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As long as he makes shoes, I will not take away the name of the art; but when he leads men into the styles of women, and causes them to become effeminate and voluptuous through their shoes, we will class it with the harmful and superfluous things, and we will not even call it an art. And I know, indeed, that I seem to many to be petty for busying myself with these things; but I will not desist for this reason. For this is the cause of all evils, that these sins seem to be small, and for this reason are neglected. And what sin, he says, could be more trivial than this, to have a shoe that is beautified and gleaming, and fitted to the foot, if indeed one should even call this a sin? Do you want me, then, to apply my tongue to it, and show how great the indecency is, and you will not be angry? Rather, even if you are angry, it is of no great concern to me. For you are the cause of this folly, you who do not even consider it a sin, and thus compel us to enter into the accusation of this profligacy. 5. Come, then, let us examine it, and see what sort of evil it is. For when you stitch silk threads, which it is not even good to weave into garments, into your shoes, of how much insolence, of how much ridicule are these things worthy? But if you despise our judgment, listen to the voice of Paul, who forbids these things with great 58.502 vehemence, and then you will perceive the ridicule. What then does he say? Not with braided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly attire. Of what pardon, then, would you be worthy, when Paul does not permit a married woman to have costly garments, yet you extend this stupidity even to your shoes, and prepare countless things for the sake of this ridiculous insolence? For a ship is built, and rowers are enlisted, and a lookout and a pilot, and a sail is unfurled, and the sea is sailed, and leaving wife and children and country, the merchant gives his own soul to the waves, and goes to the land of the barbarians, and endures countless dangers for these threads, so that you, after all that, might take them and stitch them onto your shoes, and beautify the leather. And what could be worse than this irrationality? But the old things were not like this, but were fitting for men. Whence I, for my part, expect that, as time goes on, the young men among us will also have the shoes of women, and will not be ashamed. And what is worse, is that the fathers, seeing these things, are not indignant, but even consider the matter to be of no consequence. Do you want me to say what is even worse, that these things happen while there are many who are poor? Do you want me to bring into our midst Christ who is hungry, who is naked, who wanders everywhere, who is in chains? And of how many