33. Conduct of the Arians towards the consecrated Virgins.

The Son of God, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, having become man for our sakes, and having destroyed death, and delivered our race from the bondage of corruption99    2 Tim. i. 10; Rom. viii. 21., in addition to all His other benefits bestowed this also upon us, that we should possess upon earth, in the state of virginity100    Cf. Ep. Fest. i. 3, Ep. ad Amun, also de Incar. 27, 48, 51., a picture of the holiness of Angels. Accordingly such as have attained this virtue, the Catholic Church has been accustomed to call the brides of Christ. And the heathen who see them express their admiration of them as the temples of the Word. For indeed this holy and heavenly profession is nowhere101    [Revillout (in the work quoted supr. p. 188), p. 479 sq. states the contrary with regard to Egypt. He refers to the opening of Plutarch’s de Is. et Osir., also to Brunet de Presle Serapeum.] established, but only among us Christians, and it is a very strong argument that with us is to be found the genuine and true religion. Your most religious father Constantine Augustus, of blessed memory, honoured the Virgins above all the rest, and your Piety in several letters has given them the titles of the honourable and holy women. But now these worthy Arians who have slandered me, and by whom conspiracies have been formed against most of the Bishops, having obtained the consent and cooperation of the magistrates, first stripped them, and then caused them to be suspended upon what are called the Hermetaries102    A rack, or horse, Tillemont. vol. viii. p. 169., and scourged them on the ribs so severely three several times, that not even real malefactors have ever suffered the like. Pilate, to gratify the Jews of old, pierced one of our Saviour’s sides with a spear. These men have exceeded the madness of Pilate, for they have scourged not one but both His sides; for the limbs of the Virgins are in an especial manner the Saviour’s own. All men shudder at hearing the bare recital of deeds like these. These men alone not only did not fear to strip and to scourge those undefiled limbs, which the Virgins had dedicated solely to our Saviour Christ; but, what is worse than all, when they were reproached by every one for such extreme cruelty, instead of manifesting any shame, they pretended that it was commanded by your Piety. So utterly presumptuous are they and full of wicked thoughts and purposes. Such a deed as this was never heard of in past persecutions103    Vid. Hist. Ar. §§40, 64.: or supposing that it ever occurred before, yet surely it was not befitting either that Virginity should suffer such outrage and dishonour, in the time of your Majesty, a Christian, or that these men should impute to your Piety their own cruelty. Such wickedness belongs only to heretics, to blaspheme the Son of God, and to do violence to His holy Virgins.

33 Ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Υἱὸς ὁ Κύριος καὶ Σωτὴρ ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, ἄνθρωπος γενόμενος δι' ἡμᾶς, καὶ καταργήσας τὸν θάνατον, ἐλευθερώσας τε τὸ γένος ἡμῶν ἀπὸ τῆς δουλείας τῆς φθορᾶς, ἐχαρίσατο πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις πᾶσι καὶ εἰκόνα τῆς τῶν ἀγγέλων ἁγιότητος ἔχειν ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ γῆς τὴν παρθενίαν. Τὰς γοῦν ταύτην ἐχούσας τὴν ἀρετὴν νύμφας τοῦ Χριστοῦ καλεῖν εἴωθεν ἡ καθολικὴ Ἐκκλησία. Ταύτας καὶ Ἕλληνες ὁρῶντες ὡς ναὸν οὔσας τοῦ Λόγου θαυμάζουσι· παρ' οὐδενὶ γὰρ ἀληθῶς τοῦτο τὸ σεμνὸν καὶ οὐράνιον ἐπάγγελμα κατορθοῦται ἢ παρὰ μόνοις ἡμῖν τοῖς Χριστιανοῖς. Μάλιστα γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο μέγα τεκμήριόν ἐστι τοῦ παρ' ἡμῖν εἶναι τὴν ὄντως καὶ ἀληθῆ θεοσέβειαν. Ταύτας καὶ πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων καὶ ὁ τῆς μακαρίας μνήμης ὁ εὐσεβέστατός σου πατὴρ Κωνσταντῖνος ὁ Αὔγουστος ἐτίμα· ταύτας καὶ ἡ σὴ εὐσέβεια γράφουσα πολλάκις τιμίας καὶ ἁγίας ὠνόμασεν. Ἀλλὰ νῦν οἱ θαυμαστοὶ Ἀρειανοὶ οἱ καὶ ἡμᾶς διαβάλλοντες, δι' οὓς καὶ πλεῖστοι τῶν ἐπισκόπων ἐπεβουλεύθησαν, ὑπουργοὺς ἔχοντες καὶ ὑπακούοντας αὐτοὺς τοὺς δικαστάς, ταύτας γυμνώσαντες, ἐποίησαν ἐπὶ τῶν καλουμένων ἑρμηταρίων κρεμασθῆναι, καὶ τοσοῦτον αὐτῶν τρίτον ἔξεσαν τὰς πλευρὰς, ὅσον οὐδὲ οἱ ἀληθῶς κακοῦργοι πώποτε πεπόνθασι. Πιλᾶτος μὲν οὖν, καθηκεύων τοῖς τότε Ἰουδαίοις, λόγχῃ μίαν πλευρὰν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἔνυξεν· οὗτοι δὲ καὶ τὴν μανίαν Πιλάτου νενικήκασιν, ὅτι μὴ μίαν ἀλλ' ἀμφοτέρας ἔξεσαν· τὰ γὰρ μέλη τῶν παρθένων ἐξαιρέτως ἴδια τοῦ Σωτῆρός ἐστι. Πάντες μὲν οὖν, καὶ μόνον ἀπαγγελλόντων τινῶν, φρίττουσιν ἐπὶ τῇ τοιαύτῃ ἀκοῇ· μόνοι δὲ οὗτοι οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐφοβήθησαν γυμνοῦντες καὶ ξέοντες ἄχραντα μέλη, ἃ μόνῳ τῷ Σωτῆρι ἡμῶν τῷ Χριστῷ ἀνατεθείκασιν αἱ παρθένοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τό γε χείριστον, ὀνειδιζόμενοι παρὰ πάντων διὰ τὴν τοσαύτην ὠμότητα, ἀντὶ τοῦ ἐρυθριᾷν προφασίζονται τοῦτο πρόσταγμα τῆς σῆς εὐσεβείας εἶναι· οὕτως εἰσὶ πρὸς πάντα τολμηροὶ καὶ τὴν προαίρεσιν πονηροί. Οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐδὲ ἐν τοῖς γενομένοις διωγμοῖς τοιοῦτον ἠκούσθη πραχθέν. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ἐγεγόνει ποτὲ τοιοῦτον, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔπρεπεν ἐπὶ σοῦ χριστιανοῦ ὄντος οὔτε τὴν παρθενίαν τοσαύτην ὕβριν καὶ ἀτιμίαν παθεῖν, οὔτε τούτους τὴν ἑαυτῶν ὠμότητα εἰς τὴν σὴν εὐσέβειαν ἐπιρρίπτειν· μόνοις γὰρ αἱρετικοῖς οἰκεῖον τὸ τοιοῦτον κακὸν ἀσεβεῖν εἰς τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ πλημμελεῖν κατὰ τῶν ἁγίων αὐτοῦ παρθένων.