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Stones cry out, and you are silent and careless? Unfeeling nature has heeded God, and you yourself a whirlwind? That which is not ensouled nor has had to render an account in a tribunal, as if fearing the command, cries out; and you, who are about to be called to account by God in the time of trial and to give an account even for an idle word, even if you are a beggar, do you say irrationally, "4what concern is that to me"5? These things, O master, Paul says, I have applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that in us you might learn not to think beyond what is written. Therefore even the poor man is deprived of all defense on the day of judgment, if he does not speak now as one who will be judged, and for this reason alone, let alone any of those in succession in high office up to the one who wears the diadem, for whom the judgment is also unsurpassed; for the mighty will be mightily tested, he says, and, judgment is severe for those in high places. Speak therefore, my lord, speak; for this reason I, the wretched one, fearing the tribunal, also speak. Let your voice reach the God-hearing ears of our pious emperor, since you are one of those in high places. No heresy of those that have boiled up from the church is more terrible than this iconoclastic heresy. It has denied Christ, it strikes him in the face, raging in both deed and word; on the one hand, it nonsensically claims that Christ is not to be circumscribed according to the form of his body, which is to deny that the Word became flesh (for if he is flesh, he would certainly also be circumscribed, otherwise what is proclaimed in the gospel is a phantasm with a Manichaean mindset), on the other hand, it scrapes, breaks, demolishes, and burns every divine temple, every sacred offering, upon which is the image of Christ, of the Theotokos, or of any of the saints. We Christians are perishing; let us come before the face of Christ in confession, let us embrace Christ, whom we deny through the rejection of his holy icon. 426 {1To Democharis, the general logothete}1 A meeting with good men gives confidence even to strangers to approach them, let alone acquaintances who have experienced their graciousness. For this reason, we the humble, taking courage, write to your extraordinary and most pious greatness, praising it as is fitting, because it is a good shoot of a noble root, a sacred result of right understanding, a much-sought-after ornament of varied education; whence it is also welcome to emperors and renowned among all. And from this, changing offices from the beginning, it has ascended to the highest of positions, well and very fittingly. And if also it is desirable to us the lowly on account of this virtue, it is not at all a thing to be wondered at, on account