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the hearer will perceive what is true, gathering up after the discourse the various forms of his virtues, from which we, having fashioned it like a certain gold-inlaid crown, adorned with precious and various stones, will offer as a longed-for gift to the bride of Christ, the Church; for she rejoices to be honored by such gifts, when the annual memorial of the just occurs. But now running time has brought Ephrem around for praise; and how will she not receive his memorial with great joy? That Ephrem, who is on the lips of all Christians. I mean Ephrem the Syrian; for I am not ashamed of his race, in whose ways I take pride. Ephrem, whose light of life and contemplation shone forth to all the earth; who is known to nearly all under the sun, and is unknown to as few as is the great luminary of the Church, 46.824 Basil; Ephrem, truly the spiritual Euphrates of the Church, from which the fullness of the faithful, being watered, yields the seed of faith a hundredfold; Ephrem, the fruitful vine of God, who blossoms with fruits of teaching like sweet clusters of grapes, and gladdens the nurslings of the Church with the abundance of divine love; Ephrem, the good and faithful steward of grace, who dispenses the words of the virtues to his fellow servants in due measure, and who manages the Master's house excellently. We have supposed it superfluous to bring forward his race and homeland, the distinction of his ancestors, the fame of his parents, his birth, upbringing, growth in age, physical fitness, fortune, skills, and the other embellishments collected by secular writers for their praises; because we have not received the tradition of praising divine men for such things; and though from these things he possesses an abundance of what is praiseworthy, yet from those things by which he made himself renowned in both life and word, from these let us also bind on him the crown of our discourse. For praises are for things in our power, and rewards for things of free will. But for the things enumerated, both blame is irrational and praises are unfitting. For how could he accept being eulogized for his lineage, he who detested all worldly nobility, and embraced becoming a child of God through the undertaking of the best works? Or how could he be honored for his homeland, he who considered the whole earth foreign to himself, and turned away from material creation as an enemy, on account of the eternal blessedness laid up in heaven? And how, again, could he be delighted by the fame of his ancestors or parents, he who simply trampled upon bodily affection, and was burdened by the very tunic of the soul, that is, his flesh, finding it an obstacle to the swiftest courses of virtue? And how would he at all wish to be praised for physical growth and conduct, or fitness, or skill, or any other despicable occupation in life, he who was nourished from his earliest age, and grew up in the study of the divine Scriptures, and was watered by the ever-flowing channels of grace, and attained, to speak apostolically, to the measure of the stature of