Letter 26: The priest pronounces peace upon the church from the height of his chair, imitating the Lord who upon his ascension...

To Orion the Deacon. Those being instructed must both love their true teachers as fathers and fear them as rulers, and neither dissolve the fear on account of the love, nor dim the love on account of the fear. To Ophelios the Scholastikos. On the election of the apostles. Neither the word-hunters, nor the orators, nor the dialecticians, nor those who pride themselves on the cleverness of their speech should be called wise, but rather those who shine in practical philosophy. And if the faculty of reason should also adorn them, they should be called wiser still. And if the contemplative faculty as well — by which I mean piety, which alone we define as wisdom in the proper sense — they should be called the wisest of all. The first is, as it were, the foundation and the building; the second is the adornment; and the third is the crowning achievement. Just as, when neither foundation nor building exists, neither the adornments nor the crowning elements have a place — so too, when virtue is absent, the rational and the contemplative faculties are of no use. To Cassios the Presbyter. Against those who say there is fate, or destiny, or so-called fortune. It is not terrible, O best of men, for those who have done terrible things to suffer terrible things in return. But for those who have done nothing terrible to suffer terrible things — that is in every way most terrible. How then shall we answer those who accuse us concerning this? I think in no other way than by saying, concerning the first group, that it is just; and concerning the second, that it is for their testing. For justice punished the one group, while it procured for the other the basis for crowns. Those who posit fate will be at a loss to answer about both cases. For it is not just that one who was compelled to do something, or one who did nothing terrible, should suffer terrible things. But we who affirm that Providence exists speak well and piously, and offer reasonable explanations. To Strategios the Monk. Do not fail to recognize, O friend, that the foundation of the blessed life is the mortification of the passions, than which nothing could be more desirable or more glorious. To Dorotheos the Most Illustrious. On the saying spoken by God, "On the day you eat of it." I am greatly amazed and astonished at how those who love sin, though dying continuously, never consider themselves to have died. Therefore the saying addressed to the first-formed humans, as you have written, becomes a matter of inquiry: "On the day you eat of the tree, you shall surely die." For the criminal and the murderer truly dies at that moment when he transgresses the laws and commits the sin, even if he seems to be alive. For even if not by experience, at least by the sentence and by what is just he has died — even if he seems not yet to have fallen into the nets of the laws. And if the death of the immortal soul is defined as the departure of the Holy Spirit — for it shall not dwell in a body indebted to sin — let it be understood thus as well. For just as the body lives when the soul is present, so also the soul lives when the divine Spirit is present; and just as the body remains dead when the soul departs, so when the Holy Spirit departs the soul loses the blessed life — not dissolving into non-existence, but living a life more grievous than any death. "Let the dead bury their own dead," says Christ. And: "This my son was dead and has come back to life." As for what some say — that they died before the completion of a thousand years, for it is written, "One day of the Lord is as a thousand years" — this, though not unknown, seems plausible to me, and more readily acceptable to simpler folk. To the same. Even though the common enemy of all attacked you, expecting to prevail at the first shout and to seize your entire way of life by a sudden assault, you yourself, as I have learned, by presenting the divine alliance with sleepless zeal, caused him many toils in the siege, showed his devices and siege-engines to be ineffective, and set up a more brilliant trophy against him. Rejoicing with you, then, at your victory, and singing songs of triumph, we urge you to be watchful and attentive to yourself. For the enemy knows neither shame nor blushing, nor does he despair until death, but content with his own nature instead of weapons and devices, he attacks at every opportunity — not thinking about his defeat, but dreaming of victory. Guard your heart, therefore, with all vigilance. For the battle against him is not simple — for then he would easily be caught — but manifold and versatile. For when he is defeated through temperance, he wages war through love of money. And if he is wounded there as well, he attacks through envy.

