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since God the only-begotten child of God was with us; but this is always so. For 'Behold,' he says, 'I am with you all the days, until the consummation of the age;' wherefore it is possible to celebrate Epiphany every day. What does the feast of Pascha mean? What is its theme? We proclaim the death of the Lord then; and this is Pascha; but neither do we do this at a set time. For Paul, wishing to release us from the necessity of seasons, and showing that it is possible always to celebrate Pascha, says, 'For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord.' Since, therefore, we can always proclaim the death of the Lord, we can always celebrate Pascha. Do you want to learn that even this feast of today can be fulfilled every day, or rather, that it exists every day? Let us see what is the theme of the present feast, and for what reason we celebrate it. Because the Spirit came to us; for just as the only-begotten Son of God is with faithful men; so also is the Spirit of God. How is this clear? 'He who loves me,' he says, 'will keep my commandments, and I will ask my Father, and he will give you another Paraclete, that he may remain with you forever, the Spirit of truth.' Just as, therefore, Christ said of himself, 'Behold, I am with you all the days until the consummation of the age,' and we can always celebrate Epiphany; so also he said of the Spirit, that 'he is with you forever,' and we can always celebrate Pentecost.

2. And so that you may learn that it is possible for us always to celebrate, and there is not a set time

set, nor are we confined by the necessity of a time, listen to what Paul says: 50.455 Therefore, let us celebrate. And yet it was not a feast then, when he wrote these things; it was not Pascha, it was not Epiphany, it was not Pentecost; but showing that it is not the season that makes a feast, but a pure conscience; for a feast is nothing other than gladness; and nothing else creates spiritual and intellectual gladness, but a conscience of good deeds; he who has a good conscience and such deeds, can always celebrate. Showing this very thing, therefore, Paul said: 'Therefore, let us celebrate, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.' Do you see how he did not bind you by the necessity of seasons, but exhorted you to have a pure conscience? I wished to spend this whole discourse on this; for those who after a time get some people into their hands do not easily let them go; since, therefore, we have taken you, who come once a year, within our nets, we do not wish to let you go today, but, so that you do not depart empty of words concerning the feast, it is necessary to lead the discourse from this exhortation to the theme of the feast. Many good things, then, have often come down from heaven to earth for the common race of men; but such as today, have never before been brought down. Learn, then, what the former things were, and what today's are, so that you may see the difference between both.

God rained manna upon the earth, and gave them the bread of heaven; for man ate the bread of angels; truly a great thing and worthy of the loving-kindness of God. After that, fire came down, and corrected the wandering Jewish people, and snatched the sacrifice from the altar; again, rain came down when all were wasting away with famine, and brought about great abundance. These things are great and wonderful; but the present things are much greater; for not manna and fire and rain came down today, but a shower of spiritual gifts; flakes were borne from above, not rousing the earth to fruitfulness, but persuading human nature to render the fruit of virtue to the farmer of men. And those who received a drop from there immediately forgot their own nature, and suddenly the whole earth was filled with angels; not heavenly angels, but in a human body the incorporeal

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ἐπειδὴ ὁ Θεὸς ὁ μονογενὴς τοῦ Θεοῦ παῖς μεθ' ἡμῶν ἦν· ἀλλὰ τοῦτο ἀεί ἐστιν. Ἰδοὺ γὰρ, φησὶ, μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος· διὸ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας τὰ ἐπιφάνια δυνατὸν τελεῖν. Τοῦ Πάσχα ἡ ἑορτὴ τί βούλεται; τίς ἡ ὑπόθεσις αὐτῆς; Τὸν θάνατον τοῦ Κυρίου καταγγέλλομεν τότε· καὶ τοῦτό ἐστι τὸ Πάσχα· ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τοῦτο καιρῷ ὡρισμένῳ ποιοῦμεν. Βουλόμενος γὰρ ἡμᾶς ἀπαλλάξαι ὁ Παῦλος τῆς τῶν καιρῶν ἀνάγκης, καὶ δεικνὺς ὅτι δυνατὸν ἀεὶ Πάσχα ἐπιτελεῖν, Ὁσάκις γὰρ ἂν ἐσθίητε, φησὶ, τοῦτον τὸν ἄρτον, καὶ τὸ ποτήριον τοῦτο πίνητε, τὸν θάνατον τοῦ Κυρίου καταγγέλλετε. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἀεὶ δυνάμεθα τὸν θάνατον τοῦ Κυρίου καταγγέλλειν, ἀεὶ Πάσχα δυνάμεθα ἐπιτελεῖν. Βούλεσθε μαθεῖν, ὅτι καὶ αὕτη ἡ σήμερον ἑορτὴ δύναται καθ' ἑκάστην πληροῦσθαι, μᾶλλον δὲ καθ' ἑκάστην ἐστίν; Ἴδωμεν τίς ἡ ὑπόθεσις τῆς παρούσης ἑορτῆς, καὶ τίνος ἕνεκεν αὐτὴν ἄγομεν. Ὅτι τὸ Πνεῦμα πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἦλθε· καθάπερ γὰρ ὁ μονογενὴς Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ μετὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐστὶ τῶν πιστῶν· οὕτω καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα τοῦ Θεοῦ. Πόθεν δῆλον; Ὁ ἀγαπῶν με, φησὶ, τὰς ἐντολάς μου τηρήσει, καὶ ἐγὼ ἐρωτήσω τὸν Πατέρα μου, καὶ ἄλλον παράκλητον δώσει ὑμῖν, ἵνα μένῃ μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, τὸ Πνεῦμα τῆς ἀληθείας. Ὥσπερ οὖν ὁ Χριστὸς εἶπε περὶ ἑαυτοῦ, ὅτι Ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἕως τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος, καὶ δυνάμεθα ἀεὶ τὰ ἐπιφάνια ἐπιτελεῖν· οὕτω καὶ περὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος εἶπεν, ὅτι εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα μεθ' ὑμῶν ἐστι, καὶ δυνάμεθα ἀεὶ πεντηκοστὴν ἐπιτελεῖν.

