V.
Apology
of our
Holy Father Athanasius,
Archbishop of Alexandria,
in Vindication of His Flight,
when He was Persecuted by Duke Syrianus
———————
[This Apology seems to have been written A.D.
357 or 358. The circumstances which led to it are mentioned in the
opening sentences. From what he says to Constantine in the foregoing
work, p. 177, it might almost be said that, in addition to the
considerations insisted on in the following argument, he considered
that the command of the Emperor would in itself have been a sufficient
reason for his leaving his Church; and it was because he had not
received it, that he had not left it before. Now the violence of
Syrianus, acknowledged as it was by Constantius, was of the nature of
a command. The real reason however was, that, if he had been cut off,
there was no one to take his place. vid. supr. p. 184.]
———————
§. 1.
1. I HEAR that Leontius [Note
1], now in the see of Antioch, and Narcissus of the city of
Nero, and George [Note 2], now
of Laodicea, and the Arians who are leagued with them, are spreading
abroad many slanderous reports concerning me, charging me with
cowardice, because forsooth, when myself was sought by them, I did not
surrender myself into their hands. Now as to their imputations and
calumnies, although there are many things that I could write, which
they are unable to deny, and which all who have heard of their
proceedings know to be true, yet I shall not be prevailed upon to make
any reply to them, except only to remind them of the words of our
Lord, and of the declaration of the Apostle, that a lie is of the
Devil, and that, revilers shall not inherit the kingdom of God
[vid. 1 John ii. 21. 1 Cor. vi. 10.]. For it is sufficient thereby to
prove, that neither their thoughts nor their words are according to
the Gospel, but that after their own pleasure, whatsoever themselves
desire, that they think to be good.
§. 2.
2. But forasmuch as they pretend to charge me
with cowardice, it is necessary that I should write somewhat
concerning this, {189} whereby it shall be proved that they are men of
wicked minds, who have not read the sacred Scriptures: or if they have
read them, that they do not believe the divine inspiration of the
oracles they contain. For had they believed this, they would never
have dared to act contrary to them, nor have imitated the malice of
the Jews who slew the Lord. For God having given them a commandment, Honour
thy father and thy mother, and, He that curseth father or
mother, let him die the death [Mat xv. 4.]; that people
established a contrary law, changing the honour into dishonour, and
alienating to other uses the money which was due from the children to
their parents. And though they had read what David did, they acted in
contradiction to his example, and accused the guiltless for plucking
the ears of corn, and rubbing them in their hands on the Sabbath day.
Not that they cared either for the laws, or for the Sabbath, for they
were guilty of greater transgressions of the law on that day: but
being wicked-minded, they grudged the disciples the way of salvation,
and desired that their own private notions should have the sole
pre-eminence. They however have received the reward of their iniquity,
having ceased to be an holy nation, and being counted henceforth as
the rulers of Sodom, and as the people of Gomorrah.
3. And these men likewise, not less than they,
seem to me to have received their punishment already in the ignorance
with which their own folly possesses them. For they understand not
what they say, but think that they know things of which they are
ignorant; while the only knowledge that is in them is to do evil, and
to frame devices more and more wicked day by day. Thus they reproach
me with my present flight, not for the sake of my character, as
wishing me to shew my manliness by coming forward; (how is it possible
that such a wish can be entertained by enemies in behalf of those who
run not with them in the same career of madness?) but being full of
malice, they pretend this, and whisper [Note
3] up and down that such is the case, thinking, foolish as indeed
they are, that through fear of their revilings, I shall yet be induced
to give myself up to them. For this is what they desire: to accomplish
this they have recourse to all kinds of schemes: they pretend
themselves to be friends, while they search after {190} me as enemies,
to the end that they may glut themselves with my blood, and put me
also out of the way, because I have always opposed and do still oppose
their impiety, and confute and brand their heresy.
§. 3.
4. For whom have they ever persecuted and taken,
that they have not insulted and injured as they pleased? Whom have
they ever sought after and found, that they have not handled in such a
manner, that either he has died a miserable death, or has been
illtreated in every member [Note 4]?
Whatever the magistrates appear to do, it is their work; and the other
are merely the tools of their will and wickedness. In consequence,
where is there a place that has not some memorial of their wickedness?
Who has ever opposed them, without their conspiring against him,
inventing pretexts for his ruin after the manner of Jezebel? Where is
there a Church that is not at this moment lamenting the success of
their plots against her Bishops? Antioch is mourning for the orthodox
Confessor Eustathius [Note A];
Balaneę for the most admirable Euphration [Note
5]; Paltus and Antaradus for Cymatius [Note 5]
and Carterius; Adrianople for that lover of Christ, Eutropius, and
after him for Lucius, who was often loaded with chains by their means,
and so perished; Ancyra mourns for Marcellus, Berrhœa [Note
6] for Cyrus [Note 5], Gaza for Asclepas.
5. Of all these, after inflicting many outrages,
they by their intrigues procured the banishment; but for Theodulus and
Olympius, Bishops of Thrace, and for me and my Presbyters, they caused
diligent search to be made, to the intent that if we were discovered
we should suffer capital punishment: and probably {191} we should have
so perished, had we not fled at that very time contrary to their
intentions. For letters to that effect were delivered to the Proconsul
Donatus against Olympius and his friends, and to Philagrius respecting
me. And having raised a persecution against Paul, Bishop of
Constantinople, as soon as they found him, they caused him to be
openly strangled [Note 7] at a
place called Cucusus in Cappadocia, employing as their executioner for
the purpose Philip, who was Prefect. He was a patron of their heresy,
and the tool of their wicked designs.
§. 4.
6. Are they then satisfied with all this, and
content to be quiet for the future? By no means; they have not given
over yet, but like the horseleach [Note
8] in the Proverbs, they revel more and more in their wickedness,
and fix themselves upon the larger dioceses. Who can adequately
describe the enormities they have already perpetrated? who is able to
recount all the deeds that they have done? Even very lately, while the
Churches were at peace, and the people worshipping in their
congregations, Liberius Bishop of Rome, Paulinus [Note
9] Metropolitan of Gaul, Dionysius [Note
10] Metropolitan of Italy, Lucifer [Note
11] Metropolitan of the Sardinian islands, and Eusebius [Note
12] of Italy, all of them excellent Bishops and preachers of the
truth, were seized and banished, on no pretence whatever, except that
they would not unite themselves to the Arian heresy, nor subscribe to
the accusations and calumnies which they had invented against me.
§. 5.
7. Of the great Hosius, who answers to his name,
that confessor of an happy old age [Note
13], it is superfluous for me to speak, for I suppose it is known
unto all men that they caused him also to be banished; for he is not
an obscure person, but of all men the most illustrious, and more than
this. When was there a Council held, in which he did not take the
lead, and convince every one by his orthodoxy? Where is there a Church
that does not possess some glorious monuments of his patronage? Who
has ever come to him in sorrow, and has not gone away rejoicing? What
needy person ever asked his aid, and did not obtain what he desired?
And yet even on this man they made their assault, because knowing the
calumnies which they invent in behalf of their iniquity, he would not
subscribe to their designs against me. And if {192} afterwards, upon
the repeated blows that were inflicted upon him above measure, and the
conspiracies that were formed against his kinsfolk, he yielded to them
for a time, as being old and infirm in body, yet at least their
wickedness was shewn even in this circumstance; so zealously did they
endeavour by all means to prove that they were not truly Christians [Note
14].
§. 6.
8. After this they again fastened themselves upon
Alexandria, seeking anew to put me to death: and their proceedings
were now worse than before. For on a sudden the Church was surrounded
by soldiers, and deeds of war took the place of prayers. Then George [Note
15] of Cappadocia who was sent by them, having arrived during the
season of Lent [Note 16],
brought an increase of evils which they had taught him. For after
Easter week, Virgins were thrown into prison; Bishops were led away in
chains by soldiers; the houses of orphans and widows were plundered,
and their bread taken away; attacks were made upon houses, and
Christians thrust forth in the night, and their dwellings sealed up:
the brothers of clergymen were in danger of their lives on account of
their relations.
9. These outrages were sufficiently dreadful, but
more dreadful than these followed. For on the week that succeeded the
Holy Pentecost, when the people after their fast had gone out to the
cemetery to pray, because that all refused communion with George, that
abandoned person, understanding this to be the case, stirred up
against them the commander Sebastian, a Manichee; who straightway with
a multitude of soldiers with arms, drawn swords, bows, and spears,
proceeded to attack the people, though it was the Lord's day: and
finding a few praying, (for the greater part had already retired on
account of the lateness of the hour,) he committed such outrages as
became a disciple of these men. Having lighted a pile, he placed
certain virgins near the fire, and endeavoured to force them to say
that they were of the Arian faith: and where he saw that they were
getting the mastery, and cared not for the fire, he immediately
stripped them naked, and wounded their faces in such a manner, that
for some time they could hardly be recognised.
§. 7.
10. And having seized upon forty men, he beat
them after a {193} new fashion. Cutting some fresh twigs of the palm
tree with the thorns upon them [Note
17], he scourged them on the back so severely, that some of them
were for a long time under medical treatment on account of the thorns
which had entered their flesh, and others unable to bear up under
their sufferings died. All those whom they had taken, both the men and
the virgins, they sent away together into banishment to the great
Oasis. And the bodies of those who had perished they would not at
first suffer to be given up to their friends, but concealed them in
any way they pleased, and cast them out without burial [Note
18], in order that they might not appear to have any knowledge of
these cruel proceedings. But herein their deluded minds greatly misled
them. For the relatives of the dead, both rejoicing at the confession,
and grieving for the bodies of their friends, published abroad so much
the more this proof of their impiety and cruelty. Moreover they
immediately banished out of Egypt and Libya the following Bishops [Note
19], Ammonius, Muļus, Gaļus, Philo [Note
20], Hermes, Plenius, Psenosiris, Nilammon, Agathus, Anagamphus,
Marcus, Ammonius, another Marcus, Dracontius [Note
21], Adelphius [Note 22],
Athenodorus, and the Presbyters, Hierax [Note
23], and Dioscorus; whom they drove forth under such cruel
treatment, that some of them died on the way, and others in the place
of their banishment. They caused also more than thirty Bishops to take
to flight; for their desire was, after the example of Ahab, if it were
possible, utterly to root out the truth. Such are the enormities of
which these impious men have been guilty.
§. 8.
