In sanctam parasceven (homilia 7)

Discourse of Leontius, presbyter of Constantinople, on Holy Friday, and on the passion of Christ, and on the righteous Job

Great are the gifts of prayer, indelible its achievements. And wherever one may turn the eye of the mind, one will find nothing more precious than prayer. Prayer steered Noah and kept him from shipwreck in the God-sent flood; prayer ended the barrenness of Hannah and marvelously delivered her from the accursed curse; prayer made the belly of the whale a house of prayer for Jonah and kept the city invulnerable for the Ninevites; prayer granted a period of fifteen years to Hezekiah the king. And that I may not speak at length on how powerful prayer is, let us bring into our midst the Lord himself, the one who both did and taught, the one who not only prayed but also exhorted to pray, as it is possible to hear him saying to his own disciples: When you pray, say: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come.

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As children, entreat a father; as soldiers, await the king; as citizens enrolled in the kingdom of heaven, cry out upon no other name than that of the master. But the Lord taught his disciples to pray not only for themselves, but also for those who mistreat and hate and plot against them, as it is possible to hear the Lord saying to them: Pray for those who mistreat you, do good to those who hate you. What the Lord taught, he also did; he himself also prayed for the enemies who rejected him. And when did the Lord pray for his enemies? When? On this present Friday, when he stood by the cross. For today, as you know, the judge of all is crucified. Therefore, when the Lord saw himself being crucified by the Jews and the Jews being condemned by the inanimate elements, and that the sun was darkened, but they did not grieve, and that a universal earthquake occurred, but they were not moved from their wickedness, and that the veil of the temple was torn, but their hearts were not opened, and that many tombs were opened, but their souls were not enlightened, and that the dead were rising, but they were counted among the dead, so also the Lord, loving the race of men, prayed on the cross itself to his own Father on this present Friday, saying: Father, forgive them this sin, for they know not what they do. Do you see, O friend, how what he taught, he also fulfilled, how he prays for his enemies? Why? The Father of the Lord, being indignant over the outrage against the Son, wished to put to death the tribe of the Jews, who hewed a cross instead of offering worship, and forged nails instead of offering supplication, and brought vinegar instead of an offering, and struck with a reed instead of giving gifts, and wove a crown of thorns instead of treasures, and boldly cried out: His blood be on us and on our children. For these reasons, as the Father was planning to wipe out the tribe of the Jews at once, the only-begotten Son, having taken the role of a mediator, besought the Father, saying: Father, forgive them this sin, for they know not what they do. For many of them will be converted; therefore I beseech you, let not the wheat be harvested with the tares, let not the lambs perish with the wolves, let not the doves be destroyed with the ravens, let not the roses be burned up with the thorns. Not only is Caiaphas here, scourging, but also Paul, being converted; not

In sanctam parasceven (homilia 7)

Λεοντίου πρεσβυτέρου Κωνσταντινουπόλεως λόγος εἰς τὴν ἁγίαν παρασκευὴν καὶ εἰς τὸ πάθος τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ εἰς τὸν δίκαιον Ἰώβ

Μεγάλα τῆς προσευχῆς τὰ χαρίσματα, ἀνεξάλειπτα ταύτης τὰ κατορθώματα. Ὅπου δ' ἄν τις περιστρέψῃ τὸ τῆς διανοίας ὄμμα, οὐδὲ προσευχῆς τιμιώτερον εὑρήσει. Προσευχὴ τὸν Νῶε διεκυβέρνησεν καὶ τοῦ θεηλάτου κατακλυσμοῦ ἀναυάγητον διετήρησεν· προσευχὴ τὴν στείρωσιν τῆς Ἄννας διέλυσεν καὶ τῆς ἐπαράτου κατάρας παραδόξως ἀπήλλαξεν· προσευχὴ τῷ Ἰωνᾶ τὴν κοιλίαν τοῦ κήτους εὐκτήριον οἶκον εἰργάσατο καὶ Νινευΐταις τὴν πόλιν ἄτρωτον διετήρησεν· προσευχὴ Ἐζεκίᾳ τῷ βασιλεῖ πεντεκαιδεκαετῆ χρόνον ἐχαρίσατο. Καὶ ἵνα μὴ μακρολογῶ πόσον δύναται προσευχή, αὐτὸν τὸν κύριον εἰς μέσον ἀγάγωμεν, τὸν ποιήσαντα καὶ διδάξαντα, τὸν μὴ μόνον προσευξάμενον ἀλλὰ καὶ προσεύχεσθαι παραινέσαντα, ὡς ἔστιν αὐτοῦ ἀκοῦσαι λέγοντος πρὸς τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ μαθητάς· Ὅταν προσεύχεσθε, λέγετε· Πάτερ ἡμῶν, ὁ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, ἁγιασθήτω τὸ ὄνομά σου, ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου.