βʹ. Καὶ ἵνα μάθητε, ὅτι ἔξεστιν ἡμῖν ἀεὶ ἑορτάζειν, καὶ οὐκ ἔστι καιρὸς

ὡρισμένος, οὐδὲ ἀνάγκῃ χρόνον συγκεκλείσμεθα, ἀκούσατε τοῦ Παύλου τί φησιν· 50.455 Ὥστε ἑορτάζωμεν. Καίτοι οὐκ ἦν τότε ἑορτὴ, ὅτε ταῦτα ἔγραφεν· οὐκ ἦν Πάσχα, οὐκ ἦν ἐπιφάνια, οὐκ ἦν πεντηκοστή· ἀλλὰ δεικνὺς, ὅτι οὐ καιρὸς ποιεῖ ἑορτὴν, ἀλλὰ συνειδὸς καθαρόν· ἑορτὴ γὰρ οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστιν, ἀλλ' ἢ εὐφροσύνη· εὐφροσύνην δὲ πνευματικὴν καὶ νοερὰν οὐδὲν ἄλλο ποιεῖ, ἀλλ' ἢ συνειδὸς πράξεων ἀγαθῶν· ὁ δὲ συνειδὸς ἔχων ἀγαθὸν καὶ πράξεις τοιαύτας, ἀεὶ ἑορτάζειν δύναται. Τοῦτο οὖν αὐτὸ δεικνὺς ὁ Παῦλος ἔλεγεν· Ὥστε ἑορτάζωμεν μὴ ἐν ζύμῃ παλαιᾷ, μηδὲ ἐν ζύμῃ κακίας καὶ πονηρίας, ἀλλ' ἐν ἀζύμοις εἰλικρινείας καὶ ἀληθείας. Ὁρᾷς πῶς οὐ καιρῶν σε κατέδησεν ἀνάγκῃ, ἀλλὰ συνειδὸς καθαρὸν ἔχειν παρεκελεύσατο; Ἐβουλόμην πᾶσαν τὴν διάλεξιν εἰς τοῦτο καταναλῶσαι· οἱ γὰρ διὰ χρόνου τινὰς λαβόντες εἰς τὰς χεῖρας τὰς ἑαυτῶν οὐκ εὐκόλως αὐτοὺς ἀφιᾶσιν· ἐπεὶ οὖν καὶ ὑμᾶς ἡμεῖς τοὺς δι' ἐνιαυτοῦ παραγινομένους εἴσω τῶν δικτύων ἐλάβομεν τῶν ἡμετέρων, οὐ βουλόμεθα ἀφεῖναι τήμερον, ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ κενοὶ τῶν περὶ τῆς ἑορτῆς ἀναχωρήσητε λόγων, ἀπὸ τῆς παραινέσεως ταύτης ἐπὶ τὴν ὑπόθεσιν τῆς ἑορτῆς ἀγαγεῖν χρὴ τὴν διάλεξιν. Πολλὰ μὲν οὖν πολλάκις ἐξ οὐρανοῦ κατῆλθεν εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀγαθὰ τῷ κοινῷ τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένει· οἷα δὲ σήμερον, οὐδέποτε κατηνέχθη πρὸ τούτου. Μάθετε γοῦν οἷα τὰ πρότερα, οἷα τὰ σήμερον, ἵνα καὶ ἑκατέρων ἴδητε τὴν διαφοράν.

Ἔβρεξεν ὁ Θεὸς μάννα ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἄρτον οὐρανοῦ ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς· ἄρτον γὰρ ἀγγέλων ἔφαγεν ἄνθρωπος· μέγα ὄντως καὶ τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίας ἄξιον. Μετ' ἐκεῖνο κατηνέχθη πῦρ, καὶ πλανώμενον τὸν Ἰουδαϊκὸν δῆμον διώρθωσε, καὶ ἥρπασε τὴν θυσίαν ἀπὸ τοῦ βωμοῦ κατηνέχθη πάλιν ὑετὸς λιμῷ τηκομένων ἁπάντων, καὶ πολλὴν τὴν εὐετηρίαν εἰργάσατο. Μεγάλα ταῦτα καὶ θαυμαστά· ἀλλὰ τὰ παρόντα πολλῷ μείζονα· οὐ γὰρ μάννα καὶ πῦρ καὶ ὑετὸς κατηνέχθη σήμερον, ἀλλ' ὄμβρος χαρισμάτων πνευματικῶν· νιφάδες ἠνέχθησαν ἄνωθεν, οὐχὶ τὴν γῆν πρὸς καρποφορίαν ἐγείρουσαι, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην πείθουσαι φύσιν τὸν καρπὸν τῆς ἀρετῆς τῷ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἀποδοῦναι γεωργῷ. Καὶ οἱ ῥανίδα ἐκεῖθεν δεξάμενοι εὐθέως τῆς φύσεως ἐπελανθάνοντο τῆς ἑαυτῶν, καὶ ἐξαίφνης ἀγγέλων ἐπληροῦτο πᾶσα ἡ γῆ· ἀγγέλων οὐχὶ ἐπουρανίων, ἀλλ' ἐν ἀνθρωπίνῳ σώματι τῶν ἀσωμάτων