Appendix

APPENDIX. NAUCRATII CONFESSORIS ENCYCLICAL ON THE DEATH OF SAINT THEODORE THE STUDITE

To those suffering for the Lord, and to the spiritual brothers and fathers scattered everywhere, Naucratius the sinner sends greetings. ^A

Up to this present time, my most honorable brothers and fathers, I have been delaying this humble letter, putting it off day after day, and keeping my grief to myself. I have done this for many reasons, which I think your Reverence is not ignorant of; and first of all, because I could not bear to be the messenger to you of such a grievous and bitter event: namely, the falling asleep of our blessed and most celebrated Father. But since, as I see, this new report has reached not only those here but also those far away—so much so that to most it appears difficult to believe that the servant of the Lord has truly been translated from this life—and I do not think that what we, out of reverence and fear, have kept silent about, has failed to reach you; I have been moved by necessity to write, now ^B more plainly announcing, however unwillingly, that which you have already heard from the report of others, and this, indeed, not without complaints and tears. For who, even if he has a heart of stone, would not shed hot tears, considering the common loss to the Church of God? And who, possessing an adamantine soul, unless he has entirely departed from the boundaries of nature, would not be struck by the unexpectedness of the hearing, and feel and suffer all that is human? But alas for my misery! To what an age, wretch that I am, have I been preserved? And what was this ^C laid up in store for my afflicted life, that I should have to announce the death of him who had not lived for himself, but for Christ? And most truly, indeed, our common Father has fallen asleep, he, I say, who followed you with much love and fatherly affection, as truly his children; as laborers in the Lord's vineyard; as sons of obedience; as soldiers of Christ; as true confessors; as those who labored ^D with him and struggled with him in many [things... (the text breaks here at the page bottom)]

Our common Father has fallen asleep, truly the disciple and imitator of Christ; that mouth of the Church; the ornament of priests; the pillar of the faith; the rule of monks; the evangelical shepherd; the apostolic heart; the chosen one of the confessors; the voluntary martyr; the sun of orthodoxy; the teacher of the inhabited world. And, O what a report! Our common Father has fallen asleep, the most silver-tongued preacher of the truth; the perennial fountain of doctrine; the man of ten thousand thoughts regarding the divinely-inspired guidance; the admirable counselor; the faithful steward of the mysteries of God; the citizen of the heavenly Jerusalem; the purified mind; the golden soul; the door of repentance; the source of dogmas; the sweet-sounding lyre of the Spirit; the dwelling-place of the blessed and sovereign Trinity. And I will say it again, not for the sake of consolation—for what speech could be found to be a healer of such a calamity?—but in order to express, by this voice, the pain that constricts the heart from every side: our common Father has fallen asleep; the earthly angel and heavenly man; that most pure temple of virginity; the multiform and manifold man, with the versatile wisdom of the Spirit; the most keen-sighted observer; the genuine servant of Christ; the ^B beautiful-browed eye of the body of Christ; the champion of patience, and conqueror of the Iconoclast heresy; the armor of justice; the fountain of almsgiving; the precise guardian of the Lord’s laws; the storehouse of virtues; the man sweet in speech and easy of approach. But who is capable of recording how many and how great were the titles granted him by grace, according to those operations of his, who, with an apostolic affection, became all things to all men? O most desired ones, what is this mystery for us humble ones? And what is the inscrutable wisdom of God? Now I would have need of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, and if any other blessed and holy man has bewailed the magnitude of a calamity. The man has fallen who was in truth the pillar and foundation of the Church; or rather, he indeed has been raised to the blessed life and has departed from us; but there is fear that, with this support removed, some may fall together, and that which is rotten in them may be laid bare. The mouth is closed, which was meditating in the law of the Lord day and night, and which was pouring forth words of just freedom for edification. The counsels of his mind have departed, he whose movements were in God. The eye is closed that saw rightly, and that most excellently distinguished the better from the worse. The lips have quieted, which were guarding knowledge, and from which, as from the lips of an angel of the Lord Almighty, they were seeking the divine law. ^C The lips are bound, ^D and...

^A a tongue flowing with gold, that expositor of divine dogmas, is silenced. The hand, which wrote beautifully and which had enriched the world with letters, and turned many to the knowledge of the truth, has been stayed. The feet, which were beautiful, having stood throughout vigils and having heralded peace and good things to many, have stopped. The most perspicacious mind has rested, which had searched the depths of the Spirit and had foreseen things far off, and provided for them most excellently. The body, which had been exercised by ascetic labors and had endured many exiles, and imprisonments, and stripes, and abductions, is hidden under the earth.