Christ? Since we know, therefore, that our great Father does not rejoice to be magnified by such laughable praises as carnal men do, let us try, at least moderately, to honor him from his own labors; for it is not in the nature of discourse to extend to things beyond its power. Therefore, so that neither speechlessness may fetter our desire, nor again, by travelling a path strange to the Fathers, we stray from the royal road by running through by-ways, we shall craft our discourse with moderation. And what are these things of his, from which we proposed to weave his praise? Action and contemplation, which the swarm of virtues in turn follows: faith, hope, love, 46.825 piety towards God, study of the divine Scriptures, purification of soul and body, continual tears, a hermit's life, withdrawal from place to place, flight from harmful things, unceasing teaching, uninterrupted prayer, fasting and vigils without measure,

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ἀκροατὴς ἐπόψει τὸ ἀψευδὲς, κατόπιν τοῦ λόγου τὰς ποικίλας αὐτοῦ τῶν ἀρετῶν ἰδέας ἀναλεγόμενος, ὧν ἡμεῖς καθ άπερ ἕνα τινὰ χρυσοκόλλητον στέφανον, πολυτίμοις καὶ διαφόροις περιηνθισμένον χρυσουργήσαντες λί θοις, τῇ νύμφῃ Χριστοῦ Ἐκκλησίᾳ δῶρον ποθούμενον προσκομίσομεν· χαίρει γὰρ τοῖς τοιούτοις φιλοφρο νεῖσθαι χαρίσμασιν, ὅτε μνήμη δικαίων ἀπαντήσει ἐτήσιος. Ἐφραῒμ δὲ νῦν εἰς εὐφημίαν περιήγαγε τρέχων ὁ χρόνος· καὶ πῶς οὐ περιχαρῶς τὸ τούτου μνημόσυνον ὑποδέξεται; Ἐφραῒμ ἐκεῖνον, τὸν ἐν πᾶσι Χριστιανῶν περιφε ρόμενον στόμασιν. Ἐφραῒμ λέγω τὸν Σύρον· οὐ γὰρ τὸ γένος ἐπαισχύνομαι, οὗ τοῖς τρόποις ἐγκαλλωπί ζομαι. Ἐφραῒμ, οὗ εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν τὸ φέγγος τοῦ βίου καὶ τῆς θεωρίας ἐξέλαμψεν· ὁ πάσῃ τῇ ὑφ' ἡλίῳ σχεδὸν γινωσκόμενος, παρὰ τοσούτοις τε ἀγνοούμε νος, παρ' ὅσοις ὁ μέγας τῆς Ἐκκλησίας φωστὴρ Βα 46.824 σίλειος· Ἐφραῒμ, ὁ νοητὸς ὄντως τῆς Ἐκκλησίας Εὐφράτης, ἐξ οὗ τὸ τῶν πιστῶν καταρδευόμενον πλή ρωμα εἰς ἑκατὸν ἀποδίδωσι τὸν σπόρον τῆς πίστεως· Ἐφραῒμ, ἡ πολύφορος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἄμπελος, ἡ δίκην βοτρύων γλυκερῶν καρποὺς ἀνθοῦσα διδασκαλίας, καὶ τοὺς τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τροφίμους τῷ κόρῳ τῆς θείας ἀγάπης εὐφραίνουσα· Ἐφραῒμ, ὁ καλὸς καὶ πι στὸς οἰκονόμος τῆς χάριτος, ὁ τοὺς λόγους τῶν ἀρε τῶν ἀναλόγως τοῖς ὁμοδούλοις σιτομετρῶν, καὶ τὴν δεσποτικὴν οἰκίαν οἰκονομούμενος ἄριστα. Οὗ τὸ γέ νος καὶ τὴν ἐνεγκαμένην καὶ προγόνων περιφάνειαν, καὶ γεννητόρων εὔκλειαν, καὶ γέννησιν, καὶ ἀνατρο φὴν, καὶ αὔξησιν ἡλικίας, καὶ σωματικὴν ἐπιτηδειό τητα, καὶ τύχην, καὶ τέχνας, καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ τῶν ἔξω λογογράφων ἐρανιζόμενα τοῖς ἐπαίνοις σεμνολογή ματα, περιττὸν εἰς μέσον ἄγειν ὑποτοπήσαντες· ὅτι μὴ τοὺς θείους ἄνδρας ἡμεῖς ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων ἐπαι νεῖν παρειλήφαμεν· κἂν ἐκ περιουσίας αὐτῷ κἀντεῦ θεν ὑπάρχει τὸ ἀξιέπαινον, ἐξ ὧν αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν πε ριφανῆ βίῳ τε καὶ λόγῳ κατεσκεύασεν, ἐκ τούτων καὶ ἡμεῖς αὐτῷ τὸν τοῦ λόγου στέφανον ἀναδήσωμεν. Τῶν ἐφ' ἡμῖν γὰρ οἱ ἔπαινοι, καὶ τῶν αὐτεξουσίων τὰ γέρα.

