2

divinity, there it is deemed worthy to become a companion to the heavenly king. Through it the soul, lifted high up to heaven, embraces the Lord with ineffable embraces, just as an infant cries with tears for its own mother, desiring the divine milk; and it asks for its own desires, and receives gifts greater than all visible nature. For prayer is a venerable ambassador, it gladdens the heart, gives rest to the soul, engenders fear of punishment, a desire for the kingdom of heaven, teaches humility, provides knowledge of sin, in short it adorns man with all good things, placing upon the soul, like some variegated robe, every nature of virtue. It also gave Samuel to Hannah, and showed him to be a prophet of the Lord; it also made Elijah a zealot for the Lord; and became the guide for the descent of heavenly fire upon the sacrifice. For while the priests of Baal were invoking their idol all day long, he, raising his voice from a pure heart, and crying out with heart and mouth, brought down fire from heaven, a testimony to righteous prayer.

For like an eagle swooping down upon the altar, with the vehemence of its nature it consumed everything. And the great servant of God, Elijah the zealot, did this, instructing us in spiritual things through the events of that time, so that we too, crying out to God from the heart, might urge the ineffable fire of the Spirit to descend upon the altar of our heart, thereby becoming a perfect whole burnt offering to the Lord. Prayer also made Moses the lawgiver a propitiation of God for Israel, and set up trophies against their enemies for the Israelites. Through prayer also Joshua, the son of Nun, caused the great and most brilliant star in the heavens, the sun, already cutting through the ether at mid-pole, to stay in that very place for the duration of a day. Thus indeed the Lord gave to it the primacy of the commandments, so that avoiding cities 64.465 and villages and His own disciples, He would withdraw into the deserts for the sake of prayer, so that, apart from human noises and circumstances, He might commune with it in quietness with great longing, teaching us at the same time that one who professes such a way of life should occupy desert places, practicing such a thing without distraction.

Through prayer also the great company of the apostles was deemed worthy to receive the Paraclete today; for it is for this reason that I was compelled to discourse to you about it today. Prayer, while the body lies on the earth, carries the soul away to that heavenly spring, and having filled it with that drink, makes it in itself a spring of water welling up to eternal life. It gives true assurance of things to come, providing henceforth a knowledge of the good things there that is greater than faith, it opens hidden, unseen, dark treasures, it shows you the adversary; it cuts down the battle-lines of foreigners, it annihilates opposing powers, and leads to the king himself. When I say prayer, do not think it is words.

It is a longing for God, an inexpressible love, not accomplished by men, but enacted by divine grace, about which the Apostle also says: For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. If the Lord grants such a prayer to someone, it is an inalienable wealth, and a heavenly food satisfying the soul; and he who has tasted of it possesses an eternal longing for the Lord, like a fierce fire burning in his heart.

Accomplishing this in a pre-eminent way, with gentleness and a humble heart, adorn your house, brighten it with the light of righteousness, with good works, as with some proven tablet, decorate your own house, and instead of walls and mosaic, with faith

2

θεότητι, ἐκεῖ καταξιοῦται συνόμιλος γενέσθαι τῷ οὐρανίῳ βασιλεῖ. ∆ι' αὐτῆς ἡ ψυχὴ μετέωρος ἀρθεῖσα εἰς οὐρανοὺς, περιπλέκεται τῷ Κυρίῳ περιπλοκαῖς ἀῤῥήτοις, ὥσπερ νήπιον πρὸς ἰδίαν μητέρα μετὰ δακρύων βοᾷ τοῦ θείου γλιχομένη γάλακτος· αἰτεῖ δὲ τὰ οἰκεῖα θελήματα, καὶ λαμβάνει δωρεὰς κρείττονας πάσης ὁρατῆς φύσεως. Πρέσβις γὰρ αἰδέσιμος ὑπάρχει εὐχὴ, χαροποιεῖ τὴν καρδίαν, ἀναπαύει τὴν ψυχὴν, φόβον ἐγγενᾷ κολάσεως, βασιλείας οὐρανῶν ἐπιθυμίαν, ταπεινοφροσύνην διδάσκει, ἐπίγνωσιν ἁμαρτίας παρέχει, ἁπαξαπλῶς πᾶσι κατακοσμεῖ τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὥσπερ τινὰ πέπλον ποικίλον πᾶσαν φύσιν ἀρετῆς τῇ ψυχῇ περιτιθεῖσα. Αὐτὴ καὶ τῇ Ἄννῃ τὸν Σαμουὴλ ἐδωρήσατο, καὶ τοῦτον προφήτην τοῦ Κυρίου ἀπέδειξεν· αὐτὴ καὶ τὸν Ἠλίαν ζηλωτὴν τοῦ Κυρίου πεποίηκεν· καὶ τῆς ἐπὶ τὴν θυσίαν καθόδου τοῦ οὐρανίου πυρὸς ὁδηγὸς γεγένηται. Τῶν γὰρ ἱερέων τῆς Βάαλ πανημέριον ἐπικαλουμένων τὸ εἴδωλον, αὐτὸς ἐκ καθαρᾶς καρδίας τὴν φωνὴν ἀνατείνας, καὶ βοήσας καρδίᾳ καὶ στόματι, τὸ πῦρ κατήγαγεν ἐξ οὐρανῶν, μαρτυρία τῆς εὐχῆς τῆς δικαίας.

