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 Then the two brethren said unto each other, ‘Let us go to the Patriarch of Rome, and he will avenge us and will take vengeance on all these [Bishops].’ And having gone to the great Patriarch and Bishop of Rome, and made him to know their matter, and what the Bishop and Patriarch [of Antioch] had said unto them, they said at length, ‘We have come unto thee because thou art the head of them all.’ Then the Bishop of Rome also said unto them, ‘I also excommunicate you and excommunicate ye shall be.’ Then, not knowing what to do, they said to each other, ‘All these men accept the persons each of the other, and each honoureth the other, because they are accustomed to assemble together at the Synods, but let us go to the holy man of God, Epiphanius, Bishop of Cyprus, because he is indeed a Bishop, and he doth not accept the person of any man.’ Now when they drew nigh unto the city, it was revealed unto Epiphanius concerning them, and he sent [a man] to meet them, and to say unto them, ‘Ye shall not come into the city.’ And when they came to themselves they repented, and said, ‘In very truth we have sinned; with what can we justify ourselves? For, even supposing that the Bishop and the Patriarchs have excommunicated us in an unseemly manner, peradventure this man is a prophet besides, for behold, God hath revealed unto him concerning us beforehand; let us then condemn ourselves in respect of everything which we have done.’ Then when God, Who knoweth that which is in the hearts [of men] saw that they had in very truth condemned themselves, He worked upon the mind of Epiphanius so that, of his own accord, he sent and brought them, and associated them in communion with him. And he also wrote concerning them to the Bishop of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Receive thy sons, for they have repented in truth.’ ”

And the old man said, “This is the healing of a man, and God desireth that a man should lay the offence of his companion upon himself.” And when that brother heard [this story] he acted according to the word[s] of the old man, and he went and knocked at the door of that brother, who, immediately he perceived and knew from inside [that it was he], expressed his contrition to him whilst he was as yet inside, and then straightway opened the door; and they made friends together, each with each, with all their souls, and the two of them were in great peace.

525. Abbâ Poemen used to say, “As the earth falleth not, because it is fixed from below, even so he who abaseth himself shall never fall.”

526. Abbâ Sisoes asked Abbâ ’Ôr, and said unto him, “Tell