Letter 1141: The priesthood is a sacred trust, not a career.
On the divine visitation. The incarnate appearing of the Son of God frightened all — both human beings and demons. It persuaded human beings to spare the nature that had been united to God, and compelled demons to cease their plotting against it, since it had become sinless. For before the coming of Christ, the devil exercised an almost unchallenged tyranny over human nature, exploiting its weakness and enslaving it through sin. But when the Son of God assumed that very nature and lived in it without sin, he demonstrated that human nature was capable of holiness, and he broke the power of the devil by offering no foothold for his temptations. The demons were terrified not by a display of raw power but by the presence of perfect purity in human flesh — something they had never before encountered. And human beings were given hope, for if one Man could live without sin in this mortal body, then through his grace all might be delivered from the bondage of corruption and walk in newness of life.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
Περὶ τῆς θείας ἐπιδημίας. Ἧ τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων ἁμαρτιῶν.... () ἧ τοῦ Υῇου τοῦ Θεοῦ ἕνσαῤχος ἐπιφάνεια, πάντας μὲν ἐφόδησε χαὶ ἀνθρώπους χαὶ δαίμονας, τοὺς μὲν φείδεσθαι τῆς φύσεως πείσασα, ὡς Θεῷ ἑνωθείσης " τοὺς δὲ ἀπέχεσθαι τῆς χατ᾽ αὐτῶν ἐπιδουλῆς ἀναγχάσασα, ὡς ἀναμαρτήτου λοιπὸν γενομένης σὲ δὲ οὐδὲν τούτων ἐμάλαξεν, οὐδὲ δεδιέναι παρεσχεύασεν, οὐδὲ σωφρονεῖν ἐπαιδαγώγησεν. Εὲ τοίνυν ἄνθρωπος εἶ, τῷ προτέρῳ παιδεύθητι εἰ δὲ δαίμων, τῷ δευτέρῳ διδάχθητι,. μὴ χαταχεχρῆσθαι τῇ καλλίστῃ φύσει εἰς πάθη. Ἥξεις γὰρ εἰς κρίσιν, τούτων ἁπάντων εὐθύ- νας ὑφέξων, χαὶ τῆς μαχρᾶς ἀναλγησίας μαχρὸν εἰσπραχθησόμενος λόγον. υτιιδ ΠΟΤ ΠῚ ΟΠΙΘἾΠ ΓΑΙΟΠ6Β, δἰ αἰπμαγιθβ ᾿ν ἱπάο!θι εἶα δίυροτίβ ἀϊα!