9 XXVI. EUSEBIO EPISCOPO. De aonorum acceptione. Horrendum esse vendere sacerdotium. Multi te traducunt ut pecuniis, ac non Spiritul, Κα'. - ΩΡΙΩΝΙ ΔΙΑΚΟΝΩ. Χρὴ τοὺς μαθητευομένους, καὶ ὡς πατέρας φιλεῖν τοὺς ὄντως διδασκάλους, καὶ ὡς ἄρχοντας δεδοικέ- ναι, καὶ μήτε διὰ τὴν ἀγάπην ἐκλύειν τὸν φόβον, μήτε διὰ τὸν φόβον ἀμαυροῦν τὴν ἀγάπην. ΣΤ΄. ΕΥΣΕΒΕΙ ΚΟΜΙΤΙ. Ἐπειδὰν ἴδιον ἔχεις βούλημα, ὡς ἥκιστα ἂ τοὺς οὕτως σπουδάζεις περὶ διδαχῇ τε καὶ φ δυνάμει εἰς τὴν αἰωνιότητα πρὸς δόξαν θε ΣΑ΄. – ΩΦΕΛΙΟ ΣΧΟΛΑΣΤΙΚΟ. Περὶ τῆς ἐκλογῆς τῶν ἀποστόλων. Οὔτε τοὺς λεξίθηρας, οὔτε τοὺς ῥήτορας, οὔτε τοὺς διαλεκτικούς, οὔτε τοὺς ἐπὶ τῇ τῶν λόγων δεινότητι ἐναβρυνομένους, σοφούς κλητέον, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἐπὶ τῇ πρακτικῇ φιλοσοφίᾳ διαλάμποντας. Εἰ δὲ κοσμοίη τούτους καὶ ἡ λογική, σοφωτέρους όνο- μαστέον. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ἡ θεωρητική (φημὶ δὴ ἡ εὐσέ- βεια, ἣν μόνην κυρίως σοφίαν εἶναι ὀριζόμεθα), σο- φωτάτους προσαγορευτέον. Τὴν μὲν ὥσπερ θεμέλιον καὶ οἰκοδομὴν εἶναι, τὴν δὲ ὡς ἐγκαλλώπισμα, τὴν δὲ ὡς κορωνίδα. "Ωσπερ οὖν θεμελίου μὴ ὑπάρ- χοντος, μηδ' οἰκοδομίας, οὔτε τὰ κοσμοῦντα, οὔτε τὰ στεφανοῦντα χώραν ἔχει· οὕτω καὶ ἀρετῆς μὴ ὑπαρχούσης (4), ἡ λογική καὶ ἡ θεωρητικὴ οὐχ tura sunt: ΚϚ. – ΚΑΣΙΟ ΠΡΕΣΒΥΤΕΡΟ. Κατὰ τῶν λεγόντων, εἶναι γένεσιν, ἤτοι εἰμαρμέ- νην, ἢ τὴν λεγομένην τύχην. Οὐκ ἔστιν, ὦ βέλτιστε, δεινὸν, τὸ δεινὰ πράξαν τας, δεινὰ καὶ παθεῖν. Τὸ δὲ μηδὲν δεινὸν πρά· ξαντας, δεινά παθεῖν, πάντη δεινότατον. Πῶς ὧν τοῖς ἐγκαλοῦσι περὶ τούτου ἀπολογησαίμεθα; Οίμαι οὐδαμῶς ἄλλως, ἢ περὶ μὲν τῶν πρώτων λέγοντες, ὅτι δικαίως· περὶ δὲ τῶν δευτέρων, ὅτι δοκίμως. Ἡ γὰρ δίκη τοὺς μὲν ἡμύνατο, τοῖς δὲ στεφάνων ὑπόθεσιν προὐξένησεν. Οἱ γὰρ γένεσιν ὀριζόμενοι περὶ ἀμφοτέρων ἀπορήσουσιν ἀποκρίνασθαι. Οὐ γὰρ δίκαιον, οὔτε τὸν ἀναγκασθέντα δρᾶσαί τινα, οὔτι τὸν μηδὲν δράσαντα δεινὸν, δεινὰ παθεῖν. Οἱ δὲ, Πρό νοιαν εἶναι διαβεβαιούμενοι, καὶ εὐστομοῦμεν, καὶ εὐσεβοῦμεν, καὶ αἰτίας εὐλόγους λέγομεν. ΣΚΖ΄. – ΣΤΡΑΤΗΓΙΟ ΜΟΝΑΖΟΝΤΙ. Μὴ ἀγνόει, ὦ φίλος, ὅτι