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Contra haereticos

... nor do they think heavenly things; but they do not even have human understanding, nor do they dare to come forth into the light or to converse with a sensible person, or to enter a city of Christians, like the leaders of the other heresies, who try to deceive some through philosophy and empty deceit. For indeed, through their cleverness they also try to twist the scriptures to their own wills and thereby deceive the more simple-minded; for the scriptures are like medical remedies, which, when well prepared, heal, but when poorly or unskillfully given, kill; wherefore they are fittingly called little foxes. The other heresies, then, one may find have both reason and plausibility and overcome some of the more simple-minded with reasonings and sophistries; and I think it is concerning these that the prophet prays, saying: He will deliver me from my strong enemies. But the little foxes, that is, these heresies, what power do they have to deceive? Not intelligence, not strength, not boldness for their doctrine, not the public righteousness that is able to deceive those who are divided in faith; they have only one thing: the craftiness of these beasts. For when they enter a vineyard, that is, a people, they do not enter with boldness, but secretly like thieves, just as these beasts, the foxes, do. When they see the vinedresser occupied in another area, they enter unsparingly into the labors of others, which they also destroy. It is also possible to understand the scriptural saying in this way: not only are they called little foxes, but also that they destroy little vineyards. For no man who is strong and steadfast in the faith and founded upon the rock, that is, Christ, is deceived by them, but if someone is like chaff and carried about by every wind, he is winnowed away from the church. Concerning such people the Lord also says in the Gospels: Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to stumble, it is better for him that a millstone be hung around his neck, and the rest, since it is clear that one who is great and established in the faith and holding fast to the head of the church, Christ, cannot be made to stumble. Concerning these very ones the apostle Paul also clearly alluded, saying: Of this sort are those who creep into households and capture silly women weighed down with sins, led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Through the word 'creeping into,' he showed the den of the serpent who deceived the first woman; and he revealed both the craftiness and cowardice of their ways and the weakness of their preaching and the unsoundness of those who are deceived; for he does not mention a man, but only silly women who are easy to deceive. For this reason their preaching deceives that sort of person and anyone who is effeminate; and one can see in their assemblies many silly women being deceived, following after other men and living with them promiscuously; and the things that follow these are shameful even to mention. Who is the teacher of these heresies? The teacher of all heresies is the devil. For just as Christ is the teacher of the catholic church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her and present the church to himself without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, so also the devil, being ready to deceive and to scatter, has become the teacher of all heresies. For the human race was taught to worship God alone, but the devil has made many falsely-named gods; but why do I say many? He has deified all of creation, in order to lead wretched man astray from the true God. For there was

