456

held fast by bodily organs. Therefore God also pardons, accepting from us the knowledge and glorification of him that extends beyond our power, not because we wish to grant something to God, but to glorify the divine according to our ability, so as to think piously and not fall from his grace and truth. And having discussed these things about this same Audius and the Audians, we have set forth the things said by them, which they, in their unlearned fashion, narrate themselves, and which they, in their contentiousness, unseemly insist upon, holding fast to these things. 9. But they also have certain other things, on account of which they especially stand more aloof, having made a division from the church, and by which they, often unsettling others, draw them away from the church, having led astray both men and women. For they wish to celebrate Easter with the Jews, that is, at the time when the Jews observe their Unleavened Bread, at that time they contentiously celebrate Easter. And supposedly it is true that the church was conducted in this way, since they even present a slanderous argument to the churchmen on this point, saying: "From the time of Constantine, on account of partiality towards the emperor," he says, "you have abandoned the tradition of the fathers concerning the feast of Easter and you have changed the day to suit the emperor." And some, again, according to their own contentiousness, maintain that "when Constantine's birthday was, then you changed," he says, "the date of Easter." And if Easter were celebrated on the same day every year and it had been determined at the council convened by Constantine to do this on the same day, what they say would be plausible; but since in each year the tradition cannot hold to the same calculation, their argument has collapsed. For 3.242 the emperor did not take care of this on account of his birthday, but for the sake of the unity of the church. For in fact God accomplished two very great things for us through the aforementioned Constantine, most beloved of God and ever-blessed, the convening of an ecumenical council and the setting forth of the faith set forth at Nicaea and confessed with the signatures of the bishops who had assembled, that Arius be deposed, and that the purity of the faith be preached to all, and that the matter concerning Easter be corrected by them for our unity. For from of old and from former times it was a source of division in the church, being celebrated differently, causing mockery each year, with some celebrating it a week before and contending with each other, and others a week after, and some anticipating it, others in the middle, and others celebrating it afterward. And there was simply much confusion and trouble, as is not unknown to many scholars, at how many times a disturbance was stirred up in the ecclesiastical preaching concerning the question of this feast, both in the times of Polycarp and Victor, as the East, differing from the West, would not accept letters of peace from one another, and in so many other times, and in the times of Alexander, bishop of Alexandria, and Crescentius, as each of them are found writing to one another and fighting, up to our own times; ever since the church was disturbed after the time of the circumcised bishops, it was conducted in this way. Therefore the bishops from everywhere, having come together at that time and having investigated accurately, determined with one accord that it should be done according to the fittingness of the calculation and the tradition. 10. For this point the same Audians adduce the Didascalia of the Apostles, which is indeed disputed by many, but not unapproved. For every canonical order is contained in it, and nothing counterfeit is found there of the faith, nor of the confession, nor of the ecclesiastical administration and rule and faith. But the saying from which the aforementioned men take a pretext concerning Easter and misinterpret it badly 3.243 and, being ignorant, understand it differently, is this; for in the same Didascalia they decree