of our nothingness; except that the time suggests that an exhortation be brought to you even from the lowly. And it is this: for you to stretch out a hand to our church, which has fallen by a fall of impiety. Indeed, we have heard that you did this, and we have prayed for you as sinners and we have blessed you from an afflicted heart, because with a just reproof you censured the chief of impiety John, saying as much as the abominable man deserved to hear, things which, I think, have been made known beforehand to us and to many others; since there is nothing hidden that will not be known, as the scriptures say, and in any case because the leaders of impiety have been most justly revealed as guilty of such deeds. Do not, therefore, my master, cease from your good struggle, but contribute help commensurate with your great excellence, as one called by God to this at a time of necessity; for thus you will be more glorified both by God who is well-pleased and by the emperor who has begun to be pious and by all who champion the right word of truth, and what is more you will also bestow upon yourself from this an alexipharmic medicine for the stain of heretical communion. 427 {1To Theodore the monk}1 I urged your piety, leaving aside the praises about me, to pray rather that I might not be entirely removed from God and you yourself, I know not from whence you are carried, have been kindled to greater words of praise. Not so, father, not at all; or do you not know that I, the wretched one, am more sinful than all men, even if I know not how by the mercy of God into custody

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λίθοι κράζουσι, καὶ σὺ σιωπηλὸς καὶ ἄφροντις; ἡ ἀναίσθητος φύσις θεὸν ἐπακήκοεν, καὶ αὐτὸς λαιλαπιστής; ὃ μὴ ἐμψύχωται μηδὲ ἐν κριτηρίῳ λελογοθέτηται, δεδοικὸς οἱονεὶ τὸ πρόσταγμα, φωνοβολεῖ, καὶ σύ, ὁ μέλλων εὐθύνεσθαι ὑπὸ θεοῦ ἐν καιρῷ ἐτάσεως καὶ περὶ ἀργοῦ ῥήματος, κἂν ἐπαίτης εἶ, διδόναι λόγον, λέγεις ἀλογῶν "4τίς μοι ἐν τούτῳ φροντίς"5; ταῦτα, ὦ δέσποτα, φησὶν ὁ Παῦλος, μετεσχημάτισα εἰς ἐμαυτὸν καὶ Ἀπολλὼ δι' ὑμᾶς, ἵνα ἐν ἡμῖν μάθητε τὸ μὴ ὑπὲρ ὃ γέγραπται φρονεῖν. ὥστε καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ πένης πάσης ἀπολογίας ἐστέρηται ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κρίσεως, μὴ τανῦν λαλῶν ὡς κριθησόμενος, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μόνον, μὴ ὅτι γέ τις τῶν ἐφεξῆς καθ' ὑπεροχὴν μέχρις αὐτοῦ τοῦ τὸ διάδημα περικειμένου, ᾧ καὶ ἀνυπέρβλητον τὸ κρίμα· δυνατοὶ γὰρ δυνατῶς ἐτασθήσονται, φησίν, καί, κρίσις ἀπότομος ἐν τοῖς ὑπερέχουσιν. Λάλει οὖν, κύριέ μου, λάλει· διὰ τοῦτο κἀγὼ ὁ τάλας, δεδοικὼς τὸ κριτήριον, λαλῶ. φθέγξαι ἕως τῶν θεοηχῶν ὤτων τοῦ εὐσεβοῦς ἡμῶν βασιλέως, ἐπείπερ εἶ τῶν ὑπερεχόντων. οὐδεμία αἵρεσις τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἀναβρασάντων τῆς εἰκονομαχικῆς ταύτης