Letter 248: Do not blame those who fled headlong from that merciless threat — the danger lurking in what was happening.

To Zosimus. Not long ago a discussion was set going among us about virtue and vice, and, while many were saying many things, I for my part declared that I consider all human beings to have both defects and advantages; but that the reputable and the best have small and trifling defects, while their successes are very great and extraordinary; whereas the rest either have advantages that balance their defects, or are in surplus, or even outdo them in their favor. For there are people who are inhuman, yet self-controlled; or licentious, yet merciful; or exceedingly rash, yet easily turned about; or unjust, yet moderate in temper; or rapacious, yet self-controlled; or unrestrained in tongue, yet restrained in pleasures; or unrestrained in pleasures, yet restrained in tongue and belly, and superior to anger. And, to put it all in a word, I would not readily believe that there exists a human being who is either without a share of defects or destitute of successes. And as proof I brought forward, on the one side, the judge of injustice [the unjust judge of Luke 18:1-8], the one who neither feared God nor felt shame before any man, who nonetheless did a good deed: he had mercy on the widow who kept entreating him continually, and proceeded against those who were wronging her. And on the other side I brought forward the words: "Who shall boast that he has a pure heart? Or who shall speak freely that he is clean from sins?" [Proverbs 20:9]. But when all who were present applauded, and applause broke out beyond all expectation, I for my part blushed; for in the face of praises my nature is rather to blush than to grow bold. But one of those present, a man of repute both in speech and in life (for I would not hide the truth, even though he was trying to overturn what I had said), after keeping silent a little while, O most excellent Zosimus, brought forward your manner of life and tried to refute my argument: showing that all the defects dance in chorus within you, but that there is not even a trace of any success. And to confirm this, all who were present bore witness to him as speaking the truth, and that every tongue was overmatched when it came to expressing your evils precisely. And while I, on hearing it, kept silence -- for I considered it absurd to wrangle -- those men said: "It is not to overturn your argument, O wisest of men, that we say these things; for it is true and superior to all praise; but it is because we reject that man as belonging to the human race, and define him as a beast in human form, or an avenging demon, and an enemy of nature." And these things nearly all of them uttered as if from a single mouth. And some of them earnestly urged that these very things be reported to you: perhaps somehow you will come to your senses. As for me, at first I kept putting it off; but afterward, yielding to the entreaties, I undertook to write. It remains, then, for you to take a look at your own affairs, so that you may be rid of comedy and ridicule and punishment. But if, thinking that death dispatches one into nonexistence, you transgress without fear, you fail to notice that you are deceiving yourself. For death, which seems to wither the noble plant, is nothing other than a separation of soul and body. And if you do not believe it, hear Plato saying: "When death comes upon the human being, the mortal part of him, it seems, dies; but the immortal part departs safe and undecayed, having withdrawn before death" [Plato, Phaedo 106e].