Such, indeed, most blessed ones, was our Father; or rather, to speak truly, the Father and teacher of many; a second Abraham, whose blessing from God was exceptional, and whose seed is beyond number. He was a follower ^B of the Forerunner; an emulator of Elijah; a Phinehas in grace; a new Samuel; he was the one chosen out of thousands, whose virtue many cities, regions, and islands celebrate, and whose life and contests the ends of the earth rightly extol. For who so loved virtue, or so hated vice, as he did? Who so mortified, to use the words of the Apostle, the members which are upon the earth (Colos. III, 5), and purified himself, and made himself a temple of the living God? Who so acted as a leader, and drew up a line of battle against the adversaries, and, joining issue, struck them down with such happy success, having gained a most noble victory? Who was more acute than he in foreseeing the future? Who, with such robust and solid habits, was able to act more swiftly than a lightning flash? But time would fail me to speak more, for these things are evident to all, even if we do not mention them, as we pass over them because the letter is becoming ^C too long.

Alas! Alas! My most honorable brothers, who though occupied heretofore with many evils and afflictions, have not received any wound so grave and perilous to your souls as this. Now the most beautiful world has withered for us; the Church is sad, and the peoples are mourning, because the fighter has departed, and the contemplator and admirable counselor has flown away. Hence the sacred senate seeks its head; the confessors seek their fellow combatant; the champions seek their trainer and director; the sick seek their physician; the afflicted seek their consolation; those in calamities seek one who might bring relief; the orphans seek their father; the widows their protector; the poor their provider; ^D those suffering injustice seek their champion and defender. All, calling upon him by their own names in their own respective distress, each brings his own proper and fitting lament for this blessed man—him, I say, crowned with many and innumerable gifts of grace, and who obtained his name, Theodore, by divine appointment, in accordance with its fitting meaning.

^A We humble ones, having been orphaned at the present time along with all others and indeed before all others, and being separated in body, have been left desolate. We have become as it was from the beginning: we walk about mourning and with sorrowful countenance. We have become an opprobrium to our adversaries and a joy to the heretics. "The Iconoclasts have opened their mouth against us." We have been "reckoned with them that go down into the pit," to speak in the language of the Psalms. We have "become as a sparrow alone upon the housetop." "Our life has dwelt a little while in Hades." We have despaired; we have renounced ourselves; we have become a sad story to the world; and—oh, the truly terrible and mournful desolation!—how accurately have we been likened to the pelican of the wilderness! The passing of that renowned man has filled our humble heart with grief; it has filled our darkened eyes with tears, and our soul’s senses with groans, palpitations, and heat. It has rendered the present life hateful and death desirable. It has turned the spring of the soul into winter. What is highly coveted by the many is abhorred by us. And thus, most venerable ones, our circumstances are immeasurably mournful and bitter, unfriendly and devoid of any joy; and of such a nature that they admit of no consolation, so that wherever the humble mind turns, it finds no rest, save only in looking towards God and ^B toward that sacred tomb. But what of your circumstances? I do not ask as one who does not know; nevertheless, I inquire, O most desired ones, and you will surely say the same things, for as Scripture testifies, when one member suffers, all the members suffer with it. That you are members, and of the most noble ones at that, is manifest to all; hence, the sympathy is well-deserved. For who will henceforth meet those arriving with a joyful countenance, and receive them with open hands, and having embraced them, kiss their dear faces? Who will inquire after what is necessary and profitable for the soul? Who will make the sorrowful rejoice with rhythmic admonition? Who will comfort the despondent? Who will refresh those who are despairing in their thoughts and scorched and burning? Who will anoint them for the contests? Who will urge them toward the course of piety? Who will stir them up to manly courage? Who will strengthen them for the struggle of truth? Who will bring healing to the sick? Who will speak opportune words to those at a distance by letter? Who will love them so, and lay down his precious soul for each one, in imitation of Christ, as that God-bearing shepherd and teacher did? But what need is there to recount with lamentations most of the things relating to that blessed and admirable man, on account of which you also especially consider the loss to be intolerable? For the measure of a letter would not bear it; and otherwise, it is not opportune to present a multitude of noble deeds in a writing, thus with our humble soul sinking from sadness,

For what is there of his that is such that it would deserve to fall out of our memory or to be passed over in silence? But woe is me in my lowliness! Being stirred from within by the pleasure of what has just been said, I have inadvertently lingered on the affliction, and by reminding you of the blessed one's deeds among us, appearing to console, I rather irritate the wound of your soul, and kindle the flame of the heart, and increase the grief, and perhaps fill your brotherly eyes with tears.