11. But although they have done all this, yet
they are not ashamed of the evils they have already contrived against
me, but proceed now to accuse me, because I have been able to escape
their murderous hands. Nay, they bitterly bewail themselves, that they
have not effectually put me out of the way; and so they pretend to
reproach me with cowardice, not perceiving that by thus murmuring
against me, they rather turn the blame upon themselves. For if it be a
bad thing to flee, it is much worse to persecute; for the one party
hides himself to escape death, the other persecutes with a desire to
kill; and it is written in the Scriptures that we ought to flee, but
he that seeks to destroy transgresses the law, nay, and is himself the
occasion of the other's flight. If {194} then they reproach me with
my flight, let them be more ashamed of their own persecution [Note
24]. Let them cease to compass my destruction, and I shall without
delay cease to flee.
12. But they, instead of giving over their
wickedness, are employing every means to obtain possession of my
person, not perceiving that the flight of those who are persecuted is
a strong argument against them that persecute. For no man flees from
the gentle and the humane, but from the cruel and the evil-minded. Every
one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt [1 Sam.
xxii. 2.], fled from Saul, and took refuge with David. But this is the
reason why these men desire to cut off those who are in concealment,
that there may be no evidence forthcoming of their wickedness. But
herein their minds seem to be blinded with their usual error. For the
more the flight of their enemies becomes known, so much the more
notorious will be the destruction or the banishment which their
treachery has brought upon them [Note
25]; so that whether they kill them outright, their death will be
the more loudly noised abroad against them, or whether they drive them
into banishment, they will but be sending forth every where monuments
of their own iniquity.
§. 9.
13. Now if they had been of sound mind, they
would have seen that they were in this strait, and that they were
defeated by their own arguments. But since they have lost all
judgment, they are still led on to persecute, and seek to destroy, and
yet perceive not their own impiety. It may be they even venture to
accuse Providence itself; (for nothing is beyond the reach of their
presumption,) that it does not deliver up to them those whom they
desire, certain as it is, according to the saving of our Saviour, that
not even a sparrow can fall into the net [Note
26] with out our Father which is in heaven. But when these bad
spirits obtain possession of any one, they immediately forget not only
all other, but even themselves; and raising their brow in very
haughtiness, they neither acknowledge times and seasons, nor respect
human nature in those whom they injure. Like the tyrant of Babylon [Note
27], they attack more furiously; they shew pity to none, but
mercilessly upon the ancient, as it is written, they very
heavily lay the yoke, and they add to the grief of them that
are wounded [Is. xlvii. 6. Ps. lxix. 26.]. {195}
14. Had they not acted in this manner; had they
not driven into banishment those who spoke in my defence against their
calumnies, their representations might have appeared to some persons
sufficiently plausible. But since they have conspired against so many
other Bishops of high character, and have spared neither the great
confessor Hosius, nor the Bishop of Rome, nor so many others from
Spain and Gaul, and Egypt, and Libya, and the other countries, but
have committed such cruel outrages against all who have in any way
opposed them in my behalf; is it not plain that their designs have
been directed rather against me than against any other, and that their
desire is miserably to destroy me as they have done others? To
accomplish this they vigilantly watch for an opportunity, and think
themselves injured, when they see those safe, whom they wish not to
live. §. 10. Who then does not perceive their profligacy? Is it not
very evident to every one that they do not reproach me with cowardice
from regard to my character, but that being athirst for blood, they
employ these their base devices as a snare, thinking thereby to catch
those whom they seek to destroy? That such is their character is shewn
by their actions, which have convicted them of possessing dispositions
more savage than wild beasts, and more cruel than the Babylonians [Note
28]. But although the proof against them is sufficiently clear
from all this, yet since they still dissemble with soft words after
the manner of their father the devil, and pretend to charge me with
cowardice, while they are themselves more cowardly than hares; let us
consider what is written in the sacred Scriptures respecting such
cases as this. For thus they will be shewn to fight against the
Scriptures no less than against me, while they detract from the
virtues of the Saints.
15. For if they reproach men for hiding
themselves from those who seek to destroy them, and accuse those who
flee from their persecutors, what will they do when they see Jacob
fleeing from his brother Esau, and Moses withdrawing into Midian for
fear of Pharaoh? What excuse will they make for David, after all this
idle talk, for fleeing from his house on account of Saul, where he
sent to kill him, and for hiding himself in the cave, and for changing
his appearance, until he withdrew from Abimelech [Note
29], and escaped his designs {196} against him? What will they
say, they who are ready to say any thing, when they see the great
Elias, after calling upon God and raising the dead, hiding himself for
fear of Ahab, and fleeing from the threats of Jezebel? At which time
also the sons of the prophets, when they were sought after, hid
themselves with the assistance of Abdias, and lay concealed in caves [Note
30].
§. 11.
16. Perhaps they have not read these histories;
as being out of date; yet have they no recollection of what is written
in the Gospel? For the disciples also withdrew and hid themselves for
fear of the Jews; and Paul, when he was sought after by the governor
at Damascus, was let down from the wall in a basket, and so escaped
his hands. As the Scripture then relates these things of the Saints,
what excuse will they be able to invent for their wickedness? To
reproach them with cowardice would be an act of madness, and to accuse
them of acting contrary to the will of God, would be to shew
themselves entirely ignorant of the Scriptures. For there was a
command under the Law that cities of refuge should be appointed, in
order that they who were sought after to be put to death, might at
least have some means of saving themselves. And when he who spake unto
Moses, the Word of the Father, appeared in the end of the world, He
also gave this commandment, saying, But when they persecute you in
this city, flee ye into another [Mat. x. 23.]: and shortly after
the says, When ye therefore shall see the abomination of
desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place,
(whoso readeth, let him understand;) then let them which be in Judea
flee into the mountains: let him which is on the housetop not come
down to take any thing out of his house: neither let him which is in
the field return back to take his clothes [Mat. xxiv. 15.].
