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having known from this that you are a good woman among women, a lover of God and a lover of monks, so that it is fitting to utter that saying from scripture, blessed is the husband of a good wife. Do you see, my lady, that through your goodness your lord the patrician and your God-given husband is blessed by Scripture? Therefore, striving with zeal, strive to make him even more blessed. And how might this be? By you being yet more good, that is, by reminding him, exhorting him, beseeching him to administer the high office of general in a manner pleasing to God, as indeed he does, to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, to keep himself unstained from injustice, to be a lover of monks and a lover of the poor, tempered with gentleness, since this authority is sufficient to strike fear into those under his hand, and yet to be tolerant of threats and to strike correctively, but to scourge humanely and with measure; since neither complete impunity is salutary, nor striking beyond measure is acceptable, and, before all else, orthodoxy in faith. For even if in outward matters one might say it is impossible to keep this according to what has happened before (which is not even a sufficient defense before God; for nothing is more precious than His love), yet at least in the inner man it is possible to observe this and for him to be called the savior of many, both monks and laity, both rulers and ruled. These things, moved by spiritual love for you, we have dared to remind you, knowing that even without reminder you hold to what is good. 509 {1To Bryennas the General}1 The death of your blessed mother was announced to us and, how much we groaned, what need is there to say? not for her who has fallen asleep in holiness (far from it; for her passing was a gain to her, having fled this life full of sin), but thinking of your own goodness, as being completely orphaned and possessing no consolation in life (and this while being in so grim a situation) and not even having enjoyed her holy funeral rites, which are known to bring a small comfort: a farewell address and final word, the embrace of the precious remains and the bending over the very coffin in which she is laid. And you seem to have suffered the fate of Tantalus, even if the saying is rather mythical, wasting away with thirst amidst springs, having received the news of your mother's falling asleep by hearing only, and not with your eyes. What then in these circumstances? Shall we groan, then, beyond what is necessary? Shall we shed tears insatiably? Shall we despair without restraint? And where is the knowledge, where the wisdom, where the understanding, with