But come now, O best of fathers and most sincere of brothers, let us not stop our thinking at these points, nor let us be softened and succumb to the passion, so that the great Apostle may not censure us also. Let us run back to antiquity ^B and see from our forefather down to this present time; and indeed, before others, those who pleased God through their life and excellent conduct—I mean the fathers, patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, who were before the law, and after them those who were under the law, Moses and Aaron; those who came later, the judges and prophets; those in grace, the apostles, martyrs, confessors, hierarchs, and holy men, down to the one of whom we speak; and how he permitted each of these in their own generation to serve, and in due time called them back to himself. And let not the departure of the ever-memorable one grieve you; let it rejoice you rather, that he is numbered among and is a participant with those previously mentioned, ^C as one who has struggled equally and clearly. For he has not abandoned us, provided indeed, as he himself said, that we keep his commandments; he is now all the more powerful to intercede and assist, and that to the extent that, as an example, he first served and ministered to God through a mirror and in a riddle, but now face to face, more purely and more brilliantly. And he has gone a little ahead on the way to God, clearing this path for us, preparing for us a dwelling of rest there, if indeed we live in a manner pleasing to the Lord, and as he himself taught us in deed and word. Let these things bring consolation to your blessed soul. In these things, your most pure mind, pondering, let it keep Sabbath and as it were rest. And keeping in memory ^D the commandments and exhortations of the thrice-blessed Father, night and day, and being closely occupied and meditating on them—for thus we shall also please God to whom we are attached, and we shall piously complete the race that lies before us, and he will be glorified by us and will in turn glorify us from here, and in the age to come will prepare for us the kingdom of heaven. And I have gone through these things, even if by some they might be considered to exceed a letter; but in relation to what is owed, they are not even a part of a letter; at the same time, because the noble deeds of that blessed man are most exact, and because of my humble and afflicted soul.

^A tokens of our humble and sorrowful soul; and at the same time, they are addresses to your brotherly love, and, as it were, a source of consolation.

You might ask, I well know, how the falling asleep of the blessed one took place, what the disease was, and how many days he was bedridden; who, moreover, were the departing words, and the final prayers; what his testament and his instructions were; and again, who were those who gathered in this final hour—that is to say, at the funeral—and all other such things. And who is capable of reporting these to you by letter, and what soul, being outside the realm of suffering, would have the strength to write down even the smallest detail? Yet, we shall speak in summary, so that even from this you might find some consolation.

The disease was the ancient one—I refer to that of the stomach—which, having grown worse from long years of imprisonment and exile, and from the utter neglect of the body that followed, and having progressed to painful sufferings, resulted in complete anorexia; so much so that the blessed man, even before his falling asleep, seemed almost dead. From this illness, having been confined to his bed for four days at the beginning of the month of November, he was again restored by the good pleasure of the Lord. But oh, the greatness of soul and the nobility of that thrice-blessed man! For not even during the illness itself did he wish to enjoy any rest or any consolation, so much had he despised the present life to the very end ^B. For, having already failed in longevity and being worn out by old age, and furthermore being pelted by the intensity of his pains, he acted according to the Davidic saying: *He did not give sleep to his eyes, nor slumber to his eyelids; nor rest to his temples, until he had found a place for the Lord.* ^C And indeed he found it.

And what was this? It was that uninterrupted and, as it were, unceasing salvific teaching, which—as was his custom—he would resoundingly proclaim every day, which even while lying in bed, since he could not speak more loudly to the brothers gathered about him, he dictated to one of the scribes; though he spoke to another with his own voice; which we have appended to this epistle, so that every person of good sense might know from this, too, that the holy man was not unaware of his own blessed falling asleep, even though he foretold it symbolically. For it reads thus:

OF THE PASSING OF SAINT THEODORUS THE STUDITE

^A "Brothers and Fathers, I have been sick, and have recovered once more by your prayers. But how long are we to keep coming to this 'again'? Indeed, the day of death will certainly come, when there will be no more 'again'—the day of death, I say, when I shall be separated from you and depart from among men. Yet you must not for this reason account yourselves orphans, for He is truthful who said: 'I will not leave you orphans' (John XIV, 18), and 'Behold, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world' (Matt. XXVIII, 20). Besides, it will also happen that we shall see one another on that day; would that it be in ineffable joy and in life unending. As for what happened to me in my infirmity, it does not escape you: how, with the shivering taking hold of me, I endured an insufferable trembling, and how afterwards I spent the whole day lying down under the heat of a fever. So, as I endured this, I thought to myself: what if, in the future judgment, one must fall from the Tartarean tortures into the hell of fire? And to how many ^B or perhaps more torments, might the wretched man be liable?"

Furthermore, whether one penalty remains or two, one may certainly conjecture from the pains of this present life that God's wrath against sinners will be intolerable; and therefore, we must be constrained by much fear and trembling, so that we may not fall into those intolerable punishments. This present persecution, then, to some was found to be a material for virtue, in which they shone as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life as a boast for me (if it is permitted to say so) in the day of Christ. With this good, have they not departed? With what progress and promotion toward better things? For they guarded themselves and still do, exercised by temptations, like gold tested and purified by the tribulations of fire; they both receive others and have shown themselves to be saviors of many, both of their own order and of others—those among whom may my portion be, and if anyone should desire to be aligned with me. But to others—and these are few—it was the material and occasion of wickedness and disgrace; to those, I say, who with freedom of life, and having as it were stolen obedience, have wrought their own shame. ^C Whence it is opportune to say according to Scripture: "Their appearance has been blackened more than soot" (Thren. IV, 8); to whom I shall also cry out: "O wicked children, you have forsaken the Lord; you have changed the laws of the monastic life (Isa. I, 4). You have not straight paths; but like the lame, turning this way and that, you are carried about. Depart from your ways; you are lovers of women; some are living in separation, while others are buying slaves and exchanging a life of commerce for the sake of..." ^D