Knowing these things, the Saints regulated their conduct accordingly.
For what our Lord has now commanded, the same also He spoke by His
Saints before His coming in the flesh [Note
31]: and this is the rule which is given unto men to lead them to
perfection,—what God commands, that to do.
§. 12.
17. Wherefore also the Word Himself, being made
man for our sakes, condescended to hide Himself when He was sought
after, as we do: and also when He was persecuted, to flee and avoid
the designs of His enemies. For it became Him, {197} as by hunger and
thirst and suffering, so also by hiding Himself and fleeing, to shew
that He had taken our flesh, and was made man. Thus at the very first,
as soon as He became man, when He was a little child, He Himself by
His Angel commanded Joseph, Arise, and take the young Child and His
Mother, and flee into Egypt; for Herod will seek the young Child's
life [Mat. ii. 13.]. And when Herod was dead, we find Him
withdrawing to Nazareth for fear of Archelaus his son. And when
afterwards He was shewing Himself to be God, and made whole the
withered hand, the Pharisees went out, and held a council against Him,
how they might destroy Him; but when Jesus knew it, He withdrew
Himself from thence. So also when He raised Lazarus from the dead, from
that day forth, says the Scripture, they took counsel for to
put Him to death. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the
Jews; but went thence into a country near to the wilderness [John
xi. 53, 54.]. Again, when our Saviour said, Before Abraham was, I
am, the Jews took up stones to cast at Him; but Jesus hid Himself, and
went out of the temple. And going through the midst of them, He
went His way, and so passed by [John viii. 58, 59.]. §. 13. When
they see these things, or rather when they hear of them, for see they
do not, will they not desire, as it is written, to become fuel of
fire [Is. ix. 5.], because their counsels and their words are
contrary to what the Lord both did and taught? Also when John was
martyred, and his disciples buried his body, when Jesus heard of
it, He departed thence by ship into a desert place apart [Mat.
xiv. 3.].
18. Thus the Lord acted, and thus He taught.
Would that these men were even now ashamed of their conduct, and
confined their rashness to man, nor proceeded to such extreme madness
as even to charge our Saviour with cowardice! for it is against Him
that they now utter their blasphemies. But no one will endure such
madness; nay it will be seen that they do not understand the Gospels.
The cause must be a reasonable and just one, which the Evangelists
represent as weighing with our Saviour to withdraw and to flee; and we
ought therefore to assign the same for the conduct of all the Saints.
(For whatever is written concerning our Saviour in His human nature,
ought to be considered as applying to the whole race of mankind [Note
32]; because He took our body, and exhibited {198} in Himself
human infirmity.) Now of this cause John has written thus, They
sought to take Him: but no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was
not yet come [John vii. 30.]. And before it came, He Himself said
to His Mother, Mine hour is not yet come [John ii. 4.]: and to
them who are called His brethren, My time is not yet come [John
vii. 6.]. And again, when His time was come, He said to the disciples,
Sleep on now, and take your rest: for behold, the hour is at hand,
and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners [Mat.
xxvi. 45.].
§. 14.
19. Now in so far as He was God and the Word of
the Father, He had no time; for He is Himself the Creator of times [Note
33]. But being made man, He shews by speaking in this manner that
there is a time allotted to every man; and that not by chance, as some
of the Gentiles imagine in their fables, but a time which He, the
Creator, has appointed to every one according to the will of the
Father. This is written in the Scriptures, and is manifest to all men.
For although it be hidden and unknown to all, what period of time is
allotted to each, and how it is allotted; yet every one knows this,
that as there is a time for spring and for summer, and for autumn and
for winter, so, as it is written, there is a time to die, and a time
to live. And so the time of the generation which lived in the days of
Noah was cut short, and their years were contracted, because the time
of all things was at hand. But to Hezekiah were added fifteen years.
And as God promises to them that serve him truly, I will fulfil the
number of thy days [Gen. xxv. 8.]; Abraham dies full of days,
and David besought God, saying, Take me not away in the midst of my
days [Ps. cii. 24.]. And Eliphaz, one of the friends of Job, being
assured of this truth, said, Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full
age, like as a shock of corn cometh in in his season [Job v. 26.]. And
Solomon confirming his words, says, The souls of the unrighteous
are taken away untimely [vid. Prov. x. 27.]. And therefore he
exhorts in the book of Ecclesiastes, saying, Be not overmuch
wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy
time? [Eccles. vii. 17.]
§. 15.
20. Now as these things are written in the
Scriptures, the case is clear, that the saints [Note
34] knew that a certain time was allotted to every man, but that no
one knows the end of that time, is plainly intimated by the words of
David, Declare unto me the shortness of my days [Ps. cii. 23.
Sept.]. What he did not know, that he {199} desired to be informed of.
Accordingly the rich man also, while he thought that he had yet a long
time to live, heard the words, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall
be required of thee: then whose shall those things be which thou hast
provided? [Luke xii. 20.] And the Preacher speaks confidently in
the Holy Spirit, and says, Man also knoweth not his time
[Eccles. ix. 12.]. Wherefore the Patriarch Isaac said to his son Esau,
Behold, I am old, and I know not the day of my death [Gen.
xxvii. 2.].