thunderbolts would you not be worthy, overlooking Him who lacks necessary food, while you beautify your leather with such zeal? And He Himself, when He gave laws to His disciples, did not even permit them to have shoes at all; but we not only do not endure to walk with bare feet, but not even with shoes as one ought to be shod. What then could be worse than this disorder? what of the ridicule? For the matter is a thing of an effeminate soul, and harsh and cruel, and overly curious and vainly toiling. For when will one who is occupied with these superfluous things be able to attend to anything necessary? when will such a young man endure to take care of his soul, or to consider that he even has a soul? For he will be petty who is compelled to admire such things, and cruel who neglects the poor for the sake of these things, and destitute of virtue who expends all his zeal on these things. For he who is overly concerned with the quality of threads, and the bloom of colors, and the ivy-patterns from such weavings, when will he be able to look to heaven? when will he, who is captivated by the beauty of leather and stoops to the ground, admire the beauty that is there? And God indeed stretched out the heaven, and lit the sun, drawing your gaze upward; but you compel yourself to stoop downward and toward the earth like the swine, and you obey the devil. For this wicked demon devised this indecency, of that you

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ἕως ἂν ὑποδήματα ποιῇ, οὐκ ἀποστερήσω τὸ τῆς τέχνης ὄνομα· ὅταν δὲ τοὺς ἄνδρας εἰς τὰ τῶν γυναικῶν ἐξάγῃ σχήματα, καὶ μαλακίζεσθαι ποιῇ διὰ τῶν ὑποδημάτων καὶ θρύπτεσθαι, μετὰ τῶν βλαβερῶν καὶ περιττῶν αὐτὴν τάξομεν, καὶ οὐδὲ τέχνην ἐροῦμεν. Καὶ οἶδα μὲν, ὅτι πολλοῖς μικρολόγος εἶναι δοκῶ ταῦτα περιεργαζόμενος· οὐ μὴν διὰ τοῦτο ἀποστήσομαι. Τὸ γὰρ ἁπάντων αἴτιον τῶν κακῶν τοῦτο, τὸ καὶ μικρὰ ταῦτα δοκεῖν εἶναι τὰ ἁμαρτήματα, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀμελεῖσθαι. Καὶ τί τούτου, φησὶν, εὐτελέστερον ἁμάρτημα γένοιτ' ἂν, κεκαλλωπισμένον ἔχειν ὑπόδημα καὶ ἀποστίλβον, καὶ τῷ ποδὶ προσηρτημένον, εἴγε καὶ ἁμάρτημα τοῦτο καλεῖν δοκεῖ; Βούλεσθε οὖν ἐπαφήσω τὴν γλῶτταν αὐτῷ, καὶ δείξω τὴν ἀσχημοσύνην ὅση, καὶ οὐκ ὀργιεῖσθε; Μᾶλλον δὲ, κἂν ὀργίζησθε, οὐ πολύς μοι λόγος. Καὶ γὰρ ὑμεῖς αἴτιοι τῆς ἀνοίας ταύτης, οἱ μηδὲ ἁμάρτημα εἶναι νομίζοντες, καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἡμᾶς ἀναγκάζοντες εἰς τὴν κατηγορίαν τῆς ἀσωτίας ἐμβῆναι ταύτης. εʹ. Φέρε οὖν αὐτὸ ἐξετάσωμεν, καὶ ἴδωμεν ὁποῖόν ἐστι κακόν. Ὅταν γὰρ τὰ νήματα τὰ σηρικὰ, ἃ μηδὲ ἐν ἱματίοις ὑφαίνεσθαι καλὸν, ταῦτα ἐν ὑποδήμασι διαῤῥάπτητε, πόσης ὕβρεως, πόσου γέλωτος ταῦτα ἄξια; Εἰ δὲ τῆς ἡμετέρας ψήφου καταφρονεῖς, ἄκουσον τῆς τοῦ Παύλου φωνῆς, μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς σφοδρότητος ταῦτα 58.502 