Letter 1602: This much is enough for me: your holiness has testified that your anger was not the ill-temper of a man making much...

To Paul. This is enough for me: that your holiness has testified that the anger was not produced by some peevishness of temper over trifles, but by experience of affairs that have grown corrupt and are sliding toward the worse, unless some necessity should restrain them. For the matter itself showed, as you said, how in Eustathius, and in Zosimus, and in Maron the frenzies surrounding luxury and licentiousness had increased. For, raving and gone mad, they all but eclipsed the Centaurs [the mythical creatures notorious for drunken violence]. There is therefore nothing fitting to be done but to lament over them; but if you would also grant them your own prayers, you would do well.

Ἀρκεῖ τοῦτο, τὸ μαρτυρῆσαί μοι τὴν σὴν ἁγιωσύνην, ὅτι οὐκ ἦν δυσκολία τρόπων ἐπὶ μικροῖς ποιουμένη τὴν ὀργὴν, ἀλλ' ἐμπειρία πραγμάτων διεφθαρμένων, καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ χεῖρον ἡδόνων, εἰ μή τις ἀνάγκη κωλύσειεν· ἔδειξε γὰρ, ὡς ἔφη, τὸ πρᾶγμα, πῶς Εὐστάθιος, καὶ Ζωσίμῳ, καὶ Μάρωνι ἐπ-ηυξήθησαν οἱ περὶ τὴν τρυφὴν καὶ τὴν ἀσέλγειαν μανίαι. Οἰστρῶντες γὰρ καὶ λυττῶντες, μικροῦ τοὺς κενταύρους ἀπέκρυψαν. Ἀείκεται οὖν οὐδὲν, ἢ τὸ καταθρηνεῖν αὐτούς· εἰ δὲ καὶ χαρίσαιο αὐτοῖς τὰς σαυτοῦ εὐχάς, εὖγε ποιήσειας.