Adversus Eunomianos (orat. 27)
Author namesGrégoire de Nazianze · Gregoire de Nazianze · Grégoire le Théologien · Gregory of Nazianzus · Gregorius Nazianzenus
- Scientific editors
- Arthur James Mason
- Edition reference
- The Five Theological Orations of Gregory Of Nazianzus · Cambridge · Cambridge University Press · 1899
- CTS identifier
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg2022.tlg007.local001- Corpus release
- 2.2.0 · 2026-08-29
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Chapter 1
Πρὸς τοὺς ἐν λόγῳ κομψοὺς ὁ λόγος. καὶ ἵνα ἀπὸ τῆς γραφῆς ἄρξωμαι· Ἴδου ἐγὼ ἐπὶ σὲ τὴν ὑβρίστριαν. εἰσὶ γάρ, εἰσί τινες, οἱ τὴν ἀκοὴν προσκνώμενοι καὶ τὴν γλῶσσαν, ἤδη δέ, ὡς ὁρῶ, καὶ τὴν χεῖρα, τοῖς ἡμετέροις λόγοις, καὶ χαίροντες ταῖς βεβήλοις κενοφωνίαις, καὶ ἀντιθέσεσι τῆς ψευδωνύμου γνώσεως, καὶ ταῖς εἰς οὐδὲν χρήσιμον φερούσαις λογομαχίαις. οὕτω γὰρ ὁ Παῦλος 1. 2 ὑβρίστριαν] + καὶ παίδευσιν καὶ ἀκοὴν καὶ διάνοιαν bEl || 4 om τοις ημ...χαιροωτεσ acd 1. Gr. complains of the verbosity and contentiousness of his opponents, unlike the brevity of St Paul. He wishes they would turn their attention to practice. I. πρὸς τοὺς ἐν λόγῳ κομψοὺς ὁ λόγος] The Eunomians prided themselves on their dialectical skill. Πρὸς is not ‘ ’ but ‘ addressed to ’ ; ‘ My argument is addressed to those who are smart in ’ There is a shade of sinister suggestion in the word κομψός. ib. ἀπὸ τῆς γρ.] It is not Gr.'s usual custom to take a text. 2. ἰδοὺ κτλ.] Jer. 1 31 (LXX. xxvii 31 ). The words added in b and by Elias appear to be interpretative addition. But the omission of words clearly required by the sense a little below throws some doubt on the authority of acd when they omit these here. If genuine, the accusatives express the departments in which the Eunomians display their ὕβρις: ‘ Ο thou most proud — in training, and hearing, and dis- positon’ The · ἀκοὴν anticipates the following reference to St ’s words. 3. τ. ἅκ. προσκνώμενοι] 2 Tim. iv 3. St ’s word is κνηθόμενοι. Gr. instinctively substitutes προσκν. to prepare more easily for τοῖς ἡμ. λόγοις, ‘ itching for our ’ Of course they ‘ itch ’ for them in a different sense from those of whom St Ρ. speaks. 4. τ. χεῖρα] They are prepared to fight. Elias understands it of itching to write against Gr. 5.βεβ. κενοφ. κτλ.] Ι Tim. vi 20; 2 Tim. ii 16 ; cf. 1 Tim. vi 4 and 2 Tim. ii 14. καλεῖ πᾶν τὸ ἐν λόγῳ περιττὸν καὶ περίεργον, ὁ τοῦ συντετμημένου λόγου κῆρυξ καὶ βεβαιωτής, ὁ τῶν ἁλιέων μαθητὴς καὶ διδάσκαλος. οὗτοι δέ, περὶ ὧν ὁ λόγος, εἴθε μέν, ὥσπερ τὴν γλῶσσαν εὔστροφον ἔχουσι καὶ δεινὴν ἐπιθέσθαι λόγοις εὐγενεστέροις τε καὶ δοκιμωτέροις, οὕτω τι καὶ περὶ τὰς πράξεις ἠσχολοῦντο μικρὸν γοῦν, καὶ ἴσως ἧττον ἂν ἦσαν σοφισταὶ καὶ κυβισταὶ λόγων ἄτοποι καὶ παράδοξοι, ἵν εἴπω τι καὶ γελοίως περὶ γελοίου πράγματος.
Chapter 2
‘Επεὶ δὲ πᾶσαν εὐσεβείας ὁδὸν καταλύσαντες πρὸς ἓν τοῦτο βλέπουσι μόνον, ὅ τι δήσουσιν ἢ λύσουσι τῶν 6 γοῦν] οὑν d || 7 κυβισται] ’in nonnullis κυβενται.᾿ 2. 10 δησωσιν η λύσωσι bd 1. περιττὸν κ. περίεργον] perhaps ’excessive in volume, and over-subtle in character. ’ But the two words are practically synonymous ; cf. I Tim. v 13 φλύαροι κ. περίεργοι. ib. τοῦ συντετμ. λόγου] Rom. ix 28 ; cf. Is. xxviii 22 (LXX.). 2. ὁ τῶν ἅλ’. μαθητὴς κ. διδάσκαλοσ] as distinguished from the professional fessional training of the Eunomian disputants. It is a bold thing, in the face of Gal. i 12, to call St Ρ. ‘ the ’s disciple ’ : probably it is for that reason that Gr. adds ‘ and ’ He appears to have in view such incidents as Gal. ii 14 perhaps also the Pauline influence discernible in St Peter's Epistles. 4. δεινὴν ἔπιθ’. κτλ.] ’clever at the employment of noble and choice ’ This way of using the com- parative is familiar; it almost = nobilissimis quibusque uerbis. 5. οὕτω τι καί] biting irony. Even a little attention to conduct would make a great difference. ‘Aσχολεῖσθαι σθαι = ‘ to occupy oneself. ’ 6. καὶ ἴσως] The phrase means (continuing the irony) that in that case the chances would not be very remote. 