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and of the other matters of the battle. But those who departed did not report what was true, but † yielding one thing for another they lied and slandered the blessed Pope Athanasius. And having fabricated these things in writing as if they were true, they brought and reported them to the synod of Eusebius and the others, as Ursacius and Valens later showed when they repented, approaching the blessed Julius, bishop of Rome, with written statements, offering an apology for their own error: “that we slandered Pope Athanasius, but receive us into communion and to repentance.” And to Athanasius himself they also made use of their own written recommendations through repentance. But when Pope Athanasius, being in Tyre, saw the heavy conspiracy then from all sides, before he could enter the court or the slanders could be brought face-to-face by confrontation, departing by night, he went up to Constantine at the imperial court and presented to him his case, instructing him. But he, 3.150 still carried away by grief and thinking that perhaps the accusers were telling the truth, and the one defending himself was lying, was still angry. And while he was angry, Pope Athanasius addressed a severe word to the emperor; as that "the Lord will judge between me and you, since you yourself agree with those who slander our humble self." From this it came about that he fell into exile, both from the things written by the synod to the emperor—for in his absence they pronounced his deposition—and from the things by which the emperor, provoked against him, was grieved; and he remained in the regions of Italy for more than twelve or fourteen years. 10. And afterwards a great story was told that Arsenius, who was formerly reported by the slanderers to be among the dead and was said to have had his hand cut off, was found in the regions of Arabia, and that Arsenius had fully revealed himself to Pope Athanasius while he was in exile; and that Pope Athanasius had secretly sent for him, as the report that came to us contains, and that Arsenius himself came to the same blessed Athanasius, and that they came together at the time of the events concerning Constans and Constantius, the sons of Constantine. Athanasius for his part showed Arsenius to be alive and having two hands, and the accusers were henceforth found guilty not only of slander, but also of grave-robbing, on account of the dead hand that had once been carried about. From this the whole affair was ridiculous and an astonishment at such and so great a piece of theater, and a perplexity as to what one might say about the accusers and about the accused and about all the other things, which if I wished to speak of in detail I would spend much time. And when Constantine died, Pope Athanasius being in great confidence and enjoying good repute and a warm reception in Rome and all of Italy and with the emperor himself and his sons Constantius and Constans, he is sent by the two emperors, after the death of the great Constantine, while Constantius was in Antioch and concurring through his own written letters, * we have learned from the three emperors by letters 3.151 written to the Alexandrians and to Pope Athanasius himself; and he is seated again on the throne after his successor Gregory, who was sent by the Arians, when Athanasius was in exile. 11. But again a plot was contrived against him with Constantius by Stephen's party, and he was expelled. And afterwards again a plot was contrived by the party of Leontius the eunuch and those with them. Thence it came to pass that he was cast out and again brought in; for George is sent by Constantius and Athanasius withdraws, being hidden for some time, until George was killed, in which time Julian reigned and turned to Hellenism after the death of Constantius. For the wrath of the Alexandrians
