Letter 1543: A terrible love of words has flooded the souls of people in this time — words, I say, not of the kind that bring...
Ο(βεὶξ τμὶ αὐπιοκεπάος ἐδ26 οοποϊοπαίογεξ, εἰεσαπιὶ ἐμαάεῖ ἐρὶ εἴ. φμοτγμπι Ῥγασϊοαιἷο μὲ ε ἰπ ρεγεμαεὶδε δι πμηβιαπα δαρίεπιΐα νεγϑέδ, ΝΟῊ ἐπ οδίοπεῖοηθ δρίτί μι οἰ υἱγίμϊ. ν (] Οοτ. τ΄, .) γεμαπιθῦβ ἀΐοοηάϊ βιυάϊαπι τηδπῖ68 ἰοπηΐηιπὶ τοῖο βοςὺ βθουϊο ἰηναβὶὶ, ϑογηιοηυπ, ἱπαθδη), διυάΐυ, ποθὴ αυἱ δά ργυάδηςίδπι, 56ἀ δὰ γοϊυρί8- Δεινὸς λόγων ἔρως ταῖς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ψυχαὶς εἰς τοῦτον τὸν καιρὸν ἑπεχώμασε " λόγων δὲ, φημὶ, οὗ τῶν σωφρονίζειν, ἀλλὰ τῶν τέρπειν τοὺς ἀχούοντας ΥΑΒΙΦΕ ΓΕΟΤΙΟΝῈΒ ΕΤ ΝΟΤΑ͂. () Ἃθ.λος ἐγένετο. ϑυδρίοον Ἰ6(. ὕθλος, ἱπεριΐα, ΥΟΣ ἄθηυο Γοροίδίυν, ἀἰοδίαυθ, πἰεὶ δεοϊδεϊαδιϊεἰξ δαποίοπῖϑμε ἰμάοε [ἐςετὶϊ. οὶ, ἄθλος, ργίναπυβ βΒο!!οἱ στλάυ Ῥγοδυγιογί!, διιΐ 5Βδογὶβ ΥΌΘΉ : υἱ ἀθ Ζοείπιο 6ρ. οἱ δ09, ραᾳ. . Ουἱά ] ἄθε- τος ἰθβ88, ἰά 6βὲ ἐγγίίμ, αὐτοσαίμε, αϑάϊεραίαε. ΒΟΗΟΤΤ. () Ργο φημὶ οοἀά. γαι. θ5ὺ οἱ ΑἸι. εογίυσαι φήσαιμι δὲ Υ6Γ8. . ῥΓῸ ὠραίας, ὡραιαις. ῬΟΒΞΙΝ. ἘΡΙΘΤΟΙΑΒΟῸΝ .. 0Υ.Ψ -- ἘΡΙΘΤ. ΟΥἿ. βϑυναμένων, οὗ πνευματιχῶν, ἀλλὰ σοςιστιχῶν" οὐχ Α (ἐπὶ ἀεϊδοιδιϊοπο16 δι ον ἰηροποραπάδιπ ἀποστολιχῶν, ἀλλὰ Δημοσθενιχῶν' οὐ προφητιχῶν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐριστιχῶν᾽ οὐ τῶν τὴν ψυχὴν εὐφρᾶναι δυναμέ- νων, ἀλλὰ τῶν τὴν ἀχοὴν θέλγειν εἰωθότων᾽ οὐ τῶν διὰ τοῦ ἐμπνεῖσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν πράξεων τοῦ λέγοντος ζώντων, ἀλλὰ τῶν διὰ τὴν εὐγλωττίαν εἰς ἀχοὰς νε- χρὰς ἐνηχουμένων, Τί οὖν ποιητέον ; σιωπητέον, καὶ οὐδὲν λεχτέον ; ἀλλ᾽ ἐπιχίνδυνον. ᾿Αλλὰ ῥητέον ; ἀλλ᾽ οὐχ εἰς ὠφέλειαν ὁ λόγος χαὶ ἔργων ἐπίδειξιν, ἀλλ᾽ εἰς χρότον μόνον τελευτᾷ " ἀλλ᾽ εἰ χαὶ οὕτω ταῦτα ἔχει, ἄμεινον, ὡς οἶμαι, εἰπόντα μὴ ἀχουσθῇ- ναι, ἣ μὴ εἰπόντα ἐγχληθῆναι" ε« ἀιατί τὸ ἀργύ- ριόν μου οὗ χατέδαλες ἐπὶ τοὺς τραπεζίτας, χἀγὼ ἐλθὼν ἀπήτησα ἂν αὐτὸ σὺν τῷ τόχῳ ;» Λεγέτιυ τοι": γαροῦν ὁ δυνάμενος, ἵνα πρὸς τοὺς ἀχούοντας ἧ τῷ κριτῇ ὁ λόγος.
Related Letters
Virtue must be practiced with all one's strength — not merely admired from a distance.
Jerome writes in severe but moderate language to Sabinianus, a deacon, calling on him to repent of his sins. Of these he recounts at length the two most serious, an act of adultery at Rome and an attempt to seduce a nun at Bethlehem. The date of the letter is uncertain.
Virtue must be practiced with all one's strength — not merely admired from a distance.
No one would be found worthy of the heavenly festival unless he were truly adorned with the marks of virtue.
I received the letter of your Excellency, in which you ask me to write to you. This assuredly you would not have done unless you had esteemed acceptable and pleasant that which you suppose me capable of writing to you. In other words, I assume that, having desired the vanities of this life when you had not tried them, now, after the trial has be...