^A greed. Do neither the prophetic ^B threats nor the apostolic warnings frighten you? Does the exhortation of my own humility not affect you? For I have learned that such a one, having seduced a young girl into intimacy, has, in this very act of abduction and rejection of God, made his feet ready for the snare. What are you saying, O wretched and miserable man? How often have you chanted: "Where shall I go from your Spirit, and where shall I flee from your presence?" Plainly, you have been driven by the serpentine impulse—that same breath by which Eve was seduced and, along with our first forefather Adam, cast out of Paradise. Do you think at all to deny Christ, to whom you were betrothed by your vow of virginity, in order to cling to sin, through which death entered into the world? Do you not hear the Scripture crying out concerning those who do such things: "Their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched"? Do you not heed the Apostle saying: "God will judge the fornicator and the adulterer"? And again: "If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him"? What will you find when you have completed your iniquity? Is it not darkness and a sword to sever your heart? Is it not the pit of despair? Have you not embraced, as Judas once did, the very Satan who seduced you, urging on the noose? Repent, you who are blinded by darkness! Flee the snare of death, you who have been tripped up, lest you be caught in the ^C infernal trap, in which you have lived even in the present life the life of Cain; and have been trembling and groaning, fleeing from all your acquaintances, only to be condemned in the future to the fire of Gehenna.

What, then, am I, a miserable man, confined to one place, to do toward all those I have mentioned? What, I ask, but to lament with groaning, to testify, and to announce the coming sword? And if indeed they should listen and turn from the way of their error and the path leading to destruction, they will be a salvation to themselves and to my humility; but if not, they alone will draw to themselves these evils, they alone will go into the fire which they have kindled, they alone will pay the penalty, suffering eternal destruction from the face of God and from the glory of His power, when He comes to be glorified in His saints and to be admired in all those who have walked faithfully according to the prescription of His commandments; awarding to these the fitting rewards, but to the adversaries, prepared eternal punishments. But you, my brethren, I pray that you walk well, so that having been defamed by ^D your assemblies: you are lovers of women; some of you are solitaries, while others have bought slaves; others, finally, for the sake of base gain and avarice, have taken up trade. You are not frightened by the terrible words of the prophets, or the apostolic threats, or the admonition of my own humility—which, as I know, some person such as this, entering into friendship with a girl, has, through that abduction and rejection of God, made his feet ready. What say you, O wretched and miserable man? How often have you chanted: "Whither shall I go from thy Spirit, or whither shall I flee from thy presence?" Truly you have been driven into love by that serpentine breath by which Eve was seduced, and together with our first parent Adam, was cast out of Paradise. Do you think at all to deny Christ, to whom you were betrothed by your vow of virginity, to cling to the sin by which death entered into the world? Do you not hear the Scripture crying out against those who act in this way: "Their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be extinguished"? Do you not hear Paul saying: "God will judge fornicators and adulterers"? And again: "If anyone violates the temple of God, God will destroy him"? What will you find when you have consumed your iniquity? Is it not darkness and a sword that will sever your heart? Is it not the pit of despair? Have you not embraced Satan himself, who seduced you and urges on the noose, just as he once threw down Judas? Repent, you who are blinded by darkness: Flee the snare of death, from which you have been tripped, lest you be seized by the infernal trap, in which you have lived in the present age the life of Cain; and have been trembling and groaning, and fleeing from all those you know: yet in the future, you will be damned in the fire of Gehenna. What then, miserable man that I am, confined to one place, am I to do for all those mentioned above? What, I say, can I do but groan and lament, and testify, and announce the coming sword? And if, indeed, they should listen and be converted from the way of their error, and from that which leads to perdition, they would be a salvation to themselves and to my humility: but if not, they alone will draw to themselves evils; they alone will go into the fire which they have kindled; they alone will pay the penalty, an eternal destruction from the face of God, and from the glory of his power, when he comes to be glorified in his saints, and to be held in admiration in all who have walked faithfully according to the prescription of his commandments: rendering to the former the fitting rewards; but to the adversaries, prepared eternal punishments. But you, my brothers, I pray that you walk well, so that being reviled for...

^A the word of virtue, and leading even the wicked to the knowledge of truth, all suffering all things, that all of us in all things pleasing the Lord, might escape the damnation of Gehenna and punishment, and might attain the kingdom of heaven, in the same Christ our Lord, to whom be glory and power, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen.

Now after the four-day period, on the following day—which was the day of the Resurrection—the blessed man, having sat down according to custom, and his catechesis having been read, what happened? He was enlivened by spirit and alacrity; for, as they say, labor grants health, and the alacrity of the spirit and more intense zeal raise the dead. But since it was necessary that the mystical rite also be performed, for which that thrice-blessed man had daily great desire, he entered the temple, intending to serve the Lord purely and to offer the bloodless sacrifice.

And having completed this, and communicated the life-giving sacraments to those present, and having finished all things most fittingly, he returned from there to the table; where, having embraced and lovingly received some of the Fathers and confessors who were present, he dismissed them, having conversed ^B of little else than death. And indeed not only then, as you know; but the entire time of the blessed and renowned man’s life had nothing more than the meditation on death, and the desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ. And from this remembrance, what and how great was his daily struggle! And as for the things he accomplished with diligence, both privately and publicly, what need is there to speak, when they themselves almost cry out in deed? But now, much more so: as if for nearly a year he had perfectly prepared himself for his departure; so that, when I was present with him frequently and often—he who was doing and saying everything by the will of God—nevertheless, as an emulator of Christ’s humility, he did not disdain to speak to my humility about these matters, saying: Is there anything remaining, he would ask, of those things which we needed to speak of? Have we neglected any of those things of which we were debtors? Thus did that blessed and most anxious soul struggle and take care in such matters. But after the following day—for it was the third day, on which occurred the memory of the great confessor Paul ^C; the blessed man...

as a lover of God and a lover of the saints, fulfilling the apostolic ordinance, and once again performing the divine Mystery, devoting himself to the memory of the saint. And when evening had already fallen, having spoken at length and having addressed those sitting with him according to custom, he went from there into his cell, and having completed the customary psalmody and prayers, he lay down upon his little bed. And around the fourth hour, the pain ^B habitual to his illness came upon him; and having called one of the brothers sleeping in front of his cell, he reported the pain to him, and with that came the gathering of the brothers. And having passed the day in moderate pain, on the following day he called all those present and spoke his parting words. But who were these? Those whom he never ceased to address and remind by night and by day; and this most especially: “Brothers and Fathers: this cup is common, which all our fathers drank. I too am to drink the same, and I am going to my fathers. See the deposit which I have entrusted to you; keep your faith unshaken, and your life unspotted. For I have nothing more to say, since everything that was necessary to announce to you and to teach in advance, I have already done.”

Adding this too, he who was truly a son of peace and love: “To our master the high priest, offer on my behalf a greeting of reverence and honor; likewise to the rest of the Fathers, the hierarchs and priests of Christ, to the confessors suffering persecution for the Lord’s sake, ^C to all the brothers, friends, and acquaintances, and to those who have labored with us in the contest for the faith, both small and great.” But truly, that blessed and virtue-loving soul! Which not even in that very hour was meditating on or striving for anything else than only to please God and to glorify God. Finally, being asked by our humility what he would command concerning those brothers, or laymen, who were liable to penances and were doing penance (20), the truly compassionate physician and imitator of Christ answered: “The Lord will grant indulgence to all,” ^D adding, for the sake of confirming the faith—for he was truly worthy of trust—the command of God given through his servant Moses; and having sealed himself for the third time, he prayed, saying: “The Lord of peace shall be with your

spirit.” And having embraced all those present, he remained thus. Meanwhile, the report spreads, and a not inconsiderable multitude of people arrives. And having thus spent two days, signing, blessing, and kissing each one who came, and gently addressing and praying for them, the thrice-blessed one dismissed them in peace, leaving to each a memento and a saving provision for their journey.

On the Lord’s day, on which the memory of the great martyr Menas was celebrated, when he had recited the customary Canticles and Psalms, and had become a partaker of those life-giving sacraments—sacraments, I say, which are life-giving—and had been anointed and sealed according to custom, with his hands raised on high and praying, when about the sixth hour he sensed that his strength was failing, he quietly commanded that tapers be lit; and thereupon we began the Psalms: and as we lingered on that verse where it says, “I will never forget your statutes, for in them you have given me life,” he surrendered his blessed and pure soul to the holy angels. Thus, then, in brief was the falling asleep of the thrice-blessed one, and the end of his athletic course; and this was, for his many struggles, labors, and sweats, his rest for age upon age.

But oh, how shall I bring before your eyes what follows without tears, consumed in my thoughts and, as it were, distracted in my heart? Yet grant me a little grace to linger on the narrative. The thrice-blessed one lay there (for it is good not to pass even this by, as it were a strange spectacle), venerable in appearance, angelic in form, as if the soul that had journeyed to the Lord had left imprinted upon the sacred body, with which and in which it had served the Holy Trinity, certain light-like rays, as it were, of its own radiance. Suddenly, others were added to those who had come before, a multitude both of monks and of the common people; many indeed, and of the distinguished, together with whom were bishops and priests, each bringing what was appropriate for that blessed funeral and burial. Some brought white and very precious candles; another, a shroud worked in Phrygian style; another, a purple veil; and others, vessels of silver, and gold-silver, and amber; and some, spices and incense; and one brought this, and another that, that I may not prolong the speech. All, however, in any case, were hastening with faith to offer something to the sacred relics worthy of memory, and to deposit it at the precious tomb. There occurred on that day and night a severe storm, as once before in the time of the great Peter of Alexandria. And it was a thing supernatural to behold.

For all despised sea, and air, and the flooding of rivers, and the trial of those in power, and whatever else had terror in it, accounting all things secondary. Indeed, servants despised the service of masters, farmers their work, overseers their supervision, sailors and merchants their trade, and travelers their own way; and they were all poured out around him, looking upon him as upon a sacred treasure, or more fittingly to say, as one breathing and able to speak.

And thus, with the appropriate psalmody and lighting of lamps, with all-night vigils and holy invocations, having performed the services on the following day according to custom, at about the fifth hour he was delivered to the holy tomb—that is, the coffin—not without toil, nor indeed without weariness, because of the multitude of the people falling upon him to take some of the holy grave-clothes or of his precious remains. ^B Yet he was delivered nonetheless, and placed in his own cell, in the place where the thrice-blessed one was accustomed to write holy books and to minister to the Lord. For this was his task, according to the apostolic manner, even after the affliction of persecution and old age. And the Father was joined to the Fathers; the priest to the hierarchs, and even before the anointing; the confessor to the confessors; the martyr by determination to the martyrs; the teacher to the teachers; the great trumpet of truth to the preachers. I would add also these things: the temperate to the temperate, the chaste to the lovers of chastity, the hospitable to those who were devoted to hospitality, the modest in sentiment to the modest and humble. He who had become, as far as was possible, all things to all men in a divine manner, in order that he might save all, or at least the many, leaning upon the examples of apostolic achievements. And now he himself, having completed his apostolic course, is treading the heavens, and celebrating with the angelic choirs, ^C in a place of a wondrous tabernacle, in the sound of those keeping festival, enjoying eternal goods in the Lord; and looking down upon us from there as a merciful one, he offers his prayers for us, the humble, to the Lord more fervently. But we, the humble and base, changed by hope in other things, bear the sorrowful matter with thanksgiving, uttering that celebrated voice: *The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; as it pleased the Lord, so it came to pass.* For if anything has happened, it has happened by the will of the Lord, who manages all things for our benefit; but as to his will, says the wonderful Apostle, who—

^A has resisted? But because we also submit to the laws of nature, 27 lamenting after the manner of orphans, we recount the circumstances of our Father, truly a lover of God and a lover of his children. And especially do we do so when we see daily, like little birds, our brothers from here and there, from nearer and farther places, rushing to the paternal tomb with somber faces, 28 miserably afflicted and sad, dishevelled, flowing with tears, writhing, and groaning from the depths of their hearts, so that from their very appearance anyone might immediately recognize their affection. And indeed, many others who have enjoyed his paternal benefits in both respects. But you, most blessed ones, even if you were to say the same or more, since you were left behind and missed seeing the thrice-blessed man at his passing, and are weeping and wailing, nevertheless, be comforted by the things you have heard and hope for, and find refreshment, and hold firmly to the rest of your good course without slackness; praying also for our lowliness without ceasing, since we also pray for your reverence, even if it be daring. We greet your entire community, together with the rest, in a brotherly way ^B through you. Those who are with us greet your holiness most warmly.

NOTICE REGARDING THE FOLLOWING NARRATION

Concerning the holy patriarchs Tarasius and Nicephorus

^C The celebrated patriarchs Tarasius and Nicephorus made certain dispensations, for which reason Saint Theodore the Studite separated himself from their communion, as we have already indicated. The history of this matter must therefore be set forth. The Emperor Constantine, son of the religious Irene, having cast out his wife, and by force—

^A had her shorn against her will, took another in her place. Now holy Tarasius (for he was at that time guiding the helm of the Church in Constantinople) did not consent to this at all; but a certain presbyter of the Church, named Joseph, crowned them. Then the great Theodorus, moved by divine zeal, excommunicated the Emperor and denounced him as one acting gravely against the law, with many others following his purpose and zeal; and he separated himself from the Church and the patriarch, for although the patriarch had not consented to the unlawful marriage, yet he had not actively opposed it, nor had he displayed divine zeal against an emperor guilty of such a great crime.

But after Constantine was blinded by divine judgment, and Irene, his mother, had fallen from the empire, the one who had deposed her by intrigue, Nicephorus, having obtained the scepter, among other things wrongly committed, made it his endeavor that the aforementioned presbyter Joseph, already excluded from the sacred rites, should be received back into the Church. Then holy Nicephorus, successor to the already deceased Tarasius, condescended to the will of the Emperor Nicephorus and admitted Joseph. On account of this, the great Theodorus again separated himself from his communion as well.

And indeed, from the beginning, the holy Theodorus had not tolerated that iniquity; although the Emperor Constantine had offered gifts and attempted to placate him in every way, both by himself and through others, and finally through the illegitimate wife herself, who was a relative of Theodorus; nor yet did he, having suffered the most grievous things from him—namely exiles, ^B prisons, long hunger, stripes inflicted upon his back, and all kinds of tortures—remit any of his divine zeal, nor was he seen to resist any less vigorously. Indeed, to a man of such virtue, the crime of Constantine could not appear trivial; for from this very emperor it had begun, and was already advancing to the destruction of countless souls. For many men, and especially those more inclined to passion, taking an opportunity from this for the fulfillment of their own unrestrained desires, followed the Emperor's transgression as if it were a law, casting out wives already legally joined to them and taking to themselves others as they pleased. The great Theodorus, seeing this plague already spreading to many regions, moved his divine zeal against the emperor, as we have said, and dissented until the end; and this is how that matter stood.

Of the aforementioned patriarchs, the divine Tarasius condescended for this reason and kept silent concerning such a lawless deed of Constantine, because the same Emperor Constantine threatened that if the patriarch did not submit to his will, he would restore the heresy of the emperors who had recently reigned and would again destroy the venerable and holy icons. Therefore it seemed right to him to ^C remit somewhat from the strict law, lest he ruin the sum of the matter. But holy Nicephorus, although he had previously resisted Nicephorus, who reigned after Constantine, ^D nonetheless, knowing well his contumacy and the depravity of his mind, and fearing that he might at some time disturb and confound all ecclesiastical matters, he too condescended, and received the deposed Joseph, as

as has been said. ^A Nevertheless, whether the great Theodore acted better by speaking out against the transgression and standing firm to the end, or whether the patriarchs condescended for the reasons stated, we shall leave for others to judge—those who possess the lamp of knowledge shining within themselves and whose faculties of soul are strengthened for the discernment of such things. For we find that holy Epiphanius of Cyprus also displayed similar zeal to that of the great Theodore, as well as an invincible strength of resistance against the empress Eudoxia. When she once threatened to open the temples of the idols if the divine Chrysostom were not sent into exile, the holy man was not at all cowed, nor did he yield in the least; but saying, "I am innocent of this judgment," he departed, leaving her breathing with rage.

It is said that Saint Theodore also broke away from the illustrious patriarchs for another reason; and it was that, as he says, they were raised directly from the laity to the patriarchal throne, and that their ordination did not take place according to ecclesiastical law. ^B To this, the one who wrote the account of their deeds replies that the divine canons do not strictly forbid this matter, but only fear lest, if someone ignorant of the priestly office were perhaps elected, he might ruin ecclesiastical affairs. But these men—I mean the great Tarasius and the divine Nicephorus—indeed advanced ecclesiastical matters for the better and performed everything rightly and lawfully. And therefore, the canon does not touch them.

It must be known, however, that the opposition of the great Theodore against the illustrious patriarchs, who—moved by God—relaxed their rigor somewhat so that a greater harm might not occur, and his ^C own secession from the Church, appeared to the Fathers as no small fault. But he corrected his action, as stated above and as the history of these men demonstrates. The great Methodius also shows this in his aforementioned discourse to the Studites; for he narrates that Theodore changed his earlier opinion, into which he had been carried away, and was reconciled with the Church; and that toward the end of his life, he cherished much union of soul, charity, and perpetual familiarity with the illustrious patriarch Nicephorus. Therefore, in him was fulfilled that which is said in the Psalms regarding the just man: *When he falls, he shall not be cast down, for the Lord supporteth his hand* (Ps. XXXVI, 24). For if to oppose even any priest, ^D provided there is no heresy, holds great danger, how great was the moment of opposing such pontiffs—pontiffs, I say, or rather apostles, as the great Dionysius speaks? This the divine Methodius also justly objects to the disciples of the holy man, that is, the Studites, saying thus: "You are a monk, and it is not permitted for you to scrutinize the things of priests, but it behooves you to be subject, not to subject or examine them."

INDICES. INDEX. EORUM AD QUOS SCRIPTÆ SUNT THEODORI EPISTOLÆ.

Prior numerus librum, posterior columnam indicat.

^A Abolio monacho, II, 1598. Abrahamio hospitalario, II, 1551. Agathoni cæterisque filiis, II, 1427. Albenecæ protospathariæ, II, 1262. Alexandriæ papæ, II, 1155. Ammoni filio, II, 1334. Anastasio episcopo Cnossie, I, 943. Anastasio protospathario, II, 1270. Annæ monachæ, I, 1062. Annæ præpositæ, I, 1070, 1107. Anthimo filio, II, 1362. Antisarchensis populi communi, I, 966. Antonio Dyrrachii, II, 1490. Antonio episcopo, II, 1627. Antonio præposito S. Petri, etc., I, 1110. Arcadio monacho, II, 1250. Archimandritæ Gotthiæ, II, 1519. Arsenio filio, I, 1042. Athanasio filio, I, 1070; II, 1234, 1927. Auxentio præposito, II, 1566.

^B Basilio præposito et archimandritæ Romæ, I, 1027. Basilio Christi confessori, II, 1323. Basilio filio spirituali, II, 1347. Basilio monacho, I, 998; II, 1562. Basilio patricio, II, 1266. Basilio præposito, II, 1195, 1247, 1347, 1447, 1450. Basilio præsidi S. Sabæ, II, 1670. Bryenæ stratego, II, 1546.

^C Ad canonicas, II, 1275. Ad canonicas Principenses, II, 1406. Cassia candidatissæ, II, 1622. Charitonis (S.) lauræ moderatori, II, 1167. Cizarensium fraternitati, II, 1419. Ad Cyzicenos, II, 1443. Confessoribus Patribus et fratribus, II, 1283, 1315, 1323.

^D Demetrio consuli, II, 1462, 1658. Demochari logothetæ generali, II, 1323. Demochari uxori, II, 1370. Diogeni a secretis, II, 1530. Dionysio monacho, II, 1630. Discipulis suis, II, 1374, 1403, 1422, 1459. Dorotheo filio, II, 1595.

[E] Eliæ filio, II, 1370. Eliæ presbytero, II, 1563. Ephraim et Agathoni, etc., II, 1427. Epiphanio filio, II, 1210. Episcopis exsulibus, II, 1331. Episcopis exsulibus in Chersone, II, 1343. Evaresto filio, II, 1355. Eudociæ candidatissæ, II, 1591. Eudocimo spathario, II, 1351, 1570, 1586. Eudoconi sacræ virgini, II, 1546. Euphemia inclusæ, I, 1298. Euphemio Sardensi, II, 1635. Irenæ et Euphrosynæ monialibus, II, 1359. Euphrosynæ præpositæ, II, 1375, 1382, 1390, 1402, 1430, 1467, 1547, 1594. Euprepiano et iis qui cum eo sunt, I, 1081. Silvano et Euprepiano filiis, I, 1058. Eustratio præposito, II, 1363.

[F] Fraternitati Cizarensium, II, 1419. Fraternitati Pelecetes, II, 1458. Fraternitatibus dispersis, II, 1230, 1251. Fratribus absentibus, II, 1130, 1179, 1186, 1225, 1233, 1255, 1278, 1339. Fratribus qui cum Patricio filio sunt, II, 1486. In Saccudione, I, 1010. Studianis, II, 1271, 1289. In urbe degentibus, II, 1366.

[G] Gelasio discipulo, I, 938. Gordinensis monasterii præpositæ, II, 1346. Gregoræ laico, II, 1268. Gregorio, Ezechieli, etc., in Græcia, II, 1350. Gregorio filio, II, 1500, 1522. Gregorio consuli, II, 1542. Gregorio præposito, II, 1359.

[H] Hesychio protonotario, II, 1540. Hierosolymorum patriarchæ, II, 1159. Hypacoe moniali, II, 1623, 1643. Hypato filio, II, 1354.

[I] Iconomachicæ synodo, II, 1115. Ignatio filio, II, 1190. Ignatio præposito, I, 955. Ignorum præpositæ, II, 1426. Inclusæ, II, 1246. Irenæ Augustæ, I, 929. Irene et Euphrosynæ monialibus, II, 1359. Irenæ patriciæ, I, 1107; II, 1295, 1546, 1583. Irenæ præpositæ, II, 1618.

[J] Jacobo monacho, II, 1391. Joanni, Michaeli, etc., II, 1323. Joanni clerico, II, 1654. Joanni eremitæ, II, 1386. Joanni filio, II, 1130. Joanni grammatico, II, 1531, 1587, 1638. Joanni logothetæ, II, 1519. Joanni monacho, II, 1626. Joanni Sardensi, II, 1367. Joanni spathario, I, 962; II, 1494. Josepho præposito Cerameorum, II, 1634. Josepho fratri et archiepiscopo Thessalon., I, 1038, 1063; II, 1139, 1202. Juliano vestitori, II, 1379.

[L] Laurentio filio, II, 1476. Laurentio, Simeoni, etc., filiis spiritualibus, II, 1339. Leoni orphanotropho, I, 1003. Leoni papæ Romæ, I, 1018, 1022. Leoni patricio et sacellario, II, 1067, 1415, 1574. Luciano filio, II, 1239. Lycasto consuli, II, 1463.

[M] Macario præposito, II, 1178. Machariæ spathariæ, II, 1667. Mariæ moniali, II, 1198, 1263. Mariæ reginæ, II, 1559. Mariæ spathariæ, II, 1615. Mariæ virgini sacræ, II, 1414. Mariano spathario, II, 1387. Megaloni et Mariæ monialibus, II, 1198. Methodio monacho, II, 1646. Michaeli imperatori, II, 1307, 1330. Michaeli et Theophilo impp., II, 1599. Michaeli syncello Hagiopolitano, II, 1639. Monasticam vitam agentibus, II, 1119. Monachis Myelensibus, II, 1371. Monachi Photinidii, II, 1408. Moniali, II, 1263. Monialibus, II, 1175, 1274.

[N] Naucratio filio, I, 1050, 1070, 1083, 1090, 1095; II, 1123, 1142, 1146, 1207, 1211, 1238, 1275, 1282, 1286, 1294, 1299, 1306. Nicetæ præpositæ, II, 1342. Nicephoro imperatori, I, 959. Nicephoro patriarchæ, I, 987, 1006; II, 1174, 1318. Nicephoro præposito, I, 919. Nicetæ curatori, II, 1347. Nicetæ locum-tenenti, II, 1394. Nicetæ patricio, I, 393. Nicetæ monacho, II, 1538. Nicetæ præposito, II, 1315, 1478. Nicetæ spathario, II, 1502, 1574. Nicolao chartulario, I, 1014.