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Pamphylia. What then? Is the church which is from the ends of the earth to the ends of the earth cut off? And will it no longer stand that "their sound has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world"? Nor will what was said by the Savior no longer stand: "you shall be my witnesses to the end of the earth?" For if marriage is not in honor, and marriage is not according to God, and marriage does not have life, * let them be born without marriage; but if they are born from marriage, then they are profane because of the marriage. But if they alone are not profane, though they are from marriage, marriage is not profane, because without it no one will ever be born in the world. And great is the error of men, which has wrought evil for human nature through diversity and through many pretexts, and has led each one astray from the truth by a pretext. 3. And so the church has renunciation, but it does not abominate marriage, and it has poverty, but it does not boast against those who possess in righteousness and have from their own parents what would suffice for themselves and for those in need. And many abstain from foods, but they are not puffed up against those who do not abstain; 2.383 "for let not the one who eats despise the one who does not eat, and let not the one who does not eat judge the one who eats; for he eats and drinks for the Lord, and for the Lord he does not eat and does not drink." And you see one harmony and one hope and one faith in the church, bestowing grace on each according to his own ability and according to his own struggle of labor. But the holy church of God is like a ship. But a ship is not constructed from one piece of wood, but from various ones, and it has the keel from one piece of wood, but not singularly, and the anchors from another; and ropes and planks and the inner parts, ribs and parts of the stern and walls and crossbeams, of the mast and rudders, of mast-rings and top-masts, of tillers and all the other things, it has its assembly from various woods. But each of these heresies, being of a single wood, does not exhibit the character of the church; but the holy church of God has honorable marriage and honors such, since "marriage is honorable and the bed undefiled," and it has a most wonderful continence and praises such, since it fights a fight and has despised life, as being yet more powerful, and it has virginity and greatly glorifies such, being something virtuous and adorned with the lightest wing, it has those who have renounced the world and are not puffed up against those still existing in the world, but rejoice in such people being most pious, just as the apostles also, being themselves without possessions, * and the Savior himself, being Lord of all, having come in the flesh acquired nothing from the earth, but he did not reject the women ministering to him and to his disciples; for it says "who followed him from Galilee, ministering to him and to those with him from their own possessions." 2.384 4. For how then will what was said be fulfilled: "Come, you blessed of my right hand, for whom my heavenly Father has prepared the kingdom before the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was naked and you clothed me"? And from where would they have these things to do, if not from the just labors which they performed and from their own possessions in righteousness? And if those who renounced and lived an apostolic life were mixed with the others, the character was not foreign nor alienated from the ordinance of God; and if they renounced women for the sake of continence, the choice was praiseworthy, if indeed they did not abominate marriage, but would have used those still in marriage as partners, knowing the measure and rank of each. For the ship of God receives every passenger, except a robber; for knowing him to be a robber and a pirate, it does not admit him, nor a fugitive and one who rebels against his own masters. Thus also the holy church of God