7. κυβισταὶ λόγων] ‘ word-tum-blers.' Κυβιστὴς (more usually κυβιστητήρ) is one who stands on his head, or turns head over heels, or (according to Elias) a diver. The reading κυβευταὶ ’dicers,’ or ‘sharper's (cf. Eph. iv 14), would not suggest the ‘ ridiculous ’ image which Gr. half apologizes for using. ib. ἄτοποι κ. παράδοξοι] ‘ strange and ’ Ἅτοπος does not seem to be used here, as it often is, either in the sense of ’absurd,’ i.e. unreasonable, or in that of ‘monstrous,’ ’ i.e. wicked. Gr. only emphasizes phasizes the surprising nature of the feats which the Eunomians perform. 2. No part of society is free from their importunate wrangling; Christianity is in danger of becoming a matter of pettifogging logic. The opponents must give a fatherly heart leave to express its concern. If they are not moved by what he says, they will at least have the satisfaction of rejecting and deriding it. He does not intend to adopt their style. 9. καταλύσαντες] ’having ’ stroyed ’ or ‘ broken up ’ ; both for themselves and for their disciples. Εὐσέβεια is here practical piety. 10. ὅ τι δήσ. ἢ λῦσ’. τ. προβ.] ’They care for nothing but the opportunity of tying or untying some knotty proposition.‘ προβαλλομένων, — καθάπερ ἐν τοῖς θεάτροις οἱ τὰ παλαίσματα δημοσιεύοντες, καὶ τῶν παλαισμάτων οὐχ ὅσα πρὸς νίκην φέρει κατὰ νόμους ἀθλήσεως, ἀλλ’ ὅσα τὴν ὄψιν κλέπτει τῶν ἀμαθῶν τὰ τοιαῦτα καὶ συναρπάζει τὸν ἐπαινέτην,—καὶ καὶ πᾶσαν μὲν ἀγορὰν περιβομβεῖσθαι τοῖς τούτων λόγοις, πᾶν δὲ συμπόσιον ἀποκναίεσθαι φλυαρίᾳ καὶ ἀηδίᾳ, πᾶσαν δὲ ἑορτὴν καὶ πένθος ἅπαν, τὴν μὲν ἀνέορτον εἶναι καὶ μεστὴν κατηφείας, τὸ δὲ παραμυθεῖσθαι συμφορᾷ μείζονι τοῖς ζητήμασι, πᾶσαν δὲ διοχλεῖσθαι γυναικωνῖτιν, ἁπλότητι σύντροφον, καὶ τὸ τῆς αἰδοῦς ἄνθος ἀποσυλᾶσθαι τῇ περὶ λόγον ταχύτητι· ἐπειδὴ ταῦτα οὕτω, καὶ τὸ κακὸν ἄσχετον καὶ ἀφόρητον, καὶ κινδυνεύει τεχνύδροιν εἶναι τὸ μέγα ἡμῶν μυστήριον· φέρε, τοσοῦτον γοῦν ἡμῶν ἀνασχέσθωσαν οἱ κατάσκοποι σπλάγχνοις πατρικοῖς κινουμένων καί, ὅ φησιν ὁ θεῖος ‘Ιερεμίας, σπαρασσομένων τὰ αἰσθητήρια, ὅσον μὴ τραχέως τὸν περὶ τούτων δέξασθαι 2. καὶ τῶν πάλ’.] ‘ And that too, not stick wrestling matches ’ etc. 4. κλέπτει] ‘ takes unfair possession of the ’ as opposed to the legitimate skill in wrestling. ib. τοιαῦτα] ace. after ἀμαθῶν, ‘ not versed in things οf the ’ ib. συναρπ. τ. ἐπαιν. ] an extension of the metaphor of κλέπτει. ‘ Extorts applause? lit. ’ the applauder.’ 5. περιβομβεῖσθαι] όμβος, orig. the humming of bees, comes to be used of any insistent and continuous noise. 6. ἀποκναίεσθαι] ’to be ’ or ‘made wade tedious. ’ Demosthenes (564. 12) has the expression ἀποκναίει ἀηδιᾳ καἰ ἀναισθήσιᾳ καθ’ ἑκάστην ἐκκλησίαν ταῦτα λέγων, which (Jr. perhaps has in mind. 8. παραμυθεῖσθαι συμΦ. μ. τοῖς ζητήμασι] De Billy and others understand παραμ.= βαρύνεσθαι, comparing Job xvi. 2 παρακλήτορας κακῶν, which they take to mean ‘ abettors of my afflictions.’ But this seems an unnatural sense to put upon the verb, and it would be hard to find a parallel example. Gr. prob. means that the worse calamity of their disputations relieves the lesser calamity of sorrow. The ’comfort’ in Ezek. xiv 22, 23 is by some interpreted in this fashion. 10. ἁπλ. σύντροφον] ’associated with simplicity,’ ‘ used to ’ it ; a frequent use of the word. 11. ἀποσυλ. τ. π. λόγον ταχύτητι] cf. James i 19. To rush into argument is, in Gr.’s view, a desecration of the flower of womanly modesty. It is best to take ἄνθος as the object of ἀποσυλ., γυναῖκ’. being the subject. 12. τεχνύδριον] a diminutive of τέχυη, like λογύδριον, χερύδριον, βιβλύδριον, ‘α little finicking profession.’ 13. τὸ μέγα ἡ. μυστήριον] 1 Tim. iii 16. 14. κατάσκοποι] usually thought to be used instead of ἐπίσκοποι. But there is no indication that Gr. was chiefly thinking of heretical bishops. 15. σπαρ. τὰ αὶσο.] Jer. iv 19 (LXX.). λόγον, καὶ τὴν γλῶσσαν μικρὸν ἐπισχόντες, ἃν ἄρα καὶ δύνωνται, τὴν ἀκοὴν ἡμῖν ὑποθέτωσαν. πάντως δὲ οὐδὲν ζημιωθήσεσθε. ἢ γὰρ εἰς ὦτα ἐλαλήσαμεν ἀκουόντων, καί τινα καρπὸν ἔσχεν ὁ λόγος, τὴν ὠφέλειαν τὴν ὑμετέραν,— ἐπειδὴ σπείρει μὲν ὁ σπείρων τὸν λόγον ἐπὶ πᾶσαν διάνοιαν, καρποφορεῖ δὲ ἡ καλή τε καὶ γόνιμος, — ἢ ἀπήλθετε καὶ τοῦτο ἡμῶν διαπτύσαντες, καὶ πλείονα λαβόντες ὕλην ἀντιλογίας τε καὶ τῆς καθ’ ἡμῶν λοιδορίας, ἵνα καὶ μᾶλλον ὑμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἑστιάσητε. μὴ θαυμάσητε δέ, εἰ παράδοξον ἐρῶ λόγον, καὶ παρὰ τὸν ὑμέτερον νόμον, οἳ πάντα εἰδέναι τε καὶ διδάσκειν ὑπισχνεῖσθε λίαν νεανικῶς καὶ γενναίως, ἵνα μὴ λυπῶ λέγων ἀμαθῶς καὶ θρασέως.
