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scattered because of the word of God and the testimony of his only-begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ to speak to one another by letters and to be joined together spiritually by reminders, and in no way to be considered as dead by silence. For we know this, that the blessed apostle Paul, with his fellow apostles of God, called to one another from afar and came to the same thing by the connective word, and proclaimed the gospel of the kingdom of God to the whole world, in which the Holy Spirit, even if it is bold to say, having placed us, also exhorts; for he says, Speak, and do not be silent, for I have many people here. And elsewhere: if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him. So the judgment of silence is terrible, and this in the midst of this willful deafness of the heretics. Which your Holiness, as he has written, acting in a manner worthy of God, would say he endures many trials from those who do not wish to hear a holy word, but have denied the divinely-written icon of Christ, of the Theotokos and of any of his servants. Remain, therefore, O thrice-desired one, placed upon the lampstand of the word by the gospel command and shining to all in the house, so that those who open their eyes may receive the light, while those who close their senses may reap the fruit of their own blindness; and pray that we too may do this and bring back the gift of our charge blamelessly. But we wish you to know that one of the lamps has flown away to the Lord, this most holy metropolitan of Synnada, since also before him were the renowned brothers and fathers, Athanasius the abbot of Paulopetrion and John the abbot of Chalcites. And the heretics seem to cut down the confessing body of Christ, but they are ignorant that it is multiplied even more, rising up with zeal for those who have contended before, and even the flock that may have shed its feathers. But Christ is still sleeping, opening a door for some with inexpressible kindness, testing the desire of others in the crown of endurance, and receiving others still as gold that has been tested, each time for a diadem of the beauty of his glory. These things to you from us, O most blessed one. But you yourself might still beseech God to make peace in his church, plucking out every evil from the midst, and deeming us who are left behind worthy to come to a face-to-face conversation, as you also indicated in your prayer. 543 {1To Dionysius the monk}1 Those who are treated by skilled physicians have no need of the visit of inferior ones, unless perhaps out of love they are showing devotion to their true friends; so that your brotherly honor would have done something superfluous, having been healed by our most God-loving father and archbishop of Dyrrhachium and not remaining so, but still seeking treatment also from us who are inferior and humbled. But, since the word of love has now moved you to write, it has also persuaded us, who are nobodies, to write back to you and to join ourselves to you in a loving disposition; for it is necessary, even without any need, for those who have undertaken the same profession and who embrace the same mindset to be mingled together in love. For the Lord has said that because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold. Therefore let the matter of your healing, according to what has been prescribed by the most holy archbishop, be kept healthy. But this we advise and remind you, not to sink back again, nor to be led away to the ruinous fall by these and those signs; for the past is enough, for which we ought to groan and lament forever, to weep and wail, that while our like-minded brothers have flown on high like eagles in their confession, we have been held in the snare of heresy; and while they were being persecuted, we remained at home, and while they contended as martyrs, we have become deniers by hand and mouth, even if not in heart, and others

