[That Every Christian Ought to Frequent the Church Diligently Both Morning and Evening.]
LIX. When thou instructest the people, O bishop, command and exhort them to come constantly to church morning and evening every day, and by no means to forsake it on any account, but to assemble together continually; neither to diminish the Church by withdrawing themselves, and causing the body of Christ to be without its member. For it is not only spoken concerning the priests, but let every one of the laity hearken to it as concerning himself, considering that it is said by the Lord: “He that is not with me is against me, and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.” 258 Matt. xii. 30. Do not you therefore scatter yourselves abroad, who are the members of Christ, by not assembling together, since you have Christ your head, according to His promise, present, and communicating to you. 259 Matt. xxviii. 20. [Compare vol. i. pp. 185, 186, this series.] Be not careless of yourselves, neither deprive your Saviour of His own members, neither divide His body nor disperse His members, neither prefer the occasions of this life to the word of God; but assemble yourselves together every day, morning and evening, singing psalms and praying in the Lord’s house: in the morning saying the sixty-second Psalm, and in the evening the hundred and fortieth, but principally on the Sabbath-day. And on the day of our Lord’s resurrection, which is the Lord’s day, meet more diligently, sending praise to God that made the universe by Jesus, and sent Him to us, and condescended to let Him suffer, and raised Him from the dead. Otherwise what apology will he make to God who does not assemble on that day to hear the saving word concerning the resurrection, on which we pray thrice standing in memory of Him who arose in three days, in which is performed the reading of the prophets, the preaching of the Gospel, the oblation of the sacrifice, the gift of the holy food?
[59] Διδάσκων δέ, ὦ ἐπίσκοπε, κέλευε καὶ παραίνει τῷ λαῷ εἰς τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν ἐνδελεχίζειν ὄρθρου καὶ ἐσπέρας ἑκάστης ἡμέρας καὶ μὴ ἀπολείπεσθαι τὸ σύνολον, ἀλλὰ συνέρχεσθαι διηνεκῶς, καὶ μήτε τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν κολοβοῦν ἑαυτὸν ὑφαιροῦντα καὶ παρὰ μέλος ποιεῖν τὸ σῶμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ: οὐ γὰρ μόνον περὶ ἱερέων ἐρρέθη, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἕκαστος τῶν λαϊκῶν περὶ ἑαυτοῦ ἀκουέτω λογιζόμενος, ὅτι εἴρηται ὑπὸ τοῦ Κυρίου: »Ὁ μὴ ὢν μετ' ἐμοῦ κατ' ἐμοῦ ἐστιν, καὶ ὁ μὴ συνάγων μετ' ἐμοῦ σκορπίζει.« Μὴ οὖν ἑαυτοὺς μέλη ὄντες τοῦ Χριστοῦ σκορπίζετε, μὴ συναθροιζόμενοι: Χριστὸν κεφαλὴν ἔχοντες κατὰ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν αὐτοῦ συνόντα καὶ κοινωνοῦντα ὑμῖν, μὴ ἀμελεῖτε ἑαυτῶν μηδὲ ἀποστερεῖτε τὸν σωτῆρα τῶν οἰκείων μελῶν μηδὲ διαιρεῖτε τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ μηδὲ σκορπίζετε τὰ μέλη αὐτοῦ μηδὲ προκρίνετε τοῦ θείου λόγου τὰς βιωτικὰς χρείας, ἀλλ' ἑκάστης ἡμέρας συναθροίζεσθε ὄρθρου καὶ ἑσπέρας ψάλλοντες καὶ προσευχόμενοι ἐν τοῖς κυριακοῖς, ὄρθρου μὲν λέγοντες ψαλμὸν τὸν ξβʹ, ἑσπέρας δὲ τὸν ρμʹ. Μάλιστα δὲ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ σαββάτου καὶ ἐν τῇ τοῦ Κυρίου ἀναστασίμῳ τῇ κυριακῇ σπουδαιοτέρως ἀπαντᾶτε, αἶνον ἀναπέμποντες τῷ Θεῷ τῷ ποιήσαντι τὰ ὅλα διὰ Ἰησοῦ καὶ αὐτὸν εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐξαποστείλαντι καὶ συγχωρήσαντι παθεῖν καὶ ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστήσαντι. Ἐπεὶ τί ἀπολογήσεται τῷ Θεῷ ὁ μὴ συνερχόμενος ἐν τῇδε τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἀκούειν τοῦ σωτηρίου περὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως λόγου; Ἐν ᾗ καὶ τρεῖς εὐχὰς ἑστῶτες ἐπιτελοῦμεν μνήμης χάριν τοῦ διὰ τριῶν ἀναστάντος ἡμερῶν, ἐν ᾗ Προφητῶν ἀναγνώσεις καὶ Εὐαγγελίων κηρυκία καὶ θυσίας ἀναφορὰ καὶ τροφῆς ἱερᾶς δωρεά.