴν τοῦ τρόπου ἡμερότητα, οὕτω δὲ ὑποκειμένην τῷ πάθει ὥστε οἱονεὶ διχοτομίας τινὸς αἰσθά νεσθαι ἐν τῷ χωρισμῷ τοῦ ὁμόζυγος. Καὶ γάρ, εἰ τῷ ὄντι κατὰ τὸν τοῦ Κυρίου λόγον οὐκέτι εἰσὶ δύο, ἀλλὰ σὰρξ μία, δηλονότι οὐχ ἧττόν ἐστιν ἀλγεινὴ ἡ τοιαύτη διάζευξις ἢ εἰ τὸ ἥμισυ ἡμῶν