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ST. ATHANASIUS

DEFENCE OF HIS FLIGHT

[Oxford translation by Rev. M. Atkinson, revised by Rev. Archibald
Robertson, Principal of Bishop Hatfield's Hall, Durham, late fellow of
Trinity College, Oxford.]


APOLOGIA DE FUGA

1. Athanasius charged with cowardice for escaping.

   I HEAR that Leontius[1], now at Antioch, and Narcissus[2] of the city
of Nero, and George[3], now at Laodicea, and the Arians who are with them,
are spreading abroad many slanderous reports concerning me, charging me
with cowardice, because forsooth, when I 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 even
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[4].' 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. Insincerity of this charge.

   But forasmuch as they pretend to charge me with cowardice, it is
necessary that I should write somewhat concerning this, 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 not dare to act contrary to them, nor imitate 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[5];' 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[6]. 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[7]. And these men likewise, not less than they,
seem to me to have received their punishment already in their ignorance of
their own folly. 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 us with our present flight, not for the sake of virtue,
as wishing us to shew 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 buzz[8] all around that such is the case, thinking,
foolish as indeed they are, that through fear of their revilings, we shall
yet be induced to give ourselves 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 as enemies, to the end that
they may glut themselves with our blood, and put us also out of the way,
because we have always opposed and do still oppose their impiety, and
confute and brand their heresy.

3. Outrages of the Arians against the Bishops.

   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 ill- treated in every way? Whatever the
magistrates appear to do, it is their work; and the others are merely the
tools of their will and wickedness. In consequence, where is there a place
that has not some memorial of their malice? 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[9]; laneae for the most
admirable Euphration[10] Paltus and Antaradus for Kymatius[11] and
Carterius; Adrianople for that lover of Christ, Eutropius, and his
successor Lucius, who was often loaded with chains by their means, and so
perished; Ancyra mourns for Marcellus Berthoea[1] for Cyrus[11], Gaza for
Asclepas. Of all these, after inflicting many outrages, they by their
intrigues procured the banishment; but for Theodulus and Olympius, Bishops
of Thrace, and for us and our Presbyters, they caused diligent search to be
made, to the intent that if we were discovered we should suffer capital
punishment: and probably 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 fellows,
and to Philagrius against me. And having raised a persecution against Paul,
Bishop of Constantinople, as soon as they found him, they caused him to be
openly strangled[2] 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. Proceedings after the Council of Milan.

   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[3] 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[4], Metropolitan of Gaul, Dionysius[5],
Metropolitan of Italy, Lucifer[6], Metropolitan of the Sardinian islands,
and Eusebius[7] of Italy, all of them good Bishops and preachers of the
truth, were seized and banished[8], on no pretence whatever, except that
they would not unite themselves to the Arian heresy, nor subscribe to the
false accusations and calumnies which they had invented against

5. In praise of Hosius.

   Of the great Hosius[9], who answers to his name, that confessor of a
happy old age, 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[10], and
by right counsel convince every one? 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
us. And if afterwards, upon the repeated stripes above measure that were
inflicted upon him, and the conspiracies that were formed against his
kinsfolk, he yielded[1] to them for a time[2], as being old and infirm in
body, yet at least their wickedness is shewn even in this circumstance; so
zealously did they endeavour by all means to prove that they were not truly
Christians.

6. Outrages of George upon the Alexandrians.

   After this they again fastened themselves upon Alexandria, seeking anew
to put us to death: and their proceedings were now worse than before. For
on a sudden the Church was surrounded by soldiers, and sounds of war took
the place of prayers. Then George[3] of Cappadocia who was sent by them,
having arrived during the season of Lent[4], 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; houses of orphans and
widows were plundered, and their loaves taken away; attacks were made upon
houses, and Christians thrust forth in the night, and their dwellings
sealed up: brothers of clergymen were in danger of their lives on account
of their brethren. These outrages were sufficiently dreadful, but more
dreadful than these followed. For on the week that succeeded the Holy
Pentecost [May 11], when the people after their fast had gone out to the
cemetery to pray, because that all refused communion with George, that
abandoned person, on learning this, 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 days[5]: 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 when he saw that
they were getting the mastery, and cared not for the fire, he immediately
stripped them naked, and beat them in the face in such a manner, that for
some time they could hardly be recognised.

7. Outrages of George.

   And having seized upon forty men, he beat them after a new fashion.
Cutting some sticks fresh from the palm tree, with the thorns still upon.
them[6], he scourged them on the back so severely, that some of them were
for a long time under surgical treatment on account of the thorns which had
broken off in their flesh, and others unable to bear up under their
sufferings died. All those whom they had taken, and the virgin, 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[7], in order that they might not appear to have any
knowledge of these creel 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[8],
Ammonius, Muius[9], Gaius, Philo[9], Hermes, Plenius, Psenosiris, Nilammon,
Agathus, Anagamphus, Marcus, Ammonius, another Marcus, Dracontius[1],
Adelphius[2], Athenodorus, and the Presbyters, Hierax[3], 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. If it is wrong to flee, it is worse to persecute.

