2

The Pharisees, in defending Paul, refuted their own and the Jews' conspiracy that had been formed against him; thus the blessed David was shown to be persecuted in vain, when his persecutor confessed, saying, "I have sinned, my son David"; thus these men also, vanquished by the truth, saw fit and, having written, have delivered it to Julius 2.4 the bishop of Rome. They who had made such a stir also wrote to us, asking to have peace with us, and are perhaps even now blushing, because those whom they sought to destroy, they see living by the grace of the Lord. And they anathematized Arius and his heresy, doing this consistently. For knowing that the party of Eusebius plotted against us for no other reason than their own impiety, once they decided to confess their slander against us, they immediately renounced also the Christ-fighting heresy, on account of which they had feigned their accusations against us.

3.1

The things, then, written by the bishops on our behalf at various synods, and first those of the Egyptians, are as follows: The holy synod assembled in Alexandria from Egypt and the Thebaid and Libya and Pentapolis to the bishops everywhere in the catholic church, beloved and most desired brethren, greeting in the Lord. 3.2 We were able, indeed, beloved brethren, both at the beginning when our fellow minister Athanasius was conspired against, and also after he entered Alexandria, to make a defense concerning the things the party of Eusebius conspired against him, and to bring charges concerning what he suffered from them, and to show all the slanders that had been made against him; but since at that time circumstances did not permit, as you also know, and now we thought that after the return of bishop Athanasius they would be put to shame and would blush at their so 3.3 manifest injustices, for this reason we persuaded ourselves to be silent. But since after the man had suffered so many things, after his journey to Gaul, after his stay in a foreign land instead of his own and very far away, after he came near to dying from their slanders, had he not met with a philanthropic emperor, at which things any enemy would have been satisfied, even the most savage in temper, they do not blush, but again act insolently against the church and the man, and being indignant at his release they dare worse, second offenses. 3.4 And they accuse readily, but they do not fear what is written in the holy scriptures, "a false witness will not be unpunished," and "a lying mouth slays the soul." For this reason, we can no longer be silent, but we marvel at their wickedness and their insatiable 3.5 contentiousness in conspiracies. For behold, they do not cease again from troubling the royal ears against us, they do not cease from writing letters of destruction for the slaying of the bishop who is the enemy of their impiety. For again they have written to the emperors against him, again they want to conspire against him, alleging slaughters that did not happen, again they want to murder him, alleging murders that did not happen. And they would indeed have murdered him then by their slanders, if we had not met with a philanthropic emperor. Again, to say the least, they are eager for him to go into exile, pretending to lament 3.6 the misfortunes of exiles as if caused by him. And they lament among us things that did not happen, but they are not satisfied with what has been done against him, but want to attach second, worse things. So gentle and philanthropic and mild in manner are they, or rather (for the truth shall be told) wicked and bitter, and honored out of fear and threats rather than out of piety and mildness, which are fitting for bishops. For they have dared to pour out such words 3.7 as not even any meddlesome person from outside would utter, in what they have written to the emperors. And of so many murders and slaughters they have made accusation not before a governor, not before any other greater authority, but before the three Augusti, not even shrinking from the distances of the journeys, only that all things greater

2

Φαρισαῖοι ἀπολογούμενοι ὑπὲρ τοῦ Παύλου διήλεγχον τὴν ἑαυτῶν καὶ τῶν Ἰουδαίων κατ' αὐτοῦ γενομένην συνωμοσίαν· οὕτως ὁ μακάριος ∆αυὶδ ἐδείχθη μάτην διωκόμενος, ὁπηνίκα ὁ διώκων ὡμολόγησε λέγων· «ἥμαρτον, τέκνον ∆αυίδ»· οὕτως καὶ οὗτοι νικηθέντες ὑπὸ τῆς ἀληθείας ἠξίωσαν καὶ γράψαντες ἐπιδεδώκασιν Ἰουλίῳ 2.4 τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ Ῥώμης. ἔγραψαν δὲ καὶ ἡμῖν ἀξιοῦντες ἔχειν τὴν πρὸς ἡμᾶς εἰρήνην οἱ τοσαῦτα θρυλήσαντες καὶ τάχα καὶ νῦν ἐρυθριῶντες, διότι οὓς ἐζήτησαν ἀνελεῖν, τούτους τῇ χάριτι τοῦ κυρίου ζῶντας ὁρῶσι. καὶ Ἄρειον δὲ καὶ τὴν αἵρεσιν ἀνεθεμάτισαν ἀκολούθως τοῦτο ποιοῦντες. εἰδότες γάρ, ὡς δι' οὐδὲν ἕτερον οἱ περὶ Εὐσέβιον ἡμῖν ἐπεβούλευον ἢ διὰ τὴν ἰδίαν ἑαυτῶν ἀσέβειαν, ἅπαξ κρίναντες ὁμολογῆσαι τὴν καθ' ἡμῶν συκοφαντίαν εὐθὺς ἠρνήσαντο καὶ τὴν χριστομάχον αἵρεσιν, δι' ἣν καὶ τὰ καθ' ἡμῶν ὑπεκρίναντο.

