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In Bassum martyrem

In memory of Saint Bassus. Spoken concerning the fears, and concerning the text, 'Learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart.'

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αʹ. It would indeed have been fitting for us, since so great a spring of words is usually poured out upon you, and now that a rich spiritual table has been set before you by our preceding priests and teachers, to hold back the meager drops of our words, especially since we are constrained, O Christ-lovers, by a long-standing illness of the body, and by weakness of voice, and furthermore by successive cares; but since you allow us also to speak, being held by an insatiable desire for divine hearing, come, by the grace of the Savior let us set before your goodness in brief what is suitable and fitting for the occasion. For this, I think, is appropriate both for us who speak and for you who listen, providing for ourselves by reason the things that are better and expedient.

For the holy and much-praised martyr and bishop Bassus, who gathers this festival for us today, has acquired the prizes from his own contests, in no way needing the contribution of our encomiums, but himself, as is his custom, making supplications to the Lord on our behalf, as one who has acquired confidence before him through the wrestling-arena of martyrdom, and having received from him the crown of incorruption, which Christ also prepared beforehand for the faithful. For abundant, 50.720 according to the divine Apostle, are the gifts of the Lord, who has long been bestowing the gifts of the martyrs on those who genuinely call upon him, and especially now, when after a short while the yearly remembrance of the fears awaits us, and the philanthropic wrath of that terrible threat calls us to doxology. For we truly saw an anger flashing with love for mankind, when we were girded with the fear of the earthquakes, when we perceived creation being shaken, when the ground was being violently shaken, but the Savior did not depart from His own mercies, when we expected the bitter end, when we suddenly considered our houses to be tombs, when, being seized by the shaking, we could not find a place or a way of refuge, when, having reached midday, we did not hope to see the evening, when the sword was hanging from above, and from below good deeds with prayer were being courageously performed, when the people cried out in unison, 'Have mercy.' and the Lord was moved by his compassions; for while moving creation with his glance, with his hand he held fast the trembling creation,

Why do I not say in brief? when, if the Lord of Sabaoth had not helped us, our soul would have almost dwelt in Hades. For whom does the greatness of the Savior's love for mankind not astound? 50.721 what reasonings do the things that then happened not move toward thanksgiving, and not only the things then, but also the things after these, and those that met us a short while ago? He shook the supports of the earth, he made the foundations of the houses tremble, the roofs were tossed up like merchant ships on the waves of the sea; he only showed a judicial eye, and we all trembled as if standing in waters. Great was the fear, and the acts of love for mankind were many times greater than the fear. For though shaking creation, he did not destroy it, though convulsing everything, he did not raze it to the ground, he did not strip the earth of the beauty of its creations; he shook only the roofs for our remembrance, and brought us not even a taste of destruction. So great is the sea of his compassion from him toward us. And to shake the foundations of the earth, as a guardian, as one full of compassion. For he saw men setting him at nought and provoking him, he saw men loving

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In Bassum martyrem

Εἰς τὴν μνήμην τοῦ ἁγίου Βάσσου. Ἐλέχθη εἰς τοὺς φόβους, καὶ εἰς τὸ, Μάθετε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ, ὅτι πρᾶός εἰμι, καὶ ταπεινὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ.

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αʹ. Ἔδει μὲν ἡμᾶς τοσαύτης λόγων πηγῆς συνήθως εἰς ὑμᾶς χεομένης, νῦν δὲ διὰ τῶν προλαβόντων ἡμῶν ἱερέων τε καὶ διδασκάλων πλουσίας ὑμῖν τῆς πνευματικῆς παρατεθείσης τραπέζης, τὰς πενιχρὰς τῶν ἡμετέρων ῥημάτων ἀναστεῖλαι ψεκάδας, καὶ μάλιστα τῇ πολυχρονίῳ τοῦ σώματος ἀῤῥωστίᾳ, καὶ τῇ ἀσθενείᾳ τῆς φωνῆς, ἔτι γε μὴν καὶ ταῖς ὑπαλλήλοις φροντίσι κεκρατημένους, φιλόχριστοι, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ καὶ ἡμᾶς πρὸς τὸ λέγειν ἐπιτρέπεσθε ἀκορέστῳ περὶ τὴν θείαν ἀκρόασιν κεκρατημένοι τῷ πόθῳ, φέρε τῇ χάριτι τοῦ Σωτῆρος διὰ βραχέων τὰ πρόσφορα καὶ ἁρμόζοντα τῷ καιρῷ παραθώμεθα τῇ ὑμετέρᾳ χρηστότητι. Τοῦτο γὰρ, οἶμαι, καὶ ἡμῖν τοῖς λέγουσι καὶ ὑμῖν τοῖς ἀκούουσιν ὑπάρχει κατάλληλον, λογισμῷ ποριζομένοις ἑαυτοῖς τὰ βελτίω τε καὶ συμφέροντα.

Ὁ μὲν γὰρ ὅσιος καὶ πολυύμνητος μάρτυς καὶ ἐπίσκοπος Βάσσος, ὁ σήμερον ταύτην ἡμῖν συγκροτῶν τὴν πανήγυριν, ἐκ τῶν οἰκείων ἄθλων τὰ ἔπαθλα κέκτηται, οὐδαμῶς μὲν τῆς παρ' ἡμῶν συνεισφορᾶς τῶν ἐγκωμίων δεόμενος, αὐτὸς δὲ τὰς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν συνήθως πρὸς τὸν ∆εσπότην ἱκεσίας ποιούμενος, οἷα καὶ τὴν πρὸς αὐτὸν διὰ τῆς τοῦ μαρτυρίου παλαίστρας παῤῥησίαν κτησάμενος, καὶ τὸν τῆς ἀφθαρσίας παρ' αὐτοῦ ὑποδεξάμενος στέφανον, ὃν καὶ τοῖς πιστοῖς ὁ Χριστὸς προευτρέπισεν. Ἄφθονα γὰρ, 50.720 κατὰ τὸν θεῖον Ἀπόστολον, τὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου χαρίσματα, καὶ πάλαι τοῖς ἐπικαλουμένοις γνησίως αὐτὸν τὰς τῶν μαρτύρων δωρεὰς πρυτανεύων, καὶ μάλιστα νῦν, ὅταν ἡμᾶς ἡ δι' ἐνιαυτοῦ μετὰ μικρὸν τῶν φόβων περιμένῃ ἀνάμνησις, καὶ τῆς φοβερᾶς ἐκείνης ἀπειλῆς ἡ φιλάνθρωπος ὀργὴ πρὸς δοξολογίαν καλῇ. Ἐθεασάμεθα γὰρ ὄντως θυμὸν φιλανθρωπίαν ἀστράπτοντα, ὅτε τὸν τῶν σεισμῶν περιεζώσθημεν φόβον, ὅτε κραδαινομένην τὴν κτίσιν ἐγνώκαμεν, ὅτε τὸ μὲν ἔδαφος σφοδρῶς ἐτινάσσετο, ὁ δὲ Σωτὴρ τῶν ἰδίων οἰκτιρμῶν οὐκ ἀφίστατο, ὅτε τὸ πικρὸν προσεδοκήσαμεν τέλος, ὅτε τάφους τὰς οἰκίας ἄφνω ἐνομίσαμεν, ὅτε τὸ τιναγμῷ συνεχόμενοι τόπον ἢ τρόπον καταφυγῆς οὐχ εὑρίσκομεν, ὅτε τὸ μέσον τῆς ἡμέρας φθάσαντες τὴν ἑσπέραν ἰδεῖν οὐκ ἠλπίσαμεν, ὅτε ἄνωθεν τῷ ξίφος ἐπήρτητο, καὶ κάτωθεν ἠνδρίζετο μετὰ προσευχῆς εὐποιία, ὅτε συμφώνως οἱ λαοὶ τὸ, Ἐλέησον, ἔκραζον. καὶ ὁ ∆εσπότης τοῖς οἰκτιρμοῖς ἐπεκάμπτετο· τῷ γὰρ βλέμματι κινῶν, τῇ χειρὶ τὴν ὑποτρέμουσαν κτίσιν ὑπέσφιγγε,

Τί συντόμως οὐ λέγω; ὅτε εἰ μὴ Κύριος Σαβαὼθ ἐβοήθησεν ἡμῖν παραβραχὺ παρῴκησε τῷ ᾅδῃ ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν. Τίνα γὰρ οὐκ ἐκπλήττει τῆς τοῦ Σωτῆρος φιλανθρωπίας τὸ μέγεθος; 50.721 τίνας οὐχὶ κινεῖ λογισμοὺς πρὸς εὐχαριστίαν τὰ τότε γεγενημένα, καὶ οὐ μόνον τὰ τότε, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ μετὰ ταῦτα, καὶ πρὸ βραχέως ἡμῖν ἀπαντήσαντα; Ἐσάλευσε τῆς γῆς τὰ στηρίγματα, ἐκλόνησε τῶν οἰκιῶν τὰ θεμέλια, τὰ δώματα καθάπερ ὁλκάδες ἐν τοῖς τοῦ πελάγους ἀνεβράσσοντο κύμασι· μόνον ἔδειξεν ὄμμα δικαστικὸν, καὶ καθάπερ ἐν ὕδασιν ἑστῶτες ἐδονούμεθα πάντες. Πολὺς ὁ φόβος, καὶ τοῦ φόβου τὰ τῆς φιλανθρωπίας πολυπλασίονα. Τὴν κτίσιν γὰρ κλονῶν οὐ κατέστρεψε, συσσείων τὸ πᾶν οὐκ ἠδάφισε, τοῦ κάλλους τῶν κτισμάτων τὴν γῆν οὐκ ἐγύμνωσεν· ἐτίναξε τοὺς ὀρόφους μόνον πρὸς τὴν ἡμετέραν ὑπόμνησιν, καὶ φθορᾶς οὐδὲ γεῦσιν ἡμῖν ἐκόμισε. Τοσοῦτον παρ' αὐτοῦ τῆς εἰς ἡμᾶς εὐσπλαγχνίας τὸ πέλαγος. Καὶ τὸ τινάξαι δὲ τῆς γῆς τὰς βάσεις, ὡς κηδεμὼν, ὡς φιλεύσπλαγχνος. Εἶδε γὰρ ἀθετοῦντας καὶ παραπικραίνοντας, εἶδε φιλοῦντας