Καθάπερ γάρ τις ἀετὸς ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον ἐπιπτὰς, τῷ λάβρῳ τῆς φύσεως κατεκάρπωσεν ἅπαντα. Τοῦτο δὲ πεποίηκεν ὁ μέγας θεράπων τοῦ Θεοῦ Ἠλίας ὁ ζηλωτὴς, ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ τὰ πνευματικὰ διὰ τῶν τότε παιδαγωγῶν, ἵνα καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐκ καρδίας πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν βοῶντες, τὸ ἄῤῥητον τοῦ Πνεύματος πῦρ ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον τῆς ἡμετέρας καρδίας κατελθεῖν προτρεψώμεθα, διὰ τοῦτο τέλειον ὁλοκάρπωμα γινόμενοι τῷ Κυρίῳ. Εὐχὴ καὶ Μωυσῆν τὸν νομοθέτην ἱλαστήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ πεποίηκεν τὸν Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ πρόπαια κατὰ τῶν ἐναντίων τοῖς Ἰσραηλίταις ἔπηξεν. ∆ι' εὐχῆς καὶ Ἰησοῦς, ὁ τοῦ Ναυῆ, τὸ μέγα καὶ περιφανέστατον ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς ἄστρον τὸν ἥλιον, μέσον ἤδη τοῦ πόλου κατατέμνοντα τὸν αἰθέρα, ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ τόπῳ καιρὸν ἡμέρας διατρίψαι πεποίηκεν. Οὕτω δὴ ταύτῃ τὰ πρεσβεῖα τῶν ἐντολῶν ὁ Κύριος ἔδωκεν, ὥστε πόλεων 64.465 καὶ κωμῶν καὶ τῶν ἰδίων ἀποφεύγοντα μαθητῶν, ἐν ταῖς ἐρήμοις ὑποχωρεῖν τῆς προσευχῆς ἕνεκεν, ἵνα ἐκτὸς θορύβων καὶ περιστάσεων ἀνθρωπίνων ἐν ἡσυχίᾳ ταύτῃ μετὰ μεγάλου πόθου προσομιλῇ, διδάσκων ἡμᾶς ἅμα, ὅτι χρὴ τὸν τοιαύτην ἐπαγγελλόμενον πολιτείαν, τόπους καταλαμβάνειν ἐρήμους, ἀπερισπάστως τὸ τοιοῦτον πράττοντας.

∆ι' εὐχῆς καὶ τὸ μέγα τῶν ἀποστόλων σύστημα κατηξιώθη τὸν Παράκλητον δέξασθαι σήμερον· τούτου γὰρ ἕνεκεν περὶ αὐτῆς ὑμῖν ἠναγκάσθην σήμερον διεξελθεῖν. Εὐχὴ, τοῦ σώματος ἐπὶ γῆς κειμένου, τὴν ψυχὴν πρὸς ἐκείνην τὴν ἐπουράνιον ἀποκομίζει πηγὴν, κἀκείνου τοῦ πόματος ἐμφορήσασα ταύτην ποιεῖ ἐν αὐτῇ πηγὴν ὕδατος ἁλλομένου εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον. Αὐτὴ τῶν μελλόντων ἀληθῆ δίδωσιν πληροφορίαν, κρείττονα λοιπὸν πίστεως τὴν ἐπίγνωσιν τῶν ἐκεῖσε παρεχομένη ἀγαθῶν, θησαυροὺς ἀποκρύφους, ἀοράτους, σκοτεινοὺς ἀνοίγει, δεικνύει σοι τὸν ἀντίπαλον· τέμνει τὰς τῶν ἀλλοφύλων παρατάξεις, τὰς ἀντικειμένας ἀφανίζει δυνάμεις, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁδηγεῖ τὸν βασιλέα. Εὐχὴν ὅταν εἴπω, μὴ νομίσῃς λόγους εἶναι.

Πόθος ἐστὶ πρὸς Θεὸν, ἀγάπη ἀνεκλάλητος, οὐκ ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἐπιτελουμένη, ἀλλ' ἐκ θείας ἐνεργουμένη χάριτος περὶ ἦς καὶ ὁ Ἀπόστολος λέγει· Τὸ γὰρ τί προσευξώμεθα καθὸ δεῖ, οὐκ οἴδαμεν, ἀλλ' αὐτὸ τὸ Πνεῦμα ὑπερεντυγχάνει ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν στεναγμοῖς ἀλαλήτοις. Τὴν τοιαύτην εὐχὴν ἐάν τινι χαρίσηται ὁ Κύριος, πλοῦτός ἐστιν ἀναφαίρετος, καὶ σίτισις οὐρανία κορεννύουσα τὴν ψυχήν· ἧς ὁ γευσάμενος τὸν πρὸς Κύριον πόθον ἀΐδιον κέκτηται, ὥσπερ πῦρ τι λάβρον τὴν αὐτοῦ καρδίαν ἐκκαῖον.

Ταύτην δὲ πρωτοτύπως ἐπιτελῶν, ἐπιεικείᾳ καὶ καρδίᾳ ταπεινῇ, ζωγράφει τὸν οἶκόν σου, καταφαίδρυνε τῷ τῆς δικαιοσύνης φωτὶ, ἔργοις ἀγαθοῖς, ὥσπερ τινὶ δοκίμῃ πλακὶ, τὸν σεαυτοῦ διακόσμησον οἶκον, καὶ ἀντὶ τειχέων καὶ ψηφίδος πίστει