Chapter 3
Οὐ παντός, ὦ οὗτοι, τὸ περὶ θεοῦ φιλοσοφεῖν, οὐ παντός· οὐχ οὕτω τὸ πρᾶγμα εὔωνον καὶ τῶν χαμαὶ ἐρχομένων. προσθήσω δέ, οὐδὲ πάντοτε, οὐδὲ πᾶσιν, οὐδὲ πάντα, ἀλλ’ ἔστιν ὅτε, καὶ οἷς, καὶ ἐφ’ ὅσον. οὐ πάντων μέν, ὅτι τῶν ἐξητασμένων καὶ διαβεβηκότων ἐν θεωρίᾳ, καὶ πρὸ τούτων καὶ ψυχὴν καὶ σῶμα κεκαθαρμένων, ἢ καθαιρομένων, τὸ μετριώτατον. μὴ καθαρῷ γὰρ ἅπτεσθαι 1 ἄρα καὶ] om καὶ bcd || 10 νόμον ’τον ὑμέτερον c. 3. 16 κα οις] ἐφ’ ὄις b || ἐφ’ ὅσον] ων b 3. ἐλαλήσαμεν . . . ἕσχςν] Gr. as- sumes that what he asks has been done, and looks back upon the re- suit. The words are a quotation from Ecclus. xxv 9. 5. ὁ σπείρων τ. λ.] Mk iv 14. 6. καἰ τοῦτο ἤμ’. διαπτύσαντες] Cp. Oral, xxv § 18 διάπτυέ μοι τὰς ἐνστάσεις. ’ Pouring contempt upon this utterance as you have done tipon others of ours.' ’ If they fail to get good, Gr. ironically says they will at least have the advantage of in- dulging in increased contempt for their opponents. 9. παράδοξον] i.e. what the Eu- nomians will consider to be such. ΙΙ. νεανικῶς] ’ ’ ‘audaciously’; cp. iii 1. On ’s lips of course it has an ironical meaning. 3. To speak on theological subjects belongs only to men prepared by deep study and by moral self-purification. It should be done only in seasons of calmness, before serious hearers; and the subjects should be such ἃς the or- dinary intelligence can grasp. 14. εὔωνον] ’so cheaply acquired.' ib. τ. χαμαὶ ἔρχομ’.] ’ nor is it the property of those tvho go along upon the ground ’ ; a common expression from Homer downwards. 17. διαβεβηκότων] Διαβεβηκώς is one who stands firmly planted upon both feet. Elias paraphrases by ἡδραιωμένων, though he gives an alternative explanation. 19. τὸ μετριώτατον] ‘to say the least of ’ For the thouglht, cp. Athan. de Inc. § 57. καθαροῦ τυχὸν οὐδὲ ἀσφαλές, ὥσπερ οὐδὲ ὄψει σαθρᾷ ἡλιακῆς ἀκτῖνος. ὅτε δέ; ἡνίκα ἂν σχολὴν ἄγωμεν ἀπὸ τῆς ἔξωθεν ἰλύος καὶ ταραχῆς, καὶ μὴ τὸ ἡγεμονικὸν ἡμῶν συγχέηται τοῖς μοχθηροῖς τύποις καὶ πλανωμένοις, οἷον γράμμασι πονηροῖς ἀναμιγνύντων κάλλη γραμμάτων, ἢ βορβόρῳ μύρων εὐωδίαν. δεῖ γὰρ τῷ ὄντι σχολάσαι, καὶ γνῶναι θεόν· καὶ ὅταν λάβωμεν καιρόν, κρίνειν θεολογίας εὐθύτητα. τίσι δέ; οἷς τὸ πρᾶγμα διὰ σπουδῆς, καὶ οὐχ ὡς ἕν τι τῶν ἄλλων καὶ τοῦτο φλυαρεῖται ἡδέως, μετὰ τοὺς ἱππικούς, καὶ τὰ θέατρα, καὶ τὰ ᾄσματα, καὶ τὴν γαστέρα, καὶ τὰ ὑπὸ γαστέρα · οἷς καὶ τοῦτο μέρος τρυφῆς, ἡ περὶ ταῦτα ἐρεσχελία καὶ κομψεία τῶν ἀντιθέσεων. τίνα δὲ φιλοσοφητέον, καὶ ἐπὶ πόσον ; ὅσα ἡμῖν ἐφικτά, καὶ ἐφ’ ὅσον ἡ τοῦ ἀκούοντος ἕξις ἐφικνεῖται καὶ δύναμις· 14 ἐξικνεῖται bd ’Or. 1 etc.’ 1. τυχόν] ‘ perhaps ἴθι even free from danger. ’ The words are based upon Plato Phaed. p. 67 μὴ καθαρῷ γὰρ καθαροῦ ἐφάπτεσθαι μὴ οὐ θεμιτὸν ᾖ. ib. σαθρᾷ] properly = σαπρᾷ ‘decayed,’ ‘corrupt,’ but used in the sense of ’ ’ ’feeble.’ Cp. § 5 and iii 6, where it is contrasted with ἰσχύν, ἰσχυροῖς. Hesych. σαθρά· ἀσθενῆ, κεκλασμένα. 3. ἰλύος] lit. ’mud’’, esp. in solution, the impurities which hinder a liquid from being clear. By τῆς ἕξ. ἰ. κ. ταραχῆς Gr. seems to mean the confusions and agitations of secular life. ib. τὸ ἡγεμονικόν] ‘ the commanding ’ a technical word from philosophy, esp. Stoic philosophy, descriptive of the reason. See Plutarch de Plac. Phil. 898 Ε and 903 B ; also Cic. de Nat. Deor. 11 xi 29. 4. τύποις] ’impressions,’ or ‘images.’ Μοχθηρὸς is a word of many shades of meaning. Here it appears to mean, not ’vicious,’ nor ’unhappy,’ but (like πονηροῖς just below) ’poor,’ ’worthless,’ — ’worthless and roving imaginations. ’ 5. κάλλη γραμμάτων] So Pint, speaks of κάλλη οἰκοδομημάτων = καλὰ οἰκοδομήματα. 6. σχολάσαι κ. γν. θεόν] Psalm xlv (our xlvi) 10. The καὶ γνῶναι has the force of ‘ and so to ’ ‘in order to know. ’ 7. ὅταν λάβ’. καιρόν] Psalm Ixxiv 3 (lxxv 2). Not at all times, but only when we ’ receive the οpportunity,’ can we ’judge according unto right ’ in matters of theology. 8. διὰ σπουδῆς] so ἐστί. ' To whom it is a serious thing, and who μ’ not make this also, like other things, α subject of light conversation.’ 10. τοὺς ἱππικούς] sc. ἀγῶνας, or perh. δρόμους. 12. ἐρεσχελία] ‘ disputing for fun? esp. with a view to provoking, as distinguished from ’ talking in earnest. ’ 13. τίνα] neut. plur. ; ’on what subjects?’ ib. ἐφικτά] ’ within our reach.’ 14. ἕξις] appears to mean skill,’ ’ acquired power.’ ἵνα μὴ καθάπερ αἱ ὑπερβάλλουσαι τῶν φωνῶν, ἢ τῶν τροφῶν, τὴν ἀκοὴν βλάπτουσιν ἢ τὰ σώματα, — εἰ βούλει δέ, τῶν φορτίων τὰ ὑπὲρ δύναμιν τοὺς ὑποβαίνοντας, ἢ τὴν γῆν τῶν ὑετῶν οἱ σφοδρότεροι, — οὕτω δὴ καὶ οὗτοι τοῖς στερροῖς, ἵν οὕτως εἴπω, τῶν λόγων καταπιεσθέντες καὶ βαρυνθέντες ζημιωθεῖεν καὶ εἰς τὴν ἀρχαίαν δύναμιν.