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διεσπαρμένους διὰ τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὴν μαρτυρίαν τοῦ μονογενοῦς αὐτοῦ υἱοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ φθέγγεσθαι ἀλλήλοις τοῖς γράμμασι καὶ συνάπτεσθαι πνευματικῶς τοῖς ὑπομνήμασι, καὶ μηδαμῶς τῇ ἀφωνίᾳ ὡς τεθνεῶτας λελογίσθαι. τοῦτο γὰρ ἴσμεν καὶ τὸν μακάριον ἀπόστολον Παῦλον σὺν τοῖς ὁμοταγέσι θεοστόλοις ἀλλήλους μακρόθεν φωνοῦντας καὶ εἰς ταὐτὸν ἐρχομένους τῷ συναπτικῷ λόγῳ καὶ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ καταγγέλλοντας παντὶ τῷ κόσμῳ, ἐν ᾧ καὶ ἡμᾶς τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ Ἅγιον, εἰ καὶ τολμηρὸν εἰπεῖν, θέμενον παρεγγυᾷ· λάλει γάρ, φησί, καὶ μὴ σιωπήσῃς, ὅτι λαός μοι πολύς ἐστιν ἐνταῦθα. καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ· ἐὰν ὑποστείληται, οὐκ εὐδοκεῖ ἡ ψυχή μου ἐν αὐτῷ. ὥστε φοβερὸν τὸ κρίμα τῆς σιωπῆς, καὶ ταῦτα ἐν τῇδε τῇ ἐθελοκάκῳ κωφεύσει τῶν αἱρετιζόντων. ὅπερ ἡ ἁγιωσύνη σου, καθὰ γέγραφεν, ἐνεργοῦσα θεοπρεπῶς πολλοὺς πειρασμοὺς ὑφίστασθαι φαίη παρὰ τῶν οὐκ ἐθελόντων λόγον ὅσιον ἐνηχεῖσθαι, ἀλλ' ἠρνημένων τὴν θεόγραπτον Χριστοῦ εἰκόνα, τῆς Θεοτόκου καὶ οὑτινοσοῦν τῶν θεραπόντων αὐτοῦ. Μένοις οὖν, ὦ τριπόθητε, ἐπὶ τῆς λυχνίας τοῦ λόγου κείμενος εὐαγγελικῷ προστάγματι καὶ λάμπων πᾶσι τοῖς ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ ὡς ἂν οἱ ἁπλοῦντες τὰς ὄψεις τὸ φῶς εἰσδέχοιντο, οἱ δὲ μύοντες τὰς αἰσθήσεις τῆς οἰκείας ἀβλεψίας τὸν καρπὸν δρέψωνται· καί γε εὔξαιο τοῦτο καὶ ἡμᾶς ποιεῖσθαι καὶ ἀνένοχον τὸ τῆς προστασίας δῶρον ἀπενέγκασθαι. γινώσκειν σε δὲ βουλόμεθα ὅτι εἷς τῶν λαμπτήρων ἀπέπτη πρὸς Κύριον, οὗτος δὴ ὁ ἁγιώτατος μητροπολίτης Συννάδων, ἐπεὶ καὶ πρότερον οἱ κλεινοὶ ἀδελφοὶ καὶ πατέρες, Ἀθανάσιος ὁ τοῦ Παυλοπετρίου καθηγεμὼν καὶ Ἰωάννης ὁ τῆς Χαλκίτου καθηγητής. καὶ οἱ αἱρετικοὶ μὲν δοκοῦσιν ὑποτέμνεσθαι τὸ ὁμολογητικὸν πλήρωμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἀγνοοῦσι δὲ ὅτι καὶ μᾶλλον πληθύνεται, ζήλῳ τῶν προηθληκότων συνανιπτάμενον καὶ τὸ πτερορρυῆσαν τυχὸν στῖφος. Χριστὸς δὲ ἔτι καθεύδει, τοῖς μὲν ὑπανοίγων θύραν χρηστότητι ἀνεκδιηγήτῳ, τῶν δὲ δοκιμάζων τὸν πόθον ἐν ὑπομονῆς στεφανώματι, τοὺς δὲ καὶ ὡς χρυσὸν δεδοκιμασμένον προσλαμβάνων ἑκάστοτε εἰς διάδημα κάλλους δόξης αὐτοῦ. Ταῦτά σοι πρὸς ἡμῶν, ὦ μακαριώτατε. αὐτὸς δὲ ἔτι δυσωπήσειας τὸν θεὸν εἰρήνην ἐμποιῆσαι τῇ αὐτοῦ ἐκκλησίᾳ, ἐκτίλλων πᾶν κακὸν ἐκ μέσου καὶ τοὺς ὑπολελειμμένους ἡμᾶς ἀξιῶν εἰς τὴν κατ' ὀφθαλμοὺς ὁμιλίαν ἐλθεῖν, καθὰ καὶ εὐκτικῶς ὑπεδήλωσας. 543 {1∆ιονυσίῳ μονάζοντι}1 Οἱ παρὰ τῶν ἐπιστημόνων ἰατρῶν θεραπευόμενοι οὐ χρείαν ἔχουσι τῆς τῶν ὑφειμένων ἐπισκέψεως, εἰ μή τι ἆρα ἀγάπης τρόπῳ ἀφοσιούμενοι τοὺς γνησιεύοντας· ὥστε καὶ ἡ ἀδελφικὴ ὑμῶν τιμιότης περιττόν τι ἂν εἰργάζετο, παρὰ τοῦ θεοφιλεστάτου ἡμῶν πατρὸς καὶ ἀρχιεπισκόπου τοῦ ∆υρραχίου ἰαθεῖσα καὶ μὴ ἐμμείνασα, ἀλλ' ἔτι καὶ πρὸς ἡμῶν τῶν ὑφειμένων καὶ τεταπεινωμένων θεραπείαν ἐπιζητοῦσα. ἀλλ', ἐπεὶ ὁ λόγος τῆς ἀγάπης κεκίνηκε νῦν ὑμᾶς ἐπιστεῖλαι, πέπεικεν καὶ ἡμᾶς τοὺς οὐδαμινοὺς ἀντεπιστεῖλαι ὑμῖν καὶ συνάψαι πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς τῇ ἀγαπητικῇ διαθέσει· χρὴ γὰρ καὶ δίχα τινὸς ἀναγκαίου τοὺς τὸ αὐτὸ ἐπάγγελμα ἐπανῃρημένους καὶ τὸ αὐτὸ φρόνημα οὖν ἀσπαζομένους ἀγαπητικὸν συνανακρᾶσθαι. καὶ γὰρ διὰ τὸ πληθυνθῆναι τὴν ἀνομίαν ψυγῆναι τὴν τῶν πολλῶν ἀγάπην ὁ Κύριος εἴρηκεν. Τὸ μὲν οὖν τῆς ἰατρείας ὑμῶν κατὰ τὸ κεκανονισμένον ὑπὸ τοῦ ἁγιωτάτου ἀρχιεπισκόπου συντηρείσθω ἄνοσον. τοῦτο δὲ παραινοῦμεν καὶ ὑπομνήσκομεν, μὴ ὑφιζάνειν πάλιν εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω μηδὲ πρὸς τὴν ὀλεθρίαν ὑπόπτωσιν ἀπάγεσθαι διὰ τῶνδε καὶ τῶνδε τῶν γνωρισμάτων· ἀρκεῖ γὰρ καὶ τὰ πάλαι, ἐφ' οἷς καὶ ὀφείλομεν στένειν καὶ ποτνιᾶν εἰς τὸ ἀεί, κλάειν τε καὶ οἰμώζειν, ὅτι τῶν ἀδελφῶν ὁμοσχήμων πετασθέντων ὡς ἀετῶν ὑψοῦ τῇ ὁμολογίᾳ ἡμεῖς ὑπὸ παγίδα κεκρατήμεθα τῆς αἱρέσεως· κἀκείνων διωκομένων ἡμεῖς οἴκοι ἐμένομεν, καὶ τῶνδε ἠθληκότων μαρτυρικῶς ἡμεῖς ἔξαρνοι γεγόναμεν χειρὶ καὶ στόματι, κἂν οὐ καρδίᾳ, καὶ ἄλλων