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καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πραγμάτων τῆς μάχης. οἱ δὲ ἀπελθόντες οὐκ ἐκεῖνα ἀνήνεγκαν ὅσα ἦν ἀληθῆ, ἀλλ' ἕτερα ἀνθ' ἑτέρων † παραχωρήσαντες ἐψεύσαντο καὶ ἐσυκοφάντησαν τὸν μακαρίτην πάπαν Ἀθανάσιον. κἀκεῖνα δὲ ὡς ἀληθῆ ὄντα πλασάμενοι ἐγγράφως ἐνέγκαντες ἀνέφερον ἐπὶ τὴν σύνοδον τῶν περὶ Εὐσέβιον καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους, ὡς εἰσύστερον ἔδειξαν μετανοοῦντες Οὐρσάκιος καὶ Οὐάλης μετὰ λιβέλλων προσελθόντες τῷ μακαρίτῃ Ἰουλίῳ τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ Ῥώμης, ὑπεραπολογούμενοι τοῦ αὐτῶν σφάλματος· ὅτι ἐσυκοφαντήσαμεν τὸν πάπαν Ἀθανάσιον, ἀλλὰ δέξαι ἡμᾶς εἰς κοινωνίαν καὶ εἰς μετάνοιαν. καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν δὲ τὸν Ἀθανάσιον ταῖς αὐτῶν ἐχρήσαντο ἐγγράφοις διὰ μετανοίας συστάσεσιν. ὁρῶντος δὲ τοῦ πάπα Ἀθανασίου ὄντος ἐν τῇ Τύρῳ βαρεῖαν τὴν τότε συσκευὴν ἐκ πανταχόθεν, πρὶν ἢ εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὸ δικαστήριον ἢ εἰς πρόσωπον τὰ συκοφαντούμενα ἐξ ἀντικαταστάσεως γένηται, νύκτωρ ἀναχωρήσας ἀνέρχεται πρὸς Κωνσταντῖνον εἰς τὸ κομητάτον καὶ προσφέρει αὐτῷ τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν ἀναδιδάσκων. ὁ δὲ ἔτι 3.150 λύπῃ φερόμενος καὶ νομίζων μή πη ἄρα ἀληθεύουσιν οἱ κατηγορήσαντες, ψεύδεται δὲ ὁ ἀπολογούμενος, ἔτι ἐχαλέπαινε. χαλεπαίνοντος δὲ αὐτοῦ ὁ πάπας Ἀθανάσιος λόγον βαρὺν τῷ βασιλεῖ ἐπετείνετο· ὡς ὅτι δικάσει κύριος ἀνὰ μέσον ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ, ὁποῖα καὶ αὐτὸς συμφωνεῖς τοῖς συκοφαντοῦσι τὴν ἡμετέραν μετριότητα. ἐντεῦθεν συμβαίνει αὐτὸν ἐξορίᾳ ὑποπεσεῖν, ἀπό τε τῶν γραφέντων ἀπὸ τῆς συνόδου τῷ βασιλεῖ ἀπόντος γὰρ αὐτοῦ καθαίρεσιν ποιοῦνται αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐξ ὧν ὁ βασιλεὺς παροξυνθεὶς πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐλυπεῖτο, καὶ μένει ἐν τοῖς μέρεσι τῆς Ἰταλίας ἐπὶ ἔτεσι πλείω δώδεκα ἢ δεκατέσσαρα. 10. Πολὺς δὲ μετέπειτα ᾄδεται λόγος ὡς Ἀρσένιος, ὁ πάλαι ἐν τεθνεῶσι παρὰ τῶν συκοφαντῶν καταγγελλόμενος καὶ τὴν χεῖρα τετμῆσθαι λεγόμενος, εὕρηται ἐν τοῖς μέρεσι τῆς Ἀραβίας, καὶ ὡς ἀνήγγειλεν ἑαυτὸν ὅλως ὁ Ἀρσένιος τῷ πάπᾳ Ἀθανασίῳ ὄντι ἐν τῇ ἐξορίᾳ· καὶ τοῦ πάπα Ἀθανασίου λεληθότως αὐτὸν μεταστειλαμένου, ὡς ἡ εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐλθοῦσα φήμη περιέχει, καὶ αὐτοῦ Ἀρσενίου πρὸς τὸν αὐτὸν μακαρίτην Ἀθανάσιον γενομένου, ὁμοῦ τε ἐπὶ τοῖς περὶ Κώνσταν καὶ Κωνστάντιον τοὺς υἱοὺς Κωνσταντίνου γενομένοις ἅμα ἐλθόντων αὐτῶν. ὁ μὲν Ἀθανάσιος τὸν Ἀρσένιον ἐδείκνυε ζῶντά τε καὶ δύο χεῖρας ἔχοντα, συκοφαντίας τε λοιπὸν οἱ κατήγοροι αἴτιοι οὐ μόνον ηὑρίσκοντο, ἀλλὰ καὶ τυμβωρυχίας, διὰ τήν ποτε περιφερομένην νεκρὰν χεῖρα. ἐντεῦθεν τὸ μὲν πᾶν γελοῖον ἦν καὶ ἔκπληξις τοῦ τοιούτου καὶ τοσούτου δραματουργήματος καὶ ἀπορία τὸ τί ἄν τις εἴποι περί τε τῶν κατηγορησάντων περί τε τοῦ κατηγορουμένου καὶ περὶ τε τῶν ἄλλων πάντων, ἃ κατὰ μέρος βουλόμενος εἰπεῖν πολὺν ἀναλώσω χρόνον. τελευτήσαντος δὲ Κωνσταντίνου, τοῦ πάπα Ἀθανασίου ἐν πολλῇ παρρησίᾳ γενομένου καὶ εὐδοκιμήσει καὶ δεξιώσει ἐπὶ Ῥώμης τε καὶ πάσης Ἰταλίας καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν τὸν βασιλέα καὶ τοὺς αὐτοῦ παῖδας Κωνστάντιον καὶ Κώνσταν, ἀποστέλλεται ἐκ τῶν δύο βασιλέων, μετὰ τὴν τοῦ μεγάλου Κωνσταντίνου τελευτήν, Κωνσταντίου ὄντος ἐπὶ τῆς Ἀντιοχείας καὶ συνευδοκοῦντος δι' ἰδίων τε καὶ ἐγγράφων ἐπιστολῶν, * παρὰ τῶν τριῶν βασιλέων ἔγνωμεν γρα3.151 φεισῶν τοῖς Ἀλεξανδρεῦσι καὶ αὐτῷ τῷ πάπᾳ Ἀθανασίῳ· καὶ καθέζεται πάλιν εἰς τὸν θρόνον μετὰ τὸν διαδεξάμενον αὐτὸν τὸν ὑπὸ τῶν Ἀρειανῶν πεμφθέντα Γρηγόριον, ὅτε ἦν ἐν τῇ ἐξορίᾳ Ἀθανάσιος. 11. Πάλιν δὲ συνεσκευάσθη πρὸς Κωνστάντιον ἀπὸ τῶν περὶ Στέφανον καὶ ἐξεώθη. καὶ μετέπειτα πάλιν συνεσκευάσθη ἀπὸ τῶν περὶ Λεόντιον τὸν ἀπόκοπον καὶ τῶν ἅμα αὐτοῖς. ἔνθεν ἐγίνετο αὐτὸν ἐκβάλλεσθαι καὶ πάλιν εἰσφέρεσθαι· Γεώργιος γὰρ ὑπὸ Κωνσταντίου ἀποστέλλεται καὶ ὑποχωρεῖ Ἀθανάσιος, κρυβεὶς χρόνον τινά, ἕως ὅτε ὁ Γεώργιος ἀνῃρέθη, ἐν ᾧ χρόνῳ ἐβασίλευσεν Ἰουλιανὸς καὶ εἰς Ἑλληνισμὸν ἐτράπη μετὰ τὴν τελευτὴν Κωνσταντίου. Ἀλεξανδρέων γὰρ μῆνιν