lives. Firmly established and ordered from within, and notwithstanding the persecutions stirred up from without by the one who has been expelled, this peace only serves to enhance that glory which is according to God. Nor does he cause anything to collapse within this edifice, but through his abortive scheming he only succeeds in making clear just how solid its internal construction is. And so it follows, Blessed are those who suffer persecution for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom