Letter 245: It is some time since I received your letter, but I waited to be able to reply by some fit person; that so the bearer of my answer might supply whatever might be wanting in it. Now there has arrived our much beloved and very reverend brother Strategius, and I have judged it well to make use of his services, both as knowing my mind and able to co...

It has been some time since I received your letter, but I waited for a suitable person to carry my reply -- someone who could supplement in person whatever the letter left out. Now our beloved and reverend brother Strategius has arrived, and I have decided to use his services, since he knows my mind and can convey my news with proper care. Know this, my dear and honored friend: I value my affection for you highly, and I am not conscious of ever having failed in it, despite having had many serious and legitimate reasons for complaint. But I have chosen to weigh the good against the bad, as in a balance, and to come down on the side where the good outweighs. Changes have been made by those who should have been the last to allow them. Forgive me, then. I have not changed my mind. If I have shifted my position, it is because others keep changing theirs and are now openly going over to the enemy. You know how much I valued their communion when they were on the side of sound doctrine. If I now refuse to follow them and avoid all who share their views, I think I deserve to be forgiven. I put truth and my own salvation before everything.

ST. BASIL OF CAESAREA To Theophilus the Bishop. It is some time since I received your letter, but I waited to be able to reply by some fit person; that so the bearer of my answer might supply whatever might be wanting in it. Now there has arrived our much beloved and very reverend brother Strategius, and I have judged it well to make use of his services, both as knowing my mind and able to convey news of me with due propriety and reverence. Know, therefore, my beloved and honoured friend, that I highly value my affection for you, and am not conscious so far as the disposition of my heart goes, of having at any time failed in it, although I have had many serious causes of reasonable complaint. But I have decided to weigh the good against the bad, as in a balance, and to add my own mind where the better inclines. Now changes have been made by those who should least of all have allowed anything of the kind. Pardon me, therefore, for I have not changed my mind, if I have shifted any side, or rather I should say, I shall still be on the same side, but there are others who are continually changing it, and are now openly deserting to the foe. You yourself know what a value I put on their communion, so long as they were of the sound party. If now I refuse to follow these, and shun all who think with them, I ought fairly to be forgiven. I put truth and my own salvation before everything.

[Πρός: Θεοφίλῳ ἐπισκόπῳ.] Πάλαι δεξάμενος τὰ παρὰ τῆς σῆς ἀγάπης γράμματα, ἀνέμενον διὰ γνησίου προσώπου ἀντεπιστεῖλαι, ἵνα καὶ ὅσα τὴν ἐπιστολὴν διαφύγῃ ὁ διάκονος τῶν γραμμάτων ἀναπληρώσῃ. ἐπεὶ οὖν παρεγένετο ἡμῖν ὁ ποθεινότατος καὶ εὐλαβέστατος ἀδελφὸς ἡμῶν Στρατήγιος, αὐτῷ ἐνόμισα δίκαιον εἶναι χρήσασθαι διακόνῳ, τῷ καὶ εἰδότι τὴν ἡμετέραν γνώμην καὶ δυναμένῳ γνησίως τε ἅμα καὶ εὐλαβῶς διακονῆσαι τὰ παρʼ ἡμῶν. Γίνωσκε τοίνυν, ποθεινότατε ἡμῖν καὶ τιμιώτατε, πολλοῦ ἀξίαν τίθεσθαι ἡμᾶς τὴν πρὸς σὲ ἀγάπην, ἧς, ἕνεκα μὲν τῆς κατὰ ψυχὴν διαθέσεως, οὐδεμίαν ὥραν ἀπολειφθεῖσιν ἑαυτοῖς συνεγνώκαμεν, εἰ καὶ ὅτι πολλαὶ καὶ μεγάλαι λύπης εὐλόγου γεγόνασιν ἀφορμαί. ἀλλʼ οὖν ἐκρίναμεν τοῦτο, ὥσπερ ἐν τρυτάνῃ, τὰ χρηστότερα τοῖς ἀηδεστέροις ἀντιτιθέντες, τῇ τῶν ἀμεινόνων ῥοπῇ προσθέσθαι τὴν γνώμην. ἐπειδὴ δὲ τὰ πράγματα ἠλλοιώθη παρʼ ὧν ἥκιστα ἐχρῆν τοῦτο γενέσθαι, συγγίνωσκε καὶ ἡμῖν οὐχὶ τὴν γνώμην ἀλλοιωθεῖσιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν τάξιν μεταθεμένοις. μᾶλλον δὲ ἡμεῖς μὲν ἐπὶ τῆς αὐτῆς μενοῦμεν τάξεως, ἕτεροι δέ εἰσιν οἱ συνεχῶς μετατιθέμενοι, νῦν δὲ καὶ φανερῶς πρὸς τοὺς ἐναντίους αὐτομολοῦντες· ὧν ὅσου ἀξίαν ἐτιθέμεθα τὴν κοινωνίαν, ἕως ἦσαν ἐπὶ τῆς ὑγιαινούσης μερίδος, οὐδὲ αὐτὸς ἀγνοεῖς. νῦν δὲ εἰ μήτε ἐκείνοις συνεπόμεθα, καὶ τοὺς τὰ αὐτὰ φρονοῦντας αὐτοῖς ἐκκλίνομεν, συγγνώμης ἂν δικαίως τύχοιμεν, μηδὲν προτιμότερον τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ τῆς οἰκείας ἑαυτῶν ἀσφαλείας τιθέμενοι.