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not one only, nor two, but I am ready to dare even ten thousand murders. And of these dramas there are many witnesses. Which is indeed what she did then, expecting to escape notice from then on and to hide her audacious act. The very opposite of which came to pass; for after these things John cried out even more loudly. 5. But wickedness looks only to the present, just like those with a fever, when they ask for cold water at the wrong time. For if she had not slain her accuser, the audacious act would not have been exposed in this way. At least the disciples, when she threw him into prison, said nothing of the sort; but when she killed him, then they were compelled to state the reason. For they wished to hide the adulteress, and were not willing to publicize the misfortunes of their neighbors; but since they fell into the necessity of the history, then they tell the whole audacious act. For so that no one might suspect an evil cause for the slaughter, as in the case of Theudas and Judas, they are compelled to state the pretext for the murder. So that the more you may wish to cover up a sin in this way, the more 58.493 you publicize it. For sin is not hidden by the addition of sin, but by repentance and confession. But observe the evangelist, how inoffensively he relates everything, and as far as it is possible for him, he even composes a defense. For on behalf of Herod he says: for the sake of the oaths and those reclining with him, and that he was grieved; and concerning the girl, that having been put forward by her mother, and that she brought the head to her mother; as if he were saying, She was fulfilling that woman's command. For not for those who suffer evil, but for those who do it do all the righteous grieve, since these especially are the ones who suffer evil. For John was not wronged, but these who contrived these things. Let us also imitate these, and let us not tread upon the sins of our neighbors, but as much as is necessary, let us cover them. Let us take up a philosophic soul. For the evangelist also, when speaking about a prostitute and a murderous woman, was inoffensive, as far as it was possible. For he did not say, By the murderous and accursed one, but, Having been put forward by her mother, calling her by more auspicious names. But you insult and speak evil of your neighbor, and would never endure to mention a brother who has grieved you in the way that he mentioned the prostitute, but with much savagery and reproach, calling him the wicked one, the evildoer, the treacherous one, the senseless one, and many other names worse than these. For we become more like wild beasts, and we speak as if about a man of another race, reviling, reproaching, insulting. But not so the saints; but rather they lament for those who sin, than curse them. Let us therefore do this, and let us weep for Herodias, and for those