Chapter 4
καὶ οὐ λέγω τοῦτο μὴ δεῖν πάντοτε μεμνῆσθαι θεοῦ. μὴ πάλιν ἐπιφυέσθωσαν ἡμῖν οἱ πάντα εὔκολοι καὶ ταχεῖς. μνημονευτέον γὰρ θεοῦ μᾶλλον ἢ ἀναπνευστέον· καί, εἰ οἷόν τε τοῦτο εἰπεῖν, μηδὲ ἄλλο τι ἢ τοῦτο πρακτέον. κἀγὼ τῶν ἐπαινούντων εἰμὶ τὸν λόγον, ὃς μελετᾷν ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς διακελεύεται, καὶ ἑσπέρας καὶ πρωὶ καὶ μεσημβρίς διηγεῖσθαι, καὶ εὐλογεῖν τὸν κύριον ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ· εἰ δεῖ καὶ τὸ Μωυσέως εἰπεῖν, κοιταζόμενον, διανστάμενον, ὁδοιποροῦντα, ὅ τι οὖν ἄλλο πράττοντα, καὶ τῆ μνήμη 2 βλάπτωσιν bc || 3 ὑπερβαίνοντας a || 4 δὴ] ’δε cd || 6 βαρηθέντες c 4. 7 om τοῦτο a || II λόγον] νόμον bd 4. τοῖς στεπποῖς τῶν λόγων] Though Gr. is fond of the partitive gen. (οἱ στερροὶ τῶν λόγων = οἱ λόγοι οἱ στερροί), it seems best here to suppose τοῖς ’στ’. to be neut., ’the solid qualities of our discourses? Perh. Gr. is still using the metaphor or simile of food. It would seem to suit καταπιεσθέντες κ. βαρυνθέντες as well as τοῖς στερροῖς. Cf. Heb. v 12 στερεά τροφή). 6. ζημ. καὶ εἰς τ. ἁ. δ.] The εἰς does not denote the extent of the damage, but the quarter in which it is felt. Over-strong meat not only fails to increase the vital forces of those to whom it is administered; it even impairs those which they possessed. Cp. v 26. 4. It is always right to think of God; but not always suitable to discourse of Him. 8. ἐπιφυέσθωσαν] ἐπιφύειν is ’to plant upon ’ ; hence in pass. ‘to fasten upon and cling ’ like hounds upon a quarry. Plutarch frequently uses the word in this way; e.g. § 1 ἐπιφυομένους, ὥσπερ θηρίοις εὐγενεῖς σκύλακας. Gr. uses it again in v ιι. ib. οἱ π. εὔκολοι] ‘ who are always (lit. in all points) so agile and ’ ὕκολος (cp. δύσκολος), from κόλον, ’diet,’ means originally one whose food agrees with him. Hence it comes to be used for facility in any direction. Plato Legg. 942 D uses the substantive in the sense of bodily activity, which (metaphorically applied) plied) is the sense here. 9. μνήμον. κτλ.] ’It is more necessary to remember God than to breathe.’ 11 . τῶν ἐπ’. εἰμι] ‘ am one of those who approve.’ ib. μελετᾷν ἤμ’. κ. νυκτός] Psalm i 2 (Josh, i 8). 12. ἑσπέρας κτλ.] Psalm liv 18 (lv Ι7). 13. εὐλογεῖν κτλ.] Psalm xxxiii 2 (xxxiv 1). 14. κοιταζόμενον κτλ.] Deut. vi 7 (cp. xi 19). τυποῦσθαι πρὸς καθαρότητα. ὥστε οὐ τὸ μεμνῆσθαι δίη. νεκῶς κωλύω, τὸ θεολογεῖν δέ· οὐδὲ τὴν θεολογίαν, ὥσπερ ἀσεβές, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀκαιρίαν· οὐδὲ τὴν διδασκαλίαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀμετρίαν. ἢ μέλιτος μὲν πλησμονὴ καὶ κόρος ἔμετον ἐργάζεται, καίπερ ὄντος μέλιτος, καὶ καιρὸς τῷ παντὶ πράγματι, ὡς Σολομῶντι κἀμοὶ δοκεῖ, καὶ τὸ καλὸν οὐ καλόν, ὅταν μὴ καλῶς γίνηται, ὥσπερ ἄνθος ἐν χειμῶνι παντελῶς ἄωρον, καὶ γυναιξὶ κόσμος ἀνδρεῖος, ἢ γυναικεῖος ἀνδράσι, καὶ πένθει γεωμετρία, καὶ πότῳ δάκρυον, ἐνταῦθα δὲ μόνον τὸν καιρὸν ἀτιμάσομεν, οὗ μάλιστα τιμητέον τὸ εὔκαιρον ;
Chapter 5
Μηδαμῶς, ὦ φίλοι καὶ ἀδελφοί· ἀδελφοὺς γὰρ ὑμᾶς ἔτι καλῶ, καίπερ οὐκ ἀδελφικῶς ἔχοντας· μὴ οὕτω διανοώμεθα, μηδὲ καθάπερ ἵπποι θερμοὶ καὶ δυσκάθεκτοι, τὸν ἐπιβάτην λογισμὸν ἀπορρίψαντες, καὶ τὴν καλῶς 3 εὐσεβὲς acd ’duo Colb. Coisl. 3 Or. 1 ’ 2. θεολογεῖν] = τὸ περὶ θεοῦ φιλο- σοφεῖν (supra), ‘to discuss theology.’ ib. ὥσπερ ἀσεβές] ‘ as though it were wrong in itself? The reading εὐσεβές, though well attested, appears to be the result of misunderstanding. It would mean, ’ nor do I forbid theology, if done in a godly manner.’ 4. τὴν ἀμετρίαν] ‘ Nor is it the function of a teacher that I object to, but want of judgment in the exercise of it.' ib. ἢ μέλιτος κτλ.] Prov. xxv 16. καίπερ ὄντος μ., ‘ honey though it ’ i.e. the best of things in itself. 5. καιρὸς τῷ π. π.] Eccl. iii 1 ; ὡς Σ. κἀμοὶ δ., ‘ There is α time... as Solomon and I think.’ 6. τὸ καλὸν οὐ κ.] The saying is quoted as a proverbial one ὅ Φασιν) in the Clementine Epitome § 18. 7. ἄνθος ἐν χ.] rather a curious instance to choose, — as if people would object to flowers in winter. 9. πένθει γεωμ.] Geometry was, so Maximus suggests, a recreation and a joy. Indeed, according to him, it formed part of the musical curriculum, and as such is included in the warning of Ecclus. xxii 6. After this suggestion Max. gives up the enquiry into Gr.'s meaning. Perhaps it was not necessary to go so far into it. Or. is only taking examples of irksome incongruity. ib. ἐνταῦθα δέ] ‘ And shall we in this case alone disregard “ the time ”?’ 