Τῶν ἀπηριθμημένων δὲ, καὶ ψόγοι παράλογοι, καὶ εὐφημίαι ἀνάρμοστοι. Πῶς γὰρ οὗτος ἀπὸ γένους ἐγκωμιάζεσθαι κατ εδέξατο, ὁ πᾶσαν κοσμικὴν εὐγένειαν βδελυξάμενος, καὶ τέκνον Θεοῦ δι' ἀναλήψεως ἔργων ἀρίστων γενέ σθαι κατασπασάμενος; Ἢ πῶς ἀπὸ πατρίδος σεμνύ νεσθαι, ὁ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἀλλοτρίαν ἑαυτοῦ λογιζόμε νος, καὶ ὡς ἔχθραν τὴν ὑλικὴν κτίσιν ἀποστρεφόμε νος, διὰ τὴν ἐν οὐρανοῖς ἀποκειμένην ἀΐδιον μακα ριότητα; Πῶς δὲ πάλιν ἐπὶ προγόνων ἢ γεννητόρων ἡδυνθείη εὐκλείᾳ, ὁ σωματικὴν ἁπλῶς καταπατήσας προσπάθειαν, καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ ψυχικὸν χιτώνιον, ἤτοι σαρκίον βαρούμενος, ὡς ἐμποδὼν αὐτῷ πρὸς τοὺς τῆς ἀρετῆς ὀξυτάτους εὑρισκόμενον δρόμους; Πῶς δὲ ὅλως ἐκ σωματικῆς αὐξήσεως καὶ ἀναστροφῆς, ἢ ἐπιτηδειότητος, ἢ τέχνης, ἤ τινος ἄλλης καταπτύστου θελήσειεν ἐπαινεῖσθαι περὶ τὸν βίον ἀσχολίας, ὁ τρα φεὶς μὲν ἐκ πρώτης ἡλικίας, καὶ αὐξηθεὶς ἐν τῇ τῶν θείων μελέτῃ Γραφῶν, ποτισθεὶς δὲ τοῖς τῆς χάριτος ἀεννάοις ὀχετοῖς, καὶ πρὸς μέτρον ἡλικίας, ἀποστολι κῶς εἰπεῖν, φθάσας Χριστοῦ; Εἰδότες οὖν ἡμεῖς ὡς οὐ χαίρει τοῖς τοιούτοις ὁ μέγας Πατὴρ ἡμῶν μεγα λύνεσθαι, οἷσπερ οἱ σωματικοὶ, καταγελάστοις ἐπαί νοις, ἐκ τῶν οἰκείων αὐτὸν πόνων, κἂν γοῦν μετρίως πειραθῶμεν ἀποσεμνῦναι· οὐ γὰρ ἔχει φύσιν ὁ λό γος τοῖς ὑπὲρ δύναμιν ἐπεκτείνεσθαι. Ὡς ἂν οὖν μήτε τὸν ἡμέτερον πόθον ἡ ἀφωνία πεδήσῃ, μήτ' αὖ πάλιν ξένην τρίβον τῶν Πατέρων ὁδεύοντες, βασι λικῆς παρασφαλῶμεν ὁδοῦ, τὰ παρεκτρίβια διαθέον τες, τῷ μετρίῳ τὸν λόγον φιλοτεχνήσομεν. Τί δὲ τὰ τούτου, δι' ὧν ἐξυφᾶναι τὸν ἔπαινον ὑπ εθέμεθα; Πρᾶξις καὶ θεωρία, αἷς ὁ κατὰ μέρος τῶν ἀρετῶν ἑσμὸς ἐπακολουθεῖ, πίστις, ἐλπὶς, ἀγάπη, 46.825 εὐσέβεια εἰς Θεὸν, μελέτη τῶν θείων Γραφῶν, ἁγνι σμὸς ψυχῆς καὶ σώματος, δάκρυα διηνεκῆ, ἐρημικὴ διαβίωσις, ἡ ἐκ τόπου εἰς τόπον ἀναχώρησις, φυγὴ τῶν ἐπιβλαβῶν, διδασκαλία ἀένναος, προσευχὴ ἀκα τάπαυστος, νηστεία καὶ ἀγρυπνία μέτρον οὐκ ἔχου σαι,