αἱρέσεως δεινοτέρα. Χριστὸν ἤρνηται, εἰς πρόσωπον δέρει, πραγματικῶς καὶ λογικῶς λυττῶσα· τὸ μὲν φληναφεῖ Χριστὸν μὴ περιγράφεσθαι κατὰ τὸν τοῦ σώματος χαρακτῆρα, ὅπερ ἐστὶν ἀναιρετικὸν τοῦ σάρκα γενέσθαι τὸν λόγον (εἰ γὰρ σάρξ, πάντως καὶ περιγράφοιτο, ἐπεὶ φάντασμα τὸ εὐαγγελιζόμενον μανιχαϊκῷ φρονήματι), τὸ δὲ ὅτι ξέει, κλᾷ, κατασκάπτει, πυροκαυστεῖ πάντα θεῖον ναόν, πᾶν ἱερὸν ἀνάθημα, ἐφ' ᾧ ὁ Χριστοῦ χαρακτήρ, τῆς Θεοτόκου, εἰτινοσοῦν τῶν ἁγίων. χριστιανοὶ ἀπολλύμεθα· προφθάσωμεν τὸ πρόσωπον Χριστοῦ ἐν ἐξομολογήσει, ἀσπασώμεθα Χριστόν, ὃν δι' ἀθετήσεως τῆς ἁγίας αὐτοῦ εἰκόνος ἀρνούμεθα. 426 {1∆ημόχαρι λογοθέτῃ γενικῷ}1 Ἡ τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἀνδρῶν ἔντευξις παρρησίαν δίδωσι καὶ τοὺς ἀγνῶτας πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἵεσθαι, μὴ ὅτι τοὺς γνωρίμους καὶ τῆς αὐτῶν εὐθημοσύνης πεῖραν εἰληφότας. διὰ τοῦτο τεθαρρηκότες οἱ ταπεινοὶ ἐπιστέλλομεν τῇ ὑπερφυεῖ καὶ εὐσεβεστάτῃ σου μεγαλωσύνῃ, εὐφημοῦντες αὐτὴν κατὰ τὸ εἰκὸς ὅτι ῥίζης εὐφυοῦς ἀγαθὸν βλάστημα, ὅτι φρονήσεως δεξιᾶς ἱερὸν ἀποτέλεσμα, ὅτι παιδεύσεως ποικίλης ἀγλάισμα περισπούδαστον· ἔνθεν καὶ βασιλεῦσιν ἀσπαστὴ καὶ πᾶσι διαλαλητή. κἀκ τούτου ἀρχὰς ἐξ ἀρχῶν ἀμείβουσα εἰς τὴν κορυφαιοτάτην τῶν ἐν τέλει ἀνέδραμεν εὖ γε καὶ πάνυ εἰκότως. εἰ δὲ καὶ ὅτι ἡμῖν τοῖς εὐτελέσι δι' αὐτὴν τὴν ἀρετὴν ποθητή, οὐ πάνυ τι τῶν ἀγαστῶν διὰ τὸ οὐδαμινόν· πλὴν ὅτι ὑποβάλλοι ὁ καιρὸς καὶ ἐξ εὐτελῶν παράκλησίν σοι προσάγεσθαι. ἡ δέ ἐστιν ὀρέξαι σε χεῖρα τῇ καταπεσούσῃ καθ' ἡμᾶς ἐκκλησίᾳ πτώματι ἀσεβείας. τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ἤκουσται ἡμῖν ἐνεργήσαντα καὶ εὐξάμεθά σοι ὡς ἁμαρτωλοὶ καὶ εὐλογήσαμέν σε ἀπὸ καρδίας πεπονημένης, ὅτι καὶ ἐλεγμῷ δικαίῳ ἤλεγξας τὸν ἀσεβάρχην Ἰωάννην, τοσαῦτα εἰπών, ὅσα ἦν ἄξιον ἀκοῦσαι τὸν μυσαρόν, ἅττα καὶ ἡμῖν, οἶμαι, καὶ πολλοῖς ἄλλοις προδεδήλωται· ἐπεὶ οὐκ ἔστι κρυπτόν, ὃ οὐ γνωσθήσεται, καθά φησι τὰ λόγια, καὶ ἄλλως ὅτι οἱ ἀσεβείας ἔξαρχοι τοιούτων πράξεων ἔνοχοι δικαιοτάτως πεφανέρωνται. Μὴ τοίνυν, ὦ δέσποτά μου, ἀπολήξειας τοῦ καλοῦ σου ἀγῶνος, ἀλλὰ συνεισένεγκον τῇ μεγίστῃ σου ὑπεροχῇ ἰσόρροπον τὴν βοήθειαν ὡς ὑπὸ θεοῦ εἰς ταύτην προσκληθεὶς ἐξ ἀναγκαίου τοῦ χρόνου· οὕτω γὰρ μᾶλλον εὐκλεηθήσῃ παρά τε θεῷ τῷ εὐδοκήσαντι καὶ βασιλεῖ τῷ εὐσεβεῖν ἀπαρξαμένῳ καὶ ἅπασι τοῖς τὸν ὀρθὸν λόγον τῆς ἀληθείας πρεσβεύουσιν, οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ σεαυτῷ τῆς κατὰ τὴν αἱρετικὴν κοινωνίαν χράνσεως ἐντεῦθεν χαρίσῃ ἀλεξιτήριον φάρμακον. 427 {1Θεοδώρῳ μονάζοντι}1 Ἐγώ σου τὴν θεοσέβειαν παρεκάλεσα, τῶν κατ' ἐμοῦ ἐγκωμίων ἀφέμενον, μᾶλλον προσεύχεσθαι μὴ πάντῃ με θεοῦ ἀπομακρύνεσθαι καὐτός, οὐκ οἶδ' ὅθεν φερόμενος, εἰς μείζους ἐξήφθης λόγους αἰνέσεως. μὴ οὕτω, πάτερ, μηδαμῶς· ἢ οὐκ οἶσθα ὅτι ἀνθρώπων ἁπάντων ἐγὼ ὁ τάλας ἁμαρτωλότερος, κἂν οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως ἐλέει θεοῦ εἰς φυλακὴν