which your nobility has been adorned, and indeed beyond many of those now seen in authority? By no means, then, O longed-for one, by no means, but having groaned and wept moderately, as much as to perform the maternal funeral rites and to show what is natural, let us return to ourselves again, if you will, and let us look with lofty contemplation upon the things here as a dream and a shadow and this play upon the earth, as one of the theologians says somewhere, that not existing we came to be and having come to be we are dissolved. For we too shall travel the same road which our fathers have traveled before, and the same lodging awaits all equally, and perhaps for one it is more tragic than for another, because for one the burial is in peace, perhaps, but for another not so; for one has become a casualty of war or swallowed by the sea or in some other way, as is seen in the piteous circumstances of sudden deaths in other ways, of which your blessed mother was above, having departed from here in holiness and a cross-bearing life. It remains, therefore, in these circumstances, for us to say that renowned voice of the blessed Job, the Lord gave, the Lord has taken away, as it seemed good to the Lord, so it has come to pass; and I would add that it is profitable for us to say this voice also in the afflictions and perplexities in which we find ourselves, since that renowned man too, as you know, in the midst of countless pains gave thanks to God. Let us not then be disheartened, O dearest one, nor despair even of living, knowing that the Lord will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able. Who knows what the morrow will bring forth and who will announce

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ἐγνωκότες ἐντεῦθεν ἀγαθήν σε εἶναι ἐν γυναιξίν, φιλόθεόν τε καὶ φιλομόναχον, ὥστε ἁρμόσαι ἐκεῖνο ἐπιφθέγξασθαι τὸ γραφικόν, γυναικὸς ἀγαθῆς μακάριος ὁ ἀνήρ. ὁρᾷς, ὦ κυρία, ὅτι τῇ ἀγαθότητί σου μακαρίζεται ὑπὸ τῆς Γραφῆς ὁ κύριος ὁ πατρίκιος καὶ θεόσδοτός σου σύζυγος; οὐκοῦν ζηλοῦσα ζήλωσον ἔτι μακαριώτερον αὐτὸν ἀπεργάσασθαι. πῶς δ' ἂν εἶεν τοῦτο; ἐν τῷ σὲ ἔτι ἀγαθύνεσθαι, ἤγουν ὑπομνηματίζειν αὐτόν, παρακαλεῖν, ἐκλιπαρεῖν τὸ τῆς στρατηγίας ὕψωμα διέπειν θεοφιλῶς, καθὰ καὶ διέπει, ἐπισκέπτεσθαι ὀρφανοὺς καὶ χήρας ἐν τῇ θλίψει αὐτῶν, ἄσπιλον ἑαυτὸν τηρεῖν ἀπὸ ἀδικίας, φιλομόναχόν τε εἶναι καὶ φιλόπτωχον, ἡμερότητι κεκραμένον, ἐπειδήπερ ἡ ἐξουσία αὕτη ἀρκοῦσά ἐστι καταπλῆξαι τοὺς ὑπὸ χεῖρα, καὶ μὴν ἀνεχόμενον ἀπειλῆς καὶ παιδευτικῶς μὲν πλήττοντα, φιλαν θρώπως δὲ καὶ μεμετρημένως μαστίζοντα· ἐπείπερ οὔτε τὸ ἄφετον παντάπασι σωτήριον οὔτε τὸ ὑπὲρ μέτρον πληκτικὸν εὐαπόδεκτον καί, πρό γε πάντων, τὸ κατὰ πίστιν ὀρθόδοξον. εἰ γὰρ καὶ πρὸς τὸ ἔξω ἔστι λέγειν ἀδυνατεῖν κατὰ τὰ φθάσαντα τοῦτο φυλάττειν (ὅπερ οὐδὲ τοῦτο ἀρκοῦν εἰς θεοῦ ἀπολογίαν· τῆς γὰρ αὐτοῦ ἀγάπης οὐδὲν προτιμότερον), ἀλλ' οὖν γε κατὰ τὸν ἔσω ἄνθρωπον δυνατὸν τοῦτο παραφυλάττεσθαι καὶ πολλῶν σωτῆρα χρηματίζειν αὐτὸν καὶ μοναστῶν καὶ λαϊκῶν καὶ ἀρχόντων καὶ ἀρχομένων. Ταῦτα, ἐξ ἀγάπης πνευματικῆς τῆς πρὸς ὑμᾶς κινούμενοι, τεθαρρήκαμεν ὑπομνῆσαι, εἰδότες καὶ ἀνυπομνήστως ἔχεσθαι ὑμᾶς τοῦ καλοῦ. 