who emulate her. For many such banquets take place even now; and even if John is not killed, yet the members of Christ are, and much more grievously. For those who dance now do not ask for a head on a platter, but for the souls of those who are reclining. For when they make them slaves, and lead them into lawless loves, and build prostitutes against them, do they not kill the head, but slaughter the soul, making them adulterers and effeminate and fornicators. For surely you will not tell me that, being flushed with wine and drunk, and seeing a woman dancing and speaking shamefully, you feel nothing towards her, nor are you carried away to debauchery, overcome by pleasure. And you suffer that dreadful thing, making the members of Christ the members of a prostitute. For even if the daughter of Herodias is not present, yet the devil who then danced through her, also now dances through these, and taking the souls of those who recline captive, he departs. But if you are able to remain free from drunkenness, yet you partake of another most grievous sin; for such banquets are full of many robberies. For do not look at the meats set before you, nor the cakes; but consider from where they have been collected, and you will see that it is from insolence and greed and violence and robbery. But these things are not from these sources, he says. May it not be so; for neither do I wish it. Yet even if it were clean of these things, not even so

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οὐχ ἕνα μόνον, οὐδὲ δύο, ἀλλὰ καὶ μυρίους ἕτοιμαι τολμῆσαι φόνους. Καὶ τούτων πολλοὶ μάρτυρές εἰσι τῶν δραμάτων. Ὃ δὴ καὶ ἐκείνη τότε ἐποίησε, προσδοκῶσα λήσεσθαι λοιπὸν καὶ ἀποκρύψειν τὸ τόλμημα. Οὗ τοὐναντίον ἅπαν ἐξέβαινε· καὶ γὰρ μειζόνως μετὰ ταῦτα ἐβόησεν ὁ Ἰωάννης. εʹ. Ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ παρὸν ἡ κακία μόνον ὁρᾷ, καθάπερ οἱ πυρέττοντες, ὅταν ψυχρὸν ἀκαίρως αἰτῶσι. Καὶ γὰρ εἰ μὴ ἔσφαξε τὸν κατήγορον, οὐκ ἂν οὕτως ἐξεκαλύφθη τὸ τόλμημα. Οἱ γοῦν μαθηταὶ, ὅτε αὐτὸν εἰς τὸ δεσμωτήριον ἐνέβαλεν, οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον εἶπον· ὅτε δὲ ἀπέκτεινε, τότε ἠναγκάσθησαν καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν εἰπεῖν. Τὴν γὰρ μοιχαλίδα κρύπτειν ἐβούλοντο, καὶ οὐκ ἤθελον ἐκπομπεύειν τὰς τῶν πλησίον συμφοράς· ἐπειδὴ δὲ εἰς ἀνάγκην ἐνέπεσον τῆς ἱστορίας, τότε λέγουσι τὸ τόλμημα ἅπαν. Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ πονηράν τις ὑποπτεύσῃ τῆς σφαγῆς τὴν αἰτίαν, καθάπερ ἐπὶ Θευδᾶ καὶ Ἰούδα, ἀναγκάζονται καὶ τὴν πρόφασιν εἰπεῖν τοῦ φόνου. Ὥστε ὅσῳ ἂν βουληθῇς ἁμαρτίαν συσκιάσαι τῷ τρόπῳ τούτῳ, τοσούτῳ 58.493 μᾶλλον αὐτὴν ἐκπομπεύεις. Ἁμαρτία γὰρ οὐχ ἁμαρτίας προσθήκῃ κρύπτεται, ἀλλὰ μετανοίᾳ καὶ ἐξομολογήσει. Θέα δὲ τὸν εὐαγγελιστὴν, πῶς ἀνεπαχθῶς πάντα διηγεῖται, καὶ ὡς οἷόν τέ ἐστιν αὐτῷ καὶ ἀπολογίαν συντίθησιν. Ὑπὲρ μὲν γὰρ τοῦ Ἡρώδου φησί· διὰ τοὺς ὅρκους καὶ τοὺς συνανακειμένους, καὶ ὅτι ἐλυπήθη· περὶ δὲ τῆς