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Ὡς τέκνα πατέρα παρακαλεῖτε, ὡς στρατιῶται τὸν βασιλέα περιμένετε, ὡς πολιτογραφηθέντες εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, πλὴν τοῦ δεσποτικοῦ ὀνόματος μηδὲν ἕτερον ἐπιβοᾶτε. Οὐ μόνον δὲ ὑπὲρ ἑαυτῶν τοὺς μαθητὰς ὁ κύριος ἐδίδαξε προσεύχεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐπηρεαζόντων καὶ ἐχθραινόντων καὶ ἐπιβουλευόντων, ὡς ἔστιν αὐτοῦ ἀκοῦσαι τοῦ κυρίου λέγοντος πρὸς αὐτούς· Προσεύχεσθε ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐπηρεαζόντων ὑμᾶς, καλῶς ποιεῖτε τοῖς μισοῦσιν ὑμᾶς. Ὃ ἐδίδαξεν ὁ κύριος καὶ ἐποίησεν· προσηύξατο καὶ αὐτὸς ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀθετούντων αὐτὸν ἐχθρῶν. Καὶ πότε προσηύξατο ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐχθρῶν ὁ κύριος; Πότε; Τῇ παρούσῃ παρασκευῇ, ὅτε παρέστη τῷ σταυρῷ. Σήμερον γάρ, ὡς ἴστε, ὁ πάντων κριτὴς σταυροῦται. ∆ιὸ καὶ ὡς εἶδεν ἑαυτὸν ὁ κύριος ὑπὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων σταυρούμενον καὶ τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ὑπὸ τῶν ἀψύχων στοιχείων κατακρινομένους, καὶ ὅτι ὁ ἥλιος ἐσκοτίζετο, ἐκεῖνοι δὲ οὐκ ἐστύγναζον, καὶ ὅτι σεισμὸς καθολικὸς ἐγίνετο, ἐκεῖνοι δὲ τῆς κακίας οὐ μετεφέροντο, καὶ ὅτι τὸ καταπέτασμα τοῦ ναοῦ διερρήγνυτο, ἐκείνων δὲ αἱ καρδίαι οὐ κατηνοίγοντο, καὶ ὅτι πολλὰ μὲν ἠνοίγοντο μνήματα, ἐκείνων δὲ αἱ ψυχαὶ οὐκ ἐφωτίζοντο, καὶ ὅτι νεκροὶ μὲν ἀνίσταντο, ἐκεῖνοι δὲ τοῖς νεκροῖς συνελογίζοντο, οὕτως καὶ ὁ κύριος φιλανθρωπευόμενος τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ σταυρῷ προσηύχετο πρὸς τὸν ἑαυτοῦ πατέρα τῇ παρούσῃ παρασκευῇ λέγων· Πάτερ, ἄφες αὐτοῖς τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ταύτην, οὐ γὰρ οἴδασι τί ποιοῦσιν. Εἶδες, ὦ φίλε, πῶς ὃ ἐδίδαξε καὶ ἐπλήρωσεν, πῶς ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐχθρῶν προσεύχεται; ∆ιὰ τί; Ἤθελεν ὁ πατὴρ τοῦ κυρίου ὡς ἀγανακτῶν ὑπὲρ τῆς ὕβρεως τοῦ υἱοῦ θανατῶσαι τὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων φῦλον, τοὺς ἀντὶ προσκυνήσεως σταυρὸν πελεκῶντας, καὶ ἀντὶ παρακλήσεως ἥλους χαλκεύοντας, καὶ ἀντὶ προσφορᾶς ὄξος προσάγοντας, καὶ ἀντὶ δώρων καλάμῳ τύπτοντας, καὶ ἀντὶ κειμηλίων ἀκάνθινον στέφανον πλέκοντας, καὶ τολμηρῶς βοῶντας· Τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐφ' ἡμᾶς καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ τέκνα ἡμῶν. ∆ιὰ ταῦτα βουλευομένου τοῦ πατρὸς ἐξαλεῖψαι παραυτὰ τὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων φῦλον, ὁ μονογενὴς υἱὸς ὡς μεσίτου τάξιν εἰληφὼς παρεκάλει τὸν πατέρα λέγων· Πάτερ, ἄφες αὐτοῖς τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ταύτην, οὐ γὰρ οἴδασι τί ποιοῦσιν. Πολλοὶ γὰρ ἐξ αὐτῶν ἐπιστρέψουσιν· διὸ παρακαλῶ, μὴ συνθερισθῇ ζιζανίοις σῖτος, μὴ συναπόλλωνται λύκοις ἀρνειοί, μὴ συνφθαρῶσι κόραξι περιστεραί, μὴ συγκαυθῶσιν ἀκάνθαις ῥόδα. Οὐ μόνον Καϊάφας ἐνταῦθα μαστίζων, ἀλλὰ καὶ Παῦλος ἐπιστρέφων· οὐ