21. Our Lord therefore, although as God, and the
Word of the Father, He both knew the period which He had allotted to
all, and was conscious of the time for suffering, which He Himself had
appointed also to His own body; yet since He was made man for our
sakes, He hid Himself when He was sought after before that time came,
as we do; when He was persecuted, He fled; and avoiding the designs of
His enemies He passed by, and so went through the midst of them
[Luke iv. 30.]. But when He had brought on that time which He Himself
had appointed, at which He desired to suffer in the body for all men,
He announces it to the Father, saying, Father, the hour is come;
glorify Thy Son [John xvii. 1.]. And then He no longer hid Himself
from those who sought Him, but stood willing to be taken by them; for
the Scripture says, He said to them that came unto Him, Whom seek
ye? and when they answered, Jesus of Nazareth, He saith
unto them, I am He whom ye seek [John xviii. 4, 5.]. And this
He did even more than once; and so they straightway led Him away to
Pilate. He neither suffered Himself to be taken before the time came,
nor did He hide Himself when it was come; but gave himself up to them
that conspired against Him, that He might shew to all men that the
life and death of man depends upon the divine sentence; and that
without our Father which is in heaven, neither a hair of man's head
can become white or black, nor a sparrow fall into the net [Note
35].
§. 16.
22. Our Lord therefore, as I said before, thus
offered Himself for all; and the Saints having received this example
from their Saviour, (for all of them before His coming, nay always,
were under His teaching [Note 36],) in their
conflicts with their persecutors acted lawfully in flying, and hiding
themselves when they were sought after. And being ignorant, as men, of
the end of the time which Providence had appointed unto {200} them,
they were unwilling at once to deliver themselves up into the power of
those who conspired against them. But knowing on the other hand what
is written, that the times of man are in God's hand
[Ps. xxxi. 15.], and that the Lord killeth, and the Lord maketh
alive [1 Sam. iii. 6.], they the rather endured unto the end, wandering
about, as the Apostle has spoken, in sheepskins, and goatskins,
being destitute, tormented, wandering in deserts, and hiding
themselves in dens and caves of the earth [Heb. xi. 37, 38.];
until either the appointed time of death arrived, or God who had
appointed their time spoke unto them, and stayed the designs of their
enemies, or else delivered up the persecuted to their persecutors,
according as it seemed to Him to be good. This we may well learn
respecting all men from David: for when Joab instigated him to slay
Saul, he said, As the Lord liveth, the Lord shall smite him; or his
day shall come to die; or he shall descend into battle, and perish;
the Lord forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the
Lord's anointed [ 1 Sam. xxvi. 10, 11.].
§. 17.
23. And if ever in their flight they voluntarily
came unto those that sought alter them, they did not do so without
reason: but when the Spirit spoke unto them, then as righteous men
they went and met their enemies; by which they also shewed their
obedience and zeal towards God. Such was the conduct of Elias, when,
being commanded by the Spirit, he shewed himself unto Ahab; and of
Micaiah the prophet when he came to the same Ahab; and of the prophet
who cried against the altar in Samaria, and rebuked Jeroboam; and of
Paul when he appealed unto Cęsar. It was not certainly through
cowardice that they fled: God forbid. The flight to which they
submitted was rather a conflict and war against death. For with wise
caution they guarded against these two things; either that they should
offer themselves up without reason, (for this would have been to kill
themselves, and to become guilty of death, and to transgress the
saying of the Lord, What God hath joined, let not men put asunder
[Mat. xix. 6.];) or that they should willingly subject themselves to
the reproach of negligence, as if they were unmoved by the
tribulations which they met with in their flight, and which brought
with them sufferings greater and more terrible than death. For he that
dies, ceases to suffer [Note 37]; {201} but he
that flies, while he expects daily the assaults of his enemies,
esteems death a lighter evil. They therefore whose course was
consummated in their flight did not perish dishonourably, but attained
as well as others the glory of martyrdom. Therefore it is that Job is
accounted a man of mighty fortitude, because he endured to live under
so many and such severe sufferings, of which he would have had no
perception, had he come to his end.
24. Wherefore the blessed Fathers thus regulated
their conduct also; they shewed no cowardice in fleeing from the
persecutor, but rather manifested their fortitude of soul in shutting
themselves up in close and dark places, and living a hard life. Yet
did they not desire to avoid the time of death when it arrived; for
their concern was neither to shrink from it when it came, nor to
forestall the sentence determined by Providence, nor to resist His
dispensation, for which they knew themselves to be preserved; lest by
acting hastily, they should become to themselves the cause of terror:
for thus it is written, He that is hasty with his lips, shall bring
terror upon himself. [Prov. xiii. 3. Sept.]
§. 18.
25. Of a truth no one can possibly doubt that
they were well furnished with the virtue of fortitude. For the
Patriarch Jacob who had before fled from Esau, feared not death when
it came, but at that very time blessed the Patriarchs, each according
to his deserts. And the great Moses who previously had hid himself
from Pharaoh, and had withdrawn into Midian for fear of him, when he
received the commandment, Go into Egypt [vid. Ex. iii. 10.],
feared not to do so. And again when he was bidden to go up into the
mountain Abarim and die, he delayed not through cowardice, but even
joyfully proceeded thither. And David who had before fled from Saul,
feared not to risk his life in war in defence of his people; but
having the choice of death or of flight set before him, when he might
have fled and lived, he wisely preferred death. And the great Elias
who had at a former time hid himself from Jezebel, shewed no cowardice
when he was commanded by the spirit to meet Ahab, and to reprove
Ochozias. And Peter who had hid himself for fear of the Jews, and the
Apostle Paul into was let down in a basket, and fled, when they were
told, Ye must bear witness at Rome [vid. Acts xxiii. 11.],
deferred not {202} the journey; yea, rather, they departed rejoicing [Note
38]; the one as hastening to meet his friends, received his death with
exultation; and the other shrunk not from the time when it came, but
gloried in it, saying, For I am now ready to be offered, and the
time of my departure is at hand [2 Tim. iv. 6.].