509 {1Βρυένᾳ στρατηγῷ}1 Ἀνηγγέλη ἡμῖν ὁ θάνατος τῆς μακαρίας μητρὸς καί, ὅσον ἐστενάξαμεν, τί δεῖ καὶ λέγειν; οὐ διὰ τὴν ὁσίως κεκοιμημένην (ἄπαγε· κέρδος γὰρ αὐτῇ ἐγένετο ἡ μετάστασις, φυγούσῃ τὸν πολυαμάρτητον βίον τοῦτον), ἀλλ' ἐννοοῦντες τὴν σὴν καλοκἀγαθίαν ὡς ἀπορφανισθεῖσαν τέλεον καὶ μηδεμίαν ἐν τῷ βίῳ παραμυθίαν κεκτημένην (καὶ ταῦτα ἐν οὕτω σκυθρωπῇ καταστάσει ὑπάρχουσαν) καὶ οὐδὲ αὐτῆς τῆς ὁσίας κηδείας ἀπολαύσασαν, ὃ φέρειν οἶδεν μικρὰν παρηγορίαν, λόγος ἐξιτήριος καὶ τελευταία φωνή, πρόσπτυξίς τε τοῦ τιμίου λειψάνου καὶ αὐτῆς τῆς ἐν ᾧ κατατίθεται θήκης ἐπικύψεως. καὶ ἔοικας τὸ τοῦ Ταντάλου παθεῖν, εἰ καὶ μυθικώτερον τὸ ἐπίφθεγμα, ἐν μέσαις πηγαῖς δίψῃ τηκόμενος, ἀκοαῖς μόναις, ἀλλ' οὐκ ὀφθαλμοῖς ὑπολαβὼν τὴν τῆς μητρὸς κοίμησιν. Τί οὖν ἐν τούτοις; στενάξομεν ἆρα πέρα τοῦ δέοντος; δακρυρροήσομεν ἄπληστα; ἀποδυσπετήσομεν ἀκράτητα; καὶ ποῦ ἡ γνῶσις, ποῦ ἡ σοφία, ποῦ ἡ σύνεσις, οἷς κατεκοσμήθη σου ἡ εὐγένεια καί γε ὑπὲρ πολλοὺς τῶν νῦν ὁρωμένων ἐν τέλει; μηδαμῶς οὖν, ὦ ἐπιπόθητε, μηδαμῶς, ἀλλὰ στενάξας καὶ κλαύσας μετρίως ὅσον καὶ τὰ μητρικὰ ἐπικήδεια ἀφοσιώσασθαι καὶ τὸ τῆς φύσεως ἐπιδείξασθαι εἰς ἑαυτοὺς πάλιν, εἰ βούλει, γενώμεθα καὶ διαβλέψωμεν μετεώρῳ θεωρίᾳ τὰ τῇδε ὡς ὄναρ καὶ σκιὰ καὶ τὸ ἐπὶ γῆς τοῦτο παίγνιον, ὥς πού φησί τις τῶν θεολόγων, οὐκ ὄντας γενέσθαι καὶ γενομένους ἀναλυθῆναι. καὶ γὰρ τὴν αὐτὴν ὁδὸν καὶ ἡμεῖς πορευσόμεθα, ἥνπερ οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν προωδεύκασι, καὶ τὸ αὐτὸ πᾶσιν ἐξ ἴσου ἀναμένει κατάλυμα, τάχα δὲ καὶ ἄλλου ἄλλο τραγῳδικώτερον, ὅτι τοῦ μὲν ἐν εἰρήνῃ ἡ ταφὴ τυχόν, τοῦ δὲ οὐχ οὕτως· ἢ γὰρ πολέμου παρανάλωμα γέγονεν ἢ θαλάσσης ὑπορρόφημα ἤ πως ἄλλως, ὡς ὁρᾶται τὰ ἄλλοις τρόποις ἐλεεινὰ τῶν ἐξαπίνης θανάτων, ὧν ἡ μακαρία μήτηρ ἀνωτέρα, ἐν ὁσιότητι καὶ σταυροφόρῳ βίῳ ἀπάρασα τῶν ἐνθένδε. λειπόμενον οὖν ἐστιν ἐν τούτοις εἰπεῖν ἡμᾶς τὴν ἀοίδιμον φωνὴν ἐκείνην τοῦ μακαρίου Ἰώβ, ὁ Κύριος ἔδωκεν, ὁ Κύριος ἀφείλατο, ὡς τῷ Κυρίῳ ἔδοξεν, οὕτως καὶ ἐγένετο· προσθείην δ' ἂν λυσιτελεῖν ἡμᾶς τὴν φωνὴν ταύτην καὶ ἐν οἷς ἐσμεν θλιπτικῶς καὶ ἐξαπορητικῶς, ἐπεὶ κἀκεῖνος ὁ ἀοίδιμος, ὡς οἶσθα, ἐπὶ μυρίοις ἀλγεινοῖς τὰ εὐχαριστήρια τῷ θεῷ ἀπεδίδου. Μὴ τοίνυν ῥαθυμήσωμεν, ὦ φίλτατε, μηδὲ ἐξαπορήσωμεν καὶ τοῦ ζῆν, εἰδότες ὅτι οὐκ ἐάσει ἡμᾶς Κύριος πειρασθῆναι ὑπὲρ ὃ δυνάμεθα. τίς οἶδεν τί τέξεται ἡ ἐπιοῦσα καὶ τίς ἀναγγελεῖ