5. We should not discuss theology before the heathen. Tiny turn our dissensions into a defence of heathenism, and come down upon our weaknesses like flies upon a sore. They would themselves rather die than divule their mysteries. We must learn the decencies of speech. 13. οὐκ ἀδελφικῶς ἕχ.] ’ although so unbrotherly ’ Cp. Aug. Serm. ccclvii 4, Quiduis dicas, quantumlibet odens, at placuerit detesteris, teris, frater meus es. 14. θερμοὶ κ. δυσκάθεκτοι] θ. is ‘wild,’ ‘excited’ ; δυσκ. (from κατέχειν), ‘hard to hold in.' Xenophon uses it ID the same sense. 15. ἐπιβάτην] more usually signifies ’ a rider ’ ; but here the metaphor is probably taken from a chariot race, and ἐπιβ. will mean ’ the man in the ’ i.e. the driver. The word is elsewhere used in a more restricted sense, of the man who fights in a chariot, not the driver; but it is evidently not so intended here. ἄγχουσαν εὐλάβειαν ἀποπτύσαντες, πόρρω τῆς νύσσης θέωμεν· ἀλλ’ εἴσω τῶν ἡμετέρων ὅρων φιλοσοφῶμεν, καὶ μὴ εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἐκφερώμεθα, μηδὲ εἰς Ἀσσυρίους κατασυ- ρώμεθα, μηδὲ ᾄδωμεν τὴν ᾠδὴν κυρίου ἐπὶ γῆς ἀλλοτρίας, πάσης ἀκοῆς λέγω, ξένης τε καὶ ἡμετέρας, ἐχθρᾶς καὶ φιλίας, εὐγνώμονος καὶ ἀγνώμονος, ἢ λίαν ἐπιμελῶς τηρεῖ τὰ ἡμέτερα, καὶ βούλοιτο ἂν τὸν σπινθῆρα τῶν ἐν ἡμῖν κακῶν γενέσθαι φλόγα, ἐξάπτει τε καὶ ἀναρριπίζει καὶ εἰς οὐρανὸν αἴρει ταῖς παρ’ ἑαυτῆς αὔραις λανθάνουσα, καὶ ποιεῖ τῆς Βαβυλωνίας φλογὸς τὰ κύκλῳ καταφλεγούσης ὑψηλοτέραν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ οὐκ ἐν τοῖς ἑαυτῶν δόγμασιν ἔχουσι τὴν ἰσχύν, ἐν τοῖς ἡμετέροις σαθροῖς ταύτην θη- ρεύουσι, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο, ὥσπερ αἰ μυῖαι τοῖς τραύμασιν, 1. ἄγχουσαν] lit. ‘throttling,’ ‘strangling’; here ‘restraining.’ ib. ἀποπτύσαντες] lit. ‘ slitting out,’ i.e. ‘ getting the bit out of our mouths.’ It is used by other authors of the same action. ib. πόρρωτῆςνύσσης θέωμεν] ‘dash wide of the .’ Νύσσα (Lat. meta) is the καμπτήρ, or post, round which the chariot turns to do the second lap of the δίαυλος. Naturally, it ought to be barely euitata rotis. 2. εἵσω τ. ἤμ’. ὅρων] The metaphor phor begins to change; and Gr. ’s, as the following words shew, ’within the Holy ’ i.e. within the Church. The Egypt and Assyria are the heathen world, — not, as Elias and others take it, heretical Christians. 3. ἐκφερώμεθα . . . κατασυρώμεθα] The metaphor of the runaway chariot seems not to have wholly disappeared. There is, of course, a reference to such passages as Hos. ix 3. 4. τὴν ᾠδὴν κ.] Psalm exxxvi cexxxvii) 4. 5. πάσης ἀκοῆς λέγω] ‘Ι mean any and every ’ ‘Akoῆς is grammatically in apposition to γῆς. 6. εὐγνώμονος κ. ἂγ ἀγν.] ‘sympathetic thetic or unsympathetic.’ This seems from the context to be the intended meaning; but it would be equally in accordance with the usage of the words to understand (as Elias does) ‘ sensible and senseless. ’ ib. ἢ] very naturally refers only to the ἀκοὴ ἀγνώμων, or the γῆ ἀλ- λοτρία. 7. τὰ ἡμέμτερα...τῶν ἐν ἤμ’. κακῶν] The heathen and unconverted keep a watch upon Christians, and make the most of anything among them that is wrong ; ‘ would like the spark ...to become a flame.’ 8. ἀναρριπίζει] ’fans it up ’ ; from ῥιπίς, ‘a fan.’ 9. λανθάνουσα] i.e. without our seeing what they are about. 10. τῆς Baβ. φλογός] Dan. iii 23 (LXX.). 11. δόγμασιν] ‘ received ’ ; used of heathen beliefs in general, — possibly of the doctrines of heathen philosophers in particular. οὕτω τοῖς ἡμετέροις ἐπιτίθενται — εἴτε ἀτυχήμασι λέγειν, εἴτε ἁμαρτήμασιν. ἁλλ’ ἡμεῖς γε μὴ ἐπὶ πλεῖον ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἀγνοήσωμεν, μηδὲ τὸ περὶ ταῦτα κόσμιον ἀτιμάσωμεν· ἀλλ’ εἰ μὴ τὴν ἔχθραν καταλύσασθαι δυνατόν, ἐκεῖνό γε συμβῶμεν ἀλλήλοις, μυστικῶς τὰ μυστικὰ φθέγγεσθαι, καὶ ἁγίως τὰ ἅγια, καὶ μὴ ῥίπτειν εἰς βεβήλους ἀκοὰς τὰ μὴ ἔκφορα, μηδὲ σεμνοτέρους ἡμῶν ἀποφαίνωμεν τοὺς προσκυνοῦντας τοῖς δαιμονίοις καὶ τῶν αἰσχρῶν μύθων καὶ πραγμάτων θεραπευτάς, οἲ θᾶττον ἂν τοῦ αἵματος ἢ λόγων ἔστιν ὧν μεταδοῖεν τοῖς ἀμυήτοις. ἀλλ’ εἰδῶμεν, ὥσπερ ἐσθῆτος καὶ διαίτης καὶ γέλωτος καὶ βαδίσματος οὖσάν τινα κοσμιότητα, οὕτω καὶ λόγου καὶ σιωπῆς, ὅτι καὶ λόγον πρεσβεύομεν μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων τοῦ θεοῦ προσηγοριῶν καὶ δυνάμεων. ἔστω καὶ τὸ φιλόνεικον ἡμῶν ἔννομον.