ὑπόθεσῖς ἐστι τῆς μακαρίας ζωῆς, ἡ τῶν παθῶν νέκρωσις, ἧς οὐδὲν εὐκταιότερον, οὐδ᾽ εὐκλεέστερον γένοιτ' ἂν. ΣΝΒ΄. – ΔΩΡΟΘΕΩ ΛΑΜΠΡΟΤΑΤΩ. Εἰς τὸ εἰρημένον ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ· · Η δ᾽ ἂν ἡμέρᾳ φάγεσθε ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ. » Λίαν θαυμάζω καὶ ἐκπλήττομαι, πῶς οἱ φιλαμαρ τήμονες ἀεὶ ἀποθνήσκοντες, οὐδέποτε τεθνηκέναι (26) νομίζουσι. Διὸ καὶ ζήτημα, ὡς γέγραφας, οἷόν τε εἶναι ἐκεῖνο τὸ πρὸς τοὺς πρωτοπλάστους εἰρημένον. « Ἡ δ᾽ ἂν ἡμέρᾳ φάγητε ἀπὸ τοῦ ξύλου, θανάτῳ ἀποθανεῖσθε. » Ὁ γὰρ κακουργὸς καὶ ὁ ἀνδροφόνος, τότε κυρίως ἀποθνήσκει (27), ὅταν τοὺς νόμους πα- ραβαίη, καὶ τὸ ἁμάρτημα ἐργάσοιτο, κἂν δοκοίη ζῇν. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ μὴ τῇ πείρᾳ, ἀλλὰ γε τῇ ἀποφάσει, καὶ τῷ δικαίῳ τέθνηκεν · εἰ καὶ δοκοίη μηδέπω εἰς τὰς τῶν νόμων σαγήνας ἐμπεπτωκέναι. Εἱ δὲ καὶ θάνατον τῆς ἀθανάτου ψυχῆς ὁρίζεται (28) τὴν τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἀποφοίτησιν· οὐ γὰρ κατοικήσει ἐν σώματι κατάχρεῳ ἁμαρτίας· καὶ οὕτω νοείσθω. Ωσπερ γὰρ τὸ σῶμα ζῇ παρούσης ψυχῆς, οὕτω καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ παρόντος τοῦ θείου Πνεύματος · καὶ ὥσπερ ἀναχωρησάσης τῆς ψυχῆς νεκρὸν μένει τὸ σῶμα, οὕτω καὶ ἀποφοιτήσαντος (29) τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἀπολέσει ἡ ψυχὴ τὴν μακαρίαν ζωὴν, οὐκ εἰς τὸ μὴ ¿v ἀναλυομένη, ἀλλὰ θανάτου παντὸς χαλεπωτέραν βιοῦσα ζωήν. « "Ἄφες γὰρ, φησὶὁ Χριστὸς, τοὺς νε κροὺς θάψαι τοὺς ἑαυτῶν νεκρούς.» Καὶ· «Ο υἱός μου οὗτος νεκρὸς ἦν καὶ ἀνέζησε. » Τὸ γὰρ λεγόμενον παρά τινων ὅτι πρὸ τῆς τῶν χιλίων ἐτῶν συμπλη- ρώσεως ἐτεθνήκεσαν · γέγραπται γάρ· · Μία ἡμέρα Κυρίου ὡς χίλια ἔτη » οὐκ ἀγνοούμενον πιθανόν εἶναι (30) μοι δοκεῖ, καὶ τοῖς ἁπλουστέροις μᾶλλον εὐπαράδεκτον. Κϛ΄. – ΤΩ ΑΥΤΩ Δέον προσκυνεῖν ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις τὸν θεὸν, κἂν εἰ ἀνένδοτοι εἶεν οἱ πειράζοντες καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἑαυτῶν θελήμασιν ἐμμένειν ἀξιοῦντες. ΡΜΓ΄. – ΙΣΙΔΩΡΩ ΚΟΜΙΤΙ Θησαυρίζειν πῶς ἔστιν εὖ.