ἀπαγορεύοντος, καὶ τότε αἰσθήσῃ τοῦ γέλωτος. Τί οὖν ἐκεῖνός φησι; Μὴ ἐν πλέγμασιν, ἢ χρυσῷ, ἢ μαργαρίταις, ἢ ἱματισμῷ πολυτελεῖ. Τίνος οὖν ἂν εἴης συγγνώμης ἄξιος, ὅταν τῇ γεγαμημένῃ μὴ ἐπιτρέποντος Παύλου πολυτελῆ ἱμάτια ἔχειν, σὺ καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ὑποδήματα τὴν βλακείαν ταύτην ἐξάγῃς, καὶ μυρία κατασκευάζῃς ὑπὲρ τῆς καταγελάστου ὕβρεως; Καὶ γὰρ καὶ ναῦς πήγνυται, καὶ ἐρέται καταλέγονται, καὶ πρωρεὺς καὶ κυβερνήτης, καὶ ἱστίον ἀναπετάννυται, καὶ πέλαγος πλεῖται, καὶ γυναῖκα καὶ παιδία καὶ πατρίδα ἀφεὶς, καὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ὁ ἔμπορος ἐκδίδωσι κύμασι, καὶ εἰς τὴν τῶν βαρβάρων ἔρχεται χώραν, καὶ μυρίους ὑπομένει κινδύνους διὰ ταῦτα τὰ νήματα, ἵνα σὺ μετὰ πάντα ἐκεῖνα λαβὼν ἐπὶ τῶν ὑποδημάτων διαῤῥάψῃς, καὶ τὸ δέρμα καλλωπίσῃς. Καὶ τί ταύτης τῆς ἀλογίας χεῖρον γένοιτ' ἄν; Ἀλλ' οὐ τὰ παλαιὰ τοιαῦτα, ἀλλ' ἀνδράσι πρέποντα. Ὅθεν ἔγωγε προσδοκῶ, χρόνου προϊόντος τοὺς νέους τοὺς παρ' ἡμῖν καὶ γυναικῶν ὑποδήματα σχήσειν, καὶ οὐκ αἰσχυνεῖσθαι. Καὶ τὸ χαλεπώτερον, ὅτι οἱ πατέρες ταῦτα ὁρῶντες οὐκ ἀγανακτοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀδιάφορον τὸ πρᾶγμα εἶναι νομίζουσι. Βούλεσθε εἴπω καὶ τὸ ἔτι χαλεπώτερον, ὅτι καὶ πενήτων ὄντων πολλῶν ταῦτα γίνεται; Βούλεσθε εἰς μέσον ἀγάγω τὸν Χριστὸν τὸν λιμώττοντα, τὸν γυμνὸν, τὸν ἀλώμενον πανταχοῦ, τὸν δεδεμένον; Καὶ πόσων οὐκ ἂν εἴητε σκηπτῶν ἄξιοι, ἐκεῖνον μὲν τροφῆς ἀναγκαίας ἀποροῦντα περιορῶντες, τὰ δέρματα δὲ μετὰ τοσαύτης καλλωπίζοντες τῆς σπουδῆς; Καὶ αὐτὸς μὲν ἡνίκα τοῖς μαθηταῖς ἐνομοθέτει, οὐδὲ ἁπλῶς ὑποδήματα ἔχειν ἐπέτρεπεν· ἡμεῖς δὲ οὐ μόνον γυμνοῖς ποσὶν οὐκ ἀνεχόμεθα βαδίζειν, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ὑποδεδεμένοις ὡς ὑποδεδέσθαι δεῖ. Τί τοίνυν τῆς ἀκοσμίας ταύτης χεῖρον γένοιτ' ἄν; τί τοῦ γέλωτος; Καὶ γὰρ ψυχῆς ἐστι μαλακώδους τὸ πρᾶγμα, καὶ ἀπηνοῦς καὶ ὠμῆς, καὶ περιέργου καὶ ματαιοπόνου. Πότε γὰρ δυνήσεται ἀναγκαίῳ τινὶ προσέχειν ὁ περὶ ταῦτα τὰ περιττὰ ἠσχολημένος; πότε ἀνέξεται ὁ τοιοῦτος νέος ψυχῆς ἐπιμελήσασθαι, ἢ ἐννοῆσαι ὅτι κἂν ψυχὴν ἔχει; Καὶ γὰρ μικρολόγος ἔσται ὁ τὰ τοιαῦτα θαυμάζειν ἀναγκαζόμενος, καὶ ὠμὸς ὁ διὰ ταῦτα τῶν πτωχῶν ἀμελῶν, καὶ ἀρετῆς ἔρημος ὁ πᾶσαν εἰς ταῦτα καταναλίσκων τὴν σπουδήν. Ὁ γὰρ νημάτων ἀρετὴν, καὶ χρωμάτων ἄνθος, καὶ τοὺς κισσοὺς τοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν τοιούτων ὑφασμάτων περιεργαζόμενος, πότε εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν δυνήσεται ἰδεῖν; πότε τὸ ἐκεῖ θαυμάσεται κάλλος ὁ πρὸς κάλλος ἐπτοημένος δερμάτων, καὶ χαμαὶ κύπτων; Καὶ ὁ μὲν Θεὸς ἔτεινεν οὐρανὸν, καὶ ἥλιον ἀνῆψεν, ἄνω σου τὰς ὄψεις ἕλκων· σὺ δὲ κάτω σαυτὸν καὶ πρὸς τὴν γῆν κατὰ τοὺς χοίρους νεύειν ἀναγκάζεις, καὶ τῷ διαβόλῳ πείθῃ. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ πονηρὸς δαίμων οὗτος ταύτην ἐπενόησε τὴν ἀσχημοσύνην, ἐκείνου σε τοῦ