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Παμφυλίαν. τί οὖν; ἆρα ἐκκόπτεται ἡ ἐκκλησία ἡ ἀπὸ γῆς περάτων ἄχρι γῆς περάτων; καὶ οὐκέτι στήσεται ὅτι «εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος αὐτῶν καὶ εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς οἰκουμένης τὰ ῥήματα αὐτῶν»; οὐδὲ οὐκέτι τὸ παρὰ τοῦ σωτῆρος εἰρημένον στήσεται τό «ἔσεσθέ μοι μάρτυρες ἄχρι ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς;» εἰ μὲν γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν σεμνότητι ὁ γάμος καὶ κατὰ θεὸν ὁ γάμος καὶ ζωὴν ἔχων ὁ γάμος, * γεννηθῶσιν ἄνευ γάμου· εἰ δὲ ἀπὸ γάμου γεννῶνται, ἄρα βέβηλοί εἰσι διὰ τὸν γάμον. εἰ δὲ αὐτοὶ μόνοι οὐκ εἰσὶ βέβηλοι, καίτοι γε ὄντες ἀπὸ γάμου, οὐ βέβηλος ὁ γάμος, διότι ἄνευ αὐτοῦ οὐδεὶς γεννηθήσεταί ποτε ἐν κόσμῳ. καὶ πολλή τίς ἐστιν ἡ τῶν ἀνθρώπων πλάνη, διὰ ποικιλίας καὶ διὰ πολλῶν προφάσεων ἐργασαμένη τὸ φαῦλον τῇ ἀνθρωπείᾳ φύσει καὶ πλανήσασα ἕκαστον διὰ προφάσεως ἀπὸ τῆς ἀληθείας. 3. Καὶ ἔχει μὲν οὖν ἀποταξίαν ἡ ἐκκλησία, ἀλλὰ οὐ βδελύττεται τὸν γάμον, καὶ ἔχει ἀκτημοσύνην, ἀλλ' οὐ κατεπαίρεται τῶν ἐν κτήσει δικαιοσύνης ὑπαρχόντων καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων γονέων ἐχόντων, ὅπερ ἑαυτοῖς τε καὶ τοῖς ἐπιδεομένοις ἐπαρκέσειεν. καὶ ἀπέχονται μὲν βρωμάτων πολλοί, ἀλλὰ οὐ φυσιοῦνται κατὰ τῶν μὴ ἀπεχομένων· 2.383 «ὁ γὰρ ἐσθίων τὸν μὴ ἐσθίοντα μὴ ἐξουθενείτω, καὶ ὁ μὴ ἐσθίων τὸν ἐσθίοντα μὴ κρινέτω· κυρίῳ γὰρ ἐσθίει καὶ πίνει, καὶ κυρίῳ οὐκ ἐσθίει καὶ οὐ πίνει». καὶ ὁρᾷς μίαν ὁμόνοιαν καὶ μίαν ἐλπίδα καὶ μίαν πίστιν ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ, ἑκάστῳ χαριζομένην κατὰ τὴν ἰδίαν δύναμιν καὶ κατὰ τὸν ἴδιον ἀγῶνα τοῦ καμάτου. ἔοικε δὲ ἡ ἁγία τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκκλησία νηΐ. ναῦς δὲ οὐκ ἀπὸ ἑνὸς ξύλου σκευάζεται, ἀλλ' ἐκ διαφόρων, καὶ τὴν μὲν τρόπιν ἀπὸ ἑνὸς ξύλου κέκτηται, ἀλλὰ οὐ μονοβόλως, τὰς δὲ ἀγκύρας ἐξ ἑτέρου· περιτόναιά τε καὶ σανίδες καὶ τὰ ἐγκοίλια, στάματά τε καὶ μέρη πρύμνης καὶ τοίχων καὶ ζυγωμάτων, ἱστίου τε καὶ πηδαλίων, ὄκνων τε καὶ αὐχενίων, οἰάκων τε καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πάντων, ἐκ διαφόρων ξύλων ἔχει τὴν συναγωγήν. ἑκάστη δὲ τούτων τῶν αἱρέσεων μονόξυλός τις οὖσα οὐ τὸν χαρακτῆρα τῆς ἐκκλησίας ὑποφαίνει· ἡ δὲ ἁγία τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκκλησία ἔχει μὲν γάμον σεμνὸν καὶ τιμᾷ τὸν τοιοῦτον, ἐπειδὴ «τίμιος ὁ γάμος καὶ ἡ κοίτη ἀμίαντος», ἔχει δὲ ἐγκράτειαν θαυμασιωτάτην καὶ ἐπαινεῖ τὴν τοιαύτην, ἐπειδὴ ἀγῶνα ἀγωνίζεται καὶ κατεφρόνησε τοῦ βίου, ὡς ἔτι δυνατωτέρα, ἔχει δὲ παρθενίαν καὶ ὑπερδοξάζει τὴν τοιαύτην ἐνάρετόν τινα οὖσαν καὶ πτερῷ κουφοτάτῳ κεκοσμημένην, ἔχει ἀποταξαμένους τῷ κόσμῳ καὶ μὴ πεφυσιωμένους κατὰ τῶν ἔτι ἐν κόσμῳ ὑπαρχόντων, ἀλλὰ χαίροντας τοῖς τοιούτοις εὐλαβεστάτοις οὖσι, καθάπερ καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι, αὐτοὶ μὲν ἀκτήμονες ὑπάρχοντες, * καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ σωτήρ, πάντων δεσπότης ὤν, ἐν σαρκὶ γενόμενος οὐδὲν ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἐκτήσατο, ἀλλὰ οὐκ ἀπεβάλετο τὰς αὐτῷ τε καὶ τοῖς αὐτοῦ μαθηταῖς διακονούσας γυναῖκας· λέγει γὰρ «αἵτινες ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας, διακονοῦσαι αὐτῷ καὶ τοῖς μετ' αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τῶν ἰδίων ὑπαρχόντων». 2.384 4. Ἐπεὶ πῶς ἄρα πληρωθήσεται τὸ εἰρημένον «δεῦτε ἐκ δεξιῶν μου οἱ εὐλογημένοι, οἷς ὁ πατήρ μου ὁ ἐπουράνιος ἔθετο τὴν βασιλείαν πρὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου· ἐπείνασα γὰρ καὶ ἐδώκατέ μοι φαγεῖν, ἐδίψησα καὶ ἐποτίσατέ με, γυμνὸς ἤμην καὶ περιεβάλετέ με»; πόθεν δὲ ταῦτα οὗτοι εἶχον πράττειν, εἰ μὴ ἀπὸ δικαίων πόνων ὧν ἐπετέλουν καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἰδίων ὑπάρξεων ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ; καὶ εἰ μὲν αὐτοὶ οἱ ἀποταξάμενοι καὶ ἀποστολικὸν βίον βιοῦντες μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἦσαν μεμιγμένοι, οὐκ ἀλλότριος ἦν ὁ χαρακτὴρ οὔτε ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ διατάξεως ἀπεξενωμένος· καὶ εἰ γυναιξὶν ἀπετάξαντο δι' ἐγκράτειαν, ἐπαινετὴ ἦν ἡ προαίρεσις, εἴπερ τὸν γάμον οὐκ ἐβδελύξαντο, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἔτι ἐν γάμῳ οὖσιν κοινωνοῖς ἐχρήσαντο ἄν, εἰδότες ἑκάστου τὸ μέτρον καὶ τὴν τάξιν. ἡ γὰρ τοῦ θεοῦ ναῦς πάντα ἐπιβάτην δέχεται, δίχα λῃστοῦ· γνοῦσα γὰρ λῃστὴν καὶ πειρατὴν τοῦτον οὐκ εἰσδέχεται οὐδὲ φυγάδα καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἰδίων δεσποτῶν ἀφηνιάζοντα. οὕτω καὶ ἡ ἁγία τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκκλησία