Said Myrtias (a Syrian student

in Alexandria; in the reign of

Augustus Constans and Augustus Constantius;

in part a pagan, and in part a christian);

“Fortified by theory and study,

I shall not fear my passions like a coward.

I shall give my body to sensual delights,

to enjoyments dreamt-of,

to the most daring amorous desires,

to the lustful impulses of my blood, without

any fear, for whenever I want—

and I shall have the will, fortified

as I shall be by theory and study—

at moments of crisis I shall find again

my spirit, as before, ascetic.”