Chapter 6
Τί γέννησιν ἀκούει θεοῦ καὶ κτίσιν, καὶ θεὸν οὐκ ὄντων, καὶ τομὴν καὶ διαίρεσιν καὶ ἀνάλυσιν, ὁ πικρὸς τῶν λεγομένων ἀκροατής ; τί δικαστὰς τοὺς κατηγόρους καθίζομεν; τί τὰ ξίφη τοῖς ἐχθροῖς ἐγχειρίξομεν ; πῶς, οἴει, δέξεται τὸν περὶ τούτων λόγον, ἢ μεθ’ οἵας τῆς διανοίας, ὁ τὰς μοιχείας ἐπαινῶν καὶ τὰς παιδοΦθορίας, καὶ προσκυνῶν τὰ πάθη, καὶ μηδὲν ὑπὲρ τὸ σῶμα διανοηθῆναι δυνάμενος, ὁ χθὲς καὶ πρώην ἑαυτῷ στήσας θεούς, καὶ τούτους ἐπὶ τοῖς αἰσχίστοις γνῶ γνωριξομένους ; οὐχ ὑλικῶς ; οὐκ αἰσχρῶς; οὐκ ἀμαθῶς ; οὐχ ὡς εἴωθεν ; οὐ συνήγορον τῶν οἰκείων θεῶν καὶ παθῶν τὴν σὴν θεολογίαν ποιήσεται ; εἰ γὰρ αὐτοὶ ταῖς φωναῖς ταύταις ἐπηρεάζομεν, σχολῇ γ ἂν ἐκείνους πείσαιμεν φιλοσοφεῖν ἐν τοῖς ἡμετέροις· καὶ εἰ 6. 3 ακροατης] εξεταστης b 1. γέννησιν. . .κ. κτίσιν] The one is an orthodox word and the other a heretical one ; but Gr. deprecates the using of both alike before a promiscuous public. ib. θεὸν ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων] The Arians affirmed that the Son ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων ἐγένετο, but of course denied that He was in the full sense θεός. Gr., however, is speaking of the effect produced upon the heathen by the varying language of professing Christians. 2. τομὴν κ. διαίρεσιν κ. ἀνάλυσιν] These are not to be taken (as Elias and others take them) as technical terms of theology ; nor are they strictly parallel to the first three accusatives after ἀκούει. The ἀκροατής hears οf ‘ begetting ’ and ‘creation’; he hears ’dissection and division and analysis.’ 4. καθίζομεν] as in I Cor. v 4. 6. ἐπαινῶν] inasmuch as he attributes such actions to the gods. 8. ὁ χθὲς κτλ.] Gr. does not mean that he no longer worships those gods, but rather that he has not worshipped them very long. The heathen is accustomed to making new gods. 9. οὐχ ὑλικῶς] He cannot but put a material construction upon such language. Ἀμαθῶς will mean ‘grossly.’ 10. συνήγορον] He will turn what you say about God into an advocacy of his own deified passions. 12. ταῖς φωναῖς τ. ἐπηρεάζομεν] The Eunomians ‘ maltreated these ’ by maintaining that, because the Son is begotten, the Father must have existed before Him. At the same time Gr. does not acquit his own party of a similar misuse of terms, as is seen by what follows, though in their case the misuse lay in a different direction. 13. φίλ’. ἐν τοῖς ἡμετέροις] τοῖς ἤμ’. is prob. neuter, ‘ in our quarters ’ ’ in our ’; but it may be masc., ‘ among our ’ In either case, of course, it means, ’to adopt and use our system of ’ The term φιλοσοφία was early applied to Christianity. See Melito ap. Eus. Hist. Eccl. iv xxvi 7 ἢ καθ’ ἡμᾶς φιλοσοφία. παρ’ ἑαυτῶν εἰσὶν ἐφευρεταὶ κακῶν, πότε ἂν τῶν διδομένων ἀπόσχοιντο ; ταῦτα ἡμῖν ὁ πρὸς ἀλλήλους πόλεμος. ταῦτα οἱ πλεῖον ὑπὲρ τοῦ λόγου μαχόμενοι, ἢ ὅσον ἀρέσκει τῷ Λόγῳ, καὶ ταὐτὸν πάσχοντες τοῖς μαινομένοις, οἲ τοὺς ἰδίους οἴκους ἀνάπτουσιν, ἢ τοὺς παῖδας σπαράττουσιν, ἢ τοὺς γονέας περιωθοῦσιν, ὡς ἀλλοτρίους νομίζοντες.