Λόγος ἡμῖν ἔναγχος περὶ ἀρετῆς καὶ κακίας ἐκείνητο, καὶ πολλῶν πολλὰ λεγόντων, ἔφην ἐγώ, ὅτι ἡγοῦμαι πάντας ἀνθρώπους καὶ ἐλαττώματα ἔχειν, καὶ πλεονεκτήματα· ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν εὐδοκίμους καὶ ἀρίστους, μικρὰ μὲν ἔχειν καὶ εὐτελῆ τὰ ἐλαττώματα, μέγιστα δὲ καὶ ὑπερφυῆ τὰ κατορθώματα· τοὺς δὲ ἄλλους ἢ ἀναλογοῦντα τοῖς ἐλαττώμασι τὰ πλεονεκτήματα, ἢ καὶ πλεονεκτοῦντα, ἢ καὶ πλεονεκτοῦντας. Εἰσὶ γὰρ ἄνθρωποι, ἀπάνθρωποι μὲν, σώφρονες δέ· ἢ ἀσελγεῖς μὲν, ἐλεήμονες δέ· ἢ θρασύτατοι μὲν, ῥᾳδίως δὲ μεταβαλλόμενοι· ἢ ἄδικοι μὲν, μετριόφρονες δέ· ἢ ἅρπαγες μὲν, ἐγκρατεῖς δέ· ἢ ἀκρατεῖς μὲν γλώττης, ἐγκρατεῖς δὲ ἡδονῶν· ἢ ἀκρατεῖς μὲν ἡδονῶν, ἐγκρατεῖς δὲ γλώττης καὶ γαστρὸς, ὀργῆς δὲ κρείττονες· καὶ συλλήβδην εἰπεῖν, οὐκ ἂν ῥᾳδίως πιστεύσαιμι εἶναι ἄνθρωπον, οὔτ᾿ ἐλαττωμάτων ἄμοιρον, οὔτε κατορθωμάτων ἔρημον. Καὶ προὔφερον πρὸς ἀπόδειξιν, τῶν μὲν τὸν κριτὴν τῆς ἀδικίας, τὸν μήτε τὸν θεὸν φοβούμενον, μήτε ἄνθρωπον ἐντρεπόμενον, ὅστις ἐποίησε καλὸν, τὴν συνεχῶς ἱκετεύουσαν αὐτὸν ἐλεήσας χήραν, καὶ ἐπεξελθὼν τοῖς ἀδικοῦσι. Τῶν δὲ τὸ « Τίς καυχήσεται ἁγνὴν ἔχειν τὴν καρδίαν, ἢ τίς παρρησιάσεται, καθαρὸς εἶναι ἀπὸ ἁμαρτιῶν. » Ὡς δὲ πάντες οἱ παρόντες ἔπηνουν, καὶ κρότος ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν ἐλπίδα ἀπερρήγνυτο, ἐγὼ μὲν ἠρυθρίασα· πρὸς γὰρ τοὺς ἐπαίνους ἐρυθριᾷν μᾶλλον πέφυκα, ἢ θρασύνεσθαι. Εἷς δὲ τῶν παρόντων, καὶ λόγῳ καὶ βίῳ εὐδόκιμος (οὐ γὰρ ἀποκρυψαίμην τὴν ἀλήθειαν, εἰ καὶ ἀνατρέπειν τὰ παρ᾿ ἐμοῦ λελεγμένα ἐπειρᾶτο) ὀλίγα ἐφησυχάσας, ὦ βέλτιστε Ζώσιμε, καὶ τὸν σὸν προφέρων βίον, ἐλέγχειν τὸν λόγον ἐπειρᾶτο· πάντα μὲν τὰ ἐλαττώματα ἔν σοι χορεύειν. δείκνυς, κατορθώματος δὲ οὐδὲ ἴχνος (15). Ὧν δὲ ἡ πίστων ἐγὼ, πάντες οἱ ὄντες ἐμαρτύρουν αὐτῷ ὡς ἀληθεύοντι, καὶ ὡς ἡττωμένης πάσης γλώττης, εἰς τὸ τὰ σὰ ἀκριβῶς ἐκφράσαι κακά. Ὡς δὲ ἀκούων ἡσυχίαν ἦγον · ζυγομαχεῖν γὰρ ἄτοπον ἡγούμην · ἔφασαν ἐκεῖνοι · Οὐ τὸν σὸν ἀνατρέποντες, ὦ σο- φώτατε, λόγον, ταῦτά φαμεν (16) · ἀληθὴς γάρ ἐστι καὶ πάσης εὐφημίας κρείττων · ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνον τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀποδοκιμάζοντες εἶναι γένους, καὶ ἀν- θρωπόμορφον θηρίον, ἢ δαίμονα ἀλάστορα, καὶ τῆς φύσεως ἐχθρὸν ὁριζόμενοι. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν σχεδὸν πάντες ὥσπερ ἐξ ἑνὸς στόματος ἐφθέγγοντο. Τινὲς δὲ ἐξ αὐτῶν λιπαρῶς παρεκάλουν, αὐτὰ ταῦτα μη- νυθῆναί σοι · τάχα πῶς γνωσιμαχήσεις. Ἐγὼ δὲ ἐξ ἀρχῆς μὲν ἀνεβαλλόμην · ὕστερον δὲ ἐνδοὺς πρὸς τὰς ἱκεσίας, γράφειν ἐπηγγειλάμην. Σὺ δ᾽ ἂν εἴη λοιπὸν τὰ κατὰ σαυτὸν σκοπῆσαι, ἵνα κωμῳδίας καὶ γέλωτος, καὶ τιμωρίας ἀπαλλαγείης (17). Εἰ δὲ νομίζων τὸν θάνατον εἰς ἀνυπαρξίαν παραπέμπειν, ἀδεῶς πλημμελεῖς, σεαυτὸν ἀπατῶν λανθάνεις. Ὁ θάνατος γὰρ ὁ δοκῶν τὸ εὐγενὲς φυτὸν μαραίνειν, οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστιν ἢ χωρισμὸς ψυχῆς τε καὶ σώ- ματος (18). Εἰ δὲ ἀπιστεῖς, ἄκουε Πλάτωνος λέγον- τος, Ἐπιόντος θανάτου τὸν ἄνθρωπον, τὸ μὲν θνητὸν, ὡς ἔοικεν, αὐτοῦ ἀποθνήσκει · τὸ δὲ ἀθά- νατον, σῶον καὶ ἀδιάφθορον οἴχεται, ὑποχωρῆσαν τῷ θανάτῳ (19).