§. 19.
26. These things both prove that their previous
flight was not the effect of cowardice; and testify that their after
conduct also was of no ordinary character: and they loudly proclaim
that they possessed in a high degree the virtue of fortitude. For
neither did they withdraw themselves to gratify a slothful timidity,
seeing they were at such times under the practice of a severer
discipline [Note 39] than at others; nor were
they condemned for their flight, or charged with cowardice, by such as
are now so fond of criminating others. Nay they were blessed through
that declaration of our Lord, Blessed are they which are persecuted
for righteousness' sake [Mat. v. 10.]. Nor yet were these their
sufferings without profit to themselves; for having tried them as gold
in the furnace, as the Book of Wisdom has said, God found them
worthy for Himself. And then they shone the more like sparks,
being saved from them that persecuted them, and delivered from the
designs of their enemies, and preserved to the end that they might
teach the people, that their flight and escape from the rage of them
that sought after them, was according to the dispensation of the Lord.
And so they became dear in the sight of God, and obtained the most
glorious testimony to their fortitude.
§. 20.
27. Thus for example, the Patriarch Jacob was
favoured in his flight with many, even divine visions, and remaining
quiet himself; he had the Lord on his side, rebuking Laban, and
hindering the designs of Esau; and afterwards he became the father of
Judah, of whom sprang the Lord according to the flesh; and he
dispensed the blessings to the Patriarchs. And Moses the beloved of
God, when he was in exile, then it was that he saw that great sight,
and being preserved from his persecutors, was sent as a prophet into
Egypt, and being made the minister of those mighty wonders and of the
Law, he led that great people in the wilderness. And David when he was
persecuted wrote the Psalm, My heart is inditing a good matter
[Ps. xlv. 1.]; and, Our God shall come, and shall not keep
{203} silence [Ps. l. 3.]. And again he speaks more confidently,
saying, Mine eye hath seen his desire upon mine enemies [Ps.
liv. 7.]; and again, In God have I put my trust; I will not be
afraid what man can do unto me [Ps. lvi. 11.]. And when he fled
and escaped from the face of Saul to the cave, he said, He hath
sent from heaven, and hath saved me. He hath given them to reproach
that would tread me under their feet. God hath sent His mercy and
truth, and hath delivered my soul from the midst of lions [Ps.
lvii. 3.]. Thus he too was saved according to the dispensation of God,
and afterwards became king, and received the promise, that from his
seed our Lord should spring.
28. And the great Elias, when he withdrew himself
to mount Carmel, called upon God, and destroyed at once more than four
hundred prophets of Baal; and when there were sent to take him two
captains of fifty with their hundred men, he said, Let fire come
down from heaven [2 Kings i. 10.], and thus rebuked them. And he
too was preserved, so that he anointed Elisha in his own stead, and
became a pattern of virtue for the sons of the prophets. And the
blessed Paul, after writing these words, what persecutions I
endured; but out of them all the Lord delivered me, and will deliver
[2 Tim. iii. 11.]; could speak more confidently and say, But in all
these things we are more than conquerors, for nothing shall separate
us from the love of Christ [Rom. viii. 35, 37.] [Note
40]. For then it was that he was caught up to the third heaven, and
admitted into paradise, where he heard unspeakable words, which it
is not lawful for a man to utter [2 Cor. xii. 4.]. And for this
end was he then preserved, that from Jerusalem even unto Illyricum
he might fully preach the Gospel [Rom. xv. 19.].
§. 21.
29. The flight of the saints therefore was
neither blameable nor unprofitable. If they had not avoided their
persecutors, how would it have come to pass that the Lord should
spring from the seed of David? Or who would have preached the glad
tidings of the word of truth? It was for this that the persecutors
sought after the saints, that there might be no one to teach, as the
Jews charged the Apostles; but for this cause they endured all things,
that the Gospel might be preached [Note
41].
Behold, therefore, in that they were thus engaged in conflict with
their enemies, they passed not the time of their flight unprofitably,
nor while they were persecuted, did they forget the welfare of others:
but as being ministers of the {204} good word, they grudged not to
communicate it to all men; so that even while they fled, they preached
the Gospel, and gave warning of the wickedness of those who conspired
against them, and confirmed the faithful by their exhortations.
30. Thus the blessed Paul, having found it so by
experience, declared beforehand, As many as will live godly in
Christ, shall suffer persecution [2 Tim. iii. 12.]. And so he
straightway prepared them that fled for the trial, saying, Let us
run with patience the race that is set before us [Heb. xii. 1.];
for although there be continual tribulations, yet tribulation
worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and
hope maketh not ashamed [Rom. v. 4.]. And the Prophet Esaias when
such-like affliction was expected, exhorted and cried aloud, Come,
my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors: hide
thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be
overpast [Is. xxvi. 29.] [Note
42], And
the Preacher who knew the designs of the wicked against the righteous,
and said, If thou seest the oppression of the poor, and violent
perverting of judgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the
matter: for He that is higher than the highest regardeth, and there be
higher than they: moreover there is the profit of the earth
[Eccles. v. 8, 9]. He had his own father David for an example, who had
himself experienced the sufferings of persecution, and who supports
them that suffer by the words, Be of good courage, and He shall
strengthen your heart, all ye that put your trust in the Lord [Ps.
xxxi. 24.]; for them that so endure, not man, but the Lord Himself,
(he says,) shall help them, and deliver them, because they put
their trust in Him [Ps. xxxviii. 40.]: for I also waited
patiently for the Lord, and He inclined unto me, and heard my calling;
He brought me up also out of the lowest pit, and out of the mire and
clay [Ps. xl. 1.]. Thus is shewn how profitable to the people and
productive of good is the flight of the Saints, howsoever the Arians
may think otherwise.
§. 22.
31. Thus the Saints, as I said before, were
abundantly preserved in their flight by the Providence of God, as
physicians for the sake of them that had need. And to all men
generally, even to us, is this law given, that we should flee when we
are persecuted, and hide ourselves when we are sought after, and not
rashly tempt the Lord, but should wait, as I said above, until the
appointed time of death arrive, or {205} the Judge determine something
concerning us, according as it shall seem to Him to be good: that we
should be ready, that, when the time calls for us, or when we are
taken, we may contend for the truth even unto death. This rule the
blessed Martyrs observed in their several persecutions. When
persecuted they fled, while concealing themselves they shewed
fortitude, and when discovered they submitted to martyrdom. And if
some of them came and presented themselves to their persecutors [Note
A], they did not do so without reason; for immediately in that case
they were martyred, and thus made it evident to all that their zeal,
and this offering up of themselves to their enemies, were from the
Spirit.
§. 23.
32. Seeing therefore that such are the commands
of our Saviour, and that such is the conduct of the Saints, let these
persons, to whom one cannot give a name suitable to their
character,—let them, I say, tell us, from whom they learnt to
persecute? They cannot say, from the Saints [Note
43]. No, but from the Devil; (that is the only answer which is left
them;)—from him who says, I will pursue, I will overtake [Ex.
xv. 9.]. Our Lord commanded to flee, and the saints fled: but
persecution is a device of the Devil, and one which he desires to
exercise against all. Let them say then, to which we ought to submit
ourselves; to the words of the Lord, or to their fabrications? Whose
conduct ought we to imitate, that of the Saints, or that of those
whose example they have adopted? But since it is likely they cannot
determine this question, (for, as Esaias said, their minds and their
consciences are blinded, and they think bitter to be sweet, and
light darkness [Is. v. 20.] [Note
44],)
let some one come forth from among us Christians, and put them to
rebuke, and cry with a loud voice, “It is better to trust in the
Lord, than to attend to the foolish sayings of these men; for the words
of the Lord have eternal life [John vi. 68.], but the things
which these utter are full of iniquity and blood.”
§. 24.
33. This were sufficient to put a stop to the
madness of these impious men, and to prove that their desire is for
nothing else, but only through a love of contention to utter revilings
{206} and blasphemies. But forasmuch as having once dared to fight
against Christ, they have now become officious, let them enquire and
learn into the manner of my withdrawal from their own friends. For the
Arians were mixed with the soldiers in order to exasperate them
against me, and, as they were unacquainted with my person, to point me
out to them. And although they are destitute of all feelings of
compassion, yet when they hear the circumstances they will surely be
quiet for very shame.
34. It was now night [Note
45], and some of the people were keeping a vigil preparatory to a
communion on the morrow, when the General Syrianus suddenly came upon
us with more than five thousand soldiers, having arms and drawn
swords, bows, spears, and clubs, as I have related above. With these
he surrounded the Church, stationing his soldiers near at hand, in
order that no one might be able to leave the Church and pass by them.
Now I considered that it would be unfair in me to desert the people
during such a disturbance, and not to endanger myself in their behalf;
therefore I sat down upon my throne, and desired the Deacon to read
the Psalm, and the people to answer, For His mercy endureth for
ever [Ps. cxxxvi. 1.], and then all to withdraw and depart home.
But the General having now made a forcible entry, and the soldiers
having surrounded the Chancel for the purpose of apprehending me, the
Clergy and those of the laity, who were still there, cried out, and
demanded that I should withdraw. But I refused, declaring that I would
not do so, until they had retired one and all. Accordingly I stood up,
and having bidden prayer, I then made my request of them, that all
should depart before me, saying that it was better that my safety
should be endangered, than that any of them should receive hurt. So
when the greater part had gone forth, and the rest were following, the
monks who were there with me and certain of the Clergy came up and
dragged me away. And thus, (Truth is my witness,) while some of the
soldiers stood about the Chancel, and others were going round the
Church, I passed through, under the Lord's guidance, and with His
protection withdrew without observation, greatly glorifying God, that
I had not {207} betrayed the people, but had first sent them away, and
then had been able to save myself, and to escape the hands of them
which sought after me.
§. 25.
35. Now when Providence had delivered me in such
an extraordinary manner, who can justly lay any blame upon me, because
I did not give myself up into the hands of them that sought after me,
nor return and present myself before them? This would have been
plainly to shew ingratitude to the Lord, and to act against His
commandment, and in contradiction to the practice of the Saints. He
who censures me in this matter must presume also to blame the great
Apostle Peter, because though he was shut up and guarded by soldiers,
he followed the angel that summoned him, and when he had gone forth
from the prison and escaped in safety, he did not return and surrender
himself, although he heard what Herod had done. Let the Arian in his
madness censure the Apostle Paul, because when he was let down from
the wall and had escaped in safety, he did not change his mind, and
return and give himself up; or Moses, because he returned not out of
Midian into Egypt, that he might be taken of them that sought after
him; or David, because when he was concealed in the cave, he did not
discover himself to Saul. As also the sons of the prophets remained in
their caves, and did not surrender themselves to Ahab. This would have
been to act contrary to the commandment, since the Scripture says, Thou
shall not tempt the Lord thy God [Deut. vi. 16. Mat. iv. 7.]. §.
26. Being careful to avoid such an offence, and instructed by these
examples, I so ordered my conduct; and I do not undervalue the favour
and the help which have been shewn me of the Lord, howsoever these
madmen may gnash their teeth [Note
46] against
me. For since the manner of my retreat was such as I have described, I
do not think that any blame whatever can attach to it in the minds of
those who are possessed of a sound judgment: seeing that according to
holy Scripture, this pattern has been left us by the Saints for our
instruction. But there is no atrocity, it would seem, which these men
neglect to practise, nor will they leave any thing undone, which may
shew their own wickedness and cruelty.
36. And indeed their lives are only in accordance
with their spirit and the follies of their doctrine; for there are no
sins {208} that one could charge them with, how heinous soever, that
they do not commit without shame. Leontius [Note
47], for instance, being censured for his intimacy with a certain
young woman, named Eustolium, and prohibited from living with her,
mutilated himself for her sake, in order that he might be able to
associate with her freely. He did not however clear himself from
suspicion, but rather on this account he was degraded from his rank as
Presbyter, although the heretic Constantius by violence caused him to
be named a Bishop. Narcissus [Note
48],
besides being charged with many other transgressions, was degraded
three times by different Councils; and now he is the most wicked among
them. And George [Note 49] who was a
Presbyter, was degraded on account of his vices, and although he had
nominated himself a Bishop, he was nevertheless a second time degraded
in the great Council of Sardica. And besides all this, his dissolute
life is notorious, for he is condemned even by his own friends, as
making the end of existence and happiness to consist in the commission
of the most disgraceful crimes.
§. 27.
37. Thus each surpasses the other in his own
peculiar vices. But there is a common blot that attaches to them all,
in that through their heresy they are enemies of Christ, and are no
longer called Christians [Note B], but Arians.
They ought indeed to accuse each other of the sins they are guilty of,
for they are contrary to the faith of Christ; but they rather conceal
them for their own sakes. And it is no wonder, that being possessed of
such a spirit, and implicated in such vices, they persecute and seek
after those who follow not the same impious heresy as themselves; that
they delight to destroy them, and are grieved if they fail of
obtaining their desires, and think themselves injured, as I said
before, when they see those alive, whom they wish to perish. May they
continue to be injured in such sort, that they may lose the power of
inflicting injuries, and that those whom they persecute may give
thanks unto the Lord, and say in the words of the twenty-sixth Psalm, The
Lord is my light and my salvation; whom then shall I fear? The Lord is
the strength of my life; of whom then shall I be afraid? When the
wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, {209} come upon me to
eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell [Ps. xxvii. 1.]: and again
in the thirtieth Psalm, Thou hast known my soul in adversities;
Thou hast not shut me up into the hands of my enemies; Thou hast set
my feet in a large room [Ps. xxxi. 7, 8.]; in Christ Jesus our
Lord, through whom to the Father in the Holy Spirit be glory and power
for ever and ever. Amen.
A. vid. Hist. Arian. §. 4. also Theodoret Hist.
i. 20. Eustathius was one of the original opponents of Arianism. S.
Alexander wrote to him (then Bishop of Berrhœa) against Arius, as
well as to Philogonius of Antioch and Alexander of Constantinople. He
was deposed by the Arians A.D.
331, on the pretence of Sabellianism and perhaps of incontinency.
Montfaucon, however, doubts whether the latter was ever made a charge,
though Theodoret mentions it. V. Athan. p. 14. Another reason is given
Hist. Arian. loc. cit. The orthodox succession was continued, though
dispossessed, and gave occasion to the schism, after the overthrow of
Arianism, which was not terminated till the time of S. Chrysostom. The
name of Euphration occurs de Syn. 17. (tr. vol.8. p. 99.) as the
Bishop to whom Eusebius of Cęsarea wrote an heretical letter. Balaneę
is on the Syrian coast. Paltus also and Antaradus are in Syria, and
these persecutions took place about A.D. 340; that of Eutropius, and of Lucius his successor, about
332, shortly after the proceedings against Eustathius. Cyrus too was
banished under pretence of Sabellianism about 340. Asclepas has been
mentioned supr. p. 69. note E. For Theodulus and Olympius vid. Hist.
Arian. §. 19. and supr. p. 71. note G. Return to text
A.
Vid. instances and passages collected in Pearson's Vind. Ignat. part
ii. c. 9. also Gibbon, ch. xvi. p. 438. Mosheim de Reb. Ante Const. p.
941. Return to text
B.
Vid. supr. p. 149, r. 4. infr. Hist. Arian. §§. 17. 34 fin. 41 init.
59 fin. 64 init. vol. 8. p. 27, note h. pp. reff. 85, 1. 179, 4. 182.
188, 4. 194, 2. Return to text