Chapter 7
'Eπεὶ δὲ ἀπεσκευασάμεθα τοῦ λόγου τὸ ἀλλότριον, καὶ εἰς τὴν ἀγέλην τῶν χοίρων ἀπεπεμψάμεθα τὸν πολὺν λεγεῶνα κατὰ βυθῶν ὦν χωρήσαντα, ὃ δεύτερόν ἐστι, πρὸς ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἴδωμεν, καὶ ξέσωμεν εἰς κάλλος, ὥσπερ ἀνδρι- ἄντα, τὸν θεόλογον. ἐκεῖνο δὲ πρῶτον λογισώμεθα, τίς ἡ τοσαύτη περὶ τὸν λόγον φιλοτιμία καὶ γλωσσαλγία ; τίς 7. 9 βυθῶν] -θου b || χωρήσαντα] -σοντα a || εστι]+τουτο ποιήσωμεν b 11 πρῶτον] πρότερον a 1. ἐφευρεταὶ κακῶν] Rom. i 30. ib. τῶν διδομένων] ‘ the evil tilings that we give .’ Gr. means, no doubt, disrelish for divine truth, which Christians set forth so unattractively. 2. ταῦτα] sc. ἐστίν. ‘ This is what our war of Christian against Christian comes to ,’ this is what comes of it.’ 3. ὑπὲρ τ. Λ.] Catholics were to blame, in Gr.’s estimation, as well as heretics. 4. ταὐτὸν πάσχοντες τ. μ.] The idiomatic use of πάσχειν, ’ to be in a given frame of mind ’ ; almost = ‘ behaving like.’ 5. ἀνάπτουσιν] like ἐξάπτει above, ‘ to set on fire. ’ 6. περιωθεῖν) ‘ to push about,’ i.e. to treat with violence and indignity. So in Or. in Jul. I Gr. says τοὺς ἐμμένοντας τῆ ὁμολογίᾳ περιωθῶν. 7. Why should we contend ἃς we do ? There are plenty οf other th things to occupy our thoughts, the exercises of philanthropy, and devotion, and self discipline. But we not only neglect these ourselves ; we give other men license to sin, if by that means we can get their support in our party warfare. 7. τὸ ἀλλότριον] Gr. does not say τούς ἀλλοτρίως, i.e. the heathen. He means the false and heathenish element which had been introduced into Christian language. τοῦ λόγου, however, depends on ἀπεσκ. , not on τὸ ἀλλ. 8. εἰς τὴν ἂγ. τ. χ.] Mark v 9 foil. Βy the ‘ Legion ’ Gr. means the gross and unworthy spirit which had instigated the contentions which he has been deploring. ib. ἀπεπ....κατὰ βυθῶν χωρήσαντα] ’ We have sent it away and it has gone.’ Κατὰ βυθῶν answers to the κατὰ τοῦ κρημνοῦ of the Gospels ; but it appears to be influenced by the remembrance of εἰς τὴν ἄβυσσον of Luke viii 31. 9. ὅ δεύτερόν ἐστι, πρός] The relative looks on to what follows : ‘ the next thing is, to. ’ 10. ὥσπερ ἀνδριάντα] Cp. Plat. Rep. II § 5 ὡς ἐρρωμένως ἑκάτερον, ὥσπερ ἀνδριάντα, ἐκκαθαίρεις. 12. γλωσσαλγία] Α classical word for ‘talkativeness,’ much used by Gr. ἢ καινὴ νόσος αὕτη καὶ ἀπληστία ; τί τὰς χεῖρας δήσαντες τὰς γλώσσας ὡπλίσαμεν ; οὐ φιλοξενίαν ἐπαινοῦμεν ; οὐ φιλαδελφίαν, οὐ φιλανδρίαν, οὐ παρθενίαν, οὐ πτωχοτροΦίαν θαυμάζομεν ; οὐ ψαλμῳδίαν, οὐ πάννυχον στάσιν, οὐ δάκρυον ; οὐ τὸ σῶμα νηστείαις ὑποπιέζομεν ; οὐ δι’ εὐχῆς πρὸς θεὸν ἐκδημοῦμεν " οὐ τῷ κρείττονι τὸ χεῖρον ὑποζεύγνυμεν, τὸν χοῦν λέγω τῷ πνεύματι, ὡς ἂν οἱ τῷ κράματι δικαίως δικάζοντες ; οὐ μελέτην θανάτου τὸν βίον ποιούμεθα; οὐ τῶν παθῶν δεσπόται καθιστάμεθα, μεμνημένοι τῆς ἄνωθεν εὐγενείας ; οὐ θυμὸν τιθασσεύομεν ἐξοιδοῦντα καὶ ἀγριαίνοντα ; οὐκ ἔπαρσιν κάτα βάλλουσαν, οὐ λύπην ἀλόγιστον, οὐχ ἡδονὴν ἀπαίδευτον, οὐ γέλωτα πορνικόν, οὐκ ὄψιν ἄτακτον, οὐκ ἀκοὴν ἄπληστον, οὐ λόγον ἄμετρον, οὐ διάνοιαν ἔκτοπον, οὐχ ὅσα παρ’ ἡμῶν ὁ πονηρὸς καθ’ ἡμῶν λαμβάνει, τὸν διὰ τῶν θυρίδων, ὡς ἡ γραφή φησιν, 5 ὑποπιέζομεν] ὑπωπιάζομεν d 1. τὰς χ. δήσαντες] ‘ though our hands are tied.’ 2. οὐ Φιλοξ. ἐπαινοῦμεν ;] The string of questions which follows is intended to shew the inconsistency of this γλωσσαλγία with the οccupations pations which it is assumed that Christians are following. 3. φιλοπτωχίας. Gr.'s Or. is περὶ φιλοπτωχίας. The zeal of his friend Basil in that direction is well known : see De Broglie L'Eglise V Empire t. v p. 186 (3rd ed.). 4. πάννυχον στάσιν] Cp. Or. xlii 26 χαίρετε, Ναζαραίων χοροστασίαι, ψαλμῳδιῶν ἁρμονίαι, στάσεις παννυχοι. The word στάσις appears to correspond to Lat. statio, in the sense of ‘α service.' It is from the custom of standing for prayer. 5. ὑποπιέζομεν] ‘ crush down,' ‘ suppress. ’ 6. πρ. θεὸν ἐκδημοῦμεν] Cp. Cor. v 6 foll., — ‘ leave the world behind and sojourn with God.' 7. τὸν χοῦν] 1 Cor. xv 47 ; Gen. ii 7. ib. οἱ τῷ κράματι δ. δικάζοντες] The κρᾶμα is the human compound of soul and body, or ‘ dust ’ and ’spirit.’ Upon this, i.e. upon the rival claims of the constituent elements, man has to pass judgment. 10. τῆς ἄνωθεν εὐγενείας] Peril. with reference to John iii 3. ib. τιθασσεύομεν] ‘ to tame,' from τίθασσος ‘tame’ ; opp. to ἄγριος ’wild ’ ‘Eξοιδεῖν ‘ swell up.' 11. ἔπαρσιν καταβάλλουσαν] sc. τιθασσύομεν. Cp. Prov. xvi 18 and similar passages. 14. διάνοιαν ἔκτοπον] ἕκτ. seems to be used as practically = ἄτοπος, ‘improper,’ ‘ unseemly.' ib. παρ’ ἡμῶν. . . καθ’ ἡμῶν] i.e. finds in us and uses against us. 15. διὰ τῶν θυρίδων] Jer. ix 21. The same interpretation is given by Greg. Nyss. de Dom. Οrat. v, by Ambrose de Fuga Saec. ἑ 3 and in Psalm, cxuiii Exp. vi ἑ 20, and by Jerome adv. Jovin. II p. 202 (Mart.). It became the traditional interpretation. Cp. Greg. Moral, xxi 2 ; Bern. in Cant. 24. εἴτουν αἰσθητηρίων, εἰσάγων θάνατον; πᾶν μὲν οὖν τοὐναντίον, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλων πάθεσιν ἐλευθερίαν δεδώκαμεν, ὥσπερ οἱ βασιλεῖς τὰς ἐπινικίους ἀφέσεις, μόνον ἂν πρὸς ἡμᾶς νεύωσι, καὶ κατὰ θεοῦ φέρωνται θρασύτερον· καὶ κακὸν οὐ καλοῦ πράγματος μισθὸν ἀντιδίδομεν, τῆς ἀσεβείας τὴν παρρησίαν.