   But although[4] 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 then they reproach me
with my flight, let them be more ashamed of their own persecution[5]. Let
them cease to conspire, and they who flee will forthwith cease to do so.
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 those who 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[6],' 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[7]; 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 everywhere monuments of their
own iniquity.

9. The accusation shews the mind of the accusers.

   Now if they had been of sound mind, they would have seen that they were
in this strait, and that they were falling foul of 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 saying of our Saviour, that not
even a sparrow can fall into the snare without our Father which is in
heaven[8]. But when these accursed ones 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[9], 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[1].' 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 the Spains and the Gauls, 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 wished not to live.

10. Their real grievance is not that Athanasius is a coward, but that he is
free.

   Who then does not perceive their craftiness? Is it not very evident to
every one that they do not reproach me with cowardice from regard to
virtue, but that being athirst for blood, they employ these their base
devices as nets, 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 Babylonians. 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[2],' 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.

   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, when he sent to kill him, and for hiding himself in the cave, and for
changing his appearance, until he withdrew from Abimelech[4], and escaped
his designs against him? What will they say, they who are ready to say
anything, when they see the great Elijah, 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 Obadiah, and lay
concealed in caves[5].

11. Examples of Scripture Saints in defence of flight.

   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[6] 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:' and shortly after He 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
Judaea 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[7].' 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: and
this is the rule which is given unto men to lead them to perfection--what
God commands, that to do.

12. The Lord an example of timely flight.

   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, 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[8].' And when Herod was dead, we find Him withdrawing to
Nazareth by reason 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[9]. 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 the country near to the
wilderness[10].' 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[1].' And 'going through the midst of them, He went His
way,' and 'so passed by[2].'

13. Example of our Lord.

   When they see these things, or rather even hear of them, for see they
do not, will they not desire, as it is written, to become 'fuel of
fire[2a],' 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[3].' 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[4]; because He took our body, and exhibited 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[5].'
And before it came, He Himself said to His Mother, 'Mine hour is not yet
come[6]:' and to them who were called His brethren, 'My time is not yet
come[7].' 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[8].'

14. An hour and a time for all men.

   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[9]. 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[10], 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[1],'
Abraham dies 'full of days,' and David besought God, saying, 'Take me not
away in the midst of my days[2].' And Eliphaz, one of the friends of Job,
being assured of this truth, said, 'Thou shall come to thy grave like ripe
corn, gathered in due time, and like as, a shock of corn cometh in in his
season[3].' And Solomon confirming his words, says, 'The souls of the
unrighteous are taken away untimely[4].' And therefore he exhorts in the
book of Ecclesiastes, saying, 'Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou
hard: why shouldest thou die before thy time[5]?'

15. The Lord's hour and time.

   Now as these things are written in the Scriptures, the case is clear,
that the saints know that a certain time is measured 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[6].' What he did not know,
that he 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 they are requiring thy soul: then whose shall those things be
which thou hast provided[7]?' And the Preacher speaks confidently in the
Holy Spirit, and says, 'Man also knoweth not his times[8].' Wherefore the
Patriarch Isaac said to his son Esau, 'Behold, I am old, and I know not the
day of my death 9.' Our Lord therefore, although as God, and the Word of
the Father, He both knew the time measured out by Him 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[1].' 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[2].' 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[3]?' and when they
answered, 'Jesus of Nazareth,' He saith unto them, 'I am He whom ye seek.'
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 depend 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 ever fall into the snare[4].

16. The Lord's example followed by the Saints.

   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), 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 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 portions' of man'
are in God's hand[5],' and that 'the Lord killeth[6],' and the Lord 'maketh
alive,' they the rather endured unto the end, 'wandering about[7],' as the
Apostle has said, 'in sheepskins, and goatskins, being destitute,
tormented, wandering in deserts,' and hiding themselves 'in dens and caves
of the earth;' 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 persecured 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 be delivered to the enemies; the Lord
forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's anointed[8].'

17. A time to flee and a time to stay.

   And if ever in their flight they came unto those that sought after
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
Elijah, when, being commanded by the Spirit, he shewed himself unto
Ahab[9]; 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
Rehoboam[10]; and of Paul when he appealed unto Caesar. 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 man put asunder[1]' ), 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; but he that flies, while he
expects daily the assaults of his enemies, esteems death lighter. 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 was 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 sense, had he come to his end. 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[2].'

18. The Saints who fled were no cowards.

   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, 'Return into Egypt[3],'
feared not to do so. And again, when he was bidden to go up into the
mountain Abarim[4] 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 Elijah, 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 Ahaziah. And Peter, who had hid
himself for fear of the Jews, and the Apostle Paul who was let down in a
basket, and fled, when they were told, 'Ye must bear witness at Rome[5],'
deferred not the journey; yea, rather, they departed rejoicing[6]; 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[7].'

19. The Saints courageous in their flight, and divinely favoured.

   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 on
account of a slothful timidity, on the contrary, they were at such times
under the practice of a severer discipline 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 sakes.[8] Nor yet were these their sufferings without profit
to themselves; for having tried them as 'gold in the furnace,' as Wisdom
has said, God found them worthy of Himself[9]. 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; so 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 had the most glorious
testimony to their fortitude.