γηλπὶ οχίξονάυς Γᾶ- ἀἸΪοΠΟΙΉ. ᾿ ΟΟΧΧΧ. --- ΑΓΡΗΙΟ ΕΡΙΘΟΟΡΟύ. ὃ ϑεμππαολιονιῦ. Θυοπίαπι ΘϑηηδοΠ Υ πη8) Γὰ αυ810 ῬΤῸ δία οἱ ψἰ τὶ θυ8. ᾿υγηδη πιϊπαῖυδ . ΕΖΕΘΙ, ἰ060 ργΟρΥΪδ ἐμ ΟΠ πη Πίϑν οορσπονῖ., Νἧιη αυΐ ΒροΓᾶ- ΣΛ΄. -- ΑΔΦΙΩ () ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΏ. Περὶ τοῦ Σεγαχειρήμ. Ἐπειδὴ ὁ Σεναχειρὴμ ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως χαὶ δυνάμεως μείζονα ἠπείλησε τῷ Ἐζεχίᾳ, διὰ τοῦτο ἔγνω τῆς οἰχείας ἀσθενείας τὴν οὐδένειαν. Ὁ γὰρ μαῖ ΠΙΠΘΓΟΒΟΙΥπιδιη Ὀγίαιο 4υδϑὶ ἱπηρθί οἱ ουπὶ Ὦ ἐξ ἐπιδρομῆς καὶ αὐτοδοεὶ προσδοχήσας ἑλεῖν τὴν Ῥγίηνυπε βυκίυ ἰ556. οἰδιῃογαπι, οδρίυΓαπι, ἰ8 ΠΏΪΥΟΓΒΟ [ἐγ δχογοίια αὔδᾳυο σουΠίσιυ ργϑὶϊ Δ ηι1880, ρΓΏ- ΟΙΆΓΟ 0η ἀρὶ ρυίαῦθαὶ, δἱ νϑὶ βαϊνιϑ δὐδάογοι. Οὐ δυίδην ἀοιηυπι ῬΓΟΙυ͵, ἃ ἀοπιηρϑι οἷ ἰη!αΓοιηρίυ8 , υἱ δἱ . δρηύβθοσιαι ἰηῇγ- πἰίδιθη), οἱ ι8ι ἀἰν δι ιηδάνογβίοποπι ΠΟη οἰδπιχογοί, Ἱερουσαλὴμ, πᾶσαν σχεδὸν τὴν στρατιὰν ἄνευ πολέ- μου χαὶ μάχης ἀποδαλὼν, ἀγαπητὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ διασωθῆναι μόνον. Διαφυγὼ» δ᾽ οἴχαδε, ὑπὸ τῶν οἱ- χείων ἀνῃρέθη (), ἵν᾽ ὁμοῦ χαὶ τὴν οἰχείαν ἀσθέ- νειᾶαν γνοίη, χαὶ μὴ διαφύγοι τὴν δίχην. ΥΑΠΙΔ ΓΕΟΤΙΟΝΕΒ ΕἸ ΝΟΤΑἝ. () Ροδὶ ὁ τὴν δά ! ἰάθπι πανάρετον εἰ 5εαιὶ- , σοφίαν, ἅψθη) ἀ6 Ἐοἰοδίδϑιϊοο ΠΌΓῸ Δ πομΐ ]Ζυσιη ], ὃἱ ποιανίπηυ8, ἁπλῶς εἰ Δ πᾶν- ἄρετον πυπειρᾶιὶ. ΡΟΒΞΙΝ. () ᾿Αμαρτιῶν. Ὑίάδιυν δοαυΐ ἀδῦογο ἀντίδοτος, ν6] θεραπεία, νοὶ φιοά 5ἰτΐ] ὀρ 6ι ), ᾿νΐς ἧπ Ω). Π). ΕἰΙΤΤ. () Νος Πυι πεϊπυΐαπν πορίθχ ογΐ ἢ) Σ ΠΟΠΊΘΗ δὰ π ὀρ ϑιοία βου θἰταγ ἢ ὑπ ργ ΘΓ ΠΙΟΓΘΙΝ οἰγουπιῆοοι! οοὐ. γαϊϊς. βογίρεπβ ᾿Αλφιῷ. ῬΟΒΒΙΝ. Ε () ᾽ΥὙπὸ τῶν οἰχδίων ἀνῃρέθη. ϑοπηϑοβοτγίθ. ΤΕΧ ΑΒΒΥΓΙΙ8, 6χ δυάδα ὀοινυ Γανεγϑυβ, ἃ ἀποῦας ἰγυοϊ πῃ ἰθηρῖο 4ιοά ογαὶ Νίωηϊνο, ] οί) διυπὶ νΘΠΟ γα . - Υἰ6 ἰδαϊδπη δχίΓο- " . ΧΥΧΥΙΙ, οἱ ἰὺ. ΕΥ̓ Ἀὸρσ., ς. χιχ ἢ ἤπια. ἘΡΙΞΤΟΙΑΕΌΝ . 0Ὑ΄ -- ἘΡΙ5Τ. Π. ΤΩΝ ΤΟΥ͂ ΑΓΙΟΥ͂ ΙΣΙΔΩΡΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΠΗΛΟΥΣΙΩΤΟΥ ἘΠΙΣΤΟΛΩΝ
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