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groaning, and lamenting. But if he does not show it, this too is because of you. Therefore, let your table-companions be poor and free men, not perjurers, nor buffoons. But if you wish to demand from them a return for their food, command them, if they see anything improper happening, to rebuke, to advise, to share in the care of the household, in the supervision of the servants. Do you have children? Let them be common fathers to them, let them share the supervision with you, let them bring you profits that are dear to God. Engage them in a spiritual commerce. And if you see someone needing protection, order them to help, command them to serve. Through them hunt for strangers, through them clothe the naked, through them send to the prison, relieve the needs of others. Let them give you this return for their food, which benefits both you and them, and has no condemnation. Through these things, friendship is also strengthened more. For now, even if they seem to be loved, yet they are ashamed, as living idly with you; but if they accomplish these things, they themselves will be at ease, and you will feed them more gladly, as not spending in vain, and they will be with you with confidence and fitting freedom, and your house will become a church for you instead of a theater, and the devil will flee, and Christ will enter and the choir of angels. For where Christ is, there also are the angels; and where Christ and the angels are, there is heaven, there is light brighter than this sun. And if you wish to reap another consolation through them, command them, when at leisure, to take 58.496 books and read the divine law. They will serve you more gladly in these things than in those. For these things make both you and them more honorable; but those things disgrace all together: you as insolent and drunken, and them as wretched and gluttonous. For if you feed them for insolence, it is worse than if you killed them; but if for benefit and profit, it is more useful again than if you had brought back those being led away to death. And now you disgrace them more than the servants, and the servants have more confidence than these and a free conscience; but then you will make them equal to angels. Therefore deliver both them and yourself, and removing the name of parasites, call them table-companions, and casting out that of flatterers, apply the designation of friends. For this reason God also made friendships, not for the harm of those loved and those who love, but for good and usefulness. But these friendships are worse than any enmity. For from our enemies, if we wish, we can even profit; but from these it is necessary to be harmed in every way. Therefore, do not keep friends who are teachers of harm; do not keep friends who are lovers of the table rather than of friendship. For all such men, if you should put an end to the luxury, also put an end to the friendship; but those who are with you for the sake of virtue, remain continually, bearing every inequality. But the race of parasites, both often defend you, and attach an evil reputation to you. From this, at least, I know many free men who have acquired evil suspicions; and some were slandered for sorcery, others for adultery and the corruption of boys. For when they have no work, but live their own lives idly, they are suspected by many of ministering to the same things as boys. Therefore, delivering ourselves from an evil reputation, and above all from the future Gehenna, and doing the things that please God, let us put an end to this diabolical custom, so that whether eating or drinking we may do all things to the glory of God, and enjoy the glory from Him; of which may it be granted for us all to attain, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and power, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

58.495 HOMILY 49. But when Jesus heard it, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself; and when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from

all the cities.

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στένοντα, καὶ ὀδυρόμενον. Εἰ δὲ οὐκ ἐπιδείκνυται, καὶ τοῦτο διὰ σέ. Ἔστωσαν τοίνυν ἄνθρωποι πένητες καὶ ἐλεύθεροι οἱ σύσσιτοί σου, μὴ ἐπίορκοι, μηδὲ μῖμοι. Εἰ δὲ βούλει καὶ τῆς τροφῆς αὐτοὺς ἀμοιβὴν ἀπαιτῆσαι, κέλευσον, ἂν ἴδωσί τι τῶν ἀτόπων γινόμενον, ἐπιπλῆξαι, παραινέσαι, συναντιλαβέσθαι τῆς κατὰ τὴν οἰκίαν ἐπιμελείας, τῆς τῶν οἰκετῶν προστασίας. Παῖδας ἔχεις; Κοινοὶ πατέρες ἔστωσαν ἐκείνων, μετὰ σοῦ τὴν προστασίαν διανεμέσθωσαν, κέρδη σοι φερέτωσαν τὰ τῷ Θεῷ φίλα. Εἰς ἐμπορίαν αὐτοὺς ἔμβαλε πνευματικήν. Κἂν ἴδῃς δεόμενον προστασίας, ἐπίταξον βοηθῆσαι, κέλευσον διακονήσασθαι. ∆ιὰ τούτων θήρευε τοὺς ξένους, διὰ τούτων ἔνδυε τοὺς γυμνοὺς, διὰ τούτων εἰς δεσμωτήριον πέμπε, τὰς ἀνάγκας λύε τὰς ἀλλοτρίας. Ταύτην σοι διδότωσαν τῆς τροφῆς τὴν ἀμοιβὴν, τὴν καὶ σὲ καὶ ἐκείνους, ὠφελοῦσαν, καὶ οὐδεμίαν κατάγνωσιν ἔχουσαν. ∆ιὰ τούτων καὶ ἡ φιλία σφίγγεται μᾶλλον. Νῦν μὲν γὰρ κἂν δοκῶσι φιλεῖσθαι, ἀλλ' ὅμως αἰσχύνονται, ὡς εἰκῆ ζῶντες παρὰ σοί· ἂν δὲ ταῦτα ἀνύωσι, καὶ αὐτοὶ ῥᾴδιον διακείσονται, καὶ σὺ ἥδιον θρέψεις, ἅτε οὐ μάτην δαπανῶν, κἀκεῖνοι μετὰ παῤῥησίας σοι συνέσονται καὶ τῆς προσηκούσης ἐλευθερίας, καὶ ἡ οἰκία σου ἀντὶ θεάτρου ἐκκλησία σοι γενήσεται, καὶ ὁ διάβολος δραπετεύσει, καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς εἰσελεύσεται καὶ ὁ τῶν ἀγγέλων χορός. Ὅπου γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς, ἐκεῖ καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι· ὅπου δὲ ὁ Χριστὸς καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι, ἐκεῖ ὁ οὐρανὸς, ἐκεῖ φῶς τοῦ ἡλιακοῦ τούτου φαιδρότερον. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ἑτέραν βούλει δι' αὐτῶν καρποῦσθαι παράκλησιν, κέλευσον, σχολὴν ἄγων, βι 58.496 βλία λαβόντας τὸν θεῖον νόμον ἀναγινώσκειν. Ἥδιόν σοι ταῦτα ὑπηρετήσονται, ἢ ἐκεῖνα. Ταῦτα μὲν γὰρ καὶ σὲ κἀκείνους ποιεῖ σεμνοτέρους· ἐκεῖνα δὲ ἅπαντας ὁμοῦ καταισχύνει· σὲ μὲν ὡς ὑβριστὴν καὶ πάροινον, ἐκείνους δὲ ὡς ἀθλίους καὶ γαστριμάργους. Ἂν μὲν γὰρ ἐφ' ὕβρει τρέφῃς, χαλεπώτερον, ἢ εἰ ἀνεῖλες· ἂν δὲ ἐπ' ὠφελείᾳ καὶ κέρδει, χρησιμώτερον πάλιν, ἢ εἰ ἀπαγομένους τὴν ἐπὶ θανάτῳ ἐπανήγαγες. Καὶ νῦν μὲν τῶν οἰκετῶν μᾶλλον αὐτοὺς καταισχύνεις, καὶ οἱ οἰκέται πλείονα τούτων ἔχουσι παῤῥησίαν καὶ ἐλεύθερον συνειδός· τότε δὲ τῶν ἀγγέλων ἐργάσῃ ἴσους. Καὶ τούτους τοίνυν καὶ σαυτὸν ἀπάλλαξον, καὶ ἐξελὼν τὸ τῶν παρασίτων ὄνομα, συσσίτους κάλει, καὶ ἐκβαλὼν τὴν τῶν κολάκων, τὴν τῶν φίλων ἐπιτίθει προσηγορίαν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὰς φιλίας ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς, οὐκ ἐπὶ κακῷ τῶν φιλουμένων καὶ τῶν φιλούντων, ἀλλ' ἐπ' ἀγαθῷ καὶ χρησίμῳ. Αὗται δὲ αἱ φιλίαι πάσης ἔχθρας εἰσὶ χαλεπώτεραι. Παρὰ μὲν γὰρ τῶν ἐχθρῶν, ἂν ἐθέλωμεν, καὶ κερδαίνομεν· παρὰ δὲ τούτων ἀνάγκη καὶ βλάπτεσθαι πάντως. Μὴ δὴ κάτεχε φίλους, βλάβης διδασκάλους· μὴ κάτεχε φίλους τραπέζης μᾶλλον ἢ φιλίας ἐραστὰς ὄντας. Οἱ γὰρ τοιοῦτοι πάντες, ἂν τὴν τρυφὴν καταλύσῃς, καταλύουσι καὶ τὴν φιλίαν· οἱ δὲ δι' ἀρετήν σοι συνόντες, μένουσι διηνεκῶς, πᾶσαν φέροντες ἀνωμαλίαν. Τὸ δὲ τῶν παρασίτων γένος, καὶ ἀμύνονταί σε πολλάκις, καὶ πονηρὰν περιτιθέασι δόξαν. Ἐντεῦθεν γοῦν πολλοὺς τῶν ἐλευθέρων οἶδα πονηρὰς ὑπολήψεις λαβόντας· καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐπὶ γοητείαις, οἱ δὲ ἐπὶ μοιχείαις καὶ παίδων διαφθοραῖς διεβλήθησαν Ὅταν γὰρ μηδὲν ἔργον ἔχωσιν, ἀλλ' εἰκῆ τὸν ἑαυτῶν ζῶσι βίον, ὡς ταὐτὰ διακονούμενοι τοῖς παισὶ παρὰ πολλοῖς ὑποπτεύονται. Καὶ δόξης τοίνυν ἑαυτοὺς ἀπαλλάττοντες πονηρᾶς, καὶ πρὸ πάντων τῆς μελλούσης γεέννης, καὶ τὰ τῷ Θεῷ δοκοῦντα ποιοῦντες, τὴν διαβολικὴν ταύτην καταλύσωμεν συνήθειαν, ἵνα καὶ ἐσθίοντες καὶ πίνοντες πάντα εἰς δόξαν Θεοῦ ποιῶμεν, καὶ τῆς παρ' αὐτοῦ δόξης ἀπολαύσωμεν· ἧς γένοιτο πάντας ἡμᾶς ἐπιτυχεῖν, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ᾧ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος, νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

58.495 ΟΜΙΛΙΑ ΜΘʹ. Ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς, ἀνεχώρησεν ἐκεῖθεν ἐν πλοίῳ εἰς ἔρημον τόπον κατ' ἰδίαν· καὶ ἀκού σαντες οἱ ὄχλοι, ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ πεζῇ ἀπὸ

πασῶν τῶν πόλεων.