3.1 Τὰ μὲν οὖν γραφέντα παρὰ τῶν ἐπισκόπων ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν κατὰ διαφόρους συνόδους καὶ πρῶτα τὰ τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ἔστι τάδε· Ἡ ἁγία σύνοδος ἡ ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ συναχθεῖσα ἀπό τε τῆς Αἰγύπτου καὶ τῆς Θηβαίδος καὶ Λιβύης καὶ Πενταπόλεως τοῖς ἁπανταχοῦ τῆς καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐπι σκόποις ἀγαπητοῖς καὶ ποθεινοτάτοις ἀδελφοῖς ἐν κυρίῳ χαίρειν. 3.2 Ἠδυνάμεθα μέν, ἀγαπητοὶ ἀδελφοί, καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἅμα τῷ συσκευασθῆναι τὸν συλλειτουργὸν ἡμῶν Ἀθανάσιον ἢ καὶ μετὰ τὸ εἰσελθεῖν αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν Ἀλεξάνδρειαν ἀπολογήσασθαι περὶ ὧν συνεσκευάσαντο αὐτῷ οἱ περὶ Εὐσέβιον καὶ αἰτιάσασθαι περὶ ὧν πέπονθε παρ' αὐτῶν καὶ δεῖξαι πάσας τὰς γεγενημένας κατ' αὐτοῦ συκοφαντίας· ἐπειδὴ δὲ τότε μὲν οὐκ ἐπέτρεπε τὰ πράγματα, ὡς ἴστε καὶ ὑμεῖς, νῦν δ' ἐνομίζομεν μετὰ τὴν ἐπάνοδον Ἀθανασίου τοῦ ἐπισκόπου δυσωπεῖσθαι καὶ ἐρυθριᾶν αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ οὕτω 3.3 φανεροῖς αὐτῶν ἀδικήμασι, τούτου ἕνεκεν σιγᾶν ἑαυτοὺς ἐπείσαμεν. ἐπεὶ δὲ μετὰ τὸ παθεῖν τοσαῦτα τὸν ἄνδρα, μετὰ τὴν εἰς Γαλλίας ἀποδημίαν, μετὰ τὴν ἐπὶ ξένης ἀντὶ τῆς οἰκείας καὶ πορρωτάτω διατριβήν, μετὰ τὸ ὀλίγου δεῖν αὐτὸν ἀποθανεῖν ἐκ τῶν διαβολῶν αὐτῶν, εἰ μὴ βασιλέως ἔτυχε φιλανθρώπου, ἐφ' οἷς ἂν καὶ πᾶς ἐχθρὸς ἐκορέσθη κἂν τὸν θυμὸν ὠμότατος, οὐκ ἐρυθριῶσιν, ἀλλὰ πάλιν ἐπινεανιεύονται κατὰ τῆς ἐκκλησίας καὶ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἄφεσιν ἀγανακτοῦντες αὐτοῦ χείροσιν ἐπιτολμῶσι δευτέροις. 3.4 καὶ κατηγοροῦσι μὲν εὐχερῶς, οὐ φοβοῦνται δὲ τὸ ἐν ταῖς ἁγίαις γραφαῖς γεγραμμένον «μάρτυς ψευδὴς οὐκ ἀτιμώρητος ἔσται» καὶ «στόμα καταψευδόμενον ἀναιρεῖ ψυχήν». διά τοι τοῦτο οὐκέτι μὲν δυνάμεθα σιγᾶν, θαυμάζομεν δὲ τὴν πονηρίαν αὐτῶν καὶ τὴν ἀκό 3.5 ρεστον ἐπὶ συσκευαῖς φιλονεικίαν. ἰδοὺ γὰρ οὐ παύονται πάλιν βασιλικὰς ἀκοὰς κι νοῦντες καθ' ἡμῶν, οὐ παύονται γράφοντες ὀλέθρου γράμματα πρὸς ἀναίρεσιν ἐπισκόπου τοῦ τῆς ἀσεβείας αὐτῶν ἐχθροῦ. πάλιν γὰρ ἔγραψαν τοῖς βασιλεῦσι κατ' αὐτοῦ, πάλιν αὐτὸν συσκευάσασθαι βούλονται, σφαγὰς αἰτιώμενοι μὴ γενομένας, πάλιν αὐτὸν φονεῦσαι βούλονται φόνους αἰτιώμενοι μὴ γενομένους. καὶ τότε γὰρ ἂν ἐφόνευσαν διαβάλλοντες, εἰ μὴ φιλανθρώπου βασιλέως ἐτύχομεν. πάλιν αὐτόν, ἵνα τὸ ἔλαττον εἴπωμεν, ἐπ' ἐξο ριστίαν ἀπελθεῖν ἐπείγονται συμφορὰς ἐξορίστων ὡς παρ' αὐτοῦ γενομένων προσποιού 3.6 μενοι θρηνεῖν. καὶ θρηνοῦσι μὲν παρ' ἡμῖν τὰ μὴ γενόμενα, οὐκ ἀρκοῦνται δὲ τοῖς γενομένοις κατ' αὐτοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ δεύτερα χείρονα προσάψαι βούλονται. οὕτως εἰσὶ πρᾶοι καὶ φιλάνθρωποι καὶ τὸν τρόπον ἐπιεικεῖς, μᾶλλον δὲ (εἰρήσεται γὰρ τἀληθές) πονηροὶ καὶ πικροὶ καὶ ἐκ φόβων καὶ ἀπειλῶν ἢ ἐξ εὐσεβείας καὶ ἐπιεικείας, ἃ τοῖς ἐπισκόποις πρέπει, τιμώμενοι. οἷα γὰρ μηδὲ τῶν ἔξω τις φιλοπραγμόνων φθέγξαιτο, τοιαῦτα ῥήματα 3.7 καταχέαι τετολμήκασιν ὧν πρὸς τοὺς βασιλέας ἔγραψαν. καὶ τοσούτων φόνων καὶ σφαγῶν κατηγόρησαν οὐκ ἐπὶ ἡγεμόνος, οὐκ ἐπ' ἄλλου τινὸς μείζονος, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τῶν Αὐγούστων τῶν τριῶν, οὐδὲ πρὸς τὰ διαστήματα τῶν ὁδῶν ἀποκνήσαντες, μόνον ἵνα πάντα μείζονα