κόρης, ὅτι προβιβασθεῖσα ὑπὸ τῆς μητρὸς, καὶ ὅτι ἤνεγκε τῇ μητρὶ τὴν κεφαλήν· ὡσανεὶ ἔλεγεν, Ἐκείνης τὸ πρόσταγμα ἐπλήρου. Οὐ γὰρ ὑπὲρ τῶν κακῶς πασχόντων, ἀλλ' ὑπὲρ τῶν ποιούντων ἀλγοῦσιν οἱ δίκαιοι πάντες, ἐπειδὴ καὶ οὗτοι μάλιστα οἱ πάσχοντές εἰσι κακῶς. Οὐδὲ γὰρ Ἰωάννης ἠδίκητο, ἀλλ' οὗτοι οἱ ταῦτα κατασκευάσαντες οὕτω. Τούτους καὶ ἡμεῖς μιμώμεθα, καὶ μὴ ἐπεμβαίνωμεν ταῖς τῶν πλησίον ἁμαρτίαις, ἀλλ' ὅσον ἂν δέῃ, συσκιάζωμεν. Ἀναλάβωμεν φιλόσοφον ψυχήν. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς ὑπὲρ πόρνης καὶ μιαιφόνου γυναικὸς διαλεγόμενος ἀνεπαχθὴς ἐγένετο, ὡς οἷόν τε ἦν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ εἶπεν, Ὑπὸ τῆς μιαιφόνου καὶ ἐναγοῦς, ἀλλὰ, Προβιβασθεῖσα ὑπὸ τῆς μητρὸς, ἀπὸ τῶν εὐφημοτέρων καλῶν ὀνομάτων. Σὺ δὲ καὶ ὑβρίζεις καὶ κακηγορεῖς τὸν πλησίον, καὶ οὐκ ἂν ἀνάσχοιό ποτε λελυπηκότος οὕτως ἀδελφοῦ μνησθῆναι, ὡς ἐκεῖνος τῆς πόρνης, ἀλλὰ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς θηριωδίας καὶ τῶν ὀνειδῶν, τὸν πονηρὸν, τὸν κακοῦργον, τὸν ὕπουλον, τὸν ἀνόητον, καὶ πολλὰ ἕτερα χαλεπώτερα τούτων καλῶν. Καὶ γὰρ ἐκθηριούμεθα μᾶλλον, καὶ ὡς περὶ ἀλλογενοῦς ἀνθρώπου διαλεγόμεθα, κακίζοντες, λοιδορούμενοι, ὑβρίζοντες. Ἀλλ' οὐχ οἱ ἅγιοι οὕτως· ἀλλὰ θρηνοῦσι μᾶλλον τοὺς ἁμαρτάνοντας, ἢ καταρῶνται. Τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ἡμεῖς ποιῶμεν, καὶ δακρύωμεν τὴν Ἡρωδιάδα, καὶ τοὺς ἐκείνην ζηλοῦντας. Πολλὰ γὰρ καὶ νῦν τοιαῦτα συμπόσια γίνεται· κἂν μὴ Ἰωάννης ἀναιρῆται, ἀλλὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ τὰ μέλη, καὶ πολλῷ χαλεπώτερον. Οὐ γὰρ κεφαλὴν αἰτοῦσιν ἐπὶ πίνακι οἱ νῦν ὀρχούμενοι, ἀλλὰ τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνακειμένων. Ὅταν γὰρ δούλους αὐτοὺς ποιῶσι, καὶ εἰς παρανόμους ἔρωτας ἄγωσι, καὶ πόρνας ἐπιτειχίζωσιν, οὐχὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀναιροῦσιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ψυχὴν σφάττουσι, μοιχοὺς ἐργαζόμενοι καὶ θηλυδρίας καὶ πόρνους. Οὐ γὰρ δή μοι ἐρεῖς, ὡς οἰνωμένος καὶ μεθύων, καὶ γυναῖκα ὀρχουμένην καὶ αἰσχρολογοῦσαν ὁρῶν, οὐ πάσχεις τι πρὸς αὐτὴν, οὐδὲ ἐκφέρῃ πρὸς ἀσωτίαν ὑπὸ τῆς ἡδονῆς ἡττώμενος. Καὶ πάσχεις ἐκεῖνο τὸ φρικτὸν, τὰ μέλη τοῦ Χριστοῦ μέλη πόρνης ποιῶν. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ μὴ ἡ θυγάτηρ Ἡρωδιάδος πάρεστιν, ἀλλ' ὁ δι' ἐκείνης ὀρχησάμενος τότε διάβολος καὶ διὰ τούτων χορεύει νῦν, καὶ τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνακειμένων αἰχμαλώτους λαβὼν ἄπεισιν. Εἰ δὲ ὑμεῖς δύνασθε μέθης μένειν ἐκτὸς, ἀλλ' ἑτέρας κοινωνεῖτε ἁμαρτίας χαλεπωτάτης· καὶ γὰρ πολλῶν ἁρπαγῶν τὰ τοιαῦτα γέμει συμπόσια. Μὴ γάρ μοι τὰ παρακείμενα κρέα ἴδῃς, μηδὲ τοὺς πλακοῦντας· ἀλλὰ πόθεν συνείλεκται ἐννόει, καὶ ὄψει ὅτι ἐξ ἐπηρείας καὶ πλεονεξίας καὶ βίας καὶ ἁρπαγῆς. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔστιν ἐκ τούτων ταῦτα, φησί. Μὴ γένοιτο· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐγὼ βούλομαι. Πλὴν εἰ καὶ τούτων καθαρεύοι, οὐδὲ οὕτως