456

συνεχόμενον τοῖς σωματικοῖς ὀργάνοις. διὸ καὶ συγγνωμονεῖ θεός, παρ' ἡμῶν ἀποδεχόμενος τὴν περὶ αὐτοῦ εἴδησιν καὶ δοξολογίαν ὑπὲρ τὴν ἡμῶν δύναμιν ἐπεκτεινομένην, οὐχὶ θεῷ χαρίσασθαί τι βουλομένων ἡμῶν, ἀλλὰ δοξολογεῖν τὸ θεῖον κατὰ δύναμιν εἰς τὸ εὐσεβῶς φρονῆσαι καὶ μὴ ἐκπεσεῖν τῆς αὐτοῦ χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας. ταῦτα δὲ περὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ Αὐδίου καὶ τῶν Αὐδιανῶν διαλαμβάνοντες ἐξείπομεν τὰ ὑπ' αὐτῶν λεγόμενα, οἷς κατὰ τὸ ἰδιωτικὸν καὶ αὐτοὶ διηγούμενοι καὶ κατὰ τὸ φιλόνεικον ἐν τούτοις ἀντεχόμενοι ἀπρεπῶς διισχυρίζονται. 9. Ἔχουσι δὲ καὶ ἄλλα τινά, δι' ἅπερ μάλιστα ἵστανται περισσότερον τὴν διαίρεσιν ποιησάμενοι τῆς ἐκκλησίας, δι' ὧν καὶ ἄλλους πτύραντες πολλάκις ἀνθέλκουσιν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐκκλησίας, παρελκύσαντες ἄνδρας τε καὶ γυναῖκας. μετὰ γὰρ Ἰουδαίων βούλονται τὸ Πάσχα ἐπιτελεῖν, τουτέστιν ᾧ καιρῷ οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι ποιοῦσι τὰ παρ' αὐτοῖς Ἄζυμα, τότε αὐτοὶ φιλονεικοῦσι τὸ Πάσχα ἄγειν. καὶ δῆθεν ἔστιν ἀληθές ὅτι οὕτως ἦν ἡ ἐκκλησία φερομένη, εἴ γε καὶ λόγον σεσυκοφαντημένον δεικνύουσι τοῖς ἐκκλησιαστικοῖς κατὰ τοῦτο τὸ μέρος, φάσκοντες· ἀπὸ Κωνσταντίνου διὰ τὴν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα, φησί, προσωποληψίαν καταλελοίπατε τὴν τῶν πατέρων περὶ τῆς τοῦ Πάσχα ἑορτῆς ἀκολουθίαν καὶ τὴν ἡμέραν μετηλλάξατε εἰς τὸ καθῆκον τοῦ βασιλέως. τινὲς δὲ πάλιν κατὰ τὸ ἴδιον φιλόνεικον ὁρίζονται ὅτι ὅτε τὰ γενέθλια τοῦ Κωνσταντίνου, τότε μετεποιήσασθε, φησί, τὸ Πάσχα. καὶ εἰ μὲν τῇ αὐτῇ ἡμέρᾳ τὸ Πάσχα ἤγετο κατ' ἔτος καὶ τῇ αὐτῇ ὡρίσθη τοῦτο ποιεῖν ἐπὶ τῆς ὑπὸ Κωνσταντίνου συναχθείσης συνόδου, πιθανὸν ἦν τὸ παρ' αὐτοῖς λεγόμενον· ὁπότε δὲ καθ' ἕκαστον ἐνιαυτὸν οὐ δύναται ἔχεσθαι τῆς αὐτῆς ψήφου ἡ ἀκολουθία, διέπεσεν ὁ αὐτῶν λόγος. οὐ 3.242 γὰρ διὰ τὸ γενέθλιον ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐπεμελήσατο, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν ἕνωσιν τῆς ἐκκλησίας. τῷ γὰρ ὄντι δύο μέγιστα ἡμῖν κατώρθωσεν ὁ θεὸς διὰ τοῦ προειρημένου Κωνσταντίνου τοῦ θεοφιλεστάτου καὶ ἀειμακαρίστου, τὸ συνάξαι οἰκουμενικὴν σύνοδον καὶ ἐκθέσθαι τὴν ἐν Νικαίᾳ ἐκτεθεῖσαν πίστιν καὶ ὁμολογηθεῖσαν μεθ' ὑπογραφῆς ὑπὸ τῶν συνελθόντων ἐπισκόπων, καθαιρεθῆναι μὲν Ἄρειον, τὸ δὲ καθαρὸν τῆς πίστεως κηρυχθῆναι πᾶσι, καὶ τὸ περὶ τοῦ Πάσχα εἰς ἕνωσιν ἡμῶν ὑπ' αὐτῶν διορθωθῆναι. ἔκπαλαι γὰρ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν πρώην χρόνων διέστη ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ διαφόρως ἀγόμενον, χλεύην ἐμποιοῦν καθ' ἕκαστον ἔτος, τῶν μὲν πρὸ ἑβδομάδος ποιούντων καὶ φιλονεικούντων πρὸς ἀλλήλους, τῶν δὲ μετὰ ἐβδομάδα, καὶ τῶν μὲν προλαμβανόντων, τῶν δὲ μεσαζόντων, ἄλλων δὲ μετέπειτα ἐπιτελούντων. καὶ ἦν ἁπλῶς φύρσις πολλὴ καὶ κάματος, ὡς πολλοῖς φιλολόγοις οὐκ ἄγνωστον, ἐν πόσοις καιροῖς θόρυβος ἐκινεῖτο ἐν τῷ ἐκκλησιαστικῷ κηρύγματι περὶ τοῦ τῆς ἑορτῆς ταύτης ζητήματος, ἔν τε χρόνοις Πολυκάρπου καὶ Βίκτωρος, ὡς ἡ ἀνατολὴ πρὸς τὴν δύσιν διαφερομένη εἰρηνικὰ παρ' ἀλλήλων οὐκ ἐδέχοντο, ἐν ἄλλοις δὲ ὅσοις καιροῖς, ἔν τε χρόνοις Ἀλεξάνδρου ἐπισκόπου Ἀλεξανδρείας καὶ Κρισκεντίου, ὡς πρὸς ἀλλήλους εὑρίσκονται ἕκαστος αὐτῶν γράφοντες καὶ διαμαχόμενοι, ἕως τῶν ἡμετέρων χρόνων· ἐξότου ἐταράχθη ἡ ἐκκλησία μετὰ τὸν χρόνον τῶν ἐμπεριτόμων ἐπισκόπων, οὕτως ἐφέρετο. διὸ συνελθόντες οἱ πανταχόθεν ἐπίσκοποι τότε καὶ ἀκριβώσαντες ὥρισαν μεθ' ὁμονοίας γίνεσθαι κατὰ τὸ πρέπον τῆς ψήφου καὶ τῆς ἀκολουθίας. 10. Εἰς τοῦτο δὲ οἱ αὐτοὶ Αὐδιανοὶ παραφέρουσι τὴν τῶν ἀποστόλων διάταξιν, οὖσαν μὲν τοῖς πολλοῖς ἐν ἀμφιλέκτῳ, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀδόκιμον. πᾶσα γὰρ ἐν αὐτῇ κανονικὴ τάξις ἐμφέρεται, καὶ οὐδὲν παρακεχαραγμένον τῆς πίστεως ἐκεῖ εὑρίσκεται οὔτε τῆς ὁμολογίας οὔτε τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς διοικήσεως καὶ κανόνος καὶ πίστεως. τὸ δὲ ῥητόν, ἀφ' οὗ λαμβάνοντες πρόφασιν περὶ τοῦ Πάσχα κακῶς παρερμηνεύουσιν οἱ προειρημένοι 3.243 καὶ ἀγνοοῦντες ἑτέρως ὑπολαμβάνουσιν, ἐστὶ τοῦτο· ὁρίζουσι γὰρ ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ ∆ιατάξει οἱ