Chapter 8
Καίτοιγε, ὦ διαλεκτικὲ καὶ λάλε, ἐρωτήσω σέ τι μικρόν· Σὺ δὲ ἀπόκριναί, φησι τῷ Ἰὼβ ὁ διὰ λαίλαπος καὶ νεφῶν χρηματίζων. πότερον πολλαὶ μοναὶ παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ, ὅπερ ἀκούεις, ἢ μία; πολλαί, δώσεις δηλαδή, καὶ οὐ μία. πότερον δὲ πληρωθῆναι δεῖ πάσας, ἢ τὰς μέν, τὰς δὲ οὐ, ὡς εἶναι κενὰς καὶ μάτην ἡτοιμασμένας; ναὶ πάσας· οὐδὲν γὰρ εἰκῇ τῶν παρὰ θεοῦ γενομένων. ταύτην δὲ ὅ τί ποτε θήσεις τὴν μονήν, ἔχοις ἂν εἰπεῖν; ἄρα τὴν ἐκεῖθεν 3 βασιλεις] βασιλικοι b || 4 νευωσι] -σωσι d || θεου] του θεου b || θρα- συτερον] + η ευσεβεστερον b 8. 14 ποτε] + εστι c || θησεις] -ση d I. εἴτουν] i.e. εἴτε οὖν, in late Greek = sive, and is used for ‘that is to say.?’ ib. μὲν οὖν] = immo, ‘nay.’ So far from ruling our own passions, Gr. says, we give license to those of others. 3. ἐπινικίους ἀφέσεις] Elias understands it of the manumission of slaves; but a more usual form of celebrating a triumph was to release prisoners, and that is prob. the comparison here. ib. μόνον ἄν] This is the sole condition of the release, that they should tend to promote our cause. Gr. is prob. referring to the way in which, in his time as in other times, the sins of powerful patrons were treated with complaisance. Of course he has the Arians chiefly in view. They laid themselves open to the charge; and it is of them esp. that Gr. uses the expression κατὰ θεοῦ φέρ., ‘to rush against God.’ 5. τῆς ἀσεβείας τὴν παρρησίαν] ἀσεβ. is in apposition to οὐ καλοῦ πρ., τὴν παρρ. to μισθόν. In exchange for their serviceable impiety, they are allowed to sin unrebuked. 8. There are ‘ many mansions ’ above, and they are reached by many ways, though in one sense the many ways are the one strait and narrow way. Why should we leave all the other ways for the way of controversy? 8. σὺ δὲ ἀπόκριναι] Job xxxviii 3. 9. χρηματίζων] ‘to answer’ when consulted, esp. as an oracle. It is not the word used in Job xxxviii 1 (LXX.), but it occurs in the similar passage xl 3 (8). ib. πολλαὶ μοναί] John xiv 2. Ἀκούεις = ‘ you are taught.’ 10. δώσεις] ‘you will grant.’ 13. ὅ τί ποτε θήσεις] like δίδωμι, used in a logical sense; ‘what you will affirm this “mansion” to be.’ Ταύτην τὴν μονήν is a somewhat curious use of the singular. It is a kind of attraction for τοῦτο τὸ μονήν, i.e. ‘the word μονὴν in this connexion.’ 14. ἐκεῖθεν] ‘on yonder side.’ ἀνάπαυσίν τε καὶ δόξαν τὴν ἀποκειμένην τοῖς μακαρίοις, ἢ ἄλλο τι; οὐκ ἄλλο ἢ τοῦτο. ἐπειδὴ τοῦτο ὡμολογήσαμεν, κἀκεῖνο προσεξετάσωμεν. ἔστι τι τὸ ταύτας προξενοῦν τὰς μονάς, ὡς ὁ ἐμὸς λόγος, ἢ οὐδέν ; ἔστι πάντως. τί τοῦτο; τὸ διαφόρους εἶναι πολιτείας καὶ προαιρέσεις, καὶ ἄλλην ἀλλαχοῦ φέρειν κατὰ τὴν ἀναλογίαν τῆς πίστεως, ὅπερ καὶ ὁδοὺς ὀνομάζομεν. πάσας οὖν ὁδευτέον, ἢ τινὰς τῶν ὁδῶν τούτων ; εἰ μὲν οἷόν τε τὸν αὐτόν, ἁπάσας· εἰ δὲ μή, ὅτι πλείστας· εἰ δὲ μή, τινάς· εἰ δὲ μηδὲ τοῦτο, μέγα κἂν εἰ μίαν διαφερόντως, ὥς γέ μοι φαίνεται. ὀρθῶς τοῦτο ὑπολαμβάνεις. τί οὖν; ὅταν ἀκούσῃς μίαν ὁδὸν εἶναι, καὶ ταύτην στενήν, τί σοι φαίνεται δηλοῦν ὁ λόγος ; μίαν μὲν διὰ τὴν ἀρετήν· μία γάρ, κἂν εἰς πολλὰ σχίζηται· στενὴν δὲ διὰ τοὺς ἱδρῶτας καὶ τὸ 2 οὐκ ἄλλο] + τι d || ἐπειδὴ τοῦτο] ἔπει ’δε κἀκεῖνο b : ἔπει ’δε τοῦτο c || 8 ’τον αὐτὸν] τῶν ἀυτῶν b || g ἅπασας] πάσας d 4. προξενοῦν] quite classical in the derived sense of ’ to prouide,’ ’ procure.’ Here the plural, as the reply shews, is emphatic; ’ these…
Chapter 9
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