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Contra haereticos

... οὐδὲ οὐράνιον φρονοῦσιν· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ ἀνθρώπινον φρόνημα ἔχουσιν, οὐδὲ τολμῶσιν εἰς τὸ φῶς προελθεῖν ἢ φρονίμῳ ἀνθρώ πῳ διαλεχθῆναι, ἢ πόλει χριστιανῶν ἐπιβῆναι, καθὼς οἱ προεστῶτες τῶν ἄλλων αἱρέσεων, οἵτινες πειρῶνται διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης πλανῆσαί τινας. Καὶ γὰρ διὰ τὴν προσοῦσαν αὐτοῖς δεινότητα καὶ τὰς γραφὰς πειρῶνται πρὸς τὰ ἑαυτῶν θελήματα ἕλκειν κἀκεῖθεν ἀπατᾶν τοὺς ἁπλουστέρους· αἱ γὰρ γραφαὶ ἐοίκασι τοῖς βοηθήμασι τοῖς ἰατρικοῖς, ἅτινα καλῶς μὲν σκευαζόμενα θεραπεύει, φαύλως δὲ ἢ ἀτέχνως διδόμενα φονεύει· διόπερ εἰκότως ἀλώπεκες μικροὶ λέγονται. Τὰς μὲν οὖν λοιπὰς αἱρέσεις ἔστιν εὑρεῖν ὅτι καὶ λόγον καὶ πιθανότητα ἔχουσι καὶ συλλογισμοῖς καὶ σοφίσμασί τινων ἁπλουστέρων περιγίνον ται· καὶ νομίζω γὰρ καὶ περὶ τούτων ὁ προφήτης εὔχεται λέγων· Ῥύσεταί με ἐξ ἐχθρῶν μου δυνατῶν. Αἱ μέντοι μικραὶ ἀλώπεκες, τουτέστι αὗται αἱ αἱρέσεις, τί ἔχουσι δυνατὸν εἰς τὸ ἀπατῆσαι; Οὐ φρόνησιν, οὐκ ἰσχύν, οὐ παρρησίαν τοῦ δόγματος αὐτῶν, οὐ τὴν ἐπὶ πόλεων δικαιοσύνην δυναμένην ἀπατῆσαι τοὺς μεριζομένους τῇ πίστει· ἓν μόνον ἔχουσι, τὸ δολερὸν τῶν θηρίων τούτων. Ὅταν γὰρ εἰσέλθωσιν εἰς ἀμπελῶνα, τουτέστιν εἰς λαόν, οὐ παρρησίᾳ εἰσέρχονται, ἀλλὰ λάθρᾳ ὡς κλέπται, ὡς καὶ τὰ θηρία ταῦτα, αἱ ἀλώπεκες. Ἐπὰν ἴδωσι τὸν ἀμπελουργὸν εἰς ἕτερον μέρος ἀσχο λούμενον, εἰσέρχονται ἀφειδῶς εἰς τοὺς ἀλλοτρίους καμάτους, οὓς καὶ ἀφανίζουσιν. Ἔστι δὲ καὶ οὕτως νοῆσαι τὸ γραφικὸν ῥητόν, οὐ μόνον αὐτοὺς μικροὺς ἀλώπεκας ὀνομαζομένους, ἀλλὰ καὶ μικροὺς ἀφανίζοντας ἀμπελῶνας. Οὐδεὶς γὰρ παρ' αὐτῶν ἀνὴρ ἰσχυρὸς καὶ ἑδραῖος τῇ πίστει καὶ τεθεμελιωμένος ἐπὶ τὴν πέτραν, τουτέστι τὸν Χριστόν, ἀπατᾶται, ἀλλ' εἴπου τις ἀχύρῳ παραπλή σιος καὶ παντὶ ἀνέμῳ περιφερόμενος ἀπολικμᾶται τῆς ἐκκλησίας. Περὶ τῶν τοιούτων καὶ ὁ κύριος ἐν εὐαγγελίοις λέγει· Ὃς ἂν σκανδαλίσῃ ἕνα τῶν μικρῶν τῶν πιστευόντων εἰς ἐμέ, συμφέρει ἵνα μύλος ὀνικὸς κρεμασθῇ εἰς τὸν τράχηλον αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς, δηλονό τι μεγάλου καὶ ἡδρασμένου ἐν τῇ πίστει καὶ κρατοῦντος τὴν κεφαλὴν τῆς ἐκκλησίας, τὸν Χριστόν, μὴ δυναμένου σκανδα λισθῆναι. Περὶ τούτων αὐτῶν καὶ ὁ ἀπόστολος Παῦλος σαφῶς ᾐνίξατο εἰπών· Ἐκ τούτων εἰσὶν οἱ ἐνδύνοντες εἰς τὰς οἰκίας καὶ αἰχμαλωτίζοντες γυναικάρια σεσωρευμένα ἁμαρτίαις, ἀγόμενα ἐπι θυμίαις ποικίλαις, πάντοτε μανθάνοντα καὶ μηδέποτε εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν ἀληθείας ἐλθεῖν δυνάμενα. Ἔδειξε διὰ τοῦ ῥήματος τοῦ ἐνδύνοντες τὸν φωλεὸν τοῦ ὄφεως τοῦ ἀπατήσαντος τὴν πρώτην γυναῖκα· ἐφανέρωσε δὲ καὶ τὸ δολερὸν καὶ δειλὸν τῶν τρόπων αὐτῶν καὶ τοῦ κηρύγματος αὐτῶν τὴν ἀσθένειαν καὶ τῶν ἀπατωμένων τὸ σαθρόν· ἀνδρὸς γὰρ οὐ μέμνηται, εἰ μὴ μόνων γυναικαρίων εὐκόλων εἰς ἀπάτην. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὸ κήρυγμα αὐτῶν ἐκεῖνο τὸ γένος ἀπατᾷ καὶ εἴπου τις γυναικώδης· καὶ ἔστιν ἰδεῖν ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς αὐτῶν πλείονα γυναικάρια ἀπατώμενα, ἐξακολου θοῦντα ἀλλοτρίοις ἀνδράσι καὶ μετ' αὐτῶν ἀδιαφόρως συζῶντα· τὰ δὲ ἀκόλουθα τούτοις αἰσχρόν ἐστι καὶ εἰπεῖν. Τίς ὁ καθηγητὴς τῶν αἱρέσεων τούτων; Ὁ καθηγητὴς πασῶν τῶν αἱρέσεών ἐστιν ὁ διάβολος. Ὡς γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς καθηγητής ἐστι τῆς καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας καὶ παρ έδωκεν ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς, ἵνα αὐτὴν ἁγιάσῃ καὶ παραστήσῃ αὐτὸς ἑαυτῷ τὴν ἐκκλησίαν μὴ ἔχουσαν σπίλον ἢ ῥυτίδα ἤ τι τῶν τοιούτων, οὕτως καὶ ὁ διάβολος εἰς τὸ ἀπατᾶν καὶ σκορπίζειν ὢν ἕτοιμος καθηγητὴς γέγονε πασῶν τῶν αἱρέσεων. Μόνον γὰρ ἐδιδάχθη τὸ γένος τῶν ἀνθρώπων θεὸν προσκυνεῖν, πολλοὺς δὲ ψευδωνύ μους θεοὺς ἐποίησεν ὁ διάβολος· τί δὲ λέγω πολλούς, πᾶσαν τὴν κτίσιν ἐθεοποίησεν, ἵνα τὸν ἄθλιον ἄνθρωπον ἀπὸ τοῦ ὄντως θεοῦ ἀποπλανήσῃ. Ἦν γὰρ