Letter 716: You know better than most that I want the temples to recover their beauty no less than the priests do.
Ἡσυχίῳ. (362)
Ὅτι μὶν οὐχ ἧττον τῶν ἱερέων ὑμῶν ἐπιθυμῶ τοὺς
νεὼς κομίσασθαι τὸ κάλλος, οἶσθά που μᾶλλον ἑτέρων· οὐ
μέντοι βουλοίμην ἂν οἰκιῶν καθαιρουμένων γενέσθαι τοῦθ’,
ὃ γένοιτ’ ἂν καὶ μενουσῶν ἐκείνων, ὅπως τὰ μὲν ὄντα ἑστήκῃ,
τὰ δὲ κείμενα ἀνιστῆται, καὶ μὴ τὰ μὲν κοσμῶμεν, τὰ δὲ
λωβώμεθα τὰς πόλεις.
τῆς δὲ οἰκίας Θεοδούλου κατηγο-
ρῆσαι μὲν πρόχειρον, φείσασθαι δὲ ἄξιον οὔσης καλῆς τε καὶ
μεγάλης καὶ ποιούσης ἑτέρων καλλίω τὴν ἡμετέραν, ἄλλως θ’
ὅτε Θεόδουλος οὐχ ὕβρει καὶ παροινίᾳ διέσπα τὸ ἱερόν, ἀλλ’
ὄντων τῶν πωλούντων ἐώνητο τιθεὶς τὰς τιμάς, πρᾶγμα
ποιῶν, ὃ πᾶσιν ἐξῆν τοῖς δυναμένοις ὠνεῖσθαι.
λέγουσι
δὲ οἱ πάντα εἰδότες τὰ Θεοδούλου πολλάκις αὐτὸν ἐωνῆσθαι
τοιαῦτα καὶ ᾤοντο δεῖν χρῆσθαι δικαστηρίῳ γνοὺς δὲ ἐγὼ
δικαστὰς ὑμῶν αὐτοῖς οὐκ ἐπέτρεψα ζητεῖν ἀμείνους εἰδὼς
ὑμᾶς βουλεύσεσθαί τι τοιοῦτον, ᾧ καὶ τοῦ θεοῦ φροντίζοντες
φανεῖσθε καὶ τῆς πόλεως οὐ καταμελοῦντες.
ἢν οὖν τι
γένηται μέτριον, ἐπιστέλλετε πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ἕν’ ὑμᾶς ἐπαινῶμεν.
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