20. Same subject continued.

   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 when Moses the
beloved of God 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 uttered a good word[1];' and, 'Our God shall come even
visibly, and shall not keep silence[2].' And again he speaks more
confidently, saying, 'Mine eye hath seen his desire upon mine enemies[3];'
and again, 'In God have I put my trust; I will not be afraid what man can
do unto me[4].' 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[5].'
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
issue. And the great Elijah, when he withdrew 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[6],' and thus rebuked them.
And he too was preserved, so that he anointed Elisha in his own stead, and
became a pattern of discipline 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[7];' 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[8].' 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[9].' And for this end was he then preserved, that 'from
Jerusalem even unto Illyricum' he might 'fully preach the Gospel[10].'

21. The Saints fled for our sakes.

   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. 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 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.
Thus the blessed Paul, having found it so by experience, declared
beforehand, 'As many as will live godly in Christ, shall suffer
persecution[1].' And so he straightway prepared them that fled for the
trial, saying, 'Let us run with patience the race that is set before
us[2];' for although there be continual tribulations, 'yet tribulation
worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and hope
maketh not ashamed[3].' And the Prophet Isaiah 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[4].' And so also the Preacher,
who knew the conspiracies 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(5).' 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 strength
your heart, all ye that put your help them, and deliver them, because they
put their trust in Him:' 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(7).' Thus is shewn how profitable
to the people and productive of the good is the flight of the Saints,
howsoever the Arians may think otherwise.

22. Same subject concluded.

   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, to flee
when persecuted, and to hide when sought after, and not rashly tempt the
Lord, but wait, as I said above, until the appointed time of death arrive,
or the Judge determine something concerning them, according as it shall
seem to Him to be good: that men should be ready, that, when the time
calls, or when they are taken, they 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(3), they
did not 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. Persecution is from the Devil.

   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(9). No, but
from the Devil take(10).' Our Lord commanded to flee, and the saints fled:
but persecution is a deuce 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 these men 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(1)') 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(2)," but the things which these utter are
full of iniquity and blood.'

24. Irruption of Syrianus.

   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 and insults. But forasmuch as having once
dared to fight against Christ, they have with my person, to point me out to
them. And although they are destitute of all feelings of stances they will
surely be quiet for very shame. It was now night(3), 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 unreasonable 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 a Psalm, and the people to answer, 'For His mercy endureth for
ever(4),' and then all to withdraw and depart home. But the General having
now made a forcible entry, and the soldiers having surrounded the sanctuary
for the purpose of apprehending us, the Clergy and those of the laity, who
were still there, cried out, and demanded that we too 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 salty 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 us and certain of the Clergy came
stood about the sanctuary, and others were going round the Church, we
passed through, under the Lord's guidance, and with His protection withdrew
without observation, greatly glorifying God that we had not betrayed the
people, but had first sent them away, and then had been able to save
ourselves, and to escape the hands of them which sought after us.

25. Athanasius's wonderful escape.

   Now when Providence had delivered us in such an extraordinary manner,
who can justly lay any blame upon me, because we did not give ourselves up
into the hands of them, that sought after us, nor return and present
ourselves 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 shalt not tempt the Lord thy
God(5).'

26. He acted according to the example of the Saints. Character of his
accusers.

   Being careful to avoid such an offence, and instructed by these
examples, I do ordered my conduct; and I do not undervalue the favour and
the help which have been shewn me of the Lord, howsoever these in their
madness may gnash their teeth(5a) against us. For since the manner of our
retreat was such as we 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
anything undone which may shew their own wickedness and cruelty. And indeed
their lives are only in accordance with their spirit and the follies of
their doctrines; for there are no sins that one could charge them with, how
heinous soever, that they do not commit without shame. Leontius(6) 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(7)] Narcissus(8), besides being
charged with many other transgressions, was degraded three times by
different Councils; and now he is among them, most wicked man. And
George(9), who was a Presbyter, was deposed for his wickedness, and
although he had nominated himself a Bishop, he was nevertheless a second
time deposed in the great Council of Sardica. And besides all this, his
dissolute life was notorious, for he is condemned even by his own friends,
as making the end of existence and its happiness, to consist in the
commission of the most disgraceful crimes.

27. Conclusion.

   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(10), 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 grived 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, came upon me to eat
up my flesh, they stumbled and fell(11);' and again the thirtieth Psalm,
'Thou hast saved my soul from adversities; thou hast not shut me up into
the hands of mine enemies; thou hast set my foot in a large room(12)? in
Christ Jesus our Lord, through whom to the Father in the Holy Spirit be
glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.


Taken from "The Early Church Fathers and Other Works" originally published
by Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. in English in Edinburgh, Scotland, beginning in
1867. (LNPF II/IV, Schaff and Wace). The digital version is by The
Electronic Bible Society, P.O. Box 701356, Dallas, TX 75370, 214-407-WORD.

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